The Real Indies: A Close Look at Orphan Films

Spider Baby
Friday, October 31 | 7:30 p.m.
 

Co-presented with New York University and the Orphan Film Symposium
 

New York Restoration Premiere, introduced by Jack Hill and hosted by indie-horror filmmaker William Lustig.

Filmed in 1964 but not released theatrically until 1968, this cult classic marked the solo directorial debut of writer-director Jack Hill. Cheekily subtitled “The Maddest Story Ever Told,” it follows three orphaned siblings suffering from a rare genetic disorder that causes them to regress, the narrator warns us, “to a pre-human condition of savagery and cannibalism.”  (80 mins., restored by the Academy Film Archive, 35mm).

Before the screening, a trailer reel from the Packard Humanities Institute Collection will highlight several of  Hill’s films, including Blood Bath (1966), House of Evil (1968), Pit Stop (1969), The Big Doll House (1971), Coffy (1973) and Switchblade Sisters (1975).

Celebrated indie filmmaker Jack Hill will participate in an onstage discussion with William Lustig following the program.

Watch the trailer for Spider Baby  here.