Film Festivals

Not in NYC? 2013 Tribeca Film Festival Unveils Lineup for Tribeca Online Festival

[caption id="attachment_3411" align="alignnone" width="550"]Fresh Meat[/caption]

The Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) which runs April 17-28, 2013 in lower Manhattan, New York, announced the lineup and programming for the Tribeca Online Festival. The Tribeca Online Festival (TOF) will provide free streaming of Festival films.

Seven titles including features Alias Ruby Blade: A Story of Love and Revolution, Lil Bub & Friendz, and Farah Goes Bang (which will be streamed just after their Festival theatrical premieres), and short films RPG OKC, Delicacy, The Exit Room, and A Short Film About Guns will be accessible on tribecaonlinefestival.com . Via TribecaOnlineFestival.com audiences can vote on the best online feature and short, with the winners receiving a total of $16,000 in prize money.

The Tribeca Online Festival will also stream a number of highly anticipated conversations during the Festival as well as the 2013 TFF awards show on Thursday April 25, 2013.

Tribeca Film will also release 2013 TFF selections What Richard Did, Greetings from Tim Buckley, Fresh Meat andThe English Teacher nationwide via on demand during the Festival window. The titles will be available in more than 50 million homes in the U.S. and Canada through all major cable video-on-demand providers, as well as iTunes, Amazon Watch Instantly, VUDU, Xbox, Google Play and YouTube.

New this year is the launch of Tribeca Film Festival’s #6SECFILMS Vine Competition, an online juried competition using the six-second, micro-movie making app. Filmmakers can submit in one of four categories — #genre, #auteur, #animate and #series – using both the category hashtag and #6SECFILMS . Shortlists in each category will be viewable for the public on April 17 and will compete for cash prizes of $600. Submissions are now open through midnight on April 7. Winners will be announced by the Tribeca Online Festival on April 26.

Details on the VOD and Tribeca Online Festival offerings follow:

TRIBECA ONLINE FESTIVAL

FREE STREAMING OF OFFICIAL FESTIVAL SELECTIONS:

Three feature titles and four short films from the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival will be available on TOF. Each film will have limited screening windows and capacity. Online viewers will be able to vote for the Best Tribeca Online Feature Film, a prize of $10,000, and the Best Tribeca Online Short Film, a prize of $5,000. Winners will be announced at the Tribeca Film Festival Awards on April 25.

The full list of feature films streamed on the Tribeca Online Festival is as follows:

[caption id="attachment_3412" align="alignnone" width="550"]ALIAS RUBY BLADE: A Story of Love and Revolution[/caption]

Alias Ruby Blade: A Story of Love and Revolution, directed by Alex Meillier, written by Tanya Ager Meillier and Meillier. (USA) – North American Premiere. Kirsty Sword Gusmão went to Timor-Leste to document injustice in an area closed to Western journalists. Over the next decade, she became the lynchpin that sustained the nation’s harrowing struggle for independence and met the man who would redefine the cause for which she was fighting. Using astonishing footage of the years-long resistance, director Alex Meillier presents a highly personal account of the courage needed to create a new democracy in modern times.

[caption id="attachment_3413" align="alignnone" width="550"]LIL BUB & FRIENDZ[/caption]

Lil Bub & Friendz, directed by Andy Capper and Juliette Eisner. (USA) – World Premiere, Documentary. Called “the most famous cat on the Internet,” the wide-eyed perma-kitten Lil Bub is the adorable embodiment of the Web’s fascination with all things cats. Join Lil Bub and her owner on a wild cross-country romp as they meet the Internet’s most famous cat-lebrities. Chock full of adorable kitties, hilarious videos and the dedicated cat enthusiasts who love them, Lil Bub & Friendz is a fun and hip peek behind the memes we know and love. Includes Mike “The Dude” Bridavsky, Ben Lashes, Grumpy Cat, Nyan Cat, Keyboard Cat.

Farah Goes Bang, directed by Meera Menon, written by Laura Goode and Menon. (USA) – World Premiere, Narrative. Farah hits the road with her buddies to stump for John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election, hoping the trip will be her opportunity to finally shed her unwanted virginity. She soon finds her efforts on both political and sexual fronts continuously thwarted. Comically balancing that moment’s climate of intolerance with a universal coming-of-age tale, Farah Goes Bang paints a comic portrait of the overdue growing pains of a group of girlfriends and the country itself.

The full list of short films streamed on the Tribeca Online Festival is as follows:

RPG OKC, Directed and written by Emily Carmichael, (USA), World Premiere. Two video game characters forge an unlikely romance.

Delicacy, Directed by Jason Mann, written by Frieda Luk and Jason Mann, (USA), New York Premiere. A culinary connoisseur and a chef go on a hunt for a rare animal.

The Exit Room, Directed and written by Todd Wiseman Jr, (USA), World Premiere. It is 2021, and imprisoned journalist Joseph Michaels faces government execution and contemplates a desperate escape attempt in order to return to his young family.

A Short Film About Guns, Directed by Minos Papas, (Cyprus), (U.K.), (USA), World Premiere. Four experts on arms trafficking recount first-hand experiences with the black market and how the illegal flow of weapons facilitates loss of life and devastation.

TRIBECA FILM VIDEO-ON-DEMAND

[caption id="attachment_3415" align="alignnone" width="550"]WHAT RICHARD DID[/caption]

What Richard Did, directed by Lenny Abrahamson, written by Malcolm Campbell. (Ireland) – U.S. Premiere, Narrative. Charismatic Richard leads a group of devoted friends through the rituals of their final summer break together: partying on the beach, hazing younger students, hooking up. But the good times will not last forever. When jealousy leads to a senseless act, Richard’s perfect life unravels amid self-doubt, shame, grief and guilt. What Richard Did is a gripping dissection of an action and its consequences, featuring a stellar lead performance by Jack Reynor. A Tribeca Film release.

[caption id="attachment_3416" align="alignnone" width="550"]Greetings from Tim Buckley[/caption]

Greetings from Tim Buckley, directed by Daniel Algrant, written by David Brendel, Emma Sheanshang and Algrant. (USA) – U.S. Premiere, Narrative. “Like father, like son” is a demanding expression for someone who never knew his dad. When young Jeff Buckley (Penn Badgley) is asked to participate in a tribute concert for his late musician father Tim, music opens his eyes to the artistic legacy that he is destined to follow. Imogen Poots co-stars in this quiet and powerful tribute to those legends sustained by admiration, love and, in this case, beautiful music. A Focus World and Tribeca Film release.

[caption id="attachment_3411" align="alignnone" width="550"]Fresh Meat[/caption]

Fresh Meat, directed by Danny Mulheron, written by Briar Grace-Smith. (New Zealand) – New York Premiere, Narrative. After a poorly executed escape from the police, a gang of dysfunctional criminals flees to the suburbs and gets more than it bargained for when it crash lands in the garage of an upper-class Maori family whose refined palates have developed a taste for human flesh. This action-packed horror comedy tells a blood-spattered tale of basement butchery and shifting allegiances as these unlikely adversaries enter a deadly showdown. A Tribeca Film release.

[caption id="attachment_3417" align="alignnone" width="550"]THE ENGLISH TEACHER[/caption]

The English Teacher, directed by Craig Zisk, written by Dan Chariton and Stacy Chariton. (USA) – World Premiere, Narrative. Teacher Linda Sinclair (Julianne Moore) balances her staid home life with an incredible passion for her subject, but her routine is forever altered when a former star pupil and his unsupportive father reenter her life. Go-to television director Craig Zisk, whose credits include Scrubs, Weeds and United States of Tara, takes a turn on the big screen with this insightful comedy about self-discovery co-starring Greg Kinnear, Nathan Lane, Michael Angarano and Lily Collins. A Cinedigm and Tribeca Film release.

Read more
30th Anniversary Restoration of Martin Scorsese’s The King of Comedy to Close 2013 Tribeca Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_3400" align="alignnone" width="550"]Jerry Lewis and Robert De Niro in The King of Comedy directed by Martin Scorsese.[/caption]

The Tribeca Film Festival (TFF), has chosen the 30th Anniversary of Martin Scorsese’s The King of Comedy, restored in association with The Film Foundation, Regency Enterprises and Twentieth Century Fox, to close its 12th edition on Saturday, April 27.

The King of Comedy – directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Paul D. Zimmerman, produced by Arnon Milchan, and starring Robert De Niro, Jerry Lewis, Diahnne Abbott and Sandra Bernhard –was originally released in 1983. Lauded as “shockingly prescient” by Moviefone, the film is recognized for its groundbreaking foresight into reality-TV culture and lack of distinction between renown and notoriety. It also holds up as the finest dramatic work of Lewis’ career, one of Martin Scorsese’s most underrated movies and a darkly funny film that features Robert De Niro playing the scary and fascinating character, Rupert Pupkin.

The King of Comedy is being restored digitally in 4K from the original camera negatives at Sony Colorworks; John Polito at Audio Mechanics is digitally restoring the soundtrack.

“Twelve years ago when we announced the first Festival, it was Marty’s idea for us to feature Restored and Rediscovered films. This year we are proud to close our 12th Festival with a restoration of his The King of Comedy,” said Jane Rosenthal, co-founder, Tribeca Film Festival. “The King of Comedy was so ahead of its time; it seems more relevant today than it was 30 years ago. We are so grateful to Jim Gianopulos and Regency for helping to restore such an iconic film and ensuring it remains a part of our cultural heritage.”

In this unforgettable film, a funny thing happens to talk show host Jerry Langford (Lewis) on his way to the studio. Kidnapped by stand-up comedian Rupert Pupkin (De Niro) and his wacky sidekick (Bernhard), Langford is forced to give Pupkin a shot at the big time by allowing the struggling comic to perform his routine on Langford’s show. What unfolds is an incredibly funny and poignant story about the darker side of comedy.

“I was a big fan of the script and was very excited to do it with Marty and happy that we finally made it. The fact that it’s been restored (hard to believe so many years have passed) is even all the better, and I can’t wait to see it on our closing night,” said Robert De Niro, co-founder, Tribeca Film Festival.

Scorsese said, “I’ve always been partial to comedians – the irreverence, the absurdity, the hostility, all the feelings under the surface – and to the old world of late night variety shows hosted by Steve Allen and Jack Paar and, of course, Johnny Carson, to the familiarity and the camaraderie between the guests. You had the feeling that they were there with you, in your living room. Robert De Niro and I were both drawn to Paul Zimmerman’s script for The King of Comedy, which really captured the show business atmosphere and the desperate attachments that some of the people on the other side of the screen could form, the ones that in certain cases turned dangerous.

“Making the picture was quite an experience. We had Sandra Bernhard in her debut. We had New York in summer. We had the beautiful Diahnne Abbott. We had all those wonderful guest stars like Tony Randall and Victor Borge and Ed Herlihy and Dr. Joyce Brothers, and the people who were really in the business, like Freddy De Cordova and Ed Scherick. We had my mother, and my father, and my daughter Cathy. We even had The Clash in a couple of shots, in the role of ‘street trash.’ And, we had a living legend, the great Jerry Lewis.

“I’m so happy that after all this time, The King of Comedy is finally getting a restoration, from our wonderful friends at Fox.”

The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival will take place from April 17-28, 2013.

Read more
BLANCANIEVES to Open 2013 Cine Las Americas International Film Festival and 7 BOXES to Close The Festival

Pablo Berger’s BLANCANIEVES will open the 16th Cine Las Americas International Film Festival, on Tuesday, April 16 at the Stateside Theatre. Winner of multiple awards and chosen to represent Spain at the 2012 Academy Awards, the film stars Maribel Verdú, Daniel Giménez Cacho, Angela Molina and newcomer Macarena García.

Closing the festival is 7 CAJAS (7 BOXES) on Sunday, April 21 also at the Stateside Theatre. A cunningly plotted action thriller, the film shows a rarely seen Paraguay on the cinematic map, bringing an inventive, lo-fi ingenuity to the traditional crime thriller.

A re-telling of the classic Brothers’ Grimm fairy tale “Snow White”, BLANCANIEVES is described as a breathtakingly beautiful film and a uniquely spirited homage to the black-and-white Golden Age of Europe’s silent cinema. Set in a romanticized 1920s Seville, Berger’s Snow White is Carmen, the daughter of a famous bullfighter, who lives under the tyrannical rule of her monstrous, evil stepmother, Encarna. She escapes and joins a troupe of bullfighting dwarves, where her beauty and natural talent in the ring attract notices from the press. But soon the news reaches Encarna, who at last she knows where to find Carmen, and she prepares for the final showdown.

7 CAJAS develops on a single, sweltering hot night in Asuncion, Paraguay. Víctor, a 17-year-old wheelbarrow delivery boy, dreams of becoming famous and covets a fancy TV set in the infamous Mercado 4. He’s offered a chance to deliver seven boxes with unknown contents in exchange for a quick hundred bucks. But what sounds like an easy job soon gets complicated. When something in the boxes is highly coveted, Víctor and his pursuers quickly find themselves caught up in a crime they know nothing about.

The 16th Cine Las Americas International Film Festival, which runs April 16-21, 2013, will take place at the Stateside Theatre in downtown Austin, the Alamo Drafthouse Village, and the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center (MACC), with additional screenings at St. Edward’s University. All screenings at the MACC and at St. Edward’s University are free and open to the public. All films are subtitled in English.
Read more
Mickey Sumner, Cheryl Hines Among Stars Attending 2013 Sarasota Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_3393" align="alignnone" width="550"]Greta Gerwig and Mickey Sumner in Frances Ha[/caption]

Sarasota, FL – Mickey Sumner will receive the Breakthrough Performer Award at the 2013 Sarasota Film Festival for her performance in the closing night film FRANCES HA. The award will be presented at the annual Tribute Luncheon, Sarasota Yacht Club on Friday, April 12th. Ms. Sumner was seen most recently on stage in New York City opposite Carol Kane in the Atlantic Theater Company’s production of THE LYING LESSON. Ms. Sumner joins previously announced guests Suzanne Clément, Griffin Dunne, Mariel Hemingway, Barbara Kopple and Lili Taylor in receiving honors at the Tribute. Ms. Sumner will also introduce the festival’s screening of FRANCES HA on Saturday, April 13th at The Sarasota Opera House.

Cheryl Hines, star of the festival’s Spotlight film PASADENA, will serve as host for the festival’s Filmmaker Awards, Saturday, April 13th at 6:00 PM at The Sarasota Opera House.

In addition, several former Sea World whale trainers have announced that they will be joining the festival’s Opening Night screening of BLACKFISH to participate in a provocative post-screening Q&A, along with the film’s director Gabriela Cowperthwaite. The group includes John Hargrove, Samantha Berg, Carol Ray, John Jett and Jeff Ventre.

Also joining the festival is David Call (GOSSIP GIRL, TINY FURNITURE) who has three films in the festival with DEAD MAN’S BURDEN, NOR’EASTER, and the short film MOBILE HOMES while WWE superstar Brodus Clay will attend with his film NO ONE LIVES on Saturday, April 13th.

“We are honored to welcome these wonderful guests to our festival,” says Festival Director Tom Hall. “Sarasota is a city that celebrates the arts, and we hope our community joins us in embracing these artists and their work.”

via: Sarasota Film Festival
Read more
American Documentary Film Festival to Present World Premiere of BEAUTY FACTORY

Palm Springs, CA – BEAUTY FACTORY, which will have its world premiere at this year’s American Documentary Film Festival, follows five Venezuelan contestants over the course of four months as they compete for the coveted Miss Venezuela Crown; offering an intimate look into the world of beauty, and the sometimes-ugly things people do to be part of it.

Venezuela has won more international beauty pageants than any other country. With 6 Miss International Crowns, 6 Miss World Crowns, and 6 Miss Universe Crowns, what is it that makes Venezuelan beauty queens so special? This film takes viewers behind the scenes as the girls are told how much weight to lose, how big their breasts need to be, what diet they need to follow, how long their hair should be and what color it should be, what gym routine they should follow, and even what plastic surgeries they should have prior to competing. For many of the contestants, the ultimate goal isn’t the Miss Venezuela crown, or even the Miss Universe crown. These are smart, savvy women who are using their beauty as the launching pad for something greater. BEAUTY FACTORY is a film about Female empowerment, with some positive twists.

For Tickets and/or More Information,
visit http://americandocumentaryfilmfestival.com/

The American Documentary Film Festival
April 4-8, 2013

Camelot Theatres
2300 E Baristo Road
Palm Springs, CA 92262
760-325-6565

Cinemark Century Theatres at The River
71800 Hwy 111Suite A-137
Rancho Mirage, CA 92270

760-836-1940

via: American Documentary Film Festival
Read more
College Student, Allison Koch Wins Charleston International Film Festival’s Spire Award Design Contest

(Charleston, SC ) – A senior and Studio Art major at the College of Charleston, Allison Koch, concepted and created the winning design for Charleston International Film Festival’s Spire Award. The award will be given annually during the festival to recognize those who exhibit the very best in the art of filmmaking and writing.

Chosen by the festival’s directors from more than a dozen award designs by College of Charleston students, Koch’s prototype truly captured the essence of the Spire, which alludes to Charleston’s iconic steeple-dotted skyline. Furthermore, the shape of a Spire demonstrates a reach for the skies, something the festival’s winning filmmakers and screenwriters truly embody.

Koch, who is from New Jersey, but grew up in North Myrtle Beach said she was influenced by art deco movie theatre architecture. “The geometric, streamlined look seemed to suit the award,” Koch said. Her piece evolved, however, as it developed. Koch explained, “the initial form I had in mind is not at all what I felt worked best in the end.”

The award will be cast in glass and given out for the first time during the 6th annual Charleston International Film Festival, April 24 – 28, 2013.

For having the winning submission, Koch will receive a cash prize of $500.

To learn more about Charleston International Film Festival or buy tickets, visit CharlestonIFF.org.

via: Charleston International Film Festival
Read more
Jill Morley’s Documentary, Fight Like A Girl to World Premiere at 2013 American Documentary Film Festival

The World Premiere of Fight Like A Girl at the 2013 American Documentary Film Festival, will screen at 4:30pm on Fri. Apr 5, 2013, at the Cinemark Century Theatres at The River in Rancho Mirage, California. Jill Morley’s documentary, Fight Like A Girl, is a gritty, first person insider’s narrative shot over five years.

March 25, 2013, Palm Springs, CA – Boxers training for the Golden Gloves – the world’s most famous amateur boxing tournament – live in a world of sweaty leather gloves thudding against heavy bags, twirling jump ropes, and fierce competition. Many of these rising fighters must overcome obstacles of child abuse, depression, addiction and eating disorders to become champions on their own terms, facing their own mortality and demons within. The game changer: these fighters are women.

Jill Morley’s documentary, Fight Like A Girl, is a gritty, first person insider’s narrative shot over five years. Delving into the little-known world of female boxers, Jill discovers they all have a lot in common. Emotional traumas surface to reveal histories of battles with suicide, abuse, sexism, depression, racism and drugs.

While there has always been a fascination with women fighting, they were not allowed to compete in the New York Golden Gloves until 1995. 2012 saw the debut of female boxing in the Olympic games. From amateurs training for local tournaments to world champions, you meet the women who are passionate about fighting hard.

“When I decided to compete in the New York Golden Gloves, I was fascinated by this sisterhood of female boxers,” says Morley. “I realized how much more I had in common with these women than I originally thought. That inspired me to tell their stories. And gave me courage to tell my own.”

Taking us into the world of sweaty boxing gyms where women must fight for respect in an alpha male culture, Fight Like A Girl shows the real fight that happens within, and the struggle to emerge as champions inside and outside the ring. The World Premiere of Fight Like A Girl will screen at 4:30pm on Fri. Apr 5, 2013, at the Cinemark Century Theatres at The River in Rancho Mirage.

For Tickets and/or More Information,

visit http://americandocumentaryfilmfestival.com/

The American Documentary Film Festival
April 4-8, 2013

Camelot Theatres
2300 E Baristo Road
Palm Springs, CA 92262
760-325-6565

Cinemark Century Theatres at The River
71800 Hwy 111Suite A-137
Rancho Mirage, CA 92270
760-836-1940

via: The American Documentary Film Festival
Read more
Launch Pad program brings World Premiere genre films to 2013 Fantastic Planet Film Festival in Sydney, Australia

[caption id="attachment_3385" align="alignnone" width="550"]THE TAKING, directed by The BAPartists [/caption]

Fantastic Planet Film Festival announced it’s inaugural LAUNCH PAD program of world premiere films.

“Launch Pad was developed to provide a solid starting point for genre feature films just commencing their festival run,” explains festival director Dr. Dean Bertram. “Festivals often tend to focus their publicity on films that already have buzz from previous screenings, those which originate from within the studio system, or from a name director. We wanted to provide a specific component of the festival dedicated to discovering, showcasing, and promoting exceptional independent feature films and talented filmmakers beginning their journey.”

The three fantastic films accepted into the inaugural LAUNCH PAD program are:

A DARK MATTER, directed by James Naylor (Twisting cerebral sci-fi thriller.)
THE TAKING, directed by The BAPartists (Deep and disturbing art-house horror.)
WET AND RECKLESS, directed by Jason Trost (Hilarious buddy-caper come reality TV parody.)

All of these filmmakers, as well as some cast members from the films, will be attending the festival and partaking in Q&A sessions after their screenings. Launch Pad is a component of the 4th edition of Fantastic Planet Film Festival. Taking place in conjunction with the 7th annual A Night of Horror Film Festival, at Dendy Cinemas Newtown, April 11 to 21. Combined, the festivals will screen over 100 films. Together they are dedicated to presenting Sydney audiences with a stunning showcase of the latest in horror, sci-fi, fantasy and cult cinema.

A brief synopsis and the screening details of this year’s three (3) Launch Pad films follow:

A DARK MATTER (Screens Friday April 19, 9:00pm at Dendy Newtown)
Director: James Naylor
CAN / 2013 / 100 min
World Premiere

In this compelling and mind-bending sci-fi thriller, an artist struggles to find love in an underworld where murder, and what might be an alternate time-stream, distort his perception of reality. Angus and Laura love each other deeply…but Laura is holding a deep dark secret. When she leaves him inexplicably, Angus slips into a foreboding realm, where the Demon of Nothingness reigns supreme. After Laura’s exit, Angus questions his role in her disappearance and sets out to uncover the truth. Working his way through a cunning gallery of underworld figures, Angus slowly unlocks Laura’s secret while discovering sinister truths about himself. With nothing but his own Demon to guide him, Angus ventures across dimensions and alternate states of reality to find Laura and win her back. A powerful exploration of love and existence tinged with the type of masterful high strangeness one finds in a P. K. Dick novel or a David Lynch film. Lovers of cerebral sci-fi should not miss this mesmerising movie.

THE TAKING (screens Saturday April 13, 9:00pm, at Dendy Newtown)
Directors: The BAPartists (Cezil Reed and Lydelle Jackson)
USA/2013/77 min
World Premiere

If David Lynch had written and directed THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE it well could have resembled this feverish and stylised nightmare. A man seeking vengeance against his best friend and unfaithful fiancee, and a woman determined to kill the man who murdered her daughter, are drawn into the depths of a mysterious forest. There, sadistic locals have far more horrifying plans for the vengeful interlopers than just torturing the flesh of their bodies. A dark, disturbing, independent masterpiece, that proves that there are still original stories to be told in the horror genre, and masterful ways to tell them.

WET AND RECKLESS (Screens Monday April 15, 7:00pm, at Dendy Newtown)
Director: Jason Trost
USA/2013/87 min
World Premiere

Imagine Wes Anderson’s BOTTLE ROCKET fused with the reality TV show SURVIVOR, and you might get the slightest inkling of this hilarious buddy-comedy-crime-caper that spins entirely off the rails. Two party-animal, reality TV stars (Jason Trost – THE FP, and Lucas Till – X-MEN: FIRST CLASS) are dumped in Thailand by the producer of their over-the-top reality show. The only way home, and last chance of reclaiming their reality star-status? A treasure map… to a treasure map… Hilarity and adventure ensue in this indie comedic gem.

via: Fantastic Planet Film Festival
Read more
Inventor Ray Dolby to be Honored at 2013 San Francisco International Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_3383" align="alignnone" width="550"]Ray Dolby [/caption]

Ray Dolby, inventor of numerous recording technologies and founder of local industry powerhouse Dolby Laboratories, will be honored with the inaugural George Gund III Award at the 56th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 25 – May 9, 2013). The George Gund III Award, given in tribute to the longstanding Film Society chairman of the board who passed away earlier this year, honors a worthy member of the filmmaking community for their outstanding and unique contributions to the art of cinema.
Read more
The Atomic States of America Among 48 Films Selected for 2013 International Uranium Film Festival Rio de Janeiro

[caption id="attachment_1890" align="alignnone" width="552"]THE ATOMIC STATES OF AMERICA, USA[/caption]

The 3rd International Uranium Film Festival Rio de Janeiro selected 48 films from 16 countries as finalists for this year’s festival at the Museum of Modern Art (MAM) Cinema. The films will compete for 3 Yellow Oscar Awards: Best Feature Film, Best Short Film, Best Animated Film

Uranium Film Festival 2013 Finalists (Title / Country/ Director)

FEATURE
ATOMIC BOMB HOME – Japan, 2012, Katsumi Sakaguchi , 65 min – world premiere ATOMIC IVAN – Russia, 2012, Vasily Barkhatov , 91min
ATOMIC MOM – Japan/USA, 2010, M. T. Silvia, 80 min
CHILDREN OF URANIUM – Romania, 2009, Adina Popescu, 64 min
CESIUM IBLODET – Sweden, 2009, Lars Westman, 70 min
DER BAUCH VON TOKYO (Tokyo’s Belly) – Germany, 2013, Reinhild Dettmer-Finke, 70 min – world premiere DOUBLE HAPPINESS URANIUM – Australia, 2012, Cole Larsen, 87 min – world premiere
FORBIDDEN GROUND FUKUSHIMA – Japan, 2012, Kazunori Kurimoto, 57 min – world premiere
FRIEDLICH IN DIE KATASTROPHE (Quietly into the Disaster) – Germany, 2012, Marcin El, 120 min
HIROSHIMA NAGASAKI DOWNLOAD – Mexico/Japan, 2010, Shinpei Takeda, 73 min
IRAK: LES ENFANTS SACRIFIÉS DE FALLUJA (Falluja: A lost generation?) – France, 2011, Feurat Alani, 48 min NUCLEAR SAVAGE: The Islands of Secret Project – USA, 2012, Adam Jonas Horowitz, 87 min
THE ATOMIC STATES OF AMERICA – USA, 2011, Don Argett, Sheena M. Joyce, 92 min
THE ULTIMATE WISH: ENDING THE NUCLEAR AGE – USA, 2012, Robert Richter, 40 min
THE FOUR CORNERS: A NATIONAL SACRIFICE AREA? – USA, 1983, Christopher McLeod, 58 min
U 4 URANIUM – Australia, 2011, Astral Jester, 72 min
UNDER CONTROL (Unter Kontrolle) – Germany, 2011, Volker Sattel, 98 min
URANIUM – TO DIE FOR (HaZman Hatzahov) – Israel, 2012, Shany Haziza, 54 min – world premiere URANIUM PROJECT – Italy, 2011, Alan Gard e Stefania Prandi, 43 min

SHORT
ACOUPHENES (White Noise) – France, 2004, François-Xavier Drouet , 17 min
ANATOMIA DI UNA BOMBA – Italy, 2006, Flaviano Masella, Angelo Saso, Maurizio Torrealta, 22 min ATOMIC FOOTPRINTS – Australia, 2006, Pip Starr, 14 min
BLACKWATER – Spain, 2012, Karlos Alastruey, 4 min
CAETITÉ – Brasil, 2013, Laura Pires, 35 min
CURIOSITY KILLS – Estonia, 2012, Sander Maran, 14 min
ENOLA – Germany, 1986, Christoph Boekel, 28 min
EXCLUSION ZONE – Spain, Omar Kardoudi , 13 min
FUOCO AMICO: RITORNO NEI BALCANI – Italy, 2010, Terra Project Photographers, 10 min GET UP STAND UP – India, Sreemith, 34 min
HALBWERTSZEIT (Half Life) – Germany, 2012, Anne-Katrin Kiewitt, Alice von Gewinner, 20 min HIGH POWER – India, 2013, Pradeep Indulkar, 27 min – world premiere
KINTYRE – Australia, 2012, Curtis Tylor, 15 min
NO TO A NUCLEAR JORDAN – Jordan, 2012, Solenne Tadros, 7 min NUCLEAR WASTE – Ukraine, 2012, Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy, 25 min RETORN OF NAVAJAO BOY EPILOGUE – USA, 2008, Jeff Spitz, 15 min TAILINGS – USA, 2012, Sam Price-Waldman, 12 min
WAR ́S DUST – URANIUM BEIRUT – Italy, 2007, Flaviano Masella, Angelo Saso, Maurizio Torrealta, 23 min WOMEN OF FUKUSHIMA – Japan/Australia, 2012, Paul Johannessen, 27 min
YURI’S OMEN – Spain, 2012, Jordi Montornés, 14 min

ANIMATION
ABITA – Germany, 2012, Shoko Hara, Paul Brenner, 4 min
FAIRLIGHTS – Germany, 2013, Ilinca Höpfner, Helge Henning , 10 min, world premiere
HERR HOPPE AND THE NUCLEAR WASTE – Germany, 2011, Jan Lachauer & Thorsten Löffler , 4 min HIBAKUSHA – USA, 2012, Steve Nguyen, Choz Belen, 54 min
MOAB – Israel, 2012, Keren Zaltz, 3 min
SLOUCHING TOWARDS YUCCA MOUNTAIN – USA, 2011, Eve-Andrée Laramée, 17 min
THE LAST FLOWER – Iran, 2013, Sima Baghery, 6 min

Further selected films – not part of the Competition

BUDDHA WEEPS IN JADUGODA – India, 1999, Shriprakash, 55 min
WHEN THE DUST SETTLES – UK, 2011, 7 min
Read more
Beaufort International International Film Festival Announces 2014 Festival Dates

The 8th annual Beaufort International International Film Festival (BIFF) will be held February 12 – 16, 2014, in Beaufort, SC. The festival is now accepting entries from filmmakers; Categories for competition are: Features , Documentaries, Short Films, Student Films, Animation, and Screenplays. The Early Bird deadline for submissions is July 31, 2013 with the final deadline being October 31, 2013.
Read more
Ashland Independent Film Festival Unveils 2013 Lineup

[caption id="attachment_3375" align="alignnone" width="550"]The Forgotten Kingdom[/caption]

The full schedule, film descriptions and program are now all set for the Ashland Independent Film Festival (AIFF) scheduled to be held in the heart of historic downtown Ashland, Oregon, April 4-8, 2013.

—————-

Ashland, Ore. The nationally acclaimed Ashland Independent Film Festival (AIFF) today unveiled its complete program for the twelfth annual festival, to be held in the heart of historic downtown Ashland, Oregon, April 4-8. Over 7,500 film lovers are expected to gather with filmmakers from around the world for the five-day showcase of independent film at the Varsity Theatre, the Historic Ashland Armory, the Ashland Springs Hotel, and the festival’s newest venue, the Ashland Street Cinemas. The festival’s full schedule, film descriptions and program are available now at www.ashlandfilm.org. Tickets go on sale to members beginning March 12 and to the general public on March 18.

SPECIAL GUEST

Each year, the AIFF presents its Rogue Award to a filmmaker of unique talent who is making a mark in the world of independent film. This year the festival honors celebrated director and AIFF alumni Lucy Walker. Walker has been nominated twice for an Academy Award® — in 2010 for Waste Land (AIFF 2011), and in 2012 for The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom (AIFF 2012). Walker will screen her latest documentary, The Crash Reel — about champion snowboarder Kevin Pearce and his ongoing fight to recover from a massive brain injury incurred while training for the 2010 Winter Olympics — as well as Going for Gold: Olympic Shorts, a selection of short films that follow four athletes from around the world as they meet the challenges of preparing for the Olympics. Walker will receive the Rogue Award at the festival’s Awards Celebration on Sunday, April 7.

WORLD PREMIERES

This year’s festival lineup features seven World Premieres, including the narrative features The Forgotten Kingdom about a young man’s return to his African homeland directed by Andrew Mudge, and the locally produced Redwood Highway starring Shirley Knight and directed by Gary Lundgren (Wow and Flutter, AIFF 2005, Calvin Marshall, AIFF 2010). Also premiering at the AIFF are films from a number of festival alumni: the feature length documentaries Before the Spring After the Fall, about four members of a heavy metal band in Egypt before, during and since the Arab Spring from Jed Rothstein (Killing in the Name, AIFF 2011), and the short films The Caretaker and The Mayor directed by Theo Rigby (Close to Home, AIFF 2010, Sin País, AIFF 2011), Like a Dance from director Jill Orschel (Sister Wife, AIFF 2010), and An Act of Revenge from returning filmmakers Sam Roden and Nick Hartanto (The Lonely Pair, AIFF 2012).

WORLD-CLASS DOCUMENTARIES

Among the documentaries featured at the 12^th annual AIFF are a candid portrait of one of the most influential – and controversial — political leaders our nation has ever known, in The World According to Dick Cheney; a profile of the Hawaiian ukulele virtuoso, Jake Shimabukuro: Life on Four Strings; an indelible portrait of the complex relationship between Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright/actor Sam Shepard and his close friend Johnny Dark in Shepard & Dark, and Joe Papp in Five Acts about the legendary theatre producer who nurtured a generation of American actors and playwrights and spent a lifetime expanding access to public arts. Academy Award®-winning director Roger Ross Williams (Music By Prudence, AIFF 2010) also returns to Ashland with God Loves Uganda, a powerful examination of the impact of the evangelical movement.

OSCAR® WINNERS AND NOMINEES

Other festival highlights include the Oscar®-winning short film, Inocente, a documentary about a homeless teen who transforms her life through her art, which is paired with the Oscar®-nominated Open Heart in the festival’s Oscar® Short Docs 2 program. Also screening is the Academy Award® winning narrative film Curfew, the story of a young man coerced into spending an evening with his nine-year-old niece, which appears in the Short Stories program. This year, the festival also presents Oscar Short Docs 1,which includes nominees Redemption, about New York City’s burgeoning bottle and can collectors, and Mondays at Racine, about a beauty salon that opens its doors each week to women undergoing chemotherapy.

FEATURE FILMS

The AIFF again presents some of the best new feature film work available on the festival circuit. Emanuel and the Truth About Fishes is a coming-of-age story about a teenager who becomes preoccupied with her mysterious new neighbor, Linda (Jessica Biel), who bears a striking resemblance to her dead mother. The Story of Luke is about an autistic young man, Luke (Lou Taylor Pucci) who sets off on a quest to find a job and true love. The Kings of Summer, which plays at the Ashland Street Cinemas, is the tale of three unhappy teenage boys who flee to the wilderness to live off the land as masters of their own destiny. Aquí y Allá (Here and There) offers an unexpected take on the traditional immigrant story, as a young father abandons an uncertain future in the United States and returns to his homeland to try to make a living.

FAMILY PROGRAMS

The festival again offers a special program of independent film geared toward younger audiences. The program and Q&A with visiting filmmakers will screen five times throughout the festival weekend at the Ashland Street Cinemas, providing increased capacity, access and scheduling flexibility for local families. The program offers a selection of ten short films that are geared for kids, but whose creativity will engage and delight audiences of all ages. Among the selections are animation from around the world, films from Rogue Valley students, and a new documentary by AIFF 2008 Lifetime Achievement Honoree, Albert Maysles. The AIFF and Coming Attractions Theatres will donate $1.00 to the non-profit Ashland Schools Foundation for each Family Film ticket purchased.

FREE PROGRAMS

The AIFF features the work of local filmmakers in a free Locals Only program, which plays at the Ashland Street Cinema and the Varsity Theatre. Among the eight films to be screened are The Michael Maag Story: You Don’t Have to Be Able to Stand to Walk Tall, Jim Long’s tribute to a local hero who finds the courage to live life in a new way following a severe spinal cord injury, and Breath: in Three Verses, Katherine Roselli’s carefully composed visual and auditory journey on the impact of breath. The Locals Only program on Saturday, April 6 will include the winners of The Launch, the festival’s Siskiyou region student competition, and will be followed by an Award Ceremony for the winning students with prizes made possible by a grant from the Fred W. Fields Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation.

Three free TalkBack panel discussions will be held with filmmakers of all genres discussing their craft at the Ashland Springs Hotel on Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings at 10am. Guest moderators will lead the discussions and field audience questions on such topics as No Borders, which tackles the complexities of international short- and long-form narrative and documentary filmmaking; Close-Up and Personal, about the art and craft of translating private and public personalities to film, and Transmedia 101: The Future of Storytelling, which pairs filmmakers and technologists in a lively discussion about the evolution of storytelling in the digital age.

This year, the festival introduces a new form of programming with eMerge, a showcase of digital and interactive storytelling that crosses genres and platforms. The program, developed in collaboration with SOU’s Emerging Media and Digital Arts program and sponsored in part by the Governor’s Office of Film and Project A, includes Follow the Food, a series of short videos profiling local artisan food providers; a live community storytelling event, Immigrant Nation, which includes a gallery installation at Houston’s Custom Framing and Fine Art and a two-day hackathon at SOU’s Digital Media Center, and a TalkBack panel.

Many of the screenings features question-and-answer sessions with visiting filmmakers and film subjects. Audiences also have the opportunity to rub elbows with filmmakers over a late-night drink at the AfterLounge, hosted by a different restaurant every night.

Tickets for festival films and events, as well as more information about films, special events and parties and the festival’s complete program are available online at ashlandfilm.org and at the festival Box Office located at Ashland Hardwired, 340 A Street, and at the Varsity Theatre April 4 – 8.

source: AIFF
Read more