Newtown[/caption]
Kim A. Snyder’s documentary Newtown that tells the story of the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting of schoolchildren in American history will air on Independent Lens on PBS April 3.
On December 14, 2012, a disturbed young man committed a horrific mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, that took the lives of 20 elementary school children and six educators. Kim A. Snyder’s searing new documentary Newtown, filmed over the course of nearly three years, uses deeply personal, never-before-heard testimonies to relate the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting of schoolchildren in American history. Through raw and heartbreaking interviews with parents, siblings, teachers, doctors and first responders, Newtown documents a traumatized community still reeling from the senseless tragedy, fractured by grief but driven toward a sense of purpose.
Newtown premieres on Independent Lens Monday, April 3, 2017, 10:00-11:30PM ET (check local listings) on PBS.
There are no words of compassion or reassurance that can bring back those who lost their lives during the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Instead, Snyder delves into the lives and homes of those who remain, all of whom have been indelibly changed by the events. They speak candidly about their grief, anger and disbelief over what occurred and their disappointment that nothing has truly changed with regard to the country’s legal response to gun violence. Newtown bears witness to their profound grief and allows it to reverberate within our collective conscience, exploring what happens to a community after it becomes the epicenter of a national discussion and what it must cope with after the cameras leave.
“Working with Kim on this film has been a deeply rewarding experience,” said Lois Vossen, Independent Lens executive producer. “The team was committed to making a film that was incisive without being exploitative. Newtown shows the impact of trauma on a community, the grief gun violence causes and how we begin to heal and move forward.”
Films
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NEWTOWN, Documentary on Deadliest Mass Shooting of Schoolchildren in American History, to Air on PBS | Trailer
[caption id="attachment_21180" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Newtown[/caption]
Kim A. Snyder’s documentary Newtown that tells the story of the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting of schoolchildren in American history will air on Independent Lens on PBS April 3.
On December 14, 2012, a disturbed young man committed a horrific mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, that took the lives of 20 elementary school children and six educators. Kim A. Snyder’s searing new documentary Newtown, filmed over the course of nearly three years, uses deeply personal, never-before-heard testimonies to relate the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting of schoolchildren in American history. Through raw and heartbreaking interviews with parents, siblings, teachers, doctors and first responders, Newtown documents a traumatized community still reeling from the senseless tragedy, fractured by grief but driven toward a sense of purpose.
Newtown premieres on Independent Lens Monday, April 3, 2017, 10:00-11:30PM ET (check local listings) on PBS.
There are no words of compassion or reassurance that can bring back those who lost their lives during the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Instead, Snyder delves into the lives and homes of those who remain, all of whom have been indelibly changed by the events. They speak candidly about their grief, anger and disbelief over what occurred and their disappointment that nothing has truly changed with regard to the country’s legal response to gun violence. Newtown bears witness to their profound grief and allows it to reverberate within our collective conscience, exploring what happens to a community after it becomes the epicenter of a national discussion and what it must cope with after the cameras leave.
“Working with Kim on this film has been a deeply rewarding experience,” said Lois Vossen, Independent Lens executive producer. “The team was committed to making a film that was incisive without being exploitative. Newtown shows the impact of trauma on a community, the grief gun violence causes and how we begin to heal and move forward.”
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Slamdance Grand Jury Winner DIM THE FLUORESCENTS to Be Released in Canada | Trailer
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Dim The Fluorescents – director Daniel Warth and producer Josh Clavir,[/caption]
Dim The Fluorescents, the feature film debut of director Daniel Warth and producer Josh Clavir, and winner of the 2017 Slamdance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize will be released in Canada by Films We Like. The film will have a cross-Canada fall theatrical release, followed by a wide digital release targeting SVOD, streaming and airline services.
FWL has been following the film since before its debut at Slamdance Film Festival, and shortly after the fest, finalized the deal.
Dim the Fluorescents tells the story of struggling actor Audrey (Claire Armstrong) and aspiring playwright Lillian (Naomi Skwarna), who pour all of their creative energy into the only paying work they can find: corporate role-playing demonstrations. When they book the biggest gig of their careers at a hotel conference, work commences on their most ambitious production to date, and the ensuing tensions threaten to derail both the production and their friendship.
As wryly funny as it is unexpectedly poignant, Dim the Fluorescents is a one-of-a-kind portrait of the artistic life and process in the unlikeliest of settings. A labour of love painstakingly constructed over the course of four years, the film was written by Daniel Warth and Miles Barstead – who also composed the score – and produced by Josh Clavir.
“I honestly can’t think of a better Canadian home for Dim the Fluorescents than Films We Like,” said Warth. “They have put out so many of my favorite films of the new century: Tabu, Berberian Sound Studio, Like Someone in Love, and far too many others to mention. I am beyond excited for this partnership, and I know they’re going to do an incredible job bringing the film to Canadian audiences.”
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Rob Meyer’s LITTLE BOXES from Tribeca 2016 Gets April 14th Delivery Date
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Little Boxes[/caption]
Rob Meyer’s LITTLE BOXES starring Melanie Lynskey (“Togetherness”), Nelsan Ellis (GET ON UP), Armani Jackson (THE LAST WITCH HUNTER), Oona Laurence (Broadway’s MATILDA), and Janeane Garofalo, will be released in theaters on April 14th by Gunpowder & Sky Distribution.
It’s the summer before 6th grade, and Clark (Jackson) is the new biracial kid in a very white town. Discovering that to be cool he needs to act ‘more black’, he fumbles to meet expectations. Meanwhile, his urban intellectual parents Mack (Ellis) and Gina (Lynskey) try to adjust to small-town living. Accustomed to life in New York, the tight-knit family is ill-prepared for the drastically different set of obstacles that their new community presents. They soon find themselves struggling to understand themselves and each other in this new context.
Written by Annie J. Howell, LITTLE BOXES premiered at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival, where it received a warm reception from critics. IndieWire praised Lynskey’s performance as “radiantly real” and called Howell’s script “knowing and perceptive”, noting approvingly that the film “addresses delicate questions about how our national conversations shape and seep into younger generations.” Variety concurred, hailing Ellis and Lynskey as “warm, funny and credible” and the film’s gentle touch on “issues of race, class and privilege”.
“LITTLE BOXES is as heartwarming as it is timely,” said Gunpowder & Sky Distribution’s Jake Hanly. “Rob unpacked a very complex issue in a way any audience can understand and relate to.”
Director Rob Meyer said, “It’s a thrill and an honor to team up with Gunpowder & Sky Distribution for the theatrical and VOD release. They distribute the kind of movies that I want to watch.” Producer Jared Ian Goldman added, “The Gunpowder & Sky team love the heart, humor and commentary of LITTLE BOXES as much as those of us who made it. They understand the timeliness and nuance to the mix-ups, misunderstandings, and stereotyping that the story utilizes so successfully.”
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Faith-Based Human Trafficking Thriller RUN Starring Stephen Baldwin Sets Premiere Date | Trailer
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RUN starring Stephen Baldwin[/caption]
The new faith-based feature film, RUN, starring Stephen Baldwin, will premiere on March 9, 2017 at the Palladium IMAX in San Antonio, TX before expanding to select cities nationwide.
The faith-based dramatic thriller stars Stephen Baldwin (The Usual Suspects; Bio-Dome; Born on the Fourth of July), Taylor Murphy (Scream: The TV Series; The Middle; MTV’s Awkward) and Josiah Warren (The Prophet’s Son; Scarlett; In Over My Head) who also directs the film. RUN follows Levi (Warren), a young businessman who marries a passionate journalist who reports on human trafficking and fights to expose it. On their wedding night, Natalie (Murphy) is kidnapped and sold into sex slavery. Levi goes on the hunt for his wife chasing clues wherever he can find them, leading him to Jeff Conners (Baldwin) – a crime lord with no mercy. Will Levi be able to find his wife before she is moved out of the country? Only with the help of God can Levi find the strength to fight.
Numerous anti-human trafficking organizations will be participating in the RUN premiere including Alamo Area Coalition Against Trafficking (AACAT), Embassy of Hope, Freedom Youth Project, Rape Crisis Center, Alamo Youth Center, Ransomed Life, A21 Freedom Chasers, Path Now Global, Heidi Search Center, No Strings Attached and New Life Refuge Ministries.
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A QUIET PASSION, starring Cynthia Nixon as Emily Dickinson Sets Release Dates | Trailer
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A Quiet Passion[/caption]
A QUIET PASSION starring Cynthia Nixon, and an official selection at the 2016 New York, Toronto and Berlin film festivals, will open in New York on April 14, and at the Laemmle Royal in Los Angeles on April 21. A national release will follow.
Following Sunset Song, acclaimed British director Terence Davies turns to 19th-century American poet Emily Dickinson, and exquisitely evokes Dickinson’s deep attachment to her close-knit family along with the manners, mores and spiritual convictions of her time that she struggled with and transcended in her poetry. Cynthia Nixon delivers a triumphant performance as Emily Dickinson as she personifies the wit, intellectual independence and pathos of the poet whose genius only came to be recognized after her death.
In addition to his two acclaimed semi-autobiographical features Distant Voices, Still Lives and The Long Day Closes, Mr. Davies’ films include the gorgeous literary adaptations The House of Mirth, The Neon Bible, The Deep Blue Sea, Sunset Song, as well as Of Time and the City, his masterful exploration of his native city, Liverpool.
A QUIET PASSION written and directed by Terence Davies, reunites Davies with his Deep Blue Sea cinematographer Florian Hoffmeister to create a luminous rendering of the poet’s universe.
Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts. Not publicly recognized during her lifetime, her first volume of works was published posthumously in 1890 after her family discovered forty hardbound volumes containing nearly 1,800 poems.
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SXSW Documentary MISSION CONTROL: THE UNSUNG HEROES OF APOLLO Sets Release Launch Date | Trailer
The documentary Mission Control: The Unsung Heroes of Apollo, directed by David Fairhead, about the NASA team that guided the United States’ early astronauts, has been acquired by Gravitas Ventures for release in the U.S.
Mission Control: The Unsung Heroes of Apollo, which is set for its world premiere on March 14 at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, will be released in select U.S. theaters and through video on demand (VOD) on April 14.
Featuring archival and on-site footage and stories from the men who lived it, “Mission Control” includes interviews with the founder of NASA’s Mission Control Center (and now its namesake) Chris Kraft and Apollo-era flight directors Gene Kranz (portrayed by Ed Harris in the 1995 film “Apollo 13”), Glynn Lunney and Gerry Griffin. Also appearing in the film are Apollo flight controllers Jerry Bostick, John Aaron and Sy Liebergot, and astronauts James Lovell (played by Tom Hanks in “Apollo 13”), Charles Duke, and the late Eugene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon. Through their testimony, the movie explores the journey in Mission Control, from the Mercury and Gemini trailblazing flights to the tragic Apollo 1 fire and, ultimately, the glories of the moon landings.
“To make this film of the unsung heroes [of NASA Mission Control] has been a fantastic experience,” Fairhead said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7maQ_-k6DI
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Ghanian Film and Film Independent Spirit Award Nominee NAKOM Sets March 3rd Release Date | Trailer
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Nakom[/caption]
Nakom, directed by the female team of TW Pittman and Daniela Norris, and nominated for the John Cassavetes Film Independent Spirit Award for the best new film made for under $500,000, will be released by Corinth Films. The film, starring Jacob Ayanaba, Justina Kulidu, Shetu Mussah, Grace Ayariga, Aziz Abdul, Esther Issaka, Mamudu Asigiri, and Thomas Kulidu, will open Friday March 3rd at New York’s Cinema Village in Manhattan.
Set in present day Ghana, Nakom follows Iddrisu, a talented medical student who is summoned home by his sister after their father’s sudden death. Iddrisu reluctantly returns home to the village of Nakom, buries his father and temporarily assumes the head of the impoverished household and farm, inheriting not only the delicate task of planting a successful crop but also a debt left by the deceased patriarch that could destroy the family. Attempting to maintain part of his studies from the confines of a small hut, Iddrisu becomes increasingly frustrated with the incessant physical and emotional needs of those around him, the demanding toil of the land and lack of rain. A contentious relationship with his uncle Napolean, to whom the sizeable debt is owed, is further complicated by the unplanned pregnancy of Napolean’s granddaughter who was sent to live with Iddrisu’s family. As the new patriarch grapples with tradition and familial duty, he is met with varying shades of contempt by both family and villagers who compare him with his father expecting a resemblance. Iddrisu’s patience and wisdom are tempered by the strange paradox created by his faith in God and desire for control, the latter of which he cannot have so long as he stays in Nakom. As circumstances swell, Iddrisu suddenly begins to realize that no future for him exists in the place where he is needed the most, even despite an offer by the village Chieftain to remain in Nakom to become an elder and marry his daughter. [gallery size="medium" type="rectangular" ids="20737,20738,20746,20745,20744,20743,20742,20741,20740,20739"]
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Watch First Official Trailer for Irish Coming of Age Comedy HANDSOME DEVIL
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HANDSOME DEVIL[/caption]
Here is the first official trailer for Handsome Devil, an Irish funny, music-drenched coming-of-age story set in an elite Dublin rugby school from writer-director John Butler. Handsome Devil which premiered at Toronto International Film Festival stars Andrew Scott (Sherlock, Spectre) alongside rising stars Fionn O’Shea and Nicholas Galitzine.
Heading up a cast of bright new talent is Fionn O’Shea as gawky, sixteen year-old Ned, a bright, artistic lad who faces his own hell on earth when he is sent to an all-boys Irish boarding school where the manly pursuit of rugby is virtually a religion. He steels himself for the loneliness, ridicule and constant insinuations about his sexuality. Everything changes with the arrival of his new roommate Conor (Nicholas Galitzine), a star player in the rugby team, and inspirational English teacher Dan Sherry (Sherlock and Spectre star Andrew Scott). Ned and Conor bond over a mutual appreciation of cool music and an unlikely friendship blossoms and faces unbearable pressures from a school grimly attached to its narrow macho values.
A music-mad 16-year-old outcast at rugby-mad boarding school forms an unlikely friendship with his dashing new roommate, in this funny and observant coming-of-age tale from Irish novelist and filmmaker John Butler.
This tender look at the travails of teenage life is the story of the worst thing Ned (Fionn O’Shea) ever did. It’s also the story of the best thing that ever happened to Ned. With his dyed hair, willowy build, and penchant for sexually ambivalent pop and rock from generations past, 16-year-old Ned has never fit in at the rugby-mad boarding school his father insists he attend. Determined to simply keep his nose down and weather another year of loneliness and bullying, Ned is pleasantly surprised when he develops a friendship with his dashing new roommate, Conor (Nicholas Galitzine), a rugby virtuoso with issues of his own. The boys bond over music and start to practice guitar together. At the encouragement of their English teacher (Andrew Scott), Ned and Conor enter a talent show at a local girls’ school. As both talent show and rugby season loom, however, the pressure on Conor to choose between manly athletic discipline and more artistic pursuits threatens to tear him apart — while Ned is increasingly tempted to betray Conor’s trust in order to save his own skin. Toronto International Film Festival https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-j1i94L8PMk
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I CALLED HIM MORGAN Documentary on Jazz Legend Lee Morgan Sets March Release Date
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I CALLED HIM MORGAN[/caption]
I CALLED HIM MORGAN, Kasper Collin’s (My Name Is Albert Ayler) documentary portrait of legendary jazz musician Lee Morgan and the woman who tragically took his life will open in New York on March 24 and Los Angeles on March 31. Featuring cinematography by Oscar-nominated DP Bradford Young (Arrival, Selma), I CALLED HIM MORGAN swept a prestigious group of fall film festivals—Venice, Telluride, Toronto, New York, and London.
The film will open theatrically on Friday, March 24 at New York’s Film Society of Lincoln Center, and followed on Friday, March 31 by openings at Manhattan’s Metrograph Theater and Los Angeles’ Laemmle Monica with a national expansion to follow.
On a snowy night in February 1972, 33-year-old jazz trumpet star Lee Morgan was shot dead by his common-law wife, Helen, during a gig at a club in New York City. The murder sent shockwaves through the jazz community, where Morgan played with such greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey and John Coltrane. Helen served time for the crime and, following her release, retreated into obscurity. Over 20 years later, a chance encounter led her to give a remarkable interview. Helen’s revealing audio “testimony” acts as a refrain throughout the film, which draws together a wealth of archival photographs and footage, interviews with friends and bandmates and incredible jazz music to tell the ill-fated pair’s story. Part true-crime tale, part love story, and an all-out musical treat, I CALLED HIM MORGAN is a captivating chronicle of the dramatic destinies of two unique personalities and the music that brought them together.
Featuring Wayne Shorter, Paul West, Charli Persip, Albert “Tootie” Heath, Larry Ridley, Jymie Merritt, Bennie Maupin, Billy Harper, Larry Reni Thomas, and more.
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Berlinale 2017: Karam Ghossein’s STREET OF DEATH Wins Audi Short Film Award
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The Audi Short Film Award goes to Lebanese director Karam Ghossein – here with Jason Lusty, Head of Marketing Germany at AUDI AG[/caption]
Lebanese director Karam Ghossein has won the Audi Short Film Award, along with its €20,000 cash prize at the 2017 Berlin International Film Festival for his short film Street of Death.
Director and cameraman Karam Ghossein creates a stream of images from the present combined with stories from the past, occurring like a kaleidoscope along the highway to the Beirut International Airport. In the 22-minute-long firm, struggles for power and respect remain as persistent points throughout the ages. The international short film jury for 2017 includes Christian Jankowski, an artist and Professor at the State Academy of Art and Design in Stuttgart; Kimberly Drew, Curator and Social Media Manager at the Metropolitan Museum of Art New York; and Carlos Núñez, Artistic Director of the SANFIC Santiago International Film Festival.
A total of 23 films from 19 countries competed in the Berlinale Shorts section. Under the title “Reframing the Image,” curator Maike Mia Höhne assembled a series of films focused on recalibrating one’s own perception, offering the filmgoer a unique new perspective. “The short film is the hotbed of creativity for the film industry. This is where directors execute their visions and provide food for thought, sometimes experimentally, sometimes essayistically. This gives rise to new trends – and that’s what we want to support with the Audi Short Film Award,” says Jason Lusty, Head of Marketing Germany at AUDI AG, explaining Audi’s involvement. The Audi Short Film Award is presented in the Berlinale Shorts section alongside the Golden and Silver Bears, and is among the world’s most lucrative short film awards.
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Documentary INVISIBLE WOMEN: BEING A BLACK WOMAN IN CORPORATE AMERICA to Screen at Hollywood Black Film Festival | TRAILER
The documentary Invisible Women: Being a Black Woman in Corporate America directed by Melody Shere’a will screen at the 2017 Hollywood Black Film Festival (HBFF). The film which is executive produced by her talented sibling Monica Simmons, is the result of a year-long research study interviewing professional black women in the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City.
Invisible Women uncovers and addresses issues around racism that profoundly affects black women in the corporate workplace. In the film, several women share respective experiences of disappointment and rejection when simply trying to earn a living and compete against women of other races for a higher step on the corporate ladder.
The film will screen at the Hollywood Black Film Festival on Thursday, February 23rd at 2:15 p.m., hosted at the AMC Theater Marketplace 6 in Marina del Rey, CA.
“For the production of Invisible Women: Being a Black Woman in Corporate America, we interviewed black women of varied professional levels who generously shared their previously untold stories and feelings around race-related issues on the job,” said Shere’a, HNTT Productions founder and CEO. “In conducting the research, we found the corporate practice of discrimination to be a common harsh reality faced by countless women of color. We also interviewed experts who provide employment reports and statistical data on this topic.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYztEMOuQ4Y
According to Simmons, “Black women continue to experience racism on the job. We must be open to talking about this distressing issue to move toward a resolution. Obstacles that my sister and I have faced working in Corporate America were the inspiration behind Invisible Women: Being a Black Woman in Corporate America. Our film is meant to drive a movement for change in the workplace, especially the technology industry. ”
“No longer should we be silenced. We need to speak up and call it what it is,” commented Shere’a. Unlike “Hidden Figures,” we are no longer in the 1950’s-60’s era. This racial discrimination against smart, educated, and powerful black women is unacceptable. We deserve a seat at the table, and we are demanding our place to exist, no longer will we continue to remain Invisible Women.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdUthH1rGhc&t=9s
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Jamie Patterson’s Alien Home Invasion Thriller, CAUGHT, to World Premiere at Fantasporto – Oporto International Film Festival
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Caught[/caption]
Jamie Patterson’s (Fractured, City of Dreamers) alien home invasion thriller, Caught, will world premiere as an official selection in the Fantasy Films program at the Fantasporto – Oporto International Film Festival.
Caught stars Mickey Sumner (Frances Ha, End of the Tour, The Mend), April Pearson (Skins. Tormented, Age of Kill) Cian Barry (Dr. Foster, Nina Forever), Ruben Crow (Doctors, Austenland), David Mounfield (This is Jinsy), and newcomers Aaron Davis and baby Regan Brown.
While on an afternoon walk with their children, two small town reporters notice the military camped on a hilltop. Debating the possible significance of this activity, they answer their door when two unusual strangers come knocking and find themselves held hostage in their own home.
“Very excited to have our world premiere of Caught at Fantasporto. This is a different kind of horror film. Inspired by films of the 70’s, I wanted a gritty, raw feel to the story because there’s nothing glossy about horror. This is my idea of alien art house,” said Director Jamie Patterson.