Space Cowboy, a TIFF Docs preview

Marah Strauch & Bryce Leavitt profile skydiving cinematographer Joe Jennings

Thom Powers here filling in for Anisha this month. I’m continuing to preview docs coming to the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept 5-15.

Space Cowboy profiles the skydiving cameraman Joe Jennings. You probably don't know his name, but you've likely seen his work in Hollywood films and TV commercials. He first established himself working in partnership with aerial stunt artist Rob Harris. While Harris performed tricks in front of the camera for the ESPN X Games, Jennings developed innovative techniques to capture the action like never before.

Now in his early sixties, Jennings looks back on the triumphs and tragedies of his career. We also watch him strive to pull off a fresh stunt that he’s never been able to fulfill.

The project originated with Bryce Leavitt, who was formerly a professional basketball player in Germany. Bryce was working on a self-funded commercial and needed a cameraman for a skydiving shot. He found Joe Jennings on Google. Bryce came to realize that Joe should be the subject of a longer film. As an emerging director, Bryce partnered with Marah Strauch, who previously directed Sunshine Superman, about the base jumping pioneer Carl Boenish.

[Marah Strauch’s first film Sunshine Superman premiered at TIFF 2014 and was later released by Magnolia Pictures.]

Marah described the appeal of working on Space Cowboy:

Joe Jennings is a cinematographer and Carl Boenish was a cinematographer. They used the same cameras for aerial shots. So it felt like destiny for me. Even though Carl died in 1984, he had passed this legacy in some ways to Joe Jennings. It made sense to me to be part of this film. Bryce and I get along well. It just felt like a good-hearted film. 

Another appeal of the film was the treasure trove of archive footage from Jennings’ career. For TIFF, I’m always looking for films that deliver a big screen experience. Boy, does this ever.