Industry

Alamo Drafthouse Greets Brooklyn with FREE Outdoor Film Screenings

[caption id="attachment_13970" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] BEST IN SHOW[/caption] With its Downtown Brooklyn theater set to open later this summer, the Alamo Drafthouse Brooklyn will offer a taste of its movie programming with three free admission outdoor screenings at Fort Greene Park. Featuring three revered contemporary classics, these outdoor shows are a chance for Alamo to introduce itself and connect with New York’s movie-lovers. Each screening will take place at sundown and will be complimented by themed festivities before the show. “We’re excited for the opportunity to finally share movies with the community before our venue opens. With the Brooklyn sky as our roof, these Fort Greene Park screenings represent the perfect opportunity to meet our new neighbors and introduce them to Alamo Drafthouse,” says NY Creative Manager/Programmer Cristina Cacioppo. One-of-a-kind film experiences have long been a hallmark of Alamo Drafthouse’s unique approach to programming: for over fifteen years the company has produced screenings of iconic films in iconic locations across the globe. Such high profile signature events have included Sergio Leone’s FISTFUL OF DOLLARS in Spain, ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ on Alcatraz Island, CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND at the foot of Devil’s Tower, and JAWS on the famed sandy beaches of Martha’s Vineyard. “Alamo Drafthouse primarily operates in a theater environment but we’re not limited to that experience,” says Henri Mazza, VP of Special Events. “We exist to create unique and memorable cinematic experiences for audiences everywhere, whether it’s in a theater, on a lake, or in a beautiful park in the heart of Brooklyn. These screenings are a sample of what’s in store for the coming years.” May 27 – Bring Your Own Dog Screening of BEST IN SHOW Enjoy Christopher Guest’s uproarious mockumentary along with your pooch! Dog owners are welcome to bring their pets and will have the chance to parade them before the audience in a pre-movie dog show. June 3 – Quote-Along®: LABYRINTH Alamo’s beloved version of LABYRINTH allows the audience to sing-along with the David Bowie tunes and quote the best lines of the movie. Free souvenir props will also be available for the first to arrive at the park! June 10 – FINDING NEMO One week before the release of FINDING DORY, kids big and small can revisit Pixar’s original aquatic adventure with the Tank Gang. Costumes are encouraged, and surprises are in store!
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Tisha Campbell-Martin, Naturi Naughton, Fran Burst Honored at Black Women Film Summit

[caption id="attachment_11980" align="aligncenter" width="720"] Fran Burst, Mikki Taylor, Naturi Naughton, Sheryl Gripper, Tisha Campbell-Martin at The Black Women Film Network[/caption] Last week, the Black Women Film Network (BWFN) hosted the 2016 Black Women Film Summit, featuring the popular “Untold Stories Awards Luncheon.” Actress/singer Tisha Campbell-Martin (ABC’s “Dr. Ken”), actress/singer Naturi Naughton (“POWER”), ESSENCE editor-at-large Mikki Taylor and film director and producer Fran Burst were honored at the2016 Black Women Film Summit held at the Intercontinental Buckhead. TV and radio personality Ebony Steele (“Coffee with America”) hosted the affair with music provided by DJ Salah Ananse. Scholarships were awarded to aspiring filmmakers Anita Salley and Martha Carswell. Additional luncheon attendees included comedian/writer Myra J, actress Charmin Lee and media personality Spirit. The Summit that day also included the “Reel Sista Talk” and “Marketing Your Film to Hollywood” panel discussions featuring Haj Chenzira Pinnock, Mikki Taylor, Shante Bacon and Saptosa Foster. On Saturday, the Summit hosted a number of seminars and panels including a Kids Acting Workshop, a Comedy Class led by Myra J, a “Screenwriting 101” workshop and “The YBF: Young, Black & Filming” panel. Additionally, authors James E. Chandler, Sr., Amber Saunders, Saunya M. Williams, Ph.D, and BWFN founder Sheryl Gripper showcased their titles at the Book Festival, while various black women filmmakers from around the country debuted their film shorts during the competitive Film Festival. At the end of the day, the winning films were announced: Best of Festival Masquerade Meleisha Edwards, Writer/Producer Best of Festival (Student Category) Suga Water Nakia Stephens, Writer/Producer Audience Participation Award Ms. Glo Angela Edmond, Writer/Director
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332 Invited to Join Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; Finish Director Pirjo Honkasalo Rejects Invitation

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is extending invitations to join the organization to 322 artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures. Those who accept the invitations will be the only additions to the Academy’s membership in 2015. “It’s gratifying to acknowledge the extraordinary range of talent in our industry,” said Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs. “This year, our branches have recognized a more diverse and inclusive list of filmmakers and artists than ever before, and we look forward to adding their creativity, ideas and experience to our organization.” Update: Finnish film director Pirjo Honkasalo (pictured above) has reportedly dismissed an invitation to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences reports thenewage.
Honkasalo told the biggest Finnish language daily that she would rather belong to organizations where she can influence decisions. She criticized the position of foreign films in the Oscar nominations. Honkasalo said that lobbyists and personal relations have too great a role in the Oscar process.
The 2015 invitees are: Actors Elizabeth Banks – “Love & Mercy,” “The Hunger Games” Choi Min-sik– “Lucy,” “Oldboy” Benedict Cumberbatch – “The Imitation Game,” “Star Trek Into Darkness” Martin Freeman – “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” “Hot Fuzz” Heather Graham – “The Hangover,” “Boogie Nights” Tom Hardy – “Mad Max: Fury Road,” “Inception” Kevin Hart – “The Wedding Ringer,” “Ride Along” Felicity Jones – “The Theory of Everything,” “Like Crazy” Stephen Lang – “Avatar,” “The Men Who Stare at Goats” Jodi Long – “A Picture of You,” “Beginners” John Carroll Lynch – “Shutter Island,” “Zodiac” Gugu Mbatha-Raw – “Beyond the Lights,” “Belle” Denis O’Hare – “Milk,” “Michael Clayton” Michael O’Neill – “Dallas Buyers Club,” “Transformers” David Oyelowo – “Selma,” “A Most Violent Year” Dev Patel – “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” “Slumdog Millionaire” Rosamund Pike – “Gone Girl,” “Pride & Prejudice” Chris Pine – “Into the Woods,” “Star Trek” Daniel Radcliffe – “Kill Your Darlings,” “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2” Eddie Redmayne – “The Theory of Everything,” “Les Misérables” Jason Segel – “The Five-Year Engagement,” “The Muppets” J.K. Simmons – “Whiplash,” “Juno” Sonny Skyhawk – “Geronimo: An American Legend,” “Young Guns II” Song Kang-ho – “Snowpiercer,” “The Host” Emma Stone – “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance),” “The Help” Casting Directors Lucy Bevan – “Cinderella,” “The Hundred-Foot Journey” Victoria Burrows – “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” “King Kong” Aisha Coley – “Selma,” “Beyond the Lights” Patricia DiCerto – “Blue Jasmine,” “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” Mary Hidalgo – “The Lego Movie,” “The Incredibles” Roger Mussenden – “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” “Get Smart” Lucie Robitaille – “Incendies,” “The Barbarian Invasions” Luis San Narciso – “The Skin I Live In,” “The Sea Inside” April Webster – “Tomorrowland,” “Star Trek” Tricia Wood – “Woman in Gold,” “The Lincoln Lawyer” Cinematographers Christopher Blauvelt – “The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby,” “The Bling Ring” Adriano Goldman – “August: Osage County,” “Jane Eyre” Ben Kasulke – “Laggies,” “Safety Not Guaranteed” Ryszard Lenczewski – “Ida,” “Margaret” Jody Lee Lipes – “Ballet 422,” “Martha Marcy May Marlene” Sharone Meir – “Whiplash,” “Mean Creek” Rachel Morrison – “Cake,” “Fruitvale Station” Tristan Oliver – “ParaNorman,” “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Hoyte Van Hoytema – “Interstellar,” “Her” Roman Vasyanov – “Fury,” “End of Watch” Łukasz Żal – “Ida,” “Joanna” Costume Designers Kasia Walicka Maimone – “Foxcatcher,” “Moonrise Kingdom” Francesca Livia Sartori – “Piazza Fontana: The Italian Conspiracy,” “When the Night” Jany Temime – “Gravity,” “Skyfall” Designers Ramsey Avery – “Tomorrowland,” “Star Trek Into Darkness” Gae Buckley – “The Book of Eli,” “He’s Just Not That into You” Keith Brian Burns – “The Best Man Holiday,” “2 Fast 2 Furious” Lester W. Cohen – “Fading Gigolo,” “Cop Land” Suzie Davies – “Mr. Turner,” “The Children” John F. Fenner – “The Phantom of the Opera,” “The Talented Mr. Ripley” Darren Gilford – “Oblivion,” “Tron: Legacy” Derek R. Hill – “Southpaw,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl” Bryn Imagire – “Cars 2,” “Up” Dina Lipton – “Baggage Claim,” “Love Hurts” Tatiana Macdonald – “The Imitation Game,” “The Invisible Woman” Dominic Masters – “Woman in Gold,” “Casino Royale” Doug Meerdink – “Jurassic World,” “Ocean’s Thirteen” Chris Spellman – “Paper Towns,” “This Is the End” Patrick Tatopoulos – “300: Rise of an Empire,” “Total Recall” Charlotte Watts – “Mr. Holmes,” “Mr. Turner” Directors Michael Binder – “Black or White,” “Reign over Me” Bong Joon-ho – “Snowpiercer,” “Mother” Niki Caro – “North Country,” “Whale Rider” Damien Chazelle* – “Whiplash,” “Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench” Simon Curtis – “Woman in Gold,” “My Week with Marilyn” François Girard – “Silk,” “The Red Violin” F. Gary Gray – “The Italian Job,” “Friday” James Gunn – “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Super” Im Kwon-taek – “Chi-Hwa-Seon (Painted Fire),” “Chunhyang” Stan Lathan – “Beat Street,” “Amazing Grace” Malcolm D. Lee* – “The Best Man Holiday,” “The Best Man” Justin Lin – “Fast & Furious 6,” “Better Luck Tomorrow” François Ozon – “Young & Beautiful,” “Swimming Pool” Paweł Pawlikowski* – “Ida,” “My Summer of Love” Kelly Reichardt – “Meek’s Cutoff,” “Wendy and Lucy” Ira Sachs – “Love Is Strange,” “Keep the Lights On” Lynn Shelton – “Laggies,” “Your Sister’s Sister” Abderrahmane Sissako* – “Timbuktu,” “Bamako” Damián Szifron* – “Wild Tales,” “On Probation” Fernando Trueba – “Chico & Rita,” “Belle Epoque” Morten Tyldum – “The Imitation Game,” “Headhunters” Zaza Urushadze – “Tangerines,” “The Guardian” Wayne Wang – “Anywhere but Here,” “The Joy Luck Club” Edgar Wright – “The World’s End,” “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” Joe Wright – “Anna Karenina,” “Atonement” Andrey Zvyagintsev* – “Leviathan,” “Elena” Documentary Richard Berge – “The Island President,” “The Rape of Europa” Mathilde Bonnefoy* – “CitizenFour,” “The Invisibles” Emad Burnat – “5 Broken Cameras” Guy Davidi – “5 Broken Cameras,” “Interrupted Streams” Geralyn Dreyfous – “The Square,” “The Invisible War” Lewis Erskine – “Free Angela: And All Political Prisoners,” “Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple” Shana Hagan – “Misconception,” “This Film Is Not Yet Rated” Tony Hardmon – “Detropia,” “Semper Fi: Always Faithful” Leonard Retel Helmrich – “Position among the Stars,” “Shape of the Moon” Pirjo Honkasalo – “The 3 Rooms of Melancholia,” “Atman” Judy Irving – “Pelican Dreams,” “The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill” Robert Kenner – “Merchants of Doubt,” “Food, Inc.” Marc Levin – “Mr. Untouchable,” “The Last Party” Jesse Moss – “The Overnighters,” “Full Battle Rattle” Pratibha Parmar – “Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth,” “A Place of Rage” Paula DuPre’ Pesmen – “Keep On Keepin’ On,” “The Cove” Gordon Quinn – “Life Itself,” “Hoop Dreams” Kim Roberts – “Waiting for ‘Superman’,” “Lost Boys of Sudan” Richard Rowley – “Dirty Wars,” “The Fourth World War” João Moreira Salles – “Santiago,” “Entreatos (Intermissions)” Ondi Timoner – “We Live in Public,” “Dig!” Executives Carolyn Blackwood Robbie Brenner Lia Buman Steve Burke David Fenkel Mellody Hobson Brian Keane Steven Paul O’Dell Jim Orr Mark Rachesky Ted Sarandos Jeff Shell Film Editors Craig Alpert – “Pitch Perfect 2,” “Pineapple Express” Mick Audsley – “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” “Dirty Pretty Things” Pablo Barbieri – “Wild Tales,” “La Antena (The Aerial)” Nadia Ben Rachid – “Timbuktu,” “Bamako” Kristina Boden – “The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby,” “Cake” Mathilde Bonnefoy* – “CitizenFour,” “Run Lola Run” Julian Clarke – “Chappie,” “District 9” Douglas Crise – “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance),” “Babel” Tom Cross – “Whiplash,” “Any Day Now” Jinx Godfrey – “The Theory of Everything,” “Man on Wire” Robert Grahamjones – “Brave,” “Ratatouille” Masahiro Hirakubo – “Virunga,” “The Duchess” Jarosław Kamiński – “Ida,” “Aftermath (Pokłosie)” William Kerr – “Bridesmaids,” “I Love You, Man” Nico Leunen – “Lost River,” “The Broken Circle Breakdown” Mike McCusker – “Get On Up,” “3:10 to Yuma” Tim Mertens – “Big Hero 6,” “Wreck-It Ralph” Barney Pilling – “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “An Education” David Rennie – “22 Jump Street,” “Office Space” Gary D. Roach – “American Sniper,” “Prisoners” Michael L. Sale – “We’re the Millers,” “Bridesmaids” Stephen Schaffer – “Cars 2,” “WALL-E” Job ter Burg – “Borgman,” “Winter in Wartime” Peter Teschner – “St. Vincent,” “Horrible Bosses” Tara Timpone – “Friends with Kids,” “Bad Teacher” Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Frida S. Aradottir – “August: Osage County,” “A Serious Man” Victoria Down – “Big Eyes,” “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” Frances Hannon – “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “The King’s Speech” Todd Kleitsch – “Run All Night,” “Black Swan” Dennis Liddiard – “Foxcatcher,” “Jobs” Jerry Popolis – “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance),” “Noah” Janine Rath-Thompson – “Star Trek Into Darkness,” “Bridesmaids” Johnny Villanueva – “The Gambler,” “The Fighter” David White – “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “La Vie en Rose” Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou – “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “An Education” Members-at-Large Andy Armstrong Wayne Billheimer Kevin Brownlow Simon Crane Debbie Denise Jeff Habberstad Andy Hendrickson Elissa M. Rashkin Loparco Guido Quaroni Nicole Scalise Steven J. Scott Leon D. Silverman Gregg Smrz Lynda Ellenshaw Thompson Steve Venezia Music Tyler Bates – “John Wick,” “Guardians of the Galaxy” Alex Gibson – “Interstellar,” “The Dark Knight” Jonny Greenwood – “Inherent Vice,” “The Master” Dave Grusin – “Skating to New York,” “The Firm” Alex Heffes – “Love and Honor,” “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom” Lisa Jaime – “Annie,” “Rock of Ages” Jóhann Jóhannsson – “The Theory of Everything,” “Prisoners” Laura Karpman – “States of Grace,” “Black Nativity” Christopher Lennertz – “The Wedding Ringer,” “Horrible Bosses” Lonnie Lynn – “Selma,” “Freedom Writers” Chris McGeary – “Jersey Boys,” “RoboCop” Sergio Mendes – “Rio 2,” “Rio” Daniel Pinder – “Big Hero 6,” “Captain Phillips” Trent Reznor – “Gone Girl,” “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Atticus Ross – “Love & Mercy,” “The Social Network” John Stephens – “Selma,” “Django Unchained” Marc Streitenfeld – “Poltergeist,” “Prometheus” Erica Weis – “Spy,” “The Heat” Gary Yershon – “Mr. Turner,” “Another Year” Producers Caroline Baron – “Capote,” “Monsoon Wedding” Effie T. Brown – “Dear White People,” “Real Women Have Curves” Terence Chang – “Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale,” “Face/Off” Wyck Godfrey – “The Fault in Our Stars,” “Twilight” Jeremy Kleiner – “Selma,” “12 Years a Slave” Pamela Koffler – “Still Alice,” “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” Gina Kwon – “Camp X-Ray,” “Me and You and Everyone We Know” Dan Lin – “The Lego Movie,” “Sherlock Holmes” Eric Newman – “RoboCop,” “Children of Men” Bruna Papandrea – “Wild,” “All Good Things” Lydia Dean Pilcher – “Cutie and the Boxer,” “The Darjeeling Limited” Rebecca Yeldham – “On the Road,” “The Kite Runner” Public Relations Jennifer Allen Asad Ayaz Dawn Baillie Andrew Bernstein Liz Biber Mara Buxbaum Lee Ginsberg R. Jeff Hill Michelle Hooper Chris Libby Susan Norget Lewis Oberlander Gordon Paddison Elias Plishner David Pollick Weiman Seid LeeAnne Stables Ryan Stankevich Bonnie Voland Short Films and Feature Animation Alan Barillaro – “Brave,” “WALL-E” Kristine Belson – “The Croods,” “How to Train Your Dragon” Darlie Brewster – “Curious George,” “The Prince of Egypt” Roy Conli – “Big Hero 6,” “Tangled” Ronnie Del Carmen – “Up,” “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron” Paul A. Felix – “Big Hero 6,” “Lilo & Stitch” Michael Fukushima – “Me and My Moulton,” “Dimanche/Sunday” Don Hall – “Big Hero 6,” “Winnie the Pooh” Talkhon Hamzavi – “Parvaneh,” “Taub” Hu Wei – “Butter Lamp (La Lampe Au Beurre De Yak),” “Le Propriétaire” Jin Kim – “Big Hero 6,” “Bolt” Mat Kirkby – “The Phone Call,” “Hard to Swallow” David Kneupper – “Alex and Sylvia,” “The Civil War in 4 Minutes” Michael Lennox – “Boogaloo and Graham,” “The Back of Beyond” Fabio Lignini – “How to Train Your Dragon 2,” “Puss in Boots” James Lucas – “The Phone Call” Patrick Osborne – “Feast,” “Paperman” Jerome Ranft – “Toy Story 3,” “Ratatouille” Jim Reardon – “Wreck-It Ralph,” “WALL-E” Kristina Reed – “Feast,” “Paperman” Jason Reisig – “Home,” “Shrek Forever After” Nicolas Schmerkin – “Habana,” “Logorama” Anthony Stacchi – “The Boxtrolls,” “Open Season” Isao Takahata – “The Tale of the Princess Kaguya,” “Grave of the Fireflies” Michael Thurmeier – “Ice Age: Continental Drift,” “No Time for Nuts” Marlon West – “Frozen,” “The Princess and the Frog” Sound Ray Beckett – “Zero Dark Thirty,” “The Hurt Locker” Odin Benitez – “Frozen,” “Silver Linings Playbook” Ron Bochar – “Mortdecai,” “Moneyball” Jason Canovas – “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,” “World War Z” Thomas Curley – “Whiplash,” “The Spectacular Now” Michael Dressel – “American Sniper,” “Interstellar” Mary H. Ellis – “Vacation,” “Prisoners” Stephanie Flack – “Jupiter Ascending,” “Ender’s Game” Martín Hernández – “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance),” “Biutiful” Dean Humphreys – “Taken 3,” “The Pianist” William Johnston – Vice President of Engineering, Formosa Group Shawn Jones – “Iron Man 3,” “Drive” Daniel Laurie – “Inside Out,” “Big Hero 6” David Lee – “Unbroken,” “The Matrix” Craig Mann – “Dope,” “Whiplash” Kyrsten Mate – “Tomorrowland,” “Guardians of the Galaxy” Shannon J. Mills – “Inside Out,” “Big Hero 6” Bryan K. Pennington – “Transformers: Age of Extinction,” “Promised Land” Juan P. Peralta – “Tomorrowland,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” John Ross – “Danny Collins,” “American Hustle” Peter Staubli – “San Andreas,” “Skyfall” Mark Taylor – “Edge of Tomorrow,” “Captain Phillips” Addison Teague – “Big Hero 6,” “The Amazing Spider-Man” Jon Title – “San Andreas,” “The Divergent Series: Insurgent” Thomas Varga – “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance),” “The Immigrant” Ben Wilkins – “Whiplash,” “Star Trek” Visual Effects Nicolas Aithadi – “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “X-Men: First Class” Daniel Barrett – “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” Stephane Ceretti – “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Cloud Atlas” Paul Corbould – “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Guardians of the Galaxy” Tim Crosbie – “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” “The Wolverine” Dan DeLeeuw – “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Iron Man 3” Sean Faden – “Fast & Furious 6,” “Let Me In” Joe Farrell – “The Wolf of Wall Street,” “Hereafter” Scott R. Fisher – “Interstellar,” “The Dark Knight Rises” Chris Harvey – “Chappie,” “Fast & Furious 6” Alex Jaeger – “Tomorrowland,” “Marvel’s The Avengers” Matt Kutcher – “Focus,” “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” Andrew Lockley – “Interstellar,” “Inception” Gray Marshall – “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Captain America: The First Avenger” Carl Miller – “Jurassic World,” “Elysium” David Nakabayashi – “Tomorrowland,” “Avatar” Rocco Passionino – “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Spider-Man 2” Lou Pecora – “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” Cary Phillips – “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Ellen Poon – “Frozen,” “Inception” Edwin Rivera – “22 Jump Street,” “Moneyball” Cameron Waldbauer – “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” “Elysium” Erik Winquist – “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” “Avatar” Writers Armando Bo – “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance),” “Biutiful” Damien Chazelle* – “Whiplash,” “Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench” Álex de la Iglesia – “El Crimen Perfecto,” “The Day of the Beast” Rick Famuyiwa – “Dope,” “The Wood” Maya Forbes – “Infinitely Polar Bear,” “Monsters vs Aliens” E. Max Frye – “Foxcatcher,” “Something Wild” Nicolás Giacobone – “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance),” “Biutiful” Dan Gilroy – “Nightcrawler,” “The Bourne Legacy” Jorge Guerricaechevarría – “Cell 211,” “The Day of the Beast” Rita Hsiao – “Toy Story 2,” “Mulan” Simon Kinberg – “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” “Sherlock Holmes” Malcolm D. Lee* – “The Best Man Holiday,” “The Best Man” Christopher Markus – “Thor: The Dark World,” “Captain America: The First Avenger” Stephen McFeely – “Thor: The Dark World,” “Captain America: The First Avenger” Graham Moore – “The Imitation Game” Paweł Pawlikowski* – “Ida,” “My Summer of Love” Abderrahmane Sissako* – “Timbuktu,” “Bamako” Damián Szifron* – “Wild Tales,” “On Probation” Kessen Tall – “Timbuktu” Tyger Williams – “The Perfect Guy,” “Menace II Society” Andrey Zvyagintsev* – “Leviathan,” “Elena” Associates Victoria Belfrage Josh Braun Wayne Fitterman Sharon Jackson Patricia Keighley Cliff Roberts Elyse Scherz James Toth Bart Walker Seven individuals (noted above by an asterisk) have been invited to join the Academy by multiple branches. These individuals must select one branch upon accepting membership. Each year, each Academy member may sponsor one candidate for membership within their branch. New member application reviews take place in the spring. Applications for the coming year must be received by March 24, 2016. New members will be welcomed into the Academy at an invitation-only reception in September.
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Actress Sofia Vergara Receives Actors Inspiration Award at SAG Foundation LA Golf Classic

The Screen Actors Guild Foundation kicked off their 30th Anniversary festivities with the star-studded Los Angeles Golf Classic on June 8th, 2015, in Burbank, CA. The SAG Foundation awarded actress Sofia Vergara with its inaugural Actors Inspiration Award in honor of her commitment to giving back and her support of the Foundation and their children’s literacy programs. Vergara was honored to accept the award, saying, “[It’s] so lovely to be part of an organization that gives back as much as the SAG Foundation does. Currently, 80% of children in the United States that attend at-risk schools read below grade level. Many of these children are bilingual, but it’s not [just] important to be able to speak the two languages, it’s also important to be able to read and write in them.”
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San Francisco Film Society Launches Women Filmmaker Fellowship

The San Francisco Film Society has launched the SFFS Women Filmmaker Fellowship, a new suite of services designed to support female writer/directors working on their second or third narrative feature.

The San Francisco Film Society announced the launch of the SFFS Women Filmmaker Fellowship, a new suite of services designed to support female writer/directors working on their second or third narrative feature through a combination of financial backing, innovative programs and events, mentorship services, industry connections and a growing community of fellow filmmakers. Inaugurated with the support of the Kenneth Rainin Foundation and facilitated by Filmmaker360, the Film Society’s filmmaker services department, this fellowship program will provide direct assistance to an under-served group of storytellers and help to build sustainable careers for women filmmakers all over the world. The first Women Filmmaker Fellows, to be handpicked by Filmmaker360 staff, will be announced in April. An application period for subsequent Fellowships will open in winter 2016.

Participants in the SFFS Women Filmmaker Fellowship must working on a second or third English-language narrative feature screenplay, with an intended budget of no more than $3 million. They must have had a previous film premiere at a major international festival and priority will given to projects in the under-represented genres of science fiction, comedy, action, thriller and horror.

“Through our engagement with the growing Filmmaker360 community, we have come to understand the particular challenges for women filmmakers in obtaining financing, building networks and overcoming stereotypes, especially when embarking on a second feature film project,” said Michele Turnure-Salleo, director of Filmmaker360. “While the independent arena is perhaps more supportive of first-time female directors than Hollywood and the commercial mainstream, we continue to find severe limitations in the opportunities provided to women seeking to build sustainable careers making narrative feature films. The SFFS Women Filmmaker Fellowship program is part of the Film Society’s ongoing efforts to address that issue.”

In 2013 and 2014, academic institutions such as the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California and the Center for Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State produced substantive reports on the state of women in the film industry, revealing startling statistics that point to drastic gender inequality. The latter group, for example, reports that in 2013, women accounted for just 6% of directors, 10% of writers, 15% of executive producers, 17% of editors and 3% of cinematographers. Additionally, women were found more likely to be working on romantic comedies, dramas or documentaries than the top-grossing genres of animation, sci-fi, action and horror.

“This is about supporting our most important emerging female filmmakers in telling the stories that they want to tell, on their terms,” said Jennifer Rainin, CEO of the Kenneth Rainin Foundation. “With this initiative, we’re working to reduce financial barriers, break down stereotypes, and build connections to increase opportunities for talented women and help their careers thrive. I am proud to contribute to the global effort to level the playing field and support strong female voices in the independent narrative feature sphere, and by providing the seed funding for this new SFFS initiative we hope to create greater balance in the years to come.”

Designed to grow organically over time to include additional programs and events, the SFFS Women Filmmaker Fellowship will be seeking additional funding partners once the 2015 pilot phase has concluded.

SFFS WOMEN FILMMAKER FELLOWSHIPS

SFFS Women Filmmaker Fellowships will take place from April to October each year, overlapping with the Film Society’s previously announced Producers Fellowship programs and the San Francisco International Film Festival (April 23-May 7). Program support includes:

* A $25,000-$40,000 cash grant, which must be used for living expenses. Individual amounts depend on place of residence and estimated travel costs to participate in Bay Area fellowship components.
* Placement in FilmHouse Residency program and access to all FilmHouse programs and activities.
* One-on-one consultation with film industry experts from the Bay Area and beyond regarding casting, financing, budgeting legal issues, distribution and other relevant topics.
* Weekly one-on-one consultation services provided by Filmmaker360 staff, with feedback on screenplays, verbal pitch strategies and written materials such as synopsis and treatment.
* Presentations and networking opportunities with Bay Area narrative filmmakers.
* Expenses covered for one 3-day networking trip with a Filmmaker360 staff member from San Francisco to Los Angeles, for meetings with established industry professionals.

Filmmaker360 has a strong track record for supporting innovative work by female writer/directors. Four out of six of the projects that received funding in the most recent round of SFFS / Kenneth Rainin Foundation Filmmaking Grants — the Film Society’s flagship grant program which has disbursed more than $2.8 million since its inception — were written and directed by women. Additionally, four films supported by SFFS grants, residencies and fiscal sponsorship will have their world premieres at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival: Jennifer Phang’s Advantageous, Jenni Olson’s The Royal Road, Chloé Zhao’s Songs My Brothers Taught Me and Kris Swanberg’sUnexpected.

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Sundance Institute to Honor Director Alejandro G. Iñárritu

Alejandro G. Iñárritu will be honored with the Vanguard Leadership Award at the fifth annual Sundance Institute benefit on June 2, 2015 in Los Angeles.

Iñárritu will be honored for the originality and independent spirit of his films, including Amores Perros (2000), 21 Grams (2003),Babel (2006), Biutiful (2010) and Birdman (2014). He is the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and by the Directors Guild of America for Best Director. He is also the first Mexican-born director to have won the Prix de la mise en scene or best director award at Cannes (2006). Amores Perros is featured in the Sundance Collection at UCLA, an independent film preservation program established in 1997. He has produced three films that appeared at the Sundance Film Festival: Nine Lives (2005), Mother & Child (2010) and Rudo y Cursi (2009).

Keri Putnam, Executive Director of Sundance Institute, said, “The current health and vibrancy of independent film is best reflected in the stories from filmmakers who continue to push and break boundaries. Alejandro G. Iñárritu is among the most creative and innovative filmmakers working today, and the boldness, humanity and audacity of his films will inspire generations to come.”

Iñárritu said, “It comes as a great honor to receive this award from an organization whose mission, spirit and objectives are noble and have a profound effect on many filmmakers around the world.”

Iñárritu will be the fourth recipient of the Vanguard Leadership Award, joining philanthropist and former Institute Trustee George Gund, journalist and film critic Roger Ebert and actress and arts advocate Glenn Close. In addition to the Vanguard Leadership Award, the Institute presents the Vanguard Award, including a cash grant and mentorship from industry professionals and Institute staff, to an emerging artist with creative independence. Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild), Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station), Damien Chazelle (Whiplash) are past recipients, and the 2015 recipient will be announced in the spring. The Vanguard Awards were founded in 2011 to mark the 30th anniversary of the Sundance Institute Feature Film Program and its founding director, Michelle Satter.
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A. Sayeeda Moreno and Micah Shaffer Win $15,000 to Develop Feature Screenplay for “White” Which Explores Racial Issues and Climate Change

A. Sayeeda Moreno and Micah Shaffer

A. Sayeeda Moreno and Micah Shaffer have been selected to receive this year’s $15,000 San Francisco Film Society / Hearst Screenwriting Grant for development of their script White. The SFFS / Hearst Screenwriting Grant is awarded in the fall of each year to writers residing in the United States who have been practicing for at least five years and who have previously written a minimum of one feature screenplay.

“It’s an honor to receive the Hearst Screenwriting Grant, and we are thrilled to be partnering with the San Francisco Film Society at this stage of making our movie,” said Moreno. “The Filmmaker360 program has a great track record of supporting innovative films that advance our collective dialogue, so we’re excited to be in such good company!”

A. Sayeeda Moreno is a proud native New Yorker, dedicated to the art of directing. Her short film White, funded by ITVS for Futurestates.tv, is also on PBS.org. White screened at SXSW, Tribeca, and BAMcinemaFest, with Precious at the Tri-Continental Film Festival and with Spike Lee’s Crooklyn at the Brooklyn Bridge Film Series. Clarke’s award-winning short Sin Salida aired on HBO/HBOLatino for two years. Her short The Grey Woman premiered at Lincoln Center and won the Hallmark short film competition. Clarke received an MFA in Film from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts where she was a Dean’s Fellow. She is a Film Independent Fellow for her collaborative screenplay I’m Not Down and is currently developing the feature version of White.

Micah Shaffer is a writer, filmmaker, and educator whose work focuses on forging unexpected connections between people and finding humanity in unforeseen places. Shaffer’s first feature documentary Death of Two Sons was awarded the HBO “Life Through Your Lens” Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award and was distributed through Netflix. Shaffer then attended the MFA program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, where he wrote and directed several short narrative films. Shaffer has written three feature screenplays, including On the Wall, which was a finalist for an Alfred P. Sloan screenwriting award and a selection at Independent Film Week’s Emerging Narrative Forum. He recently completed a fellowship at the Cinema Research Institute, where he is studying the future of the cross-border financing and coproduction of independent film.

White
It’s another sweltering 120-degree winter day with five more days to Christmas and hot is the only season left. The best protection from the sun remains the naturally occurring melanin in one’s skin. Like many valuable natural resources, in this future it is coveted, extracted, bought, sold and stolen. Bato, who is black, enters into a race against time to save his daughter as he is forced to bargain with the new currency of this world.

Recent Filmmaker360 success stories include Short Term 12, Destin Cretton’s sophomore feature which won both the Narrative Grand Jury Award and Audience Award at South by Southwest 2013; Ryan Coogler’s debut feature Fruitvale Station, which won the Un Certain Regard Avenir Prize at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival and both the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the narrative category at Sundance 2013; and Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin’s debut phenomenon which won Sundance’s Grand Jury Prize and Cannes’ Camera d’Or in 2012, earned four Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture) and became an indie box office smash.
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Director Ana Lily Amirpour “The Bad Batch” Wins Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund Piper-Heidsieck Feature Film Grant

Rooftop Films awarded fourteen cash and service grants to alumni filmmakers, including The Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund Piper-Heidsieck Feature Film Grant, which was awarded to director Ana Lily Amirpour. Amirpour was feted at a Piper-Heidsieck champagne reception at the spectacular garden rooftop of John Jay College on Monday in New York City and will receive a monetary grant of $10,000 to help finish her new film, The Bad Batch, the follow up to her critically acclaimed feature film debut, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night.

Selected for its grand and bold style of storytelling, Amirpour’s film is a highly twisted, unusual, romantic, and innovative movie set in a future dystopia. In a desert wasteland in Texas, a muscled cannibal breaks one important rule: don’t play with your food. The Bad Batch is a savage love story, like a psychedelic Road Warrior, inspired by films like El Topo and Wild at Heart. Shot in bold saturated hues and stylings of the ’80’s & ’90’s the film will also feature a wicked techno & western-laced soundtrack.

“Piper-Heidsieck has a long history of supporting the cinema, and we’re delighted to continue this tradition by recognizing Ana Lily Amirpour as the first-ever recipient of the Piper-Heidsieck Feature Film Grant,” says Romain Pianet, Senior Brand Director for Piper-Heidsieck. “The grant was created to support grand and bold direction in cinema, and we have selected a filmmaker whose past work and upcoming film exemplifies this direction. We are excited to be able to help bring this film to fruition.

COMPLETE LIST OF 2014 ROOFTOP FILMMAKERS FUND GRANTS:

Rooftop Films / Piper-Heidsieck Feature Film Grant:
Ana Lily Amirpour, The Bad Batch

In a desert wasteland in Texas, a muscled cannibal breaks one important rule: don’t play with your food. The Bad Batch is a savage love story and a psychedelic Road Warrior, inspired by films like El Topo and Wild at Heart, and shot in bold saturated hues and stylings of the 80’s & 90’s, with a wicked techno & western-laced soundtrack.

Rooftop Films / Technological Cinevideo Services Camera Grant:
Rachel Israel, Keep the Change

Based on Israel’s Columbia thesis short film, “Keep the Change” stars non-professional actors Brandon Polanksy and Samantha as two individuals with autism who fall in love. Polanksy stars as David, a man who tries to hide his high-functioning autism, but is nonetheless forced to attend a support group for people with disabilities. There he meets Elisofon’s character, a shy woman with autism.

Rooftop Films / Eastern Effects Equipment Grant:
Christina Choe, Nancy

Nancy, is a psychological drama about a 35-year old serial imposter who lives at home with her abusive, elderly mother. Desperate for love, she creates a fake blog and catfishes a lover, until her hoaxes cause epic and tragic consequences. NANCY will be Christina’s feature directorial debut.

Rooftop Films / Edgeworx Post-Production Grant:
Bernardo Britto, Jacqueline (Argentine)

Starring Camille Rutherford as a “25-year-old French Edward Snowden-type” who takes refuge in Argentina after leaking government secrets, Jacqueline (Argentine) is a live action feature film that will be shot from the perspective of a documentary crew she’s hired to trail her while awaiting the fallout.

Rooftop Films / DCTV Equipment and Services Feature Film Grant
Trey Shults, Krisha

Adapted from an award-winning short film of the same name, KRISHA tells the story of a multi-generational family that is gathering for Thanksgiving. Krisha has not seen her family for ten years, but when she decides to join her family for a holiday dinner, tensions escalate, and Krisha struggles to keep her demons at bay.

Rooftop Films / DCTV Equipment and Services Short Film Grant:
Frances Bodomo, Beatdown
Steven Girard, Floaters Dot Com

Frances Bodomo | Beatdown
Beatdown is a web series that follows a carefree black vigilante girl gang. Our protagonists skip school (“they’re not teaching our history anyways”) to loiter, chat, protect New York’s unprotected, and avenge the crimes that the NYPD won’t touch: from getting their hair petted to “columbusing” to gentrification. It begins as a series of vengeful (and comedic) wish fulfillments that grow bloodier and bloodier … until we start to question & complicate our discourse on brutality, power, female weakness, justice, etc. Beatdown asks the question: when the violence against us isn’t physical, how do we fight it?

Steven Girard | Floaters Dot Com
“Floaters Dot Com” is a half animated, half live-action short film about two men who work for a company that “collects” human beings. Floaters employees beam targeted civilians with a hallucinatory impulse to login to floaters.com, where the victim is sucked into his/her computer and dragged through a slew of websites. After the victim’s deepest fantasies and worst nightmares come true, he/she is “ejected” from the computer’s drive as a Free Trial disk.

Rooftop Films / Domicile NYC Sound Mix Grant:
Jarred Alterman and Ryan Scafuro, American Renaissance

AMERICAN RENAISSANCE is a short documentary that takes place at the largest outdoor Renaissance Faire in America. Knights, wizards, goths, fairies and demons all stood in front of our static lens and slowly, stories began to unfold… A family who chose to raise their 13-year-old son on the road. A Parisian expat, performing as a mime. A young woman who left the “real world” behind after the death of a close friend.

Rooftop Films / Adrienne Shelly Foundation Short Film Grant For Women:
Debra Granik, Second Act

Second Act is a documentary about inmate re-entry. Once released, felons often find themselves held apart from mainstream society, particularly in regards to employment. To survive, many turn to various forms of entrepreneurship. This film follows a man recently released from prison who is attempting to build his own business. In pursuing his dream, the subject of our documentary must navigate the transition from one lifestyle to another, negotiate a new and unfamiliar world, and wrestle with the question of who he is and what he wants.

Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund Short Film Grant:
Joanna Arnow, Bad at Dancing
Frances Bodomo, Beatdown
Reka Bucsi, LOVE
Steven Girard, Floaters Dot Com
Efren Hernandez, Ham Heads

Joanna Arnow | Bad at Dancing
Bad At Dancing. A perpetual third wheel and awkward outsider, Joanna increasingly inserts herself into the relationship of her more charismatic roommate Eleanore. The two women test each other’s sexual and emotional boundaries in this surreal dark comedy.

Reka Bucsi | LOVE
An animated short film about love that will show love in three chapters: Longing, Love and Solitude. Haiku-like scenes will show different characters evolving along these states of emotions. The goal is to capture feelings through pictures and surreal situations which are undescribable by words.

Efren Hernandez | Ham Heads
Barry and Larry are the world’s oldest living conjoined twins. After retiring from the sideshow circuit, they move into their brother’s house. Barry is sick and he’s getting worse, Larry not far behind him. As their sickness develops, they take trips to the beach; they waltz together; they fight about the volume on their separate television sets. They look out of their living room window at their old-lady neighbor who drinks too much beer. They play games with their teenage nephew and Larry verbally harasses the doctor who checks up on them. They get visits from old friends and spend every moment of every day together. Whether it is good or bad, it is their life together.

“A record number of entries were received this year and it was tougher than ever to select our winners from what was a stellar crop of films and scripts,” says Dan Nuxoll, programming director of Rooftop Films. “Each of the filmmakers that we awarded grants to this year have screened their impressive work at Rooftop Films events in the past and have demonstrated their talent, passion and perseverance throughout their careers. We are particularly excited to be supporting Ana Lily Amirpour’s latest work. A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night screened this summer at Rooftop Films and that film showcases her extraordinary talent and unique flair for bringing unexpected, artful and innovative twists to a genre film. We are confident that The Bad Batch will be an exciting next step for one of the most promising new filmmakers working in independent cinema today. A special thanks to Piper-Heidsieck –and all of our other sponsors, community partners, and audience members– for their significant help and commitment in support of these new and talented films and filmmakers.”

Amirpour was selected to attend the Sundance Screenwriters Lab in 2014 for her script for The Bad Batch and the film is set to begin pre-production this fall and will begin shooting in the spring of 2015. Amirpour’s debut feature film, the Iranian Vampire Western A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, premiered in the NEXT section of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, screened to a sold out crowd on the roof of Industry City as part of the Rooftop Films Summer Series, and was opening night selection of the New Directors/New Films series at the MoMA. A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night will be released in theaters this autumn by Kino Lorber.

Amirpour joins the ranks of past Rooftop Filmmakers Fund grantees, an illustrious group that includes Gillian Robespierre with her indie hit Obvious Child, Lucy Walker with her Academy Award-nominated short documentary The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom, Jeremy Saulnier’s Blue Ruin, which premiered at Cannes Director’s Fortnight and garnered the FIPRESCI Critics’ award, Keith Miller’s critically acclaimed and Tribeca Film Festival award winning Five Star, and Benh Zeitlin’s Academy Award-nominated Beasts of the Southern Wild. Other Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund grantees have achieved tremendous success at film festivals and their films have reached audiences worldwide.

image: Romain Pianet, Senior Brand Director for Piper-Heidsieck, presents Ana Lily Amirpour with the inaugural Piper-Heidsieck Rooftop Films Feature Film Grant on the roof of John Jay College Monday night.
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Winners Announced for Spring 2014 San Francisco Film Society SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grants Totaling $300,000

Nine filmmaking teams will receive a total of $300,000 in funding in the latest round of San Francisco Film Society (SFFS) / Kenneth Rainin Foundation (KRF) Filmmaking Grants, to help with their next stage of production, from screenwriting to postproduction. The Film Society’s flagship SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grants are awarded twice annually to filmmakers for narrative feature films that will have significant economic or professional impact on the Bay Area filmmaking community.

The SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grant program has funded a total of 46 projects since its inception, including such success stories as Kat Candler’s Hellion and Ira Sachs’ Love is Strange, both of which premiered to strong reviews at Sundance 2014; Short Term 12, Destin Cretton’s sophomore feature which won both the Narrative Grand Jury Award and Audience Award at South by Southwest 2013; Ryan Coogler’s debut feature Fruitvale Station, which won the 2014 Film Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature, the Un Certain Regard Avenir Prize at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, and both the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the narrative category at Sundance 2013; andBeasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin’s debut phenomenon which won Sundance’s Grand Jury Prize and Cannes’ Camera d’Or in 2012 and earned four Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture).

SPRING 2014 SFFS / KRF FILMMAKING GRANT WINNERS

Ad Inexplorata
Mark Elijah Rosenberg, writer/director; Jason Berman, P. Jennifer Dana, Thomas B. Fore, Matt Parker, Josh Penn and Mark Roberts, producers — $50,000 for postproduction
Captain Stanaforth is a NASA pilot alone on a one-way mission toward the unknown.

Black Metal
Kat Candler, writer/director — $17,000 for screenwriting
After a career spent mining his music from the shadows, the lead singer of a metal band and his family experience a chain reaction of turmoil following the murderous actions of a teenage fan. For more information visit candlerproductions.com.

Clash
Mohamed Diab, writer/director — $35,000 for screenwriting
In the wake of the recent removal of the former Egyptian president from office, Hayman-a jaded, claustrophobic revolutionary-is stuck in an overcrowded truck with clashing brotherhood and military supporters. Engulfed in hatred and violence, he must learn to connect with his love for Egypt in order to survive.

Five Nights in Maine
Maris Curran, writer/director/producer; Carly Hugo and Matt Parker, producers — $60,000 for production
A young African American man, reeling from the tragic loss of his wife, travels to rural Maine to seek answers from his estranged mother-in-law, who is herself confronting guilt and grief over her daughter’s death.

The Fixer
Ian Olds, cowriter/director; Paul Felten, cowriter; Caroline von Kuhn and Lily Whitsitt, producers – $18,000 for preproduction
An Afghan journalist is exiled from his war-torn country to a small bohemian community in Northern California. When he attempts to turn his menial job on the local police blotter into “Afghan-style” coverage of local crime, he gets drawn into the underworld of this small town-a shadow Northern California where sex is casual, true friendship is hard to come by, and an unfamiliar form of violence bubbles up all around him. For more information visit fixerthefilm.com.

Oscillate Wildly
Travis Matthews, cowriter/director; Keith Wilson, cowriter/producer — $25,000 for packaging
When his disability check arrives much reduced, a hot-headed young gay man with cerebral palsy is forced to confront the disability he has let define his whole being. For more information visit travisdmathews.com.

Our Lady of the Snow
Tom Gilroy, writer/director — $35,000 for screenwriting
When the Bishop decides to sell a gothic convent isolated in the snowy woods, the elderly nuns living there begin to have ecstatic visions, which he dismisses as faked. But as the visions spread to the convent’s teenaged atheist cook, inexplicable supernatural events follow, with no one sure of their cause.

Patti Cake$
Geremy Jasper, writer/director/composer; Dan Janvey, producer — $25,000 for packaging
Patricia Baccio, aka Patti Cake$, is a big girl with a big mouth and big dreams of rap superstardom. Stuck in Lodi, New Jersey, Patti battles an army of haters as she strives to break the mold and take over the rap game. For more information visit welcometolegs.com.

Snow the Jones
Alistair Banks Griffin, writer/director/producer; Jeremy Kipp Walker and Kevin Turen, producers — $35,000 for production
When teenage vagabond Lexi joins a traveling door-to-door sales crew, she discovers a world much darker than the one from which she was trying to escape. For more information visit twogatesofsleep.com.
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Indie Comedy Film “Tribute to Fluffy” Sticks to Crowdfunding the Old Fashioned Way

While crowdfunding sites like Indiegogo and Kickstarter have proved to be a boon to many indie filmmakers trying to raise money for their next projects, most filmmakers trying to raise money this way don’t have anywhere near the name recognition of recent successful crowdfunders like Zach Braff, Spike Lee, or Kristen Bell. As many indie filmmakers have learned in the wake of such big-name successes, simply posting the project on a crowdfunding site and talking about it on Facebook or Twitter isn’t always enough to convince dozens of donors open their wallets (even 1990s “It” girl Melissa Joan Hart only raised a fraction of her $2 million goal when she turned to Kickstarter to raise money for a comeback movie). With a glut of indie movies trying to raise money via crowdfunding websites, how can passionate filmmakers get their campaigns noticed?

As for the cast and crew behind indie comedy Tribute to Fluffy, they figured they’d stay ahead of the curve by crowdfunding the old fashioned way.

Tribute to Fluffy follows a young struggling stand-up comedian, Jackson Gilbert, at his lowest point after being dumped by his girlfriend (Natalia) of six years. She’s been so fed up with his lack of ambition coupled by his irresponsible misplacing Fluffy, a gift he gave Natalia on their one year anniversary, that she decides to call it quits on their relationship and pursue an interest she’s had to teach English abroad. Jackson decides with the help of his best friends in the comedy world that the best way to win her back is by throwing her a huge comedy show paying homage to the lost rabbit to prove to Natalia that he’s capable of changing.

The Tribute to Fluffy team has taken the novel approach of combining the fundraising opportunities of the crowdfunding website Indiegogo and its far digital reach with old-fashioned grassroots street marketing in the Greater Los Angeles area. Since early April the team has manned a “Fluffy booth” in various locations including the Santa Monica Promenade, the USC Festival of Books, Hollywood Boulevard, and Venice Beach. The idea behind the booth is to not just raise money by soliciting donations, but to also increase the profile of the film beyond social media.

Director Micah Cyrus admits that their new approach to fundraising came about because using crowdfunding websites the normal way wasn’t successful. He explains, “We put together a Kickstarter campaign last fall and it failed. As you know with Kickstarter, it’s all or nothing so we didn’t see anything. We realized that the campaign was a premature launch and I ultimately learned so much through that experience that helped shape us for what’s become the best version of our story, some killer marketing adjustments, and even new key cast members that wouldn’t have been replaced had we been in the position to shoot at our intended November 2013 goal.”

Cyrus took that failure as an opportunity to try fundraising again, but this time combining crowdfunding with traditional street marketing techniques. He continues, “After seeing the Kickstarter campaign fail, I told myself that I wouldn’t take the same approach of sitting in front of the computer over the 30 days. Unless we have a star talent or someone with a social media presence attached to the film, it can’t sit alone and gain traction. I decided we need to take our campaign to the streets and go where we can interact with people. That instantly birthed the idea for the Fluffy booth. We did some serious brainstorming sessions to figure out what materials to have available, how we’d approach people, and so on.”

However, it isn’t like the street campaign isn’t without its own hurdles. Cyrus admits, “It’s absolutely tough, but I’m having a blast while learning. I’ve noticed that the majority of tourists, in particular international tourists from the Venice Boardwalk, to the Santa Monica Promenade or Hollywood Boulevard, don’t seem to care that much. The response from people tied into the film industry or even people who know someone who has done a crowdfunding campaign or attempted to piece together a project on their own do understand and are super responsive and kind. I’ve received comments from those people such as ‘Wow, I wish I thought of this idea’ or ‘My sister is trying to make a movie too and I understand. Here’s $5 and good luck.”

Another part of the street campaign strategy included reaching out to sponsors who could offer them something other than money to support Tribute to Fluffy. Cyrus explains, “I put together a Corporate Sponsorship packet about a month before launching our campaign and reached out to about 70 different companies. We were very fortunate enough to get a few companies on board to aid us in our campaign and those are: Lyft, Bai (natural juice company), King Bond Bail Agency, and Flappers Comedy Club. They didn’t give us money toward our product, but rather gave us product or service that we have used in our campaign as swag/incentives. For example, Bai gave us hundreds of bottles of their favored product Bai5 that we’ve been handing out to people on the street. This has literally saved us as people may not respond to ‘Would you like to help my film campaign?’, however they definitely do respond to ‘Would you like to help support my film campaign? You get a free cold refreshing bottle of juice for doing so.’ That’s definitely worked seven out of ten times.”

Of course, this being Southern California, Cyrus and his team have experienced some truly out-there responses while out on the campaign trail. “When we were at the Venice Boardwalk, a man approached myself and one of my actresses, Kristen, asking if we were a couple. We replied ‘no’ and told him about the project and our relationship as director/actor. He insisted that we would make a great couple and asked if we would kiss each other and he would donate if so. My actress has a boyfriend and I wouldn’t compromise our friendship for $1. The request was a bit strange but then I remembered that we were in Venice (land of the strange).”

Hollywood Boulevard also provided plenty of ridiculous moments. Cyrus recalls, “We started out having to fight for a spot between an older guy who was selling ice cold waters and Gatorade from his cooler and another guy who was selling his self-produced rap CDs. My producer Ana De Diego and I naively asked the beverage guy if our spot was okay and about 5 minutes later we were escorted away as there’s an invisible line on Hollywood Boulevard that you can’t cross as that becomes private property. Of course, the guy selling drinks tricked us because we were messing up his sales by offering our free bottles of Bai drinks to people. We then moved over and had to compete with Korean radical Christians who were loudly screaming in unbearable tones ‘Kumbaya’ and a Mickey Mouse who kept creepily checking out Ana.”

But it got even weirder. “About an hour later, we decided to go across the street to the side of Hollywood Boulevard by the El Capitan Theater and we were approached by a ‘Producer’ from ABC who asked if we would answer a few questions in front of camera about pop culture for a news segment. I acquiesced this request since I was wearing my Fluffy t-shirt and if it aired then that would make good publicity. I got in front of camera and started answering questions from a strange looking man whose beard was cheaply glued to his face. He kept asking questions about the rapper Drake and I figured out after the second or third question that it was in fact Drake disguised as a reporter and I yelled out that I knew this was a prank. The real producers turned bright red and shut me up as Drake took off running around the corner. I should’ve played stupid because it ended up airing that night on Jimmy Kimmel and I didn’t make the cut!”

As with most indie filmmaker making their first films, getting funding is only one of the many hurdles. Cyrus also pointed to other challenges with getting Tribute to Fluffy off the ground. He says, “I’ve spoken to so many filmmakers over this journey from a few I met directly at the Sundance Film Festival this past January to directors that I boldly approached for a coffee to pick their brains. Everyone agreed that the timing and patience are a definite link you just have to overcome. When I say timing, I mean the prolonged process of being able to start and keeping the endurance to wake up the next day ready to go harder. Something my old boss told me after giving my two weeks’ notice last July after asking him how we knew it was the right trajectory being an entrepreneur was that it felt right even through the trials and tribulations. He said, ‘Micah, you’ll know win or fail whether or not this is what you’re meant to do and you won’t find out unless you try to fly.’ He was right because I could blab about some of the stuff that’s happened to us from investor scams to actors dropping out.”

Nonetheless, he remains positive about the final results, adding, “Despite the challenges, I go through every motion without it feeling like work. I’ve found joy in putting this project together and I can’t wait to see it through on the big screen.” In addition, it seems like the street marketing experience has generated plenty of ideas for Cyrus’ next project!

Upon the completion of the Indiegogo campaign on May 1, Tribute to Fluffy will continue pre-production and then launch into filming. For more information or to contribute to the project, see the links below:

www.indiegogo.com/projects/tribute-to-fluffy-feature-film

www.tributetofluffymovie.com

www.facebook.com/TributeToFluffyTheMovie

www.twitter.com/TributetoFluffy

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3 Filmmakers Win 2014 San Francisco Film Society Documentary Film Fund

Street Fighting Man

The San Francisco Film Society today announced the three winners of the 2014 SFFS Documentary Film Fund awards totaling more than $75,000, which support feature-length documentaries in postproduction. The SFFS Documentary Film Fund was created to support singular nonfiction film work that is distinguished by compelling stories, intriguing characters and an innovative visual approach. Moby Longinotto’s The Joneses, Jason Zeldes’s Romeo Is Bleeding and Andrew James’s Street Fighting Man were each awarded significant funding that will help push them towards completion.

The SFFS Documentary Film Fund has an excellent track record for championing compelling films that have gone on to earn great acclaim. Previous DFF winners include Zachary Heinzerling’s Cutie and the Boxer, which won Sundance’s Directing Award for documentary, was distributed theatrically by RADiUS-TWC and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature; Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson’s American Promise, which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and won the festival’s Special Jury Prize in the documentary category; and Shaul Schwarz’s Narco Cultura, which premiered to strong reviews at Sundance the same year.

Since its launch in 2011, the SFFS Documentary Film Fund has distributed more than $300,000 to advance new work by filmmakers nationwide. Expected to grow in the coming years as further underwriting is secured, the 2014 Documentary Film Fund is made possible thanks to a generous gift from Jennifer Battat and the Jenerosity Foundation.

The panelists who reviewed the 11 finalists’ submissions are Jennifer Battat, founder of the Jenerosity Foundation; Cristine Dewey, managing director of Ro*Co Films International; Athena Kalkopoulou, SFFS documentary program coordinator; documentary filmmaker Jesse Moss; Joanne Parsont, SFFS Director of Education; and Michele Turnure-Salleo, director of Filmmaker360. The jury noted that they were moved by the stories of individuals transcending their challenging circumstances and simultaneously uplifting their communities in profound and unique ways. Additionally they were impressed with the level of trust between the filmmakers and their subjects, which resulted in intimate and honest filmmaking.

“We are thrilled to continue our tradition of supporting innovative documentary films that feature compelling stories told through a strong visual aesthetic,” said Michele Turnure-Salleo, director of Filmmaker360. “This round of winners has captivated us with their striking and charismatic characters, and we can’t wait to see the finished films and experience the unique and fascinating worlds their subjects inhabit. Our deepest thanks go to Jennifer Battat, whose generous support has been critical to the growing success of the Documentary Film Fund.”

2014 DOCUMENTARY FILM FUND WINNERS

The Joneses

The Joneses
Moby Longinotto, director and Aviva Wishnow, producer
$30,627

The Joneses is a portrait of Jheri, a 73-year-old transgender trailer park matriarch, who lives in bible belt Mississippi. Reconciled with her family after years of estrangement, and now living with two of her sons, Jheri embarks on a new path to reveal her true self to her grandchildren. Will their family bonds survive?

Moby Longinotto studied at England’s National Film School where his graduation film Make Me Proud screened at multiple festivals and won numerous awards. His subsequent work includes Bad Boy, a piece made for the BBC about a young man released from prison attempting to integrate back into society; and Smalltown Boy, which follows a 15-year-old boy, once kicked out of his foster home for being gay as he attempts to win the Carnival Queen crown. Longinotto has also directed and shot multiple non-scripted television series for BBC, Channel 4 and SwissTV.

Romeo Is Bleeding

Romeo Is Bleeding
Jason Zeldes, director and Michael Klein, producer
$22,500

Donte Clark’s poetic voice was honed on the violent street corners of a struggling city. Yet rather than succumb to the pressures of Richmond, CA, Clark uses his artistic perspective to save his city from itself. For more information visit RomeoIsBleedingFilm.com.

Jason Zeldes is an editor in LA’s documentary scene. The first feature film he edited, Twenty Feet From Stardom, premiered on opening night of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, continued on to a successful theatrical run, and won the 2014 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. Prior to that film, Zeldes spent years working with acclaimed filmmakers such as Patrick Creadon, Doug Blush and Kirby Dick, learning the documentary craft at its highest level, and earning credits on films like the Oscar-nominated Invisible War. Zeldes graduated from USC in 2009.

Street Fighting Man
Andrew James, director; Sara Archambault and Katie Tibaldi, producers
$22,500

In a new America where the promise of education, safety and shelter are in jeopardy, three Detroit men fight to build something lasting for themselves and future generations. For more information visit streetfightingmanthemovie.com.

Andrew James is the writer/director of Una Vida Mejor and the coproducer/codirector of the feature-length documentary Cleanflix. Una Vida Mejor has screened at festivals worldwide and was the recipient of the Special Jury Prize for artistic vision at the 2008 Cinequest Film Festival. Cleanflix had its world premiere at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival before screening at more than 25 festivals around the world. Street Fighting Man was also selected for IFP’s 2012 Independent Film Week and the 2013 Hot Docs International Pitch Forum, and has received support from the Sundance’s Documentary Fund and Documentary Edit & Story Lab.

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Film Independent Announces Filmmakers for the 2014 Documentary Lab

Projects developed in past Documentary Labs include Andrew Droz Palermo & Tracy Droz Tragos’ RICH HILL which won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival,

Film Independent announced its filmmakers for the 2014 Documentary Lab, a seven week intensive program designed to help filmmakers who are currently in post-production on their feature-length documentary. This year’s Lab Fellows are Esteban Arguello & Xuan Jiang, Jamie Sisley & Mayuran Tiruchelvam, Suzanne Joe Kai, Robyn Symon, Nick Spark, Andrew James, Jonathan Matthews, and Jen Heck. Designed to help filmmakers who are currently in post-production on their feature-length documentary films, the Documentary Lab has two primary focuses: (1) providing creative feedback and story notes to the selected filmmakers; and (2) helping filmmakers strategize the completion, distribution, and marketing of their film.

Projects developed in past Documentary Labs include Andrew Droz Palermo & Tracy Droz Tragos’ Rich Hill which won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, PJ Raval’s Before You Know It; Hilla Medalia’s Dancing in Jaffa; Nicholas Wrathall’s Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia; Katherine Fairfax Wright and Malika Zouhali Worrall’s Call Me Kuchu; Laura Nix and Julia Meltzer’s The Light In Her Eyes; and Nicole Karsin’s We Women Warriors, among others.

“We are delighted to kick off the fourth year of our Documentary Lab with such an talented group of filmmakers and esteemed mentors,” says Kelly Thomas, Producer in Residence and Interim Director of Artist Development.

Documentary filmmakers Doug Blush (Editor, Twenty Feet from Stardom), Laura Gabbert (No Impact Man), Caroline Libresco (Sunset Story), Linda Goldstein-Knowlton (Somewhere Between), Jeff Malmberg (Marwencol) and Chris Shellen (Marwencol) are this year’s Documentary Lab Mentors. Guest Speakers include Peter Broderick (Marketing and Distribution), Michael Donaldson (Legal Issues for Documentarians), Andrew Droz Palermo (Rich Hill) and Tracy Droz Tragos (Rich Hill) as well as Susan Littenberg (And Everything Is Going Fine).

The documentaries this year’s Fellows are making are:

Title: Jiàoliàn [Coach]
Director/Producer: Esteban Arguello
Producer: Xuan Jiang
Logline: Jiàoliàn is the story of 27 year-old Norman DeSilva, an American who overnight becomes the head coach for the Foshan Longlions, a unique basketball team comprised of Americans, Syrian and Chinese players. Together, DeSilva rallies his team to overcome their challenges in order to win a spot in the Chinese Basketball Association playoffs.

Title: Farewell, Ferris Wheel
Director/Producer: Jamie Sisley
Co-Director: Miguel Martinez
Producer: Mayuran Tiruchelvam, Gerry Kim
Editor: Eugene Yi
Logline: Farewell, Ferris Wheel explores the dual morality of the H-2B seasonal migrant work visa through the lens of the American Carnival and a Mexican town that provides one third of the labor that staffs the carnivals.

Title: Like a Rolling Stone: The Life & Times of Ben Fong-Torres
Director/Producer: Suzanne Joe Kai
Logline: When one man’s passion for rock and roll coincides with a cultural revolution, the truth is set free. Like a Rolling Stone is the story of legendary journalist, Ben Fong-Torres, an original editor-writer at Rolling Stone magazine, who brought an honest literary voice to the revolutionary force of music that continues to influence our society to this day.

Title: My Uncle Gloria
Director/Producer: Robyn Symon
Logline: At age 66, Bernard “Butch” Rosichan, a Jewish, balding pot-bellied and homophobic owner of an auto wrecking business undergoes a risky sex change operation. Rosichan is reborn as “Gloria Stein” and attempts to reunite with her dysfunctional family while also becoming a leading advocate for transgender rights.

Title: Rightfooted
Director/Producer: Nick Spark
Cinematographer: Bill Megalos
Editor: Susan Metzger
Logline: Rightfooted chronicles Jessica Cox’s struggle to overcome enormous physical and emotional obstacles to become the world’s first armless pilot and her transformation into an activist for the handicapped in America and abroad.

Title: Street Fighting Man
Director/Producer/Cinematographer: Andrew James
Producer: Sara Archambault, Katie Tibaldi
Editor: Jason Tippet
Composer: Zachary Saginaw/Shigeto
Co-producers: Jamila Wignot and Torben Bernhard
Logline: In a new America where the promise of education, safety and shelter are in jeopardy, three Detroit men fight to build something lasting for themselves and future generations.

Title: Surviving Cliffside
Director/Producer: Jonathan Matthews
Producer: Richard Bever
Logline: A West Virginia family faces illness, addiction, and gun violence, while their daughter makes a run for Little Miss West Virginia.

Title: We’re With the Band
Director/Producer/Co-Editor/Co-Cinematographer: Jen Heck
Producer: Maria De La O
Cinematographer: Martina Radwan
Editor: Ben Frazer
Logline: Using a band as a cover story, a group of unlikely rebels with dubious musical skills traverse forbidden borders and become entangled in each other’s lives in Israel and Palestine.
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