A LOOK AT THE TOP DOCUMENTARIES
Fascinating films reveal amazing lives, news events around world.
Documentaries are always a highlight of the South by Southwest Film Festival. We’ve wrapped up some of the best, day by day, to help guide you through the vast offerings. Reviews of other documentaries will be posted on austin360.com the day after their screenings.
For other capsule looks at documentaries, see Matthew Odam’s story on what to see if you’re trying to navigate the festival with only a wristband. And for a roundup of narrative features, visit austin360.com or pick up a copy of the Thursday Life & Arts section of the Austin American-Statesman.
Friday
“That Guy Dick Mill
er”: Dick Miller has been a character actor since 1955 and has worked with some of the greats: Jack Nicholson, Robert DeNiro, Martin Scorsese, Jonathan Demme. But most people wouldn’t recognize him. He’s just that guy. Now he gets a movie all about him. 6 p.m., Alamo Ritz; 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Alamo Slaughter; 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Ritz; 9:30 p.m. Thursday, Marchesa.
“Cosmos: A SpaceTime Odyssey”: Neil deGrasse Tyson will present a look at the new 13-part TV series that takes us on a tour of the universe. 10 p.m., Paramount. (He’s also talking to Interactive badge holders 2 p.m. Saturday, Austin Convention Center, Exhibit Hall 5).
“The Dog”: Remember the Al Pacino movie “Dog Day Afternoon”? Most people know that the movie was based on a real case of a man who tried to rob a Brooklyn bank to pay for his male lover’s sex-reassign
ment surgery. This documentary profiles the late John Wojtowicz, on whom Pacino’s character was based. 7 p.m., Alamo Slaughter; 11:15 a. m. Tuesday, Alamo Ritz; 9:30 p.m. Thursday, Ala
mo Village.
“Lady Valor: The Kristin Beck Story”: The story of a former Navy SEAL who is now living as a transgender woman. 9:30 p.m., Violet Crown; 7:15 p.m. Sunday, Alamo Village; 2 p.m. Tuesday, Topfer.
“The Legend of Shorty”: News events have taken over this timely documentary. It traces efforts to track down Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, the notorious Mexican drug cartel leader, who was recently captured by Mexican marines. 9:30
p.m. Vimeo; 2 p.m. Saturday, Alamo Slaughter; 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Stateside; 7 p.m. March 15, Rollins.
“The Case Against 8”: Ben Cotner and Ryan White look at the efforts to overturn California’s ban on gay marriage. And with all the recent court battles in numerous states, including Texas, this documentary could not be more timely. 9:45 p.m., Alamo Slaughter; 11 a.m. Monday, Rollins; 11 a.m. Tuesday, Topfer; 6:45 p.m. March 14, Stateside.
Saturday
“Manny”: The story of boxing champion Manny Pacquiao, whose rise to stardom from poverty in the Philippines is the stuff of legend. 1 p.m., Vimeo; 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Alamo Slaughter; 7 p.m. March 14, Topfer.
“Song from the For
est”: This documentary focuses on Louis Sarno, who journeyed to a Central African rain forest and began to record more than 1,000 hours of music from Bayaka Pygmies. He lived with them for 25 years and raised a son, Samedi. But everything must come to an end, so Sarno and his son return to America and face another type of jungle — the concrete one of New York. 2 p.m., Violet Crown; 9:30 p.m. Monday, Marchesa; 2 p.m. Wednesday, Alamo Village.
“Wicker Kittens”: Director Amy C. Elliott takes us inside the world of competitive jigsaw puzzlers, with a focus on the St. Paul Winter Carnival in Minnesota. 4:30 p.m., Rollins; 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Stateside; 7
p.m. March 14, Marchesa.
“Evolution of a Criminal”: A look at how a 16-year-old turns into a bank robber. 7 p.m., Violet Crown; 2 p.m. Sunday, Alamo Slaughter; 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Rollins; 7 p.m. Wednesday, Alamo Village.
“Harmontown”: Dan Harmon, the writer and producer behind the NBC show “Community,” takes us along as he tours the U.S. with his live podcast. 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Vimeo. Also: 4 p.m. Sunday, Alamo Village; 5 p.m. Wednesday, Violet Crown; 2 p.m. March 14, Vimeo.
“Yakona”: Texas-based filmmakers Anlo Sepulveda and Paul Collins take us on a visual journey through the waters of the San Marcos River and its headwaters at Spring Lake. 9:30 p.m., Marchesa; 11 a.m. Tuesday, Paramount.
Sunday
“The Possibilities Are Endless”: After the celebrated lyricist Edwyn Collins suffers a stroke, he struggles to return to a life of love, language and music. 1:30 p.m., Alamo Ritz; 2 p.m. Tuesday, Alamo Village; 7 p.m. Thursday, Violet Crown.
“Supermensch”: Director Mike Myers (yes, the “Wayne’s World” and “Austin Powers” dude) looks at the life of Shep Gordon, who managed such celebrities as Blondie, Alice Cooper and Raquel Welch. This will be the only screening during the festival. 6:30 p.m., Paramount.
“Double Play”: Austin director Richard Linklater has long been friends with fellow filmmaker James Benning. Gabe Klinger directs this look at the relationship between the auteurs. 7 p.m., Marchesa; 7 p.m. Wednesday, Marchesa.
“Surviving Cliffside”: Director Jon Matthews takes us inside a West Virginia family that struggles with drug addiction, violence and poverty. And then they decide that their young girl, who has survived leukemia, is going to try to become Little Miss West Virginia. 9:30 p.m., Violet Crown; 4 p.m. Tuesday, Alamo Ritz; 11 a.m. Wednesday, Alamo Slaughter; 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Violet Crown.
Monday
“Seeds of Time”: Director Sandy McLeod follows agriculture pioneer Cary Fowler and his travels across the world to help save a key resource that we can’t live without: our seeds. 11 a.m., Violet Crown; 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Rollins; 11:30 a.m. March 14, Rollins.
“Above All Else”: A man leads a group of land owners in East Texas to block the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Noon Monday, Paramount; 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Alamo Village; 2 p.m. March 15, Topfer.
“Mateo”: This is a very odd documentary, probably because it focuses on a very odd character, Matthew Stoneman — a ex-convict who learned Spanish in prison and has decided to reinvent himself as East L.A.’s El Gringo Mariachi. He lives amid a trash heap at his home. And he’s clearly a hoarder. But he ends up going to Cuba and having plenty of misadventures. 2 p.m., Stateside; 11 a.m. Tuesday, Violet Crown; 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Violet Crown.
“DamNation”: The pride that we feel in the
engineering feats of damming America’s rivers might be misplaced, directors Ben Knight and Travis Rummel contend. In fact, these dams may be threatening our future. 4 p.m., Vimeo. Also: 11 a.m. Tuesday, Alamo Village; 11 a.m. Thursday, Alamo Slaughter; 7 p.m. March 14, Vimeo.
“The Dance of Reality”: This autobiographical film looks at the wild life of director Alejandro Jodorowsky. 5:30 p.m., Alamo Ritz; 4:45 p.m. March 14, Ritz.
“Beyond Clueless”: Narrator Fairuza Balk helps us dissect the teen movie by looking at more than 200 coming-of-age tales. 7 p.m., Topfer; 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, Alamo Slaughter; 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Topfer.
“For No Good Rea
son”: This fascinating documentary looks at the work of cartoonist/ artist Ralph Steadman, who teamed up with gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson to illustrate such famous books as “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.” Johnny Depp visits the artist in his English home and watches him work. Director Charlie Paul weaves archival footage of Steadman and Thompson throughout. One of the top documentaries at the festival. 7 p.m., Stateside; 7 p.m. Thursday, Alamo Village.
“Doc of the Dead”: This one looks fun. It examines zombie culture and its rise in U.S. pop culture. From Alexandre O. Philippe and the makers of “The People vs. George Lucas.” 9:30 p.m. Vimeo. Also: 9:45 p.m. Tuesday, Alamo Slaughter; 11:15 a.m. Thursday, Alamo Ritz.