Pop some popcorn and get your ducks in a row. The documentary “The Million Dollar Duck” wings its way to Animal Planet to unveil the real drama behind the Federal Duck Stamp Contest, which was a minor subplot in the Coen Brothers’ 1996 film “Fargo.”
The annual contest, which began in 1934 with the aim to raise money for wildlife conservation, pits artists from around the country in a duck-themed paint-off. After a panel of five judges weigh in, a winner is chosen, and with that victory comes prestige, bragging rights and the promise of financial reward.
Read More: 5 New Must-See Documentaries From the 2016 Hot Docs
Filmmaker Brian Golden Davis didn’t hear about the contest from “Fargo,” but from a friend and eventual winner Ron Louque. “I had a friend in high school whose dad had won the contest,” Davis told IndieWire in an interview. “We were talking about it and he said,...
The annual contest, which began in 1934 with the aim to raise money for wildlife conservation, pits artists from around the country in a duck-themed paint-off. After a panel of five judges weigh in, a winner is chosen, and with that victory comes prestige, bragging rights and the promise of financial reward.
Read More: 5 New Must-See Documentaries From the 2016 Hot Docs
Filmmaker Brian Golden Davis didn’t hear about the contest from “Fargo,” but from a friend and eventual winner Ron Louque. “I had a friend in high school whose dad had won the contest,” Davis told IndieWire in an interview. “We were talking about it and he said,...
- 9/14/2016
- by Hanh Nguyen
- Indiewire
After premiering earlier this year at the Slamdance Film Festival, Brian Golden Davis’ quirky documentary “The Million Dollar Duck” is getting ready for its digital and VOD release on August 9, and IndieWire has an exclusive clip that brings viewers into this deeply bizarre world of Duck lovers.
Read More: Animal Planet and Lionsgate Team Up for ‘Million Dollar Duck’ Acquisition
The documentary explores the eccentric world of the Federal Duck Stamp Contest, which is the only juried art competition run by the U.S. government. The Duck Stamp is among the most successful conservation tools ever created, and it has spawned an American subculture brimming with talent, ego, art, controversy and big money. The movie follows six wildlife artists striving to win what is also referred to as “the Olympics of wildlife art.”
In the exclusive clip below, the viewer is introduced to two of the competition’s biggest rivals.
Read More: Animal Planet and Lionsgate Team Up for ‘Million Dollar Duck’ Acquisition
The documentary explores the eccentric world of the Federal Duck Stamp Contest, which is the only juried art competition run by the U.S. government. The Duck Stamp is among the most successful conservation tools ever created, and it has spawned an American subculture brimming with talent, ego, art, controversy and big money. The movie follows six wildlife artists striving to win what is also referred to as “the Olympics of wildlife art.”
In the exclusive clip below, the viewer is introduced to two of the competition’s biggest rivals.
- 8/5/2016
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Brian Golden Davis's The Million Dollar Duck has won the Audience Award and the Jury Award for Documentary Feature at Slamdance. Other winners include Alex Simmons's Honey Buddies, Paul Taylor's Driftwood, Mea de Jong's If Mama Ain't Happy, Nobody's Happy, Dusty Mancinelli's Winter Hymns, Aurèle Ferrier's Infrastructures, Dominic Rodriguez's Fursonas, Marcus Armitage's My Dad, Alice Waddington's Disco Inferno and more. We've got the full list, plus reviews and trailers as we wrap coverage of the 22nd edition. » - David Hudson...
- 1/29/2016
- Keyframe
Brian Golden Davis's The Million Dollar Duck has won the Audience Award and the Jury Award for Documentary Feature at Slamdance. Other winners include Alex Simmons's Honey Buddies, Paul Taylor's Driftwood, Mea de Jong's If Mama Ain't Happy, Nobody's Happy, Dusty Mancinelli's Winter Hymns, Aurèle Ferrier's Infrastructures, Dominic Rodriguez's Fursonas, Marcus Armitage's My Dad, Alice Waddington's Disco Inferno and more. We've got the full list, plus reviews and trailers as we wrap coverage of the 22nd edition. » - David Hudson...
- 1/29/2016
- Fandor: Keyframe
Brian Golden Davis' The Million Dollar Duck, a documentary about the federal duck stamp contest, won both the audience and jury awards for best documentary feature at the Slamdance Film Festival, which announced its winners tonight at an awards ceremony at the Treasure Mountain Inn in Park City, Utah. The film, which focuses on the only juried art competition run by the U.S. government, was acquired by Lionsgate, which plans a limited theatrical release, and Discovery Communications' Animal Planet. The audience award for best narrative feature went to Alex Simmons' Honey Buddies, while Paul Taylor's Driftwood claimed the jury
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- 1/29/2016
- by Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In the week that saw Brian Golden Davis’ documentary secure a distribution deal with Discovery Communications’ Animal Planet and Lionsgate, the film also left Park City with two top awards.
The Million Dollar Duck won the narrative jury and audience awards for best documentary feature on Thursday night.
Paul Taylor’s Driftwood claimed the juried narrative feature awards while Honey Buddies by Alex Simmons took the audience award.
“Congratulations to all of the filmmakers this year. Outside of winning a Sparky, as a collective they showed us the power of real independent film and how much it enriches our lives,” said Slamdance president and co-founder Peter Baxter.
Audience Awards
Narrative Feature
Honey Buddies, dir Alex Simmons
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir Brian Golden Davis
Jury Awards
Narrative Feature
Driftwood, dir Paul Taylor
Honourable Mention for Acting
Tomas Pais and Edouard Holdener in Hunky Dory, dir Michael Curtis Johnson
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir [link=nm...
The Million Dollar Duck won the narrative jury and audience awards for best documentary feature on Thursday night.
Paul Taylor’s Driftwood claimed the juried narrative feature awards while Honey Buddies by Alex Simmons took the audience award.
“Congratulations to all of the filmmakers this year. Outside of winning a Sparky, as a collective they showed us the power of real independent film and how much it enriches our lives,” said Slamdance president and co-founder Peter Baxter.
Audience Awards
Narrative Feature
Honey Buddies, dir Alex Simmons
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir Brian Golden Davis
Jury Awards
Narrative Feature
Driftwood, dir Paul Taylor
Honourable Mention for Acting
Tomas Pais and Edouard Holdener in Hunky Dory, dir Michael Curtis Johnson
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir [link=nm...
- 1/29/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Laura Gabbert, Scott Hamilton Kennedy, Caroline Libresco, Doug Pray, Heather Rae, Eddie Schmidt, Aj Schnack to Serve as Lab Mentors .
Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, has launched a new Documentary Lab, sponsored by Latino Public Broadcasting, with 14 filmmakers and 9 projects participating. Documentary Lab is an intensive seven-week program, with a main focus of assisting documentary filmmakers on their works-in-progress and providing creative feedback. All of the Film Independent Labs are designed to support strong, original voices develop their filmmaking careers in a nurturing, yet challenging creative environment. Documentary Lab Mentors include filmmakers Laura Gabbert (No Impact Man), Scott Hamilton Kennedy (The Garden), Doug Pray (Art & Copy), Aj Schnack (Convention),Sundance Film Festival Senior Programmer Caroline Libresco, and producers Heather Rae (Frozen River) and Eddie Schmidt (Troubadours). filmmakers Jen Arnold (A Small Act), Jeff Malmberg (Marwencol), Chicken & Egg.s Julie Benello,...
Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, has launched a new Documentary Lab, sponsored by Latino Public Broadcasting, with 14 filmmakers and 9 projects participating. Documentary Lab is an intensive seven-week program, with a main focus of assisting documentary filmmakers on their works-in-progress and providing creative feedback. All of the Film Independent Labs are designed to support strong, original voices develop their filmmaking careers in a nurturing, yet challenging creative environment. Documentary Lab Mentors include filmmakers Laura Gabbert (No Impact Man), Scott Hamilton Kennedy (The Garden), Doug Pray (Art & Copy), Aj Schnack (Convention),Sundance Film Festival Senior Programmer Caroline Libresco, and producers Heather Rae (Frozen River) and Eddie Schmidt (Troubadours). filmmakers Jen Arnold (A Small Act), Jeff Malmberg (Marwencol), Chicken & Egg.s Julie Benello,...
- 3/16/2011
- by Melissa Howland
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
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