Maverick filmmaker John Cassavetes’s directorial debut presented a raw slice of Beat-era bohemia. Shot on location in Manhattan with a nonprofessional cast and crew, Shadows centers on struggling singer Hugh, his brooding brother Benny, and their sister Lelia. The film’s improvisational tone and stark visual style are complimented by musical interludes featuring bassist Charles Mingus, tenor saxophonist Shafi Hadi, and drummer Dannie Richmond. Critic Amos Vogel called it “a compassionate, violent portrayal of pickups and brawls, loneliness, casual affairs, and search for identity.”