POV

POV associate producer Andrew Catauro reports back from Italy, where he attended the 2009 Italian Doc Screenings event.

Last week I attended an event for Italian documentary filmmakers called Italian Doc Screenings (IDS). IDS is a presentation of Doc/it (the Italian Documentary Filmmakers Association), and this year marks the first time POV has taken part. As a representative of our series, I attended alongside delegates from 24 other countries, including foreign broadcasters, commissioning editors, producers, distributors and festival programmers. The panels and pitch sessions offered some guidance through the waters of the international documentary market — which has more outlets than an Italian filmmaker may be able to find domestically.

Meeting with filmmakers at Italian Doc Screenings 2009

For a variety of reasons, Italy is lacking in opportunities for television pre-sales and funding for documentary film (unlike in many other European countries), and theatrical opportunities can also be limited. Notably, IDS convened on the heels of a very controversial moment in Italian filmmaking this past month: after a documentary critical of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi premiered at the Venice Film Festival to wide acclaim, the trailer of the film was subsequently barred from Italian television.

Read more after the jump...

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TAGS: europe, film festivals, Italy

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We heard POV alum Michael Moore (both Roger & Me and Pets or Meat aired on POV in 1992) was in our neighborhood doing some publicity for his new film Capitalism: A Love Story. So we hit the sidewalk, in true Michael Moore-style, to see if he'd speak to us on camera. Lo and behold, he's still an avid fan of POV! Catch his message for POV's Emmy-nominated filmmakers, and check back tomorrow for coverage of tonight's Emmy ceremony at Lincoln Center. POV is up for 10 Emmy Awards and is the second most-nominated program after 60 Minutes.

(Special thanks to my POV colleague David Nanasi for his camera work on the clip.)

TAGS: awards, emmy awards, michael moore

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POV production assistant Andrew Catauro reports back from the 2009 Rooftop Films premiere in New York City.

I know it's a few days after the fact (I definitely can't keep up with blogger Brooklyn Vegan, who blogged about the event later that night) — but I want to write about what a great time I had at the Rooftop Films premiere in New York City for the summer season. A program of short films aptly titled "This Is What We Mean By Short Films" was projected high over the Lower East Side, on the roof of the New Design High School. One of my favorite new bands, Cymbals Eat Guitars, kicked off the evening with a short set. The sightlines were awful — with hundreds of people in attendance, my group was one of many who were stuck watching the band from around a corner — but the overall atmosphere was top-notch.

The first film of the evening was Beholder, a short doc by POV alum Eric Daniel Metzgar (The Chances of the World Changing, Life. Support. Music.), who was in the audience. Rooftop called it "A perfect opening film... crafted in our signature style... and investigating our home town."

I might be biased, but overall I felt the doc shorts in the program stood out. Ken Waldrop's The Herd was a particular highlight for me, as he returned to Rooftop after a couple of memorable showings last year.

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TAGS: eric daniel metzgar, new york events, rooftop films

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On Tuesday night, POV co-presented the New York premiere of The Way We Get By (which will air as a POV November special on PBS) at the IFC Center in Greenwich Village. The screening was a part of Thom Powers' venerable Stranger than Fiction (STF) documentary series, and capped a full New York day for Boston-based filmmakers Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly.

Earlier in the afternoon, we hosted them at DCTV's downtown studio for their official POV on-camera interview. Several minutes of the conversation with Aron and Gita will be broadcast after the premiere of their film in November on PBS stations, and a video podcast hosted by POV's Director of Production and Programming Chris White will be available for download here on our website. Be sure to check back this summer for more details.

More on the screening after the jump...

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TAGS: aron gaudet, behind the lens, dctv, gita pullapilly

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POV production assistant Andrew Catauro checks in about POV's annual Call for Entries. Read on to learn how you can submit your film!

Here at POV, we may have just announced our slate of films for the 2009 broadcast season, but we're also looking ahead to 2010 (and beyond). Whether you've got an idea to pitch, a promising rough cut to showcase, or a finished film you'd like us to see before it blows up on the festival circuit, now is the time for you to submit your work to POV

It's important to know that we evaluate submissions in four categories:

Standard: Finished films, or films that are at rough/fine cut stage. (Will be ready for broadcast in 2010)

Shorts: Finished films, or films that are at rough/fine cut stage AND whose final running time is 30 minutes or less. (Will be ready for broadcast in 2010)

Completion Funds: Films that are at assembly/rough/fine cut stage AND are seeking completion funds. (May not be ready for broadcast in 2010)

In-the-Works: Films at any stage, not ready for general submission, that a filmmaker would like to introduce to POV's programming team for future consideration.

All films must be submitted through our online submission system, and the deadline for entries this year is Tuesday, June 30. Start by going to http://cfe.pov.org and follow the instructions to complete an entry form.

If you'd like some specific tips on how to navigate our online form, read on after the jump...

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TAGS: call for entries

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POV is proud to announce the newest entry to our online short film festival: Eva Weber's City of Cranes. Watch it now on the POV website!

Cranes are a staple of the modern city skyline, as ubiquitous as the skyscrapers and towers they're put in place to build. The film tells the story of the men and women who drive these machines — in their own words and from their own breathtaking point of view.

Originally created for BBC Channel 4's "3 Minute Wonder" program, City of Cranes now runs 14 minutes and is divided into four chapters: "The City Above," "The Last Topman," "Ballet of Cranes" and "Solitary." Each chapter poetically represents a different aspect of cranes, including the routine of being a crane driver, the density of urban skyscrapers and the beauty of the cranes themselves. Through filmmaker Weber's masterful camera lens, we see the cranes move with fluidity, evoking the grace of the birds that they are named after.

So sit back and enjoy watching City of Cranes — a magnificent piece of short documentary filmmaking. Even if you can't tell a hammerhead from a luffing jib tower, you'll enjoy the way Eva Weber's film takes you hundreds of feet above the ground for a whole new perspective.

TAGS: cities, cranes, eva weber, shorts

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As Americans come off a historic day at the polls, American Documentary (the producer of POV) presents a film about America's national identity. Boomtown, by Bryan Gunnar Cole, portrays the selling of fireworks by the Suquamish Nation--exploring life, liberty and the politics of Indian sovereignty in America.

November is Native American Heritage Month. Celebrate by watching Boomtown in its entirety on the POV website.

Originally broadcast on POV in 2002, Boomtown will be streaming as part of American Documentary's True Lives series from November 5, 2008 to January 5, 2009.

Visit POV's video page or sign up for POV's newsletter to find out about other films that are available in their entirety on our website.

Boomtown is a lively visit to the Suquamish Nation, near Seattle, where selling fireworks has become a tradition for some Suquamish tribal members. For 30 years, this part of Indian country has sold fireworks that are officially banned off the reservation, attracting non-Indian buyers from near and far.

On July 4th, the Suquamish tribe plays host to one of the most enjoyable and unpredictable fireworks shows around. In a place where federal, state and local policies routinely collide with Native sovereignty, Boomtown focuses on this animated enterprise, offering a special glimpse into contemporary Indian life. The irony of celebrating Independence Day is not lost on tribal members — but while one history reads as a litany of displacement, broken treaties and cultural destruction, another holds the memories and deeds of Indian contributions to the strength and development of the country as a whole. For Bennie Armstrong, tribal chairman of the Suquamish nation, the reality is that he and other Indians are dual citizens. Celebrating success as both American business people and as Indians with an outlook unique to their experiences and traditions, Boomtown reveals the most difficult job of all: walking in two worlds.

Watch Boomtown and other POV films on the POV website!

TAGS: boomtown, native american

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Congratulations to the filmmakers of Made in L.A., who won an Emmy Award at the 29th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards Monday night! Made in L.A. had its national broadcast premiere during POV's 20th anniversary season in 2007. Director/producer Almudena Carracedo and producer Robert Bahar accepted the award (in the category of Outstanding Continuing Coverage of a News Story — Long Form) during a ceremony at Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York.

Made in L.A. received support through POV's Diverse Voices Project, a co-production initiative supported by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting that mentors emerging filmmakers and brings greater diversity to the national PBS schedule. This Emmy award comes as POV prepares to open the Call for Entries in the next edition of DVP. "CPB's support has been critical in bringing Made in L.A. to a national audience," says Cynthia Lopez, POV's vice president. "This award validates the investment in new filmmaking talent." For more information about DVP, sign up for our newsletter. Stay informed and receive information about how to submit your project — first-time filmmakers, you could be holding an Emmy of your own!

"This film started as a small, grassroots project to tell the story of three brave Latina immigrants and their struggle for their rights and their personal dignity," said Carracedo. "We are thrilled that POV and PBS were able to bring the film to such a wide audience, and hope that this award will help put a human face on the issues of immigration, low wage work and the everyday struggles of immigrant workers and that it will engage communities in essential dialogue around these issues."

Five years in the making, Made in L.A. is Carracedo's first feature documentary. The 70-minute film follows the remarkable story of three Latina immigrants working in Los Angeles garment sweatshops as they embark on a three-year odyssey to win basic labor protections from a trendy clothing retailer. In intimate observational style, Made in L.A. reveals the impact of the struggle on each woman's life. Compelling, humorous and deeply human, it is a story about immigration, the power of unity and the courage it takes to find your voice.

TAGS: awards, emmy awards, filmmaker

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This spring, WGBH Lab and POV have partnered to fund 10 independent producers, helping each of them realize ideas for a three-minute short documentary about a 2008 election story. We evaluated almost 100 pitches that reflect a wide range of filmmakers' experiences with the coming election. Everyone at the Lab and POV was impressed with quality of pitches, and though we had intended to choose five winners, you can see that the number was doubled — congratulations to all 10 producers! We wish them the best of luck, and can't wait to see what they bring back.

The winning entries are listed below. For more information on each producer and their film, click the images; to follow the production process, visit the WGBH Lab Election 2008 site and check back often. The filmmakers are in production through June 6, and rough cuts will be online for review by the Lab community by June 9.

Election Fatigue
Teralyn Wade - Jackson, MI

The Decision of Whether and How to Vote
Chris Metzler and Josh Kurz - San Francisco, CA

Back Home and Voting
Anthony Tenczar - Concord, NH

Uncle Sam Lives!
Jean Nagy - Boston, MA

Liberia??? Check!
Lisa Russell - Brooklyn, NY

See more of the winning pitches after the jump....

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TAGS: election 2008, shorts

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POV production assistant Andrew Catauro writes in with the latest news from the Tribeca Film Institute.

Last night, in a new partnership with Renew Media, the Tribeca Film Institute awarded its 2008 Media Arts Fellowships at the New York Academy of Art. POV Executive Director Simon Kilmurry and I attended the ceremony honoring the recipients. Among the 20 filmmakers and media artists who were awarded fellowships for their new projects, three were POV alums.

Judith Helfand (The Uprising of '34, POV 1995 and A Healthy Baby Girl, POV 1997) is developing Heat Wave, a documentary that revisits the 1995 Chicago heat wave that killed 739 people and explores how impoverished urban neighborhoods could be better prepared for extreme weather.

Academy Award-nominee Laura Poitras (My Country, My Country POV 2006 and Flag Wars, POV 2003) is working on Release, which explores the long-term psychological and political repercussions of the U.S. policy of detention and torture.

Jessica Yu (In the Realms of the Unreal, POV 2005) received the fellowship for Signs of Life, about the life and work of deaf educator Dr. Virginia McKinney and her fight to keep open the school she founded over 40 years ago.

For a full list of fellowship recipients, see Pamela Cohn's blog, Still in Motion. And for more information about the Media Arts Fellowships and past honorees, visit the Media Arts Fellowship website.

TAGS: documentary news, film festivals, media

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Andrew Catauro, production assistant at POV, is the newest addition to our staff. He shares his tips for filmmakers who are considering submitting their work for the Call for Entries for POV's 2009 broadcast season.

Each year, POV holds an open call for submissions, welcoming any filmmakers who are interested to send us their nonfiction films for possible broadcast. As I've joined POV very recently, this will be my first experience with the Call for Entries. We usually get about a thousand films for the 12-15 slots that are available in a season. So I'm bracing like Noah before the flood that is headed my way, and I'm writing to help you build an ark for your film to help it sail it successfully towards consideration for the 2009 broadcast season. (We're even asking for two DVD copies of every film. Who would have guessed my first blog post would have all this biblical symbolism?)

POV has four submission categories:

Standard: Films that are at rough cut or fine cut stage and will be ready for broadcast in 2009.
Completion Fund: Films that are in rough cut or assembly stage and may not be ready for broadcast in 2009, and are seeking completion funds.
Shorts: Films that are at rough cut or fine cut stage whose running time is 20 minutes or less.
In the Works: Films that are not ready for standard submission, but that a filmmaker would like to introduce to us.

All films must be submitted through POV's online submission system, and the deadline for entries this year is Friday, June 27. Start by going to http://cfe.pov.org, and follow the instructions to complete an entry form.

Read more about how to submit your film after the jump...

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TAGS: diy, filmmaker

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