Chappaquiddick[/caption]
The 24th Austin Film Festival (AFF) unveiled its lineup of feature films, and Chappaquiddick, a drama recounting Ted Kennedy’s infamous 1969 car accident resulting in the death of his campaign worker, will close out the Festival.
A staple of the Festival, AFF’s retrospective series this year will feature Philip D’Antoni’s 1973 drama The Seven-Ups presented by David Simon and George Pelecanos (The Deuce, The Wire), Jack Fisk’s 1981 film Raggedy Man—a tribute to Sam Shepard—presented by writer William D. Wittliff in partnership with the Wittliff Collections, and seminal 1987 action film Predator presented by Shane Black (Lethal Weapon, The Nice Guys) who is currently working on the film’s reboot. Additionally, already announced Extraordinary Contribution to Film awardee Walter Hill will present his cult classic The Warriors.
In addition to the slate of 150+ films, AFF will present premieres and retrospectives of television programming, including the season 2 premiere of Hulu’s darkly comedic psychic drama Shut Eye , and the premiere of the Season Finale of HBO’s drama The Deuce.
Also confirmed to attend is Dan Rather, who will help present the World Premiere of the documentary Fail State, chronicling the rise of predatory for-profit colleges. Writer/producer Gale Anne Hurd (The Terminator, The Walking Dead) will also be in attendance for AFF’s screening of documentary Mankiller about barrier-breaking female Cherokee leader Wilma Mankiller.
Other World Premieres include Wild Honey (Francis Stokes’ comedy about a phone sex operator searching for love), Coming to My Senses (a documentary following a man’s journey to regain his mobility after an accident), and Transformer (chronicling the transition of world-renowned body builder Matt Kroczaelski into Janae after being outed as transgender). Making its US Premiere at AFF is comedy Don’t Talk to Irene, which also won AFF’s Comedy Screenplay Award in 2013. Written and directed by Pat Mills, Irene premiered this month at Toronto International Film Festival to a receptive audience.
Austin Film Festival also revealed today their full Screenwriters Conference schedule, which will take place the first four days of the Festival, October 26-29. The Conference features a roster of prominent screenwriters in film and television, including Kenneth Lonergan, Keenen Ivory Wayans, Noah Hawley, Courtney A. Kemp, Lindsay Doran, Misha Green, Michael Arndt, Mark Frost, Michael Green, Sarah Gubbins, Christopher Vogler, Scott Frank, Megan Amram, John August, Eric Heisserer, and many more
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Austin Film Festival Announces 2017 Film Lineup, CHAPPAQUIDDICK to Close Fest
[caption id="attachment_24775" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Chappaquiddick[/caption]
The 24th Austin Film Festival (AFF) unveiled its lineup of feature films, and Chappaquiddick, a drama recounting Ted Kennedy’s infamous 1969 car accident resulting in the death of his campaign worker, will close out the Festival.
A staple of the Festival, AFF’s retrospective series this year will feature Philip D’Antoni’s 1973 drama The Seven-Ups presented by David Simon and George Pelecanos (The Deuce, The Wire), Jack Fisk’s 1981 film Raggedy Man—a tribute to Sam Shepard—presented by writer William D. Wittliff in partnership with the Wittliff Collections, and seminal 1987 action film Predator presented by Shane Black (Lethal Weapon, The Nice Guys) who is currently working on the film’s reboot. Additionally, already announced Extraordinary Contribution to Film awardee Walter Hill will present his cult classic The Warriors.
In addition to the slate of 150+ films, AFF will present premieres and retrospectives of television programming, including the season 2 premiere of Hulu’s darkly comedic psychic drama Shut Eye , and the premiere of the Season Finale of HBO’s drama The Deuce.
Also confirmed to attend is Dan Rather, who will help present the World Premiere of the documentary Fail State, chronicling the rise of predatory for-profit colleges. Writer/producer Gale Anne Hurd (The Terminator, The Walking Dead) will also be in attendance for AFF’s screening of documentary Mankiller about barrier-breaking female Cherokee leader Wilma Mankiller.
Other World Premieres include Wild Honey (Francis Stokes’ comedy about a phone sex operator searching for love), Coming to My Senses (a documentary following a man’s journey to regain his mobility after an accident), and Transformer (chronicling the transition of world-renowned body builder Matt Kroczaelski into Janae after being outed as transgender). Making its US Premiere at AFF is comedy Don’t Talk to Irene, which also won AFF’s Comedy Screenplay Award in 2013. Written and directed by Pat Mills, Irene premiered this month at Toronto International Film Festival to a receptive audience.
Austin Film Festival also revealed today their full Screenwriters Conference schedule, which will take place the first four days of the Festival, October 26-29. The Conference features a roster of prominent screenwriters in film and television, including Kenneth Lonergan, Keenen Ivory Wayans, Noah Hawley, Courtney A. Kemp, Lindsay Doran, Misha Green, Michael Arndt, Mark Frost, Michael Green, Sarah Gubbins, Christopher Vogler, Scott Frank, Megan Amram, John August, Eric Heisserer, and many more
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VIDEO: Watch New Trailer for Angelina Jolie’s FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER
Netflix has released a new trailer for the critically acclaimed film First They Killed My Father, directed by Angelina Jolie. The film is the adaptation of Cambodian author and human rights activist Loung Ung’s gripping memoir of surviving the deadly Khmer Rouge regime from 1975 to 1978.
The story is told through her eyes, from the age of five, when the Khmer Rouge came to power, to nine years old. The film depicts the indomitable spirit and devotion of Loung and her family as they struggle to stay together during the Khmer Rouge years. First They Killed My Father is now playing in select theaters and streaming on Netflix.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K_SpNqLwzI
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Video: Gross-Out Award Winning Comedy ASSHOLES Releases New Trailer
Assholes, the gross-out comedy from writer/director Peter Vack, and winner of the Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award at SXSW 2017, has released a new trailer. The film will be released in New York City on October 6th, LA on October 13th and on Cable+Digital VOD on October 24th.
In Assholes, Adah and Aaron are sober drug addicts who meet in their psychoanalyst’s waiting room. They have sex, discover they share an anal fetish, relapse on poppers, conjure a demon, and kill Adah’s brother. When their faces turn into Assholes, Adah’s parents stage a reality show intervention to get the couple sober again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mzk0XtjeGo
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Palm D’or Winner THE SQUARE to Open Santa Fe Independent Film Festival
Ruben Ostlund’s art-world satire The Square will open this year’s ninth Santa Fe Independent Film Festival (SFIFF) on Wednesday October 18, 2017. “After first seeing it in Cannes, we are excited to present the New Mexico premiere of this fascinating picture to Santa Fe’s dedicated movie-going audience,” said Jacques Paisner, executive director.
SFIFF presents more than 300 hours of programming, the latest international and independent films, and one-of-a-kind interactive events over five (5) days of films including, Only the Brave, Becoming Who I Was, and the world premiere of Ol’ Max Evans: The First Thousand Years. John Sayles and Maggie Renzi will receive the SFIFF Lifetime Achievement Award, and John Waters will perform his live one-man show.
In The Square directed by Ruben Ostlund, Christian is the respected curator of a contemporary art museum, a divorced but devoted father of two who drives an electric car and supports good causes. His next show is “The Square”, an installation which invites passersby to altruism, reminding them of their role as responsible fellow human beings. But sometimes, it is difficult to live up to your own ideals: Christian’s foolish response to the theft of his phone drags him into shameful situations. Meanwhile, the museum’s PR agency has created an unexpected campaign for ”The Square”. The response is overblown and sends Christian, as well as the museum, into an existential crisis. Starring Elisabeth Moss, Claes Bang, Dominic West, and Terry Notary
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VIDEO: Lena Olin Captivates in MAYA DARDEL Trailer + Film Sets Release Date
Here is the trailer for Maya Dardel, the story of poet and novelist, Maya Dardel, who announces she is going to kill herself and needs an heir and executor. Young male writers drive up the mountain to compete for the position. The film that world premiered at 2017 SXSW Film Festival, will open in theaters on October 27, 2017 in New York at Village East Cinema, on October 27. 2017 in Los Angeles at Laemmle Santa Monica. Additional cities nationwide to follow.
Maya Dardel is directed by Zachary Cotler and Magdalena Zyzak, and stars Lena Olin, Rosanna Arquette, Nathan Keyes, Alexander Koch, Jordan Gavaris and Chris Voss.
Maya Dardel depicts the final weeks leading to the ambiguous disappearance of Maya Dardel (Olin), an internationally respected poet and novelist, who lived until 2016 in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. Maya announces on National Public Radio that she intends to end her life and that young male writers may compete to become the executor of her estate. They are challenged intellectually, emotionally, erotically, until one of them begins to fathom Maya’s end game.
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Insightful and Funny Docu Film TAKE MY NOSE… PLEASE! Sets Release Date | Trailer
The insightful and funny Take My Nose… Please! by Joan Kron goes in depth with a comedic take from the top female comedians on the subject of women and plastic surgery and their career as artists. Interviews, clips and commentary from some of our legendary comics including Roseanne Barr, Phyllis Diller, the late Joan Rivers,Judy Gold, Julie Halston, Kathy Griffin, Margaret Cho, Wanda Sykies, Lisa Lampanelli, Giulia Rozzi, and Adrianne Tolsch add to the magic of this film.
Take My Nose… Please! is the debut feature film from longtime former Allure Magazine editor now turned filmmaker, Joan Kron. For Joan, at the amazing age of 89 years-old, documentary film making is now her new career.
The film will open exclusive one week engagements in New York on October 6 at the Village East Cinemas, and then October 13 in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Monica in Santa Monica. It will open nationally following these cities.
Take My Nose… Please! is a seriously funny and wickedly subversive look at the role comedy has played in exposing the pressures on women to be attractive and society’s desire/shame relationship with plastic surgery. More than 15 million cosmetic procedures were performed in the US in 2014. And 90% of them on were done on women. Yet, for those who elect to tinker with Mother Nature, especially for high-profile women, plastic surgery is still a very dark secret. Funny women, though, are the exception. From Phyllis Diller and Joan Rivers to Roseanne Barr and Kathy Griffin, comedians have been unashamed to talk about their perceived flaws, and the steps taken to remedy them. For these dames, cosmetic surgery isn’t vanity, it is affirmative action – compensation for the unfair distribution of youthfulness and beauty.
By admitting what their sisters in drama deny, comic performers speak to women who feel the same pressures, giving them permission to pursue change (or not to) while entertaining us.
Take My Nose… Please! follows two comedians as they deliberate about going under the knife. Emily Askin, an up-and coming improv performer, has always wanted her nose refined. Jackie Hoffman, a seasoned headliner on Broadway and on TV, considers herself ugly and regrets not having the nose job offered in her teens. And maybe she’d like a face-lift, as well. As we follow their surprisingly emotional stories, we meet other who have taken the leap – or held out.
Putting it all in perspective are psychologists, sociologists, the medical community and cultural critics. And for comic relief and the profundity only comedians can supply. The film includes commentary from Roseanne Barr, Phyllis Diller, the late Joan Rivers,Judy Gold, Julie Halston, Lisa Lampanelli, Giulia Rozzi, Bill Scheft, and Adrianne Tolsch.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS:
Audience Award – Miami International Film Festival Audience Award – Berkshire International Film Festival Official Selection – Newport Beach International Film Festival; San Francisco Doc Fest; Arizona International Film Festival; Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival; San Luis Obispo Film Festival; Martha’s Vineyard International Film Festival; and more
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VIDEO: Watch ALL I SEE IS YOU Trailer Starring Blake Lively as Blind Wife
Blake Lively and Jason Clarke play a couple with an almost perfect marriage in All I See Is You, which opens in select theaters on October 27th. All I See Is You is directed by Marc Forster, and also stars Danny Huston and Yvonne Strahovski.
Gina (Blake Lively) and husband James (Jason Clarke) have an almost perfect marriage. After being blinded as a child in a nearly fatal car crash that claimed her parent’s lives, Gina depends on James to be her eyes—a dependence that appears to solidify their passionate relationship. She sees her world in her own vivid imagination with help from James’ descriptions. Despite her disability, the two enjoy a colorful existence in Bangkok, Thailand where James works in insurance and Gina explores life in a foreign country. It seems the only real hardship this loving couple faces is difficulty conceiving a child but when Gina is given the opportunity to have a corneal transplant and regains her vision, their life and relationship are upended. Gina now sees the world with a new sense of wonder and independence which James finds threatening. It is only when Gina suddenly begins to lose her sight again that she finally realizes the disturbing reality of their marriage and their lives.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTTaFg2Sq9Y
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Indie Films THE FLORIDA PROJECT to Open and CALL ME BY YOUR NAME to Close 2017 New Orleans Film Festival
[caption id="attachment_24746" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
The Florida Project[/caption]
Lauded for its artistry and authenticity, The Florida Project starring Willem Dafoe will open the 28th New Orleans Film Festival on Wednesday, October 11, 2017. The Florida Project also stars child actress Brooklynn Prince and a debut performance by Bria Vinaite, whom writer-director Sean Baker discovered via Instagram. The Florida Project is the newest movie from writer-director Sean Baker, who staked his claim two years ago with Tangerine, an indie feature shot entirely with his iPhone camera.
Call Me By Your Name, which created major buzz when it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, will close the festival on Thursday, October 19, 2017. Call Me By Your Name stars Armie Hammer, Timothée Chalamet and Michael Stuhlbarg. Director Luca Guadagnino continues his exploration of complicated intimate relationships that he’s addressed in prior critically-acclaimed films like I Am Love and A Bigger Splash.
Several Spotlight films have also been announced, including Darkest Hour, Last Flag Flying, The Upside, and Marshall.
Call Me By Your Name
Luca Guadagnino | 132 min | Italy, France, Brazil, United States
Summer is a perpetual state of being at the Perlmans’ Italian villa. Lush, lazy mornings become long, wine-filled evenings, ensconced in discussions of Greco-Roman art and the sounds of Mahler on piano. Oliver, a 24-year-old research assistant (Armie Hammer), joins the Perlmans for six weeks of study before returning to his position at Columbia. 17-year old Elio (Timothée Chalamet) is immediately infatuated. They begin a tense series of furtive glances and curt conversations, both enchanted but unwilling to meet the other halfway. A coming of age story. A tale of first love. Americans summering in beautiful, foreign locales. Any categorization would be an oversimplification of the evocative and intoxicating world of Call Me By Your Name.
The Florida Project
Sean Baker | 115 min| USA
Set on a stretch of highway just outside Disney World, The Florida Project follows six-year-old Moonee and her rebellious mother Halley over the course of a single summer. The two live week-to-week at “The Magic Castle,” a budget motel managed by Bobby. Despite her harsh surroundings, the precocious Moonee has no trouble making each day a celebration of life, her endless afternoons overflowing with mischief and grand adventure as she and her ragtag playmates fearlessly explore the utterly unique world into which they’ve been thrown. Unbeknownst to Moonee, however, her delicate fantasy is supported by the toil and sacrifice of Halley, who is forced to explore increasingly dangerous possibilities in order to provide for her daughter.
Last Flag Flying
Richard Linklater | 124 min| USA
Thirty years after they served together in Vietnam, a former Navy Corpsman Larry “Doc” Shepherd (Steve Carell) reunites with his old military buddies, Sal Nealon (Bryan Cranston) and Reverend Richard Mueller (Laurence Fishburne), to bury his son, a young Marine killed in the Iraq War. With the casket, the three friends take a bittersweet road trip up the East Coast, reflecting on the impact of war and reminisce about their times together. Marking a new direction for Linklater after his joyful college romp, Everybody Wants Some!!, Last Flag Flying is a poignant exploration of aging, masculinity, and friendship.
Marshall
Reginald Hudlin | 118 min | USA
As the nation teeters on the brink of WWII, a nearly bankrupt NAACP sends Thurgood Marshall (Chadwick Boseman) to conservative Connecticut to defend a black chauffeur against his wealthy socialite employer in a sexual assault and attempted murder trial that quickly became tabloid fodder. In need of a high profile victory but muzzled by a segregationist court, Marshall is partnered with Samuel Friedman (Josh Gad), a young Jewish lawyer who has never tried a case.
The Upside
Dir. Neil Burger | 118 min | USA
Based on the film The Intouchables by Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano Based on a true story, The Upside chronicles the unexpected friendship between Phillip Lacasse (Bryan Cranston), a Park Avenue billionaire left paralyzed after a hang-gliding accident, and ex-con Dell Scott (Kevin Hart), in need of a job and a fresh start. From worlds apart, Phillip and Dell form an unlikely bond, bridging their differences and gaining invaluable wisdom in the process, giving each man a renewed sense of passion for all of life’s possibilities. Directed by Neil Burger (The Illusionist, Limitless) and written by Jon Hartmere, THE UPSIDE also stars Academy Award® winner Nicole Kidman.
The Darkest Hour
Joe Wright | 2017 | UK
A thrilling and inspiring true story begins on the eve of World War II as, within days of becoming Prime Minister of Great Britain, Winston Churchill (Academy Award nominee Gary Oldman) must face one of his most turbulent and defining trials: exploring a negotiated peace treaty with Nazi Germany, or standing firm to fight for the ideals, liberty, and freedom of a nation. As the unstoppable Nazi forces roll across Western Europe and the threat of invasion is imminent, and with an unprepared public, a skeptical King, and his own party plotting against him, Churchill must withstand his darkest hour, rally a nation, and attempt to change the course of world history.
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Short Film TOKYO PROJECT Starring Elisabeth Moss to Debut on HBO | Trailer
The short film “Tokyo Project,” starring Elisabeth Moss, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Shu Kakizawa, explores a mysterious romance between two strangers. The film, written And directed By Richard Shepard, had its world premiere at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival, and will debuts Saturday, October 14, on HBO.
Sebastian (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) is on a business trip to Tokyo. Handsome and hip, he represents a high-end Brooklyn men’s grooming product company that has been successful in Japan. But there’s a sadness in Sebastian that’s not hard to notice, a past that’s haunting him. He’s also a film nerd, fascinated by Tokyo’s visual splendor and its rich cinematic history. Sebastian is also fascinated by Claire (Elisabeth Moss), a beautiful and mysterious woman he keeps running into, first at a noodle shop, and later at a hidden jewel of a sake bar.
There’s clearly something between them. Claire is a photographer, and roams the rich streets of this amazing city in search of images that will linger. Like Sebastian, there’s more to her than meets the eye – a haunted sadness that proves an undeniable attraction for him. “Tokyo is a city of ghosts,” she says.
Out with Shu (Shu Kakizawa), his local business partner, Sebastian reveals what is haunting him. He and his wife lost a child, and many months later are barely hanging on as a couple. Shu jokes that after all this time Sebastian should have an affair with a stranger. “It’s easier with strangers. No history,” Shu says. His idea lingers in Sebastian’s mind, as he’s already intrigued with Claire.
So begins an erotic, highly charged night between two Americans in a foreign land. But all is not what it seems. Truth is fiction, and fiction the new reality. And though the film has a haunted feel, this intimate story is also hopeful. Tokyo may be a city of ghosts, but it’s also a mysterious, romantic city of rebirth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8k576d4nkg
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VIDEO: Watch “The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)” Trailer Starring Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller
[caption id="attachment_24242" align="aligncenter" width="1144"]
The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)[/caption]
Writer/Director Noah Baumbach brings razor-sharp humor and bittersweet heart to his latest film The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) starring Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, Dustin Hoffman, Elizabeth Marvel, Grace Van Patten and Emma Thompson.
An Official Selection of Cannes Film Festival 2017, the film will make its North American premiere at this year’s New York Film Festival. The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) will launch on Netflix and in select theaters on October 13.
From writer/director Noah Baumbach, The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) is the emotional and comic intergenerational tale of adult siblings (Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, and Elizabeth Marvel) contending with the long shadow their strong-willed father (Dustin Hoffman) has cast over their lives. With an original screenplay by Baumbach, the film also stars Emma Thompson, Grace Van Patten, Adam Driver, Candice Bergen, Judd Hirsch, and Rebecca Miller.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYzFieit8dI
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Double Exposure Investigative Film Festival in Wash. DC to Open with ONE OF US
[caption id="attachment_23413" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
One of Us[/caption]
The third edition of Double Exposure Investigative Film Festival & Symposium will kick-off on Thursday, October 19 in DC with One of Us, the highly anticipated new documentary from Academy nominated directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady (Jesus Camp, 12th and Delaware, Detropia, Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You). In One of Us, three Hasidic Jews leave their ultra-Orthodox community to join the secular world. Unprepared for life outside the tightly-knit community, they experience ostracism, lost relationships and even danger.
No Stone Unturned, the latest work from Academy Award and Emmy-winning director Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Dark Side, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) is the festival’s centerpiece film and will screen on Friday, October 20. Gibney’s documentary re-opens a 1994 investigation into the massacre of six men as they watched a World Cup soccer match in their local Northern Ireland pub. Gibney exposes a complex web of lies and corruption, and reveals something that a criminal investigation spanning over twenty years did not: the identities of the suspected killers.
And Voyeur, from directors Myles Kane and Josh Koury, is the festival’s closing night film on Saturday, October 21. Voyeur follows journalist Gay Talese as he reports on one of the most controversial stories of his career: a portrait of a Colorado motel owner, Gerald Foos, who spent decades spying on his guests and recording their private moments.
“We are very proud to screen these wonderful, new investigative documentaries,” said Diana Jean Schemo, founder and co-director of Double Exposure. “Each film illustrates a different aspect of investigative storytelling: the first takes audiences deep inside a community usually closed to outsiders; the second investigates a mystery that has gone unsolved for decades; and the third interrogates the investigative process itself.”
“These three extraordinary films from some of today’s most visionary filmmakers embody the very essence of what we aim to achieve at Double Exposure,” said Sky Sitney, festival co-director. “They are works that seek to uncover something otherwise hidden from view, expressed through a distinctive cinematic language.”
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SXSW Grand Jury Winner MOST BEAUTIFUL ISLAND Sets November Release Date
Most Beautiful Island is a psychological thriller set in the world of undocumented female immigrants hoping to make a life in New York City.
The film written and directed by Ana Asensio; and starring Ana Asensio, Natasha Romanova, David Little, Nicholas Tucci, Larry Fessenden, and Caprice Benedetti, is the winner of SXSW 2017 – Grand Jury Prize.
Orion Pictures and Samuel Goldwyn Films will release Most Beautiful Island in select cities on November 3rd.
Shot on Super 16mm with an intimate, voyeuristic sensibility, Most Beautiful Island chronicles one harrowing day in the life of Luciana, a young immigrant woman struggling to make ends meet while striving to escape her past. As Luciana’s day unfolds, she is whisked, physically and emotionally, through a series of troublesome and unforeseeable extremes.