UCLA Film & Television Archive Welcomes 2025 With Free Winter Cinema

The UCLA Film & Television Archive, which marks its 60th anniversary in 2025, welcomes the new year with a winter lineup of public programs inviting audiences to connect with the past and celebrate the art of storytelling. This season offers engaging experiences for all, with rarely screened classic gems and retrospectives to family flicks, international cinema, TV treasures, iconic animation, film heritage tributes and celebrations, featuring special in-person guests and more.

“The Archive is committed to preserving and sharing the stories that shape our cultural landscape. We are excited to present this celebration of creativity and legacy, as well as feature programs allowing reflection and diverse storytelling,” said May Hong HaDuong, director of the Archive, a division of UCLA Library.

This winter calendar of events includes an evening with the beloved television character Lieutenant

Columbo, which starred Peter Falk, and several series reflecting on works from French New Wave filmmaker Luc Moullet, groundbreaking director Michelle Parkerson and trailblazer Ida Lupino. A special evening will celebrate the life of professor emeritus and former dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, Robert Rosen, who made immeasurable contributions to film preservation as the first director of the UCLA Film & Television Archive.

“Going My Own Way”: Celebrating Ivan Dixon

The season opens with “Going My Own Way”: Celebrating Ivan Dixon (1931–2008), a three-day celebration from Jan. 17 to Jan. 19 that honors the prolific actor, director and producer Ivan Dixon, who was part of a generation of Black actors advocating for more professional opportunities and nuanced roles. The series features the world premiere of the 35 mm restoration of The Spook Who Sat by the Door (U.S., 1973), Nothing but a Man (U.S, 1964) and Infiltrating Hollywood: The Rise and Fall of the Spook Who Sat by the Door (U.S, 2011). The television program includes the episode titled “Big Tall Wish” from The Twilight Zone (U.S., 4/8/1960), Frederick Douglass: Slave and Statesman (U.S., 2/16/1983) and “The Sty of the Blind Pig” from the Hollywood Television Theatre (U.S., 5/31/1974). Special in-person guests on Jan. 17 include professor Christine Acham of the University of Hawaii; Dixon’s daughter Nomathande Dixon; Robin D.G. Kelley, a UCLA distinguished professor; Natiki Hope Pressley, daughter of Sam Greenlee; and actor J.A. Preston.

 

Luc Moullet: A Retrospective

 

One of the season’s highlights is the five-night retrospective (Jan. 24 to Feb. 9.) dedicated to the key works of French film critic-turned-director Luc Moullet. Many of the films shown will be new digital restorations. Moullet, who began his career writing for Cahiers du Cinéma, gained early recognition for his insights into pulpy masters such as Samuel Fuller and Fritz Lang. Now, in his late 80s, Moullet has quietly built a career creating features, shorts and documentaries that are both humorously infectious and charmingly human.

Peter Falk as Columbo

On Jan. 25, the Archive will screen two classic episodes of the original beloved Columbo series, starring Emmy-winning actor Peter Falk. Part of the Archive Television Treasures, the event includes the superb first entry of the series Murder by the Book (U.S., 9/15/1971) directed by Steven Spielberg, rare commercials from the era and a clip of Falk’s Emmy acceptance speech from 1972.

Family Flicks

The popular matinee series Family Flicks continues from Jan. 26 to April 13, showcasing new and classic family-friendly films from around the world. Copresented with the Hammer Museum, this series aims to provide a delightful cinematic experience for families.

 

Spotlight on Ida Lupino, including the Special Screening: Restoration World Premiere of Lupino-directed Noir Television Drama!

 

Showcasing the unique career of Ida Lupino, the Spotlight on Ida Lupino weekend (Feb. 14 and 15) will celebrate her contributions as both an actor and director. Feb. 14, the program will feature rarely screened gem The Bigamist (U.S., 1953), considered the first Hollywood sound feature directed by its female star. The following day, Feb. 15, will feature the program Ida Lupino and the Small Screen, with in-person Q&A Alexandra Seros, author of “Ida Lupino, Forgotten Auteur: From Film Noir to the Director’s Chair,” moderated by Maya Montañez Smukler, Archive Research and Study Center Officer, and a screening of This is Your Life: “Ida Lupino” (U.S., 1/15/1958). It will also feature original commercials and the TV sitcom Mr. Adams and Eve: ‘Howard and Eve and Ida (U.S., 4/22/1958), which has undergone new digital preservation from original 35 mm negatives. Additionally, the screening will include the restoration world premiere of Lupino-directed noir television drama.

 

Archive Talks: No Way Out

 

Archive Talks, which pairs leading historians and scholars with screenings of the moving image media that is the focus of their writing and research, will feature a discussion on Feb. 16, accompanying the screening of the pioneering film No Way Out (U.S., 1950). The film, which was controversial upon its release for its graphic exploration of racial violence, will be introduced by UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television Associate Professor Ellen C. Scott, author of “Cinema Civil Rights” (Rutgers University Press, 2015). The in-person Q&A with Scott will provide audiences with new insights, interpretations and contexts surrounding this significant work.

 

Documenting Michelle

 

On Feb. 21 and 22, the program Documenting Michelle will showcase the remarkable five-decade career of American writer, performance artist and filmmaker Michelle Parkerson, who will sit for a Q&A on both nights of this retrospective. Her vital work, which has often gone under the radar, explores the lives of “Black women who define their own criteria for success in their particular art form,” said Ada Griffin, from her interview with Parkerson for “Artist and Influence,” Vol. 17. As part of the wave of “New Black Cinema” in the early 1980s, Parkerson is known for creating authentic, nuanced stories about Black and queer life.

 

Legacy Project Screening Series

 

From Feb. 23 to March 15, the Legacy Project Screening Series will present three programs featuring works from the Outfest UCLA Legacy Project, the largest publicly accessible collection of LGBTQ+ films in the world. The series will kick off on Feb. 23 with the Gay Girls Riding Club program, showcasing new digital restorations of four camp classics: Always on Sunday (U.S., 1962), The Roman Springs on Mrs. Stone (U.S., 1963), The Spy on the Fly (U.S., 1967) and What Really Happened to Baby Jane (U.S., 1963). On Feb. 29, the program will feature a screening of

 

Brother to Brother (U.S., 2004). March 15 brings the West Coast restoration premiere of Pink Narcissus (U.S., 1971), featuring an in-person Q&A with Michael Lumpkin, and Kelly McKaig, author of the forthcoming publication “James Bidgood: Dreamlands.”

Disclosure: A Trans Re-Reading of American Cinema

The series Disclosure: A Trans Re-Reading of American Cinema will run from March 1-30, screening seven films cited in the groundbreaking documentary Disclosure (U.S., 2020) by director Sam Feder. The story examines transgender depictions in film and television through the lens of trans thinkers and creatives, including Laverne Cox (also an executive producer), Lilly Wachowski, Yance Ford, Michaele Jaé Rodriguez, Jamie Clayton and Chaz Bono, to name a few. The series will include in-person appearances by key figures such as consultant Tre’vell Anderson, artist and filmmaker Zackary Drucker, editor Stacy Goldate, Feder, actor and creative consultant Jen Richards and producer Amy Scholder.

The Genius of Jay Ward: Rocky, Bullwinkle, Rarities and More (U.S., c. 1959–1970)

On March 8, animation enthusiasts are invited to a mega-mix tribute to the iconic producer Jay Ward. The screening will feature beloved characters such as Rocky, Bullwinkle and Super Chicken, and rare gems from the Archive. Animation historian Jerry Beck and Amber Ward, vice president of Jay Ward Productions, will introduce this special evening.

A Tribute to Bob Rosen

On March 22, the Archive will honor the late Robert “Bob” Rosen, the founding director of the UCLA Film & Television Archive and former dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. This program will reflect on Rosen’s significant impact on the film community and express gratitude for his contributions that made the impossible possible. The evening will include a screening of Kiss Me Deadly (U.S., 1955), an atomic-age noir film that continues to resonate as a cautionary tale for perilous times.

 

Food and Film

 

The season will conclude with the quarterly program from the Food and Film series, pairing cinematic experiences with culinary delights. On March 29, in partnership with legendary Bay Area chef, restaurateur and food activist Alice Waters, the Archive and the Hammer Museum copresent The Automat (U.S., 2021). This documentary, directed by Lisa Hurwitz, captures the nostalgia of the famed restaurant chain known for its unique self-service model, fostering a sense of community, optimism and egalitarianism. Both Waters and Hurwitz will be present for this special event.

Screenings held at the Billy Wilder Theater at the Hammer Museum are free through June 2025, thanks to a gift from an anonymous donor.

 

Below are summaries of each program with in-person speakers and brief film or episode synopsis notes.

Jan. 17—19

UCLA Film & Television Archive and the Hugh M. Hefner Classic American Film Program present

“Going My Own Way”: Celebrating Ivan Dixon

A prolific actor, director and producer, Ivan Dixon was part of a generation of Black actors who fought not only for more professional opportunities, but for more nuanced Black on-screen roles. The Archive’s three-day celebration of Dixon’s work includes: The Spook Who Sat by the Door (35 mm restoration world premiere), Nothing but a Man and Infiltrating Hollywood: The Rise and Fall of the Spook Who Sat by the Door. Television program: “Big Tall Wish” from The Twilight Zone, Frederick Douglass: Slave and Statesman and The Sty of the Blind Pig.

  • 17, 7:30 p.m.

In-person: Professor Christine Acham, University of Hawaii; Nomathande Dixon, daughter of Ivan Dixon; UCLA Distinguished Professor Robin D.G. Kelley; Natiki Hope Pressley, daughter of Sam Greenlee; actor J.A. Preston.

 

The Spook Who Sat by the Door (U.S., 1973)—35 mm restoration world Premiere!

Based on the explosive 1966 novel by Sam Greenlee who co-wrote the screenplay, director Ivan Dixon’s pull-no-punches adaptation follows the CIA’s first Black agent from the halls of power to the streets of Chicago where he uses the agency’s own training to foment a violent Black revolution. Ivan Dixon shot film guerilla-style deploying the action tropes of Blaxploitation to revolutionary ends. The Archive is honored to present the world premiere screening of a new 35mm restoration of this underground classic.

 

  • 18, 3 p.m.

In-person: Filmmaker Christine Acham; Nomathande Dixon, daughter of Ivan Dixon; Natiki Hope Pressley, daughter of Sam Greenlee.

 

The Spook Who Sat by the Door (U.S., 1973)—Special Reprise Screening!

 

Infiltrating Hollywood: The Rise and Fall of The Spook Who Sat by the Door

(U.S, 2011)

This fascinating documentary preserves the story of one of the most stunning acts of government interference in American film history: the suppression of The Spook Who Sat by the Door. It features candid interviews with novelist and screenplay co-writer Sam Greenlee as well as several cast members (JR Preston, David Lemieux) as well as Berlie Dixon, Ivan Dixon’s widow.

 

  • 18, 7:30 p.m.

Nothing but a Man (U.S, 1964)

When a railroad worker named Duff marries Josie, an educated preacher’s daughter, the

racial tensions of their small Alabama town tear at the threads of their new life together.

 

With an all-Black cast, including non-actors from the community, the film broke new ground for the period by showcasing the dignity and resistance of Blacks in the South in the face of systemic oppression. The film was named to the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry in 1993.

 

Preceded by

 

The Twilight Zone: “The Big Tall Wish” (U.S., 4/8/1960)

In a rare showcase for an all-Black cast in early 1960s network television, Ivan Dixon delivers a deeply poignant performance as an aging boxer with only scars to show for years of painful defeats. With his best days seemingly behind him, he’s confronted by the immeasurable power of hopes and dreams via a small child (Steven Perry) that channels giant-sized beliefs into an alternate reality.

 

  • 19, 7 p.m.

In-person: Nomathande Dixon, daughter of Ivan Dixon

Made possible by the John H. Mitchell Television Programming Endowment

 

In innumerable productions over his pioneering career, Ivan Dixon’s multifaceted talents would far exceed the fame he achieved in his starring role on the 1960s sitcom Hogan’s Heroes. During his five seasons with Hogan, Dixon purposely utilized his time on-set to learn filmmaking, observing episodes as they were directed and edited. He went on to a highly successful career as a feature film and television director, helming episodes for a diverse range of programs, including several innovative productions for public television: “Frederick Douglass: Slave and Statesman” and Hollywood Television Theatre: “The Sty of the Blind Pig.”

 

Frederick Douglass: Slave and Statesman (U.S., 2/16/1983)

Directed by Ivan Dixon, this powerful one-person show stars William Marshall (Blacula) as abolitionist and trusted Lincoln advisor Frederick Douglass. Based on Douglass’ essential writings, Sylvia Jarrico’s teleplay dramatizes the highly-influential thinker’s life from the

period surrounding his birth as an enslaved person through Reconstruction. Dixon trains his incisive video lens directly on Marshall as he addresses the audience, channeling Douglass’ profound insights on slavery, emancipation, suffrage and equal rights for all.

 

Hollywood Television Theatre: “The Sty of the Blind Pig” (U.S., 5/31/1974)

KCET’s dynamic production of Philip Hayes Dean’s critically acclaimed play examines the volatile relationship between a domineering mother (Madie Norman) and her yearning daughter (Mary Alice), torn by generational change amidst the backdrop of the burgeoning civil rights movement. Directed with escalating urgency and tension by Ivan Dixon, the incisive character drama features a harrowing, tour-de-force lead performance by Emmy, Obie, and Tony Award-winner Mary Alice (Fences).

 

Jan. 24—Feb. 9

 

Luc Moullet: A Retrospective

French film critic-turned-director Luc Moullet began his career writing for Cahiers du Cinéma where he drew early attention to pulpy masters such as Samuel Fuller, Edgar G. Ulmer and Fritz Lang. And just as Cahiers colleagues took up cameras, Moullet made his first feature in 1966 but missed the spotlight that fell on his French New Wave compatriots. Now in his late 80s, Moullet built a career quietly making features, shorts and documentaries that can be as infectiously funny and charmingly human as they have been difficult to see even in his native country. The Archive is pleased to present this five-night retrospective of Moullet’s key works, many in new digital restorations.

 

  • 24, 7:30 p.m.

Brigitte and Brigitte (Brigitte et Brigitte, France, 1966)—New digital restoration!

In keeping with les enfants terribles of the French New Wave, Luc Moullet’s debut feature centers post-war French youth culture as exemplified by a pair of university-bound young women named Brigitte whose sense of individuality is shaken after they meet and compare demographic notes. Embracing their generational similarities, they set out together to tackle the challenges of urban life from housing to study to activism to boys. Though not as stylistically innovative as other New Wave works, Brigitte and Brigitte exudes a sense of freedom with a number of cinematic rebels making cameos including Samuel Fuller, Claude Chabrol, Éric Rohmer and André Téchiné.

 

Anatomy of a Relationship (Anatomie d’un rapport, France, 1976)—New digital restoration! Luc Moullet shares directing credit with his wife and frequent collaborator, Antonietta Pizzorno, on this earnest exploration of the breakdown of a relationship that doubles as a knowing takedown of the solipsistic men who make them. Intimate in form and content, the entire piece unfolds in tight interior spaces roiled by social and cultural forces outside.

There’s no shortage of cringe moments as He (Moullet) struggles to maintain his dignity and She (Christine Hébert) lays bare her dissatisfaction and desire for change with their back and forth culminating in a meta struggle for control of the camera itself.

 

  • 26, 7 p.m.

The Smugglers (Les Contrebandières, France, 1968)—New digital restoration!

The rugged beauty of the French Alps is an intense backdrop for any story and Luc Moullet makes the most of the contrast with his shaggy satire of the action film. A customs agent runs a smuggling operation across the border of two fictional warring countries keeping a romantic partner on either side of the demarcation line to help. When the two women discover each other, they form an uneasy trio running contraband, evading the authorities, producing agitprop and negotiating modern sexual mores. Moullet throws touches of surrealism and the nonsensical into the unstable mix.

A Girl is a Gun (Une aventure de Billy le Kid, France, 1971)—New digital restoration! French New Wave icon Jean-Pierre Léaud stars in Luc Moullet’s bizarro Western as a gun- slinging outlaw who stumbles across a beautiful woman (Rachel Kesterber) with a secret while on the run from a posse across the scorching desert. Unreleased in France at the

 

time, the film played internationally in an English dubbed version that gave Léaud the deep voice of a Hollywood B-movie actor much to Moullet’s delight. Such goofy contrasts abound in a film that features both stunning landscapes and obviously fake mustaches as Moullet revels in making a Western even as he dismantles it.

 

  • 31, 7:30 p.m.

Up and Down (Parpaillon, France, 1992)—New digital restoration!

A loving, slapstick sendup of the French passion for cycling that doubles as an ode to 19th century French symbolist poet Alfred Jerry, Luc Moullet’s Up and Down (Parpaillon) may be the most French thing ever. A mountain road rally up the Parpaillon pass in the French Alps is the simple line on which Moullet hangs a series of gags broad and obscure (depending how versed you are, for example, in the inner tube vs. clincher debate) that have the cumulative effect of slow-release laughing gas.

 

Shipwrecked on Route D 17 (Les Naufragés de la D17, France, 2001)

High in the French Alps during the opening days of the Iraq War, an astronomer grows jealous of his assistant’s relationship with a shepherd, a veteran race car driver sends his new co-pilot for help after getting stranded at the side of the road, and a squad of confused French soldiers patrol the mountainside for Iraqi invaders. These are just a few of the coterie of characters who stumble across and around each other in Luc Moullet’s thin air satire of just about everything.

 

Preceded by

 

Barres (France, 1983)

Human ingenuity and perseverance are on full display in Luc Moullet’s cheeky look at the imaginative ways average Parisians have devised to get over, under and around the ticket barriers at metro stations.

 

  • 1, 7:30 p.m.

Death’s Glamour (Le Prestige de la mort, France, 2005)

After failing to raise funds for his latest film, an obscure filmmaker (Luc Moullet, as himself in an outrageous toupee and fake beard) takes solace in location scouting only to discover a corpse on the hiking trail. Quickly swapping identities with the deceased, he hopes his death will arouse interest in his work — and maybe a sale of his catalog to French television. His plan goes horribly wrong when an actually famous director dies and he’s

arrested for his own murder. A wry reworking of Cecil B. DeMille’s The Whispering Chorus (1918), Moullet’s satire of fame, ego and artistic legacy abounds with movie references and cinephilic in-jokes.

Les Sièges de l’Alcazar (France, 1989)

The legendary feud between French film journals Cahiers du Cinéma and Positif is given a loving and masterfully droll sendup — along with cinephilia itself — as only Luc Moullet

 

could. Cahiers critic Guy Moscardo (Olivier Maltinti) happily extols the virtues of his favorite theater, the Alcazar, until Jeanne (Elizabeth Moreau), a Positif critic, turns up during a Vittorio Cottafavi retrospective and he’s faced with a double bill of rivalry and potential romance. Incidents and episodes in and around the theater — uncomfortable seats, skipped reels and passionate auteurist quibbles — will bring a tear of recognition to art house denizens.

Preceded by

 

Essai d’ouverture (France, 1988)

Luc Moullet comically explodes the trivial frustration of consumer packaging into a full-tilt critique of capitalism as a man (Moullet himself) struggles to open a bottle of Coca-Cola.

  • 9, 7 p.m.

The Comedy of Work (La Comédie du travail, France, 1987)—New digital restoration!

A professional layabout who scams unemployment to fund his mountain climbing hobby has his carefully arranged leisure disrupted by an amorous employment agent who lands him a job he doesn’t want at the expense of a diligent, laid-off banker who desperately needs it. This droll take on the drudgery of work and work required to avoid it was the 50- year-old Luc Moullet’s sixth feature which didn’t stop him from winning the Jean Vigo Prize at Cannes, an award traditionally given to young directors early in their careers.

 

Preceded by

 

Le Litre de lait (France, 2006)

A neighbor’s simple walk to buy milk from a rural dairy farm triggers existential dread in Luc Moullet’s knowing deconstruction of horror genre cues and cliches.

 

Jan. 25, 7:30 p.m.

Made possible by the John H. Mitchell Television Programming Endowment

Peter Falk as Columbo

In an acclaimed career, Academy Award-nominated actor Peter Falk will be forever remembered as “Lt. Columbo,” one of the most beloved characters in the history of television. For over three decades, Falk proved indelible as the disheveled genius sleuth, with the actor seemingly indistinguishable from the iconic role for which he would win four Emmy Awards. Join us for two classic Columbo episodes from the 1970s, including the superb first entry directed by Steven Spielberg.

Columbo: “Murder by the Book” (U.S., 9/15/1971)

Cinema maestro Steven Spielberg famously began his legendary career as a wunderkind at Universal Studios — directing television programs ranging from an acclaimed segment in the Night Gallery horror pilot to this first post-pilot episode of Columbo. Spielberg delivers one of the finest (and most visually striking) installments of the entire series run, aided by a pitch-perfect performance by Jack Cassidy as a vain, smirking mystery writer who severely underestimates his perpetually unkempt adversary.

24th Annual Emmy Awards – excerpt (U.S., 5/14/1972)

Peter Falk accepts an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Series” for Columbo/“NBC Mystery Movie.”

Columbo: “Double Shock” (U.S., 3/25/1973)

As originally broadcast with NBC Mystery Movie opening, network bumpers and commercials!

Directors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Robert Butler helmed this superb Columbo entry with an unparalleled twist. Academy Award-winner Martin Landau stars in a dual role as identical twins, one possibly implicated in a horrific, cold-blooded murder.

Butler masterfully sustains suspense to the final act, delivering scene-stealing moments for Falk along the way — from Columbo guesting on a TV cooking show segment to his unraveling of a prim housekeeper (Jeanette Nolan) infuriated by his involuntary untidiness.

The Archive and Hammer Museum present

Family Flicks

The Archive and the Hammer Museum continue to team up for a free matinee screening series of new and classic family-friendly films from around the world.

 

  • 26, 11 a.m.

Over the Moon (U.S., 2020)

Celebrate the Lunar New Year with the lush animation and stunning soundtrack of Over the Moon. Fei, a young girl grieving the loss of her mother and navigating the complex emotions around her father’s impending remarriage, is determined to prove the existence of a legendary moon goddess, Chang’e. She builds a rocket ship and embarks on a journey that will take viewers on a musical expedition beyond the stars.

  • 9, 11 a.m.

Deidra & Laney Rob a Train (U.S., 2017)

A crime caper with a heartwarming spin, Deidra & Laney Rob a Train shows just how far one can go to keep a family together. With their mother in jail, sisters Deidra and Laney are left to fend for themselves. Along with their brother, Jet, the siblings plan to pay the bills and their mother’s bail by robbing trains. Along the way they learn who to trust and how to get along despite their circumstances.

 

  • March 9, 11 m.

Soul (U.S., 2020)

Jamie Foxx voices Joe, a frustrated middle school music teacher who dies on the cusp of achieving his lifelong dream of playing in a renowned jazz band. Unwilling to let go and with the help of a kindred lost spirit, Joe escapes the afterlife to reboot his plans. Despite a

 

theatrical release waylaid by the pandemic, Soul has entered the Pixar pantheon for its dazzling blend of beautiful animation, big ideas and even bigger feelings.

 

  • April 13, 11 m.

Earth (France/U.K./Germany/U.S., 2007)

From the asteroid hit that changed Earth’s angle to the sun five billion years ago to the present-day profusion of life made possible by that cosmic accident, this stirring BBC documentary blends wonder and warning about the fragile dynamics that sustain life on our planet. Earth revels in the beauty of the natural world while examining how climate change impacts species as far-flung as the Arctic polar bear, the African bush elephant and the humpback whale.

 

Feb. 14—15

Spotlight on Ida Lupino

Ida Lupino was well-known to audiences as a movie star when she took a turn behind the camera on her uncredited directorial debut Not Wanted in 1949. The decade that followed was a highly productive period for Lupino: the dismantling of the studio system opened up new opportunities for independent filmmakers and the ascendancy of television created a bridge between Hollywood stars and the innovations of the small screen. She established, with her second husband Collier Young, the production company The Filmakers, and directed, co-wrote and co-produced five features, including The Bigamist (1953), in which she co-starred, while continuing to act in other people’s films. Television provided Lupino with the chance to extend her artistic vision further, as a director, producer and performer, across genres within the new medium.

 

  • 14, 7:30 p.m.

UCLA Film & Television Archive and the Hugh M. Hefner Classic American Film Program present

The Bigamist (U.S., 1953)

Considered the first Hollywood sound feature directed by its female star herself, The Bigamist marks another entry in Ida Lupino’s string of filmmaking efforts to squarely confront pressing, taboo social topics. The feature, which comes from Lupino and her then- husband Collier Young’s production company The Filmakers, follows a traveling salesman who gets caught in his lies by an adoption agent, further entangling his ongoing romances with two women via a series of flashbacks.

  • 15, 7:30 p.m.

In-person: Q&A with Alexandra Seros, author of “Ida Lupino, Forgotten Auteur: From Film Noir to the Director’s Chair,” moderated by Maya Montañez Smukler, Archive Research and Study Center Officer.

Book signing before the screening.

 

Made possible by the John H. Mitchell Television Programming Endowment.

Ida Lupino and the Small Screen

 

In her new book, Ida Lupino, Forgotten Auteur: From Film Noir to the Director’s Chair, filmmaker and scholar Alexandra Seros reexamines Lupino’s industrious and unique career from actor to director, first in film, then in television. Join us for a trio of television programs exploring the multifaceted Lupino — including the world premiere preservation of a noir television drama directed by Lupino.

 

This is Your Life: “Ida Lupino” (U.S., 1/15/1958)—With original commercials!

In this kinescope of a live broadcast, Ida Lupino breathlessly finds herself the unwitting honoree of Ralph Edwards’ immensely popular biographical television series. Host Edwards illuminates key milestones and introduces central figures in Lupino’s life, describing the pioneer as “Hollywood’s rarest talent, a woman producer-director.” The parade of special guests includes Lupino’s husband Howard Duff, their daughter Bridget Duff, and Academy Award-winning director William Wellman.

 

Mr. Adams and Eve: “Howard and Eve and Ida” (U.S., 4/22/1958)—New digital preservation from original 35mm negatives!

Ida Lupino and Howard Duff’s satirical sitcom elevates its lampoon of the couple’s real Hollywood life to meta heights with Lupino starring in a dual role as fictional TV star Eve Adams and herself — as a director defending her artistic vision. Lupino received two consecutive Emmy nominations for her work on the innovative two-season series, which was executive produced by her ex-husband Collier Young (producer of Lupino’s directorial features Outrage and The Hitch-Hiker).

 

Special Screening: Restoration World Premiere of Lupino-directed Noir Television Drama!

 

Feb. 16, 7 p.m.

In-person: Q&A with UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television Associate Professor Ellen C. Scott, author of “Cinema Civil Rights” (Rutgers University Press, 2015).

 

Archive Talks pairs leading historians and scholars with screenings of the moving image media that is the focus of their writing and research. Each program will begin with a special talk by the invited scholar that will introduce audiences to new insights, interpretations and contexts for the films and media being screened.

 

Archive Talks: No Way Out

No Way Out (U.S., 1950)

The pioneering No Way Out was controversial upon release for its graphic exploration of racial violence and what director Joseph L. Mankiewicz described as “the absolute blood and guts of Negro hating.” In his feature debut, Sidney Poitier delivers a mature performance as a young doctor breaking down racial barriers under hostile circumstances and embodies the combination of emotional intensity and grace that would become his hallmark.

 

Preceded by

 

Daydream Therapy (U.S.,1977)

With scoring from Nina Simone (“Pirate Jenny”) and Archie Shepp (“Things Have Got to Change”),

this short film captures the fantasy life of a hotel worker whose daydreams — and quiet vengeance

— provide an escape from workplace strife. An activist-turned-filmmaker, Bernard Nicolas filmed in Burton Chace Park in Marina del Rey. He wrote, directed, produced, shot and edited Daydream Therapy for his first project as an M.F.A. student at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television.

Feb. 21—22

Documenting Michelle

Michelle Parkerson is a writer, performance artist and filmmaker with a career that spans five decades. Part of a wave of “New Black Cinema” in the early 1980s, she bucked Hollywood stereotypes to create authentic, nuanced stories about Black queer life. She cites Chantal Akerman, Maya Deren, Doris Chase, Shirley Clarke and Oscar Micheaux among her influences. The majority of her films are documentaries through which she has continuously explored her curiosity about “Black women who define their own criteria for success in their particular art form.” This two-night program showcases the remarkable work of an American filmmaker whose vital work has gone under the radar for far too long.

  • 21, 7:30 p.m.

In-person: Q&A with filmmaker Michelle Parkerson.

 

Fierceness Served! The ENIKAlley Coffeehouse (U.S., 2021)

During the mid-1980s, political activists and artists like the poet Essex Hemphill, and a young Michelle Parkerson herself, found vital refuge at the Enikalley Coffee House, a little- known Black LGBTQ performing arts space in Washington, D.C. Parkerson’s affection for Enikalley and the people she encountered there, many of whom were lost to HIV/AIDs, shines through and ultimately makes a convincing case for why this community institution should be seen as a touchstone in queer cultural history.

…But Then, She’s Betty Carter (U.S.,1980)

This serene documentary portrait of the daring and groundbreaking jazz vocalist Betty Carter, most well known for her duets with Ray Charles (“Baby It’s Cold Outside”), features extended interviews with Carter about her 30-year career, and with bandleader Lionel Hampton, an early mentor. Carter speaks with a gauzy elocution that makes you lean in — to Carter’s musical genius and her fierce dedication to personal and artistic independence.

Gotta Make This Journey: Sweet Honey in the Rock (U.S, 1983)

This public broadcasting-funded documentary about the dynamic acapella group Sweet Honey and the Rock intercuts between interviews with group members and a rousing performance at their ninth anniversary concert at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., Parkerson’s hometown. Angela Davis, Alice Walker and Holly Near provide commentary on

 

Sweet Honey’s deep resonance around the world and the footage of the audience speaks

volumes about the power of song in the face of injustice.

 

  • 22, 7:30 pm

In-person: Q&A with filmmaker Michelle Parkerson.

 

Odds and Ends (U.S./Distant Universe, 1993)

Filmmaker Michelle Parkerson temporarily leaves her East Coast base for Los Angeles to make this narrative short during her participation in the American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women. In this near future drama set in a distant universe in the year 2096, Lieutenant Loz Wayard (Latanya West) falls in love with Sephra (Cynthia L. James) and learns what it means to sacrifice for the struggle as Black women warriors wage war against racial and gender annihilation.

Stormé: The Lady of the Jewel Box (U.S.,1987)

One of Parkerson’s earliest films tells the story of Stormé DeLarverie, who toured the Black theater circuit during the 1950s and 60s with the historic Jewel Box Revue, America’s first integrated female impersonation show. Once the Revue’s sole “male impersonator,” DeLarverie bucked rigid gender roles on and off stage.

A Litany For Survival: The Life and Work of Audre Lorde (U.S.,1995)

On a half-a-million-dollar budget raised from grants, sponsors and individual donors, Ada Gay Griffin and Michelle Parkerson deliver a tender, in-depth documentary of the life of the influential Black lesbian poet, mother, teacher and activist Audre Lorde. It took nine years to complete the film, and Lorde passed away three years before its official release. Includes vérité and archival footage as well as excerpts of Lorde reading from her memoir Zami.

Feb. 23—March 15

UCLA Film & Television Archive and The Andrew J. Kuehn Jr. Foundation present

Legacy Project Screening Series

The Legacy Project is the largest publicly accessible collection of LGBTQ+ films in the world. This screening series showcases works from that collection.

 

  • 23, 7 p.m.

Gay Girls Riding Club

Formed in Los Angeles in the early 1960s by cinematographer Ray Harrison and a group of his queer friends, the Gay Girls Riding Club (GGRC) became an underground sensation in the pre-Stonewall Southern California gay rights movement. Alongside the many elaborate social events produced by the group, they also produced a series of elaborate and campy short film satires of popular movies. Screened at gay bars and private events, GGRC films paired underground, guerilla-style filmmaking with outrageously irreverent spectacle. Their subversive take on such Hollywood classics were important mid-century representations of cis-gendered drag culture. The Archive is pleased to present the Club’s first four camp classics presented in new digital restorations.

 

Always on Sunday (U.S., 1962)

Always on Sunday abandons scene-for-scene recreations of the Jules Dassin international hit Never on Sunday (1960), and plays like a much shorter gender-bending comedy sketch with only a light contextual nod to the original classic.

 

The Roman Springs on Mrs. Stone (U.S., 1963)

A Broadway actress past her prime worries away her lonely days in a Hollywood Hills villa until an ad for a gigolo service brings the handsome young Paolo into her life. Confident in her newfound happiness she throws a party for her new beau where everything takes a comically dark turn. A broad sendup of The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961), a big- screen adaptation of a Tennessee Williams’ novel, it also reveals the Club’s surreal side.

 

The Spy on the Fly (U.S., 1967)

In this James Bond spoof like no other, swinging Secret Agent 0069 must keep secret plans for a new atomic bomb from falling into enemy hands. Donning drag, he sets out on a road trip that includes stops at a few Los Angeles night spots and culminates at San Francisco’s then drag mecca, Finocchio’s Club. Vintage location shooting shows off GGRC’s dedication to production value even with their tongues firmly planted in their cheeks.

 

What Really Happened to Baby Jane (U.S., 1963)

GGRC pulled out all the stops for their hilarious homage to Robert Aldrich’s grand guignol of fame, family, resentment and revenge. Featuring an almost all-drag cast, What Really Happened to Baby Jane rivals its inspiration for sheer over-the-top pathos even as it enshrines the infamous original as a key queer camp text. Again, the camera work, editing and score all make clear that GGRC were no amateurs.

 

  • 29, 7:30 p.m.

Brother to Brother (U.S., 2004), from the Archive Treasures

Rodney Evans’ moving feature debut stands firmly on the shoulders of the 1990s Queer New Wave, portraying its Black queer characters with depth and unflinching authenticity. The film helped launch the career of Anthony Mackie who plays Perry Williams, a Black art student navigating success in a white-dominated sphere, homophobic classmates and fetishization by his white lover. More than 30 years after its release, Brother to Brother easily stands up as a classic in modern American independent cinema.

Preceded by

 

Portal (U.S., 2022)

Rodney Evans’ latest film Portal is a visual essay that documents how Evans and his friend Homay King navigate the new life thrust upon them by the Covid-19 pandemic, dwelling on human connection over isolation. With poetry and prose written by Evans and King, as well as intimate audio recordings, the film invites viewers to collectively process their own pandemic stories alongside and through the portal that is Portal.

 

  • March 15, 7:30 m.

In-person: Q&A with Michael Lumpkin and Kelly McKaig, author of the forthcoming publication “James Bidgood: Dreamlands.”

Pink Narcissus (U.S., 1971)—West Coast Restoration Premiere

In 1963, physique photographer James Bidgood began working on his lavish homoerotic film fantasy, Pink Narcissus. Over six years, he shot the film using 8mm and 16mm stock on lavish sets built in the confines of his cramped Manhattan apartment. Frustrated with the painstakingly slow pace of production, the film’s backers dropped Bidgood from the project, and in 1971 Pink Narcissus was released in theaters with Bidgood’s credits listed as “Anonymous.” Nearly 30 years later, Bidgood would reclaim his role in creating this queer cinema classic. Now, over 60 years after Bidgood began crafting his sumptuous opus, the Archive presents its 4K restoration in this West Coast restoration premiere.

 

March 1—30

Disclosure: A Trans Re-Reading of American Cinema

The groundbreaking documentary Disclosure from director Sam Feder examines transgender depictions in film and television through the lens of trans thinkers and creatives, including Laverne Cox (also an executive producer), Lilly Wachowski, Yance Ford, Michaela Jae Rodriguez, Jamie Clayton and Chaz Bono, to name a few. This series selects seven out of the hundreds of films the documentary cites and screens them in their entirety along with six short films with trans characters at the center of the stories. One cannot erase nor ignore the history of misrepresentation of trans people throughout film history, but it is possible to look back and re-read these images with intention. This program is an invitation to engage with that possibility.

 

  • March 1, 7:30 m.

In-person: creative consultant Tre’vell Anderson; editor Stacy Goldate; actor and creative consultant Jen Richards.

 

Disclosure (U.S., 2020)

An essay of visual cultural criticism, Sam Feder’s documentary uses film and television clips to tackle common misrepresentations of trans people, while deploying the personal stories of its interviewees (actors, writers, directors, advocates) to narrate how those

misrepresentations have manifested in their lives. Often the film’s narrators enact “counter- readings” of the representations that touched them, making space to relate to complex characters.

  • March 7, 7:30 m.

Drunktown’s Finest (U.S., 2014)

Writer-director Sydney Freeland’s hometown of Gallup, New Mexico, once described as “Drunktown, USA” in the headlines, inspired the name of her immersive debut feature. The film braids together the stories of three Navajo main characters: a young man struggling to stay out of jail, a college student adopted by white parents searching for roots and a trans woman dreaming of becoming a model.

 

Victor/Victoria (U.K./U.S., 1982)

In this celebrated backstage musical set in 1934 Paris, Victoria (Julie Andrews), a down-on- her-luck soprano forges a bond with Toddy (Robert Preston), a seasoned performer whose star is fading. Together they hatch a gender-bending plan to get back into the limelight.

Writer-director Blake Edwards’ adaptation comes out of a longstanding trope in American cinema of making gender play palatable through comedic farce. Filmmaker and artist Zackary Drucker nods toward Victor/Victoria as an example of Hollywood’s inching toward more nuanced gender expression portrayals in her Disclosure interview.

  • March 9, 7:30 m.

In-person: artist and filmmaker Zackary Drucker

 

The Queen

Queens at Heart (U.S., 1967)

This short pseudo-documentary offers a rare look at trans life and drag ball culture in mid- 1960s New York. LGBTQ historian and archivist Jenni Olson found the long-lost film in the mid-1990s and UCLA Film & Television Archive restored the archival treasure in 2009.

Alongside the stomach-turning, inappropriate line of questions asked to four elegant and discrete trans women Misty, Vicky, Sonja and Simone, are joyful images of mid-century drag balls with gay men, including men of color, dancing and presenting themselves with pride, elegance and delight.

The Queen (U.S., 1968)

An American documentary classic, The Queen offers a precious window into the world of queer and trans life in New York City in the 1960s. Narrator Flawless Sabrina (Jack Doroshow) nurtures and directs a diverse group of young drag queens from all over America, as they converge on New York City to participate in the 1967 Miss All America Camp Beauty Queen contest she founded

At Least You Know You Exist (U.S., 2012)

Zackary Drucker pens a visual love letter to her friend and mentor in the last decade of her life, the iconic drag performer Flawless Sabrina. Drucker shoots in Flawless Sabrina’s cavernous 73rd Street apartment in Manhattan and introduces us to the interior life of her larger-than-life friend who starred in The Queen in 1968.

  • March 14, 7:30 m.

Behind Every Good Man (U.S., 1967)

In strong contrast to the largely negative depictions of transgender people on film at the time, Nikolai Ursin’s black and white short provides an illuminating glimpse into the life of an unnamed Black trans woman. Ursin artfully blurs elements of cinéma vérité documentary and subtle dramatization to bring his lead’s deeply personal aspirations and meditations on love and acceptance to light.

 

How Not to Date While Trans (U.S., 2022)

 

Filmmaker Nyala Moon delves into the issue of trans identity disclosure through a darkly

comedic chronicling of recent first dates with “problematic” men. By routinely breaking the fourth wall, Moon, who stars as Andi, playfully reclaims her right to self-definition, autonomy and privacy.

Gun Hill Road (U.S., 2011)

Harmony Santana, an early example of a trans actor playing a trans character, shines as Vanessa in this family drama about a Puerto Rican trans teenager in New York City navigating her hormonal changes as a girl who must hide who she is from her transphobic father (Esai Morales). In his feature debut, filmmaker Rashad Ernesto Green (Premature) features a strong ensemble cast of Morales, Judy Reyes and Santana who imbue this story with vibrance, tenderness and pathos.

  • March 16, 7:30 m.

In-person: Tre’vell Anderson, author of “We See Each Other: A Black Trans Journey Through TV and Film.”

 

Mary of III Fame (U.S., 2020)

A newspaper clipping from the 1830s about a trans woman named Mary Jones who was arrested for stealing a man’s wallet inspires this film set in Seneca Village, an autonomous settlement of free Blacks and Irish immigrants located on what is known today as Central Park. Here, writer-director Tourmaline answers the call of “critical fabulation” theorized by the influential historian Saidiya Hartman, inventing a narrative that doesn’t exist in the historical archive for Jones.

 

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (U.S.,1997)

Chablis Deveau enters Clint Eastwood’s adaptation of John Berendt’s novel as a potential source for a magazine writer from New York City who comes to the aid of an antiques dealer when he is accused of murder. It’s a rare on-screen portrayal of a Black trans woman in the 1990s that “evades the life-ending trauma and violence that often comes to Black trans folks in popular culture,” writes cultural critic Tre’vell Anderson.

 

  • March 30, 7 m.

In-person: Director Sam Feder (Disclosure), producer Amy Scholder (Disclosure).

 

Wouldn’t Make It Any Other Way (U.S., 2024)

An opportunity to costume design on their home island of Guam for an elementary school play forces Marc to choose between his present and his past. Director, cinematographer and editor Hao Zhou propels the film forward with a steady rhythm of quick cuts that create an upbeat, snappy tone and leave little room to fall into the kind of longing and ennui we are primed to expect from a queer subject wrestling with identity and familial belonging.

 

Yentl (U.S., 1983)

 

Yentl (Barbra Streisand), an only daughter of a rabbi in a small Ashkenazi Jewish village in 1904 Poland, yearns to enter yeshiva and complete religious studies. In Disclosure, Laverne Cox cites Yentl as a film that resonated with her trans identity.

 

March 8, 7:30 p.m.

In-person: Introduction by animation historian Jerry Beck, Amber Ward, Vice President of Jay Ward Productions.

 

Made possible by the John H. Mitchell Television Programming Endowment

The Genius of Jay Ward: Rocky, Bullwinkle, Rarities and More (U.S., c. 1959–1970)

Throughout the 1960s, the credit “A Jay Ward Production” on an animated television program signaled intelligent, irreverent humor delivered by unforgettable characters. Producer Ward’s iconic creations equally lampooned all conventions, thumbing their noses at the establishment along the way. Join us for a mega-mix tribute to pioneer Jay Ward featuring Rocky, Bullwinkle, Super Chicken and much more — including rarities from the Archive! Introduced by animation historian Jerry Beck and Amber Ward of Jay Ward Productions.

 

March 22, 7:30 p.m.

A Tribute to Bob Rosen

Robert “Bob” Rosen, founding director of the UCLA Film & Television Archive and former dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, passed away in late 2024. A titan of the film community, Bob was an archivist, scholar, educator and critic. Bob elevated the field of archiving by championing, training and advocating for the preservation of moving image media in all forms, from classic Hollywood to independent productions. Among his many leadership roles, he served on the National Film Preservation Board for over two decades and played a crucial role in the formation of The Film Foundation.

 

In his 2012 oral history with the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF), Bob shared: “The UCLA Film & Television Archive’s success in building one of the world’s largest collections and in establishing top-notch programs in preservation, programming and access was the result first and foremost of an extraordinarily dedicated staff. If I take any personal credit at all for our growth, it was in nurturing a sense of mission, determination and common purpose. Nothing, I thought, was impossible.”

 

Kiss Me Deadly (U.S., 1955)

Director Robert Aldrich and screenwriter A.I. Bezzerides were deeply suspicious of the fascist impulses driving Mickey Spillane’s two-fisted detective, Mike Hammer. In their Kiss Me Deadly, Hammer smashes his way across Los Angeles battling a mysterious “They” in pursuit of “the great whatsit” barely cognizant of the apocalyptic forces he threatens to unleash. An atomic age noir, Kiss Me Deadly still plays like a red-light warning for perilous times.

 

March 23

Archive Treasures

 

Archive Treasures showcases works from UCLA Film & Television Archive’s extensive holdings, which comprise one of the largest moving image collections in the world. Included in this series will be deserving and rarely screened gems presented in original and restored prints.

 

  • March 23, 7 m.

Cry Danger (U.S., 1951)—special Screening: Restoration World Premiere of Lupino- directed Noir Television Drama!

Cry Danger is an unforgettable noir filled with snappy laconic dialogue and a captivating narrative equal to none other. An ex-con released from prison for a crime he didn’t commit wants revenge for those iniquitous stolen best years of his life! Set in Los Angeles this film noir thriller stars Dick Powell as fast paced, fresh talking wise guy Rocky Molloy along with Rhonda Flemming, Richard Erdman and William Conrad. Written by William Bowers of Split Second and The Mob equally both great noir films. Robert Parish makes his directorial debut, taking a break from film editing and acting. Although this film is directed by Parish, many including Flemming, feel Dick Powell truly deserves that credit. The utilization of dialogue and shots in this film make it more of a pulp fiction, then a noir, nevertheless Powell’s on the Prowl with witty smart zingers.

 

March 29, 7:30 p.m.

In-person: Director Lisa Hurwitz, chef and restaurateur Alice Waters.

 

UCLA Film & Television Archive and the Hammer Museum present

Food and Film

The UCLA Film & Television Archive and the Hammer Museum are thrilled to partner with legendary Bay Area chef, restaurateur and activist, Alice Waters for a film series that explores how movies from around the world have represented food and food production. Each program will pair a movie with a special dinner at Lulu restaurant at the Hammer Museum, Waters’ latest culinary celebration.

 

Director Lisa Hurwitz’s documentary on the Automat brims with nostalgia for the fabled restaurant chain known for its iconic method of self-service. A chief booster, Mel Brooks wistfully recalls its famed coffee and strawberry rhubarb pie, drawn from a behind windowed, coin-operated door. Hurwitz’s extensive interviews make the case that along with fresh-made meals, Automats served up a sense of community, optimism and egalitarianism, qualities lost in our current fast food culture.

 

Preceded by

 

The Merry Cafe (U.S., 1936)

Soon after a hungry Krazy Kat enters the “The Eato-mat Restaurant,” inspired by the

famous Automat, the place comes alive with singing and dancing food.

 

For details on all programs and admission information, please visit cinema.ucla.edu.

Schedules and guest speakers subject to change.

Dev Shapiro
Dev Shapirohttp://seligpolyscope.com
Dev is the CEO and head of production at Selig Polyscope Co. He is also the technical brains behind Selig Film News. Often compared to Irving Thalberg he is a film historian and a Bollywood movie poster collector.

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