NAKED STATES Documentary Competition

New York photographer Spencer Tunick spent two years crossing the country by van, asking strangers in every state to pose nude in public spaces. Beginning with his arrest at a Times Square photo shoot, NAKED STATES follows Tunick’s trek, including his run-ins with South Dakota bikers and 1,200 willing participants at a Phish concert. The resulting photos are beautiful, funny, absurd, and at times evocative of war imagery. But they are always sympathetic toward the delicate human form in its often-harsh environment.

Debut director Arlene Donnelly’s interviews with participants are the piece de resistance: She discovers that remarkably thoughtful people respond to Tunick’s call, whether in small towns or big cities, and that posing helps them clarify their sense of self-possession at a crucial moment in their lives.