The first film, playing Thursday night at The Blue Note, is The Expedition to the End of the World. This travelogue follows a group of scientists and philosophers as they travel on a three-mast schooner through the unexplored inlets of Northeast Greenland. The crew’s meditations on matters great and small are punctuated by an excellent and unconventional score, ranging from opera to heavy metal. This film is sure to be a powerful experience on the big screen.

Next up is No, a interesting mix of historical fact and fiction, recounting the time an intrepid group of madmen took on a Chilean military dictatorship. This film blends archival material with fictional scenes shot on reconstructed 80s style cameras to create a unified retro aesthetic. Manohla Dargis of the New York Times discussed the film with its director Pablo Larraín at last summer’s Cannes film festival. No is also nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award.

Crash Reel is the latest from Lucy Walker, director of the T/F 2010 hit Wasteland. It tells the story of Kevin Pearce, once arguably the world’s greatest snow boarder, who suffered a terrible crash. The film transforms seamlessly from a high-adrenaline sports movie into a poignant and inspiring tale of recovery and brotherly love. Walker discusses how she became interested in telling this story to fellow T/F filmmaker Ondi Timoner in the video below.

Gateway includes three films dealing with the fascinating and frequently morally hazy subject of intelligence and counter-terrorism. The first, Manhunt, talks with the CIA analysts and agents who spent over 20 years tracking down Osama bin Laden. The film turns the record of their frustrations, ethical conflicts and ultimate triumph into a compelling detective story. The Daily Beast spoke with three of these analysts about their reactions to seeing their story on the big screen.

The Gatekeepers is built around interviews with the six men who have headed the Israeli Shin Bet intelligence agency. The film revisits the history of the post-1967 Arab-Israeli conflict from this fascinating new perspective. Director Dror Moreh spoke with the Times of Israel about getting these secretive men to open up for his camera and the perplexing implications of what they said.

Dirty Wars follows journalist Jeremy Scahill on a noirish journey from dusty huts outside Abottabad to seedy D.C.-area motels to the halls of Congress as he uncovers the unpleasant facts about the activities of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), the organization empowered by the Obama administration to oversee an expanded “kill list”. Scahill and director Rick Rowley talk in depth about the film in the clip below from Democracy Now.

Winter Go Away is a powerful survey of life in Russia during last winter’s presidential elections. Avoiding all talking heads, the film captures the rallies, protests and backroom meetings directly, creating an important document of the hope, frustration and confusion of the political moment.

Cutie and the Boxer, a breakout hit at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, observes the difficult relationship of an aging bohemian couple, the “action painter”  Ushio Shinohara and wife of 40 years, Noriko. This intimate exploration of the problems of love and art is an impressive directorial debut for Zachary Heinzerling, who introduces his film in the clip below.

After Tiller follows the lives and work of the four doctors left in all of America who perform late term abortions. While clearly made with a point of view, the film avoids any lionizing or demonizing, instead providing a much needed human context for this most divisive of issues.

This diverse selection of films offers a real cross section of this year’s fest. And just a reminder, this package will only be available for another 24 hours.

True/False would not be True/False without our buskers. They infuse the entire weekend with a vital energy. And no one represents this energy better than Toughcats, favorites at T/F since 2008. The tireless indie-bluegrass trio is part of a loyal group of True/Falsers from Maine who make an annual journey to Columbia for the Fest.

Corey Ransberg captured Toughcats playing their song “Happy Day” in one of a series of videos shot in the music nook of our 2012 box office.

Also a must see for Toughcats fans is the beautiful music video for their song “Somebody Old”.

Check out Toughcats official website for much more music and info, and check back here soon for more T/F Box Office Sessions.

Those visionary nerds would be wrong!

Every ticket is actually printed on a mini-thermal ticket printer sitting atop the ping-pong table in the basement of T/F materials coordinator and signage czar Glenn Rice’s basement. Rice has produced an impossibly entertaining, one-minute-long, lovingly annotated film that explains the process in loving detail.

There is no sad robot; there is only Glenn:

Glenn’s notes on the process:

One minute out of the 12-16 hours of tedium that is the True/False Film Fest ticket printing process. This is a Boca Systems (http://www.bocasystems.com/) “Mini” thermal ticket printer with an integrated cutter. We’re using so-called “concert” size tickets, 2″ x 5.5″ with a 1″ leading perforation (the “stub”).

The printer uses a thermal print head, so there’s no ink to replace. It’s a good machine, amazingly durable and trouble free so far. It does jam occasionally.

I use a Microsoft Access database to connect to our reservations DB using ODBC & linked tables, then generate an Access report in which each “page” is an individual ticket. Access also prints a control ticket at the beginning of each passholder’s ticket order, which allows our Box Office staff to easily separate the completed ticket stacks and bundle them for patron pick-up. You might see the control ticket in your pass envelope, though I’m not sure if Box Office staff includes those or not.

I’ll usually print around 1,000 tickets in each short run, so I can take breaks. 3-4 hours of this is all I can stand, so it takes 4 or 5 long runs to do them all. During a print run, if I walk away for more than a minute, things get out of control very quickly.

Yes, I’m doing this on my ping-pong table in our basement. There’s lots of room, & I’m not disturbing my family with the noise.

Gateway Packets allow attendees to reserve three tickets online (they can be used for one, two, or three films), selected from a list specially chosen by the T/F programmers. Visit Visit the online T/F Box Office to purchase! Gateway sales end at 6:00 pm on Friday, 2/24.

Behold the giant grid of films!

Savor the detailed schedule of screenings!

Easily print out all the film descriptions!

Start planning your weekend!

Freak out completely!!!

On Saturday, August 20, we’re teaming up once again with the jolly adventurers at Off Track Events to ensure a refreshing, fun bike ride from Columbia to Rocheport down the MKT and Katy Trails. To dawdle means to take one’s time, to proceed slowly — and that is a fine way to describe this lazy summer evening’s expedition from our cozy downtown Columbia home to the Missouri River, specifically the beautiful limestone blufftops of Rocheport. We’re retaining the elements you loved last year and interjecting some fresh surprises that will unfold over the course of the day.

Some of us will leisurely ride our bikes out on the Katy Trail, finding intriguing spots along the way, including some T/F-style busking musicians, while others will hop in their jalopies or catch a shuttle to the Blufftop Bistro at Les Bourgeois vineyards. Out there before sunset, we will serve up a delicious local food picnic-style dinner, along with beer, wine and other drinks, and listen to one of our new favorite bands. And then, after the sun has dropped, we’ll kick back on the hillside to enjoy an outdoor screening of a brand-new documentary, looking out over the Missouri River valley. Last year, the orange sunset was stunning, and we’re counting on more of the same.

And, as with all True/False films, the filmmaker and hopefully a few of the subjects will be there in person to answer your questions afterwards. Then it’s on to waiting buses and back home to wait out the 194 days until True/False 2012 (March 1-4).

We’re finalizing plans for the band and the film now, and plan to announce them both on July 1. Ticket sales will also start that day. To get an idea of what this craziness is all about, take a moment to relive last year’s Boone Dawdle.

Ticket Types

Whole Shebang ($65)

• Organized bike ride from downtown Columbia to Les Bourgeois (complete with trail support, water, live music and other surprises)
• Boone Dawdle tank top (perfect for a warm summer evening)
• Local food picnic
• Two drink tickets good for Schlafly beer or Les Bourgeois wine
• Concert
• Outdoor screening, complete with director Q&A
• Shuttle back to downtown Columbia for you and your bike
• Please download the Release from Liability, print it out, sign it, and bring it with you on the day of the Dawdle. (Every individual participating in the ride or the splash zone must sign a release in order to participate.)

Party Pass ($45)

• Local food picnic
• Two drink tickets good for Schlafly beer or Les Bourgeois wine
• Concert
• Outdoor screening, complete with director Q&A
• Shuttle from downtown Columbia to Les Bourgeois and back (complimentary for the first 100 folks who sign up; $5 after that)
• Does not include transportation for a bike

Just the Ride ($30)

• Organized bike ride from downtown Columbia to Les Bourgeois (complete with trail support, water, live music and other surprises)
• Boone Dawdle tank top (perfect for a warm summer evening)
• Shuttle back to downtown Columbia for you and your bike
• Please download the Release from Liability, print it out, sign it, and bring it with you on the day of the Dawdle. (Every individual participating in the ride or the splash zone must sign a release in order to participate.)
• Does not include film, concert, dinner or drinks at the winery.

Super Circle Advance Purchase ($500)

Purchase your Super Circle pass now for True/False 2012, and we’ll throw in a free Whole Shebang ticket to the Boone Dawdle as thanks for your early support. The Super Circle is our ultra-deluxe patron pass, perfect for those wanting a complete immersion in the True/False experience, and the best way to support the future of the Festival.

Super Circle Pass includes:

• Admission for one person to festival films from Thursday through Sunday
• Admission to ALL T/F events and parties, including the Filmmaker Fete, the Jubilee, Reality Bites, the Friday night @ction party, and the Weird Wake Up (with a reserved ticket)
• 45 minutes of personal, one-one-one consultation with one of the festival directors (Paul Sturtz or David Wilson) to help plan your film selections and schedule for the weekend
• An invitation to join the True/False submissions committee for a pre-fest screening and discussion of a film being considered for inclusion in the festival
• First crack at on-line ticket reservations, including a 24-hour window of exclusive access before all other passholders
• Preferred access via the Q to films at all festival theaters
• One of our coveted True/False festival swag bags
• Early announcements of festival happenings and film selection news throughout the year
• $200 of the purchase price is tax deductible as a charitable donation to the festival

Tickets go on sale July 1. All tickets (except the Super Circle Advance Purchase) will increase $5 on August 8. Tickets sold out quickly last year, so we encourage getting yours early.

Due to the grown-up nature of the event, we strongly discourage bringing children under 12. Children 12 and up will be admitted at regular ticket prices.

Schedule

We’ll post a detailed schedule soon, but here’s an approximate idea of how the day will go:

3:00-4:00 pm:  Bike ride departures from downtown

6:30-8:30 pm:  Local foods picnic

8:00-9:00 pm:  Concert

9:00-10:30 pm:  Film screening

10:30-11:00 pm:  Director Q&A

(schedule is subject to change)

Bad Weather Plan

If inclement weather strikes on August 20, the bike ride portion of the Boone Dawdle will still take place rain or shine. The party at Les Bourgeois (picnic and live music) will be moved inside the Blufftop Bistro. The film will be shown at a later date at Ragtag Cinema (exact date tbd), and all Boone Dawdle ticket holders will be granted free admission to the film and informed of the date and times well in advance.