Some 20 years ago, New York filmmaker Zachary Levy went looking for a story that would become his first documentary feature film. He wound up finding the personality of a lifetime in Stanley Pleskun, a New Jersey scrap metal hauler with a colorful side hustle. In Levy’s 2009 documentary Strongman, Levy contributes an enduring character to the canon of vérité filmmaking.Intro music: Arne Bang HusebyOutro music: Jahzzar This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.talkingdocumentary.com
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Shaleece Haas tackles one of America's great social issues in "Real Boy"
Ten years ago, Shaleece Haas stumbled upon a musician whose lyrics captured her attention ... and then her imagination. Turns out the musician, Bennett Wallace, had a story to go along with his music. It was a story increasingly playing out in living rooms across the country and one that is forcing American society to rethink old ideas about gender and identity. In "Real Boy," Haas tenderly trains her lens on a young transgender musician, his best friend and mentor, and the mother who struggles to accept the reality of who her son is becoming.Intro Music by Lobo LocoOutro Music by Kevin MacLeod This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.talkingdocumentary.com
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Robert Greene returns to his roots to film pro wrestlers in "Fake It So Real"
Robert Greene is an award-winning filmmaker who directed the highly regarded Netflix documentary, "Procession." But at the dawn of the 2010s, Greene was only beginning to refine his voice and vision as a filmmaker. In 2011, Greene parlayed a family connection into access to a handful of small-time pro wrestlers and followed them as they prepared for a show in rural North Carolina. The result is documentary treasure. Greene's film, "Fake It So Real," explores a subculture that alternately generates smiles and winces but ultimately wins your heart. The film also captures a slice of rural America in the years before Donald Trump exploded onto the political scene, straining the already fraught relationship between urban and rural Americans. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.talkingdocumentary.com
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Drew Xanthopolous leans on his humanity to enter the world of "The Sensitives"
Drew Xanthopolous was a young, unestablished filmmaker when he came across a New York Times photo essay that would launch his career—as well as change the next five years of his life. The essay documented the lives of people who suffer from Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, a crippling condition that forces the afflicted to rethink everything about their day-to-day lives (including where they live and how they interact with family). Xanthopolous was intrigued and decided to learn more. He met several MCS sufferers and decided to tell their story. Over the ensuing handful of years, Xanthopolous undertook a nearly continuous milk run across two time zones to capture the lives of those living with MCS. His ensuing film, The Sensitives, documents the unique emotional terrain of those for whom modern life is more curse than blessing.Music by Wall Matthews This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.talkingdocumentary.com
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Elizabeth Lo captures the romance of urban dog life in "Stray"
In the United States, stray dogs are not allowed to live on the street. They are whisked away to live in concrete cells. The approach is very different in some cities in Europe and Asia, where stray dogs are allowed to live freely alongside the human population.Elizabeth Lo pondered these differences and what it all means. She wanted to create a visual document that captures stray dogs as seen from their perspective, not ours. The result is a stunning visual achievement that also carries a message about what it means to live free.Lo's film, Stray, was released in 2021. It won the jury prize for Best International Feature Film at the Hot Docs International Film Festival! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.talkingdocumentary.com
Do you love documentaries? Join me for a series of conversations with directors who discuss the craft of documentary filmmaking. You'll learn how these talented creators find great stories and how they bring them to life on screens around the world. www.talkingdocumentary.com
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