2004 Full Frame Films for Emerging Pictures Digital Syndication
Participating Venues:
Sarasota Film
Society/Burns Court. FL
Kalamazoo Valley Museum , MI
Wealthy Theatre,
Grand Rapids , MI
Mary
Riepma Ross Media Arts Center, Lincoln, NE
WV State
College Capitol Center, Charleston , WV
Participating Films:
Citizen King
(2003. USA. 120mins. Directed by Orlando Bagwell.
Produced by Orlando Bagwell.)
The remarkable achievements of Martin Luther King, Jr.
have been well documented, but this moving, revealing film brings a fresh
focus to King by concentrating on the lesser known last five years of his
life, when he alienated many of his closest associates by broadening his
scope beyond civil rights and embracing causes such as opposition to the
Vietnam War and the plight of America’s poor and dispossessed.
Meticulously researched and beautifully crafted, the film weaves together
archival footage and personal recollections to offer new insights into
this committed, compassionate leader, who faced formidable challenges as
he struggled to transform himself while continuing his moral imperative to
transform the world.
Dirty Work
(2003. USA. 61mins. Directed by David Sampliner and
Tim Nackashi. Produced by David Sampliner and Tim Nackashi.)
A bull semen collector, a septic tank pumper, and a
preparer of cadavers allow us into their worlds in this account of
individuals who love their jobs despite what anyone might expect. This
film comments on the intersection between work and personality.
Farmingville
(2003. USA. 78mins. Directed by Catherine Tambini and
Carlos Sandoval. Produced by Carlos Sandoval and Catherine Tambini.)
A small community in Long Island is torn apart by the
sudden arrival of thousands of undocumented migrant workers on their
idyllic suburban shores. Some residents watch in horror, as their cozy,
frozen dreams of property values and standards of living appear to melt
before their eyes. Others try to embrace these historical changes in a way
that allows for the kind of justice that benefits all. Directors Carlos
Sandoval and Catherine Tambini walk right into this explosive moral
situation where the fears of Middle America turn into the reality of
racial violence. Presenting all sides of the issue while retaining a
measured sense of indignation, this documentary goes straight at the heart
of what’s wrong with our failed immigration policies. Given that there are
currently more than 7 million undocumented workers in this country, with
thousands living right here in Durham, NC, Farmingville is a powerful and
relevant reminder of the many battles that lie ahead.
Home of the Brave
(2003. USA. 75mins. Directed by Paola di Florio.
Produced by Paola di Florio and Nancy Dickenson.)
Viola Liuzzo was the only white woman murdered during
the Civil Rights movement, and her dramatic story provides a somber
backdrop to a nuanced family portrait. It’s bad enough for your mom to be
murdered by the Klan, but what if the FBI’s investigation is maliciously
bungled and you never get any closure? Viola’s son Tony is the backbone
of the film: a militia member who turns his back on America and goes off
the grid. His sarcastic response to seeing state troopers drive by his
house, “I feel safe knowing that they’re here,” both hides and reveals his
heartbreak.
Maletilla
(2003. Spain and Mexico. 60mins. Directed by Victoria
Clay-Mendoza. Produced by Carolina Herrera, Jose Ibañez, and Xavier
Mascaro.)
Ever wondered why anyone would want to become a
bullfighter? What would make a seven-year-old knowingly tackle his
mortality at such a young age? Victoria Clay-Mendoza asks herself this
intriguing question in her feature debut Maletilla. Taking as a
starting point her desire to know why her father suddenly became a
bullfighter at age 39, the director begins a four-year journey into the
existential mysteries of this bloody but beautiful relationship between a
bull and a man. Following the careers of three up-and-coming bullfighting
apprentices, Maletilla brings to the screen an exquisite sense of
detail, a wealth of unanswered questions, and kaleidoscopic collage of
images you’ll not soon forget.
Music from the Inside Out
(2004. USA. 90mins. Directed by Daniel Anker.
Produced by Daniel Anker.)
Musicians are people, too. This intimate,
behind-the-scenes look at the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra delves into
the lives of gifted musicians outside the concert hall. Music is more
than a job. It veers off in different directions, produces exciting
collaborations, and offers solace, comfort, and a sense of belonging to
those who follow its beat.
No Name Game Farm
(2003. USA. 50mins. Directed by Toby Beach and Peter
Yost. Produced by Toby Beach and Peter Yost.)
“I wouldn’t own a mean chicken,” says Glen Comeaux, who
has been raising fighting birds for 43 years in southwest Louisiana.
Cockfighting is legal there, and Friday night fights are Glen’s domain.
“It’s a gentlemen’s sport,” he tells us. Beautiful camerawork and
nontraditional music help to shake off stereotypes, evoking a
compassionate description of the birds and their caretakers in addition to
graphic scenes of cockfighting. The film is really a character study of
two men with plenty of heart under their tough exteriors.
A Place of Our Own
(2003. USA. 56mins. Directed by Stanley Nelson.
Produced by Stanley Nelson.)
The town of Oak Bluffs, on Martha’s Vineyard, has long
been a summer resort destination for generations of upper-middle-class
African-Americans, filmmaker Stanley Nelson’s family among them. In this
intimate, heartfelt documentary, Nelson deftly balances the personal,
political, and historical as he examines how Oak Bluffs became a haven for
affluent blacks, particularly during the tumultuous ‘60s; how the
community has changed, and how Nelson’s family has changed since the death
of his mother. Though wistful, Nelson’s clear-eyed look at conflicts of
class, race, and age transcends mere nostalgia through its unsentimental
honesty and richly textured complexity.
Thirst
(2004. USA. 62mins. Directed by Alan Snitow and
Deborah Kaufman. Produced by Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman.)
Multinational corporations seizing control of water
supplies around the world are shocked, shocked by grassroots opposition.
"Water for Life, Not for Profit!" shout California community activists in
their campaign to prevent private takeover of their local water utility.
Supercilious businessmen and pro-privatization bankers show scorn for the
opposition, but maybe grass-roots, door-to-door activism has a chance.
Idealists like Oscar Olivera (Bolivia) and Rajenda Singh (India) have
organized mass movements against water as a commodity: "water more
expensive than milk." Thirst skillfully engages the viewer with a
complex global issue.
Tobacco Money Feeds My Family
(2003. USA. 87mins. Directed by Cynthia Hill.
Produced by Cynthia Hill and Curtis Gaston.)
Depicting the contemporary lives of several local
tobacco farmers, Tobacco Money Feeds My Family makes the convincing
case that one cannot truly tell the story of North Carolina without
placing the history of tobacco's rise and fall right at its center. North
Carolina tobacco farmers explain tobacco's importance to the state's
economy as they continue to plant their crops, pray for rain during
prolonged droughts, and adjust to recent changes in America's smoking
culture. Filmmaker Cynthia Hill also recounts her own childhood memories
of tobacco farming's impact on Pink Hill, North Carolina, where she grew
up learning to respect the vitality of tobacco farming culture. In the
wake of recent bans on smoking in major American cities, most infamously
New York, Hill's film moves the discussion from consumption to production,
asking what the history of tobacco farming tells us all about race, class,
urbanization, and health issues in contemporary American society. This
will be an eye-opener for smokers and non-smokers alike. |
