Posted by Larry Gleeson

The Agnès Varda eyes are clear and bright: this is how she appears in the press meetings, on stage for the exceptional preview of her latest effort and elaborate shot JR, the blow that the street artist in Paris pasted on cars a train, in selfies on Instagram and early plans Visages Villages . But if the physical myopia is a motif that recurs throughout the documentary out of competition at Cannes that has heated up the evening in Piazza Maggiore, certainly is not that the worldview that the director octogenarian sent in her latest work, straddling cinema and contemporary visual culture (fashion, street art, installation art, social media).

The imaginative power of the look, however, is one of the pillars of filmmaking: the artist’s eye not only knows how to observe with keenness the reality, but it can, representing it, to color it in his own way, and to bring the viewers outside the borders and inside dimensions that gradually become poetry in the making, in the practice of gestures, find themselves in these places.

But if we look, in fact, in Visages Villages (2017), and also to its immediate antecedent, Les trois boutons (2015) – the short film inside the Miu Miu Women’s series Tale – it is clear that Agnès Varda has been able to create a veritable palette of colors through which she expresses a world system that, far from being programmatic, however, tends to an end: the recovery of humanity, the sense of belonging, the pleasure of meeting, and the reshaping of femininity within new spaces, both physical and cultural.

The two films, when viewed in close sequence, seem to come from the same palette: there are common characters (the mailman and the picture of him, in which a small female figure, Jasmine, the young protagonist of the short film, receiving parcels and letters now turns into a poster monumental poster of grandeur), recurrent landscapes (a gentle, quiet countryside), same attendance (the inevitable white goats). But in hindsight, the closest connection that unites them is precisely that set up of color, highly nuanced and opaque, made small despite its brilliance.

There is blue, declined both in turquoise, is in its most cold colors and light. The first is the color of a more benevolent sky, whether it be the small countries of the North of France – it is to enlighten the South streets to the cemetery where is buried Henri Cartier-Bresson. This is not mere aestheticism, but the search for an inner being that favors the meeting with him (in the case of Jasmine) or the other (in Visages Villages ). The second trend can be sweet or melancholy: Jasmine is always dressed in a light blue, as well as the postman wearing his sugar paper uniform in both films. It is a color that also returns in the shutters of the houses, but soon instilled in the gray posters by JR. They are the colors of the light, but also the color of the atmosphere, quell’impalpabilità that Leonardo da Vinci had designed to give the impression of spatial distance, and that we find in many of the shots Visages Villages where Varda and JR are shown over-the-shoulder, peering towards the sea or at a lake horizon. Along with the tenderness of the two are the closeness to people and to the world – there is always the cold shadow that photography brings, the harbinger of a film of the uncanny, as perceived by one of the girls that is observed in amazement at the posting of her country.

The variations of the indefinite colors are ocher, ice, sand making of houses, water towers, the beach at the cliff –  a façade, still under construction of memorable places: Varda reminiscent of Guy Bourdin, a fleeting image on bunkers collapsed and washed away by the tide. Yet, Varda and JR reproduce a desert Louvre and gilded the famous Godard race scene in Bande à part.

But, finally, there is room for more iridescent, though rarefied, by an increasingly opaque use of light: there is the pure white goat with horns (symbol, perhaps, of a simplicity to be respected, and perhaps to imitate), there are fuchsia and burgundy of the magic suit of Jasmine and the same in Agnès Varda’s clothes. And, there are greens and a bright red container at the center of springing the wives of stevedores at the port of Les Havres. This is why the femininity proposal by Varda is strong, free, independent, and stands next to the things of the world, never behind them.

—-Beatrice Seligardi

Posted by Larry Gleeson

By Staff Writer

Melbourne’s December Media has established a distribution arm to handle films made for IMAX and giant screen theatres.

Known as December Media Distribution, the unit will be headed by Mark Bretherton and will distribute both December Media’s films as well as those from other producers. The first film on the slate will be December’s Earth Story, currently in production.

“We have been producing films for IMAX and giant

screen theatres for six years and we have a long term commitment to the industry,” said Tony Wright, executive chairman of December Media.

“We believe we now have a very capable and experienced team able to carry out our own distribution. It’s a logical step forward for December in the evolution of our giant screen business.”

 

December Media’s head of giant screen Stephen Amezdroz said that all the key players in the giant screen industry have a vertically integrated business model, with both production and distribution handled in-house.

“It’s a business model that makes sense and I believe we’ve reached the stage where we are equipped to do this successfully,” he said.

Bretherton, the new unit’s head, has worked in the IMAX and giant screen space for over 20 years and is a former CEO of World’s Biggest Screens Pty Ltd, the operators of the IMAX Theatre Sydney. He has released over 90 giant screen films in Australia, and served on the board of international body the Giant Screen Cinema Association.

“Ever since I first met Stephen Amezdroz, I’ve been impressed with the way December Media have entered the giant screen industry,” Bretherton said.

“They have invested time and energy really understanding the market and their first two film releases have demonstrated how successfully that has been achieved. Their forthcoming slate of films is exciting and relevant to the industry and I really look forward to introducing those titles to exhibitors.”

 

 

 

(Source: Inside Film Magazine, if.com.au)

Posted by Larry Gleeson

SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED AT CLOSING NIGHT GALA

 

The 64^th Sydney Film Festival awarded On Body and Soul, directed by Ildikó Enyedi, the prestigious 10th anniversary Sydney Film Prize, out of a selection of 12 Official Competition films.

The $60,000 cash prize for ‘audacious, cutting-edge and courageous’ film was awarded to Enyedi at the Festival’s Closing Night Gala awards ceremony and event at the State Theatre, ahead of the Australian premiere screening of Bong Joon-ho’s Okja.

Accepting the award, Enyedi said, “It was such an amazingly strong competition. It’s marvellous that such a film can move so many people, it gives me so much hope in cinema and in human communication.”

Sydney filmmakers Sascha Ettinger Epstein and Claire Haywood were awarded the Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary’s $10,000 cash prize for The Pink House, about the last brothel in old mining town Kalgoorlie.

The Dendy Awards for Australian Short Films saw the $7000 cash prize for the Dendy Live Action Short Award going to Adele, directed by Mirene Igwabi.  Sunday Emerson Gullifer was Highly Commended for her short film Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow.  And Daniel Agdag’s animation Lost Property Office took out both the $7000 Rouben Mamoulian Award for Best Director and the $5000 Yoram Gross Animation Award.

The Event Cinemas Australian Short Screenplay Award, a $5,000 prize for the best short screenwriting, was awarded to Michael Cusack, the writer and director of stop motion animation After All.  And the writers of Screenability short film The Milky Pop Kid, Johanna Garvin and Emily Dash, were Highly Commended.

The $10,000 Sydney-UNESCO City of Film Award, bestowed by Create NSW to a trail-blazing NSW-based screen practitioner, went to Indigenous Australian actor, director and writer Leah Purcell.

Chris Freeland announced he will step down as Sydney Film Festival Chair while remaining on the Board.   Freeland, a Partner of Baker McKenzie and a member of its Asia Pacific Regional Council, chaired the organisation for eight years.  He led an era of expansion as well as industry and public popularity, seeing attendances almost double.

Festival Board Director Deanne Weir was welcomed to the position of Chair. Weir has over 25 years’ experience in media and communications and is Foxtel’s Managing Director, Content Aggregation and Wholesale.  She is also a renowned television producer and philanthropist whose passion is to support the advancement of women in the community.

Sydney Film Festival CEO Leigh Small said, “This year again, the Festival exceeded previous attendance figures – a continuing ten-year trend. There was an average of 72% capacity across all sessions with almost 185,000 attendances. This result marks a fitting end to Chris Freeland’s eight year tenure during which the number of people attending the Sydney Film Festival almost doubled.”

Sydney Film Festival Director Nashen Moodley said: “2017 has been a significant year for film and filmmakers.   As the world looks for ways to understand and interpret the momentous events and challenges facing humanity, filmmakers across the globe have risen to the challenge.

“From refugees and the horrors of war, to the state of the world’s oceans,  this program of films – screened to Australian audiences for the first time at the 64^th Sydney Film Festival – has provided an opportunity to debate and discuss some of the most pressing and contentious issues of our time.

“With a spotlight on questions of equality in race, sexuality, wealth, accessibility, and many other global conversations, these 12 days have provided a wealth of stories from diverse viewpoints and a moment in time to take stock of who, what and where we are today.

“I congratulate all the winners and all of the finalists, as well as the hundreds of filmmakers who have joined us at the Festival to present their ideas and opinions in films, talks and discussions,” he said.

THE SYDNEY FILM PRIZE

On awarding the Sydney Film Prize to Hungarian filmmaker Ildikó Enyedi’s On Body and Soul, Jury President Margaret Pomeranz said:

“Over the past 12 days we’ve experienced a most extraordinary cinematic journey curated by Sydney Film Festival.

“We’ve seen films about women struggling to find a space for themselves in a world that seems to want to keep them in their place; there have been films about transgressions, from youthful murder to child abuse.

“We’ve seen films about the many faces of sexual desire; we’ve been invited into worlds of wonder we have never experienced and we’ve been exposed to the ugly side of ourselves, through racism, poverty, cruelty and displacement.  And we’ve also been invited into the world of human compassion.

“And that element of compassion is very present in the film we’ve chosen to award the Sydney Film Prize.  It’s a film that shows us that even in this divided world we are capable of sharing the same dreams, that amongst the ugliness of a slaughterhouse, kindness, gentleness can be found,” she said.

“So the Sydney Film Prize goes to the graceful, measured and ever so compassionate On Body and Soul from Hungarian filmmaker Ildikó Enyedi.”

Winner of the Berlinale Golden Bear, On Body and Soul is Enyedi’s visually ravishing return to filmmaking after an 18-year break.  The film is about the unconventional romance between two co-workers who discover that each night they have exactly the same dreams.

The Festival jury was comprised of Australian film critic Margaret Pomeranz, critically acclaimed Nepali director Deepak Rauniyar, former senior film executive of South Korean powerhouse CJ Entertainment Kini Kim, independent Asian-Canadian animator Ann Marie Fleming, and Australian film producer Rosemary Blight of smash-hit The Sapphires and acclaimed television series Cleverman.

Previous winners include: Aquarius (2016), Arabian Nights (2015); Two Days, One Night (2014); Only God Forgives (2013); Alps (2012); A Separation (2011); Heartbeats (2010); Bronson (2009); and Hunger (2008).

The competition is endorsed by FIAPF, the regulating body for international film festivals, and is judged by a jury of five international and Australian filmmakers and industry professionals.

THE DOCUMENTARY AUSTRALIA FOUNDATION AWARD FOR AUSTRALIAN DOCUMENTARY

The Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary was awarded to The Pink House from filmmakers Sascha Ettinger Epstein and Claire Haywood. The Jury comprising award-winning Asian-American filmmaker Ramona S. Diaz, CEO of the Documentary Australia Foundation Dr Mitzi Goldman and Australian based Iranian filmmaker Amin Palangi in a joint statement said:

“Amongst ten noteworthy films, one film enthralled us with its blend of nuanced characters and narrative depth.

“In classic cinema verite fashion, the filmmaker introduces us to two singular women who give her unfettered access to their constantly changing lives, revealing a profound trust between filmmaker and subject that renders this film deeply personal and intimate.

“Through the unflinching gaze of her lens, this filmmaker immerses us in a world that, in less disciplined hands, could very well have been voyeuristic.  Instead we are treated to a film that is handled with affection and grace.”

“We the Jury give the Australian documentary prize to Sasha Ettinger Epstein and Claire Haywood for The Pink House.”

2017 marks the fourth year the prize has been supported by the Foundation.

Previous winners include: In the Shadow of the Hill (2016); Only the Dead (2015); 35 Letters (2014); Buckskin (2013); Killing Anna (2012); Life in Movement (2011); and The Snowman (2010). In 2009 the inaugural prize was shared between Contact and A Good Man, and each film received a $10,000 cash prize.

The 10 finalists for the 2017 Sydney Film Festival Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary are listed HERE.

THE DENDY AWARDS FOR AUSTRALIAN SHORT FILMS

The Dendy Awards for Australian Short Films were awarded to Mirene Igwabi for Adele (Dendy Live Action Short Award), Sunday Emerson Gullifer for Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow (Highly Commended), and Daniel Agdag for Lost Property Office (Rouben Mamoulian Award for Best Director and Yoram Gross Animation Award). The Jury comprised Canadian filmmaker Kirsten Carthew, former Vice President of Paramount Pictures Mike Selwyn, and Australian film producer Kath Shelper. In a joint statement, the Jury said:

“This year’s Jury was particularly excited by the exceptional talent that continues to emerge from Australia’s animation sector.

“We were captivated by the original and diverse stories and variety of animation techniques presented in both the Dendy Awards and in the rest of the Festival.

“Lost Property Office stood out for its direction, storytelling and exquisite visuals that could only have been realised through animation, which was the perfect choice of medium to tell this story.”

The Festival’s short-film competition is now in the 48^th year; and has been sponsored by Dendy Cinemas for 29 years. Winners of the Best Live Action Short Film award and the Yoram Gross Animation award, sponsored by Yoram Gross Films, are Academy Award-eligible, opening new pathways for many Australian filmmakers.

These ground-breaking awards have kick-started the careers of many prominent filmmakers, with past competitors Warwick Thornton, Ariel Kleiman, Cate Shortland, Jane Campion, Phillip Noyce and Ivan Sen among Dendy Awards alumni.

The 10 finalists for the 2017 Dendy Award for Australian Short Film are listed HERE.

EVENT CINEMAS AUSTRALIAN SHORT SCREENPLAY AWARD

A jury comprising Canadian filmmaker Kirsten Carthew, former Vice President of Paramount Pictures Mike Selwyn, and Australian film producer Kath Shelper awarded the Event Cinemas Australian Short Screenplay Award to Michael Cusack, the writer and director of stop motion animation After All. Highly Commended the writers of Screenability short film The Milky Pop Kid, Johanna Garvin and Emily Dash.

Sponsored by Event Cinemas, Anthony Kierann, Area General Manager, Event Cinemas said:

“Event Cinemas is proud to once again sponsor The Event Cinema’s Australian Short Screenplay award.  Events acknowledges and supports the idea, concept and vision of a short film as penned by the writers in this exciting category.

“To be able to participate and support an outstanding written script by an Australian at this iconic film festival, we hope to encourage and support the writer towards inspiring development and achievements in the film landscape. We applaud all the short films within the category as stand out short films from the writers.”

The Australian short films eligible for the 2017 Event Cinemas Australian Short Screenplay Award are listed HERE.

Winners of all Sydney Film Festival awards are presented with the Festival’s signature mesmeric swirl award, designed and handmade in Sydney by Festival partners Dinosaur Designs.

The UNESCO Sydney City Of Film Award

The $10,000 Sydney-UNESCO City of Film Award, bestowed by Create NSW to a trail-blazing NSW-based screen practitioner, went to Indigenous Australian actor, director and writer Leah Purcell.

ABOUT SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL

From Wednesday 7 June to Sunday 18 June 2017, the 64^th Sydney Film Festival offers Sydneysiders another exciting season of cinema amidst a whirlwind of premieres, red-carpet openings, in-depth discussions, international guests and more.

Sydney Film Festival also presents an Official Competition of 12 films that vie for the Sydney Film Prize, a highly respected honour that awards a $60,000 cash prize based on the decision of a jury of international and Australian filmmakers and industry professionals. Previous Sydney Film Prize winners: Aquarius (2016); Arabian Nights (2015); Two Days, One Night (2014); Only God Forgives (2013); Alps (2012); A Separation (2011); Heartbeats (2010); Bronson (2009); and Hunger (2008).

The Festival takes place across Greater Sydney: at the State Theatre, Event Cinemas George Street, Dendy Opera Quays, Dendy Newtown, Skyline Drive-In Blacktown, Art Gallery of NSW, Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace Cremorne, Randwick Ritz, Casula Powerhouse, the Festival Hub at Sydney Town Hall and SFF Outdoor Screen in Pitt Street Mall.

The Festival is a major event on the New South Wales cultural calendar and is one of the world’s longest-running film festivals. For more information visit: www.sff.org.au.

The 64^th Sydney Film Festival is supported by the NSW Government through Screen NSW and Destination NSW, the Federal Government through Screen Australia and the City of Sydney. The Festival’s Strategic Partner is the NSW Government through Destination NSW.

(Source: Media release provided by image.net)

 

Posted by Larry Gleeson

103 Films From 28 Countries
Including Three World Premieres and 11 Spotlight Screenings
Will Screen June 14–18 in Washington, DC, and Silver Spring, MD

Tickets to AFI DOCS 2017, happening June 14–18, 2017, in Washington, DC, and Silver Spring, MD, are now available to the public. Highlights from this year’s lineup include AN INCONVENIENT SEQUEL: TRUTH TO POWER; CITY OF GHOSTS; THE REAGAN SHOW; WHITNEY. “CAN I BE ME”; to name a few.

Get tickets here

“The 2017 slate of films reflects AFI DOCS’ mission to celebrate powerfully told stories and the people at the heart of them,” said Michael Lumpkin, Director, AFI DOCS. “Documentaries continue to play an important role in our country regardless of partisan lines. No matter your background, these human stories have the power to inform and inspire. We look forward to another year of dynamic nonfiction cinema.”

As previously announced, AT&T — the Presenting Sponsor of AFI DOCS — will host the Opening Night East Coast premiere screening of ICARUS (DIR Bryan Fogel). The festival’s Closing Night Screening will be YEAR OF THE SCAB (DIR John Dorsey). Both films will be screened at the Newseum, ­­the festival’s Official Gala Screening Partner.

The 15th edition of AFI DOCS will showcase 103 films representing 28 countries — including three world premieres, two international premieres, three North American premieres, seven U.S. premieres and five East Coast premieres.

This year’s program includes 11 Spotlight Screenings, a selection of some of the most anticipated documentaries of the year: the world premiere of ATOMIC HOMEFRONT (DIR Rebecca Cammisa), DOLORES (DIR Peter Bratt), AN INCONVENIENT SEQUEL: TRUTH TO POWER (DIRS Bonni Cohen, Jon Shenk), the U.S. premiere of MAMA COLONEL (DIR Dieudo Hamadi), the international premiere of MOSQUITO (DIR Su Rynard), NEW CHEFS ON THE BLOCK (DIR Dustin Harrison-Atlas), THE REAGAN SHOW (DIRS Pacho Velez, Sierra Pettengill), the U.S. premiere of RECRUITING FOR JIHAD (DIRS Adel Khan Farooq, Ulrik Imtiaz Rolfsen), RUMBLE: THE INDIANS WHO ROCKED THE WORLD (DIRS Catherine Bainbridge, Alfonso Maiorana), the world premiere of TOUGH GUYS (DIRS Henry Roosevelt, W.B. Zullo) and WHITNEY. “CAN I BE ME” (DIRS Nick Broomfield, Rudi Dolezal). The festival will also feature nine virtual reality films in this year’s program as part of the VR Showcase.

Newly announced films from notable documentarians include ACORN AND THE FIRESTORM (Oscar^® nominee Samuel Pollard), CITY OF GHOSTS (Oscar^® nominee Matthew Heineman), I AM EVIDENCE (Oscar^® nominee Trish Adlesic, Emmy^® winner Geeta Gandbhir) and TAKE EVERY WAVE: THE LIFE OF LAIRD HAMILTON (Oscar^® nominee Rory Kennedy).

AFI DOCS also will offer special programs for festival filmmakers and audiences as a way to connect with industry and policy leaders, including the AFI DOCS Forum, open to documentary professionals and to festivalgoers, and the Impact Lab, a two-day intensive program designed for filmmakers to create broader social and political change through the power of story and film. More information about these programs will be announced soon.

In addition, AFI DOCS will host the VR Showcase, inviting audiences to participate in immersive virtual reality experiences that represent the cutting edge of documentary storytelling.

Audience Awards will be bestowed upon films based on the results of ballots cast by festival attendees. The winners of the Audience Awards for Best Feature and Best Short will be announced on Monday, June 19.

Tickets to AFI DOCS 2017 are now available exclusively to AFI members, and will be available to the public starting on May 15. Passes are now on sale to both members (at a discounted rate) and the public at AFI.com/afidocs. To become an AFI member click here.

Source: AFI Announces Full Slate of AFI DOCS 2017 Films