On March 11th, MEREDITH VIEIRA will interview three distinguished documentary filmmakers during our MFF PRODUCES fundraising event. Each has been nominated for an Academy Award, and each has honored films about important subjects in the news.
Vieira will engage our filmmaker guests in a discussion around the subject “Are Documentary Filmmakers the New Journalists?”
Rachel Grady– (BOYS OF BARAKA, JESUS CAMP, and 12th & DELAWARE). Exploring issues of educating urban boys, children in the world of fundamentalist Christianity, and abortion, Rachel Grady and filmmaker partner Heidi Ewing have always brought incredible insight to issues that divide people. Cited by Time Magazine as one of five innovator filmmakers in 2007, MFF has had the privilege of showcasing all of her films. Rachel Grady is currently working on her newest film, DETROIT HUSTLES HARDER.
Marshall Curry– (STREET FIGHT, RACING DREAMS, IF A TREE FALLS: A STORY OF THE EARTH LIBERATION MOVEMENT). A self taught documentary filmmaker, Marshall’s first film, STREET FIGHT, chronicled Cory Booker’s first attempt to run for Mayor of Newark, NJ. Booker was a Stanford and Yale grad who had a good record as a councilman and had been living in Newark’s infamous projects. He immediately attracted attention, and gathered around him a tireless group of volunteers. He got crushed. The film was nominated for both an Academy Award and an Emmy. RACING DREAMS, Marshall’s second film, followed a few teenage race car drivers as they learned to contend on the NASCAR circuit, and won Best Documentary at Tribeca 2009. His latest film, covering the issue of eco-terrorism, was in the competition of Sundance 2011, and, like each of the first two, will be part of MFF.
Laura Poitras– (MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY; THE OATH) Diving in to two of the most reported news stories of the past few years, Laura gained access to a physician in Baghdad as he decided to run in the first election after the fall of Saddam Hussein, and then spent a year with Osama Bin Laden’s driver/bodyguard in Yemen. The results are two remarkable films, taking the viewer deep inside of stories that were all over the front pages.
More information about the event and how to purchase tickets below…
Congratulations to MFF 2010’s DOGTOOTH, which against long odds was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Foreign Language Film! If you missed this edgy Greek thriller at the festival and during its late-Fall theatrical run at The Charles, as of this week you can now catch it on DVD. 
Bill Plympton, one of the most widely recognized and respected animators in America, will be hosting the Friday night premiere of the Maryland Film Festival Shorts at the Charles at Artscape 2009.
Maryland Film Festival Blog 
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