We note with sorrow the passing of a great humanitarian whom we only knew through the documentary of his life we have been privileged to carry. Dr. Venkataswamy revolutionized the treatment of glaucoma in India, an affliction that condemns the sufferer to death due to interesting cultural issues having to do with the role of the elderly in society. Dr. “V” (as he was known) created an extraordinary process for the surgical treatment of glaucoma, and in the process contributed to saving many many thousands of lives and advancing the understanding of medical practices throughout the world. His work was remembered by his family and patients in ceremonies in Madurai, India on July 7. The proceeds from the sale of the story of his work go to support his foundation. Thank you, Pavi Mehta, for giving us the opportunity to work with you on this film.

Last night I went to an evening screening of “The Piano Teacher”, at the Anthology Film Archive’s wonderful retrospective on director Michael Haneke, with my friend, the lovely graphic designer Taisha Okata. Being able to see it on the big screen for the first time reminded me so much of why it is still my favorite film. Based on the semi-autobiographical Nobel Prize winning book by Elfriede Jelinek, it concerns the story of Erika Kohut, a French piano teacher living in Austria with her domineering mother. They sleep in the same bedroom, and argue over what Erika is to wear, or how much is too much money to spend on an evening dress. Parental control over a child is expected to some degree, except in this case, Erika is nearly 50 years old. She is unmarried, vaguely depressed, yet declares that she “has no feelings” and if ever she does, “they will never overcome her intelligence”. Together, mother and daughter plan to save up enough money to buy an apartment together. This is expected, regardless of what Erika wants or thinks. Erika teaches at a prestigious conservatory, and, unfortunately for her, never became a master pianist the way mother expected her to. Questioning her own self-worth on the grand stage of Austrian society, Erika is an unstable, tentative woman who appears, nevermind her icy demeanor, to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown. The breakdown in question does occur, gloriously, when a young student enters the equation and attempts, of all things, to seduce her. (more…)

This morning, Agnes Varnum, the goddess of Fair Use, came to Indiepix HQ to present on the ins and outs of Fair Use and Copyright Law, as it applies to the documentary filmmaker. As the “Special Projects Coordinator” for The Center for Social Media , Agnes helped write the definitive pamphlet on Fair Use, which can be downloaded in pdf. form here .
According to the website, Fair Use is: “the right, in some circumstances, to quote copyrighted material without asking permission or paying for it. It is a crucial feature of copyright law and what keeps copyright from being censorship. You can invoke fair use when the value to the public of what you are saying outweighs the cost to the private owner of the copyright.” (more…)