LBJ[/caption]
LBJ, directed by Rob Reiner and starring Woody Harrelson as LBJ, Jeffrey Donovan as John F. Kennedy, Richard Jenkins as Senator Richard Russell, Jr., and Jennifer Jason Leigh as Lady Bird Johnson, will be the opening night film of the 2017 Annapolis Film Festival on Thursday, March 30 at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts. The film is expected to be released this summer.
LBJ shows Johnson confronting the challenge of leading a nation still grieving its beloved President Kennedy, even as he grapples with urgent calls for social justice led by Martin Luther King Jr. Shrewd by nature even when he was appallingly coarse, Johnson emerges in Harrelson’s full-blooded characterization as a man willing to drive through landmark legislation partly on principle and largely on guts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMkl2fYM–E
Now in its fifth year, the Annapolis Film Festival (AFF) brings independent cinema to the Chesapeake with an extraordinary lineup of narrative, short, and documentary films. The Festival takes place March 30th to April 2nd, 2017 in downtown Annapolis.
Signature AFF programs include the Friday night African-American Experience Showcase, Chasing Trane, a Denzel Washington-narrated documentary about the origins and worldwide impact of jazz titan John Coltrane. This year’s Environmental Showcase presents the documentary The Islands and the Whales, directed by Mike Day and featuring pioneering ambisonic sound design by George Lucas’ Skywalker Sound. Other film topics include our Jewish Experience showcase, sailing, the military, politics, food, the LGBTQ community, global issues, current events, and the fine arts.
Some of the full-length features and documentaries on the 2017 film line-up are:
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LBJ, Directed by Rob Reiner and Starring Woody Harrelson as LBJ, to Kick off 2017 Annapolis Film Festival
[caption id="attachment_16239" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] LBJ[/caption]
LBJ, directed by Rob Reiner and starring Woody Harrelson as LBJ, Jeffrey Donovan as John F. Kennedy, Richard Jenkins as Senator Richard Russell, Jr., and Jennifer Jason Leigh as Lady Bird Johnson, will be the opening night film of the 2017 Annapolis Film Festival on Thursday, March 30 at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts. The film is expected to be released this summer.
LBJ shows Johnson confronting the challenge of leading a nation still grieving its beloved President Kennedy, even as he grapples with urgent calls for social justice led by Martin Luther King Jr. Shrewd by nature even when he was appallingly coarse, Johnson emerges in Harrelson’s full-blooded characterization as a man willing to drive through landmark legislation partly on principle and largely on guts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMkl2fYM–E
Now in its fifth year, the Annapolis Film Festival (AFF) brings independent cinema to the Chesapeake with an extraordinary lineup of narrative, short, and documentary films. The Festival takes place March 30th to April 2nd, 2017 in downtown Annapolis.
Signature AFF programs include the Friday night African-American Experience Showcase, Chasing Trane, a Denzel Washington-narrated documentary about the origins and worldwide impact of jazz titan John Coltrane. This year’s Environmental Showcase presents the documentary The Islands and the Whales, directed by Mike Day and featuring pioneering ambisonic sound design by George Lucas’ Skywalker Sound. Other film topics include our Jewish Experience showcase, sailing, the military, politics, food, the LGBTQ community, global issues, current events, and the fine arts.
Some of the full-length features and documentaries on the 2017 film line-up are:
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Watch Mr. Robot’s Rami Malek in First Trailer for Indie Thriller BUSTER’S MAL HEART
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BUSTER’S MAL HEART[/caption]
BUSTER’S MAL HEART starring Rami Malek of the USA Network hit Mr. Robot, has released the official trailer.
In this bold thriller peppered with dark humor and interlocking mystery, an eccentric mountain man is on the run from the authorities, surviving the winter by breaking into empty vacation homes in a remote community. Regularly calling into radio talk shows — where he has acquired the nickname “Buster” — to rant about the impending Inversion at the turn of the millennium, he is haunted by visions of being lost at sea, and memories of his former life as a family man.
Buster (Rami Malek) was once Jonah, a hard-working husband and father whose job as the night-shift concierge at a hotel took its toll on his psyche and, consequently, his marriage to the sensitive Marty (Kate Lyn Sheil) — until a chance encounter with a conspiracy-obsessed drifter (DJ Qualls) changed the course of their lives forever. As the solitary present-day Buster drifts from house to house, eluding the local sheriff at every turn, we gradually piece together the events that fractured his life and left him alone on top of a snowy mountain, or perhaps in a small rowboat in the middle of a vast ocean — or both, in this visceral mind bender that will provoke discussion long after it turns your world upside-down.
BUSTER’S MAL HEART, written and directed by Sarah Adina Smith, opens theatrically in New York and Los Angeles on April 28th.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-NGiCB-6js
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Music Films Featuring Snoop Dogg, Bonnie Raitt Among First 9 Titles Announced for 2017 Nashville Film Festival
Films featuring artists as diverse as Snoop Dogg, John Williams and Bonnie Raitt are among the first nine titles announced for the 2017 Nashville Film Festival taking place April 20 to 29, 2017. These nine titles are part of the Music Films/Music City Competition celebrating films about music, musicians and the impact music has on our lives.
Nashville Film Festival Artisict Director Brian Owens said of the selection, “I really love the variety of voices present in this selection – from a rapper working in a nearly extinct language to composers creating some of the most familiart tunes known to us all – there is a little bit of everything in these nine exciting films.” 2017 marks the Nashville Film Festival’s 48th annual event.
2017 Nashville Film Festival Music Films/Music City Competition
Arctic Superstar / Norway (Director: Simen Braathen) — A Sami rapper dreams of becoming world famous. The only problem is that less than 20,000 people speak his endangered language. Cast: Nils Rune Utsi. Southeast US Premiere Bill Frisell: A Portrait / Australia (Director: Emma Franz) — A character portrait of anti-archetype guitar hero, Bill Frisell, and the ideas and processes that shaped his music. Featuring Bonnie Raitt, Hal Willner, Paul Simon, Joey Baron, Jim Hall and Jason Moran. Cast: Bill Frisell | Paul Motian | Jim Hall | Mike Gibbs | Jason Moran | Jim Woodring. Southeast US Premiere Cassette: A Documentary Mixtape / USA (Director: Zack Taylor) — Cassette tape inventor Lou Ottens digs through his past to figure out why his invention won’t die. Rock veterans like Henry Rollins, Thurston Moore, and Ian MacKaye join a new generation of bands releasing music on tape to push Lou along on his journey to remember. Cast: Lou Ottens | Henry Rollins | Thurston Moore | Rob Sheffield | Lily Rothman | Damien Jurado. Tennessee Premiere Davi’s Way / USA (Director: Tom Donahue) — DAVI’S WAY is a character portrait of Robert Davi as he makes a shift from acting to singing professionally and his quest to put on a concert celebrating Sinatra’s 100th Birthday. Cast: Robert Davi.Southeast US Premiere G Funk / USA (Director: Karam Gill) — G FUNK is the untold story of three childhood friends from East Long Beach who helped commercialize hip hop by developing a sophisticated and melodic new approach – merging Gangsta Rap with elements of Motown, Funk, and R&B. Cast: Warren G | Snoop Dogg | Ice Cube | Russell Simmons | Wiz Khalifa | Ice T.Southeast US Premiere The Last Songwriter / USA (Director: Mark Barger Elliott) — Featuring Garth Brooks, Emmylou Harris, and Jason Isbell, THE LAST SONGWRITER spotlights a young writer struggling to make a living in the age of streaming as well as those who have crafted the most influential songs of the past twenty-five years. Cast: Garth Brooks | Emmylou Harris | Jason Isbell.World Premiere Score: A Film Music Documentary / USA (Director: Matt Schrader) — SCORE: A FILM MUSIC DOCUMENTARY follows the creative struggles of designing a modern soundtrack from scratch, featuring some of cinema’s most recognized names in film music. Cast: Hans Zimmer | Danny Elfman | John Williams | Trent Reznor | Randy Newman | Quincy Jones. Tennessee Premiere Straight Into a Storm / USA (Director: William Miller) — Centered around Deer Tick’s 10th anniversary, STRAIGHT INTO A STORM is a portrait of a hard rocking band known for their substance-fueled live performances on their evolutionary journey to become one of the greatest cult rock bands of our time. Cast: John McCauley | Dennis Ryan | Chris Ryan | Ian O’Neill | Robbie Crowell. World Premiere Tokyo Idols / United Kingdom | Canada (Director: Kyoko Miyake) — This exploration of Japan’s fascination with girl bands and their music follows an aspiring pop singer and her fans, delving into the cultural obsession with young female sexuality and the growing disconnect between men and women in hypermodern societies. Southeast US Premiere
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Watch Trailer for Michael O’Shea’s Indie Vampire Thriller THE TRANSFIGURATION
Here is the new trailer for The Transfiguration written and directed by Michael O’Shea, and starring Eric Ruffin and Chloe Levine, that will screen at the upcoming 2017 SXSW Film Festival. The film will open in New York on Friday, April 7th at the Angelika Film Center, and in Los Angeles on Friday, April 21st at The Nuart Theatre.
An official selection at the Cannes Film Festival, writer/director Michael O’Shea’s debut feature The Transfiguration follows troubled teen Milo who hides behind his fascination with vampire lore. When he meets the equally alienated Sophie, the two form a bond that begins to challenge Milo’s dark obsession, blurring his fantasy into reality. A chilling portrait of violence, The Transfiguration is an atmospheric thriller set against the grit of New York City.
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Poster + Trailer for I, OLGA HEPNAROVA Based on Crimes of Olga Hepnarova, a Lonely 23 Year Old Czech Lesbian
Here is the new poster and trailer for the award-winning Czech film I, Olga Hepnarova, based on the crimes of Olga Hepnarova, a young, lonely lesbian who on July 10, 1973, drove a rented truck into a group of people waiting for a tram in Prague, Czechoslovakia, killing 8 of them.
I, Olga Hepnarova will open theatrically in NYC on Friday, March 24 with a national release to follow.
Olga Hepnarová (b. June 30, 1951) was a young, lonely lesbian outsider from a coldhearted family who couldn’t play the part society desired of her. Her paranoid self-examination and inability to connect with other people eventually drove her over the edge of humanity when she was only twenty-two years old.
On July 10, 1973, Olga drove a rented truck into a group of about 25 people waiting for a tram in Prague, Czechoslovakia, all aged between 60 to 79, killing 8 of them. Before the murder, she sent a letter to two newspapers explaining her action as revenge for all the hatred against her by her family and the world. She was found to be sane and sentenced to death. The execution took place on March 12, 1975 in the Pankrác Prison in Prague. She was the last woman executed in Czechoslovakia.
The film shows the human being behind the mass murderer without glorifying or downplaying the terrible crime she committed. Guided by her letters we delve into Olga’s psyche and witness the worsening of her loneliness and alienation as we reconstruct the events that led up to her disastrous actions.
Although the story is set in the seventies, young people worldwide today still face problems of not belonging, being different, and being bullied because of race, gender or sexual orientation.
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Robert McGinley’s DANGER DIVA Starring Molly Sides of THUNDERPUSSY to World Premiere on April 13 | Trailer
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DANGER DIVA[/caption]
DANGER DIVA, a new cyberpunk musical thriller, written, directed and produced by Robert McGinley (award-winning filmmaker of JIMMY ZIP and SHREDDER ORPHEUS), will have it’s World Premiere at the SIFF Egyptian Theater in Seattle, Washington on Thursday, April 13.
Danger Diva was filmed entirely in Seattle with a local cast and crew. The film stars Molly Sides, lead singer of the all-girl rock/pop band, THUNDERPUSSY. Also starring in Danger Diva are Seattle theater/film standouts Tim Gouran, Ray Tagavilla, Amy Thone and Conner Neddersen. After the screening, THUNDERPUSSY will mount the stage and unleash a set of their fiery brand of rock.
In Danger Diva, audiences are taken on a journey into the near future with hard rock singer Devi Danger as she is coerced into becoming an electronically enhanced new-music diva. Her singing voice is used to control and energize the brains of indoctrinated employees (also known as “Brain Cattle”) that are being used as external processors for the advancement of corporate high tech clients. Operating in a digital sweatshop, these “Brain Cattle” process binary algorithms that serve as a chorus for Devi Danger. McGinley’s influences for the film came mainly from cyberpunk literature and films; in particular, William Gibson’s “NEUROMANCER” and the science-fiction classic, BLADE RUNNER. Further inspired by the Ella Fitzgerald “Is it live, or is it Memorex” commercial, DANGER DIVA explores the conflict between high tech vs. high touch, and what it means to be human in a digitally enhanced bio-tech future. Music anchors these themes with an eclectic rocking score with songs by Seattle-based rock band THUNDERPUSSY and composer Regan Remy. McGinley explains, “In the midst of this rock ‘n roll saga, the audience will have an opportunity to ponder future technology nightmares like the use of enslaved human brains as external hard drive processors, or employing human offspring as vehicles for life extension.”
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Boston Underground Film Festival Unveils Final Wave of Films – A LIFE IN WAVES, SHE’S ALLERGIC TO CATS and More
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A LIFE IN WAVES[/caption]
The Boston Underground Film Festival completed the 2017 lineup with the the final wave of more intriguing films from around the world, including over 80 short films and music videos.
BUFF will host the East Coast Premiere of the documentary A Life in Waves, an intimate portrait of one of the most influential electronic composers of the last 40 years, Suzanne Ciani. Documentarian duo (and BUFF alum) Brett Whitcomb and Bradford Thomason will be in attendance, along with the diva of the diode herself for a post-screening Q&A at the Harvard Film Archive. On the other end of the documentary spectrum is the New England Premiere of Dean Fleischer-Camp’s Fraud, an impossible to categorize hybrid-doc and bold experiment in filmmaking that explores the essence of “truth” in a post-truth era.
Lovers of all things dark and disturbing are advised to pencil in this quadruplet of narrative nightmares: A grieving mother and a bullying occultist (Steve Oram) face their demons in black magic thriller A Dark Song, from Irish, first-time director Liam Gavin. First time director, writer and star, Ana Asensio examines an undocumented immigrant’s day from hell in her gripping Most Beautiful Island, fresh from its World Premiere at SXSW. Valentin Hitz’s gorgeous and unnerving Hidden Reserves gives us a peek at the future-that-could-be (ponder this: death insurance) with his Austrian dystopian sci-fi masterpiece. And speaking of hidden, BUFF presents for the first time ever a Secret Screening.
Lightening things up substantially is a triple threat of comedic treats: A group of awful idiots fail at throwing a party over and over in Slamdance smash Neighborhood Food Drive, with BUFF alum & director Jerzy Rose and writer Halle Butler in the house. Emerson College alum Michael Reich brings his surreal and sensational She’s Allergic to Cats to the Brattle; you’ll laugh, cry, and ponder duck boobs. Rounding things out is the anniversary screening of oft underappreciated Southland Tales, Richard Kelly’s gonzo anarchic vision of the near future (which may be closer to the near present), which we lift up and celebrate ten years later.
2017 BOSTON UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL FINAL WAVE
A DARK SONG – East Coast Premiere Liam Gavin | Ireland | 2016 A determined young woman and a damaged occultist risk their lives and souls to perform a dangerous ritual that will grant them what they want. A LIFE IN WAVES – East Coast Premiere Brett Whitcomb | USA | 2017 his incredible documentary explores the even more incredible life and innovations of composer and electronic music pioneer, Suzanne Ciani. Join us for a Q&A with Suzanne & the filmmakers following the screening! FRAUD – New England Premiere Dean Fleischer-Camp | USA | 2016 A struggling family commits fraud in this contentious docu-ficto hybrid. HIDDEN RESERVES – East Coast Premiere Valentin Hitz | Austria/Germany/Switzerland | 2016 Where death with dignity comes at a premium, an insurance salesman turned narc must reevaluate his ideology when he falls for the rebel he’s assigned to entrap. MOST BEAUTIFUL ISLAND – East Coast Premiere Ana Asensio | USA | 2017 A chilling portrait of an undocumented young woman’s struggle for survival as she finds redemption from a tortured past in a dangerous game. NEIGHBORHOOD FOOD DRIVE – East Coast Premiere Jerzy Rose | USA | 2017 A group of awful idiots fail at throwing a party over and over. SECRET SCREENING – Secret Premiere Secret Director | Secret Country | Secret Year One of the best genre films coming out this year. SHE’S ALLERGIC TO CATS – New England Premiere Michael Reich | USA | 2016 A dog groomer in Hollywood aspires to be more than a dog groomer in Hollywood. SOUTHLAND TALES – Anniversary Screening Richard Kelly | USA | 2006 During a three day heat wave just before a huge 4th of July celebration, an action star stricken with amnesia meets up with a porn star who is developing her own reality TV project, and a policeman who holds the key to a vast conspiracy.
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75th Annual Golden Globe Awards Sets Date of January 7, 2018
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Meryl Streep accepts the Cecil B. Demille Award at the 74th Annual Golden Globes Awards at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, CA on Sunday, January 8, 2017.[/caption]
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association will present the 75th Golden Globe Awards on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2018. The ceremony will air on NBC live coast-to-coast.
In January, NBC’s telecast of “The 74th Annual Golden Globe Awards” averaged 20.0 million viewers and a 5.6 rating (+2%) in adults 18-49, according to Nielsen Media Research. That represented a year-to-year gain of 1.5 million persons or 8% versus the prior year’s 18.5 million viewers, making it the second most-watched “Golden Globes” in the last 10 years.
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DOLORES, I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO, DEAN Among Lineup for Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival
Dolores Huerta[/caption]
The 17th Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival (MVFF) will be taking place March 16 to 19, 2017.
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Virginia Film Festival Announces 2017 Dates and Filmmaker: Call For Entries
The Virginia Film Festival (VFF), organized by the University of Virginia, will celebrate its 30th anniversary from November 9 to 12, 2017
The VFF is coming off yet another record-breaking year in 2016 that included an extraordinary lineup of special guests that included Shirley MacLaine, Liv Ullmann, Werner Herzog, Danny McBride, Colin Firth, and more than 150 filmmakers from around the globe.
“We are very excited to announce that we will be celebrating our 30th year from November 9-12,” said VFF Director and UVA Vice Provost for the Arts Jody Kielbasa. “Our 2016 Virginia Film Festival was historic in so many ways, from the all-time highs in box office sales and attendance to a remarkably deep and vast program to a guest roster that was filled with true legends of the film and entertainment worlds. We continue to be honored by the overwhelmingly positive feedback from our guests and our audience members alike. It is clear that the profile of the Virginia Film Festival as one of America’s premiere regional film festivals is on the rise, and we are already hard at work trying to build on that momentum for 2017.”
Festival officials also announced the Call for Entries for 2017 will launch on Thursday, March 16. Filmmakers can make their submissions online beginning that day. Once again this year, Virginia residents and students at Virginia schools are eligible to have their entry fees waived. The fees for non-Virginia filmmakers submitting by the regular deadline of Monday, June 12 will be $35 for features and $15 for shorts. Those submitting by the extended deadline of Monday, July 24 may do so for $50 for features and $25 for shorts. The fee for students outside of Virginia to submit a film is $10.
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THE PROMISE Starring Christian Bale to Open 20th Sonoma International Film Festival
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The Promise[/caption]
The Sonoma International Film Festival (SIFF) highly anticipated 20th Anniversary celebration will open on Wednesday, March 29 with The Promise starring Christian Bale and Angela Sarafyan. Set during the last days of the Ottoman Empire, The Promise follows a love triangle between Michael, a brilliant medical student, the beautiful and sophisticated Ana, and Chris – a renowned American journalist based in Paris.
The five-day event takes place in the heart of Northern California’s Wine Country and will feature more than 130 hand-selected films including independent features, documentaries, world cinema and short films.
”We are excited and prepared for an unprecedented number of filmmakers and festival attendees to come to Sonoma and experience the very best in film, food, wine and spirits,” enthused Executive Director Kevin McNeely.
One of the festival highlights is the Student Showcases on Thursday, March 30 and again the following Sunday afternoon. Peter Hansen, the director of the Media Arts Program at Sonoma Valley High School has selected Owen Summers stop action claymation film Magic Beans to be accepted into the Sonoma International Film Festival. Owen is a senior at Sonoma Valley High School.
Kiara Ramirez will be awarded the inaugural SIFF Emerging Artist Award. This award has been selected for post-high school filmmakers who exemplify the spirit of independent filmmakers with career aspiration in the film arts. Kiara is a 2016 graduate from Mendocino High School. Her first film, which she has produced and directed, is “mini-doc” Behind the Wall.
Cook Up A Storm will close out the festival on Sunday, April 2. A Cantonese street cook and his chief rival, a French-trained Michelin-starred chef, discover they have a lot in common as they prepare for a world-famous culinary competition. An international culinary competition becomes a battleground between rival cooks, one famous for his Cantonese street food and the other a Michelin-starred chef trained in France. But their rivalry takes an unexpected turn when they discover a common foe and combine their skills in a fusion of East and West.
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Kevin Phillips’ SUPER DARK TIMES Headed to Tribeca Film Festival in April and Theaters in Late 2017
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Owen Campbell as Zach, Charlie Tahan as Josh, Max Talisman as Daryl, and Sawyer Barth as Charlie in SUPER DARK TIMES. Photo by Eli Born.[/caption]
Kevin Phillips’ debut feature Super Dark Times which debuted at the Rotterdam Film Festival in January, will also screen at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival in April. The Orchard plans a theatrical release for the film later this year.
Super Dark Times is set in the mid-1990’s and centered on teenage best friends Zach and Josh. When a gruesome accident leads to a cover-up, the secret drives a wedge between the two boys and propels them down a rabbit hole of escalating paranoia and violence.
The film, written by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski, and stars Owen Campbell (“The Americans”), Charlie Tahan (“Wayward Pines”), and Elizabeth Cappuccino (“Jessica Jones”).
“Super Dark Times is the kind of movie you hope to stumble upon and rarely do – a stylish debut from an assured creative team that feels fresh and new,” said Paul Davidson, The Orchard’s EVP Film and Television. “Kevin Phillips’ engaging film is going to surprise and engross audiences in a big way when we release it later this year.”
“I couldn’t be more excited to release Super Dark Times with The Orchard,” said Director Kevin Phillips. “This film has a big heart. From the onset we carefully considered every detail in its creation and we are confident that The Orchard will carry that passion into its release.”