This weekend, I was hard at work trying to determine the list of films I want to see this year at Fantastic Fest. I thought I had a good plan laid out…then came this third and final wave of titles playing this year. Well, I guess it’s back to the drawing board. While I figure out what to cram in my eye sockets during the first half of the fest, I hope you get to enjoy the titles that the Alamo team have lined up. There really isn’t a bad one in the bunch. Aside from huge titles (like JoJo Rabbit, Knives Out, Parasite and In the Shadow of the…
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Second Wave of Feature Programming for FANTASTIC FEST 2019
Hot on the heels of the first wave announcement, the organizers dropped their next batch of awesome genre titles. Not every film is a new release or a world premiere. Several curated titles are being shown (resurrected, really) to tie into this year’s theme. The festival will show repertory titles from the AFGA (American Film Genre Archive) to help celebrate obscure cerebral and campy titles that help define genre filmmaking. One of the big league standouts this year will be the new film, Knives Out, from Rian Johnson. Before he brought the world Episode VIII, he wowed festival attendees with Looper. Can’t wait to see what he does with his…
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First Wave of Feature Programming for FANTASTIC FEST 2019
Hey, film fans! We’re less that 48 hours from our favorite time of year. The 15th annual Fantastic Fest (Austin’s own world-famous genre film festival) kicks off on September 19 and this year the team is really going all out to celebrate. I’m headed down there to cover the Fest for a 5th time, it never gets old. Why? Because of the plethora of screenings, events, world premieres, guests, and awesome fans, that’s why. Trust me, you’ll never have the same experience twice, and you’ll never imagine the things you’ll see or the people you’ll meet. Check out my recap from last year, and others in our Festival tab. Below,…
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Fantastic Fest Kicks Off This Week! 15 Films G-S-T Is Looking Forward To
Fantastic Fest 2012 kicks off this Thursday in Austin, TX. Dubbed the largest genre film festival in the US it specializes in horror, fantasy, sci-fi, action and just plain fantastic movies from all around the world. If you ever wanted to see really crazy films, this is the place as the features and shorts are bat shit nuts….just have a look at the insanely humorous categorical breakdown of the films. The full schedule has been released and Festival goers will be eager to see the Opening night and closing night films (respectively, Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie 3D and Red Dawn) but the real draw of the Fest are all the oddball films in between. Anyway before I head down…
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[SFF Coverage]…2012 Sydney Film Festival Recap
Between the 6th and 17th of June, the 2012 Sydney Film Festival screened more than 150 films to more than 120 000 Australian film goers…just one of whom was yours truly. Although not quite as large or prestigious Melbourne International Film Festival, there’s no doubt that Sydney’s standing has been improving in recent times. This year, programmers took particular advantage of their festivals convenient placement in the international film festival calendar, snapping up several features hot of their premiere at Cannes last month (and perhaps stealing some of MIFF’s thunder in the process). Amongst the Cannes titles, Michael Haneke’s Palme d’Or winning Amour and Leo Carax’s Holy Motors proved to be two of the highlights…
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Announcement: Oak Cliff Film Festival Runs June 14th – June 17th
This Thursday, June 14, kicks off the inaugural Oak Cliff Film Festival, brought to you by the film fanatics of Aviation Cinemas, also known as the guys who resurrected the Texas Theatre. Get your VIP badges, and beginning at 5 p.m., start the festival off right in the Texas Theatre’s New Belgium Filmmakers Lounge along with visiting filmmakers and other film lovers. Stick around for the festival’s Opening Night film, the modern day throwback to the 1950’s sci-fi thriller with a musical twist, The Ghastly Love of Johnny X, at 7:30 p.m., followed by a musical performance from local favorites, The King Bucks. The festival also features repertory picks, C.M. Talkington’s Love and a .45 and the…
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[IFFBoston Review]…V/H/S
V/H/S could very well represent the pinnacle of found footage horror cinema. Actually, it may be fairer to think of the film a “do this, not that” instructional presentation to other aspiring horror filmmakers. In turns, V/H/S demonstrates both how to do found footage well and how to fail miserably maneuvering within the sub-genre’s cinematic mode; in fits and spurts, the film is tense and incredibly scary, but when it doesn’t work, it really, truly does not work in the most embarrassing and chagrin-inducing ways possible. That’s a risk of omnibus/anthology filmmaking. Assemble a ragtag team of five different directors—David Bruckner, Adam Wingard, Ti West, Joe Swanberg, Glenn McQuaid, and…
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42nd Annual USA Film Festival – Schedule of Events
April is a busy month if you’re a film fan and from state to state you’ll likely find no shortage of great (sometimes back to back) film festivals. New York has Tribeca, Boston has the Independent Film Festival of Boston (which our own Andrew Crump is covering) and Dallas has two that nearly overlap. The Dallas based USA Film Festival only runs from April 25th – 29th but hosts a lot of note-worthy films and talent in those 5 days. All programs will be held at the Angelika Film Center Dallas. Below is the official Festival brochure which lists the films, special events, tributes, and actors/filmmakers coming to our neck of the woods.…
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DIFF 2012 Announces Honorees and Additions to Schedule
The Dallas International Film Festival presented by Boardwalk Auto Group Volkswagen Dealers announced today that a Dallas Star Award would be presented to one of the great legends of costume design, Mr. Bernie Pollack. DIFF also announced that rising star, Ms. Gabourey Sidibe will be honored with the Dallas Shining Star Award for the contribution she has made to film in her short, yet impressive career to date. Both Pollack and Sidibe will receive their awards at DIFF’s annual awards dinner, the Dallas Film Society Honors on Friday, April 20, 2012. Other announcements include the full line-up for the South Korean International Spotlight and programming duo James Faust and Sarah Harris have announced the titles of additional films which…
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Dallas IFF Announces Full Schedule for 2012 Festival
The Dallas International Film Festival, presented by Boardwalk Auto Group Volkswagen Dealers, announced today that the past president and CEO of United Artists and Orion Pictures respectively, Eric Pleskow, will be honored for his lifetime achievements in the film industry at the Dallas Film Society Honors on April 20. Also revealed is the full schedule of features and shorts that will be screened through the Festival’s 11-day run (April 12 – 22, 2012). Finally, the lucky filmmakers who win the Texas Competition category will enjoy a camera rental package worth $30,000 for their next production, courtesy of PANAVISION. In a year where key industry players and their achievements are celebrated…
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USA Film Festival & Angelika Film Center Host 'A Tribute to STUDIO GHIBLI'
As many of you already know I am a HUGE fan of the works and films of Studio Ghibli. That said, I wanted to let all you Dallas area film fans with a fondness for the works of Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata and the gifted story tellers from Studio Ghibli know about a 2 day event sponsored by the USA Film Festival. This weekend on January 21st and 22nd, The Angelika Film Center will be hosting 11 of the studio’s most famous and popular films in all new 35MM prints. (FYI, all films will be show in English except for Castle in the Sky) The Angelika will be showing: My Neighbor Totoro,…
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Beneath the Earth Film Festival – Official Selections Available On-Line NOW
Happy Friday everyone! A few months ago we posted that yours truly would be participating in the grand jury for an awesome off-the-grid film festival. Based in the Big Apple, the Beneath the Earth Film Festival set to find the best short films out there. The difference here is that the fest would be held exclusively “on-line”. Yup, no need to travel to NYC to partake, this free festival offers these ambitious short films right on the BTE website. I have to say that some of them are very very good and with a little luck I can see some of these filmmakers setting off on a future in film.
