2009 Florida Film Festival Documentaries
10 Full-Length Docs in American Independent Competition
Mar 25, 2009
Blast!, The Garden, Earth Days, and Pressure Cooker Highlight 18th Annual Florida Film Festival Documentary Competition.
The Florida Film Festival, produced by Enzian Theater and held in the Orlando, Florida, area from March 27 through April 5, features ten documentaries in its American Independent Competition. Each film competes for up to three awards: a Grand Jury Award for best film in that category; a Special Jury Award given at the jury’s discretion for exceptional achievement; and an Audience Award determined by audience votes. The Festival offers the same competition for narrative feature films, and includes other non-competing films in several showcases.
Competing Documentaries About Science and Nature
Blast!
- Dr. Mark Devlin and his team of astrophysicists attempt to launch a “Balloon-borne Large-Aperture Sub-millimeter Telescope” into the upper atmosphere in order to provide answers about the origin of the universe.
- Director: Paul Devlin
- Run Time: 74 minutes
- Southeast Premiere
- Additional Information: The filmmaker is the brother of Dr. Mark Devlin. Blast! is preceded by the 8-minute short documentary Suspended by director Kimi Takesue.
Earth Days
- This film recounts the birth of Earth Day using archival footage and nine witnesses to the events surrounding this environmental movement.
- Director: Robert Stone
- Run Time: 100 minutes
- East Coast Premiere
- Additional Information: Earth Days is preceded by the 4-minute short documentary Out Of Print by director Danny Plotnick.
The Garden
- Politicians and gardeners argue about the fate of a 13-acre garden – the nation’s largest urban farm – in South Central Los Angeles.
- Director: Scott Hamilton Kennedy
- Run Time: 100 minutes
- Florida Premiere
- Additional Information: This film was a 2009 Academy Award Nominee for Best Documentary Feature. The Garden is preceded by the World Premiere of the 8-minute short documentary People Like Us by director Brett Smith.
Competing Documentaries About Art and Commerce
- This documentary explores some of the most successful modern advertising campaigns since the mid-1960s and the people who created them.
- Director: Doug Pray
- Run Time: 86 minutes
- East Coast Premiere
- Additional Information: Art & Copy is preceded by the 4-minute short documentary Sell It To The Hedge Funds by director Haven Pell.
In A Dream
- Isaiah Zagar, an aging artist suffering from mental illness, has created 50,000 square feet of mosaic murals in his south Philadelphia neighborhood.
- Director: Jeremiah Zagar
- Run Time: 78 minutes
- Florida Premiere
- Additional Information: The filmmaker is the son of Isaiah Zagar. In A Dream is preceded by the 12-minute short documentary Push Button House by directors Robert Profusek and Ryan Silbert.
- Mrs. Wilma Stephenson’s Culinary Arts class at Frankford High School in northeast Philadelphia teaches inner city students how to cook.
- Directors: Jennifer Grausman and Mark Becker
- Run Time: 99 minutes
- Southeast Premiere
- Additional Information: Pressure Cooker is preceded by the 3-minute short documentary The Lost Tribes of New York City by directors Andy and Carolyn London.
Smile ‘Til It Hurts: The Up With People Story
- This film explores the singing group that inspired the world for 40 years.
- Director: Lee Storey
- Run Time: 80 minutes
- East Coast Premiere
- Additional Information: Actress Glenn Close is a former member of Up With People. Smile ‘Til It Hurts is preceded by the 23-minute short documentary Pickin’ & Trimmin’ by director Matt Morris.
Where You From
- Three rural hopefuls try to make it in the world of Hip Hop.
- Director: Sabrina Lee
- Run Time: 76 minutes
- World Premiere
- Additional Information: Where You From is preceded by the 14-minute short documentary The Sheriff by director Jeff M. Giordano.
Competing Documentaries About People and Places
Prodigal Sons
- Kim returns home to Helena, Montana, for her 20th high school reunion bracing herself for the inevitable conflicts surrounding her sex change, her father’s death, and her disabled brother.
- Director: Kimberly Reed
- Run Time: 86 minutes
- Southeast Premiere
- Additional Information: Prodigal Sons is preceded by the 10-minute short documentary And What Remains by director Marc Havener.
- A group of senior citizens in Bangor, Maine, greets U.S. soldiers 24 hours a day, 52 weeks a year as the Maine Troop Greeters.
- Director: Aron Gaudet
- Run Time: 84 minutes
- Southeast Premiere
- Additional Information: The Way We Get By is preceded by the 3-minute short documentary Germans In The Woods by director Tim Rauch.
For a film schedule, list of programs, and other information about the Florida Film Festival, visit the official website.
The copyright of the article 2009 Florida Film Festival Documentaries in Documentary Films is owned by Leslie C. Halpern. Permission to republish 2009 Florida Film Festival Documentaries in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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