The Film Panel Notetaker

By Liz Nord | Twitter @lizfilm

The documentary community was out in full force at last night’s Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking : from rising stars like Kristi Jacobson, who is heading to Sundance with her film Finding North next week; to household names like Michael Moore; to doc pioneers who’ve inspired us all like Al Maysles and Fred Wiseman.

And what a community it is! The spirit of camaraderie in the room was palpable, and was commented upon by several presenters.  The evening was hosted by charismatic Cinema Eye Honors co-chairs AJ Schnack and Esther Robinson. They fostered this sense of community by sharing personal anecdotes throughout the evening and reminding the audience why the awards were founded in the first place: to honor the countless hours spent by often unsung documentary producers, directors, shooters, and editors in the name of helping us better understand our world.

The crowd shared appreciative laughter when one presenter commented on the difference between doc-makers and Hollywood producers: “We fly Greyhound.”  There were also some surprisingly touching moments, like when Tim Hetherington’s mother accepted his award for the short film Diary.  Tim, a photojournalist who was killed while covering the Libyan conflict last year, was beloved by many in the room. Danfung Dennis, director of Hell and Back Again, addressed Mrs. Hetherington in his acceptance speech for the Cinematography prize, sharing that “Tim was our Prince.” [Read more →]

Hard to believe 2011 is almost over already. It’s been another great year of notes from film panels and filmmaker Q&As, but I have to give most of the credit to my contributing notetakers Erin Scherer, Liz Nord, Erin Essenmacher, and Rebecca Banach, all of whom have an incredible knack for transforming source discussion into compelling summations and analysis. We also had the great privilege to be chosen by The Christian Science Monitor as a blog partner in its Culture Cafe.

While I did have the opportunity to post some of my own notes this year, I personally  had to take a back seat from posting due to my very fortunate almost non-stop work on many incredible film publicity projects. I want to thank the people who’ve been very generous to me giving me these amazing opportunities. [Read more →]

By Liz Nord | Twitter @lizfilm

Telling Global Stories at DOC NYC
November 5, 2011
New York, NY

PANELISTS:

Andrew Berends (Director: The Blood of My Brother. Upcoming film: Delta Boys)
Ross Kauffman (Director: Born Into Brothels. Upcoming film: The E-Team)
Pamela Yates (Director: Granito, When the Mountains Tremble)
Elizabeth Cantrell & Mara Tshibaka (NYU Master’s students, co-directors of a yet-unnamed film shooting in the Congo)

“Does humanity have the possibility of doing better than this?”

That question is posed as a guiding principal of the International Criminal Court in the captivating trailer for Pamela Yates’s recent film, The Reckoning. I would argue that the same question motivates many documentary filmmakers, particularly those represented on DOCNYC’s Telling Global Stories panel. [Read more →]

By Liz Nord | Twitter @lizfilm

“What the f*ck is up with Netflix?”

DOC NYC’s State of Digital panel started out with a bang as moderator Brian Newman of Sub-Genre Media bluntly asked his esteemed panelists about Netflix’s fate. Though panelist Matt Dentler of FilmBuff assured him that “Netflix will be fine,” the inquiry set the tone for the whole day, wherein panel after panel raised almost as many questions about the state of the industry as they were able to answer.

The jury still seems out as to whether the film industry as a whole is in a period of great crisis or great opportunity, but one thing that’s clear is that this tumult levels the playing field in certain ways, and savvy indie producers have the potential to capitalize on many new outlets for their work. [Read more →]

The Crowdstarter Revolution: How to Build an Audience

Master class presentation at IFP’s Independent Film Week on 9/21/11

Notes by Erin Essenmacher

“Get Over Yourself.”

That’s how Paola Freccero from Crowdstarter opened her Master Class presentation on how to build an audience at this year’s IFP Independent Film Week filmmaker conference.

“I’m going to be coming back to that a lot over the next hour, so I want all of you to say it with me.”

“Get over yourself” the crowd said in unison.

Freccero and her Crowdstarter co-founder Liz Ogilvie collectively have almost 40 years experience in the independent film world and have worked in every aspect of the film industry including PR, marketing, home entertainment, television, theatrical and digital distribution.

Given that pedigree, it’s no surprise that Crowdstarter has become a powerhouse.  But it’s also clear that the organization’s success is due in no small part because Freccero is such a dynamo.  She exudes confidence with a down-to-earth style and no bullsh*t approach to addressing her audience. Which is why, even when it feels like she might be insulting you, some innate wisdom deep down tells you right off the bat  it’s for your own good. In fact Frecerro could have easily called her presentation “Everything (And I Mean *Everything*) You Ever Needed to Know About DIY Outreach for Film But Were Afraid to Ask” [Read more →]

Photo courtesy of http://simplyarlie.tumblr.com/.

WIFV DC Presents: Thelma and Louise 20th Anniversary Screening

and

Q and A with Geena Davis

by Erin Essenmacher

This year marks the 20^th birthday of some of America’s greatest exports: The World Wide Web.  Pearl Jam. Thelma and Louise.  While I missed Eddie Veder and the guys at Destination Weekend festival in Wisconsin, I was able to hit up Women in Film and Video’s special 20^th anniversary screening of Thelma Louise at the National Women’s Democratic Club in Washington, DC  last  Wednesday night. My sister and I have watched the movie no fewer than 50 times and can pretty much recite it from memory, so when I heard that WIFV was hosting the screening complete with Q and A with Geena Davis, I couldn’t resist.

The event also served as a benefit for the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, which works to change female portrayals and gender stereotypes in film and television.

WIFV president Sandy Cannon-Brown kicked off the program with a brief intro and then handed it over to NPR’s Neda Ulaby for the question and answer. [Read more →]

One-On-One Q&A: Kris Swanberg,
Filmmaker/Entrepreneur, Nice Cream

Interview by Erin Scherer

When I last interviewed Kris in 2009, her company Nice Cream was in its infancy. Later that year, I traveled to Chicago and sampled Nice Cream’s Chocolate Basil flavor at the Swim Cafe.

Since then, Nice Cream has developed into a thriving business in the Chicago Area. In addition to Nice Cream’s success, Kris and her husband Joe welcomed a baby boy, Jude. Earlier this year, I managed to talk to Kris for a couple of minutes at SXSW Film’s closing night party. She told me that she was finally making enough with Nice Cream to pay herself. Over the summer, though, she was approached by officials from the State of Illinois that she would have to cease business due to the lack of a dairy license. Right now, Kris and other Ice Cream Makers are working with the Illinois State Legislature to amend state law to accomodate artisanal ice cream makers.

Good news for the rest of us! Kris is working on a new movie in Montana as this interview is posted. In the meantime, though, you can help Kris and Nice Cream by donating money to Nice Cream’s Kickstarter Campaign.

This interview was conducted by e-mail two weeks ago. [Read more →]

Notes from The Master Class on Directing with Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing

AFI/Discovery Channel Silverdocs

Silver Spring, Maryland

June 25, 2011

Notes by Erin Essenmacher

*Read also on Christian Science Monitor’s Culture Cafe.

Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady are fierce. As Loki Films they have produced countless works for television and four feature length documentaries, with a fifth currently in production.  Their work has taken them from inner city Baltimore to East Africa, from the jungles of Sri Lanka to a non-descript looking corner in Florida that is actually ground zero for the fierce debate around abortion rights. They have snuck into abandoned buildings and the country of Cuba, fearlessly following where the story takes them.  Their work has premiered at Sundance, appeared on networks like HBO A&E and Al Jazeera and been nominated for an Academy Award.

That’s all to say that when I heard they were coming to Silverdocs to spill all of their secrets on the craft and process of directing, I was more than a little excited to go hear them speak.   Let’s just say the discussion lived up to the hype.  Read on for some of the highlights. [Read more →]

Notes from Donor Unknown Q&A

AFI/Discovery Channel Silverdocs

Silver Spring, Marlyand

June 21, 2011

Notes by Erin Essenmacher

Also appearing on Christian Science Monitor’s Culture Cafe on June 30, 2011.

UK-based Met Film’s enchanting documentary “Men Who Swim” — about a group of Swedish guys who face down a mid-life crisis by forming a synchronizing swimming team — made a splash at last year’s Silverdocs (pun intended.) They’re back again for this year’s fest, this time with a film that somehow manages to tackle a slightly more serious topic with the same level of compassion and laugh-out-loud humor.

“Donor Unknown” is a poignant, thoughtful and hilarious look at what happens when Jeffrey, a beach bum from Venice, California suddenly finds out that in the course of donating sperm as a means to pay the rent, he has fathered dozens of children. What’s more, thanks to the exploding reach of the Internet, those children now know how to find each other. [Read more →]

Notes from A Crude Awakening Panel

AFI/Discovery Channel Silverdocs

Silver Spring, Maryland

June 21, 2011

Notes by Erin Essenmacher

Filmmaker Joe Berlinger spent three years travelling between the US and Ecuador following a lawsuit between Chevron and a group of 30,000 indigenous and colonial rainforest dwellers that claim the oil giant poisoned their land and ruined their way of life.  The resulting documentary film, “Crude: The Real Price of Oil”, debuted in 2009, screened at The Sundance Film Festival and went on critical acclaim. A year later Berlinger was hit with a subpoena, demanding that he turn over all 600 hours of his raw footage to Chevron for review and possible use as evidence in their defense.

Berlinger chose to fight the case in court, invoking his journalistic privilege.  IDA and a mix of media heavyweights including ABC, The Associated Press and HBO filed amicus briefs on his behalf. Friends and colleagues started a legal defense fund. Even Robert Redford got in on the act, writing an article in support of Berlinger for the Huffington Post. Ultimately the court ruled that journalistic privilege didn’t apply to Berlinger and ordered him to turn over most of his footage to the oil giant. His story sent a chill through the entire documentary filmmaking community and the case has far reaching implications for the future of documentary and the role of the documentary filmmaker as journalist. [Read more →]