ITVS Broadcasts
IL Series Producer Recaps Sundance 2012
By Lois Vossen, Founding Series Producer of Independent Lens and Vice President of ITVS
ITVS-funded filmmakers and staff rally for lunch at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT
Sundance 2012 was a record-breaking year year for ITVS and Independent Lens. Six ITVS funded films screened in the documentary competitions and all six were honored with Sundance awards. (ITVS had had seven films playing at Sundance in 2004; six films in 2002; and eight films in 1997 for those interested in banner years).
Filmmaker Sharon La Cruise Discusses Daisy Bates Biopic with Hari Sreenivasan
The documentary Daisy Bates: First Lady of Little Rock will air Thursday, February 2 on Independent Lens to kick off Black History Month. Recently, PBS NEWSHOUR’s Hari Sreenivasan caught up with filmmaker Sharon La Cruise to discuss the project.
Interrupter Ameena Matthews Handles Stephen Colbert
Featured in the ITVS-funded documentary The Interrupters, Ameena Matthews gave a powerful performance on Wednesday’s edition of the Colbert Report. The documentary, by acclaimed director Steve James, will premiere on PBS’s FRONTLINE on February 14.
The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive
The film takes a look at a group of men and women — most of them former gang leaders and ex-cons — that are trying to “interrupt” shootings and protect their communities from the violence they once employed. Watch the trailer for the The Interrupters below:
› Continue reading
ITVS in the News
A sampling of coverage from the New York Times, Realscreen, and more …
New York Times: Sundance Documentaries Transform Data Into Stories
Over the weekend, The House I Live In, Eugene Jarecki’s heart-heavy investigation into the American war on drugs, nabbed the grand jury prize for documentary at the Sundance Film Festival.
Miller-McCune Magazine: Does Black History Month Need More Than a Month?
At a time when so many documentaries adopt an either angry or elegiac tone, More Than a Month has a disarmingly light touch. Among the several laugh-out-loud moments is a brief parody of Ken Burns’s The Civil War, featuring the filmmaker in period costume. Tilghman’s a great guide on this journey: he’s genuinely troubled by the questions he raises, but he’s also unpretentious, quizzical, and, at times, bemused.
› Continue reading
ITVS Heads into High Gear for Black History Month
By Sally Jo Fifer, President & CEO of ITVS
The organization has supported a slate of documentaries that shine a unique light on the history of African American activism. Several of the films will air this month on Independent Lens.
February is Black History Month. It’s an important time for public media, because the heritage months — as artificial as they seem to some, including ITVS-funded filmmaker Shukree Hassan Tilghman, whose film More than A Month tracks his playful yet serious quest to end Black History Month — act as public reminders of our mission to bring underrepresented voices into the mainstream and ensure that the diversity of the nation is reflected on television.
› Continue reading
Filmmakers of “The House I Live In” Respond to Sundance Premiere
By Steve Goldbloom, Reporting for PBS and BTB at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival
The House I Live In premiered last weekend at the Sundance Film Festival. The film weaves together director Eugene Jarecki’s personal narrative with America’s war on drugs. Here, producers including Sam Cullman, Melinda Shopsin, Danny Glover, and director Eugene Jarecki — reflect on the film and its Sundance premiere.
“Hell and Back Again” Filmmaker Danfung Dennis Reacts to Oscar Nomination
By Steve Goldbloom, Reporting for PBS and BTB at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival
Danfung Dennis woke up this morning in Park City as an Academy Award nominated filmmaker for his documentary Hell and Back Again. The film weaves together two overlapping narratives of a Marine at war on the front and in recovery at home. BTB caught up with the filmmaker earlier today on Main St at the Sundance Film Festival.
Hell and Back Again will air on May 24 on Independent Lens.
Oscar Nominees for Best Doc Include: Hell and Back Again & If a Tree Falls
Early Tuesday morning the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this year’s Oscar nominees. Among the films selected for best documentary were two ITVS programs: Hell and Back Again by Danfung Dennis (coming to Independent Lens on May 24) and If a Tree Falls by filmmakers Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman (broadcast last September on POV). BTB will be speaking with filmmakers Dennis and Cullman later today in Park City at the Sundance Film Festival to get their reaction on the nomination. Until then, join us in congratulating the filmmakers and watch the trailers below:
Find the complete list of nominated film here.
Macky Alston’s “Love Free or Die” Takes Off at Sundance
By Steve Goldbloom, Reporting for PBS and BTB at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival
Premiering Monday night at Sundance is Macky Alston’s new film Love Free or Die, which follows the historic and controversial rise of Gene Robinson, the first openly gay Bishop. BTB caught up with Alston at a mass held at St. Luke’s Church on Sunday in Park City, where LGBT leaders showed up to support and discuss the film.
Love Free or Die is an ITVS-funded film slated for broadcast on an upcoming season of Independent Lens.
A Conversation with Dr. Angela Davis
Earlier this month, Independent Lens launched a slate of films celebrating Black History at the Television Critics Association in Los Angeles. While at the event, the series teamed up with PBS NEWSHOUR’S Hari Sreenivasan to interview many of the filmmakers and subjects. Watch an excerpt below of Sreenivasan’s conversation with Dr. Angela Davis, profiled in Göran Hugo Olsson’s The Black Power Mixtape 1967–1975 which premieres on PBS on February 9.
Subscribe to Beyond the Box and stay on the lookout for more excerpts from Sreenivasan’s conversation with Davis and many others.
Recent Posts
Archives
Categories
- #ILDocClub
- All Video
- Ask Programming
- Audio Podcasts
- Awards
- Community Cinema
- Community Classroom
- Film Festivals
- Filmmaker Profile
- From the President's Desk
- FUTURESTATES
- Global Voices
- In the News
- Independent Lens
- Inside Indies
- Institutional Updates
- ITVS Broadcasts
- ITVS Deep Dive
- ITVS Funding
- ITVS Indies Showcase
- ITVS International
- Live Chat
- Minority Consortia
- New Online
- On the Road
- Producer Resources
- Public Media
- Recently Funded
- Social Media
- Special Events
- Talkback
- Uncategorized
- Women and Girls Lead
Related sites
Film Blogs
Public Media Blogs
-
Get the Beyond the Box e-newsletter, sent monthly with the latest news about ITVS, funding opportunities and more. Enter your email and sign up.
-
Sign up for the Independent Lens newsletter. Get news once a week during the broadcast season (fall-spring).