doc it out » Screenings http://agnesvarnum.com watching, ranting and connecting with documentary film Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:00:00 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 en hourly 1 The Way We Get By http://agnesvarnum.com/2009/04/27/the-way-we-get-by/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2009/04/27/the-way-we-get-by/#comments Tue, 28 Apr 2009 03:39:20 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=748 The Way We Get By

It’s funny how life cycles, isn’t it? One day Bush, the next Obama. One day love and sunshine, the next rain and sorrow. Money, no money. I’ve very much been in a period of waning on my blog, but the doc days are heating up and so too must my little project here, or be I doomed back too obscurity!!

Through several channels has The Way We Get By by Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly come to me. If you click to their website, you can see they are consummate internet marketers. I have to say that is about as technologically advanced as a film website can be these days – especially after all, they just premiered at SXSW where they won an Special Jury Award. They clearly have their ducks in a row, as the other channel that the film came through on was the P.O.V. press release as it will be on late in the upcoming season.

A prize at SXSW and a slot on P.O.V. plus their outstanding website are about as good of a pedigree for a documentary as you get these days. A lot of people believe in this film. The filmmakers shared a screener with me so of course, I watched it. It would take a hard heart indeed to not be taken in by the folks who are the focus of this film.

It is a group of volunteer troop greeters at an airport in Maine where most flights to and from Iraq connect. These sweet elderly people drag themselves out to the airport, at all hours, in all conditions and always with complete humility to say “goodbye and good luck” to departing soldiers and “welcome home” to those returning. I remember when I was a kid that having someone at the gate to greet me and waving me off as I walked down the jetway (back when you could get that close) was one of those simple, joyous moments. I can only imagine how much it must mean when a war is on the other side of the trip.

Your don’t matter. The hearts and souls of these people will show you what you are made of. Whether or not you like what you see in that picture is entirely between you and the screen upon which you watched. Unless, of course, you agreed to blog about it.

The last channel that I got news of this film was through Thom Powers, as it will be screening tomorrow night as part of the Stranger Than Fiction series at the IFC Theater in . The film is being co-presented by the Camden International Film Festival… a documentary festival in… Maine.

Now, it makes perfect sense, given that The Way We Get By is set in Maine, that Maine’s doc fest present the film in New York City. For a documentary festival to be in its 5th year and for me to not recall ever hearing about it? Oye. Maybe I should hang up my PowerBook. Am I getting too old for this already? Geesh. Well, I read through the materials Leah Hurley and Ben Fowlie, the folks who run the fest, sent me and it sounds like a great event. “Over the past five years we’ve managed to bring in some relatively big names and premieres from the doc world to the coast of Maine, including Al Maysles, Eric Metzgar, Ian Cheney, Jennifer Baichwal, David Redmon and Nina Davenport….and several NE PREMIERS like Al Otro Lado, Iraq in Fragments, The Garden and Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars.” It runs from October 1 – 4 this year.

So there you have it. My blog continues. Stranger Than Fiction tomorrow night or you can also catch The Way We Get By at Hot Docs (May 5 & May 7 screenings), which starts this Thursday as well.

I’ll be at Hot Docs from this Saturday to Tuesday, so send me your recommendations if you have them. I’m going to celebrate the mid-career retrospective of Ron Mann’s films. Ron is one of the rare people in this world who has maintained his sense of fun and rightousness, while still delivering important messages about freedom and entertainment.

And, if you are looking for a new documentary destination? Camden International Film Festival? Let me know what you think if you attend this year.

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]]> http://agnesvarnum.com/2009/04/27/the-way-we-get-by/feed/ 1 JUMP! on Showtime http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/12/01/jump-on-showtime/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/12/01/jump-on-showtime/#comments Tue, 02 Dec 2008 04:17:14 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=605 Eegads! I just got an email that a film I enjoyed very much is going to be on Showtime on this Sunday at 5 PM ET/PT. I search my blog for my post about the film, assuming I wrote one, and no go. Big mistake. In JUMP!, filmmakers Helen Hood Scheer and Scott B. Morgan follow champion jump ropers (seriously, this ain’t the playground game of our youth) as they practice and eventually compete in the World Championships. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been feeling likewatching feel-good films these days, after the intensity of the past few months. JUMP! fits the bill nicely. Not only are these kids unbelievablely impressive in their ability and drive, but there’s the highs of winning and sorrows of losing. Don’t worry, they still come out all right even when they lose.

If you can, I encourage you to catch the film, and if you happen to have kids, be sure to have them watch too. They will be inspired by these amazing young people. Watch the trailer>>

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]]> http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/12/01/jump-on-showtime/feed/ 0 Link Round-Up: Get Your Movie On http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/11/14/link-round-up-get-your-movie-on/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/11/14/link-round-up-get-your-movie-on/#comments Fri, 14 Nov 2008 20:31:00 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=586 Lots of very cool screenings to announce. Days are getting shorter and temps are dropping, so it’s time to catch up on the great stuff that is coming to a screen near you.

- a/k/a Tommy Chong is now on Showtime, preeming tonight. Not just for stoners, Chong underwent an ordeal that should make everyone’s skin crawl. Unopposed US attorneys can make the life of an ordinary citizen hell. This doc by Josh Gilbert is compelling and has had a tough road getting to you, so be sure to check it out.

- If you are in , the Margaret Mead Film Festival is this weekend. Don’t miss Jesse Epstein’s The Guarantee and Throw Down Your Heart by Sascha Paladino.

- Ellen Kuras and Thavi Phrasavath’s The Betrayal (Nerakhoon) starts at the IFC Center in NYC on November 21. As you all know, it’s important to hit the theater early to keep it in the theater for word-of-mouth to build. I first saw this film at Sundance, and watched it again at Sheffield last week. It’s beautiful and well worth the price of admission.

- Arthur Dong’s superb Hollywood Chinese is now out on . This film is a must for movie buffs, but it features many well-known Chinese-American actors and clips from many of your favorites so it can be enjoyed by all.

And in case you didn’t follow my instructions to follow Byron Hurt’s lead-up to his short film release, Barack & Curtis, the time has come and the film is now available… right here. Enjoy!

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]]> http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/11/14/link-round-up-get-your-movie-on/feed/ 0 Crawford on Hulu http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/10/07/crawford-on-hulu/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/10/07/crawford-on-hulu/#comments Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:45:34 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=551 Festival fave Crawford by David Modigliani premieres online today at . You can watch the whole film with brief commercials here. Nice.


Crawford: a documentary from Crawford: The Movie on Vimeo.

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]]> http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/10/07/crawford-on-hulu/feed/ 1 Neither Memory Nor Magic http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/09/25/neither-memory-nor-magic/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/09/25/neither-memory-nor-magic/#comments Thu, 25 Sep 2008 22:05:47 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=528 Miklos Radnotti

My wonderful friend Hugo Perez is having a of his doc Neither Memory Nor Magic coming up at the Bowery Poetry Club. Here is his synopsis:

When the Hungarian poet Miklos Radnoti was executed and buried in a mass grave in 1944 after a two-month death march, he did not know whether his poems would survive. Eighteen months later, when his body was exhumed, a notebook was found in his coat pocket that contained his final poems. Neither Memory Nor Magic tells the story of a man who believed in the life of his poems even when he knew that he himself would not survive.

I don’t know much about obscure Hungarian poets and like many, I feel that Holocaust stories have been well-told, but Hugo has done a really lovely job, from what I saw in rough cuts, of elevating this story beyond its elements to dig down into the human experience. If you’ve loved and lost, if you’ve had a passion for your work or have simply experienced the tragedy of losing a loved one, there is something in this movie for you. It’s elegant and moving. Bring a tissue. Check it out on September 28 @ the Bowery Poetry Club. Tickets here.

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]]> http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/09/25/neither-memory-nor-magic/feed/ 1 Get Your Panel On, And Other Good Stuff http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/06/06/get-your-panel-on-and-other-good-stuff/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/06/06/get-your-panel-on-and-other-good-stuff/#comments Fri, 06 Jun 2008 22:11:50 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=479 SXSW Interactive has opened their Panel Picker process. You suggest panel ideas, attendees vote on the ones they want to see, and then if you are so lucky as to be chosen (or take on a massive publicity campaign to get the most votes), you can be on a SXSWi Panel. I’ve had tons o fun with this, and highly recommend. Get the details here>>

If you are in and looking for something fun this weekend, Newfest is ongoing and highly worth checking out, and the inimitable Nina Davenport’s Operation Filmmaker is playing at the IFC Center. It’s a highly enjoyable doc, and will give you and a date plenty to discuss. Davenport will be a several screenings this weekend. I’m including this awesome photo that Mary Kerr took of Nina at a holiday party last year just cuz I love it! Have a great time at the screenings Nina!

And if you are in Austin? Here’s my Sunday plan: “The Austin Symphonic Band is presenting a free concert in honor of Father’s Day.  It will be held at the Zilker Hillside Theater on Sunday, June 15, at 7:30 p.m.  The band will perform marches, light classics, and other musical selections you and Dad are sure to enjoy.  Bring a picnic supper, spread a blanket under the pecan trees, and watch the stars come out as the band performs.”

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]]> http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/06/06/get-your-panel-on-and-other-good-stuff/feed/ 0 Doxita Tonight in NYC http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/05/12/doxita-tonight-in-nyc/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/05/12/doxita-tonight-in-nyc/#comments Mon, 12 May 2008 18:03:46 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=469 The lovely Karen Cirillo, formerly with Full Frame and now programming independently, has put together a fabulous fest of short docs, Doxita, that she is currently taking around the country.

Tonight is the premiere of the the show at the IFC Center, 7:45 PM, and it includes some can’t-miss films! Enjoy and report back! The line-up:

Vángelo Monzón (Argentina/Sweden, Andréas Lennartsson, 8 min.) – A visit with Vángelo Monzón who’s been making bricks in Argentina since he was a boy.

Shit and Chicks (The Netherlands, Kees van der Geest, 10 min. ) – A portrait of a traditional method of feeding chickens in Ghana, done with gentle restraint.

El Cerco (Spain, Ricardo Íscar/Nacho Martín, 16 min.) – A breathtaking look at tuna fishing in the Mediterranean sea where the fight is a ritual of blood and death.

Cross your Eyes, Keep them Wide (USA, Ben Wu, 23 min.) – An invitation into the San Francisco “Creativity Explored,” a work space for artists with development disablilities.

The Guarantee (USA, Jesse Epstein, 10 min.) – Through animated drawings, a man tells how he considered plastic surgery for his ballet career.

Martin Thomas (UK/Wales, Dylan Wyn Thomas, 31 min.) – The sometimes painful yet ultimately joyous journey of one man’s quest to stop his stammer.

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]]> http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/05/12/doxita-tonight-in-nyc/feed/ 0 iW: Arts Engine Celebrates 10 Years http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/05/02/iw-arts-engine-celebrates-10-years/ http://agnesvarnum.com/2008/05/02/iw-arts-engine-celebrates-10-years/#comments Fri, 02 May 2008 20:24:47 +0000 Agnes Varnum http://agnesvarnum.com/?p=467 Ten years can either be a blip or an eternity depending on your perspective. The year 1997 saw President Bill Clinton inaugurated for his second term, James Cameron’s “Titantic” was the top movie and a book about a young wizard named Harry Potter first hit shelves. It was before the Internet stock bust and “information superhighway” was still a promise. The world of documentary in the U.S. was one of foundation funding, public broadcast and educational distribution with precious few docs breaking into any kind of commercial success. It was in that entrenched world that then-new filmmakers Katy Chevigny and Julia Pimsleur felt like they had little opportunity. Read the article & catch screenings of Arts Engine productions at The Paley Center in NYC this weekend>>

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