Category: News

The experience of sharing Dancing in Jaffa with the San Diego and Tijuana communities was very profound for me, both in terms of people’s reaction to the film, and the stimulating dialogue that later ensued. 
Even though Southern California and Mexico are far away from Jaffa, these audiences were able to identify with the children depicted in the film — Noor, Alaa and Lois — in a deep way. This enabled me to see firsthand how the issues portrayed in the film are relevant in other parts of the world.

New projects selected for support include a wide range of filmmaking styles and approaches including experimental, character driven narrative nonfiction, and investigative documentaries. Stories range from very personal  moments (Art and Craft, Never Better) to cultural  appreciation (Like Ants for Sugar) and examples of social inquiry (The Campus Project, Down By Law). Together these artists engage with distinctive stories in creative ways.

Is being a hero meaningless? Do we need superheroes or normal people who are doing good things every day? Who are they? Our neighbors, friends, people we know? That’s the question I asked people from the audience at Circles screenings over my four days in San Diego and Tijuana, during which we discussed our need to be good humans. I spoke with different people–young people from the public high school Lazaro Cardenas in Tijuana, people of all ages in Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice at the University of San Diego, and people who came to watch Circles at the San Diego Public Library.

March 11, 2014 (Beverly Hills, CA) — The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts and Sundance Institute are collaborating to present two events exploring the role of music in film: ComposersLab: LA On Stage with world-renowned composer Harry Gregson-Williams on Sunday, March 30 at 2:00pm; and ComposersLab: LA on Saturday, April 12 for composers working in film and television. Both programs will provide an intimate, behind-the-scenes look into the creative process of a film composer.
ComposersLab: LA On Stage – March 30 Peter Golub, Director of the Sundance Institute Film Music Program will lead a conversation with Gregson-Williams, one of the most successful and exciting film composers working today and the talent behind the film scores of the Shrek series, The Chronicles of Narnia, Kingdom of Heaven, Man on Fire, and Spy Game, among many others.

I make films to share them with people, and personally one of the most interesting and important aspects is to see and feel the audience’s reaction to my work, and to engage with them in dialogue. When Film Forward chose to include Dancing in Jaffa in this year’s program, I was especially excited to have the opportunity to share the film and be present at these places where the audience wouldn’t otherwise have a chance to see the film, and I wouldn’t have had a chance to meet these people. I have been thinking about the themes Dancing in Jaffa presents and the ways they are relevant to the people who live in San Diego and Tijuana.

Last April, I attended the Skoll World Forum in Oxford, England, as part of the Sundance Documentary Film Program delegation. The SWF is an annual convening of social entrepreneurs and world-renowned problem solvers to come together for critical debates, discussions, and work sessions aimed at innovating, accelerating and scaling solutions to social challenges. There’s even a little time set aside every year for some pretty darn good karaoke.

Documentaries come in many flavors. Some are a call to action. Some exist just to entertain.

Behind the scenes and screens of the Sundance Film Festival, the Sundance/Skoll Stories of Change program quietly comes to life. For four days while the Festival is in full swing, smack in the middle of premieres, panels and parties, two groups of international award winners – Sundance filmmakers and Skoll Foundation social entrepreneurs – come together to explore the power of storytelling to deepen social movements.
We form an intimate tribe – four inspired story experts are paired with four visionary nonprofit groups, and over the course of the Convening we engage in a wide range of activities together (from walking and talking to pecha kucha) to help the social entrepreneurs develop authentic and strategic approaches to storytelling in the context of their world-shifting operations, and to provide a vibrant experience for filmmakers where they can access and share their creativity in wholly new ways.

February 23rd
No sleep. Woke up, ate. Have to have the most important meal of the day.

One of the most thrilling aspects of my work at the Feature Film Program is discovering and working with first- and second-time narrative feature filmmakers. As part of our ongoing efforts to expand the different ways in which we support emerging artists, we are excited to announce the four newest members of our family, Feature Film Program development Fellows MK Asante, Aurora Guerrero, Nate Parker, and Stacie Passon, each of whom is the recipient of a $5,000 development grant as well as two designated screenwriter mentors. They will also be part of our year-round project support continuum that provides customized tactical and creative support from script to the screen.

The documentary format has long been a spotlight for the unheralded and the unsung (pun possibly intended) and that theme holds true in Morgan Neville’s soulful film 20 Feet From Stardom. Reflecting on an era when backup singers played a pivotal role in composing the body of a record, 20 Feet transports viewers to the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s when virtual unknowns such as Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer, and Judith Hill played second fiddle on iconic songs and albums credited to their more famous contemporaries. Neville stuffs the film full of interviews with luminaries such as Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Mick Jagger and Sting, among many others, who provide one-of-a-kind commentary and intimate tales culled from their years in the industry.

Hovering above Jackson on what feels like a submarine with wings. Didn’t sleep a wink on my last night here. Instead, I drifted in and out of a Netflix-induced fog.