“Out of the Fire” Documentary to Screen at Utopia Film Festival

LOS ANGELES - Sept. 16, 2013 - PRLog -- “Out of the Fire,” a documentary film by Courtenay Singer that examines the risks and rewards of producing wood-fired pottery, will have its Maryland premiere at the 9^th annual Utopia Film Festival (http://www.utopiafilmfestival.org/). The film follows potter Kevin Crowe (http://www.kevincrowepottery.com/index.htm), his apprentice Krista Loomans and others during a four-day firing of Crowe’s Japanese-style wood-fired kiln at Tye River Pottery in Amherst, Virginia.

Crowe produces wood-fired, functional pottery, firing it twice yearly in a 450 cubic foot, 3-chamber, combination anagama and noborigama kiln. The kiln’s contents, some 2,000 pots, represent several months of work and potential income. Maintaining a constant high temperature is the goal, but one which requires the hands of many volunteers.  A drop in temperature—or heat that’s too intense—could break pots. Risk is the cost of reward, and Crowe shares the duties with a crew of potters from the region and family members. The experience results in a camaraderie born of the exhausting, round-the-clock stoking and monitoring of the kiln.

“’Out of the Fire’ documents a little seen world and the high-stakes of producing quality, functional art,” says Singer. “I’m particularly glad that the film will be seen by a DC-area audience, as many of the people featured in the film are potters from this region.  And many of the production team have spent years living and working in DC, as well.”

The Utopia Film Festival launched in 2005 and is Prince George's County, Maryland's first international film festival. From its inception, Utopia has sought quality independent films which reflect the utopian spirit of better living through film: works that entertain, enlighten, and address such themes as community building, cultural diversity, social and economic concerns, and environmental issues.

“Out of the Fire” is Singer’s first feature film and will have its world premiere at the Breckenridge Festival of Film (http://www.breckfilmfest.com/).​ Learn moreatwww.outofthefirefilms.com or www.facebook.com/outofthefirethefilm.

Watch the trailer of “Out of the Fire” at https://vimeo.com/63294383.



​About Courtenay Singer

Courtenay Singer is an award-winning producer, director, and writer of non-fiction films and television programs.  She has worked on shows for PBS, National Geographic, HGTV, and Animal Planet, and has contributed to several independent films. She recently received an LA Area Emmy Award for the documentary special “Imagine: A Celebration of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.” In addition, Courtenay has managed international health communications projects for the World Health Organization, the South African Department of Health and the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center.