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Festival Coverage

Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: Deep Rooted

April 30, 2014Addison Wylie1 Comment

The Last Season (DIR. Sara Dosa) By: Gesilayefa Azorbo It’s often said that there’s nothing stronger than the bonds of brotherhood forged between fellow soldiers.  Regardless of place of origin or beliefs, the experiences that form one’s life as a soldier are often common across borders, with a mutual understanding that often transcends other differences. The Last Season is ostensibly a film about a mushroom hunt.  The town of Chemult, Oregon, population 135, is also home to…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: Hunky-Dory Heartbreak Doc

April 29, 2014Addison Wylie0 Comments

Sleepless in New York (DIR. Christian Frei) By: Addison Wylie There’s narration – nay – lots of narration in Christian Frei’s Sleepless in New York from lonely people who have been dumped.  The voiceovers wear thin after a while, but they do serve a purpose. The doc is a film that gets “the break-up” right.  Frei is fortunate to have received good applicants from his open casting call (street-laden flyers inviting heartbroken souls to participate), and those…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: Help Me, Help You

April 28, 2014Addison Wylie1 Comment

The theme of human connection has never been so prevalent.  The latest technology seems to be fastening people away from face-to-face interactions, and Spike Jonze’s Her made it clear as to what path the human race could possibly fall into. Filmmaker Tony Shaff has made a documentary that tries to follow suit. But, can he stick his landing? Hotline (DIR. Tony Shaff) By: Addison Wylie Hotline has an intriguing dynamic.  Tony Shaff’s documentary focuses on those conversations that…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: Everything is Political

April 27, 2014Addison Wylie0 Comments

Shield and Spear (DIR. Petter Ringbom) By: Parker Mott “Everything is political”, a group of South African artistes extol as mantra in Shield and Spear, which has its world premiere at Hot Docs.  This saying is called, in conventional wisdom, “The Activist’s Argument”;  it also resembles Ai Weiwei’s line that “art is politics” from his documentary Never Sorry (the latest documentary on the provocative Chinese artist, The Fake Case, is also at Hot Docs).

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: A Doc with Braaains

April 26, 2014Addison Wylie0 Comments

Just as other festivals offer a “Midnight Madness” selection, Hot Docs hopes to bring in the same crowd with its Nightvision screenings. These documentaries feature brazen topics and massive cult followings;  films that are certainly unlike any other.  An added bonus is the discounted price of films screening after 11:00 p.m.  For a cool $7, treat yourself to some of these neat docs. If you’re into horror, you should give Alexandre Philippe’s doc a shot. Doc of the Dead (DIR. Alexandre Philippe)…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: Age is No Misfortune

April 25, 2014Addison Wylie2 Comments

Growing old should never be looked at as a negative. It should be thought of as a way to celebrate. The ladies featured in the following documentaries have found a way to stay young at heart and hold onto their impassioned looks at life. They have ambition and simply run with it; knowing that their actions will make a difference and perhaps make people smile. Divide In Concord (DIR. Kris Kaczor) By: Gesilayefa Azorbo If documentary…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: Fittingly Framed

April 24, 2014Addison Wylie1 Comment

Crime often features some prime subjects for documentarians. The stories sometimes serve up a ruthless criminal, unbelievable twisty pasts, and layers upon layers of aggressive activity with hopes that justice will prevail. The docs are even more riveting because none of this is fiction. This year’s festival isn’t without a few crime docs. Let’s take a look at a couple of them. Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger (DIR. Joe Berlinger) By: Addison Wylie…

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Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: A Different Type of Doc

April 23, 2014Addison Wylie0 Comments

To movie goers who may not be doc-savvy, they may instantly think a documentary has to be a film where talking heads flap away while being accompanied with relevant b-roll.  That’d be unfortunate because that’s not always the case. The Hot Docs International Documentary Festival tries to provide audiences with documentaries that set out to portray the genre from a different angle.  The festival does a solid job at providing plenty of examples. However, there are…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ TIFF Kids 2014: A Day With the Industry

April 22, 2014Addison Wylie0 Comments

  By: Addison Wylie I’ve enjoyed covering the TIFF Kids International Film Festival in the past, but this year was especially cool. This marked the first year for any festival where I obtained an industry pass.  The TIFF Kids Industry pass entitled you to sit in on exclusive conversations, workshops, keynotes, and Q&A’s.  The team behind the festival made sure they delivered on guests who could provide truthful insight about the world of filmmaking and…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2014: Baring It All and Barely Keeping Quiet

April 21, 2014Addison Wylie2 Comments

The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is fast approaching, which means it’s time to  check out some of the docs that will be playing this year. The festival has been known to feature a variety of different work capturing all sorts of subjects and world events.  There’s simply no other festival like it, which explains why it’s become the largest film festival for docs in North America. Hot Docs is one of my favourite festivals…

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