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Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists[/caption]
DOC NYC, America’s largest documentary festival, returns for its ninth edition with 135 feature-length documentaries among over 300 films and events overall. The festival takes place November 8 to 15 at in New York at the IFC Center in Greenwich Village and Chelsea’s SVA Theatre and Cinepolis Chelsea.
Special Events include Closing Night Film, the world premiere of HBO’s
Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists, about the beloved New York City journalists Jimmy Breslin and Pete Hamill, directed by Jonathan Alter, John Block and Steve McCarthy; and the festival’s Centerpiece presentation, the world premiere of Original Cast Album: Co-op, an episode in the upcoming season of IFC’s Documentary Now! series inspired by D.A. Pennebaker’s Original Cast Album: Company, followed by a conversation with creators Seth Meyers and Rhys Thomas, director Alex Buono, writer and star John Mulaney, and star Renee Elise Goldsberry (Hamilton). The NYC premiere of John Chester’s Telluride and Toronto hit
The Biggest Little Farm will open the festival.
World premieres at the festival include Lady Parts Justice in the New World Order, following The Daily Show co-creator Lizz Winstead on a “Vagical Mystery Tour” to fight for reproductive rights; New Homeland, the newest film from two-time Academy Award winner Barbara Kopple, following refugee boys to a summer camp;
Cracked Up, a revealing portrait of Saturday Night Live alumnus Darrell Hammond;
Olympia, on Academy Award winning actress Olympia Dukakis; Buzz, about Friday Night Lights author Buzz Bissinger; Afterward, a candid exploration of complex tensions between Germans, Jews and Palestinians; Creating a Character: The Moni Yakim Legacy, on the legendary Juilliard drama teacher who trained Meryl Streep and Viola Davis among countless other talents; Beyond the Bolex, a personal history of the iconic camera; and The Show’s the Thing: The Legendary Promoters of Rock, which reveals an untold chapter of rock history.
Among this year’s U.S. premieres are
Screwball, a hilarious exposé of Alex Rodriguez’s doping scandal;
The Insufferable Groo, on a prolific low-budget filmmaker who recruits Jack Black for his latest opus; Evelyn, Oscar-winner Orlando von Einsiedel’s reckoning with a family tragedy; Rudeboy: The Story of Trojan Records, the fascinating tale about the popularization of Jamaican music worldwide; Barbara Rubin & the Exploding NY Underground, on an influential but little-recognized member of the 1960s film and art world; and The Artist & the Pervert, on the controversial relationship between a world renowned composer and a sex educator.
The festival is curated in 21 sections that include five new strands:
Series Showcase, offering world premieres of new episodic programs, including Showtime’s Enemies: The President, Justice & the FBI, exploring the contentious relationship between U.S. presidents and the FBI; and SundanceTV’s Jonestown: Terror in the Jungle, commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Jonestown Massacre.
Photography on Film, which includes the world premiere of Last Stop Coney Island: The Life and Photography of Harold Feinstein, on the seven-decade career of the NYC photographer.
Portraits, which presents the world premieres of The Great Mother, a profile of a woman serving as the legal guardian for 2,000 children of undocumented immigrants; and Welcome to the Beyond, the surprising story of a fashion model and a cult.
In the System, offering an inside look at institutions, including sexism in the restaurant world in
The Heat: A Kitchen (R)evolution; and the financial industry on the cusp of the economic recession in Inside Lehman Brothers.
True Love, which presents the world premiere of Dennis and Lois, about a punk rock-loving older couple; and the U.S. premiere of China Love, which explores China’s $80 billion pre-wedding photo industry.
In the festival’s two feature competition sections, nine films appear under the Viewfinders section for distinct directorial visions. They include the world premieres of Cooked: Survival by Zip Code, a radical reframing of natural disasters and their link to poverty; Out of Omaha, a coming-of-age story executive produced by musician J. Cole; The Smartest Kids in the World, an exploration of the shortcomings of the U.S. education system; and The Kleptocrats, an investigation of the Malaysian financial scandal that helped finance The Wolf of Wall Street.
In the Metropolis competition section, seven films are dedicated to stories set in New York City. They include the world premieres of Jay Myself, about acclaimed photographer Jay Maisel; Decade of Fire, on the notorious series of fires that devastated the Bronx in the 1970s; See Know Evil, about a young photographer who left an indelible mark on fashion in the 1990s; and The Candidates, which follows an elaborate mock U.S. presidential election at a Queens high school.
Other returning sections include high-profile Special Events; national and global takes inAmerican Perspectives and International Perspectives; and thematic sections Centerstage (on performance), Jock Docs (on sports), Science Nonfiction (on science and technology), Wild Life (on animals), Modern Family (on unconventional families), Behind the Scenes (on filmmaking), Fight the Power (on activism), Sonic Cinema (on music) and Docs Redux (revisiting classic nonfiction). Short-form content (92 films in total) is represented by the festival’s Shorts Competition and DOC NYC U (showcasing student work), selected by Programmer Opal H. Bennett.
These sections join the Short List: Features titles, highlighting 15 of the year’s award contender documentary features; Short List: Shorts, an inaugural list of 12 of the year’s leading nonfiction shorts; and the eight-day DOC NYC PRO conference, doubled in size from 2017, focusing on panels and masterclasses.
DOC NYC will welcome over 500 filmmakers and special guests in attendance for Q&As after most screenings and for DOC NYC PRO panels. Among the notable guests expected to appear in person are Jakob Dylan for Echo in the Canyon, Darrell Hammond for Cracked Up, Jeffrey Wright for We Are Not Done Yet, Sandra Lee for RX: Early Detection, J.Cole for Out of Omaha, Christo for Walking on Water, Alex Sharp for Creating a Character, Lizz Winstead for Lady Parts Justice in the New World Order and more to be announced in the coming weeks.
For this year’s Short List section of awards season frontrunners, filmmakers presenting their work in person at the festival include Rashida Jones and Alan Hicks (Quincy), Wim Wenders (Pope Francis: A Man of His Word), Michael Moore (Fahrenheit 11/9), Morgan Neville (Won’t You Be My Neighbor?), Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (Free Solo), Betsy West and Julie Cohen (RBG), Rudy Valdez (The Sentence), Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg (Reversing Roe), Susan Lacy (Jane Fonda in Five Acts), Bing Liu (Minding the Gap), Tim Wardle (Three Identical Strangers), Sandi Tan (Shirkers), Alexandria Bombach (On Her Shoulders), RaMell Ross (Hale County This Morning, This Evening) and Stephen Maing (Crime + Punishment). Filmmakers will also take part in the Short List Day of panel conversations on Nov. 9 at DOC NYC PRO.
Notable documentarians will also be honored at the Visionaries Tribute Awards event on Nov. 8: Wim Wenders and Orlando Bagwell will receiveLifetime Achievement Awards while Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin will receive the Robert and Anne Drew Award for observational filmmaking. Tabitha Jackson, director of the Documentary Film Program at Sundance Institute, will receive theLeading Light Award for distinguished service to documentary in a role outside filmmaking.
The following is a breakdown of programming by section:
SPECIAL EVENTS
OPENING NIGHT
THE BIGGEST LITTLE FARM
Dir: John Chester (NYC PREMIERE)
For over eight years, John and Molly Chester struggle to work with nature to establish a biodynamic farm, like a modern-day Little House on the Prairie.
CLOSING NIGHT
BRESLIN AND HAMILL: DEADLINE ARTISTS
Dirs: Jonathan Alter, John Block and Steve McCarthy (WORLD PREMIERE)
Legendary newspaper columnists Jimmy Breslin and Pete Hamill are profiled in this essential look at journalism in New York City.
CENTERPIECE
Documentary Now! Presents ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM: CO-OP
Dir: Alex Buono (WORLD PREMIERE)
IFC’s comedy series Documentary Now!, which pays homage to nonfiction classics, presents an episode inspired by D.A. Pennebaker’s Original Cast Album: Company.
VIEWFINDERS
COOKED: SURVIVAL BY ZIP CODE
Dir: Judith A. Helfand (WORLD PREMIERE)
Director Judith A. Helfand (Blue Vinyl) investigates the victims and profiteers in extreme weather catastrophes like Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy.
GHOST FLEET
Dirs: Shannon Service, Jeffrey Waldron (NYC PREMIERE)
This suspenseful high-seas adventure follows a team of activists who rescue modern-day slaves in Thailand’s illegal fishing industry.
HEARTBOUND
Dirs: Janus Metz, Sine Plambech (NYC PREMIERE)
Janus Metz (Borg vs McEnroe) and Sine Plambech explore the surprising cross-cultural marriages between Danish men and Thai women over a decade.
THE KLEPTOCRATS
Dirs: Havana Marking, Sam Hobkinson (WORLD PREMIERE)
Investigative journalists uncover how $3.5 billion was plundered from the Malaysian government for a spending spree that included funding The Wolf of Wall Street.
A LITTLE WISDOM
Dirs: Yuqi Kang (NYC PREMIERE)
In a Tibetan Buddhist monastery, young novice monks try to balance rituals and discipline with the distractions of modern life and childhood.
OUT OF OMAHA
Dir: Clay Tweel (WORLD PREMIERE)
A coming-of-age tale of twin African-American brothers filmed over eight years by director Clay Tweel (Gleason) and executive produced by musician J. Cole.
THE SMARTEST KIDS IN THE WORLD
Dir: Tracy Droz Tragos (WORLD PREMIERE)
Based on Amanda Ripley’s bestselling book, four American teenagers go abroad to study in nations that outperform the US in education.
UNDER THE WIRE
Dir: Chris Martin (NYC PREMIERE)
A gripping, first-hand account of the mortal peril faced by war correspondent Marie Colvin and photographer Paul Conroy while reporting from within Syria.
WALKING ON WATER
Dir: Andrey Paounov (NYC PREMIERE)
After the death of his partner, Jeanne-Claude, the visionary artist Christo, known for The Gates of Central Park, realizes his dream of The Floating Piers in Italy.
METROPOLIS
BARBARA RUBIN & THE EXPLODING NY UNDERGROUND
Dir: Chuck Smith (U.S. PREMIERE)
The untold story of an influential figure who defied sexist conventions and enabled surprising connections in the 1960s New York underground film scene.
THE CANDIDATES
Dirs: Alexandra Stergiou, Lexi Henigman (WORLD PREMIERE)
In a Queens high school, a mock Presidential election sees a Russian-American as Donald Trump face off against a Pakistani-American as Hillary Clinton.
CREATING A CHARACTER: THE MONI YAKIM LEGACY
Dir: Rauzar Alexander (WORLD PREMIERE)
Legendary Juilliard acting teacher Moni Yakim, who taught Meryl Streep, Viola Davis, Patti LuPone and countless others, gets his time in the spotlight.
DECADE OF FIRE
Dirs: Vivian Vazquez, Gretchen Hildebran (WORLD PREMIERE)
The true, inside story behind the burning of the Bronx in the 1970s and how the community resisted, remained and rebuilt.
JAY MYSELF
Dir: Stephen Wilkes (WORLD PREMIERE)
For five decades, photographer Jay Maisel created an artistic wonderland in a six-story building on the Bowery, but now it’s time to move.
SEE KNOW EVIL
Dir: Charles Curran (WORLD PREMIERE)
At a young age, photographer Davide Sorrenti took New York City by storm in the 1990s and left an indelible imprint on the fashion world.
THE WORLD BEFORE YOUR FEET
Dir: Jeremy Workman (NYC PREMIERE)
This charming portrait captures urban explorer Matt Green on his mission to walk every block of New York City.
AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES
THE BLESSING
Dirs: Hunter Robert Baker, Jordan Fein (NYC PREMIERE)
Deep in the Navajo Nation, one family struggles with contradictions as a coal company offers employment while destroying the community’s sacred homeland.
CITY OF JOEL
Dir: Jesse Sweet (NYC PREMIERE)
In Monroe, NY, 50 miles north of NYC, a fast-growing Hasidic community sets off a turf war with political, economic and religious implications.
THE CITY THAT SOLD AMERICA
Dir: Ky Dickens (NYC PREMIERE)
A playful and informative look at the key role Chicago has played in modern advertising and its impact on pop culture.
Screening with Ross Kauffman’s short Still Plays with Trains:
John reconstructs his idyllic 1950s childhood through one of the world’s largest model train sets.
EMANUEL
Dir: Brian Ivie (NYC PREMIERE)
In the aftermath of the 2015 church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, a community grapples with justice, faith and forgiveness.
HARVEST SEASON
Dir: Bernardo Ruiz (NYC PREMIERE)
Set in California’s Napa and Sonoma Valley wine country, this film celebrates the unsung workers and small producers, from vine to vintage.
HILLBILLY
Dirs: Sally Rubin, Ashley York (NYC PREMIERE)
Ashley York returns to her hometown in Appalachia where, contrary to dismissive stereotypes, she shows a diverse, complex and proud community.
NORTH POLE, NY
Dir: Ali Cotterill (NYC PREMIERE)
Upstate New York’s Santa’s Workshop theme park struggles to overcome economic challenges and a con man who tries to steal Christmas.
THE PROVIDERS
Dirs: Anna Moot-Levin, Laura Green (NYC PREMIERE)
In rural New Mexico, healthcare workers serve a community hard hit by the opioid crisis and still reeling from the 2008 recession.
VERY SENIOR: ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING
Dir: Susan Gluth (WORLD PREMIERE)
In Sun City, Arizona, seniors in a retirement community demonstrate the art of aging gracefully while making one’s own choices.
Screening with Rachel Mills and Maya Tippett’s short Magnitudinous Illuminous:
Meet Pete, a 66-year-old Brooklyn bartender and self-proclaimed philosopher.
WHILE I BREATHE, I HOPE
Dir: Emily Harrold (NYC PREMIERE)
Young, African-American and a Democrat, Bakari Sellers faces an uphill struggle as he runs for lieutenant governor in South Carolina.
INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES
AFTERWARD
Dir: Ofra Bloch (WORLD PREMIERE)
Disturbed by the resurgence of anti-Semitism worldwide, the filmmaker travels to Germany, Israel and Palestine to confront lasting tensions and contradictions.
BRAVE GIRLS
Dirs: Yashaswi Desai, Ellie Walton (WORLD PREMIERE)
Three young Indian women in a conservative Muslim town seek to change their futures through education and self-determination.
Screening with Guille Isa and Angello Faccini’s short Dulce:
A mother teaches her daughter how to swim, essential to survival in their Colombian village.
EXIT
Dir: Karen Winther (NYC PREMIERE)
What makes someone join neo-Nazis, Jihadists or other hate groups, and what makes them decide to leave?
THE INTERPRETERS
Dirs: Andres Caballero, Sofian Khan (NYC PREMIERE)
Interpreters who worked for US military forces in Afghanistan and Iraq face retribution while they await promised but long-delayed special visas into the US.
NEW HOMELAND
Dir: Barbara Kopple (WORLD PREMIERE)
Refugee boys from war-torn Syria and Iraq attend a Canadian summer camp where some thrive while others struggle.
OF FATHERS AND SONS
Dir: Talal Derki (NYC PREMIERE)
In this Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner, director Talal Derki (Return to Homs) gains access to a radical Syrian jihadist and his family for two years.
THE OTHER RIO
Dir: Émilie B. Guérette (U.S. PREMIERE)
In Rio de Janeiro, squatters live in an abandoned government building under the rule of drug dealers, but exhibit a remarkable resilience.
TAKUMI: A 60,000 HOUR STORY ON THE SURVIVAL OF HUMAN CRAFT
Dir: Clay Jeter (WORLD PREMIERE)
Profiles of devoted artisans including a chef, a traditional paper cut artist, a car factory inspector and a carpenter.
SERIES SHOWCASE
ENEMIES: THE PRESIDENT, JUSTICE & THE FBI
Dir: Jed Rothstein (WORLD PREMIERE)
A preview of the new Showtime series, inspired by Tim Weiner’s Enemies: A History of the FBI, with an episode on the Iran-Contra affair plus an extended Q&A.
JONESTOWN: TERROR IN THE JUNGLE
Dir: Shan Nicholson (WORLD PREMIERE)
Based on Jeff Guinn’s book The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple, the first half of the new SundanceTV series is previewed, with an extended Q&A.
LADY PARTS JUSTICE IN THE NEW WORLD ORDER
Dir: Ruth Leitman (WORLD PREMIERE)
Lizz Winstead, co-creator of The Daily Show, organizes activists and comedians for a satire-infused advocacy tour for reproductive rights.
PHOTOGRAPHY ON FILM
INSTANT DREAMS
Dir: Willem Baptist (NYC PREMIERE)
After the Polaroid company stops production, three enthusiasts are determined to keep alive the magical wonder and technology of instant cameras.
THE LAST RESORT
Dirs: Dennis Scholl, Kareem Tabsch (NYC PREMIERE)
Photographers Andy Sweet and Gary Monroe captured Miami Beach’s aging Jewish population for a decade, even as the city transformed around them.
LAST STOP CONEY ISLAND: THE LIFE AND PHOTOGRAPHY OF HAROLD FEINSTEIN
Dir: Andy Dunn (WORLD PREMIERE)
Photographer Harold Feinstein captured the beauty, joy and diversity of New Yorkers over seven decades.
WITKIN & WITKIN
Dir: Trisha Ziff (NYC PREMIERE)
Gifted twin brothers—photographer Joel-Peter Witkin and painter Jerome Witkin—reunite for a joint show after decades of estrangement.
PORTRAITS
BUZZ
Dir: Andrew Shea (WORLD PREMIERE)
While co-writing Caitlyn Jenner’s biography, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Buzz Bissinger (Friday Night Lights) tests his marriage with surprising revelations.
COMMANDER ARIAN: A STORY OF WOMEN, WAR & FREEDOM
Dir: Alba Sotorra (NYC PREMIERE)
Under threat from ISIS, Commander Arian gathers her all-women Kurdish battalion to rescue enslaved civilians in northern Syria.
THE FEMINIST
Dir: Hampus Linder (INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE)
This starkly intimate portrait of Sweden’s feminist trailblazer politician Gudrun Schyman serves as a rallying call in today’s political climate.
THE GREAT MOTHER
Dirs: Dave LaMattina, Chad Walker (WORLD PREMIERE)
Nora Sandigo has more than 2,000 kids, acting as the legal guardian for US-born children of undocumented immigrants.
I’M LEAVING NOW
Dirs: Lindsey Cordero, Armando Croda (U.S. PREMIERE)
Felipe, an undocumented immigrant in NYC who has long struggled to support his family in Mexico, faces the limits of self-sacrifice.
LAILA AT THE BRIDGE
Dirs: Elizabeth Mirzaei, Gulistan Mirzaei (NYC PREMIERE)
Self-proclaimed badass Laila offers salvation to drug addicts in Kabul, running a clinic with her brother, himself a recovered addict.
WELCOME TO THE BEYOND
Dir: Brent Huff (WORLD PREMIERE)
The surprising story of Hoyt Richards, the world’s first male supermodel… and secretly a member of the Eternal Values cult.
WORLDS OF URSULA K. LE GUIN
Dir: Arwen Curry (NYC PREMIERE)
A moving and intimate profile of feminist sci-fi/fantasy author Ursula K. Le Guin, featuring interviews with admirers like Neil Gaiman and David Mitchell.
IN THE SYSTEM
ALICIA
Dir: Maasja Ooms (NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE)
A gem of observational cinema, Maasja Ooms’ film portrays the emotional roller coaster experienced by a girl in foster care longing for love.
FALSE CONFESSIONS
Dir: Katrine Philp (NYC PREMIERE)
A dogged defense attorney is on a crusade to put a stop to coerced false confessions, exposing their destructive consequences.
THE HEAT: A KITCHEN (R)EVOLUTION
Dir: Maya Gallus (NYC PREMIERE)
Seven female chefs are profiled in a no-holds-barred exploration of the struggles faced by women in the restaurant industry.
INSIDE LEHMAN BROTHERS
Dir: Jennifer Deschamps (NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE)
Ten years after Wall Street’s meltdown, Lehman Brothers whistleblowers look back on their efforts to sound an alarm.
OWNED: A TALE OF TWO AMERICAS
Dir: Giorgio Angelini (NYC PREMIERE)
An investigation of how greed, flawed economics and systemic racism have distorted the American dream of homeownership.
THE SCHOOL IN THE CLOUD
Dir: Jerry Rothwell (NYC PREMIERE)
The brainchild of TED Prize winner Sugata Mitra, a state of the art learning lab connects children in remote areas to teachers via the Internet.
SEE YOU TOMORROW, GOD WILLING!
Dir: Ainara Vera (NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE)
Seventeen octogenarian Franciscan nuns in Spain take care of each other in this beautifully observed and often humorous portrait.
Screening with Leah Galant’s short Death Metal Grandma:
A 97-year-old Holocaust survivor prepares a death metal audition for America’s Got Talent.
SOMEWHERE TO BE
Dir: Peter Odabashian (WORLD PREMIERE)
In NYC’s Greenwich House, seniors from all walks of life share stories in this heartwarming portrait that redefines the meaning of a good life.
TRUE LOVE
THE ARTIST & THE PERVERT
Dirs: Beatrice Behn, René Gebhardt (U.S. PREMIERE)
In this provocative exploration of sexual kinks, composer Georg Friedrich Haas and sex educator Mollena Williams redefine norms of love and ownership.
CHINA LOVE
Dir: Olivia Martin-McGuire (INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE)
In modern-day Shanghai, engaged couples go on a fantasy ride of glitz, excess and glamour in search of the perfect wedding photo.
DENNIS AND LOIS
Dir: Chris Cassidy (WORLD PREMIERE)
Forty years after meeting at CBGB, aging superfans Dennis and Lois still live life to its fullest, traveling all over to support their favorite bands.
SILICONE SOUL
Dir: Melody Gilbert (NYC PREMIERE)
Profiling individuals who form relationships with eerily lifelike dolls, this film sensitively explores the need for companionship and emotional connection.
CENTERSTAGE
CARE TO LAUGH
Dir: Julie Getz (NYC PREMIERE)
Jesus Trejo funnels his experiences as a caregiver to his elderly parents into disarmingly funny material for his stand-up routine.
CRAFTING AN ECHO
Dir: Marco Williams (WORLD PREMIERE)
Choreographer Andonis Foniadakis struggles to stage an ambitious work with the Martha Graham Dance Company with no shortage of behind-the-scenes drama.
Screening with Dime Davis’ short Wild Wild West: A Beautiful Rant by Mark Bradford:
A provocative artist explains where artists come from.
THE ICE KING
Dir: James Erskine (NYC PREMIERE)
A profile of 1976 Gold medal-winning figure skater John Curry, arguably the first openly gay Olympic athlete and the creator of ice dancing.
OLYMPIA
Dir: Harry Mavromichalis (WORLD PREMIERE)
Follow Academy Award winner Olympia Dukakis behind the scenes in this affectionate profile of a stalwart New Yorker and beloved stage and screen treasure.
WE ARE NOT PRINCESSES
Dirs: Bridgette Auger, Itab Azzam (WORLD PREMIERE)
Refreshingly candid Syrian women find personal connections to Greek tragedy during a theater workshop in a Lebanese refugee camp.
WHEN ARABS DANCED
Dir: Jawad Rhalib (NYC PREMIERE)
Jawad Rhalib profiles artists in the Muslim world—including his mother, a Moroccan dancer—who seek freedom from stereotypes and repression.
JOCK DOCS
LIFE WITHOUT BASKETBALL
Dirs: Tim O’Donnell, Jon Mercer (WORLD PREMIERE)
Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir fights the International Basketball Federation to wear the hijab during Division I competition.
MEMORY GAMES
Dirs: Janet Tobias, Claus Wehlisch (WORLD PREMIERE)
Inside the world championship of memory athletes, the abilities on display are unforgettable.
MY PERFECT WORLD: THE AARON HERNANDEZ STORY
Dir: Geno McDermott (WORLD PREMIERE)
Sports journalists Dan Wetzel and Kevin Armstrong track the scandal of New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez as he spiraled from stardom to infamy.
SCREWBALL
Dir: Billy Corben (U.S. PREMIERE)
From the makers of Cocaine Cowboys, this true crime comedy exposes baseball player Alex Rodriguez’s doping scandal with a hilarious profile of his drug supplier.
SCIENCE NONFICTION
BEHIND THE CURVE
Dir: Daniel J. Clark (NYC PREMIERE)
A profile of passionate advocates of the Flat Earth theory reveals the deep-seated need for community and the hazards of believing in alternative facts.
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF DESIRE
Dir: Hao Wu (NYC PREMIERE)
This SXSW Grand Jury winner goes behind the scenes of China’s live-streaming showrooms, where web stars seek fans and financial rewards.
THE TRUTH ABOUT KILLER ROBOTS
Dir: Maxim Pozdorovkin (NYC PREMIERE)
The director of Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer investigates how robots are becoming more human and humans more robotic.
WILD LIFE
THE ANCIENT WOODS
Dir: Mindaugas Survila (NYC PREMIERE)
Ten years in the making, a biologist-turned-filmmaker documents an old-growth forest with immersive cinematography and sound design.
THE CAT RESCUERS
Dirs: Rob Fruchtman, Steven Lawrence (NYC PREMIERE)
A profile of street-smart volunteers working tirelessly in Brooklyn to help save as many street cats in need as possible.
ELEPHANT PATH/NJAIA NJOKU
Dir: Todd McGrain (NYC PREMIERE)
In the forests of the Central African Republic, one of the last wild herds of elephants struggles for survival.
FIRE ON THE HILL: THE COWBOYS OF SOUTH CENTRAL LA
Dir: Brett Fallentine (NYC PREMIERE)
Three black cowboys seek to preserve a unique culture of horse-riding in the last public stable in South Central LA.
FOR THE BIRDS
Dir: Richard Miron (NYC PREMIERE)
Kathy, an obsessive bird lover in upstate New York, struggles to maintain over 200 chickens, geese, ducks and turkeys.
OF FISH AND FOE
Dirs: Heike Bachelier, Andy Heathcote (U.S. PREMIERE)
Wildlife preservation clashes with family tradition when one of Scotland’s last salmon fishing families is accused of animal rights violations.
STARS IN THE SKY: A HUNTING STORY
Dir: Steven Rinella (WORLD PREMIERE)
Set in the Alaskan wilderness, this thought-provoking film explores controversies over the sport of hunting.
Screening with Orlando Mora Cabrera’s short Olga:
After years of taking in street cats, Olga has more than she can handle.
MODERN FAMILY
COLOSSUS
Dir: Jonathan Schienberg (WORLD PREMIERE)
Born in the US, 15-year-old Jamil copes with the deportation to Honduras of his undocumented parents and older sister.
EVELYN
Dir: Orlando von Einsiedel (INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE)
Oscar-winning filmmaker Orlando von Einsiedel (The White Helmets) turns the camera on his family as they cope with a tragic loss.
FAMILY IN TRANSITION
Dir: Ofir Trainin (INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE)
In a small Israeli town, a husband and father of four undergoes a gender transition that has rippling effects on the family.
GLOBAL FAMILY
Dirs: Melanie Andernach, Andreas Köhler (U.S. PREMIERE)
A family, scattered across the globe in their escape from Somalia’s civil war, faces challenges when they must find a caregiver for their matriarch.
LITTLE MISS WESTIE
Dir: Joy E. Reed, Dan Hunt (WORLD PREMIERE)
In Connecticut, Ren is the first out transgirl to compete in the Little Miss Westie Pageant, coached by her transgender brother.
REFUGEE
Dir: Alexander J. Farrell (WORLD PREMIERE)
Syrian refugee Raf’aa seeks to be reunited with her family who are blocked by closed borders in this poignant story about today’s migration crisis.
A SISTER’S SONG
Dir: Danae Elon (NYC PREMIERE)
In this real-life psychological thriller, an Israeli woman tries to convince her sister to leave the religious order which has kept them separated for 20 years.
TO KID OR NOT TO KID
Dir: Maxine Trump (WORLD PREMIERE)
Filmmaker Maxine Trump (no relation) explores women like herself who face societal stigma for choosing not to have children.
TRE MAISON DASAN
Dir: Denali Tiller (NYC PREMIERE)
This profile of three boys cut off from parents who are in prison poses meaningful questions about the effects of mass incarceration.
WRESTLING GHOSTS
Dir: Ana Joanes (NYC PREMIERE)
A young mother tries to unravel her conflicted feelings around parenthood, inviting the viewer into her counseling sessions to heal past trauma.
BEHIND THE SCENES
BEYOND THE BOLEX
Dir: Alyssa Bolsey (WORLD PREMIERE)
Alyssa Bolsey explores the iconic Bolex camera, invented by her great-grandfather, Jacques Bolsey, who was a Russian refugee during World War I.
CRACKED UP
Dir: Michelle Esrick (WORLD PREMIERE)
With courage and humor, comedian and Saturday Night Live alumnus Darrell Hammond reveals his dark history of child abuse.
THE EYES OF ORSON WELLES
Dir: Mark Cousins (NYC PREMIERE)
Mark Cousins (The Story of Film) takes a novel approach to Orson Welles by studying the legendary filmmaker’s paintings, drawings and doodles.
THE GHOST OF PETER SELLERS
Dir: Peter Medak (NYC PREMIERE)
Director Peter Medak (The Ruling Class) revisits his ill-fated 1973 pirate film with Peter Sellers in a classic insider’s tale of movie-making madness and folly.
THE GREENAWAY ALPHABET
Dir: Saskia Boddeke (NYC PREMIERE)
Peter Greenaway (The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover) is profiled with an alphabetical word association, directed by his multimedia artist wife.
Screening with Chuck Workman’s short Moments of Truth:
A masterful montage of moments from 100 documentary films.
THE INSUFFERABLE GROO
Dir: Scott Christopherson (NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE)
Stephen Groo, a Utah-based filmmaker of outlandish low-budget genre films with admirers like Jack Black, attempts an opus that may be his undoing.
THE ORANGE YEARS: THE NICKELODEON STORY
Dir: Scott Barber, Adam Sweeney (WORLD PREMIERE)
A nostalgic and entertaining look back at the early years of Nickelodeon, the TV network that let kids enjoy being kids.
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
Dir: Tom Donahue (NYC PREMIERE)
Meryl Streep, Jessica Chastain, Shonda Rhimes and Geena Davis join a who’s who of Hollywood in this investigation of the entertainment industry’s systemic sexism.
UNITED WE FAN
Dir: Michael Sparaga (NYC PREMIERE)
Looking at fandom culture that rallied around shows like Star Trek or Cagney and Lacey,this film reflects on the meaning of pop culture devotion.
WHAT SHE SAID: THE ART OF PAULINE KAEL
Dir: Rob Garver (NYC PREMIERE)
A nuanced portrait of controversial and influential film critic Pauline Kael revisits late-twentieth-century cinema through her words, followed by an extended Q&A.
FIGHT THE POWER
BEI BEI
Dirs: Rose Rosenblatt, Marion Lipschutz (NYC PREMIERE)
In Indiana, the murder trial of Chinese immigrant Bei Bei Shuai poses a disturbing legal precedent for terminating a pregnancy.
BLEED OUT
Dir: Steve Burrows (WORLD PREMIERE)
In this legal drama meets medical mystery, Steve Burrows seeks justice for his mother, who suffers catastrophic complications after routine surgery.
BOYS WHO LIKE GIRLS
Dir: Inka Achté (NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE)
In the aftermath of the infamous Delhi gang rape, a man works to change the way Indian boys view females.
Screening with Thomas Winston’s short Casting in Jagüey Grande:
Cuban kids attempt to master the art of fly fishing with their mentor and father figure.
GRIT
Dirs: Cynthia Wade, Sasha Friedlander (NYC PREMIERE)
In East Java, Indonesia, a mother and daughter battle a corporation over a man-made catastrophe that’s displaced more than 60,000 people.
I AM THE REVOLUTION
Dir: Benedetta Argentieri (WORLD PREMIERE)
Three women in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria lead the fight for gender equality and freedom in this empowering portrait.
PATRIMONIO
Dirs: Lisa F. Jackson, Sarah Teale (NYC PREMIERE)
In Baja, Mexico, local fishermen face off against the development of a luxury resort, which will have a radical impact on the environment and on their livelihood.
THE RESCUE LIST
Dirs: Alyssa Fedele, Zachary Fink (NYC PREMIERE)
On Ghana’s Lake Volta, activists work to rescue victims of a child-slavery industry and help them transition back to normal life.
Screening with Nicholas Brennan’s short Mama:
Gertrude has dedicated her life to delivering children in her rural Ugandan village.
SONIC CINEMA
THE 5 BROWNS: DIGGING THROUGH THE DARKNESS
Dir: Ben Niles (NYC PREMIERE)
Siblings and Juilliard-trained piano virtuosos, the 5 Browns confront a disturbing secret and use music to recover from its impact on their family.
16 BARS
Dir: Samuel Bathrick (NYC PREMIERE)
Grammy winner Todd Thomas—aka “Speech” of Arrested Development—leads a unique collaborative music workshop in a Virginia state penitentiary.
ECHO IN THE CANYON
Dir: Andrew Slater (NYC PREMIERE)
Musician Jakob Dylan of The Wallflowers explores the 1960s musicians who fostered folk rock tradition in the community of Laurel Canyon.
I USED TO BE NORMAL: A BOYBAND FANGIRL STORY
Dir: Jessica Leski (NYC PREMIERE)
Profiling the ardent fans who find joy in their devotion of boy bands such as New Kids on the Block, N*Sync, One Direction and The Beatles.
IT MUST SCHWING! THE BLUE NOTE STORY
Dir: Eric Friedler (NYC PREMIERE)
Executive produced by Wim Wenders and featuring a swinging jazz soundtrack, this history of Blue Note Records profiles the company’s two Jewish German refugee founders.
RUDEBOY: THE STORY OF TROJAN RECORDS
Dir: Nicolas Jack Davies (U.S. PREMIERE)
Set to great Jamaican music, a creative exploration of the pioneering 1960s label behind “Rudy, A Message to You,” “You Can Get if You Really Want” and more.
THE SHOW’S THE THING: THE LEGENDARY PROMOTERS OF ROCK
Dir: Molly Bernstein, Philip Dolin (WORLD PREMIERE)
This untold chapter of rock history reveals the influential live music promoters behind the rise of the Rolling Stones, Simon & Garfunkel, David Bowie and more.
TEDDY PENDERGRASS: IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME
Dir: Olivia Lichtenstein (NYC PREMIERE)
This definitive bio, set to a soulful soundtrack, tells the story of Teddy Pendergrass, poised to be the biggest R&B artist ever—until tragedy struck.
DOCS REDUX
A HYMN FOR ALVIN AILEY (1999)
Dir: Orlando Bagwell
A classic film by DOC NYC Lifetime Achievement Award-winner Orlando Bagwell, celebrating the legacy of pioneering choreographer Alvin Ailey.
SHORTS PROGRAMS
SHORTS: THE BIG APPLE
New York, NY. It’s a helluva town. Seven films explore the city, from the lives of immigrant cabbies to the World Trade Center memorial.
The Accidental Activist (Samia Khan)
Footprint (Sara Newens)
The Sheriff of Goodtimes (Brad Hinkle)
A Sharper Sword (Olivier Bernier)
I’ve Never Been a Fisherman (Joe Stankus)
King of the Night (Molly Brass, Stephen Tyler)
Vilaayat (Ansh Vohra)
SHORTS: THE CREATIVE SPARK
On artists, performers and designers. Eight films profile graffiti to woodworking, architecture to art in Havana.
Painting the Town (William Higbie)
Barbara Kruger: Part of the Discourse (Ian Forster)
Perspective. (Allyssa Agro)
Thomas Fire Architect (Nicholas Weissman)
Cuban Canvas (Kavery Kaul)
Don’t Define Me (Don Casper)
Tapume (Hugo Faraco)
My Paintbrush Bites (Joel Pincosy, Joe Egender)
SHORTS: DRAWN TOGETHER
Life, animated. Nine films offer a creative use of animation to tell stories about Christmas, clowns, film pioneers and more.
Santa Is a Psychedelic Mushroom (Matthew Salton)
Music & Clowns (Alex Widdowson)
Obon (Andre Hoermann, Anna Samo)
Tightly Wound (Shelby Hadden)
For A Better Life (Yasmin Mistry)
Carlotta’s Face (Valentin Riedl, Frédéric Schuld)
Lon (Nina Landau)
Lotte That Silhouette Girl (Elizabeth Beecherl, Carla Patullo)
The Likes and Dislikes of Marj Bagley (Taylor Stanton)
SHORTS: GENERATION Z
The hopes and dreams of the youngest generation. Seven films detail young love, youth activism, refugee life and more.
True Love in Pueblo Textil (Horatio Baltz)
Station 15 (Kira Akerman, Sophie Tintori)
Share (Barna Szász, Ellie Wen)
Listen (Astrid Bussink)
Osama and Ayman (Sam Price-Waldman, Ben Mullinkosson, Chris Cresci)
We Became Fragments ( Luisa Conlon, Hanna Miller, Lacy Jane Roberts)
Hallo Salaam (Kim Brand)
SHORTS: I’M A SURVIVOR
Contemplating life and death and finding grace. Six films offer hope in the face of life’s curveballs, from illness to accident.
Grace (Rachel Pikelny)
Sister Hearts (Mohammad Gorjestani)
Crannog (Isa Rao)
I Was Here (Julian Dalrymple)
Prince’s Tale (Jamie Miller)
The Pull (Paul Szynol)
SHORTS: LEGACY
History is made, for better or worse. Three films explore the legacy of both private and public actions.
The Happiness Machine (Rebecca B. Blumhagen)
In the Absence (Yi Seung-Jun)
Father K (Judd Ehrlich)
SHORTS: QUEERLY BELOVED
Life, loud and proud. Four films detail the diversity of LGBTQ experience.
The Journey: Gay Officers Action League (Det. John Giretti, Andrew Sklar)
Landline (Matt Houghton)
Almost Liam (Sapir Rokach)
Transformations (Alonso Mayo)
SHORTS: SPACES UNKNOWN
Unexpected moments and unusual discoveries. Six surprising stories about fake news, rhino guardians and more.
Fake News Fairytale (Kate Stonehill)
The Traffic Separating Device (Johan Palmgren)
Tungrus (Rishi Chandna)
The Mauritania Railway: Backbone of the Sahara (MacGregor)
Black Line (Mark Olexa, Francesca Scalisi)
The Black Mambas (Bruce Donnelly)
SHORTS: THIS IS AMERICA, 2018
The states of the nation. Seven stories offer seven stories about Alabama quilters, a Texas pastor, New Orleans politicians and more.
Lonesome Willcox (Ryan Maxey, Zack Wright)
Sole Doctor (Paula Bernstein)
While I Yet Live (Maris Curran)
Cats Cradle (Jonathan Napolitano)
LA Stories (Sara Newens, Josh Polon)
Last Sermon at George’s Creek (Spencer Creigh, Bobby Moser)
All Skinfolk Ain’t Kinfolk (Angela Tucker)
SHORTS: THIS SPORTING LIFE
Athletes, on and off the field. Six portraits of boxing, climbing, football and more.
El Gallo (Michael Medoway)
Big Wall (Jennifer Law-Smith)
Concussion Protocol (Josh Begley)
This Is Yarra (Lydia Rui)
Black 14 (Darius Clark Monroe)
Junction (Brendan Young)
DOC NYC U
The festival’s long-running section offers showcases of some of the city’s top student documentary filmmaking programs. Five programs reveal the nonfiction filmmakers of tomorrow, with work from Columbia University, Hunter College, New York Film Academy, New York University and School of Visual Arts.
Columbia Journalism School’s Documentary Project showcase includes:
The Lifehouse (Heba Elorbany, Kimberly Flores Guzmàn)
Love, Mommy (Tala Hadavi, Yeong-Ung Yang)
Hunter’s MFA Program in Integrated Media Arts showcase includes:
After… After… (Access) (Jordan Lord)
Dick’s Decoys (Sean Hanley)
Cranberry Lake (Zoya Baker)
Gentrification Express: Breaking Down the BQX (Samantha Farinella, Amanda Katz)
Postcards from Miss Universe (CG Foisy)
NYFA’s Documentary Department showcase includes:
Cricket Liu (Julia Cheng)
I Love You, Wally (Simona Kubasova Prakash)
Keliling Bali (Gary Bencheghib, Aitor Mendilibar)
The Trolls & I (Charlotte Madvig Schmidt)
NYU’s NewsDoc showcase includes:
An Edited Life (Mathieu Faure)
Trafficked In Paradise (Olivia Wilson)
SVA’s MFA Social Documentary Film showcase includes:
Bird (Kate Fisher)
Bob Man (Olivia Garzon)
The Calling (Padcha Ithijarukul)
Dressed to Fight (Naijie Wang)
In the Right Frame of Mind (Veronique Engel)
Noodle Soul (Hong Shanjia)
On Track (Yunhong Pu)
SHORT LIST: SHORTS
’63 BOYCOTT
Dir: Gordon Quinn
In 1963, more than 250,000 students boycotted Chicago’s public schools to protest racial segregation. Combining period footage with reflections from participants, ‘63 Boycott links the past with present-day concerns around inequality in the education system. Courtesy of Kartemquin.
EARTHRISE
Dir: Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee
In 1968, the first image of the Earth was captured from space, an iconic photograph that had an immediate and transformative impact around the globe. Earthrise explores the memories of the Apollo 8 astronauts responsible for the image, and their experience of awe in viewing the Earth framed against the void of space. Courtesy of New York Times Op-Docs/POV.
END GAME
Dirs: Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
A moving film about the passage from life to death, End Game is a portrait of the last days of those in palliative care in two San Francisco Bay Area medical facilities pioneering new paradigms for end-of-life decisions. Courtesy of Netflix.
THE GIRL AND THE PICTURE
Dir: Vanessa Roth
80 years ago, Xia Shuqin witnessed the murder of her family during the Nanjing Massacre.The Girl and the Picture uncovers how an American missionary’s camera serendipitously captured Xia and her sister, binding his family and theirs forever. Courtesy of USC Shoah Foundation/Cause & Affect Media.
THE HEAD & THE HAND
Dir: Marc Serpa Francoeur
A meditative portrait of two women who confronted great adversity with a profound bond and remarkable positivity, The Head & The Hand presents a rich exploration of disability, independence and sisterhood. Courtesy of Lost Time Media.
LESSONS FROM A SCHOOL SHOOTING: NOTES FROM DUNBLANE
Dir: Kim A. Snyder
In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook school shooting, local priest Father Bob Weiss connects with Father Basil O’Sullivan of Dunblane, Scotland, from a community which could uniquely relate to Newtown’s trauma. Kim A. Snyder’s film explores the power of resilience through the bond forged between these two priests. Courtesy of Netflix.
MY DEAD DAD’S PORNO TAPES
Dir: Charlie Tyrell
Following the death of his emotionally distant father, filmmaker Charlie Tyrell seeks to better understand him through the personal belongings he left behind… including a stack of dirty VHS tapes. Courtesy of New York Times Op-Docs.
RX: EARLY DETECTION, A CANCER JOURNEY WITH SANDRA LEE
Dir: Cathy Chermol Schrijver
After an annual mammogram results in a diagnosis of breast cancer, Emmy-winning TV host and lifestyle expert Sandra Lee sets out to discover the best options for treatment and recovery, opening up her private journey to share the importance of early detection with other women. Courtesy of HBO Documentary Films.
SIDELINED
Dir: Galen Summer
In 1978, inspired by the popularity of NFL cheerleaders, Playboy organized a pictorial feature approved by team management happy for the media exposure. But when the resulting pictures set off a critical backlash, cheerleaders were fired, exposing society’s hypocrisy around female sexuality. Courtesy of A&E IndieFilms/Lifetime Films.
TAKE BACK THE HARBOR
Dirs: Kristi Jacobson, Roger Ross Williams
On Governor’s Island, an ambitious program works to restore once-bountiful oysters and the environmental benefits they bring to New York Harbor. Take Back the Harbor highlights students at a remarkable public high school where environmental stewardship is part of the curriculum. Courtesy of Discovery/Motto Pictures.
WE ARE NOT DONE YET
Dir: Sareen Hairabedian
US veterans and active-duty service members come together through a workshop led by poet Seema Reza to combat their traumatic military pasts via the written word. Sharing fears, vulnerabilities and victories, their writing becomes a tool for empowerment and healing culminating in the live performance of a collaborative poem under the direction of Jeffrey Wright. Courtesy of HBO Documentary Films.
ZION
Dir: Floyd Russ
Born without legs and growing up in the foster care system, Zion Clark moved from one home to another as he grew up. Floyd Russ’ inspiring portrait reveals how his discovery of wrestling in the second grade provided not only a therapeutic outlet, but a sense of family.Courtesy of Netflix.
SHORT LIST: FEATURES
CRIME + PUNISHMENT
Dir: Stephen Maing
With unparalleled access to the whistle-blowing NYPD 12, this compelling Sundance prize-winner exposes systemic police corruption. Courtesy of IFC Films/Hulu.
FAHRENHEIT 11/9
Dir: Michael Moore
“One of Moore’s best and most incisively funny films” (Rolling Stone) seeks to understand the rise of Donald Trump and the resistance against him. Courtesy of State Run Films/Briarcliff Entertainment.
FREE SOLO
Dirs: Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi & Jimmy Chin
Alex Honnold aims to be the first climber to ascend free solo–without safety ropes–the 3,000-foot cliff of El Capitan in California’s Yosemite Park. Courtesy of National Geographic Documentary Films.
HALE COUNTY THIS MORNING, THIS EVENING
Dir: RaMell Ross
In this lyrical portrait of two young African-American men in the American South, “you witness a new cinematic language being born” (Village Voice). Courtesy of Cinema Guild.
JANE FONDA IN FIVE ACTS
Dir: Susan Lacy
This candid and entertaining portrait explores Jane Fonda’s many facets: sex symbol, Academy Award winner, controversial activist, tycoon’s wife and fitness mogul. Courtesy of HBO Documentary Films.
MINDING THE GAP
Dir: Bing Liu
Bing Liu films his skateboarding friends Zack and Keire over a decade, capturing the legacy of troubled relationships with their fathers. Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures/Hulu.
ON HER SHOULDERS
Dir: Alexandria Bombach
Before Nadia Murad was awarded the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize, this portrait captures the young Yazidi activist as she advocates for her minority community. Courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories/RYOT.
POPE FRANCIS: A MAN OF HIS WORD
Dir: Wim Wenders
The Oscar-nominated director of Pina and Buena Vista Social Club now trains his camera on the Argentine pontiff who leads the Catholic Church. Courtesy of Focus Features.
QUINCY
Dirs: Rashida Jones, Alan Hicks
Following the now 85-year-old producer Quincy Jones over three years on the road as he reflects on collaborators, from Frank Sinatra to Michael Jackson. Courtesy of Netflix.
RBG
Dirs: Betsy West, Julie Cohen
In this vivid history, we watch Ruth Bader Ginsburg go from trailblazing ACLU lawyer to the key liberal voice on the conservative Supreme Court. Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures/Participant Media/CNN Films.
REVERSING ROE
Dirs: Ricki Stern, Annie Sundberg
Acclaimed filmmakers Annie Sundberg and Ricki Stern trace the legacy of Roe v. Wade as reproductive rights are increasingly at risk. Courtesy of Netflix.
THE SENTENCE
Dir: Rudy Valdez
For ten years, Rudy Valdez captures the lives of his nieces while their mother serves a harsh prison term due to mandatory minimum sentencing. Courtesy of HBO Documentary Films.
SHIRKERS
Dir: Sandi Tan
Sundance Directing Award winner Sandi Tan solves a mystery from her youth in Singapore, when her mysterious older mentor stole her first film. Courtesy of Netflix.
THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS
Dir: Tim Wardle
When triplets separated at birth discovered each other in 1980, it was a media sensation, but the truth behind their past proves both surprising and disturbing. Courtesy of NEON/CNN Films.
WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR?
Dir: Morgan Neville
Oscar-winning filmmaker Morgan Neville (20 Feet from Stardom) tells the story of Fred Rogers, who influenced generations of children through his pioneering TV program.Courtesy of Focus Features.
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Brian Banks[/caption]
The LA Film Festival, announced the winners of the 2018 Festival, with the top awards going to Brian Banks by Tom Shadyac winning the Audience Award for Fiction Feature Film and Stuntman by Kurt Mattila winning the Audience Award for Documentary Feature Film. Other awards include This Teacher by Mark Jackson winning the U.S. Fiction Award, and the Swedish film Border by Ali Abbasi winning the World Fiction Award.
“We congratulate all of the filmmakers that shared their work with the LA Film Festival,” said Festival Director, Jennifer Cochis. “These awards honor the wide range of exceptional storytelling we’ve been sincerely delighted to present. All of us are looking forward to wider audiences discovering these stories in the year ahead.”
Festival Guest Director, Emmy-award-winning, Lauren Greenfield (Generation Wealth, Queen of Versailles) was awarded the Spirit of Independence Award at the event for her work advancing the cause of independent film and championing creative freedom as a celebrated documentarian, famed photographer and artist.
The Festival’s juried awards include: the U.S. Fiction Award, World Fiction Award, Documentary Award, LA Muse Awards, Nightfall Award, Music Video Award, Episodic Award, well as the Short Fiction Award and the Short Documentary Award. Audience awards are presented for Fiction Feature Film, Documentary Feature Film, Episodic Story, Episodic Pilot, Short Film, Music Video and Series from the Web.
Additionally the 25th anniversary of Film Independent’s diversity mentorship initiative Project Involve honored Effie T. Brown (Real Women Have Curves, Dear White People), Jon M. Chu (GI Joe: Retaliation, Crazy Rich Asians), Cherien Dabis (Amreeka, Empire) and MACRO’s Founder & CEO Charles D. King (Mudbound, Fences) at the home of Catharine and Jeffrey Soros during the Festival and the inaugural New Wave brunch celebrated the work of Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine Nine), Jay Ellis (Insecure), Dominique Fishback (The Hate U Give), Jorge Lendeborg Jr. (Bumblebee), Leonardo Nam (Westworld) and Millicent Simmonds (A Quiet Place).
Watergate[/caption]
Double Exposure Investigative Film Festival & Symposium, a project of 100Reporters, launches its fourth edition with world, U.S. and Washington premieres of fifteen new, investigative films that speak to our times in a newly urgent language, bridging investigative reporting and visual storytelling. This year’s themes: Demystifying. Exposing. Equalizing. Verifying.
Double Exposure opens with WATERGATE, in which celebrated director Charles Ferguson (INSIDE JOB) recreates the epochal White House scandal for a new generation, using interviews with key players, previously-classified documents and Richard Nixon’s own secret recordings as the spine for Oval Office dialogues with chilling resonance today.
The festival’s closing film, DIVIDE AND CONQUER, tracks the rise and fall of kingmaker Roger Ailes, the driving force behind Fox News, who lost it all following accusations of sexual harassment at the top.
GHOST FLEET investigates the hidden population of modern-day slaves who underpin industrial fishing, held captive at sea for years at a time.
THE PANAMA PAPERS details the unprecedented coordination of over 300 journalists who reveal the biggest global corruption scandal in history.
Our 2018 films explore the psychic cost of community-wide surveillance, uncovered through journalistic sleuthing and the Freedom of Information Act; wrongful criminal confessions; sexual assault and social media; the underside of savior complexes and much more. The films deliver illuminating stories from war-torn Afghanistan to middle America, from a middle-class apartment in Budapest to the Oval Office. Check the full lineup at dxfest.com.
“This year’s slate demonstrates the increasing relevance of film to the most pressing stories of our day,” said Double Exposure founder and co-director, Diana Jean Schemo. “Our Opening Night film revisits a scandal with searing relevance in 2018. And our Closing Night film on Roger Ailes and Fox News brings the story of an era that began with Watergate to our present time of social media, sexual reckoning and rampant truth-bending.”
“This is an extraordinary moment for investigative filmmaking. We are finding more and more filmmakers integrating journalistic practice into their storytelling, and more journalists moving into the visual realm,” said Double Exposure co-creator and co-director, Sky Sitney. “Each film on our slate not only tells an urgent story in itself, but shapes that story through a riveting, new visual language that stands at a crossroads between these two distinct practices.”
HISTORY’s definitive original documentary, WATERGATE, chronicles one of the biggest criminal conspiracies in modern American politics and features a roster of some of the most important media, legal and political figures from the scandal, including Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein, John Dean, Jill Wine-Banks, Richard Ben-Veniste, and many others. Wednesday, Oct. 10, 7pm, Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. Post screening discussion with director Charles Ferguson and special guests to be announced.
Following Opening Night, all screenings take place at the Naval Heritage Center, and are followed by conversations with the director, film subjects, and others.
STOLEN DAUGHTERS: KIDNAPPED BY BOKO HARAM revisits a shocking story that made global headlines. In 2014, 276 Nigerian school girls were kidnapped from a school in Chibok, Northern Nigeria, and hidden in the vast Sambisa forest for three years by Boko Haram, a violent Islamic insurgent movement. Granted exclusive access to the 82 girls who were freed last year and taken to a secret government safe house in the capital of Abuja, the film explores how the young women might adapt back to life after having experienced such trauma, and how the Nigerian government is navigating, and at times commandeering, their reentry into society. Thursday, Oct. 11, 6pm. Naval Heritage Center.
ROLL RED ROLL goes behind the headlines of a notorious high school sexual assault case to witness the social media-fueled “boys will be boys” culture that let it happen, and defended them when it did. Thursday, Oct. 11, 8:30pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Nancy Schwartzman, film subjects Alexandria Goddard and Rachel Dissell, and others to be announced.
In UNPROTECTED, an acclaimed American charity said it was saving some of the world’s most vulnerable girls from sexual exploitation. Then the girls were raped, and that was only the beginning. Friday, Oct. 12, 4pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Nadia Sussman, and others to be announced.
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The Feeling of Being Watched[/caption]
For THE FEELING OF BEING WATCHED, filmmaker Assia Boundaoui follows the trail of her neighbors’ suspicion that their community just outside Chicago has been under surveillance for over a decade. While investigating their experiences, Boundaoui uncovers tens of thousands of pages of FBI documents that prove her Muslim community was indeed the subject of one of the largest counter-terrorism investigations ever conducted in the U.S. before 9/11, code-named “Operation Vulgar Betrayal.” Friday, Oct. 12, 6pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Assia Boundaoui, and others to be announced.
GHOST FLEET follows a small group of activists who risk their lives on remote Indonesian islands to find justice and freedom for the enslaved fishermen who feed the world’s insatiable appetite for seafood. Bangkok-based Patima Tungpuchayakul, a Thai abolitionist, has committed her life to helping these “lost” men return home. Facing illness, death threats, corruption, and complacency, Patima’s fearless determination for justice inspires her nation and the world. Friday, Oct. 12, 8:30pm Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Shannon Service, producer Jon Bowermaster, and others to be announced.
THE TRUTH ABOUT KILLER ROBOTS is an eerie, eye-opening work of science-nonfiction, that charts incidents in which robots have caused the deaths of humans in an automated Volkswagen factory, in a self-driving Tesla vehicle and from a bomb-carrying droid used by Dallas police. Though they are typically treated as freak anomalies, each case raises questions of accountability, legality and morality. Exploring the provocative views of engineers, journalists, and philosophers, and drawing on archival footage, the film goes beyond sensational deaths to examine more subtle ways that robots pose a threat to society. Saturday, Oct. 13, 10am, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Maxim Pozdorovkin.
THE UNAFRAID (dirs. Anayansi Prado & Heather Courtney) follows the personal lives of three DACA students in Georgia, a state that has banned them from attending their top state universities and disqualifies them from receiving in-state tuition at any other public college. Shot in an observational style over a period of four years, this film takes an intimate look at the lives of Alejandro, Silvia and Aldo as they navigate activism, pursuing their right to education, and fighting for the rights of their families and communities. Saturday, Oct. 13, 12:30pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Heather Courtney, film subjects and others to be announced.
FALSE CONFESSIONS. Each year innumerable American suspects confess to crimes they did not commit, and experts say that trained interrogators can get anybody to confess to anything.
The film follows indefatigable defense attorney Jane Fisher-Byrialsen, who is determined to put an end to interrogation techniques that all too often pressure innocent people into false confessions. As we weave through four of Fisher-Byrialsen’s cases, all involving false confessions, the film examines the psychological aspect of how people end up confessing to crimes they have not committed and the consequences of these confessions – for those accused, for their families and for society at large. Saturday, Oct. 13, 3pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Katrine Philp, subject Jane Fisher-Byrialsen, and others to be announced.
In making OF FATHERS AND SONS, Syrian-born filmmaker Talal Derki travels to his homeland in Syria, where he gains the trust of a radical Islamist family, sharing their daily life for over two years. His camera focuses primarily on the children, providing an extremely rare insight into what it means to grow up with a father whose only dream is to establish an Islamic caliphate. Osama (13) and his brother Ayman (12) both love and admire their father and obey his words, but while Osama seems content to follow the path of jihad, Ayman wants to go back to school. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize for World Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival, OF FATHERS AND SONS is a work of unparalleled access that captures the chilling moment when childhood dies and jihadism is born. Saturday, Oct. 13, 5:30pm, Naval Heritage Center.
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Divide and Conquer: The Story of Roger Ailes[/caption]
In DIVIDE AND CONQUER Alexis Bloom sheds light on the current moment in American political life by following the arc of Roger Ailes: long-time Republican Svengali and controversial founder of Fox News. By coaching an unrivaled stable of politicians over the course of fifty years, Ailes heavily influenced Republican politics, steering the conservative movement from Nixon to the Tea Party to Trump. Under his tutelage, anger and fear became the coin of the realm, both on the ballot and on national television. This is a story of serial cruelty, both on the public stage and in private life. Like a true Shakespearean figure, ambition and desire were Ailes’ undoing. He was finally toppled when victims of his sexual harassment stepped forward. The accounts of these women—raw and infuriating—are the axis around which Ailes’ story inexorably turns. Saturday, Oct. 13, 8:30pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Alexis Bloom, and others to be announced.
For A WOMAN CAPTURED, director Bernadett Tuza-Ritter follows the life of a European woman who has been held by a Budapest family as a domestic slave for 10 years. She is one of over 45 million victims of modern day slavery today. Drawing courage from the filmmaker’s presence and the camera as witness, the woman captured attempts to escape the unbearable oppression and become a free person. Sunday, Oct. 14, 11am, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with director Bernadett Tuza-Ritter.
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People’s Republic of Desire[/caption]
THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF DESIRE dives deep into world of young stars of live streaming in China, where the shift to a virtual life in place of flesh-and-blood relationships has gone far. The stars build followings among the rich and poor, with the rich lavishing online personalities with gifts worth millions of dollars, and the poor cheering the wealthy patrons on and rooting for their idols. The scene culminates with a once-a-year competition, a cross between the Hunger Games and Black Mirror, in which the winner is the one whose patrons buy the most votes. Sunday, Oct. 14, 1:45pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with filmmaker Hao Wu.
Filmed over three years, ANGELS ARE MADE OF LIGHT follows students and teachers at a school in an old neighborhood of Kabul that is slowly rebuilding from past conflicts. Interweaving the modern history of Afghanistan with present-day portraits, director James Longley offers an intimate and nuanced vision of a society living in the shadow of war. Sunday, Oct. 14, 4:30pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with filmmaker James Longley.
In THE PANAMA PAPERS, Alex Winter delivers a powerful, illuminating film that paints a complete picture of the biggest global corruption scandal in history. The “Panama Papers” leak involved the unprecedented coordination of hundreds of journalists from 107 media organizations in more than 80 countries, who broke the story in 2015. The papers included over 11.5 million documents that detail financial and attorney-client information for nearly 214,500 offshore accounts. Winter includes interviews with whistleblowers and key journalists on the investigation, to tell the story of the massive data breach which uncovered murky political and financial corruption, bribes, election rigging and even murder. Sunday, Oct. 14, 7:30pm, Naval Heritage Center. Post-screening discussion with filmmaker Alex Winter, and others to be announced.
Banana Split[/caption]
The 2018 LA Film Festival taking place September 20 to 28, 2018. unveiled a diverse slate of 40 feature films, 41 short films, and 10 short episodic works in the U.S. Fiction, Documentary, World Fiction, LA Muse and Nightfall sections. Across the competition categories 42% of the films are directed by women and 39% are directed by people of color.
“Our mission of finding fresh new voices from different geographical and cultural axes remains true,” said LA Film Festival Director Jennifer Cochis. “These storytellers are united by their ability to transport, impact and inspire audiences with the power of their craft.”
Venues for the 2018 Festival include the ArcLight Cinemas in Culver City, Hollywood and Santa Monica, as well as the new LMU Playa Vista Campus (opening this fall), the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts and the Writers Guild Theater.
2018 CPH-DOX Awards. The winner of DOX:Award: The Raft[/caption]
‘The Raft’ by the Swedish director Marcus Lindeen, which tells the story of one of the strangest social experiments of all times ,and told by those who took part in it, took the top prize – the Dox:Award 2018 at the 15th edition of CPH:DOX – Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival. The film held its world premiere at as CPH:DOX.
In 1973, five men and six women sailed across the Atlantic on a raft. A social experiment and a scientific study of violence, aggression, sex and group behaviour, conducted by a radical Mexican anthropologist. Everything was filmed and documented in a diary. But theory is one thing, practice is another. And without wanting to reveal too much, the experiment didn’t exactly work out as planned. Over 40 years later, Swedish artist and filmmaker Marcus Lindeen brings the crew together again for the first time since the experiment, on a faithful copy of the raft in a film studio, to look back at the three intense months they spent together, isolated and without privacy, on ‘The Sex Raft’, as the press called it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-diO4_Y0i8
The jury gave a Special Mention to ‘América’, a charming, Mexican adventure about three mismatched brothers and their 93-year-old grandmother in a film about family ties.
‘Laila at the Bridge’ by Elizabeth Mirzaei and Gulistan Mirzaei, which had its world premiere at CPH:DOX won the F:ACT Award – dedicated to auteur filmmaking in the field between research-based, investigative journalism, activism and documentary cinema.
A powerful film about a woman who is willpower in its purest form. Day after day, the charismatic and strong-willed woman puts on her small ballerina shoes and colourful scarves and heads under the bridge to take them to her private rehab centre, where the aim is to get them out of their addiction with ice-cold baths, communal prayers and motherly reprimands. It is not a miracle factory. Many experience a relapse, and Laila has to struggle with constant financial problems. When the Taliban’s arrival in the city scares customers away from the restaurant she is running to finance her centres, things start looking bleak. But Laila threatens corrupt ministers in their marble offices, shoots mafia thugs in her bedroom with a shotgun and with equal measures of care and indignation has a serious word with the opium-addled men under the bridge.
The winner of the New:Vision Award is the film ‘Wild Relatives’ by Jumana Manna. Jumana Manna’s original and politically sensitive new work draws lines between three distant spots on the world map: Syria, Lebanon and Svalbard. The lines chart a route and a complex network of relationships. ‘Wild Relatives’ exposes the exchange of ecological currency between two of the world’s grain banks, which are the archives of the smallest basic ingredient of agriculture: Seeds. Biodiversity, conflicts and international politics are parts of a game with perspectives reaching far out into the most distant future, and form the the basis for a humorous and thought-provoking conversation between a priest and a scientist far out in the middle of nowhere.
The jury gave a Special Mention to ‘Translations’ by Tinne Zenner, a critical and graceful 16mm film in which the vistas of Greenland create a space for free thinking.
The winner of the Nordic:Dox Award – recognizing the best and brightest in cinema from the Nordic countries – is the film ‘Lykkelænder’ by the Danish director Lasse Lau. The film held its world premiere at the festival.
The relationship between Greenland and Denmark is full of fantasy and myths. And these are exactly what Danish artist Lasse Lau reflects upon – and in turn documents – in his first feature-length film. But how do you give a form to the Greenlandic experience when you are an outsider yourself? Lau has created a sensitive film about authenticity and recreation by letting both elements become a part of the work, together with his performers.
The jury gave a Special Mention to the Norwegian film ‘The Night’ by Steffan Strandberg, a beautifully animated and bittersweet film about two brothers and their upbringing with an alcoholic mother and musician father.
The winner of the Next:Wave Award given to emerging filmmakers, is the film ‘Beautiful Things’ by the Italian directors Giorgio Ferrero & Federico Biasin. If documentary science fiction was a genre – and it is now! – then ‘Beautiful Things’ is the film that locates the future in the midst of our present age. A machine engineer on a supertanker and a scientist specialising in mathematics and audio studies are two of the human cogs in a bulimic cycle of (over)production and (over)consumption of the material objects that surround us – a cycle we never even think about. A chain with many segments, which the filmmaker duo of Giorgio Ferrero and Federico Biasin brings together in an accomplished audiovisual study of our times, but with room for the human quirks that constitute the grit in the machinery.
The jury gave a Special Mention to Minding the Gap (Bing Liu, United States), where three young friends grow up, become young men and make life choices in front of rolling cameras, and Conventional Sins (Anat Yuta Zuria & Shira-Clara Winther, Israel), a Docu-noir about sexual abuse in the ultra-orthodox environment in Jerusalem.
The winner of the Politiken Audience Award is ‘False Confessions’ by the director Katrine Philp, a legal thriller about a pro-bono idealist’s work for justice in a cynical justice system. The film held its world premiere at the festival.
During an interrogation in the United States, it is both legal and commonplace to use special psychological techniques to make the suspect confess. In a closed room, coached interrogators can not only get anyone to confess to anything – they can also make innocent people believe that they have actually committed crimes such as murder and child assault. In New York, the Danish-born defence attorney Jane Fisher-Byrialsen is working to prevent false confessions, so that less people end up in prison for crimes they have not committed.
image via Facebook – The winner of DOX:Award: “The Raft” Photo by Inger Rønnenfelt