# Event Details

- **Event Name**: By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur
- **Event Start and End Date**: Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 07:00 pm – Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 11:35 pm
- **Event Description**: Born in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Spike Lee (1957–) is one of the United States’ most prolific and provocative auteurs, amassing a filmography of more than 20 narrative features alongside numerous documentary projects, television shows and music videos.

After graduating from Atlanta’s Morehouse College in 1979, and establishing his production company 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, Lee enrolled in the Graduate Film Program at New York University, where he was classmates with Jim Jarmusch and Ang Lee. As an up-and-coming independent filmmaker in the 1980s, Lee was an integral figure of the “New Black Cinema”. His low-to-mid budget commercial hits of this time such as SHE’S GOTTA HAVE IT (1986) and DO THE RIGHT THING (1989) grappled with the complexities of Black cultural identity, racism, endemic violence and gender dynamics in unapologetically direct, combative and confronting ways. Through a vibrant cinematic language of saturated colours, double-dolly shots, pastiche and fourth-wall-breaking direct address, Lee has developed a practice defined by a “creatively restless experimentation with theme, image, directorial style, camera shots [and] social issues”, all “while not being committed to a particular genre” (Ed Guerrero).

This season highlights the wide-ranging scope of Lee’s oeuvre, traversing pressing political, cultural and social issues facing America through some of its most significant historical events of the last 70 years, including the civil rights movement in MALCOLM X (1992), the 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in 4 LITTLE GIRLS (1997) and the aftermath of 9/11 in 25TH HOUR (2002). Showcasing the breadth of his filmmaking, these celebrated dramas and documentary films are rounded out by two key but lesser-known genre explorations: the musical SCHOOL DAZE (1988) and the crime thriller SUMMER OF SAM (1999).


WEDNESDAY 8 JULY

7:00pm SCHOOL DAZE
Spike Lee (1988) 121 mins – M
4K DCP.

9:20pm 25TH HOUR
Spike Lee (2002) 135 mins – MA 15+
35mm print courtesy of the National Film and Sound Archive, Australia.


WEDNESDAY 15 JULY

7:00pm MALCOLM X
Spike Lee (1992) 202 mins – M
35mm print courtesy of the National Film and Sound Archive, Australia.


WEDNESDAY 22 JULY

7:00pm 4 LITTLE GIRLS
Spike Lee (1997) 102 mins – M
35mm print courtesy of the Academy Film Archive.

8:55pm SUMMER OF SAM
Spike Lee (1999) 142 mins – R 18+
35mm print courtesy of the National Film and Sound Archive, Australia.


Memberships: acmi.net.au/cteq
Full program notes: https://www.melbournecinematheque.org/category/present-year/by-any-means-necessary-spike-lee-american-provocateur/


State Government support by VicScreen.
Supported by the City of Melbourne Annual Arts Grants Program.
The Melbourne Cinémathèque receives funding from Creative Australia through the Australian Cultural Fund.
- **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/melbourne/by-any-means-necessary-spike-lee-american-provocateur/200030332021703
- **Event Categories**: entertainment, art, performances, theatre, live-music
- **Interested Audience**: 
  - total_interested_count: 5

## Ticket Details


## Event venue details

- **city**: Melbourne
- **state**: VI
- **country**: Australia
- **location**: ACMI, Federation Square, Flinders Street, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, Victoria 3000
- **lat**: -37.81732
- **long**: 144.96834
- **full address**: ACMI, Federation Square, Flinders Street, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, Victoria 3000

## Event gallery

- **Alt text**: By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur
  - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events3/banners/83466389a770628649be0bb953b0b94e2a28f25b297cd82ee78839c7fb74ded4-rimg-w1200-h628-dc114c8a-gmir?v=1783485417

## FAQs

- **Q**: When and where is By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur being held?
  - **A:** By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur takes place on Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 07:00 pm to Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 11:35 pm at ACMI, Federation Square, Flinders Street, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, Victoria 3000.
- **Q**: Who is organizing By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur?
  - **A:** By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur is organized by Melbourne Cinematheque.
- **Q**: Who is this event for? Is it right for me?
  - **A:** By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur is ideal for art lovers, collectors, creatives, and anyone inspired by visual arts, installations, and exhibitions. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a longtime enthusiast in Melbourne, this event is thoughtfully curated to deliver a standout experience worth every moment. If By Any Means Necessary: Spike Lee, American Provocateur sounds like your kind of event, don't wait - spots fill up fast.

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