Rich Engel

Pittsburgh Filmmakers

rengel@pghfilmmakers.org

412.681.5449 x 204

Tey Stiteler

Carnegie Museum of Art

stitelert@carnegiemuseums.org

412.688.8690

July 20, 2008

Pittsburgh Filmmakers and Carnegie Museum of Art present

Life on Mars: New Perspectives, a Sunday film series on being human in today’s world and the worlds we have yet to discover

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...In conjunction with Life on Mars, the 2008 Carnegie International, Pittsburgh Filmmakers is teaming up with Carnegie Museum of Art in the presentation of a series of popular films from the last 50 years that explore themes of humanization, mechanization, and changes in our world that affect our daily lives.

The series will screen Sunday evenings in August at 8:00 p.m. at the Regent Square Theater, located at 1035 South Braddock Avenue in Edgewood.

Aug. 3: 2001:A Space Odyssey
This is the ultimate science-fiction voyage of a man through outer and inner space, through the phases of his own life in time thrown out of whack, to his death and rebirth in an intergalactic embryo. “[Kubrick] made a philosophical statement about man's place in the universe, using images as those before him had used words, music or prayer. And he had made it in a way that invited us to contemplate it -- not to experience it vicariously as entertainment, as we might in a conventional science-fiction film, but to stand outside it as a philosopher might, and think about it.” —Roger Ebert (Stanley Kubrick; 1968; 140 min)

Aug. 10: Brazil
This dark comedy is one of the best films ever made showing how technology might spawn a nightmare society of the future. With nods to both Orwell and Monty Python, this is a world marred by oppressive automation and towering bureaucracy, and populated by tyrannical guards who strong-arm the lawbreakers. Sam Lowry is a civil servant who uses his imagination to escape.  (Terry Gilliam; UK/USA; 1985; 131 min)

Aug. 17: Blow-Up
When a photographer believes he has inadvertently captured a murder on film, he begins to question everything he sees. This masterpiece—the first English language film by Antonioni—is a fascinating look at the ramifications of “recording” reality. (Michelangelo Antonioni; 1966; 108 min)

Aug. 24: Playtime
In this French comedy classic about a stranger in a strange land, Monsieur Hulot (played by the brilliant Jacques Tati) comes to Paris for an appointment but the “space age” buildings seem to thwart his every move, and he feels out of place in the modern world.  “It directs us to look around at the world we live in, the one we keep building.” —film critic Jonathan Rosenbaum (Jacques Tati; 1967; 126 min)

Aug. 31: Alphaville
Part science-fiction, part film noir—this French New Wave thriller from one of cinema's greatest contributors is nothing less than a cult classic, using no special visual effects. A bizarre space-chase across a glass and metal landscape of futuristic Paris—here called Alphaville—is the movie's premise. This dystopian tomorrow is characterized by alienation, conformity and a stunningly clinical world. Godard slyly suggests that the future is now. The result is a touching, original film laced with the director’s familiar political and intellectual themes. With subtitles. (Jean-Luc Godard; France; 1965; 100 min)

Carnegie Museum of Art

Located at 4400 Forbes Avenue in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh and founded by industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in 1895, Carnegie Museum of Art, one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, is nationally and internationally recognized for its distinguished collection of American and European works from the sixteenth century to the present. The Heinz Architectural Center, part of Carnegie Museum of Art, is dedicated to the collection, study, and exhibition of architectural drawings and models. For more information about Carnegie Museum of Art, call 412.622.3131 or visit our web site at www.cmoa.org.

Pittsburgh Filmmakers

(est. 1971) is a nonprofit corporation designed to encourage the creation and understanding of media for noncommercial artistic and literary purposes. To this end, Filmmakers offers a curriculum of courses in film, video, and photography to university and independent students in the Pittsburgh region. Filmmakers also exhibits the work of prominent photographers and filmmakers in its two galleries, Melwood Screening Room, Regent Square Theater and Harris Theater. A key component of Filmmakers’ mission is to provide equipment access and funding for independent media artists.