Top Docs: Award-Winning Documentary Filmmakers

The Sundance Film Festival marks its 40th edition on January 18 - 28. To help get us ready for the big event, Basil Tsiokos, Sundance Senior Programmer, Nonfiction, makes his third visit to “Top Docs” to preview this year’s sure-to-be-killer documentary lineup. As the first Sundance under new Festival Director Eugene Hernandez, what are the new wrinkles of this year’s fest? What are some of the doc standouts and special treats? Check out our annual January “Top Docs” Sundance preview special to find out!   For more info about the festival and to see which titles will be available to be screened in-person and online, go to festival.sundance.org.   Follow: @sundanceorg on Instagram and @sundancefest on twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

Not just a movie about sound, but an interactive feast for the senses, “32 Sounds” is the latest in filmmaker Sam Green’s (“The Weather Underground”, “A Thousand Thoughts”) unique “live” documentaries. Inspired by the great 1993 film “Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould”, the film delivers a heightened sensorial experience through an incredibly wide array of interviews, original footage, archival material and, of course, sounds.   Joining Ken on the pod, Sam goes deep inside his own creative process. What exactly is a “live” documentary, and how did Sam come up with this innovative concept? What is the idea behind “ghost voices”, and how did Ken’s random connection to one of the film’s interviews cause him to experience his own ghost voice? Of all his films, why is “32 Sounds” the one that has changed Sam the most? It’s only appropriate that we invite you to listen to our interview with Sam Green. Let’s call that the 33rd sound.   “32 Sounds” is shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film.   Hidden Gem: “Tongues Untied”   Follow: @sam_b_green on Instagram @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

 Surrounded by a Bohemian cast of characters, she was conceived and grew up in an avant-garde theater in Paris; she aspired to be a painter. What could be more romantic than that? In “Apolonia, Apolonia”, director Lea Glob’s epic and fascinating portrait of Apolonia Sokol, romantic ideals intermingle with the hard realities of what it takes for a talented young woman without a trust fund or family connections to make it in the art world.   Joining Ken on the pod, Lea describes how, as a Danish film student, she became intrigued by Apolonia, so much so that she continued filming with her off-and-on for 13 years. What was it about Apolonia and her life that grabbed Lea’s attention and held her focus for so long? What was the key moment in Los Angeles when Apolonia, facing a personal crisis, called on Lea’s camera to make a bold statement of freedom? And how did a health crisis in Leas’ life widen the film’s lens and help save her own life? It’s a story as captivating and complex as any painting.   “Apolonia, Apolonia” is shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film.   Hidden Gem: ”The World is Family”   Follow: @apolonia_apolonia_film on Instagram @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

The only movie to win an Academy Award for Best Picture with an X rating, “Midnight Cowboy” is one of those movies that once you see it, you never forget it. It broke taboos and made American movies relevant again; it both reflected the changing times and was revolutionary. And it had Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman in the indelible roles of Joe Buck and Ratso Rizzo. The late Nancy Buirski’s final film, “Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy”, masterfully captures the expanding universe of “Midnight Cowboy” and the creative powerhouses who turned James Leo Herlihy’s novel into legend.   Producers Simon Kilmurry and Susan Margolin join Ken on the pod to discuss “Midnight Cowboy” director John Schlesinger’s vision, his influences and constraints. In what ways did a gay novelist and gay director, and a blacklisted screenwriter, infuse the film with its outsider ethos? Is/is not “Midnight Cowboy” a queer film? And how does the documentary aesthetic invigorate the movie? Simon and Susan also reflect on the legendary career of Nancy Buirski, a creative force whose life and career impacted so many in the documentary field.   “Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy” is shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film.   Hidden Gems: Simon Kilmurry: “In the Shadow of Beirut” Susan Margolin: “Lovin’ Stuff”   Follow: @midnight_cowboy_doc on Instagram and @SKilmurry twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

This holiday season, discover another side to “The Painter of Light”!  In our final installment of "Live from Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival", Miranda Yousef joins Mike to discuss her feature documentary, “Art for Everybody”.  From an early age, Thomas Kinkade struggled with the impact of his impoverished youth, torn between emulating van Gogh’s critical regard and seeking the economic success of a Norman Rockwell or Walt Disney.  As Yousef explains, turning himself into a successful brand cost Kinkade dearly, and in the thousands of “unpublished” works that he left behind, we can sometimes glimpse revealing aspects of Kinkade as an artist as well as a living, breathing human with a multi-faceted personality.   While firmly grounded in her subject, Yousef’s film manages to go well beyond the life and oeuvre of this one individual to ask questions about the nature of art:  Is it meant only to “talk to” other art, to problematize representation, or can it also properly provide joy and even comfort?  And her film may ultimately be read as a plea that no matter what value we place on Kinkade's art, that we not hold disdain for those who appreciate it differently.   Follow: @artforeverybody on Instagram @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

Welcome to the Anne-ual Top Docs Holiday Special featuring the one-and-only Anne Thompson, Editor-at-Large at IndieWire! Anne joins Mike and Ken to tackle this year’s Best Feature Documentary Oscar Shortlist, released on December 21st. One day following the release of the list, Anne is already fired up and ready to go. How competitive is this year’s race? Who are the Frontrunners, Runners Up and Dark Horses? Which film will win it all? Park yourself in front of a roaring fire and pop in those earbuds. It’s Oscar time!   IndieWire Editor-at-Large Anne Thompson has been a contributor to the New York Times, Washington Post, The Observer, and Wired. She has served as film columnist at Variety, and deputy editor of Variety.com, where her daily blog, Thompson on Hollywood, launched in March 2007.    Follow: @akstanwyck on Instagram and twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

It’s Emmy time. Yes, finally, after a long delay, the Emmys are almost here. “The Hollywood Reporter”’s Executive Editor of Awards Scott Feinberg joins Mike and Ken to break down the 2023 Emmy nominees in all the major documentary categories, including Outstanding Documentary Program; Outstanding Series; Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking; and Outstanding Directing. Besides his Emmy predictions, Scott also weighs in on all the early documentary Oscar buzz. The 2023 Creative Arts Emmy Awards, including all the major doc categories, will be announced on January 6th.   An award-winning columnist and podcast host (“Awards Chatter”), Scott Feinberg is “The Hollywood Reporter”’s Executive Editor of Awards. Scott anchors THR’s coverage of the Oscar, Emmy, Tony, and Grammy races, as well as major film festivals. Best known for his “Feinberg Forecast,” and for “Awards Chatter”, Scott’s work has been recognized with six National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards and five SoCal Journalism Awards from the Los Angeles Press Club.     The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

Director Lisa Cortés’ (“The Remix: Hip Hop X Fashion”, “Invisible Beauty”) electrifying and groundbreaking documentary about Richard Penniman (aka “Little Richard”) proves the point that the stories passed down about the origins of rock and roll have been whitewashed. The so-called “Architect of rock and roll”, Little Richard was ripped off, copied, and otherwise taken for granted by a white music establishment all too eager to embrace the likes of Elvis Presley, The Beatles, and the Rolling Stones.   Joining Ken on the pod, Lisa describes how the film goes beyond biography to delve into the undertold story of the Black queer origins of rock and roll. Why was it that, at different periods, Richard could swerve so drastically from being outwardly, publicly queer to denying his sexual identity? What was Richard’s complex and changing relationship to preaching the gospel? And what was the one question that Lisa would have asked Richard had she been able to? “Little Richard” is so much more than a music doc; it’s everything you’ve been missing about one of the true geniuses of rock and roll.   “Little Richard: I Am Everything” is streaming on Max.   Hidden Gem: “Richland”   Follow: @misscortes on Instagram and twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

One is a beloved bandleader and soon-to-be Grammy nominee; the other, a “New York Times” bestselling author. But, as Matthew Heineman’s (“Retrograde”, “The First Wave”, “Cartel Land”) intimate and heartfelt new documentary “American Symphony” makes clear, life is not always so glittering for high-profile couple Jon Batiste and Suleika Jaouad. Batiste must consider the possibility that his ambitious “American Symphony” may be beyond his creative capabilities just as Jaouad confronts a life-threatening health crisis.   Joining Mike and Ken on the pod, Matthew returns to “Top Docs” to discuss the multitude of creative and logistical challenges that he faced during the making of the film. How did Matthew win Batiste’s trust only to find that access was far from assured? In what way did silence become one of the most impactful moments in the entire film? And how did Batiste’s climactic performance at Carnegie Hall almost not make it on camera? Clearly, in the life of this unscripted drama, improvisation was just as critical for the director as for his subjects.   “American Symphony” is streaming on Netflix.   Follow: @mheineman on Instagram and @MattHeineman on twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.

Building on the smoke sauna tradition of Southern Estonia (included by UNESCO on its “Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity”), filmmaker Anna Hints brings together a group of Estonian women to share the smoke sauna experience and to share some of their most personal stories. The result is Anna’s masterfully constructed and emotionally layered Sundance award-winning documentary “Smoke Sauna Sisterhood”.   Joining Ken on the pod, Anna discusses how she conceived of the smoke sauna in her film as a safe space and a source of mutual support for the women in her film. What was the process of finding a smoke sauna, casting the film and shooting it over multiple seasons? How did she work with her cinematographer Ants Tammik to build trust with the women and create a distinctive visual portrait? And what does Anna reveal about one of the scenes that caught Ken completely by surprise? Over the course of the film, the rising power of these stories is undeniable. There’s nothing “intangible” about that.   “Smoke Sauna Sisterhood” is released by Greenwich Entertainment.   Follow: @annahints on Instagram @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.