It’s a cautionary tale for documentarians navigating their fragile relationships with their subjects.
The landscape for documentary funding is mighty parched and could use the infusion of potential new players—even Netflix.
“If I find the right utopia, I’ll stay there and send you a postcard," said Peter Wintonick. Marc Glassman introduces our special issue in memory of the late filmmaker.
Stephanie Boyd reflects on meeting Peter Wintonick through a shiny VHS tape of his documentary Cinéma Vérité: Defining the Moment.
There’s a tingling contradiction in the idea of a documentary about Utopias: how does one ethnographize a ‘non-existent place’?
"When I was young with zero experience, Peter set me on the path to becoming a documentary filmmaker."
Many people can articulate Peter Wintonick's enormous influence, so Cizek offers a personal perspective on the "laughing Buddha of documentary."
"Like kids colluding against the world, we had secret code names: he was ‘Peter Red’ and I was ‘Peter Blue'," writes Lynch on Wintonick.
Peter Wintonick was Canada’s Documentary Ambassador—and actually the greatest advocate for docs in the world.
If Peter Wintonick's life was a Happening, it is how he made things happen for others that is his mighty legacy.