The Shadow Has A "Working Title"

The Shadow, as readers of this blog knows, is a big supporter of the arts in San Francisco.

Today, The Shadow had the opportunity to view art in another medium: film. The Shadow was in attendance at the West Coast Premier of the documentary "Working Title". To quote directly from the film's website:

• A doctor knows when he has become a doctor
• A lawyer knows when he has become a lawyer
• But how does one know when he as become an artist?

Everyday, people meet each other for the first time, and the quickest way to connect, is to fiture out what the other person does professionally. In contemporary America, one is generally identified, and defined by, what he does to earn a living.

How does one form his identity, within the community, when he chooses a path which denies easy classification and rejects typical work associations as the main determinate of self?

The two filmmakers, Phil Lane and John Givens, went to Montclair, New Jersey to interview five artists: Jordan Carp, a musician; Bill Mattick, a photographer; Janet Taylor Pickett, a painter; Bill Tierney, a sculptor and painter; and Shoshanna Weinberger, a painter. The film deals with the pressures, conflicts and struggles these artists faced as they were pursuing their dream.

This is an independent film and not yet available in wide release. If you know of a film festival that would be interested in showing this work anywhere around the country, contact Phil and John at by clicking on this link.

For more information on the film itself, including a trailer, you can go to the film's website.