Films

YOUTH, THE LOBSTER Leads Nominations for 28th European Film Awards

Youth directed by Paolo Sorrentino, lead the nominations for the 28th European Film Awards with 6 nominations, including Best European Film 2015, European Director for Paolo Sorrentino , European Actress for Rachel Weisz, European Actor for Michael Caine, European Screenwriter for Paolo Sorrentino. Starring Academy Award winner Michael Caine as Fred and Academy Award nominee Harvey Keitel as Mick, Paolo Sorrentino’s YOUTH explores the lifelong bond between two friends vacationing in a luxury Swiss Alps lodge as they ponder retirement. While Fred has no plans to resume his musical career despite the urging of his loving daughter Lena (Academy Award Winner Rachel Weisz), Mick is intent on finishing the screenplay for what may be his last important film for his muse Brenda (Academy Award winner Jane Fonda). And where will inspiration lead their younger friend Jimmy (Paul Dano), an actor grasping to make sense of his next performance? Set against a sprawling landscape of unforgettable sights and intoxicating music, YOUTH asks if our most important and life-changing experiences can come at any time – even late — in life. Fox Searchlight will release the film on December 4, 2015. Other films with multiple nominations, include The Lobster directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, with 4 nods, including Best European Film 2015, European Director for Yorgos Lanthimos, European Actor for Colin Farrell and European Screenwriter for Yorgos Lanthimos & Efthimis Filippou. In the very near future, society demands that we live as couples. Single people are rounded up and sent to a seaside compound—part resort and part minimum-security prison—where they are given a finite number of days to find a match. If they don’t succeed, they will be “altered” and turned into an animal. The recently divorced David (Colin Farrell) arrives at The Hotel with his brother, now a dog; in the event of failure, David has chosen to become a lobster… because they live so long. When David falls in love, he’s up against a new set of rules established by another, rebellious order: for romantics, there’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. Welcome to the latest dark, dark comedy from Yorgos Lanthimos (Dogtooth), creator of absurdist societies not so very different from our own. With Léa Seydoux as the leader of the Loners, Rachel Weisz as David’s true love, John C. Reilly, and Ben Whishaw. An Alchemy release. EUROPEAN FILM 2015 A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE EN DUVA SATT PÅ EN GREN OCH FUNDERADE PÅ TILLVARON Sweden, France, Germany, Norway, 96 min. WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Roy Andersson PRODUCED BY: Pernilla Sandström https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7pna4laaAk MUSTANG France, Germany, Turkey, 100 min. DIRECTED BY: Deniz Gamze Ergüven WRITTEN BY: Deniz Gamze Ergüven & Alice Winocour PRODUCED BY: Charles Gillibert https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rU9JAN8LtIk RAMS HRÚTAR Iceland, Denmark, 93 min. WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Grímur Hákonarson PRODUCED BY: Grímar Jónsson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWOFWaltGRw THE LOBSTER UK, Ireland, Greece, France, Netherlands, 118 min. DIRECTED BY: Yorgos Lanthimos WRITTEN BY: Yorgos Lanthimos & Efthimis Filippou PRODUCED BY: Ed Guiney, Lee Magiday, Ceci Dempsey & Yorgos Lanthimos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z069ldsumxA VICTORIA Germany, 138 min. WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Sebastian Schipper PRODUCED BY: Jan Dressler https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp8wcV3GjW0 YOUTH YOUTH – LA GIOVINEZZA Italy, France, UK, Switzerland, 118 min. WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Paolo Sorrentino PRODUCED BY: Nicola Giuliano, Francesca Cima & Carlotta Calori https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJNxQ8Wzr2I EUROPEAN COMEDY 2015 A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE EN DUVA SATT PÅ EN GREN OCH FUNDERADE PÅ TILLVARON Sweden, France, Germany, Norway, 96 min. WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Roy Andersson PRODUCED BY: Pernilla Sandström THE BÉLIER FAMILY LA FAMILLE BELIER France, 106 min. DIRECTED BY: Eric Lartigau WRITTEN BY: Eric Lartigau, Victoria Bedos, Stanislas Carre de Malberg & Thomas Bidegain PRODUCED BY: Eric Jehelmann, Philippe Rousselet & Stéphane Celerier https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9p0qnj4OC4 THE BRAND NEW TESTAMENT LE TOUT NOUVEAU TESTAMENT Belgium, France, Luxembourg, 114 min. DIRECTED BY: Jaco Van Dormael WRITTEN BY: Jaco Van Dormael & Thomas Gunzig PRODUCED BY: Jaco Van Dormael, Olivier Rausin & Daniel Marquet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9jEA8uzHwQ EUROPEAN DOCUMENTARY 2015 A SYRIAN LOVE STORY UK, 76 min. DIRECTED BY: Sean McAllister PRODUCED BY: Elhum Shakerifar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30JqnWtLvlU AMY UK, 127 min. DIRECTED BY: Asif Kapadia PRODUCED BY: James Gay-Rees https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2yCIwmNuLE DANCING WITH MARIA Italy, Argentina, Slovenia, 75 min. WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Ivan Gergolet PRODUCED BY: Igor Princic, David Rubio & Miha Cernec https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHW5kOLRVP4 THE LOOK OF SILENCE Denmark, Norway, Indonesia, 99 min. DIRECTED BY: Joshua Oppenheimer PRODUCED BY: Signe Byrge Sørensen https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp1xT302VcY TOTO AND HIS SISTERS TOTO SI SURORILE LUI Romania, Hungary, 93 min. WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Alexander Nanau PRODUCED BY: Valeriu Nicolae, Hanka Kastelicova, Alexander Nanau, Catalin Mitulescu & Marcian Lazar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXtjJbB1Oh4 EUROPEAN DIRECTOR 2015 Roy Andersson for A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE Yorgos Lanthimos for THE LOBSTER Nanni Moretti for MY MOTHER Sebastian Schipper for VICTORIA Paolo Sorrentino for YOUTH Małgorzata Szumowska for BODY EUROPEAN ACTRESS 2015 Margherita Buy in MY MOTHER Laia Costa in VICTORIA Charlotte Rampling in 45 YEARS Alicia Vikander in EX MACHINA Rachel Weisz in YOUTH EUROPEAN ACTOR 2015 Michael Caine in YOUTH Tom Courtenay in 45 YEARS Colin Farrell in THE LOBSTER Christian Friedel in 13 MINUTES Vincent Lindon in THE MEASURE OF A MAN EUROPEAN SCREENWRITER 2015 Roy Andersson for A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE Alex Garland for EX MACHINA Andrew Haigh for 45 YEARS Radu Jude & Florin Lazarescu for AFERIM! Yorgos Lanthimos & Efthimis Filippou for THE LOBSTER Paolo Sorrentino for YOUTH
Read more
Award-Winning Horror/Romance NINA FOREVER Will Open in Theaters on Valentine’s Day Weekend | TRAILER

The horror/romance film NINA FOREVER will be released on February 12, 2016, Valentine’s Day weekend via Epic Pictures Group. NINA FOREVER world premiered at the 2015 SXSW Film Festival, where it received widespread critical acclaim and generated strong word-of-mouth buzz from audiences. Written and directed by Ben and Chris Blaine, NINA FOREVER was honored with multiple British Independent Film Awards nominations this week, including Best Debut Director for The Blaine Brothers and Most Promising Newcomer for lead actress Abigail Hardingham. The film was previously recognized with the Best Feature award at FrightFest 2015. A darkly comedic romantic horror story exploring love and grief, NINA FOREVER follows Holly (Abigail Hardingham), as she begins a relationship with her co-worker Rob (Cian Barry), who is grieving over the recent death of his girlfriend Nina (Fiona O’Shaughnessy) from a motorcycle accident. Holly has fallen for Rob and is determined to help him though his grief. Yet every time they make love, Nina appears; tangled, bloody and still fixated on Rob. Holly doesn’t freak out and run – she can deal with the dead girl sharing their bed, their lives, their minds. If it’s what Rob needs, it’s what she’ll do, regardless of the consequences. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IokJt_05co
Read more
HAROLD AND LILLIAN: A HOLLYWOOD LOVE STORY to US Premiere at DOC NYC 2015 | TRAILER

HAROLD AND LILLIAN: A HOLLYWOOD LOVE STORY, which will have its US PREMIERE at the upcoming DOC NYC 2015. HAROLD AND LILLIAN: A HOLLYWOOD LOVE STORY is directed by Academy Award Nominee Daniel Raim, Executive Produced by Danny DeVito and features many familiar faces including Harold Michelson, Lillian Michelson, Danny DeVito, Francis Ford Coppola, Mel Brooks, Anahid Nazarian, Rick Carter, Tom Walsh, Jim Bissell, Marc Wanamaker, Bill Krohn, Norman Newberry, and Gene Allen. Academy Award®-nominated director Daniel Raim and Executive Producer Danny DeVito (Pulp Fiction, Man on the Moon) present HAROLD AND LILLIAN: A HOLLYWOOD LOVE STORY, a fascinating and deeply moving account of the romantic and creative partnership of storyboard artist Harold Michelson and his wife, film researcher Lillian Michelson—a talented couple once considered “the heart of Hollywood.” Harold and Lillian worked on hundreds of iconic films during Hollywood’s golden age including The Ten Commandments, The Apartment, The Birds, Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?, The Graduate, Rosemary’s Baby, Fiddler On The Roof, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Scarface, Full Metal Jacket and more. Although the couple was responsible for some of Hollywood’s most iconic examples of visual storytelling, their contributions remain largely uncredited. Through an engaging mix of love letters, film clips and candid conversations with Harold and Lillian, Danny DeVito, Mel Brooks, Francis Coppola and others, this heartfelt documentary chronicles their remarkable relationship and two extraordinary careers spanning six decades of movie-making history. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RuCqsZhkLE
Read more
Coming Out Comedy “4th Man Out” to Hit Theaters on February 5, 2016

The comedy film 4th Man Out, from director Andrew Nackman which won the Outstanding Narrative Feature prize at 2015 Outfest, will be released on VOD and in theaters on February 5, 2016, via Gravitas Ventures. The film was written by Aaron Dancik, and stars Evan Todd, Chord Overstreet, Kate Flannery, Parker Young, and Jon Gabrus. Just like his pals, twenty-something auto mechanic Adam enjoys beer, hockey and inappropriate bodily functions. But Adam also likes guys. A hilarious mash-up of man-child and coming-out comedies, FOURTH MAN OUT examines a small-town, blue-collar guy who lets his friends know he’s gay – and what happens when they try to help him find a boyfriend. Both rudely funny and daring in its exploration of the kind of gay man we rarely see on the big screen, this bawdy comedy features Chord Overstreet (“Glee”) and Kate Flannery (“The Office”). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEoXzmuKdFc
Read more
Australian Horror Film THE PACK, to Get a Spring 2016 Release | TRAILER

THE PACK, the feature debut of acclaimed commercials director Nick Robertson will be released in Spring 2016 via IFC Midnight. The film made its world premiere at the 2015 Fantasy Filmfest, and stars Anna Lise Phillips, Jack Campbell, and Kieran Thomas. In THE PACK, a farmer and his family must fight for their lives after a ferocious pack of feral wild dogs lays siege to their isolated farm.. Through a series of frightening and bloody encounters, they are forced into survival mode to defend themselves from the ravenous beasts and make it through the night. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcMH31xdvUA
Read more
Complete List + TRAILERS of 16 Animated Feature Films Submitted For 88th Academy Awards

Sixteen features have been submitted for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 88th Academy Awards®. The submitted features, listed in alphabetical order, are: “Anomalisa” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrrU3is7qvU “The Boy and the Beast” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uifJLWoWv8c “Boy and the World” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Th0NihA2q-Q “The Good Dinosaur” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-RgquKVTPE “Home” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g50GhaH0U3Y “Hotel Transylvania 2” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3nqmGgnJe8 “Inside Out” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAgJcEmMTek “Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9dY5zkwK5M “The Laws of the Universe – Part 0” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxWTp7O0VkM “Minions” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wfql_DoHRKc “Moomins on the Riviera” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ie8lqrOe_4 “The Peanuts Movie” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XmV3zGifOE “Regular Show: The Movie” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pf6vwAOUDek “Shaun the Sheep Movie” (pictured above) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQvwiOWpj7o “The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGjbpO1toTc “When Marnie Was There” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjmrxqcQdYg Several of the films have not yet had their required Los Angeles qualifying run. Submitted features must fulfill the theatrical release requirements and comply with all of the category’s other qualifying rules before they can advance in the voting process. At least eight eligible animated features must be theatrically released in Los Angeles County within the calendar year for this category to be activated. In any year in which 16 or more animated feature films are eligible, a maximum of five motion pictures may be nominated. Films submitted in the Animated Feature Film category also may qualify for Academy Awards in other categories, including Best Picture, provided they meet the requirements for those categories. The 88th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 14, 2016, at 5:30 a.m. PT at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. The 88th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, February 28, 2016, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
Read more
AMY, Listen To Me Marlon, Among Nominees for 2015 IDA Documentary Awards, Tig Notaro to Host Ceremony

Grammy-nominated comedian Tig Notaro will host the 2015 IDA Documentary Awards ceremony. Tig Notaro is the subject of Tig, the Netflix Original documentary chronicling her life after it famously fell apart. The 2015 edition of the Awards will highlight six films in Best Feature Documentary category. These films include AMY, Asif Kapadia’s moving film about six-time Grammy-winner Amy Winehouse; The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, Stanley Nelson’s vibrant chronicle of the birth of the Black Panther Party; Listen To Me Marlon, Stevan Riley’s fascinating self-portrait of Marlon Brando culled from his vast archive of personal audio and visual materials; The Look of Silence, Joshua Oppenheimer’s powerful companion piece to the Oscar®-nominated The Act of Killing; The Russian Woodpecker, Chad Gracia’s riveting examination of eccentric Ukranian artist Fedor Alexandrovich’s obsession with a Soviet-constructed radio antenna near the Chernobyl site; and What Happened, Miss Simone?, Liz Garbus’s sensitive exploration of the legendary singer and activist Nina Simone. In addition to the awards, this year’s honorees include Matthew Heineman, recipient of the IDA’s Courage Under Fire Award in recognition of conspicuous bravery in the pursuit of truth. Heineman’s gripping film, Cartel Land, documents two modern-day vigilante movements – Dr. José Mireles’s citizen-led uprising against a violent drug cartel wreaking havoc in Mexico and the Arizona Border Recon led by Tim “Nailer” Foley, which is working to prevent Mexico’s drug wars from crossing into the United States. Previous recipients of the award include: Laura Poitras, Christiane Amanpour, Andrew Berends, Jonathan Stack and James Brabazon and Saira Shah. In addition to Heineman, the 2015 IDA Documentary Awards will honor Gordon Quinn with its Career Achievement Award. Tony Tabatznik and the Bertha Foundation (berthafoundation.org) will receive the IDA Amicus Award, and Netflix’s Ted Sarandos will receive IDA’s Pioneer Award. (T)ERROR directors Lyric R. Cabral and David Felix Sutcliffe will share the Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award sponsored by the Archibald Family Foundation. The recipients of this year’s IDA Creative Recognition Awards include The Russian Woodpecker (cinematography by Artem Ryzhykov) will be recognized with the award for Best Cinematography; Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (edited by Joe Beshenkovsky and Brett Morgen) will receive the Best Editing award; Best of Enemies (original score by Jonathan Kirkscey) will be presented with the Best Music award, and Listen To Me Marlon (written by Stevan Riley, co-writer Peter Ettedgui) will receive the Best Writing award. The 31st Annual IDA Documentary Awards will take place on Saturday, December 5th at the Paramount Theatre in Los Angeles, CA 31st Annual IDA Awards Nominees Best Feature Award Amy Director: Asif Kapadia Producer: James Gay-Rees A24 The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution Director: Stanley Nelson Producer: Laurens Grant PBS DISTRIBUTION Listen to Me Marlon Director: Stevan Riley Producer: John Battsek SHOWTIME DOCUMENTARY FILMS The Look of Silence Director: Joshua Oppenheimer Producer: Signe Byrge Sørensen DRAFTHOUSE FILMS AND PARTICIPANT MEDIA The Russian Woodpecker Director: Chad Gracia Producer: Ram Devineni and Mike Lerner FILMBUFF What Happened, Miss Simone? Director: Liz Garbus NETFLIX Best Short Award Body Team 12 Director: David Darg Producer: Bryn Mooser RYOT FILMS AND VULCAN PRODUCTIONS Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah Director: Adam Benzine HBO The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul Director: Kitty Green Producer: Philippa Campey KURZFILMAGENTUR HAMBURG (GERMANY) Last Day of Freedom Directors: Dee Hibbert-Jones and Nomi Talisman Object Director: Paulina Skibińska MUNK STUDIO AND POLISH FILMMAKERS ASSOCIATION Best Curated Series Award 30 for 30 Executive Producers John Dahl and Connor Schell ESPN America ReFramed Executive Producers: Chris Hastings and Simon Kilmurry WORLD CHANNEL Independent Lens Executive Producers: Sally Jo Fifer and Lois Vossen ITVS/PBS POV Executive Producers: Simon Kilmurry and Chris White POV, PBS Storyville Series Editor: Nick Fraser Executive Producer: Kate Townsend BBC TV, BBC WORLD NEWS Best Limited Series Award Blood Brothers Executive Producers: Kees Schaap and Anja van Oostrom VARA TELEVISION (THE NETHERLANDS) Hard Earned Executive Producers: Steve James, Justine Nagan, and Gordon Quinn Series Producer: Maggie Bowman AL JAZEERA AMERICA AND KARTEMQUIN FILMS The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst Executive Producer: Jason Blum Co-Executive Producer: Zac Stuart-Pontier Produced by: Andrew Jarecki and Marc Smerling HBO Life Story Executive Producer: Mike Gunton DISCOVERY Rebel Architecture Executive Producer: Fiona Lawson-Baker AL JAZEERA ENGLISH Best Episodic Series Award Chef’s Table Executive Producers: David Gelb, Andrew Fried, and Brian McGinn NETFLIX Morgan Spurlock Inside Man Executive Producers: Jeremy Chilnick, Matthew Galkin, and Morgan Spurlock CNN AND WARRIOR POETS NOVA Senior Executive Producer: Paula Apsell Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Cort PBS The Seventies Executive Producers: Gary Goetzman, Tom Hanks, and Mark Herzog CNN, PLAYTONE, AND HERZOG & COMPANY This is Life with Lisa Ling Executive Producers: Amy Bucher, Lisa Ling, and David Shadrack Smith CNN AND PART2 PICTURES Best Short Form Series Award Do Not Track Executive Producer: Hugues Sweeney NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA, UPIAN, ARTE, AND BR Highrise: Universe Within Executive Producers: Anita Lee and Silva Basmajian NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA The New York Times Op-Docs Executive Producer: Jason Spingarn-Koff THE NEW YORK TIMES POV Interactive Documentaries Executive Producer: Simon Kilmurry and Adnaan Wasey POV AND PBS WE THE ECONOMY: 20 Short Films You Can’t Afford to Miss Executive Producer: Paul G. Allen and Morgan Spurlock VULCAN PRODUCTIONS AND CINELAN David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award This award recognizes exceptional achievement in non-fiction film and video production at the university level and brings greater public and industry awareness to the work of students in the documentary field. The Archipelago Director: Benjamin Huguet THE NATIONAL FILM AND TELEVISION SCHOOL The Blue Wall Director: Michael Milano UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY El Cacao Director: Michelle Aguilar University of California Santa Cruz In Attla’s Tracks Director: Catharine Axley STANFORD UNIVERSITY Looking at the Stars Director: Alexandre Peralta UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Pare Lorentz Award The Pare Lorentz Award recognizes films that demonstrate exemplary filmmaking while focusing on the appropriate use of the natural environment, justice for all and the illumination of pressing social problems. How to Change the World Director: Jerry Rothwell ABC News VideoSource Award This award is given each year for the best use of news footage as an integral component in a documentary. (T)ERROR Directors: Lyric R. Cabral and David Felix Sutcliffe INDEPENDENT LENS ALONG WITH BBC Best of Enemies Directors: Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville MAGNOLIA PICTURES AND INDEPENDENT LENS Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll Director: John Pirozzi ARGOT PICTURES Night Will Fall Director: André Singer HBO What Happened, Miss Simone? Director: Liz Garbus NETFLIX Creative Recognition Award Winners The Creative Recognition category recognizes special achievement in cinematography, editing, music and writing in films entered in the Feature Category. Best Cinematography The Russian Woodpecker Cinematography by: Artem Ryzhykov Best Editing Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck Edited by: Joe Beshenkovsky and Brett Morgen Best Writing Listen to Me Marlon Written by: Stevan Riley Co-Writer: Peter Ettedgui Best Music Best of Enemies Original Score by: Jonathan Kirkscey
Read more
NINA starring Zoe Saldana, David Oyelowo to be Released in Theaters in December 2015

The highly anticipated film NINA, based on the life of legendary American singer-songwriter Nina Simone will be released in theaters in December 2015 under the RLJ Entertainment brand. With first time writer-director Cynthia Mort, the film stars Zoe Saldana (Avatar, Guardians of the Galaxy) and David Oyelowo (Selma, The Butler). NINA traces the career of legendary American singer-songwriter and civil rights activist, Nina Simone (Saldana). The story follows her struggle to balance music, family and what she believes in, which leaves her living alone in France feeling exiled from her own country. That is, until she meets Clifton Henderson (Oyelowo) who helps the high priestess of soul rediscover meaning in her life and music, and to once again embrace America. NINA reflects both her and the people she gave voice to in both their searches for redemption and hope in America during the 1960’s. Nina Simone is unarguably one of the great vocalists of the 20thCentury; a 15-time Grammy nominee, she received the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2000. Nina’s versions of ‘My Baby Just Cares For Me‘ and ‘Feeling Good‘ have become standards, featuring in advertising and jazz compilations, and frequently covered by other artists. Her versions of such classics as ‘I Put a Spell on You,’ ‘Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood,’ ‘Lilac Wine,’ ‘Ain’t Got No, I Got Life‘ and ‘Wild is the Wind‘ have become the definitive versions. Nina’s strong involvement in the Civil Rights Movement brought out the talented songwriter in her. While ‘To Be Young Gifted and Black‘ is probably her best-known composition, and was subsequently covered by Aretha Franklin, Donny Hathaway, Bob and Marcia (whose cover was a U.K. top five hit) amongst others, she also wrote many other songs including ‘Mississippi Goddam’ and ‘Four Women.’ NINA was produced by Barnaby Thompson (The Importance of Being Earnest), Ben Latham-Jones (Kids in Love), Stuart Parr (Get Rich or Die Tryin’) and Cynthia Mort (The Brave One) and executive produced by Pierre Lagrange (Kick-Ass), Allison Sarofim (Lake City), Aigerim Jakisheva (Kids in Love), Zoe Saldana, David Oyelowo, James Spring (Burke and Hare), Gene Kirkwood (Rocky), Lauren Lloyd(Cellular) and Paul Rosenberg (Southpaw). “I am very excited that RLJ Entertainment will be distributing Nina Simone’s biopic with the tremendous talent involved including Zoe Saldana and David Oyelowo,” said Robert L. Johnson, RLJE Chairman and Founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET). “I had the special privilege early in my career of working with Ms. Simone while coordinating a performance for former D.C. Delegate Walter E. Fauntroy and knowing first-hand of her major contribution to the soul and emotion of the Civil Rights Movement. I look forward as I am sure many others will, to her story and legacy being made available by RLJ Entertainment to consumers on various media platforms in the coming months.”
Read more
“Sicilian Vampire” Starring James Caan, Daryl Hannah, Paul Sorvino Opens NYC Big Apple Film Festival | TRAILER

Frank D’Angelo’s fourth feature film, Sicilian Vampire, has been chosen as an opening night feature at this year’s New York City Big Apple Film Festival which runs November 4th to 7th, 2015. Written, directed and produced by Frank D’Angelo, Sicilian Vampire stars James Caan, Daryl Hannah, Paul Sorvino, Robert Loggia, Armand Assante, Robert Davi, Michael Paré, Eric Roberts, Daniel Baldwin, Tony Nardi and Frank D’Angelo. Sicilian Vampire is equal parts Goodfellas and Dusk till Dawn. It tells the story of reputed mobster Sonny Trafficante who was hoping to get away to the family hunting lodge for a little rest and relaxation and create some memories. Instead what he got was a night he will never forget. From there we’re taken on a journey of action, suspense and drama that can only come from the mind of Frank D’Angelo. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32QqR4TwZk8 Frank D’Angelo has written, produced, directed and acted in a total of four feature films in the last three years and is now in preproduction of his fifth film, The Red Maple Leaf, which is scheduled to begin shooting later this fall. His other films include Real Gangsters (the story of the Lo Giacomo family, one of the most successful crime syndicates in New York City), which is currently in worldwide release on Video-On-Demand networks. Another, The Big Fat Stone (a story of a homeless man who, simply by being at the right place at the right time, gets a chance at a new life), is now on VOD worldwide. And No Deposit (a story about a family man, who falls from grace through a series of downward spiraling events beyond his control), has been in theatres in Canada and USA and is available on Video on Demand.
Read more
Award Winning Documentary BARGE to NY Premiere at 2015 DOC NYC | TRAILER

The award winning documentary BARGE directed by Ben Powell have its NY premiere at 2015 DOC NYC, where it will screen in the Viewfinders Section. BARGE had its World Premiere at SXSW 2015, and went on to win Grand Jury Prize, Best Documentary Feature: Dallas International Film Festival 2015, Best Documentary Feature: Crossroads Film Festival 2015 and Honorable Mention, Best Documentary: Ashland Independent Film Festival 2015. BARGE evocatively depicts the lives of the Mississippi River’s ship workers over twenty-eight day shifts, shuttling cargo back and forth along America’s waterway. Dryland’s misfits, these men from all backgrounds and experience level fastidiously work to achieve their individual dreams while holding together our nation’s industrial backbone. A debut feature from Austin-based Ben Powell, BARGE is an intimate portrait of the machinery of American ambitions. A towboat drifts down the Mississippi River, on its way to the port of New Orleans. This is a barge whose life is the water, the banks, and the bright lights ahead. On board, dry land’s misfits find purpose and direction as the steady hands who move a few million tons of cargo up and down the river each year. A green deckhand; a former convict working his way up to first mate; an engineer with 38 years of experience, in no hurry to retire; and an ancient waterway pulling a double shift as the backbone of a national economy. As long as the boat is moving, they’re making money. Through the exquisitely observed details of modern river travel, this is a meditation on the importance of a meaningful job and the machinery of American ambitions. https://vimeo.com/121178742
Read more
Cuban Drag Racing Documentary HAVANA MOTOR CLUB by Bent-Jorgen Perlmutt to Get 2016 Release | TRAILER

Bent-Jorgen Perlmutt’s “Havana Motor Club” which had its world premiere at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival is set to be released in 2016 via Samuel Goldwyn Films. HAVANA MOTOR CLUB tells a personal, character-driven story about Cuba’s vibrant community of underground drag racers and their quest to hold Cuba’s first official car race since shortly after the 1959 Revolution. It tackles how Cuba’s recent reforms — the owning of property, allowance of small businesses, and greater exchange between Cubans, Cuban Americans, tourists, and other foreigners — have affected the lives of these racers and their families. One racer enlists the help of a Cuban American patron in Miami to bring in parts for his modern Porsche. His main competitor is a renowned mechanic who uses ingenuity rather than resources to create a racing machine out of his 1955 Chevy Bel Air. Another racer ponders whether he will participate in the race or sell his motor — one that he recovered on the ocean floor from a ship used to smuggle Cubans off the island — in order to flee Cuba on a raft headed to Florida. Meanwhile, the race itself is in jeopardy of coming to fruition due to factors ranging from its status as an elitist sport to the arrival of the Pope in Cuba. Through the experiences of these racers and their community, HAVANA MOTOR CLUB explores how Cuba is changing today but also what its future holds in light of Obama’s recent move to normalize relations with the island nation. Perlmutt previously co-directed the documentary “Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel,” about the prolific Harpers Bazaar editor. The film was also released by Samuel Goldwyn Films. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUTeldvSM3s
Read more
Psychological Thriller EMELIE by Michael Thelin to be Released in Spring 2016 | TRAILER

EMELIE, a gripping new psychological thriller and the first feature from prolific concert film and short-film director Michael Thelin is set for theatrical release in early Spring 2016 via MPI Media Group’s Dark Sky label. EMELIE premiered earlier this year at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival. In EMELIE, director Michael Thelin and writer Richard Raymond Harry Herbeck have taken an everyday experience – a couple handing their kids off to a babysitter – and created an original, nail-biting thriller. The Thompsons, a loving family living in a peaceful suburb of Buffalo, New York, are the definition of wholesome American normalcy. When their regular babysitter can’t make it, Dan and Joyce turn to her friend Anna to watch their three children while they go out to celebrate their anniversary. At first, the young woman seems like a dream come true for the kids, as she allows them to play with things that are usually off-limits. But, as her behavior becomes increasingly odd, the frightened kids realize her intentions are dark and twisted – and that she may not even be Anna at all. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2aBFWG58pls
Read more