Carta blanca Porto/Post/Doc
by Daniel Ribas (co-director at Porto/Post/Doc)
Based in Porto, Portugal, the Porto/Post/Doc is a new documentary film festival that seeks to promote the best contemporary films, mixing styles and genres. One of its distinctive features is also its preference towards forgotten documentary filmmakers. This carte blanche is based precisely on the concept of discovery.
There are several heroes in the American independent film industry. Amongst them there is Lionel Rogosin, a self-taught filmmaker that created documentaries concerning the reality of outcasts during the 50s and 60s. Perhaps one of his most famous pieces is On the Bowery, a ruthless portrait of one of the most charismatic neighbourhoods in New York where a group of men try to forget their daily lives by drowning themselves in alcohol. Shot in a setting of close proximity between the men and Rogosin, On the Bowery is considered a masterpiece of American independent films.
The author’s photo exhibition can also be seen during the festival. The collection, chosen by his son, Michael, shows Rogosin’s vision as well as the timelessness and the social context of his images.
ON THE BOWERY
Production: Lionel Rogosin, Richard Bagley, Mark Sufrin
Cinematography: Richard Bagley
Editing: Carl Lerner
Music: Charles Mills, Harold Gomberg
With Ray Salyer, Gorman Hendricks, Frank Mattheus
On the Bowery chronicles three days on New York’s skid row, the Bowery. The film is an incredible document of a bygone era and a vivid and devastating portrait of addiction that still resonates today. This film, made “from the inside” shows the subjects in their normal surroundings and allowed them to speak in their own words. The Oscar-nominated On the Bowery is a masterpiece of the American blend of documentary/fiction.