Series Site
Asia Society presents the premiere of three new restorations by acclaimed Georgian auteur Otar Ioselliani, followed by a full retrospective at Metrograph in August.
Described as “the true heir to Renoir, Tati, and Buñuel,” Otar Iosseliani was a devout anti-confirmist whose lyrical, anarchic comedies are closer to musical composition than conventional narrative cinema. Employing long takes with minimal cuts and allowing his subjects to overlap and intertwine, his films are propelled by behavior, milieu, and witty observations of the everyday. In the words of critic Bernard Eisenschitz, Iosseliani cultivated the feeling that “every moment should be lived as an adventure.” Iosseliani achieved his breakthrough with Falling Leaves, a landmark of the new Georgian cinema, which won the FIPRESCI prize at Cannes Critics Week in 1967. His follow up features—Once Upon a Time There Was a Singing Blackbird (1970) and Pastorale (1979)—solidified his status as “a watercolorist of everyday life” (Raphaël Bassan). (Cinema Guild).
Co-presented by Metrograph and Klassiki.