• WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT and the Complete List of Winners of 2011 AFI FEST

    [caption id="attachment_1831" align="alignnone"]WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT by Alexandra-Therese Keining[/caption]

    AFI FEST 2011 announced the features and short films that took home this year’s Audience and Jury Awards. The audience voted the lesbian themed drama, WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT by first-time writer/director, Alexandra-Therese Keining the winner in the Breakthrough Section.

    The 2011 AFI FEST complete list of winners: 

    AUDIENCE AWARDS

    Breakthrough Section (award accompanied by a $5,000 cash prize)
    WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT by Alexandra-Therese Keining

    New Auteurs Section
    BULLHEAD by Michaël R. Roskam

    World Cinema Section
    A tie: JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI by David Gelb and KINYARWANDA by Alrick Brown

    Young Americans Section
    WUSS by Clay Liford

    LIVE ACTION AND ANIMATED SHORT FILM SECTION JURY AWARDS
    The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences recognizes each winner as a qualifier for the annual Academy Awards®.

    Live Action Short Film Section
    Grand Jury Prize: FROZEN STORIES from Grzegorz Jaroszuk “for its world of meta-reality suffused with enough context to rend a beautifully nuanced story for the most heightened elements.”

    Honorable Mention: BABYLAND by Marc Fratello “for its assured direction, stunning lead performance and the ability to balance humor and pathos all the way up to its shocking conclusion.”

    Animated Short Film Section

    Grand Jury Prize: THE EAGLEMAN STAG by Michael Please “for its ambitious and elegant storytelling, both narrative and aesthetically, in which the bigness of life and the concept of time are deftly unpacked in a moving nine minutes.”

    Honorable Mention: THE VOYAGERS by Penny Lane “for its skillful juxtaposition of archival footage and personal narrative to tell a moving story of exploration, romance and space travel.”

    NEW AUTEURS SECTION CRITIC’S PRIZE

    Grand Jury Prize: THE LONELIEST PLANET by Julia Loktev “for its bold exploration of societal structures and gender roles, set against a landscape that conveys both profound beauty and profound alienation.”

    Special Jury Prize: ATTENBERG by Athina Rachel Tsangari “for its wit, distinct voice and playful sense of storytelling.”

    Acting Award Prize: BULLHEAD’s Matthias Schoenaerts “for his nuanced and intensely physical embodiment of bruised masculinity.”

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  • Morgan Freeman to receive the Cecil B DeMille award at the Golden Globes

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    Morgan Freeman will receive the Cecil B. DeMille award at the Golden Globes ceremony in January. The award is given every year by the HFPA for outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment.

    Freeman won a best actor Golden Globe in 1990 for Driving Miss Daisy and was nominated three more times, for The Shawshank Redemption, Million Dollar Baby, for which he won an Oscar, and Invictus.

    The Cecil B. DeMille was first given in 1952 to the filmmaker whose name it bears and other recipients have included Walt Disney, Joan Crawford, Robert Mitchum and, more recently, Warren Beatty, Anthony Hopkins, Steven Spielberg and Robert DeNiro among others.

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  • Oliver Platt and Edie Falco to cohosts Gotham Independent Film Awards

    Oliver Platt and Edie Falco will co-host the 21st annual Gotham Independent Film Awards ceremony scheduled to take place November 28th 2011 in New York.

    “We are absolutely thrilled to be co-hosting this year’s Gotham Awards,” Platt and Falco said in a joint statement. “We look forward to an evening that celebrates outstanding independent film-making, brave and bold voices against the backdrop of this incredible city.”

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  • Billy Crystal is the new host of the Oscars

    Billy Crystal will replace Eddie Murphy as the host of the 84th Academy Awards. The funny man announced in a tweet, “Am doing the Oscars so the young woman in the pharmacy will stop asking my name when I pick up my prescriptions. Looking forward to the show.”

    This will mark Crystal’s ninth time as host. Only Bob Hope has hosted more Academy Awards presentations, with 19 ceremonies between 1940 and 1978. Crystal last hosted the Academy Awards in 2004.

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  • Brian Grazer is the new producer of 84th Academy Awards

    Academy President Tom Sherak announced today that Academy Award®-winner Brian Grazer will be the replacement for Brett Ratner as the producer of the 84th Academy Awards. This will be the first time Grazer has produced the Oscar® telecast.

    “Brian Grazer is a renowned filmmaker who over the past 25 years has produced a diverse and extraordinary body of work,” said Sherak. “He will certainly bring his tremendous talent, creativity and relationships to the Oscars®.”

    “I am thrilled to welcome Brian Grazer as my partner and that we will be  collaborating to produce an outstanding show,” echoed co-producer Don Mischer.

    “It’s very gratifying to be part of a show that honors excellence in the medium to which I have devoted so much of my career,” said Grazer. “Don is a legend, and I am excited to work with him.”

    “I too am delighted that Brian will join Don in producing the Academy Awards and I am looking forward to our producers delivering the movie event of the year,” commented Academy CEO Dawn Hudson.

    Grazer has earned four Academy Award nominations. He won a Best Picture Oscar in 2001 for “A Beautiful Mind.” In 1984, Grazer was nominated in the writing category for “Splash,” and he received Best Picture nominations in 1995 and 2008 for “Apollo 13” and “Frost/Nixon,” respectively.  His other film credits include “Spies Like Us,” “Kindergarten Cop,” “The Nutty Professor,” “Liar Liar,” “8 Mile” and “Cinderella Man.”  His current projects include the about to be released “J. Edgar” and the just released “Tower Heist.”

    Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012.

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  • Eddie Murphy Quits as Host of 84th Academy Awards

    One day after Brett Ratner, quit as producer of the 84th Academy Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Tom Sherak announced that Eddie Murphy has withdrawn as host of the 84th Academy Awards. “I appreciate how Eddie feels about losing his creative partner, Brett Ratner, and we all wish him well,” said Sherak.

    In the statement, Murphy said, “First and foremost I want to say that I completely understand and support each party’s decision with regard to a change of producers for this year’s Academy Awards ceremony. I was truly looking forward to being a part of the show that our production team and writers were just starting to develop, but I’m sure that the new production team and host will do an equally great job.”

    Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012.

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  • Chinese film producer and director Zhang Yimou to be honored at Asia Pacific Screen Awards

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    Zhang Yimou

     

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  • Filmmakers behind Joe Frazier Film sad about his Passing

    [caption id="attachment_1816" align="alignnone"]Joe Frazier: When the Smoke Clears[/caption]

    Former heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier died at the age of 67 from liver cancer.

    The filmmakers behind the film, “Joe Frazier: When the Smoke Clears” issued a statement on their website, “It is with deep sadness that all of us involved with the film learned of Joe’s sad passing. Our thoughts are with his friends and family. We are truly grateful for the time Joe spent with us to share his story. We hope in turn that we can share it with the world.”

    Directed and produced by Mike Todd, “Joe Frazier: When the Smoke Clears” is described as the story of the real Joe Frazier.

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  • Aaron Eckhart, James Marsden, Jay and Mark Duplass honored at 2011 Savannah Film Festival

     

    [caption id="attachment_1812" align="alignnone"]Golden Globe-nominated actor Aaron Eckhart [/caption]

    The 14th annual Savannah Film Festival rounded out a full week of special screenings and award presentations by honoring Golden Globe-nominated actor Aaron Eckhart (“The Dark Knight,” “Erin Brockovich”), actor James Marsden (“27 Dresses,” “X-Men”) and the writing/directing brother team of Jay and Mark Duplass (“Cyrus,” “The Puffy Chair”) during the event’s closing weekend.

    Accepting the Outstanding Achievement in Film Award before a packed theater, Eckhart thoughtfully reflected on the driving motivation behind his career. “Early on in my career, I had the privilege to work with Morgan Freeman. Every word out of his mouth was perfect, and take after take was flawless. I asked Morgan, ‘How do you do it?’ and, without missing a beat, he turned and looked me in the eye and said, ‘Thirty years.’ I’m halfway there. After 30-plus movies, I continue to ask, ‘How do you do it?’ The perfect film role—perfection—that’s what drives me, and drives me crazy. Every role I’ve always wanted to be real so you, the audience, can have the most pleasurable experience. That’s why I continuously ask, ‘How do you do it?’”

     

    [caption id="attachment_1813" align="alignnone"]Actor James Marsden[/caption]


    Marsden received the Savannah Film Festival Spotlight Award, which is given to an outstanding young filmmaker. “I moved to L.A. when I was 19, and I’ve been doing this since then. I’ve been doing this for half my life, which just occurred to me today,” he said. “I want to be that guy in his 80’s that people say, ‘You would know him if you saw him. He’s been in everything.’ That’s the actor who’s brave enough to take risks. This award is special because it means I’m doing something right.”

    [caption id="attachment_1814" align="alignnone"]Jay Duplass accepted the SCAD Cinevation Award[/caption]


    Jay Duplass accepted the SCAD Cinevation Award prior to the screening of the Duplass’ new film “Jeff, Who Lives at Home.” Starring Jason Segel, Ed Helms, Judy Greer and Susan Sarandon, the film follows a man who looks to the universe to determine his path but, through a series of comedic and unexpected events, ends up crossing paths with his family in the strangest locations and circumstances. “I want to commend the festival on your excellent taste for choosing my brother and me for this award,” laughed Duplass. “We feel so lucky and it feels so surreal to receive this award.”

    Earlier in the week actress Ellen Barkin (“The Big Easy,” “Ocean’s Thirteen”) and actor Ray Liotta (“Goodfellas,” “Hannibal”) received Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Awards while actress Lily Tomlin (“9 to 5,” “All of Me”) and writer/director Oliver Stone (“Platoon,” “Wall Street”) were honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards.

     

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  • Brett Ratner No Longer Producing the Oscars After Homophobic Slur

    Brett Ratner has resigned as a producer of the 84th annual Academy Awards after reportedly using the homophobic F-word at an event on Sunday night. He reportedly said “Rehearsal is for f*gs,” in response to a question at the event.

    In a statement issued later today, the Academy said, This morning, Brett Ratner submitted his resignation as a producer of the 84th annual Academy Awards to Academy President Tom Sherak. Ratner then issued an open letter to the entertainment industry in which he explained his decision. “He did the right thing for the Academy and for himself,” Sherak said. “Words have meaning, and they have consequences. Brett is a good person, but his comments were unacceptable. We all hope this will be an opportunity to raise awareness about the harm that is caused by reckless and insensitive remarks, regardless of the intent.”


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  • Durban International Film Festival manager Nashen Moodley to head Sydney Film Festival

     

     

    Durban International Film Festival manager Nashen Moodley has been appointed as director of the Sydney Film Festival. Moodley will take up his new position in January. The Sydney Film Festival takes place from June 6 to 17, 2012 while the Durban International Film Festival runs from July 19 to 29, 2012.

    Announcing Moodley’s new appointment, Peter Rorvik, director of the CCA and the Durban International Film Festival, notes: “Nashen has established a reputation as an astute and world-respected film programmer, and whilst his departure is a great loss to DIFF, it is for Nashen a big step into the international arena, and deserved recognition of his skills. Of course he is not just a brilliant programmer, widely-acknowledged by the filmmaking community, but in his broader role as film festival manager he has contributed significantly to the growth and development of the Durban International Film Festival across the past decade. His expertise and understanding of film industry processes are an asset to any organization, and the CCA and DIFF congratulate Nashen on his appointment and wish him well for his future projects and adventures. Both the CCA and the city of Durban will miss this popular personality, and we will certainly maintain our relationship with him. ”

    Sydney Film Festival Chairman, Chris Freeland, said: “Nashen Moodley joins Sydney Film Festival at a time of great strength and growth. His strong international film festival connections and curatorial flair ensure that Sydney will continue to be presented the best films and filmmakers from around the world; whilst highlighting the great films and talent of the Australian film industry.”

    Nashen Moodley said: “Prior to joining DIFF, I was a regular attendee and the festival has been extremely important for me in my cinematic education. I have so enjoyed these past 11 years and, as I embark on this exciting new challenge, I am happy that DIFF is in a position of great strength and opportunity. It was been a great privilege and pleasure for me to work with Peter Rorvik and the dedicated Centre For Creative Arts team, and I wish them all the very best for the future. My intention is to remain closely connected to African cinema and filmmakers and I will remain a friend and keen supporter of DIFF.”

     

     

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  • Australian Film ‘Wedding Party’ Leads Winners of 2011 Bel-Air Film Festival

    [caption id="attachment_1806" align="alignnone"]Best Jury Feature Film Award and Best Feature Film Directing Award: Wedding Party[/caption]

    The Fourth Annual Bel-Air Film Festival was held in from October 12th-17th, and included screening 36 Feature, Documentary, Short, and Student Films.  “The 2011 Bel-Air Film Festival is proud to have showcased the work of filmmakers that have expressed their creativity and innovative spirits, and we are pleased to announce this year’s winners.” –Melody Storm, President of Bel-Air Film Festival.

    2011 Bel-Air Film Festival winning film includes:

    Best Audience Feature Film Award: My Father’s Will
    Written, directed, and produced by Fraydun Manocherian and starring actors Victor Alfieri and Ione Skye. The film is a story about a wealthy and successful businessman, Ferro Olivetti, enjoys the privileges and perks of his social stature, but on his father’s deathbed he promises to obey “his father’s will” and spend one month away from his identity and money.

    Best Audience Jury Documentary Award: Once I Was a Champion
    Written and directed by Gerard Roxburgh. The film debuts the story of Evan Tanner. Tanner was an adventure seeker, fighter, philosopher, writer and alcoholic died on September 8th, 2008 in the desert north of Brawley, California.

    Best Audience Short Film Award: Women
    Directed by Ashley Scott and George Mays and written by Ashley Scott. The film stars Kevin Scott Allen, Lena Biggerstaff, and Evyh Cerhus. “Women,” depicts the age-old dilemma of the feminine role is society. Set in a beautiful nether-France, two exquisite young ladies argue the merits of conforming to society’s idea of femininity versus what women might do if they made their own rules.

    Best Jury Feature Film Award and Best Feature Film Directing Award: Wedding Party
    Directed by Amanda Jane and written by Christine Bartlett. The film stars Josh Lawson, Isabel Lucas, and Steve Bisley. The Wedding party is a modern day love story taking place in Australia. The storyline reviews the struggles between a groom and his bride is a family of misfits and the love of his life

    Best Jury Screenwriting Award: Face to Face
    Written, directed, and produced by Michael Rymer and starring Vince Colosimo, Luke Ford, and Matthew Newton. The feature film is about a group of Australians from diverse backgrounds gather to decide the fate of a violent young man. An Australian ’12 Angry Men’, only there’s ten men, and four women.

    Best Jury Documentary Film Award and Best Jury Film Documentary Award: Beatboxing: The Fifth Element of Hip Hop
    Written and directed by Klaus Schneyder featuring artists Adam Matta, Archangel, Baba Israel, Morganics, Bee Low, Bellatrix and the Boxettes, Butterscotch, Click88, David Eaton, and DJ Shark. The documentary reviews how the late 70s youth culture evolved in the poorer parts of New York which combined several disciplines under the name of Hip Hop. Apart from the four classic elements of Graffiti writing, DJing, Breakdancing, and Rapping, the musical side of this culture was enhanced by a fifth element called, “Beatboxing.”

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