Joe Callander’s 95 seconds short film TIM AND SUSAN HAVE MATCHING HANDGUNS, scheduled to have its world premiere at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, has been snagged for U.S. release by Oscilloscope Laboratories. TIM AND SUSAN HAVE MATCHING HANDGUNS is described as a romantic tale of love, life, and the right to bear arms.
THE KINGS OF SUMMER
The Phoenix Film Critics awarded “12 YEARS A SLAVE” with the Best Picture of the year award, along with the awards for Best Supporting Actress for Lupita Nyong’o, and Best Adapted Screenplay. “BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR” won the award for Best Foreign Language Film and “20 FEET FROM STARDOM” won the award for BestDocumentary. In a notable nod to indie films, “THE KINGS OF SUMMER” and “THE SPECTACULAR NOW” tie for the award for the The Overlooked Film of the Year.
ROGER AND ME
The Librarian of Congress announced the annual selection of 25 motion pictures to join the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. Spanning the period 1919-2002, the films named to the registry include Hollywood classics, documentaries, silent films, independent and experimental motion pictures. In addition to movie classics such as “MARY POPPINS,” and “THE QUIET MAN,” along with Quentin Tarantino’s “PULP FICTION,” the 2013 registry list includes documentaries “ROGER AND ME,” Michael Moore’s advocacy film about the human effects of the failing auto industry; “CICERO MARCH,” the confrontation between blacks and whites on the streets of an Illinois town in 1966; “DECASIA,” which was created from scraps of decades-old, decomposing film; and female filmmaker Lee Dick’s “MEN AND DUST.”
A TOUCH OF SIN
SHORT TERM 12
The Austin Film Critics Association announced its 2013 awards, with Spike Jonze’s “HER” winning Best Film as well as two other awards, and leading the group’s Top Ten list. Steve McQueen’s historical drama “12 YEARS A SLAVE” won three awards: Chiwetel Ejiofor for Best Actor, Lupita Nyong’o for Best Supporting Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay by John Ridley. Short Term 12, made the Top Ten list along with Actress Brie Larson receiving honors in two categories: Best Actress, for “SHORT TERM 12,” and the Robert R. “Bobby” McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award, for her roles in “SHORT TERM 12,” “THE SPECTACULAR NOW,” and “DON JON.” Best Supporting Actor went to Jared Leto for “DALLAS BUYERS CLUB.” The Austin Film Award, for movies shot locally or by Austin-based filmmakers, went to “BEFORE MIDNIGHT” this year. Other winners include “THE ACT OF KILLING” for Best Documentary, “FRUITVALE STATION” for Best First Film, and “BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR” for Best Foreign Language Film.
MOTHER OF GEORGE
The African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) named 12 YEARS A SLAVE as the Best Picture of 2013. The Fox Searchlight film also earned Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Newcomer honors for Steve McQueen, John Ridley and Lupita Nyong’o. Other 2013 AAFCA Award winners include FRUITVALE STATION, for Best Independent Film, MOTHER OF GEORGE, for Best World Cinema and AMERICAN PROMISE, from Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson for Best Documentary. The organization, which represents the leading African-American film critics nationwide, will formally present its awards during a private ceremony on Friday, January 31, 2014 in Hollywood, CA.
The 31st Miami International Film Festival (MIFF), taking place runs March 7 to 16, 2014, will host the U.S. premiere of Oscar-winning director Juan José Campanella’s latest film FOOSBALL (METEGOL), a Spanish-Argentine produced animated film that has broken the Argentinian 2013 box-office record for the highest grossing film premiere in Argentina.
The film ALL ME: THE LIFE & TIMES OF WINFRED REMBERT directed by Vivian Ducat, was voted the winner of the 2013 Brown Harris Stevens Audience Award of the sixth annual Hamptons Take 2 Documentary Film Festival which ran December 6,7,8 at Bay Street Theatre in Sag Harbor, New York. This poignant film chronicles the journey of Winfred Rembert, an African American artist, who earlier in his life served seven years on a chain gang in Georgia where he learned how to tool on leather canvases. His intimate reminiscences depict the injustice of life in the Jim Crow south. Now in his sixties, Rembert has developed a following among collectors and more recently had a retospective of his art at a prestigious Madison Avenue gallery.
20 FEET FROM STARDOM
The Houston Film Critics Society selected “12 YEARS A SLAVE” as the Best Film of 2013. 12 YEARS A SLAVE also received awards for Best Supporting Actress for Lupita Nyong’o, Best Actor for Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Best Screenplay. 20 FEET FROM STARDOM received the award for Best Documentary and the award for Best Foreign Language Film went to THE HUNT.
12 YEARS A SLAVE
The Boston Online Film Critics Association really love 12 YEARS A SLAVE, awarding the film Best Picture of 2013, in addition to Best Director for Steve McQueen, Best Actor for Chiwetel Ejiofor, Best Supporting Actress for Lupita Nyong’o, Best Editing, Best Original Score, and Best Ensemble. The award for Best Foreign Language Film went to BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR, and Best Documentary went to THE ACT OF KILLING.
Netflix has released the trailer for the Mitt Romney documentary, “MITT,” scheduled to premiere exclusively online on Friday, January 24, 2014. The Netflix original documentary, provides an intimate, rarely seen, behind-the-scenes look at a candidate running for the presidency.
BLACKFISH
“12 YEARS A SLAVE,” wowed the Washington, D.C. Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA), winning six awards including Best Film, Best Actor (Chiwetel Ejiofor), Best Supporting Actress (Lupita Nyong’o), Best Ensemble, Best Adapted Screenplay (John Ridley) and Best Original Score (Hans Zimmer). Best Foreign Language Film went to “THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN,” from Belgium, and Best Documentary honors were awarded to “BLACKFISH.” The Washington, D.C. Area Film Critics Association is comprised of 58 DC-VA-MD-based film critics from television, radio, print and the Internet.