Scenes from Silverdocs.

I’ve been traveling a lot lately, which has prevented me from keeping the world regularly updated about my whereabouts. Having traveled across country in the past week, I’ve concluded that Silver Spring, Maryland is the Clark Kent to Las Vegas’ Superman, but I still haven’t determined if that’s a compliment to either place. At any rate, I found Silverdocs to be a refreshingly normal alternative to CineVegas’ ultra-trippy (but still intriguing) package. Non-fiction continues to provide a voice for some of the best independent filmmakers working today, and this year’s line-up offered some illuminating events to go along with the screenings. Dispatches one and two.

Here are some fleeting glimpses of the experience.

My cousin Sandra was kind enough to put me up at her Ikea-filled home in Adams Morgan. A welcome relief after all the swanky hotel room action of Vegas. Seriously.

sandras apt

Alex Gibney talks with fest director Patricia Finnegan. A great visit, although no mention of that pesky lawsuit.

gibney

Spike Lee says hey to me on his way into AFI Silver for a special evening. The guy was a little introverted, but, hey, that’s Spike. Miracle at St. Anna, by the way, looks like the best war movie of the last ten years, at least. But it is, as they say, way early.

spike

Spike in conversation with Denver Post critic Lisa Kennedy. That’s about as lively as he gets, I think.

spike talks

Festival coordinators/superheroes Josh Gardner, Georgia Koch and Mia Walker. Spike, standing behind the photographer, declined to pose for a photo with them. I think he had filled his quota for the evening or something…

publicists