''The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill'' is a 2003
documentary film directed, produced, and edited by
Judy Irving
Judy Irving is an American filmmaker. She directed the documentary ''The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill'', about writer Mark Bittner's relationship with a flock of wild parrots. The film won the Genesis Award for "Outstanding Documentary Film" ...
. It chronicles the relationship between
Mark Bittner, an unemployed musician who lives rent-free in a cabin in the
Telegraph Hill A telegraph hill is a hill or other natural elevation that is chosen as part of an optical telegraph system.
Telegraph Hill may also refer to:
England
* A high point in the Haldon Hills, Devon
* Telegraph Hill, Dorset, a hill in the Dorset Down ...
-neighborhood of
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
, and a flock of
feral parrots
A feral parrot is a parrot that has adapted to life in an ecosystem to which it is not native. The birds are often descended from pets that have escaped or been deliberately released. Many species of parrots are highly social, and like to gathe ...
that he feeds and looks after. Bittner also wrote a
memoir
A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...
about his experiences with the parrots, which shares the title of the documentary, but has the added subtitle: A Love Story...with Wings.
[
In May 2007, the documentary aired on the ]PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
series ''Independent Lens
''Independent Lens'' is a weekly television series airing on PBS featuring documentary films made by independent filmmakers. Past seasons of ''Independent Lens'' were hosted by Angela Bassett, Don Cheadle, Susan Sarandon, Edie Falco, Terrence Ho ...
''.
Summary
Much of the film focuses on the parrots and their individual personalities and relationships with one another and Bittner. The flock is composed primarily of cherry-headed conures, but there is one lonely blue-crowned conure. Some San Francisco residents share the different stories they have heard about the possible origins of the flock.
Bittner tells his story as well. He had come down to San Francisco from Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
to be a musician, but, after giving up on that dream, found himself directionless. Although he would occasionally do odd jobs, he mostly was more or less unemployed and homeless for many years, until he found some stability, thanks to a free place to stay, and purpose (and even minor celebrity), thanks to the relationship he developed with the parrots.
The later part of the film depicts Bittner's preparations to vacate his residence, which is about to undergo extensive renovations. He speaks to the city council about the parrots and finds a place to send the few birds that are unable to live with the flock, and so had been living with him. At the end, it is revealed that filmmaker, Judy Irving, and subject, Mark Bittner, began a relationship over the course of making the film.
Aftermath
As is explained in the special features included on the DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
release of the film, about a year after Bittner left Telegraph Hill, he and Irving moved back, to a house near his old one, and he reestablished his connection with the flock of parrots, which had grown some. Bittner and Irving were later married. In 2007 the city of San Francisco instituted a ban on feeding the flock. The ban was supported by Bittner.
Production
Raising funding for the film was difficult at first, as Irving had to find individual donors, but the proceeds from a fundraiser at which Bittner gave a presentation to a packed theater allowed her to start shooting the film in earnest.
The musical score for the film was the final project by Chris Michie
Chris Michie (January 12, 1948 – March 27, 2003) was an American guitarist and composer and best known for his work with Van Morrison.
Chris Michie was born in Ithaca, New York in 1948 and moved to Madison, Wisconsin, when he was a teenager. He ...
, a Bay area musician who was formerly the guitarist for Van Morrison
Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards.
As a teenager in t ...
, before his death from melanoma
Melanoma, also redundantly known as malignant melanoma, is a type of skin cancer that develops from the pigment-producing cells known as melanocytes. Melanomas typically occur in the skin, but may rarely occur in the mouth, intestines, or eye ( ...
. The film, which Michie did not live to see released, is dedicated to him.
Bittner noted that there is humor in the piece, which he believes makes it different from many other nature documentaries.
Awards
The film won the Genesis Award
The Genesis Awards are awarded annually by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) to individuals in the major news and entertainment media for producing outstanding works which raise public awareness of animal issues. Presented by the HSUS ...
for Documentary Film and was nominated for the 2005 Satellite Award
The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take place ...
for Outstanding Documentary DVD.
References
External links
The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill
site for Independent Lens
''Independent Lens'' is a weekly television series airing on PBS featuring documentary films made by independent filmmakers. Past seasons of ''Independent Lens'' were hosted by Angela Bassett, Don Cheadle, Susan Sarandon, Edie Falco, Terrence Ho ...
on PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wild Parrots Of Telegraph Hill
2003 films
2003 documentary films
Documentary films about San Francisco
Documentary films about birds
Documentary films about urban animals
Parrots
Feral parrots
Environment of the San Francisco Bay Area
Films shot in San Francisco
Films set in San Francisco
2000s English-language films