Cindy Sherman's Untitled Film Stills: The Movies That Don't Exist

A nervous woman glances over her shoulder. A lonely figure stares through a window. A young ingénue arrives in the city with a suitcase—and somehow, you already think you know what happens next. Between 1977 and 1980, Cindy Sherman created 69 black-and-white photographs inspired by the visual language of classic cinema. But these aren’t stills from real movies, and Sherman isn’t playing actual characters. She gives us costumes, poses, and familiar stereotypes—then lets our own cultural progra...