Summer movie season may be in full swing, but while some critics are lining up for The Odyssey, members of the POV team already have a queue of documentaries ready for fall festival coverage. That time of year means our fall/winter issue is now in production. This print issue has many stories in the works to give POV readers first looks at some of the hottest documentaries coming soon to festivals, theatres, and streamers near you, along with longer reads, essays, and deep dives that pair perfectly with a morning coffee and hopefully inspire some readers to seek out a few great docs. Subscribe today to be on the list when POV #126 hits the mail in September.
Here’s an early taste of what’s in the issue!
-First looks at several documentaries on the festival circuit from veteran Canadian filmmakers and emerging talents.
-Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day is one of the year’s biggest hits. The sci-fi blockbuster draws upon “archival” images of extraterrestrial encounters to fuel its moving climax, but how have documentaries chronicled evidence of alien life? POV undertakes a paranormal investigation.
-Does the hype of the World Cup have you itching for more soccer, or do you fail to understand the appeal of a sport that seems slower than baseball? Whatever one’s personal taste for soccer/football, POV editor Marc Glassman assembles a team of documentaries that capture the legacy and high stakes of the game that captures the world’s attention.
-Late filmmaker Chris Marker knew how to shift the boundaries of non-fiction cinema. The man with a love for feline iconography gets his own documentary portrait as Nostalgia for the Future explores the “best-known author of unknown films.” Future inspires a trip down the rabbit hole of films past to encounter unexpected connections.
-In September, rocker Melissa Auf der Mar of Hole and Smashing Pumpkins fame showcases her collection of photography at the Art Gallery of Ontario. The exhibit My ’90s Rock Photographs offers a time capsule of Generation X’s analogue music beat and intimate snapshots behind the scenes with some of the era’s most iconic rockers.
-Concerns about the role of artificial intelligence dominate daily conversations, but in the film sector, these queries generally remain speculative as colleagues wonder about the impact of AI generated images now that Chat GPT has the finger problem down pat. But what are the practical considerations of using such tools to streamline a production by replacing production hands and budget lines with AI shortcuts?
-Questions of the real coincide with movements in the documentary space in which filmmakers shift away from the traditional broadcast forms and explore creative new possibilities for non-fiction. Davide Abbatescianni reports from the European festival circuit to share how filmmakers are shaking up their practice and creating new avenues for representing agency and subjective experiences in the process.
-Cameras hidden in sunglasses may once have been snazzy tools for the likes of James Bond, but everyone can be a secret agent these days thanks to wearable tech. As content creators embrace the technology and blur the line between documentary-like reportage and influencer marketing, the fancy glasses invite serious concerns about consent and ethical practices, but they also make us ask if documentary is more fluid than some might like to admit.
-Many documentaries stress the implications of climate change and the threats of global warming, but what stories come in the wake of environmental disasters? We survey the scene.
-Veteran producer Cornelia Principe (To Kill a Tiger, Shamed) looks back at her career in a feature profile by Susan G. Cole
-And more!
