Oscar Best Documentary Shortlist Filmmakers 1-on-1

With the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ recent announcement naming the 15 films in the Oscar best documentary shortlist that will advance in the voting process for the 87^th Academy Awards, BYOD host Ondi Timoner previews six of the contenders with the filmmakers themselves.

Among the shortlisted Oscar documentaries discussed are:

The Case Against 8 - A behind-the-scenes look inside the historic case to overturn California’s ban on same-sex marriage. The high-profile trial first makes headlines with the unlikely pairing of Ted Olson and David Boies, political foes who last faced off as opposing attorneys in Bush v. Gore. The film also follows the plaintiffs, two gay couples who find their families at the center of the same-sex marriage controversy. Five years in the making, this is the story of how they took the first federal marriage equality lawsuit to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Citizen Koch - Set against the rise of the Tea Party in the aftermath of the US Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United ruling, a citizen uprising to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker collides with the Tea Party-aligned “Americans for Prosperity,” a group founded and lavishly financed by two of the world’s richest men - David and Charles Koch. As Republican working class voters find themselves in the crosshairs of their own party and its billionaire backers, they are forced to choose sides.

The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz - As a teenager, Aaron Swartz was a computer-programming prodigy with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. After emerging as a pioneer of Internet activism, education, and politics, he was indicted on multiple federal charges in 2011 and 2012, setting off a complex chain of events that left the Internet community reeling. Shortly thereafter, at the age of 26, Swartz was found dead of an apparent suicide in his Brooklyn apartment. His family, friends, and supporters immediately blamed the prosecutors of the case, who aimed to put him in jail for 35 years and brand him a convicted felon for life. Swartz was persecuted for the very rights and freedoms for which he stood, and that ultimately broke him. Weaving together home video footage and anecdotal interviews from his closest confidants, Brian Knappenberger creates a dynamic portrait of a precocious boy who grew up to lead the Internet community into a new age of data sharing and free speech.

Keep on Keepin’ On - Shot over the course of five years by first time filmmaker the movie depicts a 23-year-old, blind piano prodigy, Justin Kauflin, and music legend and teacher Clark Terry, 89. After a life spent working with and teaching the most totemic figures in jazz history, Terry continues to attract and cultivate budding talents.

The Overnighters - In the tiny town of Williston, North Dakota, tens of thousands of unemployed hopefuls show up with dreams of honest work and a big paycheck under the lure of the oil boom. However, busloads of newcomers chasing a broken American Dream step into the stark reality of slim work prospects and nowhere to sleep. The town lacks the infrastructure to house the overflow of migrants, even for those who do find gainful employment. Over at Concordia Lutheran Church, Pastor Jay Reinke is driven to deliver the migrants some dignity. Night after night, he converts his church into a makeshift dorm and counseling center, opening the church’s doors to allow “overnighters” (as he calls them) to stay for a night, a week or longer.

Virunga - In the forested depths of eastern Congo lies Virunga National Park, one of the most bio-diverse places on Earth and home to the planet’s last remaining mountain gorillas. In this wild, but enchanted environment, a small and embattled team of park rangers - including an ex-child soldier turned ranger, a caretaker of orphan gorillas and a dedicated conservationist who’s a member of the Belgian royal family - protect this UNESCO world heritage site from armed militia, poachers and the dark forces struggling to control Congo’s rich natural resources. When the newly formed M23 rebel group declares war, a new conflict threatens the lives and stability of everyone and everything they’ve worked so hard to protect, with the filmmakers and the film’s participants caught in the crossfire.

Guest Bio

THE CASE AGAINST 8 is a behind-the-scenes look inside the historic case to overturn California’s ban on same-sex marriage. Five years in the making, this is the story of how they took the first federal marriage equality lawsuit to the U.S. Supreme Court.

CITIZEN KOCH filmmakers Carl Deal and Tia Lessin, directors and producers, are Academy Award® nominated filmmakers who also produced and directed TROUBLE THE WATER, winner of the Gotham Independent Film Award, the Sundance Film Festival’s Grand Jury Prize, and the Full Frame Documentary Festival Grand Jury Prize.

THE INTERNET’S OWN BOY by Brian Knappenberger, director of “We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists,” follows internet activist and programming pioneer Aaron Swartz from his teenage emergence on the internet scene and involvement in RSS and Reddit, to his increased interest in political advocacy and the controversial actions he allegedly took in downloading nearly four million academic articles from the online service JSTOR.

In KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON, a 23-year-old, blind piano prodigy, Justin Kauflin, who suffers terrible stage fright, finds his way to jazz legend and teacher Clark Terry, 89. Over the course of filming, Terry begins to lose his sight as an unlikely bond begins to take hold.When Justin is invited to compete in an elite international competition, Clark’s health takes a turn for the worse.

In THE OVERNIGHTERS,desperate, broken men chase their dreams and run from their demons in the North Dakota oil fields. Local Pastor Jay Reinke opens his church to “overnighters,” men and women who have come to the region seeking employment in the oil fields. As Pastor Reinke fights for these men and women against growing opposition, he is drawn into the whirlpool of their troubled lives.

VIRUNGA is Africa’s oldest national park, a UNESCO world heritage site, and the last natural habitat for the endangered mountain gorilla. None of that will stop the business interests and rebel insurgencies lurking at the park’s doorstep. Orlando von Einsiedel pairs gorgeous natural scenes from Virunga with riveting footage of the Congolese crisis, raising an ardent call for conservation as a vital human enterprise.