• RomeFilmFest 2018: Fest Reveals Sneak Previews + Lifetime Achievement Award for Martin Scorsese

    Martin Scorsese The Artistic Director Antonio Monda of Rome Film Fest today announced several sneak previews of the upcoming thirteenth edition which will take place from October 18th to 28th 2018. The complete lineup will be announced at a press conference to be held on Friday October 5th.

    CLOSE ENCOUNTERS

    Like every year, ample space will be dedicated to the Close Encounters with directors, actors and leading figures in the world of art and culture. The first names announced include:

    Martin Scorsese | Lifetime Achievement Award

    The thirteenth Rome Film Fest will celebrate Martin Scorsese, one of the finest figures in the history of the seventh art, bestowing him with the Lifetime Achievement Award that will be presented by Paolo Taviani. On this occasion, the American filmmaker, author of a remarkable series of masterpieces from Mean Streets and Taxi Driver to Raging Bull, from Goodfellas to Casino, from Gangs of New York to The Departed, from The Wolf of Wall Street to Silence, will take part in a Close Encounter with the public. In conversation with festival director Antonio Monda, Scorsese will review his fifty-year career and discuss a selection of clips from Italian films that have had a long-lasting effect on his life and his work. Scorsese will also present a newly restored version of a classic of Italian cinema, and have a public conversation with students from the Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza”.

    Sigourney Weaver

    From science fiction to thrillers, from comedy to socially-engaged films: throughout a career that stretches across five decades, Sigourney Weaver has played profoundly different roles thanks to the combination of talent and acting skills that have made her one of the most versatile actresses in contemporary cinema. The list of filmmakers who have directed her, from Ridley Scott to Ivan Reitman, from Mike Nichols to Ang Lee, from Roman Polanski to David Fincher and James Cameron, is impressive. She gave memorable performances in the ‘Alien’ and ‘Ghostbusters’ sagas, in Gorillas in the Mist and Working Girl (which won her the Golden Globe), in Death and the Maiden and Avatar, the biggest box-office hit in the history of cinema.

    Giuseppe Tornatore

    The Sicilian director is one of the most beloved and award-winning auteurs in Italian cinema. His stories have reached beyond the borders of Italy: from the Oscar® with Cinema Paradiso to his nominations for The Star Maker, from Malèna to Baarìa, from The Legend of 1900 to The Unknown Woman, from The Best Offer to Correspondence, Tornatore has produced a universal language based on an personal style, suspended between nostalgia and illusion, intimacy and sensation. At the next Rome Film Fest, the filmmaker will take part in an encounter in which he will discuss with the audience his passion for the noir genre, between literature and cinema.

    Pierre Bismuth

    Pierre Bismuth’s works include exhibitions and video-installations presenting a revolutionary combination of genres and languages, from sculpture to painting, from collage to architecture all the way to music. The French artist won the Oscar®, with Michel Gondry and Charlie Kaufman, for the screenplay of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, considered one of the best films of the past decade. He later made his directorial debut with the feature-length film Where is Rocky II?, half-way between fiction and reality. The Close Encounter with Bismuth will be held at the MAXXI in collaboration with Videocittà.

    Luca Bigazzi and Arnaldo Catinari

    The cinematographer is one of the most important figures in the production of a film and over the course of the decades, has produced extraordinary “light wizards”, who have won great international acclaim. Two of them will meet for a conversation at the Rome Film Fest: Luca Bigazzi, who earned his place in the history of Italian cinema by winning seven David di Donatello and seven Nastro d’Argento awards, and Arnaldo Catinari, the cinematographer of films such as Light of My Eyes, La vita che vorrei, The Caiman, Tell Me About Love, The Demons of St. Petersburg, Angel of Evil.

    Giogiò Franchini and Esmeralda Calabria

    Because of its critical role, the theme of film editing has been one of the most highly debated in the field of film theory. The Rome Film Fest will bring two famous Italian film editors face to face: on one side, Giogiò Franchini, who has worked with directors such as Paolo Sorrentino, Jonathan Demme and Giovanni Veronesi and won the David di Donatello Award for The Girl By The Lake by Andrea Molajoli; on the other, Esmeralda Calabria, film editor for auteurs such as Nanni Moretti, Francesca Archibugi and Giuseppe Piccioni, winner of both the David di Donatello and the Nastro d’Argento awards for Romanzo criminale by Michele Placido.

    SPECIAL EVENT

    Notti Magiche by Paolo Virzì

    The acclaimed Tuscan filmmaker – considered one of the greatest heirs of the commedia all’italiana tradition, who directed a series of box-office hits including Hardboiled Egg, Human Capital, The First Beautiful Thing, Tutta la vita davanti, Like Crazy and The Leisure Seeker – sets his latest film in Rome in 1990 during the summer of the football world cup. The film is produced by Marco Belardi for Lotus Production, a division of the Leone Film Group, with Rai Cinema, and will be distributed in Italy by 01 Distribution.

    RETROSPECTIVES

    The retrospectives of the thirteenth Rome Film Fest, curated by Mario Sesti, will be dedicated to two sophisticated exponents of great European cinema. On the one side, Peter Sellers, the multifaceted English artist, known for his extraordinary comedic talent and the lucid madness of his characters – first and foremost Inspector Clouseau – yet also a respected performer of dramatic roles; on the other, Maurice Pialat, the French filmmaker, winner of the Golden Palm at Cannes for Under the Sun of Satan, author of cinema that deliberately eschews labels, but always deals with themes and feelings charged with exceptional emotional tension. The retrospective on Peter Sellers will be held in collaboration with the British Embassy and the British Council, the one on Maurice Pialat will be organized with the Cineteca di Bologna and the Embassy of France.

    FILM RESTORATIONS

    Several important Italian films will screen at the next Rome Film Fest in a newly-restored version: among them, Italiani brava gente by Giuseppe De Santis. The filmmaker, one of the founding masters of Neo-Realism, winner of the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in 1995, evokes the tragedy of Italian soldiers during the Russia campaign in World War II. The restoration was completed by the Cineteca Nazionale.

    A PORTRAIT OF MARCELLO MASTROIANNI

    Between October and January, the Museum of the Ara Pacis will host an important exhibition dedicated to one of the symbols of Italian cinema in the world: Marcello Mastroianni. The exhibition, curated by Gian Luca Farinelli, is promoted by Musei di Roma, Cineteca di Bologna, Istituto Luce Cinecittà, Equa di Camilla Morabito.

    THE FILMS OF OUR LIVES: NOIRS

    Like every year, the Artistic Director and the members of the Selection Committee will present the films that influenced their passion for the cinema: after westerns and musicals, this year’s choice is the film noir. Each film will be accompanied by a conversation with directors, actors and guests. Furthermore, before each screening, spectators will enjoy short clips of the most famous and beloved film noirs.

    THE ROME FILM FEST IN THE CITY

    The Auditorium Parco della Musica has been the heart of the Rome Film Fest since 2006 with the red carpet and the screening venues. Like every year, the Rome Film Fest will extend to several other locations in the city, including the Auditorium of the Rebibbia Prison (Nuovo Complesso) and the Women’s Ward in Rome. Following the success of the pilot-project that took place last year in Via della Frezza, the Rome Film Fest has decided to continue bringing its initiatives into the heart of the city, extending its iconic Red Carpet to a multiplicity of meeting points in the historic city centre of Rome. The project, organized by the communication group HDRA, will be called IT WILL HAPPEN ON THE RED CARPET and its goal will be to promote quality cinema and the city of Rome, bringing together citizens, tourists and international celebrities. The activities, which will focus on cinema, culture, new trends, fashion, design and fine music, will take place along a fascinating itinerary that will wind through the streets of the Capital, with the assistance and collaboration of institutions, merchants’ associations and private sponsors.

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  • 2018 Palm Springs International ShortFest Announces Winners, FAUVE Wins Best of the Festival

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    [caption id="attachment_30392" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Fauve, Jérémy Comte Fauve, Jérémy Comte[/caption] After screening 333 short films, the 2018 Palm Springs International ShortFest, the largest short film festival and only short film market in North America, announced its Festival award winners on Sunday, June 24, 2018.  More than $87,500 in prizes, including $27,000 in cash awards were awarded in 21 categories. “The award winners truly capture the amazing pool of talent and the incredible range of films found at the festival,” said Festival Director Lili Rodriguez. “We’re honored to witness and share such a skilled level of filmmaking and can’t wait to do it again next year.”

    2018 Palm Springs International ShortFest Award Winners

    JURY AWARDS

    Jury Awards and awards in the non-student and student competition categories were selected by ShortFest jury members Penelope Bartlett (Programmer for the Criterion Collection), Marc-André Grondin (Actor), Brian Hu (Artistic Director of Pacific Arts Movement, Presenter of the San Diego Asian Film Festival, Assistant Professor of TV, Film, and New Media at San Diego State University), Missy Laney (Director of Development at Adult Swim) and Ina Pira (Curator at Vimeo).

    BEST OF FESTIVAL AWARD

    Winner received $5,000 cash prize courtesy of the Greater Palm Springs Convention & Visitors Bureau. The winner of this award may be eligible to submit their film to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Oscar® consideration. Fauve (Canada), Jérémy Comte Set in a surface mine, two boys sink into a seemingly innocent power game with Mother Nature as the sole observer. https://vimeo.com/246704892  

    BEST INTERNATIONAL SHORT

    Winner received a $2,000 cash prize. Awarded to the best short produced outside of the U.S. or Canada, Coyote (Switzerland), Lorenz Wunderle The film shows a tragic coyote, who loses his family during an attack by wolves.

    BEST NORTH AMERICAN SHORT

    Winner received $1,000 and the use of a camera package valued at $60,000 courtesy of Panavision. Awarded to the best short produced in the U.S. or Canada. Caroline (USA), Logan George, Celine Held When plans fall through, a six-year-old is faced with a big responsibility on a hot Texas day.

    NON-STUDENT COMPETITION AWARDS

    All first place winners in the non-student categories received a cash award of $2,000 and may be eligible to submit their film to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Oscar® consideration.

    BEST ANIMATED SHORT

    Nevada (USA), Emily Ann Hoffman In this stop-motion animated comedy, a young couple’s romantic weekend getaway is interrupted by a birth control mishap.

    BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT OVER 15 MINUTES

    Shadow Animals (Sweden), Jerry Carlsson Marall follows her parents to a party and they want her to behave. As the evening progresses she finds the adults’ behavior increasingly strange.

    BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT 15 MINUTES AND UNDER

    Fence (Kosovo/France), Lendita Zeqiraj A chaotic moment in a family gathering of a woman with children and an unexpected visitor with his dog. Special Mention: Nursey Rhymes (Australia), Tom Noakes – On the side of a rural highway, a bizarre encounter with a Metalhead takes a profound turn.

    BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

    Dulce (Colombia/USA), Guille Isa, Angello Faccini In coastal Colombia, a mother teaches her daughter how to swim so that she may go to the mangroves and harvest the piangua shellfish with the other women in the village. Special Mention: After/Life (USA), Puck Lo – In an Arizona desert, a dystopic collective nightmare unfolds where US domestic and foreign policies collide.

    STUDENT COMPETITION AWARDS

    All first place winners in these categories received a $500 cash prize.

    BEST STUDENT ANIMATION

    Perfect Town (Switzerland), Anaïs Voirol In search of perfection a whole city obeys to selection. A constant struggle. Trying and trying again. Where is the difference between endurance and madness?

    BEST STUDENT LIVE ACTION SHORT OVER 15 MINUTES

    Satán (Switzerland/Mexico), Carlos Tapia González Everyday, Tiago goes into his garden to feed the crocodile that killed his brother.

    BEST STUDENT LIVE ACTION SHORT 15 MINUTES AND UNDER

    Kira Burning (USA), Laurel Parmet Teenage Kira attempts to take revenge after a heartbreaking betrayal by her ex-best friend.

    BEST STUDENT DOCUMENTARY SHORT

    Palenque (Colombia/USA), Sebastián Pinzón Silva Guided by motifs of life and death, Palenque is an ode to a small town that has greatly contributed to the collective memory of Colombia: San Basilio de Palenque, the first town in the Americas to have broken free from European domination.

    ALEXIS AWARD FOR BEST EMERGING STUDENT FILMMAKER

    The Alexis Award was created in honor of Alexis Echavarria, whose talent as a budding filmmaker and gift for inspiring excellence among his fellow students were cut short suddenly in 2005 at age 16. This year two films were selected to receive the award, which is a cash prize of $500 each. Imfura (Switzerland/Rwanda), Samuel Ishimwe How can one get an idea of the issues connected with the ruined home of a family who is a victim of the Rwandan genocide? A young man returns to the village where his deceased mother was born. He seeks to adopt a bruised collective recollection. Intoned chants all represent voices of possible reconciliation. Cross My Heart (USA/Jamaica), Sontenish Myers An American teenage girl visits her family in Jamaica and uncovers a secret that changes the way she sees the people she loves. This film explores the culture of silence amongst women, the kinds of secrets we keep and who they’re actually protecting.

    AUDIENCE AWARDS

    BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

    Beneath the Ink (USA), Cy Dodson In a time when society’s belief systems are seemingly changing, or even reverting back in time. One Ohio artist Billy Joe White is challenging his Appalachian region by saying: “bring me your mistakes”. Inspired by recent events, White and his tattoo shop are promoting a simple concept: ERASE THE HATE. Beneath the Ink is a timely look at hatred and racism in one Appalachian community and reveals heartfelt stories of change and redemption.

    LIVE ACTION SHORT

    Trois Pages (Canada), Roger Gariépy An unassuming middle-aged accountant learns he has only weeks to live. Rather than tell everyone, Martin determines to learn the three pages of a Bach adagio for piano he’d abandoned as a child. That accomplished, he performs the piece for his wife and friends, completing his life and thanking those who brightened it along the way.

    BEST ANIMATION SHORT

    Bilby (USA), Pierre Perifel, Liron Topaz, JP Sans In the deadly desert of Australia, a lonesome Bilby finds himself tied with a helpless baby bird.

    BEST STUDENT SHORT

    Untitled Short Film About White People (USA), Nicholas Colia A Drumpf-era comedy about a female yuppie who overcompensates for her white guilt by aggressively trying to befriend the Indian woman who works at her local Brooklyn bodega. It doesn’t go great.

    ADDITIONAL PRIZES

    FUTURE FILMMAKER AWARD

    Winner received a $2,000 cash prize. Awarded to a filmmaker whose work and vision point ot a bright and prospective career in cinema. Mamartuile (Mexico), Alejandro Saevich The president of Mexico spends his final days in office making plans for his future. Everything looks in order until an international conflict interrupts his pleasant rest. Special Mention: Falling (France), Benjamin Vu – In the winter of 1994 in the French suburbs, Léo and Baptiste, two polar opposite students, meet up one evening to work on a school presentation.

    VIMEO STAFF PICK AWARD

    Films featured in competition are eligible for the Vimeo Staff Pick Award, which includes a $4,000 cash prize. The winning film will be released on Vimeo June 25, 2018. Rewind Forward (Switzerland), Justin Stoneham Reliving the past is sometimes the only way to move forward.

    BRIDGING THE BORDERS AWARD PRESENTED BY CINEMA WITHOUT BORDERS

    $2,500 courtesy of Go Energistics; Awarded by the Cinema Without Borders jury to the short that is most successful in bridging and connecting the people of our world closer together. Mon Amour, Mon Ami (Italy/France), Adriano Valerio Is it possible to stage a wedding with someone who really loves you? Special Mentions: The Last Refugees (USA/Jordan), Tanaz Eshaghian – This cinema vérité style documentary follows the Kalajis—originally from the besieged city of Aleppo —allowing for a peek into the lives of those who seek a new life in America. The viewer becomes immersed in this family’s journey as they travel from Jordan to their new home of Philadelphia. Scaffold (Canada), Kazik Radwanksi – Recent immigrants to Canada, working on scaffolding break the routine of their job by observing the people in the the neighbourhood from a unique, precarious and ephemeral vantage point.

    YOUTH JURY AWARD

    Awarded by ShortFest youth juries composed of local students interested in cinema and the arts. Each winner received a $250 cash prize. Kids’ Choice (Ages 13 and under) – $250 One Small Step (USA/China), Bobby Pontillas, Andrew Chesworth Luna, a young Chinese American girl, dreams of becoming an astronaut. Supported by her humble father, Luna endeavors to make her dreams come true. Young Cineastes (Ages 14-17) – $250 Sin Cielo (USA), Jianna Maarten A modern day Romeo and Juliet story of two star crossed lovers along Mexico’s northern border where Dollars rule and girl’s bodies turn up mysteriously in the river or never at all.

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  • Watch Olivia Cooke in New Trailer for KATIE SAYS GOODBYE

    [caption id="attachment_18355" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Katie Says Goodbye Katie Says Goodbye[/caption] Signature Entertainment has released a new trailer for Katie Says Goodbye starring Olivia Cooke, which premiered at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival where it won the Discovery Award for Best Film. Olivia Cooke won the Best Actress award at the Manchester International Film Festival. Living in a struggling desert town in Arizona composed of little more than a trailer park and a small diner, Katie (Olivia Cooke: Me, Earl and The Dying Girl) dreams of a new life in San Francisco. In order to best save the necessary funds to leave her desolate town and start anew, Katie prostitutes herself to a handful of regulars that frequent the diner she waitresses at. As Katie draws near to saving the funds she believes her new life requires, she encounters a young ex-convict named Bruno (Christopher Abbott: It Comes at Night). Katie quickly falls in love, much to the dismay of Bruno’s coworkers at the local auto body shop. As a relationship with Bruno begins to form, the delicate harmony of their small town slowly begins to fall into disarray. https://youtu.be/B6TfLcoeE7M

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  • Watch Jaden Smith as a Mysterious Skateboarder in SKATE KITCHEN Trailer

    skate kitchen jaden smith Magnolia Pictures has released the official trailer for Skate Kitchen starring Jaden Smith as a mysterious skateboarder. The film that premiered earlier this year at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival is the first narrative feature from The Wolfpack director Crystal Moselle, and will be released in select theaters on August 10. Camille, an introverted teenage skateboarder (newcomer Rachelle Vinberg) from Long Island, meets and befriends an all-girl, New York City-based skateboarding crew called Skate Kitchen. She falls in with the in-crowd, has a falling-out with her mother, and falls for a mysterious skateboarder guy (Jaden Smith), but a relationship with him proves to be trickier to navigate than a kickflip. Writer/director Crystal Moselle immersed herself in the lives of the skater girls and worked closely with them, resulting in the film’s authenticity, which combines poetic, atmospheric filmmaking and hypnotic skating sequences. SKATE KITCHEN precisely captures the experience of women in male-dominated spaces and tells a story of a girl who learns the importance of camaraderie and self-discovery. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT1izrIxoos

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  • Sam Voutas’ KING OF PEKING to Premiere on Netflix on July 2 [Trailer]

    [caption id="attachment_22330" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]KING OF PEKING KING OF PEKING[/caption] Sam Voutas’ King of Peking, an Official Selection of the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival, will premiere worldwide exclusively on Netflix on July 2, 2018. SYNOPSIS: Big Wong and his young son Little Wong are part of a fading tradition: traveling film projectionists screening Hollywood movies for villagers who otherwise don’t have access to films. But when Big Wong’s ex-wife raises the spousal support payments, Big Wong faces the possibility of losing custody. In order to stay together, the two Wongs move to the basement of an old Beijing cinema, where Big Wong works as a janitor. When Big Wong discovers a prototype DVD recorder for sale in a junk store, he convinces Little Wong to join a new venture: a father-son bootlegging company. He names it King of Peking in honor of their surname’s meaning: king. Business soon booms, but in the maelstrom of making money, Big Wong realizes that he might lose something more precious than custody: his son’s trust. And Little Wong learns that sometimes parents make bad choices for very good reasons. In King of Peking, writer-director Sam Voutas (RED LIGHT REVOLUTION, SHANGHAI BRIDE) put his reverence for movies on full display. He crafts a beautiful story that is at once an endearing father-son story and a love letter to cinema. Starring Zhao Jun, Wang Naixun, Han Qing, Si Chao. Produced by Jane Zheng (Sundance 2018 hit DEAD PIGS) and Melanie Ansley. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcaYbx7U8Pw

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  • 3 Filmmaking Teams Win Inaugural $10,000 SFFILM Catapult Documentary Fellowships

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    [caption id="attachment_30369" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]2018 Winners Inaugural $10,000 SFFILM Catapult Documentary Fellowships Malika Zouhali-Worrall, Isabel Castro, Ted Passon, and Yoni Brook[/caption] Three filmmaking teams -Isabel Castro, Malika Zouhali-Worrall, and Ted Passon and Yoni Brook – have been awarded the inaugural SFFILM Catapult Film Fellowships. Fellowships are awarded to filmmakers working in the early stages of developing compelling, story-driven documentary features. The inaugural fellowships will run July through December of this year. Also, in keeping with SFFILM’s broader commitment to the Bay Area’s documentary filmmaking community, SFFILM’s popular Doc Talks series of nonfiction filmmaking workshops will continue at the organization’s FilmHouse residency space through a renewed grant from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The first of its kind in the United States, the SFFILM Catapult Documentary Fellowship supports documentary filmmakers working in the early development stage by providing financial support, mentorship, and continued artistic and industry guidance through the completion of their films. This fellowship seeks to provide direct assistance at the point in the filmmaking process when finding funding is critical, yet few funding opportunities from traditional granting programs exist. By providing support before the fundraising process even begins, this opportunity will facilitate the creation of strong grant proposals and fundraising trailers that will allow these projects to evolve through development and into production. “Each of these fellows has taken on a strikingly different project,” said SFFILM Director of Artist Development, Caroline von Kühn. “This inaugural group of fellows brings us an intimate, acutely relevant story about a family, a closely observed exploration of a political institution, and a hybrid film about a novelist’s inner landscape and acts of resistance. What ties them together is a clarity of vision and a deep curiosity. We are excited to provide early support to these compassionate, ambitious storytellers as they undertake their investigations and bring their visions to life.”

    2018 SFFILM CATAPULT DOCUMENTARY FELLOWSHIPS

    Isabel Castro: Mixed Status Isabel Castro is an award-winning Mexican American documentary director, producer, and cinematographer. In addition to winning a 2015 GLAAD Award for her directorial debut Crossing Over, she worked on two seasons of the Emmy-award winning series VICE on HBO and helped launch VICE News Tonight on HBO as a producer covering civil rights and policy. Her work there was nominated for a News Emmy in 2017. She is currently freelancing as a video journalist for the New York Times and producing an interview series about immigration for the Marshall Project. About Mixed Status: The mother? Undocumented. The father? Deported. The children? One citizen, two Dreamers. Against the backdrop of shifting border immigration policy, the Arvizus, a mixed-status family in El Paso, Texas, navigate love, work, and the desire for a better life. Ted Passon and Yoni Brook: Philly District Attorney (working title) Ted Passon is an award-winning filmmaker and video artist. He is a 2016 Sundance Lab Creative Summit Fellow. He is also a recipient of the Pew Foundation Individual Artist Fellowship Grant and the Garrett Scott Documentary Development Grant. Passon has exhibited his award-winning short films in festivals and galleries around the US and abroad including exhibitions by the Whitney Museum, French Institute Alliance Francais, and the TBA Festival. Passon was a 2016 Artist in Residence at the Headlands Center for the Arts in San Francisco. Yoni Brook is an Independent Spirit Award-nominated cinematographer and producer. He co-shot and produced the feature Menashe which premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and was distributed by A24. His cinematography credits include Valley of Saints, which premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and won the Audience Award and Alfred P. Sloan Award. As a documentary director, his films have premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival (Best Documentary Short), True/False Film Festival, Berlin Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, and International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA). About Philly District Attorney: A band of activists, led by defense attorney Larry Krasner, takes the reins of the agency at the center of mass incarceration: the district attorney’s office. Embedded behind closed doors, the filmmakers capture an unprecedented criminal justice experiment as it unfolds and asks if real reform is possible. Malika Zouhali-Worrall: Untitled Dystopia Film Malika Zouhali-Worrall is an Emmy award-winning director and editor. Her first film, Call me Kuchu, a collaboration with Katherine Fairfax Wright, screened at more than 200 film festivals, and received 20 awards, including the Berlinale’s Teddy Award. Her second film, Thank You for Playing, a collaboration with David Osit and an ITVS/POV co-production, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and was broadcast on POV. Zouhali-Worrall is a Chaz and Roger Ebert Directing Fellow and an alum of the Film Independent Documentary Lab, Tribeca All Access, the Garrett Scott Documentary Development grant, and Firelight Producers Lab. In 2012, Filmmaker magazine named Malika one of 25 New Faces of Independent Film About Untitled Dystopia Film: Caught in a modern-day dystopia, a novelist uses fiction to examine the very real brutality and absurdity of authoritarian rule. The selected SFFILM Catapult Documentary Fellows will receive:
    • A $10,000 cash grant
    • Time spent developing their project at FilmHouse, SFFILM’s artist community space. Residency at FilmHouse includes access to its robust series of presentations and workshops with leading industry professionals, peer reviews, and networking opportunities Strategic consultation from SFFILM and Catapult Film Fund staff, as well as documentary mentors, guiding them artistically and with industry support to successfully enter fundraising and production
    • In addition to funding resources and consultation services from SFFILM and Catapult, fellows will be included in a robust mentorship program as part of the FilmHouse resident community and a select group of additional documentary advisors. Integrated into SFFILM’s mentor- and peer-oriented support structures, SFFILM Catapult Documentary Fellows will have access to an established network of directors, producers, editors, managers, and legal consultants to help navigate their looming funding and producing concerns.
    The fellowship selection process seeks out documentary features with an emphasis on powerful stories, compelling storytelling, a broad spectrum of issues and perspectives. The program is open to documentary makers across the US in the development phase of their projects. The application period for the next round of SFFILM Catapult Documentary Fellowships opens January 2019. The program is open to documentary makers across the US in the development phase of their projects.

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  • Stephy Tang to Receive Screen International Rising Star Asia Award at NY Asian Film Festival

    Stephy Tang Hong Kong’s Stephy Tang will receive the Screen International Rising Star Asia Award at the 17th New York Asian Film Festival (NYAF) on July 7th before a screening of her film The Empty Hands.  Tang, a former volleyball star and model, started out in the entertainment business as the lead singer of the phenomenally popular girls’ band The Cookies before launching her successful solo career. In addition to concerts, albums and television appearances, she started her own fashion label and wrote a romance novel. In film, she is best known for her pairing with Alex Fong in a series of popular rom-coms directed by Patrick Kong from 2006-2015. NYAFF is celebrating Tang for her recent shift in career direction, taking on a series of more challenging roles. In Cheung Wing-kai’s Somewhere Beyond the Mist, she plays a pregnant policewoman investigating a morbid murder case; in Chapman To’s The Empty Hands, she plays a young woman who reaches self-actualization by stepping back into the ring after the death of her estranged father, a karate master. She trained for six months for the latter role. Tang recently told the South China Morning Post that she hopes The Empty Hands represents a new era of “more female-oriented films in Hong Kong”. She said, “In the last few years, I have been hoping that people would recognize me as an actress rather than as a singer. Of course I still do concerts but, in the past, I made movies as a singer, and now I hope I’m more an actress doing music. I’m determined to make this happen.” Samuel Jamier, NYAFF’s executive director says, “At a time when Hong Kong cinema is reinventing itself and finding a new maturity, we’re excited to award an actress who has also reinvented herself. We believe that Stephy Tang has the talent, determination and charisma to become one of Hong Kong’s leading actors in the years to come.” The previous recipients of the Screen International Rising Star Asia Award were Japan’s Fumi Nikaido in 2014; Japan’s Shota Sometani in 2015; Japan’s Go Ayano, China’s Jelly Lin, and the Philippines’ Teri Malvar in 2016; and Thailand’s Chutimon “Aokbab” Chuengcharoensukying in 2017.

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  • Damn These Heels, Utah’s LGBTQ Film Festival Unveils Lineup – 1985, THE MISANDRISTS, TRANNY FAG and More

    [caption id="attachment_30361" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]THE MISANDRISTS THE MISANDRISTS[/caption] Damn These Heels, the longest running LGBTQ Film Festival in the Mountain West,  returns for the 15th edition from July 20 to 22, 2018 at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center.  The festival explores LGBTQ issues, ideas, and art through independent, documentary, and foreign films from around the world. New this year, filmmakers of all experience levels are invited to participate in the 48 Hour Film OUT project. On July 13-15, participating film teams are tasked with creating an LGBTQ themed short film in just 48 hours. All films that meet the requirements will be screened during the Festival on Saturday, July 21. The winning film will be screened at Filmapalooza in Paris in 2019 for a chance at the grand prize of screening at the Cannes Film Festival 2019 Short Film Corner. Patrick Hubley, Director of Programming for Utah Film Center, said, “Damn These Heels is a festival that uses the powerful art of film to celebrate inclusivity, community and individual expression. This year’s line up is full of personality and complexity, we are honored to commemorate the Festival’s 15th year with such a strong range of stories that will provoke thought, spark crucial dialogue and shift our perspective.” The films selected to screen in the 2018 Damn These Heels Festival are: 1985 Directed by Yen Tan 85 min | 2018 | USA A closeted young man goes home for the holidays and struggles to reveal his dire circumstances to his conservative family. Official Selection: 2018 SXSW Film Festival Cast: Cory Michael Smith, Aidan Langford, Jamie Chung, Virginia Madsen, and Michael Chiklis ALASKA IS A DRAG Directed by Shaz Bennett 89 min | 2018 | USA Fabulous Leo, an aspiring drag superstar who can throw a punch, is stuck working in a fish cannery in Alaska. Official Selection: 2018 Frameline Film Festival, 2018 Palm Springs International Film Festival, 2018 Cast: Martin L. Washington Jr., Maya Washington, Matt Dallas, Christopher O’Shea, Jason Scott Lee, and Margaret Cho ANCHOR AND HOPE (Tierra Firme) Directed by Carlos Marques-Marcet 113 min | 2017 | Spain Two women and their best friend living on a canal boat ask: Can we balance love, family, and life and stay united? Winner: Best Film-2017 Seville European Film Festival; Official Selection: 2018 Guadalajara International Film Festival Cast: Oona Chaplin, Natalia Tena, and Geraldine Chaplin CLOSE KNIT (Karera ga honki de amu toki wa) Directed by Naoko Ogigami 127 | 2017 | Japan A neglected daughter, a gentle uncle, and his transgender lover knitted together into an unconventional family. Winner: Teddy Award-2017 Berlin Film Festival, Chromie Audience Award-2017 Filmfest Homochrom Cast: Toma Ikuta, Kenta Kiritani, Rinka Kakihara FREELANCERS ANONYMOUS Directed by Sonia Sebastián 81 min | 2018 | USA Billie quits her job right before getting married, launching her into a rag-tag world of unemployed women and tech startups. Official Selection: 2018 FilmOut San Diego, 2018 Frameline Film Festival Cast: Jennifer Bartels, Megan Cavanagh, Alexandra Billings, and Grace Rex THE GOSPEL OF EUREKA Directed by Donal Mosher & Michael Palmieri 75 min | 2018 | USA Love, faith, and civil rights collide in the south as evangelical Christians and drag queens explore the meaning of belief. Official Selection: 2018 SXSW Film Festival, 2018 Sheffield International Documentary Festival Preceded by the short film FAITHFUL directed by Dane Christensen IDEAL HOME Directed by Andrew Fleming 91 | 2018 | USA A bickering gay couple must now deal with the unexpected task of raising a ten-year-old boy. Cast: Paul Rudd, Steve Coogan, Kate Walsh, Alison Pill, Jake McDorman, and Jack Gore JUST CHARLIE Directed by Rebekah Fortune 97 min | 2017 | UK Trapped in the body of a boy, soccer star Charlie is torn between placating her father and shedding this ill-fitting skin. Winner: Best Feature Film for Youth-2017 Zlin Film Festival; Official Selection: 2017 Edinburgh International Film Festival, 2017 Frameline Film Festival Cast: Patricia Potter, Scot Williams, HARRY Gilby, and Karen Bryson LEITIS IN WAITING Directed by Dean Hamer & Joe Wilson 72 min | 2018 | USA/Tonga The story of the Tonga Leitis, a group of transgender women fighting intolerance in the South Pacific Kingdom. Official Selection: 2017 Frameline Film Festival, 2018 Festival International Du Film Documentaire Oceanien, 2017 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival MAN MADE Directed by T Cooper 93 min | 2018 | USA A trans men bodybuilding competition reveals unexpected truths about gender, masculinity, humanity and love. Official Selection: 2018 Outfest Los Angeles, 2018 Frameline Film Festival THE MISANDRISTS Directed by Bruce LaBruce 91 min | 2017 | USA Salacious hell breaks loose within the FLA — a feminist terrorist group — when an injured man appears in their midst. Official Selection: 2017 Berlin International Film Festival Cast: Susanne Sachße, Viva Ruiz, Kembra Pfahler MY BIG GAY ITALIAN WEDDING (Matrimonio italiano) Directed by Alessandro Genovesi 90 min | 2018 | Italy In this merry movie of matrimony, Antonio brings his fiancé Paulo to meet his headstrong parents and reveal his sexuality. Official Selection: 2018 Seattle International Film Festival Cast: Diego Abatantuono, Monica Guerritore, Salvatore Esposito, Cristiano Caccamo, Dino Abbrescia, and Diana Del Bufalo MY LIFE WITH JAMES DEAN (Ma vie avec James Dean) Directed by Dominique Choisy 108 min l 2017 I France Young director Géraud Champreux goes on a wild and woeful film tour that changes his life. Official Selection: 2018 Brussels Pink Screens, 2018 San Francisco International Film Festival Cast: Johnny Rasse, Mickaël Pelissier, and Nathalie Richard QUIET HEROES Opening Night Film Directed by Jenny Mackenzie, Amanda Stoddard, & Jared Ruga 68 min | 2017 | USA One doctor’s fight against stigma, shame, and ignorance at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis against a conservative religious monoculture. Official Selection: 2018 Sundance Film Festival, 2018 QDoc SHAKEDOWN Directed by Leilah Weinraub 72 min | 2018 | USA | Not Rated The chronicle of Los Angeles’ black lesbian strip club scene, an underground, illegal, and legendary moment. Mature audiences only. Official Selection: 2018 Berlin Film Festival, 2017 The Whitney Museum Biennial SHORT FILM PROGRAM: Reverent 89 min | Various A short film program featuring serious, heartfelt, and touching LGBTQ+ films from around the globe. Films include Top 10 Places to Visit in Sao Paulo, Beauty, A Kitchen Can Take You Back, Sunset, Spark, Crook – “Lavender,” and Something About Alex. SHORT FILM PROGRAM: Irreverent 78 min | Various A short film program featuring hilarious, goofy, crass, but still hard-hitting films from around the globe. Films include Magic H8 Ball, Dropping Penny, I Live Here, Scary Lucy, and Femme. SISTERHOOD Directed by Tracy Choi 97 min | 2017 | Macau/Hong Kong/Taiwan Upon seeing a missing person ad for a friend from her past, Sei decides to revisit Macau and makes a startling discovery. Nominated: Best Supporting Actress Nomination Fish Liew & Best New Performer Nomination Jennifer Yu-36th Hong Kong Film Award Cast: Gigi Leung, Fish Liew, and Jennifer Yu TRANNY FAG (Bixa Travesty) Directed by Kiko Goifman & Claudia Priscilla 75 min | 2018 | Brazil Mc Linn Da Quebrada’s electrifying performances (with plenty of nudity) brazenly take on Brazil’s hetero-normative machismo. Official Selection: 2018 Berlin Film Festival, 2018 Sheffield International Documentary Film Festival Preceded the short film MY PRICE directed by Fabricio Santiago TRANSMILITARY Directed by Gabriel Silverman and Fiona Dawson 93 min | 2018 | USA Four transgender individuals put their careers on the line by coming out in hopes of attaining the equal right to serve. Winner: Documentary Competition Audience Award-2018 SXSW; Official Selection: 2018 Frameline Film Festival WE THE ANIMALS Directed by Jeremiah Zagar 94 min | 2018 | USA Manny, Joel, and Jonah tear their way through childhood and push against the volatile love of their parents. Winner: Next Innovator Award-2018 Sundance Film Festival, Future/Now Award-2018 Montclair Film Festival Cast: Raúl Castillo, Josiah Gabriel, Isaiah Kristian, Evan Rosado, and Sheila Vand THE WILD BOYS (Les garçons sauvages) Directed by Bertrand Mandico 110 min | 2018 | France Surrealist, adolescent gender-bending sex fueled fantasy nightmare. A maritime adventure. Winner: Best Director-2018 Vilnius International Film Festival Cast: Pauline Lorillard, Vimala Pons, and Diane Rouxe

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  • Inspiring and Beautiful New Kenyan Film SUPA MODO Goes to ZIFF 2018 [Trailer]

    [caption id="attachment_29803" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Supa Modo Supa Modo[/caption] The inspiring and beautiful new Kenyan film, Supa Modo is set to screen at the upcoming Zanzibar International Film Festival, taking place in Stone Town Zanzibar from July 7th to 15th, with generous support from the Kenya Film Commission. The film which had its much-acclaimed world premiere at Berlinale in February has been heralded as a stunning debut for director Likarion Wainaina and its young cast. Acquired by Rushlake Media, the film was produced by Ginger Ink Films Africa in partnership with One Fine Day Films (OFDF). OFDF has released other award-winning African films including Kati Kati and Nairobi Half Life. It was at the One Fine Day Films BrainRoom – a two-week masterclass that allows writers to pitch and develop their ideas – where Wainaina’s story idea for Supa Modo was pitched and selected for production. The Kenya Film Commission will be hosting the screening of the film on Wednesday, July 11th at ZIFF’s main venue of the Old Fort Amphitheatre with various members of the cast and production team in attendance. Kenya Film Commission Ag. CEO, Mr. Timothy Owase had this to say of the importance of the film’s screening at ZIFF. This is part of our commitment to support local filmmakers, we are pleased to premiere Supa Modo outside Kenya and ZIFF provides a better platform for this purpose. We laud the organizers for consideration to screen Supa Modo and reaffirm our commitment to continue supporting Kenyan filmmakers and exporting local content. “Supa Modo” tells the inspiring story of a young girl whose dream of becoming a superhero is threatened by terminal illness, inspiring her village to rally together to make her dream come true. It stars newcomer Stycie Waweru in the lead role, alongside a host of veteran Kenyan thesps, including Maryanne Nungo and Nyawara Ndambia. In a statement, Rushlake’s Philipp Hoffmann described the genre-bending “Supa Modo” as “truly unique.” “It’s all at once a film with a strong female lead, a superhero film, a film about grief and dying, and about community and people coming together,” he said. “I immediately saw great potential for a touching story that attests to beautiful, universal human values and appeals to both young and grown-up audiences.” ZIFF Festival Director Fabrizio Colombo has this to say of the film and its selection for ZIFF, “Supa Modo once again shows just how important and professional Kenya film industry has become. It’s a film that will resonate strongly with ZIFF audiences, for locals especially as a Swahili movie, and universally, as it touches people with heart and deep meaning.” https://youtu.be/Zoua2UFeUqw

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  • Holt McCallany and Vincent Pastore Set to Star in IRON TERRY MALONE

    [caption id="attachment_30356" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Vincent Pastore Vincent Pastore. © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons[/caption] Actors Holt McCallany (“MindHunter”) and Vincent Pastore (“The Sopranos”) will headline the upcoming dark comedy “Iron Terry Malone” directed by award-winning filmmaker Johnny Greenlaw (Mommy’s Box). The screenplay, based on true events, hails from award-winning actors/writers Christian Keiber and Robert John Keiber. Utilizing many of the same locations used by Elia Kazan’s On The Waterfront (1954), the film is set largely in Hoboken, N.J., with the owner and five regulars teaming up to kill off one of their own to save their favorite bar from closing. McCallany, the acclaimed star of Netflix’s ‘’Mindhunter’’, plays a local mobster named Mean Mike, who with the bar’s owner Harry Moffet, played by John Doman (The Wire), hatch the plan to off the town beggar and drunk “Iron” Terry Malone, played by Pastore. Befriending Malone by getting him so drunk he can’t think or remember where he is, the six would-be assassins first try poisoning him. Then, they try freezing him. Then, they run him over with a car, but Malone will just not die! And as summer turns to winter, things go from bad to worse, as this unlikely group of killers begins to turn on each other and find out just why their marked man is called “Iron” Terry Malone. “What excites me about this film, besides the stellar cast, is the story and screenplay”, says Greenlaw. “The fact that it is based on actual events, that took place many years ago, we get to look inside the depths of humanity and what you’re willing to sacrifice just to get by in life. I look forward to bringing this dark comedy to the big screen.” Adds writer Christian Keiber : “Iron Terry Malone”, is a true passion project of mine. To be able to bring this film to life alongside my friends and family, both in the cast and crew, is the sole reason I became a filmmaker.” In addition to McCallany, Pastore and Doman, the film’s superlative ensemble also includes, Christian Keiber (“Gotham’’), Bill Sorvino (“Who’s Jenna..?”), Kerry McGann (“Bloodrunners’’), Johnny Greenlaw (“Mommy’s Box”), Robert John Keiber (“Trust Me, I’m a Lifeguard”), Maureen Van Zandt (“The Sopranos’’), and Gary Pastore (“The Deuce’’). Sam Calagione, owner of Dogfish Head Brewery, the official beer sponsor of the film, will also appear in the movie. Kerry McGann, Bill Sorvino, Johnny Greenlaw, Jason L. Koerner and Bryce C. Campbell serve as producers, with Christian Keiber as executive producer. “Iron” Terry Malone begins production in Hoboken, NJ in November.

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  • Santa Barbara International Film Festival Announces 2019 Dates for 34th Edition

    Santa Barbara International Film Festival The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) will return for the  34th edition of the festival, from January 30 to February 9, 2019,Official festival screenings and related events will be held throughout Santa Barbara, including the Arlington and Lobero Theatres. “It’s extraordinary and a cause for celebration that SBIFF is heading into its 34th edition. We love that after this past difficult year, Santa Barbara is anxiously ready to welcome once again more world-class filmmakers – and putting together our popular and insightful panels and tributes. Join us,” said SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling. Last year’s Tribute Honors were bestowed upon artists including Allison Janney, Margot Robbie, Jordan Peele, Guillermo Del Toro, Saoirse Ronan, Sam Rockwell, and Timothée Chalamet. The festival’s acclaimed Panel Series will return highlighting the year’s most accomplished producers, writers, and women in the entertainment industry.

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  • Watch New U.S. Trailer for Robert Schwentke’s THE CAPTAIN

    THE CAPTAIN Music Box Films has released the official trailer for the German film, The Captain by Robert Schwentke that will open in New York at The Quad on July 27th and in Los Angeles at Nuart on August 10th. Based on a disturbing true story, The Captain follows Willi Herold (Max Hubacher), a German army deserter who stumbles across an abandoned Nazi captain’s uniform during the last, desperate weeks of the Third Reich. Newly emboldened by the allure of a suit that he stole only to stay warm, Willi discovers that many Germans will follow the leader, whosoever that happens to be. A parade of fresh atrocities follow in the self-declared captain’s wake, and serve as a profound reminder of the consequences of social conformity and untrammeled political power. After an illustrious career in Hollywood, Robert Schwentke’s (Red, Flightplan) German homecoming film The Captain, is simultaneously a historical docudrama, a tar-black comedy, and a sociological treatise, presenting fascism as a pathetic pyramid scheme, a system to be gamed by the most unscrupulous and hollow-souled. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVj23p5vwe4

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