TC #86 - Gordon Quinn (One Way Or Another)

If cinema can achieve more than simply be art but a form of action, how does one negotiate the role that the camera plays in reality. Celebrating its 50th Year, Kartemquin Films has used cinema as a tool for addressing social, political, and economic inequality through the documentary from, spearheaded by its co-founder Gordon Quinn. In this wide-ranging interview, Gordon reflects on the early days of the collective—from films about retirement homes and the general state of happiness to more direct political engagement through filming labor strikes. He talks with Peter about negotiating the role of the subject, the role of his own identity in filming the stories of others, the importance of character, and the fickle nature between making a statement and making a dollar. Finally, the two discuss a film that shows all of the work in action: Sara Gomez's landmark documentary One Way Or Another, which stages fabricated drama in the midst of real turmoil in 1970s Cuba to a powerful effect.

0:00-3:29 Opening
4:19-10:04 Establishing Shots — Kelly Reichardt's Certain Women
10:49-1:20:13 Deep Focus — Gordon Quinn
1:20:56-51:51 Sponsorship Section
1:24:33-1:42:01 Double Exposure — One Way or Another (Sara Gomez)
1:42:05-1:43:44 Close