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Full Lineup Announced for 40th Seattle International Film Festival; “The One I Love” to Close Fest

Seattle International Film Festival

The One I Love

Seattle International Film Festival unveiled the complete lineup of films and events for the 40th annual Festival taking place May 15 to June 8, 2014. This year, SIFF will screen 440 films: 198 features (plus 4 secret films), 60 documentaries, 14 archival films, and 168 shorts, representing 83 countries. The Festival will open with the previously announced screening of JIMI: All Is By My Side, the Hendrix biopic starring Outkast’s André Benjamin from John Ridley, Oscar®-winning screenwriter of 12 Years a Slave, and close with Charlie McDowell’s twisted romantic comedy The One I Love, produced by Seattle’s Mel Eslyn and starring Elisabeth Moss and Mark Duplass.

In addition, legendary producer and Seattle native Quincy Jones will be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the screening of doc Keep on Keepin’ On.

In addition to the gala screenings, this year’s premieres and special presentations feature a star-studded lineup including Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, and Laura Dern in The Fault in Our Stars, Richard Linklater’s Boyhood with Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke; Quincy Jones and Herbie Hancock in Keep On Keepin’ On; Kim Basinger, Richard Jenkins and Cam Gigandet in 4 Minute Mile; Trent Reznor and Billy Corgan in Beautiful Noise; Nia Vardalos in Helicopter Mom; Vincent Kartheiser and Olivia Thirlby in Red Knot; Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Miranda Otto, and Mia Wasikowska in The Turning; the voices of Cate Blanchett, Kristen Wiig, and Jay Baruchel in How To Train Your Dragon 2; Michael Pitt, Brit Marling, and Astrid Bergès-Frisbey in I Origins,and Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler in They Came Together.

COMPETITIONS

New Directors Competition

10,000KM (d: Carlos Marques-Marcet, Spain/USA 2014)

40 Days of Silence (d: Saodat Ismailova, Uzbekistan/Tajikistan/Netherlands/Germany/

France 2014, North American Premiere)

B For Boy (d: Chika Anadu, Nigeria 2013)

Eastern Boys (d: Robin Campillo, France 2013)

History of Fear (d: Benjamín Naishtat, Argentina/Uruguay/France/Germany 2013)

Life Feels Good (d: Maciej Pieprzyca, Poland 2013)

Macondo (d: Sudabeh Mortezai, Austria 2014, North American Premiere)

Me, Myself and Mum (d: Guillaume Gallienne, Belgium/France/Spain 2013)

Remote Control (d: Byamba Sakhya, Mongolia/Germany/USA 2013)

Rhymes for Young Ghouls (d: Jeff Barnaby, Canada (Québec) 2013, US Premiere)

Standing Aside, Watching (d: Yorgos Servetas, Greece 2013)

Viktoria (d: Maya Vitkova, Bulgaria/Romania 2014)

New American Cinema Competition

Festival programmers select 12 films without U.S. distribution that are sure to delight audiences looking to explore the exciting vanguard of New American Cinema and compete for the FIPRESCI Award for Best New American Film. Jury is comprised of 3 members from the International Federation of Film Critics.

Alex of Venice (d: Chris Messina, USA 2014)

Another (d: Jason Bognacki, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Five Star (d: Keith Miller, USA 2014)

Kinderwald (d: Lise Raven, USA 2013)

Layover (d: Joshua Caldwell, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Little Accidents (d: Sara Colangelo, USA 2014)

Medeas (d: Andrea Pallaoro, USA/Italy/Mexico 2013)

Red Knot (d: Scott Cohen, USA/Argentina/Antarctica 2014, World Premiere)

Sam & Amira (d: Sean Mullin, USA 2014, World Premiere)

The Sleepwalker (d: Mona Fastvold, USA/Norway 2014)

Time Lapse (d: Bradley King, USA 2014, North American Premiere)

X/Y (d: Ryan Piers Williams, USA 2014)

Documentary Competition

Ballet 422 (d: Jody Lee Lipes, USA 2014)

#ChicagoGirl – The Social Network Takes on a Dictator (d: Joe Piscatella, USA/Syria 2013, North American Premiere)

Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus (d: Madeleine Sackler, United Kingdom/USA/Belarus 2013, US Premiere)

Dior and I (d: Frédéric Tcheng, France 2014, 89 min)

Garden Lovers (d: Virpi Suutari, Finland 2014, US Premiere)

I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story (d: Dave LaMattina, USA 2014)

Leninland (d: Askold Kurov, Russia/Germany/Netherlands 2013, North American Premiere)

Marmato (d: Mark Grieco, Colombia/USA 2014)

Obama Mama (d: Vivian Norris, USA/Poland/France 2014, World Premiere)

Shake the Dust (d: Adam Sjöberg, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Song of the New Earth (d: Ward Serrill, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Two Raging Grannies (d: Håvard Bustnes, Norway/Denmark/Italy 2014, North American Premiere)

FACE THE MUSIC

Seattle is a music-obsessed city, so it’s only fitting that the Festival features films that showcase the many ways in which music affects our lives, ranging from biopics and documentaries to concert films and live events. This year’s Live Performance Event features Keep on Keepin’ On subject and Quincy Jones-signed artist Justin Kauflin live with his trio at the Triple Door.

20,000 Days on Earth (d: Iain Forsyth, Jane Pollard f: Nick Cave, United Kingdom 2014, 95 min)

Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory (d: Michael Rossato-Bennett, USA 2014, 74 min)

Beautiful Noise (d: Eric Green f: Trent Reznor, Billy Corgan, Robert Smith, Wayne Coyne, USA 2014, 87 min)

Big in Japan (d: John Jeffcoat c: David Drury, Philip A. Peterson, Sean Lowry, Alex Vincent, Adam Powers, USA/Japan 2014, 100 min)

Electro Chaabi (d: Hind Meddeb, Egypt/France 2013, 77 min)

Finding Fela (d: Alex Gibney, USA 2014, 120 min)

God Help the Girl (d: Stuart Murdoch c: Emily Browning, Olly Alexander, Hannah Murray, Cora Bissett, Pierre Boulanger, United Kingdom 2014, 111 min)

Keep On Keepin’ On (d: Alan Hicks f: Clark Terry, Justin Kauflin, Quincy Jones, Gwen Terry, Herbie Hancock, USA 2014, 84 min)

Lady Be Good: Instrumental Women In Jazz (d: Kay D. Ray Narrated by: Patrice Rushen, USA 2014, 80 min)

Razing the Bar (d: Ryan Worsley f: Brian Foss, Joetta Velasquez, Bill Bullock, Chris Chambers, Jake Stratton, Rachel Ratner, USA 2014, 83 min)

Song of the New Earth (d: Ward Serrill f: Tom Kenyon, USA 2014, 89 min)

Strictly Sacred: The Story of Girl Trouble (d: Isaac Olsen f: Kurt Kendall, Bill Henderson, Bon Henderson, Dale Phillips, Neko Case, USA 2014, 95 min)

NORTHWEST CONNECTIONS

Seattleites see more films per capita than the residents of any other American city. This year’s lineup of films with their roots in the Pacific Northwest reveals a filmmaking region officially on the map. Every year, SIFF honors the many ways in which the Puget Sound region contributes to the world of cinema, whether it’s as an evocative location for outside filmmakers or inspiration for local filmmakers on the rise.

4 Minute Mile (d: Charles-Olivier Michaud c: Kelly Blatz, Richard Jenkins, Kim Basinger, Cam Gigandet, Analeigh Tipton, USA 2014, 96 min)

BFE (d: Shawn Telford c: Wally Dalton, Kelsey Packwood, Aleksander Greenleaf, Ian Lerch, Abby Dylan, USA 2014, 98 min)

Big in Japan (d: John Jeffcoat c: David Drury, Philip A. Peterson, Sean Lowry, Alex Vincent, Adam Powers, USA/Japan 2014, 100 min)

The Breach (d: Mark Titus Narrated by: Kate O’Toole, USA 2014, 85 min)

Burkholder (d: Taylor Guterson c: Bob Burkholder, Britton Crosley, David VanderWal, Sean MacLean, James Molyball, USA 2014, 81 min)

DamNation (d: Ben Knight, Travis Rummel, USA 2014, 92 min)

Desert Cathedral (d: Travis Gutiérrez Senger c: Lee Tergesen, Chaske Spencer, Petra Wright, Tony Doupe, Russell Hodgkinson, Aron Michael Thompson, USA 2014, 90 min)

Fly Colt Fly: The Legend of The Barefoot Bandit (d: Adam Gray, Andrew Gray, Canada 2013, 82 min)

Lucky Them (d: Megan Griffiths c: Toni Collette, Thomas Haden Church, Oliver Platt, Ahna O’Reilly, USA 2013, 96 min)

My Last Year With the Nuns (d: Bret Fetzer c: Matt Smith, USA 2014, 77 min)

Oil & Water (d: Laurel Spellman Smith, Francine Strickwerda, USA 2014, 78 min)

Razing the Bar (d: Ryan Worsley f: Brian Foss, Joetta Velasquez, Bill Bullock, Chris Chambers, Jake Stratton, Rachel Ratner, USA 2014, 83 min)

Sold (d: Jeffrey Brown c: Niyar Saikia, Gillian Anderson, David Arquette, USA/India, Nepal, United Kingdom 2014, 97 min)

Song of the New Earth (d: Ward Serrill f: Tom Kenyon, USA 2014, 89 min)

Strictly Sacred: The Story of Girl Trouble (d: Isaac Olsen f: Kurt Kendall, Bill Henderson, Bon Henderson, Dale Phillips, Neko Case, USA 2014, 95 min)

Two Raging Grannies (d: Håvard Bustnes, Norway/Denmark, Italy 2014, 78 min)

AFRICAN PICTURES

Now in its second year, this program once again presents an impressive and diverse selection of films from and about Africa. Supported by a generous multi-year grant from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, African Pictures brings the best in cinema to audiences in Seattle and the broader Northwest. Featured selections include indigenous films, films by African filmmakers working outside the continent, and films on topics relating to Africa’s changing contemporary political and social landscape.

African Metropolis (d: Marie Ka, Philippe Lacote, Ahmed Ghoneimy, Vincent Moloi, Folsakin Iwajomo, Jim Chuchu, Kenya/Ivory Coast/Egypt/Senegal/Nigeria/ South Africa 2013, 92 min)

B For Boy (d: Chika Anadu c: Uche Nwadili, Nonso Odogwu, Ngozi Amarikwa, Frances Okeke, Iheoma Opara, Nigeria 2013, 118 min)

Bound: Africans versus African Americans (d: Peres Owino, USA 2014, 90 min)

Difret (d: Zeresenay Berhane Mehari c: Meron Getnet, Tizita Hagere, Ethiopia 2014, 99 min)

Electro Chaabi (d: Hind Meddeb, Egypt/France 2013, 77 min)

Finding Fela (d: Alex Gibney, USA 2014, 120 min)

Four Corners (d: Ian Gabriel c: Brendon Daniels, Irshaad Ally, Jezriel Skei, Lindiwe Matshikiza, Abduragman Adams, South Africa 2014, 119 min)

Half of a Yellow Sun (d: Biyi Bandele c: Thandie Newton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, John Boyega, Anika Noni Rose, Joseph Mawle, Nigeria/United Kingdom 2013, 106 min)

Leading Lady (d: Henk Pretorius c: Gil Bellows, Katie McGrath, Brumilda van Rensburg, Bok van Blerk, Eduan van Jaarsveldt, South Africa 2014, 96 min)

Rags and Tatters (d: Ahmad Abdalla c: Asser Yassin, Atef Yousef, Amr Abed, Yara Gubran, Mohamed Mamdouh, Egypt 2013, 87 min)

The Rooftops (d: Merzak Allouache c: Adila Bendimerad, Nassima Belmihoub, Ahcene Benzerari, Aïssa Chouat, Mourad Khen, Algeria/France 2013, 92 min)

Salvation Army (d: Abdellah Taïa c: Saïd Mrini, Karim Ait M’Hand, Amine Ennaji, Malika El Hamaoui, Frederic Landenberg, Morocco/France 2013, 82 min)

Under the Starry Sky (d: Dyana Gaye c: Marème Demba Ly, Ralph Amoussou, France/Senegal 2013, 86 min)

White Shadow (d: Noaz Deshe c: Hamisi Bazili, James Gayo, Glory Mbayuwayu, Salum Abdallah, Germany/Italy/Tanzania 2013, 115 min)
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Jury Revealed for 67th Cannes Film Festival

Cannes Film Festival

New Zealand director, producer and screenwriter Jane Campion, winner of the Palme d’or for The Piano, will be the President of the Jury of the 67th Cannes Film Festival. In addition to Campion, the Jury will also include five women and four men. Their task will be to decide between the 18 films in Competition in order to select the winners – to be announced on stage at the ceremony on Saturday 24th May. The winner of the Palme d’or will be screened during the Festival’s closing evening on Sunday 25th of May, in the presence of the Jury and the entire team of the winning film.

THE JURY

Jane CAMPION – President (Director, Screenwriter, Producer – New Zealand)

Carole BOUQUET (Actress – France)

Sofia COPPOLA (Director, Screenwriter, Producer – United States)

Leila HATAMI (Actress – Iran)

JEON Do-yeon (Actress – South Korea)

Willem DAFOE (Actor – United States)

Gael GARCIA BERNAL (Actor, Director, Producer – Mexico)

JIA Zhangke (Director, Screenwriter, Producer – China)

Nicolas Winding REFN (Director, Screenwriter, Producer – Denmark)

Carole Bouquet, Actress (France)
After her film debut in 1977 with Luis Buñuel in That Obscure Object of Desire, Bouquet alternated between arthouse and blockbuster productions. A Bond Girl in 1981 in For Your Eyes Only, she worked with Bertrand Blier on Buffet Froid (1979) and Too Beautiful For You (1989) for which she won the César for Best Actress. She appeared in Le jour des idiots by Werner Schroeter, Michel Blanc’s Dead Tired and Embrassez qui vous voudrez, Lucie Aubrac by Claude Berri, L’Enfer by Danis Tanovic, Nordeste by Juan Diego Solanas (Festival de Cannes 2005) and Unforgivable by André Téchiné.

Sofia Coppola, Director and screenwriter (United States)
Coppola’s first feature film, The Virgin Suicides (1999) was selected for the Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes, where it met with international critical acclaim. Four years later, after several Oscar nominations for Lost in Translation, including Best Director, she walked off with the Best Screenplay award. Her third film, Marie-Antoinette was selected in Competition at Cannes in 2006. After picking up a Golden Lion in Venice forSomewhere (2010), Sofia Coppola opened Un Certain Regard with her last film The Bling Ring at the Festival de Cannes in 2013.

Leila Hatami, Actress (Iran)
Born in Tehran into a family of filmmakers, she started out acting in films directed by her father, Ali Hatami, before starring in Dariush Mehrjui’s Leila (1998) which brought her to national attention. It was Asghar Farhadi who established her on the world stage with A Separation (Golden Bear at the 2011 Berlin Festival). She picked up the Best Actress award in Karlovy Vary for her role in Ali Mosaffa’s Last Step in 2012.

Jeon Do-yeon, Actress (South Korea)
The first Korean actress to receive the Best Actress award at the Festival de Cannes for her role in Secret Sunshine by Lee Chang-dong (2007), Jeon Do-yeon started out as a television actress before turning exclusively to cinema. Her major films include I Wish I Had a Wife by Ryoo Seung, My Mother, The Mermaid by Park Jin-pyo and The Housemaid by Im Sang-soo, presented at Cannes in 2010. A massive celebrity in her country, she has just finished shooting Memories of the Sword by Park Heung-sik.

Willem Dafoe, Actor (United States)
Twice nominated for an Oscar, for Oliver Stone’s Platoon and Shadow of the Vampire, Dafoe has appeared in 80 films including Grand Budapest Hotel by Wes Anderson, Light Sleeper by Paul Schrader, The Last Temptation of Christ by Martin Scorsese, Antichrist by Lars von Trier and The English Patient by Anthony Minghella. He will soon be appearing in A Most Wanted Man by Anton Corbijn and Pasolini by Abel Ferrara. A co-founder of the Wooster Group – an experimental theatre collective – he is currently on tour with Bob Wilson’s play The Old Woman.

Gael García Bernal, Actor, director and producer (Mexico)
Bernal first came to public attention in Iñárritu’s Amorres Perros, soon followed by Y Tu Mamá También by Alfonso Cuarón. He then featured in films directed by some of the greats of international cinema, such as The Motorcycle Diaries by Walter Salles, Pedro Almodóvar’s Bad Education, The Science of Sleep by Michel Gondry, Babel by Gonzalez Iñárritu, and The Limits of Control by Jim Jarmusch. In 2005, he founded his Canana production company with Diego Luna and in 2010, after a few short films, directed his first feature film,Deficit, selected at La Semaine de la Critique at Cannes.

Nicolas Winding Refn, Director, screenwriter and producer (Denmark)
His first film, Pusher (1996), written and directed at the age of 24, immediately became a cult movie and he shot to fame throughout the world. He then directed Bleeder (1999), Fear X (2003), Pusher II & III (2004 & 2005),Bronson (2008) and Valhalla Rising (2009), all characteristic of the style that came to be dubbed “Refn-esque”. In 2011, Drive was presented at the Festival de Cannes and won the Best Direction prize, awarded by the Jury presided by Robert De Niro. His last film, Only God Forgives, featured in Competition at Cannes in 2013.

Jia Zhangke, Director, screenwriter and producer (China)
After first studying art Jia Zhangke, born in 1970, attended the Beijing Film Academy in the 1990s. After the success of his first film, Xao Wu (1998), he directed Platform (Zhantai, 2000) and Unknown Pleasures (Ren xiao yao, 2002) selected for Venice and Cannes respectively. Still Life picked up the Golden Lion in Venice in 2006. He also presented 24 City at the Festival de Cannes, in Competition in 2008 and I Wish I Knew for Un Certain Regard in 2010. Last year, A Touch of Sin garnered the Best Screenplay prize awarded by the Jury presided by Steven Spielberg.

Image via Cannes Film Festival. Clockwise (top left to right) Jane Campion, Jia Zhangke, Willem Dafoe, Leila Hatami, Carole Bouquet, Gael Garcia Bernal, Jeon Do-yeon, Nicolas Winding Refn, Sofia Coppola
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Winners Announced for Spring 2014 San Francisco Film Society SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grants Totaling $300,000

Industry

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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The Case Against 8 Selected as Opening Night Film for QDoc: Portland Queer Documentary Film Festival.

QDoc: Portland Queer Documentary Film Festival

THE CASE AGAINST 8, which garnered its co-directors Ben Cotner, and Ryan White the award for Best Director at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, and many other awards since, has been selected as the opening night film of this year’s QDoc: Portland Queer Documentary Film Festival. While other films have dealt with the electoral ups and downs of the marriage battle, THE CASE AGAINST 8 focuses on the extraordinary legal strategies that altered the landscape for marriage equality around the country, including Oregon.

Challenging California’s Prop 8 banning same-sex marriage, the legal case was argued all the way to the Supreme Court by a very unlikely team of attorneys: Ted Olson and David Boies, former adversaries in the 2000 Bush v. Gore presidential election battle. Together, they found common ground advocating for two courageous couples who allowed their personal lives to become the center of this controversial crusade.

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‘Chef” and ‘Keep On Keepin’ On’ Win 2014 Tribeca Film Festival Audience Awards

Tribeca Film Festival

Keep On Keepin’ On Chef, written and directed by Jon Favreau, won the Heineken Audience Narrative award, and Keep On Keepin’ On, directed by Alan Hicks, received the Heineken Audience Documentary award at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival. Each award comes with a cash prize of $25,000. Upon hearing the news Alan Hicks commented, “Mate, that’s unbelievable. I was just honored to get into the Festival in the first place. Never would have imagined coming away with the audience award and the Best New Director award. I’m just stoked! I don’t have any other words in my vocab, I’m just stoked! It was a dream of mine to premiere at Tribeca and that in itself was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had. This warm response to the film is such an honor and I’m so happy to get Clark’s story out to the world the way that we have. Clark will be so happy.” Jon Favreau commented, “I am so grateful just to be a part of this prestigious festival and to be recognized and honored by the audience of my hometown is truly humbling.” Mr. Favreau will be donating the $25,000 to City Harvest, the world’s first food rescue organization dedicated to feeding New York City’s hungry men, women, and children. Chef In Chef, after talented and dynamic chef Carl Casper’s (Favreau) social media-fueled meltdown against his nemesis food critic lands him without any job prospects, he hits the road with his son and his sous chef (John Leguizamo) to launch a brand new food truck business. Complete with lavish food imagery and a star-studded cast including Sofia Vergara, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Dustin Hoffman, Oliver Platt, and Amy Sedaris, Favreau’s fresh take on food and chef culture has poignant messages about the media-driven world in which we live and the real meaning of success. Keep On Keepin’ On chronicles eighty-nine year old trumpeting legend Clark Terry who has mentored jazz wonders like Miles Davis and Quincy Jones. Terry’s most unlikely friendship is with Justin Kauflin, a 23-year-old blind piano player with uncanny talent, but debilitating nerves. As Justin prepares for the most pivotal moment in his budding career, Terry’s ailing health threatens to end his own. Charming and nostalgic, Alan Hicks’ melodic debut celebrates an iconic musician while introducing an emerging star of equal vibrancy. It is a mentoring tale as inspirational as its subjects.
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Maryland Film Festival Announces 2014 Opening Night Shorts and 2014 Closing Night Film, LITTLE ACCIDENTS

Maryland Film Festival

Little Accidents

Maryland Film Festival concluded its 2014 lineup announcements by unveiling its Opening Night Shorts program, and its Closing Night film, Sara Colangelo’s LITTLE ACCIDENTS. Also announced were two late-breaking features added to MFF 2014’s lineup, Riley Stearns’ FAULTS, and Desiree Akhavan’s APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR.

MFF 2014’s CLOSING NIGHT FILM

Maryland Film Festival 2014’s Closing Night film will be Sara Colangelo’s drama Little Accidents, which explores the aftermath of a coal-mining disaster on a small Appalachian town. The film, which premiered at Sundance 2014 to great acclaim, stars Elizabeth Banks, Boyd Holbrook, Chloë Sevigny, Jacob Lofland, and Josh Lucas, and was shot by Rachel Morrison (Fruitvale Station, Sound of My Voice). The script was developed at Sundance Labs, and won the 2011 Maryland Filmmakers Fellowship, which is administered by Maryland Film Festival.

MFF 2014’s OPENING NIGHT SHORTS

Maryland Film Festival prides itself on its special advocacy for short-form filmmaking. The festival first devoted its Opening Night to short films in 2002, and has done so each festival since 2004. Past years’ opening night programs have included work from filmmakers such as David Lowery, Lauren Wolkstein, Frances Bodomo, Riley Stearns, and Bobcat Goldthwait. In addition to devoting its opening night to shorts, MFF 2014 will also feature 10 short-film programs, featuring work of all genres from around the globe.

All Opening Night shorts will be hosted by their filmmaker on the evening of Wednesday, May 7th in MICA’s Brown Center. MFF 2014’s Opening Night Shorts are:

THE BRAVEST, THE BOLDEST Director: Moon Molson

Two Army Casualty Notification Officers arrive at the Harlem projects to deliver Sayeeda Porter some news about her son serving in the war in the Middle East. But whatever it is they have to say, Sayeeda ain’t trying to hear it. Moon Molson is the director of previous MFF shorts Pop Foul and Crazy Beats Strong Every Time; The Bravest, The Boldest screened in the Shorts Competition at Sundance 2014.

EASY Director: Daniel Laabs

A character study that follows the relationship between two brothers; one on the verge of becoming an adult, the other becoming a teenager. Daniel Laabs is the co-director of MFF 2011’s short film 8; EASY premiered within SXSW 2014.

I WAS A TEENAGE GIRL Director: Augustine Frizzell

Emma and Jesse are close friends. One night, after an intense breakup, they have a heartfelt conversation that challenges the boundaries of their friendship in an unexpected way. I Was a Teenage Girl premiered within SXSW 2014.

MORE THAN TWO HOURS (Iran) Director: Ali Asgari

It’s 3 a.m., and a boy and a girl are wandering the city. They are looking for a hospital to cure the girl, but it’s much harder than they thought. More Than Two Hours was nominated for the Palme d’Or for best short film at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.

VERBATIM Director: Brett Weiner

A jaded lawyer wastes an afternoon trying to determine if a government employee has ever used a photocopier. All the dialogue in this film comes from an actual deposition filed with the Supreme Court of Ohio. Verbatim premiered within the Shorts Competition at Sundance 2014.

LATE-BREAKING ADDITIONS TO MFF 2014’s FEATURE LINEUP

APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR (Desiree Akhavan)

APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR

Shirin is a young woman caught between identities: bisexual, but afraid that coming out to her parents will prevent her from being the perfect Iranian-American daughter; a hip Brooklynite whose friends—and particularly her ex-girlfriend—can’t understand her trepidation about being honest with her family about her sexuality. In the depth of its characters and relatability of its situations, Desiree Akhavan’s warm and hilarious debut feature stands alongside filmmakers like Noah Baumbach, Lena Dunham, and Nicole Holofcener in delivering romantic comedy of the very highest order.

FAULTS (Riley Stearns)

Faults

Ansel Roth is one of the world’s leading experts on cults, and has built a career out of helping former members overcome brainwashing and reintegrate into society. He’s also a broken man, joylessly slogging from hotel to hotel in a futile attempt to promote his poorly received second book to ever-dwindling crowds. So when he’s approached by a distraught couple seeking his help in rescuing their daughter from a new and powerful cult family, Ansel’s anything but enthusiastic—until they put a large sum of money on the table. From Riley Stearns, director of MFF 2013’s Opening Night short The Cub, comes a brilliant film that confidently moves between dark comedy, thriller, serious drama.

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2014 Tribeca Film Festival Announces Award Winners; “ZERO MOTIVATION” “POINT AND SHOOT” “MANOS SUCIAS” “KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON” Win Top Awards

Tribeca Film Festival, VIMOOZ

ZERO MOTIVATION The 13th annual Tribeca Film Festival, which runs through April 27, 2014, announced the winners of its competition categories. The world competition winners for narrative and documentary films were chosen from 12 narrative and 12 documentary features from 10 countries. Best New Director prizes were awarded to a first-time director for both narrative and documentary films, selected from a pool of 39 feature films throughout the program. Awards were also given for the best narrative short, best documentary short, and student visionary films in the short film competitions. The winners, awards and comments from the jury who selected the recipients are as follows: WORLD NARRATIVE COMPETITION CATEGORIES: The jurors for the 2014 World Narrative Competition were Lake Bell, Steve Conrad, Bart Freundlich, Catherine Hardwicke, and Ben Younger. The Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature – ZERO MOTIVATION, written and directed by Talya Lavie (Israel). Jury Comments: “The winner of this year’s Founder’s Award follows young women who must find their place and establish their identity in a world normally dominated by men and machismo. They do so with humor, strength and intellect. The filmmaker mirrors these same qualities. We believe a new, powerful, voice has emerged.” Special Jury Mention: THE KIDNAPPING OF MICHEL HOUELLEBECQ, directed by Guillaume Nicloux (France). Best Actor in a Narrative Feature Film –Paul Schneider as Otto in GOODBYE TO ALL THAT, directed by Angus MacLachlan (USA). Jury Comments: “This performance reminded us that even in the most ordinary settings, our lives can summon extraordinary humor, pain, awkwardness, and if we earn it …. dignity.” Best Actress in a Narrative Feature Film – Valeria Bruni Tedeschi as Carla Bernaschi in HUMAN CAPITAL, directed by Paolo Virzi (Italy, France). Best Screenplay – THE KIDNAPPING OF MICHEL HOUELLEBECQ, written and directed by Guillaume Nicloux (France). Best Documentary Feature – POINT AND SHOOT, directed by Marshall Curry (USA). MANOS SUCIAS Best New Narrative Director – Josef Wladyka director of MANOS SUCIAS (Columbia, USA). Best New Documentary Director – Alan Hicks for KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON (USA). Best Narrative Short – THE PHONE CALL, directed by Mat Kirkby (UK). Best Documentary Short – ONE YEAR LEASE, directed by Brian Bolster (USA). The Nora Ephron Prize: ZERO MOTIVATION, written and directed by Talya Lavie (Israel). Special Jury Mention: I WON’T COME BACK, directed by Ilmar Raag (Belarus, Estonia, Finland, Kazhakstan, Russia). Tribeca Online Festival Best Short Film: LOVE IN THE TIME OF MARCH MADNESS, directed by Melissa Johnson and Robertino Zambramo (USA). Jury Comments: “In her elegant portrayal of a profoundly conflicted wife and mother, this actress crafts a complex performance of a woman wrestling between love, family and obligation. She layers both strength and fragility without self-consciousness, with a fearlessness to exercise both subtlety and restraint.” Best Cinematography – Cinematography by Damian García, for GÜEROS, directed by Alonso Ruizpalacios (Mexico). Jury Comments: “The film perfectly captured the energy and hope of the youth in its nation’s capital.” Jury Comments: “This screenwriter put a bodybuilder, a gypsy, a prostitute, and a world renowned poet in handcuffs at a dinner table and made it feel right. When a film’s language feels so natural as to make the viewer completely forget that a screenplay was written, the writer deserves special acknowledgement.” Best Narrative Editing – FIVE STAR, edited, directed and written by Keith Miller (USA). Jury Comments: “The winning film pulls the viewer into its world from its first decision — to live in the subtle emotional cues of the character’s face for nearly four minutes. The hypnotic pace keeps the stakes rising throughout. The attention to detail in the transitions lets us know we are being guided by a true filmmaker.” WORLD DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION CATEGORIES: The jurors for the 2014 World Documentary Competition were David Edelstein, Nick Fraser, Andrea Meditch, Jenni Wolfson, and Marina Zenovich. Best Documentary Feature – POINT AND SHOOT, directed by Marshall Curry (USA). Jury Comments: “The award goes to a film that makes its own rules. Working with hundreds of hours of first-person—selfie—footage by Matthew Van Dyke, director Marshall Curry creates an unsettlingly ambivalent and often darkly amusing portrait of a generation hellbent on documenting itself. Do we celebrate the so-called “manliness” of its protagonist—or wonder what the hell he’s doing inserting himself into the middle of a violent revolution, like a Zelig with his own camera? It’s a question viewers will brood on—much as this jury did.” Special Jury Mention: REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG, directed by Nancy Kates (USA). Best Documentary Editing – NE ME QUITTE PAS, edited, written and directed by Sabine Lubbe Bakker and Niels van Koevorden (Netherlands, Belgium). Jury Comments: “This year’s prize for editing celebrates a pair of filmmakers’ ability to give shape, rhythm, and even mythic beauty to a story that might have been, frankly, a sodden mess. For finding luster in the most unlikely places, the winners of this year’s prize for Best Documentary Editing goes to Sabine Lubbe Bakker and Niels van Koevorden for their bittersweet portrait of two Belgian boozers.” BEST NEW NARRATIVE DIRECTOR COMPETITION: The jurors for the 2014 Best New Narrative Director Competition were Jeff Goldblum, Nadine Labaki, Dorothy Lyman, Adepero Oduye, and Mickey Sumner. Best New Narrative Director – Josef Wladyka director of MANOS SUCIAS (Columbia, USA). Jury Comments: “We have chosen a filmmaker whose journey should truly be an (is an) example to all of us about the commitment to the process of researching and developing a film. Not only did this director spend several years immersed in a marginalized community in order to tell the story in the most truthful way possible, he impacted and contributed to that community. We felt this film was an eye and mind opener, that transported us to a different place, stimulating our thinking, allowing us to meditate on the relationship between violence and circumstance.” Special Jury Mention: GÜEROS, directed by Alonso Ruizpalacios (Mexico). BEST NEW DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR COMPETITION: The jurors for the 2014 Best New Documentary Director were Rebecca Cammisa, Heather Graham, Nate Parker, Doug Pray, and Michael Stuhlbarg. Best New Documentary Director – Alan Hicks for KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON (USA). KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON Jury Comments: “We have chosen to honor a filmmaker whose storytelling profoundly affected us all. This director’s work was not loud, did not call attention to itself, it displayed no excess. The filmmaking showed incredible focus, artistry, love and dedication. It told one simple story and told it well. This film has a beautiful soul, and to some extent it’s about soul. It inspired us, and we wish to honor its filmmaker so that they may continue to inspire others.” SHORT FILM COMPETITION CATEGORIES: The 2014 Best Narrative Short Competition jurors were Alfonso Arau, Whoopi Goldberg, Christine Lahti, Sheila Nevins, and Paul Wesley. Best Narrative Short – THE PHONE CALL, directed by Mat Kirkby (UK). Jury Comments: “This film demonstrates the sheer power of the human voice to convey compassion and understanding via a one-on-one telephone conversation. We have selected it for its simplicity and directness in showing how emotional bonds can be formed by empathetic communication and for its beautifully-measured performances.” The 2014 Best Documentary and Student Short Competition jurors were Lindsay Burdge, Toni Collette, Regina Dugan, Simon Kilmurry, and Anton Yelchin. Best Documentary Short – ONE YEAR LEASE, directed by Brian Bolster (USA). Jury Comments: “One Year Lease is a clever and humorously-constructed story that shows the tension of our human imperfections and our desire for connectedness, using an economy of language to construct a clear portrait of a woman we never see.” Special Jury Mention: THE NEXT PART, directed by Erin Sanger (USA). Student Visionary Award – NESMA’S BIRD, directed by Najwan Ali and Medoo Ali (Iraq). Jury Comments: “Tough, intimate, and with a clarity of vision, the winning film is a story of a fiercely strong young woman who is unapologetically herself. The directors have finely crafted a film of coherence and texture.” Special Jury Mention: CYCLOID, directed by Tomoki Kurogi (Japan). BOMBAY SAPPHIRE AWARD FOR TRANSMEDIA The 2014 BOMBAY SAPPHIRE Award for Transmedia jurors were Paola Antonelli, Kira Pollack, and Caspar Sonnen. Bombay Sapphire Award for Transmedia: CLOUDS, created by Jonathan Minard and James George (USA). Jury Comments: “The winning Storyscapes project is a tentacular documentary that explores a network of ideas thanks to digitally rendered, ectoplasmic talking heads selected and 3D-scanned quotes and questions from the interaction design community. Coders riffing about code, captured through the lens of code. It does not get more meta and abstract than this, and yet it is also surprisingly real and moving.” THE NORA EPHRON PRIZE The 2014 Nora Ephron Prize jurors were Delia Ephron, Carol Kane, Natasha Lyonne, Meera Menon, and Tanya Wexler. The Nora Ephron Prize: ZERO MOTIVATION, written and directed by Talya Lavie (Israel). Jury Comments: “In her unique and ambitious first feature, this filmmaker deftly handled such difficult themes as the military, sexism, love, ambition, and friendship. This filmmaker also pulled off the awesome feat of managing multiple characters and storylines. In, what was definitely the most hilarious film we saw at the festival…the winning film is a fresh, original, and heartfelt comedy about life behind the scenes in the Israeli army.” TRIBECA ONLINE FESTIVAL CATEGORIES: The 2014 Tribeca Online Festival winners were voted on by visitors to tribecafilm.com. Tribeca Online Festival Best Feature Film: VARA: A BLESSING, directed by Khyentse Norbu (Bhutan). Tribeca Online Festival Best Short Film: LOVE IN THE TIME OF MARCH MADNESS, directed by Melissa Johnson and Robertino Zambramo (USA).
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VIDEO Watch Trailer + Official Poster for Documentary WE COULD BE KING

Documentary

The official trailer is released for the documentary WE COULD BE KING from two-time Emmy® nominated director Judd Ehrlich. WE COULD BE KING follows the riveting true story of two rival Philadelphia high schools forced to merge due to budget cuts. Their football team’s young, rookie coach and the school’s new principal fight to overcome insurmountable odds and inspire their young players to come together and lift each other toward a better future. WE COULD BE KING will open theatrically in New York and Los Angeles on April 25th and be broadcast on ESPN2 on April 26th at 8pm.

Germantown and Martin Luther King High Schools were bitter rivals for over 40 years. This past year, a budget crisis caused Philadelphia to lay off over 4000 employees and close 37 schools, including Germantown High. Now Germantown must merge with their former rival, King. Against overwhelming odds, a 27-year old first time head coach and a new principal fight to inspire young men from difficult circumstances to come together and lift each other toward a better future.

Two-time Emmy® nominated director Judd Ehrlich uses an intimate, unflinching lens to tell a story much larger than the Martin Luther King Cougars. As the threat of more drastic budget cuts and the loss of funding for athletics looms large, WE COULD BE KING examines the crisis of education in urban America, and celebrates the power of sports to bring young people, neighborhoods, and a city together.

http://youtu.be/i1jgu9JG6qo
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Jim Mickle’s COLD IN JULY Among Lineup for 2014 Cannes Film Festival’s Directors’ Fortnight

Directors’ Fortnight (Quinzaine des Cinéastes)

COLD IN JULY

Jim Mickle’s COLD IN JULY still flying high from its critically acclaimed world premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, has been selected in the program lineup for Cannes Film Festival’s Directors’ Fortnight. This will be Jim’s second time in this selection after last year’s cannibal drama, WE ARE WHAT WE ARE. IFC Films will release COLD IN JULY day-and-date, theatrically and on VOD May 23rd.

“It’s unbelievably flattering and rewarding to be invited back to Fortnight. Ever since reading Joe Lansdale’s wonderfully twisted novel, I’ve wanted to make a film that felt like that book. COLD IN JULY has been in our lives for a very long time and many times felt like it may never make it to the big screen. To return to the Croisette to show this film to the world makes all of that time well worth the wait”, said filmmaker Jim Mickle.

In COLD IN JULY, while investigating noises in his house one balmy Texas night in 1989, Richard Dane (Michael C. Hall) puts a bullet in the brain of a low-life burglar, Freddy Russell (Wyatt Russell). Although he’s hailed as a small-town hero, Dane soon finds himself fearing for his family’s safety when Freddy’s ex-con father, Ben (Sam Shepard), rolls into town; hell-bent on revenge. However, not all is as it seems. Shortly after Dane kills the home intruder, his life begins to unravel into a dark underworld of corruption and violence. Twists and turns continue to pile up as the film reaches its inevitable destination: a gore-soaked dead end.

http://youtu.be/idLGJ3SleDs

Full lineup for Cannes Film Festival’s Directors’ Fortnight.:

Special Screenings

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Tobe Hooper

Li’l Quinquin Bruno Dumont

Feature Competition

Halleluiah Fabrice Du Welz (Belgium/France)

Next to Her Asaf Korman (Israel)

Catch Me Daddy Daniel Wolfe (UK)

Cold in July Jim Mickle (USA)

Fighters Thomas Cailley (France)

Gett Le Proces de Viviane Amsalem Ronit and Shlomi El Kabetz (Israel, France, Germany)

Tale of Princess Kaguya Isao Takahata (Japan)

A Hard Day Seong-Hun Kim (South Korea)

Eat Your Bones Jean-Charles Hue (France)

National Gallery Frederick Wiseman (France/USA)

Pride Matthew Warchus (UK)

Queen and Country John Boorman (UK)

Refugiado Diego Lerman (Argentina, France, Germany)

These Final Hours Zach Hilditch (Australia)

Tu Dors Nicole Stephane Lafleur (Canada)

Whiplash Damien Chazelle (USA)

Short Films Category

8 Bullets Frank Ternier (France)

The Revolution Hunter Margarida Rego (Portugal)

Cambodia 2099 Davy Chou (France)

In August Jenna Hasse (Switzerland)

Fragments Aga Woszczynska (Poland)

Guy Moquet Demis Herenger (France)

Jutra Marie-Jose Saint-Pierre (Canada)

Man on the Chair Dahee Jeong (France/South Korea)

Heartless Nara Normande and Tiao Tiao (Brazil)

Torn Elmar Imanov and Engin Kundag (Azerbaijan)

It Can Pass Through the Wall Radu Jude (Romania)
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Camden International Film Festival announces Points North Fellowship; Filmmakers Invited to Apply

Camden International Film Festival

The Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) which celebrates its 10th anniversary this September 25-28, 2014, announced the expansion of the Points North Documentary Forum with the launch of the Points North Fellowship.

The Points North Fellowship enhances and expands upon the well-established Points North Pitch, a unique opportunity to pitch documentary works-in-progress to an international delegation of funders, commissioning editors and producers before a live audience. Five selected filmmakers (or filmmaking teams) will receive two VIP passes to the festival, four nights of accommodations and a stipend to subsidize their travel to Camden. The fellowship will begin with a day of intensive pitch training in partnership with the Maine Media Workshop (MMW) and focused industry mentorship held at the MMW’s Campus prior to the start of the festival, followed by the fifth annual Points North Pitch, held in the Camden Opera House on September 27, 2014.

In January 2015, all Points North Fellows will receive a ticket to the Cinema Eye Honors, an invitation to CIFF’s annual nominees party and two nights of accommodations in NYC. These events will give fellows an opportunity to connect with the wider documentary community and follow up on their pitches by setting up targeted meetings with industry delegates.

Submissions for the Points North Fellowship are now open through July 18, 2014. http://camdenfilmfest.org/pointsnorth

Fellows will also have a chance to win the Points North Pitch Award, which includes a $1000 cash prize from Documentary Educational Resources, three consultations with the Tribeca Film Institute, and a discounted post-production package from Modulus Studios. Past panelists include representatives from BBC, HBO, A&E IndieFilms, Participant Media, ARTE, ITVS, POV, Al Jazeera, Sundance Institute, Tribeca Film Institute, and Cinereach, as well as leading executive producers and distributors.

The Points North Documentary Forum, held concurrently with CIFF, will continue to feature three days of programming for passholders, including hands-on workshops, panel discussions, one-on-one meetings, networking events and master classes designed to help documentary filmmakers advance their projects in concrete, meaningful ways. In addition to Points North Fellows, the 2014 forum expects to host nearly forty filmmakers with projects in development, through partnerships with the UnionDocs Collaborative Fellows, the Bay Area Video Coalition’s MediaMaker Fellows and the LEF Foundation’s Moving Image grantees.

Points North Pitch Alumni currently traveling the festival circuit include Mike Attie and Meghan O’Hara’s In Country (Points North Pitch Winner 2012), which held its World Premiere at Full Frame in April, and Aaron Naar’s Mateo, which recently premiered at SXSW. Other notable films that have pitched at Points North include the critically-acclaimed Leviathan and the award-winning Betting the Farm.

As Camden International Film Festival enters its second decade and a new chapter of growth, the festival has recruited an 8-member Industry Advisory Board to guide the development of the forum, which includes Andrea Meditch (Founder/President, Back Allie Entertainment), Ryan Harrington (Vice President Artist Programs, Tribeca Film Institute), Kristin Feeley (Director, Labs and Artist Support, Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program), Brian Newman (Founder, Sub-Genre Media), Robb Moss (Filmmaker, Harvard University Professor), Mary Lampson (Filmmaker/Editor), Nancy Schafer (Producer, former ED of Tribeca Enterprises), and Lyda Kuth (Executive Director, LEF Foundation).

The Points North Documentary Forum is made possible by the generous support of the National Endowments for the Arts, the LEF Foundation, the Maine Arts Commission, The Fledgling Fund, Maine Technology Institute and the Maine Media Workshops.
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40th Seattle International Film Festival To Open With Jimi Hendrix Biopic

Seattle International Film Festival

The Seattle International Film Festival announced that the Opening Night Film for its 40th annual Festival will be Jimi: All Is By My Side. Musician, actor, and style icon André Benjamin stars as Seattle rock legend Jimi Hendrix in this film from Academy Award®-winning screenwriter John Ridley (12 Years a Slave). Ridley is scheduled to attend the Opening Night festivities on Thursday, May 15.

It’s 1966 and James Hendrix is an unknown backup guitarist in New York City. One night, Linda Keith (rising British talent Imogen Poots) – girlfriend to Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards – happens to catch a set he’s playing and, mesmerized by his skills, brings Hendrix into her inner circle in London. There, Hendrix has the freedom to develop his craft and personal style. Before long, however, he finds himself caught between Linda’s protective grasp and the charms of a new admirer (Hayley Atwell, Captain America). With these two women by his side, Jimi, as he is now known, navigates the London music scene and begins to make his mark in the world of rock ‘n’ roll – the rest is history.

Ridley, who also wrote and executive produced the film, has crafted a daring, wholly original interpretation of an artist’s origins, perfectly blending his story with archival footage of the era. Benjamin’s magnetic, nuanced performance is the beating heart of Jimi: All Is By My Side; he brilliantly distills the essence of Hendrix before Hendrix. The result is an intimate portrait of the early, momentous years in the life of the legendary guitarist.

The film will be released in theaters this summer by XLrator Media with Open Road Films.

Carl Spence, SIFF’s Artistic Director, says, “I can’t think of a more fitting film to open our 40th – as SIFF looks back on where we’ve come from and forward to where we’re going, we’re inviting everyone to come together to see a film that traces the origins of a Seattle music legend. The film and music communities of Seattle have proved to be a source of incredible creative expression capable of garnering attention worldwide, and Jimi encapsulates that.”

Adds Mary Bacarella, SIFF’s Managing Director, “I am thrilled to kick off the Festival with such an exciting film and guests. 2014 has been an incredible year for Seattle, with the Seahawks winning the Super Bowl and Macklemore taking the world by storm – SIFF’s 40th Festival will keep the party going!”
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“THE CASE AGAINST 8” “HELLION” “OBVIOUS CHILD” Among 8 More Feature Films Added to Maryland Film Fest 2014

Maryland Film Festival

THE CASE AGAINST 8

Maryland Film Festival taking place May 7-11, 2014 in downtown Baltimore, continued announcing titles for its 16th annual festival, unveiling 18 feature-length films in addition to the 22 already announced.Today’s announcement included Sundance-premiered titles The Case Against 8, Hellion, and Obvious Child; films from Russia, Uruguay, and Quebec; documentaries about street photographers, art forgers, and a former Wire Actress; Onur Tukel’s vampire comedy Summer of Blood; and Slamdance special jury prize-winner I Play With the Phrase Each Other.

The 18 feature films announced today for MFF 2014 are:

ACTRESS (Robert Greene) Brandy Burre had a recurring role on HBO’s The Wire before giving up her career to start a family. When she decides to reclaim her life as an actor years later, the domestic world she’s carefully created crumbles around her. The latest non-fiction film from the director of Fake It So Real (MFF 2011).

APPROACHING THE ELEPHANT (Amanda Wilder) This documentary recalls the pioneering early work of Frederick Wiseman as it embeds viewers in the inaugural year of a democratic free school where classes are voluntary and children and staff have equal votes in creating the rules.

ART AND CRAFT (Sam Cullman, Jennifer Grausman) For several decades, gifted and incredibly prolific forger Mark Landis compulsively created impeccable copies of works by a variety of major artists, donating them to institutions across the country and landing pieces on many of their walls. Art and Craft brings us into the cluttered and insular life of an unforgettable character just as he finds his foil in an equally obsessive art registrar.

THE AUCTION (Sébastien Pilote) This poignant character study from Quebec follows a sheep farmer who’s stayed true to the way of life he inherited from his father even as, one by one, his neighbors sell off their farms to developers. As he reaches old age, his two daughters come back into his life in ways that change him forever.

BALTIMORE IN BLACK AND WHITE (Mary Posatko, Emily Topper) One night in 1972, a murder rocked a Baltimore family. Years later, Emily Topper returns to the city, seeking closure for a crime that has haunted her family over 40 years—and uncovers complex issues of race and class in the process.

BUZZARD (Joel Potrykus) In the unnerving and darkly comic tradition of Frownland and Bad Fever comes the story of Marty, a bored and angry office worker who takes his penchant for cheating the system over the edge. Fresh from screenings at SXSW and New Directors/New Films.

THE CASE AGAINST 8 (Ben Cotner, Ryan White) With the passing of California’s Proposition 8 in 2008, the right for same-sex couples to marry was repealed. A very unlikely pair of lawyers—Theodore Olson and David Boies, who faced off during Bush v. Gore—decided to challenge Prop 8, and take their case all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary. This riveting documentary offers remarkable access as it follows that fight from day one to its emotional conclusion.

CELESTIAL WIVES OF THE MEADOW MARI (Aleksey Fedorchenko) From the writer/director team behind 2010’s Silent Souls comes this frank exploration of the sex lives of female members of the Meadow Mari, a western Russian ethnic group that prizes fertility, beauty, and happiness.

DEEP CITY: THE BIRTH OF THE MIAMI SOUND (Dennis Scholl, Marlon Johnson, Chad Tingle) While the soulful sounds of Detroit and Memphis are celebrated worldwide thanks to influential labels like Motown and Stax, the 1960s and 1970s saw explosions of soul and funk scenes throughout the country. Deep City mixes wonderful music and archival footage with new interviews as it documents the songwriters, performers, and entrepreneurs behind a vibrant Miami record label that should’ve been huge.

EVERYBODY STREET (Cheryl Dunn) More than a dozen photographers (including Ricky Powell, Jamel Shabazz, Martha Cooper, and Boogie) are the subject of this visually rich documentary celebrating artists who have given us new ways to see both the streets of New York and the colorful characters that populate them.

GLENA (Allan Luebke) This rousing documentary follows Glena Avila, a woman who, despite no background in the sport, gave cage fighting a try. In the process, she discovered a deep passion and strong talent—but also put new pressures on her finances, love life, and relationship with her teenage son.

HELLION (Kat Candler) Juliette Lewis, Aaron Paul, and newcomer Josh Wiggins shine in this drama following a Southeast Texas teen trying to find himself amidst a group of hell-raising friends and a father tormented by his own personal demons. A feature developed from Candler’s short of the same name, which screened within the festival in 2012.

I PLAY WITH THE PHRASE EACH OTHER (Jay Alvarez) The first feature film composed entirely of cellphone calls centers around Jake, a young neurotic who moves to the city to live with his friend Sean, a fanatical poet who survives by swindling inexperienced Craigslist customers. Winner of a Special Jury Prize for Original Vision at Slamdance 2014.

THE MILITANT (Manolo Nieto) A wave of exciting films from Uruguay has hit the festival circuit over the last decade, evidence of a rich film culture previously under-represented on U.S. screens. As with Gigante and A Useful Life (MFF 2011), films that share beautiful camerawork from The Militant’s Arauco Hernández Holz, this film focuses on an idiosyncratic loner struggling to find his rhythm with the people around him—in this case, a taciturn student organizer who relocates from the big-city university to a rural outpost after his father passes away.

OBVIOUS CHILD (Gillian Robespierre) When a 20-something Brooklyn comedian gets dumped, her comedic material and personal life both head in impulsive new directions, leading to an unwanted pregnancy and an appointment at Planned Parenthood. Jenny Slate, Jake Lacy, Gaby Hoffmann, David Cross, Gabe Liedman, and Richard Kind star in this comedy that mines a divisive issue for surprisingly warm and hilarious returns.

SUMMER OF BLOOD (Onur Tukel) Neurotic romance collides with bloody horror and the mixed blessing of immortality in this vampire comedy set in contemporary New York. Starring writer/director Tukel (co-star and co-writer of MFF 2011’s Septien) alongside Anna Margaret Hollyman (star of MFF 2013’s White Reindeer), Dakota Goldhor, and Dustin Guy Defa.

THE VANQUISHING OF THE WITCH BABA YAGA (Jessica Oreck) From the director of Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo and Aatsinki: The Story of Arctic Cowboys, both of which screened within the festival, comes this mysterious feature that descends into Eastern Europe’s haunted woodlands to deliver a captivating mix of documentary, experimental film, folklore, and animation.

YOUNG BODIES HEAL QUICKLY (Andrew T. Betzer) At once meditative and transgressive, this challenging art film shot in and around Maryland brings to mind the work of Harmony Korine and Bruno Dumont in telling its story of two young brothers on the run as they hope to reconnect with their estranged father, a key figure in a disturbing subculture. Cast includes Kate Lyn Sheil (Sun Don’t Shine, The Comedy) and Julie Sokolowski (of Dumont’s Hadewijch).
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