Directed by Miri Navasky, Maeve O’Boyle, and Karen O’Connor, "I Am a Noise" proved to be an embarrassment of riches for the filmmakers. With unprecedented access to Baez’s storage unit, which was chockful of journals, drawings, home videos and photographs dating back to the earliest decades of the musician’s life, the directors were confronted with the unusual issue of having too much material at their disposal. As Baez explained to me during a recent interview, “It’s a director’s dream and a nightmare. There was so much stuff,” adding that “my mom and I kept everything.”
And Baez means everything. Incredibly, the treasure trove of media even included recordings of Baez’s therapy sessions, which enabled her to experience “the bone-shattering task of remembering.” In this fashion, "I Am a Noise" makes for one of the most intimate and revealing documentaries of its kind. In one sense, it chronicles Baez’s preparations for her final tour; yet at the same time, the film underscores the singer-songwriter’s lifelong search for the truth about the overarching depression that has marked her life.
