docuclub

talk back

Talk Back # 3 - Stages

Last week, I traveled to Silver Springs, MD, to SILVERDOCS. The documentary festival was hosting a session of DocuClub "In-The-Works" and the rough cut we chose to screen was Stages. The film--which depicts a group of elderly immigrant women and teens that unite at a community arts space in the Lower East Side of New York to make a play--is a collaboration between the twelve members of the Meerkat Media Arts Collective.

The screening went really well--it was fantastic to see the 74-minute rough cut on a huge screen, in a nice, large auditorium. The Meerkats had requested feedback on the beginning of the film: Was it clear? Did it establish the story and main characters in an intriguing way? As moderated by Erica Ginsberg, of the Silver Spring outfit Docs in Progress, Inc., the feedback from the audience was very pointed. Attendees agreed that the documentary was outstanding and were encouraging with their comments. They suggested the clarification of the whereabouts/storylines of certain characters by adding more title cards (at first, the filmmakers did not want to have too many cards). They also hinted that more context for the characters would be helpful, especially in terms of aiding in the understanding of how the community center where the women and youth come together fits within the gentrification of their neighborhood.

Another interesting factor in this session of DocuClub was having not just one or two filmmakers receive feedback, but rather a collective of artists. (There were six Meerkats present out of twelve.) I’m looking forward to seeing how the comments given at the screening are implemented in the next cut of Stages.

No Comments | Leave a Comment | Posted on June 24, 2008