Making Documentaries in the Digital Age: A Chat With “Autumn Gem” Co-Producers
by Kara Swisher
Posted on June 15, 2009 at 10:49 AM PT
At the seventh D: All Things Digital conference, besides interviewing a lot of tech and media muckety-mucks, the All Things Digital staff and friends also got a terrific screening of a new documentary–“Autumn Gem”–by our Webmaster, Adam Tow, and his wife, Rae Chang.
The pair co-produced the project, which explores the extraordinary life of the Chinese revolutionary heroine and women’s rights activist, Qiu Jin (1875 – 1907).
As Tow and Chang wrote on their Web site for “Autumn Gem”:
“During the reign of the last dynasty in China, Qiu Jin boldly challenged traditional gender roles and demanded equal rights and opportunities for women. At a time when women’s lives were often marked by repressive practices such as footbinding, arranged marriages, and denial of education, she envisioned a future where women would free themselves from the confines of tradition and emerge as strong and active citizens of a new and modern nation.”
Even more interesting is what it is like to get an indie film made and distributed in the digital age, which I talked about with Tow and Chang last week.
Here’s the video with my interview with Tow and Chang (and, below it, a preview of “Autumn Gem”) :
