Shine Global’s 2016 Top 10

Shine Global’s 2016 Top 10

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The Eagle Huntress on Oscar doc shortlist

 

2016 was an exciting year for Shine – with projects such as The Eagle Huntress, The Wrong Light, and Liyana the Movie, parties, new board members, the launch of our IGNITE outreach program, and more! Check out our #2016Top10:

2016 was an exciting year for Shine – with projects such as The Eagle Huntress, The Wrong Light, and Liyana the Movie, parties, new board members, the launch of our IGNITE outreach program, and more! Check out our #2016Top10:

Posted by Shine Global Inc. on Thursday, December 29, 2016

The Eagle Huntress on Oscar doc shortlist

The Eagle Huntress on Oscar doc shortlist

Blog

The Eagle Huntress on Oscar doc shortlist

 

TheEagleHuntress-AltaiMountains

The Eagle Huntress is among the films included on the Academy Award shortlist for Best Documentary Feature at the the 89th Academy Awards.  The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science’s Documentary Branch determined the shortlist from 145 submitted feature-length documentary films.  The nominees will be announced on Jan. 24 and the Academy Awards ceremony takes place on Feb. 26 in Los Angeles.

The Eagle Huntress, directed by Otto Bell and produced in association with Shine Global, has also recently been nominated for a Producer’s Guild of America (PGA) Award and was named as one of the top 5 documentaries of the year by the National Board of Review in addition to many festival awards and critical acclaim.  The documentary premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January where it was bought by Sony Pictures Classics and features narration by Star Wars star Daisy Ridley and an original song by Sia.  It is now playing in select cinemas across the US and opening shortly in the UK.

When Shine Global first became attached to the film during principal photography, Shine’s Executive Director Susan MacLaury, who is also  an Executive Producer on the film, said, “We wanted to become involved in this film as soon as we heard the inspirational story of Aisholpan and saw the beautiful and sensitive way Otto was telling her story.”

The 15 shortlisted films are:

Cameraperson, Kirsten Johnson; Big Mouth Productions
Command and Control, Robert Kenner; American Experience Films/PBS
The Eagle Huntress, Otto Bell; Stacey Reiss Productions, Kissiki Films and 19340 Productions
Fire at Sea, Gianfranco Rosi; Stemal Entertainment
Gleason, J. Clay Tweel; Dear Rivers Productions, Exhibit A and IMG Films
Hooligan Sparrow, Nanfu Wang; Little Horse Crossing the River
I Am Not Your Negro, Raoul Peck; Velvet Film
The Ivory Game, Kief Davidson, Richard Ladkani;Terra Mater Film Studios and Vulcan Productions
Life, Animated, Roger Ross Williams; Motto Pictures and A&E IndieFilms
O.J.: Made in America, Ezra Edelman; Laylow Films and ESPN Films
13th, Ava DuVernay; Forward Movement
Tower, Keith Maitland; Go-Valley
Weiner, Josh Kriegman, Elyse Steinberg; Edgeline Films
The Witness, James Solomon; The Witnesses Film
Zero Days, Alex Gibney; Jigsaw Productions

Shine Board Member Profile: Al Cattabiani

Shine Board Member Profile: Al Cattabiani

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Shine Board Member Profile: Al Cattabiani

 

As part of an ongoing series, we want to introduce you to the Shine Global family and especially our outstanding and hard working board members who help move Shine forward.

Al-Cattabiani
Name: Al Cattabiani
Joined Shine Board of Directors: November 2013
Title: Entrepreneur and advisor in media distribution, Co-Founder/Editor Culture Sonar, Co-founder/CEO, Wellspring Media. Co-founder, iThentic
Current Role at Shine: Member of the Board of Directors, Member of the Marketing Committee

Al Cattabiani is in the middle of a happy career as a media entrepreneur. His companies have generally focused on the arts, indie/foreign film and holistic living. Over the years, he has released well over 1,000 titles, including many Oscar, Grammy and Emmy winners. Al also publishes CultureSonar, an arts/entertainment blog for grownups. It suggests cool stuff to see, hear, read and do for folks who have jobs, families and other real-life obligations, but who are still open and curious about new things. Although playing guitar has never been his Day Job, quite rightly, he’s been gigging steadily for years — and is an avid fan.

Why did you join Shine’s board?

Susan and Albie’s passion is contagious — and they have a unique vision for Shine. Many social-issue documentaries, however noble, can be hard to watch. It’s a bit like taking your medicine: you know you should do it, but don’t look forward to it. Shine, on the other hand, brings genuine cinematic and entertainment values to its work. Shine films are crisp and very well made. Furthermore, they are hopeful. They find the rays of light in daunting situations.

What’s a favorite Shine moment for you?

Meeting the filmmakers is always a great moment. More often than not, they are relatively early in their careers and have had to climb some pretty steep hills to get where they are. Being associated with Shine is usually a pretty big “win” for them, so it’s particularly gratifying to help bring this talent — as well as these terrific stories — to the world.

How do you use your specific skill set in your work as a Shine board member?

I’m often the grimy Distribution Guy who thinks about how these films might be pitched, promoted and sold in the commercial marketplace. I spent a good portion of my career in indie film/tv distribution and think in terms of how a film will “play” in a crowded market. Shine’s films reach other markets, too, but it can be useful to think in commercial terms, since every piece of media is competing for finite consumer attention.

What are the key challenges that Shine tackles that you want supporters to know about?

For any non-profit, it comes down to funding. The good news is Shine’s films have a very long lifespan. They keep moving audiences year after year. Supporting Shine is a great way give a gift that literally keeps on giving.

See the full list of Shine’s Board of Directors Members and Board of Governors Members here and read the first four profiles of board members Dario Spina here, Keith Brown here, Kay Sarlin Wright here, and Marilyn DeLuca here.