Festivals and Trends

in Contemporary
Documentary
Selina Crammond, Director of Programming
DOXA Documentary Film Festival
Contemporary Documentary: a (very broad) overview!

● Conventional: issue-driven films as found on Netflix

● Nature docs: Planet Earth, BBC
● Reality TV
● “Creative documentary” Question?
What’s your favourite
documentary?
What is a film festivals? Have you ever been to a
● What role to they play supporting film festival before?

Independent film and filmmakers?

Film Festivals
➔ Relatively new avenue for exhibition

➔ Theatrical Screenings

➔ Interactive Screenings

➔ Industry Programming

➔ Programmers as curators

➔ Gathering place for film lovers, filmmakers

and funders

➔ Many film festivals devoted to documentaries

➔ IDFA - largest documentary film festival in the

world (founded in 1988)

➔ Hot Docs (Toronto), largest in North America

 ➔ Founded in 1998

➔ Non-profit society

➔ Documentary as a tool
DOXA is presented by The Documentary Media Society, a Vancouver
for social change
based non-profit, charitable society (incorporated in 1998) devoted to
➔ Do-it-yourself mentality
presenting independent and innovative documentaries to Vancouver
audiences. ➔ Diversity of voices and
perspectives
DOXA (pronounced dox'-ah) is a greek word meaning common belief or
➔ More recently,
popular opinion. documentary as art in
itself
DOXA 2018
May 3 - 13, 2018

Tip
Watch for our special
programs!
Embedded with Extremists
Curated by Geoff Dembicki

The question hovering above three films about violent extremism in this year’s DOXA Festival is both timeless and urgently topical: Why
do people believe things that are obviously not true? Each film provides intimate access to a dangerous fantasy.
From Our Eyes
Curated by Yi Cui

For decades, most films about Tibet have been produced by filmmakers from other parts of the world. Far fewer films
have actually been made by the Tibetan people themselves. From Our Eyes is a collection of films made by Tibetan
herdsman and youth that subvert twentieth century ethnographic conventions, and offer an intimate look into the daily
life of their communities.
French French
Curated by Thierry Garrel

DOXA is very proud to offer our fourth edition of FRENCH FRENCH with five new extraordinary films, and a special program dedicated to the
work of Alain Cavalier. Cavalier, awarded Maître du Réel (Master of the Real) at Visions du Réel Film Festival last year, and a renowned
member of the Nouvelle Vague, authored a new style of film portrait more than thirty years ago. These beautifully observed capsules
(13-minutes each) are encounters of the rarest kind—intimate, elegant and filled with a profound sense of humility. FRENCH FRENCH will
include six of these original portraits, paired with Cavalier’s latest Six Portraits XL, created from material he filmed of six different friends over the
course of many years.
 SPOTLIGHT: QUIETUDE
French philosopher Simone Weil once wrote, “Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.”
With this ethos in mind, our Spotlight on Quietude is a collection of films that pay close and
generous attention. Layered observations, rich cinematography and careful editing define these
films, encouraging deep listening, reflection, and empathy. Wonderfully idiosyncratic, individual and
even sometimes a bit odd, they are a reminder that stillness contains multitudes.

SPOTLIGHT: PRESS PLAY:

Arguably one of the most powerful art forms, music has a unique way of
elevating the senses and imagination. This group of high-energy films
take us around the world, exploring different cultures and social
movements, and celebrating the many ways that music brings people
together to challenge the status quo.
 Justice Forum
For nine years, the Justice Forum has been one of DOXA’s cornerstone programs; showcasing films that facilitate active and critical
engagement, create space for dialogue, and sow the seeds for social change. Each Justice Forum screening is paired with a panel
of speakers including filmmakers, experts in the field, academics, and community activists.

Rated Y for Youth

Now in its tenth year, Rated Y for Youth was founded upon the idea of facilitating
media literacy through thought-provoking documentaries. DOXA selects programming
for high school students and youth to foster an appreciation for cinema while giving
young audiences an opportunity to engage in open dialogue on a broad range of social
issues.
Programming Ethos
➔ Collectivity

➔ Formally aware

➔ Independent

➔ Experimental, Challenging

➔ Unheard stories

➔ Artistic Value

➔ Current Affairs
Trends in
contemporary
documentary
Performance as reality
The Road Forward
directed by Marie Clements

Trailer:
https://vimeo.com/207325640
Dramatization, Satire
and spiritual teachings
INAATE/SE/ [it Shines a Certain Way. To
a Certain Place./it Flies. Falls/.]

Directed by Adam and Zack Khalil

https://vimeo.com/151626238
Genre-blending +
Technology
Rat Film
directed by Theo Anthony

Trailer (with narration)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-
kpMAKc0l4

Story for illustration purposes only

Cameraperson
Directed by Kirsten Johnston

“If you choose to interact with people

in an honest way, life is a beautiful
thing”

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jx
52F4iLTL8
Thoughts for watching:
The power of The importance The structure and
repurposing of reflecting on how geography
footage the camera itself becomes
(ie: The Gaze) character
 THANK YOU!
Volunteer with us! DOXAFESTIVAL.CA/VOLUNTEER

Email me! selina@doxafestival.ca