Authors — Paula Bernstein
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BendFilm Festival 2023: What Filmmakers Need to Know Before Applying to Film Festivals
If there’s one thing that indie filmmakers, especially first-timers, can generally agree on, it’s that applying to film festivals can be a mystifying process. What type of films are film programmers looking for? Does running time matter? “Demystifying Film Festivals,” a panel at the recent 20th BendFilm Festival in Bend, Oregon (October 12-15, 2023) attempted to answer some of those questions. Open to the public and held at Somewhere That’s Green, a plant store and community space, the free panel was moderated by Selin Sevinç, director of programming at BendFilm and featured veteran programmers Joanne Feinberg (BendFilm, Big Sky), John […]
by Paula Bernstein on Oct 30, 2023 -
This is 40: IFP Celebrates IFP Week’s 40th Anniversary
With tomorrow’s kickoff, IFP, Filmmaker‘s publisher, celebrates the 40th anniversary of its IFP Week and its own 40th anniversary year. The Fall print edition of Filmmaker includes a commemorative supplement, produced by IFP, which contains, in addition to many fantastic archival photos, this article by Paula Bernstein on the event’s history. Tickets to some of the public events at IFP Week are still available and can be purchased here at the link. — Editor “Only one year out of film school, I soaked it all up like a sponge,” says Oscar-winning producer Adele Romanski, recalling her first time attending IFP […]
by Paula Bernstein on Sep 14, 2018 -
Five Questions with Amber Sealey, Director of No Light and No Land Anywhere
After having premiered at the 2016 Los Angeles Film Festival, Amber Sealey brings her new feature, No Light and No Land Anywhere, to theaters today. The Factory 25 release screens at the IFC Center, with Sealey doing Q&As at all the evening shows. Tickets and information can be found here at the link. And, below, read Paula Bernstein’s interview with Sealey conducted just prior to the film’s festival launch. Five years after her last feature, writer-director-actor Amber Sealey returns with No Light and No Land Anywhere, a psychosexual drama executive produced by Miranda July. Starring British stage actress Gemma Brockis […]
by Paula Bernstein on Mar 16, 2018 -
Oregon Doc Camp: A Weekend in the Woods with Documentary Filmmakers
What happens when 50 documentary filmmakers converge in the woods of Oregon for a long weekend? It sounds like the premise of an episode of Portlandia or a new reality TV show. But Oregon Doc Camp, featuring four days of film talks, screenings, workshops, and campfires at a Silver Fall State Park in Oregon, is something entirely different. It’s a relaxed, non-competitive environment where nonfiction filmmakers can swap war stories, share hard-earned expertise and provide support and feedback. In its fourth year, Oregon Doc Camp, presented by Women in Film Portland from May 18-21, gained momentum with a top-notch lineup of speakers, including editor Kate Amend (The Keepers, The Case […]
by Paula Bernstein on Jun 2, 2017 -
Lessons from The Reluctant Radical: How The First Amendment Protects Filmmakers
Lindsey Grayzel and Deia Schlosberg had never met, but on October 11, 2016, the documentary filmmakers were each arrested while filming #Shut It Down climate activists who turned off all pipelines carrying Canadian tar sands oil into the U.S. as part of a direct action protest. Though Schlosberg was in North Dakota and Grayzel was in Washington, the two filmmakers quickly found themselves in remarkably similar situations. Along with two other filmmakers, they were arrested and charged with the same felonies as the climate activists, charges carrying penalties of up to 40 years in prison. Since then, their charges have been dropped/suspended and […]
by Paula Bernstein on May 4, 2017 -
How (and When) to Hire a Documentary Editor: What I Learned Making My First Short Doc
It’s six months after my first-ever film shoot on my first-ever film, the short documentary Sole Doctor. And yes, I’m still working on that documentary! After grappling with self-doubt and fretting about the narrative arc, I feel both confident in my vision and totally confused about how to shape the story. In other words, it’s time to find a good editor! But first, a little refresher about the project: Sole Doctor is a short observational-style documentary about George, a 78-year-old African-American shoe cobbler who has owned a business in Portland for over 50 years. Preparing to retire and pass the business on to […]
by Paula Bernstein on Apr 27, 2017 -
Tribeca ’17: Five Questions with Water Warriors Director Michael Premo
I saw Water Warriors in February, just a month after Donald Trump’s inauguration, during its world premiere at Big Sky Documentary Film Festival in Missoula, Montana. The short film and multimedia photo exhibition provided an element of much-needed hope at a time when the environment is increasingly imperiled by big business interests. But rather than focusing on dire statistics and predictions about climate change, Water Warriors highlights a rare success story of ordinary citizens — including members of the Mi’kmaq Elsipogtog First Nation, French-speaking Acadians and white, English-speaking families in New Brunswick, Canada — who fight to protect their water from the oil […]
by Paula Bernstein on Apr 21, 2017 -
Oregon Doc Camp Now Accepting Applications
Now in its fourth year, Oregon Doc Camp invites experienced documentary filmmakers to a four-day documentary retreat May 18-21, 2017 at Silver Falls State Park in central Oregon. Developed by Women in Film Portland, Oregon Doc Camp gives working documentary filmmakers an opportunity to gather in an informal setting, learn from each other and build community in an ever-changing industry. This year, Kate Amend, editor of the Academy Award-winning documentaries Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport and The Long Way Home, as well as The Case Against 8, and many other films, will present the keynote speech. Currently on the faculty […]
by Paula Bernstein on Apr 19, 2017 -
Report from Big Sky: Tips on Documentary Pitching
Given the recent Presidential threats to refugees and immigrants, it seemed only fitting that The New Neighbors Project: Self-Directed Stories from the New American West, which aims to put cameras in the hands of refugees and immigrants in Montana, won the inaugural pitch competition for Tribeca Film Institute’s IF/Then Pitch competition during the recent 14th annual Big Sky Documentary Film Festival in Missoula, Montana. Directed and produced by Bryan Bello, The New Neighbors Project plans to create a series of short documentaries through workshops which teach refugees media production skills so they can direct their own stories. Developed by Tribeca Film Institute (TFI), IF/Then is designed to support short […]
by Paula Bernstein on Mar 4, 2017 -
Five Questions for The Last Laugh Director Ferne Pearlstein
Originally published during the Tribeca Film Festival, where the doc on humor and the Holocaust had its premiere, here is Paula Bernstein’s interview with director Ferne Pearlstein about The Last Laugh. The film is opening in theaters today and plays in New York at the Lincoln Plaza Cinemas. There has been no shortage of documentaries about the Holocaust but, until now, none of them have featured Sarah Silverman, Chris Rock and Louis C.K. In Ferne Pearlstein’s The Last Laugh, which premieres today at the Tribeca Film Festival, she delves into the history of humor about the Holocaust, exploring the ethical questions […]
by Paula Bernstein on Mar 3, 2017
