Ahead of its premiere at the 2026 Tribeca Film Festival, we had a rocking good time with director Rob Arthur about Frampton. This insightful and crowd-pleasing doc about the one-and-only UK rock legend shows us the fun, fame, friendship, frailty and legacy of being Peter Frampton. The exceptional doc will screen on June 4 next month. It’s fitting that the film comes out in the same year as the 50th anniversary of Rocky. Following Peter’s ascendancy to golden god of rock in 1976 with the unparalleled live album, Peter is less an underdog but he was certainly up against the ropes following the massive success of ‘Frampton Comes Alive‘. The…
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Interview…Doug Jones and Derek Maki on the Documentary Celebrating Jones’ Iconic Career
Actor Doug Jones has often been referred to as the Boris Karloff of our time. This in-depth feature length documentary seeks to find how this actor/mime went on to become one of Hollywood’s most sought-after actors when it comes to creating fantastic creatures in full body make-up/costumes. From his early start in projects like Buffy The Vampire Slayer to major motion pictures like Hellboy and Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer to Oscar winning and nominated films like Pan’s Labyrinth and The Shape Of Water. His performances, mannerisms and physicality is so well-known, you could spot Doug a mile away. We’ve taken to calling him Lean Chaney. Directed by William Conlin, the doc gives us a reverent look…
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Interview…Will Bates On the Sound of ‘Stiller & Meara: Nothing is Lost’
Many times, the most difficult creative process is going to be the most personal one. This year, filmmaker Ben Stiller is offers up a documentary about life behind the scenes in his family. To be clear, this isn’t about what went into Zoolander, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story and There’s Something About Mary. This goes back one full generation to focus on his famous parents. The duo of “Stiller & Meara” laid the groundwork for many comedians coming down the pike. But this profound, personal look at the Stiller family shows that it wasn’t always smiles and laughs bringing up two children all while headlining night clubs and other ventures…
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Interview…Director Joe Hill Discusses the Honesty and Personal Journey of ‘Match In A Haystack’
In the world of documentaries, it’s not easy to standout in the crowd. That said, we were taken with Joe Hill‘s documentary about a troupe of dancers in Ukraine. His film, Match In A Haystack, is intimate, well-crafted and tells a unique story amid a war that affects all aspects of these citizen’s lives. Hill’s eye for story and capturing the moment has made his work noteworthy, whether it is in the mountains, the arctic, or a war-torn country. He has extensive experience directing documentary projects, and he’s also a cinematographer and producer. That aids in his ability to share a cohesive and compelling slice of life of a great…
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Interview…Ilan Eshkeri on Honesty and Hope in BBC’s ‘A Perfect Planet’
Ilan Eshkeri is an award-winning composer, artist, songwriter, producer and creator. We spoke with Ilan in 2015 (about 47 Ronin, Black Sea and The Snowman & The Snowdog) and were happy to catch up with him to discuss his process writing music for BBC’s A Perfect Planet. This new nature series is his fourth collaboration with legendary naturalist Sir David Attenborough. The bulk of this interview focuses on his efforts to write that music and the underlying idea of hope in many of the themes (we’ve included selections from his score below). Recently, Ilan and Ralph Fiennes completed their third film together – a biopic about Rudolf Nureyev, The White…
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Exclusive: Director Matt Schrader Offers A Look Into ‘SCORE: A Film Music Documentary’
Have you ever wondered why certain film scores stick in your head? Have you ever found yourself humming the bars from Jaws, more terrified by John Williams‘ iconic two-note motif than the (robotic) shark which hunted Roy Scheider and the citizens of Amity Island? So much of that has to do with the craft, and, moreover, the creative skill of the composer. For example, how easily can you recall the theme to Back to the Future?…that was Alan Silvestri. Your kids love the infectious sound/songs of Frozen?…then thank Christophe Beck. You ever imagine yourself as the Caped Crusader and instinctively hum the theme to Batman or The Dark Knight?…give Danny Elfman and Hans…
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G-S-T Review…Finding Vivian Maier
Some people get one shot at greatness. If you happen to be as lucky as Vivian Maier however, one of the 20th century’s greatest street photographers, you can get 100,000 of them. The late Ms. Maier, a mysterious nanny with a passion for observing and capturing people at the most banal points in their day, is the subject of this amazing documentary. One of the many bizarre, yet dazzling facts in this eclectic woman’s life is that her work went almost entirely unseen, even by Maier herself. Finding Vivian Maier is a compelling story of discovery that really began as a fluke (you really need to check out the trailer below)…
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Interview…Composer J. Ralph on Documentaries, Real Life Heroes and the Call to Action
J. Ralph is an Academy Award-nominated composer, singer/songwriter and producer. He is also the founder of the internationally award-winning music production company The Rumor Mill, and has written and produced the music for numerous Grammy winning artists, Oscar-winning films, and The President of The United States, Barack Obama. Considered by many to have had a profound impact on the documentary medium, J. Ralph has helped elevate the experience of what it feels like to watch a documentary through his scores. Incredibly he has written and produced the music for 4 out of the last 5 Oscar winning/nominated documentary feature projects. In the 85 year history of the Academy Awards, J.…
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[OCFF Interview]…'Medora' Directors Andrew Cohn & Davy Rothbart
This past weekend at the 2nd Annual Oak Cliff Film Festival, Andrew Cohn and Davy Rothbart’s documentary feature, Medora, about a small town in Indiana, won the Jury Award for Best Documentary Feature. The film, which premiered earlier this year at the South By Southwest Film Festival in Austin, follows the lives of the boys who make up the Medora Hornets, the local high school’s basketball team, as they attempt to end their three-year losing streak. The team serves as a symbol to the community, and their hope and determination parallels with that of the town itself, as it fights to stay alive. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Check out the Medora trailer from the film’s…
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G-S-T Review…La Camioneta
Guatemala’s main source of transportation comes from drivers of colorfully painted, refurbished buses known as “camionetas.” These drivers and their decorated buses are responsible for providing the majority of Guatemalans a way to make a living by transporting them to and from work each day. For as long as he can remember, Ermelindo has had a dream of owning one of these buses, and to perform this service that is so essential to the people of Guatemala and their way of life. The documentary feature debut from Mark Kendall (www.markkendall.net), La Camioneta, follows the bus that will eventually serve to fulfill Ermelindo’s long-awaited dream, as it makes it’s way from…
