The Ashland Independent Film Festival released the complete schedule for its 20th annual festival presented this year as a “double feature”– online, with most films available coast-to-coast from April 15-29, and live and outdoors in Ashland and Medford from June 24-28. AIFF’s 2021 festival will present approximately 100 new independent films, including 35 feature films and a dozen shorts programs, accompanied by Q&A’s with filmmakers, virtual parties, mixers, and panels.
Set in the world of elite skiing, the Cannes-selected #MeToo drama Slalom, from debut filmmaker Charlène Favier, stars Noée Abita and Jérémie Renier (The Child). Slalom opens on April 9 nationwide in virtual cinemas through Kino Marquee and select physical theaters New York at Quad Cinema LA at Laemmle Monica (Santa Monica)
The first trailer debuted for the basketball documentary Alaskan Nets set to make its world premiere at the 36th Santa Barbara International Film Festival in the Documentary Competition on Saturday, April 3rd.
The environmentally-focused film festival EarthxFilm announced ten days and nights of drive-in, outdoor and online screenings during this year’s hybrid edition of the Dallas-based environmental film festival.
Identifying Features, the debut feature from director Fernanda Valadez, is the winner of the 44th Portland International Film Festival’s Future/future competition. The film, an intriguing and confident first feature following a mother’s journey to find out what happened to her son along the Mexican border, was awarded the honor as well as a $1,000 prize.
The official trailer debuted for Hope, the award-winning film written and directed by Maria Sødahl, starring Stellan Skarsgård and Andrea Bræin Hovig. Norway’s Official Selection and Shortlisted Entry for Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards, Hope will have its theatrical (and virtual) release on April 16, 2021.
Profile, the thriller film from Timur Bekmambetov, the director behind the intense Angelina Jolie-led thriller Wanted, will be released on Friday, May 14, 2021 via Focus Features.
The Miami Jewish Film Festival (MJFF) announced the program and plans for the upcoming 24th edition, which will be a hybrid of virtual and live programming events with a record-breaking 145 films in selection, and all screenings accessible for free. Running from April 14-29, three months later than their traditional dates in January, the festival will screen 100 feature films, including eight world premieres, over 20 North American premieres, and 45 short films. The lineup holds 39 first-time feature filmmakers representing 25 countries, and an unprecedented 47 films directed by women (32% of total program).
Nomadland snagged the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures at the virtual Producers Guild of America’s 32nd annual PGA Awards ceremony. Other films receiving awards included My Octopus Teacher for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion Pictures; and Soul for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures.
Smithsonian Channel follows the one and only Cher as she races to Pakistan to help save the “world’s loneliest elephant,” Kaavan. The global superstar lends the power of her celebrity and her enormous drive to a cause that grew out of a global social media campaign, backed by expert wildlife veterinarians, animal aid groups and sanctuary owners. To succeed, the group would have to overcome a series of daunting challenges to move a four-ton elephant more than 2,300 miles in the midst of a global pandemic.
The 2021 Seattle International Film Festival announced its complete lineup of programming for its first-ever virtual edition. The full slate of works includes a grand total of 219 films, including 93 feature length films from 69 countries. The festival will run from Thursday, April 8th to Sunday, April 18th.
Directed by Academy Award-nominated filmmakers Steven Ascher and Jeanne Jordan (HBO’s Emmy-nominated “Raising Renee”), the HBO documentary Our Towns, debuting Tuesday, April 13 (9:00 – 10:40 p.m. ET/PT), is a remarkable portrait of America and how the rise of civic and economic reinvention is transforming small cities and towns across the country.