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ONCE UPON A TIME IN HARLEM

Year 2026
Runtime 100 mins
Language English
Alberta Premiere
Showtimes
Sep 26
12:30 PM Globe Down
Oct 2
9:00 PM Cineplex 10

A decade after his death, genre-defying fi lmmaker William Greaves has one last trick up his sleeve with what he considered the most important event he captured on fi lm: a 1972 party he engineered with the living luminaries of the Harlem Renaissance. For four hours, this extraordinary group – many of whom had not seen each other in fi fty years – reminisced, critiqued, argued, laughed and drank while wrestling with their place in a rapidly shifting cultural landscape. Shot on 16mm fi lm, newly restored and now directed by Greaves’ son David, this landmark fi lm is at once a self-exploration and an inquiry into the heart of the critical mass of energy called the Harlem Renaissance. William Greaves’ intent was not only to document these artists and intellectuals as they spoke about their lives and work but also to plumb the meaning of the extraordinary creative period in which they lived to help us better understand how culture has been passed on from one generation to another and the role that the artist plays in keeping it alive.

Countries

United States
Festivals
Sundance Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival
Director
William Greaves, David Greaves, Liani Greaves
Producer
Liani Greaves, Anne de Mare
Cinematographer
David Greaves, Doug Harris, David Hoffman, Jerry Pantzer
Editor
Lynn True, Anne de Mare
Music
Tamar-kali
Cast
Arna Bontemps, Ida Mae Cullen, James Van Der Zee