All Episodes
Wayne Shorter: Visionary, Innovator, Icon and Human Being
Wayne Shorter: Zero Gravity is an intimate portrait and cinematic ode to jazz giant Wayne Shorter’s life and music. Shorter has long been considered one of the greatest modern composers and musicians of American music, but it is his life that has inspired all who have known him. That includes Dorsay Alavi, who produced and directed Zero Gravity. Dorsay joins Matthew Sherwood to discuss how she turned her life-long friendship with Shorter into a docu-series that moves beyond typical music doc territory to capture the man who has touched so many lives with his humanity as well as his music.
From the Tennis Court to New York: Exploring John McEnroe’s Life
John McEnroe is as well known for his explosive temper on the tennis court as he is for his many wins. Now, 31 years after the end of his singles career, and over the course of one night in New York, he explores his storied life in McEnroe, a documentary by Barney Douglas. In this episode of Factual America, Barney discusses his film, its star, and the ways in which it is not just another sports doc but a ‘cinematic experience’ – a unique film that reflects the one of a kind nature of McEnroe himself.
Mining Appalachia: Preserving the Story of King Coal
King Coal is a meditation on a world that is dying, and on another that is taking its place. Set in Appalachia, in the US, this “part documentary, part fable” explores what the end of the age of coal means to the people who have for 200 years lived under its influence. King Coal’s director, Elaine McMillion Sheldon, herself from Appalachia, joins Matthew Sherwood to discuss her film, which aims to preserve the memory of a time, place, and people who will one day fall silent forever.