The American Film Institute Announces Full Slate for AFI Docs 2020 Supported by AT&T

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Category: Entertainment News

Published on Monday, 08 June 2020 11:58

Written by AFI

FREEDOM ON MY MIND (1994):  DIRS Connie Field and Marilyn Mulford.  PRODS Connie Field and Marilyn Mulford.  USA.

This Academy Award®-nominated account of the Mississippi Voter Registration Project produced and directed by Connie Field and Marilyn Mulford combines extraordinary archival footage and in-depth interviews with traditional folk songs in a powerful tribute to the black activists and white allies who, from 1961 to 1964, descended upon the South determined to register black voters. After Herbert Lee, a local man who had been escorting voting rights organizer Bob Moses around Amite County, was shot and killed by a Mississippi state representative, the organizers were forced to acknowledge that this was a journey from which they may never return. Firm in their commitment to democracy, even under the threat of violence, they built powerful coalitions and their campaign, which culminated in the 1964 Freedom Summer and 1965 Voting Rights Act, was a triumph of political organization. The lesson learned – that freedom is a constant struggle – is one that still reverberates today.

A Clear Shot Review – Compelling Hostage Drama Resonates

NATIONTIME - GARY (1972):  DIR William Greaves.  USA.

In March 1972, an estimated 10,000 black politicians, activists and artists congregated at the National Black Political Convention in Gary, Indiana, with the express purpose of establishing a black political agenda. Attendees included Rev. Jesse Jackson, Dick Gregory, Coretta Scott King, Amiri Baraka, Richard Hatcher, Charles Diggs and H. Carl McCall. Also in attendance was prolific documentarian of black history, culture and politics William Greaves (SYMBIOPSYCHOTAXIPLASM). 

His filmed account of this historic event, narrated by Sidney Poitier with poetry recited by Harry Belafonte, was at the time thought to be too radical for television broadcast and was drastically edited. Now restored to its original cut, in a 4K restoration from IndieCollect, with funding from Jane Fonda and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, this rousing and revelatory documentary celebrates a diversity of black voices, finding support and solidarity even amid expected tensions and divisions.

SISTERS OF '77 (2005):  DIRS Cynthia Salzman Mondell and Allen Mondell.  PRODS Cynthia Salzman Mondell and Allen Mondell.  USA.

In 1977, over the course of four days, approximately 20,000 women would congregate in Houston, Texas, to attend the first ever National Women's Conference, as presided over by Congresswoman Bella Abzug. In an effort to promote equality between men and women, a series of eye-opening and impassioned debates sought to achieve resolutions on major topics, ranging from domestic violence, employment and reproductive rights to the specific experiences of lesbians and women of color and the ultimately unsuccessful Equal Rights Amendment. 

Filmmakers Cynthia Salzman Mondell and Allen Mondell combine incredible archival footage and insightful interviews with attendees to present an inside look at this historic event that defined the guiding principles of gender equality in politics today.

EPISODIC

AND SHE COULD BE NEXT:  DIRS Grace Lee and Marjan Safinia.  PRODS Grace Lee, Marjan Safinia and Jyoti Sarda.  USA. 

A sweeping chronicle of the 2018 elections and the unprecedented rise of women of color running for — and winning — office throughout the U.S., AND SHE COULD BE NEXT follows the historic and dramatic stories of six candidates from throughout the country as they fight to represent their constituents and uplift disenfranchised communities. 

Filmed, directed and produced by a team of women filmmakers of color, this riveting two-part series offers a fascinating, behind-the-scenes look at Stacey Abrams' game-changing campaign for Governor of Georgia; three battles for the U.S. House of Representatives (Rashida Tlaib, Lucy McBath and Veronica Escobar); Maria Elena Durazo's race in Los Angeles for the California State Senate; and 19-year-old Bushra Amiwala's run for the Cook County Board of Commissioners in Chicago.

The series is also an incisive look at the deeply troubling voter suppression tactics that are being employed to undermine our democratic system and the transformative organizational politics required to make real change in the U.S.

Military Wives Review – An Inspirational, Uplifting, Feel Good Film

CITY SO REAL:  DIR Steve James.  PRODS Zak Piper and Steve James.  USA.

There may be no better match between filmmaker and locale than Steve James and the city of Chicago. From HOOP DREAMS to THE INTERRUPTERS and the 10-part AMERICA TO ME, James has created a vibrant portrait of contemporary Chicago. But not until CITY SO REAL, a fascinating four-part episodic, has the celebrated filmmaker focused his lens on the epic sweep of Chicago's multifaceted neighborhoods. 

Filmed during the explosive trial of the Chicago police officer who killed Laquan McDonald, CITY SO REAL uses the wide-open 2019 mayoral election as the primary vehicle for doing what James does best: engaging with people, allowing them to express themselves as complex human beings and capturing the small, as well as the seismic, moments that define the places we come from and who we are as individuals and as members of a diverse community.

THE VOTE:  DIR Michelle Ferrari.  PRODS Connie Honeycutt and Michelle Ferrari.  USA.

In recognition of the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, this PBS American Experience documentary is a comprehensive and captivating look at the arduous 72-year struggle that culminated in permanently enfranchising women with the right to vote. Bringing to life the incredible suffragists who led this movement and the difficult path that they tread – one rife with infighting, splintered in radicalism and marred by complex alliances – this important historical documentary is a fascinating look at issues that would become near-universal to major progressive social and political movements. Their strategies, means of mobilizing, protests and demonstrations would create a framework of necessary persistence. Though many would not live to see their efforts rewarded, the ramifications of this fight affirm voting as a right that is integral to democracy.

SHORT FILMS

808: HOW WE RESPOND:  DIR Ian Bell.  PRODS Alex Megaro, Jessica Kingdon and Nathan Truesdell.  USA.

On January 13, 2018, Hawaii issued a false missile warning leading millions to believe a missile attack was imminent. Our live-streaming culture provided a record of how people dealt with their own mortality.

ABORTION HELPLINE, THIS IS LISA:  DIRS Barbara Attie, Janet Goldwater and Mike Attie.  PRODS Barbara Attie, Janet Goldwater and Mike Attie.  USA.

At an abortion fund in Philadelphia, counselors arrive each morning to the nonstop ring of calls from women and teens who seek to end a pregnancy but can't afford to.

AKASHINGA: THE BRAVE ONES:  DIR Maria Wilhelm.  PRODS Maria Wilhelm, Kim Butts and Drew Pulley.  USA.

Single mothers, abandoned wives and survivors of sexual and domestic violence enroll in an intense training selection to join rangers protecting elephants from poachers across Africa.

Point Defiance Review – Solid Psychological Thriller Haunts to the End

ALL THE PERISHES AT THE EDGE OF LAND:  DIR Hira Nabi.  CREATIVE PROD Till Passow.  Pakistan.

A decommissioned ship and the shipbreakers from all over Pakistan there to break it enter into a conversation and discover they might have more in common than otherwise imagined.

BLACKFEET BOXING: NOT INVISIBLE:  DIRS Kristen Lappas and Tom Rinaldi.  PRODS Jose Morales, Craig Lazarus, Victor Vitarelli, Ben Webber and Lindsay Rovegno.  USA.

As the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women epidemic affects tribal communities, a group of Blackfeet women tackle the threat head-on by practicing and training in self-defense.

BROKEN ORCHESTRA:  DIR Charlie Tyrell.  PROD Julie Baldassi.  Canada.

The Symphony for a Broken Orchestra project collected hundreds of broken instruments from the Philadelphia public school system, fixed them and then returned them to the hands of students.

THE CHURCH FORESTS OF ETHIOPIA:  DIR Jeremy Seifert.  PRODS Jeremy Seifert and Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee.  USA.

In Ethiopia, church forests are withstanding environmental destruction — but just barely.

DAFA METTI (DIFFICULT):  DIR Tal Amiran.  PROD Tal Amiran.  UK.

Under Paris' Eiffel Tower, undocumented Senegalese migrants sell souvenirs of the monument to support their families back home. Each day is a struggle through darkness in the City of Lights.

THE DEEPEST HOLE:  DIR Matt McCormick.  PROD Matt McCormick.  USA.

Cold War competitions are common knowledge, but few know the United States and Soviet Union faced off in a race to see which country could dig the deepest hole.

DO NOT SPLIT:  DIR Anders Hammer.  PRODS Anders Hammer and Charlotte Cook.  USA, Norway.

During the 2019 protests in Hong Kong, a series of evening demonstrations escalate into conflict when heavily armed police appear on the scene.

My Spy Review – A Fun, Family Film with Lots of Laughs

ELEVATOR PITCH:  DIR Martyna Starosta.  PROD Martyna Starosta.  USA.

A depiction of New York's subway as an absurd obstacle course – revealing a system that shuts many out of a city in motion.

FLOWER PUNK:  DIR Alison Klayman.  PROD Alison Klayman.  USA.

Japanese artist Azuma Makoto sends his floral sculptures into space and sinks them to the bottom of the ocean, but mostly, he thinks about the life and death of flowers.

HUNTSVILLE STATION:  DIRS Jamie Meltzer and Chris Filippone.  PROD Jamie Meltzer.  USA.

Every weekday, inmates are released from Huntsville State Penitentiary, taking in their first moments of freedom with phone calls, cigarettes and quiet reflection at the Greyhound station up the block.

LAKE:  DIR Alexandra Lazarowich.  PRODS Coty Savard and David Christensen.  Canada.

Shot on 16mm and in a vérité lens, LAKE shares a contemporary portrait of Métis women net fishing in Northern Alberta.

THE LOST ASTRONAUT:  DIR Ben Proudfoot.  PRODS Gabriel Berk Godoi and Abby Lynn Kang Davis.  USA.  

In 1963, Ed Dwight Jr. was poised to be NASA's first African-American astronaut, until suddenly he wasn't.

MEMOIRS OF VEGETATION:  DIR Jessica Oreck.  PROD Jessica Oreck.  USA.

An enticing kernel of botanical intrigue that delves into the salubrious uses and nefarious misuses of castor beans throughout history.

MIZUKO:  DIRS Kira Dane and Katelyn Rebelo.  PRODS Kira Dane and Katelyn Rebelo.  USA.

In Japanese Buddhism, there is a post-abortion grieving ritual called 'water child memorial.' Inspired by this ritual, a half-Japanese American woman reexamines abortion ethics after becoming pregnant herself.

MOTHER:  DIRS Jas Pitt and Kate Stonehill.  PRODS Sorcha Bacon and Lua Guerreiro.  UK.

A young dancer from a violent favela in Rio de Janeiro finds redemption through his vogueing family, the art of Ballroom and his relationship with his vogueing mother, Makayla.

NOW IS THE TIME:  DIR Christopher Auchter.  PRODS Selwyn Jacob.  Canada.

Fifty years ago, the entire village of Old Massett gathered to celebrate the raising of a totem pole that signaled the rebirth of the Haida spirit.

OUT OF THE BLUE:  DIRS Jonathan Bregel and Steve Hoover.  PROD Jonathan Bregel.  USA.

A 78-year-old man decided to cover his entire body in a blue tattoo once he retired from his career as an accomplished Baltimore City planner.

THE PAINT WIZZARD:  DIRS Jessie Auritt and Jessica Wolfson.  PRODS Jessie Auritt and Jessica Wolfson.  USA.

Millie, a transgender housepainter living and working out of her bright yellow RV in Austin, Texas, gained the courage to come out as her true self at age 58.

PAMPAS:  DIR Jessica Bishopp.  PROD Louisa Plumstead.  UK.

A hybrid documentary exploring sexual signaling and urban legends about how plants were used in 1970s suburbia to send seductive signals to neighbors, or so rumor has it.

PATTY ARE YOU BRINGING WEED IN FROM JAMAICA?:  DIR Matthew Salton.  PROD Matthew Salton.  USA.

In 1968, a young flight attendant bought 900 pounds of marijuana in Jamaica and tried to smuggle it out, leading to unexpected consequences.

SAN DIEGO:  DIR Laura Hinman.  PROD Civic Films.  USA.
An essay on gathered fragments of daily Native American life, struggles for sovereignty and youth in a post-COVID-19 reality.

SEE YOU NEXT TIME:  DIR Crystal Kayiza.  PRODS Cady Lang, Crystal Kayiza and Sean Weiner.  USA.

The intimate moments between a Chinese nail tech and her Black client shows how two women of color see each other in a space unlike anything else in their worlds.  

STILL HERE (還在):  DIR Sean Wang.  PRODS Cynthia Lee, Pamela Li and Sean Wang.  USA. In Kaohsiung, Taiwan, a few residents refuse to leave their abandoned village.