Did you ever wonder what the word “Rosebud” symbolized in “Citizen Kane,” the venerable film directed by and starring Orson Welles?

Did you ever wonder what the word “Rosebud” symbolized in “Citizen Kane,” the venerable film directed by and starring Orson Welles? Well, here’s your chance. For its September 27 screening of “Citizen Kane,” SUNY Purchase assembled a panel featuring Peter Bogdanovich, renowned director, actor, writer, and film historian. Also on the panel are James Naremore, film scholar, and acclaimed author of “The Magic of Orson Welles,” and Chuck Workman, Oscar-winning filmmaker. The 7:30 p.m. screening is at the Performing Arts Center. It’s free and open to the public.

 

Released in 1941, “Citizen Kane” is considered one of the greatest movies of all time. The film examines the life and legacy of Charles Foster Kane, played by Welles, a character based in part upon the American newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst. The screening and panel discussion is the first in a series titled “2012-13 Great Films, Great Directors” hosted by SUNY Purchase’s School of Film and Media Studies; it’s supported by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

 

Michelle Stewart, chair of Film and Media Studies, said, “The Academy institutional grant enables us to bring highly successful film professionals to Purchase College throughout the year.”

 

Known for directing “The Last Picture Show”, “What’s Up Doc”, “Paper Moon”, and “Mask”, Bogdanovich struck up a lifelong friendship with Welles while interviewing him on the set of Mike Nichols’ 1970 film adaptation of “Catch-22.” Subsequently, Bogdanovich wrote about the acclaimed actor/director.

 

Naremore is Chancellors’ Professor Emeritus of Communication and Culture, English, and Comparative Literature at Indiana University, and a Guggenheim Fellow in Humanities. Navemore also is editor of the Contemporary Film Directors series and a writer-at-large for Film Quarterly.

 

Workman has been involved in filmmaking and theater for over 30 years as an award-winning director, writer, editor, and producer. Workman’s theatrical short, “Precious Images”, won an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short.