The International Documentary Association (IDA) announced the appointment of Brenda Robinson as President of its Board of Directors. Robinson, who joined IDA’s Board of Directors in 2018, succeeds Kevin Iwashina, whose board term ends in December 2020.
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Though Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets premiered in the US Documentary Competition at pre-pandemic Sundance back in January, I didn’t catch Bill and Turner Ross' heartfelt film until the festival world had turned upside down and digital. Fortunately, I was able to watch the unusual dive-bar drama during CPH:DOX's pioneering virtual edition, deeming it "the quintessential CPH:DOX film—i.e., designed to have doc purists tearing their hair out," and summed it up as follows: "Veering from the ridiculous to the poignant, often in the same scene, this collection of character studies shot during last call
Essential Doc Reads is our curated selection of recent features and important news items about the documentary form and its processes, from around the internet, as well as from the Documentary magazine archive. We hope you enjoy! In a Los Angeles Times editorial filmmaker Stanley Nelson presses the need for Black filmmakers to tell the story of 2020 Perhaps, had funding been available, along with more support for filmmakers of color, stories that we recognize as valuable and just good stories— from slavery and emancipation to reconstruction and so much more — would have gained popular acclaim
Screen Time is your curated weekly guide to excellent documentaries and nonfiction programs that you can watch at home. Now streaming on American Experience, The Vote, a two-part series directed and written by Michelle Ferrari, commemorates the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, telling the story of the hard-fought campaign waged by American women for the right to vote. Streaming on American Masters, Unladylike 2020, an animated documentary series directed by Charlotte Mangin, profiles female trailblazers from the Progessive Era (1890s through 1920s) who broke barriers in
In this new age of physical distancing and social isolation, computer screens and television monitors have become the focal point for our contact with the world. What we see out there is ominous and tragic, ranging from deadly results of the ongoing pandemic to the rise of racism and a consequent fightback by those who have been the subject of so much hatred for too many years. Everything is in flux, from politics to medicine to culture. Where does that leave a festival like Hot Docs, which wrapped on Sunday, June 7, with a virtual ceremony, in which their Audience Award winner, the Canadian
Due to the long holiday weekend, we're a bit late on Essential Doc Reads. But here it is: our curated selection of recent features and important news items about the documentary form and its processes, from around the internet, as well as from the Documentary magazine archive. We hope you enjoy! Sundance Film Festival Director Tabitha Jackson spells out her vision for the 2020 edition. This is my image for the Festival: a powerful array of perspectives, of talent and artistry—combining with audiences in homes and cities and across countries to reveal new truths. An accessible, inclusive
Documentaries expose wrongdoing, illuminate culture, and take on powerful interests—and they depend on fair use to do it. Every day, members of our community make fair use responsibly and appropriately; get insurance; and have their work screened, broadcast and distributed without incident. Yet new threats continue to emerge. In the new digital economy, the documentary community must stay informed, organize, and agitate to protect the fair use rights we have worked so hard to earn. Challenges to fair use have become more common in recent years, even as the law on fair use in documentary
Director Dawn Porter ( Gideon's Army, Trapped) felt equipped for the documentary John Lewis: Good Trouble. She had, after all, interviewed the US Congressman previously for the doc series Bobby Kennedy for President. Porter and her crew witnessed Lewis' tenacity and resilience first hand on the first full shoot day. The team set out to follow the congressman as he campaigned in Texas for Colin Allred, Lizzie Fletcher and Beto O'Rourke for the 2018 election. "Whatever I thought this movie was going to be, I was wrong," Porter admits. "This 80-year-old man kicked our butts." Porter reveals that
As a stopgap measure, the AFI Docs festival in Washington, DC was remarkably satisfying. The technology largely worked; most Zoom participants remembered to mute/unmute; the ticketing was efficient; Q&As were well-hosted and informative. Missing, of course, was the serendipity, the opportunities to catch up with colleagues, the information-sharing about can’t-miss films. But as virtual events go, this one was well-produced. AFI Docs has demonstrated commitment to social-issue docs in a range of aesthetic modes and over a range of topics, appropriate to its DC venue. This year the showing was
Narrative justice demands that those closest to the problem define that problem. This necessarily means a rearrangement of who stands behind the camera, but also requires tools to advance responsible, accountable filmmaking no matter the filmmaker.