The documentary The Secret Life of Lance Letscher, is a deeply personal and psychological portrait of internationally-renowned collage artist Lance Letscher, told through biographical memories of trauma and triumph. Featuring interviews with collectors, fellow artists, art critics and friends, the film provides a doorway into Letscher’s unique artistry and his brilliant mind. The critically acclaimed documentary from director Sandra Adair, will debut on Ovation, America’s only arts network, as the “Artists and Icons” movie of the week on Sunday, November 19, 2017 at 7pm ET / 4pm PT.
The Secret Life of Lance Letscher, includes images of more than a hundred of his intricate and complex collages, sculptures and installations. Letscher is internationally famous for taking bits of old books, magazines, newspaper clippings, old letters, catalogues, posters, album covers and other found objects from flea markets and junk yards across Texas and assembling them into startlingly intricate art. He has exhibited extensively across the U.S. and abroad including Austin, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, as well as in London, Brussels, Munich and Barcelona and his works are represented in the collections of the Austin Museum of Art, Austin and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
The documentary film is directed, produced and edited by Sandra Adair, A.C.E. Adair is an Academy Award-nominated feature film editor (Boyhood) and is making her directorial debut with The Secret Life of Lance Letscher.
Films
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Documentary THE SECRET LIFE OF LANCE LETSCHER Will Premiere on Ovation [TRAILER]
The documentary The Secret Life of Lance Letscher, is a deeply personal and psychological portrait of internationally-renowned collage artist Lance Letscher, told through biographical memories of trauma and triumph. Featuring interviews with collectors, fellow artists, art critics and friends, the film provides a doorway into Letscher’s unique artistry and his brilliant mind. The critically acclaimed documentary from director Sandra Adair, will debut on Ovation, America’s only arts network, as the “Artists and Icons” movie of the week on Sunday, November 19, 2017 at 7pm ET / 4pm PT.
The Secret Life of Lance Letscher, includes images of more than a hundred of his intricate and complex collages, sculptures and installations. Letscher is internationally famous for taking bits of old books, magazines, newspaper clippings, old letters, catalogues, posters, album covers and other found objects from flea markets and junk yards across Texas and assembling them into startlingly intricate art. He has exhibited extensively across the U.S. and abroad including Austin, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, as well as in London, Brussels, Munich and Barcelona and his works are represented in the collections of the Austin Museum of Art, Austin and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
The documentary film is directed, produced and edited by Sandra Adair, A.C.E. Adair is an Academy Award-nominated feature film editor (Boyhood) and is making her directorial debut with The Secret Life of Lance Letscher.
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VIDEO: Watch New Trailer for Uplifting Family Romance FOREVER MY GIRL
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Forever My Girl[/caption]
A new trailer is here for the uplifting family romance Forever My Girl which will be released wide in theaters on January 19, 2018.
Forever My Girl tells the story of music super-star Liam Page (Alex Roe) who left his bride, Josie (Jessica Rothe), at the altar choosing fame and fortune instead. However, Liam never got over Josie, his one true love, nor did he ever forget his Southern roots in the small community where he was born and raised. When he unexpectedly returns to his hometown for the funeral of his high school best friend, Liam is suddenly faced with the consequences of all that he left behind.
Written and directed by Bethany Ashton Wolf based upon the novel by Heidi McLaughlin, the film stars Alex Roe, Jessica Rothe, Abby Ryder Fortson, Travis Tritt, Judith Hoag and John Benjamin Hickey.
https://youtu.be/5iEOQn8UUHI
Executive Music Producer Brett Boyett assembled some of the biggest and most respected names in country music to perform the film’s original songs including white-hot CMA New Artist of the Year nominee Lauren Alaina performing WINGS OF AN ANGEL. Alaina also performs a duet with Phillip Sweet, member of four-time CMA-nominated Little Big Town, titled ENOUGH. The film’s star Alex Roe performs four original songs including DON’T WATER DOWN MY WHISKEY, ENOUGH, SMOKIN’ AND CRYIN’ and FINALLY HOME (with co-star Abby Ryder Fortson). In addition, co-star and award-winning singer/songwriter Travis Tritt performs SLOWING DOWN with additional contributions made by Josh Turner, Dan Tyminski, Destin Bennett and Canaan Smith.
ORIGINAL SONGS / Performers
ALWAYS AND FOREVER / Canaan Smith
BACK FROM GONE / Josh Turner
CAN’T TAME A FIRE / Dan Tyminski
DON’T WATER DOWN MY WHISKEY / Alex Roe
ENOUGH / Lauren Alaina & Phillip Sweet
FINALLY HOME / Alex Roe with Abby Ryder Fortson
SLOWING DOWN / Travis Tritt
SMOKIN’ AND CRYIN’ / Alex Roe
SOLID GROUND / Brett Boyett
WHO NEEDS MEXICO / Canaan Smith
WILD AND FREE / Destin Bennett
WINGS OF AN ANGEL / Lauren Alaina
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15: A QUINCEAÑERA STORY, Five Different Latina Girls Celebrate Quinceañera, will Debut on HBO
15: A Quinceanera Story is a collection of four short films following five Latina girls from different cultural, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds as they transition to adulthood, all observing the traditional rite of passage of the quinceañera, a celebration of their 15th birthdays.
Executive produced by renowned music executive Tommy Mottola and directed by Emmy(R) winner Matthew O’Neill and Latin Grammy-winning recording artist Thalía Sodi, 15: A Quinceanera Story, debuts Tuesday, December 19 (7:00-7:30 p.m. ET/PT), followed by a new film at the same time on successive nights – DEC. 20, 21 and 22 – simultaneously on HBO and HBO Latino.
“As a Latina, I’m proud to share our culture and shine a spotlight on the dynamic, talented and beautiful young women featured in these four films,” comments director Thalía Sodi.
“These young women are fierce and determined, and represent the rising generation of American Latinas who are helping define the future of our country,” adds executive producer Tommy Mottola.
“The featured young women are examples of the breadth and diversity of the Latina experience in America – we’re proud to celebrate them and their communities as they contend with the complicated realities of growing up in America today,” says director Matthew O’Neill. “I couldn’t think of a better home for these stories than HBO.”
15: A Quinceanera Story follows young girls and their families as they navigate the complexities of coming of age in the U.S. From grappling with gender identity to the constant fear of having a loved one deported, the issues raised in each piece reflect the current cultural and political landscape.
The quinceañera girls profiled include:
Zoey (debuting Dec. 19), a young Mexican-American living south of Los Angeles, who was assigned male at birth and celebrates with her trans-madrinas (godmothers), who never had quinceañeras of their own.
Rosi (Dec. 20), an American growing up in Florida with a mother from Guatemala and a father from Cuba, who combines all three of her cultures for a quinceañera in Havana. She chooses to celebrate there because her beloved grandfather cannot get a visa to the U.S.
Ashley (Dec. 21), an amateur boxer living in East Los Angeles, whose mother is a Dreamer and whose father has been deported. She is as nervous about her first official fight as she is about her quinceañera. Ashley’s coach, who is undergoing deportation procedures, may not get to see her special day.
Jackie and Nina (Dec. 22), best friends from San Antonio, who decide to honor their multi-generational Mexican-American heritage by mixing their joint quince with their love of escaramuza, a traditional Mexican horse-dancing display.
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Sonja Sohn’s Documentary BALTIMORE RISING will Debut on HBO [TRAILER]
The new documentary Baltimore Rising directed by Sonja Sohn, star of “The Wire”, chronicles the struggle of police and activists to hold the city together in the aftermath of the death of Freddie Gray.
In the wake of the 2015 death of Freddie Gray in police custody, Baltimore was a city on the edge. Peaceful protests and destructive riots erupted in the immediate aftermath of Gray’s death, while the city waited to hear the fate of the six police officers involved in the incident, reflecting the deep divisions between authorities and the community – and underscoring the urgent need for reconciliation.
Baltimore Rising follows activists, police officers, community leaders and gang affiliates, who struggle to hold Baltimore together, even as the homicide rate hits record levels. Exploring how to make change when change is hard, the thought-provoking, timely documentary debuts Monday, November 20 (8:00-9:35 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.
The strife that grips Baltimore following the death of Freddie Gray exposes longstanding fault lines in a distraught and damaged community. Baltimore Rising chronicles the determined efforts of people on all sides who fight for justice and work to make their city better, sometimes coming together in unexpected ways, discovering a common humanity where before they often saw each other only as adversaries.
Among the key figures spotlighted in Baltimore Rising:
Genard “Shadow” Barr (community leader, former gang member) is an addiction recovery specialist at the Penn-North Recovery Center, where he also helps organize a reentry jobs program for community members. Bridging the divide between police and residents of the Penn-North area, he works with all parties to mitigate violence. Barr is now working to open an entrepreneurship and job training center in West Baltimore.
Commissioner Kevin Davis has led the Baltimore Police Department since 2015. He took over as interim police commissioner in the aftermath of the uprising and surging violence, when the mayor fired previous commissioner Anthony Batts. A lifelong Marylander, Commissioner Davis is a 25-year veteran and fourth-generation public safety professional. He was faced with repairing public trust in the department and stemming a rising tide of homicides amidst the trials of his six officers.
Makayla Gilliam-Price (activist) founded the youth justice organization City Bloc as a high school student. She also organizes with the grassroots think-tank Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle.
Adam Jackson (activist) is CEO of the grassroots think-tank Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle. His efforts are aimed at connecting young people to public policy and creating transformative change in Baltimore.
Dayvon Love (activist), director of public policy for Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle, has deep experience with grassroots activism in the community. He has given numerous speeches and led workshops to give insight into the plight of its citizens.
Kwame Rose (activist), an artist, writer, musician and public speaker, gained notoriety during the uprising that followed Freddie Gray’s death for his public confrontation with FOX News reporter Geraldo Rivera. Arrested during protests outside the trials of the police officers charged in the Gray case, he recently accepted a position in the office of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh.
Lt. Colonel Melvin Russell, chief of the Community Partnership Division, Baltimore Police Department, joined The Baltimore Police Department (BPD) in 1979 as a police cadet. He worked as a uniform patrol and then an undercover officer for 20 years before becoming an Eastern District Lieutenant in 2007. Recently he led the BPD’s chaplaincy program and worked cooperatively with such community leaders as Genard “Shadow” Barr to support a reentry jobs program and prevent another uprising during the police officers’ trials in the Gray case.
Dawnyell Taylor (police detective) has been with the Baltimore City Police for more than 16 years. In 2015 and 2016, she was the lead investigator in the Freddie Gray homicide case, and testified at the trial of Officer Caesar Goodson Jr., who was charged with Gray’s murder. Taylor continues to serve in the police academy in Baltimore.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9t87jLeOzPI
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Gravitas Ventures will Release Kyle Rideout’s Comedy PUBLIC SCHOOLED in 2018
The comedy Public Schooled, directed by Kyle Rideout and starring Judy Greer, Daniel Doheny, Siobhan Williams, and Russell Peters has been acquired by Gravitas Ventures for release in the U.S. The film which recently made its World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival will be released theatrically in the U.S. in late Q1/early Q2 2018. Kaleidoscope Entertainment will release the film theatrically in the UK.
Based on an original script co-written by Rideout and Josh Epstein, Public Schooled follows socially awkward Liam (Doheny), who has been homeschooled his entire life. When he falls in love with a popular one-legged girl (Williams), he abandons his mother’s (Greer) suffocating love and enrolls in public school, getting a crash course in sex, drugs and social mayhem.
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VIDEO: Watch SAVING CAPITALISM Trailer, Documentary Ask “Why is American Economic System Failing?”
Here is the new trailer for the documentary Saving Capitalism based on Robert Reich’s 2015 book; and looks at the reasons why the economic system that once made America strong is suddenly failing, as well as how it can be fixed.
The film debuts November 21 on Netflix.
Directed by Jacob Kornbluth, Saving Capitalism is a clear-eyed examination of a political and economic status quo that no longer serves the people, exposing the powerful alliances between Washington and Wall Street, as well as the extreme wealth disparity in our country. Visionary and acute, Saving Capitalism helps build the path toward restoring America’s fundamental promise of opportunity and advancement. Diving deep into the political economic system, this documentary is not about being democratic or republican, but refocuses the conversation on how we can fix it.
Who is Robert B. Reich? Robert B. Reich is an American political commentator, professor, and author. He served in the administrations of Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter and was Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997. Also, he was appointed a member of then-President-elect Barack Obama’s economic transition advisory board. He has published 14 books, including the best-sellers Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few; The Work of Nations; Reason; Supercapitalism; Aftershock: The Next Economy and America’s Future; and a best-selling e-book, Beyond Outrage. The Robert Reich-Jacob Kornbluth film INEQUALITY FOR ALL won a U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Achievement in Filmmaking at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival in Utah.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T9E2DBzAaI
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Get Ready!! Gravitas Ventures will Release ATTACK OF THE SOUTHERN FRIED ZOMBIES [TRAILER]
Mark Newton’s Attack of the Southern Fried Zombies, winner of “Goriest Film” at the FANtastic Horror Film Festival in San Diego, has been acquired by Gravitas Ventures for release in the US in early 2018.
In Attack of the Southern Fried Zombies, the kudzu covered hills of Charleston, Mississippi, notable as Morgan Freeman’s hometown, are ground zero for GloboBioTech testing of their experimental herbicide Quadoxin, which goes horribly wrong. Lonnie, a crop duster pilot, must lead a mismatched group of survivors to escape the deadly zombie horde after the Quadoxin transforms the citizens of the small town into zombies.
The film stars Timothy Haug, Moses J. Moseley (The Walking Dead), Wyntergrace Williams (This Just In), Megan Few (Demons), Escalante Lundy (Django Unchained), Kaitlin Mesh, Clay Acker, Bruce Penton, Susan McPhail, Johnny McPhail, Michael Joiner, Kiyomi Fukazawa, and Miles Doleac.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ys7xu1867o
Image via facebook
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VIDEO: Watch Jon Alpert’s CUBA AND THE CAMERAMAN Trailer – See Life in Cuba Over the Course of 45 YEARS
Cuba and the Cameraman, directed by multiple-Emmy award-winning and Academy Award-nominated documentarian Jon Alpert, captures life in Cuba over the course of 45 years, from the country’s cautious optimism during the early 1970s, to the harrowing 1990s after the fall of the Soviet Union, to the death of Fidel Castro last year. In the film, which premiered at this year’s Venice Film Festival, Alpert focuses on three Cuban families and their growth and struggle throughout the decades. He was also astonishingly able to obtain unprecedented access to Castro himself, exposing a more intimate side of Castro never before seen by the public.
Cuba and the Cameraman will be launching on Netflix and opening in select theaters on Friday, November 24.
Since 1959, when Fidel Castro ascended to power in the revolution that marked an era, no one had ever gone as deep inside Cuba as Jon Alpert (Baghdad ER, China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province). The multiple-Emmy award-winning and Academy Award-nominated documentarian began filming in Castro’s Cuba in 1972, having become fascinated with the country, its people, and its culture years earlier. Alpert brought along a small crew and a portable camera, beginning a fascinating, intimate, decades-long chronicle of the Communist country that was 90 miles off the coast of Florida, a longtime political foe, but a mystery to much of the world.
Compiled from more than a thousand hours of footage and filmed over 45 years, Alpert follows three families and Fidel Castro. He was there for Cuba’s optimistic socialism of the early ’70s, and for the 1980 Mariel Bay boatlift, when over 100,000 Cubans fled the island accompanied by inmates released from prisons and insane asylums. He returned to cover the hardships of the 1990s; the harrowing “Special Period” after the fall of the Soviet Union, when Cuba literally went dark. He documented how these families and the Cuban leader dealt with the serious challenges gripping their country.
Among the revelations in the Netflix original documentary Cuba and the Cameraman is Castro himself – unguarded, off-the-cuff, and unedited. In their numerous on-camera interviews, the cigar-chomping revolutionary affectionately called the straight-shooting Alpert “The Journalist,” and showed a side of himself never seen publicly. Alpert was one of the last Americans to see Castro before his death.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsZ8hDutkeM
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VIDEO: Watch a Clip from Parenting Documentary FAR FROM THE TREE Featuring Andrew Solomon
Check out a new clip – on discovering the true nature of family featuring Andrew Solomon, from new parenting documentary Far From The Tree, directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker Rachel Dretzin. Far From The Tree will World Premiere at the 2017 DOC NYC on Friday, November 10, 2017.
More than a decade ago, acclaimed author Andrew Solomon embarked on a remarkable journey that was at once intensely personal and unmistakably universal. Inspired by his family’s difficulty in accepting his differences from them, Solomon began researching children who fall “Far From The Tree” in a variety of ways. The result was Solomon’s bestselling book Far From The Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity.
Based on Solomon’s award-winning book, the new documentary Far From The Tree explores the difficulties and rewards of raising and being a child whose experience of the world is vastly different from their parents. Directed and produced by Emmy-winning filmmaker Rachel Dretzin, it follows families coping with the challenges presented by Down syndrome, dwarfism, autism and even having a child in prison as they share their intimate stories with touching candor in an illuminating look at a complex bond.
Each family tells a unique story, but Dretzin deftly uncovers parallels that touch on issues of community, understanding and self-acceptance. Deeply compassionate, the film illustrates how families that face extraordinary challenges meet them in the most ordinary ways: with love, empathy, and a desire to understand one another, and encourages us to cherish loved ones for all they are, not who they might have been.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KI1L-Fwm7NY
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VIDEO: Watch Trailer for Quinn Shephard’s High School Indie Drama BLAME Starring Nadia Alexander
Here is the new trailer for Blame, the debut of 22-year-old writer/director Quinn Shephard, and starring Nadia Alexander, winner of the award for Best Actress at 2017 Tribeca Film Festival for her performance in the film.
Blame, also starring Chris Messina, Nadia Alexander, Owen Campbell, Luke Slattery, Trieste Kelly Dunn, Tessa Albertson, Sarah Mezzanotte, and Tate Donovan will open in New York and LA, and on VOD on January 5th, 2018.
It’s the start of a new year at a small suburban high school and Abigail (Quinn Shephard) is an eternal outcast returning for the first time after a mysterious event the previous year. Facing constant bullying, Abigail escapes from her hostile surroundings by immersing herself in the worlds of the characters she reads about, much to the amusement of her manipulative classmate, Melissa (Nadia Alexander).
When the girls’ intriguing new drama teacher Jeremy (Chris Messina) announces Arthur Miller’s ‘The Crucible” as their fall show, and casts Abigail over Melissa in the starring role, Abigail’s confidence blooms — but soon her relationship with Jeremy begins to move beyond the fantasy world she’s constructed. This taboo bond strikes a nerve in Melissa, fueling a vengeful jealousy that quickly spirals out of control — and brings about a chain of events that draws even further parallels to the madness of Salem. The riveting debut of 22-year-old writer/director Quinn Shephard, Blame examines the indelible stain of rumor and suspicion in the contemporary suburban high school while delving into the psyches of the cell phone generation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m17PYWD3Hio
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VIDEO: Watch SXSW Audience Award Winner MR. ROOSEVELT Trailer – in Theaters November 17
In Mr. Roosevelt, Noël Wells’ feature directorial debut, she portrays Emily, a talented but hard-to-classify comedic performer who left behind her home and boyfriend to pursue career opportunities in L.A.
When a loved one falls ill, Emily rushes back to Austin where she’s forced to stay with her ex-boyfriend (Nick Thune) and his new-and-improved girlfriend (Britt Lower), a totally together woman with a five-year plan.Though Emily is the same, everything else is different: her house has been smartly redecorated, her rocker boyfriend is training to be a real estate agent, and her old haunts show serious signs of gentrification. Holed up in her own guest room, Emily–who has no idea what she’ll be doing five days from now, let alone five years–is forced to question everyone’s values: are they sell-outs or have they just figured out what makes them happy? And is she following her dreams or is she just a self-absorbed loser?
Mr. Roosevelt premiered at SXSW, where it won the Audience Award in Narrative Spotlight and the Louis Black Lone Star Award, and most recently at Michael Moore’s Traverse City Film Festival, where it won the Founders Prize for Best US Fiction Film.
The film also starring Nick Thune, Britt Lower, Danielle Pineda, and Andre Hyland, will open in in Los Angeles, Friday, November 17, and in New York, Wednesday, November 22.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CNhyOHqPAE
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VIDEO: Watch New Clip from THE PROBLEM WITH APU, Premieres on truTV on November 19
Check out a new clip from the highly-anticipated comedic documentary The Problem with Apu which is set to premiere on truTV on Sunday, November 19 at 10PM ET/PT. The Problem with Apu will have its World Premiere at DOC NYC on November 14. In the hour-long film, creator and star Hari Kondabolu, a South Asian-American comedian, confronts his long-standing “nemesis” Apu Nahasapeemapetilon – better known as the Indian convenience store owner on The Simpsons.
Kondabolu discusses how this controversial caricature was created, burrowed its way into the hearts and minds of Americans, and continues to exist – intact – nearly three decades later.
In this highly-personal, insightful and timely exploration of minority media representation, Kondabolu speaks with prominent South Asian actors about the damaging legacy of Apu – an animated character voiced by a white actor with a heavily exaggerated, stereotypical Indian accent. Aziz Ansari, Kal Penn, Aasif Mandvi, Hasan Minjaj, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Aparna Nancherla, Russell Peters, Sakina Jaffrey and Maulik Pancholy share poignant stories about their own experiences with Apu and the broader questions about the comedy and representation he evokes. With additional interviews with EGOT-winner Whoopi Goldberg, W. Kamau Bell, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Mallika Rao, and many more, The Problem with Apu takes a humorous look at how even a beloved television series can have a blind spot.
“I was obsessed with The Simpsons growing up and it has greatly influenced my comedy. However, as my mother proves, you can criticize something you love because you expect more from it,” said Kondabolu. “For the longest time, Apu was the most prominent representation of South Asian Americans – and despite how much our society has changed in the last three decades – the character persists today. I made this film to not only talk about the origin of Apu and highlight the impact of such images in media, but also to celebrate the diversity and complexity of my community.”
Hailed as “one of the most exciting political comics in stand-up today” by The New York Times, Brooklyn-based comedian Kondaboluis the host of the popular podcast “Politically Re-Active” alongside W. Kamau Bell.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nUp5EG-5Kc