Independent Lens Series Producer Lois Vossen at the Oscar Ceremony

Hi there! Well it was a great night. The debate is on whether or not Billy Crystal was funny and whether or not the show was well paced.

As we were leaving, I ran into Wim Wenders who made Pina and I went over and spoke with him and he said “I’m very, very sorry that Hell and Back Again lost because it was a magnificent film and I would have been honored to have lost to Hell and Back Again, honored!” So I introduced him to Fiona Otway who edited the film.

Overall, I thought the show was fun. Maybe not the best Oscars of all time but certainly best for me, maybe because I was there! The show played quickly and seem to fly by. Tony Bennett played at the Governor’s Ball afterwards and he sounded great.

Right now, people are scattering off to after parties at Vanity Fair and Elton John’s thing. We’re getting together back at the hotel with a friend of ours who’s a member of the Academy. Interesting to hear how it played on television versus inside the theatre. Apparently Cirque du Soleil played better in the theatre.

Also, I was right in front of Sasha Baron Cohen when he dumped the ashes on Ryan Seacrest! I thought it was really funny, but apparently that pissed off a lot of people? Maybe you had to be there because watching it live was just silly and unexpected.

Of course, the women all looked fabulous!

Finally, we want to send our congratulations to Daniel Junge who won for his short film Saving Face. Two of Daniel’s previous films were on Independent Lens: Iron Ladies of Liberia and Chiefs. So, we were thrilled to see him win as a member of the IL family!

That’s all for now. Good night!

Hell and Back Again, directed by Danfung Dennis and also nominated for the Best Documentary Oscar, tells the story of a Marine on the battlefield and on the homefront as he struggles to adjust to the terrifying normalcy of home. It premieres on Independent Lens May 24 at 10 PM and on Memorial Day, May 28 at 10 PM (check local listings).

We Were Here, directed by David Weissman and short-listed for the Best Documentary Oscar, is the story of the arrival of AIDS in San Francisco in 1981. The disease decimated a community, but also brought people together in inspiring and moving ways to support and care for one another and to fight for dignity and a cure. We Were Here premieres on Independent Lens on June 7, 2012 at 10 PM (check local listings).

Congratulations and good luck to the filmmakers!

We say ditto! Good luck Danfung, Mike, Martin, Nathan, Ashley, and the whole Hell and Back Again crew.

Hell and Back Again
“After so many years of war, society’s become numb to pictures of conflict, and so I felt like I had to move into a new medium to try to shake people from their indifference.” — Danfung Dennis on Hell and Back Again (the documentary will air May 24 and on Memorial Day on Independent Lens) LISTEN TO FULL INTERVIEW HERE.

If A Tree Falls
“Part of the story is a look at a small … faction of the environmental movement which became disaffected and began to feel like the democratic process wasn’t working, and they needed to do more radical actions.” — Marshall Curry on If A Tree Falls (which is streaming for a limited time on POV‘s website) LISTEN TO FULL INTERVIEW HERE.

Don’t forget to fill out your Oscar ballot and watch with us on Sunday night! You could win something cool.

Much like the apps that help you find a nearby cup of coffee or ATM, the More Than A Mapp (MTAM) iPhone and iPad app allows users to locate, experience, and contribute to African American History through an interactive map. Designed to show that this aspect of American history exists all around us, even in months outside of February, this free application highlights relevant locations in one’s immediate vicinity and gives users the ability to upload their own. Download More Than A Mapp here.

Listen to NPR’s Morning Edition interview after the jump:

Watch the trailer for The Island President below

We wanted to do something fun in anticipation of Sunday’s festivities, so we whipped up a quick little ballot for you to fill out and submit, to see how many of you can guess the outcome in several major categories. We’ll accept ballot entries (one per user, please!) up until 5 PM PST on Sunday, February 26, 2012. We’ll randomly select five entries from among the highest scores for personal glory and some special surprises.

The screening will take place exclusively online; you can join for free by signing in with Facebook (or directly on the site) and interact with other viewers and filmmaker Shukree Tlighman while you watch the film. Viewers can comment, ask questions, take polls, and even express their feelings about what they’re watching through a variety of tools on the site.

This is an entirely new way we’re offering some of our documentary films, and all of us are looking forward to an open, thoughtful conversation on Black History Month!

Find more information or join Friday’s screening here.

Shukree Hassan Tilghman

What impact do you hope More Than a Month will have?
That Americans will question why black history is taught as if it is somehow separate from American history. I hope as a country, we can imagine an America where Black History Month isn’t necessary.

What led you to make this film?
A growing feeling that African Americans continue to be seen as “Other Americans.” Watching how folks were treated during Hurricane Katrina and listening to pundits refer to those victims as refugees intensified that notion. I thought that this ideal of “other” is reinforced in society by things like Black History Month. That, combined with the new idea that we live in a “post-racial” America, led to an interest in exploring these themes.

What were some of the challenges you faced in making the film?
The biggest challenge was deciding on tone, and then executing that balance of comedy and serious, tongue-in-cheek and sincere. Getting people to speak candidly about race-related issues is a challenge. Crafting a film that addressed these issues and making it entertaining as well as informative was a constant challenge.

How did you gain the trust of the subjects in your film, get them to take you seriously, and also not become defensive?
We developed a dialogue sometimes over several months and — in some cases — years through phone calls and, emails as well as through in-person visits as we developed the film.

What would you have liked to include in your film that didn’t make the cut?
We covered many stories that we just didn’t have time to put in the film. We spent a great deal of time with high school students. We could have made a great film just talking to the youngsters.

Tell us about a scene in the film that especially moved or resonated with you.
The final scene (with out revealing a spoiler here) is a conversation that was a surprise for me. It wasn’t until we got to editing that I realized this conversation completed the journey of the film.

What has the audience response been so far?
It is not a film without some controversy. At screenings, More Than a Month has created a lot of vigorous dialogue, which, of course, it is designed to do.

The independent film business is tough. What keeps you motivated?
Money. I hope to be rich. But since documentary filmmaking doesn’t promise, or even suggest, the road to riches beyond measure, I must rely on my core motivation: a love of storytelling. The great thing about documentary is that it allows one to combine storytelling with the exploration of social issues. I love that. It can be difficult to work in any creative field, so I think the people who do it and stick with it just can’t imagine doing anything else.

Why did you choose to present your film on public television?
The film found some public television support in the early development stages. As the film grew in stages over the years, we were lucky that our support also increased. We were very fortunate to get on public television’s radar early on in the process, as they truly provide the best audience for the film.

What’s this about an app?
In working on the film we developed a mobile app that helps record and preserve the often invisible African American history that surrounds us all the time, everywhere. I hope people will consider downloading More Than a Map(p).

What are your three favorite films?
Documentary: The Agronomist, Hoop Dreams, The Thin Blue Line

Narrative: To Kill a Mocking Bird, Malcolm X, Annie Hall

What advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers?
Do something different. Not for the sake of being different, but because all filmmakers (and artists in general) have a unique voice and, in my opinion, finding that voice can only come from embracing difference: what’s different about you, what makes you laugh, what makes you angry, how do you think, how do you approach issues? When you can find that, and start creating from that place, then you’re on to something.