Focus on Frederick Wiseman

When Frederick Wiseman passed away earlier this year, he left behind 48 films as director. A documentarian, he rejected the idea of 'truth' in cinema, acknowledging that each creative choice he made was a step further away. He referred to his films as 'reality fictions', but upon reflection, they seem like the truest that cinema has ever been.

Throughout summer, ACMI presents a selection of Frederick Wiseman’s films focusing on private enterprises over time. Go behind the scenes to learn about the realities of everyday businesses, from the slaughterhouse to the world's finest restaurant and a the New York public library.

Like Wiseman’s oeuvre, these films tell us about ourselves and the world we live in, but over time – as we’ve seen with his earlier films – they take on more meaning as key markers, immortalising a world that was.