March 21 - March 30, 2023 Kelly Reichardt: An American Cinematheque Retrospective Series | OLD JOY, RIVER OF GRASS, WENDY AND LUCY, NIGHT MOVES, SHOWING UP, WE ARE THE BEST!, MEEK’S CUTOFF, CERTAIN WOMEN and FIRST COW
ABOUT THE SERIES: The American Cinematheque is proud to host acclaimed filmmaker Kelly Reichardt for a career retrospective including in-person introductions and Q&As for the celebrated films OLD JOY, RIVER OF GRASS, WENDY AND LUCY, NIGHT MOVES, and the 2022 Palm D’Or nominee SHOWING UP. Kelly Reichardt grew up in Miami-Dade County, Florida, where she first began experimenting with cameras borrowed from her police officer father’s crime scenes. Her debut feature, RIVER OF GRASS (1994), marked Reichardt’s entry into the American Independent scene with its realist depiction of a working-class couple struggling to escape the environment Reichardt herself was raised in. Although the film was awarded the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance and nominated for three Independent Spirit Awards, Reichardt has been candid about the difficulty of sourcing funding and support for female-led independent features throughout her career, and attributes the break between her first feature and 2006’s OLD JOY to these challenges. Today, Kelly Reichardt is one of the most well-regarded American independent filmmakers and a darling of the international festival circuit, undoubtedly due in part to her commitment to film authorship, often writing and editing in addition to directing her films herself. Her minimalist, Americana-infused style has been put to great effect in new arthouse classics such as MEEK’S CUTOFF (2010) and CERTAIN WOMEN (2016), which allegorize topics such as U.S. foreign policy and women’s rights through highly personal narratives surrounding intimate communities of characters. Critics have attempted to label Reichardt’s filmography time and time again, identifying her with the Slow Cinema and Feminist movements, as well as what critic A.O. Scott refers to as “neo-neorealism.” For Kelly Reichardt, however, her stories are “just glimpses of people passing through.” Kelly Reichardt’s newest film, SHOWING UP, stars long-time collaborator Michele Williams as an artist on the verge of a life-changing exhibition. Juggling work, family, and the philosophical implications of her craft, Reichardt takes us inside the mind of protagonist Lizzy as she turns to the chaos of daily life for unexpected inspiration.