“I’ve watched every single one of us struggle financially and physically from the pay and the hours. Many, including myself, have huge debts from travel and lodging costs that our seasonal salaries wouldn’t cover. I’ve seen friends fall asleep at the wheel, or be scared to drive home after an 18-hour day…” Stories like these are all too common on anonymous Instagram accounts such as OfftheFestCircuit and FestStafferStories, which chronicle the inequities experienced by film exhibition workers from across the nation. Hundreds of posts recount incidents of exploitation, abuse, sexism and racism
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The last few years have been deemed by many as the Golden Age of Documentaries, but for the majority working in the nonfiction landscape, it’s a paycheck-to-paycheck existence that does not include health care, let alone benefits like a 401(k) and paid vacations. While Hollywood lives and dies by its labor unions, for the nonfiction community, being unionized is a privilege that few can afford. For example, for a doc director to become a Directors Guild of America (DGA) member, they must be hired by a signatory company to direct a project or develop a feature-length project. For that to happen
Joining the Directors Guild of America nearly 10 years ago ranks as one of the proudest moments in my entire career. There was something about belonging to this prominent legacy organization that made my title of Director feel that much more authentic. As a child of two labor organizers, this accomplishment had a more profound significance than just moving up in the world of film and television. Mom was a shop steward for the Houston APWU (American Postal Workers Union) and Dad’s hard work and dedication took him from a local APWU President to being former Secretary-General Richard Trumka’s
Let’s face it: documentaries are no longer "niche." Since 2020, documentaries have been the fastest-growing genre on streaming platforms. Data compiled by Parrot Analytics showed that between January 2018 and March 2021, the number of documentary series soared by 63%, while demand for them skyrocketed by 142%. This explosion in demand has resulted in many distribution outlets turning to reality TV production companies to steer projects to completion. But the culture clash between reality TV and documentary is having unintended, negative consequences in the edit room, as producers are pressured
Sahar Driver and Sonya Childress recently announced their co-directorship of a new initiative to support the sustainability and strengthening of independent people of color (POC)- led documentary film institutions and POC documentary filmmakers. This initiative, called Color Congress, is a national collective of majority POC and POC-led organizations that aims to center and strengthen nonfiction storytelling by, for and about people of color in the US. As longtime field-building and impact cultural strategists, and advocates in the independent documentary film space, Driver and Childress bring
"My name is Ayudh Chatterjee, and I’m slightly unwell, sorry," coughs a little boy bundled up in a sweater and scarf. "But in this movie, the teacher insists that two and two equals five. Is this right?" "No!" shouts the indignant audience. "Then the cruel teacher forces the student to agree, brings three bullies to force him, but he refuses, he keeps rebelling. They kill him! Despite this, that other boy, even though he says 'five' out loud, he writes '4' in his notebook. That is right!" He hands the mic back. He gets a round of wild applause. In Ariadaha, in the northern suburbs of Kolkata
Since early 2020, the COVID pandemic has taken a merciless toll on film institutions and festivals around the world. But for Cinemateca Brasileira, aka the Brazilian Cinematheque, founded in 1940 and located in São Paulo, the crisis that ended with it shutting its doors in August 2020 had been nearly a decade in the making. The slow, agonizing burnout left the revered, beleaguered institution—including its workers—not only at the mercy of the faltering government’s response to longstanding economic downturn and the pandemic fallout, but also in the maelstrom of a highly politicized cultural
Few media arts centers last 50 years, let alone in Manhattan, where sky-high rents drive most out of business. But DCTV has survived for half a century. However, no celebration can be planned as long as Omicron is raging in the city. Co-founder Jon Alpert takes the long view, saying, “We want to survive, adapt, and be as relevant going forward as we have been for the last 50 years. That’s the best way to celebrate.” The reasons behind DCTV’s success are many. But foremost among them are owning the property where they’re housed, the revenue stream from DCTV productions, and the dedication of
Thomas Allen Harris is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and artist whose acclaimed works include VINTAGE—Families of Value, Through a Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People, Family Pictures USA―a documentary-style television program that uses shared family photos to bring communities together―and Digital Diaspora Family Reunion, a cross-country transmedia project that incorporates community organizing, performance, and virtual happenings to create an interactive form of storytelling. Harris has been teaching at Yale University for the past five years, and thanks
Gerardo del Valle is a video journalist from Guatemala currently based in New York City. His work explores the people behind the headlines and the repercussions of policy decisions on communities. He studied Communications and Media at Universidad Rafael Landívar in Guatemala and has a Master’s degree in Journalism from the City University of New York. He is a Firelight Documentary Lab Fellow and an SFFilm Foundation New American Fellow. His latest project The Past Is Waiting Up Ahead is supported by IDA’s Enterprise Documentary Fund and the Sundance Institute. Starting his career working as a