What’s Up, Docs? Quacky Art, Angry Weather
Posted on February 22nd, 2017 in Movies, Politics, Public Discourse, Sustainability with 1 Comment
This article covers four documentaries screened at the Sedona International Film Festival.
The winning stamp for the federal Duck Stamp Contest cycle documented in “The Million Dollar Duck.”
The Million Dollar Duck profiles the special breed of artists who compete annually in the federal Duck Stamp Contest.
Under the purview of the Fish and Wildlife Service rather than the Postal Service, the contest selects the art for each year’s Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, better known as the Duck Stamp.
Under a 1934 law signed by FDR, all waterfowl hunters age 16 and older must annually purchase the stamp, the proceeds from which are used to purchase and protect wetlands across the country. Since then, some $800 million dollars has gone into that fund to protect more than 5.7 million acres of habitat, according to the FWS. Actually, anyone can buy the duck stamp, which also can be used as an annual “pass” to national wildlife refuges that charge entry fees. It generates about $25 million a year.
“I thought I had a good year last year, but my blind dog sold more art than I did. I’m going to have to win the contest to get my name back.”
The Duck Stamp program actually benefits all of the wildlife in a wetlands ecosystem, but few of those species would look as good on a stamp as ducks.
There is a commonly held misconception that the winner of each year’s contest takes home a million-dollar prize. That’s not true, but the winner can license the image to sell merchandise.
The Million Dollar Duck follows several entrants and their works from conception through competition. Among them are:
- The three Hautman brothers from Minnesota – James, Joseph and Robert – who collectively have won the contest 12 times and earned a shoutout in the movie Fargo.
- Adam Grimm of South Dakota, a professional artist and father of three who has won the contest twice.
- Holiday window painter Tim Taylor from New Jersey. He and Grimm are buddies and work together during the early stages to stalk and photograph birds.
- Rob McBroom, an abstract mixed-media artist from Minnesota and Taylor’s nemesis.
- Dee Dee Murry from Washington state, who taught her blind dachshund, Hallie, to paint (abstracts) and sold the works to raise money for a dog-rescue organization. “I thought I had a good year last year, but my blind dog sold more art than I did,” Murry says. “I’m going to have to win the contest to get my name back.”
- Rebekah Nastav, a young postal carrier from Missouri who won the Junior Duck Stamp Contest and is ready to take on the big boys.
The year the documentary was made, the finals were held at Maumee Bay State Park in Ohio, just outside of Toledo, my hometown.
Filmmaker Brian Davis does a nice job of acknowledging the quirkiness of the contest without ridiculing those involved – many of whom are dedicated to competing year after year. Along the way, viewers learn about conservation and get a peek at a federal program that works.
The Million Dollar Duck can be streamed on the Animal Planet website and is available for purchase or rental on iTunes or Amazon.
‘Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405’
The film that screened before The Million Dollar Duck came as a complete surprise.
Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405 is not about Los Angeles traffic. It’s 40-minute documentary short about a mentally ill artist, her past and how her work with cartoons and sculpture helped her break out of her shell.
Mindy Alper stands amid some of her sculptures.
I can’t fault the misdirection in the title because the description above probably would not have lured me into the theater. Were that the case, I would have missed out on a surprisingly compelling portrait of a woman who has persevered on the edge of sanity.
“Mindy Alper is a tortured and brilliant 56-year-old artist who is represented by one of Los Angeles’ top galleries. Acute anxiety, mental disorder and devastating depression have caused her to be committed to mental institutions, undergo electroshock therapy and survive a 10-year period without the ability to speak,” writes Director Frank Stiefel in his summary. “Her hyper self-awareness has allowed her to produce a lifelong body of work that expresses her emotional state with powerful psychological precision.”
During a Q&A following the screening, Stiefel explained that he met Alper when she was his wife’s art school classmate. I commend him for recognizing an opportunity and delivering a fascinating story. Check out this film if you have the opportunity.
Stormy Weather
The Age of Consequences makes a strong point about the connection between climate change and global instability … and then belabors it to death.
The documentary begins with a parade of military leaders and civilian defense and diplomatic experts, all reinforcing that connection – as if trying to drown out the politicians who pretend it is open to debate.
The filmmakers list a number of ramifications – land loss, shortages, migration, civil unrest and international conflict, to name a few – but then make the same, or very similar, points for each one.
This documentary examines an important topic, so it’s a shame that I was nodding off about three-quarters of the way through. Really, though, you could get the gist of it from viewing the trailer.
‘Vorticity’
Paired with The Age of Consequences was the documentary short Vorticity from Phoenix filmmaker Mike Olbinski.
With no dialogue, it’s essentially a seven-minute music video with time-lapse images of various storm fronts, including a couple of tornadoes. The images are beautiful, sort of like naturally occurring abstract art.
Weather aficionados will love this film. Other folks may just see fast-moving clouds. If you count yourself among the first group, you can stream Vorticity here.
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Stu Robinson practices writing, editing, media relations and social media through his business, Phoenix-based Lightbulb Communications.
Tags: artists, Brian Davis, Duck Stamp, Fish and Wildlife Service, Frank Stiefel, Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405, Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, Mike Olbinski, Mindy Alper, The Age of Consequences, The Million Dollar Duck, Vorticity, weather
COMMENTS
David B. Lynch
I finally got to view The Million Dollar Duck. As a collector, I thoroughly enjoyed this peek behind the curtain into the Duck Stamp selection process. It was, is and continues to be one of the best-run government programs in American history. Yes, it is about artsy people doing artsy things, but it is presented in an entertaining manner, even adding a bit of tension near the end. If you have an hour, it is worth watching.