still from A Woman Under the Influence

1974 / 155 min
Director & Screenwriter: John Cassavetes
Cast: Gena Rowlands, Peter Falk
Digital | Courtesy of Shout Factory
Screening followed by Q&A with distributor Jeff Lipsky.

Filmmaker John Cassavetes and actress Gena Rowlands hit their peak with this searing portrait of a working-class housewife going to pieces. Unable to find conventional financing for the film, Cassavetes and Rowlands mortgaged their house, and got the rest of the budget from friends like co-star Peter Falk. When no distributor would pick up the long and harrowing movie (the director was told, “No one wants to see a crazy, middle-aged dame”), Cassavetes distributed the film himself, with the help of a small army of young film buffs — including Ira Deutchman, who organized and marketed the Midwest premiere while still a student at Northwestern University.  The result was a critical and commercial hit, winning Oscar nominations for both Cassavetes and Rowlands.

This screening is part of NY Indie Guy: Ira Deutchman and the Rise of Independent Film

On September 14-16 and September 20-23, 2018, Columbia University’s Lenfest Center for the Arts will host a retrospective exhibit honoring the career of Film Professor and Producing Concentration Supervisor Ira Deutchman. Since 1975, Deutchman has been a leader in distributing, marketing, and producing American independent films, international films, and arthouse films. He is perhaps best known for founding and running the distribution companies Cinecom, Fine Line Features, and Emerging Pictures. Deutchman has taught at Columbia since 1987.  

This retrospective will screen essential motion pictures from various points in Deutchman’s career, such as The Brother From Another Planet; Diva; Harlan County USA; sex, lies, & videotape; Swoon; and A Woman Under the Influence. Many showings will feature Q&A talkbacks with filmmakers or performers. The celebration will also include panel discussions and an extensive exhibit covering Deutchman’s impact on cinema.  

Sponsors

The Art House Convergence
Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard
Film and Media Studies, Columbia University School of the Arts
The Society of Fellows and Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University
The Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality at Columbia University
The University of Michigan Library