Festival films to be screened at Jordan Schnitzer museum

The international Black Maria Film and Video Festival Tour will return to the UO’s Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art this week.

The festival’s films will be shown beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 14, as part of the museum’s monthly Schnitzer Cinema event. It is cosponsored by the Cinema Pacific film festival.

“The Black Maria Film and Festival Tour is a wonderfully eclectic mix of experimental, documentary and narrative works that always satisfy our local audience,” said Richard Herskowitz, artistic director of Cinema Pacific and cinema curator at the Schnitzer museum.

The Black Maria festival highlights cutting-edge works from independent film and video makers on an international level. This spring marks the 32nd year of this annual festival and is the fourth year it has visited the Schnitzer museum. The selected films are shown at more than 65 sites around the country, with each program tailored to the location of its screening.

This year’s selection includes 10 short films, including two shorts by filmmakers from Portland. Visit the museum website for the full program.

The event is supported by the Cinema Pacific film festival, an annual film festival at the UO devoted to international films and new media from Pacific-bordering countries, including the United States, and Schnitzer Cinema, a monthly showcase for adventurous cinema and media art at the museum. All Schnitzer Cinema screenings are free, and refreshments will be provided.

For more information about the film festival, contact Debbie Williamson Smith at debbiews@uoregon.edu  or (541) 346-0924, or contact the museum at (541) 346-3027.

-By Sarah MacKenzie, UO Public Affairs Communications intern