12 PICS CELEBRATING FULL FRAME’S 12TH YEAR

  • by Thom Powers, April 07, 2009

image I congratulate the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival on its successful 12th edition held this past weekend in Durham, NC. This year marks the first for Sadie Tillery (pictured with me) as the new Director of Programming. Her team faced multiple challenges ranging from the dismal economy to college basketball distracting local audiences. Despite those hazards, the theaters were full - even for the Sunday morning show of the Slovak doc BLIND LOVES, paired with the magnificent Danish short 12 NOTES DOWN (winner of Full Frame’s short prize). Basil Tsiokos has a full report on IndieWire.

Twelve years ago, when Full Frame was founded by Nancy Buirski, the idea of championing documentaries was still novel in North America. Hot Docs was only a few years old. Since then, the field has grown a lot more crowded with the rise of True/False, SXSW, Tribeca, LAFF, and Silverdocs. Yet Full Frame still provides a unique experience. For filmmakers who tend to dwell in coastal cities, the fest gives them a rare chance to connect with southern audiences (and a taste of authentic pulled pork bbq). The pleasant spring weather and close proximity of theaters create ideal conditions for meeting fellow doc lovers. The democratic atmosphere allows students to mingle among legends like D.A. Pennebaker and Barbara Kopple. 

image On Saturday night, the Final Four basketball game featuring local favorites UNC didn’t prevent the spacious Fletcher Hall from selling out for “The September Issue.” The screening featured a Q&A with Vogue magazine’s Grace Coddington and Andre Leon Talley who appear in the film alongside their infamous boss Anna Wintour. Afterwards, A&E Indie Films threw a party where the film’s director RJ Cutler and executive producer Molly Thompson smiled for our camera.
image  Full Frame strikes a fine balance of representing documentary past, present and future. In treating documentary past, the fest programmed two sidebars of retrospective material. Steve James, best known as the director of HOOP DREAMS, curated a selection of films on “This Sporting Life” that showcased both fiction films such as SLAP SHOT and non-fiction titles such as FALLEN CHAMP: THE UNTOLD STORY OF MIKE TYSON. James is pictured here with director Barbara Kopple discussing FALLEN CHAMP.
image Another sidebar, curated by filmmaker Sam Pollard, paid tribute to St. Clair Bourne, who passed away in late 2007. Among the titles programmed by Pollard was A TIME FOR BURNING which was an inspiration to Bourne. Presenting the film was its director Bill Jersey (pictured), who can been frequently seen in the audience at STF.
image Another example of looking to the past was a free screening of HOOP DREAMS, now celebrating its 15th anniversary. One of the film’s main characters William Gates poses here with co-director Peter Gilbert, as they lift Arturo Cabanas, the director of the short MAN UP.
image Moving to the present, the fest opened with the world premiere of SONS OF CUBA about young Cubans training to be boxers. Pictured here are the film’s director Andrew Lang (right) and editor Simon Rose. Other Full Frame world premieres included THE VISITORS, about people visiting inmates in US prisons; SWEET CRUDE, about the oil economy in Nigeria; SALONICA, about a decimated Jewish community in Greece; and OWNING THE WEATHER, about attempts at weather control.
image Staying in the present, here’s director Gary Hustwit who screened OBJECTIFIED, the follow up to HELVETICA. Gary told me that he’s about to embark on a tour of 50 cities (including the IFC Center in New York) over the next 90 days for the film’s theatrical launch. On Saturday night in Durham, he hosted an after-party where he dramatically laid down his credit card to cover the 50 or so revelers. Two hours later, he received the bill for a meager $192. At those prices, every film should sponsor a party in Durham.
image  Hanging out in the hospitality suite, pictured right to left, are FOOD, INC director Robert Kenner; REPORTER producer Mikeala Beardsley; and writer Robyn Hillman-Harrigan who covered Kenner’s film for The Brooklyn Socialite blog.
image Looking ahead to documentary future, I was pleased to host the third installment of the Garrett Scott Documentary Development Grant with my fellow jurors Ian Olds (director of THE FIXER, soon to premiere at Tribeca) and Rachael Rakes (programmer for a new film series in Brooklyn). The three of us started the grant in honor of our dear friend Garrett, who made two terrific films CUL DE SAC: A SUBURBAN WAR STORY and OCCUPATION: DREAMLAND before his untimely death in 2006. Each year, we pick 2 or 3 emerging directors working on their first film and bring them to Full Frame to meet with mentors. This year’s mentors included Robert Kenner, Gary Hustwit, Laura Poitras, Nancy Abraham, Robert West and others. Full Frame devoted a slot to screen 10-minute work samples by the grant recipients Cameron Yates (THE CANAL STREET MADAM) and Elyinisia Mosha (whose project is untitled). Pictured from L to R: Olds, Powers, Mosha, Rakes, Yates.
image  The weekend in Durham was blessed with beautiful weather in the low 70s that made it possible to conduct one of our Garrett Scott mentoring meetings outdoors with Barbara Kopple and Peter Gilbert.
image  On the future of film criticism, I hosted a panel with Indiewire editor Eugene Hernandez and Variety critic Ronnie Scheib that developed the ideas from my essay WANTED: DOCUMENTARY CRITICS. You’ll find an excellent summary of the discussion on the Durham blog Indy Week.
image At the A&E Indie Films party, three filmmakers who have worked in Africa. L to R: Andrew Berends, who appeared on Full Frame’s panel “Working in Conflict” discussing his experiences in Nigeria and Iraq; Elyinisia Mosha, who screened clips from her untitled work-in-progress at the Garrett Scott grant presentation; and Chai Vasarhelyi who screened I BRING WHAT I LOVE: YOUSSOU NDOUR.

Comments

No Comments Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.

Upcoming Screenings

Sep 20: THE HOUSE OF STEINBRENNER

image from THE HOUSE OF STEINBRENNER by Barbara Kopple
STF pre-season MONDAY SPECIAL (Season passes now on sale at early bird rate through Thurs. Sept. 16; Individual tickets go on sale Fri. Sept. 17, subject to availability) Love them or hate them, ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Sep 28: MARWENCOL

image from MARWENCOL by Jeff Malmberg
STF Fall Season Opening Night (Season passes now on sale at early bird rate through Thurs. Sept. 16; Individual tickets go on sale later in Sept.) STF kicks off its fall season with MARWENCOL, ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Oct 5: AMERICAN SPLENDOR

image from AMERICAN SPLENDOR by Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
(Season passes now on sale at early bird rate through Thurs. Sept. 16; Individual tickets go on sale later in Sept.) STF pays tribute to Harvey Pekar, who recently died, with this special screening ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Oct 12: ON COAL RIVER

image from ON COAL RIVER by Francine Cavanaugh & Adams Wood
ON COAL RIVER takes viewers on a gripping emotional journey into the Coal River Valley of West Virginia, where longtime local residents begin to uncover the toxic effects of America’s increased ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Oct 19: THE CANAL STREET MADAM

image from THE CANAL STREET MADAM by Cameron Yates
Until an FBI bust upended her life, Jeanette Maier was a successful New Orleans madam. Her discreet clientele included a number of powerful, high-ranking politicians. The ensuing very public trial - ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Oct 26: TAKING ON THE KENNEDYS

image from TAKING ON THE KENNEDYS by Joshua Seftel
“A film that would be mistaken for a Robert Altman political satire if it weren’t absolutely and horribly true.” —USA TODAY When Kevin Vigilante took on Patrick Kennedy for a seat in the U.S. House ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Nov 2: WO AI NI MOMMY (I LOVE YOU MOMMY)

image from WO AI NI MOMMY (I LOVE YOU MOMMY) by Stephanie Wang-Breal
In presenting WO AI NI MOMMY with the Sterling Award for Best US Feature this past June, the jury at Silverdocs noted: “The film dives so deeply into its story that the filmmaker’s hands disappear. ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Nov 9: WAR DON DON

image from WAR DON DON by Rebecca Richman Cohen
Profiled in Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces in Independent Film as an “up-and-comer poised to shape the next generation of independent film”, Rebecca Richman Cohen won Special Jury at SXSW and the ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Nov 16: 12TH & DELAWARE

image from 12TH & DELAWARE by Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady
Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, the filmmaking team behind the 2006 Oscar-nominated doc JESUS CAMP, take us on another controversial journey with 12TH & DELAWARE.  Description from Sundance 2010 ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Nov 23: MARLENE

image from MARLENE by Maximilian Schell
Director Maximilian Schell got the reclusive Marlene Dietrich to agree to appear in this documentary only on the stipulation that she not be photographed as she looked today. Instead, we only hear ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »

Nov 30: SURVIVING HITLER: A LOVE STORY

image from SURVIVING HITLER: A LOVE STORY by John-Keith Wasson
Winner of the Inspiration Award at the 2010 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival As a teenager in Nazi Germany, Jutta is shocked to discover she is Jewish. She joins the German resistance and meets ...
Get More info or Buy Tickets »