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“So many people talk about making films that are different… and William just goes out there and does it – and he’s passionate and that’s contagious. He is inspiring to me.” Steve Buscemi    

This retrospective traces the long-ranging career of the great William Greaves; a filmmaker, producer and activist whose trailblazing work defied racial and artistic barriers across the 20th century.

Through fiction, documentaries, and experimental films, Greaves educated the masses and challenged the status quo. Born in 1926 Harlem, he was a multidimensional talent who worked first as an actor and dancer before developing a career as a director, producer and songwriter.

Greaves began to get infuriated by the stereotypical depictions of African Americans presented on TV in the 1950s and decided to become a filmmaker to redress this. He would go on to produce over 200 documentary films, win an Emmy for the pioneering television show Black Journal, as well as numerous other awards. This programme surveys his career across the 20th and 21st century and celebrates his lasting impact. 

In the 1940s Greaves began carving out a successful career on both screen and Broadway and played leading roles in two films Miracle in Harlem (USA 1948) and Souls of Sin (USA 1949), that both screen in this season. These were known as ‘race films’ which were independently produced and portrayed the Black experience more authentically. During this pivotal moment in Black cinema, around five hundred of these ‘race films’ were made, with fewer than one hundred sadly remaining today.

The Short Films by William Greaves 1959 – 1974 is a programme from early on in his career. He made several shorts for the United States Information Agency, where he was tasked with making public information films, and used the role to create work looking at Black history, such as the short From These Roots (USA 1974), a historical piece exploring the Harlem Renaissance. These films reflect his skill at creating inventive work, with a socially conscious vein, in an independent manner, even whilst working for a government agency.

The season continues with his groundbreaking feature Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (USA 1968), which defies classification and sees the filmmaker playing a version of himself, as he shoots a screen test of a couple arguing in Central Park, and in doing so, calls into question the veracity of what we are seeing, and the act of filmmaking itself. 

The film is now regarded as one of the most creative and inspiring reflections on the dynamics between actors, the crew and filmmaker, and the power of the editor and the structure of storytelling. 

In the same year (1968) Greaves produced Black Journal, a pioneering, nationally broadcast long running television series about African American news, culture and social issues. The Barbican screens the sixth episode, originally broadcast on 25 November 1968 which looks at the role of Black policeman, Ghanaian murals and the ongoing liberation movement in South Africa. Under Greaves’ production, he sought to examine how Black people were working to resolve the issues affecting their lives. 

The Short Films by William Greaves 1981 – 1988 brings together his films exploring Black history made in 1980s America, his fourth decade as a working filmmaker. His work is more conventional in this era, partly due to being commissioned by national agencies; Space For Women (USA 1981) is a training video documenting the role women play at NASA and Black Power in America: Myth or Reality? (USA 1988), sees him critically reflecting on the legacy of the civil rights movement and what Black Power meant in the 1980s.

The season concludes with Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take 2 ½ (USA 2005), the last ever film that William Greaves would complete. 

Here he revisits his most celebrated work, drawing from the characters which he would introduce in the original film Symbiopsychotaxiplasm. This sequel centres around bringing together actors who had played these two characters, some 35 years later.

Prompted by the universal praise Symbiopsychotaxiplasm received after it was eventually screened at the Brooklyn Museum in 1991, 20 years after it was filmed, Greaves would be invited by Steven Soderberg to create a sequel, along with Steve Buscemi, who appears in the film, and takes on the role of producer. Greaves creates a compelling work, mixing scripted material with improvisation and signs off on his career on an enigmatic note, creating a work that no one saw coming, and one which retains its power and intrigue to this day. 

Matthew Barrington, Barbican Cinema Curator comments: 

“Across his work in film, stage and television, William Greaves has always been able to produce exemplary, boundary pushing material, with a commitment to critically engaging with the world around him, and this programme celebrates his illustrious career and the incredible mark he has left on cinema.”

With thanks to William Greaves Productions, Indie Collect and Janus Films.

I Am Furious Black: The Films of William Greaves Full Programme:

The Voice of La Raza & Nationtime (12*)
The Voice of La Raza, USA 1972, Dir. William Greaves, 39min
Nationtime, USA 1972, Dir. William Greaves, 80min
Wed 21 Oct, 6.20pm 
Cinema 3

Two films that open a window to early 1970s America, Black politics, migrant experiences and the political temperature of a changing time. In The Voice of La Raza, Greavesblend interviews and staged scenes to explore the struggles of Mexican immigrants and Spanish-speaking families. Greaves works with Anthony Quinn to push the boundaries of documentary, using his unique flair for improvisation and violating the rules of the genre.

In Nationtime, Greaves follows the three-day National Black Political Convention in Indiana, capturing speeches by prominent figures such as Jesse Jackson, Coretta Scott King, Amiri Baraka, and Bobby Seale. Documenting the changing face of Black politics, it captures the mixture of anger and optimism of the day. Narrated by Bahamian-American actor/director Sidney Poitier and actor Harry Belafonte.

Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (15) + introduction by filmmaker Jessica Sarah Rinland 
USA 1968, Dir. William Greaves, 75min 
Tue 27 Oct, 6.30pm 
Cinema 3 

Fascinated by sociology and philosophy, William Greaves created the hyper-meta Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One to explore human behaviour through the lens of social roles and pressures. More of a psychological experiment than drama or doc, Greaves uses the pretence of making a film to examine the dynamics of a crew. 

He expanded on the concept ‘symbiotaxiplasm,’; “the living web of events and environmental elements that impact human consciousness and behaviour” (Arthur F. Bentley). 

Playing out like a documentary about a documentary about making a film; all these ideas come together to reflect 1960s US counterculture, and playfully subvert audience expectations at every turn, set to In A Silent Way by Miles Davis.

Souls of Sin 35mm & Miracle in Harlem 35mm (12)
Miracle in Harlem, USA 1948, Dir. Jack Kemp, 69min, 35mm
Souls of Sin, USA 1949, Dir. Powell Lindsay, 64min, 35mm
Tue 3 Nov, 6.20pm 
Cinema 1 

These two 35mm 'race films' from the late 1940s feature all-Black casts, and a young William Greaves as he was establishing his career on screen and Broadway.

Screened in segregated cinemas for Black audiences from 1915 - 1950s, ‘race films’ provided opportunities for more authentic representations of Black life and a wider range of roles for Black performers in 1900s America.

Miracle in Harlem blends music, romance, and comedy; telling a story of a shipowner who is tricked by a corrupt real estate mogul. During this pivotal moment in Black cinema, around five hundred ‘race films’ were made, with fewer than one hundred remaining today.

Lost Boundaries (12) 
USA 1949, Dir. Alfred L.Werker, 99min
Wed 4 Nov, 6.30pm 
Cinema 2 

Part of an ever-growing series of liberal American films that attempted to tackle the "race problem," Lost Boundaries centred around a young African American family who ‘pass’ as white, as they attempt to build a life for themselves in a white society, knowing that their idyllic existence would be threatened were their racial identity was exposed.

Today, the film stands as a sincere but flawed melodrama; an important document of Hollywood cinema and the sparsity of roles available to Black actors, which just three years later would prompt Greaves to leave the USA to Canada and learn how to make his own films.

Black Journal (15)
USA 1968, Dir William Greaves
Sat 7 Nov, 1pm 
Cinema 3 

A free screening of an episode from the long-running TV series launched in 1968, one of the first to offer alternative media representations of Black politics and concerns.

This was first broadcast on 25 November 1968 and was created in response to prejudiced media coverage of riots, aiming to document the everyday experiences and struggles of Black communities. Like much of the series, the episode features segments directed by emerging young filmmakers. 

Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (15) + panel discussion with Morgan Quaintance, Jennifer Lauren Martin and Matthew Barrington
Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One, USA 1968, Dir William Greaves, 75min 
You’ve Got A Number, 1975, USA, Dir. William Greaves, 12min
Sat 7 Nov, 2.30pm 
Cinema 3 

The acclaimed experimental film project follows William Greaves directing a screen test of a couple arguing in Central Park; questioning both the authenticity of what we see, and the act of filmmaking.

Fascinated by sociology and philosophy, William Greaves created the hyper-meta Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One to explore human behaviour through the lens of social roles and pressures. More of a psychological experiment than drama or doc, Greaves uses the pretence of making a film, to examine the dynamics of a crew. He expanded on the concept ‘symbiotaxiplasm,’; “the living web of events and environmental elements that impact human consciousness and behaviour” (Arthur F. Bentley).

In the Company of Men & The Deep North (15) 
In the Company of Men, USA 1969, Dir. William Greaves, 52min
The Deep North, USA 1988, Dir. William Greaves, 58min
Wed 11 Nov, 6.20pm 
Cinema 3 

Two films that explore psychodrama as a way of analysing and addressing racial inequality through group workshops, from 1969 and 1988. 

In In the Company of Men, Greaves addresses the life of long-term unemployed Black workers. It shows labourers and laid-off factory workers conducting role-playing workshops with white factory owners, including some who had dismissed them from their roles; sparking tense and honest discussions.

Nearly two decades later, The Deep North revisits this approach of role reversal in New York. In a series of group workshops, a diverse set of attendees share and interrogate their beliefs on the different ethnic groups making up New York, a process which unearths deeply held prejudices, and creates space for dialogue and change.

Short Films by William Greaves 1959 - 1974 (15)
Emergency Ward, USA 1959, Dir. William Greaves, 30min
Wealth of a Nation, USA 1964, Dir. William Greaves, 21min
The First World Festival of Negro Arts, 1966, 40min
From These Roots, USA 1974, Dir. William Greaves, 28min
Thu 12 Nov, 6.30pm 
Cinema 3 

From Cinema Verité docs and observational filmmaking, to public information films exploring Black history, this selection from the renowned filmmaker shows the versatility in his works 

and styles. Beginning with Emergency Ward, made during Greaves' time at Canada's NFB, where he learnt documentary filmmaking techniques, Greaves observed the staff and patients of a busy hospital ward over a single evening. 

He made films for the United States Information Agency (USIA), using this to explore Black history. In Wealth of a Nation, he questions the equality of the American Dream and his The First World Festival of Negro Arts expands a news report into a fascinating documentary.

Losing Ground (15) + introduction by Taylor Le Melle
USA 1982, Dir. Kathleen Collins, 85min
Wed 18 Nov, 6.30pm 
Cinema 3 

The multi-talented poet, playwright, filmmaker, civil rights activist, and educator Kathleen Collins worked with William Greaves as a production assistant on Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One, and as an editor at his production company. 

Losing Ground is a smart, witty, complex and very well-constructed portrait of 80s America, and a community of intellectuals, artists and students, presenting a varied snapshot of life amongst Black artistic circles. 

The Films of Madeline Anderson and St. Clair Bourne 1960 - 1974 (15) + introduction by Cyreema Marshall
Integration Report I, USA 1960, Dir. Madeline Anderson, 24min
I Am Somebody, USA 1970, Dir. Madeline Anderson, 28min
Let the Church Say Amen!, USA 1974, Dir, St Clair Bourne, 67min
Sat 21 Nov, 4pm 
Cinema 3

This programme celebrates William Greaves’ legacy through the work of the young Black filmmakers he mentored and supported, many of whom went on to become acclaimed filmmakers in their own right.

Through Black Journal, William Greaves mentored a generation of filmmakers, using the series as both a television programme and a training ground. Among them were Madeline Anderson and St. Clair Bourne, who both directed acclaimed shorts for the series.

I Am Somebody follows 400 Black hospital workers striking against poor treatment in South Carolina, while Integration Report 1 envisioned as a study of the value of protest and organised action in the civil rights era. 

Short Films by William Greaves 1981 - 1988 (15) 
Space For Women, USA 1981, Dir. William Greaves, 32min
Frederick Douglass: An American Life, USA 1985, Dir. William Greaves, 33min
Black Power in America: Myth or Reality? USA 1988, Dir. William Greaves, 58min
Mon 23 Nov, 6.15pm 
Cinema 3 

Space For Women, a training video, documents women's roles at NASA. IN Frederick Douglass: An American Life, made for the American National Park Services, Greaves uses a variety of approaches; scripted drama, interviews and narration, to expand the understanding of Frederick Douglas. The final film, Black Power in America: Myth or Reality?, sees Greaves critically reflecting on the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement, and what Black Power meant in the 1980s.

This collection of films exemplifies Greaves' commitment to making space for Black narratives within the wider media landscape of America.

Booker T. Washington: The Life and the Legacy & Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice
Booker T. Washington: The Life and the Legacy, 1986, USA, Dir. William Greaves, 29min
Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice, 1989, USA, Dir. William Greaves, 54min
Tue 24 Nov, 6.30pm 
Cinema 3 

In this programme, we showcase two films from Greaves that continue his practice in exploring African American histories. For both films, Greaves uses a variety of approaches; scripted drama, interviews and narration to explore two vital historic figures. 

Reflecting on the lifetime of 19th century intellectual Booker Taliaferro Washington, this first film draws from re-enactments and vignettes to approach his complex life. With Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice, Greaves works with author Toni Morisson as a narrator whose presence structures the film, and creates a continuation between Black women's roles in Black consciousness raising. These films are part of Greaves' important legacy which carved out space for Black history on screen.

Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take 2 ½
USA 2005, Dir. William Greaves, 99min
Sat 28 Nov, 2pm
Cinema 3 

The follow-up film to William Greaves' renowned experimental meta-fiction Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One sees the original cast reunite, thirty-five years later.

Prompted by the universal celebration and praise for Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One when it was eventually screened at the Brooklyn Museum in 1991, twenty years after it was filmed, Greaves was invited by Steven Soderberg (Erin Brockovich, Ocean's Eleven) to create a sequel, along with Steve Buscemi (Reservoir Dogs), who appears in the film, and takes on the role of producer. 

Greaves creates a compelling reflection on the creative process, blending scripted material with improvisation. The passing decades and the aging performers lend the film a melancholic undertone.