Film Festivals
A Look at the World Through Israeli Documentaries
By Claire Aguilar
Vice President of Programming, ITVS
Since its inception in 1999, DocAviv has become one of the leading cultural events in Israel with the aim of promoting Israeli and international documentary film. ITVS’s Claire Aguilar attended the 2012 DocAviv International Film Festival May 3-12, as a juror for Israeli Competition.
Over the last 10 years, Israel has become one of the leading sources of independently-produced documentary films. There is a dizzying abundance of documentary films and filmmakers in Israel — and not only are there many, they have also been successful: showcased in international festivals, sold to broadcasters in Israel and in the U.S. and Europe, winning prizes and garnering international press. It has been amazing to witness the growth of strong, innovative, and diverse Israeli films — covering subjects that you would expect to see from Israeli filmmakers, such as the Arab-Israeli conflict — but also covering the personal and global experience, films about family, identity, and culture, with other films covering globalization, immigration, and homophobia.
I heard from one filmmaker that there are at least 20 film schools in Israel, and that is mostly counting only Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The community of documentary filmmakers is intimate, diverse, and full of talent — and here at ITVS, we have been fortunate to work with many Israeli filmmakers over the past eight years and have showcased them on U.S. public television: Ari Folman’s Waltz with Bashir, Dalit Kimor’s Pickles, Inc., Yoav Shamir’s Flipping Out, Ran Tal’s The Children of the Sun, Nati Baratz’s Unmistaken Child, Ruthie Shatz, and Adi Baratz’s The Collaborator and His Family, and many others. › Continue reading
That’s a Wrap!
By Kaleigh Gaynor
Thursday marks the end of the 55th San Francisco International Film Festival, which featured three ITVS funded documentary films, including Bitter Seeds, The Invisible War, and The Waiting Room.
Still from Don't Stop Believin': Everyman's Journey (credit: Ninfa Z. Bito)
The 55th San Francisco International Film Festival is closing tonight on a high note, celebrating their festival journey with…. well, Journey! After a rousing screening of Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey at the Castro Theatre, including what is bound to be a fascinating Q&A with director Ramona S. Diaz (director of the ITVS funded documentaries Imelda and The Learning) and all five members of the band Journey, closing night attendees will head on over to SLOANE SQUARE[D], for a night of entertainment, dancing, food, and drinks.
The past 15 days have gone by so fast that it is hard to believe that another festival has come and gone. With more than 200 films screened and more than 45 countries represented, the 55th San Francisco International Film Festival proved once again to be an extraordinary showcase of innovation and cinematic discovery.
One particular highlight for ITVS was that The Waiting Room director Peter Nicks was featured on the festival’s Scoop du Jour website, a daily video feed presenting coverage of the happenings at the festival. In the interview, Nicks discusses his documentary The Waiting Room, an intimate and intense day-in-the-life documentary portrait of the patients, doctors, nurses, and social workers at Highland Hospital in Oakland. Check out the clip after the jump: › Continue reading
How to Pitch Like a Pro: A Tribeca Guide
By Claire Aguilar
Vice President of Programming, ITVS
ITVS’s Claire Aguilar attended the 11th annual Tribeca Film Festival this past April, participating in the Tribeca Film Institute’s Filmmaker Pitch Workshop and acting as a juror for the Tribeca All Access Documentary Program.
Tribeca Film Institute Industry Meetings
For the past five years, ITVS has participated in the Tribeca Film Festival in many different capacities, from the funder of films selected for the festival (this year included Stephen Maing’s High Tech, Low Life, Beth Murphy’s The List, and Jerry Rothwell’s Town of Runners), to hosting special screenings of ITVS films (FUTURESTATES), ITVS’s involvement in this iconic festival is always varied and exciting.
Two special events this year included participation in Tribeca’s Interactive Day (attended by ITVS’s Karim Ahmad) and Tribeca All Access, a year-round initiative that supports the careers of filmmakers who hail from communities traditionally under-represented in the film industry. Tribeca All Access has been a successful and groundbreaking industry event, fostering and supporting diverse filmmaking voices through industry meetings, development support, and mentoring. › Continue reading
Vive le SFIFF!
Thursday marks the start of the 55th San Francisco International Film Festival, and ITVS is proud to have three documentary films honored in the festival lineup, including Bitter Seeds, The Invisible War, and The Waiting Room.
The San Francisco Film Society is encouraging opening night attendees to go French glam for tonight’s Farewell, My Queen screening by filmmaker Benoît Jacquot. Join the convivial throng at the Castro Theatre for a special screening then head to a lavish party at the elegant contemporary art gallery Terra in SOMA to enjoy hors d’oeuvres from local restaurants, sophisticated cocktails and, of course, dancing.
Unable to join in on the opening night festivities? Not to worry, Bay Area film fanatics have 15 full days of the best in world cinema to soak up before the festival closes on May 3, 2012. With more than 200 films in the lineup and more than 45 countries represented, the 55th San Francisco International Film Festival is an extraordinary showcase of innovation and cinematic discovery. › Continue reading
A Full Frame Documentary Extravaganza
By Eric Martin
ITVS Senior Staff Writer Eric Martin, filed this report from the 2012 Full Frame Film Festival, which ran April 12-April 15 in Durham, N.C..
The Waiting Room held its world premiere at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
The Full Frame Film Festival turned 15 years old this year in Durham, N.C., where I happen to live right now, and it’s no surprise that the well-attended, four-day, 100+ documentary extravaganza, which ended Sunday, included a meaty slate of ITVS and Independent Lens projects packed with something for everyone.
› Continue reading
FUTURESTATES Episode Caps PBS Online Shorts Festival
In the fifth and final week of the inaugural Online Shorts Festival, PBS will be wrapping up with Play, a mind-bending short film from the ITVS web series FUTURESTATES.
Play by David Kaplan and Eric Zimmerman
Play, written and directed by David Kaplan and game designer Eric Zimmerman, imagines a not-too-distant future where video games have become indistinguishable from reality. It was a fan favorite when it was first released online in 2010 on FUTURESTATES.TV. We hope it will be just as much of a hit this time around and be a contender for the shorts festival’s audience award. If you’d like to vote for it (hint, hint), follow this link to PBS.org and “like” it with the Facebook like button. › Continue reading
Screening of FUTURESTATES at the Tribeca Film Festival
ITVS and the Tribeca Film Institute will be hosting a free screening of FUTURESTATES Season 3 on Saturday, April 21 at 2PM in New York City.
What will be of America in 5, 25, or even 50 years from today? This series of independent mini-features, short narrative films created by established filmmakers and emerging talents, explores possible future scenarios through the lens of today’s global realities. Immerse yourself in the visions of these independent filmmakers as they inhabit a future of their own imagining.
The screening will take place on Saturday, April 21 at 2PM at the Tribeca Cinemas (54 Varick Street) in New York City, followed by a Q&A with many of the FUTURESTATES filmmakers, including Jennifer Phang (Advantageous), Patrick Stettner (Gunny), and Trevin Matcek (Life Begins at Rewirement).
To attend, please RSVP to rsvp@itvs.org
Women and Girls Lead Presents Social Screening of Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes
Join us for the third and final film in the Women and Girls Lead Online Film Festival social screening series this Wednesday, March 28 at 1PM PT/4PM ET.
Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes filmmaker Byron Hurt
The event, which takes place exclusively online, will feature special guests Jimmie Briggs, founder and director of Man Up, and Dr. Kaila Story, Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies at University of Louisville.
Participants can join for free by signing in with Facebook or directly on the site, interacting with other viewers and panelists in real-time, while watching the film. Viewers can comment, ask questions, take polls, and even express their feelings about what they’re watching through a variety of tools on the site. This is an entirely new way of experiencing documentary films and it is inherently social. › Continue reading
PBS Brings ‘Sunshine’ to Online Film Festival
The PBS Online Film Festival features 20 unique short films in various categories. From ‘Girl Power’ to ‘Offbeat’ and everywhere in between, PBS highlights the stories that only public media can tell.
Watch Sunshine: Single Dads on PBS. See more from PBS Online Film Festival.
Dig deep into your roots and welcome diversity with this week’s ‘Who Are We?’ shorts. ITVS is proud to have Sunshine: Single Dads, a short companion piece to the ITVS documentary Sunshine. In this short, single parenthood becomes even more complicated when the parent is a father and that father is gay. Sunshine: Single Dads tells the male side of one family’s unconventional parenting journey across generations.
PBS will announce the People’s Choice Winner on April 16th, so be sure to vote for your favorite film by clicking on the “like” button after watching the videos.
For a complete listing of short included in the PBS Online Film Festival, please click here.
Feedback from a SXSW Rookie
By Robin Suchman
Digital Projects Manager, ITVS
The South by Southwest (SXSW) Conferences & Festivals (March 9-18, 2012) offer the unique convergence of original music, independent films, and emerging technologies.
As the line between film and digital projects continues to blur, it makes perfect sense that the Interactive and Film portions of SXSW run concurrently (along with ScreenBurn- the gaming tract), followed closely by the Music portion. Social TV, the crossover between television viewing and social media, was a topic mentioned quite often during many of the sessions I attended.
Although this was my first time at SXSW (and Austin), I heard that the Interactive portion has grown quite significantly over the past few years; now being held in nine different locations with complimentary shuttles for badge holders to move freely between them (although I preferred to walk, despite the persistent rain!). Moreover, the Interactive conference is broken down into 18 different themes, each being housed in a specific building, so you really do not need to move between the different buildings if you intend to focus on a single track. › Continue reading
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