The next US Documentary Competition title finds Sundance alumnus Eugene Jarecki returning to Park City: THE HOUSE I LIVE IN examines the unqualified disaster that is America’s War on Drugs.
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2012 Sundance Docs in Focus: THE HOUSE I LIVE IN
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
In Theatres/On VOD: MAN ON A MISSION
Coming to select US theatres and VOD beginning next Friday, January 13 (plus Toronto’s TIFF Bell Lightbox this Sunday, January 8): MAN ON A MISSION: RICHARD GARRIOTT’S ROAD TO THE STARS
Mike Woolf’s chronicle of a civilian’s space flight premiered at SXSW in 2010, where it also picked up an audience award. Distributor First Run Features has theatrical engagements currently planned through mid February – for more information, click here.
For years, Richard Garriott wished to follow in the footsteps of his father, NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, and travel into space. While his lack of perfect vision put a serious hurdle in his path, making him ineligible for the the space program, Richard’s success in the nascent field of computer game development resulted in a personal fortune that allowed him to realize his longheld dream. Woolf follows Richard Garriott, as he trains to become the first US second generation to travel into space as a private citizen – at the cost of $30 million and months of preparation. Garriott, who is supported in his plans by his dad, is a likeable and enviable guide through the rigorous training regiment. Arriving at Star City, the hub of the former Soviet cosmonaut training center, Woolf details everything from the molding needed to construct Garriott’s suit to Russian lessons to be able to read controls to emergency water splashdown drills. What should prove most fascinating to viewers, however, are the scenes filmed in space, with demonstrations of zero gravity life and a tour of the international space station.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
2012 Sundance Docs in Focus: FINDING NORTH
My rundown of the 2012 Sundance US Documentary Competition continues with: FINDING NORTH, Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush’s compelling exploration of poverty and food insecurity in the US.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
2012 Sundance Docs in Focus: ESCAPE FIRE
The next US Documentary Competition title in my profe of the upcoming Sundance doc slate: ESCAPE FIRE: THE FIGHT TO RESCUE AMERICAN HEALTHCARE, Matthew Heineman and Susan Froemke’s far-reaching exploration of the US healthcare system.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
2012 Sundance Docs in Focus: DETROPIA
My look at Sundance 2012′s US Documentary Competition continues with returning filmmakers Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady: DETROPIA, the story of a city, its decline, and its uncertain future.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
On DVD: QUEEN OF THE SUN
Coming to DVD next Tuesday, January 10: QUEEN OF THE SUN
Taggart Siegel’s look at the honey bee and colony collapse disorder had its world premiere at Nashville in 2010, and went on to screen at additional fests, including Seattle and IDFA. It had a limited theatrical release last Summer.
I wrote about the film upon its theatrical release Indiewire here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
2012 Sundance Docs in Focus: CHASING ICE
Continuing my doc-by-doc look at Sundance 2012: Jeff Orlowski’s US Documentary Competition title CHASING ICE, which follows the efforts of an acclaimed photographer to document climate change.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
2012 Sundance Docs in Focus: THE ATOMIC STATES OF AMERICA
Next up in my 2012 Sundance doc line-up overview: Don Argott and Sheena M Joyce’s US Documentary Competition title THE ATOMIC STATES OF AMERICA, about the history and potential risky future of nuclear energy.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
2012 Sundance Docs in Focus: AI WEIWEI: NEVER SORRY
Opening up my film-by-film look at the documentaries of the upcoming 2012 Sundance Film Festival is the alphabetical first of the US Documentary Competition: AI WEIWEI: NEVER SORRY, Alison Klayman’s insider portrait of the controversial Chinese artist and activist.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
In the Works: APPROACHING THE ELEPHANT
A first-time feature director channels Wiseman and the Maysles as she spends two years observing the inner workings of an unconventional school.
As a child, director Amanda Wilder once visited England’s Summerhill School, the first “free school,” an experimental school structured around shared and equal decision-making by educators and pupils, as well as interest-directed learning versus a mandatory curriculum. Also known as democratic schools, “free schools” have since popped up around the world, numbering in the hundreds. When Wilder learned about a free school opening in Little Falls, NJ, she arranged to film The Teddy McArdle Free School’s first day but ended up filming for two years. Employing an observational rather than interview focused approach, Wilder and producer Jay Craven capture not only this relatively novel and unusual approach to education, but also the learning curve that comes from starting a new institution – especially one intentionally divorced from traditional hierarchical models. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, In the Works
