Dawson City: Frozen Time
This meditation on cinema’s past from Decasia director Bill Morrison pieces together the bizarre true history of a long-lost collection of 533 nitrate film prints from... Read more
Dawson City: Frozen Time
Directed by Bill Morrison
Dawson City: Frozen Time
Writer Bill Morrison
Editor Bill Morrison
Cinematographer Bill Morrison
Produced by Madeleine Molyneaux and Bill Morrison
Composed by Alex Somers
Sound John Somers
This meditation on cinema’s past from Decasia director Bill Morrison pieces together the bizarre true history of a long-lost collection of 533 nitrate film prints from the early 1900s. Located just south of the Arctic Circle, Dawson City was settled in 1896 and became the center of the Canadian Gold Rush that brought 100,000 prospectors to the area. It was also the final stop for a distribution chain that sent prints and newsreels to the Yukon. The films were seldom, if ever, returned. The now-famous Dawson City Collection was uncovered in 1978 when a bulldozer working its way through a parking lot dug up a horde of film cans. Morrison draws on these permafrost-protected, rare silent films and newsreels, pairing them with archival footage, interviews, historical photographs, and an enigmatic score by Sigur Rós collaborator and composer Alex Somers. Dawson City: Frozen Time depicts the unique history of this Canadian Gold Rush town by chronicling the life cycle of a singular film collection through its exile, burial, rediscovery, and salvation.
Reviews
"Critic's Pick! An instantaneously recognizable masterpiece."
"Wondrous, almost indescribable. A complete astonishment from beginning to end."
"Critic's Pick! An orgy for film geeks and history jonesers."
"Bill Morrison's Dawson City: Frozen Time is the best new movie in town and the best movie of the year thus far."
"A bona fide adventure through history, hopscotching across the turn of the 19th century."
"Astonishing. A testament to the potential of art to weather and endure the ravages of time."
"Morrison’s movies feel like half-remembered reveries formed from memories you can no longer consciously recall. Hovering at the intersection of reappropriation, preservation, history, music, and art, any one of his works will haunt you for the rest of your life. Dawson City: Frozen Time is no exception."
"Four stars! A ghost story like you’ve never seen. Riveting, thoughtful and very emotional."
Awards
Best Documentary – Boston Society of Film Critics
Most Innovative Documentary – Critics' Choice Documentary Awards
Best Editing – International Documentary Association
On over 75 lists of the best films of 2017, including: New York Times, New Yorker, Los Angeles Times, Film Comment, Slate, Boston Globe, Washington Post, Chicago Reader, Indiewire, RogerEbert.com, Rotten Tomatoes, POV Magazine, and Slant!
RT' @elwood9062': My' @KinoLorber' run continues with Rian Johnson’s love letter to film noir with the fantastic Brick (2005). #NowWatching htt…
RT' @SaulWilliams': NEPTUNE FROST 🛸💫✨ in theaters June 3rd' https://t.co/OP6FIrlyDY'
"Oliver Twist meets Blade Runner in the dusty and industrial world of Mondocane." – Di Mario Manca,' @VanityFair' MO…' https://t.co/kfqGUnmOcg'
Don’t miss this fantastic documentary, a raucous ode to democracy in action, spotlighting the importance of liberal…' https://t.co/CaKfKUW7vm'
“Sharp and endearing. A warm and realistic comedy, with flashes of the fantastic. Introduces an exciting filmmaker…' https://t.co/7zVNzGQ2TG'
“No taboos left to break. Only the camera, with verité charm, trembles during kisses here.” - The Village Voice Th…' https://t.co/Glj1XgfLfi'
On this frightening Friday the 13th, enter our haunted house 👻!' @kino_cult' has set up a horror marathon on the…' https://t.co/Zn9oVE5ax0'
HIT THE ROAD won big at #SFFilmFestival. 🏆 And now you can see it this weekend on the big screen in Berkeley & San…' https://t.co/xJLFjnrRbn'
“A bittersweet family drama and thrilling escape story all at once” –' @erickohn'' @Indiewire' HIT THE ROAD continues…' https://t.co/s5Die5vyAm'
And you can watch it now on Digital!' https://t.co/T9JFuoi1YK'' https://t.co/BDPSTzaQHZ'
General Inquiries
333 W. 39th St., Ste. 503
New York, NY 10018
Tel. (800) 562-3330
Fax. (212) 714-0871
Press & Media
For publicity assistance and press inquiries please contact us by emailing dninh@kinolorber.com or calling 212-629-6880.
Educational
Please visit our educational site at www.KinoLorberEDU.com
For assistance with educational orders, please contact us at:
Phone:212-629-6880
Fax: 212-714-0871
Email: edu@kinolorber.com