Casting

My annual trip to the LA Film Festival generally coincides with my annual trip to downtown LA. That's about all I can handle in terms of driving across town. The metro line extension can't come soon enough.

This year's sojourn included two great docs: Our Nixon, an all-archival work compiled from hundreds of hours of Super 8 home movies filmed during Richard Nixon's administration by his close aides (and ultimately, Watergate fall guys) H.R. Haldeman, John Erlichman and Dwight Chapin. The FBI seized them 40 years ago and they sat forgotten for decades. I'm a Watergate/'70s-era junkie and this film provides a fascinating, intimate record of a complex presidency with a real cast of characters.

The second doc, Casting By, profiles legendary casting pioneer Marion Dougherty and the struggles of the unsung heroes of the entertainment industry to gain well-deserved recognition. Having some small experience in this area, I really enjoyed learning about Dougherty's work and the tremendous, game-changing influence that she had on filmmaking, the casting process and the careers of actors including Jon Voight, Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford and so many more. HBO will be airing it in August as part of its summer doc series, so catch it if you can.

Here's to a hot summer of cool docs!

London

I've been a wee bit lazy on the blog front.

What better reason to come out of my blog coma than to celebrate my favorite city, London, which is having a banner year (and a half)! Royal Wedding, Queen's Jubilee, Olympics, and now a new Julian Temple documentary, London - The Modern Babylon. Warms my Anglophile soul.

This new film, screening at the Toronto Film Festival this week (and on my birthday!), covers the past century of history in the director's hometown. Powered by the era's iconic music, the doc surveys the people and culture which changed London forever.

Having lived in this majestic city years ago, but visiting rarely now, I can't wait to check it out.

Cheers!

50

Current TV has a great 5-part primer on documentaries starting tonight and running Tuesday nights throughout August, so fire up your popcorn popper and check it out (repeats air throughout the week)!

Morgan Spurlock hosts 50 Documentaries To See Before You Die, a countdown of the most influential docs of the past 25 years.

The network is also running some of the most iconic documentary films ever this month - including Hoop Dreams, so it's a veritable summer docapalooza!

Enjoy!

Summertime

I'm getting ready for the BBQ and summer film season (Harry Potter!), and that means it is time to assemble my list of top docs I want to check out in-between trips to the beach. Some great films coming out of the festival circuit are hitting screens soon:

Project Nim: The story of the chimpanzee who was raised by a human family in the 1970s as the focus of a landmark study on teaching animals to communicate via sign language. From director James Marsh (Man on Wire).

Bobby Fischer Against the World: The bizarre life of legendary chess genius Bobby Fischer, from director Liz Garbus (Shouting Fire: Stories From the Edge of Free Speech).

Life in a Day: You Tube asked its users around the world to
film a day in their lives on July 24, 2010. 80,000 hours of footage and 1 year later, here is the edited film from director Kevin McDonald (Touching the Void, Last King of Scotland).

Page One: Inside the New York Times: Director Andrew Rossi (Le Cirque: A Table in Heaven) gets an all-access pass to the Gray Lady's newsroom during a transformational time in the media industry.

Buck: A profile of the real Horse Whisperer, Buck Brannaman, from director Cindy Meehl.

So much sunshine and so many docs!

Triangle

During the crazy rainstorm here in LA yesterday, I caught up on CBS Sunday Morning, one of my favorite weekend morning treats. The show featured a profile commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Waist Company fire, one of New York City's grimmest days. In a month where we've seen terrible tragedy in Japan and challenges to labor unions here in the U.S., this was a compelling reminder of a time when tragedy spurred labor reform.

In 2009, HBO aired a great documentary Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags, detailing the rise and decline of New York's garment industry. The film covered the Triangle fire, so it was no surprise that its filmmakers, Marc Levin and Daphne Pinkerson, expanded on the subject with a full documentary premiering tonight on HBO. Triangle: Remembering the Fire, details that horrific day when 146 mostly female garment workers perished, many of whom lept to their deaths from the top floors in front of horrified pedestrians. The event revealed terribly unsafe working conditions - including locked doors which could have saved many lives - and led to some of the first government legislation to protect workers, including safety and fire regulations, child labor laws and worker's compensation. The film pays tribute to all of the deceased workers in the hopes that we don't forget the price they paid.

It's another reminder of the protections people now have because of the suffering and heroics of those who came before us. Another reminder of how documentaries continue to tell their stories, so we don't forget them.

Sunday

Back at the blog in the (not so) new year!

This month happens to be bookended with my two favorite annual Sunday events - the pro football championship game and the Oscars®.

Although I'm not a Green Bay fan per se, I did enjoy their championship win mainly due to a recent viewing of the engrossing Lombardi documentary on HBO.

Vince Lombardi is a mythic and transcendent figure in sports history, a seminary school dropout who became the pope of Green Bay and the patron saint of football. Once an assistant coach of my beloved New York Giants, he gained iconic status and defined athletic excellence as the coach of the Packers in the late 1950s through late 1960s - leading them to multiple consecutive championships. He was a complex and driven man who was ultimately uncomfortable with the famous quote attributed to him, "Winning isn't everything but it's the only thing". It is quite touching and fitting that the championship trophy named for Lombardi is once again at home in Green Bay.

I confess to being slightly behind on my Oscar® documentary nominee viewings this year - I am catching a screening of Inside Job later this week, but have enjoyed Restrepo, Waste Land, Gasland and Exit Through the Gift Shop. What a great lineup and tough choice for voters.

Can't wait to settle in for another fab Sunday!

Waste Land

Role credits on another great year for documentary film.

One of my favorite films this year, Lucy Walker's Waste Land, has been collecting awards throughout 2010, including the International Documentary Association's Feature Film Award and the World Cinema Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival. For good reason.

Brazilian artist Vik Muniz is renowned for creating photographic art from found objects. For his latest project on garbage, he decides to journey from New York to his native Brazil - the site of the world's largest landfill, Jardim Gramacho. He meets a group of professional recyclable material pickers trying to make a living amid poverty and despair, and finds his inspiration.

Muniz collaborates with his photographic subjects and in the process, uplifts them. They each help build their art pieces with the materials they collect each day, while sharing their individual, often heart-breaking life stories. It is an intimate and moving film experience to behold.

Filmed over the course of three years, Waste Land offers a wondrous lesson in the power of art and a helping hand to transform the human spirit - fantastic reminders as we enter a brand new year of life and documentaries.

Make it a great one!

International

I've been expanding my doc horizons over the past several months, catching a number of noteworthy international (sub-titled) films at various festivals and screenings. It beats airline travel these days.

Kings of Pastry screened over the summer at the LA Film Festival. For foodies and chefs, it is a gastronomic feast - documenting the rigorous Meilleurs Ouvriers de France (M.O.F.) competition among pastry chefs to attain the Best Craftsman in France designation. It is also an edge-of-your-seat nail-biter, I kid you not. The woman next to me jumped out of her seat more than a few times. The film explores the thrill of victory and agony of defeat - all wrapped up in phyllo dough and topped with creme anglaise. Pounds gained just by viewing: 10.

I checked out a recent German film festival screening of Autumn Gold a few weeks ago. What an inspirational and moving film. It follows five athletes competing at the World Masters Athletics Championships in Finland - which would seem rudimentary, except for the fact that all of these world-class athletes are between the ages of 80-100+!! Check out the trailer at the link above to put a smile on your face all day.

At Docu Weeks LA a few months ago, I caught an engrossing and intimate documentary about coming of age in the 1980s Soviet Union. My Perestroika follows several ordinary Russians as they reflect on growing up during an age of political and societal upheaval, and the state of post-Soviet Russia. For everyone who also grew up in the Reagan era when these changes were happening, it is fascinating to get some deep insight into the last generation brought up behind the Iron Curtain.

I'm also planning to check out Passione at an upcoming Italian Festival in town. Actor John Turturro explores the exciting music scene of Naples in this new film. The doc recently had its North American premiere at the Toronto Film Festival - on my list of festivals to check out when I feel like travelling again.

But with all of these wonderful docs, do I really need to? :)

Politics

Yesterday, I decided to tackle the stack of political propaganda that makes its way to my mailbox every election. I am an active voter (you are too, RIGHT?) and try to set aside quality time to review the current issues and candidates on the ballot. In California, we generally have a good share of hot topic issues to ponder each election and this year seems to be no different.

I came across a DVD mailer for the documentary film, Gerrymandering, about the same time that I glanced at a Los Angeles Times article on the film - so I figured it must be one of the aforementioned hot topics this time around. Plus, I was impressed at the savvy marketing job - sending it directly to voters while concurrently screening it in selected theaters.

If you don't remember from your school civics or poly-sci classes, gerrymandering is the act of redrawing electoral districts for political gain. It is referred to in the film as the "blood sport of politics", which is saying a lot. The film documents the problems inherent in letting politicians draw their own districts - which seem fairly obvious, but the film highlights a number of crazy, recent examples of this practice in action across the U.S. Like a NY state assembly election wherein an incumbent gerrymandered his opponent's street right out of the district and thus, the election. Say what? The issue bubbles up after each census' Congressional reapportionment, so here we are.

The film is quite one-sided, but not partisan, and I am glad to have this enlightening documentary reminder of how to help keep our legislative houses in order.

Baseball

For a lifelong NY Yankees fan, George Steinbrenner's death this summer was the end of an era. Love him or hate him, the Boss changed the game of baseball and reinvigorated the most storied team in sports history (and certainly elicited more than a few Bronx cheers from baseball fans over the years!). His legacy will continue to impact the sport for years to come.

ESPN's 30 for 30 series continues this fall, and tonight's film directed by the famed documentarian Barbara Kopple explores The House of Steinbrenner. I've already set my DVR in anticipation of reliving the days of George at the helm of my beloved Bronx Bombers.

In other baseball news, I had the fantastic privilege to meet one of my documentary heroes, Ken Burns, last month at a Dodgers game reception honoring him and his upcoming PBS film with Lynn Novick, The Tenth Inning, which airs 9/28-9/29. What a thrill and I am looking forward to viewing the new chapter to his treasured PBS Baseball series of 1994.

I'm going to go settle in now to enjoy the early days of fall baseball. America's pastime continues to delight, and what better way to relive all of the thrills than through documentaries!

Summer

Eek, it's been a while. I've been blazing through the wintery-like Southern California summer, but of course have still found time to check out a bunch of new captivating docs.

HBO Documentaries has once again been showcasing a number of fine films in their esteemed, now annual Summer Series. I recently attended a screening for the film 12th and Delaware, an intense look at one Florida intersection where an abortion clinic and pro-life center sit within steps of each other. The incendiary abortion rights debate finds its ground zero here, in a daily battle for women at a crossroads (literally). That film stayed with me for a while.

I also have queued up on my dvr Smash His Camera, the story of pioneer paparazzo Ron Galella, whom you may remember as Jackie O's New York City street nemesis during the '70s and '80s. I can't wait to watch that one, nor Lucky - a film on the aftermath of winning the lottery.

My Sundance favorite, Gasland, also made the lineup - I'm glad their story of the consequences of natural gas fracking has reached a wider audience, to hopefully raise the level of public awareness and debate.

There are a number of other strong films - check them out Monday evenings on HBO. By the end of summer you will hopefully not only have a glowing tan, but be well versed on a plethora of fascinating stories from around the globe!

Elephants

I ventured downtown a few weekends ago to LA Live, the new venue for the Los Angeles Film Festival. While not a fan of the new location (long live Westwood!), I did enjoy a number of fine documentaries on topics including rogue economists, pastry chefs and elephants.

One Lucky Elephant, directed by Lisa Leeman, tells the heartwarming and bittersweet tale of Flora, an orphaned African elephant rescued from the wild and then raised by circus owner David Balding. When Flora starts to become restless in her circus life, Balding goes on a nearly ten-year quest to find the perfect home for her and struggles with the long-term effects of raising a wild elephant in captivity. It's a love story that ultimately weighs the complex issues of human emotions against the humane interests of our animals. And it made me cry. Much like the recent Mine documentary that just won the PBS Independent Lens 2010 Audience Award.

I have also been making my way through another true elephant tale, Modoc, a book by Hollywood animal trainer Ralph Helfer. The story of a boy and his elephant, born on the same day and raised together to share a lifetime of high adventures, is a truly captivating read.

You can watch the "elecam" of some of the elephants at Flora's current sanctuary here to get your video fix of majestic pachyderms in action.

Midnight Express

Do you remember that great line in the movie Airplane, where Peter Graves as Captain Oveur asks his young passenger, "Joey, have you ever been in a Turkish prison?" So funny, right?

Yeah, well not if you're Billy Hayes. He's the subject of Nat Geo's new documentary "The Real Midnight Express", which is premiering next week as part of its new season of Locked Up Abroad. I screened the film last night at the Paley Center - one of my favorite venues in LA (and NY) to soak up media and pop culture.

You may remember Midnight Express, the Oscar®-winning movie from the late '70s starring Brad Davis and adapted by Oliver Stone from Hayes' book of the same name. The film dramatizes the story of Hayes' hashish drug arrest, imprisonment and daring escape from a brutual Turkish prison. It has been criticized over the years for its alteration of some events for dramatic effect and for its portrayal of the Turks, but remains a solid pick among prison films. Nat Geo is presenting the story as a documentary, anchored by an interview narration with Hayes and a dramatic re-enactment of his full story, which for the first time Hayes is able to share. He is past the point of being a wanted man in Turkey - as he noted in a Q&A last night, he was actually invited back there for an event not so long ago - but his story still fascinates. He was accompanied by attorney Dick Atkins, who worked on Hayes' case and has helped thousands of Americans since get out of legal trouble abroad (and is now going to be in my rolodex next time I venture outside of the U.S.!). Atkins' tip: buy low-cost travel insurance, which helps provide assistance with many international emergencies.

Or I say, just stay home and watch documentaries instead!

Brothers

Better late than never, I always say.

I finally screened the 2001 HBO dramatic miniseries Band of Brothers this week. After being engrossed in The Pacific this year, I wanted to see its epic and much-heralded predecessor. I had missed the original run - living in NY with the events of 9/11 eerily transpiring a few days after its launch.

My friend loaned me the impressive box set, and it only took a week's worth of TV viewing time as the summer doldrum of post-season finales set in. Perfect time to catch up on a real masterpiece of the medium. Somehow, I've become a war buff of sorts - but this series really set a high-water mark.

If you haven't seen it, the 10-part series dramatizes the real men and events of E "Easy" Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment assigned to the 101st Airborne Division - an elite and innovative U.S. Army paratrooper squad assembled at the height of WWII. Among other achievements, these incredible young men parachuted behind enemy lines in the maelstrom of D-Day, were a frontline force outnumbered and without supplies during the wintertime Battle of the Bulge, and ultimately were the first to ascend upon Hitler's infamous Eagle's Nest mountain retreat. Their efforts and the Band of Brothers series that pays tribute to them, remain unprecedented triumphs. Michael Kamen's score alone still gives me chills.

I also checked out the many extra features on the DVD set, including a magnetic documentary, We Stand Alone Together: The Men of Easy Company. The film includes interviews with the surviving men portrayed in the miniseries, interspersed with actual footage of the battles re-enacted during it. This was a terrific aid in understanding all of the episodes, and was honestly quite emotional. I can't wait to also finally read Stephen E. Ambrose's book on which the series is based.

I'm glad I made the time for Band of Brothers. It's so easy to forget each day the sacrifices of those who came before us and the true bravery of soldiers who were just kids - pulled from their quiet lives and thrust into hell. Kids who saved the world, but didn't consider themselves heroes. Just a band of brothers.

Joan

Over the weekend, I caught up with a documentary that I had missed at Sundance and which has been getting great buzz ever since - Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work. An added bonus: Rivers appeared live for a brief but engaging Q&A after the show.

Known best in recent years for her multiple plastic surgeries, Joan Rivers is an icon in comedy circles - a pioneer that blazed a trail for brash female comics like Kathy Griffin and Sarah Silverman. Once named the permanent guest host for "The Tonight Show", then permanently shunned by Johnny Carson for defecting to Fox, Joan has been through many ups and downs in a career that has spanned over 50 years.

The film opens on her makeup-less face and declares at the outset that it covers "A year in the life of a semi-legend". Filmmakers Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg were originally set to follow Rivers in her 76th year as she develops a new play based on her life, and tries to keep her career going. The play dead-ends but the glimpse inside her world absolutely fascinates. Her biggest fear is an empty calendar, so she self-admittingly proclaims to never turn down anything and keeps working non-stop at nearly 80 years old. The cinema verite film includes hilarious segments of Joan's comedy act and is intertwined with cool footage from her early career.

I left the theatre with a new-found admiration for Rivers, whom I had mainly associated with awkward red carpet interviews, QVC, and her penchant for the going under the knife. The film captures the brutality of show business - especially for performers as they age - but Joan has outlasted many who dismissed her talent and tenacity.

Check out the film and watch Joan keep on working it.

Rock and Roll

I FINALLY visited the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland this week, on my first trip to the great state of Ohio. My focus was on the popular exhibit currently running, "From Asbury Park to the Promised Land: The Life and Music of Bruce Springsteen". As a lifelong fan, it didn't disappoint and it also reminded me that I really have to finish watching Wings for Wheels: The Making of Born to Run documentary off of Springsteen's Born to Run 30th Anniversary package.

I raced through the rest of the museum, which was also really cool and rustled up some great memories of all the fantastic music and artists I've encountered over the course of my life and career. Bliss.

Last night, coming off of my Rock Hall triumph and recovered from my jet lag, I was all settled in to watch When You're Strange: A Film About The Doors, the new and intimate documentary on another favorite band. "Was" being the operative word, as I somehow managed to delete the film off of my DVR in an attempt to play it. Ugh!! Of course, it's no longer playing down the street at my local theatre, so I am desperately waiting to receive the golden email from PBS American Masters letting me know if and when it will be airing locally again (soon, please please).

Until then, I will be firing up my iTunes to relive the glory days of rock and roll.

NBA

Laker fever is taking over LA once again, as the NBA Finals this year feature one of the fiercest basketball rivalries in history - the Los Angeles Lakers v. the Boston Celtics. Bring it!

A few months ago, I watched a cool documentary on HBO, Magic and Bird: A Courtship of Rivals. It captures the decades of intense rivalry between NBA legends Ervin "Magic" Johnson and Larry Bird. The film chronicles their renowned competition starting from their college days facing each other in the 1979 NCAA championship game between Michigan State and Indiana State, respectively. It carries them through their NBA careers, playing for (you guessed it), the Lakers and the Celtics, respectively, when both teams dominated and transformed the sport in the 1980s. A story of opposites in many ways, it is also a story of the unlikely friendship that can develop between people with a shared experience. The film is a great travel down the court for any basketball fan and aired in conjunction with Bird and Johnson's joint (with Jackie MacMullan) book release, When the Game Was Ours.

Although living in LA for as long as I have means I turn up to cheer on the Lakers at pivotal moments, I confess that my heart still belongs to the east coast of my youth, and the sometimes hapless New York Knicks. That is why I was so excited to also recently screen Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. The New York Knicks on ESPN's 30 for 30 documentary series. In another fantastic NBA rivalry, we jump to the mid-1990s as Miller's Indiana Pacers battle the Knicks - an epic conflict between America's Heartland and The Big City. What a fun ride remembering Miller and #1 Knicks fan Spike Lee trash-talk and psych each other out during their pivotal and theatrical matchups. Check it out during an upcoming repeat.

Basketball is nothing if not entertaining, and once again, documentaries help us relive all the fun on and off the court.

Wooden

It's tough to think of a life these days more worthy of celebration than Coach John Wooden. The iconic coach, teacher and author passed away last Friday night and I think at least everyone in the Los Angeles area breathed a collective, heavy-hearted sigh. At 99 years old and with recent health challenges, his passing was not exactly surprising but a profound loss for the sports world and beyond nonetheless.

I am glad to report that HBO2 will be re-airing The UCLA Dynasty documentary in tribute to him this Friday, June 11th at 7:30pm ET/PT. It captures the amazing run of UCLA's 10 NCAA men's basketball championships under Coach Wooden's leadership.

I had the honor of meeting him once, briefly, at a book signing at the Westwood Borders - down the street from the campus where he made history all those years ago. He was promoting his book, Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning Organization, which he graciously signed, along with my all-time favorite, Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections on and Off the Court. I told him how I had often given copies of that book to others over the years because it meant so much to me. I will never forget that moment and his lasting inspirational messages that have served so many athletes and everyday folk in finding success and a life well-lived.

One of my favorite John Wooden quotes: "Success comes from knowing that you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming."

Thanks Coach.

World Cup

I am watching Invictus tonight, finally catching it on PPV. This inspiring movie dramatizes Nelson Mandela's efforts to build post-apartheid unity through South Africa's national rugby team performance in the 1995 Rugby World Cup. It has gotten me really excited about the upcoming FIFA World Cup soccer tournament in South Africa this month.

I confess that I have not followed soccer closely over the years - nor rugby for that matter - although I did enjoy watching it re-enacted in the movie tonight. I didn't jump on the soccer train even through our successful U.S. Olympics team performances, but did catch some World Cup matches last time around and was reminded of its huge worldwide appeal. Then, a few years ago I attended a screening of the wonderful documentary, Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos. I loved the story of this soccer team's brief heyday in the frenetic New York of 1975, when Pele came to America and galvanized the country. His departure just two years later precipitated the sport's decline in the U.S. for years. Luckily, we have been experiencing a national renewed interest in soccer over the last 15 years and hopefully will see success in this year's World Cup.

I have also been supporting a great new non-profit, Global Girl Media, which is launching their Kick It Up! pilot program around the World Cup this month. The program will train underserved young women in Soweto and Los Angeles as the next generation of citizen journalists. These women will be reporting on both the World Cup events and issues in their lives and communities - using their voices to help change the world. Check out this fantastic organization and lend your support to empower young women around the globe, as you catch all the action on the soccer field.

Ole Ole!

Fest Pt. 3 (International)

I've been trying to add more international doc films and festivals into my screening repertoire; luckily the Los Angeles area is chock full of opportunities to see fantastic documentaries from around the globe.

Recently, I attended the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, where I screened Beijing Taxi, a documentary by Miao Wang. The film is a fascinating study of a city on the move, examined eloquently, intimately and metaphorically through the changing lives of three area taxi drivers. As Beijing prepared to host the 2008 Summer Olympics, it experienced not only a rapid rise in development and activity, but a society that was morphing from ancient to modern, an economy shifting from communist to capitalist, and a population that was struggling to adapt to it all against the global spotlight of the Olympic games. After seeing the Beijing Olympics successfully come to life (remember the pageantry of their opening and closing ceremonies), it was interesting to get a look at how transformational such an event can be.

I unfortunately missed Last Train Home at this festival and a few others recently, but also want to see this acclaimed doc on Chinese migrant workers' annual pilgrimages home for the Chinese New Year.

Finally, I am hoping to make my first trip to the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival next month for a dynamic line-up of films from this country. Like all of the other international doc festivals, I am sure it will make me even more eager to soak up the culture of other lands.

I've got the whole world in my (doc) hands.