I’ve been meaning to blog about a documentary called Weiner(2016) directed by Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg. After I heard Kirsten’s story and takeaway from the documentary, I was motivated to write about it. The two directors of Weiner were just there to film Anthony Weiner’s comeback campaign. For those of you who don’t know, because I didn’t until watching this, Anthony Weiner is an American former congressman who represented New York and was forced to resign after pleading guilty for his sex scandal. Back to the two documentarians who were just flies on the wall during Weiner’s campaign. There was a lot of excitement and we could see all the Democrats of the city support Weiner. As an audience, we are also introduced to Huma Abedin, Hillary Clinton’s right hand and also Weiner’s unbelievably intelligent wife. We notice how he uses his wife as a middleman for all her contacts since he needs funding during the campaign. We watch her quietly help him and stand by his side. BOOM. Sex scandal. Nude pictures that are sent from Weiner’s phone to a random woman are leaked in the media. Everyone is disgusted and there is tension all over. He keeps fighting back and asking for an apology, insisting that we are all human and make naive mistakes. Huma still stays with him and his campaign is relaunched.

Throughout the documentary, the story goes deeper and deeper. From being the lead in the election, Weiner becomes a toxic name in New York City. His personal life is an open journal for everyone, especially after the scandal surfaced. We gradually start noticing how silenced Huma is and how she is this one character who is coping and suffering the most from her husband’s actions. She is portrayed and probably was in an emotionally imprisoning relationship. The documentarians are shredding his story as the topic gets more complex. Who would’ve ever known that all this would happen going into this project? Kirsten mentioned that one of the documentarians was his Chief in staff. Professor Sikand immediately responded that she’d never be able to betray or portray her subject in such a way after they have given her permission to be a fly in the wall during such a critical point in their lives. Kirsten said that when you’re filming a documentary, you can initially be looking for x, but then you arrive at Z. She relates it to her and Laura Poitras’s experience with Julian Assange during the filming of Risk(2016). Relating to Weiner, the documentarians started off with the campaign, which lead to the reveal of the sex scandal, which transformed the story. Towards the end, the focus completely shifts towards how much Huma was suffering.

Kirsten’s takeaway was that the people directing need to have a certain persona to make the film they have. She mentioned that one of the directors, Josh Kriegman’s dad was in a cult with all of his sons. Josh was one of the sons who wasn’t part of this cult. He didn’t believe and see what they did. He turned against them. I don’t know more specifics to this story but the point is that the director also brings an attitude to the table. After watching Weiner, you can tell that the documentarians were relentless. I’m not one who is randomly interested in politics or congressmen, but this documentary is definitely worth a watch!

Link to trailer : https://youtu.be/LCoI3DdstZw

Kirsten Johnson’s film Cameraperson (2016), was probably my favorite documentary I have seen thus far. When someone else told her this, she joked and said that they probably have not seen a lot of documentaries- but it was in all honesty very moving.

Although there was really no one documentary being told, all of the compiled documentary clips flowed together so nicely, each one complimenting the previous well. There was never a moment where I felt bored or uninterested, something that is often the case with my sidetracking mind. I honestly probably didn’t even blink that much because I was so fascinated with the stories that were being told.

I can remember the exact moment where I started to become very moved by this film; when the health clinic patient and the boy who watched his brother die. After seeing these two clips, I knew that the rest of the film would capture some of the most powerful footage. I admired Kirsten’s technique of filming the health clinic patient’s hands since she could not video her face. Like Kirsten said, all of the emotion is in the hands- even if a person is saying one thing, looking at fidgety hands could mean something different. Even though we as audience members were just watching video of someones hands for minutes straight, the moment never got any less boring.

The moment where we were being shown clips from James Byrd Jr.’s case reminded me of the moment in Grizzly Man when Treadwell was killed. Kirsten strategically chose not to include the pictures of James’ death, just like Herzog chose not to include the audio from Treadwell’s death. Kirsten asked us if it was okay to show other peoples’ death just because we are making a movie, and I would say the answer is no. If she had included the images, the story would have been different (not in a good way) and I agree that she did the right thing.

The scenes of Kirsten’s mother hit home for me because they reminded me of what it was like to be around my grandfather who had Alzheimer’s. It was truly very sad and heartbreaking to watch, and even though Kirsten was smiling with all the interactions with her mother, I know it must have been very difficult to look through old family pictures with her not recognizing who Kirsten’s dad was in relation to her. These were very raw clips of her mother that I could relate to.

Kirsten Johnson’s down to earth personality only added to how highly I thought of the film. I loved how even when her camera was off, she tried to make connections with people and hear their story (when we had Q&A at the end). I highly recommend this film and will be thinking about the impact it has had on me.

Before going into see this film, I didn’t really do my homework on the film, which I probably should have done before going into it. I knew that Kirsten was a very talented documentarian, and I was extremely excited to view her work. After viewing Cameraperson (2016), I was taken aback by how good it was. My favorite part about this film is the amount of symbolism she portrayed. Someone in the class beat me to it, but I was going to ask her “why hands?” What I loved most about the scenes that portrayed hands was the fact that the hands told the story within itself. If the audio was muted, viewers could still tell by the hands what the person was feeling. I also loved the fact that there were many cultures involved in the film. There were countries portrayed in the film that I knew nothing about, and it was interesting to learn about them.

It was also really interesting to see Kirsten put in film from her personal life as well as her traveling lifestyle. I thought she did a great job meshing the two together to create this film. Most of what she filmed must have been hard: from filming her mother who had Alzheimer’s, to the hospital in the middle east. I couldn’t even look at the screen when the nurse was holding the baby by its leg. I have no idea how Kirsten was able to film that without showing her emotions about it. I loved how she told us after that “the speed that’s happening in you is different than the world”. I really appreciated her personality and her willingness to learn who we are, even though we have a lot to learn from her. I very much enjoyed her film and I hope to view her other films soon too.

         Cameraperson (Johnson, 2016) director’s statement included some ideas I have thought about but never put down on paper. One of her challenges being a documentarian is,” The people I film are in immediate and often desperate material need, but I offer little to nothing material.” This is something I have always thought about when I watch documentaries or think about making my own. For example in my poverty in America class we watched a documentary about multiple families living in poverty and as the audience, you want to help them and know if the filmmakers did something to aid them after filming. Filming people in need is sensitive because you are using them for your benefit and then leaving. However, I do think that by filming their story and giving them a voice, you are giving them something invaluable and raising awareness about their critical situation. Another bullet point said,”I can and will leave a place I film (a war, a refugee camp, etc.) when the people I film cannot.” Reading this is heartbreaking but it’s the harsh reality. Filmmakers sometimes go to locations where the environment (like extreme heat) damages their cameras, yet people have to labor in those conditions the whole day. At the end of the day the filmmakers can get up and leave, with equipment and all, but the people they film cannot. Johnson also mentions,”My work requires trust, demands intimacy, and entails total attention. To both me and the people I film, it often feels like a friendship or family, but it is something different.” This reminded me of how someone in my class said that they went to take photos/videos in a women’s shelter, but before they even introduced the camera they volunteered there for a couple of weeks to build a relationship with the women there. I think that’s the right way to do things because if you just pull out a camera on a stranger you aren’t going to have that “intimacy” with them, it won’t feel raw or real. Lastly, I checked off the bullet point that states,” My work can change the way my subject is perceived by the people who surround him/ her and can impact reputation or safety for years in the future.” As a person who has been behind and in front of the camera I know how powerful documentary can be. There are lots of complications and precautions that come with documentary because like Johnson says you can portray someone in a way that they’re unhappy with, or that can cause negative outcomes in many people’s lives. You can’t just go over your edits once but you have to go over them a million times and think of how it will be received by multiple people. A documentary has so much power and with power comes responsibility. As a filmmaker, my goal is to make a positive change or raise awareness about the subject I’m about to record.

Two quotes jumped out to me when reading Cameraperson Director’s Statement.

One being:
“The people I film are in immediate and often desperate material need, but I offer little to nothing material”

And two being:
“My work requires trust demands intimacy and entail total attention. To both me and the people i film it often feels like a friendship or family, but it is something different”

After hearing my classmate read this outline, I had to stop for a second and really take in the significant of these words. To offer nothing to someone who is suffering, but a platform to be heard is difficult to digest but a true part of most documentaries.
Most documentarians, do not fix the issues that they are portraying, whether it has to do with overall feasibility or resources it is just not possible. That is what makes documentary important because it can address the issues that we must come together to fix. Documentary is not the solution, it’s a platform for it and mechanism to bring about change.
The second quote also stuck out to me because the people who share there story with you are entrusting you to be truthful and respectful. There not just the subjects of your film they are people. The relationship you build with them is significant on and off the camera.

One of the challenges that stood out to me in Kirsten Johnsons statement was when she said “I can and will leave a place I film ( a war, a refugee camp, etc.) when the people I film cannot.” This stood out to me because that is such a difficult position to be in and I cant even begin to imagine having to learn about people in these terrible situations and not have the resources to help. Although through documentary making itself, that would be helping the people. If I were in that position, I think the only thing that would get me through the emotional hardship of leaving when others cannot would be the fact that by making that documentary, I would be shedding light on that issue in hopes that whatever difficult situation I was filming could be helped.

Another one of her statements that stood out to me was “I know little about how the images I shoot will be used in the future and cannot control their distribution or use.” This is another one I worry with and resonate with. I think this is because whenever I imagine a documentary I would make, most revolve around issues that are near and dear to me. To think that what I shoot could be misconstrued or potentially used against my cause is incredibly worrisome and concerning.

While there is nothing that can truly be done to rectify these concerns with documentary making, it is still something that weighs on documentarians lives and is something to take into account when creating a documentary.

Of the Lehigh Valley stories proposed, I think those that I resonate most with are the environmental/wildlife related ones. Saving the Shad, Many Beliefs and What the frack is going on, are all stories relating to the Delaware River, which is something that connects the entire LV community. I have always been an advocate for the environment so the thought of participating in creating a documentary about these topics excites me. When I think of documentary making, I ideally would make it about something that I am passionate about.

Another one of my passions is animal and animal welfare. I am the president of the Promotion of Animal Welfare(PAW) club here at Lafayette and am involved in animal advocacy. Because of this I would also love to work on Bad to the Bone. I have had many experiences working in Animal Shelters in the Lehigh valley, both good and bad and would be interested in delving deeper into this topic. I think it would also be interested to compare different shelters in the different regions (Easton vs Allentown)

There were two lines that stood out to me when reading Kirsten Johnson’s Director’s Statement. “I can and will leave a place I film (a war, a refugee camp) when the people I film cannot”. “I follow stories the director I work for does not need and/or want me to follow”.  These two lies spoke to me because I could relate strongly. I enjoy traveling and learning about different cultures though, in most cases, I know I have a lot of privilege. I often take those experiences and all that I have for granted. Additionally, Kirsten has a sense of ambition. She takes initiative with her work in order to produce excellent pieces. She had a drive to fund what is important and document.

Some of the stories I would love to work on are “Borders of Belonging”, “Lead in the Lehigh Valley”, “Criminal at the age of 5”, “Urban Desert” and “Bad to the Bone.” Everyone came up with amazing ideas that it was hard to narrow it down to five stories. “Borders of Belonging” is something that I rarely hear people talk about, especially in the Lehigh Valley. I believe the Latino voice needs to be heard in a place where you don’t see an abundance of Hispanic and Latino communities. “Lead in the Lehigh Valley” is a good topic because I’ve never really heard about it and some Pennsylvania cities have some of the highest levels of lead poisoning in the country. Lead poisoning greatly affects people living in poverty and worsens their living conditions. It’s a factor that keeps them in a cycle of poverty which is something that could be further explored in a film. “Criminal at the age of 5” is a pressing issue that needs to be talked about now. We need to have the voices of DACA recipients heard because unlike citizens who can vote for the next Senator or voted for the current President, we couldn’t. It’s a minority group that didn’t need to be attacked in the first place and should be given a platform to talk about the complexity of this issue. We need to put faces and stories behind just “DACA.” “Urban Desert” and “Bad to the Bone” are topics that are necessary to keep talking about but they need to be narrowed down. What about the food scarcity in Bethlehem? As we get further into the semester I think we need to focus each topic so every narrative could be more powerful. We could create a change with all of these stories.

As an environmental studies major, I find anything involving the interaction between society and the environment really interesting and a meaningful topic to explore.

I have actually done research and a few projects that focused on fracking in Pa and the negative human health effects associated with it. For the LV story “What the Frack is going on?” I think human health impacts would be an important to discuss and explore within the film. Also something to be wary of is that there are a lot of people and opinions at play when it comes to issues surrounding fracking. It’s important to keep in mind the motives behind theses opinions when bringing fracking in the Delaware watershed to light.
Another LV story that I find interesting is “Saving the shad”, again going further to uncover human’s interaction with the environment, and what the consequences of these interactions are. I also think this is a topic that people aren’t aware of, making the film both interesting and important.
Lead Poisoning in the Lehigh Valley, was actual my LV story idea but I do have some concerns about the feasibility of the project. I think this is such an important issue in the Lehigh Valley and unfortunately does not receive the attention it so desperately deserves. Lead poisoning even in small quantities has severe affects on children’s development. It affects adults as well but not in the same ways or to the same degree it does it children. And studies have shown that in Lehigh Valley, children have unusually high levels of lead in the their blood. That is something we can not and should not ignore. Uncovering something of the culprits such poisoning like old paint, could be an interesting way to uncover this storyline.

Lastly going outside of environmental issues. I think the LV Story “Criminal at the age of five” is something that needs to be addressed and told now. The time frame of this project although might be considered somewhat short by conventional documentary standards, allows for issues today to be addressed now and that’s significant. As this nation’s political climate continues to change. This story centers on an issues that affecting not only residents in the Lehigh Valley but our peers. It is current, it is important, and for some residents in Lehigh Valley unfortunately may be seen as controversial. All reasons way it is something that needs to be talked about and it’s own spotlight.