12 new documentaries you can stream for free as Freep Film Festival goes virtual
The Freep Film Festival is on hold until December, but documentary fans can catch some of the films that were scheduled to play the annual event during a virtual version of the fest later this month.
The festival will feature one film every day between April 22-26 for free on freep.com. In all, 12 films – a mix of short and full-length documentaries – will be shown.
“This is a great batch of documentaries, and we’re really excited to be able to share them for at-home viewing – particularly considering the unusual circumstances,” says Steve Byrne, Freep Film Festival's executive director. “We really appreciate the filmmakers making them available to our audiences.”
A virtual panel discussion is slated to follow each program.
'Palliative' and 'Today Was a Good Day'
(April 22, 1 p.m. ET)
These two shorts put their lens on health caregivers. “Palliative” tells the story of a Detroit-based doctor doing extraordinary work with children with special needs. “Today Was a Good Day” focuses on several Detroiters who are helping family members suffering from dementia.
'Personal Statement'
(April 23, 1 p.m. ET)
The film follows three Brooklyn high-school seniors as they try to get themselves – and their entire graduating class – into college.
'St. Louis Superman'
(April 24, 1 p.m. ET)
This Oscar-nominated documentary short profiles Bruce Franks Jr., a 34-year-old battle rapper, leading Ferguson activist and state representative from St. Louis, who is known as Superman to his constituents.
'Shelby American'
(April 24, 7:30 p.m.ET)
Matt Damon played Carroll Shelby in the Oscar-nominated film “Ford v Ferrari,” but now here’s the full story of the trailblazing visionary behind the Ford GT40.
'Berzerkers' and 'Pie in the Puss'
(April 25, 4 p.m. ET)
Two arts-themed shorts comprise this program. “Berzerkers” explores Chef James Rigato’s relationship with the band that inspired his lauded Hazel Park restaurant, Mabel Gray. In “Pie in the Puss,” Michigan native and MSU grad Stacey Davis explores the evolution of pie-ing in film – from pies in the face to pie tosses to pie fights.
'Making a Mark' and 'Marie Woo, 2020 Eminent Artist'
(April 25, 7:30 p.m. ET)
Meet some of metro Detroit’s top working artists in this documentary profiling the 2019 class of Kresge Arts in Detroit fellows. Accompanied by a short film on recently announced Kresge Eminent Artist Marie Woo.
'The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter' and 'The Girl With the Rivet Gun'
(April 26, 3 p.m. ET)
It’s a 40th anniversary screening for this documentary, which introduced viewers to five women who took stereotypical men’s jobs during World War II, giving rise to the cultural icon of the film’s title – the archetypal woman whose labor kept America moving while a generation of men were fighting in Europe and the Pacific. The feature-length doc is being paired with a new animated short, “The Girl With the Rivet Gun,” which is based on the real-life adventures of three Rosie the Riveters.
'Through the Flak: War Stories of the Tuskegee Airmen'
(April 26, 7 p.m. ET)
Detroiters Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson and Lt. Col. Harry T. Stewart, both in their 90s and two of the last living Tuskegee Airmen, recount their pulse-pounding and often heartbreaking experiences as the first African-American military pilots who not only fought a World War, but fought for the right to fight for their country.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Free streaming: Freep Film Festival offers 12 new documentaries online
