The prestigious Oscar qualifying Doc Edge returns with its 14th annual offering, expanding into more spaces, with more to offer than ever before. The 2019 Festival launches in Auckland, 30thMay – 9th June.
Auckland’s Q Theatre remains the screening hub for Doc Edge 2019, with the Ellen Melville Centre, Auckland Live’s Digital Stage and the Auckland Art Gallery playing home to extra screenings, forums and exhibitions.
Ahead of the full programme announcement on 15th April, Doc Edge offers up the first six films of the festival.
The multi award winning and visually poetic film Honeyland is a testimony to one woman’s resilience and an exploration of the delicate relationship between humankind and nature.
Delve into the history of film in Sudan, through the lens of the Sudanese Film Club in Talking About Trees, which recently received the top documentary award at the Berlin International Film Festival.
In an equally fascinating and intimate debut film, Kabul, City in the Wind, director Aboozar Amin (who himself fled Afghanistan when he was younger) explores Kabul through the sobering and warm account of daily life, told through the eyes of a bus driver, and two young brothers.
Gaza too takes us into a world of perennial conflict and struggle. But, in this rare vision of Gaza, directors Garry Keane and Andrew McConnell take us beyond the news reports to focus on everyday characters attempting to lead meaningful, ordinary lives in the rubble. The strength of the human spirit shines through in the eloquence and resilience of the people we meet, including a fisherman, tailor, taxi driver and surfer.
Award-winning director Alex Winter, directs Trust Machine: The Story of Blockchain, a compelling and eye-opening look at Blockchain, a verified digital ledger, and cryptocurrency. Winter explores the origins and evolutions of Blockchain and its potential for decentralisation and inclusion.
Exploring the close bond between animal and human, Buddy is a poignant and carefully composed portrait of six guide dogs and their owners. Among them are an 86-year-old woman, blind from birth, an autistic young boy and the wife of a war veteran suffering from PTSD who attributes the dog as saving their marriage.