BYOD - Ashland FF Pt.1: We Are Legion, Tchoupitoulas, Smoke Songs, Holy Rollers&Aquadettes

EPISODE SYNOPSIS:
Ondi heads a panel discussion from the Ashland Film Festival, where some of the most celebrated filmmakers of the event discuss their films, trends for docs, and elaborate their visions for their work.
The makers of "We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists," "Tchoupitoulas," "Smoke Songs," "Holy Rollers," and "The Aquadettes," all present their work and explain their shoots and stories. From the political to the absurd--sometimes in the same movie--all the bases are covered.

GUEST BIO AND FILM INFO:
Briar March is a documentary filmmaker and Fulbright scholar. She directed the documentary features "There Once was an Island," "Allie Eagle and Me," plus a number of music videos, magazine shows, and commercials. Briar has worked closely with filmmaker Annie Goldson, has a production company, On the Level Productions, with Lyn Collie and is currently completing an MFA at Stanford University in California.

Bryan Storkel was born and raised in Seattle, WA. The film "Strictly Background" was his first feature-length documentary about ten extras trying to make it in Hollywood. He shot and edited the film. His current film is the feature-length documentary "Holy Rollers," which centers around a team of Christian gamblers taking Vegas for millions.

The Aquadettes are a group of elderly synchronized swimmers from Leisure World, a retirement community nestled in Orange County, California, who regularly practice routines and new water stunts to maintain their health and strength. Set to an amazing burlesque soundtrack, "Aquadettes" shows how 'California girls' hold on the their vibrancy. It is an intimate and beautiful portrait about maintaining quality of life.

"We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists" is a documentary that takes us inside the world of Anonymous, the radical "hacktivist" collective that has redefined civil disobedience for the digital age. The film explores the historical roots of early hacktivist groups like Cult of the Dead Cow and Electronic Disturbance Theater and then follows Anonymous from 4chan to a full-blown movement with a global reach, one of the most transformative of our time.

"Tchoupitoulas" follows three young brothers from the West Bank of New Orleans as they cross the river on the ferry and spend one night in the shining, peculiar pleasure island that is the French Quarter. Music propels them down the streets as we witness the bewildering sights through their eyes, spending time with everyone from burlesque dancers to oyster shuckers to street musicians. In short, it's a movie about the feel and sound of New Orleans at night -- all night -- through the eyes and ears of a kid.

ADD'L LINKS:
http://wearelegionthedocumentary.com/
http://www.thereoncewasanisland.com/
http://www.strictlybackground.com/
http://www.holyrollersthemovie.com/
http://rossbros.net/tchoupitoulas.html
https://prescreen.com/movie/Aquadettes?st=srch
http://www.newday.com/filmmakers/briar_march.html
http://www.facebook.com/SmokeSongs?v=info

EPISODE BREAKDOWN:
00:01 BYOD welcome
00:40 Introducing Ondi and the panel.
03:45 Briar March discusses Smoke Songs.
04:51 Smoke Songs, clip.
06:03 How Briar got involved in filming the Navajo.
08:18 Brian Knappenberger introduces "We Are Legion."
09:35 Getting access to "Anonymous."
12:46 "We Are Legion," clip.
15:35 Bryan Storkel of "Holy Rollers."
16:33 "Holy Rollers," clip.
17:50 How Bryan got involved with Christian card counters.
19:23 Getting funding from career gamblers.
20:33 Bill and Turner Ross of "Tchoupitoulas," explain their inspiration.
24:23 "Tchoupitoulas," clip.
29:15 Introducing Drea Cooper of "Aquadettes."
29:42 Getting the story of an elderly woman who is a synchronized swimmer and medical marijuana user.
33:48 "Aquadettes," clip. (Margo smoking.)
34:22 The film becomes more than a medical marijuana story.
35:36 "Aquadettes," clip.
36:07 Ondi asks questions to the panel.
36:10 "How long did you think you'd make your film, vs. how long you actually shot?"
38:00 The split in wikileaks and filming sources.
40:24 Briar's shooting restrictions for "Smoke Songs."
42:56 "What is the reservation doing with the film?"
43:37 Shooting "Holy Rolers," and editing hundreds of hours.
46:50 The Ross brothers process of showing up to town and shooting for a year.
48:45 Drea and the continuing shoot of "Aquadettes."
50:30 The artificial tension between hollywood and the internet.
52:35 Using the internet to create webisodes, live public, and promoting online.