Among the world’s oldest international film events, the Film Festival Locarno kicks off its 66th edition tonight, running through Saturday, August 17, with a lineup of over 100 features, of which more than forty are documentaries. The Swiss fest, situated just weeks before Venice, Telluride, and Toronto, often showcases an adventurous program, balancing the expected star-driven fare with more challenging discoveries that might normally be relegated to the sidelines at other festivals its size. Its non-fiction offerings appear in virtually every section, from the fest’s signature Piazza Grande massive open-air screenings to its own version of the independently curated Semaine de la critique. The following highlights docs, section-by-section, that have caught my eye: Continue reading
Category Archives: Film
Locarno 2013: Documentary Overview
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
In Theatres: OFF LABEL
Coming to theatres this Friday, August 9: OFF LABEL
Michel Palmieri and Donal Mosher’s exploration of America’s addiction to prescription psychotropic drugs debuted at Tribeca last year. It went on to screen at Hot Docs, San Francisco, Sheffield, One World, Camden, and RIDM, among others.
I included the doc in my Tribeca coverage here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
In Theatres: THE MACHINE WHICH MAKES EVERYTHING DISAPPEAR
Coming to theatres this Friday, August 9: THE MACHINE WHICH MAKES EVERYTHING DISAPPEAR
Tinatin Gurchiani’s intimate exploration of her native Georgia debuted last year at DOK Leipzig. It came stateside at Sundance, where Gurchiani won the World Cinema Documentary Competition Best Director Award. Other festival stops have included IDFA, MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight, True/False, Hong Kong, Thessaloniki Doc, It’s All True, Documentary Edge, Hot Docs, and Planete+ Doc.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Special Screening: 12 O’CLOCK BOYS
Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films tomorrow, Thursday, August 8: 12 O’CLOCK BOYS
Lotfy Nathan’s immersive view of a Baltimore urban dirt-bike subculture had its world premiere this Spring at SXSW. It went on to screen at Hot Docs, where it claimed a jury award, as well as Full Frame, Maryland, and the upcoming Sundance Next Weekend, among others.
I included the doc in my SXSW coverage here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
On VOD: LOW & CLEAR
Now available on VOD: LOW & CLEAR
Kahlil Hudson and Tyler Hughen’s study of male friendship and fly-fishing had its debut last year at SXSW, where it picked up an audience award. Other stops on the fest circuit included True/False, IDFA, Hot Docs, Dallas, Camden, and Mountainfilm in Telluride. The doc came to iTunes yesterday.
I wrote about the film out of SXSW here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On VOD & In Theatres: THE MOTIVATION
Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, August 6: THE MOTIVATION
Adam Bhala Lough’s look at a high-stakes skateboarding competition had its world premiere at Tribeca this Spring and went on to screen at Newport Beach as well. The doc has held special screenings at skate venues and in theaters, adding NYC screenings later this month on August 24. It comes to iTunes, Amazon, Google Play PlayStation, Cinemanow, Vudu, and other On Demand services today.
Pro skateboarder Rob Dyrdek, noting deficiencies in existing skateboarding competitions, set out to present a corrective by founding Street League Skateboarding. In addition to instituting a fairer scoring system and a professionalized ranked system for its competitors, SLS also offers the largest prize in the sport. The film follows eight of the top contenders over a year’s preparation heading into the 2012 championship, from the defending title holder, Sean Malto, to the celebrated prodigy, 17-year-old Nyjah Huston. While there are a lot of characters to juggle, Lough manages to concisely convey the personalities, strengths, and potential weaknesses each brings to his own game. Skateboarders and fans will appreciate the behind-the-scenes view into their lives, while more casual viewers will find the typical joys of the competition doc form enlivened by the athletes’ brash personalities and gravity-defying tricks.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
On VOD: WELCOME TO THE MACHINE
Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, August 6: WELCOME TO THE MACHINE
Avi Zev Weider’s exploration of people’s growing dependence on technology debuted at SXSW last year. It went on to screen at Hot Docs, Sarasota, and Woodstock, among other fests. After a limited theatrical run at the beginning of the year, it now comes to VOD on Comcast, Time Warner, Cox, iTunes, Amazon, Xbox, Vudu, and Google Play.
I wrote about the doc upon its theatrical release here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
On DVD: SUSHI: THE GLOBAL CATCH
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, August 6: SUSHI: THE GLOBAL CATCH
Mark Hall’s look at the effect of the globalization of sushi debuted at Seattle in 2011. Its festival circuit has included IDFA, Vancouver, Planete+ Doc, Biografa, and several environmental events.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On Cable: THE DIPLOMAT
Coming to ESPN as part of their Nine for IX series tomorrow, Tuesday, August 6: THE DIPLOMAT
Jennifer Arnold and Senain Kheshgi’s exploration of Eastern bloc politics through Katarina Witt’s story had its debut at Tribeca this year. The film was commissioned by ESPN for its women-directed, women in sports doc series, an offshoot of the network’s popular 30 for 30 doc brand.
During the Cold War, the international sports arena was a charged space, the site of not only physical battles, but also deeply political ones. Arnold and Kheshgi’s film focuses on East Germany’s most recognizable athlete, figure skating champion Katarina Witt, arguably the country’s greatest cultural ambassador to the West. Under a repressive system that greatly limited the personal liberties of its citizens, Witt and her fellow athletes benefited from the one thing the state got right – sports. Supported financially by the state apparatus to win victories for communism, Witt excelled in international events, including winning consecutive Olympic gold medals – a feat on which her coach, Jutta Müller, and she cannily pinned the possibility for an unprecedented career in professional sports, hitherto impossible in East Germany. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, however, Witt and other athletes come under fire when revelations were made about the relative luxury they enjoyed in contrast to their fellow citizens. At the same time, Witt learned of the constant Stasi surveillance she had been under, including informing done by trusted friends and colleagues. Through interviews with Witt, Müller, former East German leader Egon Krenz, Stasi archivists, and others, Arnold and Kheshgi offer a revealing look at the machinery of sports under communism, and how one woman turned it to her own advantage.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On DVD: THE WORLD BEFORE HER
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, August 6: THE WORLD BEFORE HER
Nisha Pahuja’s profile of two extreme expressions of modern Indian gender roles debuted at Tribeca last year, where it picked up a jury award. It went on to screen at Hot Docs, Traverse City, Sydney, Reykjavik, IDFA, and Abu Dhabi, among others.
I included the doc in my Hot Docs coverage here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
what (not) to doc 