TAYLER MONTAGUE, RACQUEL GATES, AND MICHAEL GILLESPIE DISCUSSING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF SIDNEY POITIER. FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER. 2022.

Montague’s Responsibilities as Film Programmer included:

Doing research on potential venues and considering audience demographic. Handling print traffic by coordinating with the individual owners and/or film studios to send either 35MM, 16MM prints and DCPs of feature and short films. Reaching out to artists, scholars, and experts to join screenings for Q&A’s, ensuring that they’re able to make it and helping shape the conversation we will have. As well as, working with the Marketing Department on best strategies to sufficiently advertise the events.

While studying at SUNY Purchase, Montague decided to start curating screenings on campus. One of the first films she programmed was artist Arthur Jafa’s Love Is the Message, the Message Is Death. After a blessing by the artist to showcase his work, Tayler was off to the races.

In 2017, she was offered a program of her own at the Alamo Drafthouse in Yonkers. Black Is, Black Ain’t sought to shed a light on the work of Black filmmakers. The series concluded in 2019.

Since then, she’s continued upon this path, both programming at various cultural institutions as well as conducting Q&A’s and contextualizing films with scholars and guests.

A Selection of Film Programs Curated by Tayler Montague:

Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective: A Reconciliation in Four Shorts, BAM

Black Is, Black Ain’t, Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers

And She Was Loved: A Suite of Sounds and Images for Toni Morrison, BAM

A Tribute Screening to Jessie Maple: Twice As Nice, Jacob Burns Film Center