Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films tomorrow, Saturday, June 21: LIVING STARS
Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat’s glee-inducing look at Argentines dancing debuted at Sundance earlier this year. The film also screened at Hot Docs, Little Rock, and BAFICI.
My pre-Sundance profile of the film may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
Coming to PBS’s American Experience and to DVD this coming Tuesday, June 24: FREEDOM SUMMER
Stanley Nelson’s latest Civil Rights era chronicle debuted at Sundance earlier this year. It’s gone on to screen at Mountainfilm, Chicago’s African Diaspora fest, Maryland, Montclair, IFF Boston, Full Frame, Nashville, and the Pan African fest, among several other special screenings.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Gay film fest season officially kicks off tonight with the opening night of Frameline, celebrating its 38th edition this year. San Francisco is home to the world’s longest-running queer film festival, drawing an estimated 65,000 attendees to experience the newest in LGBT cinema. More than 30 feature length documentaries are included in this year’s lineup, including the fest’s coveted Opening Night slot, which goes to Sundance winners Ben Cotner and Ryan White’s excellent THE CASE AGAINST 8, with fellow Sundance alum Jennifer Kroot and Bill Weber’s TO BE TAKEI taking one of the Centerpiece spots. The following spotlights additional documentary programming SF audiences should be sure to check out: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Coming to PBS’s POV this coming Monday, June 23: WHEN I WALK
Jason DaSilva’s account of the onset of his multiple sclerosis made its debut at Sundance last year. Other fest appearances have included Hot Docs, Sarasota, LA’s Arclight Doc Fest, Vancouver, Hot Springs, Margaret Mead, ReelAbilities, San Diego Asian, Heartland, Hot Springs, and Poland’s New Horizons American Film Festival, among others.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Recently relocated to New York City from its former base in Miami, the American Black Film Festival celebrates its 18th edition beginning tomorrow, Thursday, June 19, and running through Sunday, June 22. This makes Manhattan the home to two higher-profile African American festivals, with mainstay Urbanworld also heading into year 18 this coming September. ABFF makes a notable splash, closing out this year’s event with the world premiere of Spike Lee’s latest film, the Kickstarter-funded DA SWEET BLOOD OF JESUS.
In total, more then two dozen films, masterclasses, and special events make up the event’s lineup, with five doc features included. Two appear in the Spotlight Screenings section: Muta’Ali Muhammad’s sadly timely tribute to his grandparents, LIFE’S ESSENTIALS WITH RUBY DEE (pictured), given the actress’ recent passing; and Barion Grant’s profile of a hip-hop mogul, A GENIUS LEAVES THE HOOD: THE UNAUTHORIZED STORY OF JAY-Z. The remaining nonfiction titles vie for the CNN sponsored Best Documentary Award, including two world premieres: Mike L Brown’s 25 TO LIFE, about an HIV-positive man reckoning with his promiscuous past; and Sam Hampton’s TRANSCENDING SURGEON, a consideration of African Americans in medicine through a portrait of an acclaimed surgeon; as well as the North American premiere of Khalo Matabane’s NELSON MANDELA: THE MYTH & ME, an exploration of freedom and reconciliation set against the continuing inequality faced by South Africans.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Tonight, Wednesday, June 18 sees the kick-off of the 68th edition of the Edinburgh International Film Festival. Running through Sunday, June 29, the festival will present over 150 features, representing nearly 50 countries, an increase from last year’s numbers. Among these are nearly 30 documentaries, spread about various strands, from American Dreams – recent US indies – to Focus on Film – tributes to cinema and its makers – to Teen Spirit – youth-focused films. The following spotlights some newer nonfiction work screening in other festival sections:
Most appear in the Directors’ Showcase, an auteur-driven strand, which includes LIFE MAY BE, a consideration of art and the artistic process via a collaboration between Mark Cousins and Mania Akbari; and CATHEDRALS OF CULTURE, a 3D meditation on six distinct works of architecture by Karim Aïnouz, Michael Glawogger, Michael Madsen, Robert Redford, Wim Wenders, and Margreth Olin. Nonfiction also makes a showing in New Perspectives, focused on emerging filmmakers, with such new projects as Davi Pretto’s CASTANHA, about a middle-aged Brazilian cross-dresser who lives with his mother; Lucie Dèche, Karim Loualiche, and Tarek Sami’s CHANTIER A (pictured), a hybrid personal reflection on Algeria; and Ed Perkins’ GARNET’S GOLD, which follows an unusual man on the hunt for fabled treasure.
A number of boundary pushing nonfiction projects appear in No Limits, including Antoine d’Agata’s ATLAS (pictured), an international compendium of prostitutes’ stories; and Jan Soldat’s THE INCOMPLETE, abo ut a 60-year-old gay German man who aspires to be the perfect slave. The festival offers a Focus on Germany, in which Thomas Heise’s portrait of a Mexican juvenile prison STAEDTEBEWOHNER is the sole doc; and a Focus on Iran which includes Sara Rastegar’s look at love, the Iranian revolution, and exile, MY RED SHOES.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
The Brooklyn Academy of Music’s popular BAMcinemaFest returns for its sixth year, opening tomorrow, Wednesday, June 18, and running through Sunday, June 29. After recent staff changes at the venerable institution, this year’s event was curated by BAMcinématek programmers Nellie Killian and David Reilly together with new Programmer at Large Ryan Werner, appointed at the beginning of the year. The lineup of over two dozen films includes several standouts – a mix of heralded titles from Sundance, SXSW, and beyond.
New nonfiction offerings are Göran Hugo Olsson’s exceptional, confrontative rumination on colonialism, CONCERNING VIOLENCE; Amir Bar-Lev’s complex exploration of the impact of the Penn State scandal, HAPPY VALLEY; Tony Gerber and Maxim Pozdorovkin’s engaging portrait of an infamous international criminal, THE NOTORIOUS MR BOUT; Amanda Rose Wilder’s fascinating immersion into a free school, APPROACHING THE ELEPHANT (pictured); Darius Clark Monroe’s personal reflection on the mistakes of his past, EVOLUTION OF A CRIMINAL; and Joe Callander’s look at the limits of philanthropy, LIFE AFTER DEATH.
Retrospective doc programming includes a retrospective program of the late Les Blank’s doc shorts, and a rarely seen cult classic, STATIONS OF THE ELEVATED (pictured), Manfred Kirchheimer’s 1981 graffiti-focused city symphony.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
This Wednesday, June 18, sees the opening of the 12th edition of AFI Docs, in its sophomore year in Washington DC with Scott Teems’ HOLBROOK/TWAIN: AN AMERICAN ODYSSEY. Another year has seen continued changes for the event, with longtime festival director Sky Sitney having left her post this past February. Once again running a trimmer five days vs its seven-day incarnation as Silverdocs, the festival will screen approximately fifty features through Sunday, June 22, when the festival closes with Steve James’ LIFE ITSELF. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Coming to VOD tomorrow, Tuesday, June 17: A RIVER CHANGES COURSE
Kalyanee Mam’s portrain of the downsides of Cambodia’s development had its world premiere at Sundance last year, winning the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize. Its fest circuit has included Full Frame, San Francisco, Atlanta, RiverRun, Yale’s Environmental fest, LA’s Asian Pacific, and Docville. The doc now becomes available on VOD platforms including iTunes, XBOX, Sony Entertainment Network, SundanceNOW, Amazon, Vudu, YouTube, and VHX.
I profiled the film before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to NYC’s Stranger Than Fiction series at the IFC Center tomorrow, Tuesday, June 17: ROMAN POLANSKI: WANTED AND DESIRED
Marina Zenovich’s investigation into an infamous celebrity rape case made its debut at Sundance in 2008, where it won the Documentary Film Editing Award. It went on to screen at Cannes, Seattle, Zurich, Melbourne, Sydney, and Torino, among several others, and to win two Emmy Awards.
Well-known by US audiences for ROSEMARY’S BABY and for the tragic death of his wife Sharon Tate, a victim of the Manson Family, director Roman Polanski came under scrutiny when he was arrested in 1977 for the sexual assault of a thirteen year old during a photo shoot. Though originally claiming innocence, he accepted a plea bargain to lessen the charges, and plead guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor. However, rather than re-appearing in court for final sentencing, he left America for good, and, as a French citizen, was protected from extradition for over thirty years. Popular opinion viewed his flight from the US as a further admission of guilt and a move to avoid prison, leaving the once-celebrated filmmaker persona non grata. In the first of her two films about Polanski, Zenovich re-opens the case, crafting a persuasive argument and offering provocative new information – particularly about the ambitious judge’s behavior – that calls into question what everyone has taken as fact. While made without Polanski’s participation, Zenovich secures remarkable access to other major players in the drama, including, most affectingly, Samantha Geimer, the victim at is core. The film had real consequences, as detailed in Zenovich’s follow-up, ROMAN POLANSKI: ODD MAN OUT, with re-ignited interest in the controversial case leading to Polanski’s 2009 arrest while in Switzerland, though he was ultimately not extradited.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
what (not) to doc 