JURY STATEMENTS ABOUT THE WINNERS FOR DOCUMENTARY FILMS
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT: Meltdown in Dixie by Emily Harrold
The best short documentary goes to Meltdown in Dixie by Emily Harrold that goes behind the headlines of the story of a small town in South Carolina where the Sons of the Confederate Veterans have forced an ice cream shop owner to fly a large confederate flag. While we see headlines like these all too often, this film gives us deeper insight because Ms. Harrold spent the time and got the access to all the key players. This film is an example of how documentary film can flesh out our understanding of current events in ways that the daily news cannot.
LES BLANK AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE: Missing in Brooks County by Lisa Molomot and Jeff Bemiss (Q&A to follow the feature film.)
To be necessary is to step boldly forward, to, as Susan Sontag put it, regard the pain of others. Amidst the chaos of US border policy and anecdotal generalizations about migration across the US/Mexico border, one of the most glaring atrocities of US fencing and policing is the least explored topic: the case of migrants dying in the desert by design. This film does not look away from the corpse; it joins the archeological exhuming work, tracing from the coroner's office all the way to the front door of the families awaiting their relatives who never arrive. Finally, a film connects all of these dots to make perhaps one of the most urgent calls for change to a murderous US immigration policy.
In the wake of the 2015 Charleston Massacre, a battle erupts in Orangeburg, South Carolina, between the Sons of Confederate Veterans and an ice cream shop owner forced to fly the Confederate flag in his parking lot. The film explores the broader role of Confederate symbolism in the twenty-first century and the lingering racial oppression that these symbols help maintain.
Director’s Statement: Emily Harrold
As a native of Orangeburg who grew up driving by that Confederate flag on the corner, I found this story as a stranger-than-fiction way of looking at the issue of Confederate symbolism on a local level. I think with a lot of issues like this, we tend to get into our own echo chambers and often don't interact with viewpoints different than our own. I saw this film as an opportunity to change that. While many scenes are uncomfortable to watch, until we face all sides of this issue we won't be able to bridge the divides that these symbols maintain.
- Year2021
- Runtime40 minutes
- LanguageEnglish
- CountryUnited States
- PremiereOregon
- DirectorEmily Harrold
- ProducerEmily Harrold, Seth Gadsden
- Executive ProducerJedd Canty, Ryan Chanatry, Mahalia Cohen
- CastTommy Daras, Buzz Braxton, Justin Bamberg, Debbie Daras
- CinematographerJohn Barnhardt, Lillian Burke, Kelly Creedon, Seth Gadsden, Kyle I Kelley, Michelle Lotker, Tyler Matthews, Emily Harrold
- EditorRosie Walunas, Virginie Danglades
JURY STATEMENTS ABOUT THE WINNERS FOR DOCUMENTARY FILMS
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT: Meltdown in Dixie by Emily Harrold
The best short documentary goes to Meltdown in Dixie by Emily Harrold that goes behind the headlines of the story of a small town in South Carolina where the Sons of the Confederate Veterans have forced an ice cream shop owner to fly a large confederate flag. While we see headlines like these all too often, this film gives us deeper insight because Ms. Harrold spent the time and got the access to all the key players. This film is an example of how documentary film can flesh out our understanding of current events in ways that the daily news cannot.
LES BLANK AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE: Missing in Brooks County by Lisa Molomot and Jeff Bemiss (Q&A to follow the feature film.)
To be necessary is to step boldly forward, to, as Susan Sontag put it, regard the pain of others. Amidst the chaos of US border policy and anecdotal generalizations about migration across the US/Mexico border, one of the most glaring atrocities of US fencing and policing is the least explored topic: the case of migrants dying in the desert by design. This film does not look away from the corpse; it joins the archeological exhuming work, tracing from the coroner's office all the way to the front door of the families awaiting their relatives who never arrive. Finally, a film connects all of these dots to make perhaps one of the most urgent calls for change to a murderous US immigration policy.
In the wake of the 2015 Charleston Massacre, a battle erupts in Orangeburg, South Carolina, between the Sons of Confederate Veterans and an ice cream shop owner forced to fly the Confederate flag in his parking lot. The film explores the broader role of Confederate symbolism in the twenty-first century and the lingering racial oppression that these symbols help maintain.
Director’s Statement: Emily Harrold
As a native of Orangeburg who grew up driving by that Confederate flag on the corner, I found this story as a stranger-than-fiction way of looking at the issue of Confederate symbolism on a local level. I think with a lot of issues like this, we tend to get into our own echo chambers and often don't interact with viewpoints different than our own. I saw this film as an opportunity to change that. While many scenes are uncomfortable to watch, until we face all sides of this issue we won't be able to bridge the divides that these symbols maintain.
- Year2021
- Runtime40 minutes
- LanguageEnglish
- CountryUnited States
- PremiereOregon
- DirectorEmily Harrold
- ProducerEmily Harrold, Seth Gadsden
- Executive ProducerJedd Canty, Ryan Chanatry, Mahalia Cohen
- CastTommy Daras, Buzz Braxton, Justin Bamberg, Debbie Daras
- CinematographerJohn Barnhardt, Lillian Burke, Kelly Creedon, Seth Gadsden, Kyle I Kelley, Michelle Lotker, Tyler Matthews, Emily Harrold
- EditorRosie Walunas, Virginie Danglades
