Medora
Director: Andrew Cohn, Davy Rothbart
Cast: Dylan McSoley, Rusty Rogers, Robby Armstrong, Chaz Cowles, Justin Gilbert, Corey Hansen, Logan Farmer, Josh Deering, Rudie Crane, Dennis Pace

In the small town of Medora, Indiana, life revolves around high school basketball – but what happens to a community when their beloved team can’t win a single game?

Decades ago, Medora was a booming rural community with a thriving middle class, but the factories and farms have since closed and the population has dwindled. Medora has become something of a ghost town, riddled with trailer parks and abandoned businesses and one of the smallest schools in the nation.

Directed by Andrew Cohn and Davy Rothbart, Medora follows the down-but-not-out Medora Hornets, capturing the players’ stories on and off the court as they seek to avoid another winless season.

Good Ol’ Freda
Director: Ryan White
Cinematographer: Austin Hargrave
Editor: Helen Kearns

On their 1963 Christmas record, The Beatles give thanks to “Good Ol’ Freda!” in Liverpool, their devoted secretary and friend. Directed by Ryan White, Good Ol’ Freda is a documentary about Freda Kelly, who was just a shy Liverpudlian teenager when she was asked to work for a local band hoping to make it big.

The Beatles were together for 10 years, but Freda worked for them for 11. She had no idea how far the band would go, but she had faith in The Beatles from the beginning, and they had faith in her. Many people came and went as they sky-rocketed to international stardom, but Freda remained a staple of the inner-circle because of her unfaltering loyalty and dedication. As the band’s devoted secretary and confidant, Freda was witness to the evolution of the greatest band in history.

Check this out! I had a chance to chat with director Josh Johnson, producer Carolee Mitchell, and Cinematographer/Editor Christopher Palmer at 2013’s South by Southwest Film Festival about the world premiere of their new VHS documentary, Rewind This!.

We discuss the impact of the VHS media format, hand-painted cover art, and childhood memories of Tim Burton’s Batman, Evil Dead II, and, you guessed it, Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Check out my review of Rewind This! for more information on this kick-ass love letter to the video tape! Video interview with the filmmakers is here below.

Hey Bartender
Director: Douglas Tirola
Screenwriter: Douglas Tirola
Cast: Dale DeGroff, Dushan Zaric, Jim Meehan, Sasha Petraske, Julie Reiner, Steve Schneider, Steve Carpentieri, Graydon Carter, Danny Meyer, Amy Sacco

Synopsis: Two bartenders try to achieve their dreams through bartending. An injured Marine turns his goals to becoming a principal bartender at the best cocktail bar in the world. Featuring the world’s most renowned bartenders and access to the most exclusive bars in New York, this is the story of the comeback of the cocktail and the rebirth of the bartender. — 4th Row Films

“The culture of drink endures because it offers so many rewards… above all the elusive promise of friendship and love” — Pete Hamill

At Employees Only in New York City, craft bartender Steve Schneider concocts fancy cocktails like the Mata Hari: Pierre Ferrand Ambre Cognac shaken with Chai-Infused Italian Vermouth & Pomegranate Juice, served straight up. Here the bartender is the royalty of the working class – a mixologist and mad scientist held in the same regard as the top chefs in the city.

West of Memphis
Directed by Amy Berg
Featuring: Jessie Misskelley, Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, Lorri Davis, Terry Branch, Eddie Vedder, Peter Jackson
Sony Pictures Classics
Rated R | 147 Minutes
Release Date: March 8, 2013

Directed by Amy Berg, West of Memphis is a documentary about the West Memphis Three – Jessie Misskelley, Damien Echols, and Jason Baldwin – three teenagers who were arrested in 1994 for the murders of three 8-year old children: Christopher Byers, Steven Branch, and Michael Moore.

The West Memphis Three were tried and convicted and remained in prison for more than 18 years. Berg’s film (produced by Fran Walsh and Peter Jackson) focuses on Terry Hobbs, stepfather of Stevie Branch, one of the victims of the 1993 crime, as a potential suspect due to newfound DNA evidence linking him to the crime.

West of Memphis is another miscarriage-of-justice documentary, similar to The Central Park Five by Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon. The film chronicles the history of the imprisoned men all the way up to their eventual release through interviews conducted with lawyers, judges, journalists, family members, witnesses, and the West Memphis Three themselves. There are also interviews with Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and other WM3 supporters like Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder who have been following the case for two decades.