A brief synopsis of House Devil, Street Angel, formerly Internal Exposure:

Fivel and his son Noam as an infant

In this autobiographical documentary video, Fivel Rothberg looks at his relationships with his son and father in order to address the root causes of abusive relationships and mental illness in his life and open up possibilities for change. At first, the filmmaker tries to pin the blame for his behavior and depression on a cycle of abuse, but he comes to realize through the making of the film that reality is far more complicated. Eager to be a different kind of father than his own, the filmmaker investigates his past and present situation as a parent. An intensely personal experience, House Devil, Street Angel will generate much needed dialogue about abuse, fatherhood and masculinity as multiple generations of fathers and sons pursue their own directions.

Noam at 11-years-old

A longer synopsis of House Devil, Street Angel:

House Devil, Street Angel, a short documentary video, chronicles three generations of father-son relationships in my family, with a focus on the relationship between my son and me. As the primary character, I connect the film’s main themes: abuse, depression, fatherhood, personal growth and masculinity. The themes are bound together through my search for answers about the past, in how I parent my son, and my ongoing pursuit to embody a different type of masculinity than my father.  The video also observes what it is like to be a single father in a society where mobility allows for parents to split up, yet remain connected across a large geographical divide seeing that I live in Brooklyn and my son’s mother lives in rural Pennsylvania.

Fivel at nineteen-years-old with Tamara

When I became a father at the age of twenty, I grappled with my identity as a man. I was unsure of how to be a responsible parent or a good partner to my son’s mother, Tamara. It was only after years of therapy and self-discovery that I could look back and name my actions towards Tamara as abusive. However, I also recognize that I had not learned how to be abusive on my own.

My childhood and parenting experiences motivated me to create a documentary project exploring the legacy of abuse and mental illness in my family. The central characters in House Devil, Street Angel embody three distinct, yet evolving, masculine frameworks. The eldest, my father, was born in 1946 and grew up during a time of intense societal transformation. However, my father’s value system seems to reflect that of the 1950s wherein men were not expected to participate in child rearing. Our conflict fuels my (and my character’s) decision to delve into the past and work toward change in the present. In addition to illustrating our difficult relationship, I will show how my dad is now making efforts to be an involved grandfather.

Noam and his baby brother, Iggy

The youngest man featured in the documentary is my son, Noam. At the beginning of the film he is seated at a breakfast table with me, refusing to eat his cereal. I then playfully get him to take the spoon away from me and eat. Viewers are then directed to a scene eight years later where he refuses to go out to the woods with me for a walk.  It then cuts to Noam enjoying himself, trying to skip stones across a creek. The scene introduces both the underlying Oedipal conflict and caring present throughout the film between fathers and sons. Over the course of the film Noam grows from a temperamental child to a pre-teen who is both sensitive and adventurous. Viewers watch Noam lovingly emote over his baby brother in once scene and do skateboarding tricks in the next. He seems to embody his own form of masculinity.

Fivel as a teenager

My character’s development should come across as a less linear narrative. The film first builds up the relationship between Noam and me, and then shifts modes into revealing the story behind my fatherhood. After describing the childhood conflict between my father and me, the film introduces a search for the root causes of abuse and depression in my family. I directly speak out about my past abuse toward Tamara, my depression and my desire to change. The very act of addressing underlying emotional issues, including both abuse and the strain of single fatherhood, positions my character as a representative of a different kind of man – one who is far more eager and willing to be open about sensitive topics.

Fivel's paternal grandparents, Buff and Bob, with his dad

The primary documentation in House Devil, Street Angel comes from a combination of personal archival material, including home movies and photographs, and vérité scenes of Noam, my family and me. In addition, I recorded interviews with primary figures in my family, including Noam’s mother, my father Peter, his brother John and my mother Sheryl. The film’s visual and narrative approach are inspired by Doug Block’s 51 Birch Street and The Kids Grow Up, and Spencer Nakasako’s Kelly Loves Tony.

This project began as my MFA thesis at Hunter College, and now that I have graduated I would like to take it to the next level. It is currently in post-production, where I will work to increase the post-production quality and story structure. I will also work on developing outreach, distribution, web and social media plans along with lesson plans and a discussion guide as part of a screening toolkit.