Indiana University Cinema

A Conversation with Award Winning Documentarian Frederick Wiseman

Posted on April 4, 2017 by Nathaniel Sexton

Frederick Wiseman [Photo: Erik Madigan Heck]

Guest post by Nathaniel Sexton.

I recently had the opportunity of seeing Frederick Wiseman’s 1968 documentary High School for a second time, as part of IU Cinema’s ongoing Filmmaker to Filmmaker series. The last time I saw the film, over ten years ago, I was myself a student in a public high school. Indignation marked my first experience of the film–a frustration that connected with my own dissatisfaction with a public school system that, from my vantage point, appeared more interested in generating social conformity than in creating willfully curious and critical individuals. And while that critique felt just as present, and my cynicism for public education perhaps no less engaged, I found myself more interested, upon a second viewing, in Wiseman’s attention to detail in his subjects and the sense of ambiguity that arose in this attention. (more…)

Appreciating the Complexities of Life

Posted on April 3, 2017 by Katherine Johnson

Still from Philippe Falardeau’s *Monsieur Lazhar*

I can’t remember exactly when or where I first saw Monsieur Lazhar, but I know it couldn’t have been long after it was released. What I do remember, and quite vividly, is how moved I was by it. I can remember the complexity of feelings I felt for its characters: the sadness, the joy, the despair at times, and the passion and pride resulting from a powerful educational experience. The film touches on a number of sensitive issues pertinent to our situation today–particularly those regarding feelings and acts of alienation; and in my opinion, Monsieur Lazhar‘s ability to so fully express the complexity, and yet importance, of simply existing in this world is noteworthy. (more…)

Other Independent Japanese Animation

Posted on March 30, 2017 by Laura Ivins

*House of Flame* (1979, Kihachiro Kawamoto)

Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki have inspired delight in international audiences for decades. The enchanted worlds of Princess Mononoke (1997) and Spirited Away (2001) transport us to worlds of complex ethics, captivating creatures, and a beautiful animation style.

However, the overwhelming popularity of Studio Ghibli’s films can overshadow the diversity of offerings coming from Miyazaki’s peers in independent Japanese animation. Less well known, but no less talented, are independent animators Kihachiro Kawamoto and Koji Yamamura, who both create short films in one-man operations or using small teams in an artisanal approach to animation. (more…)

ILFF 2017: Migrants R Us

Posted on March 29, 2017 by Establishing Shot

Guest post by Alexandra Coțofană, Director, ILFF.

In 2017, the InLight Human Rights Documentary Film Festival (ILFF) is honored to partner with the IU Cinema, one of its most trusted partners every year. ILFF aims to promote and support the intersections of human rights and documentary film and to facilitate dialogue between those who make documentaries and our Bloomington community. ILFF was started by a group of graduate students interested in human rights and documentary film, in both theoretical and practical ways. ILFF was thus shaped by students for students and has two main pillars: 1) new and powerful documentaries; 2) academic events, meant to engage the undergraduate, graduate and faculty members at Indiana University Bloomington with professionals and scholars in the field of human rights documentary filmmaking. (more…)

Cape Fear and Parody

Posted on March 28, 2017 by Jesse Pasternack

Still image from Martin Scorsese’s *Cape Fear*

Cape Fear is notable for many different reasons. It was Martin Scorsese’s first remake. It is one of Scorsese’s most financially successful films, which arguably paved the way for him to make higher budget movies such as Casino and The Aviator. This movie received nominations for two Academy Awards® – Best Actor (Robert De Niro as Max Cady) and Best Supporting Actress (Juliette Lewis as Danielle Bowden). But it also has a sizeable and surprising afterlife as the object of parody. (more…)

Ripley Saves the Day… Although She Doesn’t Flaunt It

Posted on March 27, 2017 by Katherine Johnson

Still image from Ridley Scott's Alien — Still image from Ridley Scott’s Alien

*SPOILER ALERT*

*If you have never seen Ridley Scott’s 1979 film Alien, beware of spoilers ahead.*

Many science fiction films or television shows push the frontier logic—so many are, after all, about “space, the final frontier” and man’s ability to conquer it, or be conquered by it. Although space is often, in these cases, where we place our hope in that mythological “progress,” sometimes we use stories like these to ponder the price of this so-called “progress.” Growing up, I knew one science fiction film that made me truly afraid of what could be “out there.” It was Scott’s Alien. (more…)