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Made By the Bay Roundup by Joanne Butcher
Al Gore (center) journeys the planet in 'An Inconvenient Sequel'. photo: courtesy J. Shenk and B. Cohen
THIS SUMMER THE MAJORITY OF
locally-made films I saw were at DocFest, 2017. Founded by Jeff Ross, SF Indie Fest, now 20 years old, and Doc Fest, 16 years old, are part of a series of film festivals that include many films made by Bay Area filmmakers.
An Inconvenient Sequel, 2017
Directors: Jon Shenk and Bonnie Cohen
“The arc of the moral universe Is long but It bends toward justice.”
Martin Luther King's famous quote is seriously challenged by this second iteration of Al Gore’s famous climate change documentary. It both questions whether or not the statement is true, when it comes to the safety and health of our planet, and motivates us to keep working for the future.
Directors Jon Shenk and Bonni Cohen weave a complex narrative that both terrifies and enlightens. As with most of their best work, they focus on an extraordinary character, in this case Gore. By looking at his past as well as his present, and bringing the work of climate change into a historic perspective, they legitimately compare it to the civil rights movement.
Growing up as he did in the segregated South, Gore was born into a world in which the equality of the races seemed impossible. And yet, change has come.
This may be the very reason, the film argues, that in the face of profound setbacks and the evidence of climate change all around—from the melting ice in the North Pole to the flooding in the streets of Miami—Gore can keep going.
Even with the disaster at the Paris climate conference—overshadowed by terrorist attacks—and the shocking election of climate change-denier Trump at the end of the film, we have to keep going.
See this film to have your desire-to-keep-fighting batteries recharged.
Annie Sprinkle (2nd fr lft) at a preview for her new film, 'Water Makes Us Wet' made with Beth Stephens (3rd fr lft) at Performance Studies, UC Davis. photo: courtesy A. Sprinkle and B. Stephens
Water Makes Us Wet, 2017
Note: Preview Test Screening
Venue: DocFest 2017
Directors: Annie Sprinkle and Beth Stephens
Mostly I went to see this film because, as a former performance artist myself, I wanted to see Annie Sprinkle, one of the great mothers of performance. It was a thrill to see her answering questions and seeking feedback after the screening.
I’m not sure that it’s kosher to review a test screening of a film that was getting reviewed by the audience and may appear in a different form once it is officially launched, but I do want to say that this was the most delightful romp of a road trip movie.
Indeed, it not so much follows but absorbs our erstwhile “ecosexual aquaphiles” as they journey around California seeking to educate themselves about the water they love so much.
This was a truly feminine version of that research and exploration, where sometimes we met scientists who explained how things work and sometimes we watched Sprinkle putting on her false eyelashes. The filmmakers successfully gave us a taste of their love and adoration of water in all its forms.
Nat Bates for Mayor
Venue: DocFest, 2017
Directors: Bradley Berman and Eric Weiss
It is the role of artists to tap into the zeitgeist and pick up on the spirit that is in the air. In “Nat Bates for Mayor,” the filmmakers follow what should be a little, local election in Richmond, California, but it turns out that this is a much bigger story.
Nat Bates campaigns for mayor in a little-known election in Richmond, California in the film by Bradley Berman and Eric Weiss. photo: courtesy B. Berman and E. Weiss
Instead of this being politics as usual, the film shows us what happens when a multinational corporation gets involved - in this case, Chevron. It is the microcosmic, local version of Citizens United at the national level, and a true harbinger of things to come.
If it were not for this film, Chevron’s massive involvement in this election might have gone unnoticed, except by all but a very few. But “Nat Bates for Mayor,” serves as a document and an instruction manual as other towns and politicians find themselves taken over by corporate interests.
The Work
Venue: DocFest 2017
Directors: Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous
This documentary follows a group of men living near to Folsom Prison as they embark on a four-day intensive inside Folsom Prison. They are assigned to groups in which two of the men from the outside are teamed with six or seven inmates.
And these are not just any inmates. Some of them are the most violent offenders, serving multiple life sentences. But they all have one area of expertise on the outsiders: they have already experienced “The Work.”
“The Work” is run by the Inside Circle Foundation, dedicated to “helping prisoners and parolees heal from the inside.” But during the intensive filmed for the documentary, it is just as likely that an outsider is helped by the work, as an inmate.
During provocative conversations, the men’s pasts, hidden shadows barely recognized in daily life show up, and the most experienced prisoners who have been doing the work for many years often help focus that person and help them look at what is actually happening.
As the group focuses on the one man beginning to have an emotional experience, there seem to be only two possible endings: tears or rage. In both cases, we are told, these memories or pockets of shame, are like trapped energy that ends up being released within the group setting.
The emotions can come out either because of the support of the group, or alternatively, because the group is strong enough to physically hold someone down while they scream and kick and lash out, preventing them from hurting themselves or others.
For good reason, this film won the 2017 SXSW Film Festival’s Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary. Directors Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous had both been involved with Inside Circle before making the film.
But this is not a film to stand back and watch the mechanics of filmmaking. It is a gripping, compelling and visceral experience in which human beings expose their most hidden secrets, often hidden from themselves most of all. The film has been purchased by The Orchard and First Look for release in October 2017.
Joanne Butcher is a coach/consultant working with independent filmmakers to create critically successful films that make money! She can be reached at her or Website.