With the Occupy movement continually growing and changing, it’s no surprise that films about the nationwide movement are starting to take shape – but it is a (very pleasant) surprise that one of the first announced films is ready to screen some of its preview footage, and in a venue conducive to easy and affordable watching.
99% – The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film is just that – a feature film created by a stunning mass of over 75 independent filmmakers, photographers, videographers and editors across the country. The project was conceived of by filmmakers Audrey Ewell and Aaron Aites in the early weeks of the first encampment in Zuccotti Park, New York City. With such a massive collaborative effort, the film features footage from across the country, including some of the more notable encampments in NYC, Los Angeles, and Oakland. The filmmakers have just announced a special online preview screening of footage from the film for January 7, taking place on the nifty in-home viewing platform, Constellation. The preview screening will not only provide a first look at the film as it takes shape, it will also provide a fundraising opportunity for the filmmakers, through their Kickstarter campaign.
Check out the film’s official trailer after the break, along with more information on the Constellation online screening and how it works.
Our own Dr. Abaius introduced us to the film when he posted a look at the project and its Kickstarter campaign back in October. And, if you’re not yet familiar with Ewell and Aites’s other work, I highly recommend checking out their black metal doc, Until the Light Takes Us. The pair’s 2009 documentary about the often maligned and misunderstood black metal scene in Norway and beyond is an ambitious and enlightening film, and it clearly shows the lengths that Ewell and Aites are willing to go to dig through complicated stories and relationships. That’s a pretty fine fit for the Occupy movement and its first large-scale feature film.
The Constellation platform is a relatively new one, and it’s a clever and different idea for in-home viewing that I’ve already tried out a couple of times on my own. The concept marries both the ease of in-home viewing with the social aspect of actual movie-going, as viewers buy tickets for pre-scheduled showtimes (though you can also create your own) and then invite their friends to “watch together.” Constellation also consistently books cast and crew guests for Q&As and such after certain showings, another fun way to connect beyond the bounds of just popping in a Netflix or similar. Also, it’s a pretty good way for people who cannot let their various mobile devices go for one goddamn minute enjoy a relatively new film (or, in this case, brand new film) in the privacy of their own homes and in a venue where chatting, texting, and tweeting is encouraged.
The Constellation-hosted screening will take place online at www.Constellation.tv/99 on January 7, 2012 at 7:30PM EST. It will be hosted by producers Audrey Ewell, Aaron Aites, and Williams Cole, and all three will introduce the footage via live webcam, with more of filmmakers joining for a post-screening discussion and Q&A. Tickets are $3.99 and proceeds will go towards their Kickstarter campaign goal of $17,500 (the campaign ends on January 13, 2012).