Woods Hole Film Festival 2009

Explores the life and adventures of the eccentric artist and entrepreneur Harrod Blank, a creator of spectacles such as the Camera Van-- a Dodge van with 2000 cameras attached to it – and The Flash Suit- a man’s suit festooned with hundreds of photo flash bulbs going off. The film follows Blank from his youth spent in the woods with chickens, to his current multi-faceted career as filmmaker and art-car maven extraordinaire. A tireless champion of self-expression, Blank chases dreams and attacks obstacles with a creative vigor that is refreshing to witness. The first documentary feature by Berkeley filmmaker David Silberberg, Oh My God! It’s Harrod Blank! uses footage spanning two decades to celebrate the man just as it exposes his naivete, and the particularly trying effects his extroversion has on those around him. Blank's family, friends, and girlfriends take turns criticizing, advising, and explaining a guy whose uncommon openness and resilience can tolerate such a forum, even as viewers laugh and squirm. Rounding out the film's point of view is Blank's own painful, often hilarious examination of his personal life and challenges, from his need for attention to such obsessions as encroaching baldness. Blank's spirited outlook is undeniably inspiring, and the film embodies a contagious affection for him as both bigger-than-life and so very human. 'The pressure to conform is incredible,' says Blank, 'but I don't care what other people think. The reason I'm alive is to create.' With special appearances from Harrod Blank’s filmmaking father Les Blank, revealing details of his early career.