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Mostly British Film Festival 2011

Details: Parent Category: Film Festivals; Category: Previews; Published on Saturday, 05 February 2011 02:36; Written by Lynne Shannon

The Mostly British Film Festival is running February 3 - 10, 2011, at the Historic Vogue Theatre Colin Firth, Ben Barnes in Dorian Gray in San Francisco. The Festival includes 26 classic and new movies--many of them award winners--from the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland.

The Festival opens with West Is West (dir. Andy DeEmmony), as the saga of a Pakistani immigrant family continues. This film is the sequel to East Is East, which is also being screened at the Festival.

The Closing Night film is Boy (dir. Taika Waititi), a coming of age story from New Zealand that won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance.

In between are such treats as the directing debut of actress Rachel Ward, a new film written and directed by the irrepressible Ricky Gervais and his pal Stephen Merchant, and a new version of Dorian Gray (dir. Oliver Parker) starring Colin Firth and Ben Barnes.

A special highlight is a pair of Sir Michael Caine classics in a salute to British Noir. Get Carter (dir. Mike Hodges) was voted one of the 20 best British films of all time. The Ipcress File (dir. Sidney J. Furie) presented the secret service agent as working-class antihero, the antithesis of James Bond slickness.

Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff (dir. Craig McCall) is a documentary covering the seven-decade-long career of the famed cinematographer, who worked with Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston and Michael Powell. Included are clips from his work in The African Queen, Red Shoes and Rambo. “A must-see for film buffs, the documentary describes Cardiff's role in the development and use of Technicolor.”
Boy
In conjunction with this documentary is the screening of Michael Powell’s Black Narcissus, with Deborah Kerr and Jean Simmons, for which Cardiff’s cinematography won him an Academy Award™.

From Australia comes another film that stands the test of time: Peter Weir’s Gallipoli, the film that introduced Mel Gibson to the US. This is considered to be one of the best films to come out of Australia.

Also screening are:

Beneath Hill 60, dir. Jeremy Sims (Australia)
This drama tells the true story of a secret platoon of Australian miners who fight to defend a leaking labyrinthine tunnel under the Western Front during World War I. With Brendan Cowell. Winner Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Director, Savannah Film Festival.

Solo, dir. David Michôd and Jennifer Peedom (Australia)
Engrossing documentary about Andrew McAuley, who tried to be the first person to kayak solo across the treacherous Tasman Sea from Australia to New Zealand. An engineer, he thoroughly planned the trip through extreme variations in weather and waves, attaching a camera to his kayak to allow him to record a visual diary. Winner Best Documentary, Australian Film Institute.

Beautiful Kate , dir. Rachel Ward (Australia)
A haunting drama about a dysfunctional family. With Bryan Brown, Rachel Griffiths, Ben Mendelsohn.

Glorious 39, dir. Stephen Poliakoff (UK)
The story of a British upper-crust family as World War II looms. An adopted daughter becomes suspicious that her politician father may be conspiring to appease Hitler. With Julie Christie, Bill Nighy, Christopher Lee.

Nothing Personal, dir. Urszula Antoniak (Ireland)
A touching drama revolving around a distraught Dutch woman who leaves her married life behind to wander alone through western Ireland. With Lotte Verbeek, Stephen Rea. Winner Best First Film, Locarno Film Festival.

This is a delightful selection and a change of pace from most festivals. (It’s also a nice bit of something for those who just can’t seem to get hooked on football.)

For more information, visit www.mostlybritish.org.

Mostly British Film Festival
February 3 - 10, 2011

Historic Vogue Theatre
3290 Sacramento Street
San Francisco, CA 94115
(415) 346-2288

Intl Film Festival Rotterdam 2011

Details: Parent Category: Film Festivals; Category: Previews; Published on Friday, 04 February 2011 17:39; Written by L E Shannon

The 40th Annual International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is being held January 26 - February 6, 2011 all over downtown Rotterdam, The Netherlands. From its start with an audience of 17 people in 1972, through the 1973 festival which hosted over 7,000 visitors, IFFR grew to be one the largest audience driven film festivals in the world.

IFFR 2011 presents a special Jubilee program, XL, referring not only to the Festival’s 40th year but also to “extra locations”. Between IFFR’s longtime venue LantarenVenster and Groot Handelsgebouw, the Maritime Museum, the Kunsthal and Focuskliniek Eye Hospital, among others, something Festival-related is happening everywhere, be it film showings, video installations or arts exhibitions.

This year IFFR also introduces Not Kidding, a “playful location and program suitable for kids from 4 years and up.”

The Festival features three main sections with components ranging from feature films to art installations:

Bright Future presents idiosyncratic and adventurous new work by novice makers, usually their first or second films, which are eligible for the Tiger Awards Competition.

Spectrum comprises new and recent work by experienced film makers and artists who provide “an essential contribution to international film culture”. The Shorts section includes some 400 films.

Signals presents thematic programs and retrospectives, and this year’s filmmakers include
F.J. Ossang (France), post-punk filmmaker/writer/musician; latest film is Dharma Guns
Agusti Villaronga (Spain), director/screenwriter/actor whose latest film is Pa negre
Nathaniel Dorsky (USA), classic avant-garde filmmaker

The theme programs include:

Red Westerns – westerns produced between 1924 and 1980 in the USSR and former countries of the communist Bloc.
Out of Fashion – films spotlighting the interaction between fashion designers and independent filmmakers.
Raiding Africa – Chinese-African relations, including new works filmed in China by African filmmakers.
Water Tiger Inn – a combination of Chinese martial arts (wuxia) films and a themed festival location, the Water Tiger Inn tavern in Rotterdam. Films range from silents out of China, such as The Swordswoman of Huangjiang, to early sound films from Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taiwan to the latest fare from John Woo and Wong Kar Wai.

As before, the Festival is a feast of riches with assorted films and special presentations from all over the world.

Bicycle riders, Rotterdam is your kind of town: the XL Festival pass is also good for a year-long subscription to the Dutch public transport bicycle scheme (OV-fiets) and includes the use of a bicycle for two days for free.

For more information and locations, go to www.filmfestivalrotterdam.com.

International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR)
January 26 - February 6, 2011

Festival Headquarters:
De Doelen, Kruisplein 40
Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Dance on Camera Film Festival NYC 2011

Details: Parent Category: Film Festivals; Category: Previews; Published on Friday, 28 January 2011 03:33; Written by Lynne Shannon

The Film Society of Lincoln Center presents the 39th annual Dance on Camera Film Festival running All the Ladies Say January 28 - February 1, 2011 at the Walter Reade Theater in New York City, co-presented by Dance Films Association.

The Opening Night presentation is Claude Bessy, Lignes d’Une Vie / Traces of a Life, directed by Fabrice Herrault. “Described as the “Golden Silhouette” by Serge Lifar, French ballerina Claude Bessy was an admired etoile of the Paris Opera Ballet and ran its prestigious school for decades.” The screening is followed by a Q&A with Claude Bessy and Fabrice Herrault.

Claude Bessy also introduces the short film Reflections of the Dance / Les Reflets de la danse, directed by Nicolas Ribowski, which shows former students of Bessy, including Sylvie Guillem and Elisabeth Maurin, at the Paris Opera Ballet School.

Spotlight at Sundance

Details: Parent Category: Film Festivals; Category: Previews; Published on Monday, 24 January 2011 03:47; Written by L E Shannon

The 2011 Sundance Film Festival runs January 20-30 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden a Michelle Williams in Meek's Cutoff nd Sundance, Utah. The Spotlight session is a showcase of films considered too special to pass up. Included is Denis Villeneuve's recent critically aclaimed Incendies, and the latest work from Indiemeister Gregg Araki.

Attenberg
Director / screenwriter Athina Rachel Tsangari (Greece)
A young woman living with her father in a decaying, seaside factory town acquires a new perspective on the mysteries of human nature after she meets a stranger. With Ariane Labed, Yorgos Lanthimos, Vangelis Mourikis, Evangelia Randou.

Incendies
Director Denis Villeneuve, with co-Screenwriter Valérie Beaugrand-Champagne, based on a stage play Incendies by Wajdi Mouawad (Canada, France)
A mother's last wish sends twins living in Canada on a journey to the Middle East in search of their tangled roots. With Lubna Azabal, Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin, Maxim Gaudette, Rémy Girard.

Meek’s Cutoff
Director Kelly Reichardt, Screenwriter Jon Raymond (USA)
In 1845, three families who have hired mountaineer Stephen Meek to guide their wagons over the Cascade Mountains get lost and face hunger, thirst and a lack of faith in their instincts for survival. With Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Zoe Kaza, Bruce Greenwood, Shirley Henderson. Incendies

Old Cats (Gatos Viejos)
Directors / screenwriters Pedro Peirano and Sebastián Silva (Chile)
An old woman who realizes that her mind is quickly deteriorating desperately tries to hide this condition from her daughter, who waits keenly for any sign of senility in order to take her apartment. With Bélgica Withro, Claudia Celedón, Catalina Saavedra, Alejandro Sieveking.

World Premieres:

Letters From the Big Man
Director / screenwriter Christopher Munch (USA)
An artist and government hydrologist surveying a remote part of southwestern Oregon befriends a sasquatch man and must take bold steps to protect his privacy, as well as her own. With Lily Rabe, Jason Butler Harner, Isaac C. Singleton Jr., Jim Cody Williams, Fiona Dourif.

Uncle Kent I Saw the Devil
Director Joe Swanberg, with co-Screenwriter Kent Osborne (USA)
A pothead cartoonist in Los Angeles spends a weekend trying to sleep with his visiting house guest. With Kent Osborne.

International Premiere:

Elite Squad 2 (Tropa de Elite 2)
Director José Padilha, with co-Screenwriters Bráulio Mantovani and Rodrigo Pimentel (Brazil)
Captain Nascimento of Rio de Janeiro’s special operations police unit has a new enemy widespread corruption within the city. With Wagner Moura, Seu Jorge, Tainá Müller, André Ramiro, Milhem Cortaz.

U.S. Premieres:

I Saw the Devil (Akma-reul bo-attda)
Director / screenwriter Kim Jee-woon (South Korea)
A young secret agent tracks a brutal serial killer who murdered his fiancée. With Byung-hun Lee, Min-sik Choi.

In a Better World (Hævnen)
Director Susanne Bier, Story by Susanne Bier and Anders Thomas Jensen, Screenplay Anders Thomas Jensen (Denmark)
The lives of two Danish families become intertwined as an extraordinary but risky friendship develops. With Mikael Persbrandt, Trine Dyrholm, Ulrich Thomsen, Markus Rygaard, William Jøhnk Nielsen.

Kaboom
Director / screenwriter Gregg Araki (USA)
A science fiction story centered on the sexual awakening of a group of college students. With Thomas Dekker, Haley Bennett, Chris Zylka, Roxane Mesquida, Juno Temple.

Submarine
Director / Screenwriter Richard Ayoade, from the novel by Joe Dunthorne (United Kingdom)
A 15-year-old has two big ambitions to save his parents' marriage and to lose his virginity before his next birthday. With Craig Roberts, Paddy Considine, Noah Taylor, Sally Hawkins, Yasmin Paige.

For further information, visit www.sundance.org/festival.