We watched nearly all of this this today in Film and Video. It's quite disturbing at times. The point of us watching it was to see that you can make a film out of footage and using editing on a computer. The man (Jonathan Caouette) got a camera when he about 9 years old. He filmed things everyday and recorded answer messages etc, basically anything, and during his 20's made this film. He didn't think the film would be such a big success but it ended up being shown at the Odion. He wasn't even a proper actor/director but after that starred in other things.

 

This is from imdb: 'Part documentary, part narrative fiction, part home movie, and part acid trip. A psychedelic whirlwind of snapshots, Super-8 home movies, old answering machine messages, video diaries, early short films, snippets of '80s pop culture, and dramatic reenactments to create an epic portrait of an American family travesty. The story begins in 2003 when Jonathan learns that his schizophrenic mother, Renee, has overdosed on her lithium medication. He is catapulted back into his real and horrifying family legacy of rape, abandonment, promiscuity, drug addiction, child abuse, and psychosis. As he grows up on camera, he finds the escapist balm of musical theater and B horror flicks and reconnects to life through a queer chosen family. Then a look into the future shows Jonathan as he confronts the symbiotic and almost unbearable love he shares with his beautiful and tragically damaged mother'

 

Anyone seen it?

yes it was on BBC 4 a few weeks ago and i caught a bit then. think i started a thread ages ago when it was the channel.