Street roots
March 1, 2013
P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F JO E A N D H A R R Y G A N T Z
Our American Winter
Filmmakers Joe and Harry Gantz talk about their experience documenting Portland's poverty
BY JAKE THOMAS
S T A F F W R IT E R
Jo e Gantz: Well, you’ll remember that
the Arab Spring was a time of unlimited
he Great Recession began nearly five
potential, a time of awakening and change in
years ago. Since then, economists and a positive direction. It kind of occurred to us
the media have produced a string of
that at this time of need, when so many
graphs, as well as employment and financial
families were losing homes and losing jobs
data that show that the economy has made
and tremendously in need of some form of
a sluggish, yet, clear march toward recovery.
assistance, we, as a country, were focusing
But what is often absent from this tepidly
on cutting budgets and cutting services and
optimistic picture are all the people who
not looking at the human side of the
weren’t lifted up by the recovery, who never
equation. So it felt like the potential of this
quite saw the recession end and never
country was being lost a little. We felt like
stopped worrying.
this is an American Winter that will
Harry and Joe Gantz, two Emmy Award
hopefully be followed by an American
winning filmmakers best known for
Spring.
capturing life in action in the documentary
series “Taxicab Confessions” and the
Harry Gantz: The point is that we want
documentary film “Sex with Strangers” as
people to see a little of themselves in there.
well as others, present an intimate portrait
Everybody knows someone who lost a job.
of eight Portland families left behind by the
Everybody knows someone who was
recovery in “American Winter.” The film,
foreclosed on or is at threat of being
which played during the Portland
foreclosed on. So this is a unique time with
International Film Festival and premiers
large new populations of poor. The formerly
March 18 on HBO, captures candid
middle class have fallen into poverty, and it’s
moments in the lives of families who seem
happening at the same time previous cuts to
to live in a state of perpetual dread as they
social serves will just make it a perfect
drift from crisis to crisis, worrying about
storm. These social workers you see in the
how to keep the electricity on, how to pay
film are having to do so much more with so
for housing and the toll their new-found
much less.
poverty is taking on their kids.
The Gantz brothers selected Portland for
J.T.: Did anything surprise you? Was there
the film’s setting, where they used 211Info,
anything that was unexpected?
a hotline that refers people in need to social
services, to find the families whose lives
Joe: I think the thing that struck me first
they document in revealing detail. Portland
and most powerfully was to watch families
caught their eye because, unlike Los
who were dealing with this kind of stress on
Angeles or New York, it wasn’t the obvious
a daily basis, on an hourly basis, that goes
place to tap into hard times. Nonetheless, it
with not having enough to meet the needs
provided a bounty of stories of a lost
of your family, to be continually worried
American dream.
about losing your electricity or your heat or
T
“American Winter”,
filmed in Portland,
makes its
television debut
March 18 on HBO.
Jake Thom as: Why did you select the title
“American Winter?”
the lease on yourhouse, of being evicted or
not having enough food. Being a parent in
the worst-case scenario, you don’t want to
transmit that sense of panic and dread to
your kid, but, on the other hand, you don’t
want to lie to them completely. And these
parents are just so overwhelmed by this. It’s
not a way to live. It’s traumatizing to the
entire family.
I personally think that having watched
that in making this film and lived so close to
them as they were going
through it that it has
long-term effects on
families and on kids.
Kids who go through this - 1 see a 40-year movement
in the U.S. will not do
In the m edia sta rtin g w ith
well in school, they will
not be able to fulfill their the Reagan adm inistration
potential or will often be to demonize people who
traumatized to the point receive social services,
where they don’t finish
w ith the welfare queen and
high school or don’t
the 4 7 percent, and we
finish college and don’t
become the members of found the opposite to be
society that we expect
true. Sure, there's some
and hope for, but they’ll
fraud in the system, bat the
be so traumatized that
they become a burden on m a jo rity of people there
society.
are because of some
J.T.: Where would you
say our social safety net
is most vulnerable, if
anywhere?
Joe: That’s a tough
unforeseen circumstances.
They want to w ork. They
want to support th e ir
fam ily. They want the
d ig n ity of a jo b ."
question. I d like to come
C O - D IR E C T O R ,
at it slightly differently. A
lot of people that we
worked with spoke about
how it’s so hard to get
help and you have to go through so many
hoops. You have to call into 211 at the right
time at the month for some services. And
then if you do get a job and make a little
See AMERICAN WINTER, page 5
~~~ H A R O TG A S TZ
A M E R IC A N W IN T E R