The producers of “The Hollywood Librarian: A Look at Librarians in Film” (Link fixed now), a new documentary in development, announced the project has received $50,000 in seed money from a private source to enable filming to begin.
The producers of “The Hollywood Librarian: A Look at Librarians in Film” (Link fixed now), a new documentary in development, announced the project has received $50,000 in seed money from a private source to enable filming to begin.
After five years in pre-production, writer/director Ann Seidl was thrilled with the news. “We are delighted with this generous gift,� she said. “American librarians deserve a first-rate documentary about their real value in society.� Seidl holds a master’s in library and information science from the University of Denver.
“The Hollywood Librarian: A Look at Librarians in Film� will be the first full-length film to focus on the work and lives of librarians, in the entertaining and appealing context of American movies. American films contain hundreds of examples of librarians and libraries on screen – some positive, some negative, some laughable and some dead wrong. Films such as “Sophie’s Choice,� “It’s a Wonderful Life,� “Lorenzo’s Oil,� “Desk Set� and “The Shawshank Redemption� include cinematic librarians. Dozens of interviews with real librarians will be interwoven with movie clips in an entertaining and enlightening treatment of such issues as intellectual freedom, equal access to information, technology in libraries, pay equity and library funding.
The film will be shot on high-definition-ready digital video and conform to theatrical and television audio and visual standards. Producers hope for a theatrical release within the next two years, depending on funding timelines and editing, to be followed by television and/or cable broadcast. “We want this documentary to help close the ‘perception gap’ between librarians and their public,� said Seidl, adding that the value of librarians is often obscured by ignorance or stereotype of the profession.
“Librarians want to see this documentary made, and this funding will get the project out of the starting gate,� said Associate Producer Kathryn Leide. To date, producers have completed the screenplay, secured commitments from film professionals for principal cinematography and sound design, and begun the research into copyright clearance for the film clips. Part of the preliminary financing will be used to seek full funding for the project, estimated between $1 million and $1.5 million dollars. Additional financing for the project is being sought from foundations that fund documentary works and library corporations.
Too much
I think it is a good idea, and I’m all for movies which portray my profession in a good light. But I’m also worried that the message will be overwhelmed by the different types of librarianship portrayed. Children’s librarians in public libraries, school librarians, medical librarians, corporate librarians, special librarians, rare book librarians, university librarians, legal librarians have all been portrayed in Hollywood productions. In trying to address all these types, I fear the documentary may be overwhelming to non-librarians, and not in-depth enough to concentrate on the profession rather than the easier types.
Most Americans are familiar with libraries from high school. They use libraries in college, but most avoid librarians unless they have to. To try to explain what a specialized chemical research librarian does or what the Library of Congress needs so many books in other languages for are good efforts, but even the question may be beyond the experience of the average American.
I wish them good luck, and will be sure to watch their final product. But when my own brother-in-law (with three librarians in the family) thinks my work must be very similar to the recent movie “The Librarian” because he has no other experience with a special or research library, or any library outside of the public and school libraries he is familiar with from childhood, I know it will be a difficult sell.
I have worked in public libraries, and sat of the floor with the kids and read stories, and I’ve worked with college students where I find the book, pull it off the shelf for them, and open the book and point to where they need to start reading, and I’ve worked in engineering and physical science research libraries where I have found the answers the patron needs, but really don’t understand what it is I’ve found. There is such a range in librarianship, that I’m afraid either the movie will have to be focused on only a narrow bit, or will be too broad to do well.
Re:Too much
Very true, Lee. I appreciate what you said here. This movie is going to be made largely in the editing room, and it’s all about the pacing. I intend to cover all aspects of librarianship, it’s true, but it can be skillfully done. Introduce concepts slowly (like ‘what the heck is special librarianship?’), and then you can move the audience a little faster along. Also, the device of ‘one represents many’ is going to be useful here.
Keep in mind, too, that this is a piece of film, not a finger wag. The last thing we want to do is come off dogmatic. So although there will be some detail on the chemical librarian, for example, it will be enough to describe, not to explain, if you see waht I mean.
Also, I guess I have faith that the “average” American audience (and the international audience, if this film gets distributed in foreign markets) IS capable of getting it. First it’s film and it’s more effective to show rather than tell and second, people are smart. I believe that everyone is as smart as me and I trust that.
Thanks for your comment!
Ann Seidl, Writer and Director