February 10, 2017 | POV’s daily list of essential reading for the documentary and independent filmmaking community.
Inside Steve Bannon’s ‘Weaponized’ Political Documentaries
Steve Bannon, chief strategist to President Trump, has also worked extensively in the film world, including writing and directing documentaries on the global financial crisis, alleged corruption in the Clinton Foundation and what he sees as the rise of a violent and radical Islam. Jeffrey Brown speaks with The Washington Post’s Ann Hornaday and Matea Gold on Bannon’s past work.
Read more | PBS Newshour »
At Last, You Can Live in the House Made Famous by the Heartbreaking Documentary ‘Grey Gardens’
In the classic documentary Grey Gardens, two once-wealthy women live in squalor among the decaying ruins of their family’s ancestral home. Now, for a mere $20 million, you, too, can live the life of Big and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, as their former East Hamptons home is on the market for the first time in 40 years.
Read more | Slate »
A Field Guide to 2017’s Diverse Slate of Oscar-Nominated Documentaries
The five documentaries nominated in the Best Documentary Feature category at the 2017 Oscars are unusually eclectic — and unusually urgent. Dealing with topics including race, mass incarceration, autism, and the European migrant crisis, they might all be seen as “issue documentaries,” movies that challenge the viewer to reconfigure the ways they understand the world.
Read more | Vox »
Denzel Washington Is Serenaded by Teen Violinist Brianna Perez, the Subject of ‘Joe’s Violin’ — Watch
During this year’s Oscar Nominees Luncheon, Denzel Washington met a very special and talented young woman: 14-year-old violinist Brianna Perez, the subject of the documentary short Joe’s Violin. Though anyone would be star-struck in the presence of the Academy Award winner, it was Denzel who ended up amazed at the teen’s great talent.
Read more | IndieWire »
‘Tower’ Pays Tribute To A 1966 Campus Shooting That Was ‘Pushed Aside’
In August 1966, a student and former Marine ascended to the top of the tower that housed the University of Texas’ main library and began shooting at people below. He killed 14 people on the campus and wounded 31 more. Hours earlier, Charles Whitman had killed his wife and mother in their homes. He was eventually shot to death by police. A 15th victim died in 2001, from injuries sustained in the attack.
Read more | NPR »
Finding the Storyline in a Documentary Short (Or, Do Short Docs Need Narrative Arcs?)
When you announce to the world (or at least on social media) that you’re making a short documentary, you’re bound to be asked the obvious question: “What’s it about?” As any documentary filmmaker can tell you, there’s a short answer to that question and a long answer, depending upon who is asking and how much time they have to spare.
Read more | Filmmaker Magazine »
Upcoming Festivals and Deadlines
This Week
- Berlinale Feb 9 – 19
- Deadline: ITVS Open Call Feb 10
- Deadline: Sundance Institute Documentary Creative Producing Lab Feb 10
- Deadline: Telluride Mountainfilm Festival submissions Feb 10
Next Week
- Berlinale Feb 9 – 19
- Doc Fortnight 2017: MoMA’s International Festival of Nonfiction Film and Media Feb 16 – 26
- Big Sky Documentary Film Festival Feb 17 – 26
- Deadline: 2017 Tribeca Snapchat Shorts Submissions Feb 17
- Deadline: Art of Brooklyn Film Festival Submission Feb 17
- Deadline: ITVS Digital Open Call Feb 17
- Deadline: Nantucket Film Festival Submissions Feb 17
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