June 12 & 13, 2012
Deutsches Haus at New York University
and Scandinavia House
The late Eva Norvind, aka Ava Taurel (born in Norway to Russian prince Paul Chegodayef Sakonsky and Finnish sculptress Johanna Kajuanus), was a larger-than-life figure, an unconventional and controversial sexual pioneer whose life incredibly intersects with many random places and very unusual facets: from becoming Mexico’s Marilyn Monroe; to studying film and human sexuality at New York University; and ultimately becoming New York City’s most famous dominatrix. Norvind died at the age of 62, on May 14, 2006, drowning in the waters of Oaxaca, Mexico.
This special tribute presented by Cinema Tropical, the Deutsches Haus at NYU and Scandinavia House, features a screening of Didn’t Do It For Love, the documentary film that renowned German filmmaker Monika Treut made about Eva’s life, as well as Born Without, the documentary film that Norvind directed and that was completed by her daughter Nailea after Norvind’s sudden death. The film, which went to win the Best Documentary Award at the Mexico City (FICCO) and Vancouver Film Festivals, tells the story of handicapped Mexican street musician José Flores.
Presented by Cinema Tropical in partnership with NYU's Deutsches Haus and Scandinavia House. Additional support by the Mexican Cultural Institute of New York
Special thanks to Nailea Norvind, Paul Marchant (First Run Features), and María Elena Cabezut (Mexican Cultural Institute of New York).
DIDN'T DO IT FOR LOVE
Directed by Monika Treut, Germany, 1997, 80 min. In English and Spanish with English subtitles.
With: Eva Norvind, Jan Baracz, Rene Cardona Jr., José Luis Cuevas, Nicolá Echevarría, Juan Ferrara, José Flores, Juan José Gurrola.
Screening followed by discussion with special guests actress Naian González Norvind (Eva's granddaughter) and Mexican writer/film critic Naief Yehya.
A fascinating look into the incredible life of sexual revolutionary Eva Norvind, alias Mistress Ava Taurel, born Eva Johanne Chegodaieva Skonskaya, the daughter of a Russian prince and a Finnish sculptress in Trondheim, Norway. The film recounts the phases in her adventurous life-story: from the early success as a showgirl in Paris and Québec, as a Nordic Marilyn Monroe in the Mexican B-movies of the sixties, and finally, as the most famous dominatrix in New York during the Eighties. Eva Norvind studied Forensic Psychology to be able to help sexual offenders as well as a way of searching for the dark secret of her own sexuality. It is the story of an odyssey through the wilderness of sexuality that has not yet reached its destination.
Tuesday, June 12, 6:30pm - Deutsches Haus at New York University
42 Washington Mews / http://deutscheshaus.as.nyu.edu / (212) 998-8660
NACIDO SIN / BORN WITHOUT
(Eva Norvind, Mexico, 2008, 86 min. In Spanish with English subtitles)
With: José Flores, Graciela Flores, Nicolás Echevarría, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Nailea Norvind.
Screening followed by discussion with special guest actress Naian González Norvind (Eva's granddaughter).
"José Flores was born without arms and with stunted legs that render him only three feet tall, but his outsized personality makes his physical attributes the least interesting thing about this complex man. A Mexico City street musician, doting husband, and father of six (with a seventh on the way), Flores navigates the world with few concessions to his disability and with an unbridled appetite for life. As unconventional as he may seem, his history is even more unexpected; charismatic from an early age, he has been a respected occasional actor in Mexican art cinema, including appearances in Alejandro Jodorowsky’s The Holy Mountain (1973) and the seminal Cabeza de Vaca (directed by Nicolás Echevarría, 1991). Flores is also, improbably, a bit of a ladies’ man. Directed by Norvind, and completed by her daughter after Norvind’s death, this intimate portrait doesn’t shy away from some of the more salacious details of Flores’ life." —Los Angeles Film Festival.
Wednesday, June 13, 7pm - Scandinavia House
58 Park Avenue (at 38th Street) / www.scandinaviahouse.org / (212) 779-3587
