June Leaf on Screen
Program 3: Robert Frank & June Leaf
In conjunction with the exhibition June Leaf: Shooting from the Heart
September 9–December 13, 2025
The Grey and Anthology Film Archives present three programs of films and videos that document June Leaf’s life and work, and attempt to capture her profoundly creative, exploratory, and uncompromising spirit.
PROGRAM 3:
Leaf married photographer and filmmaker Robert Frank in 1975, and they were together until his death in 2019. Frank and Leaf’s lives were inextricably intertwined with their creative work. This program gathers some of the films of Frank’s in which Leaf makes brief but especially memorable appearances.
TRUE STORY (2004/08, 26 min, video)
Speaking in voiceover, Frank narrates scenes shot in his homes in New York and Nova Scotia. His rambling commentary returns to familiar themes of memory, and the loss of friends and family members. Brief excerpts from earlier films are shown, along with Frank’s photographs, art by Leaf, and extraordinarily detailed letters written by his son, Pablo (1951–94).
I REMEMBER (1998, 7 min, video)
Frank narrates a charming re-enactment of his visit to the home of Alfred Stieglitz. The cast comprises Leaf as Georgia O’Keeffe, artist Jerome Sother as Frank, and Frank himself in the role of Stieglitz.
HOME IMPROVEMENTS (1985, 29 min, video)
Frank’s first video project, HOME IMPROVEMENTS is about the relationship between his life as an artist and his personal life, and how the two are inevitably intertwined. Made with a half-inch video Portapak it includes numerous sequences with Leaf.
Total running time: ca. 65 min.
VISITOR ACCESS & REGISTRATION
Purchase tickets in advance on Anthology’s website; tickets are also available at Anthology’s box office.
