Documentary

AXS TV Premieres 9 Music Documentaries in Its New Reel to Real Series

[caption id="attachment_13712" align="aligncenter" width="1280"] Green Day “HEART LIKE A HAND GRENADE”[/caption] AXS TV, “the premier destination for music festivals and everything rock and roll”, expands its music based programming lineup with the launch of “Reel To Real” – an all-new series premiering a different critically acclaimed documentary on the last Tuesday of each month. “Reel to Real” is hosted by popular TV and radio personality Eddie Trunk (“That Metal Show”), who will be on hand to introduce every premiere, providing insights and facts about the production, the artists, the inspirations and the impact of each doc. The series kicks off on May 31 at 9pE, with GRAMMY(R)-winning punk rockers Green Day in HEART LIKE A HAND GRENADE. HEART LIKE A HAND GRENADE chronicles the making of the 2015 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Green Day’s George W. Bush-era protest album American Idiot. The album went on to win a GRAMMY(R) and was turned into a Broadway Musical of the same name. Other premieres include iconic guitarist Dave Navarro in MOURNING SON (June 28); THIS AIN’T NO MOUSE MUSIC! (July 12); AIN’T IN IT FOR MY HEALTH: A FILM ABOUT LEVON HELM (July 26); WHO IS HARRY NILSSON (AND WHY IS EVERYONE TALKIN’ ABOUT HIM)? (August 30); JASON BECKER: NOT DEAD YET (September 27); RADIO UNNAMEABLE (October 25); MUSIC FROM THE BIG HOUSE (November 29); and GENIUS WITHIN: THE INNER LIFE OF GLENN GOULD (December 27). “This destination night was specially crafted by music lovers for music lovers, with nine documentaries that grant a rare look at some of the most influential names in the industry,” said Jeff Cuban, COO of AXS TV. “Viewers will surely be enthralled by the openness of each of the artists as they welcome you into their lives, careers, and the creative process that got them to where they are. We’re excited to have Eddie Trunk on board, whose encyclopedic knowledge of all things music makes him the perfect host for this new venture.” “As a huge fan of all music documentaries I couldn’t be more thrilled to be hosting this great new series for AXS TV. I had a blast learning the stories of the eclectic group of artists featured in ‘Reel to Real’ and to have had the chance to add insights, observations, and comments, and in a few cases from the some of the artists themselves, was an incredible experience,” said Trunk. AXS TV’s complete “Reel To Real” programming lineup is as follows: HEART LIKE A HAND GRENADE (2015) – Tues., May 31 at 9pE Filmed over the course of 15 months, this art house-style feature provides an in-depth look at the making of Green Day’s landmark seventh album AMERICAN IDIOT, as the band enters the studio to record and discuss the music that would ultimately catapult them back into the mainstream and forever cement their status as true punk heroes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJkYThGQEUU MOURNING SON (2015) – Tues., June 28 at 9pE Jane’s Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro stars in this deeply heartfelt documentary, following his quest for healing and closure as he recalls the night his mother was murdered when he was just 15 years old, and the impact that it had on his early life, as he struggled to make peace with his traumatic through Art, drugs, and escapism. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1E6nnGZau5U THIS AIN’T NO MOUSE MUSIC! (2013) – Tues., July 12 at 9pE How did a German count become one of the figureheads of Blues and Cajun music? In this entertaining doc, roots hero Chris Strachwitz recalls his escape to America at 16, where he was introduced to a scene and culture unbeknownst to many, sparking a lifelong love affair and a mission to bring the musical soul of America to the masses. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYyNAgs4T5o AIN’T IN IT FOR MY HEALTH: A FILM ABOUT LEVON HELM (2010) – Tues., July 26 at 9pE Filmmaker Jacob Hatley captures the final years of rock n’ roll pioneer Levon Helm, founding member of the influential roots rock quintet The Band, in this honest portrait detailing his fight to regain his voice after surviving throat cancer, his legendary career, and his frustration that The Band never received the acclaim they deserved. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yVOn1udgic WHO IS HARRY NILSSON (AND WHY IS EVERYONE TALKIN’ ABOUT HIM)? (2006) – Tues., Aug. 30 at 9pE GRAMMY-winner Harry Nilsson is remembered by an all-star roster of his closest friends and collaborators – including Robin Williams, Brian Wilson, Yoko Ono, Eric Idle, The Smothers Brothers, and more – as they discuss the tremendous highs and devastating lows of the songwriter many consider to be one of the greatest of all time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoFpvG5fb-0 JASON BECKER: NOT DEAD YET (2012) – Tues., Sept. 27 at 9pE After being diagnosed with ALS at 19, doctors said guitar virtuoso Jason Becker would never play again. Six years later, despite having lost the ability to move and speak, Becker released the first of two full-length albums. This uplifting doc takes viewers inside Becker’s inspirational journey, as he continues to defy the odds for the Art he loves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twaqqZSj8aU RADIO UNNAMEABLE (2012) – Tues., Oct. 25 at 9pE Free-form pioneer Bob Fass revolutionized the airwaves in 1963 with the launch of the groundbreaking Radio Unnameable program – an eclectic haven for music, politics, and culture, where artists and activists converged, and listeners were an integral part of the show. Over 50 years later, Fass remains behind the mic, redefining what radio really is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jF9OuKgC1Io MUSIC FROM THE BIG HOUSE (2010) – Tues., Nov. 29 at 9pE Go behind bars with Blues icon Rita Chiarelli, as she explores the impact of the form on some of the most violent inmates in one of America’s most notorious institutions: Angola Prison. Chiarelli bravely gets these men to open up about the hope they’ve found in the Blues, before joining four of Angola’s best bands for an unforgettable collaboration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NP1asvba4Ck GENIUS WITHIN: THE INNER LIFE OF GLENN GOULD (2010) – Tues., Dec. 27 at 9pE Using archived footage and personal home movies, this film pieces together the fascinating life of pianist Glenn Gould, whose upbringing as a child prodigy rocketed him into an unparalleled level of fame, masking an inner struggle as he dealt with depression, strokes, and hypochondria, leading to his untimely death at the age of 50. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=199G40DuYvQ
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Katie Couric Produced UNDER THE GUN To TV Premiere on EPIX

Under the Gun, a provocative new documentary from Katie Couric and Stephanie Soechtig that presents a balanced look at the gun debate will World Television Premiere on EPIX. The feature length documentary, which received significant praise and attention at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, makes its World Television Premiere on EPIX and across all EPIX platforms on May 15 at 8pm ET/PT, 7C during the EPIX Free Preview Weekend (May 12-15). In Under the Gun, Katie Couric (Executive producer and narrator of the 2014 documentary Fed Up, Yahoo Global News Anchor, best-selling author) and Stephanie Soechtig (Fed Up, Tapped) – the team responsible for Fed Up, which looked at the food industry and the alarming spread of childhood obesity – examine why, despite the increase in deaths at the hands of guns and the outpouring of shock and outrage that comes with it, our nation has failed to respond with meaningful action. What is keeping the two sides of this debate – those favoring stricter gun control laws and Second Amendment purists like the NRA – from finding common ground? Through the lens of families impacted by the mass shootings in Newtown, Aurora, Isla Vista and Tucson, as well as daily gun violence in Chicago, the film examines why our national politicians are refusing to act and what is being done at the state and local levels. Subjects and organizations featured in the documentary include: Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly (Americans for Responsible Solutions); Jackie and Mark Barden (Sandy Hook Promise); Sandy and Lonnie Phillips (Jessi’s Message); John Feinblatt and Richard Martinez (Everytown for Gun Safety); Victoria Montgomery (Open Carry Texas); Shannon Watts (Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America); Pamela and Tom Bosley (Purpose Over Pain); The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and Law Center To Prevent Gun Violence. Mark S. Greenberg, President & CEO of EPIX, said: “During this Presidential election year, we at EPIX want to contribute to the national dialogue on the major issues affecting our country today. I can think of no more pressing subject than gun violence, and I am extremely proud to bring Under the Gun to EPIX viewers. The gun debate, with its core issues of gun rights and gun violence, is one of the most polarizing taking place in our society today. In Under the Gun, Katie and Stephanie bring their dynamic talent and perspective to this complex, multi-faceted issue and present honest, unbiased, and thoughtful commentary to this subject that has real life or death consequences.” Katie Couric said: “I’ve covered mass shootings and gun violence throughout my career, but following the massacre at Sandy Hook, I was confused by the disconnect between public opinion (over 90% of Americans supported universal background checks) and public policy. I hope this film will help people have a better understanding of how we got to this point. Now is the time for a truly informed, rational conversation about gun violence and I’m thrilled EPIX and Lionsgate are committed to making this film available to the widest audience possible so we can do just that.” Stephanie Soechtig said: “We are pleased to make EPIX the home for Under the Gun. As both filmmakers and citizens who are deeply concerned about this issue, it was important for us that our film be seen by the widest possible audience. EPIX showed a unique willingness and commitment to make Under the Gun available to the entire country – for free – by premiering it during EPIX’s nationwide free preview. Making our film available to anyone with an Internet connection was something that no service or network other than EPIX was willing to do. Their belief in this cause, and the passion that they bring to it, made them the obvious choice for Katie and me.” The filmmakers decided not to mention the names, nor show the photos, of any shooters. Key facts explored in Under the Gun include: Gun violence is the second leading cause of death among children aged 10-19 in the U.S. (Source: Children’s Defense Fund — the first leading cause is unintentional injuries/accidents) 93% of Americans support requiring background checks for all gun buyers, including 84% of gun owners and 74% of NRA members. (Sources: Quinnipiac, 2015 and John Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research, 2013) 90% of guns used in crimes can reportedly be traced back to just 5% of gun dealers. (Source: Brady Campaign) The manufacture and distribution of teddy bears is more tightly regulated for health and safety than handguns. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uqkwo3Xr2C4 Under the Gun is produced by Atlas Films in association with Carellie Productions and directed by Stephanie Soechtig. Katie Couric, Regina K. Scully, Michael Walrath and Michelle Walrath are the executive producers. Olivia Ahnemann, Joshua Kunau, Kristin Lazure and Soechtig are the producers. The screenplay is by Mark Monroe, Brian Lazarte and Soechtig. The director of photography is Josh Salzman, the editor is Brian Lazarte and music is by Brian Tyler. Katie Couric is the narrator.
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THE GOD CELLS Documentary Tackling Stem Cell Issue to Open In Theaters in June | TRAILER

THE GOD CELLS, a film directed by award-winning documentary filmmaker, Eric Merola will open at Cinema Village in New York on June 3rd and at Laemmle Music Hall in Los Angeles on June 10. A national release will follow. THE GOD CELLS explores one of the most controversial and polarizing subjects facing mankind today: the harvesting of stem cells from aborted fetuses to be used for therapeutic use. Currently, the clinical practice fetal stem cell therapy is illegal in the United States, but research toward seeking FDA-approval has been underway for more than a decade. Stem Cell research and therapy have been growing at a rapid rate over the past 15 years. Scientific advances coupled with consumer demand has proven that stem cell therapy is the wave of the future, and is poised to change the face of medicine. THE GOD CELLS takes the audience on a journey by following those who are seeking fetal stem cell therapy abroad—while avoiding these seemingly insurmountable roadblocks at home. Originally harvested by abortions, Fetal Stem Cells are arguably the most contested and controversial form of stem cell therapy to date. Not only does this technology face enormous religious opposition, but commercial and regulatory agencies wish to slow down the approval process for fetal stem cells due to profit and market reasons— creating an atmosphere for a seemingly insurmountable dilemma. The documentary follows patients from all walks of life who sought fetal stem cells for a variety of reasons: including Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Lupus and Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Also included are interviews with some of the patients’ doctors, who were once highly skeptical, but now stand baffled by the full remissions their patients have achieved due to fetal stem cells. Eric Merola’s previous films within the same genre of THE GOD CELLS have garnered wide audiences, starting with his debut documentary series Burzynski (2010-2013), which has been viewed by millions, and sparking an international movement. Merola’s third documentary Second Opinion received rave reviews by the mainstream press with the New York Daily News saying: “Though a documentary, it’s dramatic enough to be reminiscent of ‘The Insider,’ the whistleblowing thriller about Big Tobacco.” The God Cells far exceeds the scope of anything else Merola has produced or that mainstream audiences have experienced. It has it all: religious conflict, scientific controversy, and a message that could bring down the pharmaceutical industry itself: because any patient with any ailment can seek this therapy; and any group with the proper resources can provide it. In a sentence, “this movie will piss off more people for more reasons than we can count—while also giving hope to countless others who once thought their declining health situation was hopeless.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08H0ih490RY
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EVA HESSE Documentary Sets Release Date | TRAILER

[caption id="attachment_12003" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] EVA HESSE[/caption] EVA HESSE, a documentary film by Marcie Begleiter, about the art and life of Eva Hesse will be released in the U.S. in April by Zeitgeist Films. EVA HESSE will open at Film Forum in New York on April 27, and at Laemmle Monica Film Center on May 13. Many other cities will follow. As the wild ride of the 1960’s came to a close, Eva Hesse was cresting the wave of a swiftly rising career. One of the few women recognized as central to the New York art scene, she had over 20 group shows scheduled for 1970 in addition to being chosen for a cover article in ArtForum Magazine. Her work was finally receiving both the critical and commercial attention it deserved. EVA HESSE deepens the understanding of this extraordinary artist, not only in terms of her ground-breaking work, but also the life that provided the fertile soil for her achievements. With dozens of new interviews, high quality footage of Hesse’s artwork and a wealth of newly discoverd archival imagery, the documentary not only traces Eva’s path but engages in a lively investigation into the creative community of 1960’s New York and Germany. Born in Hamburg in 1936 to a German-Jewish family, the artist’s fierce work ethic may have developed from a complex psychology that was formed, in part, as a Jew born in Nazi Germany. Having escaped the fate of her extended family, Eva and her older sister Helen were sent out on one of the last Kindertransports (trains that carried Jewish children to safety) and was eventually reunited with their parents in Holland. They made their way to New York in 1940 but her family struggled to make a new home. The remaining years of Hesse’s youth were difficult, and through dealing with these challenges she discovered herself as an artist early in life. The passion and serious attention she gave to her work led her first to Yale and then to playing a central part in the New York art scene of the sixties. Hesse’s cohort, major artists such as Dan Graham, Richard Serra, Nancy Holt, Carl Andre, Robert and Sylvia Plimack Mangold, Eva’s husband Tom Doyle and her friend, writer Lucy Lippard, speak candidly and with great passion about the 60’s, Eva’s work and her life. When Eva Hesse died in May 1970, at 34 years of age from a brain tumor, the life of one of that decade’s most passionate and brilliant artists was tragically cut short. As Jonathon Keats wrote in Art and Antiques Magazine “Yet the end of her life proved to be only the beginning of her career.” Her work is now held by many important museum collections including the Whitney, MoMA, the Hirschhorn, the Pompidou in Paris and London’s Tate Modern and Cologne’s Ludwig Museum. 2016 is proving to be a banner year for Eva Hesse; in addition to the film’s domestic and international release, “Diaries” a book of her journal entries will be published in May by Yale University Press. Also, the artist’s work is included in many landmark exhibitions this year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aov6R8qmf10
EVA HESSE Director’s statement:
I have an abiding interest in the art and life of Eva Hesse. The work moves me deeply in the mysterious way that powerful art can function. It’s hard to categorize; inhabiting a space that moves fluidly between media and ideas. The work made me want to know more about the artist and that led to Lucy Lippard’s “Eva Hesse”, the first book written on the artist after her early death in 1970. This volume includes fragments from Hesse’s unpublished journals and quotes from the single interview she gave in her lifetime. I connected strongly with the voice and heart that came through in these short quotes and began to search out more material from Hesse’s archive. Like Eva, I also have roots in the European Jewish community, a history that comes with many opportunities as well as inherent challenges. The female perspective is also very strong in her writing as is her ambition and bravery. No biography in English has been published, so I decided to go visit those unpublished journals at the Allen Memorial Art Museum in Oberlin, Ohio where they are housed. Given a pair of white gloves, I sat for a week in their rare manuscripts library, reading through hundreds of pages. The journals told a deep and compelling story about this remarkable woman’s journey. It was characterized by loss, but more importantly for me, by a triumphant commitment to work and living life to its fullest. By week’s end I had fallen for the woman as I had for the work and began a series of projects of which this film is the latest incarnation.
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WE LIKE IT LIKE THAT: THE STORY OF LATIN BOOGALOO Sets Release Date of March 15 | TRAILER

[caption id="attachment_11932" align="aligncenter" width="1280"] WE LIKE IT LIKE THAT[/caption] Award-winning documentary WE LIKE IT LIKE THAT will be released on iTunes and VOD nationwide on March 15. Directed by Mathew Ramirez Warren, WE LIKE IT LIKE THAT tells the story of Latin boogaloo, a colorful expression of 1960s Latino soul, straight from the streets of New York City. From its origins to its recent resurgence, it’s the story of a sound that redefined a generation and was too funky to keep down. WE LIKE IT LIKE THAT explores this fascinating, though often overlooked, bridge in Latin music history, showcasing the musical style that was born in the barrios of NYC and would eventually spawn a generation of chart-topping music artists and a global music movement that is once again alive and well today. In the 1960s, a generation of musicians from East Harlem, the South Bronx and parts of Brooklyn fused Afro-Cuban music with R&B, jazz, funk and rock to create Latin boogaloo. It was a period of revolution and social awakening and young Latinos in search of their identity adopted Latin boogaloo as their soundtrack. Much of this music was released by Alegre, Cotique and Fania Records during the 1960s and 70s. But as salsa, a more traditional style of Latin music, grew in popularity by the 1970s, some say the Latin boogaloo was killed off, not by the fans, but by cultural and industry politics. By the 2000s, after decades of obscurity, the artists who made Latin boogaloo popular finally began to get the recognition they deserved, with the help of DJs and new bands such as DJ Turmix, The Boogaloo Assassins and Ray Lugo & the Boogaloo Destroyers, that pay tribute to the genre. The cast of musicians and their personal stories told in We Like it Like Thatare as vibrant and enduring as the unforgettable rhythms they created. Some of the notable artists include Joe Bataan, a former gang leader who spent several years in prison before starting a band and becoming known as the “King of Latin Soul” and continues to be one of the most popular and active Latin boogaloo luminaries working today; Ricardo Ray, a Juilliard trained piano player who along with his singer, Bobby Cruz, recorded the first known Latin boogaloo “Lookie, Lookie” and went on to enjoy international fame in Latin music; Johnny Colon, the influential multi-instrumentalist, composer and bandleader who was a key player in the boogaloo scene and behind the first major latin boogaloo hit, “Boogaloo Blues,” a controversial song at the time for its chorus “LSD’s got a hold on me;” Jimmy Sabater, the late singer and percussionist for the Joe Cuba Sextet who helped write “Bang Bang,” the first boogaloo song to break through as a national hit; Pete Rodriguez, the bandleader whose group created “I Like it Like That,” the biggest Latin boogaloo hit of the 1960s and a repeat chart topper when it was covered in the 1990s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c–UlUha8nY Additionally on March 11, “We Like It Like That: The Story of Latin Boogaloo Volume One” original motion picture soundtrack will be released digitally on Fania Records, featuring 14 classic latin boogaloo tracks from legendary music icons featured in the film such as Pete Rodriguez (“I Like It Like That”), Joe Bataan (“Ordinary Guy,” “Subway Joe”), Richie Ray (“Lookie Lookie”), Ray Barretto (“New York Soul”), Eddie Palmieri (“Azucar”), LeBron Brothers (“Summertime Blues”) and more.
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Monty Python Terry Jones’ Doc BOOM BUST BOOM About 2008 Economic Crash Opens March 11 | TRAILER

[caption id="attachment_11892" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] BOOM BUST BOOM[/caption] Monty Python Terry Jones’ new feature documentary BOOM BUST BOOM investigates the worldwide economic crash of 2008, and how we can avoid another global collapse in the future. BOOM BUST BOOM will open theatrically on March 11 in New York (Village East Cinema), followed by release on iTunes and On Demand on March 15. Analyzing the direct link between the unstable financial system and our reliance on mainstream economics, the film puts a spotlight on the mistakes of the past some politicians and central bankers would like us to forget. A mix of live action, animation, puppetry and song, the film charts the ancient cycle of boom and bust and offers the world a solution. BOOM BUST BOOM features high profile advocates for change such as John Cusack, journalists Paul Mason and John Cassidy plus leading experts including the Chief Economist of the Bank of England, Andy Haldane, and Nobel Prize winners Daniel Kahneman, Robert Shiller and Paul Krugman. The documentary is a result of a meeting between writer, director, historian and Python Jones and economics professor and entrepreneur Theo Kocken, BOOM BUST BOOM is co-written by Jones and Kocken and co-directed by Jones with son Bill Jones and Ben Timlett, AKA Bill & Ben Productions. Inspired by the film, students from Rethinking Economics (who also appear in BOOM BUST BOOM) announce a brand new current affairs and education website, launching in late March. Economy will be a rich mix of new and diverse content with a global perspective from comedy pieces and live event video to vox-pops, innovative social content, explainers, commentary plus art & illustration. With support from BOOM BUST BOOM executive producers Cardano Education, Economy is on a mission to change the way we think about economics and make it more relevant to people’s lives. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XtnZDNXCKM
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Powerful Doc THEY WILL HAVE TO KILL US FIRST: MALIAN MUSIC IN EXILE Gets U.S. Release Date | TRAILER

[caption id="attachment_11886" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] They Will Have To Kill Us First: Malian Music in Exile[/caption] Timed to Music Freedom Day 2016, BBC Worldwide North America will release Johanna Schwartz’s “timely and powerful” feature documentary They Will Have To Kill Us First: Malian Music in Exile. They Will Have To Kill Us First: Malian Music in Exile will open theatrically on March 4 in New York (Village East Cinema) and April 1 in Los Angeles (Laemmle Santa Monica Theater) with additional markets to follow. Music is the beating heart of Malian culture, but when Islamic jihadists took control of northern Mali in 2012, they enforced one of the harshest interpretations of sharia law by banning all forms of music. Radio stations were destroyed, instruments burned, and Mali’s musicians faced torture, even death. Overnight, the country’s revered musicians were forced into hiding or exile, where most remain — even now. But rather than laying down their instruments, these courageous artists fought back, standing up for their freedoms and using music as a weapon against the ongoing violence that has ravaged their homeland. They Will Have To Kill Us First is director Schwartz’s debut feature, and follows Songhoy Blues andmusicians Kharia Arby, Fadimata “Disco” Walet Oumar,and Moussa Sidi as they each deal with the unfathomable situation in different ways. Telling the story of the uprising of Touareg separatists, revealing footage of the jihadists, and capturing life at refugee camps where both money and hope are scarce, Schwartz and her indefatigable, mainly female, crew chart the perilous journeys to war-ravaged cities, as some of Mali’s most talented musicians set up and perform at the first public concert in Timbuktu since the music ban. Co-written by Schwartz and Andy Morgan, renowned journalist and former manager of Grammy® Award winning band Tinariwen, They Will Have To Kill Us First is produced by Sarah Mosses of Together Films and executive produced by Andre Singer (The Act of Killing) alongside Stephen Hendel, Victoria Steventon, OKAY Africa and Knitting Factory Entertainment. They Will Have To Kill Us First: Malian Music in Exile, features an original score by Nick Zinner (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), and a commissioned soundtrack featuring Songhoy Blues, Kharia Arby, Fadimata “Disco” Walet Oumar, Moussa Sidi and many more to be released on March 4 timed to the film’s release and Music Freedom Day 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TX7ybW6nAQ
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“LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER!” A Film About Mother/Daughter Relationship & Forgiveness Opens April 8 | TRAILER

[caption id="attachment_11882" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER!, a film by Gayle Kirschenbaum[/caption] LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER!, by Gayle Kirschenbaum, and a hit at film festivals around the world and winner of numerous awards, will be released in the U.S. by Kirschenbaum Productions. LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER! will open in New York at the Village East and in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Monica Film Center in Santa Monica and Town Center 5 in Encino on April 8. Other cities will follow. What trauma could make a child certain that she was born into the wrong family? What wounds are inflicted when the home that’s supposed to be a haven isolates her as an outsider; when her mother’s words are rarely nurturing but instead, ruthlessly shaming, demeaning and critical? What will it take for the adult that child becomes to forgive such a past? Is forgiveness even possible? This is the dilemma that Emmy® award-winning filmmaker Gayle Kirschenbaum faces in her relentlessly honest and bitingly funny documentary, LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER! Her film is about the transformation of a highly charged mother/daughter relationship from Mommie Dearest to Dear Mom, from hatred to love. The documentary is the expanded version of the funny, award-winning festival favorite film, MY NOSE, in which we follow her mother’s relentless campaign to get Gayle to have a nose job. LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER! is comprised primarily of decades-worth of intimate family home movies and videos—from 8 mm film coverage of Gayle’s outwardly “Leave it to Beaver-esque” childhood in an upwardly-mobile Long Island suburb, to personal family celebrations, fights, and even tragedies right up to the present—it’s the story of one determined woman’s quest to reconcile with and understand her past, which means forgiving her proud, narcissistic and formidable elderly mother, Mildred. With raw courage and equal parts humor and pathos, Gayle invites the audience to take this epic journey along with her. Gayle is determined to unlock the key to her family’s pain and crack open her mother’s brittle shell. When Mildred grudgingly agrees to participate in the process, the two of them (with the help of a therapist) uncover shocking family secrets and long-buried suffering that throw their family history into sharp relief, and begin to shift the dynamics of their complex relationship. The specter of loss haunts the film almost as strongly as the pain of criticism: Mildred’s still a powerhouse well into her ninth decade, but Gayle knows her mother won’t be around forever. Can she learn to understand, love and forgive her mother—before it’s too late? LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER! may be about one mother-daughter relationship, but its insights and lessons are universal. In order to move forward into the future, we all have to forgive what happened in our pasts. Gayle Kirschenbaum brings her unique brand of fearless honesty and laugh-aloud humor to a film that took decades to shoot, about a relationship that took a lifetime to mend. https://vimeo.com/119594942
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Award-Winning Film RABIN IN HIS OWN WORDS, to Open in U.S. on May 6th

[caption id="attachment_11865" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Yitzhak Rabin, Bill Clinton, and Yasser Arafat during the Oslo Accords on 13 September 1993[/caption] 20 years after his assassination, Yitzhak Rabin himself tells his dramatic life story in RABIN IN HIS OWN WORDS, a film by Erez Laufer, that is set for release in the U.S. by Menemsha Films. Winner – Best Documentary at the Haifa International Film Festival 2015, RABIN IN HIS OWN WORDS will open at the Lincoln Plaza Cinema in New York and Laemmle Royal and Town Center 5 in Los Angeles, as well as in South Florida, on May 6th. A national release will follow. RABIN IN HIS OWN WORDS is an “autobiography” of sorts, the story is told entirely in Rabin’s own voice. Through a combination of rare archival footage, home movies and private letters, his personal and professional dramas unfold before the viewer’s eyes – from his childhood as the son of a labor leader before the founding of the State of Israel, through a change of viewpoint that turned him from a farmer into an army man who stood at some of the most critical junctures in Israeli history. Through a brilliant diplomatic career as Israeli Ambassador to the United States and his entry into the Israeli political arena, and through his later years during which he served as Prime Minister, opposition leader, Minister of Defense and Prime Minister once more, in which he made moves that enraged a large portion of the public, until the horrific moment when his political career and life were suddenly brought to an end. RABIN IN HIS OWN WORDS brings the man – flesh and blood – back to life, if only momentarily. The film relays the personal and political life of the man and the myth – as he lived it. Like any good protagonist, his narrative is well rounded: sacrifice, heroism, hubris, humor and heartache. Yitzhak Rabin was a complex, contradictory character: honest, innocent and timid while forceful, determined and resilient; a loyal friend who spent much of his time in solitude; blessed with a sense of resolve paralleled only by the doubt that shadowed it; calm and collected like a dormant volcano bound to erupt one day; courteous and contained, he was a gentleman with the fiery temperament of a red-head. The film combines rare archives that, since they were originally broadcasted 40 years ago, have not been seen or heard, a private 8 mm mostly shot by Rabin, a super 8 mm of Rabin in color in 1948 shot by American couple visiting Israel, and private letters to his sister his father and to his wife Leah. The director Erez Laufer is the co-Editor of two Oscar nominees for Best Documentary: Chris Hegedus and D. A. Pennebaker’s The War Room (1993) and Laura Poitras’ My Country My Country (2006) His own film Mike Brant, Laisse-moi t’aimer won the 2002 Israeli Academy Award for Best Documentary, and had its international premiere at the Directors Fortnight, Cannes Film Festival 2003.
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HOCKNEY, A Documentary about David Hockney’s Life & Art Sets U.S. Release Date | TRAILER

HOCKNEY, a documentary film by Randall Wright (Lucian Freud: A Painted Life), will be released in the U.S. by Film Movement. After screening at Outfest, London, Vancouver, Palm Springs film festivals among others, the film will open at the Film Society of Lincoln Center and at Metrograph in New York, and at Laemmle Royal, Playhouse 7 and Noho 7 in Los Angeles on April 22, 2016. A national release will follow. HOCKNEY is the definitive exploration of one of the most significant artists of his generation. For the first time, David Hockney has given access to his personal archive of photographs and film, resulting in an unparalleled visual diary of his life. The film chronicles Hockney’s vast career, from his early life in working-class Bradford, where his love for pictures was developed through his admiration for cinema, to his relocation to Hollywood where his life long struggle to escape labels (‘queer’, ‘working class’, ‘figurative artist’) was fully realized. David Hockney offers theories about art, the universe, and everything: “I’m interested in ways of looking and trying to think of it in simple ways. If you can communicate that, of course people will respond; after all, everybody does look.“ But as HOCKNEY reveals, it’s the hidden self-interrogation that gives his famously optimistic pictures their unexpected edge and attack. The documentary traces the artist’s journey to live the American or Californian dream, yet paradoxically reveals that he never broke ties with the childhood that formed him. Did Yorkshire awkwardness in his blood give him the willpower to survive relationship problems, and later the AIDS plague that killed the majority of his friends? Acclaimed filmmaker Randall Wright offers a unique view of this unconventional artist who is now reaching new peaks of popularity worldwide, and, at 78, is as charismatic as ever, working in the studio seven days a week. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUsjBK3q58k
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Dance Documentary MR. GAGA to Premiere at 2016 SXSW Film Festival | TRAILER

[caption id="attachment_11828" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] MR. GAGA, Tomer Heymann[/caption] MR. GAGA, the latest feature documentary from acclaimed director Tomer Heymann, will have its North American Premiere at the SXSW Film Festival on Friday, March 11, 2016. Heymann’s prior film Who’s Gonna Love Me Now? was recently honored with the Panorama Audience Award for Best Documentary at the 2016 Berlin International Film Festival, the same award he won in 2006 for Paper Dolls. MR. GAGA is an intimate exploration of the life and work of famed choreographer Ohad Naharin, the elusive artistic genius who created the popular Gaga dance movement. Eight years in the making, the film utilizes intimate rehearsal footage, extensive unseen archive material and stunning, large-scale dance sequences to reveal the fascinating life story of one of modern dance’s iconic pioneers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6gd8xpFMsM
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Israeli Film VITA ACTIVA: THE SPIRIT OF HANNAH ARENDT to be Released in the U.S. | TRAILER

[caption id="attachment_11824" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] VITA ACTIVA: THE SPIRIT OF HANNAH ARENDT[/caption] VITA ACTIVA: THE SPIRIT OF HANNAH ARENDT, directed by Ada Ushpiz will be released in the U.S. by Zeitgeist Films. Official selection at Jerusalem and Munich film festivals, as well as at IDFA, and winner – Best Documentary – at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, VITA ACTIVA will open at Film Forum in NYC on April 6 and at the Laemmle Monica Film Center in LA on April 29. A national release will follow. The German-Jewish philosopher Hannah Arendt caused an uproar in the 1960s by coining the subversive concept of the “Banality of Evil” when referring to the trial of Adolph Eichmann, which she covered for the New Yorker magazine. Her private life was no less controversial thanks to her early love affair with the renowned German philosopher and Nazi supporter Martin Heidegger. This thought provoking and spirited documentary, with its abundance of archival materials, offers an intimate portrait of the whole of Arendt’s life, traveling to places where she lived, worked, loved, and was betrayed, as she wrote about the open wounds of modern times. Through her books, which are still widely read and the recent release of Margarethe von Trotta’s biopic HANNAH ARENDT (also a Zeitgeist Films release) there is renewed interest in Arendt throughout the world, especially among young people who find her insights into the nature of evil, totalitarianism, ideologies, and the perils faced by refugees, more relevant than ever. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J6YWRTrnf4 Filmmaker Ada Ushpiz is a renowned Israeli film producer and director. She has a B.A. in philosophy and M.A. in history from Tel Aviv University and a significant journalistic experience in political-social writing for the prestigious Ha’aretz newspaper. She directed a number of remarkable documentaries in recent years – Detained(2001), Bloody Engagement (2004), Desert Brides (2008) and Good Garbage (2012) – which have been awarded numerous awards in Israel and around the world.
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Documentary

EVA HESSE Director’s statement: