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110 MINUTES | KENDALL SQUARE If Gauguin could find inspiration in Tahiti, why not indie-film maven John Pierson in Fiji? After a career spent establishing such filmmakers as Spike Lee and Kevin Smith, writing a book about it (Spike, Mike, Slackers & Dykes), and hosting a TV show (Split Screen), Pierson took his wife, Janet, and their two teenage kids to Taveuni for a year, during which time he ran the local cinema and offered free showings of such non-indie movies as Bringing Down the House and Jackass. He also took along documentarian Steve James (Hoop Dreams) to film the final month of their stay. It unfolds like a literate reality TV show, the crises including 16-year-old Georgia’s rebelliousness, the disapproval of the local Catholic church, and a robbery. What is learned? Not so much how cultures impinge on each other as how cinema shapes our lives. ("You’re playing to the camera," notes Janet to Georgia.) "Indie films are boring," says 13-year-old Wyatt, the voice of reason. Maybe he’d make an exception for this one.
BY PETER KEOUGH
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