Started in 2010, the DOC NYC has become the largest documentary film festival in the US. The festival is headquartered out of IFC Center with screenings also taking place at the SVA Theatre and Cinepolis Chelsea. It is run by the wife and husband team of Raphaela Neihausen and Thom Powers.
This year's festival runs November 9-16, 2017. There are documentary films for every palate. The festival opens with Greg Baker's The Final Year, which takes a look at the final year of the Obama administration.
Of note to the citizens of Gotham, there is a section called Metropolis consisting of seven films. Five of these are world premieres and will have filmmakers and some subjects in attendance. Here's a quick look at these.
Miracle on 42nd Street by Alice Elliott (narrated by Chazz Palminteri)
In the 1970s, New York City was hit with a financial crisis just as a planned luxury apartment building was being constructed in Hell's Kitchen. With its future uncertain, a bold plan was hatched to offer subsidized housing to people working in the performing arts.
Still Waters by Peter Gordon
In Bushwick, where rapid gentrification is pushing out Latino families, a unique alternative after-school program serves as a haven for the community.
Vigilante: The Incredible True Story of Curtis Sliwa and the Guardian Angels by David Wexler
In 1979, Curtis Sliwa, a McDonald's night manager in the Bronx frustrated with rampant crime, decided to take a stand. Recruiting a diverse crew, and adopting a distinctive uniform of a white t-shirt and red beret, the Guardian Angels were born.
The Iron Triangle by Prudence Katze and William Lehman
For decades, Queens' Willets Point has been the site of an interconnected network of hundreds of small auto repair shops, known for no-frills but inexpensive, quality service.
Oh, Rick! by Dustin Sussman
Rick Crom, comedy's everyman, was the long-running emcee at the Comedy Cellar in New York City's Greenwich Village. The piano-playing funnyman integrated his talent for musical theater into his act, while artfully shifting the way comedians discuss homosexuality in their routines.
Check out the rest of the schedule and get tickets at: www.docnyc.net.