American Masters
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore
Marlee Matlin, the first Deaf actor to win an Academy Award, looks back on her remarkable life, career, and the complexities of being the “first.”
Art After-Life
Osvaldo Romberg was a Latin American artist who pushed the limits of the avant-garde. Years later, his son employs generative AI technology to converse with him, after his death.
- Length
- 90 minutes
- Funding Initiative
- Open Call
Producer/Director
David Romberg
David Romberg is an award-winning Latin American filmmaker and educator. His work combines documentary and fiction modes of storytelling through community-based collaborative modes of production. His films focus on stories that meditate on the meaning of home or refuge in the context of immigration, political turmoil, and displacement.
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The Film
Osvaldo Romberg was a pivotal figure in Argentina's conceptual art scene during the 1960s and ‘70s, but was exiled from his homeland during the Argentine dictatorship. He became one of his generation's leading artists, though he retained the emotional scars of hardship and loss. In 2018, Osvaldo was diagnosed with skin cancer and his condition rapidly deteriorated. The cancer spread to his brain and impaired his motor skills, speech, and cognitive functions—a devastating blow for someone recognized for their intellect. He underwent brain surgery, but by the time his son David arrived for a visit, Osvaldo was unable to communicate with him.
After Osvaldo passed away in 2019, David mourned his father and their inability to converse before his death. Inspired by Osvaldo’s legacy of creation, David looks to emerging artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. He collaborates with computer scientist Hamed Yaghoobian to develop a generative AI model using Osvaldo's writings, interviews, photos, and artwork. David intends to create a space where he is able to 'interview' his father posthumously, but philosophical, moral, and personal questions surface along the way. Art After-Life examines the boundaries of art and the ethics of representation within the digital age, amidst the forces of grief and loss.
