(Jim Jarmusch, US 1980, 75 min., 35mm)

Jarmusch’s NYU master’s thesis project was this unusual, jazzy narrative that follows a 16-year-old drifter (Chris Parker) through the streets of Manhattan. Jarmusch’s interest in both minimalist form and character as plot are evident, with an offbeat soundtrack featuring jazz great Earl Bostic and traditional Javanese gamelan music.