Posted by Larry Gleeson

For Immediate Release

The Institute Continues to Shape Board Leadership for Future

Los Angeles — The nonprofit Sundance Institute today announced the newly appointed and recent additions to the Institute’s Board of Trustees. Kimberlé Crenshaw, Ann Lewnes, Wonya Lucas join the board alongside Uzodinma Iweala, Amanda Kelso, William Plapinger, and Junaid Sarieddeen who joined over the last year. Together they add to the business, cultural, and philanthropic leaders who guide and steer the entire organization and also act in an advisory capacity. The distinguished new Trustees bring invaluable experience and will work closely with Board Chair Pat Mitchell and Executive Director Keri Putnam.

“We are so grateful to welcome the expertise and unique perspectives of Kimberlé, Uzodinma, Amanda, Ann, Bill, and Junaid to Sundance as we move forward in this challenging time,” said Pat Mitchell. “Our board possesses the right skills, a broad range of talents and a high level of commitment to our founding values and ethics to guide the organization’s mission-oriented work in supporting emerging artists around the world and connecting audiences to their stories.”

They join current members on the Institute’s Board: Robert Redford, President & Founder; Pat Mitchell, Chair; Jeanne Donovan Fisher, Vice Chair; Ebs Burnough, Vice Chair; Sean Bailey, Ritesh Batra, Jason Blum,  Lisa-Michele Church, Kenneth Cole, Pascal Desroches, Fred Dust, Philipp Engelhorn, Caterina Fake, Robert J. Frankenberg, Donna Gruneich, Cindy Harrell Horn, Charles D. King, Lisa Kron, Lyn Davis Lear, Gigi Pritzker, Alejandro Ramírez Magaña, Amy Redford, Geoffrey K. Sands, Nadine Schiff-Rosen, and Lynette Wallworth.

Sundance Institute regularly evolves its Board, evaluating its composition to ensure it includes the skills and perspective necessary to help guide the organization as individual board member terms expire. The Institute’s Board has typically included between 24-28 members, these latest additions represent a slight growth for the Board. With three board members terms concluding, and additions over the last year, the Institute is now composed of a 32-person Board, 10 of whose members self-identify as BIPOC and six of whom self-identify as Black. The Board is 50% men and 50% women.

The new members of Sundance Institute’s Board of Trustees are:

Kimberlé Crenshaw is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the African American Policy Forum, and the founder and Executive Director of the Center for Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies at Columbia Law School. She is the Promise Institute Professor at UCLA Law School and the Isidor and Seville Sulzbacher Professor at Columbia Law School. She is popularly known for her development of “intersectionality,” “Critical Race Theory,” and the #SayHerName Campaign, and is the host of the podcast Intersectionality Matters!, a columnist for The New Republic, and the moderator of the widely impactful webinar series Under The Blacklight: The Intersectional Vulnerabilities that the Twin Pandemics Lay Bare. She is one of the most cited scholars in the history of the law, and was named Ms. magazine’s “No. 1 Most Inspiring Feminist,” honored as one of the ten most important thinkers in the world by Prospect Magazine, and included in Ebony’s “Power 100” issue.

Her groundbreaking work on “intersectionality” has traveled globally and was influential in shaping the South African Equality Clause. She has been a Visiting Professor at the Sorbonne and University of Paris; Centennial Professor at The London School of Economics; Fellow at the Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University; and taught at universities in South Africa, Brazil, and Italy. She received her J.D. from Harvard, L.L.M. from University of Wisconsin, and B.A. from Cornell University, and sits on the boards of Sundance, VDay, and the Algorithmic Justice League.

Uzodinma Iweala is an award-winning writer, filmmaker, and medical doctor. As the CEO of The Africa Center, he is dedicated to promoting a new narrative about Africa and is Diaspora. Uzodinma was the CEO, Editor-In-Chief, and co-Founder of Ventures Africa magazine, a publication that covers the evolving business, policy, culture, and innovation spaces in Africa. His books include Beasts of No Nation, a novel released in 2005 to critical acclaim and adapted into a major motion picture; Our Kind of People, a non-fiction account of HIV/AIDS in Nigeria released in 2012; and Speak No Evil (2018), a novel about a queer first-generation Nigerian-American teen living in Washington, D.C. His short stories and essays have appeared in numerous publications like The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair and  The Paris Review among others. Uzodinma was also the founding CEO of the Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria, an organization that promotes private sector investment in health services and health innovation in Nigeria. He sits on the boards of the Sundance Institute, The International Rescue Committee and the African Development Bank’s Presidential Youth Advisory Group. A graduate of Harvard University and the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and a Fellow of The Radcliffe Institute at Harvard University, he lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Amanda Kelso is passionate about technology and storytelling, and how together they can shape communities. She has spent the last 25 years serving as a creative communications and brand leader for global tech companies as well as lending her skills to non-profit organizations and startups. Amanda’s tenure includes helping to foster and oversee the stewardship of Instagram’s community of more than one billion people, serving as the Managing Director of Google Creative Lab, and providing creative digital leadership at Goodby Silverstein & Partners and West Ventures. While the majority of her career has been working in a creative capacity in the technology sector, early in her career she worked on television productions including Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Amanda holds a BA in Film from Columbia College at Columbia University and is an incoming DCI Fellow at Stanford University.

As an advocate for independent storytellers, in addition to being a trustee of the Sundance Institute, Amanda is also a member of the Producers Guild of America’s New Media Council, and a judge for the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. Work she has produced has been recognized by Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, SXSW, D&AD, Clios, One Show, The Jim Henson Technology Honor, and Communication Arts. Amanda recently co-published a public meditations project encouraging people to take time out of their busy days to meditate.

Ann Lewnes is Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Adobe, a position she has held for over a decade. Under her leadership, the Adobe brand has become synonymous with creativity, digital marketing and the design and development of transformative digital experiences. In addition to its consistent focus on creativity, Adobe’s marketing organization pioneered the shift to digital – deploying advanced digital marketing technology, establishing an insight-driven culture, and setting a template for marketing’s impact on business. Prior to Adobe, Ann spent 20 years building the iconic Intel Inside brand as VP of Marketing. Forbes has recognized her as one of the top CMOs in the world, Ad Age has named her one of The Creativity 50 and she was inducted into the American Marketing Association’s Hall of Fame in 2019. Ann received her B.A. in Political Science and Journalism from Lehigh University. She currently serves on the board of Mattel and is an active participant in the Sundance Catalyst program. Believing everyone has a story to tell, Ann is a strong advocate for empowering diverse creators, including women, youth and other under-represented groups.

Wonya Lucas is president and chief executive officer of Crown Media Family Networks. Lucas oversees the company’s portfolio of entertainment brands, including linear networks Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, and Hallmark Drama; and subscription video on demand service Hallmark Movies Now. Lucas is based in the company’s Studio City office and reports to Mike Perry, president and chief executive officer of Hallmark Cards, Inc.

Formerly, Lucas was president and chief executive officer of Public Broadcasting Atlanta, where she oversaw Atlanta’s NPR (WABE) and PBS (ATL PBA) stations. Previously, she was president and chief executive officer of TV One. Prior to joining TV One, Lucas held several positions at Discovery Communications, including executive vice president and chief operating officer for Discovery Channel and Science Channel, and global chief marketing officer, which entailed oversight of marketing in 210 countries.

Before joining Discovery Communications, Lucas served as general manager and executive vice president of The Weather Channel Networks with responsibility for corporate strategy and development and strategic marketing for The Weather Channel and . Previously, she spent eight years at Turner with roles including senior vice president of strategic marketing for CNN Worldwide; vice president of business operations and network development for Turner Entertainment; and vice president of entertainment marketing for TNT. Lucas also spent several years in brand management for The Coca-Cola Company and Clorox.

Lucas received an MBA in Finance and Marketing from Wharton and BS Industrial Engineering from Georgia Tech.

William Plapinger was a partner for almost three decades (and is now Senior Counsel) at the global law firm Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, and has dedicated most of his time since 2012 to the not-for-profit sector, primarily education, as well as conservation and the arts.

Plapinger’s legal practice focused on corporate finance and M&A in more than 30 countries, with particular emphasis on large, complex, financial transactions, many of which were the first, largest or most significant of their kind. He was resident in the firm’s London office for 25 years, and had both firm-wide and regional management responsibilities, including as managing partner of that office, coordinator of the firm’s European offices, and a member of the firm’s Managing Partners Committee.

In the education sector, he is a member of the boards of directors of The Posse Foundation and Global Citizen Year, and formerly was the chair of the board of trustees of Vassar College for 12 years, a Commissioner on the U.S.-U.K. Fulbright Commission, a trustee of the American School in London, and a director of the Conference of Board Chairs of Independent Liberal Arts Colleges. Over the last several years, he has worked with partners on an innovative venture to provide affordable financing to African students at the world’s leading universities.

In the conservation sector, he is a member of the board of directors of Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation, the largest private land trust on Martha’s Vineyard, MA, and in the arts sector, in addition to being a member of the board of trustees of the Sundance Institute, he was a co-founder and member of the board of directors of the American Friends of the British Museum.

Plapinger is a graduate of Vassar College and New York University School of Law, attended Westfield College (University of London), and was a Fellow in 2013 and 2014 in the Advanced Leadership Initiative at Harvard University. He and his wife of almost 40 years, Cassie Murray, split their time between Martha’s Vineyard and New York City, and have three grown children.

Junaid Sarieddeen is a theatre actor, director, dramaturge, and a founding member of Beirut-based Zoukak Theatre Company (2006). He has directed several theatre plays with Zoukak and other artists including, “Ish Ibka…” (2007), “Lucena / Obedience Training” (2013), “Heavens” (2014), “The Jokers” (2017), and “36 Abbas street, Haifa” (2017). As a dramaturge, Junaid worked on several theatre and dance performances, including “Mahalli” (2012), “Fatmeh” (2014), “Leila’s Death” (2015), “May he rise…” (2017) and “NIGHT” (2019), and performed in more than 20 productions in the past fourteen years, touring in multiple cities and festivals around the world. He is a trainer on the use of theatre in various educational, social, and psychosocial contexts, and since 2016, a fellow artist of the Sundance Theatre Program where he took part in various Theatre Labs, both as a director and dramaturge in the USA and the MENA region.

Establishing Zoukak has provided Junaid a broad experience in art direction, curating cultural events and festivals, in addition to the knowledge in the management of non-governmental and cultural associations. He was a member of several initiatives focusing on cultural policies and other social and cultural issues in Lebanon including, censorship, public space, cultural heritage, and history.

For its artistic and social engagement, Zoukak received the Ibsen Scholarship award (2012), the Anna Lindh Foundation’s Euro-med Dialogue Award for social resilience and creativity (2014), the Honorary Citizenship of the City of Palermo (2017), the Praemium Imperial Award for Young Artists from the Japan Arts Association (2017), the Chirac Foundation Award of Culture for Peace (2017) and the Ellen Stewart International Award (2018).

Junaid holds a BA in Theatre and a BA in Philosophy from the Lebanese University. At present, he is pursuing his Masters at the Saint Joseph University in Beirut.

Sundance Institute
As a champion and curator of independent stories for the stage and screen, the nonprofit Sundance Institute provides and preserves the space for artists in film, theatre, film composing, and digital media to create and thrive. Founded in 1981 by Robert Redford, the Institute’s signature Labs, granting, and mentorship programs which are dedicated to developing new work and take place throughout the year in the U.S. and internationally, are supported largely through contributed revenue. Sundance Co//ab, a digital community platform, brings artists together to learn from each other and Sundance Advisors and connect in a creative space, developing and sharing works in progress. The Sundance Film Festival and other public programs connect audiences and artists to ignite new ideas, discover original voices, and build a community dedicated to independent storytelling. Sundance Institute has supported such projects as Clemency, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Zola, On The Record, Boys State, The Farewell, Honeyland, One Child Nation, The Souvenir, The Infiltrators, Sorry to Bother You, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, Hereditary, Call Me By Your Name, Get Out, The Big Sick, Mudbound, Fruitvale Station, City So Real, Top of the Lake, Between the World & Me, Wild Goose Dreams and Fun Home. Join Sundance Institute on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

(Press release provided by Sundance Media Relations Office)

Posted and reviewed by Larry Gleeson during the 2020 AFI FEST presented by Audi.

Citizen Penn, written and directed by Don Hardy, provides a glimpse into Actor/producer/writer/director/humanitarian Sean Penn. Often characterized and stereotyped by early-career exploits of consistently making news headlines for punching cameramen, his political viewpoints, and marrying the world’s most recognizable pop star of the time, Madonna, Penn has diligently changed his image through extensive efforts to aid assistance to his fellow ‘man’ in war-torn, disaster laden, disaffected countries beginning in 2002 with the war in Iraq right up to the current COVID-19-infected United States, Penn’s home country. Hardy has amassed numerous photographs, direct interviews, and archival news footage, documenting the devastation and suffering along with footage from one camera operated by a Haitian police officer who accompanied Penn at all times following the country’s 2010 earthquake. Penn was adamant about his efforts not being used for overt publicity but allowed the official to have and operate a camera at his own discretion.

In 2002, Penn’s efforts in Iraq were viewed disdainfully as just another celebrity seeking attention or the limelight to jumpstart a flailing career. As noted, Penn had some off-screen issues while married to Madonna. Yet, in 2001 he received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal of Sam Dawson in I Am Sam and in 2003 Penn took home the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal of Jimmy Markum in Mystic River. Also, in 2009 Penn took home his second Oscar for his portrayal of Harvey Milk, in Gus Van Sant’s Milk, a dramatic biographical portrayal of California gay rights activist, Harvey Milk, who became the first openly gay elected official. According to IMDb, Penn has received 117 award nominations along with 74 wins from a myriad of film groups and associations.

Nevertheless, when the massive 7.0 earthquake hit the country of Haiti killing 250,000, injuring another 300,000, and displacing nearly 1,500,000 people, and Penn landed on the ground to render assistance, he was met with sideways glances and once again was looked upon as a celebrity seeking attention. And, according to Penn’s own words in Citizen Penn, he had initially landed to simply distribute 14,000 Chinese water filtration kits and 350,000 doses of ketamine and morphine pain medicines he had gotten from Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez after seeing the suffering of the Haitian people on television news coverage. Penn had seen the poor suffering in Venezuela and supported Chavez’s revolutionary efforts to provide relief to the suffering and has been widely criticized by US government officials.  Still, when a celebrity lands a helicopter in a war zone or declared disaster area, news cameras seem to follow. Penn was on CNN being questioned what he was doing in Haiti and why he specifically felt he could help the Haitian people?

Penn’s medicinal relief needed refrigeration and only one location of Port au Prince could effectively store the needed stockpile. As his group, soon thereafter formally known as J/P HRO, settled into an abandoned, hidden location for the night, Penn was surprised the next morning to discover a tent city of tens of thousands (initially 30,000) of dislocated Haitians on what once was a golf course.  Unlike other celebrities who dipped in and out of Haiti, Penn stayed on the ground for several months returning often guiding not only relief efforts but also debris and gravel removal. As his organizational efforts expanded, Penn enticed international aid worker, Ann Lee, to become the group’s leader. A once markedly different characteristic of the Haitians, according to Penn, was their willingness and zeal in being a core component of the recovery process.

As Lee accepted the helm, she and Penn altered their mission and started CORE (Community Organized Relief Effort) primarily from their outcomes and experience during the Haiti mission. The basic premise learned from the willingness of the younger Haitians, is to provide experiential training to younger individuals in areas affected and predisposed to being affected by disasters, so their communities are able to respond and recover quickly during states of emergency. Most recently, CORE has responded to COVID in providing 1.3 million tests to low-income communities in the Greater Los Angeles area. As wonderful a humanitarian as Penn and Lee are, the cost of undertaking relief efforts and providing community support is overwhelming. In order to get people in crisis what they need for basic survival, Penn began hosting an annual gala raising several million dollars from a limited guest list. Archival footage of Penn’s growing frustration over the years is on full display as archival from successive years is shown.

I’ve long been a fan of Sean Penn’s as an actor beginning with his Mick O’Brien role in the 1983 Bad Boys (post-Jeff Spicoli, Fast Times at Ridgemont High) and I was semi-aware of his Haiti relief efforts in 2010, just not to such an extent. Citizen Penn was a great way to catch up. Highly recommended.

Posted  and reviewed by Larry Gleeson

Wolfwalkers, an Apple Original Film from Cartoon Saloon, the Kilkenny, Ireland, animation studio that previously produced The Secret of Kells (2009)  and Song of the Sea (2014) completes an Irish folklore animated trilogy spanning slightly more than ten years and is one of the most breathtakingly beautiful films I have had the pleasure of viewing and experiencing. Utilizing two-dimensional hand-drawn techniques with a plethora of pastel colorations, eye-catching geometrical patterns combined with Celtic music featuring harps, violins and a sundry of woodwind instruments, artists Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart take their previous efforts to another level visually, and, in my opinion, produce their strongest work to date. Wolfwalkers made its US Premiere during this year’s American Film Institute’s AFI FEST presented by Audi and was the recipient of the festival’s Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature.

Wolfwalkers is set in 17th-century Ireland, a time of great change with successive transfers of land from catholic to protestant ownership and where administrative and political power passed into the hands of a new English minority (Irish Historical Studies, Vol. 15, No. 60, Sep 1967, pgs. 366-375).  Literary references to the Arthurian Camelot myth and to historical figure Oliver Cromwell are smoothly incorporated as well. Moore and Stewart encapsulate this situation in a magical friendship that develops between two young girls, Robyn and Mebh. Robyn is a “townie” who along with her wolf-hunter father, Bill, is sent from England and tasked with ridding the woodland outside of the town of wolves.  Mebh, on the other hand, is a wild girl who is being raised by wolves. “After being told to stay within the city walls, Robyn sneaks out to explore the magical world of the forest where she meets Mebh, and undergoes a secret transformation, turning into the very thing her father is sent to destroy creating a final battle between the wolf pack and townsfolk.” – Sarah Harris, AFI Festivals Director of Programming,

Artistically, Moore and Stewart felt the use of hand-drawn frames is not limited by aspect ratios of a camera allowing for an expression beyond realism in constructing the worlds of Wolfwalkers. For example, the visual contrast between the town and forest is represented by the aggressive lines and darker colors of the town versus softer lines and earthier, impressionistic tones of the forest. In the Q & A conversation with AFI Festivals Director of Programming, Sarah Harris, Moore and Stewart explained their choice in representation as an attempt to portray Robyn’s life in town as controlled and Mebh’s life in the forest as free, energetic, and out of control. Both agreed the stylistic attempts in drawings and the incorporation of split screens and vertical panels were somewhat experimental and the inspiration came from the 2018 Best Animated Feature Film Oscar-winning work, Spider-man: Into the Spider-verse , the 2005 Frank Miller and Quinten Tarantino Sin City, and from the early Expressionist films whereby frames were hand-painted to create coloration.

Wolfwalkers, steeped in historical significance, is a film the whole family can watch and is set to be released theatrically on October 30, 2020, by WildCard in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and on November 13, 2020, by GKIDS before debuting on Apple TV+ on December 11, 2020. Highly recommended!

Posted by Larry Gleeson

Knitting Factory Entertainment and Kino Lorber Partner for Fall Film Festival

Festival is Latest Component of Two-Tier Deal, Offering First-Run Selections And Library Titles Under KinoMarquee Banner and Kino Now

https://kinomarquee.com/series/knitting-factory-fall-film-festival

For Immediate Release

New York, NY (October 12, 2020) – Leading national entertainment group Knitting Factory Entertainment (KFE) will present a curated KNITTING FACTORY FALL FESTIVAL, a “mini film festival” of five feature films from Kino Lorber, the veteran and well-respected theatrical, educational and home entertainment distributor of independent, foreign and classic films, further expanding Kino’s leading position in the new world of “virtual cinema.”

Beginning October 9, 2020, viewers at home anywhere can watch the five films as much as they want during a 30-day period from launch with a $US20.00 pass. Individual films are available for one-week rentals for $8.00 each. The five films for the Knitting Factory Fall Festival are:

• GORDON LIGHTFOOT: IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND is co-directors Martha Kehoe and Joan Tosoni’s exploration of the career, music, and influence of legendary Canadian musical icon Gordon Lightfoot. With unprecedented access to the artist, their documentary follows Lightfoot’s evolution from Christian choirboy to troubled troubadour to international star and beloved Canadian icon. (2019; TRT: 90 minutes; Canada; English with English Closed Captions)

• AIN’T IN IT FOR MY HEALTH: A FILM ABOUT LEVON HELM. Director Jacob Hatley’s intimate documentary finds Levon Helm at home in Woodstock, NY, in the midst of creating his first studio album in 25 years. Shot during the course of more than two, this highly anticipated film focuses in on the four-time Grammy winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member after his 2007 comeback album, Dirt Farmer, brought him back to the spotlight after his years of success with The Band. (2010; TRT: 83 minutes; US; English)

• GRACE JONES: BLOODLIGHT AND BAMI. This electrifying journey through the public and private worlds of pop culture mega-icon Grace Jones contrasts musical sequences with intimate personal footage, all the while brimming with Jones’s bold aesthetic. Sophie Fiennes’s documentary goes beyond the traditional music biography, offering a portrait as stylish and unconventional as its subject: a larger-than-life entertainer, an androgynous glam-pop diva, and an enduring, unpredictable media presence. (2018; TRT: 115 minutes; U.K., Ireland; English)

• SONJA: THE WHITE SWAN. Directed by Anne Sewitsky, SONJA is the story of Sonja Henie, one of the world’s greatest athletes and the inventor of modern figure skating, who decides to go to Hollywood in 1936 to become a movie star. Her first film is a box office smash, selling the most tickets in the world in 1937. She becomes one of the richest women of her time, always surrounded by fans, lovers, and family, and never has a moment alone. As she gets older the spotlight begins to fade, but she refuses to quit. (2018; TRT: 113 minutes; Norway; Norwegian, subtitled in English)

• THE GREY FOX. After decades in prison, stagecoach robber Bill Miner (Richard Farnsworth) emerges in 1901 a free man without a place in 20th-century society…until he sees The Great Train Robbery and is inspired to once again do what he does best. THE GREY FOX is the only narrative in the series, coming from director Phillip Borsos. (1982; TRT: 92 minutes; Canada; English with English Closed Captions)

KFE has also curated several first-run Kino Lorber films as a bespoke offering, tailored to their community. This program began in June 2020 with the Justin Pemberton documentary CAPITAL IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY and Abel Ferrara’s 2019 Cannes Selection TOMMASO. Starring Willem Dafoe. These films were offered to the KFE audience prior to a virtual theatrical release to art houses and independent cinemas around the country. Going forward, Kino Lorber is planning to offer both more KFE-presented film and Knitting Factory-selected playlists of films from their vast library viewers can rent or own via their streaming platform Kino Now www.kinonow.com.

In this partnership, KFE joins a prestigious lineup of current and new curatorial groups, including The French Institute/Alliance Francaise and legendary news publication The New Republic, presenting a selection of classic films on KinoNow, which will be available to digitally rent or own.

“We’re living in a new world,” said KFE president/CEO Morgan Margolis. “To be able to continue providing entertainment to the public while supporting independent artists, we’re all going to have to be creative thinkers and Kino Lorber is providing a great platform for our new entertainment landscape.”

“As a brand, Knitting Factory has always stood for cutting-edge entertainment,” said Kino Lorber president and CEO Richard Lorber, “and the world in which we find ourselves requires the kind of agility that KFE has always brought to their business.”Knitting Factory Entertainment and Kino Lorber have some history together. Kino distributed the KFE-produced FINDING FELA, Alex Gibney’s 2014 documentary merging the life of the Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti with the genesis, Broadway run and tour of the musical Fela! KFE has produced other filmed entertainment as well, including THEY WILL HAVE TO KILL US FIRST: Malian Music in Exile, which follows Malian musicians’ fight to keep music alive after jihadist banned all forms of music in parts of the country starting in 2012; a limited rock & roll reality series Rock City LA; and a rock musician interview show.

Posted by Larry Gleeson

REGINA KING’S

ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI…

TO SCREEN MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2020, 7:30 AT THE ROSE BOWL

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — October 9, 2020, Los Angeles, CA — Today, the American Film Institute (AFI) announced that the 34th edition of AFI FEST 2020 presented by Audi has added a Centerpiece Drive-in screening to this year’s festival line-up. The Amazon Original film ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI… will screen at the Rose Bowl on Monday, October 19.  Directed by Academy Award® winner Regina King, the film takes place over one night with icons Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, and Jim Brown examining the civil rights movement.  Written by Olivier-nominated Kemp Powers, based on his 2013 stage play, ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI… is produced by Jess Wu Calder, Keith Calder, and Jody Klein, and King and Powers are executive producers. The film stars Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, and Leslie Odom Jr.

“Regina King’s directorial debut is a knock-out,” said Michael Lumpkin, Director of AFI Festivals.  “And AFI is proud to celebrate her boundless talents in a setting larger than life.”

About the film

On one incredible night in 1964, four icons of sports, music, and activism gathered to celebrate one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. When underdog Cassius Clay, soon to be called Muhammad Ali, (Eli Goree), defeats heavyweight champion Sonny Liston at the Miami Convention Hall, Clay memorialized the event with three of his friends: Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge).

Based on the award-winning play of the same name, and directed by Regina King, ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI… is a fictional account inspired by the historic night these four formidable figures spent together. It looks at the struggles these men faced and the vital role they each played in the civil rights movement and cultural upheaval of the 1960s. More than 40 years later, their conversations on racial injustice, religion, and personal responsibility still resonate. Amazon Studios will release ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI… in select U.S. theaters on December 25, 2020, and launching globally on Amazon Prime Video on January 15, 2021.

AS PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED

AFI FEST 2020 will take place online October 15-22, 2020, and will open with the World Premiere of I’M YOUR WOMAN (DIR Julia Hart) and close with the World Premiere of MY PSYCHEDELIC LOVE STORY (DIR Errol Morris).  The rest of the line-up can be found here.

Audi returns for the 17th year as the exclusive Presenting Sponsor of AFI FEST, enabling the festival to host the very best of world cinema. Audi and their visionary support reflect a continuing commitment to create opportunities for equality in film and television. Audi also supports AFI through the Audi Fellowship for Women, a full-tuition scholarship created in 2017 to support promising female directors entering the AFI Conservatory. This Fellowship is part of the Audi commitment to drive progress and a landmark investment in the future of the storytelling community.

Audi is the exclusive presenting sponsor of AFI FEST 2020. Additional top sponsors include AT&T and APPLE.

The full festival lineup and schedule will be unveiled in October. Passes will be available at FEST.AFI.com on September 28. Individual tickets will be available for purchase for AFI members and for the general public on October 7.

About the American Film Institute (AFI)

Established in 1967, the American Film Institute is the nation’s non-profit organization dedicated to educating and inspiring artists and audiences through initiatives that champion the past, present and future of the moving image. AFI’s pioneering programs include filmmaker training at the AFI Conservatory; year-round exhibition at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center and at AFI Festivals across the nation; workshops aimed at increasing diversity in the storytelling community; honoring today’s masters through the AFI Life Achievement Award and AFI AWARDS; and scholarly efforts such as the AFI Catalog of Feature Films that uphold film history for future generations.  Read about all of these programs and more at AFI.com and follow us on social media at Facebook.com/AmericanFilmInstitute, youtube.com/AFI, twitter.com/American Film and Instagram.com/AmericanFilmInstitute.

About AFI FEST presented by Audi
Now in its 34th year, AFI FEST presented by Audi is a world-class event, showcasing the best films from across the globe. With an innovative slate of programming, the eight-day festival historically presents screenings, panels and conversations, featuring both master filmmakers and new voices to enthusiastic audiences in Los Angeles. This year’s edition takes place online October 15-22, 2020, and is a diverse program of cinematic excellence that drives progress in filmmaking and film viewing. The festival includes Special Presentations consisting of appointment viewings of high-profile films with live virtual Q&As featuring the films’ cast and crew and a robust lineup of fiction and nonfiction features and shorts presented in established AFI FEST sections. Additional information about AFI FEST is available at FEST.AFI.com. Connect with AFI FEST at Facebook.com/AFIFEST, Twitter.com/AFIFEST, Instagram/AmericanFilmInstitute and YouTube.com/AFI.

About Audi of America
Audi of America, Inc. and its U.S. dealers offer a full line of German-engineered luxury vehicles. AUDI AG is among the most successful luxury automotive brands, delivering about 1.845 million vehicles globally in 2019. In the U.S., Audi of America sold just over 224,000 vehicles in 2019 and launched the brand’s first fully electric vehicle, the Audi e-tron – one of four fully electric models coming to the U.S. market in the next two years. Globally, the brand aims to be CO2 neutral by 2050. Visit audiusa.com or media.audiusa.com for more information regarding Audi vehicles and business topics.

*Featured photo by Patti Perrit

 ((Source: AFI Press Release)

Posted by Larry Gleeson

300 Initial Exhibitors Confirmed from Around the World

80+ Sessions Include Programming from Leading Industry Organizations

Online Campus to Present Unique, Interactive Networking Experiences

Los Angeles, CA – October 6, 2020 – The American Film Market today announced more details about AFM 2020 Online, including early exhibitors, plans for its biggest programming initiative to date, and its online platform that features highly engaging networking opportunities.  The event will take place wholly online and is set for November 9-13, 8:00AM – 8:00PM PST.

More than 300 exhibitors from 35+ countries have already registered, including such sales companies as AGC Studios, Arclight Films, Cornerstone, Fantawild Animation Inc., Filmexport Group, Film France, GAGA Corporation, Gaumont, Highland Film Group, Lionsgate, Millennium Media, Mister Smith Entertainment, Protagonist Pictures, Screen Media, Sierra/Affinity, Solstice Studios, STUDIOCANAL, The Exchange, TrustNordisk, and XYZ Films. The United States has the biggest exhibitor presence with 132 companies followed by Russia (26), the United Kingdom (22), France (14) and Germany (12).  The current list of exhibitors can be viewed here.

The AFM is also bringing its renowned Conference and educational programming online.  Attendees will be presented with a record 80+ live sessions and over 200 speakers who will partake in conferences, panels, workshops, conversations and presentations throughout the run of the market as well as have the opportunity to experience anything they miss with on-demand replays.

In keeping with its mission to provide timely guidance, insight, and knowledge, the AFM will present sessions centered on opportunities and solutions for finance, production and distribution in the wake of the pandemic.

Panels and presentations in partnership with some of the film industry’s most distinguished organizations and institutions will also take center stage, including AAFCA, BFI, The Film Collaborative, NAACP, NALIP, Outfest, SAG-AFTRA, SAGindie, The Black List, USC Annenberg Hollywood, Health & Society, WGAW, and Winston Baker.

AFM 2020 Online will present an interactive Market experience featuring eight dedicated areas.  The Networking Pavilion experience will be a truly unique and engaging destination for attendees as they can explore and join over 100 video discussions with small groups every hour offering tremendous opportunities for the types of “face-to-face” meetings and connections that happen organically on the AFM floor.

Other highlights of the AFM Campus include:

MyAFM (Where participants create profiles, discover other participants, send messages, and have Zoom meetings from inside the platform)

Industry Offices (where Sales and Production Companies are located),

LocationEXPO (home to Film Commissions and Production Facilities);

On-Demand Theatre (to watch Market Screenings);

AFM Stages (for Conferences and Programming);

Info Center (Video chat with AFM customer service team).

As previously announced, all accredited Buyers will receive complimentary credentials to AFM 2020 Online until October 23.  Today, more than 1,000 Buyers from 70 countries are confirmed.

More details will be announced in the coming weeks.  For more information and registration, please visit americanfilmmarket.com.

About the American Film Market® (AFM®)

The AFM is the most efficient film acquisition, development, and networking event in the world. More than US$1 billion in production and distribution deals are closed every year — on both completed films and those in every stage of development and production. Over five days in November, 7,000+ professionals from 70+ countries access the entire global catalog of available films and projects, attend world-class conferences, and connect with decision-makers. The AFM is produced by the Independent Film & Television Alliance.

(Source: AFM press release provided by Jennifer Garrick, VP, Communications, Independent Film & Television Alliance)