Thursday, November 08, 2007
SOME FILM FESTIVAL INFORMATION
Bulletfilm, a new site for filmmakers, has put up a nice list of film festivals:
http://www.bulletfilm.com/festivals .
(Bulletfilms seems to have been created to host films, but they seem to be planning to charge to host them. It is not clear to me why one would host there, and not on a free site like Video Google or YouTube. It is not clear if Bulletfilms has any traffic; they say nothing about sharing revenue; and there were programming errors in the promotional e-mail they sent.)
But it seems like a nice list of festivals!
Here's some more ...
FILM FESTIVAL INFORMATION
- http://www.filmfestivals.com/index.shtml - A site devoted to FF info
MAJOR INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVALS
- Cannes FFl -- http://www.festival-cannes.fr
Cannes FF (English Language)-- http://www.festival-cannes.fr/index.php?langue=6002 - Edinburgh FF -- http://www.edfilmfest.org.uk/
- Toronto International FF -- http://www.e.bell.ca/filmfest/2005/home.asp
- The Haifa International FF -- http://www.haifaff.co.il/index_eng.asp
- Hertfordshire International Film Festival -- http://www.hiff.co.uk/
- Rakkautta & Anarkiaa - 18th Helsinki International FF -- http://www.hiff.fi/
- Sydney (Australia) FF -- http://www.sydneyfilmfestival.org/
- Bahama's International FF -- http://bahamasinternationalfilmfestival.com/
- Venice FF -- http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/
NATIONAL FILM FESTIVALS
- Sundance FF -- http://www.sundance.org/festival/
- Hawaii International FF -- http://www.hiff.org/
- Vail FF -- http://www.vailfilmfestival.org/
NEW YORK FILM FESTIVALS
- The New York Film Festival -- http://www.filmlinc.com/nyff/nyff.htm
- Tribeca FF -- http://www.tribecafilmfestival.org/
- Hampton's International FF -- http://www.hamptonsfilmfest.org
- The Harlem International Film Festival -- http://www.harlemfilmfestival.com/
- Home FF -- http://www.homefilmfest.com/
- New York Film & Video Festival -- http://www.nyfilmvideo.com/
- Gotham City Short Film Festival -- http://www.gothamfestival.com/
- Queens International Film Festival -- http://www.queensfilmfestival.com/
Features of a World-class Film Festival Website and
Covering a Film Festival
Here are some more festival sites:
Intl. Black Women's Film Festival
Note that some festivals (especially the smaller ones) may (suddenly!) disappear.
Labels: Cannes, film festival, HIFF, NYFF, Tribeca Film Festival
Thursday, May 17, 2007
NYFF 2007
The Film Society of Lincoln Center (FSLC - pronounced FIZ'lc) has announced the selection committee for the 2007 New York Film Festival.
Joining Richard Pena, Chairman, Kent Jones, and Lisa Schwarzbaum (film critic at Entertainment Weekly), will be Scott Foundas (film editor and chief film critic at L. A. Weekly) and J Hoberman (senior film critic at The Village Voice, adjunct professor of cinema at Cooper Union, and visiting lecturer at Harvard University).
The 2007, 45th New York Film Festival will run from September 28, 2007 to Ocober 4. It will be held at the Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center, instead of Alice Tully Hall, which is being renovated.
The NYFF Sidebar, held at the Walter Reade Theater, will honor Joaquim Pedro de Andrade, part of Brazil's Cinema Novo movement in the 50's & 60's.
Application forms, and complete rules, for submissions to the New York Film Festival are now available. The deadline for submissions is 5pm on July 13, 2007.
Some highlights of the rules are:
- Anyone may submit a film.
- The standard is very high (for example, last year "The Queen," and "Pan's Labyrinth" were among the films shown) .
- Films may be submitted either to the main festival or to Views From The Avant- Garde, but not both.
- Final version of the film must be in either 35 mm or HD Cam. If not in English, it must have English subtitles. (The version submitted with the application should best be on VHS or DVD, but there are other possibilities.)
- Opening and Closing Nights are North American Premieres; all other films are New York Premieres.
Labels: Cinema Novo, film festival, J Hoberman, Joaquim Pedro de Andrade, Kent Jones, Lisa Schwatzbaum, New York Film Festival, NYFF, Richard Pena, Scott Foundas
Monday, April 23, 2007
TFF -- LADY CHATTERLEY
Lady Chatterley (coming to the Tribeca Film Festival) is a (very) French film based on D H Lawrence's second version (there were three) of the story of Lady Chatterley. (It was published as John Thomas and Lady Jane. The well-known version is #3, published as Lady Chatterley's Lover.) It was directed and co-written by Pascale Ferran, with Marina Hands playing Lady Chatterley, and Jean-Louis Coulloc'h, her lover.
I found the film life-affirming and charming.
I do sometimes find myself a little distanced by films in one language portraying people in another. (For example, I found the well-crafted British accents to be at odds with the hoodlum like behavior of the Romans they were portraying in the TV series Rome.) This film is, of course, spoken in French; but more important, it has a French sensibility; it is filmed in a French landscape, and it feels French, though the characters, of course, are English and live on an English estate.
There are several aspects to the novel. The writer/director was very selective in picking which to emphasize.
She chose to tone down the class difference between the Lady and the gamekeeper. Her husband calls the gamekeeper uncouth; but he is quite couth. (The actor, actually, resembles Marlon Brando quite strongly at times.) He is sensitive, caring, well (though simply) spoken and very well dressed in elegantly rough clothes. (The costume designer could have taken it a bit easier, I think, on his outfits, though she did win an award for her effort). The characters do refer to their relative positions, but it is more a simple fact than a central element in their relationship.
The director concentrated heavily on the role of nature, which she felt was particularly prominent in this version of the novel. The film is very close to the earth, the changing seasons, the flowers, the flow of water, and the rest of nature. The cinematography is excellent.
And sex is approached as something the characters discover in each other and themselves, as they timidly develop a relationship. Except in teen movies, where it is often played just for laughs or embarrassment, films usually skip over those stages of a relationship where both physical and emotional intimacy develop. Mostly, in films, characters meet, time passes somehow, and then they are sexually involved. That "somehow," with the evolution of sexual activities responding to the level of emotional involvement is a strong focus in this film. (The film features both male and female nudity, but sexual relations are not portrayed with the same level of detail as in, say, 9 Songs.)
It should be noted that the film moves ahead at a very languid pace, and it is very long (168 min). I suspect the director would really have liked for the film to evolve in real-time (and several years pass from the beginning to the end).
I found the film to be sometimes funny, and -- when the characters' behavior goes over the top (as in the rain-dance in the picture above) -- sometimes even a bit silly, in the way that improv comedy may suddenly discover a ridiculous truth.
The production won Cesar awards in France for Best Film, Best Actress: Marina Hands, Best Writing: Pascale Ferran, as well as awards for best costume design and cinematography; it also had nominations for Best Director, sound, and production design. Curiously, although Marina Hands won the Best Actress award, she was nominated but did not win as Most Promising Actress. (Perhaps a logician decided that her acting had passed the promising stage and so she was not eligible to win that award.) Her acting is quite wonderful (love to watch her eyes).
Labels: D H Lawrence, film festival, Lady Chatterley, Marina Hands, Pascale Ferran, Tribeca
Sunday, April 22, 2007
TFF - THE LETTER THAT WAS NEVER SENT
Among the restored/classic/historical films at the Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) is the 1959 Russian film The Letter That Was Never Sent (Neotpravlennoye pismo (1959)). Directed by Mikhail Kalatozov with cinematography by Sergei Urusevsky (who is also the assistant director / second unit director), it chronicles a search for diamonds in Siberia.
The style of direction, writing, and cinematography is Russian heroism. These are patriots who will do anything, no matter how difficult or dangerous, to advance Soviet industry and thereby become famous for their historical, important discoveries, through pioneering the wilds of Siberia to discover diamonds.
The style of direction, writing, and cinematography is Russian heroism. These are patriots who will do anything, no matter how difficult or dangerous, to advance Soviet industry and thereby become famous for their historical, important discoveries, through pioneering the wilds of Siberia to discover diamonds.
The beautiful black and white cinematography frames the characters in the most heroic poses, and dramatizes the desolate environment. The directorial set pieces are amazing.
The acting is much more naturalistic than the other elements of the film.
As a footnote to the film, it is ironic to relate the optimism of the characters here, who believe that discovering diamonds will be the seed that spawns a great industrial complex in Siberia, with the despair that Blood Diamond describes as the fate of Sierra Leone because of the discovery of diamonds there.
Labels: diamonds, film festival, Russia, Siberia, Tribeca
Saturday, April 21, 2007
TFF TICKET ALERT! (ACTUALLY 2 ALERTS)
Some events at the Tribeca Film Festival have already sold out!
It's a good idea to get tickets as soon as possible!
But note also (alert #2!) that tickets are honored only up to 30 miniutes before event time. Ticket holders must come at least 30 minutes before show time or the seat may be given away to someone on the wait line! (Good news for the standby line! Bad news for latecomers!)
Labels: film festival, latecomers, standby, tickets, Tribeca, wait line
Friday, April 20, 2007
TFF - THE TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL
Checked in today for my Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) Press Credentials.
This is one mighty festival. There are 157 feature films and 88 shorts, showing between April 25 and May 6. 73 films have their world premiere. Almost all are showing for the first time in New York. Seven important restored or re-discovered films from around the world are being presented.
Films come from 47 different countries. Only Africa seems to be under-represented. Eighteen "narrative" films and 16 documentaries are in competition.
Among the genres represented are a series of midnight features (horror and all that), family films, and sports films.
There are numerous panel discussions and special events. Spider-man gets special treatment. And Julia Stiles has a film that she directed in the shorts program. Many directors will be in attendance, along with celebrity and less well known actors.
The festival was created "in the wake of September 11," by Robert De Niro and others in 2002, largely to help re-vitalize downtown New York. It now does much more than that.
The festival program can be downloaded as a PDF file and printed out. It is one of the best organized festival film programs I've seen.
Labels: film festival, Julia Stiles, Robert De Niro, Spiderman, Tribeca
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
STUDENT FILM CONTEST -- LINCOLN CENTER / HBO
Here, direct from The Film Society of Lincoln Center, is an announcement for a very, very interesting film making contest for students. Submitted films will be viewed by an especially distinguished panel. The winning film will be used as a trailer before screenings at Lincoln Center. The winning filmmaker, in addition to credit for the film, will receive $5,000 and a trip to New York for the film's premiere, at the 2007 New York Film Festival.
"HBO Films and The Film Society of Lincoln Center are holding a nationwide competition that will provide college students with the opportunity of a lifetime: the chance to create a trailer to precede film screenings at one of the world’s most important cultural institutions. Winner Will Receive Line Credit, $5,000 and Trip to New York For Trailer Premiere at Film Society’s 45th New York Film Festival in 2007.
"The Film Society of Lincoln Center, which has screened the works of countless legendary filmmakers including Jean-Luc Godard, François Truffaut and Stanley Kubrick—and which continues to showcase the work of celebrated and emerging filmmakers from all over the world—will premiere the winning work in the Student Trailer Competition at its 45th New York Film Festival, which will take place Sep 28 – Oct 14 at the Time Warner Center’s Rose Hall. The winning trailer will showcase the Film Society of Lincoln Center as well as highlight its major annual festivals, programs and events.
"The winner will receive a check for $5,000 and a trip to New York for the trailer’s premiere, as well as a line credit at the end of the trailer, which will be shown before every Film Society screening for the next two years. HBO Films producers will professionally finish the trailer.
"Judging the entries will be five respected film industry professionals. The panel includes Mira Nair, noted filmmaker and Director of The Namesake, Monsoon Wedding, Kama Sutra and Salaam Bombay, among many other films; Bob Berney, President of Picturehouse and marketing and distribution chief on several successful US film campaigns, including the triple Oscar winner Pan’s Labyrinth, Prairie Home Companion, The Passion of the Christ, Y Tu Mamá También and My Big Fat Greek Wedding; Nelson George, author, music and culture critic, and filmmaker whose film, Life Support, debuted on HBO on March 10th, 2007; Sam Martin, Vice President of Programming for HBO Films; Marian Masone, Managing Director, Festivals and Associate Director of Programming, for the Film Society of Lincoln Center; and Steve Perania, Creative Director who has overseen numerous major and independent film marketing campaigns.
"Chris Smith, then a senior at Brown University, won the inaugural Student Trailer Competition in 2005. His winning entry has preceded every Film Society screening since it debuted at the 2005 New Directors/New Films Festival, and will continue to do so until the premiere of the 2007 winner’s trailer.
"Through creative use of imagery and words in graphic montage or other means, the 60-second trailer should let audiences know they are seeing a presentation of The Film Society of Lincoln Center. The winning entry will be the one that best conveys the Film Society’s core image and mission, touches upon its major offerings, signals ways to learn more and get involved, and credit its underwriter and creator.
"In addition, the trailer should be layered, dynamic and sophisticated. It should implicitly or explicitly convey that the Film Society, a) has been on the cutting-edge of international film exhibition for four decades; b) offers a wide range of highly-popular and critically-acclaimed programs and events; c) annually brings the best in world cinema and international filmmaking talent to New York audiences; and d) is one of the most exciting, innovative and influential cinematheques in the world.
"All entries must be received by May 31, 2007, and should be submitted to Film Society/HBO Films Student Trailer Competition, PO Box 5076, Blair, NE 68009-5076.
"To submit an entry, film students should visit www.filmlinc.com to print and complete both an Official Entry Form and a Competition Release Form. A complete list of the Official Rules is also available on the site.
"About the Film Society of Lincoln Center: The Film Society of Lincoln Center was founded in 1969 to celebrate American and international cinema, to recognize and support new directors, and to enhance the awareness, accessibility and understanding of film. "
Labels: contest, film festival, film society of lincoln center, HBO
