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The DocBlog Recommends
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02.28.11The Documentary Blog Recommends: Oscilloscope LaboratoriesWe've spent a lot of time recommending films here at The Documentary Blog but I figured it might be time to actually highlight a distributor that we love: Oscilloscope Laboratories. I've always approached the search for documentaries (and obscure genre films for that matter) by gravitating towards companies with great taste that put a lot of heart into their releases. Once you find a distributor you can trust, you can count on them to guide you towards some great cinema. It's a very similar method used by music fans when keeping tabs on their favourite artists: find a record label ...
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02.04.11The Documentary Blog Recommends: Diary by Tim HetheringtonDiary is a short film made by Tim Hetherington, co-director of the recently Oscar nominated Restrepo. The film is particularly interesting as it's a very personal look into the experience of working in conflict zones. Prior to Restrepo, Tim was best known for his photojournalism--both freelance and as a contributing photographer for Vanity Fair. He is one of many photojournalists who have made a move into feature documentary, with another notably being Danfung Dennis who won two awards last week at Sundance. It seems a natural progression for people working in this field to move into feature-length filmmaking, as photojournalists ...
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11.25.10The Documentary Blog Recommends: AFOL A BlocumentaryWho didn't love Lego as a kid? I loved it even back before all of the franchise tie-ins (Star Wars, Harry Potter, Spider-Man). I have to say it isn't surprising to discover that a group of dedicated adult Lego fans have created their own society of builders called AFOL (Adult Fans of Lego) It's even less surprising that there's a documentary about them! AFOL A Blocumentary is a short film directed by Jess Gibson which examines the 'love for the brick', highlighting the passion and creativity behind one of the world's most open-ended and expressive toy products. As with ...
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08.25.10The Documentary Blog Recommends: Salim BabaI'm a little behind on this one (three years behind to be exact) but I just checked out director Tim Sternberg's beautiful short documentary Salim Baba and was pretty much blown away. The film looks at one man's love of cinema and his attempt to maintain a family tradition in the face of technological advancements. Salim Muhammad lives in Kolkata, India where he pushes a handmade portable cinema cart around town for the local kids to watch cut-up versions of Bollywood action scenes and dance sequences. It's a tradition that was passed down to him by his father and one ...
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07.20.10The Documentary Blog Recommends: UniverseFor anyone looking for solid documentary recommendations, I suggest you start following the National Film Board of Canada's twitter page. Every now and again they'll throw up a link to a cool classic doc featured on their amazing website and thus begins a journey into their impressive back catalogue. This week they've highlighted Roman Kroitor & Colin Low's 1960 documentary 'Universe', a film which apparently served as a source of inspiration for Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. The short documentary explores our Universe using surprisingly realistic animation and miniature effects in combination with Earth based source materials. It's easy ...
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07.02.10The Documentary Blog Recommends: Hitman Heart: Wrestling With ShadowsGuess what today is? If you answered 'the day after Canada Day' you are WRONG. July 2nd marks the birth of legendary Canadian wrestler Brett 'The Hitman' Heart. For those of you unfamiliar with The Hit Man, he was the wrestler who wore pink and had a mullet with sunglasses. Maybe that doesn't narrow it down. Apparently he was also known as 'The Pink and Black Attack', which sounds like the side effect of a few doses of Pepto Bismol. Either way, wrestling fan or not I suggest you check out 'Hitman Heart: Wrestling With Shadows', a powerful look at ...