Loving Lampposts is available through its own website.
Dave Watson: What led to this film?
Todd Drezner: My son Sam was diagnosed with autism. I was editing a documentary at the time and looking for a subject for my own documentary. I was at the park with him on a circuit of four lampposts that he liked to visit there. And it occurred to me that his obsession with lampposts was a way in to talking about autism. It’s not what we would call “normal” behavior, but it’s not necessarily harmful either, and that’s a debate that goes on with autism – is it a medical condition that should be treated or a different way of being? That seemed to me to be a good subject for a documentary. There had been a lot of documentaries about individual autistic people, but I wanted to present a 50,000 foot view of autism in our culture at a time when it’s more common than ever before.
DW: You balance talking heads with data and footage in your film. Was this hard to achieve?
TD: The best films thrive on conflict and change, and autistic people tend to do best following a linear routine. So I knew I couldn’t necessarily rely on their stories to drive the narrative. The talking heads and data are there to present the two sides of the debate about autism and to introduce some conflict into the film. Hopefully, they’re presented in a way that’s engaging.
DW: Autism is a broad spectrum. Was it hard not to cover too much?
TD: I was open. Sam doesn’t have stereotypically difficult autistic behaviors. He doesn’t bite himself or bang his head against the wall. The fact that he’s “easy” in that way made it easier for my wife and me to accept his autism. I was interested in whether I could find people who had more “difficult” children who also believed in autism acceptance. And I think I was able to do that. I was glad to be able to show that acceptance is not simply a function of how “easy” a child you have.
DW: The playwright David Mamet said that all documentaries are fiction, that they are designed and structured for the audience to make an inference. Would you agree?
TD: To some extent. On the one hand, even Frederick Wiseman, who is famous for not conducting interviews or including narration or explaining his films in any way, still chooses what you’re going to see. We think of his style at the ultimate in verité, but he’s still creating the world of the film. On the other hand, you have Errol Morris where he is much more obviously part of the story and we’re aware of him. This goes back to the Heisenberg uncertainty principle from physics, which says that observing a phenomenon changes the phenomenon. It’s the same with a documentary. The presence of the camera changes the people who are being filmed. I wouldn’t say it’s fiction, necessarily. But it’s constructing reality and not just showing reality.
DW: A friend said recently that we’re living in a golden era of documentaries. Would you agree?
TD: Well, it’s easier! I can’t imagine making a documentary pre-internet. It’s now much easier to find subject matter and an audience. You can do a Google search and find people, go interview them, then edit. It’s so much less expensive to produce now. Then again, an old colleague of mine who worked at the BBC used to say that people think making TV is just as easy as watching TV. And it’s not. The opportunity to make something is available to many more people now, but the skill to make something good is still in relatively short supply. There’s so much material out there and the audience has to sort through to get to the good stuff.
DW: Do you have a favorite documentary?
TD: I’d have to say Hoop Dreams. It felt like a script from God in that if you’d written it as a script no one would believe it. I like the way it got into these kids’ lives and tied to examine larger issues without being overbearing.
DW: Structuring a movie like this seems hard. Was it?
TD: Yeah, it was a challenge. The initial goal was not to have me as a primary voice, but a number of factors came up. As I mentioned, autistic people thrive on routines, and their stories didn’t come together to go anywhere narratively. I had many people and no natural connections. I realized I would have to make the connections, to ultimately lead into arguments and counterarguments with all the stories.
DW: There seemed to be a difference between the medical, academic, and parental perspectives on autism.
TD: I would add a fourth perspective, the autistic adults.
DW: Yes. Were there similarities?
TD: I did a fair amount of interviews at a conference in Atlanta for the medical point of view. There was not one autistic person there; it would be like having a conference on civil rights and not inviting one African American person. People are there to sell hyperbaric chambers or other alternative treatments. I went to another conference filled with autistic adults and really designed to make autistic people comfortable. For example, you don’t applaud after someone speaks, you wiggle your fingers to show appreciation. That conference was all about how to get along as an autistic adult in a world that’s not designed for you. I would say that the parents at both conferences are acting from a place of love and want the best for their kids. But I would also say that trying to learn how best to help an autistic child from a conference with no autistic adults is not a good idea.
DW: What's next for you?
TD: I’m working on a documentary called In Transit. You can visit it at www.intransitmovie.com. It’s about cities and how they’re redesigning themselves for the twenty-first century. Many cities are trying to de-emphasize the car, which has been dominant for so long, and be more bicycle and pedestrian-friendly. Millennials want to live downtown and not drive, and yet people, especially in suburbs, push back on this kind of change. Hopefully, I’ll focus on a few specific stories and try to tie them to larger issues.
DW: What is the most memorable cinematic moment for you?
TD: I hate to sound trite, but I saw Star Wars at the age of five. It was special because my little sister wasn’t allowed to go. It was late, dark when we got out of the theater. If there was one moment that stood out, it was the Millennium Falcon’s jump to hyperspace. It was kinetic, and though my films are nothing like that, it was such an experience that I wrote about it when I applied to film school
Clip: Star Wars jump
Dave Watson: What led to this film?
Todd Drezner: My son Sam was diagnosed with autism. I was editing a documentary at the time and looking for a subject for my own documentary. I was at the park with him on a circuit of four lampposts that he liked to visit there. And it occurred to me that his obsession with lampposts was a way in to talking about autism. It’s not what we would call “normal” behavior, but it’s not necessarily harmful either, and that’s a debate that goes on with autism – is it a medical condition that should be treated or a different way of being? That seemed to me to be a good subject for a documentary. There had been a lot of documentaries about individual autistic people, but I wanted to present a 50,000 foot view of autism in our culture at a time when it’s more common than ever before.
DW: You balance talking heads with data and footage in your film. Was this hard to achieve?
TD: The best films thrive on conflict and change, and autistic people tend to do best following a linear routine. So I knew I couldn’t necessarily rely on their stories to drive the narrative. The talking heads and data are there to present the two sides of the debate about autism and to introduce some conflict into the film. Hopefully, they’re presented in a way that’s engaging.
DW: Autism is a broad spectrum. Was it hard not to cover too much?
TD: I was open. Sam doesn’t have stereotypically difficult autistic behaviors. He doesn’t bite himself or bang his head against the wall. The fact that he’s “easy” in that way made it easier for my wife and me to accept his autism. I was interested in whether I could find people who had more “difficult” children who also believed in autism acceptance. And I think I was able to do that. I was glad to be able to show that acceptance is not simply a function of how “easy” a child you have.
DW: The playwright David Mamet said that all documentaries are fiction, that they are designed and structured for the audience to make an inference. Would you agree?
TD: To some extent. On the one hand, even Frederick Wiseman, who is famous for not conducting interviews or including narration or explaining his films in any way, still chooses what you’re going to see. We think of his style at the ultimate in verité, but he’s still creating the world of the film. On the other hand, you have Errol Morris where he is much more obviously part of the story and we’re aware of him. This goes back to the Heisenberg uncertainty principle from physics, which says that observing a phenomenon changes the phenomenon. It’s the same with a documentary. The presence of the camera changes the people who are being filmed. I wouldn’t say it’s fiction, necessarily. But it’s constructing reality and not just showing reality.
DW: A friend said recently that we’re living in a golden era of documentaries. Would you agree?
TD: Well, it’s easier! I can’t imagine making a documentary pre-internet. It’s now much easier to find subject matter and an audience. You can do a Google search and find people, go interview them, then edit. It’s so much less expensive to produce now. Then again, an old colleague of mine who worked at the BBC used to say that people think making TV is just as easy as watching TV. And it’s not. The opportunity to make something is available to many more people now, but the skill to make something good is still in relatively short supply. There’s so much material out there and the audience has to sort through to get to the good stuff.
DW: Do you have a favorite documentary?
TD: I’d have to say Hoop Dreams. It felt like a script from God in that if you’d written it as a script no one would believe it. I like the way it got into these kids’ lives and tied to examine larger issues without being overbearing.
DW: Structuring a movie like this seems hard. Was it?
TD: Yeah, it was a challenge. The initial goal was not to have me as a primary voice, but a number of factors came up. As I mentioned, autistic people thrive on routines, and their stories didn’t come together to go anywhere narratively. I had many people and no natural connections. I realized I would have to make the connections, to ultimately lead into arguments and counterarguments with all the stories.
DW: There seemed to be a difference between the medical, academic, and parental perspectives on autism.
TD: I would add a fourth perspective, the autistic adults.
DW: Yes. Were there similarities?
TD: I did a fair amount of interviews at a conference in Atlanta for the medical point of view. There was not one autistic person there; it would be like having a conference on civil rights and not inviting one African American person. People are there to sell hyperbaric chambers or other alternative treatments. I went to another conference filled with autistic adults and really designed to make autistic people comfortable. For example, you don’t applaud after someone speaks, you wiggle your fingers to show appreciation. That conference was all about how to get along as an autistic adult in a world that’s not designed for you. I would say that the parents at both conferences are acting from a place of love and want the best for their kids. But I would also say that trying to learn how best to help an autistic child from a conference with no autistic adults is not a good idea.
DW: What's next for you?
TD: I’m working on a documentary called In Transit. You can visit it at www.intransitmovie.com. It’s about cities and how they’re redesigning themselves for the twenty-first century. Many cities are trying to de-emphasize the car, which has been dominant for so long, and be more bicycle and pedestrian-friendly. Millennials want to live downtown and not drive, and yet people, especially in suburbs, push back on this kind of change. Hopefully, I’ll focus on a few specific stories and try to tie them to larger issues.
DW: What is the most memorable cinematic moment for you?
TD: I hate to sound trite, but I saw Star Wars at the age of five. It was special because my little sister wasn’t allowed to go. It was late, dark when we got out of the theater. If there was one moment that stood out, it was the Millennium Falcon’s jump to hyperspace. It was kinetic, and though my films are nothing like that, it was such an experience that I wrote about it when I applied to film school
Clip: Star Wars jump
