WATCHING
Indie Lens Short Film Festival
An eclectic mix of stories and storytelling with this batch of winning shorts. View. Vote. Download.
18 in ’08
Nonpartisan doc and movement targeting today’s 17- to 24-year-olds, many of whom will be voting in their first presidential election in 2008. Watch trailer.
Frederick Wiseman
Many of Wiseman’s documentaries are finally available on DVD for the home market.
YouTube: The Gilmour Boys
What happens when novelist David Gilmour lets his 15-year-old son drop out of school on the condition that they watch three movies a week together? (Via Paper Cuts)
Independent Lens: Sisters in Law In a small courthouse in Cameroon, a tough-minded state prosecutor and court president help women in their village fight abuse.
READING
WireTap: Brother Outsider
Filmmakers talk about how the once untold story of Bayard Rustin is making waves among a new generation of organizers.
BBC Three
The BBC is looking for new documentary filmmakers! Pitch an idea for a documentary film around the theme of beauty. Up to three directors will get their ideas commissioned.
The New York Times
Reading this article about the crisis facing turtles and other animals in China due to pollution makes us think back to Richard Ogust, who housed 1,200 turtles in his Manhattan loft. Richard was the subject of a 2007 POV film, The Chances of the World Changing.
Paste Magazine
Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars will participate in a new compilation album featuring African artists covering U2 songs to be released next year. SLRAS will do “Seconds.”
The Huffington Post
Blogger David Wallechinsky celebrates the release of 23 Frederick Wiseman films on DVD this week from Zipporah Films.