The new trailer and poster dropped today for the documentary A Whale of a Tale from director/producer Megumi Sasaki of Herb & Dorothy. Following THE COVE documentary, A Whale of a Tale reveals the complex story behind the ongoing debate – can a proud 400-year-old whaling tradition survive a tsunami of modern animal-rights activism and colliding forces of globalism vs. localism? The film will open theatrically in New York on Friday, August 17 (The Quad) and Los Angeles on Friday, August 24 (Laemmle Music Hall) with a nationwide release to follow.
In 2010, Taiji, a sleepy fishing town in Japan, suddenly found itself in the worldwide media spotlight. THE COVE, a documentary denouncing the town’s longstanding whale and dolphin hunting traditions, won an Academy Award and almost overnight, Taiji became the go-to destination and battleground for activists from around the world.
Told through a wide range of characters including local fishermen, international activists and anAmerican journalist (and long time Japanese resident), this powerful documentary unearths a deep divide in eastern and western thought about nature and wildlife and cultural sensitivity in the face of global activism.
Films
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Watch Trailer + Poster for A WHALE OF A TALE on Controversial Debate over Whale and Dolphin Hunting Traditions
The new trailer and poster dropped today for the documentary A Whale of a Tale from director/producer Megumi Sasaki of Herb & Dorothy. Following THE COVE documentary, A Whale of a Tale reveals the complex story behind the ongoing debate – can a proud 400-year-old whaling tradition survive a tsunami of modern animal-rights activism and colliding forces of globalism vs. localism? The film will open theatrically in New York on Friday, August 17 (The Quad) and Los Angeles on Friday, August 24 (Laemmle Music Hall) with a nationwide release to follow.
In 2010, Taiji, a sleepy fishing town in Japan, suddenly found itself in the worldwide media spotlight. THE COVE, a documentary denouncing the town’s longstanding whale and dolphin hunting traditions, won an Academy Award and almost overnight, Taiji became the go-to destination and battleground for activists from around the world.
Told through a wide range of characters including local fishermen, international activists and anAmerican journalist (and long time Japanese resident), this powerful documentary unearths a deep divide in eastern and western thought about nature and wildlife and cultural sensitivity in the face of global activism.
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PBS Online Film Festival Returns for 7th Edition with 25 Independent Short Films
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Flip the Record[/caption]
The PBS Online Film Festival returns for a seventh year July 16-27 featuring 25 short-form independent films from multiple public media partners and PBS member stations. The PBS Online Film Festival is part of a multi-platform initiative to increase the reach and visibility of independent films, and to provide a showcase for diverse storytelling that inspires and engages.
The festival will be available via PBS and station digital platforms, including PBS.org. As in previous years, films will also be available to stream on YouTube and Facebook.
This year’s lineup features films from the Black Public Media, Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), Independent Television Service (ITVS), Latino Public Broadcasting, National Association of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP), Pacific Islanders in Communications (PIC), POV, To The Contrary, Vision Maker Media and World Channel, as well as PBS local member stations, including DPTV (Detroit), KLRU-TV Austin PBS, Louisiana Public Broadcasting, NET (Nebraska), Twin Cities Public Television, UNC-TV, Vermont PBS, WNET (New York) and WSIU (Illinois).
“Every year, PBS and its member stations challenge ourselves to elevate the breadth and depth of innovative storytelling through our work with the PBS Online Film Festival,” said Ira Rubenstein, Chief Digital & Marketing Officer. “The world of filmmaking is changing, and filmmakers can make as much of an impact on small screens as they do on big screens. The festival amplifies unique stories from an exciting collection of filmmakers across the country, reaching viewers on platforms as diverse as the films themselves.”
Viewers are encouraged to vote for their favorite film to win the “Most Popular” award, and a distinguished panel of eight jury members will select their favorite film of the festival for the “Juried Prize.” This year’s jury members include International Documentary Association Executive Director Simon Kilmurry, Black Film Critics Circle Founder Mike Sargent, WGBH Educational Foundation Executive Producer Judith Vecchione, Firelight Media & Films Documentary Lab Manager Chloe Walters-Wallace, Digital Media Executive Adnaan Wasey, Senior Director of Programming & Development at PBS Pamela Aguilar, FRONTLINE Producer & Editor Michelle Mizner and American Experience Producer Eric Gulliver.
Short films featured in the 2018 PBS Online Film Festival include:
Black Public Media
“Heroes of Color”
An educational video series highlighting the outstanding achievements of people of color.
CAAM
“Flip the Record”
In this 1980s coming-of-age story, a Filipino American teen flips the narrative by teaching herself how to DJ.
“Our Time”
A dark family secret opens up a young child’s eyes to a sobering reality, but also love.
DPTV
“Hungry for Love”
Two down-and-out foodies embark on an all-night dining adventure through Sapporo, Japan.
“The Book Club”
A sequel to the stop-motion short film “The List,” “The Book Club” is, at heart, a love story, but carries a deeper message about staying true to oneself.
ITVS
“Pops Ep. 1 “La Guardia Adjusts to Fatherhood””
Pops tells three stories of African Americans from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds and regions, all deeply engaged in the beautiful struggle of fatherhood.
“The F Word Ep. 1 ‘F Is for: Foster Care’”
A queer Bay Area couple bumble through a bureaucratic maze as they seek to form their family by adopting from foster care.
KLRU
“Animal Facts Club Presents – Endangered Rituals”
The curious mating rituals of the endangered Attwater Prairie Chicken and Houston Toad.
Latino Public Broadcasting
“Caracol Cruzando”
A Costa Rican girl decides if she will bring her pet turtle across the U.S. border.
Louisiana Public Broadcasting
“Mr. United States”
Today, Avery D. Wilson appears to be a confident pillar of his community, but in this uplifting story, he reveals otherwise. Avery was bullied as a child and later questioned how being gay would affect his faith. As an adult, he feared how his parents would react to his secret. It wasn’t until years later that Avery learned to accept himself – to love himself – and become Mr. United States.
NALIP
“Desde el principio”
In the darkness of a soundproof recording studio, a conversation sparks between two voice actors dealing with a shared tragedy.
“The Melancholy Man”
“The Melancholy Man” tells the story of the world’s saddest man who meets the world’s saddest woman. Through a fantastical lens, these characters come together in their harmonious misery and find something that surprises them both.
NET Nebraska
“Total Eclipse of the Heartland”
From sky to prairie, relive the Great American Eclipse of 2017 in 360 degrees.
PIC
“Ka Piko”
When his girlfriend dies during childbirth, Makana, a young Native Hawaiian man, must perform a traditional birthing ritual with his girlfriend’s overbearing father.
POV
“Redneck Muslim”
A Muslim hospital chaplain honors his Southern heritage while challenging white supremacy.
To The Contrary
“Ties That Bind”
A personal and heartfelt documentary on one family’s experience with gender transition.
Twin Cities Public Television
“I Am a Refugee”
There are 64 million refugees in the world. This film explores their experience.
“Women in Sports Leadership”
Explore why having women coaches matters, hear some of their barriers and celebrate a few successes.
UNC-TV
“Cowgirl Up”
A cowgirl from Natchez, Mississippi pursues her lifelong dream to become the first African American female in the National Finals Rodeo.
Vermont PBS
“Black Canaries”
Isolated, desperate, and haunted by his coal-stained birthright, Father continues his daily descent into the accursed Maplemine — even after it has crippled his ancestors and blinded his youngest son.
Vision Maker Media
“A Redemption Story”
See how Leo Yankton (Oglala Lakota) contributed in efforts to protect the water on the Standing Rock reservation and continues to find ways to have a positive impact with Native Country and the rest of the world.
World Channel
“Black Muslim Woman”
Against a rhythmic score, Mikel Aki’leh delivers a powerful poem on beauty and blackness.
WNET
“Stronghold of Resistance: Sable Island & Her Legendary Horses”
This short film takes viewers to the shores of Sable Island, a remote strip of land less than a mile wide, whose only full-time inhabitants are a herd of near-mythical wild horses; no human attempts at colonization have ever succeeded.
“Wind Back”
A sealed door divides a little boy from his mother. He will go to great lengths to be with her, but when that barrier breaks down, the boy will have to become an adult.
WSIU
“Super Predator: Preludes of the Black Fish”
Parallels the predator-prey relationship of a black man and social boundaries.
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Billy Wilder’s SOME LIKE IT HOT and More in Venezia Classici Lineup of 75th Venice International Film Festival
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SOME LIKE IT HOT[/caption]
Since 2012, the Venezia Classici of the Venice International Film Festival has been presenting the world premieres of a selection of the best restorations of classic films conducted over the previous year by film libraries, cultural institutions and productions all over the world. Curated by Alberto Barbera in collaboration with Stefano Francia di Celle, Venezia Classici also presents a selection of documentaries about cinema and its filmmakers. The Jury, chaired by Italian director Salvatore Mereu (Three Steps Dancing, Pretty Butterflies), is composed of 26 cinema history students – nominated by their professors – from Italian universities, DAMS performing arts courses, and Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, and will award the VENEZIA CLASSICI AWARD for the BEST RESTORED FILM and the BEST DOCUMENTARY ON CINEMA.
The numerous restored masterpieces in the Venezia Classici section of the 75th Venice International Film Festival include: The Night of the Shooting Stars (1982) by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, Il posto (1961) by Ermanno Olmi, The Ascent (1976) by Larisa Shepitko, The Place Without Limits (1977) by Arturo Ripstein, The Brick and the Mirror (1964) by Ebrahim Golestan, Adieu Philippine (1962) by Jacques Roziers, Last Year in Marienbad (1961, Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival) by Alain Resnais, Some Like It Hot (1959) by Billy Wilder, Street of Shame (1956, Special Mention at the Venice International Film Festival) by Kenji Mizoguchi, The Night Porter (1974) by Liliana Cavani and Love, Thy Name Be Sorrow (1962) by Tomu Uchida.
The 75th Venice International Film Festival will be held at the Lido from August 29 to September 8, 2018; it is directed by Alberto Barbera and organized by the Biennale chaired by Paolo Baratta.
The list of the films selected for the Venezia Classici section of the 75th Festival:
VENEZIA CLASSICI
THEY LIVE [ESSI VIVONO] by JOHN CARPENTER (USA, 1988, 94’, COL.) restoration: Studiocanal IL PORTIERE DI NOTTE (THE NIGHT PORTER) by LILIANA CAVANI (Italy, 1974, 120’, COL.) restoration: CSC-Cineteca Nazionale and Istituto Luce – Cinecittà THE NAKED CITY [LA CITTÀ NUDA] by JULES DASSIN (USA, 1948, 96’, B/W) restoration: Brook Productions and Master Licensing KHESHT O AYENEH (THE BRICK AND THE MIRROR) by EBRAHIM GOLESTAN (Iran, 1964, 130’, B/W) restoration: Ecran Noir production (Mitra Farahani) and Ebrahim Golestan in collaboration with Cineteca di Bologna AKASEN CHITAI (STREET OF SHAME) [LA STRADA DELLA VERGOGNA] by KENJI MIZOGUCHI (Japan, 1956, 86’, B/W) restoration: Kadokawa Corporation IL POSTO by ERMANNO OLMI (Italy, 1961, 95’, B/W) restoration: Cineteca di Bologna and Titanus L’ANNÉE DERNIÈRE À MARIENBAD (LAST YEAR IN MARIENBAD) [L’ANNO SCORSO A MARIENBAD] by ALAIN RESNAIS (France, Italy, 1961, 94’, B/W) restoration: Studiocanal with the support of Centre National du Cinéma et de l’image animée and Chanel EL LUGAR SIN LÍMITES (THE PLACE WITHOUT LIMITS) [IL LUOGO SENZA LIMITI] by ARTURO RIPSTEIN (Mexico, 1977, 110’, COL.) restoration: Cineteca Nacional México and Imcine ADIEU PHILIPPINE [DESIDERI NEL SOLE] by JACQUES ROZIERS (France, Italy, 1962, 103’, B/W) restoration: Cinémathèque française and A17 with the support of Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée. In collaboration with Les Archives audiovisuelles de Monaco, La Cinémathèque suisse and Extérieur Nuit. VOSKHOZHDENIYE (THE ASCENT) [L’ASCESA] by LARISA SHEPITKO (Russia, 1976, 110’, B/W) restoration: Mosfilm (producer of the restoration Karen Shakhnazarov) THE KILLERS [CONTRATTO PER UCCIDERE] by DON SIEGEL (USA, 1964, 102’, COL.) restoration: Universal Pictures THE KILLERS [I GANGSTERS] by ROBERT SIODMAK (USA, 1946, 95’, B/W) restoration: Universal Pictures LA NOTTE DI SAN LORENZO (THE NIGHT OF THE SHOOTING STARS) by PAOLO E VITTORIO TAVIANI (Italy, 1982, 107’, COL.) restoration: CSC-Cineteca Nazionale and Istituto Luce – Cinecittà KOI YA KOI NASUNA KOI (LOVE, THY NAME BE SORROW aka THE MAD FOX) [LA VOLPE FOLLE] by TOMU UCHIDA (Japan, 1962, 109’, COL.) restoration: Toei Company, Ltd. MORTE A VENEZIA (DEATH IN VENICE) by LUCHINO VISCONTI (Italy, France, USA, 1971, 130’, COL.) restoration: Cineteca di Bologna and Istituto Luce – Cinecittà in collaboration with Warner Bros. and The Criterion Collection NOTHING SACRED [NULLA SUL SERIO] by WILLIAM A. WELLMAN (USA, 1937, 74’, COL.) restoration: The Museum of Modern Art SOME LIKE IT HOT [A QUALCUNO PIACE CALDO] by BILLY WILDER (USA, 1959, 121′, B/W) restoration: Park Circus in collaboration with Metro Goldwyn Mayer and The Criterion Collection The Venezia Classici section will also feature the presentation of a selection of documentaries about cinema and its filmmakers. The complete list of the section will be announced during the press conference presenting the program of the Venice Film Festival, on Wednesday, July 25th at 11 a.m. in Rome (Cinema Moderno). Salvatore Mereu – Biography Salvatore Mereu was born in Dorgali in 1965. After graduating in film directing from the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome, he made several short films including Notte rumena (1996), Miguel (1999), Il mare (2004). Starting with his first feature-length film, Ballo a tre passi (Three Steps Dancing, 2003), distinguished by its particular four-part structure, each corresponding to one season of the year, he explores the relationship between tradition and modernity in his native land, Sardinia. For Ballo a tre passi, Mereu won the Settimana della Critica award in Venice in 2003, as well as the David di Donatello and the Ciak d’Oro as best emerging director. He was also nominated for three Nastro d’argento awards including Best Screenplay. His second film, Sonetàula (2008), was presented at the Berlin Film Festival in the Panorama section, and was awarded the Globo d’oro of the Foreign Press, as well as the FIPA d’Or at the Biarritz Film Festival for Best Screenplay. He returned to the Venice Film Festival in 2010 with Tajabone, set among the young students of the middle schools on the outskirts of Cagliari, and in 2012 participated in the Orizzonti section with Bellas mariposas (Pretty Butterflies), from the eponymous book by Sergio Atzeni, the story of two adolescent girls who live in a working-class neighbourhood in Cagliari. The film won him the Schermi di Qualità award at the Venice Film Festival, the Big Screen Award at the Rotterdam Festival. For the same film, he won the Premio Suso Cecchi D’Amico for Best Screenplay and the Premio Tonino Guerra for Best Screenplay at the Bif&st. In 2013, again for the Venice Film Festival, he made the collective film Venezia 70 – Future Reloaded along with 70 directors from around the world, to celebrate the Festival’s 70th edition. For years he has alternated his work as a director with his teaching of image education. He has taught film in various schools around the island, producing several short films with his students (Il mare, La vita adesso, Scegliere per crescere, Futuro prossimo), selected for the most important Italian and international film festivals. In recent years, in collaboration with CELCAM, he has taught a course in film direction and screenwriting at the Department of Humanities and Philosophy at the University of Cagliari. Since 2004, he has been a member of the Accademia del Cinema Italiano.
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Watch Movie Maverick Larry Cohen Discuss Special Effects in “Q : The Winged Serpent” in Clip from KING COHEN [Video]
A brand-new video clip debuted today from the highly anticipated King Cohen, the story of Movie Maverick Larry Cohen, before its release July 20. In this fun new clip, Cohen, as well as Joe Dante (“Gremlins”) and Michael Moriarty (“The Stuff”), discuss the filmmaker’s use of special effects in the 1982 classic “Q : The Winged Serpent”.
The highly anticipated King Cohen, the true story of writer, producer, director, creator and all-around maverick, Larry Cohen, will receive a full theatrical run across the U.S beginning July 20 in L.A (with other cities in the weeks to follow), courtesy Dark Star Pictures.
Cohen, best known for resourceful low-budget horror and thriller films that combine social commentary with prerequisite scares and welcome humor, is responsible for celluloid classics including Black Caesar, It’s Alive, Q: The Winged Serpent, and The Stuff. He was also a major player in the Blaxploitation films of the 1970s, as well as a prominent Hollywood screenwriter (Phone Booth).
The acclaimed film features interviews with such industry luminaries as Martin Scorsese, J.J Abrams, Joe Dante, Mick Garris, John Landis, Fred Williamson as well as Cohen himself. Cohen’s remarkable one-of-a-kind career, from 60’s TV series creator (Branded, The Invaders), to 70’s and 80’s independent film icon and beyond, is chronicled with freewheeling and insightful verve.
Winner of the 2017 Fantasia Fest Best Documentary Feature Audience Award, King Cohen hails from Rondo Award-winning writer/director Steve Mitchell, whose film and television credits include co-writing the beloved cult horror/comedy Chopping Mall. King Cohen is a La-La Land Entertainment production, in association with Big And Tall Pictures and Off The Cliff Productions. It is directed and produced by Steve Mitchell and produced by Matt Verboys and Dan McKeon.
King Cohen begins its theatrical run July 20 in LA, with other cities to follow.
Synopsis: Buckle up for King Cohen, the true story of writer, producer, director, creator and all-around maverick, Larry Cohen. Told through compelling live interviews, stills and film/TV clips, the people who helped fulfill his vision, and industry icons such as Martin Scorsese, J.J. Abrams, John Landis, Michael Moriarty, Fred Williamson, Yaphet Kotto and many more, including Larry himself, bring one-of-a-kind insight into the work, process and legacy of a true American film auteur. Few can boast of a career as remarkable or prolific, spanning more than 50 years of entertaining audiences worldwide.
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World Wide Motion Pictures to Release THE ROAD TO MOTHER, Kazakhstan’s Submission for Best Foreign Language Film Oscar
The Road to Mother (Anaga aparar jol), Kazakhstan’s official submission for the 2017 Academy Awards in the category of Best Foreign Language Film has been acquired by World Wide Motion Pictures Corporation for release in the US. The Road to Mother will be released in select theaters throughout the US in fall 2018, including major metropolitan areas, with many Kazakhstani and Asian American organizations offering their support.
Executive Produced by Aliya Nazarbayeva, directed by Akan Sateyev (also known for Strayed, Zhauzhurek Myng Bala), and starring internationally acclaimed Central Asia actors Bolat Abdilmanov, Aruzhan Jazilbekova, and Berik Aitzhanov, The Road to Mother was produced by KazakhFilm JSC. Inspired by true events and spanning nearly a century, the epic drama follows the journey of a young Kazakh family from the 1930s to present day and explores the history of Kazakhstan through war, famine, collectivization, and the determination of the clan to remain united.
“The film’s producers and I are honored to finally have The Road to Mother opening theatrically in the United States. I’m very happy that the World Wide Motion Pictures Corporation’s marketing and distribution team could see that the film’s heartwarming story was truly universal and could be enjoyed by audiences anywhere in the world,” states the film’s director, Akan Satayev.
The Road to Mother premiered at the 38th Moscow International Film Festival to critical acclaim and has been showcased at numerous other festivals, including: the New York Eurasian Film Festival (USA) – Winner: Best Foreign Film; the Marco Polo Film Festival (Croatia) – Winner: Best Film; WeLink International Film Festival (USA) – Winner: Best Feature Film; the Eurasian Bridge International Film Festival (Yalta) – Winner: Grand Prix and Best Actress for Altynai Nogherbek; and the Almaty Independent Film Festival (Kazakhstan) – Winner: Tulpar Prize. Additionally, The Road to Mother was recognized by the Ak Ilbirs National Film Awards (Kyrgyzstan) in the category of Best Central Asia Film.
“World Wide is very proud to be releasing a meaningful multigenerational drama that also carries with it the high prestige of being Kazakhstan’s official foreign language entry for the Oscars,” states CEO Paul D. Hancock. “Families throughout the United States, especially mothers, will surely embrace this heartwarming story.”
The Road to Mother will be released in select theaters throughout the US in fall 2018, including major metropolitan areas, with many Kazakhstani and Asian American organizations offering their support.
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13 Filmmakers to Compete for Kutxabank-New Directors Award at 2018 San Sebastián Film Festival
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Apuntes para una película de atracos (Notes for a Heist Film).[/caption]
Thirteen first or second films by European, Asian and Latin American directors that will be competing for the Kutxabank-New Directors Award at the 2018 San Sebastián Film Festival.
Koldo Almandoz (San Sebastián, 1973) has had an intense career in the world of short films, linked to the Kimuak programme and to the San Sebastián Festival, which programmed his first short, Razielen itzulera (The Return of Raziel), in 1997 in Zabaltegi, the section in which two decades later he presented his first full-length film, Sipo Phantasma (Ghost Ship), after premiering it in Rotterdam. Oreina (The Deer) is his second feature film.
Elías León Siminiani (Santander, Spain, 1971), nominated for a Goya for Mapa (Map), is now presenting Apuntes para una película de atracos (Notes for a Heist Film). For her part, Nataliia Meshchaninova (Krasnodar, Russia, 1982), who competed in Rotterdam with her first full-length film, Kombinat ‘Nadezhda’ / The Hope Factory, focuses on the vet on a farm in Serdtse Mira / Core of the World. And after Ama Doren / Hold my hand, Ismet Sijarina in Nëntor i ftohtë / Cold November returns to the War in the Balkans, in this case to its background, when Kosovo’s autonomy was suppressed.
Hadrian Marcu (Brăila, Rumanía, 1976) will be presenting Un om la locul lui / A Decent Man, about a man who is torn by an emotional conflict, that was selected last year in the first Glocal in Progress, the industry activity at the Festival aimed at European films in non-hegemonic languages. It stars Bodgan Dumitrache, who won the Silver Shell for best actor last year for his performance in Pororoca.
The selection also includes the first film by Francisco Marise (La Plata, Argentina, 1985), Para la Guerra (To War), coproduced by the filmmaker, Javier Rebollo, who also takes part in the editing process, and the first film by Hiroshi Okuyama (Japan, 1996), the award-winning music video director, who makes his debut with Boku wa Iesu-sama ga kirai / Jesus.
The short by Inés María Barrionuevo (Córdoba, Argentina, 1980), La quietud (2012), competed in the official section at Locarno, and her first feature film, Atlántida (2014), was selected at the Berlinale in the Generation 14plus section. In Julia y el zorro (Julia and the Fox) she deals with a woman and her twelve-year-old daughter who are going through a mourning process. The director, producer and actress Lila Avilés (Mexico, 1982), after working in theatre and presenting shorts at international festivals, in her first full-length film, entitled La camarista (The Chambermaid), describes the everyday life of one of the so-called ‘chambermaids’.
After winning awards in his short-film career (with films like Teneriffa), Hannes Baumgartner (Männedorf, Switzerland, 1983) has been inspired in his first feature film Der läufer / Midnight Runner, by the true story of an athlete who starts to commit robberies and lead a double life.
Snow, the graduation film by Laurits Flensted-Jensen (Aarhus, Denmark, 1985), was selected at Rotterdam and was chosen as best documentary short by the Danish Academy. His fictional short Melon Rainbow was once again programmed at the Dutch festival and won the most important award at Odense. Neon Heart is his first full-length film.
After taking part in the Short Film Corner at Cannes with Grasshopper, the Vietnamese director Ash Mayfair (Ho Chi Minh City, 1985) is presenting her feature-film debut at San Sebastián with The Third Wife, whose screenplay was chosen by Spike Lee as the winner of his Spike Lee Film Production Fund Award in 2014.
The short film Luisa no está en casa (Luisa is not Home) by Celia Rico Clavellino (Seville, 1982) was chosen in the Short Film Corner at Cannes and at Venice and won the Gaudí award for best short. Her first full-length film, Viaje al cuarto de una madre (Journey to a Mother’s Room), whose screenplay took part in the Berlinale Talents Script Station Lab, stars Lola Dueñas and Anna Castillo.
The remaining titles making up the New Directors section will be announced in the coming weeks.
APUNTES PARA UNA PELÍCULA DE ATRACOS (NOTES FOR A HEIST FILM)
LEÓN SIMINIANI (SPAIN)
Elías is a film director who dreamed of making a heist movie. During the summer of 2013 he reads a news story about the arrest of ‘The Vallecas Robin Hood’, the leader of ‘the sewers gang’. He then feels that he has found the opportunity to make his dream come true. He sends him a letter to the prison where he is serving his sentence. Against all odds, Elías receives a reply three weeks later. Robin Hood agrees for him to come and visit him in prison.
BOKU WA IESU-SAMA GA KIRAI / JESUS
HIROSHI OKUYAMA (JAPAN)
Cast: Yura Sato, Riki Okuma
Yura is a young boy whose family leaves Tokyo to live with his grandmother in the snowy countryside. Not only must he fit in at a new school, but it’s a Christian one. At first he is puzzled when he and his classmates are called to ‘worship’, but he gradually adjusts to his new environment. One day, in the middle of a prayer, he sees a very small Jesus appear before him. Each wish Yura makes to Jesus comes true, and he starts to have faith in the power of the Lord.
DER LÄUFER / MIDNIGHT RUNNER
HANNES BAUMGARTNER (SWITZERLAND )
Cast: Max Hubacher, Annina Euling, Luna Wedler, Sylvie Rohrer, Christophe Sermet, Saladin Dellers
Jonas Widmer is one of the best runners in Switzerland and his focus is to attend the Olympic games. Besides the sport Jonas is a successful cook and plans to move in with his girlfriend Simone. But Jonas perfect life gets disturbed by the increasing memories of his late brother. He starts a tragic double life by robbing young women at night. After a true story.
JULIA Y EL ZORRO (JULIA AND THE FOX)
INES MARÍA BARRIONUEVO (ARGENTINA)
Cast: Umbra Colombo, Pablo Limarzi, Victoria Castelo Arzubialde
Julia, an ex-actress, and her daughter Emma move into a mansion in a village in Córdoba, Argentina. It is winter and Julia needs to fix up the house so she can sell it. Quite a while has gone by since the death of her husband and Emma’s father, but they are still in mourning. The days go gloomily by. Grief has made Julia quiet and cool with her daughter. One night Julia meets Gaspar, a life-long friend of hers. Gaspar tries to convince Julia to take part in a theatre competition. Julia, Emma and Gaspar find a way to rebuild their lives by starting a rather uncertain project to form a new type of family.
LA CAMARISTA (THE CHAMBERMAID)
LILA AVILÉS (MEXICO – USA)
Cast: Gabriela Cartol, Teresa Sánchez
Eve is a young chambermaid working in one of the most luxurious hotels in Mexico City, an exclusive glass tower inhabited by guests so wealthy she can only imagine their lives through intimate fantasies of the belongings they’ve left behind. Long, laborious shifts prevent Eve from caring for her child while she helps guests with their own children, but she believes her situation will improve if she gets promoted to work at executive-level suites, for which she accepts a grueling schedule. In keeping with this goal, she also enrolls in the hotel’s adult education program…
NËNTOR I FTOHTË / COLD NOVEMBER
ISMET SIJARINA (KOSOVO – ALBANIA – FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA)
Cast: Kushtrim Hoxha, Adriana Matoshi, Emir Hadzihafizbegovic, Fatmir Spahiu, Majlinda Kosumovic, Bislim Mucaj, Lum Veseli, Aurita Agushi
In the beginning of the ’90s, Yugoslavian Government cancelled the autonomy of Kosovo, dissolved its Parliament and closed down the National Television. Whole institutional life was reorganized by new authorities, while the majority of citizens responded with peaceful demonstrations. During this evil time, Fadili who is working as an archivist has to choose between two options, being aware that both of them are wrong. In this way, he involuntarily and unwillingly, ‘swallows’ the shame, endures the pressure coming from all sides and deals with the bad reputation for just one reason: to provide welfare for his family.
NEON HEART
LAURITS FLENSTED-JENSEN (DENMARK)
Cast: Victoria Carmen Sonne, Niklas Herskind, Noah Skovgaard Skands
Neon Heart is a story about three people chasing life and each other. Laura is on her way to a porn film casting. Niklas is trying to take care of two men with Down’s Syndrome, and Frederik is out to gain respect as a hooligan. In glimpses and fragments of past and present, we follow the three characters on a journey full of taboos and desires. With a cast of mainly non-actors in authentic environments, Neon Heart confronts its audience with a world we would rather not look at.
OREINA (THE DEER)
KOLDO ALMANDOZ (SPAIN)
Cast: Laulad Ahmed, Patxi Bisquert, Ramón Agirre, Iraia Elías, Erika Olaizola
Khalil is a rootless young man who lives on the edge of town, where the industrial estates merge into the river and the marshes. Khalil gets by as best he can and spends his time with an old poacher, who shares a house on the riverbank with a brother who he hasn’t spoken to in years. On the banks of the marshes, the tides mark the time for love and heartbreak, friendship and revenge.
PARA LA GUERRA (TO WAR)
FRANCISCO MARISE (CUBA – ARGENTINA – SPAIN)
Para la guerra explores the memory and loneliness of a Cuban former internationalist soldier by observing his body and (extra)ordinary gestures. This is a bloodless war film without any shooting; a film about a wound, that ‘Sledgehammer’, ‘ El Rayado’, Andrés, has, this special forces veteran who tries to find his colleagues from the commando that survived their last mission 30 years ago.
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Core of the World (Serdtse Mira[/caption]
SERDTSE MIRA / CORE OF THE WORLD
NATALIIA MESHCHANINOVA (RUSSIA)
Cast: Stepan Devonin, Dmitriy Podnozov, Jana Sekste
Egor is a veterinarian on a rural farm which doubles as a hunting dog training center. He is a grown man, but deep inside he is a child who has been hurt and abandoned by everyone, including his own mother. All he wants is to care for the animals and to feel part of the close-knit family he works for. When animal rights activists invade this fragile microcosm, throwing off its delicate balance, Egor’s world begins to crumble… Or so it seems.
THE THIRD WIFE
ASH MAYFAIR (VIETNAM)
Cast: Trần Nữ Yên Khê, Mai Thu Hường, Nguyễn Phương Trà My, Nguyễn Như Quỳnh
In 19th century rural Vietnam, 14-year-old May becomes the third wife of wealthy landowner Hung. Soon she learns that she can only gain status by asserting herself as a woman who can give birth to a male child. May’s hope to change her status turns into a real and tantalizing possibility when she gets pregnant. Faced with forbidden love and its devastating consequences, May finally comes to an understanding of the brutal truth: the options available to her are few and far between.
UN OM LA LOCUL LUI / A DECENT MAN
HADRIAN MARCU (ROMANIA)
Cast: Bogdan Dumitrache, Ada Gales, Madalina Constantin, Iulian Postelnicu, Adrian Titieni
Petru is a drilling engineer living in a community of oil industry workers. Petru is quite conflicted. On one hand he is about to get married to his pregnant girlfriend Laura, on the other he is involved with the wife of one of his colleagues, Sonia, who had a serious work-related accident. His new life seems to begin while she feels hers is ending. Everything is thrown into chaos when Laura finds out about his relationship with Sonia. He feels guilt-ridden but also responsible for the upcoming baby. Participant in the first edition of Glocal in Progress.
VIAJE AL CUARTO DE UNA MADRE (JOURNEY TO A MOTHER’S ROOM)
CELIA RICO CLAVELLINO (SPAIN- FRANCE)
Cast: Lola Dueñas, Anna Castillo, Pedro Casablanc
Leonor wants to leave home, but she doesn’t dare to tell her mother. Estrella doesn’t want her to leave but is unable to keep her by her side either. Mother and daughter will have to face this new stage in life in which the world that they share starts to fall apart.
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MEMOIR OF WAR Based on Marguerite Duras’ Novel “The War: A Memoir” Sets August Release Date
MEMOIR OF WAR, Emmanuel Finkiel’s haunting adaptation of seminal author Marguerite Duras’ semi-autobiographical novel “The War: A Memoir” starring Mélanie Thierry (THE PRINCESS OF MONTPENSIER) in a riveting performance as Duras will be released via Music Box Films. An emotionally complex story of love, loss, and perseverance against the backdrop of war, MEMOIR OF WAR will open in New York on August 17 at Film Forum and The Film Society of Lincoln Center, and in Los Angeles on August 24 at the Laemmle Royal. Other cities will follow.
It’s 1944, and Duras is an active Resistance member along with her husband, writer Robert Antelme, and a band of fellow subversives in Nazi-occupied Paris. When Antelme is deported to Dachau by the Gestapo, she becomes friendly with French collaborator Rabier (Benoît Magimel) to gain information at considerable risk to her underground cell. But as the months wear on without news of her husband, she must begin the process of confronting the unimaginable. Through subtly expressionistic images and voiceover passages of Duras’ writing, Finkiel evokes the inner world of one of the 20th century’s most revolutionary writers.
Marguerite Duras was a highly successful novelist, memoirist, screenwriter, essayist and experimental filmmaker. Her script for Alain Resnais’ seminal film HIROSHIMA, MON AMOUR earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay. She went on to write over 30 novels and direct 19 films. Duras won the Prix Goncourt (France’s most distinguished literary prize) for “The Lover.” “The War: A Memoir” (“La Douleur”) was written in 1944 and first published in 1985. The book has been translated and released in over 20 countries.
Award-winning writer-director Emmanuel Finkiel began his career as an assistant director to Bertrand Tavernier, Krzysztof Kieslowski, and Jean-Luc Godard. His first outing as a filmmaker, MADAME JACQUES ON THE CROISETTE, won a César Award for Best Short Film. His first feature length film, VOYAGES, which follows the travels of three elderly Jewish women whose lives were touched by the Holocaust, earned him two César Awards (Best First Film and Best Editing) and the Youth Award in Cannes. In 2008, he won the prestigious Jean Vigo Award for NOWHERE PROMISED LAND which debuted at the Locarno Film Festival. He has also directed documentaries including CASTING (2001) and JE SUIS (2012).
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Documentary 40 YEARS IN THE MAKING: THE MAGIC MUSIC MOVIE Opens in Theaters on August 3 [Trailer]
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40 Years in the Making: The Magic Music Movie[/caption]
Magic Music is one of the most fondly remembered bands of the Boulder Revolution of the late 60s and early 70s. Living in a makeshift camp up in the mountains, they would delight local residents and university students with their original songs, acoustic instruments, and light harmonies; their growing popularity brought them to the brink of success more than once. Unfortunately, they never signed a record deal and eventually broke up in 1975.
40 Years in the Making: The Magic Music Movie chronicles how one of their greatest fans, acclaimed director (and UC Boulder alumnus) Lee Aronsohn, tracked down the original band members four decades later to tell their story. More importantly, he makes a dream come true for himself, fellow fans, and the band, by bringing them all back to Boulder for a sold-out reunion concert that preserves their legacy for posterity.
40 Years in the Making: The Magic Music Movie opens in theaters on August 3 with additional markets to follow. The Orchard will release the film digitally on September 4.
The film is written and directed by Emmy-nominated writer-producer Lee Aronsohn (Two and a Half Men, Big Bang Theory) and produced by Fleur Saville. Executive Producers are Aronsohn and Lisa Haisha and Producer is Jeff Jampol. Cinematography is by Dean Cornish with editing by Kyle Vorbach.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N87NMTsr4So
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Teemu Nikki’s Acclaimed Horror Film EUTHANIZER Injects into Theaters this July [Trailer]
Writer/director Teemu Nikki’s Euthanizer injects into theaters this July, and August on VOD, via Uncork’d Entertainment.
Veijo runs a black-market operation euthanizing people’s ailing pets to make extra money. It is clear he has dark secrets, but only after meeting a young nurse and a seedy mechanic (who’s mixed up with a vicious gang of neo-Nazis) that Veijo’s carefully balanced, albeit deranged, life begins to show cracks. Things turn to the extreme when Veijo does not finish a job he was paid to and his client finds out…in this grungy exploitation throwback.
Euthanizer will play in L.A theaters (other cities to be announced) from July 20, with a VOD release set for August 7.
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Icelandic Coming-of-age Drama THE SWAN Sets Release Date [Trailer]
Ása Helga Hjörleifsdóttir’s first feature film The Swan, based on the acclaimed novel by Guðbergur Bergsson, is an elegant coming-of-age story that beautifully captures the stunning Icelandic countryside.
The film which world premiered at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and winner of the Special Jury Prize at the 2018 Santa Barbara International Film Festival will open in theaters on August 10th in New York at Village East, and on August 17th in Los Angeles at Laemmle Royal.
In contemporary rural Iceland, a wayward 9-year old girl, Sól, is sent to distant countryside relatives for a summer to work and to mature. Nature seems endless there, the animals soulful but the people harsh. All except the mysterious farmhand Jón, who – as herself – likes words better than people.
But the farmers’ daughter Ásta has a claim on Jón as well, and soon Sól becomes entangled in a drama she hardly can grasp. This summer marks Sól’s rite of passage into the murky waters of adulthood, and the wild nature in us all.
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Watch New Trailer for Sundance Award Wining THE MISEDUCATION OF CAMERON POST Starring Chloë Grace Moretz
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Forrest Goodluck, Sasha Lane and Chloë Grace Moretz appear in The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Desiree Akhavan.
Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Jeong Park.[/caption] The new trailer debuted for the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize winning film The Miseducation of Cameron Post directed by Desiree Akhavan, and starring Chloë Grace Moretz, John Gallagher Jr., Sasha Lane, Forrest Goodluck and Jennifer Ehle. FilmRise will release The Miseducation of Cameron Post in New York on August 3rd and Los Angeles on August 10th Based on the celebrated novel by Emily M. Danforth, The Miseducation of Cameron Post follows the titular character (Chloë Grace Moretz) as she is sent to a gay conversion therapy center after getting caught having sex with the prom queen. Run by the strict Dr. Lydia Marsh (Jennifer Ehle) and her brother, Reverend Rick (John Gallagher Jr.) — himself an example of how those in the program can be “cured” — the center is populated by teens “struggling with same-sex attraction.” In the face of outlandish discipline, dubious methods, and earnest Christian rock songs, Cameron forms an unlikely gay community, including the amputee stoner Jane (Sasha Lane) and the Lakota Two-Spirit, Adam (Forrest Goodluck). In creating a family on her own terms, she learns what it means to empower herself and have confidence in her identity.
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Documentary THE FUN’S NOT OVER on South African Musician James Phillips to Premiere at Durban International Film Festival
Durban filmmaker Michael Cross’ award-winning documentary film, “The Fun’s Not Over – The James Phillips Story” will have its local premiere at the Durban International Film Festival on Saturday July 21, 2018.
The film, which recently won the Audience Award when it premiered at this years 20th Encounters South African International Documentary Film Festival, tells the story of the life and untimely death of James Phillips who died aged 36 in July 1995.
He was a composer, musician, bandleader and the voice and conscience of a generation of white South Africans. Cross’ film examines his extraordinary journey and his multiple musical incarnations.
Phillips’ Afrikaans alter ego Bernoldus Niemand’s 1983 single, “Hou My Vas Korporaal” (“Hold Me Tightly, Corporal”) became an anthem of the End Conscription Campaign and spawned “alternative” Afrikaans rock music and the Voëlvry movement.
In 1985, with his beloved Cherry Faced Lurchers, he recorded the gut-wrenching “Shot Down” that addressed both white privilege and the violence of the apartheid state.
James Phillips’ legacy is that of one of this country’s most aware, articulate and passionate artists. He was a genius, a satirist, a poet and probably one of the most accomplished songwriters that South Africa has ever produced.
“The Fun’s Not Over” tells James’ story in his own words and through the voices of journalists like Max du Preez, satirists Zapiro and Pieter Dirk Uys, his musical collaborators and label-mates like Koos Kombuis and Vusi Mahlasela, contemporary artists like Jack Parow and his friends and family.
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Filmmaker Michael Cross of “The Fun’s Not Over – The James Phillips Story”[/caption]
“The Fun’s Not Over – The James Phillips Story” will screen in competition, for Best South African Documentary Feature at the 39th Durban International Film Festival on Saturday July 21, 2018 at Musgrave 3 at 20:00 and Wednesday July 25, 2018 at Musgrave 3 at 18:00.