Screened in 35mm!

Join us for this special screening to experience a beloved classic in a new context, and consider how its vision of Los Angeles resonates with the city’s ongoing stories today.

Set against the sunlit boulevards and manicured lawns of Los Angeles, Clueless (1995) sparkles as both a time capsule and a playful cultural snapshot. Cher’s world of Beverly Hills privilege—designer closets, palm-lined drives, and carefully navigated social hierarchies—captures a distinctly local blend of aspiration and self-invention.

Written and directed by Amy Heckerling, the film stands as a defining example of women’s creative leadership in Hollywood, shaping its voice and enduring cultural impact. Through humor and satire, Heckerling explores how young women navigate systems of privilege and expectation, offering a nuanced take on what liberty and self-determination can look like in Los Angeles.

In dialogue with Life, Liberty and Los Angeles, this screening invites reflection on how the city embodies—and complicates—the ideals of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Beneath its glossy surface, the film reveals tensions around class, identity, and access, highlighting who gets to fully participate in these promises and who remains on the margins. At once lighthearted and incisive, Clueless offers a lens on Los Angeles as both dream and contradiction.

Introduced by Rosanne Welch, Executive Director of the MFA in Screenwriting Program, Stevens College

Directed and written by Amy Heckerling | Starring Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, and Brittany Murphy