I honestly never thought I would see this happen. For the longest time, the only way to see the work of Frederick Wiseman was via a projected 16mm print. That was certainly the case when we presented a retrospective in conjunction with a Regis Dialogue back in 2003. Cinephiles knew they needed to get here to see the films as catching up with them on video was not an option. Since then, Wiseman’s company, Zipporah Films, began to offer VHS copies of his work for sale to institutions. Even that seemed revolutionary given his long-standing stance on presenting his work on film, protecting himself from lost revenue from bootlegged video copies. I was really excited to see today, on Michael Tully’s blog, that Zipporah has now crossed over to DVDs, offering them for sale not only to institutions, but to individuals as well. Now so many more people will be able to catch up with some of the greatest documentaries ever produced. I count High School and Titicut Follies amongst my favorites, but all of his work is worth checking out.
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