My Father, the Genius

2002 Documentary
73%

When long-estranged father, dreamer and visionary architect, Glen Small bequeaths his daughter the task of writing his biography, she answers instead with an irreverent film about his precarious career and rocky private life - while he is still alive. Her father has always called himself a genius; Lucia Small is torn. On the one hand she fancies the idea that her dad might be amongst the undiscovered greats, but she also wonders if maybe he isn't suffering from a giant ego. "My Father, The Genius" explores the precarious framework on which a career and family are built. How does a man dedicate his entire life to "saving the world through architecture," yet miss some basics at home? How does one balance creative obsession with familial obligations? And how does a filmmaker daughter balance her father's wishes with her own artistic vision?