2010 DocFest program information
ALL KINDS OF LOVE
75 min
The Color of 8
Adam Blank Gets a Vasectomy
All Of Me: Sex Over 70
Sick-Amour
AMERICAN MYSTIC
Alex Mar, 80 min, USA
Sat 10/23 930p
“Set against a vivid backdrop of bucolic rural landscapes, American Mystic weaves together the stories of three young Americans exploring alternative religion… a complement to prevalent depictions of religious America as homogenous and Christian. Chuck, Morpheus, and Kublai pursue religious insight in disparate, exceptional ways, but are united in a uniquely American vision of transcendence.” -Tribeca Film Festival
AMERICAN: THE BILL HICKS STORY
Matt Harlock, Paul Thomas, 107 min, UK
Fri 10/15 715p; Tue 10/19 715p
“With a razor-sharp mind and a butcher’s knack for finding the soft underbelly of American society, stand-up comic Bill Hicks sliced through pop culture with a white-hot intensity rarely seen. And then he died. Now the late outlaw comic’s story is being told in American, a documentary that combines Hicks’ righteous performances with vivid animation and interviews with his friends and admirers.” –Lewis Wallace, Wired
BAS! BEYOND THE RED LIGHT
Wendy Champagne, 77 min, Canada
Sat 10/23 715p; Mon 10/25 930p
Like some other teens, these 13 girls live in a dorm, practice dance moves for a video, and wonder if they should get married. But these girls are special: they’ve been rescued from brothels in Mumbai, the world’s largest red-light district. Amid the ongoing search for more kidnapped girls, moving interviews reveal their ambitions: to learn a skill, punish a former madam, or find a mother.
BAY AREA SHORTS
70 min
The Sea Is A Harsh Mistress
My Best Friend
Ezekiel
Leaving My Mark
The Individualist
Jeremy Lamberton, 89 min, USA
Sun 10/17 5p; Mon 10/18 930p
The story of Frank P. DeLarzelere III, aka “Biker Fox,” Tulsa, Oklahoma’s misunderstood motivational bicyclist, nature conservationist and muscle car guru. Part-documentary and part-self-help testimonial, the film navigates the uneasy relationships DeLarzelere has with both the city of Tulsa and himself, as his Biker Fox character’s intentions of spirited goodwill sometimes neglect certain boundaries.
COMING BACK FOR MORE
Willem Alkema, 74 min, Netherlands
Sun 10/17, 715p; Thu 10/28, 930p
A filmic tribute to persistence, Dutch filmmaker Alkema spent years playing hide-and-seek with his elusive musical idol, Sly Stone. He found Stone on a dead-end street in the Los Angeles hills, recovering from a motorcycle accident, stolen royalties, and the downside of fame and fortune. Five more years of emails, calls, and promises later, Stone finally agreed to sit down for his first filmed interview in over 20 years.
CREATIVE MINDS
75 min
Beam Drop –Richard Dewey
The Time Machine –Mark Kendall
Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School –Peter Bolte
The Mixtress –Peter Hermes
Mezzanotte Obscura –Lori Petchers
DREAMLAND
Thorfinnur Gudnason, Andri Snær Magnason, 89 min, Iceland
US PREMIERE
Sun 10/24 930p; Wed 10/27 715p
“Dreamland is a documentary like no other… A visual treatise that exposes the greed and corruption that has befallen Iceland like a plague of myopic and avaricious infection of the mind and heart. It is a poem to the natural world and speaks for ecology through stunning cinematography and the pacing of a practiced orchestra.” -Ezra Winton, Art Threat
EAT THE SUN
Peter Sorcher, 79 min, USA
Told mostly through the experiences and encounters of its main subject, Mason, Eat The Sun traces the roots of sungazing from ancient times to modern-day practitioners, interviewing people who claim that as a result of doing this simple practice, they have physical benefits that range from weight loss, better eyesight, enhanced vitality and in some instances, a complete loss of the desire and need to eat food.
EVERYDAY SUNSHINE
Lev Anderson, Chris Metzler, 107 min, USA
OPENING NIGHT FILM
Thu 10/14 715p; Thu 10/21 930p
“Years of ‘Behind the Music’-style studies suggest that all unhappy bands seem to follow a similar sequence of drug-fueled dissolution. Iconoclastic LA band Fishbone proves a welcome exception to the rule….Everyday Sunshine resists self-pity in casting the band’s many misfortunes as a sort of secret triumph … (and) becomes a rare beast: an inspirational, happy film about failure.” -Andrew Barker, Variety
FAMILY AFFAIR
Chico Colvard, 80 min, USA
Fri 10/15 930p; Mon 10/18 930p
When filmmaker Colvard discovered what his father had done to his sisters, he detested the “G.I. Joe” he once admired. Incredibly, all three sisters kept seeing their father after his release, even leaving their children alone with him. When his father was welcomed one Thanksgiving by adoring friends and family members, Colvard began his documentary to uncover the complexities of pedophilia, and how it had manipulated his family.
THE FORGOTTEN TREE
Luis Rincón, 80 min, Mexico
Sun 10/17 715p; Thu 10/21 715p
A documentary that revisits a famous film location: the slums where Luis Buñuel’s Los Olvidados was shot more than fifty years ago. The Forgotten Tree captures fragments of the lives of Juan, Gaby, Noemí, and Ivonne, who still live by the train tracks immortalized in Buñuel’s masterpiece. Though they attempt to escape the cycle of extreme poverty and violence, the decisions they make only seem to reaffirm the tragic fate of Los Olvidados.
GIANTS
Jim Dever, Mimi Gan, 70 min, USA
Thu 10/21 715p; Sun 10/24 715p; Wed 10/27 930p
Joel Holland makes a living growing pumpkins. Not any old pumpkins, but giants, big as boats. In fact, Joel may be the greatest giant pumpkin farmer in the world. But he has a problem: rival gourd-grower Jack LaRue. With pride and prize money on the line, it’s a showdown of epic proportions at the championship in Half Moon Bay. Narrated by Tom Skerritt.
MAY I BE FRANK
Conor Gaffney, Gregg Marks, Cary Mosier, 90 min, USA
Sun 10/17 930p; Fri 10/22 715p; Mon 10/25 715p
Imagine you’re Frank: 54, living in San Francisco, struggling with addiction and depression, overweight, and desperately needing a change. Would you let the staff of a raw, vegan, organic café give you a makeover? In a leap of faith, Frank does, and what starts as a weight-loss attempt soon becomes a whole-life adventure.
MISS LANDMINE
Stan Feingold, 71 min, Canada
WORLD PREMIERE
Sat 10/16 5p; Mon 10/18 715p
At first, Morten Traavik’s “Miss Landmine” pageant seems like a picture-perfect opportunity to empower and celebrate its contestants and bring awareness to a troubled Cambodian population. But as the contest gains momentum, opponents in the government, and even the expatriate community, grow more determined to shut him down. Beautiful photoshoots and affecting interviews with the women of the pageant bolster the cause—and the film.
MY BEAUTIFUL DACIA
Stefan Constantinescu, Julio Soto, 74 min, Romania/Spain
An adorable essay on the Romanian odyssey from Communism to Capitalism as seen from the perspective of one of Romania’s most charismatic symbols: the Dacia automobile. Following several of the generations of Romanians whose lives have been shaped to some degree by this humble transportation, the film reveals not just the universal connection of man to car, but the transformation of Romanian society from past to present.
MY KIDNAPPER
Mark Henderson, Kate Horne, 83 min, UK
Sat 10/16 715p; Wed 10/20 930p
In 2003, Mark Henderson was one of eight backpackers taken hostage while hiking in Colombia—an ordinary tour turned into 101 terrifying days of captivity. Eleven months after his release, he received an email from one of his kidnappers, beginning a correspondence that eventually drew Mark back to the one place he thought he’d never see again…to meet his kidnapper face-to-face.
OC87: THE OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE, MAJOR DEPRESSION, BIPOLAR, ASPERGER’S MOVIE
Bud Clayman, Glenn Holsten, Scott Johnston, 80 min, USA
WORLD PREMIERE
Sat 10/16 930p; Wed 10/20 715p
A very original film of vulnerability and empowerment. In the pursuit of filmmaking, Bud Clayman reveals the inner world of “OC87” (what he and his therapist call his uniquely altered state of mind.) “My mind becomes filled with intrusive thoughts that over-analyze every action and idea.” Bud’s OC87 gets in the way of plain ordinary living; is it possible to direct a movie about your own mental illness?
ON COAL RIVER
Francine Cavanaugh, 81 min, USA
With the recent April 2010 Massey Energy Company coal mine disaster in West Virginia, On Coal River could not be more relevant. When residents of the Coal River Valley begin noticing that a host of medical problems are linked to a Massey-owned coal-waste dumping ground that sits above the local elementary school…they join together in a David-and-Goliath struggle to draw national attention to the dangers they face on a daily basis. -Silverdocs
THE PEOPLE VS. GEORGE LUCAS
Alexandre O. Philippe, 92 min, USA/UK
The passion the original Star Wars trilogy inspires is unparalleled, but when it comes to Lucas himself, many a fan’s ardor has cooled into a complicated love-hate relationship. Utilizing interviews from over 600 hours of footage, and peppered with Star Wars and Indiana Jones recreations lovingly immortalized in song, needlepoint, Lego, claymation, puppets, and paper-mâché, this film asks the question: Who truly owns that galaxy far, far away—the man who created it, or the fans who worship it?
span style=”font-family: Arial, sans-serif;”>PLUG & PRAY
Jens Schanze, 90 min, Germany
Fri 10/15 930p; Thu 10/21 930p
A playful and questioning look into the fantastic and sometimes creepy world of Artificial Intelligence. What does A.I. have in store for us? Should we be excited? Or very, very worried? Featuring Joseph Weizenbaum, creator of the speech program “Eliza,” and Hiroshi Ishiguro, who developed a robot copy to stand in for himself while he’s away on business trips.
REQUIEM FOR BOBBY FISCHER
Igor Stevanovic, 64 min, Serbia/Montenegro
Sun 10/24 715p; Mon 10/25 930p
Yugoslavia was where America’s late chess champion felt welcome, and they in turn remember Bobby Fischer. This fantastic collection of Serbian interviews—including a chess grandmaster, a journalist, a doctor, a barber, and a pickpocket—recall the revered and reviled Fischer through funny anecdotes and dramatic stories, from his unstoppable heyday and his erratic behavior to his retirement from chess and bizarre death in Iceland. Includes rarely-seen archival footage of Fischer’s early matches.
With: Zero Currency
ROLL OUT, COWBOY
Elizabeth Lawrence, 75 min, USA
Sat 10/23 930p; Wed 10/27 930p
Chris “Sandman” Sand is a rappin’ cowboy from Dunn Center, North Dakota (population: 120 and shrinking). His tour van is broken, and he spent his savings on a house (just $1000), but Sandman’s not about to put off his nationwide tour. Band break-ups over bug spray, small-town groupies, and an ill-advised flirtation with commercial truck-driving ahead. Oh, and it’s Election ‘08, so expect some raps about Obama.
SEX MAGIC
Jonathan Schell, Eric Liebman, 77 min, USA
Fri 10/22 930p; Tue 10/26 930p
A very inside look at the Sedona Temple’s sexual shamen training center and its sought-after Daka Dez, who’s traveled the world in the name of sexual healing and a polyamorous lifestyle. But recently, his favorite lover Maya has started to claim some power of her own, and when she up and leaves Dez, it’s a catastrophe he wasn’t prepared for. Can sex magic win her back?
Mitch Schultz, 75 min, USA
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Fri 10/15 715p; Tue 10/19 930p
Exploring the enigmatic dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a molecule found in all living organisms, and considered the most potent psychedelic on earth. In 1995, Dr. Rick Strassman completed the first government-sanctioned, psychedelic research on DMT, with results that shed light on humanity’s greatest questions about science, spirituality, and philosophy. Featuring stunning visualizations from Scott Draves (Electric Sheep).
THE TIGHTROPE
Nuria Ibáñez, 84 min, Mexico
Sun 10/17 930p; Tue 10/19 930p
Marce, his wife Adriana, their son Mario, and their daughter Jaqueline, as well as Carmelo, Jaqueline’s boyfriend, are the only members of the Aztlán Circus, which roams the villages of Texcoco, on the outskirts of Mexico City. The Tightrope is the story of a family that insists on keeping the circus going because they are convinced of the transcendence of their art.
THE VANISHING OF THE BEES
Maryam Henein, George Langworthy, 87 min, USA
A piercing investigative look at the economic, political and spiritual implications of the world-wide plight of the honeybee, known here as Colony Collapse Disorder. Defying efforts to combat it, the disease still spreads, leaving little evidence as the bees just…vanish. Aimed at anyone who likes to eat, this documentary examines the importance of these crucial pollinators and reveals the truth about our current agriculture landscape. Narrated by Ellen Page.
Ken Sons, 68 min, USA
In the high-stakes world of the 22 billion-dollar toy industry, fortune’s just around the corner for the creator of the next “Lite Brite,” “Twister,” or “Operation.” The people behind the biggest toys in history tell their stories as designer Tim Walsh takes his new game to the big time: Toy Fair. Will his toy light up the imagination of kids everywhere, or never see the light of day?
with: Babble
TRAMPOLINE
Mark Wojahn 100 min, USA
WORLD PREMIERE
Trampoline is the true story of one explosive year in the very difficult life of a family. Osla is fighting to save her kids from their psychotic stepfather, Nathaniel—a difficult task when they’re still living together. Meanwhile the kids might need saving from themselves, since all four of them give new and terrifying meaning to the phrase “teenaged rebellion.” A shockingly intimate documentary that delivers the real goods.
URGH! A MUSIC WAR
Derek Burbidge, 96 min, UK
Sat Oct 16, 715p
A veritable who’s who of the 80’s Punk/New Wave movement, Urgh! earned its cult status thanks to repeated late-night broadcasts on television programs like Night Flight. This concert film features performances from The Police, Devo, X, Wall of Voodoo, The Go Go’s, The Cramps, The Dead Kennedys, OMD, Oingo Boingo, Gang of Four, XTC, Echo & the Bunnymen and many many more. One of the best concert films of all time!
Followed By: JUST CAN’T GET ENOUGH: 80s NEW WAVE SINGALONG
WORLD WIDE SHORTS
80 min
Los Maravillistas
A Cambodian Snack
Bye Bye Now
Coffee Futures
Dancing With The Prime Minister
