Documentary

  • Sundance Film Festival Rock and Roll Documentary “MUSCLE SHOALS” Gets a Fall 2013 Release Date | TRAILER

    muscle-shoals

    The rock and roll documentary “MUSCLE SHOALS” which premiered earlier this year at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival will open September 27, 2013 at the IFC Center in NY and nationwide on VOD, and October 11th in LA. At the heart of the story is Rick Hall who managed to convince musical superstars like Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, and Etta James to come to Alabama and record their hit albums. He is responsible for creating the “Muscle Shoals sound” and The Swampers, the house band at FAME that eventually left to start their own successful studio

    Directed by Greg ‘Freddy” Camalier, “MUSCLE SHOALS” is a documentary about a place filled with magic and music, legend and folklore, where the river is inhabited by a Native American spirit who has lured some of the greatest Rock and Roll and Soul legends of all time, and drawn from them some of the most uplifting, defiant, and important music ever created. In Muscle Shoals, Alabama, music runs through the hills, the river, and the spirit of the people. It is a place where, even before the Civil Rights Movement really took shape, the color of your skin didn’t matter inside the studio.

    At its heart is Rick Hall who founded FAME Studios. Overcoming crushing poverty and staggering tragedies, Hall brought black and white together in Alabama’s cauldron of racial hostility to create music for the generations. He is responsible for creating the “Muscle Shoals sound” and The Swampers, the house band at FAME that eventually left to start their own successful studio.

    Aretha Franklin in Muscle ShoalsAretha Franklin in Muscle Shoals

    Jimmy Cliff, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Etta James, Alicia Keys, Wilson Pickett, The Rolling Stones, Bob Seger, Paul Simon, The Staple Singers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Percy Sledge and countless other stars have all been lured to this remote and mystical place in the backwoods of Alabama to work with the musicians and producers there.

    Raw and candid interviews, inspiring music, live performances, and the magic of the milieu itself capture and convey this tale. Interviewees include legendary musicians Gregg Allman, Bono, Clarence Carter, Jimmy Cliff, Aretha Franklin, Mick Jagger, Alicia Keys, Ed King, Keith Richards, Percy Sledge, and Steve Winwood among many others.

    http://youtu.be/jU09t0smAWI

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  • Anita Hill Documentary To Get a Fall 2013 Release

    Anita

    The documentary “ANITA,” which recently screened as part of the Human Rights Watch Film Festival following its Sundance Film Festival debut earlier this year will be released this Fall by Samuel Goldwyn Films.

    Directed by Freida Mock, “Anita” reveals a rare glimpse into her private life with friends and family; she speaks openly and intimately for the first time about her experiences that led her to testify before the Senate about sexual harassment she endured while working with U.S. Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas.

    Hill’s graphic testimony was a turning point for gender equality in the U.S. and ignited a political firestorm about sexual misconduct and power in the workplace.

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  • Comedy Documentary “THE MUSLIMS ARE COMING!” to Get A September Release | TRAILER

    THE MUSLIMS ARE COMING!, directed by comedians Negin Farsad and Dean Obeidallah

    THE MUSLIMS ARE COMING!, directed by comedians Negin Farsad  and Dean Obeidallah will open in theaters in September, with New York on September 20 at the Quad Cinema. The film follows a band of Muslim-American comedians – “Muzzies” – lead by Farsad and Obeidallah as they visit big cities, small towns, rural villages, and everything in between to combat Islamophobia with the only weapons they have:  jokes! 

    THE MUSLIMS ARE COMING! is a road movie, that follows a comedy tour of middle America. A traveling band of comedians visit big cities, small towns, liberal enclaves, conservative hotbeds, rural unincorporated villages, and everything in between to explore the issue of Islamophobia! They’ll perform, meet the locals, and take the pulse of real Americans.

    Islam has been duly tarnished by the mainstream media and the serious approach to repairing the political wedge hasn’t worked. We are so many years out of 9/11 and Muslim fear-mongering hasn’t dissipated. Whether it’s the mosque at Ground Zero, the perceived threat of Shariah Law, the NYPD surveillance of Muslim groups, or heated discussions of Muslims during presidential elections, the idea that Islam is somehow antithetical to American culture just won’t go away. THE MUSLIMS ARE COMING! wants to change the discourse by unleashes the power of punch lines in reaching out to middle America! If all you’ve ever heard about Islam is that it’s a dangerous religion, that women cover themselves, and that those shifty eyed Muslims have evil ulterior motives, this movie wants to give you a new stereotype. Yeah, this movie is going to convince you that Muslims are just a bunch of hilarious people. By the end of this movie, you’re gonna love the pants out of Muslims.

    In every town the comedians perform, using the stage as a sounding board not only for punchlines but for social commentary. Oh, and those shows are free – there are no barriers to entry with this gang. Each tour stop asks a particular question and examines an issue. The film is peppered with commentary from pop culture icons like the Daily Show’s Jon Stewart, David Cross, Janeane Garofalo, Colin Quinn, Lewis Black, Rachel Maddow, CNN’s Soledad O’Brien, Ali Velshi and the Young Turk’s Cenk Uygur as well as business tycoon Russell Simmons and even US Representative Keith Ellison.

    This group of Muzzie comics is dispatched not only to perform standup at each tour stop but to create ridiculous interventions in unsuspecting town squares, like the ol’ classic, Ask a Muslim Booth. Downtown Birmingham was treated to a game of “Name That Religion” where contestants are presented with quotes from major religious texts and asked to “name that religion.” The comedians break bread with locals, invite fine southerners to Bowl With a Muslim, and even shoot guns at the neighborhood range all in the name of bridge-building and communal laughs.

    The goal is to interact with people from a wide range of perspectives on the issue of Islam and highlight the various similarities between the major religions. At the end of the day, we all have daddy issues, all have too much credit card debt, and are all captivated by Instagram, Jeremy Lin, and Olympic curling. The only differences are on the margins, like yay or nay to pork. The ultimate goal: present an Americanized face of Islam, create awesomeness between Muslim- and non-Muslim Americans of all stripes, and get these crazy kids to fall in love (the crazy kids being Muslims and non-Muslims everywhere)! Rest assured, you’ve never laughed this hard at a Muslim!

    Sept. 12 Chicago – The Gene Siskel Cinema
    Sept. 13 Seattle – The Grand Illusion Cinema
    Sept. 14 Los Angeles – The Downtown Independent 
    Sept. 20 New York – The Quad Cinema

    Available on iTunes and Cable on Demand Sept. 24

    http://youtu.be/1brf79VyF40

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  • Sundance Selects to Release Photographer Vivian Maier Documentary | TRAILER

    finding-vivian-maier

    Sundance Selects will release John Maloof and Charlie Siskel’s feature documentary FINDING VIVIAN MAIER, which will have its world premiere in the Documentary section at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival.

    FINDING VIVIAN MAIER unearths the untold story of one of the greatest photographers of the 20th Century, who was a mystery to even those who knew her. A nanny in the wealthy North Shore suburbs of Chicago, Maier’s secret world is unraveled slowly through her photo collections and interviews with those who knew her — parents who hired her, children she cared for, store owners, movie theater operators, and curious neighbors who remember her. The story that emerges goes beyond clichés of the undiscovered artist to offer a portrait of a woman who left a legacy of transformative work.

    http://youtu.be/2o2nBhQ67Zc

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  • Johnny Cash Documentary “MY FATHER AND THE MAN IN BLACK” Gets a September 6 Release Date | TRAILER

    MY FATHER AND THE MAN IN BLACK

    Jonathan Holiff’s award winning documentary MY FATHER AND THE MAN IN BLACK which explores the relationship between Johnny Cash and his longtime manager Saul Holiff (the director’s father who committed suicide after being estranged for 20 years) will open in New York City and Los Angeles on September 6, 2013.

    Following his father’s suicide, director Jonathan Holiff discovers hundreds of letters and audio diaries, including recorded phone calls with Johnny Cash during his crazed pill-fueled 1960s jags, triumphs at Folsom and San Quentin, wedding to June Carter, and his conversion in the early 1970s to born-again Christian.

    These artifacts are revelatory, for the filmmaker and for us: a behind-the-scenes look at the business of music, the pitfalls of success and the tensions of a friendship that would eventually dissolve. Mixing found footage, creative re-enactments and poignant voice-over narration, the documentary tells a riveting story with creative means as well as an act of catharsis for its maker.

    http://youtu.be/jtovAxxPo2Q

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  • WATCH Trailer for Abortion Documentary “AFTER TILLER”

    AfterTiller 

    New trailer was released for Martha Shane’s and Lana Wilson’s directorial debut AFTER TILLER which premiered earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival. The film title refers to Dr. George Tiller, a Kansas doctor who provided late-term abortions and was assassinated by anti-abortion activist Scott Roeder in 2009. AFTER TILLER will be released in theaters September 20, 2013. 

    Since the assassination of Dr. George Tiller in Kansas in 2009, only four doctors in the United States continue to perform third-trimester abortions. These physicians, all colleagues of Dr. Tiller, sacrifice their safety and personal lives in the name of their fierce, unwavering conviction to help women. But for some in the pro-life movement, these doctors are “murderers” who must be stopped.

    http://youtu.be/4vbqXzxnqzU

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  • Documentary THE TRIALS OF MUHAMMAD ALI Gets a Late Summer 2013 Release Date

     The Trials of Muhammad Ali

    Bill Siegel’s documentary THE TRIALS OF MUHAMMAD ALI, that premiered earlier this year at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival will be released in the US by Kino Lorber. The documentary film opens in New York at the IFC Center on August 23rd with a national rollout planned through the summer and fall.

    THE TRIALS OF MUHAMMAD ALI is not a conventional sports documentary. As befitting its extraordinary and often complex subject, the film examines Ali’s life outside the boxing ring, beginning with the announcement of his deeply held Islamic religious beliefs which were a source of controversy, and his decision to change his name from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali. It explores his refusal to serve in the Vietnam war (after his conscientious objector status was denied) on the grounds of protesting the racial injustice at home, and captures his passion and anger in interviews and TV appearances culled from a rich variety of archival sources.

    Passionate and outspoken in his beliefs, Muhammad Ali found himself at the center of America’s controversies over race, religion, and war. THE TRIALS OF MUHAMMAD ALI gives audiences the chance to experience this remarkable figure who took a strong stance on difficult issues, and transcended his fame as a celebrated sports figure to become a leader of global humanitarian efforts. His remarkable story is told through archival footage of his supporters and spiritual leaders including Malcolm X and Elijah Muhammad, as well as opponents of his views such as Jackie Robinson and Joe Louis. The documentary also features new interviews with those who know and have worked with Ali, including his brother Rahman, his wife Khalilah Camacho-Ali, sports journalist Robert Lipsyte and Louis Farrakhan.

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  • Sony Pictures Classics to Release Lance Armstrong documentary, “THE ARMSTRONG LIE”

    lance-armstrong

    Alex Gibney’s Lance Armstrong documentary, THE ARMSTRONG LIE which tells the unfolding story of Armstrong’s life and career over the last four years.will be released by Sony Pictures Classics. No exact release date was announced.

    Lance Armstrong was considered one of the greatest sports figures of all time and put competitive cycling into the global spotlight, by beating cancer and winning the Tour de France seven times. That success earned him an immense fortune and worldwide fame. His was also one of the most influential and inspiring sports stories of recent memory and became a pop culture phenomenon, thanks to his Livestrong initiative. Beginning in 2009, Academy Award winning documentarian Alex Gibney followed Armstrong for four years chronicling his return to cycling after retirement, as he tried to win his eighth title. Unexpectedly, Gibney was also there in 2012 when Armstrong admitted to doping, following a federal criminal investigation, public accusations of doping by his ex-teammates, and an investigation by the US Anti-Doping Agency, that led USADA’s CEO, Travis Tygart, to conclude that Armstrong’s team had run “the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen.”

    What began as the chronicle of a comeback became an examination into the anatomy of a lie. This film offers unparalleled access to Armstrong’s former teammates, doctors, and professionals, many of whom have never before spoken to the media about Armstrong and his bombshell doping admission – as well as unprecedented access to Armstrong himself.

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  • Documentary “I AM BREATHING” Life-affirming film about man with ALS/Lou Gehrig’s Disease in Theaters This Fall 2013

    I AM BREATHING A Film By Emma Davie and Morag McKinnon

    The documentary “I AM BREATHING” which played at many prestigious international film festivals will make its U.S. theatrical premiere in New York Sept. 6-12 at IFC Center and in Los Angeles Sept. 13-19 at Laemmle Music Hall with additional national screenings to follow. In I AM BREATHING, filmmakers Emma Davie and Morag McKinnon craft a life-affirming portrait of the last months of Neil Platt, a 34-year-old architect and father from England diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s Disease also known as Motor Neuron Disease (MND) in the UK.

    I AM BREATHING is a film about a man, when faced with the unimaginable, shares his own story in what he called, “a tale of fun and laughs with a smattering of upset and devastation.” Within a year, Neil Platt goes from being a healthy 30-something British bloke, with a great sense of humor, to becoming completely paralyzed from the neck down, due to the devastating illness he has inherited, ALS. As his body gets weaker, his perspective on life changes. His humor remains, but a new wisdom emerges:

    “It’s amazing how adaptable we are when we have to be. It’s what separates us and defines us as human beings.”

    Knowing he only has a few months left to live, and while he still has the ability to speak, Neil puts together a letter and memory box for his baby son Oscar and communicates his experience and thoughts about life in a blog (The Plattitude) – and in this film, which he was determined to make. The directness of his communication mingles with images of the sensory details of a life well lived, and makes us revalue the ordinary.

    His blog posts form the film’s narration as he tells his own story through memories and impressions of his life – the sheer joy of falling in love, of partying with his mates, of fast motorbike rides. Through his determination to share his final journey, Neil makes us ask questions about our own lives.

    Neil Platt was diagnosed with ALS in February 2008 by Professor Chris Shaw. Sadly, Neil lost his own personal battle with the disease a year later, but through his family, friends and this documentary he wanted to continue to raise awareness around this devastating illness. ALS/MND has been described as the last truly incurable disease of the modern day. ALS/MND is a rapidly progressive and fatal disease. It can affect any adult at any time and attacks the motor neurons that send messages from the brain to the muscles, leaving people unable to walk, talk or feed themselves. Ten days after Neil died, Shaw made a very significant breakthrough in MND research by identifying one of the genes that causes it, and more discoveries are being made every day. Neil Platt was among the small proportion (5-10%) of people with MND who have a family history of the disease, caused by genetic mistakes that can be passed from one generation to the next.

    Since Neil’s death, his widow Louise Oswald continues to fulfill her final promise to Neil by continuing to raise awareness of ALS/MND. Louise is working closely with the filmmaking team on the outreach campaign, providing interviews for national press and making many personal appearances to speak at screenings.

    Since 2009 Louise has been writing a book about her experience of caring for her family in the eighteen months between the birth of her son and the death of her husband. Neil’s words join her in the latter part of the book as she adds comment to each entry of The Plattitude. Louise now lives in a small village near St. Andrews in Scotland with Oscar and her new husband Robin. Oscar is now in his first year of school.

    According to the ALS Association, every day, an average of 15 people are newly diagnosed with ALS — more than 5,600 people per year. As many as 30,000 Americans may currently be affected by ALS. Annually, ALS is responsible for two deaths per 100,000 people. More information at:  www.alsa.org/news/media/

     

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  • Documentary THE WAITING ROOM An Inside Look Behind the Doors of an Oakland Public Hospital, to Premiere on PBS

    the-waiting-room

    The documentary THE WAITING ROOM, directed by Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Peter Nicks, that goes behind the doors of Oakland’s Highland Hospital, a safety-net hospital fighting for survival while weathering the storm of a persistent economic downturn, premieres on Independent Lens on Monday, October 21, 2013 as part of the first PBS Independent Film Showcase. 

    Highland is the primary care facility for 250,000 patients of nearly every nationality, race, and religion, with 250 patients — most of them uninsured — crowding its emergency room every day.The film weaves together several stories from the hundreds being played out in the waiting room: a frightened child with a dangerous case of strep throat, a young man with a testicular tumor in desperate need of surgery, as well as those suffering from chronic conditions such as alcohol and drug abuse, heart disease, and diabetes. Young victims of gun violence take their turn alongside artists and uninsured small business owners. Steel workers, cab drivers and international asylum seekers crowd the halls.

    We also meet the overwhelmed hospital staff who cope with under-staffing, insufficient beds, and a never-ending stream of ER patients who jump to the head of the line of those sitting in the waiting room. As one doctor says, Highland is “the institution of last resort for so many people.”

     http://youtu.be/15Fn32l_At8

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  • Calvin & Hobbes Documentary “DEAR MR. WATTERSON” Gets A November 15 Release Date

    Dear Mr. Watterson

    The documentary “DEAR MR. WATTERSON,” directed by Joel Allen Schroeder, which explores the phenomenon of Bill Watterson’s popular 1980s and 1990s comic strip Calvin & Hobbes, will be released in theaters and VOD on November 15, 2013 by Gravitas Ventures.

    As described by the filmmakers:

    Calvin & Hobbes dominated the Sunday comics in thousands of newspapers for over 10 years, having a profound effect on millions of readers across the globe. When the strip’s creator, Bill Watterson, retired the strip on New Year’s Eve in 1995, devoted readers everywhere felt the void left by the departure of Calvin, Hobbes, and Watterson’s other cast of characters, and many fans would never find a satisfactory replacement.

    It has now been more than a decade since the end of the Calvin & Hobbes era. Bill Watterson has kept an extremely low profile during this time, living a very private life outside of Cleveland, Ohio. Despite his quiet lifestyle, Mr. Watterson is remembered and appreciated daily by fans who still enjoy his amazing collection of work.

    Mr. Watterson has inspired and influenced millions of people through Calvin & Hobbes. Newspaper readership and book sales can be tracked and recorded, but the human impact he has had and the value of his art are perhaps impossible to measure.

    This film is not a quest to find Bill Watterson, or to invade his privacy. It is an exploration to discover why his ‘simple’ comic strip made such an impact on so many readers in the 80s and 90s, and why it still means so much to us today.

    http://youtu.be/sRnnGfuS4vU

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  • Documentary ZIPPER Gets A Release Date

    zipper

    ZIPPER a documentary about “greed, politics, land use and public policy’ and the battle over the Coney Island amusement district in New York City will be in theaters this Summer. The film will open at the IFC Center in New York City on August 9th, 2013.

    Directed by Amy Nicholson, ZIPPER is described as a story about greed, politics and the land grab of the century, – chronicling the battle over an American cultural icon. On a small rented lot in the heart of Coney Island’s gritty amusement district, Eddie Miranda proudly operates a 38-year-old carnival contraption called the Zipper. When an opportunistic real estate mogul sets his sights on the property, Eddie and his ride – along with many of Coney Island’s eclectic small businesses – are forced to leave. 

    Behind the scenes, a high-stakes power struggle brews between the developer and the City of New York. Both see the redevelopment of Coney Island’s waterfront real estate as a lucrative opportunity. They lock horns when the City denounces the developer’s glitzy vision of condos and shopping, and ironically, hatches its own grand scheme to transform the area with the promise of housing and retail. The resulting standoff is a scary ride that leaves the future of the world-famous amusement park up in the air.
     
    Can a reinvented Coney Island remain the “People’s Playground?” Will the zeal to capitalize on Coney Island as a brand ultimately sanitize its unfettered spirit? Be it an affront to history or simply the path of progress, ZIPPER examines the high cost of economic development. In an increasingly corporate landscape where authenticity is often sacrificed in the interest of economic growth, the Zipper may be just the beginning of what is lost.
     
    http://youtu.be/nwqg_QAQUJs
     
    image via facebook

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