Contemporary Documentary Series at UCLA
by Andre Soares
On Feb. 1, the Contemporary Documentary Series will screen four short documentaries, including the Oscar-nominated Autism Is a World, at UCLA’s James Bridges Theater. The series is presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Academy Foundation and the UCLA Film and Television Archive. As per the Academy’s press release, the four documentaries are:
Hotel City follows a contingent of San Francisco tenants from several Single Residence Occupancy hotels as they join together and form a city-wide collaborative to improve their quality of life. The film was directed and produced by Phoebe Tooke.
In Chavez Ravine: A Los Angeles Story, the eviction of a close-knit Mexican-American community of 300 families is remembered. The promised, but never materialized, public housing project instead became Dodger Stadium. The film was directed by Jordan Mechner, who also produced with Don Normark.
Filmmaker Ira Wohl brings the story of his elderly cousin, Frances, to the screen in Best Sister. Wohl won an Oscar in 1979 for Best Boy, which focused on Frances’ mentally retarded brother, Philly.
The Academy Award nominated Autism Is a World looks at Sue Rubin, who, through “facilitated communication” techniques introduced to her at the age of 13, was finally able to emerge from a world of autistic silence. Despite many remaining hurdles, she now attends community college. The film was directed and produced by Gerardine Wurzburg.
For more information, call 310-247-3600 or 310-206-FILM.
Hollywood Foreign Press Association 2005 Golden Globe Award nominations
List of the British Academy of Film 2005 nominees
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