Shadows an improvisation inspired film about interracial relations during the Beat Generation years in New York City, and was written and directed by John Cassavetes. In 1960 the film won the Critics Award at the Venice Film Festival. Cassavetes shot the film twice, once in 1957 and again in 1959. The second version is the one Cassavetes favored; though he did screen the first version, he eventually lost track of the print, and for decades it was believed to have been lost or destroyed. This version was intended to have the jazz music of Charles Mingus on the soundtrack, but Mingus continuously failed to meet the deadlines Cassavetes set; the contributions of saxophonist Shafi Hadi, the saxophonist for Mingus's group, proved to ultimately be the soundtrack for the film.