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The Beaver Trilogy
The Nickel Cinema117-119 Clerkenwell Road, London
Thu 17 Sept · 20:45
About this event
In 1979, filmmaker Trent Harris encounters an eccentric young man named Groovin’ Gary in Beaver, Utah, who invites him to film a local talent show where he performs in drag as Olivia Newton-John. Fascinated by Gary’s personality and performance, Harris later recreates the story twice more: first with Sean Penn in Beaver Kid 2 (1981), and then with Crispin Glover in The Orkly Kid (1985). The three films are combined into a single work that explores the life, dreams, and outsider identity of its central figure. Part documentary, part fiction, and part experimental investigation into the act of filmmaking itself, the trilogy examines how a real person’s story changes when filtered through different performers and interpretations. A unique piece of underground cinema, it became a cult landmark for its strange blend of humour, empathy, performance, and questions about identity and representation.
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LineageIndependent cinema movementTrace other London rooms working in this tradition.LineageWorld cinema traditionsTrace other London rooms working in this tradition.LineageCommunity-driven film cultureTrace other London rooms working in this tradition.Adjacent this weekLa HainePrince Charles CinemaAdjacent this weekThe TerminatorPrince Charles CinemaAdjacent this weekThe Dream Songs + Q&AThe Garden Cinema
A different kind of night
Not the same tradition as the lineage above — a genuinely different thread to pull, if you want one.