Speaking as a person with a background similar to June Cross's--black father, white mother--I found this film incredibly fascinating. Much of the shooting gave the impression that it was low-budget, which really added to "Secret Daughter" 's overall reflexivity (the shaky camera, the admission of mistakes--e.g., the botched interview with the filmmaker's mother). I don't think this film would have been as successful if June Cross had played down her own role in her family history, and had focused solely on her mother and father's individual pasts. Since she (the filmmaker) is a "racial mixing" incarnate, her constant presence in the video was very fitting. Her use of found footage was also effective, and helped enhance the character studies of her mother and father by revealing their public personae and well as their private ones.
My favorite moments: June Cross's recount of the mother's "silent interview" in sync with the lost sound--and her interview with Jerry Lewis, which was stunning and quite telling about the kind of white-on-black thievery that happened (and continues to happen) in show business.
~ Cassie Jensen
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