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

LOS ANGELES - Sept. 17, 2013 - PRLog -- “Out of the Fire,” a documentary film by Courtenay Singer that examines the risks and rewards of producing wood-fired pottery, will screen at the prestigious Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival (http://www.hsdfi.org/), October 11-20, 2013.

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 represent several months of work and potential income. Maintaining a constant high temperature over four days requires intense labor, many hands and much patience. Temperature fluctuations or other mishaps could lead to broken pots. Crowe shares the duties with a crew of potters and family members. The experience results in a camaraderie born of the exhausting, round-the-clock work with the kiln.

“’Out of the Fire’ documents the high-stakes of producing quality, functional art,” says Singer. “Few understand how potters like Kevin Crowe lay it all on the line for their art—and livelihood. This film provides a rare glimpse of that world, and offers inspiration to everyone seeking the courage to follow their dreams.”

The Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival (HSDFF) began in 1991 and is the oldest documentary film festival in the world. HSDFI emphasizes documentary film as an art form as well as a means to promote critical thinking on real life 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.