Cucalorus Reflection

I'm proud of myself for meeting all of my goals. I asked questions at most, if not all, of the screenings I attended. I didn't, however, get to go to the lounge to see if our projects were showing. I thoroughly enjoyed every screening I went to. It didn't occur to me until afterward that everything besides the shorts block was a documentary. Each doc's subject was fascinating to me. While I Breath, I Hope followed South Carolina politician Bakari Sellers during his campaign for lieutenant governor of the state. While he ended up losing the election, he has continued to have a somewhat prominent voice in politics, both on the state and national level. I never understood exactly how much goes into a campaign and it was baffling to see how exhausted Bakari and his team would be. It gave me a greater appreciation for the politicians who genuinely care about their constituents and the work they put in to be able to do that. White Ravens was Georg Kozulinski's film and it was beautifully shot. The nature shots were incredibly serene, and I so appreciate films that seek to document cultures that have been marginalized and/or pushed towards extinction. I have always been fascinated by other cultures and how they are preserved (or not). It was very impactful. The documentary I liked the most was TransMilitary, which follows a few transgender people in the military and how they have been fighting for their right to serve. As someone existing under the trans umbrella and who is engaged to a transgender woman, the message of this film hit home hard. One of the characters, Laila Ireland, was there for the film's Q&A and it was such a treat to get to talk to her and thank her in person. She's no longer in the military but continues to travel and educate people about what it means to be transgender and why our rights are important. The Fiddlehead shorts block was all over the place in such a good way. Seeing Shoot the Duck after hearing about the shoot over the summer was very exciting. Escape the Ninja was a masterpiece, White Chocolate was well made and had a good message, and I really enjoyed The Ape Man cartoon. As a filmmaker I was reminded that there is always an audience for your work, no matter how small or insignificant it may feel to me. I also understand that if I were to have a film play at a festival, I would want people to ask questions. It always felt weird if we sat in awkward silence during the Q&A's. To have people engage with you and your work in person is really valuable and not something every filmmaker gets a chance to do.