1. 52 malaysia tatler . april 2015
Why did you choose
to do documentaries
over narratives?
I actually wanted to do
narratives when I was
younger. I started as
a production assistant
at MTV and was given
opportunities to go into
many different areas. I
loved the challenges the
job presented: create a
story, find the talents,
shoot on location and
it’s done. But ultimately
it wasn’t super fulfilling.
Volunteering on
creating public service
announcements was
much more rewarding
because they were
for a cause. The first
documentary I produced
was actually An
Inconvenient Truth after
I saw the slide show on
global warming by Al
Gore. I caught the bug
after that and delved into
documentary-making.
How do you decide on
a subject to work on?
Sometimes you find it,
sometimes it finds you.
For A Small Section of
the World, it found me.
The coffee company
Illy approached me to
do this story and after
learning more about it,
I decided that it was a
story I wanted to tell. A
lot of times you stumble
upon things. Every day
I find millions of ideas
for documentaries and
the people I meet tell
me theirs. Everyone
does it differently but for
me, I like to do a lot of
research in order to have
a foundation to work on.
But it is also important
to leave your mind
open when making a
documentary. You have
to listen to what people
say and look out for the
story that emerges.
Now everyone can
be filmmakers or
documentarians.
Do you think
professionals should
be worried?
I think the job of a
documentarian is
to reveal the main
character’s point
of view or truth. Of
course it is better to
show other sides to
the same story but it is
not necessary. There
will always be room for
more wonderfully woven
stories so professionals
have no reason to worry.
I do see more filmmakers
moving towards
documentaries because I
think the appeal of a true
story is universal.
How can one be a
better storyteller?
Anyone who wants to
be a good storyteller
or filmmaker should
give themselves this
challenge: Capture the
essence and gist of
a person under three
minutes. Then, watch
it with your subject
and you will discover
new ideas and different
perspectives.
If you could have
unlimited funds to
work on one project,
what would it be?
A 10-part documentary
series on privacy
issues; GPS tracking,
private surveillance,
etc. I think we use the
Internet without cause
for care and we give
up bits of ourselves in
the process, creating
inaccurate profiles
and representations of
ourselves. I think our
freedom to think and
develop new ideas
is threatened by this
invasion of privacy.
A Point of View
Jacqueline Wong talks to award-winning producer
Lesley Chilcott on her filmmaking thought process
AN iNquisitive miNd Lesley Chilcott made time to visit the historical city of Malacca
and took in the sights and sounds during the brief tour
B
est known for her producing work for An Inconvenient
Truth that garnered an Academy Award for Best
Documentary Feature in 2006, Lesley Chilcott returns
with her directorial debut in A Small Section of the World,
a touching documentary telling the story of a group of
women whose ideas sparked a revolution in the coffee growing world.
Other notable works from Chilcott include Waiting for Superman and It
Might Get Loud. The amicable producer-turned-director made a stop in
Kuala Lumpur to present a masterclass on filmmaking in conjunction with
Astro and Sundance Channel’s short film contest. Sharing insights and
advice with budding filmmakers, Chilcott continues to expand her skill sets.
She is currently working on the screenwriting for a film adaptation of A
Small Section of the World.
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