Tuesday, July 21, 2020

Announcing the Launch of:METROGRAPH DIGITAL Featuring Live Screenings, Opening July 24

Inaugural Calendar Includes Films by Claire Denis, St. Clair Bourne, Alain Resnais, Laurie Anderson, Manfred Kirchheimer, Djibril Diop Mambéty, and Bruce Baillie

Nan Goldin Presents Online Premiere of Her Short Sirens with Guest Program Featuring Films by Vivienne Dick and Michael Roemer’s Nothing But a Man

Retrospectives of Éric Rohmer, Ulrike Ottinger, and Satoshi Kon

Guest Introductions by Filmmakers Noah Baumbach, James Gray, and Jenna Bliss; Programmers/Scholars Melissa Lyde, Yasmina Price, Boukary Sawadogo, and Kazembe Balagun

Exclusive Runs of Legendary Docs Dark Circle (1982) and Mayday (1970) in New Restorations



July 20, 2020 (New York) - Metrograph launches Metrograph Digital on Friday, July 24, available to anyone nationwide through its new online membership program. The first initiative of Metrograph Digital is Metrograph Live Screenings, developed and curated by the renowned programming team at Metrograph, a celebration of communal movie watching, featuring a rotating selection of new releases and repertory titles each week, opening at set showtimes, with introductions, pre-show material, and Q&As specific to every show.

Inaugural calendar programs include many films that are not available anywhere else online, directed by enduring masters Claire Denis, Éric Rohmer, St. Clair Bourne, Ulrike Ottinger, Alain Resnais, Djibril Diop Mambéty, Satoshi Kon, James Gray, Laurie Anderson, and Manfred Kirchheimer. Legendary photographer and activist Nan Goldin will be the first guest programmer of a series to accompany her new film, Sirens (2019), starting July 31. For longtime guests of Metrograph in New York and those who have visited from afar, Metrograph Live Screenings can be accessed nationwide via a Metrograph Digital membership at http://www.metrograph.com.

The Metrograph theater at 7 Ludlow Street in New York remains closed to the public until further notice, when the safety of our staff and guests can be guaranteed.

Metrograph Live Screenings - What to Expect:

The first Metrograph program book in 2016 said: “At Metrograph, you will experience all kinds of movies. What will unite them all is—simply—that we believe in them, and we think they are films you should see.” That spirit continues on with Metrograph Live Screenings, which will bring the most refined version of the unique Metrograph filmgoing experience to your home device, with a curated selection of rare and adventurous films each week. It will be a new digital space for cinephiles. Much like at our theater, guests can expect full presentations: film-specific pre-shows, introductions, and feature films in the best quality available via a native Metrograph player, complemented by a robust selection of newly commissioned film writing, interviews, and videos on our website, inspiring conversation about movies long after they end.

“What’s most exciting to me about Metrograph digital expansion is that it means a larger audience can see more of the films we feel so passionately about, while continually broadening our offerings,” said Jake Perlin, Artistic Director of Metrograph. “The foundational principle of the Metrograph theater is the pleasure of sharing cinephilia and a view that there are always new filmmakers and ideas to discover from around the world, and with Metrograph Live Screenings, that is now possible online, in addition to our theater.”

“Programming the Metrograph theater for four years has been an unbelievably rewarding challenge,” said Aliza Ma, Head of Programming. “Metrograph Live Screenings will reflect everything we’ve put into this project, with dynamic films and series featuring legendary and up-and-coming filmmakers. The heart and soul of our curatorial voice can be found here, in tightly focused programs changing weekly.”

How To Watch:

To experience Metrograph Live Screenings, audiences tune in for a live broadcast screening at a scheduled showtime via Metrograph’s livestream player, available on any computer and mobile device, and connectable to TVs. Broadcasts will include original pre-show material, short films, introductions, followed by the feature presentation. After the show, a recording of each broadcast will be available on demand for a limited run.

Metrograph Live Screenings is automatically available to existing Metrograph members at no cost and for $5/month or $50/annually through our new Digital Membership for those who wish to sign up.


About Metrograph Digital:

Metrograph Digital, long in the works, will continue and expand long after the theatrical film experience returns. In the coming weeks and months, an expansion of digital initiatives will include ticketed extended engagements on demand (TVOD), as well as expanded editorial coverage and exclusive original video work available exclusively to members.

“The digital strategy of Metrograph will be to roll out new components through 2020 and beyond,” said Metrograph CEO Christian Grass. “Our goal is to present all the facets of the Metrograph experience—from our distinct film programming, editorial coverage, and original video material—to create a compelling, essential home for anyone who is passionate about movies.”

Live Screenings Calendar: July to Early September
(Screenings introduced by Metrograph programmers)

Opens Friday, July 24 – 8:00pm EST
Claire Denis’s L’Intrus (2004) - digital exclusive (A Metrograph Pictures release)
with Bruce Baillie’s All My Life (1966)
Through July 27

Opens Monday, July 27 - 8:00pm EST
St. Clair Bourne’s Paul Robeson: Here I Stand (1999)
Guest introduction by organizer and cultural historian Kazembe Balagun, Project Manager for Rosa Luxembourg Shiftung New York City
Through July 29

Opens Wednesday, July 29 - 8:00pm EST
Manfred Kirchheimer’s Bridge High (1975) and Stations of the Elevated (1981)
Guest introduction by Kirchheimer
Through July 31

Opens Friday, July 31 - 8:00pm EST
Nan Goldin’s Sirens (2019) - digital premiere
with Vivienne Dick’s Liberty’s Booty (1980) and Beauty Becomes the Beast (1979)
Guest introduction by Goldin
Through August 2

Throughout July/August
New Digital Restorations from Canyon Cinema

Opens Sunday, August 2 - 8:00pm EST
Nan Goldin Presents Michael Roemer’s Nothing But a Man (1964)
Guest introduction by Goldin
Through August 5

Opens Monday, August 3 - 8:00pm EST
Michael Roemer’s Nothing But a Man (1964)
Guest introduction by programmer Melissa Lyde
Through August 5

Opens Tuesday, August 4 - 8:00pm EST
Kevin Rafferty and James Ridgeway’s Feed (1992)
Through August 7

Opens Wednesday, August 5 - 8:00pm EST
Damani Baker and Alex Vlack’s Still Bill (2009)
Guest introduction by filmmakers Damani Baker and Alex Vlack, and producer/editor Jon Fine
Through August 7

Opens Friday, August 7 - 8:00pm EST
Satoshi Kon Retrospective begins

Opens Monday, August 17 - 8:00pm EST
Jenna Bliss’s The People’s Detox (2018)
Guest introduction by Bliss
Through August 19

Opens Wednesday, August 19 - 8:00pm - EST
James Gray’s Two Lovers (2008)
Guest introduction by Gray
Through August 21

Opens Friday, August 21 - 8:00pm EST
Judy Irving’s Dark Circle (1982) (A First Run Features release)
Guest introduction by Irving
Through August 27

Opens Saturday, August 22 - 8:00pm EST
Alain Resnais’s Je t’aime, Je t’aime (1968)
Through August 24

Opens Monday, August 24 - 8:00pm EST
New restoration: Mayday (1970) - Courtesy of the Yale Film Archive
Guest introduction by writer and researcher Yasmina Price
Through August 26

Opens Wednesday, August 26 - 8:00pm EST
Laurie Anderson’s Home of the Brave (1986)
Through August 28

Opens Friday, August 28 - 8:00pm
Ulrike Ottinger Retrospective - Ticket of No Return (1979)
Series continues through September

Opens Sunday, August 30 - 8:00pm
Djibril Diop Mambéty’s Le Franc (1994) and The Little Girl Who Sold The Sun (1999)
New restorations and digital premieres (Metrograph Pictures releases)
Through September 4

Opens Tuesday, September 1 - 8:00pm
Djibril Diop Mambéty’s Hyenas (1992) - new restoration (A Metrograph Pictures release)
Guest introduction by Boukary Sawadogo, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Cinema Studies, City College of NY (CUNY)
Through September 4

Opens Friday, September 4
8:00pm - Éric Rohmer x 3 - Boyfriends and Girlfriends (1987) (A Metrograph Pictures release)
Guest introduction by filmmaker Noah Baumbach - new restoration and digital premiere
Series continues through September with The Aviator’s Wife (1981) and 4 Adventures of Reinette and Mirabelle (1987) in new digital restorations.

About Metrograph

Metrograph is an entertainment company founded in 2016, based in New York City.


Projects to date:

Metrograph NYC, launched in 2016, is an independent movie theater at 7 Ludlow that focuses on premieres, rare archival screenings (35mm and digital), and special Q&As, for a wide spectrum of audiences, filmmakers, and communities. Metrograph NYC includes an on-site restaurant, The Commissary, and a bookstore.

Metrograph Pictures, launched in 2019, is an independent distribution company with a focus on quality and curation. Works acquired and released to date include restorations such as A Bigger Splash (1973), Downtown 81 (1981/2001), Hyenas (1992), among other titles.

Metrograph Live Screenings, launched in July 2020, is Metrograph’s virtual event product, bringing the Metrograph’s curation to a broader audience via our new digital platform.

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