Addie Morfoot Contributor DOC NYC is known for its 15-feature film shortlist and for its annual Visionaries Tribute luncheon, which attracts the who’s who of the docu community from both coasts.
But, while the festival, which begins on Nov. 8, is a key campaign stop for filmmakers hoping to garner a spot on the Oscar documentary shortlist, it has also become a place where more documentarians are choosing to premiere their work.
This year 33 films out of the 253 featured on the main slate will have their world premieres at the fest. Many of those films debuting at DOC NYC are profile docus including: “June,” a profile of June Carter Cash; “The Cowboy and the Queen,” about Queen Elizabeth II’s friendship with a California horse trainer; “Candace Parker: Unapologetic,” the story of the WNBA superstar; “Ashima,” about Ashima Shirashi, the Japanese-American rock climber who set world records in her teens; “Shari & Lamb Chop,” a biography of pioneering children’s television performer Shari Lewis;”The Trials of Alan Dershowitz,” about the famously controversial defense attorney; “How to Come Alive… with Norman Mailer,” a new examination of the American literary icon.
Dan Hartley’s HBO doc, “David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived,” about a Harry Potter stunt double whose life took an unexpected turn, is another portrait docu making its world debut at DOC NYC.
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