MUSEUM OF TELEVISION & RADIO SEMINAR SERIES, THE: TELEVISION DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL: POP {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in a series of seminars presented in New York by The Paley Center for Media (known at the time as The Museum of Television & Radio) as part of its PALEYDOCFEST 2000 Television Documentary Festival. This seminar focuses on "Pop," the documentary film by Joel Meyerowitz about his road trip from Florida to New York with his son Sasha and his father Hy, who has Alzheimer's Disease. Host Ron Simon (curator, The Paley Center for Media/New York) offers opening remarks and then welcomes Joel to the stage. He introduces the documentary, which is then screened in its entirety. (For synopsis and credits, see T:59752.)
After the screening, Simon moderates a conversation with Joel and Sasha, and they touch upon such topics as: Joel's decision to make a road-trip film to give his father a break from his restricted life at his assisted-living facility; his "instinctive," unscripted filming style and lack of concern with traditional documentary techniques; their decision to spend three weeks on scenic back roads rather than a few days on the highways; their sense of Hy's restored independence over the course of the trip; the decision after the fact to incorporate home-movie footage into the film; Sasha's experience seeing his grandfather's true "character" during the journey; Hy's "fearless" attitude about his Alzheimer's and the film's message of hope; the film's many humorous moments, largely due to Hy's wit; and Hy's lifelong love of Charlie Chaplin and his own use of comedy as a defense mechanism.
Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics among others: how Hy's "curiosity" about everyday events led to Joel's interest in street photography; his un-self-conscious nature in front of the camera; the road trip as an "uplifting experience" despite its challenges; Hy's experience seeing parts of the film and recognizing himself; his struggle in dealing with his wife Sally's death shortly after his return to Florida; how Joel "introduced" her as a part of the story despite her absence from the road trip; his process of learning how to talk with and question his father during filming; selecting the best scenes and moments from forty-four hours of footage; and his plans for a possible second project with "Frontline."
Details
- NETWORK: Paley
- DATE: May 17, 2000
- RUNNING TIME: 1:35:12
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 111455
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Ron Simon … Host
- Joel Meyerowitz … Guest
- Sasha Meyerowitz … Guest
- Hy Meyerowitz
- Sally Meyerowitz