Free fall cinema: UCLA Film & Television Archive screenings

This fall, the UCLA Film & Television Archive presents a wide-ranging big screen lineup featuring a major retrospective of Greek auteur Theo Angelopoulos, psychedelic TV from the ‘60s and ’70s, a series on the work of Joan Didion, a tribute to Silent Movie Day, screenings of the Spanish-language “Drácula” and Brazil’s “Madame Satã,” and more.

“The Archive closes the year with a unique variety of programs ranging from international offerings from Brazil, China and Greece to previously lost African American television and classic Hollywood films,” said May Hong HaDuong, director of the Archive, a division of UCLA Library. “Through our incredible partnerships across campus, we’ve produced a fall slate that reflects our dedication to deepening audience engagement on a global scale.”

Screenings are held at the Billy Wilder Theater. All programs are free through June 2023, thanks to a gift from an anonymous donor.

Sept. 25–Dec. 4
Family Flicks

The Archive and the Hammer Museum continue the tradition of Sunday matinees featuring new and classic family-friendly films with “School of Rock” on Sept. 25, “Coco” on Oct. 23, “The Wizard of Oz” on Nov. 13 and “The Nightmare Before Christmas” on Dec. 4.

Oct. 1–Nov. 19
Archive Television Treasures

Drawing from the Archive’s vast television collection, this series features rare and sometimes forgotten titles, as well as popular programs and landmarks of the medium. Screening Oct. 1, “Psychedelic TV: Musical Variety in the Age of Aquarius” presents two rare examples of counter-culture–inspired 1960s and early ‘70s primetime television. Featuring trippy sets, Carnaby Street costumes and musical numbers by the 5th Dimension, Andy Williams and a host of others, the shows offer a portal back to a time when the mantra “turn on, tune in and drop out” was on the lips of both hippies and network executives.

In person: UCLA alumna Marilyn McCoo, Billy Davis Jr. and Florence LaRue, original members of the 5th Dimension

On Nov. 19, the Archive and the National Museum of African American History and Culture present “Lost African American TV: Robert L. Goodwin’s ‘The Upper Chamber.’” One of the first Black writers for network television, Goodwin produced, wrote and co-starred in this powerful drama exploring the lives of four men on death row awaiting execution. Shot on videotape, Goodwin’s self-funded production is a uniquely revelatory work of television art. It will be screened with a Goodwin-penned episode of the Emmy Award–winning series “Insight.”

In person: The program will be introduced by Ina Archer, media conservation and digitization specialist for the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Oct. 2–Nov. 5
Archive Treasures

This series showcases rarely screened gems, presented in original and restored prints, from the Archive’s holdings, which comprise one of the largest moving image collections in the world. On Oct. 2, the Archive celebrates Silent Movie Day (Sept. 29) with a screening of the Clara Bow film “Mantrap” (1926), followed on Oct. 16 by a double-feature of “Double Door” (1934) and “Supernatural” (1933). On Nov. 5, the Archive presents a double-feature of “Letter From an Unknown Woman” (1948) and “Caught” (1949). All these titles have been restored by the Archive.

Oct. 14–Dec. 18
Landscapes of Time: The Films of Theo Angelopoulos

This major career retrospective includes all of Greek writer-director Theo Angelopoulos’ feature films and a selection of shorts. Internationally recognized as one of the most important auteurs of his generation, Angelopoulos always seems in need of rediscovery in the U.S. This is partly due to the challenging nature of his films, but it is precisely the idiosyncrasies of his formal and thematic concerns that make his films as necessary and urgent today as they have ever been. The Archive co-presents this program with the UCLA Stavros Niarchos Foundation Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture, with the collaboration of the UCLA Center for European and Russian Studies.

Oct. 22
Journey From the Fall

Set in the aftermath of the 1975 fall of Saigon, “Journey From the Fall” (2006) weaves together stories of a family separated and struggling for freedom. Director Hàm Trần’s award-winning drama, inspired by true stories of refugees, artfully defies common narratives about the Vietnamese experience, examining the role of memory and family in communities — and a country — built out of resilience. The Archive presents this program with the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, the UCLA Center for Musical Humanities and the Sundance Institute.

In person: Director Hàm Trần and composer Christopher Wong

Oct. 23
Outfest UCLA Legacy Project Screening Series

The Outfest UCLA Legacy Project is a collaboration between the Archive and Outfest to collect, restore and showcase queer film and video. This fall, the project screens “Madame Satã” (Brazil, 2002) in honor of the film’s 20th anniversary. The event is co-presented by the Outfest UCLA Legacy Project, the Andrew J. Kuehn Jr. Foundation and Film Quarterly.

In person: Director Karim Aïnouz

Oct. 25–Dec. 17
Can’t Get That Monster Out of My Mind: Joan Didion and Cinema

Cinema, and Hollywood in particular, casts a long shadow across the writings of Joan Didion. This series, co-presented with the Hammer Museum, seeks to measure its reach in a variety of ways, considering Didion’s work as a screenwriter and her influences, as well as those directors who share a subject with her but diverge, sometimes dramatically, from her unflinching perspective.

Oct. 29
Drácula (Spanish language)

For this 1931 version of “Dracula,” produced by Universal for the Spanish-language market, director George Melford filmed his all–Spanish-speaking cast at night on sets being used during the day by director Tod Browning for his English-language version. Carlos Villarías plays the count, with Lupita Tovar as Eva, the object of his infernal desire. More than a historical curio, “Drácula” stands on its own as an atmospheric horror classic. The Archive co-presents “Drácula” with the Latin American Cinemateca of Los Angeles.

Dec. 3
Archive Talks

Digital visual effects brought unparalleled freedom to filmmakers, so why do so many blockbusters look the same? In Julie Turnock’s latest critical examination of the history and aesthetics of visual effects, “The Empire of Effects: Industrial Light and Magic and the Rendering of Realism,” the associate professor of media and cinema studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign argues that this is due to the outsized influence of Industrial Light and Magic. Turnock will give a brief talk, followed by a screening of “The Mermaid” (China, 2016) and a conversation.

Dec. 9–11
Radical Films: A Weekend With Robert Carl Cohen

After graduating from UCLA with a master’s in film, Robert Carl Cohen worked as a filmmaker and foreign correspondent, focusing on politics and social justice issues. Traveling to places like China, Cuba and East Germany, Cohen produced a one-person counter-history to America’s dominant Cold War narrative. The Archive presents a selection of works that illustrate Cohen’s lasting contribution to the documentary field, including “Mondo Hollywood” (1967) on Dec. 9 and “Inside Red China” (1957) and “Committee on Un-American Activities” (1962) on Dec 11.

In person: Director Robert Cohen will be present for both screenings.

Virtual Screening Room

The Archive’s Virtual Screening Room continues to offer online access to a broad spectrum of Archive-curated programs, including Oct. 20’s “Horror Television of the 1970s: The House and the Brain,” a rare time capsule of horror television directed by Gloria Monty (“General Hospital”), with guest speaker Elana Levine, author of “Her Stories: Daytime Soap Opera and U.S. Television History.”

On Dec. 8, the Archive presents “KCET-TV Pioneers: Los Angeles Documentary in the 1970s,” a special screening of three rare 1970s TV documentaries and a panel discussion with their award-winning directors: Jesús Salvador Treviño (“América Tropical,” 1971), Thandeka, a.k.a. Sue Booker (“Doin’ It at the Storefront,” 1973) and Lynne Littman (“Number Our Days,” 1976). The panel will be moderated by Joshua Glick, author of “Los Angeles Documentary and the Production of Public History, 1958–1977.”