Once Upon a Time in Harlem

Followed by a conversation with director David Greaves and producer Liani Greaves

The great American filmmaker William Greaves, who in his illustrious career of more than 50 years documented the civil rights movement and historical figures like Muhammad Ali, Paul Robeson, Ida B. Wells, and Raphe Bunche, who executive produced the groundbreaking PBS news program Black Journal, and who wrote and directed the radically experimental fiction hybrid Symbiopsychotaxiplasm, had one last trick up his sleeve before his death in 2014: He left behind an extraordinary archive of unedited footage from a cocktail party he staged and hosted in 1972 at the home of Duke Ellington, an astonishingly vital and poignant gathering of luminaries from the Harlem Renaissance, many of whom had not seen each other for nearly a half century. Among those assembled were the artists Aaron Douglas and Romare Bearden, the composers Eubie Blake and Noble Sissle, the photographer James Van Der Zee, the poet Arna Bontemps, and the actor Leigh Whipper. Now, some 50 years later, Greaves’ son David, one of three cameramen filming that day, has shaped this never-before-seen material into the beautiful and indelible Once Upon a Time in Harlem, carrying on the work of Greaves’ wife and longtime partner Louise Archambault Greaves and collaborating with Greaves’ granddaughter Liani and Anne de Mare as producers.

2026. USA. Directed by William and David Greaves. DCP courtesy NEON. 100 min.

TICKETS

$20 General Admission $10 Hammer Members with valid discount code. Become a member today, and get 50% off tickets now.

Your seat(s) will be assigned to you when you pick up your ticket(s) at the box office. Box office opens at 6:30 p.m. Seats are assigned on a first come, first served basis. No late seating; any unclaimed tickets will be released at 7:20 p.m. No refunds and no exchanges. Post-screening guests are subject to change.

ABOUT MOMA CONTENDERS

The Hammer Museum proudly presents MoMA Contenders, The Museum of Modern Art’s renowned series of influential, innovative films from the past 12 months. Whether bound for awards glory or cult classic status, each of these films is a contender for lasting historical significance.