EARLY AMERICAN AVANT-GARDE CINEMA: MAYA DEREN & BEYOND

EARLY AMERICAN AVANT-GARDE CINEMA: MAYA DEREN & BEYOND

Curated by Anthology Film Archives for the Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Centre

From 4–18 December 2025, the Dovzhenko Centre, in collaboration with RIBBON International and Anthology Film Archives, presented Early American Avant-Garde Cinema: Maya Deren & Beyond, a film program in two parts — with a further Body + Dance program, as well as a Feature Film program — exploring the emergence of the American experimental and underground film movements that took shape during and immediately after the Second World War.

Following the success of the first chapter in this collaboration — a retrospective dedicated to Sergei Parajanov presented at Anthology Film Archives in New York in November 2024 — this second edition considered the radical reinvention of cinema as an art form in the mid-20th century, from Maya Deren’s pioneering works in the 1940s to the groundbreaking films of the 1950s, 60s and 70s.

Jed Rapfogel, Film Programmer of Anthology Film Archives says:

“This series highlights how Maya Deren helped forge the path for avant-garde cinema, demonstrating — alongside her contemporaries — that film could be as intimate, poetic, and self-expressive as any art form. By following the movement from Ukrainian-born Deren’s early experiments to the innovations of Brakhage, Anger, and Menken (who were inspired in part by the montage experiments of Dovzhenko among others), we also trace the connections between the American avant-garde and global and Ukrainian cinematic histories.

We’re thrilled to be collaborating so closely with the Dovzhenko Centre, one of the world’s most vital film archives, in telling this story.”

Olena Honcharuk, Creative Director of the Dovzhenko Centre says:

“This program powerfully reaffirms how deeply Ukrainian artists have shaped global film history. Maya Deren’s legacy reminds us that Ukrainian-born creators have long expanded the language of cinema and helped spark entirely new artistic movements.

At a time when Ukraine’s cultural memory is under direct threat, the work of the Dovzhenko Centre to preserve and share our cinematic heritage has never been more urgent. We’re honored to collaborate on a series that not only celebrates the American avant-garde but also recognizes the Ukrainian histories and voices that shaped it [the American avant-garde].”

Screenings

Thurs, Dec 4
18:00 Introduction: Early American Avant-garde 1 (80 min)
20:00 Heaven and Earth Magic (66 min)

Sat, Dec 6
16:00 Early American Avant-garde 2 (85 min)
18:00 Panel Discussion
19:30 Opening Reception

Sun, Dec 7
15:00 Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (82 min)
17:00 Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (75 min)
19:00 Body + Dance program (ca. 75 min)

Wed, Dec 10
17:00 The Connection (103 min)

Thurs, Dec 11
18:00 Walden (180 min)

Fri, Dec 12
18:00 Early American Avant-garde 1 (80 min)
20:00 Heaven and Earth Magic (66 min)

Sat, Dec 13
15:00 Early American Avant-garde 2 (85 min)
17:00 Panel Discussion

Sun, Dec 14
15:00 Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (82 min)
17:00 Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (75 min)
19:00 Body + Dance program (ca. 75 min)

Wed, Dec 17
19:00 The Connection (103 min)

Thurs, Dec 18
18:00 Walden (180 min)