15 years later: HOOP DREAMS visits STF
- by Raphaela Neihausen, November 10, 2009
“How many people here have never seen HOOP DREAMS?” asked STF host Thom Powers to the crowd gathered for the 15th anniversary screening at the IFC Center. About half the room raised their hands. Among the other half included several people with close connections to the film, starting with cinematographer Peter Gilbert who flew in from Chicago to present the film. He paid tribute to three key figures in the audience:
1) Ira Deutchman, who was a key member of the team that released the film at Fine Line. Deutchman has written his own reminiscence on his blog at www.iradeutchman.com
2) Barbara Kopple, who had previously used Gilbert as a cameraman on her Academy Award winning film AMERICAN DREAM. In the Q&A, Gilbert said it was partly the longitudinal experience of working on AMERICAN DREAM that inspired his team to consider following the characters in HOOP DREAMS for four years.
3) Gilbert’s son Leo, who was born during the production of HOOP DREAMS and is now in the midst of his freshman year at NYU studying - what else? - film.
For more on HOOP DREAMS, read the recent 15th anniversary reflections of Roger Ebert who calls it “the great American documentary.”
(photos courtesy of Joshua Z Weinstein, above L to R: Barbara Kopple, Peter Gilbert, Ira Deutchman and Thom Powers. )
Read more »STF abuzz with COLONY
- by Raphaela Neihausen, November 06, 2009
New York City was a swarm with different kinds of bees on Tuesday night, as COLONY co-director Carter Gunn poses here at the Sixth Avenue newsstand outside the IFC Center. Inside the theater, it was a packed hive of activity for the film’s first sneak preview since its acclaimed world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. The New York Times Urban Eye gave the following plug:
You’ve probably heard about the mass death of the world’s honeybees. Scientists are still debating how much to worry about it; filmmakers, though, are acting. The documentary “Colony” tackles the subject, shifting “seamlessly from macroimages of the swarming bees to close-ups of their fretting keepers who are struggling with the devastation,” Manohla Dargis writes. With its “attention to beauty, interview style and even pacing,” she compares the film to the works of Errol Morris.
In the Q&A, Gunn talked about the hazards of making the film, including 35 bee stings in one day. The screening attracted many STF newcomers, several of whom joined for the regular post-film celebration at the bar 99 Below.
Read more »LOOT wins while the Yankees lose
- by Raphaela Neihausen, November 03, 2009
LOOT made a sensational debut last night at Stranger Than Fiction with director Darius Marder in attendance. Not even the World Series stopped the theater from filling up. Winner of the jury prize at the 2008 Los Angeles Film Festival, the film was introduced at STF by one of those jurors, Esther Robinson who praised the film for being full of surprises. Indeed, the most frequent comment heard after the show is that audience members didn’t think the film’s synopsis does justice to its splendors. Rather than dwell on the plot-line about World War II veterans going in search of buried wartime treasure, perhaps it’s better to take Sam Shepard’s word that it’s “a powerful evocation of fathers, sons, war and time, that sneaks up on you like a thief in the night.” Or as Michael Tully wrote yesterday in HAMMER TO NAIL: “Darius Marder’s LOOT isn’t just proof that truth is stranger than fiction; in this case, it is infinitely richer than the very best of fiction.” LOOT will open later this month at the IFC Center.
(Q&A photo courtesy of Tequila Minsky)
Read more »STF celebrates the 25th anniversary of THE GOOD FIGHT
- by Raphaela Neihausen, October 30, 2009
Matti Mattson, the 93-year-old veteran who fought with the Abraham Lincoln Brigade in the Spanish Civil War, took the stage on Tuesday to a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd at Stranger Than Fiction (pictured). The occasion was the 25th anniversary screening of THE GOOD FIGHT, co-presented by the Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives. Mattson praised the filmmakers for capturing the spirit of the times when over 3,000 American soldiers volunteered to fight against the fascist forces in Spain. The filmmaking trio of Noel Buckner, Mary Dore, and Sam Sills were joined by the film’s consulting historian David Paskin in a Q&A to discuss the making of the film. They noted that the film was among the last round of projects to be funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities under the administration of President Carter. It took over five years to complete and entailed over 100 interviews. Twenty-five years later that investment of energy is still paying dividends as a historical record. Among the STF audience were filmmakers who have previously presented their own work in the series including George Stoney, Ngawang Choephel, and David Leitner.
New film in STF fall line-up: HOOP DREAMS
- by Raphaela Neihausen, October 26, 2009
This year marks the 15th anniversary since HOOP DREAMS premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won the audience award for Best Documentary. Roger Ebert described this film as “one of the great moviegoing experiences of my lifetime.”
To celebrate this special anniversary, STF will screen HOOP DREAMS on Monday November 9th. Due to the length of the film - the screening will commence at 7pm. Filmmaker Peter Gilbert will be in attendance. Tickets now on sale here.
Join the STF Mailing List »
Upcoming Screenings
Feb 9: STARTUP.COM
by Chris Hegedus and Jehane NoujaimNow that a decade has gone by since the hey day of the dot com bubble, when downtown New York was dubbed Silicon Alley, it’s hard to recall the dreams and excesses of that period. Thankfully, they ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »
Feb 16: THE ART OF THE STEAL
by Don ArgottA sensation at the Toronto and New York film festivals, this art world investigation explores the power play to control Albert Barnes’ extraordinary collection of Post-Impressionist paintings, ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »
Feb 17: FOOD, INC. (WED NIGHT SPECIAL)
by Robert KennerNominated for an Academy Award, Independent Spirit Award and winner of the Gotham Award for “Best Documentary.” From the Toronto International Film Festival catalogue: You are what you eat. It is ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »
Feb 23: WINNING TIME: REGGIE MILLER VS. THE NEW YORK KNICKS
by Dan KloresThe filmmaker behind CRAZY LOVE - winner of the Independent Spirit Award - delivers another classic New York story, ripped from the headlines of tabloids. In the 1990s, an epic rivalry arose ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »
Mar 2: A HEALTHY BABY GIRL
by Judith HelfandIn celebration of director Judith Helfand living 20 years post the cancer and chemical exposure drama explored in A HEALTHY BABY GIRL, STF is delighted to show this anniversary presentation. In her ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »
Mar 9: BEST OF THE ORPHAN FILM SYMPOSIUM (THIRD EDITION)
by Co-presented by Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives The term “orphan” film refers to footage with unknown origins uncovered by archivists. The films range from home movies to industrials to works that ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »
Mar 16: DAVID HOLZMAN’S DIARY
by Jim McBrideThis 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 ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »
Filmmakers David Redmon (
Filmmakers David Soll and Hannah Rosenzweig.
Lea Hjort, a New School student studying documentary.
Filmmaker and STF regular Hemal Trivedi who just returned from shooting in Islamabad, Pakistan for a month. Welcome home, Hemal!
Related Film/Screening:
Related Film/Screening:
THE GOOD FIGHT directors (L to R): Noel Buckner, Sam Sills and Mary Dore.
L to R: Directors Noel Buckner, Mary Dore, Sam Sills and project historian David Paskin. Seated in front is 93-year-old veteran Matti Mattson.
Matti enjoying some wine at 99 Below.
Director Ngawang Choephel (
A toast to the directors.
Related Film/Screening: 

