Seeking Mavis Beacon

Last updated
Seeking Mavis Beacon
Seeking Mavis Beacon poster.jpg
Film poster
Directed byJazmin Jones
Written byJazmin Jones
Produced byGuetty Felin
Starring
  • Jazmin Jones
  • Olivia McKayla Ross
CinematographyYeelen Cohen
Edited by
  • Jon Fine
  • Jazmin Jones
  • Yeelen Cohen
Music by Fatima Al Qadiri
Production
companies
Distributed byNeon
Release dates
  • January 20, 2024 (2024-01-20)(Sundance)
  • August 30, 2024 (2024-08-30)(United States)
Running time
102 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$52,897 [1] [2]

Seeking Mavis Beacon is a 2024 American documentary film directed by Jazmin Jones, [3] which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. [4] The film is distributed by Neon [5] and is Jones' directorial debut. [3]

Contents

Premise

The film follows Jazmin Jones and Olivia McKayla Ross on their search to find Renée L'Esperance, the Haitian model [6] for Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing, an educational software program developed in the 1980s. [7]

Cast

Production

Seeking Mavis Beacon was produced by filmmaker Guetty Felin and Neon, [8] in association with Field of Vision. The film was also associate produced by Olivia McKayla Ross. [8]

Release

The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in the NEXT category. [9] The film was released by Neon on August 30, 2024.

Critical reception

Initial reception was generally positive. [6] [10] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 75% of 44 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.2/10.The website's consensus reads: "Director Jazmin Jones' exploration of one of the internet's strangest cases occasionally lapses into self-indulgence, but the personalized approach ultimately yields a one-of-a-kind documentary experience." [11] Metacritic calculated a weighted average of 72 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. [12]

Murtada Elfadl of Variety wrote that the "format-defying" documentary was "affecting and haunting," [13] noting that the filmmaker explores "a range of philosophical and sociological considerations, from the notion of 'coded bias' to how they personally use technology to communicate and find community." [13]

References

  1. ↑ "Seeking Mavis Beacon". The Numbers . Retrieved September 20, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Seeking Mavis Beacon". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved September 20, 2024.
  3. 1 2 "'Seeking Mavis Beacon' Director Jazmin Renee Jones And Olivia McKayla Ross Undertake A Quest To Find An Unsung Cultural Icon — Sundance Studio". Deadline. 2024-01-26. Archived from the original on 2024-01-26. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  4. ↑ Sippell, Margeaux (2024-01-26). "Seeking Mavis Beacon: Jazmin Jones on the Ethics of Her Incredibly Meta Doc". MovieMaker. Archived from the original on 2024-01-27. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  5. ↑ Gyarkye, Lovia (2024-01-23). "'Seeking Mavis Beacon' Review: An Enlightening Debut Doc Dives Into the Past to Ponder the Digital Future". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2024-01-27. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  6. 1 2 Hardawar, Devindra (2024-01-27). "Seeking Mavis Beacon is a wild Sundance doc about the search for a lost tech icon". Engadget. Archived from the original on 2024-01-27. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  7. ↑ Piñon, Natasha (2021-10-10). "She taught a generation to type. But who is the real Mavis Beacon?". Mashable. Archived from the original on 2024-01-27. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  8. 1 2 Rubin, Rebecca (2022-02-24). "'Seeking Mavis Beacon' Documentary in the Works at Neon". Variety. Archived from the original on 2024-01-28. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  9. ↑ Spicer, Lucy (2024-01-21). ""Seeking Mavis Beacon" Searches for an Icon of Black Representation in Technology". Sundance Film Festival. Retrieved 2025-02-06.
  10. ↑ Slater, Shane (2024-01-27). "Sundance Film Festival Review: 'Seeking Mavis Beacon' is a Fascinating Detective Story". Awards Radar. Archived from the original on 2024-01-28. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  11. ↑ "Seeking Mavis Beacon". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved 2024-12-30.
  12. ↑ "Seeking Mavis Beacon". Metacritic . Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  13. 1 2 Elfadl, Murtada (2024-01-21). "'Seeking Mavis Beacon' Review: Thoughtful Doc Pursues an Elusive Black Icon". Variety. Archived from the original on 2024-01-28. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
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