FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 31, 2007   

 

Contact:

Amy Douthett in New York

Cassin Donn, DKC

Caitlin O’Neill, DKC

212 621 6785

212 981 5144

212 981 5275

adouthett@paleycenter.org

Cassin_Donn@dkcnews.com

Caitlin_O’Neill@dkcnews.com

 

 

The Paley Center for Media Presents “DocFest07”
Eighth Annual Documentary Film Festival –-
Announces Call for Entries for Pitch Workshop

 

October 24 to November 2, 2007 in New York

Annual Showcase of Documentary Premieres, Works-in-Progress,

Classic Docs, Workshops, and Special Events


New York, NY—The Paley Center for Media (formerly The Museum of Television & Radio) today announced the dates of DocFest07, its eighth annual Documentary Festival, in New York: October 24 through November 2, 2007. A call for entries for the celebrated Art of the Documentary Pitch Workshop with a cash prize of $5,000 was also announced.

 

The Art of the Documentary Pitch Workshop is a highly popular workshop in which five emerging filmmakers compete for a $5,000 prize sponsored by American Documentary Inc., producers of the award-winning P.O.V. series for PBS.  During the workshop, a panel of television executives and producers discuss the process of developing a documentary and hear and evaluate pitches from five pre-selected filmmakers who are hoping to sell either a nonfiction concept or a documentary work-in-progress. Entries are now being accepted; complete submission guidelines and entry forms can be found at http://www.paleycenter.org/festivals/docfest2007/index.htm.  There is no entry fee.  Submission materials will not be returned. The deadline is September 1, 2007

 

DocFest07 will feature  an exciting slate of premiere screenings—all of which will be introduced by the filmmakers and followed by the lively Q&A discussions that have become a hallmark of the festival—as well as a variety of sidebars, panels, and special events, exploring issues crucial to the craft and content of the documentary form. 

 

A complete festival schedule will be announced at a later date. Past Festival highlights have included the New York premieres of such acclaimed films as Marshall Curry’s Street Fight, Dan Klores’s Ring of Fire: The Emile Griffith Story, Zana Briski and Ross Kaufman’s Born into Brothels, and Ken Burns’s Jazz, among others.

 

For additional information, go to www.paleycenter.org. 

 

The Paley Center’s annual documentary festival was inaugurated in 2000 with the mission of bringing exemplary documentaries and works of nonfiction to the public.  Last year’s festival included the New York premieres of The World According to Sesame Street, Maxed Out, The Chances of the World Changing, Ken Burns’s The War, Life After Tomorrow, 51 Birch Street, and Darfur Diaries: Message from Home.  Previous festivals have introduced audiences to such acclaimed films as Born Into Brothels, Street Fight, Ring of Fire: The Emile Griffith Story, and Lalee’s Kin.  Over the years, the festival has hosted screenings and dialogues with such participants as Jon Alpert, Peter Arnett, Ken Burns, Ric Burns, Glenn Close, Robert Drew, Eve Ensler, Liz Garbus, Mikhail Gorbachev, Taylor Hackford, Eugene Jarecki, Sebastian Junger, Susan Lacy, Annie Leibovitz, Jerome Liebling, Nathanial Kahn, Rory Kennedy, Al Maysles, Michael Moore, Jehame Noujaim, Sam Pollard, Gordon Parks, Alexandra Pelosi, DA Pennebaker, Alvin Perlmutter, Sam Phillips, Alan and Susan Raymond, Gore Vidal, Kurt Vonnegut, Robert Weide, and Gideon Yago.

 

The Documentary Festival Advisory Committee members are Jon Alpert, Downtown Community Television Center; Katie Carpenter, Bahati Productions; David Fanning, Frontline; Liz Garbus, Moxie Firecracker Films; Chana Gazit, Steward/Gazit Productions; Rena Golden, CNN International; David Grubin, David Grubin Productions; Diana Holtzberg, Films Transit International; Marjorie Kaplan, Animal Planet and Discovery Kids;  Lynne Kirby, Sundance Channel; Barbara Kopple, Cabin Creek Films; Susan Lacy, American Masters; Lauren Lazin, MTV Networks; Ruby Lerner, Creative Capital; Beni Matias, Association of Independent Video and Filmmakers; Al Maysles, Maysles Films, Inc.; Cara Mertes, Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program; Stanley Moger, SFM Entertainment, LLC; Nina Henderson Moore; Sheila Nevins, HBO; Thom Powers, Filmmaker; Steve Rosenbaum, Magnify Media; Prof. George Stoney, Tisch School of the Arts; Molly Thompson, A&E IndieFilms; Rosalind P. Walter; Susan Werbe, The History Channel; Christopher Wilcha, Filmmaker; and Kristal Brent Zook, Columbia University.

 

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The Paley Center for Media, with locations in New York and Los Angeles, leads the discussion about the cultural, creative, and social significance of television, radio, and emerging platforms for the professional community and media-interested public. Drawing upon its curatorial expertise, an international collection, and close relationships with the leaders of the media community, the Paley Center examines the intersections between media and society. The general public can access the collection and participate in programs that explore and celebrate the creativity, the innovations, the personalities, and the leaders who are shaping media. Through the global programs of its Media Council and International Council, the Paley Center also serves as a neutral setting where media professionals can engage in discussion and debate about the evolving media landscape. Previously known as The Museum of Television & Radio, the Paley Center was founded in 1975 by William S. Paley, a pioneering innovator in the industry.  For more information, please visit www.paleycenter.org.

 

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