Starring Rajkummar Rao, Newton has received accolades at international film festivals the world over including the Berlin Film Festival, Tribeca, and the London Indian Film Festival among others earlier this year. Now the Eros International, Colour Yellow Productions and Drishyam production has been chosen as India’s official pick for Oscars 2018 in the Foreign Language Film category.
Rajkummar took to his social networking site to share the big news and congratulated the entire team of Newton. He wrote, “It’s amazing! Newton is such a unique and a special film for all of us. It’s a film which has been made with so much purity and honesty, without keeping any commercial aspects in mind. It’s a simple, honest story and it’s resonating with everyone. The response that we have been getting from the critics also is huge. I really hope this translates on to the box office as well.
Rajkummar took to his social networking site to share the big news and congratulated the entire team of Newton. He wrote, “It’s amazing! Newton is such a unique and a special film for all of us. It’s a film which has been made with so much purity and honesty, without keeping any commercial aspects in mind. It’s a simple, honest story and it’s resonating with everyone. The response that we have been getting from the critics also is huge. I really hope this translates on to the box office as well.
- 9/25/2017
- by Stacey Yount
- Bollyspice
The Chhattisgarh region of central India is rich in mineral resources, but its people live in poverty, eking out a living amongst the fighting that has gone on for close to three decades, with many of them uprooted from traditionally held tribal land. These people end up caught between the government and the Maoist rebels, and it’s this tension that serves as the backdrop to Amit V. Masurkar’s finely chiseled film, Newton. In the world’s largest democracy, free and fair elections are seen as the way to counter Maoist opposition, and the key to free and fair elections is the voting machine.
Newton (Rajkummar Rao) is a college graduate with a master’s degree in physics and a deeply rooted sense of justice. When his government job requires him to serve as an election official at a polling station in an isolated rural area at the heart...
Newton (Rajkummar Rao) is a college graduate with a master’s degree in physics and a deeply rooted sense of justice. When his government job requires him to serve as an election official at a polling station in an isolated rural area at the heart...
- 6/16/2017
- by Katherine Matthews
- Bollyspice
Canada’s Studio Film Group (Sfg) International will co-produce Abhijeet Singh Parmar’s debut feature Overcoat, which will be made under the recently signed India-Canada co-production treaty.
Indian producers Jogavindra S. Khera and Rishebh Batnagar of Telling Tales Entertainment are also on board the project, based on Russian writer Nicolai Gogol’s short story The Overcoat.
“Overcoat is a uniquely satirical genre project exploring the human condition, and Abhijeet has an amazing vision for this adaptation that I think will resonate with genre fans throughout the world,” said Sfg International president Nadia Sandhu.
Set in Varanasi in the 1990s, the story follows a solitary office clerk who digs into his savings to buy a new coat. But when it is stolen, the traumatised man dies only to return as a ghost that seeks peace by solving the mystery of his stolen overcoat.
The project was selected for Nfdc’s National Script Lab in 2013 and this year’s...
Indian producers Jogavindra S. Khera and Rishebh Batnagar of Telling Tales Entertainment are also on board the project, based on Russian writer Nicolai Gogol’s short story The Overcoat.
“Overcoat is a uniquely satirical genre project exploring the human condition, and Abhijeet has an amazing vision for this adaptation that I think will resonate with genre fans throughout the world,” said Sfg International president Nadia Sandhu.
Set in Varanasi in the 1990s, the story follows a solitary office clerk who digs into his savings to buy a new coat. But when it is stolen, the traumatised man dies only to return as a ghost that seeks peace by solving the mystery of his stolen overcoat.
The project was selected for Nfdc’s National Script Lab in 2013 and this year’s...
- 11/24/2014
- by uditaj@gmail.com (Udita Jhunjhunwala)
- ScreenDaily
The 61st Sydney Film Festival, to be held from June 4-15, will screen Ritesh Batra’s The Lunchbox, Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections and Richie Mehta’s Siddharth in different sections.
Satyajit Ray’s Charulata, which was first screened at the festival in 1966, will be screened again.
The Lunchbox is the story of a housewife, Ila and Saajan Fernandes, who correspond to each other in letters sent inside a lunchbox. The Lunchbox has been one of the most successful Indian films in the festival circuit.
Richie Mehta’s film Siddharth revolves around Mahendra who works on street corners as a chain-wallah (a zipper-fixer). To contribute to the family income, his boy Siddharth is sent far away from home, from New Delhi to Ludhiana, where a relative has a job for him and a place to sleep. It seems like a dream come true to his father, until he realises that...
Satyajit Ray’s Charulata, which was first screened at the festival in 1966, will be screened again.
The Lunchbox is the story of a housewife, Ila and Saajan Fernandes, who correspond to each other in letters sent inside a lunchbox. The Lunchbox has been one of the most successful Indian films in the festival circuit.
Richie Mehta’s film Siddharth revolves around Mahendra who works on street corners as a chain-wallah (a zipper-fixer). To contribute to the family income, his boy Siddharth is sent far away from home, from New Delhi to Ludhiana, where a relative has a job for him and a place to sleep. It seems like a dream come true to his father, until he realises that...
- 6/3/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
A still from Alchemy
Nagraj Manjule’s critically acclaimed film Fandry won the Jury Grand Prize for narrative feature film at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) 2014.
“It is an award for me that I am here in La, in the USA,” Manjule said in his acceptance speech.
Siddharth by Richie Mehta won the audience choice award in narrative feature category.
In the documentary category, Powerless (Katiyabaaz) by Deepti Kakkar and Fahad Mustafa won the Jury award and Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections won the Audience Choice award.
Alchemy, directed by Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat and Janmeet Singh, won the Jury Prize in the short film category while Kush by Shubhashish Bhutiani won the Audience Choice award.
The 12th Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles was held from April 8-13, 2014.
Nagraj Manjule’s critically acclaimed film Fandry won the Jury Grand Prize for narrative feature film at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) 2014.
“It is an award for me that I am here in La, in the USA,” Manjule said in his acceptance speech.
Siddharth by Richie Mehta won the audience choice award in narrative feature category.
In the documentary category, Powerless (Katiyabaaz) by Deepti Kakkar and Fahad Mustafa won the Jury award and Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections won the Audience Choice award.
Alchemy, directed by Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat and Janmeet Singh, won the Jury Prize in the short film category while Kush by Shubhashish Bhutiani won the Audience Choice award.
The 12th Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles was held from April 8-13, 2014.
- 4/14/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
The New York Indian Film Festival (Nyiff) announced the full lineup last night for their 14th year of celebrating independent, art house, alternate, and Diaspora films from/about/connected to the Indian subcontinent (May 5 – 10) at the SoHo Tiffin Junction. Dedicated to bringing these films to a New York audience, the festival will feature 34 screenings (23 narrative, 11 documentary) –all seen for the first time in New York City.
The festival highlights various cinemas of India’s different regions – Marathi, Bengali and two films from the Northeast. In addition the festival covers cinemas from the neighboring South Asian countries – four films by Pakistani filmmakers, two from Sri Lanka – a feature and a documentary, and one from Nepal.
The festival’s Marathi films include Postcard and multiple-award winning films Astu and Fandry. Directed by Nagraj Manjule, Fandry received rave reviews in India, winning the grand jury prize at the Mumbai Film Festival in October...
The festival highlights various cinemas of India’s different regions – Marathi, Bengali and two films from the Northeast. In addition the festival covers cinemas from the neighboring South Asian countries – four films by Pakistani filmmakers, two from Sri Lanka – a feature and a documentary, and one from Nepal.
The festival’s Marathi films include Postcard and multiple-award winning films Astu and Fandry. Directed by Nagraj Manjule, Fandry received rave reviews in India, winning the grand jury prize at the Mumbai Film Festival in October...
- 4/10/2014
- by Press Releases
- Bollyspice
This year the 12th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) includes a lineup of narrative and documentary features and short films. The impressive program reflects the rich diversity of Indian cinema, as well as the future of Indian filmmaking, with cutting-edge filmmakers and emerging voices bringing their acclaimed films to Los Angeles.
The festival is widely recognized as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema globally. Iffla will run April 8-13 at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception. Jadoo, an exploration of family bonds amidst two feuding brothers’ restaurants in England, will screen as the festival’s Closing Night Gala. The film is written and directed by Iffla alum Amit Gupta, and first premiered at the 2013 Berlinale. It features a wonderful ensemble cast that includes Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, and Madhur Jaffrey. As previously announced, Iffla will open with Jeffrey D. Brown’s Sold, produced by Jane Charles and executive produced by Emma Thompson.
Iffla 2014 wil l present more than 33 films, including three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
“I'm thrilled and proud that Iffla's line-up this year includes an especially diverse range of cinematic experiences, covering many regions of India and the diaspora,” said Iffla’s Artistic Director Jasmine Jaisinghani. "We would like to thank our Programming Advisor in India, Uma Da Cunha, for helping our programming team source some of these exceptional films."
Program highlights include: the North American premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s latest, Ugly an intense, masterfully directed psychological thriller that premiered in the 2013 Director’s Fortnight section of Cannes; Liar's Dice, the remarkable directorial debut of South Indian actress Geetu Mohandas that premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival; Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost, starring Irrfan Khan (Life of Pi, Slumdog Millionaire), winner of Netpac Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Dioraphte Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam; the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Hank and Asha , an exploratory, romantic look at two people bonding in the digital age by newcomer James E. Duff; Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry, a highly praised debut feature for its multilayered emotion and realism on the subject of caste discrimination; Brahmin Bulls starring Roshan Seth (Gandhi, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Mississippi Masala) and Sendhil Ramamurthy (Beauty and the Beast, Heroes) as an estranged father and son unexpectedly brought together to confront the family’s past; and Siddharth, a nuanced look at a family whose son goes missing, by lauded Canadian director and Iffla alum Richie Mehta (Amal).
The festival's feature documentary competition includes an eclectic mix of films from established and upcoming filmmakers that consider India's unique traditions and dynamic future. The films include: the world premiere of
The Auction House , an intimate and funny look at two brothers trying to keep their anachronistic family business going in the digital age; festival favorite Powerless, which depicts intense struggles over electricity in a mid-size Indian city; Faith Connections, Iffla alum Pan Nalin's beautiful and rare look at the Kumbh Mela; and the National Award-winning Shepherds of Paradise, about an arduous, mountainous trek through an animal drive in the Kashmiri winter.
The Bollywood by Night series returns this year with Bombay Talkies and Monsoon Shootout. Premiering at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Bombay Talkies is a quartet of short films that celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema. The omnibus film features work by four of India’s most exciting contemporary directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, and Anurag Kashyap, as well as a stellar cast that includes Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, and Katrina Kaif. Monsoon Shoutout is a thrilling debut by Iffla alum writer/director Amit Kumar about how a split-second decision made by a rookie police officer has rippling effects in his life and the lives of those around him.
The shorts competition showcases a diverse selection of 15 films that include narrative, documentary, experimental, and animated works. Highlights of this year’s program include Academy Award® shortlisted Kush; Sundance award winner Love.Love.Love.; and the world premiere of acclaimed director Umesh Kulkarni’s The Fly.
Festival Passes and Gala tickets are currently on sale at the festival's website.
For more information, please visit:
Website: www.indianfilmfestival.org.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ indianfilmfestival
Twitter: https://twitter.com /iffla
Tumblr: http://indianfilmfestival.tumblr.com/
About Iffla
Now in its 12th year, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) is a nonprofit organization devoted to a greater appreciation of Indian cinema and culture by showcasing films, honoring entertainment industry business executives, and promoting the diverse perspectives of the Indian diaspora.
Opening Night Gala
Sold
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2014/97min
Director: Jeffrey D. Brown
Producer: Jane Charles
Executive Producer: Emma Thompson
Screenwriters: Joseph Kwong, Jeffrey D. Brown
Composer: John McDowell, Sammy Chand, Salim & Sulaiman Merchant
Cast: Susmita Mukherjee, Seema Biswas, Tillotama Shome, Niyar Saikia, Priyanka Bose, Ankur Vikal, Parambrata Chatterjee, Gillian Anderson, David Arquette
Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Jeffrey D. Brown adapts Patricia McCormick’s novel Sold – a National Book Award finalist – into a vivid, harrowing and inspiring story of a young girl’s resilience in the face of unspeakable cruelty.
Closing Night
Jadoo
Los Angeles Premiere
UK/2013/84 mins
Director: Amit Gupta
Producers: Amanda Faber, Isabelle Georgeaux, Richard Holmes, Nikki Parrott
Screenwriter: Amit Gupta
Composer: Stephen Warbeck
Cast: Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, Madhur Jaffrey
Set in Leicester, England, Amit Gupta’s culinary comedy charts the chaos that ensues when young Shalini gets engaged to her longtime boyfriend Mark. The fact that Mark is not Indian is the least of Shalini’s concerns. Her father Raja and uncle Jagi have been at war for years. After a legendary falling out that caused them to close their family restaurant, each man opened his own establishment – directly across the street from one another! Shalini’s dream wedding would see both men put aside their differences and prepare the feast together, but resentment runs deep and neither man can hear mention of the other’s name without a spike in blood pressure. Both the prospect of disappointing their beloved Shalini and the threat of a new, hip restaurant opening in the area force Raja and Jagi to work together – but for how long? In this uproariously funny and heartfelt exploration of family bonds, shared history and gastronomic perfection, Gupta’s cast is endlessly appealing. Plus, there’s enough mouth-watering Indian food on display to have your stomach growling before the credits roll.
Feature Films
Before My Eyes (Ankhon Dekhi)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/107min
Director: Rajat Kapoor Producer: Manish Mundra
Screenwriter: Rajat Kapoor
Cast: Sanjay Sanjay Mishra, Seema Pahwa, Rajat Kapoor, Taranjeet, Maya Sarao
Celebrated writer, director, and actor Rajat Kapoor (Midnight’s Children, Monsoon Wedding, Mixed Doubles, Mithya) paints an offbeat yet thought-provoking portrait of domestic life in modern day Delhi when an incident prompts head of the family Bauji to reject anything he himself has not experienced, much to the exasperation of his extended family but to the delight of his newfound philosopher disciples. Balancing the comical and the existential, both Bauji and the film ask the basic question, ‘Can you know truth without true experience?’
Brahmin Bulls
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/96min/2013
Director: Mahesh Pailoor
Producer: Yoshinobu Tsuji
Screenwriters: Anu Pradhan, Mahesh Pailoor
Cast: Sendhil Ramamurthy, Roshan Seth, Mary Steenburgen, Justin Bartha, Cassidy Freeman, Monica Raymund, Michael Lerner
Mahesh Pailoor's tender, funny, and touching debut tells the story of estranged father and son Ashok and Sid, who reunite at Sid's Los Angeles home when Ashok arrives unexpectedly. Each man is keeping secrets from one another, and when the truth is revealed, parent and child must work even harder to close the rift between them.
Fandry
North American Premiere
India/2013/103min
Director: Nagraj Manjule
Producers: Vivek Kajaria, Nilesh Navalakha
Screenwriter: Nagraj Manjule
Cast: Kishor Kadam, Chhaya Kadam, Somnath Awghade, Suraj Pawar, Rajshree Kharat, Sakshi Vyavhare, Aishvarya Shinde, Nagraj Manjule
Marathi poet Nagraj Manjule's impressive debut feature tells the story of Jabya, a Dalit boy, and his family's struggle against daily prejudice in their Maharashtra village. Jabya's carefree childhood desires and antics are soon stifled by his family's "untouchable" status, and the film's gradual transformation into an insightful and damning look at caste discrimination builds from a murmur to a defiant roar. Refusing to reduce his Dalit characters to victims – most explicitly at the film's explosive conclusion - Manjule's socially reflective film has received critical acclaim in India.
Hank and Asha
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/73min
Director: James E. Duff
Producers: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Screenwriters: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Cast: Mahira Kakkar, Andrew Pastides
James E. Duff's feature directorial debut, the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival, is an endearing tale of a long-distance connection in the digital age. Hank and Asha, two aspiring filmmakers separated by an ocean, connect with one another through video messages and quickly find themselves heading towards romance. That is, until Asha reveals some surprising news. Duff has created a captivating ode to the new possibilities open to us now that the world's gotten smaller.
Liar's Dice
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/104min
Director: Geetu Mohandas
Producers: Alan McAlex, Ajay G. Rai
Screenwriter: Geetu Mohandas
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Geetanjali Thapa, Manya Gupta
Established actress Geetu Mohandas steps behind the lens for her bracing directorial debut. A woman named Kamala and her daughter journey from their remote Himalayan village to Delhi in search of Kamala's missing husband. They find a guide in an unfriendly wanderer whose interest may lie more in his personal gain than in any help he can offer them. Beautifully shot by Rajeev Ravi (Gangs of Wasseypur), Mohandas' film evokes a hazardous world where answers may never be clear and a helping hand always comes at a price.
Phoring
North American Premiere
India/2013/128min
Director: Indranil Roychowdhury
Producers: Anasua Roychowdury, Sugata Bal
Screenwriters: Indranil Roychowdhury, Sugata Sinha
Cast: Akash Adhikary, Sohini Sarkar, Sourav Basak, Ritwick Charaborty, Shankar Debnath, Senjuti Roymukherjee
Indranil Roychowdhury's stunning feature debut is an evocative, unpredictable tale of confused adolescence in a struggling North Bengal town. Phoring, an imaginative adolescent boy, and his beautiful new teacher Doel form a close friendship that soon arouses doubt and suspicion when Doel's presence in the town is revealed to have less-than-noble origins. Roychowdhury accomplishes a tricky feat with his first film by luring us with the promise of an inspirational teacher-student story before ultimately delivering a much more complex and truthful account of the joys and pains of growing up.
Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost (2013)
Los Angeles Premiere Germany-India-Netherlands/2013/109min
Director: Anup Singh
Producers: Bero Beyer, Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper, Thierry Lenouvel
Screenwriter: Anup Singh, Madhuja Mukherjee
Cast: Irrfan Khan, Tisca Chopra, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal
Set in 1940s Punjab, Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa details the aftermath of the Indo-Pakistan Partition through the experiences of one Sikh family, headed by Umber (Irrfan Khan). Following the family’s forceful displacement from their village, Umber’s desire for a male heir is stronger than ever. When his wife gives birth to their fourth daughter, Kanwar, Umber makes the fateful decision to raise her as a boy. This tragic choice ends up dividing the family in violent ways, and provokes a series of increasingly unsettling situations for Kanwar as she grows up. While in a sense a ghost story, the source of pain and suffering is all too real.
Siddharth
Los Angeles Premiere
Canada-India/2013/96min
Director: Richie Mehta
Producers: David Miller, Steven N. Bray
Screenwriter: Richie Mehta
Cast: Rajesh Tailang, Tannishtha Chatterjee
A celebrated Iffla alum, Canadian director Richie Mehta returns to the festival with a heartbreaking story of parents Mahendra and Suman, whose son goes missing after being sent to work 200 miles north of Delhi. Carried by powerful yet restrained performances from Rajesh Tailang and Tannishtha Chatterjee as the parents, Mehta and cast capture the dignity of those facing the unthinkable. Mehta's chance encounter with a man searching for his lost son alerted him to the underreported plight of the families of 44,000 children estimated missing in India every year.
Ugly
North American Premiere
India/2013/128mins/Dcp
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Writer: Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Vikas Bahl, Madhu Mantena, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vivek Rangachari, Arun Rangachari
Cast: Rahul Bhatt, Ronit Roy, Tejaswini Kolhapure, Anshika Shrivastava
When ten-year-old Kali disappears from her father Rahul's car on the busy streets of Mumbai, the events that follow quickly spiral out of control and plunge into a morass of corruption and violence. Rahul and Kali's mother, Shalini, are divorced. Shalini is now married to Shoumik, the local police chief. When Shoumik learns that his stepdaughter is missing, he and Rahul clash in a breathless race to find the girl. With intricate plotting and vivid characterizations, Iffla alum Anurag Kashyap fashions a story that's sure to keep the heart racing.
Writers (Sulemani Keeda)
North American Premiere
India/2013/90min
Director: Amit V Masurkar
Writer: Amit V Masurkar
Producer: Datta Dave
Cast: Naveen Kasturia, Mayank Tewari, Aditi Vasudev and Karan Mirchandani
Writing partners Dulal and Mainak dream of shaking up Bollywood in director Amit Masurkar's slacker comedy. The two young men take a job from the wealthy, oddball son of a famous B-movie producer, but soon fear they're on the path to selling out. Masurkar's film captures the creative spirit of Andheri West, a Mumbai suburb where writers, directors, and actors come from all over India with the dream of working in the film industry, and is a sweet taste of things to come from the new "hindie" cinema.
Documentary Features
The Auction House: A Tale of Two Brothers
World Premiere
UK/2014/85min
Director: Ed Owles
Producers: Ed Owles, Giovanna Stopponi
The auction houses of Kolkata used to be where the rich and famous found the right high-end objects to decorate their homes. Today, the family-owned Russell Exchange is the last, and oldest, one to remain in India. Director Ed Owles follows two brothers, with the older brother moving back to Kolkata from London with hopes of using his Western business acumen to bring the Exchange into the 21st century. However, in a country radically transformed by technology and a rising youth culture, it may already be too late.
Faith Connections
Los Angeles Premiere
France-India/2013/115min/Dcp
Director: Pan Nalin
Producers: Raphaël Berdugo, Gaurav Dhingra, Pan Nalin, Virginie Lacombe
Every three years, Hindus gather at one of four rotating sites for Kumbh Mela, a religious celebration of faith and devotion marked by bathing in the sacred waters of the Ganges. With 100 million people at the 2013 Kumbh Mela, the pilgrimage is said to be the largest gathering on the planet. Iffla alum Pan Nalin crafts a moving and unique view of the mass gathering and presents unique stories of how individuals came to be there to share in the belief of the divine.
Powerless (Katiyabaaz)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/82min
Director: Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar
Producers: Fahad Mustafa, Deepti Kakkar, Judy Tam, Leopold Koegler
Screenwriter: Fahad Mustafa
In Kanpur, a city of three million that has seen better days, one of the only ways for many residents to get electricity is to steal it. Co-directors Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar focus their attention on the likes of pirate engineers like Loha Singh and first female CEO at the local power authority Ritu Maheshwari. Coupled with beautiful photography of the intricately tied together powerlines of the city and a pulsating original score, they present a unique documentary about current-day India and its future battles over limited resources.
Shepherds of Paradise
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/50min
Director/Producer/Screenwriter/Cinematographer/Editor: Raja Shabir Khan
Composer: Bilal Iran
Nomadic herder Gafoor has to lead his large flock of goats, sheep, cows and horses across Jammu all the way to Kashmir so they can graze. Director Raja Shabir Khan presents lives few have ever seen, let alone lived, with simple beauty and real terror in a film that has won major National Awards in India. A cinematic wonder that must be seen to truly understand, Shepherds of Paradise is a testament of the power of film to transport us to other lands and experiences.
Bollywood By Night
Bombay Talkies
North American Premiere
India/117min/2013
Directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Guneet Monga
Screenwriters: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan , Rani Mukerji, Katrina Kaif, Randeep Hooda, Saqib Saleem, Nawazuddin Siddiqui
A quartet of short films directed by four of India’s most exciting contemporary filmmakers celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema in this omnibus film. Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap crafts a tale of ordinary people whose love of movies profoundly alters the course of their lives. Each story beautifully captures how lovers of cinema can’t help but carry that fascination into their day-to-day life. Haven’t we all wished, at one time or another, that our lives were more like a film?
Monsoon Shootout
Los Angeles Premiere
India-uk-Netherlands/2013/88min
Director: Amit Kumar
Producers: Trevor Ingman, Guneet Monga, Martijn De Grunt
Screenwriter: Amit Kumar
Cast: Vijay Varma, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Geetanjali Thapa
A split-second decision made by a rookie police officer propels writer/director Amit Kumar’s debut feature, which fascinatingly splinters into three separate, equally pulse-pounding scenarios. In a secluded alley drenched in the pouring rain, principled cop Adi aims his gun at Shiva, a vicious gangster on the run. What Adi decides to do next will reverberate throughout his personal and professional life in ways he could never imagine. Kumar thus explores the ripple effect our choices have, and how we unknowingly alter the lives of those around us.
Shorts
Aarti
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
USA/2013/4min
Director: David Walter Lech
Producer: Terrie Samundra
A hypnotic look into the nightly “ceremony of light” ritual in a Hindu temple in Sheikhupur, Punjab.
Alchemy
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/5min
Directors: Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat, Janmeet Singh
Producer: Pritesh Varia
A bold and vibrant song to the intricate fabric of modern day India, a kaleidoscope of voices, colors and traditions.
Bhiwani Junction
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/18min
Director: Abhi Singh
Producer: Abhi Singh
A poignant documentary portrait of Himanshu, a 12-year old boxer, whose formidable commitment to the sport makes his lofty dreams to become an Olympic champion appear well within reach.
Black Rock (Kaatal)
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/22min
Director: Vikrant Pawar
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Two young lovers spend one last afternoon together. A beautiful meditation on the ephemeral nature of young love that has won three of India’s National Film Awards.
The Fly (Makhi)
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
India/2013/31min
Director: Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Employed as a Fly Killer in an upscale restaurant, Pipal must ensure a fly-free environment by smacking dead the flies that buzz over the patrons’ heads. When a nearby drainage is closed and the source of the fly infestation eradicated, Pipal must find a way to produce enough live flies to save his job, in this delightfully absurdist commentary on urban India’s emerging work culture.
Beloved (Humsafar)
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors/Writers: Swapnil Awate, Laura Erbacher
Producer: Dsk Supinfocom
A sweeping single shot takes us on the breathtaking animated journey of two lovers and their eternal pursuit of harmony.
Jaya
Shorts Program 2
USA/2013/19min
Director: Puja Maewal
Producer: Puja Maewal
Young Jaya is able to survive the gruesome gang life in the unforgiving streets of Mumbai by posing as a boy. When she meets a wealthy businessman who looks like he could be the father who abandoned her, she sets out to reclaim her identity, in this engrossing drama that was shortlisted for a Student Academy Award®.
Kush
Shorts Program 1
India/2013/25min
Director: Shubhashish Bhutiani
Producer: Shubhashish Bhutiani
A bus full of schoolchildren boisterously makes its way back from a field trip when the news of Indira Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards breaks. As violence quickly erupts across the country, Kush, the only Sikh student in the class, must find a way to escape the unquenchable fury of retribution, in this gripping drama that was shortlisted for an Academy Award®.
Little Gypsy (Kachho Gadulo)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors: Saptesh Chaubal, Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat
Producer: D.S.K. Supinfocom
Inspired by the folk traditions of various parts of India, this stunning animated film sweeps us into a mythical journey that celebrates the power of play and imagination.
Love.Love.Love.
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
Russian Federation/2013/12min
Director: Sandhya Daisy Sundaram
Producers: Tanya Petrik, Guillaume Protsenko
An intimate ode to the wondrous force of love, as it takes new shapes and forms through the endless Russian winters. Love. Love.Love. won the Short Film Special Jury Award for Non-Fiction at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.
Outpost
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India-usa/2013/17min
Director: Shiva Shankar Bajpai
Producer: Aditi Anand
In the barren desert of the India-Pakistan border, two lone army guards on the opposite sides of the line yearn for booze, mosquito repellent and some human contact, in this humorous glimpse into the absurdity of rigid immaterial divides.
Presence
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/17min
Directors: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Producers: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Long days and nights spent within the bellies of the rising structural beasts that rapidly transform the city of Bangalore bring on visions of ghosts that speak of the construction workers’ memories, longings and fears, in this haunting meditation on the migrant experience.
Skin Deep
Screens with Writers
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/20min
Director: Hardik Mehta
Producers: Devang Bhavsar, Niraj Kothari
Sanjay and Sushma plan to elope to escape a looming arranged marriage. They are in love and their future together shines bright and perfect and filled with possibility--that is, as long as an extra piece of skin that complicates their sex life gets fixed in what should be a routine medical procedure. But Mumbai’s electricity gods have other plans in store for them.
Small Yellow Field (Tau Seru)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
Australia-India/2013/8min
Director: Rodd Rathjen
Producer: Rodd Rathjen
In the remote vastness of the Himalayas, a young nomad's curiosity lies beyond the horizon. This stunningly photographed film made its world premiere at Cannes Critics’ Week.
The Puppet (Tamaash)
Screens with Shepherds Of Paradise
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/32min
Directors: Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
Producers: Datta Dave, Chaitanya Hegde, Omar Nissar Paul, Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
A mysterious puppet offers young Anzar the chance to escape his father’s relentless punishments over his poor school grades by granting him the power to inflict misfortune on his nemesis, his brilliant classmate, Sadat. However, his newfound peace is short-lived as Sadat falls severely ill and Anzar comes to realize that the puppet’s powers are spiraling out of his control...
The festival is widely recognized as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema globally. Iffla will run April 8-13 at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception. Jadoo, an exploration of family bonds amidst two feuding brothers’ restaurants in England, will screen as the festival’s Closing Night Gala. The film is written and directed by Iffla alum Amit Gupta, and first premiered at the 2013 Berlinale. It features a wonderful ensemble cast that includes Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, and Madhur Jaffrey. As previously announced, Iffla will open with Jeffrey D. Brown’s Sold, produced by Jane Charles and executive produced by Emma Thompson.
Iffla 2014 wil l present more than 33 films, including three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
“I'm thrilled and proud that Iffla's line-up this year includes an especially diverse range of cinematic experiences, covering many regions of India and the diaspora,” said Iffla’s Artistic Director Jasmine Jaisinghani. "We would like to thank our Programming Advisor in India, Uma Da Cunha, for helping our programming team source some of these exceptional films."
Program highlights include: the North American premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s latest, Ugly an intense, masterfully directed psychological thriller that premiered in the 2013 Director’s Fortnight section of Cannes; Liar's Dice, the remarkable directorial debut of South Indian actress Geetu Mohandas that premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival; Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost, starring Irrfan Khan (Life of Pi, Slumdog Millionaire), winner of Netpac Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Dioraphte Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam; the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Hank and Asha , an exploratory, romantic look at two people bonding in the digital age by newcomer James E. Duff; Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry, a highly praised debut feature for its multilayered emotion and realism on the subject of caste discrimination; Brahmin Bulls starring Roshan Seth (Gandhi, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Mississippi Masala) and Sendhil Ramamurthy (Beauty and the Beast, Heroes) as an estranged father and son unexpectedly brought together to confront the family’s past; and Siddharth, a nuanced look at a family whose son goes missing, by lauded Canadian director and Iffla alum Richie Mehta (Amal).
The festival's feature documentary competition includes an eclectic mix of films from established and upcoming filmmakers that consider India's unique traditions and dynamic future. The films include: the world premiere of
The Auction House , an intimate and funny look at two brothers trying to keep their anachronistic family business going in the digital age; festival favorite Powerless, which depicts intense struggles over electricity in a mid-size Indian city; Faith Connections, Iffla alum Pan Nalin's beautiful and rare look at the Kumbh Mela; and the National Award-winning Shepherds of Paradise, about an arduous, mountainous trek through an animal drive in the Kashmiri winter.
The Bollywood by Night series returns this year with Bombay Talkies and Monsoon Shootout. Premiering at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Bombay Talkies is a quartet of short films that celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema. The omnibus film features work by four of India’s most exciting contemporary directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, and Anurag Kashyap, as well as a stellar cast that includes Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, and Katrina Kaif. Monsoon Shoutout is a thrilling debut by Iffla alum writer/director Amit Kumar about how a split-second decision made by a rookie police officer has rippling effects in his life and the lives of those around him.
The shorts competition showcases a diverse selection of 15 films that include narrative, documentary, experimental, and animated works. Highlights of this year’s program include Academy Award® shortlisted Kush; Sundance award winner Love.Love.Love.; and the world premiere of acclaimed director Umesh Kulkarni’s The Fly.
Festival Passes and Gala tickets are currently on sale at the festival's website.
For more information, please visit:
Website: www.indianfilmfestival.org.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ indianfilmfestival
Twitter: https://twitter.com /iffla
Tumblr: http://indianfilmfestival.tumblr.com/
About Iffla
Now in its 12th year, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) is a nonprofit organization devoted to a greater appreciation of Indian cinema and culture by showcasing films, honoring entertainment industry business executives, and promoting the diverse perspectives of the Indian diaspora.
Opening Night Gala
Sold
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2014/97min
Director: Jeffrey D. Brown
Producer: Jane Charles
Executive Producer: Emma Thompson
Screenwriters: Joseph Kwong, Jeffrey D. Brown
Composer: John McDowell, Sammy Chand, Salim & Sulaiman Merchant
Cast: Susmita Mukherjee, Seema Biswas, Tillotama Shome, Niyar Saikia, Priyanka Bose, Ankur Vikal, Parambrata Chatterjee, Gillian Anderson, David Arquette
Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Jeffrey D. Brown adapts Patricia McCormick’s novel Sold – a National Book Award finalist – into a vivid, harrowing and inspiring story of a young girl’s resilience in the face of unspeakable cruelty.
Closing Night
Jadoo
Los Angeles Premiere
UK/2013/84 mins
Director: Amit Gupta
Producers: Amanda Faber, Isabelle Georgeaux, Richard Holmes, Nikki Parrott
Screenwriter: Amit Gupta
Composer: Stephen Warbeck
Cast: Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, Madhur Jaffrey
Set in Leicester, England, Amit Gupta’s culinary comedy charts the chaos that ensues when young Shalini gets engaged to her longtime boyfriend Mark. The fact that Mark is not Indian is the least of Shalini’s concerns. Her father Raja and uncle Jagi have been at war for years. After a legendary falling out that caused them to close their family restaurant, each man opened his own establishment – directly across the street from one another! Shalini’s dream wedding would see both men put aside their differences and prepare the feast together, but resentment runs deep and neither man can hear mention of the other’s name without a spike in blood pressure. Both the prospect of disappointing their beloved Shalini and the threat of a new, hip restaurant opening in the area force Raja and Jagi to work together – but for how long? In this uproariously funny and heartfelt exploration of family bonds, shared history and gastronomic perfection, Gupta’s cast is endlessly appealing. Plus, there’s enough mouth-watering Indian food on display to have your stomach growling before the credits roll.
Feature Films
Before My Eyes (Ankhon Dekhi)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/107min
Director: Rajat Kapoor Producer: Manish Mundra
Screenwriter: Rajat Kapoor
Cast: Sanjay Sanjay Mishra, Seema Pahwa, Rajat Kapoor, Taranjeet, Maya Sarao
Celebrated writer, director, and actor Rajat Kapoor (Midnight’s Children, Monsoon Wedding, Mixed Doubles, Mithya) paints an offbeat yet thought-provoking portrait of domestic life in modern day Delhi when an incident prompts head of the family Bauji to reject anything he himself has not experienced, much to the exasperation of his extended family but to the delight of his newfound philosopher disciples. Balancing the comical and the existential, both Bauji and the film ask the basic question, ‘Can you know truth without true experience?’
Brahmin Bulls
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/96min/2013
Director: Mahesh Pailoor
Producer: Yoshinobu Tsuji
Screenwriters: Anu Pradhan, Mahesh Pailoor
Cast: Sendhil Ramamurthy, Roshan Seth, Mary Steenburgen, Justin Bartha, Cassidy Freeman, Monica Raymund, Michael Lerner
Mahesh Pailoor's tender, funny, and touching debut tells the story of estranged father and son Ashok and Sid, who reunite at Sid's Los Angeles home when Ashok arrives unexpectedly. Each man is keeping secrets from one another, and when the truth is revealed, parent and child must work even harder to close the rift between them.
Fandry
North American Premiere
India/2013/103min
Director: Nagraj Manjule
Producers: Vivek Kajaria, Nilesh Navalakha
Screenwriter: Nagraj Manjule
Cast: Kishor Kadam, Chhaya Kadam, Somnath Awghade, Suraj Pawar, Rajshree Kharat, Sakshi Vyavhare, Aishvarya Shinde, Nagraj Manjule
Marathi poet Nagraj Manjule's impressive debut feature tells the story of Jabya, a Dalit boy, and his family's struggle against daily prejudice in their Maharashtra village. Jabya's carefree childhood desires and antics are soon stifled by his family's "untouchable" status, and the film's gradual transformation into an insightful and damning look at caste discrimination builds from a murmur to a defiant roar. Refusing to reduce his Dalit characters to victims – most explicitly at the film's explosive conclusion - Manjule's socially reflective film has received critical acclaim in India.
Hank and Asha
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/73min
Director: James E. Duff
Producers: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Screenwriters: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Cast: Mahira Kakkar, Andrew Pastides
James E. Duff's feature directorial debut, the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival, is an endearing tale of a long-distance connection in the digital age. Hank and Asha, two aspiring filmmakers separated by an ocean, connect with one another through video messages and quickly find themselves heading towards romance. That is, until Asha reveals some surprising news. Duff has created a captivating ode to the new possibilities open to us now that the world's gotten smaller.
Liar's Dice
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/104min
Director: Geetu Mohandas
Producers: Alan McAlex, Ajay G. Rai
Screenwriter: Geetu Mohandas
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Geetanjali Thapa, Manya Gupta
Established actress Geetu Mohandas steps behind the lens for her bracing directorial debut. A woman named Kamala and her daughter journey from their remote Himalayan village to Delhi in search of Kamala's missing husband. They find a guide in an unfriendly wanderer whose interest may lie more in his personal gain than in any help he can offer them. Beautifully shot by Rajeev Ravi (Gangs of Wasseypur), Mohandas' film evokes a hazardous world where answers may never be clear and a helping hand always comes at a price.
Phoring
North American Premiere
India/2013/128min
Director: Indranil Roychowdhury
Producers: Anasua Roychowdury, Sugata Bal
Screenwriters: Indranil Roychowdhury, Sugata Sinha
Cast: Akash Adhikary, Sohini Sarkar, Sourav Basak, Ritwick Charaborty, Shankar Debnath, Senjuti Roymukherjee
Indranil Roychowdhury's stunning feature debut is an evocative, unpredictable tale of confused adolescence in a struggling North Bengal town. Phoring, an imaginative adolescent boy, and his beautiful new teacher Doel form a close friendship that soon arouses doubt and suspicion when Doel's presence in the town is revealed to have less-than-noble origins. Roychowdhury accomplishes a tricky feat with his first film by luring us with the promise of an inspirational teacher-student story before ultimately delivering a much more complex and truthful account of the joys and pains of growing up.
Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost (2013)
Los Angeles Premiere Germany-India-Netherlands/2013/109min
Director: Anup Singh
Producers: Bero Beyer, Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper, Thierry Lenouvel
Screenwriter: Anup Singh, Madhuja Mukherjee
Cast: Irrfan Khan, Tisca Chopra, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal
Set in 1940s Punjab, Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa details the aftermath of the Indo-Pakistan Partition through the experiences of one Sikh family, headed by Umber (Irrfan Khan). Following the family’s forceful displacement from their village, Umber’s desire for a male heir is stronger than ever. When his wife gives birth to their fourth daughter, Kanwar, Umber makes the fateful decision to raise her as a boy. This tragic choice ends up dividing the family in violent ways, and provokes a series of increasingly unsettling situations for Kanwar as she grows up. While in a sense a ghost story, the source of pain and suffering is all too real.
Siddharth
Los Angeles Premiere
Canada-India/2013/96min
Director: Richie Mehta
Producers: David Miller, Steven N. Bray
Screenwriter: Richie Mehta
Cast: Rajesh Tailang, Tannishtha Chatterjee
A celebrated Iffla alum, Canadian director Richie Mehta returns to the festival with a heartbreaking story of parents Mahendra and Suman, whose son goes missing after being sent to work 200 miles north of Delhi. Carried by powerful yet restrained performances from Rajesh Tailang and Tannishtha Chatterjee as the parents, Mehta and cast capture the dignity of those facing the unthinkable. Mehta's chance encounter with a man searching for his lost son alerted him to the underreported plight of the families of 44,000 children estimated missing in India every year.
Ugly
North American Premiere
India/2013/128mins/Dcp
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Writer: Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Vikas Bahl, Madhu Mantena, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vivek Rangachari, Arun Rangachari
Cast: Rahul Bhatt, Ronit Roy, Tejaswini Kolhapure, Anshika Shrivastava
When ten-year-old Kali disappears from her father Rahul's car on the busy streets of Mumbai, the events that follow quickly spiral out of control and plunge into a morass of corruption and violence. Rahul and Kali's mother, Shalini, are divorced. Shalini is now married to Shoumik, the local police chief. When Shoumik learns that his stepdaughter is missing, he and Rahul clash in a breathless race to find the girl. With intricate plotting and vivid characterizations, Iffla alum Anurag Kashyap fashions a story that's sure to keep the heart racing.
Writers (Sulemani Keeda)
North American Premiere
India/2013/90min
Director: Amit V Masurkar
Writer: Amit V Masurkar
Producer: Datta Dave
Cast: Naveen Kasturia, Mayank Tewari, Aditi Vasudev and Karan Mirchandani
Writing partners Dulal and Mainak dream of shaking up Bollywood in director Amit Masurkar's slacker comedy. The two young men take a job from the wealthy, oddball son of a famous B-movie producer, but soon fear they're on the path to selling out. Masurkar's film captures the creative spirit of Andheri West, a Mumbai suburb where writers, directors, and actors come from all over India with the dream of working in the film industry, and is a sweet taste of things to come from the new "hindie" cinema.
Documentary Features
The Auction House: A Tale of Two Brothers
World Premiere
UK/2014/85min
Director: Ed Owles
Producers: Ed Owles, Giovanna Stopponi
The auction houses of Kolkata used to be where the rich and famous found the right high-end objects to decorate their homes. Today, the family-owned Russell Exchange is the last, and oldest, one to remain in India. Director Ed Owles follows two brothers, with the older brother moving back to Kolkata from London with hopes of using his Western business acumen to bring the Exchange into the 21st century. However, in a country radically transformed by technology and a rising youth culture, it may already be too late.
Faith Connections
Los Angeles Premiere
France-India/2013/115min/Dcp
Director: Pan Nalin
Producers: Raphaël Berdugo, Gaurav Dhingra, Pan Nalin, Virginie Lacombe
Every three years, Hindus gather at one of four rotating sites for Kumbh Mela, a religious celebration of faith and devotion marked by bathing in the sacred waters of the Ganges. With 100 million people at the 2013 Kumbh Mela, the pilgrimage is said to be the largest gathering on the planet. Iffla alum Pan Nalin crafts a moving and unique view of the mass gathering and presents unique stories of how individuals came to be there to share in the belief of the divine.
Powerless (Katiyabaaz)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/82min
Director: Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar
Producers: Fahad Mustafa, Deepti Kakkar, Judy Tam, Leopold Koegler
Screenwriter: Fahad Mustafa
In Kanpur, a city of three million that has seen better days, one of the only ways for many residents to get electricity is to steal it. Co-directors Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar focus their attention on the likes of pirate engineers like Loha Singh and first female CEO at the local power authority Ritu Maheshwari. Coupled with beautiful photography of the intricately tied together powerlines of the city and a pulsating original score, they present a unique documentary about current-day India and its future battles over limited resources.
Shepherds of Paradise
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/50min
Director/Producer/Screenwriter/Cinematographer/Editor: Raja Shabir Khan
Composer: Bilal Iran
Nomadic herder Gafoor has to lead his large flock of goats, sheep, cows and horses across Jammu all the way to Kashmir so they can graze. Director Raja Shabir Khan presents lives few have ever seen, let alone lived, with simple beauty and real terror in a film that has won major National Awards in India. A cinematic wonder that must be seen to truly understand, Shepherds of Paradise is a testament of the power of film to transport us to other lands and experiences.
Bollywood By Night
Bombay Talkies
North American Premiere
India/117min/2013
Directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Guneet Monga
Screenwriters: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan , Rani Mukerji, Katrina Kaif, Randeep Hooda, Saqib Saleem, Nawazuddin Siddiqui
A quartet of short films directed by four of India’s most exciting contemporary filmmakers celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema in this omnibus film. Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap crafts a tale of ordinary people whose love of movies profoundly alters the course of their lives. Each story beautifully captures how lovers of cinema can’t help but carry that fascination into their day-to-day life. Haven’t we all wished, at one time or another, that our lives were more like a film?
Monsoon Shootout
Los Angeles Premiere
India-uk-Netherlands/2013/88min
Director: Amit Kumar
Producers: Trevor Ingman, Guneet Monga, Martijn De Grunt
Screenwriter: Amit Kumar
Cast: Vijay Varma, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Geetanjali Thapa
A split-second decision made by a rookie police officer propels writer/director Amit Kumar’s debut feature, which fascinatingly splinters into three separate, equally pulse-pounding scenarios. In a secluded alley drenched in the pouring rain, principled cop Adi aims his gun at Shiva, a vicious gangster on the run. What Adi decides to do next will reverberate throughout his personal and professional life in ways he could never imagine. Kumar thus explores the ripple effect our choices have, and how we unknowingly alter the lives of those around us.
Shorts
Aarti
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
USA/2013/4min
Director: David Walter Lech
Producer: Terrie Samundra
A hypnotic look into the nightly “ceremony of light” ritual in a Hindu temple in Sheikhupur, Punjab.
Alchemy
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/5min
Directors: Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat, Janmeet Singh
Producer: Pritesh Varia
A bold and vibrant song to the intricate fabric of modern day India, a kaleidoscope of voices, colors and traditions.
Bhiwani Junction
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/18min
Director: Abhi Singh
Producer: Abhi Singh
A poignant documentary portrait of Himanshu, a 12-year old boxer, whose formidable commitment to the sport makes his lofty dreams to become an Olympic champion appear well within reach.
Black Rock (Kaatal)
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/22min
Director: Vikrant Pawar
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Two young lovers spend one last afternoon together. A beautiful meditation on the ephemeral nature of young love that has won three of India’s National Film Awards.
The Fly (Makhi)
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
India/2013/31min
Director: Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Employed as a Fly Killer in an upscale restaurant, Pipal must ensure a fly-free environment by smacking dead the flies that buzz over the patrons’ heads. When a nearby drainage is closed and the source of the fly infestation eradicated, Pipal must find a way to produce enough live flies to save his job, in this delightfully absurdist commentary on urban India’s emerging work culture.
Beloved (Humsafar)
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors/Writers: Swapnil Awate, Laura Erbacher
Producer: Dsk Supinfocom
A sweeping single shot takes us on the breathtaking animated journey of two lovers and their eternal pursuit of harmony.
Jaya
Shorts Program 2
USA/2013/19min
Director: Puja Maewal
Producer: Puja Maewal
Young Jaya is able to survive the gruesome gang life in the unforgiving streets of Mumbai by posing as a boy. When she meets a wealthy businessman who looks like he could be the father who abandoned her, she sets out to reclaim her identity, in this engrossing drama that was shortlisted for a Student Academy Award®.
Kush
Shorts Program 1
India/2013/25min
Director: Shubhashish Bhutiani
Producer: Shubhashish Bhutiani
A bus full of schoolchildren boisterously makes its way back from a field trip when the news of Indira Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards breaks. As violence quickly erupts across the country, Kush, the only Sikh student in the class, must find a way to escape the unquenchable fury of retribution, in this gripping drama that was shortlisted for an Academy Award®.
Little Gypsy (Kachho Gadulo)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors: Saptesh Chaubal, Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat
Producer: D.S.K. Supinfocom
Inspired by the folk traditions of various parts of India, this stunning animated film sweeps us into a mythical journey that celebrates the power of play and imagination.
Love.Love.Love.
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
Russian Federation/2013/12min
Director: Sandhya Daisy Sundaram
Producers: Tanya Petrik, Guillaume Protsenko
An intimate ode to the wondrous force of love, as it takes new shapes and forms through the endless Russian winters. Love. Love.Love. won the Short Film Special Jury Award for Non-Fiction at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.
Outpost
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India-usa/2013/17min
Director: Shiva Shankar Bajpai
Producer: Aditi Anand
In the barren desert of the India-Pakistan border, two lone army guards on the opposite sides of the line yearn for booze, mosquito repellent and some human contact, in this humorous glimpse into the absurdity of rigid immaterial divides.
Presence
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/17min
Directors: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Producers: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Long days and nights spent within the bellies of the rising structural beasts that rapidly transform the city of Bangalore bring on visions of ghosts that speak of the construction workers’ memories, longings and fears, in this haunting meditation on the migrant experience.
Skin Deep
Screens with Writers
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/20min
Director: Hardik Mehta
Producers: Devang Bhavsar, Niraj Kothari
Sanjay and Sushma plan to elope to escape a looming arranged marriage. They are in love and their future together shines bright and perfect and filled with possibility--that is, as long as an extra piece of skin that complicates their sex life gets fixed in what should be a routine medical procedure. But Mumbai’s electricity gods have other plans in store for them.
Small Yellow Field (Tau Seru)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
Australia-India/2013/8min
Director: Rodd Rathjen
Producer: Rodd Rathjen
In the remote vastness of the Himalayas, a young nomad's curiosity lies beyond the horizon. This stunningly photographed film made its world premiere at Cannes Critics’ Week.
The Puppet (Tamaash)
Screens with Shepherds Of Paradise
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/32min
Directors: Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
Producers: Datta Dave, Chaitanya Hegde, Omar Nissar Paul, Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
A mysterious puppet offers young Anzar the chance to escape his father’s relentless punishments over his poor school grades by granting him the power to inflict misfortune on his nemesis, his brilliant classmate, Sadat. However, his newfound peace is short-lived as Sadat falls severely ill and Anzar comes to realize that the puppet’s powers are spiraling out of his control...
- 4/8/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
From April 8th to the 11th, Indian films will once again be showcased in the Us at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla). In its 12th year, Iffla boasts an incredible lineup of fabulous films that reflects the rich diversity of Indian cinema. Iffla’s Artistic Director Jasmine Jaisinghani says, “I’m thrilled and proud that Iffla’s line-up this year includes an especially diverse range of cinematic experiences, covering many regions of India and the diaspora.”
Iffla 2014 presents 33 films that include feature films, documentaries and shorts. The festival will have three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
Bollywood will be well represented with three outstanding films all showing during the festival’s run.
Iffla 2014 presents 33 films that include feature films, documentaries and shorts. The festival will have three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
Bollywood will be well represented with three outstanding films all showing during the festival’s run.
- 3/21/2014
- by Stacey Yount
- Bollyspice
A still from Jadoo
The 12th Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla), to be held from April 8-13, announced its 2014 line-up of feature films and short films.
Amit Gupta’s Jadoo, an exploration of family bonds amidst two feuding brothers’ restaurants in England, will screen as the festival’s closing night gala. The film premiered at the 2013 Berlinale.
As previously announced, Iffla will open with Jeffrey D. Brown’s Sold. The 2014 edition of the festival will present more than 33 films.
Program highlights include the North American premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s Ugly, Geethu Mohandas’ Liar’s Dice, Anup Singh’s Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost and the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Hank and Asha by James E. Duff.
Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry, Mahesh Pailoor’s Brahmin Bulls and Richie Mehta’s Siddharth will also be screened at the festival.
The festival’s feature...
The 12th Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla), to be held from April 8-13, announced its 2014 line-up of feature films and short films.
Amit Gupta’s Jadoo, an exploration of family bonds amidst two feuding brothers’ restaurants in England, will screen as the festival’s closing night gala. The film premiered at the 2013 Berlinale.
As previously announced, Iffla will open with Jeffrey D. Brown’s Sold. The 2014 edition of the festival will present more than 33 films.
Program highlights include the North American premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s Ugly, Geethu Mohandas’ Liar’s Dice, Anup Singh’s Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost and the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Hank and Asha by James E. Duff.
Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry, Mahesh Pailoor’s Brahmin Bulls and Richie Mehta’s Siddharth will also be screened at the festival.
The festival’s feature...
- 3/19/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Exclusive: Kino Lorber has acquired Us rights to Pan Nalin’s feature documentry Faith Connections.
The film, which had its world premiere at Toronto last year, is set to receive its Us premiere at the Palm Springs International Film Festival this weekend. It was previously sold to France, Germany & Austria, Benelux, Switzerland and Australia & New Zealand.
“Faith Connections is probably the first Indian doc to break into the international theatrical market. We are thrilled at our association with Us distributor Kino Lorber for its Us release,” said producer Gaurav Dhingra.
Dhingra and Nalin’s Jungle Book Entertainment produced with France’s Cite Films and Virginie Films. Jungle Book also recently wrapped Nalin’s Goa-set comedy drama Angry Indian Goddesses.
Nalin is also casting for Beyond The Known World, a co-production between Jungle Book, New Zealand’s Reservoir Film and Arsam France. The film is expected to shoot later this year in New Zealand and the Indian Himalayas...
The film, which had its world premiere at Toronto last year, is set to receive its Us premiere at the Palm Springs International Film Festival this weekend. It was previously sold to France, Germany & Austria, Benelux, Switzerland and Australia & New Zealand.
“Faith Connections is probably the first Indian doc to break into the international theatrical market. We are thrilled at our association with Us distributor Kino Lorber for its Us release,” said producer Gaurav Dhingra.
Dhingra and Nalin’s Jungle Book Entertainment produced with France’s Cite Films and Virginie Films. Jungle Book also recently wrapped Nalin’s Goa-set comedy drama Angry Indian Goddesses.
Nalin is also casting for Beyond The Known World, a co-production between Jungle Book, New Zealand’s Reservoir Film and Arsam France. The film is expected to shoot later this year in New Zealand and the Indian Himalayas...
- 1/6/2014
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
2013 proved to be yet another exciting year for Indian documentaries: they screened at numerous international film festivals and took home awards. In a small but significant step, a few of them even found their way into theatres in India. Though the domestic funding and distribution scenario still remains gloomy, there’s much to rejoice in the international acclaim that these documentaries have found in the last year.
We have compiled a list of the 10 most successful documentaries of 2013, taking into account factors such as film festivals, awards, popularity, reviews and distribution.
Special Mention for Shivendra Singh Dungarpur’s Celluloid Man that has recently been selected for its fiftieth festival, Saurav Sarangi’s Char..The No Man’s Island and Nishtha Jain’s Gulabi Gang for still being hot on the festival circuit and Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam’s When Hari Got Married for its theatrical release in August. All...
We have compiled a list of the 10 most successful documentaries of 2013, taking into account factors such as film festivals, awards, popularity, reviews and distribution.
Special Mention for Shivendra Singh Dungarpur’s Celluloid Man that has recently been selected for its fiftieth festival, Saurav Sarangi’s Char..The No Man’s Island and Nishtha Jain’s Gulabi Gang for still being hot on the festival circuit and Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam’s When Hari Got Married for its theatrical release in August. All...
- 1/3/2014
- by Editorial Team
- DearCinema.com
Paris-based Indian filmmaker Pan Nalin has wrapped principal photography on his debut in mainstream Hindi cinema, coming-of-age drama Angry Indian Goddesses.
The film features a hot ensemble cast of established and up-and-coming actresses, including Tannishtha Chatterjee (Brick Lane), Sandhya Mridul (The Great Indian Butterfly), singer Anushka Manchanda, actress Rajashri Deshpande, former Miss India Sarah-Jane Dias, model-turned-actress Amrit Maghera and model Pavleen Gujral.
Set in Goa, the film revolves around seven women from different walks of life who come together on a friend’s invitation. The film is produced by Jungle Book Entertainment, owned by Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra.
“It’s a light-hearted female buddy film. We have tried to deal with contemporary issues related to women without being preachy,” said Nalin. “It’s made with the sensibility of my earlier films and is not-over-the-top. But it’s my most commercial film till date.”
Nalin has previously directed features such as Samsara and Valley Of Flowers. His recent...
The film features a hot ensemble cast of established and up-and-coming actresses, including Tannishtha Chatterjee (Brick Lane), Sandhya Mridul (The Great Indian Butterfly), singer Anushka Manchanda, actress Rajashri Deshpande, former Miss India Sarah-Jane Dias, model-turned-actress Amrit Maghera and model Pavleen Gujral.
Set in Goa, the film revolves around seven women from different walks of life who come together on a friend’s invitation. The film is produced by Jungle Book Entertainment, owned by Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra.
“It’s a light-hearted female buddy film. We have tried to deal with contemporary issues related to women without being preachy,” said Nalin. “It’s made with the sensibility of my earlier films and is not-over-the-top. But it’s my most commercial film till date.”
Nalin has previously directed features such as Samsara and Valley Of Flowers. His recent...
- 11/23/2013
- ScreenDaily
Paris-based Indian filmmaker Pan Nalin has wrapped principal photography on his debut in mainstream Hindi cinema, coming-of-age drama Angry Indian Goddesses.
The film features a hot ensemble cast of established and up-and-coming actresses, including Tannishtha Chatterjee (Brick Lane), Sandhya Mridul (The Great Indian Butterfly), singer Anushka Manchanda, actress Rajashri Deshpande, former Miss India Sarah-Jane Dias, model-turned-actress Amrit Maghera and model Pavleen Gujral.
Set in Goa, the film revolves around seven women from different walks of life who come together on a friend’s invitation. The film is produced by Jungle Book Entertainment, owned by Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra.
“It’s a light-hearted female buddy film. We have tried to deal with contemporary issues related to women without being preachy,” said Nalin. “It’s made with the sensibility of my earlier films and is not-over-the-top. But it’s my most commercial film till date.”
Nalin has previously directed features such as Samsara and Valley Of Flowers. His recent...
The film features a hot ensemble cast of established and up-and-coming actresses, including Tannishtha Chatterjee (Brick Lane), Sandhya Mridul (The Great Indian Butterfly), singer Anushka Manchanda, actress Rajashri Deshpande, former Miss India Sarah-Jane Dias, model-turned-actress Amrit Maghera and model Pavleen Gujral.
Set in Goa, the film revolves around seven women from different walks of life who come together on a friend’s invitation. The film is produced by Jungle Book Entertainment, owned by Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra.
“It’s a light-hearted female buddy film. We have tried to deal with contemporary issues related to women without being preachy,” said Nalin. “It’s made with the sensibility of my earlier films and is not-over-the-top. But it’s my most commercial film till date.”
Nalin has previously directed features such as Samsara and Valley Of Flowers. His recent...
- 11/23/2013
- ScreenDaily
Iffi to screen festival favorites Blue is the Warmest Colour, Ilo Ilo, The Past among others
A still from The Coffin Maker
Two Indian Films; Apu’s Song by Kaushik Ganguly and The Coffin Maker by Veena Bakshi have been selected in the International Competition section at the International Film Festival of India (Iffi) to be held in Goa from November 20-30, 2013.
Apu’s Song is a real-life story inspired by Subir Banerjee, the child actor who played the iconic role of Apu in Satyajit Ray’s Pather Panchali. The film released theatrically in August 1955 and it has been 58 long years hence. But ironically Subir never became a part of any film again in his entire life. On his way to receive an award in a film festival in Germany, he reminisces about his life.
The Coffin Maker by Veena Bakshi (India) is set in a small village in Goa.
A still from The Coffin Maker
Two Indian Films; Apu’s Song by Kaushik Ganguly and The Coffin Maker by Veena Bakshi have been selected in the International Competition section at the International Film Festival of India (Iffi) to be held in Goa from November 20-30, 2013.
Apu’s Song is a real-life story inspired by Subir Banerjee, the child actor who played the iconic role of Apu in Satyajit Ray’s Pather Panchali. The film released theatrically in August 1955 and it has been 58 long years hence. But ironically Subir never became a part of any film again in his entire life. On his way to receive an award in a film festival in Germany, he reminisces about his life.
The Coffin Maker by Veena Bakshi (India) is set in a small village in Goa.
- 11/13/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
France’s Cite Films has sold Pan Nalin’s documentary Faith Connections to Madman Entertainment for Australia & New Zealand and Contact Films for Benelux at the Afm.
The film was previously sold to France (Sophie Dulac Distribution), Nfp (Germany & Austria), Filmcoopi (Switzerland) at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, where it received its world premiere.
Faith Connections follows the stories of holy men, policemen, pilgrims and a runaway child at India’s biggest religious festival, which is held once every 12 years and attracts around 100 million Hindu pilgrims.
Cite Films also co-produced the film with Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra’s Jungle Book Entertainment. Producers on the film include Dhingra, Nalin, Raphael Berdugo and Virginie Lacombe.
Faith Connections is making its Indian premiere at the upcoming International Film Festival of India (Iffi, Nov 20-30).
The film was previously sold to France (Sophie Dulac Distribution), Nfp (Germany & Austria), Filmcoopi (Switzerland) at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, where it received its world premiere.
Faith Connections follows the stories of holy men, policemen, pilgrims and a runaway child at India’s biggest religious festival, which is held once every 12 years and attracts around 100 million Hindu pilgrims.
Cite Films also co-produced the film with Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra’s Jungle Book Entertainment. Producers on the film include Dhingra, Nalin, Raphael Berdugo and Virginie Lacombe.
Faith Connections is making its Indian premiere at the upcoming International Film Festival of India (Iffi, Nov 20-30).
- 11/11/2013
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Ritesh Batra’s The Lunchbox won the Best Film award at the inaugural edition of Extravagant India! International Indian Film Festival in Paris.
Anurag Kashyap won the Best Director award for Ugly. The Best Actor award was posthumously awarded to Rituparno Ghosh for Chitrangada, while Vidya Balan won the Best Actress award for Dirty Picture and Kahani.
Rajesh S Jala’s Children of the Pyre won the Best Documentary award, Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections won a Special Mention of the Jury. Andrea Iannetta’s Allah is Great was awarded the Best Short Film award.
Happiness Distribution, a French distribution company, will theatrically release The Lunchbox in France on December 13, 2013 and Ugly in March 2014 while Sophie Dulac Distribution will distribute Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections under the title Kumbh Mela, Les chemins de la Foi.
The festival was held from October 16-22, 2013 in association with the Indian Embassy in Paris and the Paris City Hall.
Anurag Kashyap won the Best Director award for Ugly. The Best Actor award was posthumously awarded to Rituparno Ghosh for Chitrangada, while Vidya Balan won the Best Actress award for Dirty Picture and Kahani.
Rajesh S Jala’s Children of the Pyre won the Best Documentary award, Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections won a Special Mention of the Jury. Andrea Iannetta’s Allah is Great was awarded the Best Short Film award.
Happiness Distribution, a French distribution company, will theatrically release The Lunchbox in France on December 13, 2013 and Ugly in March 2014 while Sophie Dulac Distribution will distribute Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections under the title Kumbh Mela, Les chemins de la Foi.
The festival was held from October 16-22, 2013 in association with the Indian Embassy in Paris and the Paris City Hall.
- 10/25/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Still from Faith Connections
Faith Connections by Pan Nalin and Powerless (Katiyabaaz) by Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar will screen at Cph:dox, Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival to be held from November 7-17, 2013.
Both documentaries will screen in Top Dox, a section for festival hits and ‘front page stories from the world of documentaries’.
Faith Connections directed by Pan Nalin (India, France) premiered at Toronto International Film Festival. The film is set during the Hindu religious ritual Kumbh Mela, which takes place every three years at selected places along India’s river banks and is attended by about one hundred million people.
Powerless revolves around the Indian ‘Katiyabaaz’, a kind of modern Robin Hoods, who have made it their mission to steal power at night and give it to the poor. For there are three million people in Kanpur, but only half a million of them pay their electricity bill,...
Faith Connections by Pan Nalin and Powerless (Katiyabaaz) by Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar will screen at Cph:dox, Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival to be held from November 7-17, 2013.
Both documentaries will screen in Top Dox, a section for festival hits and ‘front page stories from the world of documentaries’.
Faith Connections directed by Pan Nalin (India, France) premiered at Toronto International Film Festival. The film is set during the Hindu religious ritual Kumbh Mela, which takes place every three years at selected places along India’s river banks and is attended by about one hundred million people.
Powerless revolves around the Indian ‘Katiyabaaz’, a kind of modern Robin Hoods, who have made it their mission to steal power at night and give it to the poor. For there are three million people in Kanpur, but only half a million of them pay their electricity bill,...
- 10/23/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
The 15th Mumbai Film Festival (Mff) presented by Reliance Entertainment and organized by the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (Mami) scheduled between 17th-24th October is all set to showcase the best of contemporary French cinema and welcome artists for the 6th edition of the Rendez-vous with French Cinema co-organized with The French Embassy in India, Institut Français en Inde and Unifrance films.
As part of the festival highlights, Costa Gavras will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award during the opening ceremony in the presence of His Excellency Mr François Richier, Ambassador of France to India who will grace us with his presence especially for this occasion. Among others, Nathalie Baye, jury member of the international section, Mahamat Saleh Haroun, director of the film “Grigris”, Guillaume Brac, director of the film “Tonnerre” (Competition) and Leos Carax, well known film maker who will be conducting a masters class.
The special section “Rendez-vous...
As part of the festival highlights, Costa Gavras will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award during the opening ceremony in the presence of His Excellency Mr François Richier, Ambassador of France to India who will grace us with his presence especially for this occasion. Among others, Nathalie Baye, jury member of the international section, Mahamat Saleh Haroun, director of the film “Grigris”, Guillaume Brac, director of the film “Tonnerre” (Competition) and Leos Carax, well known film maker who will be conducting a masters class.
The special section “Rendez-vous...
- 10/18/2013
- by Pooja Rao
- Bollyspice
The 15th edition of the Mumbai Film Festival will be held from October 17 – 24, 2013. Liberty Cinema, New Marine Lines, will be the main venue where the opening and closing ceremonies will be held. Besides, Metro Cinema, Marine Lines and Cinemax / PVR, Versova will be the satellite venues. Read in detail here.
The festival has launched an online ticketing system this year which means no queues for popular films any more. Read about it here.
Lee Daniel’s The Butler will be the opening film while Bill Condon’s The Fifth Estate will close the festival. Read about the closing film here.
Showcasing over 200 films from over 65 countries, the festival will award $220,000 in cash prizes. The countries in focus this year are Spain, Cambodia and Afghanistan.Know more about it here.
The festival has launched a brand new Experimental film section and will pay homage to Yash Chopra, Rituparno Ghosh and Pran.
The festival has launched an online ticketing system this year which means no queues for popular films any more. Read about it here.
Lee Daniel’s The Butler will be the opening film while Bill Condon’s The Fifth Estate will close the festival. Read about the closing film here.
Showcasing over 200 films from over 65 countries, the festival will award $220,000 in cash prizes. The countries in focus this year are Spain, Cambodia and Afghanistan.Know more about it here.
The festival has launched a brand new Experimental film section and will pay homage to Yash Chopra, Rituparno Ghosh and Pran.
- 10/17/2013
- by Editorial Team
- DearCinema.com
F rom the works of masters like Costa-Gavras and Asghar Farhadi to newcomers like Nagraj Manjule and Kim Mordaunt, the Mumbai Film Festival 2013 offers above 200 films to choose from for an entire week!
Anu Rangachar, the Program Director of Mumbai Film Festival, lists her 20 favourite films in the lineup.
1. The Act of Killing
Dir.: Joshua Oppenheimer (2012 / Col. / 115′)
Section: The Real Reel
The film won the Panorama Audience Award and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the Berlin International Film Festival 2013 and the Cph:dox Award at the Cph:dox Film Festival 2012. It has bagged several other awards in film festivals at Istanbul, Prague, Geneva, Warsaw, Barcelona, Zagreb, Mexico, etc.
An Indonesian documentary, The Act of Killing challenges the total impunity on genocide by the death squad leaders. In 1965, Anwar Congo and his friends were promoted to the ranks of Death Squad Leaders to help the army obliterate more than one million alleged communists,...
Anu Rangachar, the Program Director of Mumbai Film Festival, lists her 20 favourite films in the lineup.
1. The Act of Killing
Dir.: Joshua Oppenheimer (2012 / Col. / 115′)
Section: The Real Reel
The film won the Panorama Audience Award and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the Berlin International Film Festival 2013 and the Cph:dox Award at the Cph:dox Film Festival 2012. It has bagged several other awards in film festivals at Istanbul, Prague, Geneva, Warsaw, Barcelona, Zagreb, Mexico, etc.
An Indonesian documentary, The Act of Killing challenges the total impunity on genocide by the death squad leaders. In 1965, Anwar Congo and his friends were promoted to the ranks of Death Squad Leaders to help the army obliterate more than one million alleged communists,...
- 10/10/2013
- by Editorial Team
- DearCinema.com
Late as usual. People are attending Mipcom in Cannes and in November Afm in Santa Monica, and I’m only now getting around to writing about my own private Toronto. I chose films I would not be able to see soon in a theater near me and I chose films because my schedule permitted me to see them. Occasionally I chose films my friends were going to and that happened when my time was not demanding other things be done.
I wish I could have seen 100 other films too but for some reason or another I could not fit them in.
I moderated a wonderful panel (and we did blog on that!) on international film financing with Sffs’ Ted Hope, UTA’s Rena Ronson, Revolution’s Andrew Eaton, and Hollywood-based Cross Creek’s Brian Oliver, and Paul Miller, Head of Film Financing, from the Doha Film Institute, Qatar's first international organization dedicated to film financing, production, education and two film festivals.
I also spoke with Toronto Talent Lab filmmakers and then I filled my days with films – I did get an interview with Gloria’s director Sebastian Lelio and Berlin Best Actress winner Paulina Garcia and with Marcela Said, director of The Summer of Flying Fish but mostly I watched film after film after film – up to five a day, just like in the old days when I had to do it for my acquisitions jobs. This was pure pleasure. Friends would meet before the film, we would watch and disperse. And we would meet again at the cocktail hour or the dinner hour and then disperse again.
My partner Peter had lots of meetings with the Talent of Toronto from the Not Short on Shorts and the Talent Lab Mentoring Programs.
Parties like the Rotterdam-Screen International party gave us the chance to catch up with our Dutch friends whom we have not seen for the last two years. Ontario Media Development Corporation’s presenting the International Financing Forum luncheon gave us the chance to talk to lots of upcoming filmmakers and old friends again who were mentoring them. The panel Forty Years On: Women’s Film Festivals Today, moderated by Kay Armatage, former Tiff programmer, Professor Emeritus University of Toronto, and featuring Debra Zimmerman, Executive Director of Women Make Movies, NYC, Melissa Silverstein, Do-Fojnder an dArtistic Director of the Athena Film Festival in NYC and blogger of Women in Hollywood, So-In Hong, Director of Programming of the International Women’s Film Festival in Seoul had a rapport and didn’t hesitate to challenge each other. It felt like a party even though the subject was quite serious. The SXSW party was crowded as always, filled with everyone we could possibly know. It is always a great party we all want to attend.
One of the great dinners was that of The Creative Coalition Spotlight Awards Dinner honoring Alfre Woodard (12 Years a Slave), Hill Harper (1982, CSI: NY), Sharon Leal (1982), Matt Letscher (Scandal, The Carrie Diaries), Brenton Thwaites (Oculus, Maleficient), Tommy Oliver (1982, Kinyarwanda – I am a great fan of Tommy’s!), Tom Ortenberg (CEO, Open Road Films which has a coventure with Regal Theaters and AMC Theaters recently acquired by the richest man in China), and David Arquette (The Scream series). Our hostess, Robin Bronk is so welcoming and so dedicated to furthering the cause of universal education as a human right, education in the arts as a must. I admire her presence and her good work.
Here is a list of the great (and not so great, but never bad) films I got to see. I also list those I continue to hear about even now. I do not list all the films which were picked up during the festival and later. For that, you can go to SydneysBuzz.com and buy the Fall Rights Roundup 2013 and see all films whose rights were acquired (and announced) and by whom with links to all companies and Cinando for further research. For buyers it will, by deduction, show what is still available for Afm and for programmers, it will show who is in charge of the film for specific territories. The second edition will be issued two weeks after Afm.
One of the first films I saw and still retaining its place as one of my favorites was the documentary Finding Vivian Maier which begins with the discovery of photographs by an unknown woman named Vivian Maier by filmmaker John Maloof. As the mystery of this woman is uncovered, the audience is treated to her stunning work and the story of who she was.
One of my favorite films was by one of my favorite directors, Lucas Moodyson. We Are The Best (Isa: Trust Nordisk) was a great surprise, the story of three teeny-bopper punk-influenced girls who loved getting into unusual situations. It was loving and fun, darling and funny. I would take my children to see it and would delight in seeing it again. It was the biggest surprise for me. I can see why Magnolia snapped it up for the U.S. I thank programmer Steve Gravenstock for giving me the ticket for this film which I would have missed otherwise.
I had missed Jodorowsky’s Dune in Cannes. I am a great fan of El Topo and was eager to see this film. I was surprised at the elegance and skill of Jodorowsky in explaining his vision. Afterward, Gary Springer, our favorite publicist, arranged a wonderful reception at a classic comic book store where we loaded up on some fascinating graphic novels and Gary showed us his depiction on an old issue of Mad Magazine discussing the making of Jaws which he was in. picture here.
A totally unique and unexpected film about the African Diaspora, Belle, written and directed by Amma Asante was not talked about much to my surprise, perhaps because Fox Searchlight acquired all rights worldwide from Bankside before the festival. It is a stunningly beautiful British period piece of the 18th century about a mixed race aristocratic beauty.
My favorite film, on a par with The Patience Stone last year was Bobo (Isa: Wide) by Ines Oliveira starring Paula Garcia Aissato Indjai, produced by my friend Fernando Vendrell who gave me a ticket when I could not get one myself. This story of a woman who does nothing except go to work is forced to accept a claning woman and her young sister from Guinea-Bissau. Together they face down their demons. I love the cross-cultural understanding which results in their shared situations. I recently saw Mother of George and found the same warm connection across great cultural divides, though this one was of generations.
I wish I could have seen Pays Barbare/ Barbaric Land, the Italian/ French doc in Wavelengths about Mussolini’s attempted subjugation of Ethiopia (the only country in Africa never colonized). It sounds like great political poetry.
1982 which had previously won the prize of the jury I served on for Us Works in Progress held in July at the Champs Elysees Film Festival in Paris. It was deeply moving and disturbing film which depicts the shattering and the healing of a family. It also helps feed the pipeline begun with Lee Daniels producing Monster’s Ball who went on to direct to such films as Precious and The Butler. If the African American experience can continue to be expressed so eloquently by such filmmakers as Tommy Oliver, Rashaad Ernesto Green (Sundance 2012’s Gun Hill Road), Ava DuVernay (Middle of Nowhere), then a film literate audience will foster greater growth of even more talent in the coming generation. While I didn’t see All Is By My Side by U.K.’s John Ridley which is about Jimi Hendrix nor (yet!) the most highly acclaimed film of the festival, 12 Years a Slave by U.K.’s Steve McQueen, but I would include them in this discussion of the African American Experience.
On the subject of Africa, where last Sundance God Loves Uganda shocked and upset me, this year Mission Congo (Cinephil) revealed much of the same cultural divide only these two films show the negative impact of the Christian right upon already besieged Africans. What is done in the name of a righteous G-d is cause for dialogue and oversight.
Israel and the Middle East
No major turmoil or denunciations this year (Thank G-d, Allah, or whoever She may be). Katriel Schory, head of the Israeli Film Fund told me that if I could only see one film, then it should be Bethlehem which is the country’s submission for Academy Award Consideration for the Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. It was a sad and clear eyed microcosmic view of the issues of trust and betrayals played out among every level of the society. People compared it to Omar by Hany Abu-Assad,the filmmaker of a favorite of mine, Paradise Now, but I did not see Omar.
Rags and Tatters at first seemed like a documentary, and does have doc footage, but it is a circular story that ends where it began but with much more understanding of the chaotic events in Cairo. Really worth watching.
Latino
Of the Latino films two Chilean films, Gloria (Chile) and The Summer of Flying Fish (Review), were accompanied by interviews which you can read on my previous blogs here and here. El Mudo from Peru by the Vega brothers was in the odd vien of their previous film, October. Not sure at the end just what the film was saying…
Toronto Film Fest Programmer Diana Sanchez’s official count of Latino films in the festival is 16. Of these, 5 are by women; 30% is a strong number. Venezuela and Chile are strong with year with two films each. Two other films might have been chosen except they went to San Sebastian for their world premieres. Especially hot this year was Mexico. 4 films are here but she might have chosen 10 if she could have. Costa Rica is making a showing with All About the Feathers and Central America is making more movies. There is lots of industry buzz coming from the good pictures from Brazil like A Wolf at the Door from Sao Paolo production
She is not counting Gravity by Alfonso Cuaron as as Latino film but as a U.S. film.
And Our White Society
The Dinner (Isa: Media Luna) by Menno Meyjes ♀ (Isa: Media Luna), a Dutch film deals with the personal and political as two families disintegrate when the affluent sons kill a homeless woman. Deeply disturbing social issues on the other side of the spectrum from those of 1982 and yet very much the same. How a society can foster such dissonance in class structure today which results in the disintegration of family and even a nation’s political life is, as I said, deeply disturbing. Based on the N.Y. Times best selling book which sold over 650,000 in The Netherlands, and is published in 22 countries, it stars four of Holland’s most renowned actors, Jacob Derwig, Thekla Reuten, Daan Schuurmans, and Kim van Kooten. This is a story that could be remade in America and still maintain its strength. The writer-director Menno Meyjes wrote the Academy Award nominee The Color Purple and collaborated with director Steven Speilberg on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. In 2008 he directed Manolete with Penelope Cruz and Adrien Brody.
The Last of Robin Hood was a romp which thrilled us because Peter Belsito, my own dear husband, had a moment on screen (as the director of Errol Flynn’s last film Cuban Rebel Girls). He got the part because he had had an equally small role in the original Cuban Rebel Girls when it filmed in Cuba in 1959, four months after the Revolution. He happened to be there on vacation with his family including his 18 year old sister and his crazy aunt because Puerto Rico was full that year and Cuba had plenty of room. Directors Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland invited him to play in their film. The film actually had more meaning than merely a romp as it revealed what lays below the June-September love affair between Errol Flynn and 15 year old Beverly Aadland, the nature of fame (“a religion in this godless country” to quote Flynn himself) and ambition. Kevin Kline, Susan Sarandan and Dakota Fanning were all great in the repertoire piece.
Can a Song Save Your Life? garnered great praise as the film that followed the simple pure Once. I found it a bit flat though it kept my interest enough that I was not contemplating leaving. But it lacked the simplicity of Once.
Fading Gigolo proves that a Woody Allen Film is a Genre. John Turturro makes a Woody Allen middle-aged man fantasy of a wished for love affair with a Hasidic woman. Turturro is always lovable on screen, but his directing has something inauthentic about it…the only authentic thing was the twice-stated thought that somewhere in his heritage he was really Jewish. When I saw his previous film Passione, about Italians and passion, the opening song, being one of the first Cuban songs I ever heard, turned me off because again, it was inauthentic. It was Cuban, not Italian. I think he is not comfortable in his Italian guise.
Other films at Tiff I have seen previously:
Only Lovers Left Alive by Jim Jarmusch (Isa: HanWay, U.S. Spc). If you can see it as a dream of night, then the vampires dreaminess might appeal to you. I personally was ready to fall into my own stupor after watching this 123 minute movie of Vampires who have seen it all. Zzzzzz.
Don Jon is sexy and sweet. Scarlett Johansson is a superb comedienne, equal to Claudette Colbert in this film about two totally media mesmerized young lovers. ___ and his father are also great straight men. I loved this film, so funny and sweet and all about sex. Loved it!
Borgman Darkest humor, or is it humor? Creepy and definitely engrossing. Dutch filmmaker Alex van Warmerdam at his best. This is the Netherlands' Official Academy Awards Submission.
What I hear was good:
Aside from the ones that got snapped up for lots of money and are covered in all the trades already, there are films which I keep hearing about even now and will see:
Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon
12 Years a Slave (Isa: Summit, U.S. Fox Searchlight)
The Lunchbox (Isa: The Match Factory)
Prisoners (Isa: Summit/ Lionsgate, U.S.: Warner Bros)
Dallas Buyers Clubs (Isa: Voltage, U.S. Focus Features)
Life of Crime (Isa: Hyde Park, U.S.: )
A Touch of Sin (Isa: MK2, U.S. Kino Lorber)
Gravity (Isa: Warner Bros. U.S. Warner Bros.)
Enough Said (Isa: Fox Searchlight, U.S. Fox Searchlight)
La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty) (Isa: Pathe, U.S. Criterion) Italy’s submission for Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film
Violette (Isa: Doc & Film, U.S.: ?)
Omar (Isa: The Match Factory, U.S.: ?)
Le Passe (The Past) (Isa: Memento, U.S. Spc) Iran’s submission for Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.
To the Wolf (Isa: Pascale Ramonda)
The Selfish Giant (Isa: Protagonist, U.S. IFC)
At Berkeley by Frederick Wiseman (Isa: Doc & Film, U.S. Zipporah)
The Unknown Known (Isa: Entertainment One, U.S. Radius-twc)
Ain’t Misbehavin (Un Voyager) by Marcel Ophuls (Isa: Wide House)
Faith Connections by Pan Nalin (Isa: Cite Films). This Indian French film, produced by Raphael Berduo among others is written about here.
Civil Rights (?)
Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
12 Years a Slave (Isa: Summit, U.S. Fox Searchlight)
Belle (Isa: Bankside, all rights sold to Fox Searchlight)
Lgbt
Kill Your Darlings: The youthful finding of himself by Alan Ginsburg as he enters Colombia University and meets Lucien Carr, Jack Kerouac and Alan Bourroughs revolves around a murder which actually happened. The period veracity and Daniel Radcliffe’s acting carry the film into a fascinating character study. (U.S. Spc)
Dallas Buyers Club (Isa: Voltage, U.S. Focus Features)
Tom a la ferme / Tom at the Farm by Xavier Dolan Isa: MK2, U.S.:)
L’Armee du salut/ Salvation Army by Abdellah Taia (Isa: - U.S.:-)
Eastern Boys (Isa: Films Distribution)
Pelo Malo/ Bad Hair (FiGa Films)
The Dog (Producer Rep: Submarine)
Ignasi M. (Isa: Latido)
Gerontophilia (Isa: MK2, U.S. Producer Rep: Filmoption)...
I wish I could have seen 100 other films too but for some reason or another I could not fit them in.
I moderated a wonderful panel (and we did blog on that!) on international film financing with Sffs’ Ted Hope, UTA’s Rena Ronson, Revolution’s Andrew Eaton, and Hollywood-based Cross Creek’s Brian Oliver, and Paul Miller, Head of Film Financing, from the Doha Film Institute, Qatar's first international organization dedicated to film financing, production, education and two film festivals.
I also spoke with Toronto Talent Lab filmmakers and then I filled my days with films – I did get an interview with Gloria’s director Sebastian Lelio and Berlin Best Actress winner Paulina Garcia and with Marcela Said, director of The Summer of Flying Fish but mostly I watched film after film after film – up to five a day, just like in the old days when I had to do it for my acquisitions jobs. This was pure pleasure. Friends would meet before the film, we would watch and disperse. And we would meet again at the cocktail hour or the dinner hour and then disperse again.
My partner Peter had lots of meetings with the Talent of Toronto from the Not Short on Shorts and the Talent Lab Mentoring Programs.
Parties like the Rotterdam-Screen International party gave us the chance to catch up with our Dutch friends whom we have not seen for the last two years. Ontario Media Development Corporation’s presenting the International Financing Forum luncheon gave us the chance to talk to lots of upcoming filmmakers and old friends again who were mentoring them. The panel Forty Years On: Women’s Film Festivals Today, moderated by Kay Armatage, former Tiff programmer, Professor Emeritus University of Toronto, and featuring Debra Zimmerman, Executive Director of Women Make Movies, NYC, Melissa Silverstein, Do-Fojnder an dArtistic Director of the Athena Film Festival in NYC and blogger of Women in Hollywood, So-In Hong, Director of Programming of the International Women’s Film Festival in Seoul had a rapport and didn’t hesitate to challenge each other. It felt like a party even though the subject was quite serious. The SXSW party was crowded as always, filled with everyone we could possibly know. It is always a great party we all want to attend.
One of the great dinners was that of The Creative Coalition Spotlight Awards Dinner honoring Alfre Woodard (12 Years a Slave), Hill Harper (1982, CSI: NY), Sharon Leal (1982), Matt Letscher (Scandal, The Carrie Diaries), Brenton Thwaites (Oculus, Maleficient), Tommy Oliver (1982, Kinyarwanda – I am a great fan of Tommy’s!), Tom Ortenberg (CEO, Open Road Films which has a coventure with Regal Theaters and AMC Theaters recently acquired by the richest man in China), and David Arquette (The Scream series). Our hostess, Robin Bronk is so welcoming and so dedicated to furthering the cause of universal education as a human right, education in the arts as a must. I admire her presence and her good work.
Here is a list of the great (and not so great, but never bad) films I got to see. I also list those I continue to hear about even now. I do not list all the films which were picked up during the festival and later. For that, you can go to SydneysBuzz.com and buy the Fall Rights Roundup 2013 and see all films whose rights were acquired (and announced) and by whom with links to all companies and Cinando for further research. For buyers it will, by deduction, show what is still available for Afm and for programmers, it will show who is in charge of the film for specific territories. The second edition will be issued two weeks after Afm.
One of the first films I saw and still retaining its place as one of my favorites was the documentary Finding Vivian Maier which begins with the discovery of photographs by an unknown woman named Vivian Maier by filmmaker John Maloof. As the mystery of this woman is uncovered, the audience is treated to her stunning work and the story of who she was.
One of my favorite films was by one of my favorite directors, Lucas Moodyson. We Are The Best (Isa: Trust Nordisk) was a great surprise, the story of three teeny-bopper punk-influenced girls who loved getting into unusual situations. It was loving and fun, darling and funny. I would take my children to see it and would delight in seeing it again. It was the biggest surprise for me. I can see why Magnolia snapped it up for the U.S. I thank programmer Steve Gravenstock for giving me the ticket for this film which I would have missed otherwise.
I had missed Jodorowsky’s Dune in Cannes. I am a great fan of El Topo and was eager to see this film. I was surprised at the elegance and skill of Jodorowsky in explaining his vision. Afterward, Gary Springer, our favorite publicist, arranged a wonderful reception at a classic comic book store where we loaded up on some fascinating graphic novels and Gary showed us his depiction on an old issue of Mad Magazine discussing the making of Jaws which he was in. picture here.
A totally unique and unexpected film about the African Diaspora, Belle, written and directed by Amma Asante was not talked about much to my surprise, perhaps because Fox Searchlight acquired all rights worldwide from Bankside before the festival. It is a stunningly beautiful British period piece of the 18th century about a mixed race aristocratic beauty.
My favorite film, on a par with The Patience Stone last year was Bobo (Isa: Wide) by Ines Oliveira starring Paula Garcia Aissato Indjai, produced by my friend Fernando Vendrell who gave me a ticket when I could not get one myself. This story of a woman who does nothing except go to work is forced to accept a claning woman and her young sister from Guinea-Bissau. Together they face down their demons. I love the cross-cultural understanding which results in their shared situations. I recently saw Mother of George and found the same warm connection across great cultural divides, though this one was of generations.
I wish I could have seen Pays Barbare/ Barbaric Land, the Italian/ French doc in Wavelengths about Mussolini’s attempted subjugation of Ethiopia (the only country in Africa never colonized). It sounds like great political poetry.
1982 which had previously won the prize of the jury I served on for Us Works in Progress held in July at the Champs Elysees Film Festival in Paris. It was deeply moving and disturbing film which depicts the shattering and the healing of a family. It also helps feed the pipeline begun with Lee Daniels producing Monster’s Ball who went on to direct to such films as Precious and The Butler. If the African American experience can continue to be expressed so eloquently by such filmmakers as Tommy Oliver, Rashaad Ernesto Green (Sundance 2012’s Gun Hill Road), Ava DuVernay (Middle of Nowhere), then a film literate audience will foster greater growth of even more talent in the coming generation. While I didn’t see All Is By My Side by U.K.’s John Ridley which is about Jimi Hendrix nor (yet!) the most highly acclaimed film of the festival, 12 Years a Slave by U.K.’s Steve McQueen, but I would include them in this discussion of the African American Experience.
On the subject of Africa, where last Sundance God Loves Uganda shocked and upset me, this year Mission Congo (Cinephil) revealed much of the same cultural divide only these two films show the negative impact of the Christian right upon already besieged Africans. What is done in the name of a righteous G-d is cause for dialogue and oversight.
Israel and the Middle East
No major turmoil or denunciations this year (Thank G-d, Allah, or whoever She may be). Katriel Schory, head of the Israeli Film Fund told me that if I could only see one film, then it should be Bethlehem which is the country’s submission for Academy Award Consideration for the Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. It was a sad and clear eyed microcosmic view of the issues of trust and betrayals played out among every level of the society. People compared it to Omar by Hany Abu-Assad,the filmmaker of a favorite of mine, Paradise Now, but I did not see Omar.
Rags and Tatters at first seemed like a documentary, and does have doc footage, but it is a circular story that ends where it began but with much more understanding of the chaotic events in Cairo. Really worth watching.
Latino
Of the Latino films two Chilean films, Gloria (Chile) and The Summer of Flying Fish (Review), were accompanied by interviews which you can read on my previous blogs here and here. El Mudo from Peru by the Vega brothers was in the odd vien of their previous film, October. Not sure at the end just what the film was saying…
Toronto Film Fest Programmer Diana Sanchez’s official count of Latino films in the festival is 16. Of these, 5 are by women; 30% is a strong number. Venezuela and Chile are strong with year with two films each. Two other films might have been chosen except they went to San Sebastian for their world premieres. Especially hot this year was Mexico. 4 films are here but she might have chosen 10 if she could have. Costa Rica is making a showing with All About the Feathers and Central America is making more movies. There is lots of industry buzz coming from the good pictures from Brazil like A Wolf at the Door from Sao Paolo production
She is not counting Gravity by Alfonso Cuaron as as Latino film but as a U.S. film.
And Our White Society
The Dinner (Isa: Media Luna) by Menno Meyjes ♀ (Isa: Media Luna), a Dutch film deals with the personal and political as two families disintegrate when the affluent sons kill a homeless woman. Deeply disturbing social issues on the other side of the spectrum from those of 1982 and yet very much the same. How a society can foster such dissonance in class structure today which results in the disintegration of family and even a nation’s political life is, as I said, deeply disturbing. Based on the N.Y. Times best selling book which sold over 650,000 in The Netherlands, and is published in 22 countries, it stars four of Holland’s most renowned actors, Jacob Derwig, Thekla Reuten, Daan Schuurmans, and Kim van Kooten. This is a story that could be remade in America and still maintain its strength. The writer-director Menno Meyjes wrote the Academy Award nominee The Color Purple and collaborated with director Steven Speilberg on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. In 2008 he directed Manolete with Penelope Cruz and Adrien Brody.
The Last of Robin Hood was a romp which thrilled us because Peter Belsito, my own dear husband, had a moment on screen (as the director of Errol Flynn’s last film Cuban Rebel Girls). He got the part because he had had an equally small role in the original Cuban Rebel Girls when it filmed in Cuba in 1959, four months after the Revolution. He happened to be there on vacation with his family including his 18 year old sister and his crazy aunt because Puerto Rico was full that year and Cuba had plenty of room. Directors Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland invited him to play in their film. The film actually had more meaning than merely a romp as it revealed what lays below the June-September love affair between Errol Flynn and 15 year old Beverly Aadland, the nature of fame (“a religion in this godless country” to quote Flynn himself) and ambition. Kevin Kline, Susan Sarandan and Dakota Fanning were all great in the repertoire piece.
Can a Song Save Your Life? garnered great praise as the film that followed the simple pure Once. I found it a bit flat though it kept my interest enough that I was not contemplating leaving. But it lacked the simplicity of Once.
Fading Gigolo proves that a Woody Allen Film is a Genre. John Turturro makes a Woody Allen middle-aged man fantasy of a wished for love affair with a Hasidic woman. Turturro is always lovable on screen, but his directing has something inauthentic about it…the only authentic thing was the twice-stated thought that somewhere in his heritage he was really Jewish. When I saw his previous film Passione, about Italians and passion, the opening song, being one of the first Cuban songs I ever heard, turned me off because again, it was inauthentic. It was Cuban, not Italian. I think he is not comfortable in his Italian guise.
Other films at Tiff I have seen previously:
Only Lovers Left Alive by Jim Jarmusch (Isa: HanWay, U.S. Spc). If you can see it as a dream of night, then the vampires dreaminess might appeal to you. I personally was ready to fall into my own stupor after watching this 123 minute movie of Vampires who have seen it all. Zzzzzz.
Don Jon is sexy and sweet. Scarlett Johansson is a superb comedienne, equal to Claudette Colbert in this film about two totally media mesmerized young lovers. ___ and his father are also great straight men. I loved this film, so funny and sweet and all about sex. Loved it!
Borgman Darkest humor, or is it humor? Creepy and definitely engrossing. Dutch filmmaker Alex van Warmerdam at his best. This is the Netherlands' Official Academy Awards Submission.
What I hear was good:
Aside from the ones that got snapped up for lots of money and are covered in all the trades already, there are films which I keep hearing about even now and will see:
Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon
12 Years a Slave (Isa: Summit, U.S. Fox Searchlight)
The Lunchbox (Isa: The Match Factory)
Prisoners (Isa: Summit/ Lionsgate, U.S.: Warner Bros)
Dallas Buyers Clubs (Isa: Voltage, U.S. Focus Features)
Life of Crime (Isa: Hyde Park, U.S.: )
A Touch of Sin (Isa: MK2, U.S. Kino Lorber)
Gravity (Isa: Warner Bros. U.S. Warner Bros.)
Enough Said (Isa: Fox Searchlight, U.S. Fox Searchlight)
La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty) (Isa: Pathe, U.S. Criterion) Italy’s submission for Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film
Violette (Isa: Doc & Film, U.S.: ?)
Omar (Isa: The Match Factory, U.S.: ?)
Le Passe (The Past) (Isa: Memento, U.S. Spc) Iran’s submission for Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.
To the Wolf (Isa: Pascale Ramonda)
The Selfish Giant (Isa: Protagonist, U.S. IFC)
At Berkeley by Frederick Wiseman (Isa: Doc & Film, U.S. Zipporah)
The Unknown Known (Isa: Entertainment One, U.S. Radius-twc)
Ain’t Misbehavin (Un Voyager) by Marcel Ophuls (Isa: Wide House)
Faith Connections by Pan Nalin (Isa: Cite Films). This Indian French film, produced by Raphael Berduo among others is written about here.
Civil Rights (?)
Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
12 Years a Slave (Isa: Summit, U.S. Fox Searchlight)
Belle (Isa: Bankside, all rights sold to Fox Searchlight)
Lgbt
Kill Your Darlings: The youthful finding of himself by Alan Ginsburg as he enters Colombia University and meets Lucien Carr, Jack Kerouac and Alan Bourroughs revolves around a murder which actually happened. The period veracity and Daniel Radcliffe’s acting carry the film into a fascinating character study. (U.S. Spc)
Dallas Buyers Club (Isa: Voltage, U.S. Focus Features)
Tom a la ferme / Tom at the Farm by Xavier Dolan Isa: MK2, U.S.:)
L’Armee du salut/ Salvation Army by Abdellah Taia (Isa: - U.S.:-)
Eastern Boys (Isa: Films Distribution)
Pelo Malo/ Bad Hair (FiGa Films)
The Dog (Producer Rep: Submarine)
Ignasi M. (Isa: Latido)
Gerontophilia (Isa: MK2, U.S. Producer Rep: Filmoption)...
- 10/8/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
The 15th Mumbai Film Festival boasts of a strong lineup of films including Abdellatif Kechiche’s Blue is the Warmest Colour and Anthony Chen’s Ilo Ilo, winners of the Palme d’Or and Camera d’Or respectively at Cannes Film Festival 2013.
Other highlights of the festival include Asghar Farhadi’s Le Passe (The Past), Kim Mordaunt’s The Rocket, Michel Gondry’s Mood Indigo, Nicolas Winding Refn’s Only God Forgives , Anup Singh’s Qissa, Richie Mehta’s Siddharth, Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar’s Powerless and Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections.
The only Indian film competing in the International Competition for First Features is Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry.
The 15th Mumbai film festival’s line up of 200 movies and other highlights were revealed today at the curtain raiser press conference held at the Taj Mahal hotel, Mumbai in the presence of Shyam Benegal, Filmmaker and Chairman, Mami, Amit Khanna,...
Other highlights of the festival include Asghar Farhadi’s Le Passe (The Past), Kim Mordaunt’s The Rocket, Michel Gondry’s Mood Indigo, Nicolas Winding Refn’s Only God Forgives , Anup Singh’s Qissa, Richie Mehta’s Siddharth, Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar’s Powerless and Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections.
The only Indian film competing in the International Competition for First Features is Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry.
The 15th Mumbai film festival’s line up of 200 movies and other highlights were revealed today at the curtain raiser press conference held at the Taj Mahal hotel, Mumbai in the presence of Shyam Benegal, Filmmaker and Chairman, Mami, Amit Khanna,...
- 9/25/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Pan Nalin’s documentary Faith Connections has been sold to Germany following its world premiere at Toronto.
Nfp has acquired rights for Germany to the India-French co-production, filmed at India’s Kumbh Mela religious festival. Advanced negotiations are also underway for sales to Canada, the Us, Germany and India.
The film is being sold by Raphael Berdugo’s Cite Films, which also co-produced with Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra’s Jungle Book Entertainment. Berdugo, Dhingra, Nalin and Virginie Lacombe are credited as producers.
Cite Films has already closed deals with Sdd (Sophie Dulac Distribution) for France while the Swiss rights have gone to Filmcoopi
Faith Connections follows the stories of holy men, policemen, pilgrims and a runaway child at India’s biggest religious festival, which is held once every 12 years and attracts around 100 million Hindu pilgrims.
Nalin has previously directed feature documentary Ayurveda: Art Of Being and narrative features Samsara and The Valley Of Flowers.
Christoph Ott, vp of...
Nfp has acquired rights for Germany to the India-French co-production, filmed at India’s Kumbh Mela religious festival. Advanced negotiations are also underway for sales to Canada, the Us, Germany and India.
The film is being sold by Raphael Berdugo’s Cite Films, which also co-produced with Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra’s Jungle Book Entertainment. Berdugo, Dhingra, Nalin and Virginie Lacombe are credited as producers.
Cite Films has already closed deals with Sdd (Sophie Dulac Distribution) for France while the Swiss rights have gone to Filmcoopi
Faith Connections follows the stories of holy men, policemen, pilgrims and a runaway child at India’s biggest religious festival, which is held once every 12 years and attracts around 100 million Hindu pilgrims.
Nalin has previously directed feature documentary Ayurveda: Art Of Being and narrative features Samsara and The Valley Of Flowers.
Christoph Ott, vp of...
- 9/10/2013
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Faith Connections is a new film by the Director Pan Nalin, an Indian filmmaker living in France which will have its world premiere in the upcoming Tiff Toronto Film Festival Doc section.
The film's background is an amazing Indian pilgrimage ritual which is done only every 12 years and involves 100 million people who gather in a sacred place on the Ganges River to bathe and celebrate religious rituals.
The three interconnected but parallel stories involve a yogi who finds an abandoned baby, a 10 year old orphan who is homeless, and a poor family, villagers, whose 2 year old boy disappears during the pilgrimage and they fear kidnap.
This Indian French co-produciton Faith Connections was being sold and was produced by Raphael Berdugo, it has recently been bought by Sophie Dulac Distribution who acquired the rights for France distribution.
Raphael Berdugo is a very busy guy. His acquired and produced films, sold by his sales agent brand Cite Films are successful, of the highest quality and widely honored. He does his own sales and attends the Markets at Festivals such as Cannes, Tiff Toronto and Berlin.
The Other Son (Fils de l'Autre) 2012 has been picked up for Us by the excellent Us distributor Cohen Media. In Tokyo Ff 2012 it won the Grand Prize and Best Director honors for Lorraine Levy.
Miele 2013 was honored this year at Cannes Film Festival with inclusion in the Certain Regard section.
It concerns Irene, nicknamed 'Honey', she devotes herself to people looking for help, and tries to alleviate their suffering even when they make extreme decisions. One day she has to cope with Grimaldi and his invisible malaise. Italian Directed by Valeria Golino.
The film received a Special Mention at Cannes by the Ecumenical Jury.
It is currently seeking a Us deal and one interested company, among others, has been the Us giant Participant.
Slightly Sane also is by the above Director Pan Nalin is a tough story set during the chaotic 1947 Partition between India and Pakistan. It involves insane people and a man who goes to an asylum seeking revenge for his wife's death against a locked up rapist there.
Code Name Madeleine is based on a true story, final script is pending. Set during WW2 an Indian girl with a Us mom lives in France and decides to return to Indian high family roots after her dad dies. When the War begins she returns to the UK, is recruited as a spy and sent back to German occupied France.
The film's background is an amazing Indian pilgrimage ritual which is done only every 12 years and involves 100 million people who gather in a sacred place on the Ganges River to bathe and celebrate religious rituals.
The three interconnected but parallel stories involve a yogi who finds an abandoned baby, a 10 year old orphan who is homeless, and a poor family, villagers, whose 2 year old boy disappears during the pilgrimage and they fear kidnap.
This Indian French co-produciton Faith Connections was being sold and was produced by Raphael Berdugo, it has recently been bought by Sophie Dulac Distribution who acquired the rights for France distribution.
Raphael Berdugo is a very busy guy. His acquired and produced films, sold by his sales agent brand Cite Films are successful, of the highest quality and widely honored. He does his own sales and attends the Markets at Festivals such as Cannes, Tiff Toronto and Berlin.
The Other Son (Fils de l'Autre) 2012 has been picked up for Us by the excellent Us distributor Cohen Media. In Tokyo Ff 2012 it won the Grand Prize and Best Director honors for Lorraine Levy.
Miele 2013 was honored this year at Cannes Film Festival with inclusion in the Certain Regard section.
It concerns Irene, nicknamed 'Honey', she devotes herself to people looking for help, and tries to alleviate their suffering even when they make extreme decisions. One day she has to cope with Grimaldi and his invisible malaise. Italian Directed by Valeria Golino.
The film received a Special Mention at Cannes by the Ecumenical Jury.
It is currently seeking a Us deal and one interested company, among others, has been the Us giant Participant.
Slightly Sane also is by the above Director Pan Nalin is a tough story set during the chaotic 1947 Partition between India and Pakistan. It involves insane people and a man who goes to an asylum seeking revenge for his wife's death against a locked up rapist there.
Code Name Madeleine is based on a true story, final script is pending. Set during WW2 an Indian girl with a Us mom lives in France and decides to return to Indian high family roots after her dad dies. When the War begins she returns to the UK, is recruited as a spy and sent back to German occupied France.
- 9/8/2013
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
Once again the European Film Promotion’s (Efp) Film Sales Support (Fss) initiative will come to Toronto to link sales companies from all over Europe to a great array of buyers from across the globe. Supported by the Media Programme of the European Union, Fss has now been aiding the European film industry fro the last 10 years.
"Toronto has and is an important informal market and an important festival for European films, the distributors see the films in a different mood, more quietly, the public screenings are working well. It is a key place to launch a film or to complete previous sales on films that were in Cannes, Venice, Locarno...” (Loïc Magneron, Wide)
“Tiff is a major pillar of the annual festival calendar. Aside from a proliferation of North American buyers, it also attracts top tier international distributors so a favorable reception at Tiff can significantly increase a film's commercial prospects”. (Andrew Orr, Independent)
Due to the limited amount of resources, only 52 out of the 60 films submitted to the Efp will receive financial support to be marketed during the Tiff, which runs from September 5 to 15. This year alone, 372 films total, over 150 from Europe, will screen at the festival many of which will see their world or international premiers there.
Supported films and companies at Tiff 2013
Alpha Violet (France), rep. Virginie Devesa The Summer of Flying Fish (El Verano de los Peces Voladores) by Marcela Said, France, Chile, 2013
Arri Worldsales (Germany), rep. Moritz Hemminger Exit Marrakech by Caroline Link, Germany, 2013 Home from Home (Die Andere Heimat) by Edgar Reitz, Germany, France, 2013
Athens Filmmakers' Co-Operative (Greece), rep. Venia Vergou Wild Duck by Yannis Sakaridis, Greece, 2013
Bac Films Distribution (France), rep. Clémentine Hugot The Strange Color of Your Body's Tears (L'Entrange Couleur Ded Larmes De Ton Corps) by Hélène Cattet & Bruno Forzani, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, 2013
Beta Cinema (Germany), rep. Tassilo Hallbauer Le Grand-Cahier by János Szász, Germany, Hungary, Austria, France, 2013
Blonde S. A. (Greece), rep. Fenia Cossovitsa Standing Aside, Watching (Na Kathese Kai Na Kitas) by Yorgos Servetas, Greece, 2013
Capricci Films (France), rep. Julien Rejl Story of My Death (Historia De La Meva Mort) by Albert Serra, Spain, France, 2013 The Battle of Tabato (A Batalha De Tabato) by João Viana, Portugal, Guinea-Bissau, 2013
Celluloid Dreams (France), rep. Hengameh Panahi Those Happy Years (Anni Felici) by Daniele Luchetti, Italy, 2013
Cité Films (France), rep. Raphaël Berdugo Faith Connections (Faith Connections) by Pan Nalin, France, India, 2013
Doc & Film International (France), rep. Daniela Elstner, Alice Damiani Violette by Martin Provost, France, Belgium, 2013 South is Nothing (Il Sud E'Niente by Fabio Mollo, Italy, France, 2013
Dogwoof (United Kingdom), rep. Ana Vincente Inreallife by Beeban Kidron, UK, 2013
Ealing Metro International (United Kingdom), rep. Natalie Brenner, Will Machin Half of a Yellow Sun by Biyi Bandele, UK, 2013 The Stag by John Butler, Ireland, 2013
Embankment Films (United Kingdom), rep. Tim Haslam Le Week-End by Roger Michell, UK, 2013
Eyeworks Film & TV Drama (The Netherlands), rep. Maarten Swart The Dinner (Het Diner) by Menno Meyjes, The Netherlands, 2013
Fantasia Ltd (Greece), rep. Nicoletta Romeo The Daughter (I Kori) by Thanos Anastopoulos, Greece, Italy, 2013
Film Factory Entertainment (Spain), rep. Vicente Canales Cannibal (Canibal) by Manuel Martín Cuenca, Spain, 2013 Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang (Zipi & Zape y el Club de la Canica) by Oskar Santos, Spain, 2013
Films Boutique (Germany), rep. Jean-Christophe Simon Walesa. Man of Hope (Walesa) by Andrzej Wajda, Poland, 2013
Films Distribution (France), rep. Nicolas Brigaud-Robert, François Yon Eastern Boys by Robin Campillo, France, 2013 Under the Starry Sky (Des Etoiles) by Dyana Gaye, France, Senegal, 2013
Heretic (Greece), rep. Giorgos Karnavas The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas (I Aionia Epistrofi Tou Antoni Paraskeva) by Elina Psykou, Greece, 2013
Independent Film Sales (United Kingdom), rep. Karina Gechtman, Abigail Walsh The Sea by Stephen Brown, UK, Ireland, 2013 Starred Up by David Mackenzie, UK, 2013
Latido Films (Spain), rep. Miren Zamora Honeymoon (Libanky) by Jan Hrebejk, Czech Republic/Slovak Republic, 2013
LevelK (Denmark), rep. Tine Klint Sex, Drugs & Taxation (Spies Og Glistrup) by Christoffer Boe, Denmark, 2013
Linel Films (United Kingdom), rep. Aran Hughes To The Wolf (Sto Lyko) by Aran Hughes & Christina Koutsospyrou, Greece, UK, France, 2013
Minds Meet (Belgium), rep. Tomas Leyers I'm The Same I'm An Other by Caroline Strubbe, Belgium, The Netherlands, 2013
MK2 (France), rep. Victoire Thevenin Hotel (Hotell) by Lisa Langseth, Sweden, Denmark, 2012
Mpm Film (France), rep. Pierre Menahem For Those Who Can Tell No Tales by Jasmila Žbanić, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, 2013
Negativ s.r.o. (Czech Republic), rep. Zuzana Bielikova Miracle (Zazrak) by Juraj Lehotský, Czech Republic, Slovakia, 2013
Pathé Distribution (France), rep. Muriel Sauzay The Finishers by Nils Tavernier, France, 2013 Quai d'Orsay by Bertrand Tavernier, France, 2013
Pausilypon Films (Greece), rep. Menelaos Karamaghiolis J.A.C.E. - Just Another Confused Elephant by Menelaos Karamaghiolis, Greece, Portugal, Macedonia, Turkey, 2012
Picture Tree International (Germany), rep. Andreas Rothbauer Mary Queen of Scots by Thomas Imbach, Switzerland, 2013 Metalhead (Malmhaus) by Ragnar Bragason, Iceland, Norway, 2013
PPProductions (Greece), rep. Thanassis Karathanos Septmeber by Penny Panayotopoulou, Greece, Germany, 2013
Pyramide International (France), rep. Agathe Mauruc Giraffada by Rani Massalha, France, Germany, Italy, 2013
Rezo (France), rep. Laurent Danielou, Sebastien Chesneau The Station (Blutgletscher) by Marvin Kren, Austria, 2013 Abuse of Weakness (Abus De Faibless) by Catherine Breillat, France, Belgium, Germany, 2013
The Match Factory (Germany), rep. Michael Weber, Thania Dimitrakopoulou The Police Officer's Wife (Die Frau Des Polizisten) by Philip Gröning, Germany, 2013 Qissa (Quissa) by Anup Singh, Germany, India, The Netherlands, France, 2013
The Yellow Affair (Sweden), rep. Miira Paasilinna Heart of a Lion (Leijonasydan) by Dome Karukoski, Finland, 2013
TrustNordisk (Denmark), rep. Susan Wendt, Nicolai Korsgaard Pioneer (Pioner) by Erik Skjoldbjaerg, Norway, 2013 We Are The Best (Vi Ar Bast!) by Lukas Moodysson, Sweden, 2013
Wide (France), rep. Loic Magneron Bobo by Ines Oliveira, Portugal, 2013
Wide House (France), rep. Garreau Geoffrey Ain't Misbehavin, A Marcel Ophuls Journey (Un Voyageur) by Marcel Ophuls, France, 2013
Wild Bunch (France), rep. Vicent Maraval, Gary Farkas Going Away (Un Beau Dimanche) by Nicole Garcia, France, 2013 A Promise (Une Promesse) by Patrice Leconte, France, Belgium, 2013...
"Toronto has and is an important informal market and an important festival for European films, the distributors see the films in a different mood, more quietly, the public screenings are working well. It is a key place to launch a film or to complete previous sales on films that were in Cannes, Venice, Locarno...” (Loïc Magneron, Wide)
“Tiff is a major pillar of the annual festival calendar. Aside from a proliferation of North American buyers, it also attracts top tier international distributors so a favorable reception at Tiff can significantly increase a film's commercial prospects”. (Andrew Orr, Independent)
Due to the limited amount of resources, only 52 out of the 60 films submitted to the Efp will receive financial support to be marketed during the Tiff, which runs from September 5 to 15. This year alone, 372 films total, over 150 from Europe, will screen at the festival many of which will see their world or international premiers there.
Supported films and companies at Tiff 2013
Alpha Violet (France), rep. Virginie Devesa The Summer of Flying Fish (El Verano de los Peces Voladores) by Marcela Said, France, Chile, 2013
Arri Worldsales (Germany), rep. Moritz Hemminger Exit Marrakech by Caroline Link, Germany, 2013 Home from Home (Die Andere Heimat) by Edgar Reitz, Germany, France, 2013
Athens Filmmakers' Co-Operative (Greece), rep. Venia Vergou Wild Duck by Yannis Sakaridis, Greece, 2013
Bac Films Distribution (France), rep. Clémentine Hugot The Strange Color of Your Body's Tears (L'Entrange Couleur Ded Larmes De Ton Corps) by Hélène Cattet & Bruno Forzani, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, 2013
Beta Cinema (Germany), rep. Tassilo Hallbauer Le Grand-Cahier by János Szász, Germany, Hungary, Austria, France, 2013
Blonde S. A. (Greece), rep. Fenia Cossovitsa Standing Aside, Watching (Na Kathese Kai Na Kitas) by Yorgos Servetas, Greece, 2013
Capricci Films (France), rep. Julien Rejl Story of My Death (Historia De La Meva Mort) by Albert Serra, Spain, France, 2013 The Battle of Tabato (A Batalha De Tabato) by João Viana, Portugal, Guinea-Bissau, 2013
Celluloid Dreams (France), rep. Hengameh Panahi Those Happy Years (Anni Felici) by Daniele Luchetti, Italy, 2013
Cité Films (France), rep. Raphaël Berdugo Faith Connections (Faith Connections) by Pan Nalin, France, India, 2013
Doc & Film International (France), rep. Daniela Elstner, Alice Damiani Violette by Martin Provost, France, Belgium, 2013 South is Nothing (Il Sud E'Niente by Fabio Mollo, Italy, France, 2013
Dogwoof (United Kingdom), rep. Ana Vincente Inreallife by Beeban Kidron, UK, 2013
Ealing Metro International (United Kingdom), rep. Natalie Brenner, Will Machin Half of a Yellow Sun by Biyi Bandele, UK, 2013 The Stag by John Butler, Ireland, 2013
Embankment Films (United Kingdom), rep. Tim Haslam Le Week-End by Roger Michell, UK, 2013
Eyeworks Film & TV Drama (The Netherlands), rep. Maarten Swart The Dinner (Het Diner) by Menno Meyjes, The Netherlands, 2013
Fantasia Ltd (Greece), rep. Nicoletta Romeo The Daughter (I Kori) by Thanos Anastopoulos, Greece, Italy, 2013
Film Factory Entertainment (Spain), rep. Vicente Canales Cannibal (Canibal) by Manuel Martín Cuenca, Spain, 2013 Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang (Zipi & Zape y el Club de la Canica) by Oskar Santos, Spain, 2013
Films Boutique (Germany), rep. Jean-Christophe Simon Walesa. Man of Hope (Walesa) by Andrzej Wajda, Poland, 2013
Films Distribution (France), rep. Nicolas Brigaud-Robert, François Yon Eastern Boys by Robin Campillo, France, 2013 Under the Starry Sky (Des Etoiles) by Dyana Gaye, France, Senegal, 2013
Heretic (Greece), rep. Giorgos Karnavas The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas (I Aionia Epistrofi Tou Antoni Paraskeva) by Elina Psykou, Greece, 2013
Independent Film Sales (United Kingdom), rep. Karina Gechtman, Abigail Walsh The Sea by Stephen Brown, UK, Ireland, 2013 Starred Up by David Mackenzie, UK, 2013
Latido Films (Spain), rep. Miren Zamora Honeymoon (Libanky) by Jan Hrebejk, Czech Republic/Slovak Republic, 2013
LevelK (Denmark), rep. Tine Klint Sex, Drugs & Taxation (Spies Og Glistrup) by Christoffer Boe, Denmark, 2013
Linel Films (United Kingdom), rep. Aran Hughes To The Wolf (Sto Lyko) by Aran Hughes & Christina Koutsospyrou, Greece, UK, France, 2013
Minds Meet (Belgium), rep. Tomas Leyers I'm The Same I'm An Other by Caroline Strubbe, Belgium, The Netherlands, 2013
MK2 (France), rep. Victoire Thevenin Hotel (Hotell) by Lisa Langseth, Sweden, Denmark, 2012
Mpm Film (France), rep. Pierre Menahem For Those Who Can Tell No Tales by Jasmila Žbanić, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, 2013
Negativ s.r.o. (Czech Republic), rep. Zuzana Bielikova Miracle (Zazrak) by Juraj Lehotský, Czech Republic, Slovakia, 2013
Pathé Distribution (France), rep. Muriel Sauzay The Finishers by Nils Tavernier, France, 2013 Quai d'Orsay by Bertrand Tavernier, France, 2013
Pausilypon Films (Greece), rep. Menelaos Karamaghiolis J.A.C.E. - Just Another Confused Elephant by Menelaos Karamaghiolis, Greece, Portugal, Macedonia, Turkey, 2012
Picture Tree International (Germany), rep. Andreas Rothbauer Mary Queen of Scots by Thomas Imbach, Switzerland, 2013 Metalhead (Malmhaus) by Ragnar Bragason, Iceland, Norway, 2013
PPProductions (Greece), rep. Thanassis Karathanos Septmeber by Penny Panayotopoulou, Greece, Germany, 2013
Pyramide International (France), rep. Agathe Mauruc Giraffada by Rani Massalha, France, Germany, Italy, 2013
Rezo (France), rep. Laurent Danielou, Sebastien Chesneau The Station (Blutgletscher) by Marvin Kren, Austria, 2013 Abuse of Weakness (Abus De Faibless) by Catherine Breillat, France, Belgium, Germany, 2013
The Match Factory (Germany), rep. Michael Weber, Thania Dimitrakopoulou The Police Officer's Wife (Die Frau Des Polizisten) by Philip Gröning, Germany, 2013 Qissa (Quissa) by Anup Singh, Germany, India, The Netherlands, France, 2013
The Yellow Affair (Sweden), rep. Miira Paasilinna Heart of a Lion (Leijonasydan) by Dome Karukoski, Finland, 2013
TrustNordisk (Denmark), rep. Susan Wendt, Nicolai Korsgaard Pioneer (Pioner) by Erik Skjoldbjaerg, Norway, 2013 We Are The Best (Vi Ar Bast!) by Lukas Moodysson, Sweden, 2013
Wide (France), rep. Loic Magneron Bobo by Ines Oliveira, Portugal, 2013
Wide House (France), rep. Garreau Geoffrey Ain't Misbehavin, A Marcel Ophuls Journey (Un Voyageur) by Marcel Ophuls, France, 2013
Wild Bunch (France), rep. Vicent Maraval, Gary Farkas Going Away (Un Beau Dimanche) by Nicole Garcia, France, 2013 A Promise (Une Promesse) by Patrice Leconte, France, Belgium, 2013...
- 9/7/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
A still from Faith Connections
T he 38th edition of Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) that kicks off today has lined up seven Indian films for screenings, out of which four are world premieres.
The Lunchbox and Shuddh Desi Romance will be screened as part of Gala Presentations, Qissa and Siddharth in the Contemporary World Cinema section, The World of Gopi and Bagha in Tiff Kids section, documentary Faith Connections in Tiff Docs and Mount Song in the Wavelengths section.
Besides, the Mavericks section that is an “on-stage conversation with leaders in the film industry and beyond” has invited actor Irrfan Khan to discuss his stint in Bollywood so far. Khan plays lead roles in two of the Indian films (Qissa and The Lunchbox) at Tiff this year.
Film journalist and critic Namrata Joshi, who works with Outlook Magazine, is serving on the Fipresci (International Federation of Film Critics) Jury of the festival.
T he 38th edition of Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) that kicks off today has lined up seven Indian films for screenings, out of which four are world premieres.
The Lunchbox and Shuddh Desi Romance will be screened as part of Gala Presentations, Qissa and Siddharth in the Contemporary World Cinema section, The World of Gopi and Bagha in Tiff Kids section, documentary Faith Connections in Tiff Docs and Mount Song in the Wavelengths section.
Besides, the Mavericks section that is an “on-stage conversation with leaders in the film industry and beyond” has invited actor Irrfan Khan to discuss his stint in Bollywood so far. Khan plays lead roles in two of the Indian films (Qissa and The Lunchbox) at Tiff this year.
Film journalist and critic Namrata Joshi, who works with Outlook Magazine, is serving on the Fipresci (International Federation of Film Critics) Jury of the festival.
- 9/5/2013
- by Editorial Team
- DearCinema.com
“My father told me,” says director Pan Nalin, “I should travel to the ultimate pilgrimage of Hindus, Kumbh Mela, and fetch him a bottle of holy water. He told me that the Kumbh Mela is the biggest gathering on earth, and there I shall feel the force of faith that connects us all.” Nalin decides to bring his father back some stories along with his bottle of water, and the result is the incredible Faith Connections, having its World Premiere at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. Nalin brings us the stories of pilgrims and policemen, of sadhus and small children – stories of people like Hatha Yogi Baba and Baby Bajrangi, Mamta Devi and Sonu and their missing son, Sandeep, the sadhus Vivekanandji and Umeshji; and, perhaps most importantly, the story of ten-year old Kishan Tiwari, who has run away from home, and who claims to be an orphan, when he...
- 9/3/2013
- by Katherine Matthews
- Bollyspice
Online video distribution platform Vimeo has tied up with the Toronto International Film Festival 2013 and is offering a cash advance of $10,000 for exclusive on-demand digital sales for one month.
This offer is for all the films having their World Premiere at the festival. The Indian films eligible to avail this offer are Anup Singh’s Qissa, Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections, Shilpa Ranade’s The World of Goopi and Bagha and Maneesh Sharma’s Shuddh Desi Romance.
The films will be made available through Vimeo On Demand. Vimeo will be the exclusive digital distributor of these films for 30 days or until the film makes $10,000, whichever comes first. Filmmakers can set their own prices – above $4.99 – and choose the viewing format for their films.
After the 30-day period, Vimeo will offer 90-10 revenue split wherein 90% goes to the filmmakers.
Filmmakers will have freedom with theatrical and other distribution rights for their film.
This offer is for all the films having their World Premiere at the festival. The Indian films eligible to avail this offer are Anup Singh’s Qissa, Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections, Shilpa Ranade’s The World of Goopi and Bagha and Maneesh Sharma’s Shuddh Desi Romance.
The films will be made available through Vimeo On Demand. Vimeo will be the exclusive digital distributor of these films for 30 days or until the film makes $10,000, whichever comes first. Filmmakers can set their own prices – above $4.99 – and choose the viewing format for their films.
After the 30-day period, Vimeo will offer 90-10 revenue split wherein 90% goes to the filmmakers.
Filmmakers will have freedom with theatrical and other distribution rights for their film.
- 9/3/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Exclusive: Pan Nalin’s documentary Faith Connections has been sold to France and Switzerland ahead of its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this week.
Sdd (Sophie Dulac Distribution) has acquired French rights to the India-French co-production, filmed at India’s Kumbh Mela religious festival, while the Swiss rights went to Filmcoopi. Advanced negotiations are also underway for sales to Canada, the Us, Germany and India.
The film is being sold by Raphael Berdugo’s Cite Films, which also co-produced with Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra’s Jungle Book Entertainment. Berdugo, Dhingra, Nalin and Virginie Lacombe are credited as producers.
Faith Connections follows the stories of holy men, policemen, pilgrims and a runaway child at India’s biggest religious festival, which is held once every 12 years and attracts around 100 million Hindu pilgrims.
Nalin has previously directed feature documentary Ayurveda: Art Of Being and narrative features Samsara and The Valley Of Flowers.
“We decided...
Sdd (Sophie Dulac Distribution) has acquired French rights to the India-French co-production, filmed at India’s Kumbh Mela religious festival, while the Swiss rights went to Filmcoopi. Advanced negotiations are also underway for sales to Canada, the Us, Germany and India.
The film is being sold by Raphael Berdugo’s Cite Films, which also co-produced with Nalin and Gaurav Dhingra’s Jungle Book Entertainment. Berdugo, Dhingra, Nalin and Virginie Lacombe are credited as producers.
Faith Connections follows the stories of holy men, policemen, pilgrims and a runaway child at India’s biggest religious festival, which is held once every 12 years and attracts around 100 million Hindu pilgrims.
Nalin has previously directed feature documentary Ayurveda: Art Of Being and narrative features Samsara and The Valley Of Flowers.
“We decided...
- 9/2/2013
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Over the past few weeks, the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) began unveiling the films that will feature as part of this year’s festival line-up. Although this year features fewer films from India and the Indian diaspora (not surprising since last year’s focus on Mumbai in the City to City programme gave viewers an incredibly rich line-up of films), there are, still, some wonderful viewing opportunities in store for South Asian film fans at Tiff 2013.
Two Indian films will receive Gala Premieres this year. The festival will present the North American Premiere of The Lunchbox, written and directed by Ritesh Batra. The film, which was well received at this year’s Cannes film festival, traces the unexpected friendship that develops between two strangers, middle-class housewife Ila and lonely office worker Saajan, after a mix up in the delivery of a lunchbox intended for Ila’s husband. The film stars Irrfan Khan,...
Two Indian films will receive Gala Premieres this year. The festival will present the North American Premiere of The Lunchbox, written and directed by Ritesh Batra. The film, which was well received at this year’s Cannes film festival, traces the unexpected friendship that develops between two strangers, middle-class housewife Ila and lonely office worker Saajan, after a mix up in the delivery of a lunchbox intended for Ila’s husband. The film stars Irrfan Khan,...
- 8/18/2013
- by Katherine Matthews
- Bollyspice
Faith Connections (France/India) directed by Pan Nalin will have its World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival 2013.
In Faith Connections, Nalin travels to Kumbh Mela, one of the world’s most extraordinary religious events. There, he encounters remarkable men of mind and meditation, some facing an inextricable dilemma; to embrace the world or to renounce it. Faith Connections explores such diverse and moving stories as a young runaway kid, a Sadhu, a mother desperately looking for her lost son, a yogi who is raising an abandoned baby, and an ascetic who keeps his calm by smoking cannabis — all connected by one faith against the spectacular display of devotion.
The documentary has been produced by Gaurav Dhingra (Peddlers, Haraamkhor), Raphael Berdugo (Eros, Caramel) and Virginie Lacombe (Le fils de l’autre, Soongava – Dance of the Orchid).
Pan Nalin, who hails from Gujarat, earlier made Samsara and Valley of Flowers.
In Faith Connections, Nalin travels to Kumbh Mela, one of the world’s most extraordinary religious events. There, he encounters remarkable men of mind and meditation, some facing an inextricable dilemma; to embrace the world or to renounce it. Faith Connections explores such diverse and moving stories as a young runaway kid, a Sadhu, a mother desperately looking for her lost son, a yogi who is raising an abandoned baby, and an ascetic who keeps his calm by smoking cannabis — all connected by one faith against the spectacular display of devotion.
The documentary has been produced by Gaurav Dhingra (Peddlers, Haraamkhor), Raphael Berdugo (Eros, Caramel) and Virginie Lacombe (Le fils de l’autre, Soongava – Dance of the Orchid).
Pan Nalin, who hails from Gujarat, earlier made Samsara and Valley of Flowers.
- 7/31/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Alfonso Cuarón's Gravity, one of many Special Presentations at this year's Tiff.
The Toronto International Film Festival has begun to announce its lineup for its 2013 edition, beginning with Gala and Special Presentations. To browse the festival's programming on their web site, visit here.
Gala Presentations
American Dreams in China (Peter Chan, China)
The Art of the Steal (Jonothan Sobol, Canada)
August: Osage County (John Wells, USA)
Cold Eyes (Cho Ui-seok & Kim Byung-seo, Korea)
The Fifth Estate (Bill Condon, USA)
The Grand Seduction (Don McKellar, Canada)
Kill Your Darlings (John Krokidas, USA)
Life of Crime (Daniel Schechter, USA)
The Love Punch (Joel Hopkins, France)
The Lunchbox (Ritesh Batra, India/France/Germany)
Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (Justin Chadwick, South Africa)
Parkland (Peter Landesman, USA)
The Railway Man (Jonathan Teplitzky, Australia/UK)
The Right Kind of Wrong (Jeremiah Chechik, Canada)
Rush (Ron Howard, UK/Germany)
Shuddh Desi Romance (Maneesh Sharma, India...
The Toronto International Film Festival has begun to announce its lineup for its 2013 edition, beginning with Gala and Special Presentations. To browse the festival's programming on their web site, visit here.
Gala Presentations
American Dreams in China (Peter Chan, China)
The Art of the Steal (Jonothan Sobol, Canada)
August: Osage County (John Wells, USA)
Cold Eyes (Cho Ui-seok & Kim Byung-seo, Korea)
The Fifth Estate (Bill Condon, USA)
The Grand Seduction (Don McKellar, Canada)
Kill Your Darlings (John Krokidas, USA)
Life of Crime (Daniel Schechter, USA)
The Love Punch (Joel Hopkins, France)
The Lunchbox (Ritesh Batra, India/France/Germany)
Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (Justin Chadwick, South Africa)
Parkland (Peter Landesman, USA)
The Railway Man (Jonathan Teplitzky, Australia/UK)
The Right Kind of Wrong (Jeremiah Chechik, Canada)
Rush (Ron Howard, UK/Germany)
Shuddh Desi Romance (Maneesh Sharma, India...
- 7/31/2013
- by Notebook
- MUBI
Not too long ago we saw a rather impressive list of films announced for the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival 2013. With titles like Gravity, 12 Years a Slave and The Fifth Estate all set to appear, I simply cannot wait for September to arrive. With all the Oscar contenders flying around though, it’s easy to forget about some of the other films at the festival.
With that in mind, the Midnight Madness lineup has been announced today, showcasing some quality horror/thriller films that will serve as a break from the serious, weighty dramas that popular the majority of the festival lineup.
Amongst the highlights are the world premiere of Ei Roth’s The Green Inferno as well as the next film from Lucky McKee, All Cheerleaders Die.
Additionally, Tiff also revealed their documentary lineup today, which can be seen below along with the Midnight Madness films.
The Toronto International...
With that in mind, the Midnight Madness lineup has been announced today, showcasing some quality horror/thriller films that will serve as a break from the serious, weighty dramas that popular the majority of the festival lineup.
Amongst the highlights are the world premiere of Ei Roth’s The Green Inferno as well as the next film from Lucky McKee, All Cheerleaders Die.
Additionally, Tiff also revealed their documentary lineup today, which can be seen below along with the Midnight Madness films.
The Toronto International...
- 7/30/2013
- by Matt Joseph
- We Got This Covered
Yesterday we looked back at the exquisite documentaries that have graced us with their presence thus far in 2013, but now it is time to look to the Toronto International Film Festival which plays host to the biggest docu titles of the fall festival season. While Sundance tends to be the spring launching pad for politically charged films, Tiff tends to have a broader spectrum of non-fiction fare. This morning, Tiff Docs programmer Thom Powers and the rest of the team at the Lightbox dropped a press release with the list of non-fiction films joining this year’s already stacked lineup.
Unsurprisingly there are a few titles making their way over from Cannes in Frank Pavich’s hilarious and tragic Jodorowsky’s Dune, Claude Lanzmann’s continued Holocaust investigation with The Last of the Unjust and Mark Cousins’s film history follow up The Story of Children and Film. Expectedly, Errol Morris...
Unsurprisingly there are a few titles making their way over from Cannes in Frank Pavich’s hilarious and tragic Jodorowsky’s Dune, Claude Lanzmann’s continued Holocaust investigation with The Last of the Unjust and Mark Cousins’s film history follow up The Story of Children and Film. Expectedly, Errol Morris...
- 7/30/2013
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
The 2013 Toronto Film Festival selection grew quite a bit today as the organizers announced the Midnight Madness, Documentary, Vanguard, City to City and Cinematheque selections for this year's festival. Among the title announced there aren't exactly a ton of names that pop off the paper immediately. The Midnight Madness selection will open with Lucky McKee's All Cheerleaders Die in which a young girl who practices the dark arts turns on her best friend after she joins the cheer squad. However, I assume most attention will be on Eli Roth's The Green Inferno, a film in which a group of humanitarians go to the Amazon to help a native tribe only to have the tribe kidnap them and later learn their cannibalistic heritage is very much intact. The Documentary selection includes plenty of familiar faces such as Marcel Ophuls, Claude Lanzmann and Errol Morris and Frank Pavich will be bringing Jodorowsky's Dune,...
- 7/30/2013
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
New work from Errol Morris and Frederick Wiseman will screen in the Toronto International Film Festival’s Tiff Docs strand, while City To City spotlights Athens and Alex Aja’s Horns is among the Vanguard offerings.
Festival staff remind readers that the following listing is not complete or final and is subject to change.
Premieres key
Wp = World PremiereIP = International PremiereNAP = North American PremiereCP = Canadian PremiereTIFF Docs
A Story Of Children And Film
Mark Cousins (UK) Nap
Ain’t Misbehavin’
Marcel Ophüls (France) Nap
At Berkeley
Frederick Wiseman (Us) Nap
Beyond The Edge
Leanne Pooley (New Zealand) Wp
Burt’s Buzz
Jody Shapiro (Canada) Wp
The Dark Matter Of Love
Sarah McCarthy (UK) Nap
The Dog
Allison Berg and Frank Keraudren (Us) Wp
Faith Connections
Pan Nalin (France/India) Wp
Filthy Gorgeous: The Bob Guccione Story
Barry Avrich (Canada) Wp
Finding Vivian Maier
John Maloof and Charlie Siskel (Us) Wp
Hi-Ho Mistahey!
Alanis Obomsawin (Canada...
Festival staff remind readers that the following listing is not complete or final and is subject to change.
Premieres key
Wp = World PremiereIP = International PremiereNAP = North American PremiereCP = Canadian PremiereTIFF Docs
A Story Of Children And Film
Mark Cousins (UK) Nap
Ain’t Misbehavin’
Marcel Ophüls (France) Nap
At Berkeley
Frederick Wiseman (Us) Nap
Beyond The Edge
Leanne Pooley (New Zealand) Wp
Burt’s Buzz
Jody Shapiro (Canada) Wp
The Dark Matter Of Love
Sarah McCarthy (UK) Nap
The Dog
Allison Berg and Frank Keraudren (Us) Wp
Faith Connections
Pan Nalin (France/India) Wp
Filthy Gorgeous: The Bob Guccione Story
Barry Avrich (Canada) Wp
Finding Vivian Maier
John Maloof and Charlie Siskel (Us) Wp
Hi-Ho Mistahey!
Alanis Obomsawin (Canada...
- 7/30/2013
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
New work from Errol Morris and Frederick Wiseman will screen in the Toronto International Film Festival’s Tiff Docs strand, while City To City spotlights Athens and Alex Aja’s Horns is among the Vanguard offerings.
Festival staff remind readers that the following listing is not complete or final and is subject to change.
Premieres key
Wp = World PremiereIP = International PremiereNAP = North American PremiereCP = Canadian PremiereTIFF Docs
A Story Of Children And Film
Mark Cousins (UK) Nap
Ain’t Misbehavin’
Marcel Ophüls (France) Nap
At Berkeley
Frederick Wiseman (Us) Nap
Beyond The Edge
Leanne Pooley (New Zealand) Wp
Burt’s Buzz
Jody Shapiro (Canada) Wp
The Dark Matter Of Love
Sarah McCarthy (UK) Nap
The Dog
Allison Berg and Frank Keraudren (Us) Wp
Faith Connections
Pan Nalin (France/India) Wp
Filthy Gorgeous: The Bob Guccione Story
Barry Avrich (Canada) Wp
Finding Vivian Maier
John Maloof and Charlie Siskel (Us) Wp
Hi-Ho Mistahey!
Alanis Obomsawin (Canada...
Festival staff remind readers that the following listing is not complete or final and is subject to change.
Premieres key
Wp = World PremiereIP = International PremiereNAP = North American PremiereCP = Canadian PremiereTIFF Docs
A Story Of Children And Film
Mark Cousins (UK) Nap
Ain’t Misbehavin’
Marcel Ophüls (France) Nap
At Berkeley
Frederick Wiseman (Us) Nap
Beyond The Edge
Leanne Pooley (New Zealand) Wp
Burt’s Buzz
Jody Shapiro (Canada) Wp
The Dark Matter Of Love
Sarah McCarthy (UK) Nap
The Dog
Allison Berg and Frank Keraudren (Us) Wp
Faith Connections
Pan Nalin (France/India) Wp
Filthy Gorgeous: The Bob Guccione Story
Barry Avrich (Canada) Wp
Finding Vivian Maier
John Maloof and Charlie Siskel (Us) Wp
Hi-Ho Mistahey!
Alanis Obomsawin (Canada...
- 7/30/2013
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Participants include Germany’s Sol Bondy, Jennifer Fox [pictured] from the Us, and Canada’s Lauren Grant.
Trans Atlantic Partners (Tap), the intensive training and networking programme for European Canadian and American producers, has announced the 26 participants selected for this year’s programme.
Partners on the initiative, which is now four years old, are the Erich Pommer Institut in Potsdam, Germany (the creator of Tap), Strategic Partners in Halifax, Canada and Ifp in New York. The scheme also includes observer producers from India and Mexico.
Tap is supported by the Media Mundus Programme of the European Union, by Telefilm Canada, and Vff (Verwertungsgesellschaft der Film- und Fernsehproduzenten mbH) Germany.
The three training modules are taking place in Berlin, Halifax and New York City between June and September 2013. The selected producers also participate in the Atlantic Film Festival’s Strategic Partners and the Ifp’s Independent Film Week in New York.
Nadja Radojevic...
Trans Atlantic Partners (Tap), the intensive training and networking programme for European Canadian and American producers, has announced the 26 participants selected for this year’s programme.
Partners on the initiative, which is now four years old, are the Erich Pommer Institut in Potsdam, Germany (the creator of Tap), Strategic Partners in Halifax, Canada and Ifp in New York. The scheme also includes observer producers from India and Mexico.
Tap is supported by the Media Mundus Programme of the European Union, by Telefilm Canada, and Vff (Verwertungsgesellschaft der Film- und Fernsehproduzenten mbH) Germany.
The three training modules are taking place in Berlin, Halifax and New York City between June and September 2013. The selected producers also participate in the Atlantic Film Festival’s Strategic Partners and the Ifp’s Independent Film Week in New York.
Nadja Radojevic...
- 6/13/2013
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
When it comes to the coverage of the 66th Cannes Film Festival starting today, mainstream media outlets’ obsession with celebrities seems to be getting the better of them. Playboy Girl Sherlyn Chopra and Ameesha Patel and the likes are being written about with equal enthusiasm (quite often even higher) than the films and people who will actually represent India at Cannes 2013.
Cannes coverage of the Indian press is as ill-informed and misleading as it’s bizarre. Quite often the most talked about titles are those which don’t even feature in the selection while some have market screenings. It’s obvious that the festival coverage by the Indian mainstream media is driven by ignorance and publicists.
Here are some Cannes headlines from mainstream media:-
Rajinikanth takes Kochadaiyaan to Cannes Film Festival – Hindustran Times
Ameesha Patel’s all set for Cannes outing: The Times of India
Playboy girl Sherlyn Chopra on...
Cannes coverage of the Indian press is as ill-informed and misleading as it’s bizarre. Quite often the most talked about titles are those which don’t even feature in the selection while some have market screenings. It’s obvious that the festival coverage by the Indian mainstream media is driven by ignorance and publicists.
Here are some Cannes headlines from mainstream media:-
Rajinikanth takes Kochadaiyaan to Cannes Film Festival – Hindustran Times
Ameesha Patel’s all set for Cannes outing: The Times of India
Playboy girl Sherlyn Chopra on...
- 5/15/2013
- by Editorial Team
- DearCinema.com
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