Interviews

Quest for Truth

michele — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 07:22:26 -0500

Rory Kennedy didn’t always know she wanted to be a filmmaker, but she did see herself as a political activist. As the daughter of former U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy, politics run strong in her blood. In wanting to make an impact on people’s lives, she gravitated towards film as a means of educating herself and others about political and social issues.

Rider Strong Moves On

erin — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 18:00:00 -0500

Rider Strong grew up on television. Not like most of us, consuming it after school with a Hi-C juice box and a Swiss Cake roll, but as Shawn Hunter, the beloved boy next door on Boy Meets World. Considering the fate of other child actors, spending ages 13 to 20 under the hot lights of American television could have been his one-way ticket to rehab.

Werner Herzog Made Me Do It

michele — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Stuck in a dead-end job and worried he'd never make it as a filmmaker, Lee Kazimir decided to take Werner Herzog's advice. Legendary filmmaker Herzog had once said in an interview that he believed the best way to become a filmmaker would be not to practice filmmaking but to walk -- say, from Madrid to Kiev.

The Future of Public Media: Talking with Pat Aufderheide

michele — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:38:54 -0500

At SILVERDOCS 2008, writer Randi Cecchine talks with Pat Aufderheide, founder and director of the Center for Social Media at American University, about moving their Beyond Broadcast conference to SILVERDOCS, unraveling the complexities of fair use, and taking on the future of public media.

Documentary 2.0: Making Media That Matters

michele — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:38:49 -0500

Each June, The Media That Matters Film Festival selects a group of 12 shorts by independent filmmakers designed to spark action and debate in twelve minutes or less. Unlike other festivals, MTM works to promote its selections year-round through online streaming, broadcasts and community screenings.

For Inspiration, Judd Ehrlich Looked to the Subject of His New Film, "Run For Your Life"

mike — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 22:25:39 -0500

While vampires made a big splash at this year's Tribeca Film Festival, a documentary about a son of Transylvania carved out a decidedly different niche for itself.

To Shoot "Flying," Jennifer Fox Gave Up Control of Her Camera

michele — Thu, 01 May 2008 21:28:03 -0500

As an award-winning director, producer and camerawoman, Jennifer Fox is certainly well-versed in all the conventions of ‘proper’ documentary filmmaking – introduce the camera slowly, don’t talk about your own life, “create a neutral plane they can project on,” as she says.

"Prince Among Slaves": Recreating History on a Budget

mike — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 01:22:01 -0600

Prince Among Slaves, which aired in February on PBS as part of public television's Black History Month programming, is the story of Abdul Rahman Ibrahima, an African prince who was captured by slave traders in 1788. He completed the Middle Passage in shackles, and ended up sold to a farmer of modest means in Natchez, Mississippi.

Mastering Archival Footage: How to Find It, When to Use It

mike — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 00:46:45 -0600

Immy Humes is adept at bringing a light touch to dark subject matter as she did in her Oscar-nominated 1991 short A Little Vicious, about a dangerous pit bull and the family who loved him, and 1996’s Lizzie Borden Hash & Rehash, about the abiding fascination Americans have for the New England spinster who was accused of being an ax murderer.

Writing a Companion Book to Your Film

mike — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 01:14:02 -0600

An examination of how the Iraq War went so wrong, Charles H. Ferguson’s documentary No End In Sight is by turns forensic and surreal, a synthesis of devastating facts, damning archival footage, and poignant interviews with well-placed Iraqis and Americans who tried in vein to keep catastrophe at bay.