Magnolia Pictures Buys Pat Oliphant Documentary
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Variety is reporting that the documentary A Savage Art: The Life & Cartoons of Pat Oliphant has been purchased by Magnolia Pictures. The film will be released to theaters on Sept. 5.
The documentary follows the life of Australian-born Oliphant, whose tenure as America’s most celebrated and feared political cartoonist spanned five decades and 10 administrations. In 1990, The New York Times called him “the most influential editorial cartoonist now working.” The film covers the history and importance of political cartoons in global democracies, as well as the decline in the profession and in the newspaper industry. It also highlights the effects of extreme political partisanship on media and editorial cartooning, and shows how Oliphant used his wit, critical eye and drawing skills to take on the powers that be, sending up everyone from Ho Chi Minh to Donald Trump.
Trailer:
From my review prior to its debut back in June:
Clocking in at 88 minutes, the documentary is engaging, well-paced, artistically inspiring and reaffirms the role of being a troublemaker cartoonist.
Like most documentaries, it starts with his humble beginnings in Australia, his discovery of cartoon art, and daring gamble to come to America to push political art boundaries. Through its chronological narrative, the film expertly weaves in topics such as Pat’s masterful caricature, how he approached individual presidents—including a re-telling of an moment when Pat walked up to President Gerald Ford and drew on a band-aid on his forehead—how he handled celebrity, how his intense passion for the art affected his family, and, of course his most controversial cartoons. As a non-staff cartoonist, Pat had the liberty to say what he wanted—and he was never shy about doing so.
If there is a list of cartooning/cartoonist-related documentaries, I think this is at the top or at least in the top three.
The film was directed by Bill Banowsky, produced by Paul O’Bryan, and Susan Conway and Susan Banowsky were executive producers.
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