Notes for Jerome (1978)
Documentary
Overview
A tribute to Jonas Mekas' late friend and patron, Jerome Hill. Filmed on 16mm across three visits to Hill’s estate in Cassis, France, the film plays out as a tender visual diary of memory, passing time, and artistic exile. While the film focuses on daily life rather than explicit sexuality, it breathes with queer history. Hill was a closeted gay philanthropist who used his immense wealth to shelter and fund underground, heavily queer creatives. Mekas captures the warm, intimate atmosphere of this sanctuary, featuring legendary gay avant-garde icons like Warhol superstar Taylor Mead and actor Charles Rydell. Dedicated "to the wind of Lithuania" and featured in the 1979 Whitney Biennial, the film ultimately stands as a beautifully soft, authentic time capsule of a safe haven built by and for mid-century queer radicals.
Cast
- Jerome Hill as Self
- Jonas Mekas as Self
- Taylor Mead as Self
- Bernadette Lafont as Self
- Charles Rydell as Self
- Barbara Stone as Self
- Noël Burch as Self
- Judith Malina as Self
- Julian Beck as Self
- P. Adams Sitney as Self