The Los Angeles Documentary Film Festival (DOC LA) opened today, featuring the work of filmmakers worldwide.
Giorgi Kvelidze, a documentarian originally from the Republic of Georgia and now based in New York, found a mode to express his emotions through his film “On the Way Home.”
The film follows refugees expelled from their homes during the war between Georgia and Abkhazia, a Russian-backed state. People forced out of their homes were living in the remnants of destroyed buildings as they waited for government-promised housing.
“Human experiences are, in most cases, the inspiration,” Kvelidze said.
The filmmaker said after finding no films about the war’s impact, he returned to Georgia to work on this passion project.
Projects like this are the backbone of documentary film festivals. They allow both new and established filmmakers, some of whom are students, to showcase and be recognized for their work.
Susy Barkley, the faculty advisor for USC Impact, a student-produced documentary series that airs on Spectrum News 1 Network, says festivals grant students advantages in gaining recognition.
“When a student has a story that they worked on, and usually these docs are passion projects, and they’re able to submit it, it really puts them ahead of the game,” Barkley said.
Recognition not only helps the directors of these documentaries, but also the crew and actors involved, and can serve as a way for them to connect with other professionals in the industry.
“It’s such an amazing opportunity to be immersed with other films, other filmmakers, people in the industry,” said Caileigh Gold, a recent USC School of Cinematic Arts grad.
Gold was the cinematographer for the short film “Humor Me” which was recently accepted into a New York City film festival.
“I was over the moon excited,” Gold said. “DOC NYC is a massive festival, and honestly, it was the goal all along, was to get into somewhere like DOC NYC, and we’re so lucky to have found a home there with this.”
SCA student Kaitlyn Calta directed “Humor Me”, which is about an unemployed father who has an opportunity to shift into a career in comedy.
Back in Los Angeles, local screenwriter Benjamin David Hoffman is getting ready for the screening of his film”Grand Gesture”, a documentary-style love letter to his ex-girlfriend.
“It really allowed us to heal and grow as humans,” Hoffman said.
The film follows his journey of creating the documentary for his ex-girlfriend, flying to Slovenia and unveiling it to her. The film became a thank you letter and served as closure for both of them.
As a documentarian, Hoffman said he believes this is the beauty of his art, allowing himself and others to express their emotions in a creative form.
“By being vulnerable as the artist, you give permission to the audience to, from the comfort of their own seats, confront their own vulnerabilities,” Hoffman said.
DOC LA was established in 2015, continuing the efforts of the Parajanov-Vartanov Institute, named after two cinematographers who fought against censorship to create celebrated films and documentaries.
Regal LA Live will host the festival starting tonight. The arena can be accessed by the Metro E line station, right next to USC. Films will run tonight through Sunday from 5:00 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. More information can be found here on the festival’s website.