indieWIRE has partnered with Hulu to curate the site’s Documentaries page… and I’m serving as iW‘s chief curator. Read about my first round of selections, indieWIRE @ Hulu Docs: Inspired by TIFF, here.
Category Archives: Recommendations
indieWIRE @ Hulu Docs
Filed under Documentary, Film, Indiewire @ Hulu Docs, Recommendations
Live at the Lounge with indieWIRE: COOL IT
During Toronto, indieWIRE is presenting a series of interviews at the TIFF Filmmakers Lounge on films featured in this year’s lineup. This Monday, September 13 at 1pm, I’ll be moderating a discussion on the film COOL IT with director Ondi Timoner and her film’s subject, Bjorn Lomborg, the controversial economist and political scientist whose book, Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalist’s Guide to Global Warming inspired the documentary. The outspoken Timoner’s previous docs, DIG! and WE LIVE IN PUBLIC, both claimed the Sundance Grand Jury Prize, so I’m looking forward to the film and to the talk. Come by if you’re attending the festival – the series is free for badgeholders.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations
Workshop: Documentaries & Film Festivals
On Wednesday, October 6, I’ll be leading a workshop for Raindance New York as part of their five course Documentary Production Certificate, covering funding, legal contracts, post-production, festivals, and marketing/self-distribution.
As the title of this post suggests, I’m covering film festivals. While the workshop description says it’s “about how to get your documentary into festivals,” that’s slightly overstating it – ultimately, your work gets your film into a festival, not some secret tricks. Instead, I’ll be trying to impart advice that can help documentarians make better decisions about positioning their projects for consideration – from selecting the right and wrong fests to which to apply, to demystifying the programming process so that you know what to spend your time and resources on, and what not to. In addition, I’ll offer some practical information about how to get the most out of attending a festival in which your film is screening.
Sign up for Documentaries & Film Festivals: What You Should Know.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations
Recommendations: Fall Releases
Earlier today, Paste Magazine posted a list of Ten Documentaries Coming to Theaters & DVD in Fall 2010, noting not incorrectly that “[a] decade ago, this would have been a list of Documentaries Your Video Store Might Eventually Carry.” It’s gratifying that audiences will have a chance to see a lot of great non-fiction work theatrically and on DVD/VOD over the next few months.
It’s a good list, including a number of films on the festival circuit over the past year that have generated acclaim and awards (LAST TRAIN HOME, MARWENCOL, BUDRUS) or controversy (CATFISH, INSIDE JOB), as well as yet-to-be-seen but highly anticipated films (I’M STILL HERE, SALINGER).
The list is worth a look (all but SALINGER include a trailer) and make sure to mark your calendar to check these out when they’re released. My top two picks of the films I’ve seen are MARWENCOL (pictured) and LAST TRAIN HOME – absolute must sees.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Stranger Than Fiction: Fall 2010
The duo behind the upcoming DOC NYC, Raphaela Neihausen and Thom Powers (also Toronto International Film Festival’s Documentary Programmer), have unveiled Stranger Than Fiction’s Fall 2010 line-up, beginning with a pre-season sneak peak of Barbara Kopple’s THE HOUSE OF STEINBRENNER on September 20th at the series’ home at the IFC Center.
On a personal note, I’m thrilled that THE CANAL STREET MADAM is part of STF this season, but beyond that, Powers and Neihausen continue to balance recent festival standouts (like fellow SXSW alums MARWENCOL and WAR DON DON) with modern classics like AMERICAN SPLENDOR and MARLENE.
STF is consistently a great series for NYC documentary fans – if you haven’t been yet, take a look (especially on Tuesday, October 19th – we’re planning on distributing our popular promo items!).
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
