Three films featuring the work of boundary-pushing artists will screen at ACMI cinemas across September and October, with exclusive limited seasons of Heart of a Dog, from writer, director and performance artist Laurie Anderson; Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures, an intimate portrait of the provocative 20th-century photographer; and Chevalier, from one of the leading forces in Greek New Wave cinema, Athina Rachel Tsangari.
Following screenings at the Sundance and Berlin Film Festivals, Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures starts 22 September at ACMI cinemas. Exploring one of the most complex and provocative figures in 20th-century photography, co-directors Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato use their unrestricted access to Robert Mapplethorpe’s archives to create the first feature-length documentary since the artist’s death in 1989.
Active in New York City’s hedonistic art scene from the late ’60s through to the ’80s, Mapplethorpe achieved notoriety for photos depicting sex, gay sadomasochism and nudity. American Senator Jesse Helms famously condemned his work with four words: “Look at the pictures.”
While Mapplethorpe’s work still remains contentious to this day, he is credited with transforming photography into a fine art form.
A candid examination of an artist who didn’t distinguish between the personal and the professional, the film features interviews with Mapplethorpe’s former lovers, family members, and collaborators. Interviewees include Debbie Harry, Fran Leibowitz and Brooke Shields and the artist’s youngest brother, Edward Mapplethorpe, who worked as his assistant.
One of the most distinctive voices in the Greek New Wave, Athina Rachel Tsangari (Attenberg) brings her latest film Chevalier to ACMI cinemas from 6 October. Taking out Best Film at the 2015 London Film Festival, Tsangari’s newest work is set on a luxury yacht in the Aegean Sea where six men, all friends, embark on a competition to be crowned the ‘Best at Everything’.
Chevalier sees Tsangari shift her focus from female protagonists to create a clever critique on masculinity and human weakness. As the men score each other on their physical appearances, culinary knowledge and their jet skiing and dancing prowess, it doesn’t take long before the alpha and beta personalities are revealed and the game of one-upmanship rapidly escalates.
Receiving kudos for her work in contemporary Greek cinema, Tsangari collaborated closely with director Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster) to produce the films Dogtooth and Alps. The two filmmakers also share common creative ground with screenwriter Efthimis Filippou (The Lobster), who transforms the straightforward premise of Chevalier into a highly-amusing tale of morality, class and masculinity.
Also, from 20 October ACMI cinemas and MPavilion co-present Heart of a Dog, featuring musician and performance artist Laurie Anderson ruminating on love, loss and her beloved dog, Lolabelle, who passed away in 2011. Anchoring the film through the death of her rat terrier, Anderson creates a unique, dream-like essay stitched together by stories from a variety of sources, from her childhood to Buddhist teachings about the afterlife, to thoughtful reflections on data collection.
Featuring artwork created by Anderson, such as violin compositions, hand-drawn animation and 8mm home movies, Heart of a Dog sees the artist delve into her own life and creativity to explore the nature of storytelling and how it helps to give people’s lives meaning.
Paying tribute to a wide range of artistic influences, Anderson incorporates contributions from her late friend and sculptor Gordon Matta-Clark, author David Foster Wallace, and her late husband Lou Reed, whose music concludes the film.
Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures
When: Season starts Thursday 22 September
Where: ACMI cinemas, Federation Square
(acmi.net.au/mapplethorpe-look-at-the-pictures)
Chevalier
When: Season starts Thursday 6 October
Where: ACMI Cinemas, Federation Square
(acmi.net.au/chevalier)
Heart of a Dog
When: Season starts Thursday 20 October
Where: ACMI Cinemas, Federation Square
(acmi.net.au/heart-of-a-dog)