BYOD visits the Hot Docs festival to share three of the most talked-about films that are coming out. We speak to WILLIAM AND THE WINDMILL maker Ben Nabors and see footage of the African story of invention and self-determination. Next, THE MANOR shows the story of filmmaker Shawney Cohen’s family strip club located in a 32 room motel in Canada. THE LIFE AND CRIMES OF DORIS PAYNE is the unbelievable true story of a septuagenarian jewel thief, told by makers Kirk Marcolina and Matthew Pond.
Watch new episodes of BYOD live each week on Tuesdays at noon on TheLip.TV, or tune in for the archived replay starting here on the following Thursday.
ABOUT BYOD:
BYOD is hosted by Ondi Timoner, director of “DIG!,” “JOIN US” and “WE LIVE IN PUBLIC,” and has the rare distinction of winning the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance twice. Each week the show explores a different documentary filmmaker or aspect of filmmaking, with special guests and a live Q&A– diving deep into creative process and the business realities of producing and distributing films. Ondi shares her insider views, opinions, and personal stories, welcoming audience participation. BYOD aims to entertain, inform, and elevate documentaries in general by bringing attention to films and film makers that deserve exposure.
GUEST BIO:
William and the Windmill
William Kamkwamba, a young Malawian, builds a power-generating windmill from junk parts to rescue his family from famine, transforming his life and catapulting him on to the the world stage. His fame and success lead him to new opportunities and complex choices about his future, distancing him from the life he once knew. Directed and produced by Ben Nabors, and shot across several continents, the film documents William Kamkwamba’s journey beginning with the TEDGlobal Conference in Arusha, Tanzania, through his college attendance in the United States in 2011.
The Manor
Shawney Cohen (Director) and Mike Gallay (Co-Director)
THE MANOR: Shawney Cohen considers himself a filmmaker, but he’s actually been a strip club manager for longer. When he was six years old his father bought “The Manor,” a small-town strip club attached to a seedy 32-room motel. Thirty years after the purchase, the family’s extravagant lifestyle has got the better of this family. His father has seen his weight balloon to 400 pounds, while Shawney’s anorexic mother struggles to survive at 85 pounds. Hoping to understand what happened to his once-recognizable family, Shawney spends three years filming in a murky world of strippers, drugs and family feuds. Told with humour and frankness, “The Manor” is an intimate portrait of a family struggling to understand the ties that bind.
LIFE AND CRIMES OF DORIS PAYNE:
How does a poor, single, African-American mother from segregated 1950s America wind up as one of the world’s most notorious jewel thieves? A glamorous 81-year-old, Doris Payne is as unapologetic today about the $2 million in jewels she’s stolen over a 60-year career as she was the day she stole her first carat. With Doris now on trial for the theft of a department store diamond ring, The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne probes beneath her consummate smile to uncover the secrets of her trade and what drove her to a life of crime. Stylized recreations, an extensive archive and candid interviews reveal how Payne managed to jet-set her way into any Cartier or Tiffany’s from Monte Carlo to Japan and walk out with small fortunes. This sensational portrait exposes a rebel who defies society’s prejudices and pinches her own version of the American Dream while she steals your heart.
ADD’L LINKS:
http://www.themanordocumentary.com/
http://dorispaynefilm.com/dorispaynefilm.com/Welcome.html
http://williamandthewindmill.com/
EPISODE BREAKDOWN:
00:01 Welcome to BYOD from Hot Docs.
00:47 WILLIAM AND THE WINDMILL, with dir. Ben Nabors.
18:25 THE MANOR, with dir. Shawney Cohen.
31:36 THE LIFE AND CRIMES OF DORIS PAYNE, with filmmakers Kirk Marcolina and Marco Pond.
