Trevor Graham has worked as a writer, producer and director of documentary in the Australian film industry for more than 35 years. His feature documentaries include Mabo: Life of An Island Man (1997), Make Hummus Not War (2012) and Monsieur Mayonnaise (2016).
20 Days in Mariupol
I couldn’t stop watching this riveting account of the war on Ukraine made by shooter/director Mstyslav Chernov. Chernov is on the frontline in the besieged city where he and other journalists are filing their daily stories. His camera work, his framing and observations on the reality of modern warfare take me back to another Academy Award winning doco, Kokoda Frontline (1942) by Australian cameraman, Damien Parer. The immediacy of their reporting, the horror and danger they faced and documented is frightening and profound.
Joan Baez – I am the Noise
I am a big Baez fan. I love her voice and the songs she both writes and borrows from writers like Bob Dylan. I will watch anything and everything about her. Her engagement in social issues, in the 60s up till now as a performer, is inspiring. I am the Noise more than dabbles in Baez’s politics. But what is more disarming is the way the singer turns herself inside out revealing some uncomfortable personal truths about her career and family history. It’s revelatory. Who would have known? I also loved the animations of Baez’s drawings. For me, this is entertainment with soul.
Etre et Avoir - To Be & To Have
I saw this observational French documentary, directed by Nicolas Philibert, at the Sydney Film Festival 2002 and it has stayed with me ever since. A beautifully shot portrait of a rural school in France with a single teacher, it is observational filmmaking, with bon homie, at its best. The camera disappears in the single room school house, as though you are actually there, face to face with teacher, the students and their daily, routines – triumphs and travails. Similarly great works by Nicolas Philibert on DocPlay are: La Maison de la Radio and On the Adamant.
Namatjira Project
I was pleasantly surprised when I found this on DocPlay. A story about restorative justice, with the art of Albert Namatjira at the centre, his family and Queen Elizabeth II has got to be full of intrigue. And it is. The Namatjira family want to regain the copyright to their grandfather's artwork and they travel from Central Australia to Buckingham Palace to get it back. Story, story, story, this doc is jampacked. There are great moments throughout and wait till you get to the Palace.
The Salt of the Earth
Black and white photographs are the heart and soul of this story along with the man who took them, Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado. Directed by Wim Wenders and the photographer’s son, Juliano, it is a masterclass in documentary filmmaking and photography. Salgado described his work as “witness to the human condition”. The photographs of workers are mesmerising in their compassion and their humanity.
