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July 18, 2018

Gimme Truth! Comes to Getting Real ‘18

Los Angeles, CA (July 17 2018) - The International Documentary Association (IDA) announced today that it will bring Gimme Truth! to Getting Real ‘18, the only documentary film gathering of its kind in North America. This special edition of the infamous documentary game show is presented in partnership with True/False Film Fest. The wildly entertaining event is a hilarious mashup of filmmaking and investigation, where local filmmakers attempt to stump the panelists with their short doc-style videos that are entirely TRUE or entirely FALSE. The game show will be free and open to the public.

"It's going to be a blast to bring Gimme Truth! to Los Angeles with the IDA. It's an uproarious game show that tests our media savvy about the truthiness of images. Unfortunately, because of troll factories, bots and ‘fake news,’ it's become increasingly relevant and more charged since when we first started it back in 2006," says T/F co-founder and director Paul Sturtz.

Gimme Truth! is hosted by Chicago-born comic and radio host, Brian Babylon (NPR’s Wait Wait Don't Tell Me!) and will feature a panel of doc-world celebrity judges who determine if each story is true or false. Previous judges include: Nick Broomfield (director. Tales of the Grim Sleeper), Heidi Ewing (director, Detropia, Jesus Camp), Steve James (director, Hoop Dreams; Abacus: Small Enough to Jail), writer Derek Waters (writer, Drunk History), and Roger Ross Williams (director, Life, Animated).

Ten short films will be selected to show at Getting Real ‘18 on September 26, 2018 at the Montalbán Theater in Hollywood. Each video must be represented by a filmmaker, who will be given four tickets to the show. Films must be two minutes in length and made by people who either live in Southern California, or will be attending the IDA's Getting Real conference. Submissions will be accepted through 5PM CST, September 5, 2018. To submit a film, please visit https://truefalse.org/submit/gimme-truth

In addition to Gimme Truth!, the IDA also announced five new programs to the diverse lineup at Getting Real ‘18:  

  • #DecolonizeDocs sessions will discuss how identity and authenticity affect documentary filmmaking.  This 3-part series, focusing on The Industry, The Filmmaker, and The Audience, will reflect on who gets to tell whose story, why diversity numbers in documentary filmmaking are still so low, how majority filmmakers can be allies, and what does real change look like. Panelists will include: Iyabo Boyd (Founder, Brown Girls Doc Mafia), Jason DaSilva (director, When I Walk), Ben Dupris (director, The 7th Wave), Loira Limbal (Vice President and Documentary Lab Director, Firelight Media), Bernardo Ruiz (director, Kingdom of Shadows) and Joseph Tovares (director, Zoot Suit Riots).

  • Not Your Grandmother’s Historical Doc will focus on the importance of historical documentary films, as they give context for today's most pressing social issues. Nancy Buirski (The Rape of Recy Taylor, Loving), David France (How to Survive a Plague), Julia Bacha (Budrus, Naila), and Sonya Childress (The Black Panthers, Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities) will share insights about framing, promotion and creating impact.

  • The conference will host a discussion between two award-winning filmmakers with Michael Apted in Conversation with Morgan Neville. Neville, whose credits include Best Of Enemies: Buckley vs. Vidal, Won't You Be My Neighbor?, and the Academy Award® winner for Documentary Feature 20 Feet From Stardom, will sit down with Apted, a recipient of the IDA Career Achievement Award.

  • Film Critics of Color will dive into the current state of film critics and discuss need for critical voices from communities of color.  Panelists will include: Claudia Puig (President, LA Film Critics Association), Dino-Ray Ramos (Associate Editor, Deadline Hollywood), and Gil Robertson (Founder, African American Film Critics Association) and Inkoo Kang (Slate, The Wrap).

  • Therapeutic Interventions in Documentary, a frank and intimate panel will present a mix of personal experiences, moderated by documentary producer and psychotherapist, Rebecca Day. Panelists will include: Heidi Reinberg (producer, 93 Queen), Feras Fayyad (director, Last Men in Aleppo), and Marco Williams (director, The Undocumented).  

Getting Real '18 is presented by the IDA, in partnership with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The 2018 edition will take place September 25-27, 2018, in Los Angeles, with venues in Hollywood. Three-day passes are now on sale. For more information, please visit https://gettingreal18.com.