Director: Gina Angelone, Patrick Stewart, Mouna Stewart Cinematographer: Patrick A. Stewart Editor: Alejandro Trevino
Producer: Gina Angelone, Patrick Stewart, Mouna Stewart
Country: USA
Runtime: 01 hr : 13 min : 22 sec
Synopsis
There is a centuries-old seawall in the ancient port of Akka, located on Israel’s northern coast. Today, Akka is a modern city inhabited by Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Baha’i, but its history goes all the way back to rule of the Egyptian Pharaohs.
Young people dare to stand atop the 40' one-meter thick block structure and risk their fate by jumping into the roiling sea. This perilous tradition has continued for many generations, and has become a rite of passage for the children of Akka.
“It’s Better to Jump” is about the ancient walled city of Akka as it undergoes harsh economic pressures and vast social change. The film focuses on the aspirations and concerns of the Palestinian inhabitants who call the Old City home.
Nomination(s):
Gina Angelone
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Gina Angelone has a history in documentary and television production. Her work has received a Cable Ace award and Emmy nomination.
Her television credits include Producer of Bravo’s “Inside the Actors Studio”; creator of Comedy Central’s “Music Shorts” and Writer/Producer/Director of “Connections: Preserving America's Landscape Legacy” (PBS).
Gina’s feature documentary, René & I,” won two Audience Awards, a Human Rights Award and a Special Jury Mention in international festivals, and was broadcast both domestically (NBC) and internationally.
Gina created the centerpiece film for the Hall of Planet Earth at the American Museum of Natural History (NYC); an interactive installation at Universal Studios/Disney World (for Kodak); and a travelling film for the Smithsonian Institute (Indonesia Exhibit). Gina also associate produced “Raffi on Broadway” for the Disney Channel and MCA Home Video with music legend, Phil Ramone. Currently, she is shooting a biography series on masters of landscape design.
Gina’s fiction writing has been featured by the Literary Guild of America, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, and garnered various literary awards.
Gina has scripted, directed and produced for web, TV, and film. She’s lived in New York, Paris, Kuala Lumpur and Patagonia. She currently resides in Southern California and speaks English, French, Spanish and Italian.
Patrick Stewart
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Born and raised in
Hollywood, CA and
graduate of the University
Of Santa Clara, Patrick
began working in television
in 1982. Working in film as
well as video, Stewart shot
many music videos one,
which won Best Directed
Music Video from the Chicago International Film Festival in 1984. Following that he
shot a documentary “D.U.I.” which premiered at the Milan Film festival in 1985.
The decade of the 2000s saw Patrick Stewart work directly with three Oscar
winning Directors. In 2000, he was the Director of Photography for Mike Figgis’
groundbreaking film “Timecode.” Pairing again the next year with Figgis, he shot
another envelope pushing film, “Hotel,” in Venice, Italy.
Stewart then continued with Mike to shoot a portion of Martin Scorsese’s blues
documentary “Red White and Blues.” Later in 2007, Patrick paired with Peter
Bogdonovich to shoot the Tom Petty feature documentary “Runnin’ Down a
Dream.”
Finally, Stewart worked with Clint Eastwood and his company Malpaso to shoot the
documentaries: “Dave Brubeck: In His Own Sweet way”, and “Johnny Mercer: The
Dream’s On Me”.
In television, Patrick was the Director of Photography on the quirky, popular HBO
series “Flight Of The Concords”, and currently just finished the 4th season of FX’s
comedy “The League.”
In addition, for 18 years Stewart has run his own production company, Patrick
Stewart Productions, which has produced hundreds of segments for television
programs including specials, commercials, documentaries and webcasts.
Mouna Stewart
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Mouna is an artist whose first foray into
filmmaking was with “It’s Better To
Jump.”
She played a central role in the project. A
Palestinian herself, she is fluent in both
Arabic and English and served not only as
a translator and interviewer, but also as a
Producer, gaining access and entrée to
people and places that would otherwise
be inaccessible.
Her collateral as a native and her insights into the culture created an instant bond
of trust with all the interviewees. Mouna is very dedicated to the subject matter as
well as a steadfast researcher.
