CODE
Are makers of experimental and personal works isolated narcissistic beings, working in codes that are inaccessible to most of us, and constantly reflecting on their existential crises? In the words of a particularly agitated seminar participant, do they need to "get over it, there s a whole world out there!"
This was my first Flaherty experience, and I was excited by the focus on experimental film. As a maker of experimental and activist documentaries, I think both forms of filmmaking are powerful and effective in different ways. Personal storytelling often can be a brilliant way to connect to the political. A number of films in the seminar exemplified this.
So why was there such a divide? Perhaps what detractors were reacting to was not experimental form in itself - Marlon Riggs s innovative, experimental Tongues Untied, which screened as part of the historical section, resonated strongly for people - but a lack of cultural diversity in the contemporary voices being presented. Many women-of-color filmmakers work in experimental forms, and I for one missed these voices at Flaherty.
Another issue raised was how the audiences for and students of avant-garde film are largely white. Are racism and classism inherent in avant-garde film? Or is it a matter of how films are coded and categorized?
Experimental films by people of color tend not to be considered "avant-garde," even when they use innovative structures and push the formal boundaries of the medium. I find that my experimental work is always programmed under categories defined by my ethnicity. Rather than being included with other experimental films, my film, Border Crossing, an experimental short about racial profiling at the Los Angeles/San Diego border, is usually programmed under headings like "Exotic/ Distant Lands," along with films about lepers in Calcutta. All these films are lumped together as the voice of the "other." This classification ignores the sensibility and style of individual filmmakers and perhaps contributes to the notion that there are no worthy experimental filmmakers of color.
Flaherty was an exhilarating week full of amazing films, insights, and revelations. I witnessed passionate discussions and wonderful attempts to articulate the nuances of experimental filmmaking. Morgan Fisher, one of the presenting filmmakers, talked about how liberating avant-garde film can be; people who walk out on or dismiss these films miss out on a transformative experience. This made me think about how the same argument could be applied to diversity in the programming of films. When you exclude someone s voice (in this case the voices of women of color) you exclude a perspective, an awareness, a way of looking at the world that can enrich and transform you in ways you could never imagine. In the end, it is everyone s loss.
ANULA SHETTY, a Philadelphia-based filmmaker, is co-director of Termite TV Collective
