Ep. 39: Why Documentaries Mean More in the Age of Trump

TIFF Long Take - A podcast by TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival)

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On the first anniversary of Donald Trump's election victory, Rob sits down with documentarian Greg Barker to discuss how documentaries fit into a "post-truth" world. Greg’s new film, 'The Final Year', looks back on the last year of Barack Obama's administration. The two talk about why the Obama years already feel like ancient history (3:15), why Greg wanted humanize the foreign policy process (5:20), and how he ended up with a film that even Trump supporters will enjoy (7:00). Greg also talks about the experience of filming the reaction on election night (15:15), how documentaries are a response to the shortcomings of modern journalism (17:00), and why the form has a greater role to play than ever before (19:10).

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