still from Harlan County USA

1976 / 103 min
Director: Barbara Kopple
Digital | Courtesy of Janus Films 

Barbara Kopple’s Oscar-winning depiction of a coal miners’ strike in Kentucky is on virtually every list of the greatest documentaries ever made. In the cinema verité tradition of Leacock, Pennebaker, and Wiseman, Kopple embedded herself with the miners and their families for over a year, recording their daily struggles and often placing herself in mortal danger from anti-union forces. The result is an uncompromising film that is as relevant now as it ever was. (Ira Deutchman worked on the release of the film while at Cinema 5.)

This screening is part of NY Indie Guy: Ira Deutchman and the Rise of Independent Film

On September 14-16 and September 20-23, 2018, Columbia University’s Lenfest Center for the Arts will host a retrospective exhibit honoring the career of Film Professor and Producing Concentration Supervisor Ira Deutchman. Since 1975, Deutchman has been a leader in distributing, marketing, and producing American independent films, international films, and arthouse films. He is perhaps best known for founding and running the distribution companies Cinecom, Fine Line Features, and Emerging Pictures. Deutchman has taught at Columbia since 1987.  

This retrospective will screen essential motion pictures from various points in Deutchman’s career, such as The Brother From Another Planet; Diva; Harlan County USA; sex, lies, & videotape; Swoon; and A Woman Under the Influence. Many showings will feature Q&A talkbacks with filmmakers or performers. The celebration will also include panel discussions and an extensive exhibit covering Deutchman’s impact on cinema.  

Sponsors

The Art House Convergence
Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard
Film and Media Studies, Columbia University School of the Arts
The Society of Fellows and Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University
The Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality at Columbia University
The University of Michigan Library