The acclaimed and award-winning filmmaker Jennifer Steinman Sternin discusses her new documentary Gramma and Ginga: The Movie, playing the DOXA: Documentary Film Festival (06-16 May 2021), with Joseph Planta

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.

I can’t remember where it was I first saw the Gramma and Ginga videos. It was either on Facebook or YouTube. It was at least two or three years ago. I was actually late to the party, because they’d been online for a couple of years before that. They were these videos of a 104 year old woman, Gramma, and her 99 year old sister, Ginga. They were posted by Gramma’s grandchildren, Frank “Allen” and Sheila “Lynn.” They were of the two sisters bickering over the mundane things of life. There were laughs; always love. It was amusing, I guess seeing two old ladies cuss, calling each other “asshole” or “son of a bitch.” Genevieve Musci is Gramma’s real name, and Arlena Bashnett is Ginga. They were born, where they have lived for over one hundred years, in Clarksburg, West Virginia after their Italian parents immigrated just before they were all born. These comedic videos, these slices of later life, were often entertaining, providing insight as to what life is like for old people, and the meaning of family. They captured the affection of hundreds of thousands of viewers around the world, including Jimmy Kimmel and Steve Harvey, who each had the ladies on their shows. And thousands of fans would send the ladies cash and gifts on their birthdays and holidays. The filmmaker Jennifer Steinman Sternin, who joins me now, has made a documentary, called aptly enough, Gramma and Ginga: The Movie. It is a charming look at these two people who have meant a great deal to online audiences these last five or six years, even though the women themselves might not know how the internet works. Sadly, Mrs. Musci died Christmas Day 2020 at the age of 106. The film screens as part of this year’s DOXA: Documentary Film Festival, which starts this Thursday, 06 May 2021 (running until 16 May 2021). As most of the films on this year’s program will be screening online, the film is available to audiences across Canada. Visit www.doxafestival.ca for tickets and information. Jennifer Steinman Sternin is an award-winning director, producer, and editor in film and television. Her documentary film credits include Time for Ilhan, a movie on the American congresswoman Ilhan Omar; Desert Runners, and Motherland. She is currently in the midst of a documentary on Sheila E. Her Twitter handle is @jenfilm. She joined me from San Francisco, California last week. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Jennifer Steinman Sternin; Ms. Steinman Sternin, good morning.

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