Synopsis
A simple-minded gardener named Chance has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television.
Being There (1979) is a 2h 10min comedy feature film by Hal Ashby. A simple-minded gardener named Chance has spent all his life in the Washington D. Selected for Los Angeles Film Awards (2025).
Key facts
Cast
Shirley MacLaine, Richard Dysart, Jack Warden, Peter Sellers, Melvyn Douglas, Richard Basehart, Ruth Attaway, David Clennon
Original language
English
First release
December 19, 1979 (Sweden)
Production companies
LORIMAR PRODUCTIONS, Lorimar Television
Based on
Being There
Awards
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
Setting
Washington, D.C.
Filming locations
North Carolina
Crew
Screenplay
Jerzy Kosiński
Producer
Andrew Braunsberg, Charles Mulvehill
Cinematography
Caleb Deschanel
Editing
Don Zimmerman
Music
Johnny Mandel
Trailer
Stills
Reviews
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Festival History
- Los Angeles Film Awards 2025
- L'Étrange Festival 2022 - Carte blanche
- Seattle International Film Festival 2018 generic
- Berlin International Film Festival 1999 generic
- Academy Awards 1980 academy_award
- Cannes Film Festival 1980 generic
- National Board of Review 1979 generic
Titles
| Original title | Being There | |
| Québec French title | Bienvenue mister Chance |
Releases & classifications
| Theatrical | Sweden | December 19, 1979 |
| Theatrical | United States | December 19, 1979 |
| Theatrical | United Kingdom | December 20, 1979 |
| Theatrical | France | May 9, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Argentina | July 8, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Mexico | July 30, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Ireland | August 15, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Finland | September 12, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Netherlands | October 2, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Italy | October 15, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Portugal | October 24, 1980 |
| Theatrical | Japan | January 31, 1981 |
| Theatrical | Hungary | February 19, 1981 |
| Theatrical | Brazil | August 10, 1981 |
| Classification | United Kingdom | 12 |
| Classification | United States | PG |
Versions & editions
| Home video | Netherlands | January 15, 2003 |
| Home video | Russia | February 10, 2009 |
| Home video | United States | March 21, 2017 |
Full credits
| Director | Hal Ashby |
| Cast | Shirley MacLaine, Richard Dysart, Jack Warden, Peter Sellers, Melvyn Douglas, Richard Basehart, Ruth Attaway (Louise), David Clennon (Thomas Franklin), Fran Brill (Sally Hayes), Denise DuBarry (Johanna Franklin), Alice Hirson (First Lady), Jerome Hellman (Gary Burns), John Harkins (Sidney Courtney), James Noble (Kaufman), Mitch Kreindel (Dennis Watson), Oteil Burbridge (Lolo), Richard Venture (Wilson), Sam Weisman (Colson), Elya Baskin (Karpatov), Hal Ashby (Man at File Cabinet at the Washington Post (uncredited)), Kenneth Patterson (Perkins), Stanley Grover (Baldwin) |
| Screenplay | Jerzy Kosiński |
| Producer | Andrew Braunsberg, Charles Mulvehill |
| Executive producer | Jack Schwartzman |
| Cinematography | Caleb Deschanel |
| Editing | Don Zimmerman |
| Music | Johnny Mandel |
| Production design | Michael D. Haller |
Additional data: TMDB.
Source: Cinémathèque québécoise, linked catalogue data (CC BY 4.0)
Source: Wikidata (CC0-1.0)
