Tribeca 2011: Documentary Overview

The 10th anniversary Tribeca Film Festival begins in less than a month in New York City. The festival, founded in the shadow of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, has served as an effective launching pad for many films, both fiction and non-fiction.

While I was running NewFest, which took place in early June, it was difficult to find time to attend Tribeca, but in the last couple of years, I’ve regularly checked out their programming, largely focusing, unsurprisingly, on their documentary slate. At this point, I plan on watching as many films as I’m able to again this year, and this post runs down some of the docs I’m most anticipating which are part of the more than forty presented in the 2011 edition.

Twelve titles vie for awards in Tribeca’s World Documentary Competition, and I’m hoping to have the opportunity to catch all of them before the end of the festival. I’ve already seen and very much liked Mila Turajlic’s fascinating look at the former Yugoslavia’s history through film, CINEMA KOMUNISTO (pictured above), which I covered in in my IDFA round up here. I had some issues with Gemma Atwal’s portrait of a poor Indian running prodigy, MARATHON BOY, largely due to some repetitiveness, but it’s a welcome longitudinal doc with many twists and turns and a provocative debate at its core. Another years-in-the-making doc, Michael Collins and Marty Syjuco’s GIVE UP TOMORROW reveals the shocking corruption of the Filipino justice system. I previously profiled Lee Hirsch’s timely call to action, THE BULLY PROJECT here, as it was wrapping up its post-production.

Other competition titles I’m looking forward to include: Mona Nicoara’s (associate producer, CHILDREN UNDERGROUND) look at an attempt to integrate Roma children into Romanian schools, OUR SCHOOL (pictured); Greg Barker’s (SERGIO) Koran recitation competition doc, KORAN BY HEART; Joshua Neale’s redemptive portrait of an alcoholic, DESPICABLE DICK & RIGHTEOUS RICHARD, produced by Sandra Whipham (ENEMIES OF THE PEOPLE); and I’m curious about Gabriella Bier’s Israeli/Palestinian Romeo & Juliet doc, LOVE DURING WARTIME, which involves members of the production team behind the masterful recent Sundance alum, THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975.

A number of documentaries figure in the festival’s Galas and Special Events sections.Of these, despite my general wariness about sports docs, I’m nevertheless curious about the prolific Alex Gibney’s CATCHING HELL, about the infamous 2003 incident in which a Chicago Cubs fan was blamed for the long-suffering team’s loss of the National League pennant. Another special screening on my list comes care of the Doha Tribeca Film Festival: Mahmoud Kaabour’s 2010 Best Doc Winner, GRANDMA, A THOUSAND TIMES (pictured), a portrait of the filmmaker’s 83-year-old matriarchal family head. Also having a special screening is Sundance alum SING YOUR SONG, which I profiled here. The film’s subject, Harry Belafonte, will participate in a Q&A with Tavis Smiley after the screening.

Sixteen non-fiction projects are featured in the festival’s Spotlight category of anticipated new releases. Among these, I’ve already written about fellow Sundance alum BEATS, RHYMES & LIFE here, Paul Liebrandt portrait A MATTER OF TASTE out of SXSW here, and Nancy Buirski’s THE LOVING STORY (pictured) while it was fundraising here.

Public figures get their chance to shine in Spotlight as well: Dori Berinstein’s CAROL CHANNING: LARGER THAN LIFE lovingly captures the effervescence of the beloved nonagenarian performer and the story of her first love; Ozzy Osbourne is profiled in Mike Fleiss and Mike Piscitelli’s GOD BLESS OZZY OSBOURNE; legendary nightlife impresario Peter Gatien is the subject of Billy Corben (COCAINE COWBOYS, SQUARE GROUPER)’s LIMELIGHT (pictured); Eric Drath tells the story of trailblazing transsexual tennis player Renée Richards in RENÉE; while the inimitable Yves Saint Laurent gets a posthumous portrait in Pierre Thoretton’s L’AMOUR FOU.

Rounding out Spotlight titles on my radar are two new titles from Sundance alums: Chris Paine revisits the subject of his 2006 Sundance doc, WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR? with THE REVENGE OF THE ELECTRIC CAR (pictured), while Whitney Dow, the co-director of 2002 Sundance doc TWO TOWNS OF JASPER, brings to Tribeca her portrait of a Haitian big band in WHEN THE DRUM IS BEATING.

Finally, nine docs appear in Tribeca’s new Viewpoints section, which aims to “present a snapshot of international independent cinema.” High on your list should be Eva Mulvad’s accomplished THE GOOD LIFE, the “Danish GREY GARDENS” I’ve written about previously here, as well as Jerry Rothwell’s incredibly enjoyable film about a prolific sperm donor, DONOR UNKNOWN, which I wrote about out of IDFA here.

DONOR’s producer, Daniel Chalfen (WAR DON DON, THE DISAPPEARANCE OF MCKINLEY NOLAN), has a second film in Viewpoints, missing person doc GONE, directed by Gretchen and John Morning, which I’ve seen earlier and very promising cuts of and would also recommend. Also strong is Adam Pesce’s look at Papua New Guinea’s competing rival surf clubs, SPLINTERS; and Nick August-Perna, Carlo Mirabella-Davis, and Chris Dapkins’s THE SWELL SEASON, which provides a compelling and intimate behind-the-scenes perspective on the professional and personal relationship between ONCE stars Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. Another significant relationship provides the crux for Marie Losier’s THE BALLAD OF GENESIS AND LADY JAYE, already covered in my SXSW wrap-up.