Van Gogh and his art on the big screen

The Exhibition on Screen series, directed by Bickerstaff, is produced by award-winning arts documentary filmmaker Phil Grabsky and Seventh Art Productions, and is distributed worldwide by Arts Alliance. Filmed exclusively for cinema at the exhibitions and on location, this ground-breaking series gives art lovers across the world front row seats to enjoy, marvel at and delight in the amazing works of some of history's most foremost painters on the big screen and with the clarity of stunning high definition.

Art is long and life is short

It provides an extraordinary biography of Van Gogh's life. Cinema audiences will enjoy complete and unprecedented access to the treasures of Amsterdam's celebrated Van Gogh Museum in this surprising new film about one of the world's most celebrated artists. The film is both a major re-showing of the gallery's collection and a celebration of the 125th anniversary of Van Gogh's death who, in his own words, reminded us that "Art is long and life is short".

Says Bickerstaff: "Van Gogh became an artist at the age of 27 and made art for only 10 years before his death in 1890, but what I didn't realise was that he only made drawings and watercolours for the first five years - no paintings. He produced over 450 paintings in the last five years of his life, which is incredible when you think of how many masterpieces were amongst them. Imagine what he could have produced if he had not committed suicide?

"I was also surprised at how revealing his letters were. He was not some mad, isolated genius but a deep thinking man who was extremely well read, observant and dedicated to understanding the essence of making art. He didn't suffer fools lightly and was hungry to interact with the world, particularly with nature and ordinary people from everyday life."

Producer Phil Grabsky says: "Van Gogh's life is shrouded in myth and misunderstanding. How many times have you heard that the artist only sold one painting in his lifetime? That is just one of the myths. This film reveals how this is simply untrue. What better way to discover the real Van Gogh than through his art?"

It is great to experience the wonder of seeing these great masterpieces amplified on the big screen, through the clarity of digital projection, while specially invited guests, including world-renowned curators, artists and art historians offer their interpretations and explanations of his work. These include: Vincent Willem van Gogh (great grandson of Theo van Gogh), Dominique-Charles Janssens (President of the Institute Van Gogh), Axel Rüger (Director, Van Gogh Museum) and Van Gogh Museum Senior Researchers Teio Meedendorp and Louis van Tilborgh.

Incredible recent discoveries

With exclusive new research revealing incredible recent discoveries, the Van Gogh Museum has helped craft a riveting cinema experience. The gallery has recently undergone a complete re-hang of its collection in order to address the true story of Van Gogh's life and work, and houses over 200 of his paintings, his drawings and letters, and numerous works by his contemporaries. The re-hang and this new feature film mark the 125th anniversary of the great painter's death.

The Van Gogh Museum is one of the world's most popular galleries and houses the largest collection of Van Gogh's artistic output. With access to the galleries and storerooms, this film gives audiences privileged views and insights into his remarkable paintings and drawings, including such iconic works as The Potato Eaters, Self-Portrait with Grey Felt Hat, The Yellow House, and Sunflowers.

Van Gogh was a prolific letter writer and penned more than 800 letters in his lifetime. The film has worked its way through the entire collection to choose the most revealing and moving moments, with actor Jamie de Courcey as Van Gogh, bringing to life his illuminating letters to family and friends, the majority of which were written to his brother and closest friend, Theo, who supported him financially.

Although today his works are among the most recognised and valued of any painter, during his lifetime Vincent van Gogh sold no more than a handful of paintings and just a few drawings.

Final film in the current season

The final film in the current season is The Impressionists And The Man Who Made Them, and will be screened from 30 May. It features exclusive access to the blockbuster exhibition from the Musée Du Luxembourg & Musée D'Orsay Paris, National Gallery London and Philadelphia Museum Of Art. The works of Cezanne, Monet, Degas and their compatriots fetch tens of millions of dollars, but just who were they really? Why and how did they paint? What lies behind their enduring appeal? To help answer these questions, the film has secured unique access to a major new exhibition focussing on the 19th-century Parisian art collector Paul Durand-Ruel, the outspoken champion of Impressionism. This eagerly anticipated exhibition is perhaps the most comprehensive ever held about the Impressionists. Durand-Ruel's brave decision to exhibit the Impressionists in New York in 1886 introduced enlightened, wealthy Americans to modern French painting. In doing so, he not only filled great American galleries with Impressionist masterworks, but also kept impressionism alive at a time when it faced complete failure. This energetic and revealing film will tell his remarkable story along with that of the Impressionists themselves.

For booking information, go to www.cinemanouveau.co.za or sterkinekor.mobi. Download the Ster-Kinekor App on any Nokia, Samsung Android, iPhone or Blackberry smart phone for updates, news and to book. Follow on Twitter @nouveaubuzz and on Facebook at Cinema Nouveau. For queries, call Ticketline on 0861-Movies (668 437).

For more art, opera and live theatre on the big screen, go to www.writingstudio.co.za