Documentary

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Constraints

Sep 2013

2013 | Directed by Eric P. Gulliver

Constraints is the story of a former nude model whose portrait is used to explore notions of exploitation vs. empowerment. While visualizing the tenuous line between “art” and “pornography,” the film extrapolates the details of the model’s former lifestyle: why it started, what happened at shoots, and why it ultimately wasn’t for her. Through aesthetic mystery and underlying tension, the documentary illuminates certain paradoxes of representation — the difference between intent and viewership. Told through the words of a former model, this tale of personal regret is made even more urgent because “what goes on the Internet, stays there forever.”

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Mongolia – Mining Challenges a Civilization

Sep 2013

2012 | Directed by Edward Nef

Mongolia is at the cusp of incredible growth, as its enormous mineral wealth is suddenly discovered and exploited by the western world. It has been called the Kuwait of East Asia. Billions of dollars are pouring into this land of less than three million people, whose population until recently was largely nomad. Can this traditional rural civilization, with a love for the land, withstand the muscle of the mining industry, as it tears up the countryside in a helter-skelter effort to maximize its sales, largely to China? Is Mongolia selling its birthright and future to the Chinese market? Greed, graft and corruption are lurking dangers — and yet, no one can deny that, if properly managed, Mongolia’s future has much to gain.

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Raising Emma

Sep 2013

2013 | Directed by Jeffrey Lin

Raising Emma examines the life of Emma, an adopted Asian American college student. Her story leads us from her experiences in an orphanage in China to growing up with her American family in Chicago.

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Selina Trieff Will Not Stop

Sep 2013

2012 | Directed by Marnie Crawford Samuelson

Artist Selina Trieff haltingly makes her way to her easel and gets ready to paint. And insists she will keep painting and drawing until her brush or pen drops from her hand.

Selina Trieff Will Not Stop is a humorous and touching portrait of a fearless American artist. Trieff has been called an American original by New York Times art critic John Russell.

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Something Different: A Working Gristmill

Sep 2013

2013 | Directed by Erin Murphy

Over the past half-century, water-powered grain mills in Pennsylvania either converted to electric or shut down completely. In Union County, only one remains. Miller Curt Falck is doing something different — he turns grain into flour and animal feed using water power. This beautifully shot short documentary offers a glimpse into the past through the day-to-day operations of Grove’s Mill on Buffalo Creek. Something Different offers a glimpse into a world that many people will never see in their lifetimes — a working gristmill running on water power.

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24 Hours at the South Street Diner

Sep 2012

2011 | Directed by Melissa Dowler and Tom Dowler

In Boston, the city that brought us Cheers, there really is a place where the staff know all the regulars by name. But it’s not a bar, it’s a downtown diner that’s been there since the 1940s and has become a historical and cultural icon. 24 Hours At The South Street Diner introduces a diverse group of waiters, regulars, late-night revelers and local celebrities who call Boston’s only 24/7 restaurant home. They share stories of why this tiny diner means so much to the neighborhood and the city of Boston and how it’s survived fires, bankruptcies and even an attempt to revoke its late night license.

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A Tiny Spark

Sep 2012

2010 | Directed by Franco Sacchi

In the desert of Nevada, His Excellency Kevin Baugh has founded the independent Republic of Molossia and created a faux secession. With a population of 6 (including his 3 faithful dogs) and a complex infrastructure that ranges from a miniature railroad system to a customs booth at the front door, Molossia provokes and makes us reflect upon the meaning of sovereignty and the limits of our individual freedoms.

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In Danger of Being Discovered

Sep 2012

In Danger of Being Discovered
2011 | Directed by Marc Dole, Michael Venn

In Danger of Being Discovered takes a retrospective look at the rise of the music scene in the picturesque seacoast city of Portsmouth, NH during its Seattle-like musical peak in the mid 90’s. This was a time when local bands were king, live music venues flourished and it wasn’t a question of if you were going out to see a band, but rather which local band you were seeing and where. Portsmouth, NH was being hailed by the Boston media as the next Seattle musical sensation, where at least 5 of the 55+ local bands were being courted by major record labels, consistently selling out shows, out-requesting national acts on the radio and some even selling over 60,000 copies of their demo CD. This was a time when the music seemed like it was on the verge of exploding and catapulting the bands, and the scene that spawned them, to legendary success… but somehow the scene never managed to get the notoriety it deserved.

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Kids of the World

Sep 2012

2011 | Directed by Craig Saddlemire

With the snap of her fingers, Binto can defy the laws of nature. She can do everything from transporting her friends to instantly commanding a thunderstorm. Okay… maybe that’s just her imagination. But in Kennedy Park, kids are not constrained by the conventions of reality. Kids of the World features 11 young people who once lived in Africa, Puerto Rico, and elsewhere in the United States, who now find themselves in Lewiston, Maine, sharing one communal park. The kids were invited to make up stories – some based on their personal lives, some completely fictional – and then discuss, reenact, and perform these stories on the big screen. 11 Kids, 4 Stories, 1 Park. Part documentary and part fantasy, Kids of the World is all fun.

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Running the Rockpile

Sep 2012

2011 | Directed by Kate Avery

“It’s not just uphill, every step is uphill.” What is this mountain running phenomena and how can there be a 50-year history of running up New England’s arduous and tallest peak? Running the Rockpile takes you up just one hill for the climb of a lifetime.