Frederick Wiseman
The Complete Works
February 10 to March 5, 2005
Frederick Wiseman is one of the outstanding artists in the history of documentary filmmaking and in modern cinema. His status is comparable to that of Marcel Ophuls or Jean Rouch; his significance as a chronicler and analyst of the social realities of the United States is unparalleled. On the occasion of his 75th birthday, the Film Museum is presenting a tribute to Wiseman with the first complete retrospective ever to be shown in Austria.
Wiseman was born in Boston in 1930. After completing his studies, he taught law at various US universities. He has been working as an independent filmmaker since 1967, and in 1971 he became his own producer. In its complexity and integrity, Wiseman's film full oeuvre – 35 feature-length films to date – constitutes a unique document of the United States over four decades. He has always adhered to his radical filmmaking method of "Direct Cinema" – no interviews, no talking heads, no voice-over commentary.
Wiseman sees his own films as “voyages of discovery” in which the encounters with reality should be as open and vigorous as possible. Every single Wiseman film revolves around the relationship between the individual and society; they are all graphic portrayals of the chasm which exists between (democratic) theory and (social) practice. The locations he has selected have mostly been public institutions in the United States, which explains why Wiseman has also become known as the documentarist of institutions. He has investigated the school system (High School I & II) and hospitals (Hospital, Near Death); analysed judicial practice (Juvenile Court, Domestic Violence II), the social welfare system (Welfare, Public Housing), and the military complex (Basic Training, Manoeuvre, Missile); he has portrayed everyday life in a monastery (Essene), a department store (The Store), and a model agency (Model), and studied various forms of the relationship between humans and animals (Primate, Meat, Racetrack, Zoo).
His first films – Titicut Follies, High School, Law & Order and Hospital – already brought Wiseman a lot of acclaim and a number of awards, including three Emmys. Most American film critics consider him to be the country's most eminent documentarist since the early 1970's. His films are also a regular feature at the world's leading festivals. The Garden, Wiseman's newest work (about Madison Square Garden), will be premiered at the Berlinale in 2005; immediately afterwards, it will receive its Austrian premiere at the Film Museum.
The filmmaker's lectures which often accompany screenings of his films have become legendary. Several generations of directors and film students have embarked upon debates with him on the problems of documenting reality on film, rediscovering his works in the process. Frederick Wiseman will be visiting Vienna from February 25 to March 4; he will be available for discussions and will hold a lecture on his work methods during this period.
This programme has been co-organised by the Film Museum and Navigator Film, in cooperation with the Vienna Film Academy. Acting on the initiative of the Film Museum, Tanzquartier Wien has developed a research project on the question of the documentary element in dance and film, in which international film and performance artists will be participating ("Projections I", February 14 to 25).
Wiseman was born in Boston in 1930. After completing his studies, he taught law at various US universities. He has been working as an independent filmmaker since 1967, and in 1971 he became his own producer. In its complexity and integrity, Wiseman's film full oeuvre – 35 feature-length films to date – constitutes a unique document of the United States over four decades. He has always adhered to his radical filmmaking method of "Direct Cinema" – no interviews, no talking heads, no voice-over commentary.
Wiseman sees his own films as “voyages of discovery” in which the encounters with reality should be as open and vigorous as possible. Every single Wiseman film revolves around the relationship between the individual and society; they are all graphic portrayals of the chasm which exists between (democratic) theory and (social) practice. The locations he has selected have mostly been public institutions in the United States, which explains why Wiseman has also become known as the documentarist of institutions. He has investigated the school system (High School I & II) and hospitals (Hospital, Near Death); analysed judicial practice (Juvenile Court, Domestic Violence II), the social welfare system (Welfare, Public Housing), and the military complex (Basic Training, Manoeuvre, Missile); he has portrayed everyday life in a monastery (Essene), a department store (The Store), and a model agency (Model), and studied various forms of the relationship between humans and animals (Primate, Meat, Racetrack, Zoo).
His first films – Titicut Follies, High School, Law & Order and Hospital – already brought Wiseman a lot of acclaim and a number of awards, including three Emmys. Most American film critics consider him to be the country's most eminent documentarist since the early 1970's. His films are also a regular feature at the world's leading festivals. The Garden, Wiseman's newest work (about Madison Square Garden), will be premiered at the Berlinale in 2005; immediately afterwards, it will receive its Austrian premiere at the Film Museum.
The filmmaker's lectures which often accompany screenings of his films have become legendary. Several generations of directors and film students have embarked upon debates with him on the problems of documenting reality on film, rediscovering his works in the process. Frederick Wiseman will be visiting Vienna from February 25 to March 4; he will be available for discussions and will hold a lecture on his work methods during this period.
This programme has been co-organised by the Film Museum and Navigator Film, in cooperation with the Vienna Film Academy. Acting on the initiative of the Film Museum, Tanzquartier Wien has developed a research project on the question of the documentary element in dance and film, in which international film and performance artists will be participating ("Projections I", February 14 to 25).
Related materials
Photos 2005 - Frederick Wiseman
