May 02, 2010
DOXA is coming to town! Hello Cool World will Be There...
By
Katherine Dodds
SOME ACHBAR EXEC PRODUCED FILMS COMING SOON TO DOXA IN VANCOUVER! + COOL YOUTH FILMS.
HELLO COOL WORLD COMMNITY PARTNER FOR PAX AMERICANA & A SERIES OF YOUTH FILMS read on...
As our regular readers will know, the success of The Corporation has spwaned a uniquely produced "collection" of films, with Telefilm dollars allocated via Mark Achbar. Two of these films are launching now!
The Achbar Collection: Two New Launches at DOXA - PAX AMERICANA & BANANAS!*
Achbar reports: "The Corporation's box office success eventually triggered a Telefilm Canada incentive program called a "performance envelope" which, according to some byzantine formula, set aside an astonishing amount of funds for the exclusive use of my company." He adds, "Conditions applied and the timeframe rules made it impossible for me to seriously consider using the funds for a project of my own, but I was able to participate in the financing and the shaping of 10 projects by other filmmakers, including four, million-dollar-plus theatrical feature documentaries."
Two of these films will be playing at DOXA in Vancouver.
Denis Delestrac's "PAX AMERICANA & The Weaponization of Space" is a MUST SEE. (Even if it scares you.) As if there weren’t enough weapons here on earth, space has become the newest arena for countries around the globe to launch their struggle for supremacy. The film is packed full of some truly startling facts — everything from the “Rods of God” (space weapons that can launch from orbit) to the fact that fifty cents of every American tax dollar goes towards military spending. Exec produced by Mark Achbar, and featuring other alumni from The Corporation. Co-writer Harold Crooks, and narrator Mikela Jay will be at the screening.
Fredrik Gertten's controversial "Bananas!*" (supported in development), which The Corporation's Bart Simpson produced, is about pesticide-poisoned banana workers from Nicaragua suing a gigantic transnational corporation, Dole Foods, for health problems including sterility. The film's story and the story of the film after its release gets complicated. One judge ruled for some of the workers, resulting in a multi-million dollar award. On appeal, another judge ruled aspects of their case fraudulent and threw out the award. Dole sued the filmmaker for defamation, but subsequently dropped the suit. www.bananasthemovie.com Bananas!* at DOXA.
We'll be updating on all the films this "Achbar" fund has helped in or upcoming e'Zine. In the meantime, please continue to support the films --
Join our mailing list.
Donate to the Campaign 4 Corporate Harm Reduction.
Go see these films at DOXA!
YOUTH FILMS AT DOXA
Hello Cool World's own Manager of Youth Programs & video editor, David Ng, and our LACE campaign maven Lizzy Karp will be blogging, reviewing, promoting and tabling at a series of youth-focused films playing at DOXA.
Stay tuned for more about these films. And watch for our Hello Cool World Video blogging crew at the DOXA parties!
YOUTH FILMS SUPPORTED BY HELLO COOL WORLD AT DOXA
Six Miles Deep
On February 28, 2006, members of the Iroquois Confederacy (the Haudenosaunee) set up a blockade on a highway near Caledonia, Ontario to prevent a housing development from going ahead on their traditional land. The ensuing confrontation made national headlines for months. However, while most Canadians have watched television news footage of First Nations “protesters” blocking roads and angry non-Aboriginal people who want to get on with business as usual, few ever get the perspective of the First Nations. And even less well known is the perspective of women and in this particular situation, the crucial role of the women of the Six Nations community — the traditional source of power in the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.
The Healing Lens
In 2007, filmmaker Michelle Derosier released her dramatic film Seeking Bimaadiziiwin, a fictionalized but realistic depiction of the struggles of First Nations youth dealing with depression, suicide and racism. After auditioning hundreds of young people, Michelle assembled a stunning cast of first-time actors from around Northwestern Ontario. After working with the young “actors” on the film, Derosier decided she wanted to work with them further; this time to make a documentary about their real lives. That is how she came to make The Healing Lens, a film about the healing power of art and culture, and the resiliency of First Nations youth.
[NOTE: for the past four years we have been working with Chee Mamuk Aboriginal Program to make short films in collaboration with youth in communities in BC through a workshop called "Star in Your Own Stories." View these short films at YouthHaveThePower.com.]
BAS! Beyond the Red Light
In BAS! Beyond the Red Light, 13 young girls who were sold and then rescued from Mumbai’s infamous network of gated brothels, confront the inner and outer perils of life and reveal their very personal story inside the big business of child trafficking.
The Sari Soldiers
Julie Bridgham’s film was shot over three of the most tumultuous years in Nepalese history. King Gyanendra’s decision to dissolve parliament and seize power was met with fierce opposition, and as the country was riven by civil war, ordinary families were caught in between.When a woman named Devi Sunuwar spoke out about government brutality, the army kidnapped her daughter Marin, in lieu of Devi herself. For more than three years, Devi tries to discover her daughter’s fate.
P-Star Rising
An adorable yet precocious 9-year-old Priscilla, tells her single-father, Jesse, “I am going to become a rapper and fulfill your dreams of succeeding in the music business.” Moved by Priscilla’s undeniable passion and impressed with her natural talent, he begins to teach her all he knows about rapping.
NO FUN CITY!
We are also excited to be supporting our own LACE campaign camera-woman and cohort Melissa James' and Kate Kroll's film No Fun City! Here at Hello Cool World we are always ready to fight for the right to party!!
C U at DOXA
& come back to our blog for frequent updates.
Tag(s):
Film Launch,
Hello Cool World,
Youth,
Pax Americana,
Peace and Justice Issues,
Social Justice,
Social Marketing
Recent Blogs by Katherine Dodds:
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Katherine Dodds AKA "Kat" is the founder of Good Company Communications and HelloCoolWorld.com. Trained in renegade advertising & branding through her work with Adbusters in the '90s, Kat's early induction into the possibilities of the web-world was inspired by the term hypertext, which she immediately found comforting. She is dedicated to cause-related communication and to the development and use of tools that promote democratic processes.
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