I have an endless list of documentaries, short films, movies and even music videos that have changed me, their storytelling in some way helped me understand a new culture, a major flaw in our society, but even more so I’ve come to understand where does all the injustice of this world come from. It’s all there in the documentaries, in the movies, in the content created by filmmakers, always keeping track of history and functioning as a social mirror to our actions.
The older I get, the more I see a camera and my editing station as social changing tools, as motivators. I get bored talking about sharp lenses, new codecs, and the brand new camera that shoots out confetti. I’m really sick of it, that’s not what it’s all about, it’s about the story and the people, how I’m I going to connect with you through my stories? how I’m I going to find a way to share with you my feelings about the world? Of course, I care about the quality of the imagery, the technology is there and to be honest, it’s waaaay too easy now to capture amazing looking footage, I care and worry way more about the message, the struggle, the passion, the pain and the happiness that makes the globe go round, this is what the audience cares about as well.
Making a social change, even a little dent is huge, important and necessary to all people, we live in time in history where we are able to record and share video instantly, we can show and broadcast injustices, we can create original content telling the world about a new artist, we can teach people how to cook, I mean the possibilities are endless!
Most movies suck right now, the same stories are being told, predictable and boring, at least to me they are. I did find a couple of gems in my opinion, like “Moonlight” and “Arrival”, such masterpieces. There is hope for movies to make a comeback again like in the 1960’s and 1970’s, we need more truth in cinema these days.
More and more responsibilities will land over the social conscious filmmakers’ laps, we’ll need to do more, generate more content and educate as many as we can with our tools, in a world of ‘fake’ news, where facts don’t really matter to a lot of people, and most people have their faces pushed against a cell phone screen, it’s on us to do our part, never give up and to always try to be true to what’s going on in the world.
Since your read my little rant, please take half a minute to check out Community Supported Films, they are amazing and I’m working directly with them as an instructor and I’ll be even more involved in the near future. You can donate ANYTHING here, it will mean the world to me.