Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1499591
J U N E 2 0 2 3 I 3 7 EASTERN REGION ADDITIONS Ashley Armitage, DIR Nicholas Auz, DIR Maceo R. Bishop, DIR Michael Castillo, 2AD Greg J. Denny, UPM John Duber, DIR Abby Emmett, UPM Jeffrey F. Horne, 2AD Candice Ivy, DIR Rose B. Johnson-Brown, DIR MEMBERSHIP REPORT WESTERN REGION ADDITIONS Alexa R. Hinds, 2AD Javier Montoya, 2AD Gwyn Sannia, 1AD Bo Youngblood, UPM PRIMARY CATEGORY CHANGES Wileen Marie Dragovan to UPM Anastasia Folorunso to 1AD Dana Rummerfield to 1AD Jody Daryl Spilkoman to 1AD Gerald B. Wu to 1AD IN MEMORIAM Rebecca Blake, DIR Tony Caravello, AD Patrick J. Clayton, 1AD Gordon E. Hannan, SM Robert S. Kaminsky, DIR John Kippycash, DIR Michael Kusley, UPM Bart Roe, 1AD Kurt L. St. Amant, DIR Dick Weinberg, DIR Martin J. Wiley, UPM See more detailed descriptions, additional photos and podcasts, where available, online at www.dga.org. DGA Screenings Q&As The story of the first African American signed by the NBA is retold in Director Martin Guigui's biographical sports drama, Sweetwater. The film tells how the game of basketball was changed forever when the New York Knicks took the initiative to integrate the team with the historic introduction of Harlem Globetrotters player, Nathaniel 'Sweetwater' Clifton. On April 23, after the DGA membership screening in Los Angeles, Guigui discussed the making of the film during a Q&A moderated by Director Jeremy Kagan and spoke about challenges of maintaining a sense of historical accuracy. "During the second team owner's scene, we only had one camera that day and it was a challenge. There was improvisation but we also got what we needed from the page. It was rough because it was more than what I needed but a lot of the things were also going into a different direction than the actual story and I was being hyper-sensitive with our partnership with the NBA and staying true to the facts. I wanted to keep it historically factual. In an architectural type of way, I am open to all possibilities, but I've seen this movie for 28 years in my mind, every frame." Photo: Director Martin Guigui discusses the making of Sweetwater with Director Jeremy Kagan (moderator). Martin Guigui discusses Sweetwater photo by Elisa Haber Seated at the pinnacle of showbiz success following his Emmy Award-winning run on the beloved series Family Ties and feature film hits like Back to the Future and Teen Wolf, beloved actor Michael J. Fox was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease when he was 29. Director Davis Guggenheim's new documentary feature, Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie, incorporates documentary, archival and scripted elements to chronicle Fox's personal and professional triumphs and travails. On April 20, following the Special Projects Documentary Series screening in Los Angeles, Guggenheim sat down with Documentary Series Subcommittee Chair Ondi Timoner to discuss the making of the film and he spoke about overcoming expectations regarding a documentary about a famous person with a serious health issue. "Every film has a challenge. For this film, the expectations the audience will have will be, 'oh, this is going to be another one of those bio films about a movie star and I know what it's gonna' be.' And another one could be, 'oh, this is going to be about a heroic guy with Parkinson's.' Very early on we tried to subvert those expectations, so the challenge was to strip all of that away and tell a story about a guy. He didn't want to be pitied. He said pity is a benign form of abuse, so he wanted to project optimism to a fault." Photo: Director Davis Guggenheim (right) discusses the making of Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie with Documentary Series Subcommittee Chair Ondi Timoner (moderator). Special Projects Documentary Series screens Davis Guggenheim's Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie photo by Elisa Haber Brian S. Johnston, DIR Starr W. Jones, UPM Diego Klattenhoff, DIR Anais La Rocca, DIR Bryce J. McGuire, DIR Shelly L. McKinney, SM Madison E. O'Brien, 2AD Louise C. Palmberg, DIR Helga Rossi, 2AD Julie Rottenberg, DIR Stephen A. Ruminski, UPM Gabrielle Schonder, DIR Cindy Serigatto, 2AD Nicholas A. Stachurski, DIR Scott Stackhouse, DIR