Friends of the Museum by Heather McGowan (2025)

On the morning of a high-profile gala at a museum in New York, DIANE SCHWEBE, the ever-busy Director of the museum, is fielding the normal 5:00 AM work-related issues that comprise her long workdays with her Head Counsel, HENRY JOLES, and her assistant, CHRIS. The newest crisis is that Henry has just received word that a few of their art pieces on display, including a Dancing Shiva statue, were acquired after being illegally looted from India—this is a major PR problem for the museum.

Meanwhile, NIKOLIC, an insomniac chef employed by the museum, is up at the crack of dawn foraging for mushrooms, which he likes to add to his dishes at work. By 6:03 in the morning, Henry is at the museum and has arranged for the removal of the looted pieces from their displays, and asks Chief Security Officer SHAY PALLOT to ensure the process is discreet. Shay, a woman in her fifties, briefly speaks with Henry as he sits down for a rest. Shay does not disclose that she has inherited early-onset dementia and that her memory is slowly fading, but she does note the poignant fact “we all disappear.” By the time the two are done talking, a new piece has arrived at the museum—a lion statue from Greece.

Meanwhile, VICTOR ROBLEDOS, a Spanish filmmaker, speaks over Facetime with BENJAMIN, a post grad student and the museum’s new Film Curator. Interviews like this are all part of Benjamin’s duties as a film curator.