Documentary on Fukushima town screened at Berlin film festival

BERLIN (Kyodo) — A documentary film featuring residents forced to evacuate their town, home to the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station, was screened Sunday at the Berlin International Film Festival.

“I hope nobody in the world will have such an experience like ours again,” Katsutaka Idogawa, mayor of Futaba, Fukushima Prefecture, said in a video message shown after the screening of the tentatively titled “Nuclear Nation” by director Atsushi Funahashi.

“We had attracted the nuclear power plant to promote our town. But I changed my mind because of the accident. While a final disposal site for nuclear waste is not set, it is quite dangerous that many nuclear power plants are built in the world,” the mayor said.

The documentary depicts residents taking shelter at a former school building in Saitama Prefecture and scenes of Futaba town, which was evacuated due to a nuclear crisis following the March 2011 quake and tsunami.

The film director said after the screening, “I hope many people in the world will look at the current situation of people from Futaba. I will continue keeping a record until they find a permanent dwelling place.”

Musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, who composed piano music used in the documentary, also attended the screening.

Sakamoto said he plans to produce an album under the theme of Fukushima this summer and stage a performance with fellow musicians.

SE Asian Film Festival returns in March

SINGAPORE: The Southeast Asian Film Festival returns next month with its largest offering of cinematic works from the region.

It will showcase 20 challenging works by filmmakers from the region produced in the past two years.

Nineteen are Singapore premieres, while Myanmar will be part of the festival for the first time.

Many of the 20 films are also being shown outside their home country for the first time.

Organised by Singapore Art Museum (SAM), the films reflect and bring to the forefront a range of pertinent issues facing the region.

Director of SAM, Mr Tan Boon Hui, said: “Cinema, as a moving image medium, becomes a distinct and dynamic contemporary visual art form that examines the social and cultural transformations of today.

“Like many major contemporary art institutions around the world where films are a part of their regular programming, SAM is committed to extend the reach of our exhibitions by creating opportunities for visitors to experience the most contemporary visual art and cultural expressions of the Southeast Asian region and deliver new perspectives, through the powerful medium of cinema.”

The festival will offer the public greater insight into film-making and the Southeast Asian wave.

There will be a directors’ panel on 3 March, as well as 12 post-screening discussions with directors, producers and actors.

To provide an avenue for the works of local film makers to be presented to a wider audience, the festival will feature four Singapore films.

They include “The Legend of the Impacts” by Jeevan Nathan, “Water Hands” by Serbian-born Singapore-based director Vladimir Todorovic, as well as an animated feature film “Tatsumi” by Eric Khoo which debuted at Cannes and is Singapore’s official entry for the 2012 Academy Awards.

The festival will run from March 2-31 at the Moving Image Gallery at SAM at 8Q.

Based on the early days of the French revolution, Farewell My Queen is set to have its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival, starting 9^th February, according to the news media tracking the latest film festival reviews. The backdrop is France in those days of turmoil as soon through the eyes of the Versailles staff and stars Diane Kruger of Troyfame as Queen Marie Antoinette. The French-language period film is one of the 18 flicks in the main competition, and hundreds of more would showcased in venues across Berlin over the next ten days.

Image courtesy: germany.info

The French-language period drama, starring Diane Kruger as Marie Antoinette, is one of 18 films in the main competition, and hundreds more films will be showcased in cinemas across the city over the next 10 days.

Members of the Management Look to Add Glitz to Film Festival

The freezing cold in Berlin may prove to be a deterrent to viewership, but the film festival director Dieter Kosslick is hoping that the A-list actors set to saunter down the red carpet may counter that, helping the film festival generate the required buzz.

Another crucial matter would be the health of the film market that has grown up around the festival, attracting movie executives from the world over looking to buy and sell titles.

If critics are to be believed, the annual film festival is looking to add cutting edge to its selection this year by featuring several promising (and as yet unproven) directors in the main lineup.

It will also seek to build on the success of 2011, when Iranian divorce drama A Separation won the Golden Bear for best movie and went on to scoop a Golden Globe and two Oscar nominations.

Film Festival Jury Hoping for Hidden Gems

The jury at this year’s festival, led by British director Mike Leigh and including US actor Jake Gyllenhaal, will be looking to discover another hidden gem of world cinema.

Kosslick believes that this would once again underline Berlin’s reputation for championing films that would otherwise struggle to find an international audience.

This could be Africa’s year, as three films, Tey, War Witch and and Tabu promise to present viewers with poignant images from contemporary Africa.

Hard Hitting Films Hoping to Make a Mark at Berlin Film Festival

As ever this year, hard-hitting movies tackling difficult themes are looking to make a mark at this film festival.

Coming Home is about a girl who is locked up for eight years, and was inspired by the real-life case of abducted Austrian schoolgirl Natascha Kampusch.

White Deer Plain, which is more than three hours long, chronicles the often violent social turmoil in China throughout the 20th century.

And Just The Wind reconstructs the murder of a Roma family in Hungary and is also based on a true story.

On the lighter side, the hottest ticket in town is to see Iron Sky, a futuristic story about Nazis who had escaped to the moon in 1945 and have now launched a “meteor Blitzkrieg” on Earth.

Stalwarts of Conventional Cinema to Grace Film Festival Venue

Among the Hollywood superstars expected in 2012 is Meryl Streep, who will receive an honorary Golden Bear on February 14 when her latest movie The Iron Lady will be screened, with her portraying Margaret Thatcher. The film itself has failed to excite critics, but Street is supposed to be in the running for a ‘Best Actress’ award at the Oscars.

Angelina Jolie is due in Berlin with Bosnian war drama In the Land of Blood and Honey, while the cast of star-filled productions such as Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and Haywire should add to the celebrity count at the film festival.

For more film festival reviews and news, keep watching this space.

The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) film program is primarily composed of world premieres of narrative, documentary and short films. As such, it is the leading film festival in the world for African American and urban content. Since its inception, the ABFF has showcased more than 600 films, rewarding and redefining artistic excellence in independent filmmaking.

ABFF marks the celebration of Black and urban-inspired independent films. Its mission is to promote the work of independent filmmakers to diverse communities while cultivating a theatrical market for independent Black cinema nationwide.

The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) is held each year in South Beach Miami, and attracts close to 3,000 film enthusiasts with a unique mix of celebrities, industry executives, sponsors, and artists. In addition to its film showcases, the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) facilitates networking and is committed to nurturing artists by offering symposiums and educational workshops for actors, filmmakers and writers.

Each year, the ABFF attracts approx 5,000 artists, executives and film fans, providing a strategic vehicle for companies to reach this trendsetting and influential audience. Top-tier corporations have engaged in partnerships with the festival to promote their products, services, multicultural initiatives and branded entertainment content. This support fuels the growth of the festival and furthers the evolution of the Black independent film community. HBO is the festival’s founding sponsor.

History of ABFF

The first American Black Film Festival (originally called the Acapulco Black Film Festival, or ABFF, until the name was changed in 2002) was held in June 1997. The aim of its founders, Jeff Friday, Byron E. Lewis and Warrington Hudlin, was to create a venue at which members of “Black Hollywood” could meet, network, collaborate, and celebrate Black cinema.

Influence of ABFF

The ABFF has been acclaimed for its positive effect on the Black filmmaking community. The festival has through its various programs helped the careers of countless actors, writers and directors. Numerous Hollywood insiders, including director Antoine Fuqua (Director of ‘’Training Day’’ and Charlie Jordan Brookins of MTV Films have endorsed the festival, as well as rapper/actor Common who has stated that, “It’s a good vehicle to get out great art that we want the world to see.

ABFF 2012

The 16th American Black Film Festival is schedule for June 20th – 23rd 2012 at Miami. Traditionally held in July, the event moves to June in 2012 offering participants an opportunity to showcase films on the leading pay network and gain revenue from award prizes. A new mobile entertainment section will launch at the 16th ABFF, to showcase quality short form content ideal for distribution via the internet and mobile devices.

Keep checking this online film blog for updates on the latest industry goings-on and film festival news.

As reported by several film festival news publications, the 25^th edition of the Braunschweig International Film Festival shall honor noted French actress Isabelle Huppert with the European Actors Award, also known as “The Europa”. The awards committee of the Braunschweig International Film Festival has chosen Huppert for the honor in recognition of her lifetime achievements in the field of cinema and her outstanding role in the development of European film culture. Huppert will receive this award during the Braunschweig International Film Festival Awards ceremony which shall be held in Braunschweig’s State Theatre. Volkswagen Financial Services AG, which is also the primary sponsor for the 25^th Braunschweig International Film Festival, shall also be sponsoring this particular award.

Online Film Blog: Isabella Huppert’s Iconic Stature in European Cinema

“Isabelle Huppert is an icon of contemporary auteur cinema“, says festival director Volker Kufahl, “We are proud and happy to welcome this exceptional actress, who gives every role her distinctive expression.”

Huppert is considered as one of the greatest actresses in world cinema. To this day she has played in more than 80 films, 16 of which were selcted for the official competition in Cannes – a record. She is the only Frenchwoman to have been awarded the Golden Palm of Cannes twice: in 1978 for the Claude Chabrol directed “Violette Nozière”, who she worked with in seven films, and 2001 for ”The Piano Teacher” by Michael Haneke, for which she also received the European Film Award.

The list of directors she has collaborated pretty much resembles a who’s who of European arthouse cinema: André Techiné, Jean-Luc Godard, Andrzej Wajda, Marco Ferreri, the Taviani brothers and many more. The Paris-born actress became famous for her role in in Claude Goretta’s “The Lacemaker” which earned her a César and a BAFTA Award.

Hupperts Films being Screened at The Braunschweig International Film Festival

The Braunschweig International Film Festival will show Goretta’s drama as part of a retrospective with “The Piano Teacher” (director: Michael Haneke, A/F/D 2001), “8 Women” (François Ozon, 2002), “Comedy of Power” (Claude Chabrol, F/D 2006), “White material” (Claire Denis, F/Kamerun 2009), ”Villa Amalia“ (Benoît Jacquot, F/CH 2009) and “Copacabana” (F 2010) by Marc Fitoussi, where she co-stars with her daughter Lolita Chammah.

History of the Europa Award at the Braunschweig International Film Festival

Since 2007 the Braunschweig International Film Festival has awarded the “European Actors Award”, aka the Europa. Former prize winners include noted thespians such as Bruno Ganz, Stellan Skarsgård, Hanna Schygulla and John Hurt. Isabelle Huppert has already worked together with the latter two: in Marco Ferreri’s “Storia di Piera” she is Hanna Schygulla’s daughter (first Europa winner 2007), and in Michael Cimino’s late western ”Heaven’s Gate” she plays a business savvy prostitute next to John Hurt (Europa winner 2009).

For regular updates on the world of film festivals, and film festival reviews and news, including more on the Braunschweig International Film Festival, keep reading our online film blog.

Spike Lee, born Shelton Jackson Lee in Atlanta Georgia and brought up primarily in New York (Brooklyn), needs no introduction. We have already provided a brief snapshot of Spike Lee’s career and of this body of work. Speaking of which, here’s the lowdown on the films we judged to be seven of his best.

Best of Spike Lee: The Top 7

Do The Right Thing (1989): This comic drama tells the story of a day in Brooklyn, when interracial tensions flare up during the hottest day of the year. Race relations would continue to be a recurring theme or backdrop in Lee’s works throughout his career. This film stars Spike Lee in the lead role, with Danny Aiello and John Turturro in key-roles.

Mo Better Blues (1990): Denzel Washington stars in one of his best roles to date as fictional jazz trumpeteer Bleek Gilliam. The film follows Gilliam’s life through a phase where he makes all the wrong decisions in his musical career as well as his personal relationships, focusing on the themes of friendship, honesty, consequences and ultimately coming-of-age.

Malcolm X (1992): Spike Lee’s somewhat controversial biopic showcases the life and times of Malcolm X. Starting from his boyhood to his rise as perhaps the most chrismatic spokesperson for the Civil Rights movement, this movie doesn’t hesitate to starkly portray the racial attitudes in mid-20th Century America.

Jungle Fever (1991): The narrative weaves itself around a poignant and ill-fated interracial love story between an African American man and an Italian-American woman. Starring Wesley Snipes and Annabella Sciorra in lead roles.

Crooklyn (1994) is a semi-autobiographical film co-written and directed by Spike Lee. The film takes place in Brooklyn, where Lee grew up, particularly the neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant during the summer of 1973. The plot is built around a young girl, Troy ( Zelda Harris), and her family. As the film progresses, Troy learns life lessons through her four brothers, her loving but stern mother (Alfre Woodard), and her father (Delroy Lindo).

Girl 6 (1996): A movie about the life of a young aspiring actress (Theresa Randle) who prefers working as a phone sex operator in order to make ends meet, rather than give in to the infamous casting couch. Guest starring Quentin Tarantino as himself.

25th Hour (2002): This Spike Lee film depicts the last 24 hours in the life of a New York drug dealer (played by Edward Norton) before his 7 year jail term begins.

Spike Lee has made several other films, and seeing as he’s yet to retire from the business, it is perhaps safe to say that we haven’t yet seen the best of Spike Lee. Keep checking this online film blog for updates on the latest industry goings-on and and film festival news.

In the veritable film factory that’s Hollywood, there have been a few film-makers who have left an indelible hand-print of a legacy spanning decades. Fewer still, of this select breed, have a body of work that’s as influential and thought provoking — yet controversial — as Spike Lee. Over the span of his career, the maverick film-maker’s movies have vividly covered topics as wide-ranging as race relations, the role played by media in contemporary life, ghetto crime and poverty, and even far-reaching political issues. Lee’s films have received widespread critical acclaim, earning him numerous awards including an Emmy; he has also been nominated for the Oscars on two occasions.

Spike Lee has made films across genres, but they have all been pioneering in their gritty approach towards issues pertaining to the sociopolitical milieu of mixed race America and offer a fresh perspective on race, class and gender stereotypes in modern-day America.

Spike Lee: The Making of a Legend

Born Shelton Jackson Lee in 1957 in Atlanta Georgia to a jazz musician and an art teacher, Lee’s parents moved base to Brooklyn when he was very young. His years growing up there have had a major impact on his movies, with Brooklyn serving as a backdrop for many of the movies made by Spike Lee. His was a precocious talent recognized as early as his sting at NYU as a film student; the short film he made for his thesis won the Student Academy Award for best director in 1983.

His lauded debut film, She’s Gotta Have It, completed its 25^th anniversary recently.  This movie, which also starred Spike Lee as a major character, was released in 1986. Shot in 12 days on a shoestring budget of USD 175,000, She’s Gotta Have It was written, produced and directed by Spike Lee.  The film stars Tracy Camilla Jones as Nora Darling, a young, confident African American career woman who is juggling three lovers, none of whom she’s able to commit to. Spike Lee himself co-starred as one of the three men in Nora’s life.

Breaking Molds & Courting Controversies, the Spike Lee way

She’s Gotta Have It, while a simple drama-comedy on the surface, was a pioneering film in its non-stereotypical portrayal of urban, intelligent African-American characters and was part of the 80s independent movie movement. The film, and Lee himself, became cause célèbre among the African-American community, who found She’s Gotta Have It to be a welcome departure from the then prevalent blaxploitation style of movies that were typically made to target the African-American viewers.  Besides accolades from moviegoers and critics alike, the film won the Prix de Jeuness at the Cannes Film Festival for the best film by a newcomer.

Even greater acclaim, however, was reserved for Malcolm X, the 1992 biopic made by Spike Lee on the legendary civil rights activist; many consider that movie to be his greatest to date. The 195 length film chronicles the rise of Malcolm X from his early childhood to the most charismatic spokesperson of the Civil Rights movement, to his assassination. Through the gritty film, Spike Lee paints a stark picture of the racially bigotry America prevalent during the 1950s and ’60s.

However, the same critics who’ve lauded Spike Lee for taking African-American cinema out of the stereotypical mold also point out that Lee has been guilty of being formulaic in his portrayal of Jews and Italians; some have even gone as far to accuse him of antisemitism and racism. His 2001 television series on the life of Black Panthers Society founder Huey P. Newton was one of his more controversial works, which nevertheless solidified his image as one of the more radical and maverick figures in the American film industry and added to the aura of the legend of Spike lee.

This was a glimpse of the remarkable career of the ground breaking career of the director and producer Spike Lee. There will be more on him and his works on this online film blog in the near future, so stay tuned.

As an unprecedented platform for independent films, the recently concluded Toronto International Film Festival 2011 showcased some of the world’s finest contemporary cinema by independent filmmakers as well as established ones. The myriad kaleidoscope of talent included independent films from all over the world. Here’s a brief look at some of the best works:

Independent Films : Azhagarsami’s Horse (India)

This film explores the importance of symbolic objects in everyday rural India, weaving this theme into the life of a simple village man called Azhagarsami who earns his living by ferrying goods on a horse. In this village, a ceremonial horse statue disappears overnight. This holy symbol, or its suspicious disappearance more accurately, causes a chain of blame games that leads to a comically chaotic situation. With this situation as the backdrop, our hero must put his marriage on hold as his own horse has also gone missing and he must search for it. One of the most touching, yet understated independent films to come out of India.

Independent Films : Death for Sale (Morocco)

A heist tale with a twist in the tail, Death for Sale is set in Tetouan, Morocco, where crime is a way out of a life of misery and poverty in the city slums. Three such young boys decide to rob a jeweler’s, a plan that goes awry with drastic consequences. Director Faouzi Bensaidi paints a compelling portrait of a city left to the tender mercies of criminal lords, extremist factions and a corrupt officialdom, forming a vivid backdrop for an edge-of-the-seats crime thriller; a rarity among independent films.

Independent Films : Elena (Russia)

This film tells the story of Elena, who is the second wife of an rich elderly man called Vladimir and has a son from her earlier marriage. This son is an unemployed drifter, forever in financial doldrums and unable to provide for his own family. She hopes to be able to provide her son with more than just handouts once her husband passes away and his estate comes to her. These hopes, however, are dashed when Vladimir patches up with his estranged daughter and names her as the sole beneficiary of his will. The hitherto shy and subservient homemaker now silently rebels and plans to give her son and grandchildren a real chance at living. It is a well-crafted plot with noir undertones that have been so popular among directors of independent films in the past.

Independent Films: Free Men (France/ Morocco)

The German-occupied Paris of 1942, and the resistance activities of a handful of Muslim immigrants form the backdrop of this Second World War saga. The main protagonist is Younes, an Algerian black marketer who falls into the Gestapo’s net and agrees to spy and inform on a Parisian mosque suspected of pro-resistance and pro-Jewish activities. As this young man witnesses the brutality of the occupying regime first hand, he switches sides to become a freedom fighter.

Independent Films : Lucky (South Africa)

This is the tale of a boy named Lucky and his struggles. When AIDS takes away his parents, he goes to Durban to live with his uncle. The big city ghetto starts giving him hard life lessons, his only solace being an unlikely bond he forms with an elderly Indian neighbor, is spite of racial tensions and linguistic barriers. Lucky  is their story, a coming of age tale that deals with love, loss, self-discovery and the pursuit of happiness.

These films form barely a glimpse of the sheer variety  of contemporary cinema that was shown at TIFF 2011. Keep watching this online film blog for more film festival reviews, celebrity news and independent films.

The Growing Popularity of Home Entertainment Systems

Entertainment is something human civilization places a high premium on and indeed, everybody spends a fair share of their income on entertainment. Of course, some ways of entertainment are more expensive than others.  If price is no object and you’re ready to pay out whatever it takes to get the home entertainment system that appeals to you the most, then there is a lot of exclusive specialist gear out there for you.

Home Entertainment: It has to be Sound

The primary thing you will almost certainly want to spend money on, on your way to home entertainment nirvana, is a better sound system — audiophiles are perpetually coming up with newfangled ways to fill rooms with speakers, and get a better sound experience. If a bunch of wires running across your floor displeases you, there is no need to worry at all, wireless surround speakers for home entertainment purposes cost a lot less than they used to.

If your sound system happens to be fine, you might even want to have sound insulation put into the room the home that the home entertainment system is in, to keep the sound from getting out and worrying neighbors or even the people that are in your house. This means that you can have the volume on your home entertainment system very loud without having to be concerned about what people think.

The Whole Nine Yards: Your Own Home Entertainment System

When you get to the point of buying a separate TV  just to play films/ sports on, you might think about buying a projector instead. The main problem with projectors is that they’re not much good for normal TV viewing, but if you’re planning to keep one aside and use it just for films, then it can be much better quality, as long as you have a clear wall to point it at.

To really step it up, you might consider having a room exclusively for your home entertainment center, complete with sound proofing, a screen to act as a projector and extra-cushy cinema-hall seating. Some enthusiasts go the distance and splurge to replicate the cinema look with the whole décor: red curtains, movie posters,  popcorn machine; the whole works basically. If you go for all that, then you must show it off too! Invite friends over to enjoy a particular favorite. You could even hold screenings of rare and good films back-to-back; the makings of your own film festival. Now that’s how you take home entertainment to the next level! Keep checking this space for the latest on entertainment news, home entertainment and film festival reviews.

The creators of the ASU Art Museum Short Film and Video Festival have had to cut nearly 500 entries in its first 20 favorites. The festival is in its 15th year, attracts more than 1,200 fansoutside the museum.

Spiak which serves as museum curator, was inspired by a film festival in an old shipyard in Orange County, California, was screened films on the side of a building. The festival has ended, and Pece, a filmmaker in Southern California, wrote to launch a Spiak Arizona. The first one here has attracted more than 500 people.

“I think people are attracted to short films, and there’s such a diverse range of works,” Spiak said. “There are not a lot of places in town where there are art-based, foreign films and that you can watch them outside. And, it’s free.”

The only guideline for the festival is that all entries need to be 10 minutes or less. Other than that, filmmakers are free to pursue any subject and genre.

Tempe’s Jane Lindsay, a photography student at ASU, entered “Dan’s Big Find” this year and was chosen the winner of the AZ Award. The film is based on a story her husband (who is in the film) told her about finding an arrowhead while out target shooting.

“I love to tell a story,” Lindsay said. “Short films, to me, are a lot easier to make because they really pack a punch, and they aren’t too long so the audience gets bored.”

Word of the festival has grown so much that the 482 entries represented 43 states and 36 nations.

“It’s built a reputation as one of the festivals that people are keeping an eye on,” Spiak said. “It’s not intimidating, and a lot of filmmakers feel comfortable showing their films here first. And often times, other festivals pick them up after.”

In one success story, high school student Ryan McCulloch entered “Without You” in the 1998 festival, and it ended up being picked up at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, as well as featured in an HBO documentary.

The festival takes place in the back plaza at the museum, and a large projector screen is mounted on the backside of the building. Guests bring their own chairs, blankets and snacks, and there will also be popcorn and Hawaiian shaved ice for sale.

“This is a community gathering, and I think especially in this day and age, things have changed a lot,” said Spiak. “There is no gathering places must for clients, you have shopping malls, but it’s nothing like bringing your lawn chairs and watch movies together.”

The Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) took off on Thursday marking its 60^th anniversary. As usual the Melbourne International Film Festival will be highlighting some of the best local and international film in its stage. No matter what your taste would be here you won’t be returning unsatisfied.

The festival which started off on July 21^st with the screening of the movie The Fairy. Melbourne International Film Festival will be concluding on Sunday August 7^th and during this period the festival will screen over 300 feature films and shorts, and will arrange well panel discussions, workshops and question and answer rounds with filmmakers like Morgan Spurlock,  Mike Mills, Alex Gibney .

Some of the anticipated movies of the festival are,

1.      Project Nim

2.      Melancholia

3.      Outrage

4.      Life in a day

5.      Finisterra

6.      Inside the New York Times

7.      The eye of strom

8.      El Valador

9.      Take shelter

10.  Time in Anatolia