The annual GlobeDocs Film Festival is a six-day documentary festival designed to engage, promote, and celebrate film and production talent.
With GlobeDocs, The Boston Globe furthers its reach as an organization dedicated to shedding light on the truth by presenting the work of filmmakers near and far who are also focused on telling important stories, large and small.
The Coolidge is thrilled to host GlobeDocs again this year, with five screenings including the festival's opening and closing night films. To purchase tickets and see all the films screening at the festival, please visit their website here.
Opening Night Film: Gay Chorus Deep South
2019, USA, 100 minutes
Directed by David Charles Rodrigues
Produced by Bud Johnston, Jesse Moss
Co-Presented with Wicked Queer and Spirit Magazine
To confront a resurgence of faith-based, anti-LGBTQ laws brought about in the Trump era, conductor Tim Seelig leads 300 singers of the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus on a bus tour of the deep South. The road trip forces Seelig and other Chorus members who fled the South to confront their own fears, pain, and prejudices on a journey toward reconciliation. In a time of great divide in this country, director David Charles Rodrigues reveals a timely exploration of LGBTQ issues that both challenges and reinforces notions surrounding the South.
Wednesday, October 2, 7pm
Guest: Director David Charles Rodrigues
Moderator: Linda Henry, Boston Globe managing director
Closing Night Film: Six Locked Doors
2019, USA, 69 minutes
Directed by Zachary Graves-Miller
Produced by Zachary Graves-Miller, Michele Shapiro
Six Locked Doors: The Legacy of Cocoanut Grove examines the story behind the deadliest nightclub fire in American history. On November 28, 1942, the Cocoanut Grove nightclub in Boston attracted a mix of socialites, athletes, celebrities, and military personnel. With double the allowed occupants, locked doors, and flammable materials, the fire left 492 people dead. Featuring interviews with survivors and local notables including The Boston Globe’s Kevin Cullen and former mayor Ray Flynn, Six Locked Doors explores how corruption, greed, and a former gangster-run speakeasy led to an unimaginable tragedy.
Sunday, October 6, 7pm
Guests: Director Zachary Graves-Miller, Producer Michele Shapiro, Subject Ray Flynn
Moderator: Boston Globe columnist Kevin Cullen
Circus of Books
2019, USA, 92 minutes
Directed by Rachel Mason
Produced by Rachel Mason, Kathryn Robson, Cynthia Childs, Adam Baran, Camilla Hall
Co-presented with the Boston Jewish Film Festival
For over 35 years, the gay porn shop, Circus of Books, was an epicenter for LGBT life and culture in Los Angeles. Unbeknownst to many in the community it served, the store was cultivated and cared for by its owners, Karen and Barry Mason; a straight couple with three children. Circus of Books is a charming and intimate portrait of the Masons and their journey to become one of the biggest distributors of hardcore gay porn in the United States. Their incredible story unfolds through the lens of their daughter, filmmaker and artist, Rachel Mason.
Sunday, October 6, 4:30pm
Guest: TBD
Moderator: Meredith Goldstein, Boston Globe features writer
Human Nature
2019, USA, 93 minutes
Directed by Adam Bolt
Produced by Meredith DeSalazar, Sarah Goodwin
A scientific breakthrough called CRISPR has given us unprecedented control over the basic building blocks of life. It opens the door to curing diseases, reshaping the biosphere, and designing our own children. Human Nature is a provocative exploration of CRISPR’s far-reaching implications, through the eyes of the scientists who discovered it, the families it’s affecting, and the bioengineers who are testing its limits. Featuring scientists and writers from Harvard and MIT, we now have the opportunity to see the future, our changing relationship with nature, and how genetic engineering will affect us all.
Thursday, October 3, 7:30pm
Guest: Executive Producer Elliot Kirschner
Moderator: Sharon Begley, STAT senior writer
Made in Boise
2019, USA, 84 minutes
Directed by Beth Aala
Produced by Beth Levison, Beth Aala
Co-Presented with WGBH
Made in Boise explores the unique world of surrogacy in the most unexpected of places. As the number of surrogate births surges across the country, the epicenter of the movement is Boise, Idaho, where hundreds of women are choosing to be surrogates. For gay couples, single men, and women who struggle with infertility, this booming yet unregulated industry is often the last resort to becoming a parent. Filmmaker Beth Aala intimately follows four surrogates, and the parents whose children they carry, as they navigate the rigors of pregnancy and the mixed feelings of their own families through this unique process.
Thursday, October 3, 5pm
Guest: Producer Beth Levison
Moderator: Beth Teitell, Boston Globe features writer
To purchase tickets and see all the films screening at the festival, please visit their website here.
