Documentaries have come a long way in the past 20 years, especially in the last decade. Documentary film has developed into a popular and visible form of entertainment, while having a bigger effect on society, usually addressing important issues with the goal of informing the public and pushing for social change. Ten years ago, it …
At the venerable age of 83, the legendary documentarian Frederick Wiseman has quietly stormed the citadels of academia with his leisurely piece At Berkeley, a peek behind the gently manicured lawns of one of the most prestigious educational centres in the world. Over a lilting 4-hour lecture, Wiseman’s cameras penetrate the professional lives of the institution’s scholars and students, from the chancellor to its freshmen, capturing a fascinating fresco of an ivory tower trapped in amber, following the continual reverberations of the 2008 financial earthquake.