AN IMMORTAL MAN
Documentary short, 15 minutes, 2014
Directed by: Josh Koury, Myles Kane
Produced for ESPN Films 30 for 30 series
SYNOPSIS //
Ted Williams was one of the most beloved and well documented baseball icons of all time. When the record setting hitter’s life ended on July 5th, 2002, his body was cryonically preserved at Alcor International and the unconventional decision shocked the nation. From contradicting facts and multiple wills, to family disputes, the line between fact and fiction was blurred in the media hysteria that followed the icon’s death. AN IMMORTAL MAN walks the viewer through the winding tale of family drama to unravel the mystery surrounding Ted Williams end of life.
World Premiere: Toronto International Film Festival 2014
WE WILL LIVE AGAIN
Documentary short, 12 minutes, 2013
Directed by: Josh Koury, Myles Kane
SYNOPSIS //
WE WILL LIVE AGAIN looks inside the unusual and extraordinary operations of the Cryonics Institute. The film follows Ben Best and Andy Zawacki, the caretakers of 99 deceased human bodies stored at below freezing temperatures in cryopreservation. The Institute and Cryonics Movement were founded by Robert Ettinger who, in his nineties and long retired from running the facility, still self-publishes books on cryonics, awaiting the end of his life and eagerly anticipating the next.
World Premiere: Tribeca Film Festival 2013
JOURNEY TO PLANET X
Documentary feature, 78 minutes, 2012
Directed by: Josh Koury, Myles Kane
SYNOPSIS //
Eric Swain and Troy Bernier are scientists by day and amateur filmmakers by night. Over the years these two friends have turned out many of their own amateur, sci-fi inspired movies. Journey to Planet X follows the filming of Planet X, the duo’s most ambitious endeavor to date, and sheds light on their unique brand of “movie magic.” While Troy views Planet X as an opportunity to launch a career in the movie-industry, Eric is content with making films as a playful and creative hobby. Troy’s bold new aspirations greatly exceed anything they’ve accomplished in previous films and the pressure of raising the bar forces both to take a leap of faith. They recruit the involvement of everyone they can find – from their own family members, to co-workers, and local aspiring actors. They shoot on sand dunes, highway overpasses, and inside an industrial-sized freezer at a local supermarket. Together with their cast and crew, they form an unlikely community of like-minded adventurers. Eric and Troy are inspired by the transcendent nature of moviemaking itself, where the fantasies of being space travelers, charming leading men, and even successful filmmakers, all seem quite possible. Our documentary captures their struggle to realize their filmmaking dream.
World Premiere: Tribeca Film Festival 2012
STANDING BY YOURSELF
Documentary feature, 57 minutes, 2002
SYNOPSIS //
“This astounding documentary puts reality TV to shame and reminds us of just how unreal that prefabricated situation-based dreck really is. STANDING BY YOURSELF tracks the movements and daily machinations of a group of outcast friends in their strip-mall New York State hometown. Using everything from closely mic-ed subjects to infrared video STANDING BY YOURSELF gets uncomfortably close to its subjects as they get drunk and high, squander money, rip-off their parents, and get in trouble with pretty much everyone in their paths as a conduit to simply having a good time. And yet, as we discover, these kids are smarter than their actions would let on… Simultaneously devastating and hilarious, the film manages to capture the daily rituals and mundanities of life in such engrossing proximity that everything becomes drama. Disturbing for its unabashed honesty, our cast of characters both love and despise each other, their very actions acknowledging the pressures inherent in a tightly bonded peer group. The fact that the filmmakers family is integral to this slice of life takes us that much closer to it all.” (Synopsis courtesy of Vancouver Underground Film Festival)
World Premiere: Slamdance Film Festival 2002