Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, April 9: LOVE FREE OR DIE
Macky Alston picked up a special jury prize upon the debut of his portrait of gay bishop Gene Robinson at Sundance last year. The doc has had an extensive fest circuit, with stops at Cleveland, Full Frame, Seattle, New Orleans, IFF Boston, Frameline, Outfest, and NewFest, among others, while also screening at a number of churches and community centers.
I wrote about the film before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Starting tomorrow, Wednesday, April 10, in Auckland, New Zealand, and running through Sunday, April 21 (before moving on to Wellington between May 8-19), the Documentary Edge holds its ninth edition. The event, originally known as DOCNZ before a rebranding to emphasize its aim to showcase cutting edge fare, annually presents scores of acclaimed international docs as well as homegrown work in a series of thematic programs. More than sixty features and shorts screen this year, bookended by opening and closing night films, THE ISLAND PRESIDENT and MUSCLE SHOALS, respectively. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Celebrating its fifteenth anniversary, the Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente, or BAFICI, begins this Wednesday, April 10 and runs through Sunday, April 21. The event is among the largest in South America, drawing over 350,000 to its film screenings and other events. Of the more than 400 features and shorts in its lineup, more than a quarter are feature documentaries, appearing throughout the various sections of the festival. While I’ve sadly never had the opportunity to attend, I’m impressed by the range of selections and especially by the commitment the organizer have shown to champion their national cinema. If I were heading to Argentina, the following films, broken down section-by-section, are ones that I’d seek out: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Coming to PBS’ Independent Lens next Monday, April 8: THE HOUSE I LIVE IN
Eugene Jarecki’s searing indictment of America’s failed war on drugs premiered at Sundance last year, where it won the US documentary grand jury prize. It’s gone on to screen at Los Angeles, Vancouver, Melbourne, and Minneapolis St Paul, among others. Shortlisted for the Best Documentary Oscar, the film enjoyed a limited theatrical release as well as a VOD release.
I wrote about the film before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
Celebrating its 15th edition this year, the Sarasota Film Festival begins this Friday, April 5 and runs through Sunday, April 14. Screening over 200 films, Sarasota is one of the largest regional festivals in the US, presenting some of the year’s standout films for Florida audiences and visiting industry. I’ve never been to the festival, but industry colleagues who have attended have raved, and its Director, Tom Hall, is one of the most liked figures in the indie film community. Its feature lineup includes more than fifty documentaries, including two Sundance alums in key Gala slots – Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s BLACKFISH screens as the fest’s Closing Night film, while Barbara’s Kopple’s RUNNING FROM CRAZY is one of two Centerpieces. Other newer docs that perhaps haven’t had as big a spotlight yet include the following: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Starting tomorrow, Thursday, April 4, and running through Sunday, April 14, the Dallas International Film Festival will screen more than 175 films for its seventh edition. Kicking things off are five Opening Night films, including Sundance alum THE CRASH REEL. I had the pleasure of serving on the jury for the festival a couple of years back, enjoying Texan hospitality and a top-notch festival thanks to the efforts of Artistic Director James Faust and Senior Programmer Sarah Harris. While I won’t be attending the 2013 fest, I wanted to draw attention to some of the newer documentaries making their debut in Dallas, among a selection of acclaimed titles that previously screened at Sundance, SXSW, and Toronto. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
One of South America’s signature non-fiction events, Brazil’s It’s All True International Documentary Film Festival, kicks off its 18th edition this Thursday, April 4 and runs through Sunday, April 14 in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The event then goes on tour, presenting films in Brasilia (April 16-21) and Campinas (April 23-28), all for free. Featuring more than eighty films from over twenty-five countries, the festival includes competitions for international and Brazilian features and shorts, an overview of recent international work, special sidebars, and two retrospectives – one on seminal Soviet filmmaker Dziga Vertov and the other on 1980s’ Brazilian documentarian Silvio Tendler. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
The 16th edition of Durham NC’s acclaimed non-fiction showcase, the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, opens this Thursday, April 4, with Dawn Porter’s Sundance award-winning GIDEON’S ARMY, and continues through Sunday, April 6, presenting nearly a hundred programs of new and retrospective films, as well as panels and other events. Among the special series this year are a tribute to filmmaker Jessica Yu, which includes screenings of her past notable work, as well as the world premiere of her new short about sustainability in Mozambique, THE GUIDE; and “Stories About Stories,” a thematic sidebar of films exploring truth and storytelling in documentaries, including classics like Orson Welles’ F FOR FAKE, Amir Bar-Lev’s MY KID COULD PAINT THAT, and even Larry Charles’ BORAT, as well as Sarah Polley’s recent STORIES WE TELL.
Director of Programming Sadie Tillery and her team have curated a typically impressive lineup of recent non-fiction titles, many which I’ve covered out of other festivals like Toronto, IDFA, Sundance, and SXSW over the past several months. Beyond these films, Full Frame is presenting several docs which are making their debuts here, which I’ll spotlight below: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
This post wraps up my coverage of this year’s Thessaloniki Documentary Festival – previous postings may be found here (a pointer to my Indiewire coverage of several Greek titles and works-in-progress) and here (highlights from three fest sections). Below are thoughts on a number of the remaining sections, “Recordings of Memory,” “Habitat,” and “Human Rights.” Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, In Brief, Recommendations
For the past few years, the undergraduate course I teach at Brooklyn’s Pratt Institute culminates in the Wallabout Film Festival, a one-day event that is completely organized by my students – from programming to party planning and everything in between. This year’s Wallabout, the 5th anniversary edition, will take place at indieScreen on Thursday, April 18, showcasing student short films from Pratt and around the world.
Earlier this week, my students launched a crowdfunding campaign on a new platform, Crowdtilt, to raise much-needed funds for Wallabout. With less than a month to go, they (and I) would welcome any contributions, and would appreciate it if w(n)td readers spread the word about the campaign via social media or email to anyone who might be interested in supporting student filmmakers and film festivals. And, of course, if readers are in Brooklyn on April 18, consider coming to Wallabout!
Filed under Film, Film Festivals, In the Works, Recommendations
what (not) to doc 