The 15th annual Tribeca Film Festival begins this Wednesday, April 13, kicking off with an opening night screening of Andrew Rossi’s FIRST MONDAY IN MAY, a behind-the-scenes look at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Gala. By the time the event wraps on Sunday, April 24, the festival will have showcased nearly 60 additional nonfiction features, including fellow Gala title THE BOMB, Kevin Ford, Smriti Keshari, and Eric Schlosser’s immersive 360 degree meditation on nuclear weapons, and other highlights noted below: Continue reading
Category Archives: Film Festivals
Tribeca 2016: Documentary Overview
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On TV: NOTHING LEFT UNSAID: GLORIA VANDERBILT & ANDERSON COOPER
Coming to HBO tomorrow, Saturday, April 9: NOTHING LEFT UNSAID: GLORIA VANDERBILT & ANDERSON COOPER
Liz Garbus’ profile of a famed socialite, via her equally famous journalist son, had its world premiere at Sundance at the beginning of the year. Additional berths have included the Miami and Martha’s Vineyard fests as well as part of year-round special programming at Newport and Nantucket.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Art of the Real 2016 Overview
The Film Society of Lincoln Center’s nonfiction and hybrid showcase, Art of the Real returns for the third year starting tomorrow, Friday, April 8 and runs through Thursday, April 21. In addition to presenting twenty new features, this year’s series offers two programs of short films as well as a five-program retrospective of the work of experimental filmmaker Bruce Baillie. Two films open Art of the Real – the world premiere of Ben Rivers’ WHAT MEANS SOMETHING (pictured), a quiet portrait of artist Rose Wylie; and Roberto Minervini’s THE OTHER SIDE, a look at outsiders’ lives in the Louisiana bayou – while Jumana Manna’s ethnomusicological portrait of Palestine, A MAGICAL SUBSTANCE FLOWS INTO ME, brings the series to a close.
Additional programming includes the US premiere of José Luis Guerín’s ACADEMY OF THE MUSES, a romantic comedy crossed with a philosophical meditation on love and art, partly based on reality; Federico Lodoli and Carlo Gabriele Tribbioli’s FRAGMENT 53, an exploration of extremism through the confessions of perpetrators in Liberia’s civil war; Andrea Bussmann and Nicolás Pereda’s TALES OF TWO WHO DREAMT, in which a real Roma family seeking asylum in Canada inspires self-mythologizing stories; and Thom Andersen’s THE THOUGHTS THAT ONCE WE HAD (pictured), a Deleuzian jaunt through film history.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
In Theatres: The Maysles & Co
Tomorrow, Friday, April 8, sees the launch of The Maysles & Co, a near-comprehensive series at NYC’s Film Forum celebrating the work of the acclaimed Albert and David Maysles and their team of collaborators. Spanning twenty-five features and more than a dozen shorts, the series, which runs through Thursday, April 21, offers audiences the chance to see not only acclaimed classics like GREY GARDENS (1976) and SALESMAN (1969), but more recent work, including IRIS (2014), and especially rarely screened Out-takes, Commercials, Rarities and Portraits & Early Work (1955-1966), among several other highlights.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Overviews, Recommendations
It’s All True 2016 Overview
São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro will host the 21st edition of Brazil’s It’s All True International Documentary Film Festival, which opens tomorrow, Thursday, April 7 in the former with Berlin winner FIRE AT SEA, Gianfranco Rosi’s meditation on the refugee crisis; and in the latter on Saturday, April 9 with THE AMAZING ARTRICKS OF THE GYPSY CLOUD, Paola Vieira and Claudio Lobato’s profile of a 1970s Rio art collective. Before the festival wraps on Sunday, April 17, the event will present over forty new and recent feature docs, as well as shorts and retrospective programming. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Full Frame 2016 Overview
The 19th annual Full Frame Documentary Film Festival takes place this Thursday, April 7 through Sunday, April 10, offering NC’s Research Triangle audiences the chance to sample nearly 60 new and recent feature docs, in addition to retrospective programming, shorts, and panels. As usual, the fest’s programming team has handpicked an impressive assortment of films that have previously debuted at IDFA, Sundance, and elsewhere on the circuit, in addition to selecting several brand new films to have their debuts at the event. The following turns the spotlight on the latter: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On DVD: HOW TO CHANGE THE WORLD
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, April 5: HOW TO CHANGE THE WORLD
Jerry Rothwell’s look at the early days of Greenpeace made its bow at Sundance last year, where it picked up the World Cinema Documentary Editing Award. Its fest circuit has also included Nantucket, Hot Docs, True/False, DOXA, San Francisco Green, Sebastopol Doc, Sydney, and Telluride Mountainfilm, among others.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
On TV & In Theatres: MAPPLETHORPE: LOOK AT THE PICTURES
Coming to HBO tonight, Monday, February 4 and to theatres this Friday, April 8: MAPPLETHORPE: LOOK AT THE PICTURES
Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey’s look back at the impact of the controversial photographer’s work had its world premiere at Sundance earlier this year. The doc went on to screen at Berlin, BFI Flare, and Miami.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
On TV: WELCOME TO LEITH
Coming to Independent Lens tonight, Monday, February 4: WELCOME TO LEITH
Michael Beach Nichols and Christopher K Walker’s exploration of a white supremacist’s plan to takeover a community debuted at Sundance last year. Screenings followed at Nantucket, New Orleans, SXSW, IDFA, Hot Docs, Dallas, Cucalorus, Montclair, Sydney, AFI Docs, New Zealand, Melbourne, Docville, RIDM, and DMZ Docs, among many other events.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
On DVD: CARTEL LAND
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, March 29: CARTEL LAND
Matthew Heineman’s investigation of Mexican cartel violence had its world premiere at Sundance last year, winning two awards. Screenings followed at Nantucket, DOC NYC, True/False, Full Frame, Dallas, Sarasota, Tribeca, IFF Boston, Docville, Seattle, Sydney, Human Rights Watch, AFI Docs, and Sheffield, among many others. The film went on to be nominated for the Documentary Feature Academy Award.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
