Doc Studies DOC TALKS, Events

DOC TALK (ONLINE): The Cats of Mirikitani – Screening and Q&A with Linda Hattendorf (Director/Editor)

“A fascinating, absorbing and instructive tale, full of delayed revelations and subtle pleasures.“
–Jonathan Rosenbaum, The Chicago Reader 

“A profoundly gripping film with a cumulative impact that may well wipe you out.” 
–Bilge Ebri, New York Magazine

The Cats of Mirikitani began as a portrait of Jimmy Mirikitani, a homeless Japanese-American street artist living in New York City, but then it morphed into a stunning personal story of an unlikely relationship that confronted one of America’s long-standing prejudices and initiated a healing process catalyzed by the events of 9/11.  This film was Linda Hattendorf’s directorial debut, and she worked closely with editor Keiko Deguchi to structure a film in which she reluctantly became a character. Cats premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2006 where it won the Audience Award. The film was later broadcast on the PBS series “Independent Lens,” toured theatrically around the globe, and was invited to over 100 film festivals.  

AWARDS: Best Picture Japanese Eyes, Tokyo International Film Festival; Best Documentary, Durban International Film Festival; Norwegian Peace Film Award, Tromso International Film Festival, among over 30 others.

Linda Hattendorf

Linda Hattendorf is much in demand as an editor today, and her work has been broadcast on PBS, A&E, TCM, and The Sundance Channel, and screened in various theatrical venues and film festivals. She has collaborated with direct cinema master Barbara Kopple and did research for PBS’s house documentarian Ken Burns.  She served as cameraperson on William Greaves’ celebrated Symbiopsychotaxiplasm Take 2 ½ and editor for his PBS special Ralph J. Bunche: An American Odyssey. She is currently editing Photographic Justice: The Corky Lee Story about the legendary photojournalist of Asian American issues who died recently of covid-19. She has an MA in Media Studies from the New School and briefly taught editing for the DocStudies Certificate. 

Presented by the Graduate Certificate in Documentary Media Studies
@tnsdocstudies
Doc Studies @ Instagram

School of Media Studies
The New School
https://newschooldocstudies.wordpress.com/
http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/documentary-media-graduate-certificate/
http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/media-studies/
http://www.truthbetoldfilmfestival.com

Doc Studies DOC TALKS, Events

DOC TALK (ONLINE): The Big Scary “S” Word – Screening and Q&A with Yael Bridge (Director/Producer)

“Examines the history of socialism and why so many Americans have been conditioned to reject a philosophy that’s in their best interests” 

– Cassie Da Costa, Daily Beast

THE BIG SCARY “S” WORD  delves into the rich history of the American socialist movement and journeys with the people striving to build a socialist future today. With inequality growing, a climate catastrophe looming, and right-wing extremism ascending around the world, many Americans are wondering whether capitalism is to blame. But what is the alternative? Socialism is plagued by conflicting definitions. Is it dictatorship or democracy? Norway or Venezuela? Reform or revolution? This film explores where American socialism has been, why it was suppressed, and imagines what a renewed American socialism might look like.

AWARDS: Official Selection: AFI Fest 2020, Official Selection: Mill Valley Film Festival 2020, Official Selection: DOC NYC 2020, Official Selection: HotDocs 2020, Official Selection: DocLands 2020.

Yael Bridge

Yael Bridge is an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker based in Oakland. Her films have shown at major film festivals nationally and internationally. She produced Left on Purpose, winner of the Audience Award at DOC NYC, and most recently produced Saving Capitalism with Robert Reich, nominated for an Emmy Award in Business and Economics. As Director of Productions at Inequality Media, Yael has made numerous viral videos tackling complex political issues that have garnered over 200 million views on social media. She holds an MFA in Documentary Film and Video from Stanford University, a Graduate Certificate in Documentary Studies and an MA in Media Studies from the New School. 

Presented by the Graduate Certificate in Documentary Media Studies
@tnsdocstudies
Doc Studies @ Instagram

School of Media Studies
The New School
https://newschooldocstudies.wordpress.com/
http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/documentary-media-graduate-certificate/
http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/media-studies/
http://www.truthbetoldfilmfestival.com

Doc Studies DOC TALKS

DOC TALK (ONLINE): Honeyland – Screening and Q&A with Samir Ljuma (Cinematographer)

Nothing less than a found epic, a real-life environmental allegory.
(A.O. Scott and Manohla Dargis, NYTimes)

A miraculous feat, shot over three years as if by invisible camera.
(Cath Clarke, The Guardian)

Its narrative construction depicts extraordinary tensions and conflicts with a clarity and coherence that a screenwriter might dream of. 
(Richard Brody, The New Yorker)

Nestled in an isolated mountain region deep within the Balkans, Hatidze Muratova lives with her ailing mother in a village without roads, electricity or running water. She’s the last in a long line of wild beekeepers, eking out a living farming honey in small batches to be sold in the closest city – a mere four hours’ walk away. Hatidze’s peaceful existence is thrown into upheaval by the arrival of an itinerant family, with their roaring engines, seven rambunctious children and a herd of cattle. Hatidze optimistically meets the promise of change with an open heart, it doesn’t take long however, before a conflict evolves that exposes the fundamental tension between nature and humanity, harmony and discord, exploitation and sustainability. 

The debut feature from documentarians Ljubomir Stefanov and Tamara Kotevska, HONEYLAND is made with the widescreen sweep of an epic, yet clearly built from an intimate collaboration between filmmakers and subject. With a surprising sense of humor, it’s a tough and tender portrait of the delicate balance between humankind and nature, a glimpse at a fast disappearing way of life, and an unforgettable testament to one extraordinary woman’s resilience.

AWARDS: Sundance, Critic’s Choice Documentary Award, Cinema Eye Honors, European Film Awards, International Documentary Association + 30 other awards and over 40 nominations including two Oscar nominations for Best Documentary and Best Foreign Film.

Samir Ljuma

Samir Ljuma is an award-winning cinematographer and producer from Macedonia. He worked as Director of Photography on several documentary features and collaborated with a host of international film directors, including AVEC L’AMOUR by Ilija Cvetkovski and HONEYLAND by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov. He is the winner of the American Society Of Cinematographers Award for Best Documentary Cinematography as well as IMAGO Award, IDA Award, Cinema Eye Honors Award, and Sundance Film Festival award. 

Presented by the Graduate Certificate in Documentary Media Studies
@tnsdocstudies
Doc Studies @ Instagram

School of Media Studies
The New School
https://newschooldocstudies.wordpress.com/
http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/documentary-media-graduate-certificate/
http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/media-studies/
http://www.truthbetoldfilmfestival.com

Doc Studies DOC TALKS, Events

DOC TALK (ONLINE): Mayor – Screening and Q&A with David Osit (Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor)


THE BEST NEW FILM ABOUT THE ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT is a dark comedy about Ramallah’s Mayor… offers a striking new perspective on that struggle, with a personal on-the-ground quality matched by grand tonal ambitions that makes it the best of its subgenre. CRITICS PICK. 
—Indiewire

THOUGHTFUL AND GRIPPING… There are whiffs of Veep-like humor throughout MAYOR … but it’s also a sincere tale of a public servant who’s seeking to lead in a world that’s stacked against him.
—VOX

Offers more absurd moments than Samuel Beckett could have ever worked up.
—UNIVERSAL CINEMA

MAYOR is a real-life political saga following Musa Hadid, the mayor of Ramallah, during his second term in office. Surrounded on all sides by Israeli settlements and soldiers, most people in Ramallah will never have the chance to travel more than a few miles outside their home, which is why Mayor Hadid is determined to make the city a beautiful and dignified place to live. His immediate goals: repave the sidewalks, attract more tourism, and plan the city’s Christmas celebrations. His ultimate mission: to end the occupation of Palestine. Rich with detailed observation and a surprising amount of humor, MAYOR offers a portrait of dignity amidst the madness and absurdity of endless occupation while posing a question: how do you run a city when you don’t have a country?

AWARDS: Grand Jury Prize winner: Full Frame Film Festival, NEXT:WAVE winner: CPH:DOX 2020, Best Documentary: Boston Palestine Film Festival, Official Selection: True/False Film Festival 2020.

David Osit

David Osit is an Emmy Award-winning director, editor and composer. David is one of the directors of the feature documentary THANK YOU FOR PLAYING, which premiered at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival, broadcast on POV in 2016, and was nominated for three Emmy awards, winning for Outstanding Arts & Culture Documentary. He also edited and produced OFF FRAME, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and Berlinale in 2016. His first film, BUILDING BABEL, premiered at True/False in 2012. David is an alumnus of Berlinale Talents and the Sundance Nonfiction Director’s Lab.

Please join us for this online screening and Q&A, hosted and moderated by Amir Husak, Director of Documentary Studies and Assistant Professor in the School of Media Studies.

Presented by the Graduate Certificate in Documentary Media Studies

http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/documentary-media-graduate-certificate/
http://www.newschool.edu/public-engagement/media-studies/
http://www.truthbetoldfilmfestival.com

@tnsdocstudies
Doc Studies @ Instagram

School of Media Studies
The New School

Doc Studies DOC TALKS

Doc Talk with Peter Hutton

“Cinema has become such a commodified form of information and entertainment that it’s morphed into something that disengages the viewer from their visual discipline and the fact that you can find pleasure in just looking at something. I’m doing something that’s perhaps in opposition to the whole tradition of cinema, which is about condensing our experiences.” Continue reading “Doc Talk with Peter Hutton” →