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Our bi-weekly Film Festival Roundup column explores notable stories and news updates from the circuit.

– Slamdance has announced the Beyond and Shorts programs for their 24th edition. The 2018 Slamdance Film Festival will run January 19 – 25 in Park City, Utah. This year, several Slamdance Alumni return with highly anticipated presentations in the Beyond lineup. All films program are made by emerging filmmakers working just beyond their first features.

“The films in the Beyond Program exhibit singular directorial vision while sharing a common commitment to challenge audiences to step outside their comfort zones,” said Beyond programmer, Josh Mandel in an official statement. “These bold and adventurous filmmakers represent the most current voices in American independent film, and will continue to push boundaries in the years ahead.”

This year’s short film lineup showcases productions from 26 countries, including: Canada, Iran, USA, and beyond. Shorts in the Narrative, Documentary, Animation, Anarchy, and Experimental sections are...

Mubi is exclusively premiering online the new restorations of Hot Thrills and Warm Chills (1967) and The Nest of the Cuckoo Birds (1965) as part of the series ByNWR. I think it was Quentin Tarantino who said that the grindhouse enthusiast not only has to drink a lot of milk to get to the cream, they have to drink a lot of curdled milk. And I generally figured I would leave that to someone else because it didn't sound too appetizing. So I have to be grateful to Nicholas Winding Refn, a sturdier trashonaut than I, who has performed curatorial duties, rediscovering and restoring two prime examples of cultist cream, thick, clotted and soured and probably very bad for your figure. I shouldn't, I really shouldn't. But I'm going to.Hot Thrills and Warm Chills (1967) accompanies its nonsensical title with some really exciting Latin rhythms, credited to "Dario de Mexico" (who has...

Republic raids an early Rko talkie for a fantastic special effects sequence, and you won’t believe how it’s repurposed — in a story about a TV personality (in 1939!) taking on a corrupt political mob. New York crumbles and is then washed away — sort of. It’s yet another resurfacing of a title that not long ago we couldn’t see to save our cinema-curious souls.

S.O.S. Tidal Wave

Blu-ray

Olive Films

1939 / B&W / 1:37 flat Academy / 62 min. / Street Date October 31, 2017 / available through the Olive Films website / 29.98

Starring: Ralph Byrd, George Barbier, Kay Sutton, Frank Jenks, Marc Lawrence, Dorothy Lee, Oscar O’Shea, Mickey Kuhn, Ferris Taylor, Don ‘Red’ Barry, Raymond Bailey.

Cinematography: Jack A. Marta

Film Editor: Ernest Nims

Musical Director: Cy Feuer

Written by Gordon Kahn, Stanley Rauh, Maxwell Shane, story by James Webb

Produced by Armand Schaefer

Directed by John H. Auer

If Republic wasn’t...

The world will finally get to see Roger Deakins’ latest visual masterpiece when “Blade Runner 2049” opens in theaters this Friday, but the legendary cinematography isn’t taking any moment to rest after working on the Denis Villeneuve sequel for the last year. The 68-year-old Dp has confirmed to Variety that he’s gearing up to shoot “The Goldfinch” next, in which principal photography begins in January. Deakins’ prep on the film begins in a couple weeks.

“The Goldfinch” is an adaptation of the 2013 bestseller by Donna Tartt. Warner Brothers and Amazon Studios have teamed up for the film adaptation, which will be directed by “Brooklyn” helmer John Crawley. Ansel Elgort has been offered the lead role, according to multiple reports, but no official casting announcements have been made by the studio. The plot tells the story of Theodore Decker, a young man who survives a terrorist bombing at an art museum.

If the success of “Moonlight” and “Atlanta” are any indication, 2017 is set to become the year of the visionary black auteur (about time already). Joining their ranks soon enough is Chanelle Aponte Pearson, director of ‘195 Lewis,” which recently won a Special Mention from Outfest for “highlighting the contemporary life of queer black woman with flair, vibrancy and substance.”

The short series explores the joys and pitfalls of open relationships in a vibrant community of black queer women living in Bed Stuy, Brooklyn. Flowing with original music by members of the community and glowing with luscious colors and warm light, Pearson breathes life into the eclectic mix of characters with equal parts humor and lust. The script, by first-time screenwriters Rae Leone Allen and Yaani Supreme, radiates a confident originality that heralds a fresh new perspective.

Read More‘Atlanta’: Donald Glover Wants You To Feel What It’s Like to...

Karlovy Vary — Director David Lowery is currently on a global tour as his Sundance smash, “A Ghost Story,” prepares for release in a number of territories including the United States on July 7. The filmmaker hasn’t gotten much rest, however, as his next project, “The Old Man and the Gun,” just completed shooting last month and he’ll immediately head back into the editing room when his ‘Ghost’ promotional duties are over.

Continue reading David Lowery Says ‘Old Man And The Gun’ With Robert Redford “Experimental” Like ‘A Ghost Story’ at The Playlist.

Neill Blomkamp has premiered his new short film “Rakka,” described as “the story of broken humanity following the invasion of a technologically superior alien species.” It’s familiar territory for the filmmaker, who announced himself to the world with “District 9” and was briefly attached to an “Alien” sequel that never materialized.

Read More: Neill Blomkamp Reveals Why He’s Forming His Own Studio — and the Fate of His ‘Alien’ Sequel

He ended up working with Sigourney Weaver anyway, as the former Ellen Ripley stars in this new 20-minute sci-fi story. The project comes from Oats Studios, which Blomkamp recently launched as a means of debuting short films for free online — and potentially expanding them to feature length.

“At the end of making ‘Chappie,’ I wanted to try to figure out a different method for making films and expressing myself,” Blomkamp told the Verge about this new venture. “I felt...

Terror Films and iflix recently forged a partnership to distribute films digitally in multiple global markets, including Unearthed and Untold: The Path to Pet Sematary. Also: Monster Hunt DVD release details, The Passing clips, Matthew Quinn's The Thing in the Woods, and the winners recap for the 5th Annual Philip K. Dick Science Fiction Film Festival.

Terror Films and iflix's Global Distribution Digital Deal: Press Release: "Los Angeles, California (Friday, May 26th, 2017): Genre distributor Terror Films has teamed up with the world’s leading Subscription Video on Demand (SVoD) service, for emerging markets, iflix. This newly formed partnership will allow the distributor to expand their digital reach into multiple territories within iflix’s footprint including South East Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, with future territories to be announced.

The films set to launch under the deal will include a wide variety from the label. They will include: the post- apocalyptic film,...

Neill Blomkamp’s “Alien” sequel may not be happening now that Ridley Scott has taken back the reins on his franchise, but the “District 9” director is busy all the same. His next project is more ambitious than just another movie, as he’s forming Oats Studio as a sort of testing ground for short films that will be released for free online — and, if all goes well, perhaps even expanded into features.

Read More: Watch Neill Blomkamp’s Crazy Trailer for Alien Invasion Story ‘Volume 1’ From Oats Studios

“At the end of making ‘Chappie,’ I wanted to try to figure out a different method for making films and expressing myself,” explained Blomkamp to the Verge. “I felt that if I could sell smaller pieces directly to the audience, the sale of those small experimental pieces would keep this machine alive so that it became an ecosystem that was self-sufficient.

Neill Blomkamp has teamed up with the new short film company Oats Studios to release a series of experimental shorts, the first trailer for which looks as crazy and epic as anything you’d expect from the “District 9” and “Elysium” director. The teaser trailer for Oats Studios’ “Volume 1” depicts a world where humanity is enslaved by aliens who “came here to exterminate us,” a narrator explains. The aliens themselves look reptilian, but walk on two feet and shoot weapons. Other footage in the trailer appears to come from separate short films, one of which depicts U.S. army forces fighting in the jungle.

Read More: ‘District 9’ Director Neill Blomkamp to Release Experimental Short Films On Gaming Site Steam

Oats Studios will stream the short films via the online gaming platform Steam. Blomkamp has been dropping hints regarding the new venture for the past year on Twitter, revealing that...

Keep up with the always-hopping film festival world with our weekly Film Festival Roundup column. Check out last week’s Roundup right here.

Lineup Announcements

– Exclusive: The 12th Annual Sunscreen Film Festival announced its official selections for the 2017 event featuring films with Alec Baldwin, Dylan McDermott, John Cleese, Daphne Zuniga and more. Opening night will feature Michael Mailer’s newest film, “Blind,” a romantic-drama, starring Alec Baldwin, Demi Moore and Dylan McDermott. Closing night will wrap up the festival with “Albion: The Enchanted Stallion,” a family fantasy adventure, starring John Cleese, Debra Messing, Jennifer Morrison and Stephen Dorff.

Retrospective Screenings will include Daphne Zuniga appearance at the festival honoring the 30th anniversary of “Spaceballs.” Also in this category will be “The Greatest Show on Earth,” from 1952 directed by Cecile B. DeMille, which won the Oscar for Best Pictures and Best Writing in 1953. The screening will honor the closing of the Ringling Bros.

The Tribeca Film Festival announced today its full slate of panels and discussions with industry leaders for the 16th annual festival.

Under the Tribeca Talks banner, the festival presents a talent-filled roster in discussion with leading creative voices across the entertainment industry. That includes conversations with big name directors such as Kathryn Bigelow, Noah Baumbach, Lena Dunham, and Jon Favreau, as well as crossovers from the music and sports industries like Common, Kobe Bryant, and Bruce Springsteen. They will be joining previously announced participants Alejandro González Iñárritu and Barbra Streisand.

Read More: Tribeca 2017 Lineup: New Films From Alex Gibney, Azazel Jacobs and Laurie Simmons Lead the Eclectic Mix

Scarlett Johansson will interview Jon Favreau as part of the Directors Series, and Dustin Hoffman will do the same with Noah Baumbach. The Storytellers Series will feature “Girls” creator Lena Dunham in conversation with longtime collaborator Jenni Konner, as well as a...

In her Oscar-nominated performance as Jackie Kennedy in “Jackie,” Natalie Portman has received the bulk of the film’s praise (rightfully so) for her in-depth portrayal of a public figure so mysterious to the general public. Still, one of the most notable aspects of her character — and a major factor in her performance — is the all-important Jackie Kennedy accent.

In an aptly exhaustive examination of the actor’s approach, Alex Abad-Santos over at Vox breaks down the historical significance of Jackie’s accent with the help of several linguistic experts. Not quite transatlantic and not quite New York, Kennedy’s accent was a product of her wealthy upbringing along with a childhood split between Southampton and Long Island. The driving force of her accent, though, came from her years in school in Manhattan. At this time, well-to-do students, much like Kennedy herself, were taught a mixture of American English with...

Eight features and eight short films from the Netherlands or supported by the Dutch have been selected for the 67th Berlin International Film Festival that runs 9–19 Feb 2017.“The Wound”

“The Wound” is the only film ever to world premiere in Sundance, continue into Hivos Tiger Competition in Rotterdam and play Opening Night at the Berlinale Panorama. The movie is universal and potent exploraton of conflicting conceptions of what it means to be a man.

A lonely, young factory worker Xolani travels to a remote mountain camp in South Africa to tend teenage boys going through a traditional Xhola rite of passage. This year, Xolani is assigned to mentor Kwanda, a coddled Jo’burg boy who challenges the customs of the camp and is ostracized by other initiates. Kwanda, as observant as he is insolent, quickly notices the attraction between Xolani and his fellow caregiver, the volatile Vija. Heeding Kwanda’s exhortations,...

One of the most critically acclaimed films from last year, “Jackie,” reminded audiences of the politics of our country’s past, when in our current times contemporary politics seem inescapable. This connection between past and present is made tangible in Kevin B. Lee’s short documentary “Not Another Camelot,” which showcases every First Lady from Jackie Kennedy to our current lady of the White House, Melania Trump.

Read More: ‘Jackie’ Review: Pablo Larrain’s Experimental Jackie Kennedy Biopic Is a Unique Triumph – Venice Film Festival

Lee utilizes clips of interviews and public appearances to convey the ideologies and personalities of the First Ladies, highlighting how the role of the First Lady has evolved over the years. The documentary also demonstrates how our media has transformed in terms of the standards they hold the First Ladies to and the expectations the country has for them. The video also interestingly draws comparisons...

Last night, the 23rd annual Slamdance Film Festival announced the feature and short film recipients of this year’s Sparky Awards. A jury of filmmakers and industry professionals determined the Slamdance Jury Awards for Narrative Feature, Documentary Feature, and Short Film categories. The Audience Awards and the Spirit of Slamdance, an award given by the filmmakers of Slamdance 2017 to the director who best embodies the spirit of the Festival, were also bestowed. The award winners were announced at the festival’s annual Awards Ceremony at the Treasure Mountain Inn in Park City, Utah.

Read More: Slamdance Film Festival Announces 2017 Lineup: ‘Aerotropolis,’ ‘The Children Send Their Regards’ and More

“Independent film is made beautiful not by those individual artists that form celebrity culture but by creative collaboration” said Peter Baxter, Slamdance Co-Founder and President. “At Slamdance this year we’ve experienced an entire program of beautiful independent film and the promise...

Keep up with the glitzy awards world with our weekly Awards Roundup column.

– Jeffrey Katzenberg, Chairman of DreamWorks New Media, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 54th Annual International Cinematographers Guild (Icg, Iatse Local 600) Publicists Awards Luncheon to be held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 24, 2017.

In making the announcement, Henri Bollinger, chairman of the Publicists Luncheon Awards Committee, commented, “.From the outset of his career, Jeffrey has demonstrated an ability to incorporate the essence of entertainment into a wide spectrum of projects. This has led to an unprecedented track record which continues to evolve with each passing year..”

Icg national president Steven Poster Asc added, .”Jeffrey Katzenberg is one of the giants of our industry, a man who has brought us some of the greatest films of our generation, be they live action or animation..”

.”I am thrilled and honored by this recognition,.” Katzenberg said of the honor.

If you were dream hampton, the award-winning filmmaker who happens to call Shawn “Jay-z” Carter a friend, naturally you would want make a movie with him. And if you want to raise awareness about a massive social justice issue that deeply affects your community in gorgeously simple and human terms, you make “A History of The War on Drugs, from Prohibition to Gold Rush.”

Read More: ‘Endless’ Review: Frank Ocean Takes a Running Leap Into Experimental Digital Art With New Visual Album

The animated short, which is narrated by Carter with drawings by the artist Molly Crabapple (who credits Spike Jonze as a collaborator), premiered on The New York Times website today to much viral fanfare. Crabapple’s hand appears in frame holding a watercolor brush, the frame-rate sped up to create the illusion that whipping up her gorgeous illustrations is the easiest thing in the world. Carter’s narration tells the history of U.

Pablo Larrain’s “Jackie” roused what’s been a sleepy market at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival. Starring Natalie Portman as the former First Lady, the film covers a four-day period that begins just before the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, and Portman turns in an Oscar-worthy performance that received a standing ovation at the film’s screening Sunday.

Fox Searchlight has first and last look on the movie, but distributors also understood to be in the hunt include A24. EuropaCorp, French mogul Luc Besson’s U.S.-based upstart led by former Universal co-chairman Marc Shmuger, made initial inquiries but stopped short of a bid. CAA and Insiders are handling the sale.

Related‘Jackie’ Review: Pablo Larrian’s Experimental Jackie Kennedy Biopic Is a Unique Triumph – Venice Film Festival

Also generating heat is Spanish filmmaker Nacho Vigalondo’s genre-defying monster movie “Colossal” starring Anne Hathaway. The movie follows...

The 73rd Venice International Film Festival comes to a close this evening with their annual awards ceremony. The festival ran from August 31st through September 10th, with Sam Mendes as the President of the Jury for the main competition. You can watch the winners accept their awards live with the Venice Film Festival live stream. Follow the link to watch the ceremony and check in on the winners list below.

Read More: Venice Film Festival Reveals First Slate of 2016 Titles, Including ‘Voyage of Time,’ ‘The Bad Batch,’ ‘Jackie’ and ‘Nocturnal Animals’

This year, Viff screened many high-profile films, including such anticipated fall features like Damien Chazelle’s musical “La La Land,” Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi film “Arrival,” and Terrence Malick’s “Voyage of Time.” They also premiered more more mainstream fare outside of competition, like Mel Gibson’s latest “Hacksaw Ridge” and Antoine Fuqua’s “The Magnificent Seven.”

Read More:...

Here's to September, when the high-decibel CGI chaos of summer movie season finally gives way to more humanistic, if Oscar-eyeballing projects from the major studios. Sony, Paramount, Fox and the like prepare to trot out their prestige pictures and other awards horses, many of which have the added benefit of being quite good, while indie outfits get set to release a varied array of pictures a few steps from the beaten path. Throw in an unanticipated sequel to a decade-old horror smash, a revitalized staple of the Western genre, and...

Industry reports indicate around 67% of music streamed online in India, comprise of Bollywood and Regional. The urban millennial is clear about her/his consumption of the genre and the number is only multiplying. At a time when the nation plays host to over 20 music festivals, it is clearly the most apt time for Bollywood to debut its own festival and Mumbai will play host to its very first homegrown Bollywood music festival!

More than 20 musicians of the tallest order from the Bollywood fraternity will be seen jamming together on a single platform over two stages over the two days of the festival. Touted as Asia’s largest multi-genre Bollywood music festival, Radius Developers presents Hungama Bollywood Music Project (Bmp) will ensure that all devout music enthusiasts get up close and personal with their favourite Bollywood hit-makers. To be held at Jio Garden, Bkc, Mumbai on September 30 and October 1, the...

For those who’ve been craving stop-motion animation, there are two options currently available. First, there’s the fantasy adventure film “Kubo and the Two Strings” from Laika Entertainment, and then there’s hip hop artist Travis Scott’s latest music video “90210” taken from his album “Rodeo.” Directed by Hype Williams, the video features stop-motion animated action figure of Scott destroying a city like Godzilla and having sex with another action figure. Watch it below.

Read More: Starting Today at Bam: Hype Williams’ ‘Belly’ and The Source 360

Travis Scott began his career producing beats before shifting to a lead artist. He released his debut mixtape “Owl Pharoah” in 2013 where it was eventually nominated for Best Mixtape at the Bet Hip Hop Awards. He released his second mixtape “Days Before Rodeo” the following year. Scott then released his debut album “Rodeo” from Grand Hustle Records and Epic Records. It received generally positive reviews from critics,...

Here’s your daily dose of an indie film, web series, TV pilot, what-have-you in progress — at the end of the week, you’ll have the chance to vote for your favorite.

In the meantime: Is this a project you’d want to see? Tell us in the comments.

Queer Genius

Logline: “Queer Genius” explores the lives of four visionary queer artists: Eileen Myles, Barbara Hammer, Jibz Cameron and Shannon Funchess.

Elevator Pitch:

“Queer Genius” is a cinematic exploration of four visionary queer artists breaking down barriers in their creative fields as they confront fame, failure, censorship, family, gender, and sexuality. The film embraces the communal possibilities of “genius” from a particularly queer perspective crossing genre and generational perspective.

The film features intertwined portraits of Eileen Myles, Barbara Hammer, Jibz Cameron (Dynasty Handbag), and Shannon Funchess of Light Asylum.

Production Team:

Catherine Pancake – Director/Producer

L.A. Teodosio – Consulting Producer (“Little Men”)

Laura Terruso – Consultant,...

Here’s your daily dose of an indie film, web series, TV pilot, what-have-you in progress — at the end of the week, you’ll have the chance to vote for your favorite.

In the meantime: Is this a project you’d want to see? Tell us in the comments.

Tangent Realms: The Worlds of C.M. Kösemen

Logline: A new documentary about a young Turkish artist exploring imagined worlds both vastly cosmic and deeply personal.

Elevator Pitch:

“Tangent Realms: The Worlds of C.M. Kösemen” is a new documentary about a young Turkish artist who explores imagined worlds both cosmic and personal. By merging science with art, evidence with surrealism, the natural world with mythology, Memo Kösemen continuously asks a dominant theme in his various creations: “What If …?” It’s about what happens when we find ourselves at a unique point in our lives, and wonder about what might have been,...

Festival’s new $20,000 international competition prize goes to Albert Serra for The Death Of Louis Xiv; One Week And A Day wins best Israeli feature.

The 33rd Jerusalem Film Festival, which wraps on Sunday, has awarded its top prizes to The Death Of Louis Xiv by Albert Serra (best international film), One Week And A Day by Asaph Polonsky (best Israeli feature), and Dimona Twist by Michal Aviad (best Israeli documentary).

The international jury was comprised of Cornerstone Films’ Alison Thompson, Icelandic director Grímur Hákonarson, and Israeli director Talya Lavie, who praised Serra “for creating a bold and distinctive chamber piece in a beautifully detailed world. For its stunning set design and cinematography that captures its period brilliantly. For creating an intimate and moving look at the sunset of a great figure in history.”

An honourable mention went to Tobias Lindholm’s A War.

The Death Of Louis Xiv wins the $20,000 cash prize for the festival’s new international...

Festival’s new $20,000 international competition prize goes to Albert Serra for The Death of Louis Xiv; One Week And a Day wins best Israeli feature.

The 33rd Jerusalem Film Festival, which wraps on Sunday, has awarded its top prizes to The Death of Louis Xiv by Albert Serra (best international film), One Week And A Day by Asaph Polonsky (best Israeli feature), and Dimona Twist by Michal Aviad (best Israeli documentary).

The jury was comprised of Cornerstone Films’ Alison Thompson, Icelandic director Grímur Hákonarson, and Israeli director Talya Lavie, who praised Serra “for creating a bold and distinctive chamber piece in a beautifully detailed world. For its stunning set design and cinematography that captures its period brilliantly. For creating an intimate and moving look at the sunset of a great figure in history.”

An honourable mention went to Tobias Lindholm’s A War.

Louis Xiv wins the $20,000 cash prize for the festival’s new international competition, supported...

Director David Lynch enlisted rockers, techno producers, DJs, film composers, dance choreographers, and others to participate in the first Festival of Disruption. The full-blown Lynchian event takes place October 8th and 9th at the Ace Hotel and Theater in Los Angeles.

Robert Plant & the Sensational Space Shifters, Angelo Badalamenti (performing the music of Twin Peaks), Xiu Xiu, St. Vincent, Sky Ferreira, Jon Hopkins, Questlove (DJ set), and more will perform. Experimental architect Frank Gehry, actor Mel Brooks and Blondie’s Debbie Harry and Chris Stein will give talks. Lynch also...

Keep up with the always-hopping film festival world with our weekly Film Festival Roundup column.

– Exclusive: The 6th Annual Lower East Side Film Festival and their 2016 panel of judges, including Ethan Hawke, Cindy Tolan, Steve Farneth and Raul Castillo have announced their winners. Check them out below.

Best Feature Film – “Americana” – By Zachary Shedd

Best Live Action Short Film – “Killer” – By Matt Kazman

Best Animated Short Film – “The Mega Plush: Episode I” – By Matt Burniston

Best Music Video – The Knocks’ “Collect My Love” – By Austin Peters, Music by The Knocks, featuring Alex Newell

Best Documentary Short Film – “Erosion” – By Brandon Bloch, Tim Sessler and Brandon Bray

The Advocacy Award Presented by Here TV – “Video” – By Randy Yang

The Lesff Neighborhood Award – “Streit’s: Matzo and the American Dream” – By Michael Levine

Best of Fest, The Lesff Prix D’Or – “Art of the Prank” – By Andrea Marini

Audience Award...

With filmmaking and digital technology being so ubiquitous today, it becomes almost difficult to decide the difference between amateur stuff and real aspiring artists. Those budding filmmakers need not look further than the Brooklyn Film Festival, a festival founded in 1998 as a way to bring independent and ambitious filmmakers into the limelight. With the opportunity of having their work shown to an audience filled with movie lovers, critics, and anything in between, the Brooklyn Film Fest offers a once in a lifetime shot for those artists to truly make a mark on society and leave people yearning for more.

The 18th Brooklyn Film Festival took place from June 3 to 12 in Brooklyn (duh), sharing multiple venues between the Wythe Hotel and Windmill Studios. Of the festival’s “quirks,” one such innovative idea is the theme that goes along with each year’s entries. This year’s theme was Experiment, claiming that...

Numerous sections that range from those that focus on particular geographical regions, to one that highlights features crafted by homegrown talent, another formed by stories about people who have left their hometowns to find a better life elsewhere, and even one that honors Minnesota’s Scandinavian heritage, are some of the blocks that build the extensive and boldly curated program of the 35th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (Mspiff).

Discerning which films to watch from the couple hundred that will play in the Midwestern city during the next two weeks is a colossal task and one that is directed by taste and interests; however, there are plenty of options for adventurous audiences looking to watch a unique cinematic vision outside of their comfort zone.

The most audacious offers include a French animated featured focused on a war-torn African country, Joel Potrykus follow-up to “Buzzard,” a subversive Lgbt drama about skaters in Mexico City, the story of a Somali man in Minneapolis who finds friendship in a lonely dog, a dark Swedish comedy that resembles the humor of celebrated Nordic masters, or a Brazilian coming-of-ager centered on a girl obsessed with the recent murders of local women. Just from the premises is easy to predict that these will not be your typical experience at the movies, but that's not to say they won't be exponentially more entertaining and eye-opening.

Here is a list with 12 unconventional choices, including those mentioned above, playing at Mspiff that we can't wait to see.

Synopses courtesy of the festival.

The 35th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival takes place runs April 7-23. For the full program and tickets visit Here.

"Adama"

Dir. Simon Rouby

France

12 year-old Adama, voiced by French-Malian child actor Azize Abdoulaye Diabaté, lives in an idyllic village sheltered by cliffs. When his brother Samba defies their elders and flees to join the ‘Nassara’ (colonialist French army), Adama follows in an attempt to bring Samba home. Experimental animation combining laser-scanned sculptures of clay and sand with painterly animated scenes bring magical realism to Adama’s journey north from West Africa to Europe’s Western Front in 1914. A heroic odyssey mixes elements of mysticism and allegory with action, adventure, and a little known historical African narrative

Screens April 20 at 2:30 Pm and April 16 at 3:45

"The Alchemist Cookbook"

Dir. Joel Potrykus

U.S.

Sean is a young hermit, living in near total isolation and obsessed with a mysterious alchemic and somewhat manic pursuit that challenges the laws of nature. Off the grid and turning his back on civilization, his days play out inside an old trailer in the swamps, conducting experiments. When a demonic entity appears in the shadows, Sean’s self-induced seclusion is shattered by a true force of evil. Joel Potrykus delivers another meditation on the idiosyncratic side of the male psyche that feels like a dark and demented modern-day folk tale.

Screens April 14 at 9:50 Pm and April 21 at 10:00 Pm

"The Ardennes"

Dir. Robin Pront

Belgium

Robin Pront's feature-film debut opens with a powerful punch and continues with a slow burn downward spiral of brotherly betrayal and brutal retribution. After a robbery goes hopelessly wrong, Dave escapes the scene leaving his brother Kenny behind to take the rap. Flash forward four years and Dave has been able to turn his life around while time has stood still for Kenny, now out on parole, who was left simmering in jail. The palpable tension between Dave and Kenny builds to brutal and thrilling crescendo in the shadows of Belgium's Ardennes forest.

Screens April 10 at 9:40 Pm and April 22 at 9:45 Pm

"A Decent Man"

Dir. Micha Lewinsky

Switzerland

This provocative drama chronicles a family vacation that turns into every parent’s nightmare. Thomas, an amiable man in his mid-forties, resolves that his family will take their annual skiing holiday in the Swiss Alps even though neither his wife or daughter are interested. But things soon become more complicated when his manipulative boss pressures him to include his difficult daughter, Sarah. A convincing portrait of an insecure man whose failure to be a beloved father, brilliant journalist and understanding husband is sending him over the edge.

Screens April 8 at 4:45 Pm and April 19 at 9:40 Pm

"Dragonfly"

Dir. Maribeth Romslo and Cara Greene Epstein

U.S.

Told with heart, humor, and a little bit of magic, "Dragonfly" is a film about homecoming and healing for a Midwestern family divided by divorce and illness. When Anna’s mom is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s, Anna returns home to help but not without some reluctance tied to her emotional family baggage. As she unpacks her past, Anna rediscovers a mysterious mailbox from her childhood and embarks on a search to solve its mystery. What she learns along the way may be the key to her own reconciliation.

Screens: April 10 at 7:10 Pm and April 16 at 4:40 Pm

"Endorphine"

Dir. André Turpin

Canada

What’s the connection between trauma, memory and the relativity of space and time? Endorphine sends you down a rabbit hole where time and existence are scrambled into a Lynchian fever dream. After 12-year-old Simone helplessly witnesses the murder of her mother, she is thrust into an endless loop that explores alternate realities and parallel lives, including what may or may not be adult versions of herself. Expertly crafted by André Turpin (cinematographer on Xavier Dolan’s Mommy and Tom at the Farm and Denis Villeneuve’s Incendies), "Endorphine" is a dark and visually arresting head trip.

Screens April 10 at 9:15 Pm and April 18 at 9:30 Pm

"The Garbage Helicopter"

Dir. Jonas Selberg Augustsén

Sweden

An old Roma woman is seized by a sudden urge to reclaim her antique clock, sending her three grandchildren on an odyssey across the lonesome, big-sky highways of northern Sweden (captured in beautifully bleak black-and-white). The action takes place in the deadpan absurdist territory pioneered by Jarmusch, Kaurismäki, and Andersson. Here, crosswords are completed (including the mysterious entry, "garbage helicopter"), a speed-trap camera is demolished, a Holocaust museum is visited, the world’s second-biggest chair is solemnly viewed, and a gang of art thieves is encountered.

Screens April 21 at 9:40 Pm and April 23 at 7:05 Pm

"Kill Me Please"

Dir. Anita Rocha da Silveira

Brazil/Argentina

Anita Rocha da Silveira’s stunning debut drops us directly into the psyche of a middle-class teenage girl, piqued by raging hormones and fueled with fearless curiosity. A string of grisly neighborhood murders of women captures the imagination of a clique of girls, but especially Bia who feels more and more connected to the dead women than her high school friends. The incident ignites something in Bia, causing her to embrace fantasy and openly explore her sexuality. Built on a unique atmosphere devoid of adults, Kill Me Please is a dark yet pop-infused coming-of-age story.

Screens April 9 at 3:15 Pm and April 14 at 9:45 Pm

"I Promise Anarchy"

Dir. Julio Hernández Cordón

Mexico

Miguel and Johnny are friends from opposite sides of the tracks, but that doesn’t inhibit their romance with one another that revolves around sex, drugs and skateboarding. To support their devil-may-care lifestyle, the boys sell their own blood—and occasionally the blood of their friends and whomever they can find—to an underground network run by the drug cartel. When one such arrangement goes wrong, Miguel and Johnny find themselves way over their head. Director Julio Hernandez Cordon’s stylishly blends a breezy romance of wayward youth with a gritty nior thriller on the streets of Mexico City.

Screens April 8 at 9:15 Pm and April 11 at 9:50 Pm

"Schneider vs. Bax"

Dir. Alex van Warmerdam

Netherlands/Belgium

This black comedy makes a point of turning the hitman genre on its head with unconventional setups that spiral into absurdism. Schneider wakes to his adoring wife and two young daughters planning his birthday party only to have it interrupted by a call from his boss with a job that must be done right away: an easy hit on an isolated novelist named Bax that he can finish by noon. Needless to say, things do not go as planned. Schneider vs. Bax is as much about the contrast and comparison of these two men and their families, as it is the nascent yet ineffective real-world cage match.

Screens April 10 at 9:35 Pm and April 14 at 9:40 Pm

"A Stray"

Dir. Musa Syeed

U.S.

In the microcosm of Minneapolis’ large Somali community, Adan has run out of options. Looking to turn his life around, he finds solace, friendship and a job as a janitor at the mosque. Finding an even better job driving a taxi, Adan unexpectedly finds a new friend in a stray dog. But the mosque sees the dog as impure, and Adan finds himself on the streets again. Director Musa Syeed brings the streets of Riverside and the struggles of young Somalis to the big screen in this vivid and moving drama.

Screens April 15 at 7:20 Pm and April 17 at 3: 50 Pm

"Wednesday, May 9"

Dir. Vahid Jalilvand

Iran

Leila works in a chicken packing factory to support her family, but still has no money left over to save for a much-needed operation for her disabled husband. Setareh secretly married against her family’s wishes, and when her tyrannical cousin finds out, an altercation lands her young husband in jail, requiring 30 million tomans in “blood money” for his release. The two tragic stories of these women are connected to a potential benefactor who could help them in Vahid Jalilvand’s incredible debut feature of carefully drawn characters and bold statements of humanism.

Screens April 8 at 4:50 Pm and April 19 at 4:30 Pm...

Curt McDowell and George Kuchar's comedy epic of oversexed sensationalists running amuck while trapped in a storm-battered house goes beyond strange. It's a legit experimental film but -- gasp! -- also 2.5 hours of hardcore porn and other forms of giddy depravity. A movie guaranteed to make conservative heads explode -- read with caution, please! Thundercrack! Blu-ray Synapse Films 1975 / B&W /1:33 flat full frame / 160 min. / Street Date December 8, 2015 / 39.95 Starring Marion Eaton, Melinda McDowell, George Kuchar, Mookie Blodgett, Ken Scudder, Bernie Boyle, Mark Ellinger, Laurie Hendricks, John Thomas. Cinematography & Film Editor Curt McDowell Makeup Mr. Dominic Original Music Mark Ellinger Written by Mark Ellinger, George Kuchar, Curt McDowell Produced by Charles Thomas, John Thomas Directed by Curt McDowell

Reviewed by Glenn Erickson

*Not your usual Savant review.* As a student in the 1970s I worked as an usher at a couple of Filmex exhibitions at Grauman's Chinese. I then volunteered...

Festival top brass said the Park City event will open with a Special screening of Adam Rifkin and Penn Jillette’s Director’s Cut.

Overall the additional selections announced on Tuesday encompass 23 world, 13 North American and 13 Us premieres.

Special Screenings include sci-fi features Let’s Be Evil from Martin Owen and Embers from Claire Carré, which will close the festival.

Beyond Program selections include Axel Ranisch’s Alky Alky and Daniel Martinico’s Excursions.

The Oscar-qualifying shorts section presents 39 American and 32 international productions in Narrative, Documentary, Animation, Anarchy and Experimental sections.

“The Slamdance Special Screenings section this year is a mix of higher profile work, remarkable talent and a film we thought truly deserved further exposure,” said Special Screenings programmer Paul Rachman.

“Our closing night choice of Claire Carre’s Embers is not a premiere but so what? We’re far more interested getting behind a visionary film from a woman director we are excited to support...

Festival top brass said the Park City event will open with a Special screening of Adam Rifkin and Penn Jillette’s Director’s Cut.

Overall the additional selections announced on Tuesday encompass 23 world, 13 North American and 13 Us premieres.

Special Screenings include sci-fi features Let’s Be Evil from Martin Owen and Embers from Claire Carré, which will close the festival.

Beyond Program selections include Axel Ranisch’s Alky Alky and Daniel Martinico’s Excursions.

The Oscar-qualifying shorts section presents 39 American and 32 international productions in Narrative, Documentary, Animation, Anarchy and Experimental sections.

“The Slamdance Special Screenings section this year is a mix of higher profile work, remarkable talent and a film we thought truly deserved further exposure,” said Special Screenings programmer Paul Rachman.

“Our closing night choice of Claire Carre’s Embers is not a premiere but so what? We’re far more interested getting behind a visionary film from a woman director we are excited to support...

The International Animated Film Society, Asifa-Hollywood, has announced the nominations for the 43rd Annual Annie Awards and "Inside Out" and "The Good Dinosaur," both Pixar movies, led the pack! "Inside Out" received fourteen nominations while "The Good Dinosaur" got nine.

My pick of the year for best animated feature is "Inside Out" but I love Charlie Kaufman's "Anomalisa" as well which picked five noms.

We'll find out the winners of the Annie Awards on February 6th!

Here is the full list of nominees in all categories of the 43rd Annie Awards:

Best Animated Feature

Anomalisa

Paramount Pictures

Inside Out

Pixar Animation Studios

Shaun the Sheep The Movie

Aardman Animations

The Good Dinosaur

Pixar Animation Studios

The Peanuts Movie

Blue Sky Studios, Twentieth Century Fox Animation

Best Animated Special Production

Elf: Buddy.s Musical Christmas

Warner Bros. Animation

He Named Me Malala

Parkes-MacDonald / Little Door

I Am A Witness

Moonbot...

Sonya Pemberton.s Uranium — Twisting the Dragon.s Tail won three prizes at the 2015 Atom Awards presented in Melbourne on Thursday night.

The Genepool Productions documentary, which chronicles the cultural, scientific and natural history of uranium, was lauded as best documentary- history, TV factual series and best documentary — science, technology and the environment.

Director Maya Newell and producer Charlotte Mars. Gayby Baby was named best documentary-general at the awards for tertiary and general/open categories held at Lux Melbourne on Chapel Street, hosted by Brian Nankervis from RocKwiz.

Best documentary- biography went to Remembering the Man, Nickolas Bird and Eleanor Sharpe.s. film on Tim Conigrave and John Caleo, whose story was told in Neil Armfield.s Holding the Man.

Gillian Armstrong.s Women He.s Undressed, produced by Damien Parer, was best documentary - arts.

Best docudrama was The War That Changed Us, which chronicled how WW1 impacted the soldiers and their families,...

** New Update: Two more American films have come to my attention through readers of the blog:

Alison Klayman wrote to say "I know you said at least two films, but I wanted specifically to alert you to the fact that my film "The 100 Years Show" is also playing in the Panorama Documental sections (same as Pj Letofsky's film). "The 100 Years Show" is about 100-year old Cuban-American artist Carmen Herrera, and was produced with RatPac (Brett Ratner) Documentary Films. I'll be attending the festival too.

Alex Mallis wrote in to say: "Our short narrative, "La Noche buena" (the first American-directed since the embargo) is also screening at the festival.

Original Blog:

At least two films by American filmmakers will screen this year at the Havana Film Festival, whose official name is Festival de Cine Nuevo Latinamericano. As the Centerpiece Film, Bob Yari, producer of almost 50 films, will screen his second directed film “Papa” about Ernest Hemingway. It can be called “the first [official or legal] American film made in Havana in the last fifty years”, though underground films have been made (e.g., “Love & Suicide”). “Papa” is being sold at Afm by Elias Axume’s Premiere Entertainment.

Doc filmmaker Pj Letofsky will also be screening his film “ Tarkovsky: Time Within Time” which just premiered at the Sao Paolo Film Festival.

Many U.S. citizens are now interested in going to Havana. To give an in-depth look at Cuba’s film business, I am publishing a [long] chapter of what I hope will soon be published, my book on Iberoamerican film business. I will also be publishing another [shorter] interview here soon with Havana Film Festival Director, Ivan Giroud.

Cuba (Chapter Seven)

Officially the Republic of Cuba, or in Spanish, República de Cuba, the nation is comprised of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. To the north of Cuba lies the United States; the Bahamas are to the northeast, México to the west, the Cayman Islands and Jamaica to the south, and Haiti and the Dominican Republic are to the southeast.

Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean, and with over 11 million inhabitants.

Cuba is undergoing a transition into a market, entrepreneurial economy under the Presidency of Raul Castro. With this transition, the cinema industry is also undergoing great changes. The state mandated organization, Icaic, which has been running the cinema industry, is now under scrutiny. New legislation concerning the film industry is slowly underway as a result of discussions ongoing within the film community. Hopefully the establishment of diplomatic relations will the U.S. last October will propel changes, though without lifting the embargo, it may not.

History of Cinema of Cuba

Cuba’s elite has always stayed in touch with the latest in culture as it developed in Europe during the Spanish colonial era. Cuba’s tradition of cinema dates back to 1897 when the Lumiére Brothers representative from France stopped in Havana to show their films on a tour of the Antilles Islands, México, Venezuela, and the Guineas. Cuba’s particular style of cinema, called the “Cinema of the Greater Antilles”, evolved from the theater of melodrama and comedy and from the radio dramas of Felix B. Caignet, all of which formed the popular melodramas and comedies we still see today.

Mexican coproductions and U.S. filmmakers escaping the monopolistic Edison came to Cuba as well as to California in the early days of film. Federico Garcia Lorca arrived in Cuba in 1930 with a screenplay, “Voyage of the Moon”, and a print of “Un Chien Andalou” hoping to break from the Paris-Berlin monopoly, but his plans never took shape. Many films from Spain, México, Argentina and Uruguay also played in Cuba. Some leading Cuban actors had a strong presence in México and Argentina. Musicians such as Ernesto Lecuona, Bola de Nieve and Rita Montaner performed in movies in several countries.

Cuba, along with Mexico and Argentina, has the most developed cinema culture of Latin America. At its most prosperous, it had the third largest number of theaters in Latin America until the special period when Ussr withdrew its support. Today it has 39 movie theaters. Three of them, including the Yara in Havana, had been built especially for 3D in the 1950s.

Movie going is one of Cuba’s national pastimes, rating perhaps as high as baseball. The average Cuban sees one and a half films a year. However, the lack of international appeal for most of its comedies and melodramas has held its international growth in check up to today. That is now changing.

The international nature of Cuban cinema was consciously defined after the Revolution of 1959 when the Institute for Cuban Art and Industry Cinematography (Icaic) was created by Fidel Castro and entrusted to his university classmate, Alfredo Guevara. The law creating Icaic was incorporated into the Cuban Constitution itself just three months after the Revolution and was an important part of the Nuevo Cine Latinoamerico, a movement throughout Latin America as the Latin American nations threw off their dictatorships. Film, according to this law, is "the most powerful and provocative form of artistic expression, and the most direct and widespread vehicle for education and bringing ideas to the public.”

Cinema was created for theatrical exhibition, for individuals and groups to share in smaller collectives, and for television.

The law ordaining Icaic to control every cinematographic activity created no further rules about financing, about submitting, reading and approving project proposals or regarding any required time frames. Icaic functions very internally with no outside surveillance.

Actually it is possible to make films without Icaic participation, the point is that without Icaic a film cannot get national distribution.

Over the past decade Icaic has loosened its monopolistic administration. Every sector and every level of cinema is discussing the concept of a new Law of Cinema with the government’s interest in formalizing as law a more inclusive infrastructure with more transparent rules and regulations.

Under the leadership of Raul Castro, the island has been undergoing a gradual economic reform process allowing entrepreneurs to license their own businesses after decades of state monopoly. The measures include the authorization of self-employment in more than 200 small trades and activities. According to the government, there are currently 442,000 registered as “self-employed”. The Castro administration hopes for this emerging sector to absorb over a million state workers to be laid off in the coming years.[ii]

In October 2014, the state closed down many private cinemas which had emerged avowing to the love of cinema of the people. Many were 3D “salons” in homes or in separate rooms in restaurants. Authorities pressed for "order, discipline and obedience" in the growing small business sector. Needless to say, the films shown were pirated and not licensed by the rights holders. Nor was there ever any official licensing to privately owned theaters (yet).

However, these could provide a good source of taxation. It needs to be decided what shall be taxed, how tax monies should be apportioned for film funding, film education, what tax incentives the government might offer, how distribution will be subsidized, how archives may be maintained and presented, how to regulate screenings, dvd, TV and online platforms, what cash incentives might bring in production from the outside, what joint ventures within the Caribbean might be developed and how Icaic is approaching and incorporating the changing environment. The Director of Icaic, Robert Smith de Castro. is facing more challenges than its previous longtime Director, Alfredo Guevera, ever faced when the government provided everything. Now it must find answers from its neighbors and its own internal producers and procedures.

In general, funding a film, renting equipment and shooting in Cuba all need to be approved by Icaic. This has changed somewhat as other players have come to take a role, like Rtv Commercial, which is in fact the production company of Cuban National Television.

Rtv Commercial coproduced the newest Cuban hit, “Conducta” (“Behavior”) with Icaic. It premiered at Ficg 2014 (Guadalajara International Film Festival) and played at Tiff 2014 and other festivals such as the Málaga Spanish Film Festival 2014 where it won five awards.

New Developments in Cuban Cinema

In 2014 there were 14 productions and coproductions made, compared to seven in 2009 and 4 in 2000 according to FnCl and Ocal, databases of Latin American film.

At Cannes’ Cinema du Monde in May 2014 and in San Sebastian’s Coproduction Forum, “ August” (“Agosto”) was one of 15 projects selected to be seen and discussed by the international community of sales, distribution and financial executives. Directed by Armando Capó Ramos and produced by La Feria Producciones’ Marcella Esquivel, it is a coproduction between Costa Rica and Cuba. It will shoot next year in Havana and is now raising funds through crowdfunding. Also featured among the 15 in San Sebastian was “Wolfdog” (“Hombre entre perro y lobo”) directed by Irene Gutiérrez and produced by El Viaje Films, a Spain-Cuba coproduction.

Seeking modes of financing outside of government funding began in 2002 with the Festival of New Filmmakers showcasing projects was created by young people outside the Icaic system. As a result of the 2002 event, five years later, a funding mechanism called Hacienda Cine was created by pulling productions from Icaic Cuban television into centers and foundations that have other areas for audiovisual production. Pitch sessions for each selected entity were set up. The prize for production services worth 20,000 Convertible Cuban Pesos (equivalent to Us $20,000) was set up by Icaic Production. There are currently also smaller groups creating smaller formats, scientific or otherwise who are fomenting alternative forms of financing as well.

Lia Rodriguez Nieto is an attorney who was mentored by and worked fourteen years, until his death, with Camilo Vives, Icaic’s head of production, first as an attorney and then as a producer. She has now taken charge of the industry section at the Havana Film Festival which Vives began in 2009. She and Antonio López, recently produced a Cuba-Panama-France coproduction “ El Acompañante” (“The Companion”) directed by Pavel Giroud. She states that over the last five to seven years, private (not state institutional) productions have co-existed with institutional production. However, it would be important for independent producers to have a more regulated and confident relationship with Icaic in a more normalized fashion in order to have easier access to filming permits, forms of financing, banking relations, coproduction treaties, and a number of other elements which are essential to film production.

Rebeca Chávez is a director and a member of one of the groups pushing for a new cinema law which will, in principle, establish a new system incorporating the democratic participation of all people in the business, including techs, writers, directors, producers, actors, etc. and where all will have a democratically designed access to funds. In1984 she began her career as documentary director and her work has been given different national and international awards. She is the second woman in Cuba who has made feature films. She has taught several seminars on theory and practice of documentary cinema and on the Cuban experience in the genre in different institutions in the United States, Puerto Rico, England and Spain. She has worked as advisor for scripts of documentaries and feature films.

It is most important that the state has the will to make these changes, and it has stated it is open to changing the laws. Omar González who succeeded Alfredo Guevara as the head of the Icaic was replaced in 2013 by 30 year Icaic employee Roberto Smith de Castro who is now faced with reorganizing Icaic and implementing new laws which are yet to be formulated. He is considered to be a patient and attentive man who listens and will work to incorporate the diverse opinions into a new working reality.

The son of the famed director Daniel Diaz Torres whose controversial film “Alicia en el pueblo de Maravillas” (“Alice in the City of Wonders”) in 1991 was so critical of the bureaucracy of the government at the time of the Soviet collapse that it caused the resignation of Icaic’s director Espinosa, independent producer Daniel Diaz Ravelo points out that the independent producer is neither legal nor illegal but exists in a sort of limbo, free to produce whatever he or she wants but needing legal sanctions to access necessary permits, equipment, etc. And a filmmaker has no bank account so fiscal responsibility is difficult. One must get a certificate from Icaic but there is no registration rule on how this is to be done.

And it gets more complicated. It is difficult to raise a Us$400,000 budget without networking with filmmakers from other countries and yet travel is not easy for Cubans. They can travel -- Cuba no longer has a problem with that -– but often they cannot get the visa required from the country they want or need to travel to. Daniel’s father had a problem in traveling to find financing for his last film, “La Pelicula de Ana” (“Ana's Movie”), from former producers of his films. It did receive some funding from Icaic and from former funding friend, Icestorm in Germany, and a loan from Ibermedia. Unfortunately Daniel Diaz Torres, Sr. recently died an early death and did not see the fruits of his labor in the 2013 Havana premiere.

The new generation today in Cuba is highly independent; it knows that diversity of film subjects and of filmmakers is key to Cuban cinema today and it is finding diverse sources of financing and distribution. It needs more information as well because everything depends upon contacts. Cineastes traveling to Cuba will find a vibrant group open to coproducing.

2015 marks the eighth year of the Havana Film Festival’s Works in Progress. The Post Production Award, Nuestra América Primera Copia, is an international competition for films from Latin America and from Cuba, with no restrictions; films can be produced by Icaic or independently. For example, in 2013 awards went to four films, one from Chile, “I’m Not Lorena” (“No Soy Lorena”), which premiered at Tiff 2014; one from Argentina, “La Salada”, which premiered at the San Sebastian International Film Festival 2014 and Tiff 2014; and two from Cuba -- one Icaic film, “His Wedding Dress” (“Vestido de novia”), and the independent, “Venice” which was also Tiff 2014.

Thanks to an initiative by La Muestra, a group of Cuban production companies (including several independent ones), once a year support is awarded to four or five projects by young filmmakers. The independent film “Melaza” by Carlos Lechuga with the 5ta Avenida Productions premiered on October 3, 2013.

Rubén Padrón Astorga, writing for On Cuba [iii], November-December 2013 [1] writes:

The best prospects for our cinema today emerged like an earthquake in late April of this year, when Kiki Álvarez, the director of “Jirafas”, “La ola” and “Marina” and “Venezia”, initiated a debate on the problems that the country has with two vital filmmaking processes (production and distribution). Close to 60 audiovisual makers responded with a meeting where they formed a Filmmakers Committee to represent the rest of the country’s professionals.

Soon after its creation, the Committee announced that its objectives included ensuring the active participation of Cuban filmmakers in every decision that was made about [our] cinema, and protecting and developing its production at the industrial and independent levels. At this time, they are working together with Icaic and the Ministry of Culture to pass a decree-law defining the autonomous audiovisual creator, which would legitimize filmmakers as a legal concept, with full rights to exercise their profession. However, the decree-law, which was drafted seven years ago and ratified by the most recent Uneac Congress, was rewritten by the Filmmakers Committee so that it is not limited to recognizing audiovisual practice as individual work, but as collective, and so that it legally protects independent producers.

This committee, together with the so-called Ministry of Culture Temporary Working Group for the Transformation of Icaic, is actively participating in drawing up a diagnosis of Cuban cinema’s problems, which will be followed with the drafting of policies and actions for solving those problems. This step will clear the way for the long-term creation of a comprehensive film law. This law, which would involve widening the scope of the law passed in 1959 for Icaic’s founding, or drafting a new one, would include the creation of a film commission that would support production and make it viable; a promotion fund that would be governed by an arts council, and to which all independent and institutional artists could aspire; financial incentives that would promote the support of private and state companies and sponsors; and a general legal framework that conceives of cinema systemically, inspired by the useful experiences that have taken place in other countries in the region, such as Colombia, Argentina, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic.

A convocation of cinema directors was held May 4, 2013 in Strawberry and Chocolate Cultural Center, Havana to address the need to participate in all plans and activities planned for Cuban cinema. The meeting chose a working group composed of Enrique Kiki Álvarez, Enrique Colina, Rebeca Chávez Lourdes de los Santos, Daniel Diaz Ravelo, Pavel Giroud, Magda González Grau, Inti Herrera, Senel Paz, Fernando Perez, Manuel Perez and Pedro L. Rodríguez.

The main objective of this group is to represent the filmmakers at all levels and events, promote and ensure the active participation of the same in all decisions and projects that relate to Cuban cinema, and strive for the protection and development of these arts and industries and their makers, which is our right and duty as protagonists of this art. At its first meeting, the group reached the following conclusions and agreements (verbatim):

1 -. We recognize the Cuban Film Institute and the Film Industry (Icaic) as the rector of the Cuban film industry state agency; born with the revolution and its long history is a legacy that belongs to all filmmakers. At the same time, we believe that the problems and projections of Cuban cinema today do not concern only the Icaic, but also other institutions and institutional groups or independently involved in their production, without whose help and commitment is not possible to achieve meaningful and lasting solutions. For that reason, its reorganization and promotion can not be done only in the context of this organism.

2 -. We understand the Cuban film produced through institutional, independent mechanisms, co-production with third or mixed formulas, and as filmmakers to all creators, technicians and Cuban specialists of these arts and industries that do their work inside or outside the institutions , whatever they may be aesthetic, content or affinity group. Consequently, it is imperative the adoption of Decree Law Media Creator recognition. This decree should be enriched with all additional legal supplements necessary.

3 -. We consider essential enacting a Film Law, whose production and given all participate and to be the legal body to order and protect the artistic and economic activity in the country.

4 -. We consider it important to study and implement a Film Development Fund, to which all authors in accessing equal rights and conditions, and open call to an independent jury whose selection parameter is the quality and feasibility of the whole project.

5 -. At this stage, the filmmakers give priority to the organization and remodeling of the methods of production and realization of works, the concept that these are, first and last instance being essentially the way we express ourselves and connect with the public. Similarly, we propose a systemic boost our activity covering the organization and remodeling of the forms of production, distribution, exhibition and national and international projection of Cuban cinema.

6 -. Start work, reviewing and updating the document "Proposals for a renewal of Cuban cinema", adopted at the Seventh Congress of the Uneac in 2008. As progress is made, they will be sharing all the proposals with the filmmakers.

7 -. Exchanging proposals and views with the State Commission working on the development of proposals for the transformation of the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry.

8 -. To express our deep concern for all matters concerning international relations and Cuban cinema projection, which was a revolutionary vanguard movement in the Latin American and global context. We strive for a quick recovery and exchange relationships with filmmakers from Latin America and the world, and the continuity of the Festival of New Latin American Cinema, in its next edition turns 35.

9 -. This representation group performed their work in ongoing dialogue and communication with all filmmakers through regular meetings, which shall have the power to ratify or renew the group members, making decisions of common interest and to identify priorities and lines of job.

Filmmakers Group in the Assembly elected Cuban Filmmakers Saturday May 4 at the Centro Cultural Fresa y Chocolate, after its first meeting on May 8.

Havana, May 8, 2013. This was a verbatim article in Cubarte Magazine. [iv]

Festivals/ Markets

In 1979 Icaic created the International Festival of New Latin American Cinema aka Havana Film Festival as a way to disseminate its ethical convictions about developing film that was nonconformist, irreverent, critical of social injustice and rebellious against the pressures of the market across the continent. The event hosted over 600 filmmakers from Latin America and had as presidents of juries Gabriel García Márquez (Fiction ) and Santiago Álvarez (Documentaries and Cartoons.) The Coral Grand Prize winners were Geraldo Sarno (“Colonel Delmiro Gouveia”, Brazil) and Sergio Giral (“Maluala”, Cuba), in Fiction, Patricio Guzmán (“The Battle of Chile: the Struggle a People Without Arms”, Chile), Documentary, and Juan Padrón (“Elpidio Valdés”, Cuba) in Animation.

However, the contradiction of Icaic’s exercising a central control over maverick innovations is obvious since it controlled the production criteria and the right to decide what type of film was convenient to make and what was not.

An official competition of unpublished scripts for feature films is held by International Festival of New Latin American Cinema for authors from Latin America and the Caribbean for original scripts (no literary adaptations), written in Spanish and with Latin American themes. Scripts whose production rights have been transferred to third parties are not eligible. [v]

Icaic also supports the Festival Internacional de Cine Pobre de Humberto Solas[vi] for low budget films and Festival Internacional de Documentales “Santiago Alvarez in Memoriam”[vii].

Muestra Joven is a festival for Cuban youth with premiere fiction, doc and animated films. It has collateral activities of debates about the films in the festivals, master classes, meetings about contemporary issues and themes in the audiovisual community, workshps and onferences, poster exhibitions and homages.

In April 2014 the Mediateque of Women Directors, based in Cuba formally affiliated with The Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival in creating the the Caribbean Film Market. The project is also in association with The Foundation for Global Democracy and Development of the Dominican Republic, The Association for The Development of Art and Commercial Cinematography of Guadalupe, The Foundation for New Latinamerican Cinema, The Regional and International Film Festival of Guadalupe and the Mediateque of Women Directors.

Education

Icaic was in charge of training and promotion of talented young people not only in cinema but in other arts like music for which it created the Experimental Sound Group.

Isa

Most of the new independent filmmakers are young graduates of the Higher Art Institute’s (Isa) Faculty of Audiovisual Communication Media and its provincial affiliates. The University of Arts of Cuba - (Isa), Instituto Superior de Arte - was established on September 1, 1976 by the Cuban government as a school for the arts. Its original structure had three schools: Music, Visual Arts, and Performing Arts. At present the Isa has four schools, the previous three and the one for Arts and Audiovisual Communication Media. There are also four teaching schools in the provinces, one in Camagüey, two in Holguín and one in Santiago de Cuba. Isa offers pre-degree and post-degree courses, as well as a wide spectrum of brief and extension courses, including preparation for Cuban and foreign professors for a degree of Doctor on Sciences in Art. Predegree education has increased to five careers: Music, Visual Arts, Theatre Arts, Dance Arts and Arts and Audiovisual Communication Media. In 1996, the Isa established the National Award of Artistic Teaching, conceived for recognizing a lifework devoted to arts teaching.

Eictv

Eictv, the International School of Cinema and Television was founded December 15, 1986 at the Festival of New Latin American Cinema in Havana with the support of then-President Fidel Castro on the initiative of Latin American cultural figures such as Argentine director, “Father of the New Latin American Cinema”, Fernando Birri, Julio and Gabo and Colombian Nobel Prize winning novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez who donated his prize money to establish the school.. It is located in San Antonio de los Baños near Havana, on land donated by the Cuban government.

Hundreds of young students from all over Latin America have studied direction, script, photography and edition. Since its founding , 810 students have graduated and it has become one of the region’s most important and well-grounded cultural projects.

Students pay 15,000 euros (about $19,700) to attend for the full three-year program. The fee includes food, lodging and equipment. Tuition income accounts for just 15 percent of the school's budget. Funding comes from international agencies such as Ibermedia; countries including Brazil, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Panama; and regional organizations like the Alba alliance of leftist Latin American nations.

For the past eight years, Nuevas Miradas, organized by the Eictv Production Department has held its presentations at the International Festival of New Latin American Cinema for bringing new projects to the attention of international professionals.

Also in the late 1980s, Cuba created the Third World Film School to train students from various third world countries in the art of filmmaking.

Film Funding

Icaic has been the only body to fund films. How the selection of what films would receive funding has never been a public matter.

There are no instruments for private companies or individuals to contribute to film production in Cuba yet. There are however, international funds that may help finance films, such as Hubert Bals Fund from The Netherlands, World Cinema Fund from Germany, Fonds Sud from France, the Norwegian Fund, Sor Fond, Acp, etc. The best actively kept lists are found in Ocal[viii] and Online Film Financing [ix].

Coproduction with Cuba

As early as 1948 coproductions were common between Cuba and México. During the 70s and 80s Russian coproductions included Mikhail Kalatozov’s classic 1964 film “I Am Cuba” (“Soy Cuba”). Spain has played a role in coproducing Latin American and Cuban films since the 30s but in the 1990s it began to invest more heavily. In 1997 Ibermedia was created for the purpose of promoting coproduction between Spain and Latin American countries. Cuba is one of the fourteen countries involved in this organization.

In addition, Cuba has bilateral coproduction treaties with Italy, Canada, Venezuela, Spain and Chile. So far nothing has resulted from the Chile accord.

Two examples of Cuban coproduced films are Humberto Solás’ 1982 film “Cecilia” (Cuba - Spain) and Tomás Gutiérrez Alea and Juan Carlos Tabío’s 1992 Academy Award-nominated “Strawberry and Chocolate” (“Fresa y chocolate”) (Cuba – México – Spain - U.S.).

In September 2013 at San Sebastian International Film Festival’s 2nd Europe-Latin America Coproduction Forum, “The Companion”/ "El Acompañante" won the Best Project Award sponsored by Spain’s Audiovisual Producers’ Rights Management Association Egeda and carrying a 10,000 Euros (Us$13,000) cash award.

This is the third feature of Giroud after “The Silly Age” and “Omerta”. It is a coproduction of Cuba, Venezuela’s NativaPro Cinematográfica and France’s Tu Vas Voir owned by Edgard Tenembaum who produced Walter Salles’ “The Motorcycle Diaries”. The film also obtained the collaboration of Programa Ibermedia and was selected for Cinemas du Monde.

Pavel Giroud is one of the most promising of young Cuban filmmakers today. “The Companion”/ "El Acompañante" is set in 1988 Havana and tells the story of the friendship which develops between Horacio Romero, a Cuban boxer who fails a drug test and a defiant patient at an AIDS center under military rule for whom Romero must serve as a warden or, in Cuban government parlance, a “companion”. Playing the role of Horacio is Yotuel Romero (Latin Grammy Award-winning and founding member of Cuban rap group Orishas). Orishas is one of the world’s most critically hailed Latin-urban artists. The co-protagonist is Cuban actor Armando Miguel Gómez who has received international recognition for his role in the recent films "Behavior”/ “Conducta" and “Melaza”. International sales are handled by the Brazil-based international sales agency, Habanero, which, coincidently is owned by Cuban Alfredo Calvino and Brazilian Patricial Martin who handle such outstanding films as “Juan on the Dead”, Carlos Lechuga’s “Melaza”, Sebastian Cordero’s “Pescador” and Francisco Franco’s “Last Call”. Habanero also sponsors distribution awards at Ficg and Ventana Sur’s Primer Corte, a showcase for pictures in post-production. All the updated information about these films, including festivals and awards is available at: www.habanerofilmsales.com.

Case Study of the Producer, Inti Hererra

Cuba’s first English language film, “Eating the Sun”, a coproduction with Canada, is being produced by Inti Herrera who also is heading the new night spot of avant garde popular entertainment, La Fabrica de Arte Cubano.

Inti Herrera, formerly of 5ta Avenida Productions and I first met in 2003 through the international sales agent Alfredo Calvino whose then-company Latinofusion was selling Inti’s first fiction feature, “Viva Cuba”, a road movie of two kids traveling across Cuba in search of one’s father.

Inti graduated Eictv and worked for a long time as an independent producer of documentaries.

In 2009, when Camilo Vives, Icaic’s head of production created the Industry Sector of the Havana Film Festival Inti became its director and managed it until 2010. In 2010 when he was still running the industry space he invited me to speak about New Media, and I spoke of Peter Broderick who was then invited to do a workshop at Eictv.

As an executive producer, Inti must raise financing from the development through the completion of film projects. Each project is of course different from the last. He and Alejandro Brugués were originally discussing working on a different sort of film, “Melaza”, but put it on hold and in 2010 and 2011 he worked instead on the commercial film, “Juan of the Dead”, which is the most exhibited film of Cuba.

“Juan of the Dead”, Cuba’s first truly independent movie, a zombie horror comedy was coproduced in 2011 by Spain's La Zanfoña Producciones, where it was post-produced, and Cuba's first independent production company Producciones de la 5ta Avenida which also produced “Personal Belongings” in 2006 and “Melaza” in 2012. The film was written and directed by Alejandro Brugués (“Personal Belongings”). It was executive produced by Inti Herrera, Claudia Calviño and Gervasio Iglesias.

The film was represented for international sales by Latinofusion, a Guadalajara based company sponsored by Universidad de Guadalajara and managed by Alfredo Calvino. It was shown in more than 50 festivals worldwide, winning 10 audience awards and the Spanish Film Academy’s Goya Award of the for best Iberoamerican film. It sold to 42 territories.

“Juan of the Dead” distributors:

Argentina (Condor/ Mirada), Bolivia (Londra Films P&D), Brazil (Imovision), Canada (A-z Films), Chile (Arcadia Films), Germany (Pandastorm Pictures), Hong Kong and Macau (Sundream Motion Pictures), Hungary (Ads Service), Italy ( Moviemax Media Group Spa), Japan (Fine Films), Latin American Pay TV (HBO Latin America), México and Central America (Canana), Netherlands (Filmfreak), Norway (Tromso International Film Festival), Puerto Rico (Wiesner), Russia and Cis territories (Cinema Prestige), Spain (Avalon), Switzerland (Ascot Elite), U.K and Ireland (Metrodome), U.S.(Theatrical Distributor Outsider Pictures, all other rights Focus World)

Today Inti is working with a new director, Alfredo Ureta on the Canadian coproduction and the first Cuban film in English. “Eating the Sun” is about a Canadian-Cuban couple who decides to live in Cuba. Before settling in they make a tour of the country and become involved in a psychological thriller. The Canadian producer is Gordon Weiske of Canwood Entertainment. They are discussing the male lead role with Kris Holden-Ried. The goal is to find new markets for this film, markets which Cuba has not targeted before.

Top 10 Films of Cuba is a selection of my own:

1. “Memorias del subdesarrollo” (“Memories of Underdevelopment”) (Tomás Gutiérrez Alea, 1968)

2. “Lucia” (Humberto Solás, 1969)

3. “Vampiros en La Habana” (“Vampires in Havana”) (Juan Padrón, 1983)

4. “Soy Cuba” (“I am Cuba”) ( Mikhail Kalatozov, 1964)

5. “La bella del Alhambra” (“The beauty of the Alhambra”) (Enrique Pineda Barnet, 1989)

6. “Fresa y Chocolate” (“Strawberry and Chocolate”) (Tomás Gutiérrez Alea and Juan Carlos Tabío, 1993)

7. “Lista de Espera” (“The waiting list”) (Juan Carlos Tabío, 2000)

8. “Havana Suite” (“Suite Havana”) (Fernando Pérez, 2003)

9. “Juan of the Dead” (Alejandro Brugués, 2011)

10. “Melaza” (Carlos Lechuga, 2013)

[1] http://www.oncubamagazine.com/magazine/for-independent-and-industrial-cuban-cinema/

Cubacine. El Portal del Cine Cubano. http://www.cubacine.cu/index.html.

[ii] http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=99785#sthash.yCWbyCcU.dpuf

[iii] http://oncubamagazine.com/magazine-articles/for-independent-and-industrial-cuban-cinema/ Cubacine. El Portal del Cine Cubano. http://www.cubacine.cu/index.html.

[iv] http://www.cubarte.cult.cu/periodico/opinion/cineastas-cubanos-por-el-cine-cubano/24423.html

[v] http://www.cinelatinoamericano.org/ocal/direct.aspx?cod=1234

[vi] www.festivalcinepobre.org , www.cubacine.cu/cinepobre

[vii] www.cubacine.cu/festivalsantiagoalvarez/index.html

[viii] http://www.cinelatinoamericano.org/ocal/directorios.aspx?cod=8&par=2

[ix] www.olffi.com/...

Special Mention: Un chien andalou

Directed by Luis Buñuel

Written by Salvador Dalí and Luis Buñuel

France, 1929

Genre: Experimental Short

The dream – or nightmare – has been a staple of horror cinema for decades. In 1929, Luis Bunuel joined forces with Salvador Dali to create Un chien andalou, an experimental and unforgettable 17-minute surrealist masterpiece. Buñuel famously said that he and Dalí wrote the film by telling one another their dreams. The film went on to influence the horror genre immensely. After all, even as manipulative as the “dream” device is, it’s still a proven way to jolt an audience. Just ask Wes Craven, who understood this bit of cinematic psychology when he dreamt of the central force behind A Nightmare on Elm Street, a film intended to be an exploration of surreal horror. David Lynch is contemporary cinema’s most devoted student of Un chien andalou – the severed ear at...

Special Mention: Spirits Of The Dead (Histoires extraordinaires)

Written and directed by Federico Fellini (segment “Toby Dammit”), Louis Malle (segment “William Wilson”), Roger Vadim (segment “Metzengerstein”)

France, 1968

The first thing you should notice is the three directors: Federico Fellini, Louis Malle, and Roger Vadim. Secondly, take notice of the cast, which includes Brigitte Bardot, Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda, Alain Delon, Terence Stamp, Salvo Randone, James Robertson Justice, Françoise Prévost and Marlène Alexandre. Spirits Of The Dead is an adaptation of three Edgar Allan Poe stories, one of which demands to be seen.

The first segment of the film, Vadim’s “Metzgengerstein”, is unfortunately the least impressive, but is still great in its own right, and features a marvelous performance by Jane Fonda. Malle’s segment, which is the second of the three, turns Edgar Allan Poe’s 1839 story into an engrossing study in cruelty and sadism. This episode is an engaging enough entry,...

In our last article, we went over the history and exciting things the Brooklyn Film Festival offers its contestants. And now it’s time to meet the films and the winners.

16Mmonster: directed by Jacob Kindlon; a 12 minute short from the Us.

20 Years Of Madness: directed by Jeremy Royce; a 90 minute documentary from the Us.

Abby Singer/Songwriter: Directed by Onur Tukel , a 75 minute film from the Us.

Abigail Deville’S Harlem Stories: Directed by Nick Ravich, a 7 minute American documentary.

After A Dream: Directed by Tobias Schmuecking, a 17 minute short from Germany.

And It Was Good: Directed by Graham Waterston, a 19 minute short from the Us.

Winner of the Short Narrative Spirit Award

Big Bag: Directed by Ricardo Martin Coloma, a 13 minute animation from Spain.

Block And Piled: Directed by Marc Riba & Anna Solanas, a 5 minute animation from Spain.

Blue-eyed Me: Directed by Alexey Marfin, a 7 minute short from England.

The 5th Annual UnderGround Film Festival will take place between August 22nd and August 29th at venues in and around Cork City. Screening 120 short and feature films in diverse categories such as Local, National, International, Spanish, Drama, Comedy, Documentary, Animation, Experimental, Horror/Sci-Fi and Music Videos. Proudly supported by Rising Sons Brewery, the UnderGround Film Festival is one of the only Film Festivals in the country to actively give to charity and this year will once again continue to contribute to its long term partners; the Ispcc. This year’s events programme is the largest to date, with submissions having come from 35 countries but according to Festival Director Darren O’Mahony, the most exciting events are still the wide selection of local made short films. "This year has seen a huge surge in submission numbers, we took in almost three times as many entries as last year and those...

At their annual retreat, the traditional internal kick-off for the big Sundance Film Festival this January, programmer Charlie Reff was able to take some time to talk with me about Next Fest.

My colleague Carlos Aguilar has already written about this big L.A. event here, so I will cover other areas and fill in on the music components of the film program.

Each film is its own event so that audiences will go to one film and not necessarily all films. Though the series package is selling well, the individual ticket sales are significant not only selling out but in bringing in new audiences. Getting L.A. people’s attention is not an easy task, but the pairing of movies and music in the unique way Next is creating, plus the spectacular venue, the Theatre at the Ace Hotel, one of L.A.’s most lavish and historic film venues, downtown at 9th and Broadway, will also bring out new audiences who care about preservation of our art deco landmarks.

This year more than half the films that showed in Sundance came out quickly theatrically this spring and summer followed by their VOD releases. If they did not get released theatrically then they were eligible to be chosen for Next if they were sufficiently “renegade” in the best spirit of indie filmmakers, like past films “Obvious Child”, “Compliance”, “Appropriate Behavior”, “Tangerine” and “Escape from Tomorrow”.

Out of the six films chosen for the unconventional and forward thinking of their narrative styles – including one doc -- there is a full range of experience to be had.

Four films showing in the evening are paired with live musical acts which somehow fit the film in mood or in ideas and are new and next in film and music.

In addition there will be three world premiere music videos and a full-body, mind-blowing virtual reality flight simulator, Birdly which was shown this past Sundance in the New Frontier exhibition. You can experience being a bird from a first-person perspective through a full-body virtual reality set up….it’s free, in the mezzanine of The Theatre of the Ace Hotel and available through an onsite waitlist system.

The world premiere music videos are Superhumanoid’s music video for “Anxious in Venice”, premiering Friday along with Noah Baumbach’s out of the mold “Mistress America” (Fox Searchlight) followed by a live performance by Sky Ferreira.Health’s album trailer for “Death Magic” as part of Saturday evening’s screening of “ Entertainment“ (Magnolia Releasing) starring Michael Cera will be followed by a solo performance by Sharon Van Etten. “Death Magic” is directed by acclaimed graphic designer, title designer, and editor Pablo Ferro, who has worked alongside some of the most respected filmmakers of all time including Stanley Kubrick, Hal Ashby and Tim Burton. An experimental short film by Eddie Alcazar with soundtrack by Flying Lotus, “Fuckkkyouuu”, will premiere Sunday at the “Turbo Kid” (Epic Pictures Releasing) screening with a back-to-back DJ battle between Neon Indian and Toro Y Moi.

Pairing music audiences with movie audiences aims to bring new awareness of new art canvasses to people who do not have a lot of crossover knowledge of film on one hand or of music on the other. Musicians often want to make movies and both they and filmmakers have had the carpets pulled out from under them and are struggling to find their way amidst digitization. It seems self-evident that fimmakers appreciate music since soundtracks and even the most incidental music in a film can make or break it. By pairing “Mistress America” with Sky Ferreira, Charlie is sure Sky’s fans will love “Mistress America” which will result in new discussions and will perhaps begin to define how to make sense of movies to music audiences. The cross-pollination of audiences enriches everyone.

The two daytime films, “Cronies” by Michael Larnell and “Finders Keepers” will be followed by conversations, paired respectively with Robert Townsend, one of the Godfathers of the Independent Film World, actor, writer, director and producer of first of “Hollywood Shuffle” followed by many other films; and Saturday’s “Finders Keepers” directors Bryan Carberry and Clay Tweel with Thomas Middletich (“Silicon Valley” ) along with the film’s subject John Wood himself! Speakers were chosen by the filmmakers who were told to ask who was influential them them and who would they want to see their film.

Among the filmmakers, cast and musicians expected to attend Sundance Next Fest are Rick Alverson, Noah Baumbach, Bryan Carberry, Munro Chambers, Greta Gerwig, Health, Tim Heidecker, Lola Kirke, Michael Larnell, François Simard, Superhumanoids, Gregg Turkington, Clay Tweel, Anouk Whissell and Yoann-Karl Whissell.

Attendance is expected to be around 10,000 judging by lat year’s numbers. Last year all three film with music event was sold out. The opening screening in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery was huge and the screenings over three days had about 1,000 at each event.

Next is not just a film festival; it is an Event.

Sundance Next Fest is supported by Principal Sponsors – Acura and Adobe; Major Sponsor – Kickstarter; Media Sponsor – Kcrw; and Supporting Sponsors – Beachside Films, Dolby, FilmL.A., Inc., ShopHouse, Shudder, Skullcandy®, Southwest Airlines, Stella Artois®, The Theatre at Ace Hotel and the Utah Film Commission. As part of their presence at the festival, Adobe and Kickstarter will host panels open to the public on Saturday and Sunday afternoons;

Below is the full program in detail. Even more details and tickets ($15-25) now on sale can be found at sundance.org/next.

Friday, August 7, 8:00 p.m.

"Anxious in Venice" (Band: Superhumanoids, Director: Taylor Cohen) — It's 4:37 a.m. and someone straps a camera to your chest. Nearby, your hungover bandmate sips gas station coffee and the director yells about missing the sunrise. You hate performance music videos but you're sure this one will be different. Then again, when you've been up all night and are shooting without a permit -- you can't be sure of anything. Welcome to Anxious In Venice. Music Video. World Premiere

"Mistress America" / U.S.A. (Director: Noah Baumbach, Screenwriters: Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig) — Tracy is a lonely college freshman in New York, having neither the exciting university experience nor the glamorous metropolitan lifestyle she envisioned. But when she is taken in by her soon-to-be stepsister, Brooke – a resident of Times Square and adventurous gal about town – she is rescued from her disappointment and seduced by Brooke's alluringly mad schemes. Cast: Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke. Los Angeles Premiere

Sky Ferreira — Sky Ferreira has quickly established herself as one of today’s most exciting new faces in music, film and fashion. She first signed to Capitol Records at the early age of 15 where she eventually wrote & executive produced her critically acclaimed debut album, Night Time, My Time. As an actress, she has worked with many independent filmmakers including Eli Roth, Liza Johnson & Matthew Porterfield. Sky is currently recording her highly anticipated new album, Masochism.

Saturday, August 8, 3:30 p.m.

"Finders Keepers" / U.S.A. (Directors: Bryan Carberry, Clay Tweel) — Recovering addict and amputee John Wood finds himself in a stranger-than-fiction battle to reclaim his mummified leg from Southern entrepreneur Shannon Whisnant, who found it in a grill he bought at an auction and believes it, therefore, to be his rightful property. Los Angeles Premiere

Followed by a conversation between directors Bryan Carberry and Clay Tweel, subject John Wood and special guests Aubrey Plaza and Thomas Middleditch.

Saturday, August 8, 8:00 p.m.

"Death Magic" (Band: Health, Director: Pablo Ferro) — The sun slowly sets; its beauty soundtracked by a serene yet melancholy sound. As the last rays of light slip behind the clouds, a violent transformation takes place. The music, ever-changing and explosive, creates the imagery… supergraphic and never seen before! The quick cuts in sync with the music, introduce the emotional range and complexity of Health’S new album Death Magic. Album Trailer. World Premiere

"Entertainment" / U.S.A. (Director: Rick Alverson, Screenwriters: Rick Alverson, Gregg Turkington, Tim Heidecker) — In an attempt to revive his dwindling career and reunite with his estranged daughter, a broken, aging comedian plays a string of dead-end shows in the California desert. Cast: Gregg Turkington, John C. Reilly, Tye Sheridan, Michael Cera, Amy Seimetz, Lotte Verbeek. Los Angeles Premiere

Sharon Van Etten — Singer/songwriter Sharon Van Etten writes from free-flowing emotional honesty and vulnerability, creating a bond with the listener that few contemporary musicians can match. Following her 2012 break-through Tramp, last year’s follow up Are We There and her new Ep I Don’t Want to Let You Down, Van Etten finds herself in full stride, writing, producing and performing.

Sunday, August 9, 3:30 p.m.

"Cronies" / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Michael J. Larnell) — Twenty-two-year-old Louis doesn’t know whether his childhood friendship with Jack will last beyond today. Cast: George Sample III, Zurich Buckner, Brian Kowalski. Los Angeles Premiere

Followed by a conversation between director Michael J. Larnell and special guest Robert Townsend.

Sunday, August 9, 8:00 p.m.

"Fuckkkyouuu" (Director: Eddie Alcazar, Music: Flying Lotus) — With the ability to travel in time, a lonely girl finds love and comfort by connecting with her past self. Eventually faced with rejection she struggles with her identity and gender, and as time folds onto itself only one of them can remain. Cast: Jesse Sullivan, Charles Baker. Experimental Short / Music Video. World Premiere

"Turbo Kid" / Canada, New Zealand (Directors and screenwriters: Anouk Whissell, François Simard, Yoann-Karl Whissell) — Set in a post apocalyptic year of 1997, this nostalgic tribute to ’80s action-adventure films follows an orphaned teenager who goes on an adventure to save his female-robot companion from the hands of the evil warlord who controls the only water supply. Cast: Munro Chambers, Laurence Leboeuf, Michael Ironside, Aaron Jeffery, Edwin Wright. Los Angeles Premiere

Neon Indian (DJ set) B2B Toro Y Moi (DJ set) — Neon Indian, the brainchild of Alan Palomo, is defined by a unique electro-mangled sound which has attracted fans and opening slots before acts like Massive Attack, The Flaming Lips, Phoenix and Chromeo. Toro Y Moi, the guise of Chaz Bundick, channels a wide swath of stylistic influences into his electronics-incorporating music and cites Big Star, Talking Heads and Todd Rundgren as some of his inspirations.

Avishai Sivan’s religious drama wins Best Israeli Feature while Hotline scoops Van Leer award for Best Documentary.Scroll down for full list of winners

Avishai Sivan’s drama Tikkun has won Best Israeli Feature at the 32nd Jerusalem Film Festival, which held its awards ceremony last night [July 16] and closes on Sunday.

Tikkun, which follows a committed Hassidic student who begins to doubt himself after a life-changing experience, won the Haggiag Award for Best Israeli Feature Film, which comes with a $31,500 (Ils 120,000) prize.

The film also won the Anat Pirchi Award for Best Script, which comes with a $2,600 (Ils 10,000) prize, the Haggiag Award for Best Actor for lead Khalifa Natour, also accompanied by a $2,600 (Ils 10,000) prize, and the Van Leer Award for Best Cinematography, which scoops $2,400 (Ils 9,000).

The film was directed by Avishai Sivan and produced by Ronen Ben-Tal, Avishai Sivan, Moshe Edery and Leon Edery of Plan B Productions.

Tikkun will also...

I had the good fortune of spending some time speaking with the CEO of the Doha Film Institute, Fatma Al Remahi, whom I had met previously at the Toronto Film Festival. She is a woman of rare talents and I intend to devote a "Women to Watch" feature on her when I return to Los Angeles. With her this day in Cannes were Khalil Benkirane, Head of Grants and Elia Suleiman, the Palestinian filmmaker known for his wry comedies/ commentaries of the current state of affairs around the Mideast, like "Divine Intervention", "The Time That Remains", "Chronicle of a Disappearance", winner of five major awards, and a segment in the 2012 omnibus, "7 Days in Havana".

They are here to celebrate being in Cannes with five films that they have invested in and which have won slots in the festival, thus proving how well their grants have worked. Even this past fall in Venice two of their films won prizes, one, "Sivas" from Turkey and Germany won the Special Jury Prize and Best Actor Award, and "Theeb" from Jordan UAE, Qatar and UK.

Before going into the films the Doha Film Institute is granting not only money to, but greater support from the filmmaking community in the Mideast and the larger world, I asked Suleiman how he envisaged his role. His answer was that, "with age, as strong passions wind down a bit, one has time and the wish to give back to the young, fresh filmmakers. In the process, you learn from their experience, and your own passion is rekindled by theirs. We all felt the same way at the same time, and the new grants program started very quickly with a wholeness to it.

It offers a way to stay connected and alert. Personally, it gives us a community, helping others and in doing this, we help ourselves. That is why we are here."

CEO Fatma Al Ramahi added that after five years of curating projects, granting financial aid and co-financing projects, they had come full circle and Dfi was now offering filmmakers more in what resembles an ecosystem.

I pointedly asked about the place of women in this "ecosystem" to which Khalil Benkirane replied, it depends upon the submissions. They preselect some and others are chosen; the decisions are based upon the combination of merit, narrative story, content, relevance and a direction toward a cinema for tomorrow, bringing in a new voice. The last three sessions before this one included more projects by women than men. This last session had less than 50% by women, more like 30%. But they have no quota which they must fill. They are conscious, but the chose by merit. Women may be in greater numbers because they offer fresh, new voices. In five years we will see more features by women.

I asked about the presence of USA projects their selection, having noticed a little known incident dramatized in "Houston, We Have a Problem!" by Ziga Virc (Slovenia, Germany, Croatia, Qatar) which occurred in March, 1961 when Yugoslavia sold its secret space program to the USA. Two months later, President Kennedy announced that Americans would travel to the Moon.

They pointed out the USA coproduction, "Liyana" by Aaron and Amanda Kopp (USA, Swaziland, Qatar), a feature doc about some talented orphaned children in Swaziland who create a fictional heroine and send her on a dangerous quest.

In their first year, 30 projects from the Us were submitted by Sundance and none made the cut. Last year saw some strong Us docs. This year they saw some real USA indies which were submitted by individuals who heard the call. These were indies not influenced by Us commercial concerns, wanting to fill TV slots or other such systemic strictures.

I agree with them that Us filmmakers need to look abroad for more originality and cannot remain Us-centric if they want to break the constraints of TV and Hollywood imposed styles.

Since those early years, Sundance itself has changed its direction and expanded its international slate, and Us itself has become more multi cultural.

Submissions for the Fall 2015 grants session will open July 18 and close August 1, so act now!

By and large however, topical themes of exile, the aftermath of war, coming of age and the importance of family feature figure prominently in the Institute’s Spring 2015 session of its grants program whose recipients were announced today at the Cannes Film Festival.

Twenty-five projects – comprising 14 narrative feature films, 5 feature documentaries, 1 feature experimental film and 5 short films – will receive funding for development, production or post-production.

This round’s selection also highlights the strength of submissions from first- and second-time feature filmmakers from the Mena region along with a strong group of short films receiving grants, reflecting the Doha Film Institute’s dedication to supporting emerging new talent.

After expanding the grants criteria to include established filmmakers from the Mena region for the category of post-production, this cycle also sees Mai Masri (Palestine) and Merzak Allouache (Algeria) awarded funding for their respective new projects – Masri’s ‘"3000 Nights," a narrative feature about a newlywed Palestinian schoolteacher who gives birth to her son in an Israeli prison and Allouache’s "Madame Courage," a narrative feature about an unstable and lonely teenager, living in a slum in the suburbs of Mostaganem, Algeria.

Former grantees Leila Hotait Salas ("Crayons of Askalan") and Nejib Belkadhi (‘Bastardo’) are also returning with new projects. Hotait Salas’ narrative feature "Stolen Skies," is set against the demonstrations in Cairo in 2011 about a women who remembers her Lebanese lover from 30 years ago and Belkadhi’s narrative feature ‘Retina’, is about a Tunisian immigrant forced to return to his country to take care of his autistic son.

Gulf representation in the short films includes Fahad Al Kuwari’s "One of Them’ from Qatar" and Amal Al-Agroobi’s "Under The Hat" from the UAE. Qatari feature film, "Sahaab" by Khalifa Abdullah Al Muraikhi marks the first Qatari feature awarded for a production grant and is a project which recently participated in Qumra – the first edition of the Institute’s new industry platform dedicated to the development of first- and second-time filmmakers.

In the feature documentary category, stories from or about Syria and its ongoing civil war and set against a backdrop of political, social and emotional turmoil form the subject matter of several projects selected for grants including Boutheyna Bouslama’s "Seeking The Man With the Camera" (Tunisia, Switzerland, France, Qatar), Ziad Kalthoum’s "Beirut Rooster" (Syria, Lebanon, Qatar) and Noura Kevorkian’s "Batata" (Lebanon, Qatar).

In the feature narrative category, regional projects from Algeria, Lebanon and Palestine span a variety of genres and cover a range of subject matter such as modern-day life in the Middle East, lost love and immigration; projects include Muhannad Lamin’s "Tin Hinan," Lidia Terki’s "Paris The White," Firas Khoury’s "Alam, The Flag" and Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya’s innovative genre film "Film Kteer Kbeer."

Five projects from outside the Mena region have received funding, including grants for filmmakers from Singapore (‘Apprentice’ by Junfeng Boo) and Slovenia (‘Houston, We Have a Problem’ by Ziga Virc) for the first time.

The new-wave of filmmaking coming out of Argentina, a story of familial secrets between sisters and a moving documentary about orphan children in Swaziland form an eclectic selection of projects chosen from the rest of the world by filmmakers Francisco Varone ("Road To La Paz"), Manu Gerosa ("Between Sisters") and Aaron and Amanda Kopp ("Liyana").

Fatma Al Remaihi, CEO of the Doha Film Institute, said: “Our Spring grantees demonstrate the strength of new work coming from emerging filmmakers with 23 projects awarded to first- and second-time directors and a strong selection of short films by new talents to watch.”

“These grants give support to projects with diverse regional perspectives and genres, underlining the Doha Film Institute’s commitment to the development of innovative new voices in cinema which is also echoed in our recently launched development platform, Qumra.”

What is Qumra? I asked and they showed me the recent Screen International Cannes supplement about it. Those of you in Cannes can get it off the trade stands or in the Screen offices. It is no red carpet event, nor is it a series of matter lasses. It is a regional conference aimed at deepening the conversations of experienced experts and emerging filmmakers. No masterclass or labs replace the personal conversations though there are workshops and grants involved. The grants are not merely monetary; they are grants of support, mentorships and approval which open the way for the filmmakers to optimize their chances to move ahead with their projects toward their intended goals.

It is a question of control often for filmmakers who may be forced to fit an organization's requirements when they receive funding. In Qumra, they have their own space without an authoritarian producer, although the producer is also invited and is treated well. Because the projects and producers themselves are curated, the producers are committed to committing themselves as it were to the projects. They are not forced to take on projects if they don't find the one that fits, but they are only invited if they intend to consider the projects seriously for their own portfolio. That filmmakers and producers both come out of Qumra contented is crucial.

“We have funded more than 220 projects through the grants programme since it was established and I am pleased to welcome back some of our grantee alumni who are returning this session with their new films. I am also pleased to introduce in this funding round a new avenue of support for established Mena directors, which reflects an integral part of our mission to support voices from the Arab world.”

Films supported in previous sessions of the grants programme are strongly represented in the Festival de Cannes this year with five grantees making their world premiere in various sections. They are: "Waves ’98" by Elie Dagher (Lebanon, Qatar) competing in the Official Short Film Competition; "Dégradé" by Tarzan and Arab Abunasser (Palestine, France, Qatar) and "Mediterranea" by Jonas Carpignano (Italy, France, Germany, Qatar) in the Critics’ Week sidebar which is dedicated to showcasing innovative works by new filmmakers; ‘"Lamb" by Yared Zeleke (Ethiopia, France, Qatar) in the main world cinema showcase, Un Certain Regard; and "Mustang" by Deniz Gamze Ergüven (Turkey, France, Germany, Qatar) selected for the Directors’ Fortnight.

Submissions for the Fall 2015 grants session will open July 18 and close August 1, so act now!

The fund is primarily for first and second-time filmmakers with the exception of the category of Post-Production which is available to established filmmakers from the Mena region.

For more information about eligibility and submission process visit:

http://www.dohafilminstitute.com/financing/grants/guidelines

A full directory of past grant recipients is available to view online at:

http://www.dohafilminstitute.com/financing/projects/grants

Doha Film Institute grantees for the Spring 2015 session are:

Development

Feature Narrative

"Seeking the Man with the Camera" by Boutheyna Bouslama (Tunisia, Switzerland, France, Qatar)

An investigative documentary that follows the narrator as she seeks out Seymo, a childhood friend with whom she used to play in the streets of Homs.

"Stolen Skies" by Laila Hotait Salas (Lebanon, Qatar)

Against the backdrop of the demonstrations in Cairo in 2011, a woman wants to remember the Lebanese lover she had 30 years ago – but first she will need to forgive herself.

"Tin Hinan" by Muhannad Lamin (Libya, Qatar)

A mythical coming-of-age tale in which a young girl is forced to travel into the Sahara to find a new home, ‘Tin Hinan’ depicts the struggle for identity in the midst of a revolution.

Production

Feature Narrative

"1982" by Oualid Mouaness (Lebanon, Qatar)

When 11-year-old Wissam decides to tell a classmate that he loves her, his will is challenged, his courage falters and an impending war threatens to separate them permanently.

"Alam, The Flag" by Firas Khoury (Palestine, France, Qatar)

Tamer, a young Palestinian high-school student, takes part in the mysterious Operation Flag mission on the eve of Israel’s Independence Day celebrations – a day of mourning for Palestinians.

"Paris the White" by Lidia Terki (Algeria, France, Qatar)

Aicha, a woman of 70, leaves her village in Algeria for the first time to go to Paris in search of her husband, who has not contacted her in years.

"Retina" by Nejib Belkadhi (Tunisia, Qatar)

Lotfi, a Tunisian immigrant who lives in France, is forced to return to his homeland to take care of his autistic child.

"Sahaab" by Khalifa Abdullah Al Muraikhi (Qatar)

When Nasser and his friends are lost in the desert, struggling to retrieve their falcon, their search turns out to be a deadly journey.

Short Narrative

"Aya" by Moufida Fedhila (Tunisia, France, Qatar)

‘Aya’ is a story about faith in God and in humanity, and of making changes and sacrifices in order to save one’s soul.

"The Boss" by Rzgar Huseein Ahmed (Iraq, Qatar)

A group of boys decides to select a boss from among themselves. Then the boss becomes the group’s dictator.

"One of Them" by Fahad Al Kuwari (Qatar)

Khalid finds himself in an enigmatic situation when he suddenly develops immunity to religious advocacy.

"Under the Hat" by Amal Al-Agroobi (United Arab Emirates, Qatar)

A mosque’s mu’athen loses his voice and looks for a replacement in his neighbor – the young vocalist in a heavy metal band.

Feature Documentary

"Batata" by Noura Kevorkian (Lebanon, Qatar)

While war rages back home, a family of Syrian potato farmers works the fields in neighboring Lebanon.

"Ghosts Hunting" by Raed Andoni (Palestine, France, Qatar)

Director Raed Andoni assembles an eclectic group of Palestinian ex-prisoners to rebuild the Israeli investigation centre in which they were imprisoned – a place they never in fact saw, because they were always blindfolded.

Short Experimental or Essay

"The Most Pretty Dudes" by Mohammad Dibo (Syria, Qatar)

In Homs, a city destroyed by war, two embattled groups negotiate to ensure their safe escape from the building they are both trapped in.

Post-production

Feature Narrative

"3000 Nights" by Mai Masri (Palestine, France, Jordan, Lebanon, UAE, Qatar)

A recently wed Palestinian schoolteacher gives birth in an Israeli prison, where she fights to protect her son, survive and maintain hope.

"Apprentice" by Junfeng Boo (Singapore, Germany, France, Hong Kong, Qatar)

Aiman, a corrections officer, is transferred to a high-security prison. There, he befriends Rahim, who, it turns out, is chief executioner. Can Aiman overcome his conscience and become Rahim's apprentice?

"Film Kteer Kbeer" by Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya (Lebanon, Qatar)

Intending to smuggle the amphetamine Captagon to Iraq in film canisters, a small-time Lebanese drug-dealer transforms himself into a film producer and, with the help of an underrated filmmaker, slyly manipulates public opinion.

"Houston, We Have a Problem!" by Ziga Virc (Slovenia, Germany, Croatia, Qatar)

In March, 1961, Yugoslavia sold its secret space programme to the USA. Two months later, President Kennedy announced that Americans would travel to the Moon.

"Madame Courage" by Merzak Allouache (Algeria, France, Qatar)

Omar, an unstable and lonely teenager, lives in a slum in the suburbs of Mostaganem.

"Road to La Paz" by Francisco Varone (Argentina, The Netherlands, Germany, Qatar)

Sebastián is hired to take Jahlil, a Muslim retiree, on the most important mission of his life. What begins as an inconvenient trip turns out to be a life-changing adventure.

Feature Documentary

"Beirut Rooster" by Ziad Kalthoum (Syria, Lebanon, Qatar)

While Syrian workers rebuild Lebanon, a country ruined by a lengthy civil war, their hometowns in Syria are destroyed during the brutal conflict there. Who will rebuild their houses?

"Between Sisters" by Manu Gerosa (Italy, Qatar)

Before life runs out, Ornella decides to confront her aging sister Teresa with a painful untold story – one that might change their close bond forever.

"Liyana" by Aaron and Amanda Kopp (USA, Swaziland, Qatar)

In Swaziland, some talented orphaned children create a fictional heroine and send her on a dangerous quest.

Feature Experimental or Essay

"In My Head, A Roundabout" by Lahcene Ferhani (Algeria, France, Qatar)

In the Ruisseau District of Algiers, workers and animals come together for a last dance of death: the city’s main slaughterhouse is about to close forever.

The Caribbean Film Mart and Caribbean Film Database will be launched this September during the 10th annual trinidad+tobago film festival (ttff), which takes place from the 15-29 September 2015.

The project is co-financed by the Acp Cultures+ Program, funded by the European Union (European Development Fund) and implemented by the Acp Group of States.

According to Emilie Upczak, ttff’s Creative Director: “The Mart is poised to introduce the unique voices and aesthetic of Caribbean film and filmmakers to the international film industry, through four days of meetings, presentations, and networking events. International producers, sales agents and film funds will meet one-on-one with filmmakers who will have opportunities to forge partnerships that could lead to the successful funding and distribution of their films.”

The Caribbean Film Mart’s call for projects will open on 23 March and close on 04 May 2015. Project applicants (producers or directors), must be Caribbean citizens/residents or international filmmakers living and working in the Caribbean, and the projects must be narrative features or creative documentaries that will be made in the Caribbean.

In addition to the Caribbean Film Mart, the ttff will also unveil the Caribbean Film Database—a website of feature-length independent Caribbean Narrative, Documentary and Experimental feature films from 2000 to the present. The Database will also include a select number of Caribbean classics, contain a bibliography of film resources, a Caribbean Women in Film page and links to other film festivals, film commissions and schools in the region.

“We wanted to create an online resource that was easily accessible, well organised and reflected the visual palette of the Caribbean film movement. This resource will allow filmmakers in the region to more easily collaborate, will give audiences greater ability to access films and filmmakers from the region, and provide the international industry with a one-stop shop for Caribbean film,” said the ttff’s Art Director, Melanie Archer, who is coordinating the Caribbean Film Database.

In an effort to spread the word about the two initiatives and to select the 30 participating industry guests, the ttff team has been travelling to key international film festivals and markets, including Sundance and Slamdance in the Us, Rotterdam and Berlin in Europe, and Guadalajara in Mexico. In the next few weeks, the ttff will attend two regional festivals—Festival Régional et International du Cinéma de Guadeloupe (Femi), an associate partner on the project, and the Curaçao International Film Festival Rotterdam (Ciffr). These interventions are intended to engage the regional industry and to use an inclusive approach to the development of the two projects.

The ttff’s External Relations Director Nneka Luke will attend Femi to participate on a panel in the Film Market on 14 March, and give a presentation to Femi’s industry guests on 16 March; she will also promote the Caribbean Film Mart call. The films "Art Connect," "Dubois" and "Pan: Our Music Odyssey," which all premiered at the ttff 2014, are also official selections at Femi this year. The ttff’s Programme Director, Annabelle Alcazar, will attend Ciffr to work with the Curaçao team to finalise the Dutch-language films that will be included in the Caribbean Film Database, and to promote the Caribbean Film Mart call.

The Caribbean Film Mart and Caribbean Film Database are being implemented in association with the Fundación Global Democracia y Dessarollo from the Dominican Republic, the Association for the Development of Art Cinema and Practice in Guadeloupe, the Foundation of New Latin American Cinema from Cuba, and the Festival Régional et International du Cinéma de Guadeloupe.

For more information on the Caribbean Film Mart, send an email to rhian@ttfilmfestival.com; for the Caribbean Film Database, contact database@caribbean-film.com.

How would you program this year's newest, most interesting films into double features with movies of the past you saw in 2014?

Looking back over the year at what films moved and impressed us, it is clear that watching old films is a crucial part of making new films meaningful. Thus, the annual tradition of our end of year poll, which calls upon our writers to pick both a new and an old film: they were challenged to choose a new film they saw in 2014—in theatres or at a festival—and creatively pair it with an old film they also saw in 2014 to create a unique double feature.

All the contributors were given the option to write some text explaining their 2014 fantasy double feature. What's more, each writer was given the option to list more pairings, with or without explanation, as further imaginative film programming we'd be lucky to catch...

It's becoming the year of "Boyhood!" The Los Angeles Film Critics Association chose Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" as the movie of the year. The film won three other awards including Best Director for Linklater, Best Actress for Patricia Arquette, and Best Editing.

Here's the full list of winners:

Best Picture, Boyhood

Best Director: Richard Linklater, Boyhood

Best Foreign-language Film: Ida

New Generation: Ava DuVernay, Selma

Best Screenplay: The Grand Budapest Hotel, Wes Anderson

Best Actress: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood

Best Documentary/Nonfiction Film: Citizenfour

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, Birdman

Best Supporting Actress: Agata Kulesza, Ida

Douglas Edwards Experimental/Independent Film/Video Award: Walter Reuben, The David Whiting Story

Best Music Score, Winners (tie): Jonny Greenwood, Inherent Vice and Mica Levi, Under The Skin

Best Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash

Best Production Design: Adam Stockhausen, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Editing: Sandra Adair, Boyhood

Best Animation: The Tale Of Princess...

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association has spoken this season with a list of winners quite original in response to their New York counterparts, who announced last week. "Boyhood," again, won Best Picture, as well as Best Director. But Tom Hardy ("Locke") and Agata Kulesza ("Ida") made for interesting additions to their separate conversations. "Selma" got some love as well in the form of a New Generation Award for director Ava DuVernay. Check out the full list of winners with running commentary below, and as always, follow along with the season at The Circuit. Best Editing: Sandra Adair, "Boyhood" (Runner-up: "The Grand Budapest Hotel") That's two in one day for Adair, and congrats to her. Again, lots of footage to dig through, smoothly calibrated and structured. Just a great piece of work. Bravo. Best Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons, "Whiplash" (Runner-up: Edward Norton, "Birdman") It's pretty much these two all the way to the end.

Awards: Boyhood wins best feature, director, actress and editing.

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association lavished most of its awards on Boyhood, which earned best feature and three other prizes, and The Grand Budapest Hotel, which took best screenplay for Wes Anderson and best production design for Adam Stockhausen.

Richard Linklater — in London to collect Boyhood’s best international independent award at the BIFAs — prevailed in the directing category, while Patricia Arquette was named best actress and Sanda Adair picked up best editing honours.

Ida was named best foreign-language film, Citizenfour best documentary/nonfiction film and The Lego Movie best animation.

The 40th annual awards ceremony will take place on January 10. As previously announced, Gena Rowlands will collect the 2014 Career Achievement Award.

Full list of winners:

Best Picture

Boyhood

Runner-up: The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Actor

Tom Hardy, Locke

Runner-up Michael Keaton, Birdman

Best Director

Richard Linklater, Boyhood

Runner-up: Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest...

Awards: Tom Hardy named best actor for Locke.

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association is announcing its 2014 winners live via Twitter on December 7.

Best Picture Coming Up Next

Best Actor

Tom Hardy, Locke

Runner-up Michael Keaton, Birdman

Best Director

Richard Linklater, Boyhood

Runner-up: Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Foreign-language Film

Ida

Runner-up: Winter Sleep

Best Screenplay

Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Runner-up: Alejandra Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris Jr, Armando Bo, Birdman

Best Actress

Patricia Arquette, Boyhood

Runner-up: Julianne Moore, Still Alice

Best Documentary/Nonfiction Film

Citizenfour

Runner-up: Life Itself

Best Cinematography

Emmanuel Lubezki, Birdman

Runner-up: Dick Pope, Mr. Turner

Best Supporting Actress

Agata Kulesza, Ida

Runner-up: Rene Russo, Nightcrawler

Best Animation

The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya

Runner-up: The Lego Movie

Best Supporting Actor

Jk Simmons, Whiplash

Runner-up: Edward Norton, Birdman

Best Editing

Sandra Adair, Boyhood

Runner-up: Barney Pilling, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Production Design

Adam Stockhausen, The Grand Budapest...