Support Independent Arts Journalism As an independent publication, we rely on readers like you to fund our journalism and keep our reporting and criticism free and accessible to all. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider becoming a member today. Yance Ford has grappled with issues of systemic racism in his documentaries, such as the Oscar-nominated Strong Island .
As the filmmaker took in the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd, he was struck by the same question that animated much public discourse that summer: “What, exactly, do the police exist to do?” Four years later, that line of questioning has led to Power, his documentary about the ideological evolution of policing as an institution in the United States. The film, which was released on Netflix on May 17, condenses a great deal of history and thought into an accessible 90 minutes, with Ford’s essayistic narration guiding the story. Ford joined me over Zoom to discuss the documentary, as well as image-making and reshaping, and coming across character actors in the least expected places.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Hyperallergic: Why did you decide to use an essayistic format for this film? Yance Ford: For Power , I wanted to make an essay about the power of police, and knowing the history of documentary, I wanted to make something that would resonate with people, that would feel like the conversation between me and the aud.
