| Big
Mama
Winner of an Oscar in the Documentary Short category, Big Mama depicts this devoted grandmother's struggle to raise her orphaned grandson under the watchful eye of a complex and difficult social welfare system. Big Mama follows 18 months in the lives of Viola Dees, an African American grandmother and Walter, her grandson, as she tries to raise him alone in South Central Los Angeles. Dees had taken care of her grandson Walter since his father (Viola's son) died when Walter was four years old. Walter appears in the documentary as bright and sweetly loving to his grandmother, but also profoundly troubled, affected by his mother's prenatal drug intake. In the documentary, Walter is age nine, and Dees is shown turning 90. The film focuses on the continuous battle against age discrimination faced by Dees and many like her. While contending with her own declining health, and a bureaucratic and legal system that continually threatens to force them apart, Dees fights the misconception that age supersedes one's ability to love and care for a child. Big Mama candidly chronicles the family when life deals them several blows. Dees suffers a heart attack, provoking hostile behavior from Walter who burns their house down when he sets a magazine ablaze in his room. When Walter is admitted to a psychiatric hospital, the doctors determine that Dees is no longer able to handle her grandson, and will not release him to her until she agrees to place him in long-term residential care. After a challenging search, Walter is accepted at an appropriate facility and thrives during his year there. However, when treatment is completed, social workers determine that Dees is too frail to care for him, and Walter is returned to the foster care system. Sadly, Viola Dees died at age 91. Weeks later, the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services sought an eleventh-hour block of the film's release, citing issues of Walter's privacy. The case was ultimately dismissed and the documentary went on to win an Academy Award. The strong connection
and boundless affection between these loved ones is captured in a compelling
and compassionate manner in this portrait in an ever-increasing phenomenon
of a generation of children raised by their grandparents.  |
Academy Award Winner "Big Mama is a powerful film that brings to life the
spirit and moral force of the millions of grandparents and other kin
raising so many of our nation's children." "The documentary serves as a strong plea for reform and negotiation
between grandparents who courageously rear their orphaned grandchildren
and the state which questions their ability to do so." "There is no doubt that Big Mama deserves the Oscar
it won." "A great teaching
tool covering issues that go across the lifespan. Terrific!" "Viewers are left sharing Ms. Dees's hope that Walter will remember
what she taught him."
Producer/Director: Tracy
Seretean
|
"When,
exactly, are you too old to love your own grandchild?" asks Viola Dees.
