Author Archives: basiltsiokos

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.

May 13, 2019 · 12:01 PM

Special Screening: THE POETS

Coming to NYC’s DCTV screening series tonight, Monday, May 13:
THE POETS

Director:
Chivas DeVinck

Premiere:
Mannheim-Heidelberg 2017

Select Festivals:
Encounters, Lagos, Pan African

About:
Two acclaimed African poets revisits places from their home countries that inspired their work.

Chivas DeVinck’s portrait focuses on Syl Cheney-Coker and Niyi Osundare, celebrated poets from Sierra Leone and Nigeria respectively. The two friends travel around various places in both countries, including former homes and schools, point out differences due to war and development, and read a lot of their poetry, noting how their upbringing, confrontation with politics, war, and adversity have had an impact on their work. For viewers familiar with their writing, this likely will have a great deal of meaning and importance, but the film provides insufficient context to allow proper appreciation from those without a firm grounding of African literature and history.

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Filed under Documentary, Film

May 10, 2019 · 3:02 PM

On TV: CORRIDOR FOUR

Coming to PBS’s Pacific Heartbeat tomorrow, Saturday, May 11:
CORRIDOR FOUR

Director:
Stephen Tringali

Premiere:
Washington West 2017

Select Festivals:
Hawai’i, LA Asian Pacific, Guam, Philadelphia Asian American

About:
A police officer struggles with PTSD following the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon.

Police K9 Unit officer Isaac Ho’opi’i was on duty at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. He risked his own life to lead others to safety, and, in the chaos of the attack, many of the people he rescued only knew him as a voice. When reporters tracked down his identity, he was celebrated as a hero, with numerous media appearances and participation in the Olympic Torch run for the 2002 Winter Games. As revealed in Stephen Tringali’s portrait, privately he suffered from his experience on that horrific day. Ho’opi’i and his family relate how he was affected and how he slowly found a renewed sense of peace through music and connection. While earnest, the film unfortunately feels repetitive and, at times, like a protracted PSA about PTSD, though Ho’opi’i is unquestionably an honorable protagonist, and the issue of PTSD certainly bears continued attention.

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases

May 10, 2019 · 1:31 PM

In Theatres: THE SERENGETI RULES

Coming to theatres today, Friday, May 10:
THE SERENGETI RULES

Director:
Nicholas Brown

Premiere:
Tribeca 2018

Select Festivals:
CPH:DOX, Hamptons, Jackson Hole, Bergen, Maui, Vancouver, Global Peace,

About:
Scientists explore the impact of keystone species on ecosystems.

In 1969, zoologist Bob Paine developed a pioneering ecological theory that posited that within different ecosystems, certain species played a critical role in maintaining the whole. If these keystone species – in Paine’s research, starfish – were removed from the habitat, there would be a drastic, and typically detrimental, domino effect on other organisms. In some cases, these keystone species are apex predators, those at the top of the food chain, with no natural predators. Nicholas Brown’s film, which is framed around interviews and narration with Paine at the end of his life, profiles several other scientists and their work with the concept of keystone species in diverse settings, from the impact of whaling on otters, kelp, and fish to wildebeest in the Serengeti. While the production is a bit over the top at times, it benefits, unlike many other traditionally doom-and-gloom environmentally-themed projects, by the hopeful message that reintroducing keystone species within downgraded ecosystems can reverse the damage.

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases

May 10, 2019 · 12:01 PM

On TV: WU-TANG CLAN: OF MICS AND MEN

Coming to Showtime tonight, Friday, May 10:
WU-TANG CLAN: OF MICS AND MEN

Director:
Sacha Jenkins

Premiere:
Sundance 2019

Select Festivals:
Tribeca, Hot Docs

About:
An exploration of the history and cultural significance of the influential hip-hop collective.

My pre-Sundance profile of the doc series may be found here.

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance

May 9, 2019 · 1:31 PM

In Theatres: THE BIGGEST LITTLE FARM

Coming to theatres today, Thursday, May 9:
THE BIGGEST LITTLE FARM

Director:
John Chester

Premiere:
Telluride 2018

Select Festivals:
Sundance, DOC NYC, Toronto, Berlin, Miami, Hamptons, Napa Valley, AFI Fest, Palm Springs, Thessaloniki Doc, CPH:DOX, Sarasota, Sun Valley, Newport Beach, Montclair

About:
For over eight years, John and Molly Chester find ways to work with nature to establish a biodynamic farm.

I profiled the doc before Sundance here.