Author Archives: basiltsiokos

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About basiltsiokos

Basil Tsiokos is a Senior Programmer for the Sundance Film Festival, focusing on nonfiction features. He was most recently with DOC NYC for nearly a decade, where he served as Director of Programming since 2014, and with the Nantucket Film Festival as its Film Program Director. Prior to those positions, Basil was the longtime Artistic and Executive Director of NewFest. He has been affiliated with Sundance since 2005 as a Programming Associate. Basil serves on the feature nominating committees for the International Documentary Association Awards and Cinema Eye Honors. He has written about documentaries daily since 2010 on what (not) to doc. Basil holds a Masters degree from New York University and two undergraduate degrees from Stanford University.

In Theatres & On VOD: LILY TOPPLES THE WORLD

Coming to Discovery+ today, Thursday, August 26, and to theatres tomorrow, Friday, August 27:
LILY TOPPLES THE WORLD

Director:
Jeremy Workman

World Premiere:
BlackStar 2020

Select Festivals:
Cleveland, Florida, Ashland, Minneapolis-St Paul, San Francisco, Maryland, RiverRun, Sarasota

About:
20-year-old Lily Hevesh—the world’s greatest domino toppler and the only woman in her field—in a coming-of-age story of artistry, passion, and unlikely triumph.

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On VOD: BUDDY

Coming to MUBI today, Thursday, August 26:
BUDDY

Director:
Heddy Honigmann

World Premiere:
IDFA 2018

Select Festivals:
Hot Docs, Visions du Reel, DOXA, Documentary Fortnight, Bergen, Dokfest Munich,

About:
From enabling people to occupy public spaces to easing anxieties around social interactions, dogs help their humans navigate physical and emotional living.

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On VOD: PURPLE SEA

Coming to MUBI today, Wednesday, August 25:
PURPLE SEA

Director:
Amel Alzakout, Khaled Abdulwahed

World Premiere:
Berlin 2020

Select Festivals:
IDFA, Visions du Reel, Doclisboa, Ann Arbor, RIDM, Camden

About:
Made from images filmed by the Syrian artist Amel Alzakout after the boat on which she was fleeing Syria sank off the coast of Lesbos, a revisitation of the moment in which the co-director and the other passengers are floating in the sea in their life-jackets, waiting to be rescued.

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On VOD: KIPCHOGE: THE LAST MILESTONE

New to VOD this week:
KIPCHOGE: THE LAST MILESTONE

Director:
Jake Scott

World Premiere:
VOD release (August 2021)

About:
Kenyan Olympic runner Eliud Kipchoge dreams of completing a marathon distance of less than two hours. 

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Special Screening: ONCE UPON A TIME IN QUEENS

Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films screening tomorrow, Wednesday, August 25:
ONCE UPON A TIME IN QUEENS

Director:
Nick Davis

World Premiere:
Rooftop Films (August 2021)

About:
The first two parts of ESPN’s 30 for 30 multi-part profile of one of the most dominating, infamous, and magical teams of all-time: the 1986 Mets.

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On DVD: AGAINST THE CURRENT

Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, August 24:
AGAINST THE CURRENT

Director:
Oskar Pall Sveinsson

World Premiere:
Reykjavik 2020

About:
Transgender adventurer Veiga Grétarsdóttir attempts to kayak the 1,300 mile circumference of Iceland, counter-clockwise and against the current, an achievement that has been compared to climbing K2. 

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On VOD: BOB ROSS: HAPPY ACCIDENTS, BETRAYAL, & GREED

Coming to Netflix tomorrow, Wednesday, August 25:
BOB ROSS: HAPPY ACCIDENTS, BETRAYAL, & GREED

Director:
Joshua Rofé

World Premiere:
Rooftop Films (August 2021)

About:
Bob Ross brought joy to millions as the world’s most famous art instructor, but a battle for his business empire cast a shadow over his happy trees.

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Jerusalem 2021: Documentary Overview

Festival:
The 38th Jerusalem Film Festival

Dates:
August 24-September 4

About:
This respected Israeli event presents more than 100 features, including approximately 30 documentaries.

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations

On VOD: CAITLYN JENNER

Coming to Netflix’s UNTOLD series tomorrow, Tuesday, August 24:
CAITLYN JENNER

Director:
Crystelle Moselle

World Premiere:
Netflix (August 2021)

About:
Caitlyn Jenner’s unlikely path to Olympic glory was inspiring, but her more challenging road to embracing her true self proved even more meaningful.

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On VOD: GENERATION GROWTH

Coming to Discovery+ today, Monday, August 23:
GENERATION GROWTH

Director:
Mu Sun

World Premiere:
Heartland 2020

Select Festivals:
Hot Springs Doc

About:
A Bronx educator who has developed an indoor gardening curriculum to bring hope, health, and opportunity to low-income students works to expand the program across the country.

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases