Staff Pick Award for Palm Springs ShortFest 2022: "Meantime" by Michael T Workman |

 I'm so sick of waiting.

 Aren't you,

 To help the world become good

 Beautiful and sweet?

 Let's grab the knife

 The world is cut in two

 and see what worms are eating

 At the edge.

--Langston Hughes "Good Morning, Revolution: Uncollected Social Protest Writings

Winner of the Staff Pick Award at Palm Springs Shortfest 2022 will be "Meantime" by Michael T Workman. Michael placed a camera inside his dad's home in order to create an "deeply personal investigation of memory as well as guilt, labour, and the attempt to keep the momentary." That's at least it's the way its logline is written. What is so beautiful about this documentary is that it doesn't really focus on these vague descriptions of human emotion. "Meantime" is an eye on the root of the evils that plague in the United States: capitalism, unjust labor conditions, inadequate support for those who suffer from mental illness, and the reality that the American principle of "pull your self up with your bootstraps" is a physically impossible undertaking. The film outlines the different ways that the United States fails to fully take care of its people throughout their lives, from birth to death. As Michael articulately states in our Q&A "

 "It may not be evident, but I am convinced that the topic of this documentary is the inhumanity of capitalism. ...My father is the product of a system which views the human being as "human resources," a system that treats people as "human resources" and dehumanizes them when they do not fit into a strict regime of labor exploitation. "

Filmmaking as stark like the harsh Montana winter its set in, "Meantime" is a film about broken souls who yet grew into caring and caring people.

We were able to ask Michael some questions concerning the process of creating this unique portrait of the family and were thrilled by his kind and caring answer. Check out the following excerpts of our discussion with him.

 Inspiring:

 "The idea for this documentary came to me as I assisted my dad in digitizing his home videos. When I was looking through them, I was struck by these deeply moving instances in the tiniest, seemingly unimportant moments my father captured. It was not the holidays, birthday parties, or weddings which were most profound. It was the moments where my family members were in the middle, waiting for something important to happen and just talking, arguing or joking. In those moments I saw those I had known in various stages of their lives. My perception of their lives became more granular. I had always been pretty anti-the idea of making films for personal use, but reviewing that footage and finding myself back home in Montana made me want to make this film. ."

 His tips on filming family:

 "Working with family members is so difficult. Knowing when to turn off the camera and just exist was the greatest challenge. In the middle of the day, my father and I had stopped recording. I'm comfortable simply hiding behind my camera now. My tip for filmmakers working with families is to plan the times and events in which you are going to shoot and utilize that to set a limit. Do not film everything all the time, and don't be distracted by what's happening. You should think about what you'd like to record and let the camera roll. After you're finished, it's completed. It is possible to miss some things, but that's okay. The most important thing is to set up a situation in which what you do capture will be more likely of being deep and compelling. Then turn off the camera and go back to enjoying your everyday life ."

 Reaction of his family to the film:

 "My family has seen the movie. I showed it to my mom when I finished and it was by far the most emotional viewing experience that I've had. As the film is personal to me, I went through periods of feeling totally numb to it as well as instances of deep emotions. While watching it with my mom, tiny subtleties in the film caused me to cry without a break. This just shows how much the context of the audience you are watching a movie with could profoundly alter the way you experience the film. The experience was healing for both of us and she gained a deeper understanding of my father's viewpoint that she was unable to see at the time.

 I was the most anxious about showing the film to my dad. We were going to watch it together but it wasn't the right time, so he decided to watch the film on his own. When he called me and told me he watched it at home, my heart broke. He told me something along the like "Mike I have watched your film and it's an excellent film and I'll probably never see it again." The most significant source of stress for him was not the vulnerability that was said, but rather it was the experience of watching him on the screen, as well as hearing his own voice that was most uncomfortable (for myself too). )."

 On challenges faced:

 "The toughest part of making this film was to create distance between myself and the film. This is my opinion as the primary struggle with personal work and when it is most difficult to overcome. The personal films are often emotionally charged for the creator but not the audience. I tried to steer clear of any chance of this and to try and distance myself from the film and view it as someone who is not familiar with me personally. Since I was the director, this was a constant problem. I was able to overcome this issue with the help of many trustworthy people near me who offered me constructive feedback. ."

 We should to consider upon viewing the film:

 "It might not seem obvious, but I believe that the topic of this documentary is the inhumanity of capitalism. Ultimately, this is the main reason for my father's struggles to live an enjoyable and secure life. While abuse may be the cause of his struggle, inability to recover from the trauma is a societal failure and not a personal failure. My father is part of a culture that sees the human being as "human resources," which is a system that dehumanizes the people who can't fit into a strict regime that exploits labor.

 Capitalism offers working-class people two options: work or beg on the street. While this is never explicitly made clear in the film it's the insidious premise of the story. If those in my dad's situation had access to quality mental and physical healthcare as well as housing and food without having to justify their human rights by working in terrible conditions and living in a miserable environment, they would be able to live happy and secure lives in which they could focus on healing the trauma they suffered.

 The crucial detail in the opening title cards in the movie is my father's stroke was triggered due to a panic attack during workplace because the firm was trying to maximize profit by not having enough staff in the nursing facility in which he was employed. I realized that this was a recurring situation for him while making this film after I realized the stress of work more than the pressure of raising an unborn child was what contributed to my dad's mental health issues in the early years of my life.

 It is also my hope that the film will encourage people to value the time they get with their beloved ones and discuss the effects of hardship and trauma in a compassionate and open setting. In the end, the heart of this film is about caring for our parents through knowing them as complex human beings and respecting the precious amount of time they have ."

 Michael's tips for aspiring film makers:

 "I constantly tell my students to fight tooth and nail to keep their enthusiasm in making films. Every step of the way the industry will attempt to make you go through the meat grinder of work and make you who's tools. They'll attempt to take all of the enjoyment out and make artificially high stakes for making some of the most sloppy media. Anyone who has worked on a large advertising set knows this. I would advise you to do something that makes you happy even if your wage-labor work doesn't. Make sure you continue to create your own films or creative pursuits that help you feel like an artist. If you're interested in Sundance, but you've forgotten the pleasure of making films Why are you making this? ?"

 What's next?

 "I'm working on a feature-length documentary idea which will comprise an observational film with a character driven woven narrative in a mining town in Montana. The project is in the beginning stages of its development and I can't say much beyond that right now.

 I'm involved in a project on people with jobs they are aware of as completely unproductive. If you have a job similar to this, please reach out and email me. The company is currently recruiting ."