The MSPIFF Luminaries Tribute Program recognizes notable filmmakers for their contributions to the medium of filmmaking and for artistic talents that have been instrumental in promoting a higher regard for the art of film around the world.
For 2019, MSPIFF honors the life and work of pioneering French filmmaker Alice Guy-Blaché (1873-1968) with a screening of the documentary about her amazing career, Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché, and a collection of recently-restored films created by Guy-Blaché and her studio, Solax Film Company.
Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché, explores the life and work of the French trailblazing and long overlooked pioneer of cinema, Alice Guy-Blaché, who in 1896, at the age of 23, wrote and directed the first known fiction film, La fée aux choux. She went on to make some 1,000 films in the early 1900s, many with radical themes and provocative messages, but nonetheless faded into obscurity. This eye-opening, investigative documentary from Pamela B.Green, narrated by Jodie Foster, brings us her remarkable story so rarely told in the common history of cinema. Guy-Blaché's accomplishments, including not only mastery of the technical aspects of early filmmaking, but some of the first ever demonstrations of directing, artistic cinematography and narrative composition, revolutionized the film industry. She was equal part filmmaker, producer, screenwriter and owner of her own production studio, Solax. This film brings Guy-Blaché's story to life, ensuring that her game-changing accomplishments, essential knowledge for cinephiles and audiences alike, will no longer be ignored.
Director Biography
Pamela B. Green is an American filmmaker and producer. She is the co-founder of the audiovisual communications studio PIC and founder of the Legwork Collective. Her latest film, Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché, premiered at Cannes 2018, moving on to Telluride, the New York Film Festival and BFI to universal praise.
Press
"[R]eestablish[es] the prominent role of women at the advent of cinema" - Los Angeles Times
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