Festivals & Events
Festivals & Events
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DOC NYC Expands Industry Program for 7th Edition
DOC NYC, billed as America’s largest documentary film festival, will expand its industry-focused programs for the seventh edition of the film festival. The New York-based festival will run from November 10-17, with the Visionaries Tribute luncheon taking place on November 10. “For six years, we’ve carefully nurtured our industry offerings to establish a must-attend gathering,” said DOC NYC artistic director Thom Powers in a statement. “Last year saw major growth under the new banner of DOC NYC PRO, the new conference location at Bow Tie Chelsea Cinemas and its new lounge. This is a vital networking hub for doc makers to get their future films […]
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Sundance Labs Announce 25 Film and Theater Projects and New “Multi-Lab” Setting
The Sundance Institute today announced the anticipated rosters for its Screenwriters Lab, Documentary Edit and Story Lab and new Theatre-Makers Residency as well as a major now presentation change. For the first time, these labs will run concurrently in a “multi-Lab” format at the Sundance Resort in Utah. But the format is not just an alteration of the calendar. Individual Lab Fellows will participate in portions of the other labs, giving these Sundance programs an interdisciplinary flavor. Said Keri Putnam, Sundance Executive Director, in a statement, “The unique gathering of independent voices, for the first time in a multi-Lab setting, […]
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How The Northwest Film Forum is Re-Defining the Role of the Regional Film Center
At a time when both traditional theatrical film exhibition and nonprofit operations are confronting new obstacles, Seattle’s Northwest Film Forum is re-defining the role of the regional independent film center. The recent promotion of 27-year-old Courtney Sheehan, from Artistic Director to Executive Director marks a new direction for the 20-year-old film center. Since Sheehan joined the organization as program director in 2013, The Northwest Film Forum has increased box office and ramped up audience engagement, donated hundreds of hours of venue rental space and staff time to community groups, and created new partnerships. Recent program partnerships include KEXP, Civilization, Fandor, Brick Lane Records, the University of Washington, the […]
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Five Questions with Namour Director Heidi Saman
Two years ago, Filmmaker featured Heidi Saman on our annual list of “25 New Faces of Independent Film.” The filmmaker and associate producer at NPR Radio’s Fresh Air had just concluded a successful Kickstarter campaign for her debut feature Namour and was beginning to prep for production. What a difference two years makes. Namour will have its world premiere in the LA Muse section of this year’s Los Angeles Film Festival, where it debuts on June 5. The story of Steven, a young Arab-American valet at a slick L.A. restaurant, caught between his dead-end job and the demands of his immigrant family, Namour references such disparate films as The Graduate and Taxi […]
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Five Questions with Tracktown Directors Alexi Pappas and Jeremy Teicher
It’s rare, if not unheard of: a first-time feature film director who is also an Olympic athlete. Such is the case with competitive long distance runner Alexi Pappis, who, along with her boyfriend Jeremy Teicher (one of Filmmaker‘s 25 New Faces of 2013), co-wrote and co-directed Tracktown, a new feature film which will have its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 4. In addition, Pappas, who will compete for Greece at the upcoming Summer Olympics in Brazil, stars as Plumb Marigold, a young Olympic hopeful trying to find balance in life. Filmed and set in the real-life “Tracktown,” […]
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Is It All About “Who You Know”? The Seven Steps Towards the IFP Narrative Labs
“It’s all about who you know.” That’s the suspicion when you’re a filmmaker trying to get the right kind of attention. I found this troubling because I knew absolutely no one. I kind of knew my mailman, but I could tell he wasn’t that into my movie when I talked to him. However, I was just selected for the IFP Narrative Labs with my film, A Bad Idea Gone Wrong. So, I went from an unenthusiastic relationship with a postal carrier to being in the IFP Narrative Labs. And you can too in seven easy steps! Step One: Write a […]
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“Ducking” Prison Drama Heartlock Heads to the IFP Narrative Labs
Have you heard of Richard Matt and David Sweat? They are the two convicts who engineered a meticulously plotted escape from a Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York last summer. The plan was set in motion once they were assigned to an inmate sewing shop, which was overseen by a female prison worker. The two convicts spent the next nine months methodically breaking down the personal and professional boundaries of their overseer — befriending her, coaxing her into a sexual relationship, and, finally, coercing her into assisting with their escape. Sadly, by the time all was said and done, […]
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How to Build Your Documentary’s Distribution Strategy
Gone are the days when if you were lucky enough to sell your documentary to a single distributor, they would take care of the rest. Though a select group of established documentary filmmakers still operate along those traditional lines, the majority of independent filmmakers working in documentaries today rely on a hybrid distribution plan in which theatrical, festivals, broadcast, educational, non-theatrical, and VOD rights are split. The upsides of a hybrid plan are that it potentially enables filmmakers to earn more revenue and also to develop a long-term audience. The downside? It means more work for filmmakers. A workshop at the recent Oregon […]
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IFP Announces Ten New Narrative Films for Its Filmmaker Labs
The IFP announced today the ten work-in-progress narrative films that will take part in its 2016 Narrative Lab. They include a romance shot in Ukraine in the months following the 2014 revolution; a drama about the astral travels of a comatose man during what may be the apocalypse; and a comedy about house thieves trapped inside a house by its high-tech alarm system. The filmmakers, all first-time feature directors, are attending this week in New York a series of programs and mentorship sessions providing feedback on their edits as well as advice and counsel on festival strategy, distribution deals, marketing, […]
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Cannes Dispatch #4: Thoughts on Awards, I, Daniel Blake, Risk, Elle
I won’t spend too much time bemoaning the Competition prizes handed out last night by George Miller’s jury. Their decisions sucked, just as the Coen brothers’ jury’s did, just as Campion’s did, just as Spielberg’s kinda did, just as Moretti’s very much did, and okay fine I’ll stop there. The best film way more often than not goes home empty-handed from these things, and it rarely matters. Maybe a few less people sought out Holy Motors because Nanni Moretti thought Leos Carax didn’t spend enough time developing his characters, or a few more people were curious to discover whatever the […]
