Italian Neorealism At New York's Lincoln Center

FilmNewYork — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:36:18 +0100

It doesn’t get much better than this…..the Film Society of Lincoln Center, which presents the New York Film Festival each Fall, is in the midst of a revelatory review of one of the major film movements of the 20th century, presenting a list of acknowledged classics along with previously unknown (at least to me) gems. ITALIAN NEOREALISM AND THE BIRTH OF MODERN CINEMA is an exhaustive look at the cinema that flourished in Italy in the post-war period and that still remains a high point of film’s desire to capture the reality of the moment on screen.

Organized by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, Cinecittà Luce and the Fondazione Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia-Cineteca Nazionale, with the support of the Italian Ministry of Culture – Film Department and the Italian Consulate General, the program of 40 films runs from October 30 to November 25 at the Society’s flagship Walter Reade Theater.

In 1945, with Europe in ruins, an unlikely but compelling revolution was taking place in the rubble-strewn landscapes of Italy. A group of films that were soon dubbed Italian Neorealism offered a very different kind of cinema than Italy or the world had ever seen before, drawing on the harsh deprivations and moral complexities of the times. Filmmakers, newly liberated from the grip of Fascism, used their limited resources to capture an indelible moment in time. Using real locations, available light, non-professional actors, and presenting stories of moral courage and depravity, these cinema revolutionaries created a new template that eventually influenced Hollywood and world cinema, while also giving artistic impetus to independent filmmakers around the globe to simply “go out and do it”.

Some of the titles are perennially listed as the greatest films ever made: OPEN CITY, BICYCLE THIEVES, PAISAN, UMBERTO D….films that still pack extraordinary power due to the vibrancy of the performances, the boldness of the stories, the innate humanity that survives in the most unlikely of circumstances. These humanist qualities combined with a spare modernist storytelling style not only influenced the filmmakers of the 1940s and 1950s, but their resonance carries through today.

What this ambitious program makes clear is that aside from the well-known classics from such iconic filmmakers of the period as Robert Rossellini, Luchino Visconti and Vittoria De Sica, the film movement known as Neorealism included impressive achievements from such talents as Alberto Lattuada, Renato Castellani, and Giuseppe De Santis, while also providing cinematic training for such masters Pietro Germi, Federico Fellini, Ermanno Olmi, Francesco Rosi, and Pier Paolo Pasolini. And aside from the directors’ triumphs, the era fed such indelible acting talents as Anna Magnani, Silvia Mangano, Gina Lollabrigida, Vittorio Gassman, Alberto Sordi, Marcello Mastroianni and, most scandalously, Ingrid Bergman (who turned her back on a Hollywood career to follow the voyage to Italy with future husband Rossellini).

The series includes among its themes: life during wartime (a traumatic period that remains specific and universal at the same time), the roots of the Italian gangster film (that still flourishes to this time with such recent triumphs as GOMORRAH) and a very specific type of Italian low comedy (with more than a snippet of social satire). Like a good Italian meal, this series tempts the palate and invites the filmgoer to devour more (or consider a $99 series ticket for a full Italian course). For more information on the series, visit the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s website: www.filmlinc.com

Sandy Mandelberger, Film New York Editor

Interview with Sarah Hoch - Mexico - Expresion en Corto : ... and the budget crisis.

editor — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:42:01 +0100

A scarcity of Mexican production and the absence of exhibition platforms prompted Sarah Hoch to establish the festival Expresion en Corto twelve years ago which she has helmed ever since.

As a publicly funded film festival, Expresion en Corto had a primary focus on short films. By 2009 it has morphed into one of the most important Latin American fests offering a comprehensive program with productions drawn from many countries, a program which stands comparison to much bigger major important festivals such Tribeca and Amsterdam. As in past years, the festivals perennials included children's programs, the Oscar nights with short and documentary films, sex related productions at a local art gallery (including AMERICAN EUNUCHS, a documentary I co-produced), midnight screenings of horror films at a local cemetery "cine entre muertos" (films between the dead), the profiling of an outstanding Mexican director presenting Jorge Fons this year, events and screenings with the Mexican Women in Film and Television Association, and numerous feature films, retrospectives, industry seminars, pitching sessions and so forth to name but a few festival components.

The 2009 Expresion en Corto edition focused on the United Kingdom with the provocative director (or universal artist as called by some) Peter Greenaway honored as the outstanding international director. Greenaway's impressive filmography covers 45 years with more than 30 feature films and television productions. As he forcefully articulated in the master seminar and demonstrated as the video jockey of the multi screen projection of his most recent production THE TULSE LUPER SUITCASES at the festival, traditional filmmaking and its language is dead. New aesthetics are enabled by rapidly evolving digital production and distribution technologies. From Greenaway's perspective linear narratives have become irrelevant. Instead image and sound and time juxtapositions, parallel information platforms, superimpositions, seemingly randomized presentations and so forth invade the viewers structured perception of reality. They generate reflexivity and access to the hyperreal thus provides a visual non-linear avenue to our postmodern society.
Several features distinguish Expresion en Corto. For once most of its funding comes from public sources, specifically the state governments of Guanajuatu, permitting with few exceptions programs that are free to the public. Close to 100 thousand individuals are reached over the festival's ten days including a large proportion of tourists and young people. Another unique element is having two consecutive locations where the festival program is presented; San Miguel de Allende and the state capital Guanjuato. Like other film festivals Expresion en Corto is faced with changed economic circumstances and the resultant sudden decline in public funding and to a lesser extend private sponsorship. This interview with the festival director Sarah Hoch is the first in a series probing adaptive responses to the crisis but also assessing attempts to set up new film festivals in spite of economic constraints

Claus Mueller:          What was the lead time between you learning about possible cut backs and actually getting cut?
Sarah Hoch: We had never been officially told the amount that we would be receiving from the State Government. (Our largest and most important sponsor....even more so in difficult economic times). We were told that the event was important to them and they would be giving us an amount close to what we had asked for.   We received 75% of what we asked for and were advised of this reduction one month before the event. It allowed us to realize the festival but things were tight. We were actually lucky because just after the festival was over the entire country was hit even harder economically. It could have been worse. We have been told now (10 months before next year`s event) to expect less than this year.

CM:     Where is most of your funding coming from?
SH:     We receive 80% of our funding through government with the balance provided through private funding and sponsorship. That is very common in Mexico. Most of the support for the arts comes from the government sector and not private sources.

CM:     If funding declines further what is your perspective with respect to other Mexican film festivals and the impact such decline would have on your programming?
SH:     We don' feel that we will be that affected   and [that we need] to reposition Expresion en Corto with respect to other festivals [in Mexico]. Insofar as programming is concerned
we would probably reduce programming by 20% because we would be forced to reduce venues. We would have to reduce invitations to press, actors and directors because of airfare and hotel costs. We don't foresee that at this time. Thus the most likely cuts will be in the reduction of venues since most of our venues are not movie theatres and it is very expensive for us to condition them for screenings. And as stated before we will have to extend fewer invitations.

CM:     Will there be less international films shown in the future?
SH:     NO. It doesn't cost us more to have international films since embassies [of the countries concerned] help covering the shipping expenses.

CM:     Can public sources compensate for private funding cut backs?
SH:     There will be cutbacks from both sources, but we will continue to have governmental support.

CM:     Does film festival tourism help in getting funding?
SH:     ABSOLUTLEY!! Our statistics on tourism are very high. Our event brings in 88 thousand people. Our government funding comes through the State Tourism Office.

CM:     What is your influence over funding decisions?
SH:     It is high. We have a highly respected and successful event.

CM:     I understand that you are also commissioner for film for the state of Guanajuato. Does that give you an advantage over other film festivals in Mexico?
SH:     I resigned from that position last year. I actually think it is now working to our advantage that we are separate [entities]. I think it helped early on to bring funds to the event but [the festival] got so big it needed to be separated. I also couldn`t do both, there just weren`t enough hours in the day. But yes, in the beginning it was very helpful. I founded both: The Film Commission and the Festival, though the festival, a non-profit endeavor, was coming first funded by the private sector.
CM:     What makes Expresion en Corto so different and unique?
SH:     It's honest, inclusive, passionate, ambitious, a risk taker, true to its platform for promoting young filmmakers, yet always reinventing itself. I also think holding it in two of the most beautiful cities in the world helps immensely. Everyone wants to come here.

CM:     From your perspective has film festival funding more priority than other [cultural] areas?
SH:     It is as important as [other cultural] programming, the conferences,   and so on. [The film festival] is, unfortunately, the most time consuming!

CM:     What about the argument that there too many festivals. Does it apply to Mexico?
SH:     There are many here and growing. A growth resulting in part because of the success several festivals have been having. And you need to remember that when we started Expresion en Corto there was just one other film festival in Mexico, La Muestra de Guadalajara and it was suffering from the entire economic crisis that was happening in Mexico. This crisis had SERIOUSLY hit the film industry and the country was producing around 5 films a year. You cannot have a festival with such a small number of films.   That's why our platform was so important and so significant to the re-building of the Mexican Film Industry. There is competition for funds. But we have tried to stay true to our platform and we
have our unique original identity, the only one like it in Mexico.

CM      Apart from the audience, who would be most affected by the cut backs? Young independent film makers, established film makers, international film makers?
SH:     I don't think it will affect either very much. I think we will be able to turn in a quality and diverse event. I don`t think these groups will feel the cut backs.

CM:     What is your advice to other film festival directors who are in the same position? Or to those who think of starting a film festival?
SH:     Think outside the box. Creativity is everything! And for those thinking to start a film festival, know that this is terribly hard work and it won`t make you rich.

CM: What are your plans for the next edition of Expresion en Corto? How are they impacted by the funding problem and the changed economic circumstances?
SH: Our plans are ambitious, exciting and we are joining in on our national bicentennial celebration of Independence. We are not thinking about budget cuts at this time. We never do. In Mexico we are used to not having the money we need. We never look at it as, "Well, we have a million dollars, we`ll throw a million dollar festival." We make our plans, dream our dreams and make our budget accordingly. And then we work extremely hard to get there. If at the end of the day we can`t pull it off we start cutting, but we are clever with cuts too. You wouldn't know we cut by looking at the event every year.

CM: Sarah, thank you for your comments and time.

Claus Mueller
New York Correspondent
filmexchange@gmail.com

FLIFF Film In Focus: IN MY SLEEP

FortLauderdaleFF — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:29:32 +0100

It is always tempting for a filmmaker who takes on the thriller to emulate the great master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. In fact, the term "Hitchcockian" is as overused as it is complimentary. However, in the case of IN MY SLEEP, a nifty thriller presented this evening at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, the parallels are there in spades.

IN MY SLEEP, written and directed by Allen Wolf, takes on a very Hitchcockian subject: the fuzzy line between imagination and reality. How much of the action is real and how much is in the head of the protagonist. In this case, it is the character of Marcus, who suffers from parasomnia, a rare sleep disorder which causes him to do things in his sleep which he cannot remember the next day.

His situation takes a horrifying turn when Marcus wakes up covered in blood with a knife at his side. Urgent questions pound inside his head. "Where was I last night? Who was I with?" Marcus is terrified to put together the pieces. He investigates his own nocturnal activities, desperate to figure out what happens after he goes to sleep at night. His journey to discover the truth ends in a shocking discovery.

As Hitchcock knew, casting is all important, and Wolf has done it well, from the sexy male lead to supporting players. Handsome Philip Winchester brings his chiseled good looks and a sense of fun to this portrayal of the smooth operator who may be less innocent than he appears. Winchester was discovered at 14 years old in Montana when he was cast in Steven Seagal's THE PATRIOT. His passion for acting brought him to England where he studied graduated from the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. While in London, Winchester appeared as the lead in numerous stage plays. Soon after graduating, he was cast as one of the leads in Universal's THUNDERBIRDS. He also co-starred in the independent film LETHAL DOSE before landing the lead in the WB pilot COMMANDO NANNY. Winchester co-stars in the World War I epic film FLYBOYS opposite James Franco and Jean Reno as well as THE HEART OF THE EARTH alongside Academy Award nominee Catalina Sandino Moreno. He also stars in the indie film SHAKING DREAMLAND.

For more information on the film, visit the website: www.inmysleep.com

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Dailies Editor

Mangia by Kimberly Deisler

Kim Deisler — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:33:03 +0100

One of the great things about the Italians is they know how to stop time when it comes to eating. Meals typically take three to four hours, starting first with an appetizer like an antipasto, followed by a hearty soup, a decent salad, the primi usually some kind of pasta, the secondi which is your main course and then a light dessert of maybe cheese, cookies and fruit because frankly, who can move after all of that?

I mention this because my last movie experience felt exactly the same way. The first, yes first, red carpet event of the night was quite appetizing. Director Kirk Jones, who did Waking Ned Devine, was happy to introduce his first US project Everybody’s Fine. A painfully beautiful look into the machinations of an every day family and how surviving members struggle to close the gaps after an unexpected loss. Heavy hitting cast members Drew Barrymore and Kate Beckinsale who played sisters, were dazzling. Once inside, Jones introduced these sisters as his sisters followed by an, “I wish!” Yeah, don’t we all? As expected a standing ovation for the incomparable Robert De Niro took several minutes before coming to a close. De Niro, who was more forthcoming than in interviews, gave high praise to his “daughters” and to Jones. Speaking to Jones’ passion and intelligence, De Niro said his decision to sign on was an easy one.

Everybody’s Fine was certainly the entrée of the night. It filled you with emotion so intense that all you wanted to do was take a nap to recuperate. Jones slipped in such quiet moments of Americana they were almost subliminal. The b-roll of the 9-11 make shift memorial and the passage of a soldier in his fatigues were subtle glimpses that carried a wallop of emotion powerful enough to feel like a kick in the gut. On the other hand, these moments layered the film in a devastating way. The result being a depth of perception we don’t often see in American films.

After such a satisfying cinematic experience, I was reluctant to have dessert. But if you’ve ever seen me leave a room, you’ve probably assumed, discipline isn’t my strong suit. “Just a little something sweet to balance out the entrée,” I tell myself and this night was no exception.

I marched outside and back on line for the next feature called Youth In Revolt starring Michael Cera (Juno) directed by Miquel Arteta (TV’s Ugly Betty, The Office, etc.) . Make no mistake this film was also heavy with decadent writing that kept the house in face-hurting, belly-aching, non-stop laughter. This wasn’t some empty little tart of a feature, this was a full blown, out-of-control, over-the-top-Ace Of Cakes, imagination-on-sarcastic-fire, diabetic nightmare that rounded out the emotional heavyweights of the previous film with quick witted pith sayings that stabbed their victims as swiftly as a cake knife at a ‘first’ wedding.

It was the first comedy I’ve seen in years that had me laughing as much as the previous film had me crying. While its not my usual thing to blatantly endorse films with such conviction, I just can’t help but invite anyone and everyone to the feast. Mangia!

The Doctor Is In by Kimberly Deisler...

Doctor Parnassus — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:43:49 +0100

Being a long time Monty Python fan, I thought I was ready for Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium Of Dr. Parnassus but I was wrong. From the first frame to the last, I was taken for a ride I thought could only be produced from the consumption of some really strong brownies or sugar cubes. "What must it be like to be in Gilliam's head?" I wondered. "Crowded!" I concluded.

While the story isn't something new, guy vs. devil, the journey was extraordinary. Its probably better not to have a complicated story whilst the psyche is in constant momentum. Cracking open Gilliam's head is quite enough for the rest of us.

An exhilarating heartbreak was seeing Heath Ledger on screen again. Being reminded of what an iconic loss to the world of cinema Ledger is only added to mesmerizing performances given by Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell. I could never bring myself to see The Dark Knight, but I waited in a line of over 200 people to see this unspeakably brilliant film and I suggest you do the same.

To go on would be to give too much away. Don't read reviews, don't take accept anyone's criticism, don't even watch the trailer, just see the film and experience imagination beyond your own. And if your imagination is as random and vibrant as Gilliam's, all I can say is, "good luck with that!" and I hope you find an outlet as soon as possible.

Kim Deisler

Watch the video of Heath Ledger come out of the box

Only From The Imagination of Terry Gilliam

Doctor Parnassus — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:42:21 +0100

The Global Film Village: by Marla Lewin

Heath Ledger and Verne Troyer Photo by Liam Daniel, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

The Los Angeles AFI premiere of the latest Terry Gilliam movie,was a spectacle to behold. The Chinese Theatre red carpet blends with the decor, and the rush line produced many fans anxious to see this film. At the gate, I met the producer Sam Hadida, who was anxiously looking for his tickets.

The President of the AFI, Robert Gazzale took the stage and told the history of the opening night of the theatre. Regaling us with stories of the King of Kings premiere and the introduction of Guamont and Christ being presented in that order. On that night at 8:30, the producer of Ben Hur gave a speech, and then DW Griffith, and then Will Hayes, and Mary Pickford pushed a giant green jade button and the Glory of the Scriptures were read. That film began at 11pm.

We were assured that tonight we were not to hear long speeches, and shortly there would appear the man,Terry Gilliam whom wrote, directed and produced the film we were about to see THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS. To Terry Gilliam "Time" does not matter. He gave us Time Bandits, and many other flights of fancy for past forty years, from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, to the greatest of images, Brazil and 12 Monkeys, he gives us an everyman, who soars, as Baron Munchausen. Gilliam has given us magic in our lives. When Sean Connery was honored, as part of a previous AFI Tribute, they asked him about making Time Bandits, and he replyed,"Crazy," in all the best possible ways.

Then Terry Gilliam approached the stage, like an excited child he exclaimed, I didn't imagine to show the film on such a grand screen, I had made it for an I phone. He called the film a miracle, with many thanks to Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law. He thanked his daughter Amy, for getting him off his ass, and he finished it for Heath Ledger, so that the world could see his last film and the rich work he had accomplished. Terry then presented Christopher Plummer, who he said is in every movie this year. Tomorrow night he will be honored by the AFI in a TRIBUTE, along with a screening and LA premiere of LAST STATION.

Terry Gilliam Photo taken by Liam Daniel, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

The images in the film, do not disappoint. The performances are perfect. There is magic and mysticism, and we were told by the great GIlliam to have fun. It is ironic that the film reflects on phoney charity, since 40% of Heath's work had been shot, when his friends, Depp, Farrell, and Law came onboard and worked for free, to benefit Heath's daughter. The ending title reads simply, "a film by Heath and his friends".

Throughout the ages there are lines which have already been written about floating down the river Styx, timeless, deathless. When these lines were written for the film, there was no knowledge what meaning they would hold. Heath Ledger will remain forever, one who will live beautiful and loved. We thank Terry Gilliam for this monumental film, with all its hurtles to overcome, which like the unconscious mind, leads us through mazes of tarot cards of hang men, demons, green pastures, purple mountains and brightly colored dreams. It is about immortality, and love.

Parnassos in Greece was home to Apollo, God of the Sun, who relied on his oracle, to guide him. It was the place of the muses, who inspired great literature, music, poetry. In Paris, Mont Parnass is the area where young poets recited verses, as they walked the streets. I imagine, Terry Galliam meant this as a metaphor, might he be Dr. Parnassus.

For lots more about Terry Gilliam check out his site

Courtesy The Global Film Village by Marla Levin

The Global Film Village: Only From The Imagination of Terry Gilliam

MarlaLewinGFV — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:22:39 +0100

by Marla Lewin

Heath Ledger and Verne Troyer Photo by Liam Daniel, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

Terry Gilliam Photo taken by Liam Daniel, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

For lots more about Terry Gilliam check out his site.

The Doctor Is In by Kimberly Deisler

Kim Deisler — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:22:35 +0100

Being a long time Monty Python fan, I thought I was ready for Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium Of Dr. Parnassus but I was wrong. From the first frame to the last, I was taken for a ride I thought could only be produced from the consumption of some really strong brownies or sugar cubes. “What must it be like to be in Gilliam’s head?” I wondered. “Crowded!” I concluded.

While the story isn’t something new, guy vs. devil, the journey was extraordinary. Its probably better not to have a complicated story whilst the psyche is in constant momentum. Cracking open Gilliam’s head is quite enough for the rest of us.

To go on would be to give too much away. Don’t read reviews, don’t take accept anyone’s criticism, don’t even watch the trailer, just see the film and experience imagination beyond your own. And if your imagination is as random and vibrant as Gilliam’s, all I can say is, “good luck with that!” and I hope you find an outlet as soon as possible.

CICFF Announces 2009 Award Winners

Chicago International Children_s Film Festival — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:23:15 +0100

The 2009 Best of Fest Award

Julian Fellowes, From Time to Time (UK, 2009)

The Poetry Foundation Poetry Prize

Filmmaker - Andreas Mendritzki, Poet - Loma Crozier, Fear of Snakes (Canada, 2009)

The Kenneth and Harle Montgomery Prize

Best Film or Video by an Emerging Director

Mary Ann Kellogg, Abuelo (USA, 2009)

The Kenneth and Harle Montgomery Prize

Best Child-Produced Film or Video

Shiropa Purna, Our Boat is Our Address (Bangladesh, 2009)

The Liv Ullmann Peace Prize

Vinod Ganatra, Harun-Arun (India, 2009)

The Rights of the Child Award

Andrzej Maleszka, The Magic Tree (Poland, 2009)

CHILDREN'S JURY PRIZES 2009

Children's Jury Prize - Live-action Feature Film or Video - English Language

1st Prize, Live-action, English Language Feature Film or Video

Vic Sarin, A Shine of Rainbows (Canada/Ireland, 2009)

2nd Prize, Live-action, English Language Feature Film or Video

Julian Fellowes, From Time to Time (UK, 2009)

Children's Jury Prize - Live-action Feature Film or Video - Foreign Language

1st Prize, Live-action, Foreign Language Feature Film or Video

Pieter Verhoeff, The Letter for the King (Netherlands, 2008)

2nd Prize, Live-action, Foreign Language Feature Film or Video

Lars Büchel, Lippel's Dream (Germany, 2008)

Certificate of Excellence, Live-action, Foreign Language Feature Film or Video

Jesper W. Nielsen, Through a Glass, Darkly (Norway, 2008)

Children's Jury Prize - Live-action Short Film or Video

1st Prize, Live-action Short Film or Video

Vlady Valentin Oszkiel, Lioness of Lisabi (USA, 2008)

2nd Prize, Live-action Short Film or Video

Simone van Dusseldorp, Doggie (Netherlands, 2007)

Certificate of Excellence, Live-action Short Film or Video

Anja Ehrhardt, Girls (Germany, 2008)

Children's Jury Prize - Documentary Film or Video

1st Prize, Documentary Film or Video

Yoni Brook and Musa Syeed, Bronx Princess (USA, 2008)

2nd Prize, Documentary Film or Video

Steve Furman, Chickens of the Sea (USA, 2009)

Certificate of Excellence, Documentary Film or Video

Hannah Smith Walker, Why Don't We Ride Zebras? (USA, 2008)

Children's Jury Prize - Animated Short Film or Video

1st Prize, Animated Short Film or Video

Philip Hunt, Lost and Found (UK, 2008)

2nd Prize, Animated Short Film or Video

Nick Park, Wallace and Gromit: A Matter of Loaf and Death (UK, 2008)

Certificate of Excellence, Animated Short Film or Video

Yair Landau, Live Music (USA, 2009)

Children's Jury Prize - Child-Produced Short Film or Video

1st Prize, Child-Produced Short Film or Video

Edvard Granum Dillner, Hot (Norway, 2009)

2nd Prize, Child-Produced Short Film or Video

Jane Hubbard & young People from Ysgol Gymraeg Pwll Coch, Skool Daze (UK, 2008)

Certificate of Excellence, Child-Produced Short Film or Video

Linnavuoren Päiväkoti & Pirkanmaan Elokuvakeskus, Maikki Kantola, A Fishing Bear (Finland, 2008)

ADULT JURY PRIZES 2009

Adult Jury Prize - Live-action Feature Film or Video

1st Prize, Live-action Feature Film or Video

Jesper W. Nielsen, Through a Glass, Darkly (Norway, 2008)

2nd Prize, Live-action Feature Film or Video

Fumie Nishikawa, The Azemichi Road (Japan, 2009)

Certificate of Excellence, Live-action Feature Film or Video

Julian Fellowes From Time to Time (UK, 2009)

Adult Jury Prize - Live-action Short Film or Video

1st Prize, Live-action Short Film or Video

Katrin Gebbe, Sores & Sîrîn (Germany, 2008)

2nd Prize, Live-action Short Film or Video

Yi-hsin Yuan, Eleven Days (China, 2009)

Certificate of Excellence, Live-action Short Film or Video

Cássio Pereira Dos Santos, Scarecrow Girl (Brazil, 2008)

Adult Jury Prize - Documentary Film or Video

1st Prize, Documentary Film or Video

Sara Yamamoto, Fabrice Matadi, Inka Hakala, Tapio Koivula, Iago Tannus Santos, Guan-De Jiang, Tzu-Yin Wang, My 24 Hours II: Families: "Japan" (Taiwan, 2009)

2nd Prize, Documentary Film or Video

Jenni Linko, Fight the Bad Things (Finland, 2009)

Certificate of Excellence, Documentary Film or Video

Hannah Smith Walker, Why Don't We Ride Zebras? (USA, 2008)

Adult Jury Prize - Live-action Television Program

1st Prize, Live-action Television Program

Director Hakon Liu and Jesper Danielsson, Habib: "The Ghost in the Basement" (Sweden, 2007)

2nd Prize, Live-action Television Program

Lai Man Yi, Birthday Present (Hong Kong, 2007)

Adult Jury Prize - Animated Short Film or Video

1st Prize, Animated Short Film or Video

Anita Killi, Angry Man (Norway, 2009)

2nd Prize, Animated Short Film or Video

Kevin Langdale, Engine 371 (Canada, 2008)

Certificate of Excellence, Animated Short Film or Video

Jamie Stone and Anders Jedenfors, Space Travel According to John (Scotland, 2008)

Adult Jury Prize -Animated Television Production

1st Prize, Animated Television Production

Keiko Iino and Osamu Sakai, PoPo Louise (Japan, 2008)

2nd Prize, Animated Television Production

Lajos Nagy, Hungarian Folk Tales: "The Wee King" (Hungary, 2008)

Italian Cinematographer Mario Tosi Honored At FLIFF

FortLauderdaleFF — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:56:44 +0100

It is a long journey from Nazi-occupied Rome to the sunshine glitz of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.....but this is the journey that cinematographer Mario Tosi has taken to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award in Cinematography at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival on Wednesday evening prior to the screening of ITALIANS by writer/director Giovanni Veronesi.

Mr. Tosi has shot over 35 films including such Hollywood projects as HEARTS OF THE WEST (Jeff Bridges, Blythe Danner, Andy Griffith), CARRIE (Sissy Spacek, John Travolta, Piper Laurie), MACARTHUR (Gregory Peck), THE BETSY (Laurence Olivier, Robert Duvall, Katharine Ross, Tommy Lee Jones), THE MAIN EVENT (Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal), THE STUNT MAN (Peter O'Toole), RESURECTION (Ellen Burstyn), WHOSE LIFE IS IT ANYWAY (Richard Dreyfus, John Cassavettes), SYBIL (Sally Field), among others. Over the past month and a half, FLIFF has paid homage to Mr. Tosi with a retrospective.

In a mini-memoir published in the Festival catalogue, Mario Tosi reflected on his journey from Rome to Hollywood to Fort Lauderdale:

"I was born in Rome in the middle of WWII --not an easy time! My parents had no connection with films or show business. My father worked for the government and my mother raised three kids.

However on my street just outside the Roman wall, they were many friends trying to succeed in the film industry as technicians, directors, actors -- some became very successful--like Michele Lupo, Marcello Mastroianni and Gina Lollobrigida - and even when they became famous they always came back, time to time in our caffe' to tell stories and from those my interest grew.

I started working with a Director of Photography learning the basics and went on location in South Africa to work in two productions. My big break came in Johannesburg replacing an injured second cameramen, working with a famous director of photography from Sweden that filmed many Ingmar Bergman movies. The film TEAR ON JOHANNESBURG was banned in that country because it was against the apartheid.

Soon my desire was to come to America-- Hollywood--and see were the big movies were made! A cinematographer from the American Society of Cinematographer wrote back to my enquiry with advice. And there I was in Hollywood. However, big movies were made with union members…very difficult to join, so I began helping in lowest budget film imaginable and doing intense testing on my own and learning new equipment - films stock, camera, lighting.

Finally I did find an independent producer-director who gave me the opportunity to shoot a love story in black and white. The final cut turned out more beautiful than I expected and that was the break. From then on was one project after another -with director Daniel Petri I did BUSTER AND BILLY and four others with him. Jim Harris director hired me to shoot SOME CALL IT LOVING, and THE GLORY STOMPER with Dennis Hopper. I have special memories of working with Richard Rush director of THE STUNT MAN. It was the most interesting and rewarding work of my career."

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Dailies Editor

“Four Seasons Lodge ” Opens at IFC Center New York, November 11

avivapress — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:43:27 +0100

By Maria Esteves - November 3, 2009

The New York Premiere documentary film FOUR SEASONS LODGE, directed by Andrew Jacobs will commence Wednesday, November 11, 2009, at IFC Center, New York. A special Q&A session will follow the premiere documentary film observing Kristallnacht Pogrom anniversary (November 9, 1938) with director Jacobs and cast members.

FOUR SEASONS LODGE, winner of Audience Award for Best Documentary, 2009 Miami Jewish Film Festival, depicts the power of love and friendship with a group of Polish Jews Holocaust survivors at a summer vacation colony in the Catskills, New York. For further information, please call 1.212.924.7771 or visit http://www.ifccenter.com.

AFI DIGIFEST 2009 Line up

Kim Deisler — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:37:32 +0100

AFI DigiFest will take place at the Mann Chinese 1 Theatre in Hollywood on November 4 and 5.

Now in its third year, AFI DigiFest provides a unique, behind-the-scenes look at how storytelling is adapting to an ever-widening array of new screens and platforms. The event is open to the public and admission is free.

"This has been a banner year for new media innovation," says AFI Digital Content Lab Director Suzanne Stefanac. "We're seeing forward-thinking writers, directors and producers learn to tell stories across a spectrum of screens, engaging new audiences and inventing new markets along the way. AFI DigiFest is our opportunity to shine a light on the inspiring works created during the past year."

Projects premiering at AFI DigiFest 2009 on November 4 were incubated in the AFI Digital Content Lab in coordination with MTV, NBC, Method Design, D20, EQAL, Digital Domain, Avatar Labs, TwinArt and many others. Together, the teams:

created an engaging social network and viral marketing plan for the web series INTERVIEW PROJECT PRESENTED BY DAVIDLYNCH.COM;
proposed an online strategy for engaging youth in a series of relevant environmental action challenges for the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation;
developed a mobile application that provides an interactive past-to-future timeline for an ITVS cross-platform micro-series;
conceived an interactive mentoring environment for One Economy that encourages students from low-income families to learn more about science as a career; and
presented MOBILE STORY MAKER, a hands-on session with filmmaker L.M. Kit Carson (PARIS, TEXAS; BOTTLE ROCKET), who shot the micro-series AFRICA DIARY using a Nokia mobile phone as his camera. The series is scheduled to air on the Sundance Channel.

On November 5, the AFI Digital Content Lab has invited the creators of cutting-edge recently released or soon-to-be-released digital media productions to present their projects. The productions featured this year include:

DISTRICT 9, a behind-the scenes look at games and an augmented reality application created by production house Trigger;
LIVE MUSIC, 3D animation pieced together from contributions by thousands of animators from around the world, masterminded by Mass Animation's Yair Landau, former vice-chair of Sony Pictures;
URBAN WOLF, a surveillance camera-based micro-series drama by Parisian director Laurent Touil Tartour;
MANOBI, a mobile phone application that has helped raise the standard of living for Senegalese farmers and fishermen;
FIRST THINGS LAST, a visual storytelling application for the iPhone created by ScrollMotion;
ESCAPE FROM CITY 17, a meld of machinima and live action created by the Purchase Brothers for less than $500;
NAKED SKY, a look at augmented reality.

A reception at the historic Roosevelt Hotel Ballroom will follow both day-long programs. On November 4, the reception will be followed by poolside screenings of several digital micro-series. On November 5, the reception will celebrate the market launch of Planet Illogica, an AFI Digital Content Lab 2008 project.

AFI PROJECT: 20/20

Kim Deisler — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:32:48 +0100

Marking its fourth year, AFI PROJECT: 20/20 is an American Film Institute international initiative designed to enhance cultural exchange and understanding, by bringing together filmmakers and their films from the US and abroad.

AFI PROJECT: 20/20 represents an unprecedented cultural diplomacy effort that is supported by the U.S.'s cultural agencies--the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)-- and the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities in concert with U.S. Embassies and domestic presenting institutions. AFI FEST and the other venues and countries participating in AFI PROJECT: 20/20 provide an arena for American and International cultural voices to be heard and seen, creating learning opportunities for audiences and artists alike.

The U.S. and international filmmakers invited to participate in AFI PROJECT: 20/20 are unique. Their films often explore themes and stories not usually told by commercial films and by participating in discussions, workshops and other activities around their films, the filmmakers are cultural ambassadors that bring other perspectives on America to foreign audiences and vice versa. Movies allow 20/20 to fulfill its purpose of engaging audiences beyond language and borders, to reveal both a respect for differences and a shared humanity among cultures.

2009 - 2010 AFI PROJECT: 20/20 Filmmakers

Bob Richardson
AHEAD OF TIME
Born in Brooklyn in 1911, Ruth Gruber became the youngest PhD in the world before going on to become an international foreign correspondent and photojournalist at age 24. She emerged as the eyes and conscience of the world. With her love of adventure, fearlessness and powerful intellect, Ruth defied tradition in an extraordinary career that has spanned more than seven decades.

Jessica Oreck (USA/Japan)
BEETLE QUEEN CONQUERS TOKYO
Far more fascinating than any entomology lesson, American filmmaker Jessica Oreck's debut captures the essence of a centuries-old Japanese subculture that has an acute enthusiasm for insects. Her unconventional approach to science education is never dull, unearthing a surprising national love affair with bugs.

Melissa de Raaf, Răzvan Rădulescu (Romania/France/Belgium/Croatia)
FIRST OF ALL, FELICIA
In a collaboration unique in Romania's burgeoning cinema, Răzvan Rădulescu (from Romania) and Melissa de Raaf (from the Netherlands) have co-written and directed a simple yet rich story confined to a single day. It dawns for Felicia (Ozana Oancea) with expectations that her sister will drive her to the Bucharest airport for her flight to Amsterdam, where Felicia has lived with her husband and son for years.

Damien Chazelle (USA)
GUY AND MADELINE ON A PARK BENCH
Imagine Jacques Demy as seen through an urban, jazz-infused American indie filter and you'll get a sense of writer-director Damien Chazelle's startling debut endeavor. The electrifying GUY AND MADELINE takes the musical genre to a contemporary new level, telling the story of the title characters' soured relationship in song and dance.

Lars Larson, Michael Rivoira, Peter J. Vogt (USA)
ICONS AMONG US
By combining rare archival stills, interviews with 75 jazz artists and live recordings culled from 25 hours of concerts, ICONS AMONG US is a dynamic and engaging document of many of the greatest jazz musicians of today. It contains interviews and performances from the likes of Herbie Hancock, Terence Blanchard, Ravi Coltrane, Medeski Martin and Wood, the Bad Plus and many others.

Rachid Bouchareb (Algeria/UK/France)
LONDON RIVER
On July 7, 2005, four Muslim assassins, traveling on London's public transport during morning rush hour, activate a series of bombs. They kill 56 people and injure many others on three underground trains and one double-decker bus.

Andrey Khrzhanovsky (Russia)
ROOM AND A HALF
Andrei Khrzanovsky's bittersweet, endlessly imaginative film begins with the revered poet Joseph Brodsky (Grigory Dityatkovsky, bearing an uncanny resemblance to the Nobel Prize-winning poet) approaching his beloved St. Petersburg after a decades-long exile imposed by the Soviet state. In a Proustian wave of memories, his past comes to life, centered around the tiny but welcoming flat he shared with his devoted parents.

Nina Paley (USA)
SITA SINGS THE BLUES
Wired magazine called Nina Paley "the one-woman Pixar." That's because, in this animated landmark, she built an entire feature film herself, from her home office, using standard-issue computers and over-the-counter software. But more than mere historical footnote, SITA is a magical film that weaves together two stories: of Sita, a goddess separated from her beloved lord and husband, Rama, and Nina, an animator whose husband moves to India and then dumps her by e-mail.

AFI PROJECT: 20/20 Mentors 2009

Kief Davidson (USA)
KASSIM THE DREAM
Kidnapped at age 6 and turned into a child solder--both a victim and perpetrator of war crimes -- Kassim "The Dream" Ouma has dreams of becoming a world champion boxer. His startling tale of survival and success is real-life proof that humans, against the longest odds, can turn tragedy into inspiration.

Richie Mehta (Canada)
AMAL
In chaotic New Delhi, an aged and irascible man cheats everyone he meets. When Amal, an auto-rickshaw wallah, generously allows him to dodge his fare, both are affected in a way that has far-reaching consequences.

"Precious" moments at AFI

Kim Deisler — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:28:17 +0100

Last night the AFI hosted a star studded, red carpet affair introducing the world to Clarice "PRECIOUS" Jones, directed by Lee Daniels. A film that will "split you open," is due to open later this week.

Audience members, the likes of which made me feel like I was crashing a private party for all the cool kids, included Olivia Wilde, Lisa Edelstein, Mary J. Blige, Nick Cannon, Sidney Hicks, Gayle King, Paula Abdul, Jamie Foxx, Eva Longoria Parker, Will Smith, Forest & Keisha Whitaker, Tyler Perry and the elegant Sidney Poitier, but I don't mean to drop names ... Oprah! Daniels added to the list with the introduction of cast members Sherri Sheperd, Mo'Nique, Mariah Carey, Paula Patton and of course, the lead actress Gabourey Sidibe, just to name a few. Sapphire, whose book PUSH moved Daniels to do the film, was also on hand.
After star gawking and intros, the audience was swept you away into the land of Precious Jones. It was a sensory experience that takes your breath away with powerful cinematography, dialogue and flawless acting. This wasn't a movie, this was someone's experience and now it was yours.
While Precious struggled with the unrelenting weight of her life, symbolic in her body, we, the audience struggled the frustrations of not being able to save this kid and being ashamed for not even trying. Precious isn't the first of her kind, she's certainly not the last and we were reminded of all the kids that have fallen through the cracks with nary a thought or regret. Precious represents us all on some level, but more importantly, she represents an immeasurable amount kids that both time and people have forgotten.

by Kimberly Deisler

Saturday was my first day of film viewing at AFI

Kim Deisler — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:20:21 +0100

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Known for
its assorted cartoon characters, acting wannabes and celebrity look a-likes,
Hollywood Boulevard at Halloween seems like any other day only more so. The
bustling street felt like a traffic accident where the action is fast but seems
like slow motion as ghouls, goblins and the scantily clad, wandered the streets
like Cinderella at crunch time.

In the midst of all this activity, as if quietly perched in the eye of the
storm, lies a sophisticated collection of REAL creativity, heart and soul to
make up this year's 23rd annual AFI Film Festival. Weighted with an eclectic
ensemble of talented, inspiring, and thoughtful films, this year's festival
runs the gamut from star studded premieres to quiet, provocative films that
stay with you long after the credits roll.

Saturday was my first day of film viewing. I traveled to all parts of the world
never leaving my seat. First up was a trip to the northeast of the USA to view
the intimate details of GUY AND MADELINE ON A PARK BENCH directed by Damien
Chazelle. Shot in black and white, this unique perspective of interpersonal
wanderlust followed individuals struggling for purpose and meaning in their
lives. The jazzy soundtrack added a layer of old time film making where music
tells more of the story than does the dialogue.

Next was a trip to Peru in MILK OF SORROW directed by Claudia Llosa, where a
harsh landscape was bespeckled with occasional wedding décor, bright wardrobe,
occasional humor and busy markets noting the potential for possibility and
hope, despite the transcendence of fear and sorrow in the life of Fausta.

From Peru I traveled to South Korea for MOTHER (MADEO) directed by Bong
Joon-ho, a captivating murder mystery of a mother who searches for the truth in
order to get her wrongly accused son out of prison.

Jet lagged by the day's end from all the emotional highs and lows, my senses
were overloaded to the point of inspiration.

Kim Deisler

Butterflies wins another award at First Glance FF and signs with Journeyman Pictures

filmester — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:54:37 +0100

Butterflies has closed its festival run last month at the First Glance Film Festival where it received one last Award.
We are very grateful to all who supported us throughout the festival
screenings and thank you to everyone who came to see the film, even
more special thanks to all of you who came and saw more than once <3

Read some background news on how Indie Producer helped us here and then watch the video.

More info at the Butterflies Official Website

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FLIFF Film In Focus: CHICAGO OVERCOAT

FortLauderdaleFF — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:40:08 +0100

Tales of the Mafia continue to fascinate the public. Even after THE GODFATHER trilogy and television's THE SOPRANOS would seem to have covered every angle of this sub-genre, the new American Indie film CHICAGO OVERCOAT still finds some interesting life in the tales of the underground. The film has attracted strong audience response at its premiere at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival this week.

A hit at the recent Chicago International Film Festival, the homegrown production was shot on the streets of Chicago, bringing a lived-in authenticity to its moody story. CHICAGO OVERCOAT is an assured professional directing debut for Brian Caunter, with nimble handling of actors who will be recognizable from earlier crime thrillers. In a mix of classic gangster cinema and the nouveau crime thriller approach championed by Quentin Tarantino, the hardboiled screenplay has an ironic, almost kitschy feel without taking away from the reality of the characters.

The film opens in Cook County Jail, where mob boss Stefano D’Agnostino (Armand Assante) is being held for trial on various racketeering charges. He orders his lawyer to have the witnesses silenced. D’Agnostino’s second in command, Lorenzo Galante (Mike Starr), reluctantly gives the job to 65-year-old mob soldier Lou Marazano (Frank Vincent), who has been itching to make some real money after spending 20 years performing small-time strong-arm jobs.

The film offers a fast-paced cops-and-mobsters saga that gets a bit of star power from brief appearances by Assante and Stacy Keach. But it is the character actors playing mobsters and cops who fill the screen with anger, regret, petty politics, and longing that propel this procedural beyond caricature. A standout is Frank Vincent, who has built an entire career's work as a mobster and hitman, who gives a bravura, career-capping performance as the cold-blooded killer with a troubled conscience and a surprisingly open heart. His move from family tenderness to scenes of sudden violence sums up this world in precious detail. This is a film that deserves a life beyond the festival circuit.

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Dailies Editor

Matthew Broderick Arrives In Fort Lauderdale

FortLauderdaleFF — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:22:28 +0100

Ferris Bueller himself arrived in Fort Lauderdale today to receive a Career Achievement Award from the Fort Lauderale International Film Festival. Well, to be more accurate, the actor who embodied the teen rebel in the iconic 1980s film FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, the stage and screen thespian Matthew Broderick, is in town to receive the kudos and to introduce the screening tonight of the American indie film WONDERFUL WORLD.

The son of acclaimed character actor James Broderick, the boyish Matthew, who still sports a youthful look despite his age of 47, is a born-and-bred New Yorker who has moved seamlessly from the Broadway stage to Hollywood cinema for the past twenty plus years.

Broderick first made waves in 1982 when he starred as the precocious young writer in Neil Simon's autobiographical play BRIGHTON BEACH MEMOIRS. He reprised the role of Eugene in the both the stage and filmed version of BILOXI BLUES, the second installment of the Neil Simon autobiographical trilogy. He made his film debut in 1983 in the Neil Simon-penned MAX DUGAN RETURNS and the Cold War thriller WAR GAMES. He has been seen in many films, mainly light comedies or satires, over the course of the last two decades, including, OUT ON A LIMB, THE NIGHT WE NEVER MET, THE ROAD TO WELLVILLE and THE CABLE GUY.

His most famous role is undoubtedly in 1986's FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, a box office success by the recently deceased John Hughes, earned him a Golden Globe nomination. In the film, that has since become a cult classic, he plays a street-wise kid who knows all the tricks. When he decides to take the day off from school, he sets out on an elaborate plan to "free" his fellow classmates from the drudgery of schoolwork and the tyranny of the school dean, portrayed by English character Jeffrey Jones. The film remains Broderick's best known and most successful at the box office.

With detours in the special effects blockbuster GODZILLA, the children's classic MR. GADGET and the satirical comedy ELECTION, Broderick has devoted more attention these days to his live theater career. He scored a major success in the musical revival on Broadway of HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING, which showed off his comedic talents and singing voice. This eventually led to his starring role as the neurotic accountant in the Mel Brooks musical version of THE PRODUCERS, a role he reprised in the film version, opposite Nathan Lane. He is currently on Broadway again in a new comedy by playwright Kenneth Lonergan.

In his latest film, WONDERFUL WORLD, which has its Southeast Premiere at the Festival tonight, Broderick plays Ben-a failed children's folk singer and less-than-extraordinary weekend dad. Deeply cynical, Ben's sole pleasure in life is derived from chess games with his Senegalese roommate Ibou. When Ibou is suddenly struck ill, Ben's pessimistic worldview seems unequivocally confirmed. But when Ibou's sister Khadi takes his place in their apartment, what starts as an awkward living arrangement becomes something more, and Ben finds that cynicism may be all a matter of perspective. The film gives the actor a rich role to explore middle-aged ennui and the possibility for personal redemption, in a rich script by writer/director Josh Goldin. The film, which had its international debut at the Tribeca Film Festival, will be released by US specialty distributor Magnolia Pictures in the coming months.

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Dailies Editor

The latest edition of Chris Gore’s Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide

editor — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:06:09 +0100

The fourth edition of Chris Gore's Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide is finally in stores!
Well, what's inside?

Everything you need to know to submit your film to a festival, from Sundance to the Finland Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
Invaluable, guerilla tips and tricks for marketing, selling and distributing an indie film
Candid interviews with top festival filmmakers
Full listings and contact information for more than 1,000 film festivals, plus in-depth analysis of the Big Ten festivals.

Of course if you need more comprehensive review of the scene and access the 4000 thousands+ festivals listed and reviewed by filmfestivals.com and fest21.com stay tuned and come back to this site...
Now I'll let Chris tell you all about it:

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The Global Film Village: A “Once In A Lifetime” Backstage interview with Ed Asner of Pixar’s “UP”

MarlaLewinGFV — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:26:45 +0100

by Marla Lewin

Ed Asner was born the same year as the Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman play, Once In A Lifetime, was written 1929. Ed has been a regular performer for the LA Theatre Works readings of great plays since its inception in 1985. The first live reading of this play back then had guests Steven Spielberg and Barry Diller in the audience. The producer explained that their technique and equipment for that performance had not been as good as they would have liked so they had always wanted to do it again. Now they tape 5 shows and create the final broadcast from the best of the recordings.

We got to meet him backstage after the show at the Skirball Cultural Center and I asked him if he saw value in having audiences listening to great theatre plays on PBS radio. His famous eye brows went up. He said these recordings allow today’s audience to hear plays that they might never get to experience except in the print media. Because of the high cost of mounting shows so many just never got done. He added that he really enjoyed doing them too. When he recorded Up! he was alone in a studio but here he got to work with other actors and interact with them.

Ed may be best known for playing journalist Lou Grant on television both as the station manager on the Mary Tyler Moore show and later as a Los Angeles newspaper editor on his own Lou Grant show. We discussed his feelings about the changes in the news business, with all of the consolidation of organizations around the world, and many journalists having lost their jobs and lives. Ed thought it was a shame and that we were loosing something very precious.

Ed smiled brightly when the movie “UP” was mentioned, and proud that the film premiered on opening night at the Cannes FIlm Festival this year. We laughed about how his cartoon character had replaced Stallone, Van Damme and Schwarzenegger as the action star on the famous Cannes billboards this year. Ed told us that John Lassiter had used the voice of singer Charles Aznavour to replace his in France. He talked about the wonderful underlying love story in UP! and how the first 20 minutes of the film tells this touching and beautiful story. Then Jonathan Silverman appeared with his wife backstage. He told Ed he had been married for two and a half years, and he wanted her to meet him. Ed joked that two and half years is a long time for Hollywood marriages. I asked Jonathan what it was like working on Hart’s play, after starring in Neil Simons’ Brighton Beach Memoirs on both broadway and in that film. He said “it is like reading Shakespeare. It was an honor to be a part of classic theatrical history”.

It was a treat to sit with Ed, and meet other members of the cast and crew. The stage manager said Ed was almost off book after only two days on stage. Ed is so busy working that he squeezed these performances in while doing his own new one man show FDR which is on a national tour. He is on stage in that play for almost a full 90 minutes and is loving it. He told us how FDR was hilarious. He said they had to cut so many of the great lines which were actual quotes from President Roosevelt to keep the running time manageable. “Many of them were not only meaningful but often extremely humorous” Ed confided.

Then Christopher Hart, the director of the show, and son of playwright Moss Hart came back stage. We again spoke of the timeless quality of his fathers’ work, and its’ humor. Chris said we should all read his father’s book, Act One, which is all about the early history of theatre. Chris would like to revive the play for Broadway. He cut down the 41 characters into 12,. Cut it to Two acts instead of three, and made the play into a radio show. He said evan so nothing really changes that much in the play or in Hollywood.

I mentioned the play, I’d Rather Be Right, which his father also wrote with George S. Kaufman. It is a tender story about president Roosevelt, and his promise to balance the budget to a young man, contemplating marriage. That show also included the music of Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart. He said that he hadn’t attended the production that was put on in Washington D.C. in 1994.

The play, Once In A Lifetime, is about a three actors from vaudeville trying to cash in as the movies adjust to being “talkies.” Al Jolson’s Jazz Singer had revolutionized the business. When sound was added to silent films many established stars couldn’t make the adjustment. Some actors had heavy foreign accents or just terrible sounding voices. Our heroes come up with the idea of starting a school to train actors how to speak for the new medium and become the first voice coaches. Ed Asner’s character is a studio mogul who did not buy the Vidaphone, and he is now afraid not to buy the latest technology. Little has changed in the backstage workings at the studios since the play was written.

It was a delightful night of theatre, and we highly recommend supporting LA Theatre Works fine productions.

Look for Once In A Lifetime on your local PBS radio station next spring. Also be sure to watch for FDR at a playhouse near you.

The Global Film Village: Demme, Douglas, Huston and Tarantino to present Academy Governor's Awards

MarlaLewinGFV — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:11:32 +0100

by Marla Lewin

The inaugural Governors Awards event of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will be held on November 14, Academy President Tom Sherak announced today. Oscar® winners Jonathan Demme, Anjelica Huston and Quentin Tarantino, along with past Honorary Award recipient Kirk Douglas, will be among the presenters. The evening will feature presentations of the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to producer-executive John Calley, and Honorary Awards to actress Lauren Bacall, producer-director Roger Corman and cinematographer Gordon Willis.

Demme, Douglas, Huston and Tarantino will join 600 invited guests at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center® to celebrate the careers of Bacall, Calley, Corman and Willis, who each have made lasting contributions to the motion picture industry.

They will each receive an Honorary Award, which is an Oscar statuette, for “extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”

The Thalberg Award, a bust of the legendary motion picture executive, is given to “a creative producer whose body of work reflects a consistently high quality of motion picture production.”

The Governors Awards presentation is being produced for the Academy by Oscar-winning producer Bruce Cohen in association with Emmy®-winning producer Don Mischer. It will be a black-tie dinner event and will include film clips as well as remarks from the honorees, their colleagues and admirers.

IFFI GOA, this 11 day extravaganza is the biggest annual film event in South Asia.

Iffi Goa — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:31:40 +0100

The 40th International Film Festival of India gets underway from 23rd November 2009.
This 11 day extravaganza is the biggest annual film event in South Asia.

The festival programme is divided into 4 sections:

Film Programmes
Non Film Programmes
Film Bazaar and Short Film Center
Cultural Activities

The Film Programming is the core of the festival and screens nearly 300 films during the period of 11 days across 10 Auditoria and 3 preview rooms in the cities of Panaji and Margao in Goa.
The most popular sections in the film programming include competitions for feature films from Asia, Africa, Latin America, Cinema of the World, Tributes, Homages, Retrospectives, Country Focus, Indian Panorama and specially curated sections.
Non film programming includes a range of seminars, symposia, debates, product and service presentation, pitching sessions etc.
Film Bazar conducts scripting workshops, home production forums etc. and Short Film Center apart from having the International competition for Shorts and Documentaries below 30 minutes also organises another competition of shorts and documentaries on environmental issues. The award money for both the competition sections is USD 26000.
The Short Film Center is a business platform which serves the interests of film producers, actors, cinematographers, sound recordists, funding agencies, film festival programmers at the festival. A total of nearly 500 films are likely to be registered at the Short Film Center.
Cultural Programmes - The festival conducts a special festival fair at the Corniche between Old GMC and Kala Academy. This fair is organised by the picturesque River Mandovi between 23rd November to 3rd December 2009. The fair presents glimpses into the life and culture of Goa and an opportunity for festival delegates and local population to celebrate this festival of Cinema.

European Cinema Shines At FLIFF

FortLauderdaleFF — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:40:43 +0100

Penelope Cruz in BROKEN EMBRACES (Spain)

European cinema has always had a strong presence at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. This year is no exception as FLIFF showcases a strong collection of films from a mix of emerging and established European film talents.

Most of the European films are situated in the World Cinema section, which is not exclusively but overwhelmingly dominated by European titles. AN ENGLISHMAN IN NEW YORK, UK director Richard Laxton’s biopic on gay icon and wit Quentin Crisp, focuses on the raconteur’s final 20 years in the Big Apple. John Hurt reprises his celebrated turn in a role he was clearly born to play. He originally appeared in the 1975 telefilm THE NAKED CIVIL SERVANT, based on the memoir of the gay pioneer.

Also from England comes BEYOND THE POLE, an adventure mockumentary of two friends who attempt the first organic expedition to the North Pole. Director David Williams, a founding partner of Shooting Pictures, brings an interesting spin to the wacky tale, focusing on the ecological point of the trip and the camaraderie between the two jokey adventurers.

Italian cinema is represented by COLPO D’OCCHIO (AT A GLANCE), a Hitchcockian thriller directed by Sergio Rubini. In a love triangle between a beautiful young woman and her two loves (one a prominent art critic, the other a struggling artist waiting for his big break), Rubini has created a potent story of fiery romance, competition and the dark heart of suspense that brings the audience to the edge of its seat with the film’s unexpected twists and turns. The film has been a box office hit in its native Italy.

Also from Italy is the comedic road movie ITALIANS, written and directed by Giovanni Veronesi. The director of the popular comedy MANUAL OF LOVE returns with a film that is divided into tangy vignettes, each revealing a different side of the Italian culture, obsessions and neurotic attachments. Sex, food, romance and the eternal war between men and women are at the heart of this delightful film that was nominated for several David Di Donatello awards (the Italian Oscar) this past year.

From Turkey comes the vibrant drama THE MARKET: A TALE OF TRADE, written and directed by American filmmaker Ben Hopkins. Set in Turkey, the film focuses on a market trader (played by Turkish superstar Tayanc Ayaydin) who is given the chance of a lifetime to invest in an exciting business deal. Not having the necessary cash, he turns to the outlawed black market and risks both his livelihood and life in that morally complex underworld. The film won several Golden Oranges (the Turkish Oscar) for Best Film, Best Screenplay and Best Actor.

Also representing the revitalized Turkish cinema is PANDORA’S BOX, a family drama by Yesim Ustaoglu. The film tells the tale of an elderly mother who disappears in her small village on the Black Sea coast and the coming together of her three 40-something children who set aside their problems to come together. Like the film’s title, a sea of tension is released as the children are forced to work together and accept each other’s limitations. The film won awards for Best Director and Best Actress at the 2008 San Sebastian Film Festival.

In a film that combines eros and haute cuisine, the Spanish comedy MEDITERRANEAN FOOD is a sumptuous tale of yet another love triangle. At the center of the love match is Sofia, who was raised amidst the stovetops and tables of her parents’ restaurant. Into her life come two men: one a respectable professional, the other an artistic chef with a flair for offbeat cuisine. Together, the threesome come to a professional and love arrangement that will revolutionize her culinary and personal universe. The film, written and directed by Joaquin Oristrell, was a sleeper hit at last year’s Berlin Film Festival.

One of the more anticipated films of the season also hails from Spain. The newest work from Pedro Almodovar is always a treat for his many international fans. In his latest masterworks, he again teams with Penelope Cruz in BROKEN EMBRACES, a film that combines film noir aesthetic with a nice dash of mystery, romance and sexual tension. Again bringing a heightened melodrama to the proceedings, Almodovar tells the tale of a blind screenwriter and his amour fou relationship with the mistress of a ruthless business mogul. In a screenplay that is at turns witty and winsome, Almodovar creates another intriguing portrait of the power, responsibility and ultimate dissolution of passion.

French cinema, always a favorite at FLIFF, is represented this year by two very different films. QUEEN TO PLAY, written and directed by Caroline Bottaro, stars Sandrine Bonnaire as a maid who learns about life through mastering the game of chess. Her teacher and employer, an expatriate American played by Kevin Kline, opens up a whole world for her beyond cooking meals and washing clothes. The film had its US Premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival and is making its Southeast Premiere in Fort Lauderdale.

Another Sandrine, this one named Sandrine Kiberlain, is the erstwhile star of ROMAINE 30 BELOW. She stars as Romaine, whose boyfriend decides to take her on a wilderness vacation in northern Canada at Christmas time. The fateful adventures that await her in snowy Quebec are rife with hilarity and unexpected twists. Kiberlain, a talented comedienne in the mold of classic Hollywood screwball actresses, is a delight as she becomes more and more outrageous, while winning hearts of all she encounters (of course).

European cinema shines in Fort Lauderdale this week......

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Dailies Editor

47th New York Film Festival Closing Night Premiere “Broken Embraces” Red Carpet Photos

avivapress — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:08:21 +0100

By Maria Esteves - October 28, 2009

The 47th New York Film Festival 2009 (NYFF09) presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, Closing Night Premiere of "BROKEN EMBRACES (LOS ABRAZOS ROTOS)," written/produced/directed by Pedro Almodóvar was held at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, on Sunday, October 11, 8:00 PM. NYFF09 closing night red carpet arrivals included cast of actors, directors, producers, industry executives, and celebrity guests. BROKEN EMBRACES, a Sony Pictures Classics, opens in New York November 20, 2009.

NYFF09 Closing Night Premiere of BROKEN EMBRACES
red carpet arrivals: writer/producer/director Pedro
Almodóvar, BROKEN EMBRACES.

NYFF09 Closing Night Premiere of BROKEN EMBRACES red carpet
arrivals: Academy Award winning actress Penélope Cruz, BROKEN
EMBRACES.

NYFF09 Closing Night Premiere of BROKEN EMBRACES red carpet
arrivals: (from left-right), co-founders/co-presidents Michael
Barker, Tom Bernard, Sony Pictures Classics, with producer
Augustin Almodovar, director Pedro Almodovar, Academy Award
winning actress Penélope Cruz, BROKEN EMBRACES, executive
director Mara Manus and programming director Richard Pena,
The Film Society of Lincoln Center.

NYFF09 Closing Night Premiere of BROKEN EMBRACES red carpet
arrivals: Academy Award winning actress Penélope Cruz, BROKEN
EMBRACES, ceo Andrea Illy, Illy Coffee, rear left.

John Hurt Reprises His Iconic Gay Role

FortLauderdaleFF — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:33:59 +0100

"I've played all kinds of roles, but the one that seems to have stayed in the imagination of the public was one I did way back in 1975", veteran British actor John Hurt shared with audiences at the Berlin Film Festival last winter following the premiere screening of AN ENGLISHMAN IN NEW YORK. "When I played real-life gay pioneer Quentin Crisp in the television film THE NAKED CIVIL SERVANT, it made an immediate impact not only on my life but on that of Mr. Crisp himself."

The television film, based on Crisp's autobiography of his outre life as an "out" gay man in the repressive British society of the 1940s and 1950s, was a pioneering film in its native England and became a major cause celebre at the time. Crisp himself was 65 when the film came out and he suddenly was thrust into instant celebrity and gay icon status as a result.

Hurt reprises his celebrated role in AN ENGLISHMAN IN NEW YORK, which chronicles the later life of Crisp, who came to New York City on a speaking engagement in the early 1980s and stayed for the final 20 years of his life. Catching up with the out pioneer and wit during his autumnal New York years, Richard Laxton’s made-for-BBC film showcases Crisp's reconciliation of his icon status. The film makes its Florida premiere tonight at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival.

It was not a charmed period for Crisp, although he was widely embraced by the gay community as an original and early pioneer. However, his acerbic comments on the growing AIDS epidemic (dismissing it in a published interview as a "fad") created a wedge between him and his former supporters which never completely healed until his final days.

The new film does not quite live up to the status of the original, but is absolutely worth seeing as a showcase for a brilliant John Hurt performance. He brings to it the full skill of his decades as an actor; it’s a snappy, razor-sharp performance, full of bitchy charm and devilish grins.

The film ends Sting’s closing title song (it’s from his 1987 album …Nothing Like The Sun and is based on Crisp, who was casual friends with the singer), leaves the viewer with a warmth and good cheer. Crisp remained a controversial figure to his last days, but at least he lived his life by his own moral compass and was a trendsetter and pioneer in ways that contemporary gay culture accepts as its right rather than as a privilege. Without defiant individuals like Crisp, the gay world might still be hiding in its closet.

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Dailies Editor

The Global Film Village: British Independent Film Awards nominations announced

MarlaLewinGFV — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:11:25 +0100

by Marla Lewin

THE RICHARD HARRIS AWARD (for outstanding contribution to British Film) is being awarded to Daniel Day Lewis

The twelfth annual British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs) were announced today, Monday 26 October, at Soho House in London. All of the films nominated for best picture and most of those in the other major categories have been or will be released in the United States. This is a major accomplishment in today's independent market which is under major assault.

BEST BRITISH INDEPENDENT FILM

An Education
Fish Tank
In The Loop
Moon
Nowhere Boy

BEST DIRECTOR

Sponsored by The Creative Partnership
Andrea Arnold – Fish Tank
Armando Iannucci – In The Loop
Duncan Jones – Moon
Jane Campion – Bright Star
Lone Scherfig – An Education

THE DOUGLAS HICKOX AWARD [BEST DEBUT DIRECTOR]

Armando Iannucci – In The Loop
Duncan Jones – Moon
Peter Strickland – Katalin Varga
Sam Taylor Wood – Nowhere Boy
Samantha Morton – The Unloved

BEST SCREENPLAY

Sponsored by BBC Films
An Education – Nick Hornby
Fish Tank – Andrea Arnold
In The Loop – Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
Moon – Nathan Parker
Nowhere Boy – Matt Greenhalgh

BEST ACTRESS

Sponsored by M.A.C
Abbie Cornish – Bright Star
Carey Mulligan – An Education
Emily Blunt – The Young Victoria
Katie Jarvis – Fish Tank
Sophie Okonedo – Skin

BEST ACTOR

Sponsored by Stolichnaya Elit
Aaron Johnson – Nowhere Boy
Andy Serkis – Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll
Peter Capaldi – In The Loop
Sam Rockwell – Moon
Tom Hardy – Bronson

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Anne-Marie Duff – Nowhere Boy
Kerry Fox – Bright Star
Kierston Wareing – Fish Tank
Kristin Scott Thomas – Nowhere Boy
Rosamund Pike – An Education

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Sponsored by Stolichnaya
Alfred Molina – An Education
Jim Broadbent – The Damned United
John Henshaw – Looking for Eric
Michael Fassbender – Fish Tank
Tom Hollander – In The Loop

MOST PROMISING NEWCOMER

Christian McKay – Me & Orson Welles
Edward Hogg – White Lightnin’
George MacKay – The Boys Are Back
Hilda Péter – Katalin Varga
Katie Jarvis – Fish Tank

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN PRODUCTION

Bronson
Bunny & The Bull
The Hide
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
Katalin Varga

RAINDANCE AWARD

Sponsored by Raindance
Colin
The Disappearance of Alice Creed
Down Terrace
Exam
They Call It Acid

BEST TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT

Sponsored by 3 Mills Studios
Bright Star – Cinematography – Greig Fraser
Bunny & The Bull – Production Design – Gary Williamson
Fish Tank – Cinematography – Robbie Ryan
Moon – Original Score – Clint Mansell
Moon – Production Design – Tony Noble

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Sponsored by Chapter Media
The Age of Stupid
The End of The Line
Mugabe and The White African
Sons of Cuba
Sounds Like Teen Spirit

BEST BRITISH SHORT

Christmas with Dad
Leaving
Love You More
Sidney Turtlebaum
Washdays

BEST FOREIGN FILM

Il Divo
The Hurt Locker
Let The Right One In
Sin Nombre
The Wrestler

The film receiving the most nods is Fish Tank with eight nominations. Moon follows with seven nominations. An Education, In The Loop and Nowhere Boy each receive six nominations and Bright Star receives four. Other films with multiple nominations are Katalin Varga receiving three, and Bronson and Bunny & The Bull receiving two nominations each. The BIFA Pre-Selection Committee of 70 members viewed more than 200 films, out of which they selected the nominations, decided by ballot.

The awards ceremony will take place on Sunday 6 December at The Brewery, Chiswell Street, in London and will be hosted by James Nesbitt. BIFA is sponsored by the following: The UK Film Council, 3 Mills Studios, BBC Films, Chapter Media, The Creative Partnership, M.A.C, Raindance, Soho House, Stolichnaya, Variety.

Interview with New York Film Festival Program Director Richard Pena

avivapress — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:08:08 +0100

By Maria Esteves - October 26, 2009

Dedicated to the loving memory of Florence Perlow Shientag (September 9, 1908 - October 7, 2009)

As Lincoln Center celebrates it's 50th Anniversary (October 15, 2009 - January 16, 2010), Richard Pena (RP) program director and chairman of the selection committee at The Film Society of Lincoln Center presents Italian Neorealism and the Birth of Modern Cinema at the Walter Reade Theater, October 30 - November 24, 2009. Pena discovered his love of film early in life. He attended his first New York Film Festival (NYFF) at age 12. I had the great honor of interviewing Richard Pena at the closing night of the 47th NYFF on Sunday, October 11, at the Walter Reade Theater.

ME: What inspired you to be in the film industry?

RP: As a child growing up in New York City I saw more films than I guess most kids. When I was twelve years old, I came to the New York Film Festival to see "The Wedding March," by Erich von Stroheim, which I liked very much. Before the festival, I was picking out, seeing, and reading about certain films. Coming to the festival and going to the Museum of Modern Art was where I learned a lot. As time went on, I devoted myself to watching American film classics by John Ford, Howard Hawks, Alfred Hitchcock, Ingmar Bergman, and the Hispanic works of Luis Bunuel. Film meant a lot to me and eventually I found a way of making a living out of it.

ME: How was the festival founded?

RP: Lincoln Center was founded in 1959. The first President of Lincoln Center was William Shuman. Mr. Shuman was a composer and a great film fan. He wanted film to have a presence in this new complex.The idea of starting a film festival at Lincoln Center was at the time when film festivals were beginning all over the world. The New York Film Festival was founded in 1963 and the directors were Richard Roud and Amos Bogel. Amos stayed with the festival for six years, Richard stayed for 25 years, and I came in 1988.

ME: What are the goals of the festival?

RP: The goal of the festival is to celebrate and promote film as art. Every year, we select a small number of films from all over the world and we present those films what I and my colleagues in the selection committee consider to be the cutting edge of the world of film today.

ME: How has the festival changed over the years?

RP: The festival over the years has changed very little. We are still the same structure and style. When the festival was founded in 1963, there were no other film festivals in New York City. Since then, the number of festivals has increased. A few years ago, one of my students at Columbia University did a report on film festivals and he came up with 63 film festivals in New York. Our selections have become broader internationally due to the fact there are far more films available to me than were available to Amos Bogel and Richard Roud. I can see films from Iran, Taiwan, Africa, and Latin America, which would have been more difficult for them to see because of transportation. This year, we had seventeen countries represented in the festival.

ME: What will be different next year?

RP: We are in a constant state of reassessment, looking at everything we do, and how we can make it better.

ME: Should the festival reflect a theme?

RP: No, the festival has no agendas or preconceptions. The pact we have with the audience is that we are absolutely open and honest. We do not select a film because the filmmaker happens to be famous, we have shown his/her previous work, or about an issue we think is important. The audience believe the films we select are truly the best.

ME: How has the audience changed?

RP: The audience has become more animize. We have a particular audience for particular films. At this year's festival, if you went to see Todd Solondz's film LIFEDURING WARTIME, Sunday morning, October 11th, you would have seen a younger audience. If you went to see Michael Honeke's film THE WHITE RIBBON, Thursday night, October 8th, you would have seen a slightly older more traditional film festival audience.

ME: What films have had the best reactions over the years?

RP: We are in our 47th year. Many important and famous films have come out of the New York Film Festival. The festival has been very much behind the careers of filmmakers such as Bernardo Bertolucci, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, and François Truffaut.

ME: How have the filmmakers been affected by the festival over the years?

RP: The New York Film Festival remains the single best platform in the United States, especially for foreign language subtitled films. We have provided a launching pad for many films and filmmakers and people are very grateful to us for that.

ME: How are the festival awards decided?

RP: The New York Film Festival have a policy of no awards. Every year, we are asked by someone to institute an Audience or Critique awards. We absolutely refuse. Over the years, I have heard from filmmakers say they come here and relax. They show their work, meet other filmmakers, see other films, and not have to be involved in some competition. Because of that, I myself am very much against awards and as long as I have some say, I will never allow them to be a part of the festival.

ME: Ever think of doing a best of the New York Film Festival?

RP: Years ago before we had the Walter Reade Theater, we would do summer programs at Alice Tully Hall. We did the first fifteen years tribute of the New York Film Festival. We are a small festival and we like to think all our programs are the best. If we are showing a film in one of the other programs that was in the New York Film Festival we always list it.

ME: How is the festival different from others?

RP: The difference from other festivals is size. Many festivals are really quite large especially in North America. Their approach is to be very encyclopedic and panoramic. We are a very small festival showing 25 films yearly. We give a very bright spotlight, which means there are years when certain films are not included for example, films from a certain part of the world or the work of a certain filmmaker. Our festival selection committee has to make very tough choices. Every year, people have their own ideas of what should and should have not been in the festival making it seem personal. That happens all the time. If theirs an African film in the festival is because we really love it not because theirs an African slot we have to fill every year.

ME: What can you tell us about your personal life?

RP: I'm married with three children living in the Upper West Side, New York. I divide my work time at The Film Society of Lincoln Center as program director, and chairman of the selection committee, and at Columbia University as professor in film studies.

ME: What upcoming projects are you involved?

RP: Our latest project ITALIAN NEOREALISM at the Walter Reade Theater, runs from October 30 through November 25, 2009. It brings together 40 films from the period 1943 till the early 1960s. It's the first in dept look New York has had in many years of this most important influential movement. This project has taken a very long time to organize. I am happy it finally came together.

Thank you, Richard.

Interview with Clive Owen at the BFI London Film Festival

LondonFilmFestival — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 08:31:40 +0100

It's the BFI London Film Festival and I'm at the BFI Southbank to meet Clive Owen.
We can all just google Clive Owen to read about his achievements as a BAFTA, Golden Globe winner and for his extensive work in the film and tv industry. Therefore I thought I should pick out some goodies from the interview, that you don't read about everywhere else...

Born 1964 in Coventry, Clive Owen was a man who didn't have it all set in his early life. With a father who left the family when Owen was three and raised by his mother and stepfather, a railway ticket clerk, he described his childhood as rough.

Clive is the man who first didn't believe that acting could be tought, then got into RADA by asking them to go to hell and called Julia Robers a whore in their first film together. When asked if he ever see it as just a job Clive express that he truly loves every film he goes into and that he never see it as "just a job".

"When performing in a play at the age of 13 I suddenly knew that I would dedicate my life to acting" he says. But being born and raised in a small place like Coventry didn't leave much room for expressing his vision. "I wasn't taken serious when I explained I wanted to become an actor. People told me to stop dreaming" he says. School went out the window as he fell in love with the craft of acting.

Clive had no believe in that acting was something you could be tought at school or "You can't teach people to act", as Clive express it himself. But at the age of 16 when he had been chasing acting work for over 2 years without success he got persuaded to apply to acting school. He got in immediately, but turned it down. Then it occured to him that it was the only road to take so Clive spent another two years to try to get in.

He eventually got into RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art) by swearing and cursing at the judges, as part of his audition. During his last year at RADA he went on to do 7 straight plays and he says that it was a great experience to work with other like-minded people as passionate as himself. During the interview he mentions many times that the 3 years of full-time theatre work he dedicated RADA was vital for his success as an actor. However Clive reveals that as much as he loved RADA he thought they should have included some film continuity as part of the education.

When entering the tv industry he fealt very new to the whole situation. It was basically learning by doing, as he had no experience from filming. Clive keapt the doors open to theatre which also turned him into an acclaimed stage actor. At the start of his career he was just happy to make a living, Clive says. In 1984 only 6 films was made in the UK. It was hard to get BFI funded, leaving the actors to fight for the very few jobs that were.

Clive managed to seize his first film role in Vroom (1988), coming straight out of RADA and within two years he played in the TV crime drama Chancer. The rich rewarding experience from hours of work opened up for more opportunities and many successful award winning films were to follow.

Oven got the great opportunity to work with Julia Roberts for the first time in Closer, where he in one of the scenes call her a whore, giving her the opportunity to offer one last great fuck in exchange for her freedom, meaning he would sign the devorce papers... He later got the chance to work with her again in the smart adult Hollywood film Duplicity (2009). The characters in the film don't trust eachother, but in real life Clive states that Julia Roberts was extremely easy to work with, leaving him feeling relaxed and confident. "We worked very well together", he explains.

"I don't think there is no such thing as natural charisma on film. Charisma is developed through the way the actor relates to the camera and the people you work with", Clive says.

When asked why he never moved to LA, as so many other successful actors, he explains his love for London. Whatever happend his base would always be London. "You have to go to LA, it's the centre of everything. It's all about status, how much you're worth as an actor. I don't think that's always healthy for an actor," he says.

When finally asking him when he's going to move into directing he says he does have a passion for directing and that he's been flirting with the idea, but that he must find something he's really passionate about, he would have to stop acting and be fully commited to directing. "There are no rules in film making", he says.

In a week from now he's off to America to do another film, with David Schwimmer (Friends) as director. "It's an amazing script", he says. Clive plays the father of a 14 year old girl who's on Internet, being groomed. We're all very excited about what his next masterpiece will look like.

Clive lives in Highgate, London with his wife Sarah-Jane Fenton and their two daughters Hannah and Eve. He met his wife when the two performed the leads in Rome and Juliet and they married in 1995. When asking him if he's a bit domestic he responds; "I do the washing up, yeah". He also says he's a Liverpool fan, simply stating the reason being that they won everything when he was a little kid.

Johanna Pearl Trenck

Interview with Clive Owen at the BFI London Film Festival 22nd October 2009

Johanna Trenck — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:09:28 +0100

"I don't think there is no such thing as natural charisma on film. Charisma is developed through the way the actor relates to the camera and the people you work with", Clive says.

London Film Festival Official Vodcast Day 11

LondonFilmFestival — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:26:23 +0100

Highlights from yesterday include;

Footage from the Wallace & Gromit's 20th Anniversary featuring interview with Nick Park.

Interview with Matt Harlock, Paul Thomas directors of American: The Bill Hicks Story at the Filmmakers Afternoon Tea.

David Morrissey interview at the premiere of his film “Don’t Worry About Me” also featuring interviews with Helen Elizabeth & James Brough

A Prophet premiere featuring interviews with the director Jacques Audiard and writer Abdel Raouf Dafri

Official London Film Festival vodcast - Day 11 - kewego
Catch up with the events from Day 11 of The Times BFI 53rd London Film Festival