This satirical comedy, directed by Hal Ashby and based on the 1970 novel by Jerzy Kosinski, is about a simple gardener named “Chance”, played by the iconic Peter Sellers, who improbably mutates into “Chauncey Gardiner”, an influencer among America’s movers and elites. The film is a profound social commentary on media lords, and the people of privilege and power they follow.

Earning an Academy Awards’ Best Actor nomination for his starring role, Sellers demonstrated his comic mastery as Chauncey, bolstered by an all-star cast that includes Shirley MacLaine and Melvyn Douglas, winner of the Academy Awards’ Best Supporting Actor.

Film accolades include the British Academy Film Award for Best Screenplay and the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. In 2015, the Library of Congress selected Being There for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.

Though RAAC film screenings are free, donations are always welcome to offset production costs. Hearing assistance is available.