Silverdocs Roundup

One key phrase popped up in all of the Silverdocs branding material this year: "Open Mindedness Suggested." Based on the subjects of the films and the innovations represented in the conference, it seems that open mindedness was not only suggested, but the key ingredient of the entire festival.

I spent Tuesday in the Good Pitch session of the conference. Good Pitch, which was presented by Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation and the Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program, was aimed at directors and producers with film projects that tackle important global and national issues. The filmmakers pitched their projects, all in various stages of production and distribution, to a group of experts from NGOs, charities, foundations, advertising agencies, public and commercial media interests. These pitches often resulted in newly developed partnerships, promises of outreach assistance, and in some cases, financing. This session showed the vital importance of community partnerships to give a film the outreach that it needs in today's hyper-competitive market.

On Wednesday we at the Center for Social Media presented a role-playing session about the Future of Public Media. In this session we brought together a diverse group of public broadcasters, media makers, investors, and experts to spontaneously predict how public media outlets would react to hypothetical headlines from the future. Thanks to the moderating of Joaquin Alvarado (CPB) and creative designing of Pat Aufderheide, this session was both eye-opening and humorous. A video of this session will be available on our website later this week.

I saw a number of films throughout the festival as well, but two that particularly struck me were MINE and The Way We Get By. MINE, a film by Geralyn Pezanoski, explores "how tragedy intensifies [the bond between pet and pet owner] and is told from the perspective of original guardians, rescuers, and adoptive parents of the voiceless victims of Katrina." When New Orleans residents were forced to evacuate in the face of Hurricane Katrina, they discovered that their pets were not welcome in shelter facilities. With the impression that they would be able to return in a day or two, many pet owners left their pets in their homes with food and water. They did not realize the severity of the storm, that the levees would break, and that it might be weeks or even months before they could return to their homes. Many animals died, and those that were rescued by volunteers were sent to over-crowded shelters throughout the country. Some of those animals were then adopted. When the New Orleans residents returned home and began the desperate attempt to get their pets back, many of the flaws of the rescue plan emerged. Many shelters assumed that animals had been willingly abandoned and refused the requests for reunion. This film follows pet owners, pets, and their new adoptive owners through several difficult years of determining who can call the animal "mine."

The Way We Get By, a film by Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly, explores the lives of three elderly citizens in Bangor, Maine who dedicate themselves to welcoming home returning troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. The film lovingly explores the aging process, finding purpose, human connection, war and death. Gaudet and Pullapilly were participants in this years BAVC Producer's Institute, where they created an online network for connecting with those currently serving in the military, remembering those who have fallen, and creating virtual care packages for sending videos and pictures to deployed family members. This film will be airing on POV later this year, and would be a a great tool in starting discussions in communities across the countries about supporting the troops and veterans' affairs.

The Way We Get By - Trailer from The Way We Get By on Vimeo.