Picturebox

from austin360.com:

By Matthew Odam | Monday, February 20, 2012, 10:35 AM

“Better This World” writers Katie Galloway and Kelly Duane de la Vega won the Writers Guild award for best documentary Sunday night in Los Angeles.

The documentary, which made its world premiere at South by Southwest last year, tells the story of Brad Crowder and David McKay, two Texans who attempted to disrupt the 2008 National Republican Convention in Minnesota. The men, who crafted handmade bombs and were arrested as domestic terrorists, eventually reached plea deals.

Californians Galloway and de la Vega directed the movie, but turned to cinematographer David Layton and producer Mike Nicholson of Austin-based production company Picturebox for help with the film’s production.

“It’s really gratifying to see that the film has had the same effect on audiences that it’s had on us,” Nicholson said. “We’re thrilled by the recognition, but even happier to have had the chance to collaborate with Katie and Kelly on the film.”

The Austin Film Society screens “Better This World” as a part of it’s “Best of the Fests Series” on Wednesday, Feb. 29th at 7p.m. at the Alamo Village. Crowder and McKay will be in attendance for a special Q&A after the screening. For more information, visit Austin Film Society’s website.

Find this article at:

http://www.austin360.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/austinmovies/entries/2012/02/20/better_this_world_wins_wrtiers.html

The Austin Film Society will be screening Better This World as a part of it’s “Best of the Fests Series” on Wednesday, Feb. 29th at 7pm at the Alamo Drafthouse Village.

For the first time, both Brad Crowder and David McKay will be in attendance for a special Q&A after the screening.

Click on over to the Austin Film Society for tickets.

Read the rest of this entry »

"Cave of Forgotten Dreams," "Better This World" honored in NYC

November 29, 2011 by Realscreen Staff Email/Share

Werner Herzog’s 3D effort Cave of Forgotton Dreams has been named the best non-fiction film by the New York Film Critics Circle, while Kelly Duane and Katie Galloway’s Better This World has collected the best doc prize at the IFP’s annual Gotham Independent Film Awards.

The Gotham Awards also honored a documentary in the Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You category, with Scenes of a Crime, directed by Blue Hadaegh and Grover Babcock, taking the honors.

Read the rest of this entry »

Film Is Skeptical About Domestic Efforts on Terrorism

By BRIAN STELTER

LOS ANGELES —The film "Better This World" introduces itself with the frightening sounds of television anchors filtering the news of a terrorist plot against the Republican National Convention in 2008. "Disturbing news tonight about homegrown terror," one of the anchors says, not for the first time and not for the last.

But, the film suggests, viewers should also be disturbed about the ease with which that label — "terrorist" — is applied.

Read the rest of this entry »

Silverdocs 2011, a chance to finally see those festival-circuit favorites

“Anyone who didn’t make it to South by Southwest can see one of the best nonfiction films to screen at the Austin festival this year: ‘Better This World,’ Kelly Duane de la Vega and Katie Galloway’s riveting portrait of activists who sought to disrupt the 2008 Republican National Convention but whose lives were changed forever when one of their cohorts turned out to be an FBI informant. Structured like a taut thriller, “Better This World” delivers a chilling depiction of loyalty, naivete, political zealotry and the post-9/11 security state — and it features one doozy of a kicker in the “where are they are now” category.”

Full article at:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/ann-hornaday-silverdocs-2011-a-chance-to-catch-up-with-festival-circuit-favorites/2011/06/15/AGkcknYH_story.html

Better This World is continuing its romp through the festival world – last month it won Best Documentary at the San Francisco International Film Festival and the Sarasota Film Festival.   Things aren’t slowing down in June, with a trip to Ireland for the Guth Gafa International Documentary Film Festival, followed by the New York premiere at the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival the weekend of June 18th.   There’s also a week-long run from June 17th-23rd at the Clinton Street Theater in Portland, Oregon.

We’re investigating the possibility of additional screenings in Austin prior to the PBS premiere in September, and we hope to have more information about those screenings soon.

Kelly Duane de la Vega and Katie Galloway’s documentary "Better This World" topped the 54th annual San Francisco International Film Festival Awards Thursday night.

The film won two of the three Golden Gate Awards for documentary features, taking a $20,000 cash prize for Best Documentary Feature, and a $15,000 cash prize plus $2,000 in EFILM Digital Laboratories services, for best Bay Area Documentary Feature.

Read the rest of this entry »

Radu Muntean’s "Tuesday After Christmas" received the Narrative Feature jury prize, while "Better This World" by director Katie Galloway was the Documentary Jury Prize winner at the 2011 Sarasota Film Festival. "Without" by director Mark Jackson won the festival’s juried award for Independent Vision.

Read the rest of this entry »

After a terrific SXSW festival, Better This World now heads outside of Austin.   In addition to numerous festival screenings over the next few months, PBS has announced that the movie will be included in the 2011 season of its POV documentary series.   Here’s a link to the info – Better This World airs nationwide on September 6th!

pbs.org/pov/betterthisworld/

The first two showings of Better This World have been a fantastic success, and it wouldn’t have been possible without all of your support.   Monday’s Alamo Drafthouse showing was so crowded, the directors and producers gave up their seats to make room for as many people as possible.

Now we’ve got a couple of days to catch our breath before the Friday afternoon Paramount screening, so we’re going  enjoy a couple of other documentaries by Austin filmmakers:

- Incendiary, directed by Steve Mims and Joe Bailey Jr, which delves into the controversial Willingham arson case.

- Where Soldiers Come From, directed by Heather Courtney,  an intimate look at American soldiers fighting in Afghanistan

Hope to see you out there, and thanks again for all your support!