Hi Jeff,
Women Make Movies has two films that I think would be really interesting for this course. El General A film by Natalia Almada <http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/makers/fm514.shtml> US, 2009, 83 minutes http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/pages/c763.shtml Past and present collide in this extraordinarily well crafted documentary when filmmaker Natalia Almada (ALL WATER HAS A PERFECT MEMORY), winner of the Sundance Film Festival’s US Directing Award for documentary, brings to life audio recordings she inherited from her grandmother. These recordings feature Alicia Calles’ reminiscences about her own father—Natalia’s great-grandfather—General Plutarco Elías Calles, a revolutionary general who became president of Mexico in 1924. In his time, Calles was called “El Bolshevique” and “El Jefe Máximo”, or “the foremost chief”. Today, he remains one of Mexico’s most controversial figures, illustrating both the idealism and injustices of the country’s history. Dialogues with Madwomen A film by Allie Light <http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/makers/fm42.shtml> 1993, 90 minutes http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/pages/c141.shtml "I was always so afraid that someone would ask me (where I was when JFK was shot), and I would have to say I was in a mental institution", says director Allie Light. This moving and informative film features seven women--including the filmmaker--describing their experiences with manic depression, multiple personalities, schizophrenia, euphoria and recovery. Candid interviews are enriched with dramatic reenactments and visualizations of each woman's history, emotions, and dreams--the private symbols of madness and sanity. The social dimensions of women and mental illness are revealed in testimony about sexual assault, incest, racism and homophobia, the abuses of the medical establishment, family, and church. Acknowledging that "madness" is often a way of explaining women's self-expression, this film charges us to listen to the creativity and courage of survivors. Produced by the Academy Award winning filmmakers of IN THE SHADOWS OF THE STARS, DIALOGUES WITH MADWOMEN is a ground-breaking film about women and mental illness. Best, Amy Aquilino Women Make Movies Distribution and Sales Coordinator 115 West 29th St., Suite 1200 New York, NY 10001 (p)212-925-0606 ext. 305 (f)212-925-2052 > >I'm creating a new course on writing memoir, and I want to include a >couple of films. One that I haven't seen yet but that I think will fit >well is Stories We Tell, a documentary by Sarah Polley about her >deceased mother that incorporates the memories of a range of family >and friends and in the process reveals a great deal about those being >interviewed. Another possibility is Persepolis, based on the graphic >novel/memoir by Marjane Satrapi. > >Do you have other films you could suggest that would fit this genre? >Films that raise interesting questions about storytelling, memory, >truth, conflicting versions of events, etc. would be particularly >interesting. > > > >End of videolib Digest, Vol 68, Issue 14 >**************************************** VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel of communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video producers and distributors.
VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel of communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video producers and distributors.
