Genre
Synopsis
WESTERMANN: MEMORIAL TO THE IDEA OF MAN IF HE WAS AN IDEA is a 3-D documentary film about the life and work of artist and marine H.C. (“Cliff”) Westermann, voice-acted by four-time Academy-Award nominee Ed Harris, conceived and directed by Leslie Buchbinder, and featuring interviews with Ed Ruscha, Frank Gehry, and many others. As a veteran of World War II and the Korean War who struggled with the ramifications of modern warfare, Westermann’s dramatic personal history can be traced through his beguiling, surreal artworks. The film is executive produced by the international art icon KAWS, and award-winning documentary producer Caryn Capotosto, whose prior projects include WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR, BEST OF ENEMIES, and more. WESTERMANN features music by legendary artists Laurie Anderson, the Kronos Quartet, and Terry Allen, with an original score by acclaimed cellist Tomeka Reid.
Bio
Leslie Buchbinder is a Chicago-based writer & director, & the founder & Artistic Director of Pentimenti Productions. Her directorial debut was the award-winning “Hairy Who & The Chicago Imagists,” a 2014 documentary chronicling the history and impact of an iconoclastic group of young artists from the School of the Art Institute. Slated for release in 2023, Buchbinder’s second feature is "H.C. Westermann: Memorial to the Idea of Man If He Was an Idea,” a 3-D film about artist H.C. Westermann. Executive produced by the international art icon KAWS, the film features the voice of four-time Academy Award nominee Ed Harris; music by Laurie Anderson & The Kronos Quartet; & bespoke music compositions by MacArthur Genius Grant winner, Tomeka Reid. Prior to founding Pentimenti, Buchbinder began her career as a professional dancer with companies in Chicago and San Francisco, then pivoted to working in museum & arts public relations at The Kreisberg Group, (New York City), & thereafter established her own arts public relations company in Chicago that specialized in local & international p.r. for clients including Sara Lee Corporation; The Art Institute of Chicago; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; The Arts Club of Chicago; among others. In 2011, she was nominated to the Committee on Prints and Drawings of The Art Institute of Chicago; to the Advisory Board of the Chicago Film Archives in 2012; & to the Board of Trustees of The Art Institute of Chicago in 2021.
Screening History
The Veterans Film Festival 2023
Credits
Actor - Ed Harris
Music - Laurie Anderson
Executive Producer - KAWS