'After Tiller,' 'Citizen Koch,' and 'Valentine Road' are all official selections of this year's program in Park City.
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Some of the more vital voices and visionaries in indie doc and feature filmmaking today proffered their words, wisdom and wit at the annual Film Independent Forum last month, held at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. With a robust directory of case studies and resources to complement the panels, workshops and discussions over the weekend, the forum held its own as an essential educational and informational confab. One of the Saturday offerings, "Reality Bites: The Perils of the Doc," addressed the challenges and dangers of dealing with difficult documentary subjects—both people
'The Central Park Five' opens in theaters November 23 through Sundance Selects.
The United Nations Association Film Festival ( UNAFF) celebrated its 15th anniversary this year at Stanford University. The annual event, founded by journalist and professor Jasmina Bojic, was originally conceived to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Over 15 years the range of program has broadened to 70 documentaries this year, and the festival has taken films to local schools and throughout the country on an annual tour. Here's a sampling, from a critic whose recent feature documentary film, Portrait of Wally, was also included in the
'Crossfire Hurricane' airs November 15 on HBO.
The Mill Valley Film Festival (MVFF), which runs every October at its Marin County home just north of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, boasts a full contingent of documentaries in its Valley of the Docs section. In its 35th year, MVFF represents the Bay Area as a bastion of documentary filmmaking, especially in the fields of environmentalism and social justice. Another major theme is performing artists. Jeffrey Ruoff's Still Moving: Pilobolus at 40 is a short film that pays tribute to the idiosyncratic dance company that was founded in 1971 by a group of Dartmouth College students, who
There's no question, crowdfunding is a great way to reach out to your audience and gain much-needed financial support. Whether you're in the first or final stages of making your documentary, a targeted campaign could be just the thing your fundraising strategy is missing. Getting started and knowing how to create a successful campaign might seem daunting. But never fear! The professionals at IndieGoGo are here to help. Check out IndieGoGo's blog posts and register for their upcoming webinars: Blog Posts What Makes a Campaign Successful 5 Basic Elements for a Great Pitch Page IndieGoGo Insight
Tell Them Who You Are, which will be released theatrically in April through THINKFilm, is a 95-minute summary of a personal journey for Mark S. Wexler, who explores the career of his famous father, cinematographer Haskell Wexler. The story unfolds through Mark's eyes, and in the words of his dad's collaborators and friends. The documentary is carved out of some 120 hours of material, which includes interviews spiced with the young Wexler's own sometimes-acerbic conversations with his father. Haskell Wexler, ASC, is truly a legend in his own time. He earned Oscars for Who's Afraid of Virginia
Since 1990, Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato have been bringing their unique take on the world to screens both big and small. In an industry where yesterday’s doc becomes tomorrow’s reality show and the gay channel has to become less so to survive, the duo has not only produced some of the most most-watched, cutting-edge programming of the past two decades, but have also created one of the media world’s most successful independent production companies and distinctive brands, World of Wonder. From award winning in-depth character studies ( The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Monica in Black in White) to
Remember back in the late 1990s, when the dot-com world was taking off? There was talk of the Internet replacing "brick and mortar" businesses. The days of face-to-face interaction were numbered. This was also the time when it looked like the Internet was going to become a haven for e-commerce and nothing else. While online vitamin shops and hoola-hoop specialty stores came and went, there were visionary documentarians looking to the Internet as a way to serve the documentary community. The fruits of their labors have been great: The D-Word recently celebrated its fifth birthday, which