A little test footage of a video intro for one of our clients!

 

 

 

Indie Film Nation Video Podcast #059: Madeleine Olnek (director) of Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same (USA), 2012, recorded at the Sundance Film Festival on the streets of the Park City, UT

Madeleine has been a previous guest of the program with her short, Countertransference (2009)

Her unique brand of quirky comedies are charming and truly original which have achieved international distribution around the globe after a very successful film festival run.

To find out more about Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same:

Official Site

Vimeo

Twitter

Facebook

Indie Film Nation Video Podcast #058: True/False Film Festival 2013 revisited in Missouri, Columbia (USA)

Indie Film Nation & El Jinete Films present…
A look back at the 2013 True/False Film Festival.
Video by Biliana Grozdanova.

Featuring:
Cutie and the Boxer
I Am Breathing
Who Is Dayani Cristal
Twenty Feet From Stardom
Expedition to the End of the World

www.indiefilmnation.com
www.facebook.com/eljinetefilms

@indiefilmnation
@eljinetefilms

Indie Film Nation Video Podcast #057: Interview with Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi (directors) of 5 Broken Cameras (FR/PA) feature documentary film

Five broken cameras—and each one has a powerful tale to tell. Embedded in the bullet-ridden remains of digital technology is the story of Emad Burnat, a farmer from the Palestinian village of Bil’in, which famously chose nonviolent resistance when the Israeli army encroached upon its land to make room for Jewish colonists. Emad buys his first camera in 2005 to document the birth of his fourth son, Gibreel. Over the course of the film, he becomes the peaceful archivist of an escalating struggle as olive trees are bulldozed, lives are lost, and a wall is built to segregate burgeoning Israeli settlements.

Gibreel’s loss of innocence and the destruction of each camera are potent metaphors in a deeply personal documentary that vividly portrays a conflict many of us think we know. Emad Burnat, a Palestinian, joins forces with Guy Davidi, an Israeli, and—from the wreckage of five broken cameras—two filmmakers create one extraordinary work of art.

Award Winner
World Cinema Documentary Directing Award

Indie Film Nation Video Podcast #056: Interview with Mads Matthiesen, writer/director of Teddy Bear (2012), Denmark, dramatic feature film recorded at the Sundance Film Festivla 2012 on the film’s world premiere in the World Dramatic Competition at the festival.

Sue Lawson interviews with Mads won the ‘Directing Award’ at the Sundance Film Festival in the World Dramatic Competition.

https://www.facebook.com/teddybearmovie

Indie Film Nation Video Podcast #055:

On this episode, Bruce Himmelblau chats to Rudd Simmons, Director, of The First Season and  Phyllis van Amburg, a member of the family who decide to move to the country to raise their young family on a farm and  have to deal with the daily realities of disasters at every turn.  From dream life to nightmare, this captivating documentary takes you on a honest, raw and revealing look at life in rural American.

Rudd Simmons is an accomplished producer with credits from Boardwalk Empire, The Road, Coffee & Cigarettes, High Fidelity, Dead Man Walking and many more titles.

The interview was conducted on the films world premiere at the Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, UT, USA.

For more information about The First Season visit their Facebook page for future screenings and release details.

The 61st Melbourne International Film Festival 2012 arrives in the few days, a little later than it’s customary spot on the calendar in the last week of July, relocating to the first week of August.

MIFF runs from the 2nd August to the 19th August with a strong selection of the latest international cinema and with a smattering of local premieres, the festival promises a smorgasbord of cinema for the local cinephiles.

The festival features programming strands  like International Panorama, Telescope, Australian Showcase, Accent on Asia, Street Level Visions: Docs from China, Leos Carax: The Last Romantic, 70′s New Hollywood Comedy, Documentaries, Through the Labrinyth: New Latin American Cinema, Masters & Resortations, Next Gen, Animation, Short Films and the Night Shift.

Brian Knappenberger (director) of We Are Legion: The Story of the Hackivists (USA) from Mike Anthony Smith on Vimeo.

A selection of my favourites at this year’s festival are Monsieur Lazhar (France), Shadow Dancer (UK), Beasts of Southern Wild (USA), Rampart (USA), Dark Horse (USA), Sleepless Nights (France), Your Sister’s Sister (USA), The Session (USA), Teddy Bear (Denmark), Keep the Lights On (USA), Safety Not Guaranteed (USA), Headshot (Thailand), Himizu (Japan), The Imposter (UK), Chasing Ice (USA), The House I Live (USA), Searching for Sugar Man (Sweden), A Letter to Momo (UK) and God Bless America (USA)

The current Artistic Director, Michelle Carey, has delivered a popular but predicable collection of titles in very familiar programming strands.  This year’s crop represents a collection of the films that have been festival darlings at Toronto, Venice, Sundance and Cannes over the past six months.

Fredrik Gertten (director) of Big Boys Gone Bananas (SWE) from Mike Anthony Smith on Vimeo.

MIFF has a strong international profile as one of the largest and most significant film festival in the southern hemisphere.    The festival’s audience patronage is the envy of many film festival organizers, but the festival is seen as a cinephiles festival, rather than a significant industry event.

The lack of a local or regional feature/documentary competition strand and the unwillingness to program an entirely original strand means the festival lacks the international clout to become one of the grand slams on the film festival circuit.

During the 2000′s, James Hewison, the festival director, programmed an amazing array of Asian cinema, while in recent years under the direction of Michelle Carey, the Asian cinema strand has become awfully skinny in numbers, which has meant a loss of connection with our regional neighbours.  Long gone are the days of significant Asian filmmakers showcasing their films, like the world premiere of Kung Fu Hustle or guests of the calibre of Johnnie To, Ishii Sogo and Kim Ki-duk.

One of the real disappointments of MIFF has been the lack of support for the local filmmaking community, the much heralded 37 Degree South & Accelerator programs are almost an entirely closed shop for a very select few invited guests, excluding many emerging filmmakers and eliminating a new generation from networking with the industry’s movers and shakers.

The successful MIFF Premiere Fund is a great initiative, but unfortunately the majority of the successful applicants are from the attendees of the 37 Degrees South conference.

The range of Talking Pictures and 37 Degree South public events look to be a little disappointing, but the Bobcat Goldthwait session will be a highlight for anyone wanting to see one of the cleverest and most original voices in cinema.

When all is said and done, MIFF is a still a first rate festival that provides patrons with an amazing assortment of the world’s cinema, it could just be so much more.

I’ll be looking forwarding to visiting to the Festival Club at the Forum, sharing a glass of wine and discussing some of the films I have just seen from around the globe.

 

Indie Film Nation Video Podcast #54: Interview with M.J. McMahon (co-writer/producer/director) and Matthew Jones (producer) of Hawk (UK), 2011, Part Two of Two Part Interview with the team behind their ground breaking short film.

Indie Film Nation Video Podcast #53

On this edition we present an in-depth interview with M.J. McMahon (co-writer/producer/director) and Matthew Jones (producer) of Hawk (UK), 2011, short film that is  delivers a visual stunning film of truly epic proportions.  This program will be presented in two parts with the second segment being available next week.

To find out more about Hawk visit the Official Web Site or their Facebook Page