A Walk Into the Sea: Danny Williams, the Warhol Factory Directed by Esther B. Robinson, 2007

“Captivating and artful!” Premiere

In 1966 Danny Williams disappeared. He’d been living fast—dropping out of Harvard and moving to Manhattan to begin a film career. A fixture at the Warhol Factory, he fell in love with Andy Warhol and moved in with Andy and his mother. At 26, he was making experimental films and designing the groundbreaking Velvet Underground / Exploding Plastic Inevitable light show. He was in the middle of the 20th Century’s most vibrant and dangerous art scene. After a grueling tour with the Velvets he returned to his parents’ Massachusetts shore home. One night he borrowed his mother’s car keys and drove off. He was never seen again. 35 years later his niece, Esther B. Robinson, discovered 20 extraordinary never-before-seen films Williams made while at the Factory. They feature Andy Warhol, Edie Sedgwick and the earliest known footage of the Velvet Underground. The films reveal Williams as a major talent. With these luminous films as a guide, A WALK INTO THE SEA is a riveting personal account of what she found. It is the story of an extraordinary talent abandoned by two dysfunctional families: one upright and traditional, the other bohemian and legendary. It is the story of an extraordinary talent rescued from obscurity.