Raising Renee 2012
Distributed by Passion River Films, 154 Mt. Bethel Rd., Warren, NJ 07059; 732-321-0711
Produced by West City Films, Inc.
Directed by Jeanne Jordan & Steven Ascher
DVD, color, 81 min.
General Adult
Art, African Americans, History, Disabilities, Artists, Family, Mental Health, Women, Race Relations, Sociology, Psychology, Thanatology
Date Entered: 06/03/2015
Reviewed by Cynthia Sorrell, University of Maryland, College Park, MDIndividuals are shaped by a series of complex experiences that occur throughout the life cycle. This particular documentary visually melds an interpretive glimpse of family circumstances that shaped the life of an African American woman who found her expressive voice through the medium of art. Beverly McIver’s extraordinary artistic renderings, while personally symbolic, convey irreparable and painful situations that society has inflicted upon African Americans as well as universal feelings that an individual can experience regardless of race -- belonging or not within family relationships, single-family households, social disjointedness, mental health issues, expressing emotions, self-esteem, unexpected life events , and living beyond the death of loved ones. It would benefit educational institutions to make this documentary available as part of course requirements in such disciplines as art, women’s studies, race relations, mental health, sociology, and psychology in order to critically dialogue about historical issues that shaped our society, analyze the resulting outcomes of those issues, and attempt to understand the making and the world of an artist as seen through his/her art.
Awards
- Best Documentary, Syracuse Film Festival
- Audience Award, Independent Film Festival Boston