IVAN and IVANA by JEFF SILVA!

I am so happy I went to see our very own Director Jeff Silva’s documentary masterpiece at the Harvard Film Archive last Saturday night! Jokes and bias aside- I really, really enjoyed the film and also really appreciated Jeff’s thoughtful and considerate approach to film making throughout the entire process.

The film served as a commentary on the notion of the “American Dream” as the defeating quest unfolds of a couple who have escaped the chaos and calamity of the Kosovo war with high hopes for a dream-come-true fairy tale in their new found home in the U.S., the “land of opportunity.  Jeff followed the couple in their quest for happiness, financial security, and an established sense of place and position for five years. He would visit the couple every 4-6 months for 2 weeks at a time, filming their daily lives. The film is really revealing in the perspective foreigners have on the American lifestyle as being revolved around money and material possessions and a place where someone can come and make money quickly and also shows the transformation of a bright eyed couple into self-destructing and depressed people, through the stress of the American lifestyle; the daily grind. The couple end up 1.5 million dollars in debt, become stressed and depressed, divorce, and Ivan turns to hard drugs to help heal his tormented heart. The films commentary on consumerism and materialism in the U.S. was subtlety inserted into the film. A couple scenes that stick out in my mind in particular which made me laugh and pointed out the severity of the culture of materiality in the states. There’s a scene where Ivana is sitting on the phone with a potential buyer for a property she is trying to rent out and the TV is playing in the background. You hear the commercials and with being especially attentive to the American lifestyle and values I was very aware that all the commercials or infomercials that played in the background during that scene were buying-spending oriented. Another scene that still plays over in my mind is when Ivan showing his car to his neighbor and they’re commenting on some marks on the hood of the car. The priority and preciousness of material items was brought to light in this scene. The film was emotionally charged and very heavy. You see this couple torn apart as a romantic unit but also suffering internally through their trials and tribulations in attaining this farce – “American Dream” lifestyle for themselves. The final scene is what really made my heart twang. Ivan is talking to his mother and he translates what she says to the camera. “She wants me to be a famous actor. She wants me to go to Hollywood”. This just reinforced the notion foreigners have of what America and living in America means and that even through the harsh reality Ivan faced in his attempt to attain the life style which was so important to him the possibility of a better life in the States is still present.

In his Q&A Jeff talked about how he makes a film and that he edits as he shoots to see in the edit what interesting elements and content could be incorporated to make the piece stronger. He spoke about how he is interested in pushing the boundaries of the documentary form and considers what a “truthful” documentary is, if there is such a thing. The film was shot in different styles, which incorporated both cinema verite shooting styles and an interesting aesthetic choice by Jeff to set down the camera on a surface and let the camera roll while whatever is happening unfolds on the other side – often times showing himself as a participant which was a really cool idea to me. Jeff talked his background in studying anthropology and about how when shooting a documentary he feels it’s really important that you completely delve into the environment you are interested in and commit to really understanding your subject and the people you are making a film about.  This conversation was instigated by a particular question about a scene where Ivan has slipped into a bout with drugs and Jeff is seen on camera taking a line of whatever the powder was. I think that Jeff is extremely brave to be willing to put himself out there like that and that he puts himself in the same vulnerable (to judgement) position Ivan is in by having his flaws and habits revealed. Part of my struggle with making documentary work is not to create pieces that seem condescending or unfair to the subjects. I think Jeff’s idea of challenging the traditional form of the documentary in shooting cinema verite but also in this style which makes the audience conscious of the relationship between the film maker and the subject and the fact that that relationship is as relevant and as much a part of the “story” as everything else we see on the screen. The film is awesome and was very inspiring for me to see yet another thoughtful documentary film maker (the other was McElwee) and their considerate approach to the genre.