Out of sight

“I think people are ready for a story about a blind woman who is raising a family, having a career, or both. What I wonder is if they’re ready for a blind woman who’s in her thirties living with a man who’s in his sixties, in a relationship that deals with alcohol and infidelity. In other words, I don’t know if America is ready for a blind girl who isn’t a goody two-shoes”.Blunt and ballsy, Diane Staria, the thirty-four year old blind woman who is the star of the new David Sutherland documentary OUT OF SIGHT, is no goody two-shoes. But she is strong, independent and complex woman who breaks horses, hearts and stereotypes. Her story is a complicated one –part western romance, part soap opera, and part the tale of a thoroughly modern single woman struggling to win financial independence.“I wouldn’t know how to describe this film”, says Sutherland. “If anything, I’d say it’s a soap-umentary”. A documentary filmmaker known for taking chances with his craft, Sutherland is once again breaking new ground with this film. In a series of sequences that document Diane’s recollections of her past with Herb, the flashbacks feature Diane and Herb playing themselves –an unusual technique in keeping with Sutherland’s interest in exploring new avenues of storytelling.