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Thomas Norman DeWolf’s Shortlist

Published on July 15, 2009

The Shortlist article series is your opportunity to learn about the films that inspire intellectual, artistic and activist leaders—leaders like Thomas Norman DeWolf. We asked Thomas to share his favorite films and his thoughts on the power of documentary to change the world.

So what films make Thomas Norman DeWolf’s Shortlist? Keep reading to find out.

Who is Thomas Norman DeWolf

Thomas Norman DeWolf

Thomas Norman DeWolf wrote Inheriting the Trade: A Northern Family Confronts Its Legacy as the Largest Slave-Trading Dynasty in U.S. History (Beacon Press) after traveling with nine distant relatives on a life-altering journey through Rhode Island, Ghana, and Cuba to film Katrina Browne’s documentary Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North, which was an Official Selection for the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and premiered on national television on the acclaimed PBS series P.O.V. Tom served on the Oregon Arts Commission for nine years and as a local elected official for eleven. His years of public service focused on the arts, literacy, children’s issues, and restorative justice. Since the publication of Inheriting the Trade Tom has spent much of his time on the road, speaking at colleges, libraries, film festivals, social justice conferences, and the like. His next book will explore the intersection of various types of oppression (based in race, gender, religion, politics, etc.) and what healing looks like. Tom regularly expresses his views on various interrelated subjects on his blog and on his Facebook page.

Thomas Norman DeWolf on the Power of Film

I write. Words are the primary medium through which I communicate. Crafting a story well allows readers into a world they would not otherwise experience. As I write—and read—moving images always play in my head. The combination of well-crafted words, imagery, and sounds holds the power to transport people in ways nothing else can. The Wicked Witch scared me so much as a child that I spent most of my time under my parents’ bed when the Wizard of Oz was on TV. I believed that John Wayne was the savior of our country. I knew my problems would eventually work out okay because they always did for Shirley Temple. Walter Cronkite impacted the way I understood history when his “You Are There” re-enactments of historic events were shown in school.

Having worked on film crews for Alan Rudolph (Love at Large) and Gus Van Sant (Even Cowgirls Get the Blues), I learned how complicated and challenging it is to weave the disparate threads of words, actors, sounds, music, sets, lighting, props, crews, and other factors into the final “quilt” the filmmaker envisioned. My more intimate experience with the making of Traces of the Trade showed me how challenging and important various voices become in the making of a documentary film. The subjects (actors) are not pros like Tom Berenger or Uma Thurman and they don’t always go along with the director’s vision. The editor, co-producers and director disagree. 250 hours of footage must be reduced to a 90-minute film. Fundraising often overshadows everything else. Against significant odds docs get made. They deal with subjects in ways other media don’t, won’t or can’t. As folks lose trust in politicians and pundits, they turn to documentarians to tell important stories that change the way we view our world.

Thomas Norman DeWolf’s Picks

In selecting films to highlight I’ve chosen five overarching themes that I believe represent the significant challenges we face collectively today: the economy, racism, health, war and the environment.

I.O.U.S.A.: Portents of things to come can be seen in the 2005 films Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price and Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room. To fully understand the financial crisis and what is required to repair the damage see the unflinching I.O.U.S.A. It exposes the structure and operations of government and the resulting impact on people and society. It exposes our individual greed and poor choices. I.O.U.S.A. shows how we got here and proposes solutions to prevent our grandchildren from having a far different standard of living than most of us would like to leave them.

Double Time: The false construct of “race” permeates American society; its systems and structures. We continue to live segregated lives. Many films expose aspects of racism’s legacy: The Order of Myths, Unforgiveable Blackness, the extras on the Bamboozled DVD and A Man Named Pearl. Double Time is about competitive rope jumping. Double Dutch competitors are almost all black. Single rope jumpers are almost all white. During the 70’s these became competitive sports with two separate organizations. The parallels between jump rope competitions and life in general along race, wealth, and class lines are profound. You’ll also catch yourself tapping your toes throughout.

Simply Raw: We are making ourselves fatter and sicker. Watch King Corn, Supersize Me and then Simply Raw, which documents six people with diabetes who agree to go on a strictly natural and raw foods diet. They give up meat, dairy, sugar, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, and junk, fast, processed, packaged, and cooked food for 30 days. Witness struggle, support, hope, and transformation. See that diet can reverse disease and change lives. This isn’t just for people with diabetes. Simply Raw is about all of us; how we as individuals and families consume ourselves into poor health and pass the habit onto our children.

The Betrayal (Nerakhoon): The Fog of War just pissed me off at the insanity involved in creating and prosecuting war. Slingshot Hip Hop inspired me; what civilians do in the face of violence, occupation, and forced isolation in the Middle East. The Betrayal shows the very human impact war has on people in Laos when the Viet Nam War ended and America left. Thousands of U.S. allies faced imprisonment, “re-education”, or death. This is the story of one family’s daring escape—except for two children tragically left behind—only to be swallowed up in a different kind of war in their new home in New York.

Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance: We are close to a point of no return. Our lifestyle is destroying our home. An Inconvenient Truth shows us what we face. Spike Lee’s When the Levees Broke shows not just the horror of environmental disaster but the inept, bewildered response by our government. And the amazing Koyaanisqatsi shows us, without words, the collision between humans (with all our technological “progress”) and our environment. We seem to have lost the ability to envision what we are doing to ourselves. Koyaanisqatsi provides no answers. As with all great art it allows the audience to draw its own meaning. What’s yours?

This article is available for noncommercial use under a Creative Commons license. It was originally published on MediaRights.org, a project of Arts Engine, Inc. This notice must accompany the article at all times.

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