Bruce Feiler - Where God Was Born, Abraham, Walking The Bible

Yada Yada Yada: Is Jerry Seinfeld Ruining Documentaries?
Tuesday, March 6, 2007

A fascinating scandal has erupted in the world of documentary film, where the director of one of the Oscar-nominated films has written an open letter to the Academy denouncing Jerry Seinfeld's introduction of the category. This may be a fascinating case of don't get what you wish for, after all, isn't it better to have viewer listen to Seinfeld make a few jokes at the films' expense rather than fall asleep or go to the bathroom?

While I appreciate the role of humor in our lives, Jerry Seinfeld’s remarks were made at the expense of thousands of documentary filmmakers and the entire documentary genre. Obviously we make films not for awards or money, although we are glad if we are fortunate enough to receive them. The important thing is to tell stories, whether of people who have been damaged by war, of humankind’s reckless attitude toward nature and the environment, or even of the lives and habits of penguins. With his lengthy, dismissive and digressive introduction, Jerry Seinfeld had no time left for any individual description of the five nominated films. And by labeling the documentaries “incredibly depressing,” he indirectly told millions of viewers not to bother seeing them because they’re nothing but downers. He wasted a wonderful opportunity to excite viewers about the nominated films and about the documentary genre in general.

To have a presenter introduce a category with such disrespect for the nominees and their work is counter to the principles the Academy was founded upon. To be nominated for an Academy Award is one of the highest honors our peers can give us, and to have the films dismissed in such an offhand fashion was deeply insulting. The Academy owes all documentary filmmakers an apology

Sasha Stone at OscarWatch has a great take on this, pointing out that for better or worse, this was the Green Oscars, not the Iraq Oscars, and that's why John Sinno, the director of Iraq in Fragments and the author of this letter, is so upset.

Labels: Pop Culture

Posted by B Feiler at 7:00 AM
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