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 November 19, 2008 iW NEWS | "Drummer" Wins Reel Asian Audience Award
The 12th annual Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival came to a close on Sunday, November 16, seeing the argest attendance in its history as well as many sold out shows. The fest announced awards in a number of categories, including the NOW Audience Award, which was given to Kenneth Bi's "The Drummer," which was the festival's opening night gala. Other awards included the NFB Best Documentary Award, which was given to Paul Wong's "Perfect Day," the Kim Orr Barristers Best Narrative Feature or Video Award, which was given to Liew Seng Tat's "Flower in the Pocket," and the Centennial College @ Wallace Studios Most Innovative Film Award, which went to Randall Lloyd Okita's "Machine With a Wishbone." [Peter Knegt]  [permalink] [ filed under Festivals, Honors ] November 17, 2008iW NEWS | "Nirvana" and "Julius" Among Top Lone Star Fest Winners
Igor Volshin's "Nirvana" won the grand jury prize for narrative feature at the 2008 Lone Star International Film Festival in Ft. Worth, TX, while Tom Quinn's "The New Year Parade" won a special jury prize. Eric Bricker's "Visual Acoustics - The Modernism of Julius Shulman" took best documentary, while "The Banishment" by Andrei Zvyaginstev won best foreign-language film. "My Mom Smokes Weed" by Clay Liford won best short. [Brian Brooks] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] November 14, 2008iW NEWS | "Secrets" Leads Israel Fest Winners
The Israel Film Festival closed its 23rd edition Thursday night after presenting events in New York, Los Angeles and Miami. In New York the fest announced that Avi Nesher's "The Secrets," which was the fest's Closing Night film, also won the Panavision Audience Choice Award. The award carried a $60,000 package including a full month's use of a 35mm Panavision camera package to shoot their next film in Israel. "The Secrets" will be released in New York by Montery Media on Thanksgiving Week. Audience Awards were also presented to Ran Tal's "Children of the Sun for Best Documentary and Lior Geller's "Roads" for Best Short. "I was very moved by the audience's reactions to the Israeli films we presented this year," stated Fest founder and Executive Director Meir Fenigstein at the awards' announcement. "With over 26 screenings totally sold out and lines stretching down Broadway, the energy and excitement I experienced from the public as well as the filmmakers at this year's festival truly highlight the terrific creative voices in Israeli filmmaking. It was a wonderful way to help celebrate Israel's 60th Anniversary." [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] November 13, 2008iW NEWS | Mickey Rourke to Receive Santa Barbara Accolade
"The Wrestler" star Mickey Rourke will be honored with the American Riviera Award at the 24th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival, organizers unveiled Thursday. Fox Searchlight will release "Wrestler," directed by Darren Aronofsky December 17. "America is all about second chances," commented SBIFF executive director Roger Durling in a statement. "And so it's appropriate that the American Riviera Award that always goes to a U.S. actor should be given this year to Mickey Rourke - who has shown us with his performance in 'The Wrestler' to never underestimate a true artist and his power to reinvent himself." Past recipients include Tommy Lee Jones, Forrest Whitaker, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Kevin Bacon and Diane Lane. The Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place in tne picturesque California seaside community January 22 - February 1. [Brian Brooks] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] iW NEWS | Denver Fest Kicks Off Tonight With "Bloom"
The 2008 Starz Denver Film Festival has announced the schedule for the 11-day event, which will be held Nov. 13-23 and feature 215 films from nearly 30 countries. In addition to the films, the schedule also features red carpet events, receptions, panel discussions and award presentations. "We have spent the past year assembling a program of films, panels and special events that we believe offers something for everyone: something eye-opening, something moving, something provocative, something new," said Britta Erickson, SDFF director, in a statement. "And, we are delighted that over 150 filmmakers and industry professionals will join us in Denver for our 11-day cinematic celebration." The fest will open November 13th with a presentation of Rian Johnson's "The Brothers Bloom." Other announced films include closing night film Joel Hopkins' "Last Chance Harvey," Danny Boyle's "Slumdog Millionaire," Laurent Cantet's "The Class," Jake Mahaffy's "Wellness," Darren Aronofsky's "The Wrestler," Daniel Junge's "They Killed Sister Dorothy," C. Karim Chrobog's "War Child," Don Hardy and Dana Nachman's "Witch Hunt," James Gray's "Two Lovers," Arnaud Desplechin's "A Christmas Tale," Lea Pool's "Mommy is at the Hairdressers," Dominique Abel and Fiona Gordon's "Rumba" and Andrzej Jakimowski's "Tricks." For the full schedule and a list of other programming visit the festival's website. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] November 12, 2008iW NEWS | Swinton To Lead Berlinale Jury
Actress Tilda Swinton will be President of the International Jury at the Berlinale 2009. "I'm pleased that the wonderful Tilda Swinton will be our Jury President in 2009," said Dieter Kosslick, director of the Berlinale, in a statement. "Her commanding screen presence has made an indelible impression in contemporary, innovative filmmaking." Swinton's film career also has close ties with the Berlinale. Her debut, Derek Jarman's "Caravaggio," received a Silver Bear in the Competition of the Berlin International Film Festival. Since, she has graced the screen in 14 Berlinale films. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] iW NEWS | "Amal" Big Winner At MIAAC Film Festival
The 8th Annual Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film FestivalSooni Taraporevala's "Little Zizou." The night concluded with an awards ceremony, with winners including Richie Mehta's "Amal," which won the Indira Mahindra Award for Best Film, an award that carries a $5,000 prize. Other winners included Sooni Taraporevala ("Little Zizou") and Ashish Avikunthak ("Shadows Formless"), who shared the best director award, Taraporevala also won for best screenplay while "Formless" actress Mandira Banerjee won the best actress award. Sachin Khedekar won the best actor award for "The Forgotten Hero," Nishtha Jain's "Lakshmi" won the Analog Digital Award for best documentary, and Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK's "Noise" won for best short film. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals, Honors ] iW NEWS | "27 Club," "Americana" Lead Ojai Winners
The 2008 Ojai FIlm Festival announced the winners of its competition, with Nicholas Bruckman's "La Americana" winning for best documentary feature and Erica Dunton's "The 27 Club" taking best narrative feature. Other winners included Christina Voros' "The Ladies" for best documentary short, Jelmar Hufen's "Voor een paar knikkers meer" ("For a few marbles or more") for best narrative short, Nina Chernik's "Maine Story" for best student film, Bill Plympton's "Idiots and Angels" for best animated film, and Ava Karvonen's "Seeds of Change: The ECO Story" for the festival theme award. The festival ran November 6-9 in Ojai, California. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals, Honors ] November 10, 2008iW NEWS | "Gospel" and "Bart" Among Ft. Lauderdale Winners
Director/actor Giancarlo Esposito's "Gospel Hill" took Best Film of the Fest at the 23rd Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. The nearly month-long event began October 15 and concludes tomorrow (Tuesday), November 11. The fest's "International Film Guide Award to the Emerging American or Canadian Filmmaker" award went to Brian Hecker's prom night comedy, "Bart Got a Room," while Mark Feinberg's "Play the Game" won the audience prize for best indie feature. In other jury nods, Best American Indie went to "Lifelines" by Rob Margulies and Steve Blair's "I Do & I Don't" received best comedy. Best Director went to Mark Mahon for "Strength and Honour" and Chris Mason took Best First-Time Director for "The New Twenty." For more information and a full list of FLIFF winners, visit the festival's website. [Brian Brooks] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] November 7, 2008iW NEWS | "Sunshine," "Harvey" Set For Lone Star Fest
The Lone Star International Film Festival in Fort Worth, Texas has announced programming of its 2008 festival. Christine Jeffs' "Sunshine Cleaning" will open the fest on Wednesdday, November 12, 2008, while Joel Hopkins' "Last Chance Harvey" will screen Saturday, November 15 as the Closing Night Gala for the second edition of the festival. Jaffar Mahmood's "Shades of Ray" and Nikita Mikhalkov's "12" will screen as Centerpieces, and the fest announced a new Russian Films Spotlight curated by Visiting Artistic Director Kirill Razlogov of the American Film Festival in Moscow. Films screening in the program include "The Banishment," "Live to Remember" and "Mona Lisa on Asphalt." They join "12" and "Nirvana" for a total of five Russian films in the fest. "In our second year, the Lone Star Film Festival has both broadened its outreach by forging what is truly a unique and exciting relationship with the American Film Festival of Moscow, and also put together a great selection of quality films for Fort Worth film enthusiasts," said LSIFF director Dennis Bishop in a statement. "This will be the first opportunity for the people of Fort Worth to see these films and frankly, it may be the only opportunity for them to see some of them play on the big screen." [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] November 6, 2008iW NEWS | "Mulligans," "World Mine" To Bookend Image+Nation
image+nation, Canada's oldest and largest LGBT film festival, will celebrate its 21st edition in Montreal from November 20 to 30, 2008. The festival announced that Chip Hale's "Mulligans" will kick of the festivities at Montreal's Centre Imperial on the 20th, while Chris Mason Johnson's "The New Twenty" will officially close the fest after the jury announces the winners on the 29th. A night later, a special screening of festival favorite "Were The World Mine," directed by Tom Gustafson, will cap things off. Other films include Christina Clausen's "The Universe of Keith Haring," Barbara Leibovitz's "Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens," Steven Sebring's "Patti Smith: Dream of Life," Tanaz Eshaghian's "Be Like Others," Yen Tan's "Ciao," Santiago Otheguy's "La Leon," and Darren Ashton's "Razzle Dazzle: A Journey into Dance." Canadian filmmaker Bruce LaBruce" will offer both the Montreal premiere of Otto; Or, Up With Dead People!," as well as a Master Class. For further information, visit the festival's website. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals, Queer Cinema ] October 30, 2008iW NEWS | "Little Marriage" and "Julius Shulman" Take Top Audience Prizes at Austin Fest
Writer/director Mo Perkins' "A Quiet Little Marriage" and director Eric Bricker's doc "Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman" won the top audience award nods at the 2008 Austin Film Festival. Amanda Boyle's "Pop Art" took best narrative short, while doc short went to "Road to Tlacotepec" by Berndt Mader and Flemish Beauty's "The Inquisitive Snail" won animated short. "Slumdog Millionaire" by Danny Boyle won the audience nod for best feature in the out of competition category. The 15th Austin Film Festival took place in the Texas capital October 22 - 29. [Brian Brooks] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] iW NEWS | Macedonian Film Fest Set For NYC
The Macedonian Film Fund in association with International Film Circuit announced that it will present the first Macedonian Film Festival in New York City, from November 20th through November 23rd at The Village East Cinema. The festival will screen Teona Strugar Mitevska's "I Am From Titov Veles" as the opening night film, while other screenings include Milcho Manchevski's "Before The Rain," Sergej Stanojkovski's "Kontakt," Ivo Trajkov's "The Great Water," Darko Mitrevski's "Bal-Can-Can," Milcho Manchevski's "Dust," Stole Popov's "Happy New Year," Kiril Cenevski's "Black Seed" and Igor Ivanov's "Upside Down." Several directors of the ten films featured in The Macedonian Film Festival will attend the public screenings of their films for Q&As. For the complete schedule of screening times, please visit this website. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals, New York ] October 29, 2008iW NEWS | "Pool," "Doormat" Lead South Asian Fest Winners
The 5th Annual South Asian Film Festival wrapped up this weekend in New York City, with the Grand Jury awarding director Chris Smith's "The Pool" the Best Narrative Feature and Christy Garland and Susan Armstrong's "Doormat" the Best Documentary Feature. "The Pool" is the story of a "room boy" working at hotel in Panjim, Goa, while "Doormat" spotlights a small corner of India where a community holds onto a vanishing way of life. Additionally, the winner of the short film competition was Dipti Gogna's "Narmeen," and Audience Choice Awards were handed out to Jaffar Mahmood's "Shades of Ray" for narrative feature and Joshua Weinstein's "Flying on One Engine" for documentary feature. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals, Honors ] iW NEWS | "Dark Knight" Leads Hollywood Awards
The 12th Annual Hollywood Film Festival's Hollywood Awardsceremony was held Sunday night at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. Christopher Nolan's "The Dark Knight" was chosen as "Hollywood Movie of the Year" by public voting, while previously determined honorees included Josh Brolin, Kirstin Scott Thomas, Marisa Tomei, James Franco, Sally Hawkins and Robert Pattinson for acting, Clint Eastwood and John Patrick Shanley for directing, and Shanley and Dustin Lance Black for screenwriting. The ceremony also saw the announcement of winners from the film festival's Discovery Awards competition. The winners included David Pomes' "Cook County" for best feature film and Dilip Mehta's "The Forgotten Woman" for best documentary. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Awards Watch, Festivals, Honors ] October 27, 2008iW NEWS | AFI Announces European Union Film Showcase
AFI unveiled the complete lineup for the 2008 edition of its AFI European Union Film Showcase, to run November 6-25, 2008 at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring, Maryland. Thirty-four films from 24 different EU countries, including 11 official Oscar selections for 2009 are among the selections. The fest will open with "I've Loved You So Long," will include Centerpiece screenings of "A Christmas Tale," "Gomorrah" and "The Baader Meinhof Complex," and close with "Eldorado." Other announced film include Oscar selections "I Was Here" (Estonia), "The Home of Dark Butterflies" (Finland), "Correction" (Greece), "Defenders of Riga" (Latvia), "Loss" (Lithuania), "Arabian Nights" (Luxembourg), "Dunya & Desie" (Netherlands) and "Rooster's Breakfast" (Slovenia). For a complete list of films, visit the festival's website. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals, World Cinema ] iW NEWS | "Hunger" Leads Chicago Fest Winners
The 44th Chicago International Film Festival announced the winners of this year's competition, with Steve McQueen's "Hunger" winning the Gold Hugo for Best Film. "For its' outstanding visual and dramatic strength, telling an uncompromisingly disturbing story of the courage to fight for one's belief," the jury said in regard to "Hunger." Other winners included Kiyoshi Kurosawa's "Tokyo Sonata," which won the Silver Hugo Grand Jury Prize, Henrik Ruben Genz won the Silver Hugo for Direction for "Terribly Happy," "Hunger"'s Michael Fassbender and "Heaven on Earth"'s Preity Zinta won the acting awards, and Maurizio Braucci, Ugo Chiti, Gianni Di Gregorio, Matteo Garrone, Massimo Gaudioso, and Roberto Saviano shared the screenplay award for "Gomorrah." For a full list of winners, visit the festival's website. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] iW NEWS | SXSW Sets Haynes, Linklater For 2009 Events
The South by Southwest Film Conference & Festival (SXSW) has announced the first round of confirmed speakers for the 2009 event. The event will feature Todd Haynes and Richard Linklater in conversation together, as well as a rare appearance by Col Needham, Founder and Vice President of IMDb Service Limited to discuss the nature of information in the entertainment industry. Longtime Stanley Kubrick producer Jan Harlan will also speak regarding his filmmaking experience. "I couldn't be more pleased with this first round of speaker announcements, "said Janet Pierson, Producer of SXSW, in a statement. "These are vital innovators, and true ambassadors for the spirit of SXSW. In these turbulent times we feel this is more important than ever as we head further and faster into unknown territory." The festival runs March 13-21, 2009, in Austin, Texas. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] October 23, 2008iW NEWS | "Doubt" to Open AFI Fest
John Patrick Shanley's "Doubt" will open the AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival October 30, replacing previously planned opener "The Soloist" by Joe Wright which Paramount/Dreamworks pulled from the slot. The opening night gala at ArcLight Hollywood's Cinerama Dome Theatre is "Doubt"'s world premiere and is an "unfinished version" of the film, according to the festival. The film is described as a "a gripping story about the quest for truth, the forces of change, and the devastating consequences of blind justice in an age defined by moral conviction. The film stars Academy Award-winners Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman, Academy Award-nominee Amy Adams, and Viola Davis. It is produced by Scott Rudin and Mark Roybal. The Miramax Films release is due in theaters on December 12. "The movie is still being finished, but we were so excited to show 'Doubt' and help our friends at AFI Fest and the American Film Institute at the same time. We couldn't possibly pass up the opportunity," commented Miramax president Daniel Battsek in a statement. [Brian Brooks] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] iW NEWS | Academy Awards $450,000 To Fests
The Academy Foundation of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has awarded $450,000 to 24 U.S. film festivals for the 2009 calendar year, Festival Grants Committee Chair Gale Anne Hurd announced today. Two festivals, the Nashville Film Festival and the New Orleans Film Festival will each receive a total of $75,000 over a three-year period to help develop long-term projects. The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival and the Virginia Film Festival are each in the second year of a multi-year grant. The San Francisco International Film Festival will receive $50,000 as part of multi-year grant awarded in 2007. Other allocations included $30,000 each to the Chicago International Film Festival, Heartland Film Festival, Mill Valley Film Festival, Sarasota Film Festival and Seattle International Film Festival. Since its establishment in 1999, the Academy's Festival Grants Program has distributed 198 grants totaling $3.5 million in funding. [Peter Knegt] [permalink] [ filed under Festivals ] Older Buzz/Rumors about FestivalsOctober 22, 2008 October 22, 2008 October 22, 2008 October 21, 2008 October 21, 2008 October 21, 2008 October 20, 2008 October 20, 2008 October 20, 2008 October 16, 2008 October 16, 2008 October 15, 2008 October 15, 2008 October 15, 2008 October 14, 2008 October 13, 2008 October 10, 2008 October 8, 2008 October 7, 2008 October 6, 2008 October 6, 2008 October 3, 2008 October 3, 2008 October 3, 2008 October 2, 2008 October 2, 2008 October 2, 2008 October 1, 2008 September 30, 2008 September 29, 2008 September 27, 2008 September 25, 2008 September 25, 2008 September 25, 2008 September 24, 2008 September 24, 2008 September 22, 2008 September 21, 2008 September 19, 2008 September 19, 2008 September 19, 2008 September 18, 2008 September 18, 2008 September 17, 2008 September 17, 2008 September 16, 2008 September 16, 2008 September 16, 2008 September 16, 2008 September 15, 2008 September 13, 2008 September 11, 2008 September 11, 2008 September 10, 2008 September 9, 2008 September 9, 2008 September 8, 2008 September 8, 2008 September 7, 2008 September 7, 2008 September 5, 2008 September 5, 2008 September 4, 2008 September 4, 2008 September 3, 2008 September 3, 2008 September 2, 2008 September 2, 2008 September 2, 2008 September 2, 2008 September 2, 2008 August 29, 2008 August 29, 2008 August 29, 2008 August 28, 2008 August 28, 2008 August 27, 2008 August 27, 2008 August 26, 2008 August 26, 2008 August 26, 2008 August 22, 2008 August 19, 2008 August 18, 2008 August 18, 2008 August 18, 2008 August 15, 2008 August 15, 2008 August 14, 2008 August 14, 2008 August 13, 2008 August 12, 2008 August 12, 2008 August 8, 2008 August 7, 2008 August 7, 2008 August 7, 2008 August 7, 2008 August 6, 2008 August 6, 2008 August 6, 2008 August 5, 2008 August 5, 2008 August 1, 2008 July 30, 2008 July 29, 2008 July 28, 2008 July 28, 2008 July 26, 2008 July 25, 2008 July 24, 2008 July 23, 2008 July 23, 2008 July 22, 2008 July 21, 2008 July 17, 2008 July 16, 2008 July 12, 2008 July 10, 2008 July 7, 2008 July 7, 2008 July 2, 2008 July 2, 2008 June 26, 2008 June 25, 2008 June 23, 2008 June 23, 2008 June 23, 2008 June 23, 2008 June 19, 2008 June 18, 2008 June 17, 2008 June 17, 2008 June 17, 2008 June 17, 2008 June 16, 2008 June 16, 2008 June 16, 2008 June 16, 2008 June 15, 2008 June 12, 2008 June 12, 2008 June 11, 2008 June 11, 2008 June 11, 2008 June 11, 2008 June 8, 2008 June 5, 2008 June 3, 2008 June 3, 2008 June 2, 2008 May 30, 2008 May 28, 2008 May 28, 2008 May 27, 2008 May 26, 2008 May 24, 2008 May 22, 2008 May 21, 2008 May 20, 2008 May 16, 2008 May 15, 2008 May 14, 2008 May 13, 2008 May 12, 2008 May 12, 2008 May 12, 2008 May 12, 2008 May 11, 2008 May 8, 2008 May 8, 2008 May 7, 2008 May 7, 2008 May 7, 2008 May 6, 2008 May 6, 2008 May 6, 2008 May 6, 2008 May 5, 2008 May 2, 2008 May 1, 2008 April 30, 2008 April 29, 2008 April 29, 2008 April 28, 2008 April 28, 2008 April 28, 2008 April 28, 2008 April 27, 2008 April 26, 2008 April 26, 2008 April 24, 2008 April 23, 2008 April 23, 2008 April 22, 2008 April 21, 2008 April 21, 2008 April 21, 2008 April 21, 2008 April 21, 2008 April 21, 2008 April 18, 2008 April 18, 2008 April 18, 2008 April 15, 2008 April 15, 2008 April 15, 2008 April 14, 2008 April 14, 2008 April 11, 2008 April 10, 2008 April 10, 2008 April 9, 2008 April 9, 2008 April 8, 2008 April 8, 2008 April 7, 2008 April 7, 2008 April 7, 2008 April 6, 2008 April 4, 2008 April 2, 2008 April 2, 2008 April 1, 2008 March 31, 2008 March 31, 2008 March 29, 2008 March 28, 2008 March 28, 2008 March 27, 2008 March 27, 2008 March 27, 2008 March 26, 2008 March 25, 2008 March 25, 2008 March 25, 2008 March 25, 2008 March 24, 2008 March 24, 2008 March 24, 2008 March 21, 2008 March 21, 2008 March 21, 2008 March 21, 2008 March 18, 2008 March 18, 2008 March 18, 2008 March 18, 2008 March 14, 2008 March 13, 2008 March 13, 2008 March 12, 2008 March 12, 2008 March 12, 2008 March 12, 2008 March 11, 2008 March 11, 2008 March 10, 2008 March 10, 2008 March 10, 2008 March 7, 2008 March 6, 2008 March 5, 2008 March 5, 2008 March 5, 2008 February 28, 2008 February 28, 2008 February 26, 2008 February 26, 2008 February 26, 2008 |