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Wes Anderson’s GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL Gets A Release Date, Poster and Trailer

News

Fox Searchlight has set a theatrical release date of March 7, 2014 for Wes Anderson’s THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL. Starring Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, Tilda Swinton, Owen Wilson, Ed Norton, Adrien Brody, Saoirse Ronan, Jeff Goldblum, Harvey Keitel, Tom Wilkinson, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL recounts the adventures of Gustave H, a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars, and Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend. The story involves the theft and recovery of a priceless Renaissance painting and the battle for an enormous family fortune — all against the back-drop of a suddenly and dramatically changing Continent.

http://youtu.be/1Fg5iWmQjwk
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“HARD TIME BUS” “TAKE US HOME” Win Top Awards at 2013 Hollywood Black Film Festival

Hollywood Black Film Festival

Hollywood Black Film Festival 2013 Winners

HARD TIME BUS,  directed by Dean Charles, won the award for Best Feature; and TAKE US HOME , directed by Aileen LeBlanc and Orly Malessa won the award for Best Documentary, at the Hollywood Black Film Festival which took place October 6 to 6, 2013. IF I WERE A BELL written and directed by Sherese Robinson Lee won the award for Best Short.

Starring Neil Reidman, Naomi Ryan and Roger Griffiths, HARD TIME BUS follows Mark Bishop, who after a rude awakening, his carefree and complacent lifestyle comes crashing back to reality, forcing him to make hasty plans to marry devoted girlfriend, Denise. His decision opens his eyes to the life he led and the friends he thought he knew, but will the years of complacency finally catch up with him before he makes it to the alter.

In the documentary TAKE US HOME , Fekadu and his family of eight have been waiting in Gondar for ten years. They are hoping to among those who are chosen to go to Israel but, though they are of Jewish heritage, they had been practicing Christianity since their grandparents converted many years ago. Do they fit the criteria as to who is Jewish and deserving of acceptance at “home” in the state of Israel?

FEATURE WINNER 

HARD TIME BUS
Written by: Owen Mowatt 
Directed by: Dean Charles

SHORT WINNER

IF I WERE A BELL 
Written/Directed by: Sherese Robinson Lee

Shorts HONORABLE MENTION 

SUNDAY’S AT NOON
Written by: Lyric Anderson & Tami Roman
 Directed by: Ka’ramuu Kush

STUDENT WINNER 

JUMP
Written by: Anthony Harper 
Directed by: Not Provided

Students HONORABLE MENTION 

BEYOND THE ECHO OF THE DRUM
Written by: Not Provided
Directed by: Lori Webster 

DOCUMENTARY WINNER 

TAKE US HOME
Written by: Aileen LeBlanc 
Directed by: Aileen LeBlanc & Orly Malessa

DOCUMENTARY HONORABLE MENTION 

IN SEARCH OF THE BLACK KNIGHT
Written/Directed by: Tamarat Makonnen

WEB SERIES WINNER 

MOMMY UNCENSORED: CONFESSIONS OF A REAL MOM
Written by:  Shannon Byrd,  Adrian Dukes,  Kellana Franklin,  Charity Jordan , Nell Maxwell,  Zoie Sykes,  Sonya Tate-Smith
Directed by:  Christine Horn,  Justin Jordan,  David Kote,  Sharell Luckett,  Nik Mynyan

FILM DIASPORA

MALAGASY MANKANY (LEGENDS OF MADAGASCAR)
Writer-director: Haminiaina Ratovarivony

PROJECT STARGAZER

The finalists will begin Project Stargazer Lab in January 2014, where they will be paired with mentors from the entertainment industry and NASA while they further develop their Sci-Fi ideas into a feature length screenplay at Writers Boot Camp over the course of nine months.

BEYOND HEAVEN
by: Ronald Taylor, Los Angeles, CA 

BROUGHT UP
by: Rashim Cannad and Tarina Pouncy, Los Angeles, CA 

MIRA BANE
by: Arvel Chappell III and Michael J. Martinez, Los Angeles, CA

STORYTELLER COMPETITION

1st place Winner: ESTEEM LADIES OF HOPE – Shington Lamy, Tallahassee, FL
 2nd place: THE PACK – BOND OF BLOOD, Devvin Mattison, Arlington, TX 
3rd place: MADAME CHARLIE – Nadria Tucker, Los Angeles, CA

TWINKIE BYRD’S MONOLOGUE SLAM

Kyla Garcia, Los Angeles, CA
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Cine Las Americas International Sets 2014 Dates

Cine Las Americas International Film Festival

Cine Las Americas announced the 17th Cine Las Americas International Film Festival, to take place from April 22 to 27, 2014 in Austin, Texas. The festival brings a selection of the newest Ibero-American cinema and American Indigenous films, showcasing films and filmmakers through its world-renowned programs. The deadline for filmmakers to submit entries is December 13, 2013.

Cine Las Americas invites filmmakers, producers and distributors to participate in the Cine Las Americas International Film Festival, now in its seventeenth consecutive year. The festival showcases contemporary films from Latin America (North, Central, South America, and the Caribbean) and the Iberian Peninsula. Films made by or about Latinos in the U.S. or the rest of the world, and films by or about indigenous groups of the Americas, are also invited to participate.

To be submitted for consideration, projects must have been completed after January 1, 2012. For all works where the spoken language is not English, English subtitles and/or narration are required. Preference is given to regional or national premieres, as well as to films that have not screened theatrically in Austin or on national television in the USA prior to the festival.

Deadline: December 13, 2013 at 5:00pm (Non-refundable entry fee US$25)
Late Deadline: January 17, 2014 at 5:00pm (Late entry fee US$50)
Emergencia Youth Films Deadline: January 17, 2014 at 5:00PM (Youth Films pay no entry fee)

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Bollywood Action-Comedy BOSS Opens in Theaters on Wednesday, October 16, 2013 | TRAILER

Foreign Language Films

The new Bollywood action-comedy BOSS directed by Anthony D’Souza, and starring Akshay Kumar, Aditi Rao Hydari, Shiv Pandit, and Mithun Chakraborty opens in 100 theaters across top North American markets today, Wednesday, October 16, 2013.

BOSS is just as colorful as his actions. He travels with a massive entourage of trucks that follow him. He has his personal cheerleaders who ‘cheer’ him during his endeavors. He has a penchant for playing loud music when he’s beating up the bad guys. That’s BOSS. When his father approaches him for help, BOSS leaves everything aside and makes his family his first priority. Now BOSS will travel to Delhi to accomplish his mission. His adversaries are powerful people with top connections. But BOSS is a one-man-army. He will demolish everything that comes in the way of his family – be it a dangerous cop or a corrupt Minister. However, he will take his revenge in his own way. There will be loads of action, loads of fun and loads of excitement in this entire journey. The journey that will lead to the ultimate combat in the historic war ground of Kurukshetra where once again, after centuries, good and evil will battle one another. And once again, evil will be vanquished from the face of the Earth. But this time, it will all be – BOSS style.

http://youtu.be/zaoDtl0GL2E
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First La Costa Film Festival Announces Lineup; Opens With THE SHORT GAME

La Costa Film Festival

THE SHORT GAME

The first La Costa Film Festival will run October 24 to October 27, 2013, at the world famous Omni La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California. The festival will open with the award winning documentary THE SHORT GAME executive produced by Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel; the film follows the lives of eight of the best seven-year-old golfers in the world as they train for and compete in the World Championships of Junior Golf. Closing the festival will be AT MIDDLETON, which stars Andy Garcia, Vera Farmiga, and Taissa Farmiga in the story of two wildly different parents who meet and discover they have an irresistible chemistry while taking their kids on a college tour.

The juried sports competition includes a variety of compelling documentary features: THE CRASH REEL follows snowboarder Kevin Pearce and the traumatic brain injury that kept him from competing for Gold in 2010; MAIDENTRIP reveals the journey of Laura Dekker, the youngest person to ever sail around the world alone; MCCONKEY is about Shane McConkey, a revered pioneer of free-skiing and ski-BASE jumping; and the story of two young surfers who battle nature in a remote, arctic island in Northern Norway in order to catch the perfect wave is the focus of NORTH OF THE SUN. The opening night film, THE SHORT GAME, will also compete.

Shorts in competition include: SLOMO, THE RED PILL, CROOKED LINES, and MAGNESIUM.

The winner of the local high school competition is the short film ROUTINES, which will premiere at the festival. ROUTINES was co-directed by Canyon Crest Academy senior Jason Lee Phillips and former CCA student Jason Lee Segal, who is now at Chapman University. Canyon Crest Academy will receive a cash prize from the La Costa Film Festival for its distinguished Envision Cinema program.

The Narrative spotlight section features favorites from this year’s festival circuit: the Belgian drama BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN is flavored with American-style bluegrass and was awarded the Panorama Audience Award at the Berlin Film Festival, as well as Best Actress and Best Screenplay awards at Tribeca; based on a true story of one woman’s fight against breast cancer, DECODING ANNIE PARKER stars Helen Hunt and, winner of the Best Actress award at the recent Seattle International Film Festival, Samantha Morton; French dramedy JUST A SIGH premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival this year; and winner of a Special Jury Prize at Tribeca, STAND CLEAR OF THE CLOSING DOORS.

The Documentary Showcase also has its share of acclaimed titles: an intimate portrait exploring the tragedy of Alzheimer’s, THE GENIUS OF MARIAN premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival; WALKING THE CAMINO is a festival audience favorite about the experience of walking the ancient 500-mile pilgrimage across Northern Spain known as “The Camino de Santiago;” and winner of the Grand Jury Prize at this year’s SXSW, WILLIAM AND THE WINDMILL follows a young Malawian who rescued his family from famine by building a power-generating windmill from scrap parts.

There will also be a special outdoor retrospective screening of the 1989 Kevin Costner classic, FIELD OF DREAMS, in which an Iowa farmer is inspired by a voice he can’t ignore to pursue a dream he can hardly believe.

In another nod to the area, two films will screen as part of the festival’s Surf Spotlight: ISOLATED and H2INDO.

The festival’s family film will be KHUMBA, an animated comedy from South Africa, which recently premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, and features the voices of Steve Buscemi and Laurence Fishburne.

“We’re very proud to welcome so many talented filmmakers from around the world and present their work to our community,” said festival founders, Mike and Ruby Callihan. “In turn, once they experience the beauty, hospitality, and wonder of Carlsbad, we believe it will leave a lasting impression, and they’ll want to return often.”

OPENING NIGHT GALA

THE SHORT GAME
USA / 2013 / 90min
Director: Josh Greenbaum
Cast: Edd Hall, Jennifer Van Horn, Allan Kournikova, Zamokuhle Nxasana, Alexa Pano, Yang Kuan, Jed Dy, Augustin Valery, Sky Sudberry, Amari Avery

The best seven-year-old golfers from around the world descend on the world famous Pinehurst Golf course in North Carolina to determine the next world champion and who might become golf’s next phenomenon. Most of these young prodigies have been holding clubs since before they could walk and are better by the time they are six than most people will be in their lifetime. This is the breeding ground for the PGA and the stakes are huge. THE SHORT GAME follows nine young golfers vying for the title of ‘world champion’.

CLOSING NIGHT GALA

AT MIDDLETON
USA / 2013 / 100min
Director: Adam Rodgers
Writers: Glenn German, Adam Rodgers
Cast: Vera Farmiga, Taissa Farmiga, Andy Garcia, Tom Skerritt, Peter Riegert, Nicholas Braun, Daniella Garcia, Tony Doupe, Spencer Lofranco, Sean Cook, D.R. Anderson, Stephen Borello IV, Kent Kimball, Kenny Parks Jr.

It’s not only teenagers who find themselves when they go off to college. Two brilliant actors best known for dramatic roles join forces in a romantic romp, and they have a ball. Vera Farmiga and Andy Garcia play strangers who meet while escorting their teen children to campus-tour day at a mythical college named Middleton (the film is in part a hilarious parody of American college life).

SPECIAL “UNDER THE STARS” RETROSPECTIVE SCREENING

FIELD OF DREAMS
USA / 1989 / 107min
Director: Phil Alden Robinson
Screenplay: Phil Alden Robinson
Cast: Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, Gaby Hoffman, Ray Liotta, Timothy Busfield, James Earl Jones, Burt Lancaster, Frank Whaley, Dwier Brown

An Iowa corn farmer, hearing voices, interprets them as a command to build a baseball diamond in his fields; he does, and the Chicago Black Sox come.

SPORTS COMPETITION

THE CRASH REEL
USA / 2013 / 90 min
Director: Lucy Walker
Cast: Kevin Pearce, Shaun White, Mason Aguirre, Jake Burton, Danny Davis, Scotty Lago, Jack Mitrani, Luke Mitrani

Fifteen years of vérité footage show the epic rivalry between half-pipe legends Shaun White and Kevin Pearce, childhood friends who become number one and two in the world leading up to the Vancouver Winter Olympics, pushing one another to ever more dangerous tricks, until Kevin crashes on a Park City half-pipe, barely surviving. As Kevin recovers from his injury, Shaun wins Gold. Now all Kevin wants to do is get on his snowboard again, even though medics and family fear this could kill him.

MAIDENTRIP
USA / 2013 / 75 min
Director: Jillian Schlesinger
Writers: Laura Dekker, Penelope Falk, Jillian Schlesinger
Cast: Laura Dekker

14-year-old Laura Dekker sets out on a two-year voyage in pursuit of her dream to become the youngest person ever to sail around the world alone.

MCCONKEY
USA / 2013 / 109 min
Director: Murray Wais
Writers: Rob Bruce, Scott Gaffney, Murray Wais, Steve Winter, David Zeiff
Cast: Shane McConkey, Sherry McConkey, J.T. Holmes, Glenn McConkey, Jim McConkey, Jonny Moseley, Miles Daisher, Travis Pastrana, Bob Burnquist, Mike Douglas, Kent Kreitler, Scot Schmidt

A heartfelt examination of the legacy one athlete left to the progression of his sports, and the path he paved to conquer his dreams. Shane McConkey is revered as a pioneer of freeskiing and ski-BASE jumping, and through his talent and ability to use his trademark irreverent humor he’s an inspiration to countless lives.

NORTH OF THE SUN
Norway / 2012 / 46 min
Director: Jorn Nyseth Ranum, Inge Wegge
Writers: Jorn Nyseth Ranum, Inge Wegge
Cast: Jorn Nyseth Ranum, Inge Wegge

Inge Wegge (25) and Jorn Ranum (22) spent nine months of cold, Norwegian winter in the isolated and uninhabited bay of a remote, arctic island by the coast of Northern-Norway, facing nothing but the vast Atlantic Ocean. There they built a cabin out of driftwood and other cast-off materials that washed up on shore, and ate expired food the local stores would otherwise have thrown away. But the boys brought with them two items of utmost importance: their surfboards – perhaps their biggest motivation for the arctic adventure. Because the remote bay holds a well kept secret; some of the world’s finest waves.

THE SHORT GAME
USA / 2013 / 90min
Director: Josh Greenbaum
Cast: Edd Hall, Jennifer Van Horn, Allan Kournikova, Zamokuhle Nxasana, Alexa Pano, Yang Kuan, Jed Dy, Augustin Valery, Sky Sudberry, Amari Avery

The best seven-year-old golfers from around the world descend on the world famous Pinehurst Golf course in North Carolina to determine the next world champion and who might become golf’s next phenomenon. Most of these young prodigies have been holding clubs since before they could walk and are better by the time they are six than most people will be in their lifetime. This is the breeding ground for the PGA and the stakes are huge. THE SHORT GAME follows nine young golfers vying for the title of ‘world champion’.

COMPETITION SPORTS SHORTS
CROOKED LINES
USA / 2013 / 19 min
Director: Lucy Walker
Cast: Denise Tan, Samira Maas, Vanja Rukavina

Ailson Eraclito Da Silva is the best rower in Brazilian history, the Michael Phelps of his sport. Growing up in a leper colony on the banks of the Amazon River, he’s constantly discriminated against. But his dream to win Gold for Brazil at the Olympics is within his grasp. He’s got the talent. But there’s a twist, and this gets more interesting than any Olympics featurette. Because Ailson has an achilles heel — he’s heavy for the lightweight category he competes in. Usually, he makes his weight by not drinking ahead of regattas. This time, his plan fails: he’s disqualified from the Olympic trials. Everyone plays the blame game, until Ailson goes home and faces up to the real reason he can’t control his weight

MAGNESIUM
Netherlands/ 2013 / 20 min
Director: Sam de Jong
Cast: Denise Tan, Samira Maas, Vanja Rukavina

A talented gymnast makes a life-changing discovery as she prepares for an important tournament, which is her last chance to reach the top.

THE RED PILL
USA / 2013 / 14 min
Director: Lucy Walker
Cast: Anjali Forber-Pratt, Jean Driscoll

Illinois-based Paralympian Anjali Forber-Pratt was adopted from India as an infant and became paralyzed shortly after arriving in the US. Despite daunting obstacles – told by teachers she couldn’t go to college, having to sue her school district – Anjali is now a PhD graduate and world record holder in 200m wheelchair racing. And she says if she could do it all over, she’d pick being disabled.

SLOMO
USA / 2013 / 17 min
Director: Joshua Izenberg
Cast: John Kitchin
SXSW ’13 (Best Short Doc), Big Sky Documentary FF ’13 (Best Short Doc)

Depressed and frustrated with his life, Dr. John Kitchin abandons his career as a neurologist and moves to Pacific Beach. There, he undergoes a radical transformation into SLOMO, trading his lab coat for a pair of rollerblades and his IRA for a taste of divinity.

NARRATIVE SPOTLIGHT

BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN
Belgium / 2012 / 111min
Director: Felix Van Groeningen
Writer: Johan Heldenbergh, Mieke Dobbels, Carl Joos, Felix Van Groeningen
Cast: Veerle Baetens, Johan Heldenbergh, Nell Cattryse, Geert Van Rampelberg, Nils De Caster, Robbie Cleiren, Bert Huysentruyt, Jan Bijvoet, Blanka Heirman, George W Bush

Elise and Didier fall in love at first sight, in spite of their differences. He talks, she listens. He’s a romantic atheist, she’s a religious realist. When their daughter becomes seriously ill, their love is put on trial.

DECODING ANNIE PARKER
USA / 2013 / 91min
Director: Steven Bernstein
Writer: Adam Bernstein, Steven Bernstein, Michael Moss
Cast: Samantha Morton, Helen Hunt

Love, science, sex, infidelity, disease, and comedy. The wild, mostly true, story of the irrepressible Annie Parker and the almost discovery of a cure for cancer.

JUST A SIGH
France, Belgium, Ireland / 2013 / 104min
Director: Jérôme Bonnell
Writer: Jérôme Bonnell
Cast: Emmanuelle Devos, Gabriel Byrne, Gilles Privat, Aurélia Petit, Laurent Capelluto

Alix and Doug were not supposed to meet, but they did. They did because Alix, whose relationship with her husband was at a crossroads, fancied this handsome serious-looking gentleman on the Paris-bound train. They did because Doug, although not in the mood for love, quickly fell for her. They were not supposed to meet but their brief encounter would prove to be overwhelming.

STAND CLEAR OF THE CLOSING DOORS
USA/ 2013/ 102min
Director: Sam Fleischner
Writer: Rose Lichter-Marck, Micah Bloomberg
Cast: Andrea Suarez Paz, Jesus Sanchez-Velez, Azul Zorrilla, Marsha Stephanie Blake, Tenoch Huerta Mejia, Kevin Bewersdorf

The story of an autistic youth named Ricky who, after a particularly difficult day at school, escapes into the subways. It’s here that he starts his real journey, on a days-long voyage of discovery while, above ground, his mom frantically searches for him.

DOCUMENTARY SHOWCASE

THE GENIUS OF MARIAN
USA / 2013 / 85min
Director: Anna Fitch, Banker White
Cast: Pam White, Marian Steele, Banker White

The Genius of Marian follows Pam White in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Her son, the filmmaker, works with her as she attempts to write a book that tributes her mother, the artist Marian Steele. As Pam’s family comes together to support her, they must also prepare for the new reality that Alzheimer’s brings. Both an intimate look at a much-feared illness and a loving portrait of the meaning of family.

WALKING THE CAMINO
USA / 2013 / 76min
Director: Lydia B. Smith

The story of walking the ancient 500-mile pilgrimage across Northern Spain known as ‘The Camino de Santiago’. The documentary follows six strangers from incredibly diverse walks of life as they attempt to cross an entire country on foot with only a backpack, a pair of boots, and an open mind. Each pilgrim throws themselves heart-and-soul into their physical trek to Santiago de Compostela, and their personal journey to themselves. As you watch, you will learn the rich history of this honored tradition, as well as witness the Camino’s remarkable ability to change lives and provide those who choose to walk its paths with a greater sense of self and spiritual knowledge.

WILLIAM AND THE WINDMILL
USA, Malawi, South Africa / 2013 / 95min
Director & Producer: Ben Nabors
Cast: William Kamkwamba,Tom Rielly

Fourteen-year-old Malawian William Kamkwamba teaches himself to build a power-generating windmill from junk parts, successfully rescuing his family from poverty and famine. He becomes an energy icon for the developing world and meets American entrepreneur and mentor Tom Rielly, who helps him imagine a new future. Fame, opportunity, stress, and isolation follow his invention, and his life is transformed. As William struggles with the potential of his promising future, he privately yearns to distance himself from the windmill that made him famous. This is a story about a complex young man straddling two cultures, carrying the burdens of his past achievements, while boldly pursuing a bright future.

SURF SPOTLIGHT

ISOLATED
USA, Indonesia / 2013 / 106 min
Director: Justin Le Pera
Writer: Justin Le Pera
Cast: Ryan Phillippe, Travis Potter, Jenny Useldinger, Jimmy Rotherham, Josh Fuller, Andrew Mooney

Five world-class surfers travel to New Guinea in search of undiscovered waves, but end up discovering so much more.

H2INDO
USA / 2013 / 76 min
Director: Brent Deal
Writer: Brent Deal
Cast: Dave Kalama, Connor Baxter, Chuck Patterson, Slater Trout, Talia Gangini, Dave Boehne, Jamie Mitchell

Seven of the world’s greatest surfers, Dave Kalama, Connor Baxter, Slater Trout, Talia Gangini, Chuck Patterson, Dave Boehne, and Jamie Mitchell, travel to Indonesia to Stand Up Paddle Indo’s most famous surf breaks. The result is the compelling story of these athletes and the World’s fastest growing sport. The surfing images as well as the underwater scenes are breathtaking.

FAMILY FILM

KHUMBA
South Africa / 2013 / 85 min
Director: Anthony Silverstein
Writers: Anthony Silverstein, Raffaella Delle Donne
Cast: Steve Buscemi, Liam Neeson

Rejected by his superstitious herd, a half-striped zebra embarks on a daring quest to earn his stripes but finds the courage and self-acceptance to save all the animals of the Great Karoo.

SHORTS PROGRAM

ROUTINES – High School Student Short Winner
USA / 2012/ 11min
Directors: Jason Phillips, Jason Segal
Writers: Jason Phillips, Jason Segal
Cast: Jerrin Padre, Jason Phillips, Helen Segal

ROUTINES begins with a boy who is trying to cover up his loneliness by using routines. He creates these routines to hide from real life and so that he will be protected by the spontaneity that the world has to offer.

ANNA ET JEROME
France / 2013 / 21min
Director: Melanie Delloye
Writer: Melanie Delloye
Cast: Elodie Bouchez, Malo Blondel, Jarome Boyer, Laurent Cyr

Anna hasn’t always done things right, but she wants to change. She dreams of taking Jerome far away and starting over somewhere else. They could be happy, just the two of them.

ANNIVERSARIO
USA/ 2013 / 11min
Director: Jeffrey DeChausse
Writer: Jeffrey DeChausse
Cast: Astrid Carranza, Osvaldo Andersson

Carmela visits the beauty salon in preparation for an evening out on her 45th wedding anniversary. She’s greeted by her two favorite hairdressers, Chu Chi and Pepe. But in a tragic twist, Carmela becomes the most important makeover of their lives.

DEATH, TAXES AND APPLE JUICE
USA/2013/ 8min
Director: Tamar Halpern
Writer: Tamar Halpern, George Roth III
Cast: Aymeric Dauge-Roth, Claire Dauge-Roth, Hannah Perrault

A little girl ponders the meaning of life as her friend helps her file taxes.

THE MAKING OF LONGBIRD
UK/2012/16min
Director: Will Anderson
Writer: Will Anderson, Ainslie Henderson, Vitalij Sicinava
Cast: Will Anderson, Tobias Feltus, Vitalij Sicinava

A ‘behind-the-scenes’ look at an Animator/Filmmaker as he struggles with his character.

BIRD FOOD
Ireland/ 2012/ 5min
Director: Richard Keane
Writer: Richard Keane

A man plans to eat his lunch in the park, but the local pigeons have other ideas.

THE FEAR OF FLYING
Ireland / 2012/ 9min
Director: Conor Finnigan
Writer: Conor Finnigan
Cast: Mark Doherty, Aoife Duffin, Steven Courtney

A small bird with a fear of flying tries to avoid heading south for the winter.

CHOPPER
Belgium / Netherlands / 2012 / 2min
Director: Lars Damoiseaux, Frederik Palmaers
Writer: Lars Damoiseaux, Michael Palmaers
Cast: Ruud Lammers, Duncan Meijering

The circle of life. A mantis gets eaten by a frog, the frog has been swallowed by a stork while the stork itself is eaten by a crocodile before the crocodile gets shot by a hunter.

CAFÉ REGULAR, CAIRO
Egypt / 2012 / 11min
Director: Ritesh Batra
Writer: Ritesh Batra
Cast: Mai Abozeed, Alaa Ezzat

In a regular cafe in Cairo a relationship goes through its first big test.

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Film Society of Lincoln Center Horror Fest Scary Movies 7 Lineup

Scary Movies Horror Film Festival

THE GREEN INFERNO

The Film Society of Lincoln Center’s annual horror fest Scary Movies returns for its 7th edition at the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center in New York City from Thursday, October 31 to Thursday, November 7, 2013. Films on the lineup include Lucky McKee and Chris Sivertson’s high school horror-revenge film ALL CHEERLEADERS DIE; Eli Roth’s CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST homage, THE GREEN INFERNO; the Italian supernatural meets nature film ACROSS THE RIVER; creepy psycho-thriller PROXY; creepy psycho-comedy CHEAP THRILLS; Mark Hartley’s retelling of the Australian classic PATRICK; European vacation from hell outing AFFLICTED, and mind-warped puzzler OPEN GRAVE starring ELYSIUM and DISTRICT 9 star Sharlto Copley.

SCARY MOVIES 7 Films, Descriptions

U.S. Premiere!
ACROSS THE RIVER (2013) 91 min
Director: Lorenzo Bianchini
Country: Italy
Deep in the woodlands of Friuli, on the Italy-Slovenia border, a biologist stationed alone to perform animal census studies (played by an excellent, appropriately rugged-looking Renzo Gariup) makes a frightening discovery. And, no, it doesn’t involve the wildlife… This meticulously crafted naturalist film with a supernatural kick is good old-fashioned storytelling at its finest. In fact, its impeccable sound design and music, atmospheric locations, and slowly building tension are used to such great effect that you’ll feel like you’re trapped there alongside the scientist: damp, isolated, unsettled, scared to death.

NY Premiere!
AFFLICTED (2013) 85 min
Directors: Cliff Prowse & Derek Lee
Country: Canada
Cliff and Derek’s Not-So-Excellent Adventure? Actor-writer-directors Cliff Prowse and Derek Lee put a creepy new spin on the first-person “found-footage” horror subgenre, playing two friends named Cliff and Derek who decide to document their tour of Europe despite the latter’s potentially life-threatening medical condition. What begins as a deceptively playful “America’s Least Funny Videos” lark soon takes a gruesome turn when Derek contracts a mysterious infection after a one-night stand with a comely girl who picks him up in a club. The trip goes on, but Derek’s symptoms become more and more extreme, and you could say his illness is a classic case of—whoa, no spoilers, dude! Switching gears, AFFLICTED becomes a high-speed pursuit with Interpol chasing their seemingly superhuman—or subhuman—quarry from Italy to Paris, with Prowse and Lee’s fast-paced and inventive camerawork and effective special effects driving the action like there’s notomorrow. A CBS Films Release.
Cliff Prowse & Derek Lee in Person!

U.S. Premiere!
ALL CHEERLEADERS DIE (2013) 90 min
Directors: Lucky McKee & Chris Sivertson
Country: USA
What’s worse than mean-girl cheerleaders? How about resurrected mean-girl cheerleaders with supernatural powers? Following first the gruesome accidental death of the squad captain and then the demise of four other squad members when their car is run off the road after an outdoor party turns into a boys-vs.-girls fight, witchcraft is used to revive and rejuvenate the crash victims , who return to school to avenge themselves on the football players who caused their deaths—and anyone else they don’t like. While character motivation shifts as the action plays out (a sapphic subtext may explain things), there’s more than enough mayhem and laughs to go around in this twisty, satirical take on high-school horror. An Image Entertainment release.
Introduced by producer Andrew van den Houten!

BABY BLOOD (1990) 84 min
Director: Alain Robak
Country: France
Though she may work as a circus animal wrangler, there’s one species of wild beast the well-endowed-and-proud-of-it Yanka (Emmanuelle Escourrou) can’t seem to control—men. Yet, surprisingly, it’s not one of her human admirers that ends up impregnating her but a slimy snake-like creature that arrives hidden inside an African leopard, frees itself, and finds refuge in her womb. And so begins what is quite possibly the worst pregnancy ever. That maternal glow nowhere to be found, Yanka becomes pale, sickly, and homicidal, under the telepathic influence of the bloodthirsty “fetus.” (While Gary Oldman provides the voice for the unborn monster in the English-language edition, it’s not nearly as unsettling as the one in original French version, screening here.) This is one batshit-crazy movie—and it’s not to be missed!

CEMETERY MAN (Dellamorte Dellamore) (1994) 103 min
Director: Michele Soavi
Countries: Italy/France
This compulsively watchable and quotable zombie classic from the warped minds of Dylan Dog comic-book creator Tiziano Sclavio and onetime Dario Argento protégé Michele Soavi has it all: gore, humor, heart, brains, sex and nudity, and more gore! A perfectly deadpan Rupert Everett stars as graveyard caretaker Francesco Dellamorte whose job—aided by his grotesque halfwit sidekick Gnaghi—becomes a little more complicated when the corpses start unearthing themselves after only a week’s rest, looking for human flesh to feed on. And to complicate matters further, “She” (Anna Falchi), the voluptuous woman Francesco falls for, herself joins the ranks of the undead…

NY Premiere!
CHEAP THRILLS (2013) 85 min
Director: E.L. Katz
Country: USA
Just when it seems like his day couldn’t possibly get any worse—he’s already been served with an eviction notice and laid off—new-dad Craig (Pat Healy) and an old schoolmate (Ethan Embry) are approached at a bar by a pair of filthy-rich thrill-seekers (David Koechner and Sara Paxton) looking to spice up their anniversary celebrations. What begins as a night of innocent enough boozy fun devolves into a series of increasingly disturbed “games.” While not a horror film in the conventional sense, this memorably twisted and darkly hilarious portrait of the extremes to which down-on-their-luck people will go for quick cash is actually quite terrifying. A Drafthouse Films release.

CURTAINS (1983) 89 min
Director: Richard Ciupka
Country: Canada
Method acting runs amok in this underappreciated slasher flick when an aging star (Samantha Eggar) who can’t quite master playing “crazy” decides to check herself into the loony bin for inspiration. Problem is that her regular collaborator, scumbag director Jonathan Stryker (John Vernon), leaves her there so he can hold a weekend casting session at his secluded mansion with six younger, very eager candidates. As the rivalry heats up, a masked lunatic who leaves creepy dolls as death warnings starts offing the women one by one. Is the scorned actress, who has escaped the asylum and crashed the audition bent on getting her role back, also responsible for killing off the competition?

DEATH WEEKEND aka THE HOUSE BY THE LAKE (1977) 87 min
Director: William Fruet
Country: Canada
A sleazy oral surgeon (Chuck Shamata) lures model Diane (Brenda Vaccaro) to his country home with the promise of meeting some good people. Those other “guests” of course never arrive—but some unwelcome ones do: a group of repulsive vengeance-seeking backwoods locals (led by Don Stroud) Diane pisses off on the ride up in a humiliating demonstration that she—yup, a mere woman, one who also knows how to fix a carburetor—can outdrive them. Produced by Ivan Reitman, this film is a cut above the standard home invasion/rape-revenge thriller, most of all because Vaccaro plays it smart and tough—though Diane may have been unwise to accept the invitation in the first place, she’s no bimbo. If exploitation films can have a conscience then let this be an example.

NY Premiere!
THE GREEN INFERNO (2013) 103 min
Director: Eli Roth
Country: USA
With this homage to the Italian 1980 cult classic CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST and other titles from the brief late-1970s vogue for Amazon cannibal movies, the inimitable writer-director-actor-producer-horror movie impresario who gave the world HOSTEL finds punishing and grisly new ways to inflict unimaginable torment and graphic violence on a group of unwary young Americans abroad. Justine (Lorenza Izzo), a naïve but feisty Columbia University student looking for a cause, joins a group of seemingly idealistic campus eco-activists on an trip to Peru to stage a cellphone-camera-wielding protest against the destruction of the jungle by the encroaching forces of land development. Mission accomplished. But when the group’s small aircraft crashes in the jungle, the survivors are captured by an indigenous tribe who definitely aren’t vegetarians. Let the ethnographically accurate bloodletting begin! Will Justine escape the fate of genital mutilation (i.e., a traditional “circumcision” ritual) and go on to be the proverbial Final Girl? Does a pygmy shit in the woods? An Open Road Films Release.
Eli Roth in Person!

LET’S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH (1971) 89 min
Director: John D. Hancock
Country: USA
“I sit here and can’t believe it happened. And yet I have to believe it. Dreams or nightmares? Madness or sanity? I don’t know which is which.” Spoken in somber voiceover by the titular Jessica (Zohra Lampert), these cryptic words are the first we hear in the film—they pull us in immediately and we never stop being transfixed by the creepy events that lead up to them. Following a recent stint in a mental hospital, Jessica has relocated to the Connecticut countryside with her husband and a friend from New York City to find some peace. But they sure picked the wrong farmhouse to live in! They arrive to find an alluring young squatter there—who, as it turns out, bears an uncanny resemblance to a woman who lived there centuries earlier, and who, as legend goes, drowned and now walks the grounds as a vampire. A series of strange occurrences begin, but only Jessica, who may or may not be unraveling again, seems to witness them. With its eerie use of water imagery and of the great outdoors in general, this unnerving film defines moody.

NY Premiere!
NIGHTBREED – The Cabal Cut (1990) 144 min
Director: Clive Barker
Country: USA
Restoration Director: Russell Cherrington (2012)
To serious fans, NIGHTBREED already holds a top spot in the fantasy-horror film canon (as does Cabal, the Clive Barker novella from which it was adapted, in the genre’s book canon). So to be given the opportunity to see an expanded version of the film—which incorporates an additional 42 minutes of recently recovered footage—is just the icing on the cake. And it’s delicious icing indeed. The new, richer cut presents the film as Barker originally envisioned it—with more of the subterranean world of Midian and its misunderstood mutant inhabitants, more Boone (Craig Sheffer), who is mysteriously tied to Midian through his dreams, more Lori (Ann Bobby), the girlfriend more loyal than any man deserves, more Dr. Decker (David Cronenberg), Boone’s no-good shrink, and, most frightening of all, more Buttonface, the serial killer hiding behind a spine-chilling mask. Whether it’s your first or 100th viewing, the Cabal Cut is the ideal way to experience the magic that is NIGHTBREED.
Please note: The additional footage is presented in VHS quality, which can be a bit jarring at first. You will adjust. At least this way there’ll be no confusion as to which scenes are “new.”

U.S. Premiere!
OPEN GRAVE (2013) 102 min
Director: Gonzalo López-Gallego
Country: USA
ELYSIUM and DISTRICT 9 star Sharlto Copley brings his hair-trigger intensity to this twisty mind game as an amnesiac who awakens one dark and stormy night—in a pit full of rotting corpses. He stumbles to an isolated house in the middle of a forest and discovers four other individuals who have likewise lost their memories. Mutual distrust reigns as the group slowly regain their identities, arm themselves thanks to the house’s rather conveniently well-stocked armory, and set out to understand where exactly they are, how they came to be there, and what all those distant screams in the woods means… A Tribeca Film release.

NY Premiere!
PATRICK (2013) 95 min
Director: Mark Hartley
Country: Australia
The comatose young man with telekinetic powers is back with a vengeance in this crackerjack gothic retelling of Richard Franklin’s 1978 cult classic. Newly hired nurse Kathy (Sharni Vinson, who kicked ass in this year’s YOU’RE NEXT) reports for duty at a private clinic, where among its near-vegetable patients, she finds Patrick (Jackson Gallagher) a most intriguing subject. Not only is he strikingly handsome but it appears that he’s trying to communicate with her (to account for modern technological advances, computers and cell phones have replaced typewriters as brain-wave receptors). The sketchy doctor (Charles Dance) and head nurse (Rachel Griffiths) who run the place don’t want to hear a word of it—and with good reason: even unconscious, the possessive Patrick is capable of causing great harm, which places everyone close to Kathy in serious jeopardy. A Phase 4 Films Release.

NY Premiere!
PROXY (2013) 120 min
Director: Zack Parker
Country: USA
When eight-months-pregnant single-mother Esther (Alexia Rasmussen) loses her child after an unseen attacker viciously assaults her, the solitary young woman joins a support group in an effort to deal with her depression. Another group member, Melanie (Alexa Havins), whose husband and son have been killed in a car accident, takes an interest in Esther for reasons unknown—but nothing is as it seems. As one revelation follows another, this genuinely twisted and perverse mind game escalates in a chain reaction of violence and revenge in which the motivations of its characters remain tantalizingly enigmatic. A truly disturbing indie set in the heart of darkness that is suburbia, this showcase for the singular sensibility of writer-director Zack Parker boasts terrific performances from Rasmussen, Havins, Kristina Klebe, and the ubiquitous Joe Swanberg. An IFC Midnight Release.

RITUALS aka THE CREEPER (1977) 99 min
Director: Peter Carter
Countries: USA/Canada
DELIVERANCE is a rare example of a film that’s actually spawned some quality imitators—and this is the best of them, and possibly the least-seen. Five doctors set out on their annual camping excursion, and while they may not always be the most sympathetic bunch—they bicker and whine—the men become increasingly sympathetic as the realization sets in that this may be their final trip. After their boots are mysteriously stolen, things go from bad to worse, until their idyllic wilderness trek descends into a full-on fight for their lives—and their attackers motivations just might be personal. Anchoring this grim, brutal (yet not overly bloody) backwoods survivalist horror entry is a commanding lead performance by Hal Holbrook.

TWINS OF EVIL (1971) 87 min
Director: John Hough
Country: U.K.

Vampire Girls Gone Wild! In this delicious culmination to Hammer Film’s luridly decadent lesbian vampire phase, and the conclusion of screenwriter Tudor Gates’s “Karnstein Trilogy,” orphaned twin sisters Frieda and Maria (played by identical twins and October 1970 Playboy Playmates Mary and Madeleine Collinson) move from Vienna to the village of Karnstein, where they are taken in by their austerely puritanical witch-hunter uncle Gustav (Peter Cushing). Entertaining himself with a sacrificial rite up at the castle meanwhile, jaded libertine Count Karnstein (Damien Thomas) inadvertently resurrects his vampire ancestress Mircalla (Katya Wyeth), who shows him how to have a reallygood time. And when the even racier Frieda, who has taken a fancy to the Count, slips away one night to visit the castle, the stage is set for a witch hunters vs. vampires showdown.
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12 Film Projects Selected for Biennale College – Cinema 2013/14

Industry

THE DEBT – Ritesh Batra

12 projects have been selected to participated in the first workshop of the second edition of Biennale di Venezia’s Biennale College – Cinema (2013 – 2014) held in Venice from the 5th to the 14th of October 2013. The first edition of the Biennale College – Cinema 2012/13 closed with the screening of three feature films at the 70th Edition of the Venice Film Festival in 2012: MARY IS HAPPY, MARY IS HAPPY – Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit (director, Thailand) , MEMPHIS – Tim Sutton (director, USA) and YURI ESPOSITO – Alessio Fava (director, Italy) .

The 12 selected projects with a brief synopsis.

BLOOD CELLS – Joseph Bull (director, the UK), Luke Seomore (director, the UK), Samm Haillay (producer, the UK): a decade after a catastrophe destroyed his family and their farm, an eruption from the past compels an exiled young man to embark upon an odyssey through the broken and beautiful margins of contemporary Britain.

H. – RANIA ATTIEH (director, Lebanon), Daniel Garcia (director, USA), Shruti Rya Ganguly (producer, India): a tale of two women, both named Helen, whose lives and relationships begin to unravel in the wake of a meteor explosion over their town of Troy, NY. It is a modern and lyrical re-imagining of a classic Greek tragedy.

IMACULAT – Kenneth Mercken (director, Belgium), Marcian Lazar (producer, Romania): when a 19-year-old girl from a good family is committed to rehab, she becomes a prey to the male junkies. She learns that in order to regain control over herself and her own body, she must first destroy her old self.

LA BARRACUDA – Jason Cortlund (director, USA), Julia Halperin (director, USA), David Hartstein (producer, USA): when an odd young woman named Sinaloa shows up on Merle’s front porch claiming to be her half-sister, an exciting surprise leads to violence.

LA MUJER DE LOS PERROS – Laura Citarella (director, Argentina), Verónica Llinás (director, Argentina), Mariano Llinás (producer, Argentina): a woman shares her life with ten dogs in a shack in the outskirts of a big city. The realistic story of a strange queen.

NANCY – Christina Choe (director, USA), Gerry Kim (producer, USA): Nancy, a 40-year-old serial impostor, lives at home with her abusive, elderly mother. Desperate for love and connection, she creates a fake blog and catfishes a lover, until her hoaxes result in epic and tragic consequences.

RIVER OF EXPLODING DURIANS – Edmund Yeo (director, Malaysia), Ming Jin Woo (producer, Malaysia): a peaceful coastal town in Malaysia is turned upside down by the construction of a potentially radioactive plant. A young boy at the cusp of adulthood and an idealistic history teacher find themselves fighting for the soul of their hometown.

SHORT SKIN – Duccio Chiarini (director, Italy), Babak Jalali (producer, Iran / the UK): one has to grow hard but without ever losing tenderness.

THE DEBT – Ritesh Batra (director, India), Seher Latif (producer, India): a cop tries to prove his worth when he takes on the most important case of his life and learns how to be a parent.

THE STRIKE – Adam Breier (director, Hungary), Akos Schneider (producer, Hungary): one day a middle-aged family man asks himself what if his life would be different and decides to exchange the known for the unknown. An absurdly minimalist tragicomedy.

UNLESS – Matteo Servente (director, Italy), Ryan Watt (producer, USA): an imaginative 11-year-old boy barrels into a rural town on a stolen Trans-Am, upending the careful routines of an elderly police dispatcher and a secretive barber.

WINTER – Aamir Bashir (director, India), Alan McAlex (producer, India): Nargis was abandoned by her husband for the cause of Kashmir’s freedom. She waits and hopes for her love to return. But when he does return, scarred by violence, Nargis is forced to choose between love and freedom.
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2013 Vancouver International Film Festival Award Winners; “RHYMES FOR YOUNG GHOULS” “THAT BURNING FEELING” Win Best Canadian First Feature Award

Vancouver International Film Festival

THAT BURNING FEELING by Jason James

RHYMES FOR YOUNG GHOULS by Jeff Barnaby and THAT BURNING FEELING by Jason James tied to win the Best Canadian First Feature Award at the just wrapped Vancouver International Film Festival which took place September 26 – October 11, 2013. The jury commented, “These two films share storytelling of equal high quality but are so different in terms of genre, tone and creative expression that the jury decided to honour them both.”

RHYMES FOR YOUNG GHOULS by Jeff Barnaby

RHYMES FOR YOUNG GHOULS is described by the festival as a very powerful and beautifully produced film, with a stellar cast and excellent photography and design. Depicting the aftereffects of the trauma inflicted by residential schools on the First Nations population, it also succeeds in telling a universal and touching story of an oppressed people trying to survive, rebuild and come to terms with their suffering. Using a highly creative vocabulary, from realistic to metaphorical, from fantastic to poetic, Jeff Barnaby demonstrates a promising and already impressive talent as a filmmaker.

THAT BURNING FEELING is noted as one of the best comedies the jury has seen in a long time. With a witty, smart and highly-articulate script, a talented cast and beautiful production, it makes for a wonderful self-deprecating portrait of Vancouver, with its condo maniacs, yoga lovers, community activists and other odd characters. While making us laugh along the way, it tells the human story of trying to find authenticity in a crazy world. Jason James is a rising filmmaker to watch with his wit, keen eye and intelligence.

Other awards

THE MOST PROMISING DIRECTOR OF A CANADIAN SHORT FILM AWARD
Mathieu Arsenault, NATHAN

WOMEN IN FILM + TELEVISION ARTISTIC MERIT AWARD
Chloé Robichaud, SARAH PREFERS TO RUN

AUDIENCE AWARD WINNERS

Rogers People’s Choice Award
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON (Director: Koreeda Hirokazu)

VIFF Most Popular Canadian Documentary Award
WHEN I WALK (Director: Jason DaSilva)

VIFF Most Popular Canadian Environmental Documentary Award
SALMON CONFIDENTIAL (Director: Twyla Roscovich)

VIFF Most Popular Canadian Feature Film Award
DOWN RIVER (Director: Ben Ratner)

VIFF Most Popular International Documentary
DESERT RUNNERS (Director: Jennifer Steinman)

VIFF Most Popular First Feature
WADJDA (Director: Haifaa Al Mansour)

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Interview with Andrew Matthews, Co-Director of ZERO CHARISMA

Interviews

ZERO CHARISMA directors Andrew Matthews and Katie Graham outside of the Charles Theater at 2013 Maryland Film Festival

It’s easy to make a comedy that makes fun of its protagonist by making him or her a caricature of stereotypes. In ZERO CHARISMA, a comedy about an obnoxious RPG-playing nerd who acts like a child, writer/co-directed Andrew Matthews and co-director Katie Graham could have easily used their main character, Scott (Sam Eidson), as a punching bag because he is such an easy target. However, what I admire most about the film is that Matthews and Graham delved into Scott’s background to reveal the reasons behind his demanding attitude and exactly why he feels so out-of-place in the world around him. Scott’s role as as the all-powerful game master comes into question when cool “hipster” nerd Miles (Garrett Graham) joins the game and Scott’s estranged mother (Cyndi Williams) returns to his life. Because of this, Zero Charisma is one of my favorite types of films: a comedy that has enough human drama to make it easy to relate to because of its real-life similarities.

After reviewing the film, I had the opportunity to interview Andrew Matthews regarding writing and directing this film, which is his first feature. He provided plenty of insight into a film that must have been a labor of love for most of the creators involved, including how he and Katie Graham raised money for the film through crowdfunding, a route many indie filmmakers have recently successfully explored.

VIMOOZ: How familiar are you with the traditional roleplaying game subculture, and what made you want to make a film about Scott and the way his RPG fantasy world and reality collide?

Andrew Matthews: I have been playing RPGs for a long time–probably started in about 5th grade. It’s always been a very creative outlet and a comfortable environment for me, and the variety of types of people that play it (and reasons for playing) makes it a good backdrop for a movie about clashing personalities.

VIMOOZ: One of the reasons why the film works so well is that Sam Eidson is perfect for the role of Scott. Can you tell me about how you cast him in the role?

Andrew Matthews: We saw Sam in a few small roles in Austin-made indies and we thought he was funny so we approached him about helping us make a 4-minute teaser trailer to kick off our crowdfunding campaign. We ran around town for four days shooting bits and pieces of the script (none of which is in the final film) and the resulting teaser seemed to be a hit with people, and we knew Sam had a lot to do with that. So we offered him the role. Even though he’d never had a lead role in a feature before, we felt like he was so right for the part, such a committed actor, and had just the right kind of vulnerability to take on a character that on paper is so domineering and aggressive.

VIMOOZ: Why do you feel it was important for Scott to be physically intimidating in addition to his already demanding attitude?

Andrew Matthews: Everything about Scott’s exterior, from his physicality to his wardrobe and choice of music says “badass,” but his behavior, as you start to get to know him just screams insecurities. It’s also fun to cast someone into “geeky” things who’s not the stereotypically skinny nerd. There are all types of people who play this game.

VIMOOZ: When I first started watching the film I thought it was funny, but I initially felt it was kind of taking shots at easy targets (i.e. like “Comic Book Guy” jokes on The Simpsons). However, it soon became obvious to me that this wasn’t the case because Scott wasn’t just a stereotype and his persona hid deeply-rooted personal issues. Was it difficult to avoid portraying Scott as just a geeky stereotype, and did you do anything consciously to ensure you avoided that?

Andrew Matthews: The kind of comedy that we love plays upon audience’s perceptions and expectations before subverting them. We wanted the audience to first recognize the character as a type they probably see in real life. Once they’ve accepted the “type” we’re going for, then we want them to start thinking about him in a way they haven’t before. That means you do have to do a bit of a balancing act between using stereotypes and subverting them. Ultimately, we want the audience to have empathy for the character, which means showing his inner turmoil and at least some hints at why he behaves the way he does.

VIMOOZ: Garrett Graham’s character Miles obviously represents the “neo-nerd hipster” (to quote from the press notes) type of person which has become much more “acceptable” to the mainstream than the more traditional “nerd” type that Scott and his friends represent. What were some key things you wanted to portray in the conflict between Miles’ world and Scott’s world?

Andrew Matthews: Geek culture has long been a place of refuge and camaraderie for people who for whatever reason feel like outsiders. It’s understandable that when aspects of that culture become socially acceptable, there might be resentment towards those who might not be such fans if it came with a social cost. At the same time, how can the loss of stigma for one’s pastimes be a bad thing? The aim was not to portray Miles as a bad guy, but rather someone who passion for “nerdy” things doesn’t run quite so deep. Someone who likes to sample these hobbies, but hasn’t invested the time and sacrifices that Scott has, and someone who is still aware of social intricacies and perhaps divides his friends up based on those criteria.

VIMOOZ: Did the film change at all from its initial concept to the finish film? If so, what?

Andrew Matthews: Sure, but probably no more than most films change as things go from concept to execution and more collaborators come on board. I believe in the early development, Miles was more of a villain, but we thought the story would be more interesting if his motives were a little more ambiguous–and Scott’s problems more internal.

VIMOOZ: Both of you have worked on films before, but you both directed for the first time and this was also the first narrative feature either of you worked on. What were some challenges you had to overcome in your new roles?

Andrew Matthews: Being at the wheel of a ship is very scary, especially when so many people are working for so little, you really feel like you have an obligation to deliver something special so everyone feels like their time and talent (and money) was well invested. The buck stops with you, as it were. Also, making a narrative was more intimidating for us. When you’re working on documentaries, the characters are real people, so you don’t have to worry that the audience won’t find them credible. But with Zero Charisma, we were creating a character from scratch–and a pretty extreme one as well. Making him believable and memorable was so important to us. The whole thing would fall apart if that didn’t work.

VIMOOZ: You used Indiegogo to raise some money to put finishing touches on the film before South by Southwest. Can you talk about your experience with crowdfunding and offer any advice to other filmmakers who are considering to crowdfund their projects?

Andrew Matthews: Our main IndieGoGo campaign actually occurred two years ago, to raise initial funds. It was a successful campaign, not only in the money it raised, but the awareness it gave the film. We has several articles written and hundreds of people anticipating the film’s release–and we hadn’t made it yet! That was an anxious place to be, but the film would never have gotten off the ground if not for those original donors.

VIMOOZ: If you created your own fantasy RPG alter ego like Scott, what would yours be like?

Andrew Matthews:: I’m always the GM.

VIMOOZ: What were the most important things you learned about filmmaking from directing your first narrative feature that you will take with you as you go forward in your career?

Andrew Matthews: I’ve heard this many times before but it doesn’t hit home until you live through it: trust yourself. Take advice because it makes sense to you, not because the person giving it is somehow more experienced. We had a lot of great support and counsel throughout the process, but we also heard a lot of discouragement that turned out to be totally wrong. Besides, what’s the point of making an independent film if you’re not going to do things your way?

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Five Debut Films Nominated for European Discovery 2013

Awards

Eat Sleep Die (ÄTA SOVA DÖ)

Five debut films have been nominated for the European Film Academy, EUROPEAN DISCOVERY 2013 – Prix FIPRESCI award, which is presented annually to a young and upcoming director for a first full-length feature film. The European Discovery 2013 – Prix FIPRESCI will then be presented at the European Film Awards Ceremony in Berlin on Saturday, December 7 , 2013.

Nominated are:

ÄTA SOVA DÖ (Eat Sleep Die)
Sweden, 104 min
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Gabriela Pichler
PRODUCED BY: China Åhlander

CALL GIRL

CALL GIRL
Sweden/Norway/Ireland/Finland, 133 min
DIRECTED BY: Mikael Marcimain
WRITTEN BY: Marietta von Hausswolff von Baumgarten
PRODUCED BY: Mimmi Spång

MIELE

MIELE
Italy/France, 90 min
DIRECTED BY: Valeria Golino
WRITTEN BY: Francesca Marciano, Valia Santella & Valeria Golino
PRODUCED BY: Riccardo Scamarcio, Viola Prestieri, Anne-Dominique Toussaint & Raphaël Berdugo

OH BOY

OH BOY
Germany, 83 min
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Jan Ole Gerster
PRODUCED BY: Marcos Kantis & Alexander Wadouh

LA PLAGA (The Plague)

LA PLAGA (The Plague)
Spain, 85 min
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY: Neus Ballús
PRODUCED BY: Pau Subirós

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Australia’s Delphi Bank Greek Film Festival Launches 2013 Program; Opens With “WHAT IF…”

Greek Film Festival

Christoforos Papakaliatis in “WHAT IF…”

Celebrating its 20th anniversary the 2013 Greek Film Festival (GFF) has announced its full program of films, many of which have made their mark on the international film festival circuit. This year’s festival slate once again presents the best of contemporary Greek cinema with a program that will see 35 films including 9 shorts screen at the Palace Como in Melbourne and Palace Chauvel in Sydney. The festival will open in Brisbane on Thursday 31 October at Palace Centro, followed by Sydney on Wednesday 6 November and in Melbourne on Thursday 7 November with Greece’s box office smash hit, WHAT IF… The GFF then continues its tour to Adelaide (14 – 17 November at Palace Nova Eastend) and Canberra (29 November – 14 December at Palace Electric).

An adonis of the small screen, Christoforos Papakaliatis makes his leap to the big screen as both actor and auteur in a story about love set against the backdrop of the economic crisis. In a Sliding Doors style of storytelling WHAT IF… highlights the precarious nature of life and how much our future can be affected by a single life-changing decision.

Over two weeks later the captivating financial thriller, CAPITAL (Le Capital), will close the festival in Sydney and Melbourne on Sunday 24 November. In this ambitious and thrilling melodrama which screened at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival, filmmaker Costas-Gavras (known for his political thrillers, including the Oscar-winning Z) returns to familiar territory with this persuasively-detailed tale of boardroom politics, remorseless backstabbing and the evils of capitalism.

Alongside the full program Eleni Bertes has also been announced as a guest of the festival. Eleni is one of the former founders of the GFF in Australia and is currently producing films in Greece, including Joy which is part of this year’s program – a startling narrative from director Ilias Yannakakis, who recounts the story of a middle-aged woman accused of kidnapping a newborn baby from a maternity ward.

From the Greek Weird Wave the GFF screens Elina Psykou’s self-assured debut – THE ETERNAL RETURN OF ANTONIS PARASKEVAS. This engaging off-beat film played at this year’s Berlinale and Toronto IFF and follows a famous Greek TV anchorman played by Christos Stergioglou (Dogtooth, GFF ‘10) who fakes his own kidnapping in a desperate bid to salvage his ailing career. Also from Toronto the GFF brings veteran editor Yannis Sakaridis’s directing debut WILD DUCK, shot on a micro-budget, guerrilla-style in the wake of the country’s 2009 debt crisis. Smart, introspective and politically charged, the story loosely parallels the 2005 ‘Greek Watergate’ phone-tapping scandal when a pair of telephone engineers are enlisted to investigate a hacking.

There’s a strong documentary contingent in this year’s program too; Director Kostas Vakkas challenges the dominant stereotype of success and entrepreneurism in Greek American history in his direct and highly informative documentary, GREEK AMERICAN RADICALS: THE UNTOLD STORY. Much more than just a story about politics, Dimitris Athyridis’ ONE STEP AHEAD is a poignant documentary odyssey following the unconventional Yiannis Boutaris as he stands for independent candidate in the 2010 mayoral campaign of Thessaloniki. The GFF will also be holding a special free event screening of Zoe Mavroudi’s incendiary documentary RUINS, which chronicles the shockingly blatant witch-hunt of a group of HIV positive women accused of prostitution.

Greece’s creative talents are also featured in the beautiful and gripping family drama THE TREE AND THE SWING, from director Maria Douza, who delivers a powerful, multi-layered tale of one family’s estrangement, channelling universal themes of acceptance, love and repentance. Other festival highlights include Vasilis Kehagias’ uplifting LOVE IN THE END, where three real-life stories of unfulfilled love get the happy ending they never had; the poignant DO NOT FORGET ME ISTANBUl, where seven talented filmmakers of different nationalities come together in a portmanteau feature to remind audiences that this cosmopolitan city does not only belong to the Turkish people; and one of the most unique films of the 2013 GFF – BIG HIT – a noir ‘dead ringer’ from filmmaker Karolos Zonaras, which features femme fatales, tough guys, pithy one-liners, long shadows and dramatic music stings.

As part of the 20th anniversary celebration the GFF has selected nine festival favorites to be included in this year’s special ‘best of’ program strand. The films include the multi award winning narrative A TOUCH OF SPICE – a nostalgia-steeped parable from writer-director Tassos Boulmetis, that touched the hearts of all who saw it becoming the biggest hit at the Greek box office; FEMALE COMPANY from director Nicos Perakis, which follows six emotionally-deprived, sexually-underrated wives who take matters into their own hands by renting an apartment where amorous activities abound in this lively satire; and Sotiris Goritsas’ tragi-comic road movie BALKANISATEUR which follows 35 year-old ‘teenagers’, Fotis (Stelios Mainas) and Stavros (Gerasimos Skiadaresis), on a misguided highway to Switzerland as they plan to get rich quick through a currency scam.

Lighten up your days with a wonderful selection of Greek comedy favourites from over the years including the comedy classic, BONUS, from acclaimed filmmaker Nikos Zapatinas, who proves that some laughs are universal in this infinitely appealing film about a garbage collector on the brink of retirement; Zapatinas’ Greek comedy blockbuster IN GOOD COMPANY is also featured in the ‘best of’ program, where raunchy and scatological misadventures unfold when a madman and petty criminal’s worlds collide; and the return of filmmaker Dimitris Indares’ uncomplicated and very human comedy, TOTALLY MARRIED, which wrestles with the much-debated phenomenon of the ‘seven year itch’, but does it Greek-style.

Acclaimed filmmaker Constantinos Giannaris will also feature two of his films in the ‘best of’ program. FROM THE EDGE OF THE CITY follows the leader of a gang of Kazakhstani youths who live on the outskirts of Athens – where clubbing, drugs, prostitution and petty thievery is an everyday part of life. Giannaris’ gritty depiction of this urban reality won him Best Director and the Greek Film Critics’ Prize at the Thessaloniki IFF. Realist tones continue in Giannaris’ poignant narrative ONE DAY IN AUGUST which weaves together four different stories over 24 eventful hours. The film screened at Berlin, Chicago and Melbourne and won best screenplay at Troy and the Critics’ Prize in Thessaloniki.

The GFF program also houses a selection of nine Greek shorts including, Athina Rachel Tsangari’s (Attenberg, GFF ‘11) hauntingly beautiful short THE CAPSULE which has screened in numerous festivals including Toronto and Sundance and YOU KNOW WHAT? I LOVE YOU – a debut from Melbourne filmmaker Natalie Cunningham, a joyous meditation on family, heartbreak, adversity, and memory. The eight local shorts will screen in one program as part of the Greek-Australian Short Film Festival on Thursday 21 November, competing for the Napoleon Perdis Award for Best Short Film.

The Greek Student Film Festival and Competition returns for its 4th year in 2013, presenting another selection of imaginative films from local primary, secondary and tertiary students.

The 20th Delphi Bank Greek Film Festival runs 6-24 November at Palace Chauvel Cinema in Sydney and 7-24 November at Palace Cinema Como in Melbourne. It also tours nationally, with dates in Brisbane (31 October – 3 November) Adelaide (14 – 17 November) and Canberra (29 November – 14 December).

[via press release \ Delphi Bank Greek Film Festival ]

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‘THE SELFISH GIANT’, ‘CODE BLACK’ Winners of 2013 Hamptons International Film Festival

Hamptons International Film Festival (HIFF)

THE SELFISH GIANT, directed by Clio Barnard

THE SELFISH GIANT, directed by Clio Barnard is the winner of the Golden Starfish Award for Best Narrative Feature Film at the 21st annual Hamptons International Film Festival. THE SELFISH GIANT is described as a contemporary fable about 13 year old Arbor (Conner Chapman) and his best friend Swifty (Shaun Thomas). Excluded from school and outsiders in their own neighborhood, the two boys meet Kitten (Sean Gilder), a local scrapdealer––the Selfish Giant. Arbor emulates Kitten, keen to impress him and make some money. However, Kitten favors Swifty, leaving Arbor feeling hurt and excluded and driving a wedge between the boys. The Golden Starfish Award for Best Documentary Feature Film went to CODE BLACK, directed by Ryan McGarry, M.D. CODE BLACK follows a group of young doctors as they grapple with the divide between their idealistic expectations and the realities of a heavily bureaucratic system.The 21st Annual Hamptons International Film Festival took place October 10 to 14, 2013.

Golden Starfish Award for Best Narrative Feature Film
THE SELFISH GIANT, directed by Clio Barnard

Golden Starfish Award for Best Documentary Feature Film
CODE BLACK, directed by Ryan McGarry, M.D.

Golden Starfish Award for Best Short Film
WHALE VALLEY, directed by Gudmundur A. Gudmundsson.
*WHALE VALLEY will also qualify for an Academy Award in the category of Best Live Action Short Film.

Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature
PHILOMENA, directed by Stephen Frears

Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature
DESERT RUNNERS, directed by Jennifer Steinman

Audience Award for Best Short Film
ONE LAST HUG (… AND A FEW SMOOCHES) THREE DAYS AT GRIEF CAMP

Tangerine Entertainment Juice Award which honors an outstanding female filmmaker
FREE RIDE, directed by Shana Betz.

The Zelda Penzel “Giving Voice to the Voiceless” Award presented to a film that raises public awareness about contemporary social issues, including the moral and ethical treatment and the rights of animals, as well as environmental protection
EMPTYING THE SKIES

The Victor Rabinowitz & Joanne Grant Award for Social Justice, given to a film that most exhibits the values of peace, equality, and global justice
SQUARE, directed by Jehane Noujaim.

The Views From Long Island Award, presented by the Suffolk County Film Commission to a a film that features local/resident filmmakers, the area’s unique landscapes, and the important issues—both social and political—facing Hamptons communities
THE MAID’S ROOM, directed by Michael Walker.

The 2013 winner of the Brizzolara Family Foundation Award for a film depicting positive Conflict & Resolution
PLOT FOR PEACE directed by Carlos Agullo and Mandy Jacobson
Jejane Nouhaim received an Honorable Mention for her film THE SQUARE.

The Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize, which goes to a narrative film highlighting a realistic and compelling portrayal of science and technology
DECODING ANNIE PARKER directed by Steven Bernstein
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