Tag Archives: David O. Russell

SBIFF features a free ten-year anniversary screening of SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK followed by insightful Q & A

Posted by Larry Gleeson

Friday night at the 37th Santa Barbara International Film Festival Friday night featured a free ten-year anniversary screening of SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK.

Following the free screening an insightful Q&A with writer & director David O. Russell and editor Jay Cassidy, moderated by SBIFF Executive Director, Roger During, was held.

 

 

Highlights from the conversation included:

Director David O. Russell on the film’s focus on mental health: “The film for me was very personal, because in my family we have this… and Robert also had it in his family so he related to it, and Bradley and Jennifer were both gifted with a beautiful craziness themselves, so they related to it. I’ve had many people come up to me over the years who were grateful for the removal of the stigma.”

 

Editor Jay Cassidy on working with Bradley Cooper in the editing room: “His truth-ometer is very high and that was very helpful…He can really be hard on himself, on us, the cut, and that’s a great force to have around. His interest was not a couple of afternoons, his interest was weeks…that dedication we all grew to respect.”

 

David O. Russell on why the film still appeals to audiences ten years later: “I loved watching it right now! I was standing over there and I was crying and I was laughing…it just came out real nice and it’s a nice thing to look at and feel.”

 

Of note, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival joined Direct Relief to deliver aid in response to the Ukraine crisis. The fundraiser has reached over $92K! Please help us reach our goal of $100K by sharing the link to donate here: SBIFF.org/Ukraine.

 

(News release courtesy of Michelle Tarangelo, Sunshine Sachs)

AFI FEST 2016 Presented By Audi Announces Conversation and Presentations Lineup

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, LOS ANGELES, CA, NOVEMBER 4, 2016 — The American Film
Institute (AFI) today announced the Conversations and Presentations lineup for AFI FEST
2016 presented by Audi.

Highlights include an AFI Master Class on CITIZEN KANE with Peter Bogdanovich following a 75th anniversary screening of the film; Academy Award® nominee David O. Russell discussing the 20th anniversary of his sophomore feature FLIRTING WITH DISASTER; a panel on THE LOST CITY OF CECIL B. DEMILLE; director Barry Jenkins discussing his groundbreaking MOONLIGHT with cast members of the film; a roundtable of documentary filmmakers including Werner Herzog and Barbara Kopple, presented by the Los Angeles Times; The Hollywood Reporter Indie Contenders Roundtable with nine standout artists; and more. Click here to see the entire lineup release: afi-fest-2016-conversations-and-presentations-final

Free Tickets Available at AFI.com

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AFI FEST 2016 Cinema’s Legacy Lineup

AFI FEST 2016 presented by Audi has announced its annual Cinema Legacy’s lineup. This section highlights classic movies and, this year, is comprised of nine iconic titles from film history, including Orson Welles’ masterpiece CITIZEN KANE (1941), along with films featuring the three female film trailblazers adorning this year’s festival key art: CARMEN JONES (1954), starring Dorothy Dandridge; THE HITCH-HIKER (1953), directed by Ida Lupino; and PICCADILLY (1929), starring Anna May Wong. Additionally, the Cinema’s Legacy section will present AFI Conservatory alumna Julie Dash’s (Class of 1974) groundbreaking DAUGHTERS OF THE DUST (1991).

CINEMA’S LEGACY

CARMEN JONES – Dorothy Dandridge stars in the title role that made her the first African-American woman to be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar®. DIR Otto Preminger. SCR Harry Kleiner. CAST Harry Belafonte, Dorothy Dandridge, Pearl Bailey, Olga James, Joe Adams, Brock Peters, Roy Glenn, Nick Stewart, Diahann Carroll. USA

CITIZEN KANE – Orson Welles’ classic — number one on AFI’s list of the greatest films of all time — follows the tragic life of newspaper tycoon Charles Foster Kane. DIR Orson Welles. SCRS Herman J. Mankiewicz, Orson Welles. CAST Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles, Linda Winters, Agnes Moorehead, Ruth Warrick, Ray Collins, Erskine Sanford, Everett Sloane, William Alland, Paul Stewart, George Coulouris. USA

DAUGHTERS OF THE DUST – Filmmaker Julie Dash (AFI Class of 1974) weaves lush imagery and a poetic narrative in this tale of three generations of African-American slave descendants on a journey to the North. DIR Julie Dash. SCR Julie Dash. CAST Adisa Anderson, Barbara-O, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Cora Lee Day, Geraldine Dunston, Vertamae Grosvenor, Tommy Hicks, Kaycee Moore. USA

FLIRTING WITH DISASTER – In David O. Russell’s sophomore feature, Ben Stiller, Téa Leoni and Patricia Arquette play an oddball trio careening across America. DIR David O. Russell. SCR David O. Russell. CAST Ben Stiller, Patricia Arquette, Téa Leoni, Mary Tyler Moore, George Segal, Alan Alda, Lily Tomlin, Richard Jenkins, Josh Brolin. USA

THE HITCH-HIKER – A deranged hitchhiker takes two all-American Everymen as hostages in this gripping film noir classic. DIR Ida Lupino. SCR Ida Lupino, Collier Young, Robert Joseph. CAST Edmond O’Brien, Frank Lovejoy, William Talman, José Torvay, Sam Hayes, Wendell Niles, Jean Del Val, Clark Howat. USA

IL SORPASSO – A classic road trip comedy meets the most fabulous of odd couple pairings in Dino Risi’s IL SORPASSO, considered the holy grail of commedia all’italiana. DIR Dino Risi. SCRS Dino Risi, Ettore Scola, Ruggero Maccari. CAST Vittotio Gassman, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Catherine Spaak, Claudio Gora, Luciana Angiolillo. Italy

MIFUNE, THE LAST SAMURAI – This thoughtful, elegant documentary on Japanese cinema’s greatest actor, Toshiro Mifune, is a cinephile’s dream. DIR Steven Okazaki. SCRS Steven Okazaki, Stuart Galbraith IV. FEAT Keanu Reeves, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Kyôko Kagawa, Toshio Tshuchiya. Japan

PICCADILLY – Anna May Wong, the first Chinese-American movie star, is astonishing as a dishwasher promoted to the headlining act at outré London club Piccadilly. DIR Ewald André Dupont. Presented with live DJ accompaniment from Ms. 45s. SCR Arnold Bennett. CAST Gilda Gray, Anna May Wong, Jameson Thomas, King Ho-Chang, Cyril Ritchard, Charles Laughton. UK

SPEEDY – Special engagement of the silent film classic, presented with original live music accompaniment by DJ Z-Trip. The great Harold Lloyd stars in the title role as a man who hilariously tries to save the last horse-drawn streetcar in an increasingly modern New York City. DIR Ted Wilde. SCRS John Grey, Lex Neal, Howard Rogers, Jay Howe, Albert De Mond. CAST Harold Lloyd, Ann Christy, Bert Woodruff, Babe Ruth, Brooks Benedict. USA

Tickets to Cinema’s Legacy screenings will be available on AFI.com beginning November 1.

afi-fest-2011-logo-and-free-tickets

(Source: http://www.blog.afi.com)