Annette Insdorf ‘s career has made her one of the top New York film educators, known both here and internationally for her work in deciphering and presenting the best of world cinema to both schools and to the general public in New York.
On November 19th, Insdorf screens The Humbling (directed by Barry Levinson) at the 92nd Street Y and holds a post-screening talk with Al Pacino.
Insdorf is a writer (top tomes on Francois Truffaut, Philip Kaufman and Krzysztof Kieslowski), teacher (she directs Columbia’s undergrad film studies program and is a prof in the graduate cinema school), and regular film festival jury member. She’s also developed a popular series “Reel Pieces”, held at the 92nd Street Y, with actors and directors from current films.
Most of those things cost money. But you can catch her for free in three separate presentations when she delivers the Leonard Hastings Schoff lectures, an annual series of talks at Columbia University.
The series, “Coherence And Resonance: How To Read Film Openings”, builds around an interesting idea I had never thought of – a film works, if it works well, by setting up and pulling off its opening sequences. During the series of three talks, she will show how the introduction anchors the viewer’s experience of the film.
Here’s the schedule of talks, each of which is held at Columbia’s Faculty House at 64 Morningside Heights.
OPENING-AS-PROLOGUE, Monday, November 10, 2014, 8pm (including clips from All the President’s Men, Apocalypse Now, Taxi Driver, Cabaret, Schindler’s List)
OPENING-AS-MISDIRECTION, Monday, November 17, 2014, 8pm (including clips from Touch of Evil, The Conversation, Rising Sun, Sunset Boulevard, American Beauty, Fight Club)
OPENING-AS-ACTION Monday, November 24, 2014, 8pm (including clips from The Graduate, The Player, Three Colors: Red, Aguirre, Hiroshima Mon Amour)
