1. Beasts of the
Southern Wild
directed by Benh Zeitlin
2012 (Oscar-nominated for best picture)
Faced with both her hot-tempered
father's fading health and melting ice-
caps that flood her ramshackle bayou
community and unleash ancient
aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy must
learn the ways of courage and love.

2. Beasts of the Southern Wild
nominated for four Academy Awards at the
85th Academy Awards, in the categories
Best Picture,
Best Director (Benh Zeitlin),
Best Adapted Screenplay (Lucy Alibar, Benh Zeitlin)
Best Actress (Quvenzhané Wallis)
Original Music by Dan Romer and Benh Zeitlin
Cinematography by Ben Richardson
Film Editing by Crockett Doob and Affonso Gonçalves
Production Design by Alex DiGerlando
Based on one act play, Juicy and Delicious
by Lucy Alibar (and adapted by her and the director for film)

3. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Shot on super 16mm film
1.85:1 aspect ratio
93 minutes
Estimated budget: $1.8 million
Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival where it won the
Grand Jury award for Dramatic Feature. Then played at Cannes,
Los Angeles Film Festival, and Seattle Int.’l Film Festival
Opened in 4 theatres, July 1, 2012 (opening weekend $170,000)
Rated PG-13 for thematic material including child imperilment,
some disturbing images, language and brief sensuality.

4. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Critical response to the film . . .
The film has received largely positive critical reviews. . . .Rotten Tomatoes
reports that the film has received a "Fresh" rating of 86% from 141
reviews (122 positive, 19 negative), with the consensus: Beasts of the
Southern Wild is a fantastical, emotionally powerful journey and a strong
case of filmmaking that values imagination over money.” . . . Roger Ebert
called the film a "remarkable creation... Sometimes miraculous films come
into being, made by people you've never heard of, starring unknown faces,
blindsiding you with creative genius. Beasts of the Southern Wild is one of
the year's best films."
. . . . however . . .

5. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Conversely, Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune said that Beasts was
"the most divisive film of 2012", opining that "The filmmaker comes from
a perspective of great empathy and considerable skill. But he's a pile
driver as a dramatist. The film's screw-tightening methods are so
overbearing, the story, the characters, the little girl's plight have to
struggle to breathe or develop anything like an inner life." Author and
activist [and Professor at BereaCollege] bell hooks wrote a negative
review of the film, saying "the vibrancy in this film is generated by a crude
pornography of violence" and calling Hushpuppy "a miniature version of
the ‘strong black female matriarch,’ racist and sexist representations have
depicted from slavery on into the present day."

6. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Author, professor, and activist bell hooks goes on to say:
Hushpuppy’s father is the most vocal advocate of a lawless reckless
independence. Wink is the representative hard badass black man. His
character is a composite of all the racist/sexist hateful stereotypes that
mass media projects about black masculinity. In his study of black
masculinity From Jim Crow to Jay Z, Miles White . . . explains that black
male bodies are consistently used in cinema to represent the “brute who
is immune to physical and emotional pain.” Even though he is sick and
dying from an unnamed disease that causes him to cough and spit blood
he remains the ruthless leader of the pack; his hard badness made
evident in matter large and small (whether orchestrating the bombing of
the levy or in violent attacks on his little daughter).

7. Beasts of the Southern Wild. . . Discussion Q
To be completed in class after the small group discussion. Worth 5 points for signing and
turning in and up to another 5 points for quality of answer for each group member.
Write a paragraph response for the following questions. Length of answer is not as important
as the thoroughness, quality, and insightfulness of what is written.
1) Looking at the subtext – implicit meanings in the film (which may be
ideological or symptomatic, or they may be universal) – what do you
think the aurochs were symbolic of? Explain why in one or two
sentences. (the aurochs were the large pre-historic creatures breaking out of the ice
and heading toward Hushpuppy)
2) We talked about what makes a film fit into the model of Classic
Hollywood Cinema. This film does not fit this model. In what ways does it
challenge this model the most, in your groups opinion? Explain in two or
three sentences.

8. Classic Hollywood Cinema
Defined by many, but the scholars Bordwell, Staiger & Thompson give the following:
Set in the present, external world (not this era, necessarily) and seen from
outside the action
Film focuses on one or a few distinct individuals
Main characters have a goal or a few goals
Main characters confront antagonists or series of problems
• Emphasis on clear cause & effects of actions – clear and unambiguous
The film has closure – often characters reach their goals (happy ending)
Film uses unobtrusive filmmaking techniques