Today's installment examines the nominees for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking, Beyond Utopia, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, and Stamped from the Beginning. All three fit one of my major motivations for covering entertainment in general and documentaries in particular, how entertainment depicts politics. I begin with Beyond Utopia - Official Trailer from Madman Films.
A suspenseful look at the lengths people will go to gain freedom, #BeyondUtopia follows various individuals as they attempt to flee North Korea, one of the most oppressive places on Earth, a land they grew up believing was a paradise.This is a theatrical trailer, but this movie qualified for the Emmys as an episode of Independent Lens on PBS, which I usually see nominated at the News and Documentary Emmy Awards. Congratulations on being noticed by the Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy Awards!
At the film’s core are a mother desperate to reunite with the child she was forced to leave behind; a family of five — including small children and an elderly grandmother — embarking on a treacherous journey across the Yalu River and into the hostile mountains of China; and a man of God on a mission to help these desperate souls. Leaving their homeland is fraught with danger — severe punishment if caught and possibly even execution — as well as potential exploitation by unscrupulous brokers. Family members who remain behind also may face retribution. Yet these individuals are driven to take the risk.
Gripping, visceral, and urgent, Madeleine Gavin’s film embeds the viewer with these family members as they attempt their perilous escape, palpably conveying life-or-death stakes. The result is a singular, illuminating, and unforgettable experience.
Next, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project | Official Trailer | HBO.
“I remember what’s important and I make up the rest. That’s what storytelling’s all about.” GoingtoMars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, an HBO Original Documentary featuring the voice of Taraji P. Henson, follows the legendary poet, activist, and educator’s ascendance and impact on American culture.I enjoyed the music, the hopeful tone in the face of adversity, and the conceit of the space theme in the poem and title. Here's to the movie being just as fun while exploring serious themes.
Speaking of serious themes, I'm sharing Stamped from the Beginning | Official Trailer | Netflix.
Oscar-winning director Roger Ross Williams brings Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s best-selling book Stamped From the Beginning to life, using vivid animations and leading female scholars to explore the history of anti-Black racist ideas.If the general public voted for these awards, I'd say Stamped from the Beginning would have the advantage, as this trailer has 260,847 views, more than twice the combined views of all the different trailers for Beyond Utopia and three times the views for the trailer for Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, but the general public isn't voting, the Television Academy is. They are likely to take their cues from the guilds and critics.
Beyond Utopia earned nominations from BAFTA, the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the Producers Guild of America (PGA), the Cinema Eye Honors Awards, the Gold Derby Awards, the Critics Choice Documentary Awards, and a bunch of local critics associations and film festivals, including Sundance, to be the most nominated of the nominees. Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project earned nominations from the Film Independent Spirit Awards, International Documentary Association, Cinema Eye Honors Awards, and Critics Choice Documentary Awards, plus won awards at several local critics associations and film festivals, including Sundance to be the winningest of these nominees. Stamped from the Beginning earned nominations from the Satellite Awards, NAACP Image Awards, Writers Guild of America (WGA), Black Reel Awards, Cinema For Peace Awards, Critics Choice Documentary Awards, and Guild of Music Supervisors Awards, and won Best Documentary from the African-American Film Critics Association. The entertainment professionals most love Beyond Utopia, so I'd say it's the favorite on that basis.
The prognosticators at Gold Derby agree. Right now, Eight editors have voted for Beyond Utopia, while one each have Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project and Stamped from the Beginning as their choices. The three experts who've voted so far have all picked Beyond Utopia while 20 of the top 24 users have climbed aboard the Beyond Utopia bandwagon. I'd say it's a safe bet to win.
Stay tuned for more Emmys coverage tomorrow.
Previous posts about the 76th Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy Awards
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