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Update: Hamdan Ballal, co-director of the Oscar-winning Israel-Palestine documentary “No Other Land,” has been freed, according to the latest post from co-director Yuval Abraham.

“After being handcuffed all night and beaten in a military base, Hamdan Ballal is now free and is about to go home to his family,” Abraham posted on X on Tuesday.

Previously: A petition to free Hamdan Ballal, co-director of the Oscar-winning Israel-Palestine documentary “No Other Land,” has gathered more than 3,700 signatures on Change.org.

Ballal is reportedly missing after being attacked, according to a series of posts on X from co-director Yuval Abraham.

“We, members of the global film community urgently appeal for the immediate release and safety of filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, co-director of ‘No Other Land,’ the recipient of this year’s Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

Reports that Mr. Ballal was forcibly removed by the Israeli army from an ambulance following a brutal attack by settlers,...

The blowback continues over the Miami Beach mayor’s threat to close a movie theater over its screening of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land. More than 600 people including several Oscar winners have signed an open letter to the city decrying the potential shutdown of indie theater O Cinema as “an attack on freedom of expression, the right of artists to tell their stories, and a violation of the First Amendment.”

See the letter and its signatories — including Academy Award winners Alex Gibney, Laura Poitras, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Ezra Edelman, Dan Cogan, Barbara Kopple and Barry Jenkins — below.

Last week, Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner issued a draft resolution calling for termination of a lease agreement with the 300-seat O Cinema, located at Old City Hall, a property owned by the city. The resolution, which will be debated at a city commission meeting Wednesday, also would eliminate about...

Roger Durling can’t conceal his excitement for the 40th edition of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

The Sbiff director sees the need for a celebration of art as Los Angeles, 90 minutes or so to the south of Santa Barbara, begins to recover from devastating wildfires that destroyed large areas of the county.

“It gives you a sense of togetherness, a sense of community, and that’s what we need right now. I have always found that in the most difficult times in my life, film festivals and films have always been a beacon,” Durling says.

Sbiff and Direct Relief are partnering in a response to the wildfires as well, accepting donations for relief and putting up a $100,000 matching grant. “We’re going to be printing limited edition 40th anniversary T-shirts, and then all the funds from the merchandise will go towards the Direct Relief fund,” he says.

This...

The 40th Santa Barbara International Film Festival has announced its entire program which includes 32 World Premieres and 74 U.S. Premieres from 60 countries. The fest will open on February 4, 2025 with the US premiere of Jane Austin Wrecked My Life and will close on February 15 with the US premiere of A Missing Part. Considering the ongoing tragedy of the Los Angeles wildfires this year’s festival is dedicated to L.A. to raise funds in partnership with Direct Relief.

“As the tragic events in our sister city of Los Angeles were unfolding, we debated about moving forward with Sbiff,” said Roger Durling, Executive Director of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. “Film has always been a conduit for comfort and renewal, and film festivals play a vital role in fostering a sense of connection. Festivals build community, and create an outlet for the process of feelings. In light of this, it became...

Exclusive: Film Independent has set 26 filmmakers from 15 nations to participate in the 2023 edition of their Global Media Makers LA Residency, which is being held in person this month.

A mentoring initiative and cultural exchange program that connects American filmmakers and industry pros with filmmakers spread across the globe, Gmm sees Fellows participate in filmmaking tracks focused on screenwriting, directing, creative development and documentary filmmaking, where they develop their current projects alongside a team of U.S. mentors.

The program, presented by Film Independent and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, further bolsters up-and-comers by providing access to master classes, industry sessions and field trips, as well as cultural engagement and networking opportunities.

This edition of Gmm is the eighth put on since 2016, and as always, the selection process was highly competitive, attracting a diverse pool of media makers, with the countries of Angola, Libya,...

The prestigious Visions du Réel film festival in Nyon, Switzerland wraps up this weekend, after hosting the world premiere of dozens of documentaries.

One of those world premieres, the feature documentary Amany, Behind the Lines, centers on Amany Al-Ali, considered to be the first female cartoonist in Idlib, Syria. Her city became a hotbed of protest against the regime of Bashar al-Assad beginning in 2011 in the midst of the Arab Spring and, despite enormous risk, Al-Ali has used her cartooning skill to critique the chaotic developments in Idlib for a dozen years now.

Alisar Hasan and Alaa Amer directed the 73-minute long feature documentary.

Cartoonist Amany Al-Ali

Amany Al-Ali “draws the life of her town, a bastion of jihadist groups that are attempting to overthrow President Assad since 2011,” the Visions du Réel program notes. “Armed with her pen, she is struggling against Islamist authority and traditional patriarchy. But for how...

Ahead of its world premiere at Hot Docs, London-based MetFilm Sales has acquired worldwide rights (excluding the U.S.) for feature documentary “Delikado,” directed by Karl Malakunas.

The film is an environmental thriller set in Palawan, one of Asia’s hottest new tourist destinations. Within this idyllic setting, forests and wildlife are being pillaged by criminal gangs, often supported by politicians and their cronies.

Human life is cheap and mortal danger constant and pulpable. In such an environment, a tiny network of environmental crusaders, led by the charismatic Bobby, Tata and Mayor Nieves, risk their lives and the safety of their families to prevent the thieving and destruction of their homeland.

The film is the first feature film for filmmaker and journalist Karl Malakunas, who has been covering environmental issues, conflict, natural disasters and political upheavals for two decades. After living in the Philippines for eight years while working as Afp’s Manila bureau chief,...

Exclusive: Concordia Studio has acquired rights to the autobiography of Weight Watchers co-founder Jean Nidetch and is partnering with Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat and Blackpink: Light Up the Sky director Caroline Suh, John Lewis: Good Trouble producer Laura Michalchyshyn and Whitney producer Lisa Erspamer to turn her story into a feature documentary.

Davis Guggenheim, Jonathan Silberberg and Nicole Stott will executive produce Having Your Cake: The Jean Nidetch Story for Concordia, which also is developing a scripted TV project based on the story of Nidetch, who began the now ubiquitous company in the early 1960s hosting friends in her Queens, NY, home once a week to share the best ways to lose weight.

The story centers on how one woman’s quest for self-improvement and self-invention combined with a pre-feminist focus on self-help and American entrepreneurial spirit led to a global company that now hosts more than 40,000 meetings each week,...

Re>Connext is the annual film and TV showcase run by Flanders Image.

The first footage from Netflix drama Soil, directed by Bad Boys For Life duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, is to be presented at Re>Connext, the annual film and TV showcase run by Flanders Image.

It is one of 26 upcoming television projects selected for the event, which serves as an export platform for film and TV drama made in Flanders and will run online from October 5-31. The physical showcase has been cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Scroll down for full list of projects

Soil,...

As Concordia Studio continues to grow, they have hired on Yasmin Hormozi and Patrick Callan as Vice Presidents of narrative film and television.

The company was founded by Davis Guggenheim and Jonathan King alongside Laurene Powell Jobs and Emerson Collective. It launched at Sundance with the premiere of four films: Boy State (directed by Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine), Time (directed by Garrett Bradley), A Thousand Cuts (directed by Ramona S. Diaz) and Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets (directed by Bill Ross and Turner Ross). Concordia also produced and financed Laura Nix’s Oscar-nominated Walk Run Cha-Cha.

More from DeadlineDavis Guggenheim And Jonathan King Launch Concordia Studio With Laurene Powell JobsBrian Dennehy Photo Gallery: A Career In PicturesAllen Daviau, 'E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial', 'Empire Of The Sun' Cinematographer Dies Of Coronavirus At 77

“Yasmin and Patrick each bring unique experiences and perspectives to Concordia, but they are alike in...

Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker Laura Nix was supposed to board a flight to Copenhagen today, en route to the Cph:dox festival to pitch her latest project. But the Covid-19 pandemic abruptly forced that event to shift online only, one of countless ways the coronavirus emergency is impacting the documentary space.

Nix tells Deadline, “I was working on that pitch, honestly, preparing to give it and then that all went upside down.”

More from DeadlineKew Media: How The Production Group Behind 'The Inventor' & 'Dance Moms' Collapsed After One Acquisition Too ManyAmblin Television & Alex Gibney To Adapt The Washington Post's 'Afghanistan Papers' Into Limited Documentary Series & Drama"There Was Whooping And Shouting": 'Walk Run Cha-Cha' Director Laura Nix On Reaction To Earning Oscar Nomination

Doc makers, most of whom are based in California or New York—two states now under lockdown—are scrambling to keep projects, and careers, going under dramatically altered circumstances.

New projects also selected from Oscar nominees and a Venice-winning duo.

Cph:dox has unveiled the 34 projects set to be presented at Cph:forum, its financing and co-production event from March 24-26.

Scroll down for full list of titles and descriptions

The selection includes new projects from Oscar-nominated Laura Nix (Walk Run Cha-Cha) and Talal Derki (Of Fathers And Sons), Berlinale winner Adina Pintilie (Touch Me Not), Sundance winners Jialing Zhang (Born In China) and Ra’anan Alexandrowicz (The Law in These Parts) and Venice winning team Elwira Niewiera and Piotr Rosolowski (The Prince and the Dybbuk).

Titles include Her, a documentary about...

Awards season officially comes to a close on Oscar Sunday.

The 92nd Academy Awards will be held at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre on Feb. 9 and air live on ABC at 5 p.m. Pt/8 p.m. Et. Red carpet coverage will begin at 3:30 p.m. Pt/6:30 p.m. Et. Viewers will be able to live-stream the awards show on abc.com or on the ABC app via DirecTV Now, Hulu, PlayStation Vue and YouTube TV.

The ceremony, which is going hostless again, will include appearances from this year’s nominees, as well as presenters Salma Hayek, Brie Larson, James Corden, Regina King, Lin-Manuel Miranda and more. Additionally, the show will feature performances from Cynthia Erivo, Idina Menzel, Elton John, Chrissy Metz, Randy Newman and five-time Grammy winner Billie Eilish.

A special tribute for Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna is scheduled to take place during the ceremony. The pair,...

If you look at our official racetrack odds, you’d see that the short film, “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl),” is thought to be far out front for this year’s prize for Best Documentary Short. The odds that are displayed there are taken from the forecasts made by our Expert film journalists, Gold Derby Editors, Top 24 Users and the thousands of regular Gold Derby readers making their predictions at home.

But could another one of this year’s nominees sneak in and pull off an upset? Are there any other shorts that is more of a traditional fit for the Oscars? Below, let’s take a closer look at all five of this year’s nominated short documentaries, in order by their current Gold Derby odds.

See Oscars Upsets: 24 Potential Surprise Winners To Watch For

“Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You...

“Pictures are for entertainment — messages should be delivered by Western Union.” The line has been variously attributed to half a dozen old-school Hollywood producers, from Samuel Goldwyn to Frank Capra, but no matter who said it, the sentiment captures how classic studio types endeavored to separate political statements from popular cinema. In recent years, however, pundits have been pressuring the Academy to do just the opposite — to become more activist through its awards — and rather than actually changing, the organization seems to have realized that the documentary shorts category is the easiest way to take a stand, typically awarding important messages over exceptional moviemaking. Sometimes the two coincide. , although it’s unlikely that anyone would mistake them for entertainment.

Certainly, the folks at Netflix don’t have any such illusions about John Haptas and Kristine Samuelson’s wrenching kids-in-peril short “Life Overtakes Me,” whereas the film’s “Oscar-worthiness” was almost...

For female filmmakers in the industry, this year’s round of Oscar nominations – in which acclaimed female-helmed films such as “Hustlers” and “The Farewell” were shut out in place of male-directed Best Picture nominees predominantly centred on stories of white men – told a frustratingly familiar story. But in the Academy’s non-fiction branch, a different narrative was being written.

Not only did the Best Documentary Feature category achieve directorial gender parity, with four female and four male nominees, but female filmmakers led men overall, with 13 nominees to 12 across both feature and doc short categories.

The branch celebrated newcomers such as Waad al-Kateab (“For Sama”), Tamara Kotevska (“Honeyland”) and Smriti Mundhra (“St. Louis Superman”); mid-career filmmakers such as Sigrid Dyekjær (“The Cave”) and Joanna Natasegara (“The Edge of Democracy”); and established documentarians such as Julia Reichert (“American Factory”).

The latter duo both achieved remarkable feats that garnered little mainstream press coverage:...

As audiences embrace documentaries for their gripping and bingeable truths, another trend has developed in parallel: Oscar-winning documentary directors who launch studios devoted to producing multiple high-quality nonfiction works. There’s Alex Gibney’s Jigsaw Prods., Morgan Neville’s Tremolo Prods., and now there’s Concordia Studio, launched by Davis Guggenheim (“Waiting For ‘Superman'”) with Jonathan King (and backing from Laurene Powell Jobs’ social impact-focused Emerson Collective).

However, filmmakers who have worked with Concordia say the company is unique: Its principals have such faith in directors’ vision, skill, and instincts that they will back riskier documentaries that can’t promise what the movie will be when they’re done.

“We said, ‘Look, we’ve got these great kids but we don’t know what’s going to happen in this one-week experience,’” said Jesse Moss (“The Overnighters”) who co-directed “Boys State” with Amanda McBaine. Their documentary focused on three...

As has been the case for the last few years, the 2020 Oscar nominees in the Best Documentary Short category are a remarkable bunch, and TheWrap gathered the filmmakers behind them to speak on Tuesday about the work that went into exploring such tough subjects.

Possibly the most sensitive topic touched on in this year’s field was that of Resignation Syndrome, a fairly new psychological case that has seen hundreds of traumatized refugee children become so mentally unwell that they fall into a comatose state for months or even years. In “Life Overtakes Me,” director-producers Kristine Samuelson and John Haptas managed to earn the trust of three refugee families with children in such a state and explored how they handle such a difficult situation while fighting to retain their asylum status in Sweden.

Also Read: How 'Joker' Composer Hildur Guðnadóttir Used 'Macho Chords' to Get Inside the Character's Head

Samuelson...

Non-fiction storytelling is well-represented in this year’s Oscar race. Five movies are vying for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar, but many of the contenders for Best Documentary (Short Subject) are almost feature-length experiences as well. The Academy’s rules allow shorts to run up to 40 minutes; two of this year’s nominees run exactly that length, while the others are close to half an hour. By contrast, the longest animated short nominee is just under 15 minutes, while the longest live action short is 25 minutes. That’s understandable: The documentary form often demands more time to establish context, and this year’s nominees illustrate that challenge.

As usual for the category, all of the contenders deal with timely (and often troubling) subject matter through personal dramas from around the world. It’s a particularly strong collection of non-fiction filmmaking as well. Each nominee works around the traditional talking-head approach with vivid,...

The Oscar-nominated documentary shorts are not now, nor have they ever been, a laughing matter. But the joke that gets told most often, which has a nugget of truth in it, is that they frequently represent the grimmest category of any given year at the Academy Awards.

Recent nominees have vividly, heartbreakingly illustrated end-of-life care, the opioid crisis, the plight of refugees, systemic racism in the criminal justice system, and the Holocaust. These are not, generally speaking, films that you can idly eat popcorn to.

This year’s nominees, which occupy their own theatrical program this week via ShortsTV, also tackle heavy subjects and will also make any halfway-present audience member ponder important issues of the day. And yet, somehow, they’re a little less brain-meltingly sad than usual.

Also Read: Oscar Short Nominees Discuss Creating Fiction From Bits of Reality

Which says a little more about the nominations from...

These five Oscar-nominated documentary short films have made it to the summit of the nonfiction craft. Topics are international in scope: immigration, refugees, the personal cost of political activism, government malfeasance and girls in war-torn

Kabul skateboarding for kicks.

In the Absence

More than 300 people died when the Mv Sewol ferry sank off the coast of South Korea in 2014; most tragically, 250 were high school students who remained in their cabins per instructions, rather than attempting to escape. The accident (some of which was televised live) traumatized South Korea, says “In the Absence” producer Gary Byung-Seok Kam. It is the fourth project for Kam and director Yi Seung-Jun. The documentary combines real-time footage of the accident recorded by rescuers, the students’ own cellphone videos, news footage and later-day interviews with parents and civilian divers. “We invite [the] audience to feel something behind the footage: the absence of the country on that day to protect us,...

If you ever want to see an expression of pure joy, watch a video on Twitter of director Laura Nix and the stars of her short documentary Walk Run Cha-Cha as they listen to the Oscar nominations announcement. On tenterhooks, they hear the nominees revealed one by one alphabetically—Life Overtakes Me…St. Louis Superman…The alphabet almost exhausted and the tension excruciating, they finally hear Walk Run Cha-Cha announced, triggering an explosion of emotion.

The video has been viewed tens of thousands of times.

“There was whooping and shouting,” Nix acknowledges. “I think people saw that we were like normal people who just found out that we were nominated for an Oscar and it struck a chord somehow, but it was really exciting.”

The documentary shares the story of Paul and Millie Cao, a middle-aged couple in suburban Los Angeles who spend most of their spare time pursuing a passion for ballroom dance.

Oscar-winning director Davis Guggenheim and Jonathan King are launching Concordia Studio in partnership with Laurene Powell Jobs’ Emerson Collective.

Powell Jobs, the widow of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, founded social change organization Emerson Collective in 2004. Emerson Collective became the majority owner of the Atlantic in 2017 and made an investment in 2018 in Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine.

Guggenheim’s credits include “An Inconvenient Truth,” which won the Best Documentary Academy Award in 2006, along with “He Named Me Malala,” “Waiting for Superman” and “Inside Bill’s Brain: Decording Bill Gates.” King has come on board Concordia after a dozen years at Participant Media, overseeing a slate that has included “Roma,” “Green Book” and “Spotlight.”

Concordia made the announcement Monday, noting that it will premiere four films in U.S. competition at this year’s Sundance Film Festival: “Boys State,” directed by Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine; “Time,” directed by Garrett Bradley; “A Thousand Cuts,...

“An Inconvenient Truth” director Davis Guggenheim and former Participant exec Jonathan King have launched Concordia Studio, a nonfiction film and TV production company that will premiere four documentaries at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.

The studio is launched in partnership with Emerson Collective, founded by Laurene Powell Jobs.

“We’ve been working hard for two years and waiting for the right moment to announce our new studio,” said Guggenheim, who will serve as Chief Creative Officer, Nonfiction. “Our strength is a small group of executives committed to great storytelling with the very best filmmakers.“

Concordia also includes an Artists in Residence fellowship program, led by former Sundance Documentary Fund head Rahdi Taylor. The fellowship is meant to foster creative development in diverse documentary filmmakers in the Us who demonstrate talent, voice, and commitment to story-driven nonfiction content.

The inaugural class of fellows include Bing Liu, director of the Oscar-nominated Rust Belt documentary “Minding the Gap,...

Oscar-winning director of An Inconvenient Truth Davis Guggenheim and former Participant exec Jonathan King have teamed with Laurene Powell Jobs and Emerson Collective to launch Concordia Studio. The new company will focus on creating innovative nonfiction and scripted films, series, and streaming content.

The new venture will develop, produce or finance content across all platforms with some of the most creative partners and collaborators from around the world.

“We’ve been working hard for two years and waiting for the right moment to announce our new studio,” said Guggenheim, Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Nonfiction. “Our strength is a small group of executives committed to great storytelling with the very best filmmakers. Now with four films at Sundance and Jonathan King joining as co-founder, the timing could not be better.”

“Audiences worldwide are more hungry than ever for high-quality films and television that mean something in their lives,” added King,...

Davis Guggenheim, director of the Oscar-winning “An Inconvenient Truth,” announced Monday ahead of the Sundance Film Festival the launch of Concordia Studio, which he founded with former Participant Media production head Jonathan King.

Concordia Studio will develop, produce or finance content across all platforms, with both nonfiction and scripted content being included on their slate. The studio is being launched in partnership with Emerson Collective, founded by Laurene Powell Jobs. Davis will serve as chief creative officer for the studio’s nonfiction division, while King will do the same for its scripted division.

“We’ve been working hard for two years and waiting for the right moment to announce our new studio,” Guggenheim said in a statement. “Our strength is a small group of executives committed to great storytelling with the very best filmmakers. Now with four films at Sundance and Jonathan King joining as co-founder, the timing could not be better.

Laurene Powell Jobs’ Emerson Collective a partner.

Davis Guggenheim and Jonathan King have launched Concordia Studio to create nonfiction and scripted films, series, and streaming content.

The company will develop, produce or finance content across all platforms and is being launched in partnership with Emerson Collective, founded by Laurene Powell Jobs.

Concordia Studio’s nonfiction division led by Jonathan Silberberg (president of nonfiction), Nicole Stott (executive vice-president of nonfiction), and Shannon Dill (executive vice-president of nonfiction physical production and operations) will premiere four films in Us competition at this year’s Sundance Film Festival: Boys State, Time, A Thousand Cuts,...

Filmmaker Todd Phillips' "Joker", an origin story about superhero Batman's biggest enemy Joker, led the Oscar nominations with 11 nods, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor.

Sam Mendes' World War drama "1917", Quentin Tarantino's ode to Los Angeles "Once Upon A Time In Hollywood", and Martin Scorsese's mob epic "The Irishman" followed close behind with 10 nods each.

Also Read:?Joaquin Phoenix's 'Joker' leads BAFTA 2020 nominations

Those films, along with "Ford v Ferrari", "Jojo Rabbit", "Little Women", "Marriage Story" and "Parasite" will compete for Best Picture, reports variety.com.

Female filmmakers were entirely shut out of the Best Director race. Along with Phillips, the nominees in the category include Scorsese for "The Irishman," Mendes for "1917", Tarantino for "Once Upon A Time In Hollywood" and Bong Joon Ho for "Parasite".

Here is the complete list of Oscar nominations 2020:

Best Film:

* "Ford v Ferrari"

* "The Irishman...

Chicago – In a sense of deja vu from the recent Golden Globe Awards, the nominees for the 92nd Academy Awards has been named on January 13th, 2020. This breaks a precedent of the last ten years, with the Oscar ceremony moved up to February 9th from it’s usual position in late February to early March.

Nine films were named in the Best Picture category, with “Little Women” and “Ford vs. Ferrari” joining the seven other films recognized by the Golden Globes (including Best Foreign Language Film Globe winner “Parasite”). “Joker” led the numbers game with 11 nominations, with 10 nods for “1917,” “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” and “The Irishman.” The Best Actress category was exactly the same as the Globes (Drama), and Leonardo Di Caprio is the only difference in the Best Actor column. As at the Golden Globes, the directing category is the same five men, again snubbing Greta Gerwig for “Little Women.

Oscar nominations for the 92nd annual Academy Awards were announced Monday morning from the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Martin Scorsese’s mob epic “The Irishman,” Quentin Tarantino’s ode to Los Angeles “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” and Noah Baumbach’s drama “Marriage Story” are expected to sweep nominations. Renee Zellweger is favored to land her fourth Oscar nod, this time for her turn as Judy Garland in the biopic “Judy.” Meanwhile, Joaquin Phoenix (“Joker”) and Adam Driver (“Marriage Story”) are the odds-on favorites among lead actors.

Other films that are anticipating recognition from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences include Sam Mendes’ WWI film “1917,” Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of “Little Women” and Bong Joon Ho’s social thriller “Parasite.

The Academy Awards will air live Feb. 6 on ABC.

Here is the full list of 2020 Oscar nominations (updating life):

Best Picture:

“Ford v...

When it comes to winning your office pool on Best Documentary Short Subject, think tearjerker and you’ll be close to mark. This year, the documentary branch of the Academy has selected 10 shorts out of 96 submissions to vie for the five final slots for the Oscars.

Netflix landed four entries on the shortlist, including New Yorker Nadia Hallgren’s “After Maria,” which follows three Puerto Rican women and their families as they seek shelter in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria’s catastrophic destruction in 2017; Zackary Canepari and Drea Cooper’s searing “Fire In Paradise,” which uses first-hand footage from residents of Paradise, Calif. to recreate the terrifying timeline of the Camp Fire on November 8, 2018 that killed 85 people and destroyed the town; “Ghosts of Sugar Land,” in which four Muslim suburban men near Houston try to make sense of the radicalization of a friend recruited by Isis; and veteran filmmakers John Haptas...

When it comes to winning your office pool on Best Documentary Short Subject, think tearjerker and you’ll be close to mark. This year, the documentary branch of the Academy has selected 10 shorts out of 96 submissions to vie for the five final slots for the Oscars.

Netflix landed four entries on the shortlist, including New Yorker Nadia Hallgren’s “After Maria,” which follows three Puerto Rican women and their families as they seek shelter in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria’s catastrophic destruction in 2017; Zackary Canepari and Drea Cooper’s searing “Fire In Paradise,” which uses first-hand footage from residents of Paradise, Calif. to recreate the terrifying timeline of the Camp Fire on November 8, 2018 that killed 85 people and destroyed the town; “Ghosts of Sugar Land,” in which four Muslim suburban men near Houston try to make sense of the radicalization of a friend recruited by Isis; and veteran filmmakers John Haptas...

Tornado chasers, fencing, and the so-called “pet chicken from hell” were among the topics that entertained an audience during a recent screening of five New York Times Op-Docs in Los Angeles.

The New York Times Op-Docs had diverse themes, but all of them told stories that touched on either topical issues or human-interest stories. Take “The Last Storm,” the first documentary that was screened as part of the free International Documentary Association viewing event. “The Last Storm” centered on Mark Zabawa, a man recently diagnosed with lung cancer, who sets out to fulfill his longtime goal of chasing a tornado.

Although the tornado, which Zabawa and his new friend eventually find near the end of the documentary, presents plenty of physical danger — the wind becomes so fierce it’s hard to hear the subjects, while giant chunks of hail end up taking part of their car’s windows out — “The...

National Geographic Documentary Films has secured worldwide rights to the environmental documentary “Sea of Shadows,” executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio.

Directed by Richard Ladkani (“The Ivory Game”), the documentary premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and won the Audience Award for world cinema documentary.

“Sea of Shadows” highlights efforts to save the endangered vaquita whale in the Sea of Cortez, where the native totoaba fish are being poached because of a superstitious belief among some in China that their bladders possess miraculous healing powers. The non-fiction film follows a team of scientists, high-tech conservationists, investigative journalists, undercover agents and the Mexican Navy to save the last remaining vaquita and bring the crime syndicate to justice.

“What is happening in Mexico is yet another example of human-caused devastation due to the greed of a few,” Ladkani said in a statement. “My hope is that this film can raise awareness...

At their inaugural Fall Lunch in held in Los Angeles on Thursday, Cinema Eye Honors unveiled their first round of awards, including their annual list of significant nonfiction film subjects and a list of the year’s ten top Nonfiction Short Films. They also released nominees in four categories: Broadcast Film; a new award for Broadcast Series; the Heterodox Award, which recognizes fiction films that blur the line between fiction and documentary; and the annual Audience Choice Prize, voted on by documentary lovers around the world.

Netflix, Focus Features, and Hulu hosted the event at Casita Hollywood with many of the year’s top filmmakers on hand, including Kirby Dick, Morgan Neville, Matt Tyrnauer, Jimmy Chin, Rj Cutler, Lauren Greenfield, Alan Hicks, Laura Nix, and Brett Morgen. The full list of nonfiction film and craft nominees, including the five nominees for Outstanding Nonfiction Short Film, will be revealed on Thursday,...

Ninety percent of features nominees have women producers, half are directed by women.

Free Solo and Crime + Punishment are among the 10 feature nominees unveiled by the International Documentary Association (Ida) on Wednesday (24).

Ninety percent of the features nominees have women as producers and half are directed by women.

The 2018 Ida Awards features nominees are: Crime + Punishment, Dark Money, Free Solo, Hale County This Morning, This Evening, Minding The Gap, Of Fathers And Sons, Sky And Ground, The Silence Of Others, United Skates, and Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

The 2018 Ida Awards shorts nominees are: Black Sheep, Fear Us Women,...

With the sprawling number of high-caliber documentaries flooding every platform and clamoring for attention, the International Documentary Association Awards are a crucial curator pointing other awards groups in the direction of what they need to see. Academy documentary branch members, who are inundated with hundreds of movies to watch, aren’t necessarily keeping track of which movies won awards at festivals along the way.

So far, the influential Doc NYC shortlist and the Critics Choice Documentary Award nominees also included many of the Ida’s feature picks: On all three lists are Stephen Maing’s NYPD expose “Crime + Punishment,” fall box office hit E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s vertiginous “Free Solo,” rookie filmmaker Bing Liu’s “Minding the Gap,” and Morgan Neville’s summer box office phenomenon “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?,” an emotionally wrenching portrait of the late TV star Fred Rogers.

Making two out...

With the sprawling number of high-caliber documentaries flooding every platform and clamoring for attention, the International Documentary Association Awards are a crucial curator pointing other awards groups in the direction of what they need to see. Academy documentary branch members, who are inundated with hundreds of movies to watch, aren’t necessarily keeping track of which movies won awards at festivals along the way.

So far, the influential Doc NYC shortlist and the Critics Choice Documentary Award nominees also included many of the Ida’s feature picks: On all three lists are Stephen Maing’s NYPD expose “Crime + Punishment,” fall box office hit E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s vertiginous “Free Solo,” rookie filmmaker Bing Liu’s “Minding the Gap,” and Morgan Neville’s summer box office phenomenon “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?,” an emotionally wrenching portrait of the late TV star Fred Rogers.

Making two out...

The people profiled in Laura Nix’s documentary “Inventing Tomorrow” are trying to change the world by coming up with solutions to threats facing the environment. They’re also teenagers.

They might be accomplished scientists and innovators who are addressing problems facing their local communities, but they’re also kids. That was just one of many difficulties Nix said she faced while filming the competitors from various countries at the International Science and Engineering Fair.

“When you’re filming with young people, ethically you’re in a different territory” than when you’re working with adults, Nix told the crowd after a showing of her film at the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series in Los Angeles. While working with children, you ask permission before filming everything.

“You’re always negotiating access when you’re filming,” she said — whether the scene in question is a fight between mother and...

Awards and fall releases are on the mind for industry insiders heading to the Telluride Film Festival this Labor Day weekend, while the final vestiges of specialty summer roll outs head to theaters. Focus Features is taking psychological-thriller The Little Stranger to 500 theaters Friday. The title by Oscar nominee Lenny Abrahamson and starring Domhnall Gleeson, Charlotte Rampling and Ruth Wilson headlines the weekend’s specialty narratives. The weekend also offers multiple documentaries that could not be more different from one another.

Filmmaker Jack Bryan speaks to a who’s-who in the political world including the late John McCain in a film that seeks to connect the dots between the Donald Trump campaign and collusion with Vladimir Putin’s Russia in Active Measures. The feature, bowing via Super Ltd, opens day and date. Laura Nix’s Inventing Tomorrow from Fishbowl Films and Eamonn Films spotlights teens competing in the Intel International...

In today’s film news roundup, “Killer Kate!” gets a Halloween season opening, “Mile 22” will be shown to U.S. troops in the Middle East and the documentary “Inventing Tomorrow” is set for release.

Acquisition

Freestyle Digital Media has acquired the North American rights to the horror film “Killer Kate!” for a pre-Halloween release.

The movie will open in select theaters, and will also be available to rent and own through Freestyle Digital Media on Oct. 26.

“Killer Kate!” is the debut film from writer-director Elliot Feld, and stars Danielle Burgess (“The Sinner”) and Tiffany Shepis (“Victor Crowley” and “Tales of Halloween”). The film also introduces Alexandra Feld.

“‘Killer Kate!’ is a gripping thriller with strong female leads,” said Miguel Johnson, acquisitions manager for Freestyle Digital Media. “We at Freestyle Digital Media are excited to have this teriffic addition to our slate.”

“‘Killer Kate!’ is our love letter to the early films of John Carpenter,...

"I want to represent my country, but with science." An official trailer has finally debuted for the inspiring documentary titled Inventing Tomorrow, made by producer / filmmaker Laura Nix. Inventing Tomorrow initially premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, along with the other science fair documentary titled simply just Science Fair (watch that trailer). Both films follow students who end up at the same science fair - the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (or Isef). This one focuses on following a few of the inspiring teens as they prepare their projects, taking us to their homes around the world as they attempt to solve great dilemmas in their country. This looks a bit kitschy and hammy, but it seems very fun and friendly and good for kids of all ages to enjoy. Here's the official trailer for Laura Nix's documentary Inventing Tomorrow, in high def on Apple:...

The Seattle International Film Festival announced its award winners this afternoon across a range of categories, with notable honors going to the narrative features Eighth Grade and The Reports on Sarah and Saleem.

Eighth Grade captured Best Film honors in the audience-determined Golden Space Needle Awards, with star Elsie Fisher also taking home Best Actress. Reports, which is directed by Muayad Alayan, won the jury prize in the main narrative competition.

The festival bills itself as the largest and most highly attended U.S. fest. This year’s 25-day edition began May 17. It featured more than 400 films representing 90 countries.

The annual “Best of Siff” lineup will be announced later today and the festival’s five cinema screens will resume daily service on Friday with a mix of Best of Siff titles and other screenings.

Here is the full list of winners in the Golden Space Needle rankings determined by 80,000 audience ballots,...

The 44th Seattle International Film Festival announced its winners at the festival’s concluding ceremony Sunday, with Bo Burnham’s “Eighth Grade” taking home prizes for best film and best actress for star Elsie Fisher. Mister Rogers documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?,” which has drawn attention since the release of its nostalgic trailer, won the best documentary prize for director Morgan Neville.

See the full list of winners below.

Best Film

“Eighth Grade,” directed by Bo Burnham (USA 2018)

Best Documentary

“Won’t You Be My Neighbor?,” directed by Morgan Neville (USA 2018)

Best Director

Gustav Möller, “The Guilty” (Denmark 2018)

Best Actor

Miguel Ángel Solá, “The Last Suit” (Argentina/Poland/Spain/France/Germany 2017)

Best Actress

Elsie Fisher, “Eighth Grade” (USA 2018)

Best Short Film

“Emergency,” directed by Carey Williams (USA 2017)

Lena Sharpe Award for Persistence of Vision

Presented by Women in Film – Seattle

Dana Nachman, “Pick of the Litter” (USA 2017)

Siff...

Company will world premiere Jerry Rothwell’s The School In The Cloud, and will pitch two new documentaries.

Met Film Sales, which launched in May 2017, is attending Cph:dox with a busy slate including its first finished film.

The company is selling Jerry Rothwell’s The School In the Cloud, which has its world premiere at Cph Dox tomorrow (March 20). The film is about Ted Prize-winning Indian scientist Sugata Mitra, globally renowned for his pioneering use of digital self-learning.

Mitra will be attending Cph Dox to speak on a Cph:Science panel today (March 19), alongside Anna Verghase, Director of the Ted Prize.

By most estimations, this year’s Sundance was not a big marketplace. While Neon picked up the midnight movie “Assassination Nation” for $10 million, and breakouts like “Sorry to Bother You” (Annapurna), “Puzzle” (Sony Pictures Classics) and “Colette” (Bleecker Street) are all coming to theaters at some point, a number of highlights from this year’s program ended it without homes. Of course, it goes without saying that obvious commercial plays like “Juliet, Naked” and star-driven dramas like “Wildlife,” both of which didn’t end Sundance with distribution plans in place, will eventually find them. But they aren’t alone. As the dealmakers continue to sift through their options, here are the festival standouts we’d like to see at the top of every buyer’s list.

See More:The 2018 IndieWire Sundance Bible: Every Review, Interview, and News Item Posted During the Festival “306 Hollywood”

When people occupies the same household for decades,...

Los Angeles-based editor Helen Kearns has cuts seven documentary projects since 2013. She recently served as the editor on Netflix’s The Keepers, the tennis doc Serena and The Music of Strangers, a feature on Yo-Yo Ma’s the Silk Road Ensemble. Her most recent project as editor is Inventing Tomorrow, a doc on the students competing at the world’s largest high school science competition. The film, from director Laura Nix (The Yes Men Are Revolting), screened in competition at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Kearns shares her thoughts below on what drew her to the project. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up […]...

Science has been taking a beating lately, with climate change deniers firmly ensconced in the White House and environmental protections being rolled back faster than you can say, "Drill, baby, drill." So the optimism of Inventing Tomorrow is quite uplifting, with dauntless teenage thinkers from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds working with resourcefulness and imagination to develop practical solutions to local eco threats.

Laura Nix's crisply assembled documentary is one of two films premiering at the Sundance Film Festival that center around the 2017 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Isef) in Los Angeles, the other going by ...

Science has been taking a beating lately, with climate change deniers firmly ensconced in the White House and environmental protections being rolled back faster than you can say, "Drill, baby, drill." So the optimism of Inventing Tomorrow is quite uplifting, with dauntless teenage thinkers from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds working with resourcefulness and imagination to develop practical solutions to local eco threats.

Laura Nix's crisply assembled documentary is one of two films premiering at the Sundance Film Festival that center around the 2017 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Isef) in Los Angeles, the other going by ...

Choosing cameras and lenses is a complicated process for nonfiction filmmakers; it must take into account their films’ unique shooting situation, budget and cinematic styles. Which is why in answering the question of why they picked the gear they did, this year’s crop of Sundance documentary directors also tells us how they shot their movies — the challenges, the choices, and the look. Thirty-seven directors, with features in Documentary Premieres, and the U.S. and World Cinema Documentary Competitions at this year’s festival — took IndieWire behind the scenes of shooting what will be some of the most talked-about nonfiction films of the year.

Read More:Sundance 2018: Here Are the Cameras Used to Shoot This Year’s Narrative Films Category: U.S. Documentary Competition “Bisbee ’17”

Dir: Robert Greene

Camera: Mostly the Sony FS7

Lens: Mostly Zeiss superspeed primes

Greene: “Dp Jarred Alterman created a look that he and the team of...