The Trickle Down Theory of Sorrow

“The Trickle Down Theory of Sorrow” (2002, 15 minutes) is a film that situates and incriminates the filmmaker in the web of economic and social injustices of her culture. It is an experimental, autobiographical documentary about being both the daughter of a working-class mother, and someone who has become (economically at least) middle-class and a mother herself.

“…an exceptional and original work…combines an intensely intimate perspective with a global context…as it deals with issues of domestic and industrial labor and women’s 
daily lives.”
Margarita De la Vega-Hurtado
Executive Director, The Robert Flaherty Film Seminar

“Reminiscent of some of the editing techniques of Germaine Dulac’s “Smiling Madame Beudet” and Su Friedrich’s early work, Filippo’s film goes even farther in making connections between U.S. consumption and overseas labor and asking questions about the relation of money to happiness. It is a far-reaching and riveting work.”
Yvonne Rainer
Filmmaker/Choreographer

Selected Screenings