The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures won’t open in the Miracle Mile district until Sept. 30, but leaders of the burgeoning facility Wednesday announced a robust slate of pre-opening virtual programs featuring an array of industry luminaries, beginning three days before this year’s Oscar ceremony.
“We have been hard at work preparing the Academy Museum and are ready to welcome visitors first virtually and then in person in September,” said Jacqueline Stewart, the museum’s chief artistic and programming officer. “The programs we are rolling out for our opening are dynamic, diverse and deeply grounded in the history and artistry of filmmaking.
“Whether they are recognizing Hollywood legends, delving into the working process of film professionals or addressing issues of race, gender, sexuality and inequity that run through film history, these programs will use the power of movies and stories of filmmakers to open eyes and minds,” she said.
The programming, offered on the museum’s website at academymuseum.org, will begin April 22 with a presentation titled “Breaking the Oscars Ceiling,” focused on women who broke Academy Award barriers — actresses Sophia Loren, Whoopi Goldberg and Marlee Matlin, and singer-songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie.
Future programs will include film screenings featuring conversations with the creative minds behind them; conversations with film luminaries such as writer-director Spike Lee and composer Hildur Guonadóttir; and educational programs on topics such as using film “as a teaching tool to have difficult conversations” and a program highlighting Black visual-effects artists.
The initial online film screenings will be the 2011 film “Pariah,” with a discussion with members of the cast and crew, and the 2001 film “Y tu mamá también,” with a discussion with cinematographer Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki and writer-director Alfonso Cuaron.
The 300,000-square-foot museum spans two buildings at Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue, based largely in the former May Co. building but extending into a spherical structure housing a major film theater and open-air terrace. The museum will feature 50,000 square feet of exhibition space, along with two theaters, educational studio, restaurant and other amenities.