2005 Films

Bernie

Bernie is a story about the varied interpretations of the family unit. As filmmaker Jay Heyman grew older, he was compelled to document the story of his grandfather. Grandpa Bernie grew up in the Hebrew Orphan Asylum in New York City, never knowing a parent and never having an identity of his own. After spending eleven years there as an "inmate", he returned to the institution as a professional social worker in an effort to bring about much needed change. Amidst professional success, Bernie suffered through the premature losses of loved ones, yet moved forward to create new relationships with a contagious enthusiasm that lasted almost ninety-seven years.

New England Premiere, Year: 2004, Length: 62 min., Format: MiniDV, Origin: New York, U.S.A.
Producer/Director: Jay Heyman, Writer: Jay Heyman, Lori Chodos, Cinematographer: Dan Akiba, Composer: Soren Sorensen, Editor: Lori Chodos
Featuring: Maurice Bernstein, Jay Heyman, Peggy Heyman, Bill Heyman, Lynn Hansen, Mark Heyman, Joan Pinkham, Risa Jaraslow, John Balamos


 

Castaway: The Story of Manjiro

The Castaway is a short documentary about the extraordinary life of a Japanese castaway Manjiro. After being shipwrecked in the Pacific, 14-year-old Manjiro grew up in America and paved the way for the opening of US-Japan relations upon his return to Japan.

Year: 2005, Length: 47 min., Format: MiniDV, Origin: Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Filmmaker: Ayumi Sato
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Casting About

A lyrical documentary that explores the experience of casting for a dramatic film, weaving together footage from auditions with 350 actresses in Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, and Los Angeles.

Year: 2004, Length: 86 min., Format: DVcam, Origin: Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Producer: Lewis D. Wheeler, Director: Barry J. Hershey, Cinematographer: Allie Humenuk, Editor: Marc Grossman


 

 
SHOWING: Saturday, July 30, 5 PM
LOCATION: Redfield Auditorium
SHOWING: Saturday, August 6, 8 PM
LOCATION: Pie in the Sky
Feature Documentary

Deep Blue

DEEP BLUE is an innovative motion picture experience narrated by Pierce Brosnan that sets off on an epic, Demotion-filled voyage through the last great frontier on earth: the ocean.  Diving into the unexplored liquid space that exists just beneath the surface of our planet, DEEP BLUE takes audiences to awesome realms where humans, and especially cameras, have rarely dared to go: darting with lightning speed through fierce schools of sharks, riding over stormy waves with massive killer whales, fighting for survival with families of polar bears and seals, and even plunging into pitch-black chasms that are home to wild, alien-like creatures so rare they have never been seen before on film.  Recounting the amazing stories of wildlife in its untouched state, the result is a visual and musical event that viscerally evokes the wonder, power and drama of the deep blue sea. 

Year: 2003, Length: 83 min., Format: , Origin: Germany/UK
Filmmakers: Alastair Fothergill, Andy Byatt
Narrator: Michael Gambon
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Divine of the Maddening

A world void of Frontier: a Time never before experienced by the civilization of man; the human race faces terms of existence that present unknown boundaries, undefined limits. Wilderness is all that remains of a frontier lost to mankind. The connection with Life, the connection with Self: the introspection and humility afforded of true wilderness is the thread and connection with terms of being that defines civilization. In the advent of losing the single greatest wilderness region of North America and perhaps the World, DIVINE OF THE MADDENING examines and raises questions to choices given to modern man, to the terms and conditions that establish, and to the decline that inevitably seems to follow regarding man's present and future impact on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (A.N.W.R.). By immersing himself and his partner Gretchen over the last four years to live and film remotely within A.N.W.R., wildlife filmmaker Arthur C. Smith combines stunning cinematography, sounds and spoken word to bring the message of A.N.W.R. to Woods Hole and how its' uture will impact upon our lives.

Filmmaker: Arthur C. Smith III


 

The Education of Shelby Knox

"The Education of Shelby Knox" is a coming of age story about a teenage girl who joins a campaign for comprehensive sex education in the high schools of Lubbock, Texas. As Shelby is swept into the fight, she begins to question her deeply conservative Southern Baptist upbringing; when the campaign broadens to include a fight for a gay-straight alliance, Shelby confronts her family and her pastor, in the end declaring herself a feminist and a liberal Christian.

Year: 2005, Length: 75 min., Format: ,  Origin: New York, U.S.A.
Filmmaker: Marion Lipschutz, Rose Rosenblatt


 

Following Sean

Filmmaker Ralph Arlyck first met Sean while living as a graduate student in San Francisco's Haight Ashbury neighborhood at the height of the 1960s. The city was awash with the trappings of America's cultural revolution; the San Francisco State University campus flooded with cops in riot gear, the Haight filled with drifters and idealists, and, on the third floor of Arlyck's building, a come-one-come-all crashpad apartment. It was from this top floor commune that the precocious 4-year-old Sean would occasionally wander downstairs to visit and talk, and one day Arlyck turned on his camera. Sean's casual commentary on everything from smoking pot to living with speed freaks was delivered with wide-eyed sincerity throughout the soon-to-be famous 15-minute film. This First Child of the notorious decade may have shaken the audience with his simple sentence, "Sure, I smoke pot," but it was his barefoot impishness and confidence which seemed to encapsulate the mood of the time: a promise of infinite possibility. Thirty years, three generations, and a lifetime later, Arlyck has returned to San Francisco in search of who the adult Sean may have become. And what he finds, to his surprise, tells him as much about his own east-coast migration as it does about the Californian life he left behind?that the choices we?re handed and the choices we make are, very often, quite odd bedfellows.

Year: 2004; Length: 87 min; Origin: New York, U.S.A.
Producers: Ralph Arlyck, Malcolm Pullinger, Writer/Director: Ralph Arlyck, Editor: Malcolm Pullinger


 

Images from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Filmmaker Art Smith shows magnificent footage collected in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Filmmaker: Art C. Smith


 

Libby, Montana

A journey into this hard-working blue collar community, Libby, Montana is the story of the American Dream gone horribly wrong. Nestled below the rugged peaks of the Northern Rockies and along the crystal-clear Kootenai River lies the small town of Libby, Montana - an ironic setting for a town where many hundreds of people are sick or have already died from asbestos exposure. The Environmental Protection Agency calls Libby the worst case of community-wide exposure to a toxic substance in U.S. history.

Year: 2004, Length: 124 min., Format: , Origin: Montana, U.S.A.
Filmmakers: Drury Gunn Carr, Doug Hawes-Davis
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Matzo and Mistletoe

Matzo & Mistletoe is the documentary film that asks the question “Is Jewish more than bagels?” Five years ago a Rabbi asked Martha’s Vineyard-based filmmaker Kate Feiffer if she was Jewish. Having been raised a non-practicing Jew, the kind of Jew that celebrated Christmas, she didn't know how to answer. The Rabbi's seemingly straightforward question gnawed away at Feiffer, and in an effort to make it stop, she made a film. Matzo & Mistletoe (currently a work-in-progress) explores issues of religious and ethnic identity with heart, humor and Klezmer Christmas carols. In addition to others, the film features a number of Martha's Vineyard seasonal residents. They include Jules Feiffer, Mike Wallace, Alan Dershowitz, Walter Shapiro and Meryl Gordon.

Filmmaker: Kate Feiffer; Origin: Massachusetts, USA
 

Other People's Pictures

Nine obsessive collectors share an unlikely addiction: snapshots that have been abandoned or lost by their original owners and are now for sale. Ready to pay hundreds of dollars for a single picture, these collectors hunt for the images that feed their fantasies and quiet the voices in their heads. See what they find and learn why they want it in this surprising look at the little-known world of vintage snapshot collecting.

Year: 2004, Length: 53 min., Format: MiniDV, Origin: New York, U.S.A.
Producers/Directors/Camera: Lorca Shepperd & Cabot Philbrick, Writer: Lorca Shepperd, Composer: Hub Moore, Editor: Cabot Philbrick
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Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea

Once known as the "Riviera of the West", the Salton Sea is one of America's worst ecological disasters: a fetid, stagnant, salty lake, coughing up dead fish and birds by the thousands. Yet a few hardy eccentrics hang on to hope, including a roadside nudist waving at passing European tourists, a man building a religious mountain out of mud and paint, beer-loving Hungarian Revolutionary Hunky Daddy, and the real-estate "Ronald McDonald" known simply as The Landman. Through their perceptions and misperceptions, the strange history and unexpected beauty of the Salton Sea is revealed.
    "Accidentally" created by an engineering error in 1905, reworked in the 50's as a world class vacation destination for the rich and famous, and then suddenly abandoned after a series of hurricanes, floods, and fish die-offs, the Salton Sea has a bittersweet past. Congressman Sonny Bono himself was once dedicated to saving the lake, until he went skiing one day.
    Now amongst the ruins of this man-made mistake, these few remaining people struggle to keep a remodelled version of the dream alive. However, this most unique community is now threatened by the nearby megalopolises of Los Angeles and San Diego, as they attempt to take the agricultural run-off that barely sustains the sea. The fate of this so-called ecological time bomb and the community that surrounds it remain uncertain, as the Salton Sea might just dry up.
     While PLAGUES & PLEASURES covers the economic, political, and environmental issues that face the sea, it more importantly offers up an offbeat portrait of the eccentric and individualistic people who populate its shores. It is an epic western tale of fantastic real estate ventures and failed boomtowns, inner-city gangs fleeing to white small town America, and the subjective notion of success and failure amidst the ruins of the past. Hair-raising and hilarious, part history lesson, part cautionary tale and part portrait of one of the strangest communities you've ever seen, this is the American Dream gone as stinky as a dead carp.

Year: 2005, Length: 68 min., Format: DV, Origin: California, U.S.A.
Producer: Chris Metzler, Director/Writer/Cinematographer: Chris Metzler, Jeff Springer, Editor: Jeff Springer, Composer: Friends of Dean Martinez
Narrator: John Waters
Cast: Sonny Bono, Paul Clement, Steve Horvitz, Leonard Knight, Petre Melvin, Norm Niver, Bobbie Todhunter, and Hunky Daddy
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Profiles in Aspiration

This beautiful and inspiring 47 minute film is an international collection of portraits of strong, competent, and well-spoken women athletes and dancers. They explore the mental, emotional, and physical qualities needed to reach high lefels of performance.

Year: 2005, Length: 47 min., Format: DV, Origin: Germany, Spain, U.S.A. 
Filmmaker: Andrew Silver
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Pucker Up: The Fine Art of Whistling

This delightful story of the annual International Whistling Competition opens a window on an astonishing world. Including explanations and tips from a sound-effects expert and champion whistlers, hilarious archival footage of whistling in its heyday, and portraits of current contestants, the directors move the film from fun frivolity to a celebration of a fading art form. Follow the efforts of competitors drawn from all walks of life: a turkey hauler, an investment banker, and a Dutch social worker: who share the amazing ability to whistle everything from pitch-perfect opera and Vivaldi to rollicking Texas swing. With great footage of Harpo Marx, Monty Python, and Elvis, as well as the whistling languages of Turkey and the Canary Islands, this family film offers great fun for young and old. You'll leave the theater ready to pucker up and blow!

Year: 2005, Length: 79 min., Format: DV, Origin: New York, U.S.A.,
Filmmakers: Kate Davis and David Heilbroner

WHFF Review on independentfilm.com


 

  
SHOWING: Monday, August 1, 5 PM
LOCATION: Redfield Auditorium
Special Screening for the Falmouth Road Race
SHOWING: Saturday, August 13, 7:30 PM
LOCATION: Redfield Auditorium
Feature Documentary (*)

Racing Against the Clock

This film tells story of five extraordinary women between the ages of 50 and 82 who compete against each other, and ultimately themselves, on their quest to reach the 2003 World Masters Athletics (Track & Field) Championships in Puerto Rico. They include a three-time cancer survivor, a sharecropper's daughter, a political refugee, a former cowgirl and the oldest athlete to ever be honored as a finalist for the Sullivan Award, which celebrates the top amateur athletes in America. Pre-Title IX, these athletes grew up in an era when women were not allowed to participate in sports. With some not entering the realm of competition until well after retirement, there is no telling what they may have accomplished had things been different. Vibrant, inspiring and courageous, these women shatter preconceptions about aging and about the human spirit.

Year: 2004, Length: 80 min., Format: Super 16mm / MiniDV, Origin: Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Producer: Bill Haney, Kees Kasander, Director: Bill Haney,  Cinematographer: Adam Moyers, Eric Cochran, Composer: Flynn, Editor: Peter Rhodes
Cast: Jacqueline Board, Margaret Hinton, Leonore McDaniels, Pat Peterson, Phillipa "Phil" Raschker


 

Refuge

A story about the reality of Buddhism in the West, today, as told by Martin Scorsese, Oliver Stone, the Dalai Lama, Bernardo Bertolucci and others... REFUGE reveals critical issues about Buddhism through the experiences of those in the west seeking refuge in Buddhism, and Tibetans who seek refuge in the West. Also includes: Khyentse Norbu- abbot (Director, THE CUP), Melissa Mathison (Writer, KUNDUN), Tenzin Palmo (lived 12 years in a cave), Philip Glass, … and others. REFUGE presents several controversial subjects to the general audience for the first time: the Distinction between Buddhism and Tibetan culture, Exploitation in the West in the name of Buddhism, Spiritual voyeurism vs. practice and “Can Buddhism survive without Tibet?” In a series of exclusive and up-close interviews, REFUGE blends the humor and charm of its story tellers with the beauty of India, Tibet, Nepal, and USA. REFUGE includes wonderful journeys from Siddhartha’s life to the “God World” of Times Square, Buddhist art, western practitioners and replica of a Tibetan temple in upstate New York. REFUGE is a refreshing and revitalizing experience of Buddhism and the spiritual developments in the west since the fall of Tibet in 1959.

Year: 2004, Length: 57 min., Format: DVcam/Beta, Origin: New York, U.S.A.
Producer/Director: John Halpern, Writer: Les Levine. Camera: Wayne De Laroche, Liz Dory, Rahul Ranadive, Composer: Steve Reich


 

The Special: Story of An American Anthem

The Special is a contemporary documentary about an ageless song - Orange Blossom Special - a tune that has permeated the picking, strumming and bowing of musicians across America's rich musical spectrum, becoming a standard in the nation's songbook. It is an access point into folk Americana, a milestone in the fusion of bluegrass, hillbilly and jazz musical styles, a sound so electric that audiences always 'come undone.

Year: 2005, Length: 73 min., Format: DigiBeta, DVcam, Origin: Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Filmmaker: Bestor Cram


 

Sweet Honey in the Rock: Raise Your Voice

2002 MacArthur Fellow and world-renowned documentary filmmaker Stanley Nelson directs this feature-length film about Sweet Honey In The Rock, the Grammy-Award-winning, African-American female a cappella ensemble with incredible range.
   Committed to black musical forms, Sweet Honey uses music to touch on issues of racism, gender politics and inequality--all conveyed with a sense of indomitable optimism. The sextet, whose words are interpreted on stage in American Sign Language, demands a just and humane world for all.
     This detailed portrait showcases the group's singular sound as well as its unwavering message of social justice. Presenting themes of self-expression, collaboration in the arts and the history of protest music, the documentary highlights the importance of harmony in sustaining movements for social change. The film is also a historical document of the now-retired Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon's public performance and remarkable work.
     A first-person narrative from founder Reagon and in-depth interviews with group members, peer musicians and Sweet Honey's loyal fan base are interwoven throughout the film. Behind-the-scenes, verite footage, combined with full-scale concert footage, gives a broad perspective on the women of Sweet Honey and their incredible commitment to social issues and egalitarianism.

Year: 2005, Length: 84 min., Format: DV, Origin: New York, U.S.A.         
Filmmaker: Stanley Nelson


 

Their Lives in Art: Robert Henry & Selina Trieff

The story of the life and work of two painters whose nearly 50 years of married life has been devoted to the making of art. It is a film which will provide insight and inspiration for all art students and working artists, as well as writers, musicians and those who work creatively in any medium.

Year: , Length: 57 min., Format: MiniDV, Origin: Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Filmmakers: Robert Potts, Marjorie Potts


 

 
SHOWING: Saturday, July 30, 8:30 PM
LOCATION: Pie In The Sky as part of Project Green Screen: Outdoor screenings powered by renewable energy
SHOWING: Moday, August 1, 7 PM
LOCATION: Old Woods Hole Fire Station
Feature Documentary (*)

Top of the World

World-travelers and mountaineers are drawn to the Himalayan Mountains, some in search of adventure, others on a spiritual quest. One man film crew, Bill Kern, embarks on a Himalayan trek carrying only what can fit on his back. Along the way, Buddhist monks share their art, school children their joy. At the base of Mount Everest (elevation 17,500 feet), Kern is invited to stay with a Russian climbing expedition as they attempt the summit (29,028 feet). The film captures the beauty and adventure of trekking in the Himalayas, and climbing Mount Everest.

New England Premiere, Year: 2004, Length: 70 min., Format: Hi-8, Beta SP, Origin: Nepal and New York, U.S.A.
Producer/Director/Cinematographer: Bill Kern, Writer/Editor: Jon Lonoff, Bill Kern

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Touching the Game: The Story of the Cape Cod Baseball League

There is no amateur baseball league more prestigious and more storied than the Cape Cod Baseball League. Now for the first time, the story of the league is told by the players, coaches, fans, and others who make Cape Cod the place to be for a true summer experience.

Year: 2004, Length: 105 min., Format: DV, Origin: Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Producer: Fields of Vision and Eye Candy Cinema, Director/Writer/Editor: Jim Carroll, Cinematographer: Eric Scharmer
Narrator: Steve Buckley
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Visioning Tibet

VISIONING TIBET chronicles the work of an American doctor who has dedicated his life to ending preventable blindness in Tibet. Through the stories of two blind Tibetans, the film shows how his project has transcended borders and cultures, bringing light.

Year: 2005, Length: 40 min., Format: MiniDV / DVcam, Origin: New York, U.S.A.
Filmmaker: Isaac Solotaroff
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Voices in Wartime

VOICES IN WARTIME sharply etches the experience of war through powerful images and the words of poets – unknown and world-famous. Soldiers, journalists, historians and experts on combat interviewed in Voices in Wartime add diverse perspectives on war’s effects on soldiers, civilians and society. Poets around the world, from the United States and Colombia to Britain and Nigeria to Iraq and India, share their views and experiences of war that extend beyond national borders and into the depth of the human soul.

Year: 2005, Length: 74 min., Format: , Origin: Washington, DC., U.S.A.
Producer: Andy Himes, Jonathan King, Director: Rick King, Composer: Anton Sanko, Editor: Daniel Loewenthal
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SHOWING: Saturday, August 6, TBA
LOCATION: Redfield Auditorium
Feature Documentary (Work-in-Progress)

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: 75 Years

For seventy-five years, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has thrilled scientists and the public alike with their discoveries about the oceans and our relationship to them. This documentary will chart the course of these adventurous men and women who discovered the workings of the Gulf Stream, were crucial in scientifially assisting the Navy in World War II, discovered the undersea vent systems and the Titantic, and gave us such thrilling symbols of the modern age as "Alvin" and "Jason."

Year: 2005, Format: Archival sources, Origin: Massachusetts, USA
Filmmakers:  Woods Hole Film Festival Documentary Workshop