A friend emailed and asked the following question:

What the hell has happened to you? You are among the most critical thinkers I know. Your movie festival writing is so happy, I think you need to cut back on your prozac. What is going on down there?

So, right off the bat, I know that even my friends don’t read my policies page.

More to the point, I think making art is hard as hell. I don’t want to spend my time tearing work apart, when I can be bringing my readers stuff I think is great. That doesn’t mean I can’t be critical of works that I love, but I haven’t been digging in for analysis for SILVERDOCS, since I’ve been mostly posting quick bits. I’ll have some more analytical writing following the festival, as the panels and fellow festival-goers typically give me lots to think about.

And to the particular writer of that question, I note that you know what I do if I want to rant, rave, criticize and attack–I write about politics.

If you are looking for a great film to see this weekend, consider Lucio and steep yourself in a fascinating modern political story that is unknown to many. Lucio Urtubia is a humble man of modest means who supported himself through the hard work of bricklaying. Did I mention that he is suspected to be at the center of a massive counterfeiting ring that appeared to exist primarily to fund anarchist political movements all over the world? A few years and tens of millions of dollars later, Citibank came to the bargaining table to get him to stop. He did 6 months in prison and sealed his reputation as the Robin Hood of Anarchism.

Did I mention he is alive and well and living in Paris, where he runs a radical bookstore? Capitalism may be trying to eat Che, but I doubt they will be able to swallow Lucio anytime soon. Viva Lucio!  Viva La Revolución!

There is plenty of hustling going on at your average film festival, but this was something different. Guerilla marketing hit SILVERDOCS yesterday when the woman in the photograph showed up to promote Jon Hotchkiss’ latest project, Obscene Movie. If you are fans of Penn & Teller or “Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher” (where he was one of the original writers), you probably recognize his name. Hotchkiss wasn’t present, but the promotional attempt seemed to get a less than warm reception at the Cinema Lounge, where the manager politely asked them to leave (and they politely complied).

It definitely got people’s attention. People were asking if she was a real sex worker or a porn star, but I asked the first question that came to my mind–how do you walk in those crazy shoes? Apparently it helps if you take small steps.

OK, in the interest of full disclosure let me state categorically: I think banjo genius Béla Fleck is the tops.¹ That said, my mind still would have been blown by Throw Down Your Heart even if it wasn’t Bela Fleck.²

Filmmaker Sascha Paladino has created a delight of a film as he joins his brother Fleck on a trip to Africa to explore the roots of the banjo.³ Their multi-country trip brings Fleck together with many talented musicians and remarkable collaborations result. The energy of the musicians is infectious, the music joyous to behold, and Paladino gives you the experience of being right in the mix.

Following the screening, the audience got an opportunity to hear Fleck play, joined by Cheick Hamala Diabaté, a terrific n’goni player and star in his own right (see photo below). For the second night in a row, SILVERDOCS hits it out of the park.⁴

1. I’m not exaggerating. I had the guy sign my mandolin today. How pathetically fanboy is that?
2. That it is Béla Fleck? Awesome! See footnote one re: my pathetic-ness.
3. I had a chance to hear the two speak at length earlier in the day about the process of making the film, and hopefully I will get a chance to write up those comments soon.
4. Look! A sports analogy! How did that happen? Answer: it’s a baseball analogy. Even I know from baseball.

Am excitedly waiting to go see Stages, a film made by Meerkat Media, a collaborative, non-hierarchical media collective. Am hoping to catch up with one or more of the filmmakers for an interview about their process.

UPDATE: I had to leave after about 45 minutes due to a scheduling conflict, but was really impressed by what I saw and I look forward to seeing the final version. Not only was the rough cut remarkably coherent (remember, collaborative collective!), but it was quite moving. In addition, the energy and passion of the filmmakers themselves is enough to get me to go see everything they do. I am filled with regret that I wasn’t there for the discussion following the screening.