Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024 at 11 p.m. on KPBS TV / Not available in the PBS app
POV offers an intimate view of modern urban life, with its aggravations and unexpected moments of joy, from the point of view of first-time filmmaker Reid Davenport in the thoughtful documentary "I Didn’t See You There," produced by Keith Wilson. Filmed from Davenport’s physical perspective — a camera mounted to his wheelchair or handheld without himself being seen, the film serves as a clear rebuke to the norm of disabled people being seen and not heard.
Airing immediately after the premiere will be a short film by UCLA student Aaron Lemle, "The Beautiful Colors of Jeremy Sicile Kira", which had its world premiere at the San Diego International ShortFest in 2021. The film follows artist Jeremy Sicile-Kira, who uses painting to transcend his disability and communicate his dreams to others.
When the unexpected arrival of a circus tent goes up outside of Davenport’s Oakland, California apartment, he launches into a meditative journey exploring the history of freakdom, vision, and (in)visibility. As he confronts the legacy of the Freak Show and its lingering presence in his daily life in the form of gawking, lack of access and other forms of ableism, he ponders whether his past autobiographical filmmaking has fit into its tradition.
Informed by his position in space, lower to the ground, Davenport captures indelible images, often abstracted into shapes and patterns separate from their meaning. But the circus tent looms in the background, and is reverberated by tangible on-screen interruptions, from unsolicited offers of help to careless blocking of ramps. Personal and unflinching, “I Didn't See You There” forces the viewer to confront the spectacle and invisibility of disability.
Filmmaker Quotes:
“I shot this film from my literal perspective. As a disabled filmmaker, I first and foremost want to share that perspective with other disabled people in the hopes that it resonates. I also hope that non-disabled people find entry points into the film. There is no place better than POV for ensuring that 'I Didn’t See You There' is seen by a wide audience,” said Reid Davenport, director and director of photography.
“POV is the absolute perfect place for ‘I Didn’t See You There’ to reach so many viewers and start some needed conversations. It’s an incredible honor to follow in the footsteps of so many groundbreaking filmmakers whose POV films influenced me including Marlon Riggs, Laura Poitras, and Marshall Curry,” said Keith Wilson, producer.
The film premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival where it won the Directing Award: U.S. Documentary and was a Grand Jury Prize nominee. At the 2022 Full Frame Documentary Festival, it won the Grand Jury Prize and was the McBaine Bay Area Documentary Feature Award winner at the 2022 San Francisco International Film Festival. Recent accolades include two 2022 Cinema Eye nominations for Outstanding Debut and Outstanding Sound Design.
Credits: A co-production of American Documentary | POV, in association with Breezy Circle, Ajna Films, and XTR. Reid Davenport is the director/director of photography, Keith Wilson is the producer and Todd Chandler is the editor. Alysa Nahmias, Bryn Mooser, Kathryn Everett, Andy Hsieh, Dawn Bonder, Marci Wiseman, Erika Dilday and Chris White are the executive producers.
