Submarine Channel
It’s nigh on impossible to pick out the highlights from this year’s DocLab – because the whole thing was so darned exceptional – and I’m not just saying that. Really! Whereas other documentary festivals may have a slightly shoddy sideline in New Media, DocLab show-cases the cream of web content (documentaries, cross-media fun stuff, data-visualization, etc.) in the sumptuous surroundings of the art deco Tuschinski theatre, providing this emerging genre with the dignified platform it deserves. It’s so luxurious to watch productions created for the web – with super-immersive audio, compelling editing and other attributes that keep the Adderall-needy global internet audience interested – on the big screen. It’s like… immersive x 10! And these were the personal faves:
T_Visionarium
The incredible multiple floating screen sensation really has to be seen to be believed – but think Minority report but then with documentary content that you can fly through via meta-tagged navigation.
Ira Glass
We were totally mesmerized by this guy which isn’t surprising: he’s carved an exceptionally successful living from telling stories. This American Life celebrates the banality and minutia of life, with a media empire that now spans radio, TV, web and even live shows. One to watch / hear / see!
Interview Project
Filmmaker Austin Lynch graced us with his ultra-charming presence to show-case this gem of an Interview Project. Snapshots from the fringes of rural Americana, laced with priceless intros by none other than David Lynch himself!
The Ninth Floor
This deeply intimate photo documentary about heroin addiction on the big screen made for a morbidly spellbinding immersive experience. We love everything those clever Mediastorm people make! Driftless wasn’t half bad either…
The Crisis of Credit: Visualized
Just for japes!
