Documentary of the Week

Chinese feminist Ye Haiyan (aka Hooligan Sparrow) has a reputation for her viral campaigns in support of sex workers. In the film “Hooligan Sparrow,” filmmaker Nanfu Wang follows the activist as she campaigns for justice in the southern province of Hainan, where six girls — all under the age of 14 — accuse their principal of rape. Sparrow and Wang both stand up to powerful interests that want this story to go away.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the official film web site.

The documentary “Sour Grapes” investigates a massive fraud perpetrated on wine collectors. Filmmakers Jerry Rothwell and Reuben Atlas look at the case of Rudy Kurniawan, who was known for having an uncanny palate to identify wines. He applied his talents to creating fake bottles that created a sensation in the auction market until collectors like Bill Koch uncovered his deception and sought revenge.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the official film web site. 

The Staples Singers topped the R&B charts with songs like “I’ll Take You There” and “Respect Yourself.” The documentary “Mavis!” profiles the group’s lead singer Mavis Staples, now in her 70s. She recounts her winding musical journey that passed through gospel, folk, soul and included solo albums produced by Prince.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the official film web site.

The Staples Singers topped the R&B charts with songs like “I’ll Take You There” and “Respect Yourself.” The documentary “Mavis!” profiles the group’s lead singer Mavis Staples, now in her 70s. She recounts her winding musical journey that passed through gospel, folk, soul and included solo albums produced by Prince.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the official film web site.

Richard and Mildred Loving were an interracial couple whose marriage was outlawed in their home state of Virginia. In 1967, their case -- Loving vs. Virginia -- went all the way to the Supreme Court. Hope Ryden, a pioneering woman documentary maker, filmed the Lovings in the 1960s, but her footage remained unseen until it was rescued by director Nancy Buirski and producer Elisabeth Haviland James. They artfully combined it with other sources and new interviews to make the “The Loving Story." The documentary is now available on HBO Go and iTunes. 

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

Winner of the 2016 DOC NYC festival Metropolis Award, "Off the Rails" is a fascinating character portrait of Darius McCollum, who has Asperger's syndrome and a notorious habit of impersonating New York subway and bus drivers. Director Adam Irving follows McCollum through the criminal justice system and shows how it's ill-equipped to deal with his mental health.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the official film web site.

Kenny Anderson was a basketball star from his high school days in Queens. His mother called him “Mr Chibbs” — a play on “cheeks.” In the documentary “Mr Chibbs,” director Jill Campbell follows Anderson after his career as an NBA All-Star. He copes with bankruptcy and demons from his past in the aftermath of his beloved mother’s death. The film makes its world premiere at the DOC NYC film festival with Anderson and other guests in person.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the film web site.

The DOC NYC film festival begins today. Over the past seven years, it’s become America’s largest documentary festival. Over 200 films are screening this year at three locations in Chelsea and Greenwich Village.

Thom Powers is DOC NYC's founder and artistic director, as well as the co-host of WNYC’s Documentary of the Week, and he joined us to preview the festival, which opens tonight with a screening of "Citizen Jane: Battle for the City," about the author and activist who stopped Robert Moses from building a highway through lower Manhattan.

The documentary The Ivory Game plays a like a global thriller as it follows activists on the front lines to save elephants. Filmmakers Kief Davidson and Richard Ladkani embed with African security forces fighting poachers and the Wildleaks activists conducting sting operations in Asia to arrest black-market dealers. They are racing against time to prevent elephants from going extinct in our lifetime.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the film web site.

Filmmaker Werner Herzog (Grizzly Man, Cave of Forgotten Dreams) joins volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer to study volcanoes around the world. They travel from Indonesia to Iceland and even to North Korea, exploring the mystery, science and history of lava-spewing mountains.

— Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen

For more information, click here to visit the film web site.