On November 17th 2018, five years to the day before this film's release, a young man died. What makes The Mission so striking isn't the certainty of that fate but the complexity of the circumstances that brought him to it. Treading a delicate path as it explores his difficult course, the film tries to explore without judgement. In a story where judgement is often lacking, and in a telling where there are a few unusual decisions, this is itself a source of questions, of discomfort, and the better for it.
Amanda McBaine and frequent collaborator Jesse Moss have been producing (in both senses) documentaries for decades. 2014's The Overnighters explored overlapping territories, crises of faith among oil men. They documented another utopian and paean to youth in Boys State. Moss also contributed to 2019's docuseries The Family about the influence of a particular evangelical group on US politics. That quasireligious...
Amanda McBaine and frequent collaborator Jesse Moss have been producing (in both senses) documentaries for decades. 2014's The Overnighters explored overlapping territories, crises of faith among oil men. They documented another utopian and paean to youth in Boys State. Moss also contributed to 2019's docuseries The Family about the influence of a particular evangelical group on US politics. That quasireligious...
- 11/17/2023
- by Andrew Robertson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Every year, the American Legion sponsors high school boys as they’re given a crash course on American politics. In 2017, Boys State (as it is known) made national news when Texas voted to secede from the union — shining a spotlight on the event.
Filmmaker Jesse Moss (“The Overnighters”) read an article in The Washington Post and was soon on a plane with fellow filmmaker Amanda McBaine, following Ben Feinstein, Steven Garza, Robert MacDougall and René Otero as they participated in the mock election.
“Boys State,” now streaming on Apple TV Plus provides an insight into the minds of these four teenage boys – some jaded, some optimistic — who hope to pursue a career in politics. Moss, McBaine and editor Jeff Gilbert spoke to Variety about “Boys State.”
Boy’s State is commonly known as offering a better perspective of the practical operation of government — where did the idea for this begin?...
Filmmaker Jesse Moss (“The Overnighters”) read an article in The Washington Post and was soon on a plane with fellow filmmaker Amanda McBaine, following Ben Feinstein, Steven Garza, Robert MacDougall and René Otero as they participated in the mock election.
“Boys State,” now streaming on Apple TV Plus provides an insight into the minds of these four teenage boys – some jaded, some optimistic — who hope to pursue a career in politics. Moss, McBaine and editor Jeff Gilbert spoke to Variety about “Boys State.”
Boy’s State is commonly known as offering a better perspective of the practical operation of government — where did the idea for this begin?...
- 8/29/2020
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
You may have heard his name uttered by Kanye West or Migos in songs but Martin Margiela isn’t necessarily a household name when it comes to fashion — but it should be. One of the most elusive designers in the fashion industry, there are barely any photos of him on the internet, but his work speaks for itself. In the Oscilloscope documentary, Martin Margiela: In His Own Words, filmmaker Reiner Holzemer takes us behind the scenes of the career of the titular avant-garde.
With the docu, Margiela breaks his no-interview policy and aversion to being in the public eye as Holzemer puts the spotlight on the “Banksy of fashion”. He worked as Jean Paul Gaultier’s assistant and was the creative director at Hermès before he started his own fashion house. For the first time, Margiela reveals his drawings, notes, and personal items in this intimate profile of his vision...
With the docu, Margiela breaks his no-interview policy and aversion to being in the public eye as Holzemer puts the spotlight on the “Banksy of fashion”. He worked as Jean Paul Gaultier’s assistant and was the creative director at Hermès before he started his own fashion house. For the first time, Margiela reveals his drawings, notes, and personal items in this intimate profile of his vision...
- 8/14/2020
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Filmmakers Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine have a unique niche among documentarians: their work, together or apart, often involves liberal people in conservative spaces. Moss produced last year’s Gay Chorus Deep South, about the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus embarking on a musical tour below the Mason-Dixon line, and both worked on The Overnighters, the story of a Lutheran pastor who opens his church doors to homeless workers who are seeking oil jobs in his North Dakota town. Moss and McBaine return with Boys State, the story of four boys creating a representative government from the ground up at a simulation in Texas.
When first hearing about the Sundance Grand Jury Prize documentary winner about teen boys in Texas politics, one might recall Lord of the Flies. Instead, Boys State demonstrates the complex inner life of those featured in competition. McBaine notes their most conservative character reveals “surprising [self] reflection,...
When first hearing about the Sundance Grand Jury Prize documentary winner about teen boys in Texas politics, one might recall Lord of the Flies. Instead, Boys State demonstrates the complex inner life of those featured in competition. McBaine notes their most conservative character reveals “surprising [self] reflection,...
- 8/14/2020
- by Joshua Encinias
- The Film Stage
Was it a simpler time back in January, when “Boys State” won the jury prize as the best documentary at the Sundance Film Festival? Maybe it was – certainly, it was a time before the pandemic really came to our shores, before life as we knew it ground to a halt, before George Floyd was killed and cities erupted, before a Black and Asian woman became a major party’s presumed nominee for vice president.
And in those times, maybe it was possible to sit through the opening half hour of “Boys State,” meeting a group of 16- and 17-year-old boys from Texas who are interested in government, and not cringe at what you heard. But it’s a little harder to do that only seven months later, with “Boys State” coming to Apple TV+ on August 14.
These days, to watch these would-be legislators assemble in Austin, Texas for the annual...
And in those times, maybe it was possible to sit through the opening half hour of “Boys State,” meeting a group of 16- and 17-year-old boys from Texas who are interested in government, and not cringe at what you heard. But it’s a little harder to do that only seven months later, with “Boys State” coming to Apple TV+ on August 14.
These days, to watch these would-be legislators assemble in Austin, Texas for the annual...
- 8/13/2020
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
There’s a great documentary about what life is like in the fracking boomtowns of North Dakota entitled The Overnighters. In it, we witness an example of humanity at its simultaneous best and worst. Desperate men seeking an escape from troubles back home arrive to find a different sort of struggle that they may never overcome despite promises sold. Angels prove themselves to be demons and vice versa as director Jesse Moss collects candid interviews that reveal just how bad things are in a land of overblown and exploitative opportunity. And if it’s this harrowing an experience for those who’ve chosen to travel to Williston, what about the ones born and raised praying to leave this supposed boom for a normalcy their poverty has yet to provide?
Writer/director Nia DaCosta’s Little Woods therefore serves as a perfect companion piece that looks at the collateral damage of such environments.
Writer/director Nia DaCosta’s Little Woods therefore serves as a perfect companion piece that looks at the collateral damage of such environments.
- 4/16/2019
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
Jesse Moss’ documentaries often take on heavy material, and his last film — 2014’s The Overnighters — was no exception. The experience of profiling pastor Jay Reinke — a North Dakota minister whose decision to open up his congregation to homeless laborers seeking oil field work placed him at odds with his flock — took a heavy toll on Moss. His new documentary The Bandit is a completely different kind of movie, an archival-based profile of Burt Reynolds and his good friend Hal Needham. Moss examines their complicated relationship through the making of 1977’s Needham-directed Smokey and the Bandit, a film still in regular circulation […]...
- 3/14/2016
- by Vadim Rizov
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
There will be late additions, but the bulk of this year’s SXSW feature film slate has been unveiled. From the festival, here’s the rundown section by section. Obvious highlights: world premieres of Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some and Pee-wee’s Big Holiday, Joel Potrykus’ follow-up to Buzzard, and a documentary about the making of Smokey and the Bandit from Jesse Moss (The Overnighters). Narrative Feature Competition Ten world premieres; ten unique ways to celebrate the art of storytelling. Selected from 1,443 narrative feature submissions in 2016. The Arbalest Director/Screenwriter: Adam Pinney The inventor of the world’s greatest toy reflects on his decade-long obsession with a woman […]...
- 2/2/2016
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
There will be late additions, but the bulk of this year’s SXSW feature film slate has been unveiled. From the festival, here’s the rundown section by section. Obvious highlights: world premieres of Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some and Pee-wee’s Big Holiday, Joel Potrykus’ follow-up to Buzzard, and a documentary about the making of Smokey and the Bandit from Jesse Moss (The Overnighters). Narrative Feature Competition Ten world premieres; ten unique ways to celebrate the art of storytelling. Selected from 1,443 narrative feature submissions in 2016. The Arbalest Director/Screenwriter: Adam Pinney The inventor of the world’s greatest toy reflects on his decade-long obsession with a woman […]...
- 2/2/2016
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
To ignite a spark in Adam McKay’s step, simply mention Jesse Moss’ documentary from last year, “The Overnighters.” A recent Netflix watch by the writer/director of “Anchorman” and “Step Brothers” has left him blown away, and willing to explore every facet when I sit down with him in Los Angeles. But how would he pitch such a reveal-heavy film? “A minister in this oil-rich town lets these transient workers sleep in his church, and all I’ll tell you besides that is if I had to explain where America is right now, I would have you watch that movie.” It’s fitting, and gracious, considering that we’re here to talk about McKay’s latest film, “The Big Short,” which explains how America got to its present state by focusing on its recent financial past. Focused on the housing and credit bubble that burst in 2008 to several trillions...
- 12/7/2015
- by Charlie Schmidlin
- The Playlist
Before the North Dakota oil boom (as witnessed in Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters), a good century back, there was the another type of boom. Commonly associated with the West, North Dakota was home to a short lived gold rush. Sabyn Mayfield will tap into the reserves of two up-and-comer players for what will be his directorial debut as THR reports that Boyd Holbrook and Rachel Brosnahan will topline Boomtown alongside Jocelin Donahue and newcomer Tyler Riggs. Holbrook is set to play Jt’s childhood best friend and Brosnahan plays a local bartender in the oil town.
Gist: Co-written by Mayfield and David Newbert, this follows Jt Turner’s (Riggs) journey across the country to Williston, North Dakota, home of the modern day Gold Rush. In an effort to make ends meet, the main character leaves his family behind to pursue a grueling, yet highly coveted, job in a now booming oil industry.
Gist: Co-written by Mayfield and David Newbert, this follows Jt Turner’s (Riggs) journey across the country to Williston, North Dakota, home of the modern day Gold Rush. In an effort to make ends meet, the main character leaves his family behind to pursue a grueling, yet highly coveted, job in a now booming oil industry.
- 10/27/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Academy invitee Eddie Redmayne in 'The Theory of Everything.' Academy invites 322 new members: 'More diverse and inclusive list of filmmakers and artists than ever before' The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has offered membership to 322 individuals "who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures." According to the Academy's press release, "those who accept the invitations will be the only additions to the Academy's membership in 2015." In case all 322 potential new members say an enthusiastic Yes, that means an injection of new blood representing about 5 percent of the Academy's current membership. In the words of Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs (as quoted in the press release), in 2015 "our branches have recognized a more diverse and inclusive list of filmmakers and artists than ever before, and we look forward to adding their creativity, ideas and experience to our organization." In recent years, the Academy membership has...
- 7/1/2015
- by Anna Robinson
- Alt Film Guide
©Renzo Piano Building Workshop/©Studio Pali Fekete architects/©A.M.P.A.S.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this week that the Los Angeles City Council, in a unanimous vote, approved plans for the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Construction will begin this summer, and ceremonial groundbreaking festivities will occur this fall.
“I am thrilled that Los Angeles is gaining another architectural and cultural icon,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “My office of economic development has worked directly with the museum’s development team to ensure that the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will create jobs, support tourism, and pay homage to the industry that helped define our identity as the creative capital of the world.”
“We are grateful to our incredible community of supporters who have helped make this museum a reality,” said Dawn Hudson, the Academy’s CEO. “Building this museum has been an Academy...
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this week that the Los Angeles City Council, in a unanimous vote, approved plans for the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Construction will begin this summer, and ceremonial groundbreaking festivities will occur this fall.
“I am thrilled that Los Angeles is gaining another architectural and cultural icon,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “My office of economic development has worked directly with the museum’s development team to ensure that the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will create jobs, support tourism, and pay homage to the industry that helped define our identity as the creative capital of the world.”
“We are grateful to our incredible community of supporters who have helped make this museum a reality,” said Dawn Hudson, the Academy’s CEO. “Building this museum has been an Academy...
- 6/27/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Strangely dropping a press release on a historic day where the nation's attention is elsewhere, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed their annual list of new member invitees this morning. For those who criticize the makeup of the Academy there was some good news and the stark realization the organization still has a long way to go. The Academy has spent the last eight to 10 years attempting to diversify its membership and this year's class mostly reflects that. There are significantly more invitees of Asian and African-American descent, but the male to female disparity is still depressing. Out of the 25 potential new members of the Actor's Branch only seven are women. And, no, there isn't really an acceptable way for the Academy to spin that sad fact. Additionally, It's important to realize the 322 people noted in the release have only been invited to join Hollywood's most exclusive club.
- 6/26/2015
- by Gregory Ellwood
- Hitfix
The Overnighters, Jesse Moss's documentary feature, earned many comparisons to The Grapes Of Wrath upon release last year, and at first glance seems to merit them. Its portrait of impoverished Americans migrating to North Dakota in search of work recalls that novel and film's almost Biblical image of California as the land of milk and honey, and its central figure Jay Reinke seems cast in the part of its Christ figure Jim Casey. Reinke, however, is a far darker and more conflicted character than any of Steinbeck's migrants, and the sentences of his trials more ambiguous in their meaning.
Read more...
Read more...
- 6/6/2015
- by Anders Nelson
- JustPressPlay.net
15 finalists are up for San Francisco Film Society/Kenneth Rainin Foundation grants. Up to $300,000 will be awarded to one or more narrative feature films now in various stages of production. These grants are given out twice annually, and the spring 2015 recipients will be announced in May. These are promising projects to watch for. Past films have enjoyed indie success on the festival circuit and theatrically, including Ira Sachs' "Love Is Strange," Destin Cretton's "Short Term 12," Ryan Coogler's "Fruitvale Station," which went all the way to win a Cannes prize, and Benh Zeitlin's Best Picture-nominated "Beasts of the Southern Wild." There are a few familiar names on this list with their next projects, like documentary filmmaker Jesse Moss ("The Overnighters"), Ian Olds ("The Fixer," starring James Franco), Travis Mathews, who co-directed "Interior Leather Bar" with Franco, and Boots Riley, the frontman of hip...
- 4/9/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
One of the joys of True/False, it turns out, is that nearly all of the post-screening Q&As are hosted not by programmers or associate programmers or awkward theater staff who’ve been left with a pair of mics and little context, but fellow filmmakers. Several of the screenings I’ve attended thus far were moderated by Jesse Moss, whose own exquisite film The Overnighters was part of last year’s lineup. Yesterday he moderated , amongst others, the Q&A with Brett Morgen, director of the deeply moving, humanizing portrait of the Nirvana frontman in Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, as witnessed above in the photo Moss himself took from the stage of the Missouri Theater (you can see me peeking out from behind someone on the end of the right hand side of the fifth row).
“While you were watching the movie, we were drinking,” Morgen confessed as...
“While you were watching the movie, we were drinking,” Morgen confessed as...
- 3/9/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
The Nominations: Best Documentary Film
CitizenFour
Finding Vivian Maier
Last Days In Vietnam
The Salt Of The Earth
Virunga
Shoulda Been a Contender: “The Overnighters”
For some of us, Jesse Moss’s intimately textured portrait of North Dakota’s oil-fueled modern boom town was one of the very best features of the year, non-fiction or not. To have it completely disregarded by the Academy seems almost shameful.
Should Win: “CitizenFour”
Being that The Overnighters isn’t an option, Laura Poitras deserves to pocket a statue not only for taking a slow burn chamber piece interview and molding it into a historic political thriller, but for risking her own freedom in the process and forging the way for the future of cinematic journalism.
Could Win: “Virunga”
Backed by their deep-pocketed distributor, Netflix, and armed with a cache of awards collected on the festival circuit, Orlando von Einsiedel’s exposé of the...
CitizenFour
Finding Vivian Maier
Last Days In Vietnam
The Salt Of The Earth
Virunga
Shoulda Been a Contender: “The Overnighters”
For some of us, Jesse Moss’s intimately textured portrait of North Dakota’s oil-fueled modern boom town was one of the very best features of the year, non-fiction or not. To have it completely disregarded by the Academy seems almost shameful.
Should Win: “CitizenFour”
Being that The Overnighters isn’t an option, Laura Poitras deserves to pocket a statue not only for taking a slow burn chamber piece interview and molding it into a historic political thriller, but for risking her own freedom in the process and forging the way for the future of cinematic journalism.
Could Win: “Virunga”
Backed by their deep-pocketed distributor, Netflix, and armed with a cache of awards collected on the festival circuit, Orlando von Einsiedel’s exposé of the...
- 2/20/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
The Directors Guild of America announced its television, commercial and documentary nominations on Wednesday, with Jodie Foster receiving a pair of nods for directing episodes of the drama series “House of Cards” and the comedy series “Orange Is the New Black.”
The Oscar-winning actress is the only director to be nominated in both the drama and comedy categories. In drama, she will be competing with Dan Attias and Lesli Linka Glatter for two different episodes of “Homeland,” Cary Joji Fukunaga for “True Detective” and Alex Graves for “Game of Thrones.”
See photos: Golden Globe Awards: Winners Gallery (Photos)
In comedy,...
The Oscar-winning actress is the only director to be nominated in both the drama and comedy categories. In drama, she will be competing with Dan Attias and Lesli Linka Glatter for two different episodes of “Homeland,” Cary Joji Fukunaga for “True Detective” and Alex Graves for “Game of Thrones.”
See photos: Golden Globe Awards: Winners Gallery (Photos)
In comedy,...
- 1/14/2015
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
#20. The Skeleton Twins
#19. Obvious Child
#18. A Spell To Ward Off The Darkness
#17. Wild
#16. 112 Weddings
#15. The Vanquishing of the Witch Baba Yaga
#14. Tales of the Grim Sleep
#13. The Boxtrolls
#12. Enemy
#11. The Guest
#10. The Lego Movie
Despite my love of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, nothing could prepare me for the sheer joy projecting from every pixel, effortless kineticism that carries the raucous narrative, nor the surprising intellectualism that serve as the building blocks of the entire film. Writer/directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller have performed a cinematic miracle in bringing a beloved inexpressive children’s toy to life with more vivacious wit than the vast majority of films release this year, animated or not.
#9. The Strange Little Cat
Ramon Zürcher’s student project turned festival darling debut is an odd, wholly original work that bears little resemblance to anything on this list. Essentially a non-narrative dinner party film about...
#19. Obvious Child
#18. A Spell To Ward Off The Darkness
#17. Wild
#16. 112 Weddings
#15. The Vanquishing of the Witch Baba Yaga
#14. Tales of the Grim Sleep
#13. The Boxtrolls
#12. Enemy
#11. The Guest
#10. The Lego Movie
Despite my love of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, nothing could prepare me for the sheer joy projecting from every pixel, effortless kineticism that carries the raucous narrative, nor the surprising intellectualism that serve as the building blocks of the entire film. Writer/directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller have performed a cinematic miracle in bringing a beloved inexpressive children’s toy to life with more vivacious wit than the vast majority of films release this year, animated or not.
#9. The Strange Little Cat
Ramon Zürcher’s student project turned festival darling debut is an odd, wholly original work that bears little resemblance to anything on this list. Essentially a non-narrative dinner party film about...
- 1/6/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
We're winding down the year-in-review game here at HitFix as 2014 draws to a close. For whatever reason I took a year off of the ballot/superlatives posts, but I'm back with those personal assessments of the best of the year, beginning today with my top picks across the Academy's 24 categories. Check back in tomorrow for a list of winners from this lot, as well as others in a slew of peripheral categories. And of course, feel free to let us know what your Oscar ballot would look like in the comments section below. (Oh, and naturally it goes without saying this post is living in a parallel reality where I'm not confined to a specific branch for nominations and reign supreme over all categories with selections for each.) We'll find out if the Academy agrees with any of this when the 87th annual Oscar nominations are announced on Jan. 15. *** Best...
- 12/30/2014
- by Kristopher Tapley
- Hitfix
Enemy, The F Word and Mommy compete for Rogers Best Canadian Film Award.
The Toronto Film Critics Association has awarded three of its top prizes to Richard Linklater’s Boyhood. It won best picture, best director and best supporting actress for Patricia Arquette.
The awards were voted by the Tfca at a meeting on the afternoon of December 14. The group announced the three finalists for the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award: Enemy, directed by Denis Villeneuve; The F Word, directed by Michael Dowse; and Mommy, directed by Xavier Dolan.
The 2014 Joe Fresh Allan King Documentary Award goes to The Overnighters; whose director Jesse Moss will receive a $5,000 cash prize.
Albert Shin, director of the South Korean domestic drama In Her Place, was named the winner of the Scotiabank Jay Scott Prize for an emerging artist. He also receives $5,000.
As previously reportted, the 2014 recipient of the Technicolor Clyde Gilmour Award is Piers Handling who will present a filmmaker...
The Toronto Film Critics Association has awarded three of its top prizes to Richard Linklater’s Boyhood. It won best picture, best director and best supporting actress for Patricia Arquette.
The awards were voted by the Tfca at a meeting on the afternoon of December 14. The group announced the three finalists for the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award: Enemy, directed by Denis Villeneuve; The F Word, directed by Michael Dowse; and Mommy, directed by Xavier Dolan.
The 2014 Joe Fresh Allan King Documentary Award goes to The Overnighters; whose director Jesse Moss will receive a $5,000 cash prize.
Albert Shin, director of the South Korean domestic drama In Her Place, was named the winner of the Scotiabank Jay Scott Prize for an emerging artist. He also receives $5,000.
As previously reportted, the 2014 recipient of the Technicolor Clyde Gilmour Award is Piers Handling who will present a filmmaker...
- 12/16/2014
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
As is usually the case, 2014 held a rich vein of great nonfiction cinema … that went mostly untapped by any wide audiences. But just because documentaries are perpetually under-served by popular (and even critical) attention doesn’t mean that we should neglect these films. This is a celebration of all the best docs to come out this year.
But first, for the sake of full disclosure, here are all the notable docs of 2014 that I haven’t gotten around to seeing yet:
1989, 20,000 Days on Earth, Ai Weiwei: The Fake Case, Big Joy, Big Men, Code Black, Evolution of a Criminal, The Great Flood, The Great Invisible, The Kill Team, National Gallery, The Missing Picture, Maidentrip, Manakamana, The Naked Opera, Virunga, Watchers of the Sky, What Now? Remind Me, Whitey
Next,we have some honorable mentions — other docs of 2014 that are well worth seeking out:
A Will for the Woods, Art and Craft,...
But first, for the sake of full disclosure, here are all the notable docs of 2014 that I haven’t gotten around to seeing yet:
1989, 20,000 Days on Earth, Ai Weiwei: The Fake Case, Big Joy, Big Men, Code Black, Evolution of a Criminal, The Great Flood, The Great Invisible, The Kill Team, National Gallery, The Missing Picture, Maidentrip, Manakamana, The Naked Opera, Virunga, Watchers of the Sky, What Now? Remind Me, Whitey
Next,we have some honorable mentions — other docs of 2014 that are well worth seeking out:
A Will for the Woods, Art and Craft,...
- 12/11/2014
- by Dan Schindel
- SoundOnSight
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced its shortlist of films under consideration for inclusion in the best documentary feature category of the Academy Awards next year. A huge 134 titles were submitted, which the Academy’s documentary branch has meticulously whittled down to just 15. Branch members will now decide which of those shortlisted will receive an Oscar nomination. Among the titles in competition are the much-discussed CitizenFour, Life Itself and Last Days In Vietnam – all three of which are widely considered to be frontrunners.
CitizenFour documents the initial meetings between Nsa whistleblower Edward Snowden and a small number of journalists – including filmmaker Laura Poitras. Life Itself is a detailed portrait of renowned film critic Roger Ebert, and Last Days In Vietnam examines the withdrawal from Saigon by American forces at the close of the Vietnam War.
Other films selected for further consideration include subject matter such as...
CitizenFour documents the initial meetings between Nsa whistleblower Edward Snowden and a small number of journalists – including filmmaker Laura Poitras. Life Itself is a detailed portrait of renowned film critic Roger Ebert, and Last Days In Vietnam examines the withdrawal from Saigon by American forces at the close of the Vietnam War.
Other films selected for further consideration include subject matter such as...
- 12/5/2014
- by Sarah Myles
- We Got This Covered
Last year, Andrew Droz Palermo and Tracy Droz Tragos’ Rich Hill walked away with U.S. Grand Jury Prize while Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters was perhaps the section’s most buzzed about film. The sixteen titles offerings for 2015 include a first docu offering from Bobcat Goldthwait, Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare director Matthew Heineman, the return of Oscar winning director Morgan Neville (for Twenty Feet from Stardom) with Best of Enemies and the latest from Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love director E. Chai Vasarhelyi. Here are the sweet sixteen:
U.S. Documentary Competition
3½ Minutes / U.S.A. (Director: Marc Silver) — On November 23, 2012, unarmed 17-year-old Jordan Russell Davis was shot at a Jacksonville gas station by Michael David Dunn. 3½ Minutes explores the aftermath of Jordan’s tragic death, the latent and often unseen effects of racism, and the contradictions of the American criminal justice system.
Being Evel / U.
U.S. Documentary Competition
3½ Minutes / U.S.A. (Director: Marc Silver) — On November 23, 2012, unarmed 17-year-old Jordan Russell Davis was shot at a Jacksonville gas station by Michael David Dunn. 3½ Minutes explores the aftermath of Jordan’s tragic death, the latent and often unseen effects of racism, and the contradictions of the American criminal justice system.
Being Evel / U.
- 12/3/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Virunga director Orlando von Einsiedel celebrating Leonardo DiCaprio as executive producer at the 21 Club in New York Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences' Oscar documentary shortlist of 15 films was announced today. The final cut down to five nominations will be announced on January 15, 2015.
Sam Cullman, Jennifer Grausman and Mark Becker's Art And Craft; Ben Cotner and Ryan White's The Case Against 8; Tia Lessin and Carl Deal's Citizen Koch; Laura Poitras' Citizenfour; Charlie Siskel and John Maloof's Finding Vivian Maier; Brian Knappenberger's The Internet’s Own Boy; Frank Pavich's Jodorowsky’s Dune; Alan Hicks' Keep On Keepin’ On; Dan Krauss' The Kill Team; Rory Kennedy's Last Days In Vietnam; Steve James' Life Itself; Jesse Moss' The Overnighters; Wim Wenders and Juliano Ribeiro Salgado's The Salt Of The Earth; Nick Broomfield's Tales Of The Grim Sleeper...
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences' Oscar documentary shortlist of 15 films was announced today. The final cut down to five nominations will be announced on January 15, 2015.
Sam Cullman, Jennifer Grausman and Mark Becker's Art And Craft; Ben Cotner and Ryan White's The Case Against 8; Tia Lessin and Carl Deal's Citizen Koch; Laura Poitras' Citizenfour; Charlie Siskel and John Maloof's Finding Vivian Maier; Brian Knappenberger's The Internet’s Own Boy; Frank Pavich's Jodorowsky’s Dune; Alan Hicks' Keep On Keepin’ On; Dan Krauss' The Kill Team; Rory Kennedy's Last Days In Vietnam; Steve James' Life Itself; Jesse Moss' The Overnighters; Wim Wenders and Juliano Ribeiro Salgado's The Salt Of The Earth; Nick Broomfield's Tales Of The Grim Sleeper...
- 12/2/2014
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
"The Overnighters" director Jesse Moss found a haunting metaphor for the American dream in a despairing North Dakota oil boom town. The result is an Oscar-contending documentary (now up for top Cinema Eye Honors) that provokes a spectrum of reactions. After a hometown screening in Williston, Drafthouse Films' Tim League hosted a Q&A with the former mayor and a local journalist who investigated Jay Reinke, the charismatic pastor with an open-door policy who scandalized the town. In this Toh! exclusive video, Williston folks speak up about how this potently disturbing documentary has touched their lives, in one way or another.
- 11/13/2014
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
Following the Ida Awards nominations last month, the year’s top documentary contenders come into crisper focus with Thursday’s announcement of Cinema Eye’s 8th Annual Nonfiction Film Awards nominations. Laura Poitras’ "Citizenfour" leads the pack with six nominations, including Outstanding Nonfiction Feature. The inside look at Edward Snowden’s Nsa leak also earned praise in Directing, Editing, Production, Cinematography, and the Audience Choice category. Poitras is no stranger to Cinema Eye’s awards — she won the 2011 Directing Award for "The Oath." Familiar faces rounded out the Oustanding Feature category, including Steve James’ Roger Ebert portrait "Life Itself," Jesse Moss’ tale of a North Dakota oil boom town, "The Overnighters," Iain Forsythe & Jane Pollard’s "20,000 Days on Earth," a look musician Nick Cave, and Orlando von Einsiedel’s environment-minded "Virunga." Thirty-six feature films and six shorts will vie for this year’s Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking. Other...
- 11/13/2014
- by Matt Patches
- Hitfix
There are few films that have made an impact on the docu landscape like Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters, which made its debut at Sundance earlier this year (it’s where I sat down with the director for a wonderful little interview) and yesterday evening received, a pair of nominations (including Outstanding Feature) from the 2015 Cinema Eye Honors. A remarkable film that sees a small town in North Dakota crumble under the weight of desperate men’s hopes as they flock to the modern oil boom town for work. In this exclusive clip, we see just a sampling of the work that the film’s subject, Pastor Jay Reinke, and his buckling congregation of church goers do to help these men get back on their feet when they’re at their lowest. As Reinke’s right hand man comfortingly emphasizes to these men, “Anytime you’re here, you’re safe.”
Via the Drafthouse Films folks,...
Via the Drafthouse Films folks,...
- 11/13/2014
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
Laura Poitras's Citizenfour leads the Cinema Eye Honors nominations for the 8th annual Nonfiction Film Awards. Also in the running for Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Filmmaking are Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard's Nick Cave documentary 20,000 Days on Earth, Steve James's portrait of the late Roger Ebert, Life Itself, Jesse Moss's The Overnighters and Orlando von Einsiedel's Virunga. Nick Broomfield (Tales of the Grim Sleeper) and Robert Greene (Actress) have also been nominated for directing awards. » - David Hudson...
- 11/13/2014
- Keyframe
Laura Poitras's Citizenfour leads the Cinema Eye Honors nominations for the 8th annual Nonfiction Film Awards. Also in the running for Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Filmmaking are Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard's Nick Cave documentary 20,000 Days on Earth, Steve James's portrait of the late Roger Ebert, Life Itself, Jesse Moss's The Overnighters and Orlando von Einsiedel's Virunga. Nick Broomfield (Tales of the Grim Sleeper) and Robert Greene (Actress) have also been nominated for directing awards. » - David Hudson...
- 11/13/2014
- Fandor: Keyframe
Further reminding us that the Academy Awards are irrelevant in year-end discussions for the best in documentary film, according to the experts at the Cinema Eye Honors’ voting committee, Laura Poitras’ Citizenfour, Steve James’ Life Itself and Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard’s 20,000 Days on Earth would be among the best docu films of the year, leading the pack in almost all categories. Not to be overlooked, Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters and Robert Greene’s Actress received kudos in Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking and Outstanding Achievement in Direction while the major surprise of the noms belongs to Orlando von Einsiedel’s Virunga (presented at the Tribeca and Hot Docs Film Fests) grabbing a total of three. Left completely off the scorecard, Manakamana failed to produce a single nom. The Cinema Eye Honors winners will be announced on Wednesday, January 7 at New York’s Museum of the Moving Image.
- 11/13/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
After picking up the Special Jury Prize at Sundance in January, the documentary "The Overnighters" has been on a helluva run, hitting festivals around the world, and picking up more hardware along the way. Now the film is rolling out to theaters, and today we have an exclusive clip which highlights the drama that has won over critics and audiences. Directed by Jesse Moss, "The Overnighters" chronicles the work of Pastor Jay Reinke of Williston, North Dakota who opens the doors of his church to the sea of workers coming to the state to try and grab a slice of the oil boom. But not everyone can live the American Dream, and those who can't make ends meet find refuge under Reinke's roof. Things get more difficult when the City Council tries to shut down the pastor's efforts. It's a movie we included among our Best of 2014 So Far, and...
- 11/3/2014
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
The Overnighters is like a punch in the gut. I can’t remember the last time a documentary hit me so hard. What’s all the more remarkable is that filmmaker Jesse Moss (who shot this film by himself) had no idea whether his investment of time would pay off. He ventured to Williston, North Dakota in the belief that there had to be a story there: the small community has become a boom town, thanks to fracking, and he reasoned that every boom town in history has yielded colorful and dramatic tales. He was right, but I doubt that he envisioned the way his feature would turn out. Lured by the promise of high-paying jobs, men have traveled from all over the map to Williston, many of...
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- 10/30/2014
- by Leonard Maltin
- Leonard Maltin's Movie Crazy
★★★★★More American nightmare than American Dream, Jesse Moss' Sundance award-winning documentary The Overnighters (2013) looks at the crisis at the centre of the economic collapse within the post-Empire confines of contemporary America. Coming at this point through the prism of Lutheran Pastor Jay Reinke, Moss is free to portray many positives within a tirade of negatives. Williston, North Dakota is America's 21st century equivalent of gold rush-era San Francisco. The average rent in the town has spiralled to post-New York and Los Angeles levels, but work in the fracking industry is apparently easy to find and six-figure salaries are the norm amongst employees.
- 10/30/2014
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Directed by Jesse Moss, new documentary The Overnighters , details the attempts of a Lutheran pastor named Jay Reinke to help the homeless migrants who flocked to the oil boom town of Williston, Nd, in search of work. "The lure of the boomtown and its powerful place in the American imagination resides in its seductive promise of redemption and fortune for the brave and the desperate," Moss says in his director's statement. "It is this theme—played out in stark, raw terms in North Dakota and viewed through the prism of Pastor Reinke’s Church—that drew me to this story.
- 10/23/2014
- by Clark Collis
- EW - Inside Movies
One of my favorite documentaries, in fact one of the very best documentaries this year, is one called The Overnighters from director Jesse Moss. The film follows a wild, almost unbelievable story set in North Dakota about a local Pastor named Jay Reinke who risks everything to help his new neighbors. It won over crowds at the Sundance Film Festival this year, picked up a Special Jury Prize, before going on to play at the Tribeca, Sheffield, Montclair, Sydney and New Zealand Film Festivals, winning awards at Full Frame, Miami and San Francisco, too. Drafthouse Films bravely picked up the doc and it's now playing in select theaters. I was lucky enough to meet up with Jesse Moss for an interview in New York last week and it was wonderful. We talked for nearly 30 minutes about everything from his own drive to make docs, to the openness of Jay Reinke,...
- 10/22/2014
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Jesse Moss' "The Overnighters" was one of the breakout documentary hits of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, taking home a Special Jury Prize. Set in Williston, North Dakota, "The Overnighters" depicts the problems in a small town when oil prospects bring in an avalanche of new jobs and an even larger onslaught of potential workers, many drawn by the opportunity to restart lives stalled by prolonged unemployment or murky pasts. Caught in the middle between a wary community and the invading horde aspiring to the American Dream is Pastor Jay Reinke, who opens the doors of the Concordia Lutheran Church to this influx of settlers. If you'll recall my review from Sundance, I had reservations about the last quarter of "The Overnighters," which seemed to overreach for conclusions based on narrative twist-of-sorts. However, for much of its running time, "Overnighters" is provocative in the most literal sense of the word.
- 10/22/2014
- by Daniel Fienberg
- Hitfix
Doesn't everyone deserve a second chance? We're excited to debut the brand new poster for Jesse Moss' highly acclaimed, extraordinary documentary The Overnighters which was just released in theaters last weekend by Drafthouse Films. It's a must see doc this year. The poster features a handful of quotes from critics all over, praising the "masterwork" doc calling it "riveting", "powerful" and "explosive". It is all of these things and much more, an incredible discovery out of Sundance this year hoping to go all the way at the Oscars next year. We're lucky to be quoted on this as well, out of my own Sundance review, where I call it a "wildly captivating real world ride." Take a look at the new poster below and catch this in theaters now. I was lucky to catch up with director Jesse Moss for an interview last week (posting soon) and we spoke...
- 10/16/2014
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
The oil boom of North Dakota has drawn thousands of migrant workers looking for work and homes. The Overnighters, a documentary by Jesse Moss, tells the story of pastor Jay Reinke, who let those who could not find work stay in his church. In this clip, Reinke tries to reclaim a motor-home left behind by one of the overnighters, only to meet resistance from a neighbour. The Overnighters is released in the UK on 31 October Continue reading...
- 10/16/2014
- by Guardian Staff
- The Guardian - Film News
Documentarian Jesse Moss likes to make his films on his own, armed with a camera and a lot of curiosity. His early efforts focused on fascinating characters and topics, from the virtual wars that American soldiers fought before heading to Iraq (Full Battle Rattle) to an up close and personal account of con artist James Arthur Hogue (Con Man).
For his latest film, The Overnighters, Moss spent 18 months in the boomtown of Williston, North Dakota, where he became a close friend of the town’s revered and controversial pastor, Jay Reinke. What began as a modest human-interest story turned into one of the most compelling looks at an American community to come onto the screens in years. The film was one of the hottest documentary titles at Sundance earlier this year, where it won the Special Jury Prize for Intuitive Filmmaking. It is now playing in limited release across the United States,...
For his latest film, The Overnighters, Moss spent 18 months in the boomtown of Williston, North Dakota, where he became a close friend of the town’s revered and controversial pastor, Jay Reinke. What began as a modest human-interest story turned into one of the most compelling looks at an American community to come onto the screens in years. The film was one of the hottest documentary titles at Sundance earlier this year, where it won the Special Jury Prize for Intuitive Filmmaking. It is now playing in limited release across the United States,...
- 10/16/2014
- by Jordan Adler
- We Got This Covered
The searing documentary The Overnighters asks a lot of hard questions. The hardest may be, "What does community mean?"
Shot in Williston, North Dakota, filmmaker Jesse Moss's documentary -- which Drafthouse Films is releasing Friday in Austin -- captures the tiny town in the midst of the current North Dakota oil boom. The boom is a blessing and a curse: The townspeople welcome the unprecedented economic boost, but have mixed feelings about the influx of thousands of oil field workers.
The main problem is housing. Most new arrivals have nowhere to live, so many sleep in their cars, trucks and RVs, parked wherever they can. Another problem is less about logistics than human nature: The workers are roughnecks in every sense of the word -- desperately poor men, often with little education, all chasing quick money and some running from their pasts. To the good and decent citizens (in...
Shot in Williston, North Dakota, filmmaker Jesse Moss's documentary -- which Drafthouse Films is releasing Friday in Austin -- captures the tiny town in the midst of the current North Dakota oil boom. The boom is a blessing and a curse: The townspeople welcome the unprecedented economic boost, but have mixed feelings about the influx of thousands of oil field workers.
The main problem is housing. Most new arrivals have nowhere to live, so many sleep in their cars, trucks and RVs, parked wherever they can. Another problem is less about logistics than human nature: The workers are roughnecks in every sense of the word -- desperately poor men, often with little education, all chasing quick money and some running from their pasts. To the good and decent citizens (in...
- 10/15/2014
- by Don Clinchy
- Slackerwood
Early in 2014, many film columnists penned pieces about how, ten years after the box office behemoth of The Passion of the Christ, Hollywood studios were finally starting to embrace the dollars of Christian audiences through films that openly approached religious themes. Two films with sanctimonious declarative sentences in their titles – God’s Not Dead and Heaven is For Real – led this surge in faith-based titles. However, since those hits, audiences have abandoned films aimed at the devout, resulting in a stream of flops that included one-weekend wonders like Persecuted and The Identical.
The newest film with a religious angle is a documentary, The Overnighters. The title refers to a large group of stragglers from around the United States that found refuge on the floors and in the parking lot of a Lutheran church in the town of Williston, North Dakota. Many came to town with the promise of making a...
The newest film with a religious angle is a documentary, The Overnighters. The title refers to a large group of stragglers from around the United States that found refuge on the floors and in the parking lot of a Lutheran church in the town of Williston, North Dakota. Many came to town with the promise of making a...
- 10/15/2014
- by Jordan Adler
- We Got This Covered
Intense music drama Whiplash, already a big winner at Sundance and the Deauville American Film Festival earlier this year, should drum up plenty of audience interest in its debut this weekend, even though it faces a crowded specialty market that also features several other notable newcomers, including the Bill Murray comedy St. Vincent, Hilary Swank‘s You’re Not You and Jeremy Renner‘s Kill the Messenger. All are what I’d call “big” specialty releases, with big names attached that should attract big attention.
The weekend also includes what I’d call some “small” releases, including documentaries The Overnighters (another Sundance winner) and I Am Ali, about the former heavyweight boxing champion, alongside the Mormon Church-backed Meet the Mormons. All will be clawing for attention in a market that’s seen more than 30 films debut in the past three weeks.
That said, Whiplash should be a real career turner...
The weekend also includes what I’d call some “small” releases, including documentaries The Overnighters (another Sundance winner) and I Am Ali, about the former heavyweight boxing champion, alongside the Mormon Church-backed Meet the Mormons. All will be clawing for attention in a market that’s seen more than 30 films debut in the past three weeks.
That said, Whiplash should be a real career turner...
- 10/10/2014
- by Brian Brooks
- Deadline
Quick, name the most expensive housing market in America. If you said New York, Los Angeles, or San Francisco, you couldn't be farther from the truth -- literally. Each is over 1,500 miles away from Williston, North Dakota, a monochrome town you can drive end-to-end in 15 minutes. In four years, the population of Williston has doubled as newcomers gold-rush to work the newly discovered Bakken Shale formation, the largest oil find in U.S. history. But these men need a lot of black gold to afford a place to sleep. The average cost of a 700-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment in Williston is $2,394 a month -- almost $1,000 more than the same space in Manhattan.
Jesse Moss's documentary The Overnighters is a heart-wrencher about the clash between economics and ethics. Its story ...
Jesse Moss's documentary The Overnighters is a heart-wrencher about the clash between economics and ethics. Its story ...
- 10/8/2014
- Village Voice
Throughout the filming of his heart-wrenching new film, The Overnighters, director Jesse Moss acted as a sort of cinephilic one man band, shooting the story of Pastor Jay Reinke and the desperate men he’s been helping in the modern oil boom town of Williston, Nd all by his lonesome. Over the course of 18 months, off and on, Moss buckled down and lived amongst the weary men sleeping on the floors of Reinke’s church to observe what exactly was taking place in this over-saturated small town. Just after the film’s premiere, yet before it took home the Special Jury Prize from the Sundance Film Festival, I sat down (in Park City) with Jesse to discuss how he discovered the situation in Williston, if he felt if the rampant fear within the town was justifiable, what it was like shooting all alone in such a vulnerable situation and much more.
- 10/7/2014
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
Love Thy Neighbor: Moss Finds Faith In Oil Boomtown
In the small town of Williston, North Dakota, a modern day boomtown is growing exponentially as men down on their luck and desperately seeking work flock with hopes of being hired in the newly fracked oil fields that surround the town. This influx of migrant workers has brought an unforeseen strain on the community, as the large majority of them ride by bus or train into town with nothing more than a bag full of cloths and a heart full of hope, and hence, have no where to sleep. Those that do manage to drive themselves out in beat up minivans and lived in winnebagos have very few places to legally sleep in their vehicles. Enter Pastor Jay Reinke and his overnighters program that allows these world weary men to take refuge after dark in the Concordia Lutheran Church, much...
In the small town of Williston, North Dakota, a modern day boomtown is growing exponentially as men down on their luck and desperately seeking work flock with hopes of being hired in the newly fracked oil fields that surround the town. This influx of migrant workers has brought an unforeseen strain on the community, as the large majority of them ride by bus or train into town with nothing more than a bag full of cloths and a heart full of hope, and hence, have no where to sleep. Those that do manage to drive themselves out in beat up minivans and lived in winnebagos have very few places to legally sleep in their vehicles. Enter Pastor Jay Reinke and his overnighters program that allows these world weary men to take refuge after dark in the Concordia Lutheran Church, much...
- 10/7/2014
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
After being touted in the national press as a place overflowing with jobs in the oil industry, the small North Dakota town of Williston has been flooded with hopeful job seekers from around the country. As director Jesse Moss’ new documentary “The Overnighters” shows, however, the boom has created a plethora of problems for the community. In this exclusive clip (above) from the Drafthouse Films release, a teary young man explains that his home state of Indiana has a 26 percent rate of unemployment among people with high school diplomas. He had already exhausted all his avenues back home, and with a little.
- 9/29/2014
- by Linda Ge
- The Wrap
One of the most talked about documentaries at Sundance last January was Jesse Moss's powerful film The Overnighters. The film, which looks at the influx of workers in North Dakota through the lens of a pastor who runs a work center, won a Special Jury Prize at the fest. Drafthouse has scooped it up with an eye to the Best Documentary race and is bringing it to screens on October 10 (New York) and October 31 (La). A modern-day Grapes of Wrath, award-winning documentary The Overnighters is an intimate portrait of job-seekers desperately chasing the broken American Dream to the tiny oil boom town of Williston, North Dakota. With the town lacking the infrastructure to house the overflow of migrants, a local pastor starts the...
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- 9/18/2014
- Screen Anarchy
The trailer for Jesse Moss' timely, wrenching documentary “The Overnighters," winner of the 2014 Sundance Special Jury Prize, has debuted. This tragic study of unemployment in America centers on a North Dakota town where the discovery of an untapped oil field attracts jobseekers. But dreams of prospect-style wealth quickly turn to disillusion as limited jobs are filled almost overnight, and a local pastor's charity brings chaos to a now-divided community, dragging everyone's demons out into the light. "The Overnighters” opens in NY October 10, La October 31.
- 8/28/2014
- by Elaina Patton
- Thompson on Hollywood
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