Sundance
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.
ITVS Garners Four Nominations for IFP Gotham Awards
ITVS films received four out of five nominations in the Best Documentary category for the 2011 Gotham Awards. The award ceremony will take place on November 28th at Cipriani Wall Street in New York.
ITVS nearly got a clean sweep in the Best Documentary category of the IFP Gotham Awards with ITVS films receiving four out of the five nominations. Check out the list of ITVS Best Documentary nominees along with their trailers after the jump >>
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Now Streaming on Indies Showcase: Daddy & Papa
Exploring the growing phenomenon of gay fatherhood through the stories of four families, Daddy & Papa looks at gay fathers who face both the routine and revolutionary challenges of becoming parents. Watch the Emmy Award-nominated documentary streaming free until Sept. 1st on ITVS’s Indies Showcase.
Daddy & Papa explores the personal, cultural, and political impact of gay men who are making a decision that is at once traditional and revolutionary: to raise children themselves. Taking us inside four gay male families, Daddy & Papa traces the day-to-day challenges and the larger, critical issues that inevitably intersect their private lives – the ambiguous place of interracial families in America, the wonder and precariousness of surrogacy and adoption, the complexities of marriage and divorce within the gay community, and the legality of their own parenthood.
Watch Daddy & Papa now on ITVS’s Indies Showcase >>
The Unsettling Images of War at Home and Abroad
Hell And Back Again, which picked up multiple awards at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, will air next season on Independent Lens. The documentary, by photo-journalist Danfung Dennis, profiles a Marines life during and after his stint in Afghanistan.
New Video recently acquired the film for North American distribution, with plans to release it in theaters this October.
The film provides two overlapping narratives that equally depict the rawness of war, at home and abroad. Dennis — who served as an embed journalist in Afghanistan — weaves together battle scenes from the frontlines with home footage that depicts the post-traumatic-stress, awaiting so many of today’s soldiers.
“The film evolves from war expose into the story of one man’s personal apocalypse, and also underscores the price military families pay when soldiers resume civilian life.,” said Lois Vossen, Founding Series Producer of Independent Lens. “We look forward to presenting Hell and Back Again to millions of viewers through the Independent Lens Community Cinema outreach program and our spring 2012 broadcast.”
The Independent Lens Curating Process
Independent Lens Series Producer Lois Vossen has been tweeting from Sundance this week as she scouts out a brand new slate of documentaries. Last year, BTB asked Lois to describe the curating process behind the Emmy Award-wining series, and what she looks for in an Independent Lens film.
See ITVS Films at Sundance 2011
BTB has been keeping tabs on all ITVS films (The Interrupters, Granito, Family Portrait in Black and White, and If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front) and staff (Lois Vossen and Claire Aguilar) at Sundance through our twitter widget #itvssundance as the snowy festival cruises on this week.
For those in Park City, check out the screenings below over the next few days to get caught up on our great lineup of films playing at the festival.
Find ITVS Staff at Sundance
ITVS is well represented at this year’s Sundance Film Festival in Park City. In addition to having two films competing in the festival and another two hosting their doc premiere, two ITVS execs are also on-hand for industry meetings.
Vice Presidents Claire Aguilar (programming) and Lois Vossen (series producer of Independent Lens) will both be attending the following two events over the next few days:
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PUMA.Creative Impact Award, Launched at Sundance
Today PUMA.Creative and Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation announced the launch of the PUMA.Creative Impact Award, a major new annual award to honour the documentary film creating the most significant impact in the world. This 50,000 Euro award acknowledges the film’s makers and will help the continuation of the film’s campaign work.
Two ITVS Films to Premiere at Sundance
Granito
Two ITVS-funded films will have their documentary premiere at Sundance: Granito by filmmaker Pamela Yates and The Interrupters by filmmaker Steve James.
In Yates’s Granito, an documentary film she made intertwines with Guatemala’s turbulent history and emerges as an active player in a nation’s struggle to heal itself and serve up justice.
The Interrupters from Academy Award-winning director of Hoop Dreams Steve James, tells a story of ex-gang members who are now protecting their communities from the violence they themselves once employed.
The Interrupters
Screening dates and times are still pending. You can find up-to-date information online at Sundance.
You should also check out this clip from the producers of Granito as they explain the process behind making their film.
Two ITVS Films Selected to Compete at Sundance
The Sundance Institute has revealed the lineup of films selected to screen in the U.S. and World Cinema Dramatic and Documentary competitions for the 2011 Sundance Film Festival in January. Among the films selected are two ITVS-funded documentaries: If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation for the U.S. Documentary competition and Family Portrait in Black and White in the World Cinema Documentary competition.
Today’s announcement brings the total number of ITVS-funded films that have screened at Sundance to 71 since we first attended in 1994.
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