Festival:
The 14th ZagrebDox
Dates:
February 25-March 4
About:
This Croatian event presents nearly 80 new feature documentaries in addition to retrospective programming. Continue reading
Category Archives: Recommendations
ZagrebDox 2018 Overview
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On TV: AGENTS OF CHANGE
AP Photo/Ernest K Bennett
AGENTS OF CHANGE
Directors:
Frank Dawson and Abby Ginzberg
Premiere:
Pan African LA 2016
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, St Louis, Toronto Black, March on Washington
About:
A revealing history of the battle for diversity study programs on college campuses.
I previously wrote about the film for DOC NYC’s program, saying:
As students of color began arriving on college campuses in unprecedented numbers in the late 1960s, they found institutions ill-prepared to adapt to diversity. Unwilling to accept the absence of their unique cultures and histories, or to ignore prejudicial treatment, students mobilized for black and ethnic-studies programs, even taking up arms when necessary. Focusing on seminal struggles at San Francisco State and Cornell University, Frank Dawson and Abby Ginzberg’s film powerfully demonstrates this sadly still topical call for inclusivity in education.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Special Screening: THIS IS CONGO
Coming to NYC’s Stranger Than Fiction series tomorrow, Tuesday, February 20:
THIS IS CONGO
Director:
Daniel McCabe
Premiere:
Venice 2017
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, IDFA, Camden, DocPoint, Big Sky Doc, Palm Springs, Woodstock, Stockholm
About:
An inside look at the complex forces behind the Democratic Republic of Congo’s ongoing conflicts.
The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
Filmmaker Daniel McCabe examines multiple sides of the fractious war in the Democratic Republic of Congo – including soldiers, rebels, and a diamond merchant known as Mama Romance – who allow us to make human connections in a chaotic conflict. In the process, his stunningly shot film demonstrates the connections between instability and violence in the region and the market in illegally mined natural resources.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
On TV/DVD: TELL THEM WE ARE RISING: THE STORY OF BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens this coming Monday, February 19 and to DVD on Tuesday, February 20:
TELL THEM WE ARE RISING: THE STORY OF BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
Director:
Stanley Nelson
Premiere:
Sundance 2017
Select Festivals:
Documentary Fortnight, Full Frame, Hot Springs Doc, Pan African, Toronto Black, American Black, Blackstar, African Diaspora, Rio, Milwaukee, Heartland, Freep, RiverRun, Bentonville, Montclair, Maryland
About:
An exploration of the pivotal role played by historically Black institutions of higher learning in American society.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Big Sky Documentary 2018 Overview
Festival:
The 15th Big Sky Documentary Film Festival
Dates:
February 16-25
About:
Montana’s largest film event includes more than 50 features as well as shorts and extensive retrospective programming. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On VOD: HUMAN FLOW
Coming to VOD tomorrow, Friday, February 16:
HUMAN FLOW
Director:
Ai Weiwei
Premiere:
Venice 2017
Select Festivals:
Telluride, Hamptons, Mill Valley, Haifa, Atlantic
About:
An overarching view of the global refugee crisis.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Documentary Fortnight 2018 Overview
Festival:
The 17th Documentary Fortnight
Dates:
February 15-26
About:
Nearly two dozen new or recent features, in addition to retrospective programming, make up MoMA’s annual nonfiction showcase. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On DVD/VOD: REBELS ON POINTE
New to DVD and VOD this week:
REBELS ON POINTE
Director:
Bobbi Jo Hart
Premiere:
Santa Barbara 2017
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Hot Docs, DocEdge, Raindance, Calgary, Vancouver, Ashland, Hot Springs Doc, Cuculorus, Napa Valley, AmDocs, Frameline, Outfest, Inside Out, QDocs, LGBT fests in Amsterdam, Miami, Denver, Austin, Atlanta, and Rochester
About:
An intimate look at a long-running all-male drag ballet troupe.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On DVD: THE GUYS NEXT DOOR
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, February 13:
THE GUYS NEXT DOOR
Directors:
Amy Geller and Allie Humenuk
Premiere:
Sarasota 2016
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, IFFBoston, Maryland, Provincetown, Woods Hole, Rhode Island, Big Sky Doc, RiverRun, MIX Milano, SF Jewish, Washington Jewish
About:
A profile of a gay couple and the woman who helped them have their own family.
I previously wrote about the doc for DOC NYC’s program, saying:
Rachel is a married woman in her 40s, with a husband and three children. She is also the surrogate mother for her married gay friends Erik and Sandro. With refreshing candor and humor, Geller and Humenuk’s film explores the unique challenges of this unusual extended family through the course of three years. Erik and Sandro move away from New York City and adjust to small-town life; Sandro travels to his Italian homeland; and Rachel delivers the couple’s second daughter.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On DVD: DEALT
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, February 13:
DEALT
Director:
Luke Korem
Premiere:
SXSW 2017
Select Festivals:
Dallas, Sarasota, IFF Boston, deadCENTER, Shanghai, New Zealand, Bergen
About:
A portrait of an acclaimed card magician who also happens to be blind.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
