Film Independent at LACMA: The Tale

Includes a conversation with writer/director Jennifer Fox.

You’d be hard pressed to come up with a better time than right now for documentarian Jennifer Fox’s fiction debut, The Tale. Trippy and intense, the film premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, where it became a sensation for both its timely subject matter as well its commanding use of the medium. Writer/director Fox plays with time and storytelling techniques in this story of the relationship between a younger woman and an older man that becomes more and more compelling as perspective shifts. Jenny (Laura Dern) is a nonfiction filmmaker forced to examine her past when she’s asked by her mother (Ellyn Burstyn) about a ménage a trois that took place decades earlier. As she examines this event, long framed as her transition from adolescence into maturity, layer by layer is stripped away until Jenny – whose career is defined by bringing facts to light – is left to face the terrible truth. The Tale, which was purchased by HBO Films at Sundance, also stars Jason Ritter, Common and Frances Ritter. Writer/director Jennifer Fox will be on hand for a conversation after the screening.

2018, 114 minutes, Color, DCP | Writer/director Jennifer Fox; with Laura Dern, Ellen Burstyn, Jason Ritter, Elizabeth Debicki, Common, Frances Conroy, John Heard, Isabel Nélisse

Ticketing Information

Free for Film Independent & LACMA Film Club members.

Film Independent and LACMA Film Club members can reserve screening tickets starting at 12 pm on Thursday, April 19. | Screening tickets are free; limit two tickets per membership. | Proof of member status is required to reserve tickets during advance reservation period.

PLEASE NOTE: Pre-reserved tickets for this event can be picked up at LACMA’s Ticket Office, located in the Hammer Building, on the day of the event—as early as 11 am. Tickets are for general, unreserved Bing Theater seating. Ticketed guests must be in their Bing Theater seat 15 minutes prior to the advertised start time or seat(s) may be released. Reservations do not guarantee entry, even with a ticket in hand. Entry is first come, first served, so please arrive early. Program and guest participation subject to change or cancellation without prior notice. Tickets are nontransferable and can only be picked up by the individual who purchased or reserved them.