Series Site
July 9–11, 2026
“Acclaimed film restorationist and independent filmmaker Ross Lipman has spent decades thinking about film as both a material artifact and an artistic medium. . . . The Archival Impermanence Project (Sticking Place Books, 2025) sets out to propose nothing less than a new philosophy of the archive for the post-digital era.” —Dana Stevens
Ross Lipman has received recognition for his work as a film preservationist, including the Preservation Honors bestowed by Anthology Film Archives and three Heritage Awards from the National Society of Film Critics. Noted for his restoration work on American independent and experimental cinema, Lipman is also an essayist. His recent book-length study, The Archival Impermanence Project, brings together his writing on film restoration, research, analysis, and creativity.
In recent years, BAMPFA has teamed up with Los Angeles–based Lipman on preservation projects such as David Schickele’s Bushman and our current project to restore the films of Jordan Belson. We are excited to have the opportunity to host Lipman, who will share his thoughts and experiences as a film preservationist. The films we will screen feature some of his past restoration projects: Barbara Loden’s Wanda; Rob Epstein’s The Times of Harvey Milk; and Kent Mackenzie’s The Exiles. Lipman will also present The Exploding Digital Inevitable and Bruce Conner’s Crossroads.
—Susan Oxtoby, Director of Film and Senior Film Curator