Nevins Brings Three Films to Sundance 2007
While at the Producers Conference last August, I had the good fortune of meeting the Grand Dame of Documentary, HBO's Sheila Nevins. With a sharp eye for material that will captivate the public's attention, Nevins chooses documentary projects of significance. At my very first Sundance, I saw a Nevins film. At the time, I didn't know it was a Nevins film; I only knew I was deeply moved by the film and showed it to every rebellious teenager I knew. The film was about three "Goth" teens sentenced to life in prison for murders they probably did not commit. PARADISE LOST: THE CHILD MURDERS AT ROBIN HOOD HILLS. Minors Jessie Misskelley, Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin were subjected to 12 hours of questioning without legal counsel or parental consent. Their coerced, erroneous confessions can be read on the Free the West Memphis Three site. I can still recall that film and the impact it had on my commitment to Sundance and the value of documentary filmmaking.
So it is not surprising that Nevins has several films at Sundance 2007 that I would like to see. She brings Rory Kennedy's GHOSTS OF ABU GHRAIB, Steven Okazaki's WHITE LIGHT/BLACK RAIN and Irene Taylor Brodsky's very touching and personal film, HEAR AND NOW. To better sense the sensibility of Nevins, refer to Pamela Bowman's SUNDANCE GOES TO WAR for a summary of ABU GHRAIB and WHITE LIGHT. Brodsky's film deals with the internal struggles and challenges faced by a family. Brodsky describes her film thusly: "In this deeply personal memoir, HEAR AND NOW documents her deaf parents' complex decision to leave their world of silence and undergo a dangerous surgery to get cochlear implants -- the only one of its kind that can restore a sense. At the age of 65, Paul and Sally Taylor decided they wanted to hear their first symphonies, hear their children's' voices, and talk on the phone. How this operation transforms them, their relationship with each other, and the deaf world is revealed. This is a story of two people taking a journey from silence to sound and what might they gain -- or lose -- forever?
At the end of the day, all three films have no doubt benefitted from Nevins' skillful stewardship. The film community at large continues to gain and will be forever indebted to Nevins for her commitment to the documentary form long before it was cool to do so. I love what she's doing for cargo pants.
