August 10, 2016 | POV’s daily list of essential reading for the documentary and independent filmmaking community.
Amanda Knox Documentary Among Four Newly Announced Netflix Originals
The Toronto International Film Festival starts the prestige of Oscar season, and as this year’s lineup continues to pour in, Netflix has joined the crop of studios that will introduce their films at September’s festival. The streaming service announced four original documentaries, all of which will premiere on Netflix before the year’s end.
Read more | Huffington Post
NYFF 2016: 5 Must-See Films, As Recommended By Festival Director Kent Jones
Every film playing in the 54th New York Film Festival this fall is a must-see in the eyes of Festival Director and Selection Committee Chair Kent Jones, but a handful of titles are particularly indispensable. During a presentation on Tuesday morning unveiling the 25 films that will make up NYFF’s Main Slate, Jones shared some insights into the festival’s selection process.
Read more | IndieWire
BitTorrent Offering Cash Grants to Filmmakers and Other Artists
BitTorrent is launching the Discovery Fund, which will provide 25 cash grants of up to $100,000 in marketing and distribution funding. The Discovery Fund comes two months after BitTorrent enlisted A24, Oscilloscope, and Honora as partners to refresh the service’s Bundle platform with a pilot program for ad-supported streaming releases across multiple platforms, with 70% of ad revenues going to artists.
Read more | Variety
Sundance Institute and Time Warner Foundation Select 12 Fellows for 2016 Artist Support Grants
Twelve diverse independent artists will receive support from the 2016 Sundance Institute | Time Warner Foundation Fellowship Program. The program includes support for Fellows working in new media, documentary and narrative film, theatre and film music as well as from the Institute’s Native American and Indigenous Program.
Read more | Sundance
Twitter is expanding the creation of Moments to everyone, starting with brands and influencers
Twitter has announced that in the “coming months” it will be rolling out its Moments feature for everyone to use and create their own tweet compilations. As of today, Twitter Moments is available for use by certain Twitter partners, brands, and influencers. Budweiser, Allure Magazine and activist DeRay McKesson are among the first to try out the new influencer-only Moments.
Read more | Nieman Lab
The New York Times is launching its film and TV recommendation site Watching
The New York Times announced the launch (in closed beta) of its movies-and-TV recommendation site Watching on Monday. For eager movie and TV nerds among us, the platform is still in closed beta, available only to “select NYTimes.com registered users,” as well as a “limited number of users who sign up to the Watching beta waitlist.”
Read more | Nieman Lab
Upcoming festivals and deadlines
This Week
- Open Call: Hot Docs Ted Rogers Fund 8/11
Next Week
- Deadline: Hot Docs-Blue Ice Group Documentary Fund 8/19
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