October 12, 2008
DISPATCH FROM MEXICO | Todd Haynes, "Wadley," Christian Mungiu, and Mexico's First Lady at Morelia Fest
by Eric Kohn (October 12, 2008)
curity measures suddenly became intense on Thursday at the
Morelia International Film Festival (FICM), but not due to a looming threat. Quite the opposite, in fact: The wife of Mexican president Felipe Calderon paid a visit to the small town and spent the day watching films, bringing a protective army in tow. Her presence attracted a swarm of media attention, while droves of filmgoers clustered at the door to the Cinepolis Central, their progress hindered by the abrupt installation of two metal detectors at the entrance. (The next day, the metal detectors were gone, and so was the Mexican first lady.) The high profile brouhaha would seem to contradict festival founder
Daniela Michel's frequently stated intention of limiting the size of the six-year-old festival to maintain its intimate reputation. However,
FICM's largely non-commercial program allows it to continue cultivating a unique, tightly controlled identity. "Luckily, we're growing in audience, not in number of films," Michel told
indieWIRE on Friday, once the madness died down everywhere but in the papers.
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October 8, 2008
AFI FEST '08 | 22nd Edition Announces 148 Films; Boyle, Swinton To Receive Tributes
by Peter Knegt (October 8, 2008)
The 22nd
AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival, running October 30-November 9, 2008, has announced its complete schedule. The lineup totals 100 features and 48 shorts, including 6 World Premieres, 17 North American Premieres, and 18 U.S. Premieres. "This year's selection of international films shows a commitment to cinematic innovation and a renewal of a tradition of realism in cinema," said Artistic Director
Rose Kuo in a statement. In addition, 37 of the features in official selection will be represented by distributors at the
American Film Market, unfolding concurrently with AFI from November 5-November 12.
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DISPATCH FROM MEXICO | In Wake Of Attack, Morelia Fest Offers Sense of Renewal
by Eric Kohn (October 8, 2008)
It can take over four hours to drive from Mexico City to the capital of Michoacan de Ocampo for the
Morelia Film Festival, but the vibrant town in question lies several more metaphorical miles away from recent newspaper headlines. It was only a few weeks ago that Morelia became the focus of an international media scare following the devastating terrorist bombing that took the lives of eight people on September 15. However, the attack, which coincided with local festivities for the Mexican War of Independence in Plaza Melchor Ocampo, hardly made a dent on preparations for the festival's sixth year.
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October 7, 2008
NYFF '08 | Assayas Discusses His "Summer Hours," Martel's "Woman" Makes NYC Debut
by Peter Knegt (October 7, 2008)
As the 46th
New York Film Festival winds down through its second and final week,
indieWIRE had the chance to hear from two of its featured directors.
Olivier Assayas, whose "
Summer Hours" made its U.S. debut at the festival, sat down for an interview at The Park Lane Hotel last Thursday, while
Lucrecia Martel, Argentine director of "
The Headless Woman" spoke after the film's Monday press screening at the Walter Reade Theater. The New York Film Festival runs through Sunday, October 12.
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DISPATCH FROM ST. PETERSBURG | Russia's First LGBT Film Festival Fights On Despite Government and Media Resistance
by Basil Tsiokos (October 7, 2008)
Facing local hostility, overt moves by the government to halt their event, and a persistent shroud of secrecy for gays and lesbians in their country, organizers of Russia's first queer film festival fought to stage their event this weekend even as they were ridiculed in the media. Just back from St. Petersburg, outgoing NewFest artistic director and Sundance fest doc programming associate Basil Tsiokos offers a diary of his experience as a juror at the first Side By Side fest.
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October 6, 2008
DISPATCH FROM KOREA | Pusan Festival Opens Huge Event, but Sees the Sky Falling too
by Doug Jones (October 6, 2008)
Busan's beaches are always busy on holiday weekends, but none more so than this past Kae Chun Jul weekend. In addition to the launch of the 13th
Pusan International Film Festival, which opened on Thursday, the seaside community hosted a marathon, the opening of the Korean Navy's International Fleet Review, and the continued production of "
Haeundae," a 15-million-dollar disaster movie being shot on-location.
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DISPATCH FROM MILL VALLEY | Wright's "The Soloist" Get's Early Buzz at MVFF on 31st Fest's Varied Opening Weekend
by Keaton Kail (October 6, 2008)
This past weekend in Marin, the posh Northern Californian county just beyond the Golden Gate Bridge, the
Mill Valley Film Festival kicked off its 31st season with several premieres and a wide, fascinating range of programs. With a few theatres scattered across Mill Valley and San Rafael's charming, boutique-laden towns, the festival enjoyed brilliant weather and an air of casual enthusiasm as the event kicked off with high profile guests, a mix of festival circuit favorites and a handful of new films.
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DISPATCH FROM NEW YORK | Woodstock: A True American Maverick Among Fests; "Broadway" and "Dream" Take Top Prizes
by Eric Kohn (October 6, 2008)
Woodstock is a town perpetually caught up in its funky mythology. However, the
Woodstock Film Festival -- now on the verge of its tenth anniversary -- has a separate legacy in the works. The cozy scenery of this quaint artists' colony hides a passionate gathering of cinephiles and professionals alike. Founded in 1999 by
Meira Blaustein and
Laurent Rejto, the festival's ninth year culminated on Saturday night with an impressively upscale awards ceremony in the nearby city of Kingston, where the combination of guests in attendance looked like the set-up for a film industry geek joke:
Ang Lee,
James Schamus,
Kevin Smith and
Haskell Wexler walk into a bar...
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October 5, 2008
NYFF '08 | "Gomorrah," Garrone and Scorsese in NYC; Wong Kar Wai Revisits "Ashes of Time"
by Brian Brooks and Eugene Hernandez (October 6, 2008)
There is no slick soundtrack and no Hollywood stars playing criminals, but Italian director
Matteo Garrone's "
Gomorrah," which won the Cannes Film Festival's grand prize, and is currently screening at the
New York Film Festival, is nothing short of riveting, and sadly - real. Over the last thirty years, the Comorra crime syndicate has murdered 4,000 people in Italy's Naples and Caserta provinces. That number tops assasinations by the IRA, ETA and other European terrorist organizations. Additionally, its economic might is estimated to be an immense 150 billion Euros per year via drug and arms trafficking and other "enterprises" such as "protection" as well as by doing business in seemingly legitimate businesses as construction, tourism, textiles, trasport, fuel, distribution, food, supermarkets, restaurants, retail and banking.
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DISPATCH FROM ICELAND | Reykjavik Fest Honors Costas-Gavras and Shirin Neshat; Docs Celebrate Rebellion
by James Israel (October 5, 2008)
As the
Reykjavik International Film Festival wrapped up this past Sunday, the Icelandic fest celebrated artistic achievement by honoring
Costa-Gavras and
Shirin Neshat earlier in the week. Iranian artist
Shirin Neshat was honored with the Creative Excellency Award and also had an exhibit of her video and photography work on display at The National Gallery of Iceland. Greek filmmaker Costa-Gavras received a Lifetime Achievement Award for his body of politically charged films.
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October 2, 2008
NYFF '08 | Aronofsky, Rourke Talk "Wrestler," Folman "Waltzes" With New York
by Peter Knegt (October 2, 2008)
Wednesday afternoon at the Walter Reade Theatre in New York marked a big day for the 46th
New York Film Festival. "
The Wrestler"
Mickey Rourke and
Marisa Tomei and producer
Scott Franklin joined director
Darren Aronofsky to discuss the film after its first screening for New York press and industry. The movie, acquired shortly after its North American debut last month at the Toronto fest, will close the NYFF on October 12th. Meanwhile,
Ari Folman's acclaimed animated documentary, "
Waltz With Bashir" made its New York debut as well.
indieWIRE was in attendance, and has the highlights.
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October 1, 2008
Sundance Halts Online Fest Initiative; Short Filmmakers Kept in the Dark by Aggregator Mediastile
by Eric Kohn (October 1, 2008)
The
Sundance Film Festival has ended its relationship with new media aggregator
Mediastile Inc. after the company repeatedly failed to send royalty payments and traffic reports to Sundance directors who screened films online via
iTunes,
Netflix and
XBox LIVE. Over the weekend, Sundance organizers e-mailed filmmakers to confirm the shift, leaving them to resolve their individual situations with Mediastile, which controls digital rights to their work. The decision affects at least 45 filmmakers who had opted to put their work online after also being accepted to screen at Sundance this year, as well as another crop from the 2007 festival.
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September 30, 2008
NYFF '08 | Soderbergh's "Che," Leigh's "Lucky" Make New York Debuts
by Peter Knegt (September 30, 2008)
Steven Soderbergh's 4-hour
Ernesto 'Che' Guevara biopic, "
Che" and
Mike Leigh's much shorter "anti-miserablist" film, "
Happy-Go-Lucky," were among the films screened for the press in the past few days at the 46th Annual
New York Film Festival. Both screenings were followed by press conferences featuring the directors, and in "Lucky"'s case, its star
Sally Hawkins.
indieWIRE was in attendance, and has the highlights.
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DISPATCH FROM CANADA | Vancouver Fest Shares International Trends Through Film and Talk
by Matt Dentler (September 30, 2008)
The
Vancouver International Film Festival is probably one of the only regional film fests in North America that plays host to three international regions. Layered in the festival's large and lengthy program is a separate but equal focus of films from Canada, the U.S., and Asia. The Western Canadian city is a diverse destination all year long, but VIFF is the annual cinematic expression of Vancouver's unique spot on the cultural map.
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Dispatch from Iceland: Reykjavik Fest Celebrates Fifth Year With Focus on the Environment and the Richness of Iceland
by James Israel (September 30, 2008)
Visitors arriving in Reykjavik on Thursday morning were greeted with a wall of brutal cold rain and wind which then miraculously broke minutes later to reveal intense rainbows that appeared as if from a child's kindergarten finger-painting, thus summing up the experience of Iceland. Isolated in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with vast empty spaces and a small population of 320,000, yet revealing an artistry that is enamoring and without precedent, Iceland has somehow managed to be one of the cultural curiosities of the world, offering a unique richness of music and film. The
Reykjavik International Film Festival is a part of this celebration that continues this week.
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September 29, 2008
Fall On Me: Filmmakers Find Hope at the Fourth Film Independent Filmmaker Forum
by James Ponsoldt (September 29, 2008)
"I can't talk about the 'crisis' of the indie film industry. There is no crisis," began
Ted Hope's Saturday morning
Film Independent Filmmaker Forum
keynote speech at the DGA in Los Angeles. With those words, Hope acknowledged the elephant in the room, then proceeded to have it forcefully escorted from the auditorium.
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DISPATCH FROM SPAIN: Star-studded San Sebastian is lean on discoveries
by Laszlo Kriston (September 29, 2008)
As the 56th edition of the
San Sebastian International Film Festival in the north of Spain came to a close, French comedy "
Louise Michel," a third feature by
Benoit Delepine and
Gustave Kervern, the comic duo behind "
Avida" (2006), captured much of the buzz here. Produced by
Matthieu Kassowitz, "Louise Michel" is roughly a crazy assassination plot in an absurdist (and actually cross-dressing) comedy about working class mishaps.
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September 28, 2008
FIRST PERSON | Ted Hope: How The New Truly Free Filmmaking Community Will Rise From Indie's Ashes
by Ted Hope (September 27, 2008)
This morning, Saturday September 27th in Los Angeles, producer Ted Hope gave the keynote speech at Film Independent's Filmmaker Forum "There is no crisis," Hope proclaimed in his opening comments. How can there be a "Death Of Indie" when Indie -- real Indie, True Indie -- has yet to even live?" he asks. Creativity is not a victim of a distribution meltdown. Hope notes that the moment when the constraints of traditional models are changed for the collective good is now. His complete prepared remarks, as delivered to indieWIRE today, are included below.
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NYFF '08 | Politics and Cantet on Opening Night; Film Criticism in Focus; and McQueen's "Hunger"
by Eugene Hernandez and Peter Knegt (September 28, 2008)
It's hardly a surprise that the U.S. presidential race was a hot topic on Friday night as the
New York Film Festival kicked off in Manhattan with its traditional bash. With fewer than 40 days before the American general election, the opening night screening of
Laurent Cantet's "
The Class" took place at the same time as the first televised debate between Senators
John McCain and
Barack Obama. Heavy mist dampened the post-screening party at Tavern on the Green in Central Park where guests seemed torn between talking about the opening night film, winner of this year's Palme d'Or in Cannes, and the evening's debate. Reactions to both seemed about the same: somewhat mixed. Although enthusiasm for both the film and Barack Obama's performance was considerable among those informally polled throughout the night - though the crowd were most likely not a typical cross-section of America's political spectrum.
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September 26, 2008
FESTIVALS | "Valentino" and "Synecdoche" Bookend 122 Films at 16th Hamptons Fest
by Brian Brooks (September 26, 2008)
The
Hamptons International Film Festival unveiled its slate Friday afternoon, for its 16th annual event taking place October 15 - 19 on Long Island, New York's east end. Highlighting this year's roster of 122 films are 14 world, 23 North American and 18 U.S. premieres in addition to 15 East Coast and 15 New York debuts.
Matt Tyrnauer's
Toronto Film Festival doc "
Valentino: The Last Emperor," about the Italian designer of the same name, will open the event, while the U.S. premiere of
Charlie Kaufman's Cannes '08 feature, "
Synecdoche, New York" will close the festival.
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September 25, 2008
NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL '08 | Beyond Cannes and Toronto: Surveying NYFF's Nooks and Crannies
by Howard Feinstein (September 25, 2008)
It has a decidedly French twist. For one thing, 18 of the 28 features in this edition of the
New York Film Festival bowed in Cannes in May. Four "fully" French movies and eight co-pros with French backing are being screened. Given the weight of place, of site, in this year's crop, the latter frequently translates into product placement, aka "embedded marketing," not of Converse or Nike but of France itself--more economic exchange than organic inclusion.
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September 24, 2008
DISPATCH FROM AUSTIN | Fantastic Fest Comes Of Age
by Michael Lerman (September 24, 2008)
In a
Fantastic Fest opening night Q&A for the US Premiere of his new comedy "
Zack and Miri Make a Porno" in Austin's downtown Paramount Theater last Thursday, director
Kevin Smith reminisced about the first time he decided he wanted to make films. "It was actually when I saw
Richard Linklater's '
Slacker.' I said, 'if this counts as a movie and this guy can do that in fucking Nowheresville, USA," Smith joked ironically, "then I can do that.'"
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September 23, 2008
SHORTS COLUMN | What Was Hot This Summer at North America's Three Biggest Short Film Festivals
by Kim Adelman (September 23, 2008)
Every summer the three biggest short film festivals in North America open the doors of their air-conditioned movie theaters and entertain hordes of festival goers eager to check out the best short films the world has to offer. In Toronto, the
CFC Worldwide Short Film Festival exhibited 268 films during its June 10 - 15, 2008 run. In Los Angeles,
LA Shorts Fest screened 201 shorts and 42 noteworthy commercials/music videos from August 15 -21, 2008 at the Laemmle's Sunset 5. The
Palm Springs International ShortFest completed the trifecta with 317 films screening August 21-27, 2008 at the Camelot Theatres.
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September 22, 2008
DISPATCH FROM SPAIN | Local Heroes Stroll the Fuschia Carpet and Boys Conquer the Screen in San Sebastian
by Laszlo Kriston (September 18, 2008)
Cutely, and accutely, billed as the "Gothic Rio de Janeiro of Spain," the capital of the Basque region is the perfect place not to be in the cinemas. With its majestic beaches, picturesque surrounding mountains, a Jesus statue on the hilltop, small cobblestone alleys in the old town, and massive stone structures of centuries-old buildings that appear like movie sets,
San Sebastian offers plenty of distraction from the silver screen.
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September 18, 2008
DISPATCH FROM NYC | Winners and Porno: IFP's Independent Film Week Defies the Economic Woes with $50K Prize
by Eric Kohn (September 18, 2008)
The savviest independent filmmakers showing a wide variety of works-in-progress this week at
IFP's Independent Film Week Conference understood the importance of pleasing their audiences. On countless panels and ongoing discussions around town, members of the industry lamented the current state of affairs with familiar anxiety, discouraged because the current glut of product hasn't made things any easier. But when
Kevin Smith took the stage last Sunday to mark the fifteenth anniversary of his own journey to IFP with "
Clerks," he insisted that filmmakers set on finishing their projects mainly need to focus on impressing anyone willing to invest. "It doesn't matter if you have ten bucks or ten million bucks - your job remains the same," he said. "Making it with someone else's money is better."
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September 17, 2008
DISPATCH FROM NYC | At IFP Conference, Snag Talks Dual Online/Hamptons Fest Premieres; Others Explore Net Opportunities
by Eric Kohn (September 17, 2008)
During an appearance at
IFP's Independent Film Week Conference today,
SnagFilms CEO
Rick Allen revealed several plans to premiere new documentaries online. As SnagFilms' library continues to expand, the company will stream two documentaries in conjunction with screenings of both films at the
Hamptons International Film Festival next month, and the company is hosting an online sidebar of festival films.
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September 16, 2008
DISPATCH FROM MARTHA'S VINEYARD | In Its Third Year, Festival Grows Beyond Local Event
by Cameron Yates (September 16, 2008)
As September begins, Martha's Vineyard breathes a sigh of relief after 100,000 summer visitors have left, and the island's population returns to 15,000 year-round residents. The
Martha's Vineyard International Film Festival, in its third year, is meant for those who remain, as Co-Directors
Richard Paradise and
Nevette Previd are quick to point out. "This place is known for clambakes and pretty beach walks," says Previd, "but the idea is to offer something different for local people. What makes Martha's Vineyard so special is that it is a destination, but it's also a microcosm of the world." Paradise adds, "It's about community, bringing together people and watching some great films from around the world."
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DISPATCH FROM NYC | Pondering the Future at Independent Film Week: Festivals and Distribution
by Brian Brooks and Eugene Hernandez (September 15, 2008)
Dedicated to the theme "Filmmaking 2.0," the first weekday of
Independent Film Week '08 explored changes emerging in the film business at F.I.T. in New York City. Sundance's
Geoff Gilmore spoke out about the state of festivals and imagined what such events might be like in a decade, while
Rainbow Media chief
Josh Sapan elaborated on his companies growing strategy to bring indie, foreign and doc features to home theaters via video-on-demand.
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September 15, 2008
TORONTO '08 | "Still Walking," "Goodbye Solo," "The Wrestler" Tops With TIFF Critics, Bloggers
by Eugene Hernandez (September 15, 2008)
Hirokazu Kore-Eda's "
Still Walking," from Japan, was selected as the best film at the
Toronto International Film Festival in a poll of film critics and bloggers conducted this weekend by
indieWIRE. The story of a family coming together on the anniversary of a son's passing, the film is Kore-Eda's latest after the acclaimed "
Nobody Knows." "Still Walking" edged out
Ramin Bahrani's "
Goodbye Solo" and
Darren Aronofsky's "
The Wrestler," two new American films produced and financed independently. More than 30 writers - ranging from
AO Scott and
Roger Ebert to
B Ruby Rich and
Karina Longworth, were surveyed. The group singled out "The Wrestler" star
Mickey Rourke as the best actor by wide margin, while
Agnes Varda's "
Les Plages d'Agnes" was chosen as the best documentary at the festival.
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September 13, 2008
TORONTO '08 | "Slumdog Millionaire" Takes People's Choice, "Hunger, "Lost Song" Among Other Winners
by Peter Knegt (September 13, 2008)
Danny Boyle's "
Slumdog Millionaire" was announced as the Cadillac People's Choice Award for the 2008
Toronto International Film Festival Saturday afternoon in Toronto. First runner-up was
Kristopher Belman's "
More Than A Game" and the second runner-up was
Cyrus Nowrasteh's "
The Stoning of Soraya M." Other winners included
Rodrigue Jean's "
Lost Song" for the City of Toronto-CityTV Award For Best Canadian Feature Film,
Marie-Helene Cousineau and
Madeline Piujug Ivalu's "
Before Tomorrow" for the CityTV Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film, and
Steve McQueen's "
Hunger" for the Diesel Discovery Award.
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