BY SCOTT STIFFLER | DOC NYC: DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL True crimes, intimate struggles, epic personal journeys and sweeping social movements are among the tales told — dozens of them by local directors — when America’s largest documentary film festival unspools on the screens of SVA, IFC and Bow Tie Chelsea cinemas. Consult the DOC NYC website (docnyc.net) for a complete list of the 150+ films and events. We’re highlighting these three on the strength of their premise, as well as the fact that the filmmakers will be in attendance for a post-screening Q&A (as is the case with many of the festival selections).
“Soul Boys of the Western World” looks at the rise and fall and rise of Spandau Ballet, a group of working class Brits who made 1980s synthpop safe for introspective lyrics, while making ravenous fans of both sexes swoon over their trend-setting clothes and voluminous hair. Director George Hencken convinced the members to tell their own stories, and intertwined that with period footage and never-before-seen home movies. Nov. 15, 9:45 p.m. at Chelsea’s SVA Theatre. Visit spandauballetthemovie.com.
Sentenced to death for a 1892 double homicide that took place in a Chicago park, Anthony Porter was 48 hours from being executed — when an investigation by Northwest University journalism students led to the confession of Alstory Simon and the exoneration of Porter. “A Murder in the Park” argues that there are holes in this too-good-to-be-true plot twist, and that both men in question were “just pawns in a much larger plan.” Nov. 17, 9:30 p.m. at IFC Center. More info at facebook.com/PorterMovie.
Filmed in Israel, Prague and Brooklyn, longtime Village resident Adam Zucker’s “The Return” looks at the religious and cultural awakening of four Polish Catholic women who discovered their Jewish identity while in their teens, then struggled to create a community in a country that was once the epicenter of the Jewish world. This film screens Nov. 18 & 20 at IFC, as part of DOC NYC, then has a Dec. 3 screening at the Museum of Jewish Heritage (in Battery Park City). Visit thereturndocumentary.com.
Through Nov. 20, at the IFC Center (323 Sixth Ave. at W. Third St.), Bow Tie Chelsea Cinemas (260 W. 23rd St., btw. 7th & 8th Aves.) and the SVA Theatre (333 West 23rd St., btw. 8th & 9th Aves.). For schedule info & tickets, visit docnyc.net. Regular screenings: $17 adults, $15 seniors/children. Panels and Master Classes: $12 adults, $10 seniors, $9 students.
NEGATIVE IS POSITIVE
A little honesty is all it takes to level the playing field and change the game — in Theater for the New City’s world premiere production of “Negative Is Positive.” Christy-Smith Sloman’s slow-burning dramedy centers around the suspicions, ambitions and expectations of driven pastry chef Simone, whose husband David has given up a steady gig to pursue an unlikely goal. Recently transplanted to Gowanus from the Upper West Side, the newly married couple’s dynamic is about to become as ugly (and potentially toxic) as “the weird brown goo that bubbles up from the drain every so often.” When Simone makes a shocking confession just before happily coupled George and Brianna arrive for a pleasantly sociable night of binge viewing, all four find themselves occupied by the ripple effects of their own selfish, and very human, actions.
Through Nov. 30. Thurs. Fri. & Sat. at 8 p.m. & Sun. at 3 p.m. At Theater for the New City (155 First Ave., btw. 9th & 10th Sts.). For tickets ($15), call 212-868-4444 or visit smarttix.com. For info: negativeispositivetheplay.com and theaterforthenewcity.net.
CultureHub Presents REFEST
An experimental incubator where multiple disciplines and mediums intersect, the annual art fair and technology festival known as REFEST touches down at La MaMa’s CultureHub from Nov. 21–23. On opening night, “WordHack” (8 p.m.) uses code poetry, digital and e-lit, and devArt to explore the intersection of language and technology. At 9 p.m., “Close Up” is a full-immersion art party hosted by media artists Tal and Omer Golan and dancers from LeeSaar The Company. It encourages well-lubricated attendees to ditch the notion of audience passivity and become active participants in “an ever-changing environment that combines live dance, theater and music with interactive video and audio recorded, mixed and projected in real time.” The evening concludes with Bubblyfish’s 9:30 p.m. performance of “Moori,” which incorporates the SMS of a smart phone.
Nov. 22’s 11 a.m.–5 p.m. offering challenges kids and their parents to explore an arcade full of 3D games. At 5 p.m., Anna Barsan hosts a salon where artists present projects designed to subvert the practice of video surveillance. At 7:30 p.m., an electroacoustic performance by foci + loci considers the usage of video games as virtual sound stages. At 8 p.m., “Artcade” is This Near Future’s merging of old school video arcade socialization with contemporary, independently designed video games.
The final event, at 8 p.m. on Nov. 23, brings the festival concept of interactivity and technology full circle — when The Fast Food Collective’s Eric Barry Drasin curates an evening of audio-visual speed dating.
REFEST happens Fri.-Sun., Nov. 21–23. At CultureHub (47 Great Jones St., 3rd Floor, btw. Bowery & Lafayette). For event prices, schedule and more info: culturehub.org/refest.
