Silverdocs To Honor Maysles

AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival announced that it will honor Albert Maysles at the Charles Guggenheim Symposium, a centrepiece of the eight-day documentary festival which takes place in June just outside Washington, D.C.  The Symposium, named after the late, four-time Academy Award winner Charles Guggenheim, honors a filmmaker “who has mastered the power of documentary and inspires audiences with powerful explorations of the human experience.”

“With a career spanning over five decades, Albert Maysles’ body of work covers the most iconic figures of our time and exemplifies Charles Guggenheim’s passion for his subjects and keen awareness of the importance of documentary in both capturing events and framing history,” said Sky Sitney, SILVERDOCS Artistic Director, in a statement. “We are thrilled to recognize his vast contribution to cinema and the documentary form.”

Maysles has directed over 35 films and was the cinematographer on 64, creating (in collaboration with his late brother David and other filmmakers) influential works including 1968’s “Salesman,” 1970’s “Gimme Shelter,” and 1976’s “Grey Gardens.” Recently he co-directed “The Gates” with Antonio Ferrera, which follows the artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude for over two decades as they attempt to realize their dream of transforming New York City’s Central Park into an art piece. 

As part of the Symposium, SILVERDOCS will screen a series of excerpts from Maysles’ body of documentary work.  Following the screening, Maysles will be joined by special guests to engage in a discussion of his career, including Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Barbara Kopple and other special guests.

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