Another Must See: The Marina Experiment

Next on my list of documentaries to see is “The Marina Experiment.” It’s described as “a shocking, one-of-a-kind documentary about a father’s voyeuristic obsession with his daughter.” The film has won numerous awards, including Best Documentary Super Shorts International Film Festival (London) and Best Short Film Melbourne Underground Film Festival. It was screened at Clermont-Ferrand, the world's largest short film festival; and it was also included in the Cannes Film Festival's Cannes Short Film Corner, which is where other films not screened in or included as part of the big film festival are made available for buyers and industry professionals to view.
I met the writer/director Marina Lutz recently after a film talk at The New School in New York. In promotional materials, Lutz writes: “My father communicated with me solely through cameras and audio recording devices, documenting the emotional violations I endured under his direction.” Thank goodness for us viewers that Lutz took the time to go through the more than 10,000 photographs, Super-8 films and reel-to-reel audio tape her father made of her.

I was riveted just by watching the first minutes of her film, which can be seen on The Marina Experiment Web site. Brink.com says “Everyone should view this work.” I heartily agree.