Jeanine Meerapfel's Regionalzeitung

For those of you who dig obscure 60s German documentary, check out Jeanine Meerapfel's Regionalzeitung (Local Newspaper) at Wissen und Medien's website. The film was done through the Ulm Film Institute, where Meerapfel was a student in the late 60s. It focuses on the Schwabian Danube Newspaper in Ulm, showing the different departments and jobs, as well as going through the newspaper's production process. But more than just a dry, mechanical look at how things at a newspaper get done, this student production presents some of the issues a newspaper faces - how to present news and how to represent social issues and what comes with working for a newspaper.

It's interesting to see the early student work of a director who has been an established, professional filmmaker for thirty years. Might give some aspiring chaps a bit of hope.

Unfortunately, the film has no English subtitles, so only those fortunate enough to understand German can fully appreciate this early work from a quiet and interesting filmmaker. For the rest of you: the solution.

The Potter's Meal & Nobody's Business

In the passed few weeks I've had a chance to see two rather interesting documentaries. Both deal with maybe more ordinary subjects, but it seems there's something quite unique and wonderful about both of these simple stories.

The Potter's Meal is a cool short doc about potter Joseph Bennion, who lives with his family in rural Utah. For many potting might not sound like the most exciting thing. This doc might not convert you to the excitement of making pots, but it will let you in on Joe's perspective on potting as art and the relationship that man has with nature, food, creative process, God, and family. For being only 30 min long, there's a lot in there and it's well worth the time. Director Steve Olpin also claims that a new remastered version of the film is done and he just has to find the time to get it released. We'll see how long it takes him.

Nobody's Business is Alan Berliner's film about genealogy and family relations, focusing primarily on his father, who's now a rather old man. His father has that grumpy charm that is so funny in people who've been around a while and now see no reason to change their views in the slightest. This film looks at an alleged 'ordinary' life and captures/finds some things that could be considered more than just ordinary. This is a cool look at Alan Berliner's quest to learn more about his ancestors and in the process, I believe, discovers a lot about his own relationship with his parents. And all along the way we have his father, Oscar's grumpy cursing to keep us smiling.

Three Great Documentaries

I've been on a documentary and juice diet lately* and have a few recommendations.

The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill - I remember when this hit the theaters in the US, we were still living in Norwich and were too lazy to make the trip to see it. I also remember that pretty much no one who saw it disliked this movie. Well, I can now say that I'm not the bad guy for being the first to hate it. The doc follows Mark Bittner, a guy who befriends a flock of wild parrots residing on/around Telegraph Hill in San Francisco. The story of how he came to meet the parrots and get to know them (and they him) is fascinating, as is his philosophy on life and how we interact and relate with animals. Check it out - it's brilliant. Bittner also has a web site and a book that you should probably buy. You can order signed copies of the book from the Oasis Sanctuary web site.

Cane Toads: An Unnatural History - This doc is wierd, insightful, and humorous. Not a conventional heartwarming story by any means, Cane Toads explains a bug problem in Australia and how the introduction of a non-native species (the Cane Toad from Hawaii) was designed to eliminate the bug infestation... but didn't. Now there are these ginormous toads all over the place.




I am trying to break your heart - If you love the rock band, Wilco, then you need to see this doc about the process of releasing their remarkable album, "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot." It examines the band's process of songwriting/deconstruction, as well as recording and mixing an album. Most notably, I am trying to break your heart shows how the band, riding the wave of three previously successful albums, got dumped by their label after they had the new album recorded and in hand. The amazing thing? Wilco got to keep the album.

Great photography, great music. Check it out. Your elitist sensibilities will thank you.

The great thing about all of these documentaries is, if you happen to live within the Provo/Orem Paradox (POP), you can check them out at the Orem Public Library.


*I'm not really on any kind of juice diet.

Tagged under:
Entertainment, Documentary