LOS ANGELES, CA.- The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures opens its doors to thrilling new gallery and object rotations in its Stories of Cinema exhibition. Like cinema itself, the galleries of the museum’s core exhibition Stories of Cinema are designed to evolve and change over time to highlight different movies, artists, eras, genres, and more. Following are new rotations that will be presented in the 2022–2023 season in Stories of Cinema:

THE ART OF MOVIEMAKING: THE GODFATHER

The Art of Moviemaking: The Godfather showcases the collaborative process of the making of this masterpiece through a wide array of original objects, images, and stories. In 1972, director Francis Ford Coppola’s interpretation of Mario Puzo’s popular novel provided an operatic and poignant reflection on the American Dream that not only radically transformed the moviegoing experience, but also the moviemaking process. Featured costumes, props, scripts, and equipment highlight the contributions of each cinematic branch, exploring how they innovated the changing landscape of Hollywood.

Object highlights include Don Corleone's desk and chair used in The Godfather trilogy, Coppola’s original “Godfather notebook,” and a costume worn by Al Pacino in The Godfather Part II. This exhibition is curated by Assistant Curator Sophia Serrano with Curatorial Assistant Esme Douglas.

The Academy Museum Store released an exclusive collection of The Godfather merchandise in conjunction with the gallery. The products in this collection celebrate the Academy Award®-winning film’s 50th anniversary and are officially licensed by Paramount Pictures.

The products in this collection were created in conjunction with the museum's gallery exhibition The Art of Moviemaking: The Godfather that celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Academy Award-winning film and are officially licensed by Paramount Pictures.




DIRECTOR’S INSPIRATION: AGNÈS VARDA

This gallery is an exploration of one of global cinema’s most radical and transformative artists. Agnès Varda’s (1928-2019) work is undeniably personal drawing inspiration from her life, experiences, the people, and the world around her. Structured into three sections to reflect her life as a photographer, filmmaker, and fine artist, the gallery highlights influences and films from her seven-decade long career ranging from La Pointe Courte (1955), widely regarded as the first film of the French New Wave, to her autobiographical movie Varda by Agnès (2019). While the Photography section explores her time behind the still camera showcasing her Leica, as well as prints and contact sheets, the section focusing on her life as a filmmaker shows influences from her years living in Paris and Los Angeles including familial relationships, social rights movements, and other autobiographical elements that permeate all aspects of Varda’s filmography. At the heart of the gallery, a triptych montage invites visitors to immerse themselves in themes and motives from Varda’s vast cinematic oeuvre. Lastly, the Art section features works from Varda’s career as a fine artist including a model for one of her life-size cinema shack installations. One of Varda’s most important inspirations becomes palpable through the gallery’s design: her lifelong love for beaches. This gallery is curated by former Assistant Curator Ana Santiago and completed by Jessica Niebel, Exhibitions Curator with support from Manouchka Kelly Labouba, Research Assistant and the collaboration of Rosalie Varda-Demy, Mathieu Demy, and Ciné-Tamaris.

Shop the Academy Museum Store’s collection of Director’s Inspiration: Agnès Varda merchandise.

ADDITIONAL STORIES OF CINEMA ROTATIONS
IDENTITY

The Identity gallery presents a new lineup of original costumes, wigs, concept art, and other materials to explore the creation of characters through the art of hair, makeup, and costume design. Highlights include costumes worn by Elizabeth Taylor in A Place in the Sun (1951), designed by Edith Head; Julia Roberts in Mirror Mirror (2012), designed by Eiko Ishioka; David Bowie in Labyrinth (1986), designed by Brian Froud and Ellis Flyte; Richard Pryor in The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings (1973), designed by Bernard Johnson; and a headdress worn by Greta Garbo in Mata Hari (1931), designed by Adrian.

The gallery also focuses on the work of key artists in these fields, such as the tattoo work of make-up artist Ken Diaz on movies such as Red Dragon (2002) and Black Panther (2018), wigs by hair stylist Yolanda Toussieng from Beetlejuice (1988) and Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), wigs and makeup by Nadia Stacey for The Favourite (2018), and costumes by designer Ann Roth from Mamma Mia! (2008) and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (2020).

OSCARS GALLERY AND ACADEMY AWARDS HISTORY
The Academy Awards History gallery now features Gregory Peck’s Oscar for To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), the Elie Saab gown worn by Halle Berry to the 74th Academy Awards in 2002, the tuxedo worn by Francis Ford Coppola to the 45th Academy Awards in 1973, and the Swarovski-studded vegan leather jacket worn by costume designer Jenny Beavan to the 88th Academy Awards in 2016.