Categories
GUEST EDITOR

From The Desk Of Hard Working Americans: “Big Charity” And “What Doesn’t Kill Me” (Documentaries On The Verge Of A Premiere)

HWALogoGonzo troubadour Todd Snider is the de facto leader of Hard Working Americans, a band that evolved out of his friendship with Widespread Panic bassist Dave Schools. The group’s self-titled debut began as a collection of Snider’s favorite songs, many from past tourmates like country traditionalist Kieran Kane (“The Mountain Song”) and the Bottle Rockets’ Brian Henneman (“Welfare Music”). Two of the album’s most memorable tracks (“Another Train” and “I Don’t Have A Gun”) are credited to Will Kimbrough, who played in Snider’s ’90s backup band, the Nervous Wrecks. Snider and Schools will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our brand new feature on them.

BigCharity

Schools: Louisiana is no stranger to political shenanigans, and filmmaker Alex Glustrom here provides a touching history of beloved New Orleans Charity Hospital from its inception in 1736 until its sad post-Hurricane Katrina demise at the hands of Louisiana State University. The shock doctrine-esque machinations of the high positioned nefarious abusers of the opportunity provided them by one of the largest and most costly natural disasters in the history of this country will have you seething with rage or streaming with tears at the human cost in lives, jobs and wasted FEMA funds (read: your own tax dollars). And all for the purpose of trading a landmark centuries old charity healthcare facility in for one that will bring in high-dollar patients for a profit-making model. Maddening and yet ultimately supportive of the caregivers who can always be counted on to help their fellow men, Big Charity paints a nutshell picture of the ever-widening gap between the haves and have-nots in post 9-11 America and the reasons why that gap continues to grow. Still in post-production, keep this film in your “now you know” datebook for late 2014.

What Doesn’t Kill Me is a biographic concerning the life and songwriting of Georgia native Vic Chesnutt. Compiled by longtime friend Scott Stuckey, this film details with lovingly brutal honesty the arc of Chesnutt’s tragicomic genius from his earliest attempts at songwriting to the ups and downs of the ’90s and finally his self-inflicted escape from life and his broken body in 2009. A rare look into the evolution and songwriting process of one of America’s greatest sardonic syllable stretchers. The film will make you laugh, cry and wonder where those melodies came from in your next shower. Look for a premiere at SXSW this year.

Video after the jump.