Like A Pig In Shit...

For a long time I've tried to put my finger on just why it is I like documentary films so much. I think there are many reasons. For one, documentaries are all about asking questions and we all know what a big fan I am of questions. I'm also a big fan of the underdog. Documentaries often focus on underdogs - people whose voices aren't often heard in the mainstream media. The films themselves are really the underdogs of the world of cinema. There are very few docs that receive a lot of attention or make a lot of money. Documentaries have exposed me to so many new and interesting things. Like one of the women in the video says, documentaries "have the power to make you empathize with things you never really knew you could empathize with."

I recently discovered an interactive website with 163 interview clips of 38 documentary filmmakers, including some of my favorites like Errol Morris, Werner Herzog, and Albert Maysles, discussing a wide range of topics. Apparently there is also a movie - a documentary about documentaries - which is not yet available on Netflix. I know this probably isn't as interesting to all of you as it is to me, but I can listen to these people talk all day. If this sort of thing interests you as well, you'll really want to spend some time exploring this site.