The New York International Short Film Festival aka NY Shortsfest held May 29 – 31 in New York City, announced its 2012 winners. And the winners are
BEST DRAMA
The Man Who Knew How To Fly
Director: Robi Michael
BEST COMEDY
Derek
Director: Ricky Gervais
BEST ANIMATION
A Morning Stroll
Director: Grant Orchard
BEST OF NEW YORK
Harry Grows Up
Director: Mark Nickelsburg .
10-13-year-old audiences in Amsterdam, Belgrade, Copenhagen, Erfurt, Norrköping and Turin have elected KAUWBOY by Boudewijn Koole as the winner of the first European Film Academy Young Audience Award. The German jury speakers Marie-Louis und Carl (both 12 years old) presented the award to co-author Jolein Laarman who thanked the children for their votes and stated, “it’s so important that the European Film Academy gives all the children a voice!”
The European Film Academy Young Audience Award is organised and presented by the European Film Academy and EFA Productions with the support of the Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (MDM).
Tribeca Film acquired U.S. rights to Kim Nguyen’s award winning War Witch (Rebelle), described as “a powerfully poignant film shot in the Congo with an exceptional lead performance by Rachel Mwanza, a newcomer who was discovered on the streets of Kinshasa.” In her very first acting role, Mwanza has already garnered critical acclaim for her astounding performance winning the Silver Bear- Best actress award at the Berlin Film Festival, where the film made its world premiere in competition, as well as the Best Actress in a Narrative Feature Film Award at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film took home the “Founders Award” for best narrative feature at Tribeca, where it made its North American premiere.
The film, with a screenplay by Nguyen, stars Mwanza, Alain Bastien, Serge Kanyianda, Ralph Prosper and Mizinga Mwinga. The film was produced by Pierre Even and Marie-Claude Poulin of Montreal-based ITEM 7. Tribeca Film plans a release across multiple platforms in the first quarter of 2013.
War Witch tells the story of Komona, a young girl whose life is anything but normal. Kidnapped by African rebels at the age of 12, Komona was forced at gunpoint to slaughter her own parents and fight as a child soldier against the government in the jungles. But Komona was no ordinary solider. Due to her ability to see gray ghosts in the trees that warn her of approaching enemies, she was deemed a sorceress and bestowed the title of War Witch by the supreme leader of the rebels, Great Tiger. War Witch exudes visceral energy and emotional power as Komona’s journey ultimately finds her in love with a fellow child soldier named Magician (Serge Kanyinda), but pregnant with another man’s child. Saddled with the reality that a life of normalcy is forever beyond her grasp, Komona must find a way to resolve the actions of her past.
“This film has spectacular resonance at a time when the world has been awakened to the situation of children being conditioned to wage war in Africa,” said Geoff Gilmore, Chief Creative Officer of Tribeca Enterprises. “Director Kim Nguyen balances heartbreakingly emphatic scenes of conflict, romantic yearning, and lyrical and dreamlike storytelling. We are so proud to be bringing this award winning film to wider audiences and look forward to taking this exhilarating journey with the filmmakers.”
“I am thrilled to have Tribeca Film distribute War Witch. Hearing the team talk about the film is a true inspiration and I am incredibly thrilled to be working closely with them for the release in the U.S.”, said writer-director Kim Nguyen. “We are confident that Tribeca Film’s passionate team can bring this special film to a wide audience in the U.S. and are very pleased to have them as U.S. distributor,” added Marie-Claude Poulin and Pierre Even for Item 7.
The San Francisco Film Society announced the 11 finalists for the $100,000 2012 SFFS Documentary Film Fund, which supports feature-length documentaries in postproduction. The SFFS Documentary Film Fund was created to support singular nonfiction film work that is distinguished by compelling stories, intriguing characters and an innovative visual approach.
From 2011 to 2013, a total of $300,000 will be disbursed to further new work by documentary filmmakers nationwide. Expected to grow in the coming years as further underwriting is secured, the Documentary Fund was inaugurated thanks to a generous gift from valued Film Society patrons Sharon and Larry Malcolmson.
2012 Finalists
Mike Plunkett, director; Anna Farrell, producer, Charge
Charge is a character-driven story about Bolivians’ relentless fight to control their country’s abundant natural resources.
Katy Chevigny, codirector/coproducer; Ross Kauffman, codirector/coproducer, E-Team
E-Team follows the intense and courageous work of three intrepid members of Human Rights Watch’s Emergency Team on the front lines of identifying international human rights abuses.
Roger Ross Williams, director; Julie Goldman, producer, God Loves Uganda
God Loves Uganda goes inside the powerful and underreported evangelical campaign to change the face of African culture with values imported from America’s Christian Right. As the radical effort to eliminate “sexual immorality” creates a wave of religious violence and hatred, an embattled Ugandan pastor searches for solutions.
Charles Schultz, director/producer, The Last Crop
Seven out of every ten of America’s farms will change hands over the next twenty years as aging farmers face retirement. In California’s Central Valley one family’s struggle to ensure their farm’s future conveys the powerful emotions and deep values inherent in this national issue. For more information: thelastcropfilm.com
David Sampliner, director/producer, My Own Man
As Sampliner turns 40 and faces marriage and fatherhood, he finds himself in an identity crisis. Stalled in his career and feeling alienated from other men, the filmmaker decides to get in better touch with his manhood. He explores a range of manly pursuits and seeks out a broad spectrum of men to explore the complex world of contemporary masculinity.
Shaul Schwarz, director; Lars Knudsen, producer; Jay Van Hoy, producer, Narco Cultura
Narco Cultura explores the phenomenon of narcotics culture in North America through the personal stories of those entangled in the drug wars, from cartel-sponsored musicians and filmmakers to a crime scene investigator.
Holen Kahn, codirector/coproducer; Alessandra Zeka, codirector/coproducer, A Quiet Inquisition
When abortion is criminalized in Nicaragua an OB/GYN doctor at a public hospital must choose between disregarding her medical ethics by obeying the new law or risking incarceration by breaking the law to treat girls and women whom she believes are in danger.
Matt Wolf, director; Kyle Martin, producer, Teenage
Based on a groundbreaking book by punk author John Savage, Teenage is an unconventional historical film about the invention of the term “teenager.” Bringing to life fascinating youths from the early 20th century — from party-crazed flappers and punk swing kids to brainwashed Nazi Youth and frenzied, consumerist sub-debs — the film reveals the prehistory of the modern teenager and the struggle between adults and adolescents to define youth.
Johanna Hamilton, director/producer, Untitled 1971
Hamilton continues her exploration of social movements and the limits of dissent, this time turning her lens to domestic contradictions in North America.
Nicholas Philipides, codirector/coproducer; Benjamin Schuder, codirector/coproducer, The Village of Peace
The Village of Peace explores the lives of four individuals in an Israeli village that was settled 40 years ago by African Americans from Chicago. The four main characters each provide a different perspective on the village and its history, as well as their individual place within Israeli culture. For more information: villageofpeacemovie.com
Emily Topper, director; Mary Posatko, producer, The Wreckage
Topper’s grandfather was shot in Baltimore in 1972, and because race seemed to be involved, the topic became taboo within her family. The Wreckage is a close to-the-bone examination of the murder and the family’s reaction.
The Brooklyn Film Festival (BFF) announced the winners for its annual festival, themed DECOY. The competitive event ran from June 1 through June 10 at indieScreen in Williamsburg and Brooklyn Heights Cinema.
Winners were chosen from 104 film premieres that were selected from over 2,000 submissions coming from 111 countries. This year, BFF featured more than 30 New York City based film directors with over a dozen projects shot in Brooklyn.
Through the resources of industry-related sponsors, the Brooklyn Film Festival awarded the 2012 winners with a total of $57,000 in prizes and film services.
GRAND CHAMELEON AWARD
DEAR MANDELA by Dara Kell & Christopher Nizza
Best Narrative Feature
OLD DOG by Pema Tseden
Best Documentary
DEAR MANDELA by Dara Kell & Christopher Nizza
Best Narrative Short
CHEAP EXTERMINATION by Minka Farthing-kohl
Best Animation
THE MAKING OF LONGBIRD by Will Anderson
Best Experimental
MOVE by John Graham
Best New Director
BROOKLYN CASTLE by Katie Dellamaggiore
Spirit Awards
Feature Narrative: GEORGE THE HEDGEHOG by W. Wawszczyk, J. Tarkowski, T. Lesniak
Documentary: [S]COMPARSE by Antonio Tibaldi
Short Narrative: PIGEON KICKER by Daniel Long
Experimental: PLACES OTHER PEOPLE HAVE LIVED by Laura Yilmaz
Animation: WE, THE MASSES by Eoghan Kidne
Audience Awards
Feature Narrative: CAT SCRATCH FEVER by Lisa Duva
Documentary: MY BROOKLYN by Kelly Anderson & GUT RENOVATION by Su Friedrich
Short Narrative: NANI by Justin Tipping
Experimental: SEA PAVILION by Marysia Makowska & Todd Somodevilla
Animation: OLD MAN by Leah Shore
Certificates of Outstanding Achievement
Screenplay: TINA GHARAVI for I AM NASRINE
Producer: CAITLYN COADY for PERCIVAL’S BIG NIGHT
Cinematography: PIOTR SOBOCINSKI for ROSE
Editing: LISA DUVA, KATHERINE NOLFI, BEN BROWN for CAT SCRATCH FEVER
Original Score: ROBERT AIKI AUBREY LOWE for LAST KIND WORDS
Actor Female: SARAH WHARTON for PERCIVAL’S BIG NIGHT
Actor Male: BRYAN KAPLAN for FRAY
deadCENTER Film Festival announced its 2012 award recipients on Saturday evening, June 9, 2012. The awards ceremony was held immediately before the free, outdoor screening of “Under African Skies”, on the Great Lawn at the Myriad Gardens.
“This year, deadCENTER Film Festival’s submissions were judged by 25 individuals from across the country, ranging from film critics and distributors, to academics and filmmakers,” said Festival Director Kim Haywood. “Our winners truly represent independent film voices from around the world.”
The 2012 winners are as follows:
Best Narrative Feature, See Girl Run
See Girl Run is what happens when a 30-something woman allows life’s ‘what ifs’ to overwhelm her appreciation for what life actually is. Disregarding her current obligations, she digs into her romantic past in hopes of invigorating her present.
Best Documentary Feature, Beauty Is Embarrassing
Raised in the Tennessee mountains, Wayne White started his career as a cartoonist in NYC. He found success as one of the creators of the Pee-wee’s Playhouse TV show which led to work designing some of the most iconic images in pop culture. The movie features Matt Groening, Mark Mothersbaugh, Todd Oldham, Paul Reubens, Gary Panter, Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Feris and many more.
Special Jury Narrative Feature, Somebody Up There Likes Me
Thirty-five years in the life of Max (Keith Poulson), his best friend Sal (Nick Offerman) and a woman they both adore, Lyla (Jess Weixler). The trio stumble through mandatory but seemingly unfulfilling entanglements, at weddings, funerals, hospitals, eateries, divorce courts and the tool shed. A deadpan fable about time sneaking up on and swerving right around us.
Special Jury Documentary Feature, The Queen of Versailles
A character-driven documentary about a family who attempts to build the biggest house in America. The film intimately documents a billionaire’s rise and fall, amidst economic crisis. The vérité narrative explores varying interpretations of the American Dream through character studies of family members and household employees, as it examines the culture of consumerism.
Narrative Short, After School Special
What do we really know about the people around us? A man and a woman have an awkward encounter at an indoor playground in this Neil LaBute penned slice-of-life starring Sarah Paulson and Wes Bentley.
Documentary Short, A Brief History of John Baldessari
A towering figure in the art world, standing at 6’7″, John Baldessari’s epic career crammed into 5 and a half frenzied minutes…narrated by Tom Waits.
Best Student Film, Reprise
Struggling in an abusive same-sex marriage, Meena is forced to confront the reality of her relationship, her life, and the difficult choice between staying and leaving.
Oklahoma Film, Bringing Up Bobby
The story of European con-artist Olive (Milla Jovovich), who flees to Oklahoma with her 10-year-old son in an effort to live out the American Dream. Olive and Bobby blithely charm their way from one adventure to another, but Olive”s criminal past is always in danger of catching up. The stellar cast also features Bill Pullman, Marcia Cross and Rory Cochrane.
Best Short Screenplay, Lightening Round
Thirteen students from colleges and universities around the world were honored tonight (June 9) as winners at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 39th Annual Student Academy Awards. The medal placements were announced at the awards ceremony, which featured as presenters actors Laura Dern, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Greg Kinnear and Mena Suvari alongside Academy President Tom Sherak at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
The winners are:
Alternative
Gold Medal*: “The Reality Clock,” Amanda Tasse, University of Southern California
*Only one winner was selected in this category.
Animation
Gold Medal: “Eyrie,” David Wolter, California Institute of the Arts
Silver Medal: “The Jockstrap Raiders,” Mark Nelson, University of California, Los Angeles
Bronze Medal: “My Little Friend,” Eric Prah, Ringling College of Art and Design
Documentary
Gold Medal: “Hiro: A Story of Japanese Internment,” Keiko Wright, New York University
Silver Medal: “Dying Green,” Ellen Tripler, American University
Bronze Medal: “Lost Country,” Heather Burky, Art Institute of Jacksonville
Narrative
Gold Medal: “Under,” Mark Raso, Columbia University
Silver Medal: “Narcocorrido,” Ryan Prows, American Film Institute
Bronze Medal: “Nani,” Justin Tipping, American Film Institute
Foreign Film
Gold Medal: “For Elsie,” David Winstone, University of Westminster, United Kingdom
Silver Medal: “Of Dogs and Horses,” Thomas Stuber, Film Academy Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Bronze Medal: “The Swing of the Coffin Maker,” Elmar Imanov, The International Film School Cologne, Germany
The Fourth Dimension is a compilation of three short films, produced in association with VICE and Groslch Film Works. Francesca sat down with VICE’s Eddy Moretti, Russian director Alexey Fedorchenko (Silent Souls) Moretti and newbie Polish filmmaker Jan Kwiecinski. Moretti gave the directors a creative “brief,” the first tenant being the film must focus upon the concept of, you guessed it, the “Fourth Dimension.” Harmony Korine, the first director to get onboard, was sadly and understandably jet-lagged, having just finished logging eight weeks of editing hours for his upcoming film starring James Franco, Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens (yep) called Spring Breakers. (He sends his regards though.)
VIMOOZ: How did you come up with this ‘Creative Brief’?
Eddy Moretti: It was just a series of emails that Harmony had been exchanging back and forth. I definitely wanted to be really playful with the project, and he started writing some freaky roles, and I kinda went with it. And I kinda encouraged the playfulness. And I wanted to work him. And I said, “You be the first filmmaker on board,” which I knew would already set a tone. And Jan especially Jan (Kwiecinski ) really played with visuals which were influenced by Harmony, I think.
VIMOOZ: What did you first think when you given the ‘creative brief’ by Eddy Moretti?
Jan Kwiecinski: That was super crazy! The brief is so extremely strange, and deranged, in a way. You simply have no idea what to start with. Me. Personally, I had to forget everything I knew. Which was actually one of the rules. And slowly getting the form. That’s what I did.
Alexey Fedorchenko: Actually, I was reading it over many times, and the first thing that struck me, really, was that an insane person must have written this! But then, I was just trying to read them carefully. And you know, each of the guidelines could actually be made into a separate movie.
VIMOOZ: Alexey, was your story based on the actual man (a mathematician- ) who refused a million dollars in awards money?
Alexey Fedorchenko: Yes, I did. One of the requirements of the guidelines was that the person has to be sort of marginalized. The main character had to be on the margins of society. The fact was, I didn’t want to make him too marginalized- to a person that was just a bum, or down-in-the-dumps. So I went for the actual character-the Russian mathematician Gregori Perelman, (who turned down two prestigious international prizes).
VIMOOZ: Did you know who the other filmmakers would be?
Jan Kwiecinski: Yes, and I was quite honored to be, you know, to be asked to pitch, even. We won a contest in each of our countries. And I had seen Alexey’s Silent Souls, which I really adored. And Harmony is one of the masters of the cinema. I grew up on his movies Gummo and Kids. I was very honored. I am the least experienced director, as well. (He had has made one previous, short film.)
Alexey Fedorchenko: I knew nothing. I hadn’t seen anyone’s work. But I was very surprised that they decided to go with Russia and Poland and America. I don’t know if they had chosen, say, a director from Africa and the Asian countries- would it had been better, not better? I just don’t know. When I was watching the film in the end, I was really watching it and enjoying it as a viewer, not as a director, picking apart its flaws.
VIMOOZ: Did everyone have the same budget?
Jan Kwiecinski: Yes. It was very low! Everyone had the same amount. I shot mine in four days. We were really running. The preparation and post is really the most time-consuming, of course.
Alexey Fedorchenko: I shot mine in twelve days.
Jan Kwiecinski: Harmony shot his in two!
VIMOOZ: What’s next for you both?
Jan Kwiecinski: I’m working on a feature, based on my short story called The Incydent.
Alexey Fedorchenko: I’m also working on a bigger feature, and Darya (actress Darya Ekasamova- truly wonderful in his segment of the film “Chronoeye”) will also be in it.
VIMOOZ: Thank you all, and good luck with The Fourth Dimension!
A production of VICE and Grolsch Film Works, The Fourth Dimension is a compilation of three different short films (thirty minutes each) directed by Harmony Korine, Alexey Fedorchenko and newcomer Jan Kwiecinski, respectively. VICE’s Eddy Moretti, who really wanted to work with Korine, developed a ‘creative brief’ and began emailing him back and fourth with ideas. Grolsch Film Works held an international contest, and Fedorchenko and Kwiecinski were chosen. No director knew what the other director was doing, which makes it quite interesting for everyone, including us, the audience.
Korine’s short starts out with a pony-tailed Val Kilmer playing a hilarious, New Age-y self-motivational speaker in the segment “The Lotus Community Workshop.” Kilmer rides around town on his tiny white BMX, with his corn-rowed gal pal Rachel (Rachel Korine) pedaling right alongside him. Did I mention that his character is also named ‘Val Kilmer?’ He delivers his sermons of sorts at an arcade-slash-roller rink to a throng of locals who really need his help, and bad. These scenes, with Kilmer inciting the crowd to chant “Awe-some, Sec-rets!” and more, are some of the most entertaining moments, truly, of the entire film. As usual, Korine has the breathtaking ability to take the audience straight past their comfort zone, and into an America that is, really, never shown onscreen. (Or at least, never quite accurately.) His hard-luck cases are not Oscar winning actors hamming it up, or the owners of meth labs (well, at least I hope not!) or any of the other two hundred and three thousand stereotypes we have all seen before on film. His people are real. They are the ones who maybe can’t get with the program or maybe, never even knew there was one, never learning that they too are allowed a place at the table. There is a great humanity at work here, and Kilmer, with his strange sweetness and zany lovability, is the perfect complement to this humanity. It’s as if, in works like this one, and past films like Gummo and Julien Donkey-Boy, Korine seems to have been put here to remind the ones lucky enough to have choices and privileges and aspirations that they (we?) even in this great country, are still, unfortunately, very much the minority.
Alexey Fedorchenko, who wowed the Venice Film Festival in 2010 with Silent Souls, offers the most formal and literal take on the fourth dimension in “Chronoeye,” and it’s Russian and heart-breaking and lovely all at once. A scientist lives in a concrete slab of a building, toying with his invention that only allows to go back in time to the same moments, over and over again, and always from the same point of view. A witty, melancholic commentary on memory, love and loss, Darya Ekasmova is also wonderful here, playing the game upstairs neighbor to a grieving, obsessed ‘time-traveler.’
Jan Kwiecinski’s segment, “Fawns,” is the weakest work of the three, although still quite beautiful to watch, although the visuals seem a bit derivative of current, punkish underground fashion editorials. Four kids in their early twenties wander empty neighborhood streets, recently evacuated, waiting for the end of the world to approach in the guise of an impending flood. The performances are all pretty decent, but there seems to be little at work in terms of genuine depth.
All in all, even for Korine’s segment especially, The Fourth Dimension is one of the greatest surprises at this year’s 2012 Tribeca Film Festival. Find listings and show times here.
Francesca McCaffery sat down with the legendary actor Val Kilmer to talk about his new project premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival this year.
The Fourth Dimension is a triptych of short films, and is the brainchild of VICE and Groslch Film Works, as well as VICE’s Renaissance Madman Eddy Moretti, who gave the directors a creative “brief,” the first tenant being the film must focus upon the concept of, you guessed it,the “Fourth Dimension.”
Cinematic wunderkind Harmony Korine directed the first short of the three segments, “The Lotus Community Workshop,” which he wrote expressly for Val Kilmer, and it is features agenuine, hilarious and endearing performance by Kilmer.Here, Kilmer talks about his love for working with Harmony and his excitingnew one-man theatrical show about Mark Twain.
Vimooz: Was it your idea to use your own name as the character in The Fourth Dimension?
Val Kilmer: No, it was very much Harmony’s idea. It was his insistent idea- “Oh, if it doesn’t work, we’ll change it!” The few times we say my name, we say “Hector,” as well. By the time we got to the night of the first day, and Rachel (Rachel Korine, Harmony’s wife, performing in the film, sporting adorable corn rows) kept saying, “Aw, that’s so great, Val!” I kind of got the idea that they were gonna go with my name.
Vimooz: Did Harmony write the script with you in mind? Did he write it for you?
Val Kilmer: I think so. And I don’t know if that’s a compliment or not! I think he was thinking about me- what are the building blocks that incorporate this kind of terrain, what the ideas are, the challenge of it being a short. Although, I happen to know the rules of an Academy Award consideration- and a short may go up to 48 minutes! I think we could get in there!It’s a fun little world, the short film world.
Vimooz: Was the film really shot in just two days? How was that?
Val Kilmer: It was very intense! We shot way into the night.
Vimooz: How was it working with Harmony Korine? I heard you rarely felt so much love on a set before.
Val Kilmer: I really love him. And I don’t want to insult Francis Coppola- there’s alotta love there, too! But, you know, he’s just impish. I think it kinda surprises some people, because you kind of find out he’s just…a comedian! Because the darker part of his movies sort of stand out, I guess? But, he is so playful…He is just looking to smile, he is looking to be alive about what comedy is- it’s some recognition of reality. Not the normal reality, but, something so extreme, even violent. I mean, why do we think it’s funny when someone falls on their face? See. We’re all smiling now! It’s weird. And I’m proud, too, because, a s far as I know of his movies, and I think I’ve seen everything he’s done- it’s the first really sort ofstraight comedy he’s ever done.
Vimooz: What’s next for you, Val?
Well, me and Eddy, and Harmony, we’ve got big ideas. We want to take this self-help program on the road! I just finished on putting on my one-man show about Mark Twain in Hollywood. I really want to get at-risk kids and vets coming back from Afghanistan to come and see. Theatre can be pretty snobby- but there needs to be outreach- it needs to be for everyone. and I’m going to St. Louis, Missourri next week to receive my honorary doctorate from William Woods University. And I am going to do the Twain play there. I’m actually pretty nervous about it.The last artist they had there was Wayne Newton pre-Las Vegas! So they’re pretty excited,but I’m actually pretty nervous. Because I have this theory that Twain made up his dialect, so I don’t really do a Missourri dialect (in the piece.) I hope they don’t mind. That’s a tough community there!
Vimooz: Thank you so much, Val. It was such a real pleasure.
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DARK HORSE[/caption]
DARK HORSE, described as the latest “sad comedy” by filmmaker Todd Solondz,has been selected as the Closing Night film of the 2012 Maryland Film Festival scheduled to run May 3-6 in downtown Baltimore. The film, starring Jordan Gelber and co-starring Selma Blair, Justin Bartha, Mia Farrow, and Christopher Walken,will be screened on the evening of Sunday, May 6th in the historic Charles Theater, with Solondz and members of his cast presenting.
Abe (Jordan Gelber), is an overgrown and selfish man-child who, firmly on the far side of 30, still lives at home, working for his father and collecting toys. Deeply lonely yet full of blustery delusions of grandeur, Abe aggressively pursues troubled beauty Miranda (Selma Blair). In a moment of weakness, she goes along with his advances, built around his grandiose vision of a life together in his room full of collectibles. This stroke of good fortune surprises no one more than Abe’s long-suffering parents (a note-perfect pairing of Mia Farrow and Christopher Walken)—until, that is, things begin to unravel. [via MFF]
The Opening Night program, which each year since 2004 the festival has dedicated to a program of short films, will take place the evening of Thursday, May 3rd in the Maryland Institute College of Art’s Brown Center, with each film presented by its director.
The MFF 2012 Opening Night Shorts are:
I Am John Wayne (Christina Choe)
The Kook (Nat Livingston Johnson and Gregory Mitnick)
Modern Man (Kerri Lendo and John Merriman)
Cork’s Cattlebaron (Eric Steele)
Fishing Without Nets (Cutter Hodierne)
City of the Caesars (Chile), Cuando los Muertos Estan Mas Secos/When the Dead Are Drier (Bolivia), Elena (Brazil), The Shark’s Eye (Argentina), were announced as the award winners for the Tribeca Film Institute Latin America Media Arts Fund; and Las Marthas and Feriado (Holiday) the winners of the first-ever Heineken VOCES grant at a celebration over the weekend for Latin American filmmakers during the Tribeca Film Festival. The funds, totaling $60,000, support innovative Latin American film and video artists to help them explore stories reflecting diverse cultures and gain exposure in the film industry.
The TFI Latin America Media Arts Fund awards $10,000 grants to animation, documentary, or hybrid feature-length films in advanced development, production or post-production from filmmakers living and working in the Caribbean, Mexico, Central and South America. Grantees also receive exclusive guidance from TFI to ensure that each film reaches completion and enters the U.S. marketplace from the best possible vantage point. The Fund is sponsored by Moviecity and CANACINE.
The following four films are winners of this year’s TFI Latin America Media Arts Fund:
City of the Caesars (Chile), Directed & Produced by Francisco Hervé, Edited by Andrea Chignoli — Two conspiracy theories. Two ordinary men. Wisdom, immortality and natural resources are at stake in a mythical place somewhere in Patagonia.
Cuando los Muertos Estan Mas Secos/When the Dead Are Drier (Bolivia), Directed & Produced by Claudio Araya Silva and Produced by Yara Morales Rivera — In the eighties, more than 50 women committed suicide in a small peasant community. Hermenegildo and Pedro return to their community, attempting to retrace the paths of memory regarding the deaths of their wives. The trip aims to unravel the mystery surrounding the life and death of these women.
Elena (Brazil), Directed & Produced by Ana Petra Costa – The film recounts the journey of Petra, a young Brazilian woman who dreams of becoming an actress but is warned not to do so by her mother. Against these admonitions, Petra moves to New York City where the reasons why she was advised against this path begin to unfold.
The Shark’s Eye (Argentina), Directed by Alejo Hoijman and Produced by Gema Juarez Allen — Summer is coming to Nicaragua and Maycol and Bryan will start to learn their families’ trade, shark hunting. In a place where traditional trades disappear in favor of drug trafficking, these two boys choose their future. A coming of age film set in the forgotten Caribbean coast of Nicaragua.
The winners of the first-ever Heineken VOCES grants include:
Heineken VOCES Award for Documentary
Las Marthas
A documentary about an extraordinary rite of passage in Laredo, Texas where Mexican-American debutantes are presented at a grand Colonial ball dressed as American revolutionaries – a border tradition that’s 114 years old.
Directed & Produced by Cristina Ibarra and Produced by Erin Ploss-Campoamor
Heineken VOCES Award for Narrative
Feriado (Holiday)
The sheltered life of Juan Pablo is turned upside down when he must spend the carnival holiday with his wealthy family at their hacienda in the Ecuadorian Andes and meets Juano, a self-assured black metal fan from the nearby pueblo.
Written & Directed by Diego Araujo
Produced by Hanne-Lovise Skartveit, Juan Sebastián Jácome & Andrés Longares
Executive Produced by Frida Torresblanco
Cinematography by Bradford Young