SW DocuFest Presents
The following are the films that were chosen to be a part of the 2021 Something Wicked DocuFest! These films are all part of a select group of films that have been viewed by our Festival Jury and Festival Judge. These are the only films that are up for our Awards. Most of these films are still only available to view via film festivals and as such some of them have not been released to be part of our online event. We still will give you info about the films that you cannot view at this time and hope that when they become available you seek them out. These films are still eligible for Awards. We hope you enjoy!
TITLE: “A 1969 COMET’S TALE”
RUN TIME: 0:25
SYNOPSIS:
This is a documentary about my car, a 1969 Mercury Comet. Some people say it has a personality all its own. This film was done, entirely long distance between myself editing and shooting some of the material, and Georgia resident Neil Strawbridge, who did the amazing music & animation. For the most part, this was a 2 person operation.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
RUN TIME: 0:25
SYNOPSIS:
This is a documentary about my car, a 1969 Mercury Comet. Some people say it has a personality all its own. This film was done, entirely long distance between myself editing and shooting some of the material, and Georgia resident Neil Strawbridge, who did the amazing music & animation. For the most part, this was a 2 person operation.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
TITLE: BEHINDTHE NAME SHAKESPEARE: POWER, LUST, SCORN & SCANDAL
RUN TIME: 1:39
SYNOPSIS:
WHO CREATED THE GREATEST WORK OF IAMBIC THUNDER IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE? “Behind the Name SHAKESPEARE: Power, Lust, Scorn & Scandal” answers that question in this fun yet important film. It is a costume-filled journey into literary history’s greatest mystery: Who really wrote the works of Shakespeare?
This charming documentary is clearly a labor of love, which one can feel in every scene. The world needs it and bravo to Christina di Marlo for doing it!" -- Don Rubin, Professor Emeritus, York University Editor, World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre.
VENICE FILM AWARDS REVIEW, 11/11/2020
"BEHIND THE NAME SHAKESPEARE is an extraordinary one-woman show/documentary.
The exceptional Robin Phillips guides us through the exciting investigation about who is really behind the most important plays in the whole world and therefore behind the name of William Shakespeare…
Robin Phillips puts all her talent as an author, actress, and storyteller, playing sort of comedian detective (a brilliant choice that makes us remain glued to the screen for the whole duration of the film) but contextualized in the era we are referring to. She transforms herself several times, she steps out and gets back into the narration with delicacy and without ever being out of tune.
And as a consequence of this, it's not difficult to get involved in the typical atmosphere of the sixteenth century, also thanks to the beautiful costumes designed by Phillips herself, who also worked on the music ("Best Sound Design," Venice Film Awards) hairstyles, make-up, and artistic direction.
The documentary is full of information, anecdotes, details, and spins around two centuries, between literature, history, and art. Despite being so full of news and quotes, you can easily follow it from start to finish. Not only without ever getting bored but remaining with bated breath in search of yet another proof that helps to agree with an increasing number of groups of people who support this extraordinarily beautiful and thrilling theory.
It's difficult, after having seen it, not to want to join the chorus of voices of these artists, historians, writers, who claim that a glove maker's son could not have created what are among the greatest masterpieces of world theater literature. And that it's much more likely that it was the 17th Earl of Oxford, Edward de Vere, lover (to be reductive) of Queen Elizabeth, and an erudite and brilliant man of letters.
Art Harman enriches the movie with his cinematography and his technical effects, which join the narrative moments in a fluid and coherent way .To quote Anna Rice, even within the documentary itself this is "very very interesting stuff", which could not tell this crazy part of history in a better way.
I challenge the public not to fall in love with this story, with their protagonists, and with Robin Phillips in this delightful documentary film, which teaches and entertains, thus remaining faithful to the primary purpose of Elizabethan theater."
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
SPECIAL NOTES:
Due to ongoing distribution arrangements this film is not being screened at this event since it is an online event but it is eligible for festival awards and prices. Please remember to seek out this wonderful film in whatever festivals and outlets that you can.
Website: https://groundbreakerfilms.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GroundbreakerFilms/
RUN TIME: 1:39
SYNOPSIS:
WHO CREATED THE GREATEST WORK OF IAMBIC THUNDER IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE? “Behind the Name SHAKESPEARE: Power, Lust, Scorn & Scandal” answers that question in this fun yet important film. It is a costume-filled journey into literary history’s greatest mystery: Who really wrote the works of Shakespeare?
This charming documentary is clearly a labor of love, which one can feel in every scene. The world needs it and bravo to Christina di Marlo for doing it!" -- Don Rubin, Professor Emeritus, York University Editor, World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre.
VENICE FILM AWARDS REVIEW, 11/11/2020
"BEHIND THE NAME SHAKESPEARE is an extraordinary one-woman show/documentary.
The exceptional Robin Phillips guides us through the exciting investigation about who is really behind the most important plays in the whole world and therefore behind the name of William Shakespeare…
Robin Phillips puts all her talent as an author, actress, and storyteller, playing sort of comedian detective (a brilliant choice that makes us remain glued to the screen for the whole duration of the film) but contextualized in the era we are referring to. She transforms herself several times, she steps out and gets back into the narration with delicacy and without ever being out of tune.
And as a consequence of this, it's not difficult to get involved in the typical atmosphere of the sixteenth century, also thanks to the beautiful costumes designed by Phillips herself, who also worked on the music ("Best Sound Design," Venice Film Awards) hairstyles, make-up, and artistic direction.
The documentary is full of information, anecdotes, details, and spins around two centuries, between literature, history, and art. Despite being so full of news and quotes, you can easily follow it from start to finish. Not only without ever getting bored but remaining with bated breath in search of yet another proof that helps to agree with an increasing number of groups of people who support this extraordinarily beautiful and thrilling theory.
It's difficult, after having seen it, not to want to join the chorus of voices of these artists, historians, writers, who claim that a glove maker's son could not have created what are among the greatest masterpieces of world theater literature. And that it's much more likely that it was the 17th Earl of Oxford, Edward de Vere, lover (to be reductive) of Queen Elizabeth, and an erudite and brilliant man of letters.
Art Harman enriches the movie with his cinematography and his technical effects, which join the narrative moments in a fluid and coherent way .To quote Anna Rice, even within the documentary itself this is "very very interesting stuff", which could not tell this crazy part of history in a better way.
I challenge the public not to fall in love with this story, with their protagonists, and with Robin Phillips in this delightful documentary film, which teaches and entertains, thus remaining faithful to the primary purpose of Elizabethan theater."
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
SPECIAL NOTES:
Due to ongoing distribution arrangements this film is not being screened at this event since it is an online event but it is eligible for festival awards and prices. Please remember to seek out this wonderful film in whatever festivals and outlets that you can.
Website: https://groundbreakerfilms.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GroundbreakerFilms/
TITLE: “CHESTY & OPAL”
RUN TIME: 0:11
SYNOPSIS:
CHESTY & OPAL is a 10 minute short documentary film about 2 burlesque legends talking about the golden years of burlesque. Burlesque legends Chesty Morgan and Wild Star share memories from their dancing days in the 60's and '70's. A hilarious, eye-opening, shocking underground short film, CHESTY & OPAL opens the audience's eyes to a lost era.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
RUN TIME: 0:11
SYNOPSIS:
CHESTY & OPAL is a 10 minute short documentary film about 2 burlesque legends talking about the golden years of burlesque. Burlesque legends Chesty Morgan and Wild Star share memories from their dancing days in the 60's and '70's. A hilarious, eye-opening, shocking underground short film, CHESTY & OPAL opens the audience's eyes to a lost era.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
TITLE: F.E.A.R.: FACE EVERYTHING AND RISE
RUN TIME: 1:03
SYNOPSIS:
"Cultural expectations” and “values” can often clash with our innermost desires. Many women today feel caught between what has been conditioned into them by their family, culture or society and their own dreams and aspirations. Many are consumed by what has been put upon them instead of fighting for what they believe is their freedom and the opportunity to make a better life for themselves and the world around them.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Canada
SPECIAL NOTES:
Due to ongoing distribution arrangements this film is not being screened at this event since it is an online event but it is eligible for festival awards and prices. Please remember to seek out this wonderful film in whatever festivals and outlets that you can.
Website: https://findyourselfseries.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gtasamn
RUN TIME: 1:03
SYNOPSIS:
"Cultural expectations” and “values” can often clash with our innermost desires. Many women today feel caught between what has been conditioned into them by their family, culture or society and their own dreams and aspirations. Many are consumed by what has been put upon them instead of fighting for what they believe is their freedom and the opportunity to make a better life for themselves and the world around them.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Canada
SPECIAL NOTES:
Due to ongoing distribution arrangements this film is not being screened at this event since it is an online event but it is eligible for festival awards and prices. Please remember to seek out this wonderful film in whatever festivals and outlets that you can.
Website: https://findyourselfseries.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gtasamn
TITLE: “IN A STRANGE ROOM”
RUN TIME: 0:38
SYNOPSIS:
In the summer of 2008, Enzo travels to Berlin to work on a creative documentary and find a former lover.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Spain
SPECIAL NOTES:
Film contains nudity and explicit sexual context. Viewer discretion is advised.
RUN TIME: 0:38
SYNOPSIS:
In the summer of 2008, Enzo travels to Berlin to work on a creative documentary and find a former lover.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Spain
SPECIAL NOTES:
Film contains nudity and explicit sexual context. Viewer discretion is advised.
TITLE: KILLING THE SHEPHERD
RUN TIME: 1:28
SYNOPSIS:
A remote community in Africa, led by a woman chief, attempts to break the stranglehold of absolute poverty by waging a war on wildlife poaching. For decades illegal wildlife poaching by both subsistence and bush meat gangs has led to the government declaring this community’s homeland “depleted” of wildlife.
The chief finds help in the form of a safari operator and they work together to bring stability to the community. But all was not well. Disease, food stability, and rampant alcoholism hamper basic needs like health care and education. Even young girls, just after reaching puberty, are sold by their parents as child brides in order to feed their family for one year. Dark forces including South African land speculators, criminal poaching gangs, and her own people conspire against the chief. Even elements from the modern world work against the chief’s wishes.
Will the chief and her community see success?
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
Website: https://www.shepherdsofwildlife.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shepherdsofwildlifesociety
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wildshepherds
RUN TIME: 1:28
SYNOPSIS:
A remote community in Africa, led by a woman chief, attempts to break the stranglehold of absolute poverty by waging a war on wildlife poaching. For decades illegal wildlife poaching by both subsistence and bush meat gangs has led to the government declaring this community’s homeland “depleted” of wildlife.
The chief finds help in the form of a safari operator and they work together to bring stability to the community. But all was not well. Disease, food stability, and rampant alcoholism hamper basic needs like health care and education. Even young girls, just after reaching puberty, are sold by their parents as child brides in order to feed their family for one year. Dark forces including South African land speculators, criminal poaching gangs, and her own people conspire against the chief. Even elements from the modern world work against the chief’s wishes.
Will the chief and her community see success?
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
Website: https://www.shepherdsofwildlife.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shepherdsofwildlifesociety
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wildshepherds
TITLE: WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT?
RUN TIME: 1:10
SYNOPSIS:
Filmed over the last decade, a reach into the minds of one person from every country in the world; revealing their spontaneous response to the title question, sharing their views, fears & hopes for the future.
‘What is Going to Happen Next?’ is a large-scale and ambitious documentary that showcases a curated selection of unrehearsed video responses to the title question, put to one person in every country around the world.
The film emerged from a ten-year-long socially engaged project to capture opinions from all 203 sovereign states as defined by the United Nations. The documentary, which was completed in 2020, presents a curated selection of these participants. This film creates a global discussion that serves to highlight the diversity and complexity of humanity.
To initiate a genuinely unplanned answer to the title question, the participants were not informed of the question in advance. Instead, the participants were asked to record themselves reading the question, and were given just two minutes to respond. By removing the participant’s ability to prepare, the film presents its audience with a series of natural responses and a variety of behavioural nuances within an international cultural context.
By showcasing participants’ choice in visual setting, manner and practice of participating, along with a series of complex personal, social and political responses, the film attempts to give voice to the incredible diversity of our planet’s population.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Ireland
Website: http://whatisgoingtohappennext.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coreproject/
RUN TIME: 1:10
SYNOPSIS:
Filmed over the last decade, a reach into the minds of one person from every country in the world; revealing their spontaneous response to the title question, sharing their views, fears & hopes for the future.
‘What is Going to Happen Next?’ is a large-scale and ambitious documentary that showcases a curated selection of unrehearsed video responses to the title question, put to one person in every country around the world.
The film emerged from a ten-year-long socially engaged project to capture opinions from all 203 sovereign states as defined by the United Nations. The documentary, which was completed in 2020, presents a curated selection of these participants. This film creates a global discussion that serves to highlight the diversity and complexity of humanity.
To initiate a genuinely unplanned answer to the title question, the participants were not informed of the question in advance. Instead, the participants were asked to record themselves reading the question, and were given just two minutes to respond. By removing the participant’s ability to prepare, the film presents its audience with a series of natural responses and a variety of behavioural nuances within an international cultural context.
By showcasing participants’ choice in visual setting, manner and practice of participating, along with a series of complex personal, social and political responses, the film attempts to give voice to the incredible diversity of our planet’s population.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Ireland
Website: http://whatisgoingtohappennext.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coreproject/
TITLE: ZE PEDRO: ROCK ‘N Roll
RUN TIME: 1:49
SYNOPSIS:
Zé Pedro, the legendary guitar player of Xutos e Pontapés, is the greatest name in Portuguese rock ‘n’ roll. He was its main driving force, not only as the founding guitar player of the greatest Portuguese band ever, but also by promoting the genre as a music critic, radio broadcaster and owner of Johnny Guitar, a mythic club and concert hall in Lisbon where so many bands took their first steps.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Portugal
Website: https://hot-chilli-films.pt/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zepedrorocknroll
RUN TIME: 1:49
SYNOPSIS:
Zé Pedro, the legendary guitar player of Xutos e Pontapés, is the greatest name in Portuguese rock ‘n’ roll. He was its main driving force, not only as the founding guitar player of the greatest Portuguese band ever, but also by promoting the genre as a music critic, radio broadcaster and owner of Johnny Guitar, a mythic club and concert hall in Lisbon where so many bands took their first steps.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Portugal
Website: https://hot-chilli-films.pt/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zepedrorocknroll
TITLE: “THE LEGACY”
RUN TIME: 0:34
SYNOPSIS:
What traces do we leave behind after death? Climate change, extinction of species, environmental pollution - the last few decades have clearly shown that the earth is at its limit. And some people wonder if this is what they want to bequeath to future generations. This film is the legacy of such a person. After a cancer diagnosis, a man is facing the end of his life. And he decides to invest the money he has saved in a project that is dedicated to these issues. A film that takes stock of how we humans deal with the environment and nature. A film that should be made available to as many people as possible, free of charge and without looking at quota. On his behalf, animal filmmaker Jens Klingebiel is on the road to get an idea of the situation. On his travels he discovers both shocking and encouraging things. Humanity now faces one of its greatest challenges. Which direction will it take?
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Germany
Website: http://eng.das-vermaechtnis.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TierfilmerJensKlingebiel
RUN TIME: 0:34
SYNOPSIS:
What traces do we leave behind after death? Climate change, extinction of species, environmental pollution - the last few decades have clearly shown that the earth is at its limit. And some people wonder if this is what they want to bequeath to future generations. This film is the legacy of such a person. After a cancer diagnosis, a man is facing the end of his life. And he decides to invest the money he has saved in a project that is dedicated to these issues. A film that takes stock of how we humans deal with the environment and nature. A film that should be made available to as many people as possible, free of charge and without looking at quota. On his behalf, animal filmmaker Jens Klingebiel is on the road to get an idea of the situation. On his travels he discovers both shocking and encouraging things. Humanity now faces one of its greatest challenges. Which direction will it take?
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Germany
Website: http://eng.das-vermaechtnis.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TierfilmerJensKlingebiel