Robert Beavers is a master of 16mm personal filmmaking whose films are landmarks of independent cinema. Following his magnum opus 18-film cycle, My Hand Outstretched to the Winged Distance and Sightless Measure, Beavers released several works that are considered among the great films of recent decades. Beavers’ focus is on intimate spaces and how they reflect qualities of human character and life. His art is unsurpassed in its sensitivity to seemingly ordinary details, the astonishingly sensual sound and imagery, and its deep grounding in the classical arts. Tonight's program will feature two of Beavers' most celebrated films, including the Los Angeles premiere of the groundbreaking From the Notebook of... (1971/1998, 16mm) and the mid-career masterpiece The Stoas (1991-97, 16mm).
One of the most distinctive bodies of work in cinema.
- Chrissie Iles, Artforum
Rarely seen in public, Robert Beavers' remarkable body of work is a celebration of light, life, and color.
- Mark Webber, Tate Modern
Elegant, beautiful, complex and austere, From the Notebook of … is a film about creation, about the transformation of life into art and the loveliness of Florentine sunlight flooding through a window. A 48-minute masterpiece.
- Manohla Dargis, New York Times
A remarkably perspicacious exposition of the cinematic medium... Rigorously executed, [From the Notebook of's...] golden light is nevertheless redolent of the leisure and quiet supporting such sustained inquiry. A climactic double portrait of Beavers and [Gregory] Markopoulos basks in the glow of a life in art.
- Max Goldberg, KQED Arts
(Available to download after screening date)