Written by Jenna Belhumeur In Abby Ginzberg’s documentary, Soft Vengeance: Albie Sachs and the New South Africa, viewers are taken through the fight against South African apartheid via the life of one of the country’s most noted activists. Following the film’s screening on Sunday at the SVA Theater, Ginzberg was joined onstage by Sachs for […]
Written by Maggie Glass The War Pigs. The Jolly Stompers. The Savage Nomads. The Aliens. The Renagade Turks. In the 1970s, New York City was ruled by gangs, each with its own identity, fashion sense, and style of violence. With the idealism of the 60s fading, the city was experiencing swift urban decay and […]
Written by Jacob Appet Cheryl Furjanic’s Back on Board: Greg Louganis screened Sunday night at DOC NYC to a sold-out, overjoyed crowd. The film blends archival footage with present-day interviews to paint a beautiful, complex portrait of an iconic Olympic champion. Greg Louganis, the only athlete to ever win consecutive Olympic gold medals in […]
Written by Megan Scanlon The Lion’s Mouth Opens, directed by Lucy Walker, tenderly and bravely confronts the neurodegenerative cognitive and behavioral downward spiral that is Huntington’s Disease. Walker and the subject of the film, actress and filmmaker Marianna Palka, were present for a Q&A in front of a packed DOC NYC audience on Sunday […]
Written by Krystal Grow The Synanon House in Santa Monica had a front door that faced the California freeway, and a back door that led to the rolling waves of the Pacific ocean. But in between the streets and the shoreline, a radical experiment in drug rehabilitation was happening, and an equally unheard of style […]
Written by Megan Scanlon In Saturday night’s pre-screen conversation of Life Itself, John Vanco, Vice President and General Manager of the IFC Center said Director Steve James “has been making some of the most moral and impactful and important documentaries in the past 25 years.” In Life Itself, James’ portrays the life of […]
Written by Jacob Appet The atmosphere was electric for the world premiere of Jessica Solce’s No Control at DOC NYC. The meticulous documentary aims to objectively explain the intricacies and absurdities of America’s current gun-control laws and the debates that surround them. The central figures of the film represent two very different sides […]
Written by Maggie Glass Amidst a flurry of new releases and world premieres, DOC NYC audiences had the unique opportunity on Sunday to attend the 20th anniversary restoration of the epic documentary HOOP DREAMS. Steve James’s 1994 film follows two young black teenagers with NBA aspirations as they grapple with academics, poverty, and family crises. […]
Written by Jenna Belhumeur The only way you might not have heard of Spandau Ballet is if you, A) weren’t alive in the 1980’s, or B) aren’t British. Soul Boys of the Western World, which had it’s New York City premier at DOC NYC this weekend, is a music documentary that illustrates the […]
Written by Laura Dattaro Early on in When People Die They Sing Songs, director and first-time filmmaker Olga Lvoff asks Sonia Gluckman to expand upon the difficulties of her European ancestry. In response, she gets a curt “No.” But by the end of the film, not only has Sonia showed Lvoff the details of […]