The internet is a mixed bag, to be sure, but sometimes it can make the world a smaller, warmer place.
In his heartwarming documentary “Presenting Princess Shaw,” Israeli filmmaker Ido Haar unflinchingly follows Samantha Montgomery’s pursuit of her long-shot dream of making it as a singer.
An eldercare worker in New Orleans, Montgomery, 39, recorded YouTube videos of herself under the name Princess Shaw. Unbeknownst to her, the videos caught the attention of an obsessive, bearded Israeli named Ophir Kutiel. “Kutiman,” as he is known, has achieved a level of fame as a mashup artist who combines amateur performances he finds online into seamless, addictive songs.
Intrigued by the African American singer from Louisiana, the kibbutznik in Israel began to work with her.
“This story couldn’t happen 15, 20 years ago,” Haar says in a phone interview. “It’s quite amazing that two people, or many people, in different places around the world can meet and create together. It brings a lot of optimism, I think.”
“Presenting Princess Shaw,” which screened recently in the San Francisco International Film Festival (and included a guest appearance by Montgomery), opens Friday, June 3 for a scheduled two-week run at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, a relatively new venue in San Francisco’s Mission District.
“I’ve know Kutiman for many years, and for many years I wanted to do something inspired by his work,” the 42-year-old filmmaker says.
Kutiman, however, ends up being only a minor character in the film. We occasionally glimpse him at his home in Tze’elim (in southern Israel, not far from Gaza), clicking away at his desktop computer, thoughtfully smoking a cigarette, or in a recording studio.
Undeniably talented, Kutiman is an intriguing figure but too reserved and reclusive to carry a film. No one can say that about Montgomery.
“I was very inspired by her music when Kutiman showed me the song ‘Give It Up’ he was working on,” Haar recalls. “I saw her YouTube channel and I really loved the directness and honesty, and how much courage she has. I got in touch with her and she was willing to join in this journey of this film.”
Haar conceived of the film as a trot around the globe to visit several musicians who appear in Kutiman’s work, but decided instead to focus exclusively on Montgomery. He didn’t clue her in about Kutiman, however.
“I told her that I’m doing this film about musicians that upload their work on YouTube,” Haar says.
Consequently, the audience knows more than Princess Shaw, and we take singular pleasure in the moment when she learns that “Give It Up” has gone viral.
Haar’s previous documentaries include “9 Star Hotel,” a wrenching portrait of Palestinian construction workers dodging Israeli authorities in order to reach their jobs. The film aired as part of the PBS “POV” series in 2008.
“I did political films that were very much relevant to Israeli society, but this film is very different and much more universal,” Haar says.
He shot “Presenting Princess Shaw” himself, which gives the film a casualness and intimacy well suited to Montgomery’s hard-knocks struggle. Working in the United States wasn’t a big shock for Haar, who has had residencies on both coasts, including a 2011 stint as a San Francisco Film Society artist in residence.
“Presenting Princess Shaw” climaxes with what Haar calls “a very beautiful moment in Tel Aviv,” but is it a crowd-pleasing ending or not? Haar leaves us wondering.
“Life is not always as we want it,” he says. “It was important to me not to finish with that kind of feeling. There is a success, but it’s much more complicated.”
Indeed, more chapters remain to be written. When Princess Shaw returned to Israel for the film’s theatrical release, she and Kutiman recorded an album of original songs. Stay tuned.
“Presenting Princess Shaw” opens Friday, June 3 at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in San Francisco (80 minutes, in English, unrated)