International Film and Marketing Executives Ali M. Aksu and Aya Kikimova Launch Next Generation Content Production Platform FilmCapital (filmcapital.io)

filmcapital.io’s First Project is Feature COVID-2021, co-produced with BC Entertainment Group, by Director Bob Cook, and Starring Robert Carradine (Lizzie McGuire, Revenge of the Nerds), Diane Delano, Barry Godin, Darby Hilton, Rudy Ramos (Yellowstone, Resurrection Blvd.) and Felissa Rose Created to address a pressing need within the independent film finance space, the co-production platform FilmCapital (filmcapital.io) has officially opened its doors, the announcement was made today by co-founders … Continue reading International Film and Marketing Executives Ali M. Aksu and Aya Kikimova Launch Next Generation Content Production Platform FilmCapital (filmcapital.io)

Stage 32 To Begin Screening Award-Winning Films From Cancelled And Postponed Film Festivals Due To COVID-19

Interest From Buyers And Distributors Already High   Stage 32 Screenings Launches With Over 75 Films, Shorts and TV Pilots and  welcomes Fintage House as a Premium Partner! With Fintage’s assistance, we now have nearly 4,000 professionals who have been invited to join Stage 32 Screenings, watch the films and, if they desire, to connect with these talented filmmakers. Last month, Stage 32, the world’s … Continue reading Stage 32 To Begin Screening Award-Winning Films From Cancelled And Postponed Film Festivals Due To COVID-19

Sundance Institute Selects 12 First-Time Feature Filmmakers for Screenwriters Intensive

Sundance Institute Selects 12 First-Time Feature Filmmakers for Screenwriters Intensive Writers and Advisors from a Broad Array of Backgrounds Come Together to Advance Distinctive Screenplays   Twelve screenwriters have been selected to participate in Sundance Institute’s eighth annual Screenwriters Intensive in Los Angeles, to take place March 4-5, 2020. The Intensive, a two-day workshop for select emerging writers and writer/directors from underrepresented communities, focuses on … Continue reading Sundance Institute Selects 12 First-Time Feature Filmmakers for Screenwriters Intensive

2020 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL AWARDS ANNOUNCED

Top Prizes Go To Minari, Boys State, Epicentro, and Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness  Minari, Crip Camp, The Reason I Jump, and Identifying Features (Sin Señas Particulares) Win Audience Awards   After 10 days and 128 feature films, the 2020 Sundance Film Festival’s Awards Ceremony took place tonight, with jurors presenting 28 prizes for feature filmmaking. Honorees, named in total below, represent new achievements in … Continue reading 2020 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL AWARDS ANNOUNCED

Aaron With’s Out Of Tune Will Premiere At The 2020 Slamdance Film Festival

By Steven Buckner When I first saw Director Aaron With’s Out Of Tune, I have to admit that I never saw a movie like this and that is a good thing. It is a story about a civilization that worships a musical chord. One might think how can a civilization worship a musical chord. Well that is why you need to see this movie! Between … Continue reading Aaron With’s Out Of Tune Will Premiere At The 2020 Slamdance Film Festival

Offscreen at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival: Panels, Music and Events

Onstage: Ai Weiwei, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Ron Howard, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Viggo Mortensen, Max Richter, Isabella Rossellini, Julie Taymor, Tessa Thompson, Rufus Wainwright, Carrie Mae Weems, Among Many Others   Sundance Institute will curate dozens of offscreen events, including behind-the-scenes panels on the art of filmmaking, musical performances and – around the theme of Imagined Futures – a public Bonfire and several extended post-screening conversations (known … Continue reading Offscreen at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival: Panels, Music and Events

An interview with “TRIBES” Director Nino Aldi, Producer/Actor DeStorm (day-storm) Power and Producer/Actor Jake Hunter

By: Vernon Nickerson Edited by: Christopher Roberts “Tribes” is a tremendously poignant and thought provoking film. With a rich textured story “Tribes” paints a picture of humanities complicated identity. It is the consequential poem of our times. Tribes” will be a featured short at the 2020 Santa Barbara Film Festival and The Art Of Monteque had the privilege to do a sit down interview with … Continue reading An interview with “TRIBES” Director Nino Aldi, Producer/Actor DeStorm (day-storm) Power and Producer/Actor Jake Hunter

Nino Aldi’s “TRIBES” World Premiere At The 2020 Santa Barbara Film Festival

TRIBES, or, what humankind might accomplish if it only had eleven minutes in a speeding subway car!   By Vernon Nickerson, TRIBES, directed by the incredibly talented Nino Aldi, is an absolute gem of an emotional roller coaster and a featured short at the 2020 Santa Barbara Film Festival. Full-disclosure, toy guns particularly and toy weapons of any kind in general were forbidden in my … Continue reading Nino Aldi’s “TRIBES” World Premiere At The 2020 Santa Barbara Film Festival

Sundance Institute Names 2020 January Screenwriters Lab Fellows

Writer/Directors from China, South Africa, U.S. and U.K. Fifteen screenwriters will convene to advance their independent projects at Sundance Institute’s January Screenwriters Lab, taking place at the Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah, from January 17-22, 2020. At the Lab, the screenwriters will immerse themselves in a rigorous and holistic creative process, working to further develop their scripts with the mentorship of accomplished Creative Advisors. The … Continue reading Sundance Institute Names 2020 January Screenwriters Lab Fellows

2020 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: INDIE EPISODIC, SHORTS AND SPECIAL EVENTS ANNOUNCED

8 Episodic Works, 74 Short Films, 9 Special Events Join Festival Slate   A Love Song for Latasha, photo by Sophia Nahli Allison; Takoyaki Story, courtesy of Sundance Institute; Little Chief, photo by Marshall Stief; City So Real, photo by Steve James; Awkward Family Photos, photo by Rich Schaefer; Hillary, courtesy of Sundance Institute. Works selected across the Indie Episodic, Shorts and Special Events sections … Continue reading 2020 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: INDIE EPISODIC, SHORTS AND SPECIAL EVENTS ANNOUNCED

Official Selection Features of Slamdance 2020

Presenting the Feature Film Programs of Slamdance 2020: NARRATIVE FEATURES 1986 (Germany, Belarus) North American Premiere Director/ Screenwriter: Lothar Herzog While Elena repeatedly has to drive into the ‘forbidden zone’ of Chernobyl in order to make deals for her father, her life seems more and more contaminated by a destructive force… Cast: Daria Mureeva, Evgeni Sangadzhiev, Vitali Kotovitski, Alexei Filimonov, Helga Filippova, Alexei Kravchenko A … Continue reading Official Selection Features of Slamdance 2020

2020 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: 118 FEATURE FILMS ANNOUNCED

Drawn From a Record High of 15,100 Submissions Across The Program, Including 3,853 Features, Selected Films Represent 27 Countries    The nonprofit Sundance Institute announced today the showcase of new independent feature films selected across all categories for the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. The Festival hosts screenings in Park City, Salt Lake City and at Sundance Mountain Resort, from January 23–February 2, 2020. The Sundance … Continue reading 2020 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: 118 FEATURE FILMS ANNOUNCED

A New Era For The 2019 Sundance Film Festival

By Monteque Pope-Le Beau Edited by Colleen Page As everyone walked in to get ready for the 2019 Sundance Film Festival press conference there was a sense that there was a change in the air. The festival program for the Sundance Film Festival was not only cutting edge this year, but one that spoke to a vast array of issues concerning what has been happening … Continue reading A New Era For The 2019 Sundance Film Festival

“Surviving Home” A Fascinating Look at What It Means To Be A Veteran

By William Engel “Surviving Home” takes us through the lives of four different veterans, each of whom fought in a different war – Richard Green, a World War II veteran, Claude Thomas, a Vietnam war veteran, Robert “Bobby” Henline, a Gulf War veteran, and Tracey Cooper Harris, an Iraq War veteran. The film alternates between the four veterans’ lives, demonstrating the struggles that each of … Continue reading “Surviving Home” A Fascinating Look at What It Means To Be A Veteran

SLAMDANCE ANNOUNCES 2019 FEATURE FILM COMPETITION LINEUP

  The Slamdance Film Festival announced the Narrative and Documentary Feature Film Competition programs, as well as the lineup for its new Breakouts section, for their 25th edition, taking place January 25-31, 2019 in Park City. Slamdance continues to be the premiere film festival “by filmmakers, for filmmakers”, dedicated to fostering a community for independent emerging artists. The Directors Guild of America and Blackmagic Design … Continue reading SLAMDANCE ANNOUNCES 2019 FEATURE FILM COMPETITION LINEUP

Filmmakers Li-Shin Yu and Ric Burns Talk About [The Chinese Exclusion Act] A Forgotten Part Of Our History

By William Engel Tomorrow, PBS will be airing “The Chinese Exclusion Act”, a documentary about one of the most heinous yet oft-forgotten eras in American history. From the late 19th century up until World War II, it was legally impossible for Chinese-Americans to obtain citizenship, making them an arbitrary exception to the regulations mandated by the Fourteenth Amendment. Last week, I sat down with the … Continue reading Filmmakers Li-Shin Yu and Ric Burns Talk About [The Chinese Exclusion Act] A Forgotten Part Of Our History

ANNOUNCING THE JURY MEMBERS OF THE 2017 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL

  Jessica Williams to Host Live-Streamed Awards Show  Sundance Institute will convene 24 experts in film, art, culture and science to award feature-length work shown at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival with 28 prizes, announced at a ceremony January 28 that will be livestreamed at sundance.org, and on YouTube and Facebook. Short Film Awards will be announced at a separate ceremony on January 24 and … Continue reading ANNOUNCING THE JURY MEMBERS OF THE 2017 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL

One mother’s vision of Having it All: A review of DIrector David Gaddies film, “Beautiful Dreamer”

By Vernon Nickerson Kudos to Writer and Director David Gaddies for collaborating with Co-Writer Steven Kelleher to produce the powerful, provocative and evocative film adaptation of Ken Liu’s short (but sweet) story,”Memories of My Mother”. In just under 30 minutes, the film Beautiful Dreamer captures the deepest desire of every mother who loves their children– for their children to be happy.  Facing a terminal disease, … Continue reading One mother’s vision of Having it All: A review of DIrector David Gaddies film, “Beautiful Dreamer”

2017 Slamdance Festival to Showcase 11 Narrative and 8 Documentary Features Lineup Spotlights 8 Directorial Debuts From Women Filmmakers

The Slamdance Film Festival announced today their Narrative and Documentary Feature Film Competition programs for its 23rd Festival edition, taking place in Park City from January 20-26, 2017. Driven by a dedication to emerging artists, Slamdance continues to be the premiere film festival by filmmakers, for filmmakers. Established in 1995, Slamdance is dedicated to discovering and supporting new talents in independent filmmaking. Previous Slamdance alumni … Continue reading 2017 Slamdance Festival to Showcase 11 Narrative and 8 Documentary Features Lineup Spotlights 8 Directorial Debuts From Women Filmmakers

Newness and TRUMPED: Inside The Greatest Political Upset of All Time Join 2017 Sundance Festival Lineup

       (L-R) Newness. Credit: Courtesy of Production; TRUMPED: Inside The Greatest Political Upset of All Time. Credit:Laura Hudock/Courtesy of SHOWTIME. Park City, UT — Sundance Institute augments the 2017 Sundance Film Festival program with two new independent films, announced today: Newness, from director Drake Doremus, and TRUMPED: Inside The Greatest Political Upset of All Time, from directors Banks Tarver, Ted Bourne and Mary … Continue reading Newness and TRUMPED: Inside The Greatest Political Upset of All Time Join 2017 Sundance Festival Lineup