Short Doc - Molossia:Nation in the Desert

Kevin Wells

Kevin Wells

Well-known member
Hey everyone. I just filmed this project two weeks ago and have my first cut. Molossia: Nation in the Desert is a short documentary revealing the inner workings of the Republic of Molossia, a 1.3 acre micronation located within the state of Nevada, through the eyes of His Excellency Kevin Baugh.

I'm looking for feedback on the piece. I had to rush edit this one to have it ready (it's a first year MFA practicum), so changes can certainly be made for future use. I'm interested in hearing what's working, what isn't, etc...Thanks!

 
A few random thoughts:

I don't like the first song in the piece at all.

I'd like to see a little bit, even if it's just one sentence, about what a "micronation" is and whether there's any kind of legal implications. Presumably, the US doesn't recognize Mollosia, but do they actively oppose it? Isn't this sort of like being a traitor? It was enough that after watching the video, i looked up micronation on wikipedia. Very informative, but that's information that could also have come from your video.

I'd also like to see a bit more from the family (read:anything). How do they feel about all this? That main dude is interesting but almost immediately I was wondering "Is his wife cool with this? are his kids on board? do they get teased at school?" Obviously, he may not be excited about the idea of you bringing any kind of tension into the piece, and they may not want to talk on camera, but I did have to wonder what was going on in their minds, and I would have rather seen some of that than, say, the "tour" of the gift shop.
 
Another thought; reading the wikipedia page on molossia, it seems they're at war with east germany. That seems worth mentioning...
 
Thanks for the response, and apologies for taking so long to respond.

First off, I should have mentioned in the earlier post that the film had to be around 7 minutes (school requirement). With that in mind, I set out to make a film that would embody the parody of the website (and concept in general). Since I have a short time limit, I knew I couldn't fit in anywhere near the amount of info that would be relevant (such as the war with east germany, taxes, etc). It is not the first film on Molossia, and at least one of the films took more of your suggested approach. It goes into micronational legality, etc, and is more of a traditional interview and b-roll piece. So, I knew from the start I would take a different approach because, a) it's already been done, and b) the legal aspects or "family tension" isn't what fascinates me.

My goal was to make a short film that would capture the spirit of Molossia, and show (in almost a "mockumentary-esque style) what it's like to run a micronation. I think your criticisms are certainly valid. For some people, my approach works. For others, it comes across as hollow. To me, it's a good thing if you watch the film and then go to their site or wikipedia page to get more information. It is meant to spark interest, not tell the whole history or everything about the country.

Thanks again for your comments. Other feedback welcomed as well!
 
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