The Story Of Film: A New Generation

Ten years after making his legendary cinematic essay on the history of motion pictures, The Story of Film: An Odyssey, director Mark Cousins turns his camera and characteristic poeticism on the last decade of filmmaking, arguably the most turbulent since the dawn of the medium.

Think about it: since Cousins’ last film we have seen the expansion of digital cinema, the pandemic, streaming, the return of 3D… and more. Mark Cousins returns, as wide-eyed and enthusiastic as ever, looking at the trajectory of cinema, bouncing between prestige Hollywood (Joker), Disney (Frozen), and remote masterpieces of international cinema (Cemetery of Splendor, Parasite) that even the most ardent cinephiles will admire. And he wonders what the future will hold–with an emphasis on the innovative filmmaking from under-represented communities–his optimism is infectious. “This is an unashamed celebration of cinema as an art-form: Cousins is an aesthete.” –Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Director Biography

Born in Coventry, England, raised in North Ireland and now based in Edinburgh, Mark Cousins has traveled the world making award-winning documentaries. His films on world cinema and the medium’s history have been his most famous, including the landmark The Story of Film: An Odyssey.

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