Leo receives the “Sierra Spirit Award for Acting”during a special tribute on May 26

At the Mammoth Lakes Film Festival (MLFF) actress and Academy Award winner Melissa Leo received the Sierra Spirit Award for Acting during a special tribute which took place on Saturday, May 26. The tribute consisted of a screening of Leo’s film, Frozen River, followed by a moderated conversation and award presentation.

Leo is best known for her Academy Award winning performance in The Fighter and Academy Award nominated role in Frozen River. She’s also recently starred in biopic The Most Hated Woman in America as activist Madelyn Murray O’Hair. Leo is currently starring in Showtime’s comedy series I’m Dying Up Here and can be next seen reprising her role in the upcoming sequel to action/thriller TheEqualizer alongside Denzel Washington.

“Melissa is an actress who has demonstrated her ability to take on unique and dynamic roles that showcase her remarkable range and someone who continues to make outstanding contributions to the art of film,” said Festival Director Shira Dubrovner.

Past festival honorees have included Joe Dante and John Sayles for their incomparable and thought-provoking directorial work.

Now in its fourth year, the Mammoth Lakes Film Festival proudly showcased the work of emerging, innovative filmmakers and artists against the backdrop of California’s ruggedly beautiful premiere vacation destination. The festival took place from Wednesday, May 23 with their Opening Night film, Damsel. Throughout the week there were scheduled competition screenings, spotlight presentation screenings and receptions. The festival concluded on Sunday, May 27 with the Closing Night film, Love, Gilda.

About Mammoth Lakes Film Festival

The Mammoth Lakes Film Festival, held in the scenic and majestic setting of Mammoth Lakes in the Eastern Sierra region of California, brings together world-class cinema, emerging filmmakers, industry veterans, and audiences from around the world to celebrate films with thought-provoking stories. The Mammoth Lakes Film Festival is a DBA under Mammoth Lakes Foundation—the nonprofit founded in 1989 by Dave McCoy (who also founded Mammoth Mountain Ski Area in 1953). Dave McCoy turns 103 years old this August and is excited to be a part of the fourth annual Mammoth Lakes Film Festival. Visit www.MammothLakesFilmFestival.com for more information or connect on Facebook and Twitter.

2018 Mammoth Lakes Film Festival Sponsors include Honda, Panavision, Light Iron, VER, Town of Mammoth Lakes, Mono County, Tambour Foundation, Paul and Kathleen Rudder, Sierra Nevada Resort & Spa (preferred lodging partner), Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, Blue Moon, Black Box Wine, Chapman University and many others.  

Winners Include “My Name is Myeisha,” “Tower. A Bright Day” and “White Tide”

The 4^th AnnualMammoth Lakes Film Festival (MLFF) announced this year’s juried and audience award winners at the Closing Night Award Ceremony at the Sierra Event Center in Mammoth Lakes on Sunday, May 27, 2018. The festival, held from May 23-27, screened over 70 films, including 63 in MLFF’s competition categories. Each of the festival winners received an Orson the Bear Award, handcrafted by Josh Slater of Bear in Mind Carvings located in Mammoth Lakes.

“This year’s festival exceeded our expectations on many levels. We welcomed more filmmakers, audience members, and media than in any of our other three years,” said Festival Director Shira Dubrovner. “Against the backdrop of our beautiful city, we were honored to host such an artistic collection of films that continues our commitment of bringing dynamic storytelling to our appreciative community.”

“The number of attending filmmakers from all over the world and the quality of their work, combined with the involvement of the Mammoth Lakes community, brought to life a series of scintillating events and thought-provoking discussions at this year’s festival,” said Festival Programmer Paul Sbrizzi.

“It has been my privilege to be a part of the Mammoth Lakes Film Festival since it’s conception,” said Documentary Features jury member Allison Amon (EVP Sales & Development, Bullitt). “The festival continues to grow both in scope and reputation, and it is incredibly inspiring to be here in the most beautiful landscape and surrounded by the creativity the festival attracts.”

The full list of Juried and Audience Awards is below:

• Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize, $10,000 Panavision Camera Rental Grant and $10,000 Light Iron Post Production Package, goes to My Name Is Myeisha.
• Jury Award for Best International Feature, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Tower. A Bright Day.
  • Special Mention goes to writer, director, actor Thomas Aske Berg for his performance in Vidar the Vampire.
• Jury Award for Best Documentary Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize, goes to White Tide.
• Special Mention goes to Buddha.mov.
• Special Mentions go to Babies and In A Month.
• Jury Award for Best Narrative Short, with a $500 cash prize and $5,000 VER Rental Grant, goes to Shadow Animals.
• Special Mention goes to Nevada.
• Jury Award for Best Documentary Short, with a $500 cash prize, goes to David and The Kingdom.
• Jury Award for Best Animation Short, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Cocoon, Cocoon.
• Special Jury Award for Bravery, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Minding the Gap.
• Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize and $5,000 Panavision Camera Rental Grant, goes to Rock Steady Row.
• Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature, with $1,000 cash prize, goes to Crime + Punishment.

Narrative Features Jury: Tim Rhys (MovieMaker Magazine), Nicole Sperling (Vanity Fair) and Rachel Winter (Producer).

Documentary Features Jury: Allison Amon (EVP Sales & Development, Bullitt), Lindsey Bahr (Associated Press) and Peter Baxter (Filmmaker; President/Co-Founder, Slamdance).

International Features Jury: Shalini Dore (Variety), Alonso Duralde (TheWrap) and Vincent Spano (Actor).

Shorts Jury: Ana Souza (Sundance Film Festival) and Scenery Samundra (Tru Thoughts, NTS Radio).

Photos from the 2018 Mammoth Lakes Film Festival can be found here: https://www.gettyimages.com/search/events/775144883?sort=best&family=editorial

For information for the 2019 festival slated for May 22-26, 2019, visit

www.MammothLakesFilmFestival.com.

About Mammoth Lakes Film Festival

The Mammoth Lakes Film Festival, held in the scenic and majestic setting of Mammoth Lakes in the Eastern Sierra region of California, brings together world-class cinema, emerging filmmakers, industry veterans, and audiences from around the world to celebrate films with thought-provoking stories. The Mammoth Lakes Film Festival is a DBA under Mammoth Lakes Foundation—the nonprofit founded in 1989 by Dave McCoy (who also founded Mammoth Mountain Ski Area in 1953). Dave McCoy turns 103 years old this August and is excited to be a part of the fourth annual Mammoth Lakes Film Festival. Visit www.MammothLakesFilmFestival.com for more information or connect on Facebook and Twitter.

2018 Mammoth Lakes Film Festival Sponsors include Honda, Panavision, Light Iron, VER, Town of Mammoth Lakes, Mono County, Tambour Foundation, Paul and Kathleen Rudder, Sierra Nevada Resort & Spa (preferred lodging partner), Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, Blue Moon, Black Box Wine, Chapman University and many others.  

Within the framework of the upcoming World Soundtrack Awards Gala, Film Fest Gent will honour Philippe Sarde's impressive career with a Lifetime Achievement Award followed by a tribute to Sarde's film music. The French composer is known for an immense variety and richness in his scores, ranging from impressive symphonic work to pure jazz. Sarde has worked with several world-famous directors such as Claude Sautet, Bertrand Tavernier, Yves Boisset, André Téchiné, Roman Polanski, Jean-Jacques Annaud, Marco Ferreri, Jacques Doillon and even Robert Bresson.

• Most prolific and versatile French composer Philippe Sarde honoured with career prize during 18th World Soundtrack Awards
• In his career of nearly 50 years, Sarde has worked with world's most renowned filmmakers such as Claude Sautet, Bertrand Tavernier, Roman Polanski, André Téchiné and Jean-Jacques Annaud
• Philippe Sarde completes the 18th World Soundtrack Awards programme. Previously announced: world premiere of Carter Burwell's film music (composer for the Coen Brothers) and Nicholas Britell ('Moonlight').

Film Fest Gent's artistic director Patrick Duynslaegher on Philippe Sarde’s impressive film music career: 
“When you think about his incredible output, the quality and variety of his music and the films he wrote music for, it’s a mystery why legendary French maestro Philippe Sarde isn’t more well-known and celebrated outside the film music community."

"Lots of great film music is the result of the unique partnership and understanding between a director and a composer, whereby the composer makes a crucial contribution to the artistic (and often commercial) success of the film. What would some of the best Hitchcock films be without the music of Bernard Herrmann? Or nearly the totality of the films of Blake Edwards or Steven Spielberg without the scores of Henry Mancini or John Williams? Can one think of the films of François Truffaut, Claude Chabrol, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Joel and Ethan Coen, Sergio Leone, Neil Jordan, Pedro Almodóvar, Marco Bellocchio, Benoit Jacquot without hearing the sound of Georges Delerue, Pierre Jansen, Peer Raben, Carter Burwell, Ennio Morricone, Elliot Goldenthal, Alberto Iglesias, Carlo Crivelli, Bruno Coulais?"

Impressive career

"So prolific and versatile is Philippe Sarde that he can be called the favourite composer of at least a dozen directors with whom he had a creative collaboration, either during their whole career or for an intense shorter period: Claude Sautet ('Les Choses de la Vie'; 'César et Rosalie'; 'Max et les Ferrailleurs'), Bertrand Tavernier ('Le Juge et l’Assassin'; 'Coup de Torchon', 'Un Dimanche à la Campagne'), Yves Boisset ('Un Taxi Mauve'; 'La Clé sur la Porte'; 'La Femme Flic'), André Téchiné ('Barocco'; 'Rendez-Vous'; 'Les Témoins'), Roman Polanski ('Le Locataire'; 'Tess'; 'Pirates'), Jean-Jacques Annaud ('La Guerre du Feu'; 'L’Ours'), Marco Ferreri ('Liza'; 'La Grande Bouffe'; 'La Dernière Femme'), Pierre Granier-Deferre ('Le Chat'; 'La Veuve Couderc'; 'Le Train'), Jacques Doillon ('Le Petit Criminel'; 'Ponette'; 'Rodin'), Georges Lautner ('Mort d’un Pourri'; 'Est-ce Bien Raisonnable'), Alain Corneau ('Le Choix des Armes'; 'Fort Saganne'). And yes, he even worked twice ('Lancelot du Lac'; 'Le Diable Probablement') with Robert Bresson, the mythic French director who famously makes austere films without film music."

"Of Claude Sautet for whom he scored eleven films over a period of three decades, Sarde said: ‘we were partners in life.’ They met in 1968, when Sautet who was looking for a composer for 'Les Choses de la Vie', was forty-four and Sarde twenty. According to the struggling young composer ‘Sautet was brave enough to go against his producer’s advise and give me the job.’ Since then he has scored some 190 movies (television movies and shorts not included), mostly French but occasionally Italian, British and American co-productions."

Versatile composer

"Philippe Sarde has said that to him the cinema is more interesting than music. Bertrand Tavernier indeed remembers the young Sarde as a great cinema buff who’s also a magnificent spectator. ‘He knows how to see a film, analyse it, and make judgments that are precise and warm. And he does so whatever the aesthetic, from Bresson to Lautner.’ Tavernier also admires Sarde’s film music for the lack of psychological explanation. ‘It’s never a comment on the characters’ state of mind but rather an exploration of the secret soul of the film. Listen to 'Le Juge et l’Assassin': there’s no theme that personalises each protagonist, no theme that illustrates their opposition to one another. The musical intention is situated at another level – above all, it conveys the notion of travel, of regions crossed, wanderings that are both geographical and mental.’"

"The amazing thing is the variety and richness of Philippe Sarde’s scores, going from symphonic to pure jazz, from beautiful melodic compositions to harmonic themes with no apparent melody, from diabolical rhythm sections to folk instruments from all horizons. Like a chameleon Sarde is able to compose in any style the film demands."

"After the romanticism of 'Les Choses de la Vie', he composed for Sautet’s next film, 'Max et les Ferrailleurs', a strangely arranged tune with a rhythm section as obsessive as the tormented Max character in the film."

Love for musical contrasts

"Close friend Tavernier said that over the years, from film to film he ‘flattered Sarde’s naturel tendency to create dialogues between instruments from opposite horizons: baroque ensembles with African percussion in 'La Fille d’Artagnan', a diatonic accordion in the middle of a dissonant orchestra in 'Le Juge et l’Assassin', a viola da gamba with rock percussion for 'L.627', over music that’s constantly breaking with the keys and rhythms.’ For Lautner’s 'Sains de Glace' Sarde wrote a sad ballad on electric violin. For another film of Lautner, 'Mort d’un Pourri', a violent political thriller starring Alain Delon as he idealistic hero, Sarde put the famous tenor saxophonist Stan Getz in front of the London Symphony Orchestra. In the words of the director, ‘real magic was born between the look of Delon and the timbre of Getz. The saxophone softens Alain’s face, brings something else to it, tenderness, and fragility. Nostalgia too.’"

"Yves Boisset confirms Sarde’s love for extreme contrasts in scoring for film. ‘From one film tot the next he could go from a hundred musicians in the London Symphony Orchestra (for his romantic score, with the participation of the Irish folk group The Chieftains, for 'Un Taxi Mauve') to just two soloists, like he did on 'La Femme Flic': a sad, lyrical score with a dialogue between an accordion and a classical saxophone.’"

Memorable scores

"As Boisset experienced with the score for 'Le Juge Fayard dit le Sherif', Sarde’s radical creative choices weren’t not always easily accepted by producers working in a conservative film industry. ‘The producers tried to get rid of the original score: too dissonant, too frightening, too destabilizing. They wanted music that was more lyrical, more descriptive, something to paraphrase the aerial photography. I had to get involved: “Sarde’s right, and nobody else!” Decades later it’s one of the pieces that people talk to me about most.’"

"It’s an impossible task to name every memorable score that Sarde has written, but among his best work is his deliciously creepy score for the supernatural thriller 'Ghost Story'; his wonderfully epic and other-worldly score that evokes the primitive, austere and brutal pre-historical world of 'Quest for Fire' ('La Guerre du Feu'); his lush, dark and mysterious Bernard Herrmann homage for 'Barocco'; and last but not least his discrete, understated music for Jerry Schatzberg’s 'Reunion', a subtle film about remembrance and the tricks it plays."

The World Soundtrack Awards concert will also host the world premiere of multi-award winning Carter Burwell's film scores (known for collaboration with Coen Brothers & Todd Haynes amongst others) and music by Academy Award-nominated composer, pianist and producer Nicholas Britell ('Moonlight').

The Academy’s Board of Governors has approved Oscars^®rules and campaign regulations for the 91st Academy Awards^®.

Submission deadlines for awards eligibility have been changed.  There is now one submission deadline – Monday, October 1, 2018 – for the Animated Feature Film, Documentary Feature, Documentary Short Subject, Foreign Language Film, Animated Short Film and Live Action Short Film categories.  The submission deadline for Best Picture and all other categories is Thursday, November 15, by 5 p.m. PT.

In the Music categories, all members of the Music Branch will view films eligible for Original Score and film clips of eligible Original Songs and vote in a preliminary round to produce a shortlist of 15 titles in each category using the preferential voting system.  Five nominees for Original Score and five nominees for Original Song will then be chosen by branch members in a second round of balloting also using preferential voting.

In the Documentary Feature category, films that have won a qualifying award at a competitive film festival will be eligible for Academy Awards consideration regardless of any prior public exhibition or distribution by nontheatrical means.  The Documentary Feature Qualifying Festival List will be available later this spring.  Furthermore, the critic review eligibility requirement has been expanded to include additional New York- and Los Angeles-based publications.

To align with credits eligibility in the Best Picture category, rules in both the Animated Feature Film and Documentary Feature categories have been updated to allow for more than one producer to be designated as a nominee.

In a procedural change, members of the Visual Effects Branch Nominating Committee will now be able to stream bake-off reels from the shortlisted films or attend satellite bake-off screenings and vote online.  Previously, committee members were only able to vote in person at the Academy’s Visual Effects Bake-off in Los Angeles.

Other amendments to the rules include standard date changes and other “housekeeping” adjustments.

Rules are reviewed annually by individual branch and category committees.  The Awards and Events Committee then reviews all proposed changes before presenting its recommendations to the Board of Governors for approval.

Updated campaign regulations, which specify how companies and individuals may promote to Academy members any movies and achievements eligible for the 91st Academy Awards, are also presented to the Board of Governors for approval.

For the first time, studios, distributors and filmmakers will be required to use an Academy-approved mailing house to send sanctioned awards materials for eligible films to Academy members.  Each approved mailing house will be provided with an official list of Academy members who have opted-in along with their contact information to facilitate both physical and digital mailings.

Additionally, the number of post-nominations screenings with a filmmaker Q&A is now limited to a maximum of four regardless of category or country in which the event takes place.  This rule eliminates the two additional screenings currently allowed for Documentary and Foreign Language Film nominees.

For the complete 91st Academy Awards rules, visit oscars.org/rules.

The 91st Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 24, 2019, at the Dolby Theatre^® at Hollywood & Highland Center^® in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT.  The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

THE ACADEMY AND ABC ANNOUNCE KEY DATES FOR 91ST OSCARS^®

THE OSCARS AIRS LIVE SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2019
ON THE ABC TELEVISION NETWORK
 

LOS ANGELES, CA — The Academy and the ABC Television Network today announced key dates for the 91st Oscars^®. The Academy Awards^® presentation will air live on ABC on Oscar^® Sunday, February 24, 2019.

Academy key dates for the 2018 Awards season are:
 

Sunday, November 18, 2018                       Governors Awards 

Monday, January 7, 2019                            Nominations voting opens

Monday, January 14, 2019                          Nominations voting closes

Tuesday, January 22, 2019                         Oscar Nominations Announcement

Monday, February 4, 2019                          Oscar Nominees Luncheon

Saturday, February 9, 2019                         Scientific and Technical Awards

Tuesday, February 12, 2019                        Finals voting opens

Tuesday, February 19, 2019                        Finals voting closes

Sunday, February 24, 2019                         91st Oscars
 

The date for the 91st Oscars was previously announced.
 

The 91st Oscars will be held at the Dolby Theatre^® at Hollywood & Highland Center^® in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
 

The Board of the Ischia Arts Academy today confirmed that Quincy Jones has been named recipient of the 2018 "Ischia William Walton Music Legend Award” in recognition of his monumental contributions to the arts industry throughout a sixty-year career as a world-renowned musician, film producer, entertainment company executive and humanitarian. Jones will accept his award the evening of July 18^th at ceremonies during the 16^th annual Ischia Global Film & Music Festival which runs from July 15^th - 22^nd on this picturesque island off the coast of Naples.

The announcement was made by Festival founder-producer Pascal Vicedomini and 2018 chairperson Cheryl Boone Isaacs. As in past years the Fest will include a week of major film premieres, socially-relevant symposia, music performances, a master acting class and award ceremonies.

Previous ‘Ischia Walton Music Legend Award’ winners include Sting, Burt Bacharach, Harry Belafonte, Mike Stoller, Sir Tim Rice, Julio Iglesias, Andrea Bocelli and Luciano Pavarotti.

Sir William Walton (1902-83), for whom the award is named, made his home on Ischia. He is considered one of the outstanding composers of the 20^th century. He had been considered a composer of the first rank almost since the initial performance of his most famous work, ''Facade,'' in 1923. During a sixty- year career he wrote music in several classical genres and styles from film scores to opera, including music for two coronations: the ''Crown Imperial March'' for King George VI in 1937 and ''Orb and Sceptre'' for Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.

“The immensity of Quincy Jones’ talent knows no bounds,” said Vicedomini and Isaacs. “A true impresario, throughout the past six decades in the entertainment industry he has built an exceptional, prolific and wide-ranging career in multiple genres including composer, artist, arranger, conductor, record company executive, multi-media entrepreneur, humanitarian and record, film and TV producer. On the music side he has scored a record 79 Grammy nominations, and 27 Grammys, as well as a Grammy Living Legend Award. Therefore, we are truly honored to add the ‘Ischia William Walton Music Legend Award’ to his extensive list of accolades.”

Presented under the auspices of the Ischia Arts Academy, the Ischia Global Film & Music Fest, is sponsored by Mibact-Dg Cinema and the Campania Region, and the municipalities of the Green Island. The Festival is chaired by Boone Isaacs, past president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, with noted Italian filmmaker and company executive Andrea Leone serving as its president. The American producer Mark Canton again chairs the Honorary Board which is comprised of many international entertainment industry notables including Oscar-winners Helen Mirren, Christoph Waltz, Melissa Leo, Jeremy Irons, Alessandro Bertolazzi, and Sandy Powell as well as Taylor Hackford, Bille August, Michael Radford and Lee Daniels, amongst others.

The event’s sister festivals are Capri-Hollywood – The International Film Festival, which takes place each December, and the Los Angeles, Italia Film Fashion and Art Festival, which takes place the week preceding the Academy Awards.

www.ischiaglobal.com

Pierre PAB the artist, Laurie Gordon accepting the award on behalf of Gerald Potterton and Yonathan Parienti (Horyou.com) at the award ceremony in the Palais.

 The winners of the 58th Krakow Film Festival were announced. The international jury awarded the best documentary, short and animated films, which during the whole festival week were trying to woo the experts and the audience in 7 cinemas in Krakow.

The outright winner of this year's edition of the Krakow Film Festival is an acclaimed film “Over the Limit”, directed by Marta Prus. The film received the Silver Horn for the best feature film in theInternational Documentary Film Competition and the Silver Hobby-Horse for the director of the best documentary film in the National Competition. The film about the remarkable Russian gymnast Margarita Mamun and the emotional costs of professional sports, received also the award for the best producer of Polish short and documentary films, the Best Cinematography Award and People’s Choice Award.

The winner of the International Documentary Film Competition is Talal Derki's film “Of Fathers and Sons”. The 2014 winner of the Silver Horn once again confronted Krakow audience with the sheer terror of the Syrian war. Four years after the horrifying, successful and widely discussed “Return to Homs” – the opening film of the 54th KFF – the director visited a family of a radicalized ISIS member and followed the process of forming of jihadist fighters. In “Of Fathers and Sons” the camera focuses on little boys who are being prepared the join the ranks of ISIS by their beloved fathers, for whom family is especially important. The film received this year an award for best documentary at Sundance. Jury led by Péter Forgács (Hungary) handed out the prestigious Golden Horn award for “the director's courageous penetration into the world of extremism”. Moreover, the film was also awarded by the International Federation of Film Critics Jury (FIPRESCI).

The Silver Horn for the director of the best medium-length documentary went to Pablo Aparo and Martin Benchimol for their film“The Dread” (Argentina).

The winner of the oldest festival competition - International Short Film Competition - is

Armelle Mercat for her film “Keep Your Hair On, Oliver” (France).

The jury, whose chairman was Iranian director and screenwriter Merhard Oskouei, gave the French director the Golden Dragon award emphasizing that the story presented in the film was only possible to tell through animation.

Silver Dragons are the awards given to the best short films representing all three competition genres. The Silver Dragon for the best documentary film went to Michał Hytroś for his film “The Sisters” (Poland). The film received also the special mention in the National Competition. The best animated film is “Obon” [dir. André Hörmann, Samo (Anna Bergmann)]. Silver Dragon for the best short fiction went to Emmanuelle Fleytoux for her film “Release the Dogs” (France/Belgium). The Krakow Film Festival also gave this film the nomination for the European Film Award in the short film category (PRIX EFA KRAKOW 2018 for the best European film).

The best music documentary and the winner of the Golden Heynal award, chosen by the Jury led by Marcin Borchardt (Polska), is an American-Japanese documentary“Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda” (dir. Stephen Nomura Schible). In this moving documentary a story about the roots of music turns into a film meditation, which talks about the human fight with inhibitions. The protagonist, an Academy Award winner for his original score for the film “The Last Emperor”, this time shows his other faces: as a music experimenter, an activist fighting against environmental degradation and a man struggling with serious illness. The film received also the Student Jury award.

The Golden Hobby-Horse in the National Competition went to “Unconditional Love” by Rafał Łysak (Poland). The Jury appreciated the film “for a story about an intimate reality of people from different generations, which escapes a stereotypical judgment. If we watch the world so closely it can actually be tolerant as love is unconditional”.

The best Polish animation is “III” by Marta Pajek (Poland). It is the second Silver Hobby-Horse in the artist's career. After two years Pajek came back to the idea of an impossible figure, which this time in a sensual and full of eroticism way portrays relations between men and women.

The award for the best Polish short fiction was handed out "for an accurate, comedic attempt to encapsulate the madness of the contemporary world" to Maciej Kawalski for his film “Atlas” (Poland).

The special mention went to the last year's winner Damian Kocur for his film “1410”.

For the fourth time the Krakow Film Festival, being among Europe's most important film festivals, recommends feature documentary films for the European Film Award. This year the official recommendation was given to “White Mama” (Zosya Rodkevich, Evgeniya Ostanina).

For the third time an important part of the Krakow Film Festival was DOC LAB POLAND section, which belonged to the KFF Industry - a programme of events devoted to the film industry. Awards for documentaries in development and in postproduction were handed out.

The 59th Krakow Film Festival will take place May 26th - June 2nd, 2019.

 (photo credits: Kamila Szatan / KFF)

The Extended Deadline to submit your film to the NYC 2 Paris Film Festival is June 20th, 2018! 

NYC 2 Paris International Film Festival honors the Best in Category which includes Best Narrative Feature, Best Documentary, Best Short Documentary, Best Short Narrative, Best Super Short, Best Music Video, as well as Best Director. 

The NYC 2 Paris International Film Festival provides a showcase for the best in independent cinema, including short films, feature films and music videos.

To submit, visit: https://filmfreeway.com/NewYork2ParisInternationalFilmFestival

Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates, reminders, and film fest news. 

Season: May 2018

Susan Kucera (USA), Living in the Future's Past

Award of Excellence Special Mention: Documentary Feature

Award of Excellence Special Mention: Nature / Environment / Wildlife  

http://accoladecompetition.org/

The Accolade Global Film Competition is unique in the industry.  Attracting both powerhouse companies as well as talented new filmmakers it is an exceptional, truly international awards competition, not a traditional film festival – which allows filmmakers from around the world to enter their films in this prestigious competition.

Established in 2003, Accolade Global Film Competition is an avant-garde worldwide competition that strives to give talented directors, producers, actors, creative teams and new media creators the positive exposure they deserve. It discovers and honors the achievements of filmmakers who produce high quality films and projects across a multitude of genres. The Accolade promotes award winners through press releases to over 40,000 filmmakers, industry contacts and additional international media/distribution outlets.

Amy Adrion awarded the Picturehouse #WhatNext Prize for Half the Picture 

Bo Burnham (director of Eighth Grade) and Amy Adrion (director of Half The Picture)

Picturehouse Central, 3 June 2018 — Sundance Institute and Picturehouse announced tonight that the 2018 Sundance Film Festival: London’s Audience Favourite award, sponsored by MUBI, was presented to Eighth Grade directed by Bo Burnham.  Director Amy Adrion was awarded a special Picturehouse #WhatNext Prize, sponsored by MUBI, and chosen by the programming team of Sundance Film Festival: London. Both Bo Burnham and Amy Adrion win lifetime subscriptions to MUBI.

Thirteen-year-old Kayla endures the tidal wave of contemporary suburban adolescence as she makes her way through the last week of middle school — the end of her thus far disastrous eighth grade year — before she begins high school.

Eighth Grade had its International premiere at Sundance Film Festival: London following its World Premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A. Festivalgoers voted in the thousands for their favourite films across the four-day event at Picturehouse Central for this Audience Favourite Award.

The special Picturehouse #WhatNext prize was awarded to Amy Adrion for the way her documentary Half the Picture represents key female voices and helps amplify the conversation around the treatment of female directors in Hollywood. With seven out of the twelve films presented in the main programme directed by women, the 2018 Sundance London festival celebrated female talent and asked #WhatNext for a fairer film future.

Half the Picture had its European premiere at Sundance Film Festival: London following its World Premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A.

At a pivotal moment for gender equality in Hollywood, successful women directors tell the stories of their art, lives and careers. Having endured a long history of systemic discrimination, women filmmakers may be getting the first glimpse of a future that values their voices equally.

The Sundance Film Festival: London took place from 31 May – 3 June at Picturehouse Central, presenting 12 feature films from this year's Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A, including a surprise film screening of Bart Layton’s American Animals, alongside two short film programmes and four special events.

Over 30 filmmakers and actors attended the festival to introduce their films and participate in audience Q&As, including Toni Collette and Ari Aster for the Time Out Gala film Hereditary; Ethan Hawke for First Reformed; Idris Elba and cast members from his directorial debut Yardie; and Crystal Moselle and the cast of Skate Kitchen.

The 2018 Sundance Film Festival: London was supported by: Presenting Partner – Adobe; Lead Partner – SundanceTV Global; Media Partners – Time Out and Evening Standard; Event Partners – MUBI and the Utah Office of Tourism; Hotel Partner – The May Fair Hotel; Drinks Partner – Hop House Lager; and Official Provider - Picturehouse Central and Picturehouse West End.

Awards go to documentaries and a tragicomedy with this year’s Nippon Honor Award recipient Shinobu TERAJIMA as the leading actress

After six days with more than 100 short and feature length films, the 18th Japanese Film Festival Nippon Connection in Frankfurt am Main ended on June 3. Numerous film screenings, concerts, performances, and workshops were quickly sold out. Over 120 directors, actors, producers, and artists from Japan came to Frankfurt in order to present their works to the audience in person. Around 16,500 visitors came to the festival centers Künstlerhaus Mousonturm and Theater Willy Praml in der Naxoshalle as well as to the five other locations Deutsches Filmmuseum, Mal Seh’n Kino, Naxos Atelier, Internationales Theater Frankfurt and Ausstellungsraum Eulengasse.

The festival was crowned on Sunday by the award ceremony at Künstlerhaus Mousonturm. The Nippon Honor Award, supported by Japan Airlines this year, was given out for the fourth time to one person who has made outstanding contributions to Japanese cinema. The recipient of the Nippon Honor Award 2018 is famous actress Shinobu TERAJIMA, who was obviously moved by the prize. She emphasized how much she loved Germany now that she had won another award in this country after having been awarded the Silver Bear at the 2010 Berlinale.

This year’s Nippon Cinema Award, an audience award, went to Oh Lucy! by Atsuko HIRAYANAGI. In this sensitive tragicomedy, Nippon Honor Awardee Shinobu TERAJIMA plays a single office lady trying to break out of her routine. The prize, which is endowed with 2,000 Euros, was sponsored by Bankhaus Metzler from Frankfurt am Main for the 14th time.

The winner of this year’s Nippon Visions Jury Award is Haruka KOMORI. For her documentary Trace of Breath, the filmmaker has portrayed a market garden owner from a small town destroyed by the 2011 tsunami. The winning film was chosen by a three-member jury consisting of Hiromi AIHARA (producer), Daniel Otto (Vice President Acquisition & Sales – AV Visionen) and Isao YUKISADA (director). In their statement, the jury emphasized how much they were impressed by the intense relation between the filmmaker and the protagonist. They also pointed out to the formal excellence of the film, especially regarding the editing, and highlighted their intention to help the film find a wider audience. The prize, consisting of a free subtitling for the director’s next film, is sponsored for the ninth time by Japan Visualmedia Translation Academy (JVTA) from Tokyo.

The jury also gave a special mention to the documentary Of Love & Law by Hikaru TODA. Here, the jury stated that the film convinced them by its calm und sensitive approach. Avoiding sensationalism, the directing style enabled the viewers to delve into the lives of the protagonists.

The Nippon Visions Audience Award went to the documentary Ramen Heads by Koki SHIGENO. The highly appetizing film shows how the best ramen chefs from Japan constantly strive for perfection in their recipes. The prize, sponsored by Japanisches Kultur- und Sprachzentrum e.V. in Frankfurt am Main, is endowed with 1,000 Euros.

The award ceremony was followed by the closing film The City of Betrayal by Daisuke MIURA. In this film, the leading actress is also Nippon Honor Awardee Shinobu TERAJIMA.

Save the date: the 19th Nippon Connection Film Festival will take place from May 28 to June 2, 2019. Once more, Künstlerhaus Mousonturm and Theater Willy Praml in der Naxoshalle will become the centers of Japanese film culture.

The Festival
The Japanese Film Festival Nippon Connection is organized on a voluntary basis by the 70 members of the non-profit Nippon Connection registered association. The festival is under the patronage of Peter Feldmann, Mayor of the City of Frankfurt am Main, and the Consulate General of Japan in Frankfurt am Main.

Venues
Künstlerhaus Mousonturm, Waldschmidtstr. 4, Frankfurt (festival center)
Theater Willy Praml in der Naxoshalle, Waldschmidtstr. 19, Frankfurt (festival center)
Naxos Atelier, Waldschmidtstr. 19, Frankfurt
Deutsches Filmmuseum, Schaumainkai 41, Frankfurt
Mal Seh’n Kino, Adlerflychtstr. 6, Frankfurt
Ausstellungsraum Eulengasse, Seckbacher Landstr. 16, Frankfurt
Internationales Theater Frankfurt, Hanauer Landstr. 5-7, Frankfurt

More Info
www.NipponConnection.com
www.facebook.com/NipponConnection
twitter.com/NipponFilmfest
www.instagram.com/nipponconnection
blog.nipponconnection.com

CLIPPED Music Video Festival 2018 happened Saturday June 2nd and was an overwhelming success.

Run in conjunction with Vivid Ideas, over 400 attendees passed through the Carriageworks doors to experience the exhibitions, panel discussions, premieres and awards throughout the day. The panels boasted immense talent including Jesse Kanda (UK - Bjork, FKA Tiwgs, Arca), Nash Edgerton (Gringo, Bob Dylan, Brandon Flowers), Sarah Blasko, Mclean Stephenson, Eero Heinonen (Finland), and industry experts including MTV’s Ashlee Carroll, MusicSA General Manager Lisa Bishop, Rage’s Tyson Koh, Grow Yourself Up’s Greg Carey and Creative Industry Lawyer Chris Chow. Over 400 entrants were submitted into the film clip competition. Narrowed down to just 20 on the night, live judging decided the fate of who took their share the massive prize pool of over $17,000 from the likes of Panavision, Blackmagic Design, Røde Microphones, ZOOM, Silicon Power, Chris Chow Creative Lawyers, Audeara, One Solutions to name a few.

CLIPPED Music Video Festival congratulates all nominees and winners for their overwhelming talents and efforts, with the following videos taking out the esteemed awards at the 2018 event:

Best Video (Aus) Iluka - ‘Sympathy’ Directed by Kate Halpin

Best Video (NZ) DMAs - ‘The End’ Directed by W.A.M Bleakly Directing (Aus) Lo! - ‘Locust Christ’ Directed by Adrian Shapiro Directing (NZ) DMAs - ‘The End’ Directed by W.A.M Bleakly Cinematography (Aus) Willow Beats ‘Be Kind to Yourself’, Cinematography by Ehran Edwards Directed by Oren Kanski Cinematography (NZ) DMAs - ‘The End’ Cinematography by Grégoire Lière Directed by W.A.M Bleakly Animation (Aus) PNAU - ‘Go Bang’ Created by Toby & Pete Editing (Aus) Iluka - ‘Sympathy’ Edited by Matias Bolla Directed by Kate Halpin Visual Effects (Aus) Willow Beats - ‘Be Kind to Yourself’ Directed /Visual FX by Oren Kanski Colour Grading (Aus) Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders ‘Susan’ Colour grading by Scott Stirling Directed by Leilani Croucher Make-up (Aus) Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders ‘Susan’ Makeup Artist: Amy Sartorel + Makeup Assistant: Charlotte Mcleod Directed by Leilani Croucher

2 The Rubens VR Experience continues at hometown show on 30 June The Rubens premiered an immersive VR experience demonstrating the most progressive form of music video with unreleased track ‘Casper’ from their forthcoming album LO LA RU out June 29. With the help of a specialty headset, participants enter a virtual playground they can see, hear and dance along with The Rubens. Incentivised to interact with various elements of the scene, users experience 3D visuals and animations that are colourful, vivid, fun and entertainingly out of this world. Each user’s experience is different. Once you leave the VR world an individual recording of their experience which will be emailed through to you so you can share your very own personalised music clip through social media. On 30th June at Camden Civic Centre punters will be able to enjoy The Rubens VR Music Experience.

June 1-10 @ Wythe Hotel and Windmill Studios
BROOKLYN FILM FESTIVAL

 

2018 WINNERS

Through the resources of industry-related sponsors, the Brooklyn Film Festival awarded the winners with products, services, and cash.

PRIZES SPONSORED BY: Abelcine, Xeno Lights, Media Services, Cinecall Soundtracks, Nyc Camera Company, G-Star Raw, Windmill Studios Nyc, Brooklyn Film Society.