24 Frames

press release:

Iran, France | 2017 | DCP | 114 min.

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

The final feature by iconic filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami (Taste of Cherry, Close-Up, Certified Copy) draws on his parallel career as a still photographer. Ever the sly cinematic manipulator, Kiarostami uses digital animation and sound design to bring 23 of his photographs (and one Bruegel painting) to life. Within these once static images, the filmmaker stages weather, corrals animals, and plays music, in search of what existed in these spaces beyond the instant captured by his camera. “These 24 mini-films abound with his visual acuity and dry authorial humor, all of it in accessible and pleasurable form” (Film Comment).

Premiere Showcase is the Cinematheque’s effort to bring the boldest and most exciting new cinema back to the big screen. Crafted with the same curat­orial acuity we bring to our repertory series, Premiere Showcase presents exciting new work by contem­porary directors that would otherwise have no theatrical venue in the area. Our selections for this calendar begin with Agnès Varda’s whimsical road movie Faces Places. Also included are Aki Kaurismäki’s funny and moving The Other Side of Hope, shown in a rarefied new 35mm print; The Insult, a powerful new movie from Lebanon; and, part of our annual LACIS selections, new movies from South American directors Lucrecia Martel (Zama) and Daniela Thomas (Vazante).

All Cinematheque screenings are free and open to the public.