Beyond 9/11

In the US,documentary films have gained the status of an alternative and more reliable source of news. “People there don’t trust the media. They turn to documentaries for untampered news,” said Sandra J Ruch,executive director of the International Documentary Association,who was in the city to address the students of NSHM Institute of Media and Mass Communication. Documentaries made in India can achieve that status too if only they are properly marketed. “There should be separate slots for documentary films in television channels and aspiring filmmakers should be encouraged to make non-fiction films,” Ruch said.

Ruch is on a five-city tour promoting American Documentary Showcase,a package of 29 films made by independent filmmakers/producers in the US . “These are independent (indie) films which project various facets of American life. Since they are indie films,they are both critical and objective about American life films,” said Ruch. Recent technological developments have made documentary filmmaking much easier than we think. “Today,if you are an aspiring documentary filmmaker,there are a lot of options,”she said.