The Sparrow Film Project is an annual short film competition. based in Queens and international in scope, that challenges filmmakers to make three-minute films in three weeks. For each round, filmmakers are guided by a different set of criteria based on a new theme, and each team draws a unique assignment from a hat.
Love, faith and civil rights collide in a southern town as evangelical Christians and drag queens step into the spotlight to dismantle stereotypes in the trailer for the documentary The Gospel of Eureka. Directed by Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher; and narrated by Mx Justin Vivian Bond, Kino Lorber will release The Gospel of Eureka on February 8, 2019.
International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) has selected 24 short films for the 2019 Ammodo Tiger Short Competition. Selections include exciting newcomers like German filmmaker Lucia Margarita and Moroccan artist Meriem Bennani, as well as filmmakers who have been in competition in Rotterdam before, such as Belgium-based artist Vincent Meessen or Taiwanese artist Su Hui-yu. Sara Cwynar (Rose Gold) and Daniel Jacoby (Mountain Plain Mountain), both winners of an Ammodo Tiger Short Award in 2018, return to Rotterdam in 2019 to present their films Red Film and Nehemías. Familiar names such as Simon Liu, Mike Hoolboom, Luke Fowler and Kevin Jerome Everson have shown several films at IFFR in the past, and this year make their competition debuts.
Annapurna Pictures released the official trailer and teaser poster for the comedy-drama Where’d You Go, Bernadette directed by Richard Linklater and starring Cate Blanchett, Billy Crudup and Kristen Wiig. Where’d You Go, Bernadette also starring Emma Nelson, James Urbaniak, Judy Greer, Troian Bellisario, Zoe Chao and Laurence Fishburne opens in theaters on March 22, 2019.
Building on its wildly successful inaugural year, the French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF) announced the 2019 Animation First festival, showcasing the vast history, enduring ingenuity, and diversity of France’s renowned animation studios and schools. This year’s schedule includes 17 premieres, provoking feature-length films, exciting shorts, immersive exhibits, video game demonstrations, panels with filmmakers, a special spotlight on the City of Bordeaux’s animation industry, and much more. It will take place from Friday, January 25 through Sunday, January 27, 2019, at FIAF in New York City.
Samuel Goldwyn Films released the new trailer for Mapplethorpe starring Matt Smith as the Robert Mapplethorpe, considered as one of the most important artists of the 20th century. The film directed by Ondi Timoner and also starring Marianne Rendón, John Benjamin Hickey, Mark Moses, Carolyn McCormick, Brian Stokes Mitchell, and Kerry Butler, will be released in theaters on March 1st, 2019.
Robert Mapplethorpe (Matt Smith) is arguably one of the most important artists of the 20th century. Mapplethorpe discovered himself both sexually and artistically in New York City throughout the 70’s and 80’s. The film explores Mapplethorpe’s life from moments before he and Patti Smith moved into the famed Chelsea hotel, home to a world of bohemian chic. Here he begins photographing its inhabitants and his new found circle of friends including artists and musicians, socialites, film stars, and members of the S&M underground
Mapplethorpe’s work displayed eroticism in a way that had never been examined nor displayed before to the public. The film explores the intersection of his art and his sexuality along with his struggle for mainstream recognition. MAPPLETHORPE offers a nuanced portrait of an artist at the height of his craft and of the self-destructive impulses that threaten to undermine it all.
The Polish period drama Cold War ( Zimna wojna) directed by Paweł Pawlikowskiis dominated the 2018 European Film Awards winning five awards including the top prize Best European Film along with Best Director for Paweł Pawlikowski.
The Best European Comedy prize went to The Death of Stalin by Armando Iannucci, and the Best European Documentary went to Bergman – A Year in a Life by Jane Magnusson.
2018 European Film Awards Winners
Netflix released the trailer for the Leonardo DiCaprio-produced documentary “Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski,” which looks at the life and career of Polish painter and sculptor Stanislav Szukalski. The documentary film launches Friday, December 21 on the Netflix.
“Fyre”, Chris Smith’s highly anticipated documentary film is an exclusive behind the scenes look at the infamous unraveling of the Fyre music festival. The documentary will be released globally on Netflix on January 18, 2019.
One of the most celebrated theatrical releases of 2018, Won’t You Be My Neighbor? takes an intimate look at America’s favorite neighbor: Fred Rogers. Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, the acclaimed documentary from Morgan Neville (the Oscar(R)-winning “20 Feet from Stardom”), will debut Saturday, February, 2019 9 (8:00-9:35 p.m. ET/PT) on HBO. In addition, HBO will honor Fred Rogers’ contribution and commitment to public television with a special presentation of the film on PBS’ “Independent Lens,” coinciding with the HBO debut.
Medical error is the third leading cause of death in the U.S. Bleed Out is a new documentary premiering on HBO that uses one family’s story to underscore deep flaws in America’s current healthcare system and highlights ways those problems could be fixed.
