Professor
Credit: Jonathan Johnson
Credit: Jonathan Johnson
Credit: Grant Rosenberg
Musician
Credit: Juan-Carlos Hernandez
Credit: Amanda Kraus
Credit: Juan-Carlos Hernandez
Sheriff
Credit: Simone Lueck
Filmmaker
Credit: Amanda Kraus
Professor
“Endlessly intriguing... Makes for some of the unlikeliest drama on the scene today.”
“RECOMMENDED. An excellent new documentary... For all his idiosyncrasies, Holstein and his gargantuan shtick provide an object lesson in how the medieval lecture format can still be made to work in our multimedia age.”
“9/10 STARS! Another exceptional work by a filmmaker who finds masterpieces in the smallest of details. It is memorable, mesmerizing stuff.”
“The film affords the pleasures of a good college course... It’s hardly a coincidence that the best [Work Series film], Professor, follows the person with the most specialized profession, as well as the most outsized personality.”
Musician
“NYT CRITICS' PICK: Musician feels radically fresh... shot and edited with the same inquisitive spirit that defined Studs Terkel's oral history Working. Those seeking a nutshell definition of what it means to be a committed artist need look no further.”
“A masterpiece... Among the most significant efforts of the year - or any year this decade, for that matter.”
“Musician expands a deceptively simple premise into a nuanced drama that is one of the best films of the year.”
“RECOMMENDED. Paints a vibrant but decidely unglamorous portrait. The end result is a strange duality between work and play: Vandermark loves what he does, but because resources for the improvising musician are so limited, he can never rest.”
- CHICAGO READER
Sheriff
“A tour de force… Suspenseful and quirky, Sheriff is touching and a lot of fun.”
— CHICAGO DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL
“HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. The detail captured by Kraus’s scrupulously neutral camera adds up to a fascinating, fully realized portrait of the man and the job. It’s like an extended episode of COPS directed by Frederick Wiseman — and I mean that as a compliment on both counts.”
“Equal parts colorful character study and real world procedural, this nicely handled pic retains interest throughout, and is a good bet for film fests and TV slots.”
— VARIETY