Algorithms: Blind Chess Players of India

Filmmaker Ian McDonald follows a group of sightless (or severely low-vision) boys in India as they represent their nation in international chess matches geared for the blind. That a blind chess league exists in the first place may be news to many, although chess is actually one of the few contests in which blind and sighted competitors can be on equal footing. A mentor here is adult Charudatta “Charu” Jadhav, a former chess great who lost his vision in adolescence and now coaches young contenders SaiKrishna, Darpan, and Anant in playoffs and tournaments around the world. Charu has a dream of discovering India's first blind chess grand master, but this does not override his sympathy for his students' emotional stresses and their family's anxieties. In a bonus Q&A with the director, McDonald says that he made the decision to shoot entirely in black-and-white because the vibrant color palette of India was too distracting, especially given the subject matter. Other extras include additional scenes, and the short film "Seescapes," an impressionistic piece on blindness that also profiles SaiKrishna and Darpan. Recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (C. Cassady)