PROGRAM
Fall/Winter
Thank you to everyone who joined us for the 35th Annual Brooklyn Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We were so thankful for this coming together of artists, activists, civic leaders, and community members to begin the year focused on justice, equality, and the potential for change. If you weren’t able to attend, this free virtual event is now available to stream through February 28. Plus, we’re opening two Sundance favorites in our virtual cinemas, looking forward to a conversation between award-winning poets Ross Gay and Leah Naomi Green, and putting out a call for young filmmakers to share their work at the BAMkids Film Festival 2021.

Haunted by a prophecy that he will die at age 20, a young man escapes his mother’s watchful eye and begins to question his destiny in this auspicious debut from Sudanese filmmaker Amjad Abu Alala.
Season Sponsor:
Leadership support for
off-site programs provided by:
Leadership support for BAM Access Programs
provided by the Jerome L. Greene Foundation

Set in the current Mexican humanitarian crisis, this poignant drama tells the story of a woman’s search to find her son who disappeared en route to the US border.

Calling all young filmmakers—ages 13 or younger—to submit a short film to be included in this year’s BAMkids Film Festival.

We come together to honor the iconic civil rights leader at this digital adaptation of our beloved annual event, featuring world-renowned activists and civic leaders alongside musicians and other performers.

This visually extravagant, masterful evocation of romantic longing is a milestone in Wong Kar Wai’s career, newly restored in 4K.

A new restoration of Wong Kar Wai’s emotionally raw, lushly stylized portrait of a relationship in breakdown—a celebrated influence on Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight.

One of the defining works of 90s cinema is newly restored, offering a fresh look at the gloriously shot and utterly unexpected film that made Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar Wai an instant icon.

Based on the best-selling memoir by Naoki Higashida, this immersive cinematic exploration of neurodiversity centers the experiences of five nonspeaking autistic people from around the world.

This fascinating documentary charts the improbable transformation of MASS MoCA from abandoned factories into the world’s largest museum for contemporary art and highlights some of the artists working there today.


BAM launches a new artist residency series with Timothy du White, Marjani Forte-Saunders & Everett Saunders, Annie-B Parson, and others, starting this fall.


The award winning poets discuss their work in connecting with systems of healing and support in nature, poetry, and one another.

A longtime political activist runs for office in his regional Kenyan election, but challenging corrupt opponents soon puts his family at risk. Should country really come before family, as he’s always believed?

A virtual watch party of this year’s tribute to MLK followed by discussion—just for teens.

Brooklyn artists investigate the notion of freedom in this new installation on the BAM sign.

A real-life political saga following the Christian mayor of the Palestinian city of Ramallah.

An intimate portrait of two working mothers and a caregiver at a 24-hour daycare center.

The Black Lives Matter co-creator offers a new paradigm for change with her new book.

A thrilling exposé of fraud and malfeasance after an explosive fire at a Bucharest nightclub.

Create a new theater piece that tackles social issues in this free after-school program.

Denis’ hypnotically languorous take on Billy Budd is an erotic ballet of jealousy and obsession.

A new, complete restoration of Richard Wright’s bombshell 1940 novel brought to the screen.

A new restoration of Chantal Akerman’s cinematographic elegy without dialogue or commentary.

Malian director Abderrahmane Sissako’s portrait of corrupt global forces and its effects.

This explosive tale of unrest on the margins of Paris celebrates 25 years with a new restoration.

V (formerly Eve Ensler) spotlights the nurses on the frontlines in this new virtual play.

An Italy-set bildungsroman about a self-taught proletarian with hopes to rise above his station.

A new restoration of William Greaves’(Symbiopsychotaxiplasm) long-lost documentary.

A heart-racing, one-of-a-kind essay on human connection and its aching absence.

This virtual family-friendly Halloween party includes a costume contest and dance party!

A new installation traverses four years of news headlines under Trump on the BAM sign.

The jazz visionary and inventor in a documentary as thrillingly free form as he is.

The Pulitzer-winning journalist outlines how the caste system plays out across civilizations.

Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding stars in Hong Khaou’s film about cultural dislocation.

Laura Dern stars in this dark drama based on a classic story by Joyce Carol Oates.

This portrait of a transgender fundamentalist Baptist minister reveals our country's fixation on identity.

Gentle, colorful animated films about singing, flying high, and celebrating the magic of life.

An essential record of pre-gentrification Williamsburg's Puerto Rican community.

This documentary cult classic is an affectionate portrait of five obsessive film goers.

An acclaimed DIY documentary about a homeless community living in a train tunnel.

Writer and curator Kimberly Drew and culture writer Jenna Wortham celebrate their new book.

Local filmmakers capture the magnetism, care, and resilience of the city in these shorts.

An impressionistic, idyllic portrait of New York from 1958 to 1960 by Manny Kirchheimer.

A chronicle of the world’s largest collection of materials by and about lesbians.

An electrifying portrait of writer and performer Okwui Okpokwasili and her acclaimed show.

An urgent look into our apocalyptic future as seen from the perilous present.

Two short documentaries shine a light on the struggle for housing justice in New York.