Filmmaker Interview: CRAWFORD’s David Modigliani
Documentary director David Modigliani is pissed. He’s angry at the American tidal wave of political rhetoric–and the soapbox filmmaking that comes with it.
But Modigliani has actually done something about it. He’s the guy behind Crawford, an entertaining look inside the tiny Texas town the Bushes suddenly called their own. You know when the President talks about “the ranch?” You’d think it was a generations-old Bush family property… but you’d be wrong.
After rocking SXSW, and selling out at the Independent Film Festival of Boston, Crawford is about to head home: On June 8, it’ll play outdoors on a giant screen in Crawford. For the people of Crawford.
:: THE LOBBY: We now know what brought the Bushes to Crawford? What brought you to Crawford, both the town and the movie idea?
DAVID MODIGLIANI: I was duped. I thought Bush was actually from Crawford. When I found that he’d moved there in ‘99, just a couple of months before announcing his candidacy for President, I became intrigued with how effectively he’d pulled off the creation of this image, the origin myth. I set out to make a film indicting him for his political stagecraft. Instead, I found something much more compelling: The 705 people of Crawford, Texas and their lives behind the scenes.
:: THE LOBBY: Crawford begins with the Bushes arriving in town and runs nearly to the end of the current Administration. Did you have that scope in mind?
DM: I initially intended to make a short when we began shooting. But every time I thought we were shot out, something dramatic would happen in the lives of our characters and we’d go back. It became clear the characters’ stories had such an arc that the film could — and should — be a feature. We use archival footage, home video and anecdotes to capture the early part of the Bush era in Crawford.
:: THE LOBBY: You present quite a balanced look at the people in Crawford, and that might be surprising to some viewers. You found Bush fans, detractors, skeptics… Is that something you expected?
DM: I’m sick of political polemics. I’m sick of filmmakers injecting themselves into the narratives of their films. I’m sick of filmmakers preaching to the choir and alienating the very people who their films could impact. See Moore, Michael. I wanted to tell this story through the eyes of the people of Crawford. By the end of the film, many — like many conservatives in the country — feel they’ve been had.
I was hell-bent on representing the people of Crawford accurately and fairly and letting the audience come to their own conclusions. It was scary to show them the film for the first time. Their willingness to stand behind the film meant a lot to me. Their reviews are perhaps the most important ones.
:: THE LOBBY: What’s your take on the protestors that set up camp in Crawford? I’m guessing you started feeling the pain of the Crawford residents after a while.
DM: I think their questions were valid and their approach was effective. In August of ‘05, that protest and the President’s response (or lack thereof) really marked the turning point in public opinion on the war. At the same time, Cindy Sheehan and the protestors used Crawford in the same way that Bush did — as a prop for their political stagecraft. The people of Crawford were caught in the crossfire.
THE LOBBY: The film ends with one of the most perfect lines I’ve ever heard in a documentary: “Do you believe that?” Did you feel that would be your signature as soon as you heard it?
DM: Thanks for spoiling the ending! Just kidding, that doesn’t give anything away. That line, from Bill Holmes, was something we came to in the editing room. We have more than 110 hours of footage and there were so many possibilities, but as the narrative shaped itself we saw that that moment would be a great way to close things out.
:: THE LOBBY: Do you think other American towns would have responded similarly to the Bushes’ presence?
DM: Yes, I do. It’s been wonderful to have people come up to me and say “I grew up in a small town like Crawford and I kept thinking of it through the whole film.” Crawford could have been any town — and that makes it every town.
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Great interview. Interesting to hear that the story started as one idea and changed as the reporting developed.
- Tworm -
Thanks for the compliment. I agree, I think David’s approach and experiences make for a good interview. We met up in Boston, his hometown, and screening the movie both there and in Crawford in the same season is kind of an achievement for him.
-Norm S. (Meet In the Lobby)