The greatest reward for teaching is the belated recognition of one’s students. Sure, it’s nice to get immediate feedback in a classroom, but I much prefer the idea that something I’ve said, something I’ve shared has lasting impact. That’s why I am so proud to be featured in this blog post by Jenni Boran, a graduate of TheFilmSchool and, simply, one of my favorite people.

Well, at the very least, lyrically, suicide does bring on many changes. And while the suicidal can take or leave it as they please, that does not account for those impacted by their choices, whether loved ones or… relatives. In fact, even talking about suicide can be too much for some people. Granted, it is a sensitive topic for those touched by the the deaths of others or even their own discomfort with mortality in general, however that does not mean we should shy away from conversation about suicide altogether.

Mike Stutz is a bold soul, a filmmaker/artist, whose own fixation with self-deliverance — in part due to his mother’s own suicide — led him to concoct a very personal documentary that begs to never look away. DON’T CHANGE THE SUBJECT has its flaws, such as initial over-reliance on the director’s connection to the matter, but as soon as he indulges and embraces others’ perspectives, the movie picks up and creates a compelling catalyst for post-screening discussion.

During the award-winning first season of The High Bar, I welcomed The Stranger’s Brendan Kiley to join me in a frank and, at times, irreverent discussion of suicide, its history and its current, socio-political ramifications. The episode remains one of my favorites, even if the production values are lower than Sylvia Plath‘s lows. Suicide is far from painless for those who survive and surround the act; suicide affects us all. Thus it is worthy of far more study and talk. I’ll take the plunge. And you can do the same thing if you choose.

What do YOU think?

Just because we’re moving forward doesn’t mean we’re getting ahead. The same conundrum may be true for civilization’s technological evolutions. In their latest documentary, filmmakers Mathieu Roy and Harold Crooks canvas today’s leading thinkers who criticize society’s fixation with growth, suggesting ways instead by which might start SURVIVING PROGRESS and, in turn, start saving humankind.

I have seen a lot of docs about the fate of our planet and this is by far the sharpest. It is logically constructed and lushly produced. The visuals feel fresh, appropriate and the talking heads are culled intelligently, creating a compelling narrative that explains the reasoning for our current predicaments while maintaining a refreshing optimism via tangible solutions or, at the very least, signposts guiding us to a (better) tomorrow.

I was offered an opportunity to pose questions to the co-director of SURVIVING PROGRESS. Below, Harold Crooks — whose documentary film credits include THE CORPORATION, THE WORLD IS WATCHING and BHOPAL: THE SEARCH FOR JUSTICE — praises the good fortune of campus fires, razes the notion of playing God and weighs the needs of the many versus the needs of the few, just like Spock did in STAR TREK II.

Enjoy The Warren Report’s exclusive e-interview with Harold Crooks below, then tell me… What do YOU think?

WARREN: Money-back guarantee? If nations were to multilaterally agree to forgive all debts, would that hit an environmental re-set button or just postpone the inevitable?  

I don’t get nervous.

I speak with stars. I speak with smarties. I speak with thousands. I don’t get nervous.

I speak with authors and artists I greatly admire — Howard Jacobson, Guillermo del Toro, William Gibson, Sir Salman Rushdie — and actors I truly adore — Jodie Foster, Gary Oldman, Tilda Swinton, David Strathairn. I don’t get nervous.

I address CIOs and CEOs and the journalists of the BBC. I don’t get nervous.

On Tuesday, I hosted two men I revere; the iconic Dr. Cornel West, whose works (Democracy Matters; Race Matters) have strongly influenced my sense of our nation’s social (dis)order, and Tavis Smiley, whom I consider the best conversationalis in the business. (Or, on my more immodest days, one of the top two. ; ) And, I must confess,  

American leaders like to proclaim that we get into wars either to bless other countries with democratic governments like our own or to protect American freedoms. Some would argue, we succeed at neither. One such naysayer, is former Marine Tim Thompson, a native of Tennessee appalled by the state’s new voter ID law. In this short film by David Earnhardt (UNCOUNTED: The New Math of American Elections), Thompson makes his case.

What do YOU think?

* For another take on grassroots politics, revisit filmmaker Stephen Gyllenhaal‘s appearance at The High Bar during Season 1.

* For more insights from documentarian and voting rights advocate David Earnhardt, please watch Part 1 and Part 2 of this Film Rap session, courtesy of The Warren Report.