Documentary

| | | | |

Tick Days

Sep 2017

2017 | Directed by Marnie Crawford Samuelson & Shane Hofeldt

At ground zero of a deepening health crisis of tick-borne diseases, bug guy Larry Dapsis is fighting to protect his Cape Cod neighbors.

| | | | |

The Sisters

Sep 2017

The Sisters
2016 | Directed by Guangya Zeng

An intimate portrait documentary about a woman who runs an antique shop in downtown Boston.

| | | | |

The Long Haul

Sep 2017

2015 | Directed by Chloe White

We follow one woman as she heads to sea on a fishing boat. In the eerie night or under the still bright sun, it’s not always clear where or when this is. It appears as a dream removed from the particulars of the woman’s circumstances and so in her melancholy narration she might not just be describing her own life alone, but also ours.

This film was made by possible thanks to the kind support from the Macdowell Colony.

| | | | | | | | | | |

Imagine Kolle 37

Sep 2017

2017 | Directed by Michele Meek

“Imagine Kolle 37” is a short documentary/narrative hybrid film about two girls who imagine their way to Kolle 37, a real adventure playground in Berlin, Germany.

Recently called “the mother of all Berlin playgrounds” by The New York Times, Kolle 37 enables children to build and climb three-story wooden structures, make fire, and use hammers, saws and axes. Founded in 1990, Kolle 37 invites young people ages six through sixteen, without their parents, to embrace risky play in the “adventure playground” under the loose supervision of playworkers.

Although about 1,000 adventure playgrounds exist in Europe, there are only a few in the U.S. where the concept of “free play” is becoming an endangered concept. But adventure playgrounds not only encourage young people to play outdoors in all seasons, they also provide children a chance to face risk, learn skills, and build confidence.

Ultimately, “Imagine Kolle 37” poses the question—can we, as Americans, imagine Kolle 37, which in fact is a real children’s playground in Berlin?

| | | | | |

Meredith’s Medicine

Sep 2016

Meredith’s Medicine
2015 | Directed by Andrew Burgess

Meredith has always harbored a deep connection with her favorite ski resort, but after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 1999, her relationship with the mountain entered a whole new level.

| | | | |

The Raw Essence of Carlo Pittore

Sep 2016

2015 | Directed by Richard Kane

The Raw Essence of Carlo Pittore is part of a series of films titled Great American Artists launched in 1999 as Maine Masters. Carlo Pittore (b. Charles Stanley, 1943-2005) was one of the original founders of the Union of Maine Visual Artists, the sponsor of this film series. As his friend the poet Bob Holman says in the film, “Carlo led a merry band of artists” in the 70s living in the yurts of Bowdoinham. Carlo was an internationally renowned “mail” artist and the postcards he sent around the world and exhibited at over a thousand shows are extraordinary.

It is with the hope that the release of this short will encourage others to help us fund the feature length version of this very complex artist. Contact mainemasters1@gmail.com for more information about this continuing project.

| | | | |

The First Thought

Sep 2016

2016 | Directed by Elayne Cronin

A mother learns to let go of her son who is addicted to heroin.

| | | | |

Going the Distance

Sep 2016

2016 | Directed by Jessie Beers-Altman

At the 121st annual Penn Relays track meet in Philadelphia, three runners prove that age is just a number as they compete in a 75-and-older 100m dash.

| | | | |

Crest Of The Hill

Sep 2016

2015 | Directed by Amanda Kowalski and Samantha Broun

As his Alzheimer’s progresses, Greg O’Brien prepares to sell his family home.

| | | | | |

Memorial

Sep 2016

2016 | Directed by Ben Pender-Cudlip

Craftsmen are dwarfed by giant, abstract sculpture in Memorial, an experimental documentary. Monumental sculptures appear first as silhouettes, emphasizing their geometric purity and reminding us that cinema itself is act of reduction and representation. Human craftsmen provide scale, and the eyes through which we perceive the work. Crawling about and even soaring, God-like, over the rusty plates and tubes, they simultaneously humanize and deify this inanimate work. Archival footage introduces a sense of temporality, and asks us to consider how the scales of time differ for humans and our creations.

Memorial chronicles the complete lifecycle of its steel subject, but leaves the biggest question—why must it be destroyed?—to the audience. In considering this, we confront our own mortality and choices to express ourselves through art, even if it will not outlast us.