DOX 103
I read the last article this morning in a plane on my way to Prague. I had browsed through the sport pages of a stupid Danish tabloid newspaper and felt good in my 24C seat on Czech Airlines with DOX in my hands. You concentrate on the reading and if any turbulence occurs you read the same sentences more than once holding quality in your hands! DOX is for these moments up in the air, or in the summer garden, in a train or in the sofa at home. I have never read the entire magazine right away, the same with this issue, you read it piece by piece, pick it up once in a while, also this number 103, where black is the cover and white are the letters that say ”last issue in print”.
Filmkommentaren.dk readers might have followed the posts of protest and the many why’s to Paul Pauwels (PP), who on the website of EDN has characterised this debate as a facebook campaign! In this last issue, PP writes, under the headline ”On to Greener Pastures”, that DOX does not fit into the EDN policy in a new challenging media situation.
Anyway, the other day I heard that an Executive Committee member of the EDN had suggested to publish/print one fat DOX per year to come out in connection with the idfa festival. That is
very much in line with the suggestion that I have made, inspired by what the Danish Film Institute does – they have an online service for smaller articles and longer, deeper background stuff in printed versions to come out at important festivals. Does not have to be that expensive – layout, printing, translation, symbolic fees… I am sure there could be volunteers for the editing. I do hope that PP, the staff and the Executive Committee will discuss this seriously…
Because we need articles like the ones in the last issue. Examples: Vibeke Bryld’s clever reporting from the Flaherty seminar, Sevara Pan’s intro to the succesful DocIncubator, Emma Davie on CAMP, a new way of storytelling with mention of an interesting Palestinian film, Suvi Helminen’s wonderful historical article about Glorianna Davenport and much more – all well written and edited, new to me and pointing in the direction of finding alternative ways for storytelling within our lovely documentary genre. They do not fit into an online concept. And the layout is fine, actually excellent, as is the language editing.
Yesterday I had dinner with Ole John, Danish film director and producer and writer, and one of the founders of EDN. When asked he said: I love DOX, I read all of it. Me too!
Photo: Frances Flaherty, accompanying the article by Vibeke Bryld.
