The Supreme Court Building (Local Identifier: 64-M-54)

Toward Justice Supreme: Commemorating the Establishment of the Supreme Court

After the ratification of the United States Constitution, newly-elected senators and representatives were faced with the task of creating a functioning government based on a four-page framework. The first session of the First United States Congress, held in 1789 at Federal Hall in New York City, set about erecting many of the institutions of government … Continue reading Toward Justice Supreme: Commemorating the Establishment of the Supreme Court

Celebrating the Bicentennial: Crafting the Old Ways

This is the second installment in our series about the United States Information Agency’s Young Film Maker Bicentennial Grant Films. In the previous post, we told you about the program and featured a trippy animated short. Today we have Sharon and Thomas Hudgins’ film Homespun and Stephen Rivkin’s Winter Count, both completed in 1975. Homespun When … Continue reading Celebrating the Bicentennial: Crafting the Old Ways

Celebrating America: The USIA Young Filmmaker Bicentennial Grant Project

The United States’ Bicentennial celebration was huge. America’s 200th birthday saturated popular culture in the mid-1970s, with Bicentennial-themed products and media. In addition, years of planning by the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration culminated in a year of more formal events put on by the United States government. Many federal agencies hopped on the Bicentennial bandwagon, … Continue reading Celebrating America: The USIA Young Filmmaker Bicentennial Grant Project

John Huston’s “Birthday Present” to America

“All films are created equal. I don’t think there is such a thing as a small film. We’re not pulling any punches here. Scene for scene, everything is being done to the best of our abilities. Each scene as we make it is the best scene I’ve ever made—in my imagination.” –John Huston, on Independence In … Continue reading John Huston’s “Birthday Present” to America