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.
About: Scientists, researchers, and activists sail around the globe to unveil the truth behind the death of millions of sharks, exposing the criminal enterprise that is impacting the extinction of the misunderstood creatures.
Coming to ESPN tomorrow, Tuesday, July 13: BREAKAWAY
Director: Rudy Valdez
World Premiere: ESPN 30 for 30 (July 2021)
About: Maya Moore, one of the best basketball players in the world, steps away from the sport for a remarkable reason: to fight for a man she believes was wrongly imprisoned.
Coming to PBS’s POV tonight, Monday, July 12: LANDFALL
Director: Cecilia Aldarondo
World Premiere: Tribeca 2020 (unscreened)
Select Festivals: DOC NYC, New Orleans, BlackStar, IDFA, Florida, Boston Latino, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Philadelphia Latino, Guanajuato, Camden
About: A poetic look at Puerto Rico as the island faces new challenges in the aftermath of Hurricane María.
The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read: An intimate and lyrical portrait of trauma, resilience, and resistance in Puerto Rico at a time when economic, political, and ecological forces post-Hurricane María have created a breeding ground for new predatory colonial practices. Told through the experiences of a close-knit community of hopeful and politicized people and through the encounters with cryptocurrency traders, luxury real estate developers, and newcomers flooding the island, Cecilia Aldarondo’s film raises vital questions about identity, survival, and recolonization.
Select Festivals: Documentary Fortnight, Jeonju, Midnight Sun
About: United by their jobs in a textile factory, a Japanese women’s volleyball team chases absolute perfection—and finds international superstardom—representing postwar Japan on the 1964 Olympic stage.
About: In this fascinating story about isolation and interconnection, the filmmaker and a team of intrepid scientists set out on a wild quest to find the 52 Hertz Whale, which has spent its entire life calling out at a frequency that is different from any other whale.