Watching Alan Berliner’s rarely seen work on a big screen is a true treat. Last Tuesday evening began with his short EVERYWHERE AT ONCE and was followed by INTIMATE STRANGER – a film shot 18 years ago about his grandfather Joseph Cassuto. When asked by an audience member what his grandfather would have thought of the film, Berliner replied: “He died 35 years ago and we’re still talking about it. He’d love it!”
When talking about the making of INTIMATE STRANGER, Berliner said that the film “defined labor of love”. He spent 9 months simply reading his grandfather’s archives: Joseph Cassuto had meticulously saved every letter he had ever received or written (the magic of carbon copy). Berliner explains: “I must have inherited whatever genetics were necessary to cope. I had to go through every piece of paper, since you never know what you might find.” During this early research, he remembers finding five $100 bills in one of the tucked-away envelopes, which he describes as the film’s “first grant”.
Mr. and Mrs. Stranger headed out West for a jam-packed weekend, attending the Independent Spirit Awards and other festivities around the Oscars. Here are some souvenirs.
Me with the one and only Werner Herzog. He remembered meeting my father a few years back and insisted that I take this photo for Jack.
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Josh Braun of Submarine Entertainment sharing a laugh with Diane Weyerman of Participant Media at the Independent Spirit Awards.
Filmmaker Laura Poitras (MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY) with Cara Mertes of the Sundance Institute at the Independent Spirit Awards.
Last night STF hosted a sold-out screening of Lucia Small and Ed Pincus’ documentary film THE AXE IN THE ATTIC. Lured by the added bonus of a free boxed DVD set of “THE KATRINA EXPERIENCE” (courtesy of Indiepix), patrons showed up an hour before the screening started.
The film was followed by a fun reception at 99 Below, featuring a tasty “Axe In The Attic Cocktail” which helped keep us going till the wee hours of the morning. Here are some pictures:
L to R: Director Lucia Small, filmmaker Robert Hatch-Miller and Pola Rapaport, director of WRITER OF O.
David Leitner and Ian Vollmer – coincidentally both have worked as DPs for Alan Berliner (Leitner on NOBODY’S BUSINESS and Vollmer on WIDE AWAKE). Berliner’s film INTIMATE STRANGER shows at STF on February 24.
Last night’s Stranger Than Fiction was Morgan Dews’ MUST READ AFTER MY DEATH, “a documentary about documentation” or in other words, Dews took his late Grandmother Allis’ home movies and audio tapes from the 1960s and constructed them into one cohesive story arc dealing with Allis’ unconventional relationship with her husband Charley and the psychological effects it had on their four children. The entire film is told through these documentations without any narration or talking heads. MUST READ AFTER MY DEATH, which debuted last fall at the Hamptons International Film Festival, will be distributed by Gigantic Releasing and opens Feb. 20 at Quad Cinema in New York. David Nugent, head programmer of HIFF, moderated last night’s discussion. Below are some of the highlights. (I have not included any of the audience Q&A because most of those questions pertain to specific things that go on in the film, and I don’t want to give too much away. You just have to see it for yourself.)
Nugent: How did you come across the tapes and what was it like the first time for you to listen to them?
Dews: I actually found out about the tapes really late. I always knew about the films, but my uncle’s ex-wife told me about the tapes…It was kind of shocking actually. I was very close to my grandmother…I was born about the end of the story. She in fact never really talked with me about Charley. She would talk with me about lots of other things…It was really crazy to hear this life that she had that I had no idea about.
Last night’s STF screening was a small gem known as PARALLEL LINES. Nina Davenport’s personal account of her cross country drive back to New York post 9/11 is a courageous work. She simultaneously tackles her own fears of a forever changed and emotionally damaged New York while audaciously (perhaps naively) poking around some of the forgotten corners (and people) of America with her camera.
Nina broaches some sensitive topics with complete strangers and it is amazing how quickly they share their intimate stories of loss and tragedy. In the Q&A, she admitted that there was no special tactic in convincing people to speak on camera. “I just left the camera on while engaging people in conversation. I never turned it off until we had parted.” By adopting a non judgmental position, she is able to gain great insights into these diverse lives.
As always, the conversation continued with Nina, viewers and the STF crew at its weekly watering-hole “99 Below”.
Watching Alan Berliner’s rarely seen work on a big screen is a true treat. Last Tuesday evening began with his short EVERYWHERE AT ONCE and was followed by INTIMATE STRANGER – a film shot 18 years ago about his grandfather Joseph Cassuto. When asked by an audience member what his grandfather would have thought of the film, Berliner replied: “He died 35 years ago and we’re still talking about it. He’d love it!”
Me with the one and only Werner Herzog. He remembered meeting my father a few years back and insisted that I take this photo for Jack.
Josh Braun of Submarine Entertainment sharing a laugh with Diane Weyerman of 
Filmmaker Laura Poitras (MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY) with Cara Mertes of the 
L to R: Director Lucia Small, filmmaker Robert Hatch-Miller and Pola Rapaport, director of WRITER OF O.
David Leitner and Ian Vollmer – coincidentally both have worked as DPs for Alan Berliner (Leitner on NOBODY’S BUSINESS and Vollmer on WIDE AWAKE). Berliner’s film 
