Rock Steady Row

Demented chaos rules this bizarro-world college campus where the reigning gang-frats target a freshman, who dare crosses their path. Trapped between a blaze of twisted ‘Mad Max’ style power games, he shrewdly plays both sides, fueling apocalyptic-sized battles that escalate to ensnare the school Dean who’s coming unglued.

Directed by Trevor Stevens

Starring Heston Horwin, Diamond White, Logan Huffman, Isaac Alisma, Allie Marie Evans, Larry Miller, Peter Gilroy

Genre(s) Drama Film

My Name Is Myeisha, Buddha.mov, Rock Steady Row, Crime + Punishment Win Top Awards at 4th Mammoth Lakes Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_27273" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] My Name is Myeisha[/caption] The winners of juried and audience awards of the 4th Annual Mammoth Lakes Film Festival (MLFF) were announced at the Closing Night Award Ceremony at the Sierra Event Center in Mammoth Lakes on Sunday, May 27, 2018. The festival, held from May 23-27, screened over 70 films, including 63 in MLFF’s competition categories. Each of the festival winners received an Orson the Bear Award, handcrafted by Josh Slater of Bear in Mind Carvings located in Mammoth Lakes. “This year’s festival exceeded our expectations on many levels. We welcomed more filmmakers, audience members, and media than in any of our other three years,” said Festival Director Shira Dubrovner. “Against the backdrop of our beautiful city, we were honored to host such an artistic collection of films that continues our commitment of bringing dynamic storytelling to our appreciative community.” “The number of attending filmmakers from all over the world and the quality of their work, combined with the involvement of the Mammoth Lakes community, brought to life a series of scintillating events and thought-provoking discussions at this year’s festival,” said Festival Programmer Paul Sbrizzi. “It has been my privilege to be a part of the Mammoth Lakes Film Festival since it’s conception,” said Documentary Features jury member Allison Amon (EVP Sales & Development, Bullitt). “The festival continues to grow both in scope and reputation, and it is incredibly inspiring to be here in the most beautiful landscape and surrounded by the creativity the festival attracts.” The 2019 festival is slated for May 22 to 26, 2019. The full list of Juried and Audience Awards is below:
Juried Awards
Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize, $10,000 Panavision Camera Rental Grant and $10,000 Light Iron Post Production Package, goes to My Name Is Myeisha. Jury Award for Best International Feature, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Tower. A Bright Day. Special Mention goes to writer, director, actor Thomas Aske Berg for his performance in Vidar the Vampire. Jury Award for Best Documentary Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize, goes to White Tide. Special Mention goes to Buddha.mov. Jury Award for Best Narrative Short, with a $500 cash prize and $5,000 VER Rental Grant, goes to Shadow Animals. Special Mentions go to Babies and In A Month. Jury Award for Best Documentary Short, with a $500 cash prize, goes to David and The Kingdom. Jury Award for Best Animation Short, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Cocoon, Cocoon. Special Mention goes to Nevada. Special Jury Award for Bravery, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Minding the Gap.
Audience Awards
[caption id="attachment_25678" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] Rock Steady Row[/caption] Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize and $5,000 Panavision Camera Rental Grant, goes to Rock Steady Row. Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature, with $1,000 cash prize, goes to Crime + Punishment.
Jury
Narrative Features Jury: Tim Rhys (MovieMaker Magazine), Nicole Sperling (Vanity Fair) and Rachel Winter (Producer). Documentary Features Jury: Allison Amon (EVP Sales & Development, Bullitt), Lindsey Bahr (Associated Press) and Peter Baxter (Filmmaker; President/Co-Founder, Slamdance). International Features Jury: Shalini Dore (Variety), Alonso Duralde (TheWrap) and Vincent Spano (Actor). Shorts Jury: Ana Souza (Sundance Film Festival) and Scenery Samundra (Tru Thoughts, NTS Radio).
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2018 Chattanooga Film Festival to Open with ROCK STEADY ROW and SUMMER OF ’84 | Trailers

[caption id="attachment_27466" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Caleb Emery, Cory Grüter-Andrew, Judah Lewis and Graham Verchere appear in Summer of ’84 by Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell and Yoann Whissell[/caption] ROCK STEADY ROW and SUMMER OF ’84, have been selected as the opening night films of the 2018 Chattanooga Film Festival (CFF) slated for April 5 to 8, 2018. The festival will also screen the world premiere of the highly anticipated documentary LIFE AFTER FLASH. LIFE AFTER FLASH is an inspiring and moving feature documentary that celebrates what makes that Mike Hodges enduring classic FLASH GORDON so iconic with audiences to this day. This film takes a looks at the real man behind the heroic mask, Sam J. Jones, including his successes, his battles, and his ultimate struggle for redemption. Director Lisa Downs, along with star Sam J. Jones and producer Ashley Pugh, will be in attendance for this once in a lifetime screening. “The Chattanooga Film Festival has quickly grown over the last four years,” says festival executive director Chris Dortch. “Last year was our biggest, and for our fifth anniversary we weren’t going to settle for anything less than our best, most insane year yet.” ROCK STEADY ROW | Director Trevor Stevens Rock Steady Row centers around a young college freshman who, after his bike is stolen, lands on a college campus and is compelled to take action against the reigning fraternities and ultimately the dean.| Q&A with Trevor Stevens https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJAEbawJZzg SUMMER OF ’84 | Directors François Simard, Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell After suspecting that their police officer neighbor is a serial killer, a group of teenage friends spend their summer spying on him and gathering evidence in, but as they get closer to discovering the truth, things get dangerous. | Q&A with François Simard, Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6B46J7fY4PY LIFE AFTER FLASH | Director Lisa Downs *WORLD PREMIERE LIFE AFTER FLASH explores the life of Sam J Jones since his iconic performance as ‘Flash Gordon’ in the 1980 classic of the same name, and the aftermath of the young stars’ clash with one of Hollywood’s biggest legends, producer Dino De Laurentiis. Q&A with star Sam J. Jones, Lisa Downs, and producer Ashley Pugh
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24th Slamdance Film Festival Awards – “Rock Steady Row” Wins Best Narrative Feature and Audience Award

[caption id="attachment_26788" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Rock Steady Row – Winner of the Narrative Feature Award and the Audience Feature Award. l-r. Bomani Story (Writer) and Trevor Stevens (Dir.) of Rock Steady Row.. Photo credit: Lauren Desbrg/SLAMDANCE[/caption] The 24th Slamdance Film Festival wrapped last weekend and presented prizes to the winners of this year’s Sparky Awards in the Audience, Jury, and Sponsored Categories. The festival also announced the recipients of three new awards: The Russo Brothers Fellowship, the CreativeFuture Innovation Award, and a curated Acting Award. The Sparky Award for Best Narrative Feature went to Rock Steady Row, directed by Trevor Stevens and written by Bomani Story. “Rock Steady Row is a shining star in genre, young adult themes, and ‘save the day’ filmmaking. Done creatively in a comic book meets George Miller meets John Carpenter universe. Sharply directed by Trevor Stevens and written by Bomani Story. With strong ingenuity not commonly seen at this budget and experience level, Rock Steady Row stands tall,” said jurors. [caption id="attachment_26791" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Mr. Fish: Cartooning From The Deep End
Winner of the Best Documentary Feature Award l-r.Pablo Bryant (Dir.), Ted Collins (Producer) of Mr. Fish: Cartooning From The Deep End. Photo Credit: Lauren Desberg/SLAMDANCE[/caption] The jury shared, “Crafted with the same rugged earnestness and political incorrectness as its subject, this fast paced, exceptionally told portrait creates a complex, funny and layered depiction of a cartoonist who embodies the principles of free speech while revealing the trappings of such an existence. Just like Fish’s cartoons, Mr, Fish: Cartooning From the Deep End is a gateway to hard political discourse, challenging social norms and forcing us to look more closely at what tolerance means. For showing us what is lost when political art is sacrificed to subscription fees, and capturing its subject with the same raw idealism that keeps Fish drawing, we give the Feature Documentary Award to Mr. Fish: Cartooning From the Deep End.” During the Awards Ceremony, the festival also announced the recipient of the highly anticipated The Russo Brothers Fellowship. The $25,000 prize, presented by AGBO Films in partnership with the festival, is designed to enable a deserving filmmaker the opportunity to continue their journey with mentorship from Joe and Anthony as well as development support from their studio. The 2018 recipient of the inaugural Russo Brothers Fellowship is Yassmina Karajah, director of the narrative short, Rupture. The Festival also presented the inaugural CreativeFeature Innovation Award. Slamdance and CreativeFuture have partnered for years to support new talent in the world of film and educate creatives on the importance of protecting their work. This inaugural Award is given to an emerging filmmaker who exhibits the innovative spirit of filmmaking. The CreativeFuture Innovation Award went to Shunsaku Hayashi for his animated short film, Railment. Additionally, a curated Acting Award was presented to Rhaechyl Walker for her breakout performance in, My Name Is Myeisha. “When we started this project seven years ago on a stage at an open mic night, the thought of our story being amplified on a silver screen never entered my mind.” said Walker. “I am so proud, and beyond honored to be a part of such a powerful force of artistic expression that has found its way into many hearts, planted a seed, and nourished souls. Thank you Slamdance for providing this amazing platform, and for this phenomenal award.” The George Starks Spirit Of Slamdance Award went to Wendy McColm, director of Birds Without Feathers. Formerly known as the Spirit of Slamdance Award, the prize was renamed in the honor of George Starks. Starks, who passed away last summer, was a longtime friend of Slamdance and served as the festival’s Utah Producer. [caption id="attachment_26789" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] My Name Is Myeisha Winner of the Audience Beyond Feature Award. Actress Rhaechyl Walker was also honored with an Acting Award. l-r. Alex Hines, John Merchant, Rhaechyl Walker, Dee Dee Stephens of My Name Is Myeisha. Photo credit: Lauren Desberg/SLAMDANCE[/caption] Awards were also given to festival favorites, voted on by Slamdance audiences. The Narrative Feature Audience Award was presented to Rock Steady Row, directed by Trevor Stevens. Freedom For The Wolf, directed by Rupert Russell, received the Documentary Feature Audience Award, The Beyond Feature Audience Award was awarded to My Name Is Myeisha, directed by Gus Krieger. The festival also recognized the Audience Award runners-up in their respective feature categories: Charlie And Hannah’s Grand Night Out (Dir: Bert Scholiers), MexMan (Dir.: Josh Polon) and Funny Story (Dir.: Michael Gallagher). A full list of winners is below:
Jury Awards | Narrative Features
Narrative Feature Grand Jury Prize – Rock Steady Row (Dir.: Trevor Stevens) Honorable Mentions: Fake Tattoos (Dir.: Pascal Plante) and Lovers (Dir.: Niels Holstein Kaa)
Jury Awards | Documentary Features, Documentary Shorts
Documentary Feature Grand Jury Prize – Mr. Fish: Cartooning From The Deep End (Dir.: Pablo Bryant) Honorable Mention – MexMan (Dir.: Josh Polon) Documentary Short Grand Jury Prize – Nueva Vida (Dir.: Jonathan Seligson) Honorable Mention: The Last Man You Meet (Dir.: Chris Bone)
Jury Awards – Narrative Shorts
Narrative Shorts Grand Jury Prize: Rupture (Dir.: Yassmina Karajah) Honorable Mention: Goodbye, Brooklyn (Dir.: Daniel Jaffe)
Jury Awards – Experimental Shorts/ Animated Shorts
Experimental Shorts Grand Jury Prize: Are You Tired Of Forever? (Dir.: Caitlin Craggs) Honorable Mention: Silica (Dir.: Pia Borg) Animated Shorts Grand Jury Prize: Interstitial (Dir.: Shunsaku Hayashi) Honorable Mention: Satellite Strangers (Dir.: James Bascara)
Slamdance Acting Award:
Rhaechyl Walker (My Name is Myeisha)
Spirit of Slamdance Award Winner:
Wendy McColm (Dir. of Birds Without Feathers)
CreativeFuture Innovation Award:
Railment (Dir.: Shunsaku Hayashi)
The Russo Brothers Fellowship Award Winner:
Rupture (Dir.: Yassmina Karajah)
Audience Awards:
Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature: Rock Steady Row (Dir.: Trevor Stevens) Runner up: Charlie And Hannah’s Grand Night Out (Dir.: Bert Scholiers) Audience Award for Documentary Feature: Freedom For The Wolf (Dir.: Rupert Russell) Runner up: MexMan (Dir.: Josh Polon) Audience Award for Beyond Feature: My Name Is Myeisha (Dir.: Gus Krieger) Runner up: Funny Story (Dir.: Michael Gallagher)
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Slamdance Film Festival Announces 2018 Feature Film Competition Lineup + Russo Fellowship Award

[caption id="attachment_25678" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] Rock Steady Row[/caption] The Slamdance Film Festival today unveiled its narrative and documentary feature film competition lineup for its 24th edition, taking place January 19 to 25, 2018 in Park City, Utah. The feature competition lineup will showcase 10 narrative and eight documentary features. All competition films are feature-length directorial debuts with budgets of less than $1 million and without U.S. distribution. Captain America: Civil War directors and alumni Anthony and Joe Russo are partnering with Slamdance for the inaugural Russo Fellowship award. The award winner will receive a $25,000 cash prize and mentorship from the Russo brothers in the development of the winner’s next project at their new Los Angeles-based studio. Every participating filmmaker at the 2018 festival is eligible for this prize. The award will be presented annually. “The Russo brothers exemplify our ‘by filmmakers for filmmakers’ paradigm,” says Slamdance co-founder and president Peter Baxter. “They are joined by a great number of dedicated alumni who’ve shown when it comes to recognizing talent and launching careers, Slamdance’s independent and grassroots film community really can do it themselves.” “Born out of rejection, Slamdance’s artist-led group continues to discover cutting edge talent creating work outside of convention. Our 2018 competition lineup is daring, varied, and vivid. It represents the spirit of our time and leads us into the future.”
2018 Slamdance Film Festival Feature Film Competition Lineup

NARRATIVE FEATURES
Birds Without Feathers (USA) World Premiere Director: Wendy McColm Screenwriter: Wendy McColm Desperate for human interaction, six emotionally damaged individuals risk self respect, shedding their disillusionment in a last grasp for happiness. A cruel-world comedy populated by struggling Instagram stars, Russian cowboys, Self-help gurus and more, their lives collide and crash in astounding ways. Cast: Wendy McColm, Lenae Day Cooper Oznowicz, William Gabriel Greer, Sara Estefanos, and Alexander Stasko Charlie And Hannah’s Grand Night Out (Belgium) World Premiere Director: Bert Scholiers Screenwriter: Bert Scholiers Two Girls. One Night. Magical Candy Consumed. Twenty-somethings, Charlie and Hannah, find themselves strolling through the city as events take a wildly surreal turn. Transported to a trippy galaxy, filled with cosmic wisdom and contradictions, the pair learn to realize the search for love can take many forms. Cast: Evelien Bosmans, Daphne Wellens, Patrick Vervueren Fake Tattoos (Canada) US Premiere Director: Pascal Plante Screenwriter: Pascal Plante Shy Theo finds himself unexpectedly kicked in the heart by a punk-rock romance on his 18th birthday as Mag bursts into his life for a rollicking encounter. Set against a backdrop of music and mayhem, this coming-of-age tale, explores the thrashing fragility of summer love as life choices and separation loom with no true answers in sight. Cast: Anthony Therrien, Rose-Marie Perreault Fish Bones (USA) World Premiere Director: Joanne Mony Park Screenwriter: Joanne Mony Park Hana, a Korean immigrant on winter break, is caught between worlds. While struggling to find peace with her conservative mother and the expectations surrounding her future, Hana finds herself falling for Nico, a tender and affectionate Latina music producer. Cast: Joony Kim, Cris Gris Human Affairs (USA) World Premiere Director: Charlie Birns Screenwriter: Charlie Birns This richly earnest drama follows Geneviève, a surrogate who must reckon with her ambivalence about the pregnancy and her precarious feelings for the parents-to-be. Cast: Dominic Fumusa, Kerry Condon, David Harbour, Julie Sokolowski Lovers (Denmark) US Premiere Director: Niels Holstein Kaa Screenwriter: Magnus B. B. Lysbakken In the streets, parks and cafes of Copenhagen, a triptych of love stories come to vivid life. Framed with a superb naturalism, these tales through the seasons tackle the ever rising tide of loneliness and self-doubt that can come in the face of new love. Cast: Marie Mailand, Niklas Herskind, Nina Terese Rask M/M (Canada, Germany) World Premiere Director: Drew Lint Screenwriter: Drew Lint Wayward Canadian, Matthew, crushed by the isolation of being new to Berlin, turns his sexual desires toward Matthias that spiral into a dark fixation of assumed identity. Soon, this obsessive power struggle between the two, careens toward brutal passion and violence in a bid for dominance. Cast: Antoine Lahaie, Nicolas Maxim Endlicher Rock Steady Row (USA) World Premiere Director: Trevor Stevens Screenwriter: Bomani Story Demented chaos rules this bizarro-world college campus where the reigning gang-frats target a freshman, who dare crosses their path. Trapped between a blaze of twisted ‘Mad Max’ style power games, he shrewdly plays both sides, fueling apocalyptic-sized battles that escalate to ensnare the school Dean who’s coming unglued. Cast: Heston Horwin, Diamond White, Logan Huffman, Isaac Alisma, Allie Marie Evans, Larry Miller, Peter Gilroy Songs in the Sun (Denmark) US Premiere Director: Kristian Sejrbo Lidegaard Screenwriter: Allan Hyde, Kristian Sejrbo Lidegaard Off the coast of Denmark, young Anna discovers she is the only lifeline to ailing childhood friend Julie and Sonja, Julie’s apathetic mother. Over the course of one momentous afternoon, Anna will learn the healing power of belief and myth-making in everyday living Cast: Emma Sehested Høeg, Charlotte Munck, Victoria Carmen Sonne The Starry Sky Above Me (France) US Premiere Director: Ilan Klipper Screenwriter: Ilan Klipper, Raphaël Neal Bruno is happy to live out his days luxuriating in the existential highs and lows only a brilliant literary mind can appreciate. But when his loved ones seek to intervene with the help of a psychiatrist, Bruno’s bohemian lifestyle may in fact be the perfect anecdote to the colorless, PC lives they didn’t know they hated. Cast: Laurent Poitrenaux, Camille Chamoux, Marilyne Canto, Alma Jodorowsky, François Chattot, Michèle Moretti, Frank Williams
DOCUMENTARY FEATURES
Circus Ecuador (Ecuador, USA) World Premiere Directors: Ashley Bishop and Jim Brassard James and Ashley travel to the jungles of Ecuador to make a documentary about a school being built for an indigenous community only to discover that the community may or may not be involved in aliens, gold smuggling, human trafficking, and murder. Freedom for the Wolf (Germany, USA) Director: Rupert Russell From Hong Kong to Tunisia to Bollywood, people are fighting against elected leaders dismantling freedom and democracy. These seemingly disparate international stories are cohesively tied into what is happening in the US to reach some very compelling conclusions. Ingrid (USA) World Premiere Director: Morrisa Maltz An intimate look at a woman who left her life as a successful fashion designer and mother in Texas to become a reclusive hermit, immersed in nature, focused solely on creating art. Instant Dreams (Netherlands) North American Premiere Director: Willem Baptist An essayistic quest for the secret of instant film, the magic appeal of Polaroid and what that tells us about the fascinating relationship we have with the photographic image. Man on Fire (USA) World Premiere Director: Joel Fendelman Grand Saline, Texas was a sleepy, unremarkable town–until a white preacher lit himself on fire to protest the town’s racism in 2014. MexMan (USA) World Premiere Director: Josh Polon Germán is a young artist and filmmaker struggling to complete his first feature film and express his undying love to a girl, while secretly living at an airport and trying to stay sane. Mr. Fish: Cartooning From The Deep End (USA) Director: Pablo Bryant This personal documentary follows a controversial political cartoonist as he struggles to provide for his family and stay true to his creativity in a world where biting satiric humor has an ever-diminishing commercial value. Sunnyside (Belgium, Netherlands) North American Premiere Director: Frederik Carbon On a seaside mountain in Northern California two old friends (one a visionary architect and the other an influential sound artist) dream, talk, live, and create.
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