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Award-Winning Prison Drama STARRED UP to Get 2014 U.S. Release | TRAILER

Scottish director David Mackenzie’s award-winning gritty prison drama STARRED UP, which stars Jack O’Connell (“Skins”, Angelina Jolie’s upcoming Unbroken), Ben Mendelsohn (The Dark Knight Rises, The Place Beyond the Pines), and Rupert Friend (“Homeland”) will be released in the US by Tribeca Film in 2014.

STARRED UP, which premiered earlier this year at the 2013 Telluride Film Festival and 2013 Toronto International Film Festival, is about ultra-violent 19-year-old Eric (O’Connell), who is prematurely transferred to the same adult prison facility as his estranged father (Mendelsohn). As his explosive temper quickly finds him enemies in both prison authorities and fellow inmates — and his already volatile relationship with his father is pushed past the breaking point — Eric is approached by a volunteer psychotherapist (Friend), who runs an anger management group for prisoners. Torn between gang politics, prison corruption, and a glimmer of something better, Eric finds himself in a fight for his own life, unsure if his own father is there to protect him or join in punishing him.

Fox Searchlight will release the film in the U.K. in the spring of 2014.

http://youtu.be/WuaN_xeapGU
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FROZEN Among 19 Animated Features Submitted For 2013 Oscar Race

FROZEN

Nineteen features have been submitted for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 86th Academy Awards®.

The 19 submitted features, listed in alphabetical order, are:

“CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS 2”
“THE CROODS”
“DESPICABLE ME 2”
“EPIC”
“ERNEST AND CELESTINE”
“THE FAKE”
“FREE BIRDS“
“FROZEN”
“KHUMBA”
“THE LEGEND OF SARILA”
“A LETTER TO MOMO”
“MONSTERS UNIVERSITY”
“O APÓSTOLO”
“PLANES”
“PUELLA MAGI MADOKA MAGICA THE MOVIE – REBELLION”
“RIO: 2096 A STORY OF LOVE AND FURY”
“THE SMURFS 2”
“TURBO”
“THE WIND RISES”

Several of the films have not yet had their required Los Angeles qualifying runs. Submitted features must fulfill the theatrical release requirements and comply with all of the category’s other qualifying rules before they can advance in the voting process. At least eight eligible animated features must be theatrically released in Los Angeles County within the calendar year for this category to be activated.

Films submitted in the Animated Feature Film category may also qualify for Academy Awards in other categories, including Best Picture, provided they meet the requirements for those categories.

The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2013 will be presented on Oscar Sunday, March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® and televised live on the ABC Television Network. The presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

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Three Documentaries Nominated for European Film Academy EUROPEAN DOCUMENTARY 2013 Award

STOP-OVER (L’ESCALE)

Three documentaries – THE ACT OF KILLING, STOP-OVER (L’ESCALE) and THE MISSING PICTURE (L’IMAGE MANQUANTE) have been nominated for the European Film Academy EUROPEAN DOCUMENTARY 2013 category. The European Documentary 2013 will be presented at the 26th European Film Awards Ceremony in Berlin on Saturday, December 7, 2013.

THE ACT OF KILLING
Denmark/Norway/UK, 159 min
DIRECTED BY: Joshua Oppenheimer
PRODUCED BY: Signe Byrge Sørensen

Anwar Congo and his friends are mass murderers dancing their way through musical numbers, twisting arms in film noir gangster scenes, and galloping across prairies as yodelling cowboys.

L’ESCALE (STOP-OVER)
Switzerland/France, 100 min
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Kaveh Bakhtiari
PRODUCED BY: Elisabeth Garbar & Heinz Dill

In Athens, Amir, an Iranian immigrant, has a modest flat which has become a place of transit for migrants who, like him, have chosen to leave their country.

L’IMAGE MANQUANTE (THE MISSING PICTURE)
France/Cambodia, 90 min
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Rithy Panh
PRODUCED BY: Catherine Dussart

For many years, I have been looking for the missing picture: a photograph taken between 1975 and 1979 by the Khmer Rouge when they ruled over Cambodia…

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New Indie Films, Documentaries in Theaters This Weekend Friday November 1, 2013

After last weekend being relatively quiet, we have a lot of new indie releases in theaters this weekend. Some of them have earned extremely noteworthy buzz on the way to cinemas, and others… well others might just be “limited releases”. Regardless, there’s plenty to see in theaters if you’re up for an indie movie this weekend.

ABOUT TIME

Richard Curtis’ Love Actually remains one of the more popular romantic comedies of the early 2000s, and Curtis return to the genre with About Time has an added twist: time travel. Domhnall Gleeson stars as a time traveler who uses his skill to do what probably most men would do: convince Rachel McAdams to become his girlfriend. It has played at several festivals and has received solid, if not overwhelmingly positive, reviews. All in all, it sounds like if you enjoyed Love Actually that you’ll enjoy this one, too.

DIANA

It’s been suggested that the main reason why Diana, a biopic of Princess Diana starring Naomi Watts, is opening in limited release because it has gotten completely horrid reviews from critics. Watts seems to be the only element of the film that gets any sort of praise. Everything else has been dismissed by nearly every critic, so see at your own risk.

THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN

Though it started making the festival rounds in late 2012, promotion for Belgium director’s Felix Van Groeningen really kicked into high gear when Tribeca Film picked up the U.S. distribution rights after playing at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival and winning Best Actress for Veerle Baetens and Best Screenplay. The film is about two musicians who have a daughter together despite a lack of chemistry and how their relationship changes once their child becomes ill.

MAN OF TAI CHI

It’s not surprising that the first film Keanu Reeves is in a genre that he knows quite well: martial arts. Tiger Hu Chen stars as a promising young martial artist whose skills put him in a lucrative position in the world of underground fight clubs. Chen served as a stuntman for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and the two Matrix sequels, so he and Reeves certainly make a formidable pair. Critics have said the film is a strong tribute to old-fashioned kung fu movies.

MR. NOBODY

Mr. Nobody premiered to some acclaim at the 2009 Venice Film Festival and a week later at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival, but it had some trouble finding its way to U.S. cinemas even though its already been released around the world and on the internet. Nonetheless, Magnolia is finally releasing Belgium director Jaco Van Dormael’s film in U.S. theaters. The film focuses on a choice a young boy (played as an adult by Jared Leto) who has to make between staying with his father or mother and the possibilities that result from either decision.

MUSICWOOD (Documentary)

Opening at New York’s Quad Cinemas this weekend and also available on iTunes, Musicwood is a documentary about the particular wood used in the finest American acoustic guitars and how the lumbering of those specific trees for other industries threatens to take that material away from guitar makers in the near future. It’s a combination of music, environmental, and investigative documentary and is a must-see (that I really enjoyed) for anyone who is a guitar enthusiast.

LAST LOVE

The always-charming Michael Caine stars as an elderly and retired American professor who has a connection with a young Parisian woman (Clémence Poésy) in a sort-of-but-not-quite version of Lost in Translation and Venus. Critics haven’t been particularly impressed, mostly suggesting it’s been done before. But if you’re a fan of either of those films or of Caine’s, I’m sure there’s something you’d enjoy from it.

CASTING BY (Documentary)

While it might be easy to assume casting decisions are made by directors and producers based on budget, that neglects the ever-important role of the casting director. Casting By takes a look at this important, and often unsung, role, featuring interview clips of 57 actors, directors, producers, and, of course, casting directors (culled from over 240 interviews). Many actors owe their thanks — or in some cases anger — to casting directors who served as “talent scouts” for future stars. It has received excellent reviews from those inside and outside the industry, and is definitely worth a look if you’re interested in how the casts of a film is put together.

Other notable weekend indie, foreign & documentary releases:

IMMIGRANT

BIG SUR

THE PERVERT’S GUIDE TO IDEOLOGY (Documentary)

SAL

UNDERDOGS

RUNNING FROM CRAZY (Documentary)

A PERFECT MAN

ANGELS SING

MIKEYBOY

DOONBY

SWEET DREAMS (Documentary)

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Nine Film Projects Winners of Fall 2013 SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grants

Past SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grant Winners: Short Term 12, Fruitvale Station, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Nine films have been selected to receive Fall 2013 funding in the latest round of San Francisco Film Society (SFFS) / Kenneth Rainin Foundation (KRF) Filmmaking Grants. The SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grants are awarded twice annually to filmmakers for narrative feature films that will have significant economic or professional impact on the San Francisco Bay Area filmmaking community. Previous grant winners 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 both the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the narrative category at Sundance 2013 and is an Oscar hopeful in multiple categories; 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 and earned four Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture).

SFFS / KRF FILMMAKING GRANT WINNERS
DOCTOR — Musa Syeed, director/producer/writer; Nicholas Bruckman, coproducer
$35,000 for screenwriting
Salim, a disgraced young doctor from India, will do anything to rebuild his former life. But when he starts practicing medicine illegally in New York, he’s drawn into a medical underworld where he risks losing everything.

ESCAPE FROM MORGANTOWN — Peter Nicks, writer/director
$25,000 for screenwriting
A young addict arrives at a federal prison camp with a plan to turn his life around, but is drawn into the intoxicating world of a crew of seasoned inmates.

THE FIXER– Ian Olds, writer/director; Caroline von Kuhn, producer
$25,000 for packaging
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 backwoods 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 burbles up all around him.

HELLION — Kat Candler, writer/director; Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams, producers
$70,000 for postproduction
When his delinquent behavior forces his little brother to be taken away, a motocross-obsessed teenager and his emotionally absent father must take responsibility for their destructive behavior to bring him home.

LITTLE ACCIDENTS — Sara Colangelo writer/director; Jason Michael Berman, Anne Carey, Thomas B. Fore and Summer Shelton, producers
$50,000 for postproduction
In a small American coal town, the disappearance of a boy draws a young miner, the lonely wife of a mine executive and a local 14-year-old together in a web of secrets.

LOS VALIENTES / THE BRAVE ONES — Aurora Guerrero, writer/director; Chad Burris, producer
$25,000 for packaging
Felix Lopez is gay, undocumented and living in San Francisco until his family obligations move him across the country to a small Pennsylvania mining town to join his undocumented sister. Once there, alienated by local and family politics, Felix finds unexpected solace in the company of one person: his sister’s husband.

LOVE IS STRANGE — Ira Sachs, writer/director; Lucas Joaquin, Jay Van Hoy and Lars Knudsen, producers
$70,000 for postproduction
A multi-generational story of love and marriage, Love is Strange depicts the delicate nature of any two people trying to build a long life together, and the possibility of love to grow deeper, and richer, with time.

LOVE LAND– Joshua Tate, writer/director/producer; Andrew Richey, producer
$35,000 for postproduction
Love Land follows Ivy, a young woman with a severe traumatic brain injury, as she faces her refusal to be identified as a person with an intellectual disability. When she is placed in an institution for being a danger to herself and others, Ivy will stop at nothing to prove to the world — and to herself — that she is “normal” enough to transcend the label of “special.”

MANOS SUCIAS — Josef Wladyka, writer/director; Elena Greenlee and Márcia Nunes, producers
$90,000 for postproduction
A desperate fisherman and a naive young man embark on a dangerous journey trafficking drugs up the Pacific coast of Colombia. Hidden beneath the waves, they tow a narco-torpedo filled with millions of dollars worth of cocaine. Together they must brave the war-torn region while navigating the growing tension between them.
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Film Review: MUSICWOOD

What makes a Gibson or Martin acoustic guitar a better instrument (and thus more expensive) than a no-name guitar that you could buy for $50? It’s the wood. Premium acoustic guitars are made from four types of wood that come from across the world. For three of the best U.S. guitar makers – Gibson, Martin, and Taylor – the soundboard (i.e., the “top” or front of the guitar) is made from a type of Sitka Spruce from Alaska’ Tongass National Forest via a Native American-owned logging corporation, Sealaska. Until several years ago, as far as the owners of these guitars companies were concerned they would continue to get their spruce from the Tongass National Forest for as long as guitars would be made.

That is, until Greenpeace alerted these three companies to a troubling fact: The hundreds of years old trees that they use for their guitars are being lumbered by Sealaska by clear-cutting the land that they own, which means cutting down every single tree in a given area. This leaves huge swaths of areas filled with nothing but mud and stumps. Worse, Sealaska is lumbering at such a rapid rate that the trees that the guitar industry counts on will be virtually decimated in just a few decades. Even though the guitar industry uses only a tiny fraction of the trees that are cut down – less than 200 a year (the rest are mainly shipped to Asia for pulping and construction), Greenpeace representatives hope that the American guitar makers can help them appeal to Sealaska to become Forest Stewardship Council certified, meaning that their methods are environmentally sustainable.

MUSICWOOD, which is named after the coalition Greenpeace forms with the guitar makers, takes a look at these complex issues that is just as much about the economy as it is about the environment. Based on stereotype alone (especially if you’re old enough to remember those “Keep America Beautiful” ads with a crying Iron Eyes Cody), one would probably assume Greenpace and Native Americans would be on the same “side” on environmental issues. However, for the Sealaska Corporation there is no equitable industry in the area, so the entire livelihood of the area depends on logging. The corporation is concerned that if it scales back its logging it could be economically devastating for an area that already suffers from economic problems. The guitar companies sit as a kind of middle ground, obviously wanting to still use the wood but concerned that over-lumbering will destroy the supply for future generations of musicians. Cut in between are clips of musicians that talk about their connection to their instruments and play a bit, including an absolutely jaw-dropping performance by a guitarist named Kaki King.

This isn’t a documentary that wraps up everything with a bow because these complex factors are further complicated by other environmental and legal issues. But it certainly does its job of bringing to light an issue that every guitar player should be concerned about. It’s a well-made documentary from first time feature-length documentary director Maxine Trump that weighs the views of all the sides fairly, at least for the most part (you’d expect it to be hard to have sympathy for loggers who are destroying an entire ecosystem at an alarming rate, but their economic concerns and historical treatment makes their point of view understandable). At only 80 minutes there is plenty of room to expand with new developments should they happen, and those that feel the documentary is nonetheless too open-ended could find out more on the website provided at the end.

From a technical standpoint, Musicwood would play just as well on television than a movie theater, and perhaps it might be even better on television because the video quality is at points fuzzy. Actually that’s the biggest shame regarding the documentary because some of the nature shots of the Alaskan wilderness would look even more stunning in HD quality. When so much of the documentary’s message relies on the beauty of the area, it’s important to make sure that beauty is portrayed as best as possible. But that doesn’t prevent the message from being heard.

Rating: 4 out of 5 : See it …… It’s Very Good

MUSICWOOD opens in NYC on November 1, 2013, at the Quad Cinema. The film will also have limited screenings in markets around the country including Seattle and Chicago (dates/times available here:http://musicwoodthefilm.com/screenings/)

http://youtu.be/RzgN7M6m5Yc
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‘THE ACT OF KILLING’ ‘BLACKFISH’ ‘THE SQUARE’ Among 2013 IDA Documentary Awards Nominees

THE SQUARE directed by Jehane Noujaim

The International Documentary Association announced all of the nominees for the 29th annual IDA Documentary Awards ceremony, to be held Friday, December 6, 2013 at the Director’s Guild in Los Angeles. The five films nominated in IDA’s Best Feature category include THE ACT OF KILLING (Joshua Oppenheimer), BLACKFISH (Gabriela Cowperthwaite), LET THE FIRE BURN (Jason Osder), THE SQUARE (Jehane Noujaim), and STORIES WE TELL (Sarah Polley).

The five nominated films in the Best Short category are THE EDUCATION OF MUHAMMAD HUSSEIN (Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady), THE FLOGSTA ROAR, NINE TO NINETY (Alicia Dwyer), SLOMO (Josh Izenberg), and VULTURES OF TIBET (Russell O. Bush).

The IDA Creative Recognition Awards honor excellence in cinematography, composing, editing, and writing in documentary feature films. The recipients of these awards represent the highest achievements in their respective crafts, and highlight the importance of their work in compelling documentary storytelling. PABLO’S WINTER (cinematography by Julian Schwanitz) will be recognized with the award for Best Cinematography; LET THE FIRE BURN (edited by Nels Bangerter) will receive the Best Editing award; NARCO CULTURA (original music by Jeremy Turner) will be presented with the Best Music award; and HOW TO MAKE MONEY SELLING DRUGS (written by Matthew Cooke) will receive the Best Writing award.

In addition to recognizing the year’s best in documentary filmmaking and nonfiction programming, the 2013 IDA Documentary Awards will be honoring director, producer and writer Alex Gibney with the organization’s Career Achievement Award. Producer Geralyn Dreyfous will receive the Amicus Award, which acknowledges friends of the documentary genre who have contributed significantly to our industry, and Laura Poitras will receive IDA’s Courage Under Fire Award in recognition of “conspicuous bravery in the pursuit of truth.”

Each year IDA also recognizes the achievements of a filmmaker who has made a significant impact at the beginning of his or her career in documentary film. This year IDA will honor Zachary Heinzerling, the producer, director and cinematographer of one of the year’s most-acclaimed films Cutie and the Boxer, with the 2013 Jacqueline Donnet Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award.

2013 IDA Documentary Awards

BEST FEATURE AWARD

THE ACT OF KILLING
Director: Joshua Oppenheimer
Producers: Joshua Oppenheimer, Signe Byrge Sørensen
Executive Producers: Errol Morris, Werner Herzog, Torstein Grude, André Singer, Joram ten Brink, Bjarte Mørner Tveit
Drafthouse Films

BLACKFISH
Directors: Gabriela Cowperthwaite
Producer: Manuel V. Oteyza
Writers: Gabriela Cowperthwaite, Eli Despres
Executive Producers: Judy Bart, Erica Kahn
Magnolia Pictures

LET THE FIRE BURN
Director/Producer: Jason Osder
Executive Producer: Andrew Herwitz
The George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs

THE SQUARE
Director: Jehane Noujaim
Producer: Karim Amer
Noujaim Films

STORIES WE TELL
Director/Writer: Sarah Polley
Producer: Anita Lee
Roadside Attractions

BEST SHORT AWARD

THE EDUCATION OF MUHAMMAD HUSSEIN
Directors: Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady
Producers: Heidi Ewing; Rachel Grady; Sadia Shepard; Sara Bernstein (for HBO)
Executive Producers: Sheila Nevins (for HBO)
HBO Documentary Films

THE FLOGSTA ROAR
Director/Producer: Johan Palmgren
Writer: Johan Palmgren and Åsa Blanck
Strix Television AB, Swedish National Television

NINE TO NINETY
Director: Alicia Dwyer
Producer: Juli Vizza
Executive Producers: Sally Jo Fifer
Independent Television Service (ITVS)

SLOMO
Director: Josh Izenberg
Producer: Amanda Micheli
Executive Producer: Neil Izenberg
Big Young Films, Runaway Films

VULTURES OF TIBET
Director: Russell O. Bush
Producer: Elisabeth Oakham
Executive Producer: Gary Newsom
Bushfilm

BEST LIMITED SERIES AWARD

180 DAYS: A YEAR INSIDE AN AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL
Directors/Producers: Jacquie Jones, Garland McLaurin
Executive Producer: Jacquie Jones
NBPC/PBS

INSIDE COMBAT RESCUE
Producers: Jared McGilliard, John Collin, Jr.
Executive Producers: Jerry Decker, Ted Duvall, Richard J. Wells.
National Geographic Channel

INSIDE MAN
Producers: Kristen Vaurio, Lisa Kalikow, Shannon Gibson, Suzanne Hillinger, Lara Benario
Writers: Jeremy Chilnick, Morgan Spurlock
Executive Producers: Jeremy Chilnick, Matthew Galkin, Morgan Spurlock
CNN

VIEWFINDER: LATIN AMERICA
Directors: Manuel Contreras, Russ Finkelstein, Alfonso Gastiaburo, Juan Pablo Rojas, Paola Gosalvez, Luciana Freitas Silva, Susanna Lira, Fernanda Polacow and Juliana Borges
Producers: Rodrigo Vazquez, Patricia Boero
Writer: Ingrid Falck
Executive Producers: Flora Gregory
Series Producer: Jean Garner
Al Jazeera English

WITNESS
Directors:David Frankham, Abdallah Omeish
Producers: Ike Martin, Allison Kunzman, Youree Henley, Julie Herrin, Josiah Hooper
Co-Producer: Ra’uf Glasgow
Executive Producers: Michael Mann, David Frankham
Blue Light Productions and Little Puppet Productions with HBO Entertainment and HBO Documentary Films

BEST CONTINUING SERIES AWARD

30 FOR 30
Producers: Libby Geist, Andy Billman, Kyle Godwin, Brian D’Ostilio, Jenna Anthony, Erin Leyden, Deirdre Fenton
Executive Producers: Connor Schell, John Dahl, Bill Simmons
ESPN

CURIOSITY
Producers: Geoff Deehan, Christine Weber
Executive Producers: Erik Nelson, Simon Dickson, Sanjay Singhal, Dave Harding, Mike Masland, Howard Swartz, Simon Andreae
Discovery Channel

INDEPENDENT LENS
Producer: Lois Vossen
Executive Producers: Sally Jo Fifer
Independent Television Service (ITVS) in association with PBS

POV
Executive Producer: Simon Kilmurry
Co-Executive Producer: Cynthia López
VP of Programming & Production: Chris White
Series Producer: Andrew Catauro
American Documentary | POV in association with PBS

REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL
Producer: Joe Perskie
Executive Producers: Rick Bernstein
HBO Sports

DAVID L. WOLPER STUDENT DOCUMENTARY AWARD

This award recognizes exceptional achievement in non-fiction film and video production at the university level and brings greater public and industry awareness to the work of students in the documentary field.

BETWEEN LAND AND SEA
Directors/Producers/Writers: Sarah Berkovich, J. Christian Jensen
Stanford University

MY SISTER SARAH
Directors/Producer: Elizabeth Chatelain
University of Texas at Austin

OME: TALES FROM A VANISHING HOMELAND
Director/Producer: Raul O. Paz Pastrana
Producer: Emily Parkey
MFA Social Documentary Film Department at the School of Visual Arts

SODIQ
Directors/Producers/Writer: Adeyemi Michael
National Film & Television School, UK

WHY WE RACE
Directors: Kiley Vorndran, Ryan Westra, Andrew Evers, Ben Fischinger
Producer: Kiley Vorndran
Chapman University / Dodge College of Film and Media Arts

HUMANITAS DOCUMENTARY AWARD

This award is given to a film that explores the hopes and fears of human beings who are very different in culture, race, lifestyle, political loyalties and religious beliefs in order to break down the walls of ignorance which separate us.

ANTONS RIGHT HERE
Director: Lyubov Arkus
Producers: Konstantin Shavlovsky , Aleksandra Golutova
Writers: Lyubov Arkus
Executive Producers: Sergey Selyanov
INTERCINEMA Agency

BLOOD BROTHER
Director: Steve Hoover
Producer: Danny Yourd
Writers: Steve Hoover, Phinehas Hodges, Tyson VanSkiver
Executive Producers: Steve Hoover, Michael Killen, Kathy Dziubek, Jim Kreitzburg, Leigh Blake, John Carlin
Independent Television Service (ITVS)

LET THE FIRE BURN
Director/Producer: Jason Osder
Executive Producer: Andrew Herwitz
The George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs

THE SQUARE
Director: Jehane Noujaim
Producer: Karim Amer
Noujaim Films

PARE LORENTZ AWARD

The Pare Lorentz Award recognizes films that demonstrates exemplary filmmaking while focusing on the appropriate use of the natural environment, justice for all and the illumination of pressing social problems.

A PLACE AT THE TABLE
Directors/Producers: Lori Silverbush and Kristi Jacobson
Producers: Julie Goldman, Ryan Harrington
Magnolia Pictures

The Pare Lorentz Committee acknowledges A RIVER CHANGES COURSE (director Kalyanee Mam) with a Special Mention.

ABCNEWS VIDEOSOURCE AWARD

This award is given each year for the best use of news footage as an integral component in a documentary.

ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN REVISITED
Director/Producer: Peter Schnall
Executive Producers: Robert Redford, Andy Lack, Laura Michalchyshyn
Writers: Chana Gazit, Patrick Prentice
PARTISAN PICTURES in Association with SUNDANCE PRODUCTIONS

FREE ANGELA AND ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS
Director/Producer/Writer: Shola Lynch
Producers: Sidra Smith, Carole Lambert, Carine Ruszniewski
Overbrook Entertainment

LET THE FIRE BURN
Director/Producer: Jason Osder
Executive Producer: Andrew Herwitz
The George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs

THE TRIALS OF MUHAMMAD ALI
Director: Bill Siegel
Producers: Bill Siegel, Rachel Pikelny
Executive Producers: Justine Nagan, Gordon Quinn, Leon Gast, Kat White
Independent Television Service (ITVS), Kino Lorber

WE STEAL SECRETS: THE STORY OF WIKILEAKS
Director/Producer/Writer: Alex Gibney
Producer: Marc Shmuger
Focus World

Creative Recognition Award Winners

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

PABLO’S WINTER
Cinematographer: Julian Schwanitz
Director: Chico Pereira

BEST EDITING

LET THE FIRE BURN
Editor: Nels Bangerter
Director: Jason Osder

BEST MUSIC

NARCO CULTURA
Original Music By: Jeremy Turner
Director: Shaul Schwartz

BEST WRITING

HOW TO MAKE MONEY SELLING DRUGS
Writer/Director: Matthew Cooke

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CAVEMEN Gets a February 2014 Release Date | TRAILER

“CAVEMEN”, the debut romantic comedy film from writer and director Herschel Faber, will get a 2014 release by Well Go USA. The film, which world premiered at the 2013 Austin Film Festival and stars Camilla Belle, Skylar Austin, Chad Michael Murray, and Alexis Knapp, will be released in theaters and on VOD on February 7th, 2014.

Fed up with one-night-stands and empty relationships, LA playboy Dean realizes that he wants something more out of life than just a party. After a few bad first dates and some awful advice from his oversexed guy friends, Dean realizes that true love may be much closer than he thought. Forced to make a decision between the girl he knows is perfect for him and the party-girl of his fantasies, will Dean finally get out of the cave and walk upright like a responsible male adult?

http://youtu.be/pFlePQEz-Ps
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European Film Academy Reveals First 2013 Winners

FILL THE VOID (LEMALE ET HA’HALAL)

The European Film Academy announces the first winners in the categories cinematography, editing, production design, costume design, composer and sound design who will be honored at this year’s 26th European Film Awards. The 26th European Film Awards Ceremony. will take place at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele in Berlin on Saturday, December 7, 2013.

European Cinematographer 2013 – Prix Carlo di Palma:
Asaf Sudry
for LEMALE ET HA’HALAL (FILL THE VOID)
Israel
… for his intuitive camerawork, both realistic and poetic, studying the characters with tenderness in an environment unknown to most of us – by sensitively lighting them he provides us with deep insight into their psychology and emotions.

European Editor 2013:
Cristiano Travaglioli
for LA GRANDE BELLEZZA (THE GREAT BEAUTY)
Italy/France

THE GREAT BEAUTY (LA GRANDE BELLEZZA)

… for an editing which continuously stimulates the senses and creates a weave of endless meanings in the storytelling.

European Production Designer 2013:
Sarah Greenwood
for ANNA KARENINA
UK

ANNA KARENINA

… for a production design that acts as if it were a character itself – dramaturgically integrated and contributing essentially to the film’s story and style.

European Costume Designer 2013:
Paco Delgado
for BLANCANIEVES
Spain/France

BLANCANIEVES

… for a costume design combining meticulous research of Spanish tradition and craft with the freedom of a gothic fairy tale.

European Composer 2013:
Ennio Morricone
for THE BEST OFFER
Italy

THE BEST OFFER

… for proving once again his extraordinary capacity of always renewing his style while remaining faithful to the style of the director and the film – a universal composer, indeed, and a true master.

European Sound Designer 2013:
Matz Müller & Erik Mischijew
for PARADIES: GLAUBE (PARADISE: FAITH)
Austria/Germany/France

PARADISE: FAITH (PARADIES: GLAUBE)

… for creating a sound design, pure and radical – like a music score that transforms every day sound into a composition.

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Film Review: THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN

On paper, the behind the scenes story being pushed about this joint North Korean-U.S. production is extraordinary: THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN is a film that took six years to make and was a historical first-ever collaboration between North Korea and a U.S. film company. The film was actually shot in North Korea with a North Korean cast and crew and was written and produced by Joon Bai, who was born in North Korea but immigrated to the United States in 1959, and starting in the late 1990s has made dozens of humanitarian trips to North Korea. He decided to make this film to spread his message of the suffering people of North Korea and their hopes for reunification.

So while there’s no denying that his heart is the right place, I’m not sure how much of this film is really of Bai’s vision. That’s because there is little in this film that isn’t melodramatic propaganda straight from the North Korean government via director Hak Jang. It doesn’t even attempt to be subtle with seemingly dozens of scenes of crying, dying, and suffering women and children to pull at the heartstrings.

An opening title card tells the audience that this film is based on “true events,” which then fades into the movie’s framing sequence set in 1980 about a young man of Korean descent trying to figure out the details of his recently-deceased father’s life in North Korea. An old acquaintance of his father tells the story: Il Gyu (Ryung Min Kim) is a young man in Seoul, South Korea at the start of the Korean War, and on his way to school he is picked up by South Korean soldiers and forced into the army. During his first battle in North Korea, he sees the horror of battle and tears off his uniform. After being wounded, an old man and his daughter, Son Ah (Hyang Suk Kim) come across him and, thinking that he is a North Korean soldier, he is mistakenly rescued from the battlefield and nursed back to health. While in Son Ah’s care Il Gyu falls in love with her, but his nationality and Son Ah’s dedication to being a nurse are only the first obstacles that will come between them.

From a technical standpoint the film is archaic. While I understand the limitations of the production, the visual quality is so poor that it looks like a 1980s television movie. You would have a hard time convincing anyone this film was released in 2012. Scenes that take place in the 1970s are full of anachronisms like far more recent models of cars and computers, and there is even a sign for a medical conference that says “1992.” There are also structural problems, including two ill-fitting musical interlude 35 minutes into the film. 12 minutes later, there is a brief respite from the falling-in-love frolicking of our two leads to flashback to Gyu’s father giving a stirring speech against Japanese imperialism. The film’s dialogue (or at least the English subtitles) often sounds like it is taken straight from propaganda posters: “Let’s not live as shields for American bullets.” “Why do people whose faces are different from ours bring so much tragedy upon us?” “We must be strong so our children do not fear the sound of the enemy’s bombings. Our nation with its 30 million people must stand and fight for the reunification of our divided land. So all of us, together, can rise as one glorious nation.” I know Bai is a novice writer, but I certainly don’t think those lines came from him. But perhaps his fingerprints are still on the love story, which is pure melodrama. Son Ah is beautiful, virtuous, courageous, and selfless to the point of self-ruination. Il Gyu throws his best lines at her (like “I’m jealous of this mountain wind… it steals away your scent.”) but he just can’t crack her noble exterior. Finally, though the score is credited to a North Korean musician, it is so reminiscent of Ennio Morricone’s theme from Cinema Paradiso that they are lucky that sanctions will probably prevent him from prosecuting.

Though The Other Side of the Wind is making the festival circuit in America (and even won a few awards), you’d be hard pressed to find many Americans who would be sympathetic to the portrayal of the United States. Without exaggeration, every fifteen minutes during the Korean War scenes, the U.S. military are causing some terrible atrocity to move the narrative forward – bombing villages, destroying sacred temples, or setting masses of innocent women on fire (the last with absolutely no explanation). Even after the war, when one character is diagnosed with a deadly disease I expected the Americans to get blamed for that, too. When people say that mainstream American films like Zero Dark Thirty or Captain Phillips are propaganda, they’ve really never seen anything like this, especially since the film ends with a three minute sequence of the cast and crew singing a song advocating for Korean reunification.

Yet with all that in mind, I can’t help but recommend The Other Side of the Wind to those that will either be entertained by its sometimes-absurd aspects or will marvel that a film like this even got made in the first place considering the circumstances in North Korea. Despite only being released last year, it is in a lot of ways an instant historical curiosity. If you’re a student of international film you will undoubtedly appreciate the sentiment even if you can’t appreciate the cloying narrative or the outdated production values. As I said above, Bai’s heart was obviously in the right place, even if it seems the North Korean government did its best to remove his heart from this film.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN (Korea USA 2012, 102″)

Directed by In Hak Jang, screenwriter and producer Joon Bai

Now playing as part of the 2013 Korean American Film Festival New York (KAFFNY), October 24-26, 2013, at Village East Cinema

KAFFNY venue: Village East Cinema (189 2nd Avenue, New York, NY 10003)

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New Indie Films, Documentaries in Theaters This Weekend Friday October 25, 2013

This weekend is a quiet one at the art house cinemas in terms of new releases, with only one major indie release coming out, this year’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner, BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR. It’s a great weekend then to catch up on other releases that might be expanding into your area or you just couldn’t see on its opening weekend.

BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR

Based on a graphic novel about two young women who fall in love, Blue Is the Warmest Color has been talked about since winning the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Its graphic depictions of sex — the film is rated NC-17 — and its three-hour runtime will probably scare away a lot of typical moviegoers, but with near universal praise there’s a good chance you’ll keep hearing about it until you get a chance to see it in your area.

A TRUE STORY

A comedy about two screenwriters and their personal lives when one of the writer’s ex-girlfriends (Katrina Bowden) comes back into the picture, A True Story was written by the movie’s two stars, Cameron Fife and Tyler McGee and was directed by actor Malcolm Goodwin (who appeared on American Gangster and Leatherheads). Though A True Story was first released on the internet last month, there hasn’t been much word about it from the critics.

LOSERS TAKE ALL

Though it debuted way back at the Woodstock Film Festival in September 2011, this music comedy about a 1980s indie rock band trying to decide whether or not to sell out is finally getting a release this weekend. It was directed by Alex Steyermark, who made another rock and roll film a decade ago, Prey For Rock & Roll and long-time music supervisor for Spike Lee’s films (among many others).

WHEN I WALK (Documentary)

This documentary tells the story of Jason DaSilva, who as a twenty five year-old in 2006 on vacation had suddenly lost the ability to walk because of his multiple sclerosis. Jason, who was an aspiring filmmaker, decided to film his life going forward. Critics have given it strong reviews for being an inspiring look at a young man coping with a disease.

SPINNING PLATES (Documentary)

Every once in a while I think that it must be interesting to run a restaurant, and then a second later I come to the realization how difficult the restaurant business really is (just watch an episode of Kitchen Nightmares!) Spinning Plates looks at three completely different restaurants in terms of prestige and cusine, but they all have one thing in common: they are all struggling in some way. It has been a big hit with critics, so it’s probably a bit more involved than a reality show.

Other notable weekend indie, foreign & documentary releases:

TORN

WALKING WITH THE ENEMY

TOAD ROAD

HOUSE IN THE ALLEY

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12 YEARS A SLAVE Leads 2013 Gotham Independent Film Awards Nominations

12 YEARS A SLAVE

The nominees for the 23rd Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards by IFP were announced today and 12 YEARS A SLAVE lead with three nominations followed by BLUE CAPRICE, CONCUSSION, FRUITVALE STATION, INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS, and UPSTREAM COLOR with two nominations each. The Gotham Awards is one of the leading awards for independent film and signals the kick-off to the film awards season. For 2013, the seven competitive awards include Best Feature, Best Actress (presenting sponsor euphoria Calvin Klein), Best Actor, Best Documentary, the Audience Award, Breakthrough Actor, and Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director.

In addition to the competitive awards, Gotham Award Tributes will be given to actor Forest Whitaker, NYC Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment’s Katherine Oliver, and director Richard Linklater. The Gotham Awards ceremony will be held on Monday, December 2nd at Cipriani Wall Street.in New York City.

The 2013 Gotham Independent Film Award nominations are:

Best Feature
12 YEARS A SLAVE
Steve McQueen, director; Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Bill Pohlad, Steve McQueen, Arnon
Milchan, Anthony Katagas, producers. (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
AIN’T THEM BODIES SAINTS
David Lowery, director; Tony Halbrooks, James M. Johnston, Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, Amy Kaufman,
Cassian Elwes, producers (IFC Films)
BEFORE MIDNIGHT
Richard Linklater, director; Richard Linklater, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos, Sara Woodhatch, producers
(Sony Pictures Classics)
INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, directors; Scott Rudin, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, producers (CBS Films)
UPSTREAM COLOR
Shane Carruth, director; Shane Carruth, Casey Gooden, Ben LeClair, producers. (erbp)

Best Documentary
THE ACT OF KILLING
Joshua Oppenheimer, director; Signe Byrge, Joshua Oppenheimer, producers (Drafthouse Films)
THE CRASH REEL
Lucy Walker, director; Julian Cautherly, Lucy Walker, producers (HBO Documentary Films)
FIRST COUSIN ONCE REMOVED
Alan Berliner, director and producer (HBO Documentary Films)
LET THE FIRE BURN
Jason Osder, director and producer (Zeitgeist Films)
OUR NIXON
Penny Lane, director; Brian L. Frye, Penny Lane, producers (Cinedigm and CNN Films)

Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award
Ryan Coogler for FRUITVALE STATION (The Weinstein Company)
Adam Leon for GIMME THE LOOT (Sundance Selects)
Alexandre Moors for BLUE CAPRICE (Sundance Selects)
Stacie Passon for CONCUSSION (RADiUS-TWC)
Amy Seimetz for SUN DON’T SHINE (Factory 25)

Best Actor
Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Oscar Isaac in Inside Llewyn Davis (CBS Films)
Matthew McConaughey in Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features)
Robert Redford in All Is Lost (Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions)
Isaiah Washington in Blue Caprice (Sundance Selects)

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine (Sony Pictures Classics)
Scarlett Johansson in Don Jon (Relativity Media)
Brie Larson in Short Term 12 (Cinedigm)
Amy Seimetz in Upstream Color (erbp)
Shailene Woodley in The Spectacular Now (A24)

Breakthrough Actor
Dane DeHaan in Kill Your Darlings (Sony Pictures Classics)
Kathryn Hahn in Afternoon Delight (The Film Arcade and Cinedigm)
Michael B. Jordan in Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company)
Lupita Nyong’o in 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Robin Weigert in Concussion (RADiUS-TWC)
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