DOC NYC RETURNS FOR FIFTH EDITION NOVEMBER 13-20, 2014!

Includes 20 World Premieres and 7 US Premieres, Among Over 150 Films and Events, Films of Special African-American Interest.

DOC NYC—America's largest documentary festival —begins November 13-20. The economic health of documentary work received an important jolt with the opening of diverse distribution platforms like Netflix to name just a few.

It's a dramatic line up with 153 films and events and hosting approximately 200 documentary makers and special guests all of which are expected, in person, to present their films to New York City audiences.

DOC NYC is made possible by its sponsors, including Leadership Sponsor HBO Documentary Films; Media Sponsors WNET and New York magazine; and Major Sponsors A&E IndieFilms, History Films and SundanceNow Doc Club. The festival is produced by IFC Center.

Here are a few that feature the work of  African-Americans or have our culture as the focal point.

"Althea" by director Rex Miller. - In the 1950s, long before Arthur Ashe or Venus and Serena Williams, Althea Gibson was the first African-American tennis player to win Grand Slam tournaments. Breaking the color barrier of international tennis, her singles win at Wimbledon drew worldwide attention and was celebrated with a ticker-tape parade along Broadway. Reintroducing the pioneering athlete to a new generation, Rex Miller's bittersweet tribute reveals how a street kid from Harlem reached the pinnacle of an unlikely sport during the height of racial segregation. 7:00 PM, Fri. Nov. 14, 2014 - IFC Center.  Expected to attend: Rex Miller, producers Nancy Buirski and Elisabeth Haviland James.

"Rubble King" by Shan Nicholson.  Confronting a bankrupt, decaying city and the dashed hopes of the civil rights generation, African-American and Latino teenagers violently took over the streets of 1970s New York. The South Bronx became a war zone ruled by gangs like the Savage Skulls and the Ghetto Brothers.

Screening with Fraser Munden & Neil Rathbone's THE CHAPERONE. An action-packed, animated retelling of what happened when a drunken motorcycle gang invaded a 1970s school dance.

Other jewels include "Brothers of the Black List" by director Sean Gallagher; "Hoop Dreams" by Steve James (Newly restored for its 20th anniversary); "Keep on Keepin On" by Alan Hicks; "Little White Lie" by Lacey Schwartz; "Monsieur Le President" by Victoria Campbell; "A Murder In The Park" by Shawn Rech & Brandon Kimber; "Some Kind of Spark" by Ben Niles;"Stop" by Spencer Wolff; and "Tales of the Grim Sleeper" by Nick Broomfield.

For more information go to: www.docnyc.net/blog/passes or in person at the IFC Center box office.