Los Angeles Film Festival

'Like Cotton Twines' Exclusive Clip: An American Volunteer Confronts His African Heritage

Vikram Murthi — Fri, 27 May 2016 21:00:08 GMT

"Like Cotton Twines" follows Micah (Jay Ellis), an American volunteer who teaches in a Ghanaian village and harbors high expectations for his mother's homeland. He's eager to help his students reach their full potential, especially the bright 13-year-old Tuigi (Ophelia Klenam Dzidzornu). But when Tuigi's family must pay for an accident caused by her father, Tuigi must abandon her education and offer herself as a sex slave. Outraged and upset, Micah battles the tribal culture, religious customs, and the state itself in order to save this girl from a cruel fate in this haunting feature film from Leila Djansi. Watch an exclusive clip from the film above featuring Micah confronting his own African heritage with a visit to the slave dungeons.

Djansi has this to say about "Like Cotton Twines: "Being a filmmaker gives me that great opportunity to expose the many injustices of this world, most of which are directed at women. My previous films have all sought to be that voice for many women not only in Africa, but even in developed countries. There are thousands of girls currently enslaved in Ghana, Togo and Benin under the Trokosi system (slave to the gods). It is my hope that a visual and dramatic representation of what these women go through will awaken the conscience of those with the legislative mandate to make change. Those thousands are hoping for freedom, and we are the keepers of our freedom. It starts with one voice; one act."

READ MORE: LA Film Festival Unveils Full Lineup: 42 World Premieres in U.S. Fiction, Documentary and Other Sections

Leila Djansi's career started in Ghanian film industry before transitioning to the United States. She established independent film company Turning Point Pictures whose mission is to make "films about significant social issues affecting people globally, using the medium to educate audiences and raise awareness about these pertinent issues, with the belief that these films can act as a catalyst for change." Her previous films include "I Sing of a Well," "Sinking Sands," both of which received 10 African Movie Academy Award nominations respectively, "Ties That Bind," and most recently "Where Children Play."

"Like Cotton Twines" will premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 2nd at 6pm at the ArcLight Culver City 8.

READ MORE: Trailer: Teyonah Parris Toplines Leila Djansi's 'Where Children Play' (Coming Fall 2015)

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

'Mercy' Exclusive Trailer: Four Brothers Are Under Attack In This Home Invasion Thriller

Vikram Murthi — Wed, 25 May 2016 21:18:36 GMT

In "Mercy," two sets of brothers return to their childhood home to visit their dying mother and say their final goodbyes. When they're all under one roof again, tensions build and lines are drawn along family lines as parts of their mother's past and other hidden motivations reveal themselves. Next thing they know, the brothers are under attack as masked intruders try to invade their house. As the night stretches on, close bonds are tested and fears are realized as the brothers fight for their own survival. "Mercy" stars James Wolk ("Mad Men"), Caitlin Fitzgerald ("Masters of Sex"), Tom Lipinski ("The Knick"), Dan Ziskie ("War of the Worlds"), Michael Godere ("The Affair"), Michael Donovan, Dion Graham ("The Wire"), and Constance Baron ("You Don't Mess With The Zohan"). Watch the trailer for "Mercy" above.

READ MORE: LA Film Festival Unveils Full Lineup: 42 World Premieres in U.S. Fiction, Documentary and Other Sections

"Mercy" is written and directed by Chris Sparling. He first found mainstream success with his script for the film "Buried," about an Iraq-based American civilian truck driver buried alive, which premiered at Sundance to critical acclaim. He also wrote the horror film "ATM" and Gus Van Sant's mystery film "Sea of Trees." His directorial debut was the horror film "The Atticus Institute," a psychological horror film about demonic possession set in the 1970s.

"Mercy" will have its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival on Saturday, June 4th at the ArcLight Culver City. Tickets are still available here. It will be available on Netflix later this year.

READ MORE: Attention, Filmmakers: 10 Tips for Making the Transition from Writer to Writer-Director

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

'They Call Us Monsters' Exclusive Clip: Three Young Offenders Showcase Their Quarters

Vikram Murthi — Wed, 25 May 2016 19:18:13 GMT

Ben Lear's intimate documentary "They Call Us Monsters" follows three young offenders - Jarad, Juan, and Antonio, who are residing in the Compound, a facility that houses Los Angeles' most violent juvenile offenders. All three offenders are between the ages of 14 and 16 and face adult sentences for their crimes, sometimes decades if not hundreds of years in prison. With unprecedented access to the facility, Lear allows audiences to understand these young men through a screenwriting workshop where they collectively fictionalize their lives. Lear's film asks difficult questions about America's justice system, like what is society's responsibility towards these children? Is it fair that the system treats young offenders like they're disposable? Where is the line between adulthood and childhood? Do they deserve a second chance? Watch this exclusive clip from the feature that features Jarad, Juan, and Antonio excitedly showcasing their quarters.

READ MORE: LA Film Festival Unveils Full Lineup: 42 World Premieres in U.S. Fiction, Documentary and Other Sections

Ben lear is the first director to ever film inside the Compound. As a result of "They Call Us Monsters," Lear now sits on the advisory board of InsideOUT Writers, an organization that uses creative writing as a mechanism to reduce the juvenile recidivism rate, and is an ally member within the Anti-Recidivism Coalition. He teaches a weekly writing class within the Compound and mentors former juvenile offenders upon reentry.

"They Call Us Monsters" will have its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 6th.

READ MORE: Here's How 'Lost for Life,' A Powerful New Documentary About Juvenile Murder, Came Together

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

'Girl Flu' Exclusive Clip: A Young Girl Learns About Tampons For The First Time

Vikram Murthi — Wed, 25 May 2016 18:10:23 GMT

Dorie Barton's "Girl Flu" follows Bird (Jade Pettyjohn), a thoughtful sixth grader whose emotional maturity far outpaces her body development. When her first period arrives in an embarrassingly public way, Bird turns to her flighty stoner single mother Jenny (Katee Sackhoff) for guidance, but she's just as befuddled as her young daughter. Already frustrated by her recent move to Echo Park from the Valley, Bird learns the difficulties of growing up, becoming a woman, and accepting change all in the worst week of her life. In this exclusive clip above, watch as Bird learns about how to use a tampon for the first time from Jenny and Lilli (Heather Matarazzo).

READ MORE: LA Film Festival Unveils Full Lineup: 42 World Premieres in U.S. Fiction, Documentary and Other Sections

"Girl Flu" is Dorie Barton's debut film. She's best known as an actress who has appeared in "Meet The Fockers," "Down With Love," and "God Bless America"; she also starred in the series "Stark Raving Mad," which was cancelled after one season. Katee Sackhoff is best known for playing Captain Kara 'Starbuck' Thrace on the TV series "Battlestar Gallactica," as well her appearances in TV shows like "24," "Longmire," and "Robot Chicken." Jade Pettyjohn recently starred as Summer in Nickelodeon's sitcom "School of Rock," based on the Richard Linklater film of the same name, as well as a recurring role on the TV series "The Last Ship."

"Girl Flu" will have its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 6th.

READ MORE: Katee Sackhoff to Create and Star in Climate Change-Themed Sci-Fi Series 'Rain'

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

'Chee and T' Exclusive Trailer: Two Debt Collectors Must Get Their Boss' Drug-Crazed Nephew a Suit

Vikram Murthi — Wed, 18 May 2016 22:11:20 GMT

In the new buddy comedy "Chee and T," the titular pair (Sunkrish Bala and Dominic Rains) are debt collectors stuck living in Silicon Valley; they spend their time kicking down doors and chain smoking the day away. When their boss Chee's Uncle Rob, a wealthy landlord-tycoon, task the two guys to get his nephew Mayunk (Asif Ali) a suit and a haircut before his upcoming engagement party. Unfortunately, Mayunk is a lot wilder than they previously anticipated with a penchant for acquiring and consuming drugs. Soon they have to handle their hyperactive, drug-crazed little cousin and deliver him to Chee's uncle before it's too late. Watch the exclusive teaser trailer for the film above.

READ MORE: LA Film Festival Unveils Full Lineup: 42 World Premieres in U.S. Fiction, Documentary and Other Sections

"Chee and T" is directed by Tanuj Chopra. His first feature film "Punching at the Sun" premiered at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival and won the grand jury prize at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival. His shorts include "Butterfly," "Clap Clap," and "Carbon Dated." Sunkrish Bala is best known for his roles in TV shows like "The Walking Dead," "Castle," "I Just Want My Pants Back," and "You're The Worst." Dominic Rains is best known for his roles in "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night," "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," and the TV show "Flashforward." Other cast members include Noureen Dewulf ("Anger Management"), Karan Soni ("Deadpool"), Rebecca Hazlewood ("Outsourced"), Bernard White ("Silicon Valley"), and more.

"Chee and T" will have its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 2nd in the US Fiction Competition section.

READ MORE: Review: You've Never Seen a Vampire Movie Like the Beautiful 'A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night,' Produced By Elijah Wood

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

'Dr. Feelgood' Exclusive Trailer: New Documentary Examines America's Opioid Addiction

Vikram Murthi — Thu, 12 May 2016 16:00:10 GMT

The upcoming documentary "Dr. Feelgood" examines America's opioid abuse problem through the lens of an important criminal trial. In 2004, Dr. William Hurwitz, a prominent pain specialist, was convicted of over 50 counts of narcotics and sentenced to 25 years in prison for drug trafficking. "Dr. Feelgood" traces his trial, appeal, and the details surrounding his arrest, creating a complex portrait of a man who was a healer to some and a drug dealer to others. Director Eve Marson examines the ethical dilemma of opioid painkiller prescriptions, how it's crucial for a doctor to be able to relieve his patients' pain but also how that power can beget drug addiction and death. Opioid painkillers are responsible for more American deaths than HIV and car accidents, and it's only this year that the federal government issued its first national guidelines to control prescriptions. "Dr. Feelgood" is a timely exploration of a serious national problem. Watch the trailer for the film above.

READ MORE: LA Film Festival Unveils Diverse 2016 Lineup

"Dr. Feelgood" is Eve Marson's directorial debut. She previously produced the documentaries "Fed Up," about America's obesity epidemic, and "Craigslist Joe," about a guy who wanted to see if he could survive solely on the goodwill of Craigslist. "Dr. Feelgood" will premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival, which takes place between June 1st and 9th. Tickets are currently on sale here. See the poster for the film below.

READ MORE: Watch: See How 'The Other Side' Lives in Exclusive Clip

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

LAFF First Look: Idris Elba Leads Ensemble Cast British Indie 'A Hundred Streets'

Tambay A. Obenson — Thu, 28 Apr 2016 16:46:44 GMT

Set to make its world premiere at the upcoming Los Angeles Film Festival in June is an ensemble drama feature titled "A Hundred Streets," which stars Idris Elba (who is also a producer on the film).

The British indie was once titled "One Square Mile," when we first alerted you of its production in 2013, but will be released as "A Hundred Streets."

Jim O’Hanlon directed the film from a script penned by Leon F. Butler.

Elba is joined by Gemma Arterton, Charlie Creed-Miles, Franz Drameh, Kierston Wareing, Tom Cullen and Ken Stott in the upcoming multi-stranded drama which tells 4 stories of a group of people who live within one square mile of each other in London (hence the previous title of the film).

The cast of characters face major choices and changes in their separate lives as their paths sometimes cross. All of these interconnecting stories paint a picture of a society where a person is often loneliest within a crowd. As tension mounts, relationships are strained, loyalties are tested and violence erupts."

In the film, Elba and Artherton play a former rugby player and his estranged wife.

The filmmakers describe the project as a gritty, contemporary and poignant multilayered drama, with the underlying message being one of hope, and that by working as a community, things can only get better.

"Crash" and "Amores Perros" are listed as inspirations for the film, which is said to be based on real events.

The film is a Silverstream and One Square Mile presentation in association with uMedia Entertainment.

No trailer yet; only the above photo with Elba, as well as the key art work below.

LA Film Festival Unveils Diverse 2016 Lineup

Tambay A. Obenson — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 15:48:47 GMT

The LA Film Festival, produced by Film Independent, has unveiled the official U.S. Fiction, Documentary, World Fiction, Nightfall and LA Muse sections.

The 2016 LA Film Festival, which will have its headquarters at the ArcLight Culver City, features a diverse slate of 56 feature films, 58 short films and 13 short episodic works representing 28 countries. Previously announced, the Opening Night Film is the World Premiere of Ricardo De Montreuil's "Lowriders," sponsored by Jaeger-LeCoultre. This year's Guest Director is Ryan Cooglerl; and Ava DuVernay and Array Releasing will receive the Spirit of Independence Award.

More special screenings and programs will be announced in the coming weeks.

The Festival's five competitions feature 42 World Premieres. Across the five feature competition categories, 43% of the films are directed by women and 38% of the films are directed by people of color.

This year, LA Film Festival Director Stephanie Allain is joined by Creative Director Jennifer Cochis, Director of Programming Roya Rastegar and Managing Director Ralph Rivera. Film Independent Curator Elvis Mitchell continues to oversee signature programs and LACMA events.

Passes are currently on sale to Film Independent Members and the general public. General admission tickets to individual films go on sale to Film Independent Members beginning Thursday, May 5 and to the general public beginning Tuesday, May 10. Contact the Ticket Office for passes, tickets and event information by calling 866.FILM.FEST (866.345.6337) or visit lafilmfestival.com.

Of note, with respect to this blog's interests are: Raafi Rivero's "72 Hours;" Qasim Basir's "Destined;" "Woven" from co-directors Salome Mulugeta and Nagwa Ibrahim; Deborah Riley Draper's "Olympic Pride, American Prejudice;" "Like Cotton Twines" from director Leila Djansi; Shola Amoo's "A Moving Image;" "The House on Coco Road" from director Damani Baker; "Play the Devil" from director Maria Govan; and there are likely others that I don't immediately recognize. But I'll take a closer look at the list and highlight those titles never previously profiled on this blog, in future posts, leading up to the festival, which runs June 1-9, 2016.

In the meantime, check out the full list below:

US Fiction Competition (12)
Original voices with distinct visions from emerging and established American independent filmmakers.

11:55, dir. Ari Issler, Ben Snyder, USA, World Premiere
72 Hours, dir. Raafi Rivero, USA, World Premiere
Blood Stripe, dir. Remy Auberjonois, USA, World Premiere
Chee and T, dir. Tanuj Chopra, USA, World Premiere
Destined, dir. Qasim Basir, USA, World Premiere
Dreamstates, dir. Anisia Uzeyman, USA, World Premiere
GREEN / is / GOLD, dir. Ryon Baxter, USA, World Premiere
My First Kiss and the People Involved, dir. Luigi Campi, USA, World Premiere
Paint it Black, dir. Amber Tamblyn, USA, World Premiere
Tracktown, dir. Jeremy Teicher, Alexi Pappas, USA, World Premiere
The View from Tall, dir. Erica Weiss, Caitlin Parrish, USA, World Premiere
Woven, dir. Salome Mulugeta, Nagwa Ibrahim, USA, World Premiere

Documentary Competition (12) Sponsored by Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television.
Compelling, character-driven non-fiction films from the U.S. and around the world.

Company Town, dir. Natalie Kottke, Erica Sardarian, USA, World Premiere
Denial, dir. Derek Hallquist, USA, World Premiere
Dr. Feelgood, dir. Eve Marson, USA, World Premiere
Dying Laughing, dir. Lloyd Stanton, Paul Toogood, USA/UK, World Premiere
The House on Coco Road, dir. Damani Baker, Grenada/USA, World Premiere
Jackson, dir. Maisie Crow, USA, World Premiere
The Last Gold, dir. Brian T. Brown, Germany/USA, World Premiere
Looking at the Stars, dir. Alexandre Peralta, Brazil/Nicaragua/USA, World Premiere
Olympic Pride, American Prejudice, dir. Deborah Riley Draper, USA, World Premiere
Out of Iraq, dir. Eva Orner, Chris McKim, Canada/Iraq/Lebanon/USA, World Premiere
Political Animals, dir. Jonah Markowitz, Tracy Wares, USA, World Premiere
They Call us Monsters, dir. Ben Lear, USA, World Premiere

World Fiction Competition (6)
Unique fiction films from around the world from emerging and established filmmakers, especially curated for LA audiences.

Heis (chronicles), dir. Anaïs Volpé, France, World Premiere
Like Cotton Twines, dir. Leila Djansi, Ghana/USA, World Premiere
London Town, dir. Derrick Borte, UK, World Premiere
Lupe Under the Sun, dir. Rodrigo Reyes, Mexico/USA, World Premiere
A Moving Image, dir. Shola Amoo, UK, World Premiere
Play the Devil, dir. Maria Govan, Trinidad/Bahamas/USA, World Premiere

LA Muse (6)
Fiction and documentary films that capture the spirit of L.A.

Actors of Sound, dir. Lalo Molina, Argentina/Finland/Germany/India/Ireland/USA, World Premiere
Girl Flu., dir. Dorie Barton, USA, World Premiere
Manchild: The Schea Cotton Story, dir. Eric "Ptah" Herbert, USA, World Premiere
Namour, dir. Heidi Saman, USA, World Premiere
No Light and No Land Anywhere, dir. Amber Sealey, USA, World Premiere
Sensitivity Training, dir. Melissa Finell, USA, World Premiere

Nightfall (6)
From the bizarre to the horrifying, these are films to watch after dark.

Abattoir, dir. Darren Lynn Bousman, USA, World Premiere
Beyond the Gates, dir. Jackson Stewart, USA, World Premiere
Don't Hang Up, dir. Alexis Wajsbrot, Damien Macé, UK, World Premiere
Mercy, dir. Chris Sparling, USA, World Premiere
Officer Downe, dir. M. Shawn Crahan, USA, World Premiere
Villisca, dir. Tony Valenzuela, USA, World Premiere

Short Films (58): From over 2,500 submissions, the short films selected represent 15 countries and 64% are directed by women. Short films are shown before features and as part of seven short film programs. Shorts will compete for juried prizes for fiction and documentary shorts, as well as an Audience Award for Best Short Film.

Future Filmmakers Showcase: High School Shorts (33): The LA Film Festival's Future Filmmaker Showcase brings to the big screen the best films made by budding young filmmakers from across the country and the globe. In this diverse slate of films, incredibly accomplished high school students will present wild comedies, moving dramas, mesmerizing animation, introspective experimental films and everything in between. Program sponsored by Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television and Time Warner Foundation.

Episodes: Indie Series from the Web (13)
A showcase of independently crafted web series, celebrating rising creators whose work and subjects are innovative and unfiltered.

20 Seconds to Live, dir. Ben Rock, USA
Brothers, dir. Emmett Jack Lundberg, USA
Caring, dir. Maggie Kiley, USA
Fridays, dir. Anna Kerrigan, USA
The Ghost and the Negro, dir. Sylvester Folks, USA
Her Story, dir. Sydney Freeland, USA
Instababy, dir. Rosie Haber, USA
Literally So Busy, dir. Jerad Sloan, USA
Little Things, dir. Lex Halaby, Mila Shah, USA
Outside Comedy: Beth Stelling, dir. Thomas Wood, USA
Quirky Female Protagonist, dir. Yulin Kuang, USA
Shangri-LA, dir. Drew Rosas, USA
Time Out with Yes Please!, dir. Kholi Hicks, USA

LA Film Festival Unveils Full Lineup: 42 World Premieres in U.S. Fiction, Documentary and Other Sections

Michael Nordine — Tue, 26 Apr 2016 17:49:27 GMT

Film Independent has unveiled the full lineup for the 22nd Los Angeles Film Festival, which begins in Culver City on June 1. 42 world premieres have been chosen for the U.S. Fiction, Documentary, World Fiction, LA Muse, and Nightfall Competitions. Full list below.

READ MORE: LA Film Festival Announces Lineup: Idris Elba, Laverne Cox & More Topline World Premieres

US Fiction Competition

"11:55" (Ari Issler, Ben Snyder)

"72 Hours" (Raafi Rivero)

"Blood Stripe" (Remy Auberjonois)

"Chee and T" (Tanuj Chopra)

"Destined" (Qasim Basir)

"Dreamstates" (Anisia Uzeyman)

"GREEN / is / GOLD" (Ryon Baxter)

"My First Kiss and the People Involved" (Luigi Campi)

"Paint it Black" (Amber Tamblyn)

"Tracktown" (Jeremy Teicher, Alexi Pappas)

"The View from Tall" (Erica Weiss, Caitlin Parrish)

"Woven" (Salome Mulugeta, Nagwa Ibrahim)

Documentary Competition

"Company Town" (Natalie Kottke, Erica Sardarian)

"Denial" "Derek Hallquist)

"Dr. Feelgood" (Eve Marson"

"Dying Laughing" (Lloyd Stanton, Paul Toogood"

"The House on Coco Road" (Damani Baker)

"Jackson" (Maisie Crow)

"The Last Gold" (Brian T. Brown)

"Looking at the Stars" (Alexandre Peralta)

"Olympic Pride, American Prejudice" (Deborah Riley Draper)

"Out of Iraq" (Eva Orner, Chris McKim)

"Political Animals" (Jonah Markowitz, Tracy Wares,

"They Call us Monsters" (Ben Lear)

World Fiction Competition

"Heis (chronicles)" (Anaïs Volpé)

"Like Cotton Twines" (Leila Djansi)

"London Town" (Derrick Borte)

"Lupe Under the Sun" (Rodrigo Reyes)

"A Moving Image" (Shola Amoo)

"Play the Devil" (Maria Govan)

LA Muse

"Actors of Sound" (Lalo Molina)

"Girl Flu." (Dorie Barton)

"Manchild: The Schea Cotton Stor" (Eric "Ptah" Herbert)

"Namour" (Heidi Saman)

"No Light and No Land Anywhere" (Amber Sealey)

"Sensitivity Training" (Melissa Finell)

Nightfall

"Abattoir" (Darren Lynn Bousman)

"Beyond the Gates" (Jackson Stewart)

"Don’t Hang Up" (Alexis Wajsbrot, Damien Macé)

"Mercy" (Chris Sparling)

"Officer Downe" (M. Shawn Crahan)

"Villisca" (Tony Valenzuela)

READ MORE: Los Angeles Film Festival 2016 Opening Night Film Is 'Lowriders'; Ryan Coogler is Guest Director

Already announced last week were the Buzz and Limelight sections, which include world premieres of films featuring the likes of Laverne Cox ("FREE CeCe!"), Idris Elba ("A Hundred Streets") and Teresa Palmer ("Lights Out"). LAFF has always been more premiere-heavy than AFI Fest, which takes place in Hollywood each November and primarily culls its selection from the Berlin, Cannes, Toronto and other film festivals. This year's edition of the fest runs from June 1–9 at the newly opened Arclight Culver City. Regal L.A. LIVE in downtown hosted LAFF for the last several years.

For more, watch a clip from LAFF 2014 standout "Comet":

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

LA Film Festival Announces Lineup: Idris Elba, Laverne Cox & More Topline World Premieres

Michael Nordine — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 19:11:37 GMT

READ MORE: Los Angeles Film Festival 2016 Opening Night Film Is 'Lowriders'; Ryan Coogler is Guest Director

Film Independent has announced the first round of selections for this year's Los Angeles Film Festival, which runs from June 1 – 9. Six films from the Buzz section and six from Limelight have been confirmed. Idris Elba, Laverne Cox, Mike Birbiglia and Teresa Palmer are among the more prominent stars:

Buzz (L.A. premieres of curated favorites from the festival circuit)

"Don’t Think Twice" (Mike Birbiglia)

"Equity" (Meera Menon)

"Jean of the Joneses" (Stella Meghie)

"Kicks" (Justin Tipping)

"Life, Animated" (Roger Ross Williams)

"The Music of Strangers" (Morgan Neville)

Limelight (narratives and documentaries featuring notable talent)

"FREE CeCe!" (Jacqueline Gares), featuring writer/producer Laverne Cox

"A Hundred Streets" (Jim O’Hanlon), featuring Idris Elba and Gemma Arterton

"Lights Out" (David F. Sandberg), starring Teresa Palmer and Maria Bello

"Opening Night" (Isaac Rentz), starring Topher Grace, Taye Diggs and Anne Heche

"So B. It" (Stephen Gyllenhaal), featuring Alfre Woodard and John Heard

"The Sweet Life" (Rob Spera), starring Chris Messina and Abigail Spencer

The full lineup will be announced on April 26. This year's edition of LAFF will also be notable for being the first held at its new location: the Arclight Culver City, itself only a few months old. (The fest was held at Regal L.A. LIVE in downtown for the past several years.)

READ MORE: 10 Films To Watch From the Los Angeles Film Festival

For more, watch a clip from LAFF 2014 standout "Comet":

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.

Ava DuVernay To Receive Spirit of Independence Award

Diana Martinez — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 16:00:00 GMT

Ava DuVernay and Array Releasing, her film collective dedicated to promoting films by women and people of color, will receive this year's Spirit of Independence Award at the LA Film Festival. The award honors "individuals who advance the cause of independent film, champion creative freedom or make a significant contribution to the preservation and proliferation of independent voices."

Film Independent president Josh Welsh stated, "We can’t imagine a more fitting recipient of the Spirit of Independence Award than Ava DuVernay and her distribution company Array Releasing. In addition to being a brilliant filmmaker, Ava is a passionate, forward-thinking distributor, helping unique and diverse voices find their audiences."

Array Releasing is an LA-based film collective and has previously had success at the LA Film Festival. At last year's LA Film Festival, two of their projects won prizes at the fest, "Out of My Hand" and "Ayanda." The collective has also released women-directed films "Mississippi Damned" directed by Tina Mabry, "Vanishing Pearls" by Nailah Jefferson and DuVernay's own "Middle of Nowhere" and "I Will Follow."

In December, Mattel's limited edition Ava DuVernay Barbie sold out in a staggering 17 minutes, proving the director is not only a major player in the film world, but has an intensely devoted group of fans.

In the last several months, several major DuVernay projects were announced as the director was tapped for projects at Disney and HBO. DuVernay will direct a big screen adaptation of Madeleine L'Engle's classic novel, "A Wrinkle in Time." The director is also set to direct "The Battle of Versailles," the story of an iconic 1973 fashion show that took place at France's Palace of Versailles, pitting French fashion designers against five then-unknown American designers.

In February it was reported the "Selma" director was "circling" "Intelligent Life," a sci-fi film starring Oscar-award winner Lupita Nyong'o ("12 Years A Slave," "The Jungle Book").

DuVernay is also writing, directing and executive producing "Queen Sugar," a drama series she co-created with Oprah Winfrey. The show will air on OWN.

The LA Film Festival will take place June 1-9 at ArcLight Cinemas.

"Echo Park," Array's eleventh theatrical release, will open April 15 in LA and NYC with more cities to follow. The drama marks Amanda Marsalis' directorial debut.

[via Variety]

Los Angeles Film Festival 2016 Opening Night Film Is 'Lowriders'; Ryan Coogler is Guest Director

Anne Thompson — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 00:46:04 GMT

With the Spirit Awards behind them, Film Independent is ramping up for this summer's the 2016 LA Film Festival (June 1-9). And they've chosen their opening nighter: Ricardo de Montreuil’s coming-of-age East L.A. drama "Lowriders" will play June 1 at the ArcLight Hollywood Cinerama Dome.

Produced by Brian Grazer and Jason Blum, "Lowriders" stars Gabriel Chavarria as a street artist with an old-school lowrider father (Demián Bichir). Eva Longoria and Melissa Benoist also star. “Made by filmmakers of color," said festival director Stephanie Allain, 'Lowriders' embodies our mission.”

Ryan Coogler ("Creed") will be the 2016 Festival’s Guest Director and attend Film Independent’s annual Filmmaker Retreat, which brings the festival's filmmakers together with mentors before the official start of the festival. Coogler’s "Fruitvale Station" debuted at Sundance, played at LAFF 2013 and won Best First Feature at the 2014 Film Independent Spirit Awards.

And the LAFF will award "Selma" director Ava DuVernay as well as her distribution company Array Releasing her own "Middle of Nowhere" plus "Ashes and Embers," "Mississippi Damned," "Kinyarwanda," and "Restless City"— with the annual Spirit of Independence Award given to members of the independent film community who “advance the cause of independent film and champion creative freedom.” Last year Array bought LA Film Festival US Fiction award-winner "Out of My Hand" for distribution along with "Ayanda."

EXCLUSIVE: Film Crowdfunding Platform Seed&Spark Launches Distribution Arm

Matt Brennan — Fri, 22 Jan 2016 17:33:37 GMT

Seed&Spark, the film-focused crowdfunding platform, is launching a new distribution arm, BRIGHT IDEAS Pictures, named after their independent film culture magazine, BRIGHT IDEAS. Focused on experimenting with creative distribution strategies, in which filmmakers themselves will be instrumental, BRIGHT IDEAS' first release is Natalie John's documentary "I Am Thalente," winner of the Audience Award at the Los Angeles Film Festival.

The debut of "I Am Thalente," which follows Durban, South African skateboard Thalente Biyela, will include events featuring members of the skateboarding community before a planned VOD release. But the most significant innovation of Seed&Spark's approach may be the decision to track distribution metrics publicly, and to make the data available as a resource to filmmakers.

"There's a lot of talk of filmmakers-as-entrepreneurs, but very few resources to help filmmakers make data-driven decisions," says Seed&Spark CEO Emily Best. "We are in a unique position to follow the entire lifespan of a film from crowdfunding to distribution and deliver complete case studies back to our community."

Film Independent Finds Theatre Hub for its LA Film Festival

Anne Thompson — Tue, 03 Nov 2015 18:50:51 GMT

Cheers to Film Independent which has finally abandoned its downtown experiment for summer's LA Film Festival in favor of a new home with LA's most successful theaters, ArcLight Cinemas, spread around the city, in different neighborhoods.

Non-profit Film Independent, which produces the Film Independent Spirit Awards as well as the Festival, will mount the 22nd edition of the LA Film Festival (June 1 – June 9, 2016) at ArcLight Cinemas, including popular ArcLight Hollywood and the brand new ArcLight Santa Monica. The Festival headquarters will be at ArcLight Culver City.

Under the leadership of Stephanie Allain, the LA Film Festival has been pursuing a mission to showcase diversity and innovation, with mixed results in attendance so far. Having lost veteran programmers David Ansen (now at the Palm Springs Film Festival), Maggie McKay (now at Aspen) and Doug Jones (running a theater in Williamstown, MA), Allain is promoting protege Roya Rastegar to Director of Programming, and is bringing on Jennifer Cochis as Creative Director. Elvis Mitchell continues to conduct Q & As at Film Independent's LACMA film series.

“Thanks to the efforts of the programming team this past year, 40% of the feature films in the Festival were directed by women and over 30% were directed by filmmakers of color,” Allain stated. “Celebrating the city of Los Angeles is a central part of the Festival’s mission and thanks to our new partnership, we’re delighted to bring our discoveries to an ArcLight near you. The 2016 call for submissions is now open!”

The early deadline for LA Film Festival submissions is November 20, the official deadline is December 14, and the late deadline is January 15, 2016.

How This Director Shot His First Feature in 35mm and 5 Long Takes

Ryan Lattanzio — Fri, 25 Sep 2015 16:21:00 GMT

Dennis Hauck's twisty noir "Too Late" takes the classic logline of a "a woman in trouble" to Los Angeles, and to dizzying cinematic heights in beautiful 35mm in five scenes, each of which is one long 20-minute take. John Hawkes plays your archetypal hardboiled gumshoe, a lost man who trails a missing person through the seedy wilds of the city, and into the night.

Writer/director Hauck's use of 35mm shapes the film's lived-in texture, transporting us to a Los Angeles that feels family but also like a dream place that could only exist in the movies. "That's all I've ever shot on," said Hauck in a phone interview. He and his cinematographer Bill Fernandez, who also lensed his previous shorts on film, were "probably among the last film school generations to learn on film," before the RED and the Alexa became industry standards.

The film's occasionally desultory, episodic structure — though set out of chronology at different points in time — captures the feeling of an LA day, where you're meandering from place to place, one side of town to the other, from a lurid strip club to a drive-in theater in Barstow. Hawkes' Samson does curlicues around the city as he tries to track down the body (dead or alive) of a young woman named Dorothy (Crystal Reed) who, we learn, came to Hollywood with starry dreams but ended up a pole-dancer. His eccentric encounters include a (literally) hysterical scene at a quintessential Hollywood hills mansion involving a pill-popping housewife and Robert Forster as a pimp, and a moment of painful revelation inside the Beverly Hilton.

Obviously, film technology has changed dramatically since the film started shooting in May 2012, after Hauck landed John Hawkes to play his troubled, instantly iconic detective with an existential crisis. "It was a 'can't take no for an answer' kind of thing," he said of Hawkes, for whom he wrote the script and who he knew peripherally through a friend. "He was shooting 'Lincoln' at the time which tells you how long ago this was." Hauck had a shot of bourbon ("I was very nervous"), phoned him up and soon, Hawkes, who ably carries the role of the Southern California private dick, took on the project, and filming began.

READ MORE: Los Angeles Film Festival Picks a Closing Night, 8 Films to See

Hauck found a crafty way into shooting in the 35mm format. Fuji was still making film stock at that point, "so you had options as opposed to just Kodak. There were more labs open. It has gotten tougher, but as far as getting your hands on film stock, it's pretty easy," said Hauck, who shot test footage on Fuji before buying directly from Kodak, who helped negotiate cheaper stock. "But it wasn't cheap enough for us," so Hauck and his crew purchased secondhand film stock leftover from "maybe big budget movies, where they had their camera loaded in the morning, maybe 10 magazines, but only went through seven or so."

The decision to make the film as five stitched-together scenes came organically, and not at first, but it's integral to the fabric of the story. "In the years that it took us to make this, long takes came into the zeitgeist. Even 'Gravity' came out while we were shooting," he said. "We didn't want to play up this aspect. It was less of a gimmick and more a way to challenge ourselves," said Hauck. "The long takes were more icing on the cake, something cool we thought was fun to do." (Hauck, let it be known, has yet to see LA Film Festival entry "Victoria," a heist thriller that premiered in Berlin and was shot literally in a single, 130-minute take.)

Hauck shot "Too Late" in a number of iconic Los Angeles locations, including Club Fais Do-Do in West Adams, the Skyline drive-in, the Beverly Hilton and in Radio Hill, a remote, sprawling park overlooking Dodgers Stadium that sets the stage for the film's opening where Dorothy goes missing. "We did each of the five scenes in three days, with a day-and-a-half of rehearsal and a day-and-a-half of shooting." Hauck shot about 10 takes for each scene. "We knew the magic would come toward the end of the day, so we shot the early rehearsals. What if in that last rehearsal you nail it and weren't rolling?"

Hauck, who has never shot digitally, enjoys "the limitations and quirks inherent in 35mm. There's something to mastering, or learning as much as you can about, one medium as opposed to these digital cameras, where the turnover is every few years, and then there's a new camera."

He shot "Too Late" using Techniscope film, which has been used by the likes of David O. Russell ("American Hustle," "Silver Linings Playbook"), David Fincher ("Panic Room"), George Lucas ("American Graffiti," "THX 1138"), Alejandro Jodorowsky ("The Holy Mountain"), Monte Hellman ("Two-Lane Backtop," another great West Coast movie) and Sergio Leone ("The Good, The Bad and the Ugly"). "That format allowed us to get these [five] 22-minute takes. It's cheaper than anamorphic, and you don't have to change mags as often."

Thankfully "Too Late" was projected in 35 for its Los Angeles Film Festival premiere, where it looked beautiful on the big screen at LACMA. LAFF's downtown hub LA Live had the technology to screen film stock "but it's not in the greatest repair," said Hauck, who almost cancelled the film's second screening this week but is instead scrambling to create a DCP. Digital copies will help "Too Late" on its way to locking down a distributor as Submarine shops the film for buyers.

This rising indie director hopes to keep screening the film in 35, and believes the celluloid medium is more sustainable than digital. "I can take a hundred-year old camera and put fresh film stock in it and it will always look good," said Hauck, whose indie stature doesn't quite match the stentorian yawp of celluloid's most rabid defenders (including Scorsese, Nolan and Tarantino). Still, a brash, imperfect film that embraces those imperfections, "Too Late" makes a strong case for celluloid film as more than the stuff of nostalgia.

"Too Late" plays Fantastic Fest this weekend.

4 Factors That Influence a Distributor's Decision to Buy a Film

Tom Sveen — Tue, 14 Jul 2015 14:00:00 GMT

READ MORE: What The Success of 'It Follows' Means for Indie Film Distribution

This article was originally published on the Film Independent blog and has been republished here with permission.

Another edition of the Los Angeles Film Festival is in the books. Thirty nine films had their world premieres at the 2015 festival, 59 percent of the films that screened were from first-time directors. Audiences applauded and filmmakers left the theaters grinning from ear to ear. But where do their movies go from here?

Scott Mansfield, Founder and Managing Partner at Monterey Media, an independent distribution company that acquired "Runoff" at LA Film Fest 2014, said most of the filmmakers he works with know very little about distribution. "It's a foreign world to them," Mansfield said. "They're riding high because festival audiences have loved their film, but the reality is now [they're] facing the red pencil's of the critics and serious competition consumer's time."

Julie Candelaria, SVP of Marketing at Gravitas Ventures, a leading VOD distributor that acquired the comedy "Apartment Troubles" at last year’s festival, said it's "a fascinating time to be part of the entertainment distribution business" because she has "an amazing opportunity to help shape the new distribution models and really figure out what works."

"Runoff" and "Apartment Trouble" were two of the 12 films from the 2014 Los Angeles Film Festival that were subsequently acquired for distribution. But how does one get that elusive distribution deal? And as a filmmaker, is there anything you can do to give your film a better shot?

From our conversations with Candelaria and Mansfield, we came up with four keys for filmmakers to keep in mind as they navigate the evolving world of independent film distribution in the 21st century.

1. Cast Matters (and a cast that tweets matters even more).

This one's not a surprise. The first thing filmmakers think of when they think about how they're going to sell their movie is what high profile cast they can attach to the project. It's also one of the first things Mansfield and Candelaria say they're looking for.

"Cast has become much more important than it was a few years ago," said Mansfield. "It’s almost like we’ve reverted back to when I was a kid 50 years ago and they would say, ‘Okay, well what's the little copy line we can put in the TV Guide?' And that copy line is short and it needs to say, 'A thriller starring Tom Cruise.'"

Mansfield said cast is also important when it comes to marketing the film. "[The cast members] are very important in social media because they have people who are fans of them. And therefore, at least you're starting with some core audience that wants to see this person's new work." Mansfield gave recent Monterey Media acquisition, "Like Sunday, Like Rain" as an example. The film stars Leighton Meester, Debra Messing and Green Day's Billie Jo Armstrong. "Between the three of them, they have 3 million Twitter followers. So you're able to reach—when they're supportive, and in this case they are— 3 million people who are predisposed to being curious about those people."

In the case of "Apartment Troubles," Candelaria said Jess Weixler and Jennifer Prediger, the writers, directors and stars of the film, were also very amenable to helping out with social media. "Many times [the filmmakers] have fantastic insight into particular scenes from the film or stories or outtakes or PR angles that happened during shooting," said Candelaria. "So the more we involve them in the process, the better the overall outcome is." It also didn't hurt that the film featured supporting performances from Jeffrey Tambor, Megan Mullally and Will Forte.

2. Subject matter still counts.

But not every deal is made on cast alone. "Runoff" features a lead performance by Joanne Kelly that Mansfield described as "really quite wonderful." But he said her standout showing alone wasn't enough to sell the film.

"Runoff" garnered significant critical acclaim at the LA Film Festival and Mansfield said those reviews, together with the strong lead performance, and the film's unique environmental angle—it's about small-time farmers who take desperate measures to survive against major conglomerates—combined to make "Runoff" a film that could "get above the noise," a film they could sell.

"We actually try every year to do one or two cause-related films as part of our mission statement." Mansfield said that in the past, Monterey Media has partnered on promotions with non-profit organizations like the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Amnesty International, often to great success. He hopes for similar success when "Runoff" hits theaters later this month.

For Gravitas, a large number of the films they release are documentaries. Candelaria said they're on the hunt for titles with a built-in fanbase. Sometimes that means working with award-winning directors like "Being Evel"'s Daniel Junge or "The Nightmare"'s Rodney Ascher. Other times that means acquiring films whose subjects have millions of fans, as is the case with their January release "Backstreet Boys: Show 'Em What You’re Made Of."

3. Marketing is everything.

Marketing is such a huge element of his job that Mansfield refers to Monterey Media as a marketing company that is also an independent film distributor. "It’s not about getting the film on Amazon Instant Video," he said, "It’s about getting people to watch the film on Amazon Instant Video."

For Candelaria and Gravitas, that marketing process begins as soon as the film is acquired. First they decide on a release date, and then, together with the filmmakers, work backward from that date, creating assets (the poster, the trailer) and determining how they can best be used to promote the film.

"That’s a strategic conversation we have with the filmmakers and the production teams all along the way. Everybody’s comfortable with how it works," said Candelaria. "And that process can be six months. It can be four weeks, depending on when the acquisition occurs."

4. Find the distributor that’s right for you.

Distributors come in all shapes and sizes. As the filmmaker, have to partner with the company that’s right your film.

Gravitas Ventures was founded in 2006 as a VOD distributor, but they've since branched out into theatrical releasing. The 400-plus films they distribute each year play in over 100 million homes across various platforms.

Candelaria said Gravitas' small size and the quantity of their output is an advantage over other distribution companies because it affords them increased flexibility. "Primarily because of our diverse catalogue of films and our decade-long relationships with many VOD operators, we're able to make things happen that may not necessarily happen with distributors newer to VOD," she said. "We are also collaborative by nature and realize change happens frequently in independent film. I always note that someone who feels like our competitor today is our partner tomorrow."

Monterey Media is in its 33rd year as an independent distributor. They distribute 12 to 15 films per year. Mansfield uses their relatively small release schedule as a selling point when making deals with filmmakers. "You're not one of 48 or 60 films every year. You're one of 12," said Mansfield. "You have 14 people dedicated to your film for three weeks to a month. That's fairly unusual in our business."

He calls the company "old school" because they "still believe in theatrical." They use a theatrical release primarily as a launchpad for marketing, garnering reviews and initial viewership. Mansfield believes "the best marketing tool for any film is the film itself."

He said it’s important they're passionate about each film they distribute because that passion translates to conviction and the buyers in the theaters feel it. "The bookers in the theaters are just overwhelmed with product. So I think it's very important that we’re on the phone and in our in-person meetings really caring about what we're selling."

Candelaria said even though she's in the business of acquiring films, she feels a tremendous responsibility to the filmmakers she works with. "It's their movie, it's their baby. They're trusting us with a very precious gift and I want to make sure that they're comfortable with everything."

READ MORE: Attention, Filmmakers: Here's the Distribution Strategy You Need Before Sundance (Or Any Film Festival)

U.S. Filmmaking Blooms in Cuba as Diplomacy Improves

Ryan Lattanzio — Thu, 02 Jul 2015 16:46:30 GMT

The key to getting Cuban movies off of native soil and away from the auspices of the government is foreign money — which is also the key to bringing offshore filmmaking into Cuba.

Now that embassies have opened up in both the United States and Cuba, the Havana Film Festival observes that US, European and Latin American filmmakers and producers are taking interest in the country as a blooming hotspot for development and production. Per a recent Variety story, Spanish-German miniseries "Vientos de Cuaresma" is currently shooting in Havana, where the festival, since 1979, has sought to give voice to Latin American filmmakers.

READ MORE: Miami Offers Launchpad for Cuban Cinema, "With Tape, Glue and Paper Clips"

Shooting US features in Cuba, however, requires some guerrilla maneuvering. Currently only US docs are permitted to shoot in Cuba, which is why one American director, Ben Chace, directed his Havana-set 2015 LA Film Fest world premiere "Sin Alas" as a 16mm hybrid of vérité documentary and narrative mystery. Chace shot his striking low-budget debut with local cast and crew, many of whom were more classically trained than the rookie filmmaker. The film, which should enjoy a nice festival run down the line, airs on Cuban television in the Fall.

Producer/director Bob Yari's English-language Hemingway biopic "Papa," now in post, also shot in Cuba and is now seeking US distribution after selling to foreign buyers on the Cannes market.

READ MORE: LAFF Review: Exotic, Dreamy, Arresting 16mm 'Sin Alas' Draws from Borges

Hopefully, international interest in Cuba will boost the country's own film industry, where native Cuban indies struggle to get their movies, quite literally, off the island and out to overseas audiences. You need someone in another country to negotiate and book film festivals, and worldwide sales representation. Without foreign cash, Cuban films are pretty much stuck in their home country. Another challenge is formatting, as DCP, which December's budding Havana Film Festival now employs, only recently came to the island.

LAFF Review: Deranged Midnight Film 'Dude Bro Party Massacre III' is an Instant Cult Classic, Bruh

Carlos Aguilar — Wed, 01 Jul 2015 15:00:00 GMT

Since Hollywood appears to be suffering from an infectious and soul-ripping epidemic of unoriginality, the ideal place to look for a vibrant antidote is as far away from conventional manufacturing as possible. Sometimes Sundance-indie doesn't cut it and the real pockets of unhindered creativity are found in a rogue, untamable, and bottomless fountain -the internet.

5-Seconds Films, or 5sf for the YouTube connoisseur, is a group of filmmakers, writers, and actors that have amassed an insanely loyal following by making just that: bite size content no longer than five seconds. Their material is extremely raunchy and gory, but effectively hilarious. Each miniature story manages to deliver a satisfying punch line by outrageously mocking any and every aspect of life. Nothing is sacred or too much for these guys.

Ballsy creators like 5sf are products of the no-policy policy of online platforms. It's freedom on steroids and they are taking advantage of it. No censors or ratings or much content supervision that would prevent them from showing violence and depravity to their liking. And that's fantastic. Their first feature film, which they consider to be a seamless progression, is a horror spoof that will have you laughing hysterically while simultaneously asking yourself what the f**k is going on but not really caring for answer. "Dude Bro Party Massacre III," directed by Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet, and Jon Salmon, announces itself as a murderous trip into brilliant absurdity by the hand of a group of beer-loving, sex-obsessed, hypermasculine, immature frat boys - and it delivers on its promise.

Its opening frames explain that the film we are about to watch was recorded on a VHS by a teenager staying up late and it’s the only existing copy in existence of the terrifying third installment of this bloody franchise. Clearly the other parts don’t actually exist, but for the sake of the farcical urban legend the filmmakers use the first few minutes to recap what happened in the first two massacres to give some ridiculously intricate context. Note that entire film is designed to look like an actual beat up and scratched VHS tape, a stylistic choice that’s perfectly appropriate for a project of its kind.

According to the brief summary of the past, non-existence, chapters in this bro-driven saga, the source of evil is a deranged female killer known as Motherface (Olivia Taylor Dudley), whose mission is to make the bros from the Delta Bi frat, attending school in Chico, California, suffer in revenge for their selfish, insensitive, and unpunished antics. She has murdered tons of douchebags and she is coming for more. While the original incarnation of Motherface was successfully killed before, another woman always picks up where she left off wearing the ominous, cheesy, and wrinkly mask. During the last rampage, Brock (Alec Owen), one of the most popular guys in the bropack, was one of the victims. Now his identical twin brother, Brent Chrino (also played by Owen), has come to find out who is behind his death and avenge him.

That's, of course, the most reasonable description of the origin story one can provide. As the plot unfolds and the increasingly jaw-dropping situations stack up, coherence becomes diluted. However, there is always just enough narrative glue binding it all together for it to actually feel like a story with a structure. Every element on screen pays off eventually often presenting unforeseeable outcomes - all of them viciously funny.

Brent tries to blend in with his newly found peers, some of which often confuse him with his more outgoing and machismo-fueled sibling. The array of stereotypical young males populate the house include Turbeaux (Paul Prado), an angry and homophobic dude with a dark secret, Derek (Greg Sestero), the most relaxed and almost-sane member of this drunken clan, Sizzler (Jimmy Wong), the frat’s pledge who is brutally hazed, Samzy (Ben Gigli), Brock's neurotic best friend, or Todd (Joey Scoma), a virgin who prefers to spend time with his bros that with his girlfriend Samantha (Kelsey Gunn) – a self proclaimed female-dude or dudette.

Bonding is crucial for this collection of sociopaths, and a trip to a cabin in the woods is an ideal setting for some testosterone-friendly stupidity - as well as their well-deserved deaths. On their way there they come across people who have been victims of their reckless actions, such as a man who lost his entire family in a disaster caused by the dude bros. But their reign of infuriating obliviousness will come an end when their trip becomes a bloodbath. Motherface isn’t happy and retribution is what she is after.

As bats**t crazy and irreverent as it all sounds, there is sharp social commentary here, though it’s buried under some of the most outrageous twists ever to be pulled off by any film of any kind. Nonsensical, yes, but through the baffling actions of these obnoxious bros, the filmmakers cleverly criticize the extent of white male privilege. Bro culture is often associated with blatant entitlement and reveling on the lack on consequences certain destructive behaviors enjoy. Spring break, sports events, house parties, college itself, and any other bro-habitat out there, has to suffer from their intoxicated disregard for others that only gets addressed with a slap on the wrist. But not in “Dude Bro Party Massacre 3,” their own clichéd ways of having fun will become their demise. Impunity doesn't have a place here, only grotesque ways to die. Granted, the film is evidently generalizing and it's extreme, but this is a spoof on the vein of “Wet Hot American Summer,” so anything goes.

And since anything is fair game, cameos are prominent and they are equally as unexpected as most of the plot points in this marvelously messy treat of a film. Patton Oswalt appears as the mastermind behind the dude bros annihilation, and he is excellent. Throw in Larry King and Andrew W.K. and you’ve got the perfect complements to go alongside the rest of the up-and-coming cast. Olivia Taylor Dudley, Prado, and Owen do a fantastic job at playing their parts with assertiveness in spite of the insane concept they are a part of. In a smaller, but noteworthy part, Brian Firenzi as Officer Sminkle gives a performance that is, no say the least, hard to forget.

From an industry point of view "Dude Bro" is a prime example of the miracles of crowdfunding and fan-supported content for fan-consumption. Their end credits are mostly constructed of an interminable list of Kickstarter supporters that became invested in the 5-Secong Films via their daily YouTube videos. It’s a built-in audience that become financiers in the projects they want to see on screen –any screen- regardless of how far removed from traditional production models these are. To go from a cell phone screen to a major festival’s program is not the norm, but when the content is this fresh, that transition feels earned.

“Dude Bro Party Massacre III” thrives on its imperfections and unthinkable gags that demonstrate, if briefly, that not everything has been done already. Its form and its ideas come together in a disgusting, profane, vulgar, and psychotic concoction that will become, without a doubt, an instant cult classic. Midnight screenings have a new twisted masterpiece for the enjoyment of all those who hate conventional trash and love to throw s**t at the screen.

The film will be releasing on VOD via iTunes and the film’s website (www.dudebropartymassacre3.com) on July 7^th

In David Shapiro's Doc 'Missing People' a Double Investigation Links an Artist and a Tragedy

Carlos Aguilar — Mon, 29 Jun 2015 15:00:00 GMT

A documentary’s subject is its core and driving force to tackle whatever relevant issues it’s concerned with. It’s the human component that can turn a heavily intellectual dilemma into a relatable story. Unlike actors in the realm of fiction, documentary subjects don’t abide by a script, yet the filmmaker is still manipulating their portrait to an extent. It’s the person behind the camera’s job to uncover, dissect, and dig under the surface to show us new glimpses of truth that weren’t in plain view.

However, what happens when your main subject has a subject of her own whom she is trying to do research on? Furthermore, what if her subject is also a documentarian in a way? Is the filmmaker making a documentary about someone documenting someone else who was also documenting people in his world? It’s meta, but that’s exactly what David Shapiro’s latest work “Missing People” is about.

Shapiro’s initial subject is art collector and gallerist Martina Batan, who in turn has dedicated her life to find and preserve the work of Roy Ferdinand, a painter from a crime-ridden neighborhood in New Orleans whose work depicted the murder scenes, violence, rape, and drug dealing that were around him. But how can these two stories be connected beyond the curatorial and in a more emotional manner?

The answer is in Martina’s tragic past and how Roy’s life and work resonate with her pain despite being from world’s that don’t seem to have an intersection. Shapiro starts following one story that eventually takes two paths: one for Martina to reopen an old wound, and another for Roy’s life to become visible via his sister’s memories of him.

“Missing People” is a work of humanistic complexities that delivers even more truth that its premise could have predicted. The film premiered at this year’s Los Angeles Film Festival where we had a chance to speak with Shapiro.

Aguilar: There are two subjects in "Missing People, " and they are connected in a way that's not evident at first. How did you find the first of them, Martina Batan, who is the link to the other subject, the artist?

David Shapiro: I first found her, or rather she might have found me that’s a better way to put it, at an art opening. She is a collector and a big gallerist in New York, and she had seen my other films “Keep the River on Your Right in 2001 and “Fishing Heaven” in 2009, which were both at LAFF. She had seen my work, she liked them, and she was telling me a little bit about the art that she had been collecting. She knows how to tell a story. She told me little pieces of information, which were very compelling and piqued my interest. Then she said, “I’d love to show you the work. Would you take a look at it?” I didn’t really know her but I said “OK.”

We set a date and I went to her place in Brooklyn where she keeps her work. I was startled. I just thought there would be a few, and there were hundreds of these drawings by this artist I’d never heard of named Roy Ferdinand. The work was very arresting. It was very violent, and very sexual. It was not what I was expecting. She told me a little bit more about him, not a lot, but enough to pique me interest even more. Right away I was interested in his work because I thought, “There is a documentary in this work about a time and place that’s now gone: Pre-Katrina New Orleans.”

But I was also really startled, confused, and interested in why she was collecting this work. Martina right away said, “I think Roy Ferdinand is a great American artist and I’m going to do everything I can to bring attention to his work.” It wasn’t that she was just collecting for money. I really had a sense that something else was going on. I knew there was something rumbling under the surface, so I said, “I’d like to make a film about Roy, but I’d also like to include you in the film.” I think she was surprised about that. In retrospect, she probably wanted me to make a film about Roy, but I knew there was some connection. That’s how it all started.

Aguilar: At what point did the storyline involving Martina’s brother come along as part of the greater narrative of the documentary?

David Shapiro: That was about a year later. I didn’t know her history. It took a while. It takes a while in life and especially in documentary filmmaking for subjects and filmmakers to trust one another. After about a year Martina told me that in fact her brother had been brutally murdered in 1978 and the case remained unsolved. Right then and there the light bulb went off for me and the whole crew. Sometimes you are ahead of people and sometimes people have blind spots. They can’t see the world and they can’t see what they do. Self-deception is part of survival. There were places where the film, Roy, and Martina were ahead of us, and there were places where we waited for them to catch up to what we suspected, which was that in Roy’s work she saw something about her brother.

Aguilar: Did such shcoking discovery change the angle of the film dramatically?

David Shapiro: Well I was very interested in this story. Right away I could see the double narrative. I knew that there would be some overlap, but I was very interested in how it would happen. That’s what I like to do, to make films where I learn from the work. Films where I learn about people and the world. I thought that it’d be very interesting. I knew right away, “Here are two people from different races, different classes, different time periods, and yet I’m sure there are some symmetries between them, some common denominators. I will let the film unfold and find those.” I wanted to use the double narrative to try and tell Roy’s story and to try to tell Martina’s story, but I thought the film would live and exist in the gap between the two stories and in how they had differences and symmetries.

Aguilar: Tell me about going to New Orleans to meet Roy’s family and sort of reconstructing his steps through Martina's research. It was a breakthrough for Martina and a strange experience for Roy's sisters.

David Shapiro: Yes, that was fascinating. I didn’t know him, but Martina was researching and in a way it was sort of a double investigation. She was investigating Roy, and I was investigating both of them. I think it was very remarkable when we met Faye and Michele, Roy’s sisters. At first they didn’t trust Martina and they were suspicious, and rightly so. “Who is this woman? Why is she interested in my brother? Why is she almost obsessed with my brother?“ For them it was their brother, but for Martina he was this great artist because she had never met the man. He represented something for her, but for the two sisters it was more like, “Hey, what are you doing? This is my brother.” That was very interesting and then, I would suggest that when finally Faye asks Martina, “What is going on? Why are you interesting in this work really? Stop talking about the art,” she comes to terms and wants to make peace with her tragic past. I think she gain some strength and momentum from meeting the two sisters to move forward and reopen the investigation.

Aguilar: It also feels like Roy’s sisters learn about their brother by looking at him from Martina’s perception. Then, Martina also finds out things about her own brother that change her perception of him. His life unfolds in a different way for her after this discoveries.

David Shapiro: That’s right. We all have a family and I think we all have a perception of our family that we like to keep and we all have our positive memories in a certain way. Then when life catches up to them, when you see a different perspective of them, or when you are a couple degrees over, you can see things differently and it shakes you to the foundation. Sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s bad. It was fascinating to witness and to document that.

Aguilar: Each project must have its inherent challenges and problems, what was the most difficult thing about making this particular film about these two individuals?

David Shapiro: The hardest part was after Martina had a stroke and I was filming in the hospital. That was very difficult and painful. We had become friends over the course of four years. That’s a unique element of independent films, that you spend years making a work like this and you develop a relationship with the people involved. What happened was so tragic. I was filming her trying to remember. That meant just sitting there with the camera. There is a lot of silence in watching somebody trying to remember things. It was very painful and at a certain point I really asked her truthfully, “Do you want me to continue this? “ She was insistent that we do so.

She was very adamant that the film be finished. Anything else would have diminished her agency. She is not a shrinking violet. She is a very strong and smart woman who does what she wants to do. At a certain point I started filming in the hospital with my cell phone because it just felt right. Sometimes form comes out of the material. I was just filming her about a foot away from her with the cell phone and it just felt like the way to go because it had that intimacy without the apparatus and the lights. Some of the final shots of the film were done on a cell phone as well.

Aguilar: As a documentary filmmaker you get intimate access to people’s lives, do you ever like you become part of the story, or do you try to keep an objective eye as much as possible?

David Shapiro: I don’t necessarily believe in the ideology of cinema verité. I think by the very fact that you have a camera there you are affecting the story and you are influencing it. I always expose the apparatus. I show how the film was made. I acknowledge the filmmaker and the filmmaking. Did I become part of this story? I suppose I was a little bit of a catalyst. But I don’t want to diminish Martina’s agency here, I think on some level people do things for a reason and I think she wanted to make this film on some level because she knew Jeff would come up. I didn’t know about Jeff at the beginning of the film, but she did and so I think she was sort of using the film to exhort herself to grapple with her past. In that sense I am part of the story, but I’m peripheral. I’m not the important of the story.

Aguilar: Do you hope that Roy’s art will become more prominent or well known through the exposure this film will bring and through Martina's efforts? Sadly I have to say I had never about him before.

David Shapiro: I didn’t know about his work either. I hope and trust that will happen. That was Martina’s intention all along. I really think she is committed and really believe that Roy Ferdinand is a great American artist, in her own words. She found great solace in his work and in the film you can see why. The thing that is interesting about the film and that I hope viewers will absorb is that you may think of his work in one way at the beginning of the film, but by the end I hope that is contextualizes and you’ll see it in a different light. I think Roy was a very sophisticated artist and really attendant to detail and the world in a very remarkable and smart way.

Aguilar: In a way he documented these voiceless and nameless people through his paintings. Would you say a painter can also be a documentarian through his or her work?

David Shapiro: That’s absolutely right. That was the very first thing that I thought when I walked into her studio in Brooklyn. That’s when my light bulb as a documentarian went off. I thought there was a documentary in the work itself, and then there is the person who made it, and there is Martina. I didn’t know about Martina’s brother who was murdered yet, but even in that embryonic moment I knew that there was a film here because the work is very remarkable and it really is a documentary in and of itself. Kind of like George Catlin and the paintings he did of Native Americans. Even though there is artistic license, in the detail there is a great emotional truth.

Aguilar: What themes or subjects are you pursuing these days for your next project?

David Shapiro: My next film is going to be called “Hofu” and it’s a film about a friendship spanning 40 years, fraud, and pizza.

Aguilar: That’s a great premise. How was your experience at this year's LAFF where several of your films have premiered before?

David Shapiro: I’m a big fan of LAFF, I’m an alumn you can say. My first film “Keep the River on Your Right” premiered here in 2001 and won the jury award, and went on to win an Independent Spirit Award. This festival has really supported my work and I think it’s a fantastic festival because it takes chances and supports and champions independent films. My second film “Fishing Heaven” also premiered here and then was bought by HBO and eventually was nominated for an Emmy. Now “Missing People” premiered here to great audiences. I’m very grateful and honored. I believe this festival truly supports independent film.

How Biochemist Turned Rookie Director Kimberly Levin Made Indie Farm Drama 'Runoff'

Anne Thompson — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 15:53:52 GMT

Theater and television writer/director Kimberly Levin didn't wait for CAA to raise financing. She forged ahead with the drama "Runoff," filmed near her hometown Louisville, Kentucky. The film made its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival last year, and opens from Monterey Media this Friday.

Levin, who is trained as a biochemist, is a member of the Kentucky Film Board. She raised equity financing in her home state, where friends and family are offering locations. With help from executive producer Julia Chasman ("25th Hour," "Quills"), who discovered the script while judging the Nicholls screenwriting contest, Levin made the film under both DGA and SAG Ultra Low Budget agreements (which gets actors $100 a day plus commission against an eventual sale of the film), making it possible to film the story locally with scale and scope for less than $1 million.

Set in a rural farming community, "Runoff" tells the story of Betty ("Warehouse 13"'s Joanne Kelly), a homemaker struggling to save her family's farm-supply business as factory farming transforms and threatens her family's way of life. Her teenage son Finley ("Win Win"'s Alex Shaffer) can't abide what is happening to his world as Betty fights to keep him from leaving home.

After graduating from NYU Grad Film School with a short in hand ("Between Baronofskys"), Levin partnered with Johnny Depp’s production company Infinitum Nihil on "Carthage," a TV pilot for an hour-long drama based on her documentary work on mountaintop coal mining in Appalachia. With Tribeca Films, Levin was co-producing an upcoming HBO Films adaptation of "Eating With The Enemy," about a mob-affiliated New Jersey restaurant owner (James Gandolfini) who inserts himself into the high-stakes relationship between the US and North Korea. But Gandolfini died before the project could take off.

READ MORE: LAFF Women Directors: Meet Kimberly Levin (Runoff)

Here's a bit of Women in Hollywood's Q & A with Levin about "Runoff":

Please give us your description of the film.

"Runoff" is a slow-burning thriller that we shot in rural Kentucky. This is a place where on the surface there's a pastoral beauty: it's harvest time, the kids are getting ready for Halloween. But just beneath is the brutal reality of a farming town. The protagonist, Betty, discovers a crisis threatening her family. Every choice she has leads to somebody getting hurt, and she has to decide whom to sacrifice.

What made you write this story?

The seeds of the story are based on something that happened to me when I was working as a field biochemist in Kentucky. It led me to obsess about this idea that as human beings we make decisions in a temporal way. We have the ability to problem-solve and to judge how our choices will play out over time, which is specific to humans as far as I know. Am I choosing what's best for right at this moment? Ten minutes or a year from now? Or further in the future? Am I choosing for myself, my family, my neighbors? How wide do I draw the circle around me?

What was the biggest challenge in making the film?

We shot on working farms, so there were many times when the talent was interacting with animals. Our male lead was bitten by a hog in the middle of a scene. We had to figure out how to mike a scene with thousands of squawking turkeys that were pecking through our audio cables. Our lead actress fractured her knuckle while throwing a sack of grain into a pickup truck. We smelled funky (an understatement). We choreographed a series of shots with a biplane that held less than an hour of fuel.

This is my first feature and now, when I see any film onscreen, I think of it as a series of small victories. Every acting moment, every bit of light coming into a shot in the right way, every foleyed sound is an important part of the final picture. There are creative challenges, production challenges, financial challenges, and you have to meet them and be ready to do it again the next day and the next, until the film is finished.

LAFF: 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High' Gets the Eli Roth Treatment

Shipra Harbola Gupta — Fri, 19 Jun 2015 22:55:52 GMT

READ MORE: Why the Live Read is Here to Stay

The 2015 edition of the Los Angeles Film Festival wrapped up its final day with another edition of its live reads, this time featuring the script for the 80's cult classic "Fast Times at Ridgemont High." The reading was led by writer-director Eli Roth, who was taking a break from literally swimming with sharks for "Shark After Dark," the Discovery show he's hosting for this year's Shark Week in July. Roth, who has built his directing reputation around taking risks and working under immense pressure, didn't hesitate to accept the challenge and managed to pull together a cast comprised of friends and frequent collaborators from across the industry.

"There is a type of movie that used to happen, that I think is [now] lost, and that is the character movie," Roth told the audience in his introductory remarks. Although "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" was marketed as a comedy, Roth considers the film a drama: "It is a very, very, very funny as fuck drama." Even though it's been more than 30 years since the film's release, Roth argued, the fact that it still holds up today, is a testament to Cameron Crowe's writing. "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" was Crowe's first screenplay, based upon a book he wrote about what he observed when he went undercover at a high school at age 20 in order to write a piece for Rolling Stone.

Despite some unexpected choices, Roth's casting turned out to be pretty spot on -- with certain performances bordering on uncanny in the way that they evoked the original film. The timbre of Lily Collins ("The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones") and Daryl Sabara's ("Spy Kids") voices possessed a striking resemblance to Jennifer Jason Leigh and Brian Backer, the actors who originated the respective roles of Stacy Hamilton and Mark "Rat" Ratner. Meanwhile, Haley Joel Osment ("The Sixth Sense") and Kumail Nanjiani ("Silicon Valley") inherited the roles of Brad Hamilton and Mike Damone with a degree of self-assurance that imbued the parts with the same authenticity that the original actors brought to them.

It was the goofy Vine celebrity Logan Paul, however, who delivered the standout performance of the evening as the iconic Jeff Spicoli -- the part famously originated by Sean Penn. Save for the length of his hair, Paul was as much Spicoli as Penn had once been -- down to the lazy, surfer cadence in his voice.

There was less credibility to be found with Courtney Love and Aaron Burns, however, neither of whom left much of an impression with their performances as Mr. Hand and Charles Jefferson. Love was especially tough to buy, as a character struck such an extreme contrast to her fiery public persona; while Burns certainly gave it his best shot as Charles Jefferson, he just didn't possess the same degree of ferocity that Forest Whitaker brought to what was the actor's first major role.

The scene descriptions, read by Roth, garnered quite a few laughs. The audience got a pretty good guffaw out of the explicit descriptions of Damone's climax during sex in the pool house with Stacy, as well as Brad's fantasy of Linda stripping for him.

While the audience, and sometimes even the cast, managed to laugh in all the right places, the kinship that typically emerges between performers and spectators during live reads never reached its potential. At certain points, it was palpable. Take, for example, the scene where Stacy tries to have sex with Mark. The chemistry between actors Collins and Sabara, along with the uncanny similarity between their voices and those of the original actors, proved absolutely mesmerizing.

More often, however, the sheer scope of the ensemble proved overwhelming for Roth and his cast. In addition to their primary roles, actors also handled multiple bit parts, which proved challenging when it came to cues. And, there were so many bit parts that there were moments when it wasn't clear which character the actor was playing. Unless, of course, they made notable adjustments to their voice as Lorenza Izzo ("The Green Inferno") did when she switched between playing Linda Barrett and the waitress at the restaurant where Stacy and Mark go to dinner. For the latter scene, Izzo adopted a Russian-inspired accent that while bizarre, made it absolutely clear she was playing a different character. Contrary to Izzo, Love never made any major modifications to her voice whenever she read for a character besides Mr. Hand.

Audiences, however, are much more forgiving with live reads than they are with films. While they will be satisfied with nothing less of perfection when they go see a film, with a live read they enter into the experience with the knowledge that imperfections are to be expected to emerge during a cold read.

The event was a big gamble for Film Independent curator Elvis Mitchell and festival director Stephanie Allain, who chose the live read as a closing night selection rather than the traditional star-studded gala screening. Although the result of the evening may not have been the most memorable live read in recent memory, at least it brought the echoes of a lovable movie to the festival as it contemplates how to increase its quality in 2016.

READ MORE: Here's to Harold Ramis: Film Independent and Jason Reitman Provide Us With a Lesson on Coping

LAFF Review: 'White Moss' An Exploration Into The Siberian Nenets Tribe, With Drama And Heart

Katie Walsh — Fri, 19 Jun 2015 22:00:00 GMT

The transformative power of cinema is such that a sunny SoCal summer day can suddenly become an afternoon on the Russian Siberian tundra, thanks to the wholly unique and transporting “White Moss,” directed by Vladimir Tumaev. The LA Film Fest World Fiction jury awarded a special mention to this immersion into the culture of the Nenets reindeer herders, an exploration of this tribe that is far from just an ethnography or travelogue. A high stakes romantic drama set against the intersection of ancient and modern culture, “White Moss” illustrates how some experiences and emotions are universal.

An opening sequence illustrates how the Nenets are connected to the rest of the world—every year, a helicopter picks up children to send them off to school in the village or city. A small but hardy group remain in the temporary nomadic camp to keep the reindeer tradition alive, migrating with the herd. Our leading man, Aloysha, has an overbearing mother who is as anxious for him to be married as he is not. She takes matters into her own hands and selects for him a wife from another camp, the beautiful Savane, and brings her home.

Savane is initially happy and excited to be married and meet her new husband, but Aloysha silently rejects her and Savane grows bitter and cold. Small clues, a photograph, a mention of a name, unfold to reveal that Aloysha has long ago promised himself to a girl named Aniko from his tribe, though she now lives in the city. When her mother is killed by a wolf, Aniko and two other children of the tribe return to visit their families, and my, how things have changed. While Aloysha and Savane wear the traditional clothes and boots of the Nenets and sleep in their reindeer skin teepees, Aniko and the others are fully modernized and styled to the max, flossing in stiletto boots, down jackets, and designer purses. Aniko is more concerned about her iPhone reception than she is with reuniting with Aloysha, or her father for that matter.

This mix of the old and the new is what makes “White Moss” such a remarkable artifact: it captures this specific moment in time where new and old technologies and ideologies meet. The Nenets use sleds pulled by reindeer and also drive snowmobiles; they sleep in teepees but have iPads and cell phones (selfies truly are universal). Observing the way that technology is used by the Nenets is fascinating, because they incorporate it into their traditional lives seamlessly, but don’t let it overtake their traditional way of life.

The first half of the film is remarkable, slowly revealing the conflicts in this small tribe, developing a simmering drama between Savane, Aloysha and his mother that calls to mind the excellent Inuit film “The Fast Runner.” But, the second half is hampered by a tendency to go too far into extreme melodrama. And while the film fascinatingly explores the intersection of old and new, it becomes clear that what it truly values is the old. The estranged children of the tribe are shown to be materialistic monsters, who think only of the reindeer for their monetary value, not in the way Nenets live with and use the reindeer for every part.

“White Moss” is enjoyable for its anthropological appeal, but the story of love triangles, jealousy, overbearing mothers, and the inexorable march of time is skillfully executed against this backdrop. Though it is an escape into this vastly different culture, once we are there it’s clear that human emotion and drama exist in much the same way, no matter where you are. [B+]

Watch: 'Grandma' Trailer Proves No One Messes With Lily Tomlin

Meredith Mattlin — Fri, 19 Jun 2015 14:42:18 GMT

READ MORE: Lily Tomlin on Rocking Sundance in 'Grandma,' Reuniting With Jane Fonda for Netflix and Changing Hollywood

There are few grandmothers who would get tattoos on a whim from an indebted tattoo artist friend, pay for their granddaughter's abortion or take spontaneous trips to ask old friends for money for said abortion. Elle Reid (Lily Tomlin), however, is not your typical grandma.

In the new trailer for "Grandma," Tomlin is an absolute charmer doing all of the aforementioned tasks. Julia Garner co-stars as granddaughter Sage, while Laverne Cox, Nat Wolff and Marcia Gay Harden round out the cast. Tomlin's portrayal of Elle -- a grandmother as irreverent and bold as she is loving -- has earned critical praise and shows that age is definitely but a number.

"Grandma," directed by Paul Weitz, debuted at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and recently opened the Los Angeles Film Festival. It will be released by Sony Pictures Classics in theaters starting August 21.

READ MORE: Watch: Lily Tomlin Salutes Her Comedic Influences at 'Grandma' Tribeca Talk

2015 LA Film Fest: Women Directors Win World Fiction Award, Audience Awards and More

Laura Berger — Thu, 18 Jun 2015 17:30:00 GMT

Female filmmakers left a major impression on juries and audiences at the 2015 Los Angeles Film Festival. We were already impressed by the number of women-directed projects selected to screen at the festival -- 40% of features in competition this year. Yesterday's awards ceremony demonstrated that, when given the opportunity to enter the race, women are more than capable of holding their own. (Oscars, take note.)

Beata Gårdeler received the World Fiction Award for "Flocken," a disturbing look at a young girl who is stigmatized by her community after reporting a sexual assault that takes place in her small Swedish village. The World Fiction jury also awarded a special mention to Sara Blecher's "Ayanda and the Mechanic." Set in Johannesburg, the film focuses on a young designer who gets more than she bargained for when she takes over her deceased father's business, a garage that refurbishes cars.

The Documentary jury awarded a special mention for directing to Holly Morris and Anne Bogart for "The Babushkas of Chernobyl." Morris and Bogart also produced the doc, which takes place in the "dead zone" around Chernobyl's Reactor No. 4, and is shockingly enough the home of a community of elderly women.

"Can You Dig This" director Delila Vallot took home the LA Muse Award. Vallot's first feature-length documentary follows four people trying to launch an urban gardening revolution in South Centreal Los Angeles, one of the largest food deserts -- and home to some of the most famously dangerous neighborhoods -- in America.

In an interview with Women and Hollywood, Vallot revealed that her experience as a child visiting her dad in South LA is what drew her to the story. She explained, "I remember how uneasy and anxious I felt every time I was there -- it was a huge difference from my life in Hollywood with my mom. When I found out about Ron Finley, the 'gangster gardener' working to try and bring change to this neighborhood, I wanted to see if it could really work. Gardening really is one of the simplest, most basic concepts. I wanted to further explore how people in tough environments can use this practice to create positive results for themselves."

Elsa Biedermann was recognized with a special mention from the LA Muse Jury for her role as a supporting actress in "French Dirty," a thirtysomething's life-crisis film about a man who sleeps with his best friend's girlfriend. Shadow and Act's review singled out Biedermann's performance: "Special mention must be given to Elsa Biedermann, who plays Josephine, a French tourist. Just as the film confidently approaches a terminally cliche-ridden genre, Biedermann pulls off a winning performance that is in essence a key archetype of the romantic comedy: the 'manic pixie dream girl.' This character type has been justly derided, but Biedermann works magic. She nearly steals the film and her presence is the not-so-secret weapon of 'French Dirty' ... Her character seems familiar, but it deftly dodges all the cliches you’ve come to expect."

The Audience Award for Best Fiction Feature Film went to "Pocha (Manifest Destiny)," co-directed by Kaitlin McLaughlin. The drama, which also received a special mention for directing from the Zeitgeist jury, portrays a young woman caught between two worlds: the United States and Mexico. McLaughlin told Women and Hollywood that as soon as she heard her creative partner/co-director Michael Dwyer had been working on a project inspired by his experience speaking with deportees, she "immediately envisioned a film from a young woman's perspective" and a protagonist who is "strong," "adaptable" and ultimately "determined not to be a victim."

Natalie John's "I Am Thalente" and Lillibet Foster's "Be Here Now" shared the honors for the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature Film. The former focuses on professional skateboarder Thalente Biyela, while the latter captures "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" star Andy Whitfield's battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. (Whitfield passed away in 2011.)

If you've been reading Women and Hollywood's new feature that highlights webseries by and about women, you know that there's plenty of talented women behind exciting work in the medium. The Audience Award for Best Web-series went to "The Genderton Project." Co-directed by Anna Martemucci, the comedy series depicts the interconnected stories of a group of young gay men heading out of town for a wedding, a housewife who decides to kill herself and a sex worker hired for a recently bar mitzvah'd boy who eventually becomes his nanny.

The festival also made a clear effort to encourage budding talent by offering a number of grants to emerging writers, directors and producers.

Writer/director Elena Greenlee and producer Márcia Nunes received the Alfred P. Sloan Fast Track Grant for their project "Dark Forest." Films that deal with science and technology-related themes and characters are eligible to receive the grant, which includes a $20,000 production grant and year-round support from Film Independent.

Marisha Mukerjee's "Open House" won the Make ’em LAFF internet talent competition, a collaboration between LAFF and Funny Or Die. The competition seeks content creators of color and underrepresented voices who specialize in comedy. Mukerjee's next video will be produced by Funny Or Die.

A press release for the festival notes, "Grants were also awarded to Imani Peterkin and Maya Suchak, winners of the Ed Elias Future Filmmaker Grant for Best Narrative Film for Falling; Grace Hoffman and Michelle Miles, winners of the Ed Elias Future Filmmaker Grant for Best Documentary Film for Beatrix; and Katie Speare, winner of the Ed Elias Future Filmmaker Grant for Best Animated or Experimental Film for Mask."

See all of the female winners from the 2015 LAFF below:

****
World Fiction Award

Winner: Flocken, directed by Beata Gårdeler
Country: Sweden
Screenwriter: Emma Broström
Producers: Agneta Fagerström Olsson, Annika Hellström
Cast: Fatime Azemi, John Risto, Eva Melander, Malin Levanon, Jacob Öhrman
Film description: Breathtaking cinematography captures the desolation of a tiny Swedish village when a tight-knit community turns against a 14-year-old girl and her family after she reports being sexually assaulted by a popular classmate. North American Premiere

The World Fiction Jury awarded special mentions to:

Ayanda and the Mechanic, directed by Sara Blecher
Country: South Africa
Screenwriters: Trish Malone
Producers: Terry Pheto, Busi Sizani, Robbie Thorpe
Cast: Fulu Moguvhani, OC Ukeje, Nthati Moshesh, Kenneth Nkosi, Jafta Mamabolo, Thomas Gumede, Sihle Xaba, Venessa Cooke
Film description: Within a multi-African Johannesburg community, a young hipster-designer saves her deceased father’s prized garage by refurbishing classic cars - until family secrets and a corrupt legal system threaten her passionate resolve. World Premiere

****
The Documentary Jury awarded a special mention for directing:

The Babushkas of Chernobyl, directed by Holly Morris, Anne Bogart
Producers: Holly Morris, Anne Bogart
Featuring: Valentyna Sochenok, Hanna Zavorotnya, Maria Shovkuta
Film Description: In the radioactive “dead zone” surrounding Chernobyl's Reactor No. 4, a defiant community of elderly women cultivates an existence on some of the most toxic land on Earth. World Premiere.

****
LA Muse Award

Winner: Can You Dig This, directed by Delila Vallot
Producers: Rafael Marmor, Christopher Leggett
Cast: Ron Finley, Mychael "Spicey" Evans, Kenya Johnson, Quimonie Lewis, Hosea Smith
Film Description: In South Central Los Angeles, one of the largest food deserts in the US, inspirational stories of new gardeners reveal the beginnings of an urban gardening revolution and the lasting impact of planting seeds for a better life. World Premiere.

The LA Muse Jury awarded a special mention to Elsa Biedermann for her role as a supporting actress in:
French Dirty, directed by Wade and Jesse Allain-Marcus
Screenwriters: Peter K. Hagen, Wade Allain-Marcus
Producers: Jason Wolf, Mel Jones
Cast: Wade Allain-Marcus, Melina Lizette, Arjun Gupta
Film Description: After committing the carnal sin of sleeping with his best friend’s girlfriend, Vincent must deal with the consequences of his betrayal and hope that his bond with his brother-from-another-mother can withstand the blow. World Premiere

****
Zeitgeist Award

The Zeitgeist Jury awarded a special mention for directing to:
Pocha (Manifest Destiny), directed by Michael Dwyer, co-directed by Kaitlin McLaughlin
Producers: Alicia Dwyer, Kathleen Dwyer
Cast: Veronica Sixtos, Julio César Cedillo, Roberto Urbina, Jorge A. Jimenez, Sandra Santiago, Jessie Garcia, María del Carmen Farías
Film description: When a young woman is deported to Mexico, she must choose between reconciling with her estranged father or partnering with a local smuggler to return to the US. World Premiere

****
Audience Award for Best Fiction Feature Film

Winner: POCHA (Manifest Destiny), directed by Michael Dwyer, co-directed by Kaitlin McLaughlin
Producers: Alicia Dwyer, Kathleen Dwyer
Cast: Veronica Sixtos, Julio César Cedillo, Roberto Urbina, Jorge A. Jimenez, Sandra Santiago, Jessie Garcia, María del Carmen Farías
Film Description: When a young woman is deported to Mexico, she must choose between reconciling with her estranged father or partnering with a local smuggler to return to the US. World Premiere.

This award is given to the fiction feature audiences liked most as voted by a tabulated rating system. Select fiction feature-length films screening in the following sections were eligible for the Audience Award for Best Fiction Feature: U.S. Fiction, World Fiction, Zeitgeist, LA Muse, Nightfall, and Premieres.

****
Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature Film

Winner: I Am Thalente, directed by Natalie Johns
Producers: Colin Kennedy, Oualid Mouaness, Selema "Sal" Masekela, Jason Bergh, Julia Lebedev
Featuring: Thalente Biyela, Tony Hawk, Kenny Anderson, Guy Mariano, Lance Mountain
Film Description: One of the most promising young skaters in the world, Thalente Biyela, navigates growing up within the demands of professional skateboarding from the skate parks of Durban, South Africa to Venice, California. World Premiere.

Winner: Be Here Now, directed by Lilibet Foster
Producers: Lilibet Foster, Sam Maydew
Featuring: Andy Whitfield, Vashti Whitfield
Film Description: After landing the lead role in Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Andy Whitfield learns he has non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Armed with resilience, courage and the adoration of his family, he prepares for the battle of his life. World Premiere.

This award is given to the documentary feature audiences liked most as voted by a tabulated rating system. Select documentary feature-length films screening in the following sections were eligible for the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature: Documentary, LA Muse, and Premieres.

****
Audience Award for Best Web-series

Winner: The Genderton Project, directed by Anna Martemucci, Victor Quinaz
Description: A modern group of young gay men head to Palm Springs for a gay wedding weekend, when their story is interrupted by the tale of a 1960’s Pasadena housewife whose life is anything but a piece of cake in this gender-swapped comedy.

This award is given to the web-series audiences liked most as voted by a tabulated rating system. Web-series selected for the Episodic program in the Launch section were eligible for the Audience Award for Best Web-series.

5 Secrets of Success, From the Badass Women Who Produced 'Selma,' 'Dope,' 'The Hunger Games' and 'The Walking Dead'

Shipra Harbola Gupta — Thu, 18 Jun 2015 13:27:00 GMT

READ MORE: Tribeca: Ava DuVernay's 8 Tips to Filmmakers On How to Stay in Control

"Dear White People" producer Effie T. Brown, moderator of the "Women Make It Happen" panel at this year's Los Angeles Film Festival, opened with a very particular directive for the 90-minute conversation to follow, which featured producing heavyweights Dede Gardner ("Selma," "12 Years a Slave"), Nina Yang Bongiovi ("Dope," "Fruitvale Station"), Nina Jacobson ("The Hunger Games," "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" franchises) and Gale Ann Hurd ("The Walking Dead").
“I'm not going to focus so much on the sort of 'woe is me woman thing,'" Brown told the audience. "I'm black and a woman, been so all my life. I know it's hard out there, we know it's hard out there, the statistics show us that, so duly noted."

Her goal, she said, was to dig into "the[ir] experiences, their strength and their hope," — in other words, examine how these women managed to transcend the status quo and forge their own paths. Below, we've provided a brief summary of some of the most potent points that emerged over the course of the conversation. You can share your thoughts with us in the comments sections below.

1. Find a partner who shares the same vision.

It took Gardner and Yang's respective producing partnerships with actors Brad Pitt and Forest Whitaker years to take shape. The success of "12 Years a Slave," "Selma" and "Fruitvale Station," however, are indicative of how the wait was certainly worthwhile for both women's careers.

As Gardner noted early on in the discussion, her relationship with Pitt began with him as her boss and over the past decade, has gradually evolved into more of a partnership predicated not only on trust, but also, and perhaps more importantly, their shared goals. "Brad's a unique guy," she said, "he's an artist, he's a cinephile, and he said from the very beginning, it's not about a vanity deal, it's not about stuff for me necessarily, this is about filmmakers [and] it's about creating safe harbors for telling stories that won't get made otherwise." Gardner seemed to recall that Pitt also told her that he "doesn't believe in the shelf-life of a movie" because "you and I didn't find our favorite movies in the movie theater -- and we're going to make some that work and some that don't, and as long as we don't regret them, then I will consider those successes."

Yang, who has been producing with Whitaker for six years now, first met the Oscar-winning actor nine years into her own journey working in the film industry, both in the United States and abroad in Hong Kong. "I was in the industry, stepping on every landmine there was, for about nine years," she told the audience, "and my big break came in year nine when I met Forrest Whittaker, who believed in what I was doing and said 'let's team up and discover great projects to produce together.'"

2. Don't fall into the trap of hiring yourself.

When you're considering whether to bring someone on to your team, be sure to listen more than you speak. "It's really easy to go into an interview situation or meeting and you're talking and they are agreeing," noted Jacobson. It's important to listen more than talk, she warned, because you don't want to make the mistake of hiring someone based on who you want them to be versus who they actually are. It's an easy pitfall for producers to fall victim to because, as Jacobson point out, when you are interviewing a writer or director, you enter the meeting with the desire to work with the person because you admire their work. Given your preconceived ideas about the turnout of the meeting, Jacobson said, "you think that you've had a great conversation, but you've [really only[ had a great conversation with yourself."

3. Build relationships with your financiers.

"There is a lot of money in Asia," acknowledged Yang, "but the thing is [it's about] finding the right partners and investors that will back you long-term." These long-term investors, she said, "support us in all the endeavors that we do because they believe and trust our instincts." The investors' underlying trust in Yang and Whitaker's instincts stems from the fact that Yang has and continues to always remain honest with her financial partners -- managing their expectations by making sure that they are well aware of how the the social mandate of these films is much more important than making money off them. Yang said she makes sure that investors are clear on the risk involved -- that in the short term, the films may not make money. Yang said that by helping to "tell the story of so many different ethnicities" across the United States and the world, the hope is that these films will be seen as more viable internationally.

Case and point is writer-director Chloé Zhao's "Songs My Brothers Taught Me." Zhao is a Chinese filmmaker who directed a film set within the Native American community from the South Dakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Following its premiere at Sundance earlier this year, "Songs My Brothers Taught Me" ended up screening in the Directors' Fortnight section in Cannes last month. Moreover, Yang noted how her relationship with financiers has even started to transcend the film space altogether as viewer behavior continues to modify itself in accordance with changes in technology. "We're really strategizing with our Asian partners because the ecosystem has changed quite a bit, not only in feature films but we're talking about mobile content," Yang concluded.

4. Develop a skill that will pay the bills when you are in between projects.

"When you're a producer, you are working on spec," said Hurd. "People aren't paying you until the cameras start rolling" -- which stands in contrast, she pointed out, with how producers used to be able to "set up 10 [or] 15 projects a year and get a $25,000 development fee, so even in between projects you could support yourself." Because the production landscape has changed so much, Hurd said that she encourages every producer to develop a skill set that can help them obtain additional work that will help pay the bills in between the projects they produce. Hurd told the audience that her experience line producing for Roger Corman at the beginning of her career has proved fruitful time and time again over the years.

5. Making it is a myth. Every step of the way counts, so settle in for the long haul.

"The only difference is people return my phone calls," Hurd told the audience when asked whether she feels like she's "made it." Even after a project reaches success, she insisted, it's still an uphill battle to get the next project of the ground. Said Hurd: "Everyday you wake up and you want to make another show [and] you're starting from the bottom and working up. Ninety percent of the time the doors are going to be closed — sometimes still slammed in your face — or the worst, is when people say maybe because they don't want to say 'no' so you're actually holding out hope that [it] maybe will turn into a yes and [then] it doesn't." Unlike an executive position, she told the audience, a producer title "just gives you the opportunity to continue to try again with each new project."

Recapturing the success you may have enjoyed on a previous project, Hurd said, requires a producer to remain current. To demonstrate her point, Hurd cited her recent experience using Kickstarter for the first time in order to raise funds for the production of "Mankiller," a documentary about Cherokee leader Wilma Mankiller. Although "Mankiller" marks Hurd's third time producing a documentary about a Native American subject, much to her dismay, the project got turned down by virtually every grant organization, save for Native American public television, which awarded the project a tiny sum to put towards production.

Managing a Kickstarter campaign, however, is no walk in the park. It's a damn lot of work," she said. "Literally, it was twisting the arm of everybody that I knew to either donate or put something up as a reward for people who pledged. I was sweating for that $150,000, and we made it, [but] every moment my heart was in my throat," she said.

Of course, the pressure to constantly reinvent oneself makes it difficult to strategize your professional life along the lines of a particular trajectory. Gardner, however, doesn't believe you should be too bothered by the perception of professional chaos.

"I worked in physical production, I was doing locations and then I was doing art department and then I worked in an agency and I sort of learned the theater and then I was at a different agency and I was doing books, and I was like, this is ridiculous," she told the audience at one point. "But I didn't [realize] that there was a common denominator to all those experiences, which was me and my brain and my heart — that I was sort of sorting my way through this and I was assembling something that was more linear and that had more intention that I realized."

Gardner continued: "So I guess I would say, in those moments where it all sort of seems [like] a scramble, trust that it probably has more logic than you think. Give yourself time to kind of dig that out. I really believe that, I actually think people, they start leading their life, their dream or whatever much sooner than they realize."

READ MORE: It's Your Set, You Can Cry If You Want To: Jill Soloway Redefines 'The Rules'