Tag Archive for Cinema Archives

New Film Curator McCarty Mounts First Exhibit on Beasts

by Cynthia Rockwell • November 15, 2012

Andrea McCarty is the new Charles W. Fries Curator of the Wesleyan Cinema Archives. (Photo by Cynthia Rockwell)

Andrea McCarty, the new Charles W. Fries Curator of the Wesleyan Cinema Archives, joined Wesleyan’s Film Studies Department this summer, coming from Santa Monica where she was Director of Archives at HBO. Curating her first exhibit for the Wesleyan’s Rick Nicita [ ’67] gallery for the fall semester, McCarty received an unforgettable lesson in the workings of the “Wesleyan Film Mafia.”

“When I started in August,” she recalls, “we immediately needed to start thinking about a show for the gallery, to get it up in time for the start of the semester.”

Located in the Center for Film Studies, the Rick Nicita Gallery highlights current topics or productions related to the department. It hosts new exhibitions each spring and fall semesters.

This fall, an exhibit based on Beasts of the Southern Wild was the popular—and logical—choice. Prizewinner at both Sundance and Cannes, the indie film was directed by Benh Zeitlin ’04, produced by Dan Janvey ’06, and Michael Gottwold ’06, and featured a host of Wesleyan alumni in its credits—33, to be precise—from the director and producers to camera crew and animal trainer. Furthermore, the film was to be shown as part of the Wesleyan Film Series and Zeitlin, along with the producers, planned to speak on campus.

by Bill Holder • July 9, 2012

Mike Fries ’85, has made a gift of $2 million in support of the Wesleyan Cinema Archives Endowment Fund. The gift establishes the Charles W. Fries Curator of the Wesleyan Cinema Archives, which Fries named in honor of his father, Chuck Fries, who is considered the “godfather” of the television movie.

Mike Fries ’85, president and chief executive officer of Liberty Global, has made a gift of $2 million in support of the Wesleyan Cinema Archives Endowment Fund.

The gift establishes the Charles W. Fries Curator of the Wesleyan Cinema Archives, which Fries named in honor of his father. Chuck Fries is considered the “godfather” of the television movie for his role in producing or supervising more than 275 hours of television movies and mini-series. His films have won Emmy, Peabody, Humanitas and Christopher awards among others from film festivals.

“Wesleyan’s Cinema Archives,” says President Michael S. Roth, “is a treasure trove for the film industry and for film scholars. I am deeply grateful to Mike for his generous support, which will significantly enhance the ability of the Archives to serve film researchers worldwide. Mike is a great Wesleyan citizen.”

The gift will fulfill the matching requirement of a Challenge Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for support of the Cinema Archives.

Wesleyan will also be receiving archival materials from Chuck Fries to be preserved in the Ogden and Mary Louise Reid Cinema Archives. The 50-plus collections there include holdings devoted to Elia Kazan, Frank Capra, Ingrid Bergman, Clint Eastwood, John Waters and Martin Scorsese, among others.

Chuck Fries and Jeanine Basinger, Wesleyan’s Corwin-Fuller Professor of Film Studies and curator of the Cinema Archives, were trustees together on the board of the American Film Institute for more than a decade and both received AFI honorary degrees in 2006. “Chuck is a colorful and dynamic man in the true fashion of a television or film mogul,” she says. “He knows how to get things done with generosity and humor, and is a pleasure to work with. We’re looking forward to having him be part of our Archive family.”

Mike Fries is a 25-year veteran of the cable and media industry who, at Liberty Global, leads the second largest cable TV operator in the world, with nearly 33 million video, voice, and broadband subscribers.

by David Pesci • December 19, 2011

The National Endowment for the Humanities awarded the Cinema Archives with a $425,000 challenge grant.

Wesleyan’s Center for Film Studies Cinema Archives has long been acknowledged as one of the most vital collections and educational resources of its kind in the world. The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has approved a $425,000 challenge grant to the archives. Support from NEH, which requires a three to one match with private gifts, will ensure that the archives continue to grow and flourish.

The four-year NEH grant will help endow a full-time curatorial position for the Cinema Archives, a collection which includes the personal papers and other materials of such seminal film icons as Frank Capra, Elia Kazan, Federico Fellini, Martin Scorsese, Clint Eastwood and Ingrid Bergman, among others.

“Our Archive is a little gem,” says Jeanine Basinger, Chair and Corwin Fuller Professor of Film Studies, curator, Wesleyan Cinema Archives. “We house some of the most important primary documents in film history, and our students are allowed to use these materials in their studies. However, the real importance lies in the fact that our Archive is also vital to a wide range of other liberal arts researchers. For instance, Frank Capra was not only a famous film director. He also made science documentaries and was head of the U.S. Office of War Information during World War II.

by David Pesci • December 19, 2011

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has offered Wesleyan’s Center for Film Studies Cinema Archives a $425,000 challenge grant. Support from NEH, which requires a three to one match with private gifts, will ensure that the Archives continue to grow and flourish.

The four-year NEH grant will help endow a full-time curatorial position for the Cinema Archives, a collection which includes the person papers and other materials of such seminal film icons as Frank Capra, Elia Kazan, Federico Fellini, Martin Scorsese, Clint Eastwood and Ingrid Bergman, among others.

The NEH grant will only partially endow the position and, because it is a matching grant, Wesleyan will be responsible for raising an additional $1.275 million to ensure the position is completely endowed.