Stay tuned for more giveaways here at The Documentary Blog!

It’s been a while, but we’ve got another DVD giveaway thanks to the great folks over at Oscilloscope Laboratories. This time around it’s the punk-rock daddy documentary The Other F Word, which hits DVD January 31st, 2012. Here’s the synopsis:

This revealing and touching film asks what happens when a generation’s ultimate anti-authoritarians – punk rockers – become society’s ultimate authorities – dads. With a large chorus of punk rock’s leading men – Blink-182′s Mark Hoppus, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea, Rise Against’s Tim McIlrath – THE OTHER F WORD follows Jim Lindberg, a 20-year veteran of the skate punk band Pennywise, on his hysterical and moving journey from belting his band’s anthem ”F–k Authority,” to embracing his ultimately authoritarian role in mid-life: fatherhood.

As always, Oscilloscope gives their releases the royal treatment, and this one is no different. Here’s a look at the special features included on this disc:

Feature length audio commentary with Jim Lindberg (Pennywise / The Black Pacific), Art Alexakis (Everclear), director Andrea Blaugrund Nevins, and producer Cristan Reilly
Outtakes – including Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo) and Dr. Drew
Acoustic performance outtakes of “Father of Mine” (Art Alexakis) and “Swing Life Away” (Tim McIlrath)
Post-screening Q&A at SXSW Film Festival premiere
Music videos by The Black Pacific: “Living With Ghosts” and “The System”
Original theatrical trailer

If you’d like to enter for a chance to win a copy of The Other F Word on DVD, simply send me an email here with ‘F WORD’ in the subject line. Be sure to include your full name and mailing address and I will announce the winner sometime next week. Good luck!

Be sure to head over to the Sons of Perdition website for information on how you can own/see the film.

It’s been a while since we’ve had a giveaway around here so let’s get December started with an early X-mas present! Thanks to director Tyler Measom, we’re giving away a DVD copy of his award winning film Sons of Perdition. Some of you may remember the film and its director’s (Tyler and co-director Jennilyn Merten) from their appearance on episode #11 of The Documentary Blog podcast. The film looks at a group of teenage boys who are exiled from their polygamous Utah community and are forced to integrate into the real world. Seems like a great double bill with Lucy Walker’s The Devil’s Playground. Here’s the synopsis:

“Sons of Perdition” profiles a group of teenage boys who were banished from the polygamous Utah community led by controversial spiritual leader Warren Jeffs. By following the journey of a group of boys who must navigate the real world after being purposefully raised to be ignorant, the film shows a vivid picture of the power that Jeffs wields over his followers, and daily struggles faced by teens who can’t go back to their families, even if they want to do so.

Sons of Perdition received an R-rating due to its “adult language”, but this DVD edition of the film will feature an alternate “family friendly” audio track with all of the swearing removed (making Cleanflix’s job that much easier). If you’d like to enter to win a copy of Sons of Perdition on DVD, simply send me an email here with ‘PERDITION’ in the subject line. Be sure to include your full name and mailing address and I will announce the winner sometime next week. Good luck!

Be sure to check out the Sons of Perdition official website for more info on how to see/purchase this film.

This one is for our local readers; if you live in the Toronto area, we are giving away tickets to a few screenings at this year’s Planet in Focus Film Festival. The festival runs October 12-16 and features a great collection of films all featuring the theme of ‘landscapes’. I should note that my favourite doc of 2010, Happy People: A Year in the Taiga, is having its Canadian premiere at the festival! So for those interested, we’ve got tickets for the following screenings:

Darwin
Directed by: Nick Brandestini | 88 minutes | SWITZERLAND, USA | English | Toronto Premiere
Screening October 15, 2011 9:30 PM at the ROM

Day of the Sparrow
Directed by: Philip Scheffner | 10 minutes | GERMANY | English | Canadian Premiere
Screening October 14, 2011 9:30 PM at the AL GREEN THEATRE, MILES NADAL JCC

Werner Herzog’s Happy People: A Year in the Taiga
Directed by: Dmitry Vasyukov; Werner Herzog | 96 minutes | GERMANY | English | Canadian Premiere
Screening October 13, 2011 9:30 PM at the ROM

Alternative Landscapes: Shorts Program
Screening October 15, 2011 7:00 PM at the ROM

This collection of experimental short film and video works explores how artists working in various disciplines interpret the landscapes around them. From the sculptural lakes, volcanoes and caves crafted from cellophane, kitty litter and candle wax in LINT LEND LAND, to the contemporary dance choreography in Melt, digital video compositing in The Want and The Park, poetry in Nanameshkueu, manipulated Super 8 footage in Daybreak and musical collaboration in Sirmilik, this program celebrates the works that challenge traditional aesthetics of landscape.

If your’e in the Toronto area and would like tickets to any of these screenings, just send me an email here with PLANET IN FOCUS in the subject line and the title of the film you wish to attend in the body of the email. Good luck!

Thanks to everyone who entered and be sure to seek out this great film via Oscilloscope Laboratories. Stay tuned for more contests in the near future!

Annnddd….just like that, another DVD giveaway here at The Documentary Blog! This time, in honour of the upcoming 10 year anniversary of September 11th, we’re giving away a copy of the Oscilloscope release Rebirth. Here’s a synopsis:

Project Rebirth’s film, REBIRTH, is a full-length documentary that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January of 2011. It is the result of a decade-long process by director Jim Whitaker and is a riveting journey into living history. It is also an act of personal witness to one of the most profound events in American history and the healing that has come its wake.

You can read more about Project Rebirth at the official website. It’s worth noting that this DVD includes a second feature length film that consists of 35mm time-lapse footage of the rebuilding of ground zero over the last seven years. It’s said to be the longest time lapse shot in history!

This double disc set includes:

Disc One:
- Rebirth
- Feature length audio commentary with director Jim Whitaker and director of photography Thomas Lappin
- English subtitles for the hearing imparied

Disc Two:
- 14 cameras, 24 hours — a video about the time-lapse project
- Complete feature length time-lapse edit

For a chance to win a copy of Rebirth, simply send me an email here with ‘REBIRTH’ in the subject line. Be sure to include your full name and mailing address and I will announce the winner sometime next week. Alternately, the DVD is now available for purchase. Good luck!

Thanks to everybody who entered. Stay tuned for more giveaways here at The Documentary Blog. Also, a big thanks to Oscilloscope Laboratories for supplying the prizes.

It’s time for a giveaway! We’ve got another great DVD for you guys thanks to the awesome folks over at Oscilloscope Laboratories. “If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this year (winning the Best Documentary Editing award) and is now hitting DVD on August 30th. I haven’t had a chance to see the film yet, but the trailer definitely has me intrigued. Here’s the synopsis:

On December 7th, 2005, federal agents conducted a nationwide sweep of radical environmentalists involved with the Earth Liberation Front — an organization the FBI has called America’s “number one domestic terrorism threat.”

IF A TREE FALLS: A STORY OF THE EARTH LIBERATION FRONT is the remarkable story of the group’s rise and fall, told through the transformation and radicalization of one of its members, Daniel McGowan. Part coming-of-age tale, part cops-and-robbers thriller, the film interweaves a chronicle of McGowan facing life in prison with a dramatic investigation of the events that led to his involvement with the ELF. Using never-before-seen archival footage and intimate interviews — with cell members and with the prosecutor and detective who were chasing them — IF A TREE FALLS asks hard questions about environmentalism, activism, and the way we define terrorism.

Like all of their releases, Oscilloscope has included a great collection of features on the DVD:

Feature length commentary with Director/Editor Marshall Curry, Co-director/Cinematographer Sam Cullman, & Editor Matthew Hamachek
Deleted Scenes
Extended interviews
“You cannot control what is wild” – updates from subjects in the film
Post-screening Q&A in Ashland, Oregon with Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman
Original theatrical trailer

For a chance to win a copy of If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front, simply send me an email here with ‘TREE’ in the subject line. Be sure to include your full name and mailing address and I will announce the winner sometime next week. Alternately, the DVD will be available for purchase on August 30th. Good luck!

As I’d mentioned in a recent post, Oscilloscope Laboratories has put together a great re-release DVD of Marc Singer’s amazing film Dark Days and it’s hitting stores today! Thanks to the kind folks at Oscilloscope, we’re giving away a copy of this great film here at The Documentary Blog! Here’s the synopsis:

For years, a homeless community took root in a train tunnel beneath New York City, braving dangerous conditions and perpetual night. DARK DAYS explores this surprisingly domestic subterranean world, unearthing a way of life unimaginable to those above. Through stories simultaneously heartbreaking, hilarious, intimate, and off the cuff, tunnel dwellers reveal their reasons for taking refuge and their struggle to survive underground.
Filmed in striking black and white with a crew comprised of the tunnel’s inhabitants and scored by legendary turntablist DJ Shadow (Endtroducing…), DARK DAYS remains a soulful and enduring document of life on the fringe.

If you’d like to enter for a chance to win your own copy of Dark Days, simply send me an email here with ‘DARK DAYS’ in the subject line and be sure to include your full name and mailing address. I will announce the winner sometime next week. Good luck!

Dark Days is now available on DVD.

It’s time for another contest! This week we’re giving away a total of SIX copies of Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas’ American: The Bill HIcks Story; three on DVD and three on blu ray. The film looks at the life and times of legendary stand up comedian Bill Hicks and this DVD/Blu Ray release from the BBC is absolutely PACKED with special features. You’ll find all of the info after the jump!

American: The Bill Hicks Story brings to life the amazing true story of one of modern culture’s most ironic figures.

Much more than just a comedian, Bill Hicks has become an inspiration to millions around the world. As a rebellious teenager, he discovered that comedy was a way to break all the rules, but then found it could also open people’s minds.

Bill’s comedy challenged the injustices of life head on but his uncompromising approach met with conflict in America and it was instead on the international stage where he found fame. IN 1993, on the verge of wider success, Bill fell ill with terminal cancer, but his timeless material has lived on, revered by comedians and audiences alike as the man who changed comedy forever.

The disc includes hours of rare clips and unseen performances, extended interviews, Bill’s personal audio journals, 1.5 hours of featurettes and more! It’s a pretty sweet haul.

If you’d like to enter for a chance to win your own copy of American The Bill Hicks Story, simply send me an email here with ‘BILL HICKS’ in the subject line. Be sure to include your full name and mailing address and state which format you would prefer to receive, DVD or blu ray (or either). I will announce the winner sometime next week. THIS CONTEST IS OPEN TO US RESIDENTS ONLY (sorry!). Good luck!

American The Bill Hicks Story arrived on DVD and Blu Ray on June 6th and is now available for purchase at the BBC America Shop and other retailers.

Thanks to everybody who entered. Stay tuned for more giveaways here at The Documentary Blog. Also, a big thanks to Oscilloscope Laboratories for supplying the prizes.