Posted by editor@vimooz.com on September 30, 2008 under Tropfest NY | 
Jason van Genderen’s Mankind Is No Island – a 3 ½ minute film that was shot entirely on a cell phone – took home the top $20,000 prize last night at Tropfest NY, the world’s largest short film festival.
Thousands of New Yorkers turned out for the free, outdoor event to see the world premieres of eight short films. The films, which can now be viewed online at www.youtube.com/tropfest, were selected from more than 100 submissions from around the world. They spanned the spectrum from comedy to drama, and all include this year’s Tropfest Signature Item (TSI) – “sunflower.”
A panel of luminaries, including Julianne Moore, Billy Crudup, bestselling author Malcolm Gladwell (The Tipping Point, Blink), actress Radha Mitchell (High Art), and producers Christine Vachon (Far From Heaven) and Bruna Papandrea (MILK) selected the night’s best film live in front of the massive crowd - as well as the Best Actor and Actress prizes, which were sponsored by Nicole Kidman.
In addition to receiving a $20,000 cash prize, sponsored by Citi, van Genderen will receive a First Look Feature Film Deal from GreeneStreet Films, one of New York’s leading production and financing companies, and two round- trip tickets to Australia, courtesy of Qantas Airlines. Mankind Is No Island uses found signage on the streets of New York and Sydney to tell a touching story from the very heart of two cities and was shot entirely on a cell phone. The entire budget for the film was $57.
“We are thrilled about the turnout and the crowd’s response to this year’s films”, said Tropfest founder and director John Polson (Hide and Seek, Swimfan). “Jason’s film really exemplifies what Tropfest is all about – original, unforgettable storytelling.”
The top acting prizes were awarded to Barbara Singer for the film Mrs. Jones and Jonathan Harford for TheWildflower. The crowd also picked Mankind Is No Island as its favorite film, via an SMS vote at the end of the screenings.
Previously presented as Tropfest@Tribeca in association with the Tribeca Film Festival, Tropfest NY 2008 marks the first time the free public outdoor festival was presented independently by Tropfest and Polson. Tropfest originated at the well-known Tropicana Café in Sydney in 1993. Over the past fifteen years, it has evolved into the “Olympics of Short Film” and into an Australian cultural phenomenon with the festival screening live via satellite to over 150,000 people in eight cities across the continent.
Posted by editor@vimooz.com on under Middle East International Film Festival (MEIFF) |
The second edition of the Middle East International Film Festival (MEIFF), organised by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) announced the selection of films to be shown in the “Festival of Festivals” and the “Environmental” programmes. They are considered by many to be the most exciting programmes taking place during MEIFF to be held in Abu Dhabi from 10th to 19th October 2008.
“This initiative is important in that it brings to the local community internationally renowned films. Of course, not everyone can attend all the world’s film festivals to watch these films; but, at MEIFF, we believe that borders are no longer boundaries, and so we introduced the “Festival of Festivals” to enable cinema lovers to fulfil their passion in catching up with what they missed,” said MEIFF Vice Chairman Mohamed Khalaf Al Mazrouei.
Over half of the 24 narrative films and documentaries to be screened in “Festival of Festivals” have won or were nominated for awards in the past year at film festivals in France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Mexico and the USA.
“With so many wonderful films playing at festivals around the world, MEIFF 2008 is endeavouring to present a unique combination of the year’s top movies: a taste of the best,” said Nashwa Al Ruwaini, Director of MEIFF highlighting the “Festival of Festivals” programme. “Nearly all of these selections have already won top prizes at international festivals. Whether you’re seeking crowd favourites or critics’ picks, this section has something for you,” she added.
The films shown under this section are from a number of countries representing various cultures including Canada, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Australia, South Korea, India and Iran among many others. All films screened have been made by talented directors who didn’t feel constrained by their countries’ borders and have crossed cultural borders to represent all types of people and places. Some of the films have also been co-produced across countries, which has further enriched the variation of cultures represented. The films cover a variety of different themes; however, social issues have taken the lion’s share. Read more of this article »
Posted by editor@vimooz.com on under Middle East International Film Festival (MEIFF) |
Over 60 films from 32 countries around the world will take part in the Official Competition for this year’s Middle East International Film Festival, running October 10-19, 2008. This year’s festival will see 138 films screened from East to West, up from 80 films in MEIFF’s inaugural festival in 2007. This year’s Official Competition is comprised of four sections: feature, documentary, short films and student films. “I am pleased to say that MEIFF 2008 has attracted some of the top films, filmmakers and distinguished industry guests from all corners of the world and we are honoured to host them in Abu Dhabi,” said Vice Chairman of MEIFF, Mohamed Khalaf Al Mazrouei.
“The Official Competition is the place to be at MEIFF to see up and coming films and premieres from across the globe,” said Nashwa Al Ruwaini, Director of MEIFF. “These films should be the first stop for cinema lovers in Abu Dhabi. Among our many world and regional premieres, the In Competition feature films O’Horten (Norway) and Mermaid (Russia) have both been submitted for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. ”
With ten days in this year’s Festival, the slate of films has increased and is balanced with both international and Arab films. The line-up includes critically acclaimed films, award winners and crowd pleasers. The Black Pearl cash prize distributed to the winners, along with a trophy, has been increased this year with prizes totaling over $1 million. All Black Pearl Award Winners will be decided by a jury split into two sections, a feature and documentary jury and a shorts, students and advertisements jury with the winners announced in the Closing Ceremony on October 19, 2008. Read more of this article »
Posted by editor@vimooz.com on under San Diego Italian Film Festival |
The San Diego Italian Film Festival starts next Saturday October 3rd with an opening night at the Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla. Admission is free. The second San Diego Italian Film Festival will be presented over a two week period in October. A fantastic line-up of major, recently released Italian films will be shown free on a big screen. The festival opens at the Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla on October 3rd and then moves to the Museum of Photographic Arts (MoPA) in Balboa Park.
The San Diego Italian Film Festival is dedicated to the artist Italo Scanga. About Italo Scanga
L’ABBUFFATA, MIMMO CALOPRESTI, 2007, 100” COMEDY - Calabria & Rome.
Three youngsters from Calabria go to Rome to find a star for their film project.
Three young men with a movie camera dream of putting a local Calabrian story on the bigscreen in Mimmo Calopresti’s charmer “The Feast.” An insider film par excellence, stuffed with friends and colleagues and shot in the southern region of Italy Calopresti left as a child, it is a love letter not just to his roots, but to the concept that “history is tangible; it clings to the land.”
AGENTE MATRIMONIALE, CHRISTIAN BISCEGLIA, 2006, 100” COMEDY – Milan & Sicily
Two young men return to Sicily from Milan to begin a new and amusing job…
DOPO MEZZANOTTE, DAVIDE FERRARIO, 2004, 93” COMEDY/ROMANCE - Turin Turin’s museum of cinema provides the setting for an unlikely love affair.
This charming, whimsical movie centers on a triangular Jules et Jim-style affair between a shy, movie-obsessed curator who lives above the museum, an attractive girl who hands out leaflets for a loan-shark by day and works in a burger joint by night, and her unfaithful lover, a smooth car thief. It’s a homage to the beauty and simplicity of silent cinema and a treat for film fans.
FILM PER RAGAZZI
Award winning short films for children
LA FEBBRE, ALESSANDRO D’ALATRI, 2005, 108” COMEDY – Cremona, Lombardy
The unfulfilled life of a young accountant in provincial Northern Italy improves when he falls in love. An entertaining declaration of love and anger toward Italy.
A young man wants more out of life than an assured job. Mario is a “Mama Sita”, a young man who lives in Cremona with his mother under the towering gaze of his late father’s domineering portrait. He’s not your standard live-at-home slug, however. When Mario is awarded a cushy civil servant post with the mayor, he’s torn between the respectability of the calling and his personal dreams of opening a nightclub. Only love, the true kind, and the poetry of life, will be able to transform his dream of a nightspot into that of a free country, where people are judged on the basis of their skills.
INCANTESIMO NAPOLETANO, PAOLO GENOVESE & LUCA MINIERO 2001 90” COMEDY - Naples
In Naples what could be worse than not being Neapolitan?
A Milanese speaking child is born in a family of real genuine Neapolitans, or better of Neapolitan integralists, obsessed with tradition and with the fact of being Neapolitan. This is the exhilarating drama of Incantesimo Napoletano. Just imagine the great efforts her parents must make in order to cure Assuntina from this dangerous deviance.
JIMMY DELLA COLLINA, ENRICO PAU, 2006, 86” DRAMA, Cagliari, Sardinia.
A Sardinian adolescent confronts the toughest decision in his young life.
In a world deprived of shared hopes and points of reference, Jimmy, a working-class adolescent living in a small town in Southwestern Sardinia, finds himself breaking laws and living recklessly. When the doors of the juvenile prison swing wide open he encounters a world of more anguish and violence. His redemption will be close at hand in the delightful hills that surround the juvenile prison where the young prisoners are taught how to live a better future and lead an alternative way of life. One night Jimmy will have to make a decision that will forever change his life. Based on the novel of the same name by Massimo Carlotto.
MA CHE CI FACCIO QUI, FRANCESCO AMATO, 2006, 92” COMEDY [Rome and the coast] The coming of age summer of a Roman adolescent unfolds in a nearby beach town
Alessio is plannig a trip around Europe with his friends after graduating from high school. However, when he fails and his parents refuse to let him go, he finds himself a runaway to the nearby coast where he will spend the summer and meet unexpected companions.
MIO FRATELLO E’ FIGLIO UNICO, DANIELE LUCHETTI, 2007 100” FAMILY DRAMA [Latina, outside Rome]
The struggles of two brothers encapsulate Italian history of the 60’s & 70’s.
Accio is irritable and a trouble-maker, impulsive and explosive fighting every battle like a war. His brother Manrico is handsome, charismatic, loved by all, but just as dangerous. In the Italian small town life of the ‘60’s and ‘70’s, the two brothers have opposite political beliefs, are in love with the same woman and through an endless confrontation, they live a period of their lives made of fighting and great passions.
L’ORCHESTRA DI PIAZZA VITTORIO, AGOSTINO FERRENTE, 2006 90”, DOCUMENTARY - Rome
Musicians from the world over come together in a Roman multicultural piazza
Contagiously upbeat this is a rousing call to arms for world-music aficionados, with strong appeal to those who believe in the mini-miracles of neighborhood cultural initiatives. Describing how two Italians put together an orchestra of 30 foreign musicians living in Rome, all from different cultural traditions, this musical documentary shows us what art, initiative and politics can do.
PROVINCIA MECCANICA, STEFANO MORDINI, 2004, 107” DRAMA, Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna
A young couple juggles love and life in Ravenna
Within the mechanical rhythms and habits that often make up small-town life, Marco and Silvia Battaglia—a young couple with two children—seem to march to a different drummer. Despite love and affection to spare, and a job as a trolley operator in a factory, Marco is unable to provide peace of mind to his wife Silvia, who is oppressed by a judgmental mother. Marco and Silvia’s journey may be uphill, but fate is on their side. Mistake after mistake they will find their way back together.
LE ROSE DEL DESERTO, MARIO MONICELLI, 2006 102” COMEDY - Libya
The adventures of an Italian medical battalion in Libya during WWII
In 1941 a medical unit is posted to a remote Libyan oasis; the troops seek a Thousand and One Night adventure while awaiting orders to move, and a demanding Italian Brother, Fra Simone, cons the battalion into helping the locals. What was supposed to be a war for Fascist glory turns into something else. But war is war.
SE DEVO ESSERE SINCERA, DAVIDE FERRARIO 2004 105” COMEDY/DETECTIVE/ROMANCE, Turin
A teacher and a detective investigate a murder and find love
Adelaide is a high school teacher whose seven year marriage is on the rocks. Suddenly a co-worker who was not well liked, is killed, and she meets the handsome police commissioner, Gaetano, who has been assigned to investigate the case. Using the investigations as an excuse, loving feelings soon develop between the two of them. Based on the novel La collega tatuata by Margherita Oggero.
LA STELLA CHE NON C’E’, GIANNI AMELIO, 2006 104” DRAMA, Naples (Bagnoli), Shanghai, Beijing, Yangtze River
An Italian manager and a translator travel through China to try to avert a factory disaster
A blast furnace purchased by Chinese businessmen is dangerously defective, or so believes Vincenzo Buonavolontà, who then chases it across China trying to warn anyone who will listen. In the process he gets the Chinese translator fired, then finds her in China and convinces her to join him on his long quest. Based on the novel La Dismissione by Ermanno Rea .
THE TREE OF LIFE, HAVA VOLTERRA 2007 76” DOCUMENTARY, Venice & other Italian locations, Israel
An Italian Jewish journey
The filmmaker learns more about her father by learning more about her family and traces it to at least 1492 in Italy. Even though he left Italy at 21, he always considered himself Italian. Hava, a young woman from Los Angeles, recruits her father’s sister for camera work and together they each explore their pasts and learn how intricately they’re related to Italian history and how that history ties Italy to Israel.
VENTO DI TERRA, VINCENZO MARRA, 2004 84” DRAMA, Naples (Secondigliano)
The courageous trial of a young man from a poor suburb of Naples
Sixteen-year-old Enzo lives with his family in Secondigliano, Naples. His father’s sudden death leaves the boy with the difficult task of caring for his mother and sister and Enzo soon finds his path crossed by a series of circumstances and events that continually put his integrity to the test. However his determination and courage finally prevail and his family regains the dignity it had seemingly lost for good.
LA VITA RUBATA, GRAZIANO DIANA 2008 DRAMA, Messina
Dedicated to the memory of Graziella Campagna, hopeful 17 year old, killed by Mafia assassins.
Graziella, working in a laundry, does not know that just returning a small journal will get her killed. Simply touching this book was enough to mark her. For twenty years her carabiniere brother obsessively conducts his investigation uncovering a whole network of complicity not just among the Mafia but all the people who do not want this crime solved. Based on a true story.
