Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Why Art Matters - Documentary Maker Morgan Spurlock

Documentaries can feel a lot like going to a boring lecture with a droning professor who is the only one in the room that cares about the subject. That is not Morgan Spurlock's m.o.

He first became a name as the maker and test subject for his Academy Award nominated film "Super Size Me." In it, he examined the fast food culture in our society, while examining the effects such a diet had on an average Joe, namely, himself. The results were real, shocking, thought-provoking and ultimately, changed the way many restaurants do business.

Morgan knew his formula and turned it into a fascinating turn on the FX channel with the television documentary series titled "30 Days." Each episode focused on a different theme and the protaganist had to live in an opposing world for 30 days. The first episode was filmed immediately after the Academy Awards, entitled "Minimum Wage," and Morgan had to live on that wage, including obtaining an apartment and furnishings, for the allotted time. Other episodes were a redneck living with a muslim, a teetotaler living as a binge-drinking college student, a patroit living as an illegal immigrant, a homophobe living with two gay men and a law-abiding citizen trying to survive 30 days in jail.

Morgan tells these tales with humor, honesty, and backs his documentary style with supporting and even sometimes, opposing statistics. He allows his subjects to come to their own terms and conclusions and at times, the episodes did not end well.

Spurlock has gone on to create even more documentaries, and even directed an episode of The Simpsons. And while he is not as overtly left-wing as his contemporary Michael Moore, he has quietly created a revolution of his own.

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