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input[type='submit'].minimal, button.minimal { background: #e3e3e3 !important; border: 1px solid #bbb !important; -moz-border-radius: 3px !important; -webkit-border-radius: 3px !important; border-radius: 3px !important; -moz-box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #f6f6f6 !important; -webkit-box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #f6f6f6 !important; box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #f6f6f6 !important; color: #333 !important; font-family: "helvetica neue", helvetica, arial, sans-serif !important; font-size: 12px !important; font-weight: bold !important; line-height: 1 !important; padding: 8px 0 9px !important; text-align: center !important; text-shadow: 0 1px 0 #fff !important; width: 150px !important; } input[type='submit'].minimal:hover, button.minimal:hover { background: #d9d9d9 !important; -moz-box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #eaeaea !important; -webkit-box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #eaeaea !important; box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #eaeaea !important; color: #222 !important; cursor: pointer !important; } input[type='submit'].minimal:active, button.minimal:active { background: #d0d0d0 !important; -moz-box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #e3e3e3 !important; -webkit-box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #e3e3e3 !important; box-shadow: inset 0 0 1px 1px #e3e3e3 !important; color: #000 !important; } Join our Mailing List Email Address Close var fancyboxLoaded; try { var jqueryLoaded=jQuery; jqueryLoaded=true; //Check if a fancybox plugin is already loaded try{ fancyboxLoaded = $.fancybox } catch(err) { fancyboxLoaded=false; } } catch(err) { jqueryLoaded=false; } var head= document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; var script= document.createElement('script'); if (!jqueryLoaded) { script.type= 'text/javascript'; script.src= 'http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.4.4/jquery.min.js'; head.appendChild(script); } if (!fancyboxLoaded) { //Only load the CSS because the asynchronous JS might not load the script in time... //We'll load the script later with jQuery :) var fancystyle= document.createElement('link'); fancystyle.setAttribute("rel", "stylesheet"); fancystyle.setAttribute("type", "text/css"); //TODO: Hey MC guys, you've gotta host this somewhere! fancystyle.setAttribute("href", "http://chimplr.heroku.com/js/fancybox/jquery.fancybox-1.3.4.css"); head.appendChild(fancystyle); } var fnames = new Array();var ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[2]='LNAME';ftypes[2]='text';var err_style = ''; try{ err_style = mc_custom_error_style; } catch(e){ err_style = 'margin: 1em 0 0 0; padding: 1em 0.5em 0.5em 0.5em; background: FFEEEE none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-weight: bold; float: left; z-index: 1; width: 80%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; color: FF0000;'; } var head= document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; var style= document.createElement('style'); style.type= 'text/css'; if (style.styleSheet) { style.styleSheet.cssText = '.mce_inline_error {' + err_style + '}'; } else { style.appendChild(document.createTextNode('.mce_inline_error {' + err_style + '}')); } head.appendChild(style); $(document).ready( function($) { //Button below the Tumblr Controls //TODO: Hey MC guys, you've gotta host the image linked below somewhere! var newsletter_link = document.createElement('a'); newsletter_link.setAttribute('href', '#mc_embed_signup'); newsletter_link.setAttribute('id', 'mc-embedded-tumblr-signup'); newsletter_link.setAttribute('style', 'border:none; position:absolute; top:26px;right:3px; z-index:9999;'); var newsletter_image = document.createElement('img'); newsletter_image.setAttribute('src', 'http://chimplr.heroku.com/images/newsletter.png'); newsletter_image.setAttribute('style', 'border:none;'); newsletter_link.appendChild(newsletter_image); //Append Link to body $('body:first').append(newsletter_link); var options = { errorClass: 'mce_inline_error', errorElement: 'div', onkeyup: function(){}, onfocusout:function(){}, onblur:function(){}, invalidHandler: function(form, validator) { setTimeout("$.fancybox.resize();", 50); } }; var mce_validator = $("#mc-embedded-subscribe-form").validate(options); options = { url: 'http://rakontur.us6.list-manage.com/subscribe/post-json?u=866bf4d330d4f0c4b527693f7&id=303fc6b954&c=?', type: 'GET', dataType: 'json', contentType: "application/json; charset=utf-8", beforeSubmit: function(){ $('#mce_tmp_error_msg').remove(); $('.datefield','#mc_embed_signup').each( function(){ var txt = 'filled'; var fields = new Array(); var i = 0; $(':text', this).each( function(){ fields[i] = this; i++; }); $(':hidden', this).each( function(){ if ( fields[0].value=='MM' && fields[1].value=='DD' && fields[2].value=='YYYY' ){ this.value = ''; } else if ( fields[0].value=='' && fields[1].value=='' && fields[2].value=='' ){ this.value = ''; } else { this.value = fields[0].value+'/'+fields[1].value+'/'+fields[2].value; } }); }); return mce_validator.form(); }, success: mce_success_cb }; $('#mc-embedded-subscribe-form').ajaxForm(options); }); function mce_success_cb(resp){ $('#mce-success-response').hide(); $('#mce-error-response').hide(); if (resp.result=="success"){ $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').show(); $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').html(resp.msg); $('#mc-embedded-subscribe-form').each(function(){ this.reset(); }); $('#mc-embedded-subscribe').hide(); $('.mc-field-group').hide(); $('#mc-embedded-lightbox-close').show().focus(); } else { var index = -1; var msg; try { var parts = resp.msg.split(' - ',2); if (parts[1]==undefined){ msg = resp.msg; } else { i = parseInt(parts[0]); if (i.toString() == parts[0]){ index = parts[0]; msg = parts[1]; } else { index = -1; msg = resp.msg; } } } catch(e){ index = -1; msg = resp.msg; } try{ if (index== -1){ $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').show(); $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').html(msg); } else { err_id = 'mce_tmp_error_msg'; html = '

'+msg+''; var input_id = '#mc_embed_signup'; var f = $(input_id); if (ftypes[index]=='address'){ input_id = '#mce-'+fnames[index]+'-addr1'; f = $(input_id).parent().parent().get(0); } else if (ftypes[index]=='date'){ input_id = '#mce-'+fnames[index]+'-month'; f = $(input_id).parent().parent().get(0); } else { input_id = '#mce-'+fnames[index]; f = $().parent(input_id).get(0); } if (f){ $(f).append(html); $(input_id).focus(); } else { $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').show(); $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').html(msg); } } } catch(e){ $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').show(); $('#mce-'+resp.result+'-response').html(msg); } } $.fancybox.resize(); } function initFancybox(){ $("#mc-embedded-tumblr-signup").live('click', function(){ $.fancybox({ 'autoDimensions' : true, 'width' : 'auto', 'height' : 'auto', 'href' : $(this).attr('href'), 'scrolling' : 'no', 'onComplete': function(){ $('#mce-error-response').hide(); $('div.mce_inline_error').hide(); $('#mce-success-response').hide(); $('#mce_tmp_error_msg').remove(); $(':input','#mc-embedded-subscribe-form') .not(':button, :submit, :reset, :hidden') .val('') .removeAttr('checked') .removeAttr('selected'); //focus first input field $("#mc-embedded-subscribe-form:not(.filter) :input:visible:enabled:first").focus(); $('#mc-embedded-subscribe').show(); $('.mc-field-group').show(); $('#mc-embedded-lightbox-close').hide(); } }); return false; }); } //Check wether Fancybox is loaded or not, and if not, load the sucker and initialize it if (!fancyboxLoaded){ //TODO: Hey MC guys, you've gotta host this somewhere! $.getScript("http://chimplr.heroku.com/js/fancybox/jquery.fancybox-1.3.4.pack.js", function(){ initFancybox(); }); } if (fancyboxLoaded) { initFancybox(); } rakontur: Miami media studio founded by Billy Corben, Alfred Spellman and David Cypkin. Creators of Cocaine Cowboys, The Tanning of America, ESPN 30 for 30's The U and Broke, Limelight, Square Grouper and other classics.

373 posts

[rakontur-blog]

John McAfee Murder Mystery Series in Development at Spike

Network will develop six-part docuseries about online security pioneer.

via TheWrap:

Spike TV is developing “The McAfee Project,” a six-part documentary series focusing on the international murder mystery that embroiled tech entrepreneur John McAfee.

In April, 2012, John McAfee, a world-renowned billionaire computer anti-virus pioneer who founded McAfee Associates, found himself at the center of Central America’s hottest manhunt in recent history. McAfee was named a “person of interest,” but not a suspect, by police officials in Belize following the murder of his neighbor.

McAfee went on the run for three weeks before crossing the border into Guatemala. He was detained by Guatemalan authorities soon after entry, and was soon fighting against deportation to Belize.

McAfee claims the police and drug cartels in Belize were out to kill him thus the escape to Guatemala. He also reportedly faked a series of heart attacks to prevent deportation to Belize and aid safe passage back to the United States. Following a lengthy legal battle, he was deported to the United States while his home in Belize mysteriously burned to the ground.

Billy Corben (“Cocaine Cowboys”) will direct and executive produce the series, which will be centered around McAfee’s first-person interviews and will reveal unanswered questions about his life ranging from drug-fueled college days in Virginia, to learning to battle computer viruses early in his career at Lockheed in the 1980’s, to starting McAfee and Associates in 1987, to the 2012 murder investigation in Belize.

Alfred Spellman and Corben will executive produce the series along with Impact Future Media’s Francois Garcia and Kimberley Berlin.

“The McAfee Project” will be shot this summer and air on Spike in 2016.

[rakontur-blog]

Testament of Youth; Wild; Big Hero 6; Stray Dogs; Honeytrap; Spring; Life of Riley; Dawg Fight review

Searing wartime romance with Alicia Vikander and Kit Harington, Reese Witherspoon takes a hike and a chilly Disney tackles evil

via The Guardian:

The most arresting new documentary of the week arrives, as they so often do, on Netflix: Billy Corben’s Dawg Fight is a grimy, pummelling examination of backyard bare-knuckle fighting culture in the rougher depths of Miami suburbia. If that seems an unremittingly grim topic, Corben’s film has more than miserablism on its mind. As his aggressively probing camera uncovers the rules and practical politics of the sport, the fighting emerges with an unexpected degree of honour: it functions as individual livelihood and public entertainment are integrated into a coarse, lively social fabric.

[rakontur-blog]

As 'Dawg Fight' Hits Netflix, "Pop Doc" Filmmakers Discover Their Niche

Dawg Fight, director Billy Corben’s new film about the backyard bare-knuckle fight scene, debuts on Netflix this weekend.

via The Hollywood Reporter:

Having struck it big with 'Cocaine Cowboys,' rakontur Partners Billy Corben and Alfred Spellman explore another one of Miami's subculture.

[rakontur-blog]

'Dawg Fight' Director Pulls No Punches With His Brutal New Film

In his new documentary, Billy Corben focuses on bloody backyard fights – but he says those who focus on the brawls are missing the point

via Rolling Stone:

“With films like Cocaine Cowboys, Limelight and The U, director Billy Corben has documented the lives of cavalier drug smugglers, unrepentant nightclub impresarios and swaggering college athletes – subjects who rose to power and, inevitably, fell from grace.

But his new film, Dawg Fight, is different. A documentary about the brutal backyard fights staged in the impoverished community of West Perrine, Florida, it is less about the rise to the top as it is the permanent social stasis that keeps people on the bottom. The fight footage is plentiful, gory and uniformly horrifying, yet this is actually a film about people, poverty and the push to succeed against all odds.”

[rakontur-blog]

After six years of a little haggling and heckling, director Billy Corben's gritty documentary "Dawg Fight" is finally released on a broad scale.

"The three most prominent reasons we got for rejection [to produce 'Dawg Fight'] was that it was too urban, too violent and too real. To us, that was like a woman turning you down because you're too tall and too handsome."

[rakontur-blog]

@_FloridaMan Beguiles With the Hapless and Harebrained

A beguilingly anonymous Twitter author with the mug shot of an Indiana man unspools, tweet by tweet, a composite of Florida’s nuttiness.

via New York Times:

“That’s the most common misconception about Florida — that we are a melting pot,” said Billy Corben, who has made several Florida-esque documentaries, including “Cocaine Cowboys,” about the rise of cocaine violence and capitalism here in the 1970s and 1980s. “We are more akin to a TV dinner, where sometimes the peas spill over into the mashed potatoes.”

“As long as the Champagne is flowing and the checks are clearing,” he added, “nobody asks a lot of questions here about anything.”

[rakontur-blog]

#Happy420 #BrotherLouv #ZionCopticChurch 

#SquareGrouper is available on iTunes and Amazon

[rakontur-blog]

Billy talks Dawg Fight with Rich Eisen

[vhxtv]

'Too real' for distributors, Dawg Fight sells direct

When director Billy Corben showed DAWG FIGHT to potential distributors, they responded with: “Too urban,” “too violent,” “too real.” This story isn’t an easy sell for the mainstream, but Corben and the rest of rakontur knew it had an audience online. Now they’re distributing the film directly from their website, powered by VHX. 

DAWG FIGHT is not for the faint-of-heart. It’s a brutal look at underground MMA fighting in the backyards of Miami-Dade County, with plenty of face-crushing and blood to go around. And yet, it has so much heart. Beneath all the violent brawls, this documentary tells a human story of courage amidst desperation. Download and stream for $5 right here: http://www.dawg-fight.com. 

That’s the power of direct distribution! Allowing artists to reach audiences online, across the globe, however they want.  

[rakontur-blog]

Cocaine Cowboys Director Takes on Backyard Fighting

Dawg Fight offers a ringside seat to Florida's most dangerous game

[rakontur-blog]

Back in the day, everyone wanted a studio deal; now everyone wants a streaming deal. We were never interested in a theatrical release on 'Dawg Fight' and we wanted to get this movie out by any means necessary. We always believed that the audience for it was online. In addition making plans to release it via dawg-fight.com, Alfred [rakontur producing partner Alfred Spellman] and I still felt that this movie needed to be available on a much bigger platform.  We've put a lot into this project and it means so much to us that Netflix has acknowledged that and is come aboard as our partners to share it with their subscribers.

Billy Corben 

[rakontur-blog]

Where 'dawg fights' pay the bills - CNN.com

LZ Granderson on CNN: 

“When I first saw this footage from the documentary "Dawg Fight," I recoiled. Here we are recognizing the 50th anniversary of "Bloody Sunday" in Selma, Alabama, and in the next state over there are desperate, unemployed black men beating the hell out of each other for a hundred bucks. While the 1999 cult classic "Fight Club" made organized street fights look like a sexy form of psychotherapy for repressed men (and some of the guys who participate in street fights do fit the bill), the vast majority in the documentary just need the money. Because in the Miami area the poor reportedly live on $11 a day. And in West Perrine, the suburb where "Dawg Fight" takes place and where nearly 75% of the residents are black, unemployment remains high.

[rakontur-blog]

Director Billy Corben Takes You Into The World Of Backyard Boxing In 'Dawg Fight'

"The [documentaries] that we've always done are kind of a twisted take on the American dream," he says. "These guys think that this is their best opportunity. These are underserved communities where unemployment in off the charts, they are ravaged by crime … These guys see this as their best hope, which in a way is kind of an American Dream."

[rakontur-blog]

Dawg Fight is now available online everywhere at dawg-fight.com

[rakontur-blog]

From 'Cocaine Cowboys' filmmaker comes 'Dawg Fight,' where combat sports is laid bare

“In one corner, a man is doubled over from exhaustion, complaining of blurred vision. In the other, just a few feet away, his opponent is busy getting the blood wiped from his face as his friends assure him that the cut over his eye isn’t as bad as he thinks. Both seem like they’d rather call the whole thing off. Neither seems like he’s going to get that chance. This is the point where, as I was watching the movie, I started to wonder whether Corben’s attempt to capture the world of semi-official, absolutely illegal backyard brawling in one poor Miami neighborhood – a “twisted version of the American dream story,” as Corben later described it to me – had also captured something basic about the nature of combat sports.”

[rakontur-blog]

One of the best things about Dawg Fight, the first true narrative documentary by the rakontur crew of director Billy Corben and producers Alfred Spellman, Evan Rosenfeld and David Cypkin (Cocaine Cowboys, The U, Broke), is how the movie gradually introduces you to a world that initially seems repellent, then gradually becomes fascinating...This one’s a knockout.

Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald

[rakontur-blog]

Billy Corben's Backyard Bare-Knuckle Brawl 'Dawg Fight' Grapples With Online Distribution

“Of all the responses, my favorites were three: Too urban, too violent, too real,” Corben said. Oddly, those critiques by potential distributors “seem to describe everything popular in American culture as well.”