Jeffrey Blitz Practices Rocket Science
Oscar-nominated documentarian gets fictional
By Jennifer M. Wood
URL: http://www.moviemaker.com/screenwriting/article/jeffrey_blitz_rocket_science_20080115/
He made spelling cool when he directed the hit documentary Spellbound in 2002 and earned an Oscar nomination for his efforts. Now Jeffrey Blitz is back and taking on the English language from a different angle with the coming-of-age comedy Rocket Science. A hit at last year's Sundance Film Festival, the story of a high school debate team had a limited theatrical release in 2007 and is being released on DVD by HBO Home Video on January 29th. MM spoke with Blitz about the difference between documentary and feature moviemaking, the difficulties in navigating today's distribution process and why adolescent awkwardness makes for fascinating filmmaking.