Sarasota Film Fest 2022 Exclusive: Director Barry Avrich Talks ‘Oscar Peterson: Black + White’
Among the films playing at the Sarasota Film Festival (April 1-10) is director Barry Avrich’s documentary ‘Oscar Peterson: Black + White,’ which dives into Peterson’s life as jazz royalty. The film focuses on the racism he was forced to endure throughout his career and his commitment to mentoring younger players.
Included in the film are interviews with several musicians such as Billy Joel, Jon Batiste, Herbie Hancock, Ramsey Lewis, Branford Marsalis, Quincy Jones, Jackie Richardson, and Measha Brueggergosman.
Avrich is a well-known documentary filmmaker whose film credits include Show Stopper: The Theatrical Life of Garth Drabinsky, Filthy Gorgeous: The Bob Guccione Story, Prosecuting Evil: The Extraordinary World of Ben Ferencz, and David Foster: Off the Record.
Blackfilmandtv.com caught up with Avrich at the festival as he spoke about the making of this extraordinary film.
What was the inspiration in making this documentary?
Barry Avrich: I grew up in Montreal where Oscar Peterson came from. I love the jazz scene. It was really the first live musical performance I ever saw in Montreal. My mother went it took me to see him. I grew up with his albums and his music. I just really felt that when you think about jazz in the world, you need to think about Oscar Peterson. If there's a Mount Rushmore of jazz, then Oscar needs to be part of it.
How long did it take you to do the research?
Barry Avrich: Mark Selby, my producer, did all the research on this and we travelled around the world and found archives in Denmark, Japan, Sweden, and it was just incredible. So it took about six or seven months of that and then filming on that end of it. We shot this film during COVID so that was tough. But the musicians in the film as well as Herbie Hancock and Quincy Jones, Ramsay Lewis and John Batista and Branford Marsalis, they were all available because nobody was touring. So that certainly helped get the film made.
How challenging was the editing part as far as what to leave in and what to leave out?
Barry Avrich: It was incredibly difficult because it's such a long life and incredible career. I let his music dictate it and his interviews, I wanted this to be the the story of Oscar Peterson through Oscar Peterson's eyes, not mine. So that's why we specifically constructed interviews from his entire life, because he was so open to being interviewed everywhere, in every cycle of his life from from being a teenager to to the end. And so it's really his story.
What do you want people to get out of from seeing this documentary?
Barry Avrich: Keep jazz alive and don't forget Oscar Peterson. People instantly think of Miles Davis and John Coltrane and some of the greats. I just want to make sure that people never forget to ask for Peterson is, was, and lives forever.
Whenever you do a documentary and there’s research to be done, does it determine what subject you will focus?
Barry Avrich: I never think about that. I mean, if I want to make a film, generally, my films get made and I made a lot of them. Once I decide that there's an audience for it, then I get going on it on that end of it. Generally, the end date that you're talking about is when I need to deliver it, whether it's at a premiere of a film festival or network. So there always is a delivery date. I'm pretty so well researched. And even before we go into the editing room, I have a sense of what the arc of the story is. And in this film, it's, I call it a docu-concert, because there's so much music in it. And like ‘Standing in the Shadows of Motown,’ I wanted the audience to have these moments to breathe and listen to the music. So we have a lot of other musicians playing his music.
What's next for you?
Barry Avrich: A lot of films in development right now and so I'm excited about that. We've got a new film coming out called The Talented Mrs. Rosenberg, which is kind of a Tinder Swindler con movie. So excited about that. But the good thing about documentaries is you just walk down the street and there's an idea. I love it.
Do you have a home already for Oscar Peterson or is it still making the festival circuit run?
Barry Avrich: It’s doing the festival circuit internationally, and it's just started playing on Hulu.