Yes, yes, we know. It's February 1 and we're still looking back at 2009. Call us belated, call us procrastinators, but we still have a word or three to offer about the year that's now a month past. Last year we offered a list of ten folks who've made the community a better place in 2008. Here's our list of 2009's nonfiction heroes:
Cinereach
2009 marked the year that Cinereach broke through as
a major grant player – but with a significant twist. Their first high profile film, OCTOBER COUNTRY, was known
less for its social justice/liberal agenda perspective than for its
artistry.
Sean Farnel
Through his seafar blog, the guru of Hot Docs gave
readers an unvarnished and thoroughly revealing look at the process behind
programming a major documentary festival.
By examining his own process so publicly, Farnel gave filmmakers a
unique opportunity to understand what happens throughout a curator’s year –
from fests to submissions to hundreds of index cards thump tacked to a wall.
The Board of Film Independent
There were those who deplored the actions of Film
Independent and the Los Angeles Film Festival in their handling of the
controversial documentary, BANANAS!*, but we found the organization’s
dedication to screening the film – even in the threat of lawsuit –
courageous. For those who
believe otherwise, rest assured there are plenty of film festivals and organizations that
wouldn’t have taken the risk.
Tine Fischer
Imagining a documentary festival that awards Harmony
Korine’s TRASH HUMPERS a grand jury prize is a visionary thing. Fischer and her team at CPH:DOX have crafted an
intimate, slightly unruly and completely invigorating revisioning of what
documentary film festivals can be.
Gary Hustwit
With OBJECTIFIED, Hustwit continued his rep as one of
the most accomplished self-distributors in the doc world. Certainly, he’s one of the few who’s so
willing to detail his experience and successes (including deal points) for other filmmakers.
Roadside Attractions
As other distributors exhibited caution at last
year’s Sundance, Roadside proved intrepid – acquiring box office successes GOOD
HAIR and SEPTEMBER ISSUE and Oscar hopeful THE COVE. And although the latter was a box office disappointment, taken
in total, the three films proved that aggressive theatrical acquisition was a
recipe for success in 2009.
Eddie Schmidt
Two years ago, Schmidt grabbed hold of the reins at
the IDA and the result has been a thorough reinvigoration of the brand – from
the way in which the organization gives its awards (ANVIL! anyone?) to public programs
to their website.
Ondi Timoner
Did anyone go for broke in 2009 more than
Timoner? Fresh off her Sundance
triumph with WE LIVE IN PUBLIC, Ondi utilized social media in aggressively new
ways in her efforts to spread the word about her film. Later in the year, she’d make the first
dent in the Academy Doc Branch’s fear of the internet, getting permission to
show WLIP (as it came to be known) to press online, even as it was screening in
theaters. If the Academy finally
revises its moribund rules regarding digital and VOD releases, Timoner will
deserve much of the credit for leading the way.
Basil Tsiokos
While his “Dear Documentary Filmmaker” tweets stirred
controversy early in the year (did we really need to be told what to do),
Tsiokos’ twitter feed has since proved to be a one-stop shop for breaking doc news, grant
deadlines and RTing of the usual suspects (your humble correspondent included).
John Vanco/IFC Center
New York’s premiere venue for documentaries of all
stripes added two screens and thus enhanced their ability to hold on to films
longer and even to pick up films from downtown rival Film Forum.
thanks AJ, nice to be mentioned in such fine company....but I wouldn't even be doing a blog without the example set by yourself. ATWT is a hub for all of us active in the doc community. - Sean.
Posted by: Sean Farnel | February 01, 2010 at 05:46 PM