Film Festivals

  • Founder Sophoan Sorn to Serve As guest curator and director of the 2012 San Joaquin International Film Festival

    Founder Sophoan Sorn will serve as guest curator and director of the 5th San Joaquin International Film Festival (SJIFF5), taking place January 12th-14th, 2012 at the Stockton Empire Theatre on the Miracle Mile, and January 15th at the Janet Leigh Theatre at University of the Pacific.

    Sophoan Sorn is presently director of San Francisco’s Berlin & Beyond Film Festival.

    Sorn inaugurated SJIFF in June of 2008. During his three-year tenure through 2010, he expanded SJIFF into the year-round San Joaquin Film Society – curating unique programs as the San Joaquin Children’s Film Festival, Cinema Italia and French Cinema Days; while building strong collaborations with many institutions across the area, such as University of the Pacific, San Joaquin Delta College, The Haggin Museum and Modesto’s State Theatre. As the 4th SJIFF took place in March of 2011, Sorn contributed to its program as Guest Curator.

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  • Inuk Wins Real Big at 2011 Savannah Film Festival

    [caption id="attachment_1802" align="alignnone"]Inuk[/caption]

    The Savannah College of Art and Design held its 14th annual Savannah Film Festival, October 29 – November 5, 2011 in historic downtown Savannah, Georgia and wrapped with honoring the best films that screened at the festival. This year’s competition films competed for more than $80,000 in cash and prizes.

    The Greenlandic film ‘Inuk’ ddirected by American Mike Magidson was the big winner, taking home the awards for Best Narrative Feature, Best Director, and Best Editing.

    2011 Savannah Film Festival award winners
    Best Documentary — “These Amazing Shadows.”

    Best Narrative Feature, Best Director, Best Editing — “Inuk.”

    Best SCAD Student Competition Award — “The Secret Number”

    Special Jury Award — “Minka.”

    Best Animated Film — “Bottle.”

    Best Short — “North Atlantic.”

    Best Student Animation — “Create.”

    Silver Screen Society’s Best Short Film by a SCAD Student — “Bone’Yeerd.”

    HBO Films Student Competition Award 2011 — “The Reality Clock.”

    HBO Films Producer Award 2011 — “Grenouille d’Hiver — Winter Frog”

     

    The 2011 Savannah Film Festival competition films included the following:

    Animated Shorts


    Bottle
    USA, 2010, 5:25 min., Blu-Ray
    Director/Producer/Writer: Kirsten Lepore
    Synopsis: Animated on location at a beach, in snow, and underwater, this stop-motion short details a transoceanic conversation between two characters via objects in a bottle.

    The Maker
    Australia, 2011, 5:17 min., Blu-Ray
    Director: Christopher Kezelos
    Producers: Christopher Kezelos, Christine Kezelos
    Writer: Christopher Kezelos
    Synopsis: A strange creature races against time to make the most important and beautiful creation of his life.

    Orange O Despair (Orange Ô Desespoir)
    France, 2011, 3:35 min., Blu-Ray
    Director/Producer/Writer: John Banana
    Synopsis: What happens when a small sad orange decides to leave for the other side of the shop to meet a bunch of fun dancing pineapples?

    Ripening
    USA, 2011, 4:04 min., HDCam
    Director: Jason Maurer
    Animation: Jason Maurer
    Synopsis: Ripening is a cathartic journey that explores the inner turmoil of a crumbling relationship and the fruitful outcome of the experience.

    Salesman Pete and the Amazing Stone from Outer Space!
    France, 2010, 6:55 min., DVD
    Co-directors: Anthony Vivien, Marc Bouyer, Max Loubaresse
    Animation: Marc Bouyer
    Synopsis: Pete is a nice and clumsy salesman. But he’s also a deadly super secret agent with a microprocessor implanted into his brain by some mad scientists from the government! He has to secretly stop a bunch of bad guys who stole a magic stone that can change anything into seafood.

    Something Left, Something Taken
    USA, 2010, 10:15 min., HDCam
    Directors/Writers/Animation: Ru Kuwahata and Max Porter
    Synopsis: Everyone who enters a crime scene leaves something behind and takes something away. “Something Left, Something Taken” is a 10 minute animated dark comedy about a vacationing couples’ encounter with a man they believe to be the Zodiac Killer.

    The Thomas Beale Cipher
    USA, 2010, 10:10 min., Blu-ray
    Director: Andrew Allen
    Producer: Jason Sondhi
    Writers: Andrew Allen, Josh Froscheiser
    Synopsis: Professor White, cryptographer extraordinaire, is on the trail of the notoriously uncrackable Thomas Beale cipher-a century-old riddle hiding the location of a fortune in gold that has tormented its pursuers since inception. But White is not alone-shadowy forces are tight on his tail.

    Documentary Films

    GROW!
    USA, 2011, 50:33 min., Digibeta
    Directors/Producers: Christine Anthony, Owen Masterson
    Synopsis: Fed up with corporate America and its influence on a broken food system, a growing number of educated young people aim to solve some of the current system’s inequities by growing clean, fair food. Mostly landless, they borrow, rent or manage farmland in order to fulfill their dreams of doing something meaningful with their lives.

    PressPausePlay
    Sweden, 2010, 1:14:00 min., HDCam
    Director: David Dworsky
    Producer: Adam Svanell
    Synopsis: In the last couple of years producing music, films and other forms of creative works has gone from a privilege for a select few, to an art form almost as accessible as the pen and paper. PressPausePlay is the first real testimony of the digi-creative revolution. It’s a 90 minute global journey capturing how digital technology and mindset has transformed the concept of art and culture.

    The City Dark
    USA, 2011, 1:22:17 min., Blu-Ray
    Director/Producer: Ian Cheney
    Synopsis: The City Dark is a feature documentary about the loss of night. After moving to NYC from rural Maine, filmmaker Ian Cheney asks a simple question – do we need the stars? Exploring the threat of killer asteroids in Hawaii, tracking hatching turtles along the Florida coast, and rescuing injured birds on Chicago streets, Cheney unravels the myriad implications of a globe glittering with lights

    These Amazing Shadows
    USA, 2010, 1:26:00 min., Blu-Ray
    Directors: Paul Mariano, Kurt Norton
    Producers: Christine O’Malley, Paul Mariano, Kurt Norton
    Synopsis: What do the films “Casablanca,” “Blazing Saddles” and “West Side Story” have in common? Besides being popular, they have also been deemed “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress and listed on The National Film Registry. “These Amazing Shadows” tells the history and importance of The Registry, a roll call of American cinema treasures that reflect the diversity of film, and indeed the American experience itself.

    Narrative Features

    A Year in Mooring
    USA, 2011, 91 min., HDCam
    Director: Chris Eyre
    Producers: Kevin Reidy, Sally Jo Effenson
    Writer: Peter Vanderwall
    Cast: Ayelet Zurer, James Cromwell, Jon Tenney, Taylor Nichols, Josh Lucas
    Synopsis: A successful businessman, attempting to escape his past, moves aboard a dilapidated boat in a remote harbor. Told over movements framed by the calendar year, the Young Mariner meets other harbor inhabitants with pasts of their own.

    Inuk
    France/Greenland, 2010, 90 min., HDCam
    Director: Mike Magidson
    Producers: Mike Magidson, Sylvie Barbe
    Writers: Mike Magidson, Jean-Michel Huctin
    Cast: Gaaba Petersen, Ole-Jorgen Hammeken
    Synopsis: In Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, sixteen year-old Inuk lives a troubled life with his alcoholic mother and violent step-father. One morning, after pulling the half-frozen boy out of an abandoned car, social services decide to send Inuk north to a children’s home on a tiny island in the middle of the arctic sea-ice. Shortly after arriving, Inuk meets Ikuma, a local polar bear hunter who has his own share of problems, and is asked to take Inuk on his annual seal-hunting trip. When Inuk, the troubled boy from the city, joins Ikuma, the last great hunter of the North, on this epic dogsled journey, they will face much more than the bitter cold and fragile sea-ice. The most difficult part of the journey will be the one they must make within themselves.

    Let Go
    USA, 2011, 109 min., HDCam
    Director: Brian Jett
    Producer: Leif Lillihaugen
    Writer: Brian Jett
    Cast: Alexandera Holden, Amy Stiller, Brian Huskey, Catherine Reitman, David Denman, Dov Davidoff, Edward Asner, Gillian Jacobs, Johnny Pemberton, Kali Hawk, Kevin Hart, Kirk Fox, Maria Thayer, Rance Howard, Simon Helberg
    Synopsis: A comedy that follows the intertwining stories of Walter Dishman, a melancholy parole officer struggling with the doldrums of married life, and three eccentric ex-convicts that were recently placed under his supervision. Using the afflictions of modern love as a common thread, the stories build to a poignant climax as each of the characters struggle to free themselves from both literal and figurative bonds.

    Take Me Home
    USA, 2011, 97min, Blu-Ray
    Director: Sam Jaeger
    Producer: Michael Hobert, Jane Kelly Kosek
    Writer: Sam Jaeger
    Cast: Sam Jaeger, Amber Jaeger, Victor Garber, Cristine Rose, Lin Shaye
    Synopsis: When Claire jumps in Thom’s beat-up cab in New York, neither realize that they have just begun a journey together of self-discovery that will have them crossing the United States in an effort to find home.

    Professional Shorts

    Library of Dust
    USA, 2011, 16:20 min., DCP
    Director: Ondi Timoner
    Co-Director: Robert James
    Producers: Robert James, Ondi Timoner, Kyle Parker
    Cast: David Maisel, Senator Peter Courtney, Mary Ellen Mark, Dr. Marvin Fickle, Rick Attig, Rob Finch
    Synopsis: A tour of the Oregon State Hospital involving the local press and a State Senator was conducted to uncover the deplorable conditions of the hospital. What they didn’t expect to find was a storeroom full of human ashes dating back to the late 1800’s. Thousands of corroded copper urns containing the cremated remains of unclaimed psychiatric patients were discovered. Photos are taken of the mysterious corrosive effect on the canisters and several histories of these forgotten souls are revealed in this unique tale.

    Little Angel (Angelito)
    USA/Brazil, 2011, 13:20 min., Blu-Ray
    Director: Paula Lima
    Producer: Paula Lima, Vitor Coral
    Writer: Vitor Coral
    Cast: Angela Carrizosa, John Benson, Julia Smyth
    Synopsis: Lacking his own mother’s attention, Danny tries to earn his nanny’s respect by behaving defiantly. He keeps pushing at Luisa until she responds inappropriately. Danny threatens to tell his mother about Luisa’s slip up and get her fired. But can he take the next step?

    Love, Lots of It
    USA, 2011, 14 min., Digibeta
    Director: Rob Feld
    Producers: Asger Hussain, Chiemi Karasawa, Craig Lifschutz, Hernan Michael Otano, Joshua Green, Lea-Beth Shapiro, Lloyd Davis
    Writer: Rob Feld
    Cast: Campbell Scott, Kathleen McElfresh, McCaleb Burnett
    Synopsis: A Faustian parable in which a young woman, confused by her life and having made false assumptions about what will make her happy, goes to the proverbial crossroads to meet a man she has heard can give her what she wants. When she arrives at the barren spot, her vulnerability moves the man to offer her a way out, a chance at real happiness, if only she can recognize it.

    Minka
    USA, 2010, 15:07 min., Digibeta
    Director: Davina Pardo
    Producers: Andrew Blum, Davina Pardo
    Synopsis: In 1967, an American journalist and a Japanese architect rescued an ancient farmhouse found in the snow country of Japan, and their lives were forever changed. Minka is an intimate story about architecture, memory, and the meaning of home.

    North Atlantic
    Portugal/United Kingdom, 2010, 15 min., HDCam
    Producer/Director/Writer: Bernardo Nascimento
    Producer: James Youngs
    Cast: Clive Russell, Francisco Tavares, Grant Masters, Guilherme Mendonca Synopsis: An isolated air-traffic controller in an island off the Azores archipelago receives a transatlantic emergency signal from a lost plane. As the engagement with the lone pilot unfolds, it emerges that their newfound friendship will not last through the night.

    Persimmon
    Japan/USA, 2011, 19:30 min., Blu-Ray
    Director: Dean Yamada
    Producers: Ellie Pappuleas, Paul Nethercott, Rachel van der Merwe, Yu Shibuya
    Writer: Yu Shibuya
    Cast: Aduchi Kaneko, Ai Ozaki, Atsurou Tokuoka, Masayuki Yui, Sahori Ehara, Sakae Kimura, Yugo Saso
    Synopsis: Tamotsu is expecting a persimmon to dry and yet he cannot accept that it is time for a man on his deathbed to die. As the persimmon mysteriously, or supernaturally, holds out from drying, so Tamotsu tries his hardest to keep the man alive. Only when Tamotsu has let go can the persimmon take its natural course.

    Sexting
    USA, 2010, 8 min., DCP
    Producer: Tim Harms
    Writer: Neil LaBute
    Cast: Julia Stiles, Elizabeth Greer, Jamie Anderson, Marin Ireland, T. Lynn Mikeska
    Synopsis: A misdirected text message prompts a young woman to meet the wife of her boyfriend at a cafe. The wife’s husband has been telling her he is going to leave the wife to be with her, yet he continues to delay their plans. After receiving a sexy text message meant for his wife, the young woman decides to talk to the wife and get the real story of what is going on in their relationship.

    Winter Frog (Grenouille D’hiver)
    France, 2011, 17:43 min., DCP
    Producer: Jean Maurice Belayche
    Writer: Slony Sow
    Cast: Gerard Depardieu, Sabine Lenoel, Eriko Takeda
    Synopsis: Benjamin, a winemaker, sees his wife die in his arms following a long illness. He feels there is only one thing left for him: death. But a young Japanese woman, coming specially to taste his wine, will gently bring him to mourn the death of his wife by a series of symbols and exchanges between two cultures.

    Student Shorts

    Bone’Yeerd
    USA, 2011, 9 min., HDCam
    Writer/Director/Producer: Tom Salvaggio
    Synopsis: The Gothic tale of a lonely farmer who descends into madness when he cannot let go of the woman he loves.

    Canyonlands
    USA, 2011, 13 min., Digibeta
    Writer/Director/Producer: T.C. Webb
    Synopsis: In this documentary short, two men challenge their survival skills and rock climbing abilities on a brutal trek across the breathtaking landscape of Canyonlands National Park in Utah.

    Clear Blue
    USA, 2010, 20 min., HDCam
    Director: Lindsay MacKay
    Producer: Brent Martin
    Writer: Lindsay MacKay
    Cast: Chris Sheffield, Jeff Clarke, Nancy Linehan Charles
    Synopsis: Simon, an eager 16 year old, gets his first job as a lifeguard at the local indoor pool. At first his job is dull, until he notices Flova, a 71 year old woman who comes to swim every morning. One day Simon follows Flova into the change room, and discovers a startling secret…

    Cold Country
    USA, 2011, 1:14 min., Blu-Ray
    Director: Chris Palmer, Travis Overstreet
    Writer/Producer: Chris Palmer, Travis Overstreet
    Synopsis: In this short biographical animation inspired by the exile of Stalin, a lone bear rides an abandoned train through the frozen Siberian wilderness.

    Create
    USA, 2011, 2 min, Blu-Ray
    Director: Dan Mackenzie
    Writer: Dan Mackenzie
    Producer: Dan Mackenzie and Nicholas Reichard
    Synopsis: A mad scientist sets out to create a pet monster within parallel worlds of an imaginary laboratory and the reality of a boy’s bedroom.

    Galeana No. 8
    USA/Mexico, 2011, 12 min., HDCam
    Director: Andres Perez-Duarte
    Producer: Sebastian Celis and David Guti Rosado
    Writer: Andres Perez-Duarte
    Cast: Eduardo España, Christian Vasquez and Mary Francis Reyes
    Synopsis: Two parallel stories unfold – two kidnappers deal with their hostage’s destiny; two co-workers receive a muffled phone call from their boss who appears to be in danger. While the two kidnappers decide what to do with the hostage, a revealing twist proves a new perspective to each side of the phone call.

    Terrebonne
    USA, 2010, 15 min., Blu-Ray
    Director/Writer: Jeremy Craig
    Producer: Catherine Shao
    Cast: Cullen Chaffin, Dean West, Jessica Heap, Lance Nichols
    Synopsis: Set on the imperiled coast of Louisiana, Terrebonne is the meditative story of a brother and sister who encounter unexpected trouble when they venture deep into the swamp in search of the mythic ivory-billed woodpecker.

    The Girl and the Fox
    USA, 2011, 5:30 min., Blu-Ray
    Director: Tyler Kupferer
    Producer: Nick Allred
    Writer: Tyler Kupferer
    Synopsis: Ilona, a nine-year-old girl who lives in the wilderness with her mother and father, has fallen on hard times. Supplies are running low, and when a mysterious fox starts killing their livestock, she has no choice but to track down the strange creature in order to ensure the survival of her family.

    The Reality Clock
    USA, 2011, 7 min., Digibeta
    Director/Writer: Amanda Tasse
    Cast: J. Louis Reid, Marco Tazioli
    Synopsis: The Reality Clock is an experimental animated portrait of an elderly watchmaker’s struggle to accept the influence of early stage dementia on his identity and sense of time. Through contemplating who the raw essence of a person is when stripped bare of new memories and rational clarity, “The Reality Clock” searches for a sense of beauty and peace amidst the confusion.

    The Renter
    USA, 2011, 10 min., HDCam
    Director: Jason Carpenter
    Cast: Corey Shiffman, Taylor Sanches
    Synopsis: A young boy is dropped off at an elderly woman’s home for the day. A lone man, who rents a room, adds to the unsettling atmosphere. The savage slaughter of a chicken makes this daycare a harsh and confusing world for the boy, who learns caring can be shown in unexpected ways.

    The Secret Number
    USA, 2011, 14 min., Blu-Ray
    Director: Colin Levy
    Producers: Frank Ponce, Roque Nonini
    Writer: Colin Levy
    Cast: Daniel Jones, Tom Nowicki
    Synopsis: Tomlin, a psychiatrist in a mental hospital, has a disturbing conversation with one of his patients, a mathematician who intends to prove the existence of a secret integer between three and four. When he begins to dig deeper, the mathematician mysteriously disappears from the hospital, confirming Tomlin’s hunch that their fates are deeply entwined.

     

     

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  • The Corridor and Beg Tie For Best Feature Films at 2011 Flickers RI International Horror Film Festival

    [caption id="attachment_1800" align="alignnone"]The Corridor, Directed by Evan Kelly[/caption]

    Despite rain, snow and even power outages, the 12th Flickers RI International Horror Film Festival drew crowds to the see the 42 films that were screened during the “cinematic symphony of horror”, October 27th-30th, 2011.

    Attending this year were the cast and crew from eight of the international films screened during the Festival including Imposter, Vampyre Compendium, Beg, Inkubus, and Last Seen on Delores Street for their premieres along with directors and producers Marc Masciandaro, Matteo Bernardini from Italy, Devi Snively, Augustin Fuentes, and Kevin and Shanna MacDonald.


    Winners of top prizes for the 2011 Festival
    BEST FEATURE
    The Corridor, Directed by Evan Kelly, Canada
    Tied with
    Beg, Directed by Kevin MacDonald, United States

    First Place
    Absentia, Directed by Mike Flanagan, United States
    Tied with
    State of Emergency, Directed by Turner Clay, United States

    BEST SHORT
    Imposter, Director Marc Masciandaro, United States
    Tied with
    Incubator, Directed by Jimmy Weber, United States

    First Place
    Cabine of the Dead, Directed by Vincent Templement, France
    Tied with
    Hay Un Diablo (There is a Devil), Directed by Brant Hansen, United States

    BEST DOCUMENTARY
    Dracula: The Vampire And The Voivode, Directed by Michael Bayley Hughes, United Kingdom

    DIRECTORIAL DISCOVERY
    Last Seen on Delores Street, Directed by Devi Snively, United States

    NEW ENGLAND DISCOVERY
    Inkubus, Directed by Glenn Ciano, United States

    BEST MAKE-UP FX
    An Evening with My Comatose Mother, Directed by Jonathan Martin, United States

    BEST SCI-FI/FANTASY
    Payload, Directed by Stuart Willis, Australia
    Tied with
    Maquinas Infernales, Directed by Simon Pernollet, France

    BEST ANIMATION
    Paths of Hate, Directed by Damian Nenow, Poland

    BEST ACTOR
    Tony Moran, Beg, Directed by Kevin MacDonald, United States

    BEST ACTRESS
    Oona Chaplin, Vampyre Compendium, Directed by Matteo Bernardini, Italy

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  • 2011 Savannah Film Festival honors Oliver Stone, Ellen Barkin and Ray Liotta

    Academy Award, Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning writer/director Oliver Stone was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 14th annual Savannah Film Festival on Thursday, Nov. 3.  Stone dedicated his award to native Savannahian and well-known publicist Bobby Zarem, whom he has known for more than 30 years. “The memory of my achievement lies in Savannah, a city Bobby loves so much,” said the award-winning director. Stone ended with, “I got your back, Bobby.” 

     


    The Savannah Film Festival also honored actress Ellen Barkin with Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Awards.

    Actor Ray Liotta was also honored with Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Awards.

     

    Hosted by the Savannah College of Art and Design, the Savannah Film Festival, the 14th annual festival kicked off Saturday, Oct. 29 and runs through today, Saturday, Nov. 5, in historic Savannah, Ga.


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  • THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN to close 2011 AFI Fest

    Paramount Pictures and Columbia Pictures’ THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN, directed by AFI Life Achievement Award recipient and Academy Award®-winning director Steven Spielberg, will have its North American Premiere as the Closing Night Gala of AFI FEST 2011.

    The film is based on the internationally beloved and irrepressible characters created by Hergé and stars Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig, Nick Frost and Simon Pegg. It is produced by Academy Award® winners Spielberg, Peter Jackson and Kathleen Kennedy. From a screenplay by Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish, the story follows the unquenchably curious young reporter Tintin and his fiercely loyal dog Snowy as they discover a ship carrying an explosive secret that may hold the key to vast fortune…and an ancient curse. Academy Award®-winning composer John Williams scored the film, with 2011 marking a collaboration between Spielberg and Williams that has enriched 25 of their films together.

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  • Aurélie Laflamme’s Diary and Ormie Win 2nd NY/SF International Children’s Film Festival

    [caption id="attachment_1779" align="alignnone"]A scene from AURELIE LAFLAMME’S DIARY[/caption]

    The second NY/SF International Children’s Film Festival, wrapped a the three-day festival for kids ages 3 – 18 and their families on Sunday and announced the winners of the best feature film and the best short film, as selected by the audiences.

    Aurélie Laflamme’s Diary (Le journal d’Aurélie Laflamme, Canada 2010), Christian Laurence’s delightful story about a teenager navigating the strange conventions of adolescence on planet Earth, tipped the scale slightly ahead of Jean-Christophe Roger’s The Storytelling Show (France/Luxembourg 2010) in the audience voting for best feature film.

    Rob Silvestri’s Ormie (Canada 2010), the award-winning slapstick animation about a pig determinedly trying to reach a cookie jar on top of a fridge won the audience award for best short film. Gravity, directed by Renaud Hallée and The Lost Thing, directed by Andrew Ruhemann and Shaun Tan were tied for second in the polling.

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  • “Jo For Jonathan” by Maxine Giroux Takes the Top Prize at 2011 Gotham Screen Fest

    [caption id="attachment_1777" align="alignnone" width="550"]Best Feature: Jo For Jonathan, directed by Maxime Giroux[/caption]

    The 5th Annual Gotham Screen International Film Festival (GSIFF) is over after ten days of screenings and events in downtown New York. Highlights of the festival included the world premiere of US drama “40 West,” Singaporean production “Sandcastle” and popular Indian movie “Shuttlecock Boys.”

    Festival director Michael Gunther said of the event, “We’re very proud of this year’s program, which featured no less than six world premieres, with films as diverse as US thriller ‘Occupant,’ Chinese documentary ‘He Film’ and indie road movie ‘Days Together.’ The move to the legendary Quad Cinema brought increased attendance and allowed us to dramatically broaden the program. We definitely feel at home in the new surroundings of Greenwich Village and hope to continue our growth, both creatively and audience-wise, in the next year.”

    Winners of 2011 GOTHAM SCREEN International Film Festival:

    Best Feature: “Jo For Jonathan,” directed by Maxime Giroux
    Best Actress: Erin Anderson as ‘Alex’ in “Days Together”
    Best Actor: Raphaël Lacaille as ‘Jonathan’ in “Jo For Jonathan”
    Best Cinematography: Sharon Loh, for “Sandcastle”
    Best Documentary: “The Cost Of Creativity,” directed by John Biddle
    Best Short Film: “I Am Not A Moose,” directed by Jessica Brickman — Winner of the $1,000 Circleframe Short Film Award, sponsored by Triboro Pictures.

    Audience Choice Awards:

    Feature Film: “Brief Reunion,” directed by John Daschbach
    Short Film: “Porn Masala,” directed by Ken Kwek

    Special Jury Mentions:

    Feature Film: “Sandcastle,” by Boo Jun Feng
    Documentary: “Fat Cows, Lean Cows,” by Meni Elias
    Short Film: “Lighthouse,” by Anthony Chen

    Winners of the 2011 GOTHAM SCREEN Screenplay Contest:
    Best Screenplay: “Auntie” (Thriller), by Deirdre Patterson — Winner of the $2,500 Circleframe Screenwriting Award, sponsored by Triboro Pictures.

    Best Action/Adventure: “April Fool,” by Yvonne Fein
    Best Comedy: “Saturday Night Club,” by Rob Nagle
    Best Drama: “The Song of Sampson Dale,” by Geoffrey Caple
    Best Horror: “Committed,” by Jeff Sussman
    Best Mystery: “Absolution,” by Michael R. Lupariello
    Best Romantic Comedy: “Alison Offline,” by Gordon Rayfield
    Best Sports / Biography: “Jackie,” by Jay S. Blumenkopf
    Best War / Drama: “Silent Courage,” by Max Kopelowicz

     

    The 2012 Gotham Screen festival will return in October, 2012.

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  • We Need To Talk About Kevin Wins Best Film at BFI London Film Festival

    [caption id="attachment_1775" align="alignnone" width="550"]BEST FILM: WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN[/caption]

    Tilda Swinton’s latest film, We Need To Talk About Kevin, took the top prize at The 55th BFI London Film Festival. The film adapted from Lionel Shriver’s popular 2003 novel is about an American woman, Eva (Tilda Swinton), suffering from the fallout of a terrible crime committed by her teenage son, Kevin (Ezra Miller).

    BEST FILM: WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN, directed by Lynne Ramsay
    On behalf of the jury John Madden (Chair) said: “This year’s shortlist for Best Film comprises work that is outstanding in terms of its originality and its stylistic reach. It is an international group, one united by a common sense of unflinching human enquiry and we were struck by the sheer panache displayed by these great storytellers. In the end, we were simply bowled over by one film, a sublime, uncompromising tale of the torment that can stand in the place of love. We Need to Talk About Kevin is made with the kind of singular vision that links great directors across all the traditions of cinema.”

    BEST BRITISH NEWCOMER: Candese Reid, actress, Junkhearts
    The award for Best British Newcomer was presented by Edgar Wright and Minnie Driver to Candese Reid, for her acting role in Junkhearts, a sophisticated, social drama about hope and the search for redemption. Starting acting at the age of nine, she joined Nottingham’s prestigious Television Workshop, and her role in Junkhearts, at the age of 18, was her first professional acting role.

    Chair of the Best British Newcomer jury, Andy Harries said, “Candese is a fresh, brilliant and exciting new talent. Every moment she was on screen was compelling.”

    SUTHERLAND AWARD WINNER: Pablo Giorgelli, director of LAS ACACIAS
    The long-standing Sutherland Award is presented to the director of the most original and imaginative feature debut in the Festival. This year, Argentinian director Pablo Giorgelli took the award for his film Las Acacias, a slow-burning, uplifting and enchanting story of a truck driver and his passengers. The director received his Star of London from film director Terry Gilliam.

    The jury commented: “In a lively and thoughtful jury room debate, Las Acacias emerged as a worthy winner, largely because of the originality of its conception. Finely judged performances and a palpable sympathy for his characters makes this a hugely impressive debut for director Pablo Giorgelli.”

    GRIERSON AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY: INTO THE ABYSS: A Tale of Death, A Tale of Life directed by Werner Herzog
    The award is co-presented with the Grierson Trust, in commemoration of John Grierson, the grandfather of British documentary. Recognising outstanding feature length documentaries of integrity, originality, technical excellence or cultural significance, the jury was chaired by Adam Curtis and the award went to Werner Herzog’s coruscating study of the senselessness of violence and its consequences.

    BFI FELLOWSHIP:  Ralph Fiennes and David Cronenberg (as previously announced)

    Awarded to an individual whose body of work has made an outstanding contribution to film culture, the Fellowship is the highest accolade that the British Film Institute bestows and was awarded to Canadian auteur David Cronenberg whose film A Dangerous Method premiered at the Festival on Monday. The Fellowship was presented by Jeremy Thomas and Michael Fassbender.

    Ralph Fiennes, one of Britain’s pre-eminent actors, who has just made a bold and critically well received transition to film directing with his festival film Coriolanus, was also presented with a Fellowship, this time from fellow actor and personal friend Liam Neeson.

    Greg Dyke, Chair, BFI said: ‘The BFI London Film Festival Awards pay tribute to outstanding film talent, so we are delighted and honoured that both Ralph Fiennes, one of the world’s finest and most respected actors and David Cronenberg, one of the most original and ground-breaking film directors of contemporary cinema, have both accepted BFI Fellowships – the highest accolade the BFI can bestow. I also want to congratulate all the filmmakers and industry professionals here tonight, not only on their nominations and awards, but also for their vision, skill, passion and creativity.’

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  • Audience Award Winners of 2011 Buffalo International Film Festival

    [caption id="attachment_1770" align="alignnone" width="550"]Cape No. 7[/caption]

    The Buffalo International Film Festival announced the winners of the 2011 Audience Awards selected by a direct vote from the audiences screening the films between October 7-23, 2011.

    5th Annual Buffalo International Film Festival
    Audience Awards

    Best of Festival

    1st Place:  Tie:  Cape No. 7, Taiwan, 2010

    Tie: The Whisperer in Darkness, United States, 2011

    Honorable Mention: Cultures of Resistance, United States, 2010

    Drama

    1st Place: Shock Corridor, United States, 1963

    2nd Place: Essential Killing, Poland, Norway, Ireland, Hungary, 2010

    Honorable Mention: Janie Jones, United States, 2010



    Documentary Film

    1st Place: If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front, United States, 2011

    2nd Place: Cultures of Resistance, United States, 2010

    Honorable Mention: Kumpania, United States, 2011



    Foreign Language Films

    1st Place: Cape No. 7, Taiwan, 2008

    2nd Place: Orz Boyz, Taiwan, 2008

    Honorable Mention: Gallants, Romantics Anonymous



    Short Films

    Documentary: A Tribute to Milton Rogovin, 3 short films

    Fiction: Made In Buffalo: 15 Short Films from Buffalo and Western New York



    Comedy

    1st Place: Gallants, Hong Kong, 2010

    2nd Place: Romantics Anonymous, France, 2010



    Horror / Science Fiction

    1st Place: The Whisperer in Darkness, United States, 2011

    2nd Place: The House on Haunted Hill, United States, 1957

    Honorable Mention: Black Eve, Canada, 2011



    Animation

    Flatland, United States, 2007

    Special Event:

    Meet the Pros: Filmmaking Workshop with David Heely & Joan Kramer



    First Annual Samuel Fuller Guerilla Filmmaking Award

    Atwill, United States, 2011, Charles Dennis

     

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  • AFI FEST announces the film retrospective curated by Guest Artistic Director Pedro Almodóvar

    [caption id="attachment_1781" align="alignnone"]Law Of Desire[/caption]

    AFI FEST has released the film retrospective curated by Guest Artistic Director Pedro Almodóvar for the 2011 festival. In addition to the screening of his film LAW OF DESIRE as An Evening With Pedro Almodóvar Gala presentation on Monday, November 7, Almodóvar’s program of classic horror films and thrillers are EYES WITHOUT A FACE (DIR Georges Franju, 1960), LE CERCLE ROUGE (DIR Jean-Pierre Melville, 1970), NIGHTMARE ALLEY (DIR Edmund Goulding, 1947) and THE KILLERS (DIR Robert Siodmak, 1946).

    Almodóvar has created comprehensive notes for these curated films that will be shared with moviegoers as part of the festival’s official program guide.

    Almodóvar will attend the festival on Monday, November 7, joined by Antonio Banderas, who has a leading role in LAW OF DESIRE.

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  • First Look at the Doc NYC Film Festival

     

    [caption id="attachment_1766" align="alignnone" width="550"]The Island President[/caption]

    The Doc NYC Film Festival is kicking off at the IFC Center on 6th Avenue on November 2nd through November 10th 2011. Vimooz’s Francesca McCaffery is covering the Festival, and here are some of the first highlights of what is proving to be a truly inspiring, not-to-be-missed line-up:

     

    The Island President: If you only go see a few films at the Doc NYC Film Festival this year, Jon Shenk’s “The Island President” should be at the very top of your list. Focusing on the pint-sized President Mohamed Nasheed of the Maldives Islands (the country comprised of a thousand scattered islands, South of India) and his amazing quest to crush the threat of global warming- which is literally threatening the life of the Island’s inhabitants. (The Maldives are literally sinking at a stomach-lurching rate, due to the additional CO2 in the air, which is raising ocean water levels.) Learning about his twenty years as a political activist and political prisoner before he was elected- this movie is a tribute to a brilliant, illuminating spirit, and absolutely MUST be seen. (Radiohead does the soundtrack, another great reason to see it!) 

     

    [caption id="attachment_1767" align="alignnone" width="550"]Kumare[/caption]

    Kumare: Kumare is the story of a young, hip Indian-American filmmaker (Vikram Gandhi) who initially started out making a doc about spiritual leaders around the world. Quietly demoralized by many of their “fake” attributes, inauthenticity and very Western appetites, he sets upon an experiment: With two pretty young “assistants,” he gets his yoga certification, grows out his long, black beard, moves to Phoenix, AZ (where no one knows him) and literally remakes himself into a spiritual guru named “Kumare.” He then begins teaching self-created meditation and yoga techniques and life-enriching “seminars” at a local yoga studio. Soon, he has up to twenty students, all who start confiding in him their problems, anxieties and general fears about their lives, loves and relationships. The filmmaker now faces a great dilemma: How is he going to “reveal” his true self without breaking everyone’s heart, including his own? The film is being billed as a Borat-style stunt- and perhaps, it may have been originally conceived as such. But the message the filmmaker decides to make the crux of his highly inventive film is a beautiful one- and the film itself is a hilarious, warm, and extraordinarily thought-provoking. Please make sure to check it out!

    [caption id="attachment_1768" align="alignnone" width="550"]Lemon[/caption]

    Lemon: Another wonderful doc at the Doc NYC Film Festival this year, “Lemon” (directed by Laura Brownson and Beth Levinson) focuses upon the tough upbringing and truly resilient, genius spirit of performer Lemon Andersen, discovered By Russell Simons (and placed on both television and Broadway through the Def Poetry Jam series-winning Andersen an ensemble Tony award for the stage version) and chronicles his ups and downs, as well as his tragic Brooklyn childhood and fight to come up from the projects and become a star. The wonderful thing about watching this film is actually getting to observe an artist at work- we see the countless rehearsals of Lemon’s one -man show, his frustrations as he tries to find funding for it, what he must let go off in order to take the show to the next level, (to the historic Public Theatre) and his incredible drive to succeed. Through it all, we see that Lemon is not just a star performer, but a deft and dazzling poet, and we root for him all the way through. A well-conceived and stylized take on the American Dream, and what one has to do if they truly want to attain it. Also- the film is simply fun and beautiful to watch, just gorgeously well produced. You can say you saw it here first, because this will certainly be at a theater near you or on HBO, very soon.

    [caption id="attachment_1683" align="alignnone" width="550"]Into the Abyss, A Tale of Death, A Tale of Life: Werner Herzog [/caption]

    Into the Abyss, A Tale of Death, A Tale of Life: Werner Herzog

    Herzog again self-narrates another documentary- this time, a strange and stilted journey into the state of Texas, where he interviews two young men imprisoned for murder, one of them on Death Row, as well as the families of three of their victims. In this extensive investigation into the inhabitants of the small town, the family members, and the killers themselves, it is hard not to focus on the fact that these murders seemed to driven not by love, lust or greed, but by the need simply to possess, of all things, a new sports car. Herzog is not making a simple judgment call on materialism and society, or our literally wasted, orphaned-in-spirit youth. He seems be asking, simply: “Why do we kill? And why do states kill?” As Michael Perry proclaims, and scarily correct days before his execution, “The state of Texas wants to murder me!” I found a smaller film to be much more interesting and actually relevant, which was Grober Babcock’s and Blue Hadaegh’s “Scenes of a Crime.” This doc painstakingly picks apart the gaping holes in a grueling police interrogation of a father whose infant son has died in his care. As we learn how remiss the detectives were in this case, it makes one reflect upon the pressure we put upon our civil servants to keep our lives and our society tightly in line. This was a far more devastating commentary on how, as one hard-working lawyer for the defense put it, “Very few people put in the position of administering justice seem to really care about doing so.”

     

    We will have continuing highlights and coverage of this wonderful documentary film fest. Please stay tuned, and please go to www.docnyc.net to get your tickets now!

    By Francesca McCaffery

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  • AFI FEST 2011 Announces World Cinema, Breakthrough, Midnight and Shorts programs

    AFI FEST announced the remaining programs and films that will screen in the festival’s World Cinema, Breakthrough, Midnight and Shorts programs at the 25th edition this November. 

    The festival describes each programs as “World Cinema showcases the most anticipated and prize-winning international films of the year, Breakthrough highlights works discovered only through the submissions process and Midnight’s eclectic selection presents films with provocative and unexpected ideas.”

     

    WORLD CINEMA SELECTIONS

    ALMAYER’S FOLLY: DIR/SCR Chantal Akerman.  Belgium/France.  U.S. Premiere.
    ALPS: DIR Yorgos Lanthimos.  SCR Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou.  Greece/France.  U.S. Premiere.
    ARIRANG: DIR Kim Ki-duk.  South Korea.  U.S. Premiere.
    CAFÉ DU FLORE: DIR/SCR Jean-Marc Vallée.  Canada.  U.S. Premiere.
    CARRÉ BLANC: DIR/SCR Jean-Baptiste Léonetti.  France/Luxembourg/Russia/Belgium/Switzerland.  U.S. Premiere.
    THE DAY HE ARRIVES: DIR/SCR Hong Sang-Soo.  South Korea.  U.S. Premiere.
    EXTRATERRESTRIAL: DIR/SCR Nacho Vigalondo.  Spain.
    FAUST: DIR Alexander Sokurov.  SCR Alexander Sokurov, Marina Koreneva.  Russia.  U.S. Premiere.
    FOOTNOTE: DIR/SCR Joseph Cedar.  Israel.  Israel’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.
    THE FORGIVENESS OF BLOOD: DIR Joshua Marston.  SCR Joshua Marston, Andamion Murataj.  USA/Albania/Denmark/Italy.
    THE INVADER: DIR Nicolas Provost.  SCR Nicolas Provost, Giordano Gederlini, François Pirot.  Belgium.  U.S. Premiere.
    JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI: DIR David Gelb.  USA.
    KINYARWANDA: DIR/SCR Alrick Brown.  USA.
    MAMA AFRICA: DIR Mika Kaurismäki.  Germany/South Africa/Finland.
    ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA: DIR Nuri Bilge Ceylan.  SCR Ercan Kesal, Ebru Ceylan, Nuri Bilge Ceylan. Turkey/Bosnia/Herzegovina.  Turkey’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.
    PLAY: DIR/SCR Ruben Östlund.  Sweden/France/Denmark.
    A SEPARATION: DIR/SCR Asghar Farhadi.  Iran.  Iran’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.
    THE SILVER CLIFF: DIR Karim Aïnouz.  SCR Beatriz Brachner, Karim Aïnouz.  Brazil.
    TARGET: DIR Alexander Zeldovich.  SCR Vladimir Sorokin, Alexander Zeldovich.  Russia.
    THIS IS NOT A FILM: DIR/SCR Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Jafar Panahi.  Iran.
    THE TURIN HORSE: DIR Béla Tarr.  SCR Béla Tarr, László Krasznahorkai.  Hungary.  Hungary’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.

    BREAKTHROUGH SELECTIONS
    The Breakthrough films are true discoveries – films that come straight from the submissions process. 

    EXPECTING: DIR/SCR Francisca Fuenzalida.  Chile.  U.S. Premiere.
    LIGHT OF MINE: DIR Brett Eichenberger.  SCR Jill Remensnyder.  USA.
    THREE AND A HALF: DIR/SCR Naghi Nemati.  Iran.  U.S. Premiere.
    WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT: DIR/SCR Alexandra-Therese Keining.  Sweden.  World Premiere.

    MIDNIGHT SELECTIONS
    The Midnight section showcases an eclectic group of films across the globe from fearless proponents of provocative, jarring and unexpected ideas.

    BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW: DIR/SCR Panos Cosmatos.  USA.
    HEADHUNTERS: DIR Morten Tyldum.  DIR Morten Tyldum.  SCR Lars Gudmestad, Ulf Ryberg.  Norway.
    KILL LIST: DIR Ben Wheatley.  SCR Ben Wheatley, Amy Jump.  UK.

    SHORT FILM SELECTIONS (In Competition)
    The films in this section are in competition for the Grand Jury Prize for Live Action Short Film and Animated Short Film.  Both award categories are recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as qualifiers for the annual Academy Awards®.

    30,000 DAYS: DIR Stephanie Barber.  USA.
    ALL FLOWERS IN TIME: DIR Jonathan Caouette.  USA.
    ALL IN ALL: DIR Charlie Reff.  USA.
    ANOTHER BULLET DOGED: DIR Landon Zakheim.  USA.
    BABYLAND: DIR Marc Fratello.  USA.
    BLINK: DIR Rick Rosenthal.  AFI Conservatory Directing Class of 1973.  Canada.
    BROKEN NIGHT: DIR Yang Hyo-Joo.  Korea.
    CLEAR BLUE: DIR Lindsay MacKay.  AFI Conservatory Thesis Film/AFI Directing Class of 2010.  USA.
    DR. BREAKFAST: DIR Stephen Neary.  USA.
    THE EAGLEMAN STAG: DIR Michael Please.  UK.
    EX-SEX: DIR Michael Mohan.  USA.
    FROZEN STORIES: DIR Grzegorz Jaroszuk.  Poland.
    INFINITE MINUTES: DIR Cecilia Felmeri.  Hungary/Romania.
    JUAN Y LA BORREGA: DIR J. Xavier Velasco.  Mexico.
    LIBERTAS: DIR Kan Lume.  Australia/Singapore.
    LITTLE KITTEN: DIR Stephanie Barber.  USA.
    MASKA: DIR Stephen Quay, Timothy Quay.  USA.
    MEXICAN CUISINE: DIR Francisco Guijarro.  USA.
    NEGATIVAPEG: DIR M. Rankin.  Canada.
    NIGHT HUNTER: DIR Stacy Steers.  USA.
    ONCE IT STARTED IT COULD NOT END OTHERWISE: DIR Kelly Sears.  USA.
    ONE MINUTE PUBERTY: DIR Alexander Gellner.  USA.
    PIONEER: DIR David Lowery.  USA.
    PROTOPARTICLES: DIR Chema García Ibarra.  Spain.
    RUNAWAY: DIR Victor Carrey.  Spain.
    SATAN SINCE 2003: DIR Carlos Puga.  USA.
    SLEEP STUDY: DIR Kerri Lenoo, John Merriman.  USA.
    TATUM’S GHOST: DIR Stephanie Barber.  USA.
    THIEF: DIR Julian Higgins.  AFI Conservatory Thesis Film/AFI Directing Class of 2010.  USA.
    TO DIE NEXT TO YOU: Dir Simon Cahn, Spike Jonze.  France.
    UNMANNED: DIR Casey Cooper Johnson.  AFI Conservatory Thesis Film/AFI Directing Class of 2011.  USA.
    THE VOYAGERS: DIR Penny Lane.  USA.
    WE’RE LEAVING: DIR Zachary Treitz.  USA.
    YEARBOOK: DIR Carter Smith.  USA.
    ZERGUT: DIR Natasha Subramaniam, Alisa Lapidu.  USA.

    SHORT FILM SELECTIONS (Out of Competition)
    AANTENI: DIR Todd Cole.  USA.
    I SAW YOUR SISTER YESTERDAY: DIR Mina Park.  USA.
    MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANO: DIR Juliano Dornelles.  Brazil.
    MY BOW BREATHING: DIR Enrico Maria Artale.  Italy.

    WORLD CINEMA SELECTIONS

    ALMAYER’S FOLLY: Chantal Akerman loosely adapts Joseph Conrad’s novel set in Malaysia, the tragic tale of a failed European trader and his
    “mixed blood” daughter.  DIR Chantal Akerman.  CAST Stanislas Merhar, Marc Barbé, Aurora Marion, Zac Andrianasolo.  Belgium/France.
    U.S. Premiere.

    ALPS: DOGTOOTH director Yorgos Lanthimos returns with a tale of a group offering an unusual service for grieving families: They inhabit the
    role of the recently deceased.  DIR Yorgos Lanthimos.  SCR Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou.  CAST Aggeliki Papoulia, Aris Servetalis, Ariane
    Labed, Johnny Vekris.  Greece/France.  U.S. Premiere.

    ARIRANG: Traumatized by a near-fatal accident during filming, director Kim Ki-duk offers a visionary self-portrait of a troubled artist reeling
    from an emotional breakdown.  DIR Kim Ki-duk.  South Korea.  U.S. Premiere.

    CAFÉ DU FLORE: In his follow-up to C.R.A.Z.Y., Jean Marc Vallée tells two parallel stories connected by music about a Montreal D.J. and a
    mother devoted to her special-needs son.  DIR/SCR Jean-Marc Vallée.  CAST Vanessa Paradis, Kevin Parent, Hélène Florent, Evelyne Brochu,
    Marin Gerrier.  Canada.  U.S. Premiere.

    CARRÉ BLANC: One of the strongest debuts in years, CARRÉ BLANC is a dystopian sci-fi vision of a world with limited resources and limitless
    cruelty.  DIR/SCR Jean-Baptiste Léonetti.  CAST Sami Bouajila, Julie Gayet, Jean-Pierre Andreani, Fejria Deliba, Valerie Bodson.
    France/Luxembourg/Russia/Belgium/Switzerland. 

    THE DAY HE ARRIVES: In director Hong Sang-soo’s sublime black-and-white vision of Seoul in winter, a filmmaker’s visit to an old friend
    reverberates with déjà vu-inducing parallels and repetitions.  DIR/SCR Hong Sang-Soo.  CAST Yu Jun-sang, Kim Sang-joong, Song Sun-mi,
    Kim Bok-yung.  South Korea.  U.S. Premiere.

    EXTRATERRESTRIAL: TIMECRIMES director Nacho Vigalondo’s surprising second feature finds an alien invasion providing the backdrop for
    one of the most delightful romantic comedies in years.  DIR/SCR Nacho Vigalondo.  CAST Julian Villagran, Michelle Jenner, Raul Cimas,
    Carlos Areces, Miguel Noguera.  Spain.

    FAUST: RUSSIAN ARK director Alexander Sokurov offers a poetic meditation on Goethe’s legend of the scholar who exchanges his soul for
    unlimited knowledge.  DIR Alexander Sokurov.  SCR Alexander Sokurov, Marina Koreneva.  CAST Johannes Zeiler, Anton Adasinskiy, Isolda
    Dychauk, Georg Friedrich, Hanna Schygulla.  Russia.  U.S. Premiere.

    FOOTNOTE: With wit and pathos, Joseph Cedar tells the story of a rivalry between father and son, both professors in the competitive world of
    Talmudic scholarship.  DIR/SCR Joseph Cedar.  CAST Shlomo Bar Aba, Lior Ashkenazi, Alisa Rosen, Alma Zak, Daniel Markovich, Micah
    Lewesohn, Yuval Scharf, Nevo Kimchi.  Israel.

    THE FORGIVENESS OF BLOOD: In MARIA FULL OF GRACE director Joshua Marston’s assured second feature, a modern Albanian teenager
    finds himself ensnared in his family’s ancient blood feud.  DIR Joshua Marston.  SCR Joshua Marston, Andamion Murataj.  CAST Tristan
    Halilaj, Sindi Laçej, Refet Abazi, Ilire Vinca Çelaj, Çun Lajçi.  USA/Albania/Denmark/Italy. 

    THE INVADER: THE INVADER tells the riveting story of an African immigrant who flees near-enslavement and fights for survival in a European
    city where he does not belong.  DIR Nicolas Provost.  SCR Nicolas Provost, Giordano Gederlini, François Pirot.  CAST Issaka Sawadogo,
    Stefania Rocca, Serge Riaboukine, Dieudonné Kabongo, Tibo Vandenborre, Hannelore Knuts.  Belgium.  U.S. Premiere.

    JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI: With stunning cinematography and a score by Philip Glass, David Galb’s documentary about renowned 85-year-old
    sushi master Jiro Ono is a complete feast for the senses.  DIR David Gelb.  CAST Jiro Ono, Yoshikazu Ono, Masuhiro Yamamoto, Takashi
    Ono, Hachiro Mizutani.  USA.

    KINYARWANDA: Set in 1994, KINYARWANDA interweaves six true tales into one epic narrative about the Rwandan genocide.  DIR/SCR
    Alrick Brown.  CAST Cassandra Freeman, Edouard Bamporiki, Cleophas Kabasita.  USA.

    MAMA AFRICA: A documentary film about the late Miriam Makeba, the charismatic South African singer and anti-apartheid activist who
    became the voice and the hope of Africa.  DIR Mika Kaurismäki.  Germany/South Africa/Finland.

    ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA: A confessed killer leads detectives to his victim’s body in this slow-burning and far from routine police
    procedural from Turkish master Nuri Bilge Ceylan.  DIR: Nuri Bilge Ceylan.  SCR: Ercan Kesal, Ebru Ceylan, Nuri Bilge Ceylan.  CAST
    Muhammet Uzuner, Yilmaz Erdogan, Taner Birsel, A. Mumtaz Taylan, Ercan Kesal.  Turkey/Bosnia/Herzegovina.

    PLAY: Based on actual events, PLAY follows a group of kids lured from an enclosed mall into remote woods by another group with possibly
    nefarious intentions.  DIR/SCR Ruben Östlund.  CAST Anas Abdirahman, Sebastian Blyckert, Yannick Diakité, Sebastian Hegmar, Abdiaziz
    Hilowle.  Sweden/France/Denmark.

    A SEPARATION: Winner of the Golden Bear in Berlin, this drama is a complex portrait of an Iranian family torn apart by a divorce and an
    escalating feud.  DIR/SCR Asghar Farhadi.  CAST Leila Hatami, Peyman Moadi, Shahab Hosseini, Sareh Bayat, Sarina Farhadi, Babak
    Karimi, Merila Zarei.  Iran.

    THE SILVER CLIFF: Abandoned with shocking cruelty by her husband, Violeta embarks on a heartbroken 24-hour odyssey through the bustling
    and beautiful cityscape of Rio de Janeiro.  DIR Karim Aïnouz.  SCR Beatriz Brachner, Karim Aïnouz.  CAST Alessandra Negrini, Thiago
    Martins, Gabi Pereira, Otto Jr., Carla Ribas.  Brazil.

    TARGET: In this flamboyant and ambitious Russian science fiction drama, a wealthy couple from Moscow search for the source of eternal youth.
    DIR Alexander Zeldovich.  SCR Vladimir Sorokin, Alexander Zeldovich.  CAST Maksim Sukhanov, Justine Waddell, Danila Kozlovsky, Daniela
    Stoyanovich.  Russia.

    THIS IS NOT A FILM: Banned by Iran from filmmaking for 20 years and threatened with imprisonment, Jafar Panari offers a remarkable
    portrait of an artist at the crossroads.  DIR/SCR Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Jafar Panahi.  Iran.

    THE TURIN HORSE: An apocalyptic vision of the harsh lives of peasants in a pitiless landscape, this enigmatic and beautiful film marks
    Hungarian master Béla Tarr’s farewell to cinema.  DIR Béla Tarr.  SCR Béla Tarr, László Krasznahorkai.  CAST Erika Bók, János Derzsi, Mihály
    Kormos, Ricsi.  Hungary.


    BREAKTHROUGH SELECTIONS
    EXPECTING: In Chile, a young girl and her boyfriend wait for a black-market drug to take effect in this tense and insightful examination of teen
    pregnancy.  DIR/SCR Francisca Fuenzalida.  Chile.  U.S. Premiere.

    LIGHT OF MINE:  Rapidly going blind, photographer Owen and his wife Laura take a life-changing trip to Yellowstone National Park where
    they experience a beauty that rivals their tragedy.  DIR Brett Eichenberger.  SCR Jill Remensnyder.  USA.

    THREE AND A HALF: Three women risk everything and travel to the northwest Iranian border in hopes of escaping prison and reuniting with
    their comrades.  DIR/SCR Naghi Nemati.  CAST Samaneh Vafaiezadeh, Shooka Karimi, Negar Hassanzadeh, Mehdi Poormoosa.  Iran. 
    U.S. Premiere.

    WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT: In this Swedish romantic drama, uptight Mia attends her father’s engagement party and not only gains a
    stepmother, but also a new lover, Frida.  DIR/SCR Alexandra-Therese Keining.  CAST Ruth Vega Fernandez, Liv Mjönes, Lena Endre, Krister
    Henriksson.  Sweden.  World Premiere.


    MIDNIGHT SELECTIONS
    BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW:  An intense and hallucinogenic sci-fi film set in 1983, director Panos Cosmatos’ BEYOND THE BLACK
    RAINBOW is a one-of-a-kind film experience.  DIR/SCR Panos Cosmatos.  CAST Michael Rogers, Eva Allan, Scott Hylands, Marilyn Norry,
    Rondel Reynoldsen.  USA.

    HEADHUNTERS: In this thriller, corporate headhunter by day, art thief by night Roger will do anything to keep his gorgeous wife happy, even
    stealing from the wrong adversary.  DIR Morten Tyldum.  SCR Lars Gudmestad, Ulf Ryberg.  CAST Aksel Hennie, Synnøve Macody Lund,
    Nikolaj Coster-Waldau.  Norway.

    KILL LIST: As bills stack up and pressures at home mount, an unemployed dad realizes it’s time to get back on the horse and kill some people.
    DIR Ben Wheatley.  SCR Ben Wheatley, Amy Jump.  CAST Neil Maskell, Michael Smiley, MyAnna Buring.  UK.

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