Coming to WORLD Channel’s Global Voices series this Sunday, September 8: THE LIST
Beth Murphy’s investigation of the cost of collaborating had its world premiere at Tribeca last year. It went on to screen at IFF Boston, Nantucket, Little Rock, Camden, Hot Docs, and Abu Dhabi.
I previously wrote about the doc out of Tribeca here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, September 6: WE THE PARENTS
James Takata’s chronicle of the possibilities of parent power in education made its debut in limited theatrical release in Los Angeles last month. It now expands to NYC, with filmmakers using Tugg to set up potential screenings around the country based on demand.
In January 2010, California became the first state to pass a parent trigger law – essentially, a means by which parents can hold their school district to task for an underperforming school by closing the school, demanding a new administration, or converting it to a charter school. Takata’s film focuses on the efforts of the first group of parents who tried to invoke the law in California’s Compton school district by gathering petitions from more than half of their school’s parents, backed by Parent Revolution, the organization which fought for the parent trigger law in the first place, and which was eager to see it utilized. Not surprisingly, the Compton school district challenges the petition, necessitating a legal battle. While Takata’s film is fairly conventional in approach, and, clocking in at just about an hour, can’t hope to be comprehensive, it is decidedly successful in poignantly capturing the importance of this battle for several of the participants. The primarily Latino and African American parents profiled view the trigger law, and their involvement in Parent Revolution, as perhaps the first time they’ve felt empowered – as one mother notes, in handing the petition over the school district, she felt like she was on the same level as the administrators. That alone makes Takata’s film worth seeking out by parents, community organizers, and teachers alike.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to NYC’s Filmwax for a screening in a taxi garage parking lot this Saturday, September 7 and to VOD this coming Tuesday, September 10: DRIVERS WANTED
Joshua Z Weinstein’s look at NYC taxi drivers made its premiere at Silverdocs last year. It has gone on to screen at DOK.Leipzig, the Southern Circuit Tour, DOC NYC, Big Sky, and Sebastopol Doc fests, among others, before a limited theatrical release last Fall. It comes to VOD next week via iTunes and Amazon.
I previously wrote about the film here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, September 6: I AM BREATHING
Emma Davie and Morag McKinnon’s affecting look at a man’s impending mortality had its world premiere at IDFA last year. Its festival circuit included True/False, Hot Docs, Documentary Edge, DOK.fest Munich, DocsBarcelona, Cleveland, and Edinburgh, as well as a Global Screening Day in June that saw 36 countries host more than 170 screenings.
I included the doc in my IDFA coverage here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Fashion Week hits NYC this Thursday, inspiring my latest curated selections for Hulu’s Documentaries page. Watch these fashion focused docs now for free!
For more information about the selections, see my Indiewire article.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Indiewire @ Hulu Docs
NewFest: The NY LGBT Film Festival turns 25 this year, celebrating beginning this Friday, September 6 and running through Wednesday, June 11. After a dozen years at its helm, I left the festival after its 20th anniversary in 2008. Since then, the event has gone through many changes, most recently beginning a welcome partnership with LA’s Outfest, and relocating to the fantastic Film Society of Lincoln Center. While NewFest has scaled back considerably over the past five years, screening only 19 features and just over 30 shorts this year, these new relationships promise a resurgence and renewed focus in future editions.
Four documentary features and one hybrid make up the nonfiction component of this year’s festival. Notably, three of these are very well-regarded Sundance alumni: Christina Voros’ KINK, an inside look at a BDSM porn company; Marta Cunningham’s VALENTINE ROAD, a heartbreaking exploration of a homophobically motivated school shooting; and Travis Mathews and James Franco’s INTERIOR. LEATHER BAR., a speculative recreation of lost scenes from CRUISING. Also screening are Scott Gracheff’s THE RUGBY PLAYER (pictured), on gay 9/11 hero Mark Bingham; and Jeff Roy’s MOHAMMED TO MAYA, following a brash woman through her MTF surgery.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Coming to NYC’s MIST Harlem tomorrow, Thursday, September 5 before expanding to the IFC Center and to LA’s Laemmle Playhouse 7 this Friday, September 6: BEST KEPT SECRET
Samantha Buck’s profile of a teacher at a Newark special needs high school made its world premiere at the Independent Film Festival Boston. Additional fest screenings have included Montclair and AFI Docs.
I previously wrote about the film out of AFI Docs here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films tonight, Wednesday, September 4 and to theatres this Friday, September 6: 99% – THE OCCUPY WALL STREET COLLABORATIVE FILM
Audrey Ewell, Aaron Aites, Lucian Read, and Nina Krstic’s comprehensive overview of the Occupy movement made its debut in competition at Sundance at the beginning of the year. Since then it has screened at Cleveland, IFF Boston, Human Rights Watch, and Melbourne, among others.
I wrote about the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Available online beginning today, Tuesday, September 3: LIL BUB & FRIENDZ
Juliette Eisner and Andy Capper’s look at feline Internet love had its world premiere at Tribeca earlier this year, where it won the fest’s online audience award. It went on to screen at Seattle, Sidewalk, and Sydney Underground, among other fests. VICE, which produced the film, releases it in four parts online this week at VICE.com and on their YouTube Channel.
I included the doc in my Tribeca coverage here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to theatres this Friday, September 6: FIRE IN THE BLOOD
Dylan Mohan Gray’s chronicle of the struggle for affordable HIV treatment in the developing world had its world premiere at Sheffield last year. It came stateside at Sundance, and went on to screen at DOXA, the United Nations Association, Thessaloniki Doc, and London LGBT, among others.
My pre-Sundance profile on the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
what (not) to doc 