"The only person I would ever try to copy."--Andy Warhol on Jack Smith

Start time for Smith films: 8:45 PM. A central figure in New York's underground culture in the 1960s and an innovative progenitor of the "camp" or "trash" sensibility, Jack Smith (born in Columbus in 1932) gained notoriety with the film Flaming Creatures, whose screenings were often raided, rioted over, and banned. Through rare archival footage and interviews with collaborators and devotees including John Waters, Richard Foreman, John Zorn, and Jonas Mekas, this fascinating documentary provides a revelatory portrait of the filmmaker, performer, artist, photographer, and provocateur. With music by Zorn and Thurston Moore. (video, 96 mins.)

Following the documentary, we'll show Flaming Creatures (Jack Smith, 1962-1963) and two famed shorts featuring Smith: Blond Cobra (Ken Jacobs, 1959-1963) and Little Stabs at Happiness (Ken Jacobs, 1959-1962). (16mm, total running time 90 mins.)

image credits
Jack Smith collage, c. 1980s
Courtesy of Plaster Foundation/NY County Public Administrator
© Jack Smith Estate

Jack Smith in Rome with Yolanda La Penguina, c. 1975
Courtesy of and copyright Ivan Galietti