Flaherty Seminar 2016

At this year's Flaherty Seminar which took place from June 18-24 at Colgate University in upstate New York the theme was "play". We watched experimental and documentary films followed by intensive discussion and a week of togetherness. The filmmakers featured and who presented work, all of whom were present at the seminar are the following:

Saul Levine
Joaquim Pinto
Naomi Kawase
Luis Ospina
Ute Aurand
Ana Vaz
Billy Woodberry
Luke Fowler
Brigid McCaffrey
Kidlat Tahimik

My favourite films were the following:

Joaquim Pinto, "What Now, Remind Me"

Luis Ospina, "Oiga vea!", "It all started at the end"

Saul Levine, "Dream Story"

Billy Woodberry "Bless Their Little Hearts"

Ana Vaz, "Occidente"

Brigid McCaffrey, "Paradise Springs"

Some questions and themes that arose include:

Who's right is it to represent people different from themselves?

What are the implications related to the self-indulgence involved in autobiographical films?

The importance of friendship and collaboration 

The representation of family members vs those you develop a relationship with through film

Landscape and portraits in film