Picturing the Presidents

Feb 10, 2009

1h 10m

★ 7.0

Is image everything?

Overview

We go behind the scenes and into the minds of artists as they capture, commemorate, and, at times, condemn our presidents.

Genres

Documentary

History

Production Companies

The Smithsonian Network

Picturing the Presidents Trailers

Cast

Narrator

Salvatore Vecchio

Self (archive footage)

George H. W. Bush

Self (archive footage)

Gerald Ford

Self (archive footage)

Bill Clinton

Self (archive footage)

Lyndon B. Johnson

Self (archive footage)

Richard Nixon

Self (archive footage)

John F. Kennedy

Self (archive footage)

Elaine de Kooning

Self

Addie Moray

Self

Marc Pachter

Self

Nelson Shanks

Self

Hilary Kacser

Schtonk! is a farce of the actual events of 1983, when Germany's Stern magazine published, with great fanfare, 60 volumes of the alleged diaries of Adolf Hitler – which two weeks later turned out to be entirely fake. Fritz Knobel (based on real-life forger Konrad Kujau) supports himself by faking and selling Nazi memorabilia. When Knobel writes and sells a volume of Hitler's (nonexistent) diaries, he thinks it's just another job. When sleazy journalist Hermann Willié learns of the diaries, however, he quickly realizes their potential value... and Knobel is quickly in over his head. As the pressure builds and Knobel is forced to deliver more and more volumes of the fake diaries, he finds himself acting increasingly like the man whose life he is rewriting. The film is a romping and hilarious satire, poking fun not only at the events and characters involved in the hoax (who are only thinly disguised in the film), but at the discomfort Germany has with its difficult past.

7.6

JFK

Dec 20, 1991

Follows the investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy led by New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison.

7.2

Zeitgeist: Addendum

Oct 2, 2008

Zeitgeist: Addendum premiered at the 5th Annual Artivist Film Festival. Director Peter Joseph stated: "The failure of our world to resolve the issues of war, poverty, and corruption, rests within a gross ignorance about what guides human behavior to begin with. It address the true source of the instability in our society, while offering the only fundamental, long-term solution."

5.0

The Curious World of Hieronymus Bosch

Dec 30, 2016

Exhibition on Screen's latest release celebrates the life and masterpieces of Hieronymus Bosch brought together from around the world to his hometown in the Netherlands as a one-off exhibition. With exclusive access to the gallery and the show, this stunning film explores this mysterious, curious, medieval painter who continues to inspire today's creative geniuses. Over 420,000 people flocked to the exhibition to marvel at Bosch's bizarre creations but now, audiences can enjoy a front row seat at Bosch's extraordinary homecoming from the comfort of their own home anywhere in the world. Expert insights from curators and leading cultural critics explore the inspiration behind Bosch's strange and unsettling works. Close-up views of the curiosities allow viewers to appreciate the detail of his paintings like never before. Bosch's legendary altarpieces, which have long been divided among museums, were brought back together for the exhibition and feature in the film.

6.7

Pollock

Sep 6, 2000

In August of 1949, Life Magazine ran a banner headline that begged the question: "Jackson Pollock: Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The film is a look back into the life of an extraordinary man, a man who has fittingly been called "an artist dedicated to concealment, a celebrity who nobody knew." As he struggled with self-doubt, engaging in a lonely tug-of-war between needing to express himself and wanting to shut the world out, Pollock began a downward spiral.

6.9

Mona Lisa Smile

Dec 19, 2003

Katherine Watson is a recent UCLA graduate hired to teach art history at the prestigious all-female Wellesley College, in 1953. Determined to confront the outdated mores of society and the institution that embraces them, Katherine inspires her traditional students, including Betty and Joan, to challenge the lives they are expected to lead.

6.8

Miss Hokusai

May 9, 2015

A daughter is constantly overshadowed by her famous father, but she is determined to make her own mark in the world.

0.0

Indisciplinado. Historia de un proyecto político

May 25, 2023

No overview available.

6.2

I, Claude Monet

Feb 14, 2017

From award-winning director Phil Grabsky comes this fresh new look at arguably the world’s favourite artist – through his own words. Using letters and other private writings I, Claude Monet reveals new insight into the man who not only painted the picture that gave birth to impressionism but who was perhaps the most influential and successful painter of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Despite this, and perhaps because of it, Monet’s life is a gripping tale about a man who, behind his sun-dazzled canvases, suffered from feelings of depression, loneliness, even suicide. Then, as his art developed and his love of gardening led to the glories of his garden at Giverney, his humour, insight and love of life is revealed. Shot on location in Paris, London, Normandy and Venice I, Claude Monet is a cinematic immersion into some of the most loved and iconic scenes in Western Art.

0.0

Barack Obama

Oct 15, 2008

Featuring insightful interviews with friends and family members, as well as previously unreleased footage of Obama's campaign

6.2

W.

Oct 17, 2008

The story of the eventful life of George W. Bush—his struggles and triumphs, how he found both his wife and his faith—and the critical days leading up to his decision to invade Iraq.

7.1

Francis Bacon: A Brush with Violence

Jan 28, 2017

In this unique, compelling film, those who knew him speak freely, some for the first time, to reveal the many mysteries of Francis Bacon.

0.0

The Way of Samodelkin

Jun 5, 2009

A mystical detective story set in the realm of Moscow art scene. Psychedelic trip through different places, characters and strategies in the search for the Author, covering mythology of Moscow art from the period of 1980-2010. The movie is based on the 'Inspection Medical Hermeneutics' group's text of the same name and on the historical research performed by the authors of the film. Production was an experiment in collective film making experience.

6.1

Evita

Dec 14, 1996

The hit musical based on the life of Evita Duarte, a B-movie Argentinian actress who eventually became the wife of Argentinian president and dictator Juan Perón, and the most beloved and hated woman in Argentina.

7.0

De Charles de Gaulle à Emmanuel Macron, les gardiens de l'empire

Mar 9, 2022

No overview available.

7.5

Thomas Hart Benton

Oct 31, 1989

Thomas Hart Benton's paintings were energetic and uncompromising. Today his works are in museums, but Benton hung them in saloons for ordinary people to appreciate.

6.0

Eye of the Storm

Feb 28, 2021

The film tells the story of James Morrison’s early years, painting the tenements of Glasgow, through to his dramatic encounter with a polar bear while painting melting icebergs in North West Greenland. As the artist struggles with imposing blindness, the film follows James, as he prepares for what turned out to be his last ever public exhibition at the Scottish Gallery in Edinburgh in January 2020.

5.8

Meet the Trumps: From Immigrant to President

Jan 17, 2017

The remarkable true story of Donald Trump's family history - one of the most extraordinary immigration success stories ever told - and what it reveals about the United States' 45th President

7.5

Goya, Carrière & the Ghost of Buñuel

Sep 21, 2022

French writer Jean-Claude Carrière (1931-2021) traces the life and work of Spanish painter Francisco de Goya (1746-1828).