American Selfie: One Nation Shoots Itself

American Selfie: One Nation Shoots Itself, is a 2020 American documentary film directed and produced by Alexandra Pelosi. This sagacious and timely documentary offers a compelling perspective on the ‘selfie’ culture that is prevalent in the United States, as well as its profound influence on society.

The film plots an experiential journey across the country by the director, Alexandra Pelosi, capturing rolls of selfie footage, painting a raw, uncensored, and thought-provoking portrait of America amidst the tumultuous climate of current social and political events. Featuring Drag Queen star Manila Luzon, these 'selfie videos’ range in subject and location, offering illuminating insights into the American mindset.

This profoundly reflective documentary kicks off in New York City during the New Year Eve's celebration. At the heart of the energetic crowd, Pelosi engages with citizens, tourists, and celebrities, capturing their hopes, dreams, and aspirations as they take farewells to 2019 and look to an unknown horizon in 2020.

American Selfie: One Nation Shoots Itself is not a conventional documentary. Rather, it's a visual diary, focusing on the rugged landscape of contemporary American psyche as well as the profound and palpable cultural changes that have defined the nation over the past year. It reflects a people coalescing and cleaving in the flicker of a cellphone flash.

Pelosi doesn’t shy away from the defining moments of the year. The film touches on several significant societal issues facing Americans such as racism, police brutality, consumerism, climate change, and the political climate during the run-up to the 2020 Presidential Election, offering a stark contrast to the jubilations from New Year’s Eve.

The filming takes place over a year, maneuvering through various significant American events and holidays. As viewers get a glance into celebrations like the SuperBowl or Valentine’s Day, Pelosi juxtaposes those with more serious, divisive events like the explosion of Black Lives Matter protests after the murder of George Floyd. In a continuous stream of selfie footage, Pelosi centers the voices of everyday Americans, revealing the dichotomy of a nation at odds with itself.

As a nuanced exploration into the zeitgeist of America, Pelosi weaves in the rise of TikTok, the obsession with selfies, and the impact of social media on society. Through these lenses, she dissects the impact of technology on human connection, vanity culture, and the unique ways in which Americans celebrate, mourn, protest, and unite.

The unadulterated, raw footage, along with Pelosi’s intimate interactions with various individuals, evokes a range of emotions in the audience. Confrontational moments provoke unease and discomfort, while earnest conversations stir compassion and sympathy. The film stays clear of judgment, instead presenting a compelling representation of American society in all its diversity, division, and unity.

The inclusion of Manila Luzon offers a deeper insight into drag culture and the LGBTQ+ voices in America. Luzon, a former contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race, is paradigmatic of a significant cultural movement, providing a vivid example of how our diverse identities shape our understanding and experience of the world.

American Selfie: One Nation Shoots Itself serves as a compendium of Americanness in the era of the "selfie". As Pelosi journeys across America, she captures the spirit of the nation in the shape of iPhones, cameras, and screens. The "selfie” as a phenomenon is not only the recurrent motif of the film. It is a medium, a mirror, a metaphor.

Through this documentary, Alexandra Pelosi extends an open invitation to the audience to reflect upon the nation’s core values and question the choices made by its people. As a gritty retrospection of the American cultural landscape, American Selfie: One Nation Shoots itself is an empathetic, honest, and challenging examination of the United States. It is a film that will resonate with viewers, compelling them to look at their society in a new light.