Pete Souza was the Chief Official White House Photographer for President Reagan and President Obama. While he uses his creativity to capture the aesthetics of the Presidents and their administrations, now someone has turned the camera on him and created a documentary about his life. Dawn Porter, who recently released a documentary on Congressman John Lewis entitled John Lewis: Good Trouble, has directed a new documentary called The Way I See It-a film about Pete Souza. Porter’s work shines a spotlight on the photographer’s career and life after serving in two administrations.
Porter’s diversity as a filmmaker is on full display this year. The two documentaries share more differences than they do commonalities. The John Lewis documentation provided a detailed look at the civil rights icon and his collaboration with great leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and many others in order to bring about changes against discrimination in the 50s and 60s. The Souza documentary details the personal accounts of an artist who has been close to Presidents, their families, and administrations throughout his career. Souza is still living, and there will be more stories to share about his life than the ones chosen to be in this documentary, it is important to view this documentary as the first chapter of Souza’s story. Porter, who directed both films, believes that they are similar. Even though the central characters in each film have different occupations and goals in life, the director’s pinpointing of commonality between the two refers to her approach as a director-focus sharply on the subject and tell their story in a personable, information fashion.
After President Obama’s second term was up, Souza was no longer Chief Official White House Photographer. He went on to work on creative projects independently. One of his most popular is a photojournalism book entitled Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents, which draws a visual contrast between President Obama and President Donald Trump. Souza is a critic of President Trump and believes that photography will show viewers exactly what kind of President the United States currently has, and how he is drastically different than his predecessor.
Today Souza is viewed as an outspoken activist who speaks against the policies of President Trump. Porter believes that is something that he has in common with John Lewis; both men worked in a political environment, developed their own ideologies for America, and spoke out against anyone who was not believers in a world of equity and equality.
The Way I See It is now playing at only a few select theaters in the United States due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Porter never expected a worldwide release of the documentary, but if these were safer times the film would be available to more viewers across the United States and other territories. After its brief run at the theaters, the film will most likely be accessible on video streaming services or VOD.
Souza’s book Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents is available on Amazon in both hardcover and Kindle editions.