Film Festivals

  • Palm Springs Cultural Center Adds The Stanley Kramer Film Festival To It’s Annual List of Programs and Events

     Stanley Kramer Film Festival at Camelot Theatres

    The Palm Springs Cultural Center announced a new addition to its annual line-up of cultural programs and special events. The Stanley Kramer Film Festival will debut at Camelot Theatres on Friday, November 15th and run through Sunday, November 17th, 2013. The 2013 event, which is designed to coincide with other Stanley Kramer Centennial events taking place this year, will include special screenings of six of Stanley Kramer’s best-known films. It will also feature special events, and special appearances with actress Karen Sharpe Kramer, Stanley Kramer’s widow, and his daughter, the actress and singer, Katharine “Kat” Kramer. 

    “We are so thrilled that The Palm Springs Cultural Center has elected to create this annual celebration of Stanley’s films, as well as his legacy,” said Karen Sharpe Kramer. “And having it launch during his Centennial celebration makes it even more special to us.” 

    The inaugural edition of The Stanley Kramer Film Festival will open with 1958’s THE DEFIANT ONES, starring Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier as two escaped convicts who are shackled together, and must learn to get along in order to elude capture. 

    “THE DEFIANT ONES was ahead of its time, as were so many of Stanley’s films,” continued Karen Sharpe Kramer.“Set in the American South against the specter of segregation, the two men, one white and one black, are at first motivated to cooperate with one another purely to survive, but gradually, they begin to respect , and even like one another. This was powerful story-telling. Can you imagine that film playing in 1958?”

    The second film in the schedule is 1967’s GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER, starring Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier, and Katharine Hepburn. The film contains what was, at the time, a rare positive representation of the controversial subject of interracial marriage (which was still illegal in 17 states), right up until June 12, 1967, when the Supreme Court struck them down ( just two days after Tracy died).  “Katharine Hepburn never saw the completed version of GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER,” said Katharine “Kat” Kramer (Hepburn’s god-daughter and namesake). “She said the memories of Spencer Tracy were just too painful for her.”

    THE WILD ONE (1953), starring then-heartthrob, Marlon Brando, opens Saturday’s Festival schedule. Often lauded as the first of the “outlaw biker film” movie genre, THE WILD ONE provides a gritty, somewhat romanticized version of the lives and loves of the rebel motorcycle-riding clubs that became popular in California  after World War Two. THE WILD ONE was based on a short story that loosely chronicled an actual event.

    Saturday evening takes audiences from the world of outlaw gangs into the mad, mad world of comedy with the ever-popular film, IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD. Produced and directed by Stanley Kramer in 1963, the epic comedy centers on the search, by a crazy and colorful group of characters, for $ 350,000 in stolen cash. Led by veteran actor Spencer Tracy, IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD features an all-star ensemble cast, including the likes of Edie Adams, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Buddy Hackett, Ethel Merman, Mickey Rooney, Phil Silvers, Terry-Thomas, and Jonathan Winters.

    Sunday morning, November 17th, opens with the powerful drama, JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG, which chronicles the events of the Holocaust, and the post-World War II complexities of the Nuremberg War Trials. Stanley Kramer produced and directed this monumental film, which stars such film greats as Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Maximilian Schell, Werner Klemperer, Marlene Dietrich, Judy Garland, William Shatner,and Montgomery Clift. JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG was nominated for eleven Academy Awards, won two (Best Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay), and earned Stanley Kramer the prestigious Irving G. Thalberg  Memorial Award. 

    The last film of the festival is THE CAINE MUTINY, starring Humphrey Bogart, Van Johnson, Jose Ferrer, and Fred MacMurray. Set during World War II, and based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Herman Wouk, THE CAINE MUTINY was a huge box office success in 1954, and received seven Oscar nominations. It has also been described as featuring Humphrey Bogart’s last great film performance. When the U.S. Navy was hesitant to endorse the film, it was almost lost to history. No studio, at the time, would touch it. Finally, Stanley Kramer, determined to tell the story, purchased the rights to Herman Wouk’s novel himself and set about to produce the film. 

    “The 2013 The Stanley Kramer Film Festival will include a number of wonderful special events,” said Janie Hughes, Project Manager for the festival. “There’s a private Tea with the Kramers for All Access Passholders, an over the top pre-opening party, and a birthday celebration complete with a giant birthday cake. We plan on making this quite an event.”

    Tickets and All Access passes for The Stanley Kramer Film Festival will be available at the Camelot Theatres in Palm Springs, and online, starting Tuesday, October 8th. 

    To purchase tickets in-person, visit the Camelot Theatres Box Office (Open Daily, Call for Hours), 2300 E. Baristo Road, Palm Springs, CA, 92262, Box Office: 760-325-6565. For telephone orders, call: 888-718-4253, or order on-line at: Camelottickets.com 

    TICKET INFORMATION:

    NOTE: All screenings will be held at Camelot Theatres

    PASSES
    All Access Pass $120.00 (includes Tea with the Kramers, Pre-Opening Party, Birthday Party and all screenings)

    INDIVIDUAL TICKETS:
    Pre-Opening Party: $50.00
    Festival Screenings = $13.00 (on sale October 8th)
     
    To purchase your tickets in-person, visit:
    Camelot Theatres Box Office
    (Open Daily, Call for Hours)
    2300 E. Baristo Road,
    Palm Springs, CA, 92262,
    Box Office: 760-325-6565
     
    Telephone Orders: 888-718-4253

    Order online: Camelottickets.com

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  • Montclair Film Festival Announces Contest To Design 2014 Official Poster

    Montclair Film Festival (MFF)

    The Montclair Film Festival (MFF), in partnership with The Montclair Art Museum announced the launch of a contest to design the official poster for the 2014 Montclair Film Festival to be held April 28-May 4, 2014. The winning design will be seen on buses, lampposts, t-shirts, the web, catalogs and, of course, the big screen, as the centerpiece of a dynamic week of 80+ films and events that will comprise the third annual celebration of the art of filmmaking in Montclair. 

    Artwork can be submitted as digital file or as flat art.  Only original artwork will be considered. Image size should be no larger than 11” X 17”. The poster should include the words Montclair Film Festival 2014 and the dates April 28th-May 4th.

    Each entry should include artist’s full name, address, phone number, and a valid e-mail address.

    All entries must be postmarked/emailed by November 25th 2013. One winner will be chosen from all entries in early January by an independent panel of judges. The winner will receive two free tickets to the MFF Opening Night Gala and will be acknowledged on the MFF website.

    For more information, including mailing and email addresses for submission, go to http://montclairfilmfest.org/2014-mff-poster-contest/

    MFF Artistic Director Thom Powers said, “The poster is the focal point of the Festival and we’re excited to open up its design to the creative community who has supported us in our first two years in so many ways.”

    Added Michael Gillespie, Director of Marketing and Communications for the Montclair Art Museum, “We’re happy to join with the Montclair Film Festival in this poster competition.  The Festival, which champions local filmmakers, has become one of the premier cultural events in our area and this is another creative opportunity to showcase area talent.”

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  • 2013 Manhattan Short Film Festival Winners, KIZMET DINER is Gold Medal Winner

    KIZMET DINERKIZMET DINER 

    KIZMET DINER, an 11-minute romantic love story directed by Mark Nunneley of England is the Gold Medal winner of the 16th annual Manhattan Short Film Festival. KIZMET DINER tells the tale of a singing waitress in a diner who finds the song that opens the heart of a disinterested customer. The Silver Medal went to PALE OF SETTLEMENT, directed by Jacob Sillman, an entry from the United States. Pale of Settlement chronicles the adventures of a 10-year-old boy trying to avoid conscription in the Russian army during the Crimean War.

    The Bronze Medal went to I AM A GREAT BIG BALL OF SADNESS, another USA entry adapted from the stage play by Ken Urban and directed by Chris Tyler. The film pushes past the veneer presented by three guests at a cocktail party.

    Reece Noi was voted Manhattan Short Best Actor for his portrayal of a young man coming to terms with the death of his mother in a terrorist bombing in the British short film FRIDAY.

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  • CHASING SHAKESPEARE Starring Danny Glover to Open African Diaspora International Film Festival | TRAILER

    CHASING SHAKESPEARE, directed by Norry Niven and starring Danny Glover and Graham Greene

    CHASING SHAKESPEARE, directed by Norry Niven and starring Danny Glover and Graham Greene, will open the 21st edition of the African Diaspora International Film Festival on November 29th, as a New York Premiere.

    CHASING SHAKESPEARE is described as a beautiful and enchanting love story about a young Native American woman’s search for her destiny and her widower husband’s attempts to reunite with her after her death. Based on a screenplay by James Bird,Chasing Shakespeare recounts the beginning, end and rebirth of a love affair between William and Venus in rural Arkansas. 

    http://youtu.be/0igUrymyWDY

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  • Milwaukee Film Festival Announces 2013 Jury Award Winners; WAR WITCH directed by Kim Nguyen Wins Top Award

     WAR WITCH directed by Kim NguyenWAR WITCH directed by Kim Nguyen

     The 5th Annual Milwaukee Film Festival announced the 2013 Jury Award Winners, for both the Competition and Cream City Cinema Programs, including a Filmmaker-in-Residence Award. WAR WITCH directed by Kim Nguyen is the winner of the Herzfeld Competition Award.  WAR WITCH, described as an inspiring tale of resistance, follows Komona, who at 14 is taken captive by armed rebels and trained to become a child soldier, perpetrating unspeakable acts of violence for her captors. Quickly ascending through the ranks due to her otherworldly sense for approaching danger, Komona finds love in the least likely place with a fellow soldier named Magician, and together they plot their escape.

    2013 MILWAUKEE FILM FESTIVAL JURY AWARDS

    The Herzfeld Competition Award Winner
    WAR WITCH (dir. Kim Nguyen)

    Special Competition Jury Prize
    12 O’CLOCK BOYS (dir. Lotfy Nathan)

    Cream City Cinema: Filmmaker-in-Residence
    Michael T. Vollman, BEFORE YOU

    Special Cream City Cinema Jury Prize
    HABIBEH (THICKER THAN PAINT) (dir. Maryam Sepehri)

    Special Cream City Cinema Jury Prize, Acting
    Logan Lark, WHEN THE KING TILTS

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  • THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM Among Winners of 2013 Woodstock Film Festival

    THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM, directed by Andrew MudgeTHE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM, directed by Andrew Mudge

    The 14th annual Woodstock Film Festival which began Wednesday, October 2nd, and close on Sunday, October 6th, 2013, held its closing Maverick Awards Gala on Saturday night. THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM, directed by Andrew Mudge won the Maverick Award for Best Feature Narrative, and AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY: THE EVOLUTION OF GRACE LEE BOGGS, directed by Grace Lee won the Maverick Award for Best Feature Documentary. The festival also presented director Peter Bogdanovich with the Honorary Maverick Lifetime Achievement Award and the Meera Gandhi Giving Back Award was presented to acclaimed filmmaker and activist Mira Nair.

    The Maverick Award for Best Feature Narrative was presented to: 
    THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM, directed by Andrew Mudge 

    Atang leaves the hustle of Johannesburg to return to his ancestral land of Lesotho, where he must bury his estranged father in the remote, mountainous village where he was born. Stirred by memories of his youth, he falls in love with his childhood friend, Dineo, now a radiant young school teacher. Through her, Atang is drawn toward the mystical beauty and hardships of the people and land he had forgotten.

    Honorable Mention was presented to WINTER IN THE BLOOD, directed by Alex and Andrew Smith

    The Maverick Award for Best Feature Documentary was presented to:
    AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY: THE EVOLUTION OF GRACE LEE BOGGS, directed by Grace Lee

    AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY: THE EVOLUTION OF GRACE LEE BOGGS, directed by Grace LeeAMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY: THE EVOLUTION OF GRACE LEE BOGGS, directed by Grace Lee

    Grace Lee Boggs is a 98-year-old Chinese American woman in Detroit whose vision of revolution may surprise you.  A writer, activist, and philosopher rooted for more than 70 years in the African American movement, she has devoted her life to an evolving revolution that encompasses the contradictions of America’s past and its potentially radical future.

    Honorable Mention was presented to MAGICAL UNIVERSE, directed by Jeremy Workman

    The Maverick Award for Best Animation was presented to: 
    FERAL, directed by Daniel Sousa

    FERAL, directed by Daniel SousaFERAL, directed by Daniel Sousa

    Combining the traditional techniques of sand animation with digital processing, A TANGLED TALE, is the story of a wild boy, found in the woods by a solitary hunter and brought back to civilization. Alienated by a strange new environment, the boy tries to adapt by using the same strategies that kept him safe in the forest.

    Honorable Mention was presented to A TANGLED TALE, directed by Corrie Francis Parks

    The Diane Seligman Award for Best Short Narrative was presented to
    THE EARTH, THE WAY I LEFT IT, directed by Jeff Pinilla

    The Diane Seligman Award for Best Student Short Film was presented to 
    ABOVE THE SEA, directed by Keola Racela;
    Honorable Mention was presented to LATE SPRING, directed by Zachery Kerschberg

    The Diane Seligman Award for Best Short Documentary was presented to 
    POUSTINIA, directed by Kristian Berg
    Honorable Mention was presented to THE BEAST AND THE ANGEL, directed by Shira Piven

    The Haskell Wexler Award for Best Cinematography was presented to 
    THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM, cinematography by Carlos Carvalho

    James Lyons Award for Best Editing of a Feature Narrative was presented to 
    THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM, directed and edited by Andrew Mudge

    James Lyons Award for Best Editing of a Feature Documentary was presented to 
    THE MANOR, directed by Shawney Cohen and edited by Seth Poulin

    Honorary Maverick Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to 
    Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show, Paper Moon)

    Meera Gandhi Giving Back Award was presented to 
    Mira Nair (Salaam Bombay!, Monsoon Wedding, Vanity Fair)

    Tangerine Entertainment Juice Award for Best Female Feature Director was presented to 
    Stacie Passon, director of CONCUSSION

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  • 9th Zurich Film Festival Winners; LA JAULA DE ORO, RENT A FAMILY INC., FINSTERWALDE WORLD, NEULAND Wins Golden Eye Awards

    2013 zurich film festival winning films LA JAULA DE ORO, RENT A FAMILY INC, FINSTERWALDE WORLD , NEULAND, 2013 Zurich Film Festival, Golden Eye for Best Film 

    The 9th Zurich Film Festival awarded its main prize, the Golden Eye for Best Film in the International Feature Film Competition to to LA JAULA DE ORO by Diego Quemada-Diez (Mexico); Golden Eye for Best Film at the International Documentary Film Competition to LEJ EN FAMILY A / S (RENT A FAMILY INC.) by Kaspar Astrup Schroeder (Denmark); Golden Eye for Best Film in the German-Language Feature Film Competition to FINSTERWALDE WORLD by Frauke Finsterwalder (Germany), and Golden Eye for Best Film in the Documentary Competition Germany, Austria, Switzerland to NEULAND by Anna Thommen (Switzerland).

    The Critics ‘Prize goes to FINSTERWALDE WORLD by Frauke Finsterwalder (Germany), the Audience Award goes to JOURNEY TO JAH by Noël Dernesch and Moritz Springer (Germany), and the first time awarded Audience Award of the Section ZFF for children’ given the young audience to BELIEVE by David Schein man (UK).

    The Golden Eye for Best Film in the International Feature Film Competition to: 
    LA JAULA DE ORO by Diego Quemada-Diez (Mexico) 

    LA JAULA DE ORO by Diego Quemada-DiezLA JAULA DE ORO by Diego Quemada-Diez

    “Everything is better in the north”. Juan has decided to leave his impoverished home in Guatemala City and set off on the difficult journey to California with Sara and Samuel, two chance acquaintances. Sara not only cuts off her hair for the trip, but also bandages her youthful breasts and changes her name to Osvaldo. While traveling, the teenagers meet the Indio Chauk, who doesn’t speak Spanish. While Sara takes care of the forlorn boy, Juan sees the paperless child as a new threat to their travel plans, but a ride on the perilous “death train” through Mexico soon has the refugees bonding – until their paths suddenly and unexpectedly separate. Director Diego Quemada-Díez’s well-researched debut follows the infamous Central American migratory path with a group of young amateur actors, who were promptly and rightly awarded the A Certain Talent Prize after the world-premiere screening in Cannes.

    A special mention goes to: 
    the actor Michael B. Jordan FRUITVALE STATION Ryan Coogler (USA)

    The Golden Eye for Best Film at the International Documentary Film Competition to: 
    LEJ EN FAMILY A / S by Kaspar Astrup Schroeder (Denmark) 

    LEJ EN FAMILY A / S by Kaspar Astrup SchroederLEJ EN FAMILY A / S by Kaspar Astrup Schroeder

    On the surface, Ryuichi Ichinokawa leads an ordinary family life. With his own home in a Tokyo suburb, this mid-forties business man lives together with his wife, two children and a Chihuahua. He has various jobs to help him pay the bills – including one that he created himself. Clients of his company, “I Want to Cheer You Up Ltd”, can rent a husband, friend, father, bridesmaid or relatives by the dozen from him. Be it at a wedding, birthday or funeral, Ryuichi and his employees take on any role in order to cast a better light upon their clients. While he is able to embody the perfect husband or the understanding father in his professional life, his ability to fill these roles at home is somewhat lacking. His family knows nothing of his unusual activities, and while his pubescent son sleeps in the marital bed, Ryuichi spends his nights sleeping on the floor in the children’s room. Will he ever realize that in order to help others, he must first help himself?

    A special mention goes to: 
    THESE BIRDS WALK by Omar Mullick and Bassam Tariq (Pakistan)

    THESE BIRDS WALK by Omar Mullick and Bassam TariqTHESE BIRDS WALK by Omar Mullick and Bassam Tariq

    Karachi, Pakistan. The Edhi Home takes in homeless children regardless of whether they have run away from home or been driven out by neglect. For the last sixty years, Abdul Sattar Edhi, the founder of this social institution, has personally cared for the weakest members of society. He provides kids such as 9-year-old Omar with shelter, schooling and love, until, with the help of ambulance driver Asad – himself a former street child – he manages to find his way back to his parents. Filmed over three years, the camera follows Omar and other kids torn between a yearning for freedom and a desire to return home.

    The Golden Eye for Best Film in the German-Language Feature Film Competition to: 
    FINSTERWALDE WORLD by Frauke Finsterwalder (Germany) 

    FINSTERWALDE WORLD by Frauke FinsterwalderFINSTERWALDE WORLD by Frauke Finsterwalder

    A journey through a surreal Germany: A police officer in a bear costume. A female documentary filmmaker who is unable to find an interesting story. A pedicurist who carefully sets aside the hard skin removed from the feet of his aged female patient. A rich couple that refuses to sit in a German-built car. A history student uninterested in a class visit to a concentration camp. A wild man training a raven in the woods. In this anthology film, all are bound by family ties or a moment of coincidence in a country where the sun always shines and everybody is beautiful, polite, successful or happy. That is until they reveal their darker side, and we discover that the step from idyll to inferno is a short one. FINSTERWORLD is an ironic antithesis of the Heimatfilm and full of malicious observations and sharp-tongued remarks. Not even the name of its director Frauke Finsterwalder remains unscathed. Rarely has German cinema produced so much black humor in one fell swoop.

    A special mention goes to: 
    THE WOMAN, THE DARING by Marc Rensing (Germany)

    The Golden Eye for Best Film in the Documentary Competition Germany, Austria, Switzerland to: 
    NEULAND by Anna Thommen (Switzerland) 

    NEULAND by Anna ThommenNEULAND by Anna Thommen

    An unusual scene is witnessed on Basel’s Kasernenareal during the summer of 2010: Dozens of young people are seen standing around in groups trying to follow the talk given by their teacher Mr Zingg. They arrived in Switzerland by plane, train, bus and rubber boat from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Serbia and Venezuela, and today is their first day in an integrated class. Hopes are high that they will connect with their teacher, as it is his job over the next two years to teach them the basics and idiosyncrasies of Swiss culture. Above all, Mr Zingg’s function is to prepare these adolescents, traumatized by the severe turns of fate handed to them, for occupational integration into society. As the end of school draws nearer, each of the young immigrants is faced with the same painful question: Is there a place for me in this country? The filmmaker Anna Thommen followed the students of the Basel Integration Class for two years to create her first feature-length documentary film.

    A special mention goes to: 
    Nan Goldin – I REMEMBER YOUR FACE by Sabine Lidl (Germany)

    The critic of the price Swiss Association of Film Journalists and film journalists (SVFJ) to: 
    FINSTERWALDE WORLD by Frauke Finsterwalder (Germany)

    Audience Award 
    The Audience Award goes to: 
    JOURNEY TO JAH by Noël Dernesch and Moritz Springer (Germany)

    Audience Children’s Movies 
    The Audience Award goes to children’s films: 
    BELIEVE by David Schein Man (UK)

    Treatment-price competition 
    The first prize, awarded for the best treatment goes to the British living in Switzerland for the project STÜRM Dave Tucker – TILL I’M DEAD OR FREE.  

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  • 2013 Brazilian Film and TV Festival of Toronto to Screen Over 40 Films, Opens with THE INVISIBLE COLLECTION

    THE INVISIBLE COLLECTION by Bernard AttalTHE INVISIBLE COLLECTION by Bernard Attal

    The 2013 BRAFFTV – Brazilian Film and TV Festival of Toronto taking place October 16th to October 20th, will feature a line-up of more than 40 films among features, documentaries, animation and shorts with the best recent Brazilian film productions from all genres including drama, comedy, documentary, thriller, children, and ethnographic films. The festival will open on October 16th with the Canadian premiere of the feature THE INVISIBLE COLLECTION by Bernard Attal and the short ENVIRONMENT OF FREEDOM by Pedro Barbosa and Mariana Martins.

    The Competitive Program continues from October 17th to October 20th with 32 films (14 features  and 18 short/mid-length films)  competing for the Golden Maple Award. The Festival closes with the North-American premiere of the documentary MEETING SEBASTIÃO SALGADO directed by Betse de Paula depicting the life and work of one of the most celebrated photographers in the world, Sebastião Salgado.

    BRAFFTV’s Schedule

    OPENING NIGHT at TIFF Bell Lightbox
    October 16th at 7pm

    THE INVISIBLE COLLECTION (A COLEÇÃO INVÍSIVEL)
    Fiction / 89’ / 2012
    Directed by: Bernard Attal

    BRAFFTV’s opening film in 2013 is the award-winning drama, The Invisible Collection. It follows a young man named Beto, played by Vladimir Brichta, as he travels to rural Brazil in search of a rare art collection belonging to an eccentric ex-millionaire. During Beto’s travels, he learns about the subjectivity of beauty and the relativity of privilege. In doing so, he undergoes a personal transformation. The film offers the viewer a fresh perspective on life in Brazil and Bernard Attal’s extraordinary cinematography depicts the incredible beauty of the city of Salvador as well as the damaged forests of Brazil’s cocoa region. The themes of this film include the stark contrast between city life and country life, class differences in Brazil and the massive collapse of the country’s cocoa industry in the 1970s. Additionally, this film is the last work of renowned Brazilian actor Walmor Chagas. Director Bernard Attal built this amazing story of richness and decay based on the documentary “The Magnificent”, winner of best documentary at BRAFFTV 2011. Canadian premiere.

    ENVIRONMENT OF FREEDOM (ÂMBITO DE LIBERDADE)
    screened with THE INVISIBLE COLLECTION
    Documentary / 1’10” / 2013
    Directed by Pedro Barbosa and Mariana Martins

    A drawing teacher teaches that, in reality, the fear is fought with freedom. North American premiere

    FILM PROGRAM AT CARLTON CINEMA

    All films have English subtitles 

    FIRST DAY OF ANY YEAR (PRIMEIRO DIA DE UM ANO QUALQUER)
    Thursday, October 17th at 7 pm
    Fiction / 81’ / 2012
    Directed by Domingos Oliveira

    First Day of Any Year is a touching and funny comedy, a panoramic film where the many characters are seeking a meaning for life. The movie begins at sunrise and ends with the last ray of sun hiding behind the mountains during the first day of the year in a posh house on the outskirts of Rio. Many characters pass along, all in crisis, facing the most varied finitudes and limitations, ending by realizing: life goes on and the world will not end. The director Domingos de Oliveira is the narrator of the film and remind us Ingmar Bergman and Woody Allen’s films. And, such as these two filmmakers Domingos de Oliveira prolific career as an author, director, actor, producer, singer, thinker – with more than one hundred and thirty titles extends from Theatre to Film and TV. His first film, All the Women of the World (1967) is considered the best Brazilian comedies of all times.  North American premiere

    THEY KILLED MY BROTHER (MATARAM MEU IRMÃO)
    Thursday, October 17th at 9 pm
    Documentary / 77’ / 2013
    Directed by: Cristiano Burlan

    In 2001, on the night of October 5, Rafael Burlan was murdered with 7 shots in his back, in Capao Redondo, neighborhood of Sao Paulo. The documentary seeks to rebuild through reports from relatives and friends what was the murder and its consequences in the tragic fate of this family. North American premiere.

    XAPIRI
    Friday, October 19th at 5:30 pm
    Documentary / Experimental / 54’ / 2012
    Directed by Leandro Lima, Gisela Motta, Laymert Garcia dos Santos, Stella Senra and Bruce Albert

    Xapiri is a yanomami word for shamans, as well the spiritual men (xapiri thëpë) as the auxiliary spirits (xapiri pë). It is an experimental film on yanomami shamanism recorded in the Watoricki village, Amazon, during two shamans’s meetings at the Watoriki Village in March 2011 and April 2012. The film takes into account two different concepts of image: the yanomami’s and ours. Therefore, it does not set out to explain shamanism, its methods or procedures, but to allow different cultures to visualize and feel the way in which the shamans “embody” the spirits, their bodies and voices. North American premiere

    CINE HOLLIÚDY
    Friday, October 18th at 7 pm
    Fiction / 100’ / 2012
    Directed by: Halder Gomes

    The massive arrival of television in the countryside of Brazil, in the ’70s, puts in jeopardy the small movie theaters businesses. Francisgleydisson is the owner of Cine Holliudy, and he must be extremely creative to keep his passion for cinema alive. A Brazilian way of showing its passion for the 7Th art, even in the remotes areas. Tornatore’s Cinema Paradiso and Fellini’s Amacord are close references to this current success of Brazilian cinema spoken in local slang. So far the film has only been screened in the state of Ceara, and has has more public than Titanic and other Hollywood blockbusters. A box office hit surprise and an homage to cinema lovers of B films. Canadian premiere.

    MARGARET MEE AND THE MOONFLOWER (MARGARET MEE E A FLOR DA LUA)
    Friday, October 18th at 7:30 pm
    Documentary /  78′ / 2012
    Directed by: Malu de Martino

    Margaret Mee and the Moonflower is a documentary about the life and work of the botanical illustrator, Margaret Mee, a pioneer and a visionary, one of the most important artists of the twentieth century. Through her diaries, interviews and narratives, the film reveals a tireless advocate for the preservation of Brazilian flora, whose love of nature and whose art provide a constant reminder of the need to preserve our environment. Canadian premiere.

    A LONG JOURNEY (UMA LONGA VIAGEM)
    Friday, October 18th at 9 pm
    Documentary / 95’ / 2011
    Directed by Lucia Murat

    The awarded-winner documentarian Lucia Murat continues in this film to portray her struggles and fights against the military dictatorship in Brazil during the sixties and seventies. However, this time, she  follows the long journey of her brother, Heitor, who was sent to London by his family, while she was incarcerated and tortured by the militaries. In London, Heitor dives head on into the “Swinging London” and, just like the European and American youth of the time period, he experiments the mystic allure of India and travels all over the world smuggling drugs and searching for a meaning to his life.  Best Documentary in Malaga Festiva and Paulinia Festival, Best Film in Gramado Festival. North American premiere.

    TRUST ME (CONFIA EM MIM)
    Fiction / 85’ / 2013
    Friday, October 18th at 9:30 pm
    Directed by: Michel Tikhomiroff

    In the thriller Trust Me, Fernanda Machado (Elite Squad) plays Mari, a talented chef, who works hard to save money and open her own restaurant. Until the day she finds Caio, played by famous TV actor Mateus Solano. A charming investor,  he comes up with the money for her dreams to come true. However, things are not always what they seem to be and they find themselves in the midst of lies, corruption, and theft.  World premiere.

    TAINÁ – AN AMAZON LEGEND (TAINÁ – A ORIGEM)
    Saturday, October 19th at 3:30pm
    Fiction / 83’ / 2011
    Directed by: Rosane Svartman

    Friendship, adventure and magic are the main ingredients of the feature Taina – an amazon legend. The film is 100% shot in the Amazon Rainforest, with strong and charming images of people and animals in their real environment. It tells the story of Tainá, a 5 years old orphan Indian girl who dreams of becoming a warrior and discovering her true origin. As a girl, Tainá shouldn’t fight. However, she has her mother’s heritage, who was the last of the Amazon’s lady warriors. With the help of Laurinha, a smart city girl, and Gobí, a nerdy indian. They learn to overcome their mutual differences while going through their eventful journey. Taina confronts biopirates ancestral enemy of her family, Jurupari, the incarnation of Evil, who wants to destroy the Forest while revealing her origin’s mystery. Canadian premiere

    CHESHIRE CAT – THE MANY LIVES OF JOSÉ LEWGOY (EU EU EU JOSÉ LEWGOY)
    Saturday, October 19th at 5pm
    Documentary / 94’/ 2011
    Directed by: Claudio Kahns

    The film depicts the history of one of the most important actors of television and cinema while revealing one of the most egocentric, biting and fascinating characters of Brazilian culture. Jose Lewgoy, who studied drama at Yale, drew a respectful international career filming with the most celebrated filmmakers and actors of this generation. He went from independent French movies in the beginning of his career to Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo, and many other productions for TV and theatres. Lewgoy travelled through decisive moments in the development of the Brazilian cultural movement. Very well documented with footages from all over the world, the narrative is conducted in a non-chronological sequence. His personal recordings unveil the dreams behind the persona, the sweet and sour sides. The movie shows decisive moments with interviews from friends, movie directors and professional colleagues (like Millôr Fernandes, Werner Herzog and Tônia Carrero).  Canadian premiere.

    HELIO OITICICA
    Saturday, October 19th at 5:30pm
    Documentary / 94’ / 2012
    Directed by: Cesar Oiticica Filho

    The film allows a unique immersion in the thoughts, the trajectory and the intimacy of Hélio Oiticica, one of the greatest artists Brazil has ever produced. The narration is made by the artist himself who conducts us through one of Brazilian culture’s most fertile periods of time. Helio Oiticica and the filmmaker Julio Bressane make a docufilm from historic tapes, or as named by Haroldo de Campos, Heliotapes: cassete tapes Oiticica exchanges and sends to his artist and writer friends. The documentary is a collection of these tapes, movies made by Oiticica himself and others who filmed him in his works. All these creating this delirium ambulatorium in which the artist tells us about his life in a kaleidoscope of the 1960’s and 1970’s culture, finally enabling us to be presented to Hélio Oiticica by himself. North American premiere.

    ETERNAL AMAZON (AMAZÔNIA ETERNA)
    Saturday, October 19th at 7 pm
    Documentary / 88′ / 2012
    Directed by: Belisario Franca

    The Amazon rainforest is a living laboratory for sustainable experiments that unveil new relationships between human beings, corporations and this natural heritage. It is there that new guidelines are being drawn up for a new global economic model: the green economy. But how much are the services really worth? And who should profit from them? At a time when the world is discussing the impact of human actions on the environment, Eternal Amazon presents a critical analysis of how the world’s largest tropical rainforest is understood and appreciated. The documentary reveals successful initiatives, exploring possibilities with specialists and plunging into a sensorial journey through the daily lives of Amazon rainforest dwellers.  North American  premiere.

    BUDDIES (COLEGAS)
    Saturday, October 19th at 7:30pm
    Fiction / 103’ / 2012
    Directed by: Marcelo Galvão

    Buddies is a road movie that shows the simple things in life in a poetic light through the eyes of three young people with Down syndrome, who love movies and work at the video library of the institution where they have always lived in. One day, inspired by the movie “Thelma & Louise”, they decide to run away using the gardener’s old car to have a freedom experience. They travel to uncommon places in search for three simple wishes: Stalone wants to see the sea, Aninha looks for a husband and Marcio needs to fly. During this search, they embark on several adventures as if life was just a children’s play. Canadian premiere

    WORLD’S WEST END (A OESTE DO FIM DO MUNDO)
    Saturday, October 19th at 9 pm
    Fiction / 102” / 2013
    Directed by: Paulo Nascimento

    When nothing else remains, it might not be the end, but the beginning. Argentina. An old gas station lost in the outskirts of the old transcontinental highway is Leon’s haven. A man of few words, gestures and no friends, his solitude is only broken by the occasional truck that stops by to refuel and by the humorous visits made by the sarcastic Silas, a biker who looks like a retired hippie.  With the unexpected and mysterious arrival of Ana both men’s routines are thrown off-balance. At the foot of the towering Andes, well-hidden secrets come to light, reopening wounds and changing forever the characters’ lives. North-American premiere

    MARCELO YUKA: FOLLOW THE SIGNS (MARCELO YUKA NO CAMINHO DAS SETAS)
    Saturday, October 19th at 9:30pm
    Documentary / 95’ / 2011
    Directed by: Daniela Broitman

    A musician with a social message, Yuka was at the height of his success as the songwriter, drummer and leader of O Rappa – one of the lead Brazilian pop-rock bands in the nineties. But in 2000, nine gunshots during a robbery in Rio de Janeiro put him in a wheelchair at age 34. This documentary accompanies Yuka’s transformation since then, revealing his irreverence and complexity as an artist and activist. While searching for physical, mental and spiritual health, Yuka takes risks with new sounds and becomes in one of the main voices of social justice and peace in Brazil.  North American premiere.

    COMPLETE FEIJOADA (FEIJOADA COMPLETA)
    Thursday, October 17th at 7 pm, screened with First Day of Any Year
    Fiction / 20’/ 2012
    Directed by Angelo Defanti

    This story is not about Pedro. Pedro is a good guy, even when asleep, and he is friendly to everybody. This story could be about Pedro, but instead, it is about Carol, his wife, and how she is fed up with so much goodness. Based on the short story by Luis Fernando Verissimo, inspired on the song by Chico Buarque. Canadian premiere

    SORRY
    Thursday, October 17th at 7pm screened with First Day of Any Year
    Fiction / 2’20” / 2013
    Directed by: Rodrigo Pesavento and Ian Ruschel

    Flesh, Blood & Apologies. This surprisingly and dark humouristic film is a creative collective from the group The Wolfpack. North American premiere

    IRON CRIB (BERÇO DE FERRO)
    Thursday, October 17th at 9 pm screened with They Killed My Brother
    Documentary / 16’12 / 20132
    Directed by Rafaela Galindo

    The documentary reveals the reality of women living in “Colônia Penal Feminina do Bom Pastor” (a female prison), where mothers and children narrow their bonds for a short period of six months. North American premiere. Director in attendance

    MAUÁ SURROUNDINGS (MAUÁ, LUZ AO REDOR)
    Thursday, October 18th at 9 pm screened with THEY KILLED MY BROTHER
    Documentary / 5’ / 2012
    Directed by Juliana Vicente

    In downtown of São Paulo, the Mauá Community is now threatened to be evicted. The documentary presents the struggle, arrival, dreams and destination of the people who do not want to return to their homeless condition.  North American premiere

    SANÃ
    Friday, October 18th at 5:30pm screened with XAPIRI
    Documentary / 18’ / 2013
    Directed by: Marcos Pimentel

    In the beautiful scenery of the scorching dunes of Maranhão state, an albino boy and his searches amidst the immense landscape of sand and sea. Best Short Documentary at All is True Festival.  North American premiere. 

    QUINHA
    Friday, October 18th at 7pm screened with CINE HOLLIÚDY
    Fiction / 19’ / 2012
    Directed by: Caroline Oliveira

    A little girl, Quinha, and her mother, Rosa, head out through the Northeast region of Brazil to go to Quinha’s baptism. During this journey, both women search for their own miracles: Quinha looks for signs of magic, while Rosa hopes for her estranged husband’s return. Despite a few unexpected bumps in the road, they both manage to find small moments of salvation along the way. North American premiere

    INVISIBLE PICTURE (RETRATO INVISÍVEL)
    Friday, October 18th at 7:30 pm screened with MARGARET MEE AND THE MOONFLOWER
    Fiction / 20’/ 2012
    Directed by Denise Soares

    Young Monica has a busy day-to-day life taking care of her grandfather, who is in a vegetative state. Her routine is shaken by the unexpected visit of her friend Lara, who will unveil secrets unknown even to Monica. North American premiere

    THE STORY OF THE BOYS WHO WALKED AT NIGHT (A HISTÓRIA DOS MENINOS QUE ANDAVAM DE NOITE)
    Friday, October 18th at 9 pm screened with A Long Journey
    Fiction / 16’ / 2013
    Directed by: Flavio Barone

    Diego is forced to spend the holiday with his second disabled cousin, Vicente, what seems boring. That changes into a journey of adventure and friendship when he discover the secrets that inhabit the shadows of the farm. North American premiere

    SUASSUNA (SUASSUNA, A PELEJA DO SONHO COM A INJUSTIÇA)
    Friday, October 18th  at 9:30 pm screened with TRUST ME
    Documentary / 8’/ 2013
    Directed by Filipe Gontijo and O. Silva

    The life and thoughts of a libertarian writer, Ariano Suassuna, one of the most popular authors in Brazil. The animation is inspired by the rhymes and illustrations etched into wood a common art form from Brazil’s hinterland, where the writer came from. North American premiere

    BOY AT FIVE (MENINO DO CINCO)
    Friday, October 18th at 9:30 pm screened with TRUST ME
    Fiction / 20′ / 2012
    Directed by: Marcelo Matos de Oliveira and Wallace Nogueira

    Richard finally finds a friend, but he can’t be of his friend. Best Short Film, Best Actor at Gramado Festival,  North American premiere. 

    THE ADVENTURES OF TECA (AVENTURAS DA TECA)
    Saturday, October 18th at 3:30 pm screened with TAINA- AN AMAZON LEGEND
    Animation /3’ / 2012
    Directed by: Lucia Araujo

    Animated skits about friendship and family.  North American premiere. 

    THIS IS KAREN JONZ
    Saturday, October 19th at 5 pm screened with CHESHIRE CAT – THE MANY LIVES OF JOSÉ LEWGOY
    Documentary / 8´15´´/ 2012
    Directed by: Alex Kundera

    The life of a Brazilian girl who lives by doing only what she likes. North American premiere

    CONFETTI (CONFETE)
    Saturday, October 19th at 5:30 pm screened with HELIO OITICICA
    Documentary / 18’ / 2011
    Directed by: Mariana Kaufman and Jo Serfaty

    Confetti follows the wistful path of these tiny specks of paper through Rio de Janeiro’s street carnival: from manufacturing to the celebrations exploding in the streets, and to the trash bins, where it all ends on Ash Wednesday. ‘Confetti’ accompanies the of masses of human bodies, suspended in time by the pulsing colors and sounds one of the world’s largest street carnivals. Canadian premiere

    LULLABY (ACALANTO)
    Saturday, October 19th at 7 pm screened with ETERNAL AMAZON
    Fiction / 23′ / 2013
    Directed by: Arturo Saboia

    An illiterate lady seeks to soothe the missing of her son asking for a friend to read several times the same unique and old letter sent by her son ten years ago. Through these readings, a great friendship and complicity were born between them. Cannes Court Métrage  2013. North American premiere

    PATIO
    Saturday, October 19th at  9 pm screened with WORLD’S WEST END
    Documentary / 17’ / 2013
    Directed by: Ali Muritiba

    In a prison yard they play football and talk about freedom. Best Short Film at It’s All True Film  Festival. Cannes Critic’s Week 2013. North American premiere

    THE PACKAGE (O PACOTE)
    Saturday, October 19th at 9:30 pm screened with MARCELO YUKA: FOLLOW THE SIGNS
    Fiction / 18’ / 2013
    Directed by: Rafael Aidar

    In the outskirts of Sao Paulo, the young Leandro starts in a new school. In the classroom, he meets Jefferson who introduces him to his new group of friends. As the days go by, the boys hit it off and grow more intimate until they decide to be together as a couple. Their relationship is at stake when Jefferson informs Leandro that he is HIV-positive. Facing the news, Leandro must decide whether they continue in this romantic relationship or not. Nominated do the Teddy Award: 63º Berlin International Film Festival. Canadian premiere.

    Special Program (Non Competitive) 

    FOREIGN EYES

    MOACIR
    Sunday, October 20th at 4pm
    Argentina / Documentary / 75’ / 2011
    Directed by Tomas Lipgot

    Moacir is a Brazilian man who has been living in Argentina for 25 years. He is semi-illiterate and, despite his lack of any formal musical education, possesses an amazing talent for singing. At the age of 65 and with a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia, Moacir seemed to be just another case of a helpless patient. However, after 15 years of being hospitalized, he is granted his freedom and leaves the Borda Psychiatric Hospital. This story follows Moacir’s passionate endeavor to fulfill his greatest desire: to make a record of his songs, which have been lost for more than 25 years. This is a tale riddled with stridency, music, dance, confrontations, chaos, humor and charm. North American premiere

    KID’S SESSION

    Brazilian films for small kids. In Portuguese.

    DETECTIVES OF THE BLUE BUILDING (DETETIVES DO PRÉDIO AZUL)
    Saturday, October 19th at 2pm
    Fiction / 26’/ 2013
    Directed by: André Pellenz

    Three friends Tom, Mila and CapimIn live in an old blue building. They are neighbours. Every afternoon they get together and try to solve the problems of the building. North American premiere

    HAUNTED TALES (HISTÓRIAS ASSOMBRADAS)
    Saturday, October 19th at 2pm
    Animation / 15’/ 2005
    Directed by: Victor-Hugo Borges

    Three short stories your grandma never told you….. because you would have wet your bed…North American premiere

    THE OTHER DOLL
    Saturday, October 19th at 2pm
    Animation / 10’ / 2013
    Directed by: Humberto Avelar

    An enchanted world where magic creatures live in harmony with real people, this special series is adapted from the fantastic works of Monteiro Lobato, one of Brazil’s greatest writers. North American premiere

    BRAH-ZOO-KAH 
    Three films produced by Brazilians living abroad.

    GARIBOUS
    Saturday, October 19th  at 2:30pm
    Burkina Fasso / Documentary / 47’/ 2013
    Directed by Denis Franco Goedelt

    Recounts the lives of over 1 million children between 5 to 17 years living in West Africa in a situation analogous-slavery. The documentary aims to present this social phenomenon in Burkina Faso, showing the public why these children named Garibous or Talibes live inhumanely, without any right. North American premiere

    HEALERS
    Saturday, October 19th  at 2:30pm
    Canada / Documentary / 30’/ 2013
    Directed by Gabi Veras

    Healers tells the story of a woman known as Dona Josefa who has been a healthcare worker, midwife, and community leader for over 50 years. Director in Attendance

    FOOD FOR ALL
    Saturday, October 19th  at 2:30pm
    Canada / Documentary / 23’21” / 2012
    Directed by Marcelo Paolinelli

    Food for All investigates the alternative food system created by one of Brazil’s largest cities, Belo Horizonte, which in 1993 declared that food was a basic right of citizenship. The film explores captivating stories of people whose lives were transformed by Belo’s inspiring “food with dignity” programs. Director in Attendance

    CLOSING SCREENING AND AWARDS CEREMONY

    MEETING SEBASTIÃO SALGADO
    Sunday, October 20th at 5:30 pm
    Documentary / 75’ / 2013
    Directed by Betse de Paula

    Sebastiao Salgado is one of the world’s most famous photographers. Betse de Paula’s pleasingly informal film about the photographer is very much a family affair–almost a home movie.  No photographer in recent years has more selflessly travelled the world in search of beauty and sublimity. North American Premiere

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  • LABOR DAY and THE SACRAMENT Added to 49th Chicago International Film Festival Lineup

     Ti West’s THE SACRAMENT starring Amy Seimetz and Joe SwanbergTi West’s THE SACRAMENT starring Amy Seimetz and Joe Swanberg

    Jason Reitman’s LABOR DAY starring Kate Winslet, Josh Broslin and Tobey Maguire and Ti West’s THE SACRAMENT starring Amy Seimetz and Joe Swanberg have been added to the the 49th Chicago International Film Festival lineup. The festival runs ths year from October 10 to 24, 2013.

    THE SACRAMENT USA (Director: Ti West) – A chilling new thriller from acclaimed genre auteur Ti West (House Of The Devil) and producer Eli Roth, The Sacrament follows three reporters to remote Christian commune Eden Parish, where the residents’ sunny disposition hides dark secrets. When the Parish turns menacing, the reporters find themselves helpless in the middle of nowhere. Brilliantly written and acted by a fantastic cast of indie film all-stars, The Sacrament pushes at the boundaries of the “found-footage” format to create a different kind of horror movie.

    LABOR DAYLABOR DAY

    LABOR DAY USA (Director: Jason Reitman) – Labor Day centers on 13-year-old Henry Wheeler, who struggles to be the man of his house and care for his reclusive mother Adele (Kate Winslet) while confronting all the pangs of adolescence. On a back-to-school shopping trip, Henry and his mother encounter Frank Chambers (Josh Brolin), a man both intimidating and clearly in need of help, who convinces them to take him into their home and later is revealed to be an escaped convict.  The events of this long Labor Day weekend will shape them for the rest of their lives.

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  • GRAVITY to Open 2013 Leeds International Film Festival; Fest Announces Film Lineup

     GRAVITY, starring George Clooney and Sandra BullockGRAVITY, starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock

    The sci-fi drama GRAVITY, starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock, will open the 27th Leeds International Film Festival (LIFF27) on Wednesday November 6, 2013. From Alfonso Cuarón, the director of Children of Men, Gravity is described as “a unique and unforgettable cinema experience about a brilliant medical engineer on her first shuttle mission with a veteran astronaut. On a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes.”  Closing LIFF27 on Thursday November 21, 2013, is a rare screening of Hungarian director Gyórgy Pólfi’s unique FINAL CUT: LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, described as “an irresistible celebration of cinema, telling the ultimate love story using tiny excerpts from hundreds of movies ranging across film history.”

    LIFF27 runs from Wednesday November 6th until Thursday 21st, and includes 163 feature films, short film programs and events, presented at over 250 screenings. The line-up is arranged across five main program sections: the Official Selection for previews and new discoveries; Retrospectives; Fanomenon for genre cinema; Cinema Versa for documentaries; and Short Film City.

    The Official Selection includes some of the most acclaimed films of the year including the winner of the Palme d’Or at this year’s 2013 Cannes Film Festival, BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOUR. Other award winners in the Official Selection include Romanian drama CHILD’S POSE, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, Alexander Payne’s NEBRASKA (Best Actor for Bruce Dern) and Alain Guiraudie’s STRANGER BY THE LAKE (Un Certain Regard, Best Director). 

    The Official Selection also includes new discoveries, including Kazakh director Emir Baigazin’s debut HARMONY LESSONS and THE STRANGE LITTLE CAT from German film student Ramon Zürcher, a minimalist depiction of domestic mayhem over one day in a Berlin flat. Receiving its UK Premiere at Leeds, CONCRETE NIGHT is the latest feature from veteran Finnish filmmaker Pirjo Honkasalo, a drama about a teenage boy’s downfall.

    LIFF27 retrospective program ranges from rare opportunities to rediscover forgotten gems to celebrated classics including Walerian Borowczyk, the Polish animator and avant-gardist and Japanese master,Masaki Kobayashi with rare cinema screenings of his samurai classics Hara-Kiri and Samurai Rebellion alongside his milestone Japanese wartime epic, the 579-minute THE HUMAN CONDITION. 

    The Fanomenon section is the home of cult and fantasy cinema and includes the South Korean action blockbuster COLD EYES, receiving its UK Premiere in Leeds, and a unique cinema presentation for the complete animated BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, screening with a brand new documentary about Frank Miller. 

    Cinema Versa focuses on documentary films showcases low budget, independent features: alternative music docs, grassroots political activist films and profiles of mavericks and outsiders. The Music on Film lineup ranges from the unconventional new tour film MISTAKEN FOR STRANGERS about indie darlings The National made by the singer’s brother to HARLEM STREET SINGER about the legendary ragtime guitarist Reverend Gary Davis, whose history mirrors that of popular music in the twentieth century.  Underground Voices ranges in subject matter from everyday life in a war zone as filmed by a group of ordinary Afghans in MY AFGHANISTAN to the history of hand crafted sign painting in the USA in SIGN PAINTERS and a delegation of artists and scientists visiting the melting ice caps of Greenland in EXPEDITION TO THE END OF THE WORLD. 

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  • CBGB Film Festival Announces 2013 Film Lineup; Kicks off With BROADWAY IDIOT and CBGB Film

    BROADWAY IDIOTBROADWAY IDIOT

    The CBGB Film Festival taking place in New York City from Wednesday, October 9 to Sunday, October 13, 2013, announced the 2013 official film lineup of over 60 feature films and shorts. The fest will kick off with BROADWAY IDIOT, a documentary following Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong and the making of his Broadway bound American Idiot; and the US theatrical premiere of the feature film, CBGB.

    THE 2013 CBGB FILM FESTIVAL LINE UP

    BROADWAY IDIOT
    U.S. Theatrical Premiere
    Director: Doug Hamilton
    Broadway Idiot follows Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong from a punk rock concert at Madison Square Garden to the opening of his musical American Idiot on Broadway – only ten blocks away, but worlds apart. A look behind the curtain into the crazy journey of turning the mega-hit album into a punk rock musical – and ultimately see how the world of theater transformed Billie Joe.

    CBGB
    U.S. Premiere
    Director: Randall Miller
    CBGB follows the story of Hilly Kristal’s New York club from its conceit as a venue for Country, Bluegrass and Blues (CBGB) to what it ultimately became: the birthplace of underground rock ‘n roll and punk. When Kristal had difficulty booking country bands in his club on the Bowery he opened his doors to other kinds of rock music. Kristal had one demand of the acts he booked; they could only play original music. No top 40’s, no covers. It was the credo he lived by, support the artist at whatever the cost. Hilly Kristal ironically became known as the godfather of punk giving a chance to such bands as Blondie, Television, Ramones, Talking Heads, Dead Boys and The Police. Cast includes Alan Rickman, Ashley Greene, Malin Akerman, Stana Katic, Rupert Grint, Johnny Galecki, Justin Bartha, Freddy Rodriguez, Ryan Hurst, Richard de Klerk, Ahna O’ Reilly, Donal Logue and Katherine DuBois,  

    EVERY EVERYTHING: THE MUSIC, LIFE & TIMES OF GRANT HART
    World Premiere
    Director: Gorman Bechard
    A rock & roll “Fog of War” about Hüsker Dü’s legendary singer/songwriter Grant Hart. Director Bechard will be on hand to show clips from this unfinished film and discuss what the factors were that made him so interested in making this movie 

    THE STARCK PROJECT
    World Premiere
    Director: Michael Cain  
    A feature documentary set in 1980s, Bible Belt Dallas at the infamous STARCK Club. This world premiere includes appearances from the late Larry Hagman, Owen Wilson and this year’s CBGB Icon Award Winner Seymour Stein

    THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION SHOW
    World Premiere
    Director: Shaun Pettigrew
    A music documentary exploring the turbulent, controversial and often unbelievable 30 year history of British post punk industrial band Killing Joke.

    THE ESG STORY
    World Premiere
    Director: Greg Harding
    The E.S.G. Story gives the real story of the legendary post-punk/funk band from their beginnings in the projects of Bronx, New York in the early 80’s as a group of 3 sisters, encouraged by their Mother to make music, to current day where their passion to create genre-bending music still drives them to make albums and tour the world as a family.  E.S.G. has been exciting the world with their music for over 33 years, and show no sign of stopping. Being shown as a work in progress with director Greg Harding in attendance.

    GEEK USA
    World Premiere
    Director: Brandon Walz
    Phil is a high school senior lacking in popularity. That all changes when his band wins a battle of the bands concert and turns him from an unknown geek to the most eligible bachelor for prom. At first, Phil’s newfound popularity is boost of self-esteem, but problems arise when three very attractive girls want him as their date to the prom. Filled with 90’s nostalgia and alternative rock, Geek USA is a throwback to heartfelt and hilarious teen comedies of a now very distinguished decade.

    AUTOLUMINESCENT
    US Premiere
    Director: Richard Lowenstein
    This documentary traces the life of Rowland S Howard, who appeared on the early Melbourne punk scene. A beautifully gaunt and gothic aristocrat, the unique distinctive fury of his guitar style shot him directly into the imagination of a generation. Narrated by Henry Rollinse

    DUTCH INFLUENCE
    US Premiere
    Directors: Samuel Comazzi, Hatib el Khatib
    The beat starts to rise, a sea of hands fills the air and the crowd surges.  Welcome to the world’s most dynamic new music scene.  Buckle up for an energetic ride as Armin van Buuren, Tiësto, Afrojack, Laidback Luke and other leaders in the House Dance movement invite us into their lives.  Recognized by few in Holland, but at Miami Music Week they’re superstars who are rapidly redefining a genre and taking over the globe’s hottest clubs.

    HEART OF BRUNO WIZARD
    US Premiere
    Director: Elisabeth Rasmussen
    Bruno Wizard is a London punk musician who became an underground legend for his original performances and ‘mystery man’ status in the mid 70’s. He performed at the Roxy club alongside The Jam, Generation X and The Wire, and was part of the ‘Blitz kids’ scene, squatting with the Warren Street mafia. His loathing of the establishment and conventional music industry made him reject record company contracts and follow his own heart and principles at any cost.

    LIVIN OUT ROCK N ROLL
    US Premiere
    Director: Paulo Sedarazzi
    Livin out Rock n Roll is about the dirty disregarded history of the London 80s rock scene, the story of the Baby Teenage Idols as told by the people who somehow manage to survive it.

    LOCKED IN A GARAGE BAND
    US Premiere
    Director: Jennifer Westcott
    The feuding members of a high school rock band get locked in their garage for a day. With loyalties divided and betrayals revealed, six teens on the brink of adulthood re-examine what they thought living the rock ‘n roll dream was all about. Starring Scott Lyster, Andrew Jenkins, Ella Simon, Katelyn Wallace, Brittney Wilson and Luke Jennings, LOCKED IN A GARAGE BAND is the first feature film from Vancouver Island’s intrepid filmmaking sisters, Jennifer Westcott and Victoria Westcott. “Move over The Breakfast Club, there’s a new teen cult comedy in town.” Views from the Edge

    PAUL KELLY, STORIES OF ME
    US Premiere
    Director: Ian Darling
    PAUL KELLY, STORIES OF ME charts the lives, loves and losses of Paul Kelly, Australia’s most gifted contemporary singer-songwriter. Over 40 years, Paul Kelly has seen failure and success. And he has the songs to show for it.

    PLEASE TO MEET ME
    US Premiere
    Director: Archie Borders
    The lead singer of a seminal punk band reunites with his former partner to form a band for a single day. Starring Aimee Mann, John Doe, Loudon Wainwright.

    ROMEO AND JULIET: A LOVE SONG
    US Premiere
    Director: Tim Van Dammen
    A hip-hop operatic version of the Shakespeare classic comes to life in this brand new version of the timeless and tragic tale.


    SVENGALI
    US Premiere
    Director: John Hardwick  
    Svengali tells the story of “Dixie” (Johnny Owen), a postman from South Wales, and a music fanatic. All his life he’s dreamed of discovering a great band and then one day, trawling through YouTube, he finds them…’The Premature Congratulations’. He hunts them down and offers them his management services. They are young, arrogant, sexy, and utterly magnificent. Co-starring Martin Freeman

    THE MONTREAL UNDERGROUND
    US Premiere
    Director: Giuliano Bossa
    This documentary examines the life and struggles of  musicians in the DIY local scene of Montreal following different musicians and bands that are and have been keeping the scene alive for more than 25 years, and through it, the evolution of the city. The rise and fall of venues, of the music industry, of different genres, and the fight to continue making music against all odds.

    BABE AND RICKY’S INN 
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Ramin Niami
    The film chronicles the last days of one of the most unique and vibrant blues clubs in the world and based in LA.        

    BAD BRAINS: A BAND IN DC
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Mandy Stein, Benjamin Logan
    How four young men from Washington DC changed music forever.                

    BAYOU MAHARAJAH: THE TRAGIC GENIUS OF JAMES BOOKER
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Lily Keber
    Bayou Maharajah: The Tragic Genius of James Booker explores the life, times and music of piano legend James Booker, who Dr. John described as “the best black, gay, one-eyed junkie piano genius New Orleans has ever produced.”

    BROTHERS HYPNOTIC
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Reuben Atlas
    Eight brothers, extraordinary brass musicians from Chicago’s South Side, test their brotherhood and their father’s legacy against mounting mainstream success.

    CHURCHES, SALONS, BARS
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Tyler Casey
    Indie rock band Titanmoon makes an album in Fort Worth and Dallas, Texas, along with people from all over the globe.

    ¡CUATRO!
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Tim Wheeler
    A look at how Green Day’s three-album collection – ¡Uno!, ¡Dos! and ¡Tre! – came together as the trio went back to its roots.                

    DAVID BROMBERG UNSUNG TREASURE
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Beth Kruvant
    A look into the life of David Bromberg who is still playing his tunes in front of audiences around the world.

    DON’T ASK ME QUESTIONS
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Michael Gramaglia
    Don’t Ask Me Questions is about the life and music career of Graham Parker and the Rumor. Featuring Bruce Springsteen, Paul Rudd, Judd Apatow and many others, the film follows the bands short career of international acclaim and their unlikely reunion 30 years after breaking up.

    DON’T FOLLOW ME (I’M LOST)
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: William Miller
    An intimate “fly on the wall” documentary about iconoclastic rocker Bobby Bare Jr., son of country music legend Bobby Bare, and his struggles dealing with the repercussions of a perpetual life on the road- the constant separation and the disconnect from loved ones back home.        

    FILMAGE: THE STORY OF THE DESCENDENTS/ALL
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Matt Riggle, Deedee Lacour
    The story of the influential punk band and their endless quest for pop, angst, love and coffee.

    HOW TO GROW A BAND
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Mark Matteo
    Chris Thile is at a crossroads. His marriage has ended and his platinum- selling band, Nickel Creek, has gone on hiatus. But Thile, a prodigy who has defied expectations since he picked up the mandolin at age five, has a plan.

    JUST LIKE BEING THERE
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Scout Shannon
    A documentary about cutting-edge poster artists like Daniel Danger and Jay Ryan who have breathed new life into the art form.

    LAST FAST RIDE
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Lily Scourtis Ayers
    She was smart, beautiful and talented, and as lead singer of The Insaints, would-be rock star Marian Anderson reigns as one of the Bay Area’s most provocative and controversial lead singers of the ’90’s punk scene. Narrated by pop-culture icon Henry Rollins.          

    LOUDER THAN LOVE: THE GRANDE BALLROOM
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Tony D’Annunzio
    While the rest of the country was listening to the laid back sounds of the West Coast during the “Summer of Love” in 1967, Detroit was creating a sound that was “LOUDER THAN LOVE.” Featuring footage of such rock icons like Roger Daltrey, Alice Cooper, Ted Nugent, Wayne Kramer, James Williamson, Slash, Don Was, B.B King, Henry Rollins and many more tell the story of the Grande Ballroom and its effect on not only the Detroit Rock scene but on the World of Rock Music.        

    MY FATHER & THE MAN IN BLACK
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Jonathan Holiff
    Starring: Johnny Cash, Saul Holiff, June Carter
    My Father and The Man In Black tells the inside story of “bad boy” Johnny Cash, his talented but troubled manager, Saul Holiff, and a son searching for his father in the shadow of a legend. Before there was Johnny and June, there was Johnny and Saul.

    SACRIFICIAL YOUTH
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Joe Losurdo
    Sacrificial Youth is a Hardcore Punk musical that tells the story of TJ, a teenager caught at the crossroads of growing up and fight back.                

    STRUTTER
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Allison Anders, Kurt Voss
    An aspiring L.A. rocker loses both his band and his girl, but gains the friendship of his own local rock hero in this sweet and humanistic comedy. 

    THE LIBRARIAN & THE BANJO        
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Jim Carrier
    The inspiring true story of a music librarian Dena Epstein who labored 25 years to document the musical contributions of African Slaves to the New World. Her work, now considered classic, shattered myths and stereotypes, proved that the banjo was a slave instrument, and sparked a remarkable revival of black string band music.

    THE SCENE: AN EXPLORATION OF MUSIC IN TORONTO
    East Coast Premiere
    Director:  Josh Jensen
    A documentary film project that chronicles the lives of independent musicians as they build their careers in the Canadian music industry.

    TROPICALIA
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Marcelo Machado
    Set Against the turbulent atmosphere of the 1960’s, Tropicalia is a feature length documentary exploring the Brazilian artistic movement known as Tropicalia, and the struggle its artists endured to protect their right to freely express revolutionary thought against the traditional Brazilian music of that time.

    VIVA VIVA
    East Coast Premiere
    Director: Carolina Pfister
    Steeped in the riotous music of urban chaos, meet two generations shaping a global culture of dissent. From the slums to the city center of San Paulo, Brazil, the punks invite us to open our eyes. Viva Viva!

    LED ZEPPELIN PLAYED HERE
    NY Premiere
    Director: Jeff Krulik
    Is it just an old fable that Led Zeppelin played the Wheaton Youth Center in Wheaton MD during their first historic tour in January 1969? Or did it really happen??????

    NEVER RECORDS-YOU’RE NOT LISTENING
    NYC Premiere
    Director: Jason Wyche
    A feature length documentary set in Northern Ireland by Jason Wyche about artist/musician Ted Riederer and his ongoing Never Records project. The documentary explores the power of art and music to unite, educate, and uplift a community.

    GREENWICH VILLAGE; THE MUSIC THAT DEFINED A GENERATION
    NY Premiere
    Director: Laura Archibald
    A feature-length documentary about the Greenwich Village music scene and how it sparked everlasting political, social and cultural changes. For the first time, the greatest singer-songwriters, authors and performers from Greenwich Village reflect on how they collectively became the voice of a generation. Through poignant interviews, rare archival footage and new live performances, GREENWICH VILLAGE: MUSIC THAT DEFINED A GENERATION tells a story about community, courage and most importantly – music.      

    WHO DO I THINK I AM
    NY Premiere
    Director: Nick Mead
    Clarence Clemons goes on a spiritual journey across China. This production is a work in progress and part of the CBGB Film Forum series.

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  • Additional VIVRE SA VIE Screening for 2013 New York Film Festival

    VIVRE SA VIE

    The 51st New York Film Festival which started September 27 and runs through October 13, 2013 has scheduled an additional screening of Jean-Luc Godard’s 1962 masterpiece VIVRE SA VIE on 35MM. The film was previously announced as part of the Jean-Luc Godard – The Spirit of the Forms three-week retrospective taking place from October 9 to October 30, 2013. The additional screening will take place on Friday, October 4, 2013, at 9PM at Alice Tully Hall.

    Between 1955 and today, Godard has made 45 shorts, 11 medium-length films, 40 features, three television series, a handful of commercials, and several of his own trailers. Throughout every “period” of his working life—his early heyday with the French New Wave, his explicitly political films made in collaboration with Jean-Pierre Gorin in the aftermath of May ’68 in France, his collaborative television and video work in Switzerland during the 70s with Anne-Marie Miéville, his movement between film and video from the 80s onward—he has always continually ventured into new territory. Godard has never once retreated or backtracked. It’s been almost six decades since his first short, and he’s given us a body of work that is like a multiverse.

    Here is Manny Farber’s description of one of Godard’s greatest films, Vivre sa vie, made with, and for, his wife Anna Karina: “The fall, brief rise, and death of a Joan of Sartre, a prostitute determined to be her own woman. The format is a condensed Dreiserian novel: Twelve near-uniform segments with chapter headings, the visual matter used to illustrate the captions and narrator’s comments. This is an extreme documentary, the most biting of his films, with sharp and drastic breaks in the continuity, grim but highly sensitive newsreel photography, a soundtrack taped in real bars and hotels as the film was shot and then left untouched. The unobtrusive acting inches along in little, scuttling steps, always in one direction, achieving a parched, memory-ridden beauty. A film of extraordinary purity.” Print courtesy of Janus Films.

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