DURHAM – Realism and connecting with your audience were the themes of the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival.
The days that numerous documentaries inspired major bidding wars, received massive publicity campaigns and pulled in healthy theatrical revenue are over. Many of the key dependable distributors have been slashed by the major studio parents. During the “State of the Doc” panel, there was no bragging about massive returns that were common during the era of March of the Penguins ($77 million) and Super-Size Me ($11 million). Magnolia was happy with the returns on Oscar winner Man on Wire from theatrical and DVD. But nobody was pricing a Porsche and a house in Malibu from their Wire share. The recession has hit the documentary world.
Matt Cowal, the VP of publicity and marketing at Magnolia said the company was more comfortable sinking a million dollars to advertise a film that makes $3 million than burn through $9 million in hopes of having the documentary crack $10 million. The tightening of promotional dollars has made marketing more strategic in an industry that loves to carpetbomb. What is the new model?
Gary Hustwit took over the discussion when it came to coming up with a new business model. The director of Helvetica and the upcoming Objectified said a good documentary film director must go straight to his audience via the internet. Helvetica became a sensation last year when the rep from Red Envelope/Netflix talked about how it was doing great numbers on the website’s WatchNow function. Why? Because graphic designers were geeking out to the documentary about the font. This wasn’t merely word of mouth. Hustwit spent his time working blogs and websites frequented by graphic designers. He made them part of the discussion of the film. It became a chapter in any good student’s textbook. He’s currently doing the same thing for Objectified which deals with designers of devices such as the iPod. No matter the subject of your documentary, there’s bound to be dozens of blogs receptive to knowing there’s a film coming out.
Hustwit also believes the documentary director needs to create a sensation when his film arrives in a town by appearing at a screening. He’s doing a cross-country journey when it opens later this spring. This is not a business for the shy. It should be noted that Hustwit worked at legendary indie label SST (Black Flag, fIREHOSE and Husker Du). He has the get in the van bravado when it comes to bring a movie to the people. He was not happy at the thought of letting the distributor take care of the “heavy work.” He likes to meet the people and share a beer with them after the screening. Plus he doesn’t want to lose control of his film.
Ira Deutchman of Emerging Pictures mentioned that digital projection should help movie theaters be able to grow an audience since they don’t have to deal with prints and storage. A film can only play once a week without it being a burden in the booth. He predicts a Midnight Movies effect can be possible. Plus it won’t require a distributor to spend $5,000 a print. But you still have to put butts in the seats.
Rick Allen of Snag Films wasn’t about the theatrical. Their company distributes documentaries over the internet using ad breaks to generate revenue. Their big boost is a connection to AOL. They place their nearly 1,000 titles into news articles related to the film. He mentioned that more people saw The Life And Times of Harvey Milk from their streams than watched it when it made it’s Oscar winning run two decades ago. There’s still not enough cash flow from online streaming to cover the nut on a quality documentary.
Molly Thompson of A&E’s IndieFilms discussed how a low budget reality series like Intervention get high ratings than when Jesus Camp ran on the channel. I asked if a filmmaker would be better off pitching an idea to A&E in which the documentary was a pilot movie for a reality series. She didn’t quite see that working. Although in a way this is how Cathouse and King of Cars went from one shot deals to shows. Although I can’t imagine weekly episodes of Burma VJ..
While some might view this panel as depressing, the words spoken by these players should be inspirational. If you’re going to make a documentary: Do it because you are passionate about the subject. If you are going to invest in a documentary: Do it because you want to spread the word about the subject. Be extremely sensible in your expenses and expectations. This isn’t a great way to get rich.
THE SCOOP
Saint Misbehavin’: The Wavy Gravy Movie proved to be a smash success. The film takes us into the life of the Woodstock icon who became an ice cream flavor. He’s the guy who served breakfast in bed to the concertgoers. He was also part of Ken Kesey’s Merry Pranksters as covered in Tom Wolfe’s Electric Acid Kool-Aid Test. His story doesn’t end as merely a relic of the ’60s. Director Michelle Esrick enlightens us to his two main passions: Camp Winnarainbow and the Seva Foundation. The Camp is for kids to learn circus skills. Seva goes around the world performing eye surgery on people who need it. Wavy has hosted numerous benefit concerts for Seva. This is a much happier and inspirational film than Rainbow Man.
After the screening, I had a chance to interview Wavy Gravy and Esrick. She had worked on this documentary for nearly a decade. His 72 years have been packed with a lot of major experience from the Beats to the psychedelic San Francisco scene. This connection made me ask a question that accidentally combine Neal Cassidy, the inspiration for Jack Kerouac’s On the Road and Jack Casady, the bassist for the Jefferson Airplane. This first segment deals with Wavy’s relationship with Neal and Jack and Jack. Plus he talks about his time with the Merry Pranksters.
Wavy now discusses the process of how he became an ice cream flavor. We also get the inside scoop on why the corporate beancounters killed his popular flavor. He reveals his plan as a frozen treat comeback as a sorbet. Finally he issues a challenge to Stephen Colbert and his Americone Dream.
Wavy gives you his surefire tip on how to come down from a bad LSD trip. The Party Favors would like you to either walk or get a sober friend to drive you to the grocery store. We do not condone people tripping behind the wheel. Wavy remembers his time at the first Woodstock. He has choice words for Fred Durst. Finally we get the answer to the question: Has Wavy Gravy met Meatloaf?
AFTER SHOW
Legendary documentarian D. A. Pennebaker was an executive producer on Saint Misbehavin’. He directed Don’t Look Back, Monterery Pop and The War Room (with his wife Chris Hegedus). We had a short unfilmed chat after the film. Turns out that contrary to rumor, he is not making a sequel to Al Franken: God Spoke. Al didn’t think it would be a good move to have a film crew following him around on his campaign to be Minnesota’s senator. Hopefully someone will construct a documentary on the insanity that is the recount that’s gone nearly half a year. Also no luck on Pennebaker making a director’s cut of Bob Dylan’s Eat the Document anytime soon.
THE FILMS
What I appreciate the most about Full Frame is that it is only about documentaries instead of mixing it up with the latest Indie drama sensations like Sundance. You’re getting an eyeful of reality instead of watching Hollywood stars slum it for a shot at Oscar gold. These are real people in jeopardy on the big screen.
The big winner of the festival was Burma VJ. Remember a few years back when we’d occasionally get reports on the news about riots in Rangoon? There wasn’t too much to show us since the military generals running the country had completely blocked all outside media from their borders. Burma VJ exposed a group of daring individuals who used small videocameras and cellphones to get the truth out to the world. Their footage is inspirational and horrifying. Ever seen a Japanese tourist with a videocamera get shot down in the street? There’s footage of a group of protesters trapped in a stairwell as the armed troops advance. These are people who are as good as dead. This is not a tourism board approved vision of the country. Burma VJ takes us to the heart of the battle for a struggle that we reduce to a blurb on a news network crawl while we get another update on the Octomom.
Unmistaken Child is a real life version of Little Buddha. A monk goes out in search of the reincarnated soul of his master. When he finds the kid, he has to talk the parents in giving up control of the child. The film also won several of the major awards. Supermen of Malegaon takes us to the indie world of Bollywood. It’s the creation of a fake Superman film minus paying any rights to use a version of the character. It’s hilarious to see the barely legal production.
Art & Copy is perfect viewing for fans of Mad Men. This is a historical appreciation of the advertising minds that brought us campaigns that have been seared into our collective minds. Did you know the same guy who created those sweet Perrier ads about the quaint village also brought us Ronald Reagan’s “It’s Morning Again in America” commercials? The troubling disclosure is that Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign was inspired by Gary Gilmore’s last words to the firing squad when he was execute in Utah. I spoke with the director and producers afterward. The big problem they had was clearing the commercials for inclusion. They had to take off the Beatles’ “Revolution” from the Nike ad since there was no way they could license the song. After seeing the film, you’ll have to hop onto youtube to see bootleg copies of the ads that couldn’t make the cut. Mechanical Love wasn’t quite Lars and the Real Girl Come Alive. The film focuses on a more platonic robot-human relationship. A woman at a retirement home gets happiness from taking care of her cyber-seal pup. The interaction keeps her active versus the other elderly ladies. The bizarre part is a Japanese scientist making an android version of himself. His goal is to see how his wife and child react to the replacement dad. He thinks the wife will like the robo-hubby since the guy will pay attention to her. It’s a creepy film that can be a precursor to The Terminator.
Wounded Knee breaks down the time in 1973 when the American Indian Movement took over a small town in South Dakota to protest the injustices at a nearby reservation. The filmmakers got their hands on plenty of original footage to let us get a sense of the stand off. All sides get their say in the recent interviews. Like Burma VJ, we get to see the heart of the battle as it happened. This is scheduled to play on PBS soon. Bitch Academy takes us inside a class that teaches Russian women how to seduce and marry rich Western men. It’s almost a stripper education for these ladies.
The film that made me a raving cheerleader was Smile Til It Hurts: The Up With People Story. Because the movie is under a review embargo, I’m not allowed to say too much. If you every wondered if those lame kids who used to sing at halftime of the Super Bowl were part of a freakish cult, this movie answers the question. It’s a “family friendly” creepfest. What makes this documentary really work is that director Lee Story and crew were able to interview every side from the disenchanted ex-members to the guy who ran it. Did you know they paid to be a part of the show? Your impression of these kids will change by the end of the film. They also have tons of vintage footage including their squeaky clean Super Bowl performances. When “Smile Til It Hurts comes to your town, run down to the cinema or festival.
Once more Full Frame proved to be a top tier film festival with it’s line up. It’s impossible to see all the films they show, but I never felt completely cheated by the ones I chose. They wrapped it up with an Awards lunch featuring BBQ. Mmmmmm. Nothing tastes like victory than a plate of BBQ and a sweet tea. If you have a free week in April, come on down for next year’s festival. I’ll save a hush puppy for you.
DVD SHELF
American Swing gets inside the world of Plato’s Retreat. The legendary Manhattan swingers club rose to fame in the late ’70s with its message of sexual liberation for married couples. The club was a great place to bring the wife, meet interesting people and catch their crabs. Larry Levinson was the owner of Plato’s. He became the spokesperson for the swinging lifestyle. We get to see him on various talkshows including Phil Donahue old chatter. The movie is hilarious with Buck Henry and others talking about the buffet they served at the sex club. They didn’t have a sneeze guard. Who knew what dripped on the meatloaf. The most disturbing part of the film is realizing that the proclaimed King of Swing wasn’t really a swinger. He had a girlfriend that was the semi-Queen of the club, but she was a figurehead in his life. They weren’t a couple. Larry was guy who liked to screw and built a kingdom to get him more ladies than a fleet of Corvettes. There’s the hint that mobsters controlled this den of sin. What makes this documentary better than any talking head effort on VH1 is that there’s tons of X-rated footage from inside Plato’s Retreat. For folks with a fetish for ’70s Bridge and Tunnel grooming, you’ll be chicken choking heaven. I dare you to watch this with grandma and ask if she had the double fro in ’77.
Ron White: Behavioral Problems brings more insight from the boozing member of The Blue Collar Comedy Tour. He’s my favorite of the quartet. Ron’s the only one I can imagine paying to see. This performance from Seattle allows him to breakdown his recent bust for marijuana possession when the cops cornered his private jet. He talks about how the pleasure of a bidet has made him understand the allure of gay sex. The talk about anal sex with his wife is right on the mark. The DVD gives 40 more minutes to his routine than what you’ll catch on the Comedy Central version of the special. It’s worth it for his talk about Brokeback Mountain. You’ll never spit in your hand again without thinking of Ron’s take.
Splinter is the perfect excuse to not take your significant other on a camping trip. A happy couple (Paulo Costanzo and Jill Wagner) go on a romantic outdoor vacation. She’s lured him into the wilderness with the promise of anniversary sex under the stars. However things go wrong when they’re taken hostage by an escaped convict (Shea Whigham) and his girlfriend (Rachel Kerbs). Normally that’s enough for a film, but this one takes a monster twist. A weird virus is spreading that turns creatures into killer porcupines. The couples are trapped inside a country service station while the monsters attack wanting to make them monsters. This is good spooky fun with the vicious, spiny creatures tearing up the screen. Splinter is the Party Favors’ scare-fest of the week.
Hawaii Five-O: The Sixth Season brings another dose of island justice to the mainland. You can’t top Steve McGarrett (Jack Lord) as the ultimate lawman since he answers to nobody when he’s on a case. “Hookman” has a sniper going around killing cops. He’s got a bullet for McGarrett. The twist is the killer has hooks for hands thus he leaves no fingerprints at the crime scenes. “Charter for Death” has Bert Convy playing a mobster’s son-in-law. They’re smuggling themselves back into America except they caught bubonic plague. The Five-O crew have to track him down before he infects the town. “One Big Happy Family” is a stunner since it has Slim Pickens (Blazing Saddles) being the father of a murderous family. Have you ever seen Slim knife a man to death? His equally cold blooded son is Bo Hopkins. He’s the guy who looked like Jerry Reed in those Burt Reynolds’ films. Hawaii Five-O: The Sixth Season has the show being more grounded in the cop work than the freaky sci-fi angles. There’s no Wo Fat this season.
Mission: Impossible: The Sixth TV Season is the penultimate outing for the espionage series. Lynda Day George has replaced Lesley Ann Warren as the female member of the task force. Leonard Nimoy is gone after two seasons. But they didn’t replace him with a new man of a 1,000 faces mimic. We’re left with Peter Graves, Peter Lupus and Greg Morris as the key team members. The show in 1971-72 season focuses on them fighting mobsters. There’s not too many missions involving Latin America or Eastern Bloc countries. “Blind” has Peter Graves using a special pair of contact lens to fake being blind. Can he fool a mobster into letting him take over the inner sanctum. Tom Bosley (Happy Days) is part of the mob. “Encore” has the team make William Shatner (Star Trek) fooled into thinking it’s three decades earlier. They want to know where he hid a body. Can they fool him into a flashback confession? “The Miracle” brings us the magic of Joe Don Baker. They have to locate a heroin shipment. Russ Meyer’s mega-star and Squidbilly voice Charles Napier is a thug on “Run for the Money.” Geoffrey Lewis (the man who isn’t Robert Pine) is part of a devious plot to put a murder witness into mental hospital in “The Committed.” Following up his Hawaii Five-O guest shot, Bert Convy is back in “Trapped.” The shift to domestic missions helps the show since they no longer have to redress the Desliu studios as an alleged foreign country. Rumor has it the final season will be out this fall.
Jake and the Fatman: Season Two was a major game changer for the series since they decided to send William Conrad and Joe Penny to Hawaii. Why the location shift? To fill the production gap left by Magnum P.I. Because of a writer’s strike, season two only had the two-hour movie and 9 episodes. “Wish You Were Here” has Jake fly to Hawaii to visit an old buddy. Things go bad when the guy is killed by a sniper. There’s a few Hawaii Five-O alumni on this episode including Al Harrington (Det. Ben Kokua) and Khigh Dhiegh (Wo Fat) still on their same side of the law. The new location does pretty up the gruff Fatman. He’s an unshaven Buddha in a tropical paradise. Can the Fatman clean up the islands like Jack Lord?
A Song Is Born brings together Howard Hawks and Billy Wilder in a world of jazz legends. A gangster’s moll (Virginia Mayo) hides from the cops at a musical research institute. She attacks the eye of the head professor (Danny Kaye). Can he impress a woman who has a thing for extremely bad boys? The highlight of the film is getting to see Tommy Dorsey, Louis Armstrong, Lionel Hampton and Benny Goodman perform in Technicolor.
It’s a Pleasure will answer the question for fans of Car Talk that wonder what they mean by “Sonja Henie’s tutu.” The ice skating sensation stars in this Technicolor romance on ice. This is an early version of The Cutting Edge. Michael O’Shea is hockey player that’s banned from the sport after he beats up a ref. His only chance at redemption is to become Sonja Henie’s figure skating partner. Can he clean up his act? He gets tempted to party up with Marie McDonald skates onto the ice. There’s plenty of great skating action that should appeal to the fans of the sport.
The Goldwyn Follies is a Technicolor musical featuring the music of George and Ira Gershwin. Adolphe Menjou is the producer of box office hits who hits a cold streak. In order to connect to the little people, he hires Andrea Leeds to connect to the common man. However his wants to connect with her on a carnal basis. Things get complicated when singer Kenny Baker also wants Andrea. Producer versus crooner is never a fair fight since a producer really knows how to thrill a woman with a production. The songs include “Love Walked In” and “Love Is Here to Stay.” It’s a fun nostalgic view of an innocent love triangle that glows like its hues.
GIVEAWAY
CBS DVD is letting us send 5 lucky Party Favors readers a copy of Mission: Impossible: The Sixth TV Season. If you chose to accept this giveaway, all you need to do is answer this question: What hosts of Tattle Tales and Raw Nerve are guest villains on this boxset. Send the answers along with your name and address to mokaha@aol.com. Put “Mission: Impossible 6” in the subject line. Contest ends on April 29, 2009. Good luck. This column won’t go up in smoke.
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