Ethics & Storytelling

1. The Maysles Brothers and Frederick Wisemen faced a myriad of ethical dilemmas when they made their films. Issues of privacy and exploitation plagued the filmmakers at every corner. When the subjects of a film are legally insane or incredibly detached from reality, it is the filmmaker's duty to ask themselves: What can the public gain from seeing this film? As long as filmmakers make a concerted effort to get permission from their subjects--and from the closest relatives in cases similar to “Titicut Follies”-- the ultimate decision belongs with the filmmaker.

In the case of “Grey Gardens,” exposing the Beale family feels unnecessary and exploitive although the family might have desired the attention. There is little to gain from watching two former socialites live in squalor and become increasingly removed from the world. Filming the mother and daughter as they discuss their lives might not have breached any legal doctrines, but the filmmaker should have wondered why they were filming these exchanges. As for “Titicut Follies,” investigating the conditions of America’s mental wards is a vital service needed to prevent abuses of power.

2. It is impossible to show all of the footage because the filmmakers most likely shot hundreds of hours of film. They could have displayed the segments in their entirety, but this would have been yawn-inducing. Filmmaking conventions have clearly evolved since these documentaries were released. If Ken Burns or Errol Morris used these same techniques in their films today, critics would lambaste them.

The manner in which the filmmakers used the footage is an ethical issue and a technical matter. Both films are very organic. The stories unfold with a limited number of cuts, creating a feeling of voyeurism in the audience. Interviews and archival footage are not spliced together to create a third meaning. This style works for “Follies” because the detachment allows the violence and pain to overwhelm the viewer. However, when this same method is applied in “Grey Gardens,” it looks like a shoddy home movie. No matter how the Maysles spliced their footage, they would not have been able to overcome their dishonorable exploitation of the Beales.

3. If I was the filmmaker behind these two projects, I would have abandoned “Grey Gardens” because there is little merit in telling the Beales’ story. Just because filmmakers actions are legal, this does not mean they are ethical. As for “Follies,” I would have followed through on the project, paying special caution to privacy. A concerted effort to receive permission from the staff, patients and family members would have to be undertaken.