The Real Indies: A Close Look at Orphan Films

Visions of New York
Saturday, November 1 | 6:00 p.m.

CO-Presented with New York University and the Orphan Film Symposium

Special guests include Commissioner of the New York City Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment Cynthia Lopez, filmmakers Bill Morrison, Jimmy Picker, Luis Vale, Steven Siegel, and Phil Buehler; scholars Dan Streible (NYU/Academy Film Scholar), Brian Meacham (Yale University Film Study Center),and Lauren Tilton (Yale University); curators/programmers Ron Magliozzi (MoMA), Bruce Goldstein (Film Forum), Elena Rossi-Snook (New York Public Library), Jeffery Masino (Academy Film Archive), and Roger Mancusi (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences/NYU)

Few cities photograph as beautifully as the Big Apple. The Real Indies’ evening program takes a look at how New York City has been captured through the years by showcasing lost newsreel footage, short documentaries, promotional material, animated shorts and underappreciated treasures. Placed side by side, these short pieces offer a look at the dynamic settings and situations New York City has been host to during the 20th century, including the rooftops, subways and skyscrapers that make up the cityscape. Within the program, all five boroughs, countless landmarks and people of all walks of life are represented in this widespread look at what gives New York City its well-known reputation.

Section 1

• I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here

  (Chris Columbus, 1980, 4 mins. clip, digital) – Chris Columbus's NYU student film follows a naïve freshman from the Midwest as he becomes acclimated to his first year at NYU. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive.
   

• NYC Street Scenes and Noises

  (Fox Movietone News, 1929, 8 mins, digital) – This unedited newsreel footage from the early sound-film era takes on an uncanny time-machine quality, as we hear and see Times Square and downtown's "Radio Row" as studied by the city's Noise Abatement Commission.
  Presenter: Dan Streible (NYU/Academy Film Scholar).
   

• New York as Seen in the Yukon

  – Filmmaker and media archaeologist Bill Morrison unveils silent film fragments unseen since buried in the permafrost of Dawson City, Canada. Clips from "Universal Current Events" (October 1917), "Universal Animated Weekly: World Series Baseball Special" (1917), "British Canadian Pathé News 76" (1920) and "British Canadian Pathé News 14A" (1920) all feature different glimpses of New York life, from the New York Giants in the 1917 World Series to the 1920 bombing of Wall St. Footage from the Dawson City Museum and Historical Society Collection at the Library and Archives Canada.
  Presenter: Bill Morrison.
   

• Actors' Fund Field Day, at the Polo Grounds, New York City, August 19, 1910

  (Vitagraph, 1910, 4 mins., digital) – A wide range of celebrities participate in a fundraising benefit for the Actors' Fund, including Annie Oakley, George M. Cohan, James J. Corbett, Marie Dressler, Lew Fields, Eddie Foy and, in a rare screen moment, famed vaudevillian Bert Williams.
  Presenter: Ron Magliozzi (Museum of Modern Art).
   

• Magic Carpet of Movietone Presents 'Broadway by Day'

  (1932, 7 mins, 16mm print courtesy of Richard Scheckman) – A compilation of street scenes up and down Broadway in 1930s Manhattan. Part of Fox Film Corp.'s short-lived Magic Carpet of Movietone series, it traces the famed street, as Variety put it, "from its source in the country right down to the Battery…an excellent glimpse of the big lane."
  Presenter: Bruce Goldstein (Film Forum).
   

• Peter Stone and Ed Koch Introduce 'The Taking of Pelham One Two Three' at Film Forum

  (1974, 8 mins., digital clip provided by Film Forum) – Academy Award winner Peter Stone, screenwriter of the 1974 thriller, and Ed Koch introduce a screening, part of Film Forum's "NYC Noir" festival.
  Presenter: Bruce Goldstein (Film Forum).
   

• The Making of Pelham One Two Three

  (1974, 6 mins, 16mm, from the Packard Humanities Institute Collection at the Academy Film Archive) – A behind-the-scenes look at the making of the original Taking of movie from the perspective of Carmine Foresta, a real New York City Transit Authority cop who went from policing the location shooting to acting in a bit part.
   

• 3rd Ave. El

  (Carson Davidson, 1955, 11 mins., 16mm) – Preserved by the Academy Film Archive, an Oscar-nominated, impressionistic portrait of the Third Avenue Elevated railway. Loosely tells the story of a day in the life of the railway, to the energetic strains of a Haydn harpsichord concerto.
  Presenter: Brian Meacham (Yale University Film Study Center).
   

• Youth Film Distribution Center introduction:

  Founded in 1969, the YFDC was established "to promulgate the [then] novel concept of 'teenagers-as-filmmakers'" and served as a distribution agent for the many New York City-based youth filmmaking workshops that were springing up throughout the decade. The Real Indies showcases three highlights of the collection, now housed at the New York Public Library.
  Presenter: Elena Rossi-Snook (New York Public Library Reserve Film & Video Collection, Library for the Performing Arts).
   

• Black Faces

  (1970, 1 min., 16mm, provided by the New York Public Library) – Produced by the Sound Group Project of the Studio Museum in Harlem and distributed by Youth Film Distribution Center, this film is a montage of faces from the Harlem community. All of the faces, young or old, pretty or ugly, carry dignity and aspects of beauty. Preserved by the Reserve Film & Video Collection of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, with funding from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
  Presenter: Lauren Tilton (Yale University).
   

• Life in New York

  (Alfonso Pagan-Cruz, age 17, and Luis Vale, age 18, 1969, 6 mins., 16mm, provided by the New York Public Library) – In this fast-paced piece, the poverty of the Lower East Side is juxtaposed with the luxurious lifestyle found on Park Ave. An exhortation to the Puerto Rican community to improve their condition, the film eloquently sums up the filmmakers' anger and frustration at slum conditions and their determination to improve their neighborhood. Preserved by the Reserve Film & Video Collection of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, with funding from the National Film Preservation Foundation.
  Presenter: Filmmaker Luis Vale.
   

• Coney Island

  (Steven Siegal and Phil Buehler, 1973, 8 mins., 16mm, provided by the New York Public Library) – This ode to Coney Island's appeal and history as an urban summer refuge begins onboard a crowded F subway train. The fishing pier, the beach and Astroland arcade and amusement park rides, including the famous Cyclone rollercoaster, are explored to the accompaniment of a lively jazz soundtrack. Preserved by the Reserve Film & Video Collection of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, with funding from the New York State Library, Division of Library Development.
  Presenters: Filmmakers Steven Siegel and Phil Buehler.

Section 2

• Brooklyn, U.S.A.

  (Arthur Cohen, 1947, 10 mins., 35mm, preserved by the Academy Film Archive) – A look at the wonderful borough of Brooklyn and the many historical people and places that can be found there. Includes a great voiceover in "Brooklynese." Academy Award nominee for Short Subject (One-reel).
  Presenter: Brian Meacham (Yale University).
   

• The Proud New Yorkers

  (1971, 21 mins., 35mm, produced by Peckham Productions and Con Edison, preserved by the Academy Film Archive) – A tribute to the many New Yorkers trying to improve life in the Big Apple, dedicated to the individuals, corporations and foundations who were making New York a better place to live.
  Presenter: Jeffery Masino (Academy Film Archive).
   

• Reflections

  (Noel Black, 1967, 15 mins., 35mm, preserved by the Academy Film Archive) – In honor of the late director Noel Black, we present his story of a forbidden friendship between a young Chinese-American boy and a Latina girl. Together they explore landmarks like the Empire State Building and take trips to Brooklyn and the Lower East Side. Originally produced as the "Urban" section of the three-part ABC television special "The American Boy."
  Presenter: Roger Mancusi (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences/NYU)
   

• Sundae in New York

  (Jimmy Picker, 1983, 4 mins., 35 mm, preserved by the Academy Film Archive) – In this claymation winner for Animated Short Film, an exuberant politician who closely resembles then-mayor Ed Koch warbles new lyrics set to the tune "New York, New York" in a variety of well-known locations, amidst a bevy of celebrities associated with the city.
  Presenter: Filmmaker Jimmy Picker.