TV Junkie

Starting at an early age, Rick Kirkham wanted to shine on TV at all costs. When he was 14, he bought a video camera, which in the course of time became his loyal companion, his faithful confidant and his omnipresent witness. Meanwhile, Kirkham actually managed to secure a job as an on-air daredevil for the American entertainment news show Inside Edition. We see him buy a spacious house, start a family and work on developing his dream career. But beneath the glamour, recorded mercilessly in his personal video diaries, we see that Kirkham has become addicted to drugs and alcohol. He gradually loses every bit of control over his life, and the camera captures it all, because Kirkham cannot live without being seen. From 3,000 hours of raw footage, Michael Cain and Matt Radecki edited the downfall of a man obsessed with fame, technology and himself. Interlaced with footage of Kirkham's professional TV appearances, they managed to distil a well-rounded docudrama from the available material, artfully using contrasty parallel edits and suggestive jump cuts. Kirkham is so skilled at filming himself, always knowing how to frame the perfect shot, that we can only assume he is more comfortable in front of the camera than in real life. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)