When Frederick Wiseman passed away earlier this year, he left behind 48 films as director. A documentarian, he rejected the idea of 'truth' in cinema, acknowledging that each creative choice he made was a step further away. He referred to his films as 'reality fictions', but upon reflection, they seem like the truest that cinema has ever been.
Throughout spring, ACMI will present a selection of Frederick Wiseman’s films focusing on public institutions over time. From the Kansas City Police Department in 1969’s Law and Order to 2020’s City Hall.
Like Wiseman’s oeuvre, these films tell us about ourselves and the world we live in, but over time – as we’ve seen with his earlier films – they take on more meaning as key markers, immortalising a world that was.
