Sundance Doc Report #4: Russia, 12th and Delaware, Last Train Home, and more

image[Melissa Hibbard files her latest report in a series, submitted Jan 28]

Winding down to the last couple of days of the festival, the docs that seem to be getting the most buzz are WAITING FOR SUPERMAN by Davis Guggenheim (AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH; IT MIGHT GET LOUD) and CATFISH by directors Henry Joos and Ariel Schulman, which I haven’t been able to see because it’s been completely sold out with wait list lines in the triple digits!  Even the P&I screening was full!

With three docs about Russia I think Sundance is trying to tell us something.  MY PERESTROIKA, by Robin Hessman, is a strong film that looks at the collapse of the Soviet Union defined by the history of the 20th century.  The editing is incredible and Hessman’s obvious familiarity with Russian culture creates an intimate look at the nostalgia of the past and discontent with the present.  Her choice of following four classmates who have all taken different paths was smart.  It’s obvious that she spent a lot of time on this film.  It’s well crafted, entertaining and thought provoking.  Three of the characters traveled from Russia to attend the premier and as always, the audience delighted in meeting the subjects. It’s always smart to bring your subjects to Sundance. 




Sundance Doc Report #3: Joan Rivers, Freedom Riders, Bansky

image[In her first dispatch, STF passholder Melissa Hibbard wrote about Sundance docs HIS & HERS and SECRETS OF THE TRIBE; and in her second about SPACE TOURISTS and THE RED CHAPEL. Now she dives back in for this report filed on Jan 26]:

So, first I have to say that for those of you who are filmmakers, if you haven’t been to Sundance without a film, or any festival for that matter, I encourage you to attend.  It’s a great experience to attend a festival without the pressure to sell your film, yourself or your next project. 
Today my head is whirling with images of aging comics, freedom fighters and graffiti artists.  I started the day with JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK by powerhouse directors Ricki Stem and Annie Sundberg [pictured in Q and A].  I went in expecting not to like the film; I’m not a big fan of celebrity docs.  But I have to say it was thoroughly entertaining. And more than just being entertaining, it was a revealing look into the insecurities, obsessions and fears that propel great talent to stardom.  For the Q and A, Joan Rivers surprised audiences with an appearance and took questions from fans.  Popping one joke after the next, she thanked the gay community for their endless support, encouraged young women comics to keep pushing boundaries and insulted the locals.  She even confirmed a rumor that she has collections of ashes from all her dear friends who have died.  When someone in the audience gasped, she reassured them that the ashes were resting peacefully in small Louis Vuitton cases.




Sundance Doc Report #2

image [Melissa Hibbard follows her first Sundance report with this new post filed on January 24]

First of all, congratulations to Thom and Raphaela on the birth of their son, Bez.

With the snow still piling up all over town, I woke up early and stood in the wait list line to see SPACE TOURISTS, a science fiction-esque documentary directed by Christian Frei. The film, which explores the impact of space tourism on the heavens and the earth, seemed very much like a homage to the great Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky.  It’s beautiful images, moody dialogue and slow paced editing transports the viewer to the uncomfortable spaces of the old Soviet Union where space tourist are funding the continued exploration of the stars. It’s the kind of film I love to watch: sparse dialogue, stunning landscapes, and a gorgeous soundtrack composed by Jan Garbarek , Steve Teich and Edward Artemyev (who was the composer on some of Takovsky’s more sci-fi films including Stalker and Solaris)  For the Q and A, Frei was there along with the protagonist of the film, Anousheh Ansari [pictured], the first woman space tourist who paid more that 20 million dollars to make her childhood dream of going to space a reality.  Most of the questions were directed to Ansari who answered questions ranging from “What were the after effects on your body?”  to “Was it really worth that much money?” I loved Ansari’s reply: “How do you put a price tag on a dream.”




Born Yesterday: STF welcomes Bez Powers Neihausen

imageWhile much of the documentary world was distracted by the Sundance Film Festival, Stranger Than Fiction stealthily announced the new talent acquisition of Bez Powers Neihausen, a manchild born on Jan 23, 2010 at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan. The deal was handled by STF executive director Raphaela Neihausen in a negotiation that began at 5:30 am and was concluded at 3:55 pm.

“Bez demonstrates that the year’s best discoveries aren’t necessarily happening in Park City,” said STF artistic director Thom Powers, who fathered the deal.

The infant is named after Raphaela’s paternal grandfather Bezalel Neihausen.

“We’ve been strategizing on this acquisition for a long time,” said Powers, “and Raphaela was nothing short of heroic in the final push to get it completed.” During the intense negotiations, she was heard to make profuse and uncharacteristic use of profanity. She shocked onlookers by declining drugs. “I guess THE BUSINESS OF BEING BORN made an impression on her,” said Powers.




Sundance Doc Report #1

image[STF is pleased to have passholder Melissa Hibbard pounding the slushy pavement in Park City to bring back eyewitness news. Here is her first report filed on January 23.]

Last year I had a film at Sundance in the World Documentary Competition, THE GLASS HOUSE.  I have to say it was fantastic, one of the best festival experiences of my filmmaking career.  I am excited to be back, this year on behalf of Stranger than Fiction, one of my all time favorite screening venues.

First on my list, HIS AND HERS by director Ken Wardrop [pictured].  This beautiful cinematic mosaic tells a love story through the collective voice of 76 ladies from birth until the end of her life. There’s an innocence and simplicity in the storytelling that leaves a smile on your face as the credits roll.  During the Q and A, Ken who charmed his audience – especially the ladies – with his boyish charisma, said that his own mother was the inspiration for making the film.  And while he went on to say that this is the story of Irish women, I think most people in the audience agreed that this was a universal story of women and their relationships to the men in their lives: father boyfriends, husbands and sons.

Then I made my way to SECRETS OF THE TRIBE by José Padilha [known for his film BUS 174].  This well-crafted investigative documentary puts the entire field of anthropology under fire regarding the scandalous investigation into the research on Yanomami Indians in the Venezuelan rain forest during the 1960s and ’70s.  I wasn’t sure what to expect from a documentary about anthropologists, but I have to say, Padilha delivered.  With every passing minute the story gets weirder and weirder, ranging from bitter academics attacking each other to accusations of pedophilia to top-secret government biological experiments. Padilha didn’t make it to Sundance but producer Mike Chamberlain did.  (It was his birthday and the audience broke out in an impromptu “Happy Birthday” – got to love Sundance audiences.)  He brought with him three of the anthropologists for the Q and A to answer questions, but the story is so twisted that I think audiences left the theater asking, “What the…?”




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Upcoming Screenings

Mar 16: DAVID HOLZMAN’S DIARY

image from DAVID HOLZMAN’S DIARY by Jim McBride
This landmark work blending fiction and reality made a deep impression on the 1970s generation of filmmakers. STF is pleased to show this rare big screen appearance, accompanied by a Q&A with the ...
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Apr 6: AND EVERYTHING IS GOING FINE

image from AND EVERYTHING IS GOING FINE by Steven Soderbergh
AND EVERYTHING IS GOING FINE provides an intimate portrait of master monologist Spalding Gray, as described by his most critical, irreverent and insightful biographer: Spalding Gray. Director Steven ...
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Apr 13: HORSES

image from HORSES by Liz Mermin
An unusual, beautifully detailed documentary following a year in the lives of three charismatic Irish racehorses.  Ireland’s horse-racing culture has produced some of the finest athletes in the ...
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Apr 14: FAMILY AFFAIR

image from FAMILY AFFAIR by Chico Colvard
Wednesday Night Special Description from Sundance catalogue: At 10 years old, Chico Colvard shot his older sister in the leg. This seemingly random act detonated a chain reaction that exposed ...
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Apr 20: THE KIDS GROW UP

image from THE KIDS GROW UP by Doug Block
In his previous documentary, the internationally acclaimed 51 BIRCH STREET, Doug Block looked at his parents’ seemingly ordinary marriage and uncovered a universal story about an archetypal, ...
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Apr 27: CLEANFLIX

image from CLEANFLIX by Andrew James and Joshua Ligairi
Description from Toronto International Film Festival catalogue: Mormons can be movie lovers too. The problem is that their religious leaders strongly discourage R-rated content. As one Mormon ...
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May 4: PIN GODS

image from PIN GODS by Larry Locke
Inspired by the record breaking accomplishments of Walter Ray Williams, Jr., the reigning professional bowler of the year, three newcomers set out to chase their own dreams of pro bowling greatness. ...
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May 11: LIFE 2.0

image from LIFE 2.0 by Jason Spingarn-Koff
Description from Sundance catalogue: Every day, across all corners of the globe, hundreds of thousands of users log onto Second Life, a virtual online world not entirely unlike our own. They enter ...
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May 18: MY PERESTROIKA

image from MY PERESTROIKA by Robin Hessman
Description from Sundance catalogue: The Bolshevik revolution, the cold war, and the collapse of the Soviet Union defined the history of the twentieth century. With such a past, what does it mean ...
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May 25: MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA

image from MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA by Dziga Vertov
Soviet director Dziga Vertov’s experimental film grew out of his belief, shared by his editor, Elizaveta Svilova (who was also his wife), and his cinematographer, Mikhail Kaufman (also his brother), ...
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Jun 1: HAYNESVILLE

image from HAYNESVILLE by Gregory Kallenberg
HAYNESVILLE: A Nation’s Hunt for Energy takes place in the Louisiana backwoods, and follows the momentous discovery of the largest natural gas field in the United States (and maybe the world). The ...
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Jun 8: CLOSING NIGHT FILM: TBA

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...
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