Author: i.clement

PORTFOLIO:

FILM

DOCUMENTARY:

“When The Levees Broke” is an HBO documentary that was released in 2006. The documentary was directed by Spike Lee, and follows the events that happened after the destructive Hurricane Katrina that primarily affected the city of New Orleans.
I chose this documentary because of the significance of the interviews that were used in the documentary. New Orleans residents, the mayor at the time of the hurricane, police officials, government officials, actors, activists were all amongst the people that were interviewed for this documentary. Film from when the hurricane made landfall until people were able to go back to their homes to assess the hurricane damage was used. The documentary not only focused on the effects of the hurricane but it also focused on the controversy surrounding the Bush administration and FEMA’s failed role in providing timely aid to the people of New Orleans.
I also chose this documentary because of its authenticity and its realness. Lee really let his interviewees speak the truth on how they felt about the hurricane and how it was handled, and how they believed they were financially abandoned due to racial and class reasons. The four part documentary is told in chronological order and really makes the viewer feel as if they were there at the time of the hurricane. “When The Levees Broke” also won three Emmy awards as well as the Peabody Award.

For the visual poem I wanted to document the struggles of what it’s like relying on MTA on the weekends. I wanted to record my friend buying a metro card, swiping a metro card, going through the turnstiles, waiting for a train, getting on a train etc. I wanted to catch some background noise of the announcements of delays or schedule changes that play while you’re on the platform. Overall, I really want to capture how frustrating it can be taking the subway on the weekend. I’m not too sure about the music, but I wanted to find a dramatically slowed down version of “Empire State of Mind” or “New York, New York” to go along with the stress of taking the NYC subway.

http://www.nytimes.com/video/nyregion/100000006339801/brooklyn-jail-no-heat-video.html

 

I chose this video specifically because of it’s significance in the news right now. Also, the part where the prisoners respond to the protesters chants gave me chills as it shows that they are actually living without heat, food, or electricity. The video is also pretty short but it carries a lot of weight and alludes to some of the injustices that are commonplace in a lot of prisons today.