Back in January, we wrote about director AJ Schnack's (Kurt Cobain: About a Son) efforts to create awards for non-fiction filmmaking that would be ... somewhat more relevant than the Academy Awards. Back when the Oscar shortlist for docs came out, Schnack wrote an angry diatribe about the process and the films selected (and, more importantly, those that were not selected) that echoed the sentiments of many of us who write about, or make, documentary films.

Although I'm not at all displeased that Alex Gibney ultimately won the Oscar for Taxi to the Dark Side, and would have been equally happy if No End in Sight had won, there were some glaring omissions in the Oscar shortlist that were truly appalling, most notably In the Shadow of the Moon and King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters.

Ah, Elvis Presley. Having been born the year he died, I always find my big birthday years to be saturated with Elvis. This year is no exception, as we're almost to the 30th anniversary of the hip-shaker's death (August 16). As I told you last month, the cinematic loves of Elvis' life will soon descend on Memphis to dish the Presley dirt and sign autographs. As the big anniversary gets even closer, The Telegraph has put up a little photo feature about the actors who dared to become Elvis on the big screen.

Of course, when we think of those who embody The King, Nicolas Cage is usually the first to come to mind. While Christian Slater (who donned the sequins in 3000 Miles to Graceland) is the guy who always brings to mind Jack Nicholson, Cage is our modern-day Elvis. He worshiped the guy in Wild at Heart, sky-dived with impersonators in Honeymoon in Vegas and even married Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie. What you might not remember: Kurt Russell was actually one of the first with Elvis: The Movie in 1979, and as you might remember, was alongside Slater in 3000 Miles. Heck, even Joe Strummer of The Clash had a stint as Elvis in Jim Jarmusch's Mystery Train. But my personal favorite will always be the mummy-fighting Elvis, whose best friend is a black JFK. Of course, I'm talking about Bruce Campbell as an aged Elvis in an old folks' home in Bubba Ho-tep. Even if you remove all the over-the-top elements, the guy just has that Presley thing.

A documentary on John Graham Mellor, more widely known as Joe Strummer -- lead singer of The Clash, has been creating buzz for a while. Way back in January of 2006, Cinematical brought word that director Julaien Temple would be putting together a doc about his long-time friend -- a complete labor of love as Temple was getting the full support of Strummer's family and former bandmates, which meant tons of archival material and interviews. Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten is now complete, and has been taking the festival circuit by storm. In January of this year, our Kevin Kelly reviewed it at Sundance and called it "a more than adequate" film that filled "in the gaps about Joe Strummer," although it left off a lot of his pre-Strummer, Mellor days.

The documentary is now headed for a November 2 limited release, and the website has a bunch of information about the feature, including a trailer, which you can see in everything from 56k to HD. Unsurprisingly, coming from a pro of music videos, the film and trailer are looking pretty slick. It does a good job of showing enough to amp you up without revealing much more than a ton of images and short tidbits. However, while it is completely suitable within the realm of the film, you should be prepared for some loud bursts of song intermingled between softer voice-overs and interviews -- not exactly office material unless you work in a Clash-friendly environment.

[via The Documentary Blog]

If you can imagine what it would be like to try to document the life of one of your closest friends after their death, and to assemble everything into feature film length, you can probably see how difficult the process might be. This is what director Julien Temple had to do while he directed Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten, about the lead singer for one of the world's best known bands, The Clash. Temple's documentary utilizes an enormous amount of archival footage, personal interviews, news interviews, vintage photos, audio recordings and footage that he himself had been filming since 1976. Temple also had access to Strummer's personal notebooks, writings and recordings, so they feature heavily in the doc. He uses Strummer's doodles and writings in animations that serve as transitions between scenes, or to underscore different pieces of the film. Of course, the main element that keeps everything sticking together is Joe Strummer and his music.

Director Julien Temple has been around the music business forever, directing videos for such wildly diverse artist as Dexy's Midnight Runners, David Bowie, Blur, and Van Halen (The man directed Jump! For that act alone he should be lauded for the rest of his life.). In addition, he's made a pile of music features, including the very odd Bowie flick Absolute Beginners, and Sex Pistols documentaries The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle and The Filth and the Fury.

Temple's next project, however, will be a more personal one: he's started work on a documentary about his longtime friend, Joe Strummer of the Clash, who died in 2002. Since the film is being made with the full support of Strummer's family and former bandmates, Temple finds himself in the possession of a massive amount of archival material, as well as copious new interviews. The film is in the very early stages of production, with Temple busy sorting through the material he has, as well as searching for additional audio and video of Strummer from music journalists on this side of the Atlantic. Because of the amount of material involved, it's hard to say when Temple will finish his film, but the obvious care and passion he's bringing to the project make it one that is sure to thrill Strummer fans.