Shooting People: Shooting From The Hip » Britdoc

Does it matter who funds films?

Ingrid — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 20:49:50 +0000

Well, yes of course it does. But this is a sticky, tricky issue that the independent film community is going to have to grapple with as new sources of funding become available and new partnerships are sought. I just finished writing an article for MovieScope Magazine in the UK about the possibilities for outreach around documentaries, focusing on the productive partnerships that Third Sector funding (NGOs, charities, social enterprises, voluntary organizations etc.) can help foster. However a couple of recent Guardian articles (click here and here) have highlighted the ethical issues involved when financial support is given by organizations with a particular agenda. Who has editorial control if a film is funded by Amnesty or Oxfam? The Guardian quotes Chloe Baird-Murray, Amnesty’s director of creative relationships: “If the film-maker wants to tell both sides of the story, they can do that. We support … freedom of expression. Any storytelling is positive for us if it shines a light on what is happening in the world. We get involved to tell our side of the story correctly. Documentaries can be overwhelming if they do not contain a solution to the problems they highlight. NGOs can give that. Al Gore’s film ended with an example of what people can do. People are ripe for that kind of activism.”

The Good Pitch at BRITDOC opened many people’s eyes to the possibilities of Third Sector and commercial funding (see also the work that the Channel 4 Documentary Film Foundation did in bringing the non-profit world together with filmmakers last year at The Media Conference). Just take a look at the list of observers – many will not be folk you would consider “the usual suspects” when it comes to documentary funding:

Fledgling Fund
IMPACT PARTNERS
ITVS
C4BDFF
Sundance Institute
AOL True Stories
Participant
CBA-Dfid
Christian Aid
Oxfam
Avaaz
Amnesty
NCVO
RED
Gucci Fund
The Sunday Telegraph
Hartley Film Foundation
One World Broadcasting Trust
Vice Magazine
JRRT
Gulbenkian Foundation
Channel 4 (Corporate Affairs)
No2ID
Oak Foundation
Ecostorm
Greenpeace UK
British Beekeepers Association
Camfed
MySpace
World Development Movement

There is definitely a need for funding outside of television/government in the UK but filmmakers will have to be alert as they navigate this new landscape. There is a longer tradition of this kind of funding in the US (much of it necessitated by the profound lack of government/public service funding here) but the recent Nike/Beautiful Losers deal on this side of the pond has led to much debate about the ethics and politics of big corporations giving support to independent films. As Spout’s Karina Longworth put it: “Beyond the knee-jerk “corporate=bad” response, what should we think about indie documentaries looking to multinational giants for the kind of support that studios are no longer willing to give?”

Transparency is clearly key in all these instances. I’m inclined to agree with the Frontline Club’s Vaughan Smith who says: “I can’t think of subjective journalism that I have a problem with, if it is marked as subjective and clear. Most journalism is already subjective, even if it is labelled as objective. I am suspicious of all organisations, including news organisations. There always needs to be proper controls to protect editorial integrity.”

Thank you to Mark Rabinowitz/Docsider for the heads up about the Guardian articles.

The team behind Black Gold at The Media Conference in 2007

Britdoc Day 3: Larry Charles, Awards, Wigs and a Panda

Ingrid — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 14:13:22 +0000

Maxyne Franklin with SXSW’s Janet Pierson

Teddy Leifer, Jeremy Chilnick and Paul Taylor

SnagFilm’s Andrew Mer with Jess Search

Beadie Finzi introduces Larry Charles

Jamie Campbell deep in conversation with Larry Charles

AJ Schnack announces that Man On Wire has won the Best British Film prize at Britdoc

The Britdoc gals and Larry: Katie Bradford, Jess Search, Larry Charles, Maxyne Franklin, Beadie Finzi

Rebecca Lloyd-Evans and Beadie Finzi rocking out to Heavy Load

Jess Search and Beadie Finzi get wigged out at the end of the festival

And then it all got very, very surreal…

Britdoc Day 2: Debate and Disco

Ingrid — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 13:38:45 +0000

Maxyne Franklin (Britdoc), Daniella Eversby (CPH:DOX) and Louise Platel (Channel 4) soak up the sun before a screening

Jess Search gives Peter Dale a few pointers before the DocFest Debate: “The house believes docs should be more serious”

Kurt Engfehr has his say at the debate

Britdoc’s Charlotte Dale rocking her blue eyelashes at the Handlebar Moustache Disco

Shooting People’s Tamsin Wright looking very glam

Danielle DiGiacomo (IndiePix) and Sandra Whipham (More4)

Current TV’s Emily Renshaw-Smith draped in Mardi Gras beads

The Disco Gang: Ryan Harrington (Gucci Tribeca Fund, IndiePix), Matt Dentler (Cinetic), John Dower (Thriller in Manila) Maxyne Franklin, and Joel Wilson

Maxyne “I thought this was Burning Man” Franklin and Ryan Harrington

Me and Daniella Eversby looking terribly fetching with facial hair!

Britdoc, Bollywood and Bunting

Ingrid — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:44:48 +0000

The sun came out yesterday afternoon for gin and tonics on the Quad while The Bollywood Brass Band marched around the college playing famous songs from Bollywood movies. Today it’s The Big Pitch in the Oxford Playhouse and screenings including Up the Yangtze, Thriller in Manila, At the Death House Door and Heavy Metal in Baghdad.

Croquet on the Quad

The Bollywood Brass Band

Heather Croall, James Mullighan, Charlie Phillips and other peeps sipping G&Ts on the lawn

Ryan Harrington and Debra Zimmerman

Blurry distribution: Matt Dentler (Cinetic), Tim Sparke (Joining the Dots TV), Jess Search (moderator), Jamie King (Steal This Film) and Matt Elek (Vice)

Britdoc starts today

Ingrid — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 09:08:18 +0000

I was up with the birds this morning to prepare for Britdoc which starts today. It’s so great to be back at Keble and there are so many really fantastic people attending this year. My Surgeries (nothing medical, just one-to-one meetings with industry experts) start with aplomb at noon today with Cara Mertes from Sundance. Followed my some of my favorite doc folk: Julie Goldman, Ryan Harrington, Matt Dentler, Danielle DiGiacomo, Debra Zimmerman, Judith Helfand and Robert West. . . it’s a long and distinguished list.

Here are some photos I took this morning as I wandered around the college.

Bootiful Keble College

Bootiful Keble College Quad

Our volunteers are mighty strong

Delegate bags awaiting delegates

Extremely helpful signage

Magazines in the Surgery waiting room – awaiting doc patients!

BRITDOC 08 – Get Thee to Oxford!

Ingrid — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:16:24 +0000

The BRITDOC festival is coming up later this month in the UK: July 23-25 at Keble College, Oxford. I should declare my allegiances straight away because I am good friends with the BRITDOC gang and have helped out at the fest since its inception but, blatant bias aside, it really is a wonderful event and does all the things a good festival should by showing great films, creating genuine community and giving filmmakers useful resources going forward (from strategic knowledge and contacts to cold hard cash). BRITDOC’s themes this year are comedy and music, and events include pitching forums, speed networking with composers, talking sessions (including Larry Charles in conversation) and the Handlebar Moustache Disco!

I’m producing the Surgeries again this year which gives filmmakers the chance to get one-on-one meetings with experts including Cara Mertes (Sundance Institute), Debra Zimmerman (Women Make Movies), Cynthia Kane (ITVS) and Matt Dentler (Cinetic). If you are coming to BRITDOC make sure you apply to see one of our good Doctors!

With so much attention on the hardships faced by some sectors of the independent film community at the moment, an event like BRITDOC is a real tonic. We may be a ship of fools but it is a ship I am happy to be sailing on!

All good things must come to an end

Ingrid — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 10:44:04 +0000

Here are some pics from the final day at BRITDOC 07. I’m about to jump on a plane to South Africa so will be offline, off-piste and off-road for a couple of weeks. There will be no blogging from me for a while. Just hippos and elephants and sand dunes. Hooray!

Cows on a meadow that is now a flood plain in Oxford

Fulcrum’s Christo Hird and Sundance Institute’s Cara Mertes

Sean Farnel – Hot Docs programmer and most excellent human being

Jennifer Venditti, director of the wonderful Billy the Kid

Liesl Copland from Netflix’s Red Envelope Entertainment – in front of the lovely Liddon Quad

Steven Bognar reading the latest Harry Potter in the Great Hall

More 4’s Katie Speight has just had a baby but she made it to BRITDOC on the final day – she’s a trooper!

And her baby got her own delegate badge!

Andrey Paounov and Julia Reich outside the Phoenix Cinema

A happy gang just before the awards ceremony

Quizzing and Singing at BRITDOC

Ingrid — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 00:52:42 +0000

Shooting People Creative Director James Mullighan is a very funny man (or as he puts it “a frustrated stand-up comic”) and he did a fantastic job running the Shooters Pub Quiz on Thursday night. After that everyone went a bit mental and started rocking out with the Punk Rock Karaoke band. I didn’t get any pics of the karaoke itself but I think my audience reactions say it all really.

Fab lady in curlers at the quiz

Steven Bognar (A Lion in the House), Teddy Leifer and Paul Taylor (We Are Together) chilling in the bar

Pernilla Rose Grønkjær (The Monastery) and Jason Kohn (Manda Bala) living it large

AJ, Pernilla and Jason being awesome

More fun than you can shake a stick at

Ingrid — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 18:15:28 +0000

I’m rushing off to do the Shooting People Pub Quiz so here’s my yesterday and a bit of today at BRITDOC in photos.

Manda Bala director Jason Kohn with Helvetica director Gary Hustvit outside the Phoenix before the screenings of their films

AJ Schnack is filled with the rock and roll spirit of BRITDOC

Emily Renshaw-Smith from Current and filmmaker Lee Kern both have excellent eyebrows

Filmmakers extraordinaire Mat Killip and Jamie Jay Johnson – and me

A&E IndieFilms’ Ryan Harrington, BRITDOC’s Maxyne Franklin and filmmaker Joel Wilson

Daniella Eversby and Louise Platel from Channel 4 at the banquet in the Great Hall

Katie Bradford getting the beautiful Sheldonian Theatre set up for the Pitching Forum

More 4’s Peter Dale introduces the Pitching Forum

BRITDOC 07 Gets Underway

Ingrid — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 10:33:30 +0000

Despite some flood warnings BRITDOC 07 is rocking and rolling. Here are some pics from our prep day yesterday.

Programmer Maxyne Franklin sitting on her films outside the Phoenix Cinema

Volunteers prepare the delegate bags

The lovely Keble College – home of BRITDOC

The BRITDOC rabbit!