SILVERDOCS ANNOUNCES FESTIVAL SLATE
Festival Opens with MORE THAN A GAME
Closes with THE NINE LIVES OF MARION BARRY
Festival Films Address Sports, Politics, Pop Culture, Globalization and Music
Silver Spring, Maryland, May 21, 2009—AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival announced its full slate of films for the Festival taking place June 15-22, 2009 in the Washington, DC area. SILVERDOCS 2009 will present 122 films representing 58 countries selected from 1,983 submissions with seven World, three North American, 12 US, and 14 east coast premieres, plus 12 retrospective films. Now in its seventh year, SILVERDOCS and its concurrent International Documentary Conference honors excellence in filmmaking, supports the diverse voices and free expression of independent storytellers and celebrates the power of documentary to enhance our understanding of the world.
Films screen in six sections: Sterling US Feature Competition, Sterling World Feature Competition, Best Music Documentary, Silver Spectrum, Sterling Short Films and Special Programs.
SILVERDOCS encompasses the five day International Documentary Conference which provides fresh perspectives on craft, funding, distribution and audience engagement; this year’s program explores storytelling in an ‘always on’ world, and has a particular emphasis on youth, craft and next generation media artists, addressing the needs of 21st Century educators and their students. Tom Bernard, Sony Pictures Classics co-president and co-founder will be this year’s featured speaker addressing “The Future is Strange”. Over 1,200 filmmakers and industry professionals will participate, joining 25,000 audience members to screen highly anticipated films from some of the world’s leading documentarians.
“SILVERDOCS 2009 celebrates the best of documentary, showcasing new work by master filmmakers in the field, as well as introducing new filmmakers sure to be the recognized names of the future. SILVERDOCS is proud to present such an amazing diversity of the documentary form to our highly engaged audiences and guests from around the globe,” said Sky Sitney, Artistic Director.
Notable filmmakers presenting their work this year include SILVERDOCS’ Charles Guggenheim Symposium Honoree, the renowned Albert Maysles (SALESMAN, GREY GARDENS, GIMME SHELTER); Leon Gast (WHEN WE WERE KINGS); AJ Schnack (CONVENTION), Al Reinert (FOR ALL MANKIND); Jeffrey Levy-Hinte (SOUL POWER); Jon Blair (DANCING WITH THE DEVIL); Ondi Timoner (WE LIVE IN PUBLIC); R.J. Cutler (THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE); Joe Berlinger (CRUDE); Yoav Shamir (DEFAMATION); and Marshall Curry (RACING DREAMS).
Sitney also noted, “Apropos of Barack Obama's historic election, filmmakers this year have tapped into the zeitgeist of African-American icons and a generational shift of power and perspective. From Muhammad Ali in FACING ALI to LeBron James in MORE THAN A GAME; from Marion Barry in THE NINE LIVES OF MARION BARRY to Obama's historic nomination in CONVENTION. These national politicians, athletes, and in SOUL POWER and STILL BILL, musicians, have carried the hopes and dreams, and high expectations of millions. Each film reflects the changing nature of America's cultural, economic and political landscape in our journey to become a more perfect union."
SILVERDOCS 2009
SCHEDULE OF SPECIAL SCREENINGS AND EVENTS
Monday, June 15, 2009
- OPENING NIGHT: A remarkable coming of age story about friendship and loyalty in the face of great adversity, Kristopher Belman’s MORE THAN A GAME follows the incredible rise (and occasional fall) of five talented young basketball players from Akron, Ohio. Led by future NBA superstar LeBron James and coached by a charismatic yet initially inexperienced player’s father, Dru Joyce III, the “Fab Five’s” improbable seven-year journey lead them from a decrepit inner-city gym to the doorstep of a national high school championship. Director Kristopher Belman and film subjects in attendance. Schedule permitting, LeBron James and other special guests will attend.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
- Muhammad Ali, one of the most iconic figures of the 20th century will be making an exclusive appearance at SILVERDOCS to present FACING ALI, directed by Pete McCormack and produced by Derik Murray. The film includes interviews from around the world with the men who stepped into the ring with the three-time heavyweight champion, plus rare archival film footage and classic photos, combined with original intimate interviews with Ali’s colorful combatants, sharing their own personal experiences ‘facing Ali.’
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
- CENTERPIECE SCREENING: SILVERDOCS presents the World Premiere of CONVENTION, the highly anticipated ensemble documentary. AJ Schnack assembled an all-star crew of documentary filmmakers to tell the story of the collective efforts to mount one of the biggest events of the past decade: the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Joined by Laura Poitras (MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY), Paul Taylor (WE ARE TOGETHER), Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar (A LION IN THE HOUSE), and Daniel Junge (THEY KILLED SISTER DOROTHY), the film captures Denver through the eyes of its organizers, reporters, police and protesters leading up to the historic nomination of Barack Obama as the Democratic nominee for president of the United States.
- RIP: A REMIX MANIFESTO pivots off the example of mash-up artist Girl Talk, and a wide array of open source warriors, web activist and filmmaker Brett Gaylor explores the nature of creativity, commerce and copyright in the 21st century. The filmmaker invited audiences to mash the contents during production and following its premiere. SILVERDOCS presents the latest version for the first time. Post screening performance by audio-visual remix kings Eclectic Method.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
- The Charles Guggenheim Symposium honors the legacy of the late four-time Academy Award winning filmmaker, Charles Guggenheim. This year the Symposium celebrates Albert Maysles, for his body of documentary work including: SALESMAN; GREY GARDENS and GIMME SHELTER. Special guests include Barbara Kopple, artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude. Discussion moderated by Entertainment Weekly’s Lisa Schwarzbaum.
- Beard and Moustache Contest following SPLITTING HAIRS, which follows Americans Bruce Roe and Phil Olsen as they prep for the World Beard and Moustache Championships in Germany, where “bearded stallions” compete for top chops at the 30-year-old event. The real rivalry is between the two as they vie for the presidency of the World Beard and Moustache Association.
Friday, June 19, 2009
- Before Muhammad Ali and George Foreman’s 1974 boxing match in Zaire, the biggest names in R&B assembled for a three-day music festival. Jeffrey Levy-Hinte takes this never-seen footage in SOUL POWER and shows us the talents of James Brown, Bill Withers, B.B. King, the Spinners and top African acts such as Miriam Makeba and Orchestre Africa International. Post screening discussion and performance featuring filmmaker Jeffrey Levy-Hinte and legendary funk/jazz trombonist Fred Wesley.
- Free Outdoor screening of Al Reinert’s FOR ALL MANKIND in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the first walk on the moon. Breathtaking both in the scope of its vision and the exhilaration of the human emotions it captures, the film is the story of the 24 men who travelled to the moon, told in their words, in their voices, using the images of their experiences.
- Called the Citizen Kane of bad movies, TROLL 2 was voted by Internet users as the worst movie ever made. The film humiliated and ruined the careers of every actor in the film. Yet it’s a cult phenomenon that brings joy to thousands. Michael Paul Stephenson, the film’s former child star, chronicles the unlikely popularity of a film so bad that it’s brilliant in BEST WORST MOVIE. Filmmaker and subjects scheduled to attend. Followed by a screening of TROLL 2.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
- CLOSING NIGHT: THE NINE LIVES OF MARION BARRY, directed by Dana Flor and Toby Oppenheimer. Many people remember Marion Barry as the philandering drug-using mayor of the nation's capital, who was famously caught in a 1990 FBI sting operation. Yet others know him as a folk hero, a civil rights champion and defender of the poor. Barry’s soaring achievements, catastrophic failures and phoenix-like rebirths have made him a symbol of mythic indestructibility. Who is Marion Barry, really? A hero? A scoundrel? Why is he such a polarizing force? And why do people still vote for him? Directors Dana Flor and Toby Oppenheimer are scheduled to attend along with Marion Barry. Post-screening discussion moderated by Emmy Award-winning NBC4 News anchor Jim Vance, featuring Civil Rights activist Lawrence Guyot, political analyst Jonetta Rose Barras, and NBC4 News reporter Tom Sherwood.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
- A wide-array of Festival favorites are scheduled to play on Sunday: SWEETHEARTS OF THE PRISON RODEO, THE WAY WE GET BY, as well as engaging sports films such as POP STAR ON ICE, ONLY WHEN I DANCE and a second screening of Opening Night’s MORE THAN A GAME—with filmmakers in attendance.
SILVER SPECTRUM
21 BELOW / USA, 2008, 91 minutes (Director: Samantha Buck)—Buffalo, New York, sets the backdrop for this engrossing and provocative portrait of a middle-class Jewish family in turmoil. Pregnancy, illness, class and race collide as this family tries to cope with tragedy.
ACT OF GOD / CANADA, 2009, 76 minutes (Director: Jennifer Baichwal)—Baichwal captures stories from people who have been struck by lightning. For some it is a freak and unfortunate accident, for others it is fate or God’s will, and for a few, a glimpse into death and a miraculous return to the living.
AFGHAN STAR / UNITED KINGDOM/AFGHANISTAN, 2009, 88 minutes (Director: Havana Marking)—After living through decades of conflict and oppressive regimes, Afghans engage in democracy by voting for their favorite singer on the hugely popular TV show “Afghan Star”. The film follows four contestants as they contend with each other and fellow compatriots who are influenced by the Taliban.
THE APPRENTICE (L’APPRENTI) / FRANCE, 2008, 85 minutes (Director: Samuel Collardey)—Mathieu studies at a vocational high school in a small town near the French-Swiss border. He begins an internship on a small farm, where he gains real-world experience that can never be learned in a classroom. Using beautifully shot footage of the region and his subjects, first-time director Samuel Collardey expertly captures the vicissitudes of adolescence in rural France.
BEST WORST MOVIE / USA, 2009, 93 minutes (Director: Michael Paul Stephenson)—Called the Citizen Kane of bad movies, TROLL 2 was voted by Internet users as the worst movie ever made. The film humiliated and ruined the careers of every actor in the film. Yet it’s a cult phenomenon that brings joy to thousands. Michael Paul Stephenson, the film’s former child star, chronicles the unlikely popularity of a film so bad that it’s brilliant. East Coast Premiere.
BLOODY MONDAYS & STRAWBERRY PIES / NETHERLANDS, 2008, 87 minutes (Director: Coco Schrijber)—Narrated by John Malkovich, the film uses Dostoyevsky’s Notes from the Underground and Bret Easton Ellis’s American Psycho as touchstones to examine boredom and the human condition through portraits of a stockbroker, pie factory worker, artist, nomad and school shooter.
CARMEN MEETS BORAT / NETHERLANDS, 2008, 84 minutes (Director: Mercedes Stalenhoef)—While 17-year-old Carmen makes her way through the trials and tribulations of her teenage years, her sleepy Romanian town gets an unexpected visit from a man named Borat with an American film crew in tow. East Coast Premiere.
CAT LADIES / CANADA, 2009, 60 minutes (Director: Christie Callan-Jones)—A revealing look into the lives and motivations of four “cat ladies.” One thinks she’s gone too far, taken in too many. Another thinks there’s room for more. This quirky film sensitively takes us beyond the stereotypes to explore the extreme edge of the “cat lady” psyche. US Premiere.
THE COVE / USA, 2009, 90 minutes (Director: Louie Psihoyos)—Director Louie Psihoyos follows Richard O’Barry, the man who made “Flipper” a household name, as he and his team try to stop Japanese fishermen from slaughtering dolphins for the consumer market. Psihoyos’s film is an indictment of human greed and arrogance, a tale of redemption and a desperate call to action.
CRUDE / USA, 2009, 104 minutes (Director: Joe Berlinger)—Berlinger (BROTHER’S KEEPER, METALLICA: SOME KIND OF MONSTER) brings a judicious eye to this emotionally charged legal drama set in the rainforests of Ecuador, where indigenous tribes, American oil companies, environmental activists and an armada of lawyers spar over a botched oil-spill remediation deep in the Amazonian jungle.
DEFAMATION / AUSTRIA/DENMARK/ISRAEL/USA, 2008, 93 minutes (Director: Yoav Shamir)—A provocative and humorous look at contemporary anti-Semitism. Shamir manages a balanced approach—he interviews the controversial Norman Finkelstein as well as Anti-Defamation League representatives—while travelling around the world in a quest to comprehend the difference between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism.
EPISODE 3 – ‘ENJOY POVERTY’ / NETHERLANDS, 2008, 90 minutes (Director: Renzo Martens)—With a deadpan, satirical style that is part Nicholas Kristof, part Andy Kaufman, Martens travels to the Democratic Republic of Congo. After witnessing the ways in which Western interests profit from poverty in Africa, he attempts to persuade the poor that their poverty is a natural resource they should learn to exploit. US Premiere.
THE HORSE BOY / USA, 2008, 94 minutes (Director: Michael Orion Scott)—Like any other loving family would, the Isaacsons raised their autistic son with patience and hope. Unlike any other loving family, the Isaacsons travelled to another continent in search of a remedy that Western medicine couldn’t give them.
LET’S BE TOGETHER / DENMARK, 2008, 80 minutes (Director: Nanna Frank Møller)—Fourteen-year-old Hairon has a waifish figure, the bee-stung lips of a supermodel and a fondness for eyeliner and fine couture. Hairon is also a boy. In this touching and insightful film, complex questions of identity, gender performance and difference are explored through Hairon’s relationship with his accepting but concerned family. North American Premiere.
LONG DISTANCE LOVE / SWEDEN, 2008, 77 minutes (Directors: Magnus Gertten and Elin Jönsson)—In Osh, Kyrgyzstan, if you are a young man with a new bride, you might very well decide to strike out from home in the hope of finding a little work. While his bride Dildora stays behind with her new in-laws, Alisher heads for Moscow, where nothing goes according to plan. North American Premiere.
MINE / USA, 2009, 83 minutes (Director: Geralyn Pezanoski)—Hurricane Katrina is bearing down on you. You have to leave your home. You can't take your pet with you. When the rain stops and the water recedes, you find out that your pet is alive and well. Only he's in another state with a new family. Imagine your surprise when they refuse to give him back. East Coast Premiere.
NO IMPACT MAN / USA, 2009, 92 minutes (Directors: Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein)—Colin Beavan is determined to trim his environmental impact to zero—from his eleventh-floor New York apartment. The catch is that he needs his wife and 3-year-old daughter to join him. Once the novelty of farmers markets, bicycles and candlelight wears off, the family tries to deal with its new reality.
OLD PARTNER / SOUTH KOREA, 2008, 77 minutes (Director: Lee Chung-ryoui)—Mr. Lee, an old farmer living in a remote South Korean village, has the most unlikely soul mate—his 40-year-old ox. The peculiar yet touching relationship between Mr. Lee and his ox evolves into an unforgettable companionship that sustains them through failing health and a disappearing way of life.
ONLY WHEN I DANCE / UNITED KINGDOM, 2008, 75 minutes (Director: Beadie Finzi)—In this uplifting film, two teenage ballet hopefuls fight through tough training regimens, economic uncertainty and a gauntlet of demanding judges during their improbable journey from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro to the highest levels of international ballet competition.
OUR FORBIDDEN PLACES / FRANCE/MOROCCO, 2008, 105 minutes (Director: Leila Kilani)—When Morocco established the Equity and Reconciliation Commission in 2004 to investigate the state-sponsored disappearance of many citizens after the country won independence in 1956, it received 30,000 applications for reparation. Our Forbidden Places follows four conflicted families as they seek—at times hesitantly—the truth about their lost relatives. North American Premiere.
POP STAR ON ICE / USA, 2009, 85 minutes (Directors: David Barba and James Pellerito)—A funny, fast-paced and intimate film that follows the tumultuous career of ice skating superstar Johnny Weir, who hasn't quite achieved Olympic glory. Ice skating fans will rejoice and newcomers will be pleasantly entertained with Johnny’s antics on and off the ice. East Coast Premiere.
PRODIGAL SONS / USA, 2008, 86 minutes (Director: Kimberly Reed)—In this absorbing and unpredictable family drama, director Kimberly Reed’s journey home to small-town Montana to reconcile with her estranged adoptive brother evolves into a surprising meditation on gender, sibling rivalry, mental illness and cinematic royalty.
SACRED PLACES / CAMEROON/FRANCE, 2008, 70 minutes (Director: Jean-Marie Teno)—Jean-Marie Teno turns his camera on a popular neighborhood of Ouagadougou, home of FESPACO, the premier pan-African film festival. He encounters three captivating men who promote and participate in the arts outside the limelight. SACRED PLACES is a beautifully constructed meditation on the economics of cinema and storytelling in postcolonial West Africa. East Coast Premiere.
THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE / USA, 2009, 90 minutes (Director: R.J. Cutler)—Cutler is granted unprecedented access to Vogue editor Anna Wintour and her colleagues as they put together their largest publication of the year, the September issue. Cutler takes us to Europe on shoots, introduces us to fashion’s cognoscenti and shows us the competitive and contentious relationship between Wintour and her talented stylist, Grace Coddington. East Coast Premiere.
SUPERMEN OF MALEGAON / SINGAPORE/JAPAN/SOUTH KOREA, 2008, 79 minutes (Director: Faiza Ahmad Khan)—Sail joyously across the skies with a scrawny, baggy-suited superhero as this terrifically fun feature documents the making of a low-budget interpretation of SUPERMAN infused with the local culture of Malegaon, India. Disasters beset the cast and crew, and one obstacle after another threatens to derail production.
THE TIME OF THEIR LIVES / UNITED KINGDOM, 2009, 68 minutes (Director: Jocelyn Cammack)—A wonderful profile of three vibrant women who live in a home for active seniors in North London. These are not your average old ladies—they are intellectuals with storied careers in journalism, literature and activism. Jocelyn Cammack’s unflinching perspective on aging is highlighted by these truly inspirational subjects.
VOICES FROM EL-SAYED (SHABLUL BAMIDBAR) / ISRAEL, 2008, 75 minutes (Director: Oded Adomi Leshem)—The Bedouin village of El-Sayed in Israel has the world’s largest percentage of deaf people, and the inhabitants have developed a unique sign language over generations. When a man allows his son to undergo a cochlear implant operation, the village stirs with doubt and uncertainty. East Coast Premiere.
THE WAY WE GET BY / USA, 2009, 84 minutes (Director: Aron Gaudet)—With American wars raging overseas, a group of senior citizens in Bangor, Maine decide to get involved. Greeting hundreds of thousands of troops in the airport, these seniors offer comfort to many who otherwise have been forgotten by society, sharing the bonds of mortality and the need for human contact.
WE LIVE IN PUBLIC / USA, 2008, 90 minutes (Director: Ondi Timoner)—Timoner (DIG!) chronicled Josh Harris’ social experiments for ten years. In 1999 he invited 100 people to live in a Manhattan loft under 24-hour surveillance. After that failed, he tried again with just his girlfriend and himself. Timoner’s footage is at times titillating and at times disturbing, but never short of engrossing.
WINNEBAGO MAN / USA, 2009, 84 minutes (Director: Ben Steinbauer)—While filming a promotional video for Winnebago 20 years ago, during 14 days of blistering summer heat, Jack Rebney's frustration led to a series of expletive-filled tirades that stand in perfect contrast to the relaxation the Winnebago promises. But Rebney doesn’t know the outtakes have made him famous.
YOUTH KNOWS NO PAIN / USA, 2009, 88 minutes (Director: Mitch McCabe)—Filmmaker Mitch McCabe is the daughter of a plastic surgeon. She travels across the country immersing herself in the vast anti-aging industry. After meeting doctors, experts and others fighting the onset of old age, McCabe struggles against the ever-present temptation of eternal youth.
SHORTS
12 NOTES DOWN (12 TONER NED) / DENMARK, 2008, 27 minutes (Director: Andreas Koefoed)—A star performer of the Copenhagen Royal Chapel Choir, 14-year-old Jorgis leads his peers with charming confidence and lifts the entire choir’s spirit with his generous smile. When his voice suddenly begins to change, Jorgis must decide when and how to make an unexpected yet graceful exit.
ALI SHAN / CANADA, 2009, 6 minutes (Director: Yung Chang)—From acclaimed filmmaker Yung Chang (Up the Yangtze) comes this celluloid valentine to a childhood memory. With lyrical imagery, Chang re-creates a poignant experience: A family expedition by train is punctuated with a breathtaking sunrise that emerges from behind the peaks of Ali Shan, a legendary mountain in Taiwan.
THE ARCHIVE / USA, 2008, 8 minutes (Director: Sean Dunne)—Mawhinney has amassed the largest album collection in the world. Following an ultimatum from his wife, an obsession for music turns into a way to make a living. When the demand for records decreases in our market economy, will a rare and impressive record collection sell for its actual value?
BITCH ACADEMY / RUSSIA, 2008, 29 minutes (Director: Alina Rudnitskaya)—A tragicomic portrait of the women of capitalist Russia, Bitch Academy goes inside a school that trains women to manipulate and seduce men, all in the hopes of snagging a millionaire.
BRONX PRINCESS / USA, 2008, 38 minutes (Directors: Yoni Brook and Musa Syeed)—Rocky, a bright and confident teenager from the Bronx, is preparing for college. After high school graduation, she visits her father in Ghana—a trip that forces her to examine her headstrong ways. The directors follow Rocky as she navigates the process of growing up between two cultures and struggles to forge her own identity.
BYE BYE C’EST FINI / SWEDEN, 2008, 14 minutes (Director: Tora Mårtens)—Who says the fun stops just because you get older? Not 73-year-old Lina Merceis, who leisurely strolls the beaches of Rio De Janeiro by day and entertains young lovers by night. Unrestricted by the tradition of monogamous relationships or marriage, Lina’s carefree lifestyle disproves preconceptions on aging.
CHINA’S WILD WEST / UNITED KINGDOM, 2008, 10 minutes (Director: Urszula Pontikos)—Urszula Pontikos’ hypnotic short features stunning images of a bleak, monochromatic landscape dotted with dark-clad figures. In the winter, Uighur (a Chinese ethnic group) farmers pick away at this moonscape of riverbed rocks, hoping to unearth pieces of elusive white jade.
CHUNGKING DREAM / UK/LUXEMBOURG, 2008, 17 minutes (Directors: Jean-Louis Schuller and Sam Blair)—This beautiful and atmospheric short focuses on daily life in the Chungking Guesthouse in Hong Kong. With 10,000 people squeezed into fourteen stories spanning five blocks, Chungking is a small and fascinating world unto itself.
THE FIRST KID TO LEARN ENGLISH FROM MEXICO / USA, 2008, 20 minutes (Director: Peter Jordan)—Pedro is struggling in school—he’s in fourth grade but reading at a second-grade level. A teacher and his parents are committed to his success in the classroom, but it's not so easy for Pedro. The film is a magical journey through Pedro's world, where adults are not to be trusted and animals provide endless fascination.
FORTY MEN FOR THE YUKON / CANADA, 2008, 20 minutes (Director: Tony Massil)—As young men, Frank and Geordie ventured to the Yukon to mine for gold and strike it rich. As old men, Frank and Geordie live out their days in extreme isolation, interacting with no one and reflecting on their singular lifestyle in the town they never left.
GLASS TRAP (SZKLANA PULAPKA) / POLAND, 2008, 15 minutes (Director: Pawel Ferdek)—This testosterone-fueled romp features a group of freewheeling Polish toughs who live fast, party hard and gamble away their money on aquarium battles between their prized fighting fish. A darkly stylish mise-en-scène accents this jazzy riff on a peculiar and vaguely menacing subculture.
LA CAMINATA (THE JOURNEY) / USA, 2009, 15 minutes (Director: Jamie Meltzer)—Stripped of much of its population by the allure of steady work in the US, the town of Alberto, Mexico, now sells the experience of an illegal border crossing to those with enough money to not have to make the trip.
THE KINDA SUTRA / USA, 2008, 8 minutes (Director: Jessica Yu)—Where do babies come from? Filmmaker Jessica Yu poses this simple yet puzzling question to a group of adults who recall their childhood beliefs about sex and reproduction, as well as to children who explain their imaginative answers, all of which come alive as beautiful, eye-popping illustrations.
SANZA HANZA (KING SURFER) / USA, 2008, 7 minutes (Director: Nadia Hallgren)—In the dangerous world of train surfing in South Africa, young men distinguish themselves by their ability to maintain their hold on a moving train while performing acrobatic maneuvers.
LEAVENWORTH, WA / GERMANY, 2008, 29 minutes (Director: Hannes Lang)—A sleepy town in the Pacific Northwest is transformed into a Bavarian burg. Tourists flock to Leavenworth to find genuine cuckoo clocks; local men in lederhosen walk unabashedly through the streets. German filmmaker Hannes Lang explores this strange place—a bastion of artificiality in the midst of the natural beauty of the Cascades.
LEFT BEHIND (WAS ÜBRIG BLEIBT) / GERMANY, 2008, 13 minutes (Directors: Fabian Daub and Andreas Gräfenstein)—In a small town in Poland, those who remain after the coal mines close down struggle to survive. Lukasz and Jacek continue to dig coal in the unstable, unventilated mineshafts and sell it on the black market. Law enforcement attempts to shut down the operation, but the two persist in their efforts to make a living.
LESSONS FROM THE NIGHT / AUSTRALIA, 2008, 9 minutes (Director: Adrian Francis)—When the 9-to-5 shift ends and workers head home, Maia, an office cleaner, begins her workday. Adrian Francis accompanies her on her rounds as she ruminates on the solitary nature of her job, insisting that it is not a lonely one: She does not live with people themselves, but with the objects they have left behind.
LONG DISTANCE / UNITED KINGDOM, 2009, 28 minutes (Director: Moritz Siebert)—Punctuated by long-distance calls to his family in Ethiopia, Abiyot’s existence revolves around running. Running gives structure to his life, and winning races gives him money to send to his family. Will injuries jeopardize his Spartan lifestyle and prevent him from helping his family? Is this the new American Dream?
MA BAR / UNITED KINGDOM, 2008, 11 minutes (Directors: Adrian McDowall and Finlay Pretsell)—Clouds of chalk dust mingle with sweat, exhortations, and red-faced exertion in this exquisitely photographed portrait of 73-year-old powerlifting champion Bill McFayden. He is a Scottish powerhouse attempting to set a new Masters world record by bench-pressing 175 kilograms–nearly 400 pounds.
ME BRONI BA / USA, 2008, 22 minutes (Director: Akosua Adoma Owusu)—Stitching together sequences of hair-braiding salons in Accra, voice-over of Oprah rhapsodizing about the first time she saw brown-skinned dolls and an animated clip of famous African-Americans with signature hairstyles, Akosua Adoma Owusu ponders black beauty in a world where whiteness is the ideal. With its patchwork aesthetic ME BRONI BA is an original take on a much-explored subject.
NUTKIN’S LAST STAND / USA, 2008, 18 minutes (Director: Nicholas Berger)—Yet another rejection of a US export: Aggressive American grey squirrels threaten to annihilate Britain’s beloved red squirrels. Vigilante extermination units and large-scale public-education campaigns resolve to halt the foreign invasion.
PLANE DAYS / UNITED KINGDOM, 2008, 15 minutes (Directors: Ewan McNicol and Benjamin Kracun)—While globalization promises new, exotic experiences for the jet setter, modern life also offers more mundane amusements for those staying home. Obsessive but leisured “planespotters” seize the opportunity to surveil anonymous planes departing and arriving at Heathrow Airport, recording each and every observation in between chitchat and cabernet.
POCKETS / UNITED KINGDOM, 2008, 3 minutes (Director: James Lees)—What's in your pocket? Londoners reveal the eclectic objects they carry with them. The whole world is in their hands—and in their pockets.
POSTE RESTANTE / POLAND, 2008, 14 minutes (Director: Marcel Lozinski)—What happens to letters addressed to Santa? To deceased relatives? To God? Academy Award-nominated director Marcel Lozinski captures with beautiful photography the birth, delivery and reincarnation of undeliverable letters in Poland.
PRESIDIO MODELO / CANADA, 2008, 15 minutes (Director: Pablo Alvarez-Mesa)—On the sun-drenched coastal plain of Cuba’s Isla del Pinos, one can still glimpse the terrible symmetry of the Presidio Modelo—the Panopticon prison built by dictator Gerardo Machado in 1926. This poetic film artfully evokes the structure’s oppressive gaze as well as the nascent revolutionary fervor of its most famous prisoner, Fidel Castro.
THE REAL PLACE / CANADA, 2008, 5 minutes (Director: Cam Christiansen)—John Murrell is a playwright, librettist and translator. In the alternate universe that Murrell escaped to at the age of 13, he exists with the characters that eventually appear in his literary creations, as well as with notable figures who inspire him. What is imaginary to us is his "real place."
SALT / AUSTRALIA, 2009, 28 minutes (Directors: Michael Angus and Murray Fredericks)—A visually stunning chronicle of photographer Murray Fredericks’s journey into the remote salt flats in South Australia. Through the painstakingly deliberate process of capturing his surroundings, Fredericks transforms the way one sees the seemingly desolate landscape while discovering the limits of his own capacity for solitude.
THE SHUTDOWN / UNITED KINGDOM, 2009, 10 minutes (Director: Adam Stafford)—A mesmerizing portrait of the influence of an oil refinery in a Scottish town. Stirring narration coupled with stunning images mark this moving short.
SISTER WIFE / USA, 2009, 10 minutes (Director: Jill Orschel)—Sister Wife offers a glimpse into the world of Mormon fundamentalism, which is not as sensational as is often portrayed. DoriAnn talks candidly about her life in a polygamous marriage. Self-doubt and misgivings abound, yet she is able to come to terms with her choices through her unwavering faith in God.
SOLITARY LIFE OF CRANES / UNITED KINGDOM, 2008, 27 minutes (Director: Eva Weber)—In this companion piece to CITY OF CRANES (SILVERDOCS ’08), anonymous crane operators muse about their unique occupation while the camera voyeuristically captures London scenes. This is a wonderful short that contemplates the modern metropolis and its unceasing development.
STEEL HOMES / UNITED KINGDOM, 2008, 10 minutes (Director: Eva Weber)—In these times of insatiable consumption, self-storage facilities have become ubiquitous. Who inhabits these industrial spaces? And what do these metal containers contain? With characteristic flair, SilverDocs alum Eva Weber turns her camera on self-storage facilities, revealing what is hidden behind the padlocked doors.
TEAM TALIBAN / USA, 2009, 12 minutes (Director: Benjamin Kegan)—Adeel Alam is an Arab-American trying to carve out a place in the semi-pro wrestling world … by adopting a terrorist persona in the ring.
TIL IT HURTS (DO BOLU) / POLAND, 2008, 25 minutes (Director: Marcin Koszaka)—Relegated to decades of celibacy by his needy and dominating mother, a middle-aged psychiatrist finally finds love outside of his home. Needless to say, mom does not approve.
WAGAH / GERMANY, 2009, 13 minutes (Directors: Supriyo Sen and Najaf Bilgrami)—The only checkpoint along the 2,000-mile border between India and Pakistan, Wagah hosts a popular flag-lowering ceremony each day. Patriotic crowds on either side cheer their country's soldiers as they perform official exercises with formal precision and entertaining and colorful dynamism, revealing more similarities than differences between the two nations.
UTOPIA, PART 3: THE WORLD’S LARGEST SHOPPING MALL / USA, 2009, 13 minutes (Directors: Sam Green and Carrie Lozano)—Build it and they will come? This is the premise behind the construction of the world’s largest shopping mall, in China’s rural Guangzhou Province. Instead of hosting hordes of tourists, the mall is a ghost town—an unfortunate result of a bizarre mix of Western-style capitalism and Chinese communism.
Short Film Jury: Bryan Stamp, producer and executive at Participant Media; Angela Tucker, Filmmaker and producer (ELECTION DAY, ASEXUALITY: THE MAKING OF A MOVEMENT)
SPECIAL PROGRAMS
CONVENTION / USA, 2009, 93 minutes (Director: AJ Schnack)—In this anticipated ensemble documentary, AJ Schnack assembles an all-star crew of documentary filmmakers to tell the story of the mounting of one of the biggest events of the decade: the 2008 Democratic National Convention. The film captures Denver through the eyes of organizers, reporters, police and protesters leading up to the historic nomination of Barack Obama.
FACING ALI / USA, 2009, 98 minutes (Director: Pete McCormack)—The film chronicles 10 heavyweight boxers who faced and fought The Greatest—Muhammad Ali. The film reveals the men who stepped into the ring with the three-time heavyweight champion, including Larry Holmes, Joe Frazier and George Foreman. Rare archival film footage and classic photos combine with original intimate interviews that highlight Ali’s colorful combatants.
MORE THAN A GAME / USA, 2008, 105 minutes (Director: Kristopher Belman)—A remarkable coming-of-age story about friendship and loyalty in the face of great adversity, Kristopher Belman's MORE THAN A GAME follows the incredible rise (and occasional fall) of five talented young basketball players from Akron, Ohio. Led by future NBA superstar LeBron James and coached by the charismatic yet initially inexperienced Dru Joyce III, whose son is on the team, the "Fab Five’s” improbable seven-year journey leads them from a decrepit inner-city gym to the doorstep of a national high school championship.
THE NINE LIVES OF MARION BARRY / USA, 2009, 78 minutes (Directors: Dana Flor and Toby Oppenheimer)—Many people remember Marion Barry as the scandalous mayor of the nation's capital, who was famously caught in a 1990 FBI sting operation. Yet others know him as a folk hero, a civil rights champion and defender of the poor. Barry's soaring achievements, catastrophic failures and phoenix-like rebirths have made him a symbol of mythic indestructibility. Who is Marion Barry, really? A hero? A scoundrel? Why is he such a polarizing force? And why do people still vote for him? For the first time, THE NINE LIVES OF MARION BARRY reveals the complete, unforgettable story.
RIP: A REMIX MANIFESTO / USA, 2009, 89 minutes (Director: Brett Gaylor)—Pivoting off the example of mash-up artist Girl Talk, web activist and filmmaker Brett Gaylor explores the nature of creativity, commerce and copyright in the 21st century, incorporating never-before seen footage.
SPLITTING HAIRS / USA, 2008, 28 minutes (Director: F. Stone Roberts)—Meet Americans Bruce Roe and Phil Olsen as they prep for the World Beard and Moustache Championships in Germany, where “bearded stallions” compete for top chops at the 30-year-old event. But the real rivalry between the two is for the presidency of the World Beard and Moustache Association. Who knew facial hair clubs were so cutthroat?
THIRD COAST INTERNATIONAL AUDIO FESTIVAL / USA 2009, 65 minutes (Various)—Documentary film salutes documentary audio. In a darkened room, listen to the best, most compelling and most entertaining documentary programs made for radio and the internet.
RETROSPECTIVE PROGRAMS
FOR ALL MANKIND USA, 1989, 79 minutes / (Director: Al Reinert)—In July 1969, the space race ended when Apollo 11 fulfilled President Kennedy's challenge of "landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth." No one who witnessed the lunar landing will ever forget it. Breathtaking both in the scope of its vision and the exhilaration of the human emotions it captures, FOR ALL MANKIND is the story of the 24 men who travelled to the moon, told in their words, in their voices, using the images of their experiences.
WHEN WE WERE KINGS / USA, 1996, 84 MINUTES (Director: Leon Gast)—In 1974, Muhammad Ali and George Foreman travelled to Zaire for the “Rumble in the Jungle.” Leon Gast filmed both the fight and a music festival organized by promoter Don King. Gast’s footage was shelved for 22 years, but he released the completed film, WHEN WE WERE KINGS in 1996. This is a fascinating film that documents one of the greatest sporting and cultural events in recent history.
MAYSLES RETROSPECTIVE PROGRAMS
SALESMAN / USA, 1968, 91 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles and David Maysles)—This landmark documentary follows four Boston bible salesmen as they struggle to make a living in the cutthroat world of door-to-door sales. The film follows the salesmen as they wheedle, connive and cajole their way into homes and wallets. As the pressure of the job bears down, the film reveals the dark underside of the American Dream.
GREY GARDENS / USA, 1976, 94 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles and David Maysles)—Meet Big Edie and Little Edie—high-society dropouts and reclusive relatives of Jackie O. This fantastically intimate portrait reveals a mother and daughter living in a world of their own, thriving together amid the decay and disorder of their ramshackle East Hampton mansion.
ANASTASIA / USA,1962, 8 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles and David Maysles)—
An early Maysles brothers “work for hire” for the NBC news program Update. Produced at the height of the Cold War by acclaimed screenwriter Bo Goldman, the subject is one Anastasia Stevens, an American dancer in the Bolshoi Ballet.
CHRISTO’S VALLEY CURTAIN / USA, 1973, 28 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles, David Maysles and Ellen Hovde)—Nominated for an Academy Award, CHRISTO’S VALLEY CURTAIN celebrates the Bulgarian-born artist's dramatic hanging of a huge orange curtain between two ?Colorado mountains. The workers who hung the curtain across the valley discovered a new form of art.
CUT PIECE / USA, 1965, 8 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles and David Maysles)—Filmed at New York’s Carnegie Hall, Cut Piece documents one of Yoko Ono’s most powerful conceptual pieces.
IBM: A SELF-PORTRAIT / USA 1964, 35 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles and David Maysles)—Told in the Maysles inimitable style, IBM: A SELF-PORTRAIT captures the future corporate juggernaut at an early stage of its development.
MEET MARLON BRANDO / USA, 1965, 29 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles and David Maysles)—To help his moribund film MORITURI (1965), Brando agreed to participate in a marathon, daylong series of filmed interviews with reporters from local TV stations across the country. Maylses captured this mind-boggling event on film.
ORSON WELLES IN SPAIN / USA, 1966, 10 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles and David Maysles)—Orson Welles pitches his vision of a movie about people in Spain who live for bullfights. Welles pontificates on the state of cinema, the filmmaking process and the art of bullfighting.
PSYCHIATRY IN RUSSIA / USA, 1955, 14 minutes (Director: Albert Maysles)—In 1955, Albert Maysles travelled to Russia, 16mm camera in hand. During this trip, he shot what was to become his first film, which offers an unprecedented view into Soviet mental-health care.
WITH LOVE FROM TRUMAN / USA, 1966, 29 minutes (Directors: Albert Maysles, David Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin)—An intimate and candid portrayal of eccentric author and playwright Truman Capote shot during a Newsweek interview following the publication of his literary experiment In Cold Blood.
STERLING US, STERLING WORLD, AND MUSIC DOCUMENTARY AWARD COMPETITION
During the Festival select films will compete for the Sterling US Feature Award; Sterling World Feature Award; Sterling Short Award, Music Documentary Award; Witness Award; Cinematic Vision Award, HSUS, ACE/Animal Content in Entertainment and WGA Documentary Screenplay Award. Award winners will be announced at the SILVERDOCS Award presentation on Saturday, June 20th, 2009. All films are also eligible for Audience awards for Best Feature and Short, which will be announced on Sunday, June 21, 2009. As previously announced, competition films include:
STERLING US FEATURE COMPETITION
GOOD FORTUNE / USA, 2009, 70 minutes (Director: Landon Van Soest)—The West has spent billions of dollars over the years on aid to Africa, yet poverty persists. GOOD FORTUNE examines two multi-million dollar international aid projects that may actually be undermining the very communities they seek to help. World Premiere.
JUNIOR / USA, 2009, 70 minutes (Director: Jenna Rosher)—Even though he was diagnosed with diabetes in his teens, Eddie “Junior” Belasco, now 75, has always lived life to its fullest. After a long career in show biz, Junior is on the verge of retirement. He struggles to maintain his youthfulness, taking inspiration from his 99-year-old mother. World Premiere.
MRS. GOUNDO’S DAUGHTER / USA/MALI, 2009, 60 minutes (Director: Barbara Attie and Janet Goldwater)—Mrs. Goundo is on a quest to spare her 2-year-old daughter, Djenebou, from the same severe act she endured as a child: genital cutting. Millions of young girls have taken part in this West African tradition, which dates back thousands of years. Mrs. Goundo and her husband settle in Philadelphia, only to face deportation and the labyrinthine US judicial system. World Premiere.
MY NEIGHBOR, MY KILLER / USA, 2009, 80 minutes (Director: Anne Aghion)—After Rwanda was torn apart by ethnic division, the government put into place the Gacaca Tribunals—open-air hearings with citizen-judges intended to try their neighbors and rebuild the nation. This remarkable film explores whether it is possible to live again amongst people who slaughtered your family.
OCTOBER COUNTRY / USA, 2009, 80 minutes (Directors: Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher)—This finely crafted portrait of a family in crisis is a beautiful representation of America’s poor. The film is a haunting multigenerational story of a working-class family coping with poverty, teen pregnancy, foster care and the ineffable horrors of child molestation and war. East Coast Premiere.
OFF AND RUNNING / USA, 2009, 80 minutes (Director: Nicole Opper)—Avery is an accomplished African-American teenager adopted by Jewish lesbians. Her curiosity about her birth mother becomes a painful examination of race and identity that upends the family and threatens to derail Avery’s dreams.
THE PHILOSOPHER KINGS / USA, 2009, 70 minutes (Director: Patrick Shen)—Some people we revere, some we despise and others we simply ignore. The figure of the invisible janitor at last acquires a face, name, and personality in this probing look at the wisdom that comes from lives lived fully. World Premiere.
RACING DREAMS / USA, 2009, 93 minutes (Director: Marshall Curry)—In this rousing look at youth, passion and tricked-out go-karts, Oscar-nominated director Marshall Curry (STREET FIGHT) profiles three unforgettable pre-teen speedsters as they dream of professional racing stardom while competing in the World Karting Association championships.
SHE IS THE MATADOR (ELLA ES EL MATADOR) / USA/SPAIN, 2009, 62 minutes (Directors: Gemma Cubero and Celeste Carrasco)—The surprising history of female bullfighters is revealed in this artful portrait of two women struggling to succeed in one of the last strongholds of Spanish machismo. As Italian-born novice Eva fights for recognition and her veteran counterpart Mari Paz contemplates retirement, the travails of both athletes illuminate this controversial blood sport. US Premiere.
SWEETHEARTS OF THE PRISON RODEO / USA, 2009, 90 minutes (Director: Bradley Beesley)—Once a year at the Oklahoma Prison Rodeo in McAlester, Oklahoma, an eight-second bull ride becomes the most important time in the world. Director Bradley Beesley takes us along with male and female convicts as they compete and train for slots at this unique rough-stock rodeo. East Coast Premiere.
THE WINDMILL MOVIE / USA, 2008, 80 minutes (Director: Alexander Olch)—Richard P. Rogers was a celebrated documentarian who, despite amassing more than 20 years’ and 200 hours’ worth of footage, was never able to complete his autobiographical magnum opus. After his death, a former student, Alexander Olchs, excavates Rogers’s archives and creates a complex portrait of an endearing and contradictory artist and man.
US Feature Jury: Margaret Brown, Filmmaker (ORDER OF MYTHS); David Kwok, Director of Programming, Tribeca Film Festival; Cian Smyth has worked for all the major Irish festivals, including Dublin, Cork, Galway and Belfast.
STERLING WORLD FEATURE COMPETITON
ANOTHER PLANET (MÁSIK BOLYGÓ) / HUNGARY, 2008, 96 minutes (Director: Ferenc Moldoványi)—This powerful globe-spanning film introduces us to children who are struggling to survive as trash scavengers, soldiers and sex workers. The children speak plainly to the camera about their work, resulting in a film that lands like a hard punch. ANOTHER PLANET offers a rare opportunity to open your heart to another—often forgotten—world. East Coast Premiere.
BLOOD TRAIL / UNITED KINGDOM/USA, 2008, 79 minutes (Director: Richard Parry)—Follow war photographer Robert King for 15 years as he works war zones worldwide. Along the way, the brutality of the subject steadily takes its toll on King. We rely on war reporters to take us where we never want to go, but rarely do we consider the costs. East Coast Premiere.
COOKING HISTORY / AUSTRIA/SLOVAKIA/CZECH REPUBLIC, 2009, 88 minutes (Director: Peter Kerekes)—This innovative film re-imagines Europe’s troubled past through the unheralded culinary workers who “catered” some of the pivotal armed conflicts of the modern era. Punctuated by recipes, cooking demonstrations and sometimes-fanciful interviews, this record of the quotidian details of military cuisine underscores the futility—and unfortunate persistence—of ethnic and political warfare. US Premiere.
DANCING WITH THE DEVIL / UNITED KINGDOM, 2009, 102 minutes (Director: Jon Blair)—This gripping film by Oscar winner Jon Blair offers an intimate look at the running battle between police and drug lords in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. In the midst of staggering violence, Pastor Dione dos Santos tries to broker peace among all parties. World Premiere.
A GOOD MAN / AUSTRALIA, 2009, 79 minutes (Director: Safina Uberoi) Chris Rohrlach is an Australian farmer in remote New South Wales where farming is not the most lucrative profession. A GOOD MAN follows boisterous Chris and his awe-inspiring wife Rachel—who is paralyzed from the neck down—as they try to operate a brothel in the hopes that the extra income will help them make ends meet. US Premiere.
HUNTING DOWN MEMORY (JAKTEN PÅ HUKOMMELSEN) / NORWAY, 2009, 80 minutes (Director: Thomas Lien)—Imagine waking up in a foreign country and not knowing who you are, what you’re doing there or how you even got there in the first place. For 27-year-old Øyvind Aamot, finding his way home turns out to be only the beginning of yet another journey. US Premiere.
MUGABE AND THE WHITE AFRICAN / UNITED KINGDOM, 2009, 90 minutes (Director: Lucy Bailey)—Told through the lens of 74-year-old white farmer Michael Campbell and his family, the film explores Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s deeply controversial land seizure program, which was intended to redistribute white-owned land to poor black Zimbabweans. Instead it has led to an increase in poverty, hunger, violence and intimidation among the majority of the country’s citizens. US Premiere.
PARTLY PRIVATE / CANADA, 2009, 82 minutes (Director: Danae Elon)—Elon faces the question "To cut or not to cut?" in this charming, heartfelt and highly personal documentary. Elon travels from her home in New York to Washington, DC, Israel, Turkey, Italy and back again in search of guidance, as she and her husband address the question of whether to circumcise their sons. Along the way, she consults rabbis, doctors, priests, parents, activists and Buster, a slightly cracked anti-circumcisionist on horseback.
RENE / CZECH REPUBLIC, 2008, 83 minutes (Director: Helena T?eštiková)—For 20 years, Czech director Helena T?estíková filmed recidivist criminal René Plásil in his evolution from teen delinquent to career felon. Plásil offers an intelligent accounting of his life and nihilistic beliefs, but the whole truth is more elusive. East Coast Premiere.
SEA POINT DAYS / SOUTH AFRICA, 2008, 93 minutes (Director: Francois Verster)—Under Apartheid, the public pools and promenade at Sea Point were reserved for whites. Today this gorgeous section of Cape Town is a lively mix of people that epitomizes South Africa’s diversity. Nevertheless, an underlying malaise permeates SEA POINT DAYS. Francois Verster ponders the state of post-Apartheid South Africa in this lyrical feature. US Premiere.
THE SOUND OF INSECTS – RECORD OF A MUMMY / SWITZERLAND, 2009, 87 minutes (Director: Peter Liechti)—A hunter stumbles upon a ragged tent in a remote forest. Within lies a mummified corpse. A detailed journal found on site reveals that the man committed suicide by self-imposed starvation. Inspired by this true event and by Shimada Masahiko’s novella Until I Am a Mummy, Peter Liechti, known for his experimental and impressionistic style, evokes the mysterious man’s last days. US Premiere.
World Feature Jury: Esther Robinson, Filmmaker (A WALK INTO THE SEA); Karina Rotenstein (Programmer, HotDocs); Geoffrey Smith, Filmmaker (THE ENGLISH SURGEON).
BEST MUSIC DOCUMENTARY AWARD
INTANGIBLE ASSET NUMBER 82 / AUSTRALIA/JAPAN, 2008, 90 minutes Director: Emma Franz)—When an Australian jazz drummer embarks on a journey to find a South Korean shaman and master musician who also happens to be one of the country’s “intangible” cultural assets, the trip proves to be not only a musical exploration, but also a spiritual one.
RISEUP / ARGENTINA, 2009, 88 minutes (Director: Luciano Blotta)—Three Jamaican musicians fight for a place in the overcrowded reggae field. Ice Anastasia hails from a posh neighborhood in Kingston, while Turbulence is from Trenchtown. Kemoy Reid, a weighty female presence, is a country girl at heart. RISEUP looks at the grit behind the glamour and explores class and gender issues in Jamaica today. US Premiere.
SOUL POWER / USA, 2008, 93 minutes (Director: Jeffrey Levy-Hinte)—Before Muhammad Ali and George Foreman’s 1974 boxing match in Zaire, the biggest names in R&B assembled for a three-day music festival. Jeffrey Levy-Hinte takes this never-seen footage and shows us the talents of James Brown, Bill Withers, B.B. King, the Spinners and top African acts such as Miriam Makeba and Orchestre Africa International.
STILL BILL / USA, 2009, 78 minutes (Directors: Alex Vlack and Damani Baker)—Grammy-winning songwriter and musician Bill Withers stopped making albums in 1985, after a 15-year career that included such hits as “Lean on Me” and “Just the Two of Us.” STILL BILL offers a multifaceted look at the intriguing and insightful Withers, where he’s been and what’s next. East Coast Premiere.
TRIMPIN: THE SOUND OF INVENTION / USA, 2008, 78 minutes (Director: Peter Esmonde)—In this intriguing sonic biography, Trimpin—composer, instrument inventor, installation artist and engineering savant—guides audiences through his quirky realm of acoustic wizardry, reflecting on a long career of musical innovation as he plans a new performance piece with the esteemed Kronos Quartet.
Music Documentary Jury: To be announced.
The SILVERDOCS festival runs June 15-22 at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in the Washington, DC area. SILVERDOCS presents eight days of programming showcasing more than 100 films plus special screenings, music performances and dozens of panel discussions featuring hundreds of filmmakers, subjects and media professionals. Now in its seventh year, SILVERDOCS—along with its concurrent International Documentary Conference—is the pre-eminent documentary Festival in the US.
WHATS NEW FOR SILVERDOCS 2009
Special Programs. Muhammad Ali in attendance for FACING ALI, which chronicles 10 heavyweight boxers who faced and fought The Greatest. Centerpiece Screening: in CONVENTION, AJ Schnack assembles an all-star crew of documentary filmmakers to tell the story behind the mounting of one of the biggest events of the decade: the 2008 Democratic National Convention.
Guggenheim. The Festival’s signature program, the Charles Guggenheim Symposium, honors the legacy of artistic excellence, profound respect for humanity and democratic values of the late four-time Academy Award winning Guggenheim. In 2009, the Symposium will fete the legendary pioneer of “direct cinema” Albert Maysles in person for his extraordinary body of work, including THE SALESMAN, GIMME SHELTER, GREY GARDENS and last year’s THE GATES.
The Good Pitch. The Good Pitch, an innovative documentary pitch forum for filmmakers will be featured for the first time in the US at SILVERDOCS. Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation, in partnership with Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program created The Good Pitch in 2008 to give filmmakers a unique opportunity to pitch social-issue documentary projects with associated campaign strategies to NGOs, Charities, foundations, campaigners, advertising agencies, brands and media. It will make a stop at the Toronto Documentary Forum May 6-7 as part of the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival before coming to SILVERDOCS.
2009 Sponsors. Founding Sponsor: Discovery Communications; Founding Sponsor – International Documentary Conference: Corporation for Public Broadcasting; Official Hotel: Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Silver Spring; Official Airline: American Airlines; Official Media: Comcast; Major Sponsors: Montgomery County Maryland, Team Group, Downtown Silver Spring, Jackie’s
About SILVERDOCS
AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival is an eight-day internationally recognized event that honors excellence in filmmaking, supports the diverse voices and free expression of independent storytellers and celebrates the power of documentary to improve our understanding of the world. Now in its seventh year, the festival runs June 15-22 at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in the Washington, DC area. The 2008 Festival featured 108 films from 63 countries presented to over 25,000 attendees, including the influential audiences of the nation’s capital and media professionals from around the world. The concurrent five-day SILVERDOCS International Documentary Conference presents thought-provoking presentations and engages a diverse group of over 1,000 filmmakers and industry leaders concerned with the future of non-fiction storytelling, production and distribution. For more information, go to SILVERDOCS.com.
About the American Film Institute
AFI is a national institute providing leadership in screen education and the recognition and celebration of excellence in the art of film, television and digital media. Additional information about AFI is available at AFI.com.
About Discovery Communications
Discovery Communications is the world’s number-one non-fiction media company reaching more than 1.5 billion cumulative subscribers in over 170 countries. Discovery empowers people to explore their world and satisfy their curiosity through 100-plus worldwide networks, led by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Planet Green, Investigation Discovery and HD Theater, as well as leading consumer and educational products and services, and a diversified portfolio of digital media services including www.HowStuffWorks.com. Discovery Communications is owned by Discovery Holding Company (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB), Advance/Newhouse Communications and John S. Hendricks, Discovery's founder and chairman. For more information, please visit www.discoverycommunications.com.
Jody Arlington, 301.495.6759
jarlington@AFI.com
Tammy Shea, 240.662.6506
Tammy_Shea@discovery.com
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