Film Show 067: Bruce Wood

Bruce Wood

Bruce Wood in 1977. All photos courtesy of the artist.

Bruce Wood (b. 1951) is a Massachusetts-based filmmaker and painter who became interested in avant-garde film while studying at MassArt. Even though he went to school for painting, seeing Stan Brakhage’s Window Water Baby Moving (1959) and Mothlight (1963) led to him moving out of state for grad school, intent on studying under Brakhage at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. While there, he’d find a way to translate his interest in abstract expressionist painting into film, utilizing his Bolex camera to craft striking monochromatic works dealing with the basic elements of the medium: light and rhythm. He’d make multiple shorts on 16mm before abandoning filmmaking for several years, eventually returning in the 2000s to craft one digital piece and a single narrative feature titled The Door (2005). Wood has started making new films again this year, invigorated by a renewed interest in his work as evidenced by a retrospective of his films at Spectacle in New York. This three-program retro screens today, July 18th. Tone Glow will also present a selection of his works in two cities: in Pittsburgh on August 2nd, in collaboration with Pittsburgh Sound + Image, and in Chicago on August 12th. More details to come. Joshua Minsoo Kim spoke with Wood on July 16th, 2026 to discuss his childhood memories, his feelings of alienation while at SAIC, and the sexual energy of his films.Subscribe nowJoshua Minsoo Kim: Were you born in Massachusetts?Bruce Wood: Born and raised in Boston. For college I went to MassArt to begin with, then I moved to Chicago when I saw that Stan Brakhage was teaching there.

What are some of the earliest memories you have of growing up in Boston? What was Boston like in the 1950s?

Well, it wasn’t Leave It to Beaver land ( laughter ). My neighborhood was Hyde Park and it was all houses with yards, but not many single families—lots of two-flats and three-flats. The interesting…