This spring, the Contemporary Art Gallery is pleased to present Previously Viewed, a series of artist-curated film screenings. Inviting artists from CAG’s recent and upcoming programming to present films that have been formative to their thinking and practice in some way, each screening is a one-night-only event centered on a single feature-length work. Abbas Akhavan has selected Before Night Falls (2000). I first saw Before Night Falls in 2001 in the company of an unrequited love. The memory holds strong, as does the texture of the film and the writings of Reinaldo Arenas. While watching the film, I did not know that Julian Schnabel had made it, the camera licking every scene. Aside from the rich colours and textures I found the film and its soundtrack deeply atmospheric, hitting the right notes. Shortly after 2001 when I moved to Montreal, Fairuz's music carried me along the meandering long walks in nightly snow blizzards. -Abbas Akhavan Run time: 133 minutes. Registration for this event is encouraged; tickets are free. Secure your seat here. Rush tickets will also be made available the day of the event, starting at 6:45pm. This event will be held in CAG’s B.C. Binning Gallery, which is wheelchair accessible. Additional accessibility information can be found here. This film will be presented with closed captioning.