AFI Fest 2014 Assembles International Gems

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Parent Category: Film Festivals

Category: Previews

Published on Wednesday, 29 October 2014 17:16

Written by Eric Lurio

Eden

Way back in 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed an executive order in the Rose Garden creating the organization, The American Film Institute, and over the years it has become one of the most prestigious cinema educational and conservation organizations in the film industry. Though it started out as a government program, it has become much more. The Golden Globe® people and the Oscars® dudes aren’t accredited to give out Masters’ Degrees.  AFI’s team can. That’s a fact.

Another thing both the Foreign Film critics and The Academy don’t do is produce film festivals. AFI does. In fact, they do two.

They have a documentary fest in Annapolis, MD, and a more general one that takes place in Hollywood, California. This year the latter -- AFI FEST presented by Audi -- will take place between November 6th and the 13th, 2014, at several Hollywood area venues.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognizes AFI FEST as a qualifying festival for both Short Films categories of the annual Academy Awards®. The fest is Los Angeles' longest running international film festival and has been bringing the best in world cinema to the film capital of the world since its launch as FILMEX in 1971.

The American Film Market (AFM — www.americanfilmmarket.com) is the market partner of AFI FEST. The association between the two events connects art and commerce, broadening the opportunities for all participants, and collectively represents the largest gathering in North America.AFI members are among the first to receive festival news and updates, as well as an array of other exciting member benefits targeted to motion picture enthusiasts.

Having a major film festival in the nation’s cheesiest tourist trap might not seem like such a good idea, but then it does have some distinct advantages. Everything is in easy walking distance. The main venue, the Chinese Theater’s multiplex annex on Hollywood Boulevard and North Orange Street is only three longish blocks away from the storied (and recently restored) Egyptian Theater on Hollywood and North McFadden Street. With the Persian Shopping mall/Eastman Theater complex and its attendant subway stop (Hollywood/Highland) in-between, the area is far safer than it was in old days, when it was a notorious dump.

The TCL Chinese is actually two separate venues. It’s both the famous theater, which now has a massive IMAX screen and is currently showing Interstellar, and a six-screen multiplex in the mall, which has decent sized screening rooms, a nice bathroom, and easy access to a bunch of franchised fast food places, But it’s nothing to really write home about.

The Egyptian is a different story. This is a historical landmark through and through with plush seats and a rack of free magazines. This is primarily a repertory place, and when AFI isn’t there, they have all sorts of nifty programs.

Finally, there’s the Eastman, which is usually reserved for awards shows. The Oscars are here every year, and so is AFI’s annual “You’re going to be dead soon” Awards, which used to be on network TV but are now on TV Land. The place is totally huge and that means they’re not going to have lines all the way around the block when they had one at the Egyptian. This is an improvement.

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel is conveniently located across the street from the TCL Chinese 6 Theatres and The Dolby Theatre. It is also a short three blocks away from the Egyptian Theatre. The Cinema Lounge, Audi Sky Lounge, Media Center and other reception/event spaces are located here.

Now as to the movies: There are around 110 of them, ranging from children’s cartoons to soft-core porn, many are in foreign languages, and a few are rather old. The only thing they have in common is that they’re good which is rare for a film festival. And AFI FEST 2014 honors film legend Sophia Loren as well.

Finally, there’s some confusion as to this and the American Film Market in Santa Monica. They have nothing to do with each other whatsoever, and getting a press badge is far harder. Sad really, because I really wanted to go to that one as well.

The following is a selection of the films being featured at AFI FEST 2014:

• 

  VIOLET
  DIR Bas Devos/SCR Bas Devos
  CAST César De Sutter, Raf Walschaerts, Mira Helmer, Brent Minne
  Netherlands, Belgium, 85 minutes
  In this visually stunning debut, teen Jesse must readjust to the world and cope with grief after witnessing his friend’s murder at a local shopping mall.

• TALES OF THE GRIM SLEEPER
  DIR Nick Broomfield
  FEATURING Seymour Amster, Pamela Brooks, Nick Broomfield, Christopher Franklin, Nana Gyamfi, Laverne Peters, Margaret Prescod
  USA, UK, 110 minutes
  The latest documentary by provocateur Nick Broomfield (AILEEN: LIFE AND DEATH OF A SERIAL KILLER, KURT & COURTNEY) delves into the case of a notorious serial killer who menaced South Central L.A. for more than 25 years.

• EDEN
  DIR Mia Hansen-Løve/SCR Mia Hansen-Løve, Sven Hansen-Løve
  CAST Felix De Givry, Pauline Etienne, Vincent Macaigne, Greta Gerwig, Golshifteh Farahani, Laura Smet, Vincent Lacoste
  France, 131 minutes
  Mia Hansen-Løve’s 20-year journey through the electronic dance music scene follows DJ Paul, whose love for the turntables stays strong even after the craze has ended.

• MANOS SUCIAS
  DIR Josef Kubota Wladyka/SCR Alan Blanco & Josef Kubota Wladyka
  CAST Cristian Advincula, Jarlin Martinez, Manuel David Riascos, Hadder Blandon
  Colombia, USA, 80 minutes
  Brothers Jacobo and Delio agree to transport millions of dollars of cocaine into Panama in this suspenseful portrait of lives forever altered by the drug trade.

• HAEMOO
  DIR Shim Sung-bo
  SCR Shim Sung-bo & Bong Joon-ho
  CAST Kim Yoon-seok, Park Yu-chun, Han Ye-ri
  South Korea, 111 minutes
  Amid a shroud of sea fog, the voyage of a South Korean boat smuggling a group of illegal immigrants turns into a catastrophe.

• SONG OF THE SEA
  DIR Tomm Moore/SCR Will Collins
  CAST Brendan Gleeson, Fionnula Flanagan, Pat Shortt, Jon Kenny, Liam Hourican, Colm Ó’Snodaigh, Lucy O’Connell, Kevin Swierszcz, David Rawle, Lisa Hannigan
  Ireland, 93 minutes
  In this Irish animated film, a brother and sister embark on a magical journey to discover their connection to the mythical selkies.

• VILLA TOUMA
  DIR Suha Arraf/SCR Suha Arraf
  CAST Nisreen Faour, Ula Tabri, Cherien Dabis, Maria Zriek
  Palestine, 87 minutes
  A teenage Palestinian orphan’s life is turned upside down when she goes to live in the secluded home of her three aristocrat aunts.

• GETT, THE TRIAL OF VIVIANE AMSALEM
  DIR Ronit Elkabetz & Shlomi Elkabetz/SCR Ronit Elkabetz & Shlomi Elkabetz
  CAST Ronit Elkabetz, Menashe Noy, Simon Abkarian, Sasson Gabay, Eli Gorstein, Rami Danon, Roberto Pollack
  Israel, 115 minutes
  Unfolding entirely in a small courtroom, this edge-of-your-seat film follows Viviane Amsalem’s tense battle for a divorce in Israel’s strict rabbinical court.

• REALITY (RÉALITÉ)
  DIR Quentin Dupieux/SCR Quentin Dupieux
  CAST Alain Chabat, Jonathan Lambert, Elodie Bouchez, Kyla Kenedy, John Glover, Eric Wareheim, Jon Heder
  Belgium, France, 87 minutes
  A cameraman for a TV show is offered a chance to direct in this tapestry of dream logic that slides from one brilliantly bizarre situation to the next.

To learn more about AFI Membership, or more information about AFI FEST, e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call  toll-free at 1-866-AFI FEST (1-866-234-3378).

For more online info go to: http://afi.com/afifest/default.aspx

AFI FEST
November 6–November 14, 2014

The Dolby Theatre
6801 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90028
Level One of the Hollywood & Highland Center

TCL Chinese 6 Theatres
Level 3 of Hollywood & Highland Center
6801 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90028

Egyptian Theatre
AMERICAN CINEMATHEQUE
6712 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90028

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
7000 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90028

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