Tuesday, October 13, 2015

CARTEL LAND Documentary of Autodefensas

4 comments:

Tim Nolan said...

CARTEL LAND, the new documentary about drug cartels, paramilitary autodefensas, and the blurred lines between right and wrong in Michoacan and the US border is shared with the trailer, clips and explanation by director Matthew Heineman. The incredible on-the-ground footage of gunfights, cartel meth cooking, and border vigilante patrols, + the intimate portraits of the leadership of the self-defense squads that do battle with the narcos are explored. The Knight’s Templar Cartel, and the struggle for the bodies and soul of Mexico are laid bare in this film, which we feature on this uncensored BYOD interview, hosted by Ondi Timoner.

Tim Nolan said...

FILM & GUEST BIO:
With unprecedented access, CARTEL LAND is a riveting, on­ the­ ground look at the journeys of two modern­ day vigilante groups and their shared enemy – the murderous Mexican drug cartels. In the Mexican state of Michoacán, Dr. Jose Mireles, a small ­town physician known as "El Doctor," leads the Autodefensas, a citizen uprising against the violent Knights Templar drug cartel that has wreaked havoc on the region for years. Meanwhile, in Arizona's Altar Valley – a narrow, 52 ­mile-­long desert corridor known as Cocaine Alley – Tim "Nailer" Foley, an American veteran, heads a small paramilitary group called Arizona Border Recon, whose goal is to stop Mexico’s drug wars from seeping across our border. Filmmaker Matthew Heineman embeds himself in the heart of darkness as Nailer, El Doctor, and the cartel each vie to bring their own brand of justice to a society where institutions have failed. From executive producer Kathryn Bigelow (THE HURT LOCKER, ZERO DARK THIRTY), CARTEL LAND is a chilling, visceral meditation on the breakdown of order and the blurry line between good and evil. At the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, Heineman received both the Directing Award and Special Jury Award for Cinematography in the U.S. Documentary competition.

Tim Nolan said...

Matthew Heineman is an Emmy­-nominated filmmaker based in New York. He directed and produced ESCAPE FIRE: THE FIGHT TO RESCUE AMERICAN HEALTHCARE, which premiered at Sundance 2012. After winning numerous festival awards, the film was theatrically released to critical acclaim by Roadside Attractions / Lionsgate before airing on CNN and earning an Emmy nomination. Heineman previously collaborated for two years with a team at HBO on the groundbreaking, Emmy-­nominated HBO series, The Alzheimer's Project, which aired in May 2009. He also directed and produced Our Time – a feature ­length documentary about what it's like to be young in today's America. Heineman has directed several short films and commercials and is currently developing a few different projects.

Tim Nolan said...


EPISODE BREAKDOWN:
00:01 Welcoming Matthew Heineman of CARTEL LAND.
01:00 Shooting in Arizona and Mexico.
02:10 Rampant lawlessness and terror in Michoacan.
03:55 The Knight’s Templar.
05:49 CARTEL LAND, Clip: Making crystal meth as long as God wants.
07:21 The inspiration to go down, and getting access to narcos and autodefensas.
12:45 The scariest moment of filming.
14:15 Blurry lines of right and wrong, and complete cartel control of the border.
18:33 CARTEL LAND, Clip: “Technically we’re vigilantes…”
19:18 Race, immigration, and the border.
23:57 Editing the film and taking the audience on the roller coaster.
26:12 CARTEL LAND, Clip: Autodefensas of Michoacan at the gates of hell.
28:15 Becoming the criminals they are fighting against?
32:29 Corruption and power polluting society--from narcos to autodefensas.
36:22 CARTEL LAND, Clip: Autodefensas raid.
37:34 Filming in a gunfight.
40:00 An open depiction of flawed heroes and infidelity.
44:40 Shooting the landscape, and capturing the resilience of the people.
46:48 Seeing the film.
47:40 Revisiting the meth lab.
51:27 The Iguala kidnapping and murder of 47 students in Guerrero.
53:20 Thanks and goodbye..
53:57 CARTEL LAND, Trailer.