Norman Mailer at First Light

Authors

Wild 90, direct cinema, improvised performance, documentary fiction, independent filmmaking

A filmmaker for over five decades, D.A. Pennebaker shares some of his early experiences with Norman Mailer.

D. A. Pennebaker

D. A. Pennebaker is an American documentary filmmaker specializing in popular music and often-controversial political topics. He has directed nearly forty films, ranging from Don’t Look Back (1967) and Monterey Pop (1968), two iconic films of the Woodstock Nation, to The War Room (1993) and The Return of the War Room (2008), dual inquiries into the political dynamics and social change surrounding the Clinton era. Pennebaker pioneered the use of handheld cameras in documentary film, and transformed the resulting wayward images into evocative cultural commentary. He has worked with artists such as Bob Dylan, Little Richard, David Bowie, and John Lennon, and routinely moves from the director’s chair to serve as cinematographer, film editor, producer, and writer. 65 Revisited (2007), assembled from rare Dylan footage and concert outtakes, is available on the recent Don’t Look Back Deluxe Edition DVD.