John Cassavetes
Collection
John Cassavetes
Mercurial, driven and intense, John Cassavetes graduated from New York’s American Academy of Dramatic Arts, making his name as an actor in live television dramas of the 1950s. His first independently financed feature film, SHADOWS (1959), developed from an actor’s workshop improvisation. The film became a seminal landmark for motion pictures of a new age. This film was followed by FACES (1968) which he financed from acting in films such as THE DIRTY DOZEN, for which he received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination, and ROSEMARY’S BABY. FACES became a critical sensation from its opening, playing for 18 weeks in New York City and receiving three Academy Award nominations. Seven more films followed – tough, emotionally uncompromising movies about human relationships. They include HUSBANDS (1970), MINNIE & MOSCOWITZ (1971), A WOMAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE (1974), THE KILLING OF A CHINESE BOOKIE (1976), OPENING NIGHT (1970), GLORIA (1980), and LOVE STREAMS (1984).
John Cassavetes died in February 1989. He was married to multi-award winning actress Gena Rowlands, who starred in five of his films.
Gena Rowlands continues to be active in films, and their three children, Nick, Xan, and Zoe, are all involved in film in various ways .
Faces Distribution Corporation
Al Ruban
Faces Distribution Corp. is directed by Al Ruban on behalf of the John Cassavetes Estate. Al Ruban and John Cassavetes met in 1957 and went on to collaborate on a number of films: SHADOWS, as assistant cameraman (1958); FACES, as Producer, Director of Photography, and Editor (1966); HUSBANDS, as Producer (1970); MINNIE & MOSKOWITZ, as Producer (1971); A WOMAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE, as Distributor (1974); THE KILLING OF A CHINESE BOOKIE, as Producer and Distributor (1976); OPENING NIGHT, as Producer, Director of Photography, and Distributor (1977), and LOVE STREAMS, as Producer and Director of Photography (1983).
Al Ruban is a long time member of AMPAS, The Directors Guild of America, and the Screen Actors Guild.
Shadows
Producer: Maurice McEndree Set in the world of neon and night people in New York's Times Square, the film deals with racial tensions in which two of three siblings are able to "pass" for white. |
Faces
Producer: Maurice McEndree; Al Ruban As Richard (John Marley) and Maria's (Lynn Carlin) 14 year old marriage disintegrates, each looks for emotional gratification elsewhere with little satisfaction, ultimately finding their liaisons no more satisfying than their doomed marriage. |
A Woman under the influence
Producer: Sam Shaw Mabel Longhetti (Gena Rowlands), a working class mother of three,
confronts growing tension in her marriage to Nick (Peter Falk), slowly leading
to a nervous |
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie
Producer: Al Ruban Cosmo Vitelli (Ben Gazzara), owner of a sleazy L.A. strip club, runs up a gambling debt. Unable to pay, he agrees to kill a Chinese bookie to clear the debt. Unknown to Cosmo, the target is a powerful mob boss, and the mobsters are soon on Cosmo's trail. |
Opening Night
Producer: Al Ruban Middle aged actress Myrtle Gordon (Gena Rowlands) begins rehearsals of a new play written by her friend Sara (Joan Blondell) about a woman in denial. The accidental death of an adoring fan crystallizes Myrtle's desperation for the character to play and dealing with her own torment, searches for a way to resolve her difficulties and above all else, her sanity. |
Faces Distribution Corp. |