Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story to Open the Series
Screening locations include fabled Gilded Age mansions, picturesque beaches and international polo grounds
NEWPORT / NEW YORK – June 28, 2017 – newportFILM announced today an impressive line up of world-class documentaries for their annual summer series newportFILM Outdoors, with guests including Clive Davis, Wendy Whelan, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, and Rory Kennedy. The sunset screenings kick off on June 29th and run through August 31st, with weekly Thursday night screenings, accompanied by pre-film live music and post-screening filmmaker conversations, often moderated by esteemed film and arts journalists from around the country. The series brings over 10,000 moviegoers from around the world over the course of their summer series. This marks the 8th summer season of hosting screenings at various beautiful outdoor locations, thoughtfully paired with each film, in and around historic Newport, RI.
newportFILM Outdoors kicks off with “Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story,” at the Redwood Library & Athenaeum. The program will continue throughout the season with a notable collection of documentaries including the following highlights:
- “Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives” is set to screen on the lawn of coal baron Edward Julius Berwind’s historic mansion, The Elms. A conversation with the famed music producer himself, Clive Davis, will follow. This screening will be in partnership with the iconic Newport Folk Festival™ as part of Newport Folk Presents®.
- From Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio, “May It Last: A Portrait of the Avett Brothers” takes a behind the scenes look at the story of the beloved folk-rock group. The film will be shown in partnership with the legendary Newport Folk Festival™ and as part of Newport Folk Presents®. The screening will take place on the site where Bob Dylan first “went electric” in 1965.
- Linda Saffire and Adam Schelsinger’s “Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan” will screen on the lawn of Rosecliff, one of Newport’s most fabled and beloved mansions. A conversation with prima ballerina Wendy Whelan will follow.
- Rory Kennedy’s “Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton,” follows the remarkable story of an American icon, and a hard-charging athlete, who changed the sport of big wave surfing and transcended the surf genre. A conversation with Kennedy will follow the screening.
- The emotional and epic story of the global health movement is seen through the intimate narrative of Dr. Paul Farmer and Dr. Jim Yong Kim in “Bending the Arc.” Set to screen on the breathtaking Ochre Court lawn, a conversation with Dr. Jim Yong Kim, 12th president of World Bank, will follow.
- Sandy Chronopoulos’ high fashion documentary, “House of Z”, will wrap up the season at the stunning OceanCliff Lawn. The film unveils the life and career of designer Zac Posen. A conversation with Chronopoulos & producer Cori Shepherd Sterm will follow. This event will host newportFILM’s 4th annual picnic contest.
newportFILM’s Artistic Director, Andrea van Beuren says, “Once again, we’ve been lucky enough to find and program some fantastic films. Seems like this summer we have something for everyone. We are so looking forward to introducing our audiences to the incredible lives of Hedy Lamarr, Laird Hamilton, Clive Davis, Wendy Whelan, Richard Turner, Zak Posen and the Avett Brothers.”
newportFILM has a history of bringing the most talked about award-winning films and filmmakers to the Rhode Island community. Over the years, films have included Liz Garbus’“What Happened, Miss Simone?” Albert Maysles’ “Iris,” Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville’s“Best of Enemies,” Lauren Greenfield’s “The Queen of Versailles,” and Rory Kennedy’s “Ethel.”
newportFILM Outdoors’ documentaries are screened at picturesque locations, often thematically paired with their films, for example, “The Queen of Versailles” about the largest home ever built in America, was shown on the lawn of The Elms, one of the country’s best examples of turn-of-the century opulence and Gilded age architecture. The screening events are unique and experiential, once including a curated exhibit of the heiress Doris Duke’s Dior collection and a Dior-inspired picnic contest around a screening of “Dior and I” at Doris Duke’s fabled Rough Point mansion. Each film is attended by hundreds of local residents as well as Newport’s summer visitors and guests from around the world. Film screenings are free to the public.
A full schedule of films is below. For more information, visit www.newportfilm.com.
