Cinematography
In 1986, filmmaker Maxi Cohen was one of seven women filmmakers commissioned by German television to interpret the Seven Deadly Sins. She was given the sin of “anger” and began by putting an advertisement in The Village Voice that read, “What makes you angry?” Along with fellow filmmaker Joel Gold, she recorded the conversations with the people who replied. This exploration lead to a heart-wrenching and emotional film that shows the complexity of anger and its origins. Thirty four years later, Anger continues to resonate, especially as health, economic and political turmoil place anger at the forefront.
Producer
In 1986, filmmaker Maxi Cohen was one of seven women filmmakers commissioned by German television to interpret the Seven Deadly Sins. She was given the sin of “anger” and began by putting an advertisement in The Village Voice that read, “What makes you angry?” Along with fellow filmmaker Joel Gold, she recorded the conversations with the people who replied. This exploration lead to a heart-wrenching and emotional film that shows the complexity of anger and its origins. Thirty four years later, Anger continues to resonate, especially as health, economic and political turmoil place anger at the forefront.
Director of Photography
Seven Women, Seven Sins (1986) represents a quintessential moment in film history. The women filmmakers invited to direct for the seven sins were amongst the world's most renown: Helke Sander (Gluttony), Bette Gordon (Greed), Maxi Cohen (Anger), Chantal Akerman (Sloth), Valie Export (Lust), Laurence Gavron (Envy), and Ulrike Ottinger (Pride). Each filmmaker had the liberty of choosing a sin to interpret as they wished. The final film reflected this diversity, including traditional narrative fiction, experimental video, a musical, a radical documentary, and was delivered in multiple formats from 16, super 16, video and 35mm.
Himself
Second Grade Dreams, filmed at P. S. 255 in Brooklyn, New York, is a series of brief vignettes of second-grade schoolchildren who recount their dreams and nightmares. The straightforward, stationary camera captures the children as their stories unfold, revealing both humorous and horrifying dreams about dinosaurs, blood and chocolate bars.
Director
Joe and Maxi is a film about Maxi Cohen's relationship with her father, made when she was 23 and after her mother died of cancer. This intimate and revealing documentary portrait of a family reveals the barriers to expressing and accepting love.
