Presenting Princess Shaw: from New Orleans to Israel, via the Internet

As one would expect from a Kibbutz resident, Ophir Kutiel (a.k.a. Kutiman) definitely considers music a collective endeavor. He is not such a believer in rights and clearances, but since he is sampling little-seen, self-posted youtube videos, most of the samplees are delighted to have the exposure and track-back links. Such was certainly the case for Samantha Montgomery (a.k.a. Princess Shaw) when Kutiman’s mashed together accompaniment for her a Capella song went viral. Former San Francisco Film Society Artist-in-Residence Ido Haar was there to document her sudden internet fame and her subsequent trip to Israel in Presenting Princess Shaw (trailer here), which opens this Friday in New York.

It started as a project on nearly anonymous artists using youtube as a public workshop and confessional, but Princess Shaw (her preferred professional billing) quickly took over. She has an earthy voice, but her idiosyncratic style is hard to package in a neatly defined soul or R&B boxes. Evidently, NBC’s The Voice didn’t get it, because they gave her the unceremonious brush-off (quick, name a previous winner without checking google). Shaw was scuffling harder than the average jazz trombonist when Haar started documenting her life. She was not making ends meet as an elder care nurse, but she kept plugging away at open mic nights to empty rooms. Unbeknownst to her (but as Haar very well knew), Kutiman was crafting his newest assemblage featuring Shaw as his diva.

When Kutiman drops it online, Shaw becomes an internet sensation. Unlike his other mash-ups, such as the infectious “Mother of All Funk Chords,” Kutiman composed music to best showcase her emotional delivery and revealing lyrics. The tone is not so different from late Billie Holiday, yet we can still hear Kutiel’s Israeli and Mediterranean influences. Soon, Shaw is traveling to Israel to properly record with Kutiman and his ensemble, even though her car is still up on blocks, thanks to the punks who stole her tires.

Presenting is a film McLuhan scholars and Warhol devotees will have a field day with, but it will outlive such in-the-now analysis because of the resonance of Shaw’s life experiences. A survivor of abuse, the nature of which is clearly implied but never explicitly detailed, Shaw tenaciously, almost quixotically pursues her dreams, despite her desperate circumstances.

It is also aesthetically pleasing to see the ease with which the scruffy Israeli hipsters and the resilient New Orleanian mix. You have to smile when one of Kutiman’s sidemen ducks out for a beer run as soon as she arrives at their Tel Aviv studio. Yes, it is nice to know musicians are the same around the world. In fact, an unlikely but significant personal friendship and professional relationship blossoms between Shaw the diva and Kutiman the mad genius at the control board.

Of course, this story is still developing. Shaw has not “made it” yet, but since Kutiman is producing her debut album, possible questions of exploitation really do not apply here. Shaw’s appearances on behalf of the film should confirm as much and why wouldn’t she want Presenting high on the public radar? Haar displays great sensitivity, even when chronicling her lowest ebbs, emphasizing her generosity of spirit during the lows and the highs. Recommended for fans of soul and experimental electronica, Presenting Princess Shaw opens this Friday (5/27) in New York, at the IFC Center.

Ido Haar In-Residence at SFFS: Melting Siberia

Ido Haar’s road to San Francisco ran from Israel through Novosibirsk. Chosen as the inaugural filmmaker to launch the San Francisco Film Society’s Artist in Residence program, the still youthful looking Haar has already established an international reputation. At one point an editor for BeTipul, the Israeli series on which the HBO series In-Treatment is based (often word-for-word), Haar is probably best known on the festival circuit for the naturalistic, issue-driven documentary 9 Star Hotel. In contrast, his first non-fiction feature was the distinctly personal Melting Siberia (trailer here), which screens next Wednesday as part of two weeks of programming related to his residency.

Given its uniquely tragic history, many grieving spouses and children immigrated to Israel without parents and loved ones. Such was the case with Haar’s mother and grandmother, but his grandfather was very much alive. A Soviet Red Army officer stationed in Latvia, Marina’s father abandoned her and her mother shortly after the war. Always understandably resentful, Haar’s mother never sought out the father she never knew. However, when Haar tracks down his grandfather in frozen Novosibirsk, Marina reluctantly but resolutely follows-up in a series of phone calls, letters, and finally a fateful visit, all faithfully documented by Haar.

Deliberately modest and intimate, Melting is true to life, capturing the messy conflicting emotions and social awkwardness of Haar’s family reunion, finding closure where it can. Clearly a strong woman, Haar’s mother emerges as the star, tough but vulnerable all the way through. Yet, even on his supposed best behavior, his grandfather remains a deeply problematic figure. Before their eventual meeting, Marina muses whether deserting one’s family was conduct becoming a Soviet officer. It is a fair question, perhaps even more so following a devastating confrontation between a father and daughter still strangers to each other.

Unlike Haar’s other works, he frequently appears in Melting, good naturedly taking his family ribbing. It augurs well for his stint in-residence at SFFS (2/21-3/5), especially his classroom visits and master class scheduled for this Saturday (2/26). Haar will also be in-attendance for a special screening of Melting next Wednesday (3/2) at New People Cinema in San Francisco. Unblinkingly honest, it is quietly moving film, well worth seeing at any time.