What I Really Want to Do is Direct: Movies Stars Behind the Camera

Guest speaker: film critic Adam Nayman

The recent passing of Oscar-winning Hollywood icon Robert Redford prompted widespread reflection on his impact on the American film industry – not just as a movie star, but also as a director, producer, Sundance Festival founder, and behind-the-scenes power broker. In this five-part series, we’ll learn about the history and legacy of actors who leveraged their stardom to become ‘multi-hyphenate’ moviemakers in the Redford mould, including Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, Warren Beatty, Jodie Foster, Clint Eastwood, Diane Keaton, Ben Affleck, Greta Gerwig… and more!

Presented in partnership with the Toronto Film Society.

Join us in the Al Green Theatre, on Zoom simulcast, or register to receive the recordings!

Mondays: January 12, 19, 26; February 2 & 9

1:00-2:30pm

Al Green Theatre

Series: $80; Drop-in: $20

For registration assistance, please call 416-924-6211 x0 or email help@mnjcc.org.

For more information, contact Lisa Roy at 416-924-6211 x6155 or email lisar@mnjcc.org.

Jan 12: Charlie Chaplin and Orson Welles set the standard for the writer-director-producer-star.

Jan 19:  Robert Redford, Warren Beatty, Clint Eastwood and Spike Lee shape the culture around them.

Jan 26: Ida Lupino, Jodie Foster, Sarah Polley and Greta Gerwig move from being muses for male directors into auteurs on their own terms.

Feb 2: Charles Laughton’s Night of the Hunter, Timothy Carey’s World’s Greatest Sinner, Barbara Loden’s Wanda, Diane Keaton’s Heaven.

Feb 9: Bradley Cooper and Ben Affleck as 21st century inheritors to the Redford/Beatty tradition.

Adam Nayman is a well-respected film critic, author and lecturer. He has been a member of the Toronto Film Critics Association since 2002, and he has programmed and hosted films for the Toronto International Film Festival’s Reel Talk series. Adam regularly writes about film for publications such as The Globe and Mail, The Ringer, Sight and Sound and Reverse Shot, and his reviews have been published in The Walrus, The Village Voice, Film Comment and in spring 2022, Adam was published in The New Yorker! Adam is a contributing editor for Cinema Scope and POV, has reviewed books for Quill and Quire, and was a staff writer for season one of The Vice Guide to Film. He has also written several books, including: It Doesn’t Suck: Showgirls; Confusion and Carnage: Ben Wheatley; and The Coen Brothers: This Book Really Ties the Films Together. Adam regularly lectures about film at the University of Toronto and Ryerson University. At the Miles Nadal JCC, Adam programmed and hosted films for the Toronto Jewish Film Society, and has taught the very popular series: In Nayman’s Terms; That’s Entertainment! The Evolution of the Hollywood Musical; The New Hollywood of the 60s & 70s: Geniuses in the System; Films Shot and Set in Toronto; Revenge of the Studios: Hollywood Strikes Back; The Greatest Movie Remakes and The Reboots that Nobody Asked For; Hollywood, Cold War Paranoia and The Blacklist; and Bringing Five Jewish Directors into Focus. We are delighted to welcome Adam back to our JCC again this winter!

Toronto Film Society is Canada’s second oldest film appreciation group. Formed in 1948 to serve the need for Canadian and international forgotten, banned, independent, and fringe sound and silent films, and to support film restoration and preservation, TFS remains a volunteer-run, membership-driven, non-profit organization dedicated to the artistic, historic, educational, and social significance of cinema. Expertly-curated films (circa 1910-80) are enjoyed as they were meant to be seen: on the big screen with an audience. Some are rare, archival prints not easily obtained by the general public. Our exceptional film series, festivals, and special events engage diverse cinephiles from the GTA and beyond. Join us; you’ll be glad you did! For more information, visit http://torontofilmsociety.com/.