Reviews of short documentaries
Category: Short Docs
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‘Upstate Purgatory’ Review and Interview with Director Lee Phillips
Intimate, relevant, and humanizing, “Upstate Purgatory” from BAFTA-winning director Lee Phillips is a 19-minute window into the minds of four inmates at the Albany County Jail in upstate New York as they reflect on their …
Doc Highlight: ‘Same but Different’
In the Loading Docs short “Same but Different,” directed by Louise Leitch and co-produced by Susan Ruffell, two longtime friends Byron and Neil are forced to confront the changing dynamics of their 25-year-long friendship when …
Doc Highlight: ‘Mister Sunshine’
Directed by Eldon Booth and produced by Alex Lovell of Run Charlie Films, “Mister Sunshine” is the captivating three-minute Loading Docs’ short about Larry Woods, a former millionaire from the United States turned Auckland, New …
Doc Highlight: ‘Blood Sugar’ Directed by Joe Hitchcock
Over the next two weeks Documentary Drive will be spotlighting a few of the great 2016 short films produced by the New Zealand-based documentary initiative Loading Docs. Each year, with support from the NZ On …
Doc Highlight: ‘Ace and the Desert Dog’
A photographer named Ace? A blogging Blue Heeler named Genghis Khan? Yes! And, yes! In “Ace and the Desert Dog,” photographer Ace Kvale celebrates his 60th birthday by taking a 60-day 400 mile backpacking trip …
Review: ‘Jimmy on the Run’
Directed by Wytse Koetse, “Jimmy on the Run” is a captivating seven minute documentary about the life of Amsterdam fashion and street photographer Huang Jianmin, better known by his professional moniker: ‘Jimmy on the Run.’ …
Review: ‘Chau, beyond the lines’
Generations born after the Vietnam War may have never heard of the herbicide Agent Orange, let alone realize how its dangerous chemicals still threaten millions of people’s health to this day. In the span of …
Review: ‘50 Feet from Syria’
Directed by Skye Fitzgerald, “50 Feet from Syria” follows Dr. Hisham Bismar, a Syrian-American orthopedic surgeon, on a volunteer medical mission to a Turkish hospital on the Syrian border where he provides care to victims …
‘Rocket Wars’ vs. ‘Rocket-War’
Depending on how long you’ve been a reader, you may remember that last August “Rocket Wars” by Variable was featured as a “Doc of the Week” here on Documentary Drive. The film uses the latest high tech filming …
Doc Highlight: ‘My Enemy, My Brother’
Kicking off our look at some of this year’s Oscar contenders is the short documentary “My Enemy, My Brother.” Directed by Canadian filmmaker Ann Shin, whose résumé includes the award-winning film “The Defector: Escape from North …