Kinyarwanda, winner of the 2011 Sundance Film Festival World Cinema Audience Award opens in theaters today. During the Rwandan genocide, when neighbors killed neighbors and friends betrayed friends, some crossed lines of hatred to protect each other. At the time of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, the Mufti of Rwanda, the most respected Muslim leader in the country, issued a fatwa forbidding Muslims from participating in the killing of the Tutsi. As the country became a […]
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced today the Documentary Theatrical Motion Picture nominees that will advance in the voting process for the 23rd Annual Producers Guild Awards. The nominated films, listed below in alphabetical order, are: BEATS, RHYMES & LIFE: THE TRAVELS OF A TRIBE CALLED QUEST Television series nominations for the 2012 Producers Guild Awards will be announced December 7, 2011. All other nominations for the 2012 Producers Guild Award categories will […]
British film director Mike Leigh of Happy-Go-Lucky fame will be the Jury President of the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival. Leigh who has directed more than 20 films, made his directorial debut in 1972 with Bleak Moments, which went on to win the Golden Leopard at the Locarno Film Festival. In Cannes he won the Best Director Award in 1993 for Naked, and the Palme d’Or in 1996 for Secrets and Lies, which in itself […]
Drafthouse Films will release Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films in the U.S. From acclaimed cult film documentarian Mark Hartley (Not Quite Hollywood, Machete Maidens Unleashed), the film centers on the story of two Israeli-born, movie-obsessed cousins, Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, who in pursuit of the “American dream” launched an indie studio that would produce over 120 exploitation films from 1979-1989 turning a renegade outfit into the proclaimed “seventh Hollywood major.” […]
The U.S. National Board of Review announced its picks for the best films and performances of 2011 on Thursday, and awarded prize for top film to Hugo and Best Director to its director, Martin Scorsese.
The top 10 independent Films (in alphabetical order) included 50/50, Another Earth, Beginners, A Better Life, Cedar Rapids, Margin Call, Shame, Take Shelter, We Need To Talk About Kevin, and Win Win
The indie films Pariah and the documentary Crime After Crime were singled out to receive the NBR Freedom of Expression.
Awards for 2011: {jathumbnail off}
I Am Singh, a new film directed by a veteran Bollywood actor, Puneet Issar, opens today in 50 theaters across North America. It explores the untold story of Sikhs in the post-9/11 U.S. who were subject to discrimination and violence, and targeted as possible terrorists. It is Issar’s second film as director, and he also acts in it. The film does not have a Bollywood star-studded cast, like his first film had. The actor/director told […]
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is now accepting entries for its 2012 Student Academy Awards competition. Gold, Silver and Bronze Medal awards, along with cash prizes, may be presented to student filmmakers in the following categories: Alternative, Animation, Narrative, Documentary and Foreign Student Film. The rules and online application forms are available at: http://www.oscars.org/saa. The U.S. competition is open to all full-time college and university students at accredited institutions, whose films are […]
Tom Hall, who has served the festival as Director of Programming (2004-2009) and Artistic Director (2009-2011), has been named Director of The Sarasota Film Festival. In addition, Magida Diouri will be the new Programmer and Veronica Pastore the new Associate Director of Marketing for the 2012 Festival. Former SFF Director of Programming Holly Herrick will remain with the SFF as Director of SFF Women, a program designed to promote independent filmmaking, collaboration, awareness and film […]
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 animated short films will advance in the voting process for the 84th Academy Awards®. Forty-four pictures had originally qualified in the category. The 10 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production company: “Dimanche/Sunday,” Patrick Doyon, director (National Film Board of Canada) “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore,” William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg, directors (Moonbot Studios LA, […]
The Sundance Film Festival today announced the films selected to screen in the out-of-competition sections Spotlight, Park City at Midnight, NEXT and New Frontier at the 2012 festival to take place from January 19 through 29 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.
Trevor Groth, Director of Programming for the Sundance Film Festival, said, “In many ways, the extremes of the Festival’s program are most readily apparent in our out-of-competition sections, which showcase the wildest comedies, the most terrifying horror films and uncompromised visions from singular voices springing up from around the country and the world. We hope audiences experiment with their film selections to an equal degree as these filmmakers have experimented with their storytelling.” {jathumbnail off}
Power Cut Middle East, a themed program within the IFFR’s main Signals section, presents recent films and visual art works from the region with a focus on Syria and Egypt. The program, a collaboration with Hivos Culture Fund, consists of short films, documentaries, feature films and visual art installations guided by discussions, lectures and artist talks. Since the change of power in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, a revolutionary spirit runs through several Middle Eastern countries. […]
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival has announced that it will present award-winning actress, Viola Davis with the Outstanding Performer of the Year Award for her ‘compelling’ performance in Tate Taylor’s The Help at the 27th edition of the Festival which runs January 26 – February 5, 2012. Davis captivated audiences and critics alike last summer with her portrayal of African American housemaid “Aibileen Clark.” Set in Jackson, Mississippi, during the 1960s, “The Help” chronicles […]