Documenting Giving

I've spent much of my time at various institutions of learning grappling with the concept of the "documentary" as social demonstrative. As a history buff and young citizen concerned with various current events, the documentary obviously appeals to me as an educational tool. But there are two fundamental issues that I have with the genre: documentaries are boring, and documentaries tend to objectify, simplify, and unfairly categorize complex ideas.

Now- the first issue is an easier one to combat than the latter. There are plenty of successful, intriguing documentaries that we can use as examples: "7 Up," "Hoop Dreams," "The Thin Blue Line." I list these specifically, because they are actual films, not just recorded lectures. The directors of these documentaries use cinema and all of its tools to supplement their factual information, to enhance the story and their storytelling abilities. The result is a film that is engaging and connected to the viewer. It is promoting a dialogue, rather than a one-way conversation. This relationship can even be furthered by, dare I suggest it: humor. Learning and laughter are not enemies- upon further exploration, we may even find that one facilitates the other. Blasphemy? I think not.

In terms of my second grievance, I'm not sure that there is an answer. How can someone make a film objectively? One can't. No matter if its fly-on-the-wall technique or handing a camera to a local so he can record his story for you, point of view gets in the way. My solution? Let's stop trying to make objective pieces. By this I do not mean to encourage lying or truth twisting (ahem- Michael Moore). I mean to suggest making a claim to an opinion, and using film to explain and argue one's opinion. I think that this method can yield two positive results: more passionate films, and clearer, less-obscured messages. If a viewer sees an obviously subjective film, she will be more apt to think about the subject and discuss it with others. She'll form her own opinion, and have a dialogue, of sorts, with the film. This is priceless- this should be the goal of documentary filmmaking.

There are lots of documentaries out there, trying in different ways to raise money for charity X or cause Y. Perhaps donors could think about supporting the development of the documentary movement, in an effort to improve the foundation and language of philanthropy, thus making our giving far more effective.

Dana Variano