IFC Films acquired Sundance award-winning director Chad Hartigan’s Little Fish, starring Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One, The Sound of Metal), Jack O’Connell (Unbroken, Seberg) Raúl Castillo (We the Animals), and Soko. Little Fish was an official selection at the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival in the US Narrative Competition, and IFC Films plans to release the film on February 5th, 2021.
The seventh annual edition of Miami Film Festival GEMS, which will be held virtually this year from October 8-11, will open with an East Coast Premiere screening of the HBO documentary The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart at Dezerland Park Drive-in, with a virtual introduction by the film’s director, five-time Academy Award-nominee Frank Marshall (Jurassic World, Back to the Future, Jason Bourne).
The re-imagined 2020 San Diego International Film Festival (October 15-18) will open with the third feature film from director Chloé Zhao, NOMADLAND. Other spotlight features include HARRY CHAPIN: WHEN IN DOUBT, DO SOMETHING, BLITHE SPIRIT, FAREWELL AMOR, STARDUST, DRUNK BUS, ONE OF THESE DAYS and HONEYMOOD.
The five-part documentary series, CITY SO REAL, an official Indie Episodic selection at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival where it had its world premiere, will air in an unprecedented one-night, five-hour, commercial-free event on Thursday, October 29 beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET/PT on National Geographic. All five episodes will then be available on Hulu the following day – Friday, October 30.
HBO acquired the feature documentary The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart about the legendary band who wrote more than 1,000 songs, including twenty number one hits throughout their career. The film chronicles the rise of the iconic group, consisting of brothers Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb, their music and its evolution over the years. The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart will debut on HBO later this year and will be available to stream on HBO Max.
NIGHTSTREAM – formed as a banner uniting five US genre festivals — Boston Underground, Brooklyn Horror, North Bend, Overlook, and Popcorn Frights — who have all been affected by COVID-19, unveiled its program of films and special events set to take place virtually next month.
Following its critically acclaimed World Premiere at the Venice Film Festival, Sony Pictures Classics acquired the dramedy film The Duke, directed by Roger Michell (Notting Hill) and starring Oscar winners Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren.
Normally held in late September, Aspen Filmfest moves to October with some of the most buzzed films of the season, including the Frances McDormand “Nomadland,” the new documentary from Oscar-winning Colorado filmmaker Bryan Fogel “The Dissident” and a drive-in screening of the Spike Lee/David Byrne concert film “American Utopia.”
IFC Midnight will release killer-thriller Hunter Hunter, starring Devon Sawa (Final Destination, Idle Hands) and Nick Stahl (Bully, Disturbing Behavior) with Camille Sullivan (The Man in the High Castle), and Summer Howell (Curse of Chucky). The film, directed and written by Shawn Linden, will be released on December 18th, 2020.
The Iranian film Careless Crime (Jenayat-e bi deghat) by Shahram Mokri will have its North American Premiere at the 56th Chicago International Film Festival in the International Feature Film competition after its World Premiere in the Orizzonti competition in Venice, where it was awarded the Bisato d’Oro award.
The Indian short film CatDog directed by Ashmita Guha wins the Orona – Nest Award at the 2020 San Sebastian International Film Festival. The award which comes with 10,000 euros is given to a film “for its bold but intimate storytelling capable of suggesting the depth of fictional and also real power games”. The Speech directed by Haohao Yan received a Special Mention.
”Habitual,” the second feature film from writer/director Johnny Hickey comes to theaters and VOD this November, Friday the 13th. The psychological drug thriller/horror film stars Johnny Hickey, Chris ‘CT” Tamburello (MTV’s Real World and The Challenge), Stanley Bruno, Ally Doody, Anthony Hoang, Jaylee Hickey, Dottie Daigle, and Emilee Fitzpatrick.