Originally published at: In My Own Time: A Portrait of Karen Dalton - People of Con
Author: Newsroom
Executive Produced by Wim Wenders
Produced by Traci Carlson and Richard Peete
Co-Produced by Abby Horton, Conall Jones and Elliott Coley
Cinematography by Alex Galitano, Sam Wootton, Kevin Phillips, Joe Anderson, Gabe Elder and Ryan Dickie
Music by Julia Holter
Synopsis | IN MY OWN TIME explores Karen’s early days in Oklahoma where she experienced the harsh realities of growing up during the Great Depression and follows her through more than two decades at the margins of popular music. With two ex-husbands and two children by the time she was eighteen, she rejected the life of a housewife and set off for New York City. Constantly struggling to find her audience yet too close to her own music to compromise, Karen’s negotiations with fortune and fame were complex, but one thing is clear, she lived the music. While Karen projected a tough exterior, as a musician she was fragile and rife with insecurity. Our film focuses on Karen’s difficulties in pursuing success while trying to maintain a pure relationship with the creative process. Through stories from her closest friends, family and collaborators, combined with Karen’s rarely seen personal journals and poetry. We dive deep into the existential struggles she faced, and that ultimately led to her drug use and an untimely death due to AIDs related illness.