This week, Rip! A Remix Manifesto won the audience choice award at the Encounters South African International Documentary Festival. Congrats to director Brett Gaylor, as the film has also won the audience choice awards at the IDFA, Ann Arbor and Whistler festivals. The film plays tonight in San Francisco with the Eclectic Method. And don’t forget you can now get the film on an awesome, extras laden DVD in the U.S. (Disinformation) and Canada (Kinosmith). Also Amazon.ca and Amazon.com. And don’t forget zip.ca and netflix and iTunes.

~from www.eyesteelfilm.com

We’re very happy to announce that Up the Yangtze was nominated today for an Emmy Award for BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY in a Documentary. Congrats to Beijing-based cinematographer Wang Shi Qing (pictured here) for his stunning work. Also, thanks to the whole team, especially the fine folks at P.O.V, our U.S. broadcaster, who racked up a stunning 10 nominations in total for their documentaries.

~from www.eyesteelfilm.com

Waterlife launched at HotDocs this year, winning the special jury prize for feature documentary. It’s now playing theatrically throughout Canada – please help support this important film while it’s in cinemas. From Mark Achbar:

“WATERLIFE follows the epic cascade of the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. From the icy cliffs of Lake Superior to the ornate fountains of Chicago to the sewers of Windsor, this feature-length documentary tells the story of the last great reserve of fresh water on Earth. Filled with fascinating characters and stunning imagery, WATERLIFE is directed by Kevin McMahon and narrated by Gord Downie of The Tragically Hip. Under assault by toxins, sewage, invasive species and dropping water levels, many scientists believe the Great Lakes are on the verge of ecological collapse. We are teaming up with grassroots environmental groups who care about our water to help get the word out about the film. To find out more about the issues, click here.

OPENS FRI, JULY 17 at TINSELTOWN.
Showtimes will be posted onwww.ourwaterlife.com on Monday.

SPECIAL EVENT – JULY 18
Join representatives from the Rivershed Society of BC and the Council of Canadians to discuss local water issues and ways you can get involved. To follow the matinee screening on
Saturday, July 18th. Time TBA.”

Also, a pretty stunning website created by the NFB at waterlife.nfb.ca

~from www.eyesteelfilm.com

The Sundance Institute’s documentary initiative (our partner on our upcoming feature Last Train Home), apparently has been blessed with a new infusion of funding with 3 year partnership with Cinereach, to the tune of $1.5 million . Here it is reported on A.J. Schnack’s documentary blog. Some nice news in what has been an otherwise dim summer for docs (at least in terms of Canadian television).

~from www.eyesteelfilm.com