BEYOND THE BOX MONTHLY from ITVS
November 2009
1. FEATURES
Independent Lens on PBS’s COVE
Returning Home: Interactive Website to Honor American Soldiers
Independent Lens Season Launch Party
Native American Heritage Month Programming
Newly Funded ITVS Programs
New Projects Selected for ITVS International Call
Filmmaker Hugo Perez Recounts Unlikely Collaboration
2. DEPARTMENTS
ITVS Funding Deadlines
Ask Programming
Community Cinema
ITVS in the News
ITVS on the Road
Applause!
3. NEW ONLINE
Beyond the Box Blog Highlights
4. THIS MONTH ON TV
November Programs
Independent Lens Available on PBS’s COVE
Interested in watching full-length episodes of Independent Lens and your other favorite PBS series online? Look no further—PBS recently launched its new video player: COVE (Comprehensive Online Video Ecosystem).
Like the iTunes’ interface, COVE allows users to flip through content horizontally across the screen in a series of stacked images.
The player also features a search engine that locates material by topic or program title; “most watched” and “most emailed” video links at the bottom of the screen; and buttons for sharing and e-mailing videos or buying copies on DVD.
Select full-length episodes of Independent Lens will be available the day after broadcast for seven days. Other program-related video––such as trailers and video extras––will also be available.
JOURNALS OF A WILY SCHOOL, which looks at the life of a young pickpocket in Kolkata, India, is currently available.
Visit COVE this Wednesday to watch POWER PATHS, which depicts the struggle Indian tribes and their allies face in producing solar and wind energy.
Watch Independent Lens and other PBS series on COVE >>
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Returning Home: Interactive Website to Honor American Soldiers
On call for the past six years, a group of senior citizens have made history by greeting nearly one million U.S. troops at a tiny airport in Maine. THE WAY WE GET BY, an ITVS-funded documentary airing on P.O.V. this month, tells their uplifting and emotional journey and demonstrates the meaning of community at a time when America needs it most.
Inspired by the film, Returning Home is a new interactive website that seeks to ensure that American soldiers, both newly returned and those whose service ended many years ago, are not forgotten. Returning Home provides a place to share thoughts, photos, video or audio and to find support. Like the Maine troop greeters featured in the film, the site will honor American soldiers as they return from duty, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The site launches on Veterans Day.
Sign up for an email alert when the site launches >>
THE WAY WE GET BY premieres on Veterans Day, November 11 at 9:00 PM on P.O.V. on PBS. Check local listings >>
The program will also stream in its entirety online from November 12 to December 12 on PBS’s COVE. Learn more >>
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Independent Lens Season Launch Party
We're really excited about this season of Independent Lens! To celebrate, we recently hosted a season launch party in Beverly Hills and awarded this year's Independent Lens Vanguard Award.
Who won? What happened at the party?
Find out on Beyond the Box blog >>
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Native American Heritage Month Programming
This month, as the nation observes Native American Heritage Month, ITVS will offer two new compelling documentaries.
POWER PATHS, airing November 3 on Independent Lens, looks at how Native American tribes are turning to solar and wind sources to provide clean sustainable energy for cities across the west. Their traditional values regarding conservation and the earth offer real solutions to America’s energy crisis. A co-production of NAPT.
SUMMER SUN, WINTER MOON, airing this month on public television (check local listings), tells the story of an unexpected collaboration between a Blackfeet poet and an unconventional classical composer that led to a unique work of art from the perspective of American Indians today.
Also be sure to check out these ITVS encore presentations airing this month on public television: TRUE WHISPERS: The Story of the Navajo Code Talkers, MISS NAVAJO and MARCH POINT.
Get more information about these films and other upcoming ITVS program >>
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ITVS funds, distributes and promotes new programs produced by independent producers primarily for public television and beyond.
We’re proud to announce the latest projects recently funded by ITVS. We look forward to working with the filmmakers to support their broadcasts and continued efforts to bring diverse programming to viewers. Congratulations to all the filmmakers!
Visit Beyond the Box blog to see newly funded ITVS programs >>
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New Projects Selected for ITVS International Call
ITVS recently contracted six projects from ITVS International Call 2009, providing them with production funding and eventual U.S. television broadcast.
This year’s application process was highly competitive and included 482 submissions from 82 countries––spanning the globe and offering insights from countries such as Chile, Kenya, Vietnam and Jordan. Since the launch of the Call in 2005, nearly 91 international programs have been supported through ITVS International’s Global Perspectives Project and its International Media Development Fund.
Learn more about ITVS International Call and see which films were selected >>
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Filmmaker Hugo Perez Recounts Unlikely Collaboration
SUMMER SUN WINTER MOON airs this month on public television. The film tells the story of an unlikely collaboration between a Blackfeet poet and an unconventional classical composer who together create a provocative symphony about the Lewis and Clark expedition from the perspective of American Indians today.
Filmmaker Hugo Perez recounts the adventurous story of how the collaboration occurred and how he and composer Rob Kapilow were accidentally mistaken for federal agents.
Get a behind-the-scenes look >>
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OPEN CALL
Deadline: January 15, 2010
The online application will be posted this month.
Open Call provides finishing funds for single non-fiction or animation public television programs on any subject and from any viewpoint. Projects must have begun production as evidenced by a work-in-progress video.
Have additional questions about Open Call? Email Karim_Ahmad@itvs.org or call 415-356-8383 x259.
INTERNATIONAL CALL
Deadline: February 5, 2010
The ITVS International Call enables independent producers from outside the United States to create documentaries for U.S. television. Through International Call, storytellers from other countries introduce U.S. audiences to their global neighbors, opening a window into unfamiliar lives, experiences and perspectives.\
Find more information about guidelines and how to apply >>
Have additional questions about the Call and the International Media Development Fund? Email Joy_Scott@itvs.org or call 415-356-8383 x232.
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Each year, ITVS fields well over 1,000 applications for program funding. In reviewing a documentary proposal, there are seven criteria that ITVS and its peer reviewers consider in their evaluations.
As you craft your own application for funding, these are important to keep in mind.
Visit Beyond the Box blog to learn the seven criteria >>
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This month, ITVS Community Cinema presents BETWEEN THE FOLDS, directed by Vanessa Gould.
Think origami is just paper planes and cranes? Meet a determined group of theoretical scientists and fine artists who have abandoned careers and scoffed at graduate degrees to forge new lives as modern-day paper folders. Together they reinterpret the world in paper, creating a wild mix of sensibilities toward art, science, creativity and meaning.
Community Cinema screenings of BETWEEN THE FOLDS will include special presentations and discussions with leading community organizations in over 50 locations around the country.
Find program descriptions, event locations and more >>
COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS ScreeningsLast month, Community Cinema screened the Independent Lens film COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS, which examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, including the related debates over artistic expression, copyright law and (of course) money. Find out what happened at screenings in Kansas City, MO, and Iowa City from filmmaker Kembrew Mcleod.
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Media coverage of current, past and upcoming broadcasts:
USA Today: Watch, Listen and Read
“Independent Lens gets off to a cracking start with the strange-but-true tale of HERB & DOROTHY…”
The New York Times: What to Watch
“Independent Lens begins its eighth season with Megumi Sasaki’s HERB & DOROTHY, which Nathan Lee called a ‘modest, touching documentary’ in The New York Times.”
NewsHour Blog: HERB & DOROTHY, a Love Story About Art, Opens New Season of Independent Lens
Correspondent Jeffrey Brown interviews Megumi Sasaki, the director and producer of HERB & DOROTHY. [TRT: 7 minutes].
Vanity Fair: Remembering Hannah Senesh
Filmmaker Roberta Grossman sits down with Vanity Fair writer Jim Windolf to discuss her latest film, BLESSED IS THE MATCH. The film is part of this season of Independent Lens.
Indian Country Today: POWER PATHS to Air Nationally on Independent Lens
“From the Sioux tribes of the Great Plains in the Midwest to the Navajo and Hopi of the Southwest, tribes are fighting to protect their land, air and water from the harmful impacts of mining and coal burning and lead the nation in transitioning to renewable energy sources like wind and solar power.”
Wired: Origami Documentary Goes BETWEEN THE FOLDS
“In BETWEEN THE FOLDS filmmaker Vanessa Gould explores the expression of mathematics through origami.”
Join ITVS staff here, there and everywhere.
Miradas de Cine
Canary Islands, Spain
November 2-6
ITVS International Programming Coordinator Joy-Marie Scott will be meeting with filmmakers from Asia, Africa and Latin America, participating on a pitching panel, screening documentaries and giving an ITVS International presentation.
AFI DigiFest
Los Angeles, CA
November 4-5
Karim Ahmad, programming manager, and Matthew Meschery, director of digital initiatives, will attend November 4 and present a distribution/promotion tool for a new online series by ITVS, the culmination of this year’s AFI Digital Content Lab.
Sheffield International Documentary Festival
Sheffield, England
November 4-8
Claire Aguilar, ITVS vice president of programming, will be participating in the Doc/Fest Marketplace, the MeetMarket and the Doc/Fest Special Jury.
Doing Your Doc
San Antonio, TX
November 6-8
Senior Programming Manager Richard Saiz will be participating in a producer’s workshop.
Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival
Copenhagen, Denmark
November 6-15
ITVS International Programming Manager Cynthia Kane will be attending November 10-15 and participating in the pitching forum, one-on-one meetings and screenings. She will also give a presentation on ITVS International.
International Documentary Festival of Amsterdam (IDFA)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
November 19-29
Claire Aguilar, ITVS vice president of programming, will be attending November 22-26 and participating in the co-production FORUM as commissioning editor for ITVS. She will represent two ITVS projects: THE IMMIGRATION PROJECT by Marco Williams and GIVE UP TOMORROW by Marty Syjuco and Michael Collins. Publicity Manager Voleine Amilcar will be meeting one-on-one with select international filmmakers and organizing an event to honor ITVS-funded filmmakers.
Ventana Sur: Doc Buenos Aires/Latin Side of the Doc
Buenos Aires, Argentina
November 25-27
ITVS International Programming Manager Cynthia Kane will be attending meetings and screenings and giving a presentation on ITVS International with Paola Castillo and Tiziana Panizza, filmmakers of 74 SQUARE METERS.
A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILLES, by S. Leo Chiang, which tells the story of a Vietnamese American community on the edge of New Orleans who fought the opening of a nearby toxic government-imposed landfill, won the Best Documentary prize at the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival and the Audience Award at the New Orleans Film Festival.
NO SUBTITLES NECESSARY: Laszlo & Vilmos, by James Chressanthis, which follows cinematographers Laszlo Kovacs and Vilmos Zsigmond from their escape from Soviet-controlled Hungary to their rise to prominence in the late 60s and 70s in Hollywood, won the Best Documentary Award at the New Orleans Film Festival.
Congratulations!
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Beyond the Box Blog Highlights
Get the latest news highlights from ITVS: Learn more about recently funded Open Call projects, LINCS funding and partnerships and watch an exclusive behind-the-scenes companion video to TATTOOED UNDER FIRE, which airs this month on public television. All this and more on Beyond the Box blog.
Open Call Recipients: ITVS's Open Call provides finishing funds for single non-fiction or animation public television programs on any subject and from any viewpoint. The next deadline to apply is January 15, 2010. Interested in learning which films received funding in the previous round?Watch exclusive interviews with funded filmmakers >>
Behind-the-Scenes: TATTOOED UNDER FIRE: Check out this companion video to TATTOOED UNDER FIRE, which airs this month on public television. The film looks at River City Tattoo Parlor in Killeen, Texas––home to America’s largest military base. Meet war-bound and returning soldiers who go under the needle and share their deepest secrets and fears.
LINCS Stations Profile: KLRU: LINCS provides matching funds (up to $100,000) to partnerships between public television stations and independent producers. Learn more about a recent LINCS partnership with KLRU-Austin and the film TATTOOED UNDER FIRE.
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TIP: Visit itvs.org/shows to get a listing of all ITVS programming airing in the next few weeks. Don't miss these ITVS presentations this month.
POWER PATHS
By Bo Boudart
November 3 at 10:00 PM on Independent Lens on PBS
It's time to cut our dependence on fossil fuel and pursue renewable energy. But how can it be done? Native American tribes turn to solar and wind sources to provide clean sustainable energy for cities across the West. Their traditional values toward conservation and the earth offer real solutions to America's energy crisis.
D TOUR
By Jim Granato
November 10 at 10:00 PM on Independent Lens on PBS
Pat Spurgeon has big dreams to make it as an indie rock musician. Just as his career is about to take off, he suffers an incredible setback when one of his kidneys begins to fail. Follow Pat on his emotional search for a living organ donor. Can he balance his health with a rock ‘n' roll lifestyle?
THE WAY WE GET BY
By Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly
November 11 at 10:00 PM on P.O.V. on PBS
On call 24/7 for the past six years, three senior citizens have made history by greeting nearly one million U.S. troops at a tiny airport in Maine. Filled with unexpected turns, THE WAY WE GET BY reveals their uplifting and emotional journey and demonstrates the meaning of community at a time when America needs it most.
NO SUBTITLES NECESSARY: Laszlo & Vilmos
By James Chressanthis
November 17 at 10:00 PM on Independent Lens on PBS
They took Hollywood by storm––escaping the brutal Soviet oppression of the Hungarian Revolution and rising to fame with classic films like Easy Rider, Deliverance, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and The Deer Hunter. Cinematographers Laszlo Kovacs and Vilmos Zsigmond pioneered the "American New Wave," defining innovative ways to tell stories. This is an intimate portrait of the 50-year journey of two giants of modern image-making and their deep bond of brotherhood that transcended every imaginable obstacle.
OBJECTIFIED
By Gary Hustwit
November 24 at 10:00 PM on Independent Lens on PBS
How does the design of your cell phone, toothbrush or couch impact your life? Did you ever stop to think about it? Director Gary Hustwit (HELVETICA) looks at our complex relationship with manufactured objects, the people who design them and the creative process behind their work. Step inside the offices of the world's most influential product designers to see how these objects influence us––oftentimes without us even knowing it.
CHINESE SCHOOL
By Marcus Jones, Sarah Howitt, Sarah Hamilton, Daisy Newton Dunn and Drankie Fathers
November 24 on Link TV
More than 350 million children are enrolled in schools across the vast nation of China. Over the course of a year, CHINESE SCHOOL looks at a small school in the rural town of Anhui where a group of families, teachers and children reveal stories of hardship, joy and success.
SUMMER SUN WINTER MOON
By Hugo Perez
November 2009 on Public Television
A symphony inspired by the Lewis and Clark expedition brings together two individuals from different worlds: Rob Kapilow, a celebrated composer trying to breathe new life into classical music, and Darrell Robes Kipp, a Blackfeet Indian writer fighting to save his language from extinction. SUMMER SUN WINTER MOON tells the story of an unexpected collaboration that led to a unique work of art from the perspective of American Indians today.
TATTOOED UNDER FIRE
By Nancy Schiesari
November 2009 on Public Television
In the heart of central Texas lies the city of Killeen––home to Fort Hood, America's largest military base. Across the street from the base, at River City Tattoo Parlor, many of the war-bound and returning soldiers go under the needle, openly professing their patriotism, sharing their secrets and confessing their deepest fears. TATTOOED UNDER FIRE looks at the unconventional work of tattoo parlor owner Roxanne Willis and gives a highly personal glimpse into the human and cultural cost of war.
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