Mark Cousins’ acclaimed documentary The Eyes of Orson Welles will have its North American premiere at the Traverse City Film Festival on August 3.
The Michigan screening is appropriate since Cousins and Welles’ youngest daughter, Beatrice, met at the 2016 Traverse City Film Festival, where they conceived the project. Festival founder Michael Moore is an executive producer on The Eyes of Orson Welles.
The film explores Welles’ life and career through a trove of paintings and sketches he created throughout his life.
“Like many people, I’ve loved Welles films throughout my adult life, but I didn’t think I’d make a film about him,” Cousins told Wellesnet in April. “But then, I met Beatrice Welles and, through her, saw his drawings and paintings. I realized that this was a new way of seeing Welles, an unexpected way, a side door. The challenge is, as always, to avoid banality, cliches and the obvious. I wanted to try to say something new.”
Beatrice Welles served as a consultant to the documentary.
“I always wanted to make a documentary about my father’s artwork,” Beatrice Welles told Wellesnet. “After I met Mark at Michael Moore’s, I knew he would be the right person. His idea on how he wanted approach it also seemed just perfect.
The Eyes of Orson Welles will be shown at the Old Town Playhouse on August 3 at 9 p.m. and again the following day at 6 p.m. at City Opera House.
Tickets and schedule information may be found at traversecityfilmfest.org/tickets/
London-based Dogwoof plans an August 17 release for the film.
The BBC has the UK broadcast rights, while Turner Classic Movies and Filmstruck have television and streaming video-on-demand rights in North America.
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