Hamptons Doc Fest 2024 Critic Picks: 5 Films to Watch

Hamptons Doc Fest, the annual celebration of documentary films on the East End, returns to Sag Harbor for its 17th year this Thursday, December 5 through Wednesday, December 11 at Sag Harbor Cinema (90 Main Street) and Bay Street Theater (1 Long Wharf). Michael Moore is receiving this year’s Pennebaker Achievement Award (named for late Hamptons filmmaker DA Pennebaker), and exciting films will be screening throughout the festival — so how does one choose what to see?

Bridgehampton film critic and frequent Dan’s contributor Bill McCuddy offers some thoughts about what’s coming and what astute viewers will want to watch.

“I think the pandemic really helped documentary filmmakers. We wanted real stories of things that actually happened in a normal world. It was cathartic. And since docs often feature weird people, I felt less strange,” McCuddy says. “I vote in something called ‘The Critics Choice Documentary Awards’ and we have a Pennebaker Achievement Award too. It’s pretty cool that his former summer house is just up the street from the Sag Harbor Cinema. The family keeps it and rents it out to the guy who co-founded The Criterion Channel so everything kind of comes full circle,” he continues, adding, “Michael Moore is an old friend. He runs a theater in Northern Michigan where I grew up. I’ve performed at his comedy festival up there and attended his film festival. He’s done so much to put a face and voice to documentary films that I’m thrilled he’s getting the Pennebaker Award. Penny would approve too.”

A special Gala Evening with Michael Moore is scheduled at Bay Street Theater on Saturday, December 7, starting with a buffet and cocktail reception at 6:30 p.m., followed at 8:30 p.m. by presentation of the Pennebaker Award and an interview with Michael Moore, then a screening of Moore’s 1989 debut film Roger & Me about the economic devastation that followed General Motors shutting down its auto plants in Flint, Michigan.

Getting down to picks, McCuddy says he’s locked in from night one. “I like docs that go behind the scenes and tell stories underneath stories. So I’m looking forward to the opening night film Merchant Ivory about that vital pairing of talent responsible for so many films — the kind that help define the Sag Harbor Cinema.”

Directed by Stephen Soucy, Merchant Ivory is the definitive presentation and tribute to the Merchant Ivory partnership, anchored by interviews with James Ivory and 41 Merchant Ivory close collaborators, detailing and celebrating their experiences of being a part of the “wandering company” helmed by legendary producer Ismail Merchant. See it at Bay Street Theater on Thursday, December 5 at 8 p.m. Director Stephen Soucy and James Ivory will be in attendance for a Q&A with Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman. A cocktail reception follows the film screening.

Continuing on, McCuddy picks director Rachel Elizabeth Seed’s A Photographic Memory. “My wife and I collect still photography — she’s the brains of the outfit — so I’m keen to see A Photographic Memory about the daughter of famous avant-garde journalist Shelia Turner Seed,” he says. See it at Bay Street Theater on Friday, December 6 at noon. Rachel Elizabeth Seed will tune in via Zoom for Q&A with Mirra Bank.

“The origin of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue sounds cool on several levels,” McCuddy says of his third pick, Beyond The Gaze: Julie Campbell’s Swimsuit Issue, directed by Jill Campbell, adding, “It’s been around since the 1960s so Beyond The Gaze: Julie Campbell’s Swimsuit Issue is at the top of my list. And I get to tell Mrs. McCuddy it’s for work.” See it at Sag Harbor Cinema on Friday, December 6 at 5 p.m. Campbell and cinematographer Gregory Gerhard will be in attendance for Q&A with journalist Andrew Botsford.

“Some of the films like Daughters (directed by Natalie Rae, Angela Patton) are already sold out. So I encourage people to get tickets or check back on the website daily for last-minute additions. This little festival is really becoming a highlight of the year on the East End,” McCuddy says. About four young girls preparing for a special Daddy Daughter Dance with their incarcerated fathers, Daughters is playing at Sag Harbor Cinema on Sunday, December 8 at 2 p.m. Rae and Patton will be in attendance for a Q&A with Cynthia Lopez.

“Closing night is a kind of Jurassic Park meets Finding Your Roots. It’s paleontologist primer The Bones,” McCuddy points out about director Jeremy Xido’s film. “This is a perfect one for the whole family. Did anyone know the fossil hunting business was a thing? This turns a dry topic into a thriller.” See The Bones at Bay Street Theater on Wednesday, December 11 at 7 p.m. Xido will be in attendance for a Q&A with Andrew Botsford.

Find Hamptons Doc Fest tickets and passes for all films, along with a full schedule of screenings and events, at hamptonsdocfest.com.