Rooftop Films Summer Series

Obvious Child

Rooftop Films in New York City, announced today the feature film lineup for the 18th Annual Rooftop Films Summer Series. This year’s series kicks off at Industry City in Sunset Park with some of the most exciting new short films from around the world on Friday, May 16th, followed by a special sneak preview of Gillian Robespierre’s upcoming A24 release Obvious Child on Saturday, May 17th.

The 2014 Rooftop Films Summer Series continues through the summer, with screenings each week in a variety of exciting and picturesque outdoor locations. Rooftop Films’ full feature film slate includes documentaries about mushroom hunters in search of human connection (The Last Season), no-budget trailer park filmmakers (Giuseppe Makes A Movie), untouched corners of endangered rainforest (Forest Of The Dancing Spirits), and idiosyncratic jazz legends (The Case Of The Three-Sided Dream); bold, mind-bending fiction (R100, The Infinite Man, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night); and sneak previews of the most exciting festival hits of the year, including razor-sharp comedies (Obvious Child, The One I Love, Skeleton Twins, Appropriate Behavior, Ping Pong Summer, The Trip To Italy) and powerful independent dramas (10,000KM, Cold In July, Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter). Additionally, Rooftop Films will be presenting the World Premiere of Adam Newport-Berra’s powerful feature film debut, “Thanksgiving.”

Rooftop Films 2014 Summer Series Feature Films Line-up

10,000KM (Long Distance) (Carlos Marques-Marcet | 99 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Part of Rooftop Films SXSW Weekend
Separated by 10,000 kilometers, Alexandra and Sergi must rely on virtual communication to keep the flame of their relationship alive. But with their realities no longer shared and the touch of one another gone, the technology that has supposedly brought the world closer together may just tear them apart. 

Appropriate Behavior (Desiree Akhavan | 82 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Shirin is struggling to become an ideal Persian daughter, politically correct bisexual and hip young Brooklynite but fails miserably in her attempt at all identities. Being without a cliché to hold onto can be a lonely experience. 

The Case of the Three Sided Dream (Adam Kahan | 87 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Presented by Rooftop Films and Arts Brookfield
Free Screening. Multi-instrumentalist, civil rights activist and worshipper at the church of dreams, Rahsaan Roland Kirk overcame blindness, paralysis and social injustice to fundamentally alter the landscape of jazz. 

Cold In July (Jim Mickle | 109 min.) NY Premiere
Jim Mickle’s Sundance hit is an ostensible thriller-cum-revenge flick, harking back to ’80s b-movies and delicately crafted around a simple premise that turns out to be anything but. Courtesy of IFC Films. 

The Deadly Ponies Gang (Zoe McIntosh | 65 min.) International Premiere
Clint and Dwayne are two of a kind. The kind that start a pimped-out pony gang (ponies replete with glitter, oversized sunglasses, and bling) on the edges of rural New Zealand. Riding through town the duo deals some drugs, tries to snuggle up to some ladies, and attempts a fundraiser for new teeth while learning the lengths people will go for their mates.

The Disobedient (Mina Djukic | 112 min.) NY Premiere
Running through life with wild abandon, lifelong friends Leni and Lazar set out on an improvised countryside bike trip. Like tiny tornadoes they whirl around rural Serbia resulting in the type of destruction that can only come from true, disastrous love. 

Five Star (Keith Miller | 82 min.)
Free Show. In a blend of fiction and reality, Five Star explores the relationship between two men – Primo, a five star general in the Bloods, and John, a young man trying to decide whether gang life is the path for him. As Primo mentors John in the workings of the gang world, a secret threatens both men’s futures. Winner of a Rooftop Filmmakers Fund grant.

Forest of the Dancing Spirits (Linda Västrik | 104 min.) NY Premiere
Deep within one of the world’s last untouched rainforests lives the Yaka/ Mbendjele tribe, a group of hunter-gatherers from the Congo Basin, who are about to discover the Western world’s intense lust for “progress.” Beyond just an ethnographic study, award-winning filmmaker Linda Västrik imbues each lush frame with humor, heartbreak and vibrant storytelling.

A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night (Ana Lily Amirpour | 107 min.) Special Sneak Preview
A mysterious female vampire haunts an Iranian ghost town and falls for one of its alienated locals in this fantastical black-and-white romance. Produced by Elijah Wood, the Sundance-acclaimed title is a daring, original take on the genre.

Giuseppe Makes A Movie (Adam Rifkin | 83 min.) NY Premiere 
Using his trailer park neighbors and homeless friends, former child-actor Giuseppe Andrews (Independence Day, Detroit Rock City) has made 30 underground feature films for almost no money. This is the stranger-than-fiction story of him making his newest film, “Garbonzo Gas.” Winner of a Rooftop Filmmakers Fund grant.  

Happy Christmas (Joe Swanberg | 78 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Anna Kendrick stars as a newly single woman who crashes with her brother and wreaks havoc on his household in Joe Swanberg’s delicate comedy, which also features energetic turns by Melanie Lynskey and Lena Dunham. Courtesy of Magnolia Films.

The Infinite Man (Hugh Sullivan | 84 min.) New York Premiere
A man’s attempts to construct the ultimate romantic weekend backfire when his quest for perfection traps his lover in an infinite loop.

Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter (David Zellner | 105 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Austin-based filmmakers the Zellner brothers return to Rooftop with a touching absurdist odyssey starring Rinko Kikuchi as a Japanese woman who believes Fargo is a true story and ventures to Minnesota in search of the stolen money hidden during the classic Coen brothers film.

The Last Season (Sara Dosa | 90 min.) NY Premiere
Sara Dosa’s insightful directorial debut introduces viewers to the world of mushroom hunters in Chemult, Oregon, charting the relationships that are cultivated between men and nature, and attesting to the power of families we create.

The Living Stars (Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat | 60 min.) NY Premiere
Free screening. No script, no plot, just music and gyrating bodies. Living Stars is a sixty-minute dance party and everyone’s invited! 

Mateo (Aaron I. Naar | 85 min.) NY Premiere
Part of Rooftop Films SXSW weekend
Matthew Stoneman, a ‘white guy’ from New Hampshire, learned to play authentic and fluent Spanish songs while serving time in an LA prison for robbery. At once his worst enemy and greatest fan, this is the unlikely story of Matthew (Mateo) busking the streets, traveling to Cuba and attempting to record his newest bolero record (romantic Latin tunes).

The One I Love (Charlie McDowell | 91 min.) Special Sneak Preview
A married couple on the brink of separation escapes to a beautiful vacation house for a weekend getaway in an attempt to salvage what’s left of their relationship. That’s about where normalcy ends in this highly original, dizzyingly bizarre directorial debut from acclaimed author Charlie McDowell. Courtesy of Radius-TWC.

Obvious Child (Gillian Robespierre | 90 min.) Opening Weekend Film
Brooklyn comedian Donna Stern gets dumped, fired, and pregnant just in time for the best/worst Valentine’s Day of her life in this film festival favorite. Courtesy of A24 Films. Winner of the Rooftop Films Eastern Effects Equipment Grant.

Ping Pong Summer (Michael Tully | 92 min.) NY Premiere 
The year is 1985. Rad Miracle is a shy 13-year-old white kid who’s obsessed with two things: ping pong and hip hop. During his family’s annual summer vacation to Ocean City, Maryland, Rad makes a new best friend, experiences his first real crush, becomes the target of rich local bullies, and finds an unexpected mentor in his outcast next-door neighbor. Ping Pong Summer is about that time in your life when you’re treated like an alien by everyone around you, even though you know deep down you’re as funky fresh as it gets. Courtesy of Gravitas Ventures.

Pulp (Florian Habicht | 93 min.) Special Sneak Preview
One of the greatest bands to come out of the ’90s is captured in this intimate and imaginative documentary, structured around Pulp’s final concert in their hometown of Sheffield.  Pulp is a music-film like no other – at once a concert film, a nostalgic look back at an iconic band, and a thoughtful and sweetly charming tribute to the hometown fans that fell in love with them. Courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories. 

R100 (Hitoshi Matsumoto | 94 min.) NY Premiere
When a mild-mannered Japanese mattress salesman joins a hidden, mysterious S&M club that specializes in surprising its clients in public and applying sadistic, sexual torture in any place at any time he soon realizes the price for pleasure may be too high. Courtesy of Drafthouse Films.

The Search For Emak Bakia (Oskar Alegria | 84 min.) NY Premiere 
In 1926, the Surrealist artist Man Ray created an experimental film titled Emak Bakia, shot along a forgotten stretch of the Basque coast. Today, a filmmaker retraces Man Ray’s steps by foot, using chance and the wind to guide him in this poetic, indefinable documentary.

She’s Lost Control (Anja Marquardt | 95 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Part of Rooftop Films SXSW Weekend
Focusing on the life of a sex surrogate working in Manhattan, Anja Marquardt’s impressively assured directorial debut casts a penetrating gaze on the complexities of professional intimacy.

Skanks (David McMahon | 84 min.) NY Premiere
A small community theatre in Birmingham, Alabama mounts an original drag musical, “Skanks in a One Horse Town.” The cast of amateur performers bond to form a family of sorts while creating an unconventional show in the religion and football-obsessed south.

The Skeleton Twins (Craig Johnson | 90 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Living separate lives on opposite sides of the country, estranged siblings Maggie (Kristen Wiig) and Milo (Bill Hader) are at the ends of their ropes. But after a moment of crisis reunites them, Milo goes to spend time with Maggie in the small New York town where they grew up. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.

Thanksgiving (Adam Newport-Berra | 85 min.) World Premiere
Alex & Amy are the perfect Brooklyn couple. They have a cat, a Thanksgiving table of bohemian friends, and a glowing future together. Yet the sudden holiday appearance of Amy’s mysterious brother Will quickly disrupts their idyllic lifestyle and calls into question what we’re truly “thankful” for.

The Trip To Italy (Michael Winterbottom | 115 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon reprise their roles as themselves in this follow-up to the acclaimed The Trip in yet another off-the-cuff food adventure. Six meals in six different places on a road trip around Italy. Liguria, Tuscany, Rome, Amalfi and ending in Capri. Courtesy of IFC Films.

We Are The Best (Lukas Moodysson | 90 min.) Special Sneak Preview
Swedish auteur Lukas Moodysson’s (Show Me Love, Together) raucous and ebullient film about three pre-teen outcasts who form an all-girl punk band. Courtesy of Magnolia Films.

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I HATE MYSELF 🙂 directed by Brooklyn, New York filmmaker Joanna Arnow will World Premiere this weekend – Friday July 19, 2013, as part of the Rooftop Films summer screening series in Brooklyn, NY. “Sex, offensive slam poets, and a naked film editor add to the director’s journey for egoless self-identity in this home movie-style portrait of lilting self-loathing.”

In I HATE MYSELF :), the 20-something filmmaker Joanna Arnow, here documents her first relationship through the reactions of those around her: her parents, who are blunt yet loving; her friends, disembodied voices on the phone, adamantly giving advice; the editor of her film, a pushy, nude Freud with a ‘fro; and the film’s co-antagonist, Arnow’s boyfriend, a “performance artist” out to offend, drinking heavily and hovering just above derelict. Through her associates’ viewpoints, she reveals a raw and honest portrait of twenty-something Brooklyn malaise and the pathos that fuels it.

http://youtu.be/eST4qrq6iBY

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The 2013 Rooftop Films Summer Series held across New York City begins on May 10th with a collection of new short films including Gold Party by Nellie Kluz, a recipient of a grant from the Rooftop Filmmakers Fund; Slomo by Josh Izenberg, winner of the jury award for best short documentary at the 2013 SXSW film festival; and Weighting, directed Brie Larson and Dustin Bowser. The Summer Series will wrap August 15-17 with three screenings, including a special sneak preview of David Lowery’s, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints.

Below is the full schedule for the 2013 Summer Series. 

2013 Summer Series Schedule

Friday, May 10
This is What We Mean by Short Films (Short Films)
Opening Night of Rooftop Films 17th Annual Summer Series will feature grand stories in little packages, with some of the greatest new short films from all around the world. Shorts will be announced soon. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Saturday, May 11
Frances Ha (Dir. Noah Baumbach)
Frances wants so much more than she has, but lives her life with unaccountable joy and lightness. “Frances Ha” is a modern comic fable in which Noah Baumbach explores New York, friendship, class, ambition, failure, and redemption. Courtesy of IFC Films. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Friday, May 17
Brothers Hypnotic (Dir. Reuben Atlas) NY Premiere 
Free Screening
For the eight members of the electrifying Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, brotherhood is more than an idea, it’s a literal fact, and music is more than something they play. It’s a way of life. Filmmaker Reuben Atlas will be in attendance to introduce the film and the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble will perform live following the screening. 
Venue: Outdoors at MetroTech Commons, Bridge Street & Johnson Street, Downtown Brooklyn

Saturday, May 18
New York Mayhem (Short Films)
In NYC, you’re always on the edge of adventure. Rooftop heads to the wilds of Industry City (just two subway stops from Manhattan) for local filmmakers’ danger and chaos, dark humor and gritty beauty. 
Venue: The rooftops of Industry City, 220 36th Street at 3rd Avenue, Sunset Park

Friday, May 24
Love Hurts (Short Films)
Romantic short films that express the beauty and anguish of love, with animation, drama and dark sexy comedy.
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Saturday, May 25
The Kings of Summer (Dir. Jordan Vogt-Roberts) 
New York Special Screening
“The Kings of Summer” is a unique coming-of-age comedy about three teenage friends – Joe, Patrick and the eccentric and unpredictable Biaggio – who, in the ultimate act of independence, decide to spend their summer building a house in the woods and living off the land.  Courtesy of CBS Films
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Friday, May 31
Trapped (Short Films)
Short films about people, babies and bunnies trapped in unusual situations, with dark dramas, weird comedies and even more surreal documentaries set to confound and astonish.
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Saturday, June 1
The Dirties (Dir. Matt Johnson) NY Premiere 
Matt and Owen are best friends, who are constantly bullied by a group they call The Dirties. When an assignment goes awry, the friends hatch a plan to enact revenge on their high school tormentors.
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Friday, June 7
That Impending Sense (Short Films)
World-renowned pianist Bruce Levingston performs the Philip Glass’ “Dracula Suite” to presage a night of eerie and mysterious short films. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Saturday, June 8
Twenty Feet From Stardom (Dir. Morgan Neville) 
Special Free Sneak Preview
Presented in partnership with the Academy’s Oscars Outdoors series
Meet the unsung heroes behind the greatest music of our time. Special performance by film’s subject Darlene Love. Courtesy of RADiUS-TWC.
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Wednesday, June 12
Interface Innovation (Short Films) 
Free Screening
A collection of new short films featuring datamoshed moments and postmodem lifestyles, accompanied by new interactive works from the Brooklyn Experimental Media Center and the CITE Game Innovation Lab, both at NYU-Poly
Venue: Outdoors at MetroTech Commons, Bridge Street & Johnson Street, Downtown Brooklyn

Friday, June 14
New York Non-Fiction (Short Films)
Whether you walk into “the city,” or stay in the outer boroughs (or further, in obscure and dangerous places), New York can be an overwhelming place, packed with people hurrying, hustling, huckstering. For some, it may seem apocalyptic (and on one day last October, if not in May, it was apocalyptic). Though the city may be losing some of its local color, there are still hidden corners where rugged urbanity prevails. But one great thing about New York is that no matter how tough its exterior, the core of our denizens know that our real strength is in community, support, and events like these where we can all come together.
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Saturday, June 15
Absurd Animation (Short Films)
Outlandish animated creatures in outrageous situations. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Tuesday, June 18
The Central Park Five (Dir. Sarah Burns, Ken Burns, Dave McMahon) 
Free screening presented with the Ford Foundation and Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza
Set against a backdrop of a decaying city beset by violence and racial tension, “The Central Park Five” tells the story of how five lives were upended by the rush to judgment by police, a sensationalist media and a devastating miscarriage of justice. Courtesy of Florentine Films. 
Venue: Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, 2nd Ave & E 47th St, Manhattan

Thursday, June 20
Love Letter to the Fog / The Biggest-Smallest (Live Documentary Performance by Sam Green) 
Free Screening
Rooftop and River to River present Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Sam Green, teaming up with two local musical outfits, the Quavers and yMusic, to create a night of outdoor music and live cinema. 
Venue: Pier 15, John Street and the East River, Financial District

Saturday, June 22<
Tiger Tail in Blue (Dir. Frank V. Ross) 
“Tiger Tail in Blue” is about a young married couple, Christopher & Melody, that work opposite schedules to remain financially afloat as Chris bangs out his first novel while working nights as a waiter. Never seeing each other is taking its toll, as the two rarely get a chance to engage one another. Chris finds the attention he craves in the past and Brandy, a saucy co-worker.
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

Tuesday, June 25
The Genius of Marian (Dir. Banker White, Anna Fitch)
Free screening presented with the Ford Foundation and Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza
An intimate family portrait that explores the tragedy of Alzheimer’s disease, the power of art and the meaning of family. “The Genius of Marian” follows Pam White in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease as her son, the filmmaker, documents her struggle to hang on to a sense of self. 
Venue: Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, 2nd Ave & E 47th St, Manhattan

Thursday, June 27 
Drinking Buddies (Dir. Joe Swanberg) NY Premiere 
Presented in partnership with BAMcinemaFest
Luke and Kate are co-workers at a Chicago brewery where they spend their days drinking and flirting. They’re perfect for each other, except that they’re both in relationships. But you know what makes the line between “friends” and “more than friends” really blurry? Beer. Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.
Venue: Outdoor parking lot at BAMcinématek (Fort Greene), Fulton Street and Ashland Place, Brooklyn

Friday, June 28
Crystal Fairy (Dir. Sebastián Silva) Special Sneak Preview
Presented by Rooftop Films and Indiewire
A hilariously unpredictable comedy about a self-involved young American searching for a secret hallucinogenic cactus in the desert of Chile. Courtesy of IFC Films. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Saturday, June 29
Unexplored America (Shorts Films)
Leading into the 4th of July, Rooftop takes an honest look at authentic Americana, in all its absurd glory.  
Venue: Open Road Rooftop, 350 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Tuesday, July 2
WILLIAM AND THE WINDMILL (Dir. Ben Nabors)
Free screening presented with the Ford Foundation and Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza
William Kamkwamba, a young Malawian, builds a power-generating windmill from junk parts to rescue his family from famine, transforming his life and catapulting him on to the world stage. His fame and success lead him to new opportunities and complex choices about his future, distancing him from the life he once knew.
Venue: Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, 2nd Ave & E 47th St, Manhattan

Wednesday, July 3
Our Nixon (Dir. Penny Lane) 
Free Sneak Preview 
Presented with Socrates Sculpture Park. 
Throughout Richard Nixon’s presidency, three of his top White House aides obsessively documented their experiences with Super 8 home movie cameras. Young, idealistic and dedicated, they had no idea that a few years later they’d all be in prison. “Our Nixon” is an all-archival documentary presenting those home movies for the first time, along with other rare footage, creating an intimate and complex portrait of the Nixon presidency as never seen before. Courtesy of Cinedigm. 
Venue: The lawn in Socrates Sculpture Park, 3134 Vernon Boulevard, Long Island City

Saturday, July 6
Belleville Baby (Dir. Mia Engberg) NY Premiere 
A long distance call from a long lost lover makes her reminisce about their common past. She remembers the spring when they met in Paris, the riots, the vespa and the cat named Baby. A film about love, time and things that got lost along the way. 
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

Monday, July 8
Bending Steel (Dir. David Carroll, produced by Ryan Scafuro) 
Free Screening 
A remarkable and intimate documentary exploring the lost art of the old time strongman, and one man’s struggle to overcome limitations of body and mind. Featuring a live performance by professional strongmen from the movie prior to the film. 
Venue: The Beach in Coney Island, W 12th and the beach, right near Luna Park

Friday, July 12
Sundance Shorts (Short Films)
Highlights from the vital Sundance 2013 selections include wild, weird and wonderful short films that define the genre, at the forefront of cutting edge storytelling. 
Venue: The rooftops of Industry City, 220 36th Street at 3rd Avenue, Sunset Park

Saturday, July 13
Brasslands (Dir. Meerkat Media Collective) NY Premiere 
Free Screening
Presented by Rooftop Films and Arts Brookfield
Devoted American musicians, Serbian brass heavyweights, and a Gypsy trumpet master collide at the world’s largest trumpet festival. 
Venue: Brookfield Place (formerly World Financial Center), 220 Vesey Street (between West Street and the Hudson River), Financial District

Thursday, July 18
Newlyweeds (Dir. Shaka King) 
Special Sneak Preview
Brooklyn residents Lyle and Nina blaze away the stress of living in New York City, but what should be a match made in stoner heaven turns into a love triangle gone awry. Courtesy of Phase 4 Films.
Venue: The roof of Trilok Fusion Center for the Arts, 143 Waverly Avenue at Myrtle Avenue, Clinton Hill

Friday, July 19
i hate myself 🙂 (Dir. Joanna Arnow) World Premiere
Nebbishy NYC filmmaker Joanna Arnow documents her yearlong relationship with racially charged poet-provocateur James Kepple. What starts out as an uncomfortably intimate portrait of a dysfunctional relationship and protracted mid-twenties adolescence, quickly turns into a complex commentary on societal repression, sexuality and self-confrontation through art. 
Venue: On the roof of Industry City (882 3rd Ave, Brooklyn)

Saturday, July 20
Short Term 12 (Dir. Destin Daniel Cretton) 
Special Free Sneak Preview
Presented in partnership with the Academy’s Oscars Outdoors series
“Short Term 12” follows Grace (Brie Larson), a young supervisor at a foster-care facility, as she looks after the teens in her charge and reckons with her own troubled past. Courtesy of Cinedigm. 
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

Thursday, July 25
Towheads (Dir. Shannon Plumb) 
Special Sneak Preview
A harried New York mother struggling as an artist searches for a happy (if slightly unhinged) hybrid of the two. In her debut feature, Shannon Plumb’s charming Chaplin-like characters light up the screen with visual playfulness. 
Venue: The roof of Trilok Fusion Center for the Arts, 143 Waverly Avenue at Myrtle Avenue, Clinton Hill

Friday, July 26
Animation Block Party
Some call it punk rock, some call it grass roots, but labels aside, NYC-based Animation Block Party is the premier animation festival of the East Coast. 
Venue: The lawn of Greenpoint High School for Engineering and Automotive Technology, 50 Bedford Avenue, Williamsburg

Saturday, July 27
INDUSTRIANCE ™: Black Out (Short Films)
Hanging on to old habits, hoping for new means, humanity begets change through technology and industry, labor and artistry. A striking program of short films, including Eva Weber’s illuminating documentary “Black Out.” 
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

Wednesday, July 31
Domestic (Dir. Adrian Sitaru) NY Premiere 
Free Screening
Presented with Socrates Sculpture Park. 
Wonderfully surreal, painfully real, this is the story of children, adults and animals who live together trying to have a better life, but sometimes death comes unexpectedly. In the bittersweet comedy “Domestic” it is all about us, people who eat the animals that they love and the animals that love people unconditionally. 
Venue: The lawn in Socrates Sculpture Park, 3134 Vernon Boulevard, Long Island City

<Thursday, August 1
The Expedition to the End of the World (Dir. Daniel Dencik) NY Premiere
A real adventure film – for the 21st century. On a three-mast schooner packed with artists, scientists and ambitions worthy of Noah or Columbus, they set off for the end of the world: the rapidly melting massifs of North-East Greenland. 
Venue: The Waterfront Museum aboard the 914 Lehigh Valley Barge #79, In the water at 290 Conover Street, Red Hook

Friday, August 2
North of South, West of East (Dir. Meredith Danluck) NY Premiere 
Free screening presented with Downtown Brooklyn Partnership and Forest City Ratner
The desire to be entertained becomes hyper-realized as Meredith Danluck’s multi-screen installation creates a fully immersive non-linear cinema experience in MetroTech commons. The audience will sit at the center of the viewing space, surrounded on all four sides by screens as all the separate channels of the film play simultaneously, each storyline competing for the audience’s attention. A one-of-a-kind cinema-going experience, North of South, West of East takes the chronic existential crisis that is the American identity and turns it inside out, laying the classic components of comedy, thrill, violence, love and death neatly side by side, all at once.
Venue: Outdoors at MetroTech Commons, Bridge Street & Johnson Street, Downtown Brooklyn

Saturday, August 3
Cutie and the Boxer (Dir. Zachary Heinzerling) 
Special Sneak Preview
This candid New York love story explores the chaotic 40-year marriage of renowned “boxing” painter Ushio Shinohara and his wife, Noriko. Anxious to shed her role of assistant to her overbearing husband, Noriko seeks an identity of her own. Courtesy of RADiUS-TWC.
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

Thursday, August 8
12 O’Clock Boys (Dir. Lotfy Nathan) NY Premiere 
Part of Rooftop’s SXSW weekend
Pug, a young boy growing up on a combative West Baltimore block, finds solace in a group of illegal dirt bike riders known as The 12 O’Clock Boys. Courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories. 
Venue: The lawn of Greenpoint High School for Engineering and Automotive Technology, 50 Bedford Avenue, Williamsburg

Friday, August 9
Awful Nice (Dir. Todd Sklar) NY Premiere
Part of Rooftop’s SXSW weekend
Estranged brothers Jim and Dave must travel to Branson together when their father dies and leaves them the family lake home. A series of hilarious mishaps and costly misadventures follow as they attempt to restore the house and rebuild their relationship. 
Venue: The rooftops of Industry City, 220 36th Street at 3rd Avenue, Sunset Park

<Saturday, August 10
Elena (Dir. Petra Costa) NY Premiere
Part of Rooftop’s SXSW weekend
Intimate in style, “Elena” delves into the abyss of one family’s drama, revealing at once the inspiration that can be born from tragedy. 
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

Thursday, August 15
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints (Dir. David Lowery) 
Special Sneak Preview
“Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” tells the tale of an outlaw who escapes from prison and sets out across the Texas hills to reunite with his wife and the daughter he has never met. Courtesy of IFC Films. 
Venue: Outdoors at the Queens County Farm Museum, 73-50 Little Neck Parkway, Queens

Friday, August 16
F— for Forest (Dir. Michal Marczak) NY Premiere 
Berlin’s F— for Forest is one of the world’s most bizarre charities: based on the idea that sex can change the world, the NGO raises money for their environmental cause by selling home-made erotic films on the Internet.
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

Saturday, August 17
Rooftop Shots (Short Films)
Closing Night! Rooftop concludes with the sharpest shorts in the world, fired into the night sky one last time, the films fading like fireworks.
Venue: The roof of the Old American Can Factory, 232 Third Street, Gowanus/Park Slope

 

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Rooftop Films full feature film slate for 2013 was released today and it includes more than 45 new independent films, including two special sneak preview screenings co-presented with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Rooftop Films and the Academy will present a free screening of “Twenty Feet from Stardom,” which premiered at Sundance. The film, which opens June 14th, shines a spotlight on the untold true story of the backup singers behind some of the greatest musical legends of the 21st century. Rooftop and the Academy will also partner to present “Short Term 12”, the feature film debut of Destin Cretton. Cretton was a 2010 Academy Nicholl Screenwriting Fellowship winner, and “Short Term 12” went on to win the 2013 SXSW Grand Jury Award in March.

The 2013 Rooftop Films Summer Series begins on May 10th and continues through the summer, with screenings each weekend in a variety of outdoor locations in New York City.

Rooftop Films 2013 Summer Series Feature Films Line-up

12 O’Clock Boys (Dir. Lotfy Nathan) NY Premiere 

Pug, a young boy growing up on a combative West Baltimore block, finds solace in a group of illegal dirt bike riders known as The 12 O’Clock Boys. Courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories.

Ain’t Them Bodies Saints (Dir. David Lowery) 

“Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” tells the tale of an outlaw who escapes from prison and sets out across the Texas hills to reunite with his wife and the daughter he has never met. Courtesy of IFC Films.

Awful Nice (Dir. Todd Sklar) NY Premiere

Estranged brothers Jim and Dave must travel to Branson together when their father dies and leaves them the family lake home. A series of hilarious mishaps and costly misadventures follow as they attempt to restore the house and rebuild their relationship.

Belleville Baby (Dir. Mia Engberg) NY Premiere

A long distance call from a long lost lover makes her reminisce about their common past. She remembers the spring when they met in Paris, the riots, the vespa and the cat named Baby. A film about love, time and things that got lost along the way.

Bending Steel (Dir. David Carroll, produced by Ryan Scafuro) 

A remarkable and intimate documentary exploring the lost art of the old time strongman, and one man’s struggle to overcome limitations of body and mind.

Brasslands (Dir. Meerkat Media Collective) NY Premiere

Devoted American musicians, Serbian brass heavyweights, and a Gypsy trumpet master collide at the world’s largest trumpet festival.

Brothers Hypnotic (Dir. Reuben Atlas) NY Premiere

Brotherhood, whether biological or ideological, is never easy. “Brothers Hypnotic” is a coming-of-age story—for eight young men, and for an ideal.

The Central Park Five (Dir. Sarah Burns, Ken Burns, Dave McMahon)

Set against a backdrop of a decaying city beset by violence and racial tension, “The Central Park Five” tells the story of how five lives were upended by the rush to judgment by police, a sensationalist media and a devastating miscarriage of justice. Courtesy of Florentine Films.

Crystal Fairy (Dir. Sebastián Silva) Special Sneak Preview

A hilariously unpredictable comedy about a self-involved young American searching for a secret hallucinogenic cactus in the desert of Chile. Courtesy of IFC Films.

Cutie and the Boxer (Dir. Zachary Heinzerling) 

This candid New York love story explores the chaotic 40-year marriage of renowned “boxing” painter Ushio Shinohara and his wife, Noriko. Anxious to shed her role of assistant to her overbearing husband, Noriko seeks an identity of her own. Courtesy of RADiUS-TWC.

The Dirties (Dir. Matt Johnson) NY Premiere 

Matt and Owen are best friends, who are constantly bullied by a group they call The Dirties. When an assignment goes awry, the friends hatch a plan to enact revenge on their high school tormentors.

Domestic (Dir. Adrian Sitaru) NY Premiere 

Wonderfully surreal, painfully real, this is the story of children, adults and animals who live together trying to have a better life, but sometimes death comes unexpectedly. In the bittersweet comedy “Domestic” it is all about us, people who eat the animals that they love and the animals that love people unconditionally.

Drinking Buddies (Dir. Joe Swanberg) NY Premiere 

Luke and Kate are co-workers at a Chicago brewery where they spend their days drinking and flirting. They’re perfect for each other, except that they’re both in relationships. But you know what makes the line between “friends” and “more than friends” really blurry? Beer.
Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.

Elena (Dir. Petra Costa) NY Premiere

[caption id="attachment_3763" align="alignnone" width="550"]Elena[/caption]

Intimate in style, “Elena” delves into the abyss of one family’s drama, revealing at once the inspiration that can be born from tragedy.

The Expedition to the End of the World (Dir. Daniel Dencik) NY Premiere

A real adventure film – for the 21st century. On a three-mast schooner packed with artists, scientists and ambitions worthy of Noah or Columbus, they set off for the end of the world: the rapidly melting massifs of North-East Greenland. 

Frances Ha (Dir. Noah Baumbach) 

Frances wants so much more than she has, but lives her life with unaccountable joy and lightness. “Frances Ha” is a modern comic fable in which Noah Baumbach explores New York, friendship, class, ambition, failure, and redemption.  Courtesy of IFC Films.

F— for Forest (Dir. Michal Marczak) NY Premiere 

Berlin’s “F—“ for Forest is one of the world’s most bizarre charities: based on the idea that sex can change the world, the NGO raises money for their environmental cause by selling home-made erotic films on the Internet.

The Genius of Marian (Dir. Banker White, Anna Fitch)

An intimate family portrait that explores the tragedy of Alzheimer’s disease, the power of art and the meaning of family. “The Genius of Marian” follows Pam White in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease as her son, the filmmaker, documents her struggle to hang on to a sense of self.

i hate myself 🙂 (Dir. Joanna Arnow) NY Premiere

Nebbishy filmmaker Joanna Arnow documents her yearlong relationship with racially charged poet-provocateur James Kepple. What starts out as an uncomfortably intimate portrait of a dysfunctional relationship and protracted mid-twenties adolescence, quickly turns into a complex commentary on societal repression, sexuality and self-confrontation through art.

The Kings of Summer (Dir. Jordan Vogt-Roberts) New York Special Screening

“The Kings of Summer” is a unique coming-of-age comedy about three teenage friends – Joe, Patrick and the eccentric and unpredictable Biaggio – who, in the ultimate act of independence, decide to spend their summer building a house in the woods and living off the land.  Courtesy of CBS.

Newlyweeds (Dir. Shaka King)

Brooklyn residents Lyle and Nina blaze away the stress of living in New York City, but what should be a match made in stoner heaven turns into a love triangle gone awry. Courtesy of Phase 4 Films.

North of South, West of East (Dir. Meredith Danluck) NY Premiere

North of South, West of East takes a scrupulous look at the American Dream through Hollywood tropes and conventional cinema. Working with a narrative structure this four-part 85 minute film takes the chronic existential crisis that is the American identity and turns it inside out, laying the typical components of comedy, thrill, violence, love and death (the ultimate reinvention) neatly side by side.

Our Nixon (Dir. Penny Lane) 

Throughout Richard Nixon’s presidency, three of his top White House aides obsessively documented their experiences with Super 8 home movie cameras. Young, idealistic and dedicated, they had no idea that a few years later they’d all be in prison. “Our Nixon” is an all-archival documentary presenting those home movies for the first time, along with other rare footage, creating an intimate and complex portrait of the Nixon presidency as never seen before. 

Short Term 12 (Dir. Destin Daniel Cretton) Special FREE Sneak Preview

“Short Term 12” follows Grace (Brie Larson), a young supervisor at a foster-care facility, as she looks after the teens in her charge and reckons with her own troubled past.

Tiger Tail in Blue (Dir. Frank V. Ross) 

“Tiger Tail in Blue” is about a young married couple, Christopher & Melody, that work opposite schedules to remain financially afloat as Chris bangs out his first novel while working nights as a waiter. Never seeing each other is taking its toll, as the two rarely get a chance to engage one another. Chris finds the attention he craves in the past and Brandy, a saucy co-worker.

Towheads (Dir. Shannon Plumb)

A harried New York mother struggling as an artist searches for a happy (if slightly unhinged) hybrid of the two. In her debut feature, Shannon Plumb’s charming Chaplin-like characters light up the screen with visual playfulness.

Twenty Feet From Stardom (Dir. Morgan Neville) Special FREE Sneak Preview

Meet the unsung heroes behind the greatest music of our time. Courtesy of RADiUS-TWC.

WILLIAM AND THE WINDMILL (Dir. Ben Nabors)

William Kamkwamba, a young Malawian, builds a power-generating windmill from junk parts to rescue his family from famine, transforming his life and catapulting him on to the world stage. His fame and success lead him to new opportunities and complex choices about his future, distancing him from the life he once knew.

 

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 [caption id="attachment_3580" align="alignnone" width="550"]Frances Ha[/caption]

Rooftop Films is back for the 17th Annual Summer Series, with this year’s edition kicking off on Friday, May 10th with a screening of what the festival describes as “some of the greatest new short films from all around the world”. On Saturday, May 11th, Rooftop will present a special sneak preview screening of “Frances Ha,” directed by Noah Baumbach and starring Greta Gerwig,

Some highlights from this year’s Summer Series include New York premieres, sneak previews, and more:

Rooftop will host a sneak preview screening of “Crystal Fairy,” starring Michael Cera and Gaby Hoffmann, directed by Sebastián Silva (“Old Cats,” “The Maid”), winner of the Sundance Film Festival’s award for Best Director Award in World Cinema. The director and cast members will be in attendance.

On Saturday, July 13th, the documentary “Brasslands” will be presented with Arts Brookfield as part of the River To River Festival 2013 on the waterfront of Brookfield Place (formerly World Financial Center), with live performances by four Balkan brass bands, recreating the experience of the massive Serbian music festival that the film documents.

On Saturday, May 25th, Jordan Vogt-Roberts returns to Rooftop with his hilarious feature film debut, “The Kings of Summer” (formerly “Toy’s House”), starring Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally.

Continuing their partnership, Rooftop and BAMcinématek will host a party with a sneak preview of “Drinking Buddies,” directed by Rooftop alum Joe Swanberg and starring Anna Kendrick and Olivia Wilde, on Thursday, June 27th, outdoors across the street from BAM. The filmmaker will be in attendance for the event.

Rooftop will be screening many works by Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund grantees in 2013, including two films that premiered at Sundance: the hit western “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints,” directed by David Lowery, and “Newlyweeds,” a stoner romantic comedy directed by Shaka King.

Rooftop Films 17th Annual Summer Series Opening Weekend

Friday, May 10, 2013
This is What We Mean by Short Films
Opening Night of Rooftop Films 17th Annual Summer Series will feature grand stories in little packages, with some of the greatest new short films from all around the world. Shorts will be announced soon. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop (350 Grand Street, LES)

Saturday, May 11, 2013
Frances Ha (Dir. Noah Baumbach) (see main image)
Frances wants so much more than she has, but lives her life with unaccountable joy and lightness. “Frances Ha” is a modern comic fable in which Noah Baumbach explores New York, friendship, class, ambition, failure, and redemption. Courtesy of IFC Films. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop (350 Grand Street, LES)

Rooftop Films 17th Annual Summer Series Highlights

Ain’t Them Bodies Saints (Dir. David Lowery)

[caption id="attachment_3581" align="alignnone" width="550"]Ain’t Them Bodies Saints[/caption]
“Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” tells the tale of an outlaw who escapes from prison and sets out across the Texas hills to reunite with his wife and the daughter he has never met. 
Courtesy of IFC Films.

Brasslands (Dir. Meerkat Media Collective)

[caption id="attachment_3582" align="alignnone" width="550"]Brasslands[/caption]
Presented by Rooftop Films and Arts Brookfield
Devoted American musicians, Serbian brass heavyweights, and a Gypsy trumpet master collide at the world’s largest trumpet festival.

Crystal Fairy (Dir. Sebastián Silva)

[caption id="attachment_3583" align="alignnone" width="550"]Crystal Fairy[/caption]
A hilariously unpredictable comedy about a self-involved young American searching for a secret hallucinogenic cactus in the desert of Chile.
Courtesy of IFC Films.

Drinking Buddies (Dir. Joe Swanberg)

[caption id="attachment_3539" align="alignnone" width="550"]Drinking Buddies[/caption]
Presented by Rooftop Films and BAMcinématek
Luke and Kate are co-workers at a Chicago brewery where they spend their days drinking and flirting. They’re perfect for each other, except that they’re both in relationships. But you know what makes the line between “friends” and “more than friends” really blurry? Beer.
Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.

Newlyweeds (Dir. Shaka King)

[caption id="attachment_3584" align="alignnone" width="550"]Newlyweeds [/caption]
Brooklyn residents Lyle and Nina blaze away the stress of living in New York City, but what should be a match made in stoner heaven turns into a love triangle gone awry.
Courtesy of Phase 4 Films.

The Kings of Summer (Dir. John Vogt-Roberts)

[caption id="attachment_3585" align="alignnone" width="550"]The Kings of Summer[/caption]
A unique coming-of-age comedy about three teenage friends who, in the ultimate act of independence, decide to spend their summer building a house in the woods and living off the land.  
Courtesy of CBS.

 

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Rooftop Films announce the feature film lineup for the 16th Annual Summer Series presented by AT&T, featuring over 45 outdoor screenings with huge crowds, live music, spectacular venues and the best in new, independent, and foreign films. This year’s edition kicks off with some of the greatest new short films from all around the world on Friday, May 11th at Open Road Rooftop at New Design High School in the Lower East Side, and a special preview screening of Think of Me, starring Lauren Ambrose, on Saturday, May 12th also at Open Road Rooftop.

Rooftop Films has continued to experience remarkable growth since their initial single screening on the roof of founder Mark Elijah Rosenberg’s tenement building in 1997 and the focus remains on leveraging their grassroots popularity to bring out big crowds and shine a spotlight on new independent films that might otherwise never get the attention they deserve.

Acting as innovators and leading an event-based film marketing revolution, Rooftop Films has helped enable the success of many alumni, including Wasteland, Trouble the Water, Holy Rollers, Winnebago Man, and numerous others. In addition, through their Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund, they help more powerful, understated films not only be seen, but made; films such as Beasts of the Southern Wild, Martha Marcy May Marlene, The Patron Saints, Nancy, Please, and The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom have received production or post-production support via the Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund and gone on to have tremendous success at festivals and reaching wide, appreciative audiences.

However, the popularity and longevity of Rooftop Films comes primarily from the fact that their events take audiences beyond the average multi-plex movie going experience. This year is no different.

“Our aim at Rooftop Films,” says Founder and Artistic Director Mark Elijah Rosenberg, “is to immerse our audiences in new worlds, to bring them places they wouldn’t otherwise go, to provide intimate looks into unique lives. I’m excited about our feature film programming in 2012 because it includes daring and personal films on a wide range of subjects, from a diverse collection of filmmakers, and with every film we’ll be providing a unique cinematic experience.”   

During the weekend of June 6-8, Rooftop Films will be presenting three films from the SXSW Film Festival to New York City: Caveh Zahedi’s (I am a Sex Addict) political documentary The Sheik and I, Matthew Lillard’s (Scream, SLC Punk) comic feature debut Fat Kid Rules the World, and Amy Seimetz’s dramatic thriller Sun Don’t Shine, about a road-trip gone bad.

Please find below the full line-up for the 2012 Summer Series listing of feature films. All shows include live-music before the screenings and most include filmmaker Q&As and after parties with complementary open bars. The Summer Series will also include over 20 programs of short films. The full schedule including locations and dates will be announced in the coming weeks.

Rooftop Films 16th Annual Summer Series Opening Weekend

Friday, May 11, 2012
This is What We Mean by Short Films
Opening Night of Rooftop Films 16th Annual Summer Series will feature grand stories in little packages, with some of the greatest new short films from all around the world.
Venue: Open Road Rooftop (350 Grand Street, LES)
Tickets, films and more info at: www.rooftopfilms.com

Saturday, May 12, 2012
Think of Me (Bryan Wizemann)
http://www.thinkofmemovie.com/
“Trembling with vulnerability, Lauren Ambrose is positively devastating” (The New York Observer) as a young single mother doing her best not to fall apart. 
Venue: Open Road Rooftop (350 Grand Street, LES)
Tickets, films and more info at: www.rooftopfilms.com


Additional 2012 Feature Selections will include: (in alphabetical order)

An Oversimplification of Her Beauty (Terence Nance)
http://oversimplification.mvmt.com
Terence Nance’s explosively creative debut feature documents the relationship between Terence and a woman as it teeters on the divide between platonic and romantic.

Argentinean Lesson (Wojciech Staron)
Captured in breathtaking 16mm film, an eight-year-old traveling from Poland to Argentina meets Marcia, a beautiful and brave young girl, 11 going on 30.

Bovines (Emmanuel Gras)
In the fields, one sees them, wide in grass or grazing peacefully. Large placid animals which one believes to know because they are livestock. Lions, gorillas, bear have all our attention, but did one ever really look at cows?

China Heavyweight (Yung Chang)
http://www.eyesteelfilm.com/projects/completed-films/china-heavyweight/
In central China, a master coach recruits poor rural teenagers and turns them into Western-style boxing champions.

Detropia (Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady)
http://lokifilms.com/DET_newspress.html
Detropia is a cinematic tapestry of a city and its people who refuse to leave the building, even as the flames are rising.

Dicke Maedchen (Heavy Girls) (Axel Ranisch)
http://www.dickemaedchen.com/Home_engl.html
Sven shares his entire life, the apartment, even the bed with his mother, who is suffering from dementia. But when she takes off, Sven goes on a journey that turns his life upside down. 

Fat Kid Rules the World (Matthew Lilliard)
Marking Matthew Lillard’s (SLC Punk, Scream) directorial debut, and based on the bestselling novel by the same title, Fat Kid Rules the World is a story for anybody who has ever needed to find their inner rock star.

Gayby (Jonathan Lisecki)
http://www.gaybyfilm.com/gayby.html
Jenn and Matt, two best friends from college who are now in their 30s and single by choice, decide to fulfill a youthful promise to have a child together… the old-fashioned way. Gayby will screen during Gay Pride weekend.

Grandma Lo-Fi (Louise Johansen)
At the tender age of 70 Sigríður Níelsdóttir started recording and releasing her own music straight from the living room. 7 years later, she had 59 albums to her name with more than 600 songs – an eccentric myriad of catchy compositions mixing in her pets’ purrs and coos, found toys, kitchen percussion and Casio keyboards.

Her Master’s Voice (Nina Conti)
Internationally acclaimed ventriloquist Nina Conti takes the bereaved puppets of her mentor and erstwhile lover on a pilgrimage to ‘Venthaven’ the resting place for puppets of dead ventriloquists.

I Think It’s Raining (Joshua Moore)
http://ithinkitsraining.com/
Starring and featuring original songs written and performed by Alexandra Clayton, I Think It’s Raining is a music-infused San Francisco portrait of a young woman at odds with who she once was and who she will become.

Inocente (Sean Fine, Andrea Nix Fine)
http://fine-films.com/inocente.php
At 15, Inocente refuses to let her dream of becoming an artist be undermined by her life as an undocumented immigrant forced to live homeless for the last nine years. Rooftop and the Fledgling Fund present a series of screenings and art workshops for adults and youth alike.

Kid-Thing (David and Nathan Zellner)
A fever-dream fable about a rebellious girl who spends her time roaming the land, leaving destruction in her wake.

Kumaré (Vikram Ghandi)
Kumaré is a documentary about a man who impersonates a wise Indian Guru and builds a following in Arizona. At the height of his popularity, the Guru Kumaré must reveal his true identity to his disciples and unveil his greatest teaching of all.

Love Story (Florian Habicht)
A chance encounter between a man and a woman on a train leads to a day of adventure and discovery in this romance written on the streets of New York.

Only the Young (Jason Tippet & Elizabeth Mims)
Kevin and Garrison are boyhood friends in a sleepy California suburb. They share a love of skateboarding, an evangelical Christian faith and a sense of confusion about romantic relationships.

Sun Don’t Shine (Amy Seimetz)
Sun Don’t Shine follows Crystal (Kate Lyn Sheil) and her boyfriend Leo (Kentucker Audley) on a tense and mysterious road trip through the desolate yet hauntingly beautiful landscape of central Florida.

The Imposter (Bart Layton)
A documentary centered on a young Frenchman who convinces a grieving Texas family that he is their 16-year-old son who went missing for 3 years.

The Patron Saints (Brian Cassidy & Melanie Shatzky)
http://www.thepatronsaintsfilm.com
The Patron Saints, a recipient of the Rooftop Filmmaker’s Fund grant, is a disquieting and hyperrealistic glimpse into life at a nursing home. Bound by the candid confessions of a recently disabled resident, the film weaves haunting images, scenes and stories from within the institution walls.

The Sheik and I (Caveh Zahedi)
http://thesheikandi.com/
Commissioned by a Middle Eastern Biennial to make a film on the theme of “art as a subversive act,” independent filmmaker Caveh Zahedi (I Am a Sex Addict) goes overboard when told that he can do whatever he wants except make fun of the Sheik.

The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom (Lucy Walker)
http://thetsunamiandthecherryblossom.com/
Survivors in the areas hardest hit by Japan’s recent tsunami find the courage to revive and rebuild as cherry blossom season begins. Supported by the Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund.

The Waiting Room (Peter Nicks)
http://www.whatruwaitingfor.com/
The Waiting Room is a character-driven documentary film that uses extraordinary access to go behind the doors of an American public hospital struggling to care for a community of largely uninsured patients.

Think of Me (Bryan Wizemann)
http://www.thinkofmemovie.com/
“Trembling with vulnerability, Lauren Ambrose is positively devastating” (The New York Observer) as a young single mother doing her best not to fall apart. 

This Ain’t California (Marten Persiel)
http://www.thisaintcalifornia.de/en
A hit at the 2012 Berlinale,This Ain’t California takes a look at the transformation of Germany over the course of 40 years through the lens of three skateboarder friends.

Welcome to Pine Hill (Keith Miller)
http://welcometopinehill.com/
A recently reformed drug dealer working as a claims adjuster receives earth-shattering news that compels him to make peace with his past and search for freedom beyond the concrete jungle of New York.

 

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[caption id="attachment_1330" align="alignnone" width="560"]The Dish and The Spoon[/caption]

Rooftop Films is doing it different this year, announcing a special weekend of select films from the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival, making their New York Premieres June 3-5 2011, as part of Rooftop Films 15th Annual Summer Series.

The films making their New York Premieres as part of our South by Southwest Weekend are The Dish and the Spoon directed by Alison Bagnall and starring Greta Gerwig, No Matter What directed by Cherie Saulter, and Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund and Edgeworx Studios Grantee The City Dark directed by Ian Cheney.

Friday, June 3, 2011
Rooftop Films and SXSW Present:
The Dish and the Spoon
(Alison Bagnall | Philadelphia, PA | NY Premiere)

In this delicate affecting romance, indie starlet Greta Gerwig boldly plays against type as Rose, a woman furious with her unfaithful husband. During a drinking binge, she encounters an alienated teen played by newcomer Olly Alexander, and the two go on whimsical adventures together, their relationship becoming more enchantingly intimate as they gambol about a small beachside town.

Saturday, June 4, 2011
Rooftop Films and SXSW Present:
No Matter What
(Cherie Saulter | Chipley, FL | NY Premiere)

Teenagers Joey and Nick are navigating the complex landscape of rural Florida on their own — they don’t really have parents, they prefer skateboarding to school. When the pair set out to find Joey’s mother — camping out in drug dealers’ backyards, hopping freight trains — we wonder if, perhaps, they should just keep going.

Sunday, June 5, 2011
Rooftop Films, SXSW and Edgeworx Studios present:
The City Dark
(Ian Cheney | Brooklyn, NY | NY Premiere)

For thousands of years, the night sky was a crucial part of human experience, but due to light pollution, the stars are disappearing from our vision and consciousness. Would bringing back the sky make us better humans, or save us from some of the harmful effects of modern city life? Supported in part by the Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund and the Edgeworx Studios Post-Production Grant.

Screening with a selection of 2011 SXSW Shorts:
Heliotropes (Michael Langan | San Francisco, CA) Heliotropes documents the parallel goals of man and nature, through the most primitive and sophisticated means, to simply stay in the light. Based on the poem by Brian Christian.

Howling at the Moon (Jason Tippet, Elizabeth Mims | Los Angeles, CA): Matt and Harry receive an invitation to see a fellow employees band. To escape the awkward coffee shop performance, Matt comes up with a somewhat decent excuse.

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Rooftop Films returns Friday, May 13th on the roof of the New Design High School in the Lower East Side, Manhattan, New York City, and continue with screenings throughout the city every weekend through August 20.

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