Gregory Crewdson grew up, the son of a psychoanalyst, in Brooklyn, N.Y. But he has made a name for himself in the art world and beyond for his haunting photographs of uncanny twilight scenes in and around the old industrial towns of Western Massachusetts.

“Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters,” a documentary directed, filmed, and produced by Ben Shapiro, chronicles the artist’s career, focusing on an extended body of work called “Beneath the Roses,” made between 2003 and 2005. These large-scale photographs were shot either on specially designed sets or on location in towns such as Lee and Pittsfield.