Broadcast premiere of award-winning documentary “Painted City” to air on Maryland Public Television December 27
“Painted City,” an award-winning short documentary about the history of Washington DC’s public murals, will have its broadcast premiere on Maryland Public Television December 27 at 4:30 p.m.
“Painted City” explores DC’s murals and the preservation issues they face in rapidly changing neighborhoods by following a local historian's efforts to study and save them. Dr. Perry Frank has been documenting the city’s murals for 20 years, crisscrossing DC to interview their artists and capture photos with the help of her intrepid friend Lou, a retired journalist and her photographer. Starting with the city’s earliest murals from the 60s and 70s by African-American and Latino artists, her archive grows to include a “mural graveyard” dedicated to fallen murals that have been demolished or covered by new construction, often luxury housing. As she contemplates the future of her project, she reflects on the story it tells about a changing city – a shift that may mean change for her as well.
“Painted City” offers a lyrical perspective on the city’s cultural heritage through some of its most vibrant and accessible art, and explores what is left when that art disappears. It won “Best Documentary Short” at its premiere at the 2017 DC Independent Film Festival and “Outstanding Local Film” at the 2018 DC Shorts Film Festival. It is the first film from DC-based Painted City Films, founded by wife-and-husband filmmaking team Caitlin Carroll and Brad Forder. Carroll and Forder are currently in production on their second local documentary “Jazz Night.”
Following the broadcast premiere, “Painted City” will be available to stream online starting Monday, December 28 through the MPT Presents category on the MPT video player and the MPT and PBS apps on mobile and connected TV devices.
"Painted City" is supported in part by a grant from the Humanities Council of Washington, DC and the Office of Cable Television, Film, Music & Entertainment.