Politics in LRF films

[alextheman]

Hello I’m curious what people think of mentioning politics in your LRF film. I’ve mentioned politics briefly in some of my movies but have some stories where politics is kind of at the forefront more.
On one hand politics can be a hinderance for audiences to get into the film but on the other hand politics and the news are subjects of conversation in America especially now and art reflects reality.

[John Malone]

Personally, I try to avoid politics if I can because I don't like the idea of turning away 50% of a potential audience. That said, I don't think films about politics have to be political, if that makes sense. As Lon Charles' Stained showed, one can make a movie featuring major political figures without getting into political ideology by simply treating characters as real human beings rather than politicians or mere representations of their belief. When a filmmaker or writer lets their own particular politics become too prevalent in the film, I find it very distracting.