Vail, Colorado (March 30, 2015) — The 12th annual Vail Film Festival, which took place March 26 – 29, 2015, in one of the United States’ premier resort destinations, Vail, Colorado, is pleased to announce the official award recipients for this year’s festival, supported by signature sponsors the Town of Vail, School, Archaea Mass, Lagunitas, Volvo and the Vail Marriott, which served as the Host Hotel.

The 12th annual Festival showcased 74 films from across the globe, including 25 feature-length narrative and documentary films and 49 other films, including shorts, animated and student films. Throughout the duration of the Festival, passholders enjoyed numerous film screenings, parties, events, and a hospitality lounge. Beyond the film screenings and nightly parties, the Festival presented the annual Friday Night Concert, presented by L.A.’s renowned Hotel Café.

“We are tremendously proud of this year’s film program, which received rave reviews from attending guests and filmmakers. We'd like to congratulate the 2015 award winners and all of our filmmakers for their outstanding work,” said Scott Cross, Vail Film Festival Co-director. “The 2015 Vail Film Festival was a great success. We are thankful to the filmmakers, patrons, volunteers, staff, and sponsors for their generous support.”

The 2015 Vail Film Festival Jurors recognized outstanding films in the following categories:

·         Best Feature Film – SLOW WEST

SLOW WEST, winner of the 2015 Sundance Film Festival World Cinema Grand Jury Prize. Written and directed by John Maclean and starring Michael Fassbender, Kodi Smit-McPhee and Rory McCann, SLOW WEST follows a 16-year-old boy on a journey across 19th Century frontier America in search of the woman he loves, while accompanied by mysterious traveler Silas.

·         Best Documentary – BECOMING BULLETPROOF

BECOMING BULLETPROOF, written and directed by Michael Barnett and starring Will Halby and AJ Murray, tells the story of a diverse group of disabled people from across the U.S. taking on leadership roles in a magical rip-roaring costume drama Western, filmed on vintage Hollywood locations. This riveting film within a film raises questions about why we so rarely see disabled actors on the big screen.

·         Best Short Film – OH LUCY!

OH LUCY!, directed by Atsuko Hirayanagi, is a film about Setsuko, a 55-year-old single ‘office lady’ in Tokyo, who is given a blonde wig and a new identity, “Lucy,” by her unconventional English instructor. “Lucy” awakens desires Setsuko never knew she had.

·         Best Student Film – SCUMBAG

SCUMBAG, written and directed by Luke Spears, is a tale of an investment banker who is forced to desperate action after a chance encounter with a face from his past.

·         Audience Award for Best Environmental Film – MEXICO PELAGICO

MEXICO PELAGICO, written and directed by Jeronimo Prieto, focuses on the Pelagic Life team that is chasing the elusive sardine baitball in the open ocean near Baja, California, when they stumble upon a crude shark fishing operation that sparks a seismic shift in the group’s thinking. MEXICO PELAGICO invites the audience to engage with Mexico’s rich and majestic oceanic treasures, to be inspired and awed to take up the mantle of respect and conversation through ecotourism.

·         The 2015 Audience Award – THE GRAND SEDUCTION

THE GRAND SEDUCTION, directed by Don McKellar and starring Brendan Gleeson, Taylor Kitch, Liane Balaban and Gordon Pinsent, is a story about a dying Newfoundland fishing village that in attempt to survive, must convince a young doctor to take up residence by any means necessary.

2015 Vail Film Festival official sponsors include Town of Vail, School, Archaea Mass, Lagunitas, Volvo, Comcast Spotlight,  the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, SAG Indie, Vail Daily, Always Mountain Time, TV8, Dollar Rent a Car, Colorado Mountain Express, Slifer Smith & Frampton, Avon Theater, Vail Resorts, Resort Internet, Final Draft, ResortApp, Salem Baking, Justin’s Nut Butter, and Pretzel Crisps.

Festival lodging partners include Host Hotel Vail Marriott, as well as Vail Racquet Club, Evergreen Lodge, Simba Run, Sitzmark, Triumph properties, Sun Vail, Antlers at Vail, Vail’s Mountain Haus, the Lodge at Vail, The Inn & Suites at Riverwalk, The Tivoli Lodge, and The Arrabelle at Vail Square.

The festival’s Official Charity partner is Vail Veterans Program. Through rehabilitative sports and recreation activities the Vail Veterans Program helps to rebuild confidence and provide a sense of freedom from catastrophic injuries. The Vail Veterans Program is provided free of charge to wounded warriors and their families giving them much needed time away from the hospital and offering them hope for the future. For more information, please visit www.vailveteransprogram.com.

For more information about the Vail Film Festival, please visit: www.vailfilmfestival.com.

About Vail Film Festival

The 12th Annual Vail Film Festival, co-founded by Scott Cross and Sean Cross, took place March 26 – March 29, 2015 in Vail, Colorado. Festival activities included film screenings, panel discussions, live music, nightly galas, the filmmaker reception, and the closing night awards ceremony. The Vail Film Festival is produced by the Colorado Film Institute, a 501(c)3 nonprofit arts organization dedicated to fostering independent cinema.

About Vail

Coveted as one of the largest ski resorts in the world with more than 5,200 acres of skiable terrain, seven legendary Back Bowls spanning seven miles, and the most groomed terrain on the planet, Vail has been an extraordinary winter vacation destination for passionate skiers and snowboarders for more than 50 years. It is home to world-class athletes during the U.S. Ski Team early-season training sessions in Golden Peak, the Burton US Open Snowboarding Championships and the 2015 World Alpine Ski Championships. Under blue skies more than 300 days each year, friends and families reconnect and celebrate here from year to year and generation to generation. The vacation experience is exceptional, from the Vail Ski & Snowboard School to events, activities and festivals, shops and spas, abundant culinary experiences and luxurious accommodations. Coupled with the vision inherent in the spirit of Vail’s founders, and a modern day commitment to excellence in all aspects of guest service and operations, Vail is a mountain resort like nothing on earth. For more information on a Vail vacation, please visit www.vail.com.

With more than 85,000 visitors and 2.500 professionals each year, the Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film (ITFS, May 5-10, 2015) is one of the biggest and most important animation festivals worldwide. Since 2011, the ITFS presents the Animated Com Award, with prizes for applied animation in the categories of advertising, spatial communication and technology.

The jury has chosen 50 high class films, from 141 submitted international productions, for this year's shortlist of the Animated Com Award. Ten of them were nominated for the three prize categories. Additionally Daimler AG awards the extra prize “Future needs Derivation – Mobility in a Digital World” and U. I. Lapp GmbH the „Lapp Connected Award“.

The award ceremony will take place as a gala event at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart on May 8, 2015. Among other highlights, keynote speaker Jörn Großhans, VFX Supervisor at Mackevision – recently Emmy-awarded for “Game of Thrones” – gives insights into his work.

The Mercedes-Benz Museum is the ideal location for the Animated Com Award ceremony. Situated directly outside the factory gates at the parent plant in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim, the museum acts as a portal into Stuttgart city. The double helix depicts the almost 130-year evolutionary process of the automobile, taking in the history of the Mercedes-Benz brand and its predecessors. The architectural design of the Mercedes-Benz Museum embodies a place of innovation and demonstrates that history can point the way ahead.

http://www.mercedes-benz.com/en/mercedes-benz/classic/museum/

Please find attached the full list of nominees.

Here you can find all information on the highlights of Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film 2015: http://www.itfs.de/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Highlights_Presse_EN..pdf

All ITFS competitons: http://www.itfs.de/en/festival/competitions/

Since 2011 the International Uranium Film Festival in Rio de Janeiro awards its "Yellow Oscar" to the best nuclear films of the festival. Now April 25, 2015, the festival will honour the winners of the 5th International UraniumFilm Festival in Quebec-City. Here is the list (pdf) with all awarded films until 2014. www.uraniumfilmfestival.org

The Portland Film Festival is excited to announce its inclusion in the Moviemaker Magazine list of "50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee." 

MovieMaker has compiled the list of film festivals for over 10 years, recently expanding it from 25 to 50. The criteria for selection include a complex analysis over a broad range of topics.

According to MovieMaker Magazine, "festivals around the world were sent a survey encompassing such criteria as travel compensation, value of prizes, acceptance/submissions ratio, alumni relations, networking and press opportunities, quality of panels, workshops, and even parties."

MovieMaker then ranks the answers on a point system and "looks into some helpful testimonials from circuit-weary moviemakers" to arrive at 50.

This is the first year that the Portland Film Festival was included on the prestigious list, but second time it completed the questionnaire. Other Oregon festivals included this year include Bend and Ashland. Even the Governor's Office of Film, Oregon Film, chimed in on their Facebook Page, "We knew it, you knew it, and now everyone knows it!"

"It's always an honor to be noticed. And knowing that others appreciate our efforts is heart warming—the real people we need to thank are the countless volunteers and thousands of hours they have donated to make the festival a reality," said Executive Director Josh Leake, "and let's not forget the sponsors and the filmmakers themselves—together we support our mission of bringing more independent film, cast, crew and filmmaking events and education to Portland."

Portland Mayor Charlie Hales added to the city's designation of the "city of roses," by also naming Portland the "city of film" during the week-long festival. This year's festival is scheduled Septemeber 1-7 including Labor Day weekend. Last year hundreds of filmmakers associated with over 145 screened films made the trek to Portland, making it the largest film festival for filmmakers by filmmakers in the state.

The Portland Film Festival has already established itself as Portland’s leading film non-profit, with hundreds of screenings, events, education programs and community partnerships providing a unique opportunity for our diverse audience to connect with filmmakers working in all different genres and forms. In addition, the festivals hosts dozens of film and television professionals, offering filmmakers a chance to forge new relationships across the industry. In November, MovieMaker named the Portland Film Festival as one of the “25 coolest film festivals of the world.”

Submission Platforms

• Withoutabox
• Film Freeway
• Film Festival Life
• Direct Submission

Deadlines

• Regular Deadline – April 14, 2015
• Late Deadline – May 6, 2015
• Extended Deadline – May 15, 2015
• Final – May 22, 2015

24th Edition of the Shorts-only Festival is a Wrap!

Europe's premier event for independent cinema, ÉCU - The European Independent Film Festival announces its 2015 award-winning films, including its highest honor, "Best European Independent Film 2015".

After showcasing 84 films from 32 countries, ÉCU 2015 ended its indie-packed weekend with a spirited final ceremony recognizing 25 award winners in 14 categories. Winners included: THE ANKLET, directed by Guillaume Levil (France) for Best European Independent Dramatic Short; ROSEVILLE, directed by Martin Makariev (Bulgaria) for Best European Independent Dramatic Feature; and OUT OF REACH (RAIN NIGHT), directed by Pablo Diartinez (Belgium) for Best European Independent Experimental Film. Tannaz Hazemi took home Best Director for BEFORE THE BOMB (USA), while the most prestigious award at the festival for Best European Independent Film 2015 went to HERE LIES (United Kingdom), directed by Duncan Ward.

During the festival weekend, international audiences were granted unprecedented access to films and their filmmakers from across the spectrum of experience, culture and genre. Director Q&A sessions provided a formal setting for discussion between spectators and directors on filmmaking as both a business and an art form, while after-parties throughout Paris extended these conversations into music-fueled early morning hours. ÉCU endeavors to provide a cultural platform not only for entertainment, but also for active networking across the independent film world.

For the last 10 years, ÉCU has been launching and expanding careers for many talented independent filmmakers. The festival is extremely proud to help further the careers of these passionately driven artists who create incredible cinema without the benefits of large production budgets. ÉCU's mission to discover and promote extraordinary independent films from around the world propels its position as a major European cultural event.

"Seeing as this is the 10th year, I'm so happy to be here. I'm fascinated as it is a really, really strong festival and it genuinely has an independent sensibility about it." commented Duncan Ward, director of HERE LIES, winner of Best European Independent Film 2015. 

Scott Hillier, Academy Award-honored filmmaker and ÉCU President, remarked that "it was a great honor to showcase such an incredible array of films this past weekend," adding that "if these are the storytellers of the future, then they certainly offer insight into what this next generation of filmmakers can do."

For a full list of ÉCU - The European Independent Film Festival's 2015 award winners, please visit  www.ecufilmfestival.com.

After five days of festival, the seventh edition of Go Short was a great success. Just like last year, the festival has grown. On Saturday 11 April Go Short announced the award winners of the European Competition, the Dutch and the Breaking Short Student Competition, and the Youth Award. These prizes are handed out by two international jury’s and a youth jury. In the European competition, the prize winning fiction film is Aïssa, Hotel Straussberg won the award for best documentary, the reaction of Jan Soldat: “I was happy and surprised that my film was selected for the festival, I didn’t think of winning the award!”PLANET ∑ received the award for best art film andHouse of Unconsciousnessis crowned as best European animated film. The youth jury gave If Mama Ain’t Happy, Nobody’s Happy the prize for the Youth Award. On Sunday 12 April the Audience Award was announced. We Can't Live Without Cosmos is chosen as the audience favorite.

Go Short Audience Award to the value of€ 1.500,-

We Can't Live Without Cosmos

Konstantin Bronzit / animatie / Rusland / 2014 / 15’

Audiences favorites top 5: 1. We Can't Live Without Cosmos by Konstantin Bronzit 2. Meantime by Christian van Duuren 3.The Bigger Picture by Daisy Jacobs4. Yes We Love by Hallvar Witzø5. If Mama Ain’t Happy, Nobody’s Happy by Mea de Jong

NTR Go Short Award for Best European Short Fiction Film to the value of€ 1.250,-

AïssaClément Tréhin-Lalanne / France / 2014 / 8’

Jury: “Refreshingly concise and socio-politically resonant with a very strong central performance, this film raised a lot of questions in a challenging way.”

NTR Go Short Award for Best European Short Documentary to the value of€ 1.250,-

Hotel StraussbergJan Soldat / Germany / 2014 / 7’

Jury: “A daring yet tender and humane observation that does not make easy spectacle of its subject matter.”

Special Mention documentary

Super Unit Teresa Czepiec / Poland / 2014 / 20’

Jury: “Thought-provoking parallels between cinema and architecture were drawn in this human and fluid portrait of an enclosed community.”

NTR Go Short Award for Best European Short Art Film to the value of€ 1.250,-

PLANET ∑ Momoko Seto / France / 2014 / 12’

Jury: “A visually stunning creation of an alternate universe with an otherworldly soundscape. It merges micro and macro elements inventively.”

NTR Go Short Awards for Best European Short Animation Film to the value of € 1.250,-

House of Unconsciousness Priit Tender / Estonia / 2014 / 10’

Jury: “A feast of fantasy using rich animation language that constantly transforms in surreal ways.”

Special Mention animation film

We Can't Live Without Cosmos Konstantin Bronzit / Russia / 2014 / 15’

Jury: “A funny and nuanced twist on the heroism narrative that is also a genuinely warm tale about friendship.”

VEVAM Go Short Award for Best Dutch Short Film to the value of€ 2.500,-

Among us Guido Hendrikx / The Netherlands / 2014 / 23’

Jury: “A film that puts us into the unconfortable situation between rejection of and empathy for its protagonists. The film is neither apologetic, nor is it judgemental. Through a convincing combination between form and content it showes the inner workings and twisted emotions of protagonists that we would normally instantly judge.”

Dioraphte Encouragement Award for Best Student Short Film to the value of€ 5000,-

Mother EarthPiotr Zlotorowicz / Poland / 2014 / 30’

Jury: “It was impossible to ignore the power, raw emotion and impressive skill with which this film was made. We felt that the film touched on a classical theme, yet the filmmaker managed to surprise and move us within every aspect of this great piece of work.”

Special Mention student film

The Bigger PictureDaisy Jacobs / United Kingdom / 2014 / 7’

Jury: “The convincing, fluent storytelling and original animation technique of this film left no doubts about a special mention.“

Go Short Youth Award to the value of € 750,-

If Mama Ain’t Happy, Nobody’s Happy  Mea de Jong / The Netherlands / 2014 / 25’ / doc

Jury: “The winning film is very special and different from all the others we have seen. The characters are spontaneous and the long conversations very interesting to watch, even with only talking heads. Time flew when watching this film. This film is the best short doc we have ever seen and we recommend it to everyone!”

Format Court Award

Among us Guido Hendrikx / The Netherlands / 2014 / 23’ / doc

Solar World Cinema Green Award

Timber Nils Hedinger / Switzerland / 2014 / 6’ / ani

The European Film Academy proudly announces and congratulates the three nominees for the EFA Young Audience Award 2015: 

The nominations were chosen by an international committee consisting of Per Eriksson, Swedish Film Institute, Beata Marciniak, New Horizons Association (Poland) and Paola Traversi, Museo Nazionale del Cinema (Italy). 
 
On Young Audience Film Day on 3 May, the three nominated films will be screened to audiences of 12 – 14 year-olds in the following 25 cities across Europe: 

And it is the young audience that will act as a jury and vote for the winner right after the screenings. In a truly European vote, jury speakers will then transmit the national results live via video conference to Erfurt (Germany) where the winner will be announced in an award ceremony streamed live on yaa.europeanfilmawards.eu, a special website that offers further information about the nominated films and the participating cities.

This year’s fourth edition of the EFA Young Audience Award with a record 25 participating countries is realised with the following partners: Art Fest (Bulgaria), BFI British Film Institute, BUFF (Sweden), Children KinoFest (Ukraine), Cinematheque Tel Aviv (Israel), Creative Europe Desk Malta&  Culture Directorate Ministry for Justice, Culture and Local Government (Malta), DokuFest (Kosovo), EducaTIFF (Romania), Estonian Film Institute, EYE Film Institute Netherlands, Film Center Serbia, Filmoteca de Catalunya (Spain), German Children’s Media Foundation GOLDEN SPARROW, Hellenic Film Academy (Greece), Hungarian National Film Fund, Macedonian Film Agency, Museo Nazionale del Cinema & Film Commission Torino Piemonte (Italy), National Film Centre of Latvia, New Horizons Association (Poland), NNLE Noosfera Foundation (Georgia), Otok - Institute for the Development of Film Culture (Slovenia), University College Northern Jutland, The Centre for Educational Resources (Denmark), Visegrad Film Forum (Slovakia), Yapimlab & Edge (Turkey) and Zagreb Film Festival (Croatia). 

The European Film Academy Young Audience Award is organised and presented by the European Film Academy and EFA Productions with the support of the Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (MDM). The national Young Audience Film Day events will be organised with the support of the respective national partners. The DCP production is supported by dcinex, Ymagis Group.

Berlin, 31 March 2015

Disposable Film Festival congratulates this year's award winners! Selected from thousands of films, these are the among the best short films of the past year. 

Winners will receive prize packages valued at over $25,000 from Adobe, Outpost Studios, Color A Go-Go, iStabilizer, and Alite Designs. 
 

34TH ISTANBUL FILM FESTIVAL MEETINGS ON THE BRIDGE AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED

The 10th edition of the Meetings on the Bridge was held on 15-16 April 2015 within the scope of the Istanbul Film Festival.

The workshops at the Meetings on the Bridge provided 8 feature films and 2 documentaries, along with 1 feature film and 1 documentary at the post-production stage, from Turkey, made their first international presentations. A total of 100 international filmmakers who came to Meetings on the Bridge to meet and network with the filmmakers from Turkey had a total of 450 meetings with the directors and producers of the projects and films in the workshops.

Upon the presentations in the Film Development Workshop, the international jury determined the award winners. The projects to receive support from the Turkish-German Co-Production Development Fund were determined by the fund representatives. The projects and films that won awards and fund support were announced at a ceremony held at the Cezayir Restaurant on the night of 16 April, Thursday.

The Award Ceremony opened with speeches by Istanbul Film Festival Director Azize Tan and Head of Meetings on the Bridge Gülin Üstün.

Winners of the Film Development Workshop

The selection committee selected 10 projects out of the 120 applications for the Film Project Development Workshop held for the 8th time within the scope of the Meetings on the Bridge.

• Anons / The Announcement (Mahmut Fazıl Coşkun)

• Av / The Hunt (Emre Akay)
• Bir Baba ve Oğulun Ölümü / The Death of Father and Son (Zekeriya Aydoğan)
• Çarpık Ev / The Crooked House (Sinem Sakaoğlu)
• Hafiye / The Detective (Mehmet Sait Korkut)
• Hayatı Beklerken / Waiting for Life (Ayşe Toprak)
• Herşey O.K / Everything’s O.K (Theron Patterson)
• Iguana Tokyo (Kaan Müjdeci)
• Nebula / Dead Horse Nebula (Tarık Aktaş)
• Yanlama / Ghetto Drifters (Dağhan Celayir)

The international jury comprising of Gabrielle Dumon (Le Bureau Films), Giovanni Robbiano (Mediterranean Film Institute - MFI), Khalil Benkirane (Doha Film Institute), Meinolf Zurhorst (ZDF), and Sergio Garcia De Leaniz (Eurimages) decided on the award winning projects.

Tarık Aktaş, director of Dead Horse Nebula received the Meetings on the Bridge Award of USD 10,000 from Gabrielle Dumon.

The project of Zekeriya Aydoğan, The Death of a Father and Son was presented 10,000 Euro CNC Award by Fanny Aubert Malaurie, The Cultural Attache of France.

Melodika Sound Post Production Award was presented to Mahmut Fazıl Coşkun for his project The Announcement, by Didem Oğuz, the co-founder of Melodika.

The Mediterranean Film Institute (MFI) Script and Development Workshop Award, which comprises four stages, was presented to Sinem Sakaoğlu for her project The Crooked House by Giovanni Robbiano from MFI. The director and scriptwriter of the project will participate in the scenario workshops, two of which will be on the Nisiros and Samos Islands of Greece in 2015 and two of which will be online.

Work in Progress Workshop

5 films were selected for the Work in Progress Workshop in its 5th edition within the scope of the Meetings on the Bridge, which aims to support feature films and documentaries in their post-production stage.

Following the cancellation of the screening on 12 April, a majority of films in the National Competition, National Documentary Competition, International Competition, Cinema in Human Rights Competition, Out of Competition, and New Turkish Cinema sections of the 34th Istanbul Film Festival decided to not be screened. The festival announced that the film screenings would continue, but the National and International Golden Tulip Competitions, National Documentary Competition and the Closing Ceremony were cancelled.

Following these incidents, 3 of the films that were selected for the Work in Progress Workshop decided to cancel the presentation of their films and therefore, the Work in Progress Award within the scope of the Meetings on the Bridge was also cancelled.

The 2 films that were presented to the distributors, sales companies and festival representatives within the Work in Progress Workshop are:

Ben Apaçi Değilim / I Am not Apache - Director Aytunç Akad, Producers Cahit Binici, Onur Koçak (İkinci Parti Prodüksiyon)

Mavi Bisiklet / Blue Bicycle - Director Ümit Köreken, Producer Nursen Çetin Köreken (Drama Film Prodüksiyon),
 

The offline editings of the films that are in the workshop are watched by Karel Och (Karlovy Vary Film Festival), Rickard Olsson (Picture Tree International) and Stienette Bosklopper (Circle Films) and then they made one to one meetings with the directors and the producers of the films.

Turkish-German Co-Production Development Fund

The projects to be supported by the Turkish-German Co-Production Development Fund were also announced at the ceremony. Granted for the fifth time, this fund, formed by collaboration of Istanbul Film Festival Meetings on the Bridge, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, and Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein Film Fund, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Turkey, aims to provide an incentive fund for the co-productions by the two countries.

Out of the 10 projects that applied, 7 of them were chosen unanimously by the jury that comprises the representatives of the collaborating institutions.

The projects to be supported by the Turkish-German Co-Production Development Fund are as follows:

Mehmet Can Mertoğlu – Albüm / Album – 30.000 AVRO

Co-producers: Yoel Meranda- Kamara Film (TR), Alexander Ris- Neue Mediopolis Filmproduktion (DE)

Hüseyin Karabey- Hamarat Apartmanı / Hamarat Apartment- 20.000 AVRO

Co-producers: Hüseyin Karabey- Asi Film (TR), Alexander Ris- Neue Mediopolis Filmproduktion (DE)

Nefin Dinç – Antoine Köpe’nin Hatıraları / The Memoirs of Antoine Köpe – 20.000 AVRO

Co-producers: Gamze Paker – Atlantik Film (TR), Titus Kreyenberg- Una Film (DE)

Melisa Önel – 16 – 10.000 AVRO

Co-producers: İpek Kent- Yedi Film (TR), Ufuk Genç- Cine Chromatix (DE)

Çayan Demirel – Kardeş Türküler / Songs of Fraternity – 10.000 AVRO

Co-producers: Ayşe Çetinbaş- Surela Film (TR), Zülfiye Akkulak- Newa Film (DE)

Erol Mintaş – Kargalar / Crows – 15.000 AVRO

Co-producers: Erol Mintaş- Mintaş Film (TR), Verena Graefe-Hoet (DE)

M. Cem Öztüfekçi – Boş Zamanlar / Idle Moments – 10.000 AVRO

Co-producers: Annamaria Aslanoğlu- İstos Film (TR), Titus Kreyenberg- Una Film (DE)

Neighbours Project

The Meetings on the Bridge launched a new project in its 10th edition, the Neighbours with a view to inviting film projects from the neighbouring countries. This project aims to increase cultural interaction and enhance dialogue with our neighbours and encourage new collaborations in co-productions in order for creators of same or similar cultural backgrounds to work together. The filmmakers of the chosen projects had nearly 80 meetings with international film professionals during the course of the workshops. The 3 projects that participated in the Neighbours section of the Meetings on the Bridge are as follows.

• Forgiveness (director Sadaf Foroughi, producer Majid Barzegar) - Iran

• Manji (director Tinatin Kajrishvili, producer Lasha Khalvashi) - Georgia

• Radiogram (director Rouzie Hassanova, producer Gergana Stankova) - Bulgaria

Panels and Master Classes

The 11 panels and master classes that were held for free on 5-16 April within the scope of the Meetings on the Bridge attracted great attention from filmmakers.

In the lecture, “Different Approaches To Show Reality In Documentaries” Arash T. Riahi, one of the directors and producers of the film Everyday Rebellion, informed the audience on approaches and various sub-genres in documentaries.

Reha Erdem met with the attendees for a master class after the screening of Kosmos.

In the lecture “Editing Shaped by Human Perception”, experienced editor Çiçek Kahraman talked about the nature of editing and its contribution to the perspectives in films, based on the films she had edited.

In the panel “Creative Europe”, moderated by the producer of The Impeccables Emine Yıldırım, Kamen Balkanski, the Director of the Bulgarian Creative Europe Desk, and Hale Ural, the Coordinator of Creative Europe Desk Turkey, shared detailed information about media applications.

After the screening of the documentary Remake Remix Rip-off, which is on popular adaptations in Yeşilçam movies and copy-culture, the film’s director Cem Kaya and Kunt Tulgar, director of many popular adventure movies in Yeşilçam, together with director-producer Ali Yorgancıoğlu, founding partner of Dirty Cheap Creative, gave a lecture on making films on low-budgets.

In the lecture “Did I Forget Something? Marketing!” Christina Pelekani and Tuğçe Taçkın first talked about the conventional and alternative marketing models in the world and then discussed the marketing preferences in Turkey.

Moderator Tuğçe Taçkın hosted Shani Geva from Archer Gray, Merrill Sterritt from Film Presence, and Filmbox executive and SPI International’s Turkey Representative Güney Yasavur as speakers in the panel “New Trends On Distribution, Audience Engagement And Funding”. The speakers discussed online funding, building audiences, and alternative screening channels.

In the panels, “Meet the Markets and Training Programs” and “Meet the Funds”, which were both held for the first time this year, managers of world’s leading markets and funds, such as Berlinale, Cinéfondation, EAVE, Film Centre Serbia, Eurimages, and City of Sarajevo, informed the participants on the application processes for their funds and answered the questions.

Script consultant Anita Voorham and sector consultant and Meetings on the Bridge Advisor Tobias Pausinger gave a lecture on scriptwriting stage and the writing process, discussing the different methods of work and sharing useful tips.

The master classes at the Meetings on the Bridge culminated with the lecture “Current and Future Challenges in Film Producing” by Israel Film Fund Manager Katriel Schory. Schory talked about teamwork, fund developing, and the world of co-production.

Bringing together producers, directors, scriptwriters, and institutional representatives from Turkey and Europe, the Meetings on the Bridge provides feature projects and films at the post-production stage in Turkey opportunities to receive their first international presentations. The Meetings on the Bridge, an international platform where filmmakers can present their projects and find the support required to start the production process, will continue to bring the international representatives of the sector together with filmmakers from Turkey, within the scope of the Istanbul Film Festival in its next edition.

For more information about the Meetings on the Bridge:

film.iksv.org/tr/koprudebulusmalar/

onthebridge@iksv.org

To follow Meetings on the Bridge on social media:

facebook.com/koprudebulusmalar

twitter.com/koprudebulusmalar

For more information about the 34th Istanbul Film Festival:

film.iksv.org

To follow Istanbul Film Festival on social media:

facebook.com/istanbulfilmfestivali
twitter.com/istfilmfest
istfilmfest.tumblr.com
instagram.com/istfilmfest

Seeking Volunteers for the 2015 Los Angeles Film Festival, June 10 - 18 at L.A. LIVE

Now in its twenty-first year, the Los Angeles Film Festival showcases the best in new American and international cinema and provides the movie-loving public with access to some of the most critically acclaimed filmmakers, film industry professionals and emerging new talent by bringing them together in the heart of the entertainment capital of the world.

Our volunteers are a key component to making the Festival work. As a volunteer, you get the opportunity to go behind the scenes and be at the forefront of the Festival. Volunteers at the LA Film Fest are ambassadors for the filmmaking community and help ensure an enjoyable experience for both our Festival filmmakers and guests. Whether it’s working in theater operations, answering ticketing questions, or setting up a Q&A panel, volunteers help bring to life a world-class cinematic event.

Requirements:

*Volunteers must attend one mandatory orientation meeting prior to the Festival (May 27 or May 30, 2015)

*Volunteers must work a minimum of 16 hours during the Festival (June 11 – 19, 2015)

Visit shiftboard.com/filmindependent and register to volunteer today.

Visit www.lafilmfest.com/festival-info/volunteer/ for more details on Volunteers and Interns.

Email volunteers@filmindependent.org with any questions.

TIFF’s national film outreach program, revealed that audiences across the country awarded Don McKellar’s The Grand Seduction and Ritesh Batra’sThe Lunchbox as winners of the 11th annual Film Circuit People’s Choice Awards. The Grand Seduction was named Best Canadian Film and The Lunchbox was selected as the Best International Film.

 
Film Circuit operates through domestic grassroots networks and strong community partnerships, bringing Canadian and international independent films and artists to communities across Canada. From Prince Rupert to Charlottetown, Film Circuit has 174 groups in 155 locations. 2014 saw record attendance, with 342,091 people attending 2,116 screenings.
 
“Now in its 20th year, Film Circuit continues to grow and establish new groups across the country,” said Jesse Wente, Director of Film Programmes, TIFF. “Along with that growth, films are working Film Circuit into their release plans as a way to reach new and engaged audiences.”
 
In 2014, guests travelled to communities across Canada to introduce their films and participate in 95 Q&A sessions. Guests included Jean-Marc Vallée (Dallas Buyers Club), Don McKellar (The Grand Seduction), Sturla Gunnarsson (Monsoon), Jody Shapiro (Burt's Buzz), Elizabeth Klinck (Arctic Defenders), Richie Mehta (Siddharth), Maxime Giroux (Felix and Meira), Katie Boland (Gerontophilia), Daniel Perlmutter (Big News From Grand Rock), and Peter Keleghan and Leah Pinsent (Big News From Grand Rock).
 
The Grand Seduction follows the residents of a small Newfoundland fishing village who, in order to secure a vital factory contract, conspire to charm a big-city doctor into becoming the town’s full-time physician. This sparkling comedy from director Don McKellar (Last Night) and screenwriter Michael Dowse (Goon, The F Word) has screened in 63 Film Circuit communities and was seen by over 10,700 people.
 
In The Lunchbox, a misdelivered lunchbox brings together two very different people — a neglected housewife (Nimrat Kaur) and a grumpy, solitary widower on the verge of retirement (Bollywood star Irrfan Khan) — in this funny and touching comedy-drama from first-time writer-director Ritesh Batra. The Lunchbox has screened in 80 Film Circuit communities and was seen by over 14,300 people.
 
Now in its 11th year, the annual Film Circuit People’s Choice Awards are decided by audiences across the country who vote for their favourite film shown at a Film Circuit screening.
 
For more information, visit tiff.net/filmcircuit
Facebook.com/FilmCircuitTIFF
Twitter.com/FilmCircuitTIFF
 

The Jury of the 16th Stockholm Film Festival Junior has made their decisions. The winner of the Bronze horse is Indian film Mary Kom by Omung Kumar.

The Brons Horse for Best film was presented to Mary Kom by Omung Kumar. Mary Kom tells the true story of boxing champion Mary Kom and her struggles to be a boxer.

Motivation of the jury:

The film tells the compelling story of Mary Kom, whose life can easily be compared to one’s own. Equally, the film gives the viewer the opportunity to be acquainted with Indian life and culture. The strong characters show us that with a clear goal and a strong will one’s dreams can be realized. The thoughtful choice of music makes the film even more vibrant and exciting. A strong and inspiring film.

The Juryprize, Best film for children 6-10 years goes to The Games Maker by Juan Pablo Buscarini. A film about a young boy whose love of board games catapults him into the fantastical and competetive world of game invention.

Motivation of the jury:

An exciting film full of laughter and imagination. With imaginative characters and sensational settings, the film leaves you with a feeling of exhilaration and joy. A great story for anyone who ever dreamed of inventing something of their own.

4 days of animation feature films, shorts workshops, panel discussions, interactive performances and parties at The Montréal International Animation Film Festival, in association with Teletoon, www.filmfestivals.com and MTL Digital Spring (Printemps Numerique) has just wrapped up with a stunning closing gala and award ceremony.

MIAFF 2015 Winners

Best Feature in Competition: Anima Buenos Aires by Maria Veronica Ramirez

Best Short in Competition: Aubade by Mauro Carraro

Student Film Contest: Edgar by Marie-Ève Bélanger, Jonathan Grondin, Maude Fournier, Cédric Queland ( Cegep de Matane)

Audience Award for Best Short Film competition: World of Tomorrow, dir. Don Hertzfeldt

Sensum Award: Manieggs: Revenge of the hard egg, dir. Zoltán Miklósy

‘With such a great line-up it was tough to pick out any winners. Every screening was a highlight and any number of films could have won their respective categories. Congratulations to all of our winners. The preparations for Le MIAFF 2016 are already underway – see you next year!’ Laurie Gordon, festival director.

Fighting off the weather and playoff hockey, the inaugural Le MIAFF was a great success, attracting hardcore film fans, casual viewers and industry representatives alike. The festival will be back in 2016 with another Ani-mazing selection of films, parties and industry panels, plus lots more surprises and events. The Le MIAFF team thanks everybody involved for helping to make this year’s festival such great fun! 

The winners of the 2015 Golden Reel Awards were announced during a ceremony in Tiburon.

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Best Film: Queen of the Mountains, directed by: Sadyk Sher Niyaz [Kyrgyzstan]
Best Director: Vinko Möderndorfer, for: Inferno [Slovenia]
Best Actor: Nolan Mecham, for Neon Sky [USA]
Best Actress: Barbara Hershey, for: Sister [USA]
Best Documentary:Once My Mother, directed by: Sophia Turkiewicz [Australia]
Best Screenplay: Rudolf Havlík, for: All My Tomorrows [Czech Republic]
Best Cinematography: Murat Aliyev, for: Queen of the Mountains [Kyrgyzstan]
Humanitarian Award:Red Lines, directed by: Andrea Kalin [USA]
Best Short:First Degree, directed by: Roger Weisberg [USA]
Best Musical:Beatles, directed by: Peter Flinth [Norway]
Best Music Video:Mona Lisa, directed by: Peter Michael Escovedo [USA]
Best Animation:LADY and the frog, directed by: Tina T. Hsu [USA]
Best Comedy:The Grandad, directed by: Bjarni Haukur Thorsson [Iceland]
Federico Fellini Award: Attila Szász, for: The Ambassador to Bern [Hungary]
Orson Welles Award: David Lascher, for: Sister [USA]
Best Experimental Film:Enfilade, directed by: David Coyle [Australia]
Best Student Film: Manuel Vogel, for: The Way You Die [Germany]
Best Children’s Film:Amka and the Three Golden Rules, directed by: Babar Ahmed [Mongolia]
Best Short Children’s Film:Seagulls, directed by: Martin Smith [Scotland]

- Congratulations to all the winners!