Academy Museum to Host Exhibits Curated by Spike Lee, Pedro Almodóvar

The upcoming Academy Museum of Motion Pictures have announced that a number of prolific filmmakers will collaborate on exhibitions when the museum opens—among them, Spike Lee and Pedro Almodóvar, as well as composer Hildur Guðnadóttir, Oscar winner for her ‘Joker’ (2019) music score, and Ben Burtt, a veteran sound designer of ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Indiana Jones’ franchise fame.

Bill Kramer, the Academy Museum’s director, announced the details of these future partnerships on Saturday. The institution is due to open on 14^th December this year, nearly a decade after the project was first made public.

‘We will open the Academy Museum with exhibitions and programs that will illuminate the complex and fascinating world of cinema — its art, technology, artists, history, and social impact — through a variety of diverse and engaging voices. We will tell complete stories of moviemaking — celebratory, educational, and sometimes critical and uncomfortable. Global in outlook and grounded in the unparalleled collections and expertise of the Academy, these first exhibitions will establish this museum as incomparable in the world of cinema’, Mr Kramer said in his statement.

SPIKE LEE, ©JORDAN STRAUSS/INVISION/AP

He also acknowledged that this announcement comes at a difficult time for most museums, movie theatres and other cultural establishments, given that the coronavirus pandemic has forced them to shutter for the foreseeable future.

‘We are keenly aware that we’re working towards the opening of the Academy Museum during a time of great challenge. Over the past century, motion pictures have reflected and impacted major historical issues and events. The stories we tell in the Academy Museum are part of those bigger stories, and we are committed to highlighting the social impact of motion pictures. We look forward to brighter days for everyone, everywhere’, the Academy Museum’s director added.

PEDRO ALMODOVAR, ©NICO BUSTOS

The six-level museum will be located at Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles, and its exhibits will tell stories of our beloved film industry—stories from all over the world, giving visitors an opportunity to dive into the arts and sciences of filmmaking. Among the planned galleries, the Academy museum will focus on classics such as ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (1939), ‘Citizen Kane’ (1941), ‘The Matrix’ (1999), along with works from Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki’s stellar animated production company.

Spike Lee won his first Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay last year thanks to ‘BlacKkKlansman’ (2018), after an honorary award received in 2016. Pedro Almodóvar has earned his own share of Oscars over the years—one for ‘All About My Mother’ (1999) and another for ‘Talk to Her’ (2002). Ms Guðnadóttir is only the fourth woman in history to win the Best Original Score Academy Award, and Mr Burtt is the recipient of plenty of trophies of his own for the ‘Star Wars’ trilogy, ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ (1981), ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial’ (1982), and ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’ (1989).