Pompidou Centre to Honor Richard Linklater

Richard Linklater at the 2017 Texas Film Awards. The Oscar-winning Austin filmmaker will be the subject of an exhibition and retrospective at the Pompidou Centre in Paris, starting in November and running through to January 2020. (Photo by David Brendan Hall)

With Richard Linklater so synonymous with Austin, it's easy to forget he is a truly global filmmaker of international regard. Now one of the world's most prominent art institutions, the Pompidou Centre in Paris, is highlighting his influence with a special exhibition and complete retrospective of his work.

Richard Linklater: Filming Time as Material, which runs Nov. 25, 2019 to Jan. 6, 2020, will include a major gallery exhibition drawing from his archive, including original photographs, posters, documents, and videos, including a special new short created by Linklater just for the show, "Où en êtes-vous, Richard Linklater?"

However, the celebration will also include a complete retrospective series of all 26 of his films, from his 1985 documentary short "Woodshock" to his most recent feature, Where'd You Go, Bernadette. There will also be a special "carte blanche" selection of two films curated by Linklater himself, who will be in Paris for the show's first week to introduce the screenings and run a special Masterclass moderated by ARTE France Cinema CEO Olivier Père.

Linklater joins a prestigious roster of directors who have been given the honor of a Pompidou retrospective, including Chantal Akerman, Brian De Palma, Jean-Luc Godard, Martin Scorsese, Abbas Kiarostami, and Werner Herzog. The filmmaker said, “This is obviously a great honor and, even more of a challenge. I can’t wait to see all of the movies and material collected and on display all together, to see whether it’s coherent and meaningful. ... To be able to share my work on this scale is both profound and humbling.”

However, as any Austinite knows, Linklater's legacy is not simply in the films he has made, but the opportunities he has created for filmwatching. So, as part of the show, he has set one part of the gallery aside for a special exhibition dedicated to the Austin Film Society, which he cofounded and for which he serves as Artistic Director. AFS CEO Rebecca Campbell said, "This is an incredible honor, to celebrate alongside Richard, and be a part of this major milestone recognizing his life’s work and Austin’s place within it."

The Centre Pompidou is one of the gems of the Paris and of the global art scene. Opening in 1977 and named after French President Georges Pompidou, it hosts the Bibliothèque publique d'information, the Musée National d'Art Moderne, and the Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique.