This year we will be accepting documentary films that fit our themes WATER and OIL. Both are resources that are fundamental to our way of life and have defined our civilization. Wars have been fought over them, national boundaries drawn and with the ecological and economic challenges of the 21st century, their future is far from certain. We are interested in films that explore these issues and invite filmmakers to submit films that relate to either or both resources.
In partnership with Hot Docs, Global Visions Film Festival is proud to present DOC SOUP, a monthly series that brings the best in new documentaries to Edmonton. Subscriptions are available at the beginning of each season; single tickets are $10 at the door or through TIX on the square.
May
SOUNDTRACK FOR A REVOLUTION
D: Bill Guttentag & Dan Sturman Civil rights activist and film subject Lula Joe Williams in attendance!
Thursday, May 6 @ 7:00 pm
Metro Cinema, Zeidler Hall in the Citadel Theatre, 9828 – 101A Avenue
SOUNDTRACK FOR A REVOLUTION tells the story of the American civil rights movement through its powerful music – the freedom songs protesters sang on picket lines, in mass meetings, paddy wagons and in jail cells as they fought for justice and equality. The music and its infectious energy enabled African-Americans to sing words they could not say, helping protesters to face down brutal aggression with dignity and non-violence. Featuring new performances of these freedom songs by such celebrated performers as John Legend, Joss Stone, Wyclef Jean and The Roots, the film couples thrilling performances with riveting archival footage and interviews with civil rights foot soldiers and leaders, including Congressman John Lewis and Julian Bond. Directed by Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman (NANKING) and executive produced by Danny Glover, SOUNDTRACK FOR A REVOLUTION is a film of poignancy, energy, and power.
Admission with Doc Soup subscription Single tickets: $10 at door / or at tixonthesquare.ca
“A stirring civics lesson combined with glossy modern music videos of the movement's greatest hits” - Variety
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April
OCTOBER COUNTRY
D: Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher
Thursday, April 1 @ 7:00 pm
Metro Cinema, Zeidler Hall in the Citadel Theatre, 9828 – 101A Avenue
Every family has its ghosts - some metaphorical, some literal. The Mosher family has more than most. Shot over a year from one Halloween to the next, the film uses rich visual metaphors and floats through multiple storylines to paint a portrait of a family who are unique but also sadly representative of the struggles of America's working class. A beautifully rendered portrait of an American family struggling for stability, this vibrant and intimate documentary examines the forces that unsettle the working poor and the violence that lurks beneath the surface of American life.
Admission with Doc Soup subscription Single tickets: $10 at door
“Something special… visually seductive, conceptually concise” - Filmmaker Magazine
“Moody, amusing, stunningly filmed and riveting” - The Huffington Post
D: Lixin Fan
THURSDAY, MARCH 4 7:00 PM
METRO CINEMA (9828 – 101A AVENUE) $10.00
Every spring, China’s cities are plunged into chaos, as all at once a tidal wave of humanity attempts to return home by train. It is the Chinese New Year. The wave is made up of millions of migrant factory workers – an epic spectacle that tells us much about China, a country discarding traditional ways as it hurtles towards modernity and global economic power. In classic cinema verité style, Chinese-Canadian director Lixin Fan draws us into the fractured lives of the Zhangs, a single migrant family caught up in this desperate annual migration, as they navigate through the stark and difficult choices of a society caught between old ways and new realities. Can they get ahead and still undo some of the damage that has been done to their family? Intimate and candid, LAST TRAIN HOME paints a human portrait of the dramatic changes sweeping China.
WINNER!- Best Feature-Length Documentary, IDFA
“If there is just one film to watch from IDFA this year, it would likely be LAST TRAIN HOME” – IndieWIRE
D: Jenna Rosher
Thursday, February 4 @ 7:00 pm
Metro Cinema, Zeidler Hall in the Citadel Theatre, 9828 – 101A Avenue
Admission with Doc Soup subscription; single tickets $10 at door
Junior is Eddie Belasco, a 75-year old San Francisco native and theatre vet who epitomizes the old school Italian. Eddie's childhood was straight out of a Martin Scorsese film. Like most young Italian-American boys he had the utmost respect for his 'Ma,'. Now with his kids all grown up and three failed marriages behind him, Eddie is left to face his future as a retiree.
Junior documents the last two seasons of Eddie's theater company. He has decided to call it quits. Declining ticket sales and enrollment has left Eddie with no other choice. His 65-year battle with diabetes is also beginning to take its toll. The glaucoma has made it impossible for him to see. A director without vision, it seems unfair.
We watch as he stumbles through this process, but not alone. His 98-year old mother Josie is there to remind him of the beauty of life.
"Junior" and Josey might make the most co-dependent and heartwarming pair since Big Edie and Little Edie of Grey Gardens fame. Jenna Rosher's touching, laugh-out-loud documentary perfectly captures their endearing relationship for the ages.
Filled with good food and rich memories. Junior explores the one thing we as a society fear most...growing old.
WINNER! Audience Award, Sheffield Doc/Fest; Best Feature Documentary, Woodstock Film Festival
“Beautifully observed… a deeply touching portrait of the ageing process” – Time Out London
WATCH THE TRAILER: http://www.docsoup.ca/index.php/2008/edmonton/
January
Presumed Guilty
d. Roberto Hernandez / Geoffrey Smith
Thursday, January 7 @ 7:00 pm
Metro Cinema, Zeidler Hall in the Citadel Theatre, 9828 – 101A Avenue
Admission with Doc Soup subscription; single tickets $10 at door
(filmmaker Roberto Hernandez* will be in attendance)
On the day of the murder he was accused of, Antonio wasn't anywhere near the crime scene. Nevertheless, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Two young Mexican attorneys attempt to exonerate the wrongly convicted man by making a documentary. Due to a technicality, the case has to be reopened. This time around, Antonio has a better lawyer, but the judge is the same and he doesn't seem to like him.
Presumed Guilty exposes an unsound legal system in which detectives, district attorneys and judges barely investigate whether someone is guilty. They appear to want to close a case as quickly as possible: if they have marked a suspect, he or she stands little chance of getting off. It's no coincidence that 90% of defendants are found guilty in Mexico.
Strikingly, breakdancer and rapper Antonio remains optimistic despite all this cynicism. Shot with a hand-held camera and accompanied by raw hip-hop beats, the film shows the retake of his trial from beginning to end.
Metro Cinema, Zeidler Hall in the Citadel Theatre, 9828 – 101A Avenue
Admission with Doc Soup subscription; single tickets $10 at door
From December 2009 to May 2010, enjoy the finest documentaries the world has to offer. At many screenings you'll get to meet and engage with the filmmakers. To ensure we program the most current films, the titles are announced one month before each screening.
Doc Soup subscriptions are $50 and make great Christmas gifts for film lovers.
