If you’re still a bit clueless as to what Bitcoin is, you might want to head to New York and catch a screening of ‘The Rise and Rise of Bitcoin’ at the Tribeca Film Festival.

The Rise and Rise of Bitcoin is a documentary made by brothers Nicholas and Daniel Mross. Daniel is a software developer and a former Bitcoin miner, while Nicholas was the one in charge of documenting the Bitcoin world as experienced by his brother.

The film dives into the world of Bitcoin just as Daniel got involved with it in 2011. It goes into the basics of Bitcoin, such as mining, terms used, what exchange markets are, the who’s-who of the Bitcoin community, and everything a newbie needs to know before deciding if he or she wants to get involved in a cryptocurrency that has gained a lot of attention, especially in 2013 when its value hit the $1,000 mark.

The film also lightly touched upon the controversies the Bitcoin community was faced with in recent months, such as the arrest of BitInstant CEO Charlie Shrem, the fall of Mt.Gox, the FBI’s takedown of the Silk Road, and the controversial fingering of one Dorian Nakamoto as the real “Satoshi Nakamoto”.

The film presents these bumps in the road as events of little consequence to the Bitcoin community; something that had to happen for the cryptocurrency to mature.

“We wanted to stress, too, that bitcoin is a piece of software and it’s public domain. So anything that you tie to it, any externalities, don’t actually have to do with it.

“It’s just a computer program. People are using it a lot of different ways, and that’s what we tried to show, that there’s a lot of different ways people are using it. So, to tie it to just one-particular-use cases, is a little bit short-sighted, I think,” Daniel stated.

After the premier screening of the film, a panel was held which was moderated by New York Times financial markets reporter Nathaniel Popper. Daniel and Nicholas were open to questions from attendees who were mostly from the Bitcoin community, and surprisingly, Shrem was also in attendance albeit wearing an ankle monitor as he’s currently under house arrest for money laundering charges. Shrem tried to make light of the situation he is currently facing and remains positive for his future, Bitcoin, and his involvement in the cryptocurrency.

“Bitcoin belongs to everyone, there’s a place for Bitcoin in the heart of every person. Someday – 10 years from now, 20 years from now – Bitcoin will be powering underlying infrastructure of our banking system, or the way I send money to you, or to me, or from one person in China to pay for a surgery that needs to happen at 2:00 in the morning on a Saturday night, or for anything,” Shrem stated.

Shrem added that he sees Bitcoin as the “people’s currency” and anyone can be involved in it.

Despite the overall positive tone of the movie, it’s noticeable how the Bitcoin community lacks diversity.  As pointed out by Forbes, “The film is a great way to meet the many young white dudes working in Bitcoin.”  The article went on to point out that if it weren’t for the interview with Jennifer Chasky Calvert, head of the the financial crimes unit of the Department of Treasury and a drug dealer who goes by the name of Mr. Bitcoin, the film would not have had any women and non-white people.

“A documentary just captures real life. And a lot of people in Bitcoin are white men in their 20s and 30s,” Nicholas stated. “These are the major players in the space and we just have to capture their stories. We would love to have more diversity but that’s the nature of the beast.”

Another criticism thrown into the documentary’s way was how it was generally a positive view towards the cryptocurrency in which the filmmakers stated that it was quite hard to find people who have negative opinions about Bitcoin.

That’s hard to believe, as there are many who’re yet to be convinced by the cryptocurrency. This includes politicians who do not believe in Bitcoin – even Ron Paul, who supports Bitcoin, said he doesn’t see it as real money.

The Rise and Rise of Bitcoin would have served people better if it told both sides of the story, so viewers can make their own minds up. If the point of the film was for more people to accept it as a real currency, they should have presented an unbiased look of what Bitcoin really is.

Daniel and Nicholas are hoping to nab a distribution deal at the Tribeca Film Festival so more people will be able to watch their documentary.

Bitcoin enthusiasts may also be interested in a second documentary coming out later this year.  Life on Bitcoin received funding from the Kickstarter community. It shows how a couple, Beccy and Austin, lived for the first 100+ days of their marriage by only using Bitcoins. Some might think this impossible, but the couple is out to prove people wrong and show how Bitcoin can play a huge role in anyone’s life.