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Introducing Dick Fontaine

Presented by International House Philadelphia at The Ibrahim Theater at International House

November 17, 2011

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Minding the Gap: The Films of Dick Fontaine

The films of Dick Fontaine, a pioneer of cinema vérité in the UK, are an unrivaled document of the seismic shifts within Western culture during the second half of the 20th century. Starting in the early 60s, inspired by American jazz and the writings of Marshall McLuhan, Fontaine began forging a unique path for himself within the distinctively British tradition of documentary filmmaking. His work, past and present, speaks directly to the parallel trajectory of politics and culture, bridging the negligible distance between the two.

Program 1: Introducing Dick Fontaine

The Face on the Cover
dir. Dick Fontaine, UK, 1964, video, 30 mins

The life of the world’s top model Jean Shrimpton and her svengali photographer David Bailey, filmed by Albert Maysles.

Heroes
dir. Dick Fontaine, UK, 1967, video, 30 mins

A satire on celebrity with a cacophony of gossip merchants, publicists, and “a host of stars.”

Will the Real Norman Mailer Please Stand Up?
dir. Dick Fontaine, US/UK, 1968, video, 60 mins, b/w

The filmed counterpart to Mailer’s Pulitzer-winning nonfiction novel, The Armies Of The Night, focusing on his participation in the antiwar protest movement. Mailer, Robert Lowell, and The Fugs (accompanied by a quarter of a million others) attack the Pentagon in October 1967. Mailer goes to jail, is sprung, and recites his sermon on the mount. In addition, the film provides behind-the-scenes footage of the making of Mailer’s second feature film Beyond the Law, an interview conducted by a twenty-something James Toback, and a brilliantly performative appearance by Mailer on The Merv Griffin Show.