While I wasn’t responsible for programming Doc-A-Thon, DOC NYC‘s panel series, this year, I can’t recommend it highly enough. Each day is focused on a different part of the filmmaking process, and includes four masterclasses or special discussions with leading documentary filmmakers and industry representatives, all taking place between 10:30am-5:00pm at the IFC Center, beginning next Monday, November 18.
Monday’s Day 1 begins with the essentials of production: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
The second DOC NYC shorts program I curated this year explores the bonds that exist between people and their pets, livestock, or zoo animals.
DOC NYC Program Description:
MAN & BEAST:
Saturday, November 16 at 1:45pm
People and their animals. A Bedouin sheepherder contemplates moving his family to the city in FACES (Jordan, 16 min., Said Najmi). HERD IN ICELAND (USA, 28 min., Lindsay Blatt & Paul Taggart) chronicles the annual roundup of the country’s purebred horses, after a summer roaming free. OF COWS AND MEN (USA, 4 min., Emily Fraser) follows a dairy farmer during difficult economic times. Man and bird unite in the deserts of Pakistan in DISARMING FALCONS (USA, 15 min., Wendy Johnson & Annie Nocenti). PAST THEIR PRIME (USA, 23 min., Becca Friedman) explores the lives of geriatric zoo animals. (86 min. total)
Why You Should Attend:
Who doesn’t love animals? Beyond cats and dogs, these films offer insight into the rapport we share with the wild kingdom, from birds of prey to aging rhinos and apes.
More Info:
To purchase tickets, follow the link from the program page by clicking on the program title above.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Like last year, I’ve once again curated six collections of short films for DOC NYC in my role as Senior Programmer. This first program looks at interactions between individuals and their habitats, from stories of underground living to the efforts of city dwellers to work with nature.
DOC NYC Program Description:
PEOPLE & PLACES:
Saturday, November 16 at 11:30am
Unexpected environments. A BEAUTIFUL WASTE (USA, 6 min., Jon Kasbe) explores NYC’s vibrant sewer system, while men reflect on their time living in the tunnels under LOST VEGAS (USA, 24 min., Steve Birnbaum). WHITE BLAZE (USA, 22 min., Brian Bolster) profiles a trail angel who helps Appalachian Trail hikers. An artist becomes walking artwork to add color to grey NYC in ON BLOOMING ART (USA, 6 min., Cathryne Czubek). NEW YORK TIMES (USA, 12 min., Dana O’Keefe) is a city symphony in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. Urban farming takes to the rooftop in BROOKLYN FARMER (USA, 27 min., Michael Tyburski).
Why You Should Attend:
There’s an element of surprise and discovery to these films, sometimes disarming, other times more understated. Together, they present a focus on spaces and how we respond to them and in them.
More Info:
To purchase tickets, follow the link from the program page by clicking on the program title above.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
The eighth edition of the Rome Film Festival begins tonight, Friday, November 8, and runs through next Sunday, November 17. In its relatively brief existence, the event has seen more than its fair share of growing pains as it tries to carve out a space for itself in the European festival scene that already includes such heavy hitters as Cannes, Venice, Berlin, and Locarno. Beholden, like so many Italian cultural events, to larger political power struggles within the country, the festival has tried to balance being a distinctive cinema event with appealing to segments of its audience that might be more concerned about celebrities and a party atmosphere than in discovering groundbreaking new work. Among its approximately 120 feature length films, there are just over two dozen documentaries on offer, the majority world premieres.
While a couple of docs appear in the official Out of Competition section, that and the main Competition are decidedly fiction-focused. Significantly more nonfiction is part of CinemaXXI, an international strand exploring innovative new filmmaking. By my count, 14 of the 25 features here are docs or hybrids, including: ZimmerFrei’s HOMETOWN/MUTONIA (pictured), a portrait of an experimental outsider community; Vincenzo Marra’s THE ADMINISTRATOR, a microcosmic look at Naples through the activities of an apartment building manager and the tenants he deals with; Jan Soldat’s THE INCOMPLETE, about a 60-year-old gay German man who embraces his desire to become a slave; Vincent Dieutre’s ROLAND WOUNDED, an exploration of modern Sicily through the conceit of a number of abandoned theatre puppets; and Gustavo Fontán’s THE FACE, an experimental film following an Argentine back to the island where he was born.
Rome’s documentary slate also includes a national cinema sidebar, Prospettiva Doc Italia, which features nine features. Among these are: Elisa Amoruso’s OFF ROAD, about the relationship between a MTF racing champion and the Romanian nurse she marries; Valentina Pedicini’s FROM THE DEPTHS (pictured), an exploration of the life of Italy’s only female miner, filmed entirely underground; Romano Montesarchio’s RITRATTI ABUSIVI, a portrait of the squatters of an Italian seaside slum that’s scheduled for redevelopment; Ermanno Cavazzoni’s SEASIDE HOLIDAYS, a playful anthropological chronicle of Italian summer via home movie footage; Marco Antonio Pani and Paolo Carboni’s HEADS AND TAILS, THE REASONS OF THE SHEPHERDS, a profile of the shepherds of Sardinia, who have had to protest in recent years to negotiate fair prices for their work; and Roberto Naccari and Stefano Bisulli’s THE OTHER FELLINI, an investigation into the famous director’s not-so-famous filmmaking brother.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
DOC NYC‘s Short List shines a well-deserved spotlight on some of the best nonfiction released earlier in the year, just in time for awards season. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Copenhagen’s much-lauded nonfiction event, CPH:DOX, kicks off its 11th edition tonight, Thursday, November 7, and wraps up next Sunday, November 17. Over eleven days, the festival, known for its expansive consideration of films on the fringe of documentary, will present approximately 170 feature-length films, including several retrospective screenings, in addition to live concerts, seminars, and other events. I’ve still never had the opportunity to attend, sadly, but if I were going this year, the following titles stand out for me, section-by-section: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews
Four films make up DOC NYC‘s late-night weekend section, Midnight Docs, offering extreme eating, boundary pushing sex, a penis hunt, and the search for a legendary creature. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Coming to CNN this Thursday, November 7: PANDORA’S PROMISE
Robert Stone’s re-evaluation of nuclear power made its world premiere at Sundance this year. Since then, the doc has screened at True/False, Full Frame, Stranger Than Fiction, as well as several universities before its limited theatrical release this Summer.
My pre-Sundance profile of the film may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Next up in my extended profile of DOC NYC is our ever-popular music doc strand, Sonic Cinema, which explores a diverse range of genres and performing personalities. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
New to DOC NYC this year, Art + Design celebrates creative expression across multiple disciplines, from photography to sculpture, graffiti to tailoring. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
