WHAT DID YOU think of today's guest, filmmaker Tigre Hill?Here are a few things that stood out to me:
- He approached the two campaign staffs before following the mayoral candidates in 2003. The Sam Katz team allowed coverage. The John Street team never responded.
- Tigre's goal was to become such a regular part of the scene that he was invisible with his camera.
- A television journalist was removed from covering the mayoral race after he badgered John Street during a press conference.
- Tigre was labeled a "conservative filmmaker" after his film was released.
- He relies upon facts, and doesn't start off the process with an established agenda.
- Once he's done gathering, he forms an opinion.
- He wants to have coffee with John Street.
- He said that while at Temple as a student, he was always thinking about what would be next, rather than appreciating the moment.
- His next film, The Barrel of a Gun, about convicted cop killer Mumia Abu Jamal, will be released in the fall.
What stood out for you?
22 comments:
I really liked Tigre. I found him to be a laid-back person, who took interests in certain topics and decided to do something interesting, like create films, out of these interests. I liked the way he approached everything fairly, like when he was asked his opinion on John Street. Although everyone knew that Tigre was not fond of this man, he still answered the question fairly, not saying anything insulting about Street. The parts of "The Shame of a City" that we did see were very interesting, and I am eager to see what "The Barrel of a Gun" will be like.
I really enjoyed listening to him speak. It was awesome to hear how involved he got during the election, and I was also really interested in the Mumia film. I was wondering if you could find out when the release date would be?
Free Mumia.
I really enjoyed his talk today. At first it was a little hard to follow but after watching more of "The Shame of a City," I became intrigued. I like that his goal was to become invisible behind his camera.
Furthermore, I went to David Horowitz's lecture, about six hours later, about Temple courses and how horrible the Academic Freedom situation is on this campus. Tigre' was there and during David's talk members of Temple University's LGBQ (I think that's the group) did a demonstration asking about the LGBQ chapter in his new book. Tigre had both his cell phone out, recording video, as well what appeared to be a small camera. It was cool to see him at work.
I gained a lot more respect for Tigre as a proffesional as well as other journalists, because until hearing him speak I was unaware of all the potential threats of violence that they have to endure in their process of trying to uncover the truth.
I really enjoyed listening to Tigre Hill. I was mostly interested to learn how he tried to make the film as unbiased as possible by following both sides of the campaign but physically couldn't because John Street didn't want to let him in. To me that shows that he wants to offer the most thorough story possible.
I was also (selfishly) glad to hear that he ended up doing something different than what he majored in because near the end of my third year here at Temple I'm almost positive that I will not be working in a field within my major after I graduate. It gives me hope that you can still do what you really want to do even if you chose the wrong major. (And no, contrary to what everyone keeps asking me, I do not want to pick up another major. I want to graduate).
I really really enjoyed hearing him speak. I love how all our speakers are so different in their own ways. Tigre was very down to earth, and I felt like he knew exactly what he was talking about. But like said above, doesn't matter how many people say how much the industry sucks. I'm sticking with it till the end:)
I really really liked Tigre. What stood out most for me was his opinions on Mumia and Street. Even though he knew he was going against the societal grain by not supporting them, he stuck to his beliefs. Its refreshing to see a non-bias film maker who actually takes the time to look at both sides of an issue. I felt that he knew exactly what he was talking about and wasn't one of these film makers who just look for controversial material that sides with a majority of a population.It was surprising he mentioned that he agreed with Mike Smerconish about Street because in a largely liberal city like Philly, this man causes a lot of heat on his talk show, but we forget that others have views too. I'm tired of the liberal "must" hear side of Philly, so its nice that his film showed that Street, a Democrat party runner actually didnt have wings and a halo. What I like best about Tigre is maybe to him, "everyone is entitles to their opinion" and he forms his opinion on actually experiencing situations and hearing out others.
-Jessica Lopez
I'm glad we had the chance to see parts of one of his finished products, and then have an explanation of how he got to that point. Film does interest me but it's not my major so I don't know much about what it takes to complete a film, but he shed some light on it, so I definitely enjoyed what he had to say.
Tigre is the man. I have never even thought about film making before but he had such a laid back and interesting approach about the business. You have to be a little nuts but creative to make quality films like Tigre. I especially admired the courage that he has to get in the middle of serious political conflicts and murder cases. On another note, I'm glad that I took this class because the guest speakers have been awesome. Go Phils
I definitely enjoyed Tigre's insight. He had a very level-headed approach to film making, going in with "open eyes" as he put it, to any controversial situation, only making judgment after all of the evidence was presented to him. The only thing that disappointed me was that he didn't mention anything about Mumia's unjust trial, only an opinion on whether or not he did it. As he pointed out, he did take responsibility for the murder, but I think the major issue at hand regarding this situation was the condition of his trial. I think if he had included that aspect of it, he would have a more well rounded story to present.
I also enjoyed him speaking out about his other film "The Shame of a City". It was interesting how he mentioned he was labeled as a "conservative" film maker because John Street wouldn't respond to his request for coverage, therefore he only had coverage of the conservative side. I think this speaks volumes about what society expects of documentary film makers. People are very eager to label someone's ideologies based upon their work, I believe mostly in part to clearly biased film makers, like for example, Michael Moore, who clearly has a political agenda in his documentaries. It's hard for people to accept someone as "just presenting the truth", when this clear bias is so pronounced in this specific realm of film making.
Tigre was such an articulate and calm speaker. I was impressed at how he embraced and backed-up his own opinions. I liked his distinction between journalism and filmmaking as the difference between objective and biased reporting.
- Jess Dunford
Tigre Hill was able to connect with his audience of students by explaining his own mistakes and accomplishments during his college years. The comment he made about his constant need to think about the future when he was a student rather than relish in the moment struck a chord with me. I feel that it may have been a relevant issue for many students because we are always rushing and trying to fulfill our school work as a means of being successful in our future. Sometimes we need a reminder to keep us in the present and Hill's words made me reflect on that thought.
-Brittana Benson
I really enjoyed Tigre's speech to other day. He is one of the great examples of how hard a journalist has to work to get the right story to the viewers. He took notes on during that 2003 election and makes a film about it for the people to see the whole story of what really went down.
Tigre's speech was amazing. I use to like politics and follow them, but lost the interest. When you showed part of the film and he spoke about it, I felt a deeper connection within journalism as well as politics.
Tigre Hill really made me think about filmmaking as a means of journalism, which I just never really thought about for some reason. It's fascinating and amazing to see what kind of quality work a fairly small or solely run operation can make.
Also I really enjoyed his opinion of the Philadelphia police department in spite of all the negative publicity. He really put everything in perspective by saying it's 100 times better than it used to be.
I liked him... he seemed like a nice guy. He answered all the questions with really well thought out answers. He also seemed like the kind of guy who tries hard to get what he wants.
I also enjoyed Tigre. He seemed really laid back and also very intelligent. His film also caught my attention and it seemed very interesting. John Street seems to come up a lot in this class...
-Jess Kairis
I really liked what Tigre Hill had to say especially about Mumia. I think that he pointed out how difficult it is for people to trust journalist and how people want to make sure that journalist present them in a positive way. Hearing him reminded me of another documentary called "Street Fight" which shows how crazy it can get for reporters who cover local politics.
Anthony Brown
I liked Tigre's presentation. I thought he had some great insight and advice. Particulary, I found it inspiring that he was able to make a name in two fields, politics and documentary films. Especially after he mentioned that he had worked in a different job after graduating and had to work to get where he is now.
Tigre Hill was interesting. I like how many people from differant careers in journalism have spoke during class. I would like to watch another one of Tigre's documentaries.
Kurt Mauro
Tigre was such an articulate and calm speaker. I was impressed at how he embraced and backed-up his own opinions. I liked his distinction between journalism and filmmaking as the difference between objective and biased reporting. - Jess Dunford
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