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“37: A Final Promise” by Randall Batinkoff Wins Best Film at 2014 Arpa International Film Festival

Arpa International Film Festival

“37: A Final Promise” 17th Annual Arpa International Film Festival Winner

The 17th Annual Arpa International Film Festival wrapped with the annual Awards Ceremony, and “37: A Final Promise” by Randall Batinkoff was the big winner, taking home the Best Feature Film Award, along with the Best Director Award for Randall Batinkoff. In the film, haunted rock star, Adam Webb, plans to fulfill a vow to kill himself on his 37th birthday to atone for a horrible crime he committed as a child. With only 12 weeks to go before his expiration date (and release of his final album) he meets and falls in love with Jemma Johnstone, who has a dark secret of her own.

“When My Sorrow Died: The Legend of Armen RA and The Theremin” by Robert Nazar Arjoyan won the Best Documentary Film Award

“When My Sorrow Died: The Legend of Armen RA and The Theremin” by Robert Nazar Arjoyan won the Best Documentary Film Award. Glamorously eccentric and enigmatic Theremin master Armen Ra recounts his dynamic journey in this life-spanning, award winning, documentary that mixes rare concert performances, candid interviews, and archive material with the magical power of music that can alchemize ancient sorrow into timeless beauty.

Winners

http://youtu.be/X0B8Ib-x0OU

Best Feature Film Award: “37: A Final Promise” by Randall Batinkoff (USA).

Best Director Award: “37: A Final Promise” by Randall Batinkoff (USA).

Best Documentary Film Award: “When My Sorrow Died: The Legend of Armen RA and The Theremin” by Robert Nazar Arjoyan (USA).

Best Short Film Award: “Arena” by Martin Rath (Armenia/Poland).

Best Screenplay Award: “Tevanik” by Jivan Avetisyan (Armenia).

Best Music Video Award: “Rich Husband” (Shohare Pooldar) by Shervin Youssefian (USA).

Best Feature Audience Choice Award: “Toastmaster” by Eric Boadella and Martin Yernazian (Spain/USA).

Best Documentary Audience Choice Award: “Hannah: Buddhism’s Untold Journey” Marta Gyorgy Kessler and Adam Penn (UK).

Best Short Film Audience Choice Award: “Return of the Tyke” by Garo Berberian (UK).

via asbarez
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Lineup Announced for 2015 New York Jewish Film Festival

New York Jewish Film Festival

The Muses of Isaac Bashevis Singer

The 24th annual New York Jewish Film Festival scheduled to be held at the Film Society’s Walter Reade Theater and Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, from January 14 to 29, 2015 will screen 47 features and shorts from 11 countries. The festival opens on Wednesday, January 14 with the U.S. premiere of Asaf Galay and Shaul Betser’s The Muses of Isaac Bashevis Singer. The Nobel Prize-winning author Isaac Bashevis Singer was a charming enchanter both on the page and in his romantic life. This surprising and unflinching documentary explores, through poignant interviews and exclusive archival footage, the unknown history of one of his most vital sources of creative inspiration: his translators. Dozens of women throughout Singer’s life worked with him to open the doors to his singular Yiddish prose for the rest of the world to enjoy, and his relationships with many of them blurred the lines between the professional and the intimate.

Closing Night on January 29 will feature the U.S. premiere of Maxime Giroux’s Felix and Meira. In the Mile End neighborhood of Montréal, hipsters and Hasidim coexist amicably but independently. When Meira, an Orthodox Jewish wife and mother with an undercurrent of rebelliousness, meets Felix, a middle-aged atheist adrift without family ties, a slow-blooming affair takes shape that will present Meira with a difficult fork in the road.

Three films in the festival touch on Israel, past and present. Israel’s 2014 Foreign Language Oscar submission and a New York City premiere, Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem is adapted from a true story of an Orthodox woman who has spent five years in a legal stalemate fighting for a divorce that, according to religious law, requires her husband’s consent. Ronit Elkabetz (who co-directed with her brother Shlomi Elkabetz) delivers an unforgettable performance in the lead role. The Zionist Idea, receiving its world premiere, is a feature-length exploration of one of the most influential, controversial, and urgently relevant political ideologies of the modern era. Directed by Joseph Dorman (Sholem Aleichem: Laughing in the Darkness) and Oren Rudavsky (A Life Apart: Hasidism in America), the film examines the meaning, history and future of Zionism at this crucial time. A panel discussion will take place in conjunction with the film on January 25. Roberta Grossman’s Above and Beyond, produced by Nancy Spielberg, presents the story of a group of Jewish American fighter pilots who returned to the battlefield during the 1948 Israeli War of Independence. This documentary combines interviews with stunning footage taken from their planes.

Five films focus on various aspects of the Holocaust and its repercussions. Let’s Go!, directed by Michael Verhoeven (The Nasty Girl) and a U.S. premiere, artfully presents a biting commentary on post-World War II German society in an adaptation of Laura Waco’s autobiographical novel. Overcome with grief at her father’s funeral in 1968, Laura looks back with fresh eyes at her parents’ decision to settle in Germany after surviving the Holocaust. In Forbidden Films, receiving its New York premiere, Felix Moeller brings viewers into a vaulted, explosive-resistant compound where 40 incendiary Nazi propaganda films are kept, banned from public viewing; and interviews renowned film historians and filmmakers who debate the importance of these “Nazi movies of the poison cabinet” asking: Are they worth keeping? Do we need to show them? How do we approach this dark legacy? Acclaimed director Amos Gitai’s Tsili, receiving its U.S. premiere, adapts Aharon Appelfeld’s novel about a young Jewish woman hiding in the forests south of Czernowicz, her world and family having been ripped away, and her subsequent wandering and search for meaning following the war. Dieter Reifarth’s The Tugendhat House, also a U.S. premiere, examines the history of one of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s earliest prototypes of modernist architecture in Europe. Built for a Jewish family by the name of Tugendhat in 1930, it was abandoned during the Nazi occupation, only to resurface in the ensuing decades as a therapy center, a ballet school, and a school for children with scoliosis. In Natan, investigative documentarians David Cairns and Paul Duane reveal the forgotten life of Bernard Natan, a Romanian Jew who fought for France in World War I and became the head of the innovative and influential Pathé studios, only to die forgotten during the Holocaust and almost erased from the history of French film.

Three films examine Jews and the world of entertainment. The Outrageous Sophie Tucker, directed by William Gazecki and receiving its New York premiere, looks at the life of the so-called “Queen of Vaudeville,” theater, radio, and television icon Sophie Tucker. Born in Russia into a poor Jewish family in 1887, her campaign to capture Hollywood’s heart is a marvelous rags-to-riches story. In How to Break Into Yiddish Vaudeville, a world premiere short, animator Jack Feldstein uses his trademark style of “neonizing” (manipulating video into a kaleidoscopic color palette that resembles classic American neon signs) to whimsically document the cutthroat world of New York City burlesque theater. Hilla Medalia’s The Go-Go Boys: The Inside Story of Cannon Films, a New York premiere, revisits the lives and careers of Israeli cousins Menachem Golan and Yoram Globus, who took over the failing Cannon Films studio and forged a new business model by producing films with shlocky scripts, ranging from action thrillers like Death Wish II to musicals such as Breakin’, and even collaborations with auteur filmmakers like Andrei Konchalovsky and Jean-Luc Godard. The film features interviews with Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and other B-movie talent, as well as Golan and Globus. The festival will present a Saturday midnight screening of Breakin’ on January 17.

The festival also includes three features receiving New York premieres. In Yossi Aviram’s The Dune, a 65-year-old Parisian police officer, weary of his long career, meets a mysterious and spiritually motivated younger man, triggering a bizarre sequence of events that shapes both of their futures. The cast includes noted French actor Mathieu Amalric (The Grand Budapest Hotel). In Susan Korda’s slice-of-life drama Salomea’s Nose, the title character remembers the day her beloved brothers disfigured her and themselves for life with one clumsy act. At just under 23 minutes, the film, featuring Barbara Sukowa (Hannah Arendt) as the voice of Salomea, offers a delightfully ambiguous thesis about fate and family dynamics. In Hugo Gelin’s Like Brothers, a successful entrepreneur in his forties, a cynical screenwriter in his thirties, and a young man on the cusp of adulthood are brought together by the untimely death of the woman they all love. Reeling with grief after her funeral, they embark on a spontaneous trip together to a summer cabin in Corsica—a trip she originally planned for all of them—which becomes a journey of both tribute and discovery.

Two additional features will be screened. Director Daniel Burman’s wistful comedy The Mystery of Happiness is part buddy movie, part detective story, and part romance. Life-long business partners Santiago and Eugenio understand each other without words, care for each other, and need each other. When Eugenio vanishes without a clue, Santiago and Eugenio’s wife Laura join forces to solve the mystery of his disappearance. Alexey Fedorchenko’s colorful Angels of Revolution, receiving its U.S. premiere, tells the story of five cosmopolitan artists, led by a famed Communist revolutionary, searching for answers during a clash of cultures now known as the Great Samoyedic War in 1930s Siberia.

Three documentaries round out the main slate. Guy Natanel and Annie Sulzberger’s The King of Nerac, receiving its world premiere, is a thoughtful portrait of David Breuer Weil, a modern day Gauguin who gave up a career as one of the world’s leading art dealers to embark on a life of creativity and contemplation as an artist known for his vast, apocalyptic canvases and his colossal, dynamic sculptures that dominate public spaces around the world from London to Jerusalem. Yossi Aviram’s documentary The Polgar Variant (U.S. premiere) follows the travels of the Polgár sisters, groomed by their father Lázló to become chess champions. From their childhood in 1970s Communist Budapest to today, the family’s tale continues to make shock waves in the press. Erik Greenberg Anjou’s Deli Man, a New York premiere, is a portrait of the effusive and charming Ziggy Gruber, a Texan and third-generation delicatessen man who currently operates one of the country’s most acclaimed delis, Kenny and Ziggy’s in Houston. The documentary sheds light on the larger story of Jews in America—immigration, upward mobility, and food—and features interviews with Larry King, Jerry Stiller, and foodies sharing memories of pastrami.
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10 Contenders Remain In VFX Oscar Race

Awards

Interstellar

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that 10 films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 87th Oscars.

The films are listed below in alphabetical order:

   “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
   “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
   “Godzilla”
   “Guardians of the Galaxy”
   “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies”
   “Interstellar”
   “Maleficent”
   “Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb”
   “Transformers: Age of Extinction”
   “X-Men: Days of Future Past”

The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will now be invited to view 10-minute excerpts from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 10, 2015. Following the screenings, the members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The 87th Academy Awards® nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 15, 2015, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

The Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 22, 2015, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
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PRIDE is Big Winner at 2104 Moët British Independent Film Awards

Awards

Director Richard Linklater accepts an award for Best International Independent Film for Boyhood at the Moet British Independent Film Awards 2014

The winners of the 17th Moët British Independent Film Awards were announced at the star-studded ceremony, held at Old Billingsgate, which was hosted by THE INBETWEENERS star, Simon Bird. PRIDE won the most awards on the night, picking up Best British Independent Film, Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting Actor. Other major awards winner include Yann Demange won Best Director for ’71, Gugu Mbatha-Raw won Best Actress for BELLE and Brendan Gleeson won Best Actor for CALVARY. Andrew Scott collected his award for Best Supporting Actor for PRIDE and Imelda Staunton took home her award for Best Supporting Actress also for her role in PRIDE.

As previously announced, Emma Thompson was awarded the coveted Richard Harris Award for outstanding contribution by an actor to British film, and Benedict Cumberbatch the Variety Award, which recognizes an actor, director, writer or producer who has helped to shine the international spotlight on the UK. The Special Jury Prize went to John Boorman. The Raindance Award was won by LUNA.

The Moët British Independent Film Awards winners for 2014:

BEST BRITISH INDEPENDENT FILM
Pride

BEST DIRECTOR
Yann Demange – ’71

THE DOUGLAS HICKOX AWARD [BEST DEBUT DIRECTOR]
Iain Forsyth, Jane Pollard – 20,000 Days on Earth

BEST SCREENPLAY
Jon Ronson, Peter Straughan – Frank

BEST ACTRESS
Gugu Mbatha-Raw – Belle

Brendan Gleeson accepts the Best Actor award for ‘Calvary’ at the Moet British Independent Film Awards 2014

BEST ACTOR
Brendan Gleeson – Calvary

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Imelda Staunton – Pride

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Andrew Scott – Pride

MOST PROMISING NEWCOMER
Sameena Jabeen Ahmed – Catch Me Daddy

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN PRODUCTION
The Goob

BEST TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT
Stephen Rennicks – Music – Frank

Producer Kristian Brodle, directors Mike Brett, and Steve Jamison, winners of the Best British Documentary award for “Next Goal Wins

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Next Goal Wins

BEST BRITISH SHORT
The Kármán Line

BEST INTERNATIONAL INDEPENDENT FILM
Boyhood

THE RAINDANCE AWARD
Luna

THE RICHARD HARRIS AWARD (for outstanding contribution by an actor to British Film)
Emma Thompson

Benedict Cumberbatch, winner of The Variety Award on stage with Mark Strong and Keira Knightley during The Moet British Independent Film Awards

THE VARIETY AWARD
Benedict Cumberbatch

THE SPECIAL JURY PRIZE
John Boorman

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Camden International Film Festival Announces 2015 Dates

Camden International Film Festival

The Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) and its Points North Documentary Forum have announced dates for 2015. The festival and forum will take place September 17-20, 2015.

For the second time, CIFF has received support from both the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the National Endowment for the Arts for the 2015 Festival. Following the success of the 2013 Academy-funded Then and Now program, the Academy returns to support the festival’s new series Being There, a retrospective sidebar program and workshop series focused on the past, present and future of ethnographic documentary film.

CIFF has championed this growing movement around experimental, ethnographic documentary since the inaugural festival in 2005, screening the early works of directors such as David Redmon and Ashley Sabin, Robert Greene, Jessica Oreck, Jean Francois-Caissy, Sophie Benoot and many more. Inspired by Leacock’s famous description of his work as a “search for the feeling of being there,” CIFF will highlight historically significant ethnographic films spanning 90 years, each of which demonstrates the potential of documentary to transport viewers to another world or to see the world through another set of eyes. These screenings will be complemented by a series of in-depth interviews, workshops and master classes at CIFF’s Points North Documentary Forum, focused on topics such as research methods, observational cinematography, documentary ethics and the blurred lines between ethnography and art.

CIFF also received renewed support from the National Endowment for the Arts’ Arts Works program for the 2015 Camden International Film Festival and Points North Documentary Forum, with a focus on the expansion of its Points North Fellowship and its Engagement Summit. The Points North Fellowship is a unique opportunity for documentary filmmakers to develop their works-in-progress at CIFF through a combination of focused industry mentorships, workshops, meetings, pitch training and a public pitch session, with additional support throughout the year. Support from the NEA will provide audiences intimate access to filmmakers and an opportunity to experience the world’s best documentary cinema, while building an extended community and a supportive environment for emerging filmmakers to focus on creative and professional development.

NEA Chairman Jane Chu said, “I’m pleased to be able to share the news of our support through Art Works including the award to the Camden International Film Festival and Points North Documentary Forum. The arts foster value, connection, creativity and innovation for the American people and these recommended grants demonstrate those attributes and affirm that the arts are part of our everyday lives.”

“We’re honored to be recognized by such prestigious establishments as the NEA and Academy, and already excited for 2015 Camden International Film Festival and expanded programs through Points North Documentary Forum,” added Camden International Film Festival’s Founder/Director Ben Fowlie.

Filmmakers may submit their completed documentaries starting January 5, 2015 when submissions for feature and short films open. The Points North Fellowship submissions will open in Spring 2015. CIFF will also unveil some exciting new programs outside of their Fellowship and the Festival weekend to expand upon the support of emerging documentarians. Check out CIFF’s website for further information on upcoming programs and how to submit in the coming months.

via CIFF
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2015 Sundance Film Festival Announces Films Selected for Spotlight, Park City at Midnight, & New Frontier Programs

Sundance Film Festival

6 Desires: DH Lawrence and Sardinia

The 2015 Sundance Film Festival, which takes place January 22 to February 1 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah, announced the films that will screen in the out-of-competition sections Spotlight and Park City at Midnight, as well as the films and installations to be featured in the New Frontier program. Trevor Groth, Director of Programming for the Sundance Film Festival, said, “This year’s Park City at Midnight selections have much to offer genre enthusiasts. With everything from futuristic fantasies to paranormal nightmares, it’s an all-out trip to the cinematic edge.”

New Frontier champions films that expand, experiment with, and explode traditional storytelling. Recognizing the crossroads of film, art, and media technology as a hotbed for cinematic innovation, New Frontier is also a venue showcasing innovative media installations and panel discussions that explore the expansion of cinema culture in today’s rapidly changing media landscape. The installations will be housed on the top two floors of the historic Claim Jumper, at 573 Main Street in Park City. Admission to all New Frontier installations is free.

Shari Frilot, Sundance Film Festival Senior Programmer and curator of the New Frontier exhibition, said, “The content creators in the 2015 edition of New Frontier radically challenge the very notion of storytelling. Working with virtual reality and new gaming technologies, these artists, filmmakers, journalists, media scientists, game designers and creative technologists present a peek at the dawn of a bold new cinematic world, through an unprecedented exploration of the most basic state of being.”

In addition to those announced today, films in the U.S. and World Competitions and NEXT <=> sections have been announced. Selections for the Premieres, Documentary Premieres, Short Film, Sundance Kids and new Special Events sections have not yet been announced.

SPOTLIGHT
Regardless of where these films have played throughout the world, the Spotlight program is a tribute to the cinema we love.

6 Desires: DH Lawrence and Sardinia / United Kingdom, Italy (Director: Mark Cousins) — In winter 1921, DH Lawrence and his wife journeyed to Sardinia, and he chronicled their experiences in Sea and Sardinia. Now, Mark Cousins retraces Lawrence’s footsteps. The film is conceived partly as a letter to Lawrence — or “Bert” — a detail that’s typical of the film’s inviting sense of conversational intimacy. International Premiere

’71 / United Kingdom (Director: Yann Demange, Screenwriter: Gregory Burke) — ’71 takes place over a single night in the life of a young British soldier accidentally abandoned by his unit following a riot on the streets of Belfast in 1971. Unable to tell friend from foe, he must survive the night alone and find his way to safety. Cast: Jack O’Connell, Paul Anderson, Richard Dormer, Sean Harris, Barry Keoghan, Martin McCann.

99 Homes / U.S.A. (Director: Ramin Bahrani, Screenwriters: Ramin Bahrani, Amir Naderi, Bahareh Azimi) — A father struggles to get back the home that his family was evicted from by working for the greedy real-estate broker who’s the source of his frustration. Cast: Andrew Garfield, Michael Shannon, Laura Dern, Tim Guinee, Cullen Moss, J.D. Evermore.

Aloft / Spain, France, Canada (Director and screenwriter: Claudia Llosa) — Aloft tells the story of a struggling mother, Nana, and her evolution to becoming a renowned healer. When a young artist tracks down Nana’s son 20 years after she abandoned him, she sets in motion an encounter between the two that will bring the meaning of their lives into question. Cast: Jennifer Connelly, Cillian Murphy, Mélanie Laurent, William Shimell. North American Premiere

Eden / France (Director: Mia Hansen-Løve, Screenwriters: Mia Hansen-Løve, Sven Hansen-Løve) — Mia Hansen-Løve’s electronic-dance-music epic follows the rise and fall of a DJ (based on her brother, Sven, a contemporary of Daft Punk) who gets into the rave scene in 1994 and spends the next 20 years navigating the French club scene. Cast: Félix de Givry, Pauline Etienne, Greta Gerwig, Brady Corbet, Arsinee Khanjian, Vincent Macaigne.

Girlhood

Girlhood / France (Director and screenwriter: Céline Sciamma) — Oppressed by her family, dead-end school prospects, and the boys law in the neighborhood, Marieme starts a new life after meeting a group of three free-spirited girls. She changes her name and dress, and quits school to be accepted in the gang, hoping to find a way to freedom. Cast: Karidja Touré, Assa Sylla, Lindsay Karamoh, Mariétou Touré, Idrissa Diabaté, Simina Soumaré.

The Tribe / Ukraine (Director and screenwriter: Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy) — Set at a Ukrainian boarding school for the deaf, the film’s narrative unfolds purely through sign language without the need for employing subtitles or voiceover, resulting in a unique, never-before-seen cinematic experience that engages the audience on a new level. Cast: Grigoriy Fesenko, Yana Novikova, Rosa Babiy, Alexander Dsiadevich.

White God / Hungary (Director: Kornél Mundruczó, Screenwriters: Kata Wéber, Kornél Mundruczó, Viktória Petrányi) — When young Lili is forced to give up her beloved dog, Hagen, because its mixed-breed heritage is deemed “unfit” by The State, she and the dog begin a dangerous journey back toward each other. Cast: Zsófia Psotta, Sandor Zsótér, Szabolcs Thuróczy, Lili Monori, László Gálffi, Lili Horváth. U.S. Premiere

Wild Tales / Argentina, Spain (Director and screenwriter: Damián Szifrón) — Inequality, injustice, and the demands of the world cause stress and depression for many people. Some of them, however, explode. This is a movie about those people. Vulnerable in the face of an unpredictable reality, the characters of Wild Tales cross the thin line dividing civilization and barbarism. Cast: Ricardo Darín, Julieta Zyberberg, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Darío Grandinetti, Erica Rivas, Oscar Martínez.

PARK CITY AT MIDNIGHT
From horror flicks to comedies to works that defy any genre, these unruly films will keep you edge-seated and wide awake.

Cop Car / U.S.A. (Director: Jon Watts, Screenwriters: Christopher D. Ford, Jon Watts) — Two 10-year-old boys steal an abandoned cop car. Cast: Kevin Bacon, James Freedson-Jackson, Hays Wellford, Shea Whigham, Camryn Manheim. World Premiere

The Hallow

The Hallow / Ireland, United Kingdom (Director: Corin Hardy, Screenwriters: Corin Hardy, Felipe Marino) — When a London-based conservationist is sent to Ireland to survey an area of ancient forest believed by the superstitious locals to be hallowed ground, he unwittingly disturbs a horde of terrifying beings and must fight to protect his family. Cast: Joseph Mawle, Bojana Novakovic, Michael McElhatton, Michael Smiley. World Premiere

Hellions / Canada (Director: Bruce McDonald, Screenwriter: Pascal Trottier) — Teenage Dora Vogel must survive a Halloween night from hell when malevolent trick-or-treaters come knocking at her door. Cast: Chloe Rose, Robert Patrick, Rossif Sutherland, Rachel Wilson, Peter DaCunha, Luke Bilyk. World Premiere

It Follows / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: David Robert Mitchell) — After a strange sexual encounter, a teenager finds herself haunted by nightmarish visions and the inescapable sense that something is after her. Cast: Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Daniel Zovatto, Jake Weary, Olivia Luccardi, Lili Sepe.

Knock Knock / U.S.A. (Director: Eli Roth, Screenwriters: Eli Roth, Nicolas Lopez, Guillermo Amoedo) — Two beautiful young girls walk into a married man’s life and turn a wild fantasy into his worst nightmare. Cast: Keanu Reeves, Lorenza Izzo, Ana De Armas, Aaron Burns, Ignacia Allamand, Colleen Camp. World Premiere

The Nightmare / U.S.A. (Director: Rodney Ascher) — A documentary-horror film exploring the phenomenon of sleep paralysis through the eyes of eight people. They (and a surprisingly large number of others) often find themselves trapped between the sleeping and awake realms, unable to move but aware of their surroundings while subject to disturbing sights and sounds.World Premiere

Reversal / U.S.A. (Director: J.M Cravioto, Screenwriters: Rock Shaink, Keith Kjornes) — A gritty psychological thriller about a young woman chained in a basement of a sexual predator and manages to escape. However, right when she has a chance for freedom, she unravels a hard truth and decides to turn the tables on her captor. Cast: Tina Ivlev, Richard Tyson, Bianca Malinowski. World Premiere

Turbo Kid / Canada, New Zealand (Directors: Anouk Whissell, Francois Simard, Yoann-Karl Whissell, Screenwriters: Anouk Whissell, Francois Simard, Yoann-Karl Simard) — In a post-apocalyptic future, The Kid, an orphaned outcast, meets a mysterious girl. They become friends until Zeus, the sadistic leader of the Wasteland, kidnaps her. The Kid must face his fears, and journey to rid the Wasteland of evil and save the girl. Cast: Munro Chambers, Laurence Leboeuf, Michael Ironside, Aaron Jeffery, Edwin Wright. World Premiere

NEW FRONTIER FILMS

The Forbidden Room / Canada (Directors: Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, Screenwriters: Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, Robert Kotyk) — A submarine crew, a feared pack of forest bandits, a famous surgeon, and a battalion of child soldiers all get more than they bargained for as they wend their way toward progressive ideas on life and love. Cast: Geraldine Chaplin, Caroline Dhavernas, Roy Dupuis, Udo Kier, Charlotte Rampling, Karine Vanasse. World Premiere

Liveforever / Colombia, Mexico (Director: Carlos Moreno, Screenwriters: Alberto Ferreras, Alonso Torres, Carlos Moreno) — Driven by the music and dancing she finds along the way, a teenager leaves home willing to try anything her provocative and tolerant city has to offer, even if she burns out in the process. Inspired by the best-selling novel “Que viva la música” by Andres Caicedo. Cast: Paulina Davila, Alejandra Avila, Luis Arrieta, Juan Pablo Barragan, Nelson Camayo, Christian Tappan. World Premiere

The Royal Road / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Jenni Olson) — This cinematic essay, a defense of remembering, offers up a primer on the Spanish colonization of California and the Mexican American War alongside intimate reflections on nostalgia, butch identity and Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo — all against a contemplative backdrop of 16mm urban California landscapes.Cast: Jenni Olson, Tony Kushner. World Premiere

Sam Klemke’s Time Machine

Sam Klemke’s Time Machine / Australia (Director: Matthew Bate) — Sam Klemke has filmed and narrated 50 years of his life, creating a strange and intimate portrait of what it means to be human. World Premiere

Station to Station / U.S.A. (Director: Doug Aitken) — Station to Station is composed of 60 individual one-minute films featuring different artists, musicians, places, and perspectives. This revolutionary feature-length film reveals a larger narrative about modern creativity. World Premiere

Things of the Aimless Wanderer / Rwanda, United Kingdom (Director and screenwriter: Kivu Ruhorahoza) — A white man meets a black girl, then she disappears. The white man tries to understand what happened to her while also trying to finish a travelogue. Things of the Aimless Wanderer is a film about the sensitive topic of relations between “locals” and Westerners, about paranoia, mistrust, and misunderstandings. Cast: Justin Mullikin, Grace Nikuze, Ramadhan Bizimana, Eliane Umuhire, Wesley Ruzibiza, Matt Ray Brown. World Premiere

NEW FRONTIER INSTALLATIONS

1979 Revolution Game
Artists: Navid Khonsari, Vassiliki Khonsari
1979 Revolution Game presents an innovative approach to non-fiction storytelling. Designed to engage players with an immersive “on the ground” experience of the Iranian Revolution, the game integrates an emotionally impactful narrative with interactive moral choices and intuitive touchscreen gameplay while remaining true to history.

Assent
Artist: Oscar Raby
This immersive documentary uses virtual reality technology to put the user in the footsteps of Director Oscar Raby’s father, who in 1973 was a 22-year-old army officer stationed in the north of Chile, on the day when the Caravan of Death came to his regiment.

Birdly
Artist: Max Rheiner
Flying is one of the oldest dreams of humankind. Birdly is an experiment to capture this dream, to simulate the experience of being a bird from a first-person perspective. This embodiment is conducted through a full-body virtual reality setup.

Dérive
Artist: François Quévillon
This interactive installation uses the audience’s body motions and positions to explore 3-D reconstructions of urban and natural spaces that are transformed according to live environmental data, including meteorological and astronomical phenomena.

Evolution of Verse
Artist: Chris Milk
Chris Milk, working with visual effects powerhouse Digital Domain and virtual reality production company VRSE.works, has created this photo-realistic CGI-rendered 3-D virtual reality film that takes the viewer on a journey from beginning to new beginning.

Kaiju Fury

Kaiju Fury!
Artist: Ian Hunter
A dark energy experiment leads to a devastating attack by monstrous Kaiju, and you are standing at ground zero — all in 360-degree, stereoscopic 3-D cinematic virtual reality. You will “be there” as the beasts lay waste to a crumbling city and humanity makes its last stand. Cast: Susie Abromeit, Bill Lippincott, Daniel Martin, Brian Dodge, Vincient Chiantelli.

Paradise
Artist: Pleix
Paradise is certainly not paradisiacal if you look at it through our eyes. But neither is it totally devoid of humor, melancholy and absurdity. Perhaps it is first and foremost life as it is, and then a touch exaggerated in the digital overdrive.

Perspective; Chapter I: The Party
Artists: Rose Troche, Morris May
A young college woman attends a party with the intention of shedding her “shy girl” persona. At the same party, a young man is after a similar reinvention. They meet, drink, and misinterpreted signals turn into things that cannot be undone. Virtual reality simulators let viewers experience both characters. Cast: Tabitha Morella, Caleb Thomas, Zachary Zagoria, Anna Grace Barlow.

Possibilia
Artists: Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert
Possibilia is a multi-layered narrative experience from acclaimed directing duo the Daniels. The story of two quarreling lovers splits exponentially into more and more possible worlds as their relationship unravels. Cast: Alex Karpovsky, Zoe Jarman.

Project Syria
Artist: Nonny de la Peña
More than one million children have fled Syria and news reports indicate children are being specifically targeted in the violence. By combining pioneering virtual reality technologies with audio and video captured during a real event, audiences feel transported to the powerful scene, becoming witnesses as the intense tragedy unfolds.

The VR works of Felix & Paul
Artists: Félix Lajeunesse, Paul Raphaël
Felix & Paul’s groundbreaking live-action virtual reality experiences range from independent documentary to fictional work with major Hollywood studios and stars. These experiences let viewers sit in the room with musicians making music, roam the Mongolian plains with yak herders, and experience an encounter with the afterlife.

Way to Go
Artist: Vincent Morisset
It is a walk in the woods. It is an astonishing online and virtual reality interactive experience, a restless panorama, a mixture of hand-made animation, 360-degree video capture, music, dreaming, and code; but mostly it is a walk in the woods, c’mon!

Zero Point
Artist: Danfung Dennis
Zero Point, a 3-D and 360-degree documentary for the Oculus Rift headset, creates an entirely new digital dimension. From combat training simulations to research labs at Stanford to indie game developers and hackers, this immersive experience highlights the future of virtual reality.

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First 10 Films, All Directed by Women, Announced for 2015 Atlanta Film Festival

Atlanta Film Festival

The Sisterhood of Night

The 39th annual Atlanta Film Festival taking place March 20 thru 29, 2015, has released the first ten feature films, all directed by women, selected for the festival’s film lineup. “Films from female directors composed nearly half of last year’s feature film program. This first glimpse at the Festival’s 2015 lineup showcases the outstanding quality of work found in submissions from female filmmakers,” said ATLFF Director of Programming Kristy Breneman. Of the ten features in this first wave, six are narrative (fiction) and four are documentaries.

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2015 Sundance Film Festival Announces Films Selected for U.S. and World Cinema Dramatic and Documentary Competitions and Out-of-Competition NEXT

Sundance Film Festival

The Summer of Sangaile

Sundance Film Festival today announced the films selected for the U.S. and World Cinema Dramatic and Documentary Competitions and the out-of-competition NEXT <=> section of the 2015 Festival taking place, January 22 to February 1 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah. For the 2015 Festival, 118 feature-length films were selected, representing 29 countries and 45 first-time filmmakers, including 19 in competition. These films were selected from 12,166 submissions, including 4,105 feature-length films and 8,061 short films. Of the feature film submissions, 2,016 were from the U.S. and 2,089 were international. 103 feature films at the Festival will be world premieres.

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The National Board of Review Names A MOST VIOLENT YEAR the 2014 Best Film of the Year

Awards

A MOST VIOLENT YEAR

The National Board of Review has named A MOST VIOLENT YEAR the 2014 Best Film of the Year. “A Most Violent Year is an exhilarating crime drama with a compelling story, outstanding performances, and an elegant cinematic style,” said Annie Schulhof, NBR President. “J.C. Chandor has given us a new and provocative perspective on the American Dream.” The National Board of Review honors diverse members of the film community at their annual Awards Gala, which also acts as a fundraiser for student grant philanthropy. Hosted by Lara Spencer, this year’s gala will take place on January 6, 2015 at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York City.

Below is a full list of the awards given by the National Board of Review:

Best Film: A Most Violent Year
Best Director: Clint Eastwood – American Sniper
Best Actor (TIE): Oscar Isaac – A Most Violent Year; Michael Keaton – Birdman
Best Actress: Julianne Moore – Still Alice
Best Supporting Actor: Edward Norton – Birdman
Best Supporting Actress: Jessica Chastain – A Most Violent Year
Best Original Screenplay: Phil Lord & Christopher Miller – The Lego Movie
Best Adapted Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson – Inherent Vice
Best Animated Feature: How to Train Your Dragon 2
Breakthrough Performance: Jack O’Connell – Starred Up & Unbroken
Best Directorial Debut: Gillian Robespierre – Obvious Child
Best Foreign Language Film: Wild Tales
Best Documentary: Life Itself
William K. Everson Film History Award: Scott Eyman
Best Ensemble: Fury
Spotlight Award: Chris Rock for writing, directing, and starring in – Top Five
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: Rosewater
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: Selma

Top Films

American Sniper
Birdman
Boyhood
Fury
Gone Girl
The Imitation Game
Inherent Vice
The Lego Movie
Nightcrawler
Unbroken

Top 5 Foreign Language Films

Force Majeure
Gett: The Trial of Vivian Amsalem
Leviathan
Two Days, One Night
We Are the Best!

Top 5 Documentaries

Art and Craft
Jodorowsky’s Dune
Keep On Keepin’ On
The Kill Team
Last Days in Vietnam

Top 10 Independent Films

Blue Ruin
Locke
A Most Wanted Man
Mr. Turner
Obvious Child
The Skeleton Twins
Snowpiercer
Stand Clear of the Closing Doors
Starred Up
Still Alice
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50 Best Foreign Language Film Official Submissions to Oscars on Lineup for 2015 Palm Springs International Film Festival

Palm Springs International Film Festival, VIMOOZ

ida

The 26th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF), scheduled January 2-12, 2015, announced the films selected to compete for the FIPRESCI Award in the Awards Buzz section. The Festival will screen 50 of the 83 official submissions to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Best Foreign Language Film.

The following 50 films are selected to screen (in alphabetical order by country):

A Few Cubic Meters of Love (Afghanistan), Director Jamshid Mahmoudi

Wild Tales (Argentina), Director Damián Szifrón

Charlie’s Country (Australia), Director Rolf de Heer

The Dark Valley (Austria), Director Andreas Prochaska

Nabat (Azerbaijan), Director Elchin Musaoglu

Two Days, One Night (Belgium/France/Italy), Directors Jean-PierreDardenne, Luc Dardenne

The Way He Looks (Brazil), Director Daniel Ribeiro

Mommy (Canada), Director Xavier Dolan

To Kill a Man (Chile), Director Alejandro Fernández Almendras

The Nightingale (China), Director Philippe Muyl

Mateo (Colombia), Director Maria Gamboa

Cowboys (Croatia), Director Tomislav Mršic

Behavior (Cuba), Director Ernesto Daranas

Fair Play (Czech Republic), Director Andrea Sedlácková

Sorrow and Joy (Denmark), Director Nils Malmros

Tangerines (Estonia), Director Zaza Urushadze

Concrete Night (Finland), Director Pirjo Honkasalo

Saint Laurent (France), Director Bertrand Bonello

Corn Island (Georgia), Director George Ovashvili

Beloved Sisters (Germany), Director Dominik Graf

Little England (Greece), Director Pantelis Voulgaris

The Golden Era (Hong Kong), Director Ann Hui

White God (Hungary),Director Kornél Mundruczó

Life in a Fishbowl (Iceland), Director Baldvin Zophoníasson

Liar’s Dice (India), Director Geetu Mohandas

Today (Iran), Director Reza Mirkarimi

Gett, The Trial of Viviane Amsalem (Israel), Directors Ronit Elkabetz, Shlomi Elkabetz

Human Capital (Italy), Director Paolo Virzì

The Light Shines Only There (Japan), Director Mipo O

Three Windows and a Hanging (Kosovo), Director Isa Qosja

Kurmanjan Datka: Queen of the Mountains (Kyrgyzstan), Director Sadyk Sher-Niyaz

Rocks in My Pockets (Latvia), Director Signe Baumane

Ghadi (Lebanon), Director Amin Dora

Never Die Young (Luxembourg), Director Pol Cruchten

Timbuktu (Mauritania/France), Director Abderrahmane Sissako

Accused (Netherlands), Director Paula van der Oest

1001 Grams (Norway), Director Bent Hamer

Dukhtar (Pakistan), Director Afia Nathaniel

Eyes of a Thief (Palestine), Director Najwa Najjar

Norte, the End of History (Philippines), Director Lav Diaz

Ida (Poland), Director Pawel Pawlikowski

The Japanese Dog (Romania), Director Tudor Cristian Jurgiu

Leviathan (Russia), Director Andrey Zvyagintsev

See You in Montevideo (Serbia), Director Dragan Bjelogrlic

Sea Fog (South Korea), Director Sung-bo Shima

Living Is Easy with Eyes Closed (Spain), Director David Trueb

Force Majeure (Sweden), Director Ruben Östlund

Winter Sleep (Turkey), Director Nuri Bilge Ceylan

The Guide (Ukraine), Director Oles Sanin

Mr. Kaplan (Uruguay), Director Álvaro Brechner
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BIRDMAN on Top at 2014 Gotham Indie Film Awards

Awards

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

BIRDMAN OR THE UNEXPECTED VIRTUE OF IGNORANCE, directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, bested BOYHOOD to win Best Feature at the 24th annual Gotham Independent Film Awards held in New York City on Monday night. The film also won Best Actor for Michael Keaton, who played a movie star trying to make a comeback on Broadway. BOYHOOD directed by Richard Linklater did not leave empty handed, the film won the Gotham Independent Film Audience Award. CITIZENFOUR, the Edward Snowden documentary, won the award for Best Documentary.

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15 Documentary Features Advance In 2014 Oscar Race

Awards, VIMOOZ

Finding Vivian Maier

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 15 films in the Documentary Feature category will advance in the voting process for the 87th Oscars®. One hundred thirty-four films were originally submitted in the category.

The 15 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production companies:

“Art and Craft,” Purple Parrot Films
“The Case against 8,” Day in Court
“Citizen Koch,” Elsewhere Films
“CitizenFour,” Praxis Films
“Finding Vivian Maier,” Ravine Pictures
“The Internet’s Own Boy,” Luminant Media
“Jodorowsky’s Dune,” City Film
“Keep On Keepin’ On,” Absolute Clay Productions
“The Kill Team,” f/8 filmworks
“Last Days in Vietnam,” Moxie Firecracker Films
“Life Itself,” Kartemquin Films and Film Rites
“The Overnighters,” Mile End Films West
“The Salt of the Earth,” Decia Films
“Tales of the Grim Sleeper,” Lafayette Film
“Virunga,” Grain Media

The Academy’s Documentary Branch determined the shortlist in a preliminary round of voting. Documentary Branch members will now select the five nominees from among the 15 titles.

The 87th Academy Awards® nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 15, 2015, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

The Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 22, 2015, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
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