Mariana Rondón’s BAD HAIR, will open in the US beginning Wednesday, November 19. In the film, a nine-year-old boy’s preening obsession with straightening his hair elicits a tidal wave of homophobic panic in his hard-working mother. BAD HAIR will have a 2-week engagement, November 19 – December 2, in New York City at Film Forum, 209 West Houston Street (West of 6th Avenue), with screenings daily at 12:45, 3:00, 5:10, 7:20, and 9:30. A Cinema Tropical/FiGa Films release.
Here is the trailer for the multi-award winning “Before I Disappear,” directed by Shawn Christensen which premiered earlier this year at the SXSW Film Festival where it won the Audience Award. Starring Shawn Christensen, Fatima Ptacek, Emmy Rossum, Paul Wesley, Richard Schiff and Ron Perlman, “Before I Disappear” is based on the 2013 Academy Award® winning short film “Curfew.” At the lowest point of his life, Richie gets a call from his estranged sister, asking him to look after his eleven-year old niece, Sophia, for a few hours. “Before I Disappear” opens in theaters on November 28.
The Bigger Picture”
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 animated short films will advance in the voting process for the 87th Academy Awards®. Fifty-eight pictures had originally qualified in the category.
The 10 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production companies:
The Kings Surrender
Austin Film Festival (AFF) announced its 2014 Screenplay & Teleplay Competition winners, Jury and Audience Award Winners in Film. Awards recipients received an array of cash prizes, travel expenses, industry recognition and access. For the Screenplay & Teleplay Competition winners, a record number of 6,764 scripts were received this year and the Finalists were reviewed by an industry jury. For the Jury Award Winners The Kings Surrender written by Philipp Leinemann won the award for Best Narrative Feature and Once Upon a Crime: The Borrelli-Davis Conspiracy directed by Sheldon Wilson won the award for Best Documentary Feature Jury Award.
THE IMITATION GAME
The Whistler Film Festival taking place December 3 to 7, unveiled its complete 2014 film lineup featuring original films from around the world and more feature premieres than ever before. THE IMITATION GAME (Western Canadian Premiere) and Audience Award winner at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival is this year’s Opening Night Gala presentation starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing in his efforts to break the Nazi’s Enigma Code during World War Two at Britain’s top secret Blectchley Park. WFF’s Closing Night Gala film is the World Premiere of SNOWMAN by Whistler filmmaker and ‘godfather of free skiing’, Mike Douglas, following avalanche controller Kevin Foglin’s close call with the mountains in Douglas’ tribute to mountain culture lifestyle and living in Whistler.
IGNITION
The second annual Jalopnik Film Festival opens Wednesday, November 5th with a party at the Classic Car Club Manhattan. On November 6th, there will be a party in Williamsburg, Brooklyn at Nitehawk Cinema that will include premieres, cars, music, eating, and drinking. Films screened will include IGNITION, presented with Volvo Cars, in addition to the Official Selection and jury selections.
Nature documentaries don’t often warrant reviewing since their purpose is primarily to educate, not entertain. But many nature documentaries like Pelican Dreams often combine traditional nature photography with purposeful narratives that inject personality into the art form.
Big Hero 6
Twenty features have been submitted for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 87th Academy Awards®.
The submitted features, listed in alphabetical order, are:
Like Sunday Like Rain
The Williamsburg Independent Film Festival celebrates its 5th year opening on Thursday, November 20 and running through Sunday, November 23, 2014. Launched in 2010, the festival has showcased independent films from around the world, many with a focus on Williamsburg and Brooklyn.
Multi-talented actress and model, Andie MacDowell, will be presented the inaugural Spirit & Pride of South Carolina Award at the 9th Annual Beaufort International Film Festival being held February 11 – 15, 2015. The award will be presented during the festival awards ceremony on Saturday, February 14 by internationally recognized best-selling author and Beaufort, South Carolina resident, Pat Conroy.
POINT AND SHOOT
The International Documentary Association (IDA) announced nominations for the 2014 IDA Documentary Awards set to take place on Friday, December 5th at the Paramount Theatre at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles. The five films nominated in IDA’s Feature category are: CITIZENFOUR, Laura Poitras’ portrait of whistleblowers, including Edward Snowden, and the disturbing state of surveillance of civilians in the post 9/11 age; FINDING VIVIAN MAIER, John Maloof and Charlie Siskel’s accounting of the discovery in an abandoned storage locker of what would turn out to be the work of one of the 20th Century’s greatest photographers; POINT AND SHOOT from Marshall Curry, the firsthand account of Matt Van Dyke’s personal odyssey in North Africa including fighting and imprisonment during the revolution in Libya; THE SALT OF THE EARTH, directors Wim Wenders and Juliano Ribeiro Salgado’s poetic examination of the life and work of photographer Sebastião Salgado; and TALES OF THE GRIM SLEEPER, Nick Broomfield’s investigation of the notorious serial killer who terrorized South Central Los Angeles over a twenty-five year span.
The Bahamas International Film Festival, set for December 4th through 14th, has unveiled its 2014 promotional poster designed by artist Ryan “Duser” Stubbs.