• Florida Film Festival to Feature 182 Films, Opens with THE HERO

    [caption id="attachment_19932" align="aligncenter" width="1213"]The Hero The Hero[/caption] The upcoming 26th Florida Film Festival taking place April 21 to 30, 2017, in Maitland and Winter Park, Florida, will feature a lineup of 182 films. The festival will open with the feature film The Hero, directed by Brett Haley, preceded by the Florida premiere of the short film 5 Films About Technology directed by Peter Huang. 

    2017 OFFICIAL SELECTION:

    OPENING NIGHT FILM:

    The Hero – Directed by Brett Haley, USA, 2016, 96 minutes Preceded by: 5 Films About Technology – Directed by Peter Huang, Canada, 2016, 5 minutes, Florida Premiere

    SPOTLIGHT FILMS:

    Bitch – Directed by Marianna Palka, USA, 2017, 93 minutes, Florida Premiere Buster’s Mal Heart – Directed by Sarah Adina Smith, USA, 2016, 98 minutes, In English and Spanish with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere Colossal – Directed by Nacho Vigalondo, Canada/Spain, 2016, 110 minutes The Commune – Directed by Thomas Vinterberg, Denmark/Sweden/Netherlands, 2016, 111 minutes, In Danish with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere Dean – Directed by Demetri Martin, USA, 2016, 87 minutes, Rated PG-13 The Exception – Directed by David Leveaux, UK, 2016, 107 minutes, Southeast Premiere/2nd US Showing Manifesto – Directed by Julian Rosefeldt, Germany, 2017, 95 minutes, Southeast Premiere Menashe – Directed by Joshua Z. Weinstein, USA, 2017, 81 minutes, In Yiddish with English Subtitles Paris Can Wait – Directed by Eleanor Coppola, USA, 2016, 92 minutes, In English and French with English Subtitles, Rated PG Patti Cake$ – Directed by Geremy Jasper, USA, 2017, 108 minutes Soul on a String – Directed by Zhang Yang, China/Tibet, 2016, 142 minutes, In Tibetan with English Subtitles,East Coast Premiere Step – Directed by Amanda Lipitz, USA, 2017, 83 minutes, Rated PG

    NARRATIVE FEATURES COMPETITION:

    The Archer – Directed by Valerie Weiss, USA, 2017, 86 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Camera Obscura – Directed by Aaron B. Koontz, USA, 2017, 95 minutes, World Premiere Dave Made a Maze – Directed by Bill Watterson, USA, 2017, 81 minutes, Southeast Premiere Girl Flu. – Directed by Dorie Barton, USA, 2016, 94 minutes Katie Says Goodbye – Directed by Wayne Roberts, USA, 2016, 88 minutes My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea – Directed by Dash Shaw, USA, 2016, 75 min, Southeast Premiere Pushing Dead – Directed by Tom E. Brown, USA, 2016, 111 minutes Some Freaks – Directed by Ian MacAllister-McDonald, USA, 2016, 97 minutes, Florida Premiere The Strange Ones – Directed by Lauren Wolkstein and Christopher Radcliff, USA, 2017, 80 minutes A Stray – Directed by Musa Syeed, USA, 2016, 82 minutes, In English and Somali with English Subtitles,Southeast Premiere

    DOCUMENTARY FEATURES COMPETITION:

    8 Borders, 8 Days – Directed by Amanda Bailly, USA/Lebanon, 2017, 60 minutes, In Arabic with English Subtitles, World Premiere Cassette: A Documentary Mixtape – Directed by Zack Taylor, USA/Germany/Netherlands/UK, 2016, 92 minutes,East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Circus Kid – Directed by Lorenzo Pisoni, USA, 2016, 71 minutes, Southeast Premiere For Ahkeem – Directed by: Jeremy S. Levine and Landon Van Soest, USA, 2017, 90 minutes, Southeast Premiere/2nd US Showing The Peacemaker – Directed by James Demo, USA, 2016, 90 minutes, Southeast Premiere/2nd US Showing Rat Film – Directed by Theo Anthony, USA, 2016, 82 minutes Strad Style – Directed by Stefan Avalos, USA, 2017, 104 minutes, Southeast Premiere This Cold Life – Directed by Darren Mann, USA, 2017, 88 minutes, US Premiere Woman on Fire – Directed by Julie Sokolow, USA, 2016, 84 minutes, Southeast Premiere

    DOCUMENTARY SHORTS COMPETITION:

    116 Cameras – Directed by Davina Pardo, USA, 2017, 16 minutes, Southeast Premiere/2nd US Showing All Good Things – Directed by Chloe Domont, USA, 2017, 26 minutes, Florida Premiere Bayard & Me – Directed by Matt Wolf, USA, 2017, 16 minutes, Florida Premiere Brillo Box (3¢ Off) – Directed by Lisanne Sklyer, USA, 2016, 40 minutes, Florida Premiere The Carousel – Directed by Jonathan Napolitano, USA, 2016, 12 minutes, Southeast Premiere The Christmas Light Killer – Directed by James P. Gannon, USA, 2016, 7 minutes, Southeast Premiere/2nd US Showing Clean Hands – Directed by Lauren DeFilippo, USA, 2017, 9 minutes, East Coast Premiere The Collection – Directed by Adam Roffman, USA, 2017, 11 minutes Commodity City – Directed by Jessica Kingdon, USA, 2017, 11 minutes, In Mandarin with English Subtitles The Hama Hama Way – Directed by Treva Wurmfeld, USA, 2017, 12 minutes, Southeast Premiere Heaven is a Traffic Jam on the 405 – Directed by Frank Stiefel, USA, 2016, 40 minutes, East Coast Premiere High Chaparral – Directed by David Freid, USA/Sweden, 2016, 9 minutes, Florida Premiere The John Show – Directed by Julie Sokolow, USA, 2017, 13 minutes, East Coast Premiere Long Term Parking – Directed by Lance Oppenheim, USA, 2017, 8 minutes, Florida Premiere Oddball – Directed by Joshua Moore, USA, 2016, 5 minutes, East Coast The Rabbit Hunt – Directed by Patrick Bresnan, USA, 2017, 12 minutes Refugee – Directed by Joyce Chen and Emily Moore, USA/Senegal, 2016, 28 minutes, In English, Wolof, and French with English Subtitles, Florida Premiere Richard Twice – Directed by Matthew Salton, USA, 2017, 10 minutes, East Coast Premiere

    NARRATIVE SHORTS COMPETITION:

    August – Directed by Caitlyn Greene, USA, 2017, 8 minutes, Florida Premiere The Candidate – Directed by Michael Hilf, USA, 2016, 6 minutes Cat Killer – Directed by Wes Jones, USA, 2017, 11 minutes, World Premiere Cul-de-Sac – Directed by Damon Russell, USA, 2016, 15 minutes, Florida Premiere Cycle – Directed by Caleb Wild, USA, 2017, 10 minutes, World Premiere Get the Life – Directed by Ozzy Villazòn, USA, 2016, 12 minutes Good Crazy – Directed by Rosa Salazar, USA, 2017, 14 minutes, East Coast Premiere Hijo Por Hijo – Directed by Juan Avella, USA/Venezuela, 2016, 11 minutes, In Spanish with English Subtitles,East Coast Premiere Horseshoe Theory – Directed by Jonathan Daniel Brown, USA, 2017, 12 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Hot Seat – Directed by Anna Kerrigan, USA, 2017, 13 minutes, Southeast Premiere I’m in Here – Directed by Willy Berliner, USA, 2017, 12 minutes, Southeast Premiere It’s Been Like a Year – Directed by Cameron Fay, USA, 2017, 9 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Judy – Directed by Ariel Gardner and Alex Kavutskiy, USA, 2016, 10 minutes, Southeast Premiere La Ramona – Directed by Antonio De Jesus Sanchez, USA, 2017, 27 minutes, In Spanish with English subtitles,World Premiere Laurels – Directed by David Brundige, USA, 2017, 7 minutes, North American Premiere The Lemon Tree – Directed by Amanda Yam, USA, 2016, 11 minutes, Florida Premiere Mrs. Nebile’s Wormhole – Directed by Pinar Yorgancioğlu, USA/Germany/Turkey, 2016, 14 minutes, In Turkish and German with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere New Neighbors – Directed by E.G. Bailey, USA, 2017, 9 minutes, East Coast Premiere Night Shift – Directed by Marshall Tyler, USA, 2017, 16 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing No Other Way to Say It – Directed by Tim Mason, USA, 2016, 7 minutes, East Coast Premiere Red Apples – Directed by George Sikharulidze, USA/Georgia/Armenia, 2016, 15 minutes, In Armenian with English Subtitles, East Coast Premiere Rosie, Oh – Directed by Andy Koeger and Apple Xenos, USA, 2016, 9 minutes, East Coast Premiere Scooter Joe – Directed by Steve Collins, USA, 2017, 7 minutes, World Premiere Shift – Directed by Kristen Hester, USA, 2016, 9 minutes, Southeast Premiere Surrogate – Directed by Olivia Hamilton, USA, 2016, 16 minutes, East Coast Premiere, 2nd US Showing Tiny Mammals – Directed by Dagny Looper, USA, 2017, 8 minutes, World Premiere The Visitor – Directed by Ferran Mendoza Soler, USA, 2016, 16 minutes, North American Premiere Vitamins for Life – Directed by Grier Dill, USA, 2016, 2 minutes, Southeast Premiere You Can Go – Directed by Christine Turner, USA, 2016, 10 minutes, Florida Premiere Your Day – Directed by Ginger Gonzaga, USA, 2017, 32 minutes, Florida Premiere Zaar – Directed by Ibrahim Nada, USA, 2016, 11 minutes, Southeast Premiere Zero-Zero – Directed by Randall Whittinghill, USA, 2017, 15 minutes, World Premiere 

    ANIMATED SHORTS COMPETITION:

    149th and Grand Concourse – Directed by Andy & Carolyn London, USA, 2016, 3 minutes, 2nd US Screening The Biggest Wad is Mine – Directed by: Sam Gurry, USA, 2016, 3 minutes, East Coast Premiere Chella Drive – Directed by Adele Han Li, USA, 2016, 3 minutes, Southeast Premiere Cop Dog – Directed by Bill Plympton, USA, 2017, 6 minutes, World Premiere Fabricated – Directed by Brett Foxwell, USA, 2016, 19 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Have Sex with Us – Directed by: Rob Frese, USA, 2016, 6 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing The History of Magic: Ensueño – Directed by Josè Luis González, USA, 2016, 5 minutes, In English and Spanish with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere Hot Dog Hands – Directed by Matt Reynolds, USA, 2017, 7 minutes, East Coast Premiere Insect Bite – Directed by Grace Nayoon Rhee, USA/South Korea, 2016, 2 minutes, Southeast Premiere It’s a Date – Directed by Zachary Zezima, USA, 2016, 7 minutes, Southeast Premiere Legal Smuggling with Christine Choy – Directed by Lewie Kloster, USA, 2016, 4 minutes Slow Wave – Directed by Andy Kennedy, USA, 2016, 4 minutes, Florida Premiere Summer Camp Island – Directed by Julia Pott, USA, 2016, 9 minutes Trouble Brewing – Directed by Timothy Heath, USA, 2017, 8 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Vocabulary 1 – Directed by Becky James, USA, 2016, 4 minutes, Southeast Premiere

    INTERNATIONAL SHOWCASE FEATURES:

    I Dream in Another Language (Sueño en Otro Idioma) – Directed by Ernesto Contreras, Mexico/Netherlands, 2017, 101 minutes, In Spanish with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere Pop Aye – Directed by Kirsten Tan, Thailand/Singapore, 2017, 101 minutes, In Thai with English Subtitles,Southeast Premiere Sami Blood – Directed by Amanda Kernell, Sweden/Norway/Denmark, 2016, 107 minutes, In Swedish and South Sami with English Subtitles, East Coast Premiere White Sun – Directed by Deepak Rauniyar, Nepal/USA/Qatar/Netherlands, 2016, 89 minutes, In Nepali with English Subtitles

    INTERNATIONAL SHORTS:

    5 Films About Technology – Directed by Peter Huang, Canada, 2016, 5 minutes, Florida Premiere Add Contact – Directed by David Oeo, Spain, 2016, 3 minutes, In Spanish with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere Fish Story – Directed by Charlie Lyne, UK, 2017, 14 minutes, East Coast Premiere Gryla – Directed by Tomas Heidar Johannesson, Iceland, 2016, 6 minutes, In Icelandic with English Subtitles, Florida Premiere Home – Directed by More Raça, Kosovo, 2016, 23 minutes, In Albanian with English Subtitles, East Coast Premiere Irregulars – Directed by Fabio Palmieri, Italy, 2015, 9 minutes, Florida Premiere Jonah the Wet Nurse – Directed by Shalom Hager, Israel, 2015, 30 minutes, In Hebrew with English Subtitles,North American Premiere The Other Side – Directed by Griselda San Martin, Spain, 2017, 6 minutes, In Spanish with English Subtitles, East Coast Premiere Overtime – Directed by Craig D. Foster, Australia, 2016, 9 minutes, Florida Premiere Pria – Directed by Yudho Aditya, Indonesia, 2017, 22 minutes, In Bahasa with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere Saigo – Directed by TOCHKA (Takeshi Nagata, Kazue Monno), Japan, 2015, 2 minutes, Florida Premiere/2nd US Showing Searching for Wives – Directed by Zuki Juno Tobgye, Singapore, 2016, 12 minutes, In English and Tamil with English Subtitles, Southeast Premiere Slapper – Directed by Luci Schroder, Australia, 2016, 15 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Stallion (Hingsten) – Directed by Ninja Thyberg, Sweden, 2016, 15 minutes, In Swedish with English Subtitles,World Premiere Supot – Directed by Phil Giordano, Philippines/USA, 2015, 13 minutes, In Tagalog with English Subtitles, North American Premiere White – Directed by Paul Cioran, Romania, 2016, 20 minutes, In Romanian with English Subtitles, North American Premiere

    INTERNATIONAL ANIMATED SHORTS:

    The Absence of Eddy Table – Directed by Rune Spaans, Norway, 2016, 12 minutes, Florida Premiere Arts + Crafts Spectacular #3 – Directed by Sébastien Wolf and Ian Ritterskamp, Germany, 2015, 4 minutes,Southeast Premiere Curse of the Flesh – Directed by Yannick Lecoeur and Leslie Lavielle, France, 2016, 16 minutes, No Dialogue,North American Premiere Decorado – Directed by Alberto Vázquez, Spain/France, 2016, 11 minutes, In Spanish with English Subtitles,Florida Premiere Fears – Directed by Nata Metlukh, Canada, 2015, 2 minutes, No Dialogue, Florida Premiere How Long, Not Long – Directed by Michelle and Uri Kranot, Denmark, 2016, 6 minutes, Southeast Premiere Jonas and the Sea – Directed by Marlies van der Wel, Netherlands, 2015, 12 minutes, No Dialogue, Southeast Premiere Journal Animé – Directed by Donato Sansone, France, 2016, 4 minutes, No Dialogue, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Nou Nen Feat.Utae – Directed by Sawako Kabuki, Japan, 2016, 3 minutes, No Dialogue, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Pussy – Directed by Renata Gąsiorowska, Poland, 2016, 8 minutes, No Dialogue, Southeast Premiere SimSim (The Realm of Deepest Knowing) – Directed by Seunghee Kim, South Korea, 2017, 4 minutes, No Dialogue, World Premiere This is Not an Animation – Directed by Federico Kempke, Canada/Mexico, 2016, 5 minutes, Florida Premiere

    MIDNIGHT FEATURES:

    68 Kill – Directed by Trent Haaga, USA, 2017, 93 minutes, Southeast Premiere Bad Black – Directed by Nabwana IGG, Uganda, 2016, 70 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Bad Day For The Cut – Directed by Chris Baugh, UK/Northern Ireland, 2017, 99 minutes, East Coast Premiere Birdboy: The Forgotten Children (Psiconautas) – Directed by Alberto Vázquez and Pedro Rivero, Spain, 2015, 76 minutes, In Spanish with English Subtitles, US Premiere

    MIDNIGHT SHORTS:

    Bad Dog – Directed by Tom Putnam, USA, 2017, 4 minutes, World Premiere Death Metal – Directed by Chris McInroy, USA, 2016, 5 minutes Do No Harm – Directed by Roseanne Liang, New Zealand, 2017, 12 minutes, East Coast Premiere Feeding Time – Directed by Matt Mercer, USA, 2016, 13 minutes, East Coast Premiere Girl #2 – Directed by David Jeffery, USA, 2016, 9 minutes Hold Me (Ca Caw Ca Caw) – Directed by Renee Zhan, USA, 2016, 11 minutes, Southeast Premiere Horses – Directed by Leah Shore, USA, 2016, 1 minutes, World Premiere The Investment – Directed by Steve Collins, USA, 2017, 4 minutes, East Coast Premiere It is My Fault – Directed by Liu Sha, China, 2016, 5 minutes, East Coast Premiere Ivan’s Need – Directed by Manuela Leuenberger, Veronica L. Montaño, and Lukas Suter, Switzerland, 2015, 6 minutes, Florida Premiere Pigskin – Directed by Jake Hammond, USA, 2016, 13 minutes Pinky Toe – Directed by Lina July, USA, 2016, 1 minutes, Florida Premiere Showing it All – Directed by Lasse Persson and Lisa Tulin, Sweden, 2017, 2 minutes, World Premiere Sisyphus – Directed by Grace Nayoon Rhee, USA, 2016, 3 minutes, East Coast Premiere/2nd US Showing Summer’s Puke is Winter’s Delight – Directed by Sawako Kabuki, Japan, 2016, 3 minutes, Florida Premiere We Together – Directed by Henry Kaplan, USA, 2016, 7 minutes, Southeast Premiere

    SPECIAL SCREENINGS:

    FAMILY FILMS:

    Albion: The Enchanted Stallion – Directed by Castille Landon, USA/Bulgaria, 2016, 103 minutes, Florida Premiere Big Booom – Directed by Marat Narimanov, Russian Federation, 2016, 4 minutes, Southeast Premiere Supergirl – Directed by Jessie Auritt, USA, 2016, 80 minutes

    FOOD FILMS:

    Bugs – Directed by Andreas Johnsen, Denmark/Netherlands/France/Germany, 2016, 73 minutes New Chefs on the Block – Directed by Dustin Harrison-Atlas, USA, 2017, 96 minutes, Florida Premiere One Hundred Thousand Beating Hearts – Directed by Peter Byck, USA, 2016, 15 minutes, Florida Premiere

    MUSIC FILMS:

    Honky Tonk Heaven: The Legend of the Broken Spoke – Directed by Sam Wainwright Douglas and Brenda Mitchell, USA, 2016, 75 minutes, Southeast Premiere Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked The World – Directed by Catherine Bainbridge and Alfonso Maiorana, Canada, 2017, 103 minutes, Florida Premiere Vinyl Revival – Directed by Shasta Ford, USA, 2016, 10 minutes, World Premiere

    FLORIDA FILMS:

    FLORIDA SHORTS: THE BEST OF BROUHAHA:

    Amerigo – Directed by Todd Thompson, 2016, 19 minutes, In Italian with English Subtitles Bad Town – Directed by Daniel Smith, 2016, 13 minutes, Southeast Premiere Blackface – Directed by Malcolm Baity, 2016, 7 minutes Burp – Directed by Benjamin L. Gill, 2016, 6 minutes Cartoon Characters – Directed by Carey Kight, 2016, 9 minutes The D in David – Directed by: Michelle Yi and Yaron Farkash, 2016, 2 minutes Dorothy’s Video Application – Directed by Sara Ambra, 2017, 4 minutes Dust Buddies – Directed by Beth Tomashek and Sam Wade, 2016, 4 minutes Flora – Directed by Alexandrina Andre, 2016, 11 minutes, East Coast Premiere For Will – Directed by Grayson Goga and Grace Stalley, 2016, 13 minutes The Goat on the Roof – Directed by Erin Smyth, 2016, 7 minutes Rupee Run – Directed by Tarun Lak, 2016, 2 minutes The Wooden Mannequin – Directed by Stephanie Hunton, 2016, 1 minutes, World Premiere

    FLORIDA DOCUMENTARIES:

    Ain’t Nothing Like Being Free – Directed by John Meyer, USA, 2017, 48 minutes, World Premiere I Am Another You – Directed by Nanfu Wang, USA, 2017, 80 minutes, East Coast Premiere The Original Richard McMahan – Directed by Olympia Stone, USA, 2017, 21 minutes

    RETRO FILMS:

    Popcorn Flick in the Park: Barefoot in the Park – Directed by Gene Saks, USA, 1967, 106 minutes Closing Night Retro: Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! – Directed by Russ Meyer, USA, 1965, 83 minutes

    SPECIAL SCREENING:

    Unrest – Directed by Jennifer Brea, USA, 2017, 97 minutes, In English and Danish with English Subtitles,Southeast Premiere

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  • Hollywood Comedy Shorts Film Festival Unveiled its 2017 Shorts Lineup Featuring Alec Baldwin, Emma Thompson

    [caption id="attachment_21762" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Alec Baldwin (Curse of Don Sarducci by Chris Fondulas) Alec Baldwin (Curse of Don Sarducci by Chris Fondulas)[/caption] The Hollywood Comedy Shorts Film Festival unveiled its lineup today of the shorts selected for the 2nd annual edition of the comedy film festival which takes place April 14 to 16, 2017 at the TCL Chinese 6 Theatres.  Over 110 of best comedy short films from around the world will be showcased. The official selections include short films starring Emma Thompson (High Road by Justin Harwood), Alec Baldwin (Curse of Don Sarducci by Chris Fondulas), Linda Hamilton (Shoot Me Nicely by Misha Calvert), Erik Boccio’s Wiretap Scars features Mike Starr, Samm Levine, Kevin Pollak, and Scott Murphy. Other selected titles include: Neil Patrick and Harris: The Chronicles of Conjoined Triplets by Adam Fynke and Jesse Eisenberg Uses the Urinal by Alec Brown.

    2nd Annual Hollywood Comedy Shorts Film Festival Official Selections:

    A Christmas Surprise – by Sara Lew Acting Class – by Aaron Fradkin Beside Myself – by Jeff McCafferty Best Served Cold – by Andoni Elias Nava Big Manly Chess – by George Fleming Blazing Saddles – by Maxi Witrak and Keaton Kaplan Born Again – by Jason Tostevin Braggage – by David Mun Breaking Up With Bacon – by George Williams III and David Kerns Brosa Nostra – by Mike Smith Brown Terror – by Tim Bathrust Bullfrog Bullfrog – by Robby Descant and Brian Christ Cabin – by Luke Hollingshead Cash Only – by Jake Rasmussen Church – by Stephen Bodossian Cindy’s New Boyfriend – by Robert Brinkman Crystal – by Crystal Correa Death in Bloom – by Dael Oates Dickey Sledgehammer – by Landon Ashworth and Matt Dean Dissecting Gwen – by Katharine Barrell Divorce Party – by Lauren Manes DIY Daisy – by Erik Boccio Don’t Tell Anyone, But I’m Dating the President – by Tim Martin Gleason Don’t Think About It – by Niv Klainer Fab Life Teresa XO – by Rob Janas Farm to Table – by Ian McClellan First Night – by Daniel Gomez First Word – by Thomas R. Martin Friends on a Bench: A Relationship in Six Acts – by Sean George Friendship Without Love – by Sebastien Auger Game Of Thrones Divorce – by Andrew Pifko Girls I Audition With – by Corey Harrell Grocery Store Action Movie – by Matthew Campbell Happy Birthday Kevin – by John Psathas Have A Little Faith – by Ashton Avila Help! I’m Trapped In A Movie – by Riley Mandincea Here’s The Thing – by Seth Berkowitz High Road – by Justin Harwood How To Save Your Darling-Leopoldo Caggiano Hush Hush – by Tom Nolle I Wanna Date U – by Lisa Ovies In the Hole – by Courtney Thomas Jesse Eisenberg Uses the Urnal – by Alec Brown Justin Has A Date – by Justin Ray Kyloki – by Jordan Henry Let’s Do It – by Joel Jay Blacker Lone Douche – by Katie Locke O’Brien Managed – by Kenneth Bauer Mere Players-Dan Levy Dagerman Mike Holt 4 Ever – by Kenneth Anderson Millions of Drops – by Matt Larson Mommy Heist – by Anna Gutto Movie Night – by Hamish McCollester Neil Patrick and Harris: The Chronicles of Conjoined Triplets – by Adam Fynke New Roommate – by Victor Yerrid Now’s A Bad Time – by Michael Oberst ObSETHed: Memorial Day – by Zack Matzganis Oh Baby – by Rory Rooney One Under – by Ruth Pickett Pee Sitting Down – by Misha Calvert Real Good Drinking with Dan Peff – by Paul Thomas Reckless Juliets – by Skylar Barrett Sammy S&M – by Donnie Hobbie Shoot Me Nicely – by Elias Plagianos Shout at the Ground – by Joe Lonie Shy Guys – by Frederic Lehne Sixty-Five Drive – by Darrel Herbert Skinny Fat Girl – by Brandon Baer So F*cking Happy For You- by Lina Suh Spaceman- by Christopher Oliva Standards & Practices: A Short Film About Modern Romance – by Ellena Chmielewski Strayed – by Heather Edwards Takanakuy – by Austin Kolodney Tales from the Toilet- by Pete Novitch The Apology by Eamon Glennon The Baby Shower (Short Film) by Kiley Lane Parker The Bearded Lady – by Dan Riesser The Chad – by Matthew Moore The Curse of Don Scarducci – by Chris Fondulas The Day LA Stood Still – by Karl Harpur The Driving Seat – by Alexei Slater The Haunt – by Isabel Cueva The Haunting of Lester House – by Michael Benni Pierce The Heist – by Luke Harris The Line – by Jerome Velinsky The Nation Holds It’s Breath – by Kev Cahill The Other Side – by Michael Degani The Plumber (Le Plombier) – by Méryl Fortunat-Rossi & Xavier Séron The Pretender – by Nathan Morse The Rough Part – by Ryan Brown The Schwartz Test – by Josh Yunis The Short Short – by Martin White The United Guys Network – by Tabatha Golat The Way I Love You (Como Yo Te Amo) – by Fernando García Ruiz Think Twice – by Eliaz Rodriguez Time Travel Romance – by Ben Giroux True Dating Stories- Jesse – by Andy King Vantastic – by Alik Griffin Weekend Warriors – by Julien Lasseur Wire Tap Scars – by Erik Boccio Woman of My Dreams (La Mujer de Mis Suenos) – by Javier San Roman Working With Jigsaw – by Chris Capel You, Me & Me – by Micah Paisner You’re Alive – by W. Alex Reeves Your Mom Says Hi! – by Rocco Urbisci, Carlie Mantilla, Doni Carley Zombie Family – by Joseph Weisman

    Screenplay Official Selections

    3 To Die – Mitch Yapko & Allen Rueckert Antoine’s Play – Phillip O’ Sullivan Echo Chamber – Travis Lemke It’s A Job – Emmett Raitt Local Hero – Mark Renshaw Lovin’ It – Stuart Creque Randall Lipschitz Is A Star – Dawn Burgess Red Velvet – Tom Radovich Remedy – Margina Sisson Spooky Kind of Love – Alicia Lomas-Gross The Appetizer – Gerard George The Day The Earth Stood Awkardly – Troy Graham The Dumbest Generation – Leslie Lyshkov The Unsocial Network – Matthew Holt The Will – Amelia Solommon

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  • THE FREEDOM TO MARRY to Open Martha’s Vineyard Film Society’s New LGBTQ Festival “SPECTRUM Film Festival”

    [caption id="attachment_20769" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]THE FREEDOM TO MARRY THE FREEDOM TO MARRY[/caption] The Martha’s Vineyard Film Society is launching its newest, four-day film festival, SPECTRUM Film Festival, presenting a world perspective on LGBTQ stories, people and issues with a variety of films, guest speakers, discussions, and a special event focused on LGBTQ youth.  The SPECTRUM Film Festival will be held at the MV Film Center in Vineyard Haven from Thursday, April 27 to Sunday, April 30 with nine different programs over the course of the festival. The first festival of its kind on the Vineyard, The SPECTRUM Film Festival adds to the MV Film Society’s growing outreach to shine light on subject matters not usually covered by major Hollywood motion pictures and expects to draw moviegoers from around the island as well as from the Cape and beyond. In keeping with the meaning of the word “spectrum” (or “a wide range”), films shown at the SPECTRUM Film Festival are, indeed, wide-ranging. They originate from India, Chile, Kenya, Canada and the US; cover gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender storylines; combine comedy, drama, romance, documentary genres in both short and full-length formats; and focus on a variety of topics including legal matters, aging, parent-child relationships, religion, cultural changes, illness and suicide. Guests speakers participating in live Skype interviews currently include lawyer Mary Bonauto (who pled the same-sex marriage case before the Supreme Court), Peggy Rajski (Academy Award-winning director and co-founder of The Trevor Project), Matt Wolf (director of the short film BAYARD & ME) and Bennett Wallace (a transgender young adult whose story is told in the documentary REAL BOY). Post-show panel discussions will include topics regarding “The Shifting Tides of the LGBTQ Landscape on Martha’s Vineyard,” “Homosexuality and the Bible,” “Growing Up with Same-Sex Parents,” and “Navigating High School.” Participants/moderators appearing live on the Film Center stage currently include Mary Breslauer, Tom Dunlop, Susanna Sturgis, Tony Lombardi, Laurel Redington Whitaker, Ev Wilson as well as Rev. Cathlin Baker and Rev. Bill Clark. In keeping with the MV Film Society’s Free Youth Screenings (which are offered periodically throughout the school year), there will be a SPECTRUM Youth Event on Saturday, April 29 from 9:30am to 3:00pm focused entirely on LGBTQ Youth programming. Any local student aged 13 to 21 will be provided free admission to this event. Students coming from the Cape will also be provided with free round-trip transportation by ferry (courtesy of the Steamship Authority). Opening the festival will be the new documentary THE FREEDOM TO MARRY which relates the pursuit of same-sex marriage as a legal right — from Evan Wolfson’s 1983 senior thesis at Harvard to the U.S. Supreme Court decision [Obergefell v. Hodges] in 2015. Following the film, local resident Mary Breslauer will conduct a live Skype interview with her friend and former co-worker Mary Bonauto. Before the film, a “Wedding Album” of local same-sex couples will be shown on-screen to showcase how the right to marry has affected the culture of the Vineyard which prides itself on being LGBTQ-friendly. Participating couples may attend free of charge and can celebrate their legal victory during a dessert/wine reception in the lobby following the conversation with Mary Bonauto.  

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  • Filmmakers: The Academy Launches 2017 Student Academy Awards Competition

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    [caption id="attachment_21755" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented its 43rd Annual Student Academy Awards® on Thursday, September 22, in Beverly Hills. Pictured (left to right): Foreign Animated film winner Ahmad Saleh, Animated film winner Echo Wu, Animated film winner Carter Boyce and Animated film winner Alicja Jasina. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented its 43rd Annual Student Academy Awards® on Thursday, September 22, in Beverly Hills. Pictured (left to right): Foreign Animated film winner Ahmad Saleh, Animated film winner Echo Wu, Animated film winner Carter Boyce and Animated film winner Alicja Jasina.[/caption] The Academy is now accepting entries for its 2017 Student Academy Awards® competition. All Student Academy Award® winners become eligible for Oscars® consideration. The entry deadline for submissions is Thursday, June 1. New this year, the competition has expanded to allow two options for students at international film schools to submit their films. In addition to CILECT-member schools submitting one student film per international film school category, international students may now enter films that qualify through film festivals recognized by the Student Academy Awards Executive Committee. The U.S. competition is open to all full-time undergraduate and graduate students whose films are made within the curricular structure of an eligible accredited institution. For the third year, students are asked to submit their films online using FilmFreeway, a widely used festival and competition platform. The 44th Student Academy Awards presentation will be held on Thursday, October 12, at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. Past winners have gone on to receive 57 Oscar nominations and have won or shared 10 awards. This year one 2016 Student Academy Award winner received an Oscar nomination in the Documentary Short Subject category: Daphne Matziaraki, a Gold Medal winner in the Documentary category for “4.1 Miles.” Past Student Academy Award winners include acclaimed filmmakers Pete Docter, Cary Fukunaga, John Lasseter, Spike Lee, Trey Parker and Robert Zemeckis. In 1972, the Academy established the Student Academy Awards to provide a platform for emerging global filmmakers by creating opportunities within the industry to showcase their work.

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  • Bette Gordon’s Psychological Thriller THE DROWNING Starring Julia Stiles, to Open in Theaters on May 10th | Trailer

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    [caption id="attachment_21751" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]The Drowning The Drowning[/caption] Bette Gordon’s psychological thriller, The Drowning, based on Border Crossing, the controversial novel about violence in children by noted Booker Prize-winning author Pat Barker will open in theaters on May 10th, 2017 The Drowning, starring Julia Stiles, Josh Charles, Avan Jogia, Tracie Thoms and Leo Fitzpatrick, is the story of a forensic psychologist who is haunted by his expert witness testimony that sent a young boy to prison for a chilling murder.  When the boy later reappears in his life, he is drawn into a destructive, soul-searching reinvestigation of the case. An erotic thriller with no let up in tension, The Drowning celebrates the genre with electrifying performances. Complex, riveting and unafraid to tread deep, murky psychological waters, this is a story of shifting identities that will keep you guessing until the very end. The Drowning premiered at the most recent Woodstock Film Festival and went on to screen at film festivals around the world including Warsaw, Sao Paulo, Napa Valley and Savannah. The Drowning marks Gordon’s second collaboration with producer Jamin O’Brien and Paladin which also released her film Handsome Harry featuring Jamey Sheridan, Steve Buscemi, Aidan Quinn and Campbell Scott in 2010. A pioneer in American Independent Cinema, Bette Gordon is known for her bold explorations of themes related to sexuality, violence and power including her feature length debut from her own original screenplay, Variety (1984), a beautifully seductive film about voyeurism and pornography, that Film Comment calls “a unique feminist thought experiment that doubles as a love letter to Fear City-era New York.”  Luminous Motion (2000) was produced by Ted Hope and Anthony Bregman and stars Deborah Kara Unger in a breathtaking performance. Gordon’s film Handsome Harry  premiered in competition at the Tribeca Film Festival (2009) and was released theatrically by Paladin to rave reviews. The film features a stellar ensemble cast including Steve Buscemi, Aidan Quinn, Campbell Scott, Jamey Sheridan. The film critic John Powers has said, “Gordon’s willingness to explore dangerous territory puts her miles ahead of most filmmakers.” Gordon is a film professor at Columbia University.  The Drowning was adapted for the screen by Stephen Molton and House of Cards showrunner Frank Pugliese, and is being released by Paladin and Electric Entertainment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Waqa7wbTpMM

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  • Bentonville Film Festival to Open with Transgender Drama “3 GENERATIONS + Announces Competition Lineup

    [caption id="attachment_21743" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]3 Generations THREE GENERATIONS[/caption] The 2017 Bentonville Film Festival will open on May 2 with The Weinstein Company’s transgender drama “3 Generations” starring Elle Fanning, Naomi Watts and Susan Sarandon. Directed by Gaby Dellal, “3 Generations” shares the story of a family dealing with a life-changing transformation by one that ultimately affects them all. Festival co-founder Geena Davis said, “ I’m so excited to be heading into our third annual BFF. The Festival has become an important catalyst for change and we look forward to celebrating the accomplishments of the past year and setting the stage for years to come.” The Festival today announced an exciting slate of films across the following categories: Narrative and Documentary Feature Competition, Short Film Competition, Episodic Content Competition, and Spotlight Narrative and Documentary Feature Competition. Today’s announcement includes 46 of the feature length titles with Showcase films and more titles coming soon. Competing for the Distribution Prize are 19 narratives. Competing for the Documentary Jury Award are 14 documentaries. Currently, there are 12 narrative and documentaries in the Spotlight Competition, 4 in the Episodic Competition, and 18 films in the Short Film Competition.

    Narrative and Documentary Competition

    Documentary Features

    An Acquired Taste, directed and written by Vanessa LeMaire. (USA). Why kill your own food? A new mindful generation of teens defy factory farming and turn to hunting as a way of connecting with the source of their sustenance. To make a humane kill, these animal lovers confront tormenting ethics and their worst nightmares, partly to eat dinner, and partly to carve out their own identities in a world increasingly at odds with reality and nature. Bogalusa Charm, directed by Stephen Richardson and written by Jennifer Harrington. (USA). A loving portrait of a small Louisiana town created at the site of the world’s largest lumber mill that we examine through the lens of a 27 year-old charm school for girls run by Miss Dixie Gallaspy. Blood Road, directed by Nicholas Schrunk and written by Mark Anders. (USA, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam). Although she’s used to pushing her body to its limit, nothing could prepare ultra-endurance mountain biker Rebecca Rusch for the emotional journey she took in 2015 when she pedaled 1,200 miles of the Ho Chi Minh trail in search of the crash site that claimed the life of her father, a US Air Force pilot shot down during the Vietnam War. Cinemability, directed by Jenni Gold, written by Jenni Gold and Sam Reed. (USA). This star-studded documentary takes us on a thought provoking and humorous journey to explore the evolution of disability portrayals in film and television. Late Blossom Blues, directed by Wolfgang Pfoser-Almer and Stefan Wolner, written by Wolfgang Pfoser-Almer. (USA). A 1932-born hard-working poor black man from the Mississippi backwoods becomes an internationally acclaimed Blues star after he releases his debut album at age 81. Letters From Baghdad, directed by Sabine Krayenbühl and Zeva Oelbaum. (USA/UK/France). Gertrude Bell, the most powerful woman in the British Empire in her day, shaped the modern Middle East after World War I in ways that still reverberate today. More influential than her friend and colleague Lawrence of Arabia, Bell helped draw the borders of Iraq and established the Iraq Museum. Why has she been written out of history? Looking at the Stars, directed by Alexandre Peralta, written by Alexandre Peralta and Melissa Rebelo Kerezsi. (Brazil/Nicaragua/USA). “Looking at the Stars” is an intimate glimpse into the lives of the extraordinary ballerinas at the world’s only ballet school for the blind – the Fernanda Bianchini Ballet Association for the Blind. Mothers in the Middle, directed by Lauren Hollingsworth and written by Kaitlin McLaughlin, Inbal B. Lessner and Lauren Hollingsworth. (USA) World Premiere. Five middle-class working mothers juggle parenting and demanding jobs while contemplating major life decisions. Served like a Girl, directed by Lysa Heslov, written by Lysa Heslov and Tchavdar Georgiev. (USA). Five women veterans who have endured unimaginable trauma in service create a shared sisterhood to help the rising number of stranded homeless women veterans by entering into a competition that unexpectedly catalyzes moving events in their own lives to bring them full circle in a quest for healing and hope The Gateway Bug, directed by Johanna B Kelly, written by Johanna B Kelly and Cameron Marshad. (USA). Over 2 billion people on earth eat insects for protein. “The Gateway Bug” explores how changing daily eating habits can feed humanity in an uncertain age, one meal at a time. Unrest, directed and written by Jennifer Brea. (USA). Jennifer Brea is an active Harvard PhD student about to marry the love of her life when suddenly her body starts failing her. Hoping to shed light on her strange symptoms, Jennifer grabs a camera and films the darkest moments unfolding before her eyes as she is derailed by M.E. (commonly known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome), a mysterious illness some still believe is “all in your head.” Vegas Baby, directed and written by Amanda Micheli. (USA). Some think an in vitro fertilization contest sounds crazy, but countless Americans desperate to start a family believe this social media experiment is their only hope. Woman On Fire, directed and written by Julie Sokolow. (USA). Brooke Guinan is the first openly transgender firefighter in New York City. As a third-generation firefighter, Brooke has a passion for heroism that runs in her blood. Women of the Silk Road, directed and written by Yassamin Maleknasr. (Iran/Oman/Turkey/Tajikistan) World Premiere. Four women. Four countries. Four stories. Stories of love, struggle and art portraying the unknown faces of the East. “Women of the Silk Road” explores the diversity of individual lives under the broad banner of the Middle East and Central Asia; and the simple truth that all lives are about love.

    Narrative Features

    A Different Sun, directed and written by Reed Tang. (USA). A Chinese family moves from their native land to a town in Germany and struggle to adjust to the different culture. Marriage hangs in the balance. Cast: Chin Han, Jing Xu, Tessa Keimes, Ashley Gerasimovich and Catherine Jiang A Witches’ Ball, directed by Justin G. Dyck and written by Keith Cooper. (USA) World Premiere. A young witch is ready to jump in feet first to the Witching World but not before overcoming some magical hurdles. Cast: Morgan Neundorf, Karen Slater, Loukia Ioannou and Will Ennis Axis, directed by Aisha Tyler and written by Emmett Hughes. (USA). On the day he is set to star in a career-changing blockbuster, an Irish actor with a rocky past confronts a series of devastating events that threaten his sobriety, his loved ones, and possibly his life. Cast: Emmett Hughes, Thomas Gibson, Ciáran Hinds, Paula Malcomson, Bronagh Waugh, Jerry Ferrara, Aisha Tyler and Sam Rockwell Bloodstripe, directed by Remy Auberjonois, written by Kate Nowlin and Remy Auberjonois. (USA). A dramatic psychological thriller about a female Marine veteran and the struggle to come home. Cast: Kate Nowlin, Chris Sullivan, Tom Lipinski, Rusty Schwimmer, Ashlie Atkinson, Ken Marks and Rene Auberjonois Girl Flu, directed and written by Dorie Barton. (USA). Bird, 12, has to become a woman whether she wants to or not when – in the worst week of her life – she gets her first period, is ditched by her impulsive, free spirited mom, and learns that you can never really go back to The Valley. Cast: Katee Sackhoff, Jade Pettyjohn, Jeremy Sisto, Heather Matarazzo, Judy Reyes and Diego Josef H.O.M.E., directed by Daniel Maldonado, written by Daniel Maldonado and Hector Carosso. (USA). A ‘love letter’ to New York City woven of two stories through its subways and ethnic enclaves. Cast: Jeremy Ray Valdez, Jesús Ochoa, Angela Lin and Carlo Alban Homestate, directed by David Hickey, written by Blaise Miller and David Hickey. (USA). A truly homemade film about a down and out brother that shows up unannounced, altering the routine of his sister’s family. Cast: Blaise Miller, Grace Love, Shaneye Ferrell and David Hickey Imperfections, directed and written by David Singer. (USA). A struggling actress working as a diamond courier conspires to stage a fake robbery, setting up her ex-boyfriend as the fall guy. Cast: Virginia Kull, Marilu Henner, Ed Begley, Jr., Zach McGowan, Ashton Holmes, Chelcie Ross and Jerry Mackinnon Let Me Go, directed and written by Polly Steele. (UK) World Premiere. The film is set in the year 2000 following not only Helga and Traudi’s journeys but the next two generations and how Beth, Helga’s daughter and Emily her granddaughter are confronted with the unraveling of the darkest of family secrets. Cast: Juliet Stevenson, Jodhi May, Lucy Boynton, Karin Bertling and Stanley Weber Little Pink House, directed and written by Courtney Moorehead Balaker. (USA/Canada). A small-town nurse named Susette Kelo emerges as the reluctant leader of her working-class neighbors in their struggle to save their homes from political and corporate interests bent on seizing the land and handing it over to Pfizer Corporation. Cast: Catherine Keener, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Callum Keith Rennie, Colin Cunningham and Aaron Douglas Parkers Anchor, directed by Marc Hampson, written by Ryan and Jennica Schwartzman. (USA) World Premiere. When her plans for marriage and a family fall apart, Krystal finds herself back in her hometown, re-evaluating her life. Krystal soon discovers that you’re never starting over, every step of the journey seems destined in hindsight. Cast: Jennica Schwartzman, Amy Argyle, Christopher Marquette, Ryan Schwartzman, Penny Johnson Jerald, Michael Beach, Sarah Colonna, Brandon Keener, Claire Donald, Peter Weidman and Deborah Smith Quality Problems, directed by Brooke Purdy and Doug Purdy, written by Brooke Purdy. (USA). Family To-Do-List: throw perfect eight-year-old’s birthday party, find wandering grandpa and deal with cancer in the left boob. Cast: Brooke Purdy, Doug Purdy, Max Purdy, Scout Purdy, Mo Gaffney, Chris Mulkey, Jenica Bergere, Ryan Bollman and Michael Patrick McGill Saving Sally, directed by Avid Liongoren and written by Charlene Sawit-Esguerra, Carlo Ledesma and Avid Liongoren. (Philippines/France). A teenage comic book artist who secretly sees unpleasant people as cartoon-like monsters struggles to save his eccentric best friend (and love of his life) from her abusive foster parents—but she becomes involved with an older man who happens to be a monster too. Cast: Rhian Ramos, Enzo Marcos, TJ Trinidad and Peejo Pillar The Archer, directed by Valerie Weiss and written by Casey Schroen. (USA). High school archery champion Lauren has just landed in Paradise Trails, a brutal juvenile correctional facility in the wilderness, after hospitalizing a boy in self-defense. But when Lauren learns how deep corruption runs at Paradise Trails under the pernicious rule of warden and bow-hunter, Bob, she plots her escape, with the aid of rebellious inmate Rebecca. Cast: Bailey Noble, Jeanine Mason, Michael Grant Terry and Bill Sage The Relationtrip, directed by Renée Felice Smith and C. A. Gabriel, written by Renée Felice Smith, C. A. Gabriel and Dana Scanlon. (USA). At an age when everyone around them is settling down and finding love, Beck and Liam are self-proclaimed loners. After bonding over their mutual disinterest in relationships, they decide to go away together on a ‘friend’ trip. That’s when things get weird. Really, surreally weird. Cast: Renée Felice Smith, Matt Bush, Eric Christian Olsen, Linda Hunt, Nelson Franklin, Brandon Kyle Goodman, Sally Struthers, Georgia Mischak and Owain Rhys Davies The Space Between, directed and written by Amy Jo Johnson. (Canada). A new father discovers his child is not his own and sets out on a journey to find answers. Cast: Michael Cram, Sonya Salomaa, Michael Ironside, Julia Sarah Stone, Amy Jo Johnson, David Paetkau, Jayne Eastwood and Kristian Bruun The Sun at Midnight, directed and written by Kirsten Carthew. (Canada) US Premiere. Shot at the Arctic Circle, “The Sun At Midnight” tells the story of an unusual friendship between a hunter obsessed with finding a missing caribou herd and a teenage rebel who gets lost while on the run. Cast: Devery Jacobs, Duane Howard, Mark Anderako, Sarah Charlie Jerome, William Greenland, Shayla Snowshow and Jaclynn Robert Unbridled, directed by John David Ware and written by Bonne Bartron. (USA). Inspired by a healing ranch for troubled girls in North Carolina, “Unbridled” tells a tremendous story of redemption and triumph, exposing the atrocities of abuse, neglect and sex trafficking and the healing and redemption experienced by girls and horses who have suffered the same types of abuse. Cast: Eric Roberts, T.C. Stallings, Tea Mckay, Jenn Gotzon, Dey Young, Rachel Hendrix, David Topp and Rusty Martin, Sr. Wexford Plaza, directed and written by Joyce Wong. (Canada). A misunderstood sexual encounter unravels the life of a lonely female security guard and her deadbeat paramour in this slice-of-life comedy set in a dilapidated Scarborough strip mall. Cast: Reid Asselstine, Darrel Gamotin, Francis Melling and Mirko Miljevic

    Spotlight Narrative and Documentary Competition

    A Happening of Monumental Proportions, directed by Judy Greer and written by Gary Lundy. (USA). During the course of one day, a group of students at a school in Los Angeles find themselves caught up in a plot of sex, lies and dead bodies. Band Aid, directed and written by Zoe Lister-Jones. (USA). A couple who can’t stop fighting embark on a last-ditch effort to save their marriage: turning their fights into songs and starting a band. In Search of Fellini, directed by Taron Lexton and written by Nancy Cartwright and Peter Kjenaas. (USA). A shy small-town Ohio girl who loves movies but dislikes reality, discovers the delightfully bizarre films of Federico Fellini, and sets off on a strange, beautiful journey across Italy to find him. Cast: Maria Bello, Ksenia Solo, Mary Lynn Rajskub and Beth Riesgraf Krystal, directed by William H. Macy and written by Will Aldis. (USA) World Premiere. A young man living a sheltered life develops a crush on a stripper and joins her Alcoholics Anonymous group just so he can be in the same room with her. Losing Sight of Shore, directed by Sarah Moshman, written by Sarah Moshman and Peter Saroufim. (USA/UK/Samoa/Australia) World Premiere. Four brave women set out to row across the Pacific Ocean from America to Australia. Mully, directed and written by Scott Haze. (USA) “Mully” depicts the extraordinary rags-to-riches story of Charles Mully, whose meteoric rise from orphaned poverty in Kenya leads him on an unimaginable journey of selflessness. Pray for Rain, directed by Alex Ranarivelo, written by Christina Moore and Gloria Musca. (USA) World Premiere. When Emma Gardner learns of her father’s untimely death, she returns to her home town to find that the idyllic farming community of her childhood has been ravaged by drought and is now a place tormented by gangs and the ill effects of extreme poverty. She quickly figures out that her dad’s accidental death was not accidental at all and the lists of possible suspects is very long. Cast: Jane Seymour, Annabelle Stephenson, Nicholas Gonzalez, James Morrison and Paul Rodriguez Pure Country: Pure Heart, directed by Damon Santostefano and written by Holly Goldberg Sloan. (USA) World Premiere. When Ada and her sister, Piper, discover a letter about their late father, a Marine who died in Iraq, they embark on a secret quest beyond their life in rural Tennessee to discover the truth about the man they never knew. As they uncover his remarkable past as a musician, the sisters find their own voice, beginning their journey as singers/songwriters. Cast: Kaitlyn Bausch, Cozi Zuehlsdorff, Amanda Detmer, Laura Bell Bundy, Willie Nelson, Shawn Michaels and Ronny Cox Sanctuary, directed by Len Collin and written by Christian O’Reilly. (Ireland). Larry has Down’s, Sophie has epilepsy, in a world that conspires to keep them apart, will love triumph? Cast: Kieran Coppinger, Charlene Kelly, Robert Doherty, Emer Macken, Michael Hayes and Valerie Egan The Black Prince, directed and written by Kavi Raz. (UK/India) World Premiere. The tragic yet fascinating true story about the last King of the mighty Kingdom of Punjab. Cast: Satinder Sartaaj, Jason Flemyng, Shabana Azmi, Amanda Root, Keith Duffy, David Essex and Sophie Stevens

    Short Film Competition

    Bombing, directed and written by Gloria Mercer. (Canada). A comedian struggles to adjust to taking care of her estranged daughter. Cast: Lauren McGibbon, Annabel Maclean, Daniel Jeffery, Sarah Faye Bernstein, Penelope Good, Michael Bean, Derek Trowell, Steve Waldman and Tyson Storozinski Code Red, directed and written by Sabrina Doyle. (USA) US Premiere. What’s a girl to do when she gets an unwelcome visit from Aunt Flo? A self-conscious teenager uses technology to combat the stigma around menstruation. Inspired by a real-life story. Cast: Elle Winter, Kylee Russell, Sam Evans, Emily Johnson and Carson Boatman Deep Storage, directed and written by Susan Earl. (Australia) US Premiere. Two loners find love in the most unromantic of places. Cast: Miles O’Neil, Alice Ansara, James Lawson and Dawn Klingberg Flip the Record, directed and written by Marie Jamora. (USA). In this 1980s coming-of-age story set to pulsing hip-hop music, a Filipino-American teen discovers her identity through a budding talent for turntablism. Cast: Michael Rosete, Courtney Bandeko, Jon Viktor Corpuz, Sammay Dizon, JD Charisma, Olga Natividad and Derek Basco Free to Laugh, directed by Lara Everly. (USA). A comedy workshop in Los Angeles teaches improv and stand up to women recently released from prison, culminating in a show for friends and family. Healing River, directed by Hollie Noble, written by Megan Bannon and Jessica Marcy. (USA) World Premiere. Six years after a tragic accident, 26-year-old Andy and his family struggle to find their footing again. As Andy faces addiction and post traumatic stress, another deeper trauma emerges to threaten his course to recovery. Jonah Stands Up, directed and written by Hannah Engelson. (USA). New Orleans artist and rabble-rouser Jonah Bascle faces his mortality. He leaves behind a legacy of comedy, visual art, and disability advocacy. Kate and Lily, directed and written by Grey Cusack. (USA). Kate seems cursed to make a fool of herself every time she bumps into Lily, an old friend from college. But little does Kate know, not everything is what it seems. Cast: Lindsey Naves, Claudia Crook, Noël Wells, Joey Scoma and Shane Browne Little Hero, directed and written by Marcus A McDougald and Jennifer Medvin. (USA). “Little Hero” is a documentary about a six-year-old boy’s autism as seen through his twin sister’s eyes. Lunch in Lima, directed and written by Gail Gilbert. (USA). An elegant ladies lunch in Peru reveals the dark side of privilege with no conscience. Cast: Rengin Altay, Adrianne Cury, Julie Greenberg, Susannah Kavanaugh, Amelia Lopez, Daniela Lopez and Isabel Quintero Marc Chung Protects His Address, directed by Michael Chan and written by Drew Pollins. (USA). Marc Chung buys a gun to protect his address in this comedic and highly stylized student short film. Cast: Robert M. Lee, Corban Cloward, Christopher Carrillo, Austin Kress, Dante Smith and Scarlett the Corgi Momo, directed and written by Avid Liongoren. (Philippines) US Premiere. A little girl searches for her missing dog, Momo. Nacido de Nuevo, directed by Evan Kaufmann, written by Rick del Castillo and A. Taylor. (USA) On the anniversary of his young son’s death, border patrol agent Ramon Nunez finds redemption at the hands of an illegal alien in a single polarizing and life-altering night. Cast: Juan Pablo Raba, Grace Santos, Johan Luis and Anthony Escobar Pool, directed and written by Leandro Goddinho. (Brazil). On a quest to understand her grandmother’s past, Claudia meets Marlene, an old woman who’s created an homage to her memories inside an empty pool. Cast: Luciana Paes, Sandra Dani, Carolina Bianchi, Marcela Feter, Ester Laccava, Mawusi Tulani and Jane Eyre The Final Show, directed and written by Dana Nachman. (USA). A woman who has lived a long life full of love and loss has to decide, based on all that she has learned, who to take along to eternity. Cast: Marion Ross, Peter Mark Richman, Nancy Dussault, Jerry Douglas, Murphy Dunne, Roger Rose, Elizabeth Hayden, Kay Benjamin and Loren Lester They Charge for the Sun, directed by Terence Nance and written by Eugene Ramos, story by Terence Nance. (USA). In a dystopian future where people live nocturnally to avoid the harmful rays of the sun, a young girl unravels the lie that has kept her and her sister in the dark. Cast: Rylee Nykhol and Jontille Gerard Three Fingers, directed and written by Paul D. Hart. (USA). A young female Marine war veteran navigates her disintegrating life until there is nothing left but to make a choice. Cast: Virginia Newcomb, Benjamin Keepers, Kim Kendall, Jon Winscher and Kinsley Carter Episodic Content Competition Each piece of episodic content contains a progressive perspective that asks viewers to revisit the inviting worlds these filmmakers have created, on a recurring basis. Entertaining voices, settings not often seen, and conflicts centered on the causes near and dear to our hearts, compel all who watch to stay true and stay tuned. Au Pair, directed and written by Enid Zentelis. (USA) World Premiere. A Chinese au pair, Min, is in America “to be the woman she can’t be in China”- a radical, outspoken feminist. But her host mother, newly divorced Cindy, intends to use Min as dating bait. Cast: Wei-Yi Lin, Maeve Fogarty, Naomi Fogarty, Ann Carr, Scott Vicari, Jamie Harold and Mary Kay Place Lost & Found, directed and written by Haroula Rose. (USA). When Stella and Ian host their “unwedding”, all kinds of uncomfortable truths are unearthed for this group of friends. What is intended to be a healthy way of breaking up in fact raises all kinds of issues for this group of thirty-somethings in their own relationships, especially when Stella’s unruly mother Lourdes appears unexpectedly. Cast: Melonie Diaz, William Janowitz, Jennifer Lafleur, Terence Nance, Avi Rothman, Peter Thomson, Laura Lee Botsacos, Nick Thurston, Ethan Gold and Haroula Rose Nosh: Bite-Size Adventures, directed by Dream Kasestatad and written by Jan Epstein Schwaid. (USA) World Premiere. In this smart and funny educational series, two pint-sized cooking show hosts and their hapless young producer prepare their favorite foods, then go on fantastic adventures through time and space to learn more about the recipes’ origins. Cast: Liberty Hayes, Holden Jahn, Ann Zavelson and Sean Callawy Wild Kitchen, directed by Caroline Cox. (Canada) US Premiere. “Wild Kitchen” is a 22-minute documentary TV series about wild food, the people who harvest it, their unique stories that compel them to live off the land. Cast: Tiffany Ayalik, Lawrence Nayalle and Liz Nayalle

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  • Amanda Lipitz’s STEP to Open and Zoe Lister-Jones’ BAND AID to Close 2017 Montclair Film Festival

    [caption id="attachment_19944" align="alignnone" width="1200"]Step by Amanda Lipitz STEP[/caption] The 6th Montclair Film Festival, taking place April 28 to May 7, 2017, will open with Amanda Lipitz’s STEP on Friday, April 28 and close with Zoe Lister-Jones’ BAND AID on Saturday, May 6.  In addition, the fiction centerpiece film, Geremy Jasper’s PATTI CAKE$, will be presented on Friday, May 5 and the documentary centerpiece film, Stanley Nelson’s TELL THEM WE ARE RISING: AMERICA’S BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES will be presented on Saturday, May 6. Montclair Film is teaming up with the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) on a partnership that helps build meaningful opportunity for African American professionals in the film and television industry, and which celebrates the work of established artists in the field. This year’s partnership includes a new program, Emerging Black Voices, which will offer opportunity to filmmakers and producers at both the MFF and ABFF, as well as multiple panel discussions, screenings, and the House Party, a celebration of African American filmmakers held each year at the MFF. The festival will welcome Retro Report as the partner for a two-part series at this year’s festival that examines the state of news, reporting, and media consumption. The partnership features a program of films, curated by the Retro Report team and including the premiere of their latest film ZAPRUDER , that examines the way in which media stories can shape the public conversation, as well as a conversation entitled TRUE OR FALSE?: REPORTING IN THE AGE OF “FAKE NEWS” which will feature a panel of distinguished journalists and offer a look inside the job of reporting the facts when audiences are more inclined than ever to challenge them. Two special restorations – George Romero’s NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and Andrei Tarkovsky’s STALKER will be presented at this year’s festival. First, George Romero’s NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD will screen in a stunning new 4K restoration and will be presented on April 29 at the Wellmont Theater. Featured special guests will include Producer Russ Streiner, who also played Johnny in the film and delivered the now-famous line “They’re coming to get you, Barbara,” actress Kyra Schon, who portrayed the 11 year-old Karen Cooper in the film and provided one of the film’s most unforgettable moments, and investor and the film’s sound recordist Gary Streiner, who oversaw the film’s restoration on behalf of Image Ten. Next, the Festival will present Mosfilm’s beautiful new 2K restoration of Andrei Tarkovsky’s STALKER, screening Saturday, April 29. This restoration will be the first film ever screened in Cinema505, Montclair Film’s own cinema located in their new home at the Investors Bank Film and Media Center at 505 Bloomfield Avenue in downtown Montclair.

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  • Brazilian Drama NISE: THE HEART OF MADNESS Opens in US on April 28 | Trailer

    [caption id="attachment_21736" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Nise: The Heart of Madness Nise: The Heart of Madness[/caption] Nise: The Heart of Madness is a Brazilian film based on the true life story of psychiatrist, Nise Da Silveira, who refused to treat schizophrenia patients with electroshock therapy and instead used art and painting.  The film directed by Roberto Berliner won the Best Film-Audience Award at the Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival, and the Grand Prix along with the Best Actress Award at the Tokyo International Film Festival. Nise: The Heart of Madness will open theatrically on Friday, April 28, 2017 in New York (Village East) and Chicago (Gene Siskel Film Center) with a wider national release to follow. 1940’s, Brazil- Dr. Nise da Silveira (played by award-winning actress Gloria Pires) is at work in a psychiatric hospital on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro and refuses to employ the new and violent electroshock for the treatment of schizophrenics. Ridiculed by doctors, she is forced to take the abandoned Sector for Occupational Therapy, where she starts a revolution through paints, dogs and love. Through her efforts, renowned modern art museums opened their doors to artists nobody ever heard of. Many critics pointed out that these exhibitions revealed painters that went on to be ranked amongst the best Brazillian artists of the century. Behind this miracle there was no art academy, patron or dealer. The artists were schizophrenic, poor, hospitalized for several decades, abandoned by their families and hopeless to all but da Silveira. NISE:THE HEART OF MADNESS tells the real life story of this “miracle” and the life of this rebellious, frail and engaging psychiatrist.

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  • Watch Trailer for Polish Filmmaker Michal Marczak’s ALL THESE SLEEPLESS NIGHTS

    [caption id="attachment_17816" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]All These Sleepless Nights (Wszystkie nieprzespane noce) All These Sleepless Nights (Wszystkie nieprzespane noce)[/caption] ALL THESE SLEEPLESS NIGHTS, Polish filmmaker Michal Marczak’s boundary-pushing portrait of youthful adventure will open theatrically on Friday, April 7 at New York’s IFC Center as well as in theaters in Los Angeles and San Francisco. The film won the award for Best Director in the World Cinema Documentary competition at 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Rising young director Michal Marczak defies the fly-on-the-wall traditions of observational cinema by carefully “casting” his subjects and embedding himself in their lives. Here, he invites us into the world of Kris, an awkward 24-year-old who, after breaking up with his longtime girlfriend, is suddenly filled with a boundless sense of possibility. With his suave friend Michal leading the way, Kris embarks upon a nightly walkabout, experiencing Warsaw’s subway tunnels and manors, raves and house parties, beaches and industrial wastelands. As the two smoke, drink and dance with abandon, big ideas are as palpable as the romance and sex in the air. The arrival of the beautiful Eva opens Kris up to an even more intense and high-stakes emotional and physical adventure. Marczak captures each crystalline moment as Kris and Michal push each experience to the limit, adrift in the uncertainty and euphoria of youth. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_oSKWFGYlk

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  • Tribeca Film Festival will Spotlight Online Storytelling in New Online Work Lineup

    [caption id="attachment_21727" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]The New York Times' Op-Docs "Hotel U.S.A." A still from The New York Timesí Op-Docs “Hotel U.S.A.”[/caption] The Tribeca Film Festival will spotlight creators who are pushing the boundaries of online storytelling in its N.O.W. (New Online Work) section. The Festival today announced the lineup for the section’s programs: the N.O.W Showcase, Special Screenings, and the Creators Market participants. The Tribeca N.O.W. program will run during the Tribeca Film Festival, taking place April 19-30. This year’s N.O.W. Special Screenings series features high profile content curated by Tribeca from the industry’s leading online networks and talent. Academy Award-nominated® Tribeca alumni Josh Foxand James Spione will premiere Awake, A Dream from Standing Rock, Executive Produced by Shailene Woodley, and co-directed by Myron Dewey. Eli Roth’s Crypt TV will premiere Monster Madness, a series of several character shorts from the digital brand’s scaremakers. Op-Docs, The New York Times’ award-winning forum for short, opinionated documentaries, will screen three films at the Festival.Burgeoning online studios DUST, Adaptive Studios, and Stage 13 will bring three fresh voices into the genre sphere from trailblazing female filmmakers Nicole Delaney, Vera Miaob and Arkasha Stevenson. Conversations will follow each screening with the creators, talent, and special guests. The N.O.W. Showcase is a curated selection of 10 independent online creators’ latest work that is representative of the industry’s freshest voices and most original forms of storytelling. In addition to the world premieres of the new online work during Showcase Screenings on April 20, a piece of past work from each filmmaker will be showcased on TribecaFilm.com. Rounding out the opportunities for online storytellers is the second annual Creators Market, which connects online creators with the industry, including buyers, producers and brands, and supports the creation, sale, and showcase of new online works. The N.O.W. program has become known for its curatorial expertise in discovering emerging talent. Discoveries include High Maintenance from Ben Sinclair and Katja Blichfeld, which was picked up byHBO; Money & Violence from Moise Vernau, whose second season was picked up by Jay-Z’s Tidal; and up-and-coming talent like Brian Jordan Alvarez, whose 2016 N.O.W. series The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo went on to receive a Breakthrough Series – Short Form nomination at the Gotham Awards.

    N.O.W. SPECIAL SCREENINGS

    A selection of high-profile content from the industry’s leading digital networks and online talent playing as official Special Screenings of TFF. Awake, A Dream from Standing Rock, directed by Josh Fox, James Spione, Myron Dewey, written by Floris White Bull, Josh Fox, Myron Dewey. (USA) – World Premiere, Documentary. Standing Rock North Dakota became one of the most watched places on earth. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe captured world attention through their peaceful resistance. While many may know the details, Awake, A Dream from Standing Rock, executive produced by Shailene Woodley, captures the story of Native-led defiance that forever changed how we fight for clean water, our environment and the future of our planet.  Crypt TV’s Monster Madness, directed by Ben Franklin & Anthony Melton, Alexander Babaev, Jon Kovel, Nicholas Mihm, John William Ross, Gabriel Younes and more. (USA) – World Premiere, Narrative and Non-Scripted. Crypt TV’s Monster Madness features some of the best and biggest character shorts from the digital brand’s scaremakers. From a stunningly terrifying protector of the bullied to a child’s toy that reveals horrors around every corner of a suburban home to the real life tale of a man whose body is stretched and pierced into a piece of daring art, Crypt shorts proudly embrace the horror lifestyle. The Birch (directed by: Ben Franklin & Anthony Melton) My First Day (directed by: Jon Kovel) Odd Jobs: Body Modification (directed by: Nicholas Mihm) Stereoscope (directed by: Alexander Babaev) Sunny Family Cult (directed by: Gabriel Younes) The Thing in the Apartment (directed by: John William Ross) 

    Out of This World: Female Filmmakers in Genre

    An evening of three diverse works from female filmmakers working online in the genre sphere. From post-apocalyptic love and telekinetic mother/daughter relations to an unseen predator in a mining town, these stories from up-and-coming online studios DUST, Stage 13 and Adaptive Studios, artfully skew everyday travails into the bizarre and visually fantastic. YOYO, directed by Nicole Delaney. (USA) – World Premiere, Narrative. Caroline can’t stand that she is a virgin…And then the world ends. In post-apocalyptic Los Angeles, after a dust storm has wiped out humanity, she meets Francis and is convinced that he’s the man to pop her cherry. YOYO is a heartfelt, dark comedy about finding meaning in life, even when life ceases to exist.​ With: Martin Starr, Sophie von Haselberg. Presented by DUST and Gunpowder & Sky. Two Sentence Horror Stories: MA, directed by Vera Miao. (USA) – World Premiere, Narrative. Like many traditional Chinese families, Mona still lives at home with her stern but loving Ma.When she meets cute Erica, their instant chemistry awakens something dormant inside. But Ma is not going to let her daughter go easily. Because nothing is allowed to come between a mother and daughter. With: Wei Yi Lin, Ayesha Harris, Mardy Ma. A Stage 13 production. Pineapple (Episodes 1 & 2), directed by Arkasha Stevenson. (USA) – New York Premiere, Narrative. The local coal mine in the town of Black Rock becomes a crime scene when a miner’s daughter is assaulted in its tunnels. She utters only one word, which leaves the town baffled: “pineapple.” Tensions rise as the mine’s opportunistic owner uses the investigation as an excuse to shutter the dying operation indefinitely. With: Tyler Vickers, Kel Owens, Ron Gilbert, Gloria Vonn, Lucille Sharp, Brooklyn Robinson. An Adaptive Studios production. 

    THE NEW YORK TIMES’ Op-Docs

    The New York Times’ Op-Docs poignantly explore relatable struggles faced by everyday citizens.  From immigrant families overwhelming first night in America, to women struggling with Louisiana mandated abortion waiting periods, to a Japanese man’s attempt to both parent his young child and provide palliative care for his mother, the short films provide a window into universal experiences and acutely relevant conversations. Undue Burden, directed by Gina Pollack. (USA) – New York Premiere. When you live in a state with laws that restrict access to abortion, an unwanted pregnancy is only the start of your difficulties. Taller Than the Trees, directed by Megan Mylan. (USA) – Special Screening. Japanese men haven’t traditionally been caregivers. But for Masami Hayata, it’s a crucial part of raising his family. Hotel U.S.A., directed by Andrea Meller & Marisa Pearl. (USA) – New York Premiere. For refugee families, the very first night in the U.S. can be an exciting and bewildering experience.

     N.O.W. SHOWCASE (and Creators Market Participants)

    A curated selection of 10 independent, online creators invited to showcase their latest work on TribecaFilm.com and at two public screenings as official Tribeca selections.

    SHOWCASE A

    The Holdouts, directed by Ramon Campos Iriarte (Colombia) – World Premiere. The Western hemisphere’s oldest civil war is still going strong in the jungles of Colombia. The National Liberation Army (ELN) —a Marxist military organization— has been fighting for revolution since 1964, and with the FARC having declared a ceasefire, the ELN is today the last active guerrilla army in the Americas. In Spanish, English with subtitles. Ramon Campos Iriarte is a producer and filmmaker with a photography and journalism background, and extensive experience working in the field. He started his career working on commercial television, and then specialized in documentary production, focusing on environmental and social subjects mainly in the Americas Midnight Service, directed by Dean Colin Marcial and produced by Brett Potter (USA) – World Premiere. Midnight Service is a true-crime series about urban legends, notorious criminals, occult pop culture, and first-hand accounts of the unknown. Dean Colin Marcial is an international filmmaker working in New York and Manila. In 2009, he apprenticed under Antonio Campos, Josh Mond, and Sean Durkin of Borderline Films. In 2010, he co-founded Calavera USA, an award-winning production company. In 2014 he co-directed Sea Devil with Brett Potter, a Vimeo Staff-Picked short that went on to play festivals worldwide, garnering prizes at Fantasia and Slamdance. Brett Potter is a filmmaker and producer. He co-founded production services company Meadow Street Films and is also chairman of the board at Borscht, a film and arts non-profit. As a narrative producer, his films have premiered and won jury prizes at Sundance, SXSW, AFI, Rotterdam and more. Brett was a 2014 fellow at the Sundance Creative Producing Institute. Most recently he directed a raunchy game show pilot for Time Warner 150. New Deep South, created by Lauren Cioffi and Rosie Haber (USA) – World Premiere. This series explores the vibrant and multifaceted queer culture emerging in the American South. Playing against old stereotypes of Mississippi as a state of social conservatism and stagnation, we follow the lives of queer youth to explore the tangled and complex nature of sexual identity in the New Deep South. Lauren Cioffi is a documentary producer and shooter who has worked with award winning directors Margaret Brown, Liza Mandelup, and Amber Fares. In her free time, she programs for Sundance. Their film Instababy took home the audience award at LAFF after their digital series New Deep South was hailed by Jill Soloway as her favorite show. Rosie Haber is a graduate of Film Independent’s Project Involve, the Outfest Screenwriting lab, and AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women. She has won the Jury prize for dramatic shorts at Outfest and the audience award at LAFF. She is the writer of the screenplay adaptation of the iconic transgender novel, “Stone Butch Blues.” New York is Dead, produced by Jenn Harris, Matthew Wilkas, and Randy Harrison and directed by Matthew Wilkas (USA) – World Premiere. A darkly hilarious webseries about two broke NYC artists who become hitmen to make ends meet. Bio: Jenn Harris is an actress/writer/producer best known for her co-starring role in the film Gayby and playing Jodi Foster in the hit Off-Broadway musical “Silence! The Musical.” She has written and performed her solo show in NYC and was a writer for CNE and “Billy on the Street.” Matthew Wilkas is an actor/playwright/screenwriter also known for his co-starring role in the film Gayby. His play “Big Babies” was at the Vineyard Arts Project and Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre. His play “Pageant Play” was published by Dramatist Play Services after its production at the Berkshire Theatre Festival. New York is Dead is Randy Harrison’s directorial debut. He is best known for playing Justin Taylor for five seasons on Showtime’s acclaimed series Queer as Folk. Woman of a Certain Age, created, written by, and starring Kate Dearing, co-directed by Amanda Cowper and Sami Kriegstein and co-produced by Dearing, Cowper and Kriegstein- (USA) World Premiere. Kate confronts the daily challenges of being an adult, she is spontaneously visited by versions of herself at different ages – each offering their “best” advice. Like “A Christmas Carol” but without the pesky morals, Woman of a Certain Age explores what happens when we actually listen to the voices in our head. Kate Dearing is an actor/writer who has worked on numerous series, including High Maintenance, Good Neighbor Presents  and The Outs. Recently, she won Best Actress at LA Comedy Fest for,Starting Out. Dearing is also the co-creator of Doin’ Everythin’ a sketch series that has been featured on JASH, CollegeHumor, and Huffington Post Comedy. Sami Kriegstein is a creative EP who made her mark at Maker Studios, Fullscreen Media, Caviar Content, Astronauts Wanted, and most recently, Refinery29. In 2010 she founded the Los Angeles Music Video Festival and in 2016 produced her first feature length documentary, Figures of Speech. Amanda Cowper is a producer and director who is currently the Associate Producer on NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers. Cowper previously worked at Peacock Productions.

    SHOWCASE B

    HEROIN, directed by Jessica Beshir (USA) – World Premiere. For an artist, free will is just an illusion. Heroin explores the creative process, inspiration and alternative reality of an artist. Jessica Beshir is a first-time filmmaker. Raised in Mexico and Ethiopia by parents from each country, Beshir’s multi-cultural heritage and perspective makes her a perfect fit for the diverse New York filmmaking community.  I LIVED: Brooklyn, directed by Jonathan Nelson and produced by Danielle Andersen (USA) – World Premiere. I LIVED: Brooklyn was created by director/cinematographer Jonathan Nelson and audio producer Danielle Andersen. Nelson and Andersen both live in Brooklyn and I LIVED was born from a desire to investigate the intricacies of place and identity in the borough’s distinct neighborhoods. Jonathan Nelson has worked in the New York film industry for the past ten years and has credits on prominent documentaries such as Twenty Feet From Stardom and last year’s The Witness. Danielle Andersen works as a field producer and outreach coordinator for the national oral history non-profit StoryCorps. Phone Calls, co-directed by Bonnie Wright and Martin Cohn (USA) – World Premiere. Phone Calls is an anthology series of conversations exploring the way people speak to each other when not face to face. Free of physical proximity, a space is born in which personal truths and, often times, ugliness is unleashed by those closest to you as well as those most foreign.   Bonnie Wright’s directorial debut, Separate We Come, Separate We Go premiered at Cannes. She went on to direct a music video for Sophie Lowe and wrote and directed the short film, Know Thyself, which develops Wright’s fascination with landscape and feeling. Wright is currently developing an exhibition, SEXTANT. Martin Cohn, primarily an actor, found his way into screenwriting as an extension of his love for storytelling. He is a core member of London-based performance company, Theo Adams Company.Phone Calls marks his first foray into screenwriting. Shiva, Bankrukt Productions (Jeff Seal, Shaina Feinberg, Chris Roberti, Chris Manley) (USA) – World Premiere. Improvised vignettes from an Upper West Side Shiva, exploring the absurd, mundane, sad and spiritual. There will be lox. Jeff Seal is a comedian and filmmaker. His videos on dumpster diving and train hopping both made it to the front page of Reddit. Seal is a graduate of the Clown Conservatory and studied mime in Paris. Shaina Feinberg’s award-winning feature film, The Babymooners, blurred the lines between documentary and fiction. She made a cha cha album called “Everyday I Cha Cha Cha.” Chris Roberti is an actor and writer who can be seen in Broad City (Comedy Central), and High Maintenance (HBO). He performs throughout the city in places such as the Peoples Improv Theater and UCB. Chris Manley made an award winning film, The Babymooners. He is a founder at Bankrukt Productions and has had a hand in making over 150 short films as part of the creative team. The Show About The Show, directed by Caveh Zahedi (USA) – World Premiere. The Show About The Show is Caveh Zahedi’s self-referential scripted meta-series about a Brooklyn filmmaker trying to make a TV show. Co-starring Alex Karpovsky, Eleonore Hendricks, Dustin Defa, and a who’s who of Brooklyn’s independent filmmaking community, it tells the story of everything that can and does go wrong in trying to get a television series funded, produced, and distributed. Caveh Zahedi is an autobiographical American independent filmmaker whose films include I Am A Sex Addict (2005), In The Bathtub of the World (2001), I Don’t Hate Las Vegas Anymore (1994), andA Little Stiff (1991).

    N.O.W. CREATORS MARKET

    A daylong, private industry market that brings together leading online creators/talent looking to pitch new projects with a curated group of industry (distributors, brands, MCNs) with particular interest in engaging up-and-coming online talent. Azie Mira Dungey After graduating from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Azie Mira Dungey moved to LA and created her critically acclaimed comedy web series Ask A Slave; this sparked her career in television. Dungey is currently an Executive Story Editor on Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and she recently closed the deal to write her first book “How I Survived the 18th Century.” Arkasha Stevenson Arkasha Stevenson is a Los Angeles–based writer and director, and a recent graduate from the American Film Institute. Her thesis film, Vessels, was awarded the 2015 Iris Prize. Prior to attending film school, Stevenson worked as a photojournalist at the Los Angeles Times, which greatly informs her narrative filmmaking. Christian Larrave Christian Larrave is a filmmaker, musician, and artist from Dallas, TX whose work has screened at over 70 festivals and galleries across the world, and often involves a mixture of comedy and existential unease. He has a BFA in Animation from the Rhode Island School of Design and currently resides in New York City, where he works as a production artist. Dom Fera Dom Fera is a writer, director, actor, and composer raised in New Jersey and living in Los Angeles. Fera graduated from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts for Film & TV in 2014, and has run his YouTube channel since 2006. The channel has picked up over 82 million video views thanks to a varied collection of short films, sketches, and animations. Hazel Hayes Hazel Hayes is a director, writer, actor and vlogger. She has a thriving community of over 230,000 subscribers on her YouTube channel. As an independent filmmaker, she has written, directed and starred in a number of sketches and short films. Hayes is heavily inspired by science fiction and horror. Hye Yun Park Hye Yun Park is an actor, writer, filmmaker, who has written and performed in several short films and created 2 seasons of the award winning web series, Hey Yun. When not making videos, Park is clowning around town or acting in other people’s films. Her new web series BKPI is a comedy about 3 female private investigators in Brooklyn. Jacquelyn Ryan, Kyle Brown, Katie Micay Jacquelyn Ryan is currently production supervisor on Pretty Little Liars and Famous In Love, and production coordinator on the John Wells production American Woman. Jacquelyn produced the digital series Hers and History and the indie web series Slave 4U. She is also the founder of a nonprofit called Wide Angle Film Center, a 501(c)(3) organization that supports a more sustainable and diverse media industry. Kyle Bown is a writer/producer who began his career moving from show to show, putting in time at hits such as The Mentalist, Heroes and Scrubs. He found a home when he landed on Pretty Little Liars, where he has been fortunate enough to co-write two episodes. He also co-wrote the short film The Firefly Girls and is a Creative Executive at Long Lake Media. Katie Micay graduated from Loyola Marymount University’s film production program. Her short film Limited Engagement was an Official Selection of the Los Angeles Women’s International Film Festival.  Her second film My So Called Family was an Official Selection of the Bel Air Film Festival. Her third short film, Flirt, was an Official Selection of the Reality Bytes Film Festival. Lisa Ebersole Lisa Ebersole is an award-winning playwright and filmmaker. Her plays have been produced Off-Broadway and regionally: “Baby” (Best of The Fringe Festival), “Mother” (starring Buck Henry and Holland Taylor), “Brother” (published by Samuel French). Ebersole’s films include the feature film Brother (Tribeca Cinemas), the short Puddin’ (Palm Springs Film Festival), and the web series 37 Problems (Austin Film Festival). Lyle Friedman Lyle Friedman is currently an Executive Story Editor for Darren Star’s hit TV show, Younger. She is an alumni of UCB and the LAByrinth Theatre Company in New York. Friedman co-created the web series #hotmessmoves. Patrick Starrr Patrick Starrr is a beauty guru and LGBTQ activist. He has over 2.9 million Instagram followers and 2 million YouTube subscribers. Starrr recently attended New York Fashion Week as a backstage correspondent for Time Inc. (People, EW, InStyle) and hosted NBC’s Hairspray Live’s live stream alongside Manny Mua and Glee’s Darren Criss. Starrr has collaborated with countless celebrities such as Jessie J, Tyra Banks, Shay Mitchell and more. Paul Gale Paul Gale is an NYC-based comedic filmmaker whose work has been featured on the front pages of Reddit, BuzzFeed, and USA Today. He’s made content for companies like Broadway Video, MTV and The Huffington Post, and, if you’re in from out of town, he’s happy to make restaurant recommendations. Smaranda Luna, Michelle Flanagan Smaranda Luna is an Eastern-European actress, stand up comedian, writer, and improviser. She immigrated to the U.S on a Fulbright scholarship after graduating from the National Drama Conservatory in Bucharest, Romania. After getting her MFA in Acting from UT Austin, she relocated to Los Angeles. Her credits include Closer to the Moon, Harley and the Davidsons and numerous theatre productions. Michelle Flanagan is a performer and writer originally from Austin, where she worked with a number of theatre companies and received a degree in Theatre from the University of Texas. Since moving to Los Angeles, her voice work has been featured on Adult Swim’s China, IL, and she performs improv and character sketches at UCB, iO West, and Second City. Starsha Gill Starsha Gill is a Chicago-based filmmaker. The writer, star, and director of Jon and Starsha are Having a Baby (Official Selection, Los Angeles Film Festival 2015), also co-starred and co-wrote the feature film Cat Scratch Fever which premiered at the Brooklyn Film Festival. Gill’s most recent project, a web series entitled The Elephant in the Room, draws on her experience as a young mother in Brooklyn. Vera Miao Vera Miao is a child of Chinese immigrants and the writer/director/EP of Two Sentence Horror Stories. Her feature, Best Friends Forever, premiered at Slamdance. At First was part of the Film Independent Screenwriting Lab and Sundance/WIF Financing Intensive. Miao was a fellow of the 2016 Tribeca Chanel Women’s Filmmaker Program. Zane Rubin Zane Rubin is a nineteen year-old filmmaker from Los Angeles. Getting her start at the age of fifteen, Zane has written, directed, and acted in six shorts and a feature. Her work has been featured on Huffington Post, Wifey.tv, BUST, as well as a few festivals. It showcases the perspective of a teenage girl without the presence of curfews, parents, and homework, while addressing her debilitating anxiety and aversion to “the system.”

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  • Watch Alex Karpovsky as a Struggling Stand-up Comic in Trailer for FOLK HERO & FUNNY GUY

    [caption id="attachment_21696" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Folk Hero & Funny Guy Folk Hero & Funny Guy[/caption] Here is the new trailer and poster for Jeff Grace‘s upcoming comedy Folk Hero & Funny Guy starring Alex Karpovsky as a struggling stand-up comic. The film which also stars Wyatt Russell, Meredith Hagner, Michael Ian Black, Hannah Simone, Heather Morris, Melanie Lynskey, and David Cross, will be released in select cities and on digital/VOD on May 12th, 2017. Folk Hero & Funny Guy Poster Recently dumped by his fiancée and with a stagnating standup routine, aspiring comedian-slash-copywriter Paul (Alex Karpovsky) is stuck. The manager of the club where he performs suggests he take some time off to update his comedy material, and in waltzes his childhood friend Jason Black (Wyatt Russell), an acclaimed folk-rock musician about to embark on a solo acoustic tour of the east coast. Jason suggests Paul needs to get his mojo back—and he should start by opening for Jason on tour. They set off on the road together, picking up a new act (folk singer Bryn, played by Meredith Hagner) on the way. But when Jason reveals an ulterior motive behind the tour, rifts are exposed in their otherwise affable camaraderie. Folk Hero & Funny Guy is a music-infused spin on the road-trip buddy comedy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdBCp60TpN0  

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  • ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ ‘Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’ and more on Tribeca TV 2017 Lineup

    [caption id="attachment_21690" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Tituss Burgess as Titus Andromedon in UNBREAKABLE KIMMY SCHMIDT.[/caption] The 2017 Tribeca Film Festival today announced the lineup for the television festival, Tribeca TV, featuring a mix of world premieres of some of the most talked-about new series, including The Handmaid’s Tale and Genius, season debuts of audience favorites such as Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Episodes, as well as documentary special previews, and indie pilots. Premiere screenings will be followed by dynamic conversations with some of the most creative and well-known actors, directors, writers, and producers in the business. Tribeca TV, which will run during the festival’s 16th edition, features 15 shows including five series premieres, four season premieres, three independent pilots, one feature documentary, and one very special sneak peek. The Tribeca Film Festival takes place April 19-30. Tribeca TV debuted last year and launched a diverse selection of shows that went on to critical acclaim and commercial success, including HBO’s The Night Of and AMC’s The Night Manager. This year’s lineup includes series premieres of: Hulu’s highly anticipated The Handmaid’s Tale, followed by a conversation with the dynamic cast of Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes, Alexis Bledel, Samira Wiley, and Max Minghella; NatGeo’s first scripted series Genius about the fascinating life of Albert Einstein, followed by a conversation with executive producers Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, who also directs the first episode, and stars Emily Watson and Geoffrey Rush; USA’s crime thriller anthology series The Sinner, followed by a conversation with stars Jessica Biel and Bill Pullman, and director Antonio Campos; and There’s … Johnny!, from NBC’s new comedy service SeeSo, followed by a conversation with showrunners and cast including executive producers Paul Reiser and David Gordon Green, and star Tony Danza. “Coming off of a very successful first year of Tribeca TV, we curated this year’s program to include an expanded, exceptional lineup of top-notch shows and dynamic storytellers both in front of and behind the camera,” said Cara Cusumano, Director of Programming at the Tribeca Film Festival. “As the TV landscape continues to evolve in exciting, cinematic directions, the festival creates a unique opportunity for audiences to discover together on a big screen what everyone else will eventually be talking about from their couches at home.” Highlights also include season premieres of audience favorites including: season three premiere of the Netflix original series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, followed by a conversation with executive producers Tina Fey and Robert Carlock and stars Ellie Kemper, Tituss Burgess, Jane Krakowski and Carol Kane; the premiere of Showtime’s Episodes’ final season, followed by a conversation between Matt LeBlanc and creators David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik; season three premiere of Hulu’s family comedy Casual, followed by a conversation with creator Zander Lehmann, as well as executive producers and cast members; and season three premiere of Comedy Central’s Another Period, followed by a conversation with creators, writers, and stars Natasha Leggero and Riki Lindhome. Tribeca TV will also host a special event for CNN’s new series Soundtracks: Songs That Defined History, executive produced by Dwayne Johnson, which explores music as a driving force behind social change, with the premiere of the series’ 9/11 episode at the 9/11 Memorial & Museum. SpikeTV will premiere a new installment of their feature documentary series I Am, an inside look at the life of Heath Ledger, as told by his inner circle. Additionally, the new independent variety show from the mastermind behind collective: unconscious, The Eyeslicer will premiere at the Festival, bringing together the next generation of alternative Americans under one strange roof. This year Tribeca TV will highlight the work of independent productions for the first time, as part of the Festival’s mission of creator discovery. These three original new pilots will premiere together during a special event followed by a conversation with the creators: Black Magic for White Boys, Lost & Found, and Manic. Ken Burns will be honored for his unparalleled work as one of the most influential and celebrated historical documentarians with the Festival’s new Citizen Filmmaker Award. Following the presentation, audience members will screen a special sneak-peek created especially for Tribeca of The Vietnam War, the unprecedented 10-part, 18 hour documentary film series about the Vietnam War directed by Burns and Lynn Novick, which will air on PBS this fall.

    The TRIBECA TV Lineup:

    Another Period (Comedy Central) – Season 3 World Premiere Executive Producers: Natasha Leggero, Riki Lindhome, Jeremy Konner, Debbie Liebling, Stuart Cornfeld, Mike Rosenstein, Ben Stiller. Another Period tells the incredible story of the Bellacourt sisters, Lillian and Beatrice (played by Leggero and Lindhome). Defined by their family’s wealth, they care only about becoming super famous — which is a lot harder in 1902. The show follows the insanely decadent and outrageous life of the Bellacourt coterie. Before others claimed their fame, they were the one American family who epitomized all that was spoiled, shameless and stupid. The Bellacourts have more servants than relatives and days filled with money, sex, drugs…and more money. Casual (Hulu) – Season 3 World Premiere Executive Producers: Zander Lehmann, Liz Tigelaar, Helen Estabrook, Jason Reitman. Season 3 returns with everyone’s favorite co-dependent siblings Valerie and Alex. They continue to live deep in each other’s emotional lives as they raise Valerie’s daughter Laura. Following dramatic life changes at the end of the last season, Valerie and Alex are adjusting to a new normal while continuing to struggle to maintain boundaries with each other. Episodes (Showtime) – Final Season Premiere Executive Producer: Jimmy Mulville. Episodes, the award-winning, razor-sharp comedy about the insanity of making a television show, returns for its fifth and final season. Lauded English television writers Sean and Beverly Lincoln were lured to Hollywood to adapt their much-loved British boarding-school comedy, Lyman’s Boys. Their American network has mangled the show into Pucks!, a sitcom about a high school hockey coach starring Matt LeBlanc (played brilliantly by himself). After a dismal run, the sitcom was finally put out of its misery. Now Sean and Beverly struggle to create a successful new project in this country without completely losing their integrity, while Matt desperately attempts to revitalize his disappearing acting career. The Eyeslicer – New Series Premiere Executive Producers: Dan Schoenbrun, Vanessa McDonnell. The Eyeslicer is a new variety TV show that brings the next generation of alternative American filmmakers together under one strange roof. The hour-long show will slice, dice, and then mince your eyeballs into delicious ceviche. Each episode is a handcrafted mixtape, blending boundary-pushing short form work into a weird, wild, uninterrupted whole. The Eyeslicer premieres at Tribeca with the episode “Facial Reconstruction”, featuring work from acclaimed indie filmmakers Lauren Wolkstein, Erin Vassilopoulos, Shaka King, Danny Madden, and Leah Shore. Genius (National Geographic) – New Series World Premiere Executive Producers: Ken Biller, Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, Gigi Pritzker, Sam Sokolow. Genius charts how Albert Einstein (Geoffrey Rush), an imaginative, rebellious patent clerk who struggled to land an academic post in his early years, went on to become the greatest scientific mind of the 20th century. The show explores his rise as he juggles his volatile, passionate and complex personal relationships. Based on Walter Isaacson’s acclaimed biography. The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu, MGM) – New Series World Premiere Executive Producer: Bruce Miller. Based on Margaret Atwood’s acclaimed novel, The Handmaid’s Tale is the story of Gilead, a modern-day totalitarian society facing environmental disasters and a plunging birthrate, ruled by a fundamentalist regime that treats women as property. As one of the few fertile women, Offred is forced into sexual servitude in a desperate attempt to repopulate the world. In a society where one wrong word could end her life, Offred has one goal: survive and find the daughter taken from her. I Am Heath Ledger (Spike TV) – World Premiere Producer/Co-Director: Derik Murray. Co-Director: Adrian Buitenhuis. Told through excerpts of his greatest performances, interviews with friends and family (including Ben Mendelsohn, Naomi Watts, Ang Lee, and Ben Harper), and the lens of his own camera, I Am Heath Ledger is an intimate celebration of the actor, artist, and icon. An artist of exceptional depth and courage, Ledger was equally talented behind the camera. This stirring documentary paints a rich portrait of one of the great artists of his generation. The Sinner (USA/Universal Cable Productions) – New Series World Premiere Executive Producers: Derek Simonds, Jessica Biel, Michelle Purple, Charlie Gogolak. A young mother is overcome by an inexplicable fit of rage and commits a startling act of violence. The event launches an inverted and utterly surprising crime thriller whose driving force is not the “who” or the “what,”—but the “why.” Soon the investigator finds himself obsessed with uncovering the woman’s buried motive. From Universal Cable Productions, The Sinner is a riveting psychological thriller, with a pilot stylishly directed by acclaimed filmmaker Antonio Campos (Afterschool, Christine). After the episode: A conversation with executive producer and director of the pilot Antonio Campos, executive producer Derek Simonds, executive producer and cast member Jessica Biel, and cast members Christopher Abbott and Bill Pullman. Soundtracks: Songs That Defined History (CNN) Executive Producers: Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, Maro Chermayeff, Jeff Dupre. Soundtracks explores seminal moments in history through the music that defines them. Featuring original interviews with legendary musicians as well as celebrated journalists, historians, and writers, the series reveals how music has been a driving force behind social change. In a Tribeca screening at the 9/11 Memorial & Museum in New York, the show will explore how songs like Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind” took on new and heightened meaning, as music took center stage for a country fighting to heal. Co-hosted by the 9/11 Memorial & Museum. After the episode: A conversation with CNN anchor of New Day, Chris Cuomo, and professor at NYU’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, Jason King. Moderated by Executive Vice President and Deputy Director for Museum Programs at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, Clifford Chanin. There’s… Johnny! (Seeso) – New Series World Premiere Executive Producers: Paul Reiser, David Steven Simon, David Gordon Green, Jeff Sotzing, Brian Volk-Weiss, Craig Knizek, Cisco Henson, Michael Pelmont, Matt Ochacher, Evan Shapiro, Kelsey Balance. It’s 1972, and everyone goes to bed together… with Johnny Carson, TV’s biggest star. 19 year old Nebraskan Andy Klavin stumbles his way into a gig as a gofer at Carson’s “The Tonight Show” and into a world that will change his life. There’s… Johnny! takes a fictional comedic trip back in time, to go behind the man in front of the curtain, and look at the lives and loves of the people who make all of America laugh. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix) – Season 3 World Premiere Executive Producers: Tina Fey, Robert Carlock, Jeff Richmond, David Miner​. After living in a cult for fifteen years, Kimmy (Ellie Kemper) decides to reclaim her life and start over in New York City. Season 3 opens with Kimmy in an unfamiliar position with the Reverend back in her life. Meanwhile, Titus returns from his cruise and auditions for an exciting new role, and Lillian has to break up with her boyfriend Robert Durst.​​ The Vietnam War (PBS) – Special Sneak Peek Producers: Sarah Botstein, Ken Burns, Lynn Novick. Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s ten-part, 18-hour documentary series tells the epic story of the Vietnam War as it has never been told before. Featuring testimony from nearly 100 witnesses, including Americans who fought in the war,those who opposed it, and Vietnamese combatants and civilians from both the winning and losing sides. The Vietnam War is an immersive, 360 degree narrative of a seminal period of history Pilot Season For the first time in 2017, Tribeca opened submissions to independently produced TV pilots. This showcase program represents the strongest new voices bringing their talents to the episodic space. Black Magic for White Boys – World Premiere Executive Producers: Jamie Block, Ronald Guttman. An aging magician is about to lose his small New York theater, but has a devilish plan to save it. A middle-aged man finds his sovereignty in jeopardy when he impregnates a woman he barely knows. A real estate mogul is frustrated that he can’t raise the rent on this tenants. These characters converge in Tribeca alum Onur Tukel’s bizarre comic tale about testing boundaries, gentrification, and how old New York is fading away. With: Onur Tukel, Ronald Guttman, Jamie Block. Lost & Found – World Premiere Executive Producers: Haroula Rose, Melonie Diaz. Stella and Ian are separating. But for this modern LA couple, that’s nothing to be sad or ashamed about. They decide to host an “un-wedding” party to celebrate. As friends and family descend on their home for the occasion, secrets are revealed and loyalties tested in this comedy-drama about family, friendship, and marriage. With: Melonie Diaz, Will Janowitz, Jennifer LeFleur, Terence Nance, Avi Rothman, Laura Lee Botsacos, Abby Wathen, Nick Thurston, Haroula Rose, Ethan Gold. Manic – World Premiere Executive Producers: Kimberley Browning, Kate Marks. Aurora Carter, an Ivy League-bound, AP Exam enthusiast finds that her over-achieving obsessiveness lands her in a boarding school for kids with mental illnesses. Now she has a singular goal: prove she doesn’t belong with the rest of the freaks. Determined to fight the system, Aurora makes alliances with the other girls one by one and inspires them to take control of their lives. With: Shanice Williams, Dot-Marie Jones, Russell Andrews, Nicki Micheaux, VyVy Nguyen.

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