Joan Baez: Filming with a Folk Music Icon

The people who are in your life say so much about you. Janis Ian has a magnificent array of friends and fans. Joan Baez is one of them. That’s why I interviewed Joan for for my documentary “Janis Ian: Breaking Silence.” Joan Baez clearly loves Janis and she was Janis’s hero when Janis was coming of age as an artist. When Janis was a teenager and Joan a young woman, the two artists met backstage at a folk music festival and hit it off. I recently watched Joan Baez’s new documentary “Joan Baez: I Am Noise.” It’s a touching work that shares an intimate view into Joan Baez’s psyche. (Joan Baez loves to walk barefoot and you get to see her barefoot a lot in her documentary. I did not know this when we filmed with her, yet somehow found myself barefoot during the shoot. Something I never do. Funny coincidence.) Joan is incredibly candid and shares compelling insights about Janis and her music. She’s an inspiration to Janis and an important contributor to “Janis Ian: Breaking Silence.” I’m grateful for her participation.