The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures‘ inaugural in-person schedule for its first three months will begin on its Sept. 30 opening day with two special presentations of the 1939 classic “The Wizard of Oz.” Those will feature live musical accompaniment by the American Youth Symphony conducted by composer David Newman, the museum said Wednesday.
The museum will offer more than 115 film screenings, discussions and programs. According to a museum statement other highlights include the launch of these ongoing series:
- Stories of Cinema: featuring screenings of films highlighted in the museum’s core exhibition, including Real Women Have Curves (USA, 2002) and The Way of the Dragon (Hong Kong, 1972).
- Oscar® Sundays: held every Sunday evening in the David Geffen Theater, this series celebrates films that have been honored at the Academy Awards®. For the series’ first iteration, we are celebrating the work of women directors, including Harlan County, U.S.A. (USA, 1976) and Seven Beauties (Italy, 1975).
- Family Matinees: held every Saturday for families of all ages, screenings will include Moana (USA, 2016), The Book of Life (USA, 2014), and Labyrinth (UK/USA, 1986).
- Legacy: launching with a discussion between Laura Dern and her parents Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd.
- In Conversation: launching with a discussion of how to contextualize cinema, featuring producers Effie T. Brown and Heather Rae.
Special series and standalone screenings for the opening months include:
- Malcolm X in 70mm: a screening for Academy Museum Members of the seminal film, with special guests Spike Lee and Denzel Washington.
- Oscar® Frights: featuring screenings of Oscar®-winning and nominated horror films, including Get Out (USA, 2017) and Psycho (USA, 1960).
- Hayao Miyazaki: in conjunction with the Academy Museum’s landmark exhibition on Hayao Miyazaki, the Academy Museum will screen the filmmaker’s complete body of work as a feature director, including My Neighbor Totoro (Japan, 1988) and Spirited Away (Japan, 2001).
- Imperfect Journey: Haile Gerima and His Comrades: following honoring Haile Gerima at the Academy Museum Opening Gala, the museum is thrilled to present this series focused on Haile Gerima’s work as a director and the work of some of his mentees and comrades, including Malik Sayeed, Bradford Young, and Arthur Jafa. Opening night hosted by Ava DuVernay.
- Sound Off: A Celebration of Women Composers: in honor of the Academy Museum’s gallery created with composer Hildur Guðnadóttir, Sound Off will feature screenings of films scored by women composers, including Joker (USA, 2019), scored by Guðnadóttir and Tron (USA, 1982), scored by Wendy Carlos.
- Retrospectives of films by Jane Campion and Satyajit Ray, the latter of which draws from the Academy Film Archive’s rich holdings of Ray’s films.
- Beyond the Icon: Anna May Wong: which celebrates the early film star’s work and legacy and includes screenings of Piccadilly (UK, 1929) and Shanghai Express (USA, 1932).
- Special screenings, including the 20th anniversary of Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner (Canada, 2001).
The museum’s ongoing virtual programs include a conversation with writer-director Spike Lee and writer-director-producer Shaka King, and a 20th Anniversary screening of “Y tu mamá también“(Mexico, 2001)with a conversation between cinematographer Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki and writer-director Alfonso Cuarón.
See the complete inaugural calendar here.
