This piece is part of an ongoing Independent Lens series exploring documentary film history. Check out the previous entry, Silent Real-Life Adventure Films, and stay tuned for more installments. The birth of documentary filmmaking is the birth of cinema. The very first films were documents of people, places, and events, whether scientific studies or the moving …
Five Seriously Scary Documentaries for Halloween
It’s often said that truth is stranger than fiction, and while that may be accurate in some cases, it’s also true that truth can be a lot scarier than fiction. As creepy as Halloween, The Exorcist, or Psycho may be, the viewer can always take a bit of solace from the fact that, well, it’s all …
At Berkeley: Frederick Wiseman on Why He Went Back to School
Now in his 5th decade of making documentaries, Frederick Wiseman informally answered a few questions in brief from his current home base in Paris, France, and also spoke to us in a video interview about why he wanted to do a film about “the extraordinarily complicated place” that is UC Berkeley.
At Berkeley: Reviews and Writings
We’ve collected some of the best reviews and writings about Frederick Wiseman’s magnum opus, At Berkeley, from film critics around the world, including links to a number of Best of 2013 lists.
A Look Back at the Films of Frederick Wiseman
At Berkeley is Frederick Wiseman’s 42nd film, and we curated this collection of video clips and links introducing viewers who may not be as familiar with the prolific documentarian’s previous work to his incredible filmography.
At Berkeley Shares National Society of Film Critics Best Non-Fic Honor
At Berkeley, which will be broadcast on Independent Lens on January 13, was just named co-recipient of Best Non-Fiction Film of 2013 by the National Society of Film Critics (NSFC), sharing the honor with The Act of Killing. The full vote breakdown for all the NSFC categories is listed here. “We are extremely pleased to have supported …
Independent Lens Announces Winter/Spring 2014 Season
We’re excited to officially announce the Independent Lens Winter/Spring 2014 lineup, the second half of our current season, presenting a varied selection of independent docs from both first-time filmmakers and familiar names like Frederick Wiseman and Bill Siegel. Premieres range from Spies of Mississippi, a look back at a shocking, little-known chapter of civil rights history, to …
Frederick Wiseman’s At Berkeley Featured in New York Times
“What I’m interested in is making movies about as many different subjects as I can, and as many different forms of human experience.” — Frederick Wiseman Independent Lens, which featured Frederick Wiseman’s The Last Letter several years ago, is proud to have the master of cinéma vérité back for this coming season with his magnum …