The 6th annual Independent Film Festival of Boston takes place next week, April 23-29, at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square, the Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square, and Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brooklne. 96 of the year's best films will be shown and approximately 100 filmmakers will be flown in to take part in the festival. There will also be four great panel discussions and five amazing parties at the festival this year.
Individual tickets for films are on sale now at http:// www.iffboston.org as well as individual tickets to the Sunday night awards party.
For those of you wanting to enjoy the festival to its fullest, there are three different pass options available this year:
FILM PASS - $180. This pass grants priority seating access to every film in the festival.
PARTY PASS - $120. This pass grants entry into all five parties. Each party includes free drinks, free food, great DJs, and tons of filmmakers to chat with. The Sunday night party also includes the IFFBoston Awards Ceremony, a live performance by MC Frontalot, and DJing by Prince Paul of De La Soul. That's all of that at less than $25 a party!
CHROME PASS - $300. This pass grants access to everything. All parties, all films, all panels. With this pass you can have your run of the festival.
Highlights at the festival this year include:
Opening Night Film: TRANSSIBERIAN, directed by Brad Anderson (SESSION 9, THE MACHINIST) and starring Woody Harrelson, Emily Mortimer, and Sir Ben Kingsley. Director Brad Anderson, Writer Will Conroy, and a *very special guest* will be in attendance for the Q&A. 7:30pm at the Somerville Theatre.
Closing Night Film: ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD, directed by Werner Herzog (GRIZZLY MAN, RESCUE DAWN). See the legenday director's new masterpiece at the Coolidge Corner Theatre, Tuesday April 29th at 8:00pm.
TURN THE RIVER: Actor Chris Eigeman (BARCELONA, THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO) makes his directorial debut with this intense drama starring Famke Janssen (The X-MEN trilogy) and Rip Torn. Chris Eigeman and Famke Janssen will be in attendance for both screenings.
THE CAKE EATERS: Actress Mary Stuart Masterson (FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL) makes her directorial debut. Stars Aaron Stanford and Bruce Dern. Director Mary Stuart Masterson will be in attendance for both screenings.
MY WINNIPEG: Director Guy Maddin (THE SADDEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD) will be in attendance with his new masterpiece. You don't want to miss this one! Monday April 28th at the Coolidge Corner Theatre.
SAVAGE GRACE: Director Tom Kalin (SWOON) will be in attendance with this bizarre true-story drama starring Julianne Moore in one of her best performances to date.
AMERICAN TEEN: Director Nanette Burnstein (THE KID STAYS IN THE PICTURE) comes to the festival with year's "buzz" film from Sundance.
WOODPECKER: Director Alex Karpovsky (THE HOLE STORY) returns to the festival with this mix of fiction and documentary, and delves into the world of birdwatchers and follows one man's quest to find the until-recently thought to be extinct Ivory-Billed Woodpecker. Director Alex Karpovsky will be in attendance for both screenings.
ELEVEN MINUTES: Directors Michael Selditch and Rob Tate follow Project Runway Season One winner Jay McCarroll as he tries to live up to the post-PR expectations as he develops his first real fashion show. Both directors and Jay McCarroll will be in attendance for the Monday April 28th screening.
THE GREENING OF SOUTHIE: Director Ian Cheney's documentary about the construction of Boston's first-ever completely "green" building, from start to finish. Director Ian Cheney will be in attendance for both screenings.
MOMMA'S MAN: Director Azazel Jacobs (THE GOODTIMES KID) brings one of the best reviewed films from this year's Sundance Film Festival to IFFBoston, starring his father, legendary experimental filmmaker Ken Jacobs.
THE NEW YEAR PARADE: Director Tom Quinn will be in attendance with this Altmanesque film that won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2008 Slamdance Film Festival.
And that's just a sampling!
There are 96 films in all to choose from so look over the website, read up and take your time, and get your tickets soon. Things are starting to sell out!
INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL OF BOSTON ANNOUNCES 2008 PROGRAM LINE-UP Festival meets demandsof growing audience and expands program to 96 films; “TRANSSIBERIAN” directed by Brad Anderson to open sixth annual festival; The Independent Film Festival of Boston (IFFBoston) today announced the films that will be featured at the sixth annual 2008 Independent Film Festival of Boston. The festival will be held April 23-April 29, 2008, complete with over 150 film screenings, filmmaker Q&A sessions, panel discussions, visiting filmmakers, parties and events will showcase the works of filmmakers who seek to create films that are life changing, thought provoking and expose aspects of life in new and revealing manners.
“TRANSSIBERIAN” directed by Brad Anderson, written by Brad Anderson and Will Conroy, and starring Woody Harrelson, Emily Mortimer, and Sir Ben Kingsley will open the festival on Wednesday, April 23rd at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square. This marks a return to Boston for Brad Anderson, who previously shot his features NEXT STOP WONDERLAND and SESSION 9 in the city. Brad Anderson, Will Conroy, and Sir Ben Kingsley will be in attendance for the Opening Night screening. “ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD” directed by Werner Herzog, will close the Independent Film Festival of Boston on Tuesday April 29th at the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline.
Two feature length films will be making their World Premiere at the Independent Film Festival of Boston this April. The first, “TWELVE”, brings twelve of Boston’s brightest young filmmakers together on a collaborative project wherein each of them directed a segment of the film, each in a different month of the year, with the other 11 directors always serving as their crew. The directors who make up the twelve are Scott Masterson, Seanbaker Carter, Andy McCarthy, Garth Donovan, Luke Poling, Noah Lydiard, Megan Summers, Brynmore Williams, Joan Meister, Marc Colucci, Jared Goodman, and Vladmir Minuty.
The second film having its World Premiere at the festival is “MEADOWLARK”, an autobiographical documentary by first-time filmmaker Taylor Greeson, which simultaneously explores issues of faith and sexuality while confronting the violent murder of the filmmaker’s brother.
Special guests attending the festival include Sir Ben Kingsley, Famke Janssen, Guy Maddin, Harmony Korine, Mary Stuart Masterson, Jay McCarroll, Aaron Stanford, Chris Eigeman, Brad Neely, Harry & The Potters, and many more to be announced in the coming weeks.
The new IFFBoston website was launched on March 25th at http://www.iffboston.org with trailers and the complete film lineup with brief descriptions, and much more.
INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL OF BOSTON 2008 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS:
Narrative Features AUGUST EVENING, directed by Chris Eska BALLAST, directed by Lance Hammer BEAVER TRILOGY, directed by Trent Harris (Buried Treasure screening) BIG MAN JAPAN, directed by Hitoshi Matsumoto BLOOD CAR, directed by Alex Orr THE CAKE EATERS, directed by Mary Stuart Masterson FLASH POINT, directed by Wilson Yip FROWNLAND, directed by Ronnie Bronstein GOLIATH, directed by David Zellner & Nathan Zellner JETSAM, directed by Simon Welsford MEDICINE FOR MELANCHOLY, directed by Barry Jenkins MISTER LONELY, directed by Harmony Korine MOMMA’S MAN, directed by Azazel Jacobs MONGOL, directed by Sergei Bodrov MY EFFORTLESS BRILLIANCE, directed by Lynn Shelton MY WINNIPEG, directed by Guy Maddin NATURAL CAUSES, directed by Alex Cannon, Paul Cannon, and Michael Lerman THE NEW YEAR PARADE, directed by Tom Quinn PHOEBE IN WONDERLAND, directed by Daniel Barnz PING PONG PLAYA, directed by Jessica Yu PINK, directed by Alexander Voulgaris SAVAGE GRACE, directed by Tom Kalin SEVERED WAYS: THE NORSE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA, directed by Tony Stone STUCK, directed by Stuart Gordon TIME CRIMES, directed by Nacho Vigalondo THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS, directed by Bruce McDonald TRANSSIBERIAN, directed by Brad Anderson (Opening Night Film) TRIANGLE, directed by Ringo Lam, Johnnie To, and Tsui Hark TURN THE RIVER, directed by Chris Eigeman TWELVE, directed by Scott Masterson, Seanbaker Carter, Andy McCarthy, Garth Donovan, Luke Poling, Noah Lydiard, Megan Summers, Brynmore Williams, Joan Meister, Marc Colucci, Jared Goodman, and Vladmir Minuty VEXILLE, directed by Fumihiko Sori WOODPECKER, directed by Alex Karpovsky
Documentary Features AMERICAN TEEN, directed by Nanette Burnstein AT THE DEATH HOUSE DOOR, directed by Steve James and Peter Gilbert CRAWFORD, directed by David Modigliani DREAMS WITH SHARP TEETH, directed by Erik Nelson ELEVEN MINUTES, directed by Michael Selditch ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD, directed by Werner Herzog (Closing Night Film) FRONTRUNNER, directed by Virginia Williams THE GREENING OF SOUTHIE, directed by Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis INTIMIDAD, directed by David Redmon and Ashley Sabin JOY DIVISION, directed by Grant Gee JUMP!, directed by Helen Hood Scheer LIFE. SUPPORT. MUSIC., directed by Eric Metzgar THE LINGUISTS, directed by Seth Kramer, Daniel A. Miller, and Jeremy Newberger LIONESS, directed Meg McLagan and Daria Sommers MEADOWLARK, directed by Taylor Greeson NERDCORE RISING, directed by Negin Farsad NOT YOUR TYPICAL BIGFOOT MOVIE, directed by Jay Delaney PUBLIC ENEMY: WELCOME TO THE TERRORDOME, directed by Robert Patton-Spruill SAVIOURS, directed by Ross Whitaker and Liam Nolan SECOND SKIN, directed by Juan Carlos Pineiro Escoriaza SECRECY, directed by Robb Moss and Peter Galison SEX POSITIVE, directed by Daryl Wein SONG SUNG BLUE, directed by Greg Kohs VERY YOUNG GIRLS, directed by David Schisgall WE ARE WIZARDS, directed by Josh Koury WILD BLUE YONDER, directed by Celia Maysles
Short Films APOCALYPSE OZ, directed by Ewan Telford AQUARIUM, directed by Rob Meyer A CATALOG OF ANTICIPATIONS, directed by David Lowery CHIEF, directed by Brett Wagner DOXOLOGY, directed by Michael Langan THE DRIFT, directed by Kelly Sears THE EUROPEAN KID, directed by Ian Martin THE EXECUTION OF SOLOMON HARRIS, directed by Wyatt Garfield and Ed Yonaitis FILM MAKES US HAPPY, directed by Bryan Wizemann GLORY AT SEA, directed by Ben Zeitlin HEARTBEATS, directed by Vincent Coen IF A BODY MEET A BODY, directed by Brian Davis I HAVE SEEN THE FUTURE, directed by Cam Christiansen I LOVE SARAH JANE, directed by Spencer Susser JACKSON WARD, directed by Matt Petock KIDS + MONEY, directed by Lauren Greenfield LA CORONA, directed by Amanda Micheli and Isabel Vega LARRY (THE ACTOR), directed by Brett Portanova and Eric Poydar THE LONELY BLISS OF CANNONBALL LUKE, directed by Levi Abrino MAN, directed by Myna Joseph MAYBE IN THE SPRINGTIME, directed by Mai Sato MR.P, directed by Jake Vaughan PEPPER, directed by Harry McCoy PRIMITIVE TECHNOLOGY, directed by Bo Price THE PULL, directed by Andy Blubaugh THE RAMBLER, directed by Calvin Reeder REORDER, directed by Sean Garrity SAFARI, directed by Catherine Chalmers SANGIT SENYOR, directed by Alan Lyddiard SAVE THE WORLD, directed by David Casals-Roma SIKUMI (ON THE ICE), directed by Andrew Okpeaha MacLean SPIDER, directed by Nash Edgerton 34x24x36, directed by Jesse Epstein TONY ZOREIL, directed by Valentin Potier WELL-FOUNDED CONCERNS, directed by Tim Cawley WOMAN IN BURKA, directed by Jonathan Lisecki
Music Performances
∑ Potter Rock! Harry and the Potters, Draco and the Malfoys, and the Hungarian Horntails will perform on Saturday April 26th after the second screening of WE ARE WIZARDS.
* Nerdcore hip-hop artist MC Frontalot and De La Soul superstar Prince Paul will perform at the IFFBoston Awards Party on Sunday April 27th
Panel Discussions
∑ Collaborative Screenwriting Presented by Zhura.com A discussion with screenwriters and other industry professionals on the benefits of collaboration featuring Amy Fox (Heights) and Will Conroy (Transsiberian)
∑ Distribution 2.0 A discussion with some of the companies on the cutting edge of film distribution featuring representatives of Spout.com, Current.com, Indiepix, and Ourstage. Moderated by Amy Dotson of the Independent Feature Project (IFP).
∑ Comics to Film/ Film to Comics A presentation by “Robot Stories” writer/director and writer of the hit comics The X-Men and World War Hulk, Greg Pak. ∑ Breaking Into The Boston Film Industry A panel discussion with prominent members of IATSE Local 481 including Business Manager Chris O’Donnell on the ins and outs of making a living working in the film industry in Boston.
The Independent Film Festival of Boston will reach a diverse audience by incorporating a number of venues in the greater Boston community including: ∑ Somerville Theatre in Davis Square ∑ Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square ∑ Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline
All festival venues are easily accessible by MBTA public transportation and are all located near area parking.
Film-only, Party-only, and all-access Chrome passes are now available at http://www.iffboston.org . Individual tickets will be available on the site on April 1, 2008.
I saw a final cut of THE GATEWAY MEAT, filmed in Massachusetts. I appear in the film, I get brutally murdered and got to write my own death scene. Unfortunately my face is bound up with duct tape and we shot for 8 or 10 hours and I couldn't see and was covered in cold fake blood all day. The DVD will be out soon. The film is AMAZING- oh my god- so gory! I was only in a small part and did not see the script so knew nothing about the plot of the film or anything about it except my scenes.
Also out soon on DVD:
Countess Bathoria's Graveyard Picture Show, which debuted at the Fantasia Film Fest, and which I co-wrote.
I am writing for The Independent Magazine website and will be interviewing Jeremy Kasten, director of the upcoming remake of The Wizard of Gore.
I have an interview in the next Girls and Corpses magazine with Erik Ruhling, author of Infernal Device, an illustrated book of torture devices.
Although I put it aside months and months ago it looks like my script A Fistful of Anger may be optioned.
Vitality in film production activity in the newly rejuvenated Boston is taking many forms. There's the revived Massachusetts Film Office under the knowing leadership of Nick Paleologos; there's the emergence of Beanywood, with young energy devoted to unifying and promoting the film community; there's Paul Sherman's book covering the history of filmmaking in the area; and now there's "12", a twelve-part film showcasing the work of some of Boston's most accomplished filmmakers.
Organized by filmmakers Scott Masterson and Vladimir Manuti, who have participated in a great number of film projects in the region, "12" is a project that involves the talents of twelve area filmmakers. Structured around the twelve months of the year, each director takes a month and develops a story in which the month is important. Furthermore, it must be shot during the designated month. For example, one of the directors, Garth Donovan, shot his April story the last weekend of April.
Although the directors have free reign over their projects, there are frequent meetings of all the participants. Also, there are overlapping characters and motifs, and a couple of constants that must appear in each episode. This is not as rigorous as the Dogma 95 progeny that inspired the Scottish film RED ROAD, a feature film where the same characters will appear in two other completely different films by different directors. But, Masterson insists, "12" will stand alone as a film worth watching.
The purpose of the project is to draw attention the the talent that is in the area, a talent that has been dormant since the days of NEXT STOP WONDERLAND, almost ten years ago. The participants, for the most part, work on commercials and get assignments, often through Central Booking, on feature films like FEVER PITCH, or the series THE BROTHERHOOD, being shot in Rhode Island. They are all industry professionals. Of the group, Donovan is the most improvisational, and even he wrote a script and used a tripod for his segment.
The organizers hope for a limited theatrical release. Whatever happens it is an ambitious and worthwhile project that can be a valuable part of the Renaissance in filmmaking in Massachusetts.
