JAN KRAWITZ
Department of CommunicationMaster of Fine Arts (Film), Temple University, January 1979.
B.A. (Photography/Film), Cornell University, June 1975.
Sept. 1988 - present
Professor, Department of Art and Art History, Stanford University.
Professor, Department of Communication (1988-2006)
Director, Graduate Program in Documentary Film and VideoSept. 1980 - June 1988
Associate Professor, Department of Radio-TV-Film,
The University of Texas at Austin.
July 1986 - June 1987
Fellow, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University. On leave from University of Texas.
June 1983 - Aug. 1983
Sound recordist; "A Country Auction"; 60-minute, 16 mm documentary film directed by Ben Levin and Jay Ruby; funded by The National Endowment for the Humanities.
Sept. 1979 - May 1980
Visiting Filmmaker, The Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington.
Taught film/video production and theory.
1990 MIRROR MIRROR. Director/Sound/Editor. 16mm, color, 17 minutes.
Distributed by Women Make Movies.
1986 DRIVE-IN BLUES. Director/Sound/Editor. 16mm, color, 28 minutes.
Distributed by Direct Cinema Limited.
1984 LITTLE PEOPLE. Co-Producer/Director/Editor (with Thomas Ott).
16mm, color, 58 minutes (television version for PBS).
Distributed by Filmakers Library.
1982 LITTLE PEOPLE. Co-Producer/Director/Editor (with Thomas Ott).
16mm, color, 88 minutes. Original version
1979 P.M. Co-Director/Editor. 16 mm, b&w, 7 minutes.
1979 COTTON CANDY AND ELEPHANT STUFF. Co-Director/Editor/Sound.
16mm, color, 29 minutes. Distributed by Direct Cinema Limited.
1979 AFTERIMAGE. Co-Director/Sound. 16mm, color, 17 minutes.
Distributed by Direct Cinema Limited.
1978 A CHICKEN IN EVERY POT. Co-Director/Sound. 16mm, b&w, 29 min.
1976 STYX. Director/Editor. 16 mm, b&w, 10 minutes.
Distributed by The Museum of Modern Art.
National broadcast on P.O.V., (PBS), 2006, 2005.
International broadcast in Australia, Israel, Gaza, ABC Asia network, Denmark, New Zealand, Finland, Israel, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Latvia, Andorra. 2006, 2005.
Heart of the Festival Award, Vermont International Film Festival, 2004.
CINE Golden Eagle Award, Council on International Nontheatrical Events, 2005.
First Prize, Documentary, Carolina Film and Video Festival, 2005.
Best Documentary, University Film and Video Association National Conference, 2005.
Third Prize, Big Muddy Film Festival, 2005.
DirectorÕs Citation/Honorable Mention, Black Maria Film and Video Festival, 2005.
First Prize, Documentary, East Lansing Film Festival, 2005.
Top 25 DVD Documentaries of 2005, Video Librarian, 2005.
ReelheART International Film Festival, Toronto, 2006.
South by Southwest, 2004.
SILVERDOCS: AFI/Discovery Documentary Film Festival, 2004.
Cinequest, 2004.
Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival, 2004.
Rocky Mountain WomenÕs Film Festival, 2004.
United Nations Association Film Festival, 2004.
Santa Fe Film Festival, 2004.
DOCUPOLIS, Barcelona, Spain, 2005.
Southern Circuit Tour, 2005.
Picture thisÉ film festival, 2005.
Riverrun International Film Festival, 2005.
Sedona International Film Festival, 2005.
Tiburon International Film Festival, 2005.
Fairfax Documentary Film Festival, 2005.
Wine Country Film Festival, 2005.
National Broadcast on PBS Independent Lens, 2000.
Broadcast on PBS series Through the Lens, Philadelphia, 1997.
Broadcast on PBS series Territory, all PBS stations in the state of Texas, 1997.
Broadcast on PBS series Independent Eye, Maryland, 1998.
Best of Festival, Utah Short Film and Video Festival, 1996
Silver Award, International Documentary Association Distinguished Achievement Award, 1996
Best of Festival, Louisville, Film and Video Festival, 1997
Best of Festival, Doublettake Documentary Film and Video Festival, 1998
Best Documentary, New Frontiers Film Festival, Ottawa, 1997
Certificate of Merit, Chicago International Film Festival, 1996
Jury Award, New York Expo of Short Film & Video, 1996
Award of Merit, Sinking Creek Film/Video Festival, 1996
JurorsÕ Citation, Black Maria Film and Video Festival, 1997
Isabella Liddell Art Award, Ann Arbor Film Festival, 1997
Award of Merit, Sinking Creek Film/Video Festival, 1996.
Certificate of Merit, Chicago International Film Festival, 1996.
Jury Award, New York Expo of Short Film & Video, 1996.
Audience Award, Imagefest, 1996.
Invited Participant, INPUT, International Public Television Conference, Germany, 1998.
Los Angeles Independent Film Festival, 1998.
Margaret Mead Film Festival, 1996
Mill Valley Film Festival, 1996
Film Arts Festival, November 1996
Denver International Film Festival, 1996
First International London WomenÕs Film Festival, October 1996
International Short Film Festival, Vila do Conde, Portugal, 1997
Melbourne International Film Festival, Australia, 1997
St. Petersburg International Film Festival, Russia, 1997
Breckenridge Festival of Film, 1997
Mediawave Festival of Visual Arts, Gyor, Hungary, 1997
Three Rivers Film Festival, Pittsburgh, 1997
Rocky Mountain WomenÕs Film Festival, 1996
Boston International WomenÕs Film and Video Festival, 1997
St. Louis Film Festival, 1996
Cinequest, 1997
Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema, 1997
Music Box Theatre, 1-week commercial run in Beverly Hills, 1997.
Margaret Mead Film Festival, 1996.
Mill Valley Film Festival, October 1996.
The Museum of Modern Art, 1997.
Pacific Film Archive, 1996.
LITTLE PEOPLENational broadcast on PBS, 1987, 1988.
Discovery Channel broadcast, 1991, l992, l993.
Featured on "Entertainment Tonight" (reviewed by Leonard Maltin), l993.
"Living Room Festival," KQED, San Francisco, 1993
Excerpted on ABC's "Good Morning America", 1993.
Popular Culture Association Rollins Documentary Award, 2005.
Red Ribbon, American Film Festival, New York, 1987.
Second Prize (Documentary), Athens International Film Festival, 1987.
Festival Prize, Humboldt Film Festival, California, 1988.
Film Forum, 2-week run, 1992.
Sydney Film Festival, Australia, 1987.
Denver International Film Festival, 1988.
Ann Arbor Film Festival, 1989.
United States Film Festival, Utah, 1987.
USA Film Festival, Dallas, 1987.
Third Wave Film Festival, Austin, 1988.
21st Annual Independent Filmmakers' Exposition New York, 1987.
Women in the Director's Chair, Chicago, 1987.
Women Make Movies, American Film Institute, Washington, D.C., 1987.
Flaherty Film Seminar, New York, 1986.
P.M.
Second Prize, Bellevue Film Festival, Washington, 1981.
Finalist, American Film Festival, New York, 1981.
JudgesÕ Award, 19th Ann Arbor Film Festival (1981) and tour of award-winning films.
Received prizes at:
San Francisco Art Institute
Kent State University
The University of Texas, Arlington
Blue Ribbon, American Film Festival, New York, 1979.
CINE Eagle, Washington, D.C., 1979.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Student Film Award, 1979.
Merit Award, Athens International Film Festival, Ohio, 1981.
First Prize, Marin County Film Festival, California, 1979.
Third Prize, FOCUS Competition, Los Angeles, 1980.
Los Angeles FILMEX, 1980.
Baltimore International Film Festival, 1979.
Atlanta International Film Festival, 1981.
Conference on Visual Anthropology, Philadelphia, 1980.
Margaret Mead Film Festival, New York, 1979.
Arden House Public Television Seminar, New York, 1979.
AFTERIMAGE
First Prize, FOCUS Competition, Los Angeles, 1981.
Finalist, American Film Festival, New York, 1980.
Finalist, Birmingham Educational Film Festival, 1980.
Merit Award, Rehabilitation Film Festival, New York, 1979.
Conference on Visual Anthropology, Philadelphia, 1980.
Los Angeles FILMEX, 1980.
STYX
Permanent collection of The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Aired on public television in Chicago and Houston, 1981.
Jury Prize, Deuxiemes Rencontres Internationales Henri Langlois a Tours, France, 1978.
Second Prize, 20th International Documentary & Short Film Festival, Bilbao, Spain, 1978.
Ann Arbor Festival Award and selected to tour with award-winning films. On tour (1977):
First Prize, University of Wisconsin
First Prize, Ohio State University
First prize, Alfred University
Finalist, American Film Festival, New York, 1978.
Regional winner, Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Student Film Awards, 1977.
University Film Association Scholarship Award, 1977.
12th Annual Independent Filmmaker's Exposition, New York, 1978.
Flaherty Film Seminar, Massachusetts, 1977.
Conference on Visual Anthropology, Philadelphia, 1980.
Arden House Public Television Seminar, New York, 1979.
Jan Krawitz, ÒA Southern Exposure: Indie Dox in Dixie,Ó International Documentary, vol. 24, no. 6, July 2005, pp. 27-30.
Jan Krawitz, ÒWomen Make Documentaries,Ó Wide Angle, 2000.
Jan Krawitz, ÒArchival Footage Usage in Documentary Films: Practical and Aesthetic Considerations,Ó Stanford Humanities Review, volume 7.2, 1999.
Jan Krawitz, ÒINPUT Õ98,Ó International Documentary, Vol. 17/9 September 1998, pp. 33-35.
Jan Krawitz, "The Independent Documentary: Prospects for Survival," Journal of the University Film and Video Association, Vol, 38, No. 1, Winter 1986.
Jan Krawitz, "Juggling Gender,"Journal of Film and Video, Vol. 45, Nos. 2-3, Summer-Fall 1993.
Rea, Peter W. and Irving, David K. Producing and Directing the Short Film and Video. Boston: Focal Press, 1995.
My film Mirror Mirror is one of three short films presented as case studies in this book. I was interviewed extensively for the book, contributed documents from my film, and edited the
transcript of my interview.
Rosenthal, Alan. Writing, Directing, and Producing Documentary Films and Videos (third edition), Southern Illinois University Press, 2002, pp. 326-328. (Proposal for my film ÒIn HarmÕs WayÓ is reprinted in Chapter 20.
Muha, Marianne D. ÒBig Enough,Ó Media Reviews Online, 2005.
Shannon, J. ÒBig Enough,Ó Video Librarian, November/December 2005, p. 60.
Dearing, Paul. ÒA Review of Big Enough, Jackson Free Press, p. 28.
Vincent Canby, ÒÔLittle People,Õ The Story of Dwarfs,Ó New York Times, October 9, 1982.
John Corry, ÒÔLittle PeopleÕ Looks At the Lives of Dwarfs,Ó New York Times, July 17, 1984.
Jeff Weinstein, ÒEye to Eye,Ó Village Voice, October 19, 1982
Arthur Unger, ÒWhen Dwarfs Becomes Giants: A ÔMust-See,ÕÓ The Christian Science Monitor, July 17, 1984.
Harlan Jacobson, ÒLittle People,Ó Film Comment, November-December 1982.
Gerry Putzer, ÒLittle People,Ó The Hollywood Reporter, November 4, 1982.
Tom Shales, ÒDrive-Ins: A Breath of Fresh Air,Ó The Washington Post, October 21, 1987.
Cyn (sic), ÒDrive-In Blues,Ó Variety, October 28, 1987.
Gene Seymour, ÒWhen the Parking Lot Was the Theater,Ó Philadelphia Daily News, Oct. 21, 1987.
Timothy Lyons, ÒJan Krawitz and ÔIn HarmÕs Way,ÕÓ International Documentary, June 1997.
Alison Macor, ÒDocumentarian Shuns Easy Answers,Ó Austin American-Statesman, July 21, 1999.
Desmond Ryan, ÒWhere Short Films WonÕt Get Short Shrift,Ó The Philadelphia Inquirer, April 27, 1997.
Judith Egerton, ÒLouisville Film Festival Honors Rape Documentary,Ó The Courier-Journal, November 2, 1997.
Anne S. Lewis, ÒGetting Personal,Ó The Austin Chronicle, July 16, 1999.
Sue Adolphson, ÒNo One Fairest in ÔMirror,ÕÓ San Francisco Chronicle, August 25, 1991.
Subrin, Julie, ÒAnn Arbor Film Festival,Ó Angles,, Spring 1998.
Jan Roberts-Breslin, ÒMirror Mirror,Ó Journal of Film and Video, Fall 1991.
Randy Turoff, ÒThree Women: Three Views,Ó Bay Guardian, May 1, 1992.
ÒCotton Candy and Elephant Stuff,Ó Landers Film Reviews, March/April 1981.
ÒAfterimage,Ó Booklist, September 1, 1980.
Greg Beal, ÒFilms, Filmmakers, Dialogue: An Interview with the collaborative team of Krawitz and Ott,Ó Southwest Media Review, Spring 1983.
Thomas Albright, ÒIndependent Filmakers to Show Their Stuff Here,Ó San Francisco Chronicle, April 16, 1979.
Atkin, Ross. ÒDrive-In Movies: Featuring Families,Ó Christian Science Monitor, August 5, 1998.
Subrin, Jule, ÒAnn Arbor Film Festival: In HarmÕs Way, Angles, Volume 3, Nos. 3&4, Spring 1998.
Thomas White, ÒShort on Docs, Long on Moxie,Ó International Documentary, Vol. 17, No. 6, June 1998.
Southern Circuit, 2005.
University of South Carolina, 2005.
New York University, 2005.
University Film and Video Association Annual Conference, 2005.
Columbia College, 2005.
Center for Biomedical Ethics, Stanford, 2005.
Bryn Mawr College, 2004.
Temple University, 2004.
University of Oklahoma, 2003.
Colorado College, 2002.
Loeb Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, 2002.
Exploratorium, San Francisco, 2001.
Luce Lectureship, Vassar College, 2000, 1994.
North Carolina WomenÕs Coalition Conference, 2000.
Commonwealth Club, San Francisco, 2000.
University of Florida, 2000.
Austin Film Society, 1999.
Rice Media Center, 1999.
University of Texas at Austin, 1999.
University of North Texas, 1999.
Ann Arbor Film Festival, 1998.
Portland Museum of Art, 1997.
College of Santa Fe, 1995.
Taos Film Festival, 1995.
University of Colorado, 1995.
Gallagher Lecturer, Society for Adolescent Medicine, 1994.
Wayne State University, 1994.
San Francisco Art Institute, 1994.
Berkeley School of Journalism, 1993, 1994.
University of Oklahoma, "Cultural Perspectives in Film", 1993.
Rocky Mountain WomenÕs Film Festival, keynote speaker, l992.
Bunting Institute of Radcliffe College, 1991.
University Film and Video Association Annual Conference, 1996, 1990, 1986, 1982.
Boston University, 1991, 1983.
Flaherty Film Seminar, l993, l986, l976.
Humboldt International Film and Video Festival, 1990.
San Jose State University, l989.
California State University, Fresno, 1988.
Big Muddy Film Festival, Illinois, 1988.
University of Maryland, 1987.
Temple University, 1986.
Syracuse University, 1985.
Cornell University, 1983.
Workshop at Neighborhood Film Project, Philadelphia, 1983.
Rice University, 1982.
Feature story on "All Things Considered", National Public Radio, about LITTLE PEOPLE including filmmaker interviews, 1982.
Ashland Film Festival, 2005.
Cinequest, 2006, 1998.
Front Page Awards, NewswomenÕs Club of New York, 2005.
CINE, Jury Chair, 2005.
South by Southwest, 2004.
Documentary Summit, The University of Texas at Austin, 2002.
National Educational Media Network, 1999.
Ann Arbor Film Festival, 1998.
Cinequest Film Festival, 1998.
Louisville Film Festival, 1998, 1993.
San Francisco International Film Festival, Jury Chair: 1992-95. Juror: 1990-91.
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 1997.
American Film Festival, 1990, 1987, 1984, 1983, 1980.
Council on International Nontheatrical Events, 1993.
National Educational Film and Video Festival, l992, 1991.
Humboldt International Film and Video Festival, 1990.
Atlanta Film and Video Festival, 1989.
Big Muddy Film Festival, Illinois, 1988.
New England Film Festival, Boston, 1987.
U.S.A. Film Festival, Dallas, 1985.
Panelist, Nebraska Humanities Council, 1992-1995, 1997.
Panelist, Independent Production Fund Grant, SW Alternate Media Project, Houston, 1987
Panelist, National Endowment for the Humanities Youthgrant, Washington, D.C., 1980-82
Panelist, Film Arts Foundation Seminar on Documentary, 1994.
Panelist, Pioneer Fund Grant, l992.
Panelist, National Educational Video and Film Festival, l990, l99l, l992, 1993.
Panelist, Cinequest Film Festival, l99l, l992.
Panelist, University Film and Video Association, 1982, 1989. 1999, 2002.
Grants, Fellowships, and Teaching Awards
Fleishhacker Foundation, 2002.
Arts Council, Silicon Valley, 2001.
Shenkin Fellowship of Yale University, 2001.
Peninsula Community Foundation, 2001.
Research Incentive Award, Stanford University, 2000.
The DeanÕs Award for Distinguished Teaching, School of Humanities and Sciences, Stanford, 1995.
The Donnet Fund, 1995.
Santa Clara County Fellowship for Independent Film and Video Artists, l99l, 1995.
Stanford University Research Incentive Award, 1994.
Irvine Foundation Multicultural Curriculum Grant, 1993.
Film Arts Foundation Production Grant, l99l.
Western States Regional Media Arts Production Grant, 1991.
Marilyn Yalom Research Fund, 1991.
Women in Film Finishing Fund Grant, 1989.
Pioneer Fund Grant, 1989.
Southwest Alternate Media Project Production Grants, 1988, 1985, 1984, 1981.
The Paul Robeson Fund, Film Production Grant, 1987.
Women's Project, Film Production Grant, 1987.
Bunting Fellowship, Mary Ingraham Bunting Institute of Radcliffe College, 1986-1987.
Mary Gibbs Jones Fellowship in Communication, 1986-1987.
Texas Commission on the Arts, Grant for Film Production, 1985.
College of Communication Research/Creative Support Grant, 1985.
College of Communication Teaching Excellence Award, May 1984.
University Research Institute Grants, The University of Texas at Austin, 1984, 1981, 1980.
Sinking Creek Film Celebration Production Grant, 1981.
University Film Association Scholarship Award, 1977.
FILMOGRAPHY
Films Directed by Jan Krawitz
BIG ENOUGH 16mm, color, 53 minute, 2004.
This film revisits five dwarfs who shared their stories in Little People, a documentary I co-directed in 1981. Their contemporary stories, juxtaposed against their perspective of 20 years ago, offer a new look at being a dwarf today Ñ and at the tension between cultural preservation and assimilation.
IN HARMÕS WAY 16mm, color/b&w, 27 minutes, 1996. Distributed By Women Make Movies.
This personal memoir explores assumptions about fear, safety, and control which were instilled in children growing up in the late 1950Õs. The filmmakerÕs adult experience as a victim of anonymous sexual violence prompts her to revisit the fragile myths of childhood.
MIRROR MIRROR 16mm, color, 17 minutes, 1990. Distributed by Women Make Movies.
This film provocatively explores the relationship between a woman's body image and the quest for an idealized female form. Blending humor and candor, the film illuminates the vagaries in the concept of an "ideal" body.
DRIVE-IN BLUES 16mm, color, 28 minutes, 1986. Distributed by Direct Cinema Limited.
The film explores the history and current status of a venerated institution of popular culture -- the drive-in movie theatre.
LITTLE PEOPLE 16mm, color, 58 minutes, 1984. Distributed by Filmakers Library.
The film depicts the changes in attitude occurring among dwarfs as they struggle towards equal opportunity and enhanced self-esteem. It provides insight into the dwarf experience and offers a unique and sometimes disturbing perspective on the average-sized world.
P.M. 16 mm, b/w, 7 minutes, 1980.
A cinematic essay depicting the quiet dismissal of those who are no longer able to keep up with the relentless pace of consumer society -- the aged.
COTTON CANDY & ELEPHANT STUFF 16 mm, color, 29 minutes, 1979. Distributed by Direct Cinema Limited.
The arduous lifestyle of a travelling tent circus often contradicts the romantic notion of "running away with a circus". This film focuses on those elements of the circus which are not generally accessible to the circus audience, capturing both the magic and the routine of circus life.
AFTERIMAGE 16 mm, color, 17 minutes, 1979. Distributed by Direct Cinema Limited.
AFTERIMAGE portrays the work and experiences of two blind artists who recount the painful period of fading vision and subsequent confrontation with isolation. Their art work is seen as both a means and an end in their efforts to adjust to blindness.
STYX 16 mm, b/w, 10 minutes, 1976. Distributed by The Museum of Modern Art.
STYX affords an impressionistic view of the subterranean world of a metropolitan subway system. Joining an anonymous mass of commuters, the camera embarks on a journey across a decaying cityscape.