This month's FilmStack Challenge is here
it's month 3 and here are some top 5s!
Here’s how she lays it out:
The concept is simple: writers, like you, respond to the monthly prompt on their own newsletters, creating a decentralized brainstorming session. You can participate by posting on your own Substack, in the comments here, or anywhere else (just link back so others can find all the responses).
This month's challenge: What 5 movies would make an amazing "progressive workout" sequence for film newbies?
Or other ways to think about this:
What 5 movies would you use to turn someone into a film lover?
Design your perfect 5-movie introduction to cinema.
**You can see Challenge #1 and Challenge #2 at the links.
According to Ted I’ve got no more than 60 mins to think this through and jot down whatever comes to mind. I’m focusing first on non-fiction.
But before the list(s) I should say that I think generally I don’t think enough.
What I mean is that day to day I have everything that’s happening, the to dos, the must dos, the things that are right in front of me demanding attention, energy, and time. What that doesn’t leave is much time to think.
I do do it, just not enough. Also not enough because I actually really enjoy thinking, I’m challenged by it, I’m excited by it, and generally I like what I come up with. Shocking! When I started teaching at USC I found a had a 3 month window where I was pushed to think, what am I saying, what am I teaching and what am I putting into the minds of these students. I like that. When I started noodling with Substack a year ago this become another place for thinking to happen. I’m definitely the better for it. I find that very often I’m inspired to think when I read what others are writing (which includes 110% all the Substack writers). I’ll admit I’ve never seen myself as a writer but Substack has allowed me to use the platform as a place to think, to think out loud, and to write, respond and develop. The prompts for the monthly FilmStack challenges are an extension of that and I see it as a great service by those who challenge me to think and share, so thank you to the challenges thus far and the future ones to come. Without further ado lets get to this month’s thinking.
How about we start with a 5 movie set of action sport docs...
5. Dogtown and Z-boys
4. The Crash Reel (slight personal plug)
3. Touching the void
2. Minding the gap
1. Meru.
Ease you in with the eye candy and then get deeper. I’m not an adrenalin junky in any way but I find the storytelling, the characters and the worlds in action sports doc really compelling. They speak to humankind’s desire to push limits, to explore and grow through risk, a lot of risk. I also love the creativity on display, to see how these people think and problem solve and challenge themselves in that outsider way is f’ing cool. Each of these films also like the sports themselves, challenge the characters to look deep at themselves and get to what do they really want, what do they really want to do, how do they want to be in the word and how do they want to relate with others.
A music doc 5 could be...
5. Buena Vista Social Club
4. Air Guitar Nation
3. Amy
2. Stop making sense
1. Soundtrack to a coup d'etat
This group is such a ladder up that the final film is almost not a music doc but it is to me. I love music and I love storytelling. This is the perfect intersection of those passions! In a similar way to the sports world, the music world is an avenue to get to what’s at stake, what do we care about, what do we want to put out into the world and how do we want to affect change.
I have a Wong Kar Wai 5, an indie film from the 90s 5, a films not in the english language 5...maybe doing these mini subcategory lists could get me to man up and do a list of 5 for ALL film...but I don't think I can...or can I?
How about a short doc 5? Links to watch included.
4. Stay Close
2. The Lion's Mouth Opens (yes another personal plug)
1. Incident
This goes from pure fun to heart breakers. The short doc format is just as powerful as feature length. Great stories come in all lengths.
Ok I’m not going to debate this too much longer internally and go for 5 fiction films without a subcategory...
5. La Haine
4. In the mood for love
3. Lawrence of Arabia
2. Truly Madly Deeply
1. I am love
I think by design that I didn’t actually design this list of five films movie us geographically around the globe. The first time I saw La Haine in a tiny London cinema off of Tottenham Court Road I remember being just blasted into a whole new reality and transported on a dizzying ride. In the mood for love is a joint top Wong Kar Wai film for me and it is the most accessible of his best films so that’s why it is here. It’s a nod to the place I grew up in (though it’s not actually filmed in Hong Kong!) and a great way to bring Asia cinema to the film novice. Lawrence of Arabia will forever (I think) be one of the touch stone films along with the classics like Casablanca. The canvas is just so huge here and it had been a family Christmas tradition growing up to watch this on Christmas Day or Boxing Day. Truly Madly Deeply speaks to the romantics out there and tugs at those heart strings. I had no preconceptions when I watched this in my youth at a friend’s house and to me speaks to the power of the small films out there. Finally I am Love does so much and is another film that touches on the emotional scope cinematic storytelling can wield.
What might be your five? Join the FilmStack challenge!
Ah I love Dogtown & Z Boys! Amazing soundtrack
Loved reading this!!