An impressionistic profile with a high barrier to entry, Don’t Blink: Robert Frank is a documentary for those familiar with the photographer made by someone familiar with the man. Editor and documentarian Laura Israel had worked along Frank for years, archiving his work, before becoming compelled to profile her occasional boss. The documentary imparts the feeling of time spent in Frank’s presence. Israel films him from the backseat of a car as they pull over for conversations with passersby—be they Frank’s friends or just a random man dressed as the Statue of Liberty. Alternating between brief interviews with the contentious subject of the documentary and glimpses into the archives of Robert Frank’s work, Laura Israel’s Don’t Blink: Robert Frank is a frustratingly sparse profile of an enigmatic artist.

Robert Frank is an uncooperative interviewee, openly dismissive of Israel’s attempts to get him to reflect on his career. In some cases—as in addressing the untimely deaths of both of his children—this reserved nature makes sense. In others—such as when Israel positions Frank in front of footage from his Rolling Stones documentary that almost never was, Cocksucker Blues—Frank expresses his distaste for artists that explain their choices, which forces Israel to cut the interview short. Some insights are elicited from the photographer’s printmaker Sid Kaplan, articulating Frank’s meticulousness when he recounts the photographer’s demand of 24-second exposures instead of 22-seconds.

Frank’s impenetrable disposition makes it hard to get invested in his “sick, sad view of America,” particularly when approaching the documentary with limited knowledge of him or his work. Laura Israel’s debut feature is decidedly not an entry-level look into the man’s career, capturing the abrasive, dismissive personality of her subject. Don’t Blink: Robert Frank is a brash profile of an artist who would rather stay a mystery.

The Film Society of Lincoln Center today revealed the 26 features making up its main slate for the 53rd New York Film Festival running September 25th to October 11th. Joining Opening Night selection The Walk and Closing Night selection Miles Ahead in making their World Premieres at the 2015 festival are Steven Spielberg‘s Cold War drama Bridge of Spies (starring Tom Hanks and Mark Rylance) and Laura Israel‘s documentary portrait Don’t Blink: Robert Frank. Several other highly lauded films taking part in the three-week showcase includes Hou Hsiao-hsien‘s Cannes award-winning film The Assassin, John Crowley‘s romantic drama Brooklyn, as well as Centerpiece screening Steve Jobs.

New York Film Festival Director and Selection Committee Chair, Kent Jones remarked, “I could talk about the geographical range of the films in the selection, the mix of artistic sensibilities … but the only thing that really matters is how uniformly beautiful and vital each of these movies are.” Additional special events, the documentary section, filmmaker conversations and panels, as well as the festival’s Projections and Convergence programs will be announced in full closer to festival’s September start date. Tickets go on sale to the general public Sunday, September 13th.

Read the list of features making up the 53rd NYFF main slate below:

Opening Night

The Walk
Director, Robert Zemeckis

Centerpiece

Steve Jobs
Director, Danny Boyle

Closing Night

Miles Ahead
Director, Don Cheadle

Arabian Nights: Volume 1, The Restless One
Arabian Nights: Volume 2, The Desolate One
Arabian Nights: Volume 3, The Enchanted One
Director, Miguel Gomes

The Assassin
Director, Hou Hsiao-hsien

Bridge of Spies
Director, Steven Spielberg

Brooklyn
Director, John Crowley

Carol
Director, Todd Haynes

Cemetery of Splendour
Director, Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Les Cowboys
Director, Thomas Bidegain

Don’t Blink: Robert Frank
Director, Laura Israel

Experimenter
Director, Michael Almereyda

The Forbidden Room
Directors, Guy Maddin & Evan Johnson

In the Shadow of Women / L’Ombre des femmes
Director, Philippe Garrel

Journey to the Shore / Kishibe no tabi
Director, Kiyoshi Kurosawa

The Lobster
Director, Yorgos Lanthimos

Maggie’s Plan
Director, Rebecca Miller

The Measure of a Man / La Loi du marché
Director, Stéphane Brizé

Mia Madre
Director, Nanni Moretti

Microbe & Gasoline / Microbe et Gasoil
Director, Michel Gondry

Mountains May Depart
Director, Jia Zhangke

My Golden Days / Trois Souvenirs de ma jeunesse
Director, Arnaud Desplechin

No Home Movie
Director, Chantal Akerman

Right Now, Wrong Then
Director, Hong Sangsoo

The Treasure / Comoara
Director, Corneliu Porumboiu

Where To Invade Next
Director, Michael Moore