State of Control Directed
by
Christian Johnston and Darren Mann USA / 2013 / 84 minutes Sneak Peak
Screening
Times and Venues:
As of Sept. 29, tickets can no longer be shipped. S/H charges are no longer in effect. All online orders must now be picked up at WFF box Office at 13 Rock City Road in Woodstock. This includes tickets for shows in Rhinebeck, Rosendale and Saugerties.
Q&A Attendees *subject to change: Christian Johnston, Darren Mann
SYNOPSIS: State of Control is a firsthand account of the global technological arms race between the voices of dissent and the power of the state. Can the struggle for basic human rights survive in the global media age? Technology enables dissenters while also extending State repression beyond any physical borders.
In the months leading up to the Beijing Olympics, Tibetan rights activists are determined to make their voices heard to the international community. The Chinese government wants nothing to interfere with its triumphant Olympic narrative.
Filmmakers Christian Johnston and Darren Mann traveled to India, Nepal, China and Tibet intending to shoot a documentary about regional unrest. With their efforts were thwarted by constant surveillance by the Chinese government, the filmmakers turned their cameras on themselves and their harassers. State of Control is a chilling depiction of both the ham-handed and high-tech methods of a 21st century Police State. –Eliza Kunkel
BIO:
Christian Johnston is an award-winning director, producer, writer, and founder of Complex Films. His resume is comprised of many notable projects such as September Tapes,MTV True Life: Trial by Fire, and Blackline: The Beirut Contract. Johnston has extensive film-making experience including filming in active war zones including the first western film shot in Lebanon in 35 years, and filming September Tapes in Afghanistan just six months after 9-11. Johnston is currently producing The Three Hikers, the exclusive feature documentary about the three American bikers recently freed from prison in Iran.
Darren Mann is an award-winning, Emmy-nominated director/producer and founder of Mann-made Pictures. He edited the 2004 Sundance and Cannes Film Festival hit September Tapes. He directed/produced the documentary American Sumo and produced the documentary An Ox's Tale, on the legendary rock band The Who. He directed the feature film FightF*ckPray. He recently shot/edited Becoming Barack, a documentary on Obama’s years as a community developer in Chicago. In addition to films, Darren has directed/produced hundreds of hours of broadcast television for such networks as National Geographic, Discovery, FOX, VH-1 Spike and ESPN, to name a few. His company, Mann-made Pictures, recently produced a ten-episode, animal-conservation series called Uncaged, airing on Nat Geo Int’l.
MAIN CREDITS:
Executive Producer(s): Stephen Nemeth
Producer(s): Christian Johnston, Darren Mann, Steven Kaplan, P.G. Morgan
Director(s): Christian Johnston and Darren Mann
Screenwriter(s): P.G. Morgan, Abigail Fuller
Cinematographer(s): Christian Johnston,
Darren Mann
The Woodstock Film Festival is a not-for-profit, 501c3 organization with a mission to present an
annual program and year-round schedule of film, music,
and art-related activities that promote artists, culture,
inspired learning, and diversity. The Hudson Valley Film
Commission promotes sustainable economic development
by attracting and supporting film, video and media production.
Copyright, 2000-2013 Woodstock Film Festival, Inc.
