Film on Athens sculptor snags national awards

The locally produced documentary, "œDavid Hostetler: The Last Dance," has received two national awards for excellence in the past month.

 

The film chronicles the life and career of Ohio University professor emeritus David Hostetler, presenting a portrait of the artist in his 80s and illuminating the process of creation of his latest work, "œThe Last Dance."

 

In late April, the film won awards at the Broadcast Education Association's Festival of Media Arts in Las Vegas, including the BEA Best of Festival King Foundation Award. Producer Keith Newman said the filmmakers had entered the film into the quadruple-tiered jury competition.

"What they're looking for is the best student and faculty work to be submitted," Newman said. "And then it goes through this incredibly rigorous judging process."

Various categories in the competition include, news, audio, scriptwriting and narrative. Newman said they entered their film into the documentary category.

"Then, from the winners of each category, they pick what they think is the best of the best, and that's what we nailed," Newman said. "It's one thing to win a category on a national level, but to win the whole shooting match is pretty darn spectacular."

The film also took an award at the national Appalachian Film Festival.

Newman said that in that festival, too, the competition was stiff. He said he had been notified about a month ago that they would win first or second, and after going to the Web site of the film they were competing against, he was sure they couldn't beat it.

"This was a really major film, a heart-wrenching tale about coal mining in Appalachia," Newman said. "And we were kidding around about how second place is still fine. And then it turns out that we win the thing anyway, which still boggles my mind."

Hostetler has been an artist for more than 60 years, working mainly in bronze sculpting and wood carving, and focusing on the female form.

Newman has said Hostetler is one of the best, if not the best American sculptor. The documentary focuses more on Hostetler the person, and his wife Susan Crehan Hostetler, than Hostetler the artist. Both Newman and Hostetler have referred to the film as a "memoir."

The film is a major documentary about Hostetler, covering nearly his entire life and career. It also includes film footage from "Art Park," a counter-culture experiment that Hostetler was instrumental in establishing in Athens (near "Bong Hill" across the river from the Mill Street athletic fields) in the late '60s and early '70s.

Hostetler became an artist after being wounded in World War II and receiving art supplies in the hospital from the Red Cross. Hostetler received his degree from Indiana University at Bloomington after a letter from his father intending to get him into engineering at Purdue was sent to IU instead. It was two years before Hostetler's father knew his son was in art school.

More than 25 museums and galleries showcase Hostetler's works, including the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown. His piece "The Duo" resides in a park at Trump International Hotel & Tower in New York City.

Newman praised the work of director Casey Hayward, who he said did all of the visuals, shooting, cinematography, lighting and editing.

"I had this weird idea for this story that I wanted to tell, and Casey was sort of my eyes and ears for pulling this together," Newman said. "It was a total partnership."

Newman said this was his third attempt at doing a film about Hostetler. He pointed out that with many artists, they have both a public persona and a private persona.

"It was my idea, since I knew Dave really well, that it would be really interesting, since he's in his 80s, to have him reflect back on his entire life and career, without any bullshit," Newman said. "You know, what is this really all about? What does it take to make great art?"

Newman said that the film became a very honest story, as they were able to chip away at that veneer and discover who Hostetler really is and what he's all about.

"So interestingly enough, the piece isn't about his art," Newman said. "Everybody from the BBC to NBC to every network has done stories on Dave. Every newspaper has done stories on Dave... Every one of those interviews is David the character. This is the film where you see his whole life for real. And it's a really interesting story about what it takes to make great art, and what you have to give up to make great art."

The documentary, which has a 68-minute running time, was produced by Too Much Media, LLC. Support for the film came from private donors, and production assistance was obtained from many OU departments, including the School of Media Arts and Studies, the School of Visual Communication, the School of Film, and the history and dance departments.

Hostetler and his wife live outside of Athens on a 40-acre farm. In the summer months they live in Nantucket, Mass. where the couple owns a gallery.

Newman said that DVDs of the documentary are available uptown at Little Professor Bookstore, as well as on Hostetler's Web site.