A FRAGILE TRUST: PLAGIARISM, POWER, AND JAYSON BLAIR AT THE NEW YORK TIMES / SONG FROM THE FOREST /
THE GOOD SON / LEAVING GREECE / BEACH BOY
A press conference was held on Friday, March 21, 2014 as part of the 16th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. Present were directors Samantha Grant Wiesler (A Fragile Trust: Plagiarism, Power, And Jayson Blair At The New York Times), Shirly Berkovitz (The Good Son), Anna Brass (Leaving Greece), Michael Obert (Song From The Forest) and Emil Langballe (Beach Boy).
Shirly Berkovitz spoke first, whose documentary The Good Son follows a young man on his trip to Thailand to get a sex change. His parents in the meantime believe he has gone to Oxford University to study. The director referred to her relationship with him: "Or had seen my previous film and literally came to my door and found me, asking me to join him on his journey and to film it. It was like I had won the lottery. I started immediately. I sold my car, left my dog with a neighbor, bought a ticket and went to Thailand. I stayed with him for a month on the hospital couch. I wanted to have as much raw material as possible." Referring to the decision of the hero, Ms Berkovitz said: "It was a very difficult decision. To have the surgery, he took money from his parents, telling them that he was going to study at Oxford University. This is against my principles, I think it is better to speak honestly. However, when I got to know him better, I realized that he had no other options. People would not have accepted him otherwise. He had the courage to go after his dream. I began to admire him for having the courage to do what he believed. Most of us simply dream of doing it".
Samantha Grant Wiesler spoke about her documentary A Fragile Trust: Plagiarism, Power, And Jayson Blair At The New York Times. The protagonist is Jayson Blair, former reporter for the New York Times, who caused a scandal when it was revealed that he stole and invented false information in his reports. "Jayson is a complex and cranky individual. Our relationship was not easy. The story was widely covered by the media, but I did not believe that it had been covered in depth. There were many conflicting opinions and I wanted to show them in my film. I wanted to provide a platform to all involved in the scandal, but of course when it comes to a scandal nobody wants to talk," said the director. She added: "I functioned like a journalist, I found the correct sources and sent e-mails to Jayson, asking his opinion on the matter. I received no reply and continued for several weeks to no avail, until I found his address and wrote that I would visit him. This caught his attention and eventually a year later, he agreed to talk to me." The director said about her intentions: "I wanted to show the public what I had discovered, but not tell them what to think about it. Jayson cried on camera and said he was sorry for what happened. Whether you believe him or not it is a personal matter." Ms Wiesler spoke of the attitude of the media: "I ??do not know if the press has figured out what went wrong in this story. The press is like a headless body. What I find particularly problematic is how Jayson’s story was recorded and developed, after the media focused on the fact that he is African-American, which is irrelevant to the issue at hand. Through the film, the audience can draw lessons and reflect on the role of media.”
Beach Boy by Emil Langballe takes us to Africa. It focuses on the relationship a young Kenyan “companion” and a middle-aged British tourist. "Some might call this young Kenyan a gigolo, but I would call him an adventurer. He is a poor man who has no options," explained the director, and continued: "When I went to Kenya I thought I would meet a man who is a victim of colonialism. But when I got to know the people there, I realized that there was a strange balance between the two sides. One exploits the other, feeding each other lies and dreams. This tourist has the financial strength, while the young Kenyan the physical. I did not want to show the dark side of love for sale in these countries, like Ulrich Seidl’s Paradise: Love, which deals with the same subject". The director spoke about meeting with the couple: "It was easy to convince them to be filmed. On a beach in Mombasa one meets many such couples and usually they do not want to talk. They met in a bar a few times and I think mainly because we were having a good time together, they agreed to appear in the film. The filming was fun, despite the gravity of the matter and I think there is a good deal of humor in the film."
Then director Anna Brass talked about how she tackled the subject in her documentary Leaving Greece, which focuses on immigrants who arrive in Greece in order to leave for other countries in Europe. "I was interested in the political context of the issue. I didn’t know how difficult things are in Greece for immigrants. I became interested in the issue when I read an article and learned that many immigrants lose their lives while attempting to escape. Initially I went to Lesbos, where a refugee center is located and I met people who lived and worked there. This is how I found the characters for my film", said Ms Brass, who then revealed another dimension of the film: “The documentary is about being a refugee, but it also talks about friendship and love. For example, one of the heroes is trying to go to Germany because he is in love with a German woman who is pregnant with his child. I think a major problem in dealing with the immigration problem is institutionalization. The institutions do their job, but in an impersonal manner, in spite of the fact that each immigrant has his own personal story. On the other hand, it is difficult to operate this way, one would become too entangled in the case, as it happened to me. I still communicate with my three protagonists. We managed to bring them to Germany and now I feel somewhat responsible for them. In a way, it's like the film hasn’t finished.”
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A very unique personality is the protagonist of the documentary Song From the Forest by Michael Obert. It is about the American Louis Sarno, who has chosen to live with the Bayaka pygmy tribe in Africa for many years. The director noted: "In the middle of the ‘80s, Louis heard a song on the radio which fascinated him. Researching what it was, he discovered that it was from the Bayaka pygmy tribe, which lives in Central Africa and he visited them. He has been staying with them ever since, having married a native who gave birth to their son, Samedi. When Samedi became seriously ill at a very young age, Louis promised him that if he survived he would show him where he comes from, that is, New York. Thirteen years later, they made this journey together, from one ''jungle'' to another." The director commented on the romantic aspect of Louis’ story: "This dimension certainly exists in the primitive lifestyle of the tribe, in a sense it is like before the fall from paradise. On the other hand, however, the story touches on some very down to earth issues, like ''Where do I belong? 'How will I get out of the system?". Louis is a unique case, because he became integrated with the tribe. He began as the most useless member, he was almost like a burden. He could not hunt and got lost in the woods, but now I think he is the most useful one. The tribe is in danger, there are many problems in the region, such as poaching and the Cote d'Ivoire Mafia. The story therefore is not really romantic." Talking about his relationship with Louis, Mr. Obert explained: "He's my alter ego, we both love nature, music and travel. But I a need to go back and recount my experiences. I admire him very much for living there and I think that he represented many roles for me – he was a friend, a brother and a father figure.
