Year: 2017

Film Review: BAD GRANDMAS (Canada 2016)

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Bad Grandmas Poster
Four grandmothers accidentally kill a con man. When his partner shows up, things go south quickly.

Director:

Srikant Chellappa

Writers:

Srikant Chellappa, Jack Snyder

Stars:

Pam Grier, Judge Reinhold, Florence Henderson

It has barely been two weeks since two films about old ladies hits the screen.  There was THE BEST OF THEIR LIVES and now BAD GRANDMAS, a Canadian feature where one granny accidentally kills her friend’s bad son-in-law resulting in all other cronies trying to hide the body and cover up the deed.

The film’s first scene shows an American flag out front of a building of an insurance company in this IndieCan production.  Obviously, the film is set in the States (Southern U.S.A. to be more accurate) to expand the film’s marketing base.  All the grandmas in the film thus speak with a southern drawl.

The film contains typical scenes of the elderly ladies doing jumping jacks and smoking up, trying to look cool, things that have been done in films on old farts before.

Four grandmothers spend their twilight years in peace playing card games and baking cakes.  Their world is turned upside down when one of ladies (Bobbi played by Susie Wall) son-in-law Jim (David Wassilak) cons the lady.  In the process of trying to fix the problem, Mimi (chief protagonist, ringleader and brains played by Florence Henderson) accidentally kills him. Things go from bad to worse but the ladies are smarter than they seem.  The premise does not sound original and this plot of accidental killing has been done more than once in other films, for example in the best film dealing with accidentally killing, Robert Carlisle’s THE LEGEND OF BARNEY THOMSON, where a barber’s accidental killing leads to another to another.  BUT BAD GRANDMAS is hardly funny, despite many opportunities for comedy.  The film is a clear textbook example where timing is essential in comedy.

The addition of the character of the investigating Detective Randall Mclemore (Randall Batinkoff) is puzzling.  His character is a smug rather good-looking man who charms the daughters of the grandmothers.  He does not add much humour either but not for want of trying.

There is also one bug flaw in the script.  If the ladies have in their possession  the CCTV video of the villain kidnapping Bobbi, why don’t thy just go to the police in the first place?

The film is performed by a cast of mostly little heard actors except for veterans Pam Grier and Judge Reinhold,who do nothing to lift this piece out of the doldrums.

The film contains countless attempts at humour but none too successfully.   The only laugh out loud joke for me is the one when one of the grandmas remarks after seeing a dead body: “This makes me more nervous than a long tail cat in a room full of rocking chairs.”  But this is not because the joke itself is funny but because it has ben ions when I used to repeat that line.  The film improves during the second half, story-wise.

BAD GRANDMAS attempts to cash in on the successful comedy BAD MOMS by adding the murder angle.  Better skip this one and wait for BAD MOMS AT CHRISTMAS or BIG DADDY 2 where the 2 grandpas (played by Mel Gibson and John Lithgow) are added to the story.

Trailer: http://indiecanent.com/movies/bad-grandmas/

October 2017 – Read Interviews with Winning Short Filmmakers

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WILDsound Festival's avatarWILDsound Festival

Interview with 15 winning short filmmakers from around the world. Interviews by Matthew Toffolo:

Interview with Director James Bowsher (WITHHELD)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/06/interview-with-director-james-bowsher-withheld/

 

Interview with Director Steve Hally (TWISTED SOBRIETY)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/09/interview-with-director-steve-hally-twisted-sobriety/

 

Interview with Director Andi Osho (AMBER)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/06/interview-with-director-andi-osho-amber/

 

Interview with Directed Eric Shahinian (FOREIGN SOUNDS)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/06/interview-with-directed-eric-shahinian-foreign-sounds/

 

Interview with Directed Elaine Chu (MANEKI-NEKO)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/06/interview-with-directed-elaine-chu-maneki-neko/

 Interview with Director Jana Stackhouse (THE MAN WHO DOESN’T SLEEP) https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/03/interview-with-director-jana-stackhouse-the-man-who-doesnt-sleep/

 

Interview with director Anthony Bennett (MY LITTLE BROTHER)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/03/interview-with-director-anthony-bennett-my-little-brother/

 

Interview with Animation Director Peter Zhaoyu Zhou (KARMA)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/10/03/interview-with-animation-director-peter-zhaoyu-zhou-karma/

 

Interview with Director Margaret Costa (MY NAME IS JOAN)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/09/24/interview-with-director-margaret-costa-my-name-is-joan/

 

Interview with Director Igor Gavva (SUITCASE)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/09/23/interview-with-director-igor-gavva-suitcase/

 

Interview with Director Andrea Behring (BAGGAGE)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/09/23/interview-with-director-andrea-behring-baggage/

 

Interview with Director Dan Pal (COUNTING)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/09/23/interview-with-director-dan-pal-counting/

 

Interview with Director Andrew Galloway (WALLY)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/09/23/interview-with-director-andrew-galloway-wally/

 

Interview with director Katie Maguire (THE SESSION)
https://matthewtoffolo.com/2017/09/23/interview-with-director-katie-maguire-the-session/

 

Interview with Director’s Blair Bomar & Olivia Applegate (GRACE & GRIT)

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Interview with Festival Directors Nick John Whittle & Stuart Wheeldon (9LadiesFilmFestival)

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9LadiesFilmFestival is a distinguished independent film festival showcasing short films from around the world to an audience of film fans and movie-makers.

Contact

What is your Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers?

9LadiesFilmFestival brings cinematic exposure for independent filmmakers. That’s what filmmaking is essentially about: getting audiences to see your creation. And with exposure comes possibilities. It isn’t just about letting the common man see your film. There are scores of studios out there watching indie films. If they see something that ticks boxes they’ll grab it. Famous case in point: Paranormal Activity.

There are also the laurel stamps for the winners. Films showing laurel stamps in their credits are proven to be the ones most watched. True, it’s not necessarily the mark of an all-round incredible film but it shows it has been scrutinized by professionals and that one element of it (or several) passes muster. It also proves that the filmmakers have a belief in their product and have put in the man hours (and money) to get it through the festival process.

What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival this year (2017)?

Our finalists this year will enjoy a specific location for their live screening, from historical houses to modern cinemas. We’ve worked hard to secure theatres that in some way add a cultural essence to the screenings. This isn’t just town-hall-and-sandwiches stuff; it’s a festival with a difference. Always has been.

9LadiesFilmFestival promotes the work of inventive, original, free-thinking and independent filmmakers; to raise their profile throughout the web and connect them with established industry professionals around the world. One of the ways we do this is by creating and taking care of your online presence; creating a web page for your winning film and promoting it like hellfire across social media platforms.

What are the qualifications for the selected films?

9LadiesFilmFestival accepts short films and documentaries and we take submissions from filmmakers all around the world. We stipulated that the language of the piece has to be in English (or at least subtitled) but we’ve left things very free and easy deliberately. The films are required to be either 9 mins or less or 10-29 minutes long. The whole theme of this year’s festival is “nine” in honour of our parent company’s title.

 Do you think that some films really don’t get a fair shake from film festivals? And if so, why?

We believe every film gets a fair shake. Film festivals are an essential part of the growth of an indie moviemaker. If the festival is managed correctly and in a just and reasonable way everyone has equal chance of becoming a winner. Festivals open gateways to the Bigger Picture, to distribution possibilities…a festival like ours represents equal opportunity for everyone – from beginner to expert.

What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

A passion for making great movies and helping others through the process.

How has your FilmFreeway submission process been?

We have found the FilmFreeway submission process very good, we are already up on the number of entries for the current time of year. With recent tweeks to the way the FilmFreeway program works it is easier to manage the film festival process. And it seems that more and more filmmakers are now using the FilmFreeway Submission process.

Where do you see the festival by 2020?

We’d like to think the festival will have grown to the point where we can award substantial funding and great distribution opportunities to the winners.  There are a huge number of inspiring and culturally stand-out filmmakers out there and we look forward to viewing their work.

 What film have you seen the most times in your life?

Nick: Casino Royale (the good one!)

Stuart. The Red Shoes

In one sentence, what makes a great film?

Basically, a great story. A movie is like a book in some ways with scene cuts instead of page turns…if you’re bored by the plot of a book you won’t turn a page. On the other hand, if you love it, you can’t stop turning pages. A movie is also story – whether you pour millions of dollars into a project or not, if the story doesn’t hit the spot it won’t be successful. Add superb characters to your story and plenty of subtext and you have a winner.

There is a technical consideration as well, something we like to look at in the festival. Sound, direction, visuals, lighting, props are all taken into consideration as technical achievements of a movie. After all, they are important aspects of the art.

 How is the film scene in your city?

We are fortunate that in the Midlands the film scene is thriving, there are a number of very good Independent Cinemas that show films that otherwise wouldn’t get a release, the indie film making scene is also very good, with the likes of cities such as Nottingham, Sheffield and Birmingham all  have a thriving Indie scene.

9LadiesFilmFestival1.jpg

Nick John Whittle – Producer. Nick is an award winning writer and producer based in Birmingham. His work includes the award winning film Faith, The Adventures of Joshua (TV mini-series), No Way Back (short/horror) Nick’s cinematic influences include Beckett, Hitchcock, Buñuel, Mamet, Allen, Jarmusch, and Bergman. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm7825353/. nick is the co- director of the 9ladiesfilmfestival.

Stuart Wheeldon. Writer/Director Stuart is an award winning writer and director and founder of Nine Ladies Film. Stuart’s work as included theatrical plays, radio and film shown and featured around the world. His work includes In Limbo, The Telephone, The Collector (Pre-Production)and The Wasteland.  Stuart was also the founder of 9ladiesfilmfestival which in it’s first year attracted over 200 entries from around the world. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm7240661

 *****

Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 20-50 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto, and Los Angeles at least 2 times a month. Go to www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

SUBMIT your TV PILOT Screenplay or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 Screenplay CONTESTSUBMIT your Short Screenplay or FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script performed

Interview with Festival Director Vanna Nauk (Fresno’s State Asian Pacific Film Festival)

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The Asian Pacific Islander Programs and Services will be hosting the 1ST EVER Asian Pacific Islander Film Fest at Fresno State! They will be hosting this event along with CineCulture! It’s a two day event beginning on Friday, October 20, 2017 to Saturday, October 21, 2107.

Contact

 

What is your Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers?

We are providing them a space to display their work in Fresno, which is the fifth largest city in California, so we were definitely due for an Asian Pacific Islander Film Festival of our own.

What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival this year (2017)?

I hope that I see a sense of solidarity amongst the Asian Pacific Islander groups here in the Central Valley, and I hope that this can be an opportunity for others outside of our group to see that Asian Pacific Islanders are actually very talented in film. Overall, I hope to feel a sense of pride amongst my peers.

What are the qualifications for the selected films?

Sense it is an Asian Pacific Islander Film Festival, the films have to have some sort of Asian Pacific Islander element in there or involved in the making.

Do you think that some films really don’t get a fair shake from film festivals? And if so, why?

I do, I think that some ethnic groups are overlooked, which is why we are trying to promote Southeast Asian films as much as possible because their visibility tend to go silent.

What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

You do not see very many Asians on screen, so we decided to create a space for ourselves.

How has your FilmFreeway submission process been?

FilmFreeway has been extremely helpful and the submissions are pouring in quite rapidly.

Where do you see the festival by 2020?

I hope that the festival becomes an annual event that will connect the university with the community. I see a lot of potential in our greater Asian Pacific Islander community here in the Central Valley, and I hope that this Festival will grow into something that they can take pride.

What film have you seen the most times in your life?

Hercules [laugh out loud]
In one sentence, what makes a great film?

The theme/plot!

How is the film scene in your city?

The film scene in our city is most renowned for the Reel Pride Film Festival, which is one of the largest, if not the largest, LGBTQ Film Festival in the west coast. We also have Filmworks and Cineculture, which are great film organization here in Fresno. However, there are definitely room for the film scene to grow here.

 *****

Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 20-50 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto, and Los Angeles at least 2 times a month. Go to www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

SUBMIT your TV PILOT Screenplay or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 Screenplay CONTESTSUBMIT your Short Screenplay or FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script performed

Interview with Festival Directors Betsy Uhler Colombo & Alexa Roman (LA Dance Film Festival)

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The LA Dance Film Festival aims to provide a supportive and enriching environment for both emerging and established dance filmmakers. The festival is open to filmmakers from around the world. LADFF accepts films from a variety of genres as long as dance is the main storytelling component.

Contact

What is your Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers?

Our film festival has been successful at fulfilling our mission, which is twofold: 1) to create opportunities and exposure for dance films from around the world, and 2) to unite the Los Angeles dance and film communities.

 What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival this year (2017)?

Attendees to our festival in January 2018 should expect to see a wide variety of short dance films from around the world. We have some fantastic submissions coming in across all styles and genres of dance, and are looking forward to sharing a selection of them with our local community of dance film lovers.

 What are the qualifications for the selected films?

Qualifying films are under 30 minutes in length, and incorporate dance as a core narrative component. We have two categories: fiction and nonfiction.

 Do you think that some films really don’t get a fair shake from film festivals? And if so, why?

It’s hard for us to speak to other festivals but we take a lot of steps to ensure we are as objective as possible in how we assess films. We have a submissions team comprised of dancers, filmmakers and dance filmmakers. Our team watches every film and scores it against a multi-point rubric. We use the scores to determine the final selections for the festival. Separately, we have both a Jury Award and an Audience Award. Those awards are determined by people who are independent from the festival staff.

What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

We are motivated by our desire to provide opportunities and exposure for dance films from around the world as well as unite the dance and film communities here in Los Angeles. Dance film offers something different than traditional films and it’s not a commonly known genre. We wanted to make Los Angeles a place where dance filmmaking and dance film viewership thrive.

How has your FilmFreeway submission process been?

Great! We love FilmFreeway. We also use WithoutaBox and we offer an extended deadline on WithoutaBox.

Where do you see the festival by 2020?

We’d love to be able to expand to a bigger venue and offer multiple days of programming so we can reach a wider audience and offer screening opportunities to a greater number films.

 What film have you seen the most times in your life?

Beverly Hills Cop. Maybe Beverly Hills Cop III.

If we’re talking dance films, I’ve seen Confrontation (dir. Shannon Janet Smith and Steven Butler) the most as it has played at three festivals I’ve attended, was part of a StandardVision Showcase and we screened it at our festival. Thomas Freundlich’s film Cold Storageis a close second. [Alexa]

 In one sentence, what makes a great film?

A great dance film uses the art of dance to tell a compelling story in a unique and entertaining way. It leaves the audience asking questions, entertaining new thoughts or discovering untapped emotions.

  How is the film scene in your city?

Los Angeles is the film capitol of the world, so… pretty good!

 

ladance1.jpg

 *****

Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 20-50 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto, and Los Angeles at least 2 times a month. Go to www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

SUBMIT your TV PILOT Screenplay or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 Screenplay CONTESTSUBMIT your Short Screenplay or FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script performed

Interview with Festival Director Georges Chamchoum (Asian World Film Festival)

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The Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) brings the best of a broad selection of Asian World cinema to Los Angeles in order to draw greater recognition to the region’s wealth of filmmakers, strengthening ties between the Asian and Hollywood film industries. Uniting through cross-cultural collaboration, our festival champions films from  over 50 countries across Asia spanning from Turkey to Japan and Russia to India. All films that participate in the Festival will have a unique chance to be guided through the challenging awards season, showcasing their foreign films to the Academy, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and all Guilds for enhanced exposure, media attention and awards consideration.*

The Social Links are:

https://twitter.com/asianworldff

https://www.facebook.com/AsianWorldFilmFest

https://www.instagram.com/asianworldff/

http://www.asianworldfilmfest.org/

 
  • What is your Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers?

We pride ourselves on being at the service of the film and the filmmakers. We feel that we are their gateway to the Oscars and Golden Globes during the award season. We give them PR opportunities, which saves the filmmakers a lot of money during their marketing period.

  • What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival this year (2017)?

We like to think of the Asian World Film Festival as being the window to dreams. Besides screening the Oscar and Golden Globes submitted movies, we also have a Signature Screening Series. 

Our opening night film is Ayla: The Daughter of War, which is Turkeys official Oscar entry.

We screen movies from unchartered territories, little known countries like the Republic of Sakha, Buryatia, and this year a movie called Salt from North Korea.

This is the first time Salt is being screened in the U.S.  The film is directed by the controversial South Korean filmmaker Sheen Sang-ok during his period of filmmaking in North Korea, so we are excited to have it in our schedule.

We also screen Asian American movies. This year we have the 25th anniversary screening of The Joy Luck Club, which was a ground-breaking movie. Several of the cast members will be in attendance for the Q & A.  Our closing night film is George Takei’s Allegiance. We will be honoring George with our Lifetime Achievement Award.

  • What are the qualifications for the selected films?

First and foremost, any movie submitted to the Oscars and Golden Globes for Foreign Language selection from Asian Countries is automatically selected. Then we choose films from countries that often get overlooked but we feel would be interesting to an audience.

  • Do you think that some films really don’t get a fair shake from film festivals? And if so, why?

It’s a matter of perspective and taste, which of course depends upon the individual.  Each movie is perceived in differently.  The Jury sees a film in a certain way, probably different from how the press sees it, and the audience tastes differs most of the time from the Jury or the Press. So, it boils down to one thing: not everyone sees a movie with same outlook.

  • What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

The love and passion for the Asian Cinema.  When we say Asia, we mean from the Eastern shores of the Mediterranean to Japan, from Russia by way of Turkey to India and China. Fifty plus strong countries with a wealth of talent.

We want the Asian Cinema to find its rightful place in Hollywood, a place in the sun. After seventy-one years and only six Oscars, that’s what motivates us.

  • How has your FilmFreeway submission process been?

We do not have a submission process. After the Oscar and Golden Globe submissions, we have a selection team throughout Asia that makes recommendations, based upon our criteria. Our Los Angeles programming team makes the final selections.

  • Where do you see the festival by 2020?

On the level of the Cannes, Venice and Berlin Film Festivals. We aspire to being a major festival, that will keep the spirit of the art of cinema and not focus on the business side.  It’s the films and filmmakers who are our key focus.

What film have you seen the most times in your life?

Andrei Tarkovski’s ANDREI RUBLEV; Francis Ford Coppola’s THE GODFATHER TRILOGY; Clint Eastwood’s THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES and Sergio Leone’s ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA.

In one sentence, what makes a great film?

The Screenplay. The Screenplay. The Screenplay!

How is the film scene in your city?

How can you describe the film scene in the cinema capital of the world, and for that matter Culver City, the heart of screenland and home of the Asian World Film Festival.

In Los Angeles, Hollywood, Culver City we breath cinema, we eat cinema, we dream cinema – we are surrounded by everything that suggests cinema!

Look left, right, front and center and you see films that defines my City: Sunset Boulevard, Rebel Without a Cause, Chinatown, They Shoot Horses Don’t They, Alice’s Restaurant, The Day of the Locust, LA Story, The Player, Boyz ‘n the Hood, La La Land and I could go on….

**********************************************

GEORGES N. CHAMCHOUM, EXECUTIVE & PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Georges Chamchoum is an Emmy and multiple award-winning Film Director and Producer, born in Niger West Africa of Lebanese origin. He was educated in France, Germany and Wales and entered the film industry in 1968 after graduating from the Conservatoire du Cinema Francais in Paris.

Georges has directed and produced over 35 features in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Canada and the USA, with many screened at various International Film Festivals and Universities.

He has also organized numerous film festivals since 1982, most notably as Jury Delegate for the Festival du Film Fantastique et de Science Fiction de Paris (France) and as the Executive and Program Director of the Monaco Charity Film Festival.

Georges is currently the International Director of the Yakutsk International Film Festival (Yakutia, Sakha Republic) and International Relations Executive for Notre Dame University International Film Festival (Lebanon). In addition, he is Co-founder of Film Festivals Cinergy, a union of film festivals around the world to promote and champion talent in filmmaking.

Georges has lived in Los Angeles for the past 28 years. Most recently, in 2017, he was named one of the 100 most influential Lebanese in the world and has been   honored in a special commemorative publication to mark the occasion.

 

 *****

Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 20-50 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto, and Los Angeles at least 2 times a month. Go to www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

SUBMIT your TV PILOT Screenplay or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 Screenplay CONTESTSUBMIT your Short Screenplay or FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script performed

Interview with Festival Director Alessandro Cassa (FICMAN/INSFF)

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What is FICMAN/INSFF in a few words ? 12 months. 12 finalists. 1 great winner! Filmmakers, get noticed! FICMAN / INSFF is an international film festival and LIVE screening for Short film. Be part of this one of a kind festival for shorts lovers, and give your film and your talent a chance to be shown and noticed by the right people from all over the world.  FICMAN / INSFF is produced by Productions du 3 juin, a company from Québec (Canada) recognized internationally. Since 2007,Productions du 3 juin has focused on production (videos, short films and promotional documentaries) for various renowned clients. This creative company is recognized internationally and followed by people from 47 countries on its WEBTV (P3J.TV) and VIMÉO PRODUCTIONS DU 3 JUIN channel. To celebrate its 15 years in 2017, it has founded the FICMAN International Short Film Festival, in which it excels, and WEBTV by P3J.TV which offers an immersion in emotion, its production line.

Contact

What is your Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers? 

All filmmakers work hard to realise and produce their Short… and FICMAN/INSFF wants to give author’s film a chance to be seen and to be discovered all around the world. This is why FICMAN/INSFF is a monthly international competition that offers the opportunity to be selected for a live screening in Québec (Canada) at the end of the year: a great night of short to present and choose the best of the best. But all year round it is also a moment to be discovered by an international jury from the industry, and most of all, to have its trailer (for monthly winners) relayed on P3J.TV, a cultural WebTV followed by people from 47 countries. And because we all need recognitions in this industry, our Festival will give official Laurels, review on a professional cinema blog (LE PETIT SEPTIÈME) and much more to winners. Prizes of more than $ 15,000 in visibility and recognition will be awarded.

We create this one of a kind festival for short films lovers, to give to filmmakers a chance to be shown and noticed by the right people from all over the world. So, each month, for a year, a winner will be chosen in a monthly competition from the submissions received during the past month, what means we will have more than 12 Films Finalists. The trailer of this Finalist Short Winner will be shown on P3J.TV with a bio of the Director, the poster of the Film and a description of the Short. FICMAN/INSFF offers international visibility, recognitions, and a chance to be discovered!

What are the qualifications for the selected films? 

FICMAN/INSFF is really a simple and friendly user Short Film Festival for author’s film. Shorts submitted must have a trailer that will be shown on the international cultural WebTV called P3J.TV. Short must have been made for 5 years or less, and our festival is also open to first films and student films. Of course, the film will not be shown online, but on the yearly live screening. The following categories of fiction films are eligible: author’s film, narrative film, silent film, art film, animated film, experimental film, student film, first work, documentary fiction, video clip, web series. Short films must be under 15 minutes and all Submissions must be subtitled in English (for non-French speaking films). Silent films are also accepted. All the details are on our website (www.ficman-insff.com) and FILMREEWAY.

What motivates you and your team to do this festival? 

The FICMAN/INSFF team simply loved Short film! Our motivation is simple, we want to help promote inspiring, honest short films that focus on the director’s vision and reflect their personality. Whether the films are poetic, intimate, touching, funny or political, we want to put the spotlight on high-quality works that reflect the personality of the director who wrote and created them from a single idea, a vision of the story they wanted to tell, the universe they wanted to share. As a festival and platform for discovery, FICMAN-INSFF, also wants to help highlight short films in the current cinematographic landscape that were written and directed by the same person. Works that present their own universe. And we simply want to celebrate the many independent shorts from all over.

In one sentence, what makes a great film? 

We believe that all great film begins with a great idea, a flash of genius, and the desire to bring a personal universe to life.

How has your FilmFreeway submission process been? 

From the beginning of the process, and from the beginning of the adventure, the FilmFreeway Team has been there to help us with all the steps for creating our Festival page’s. And we must say that the submission processes each month, of our monthly competition, is easy and friendly user. For us, to manage, and for the Jury. All this offers an great opening and a great opportunity to connect with Filmmakers from all the world, and must of all, with FilmFreeway, we are able to do it the right way.

Where do you see the festival by 2020? 

Our vision is to be, in 2020, one the recognized international Festival, dedicated to narratives Shorts. And we wish that through the years, we will give a chance to Filmmakers to get noticed… to encourage them to continue and to create more shorts. As a Director myself, I know that first of all, we have to believe in us, and to believe in the potential of our film. Our festival is there, simply for that: to help creators to believed in their ideas, by getting visibility and recognitions with FICMAN. And we wish for FICMAN, to be recognized that way in 2020. We have three years do to so!

What film have you seen the most times in your life? 

I must confess to be honest, that one of the first movie I saw, and the one I am always trilled to see again and again, is Signing in the rain with Gene Kelly. For a lot of reasons (quality of actors, music, script, dance numbers of course…) but for one reason in particular. It was the first time I saw, behind the scene. And that day I knew for sure, what I was going to do in my life: filmmaking !

SHORT BIO OF THE DIRECTOR

Vice-President of Productions du 3 juin and Festival Director, Alessandro Cassa is a versatile creator whose works have been selected at various festivals in recent years, recognizing his creativity and sensitive approach. He is an author, chronicler and director and passionate about image and creation.  In 2006 and 2007 he represented Quebec at the Cannes Festival Short Film Corner, with two short films. He was decorated in 2013 with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for all his achievements in culture, literature and film. His most recent short film that was inspired by his youth series has been screened in 10 countries around the world where he has won several awards: ACARUS DUMDELL OU LA THÉORIE DE LA FICTION is in official selections at 21 international festivals: India, Great Britain, United States, France, Belgium, Italy, Romania and Spain. He hopes that the FICMAN/INSFF will offer the opportunity to highlight and showcase various auteur cinema productions throughout the world.

BANDE ANNONCE ANGLAIS : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nh3epbkPo08

SITE FILMFREEWAY : https://filmfreeway.com/festival/FICMAN-INSFF

SITE FICMAN : www.ficman-insff.com

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*****

Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 20-50 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto, and Los Angeles at least 2 times a month. Go to www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

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1997 Movie Review: WILDE, 1997 – Starring: Stephen Fry, Jude Law

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WILDEWILDE, 1997
Movie Reviews

Directed by Brian Gilbert

Cast: Stephen Fry, Jude Law, Vanessa Redgrave, Michael Sheen, Tom Wilkinson, Gemma Jones, Jennifer Ehle, Judy Parfit
Review by Stefan Leverton

SYNOPSIS:

The story of Oscar Wilde, genius, poet, playwright and the First Modern Man. The self-realisation of his homosexuality caused Wilde enormous torment as he juggled marriage, fatherhood and responsibility with his obsessive love for Lord Alfred Douglas, nicknamed Bosie. After legal action instigated by Bosie’s father, the mad Marquess of Queensberry, Wilde refused to flee the country and was sentenced to two years at hard labour by the courts of an intolerant Victorian society.

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REVIEW:

Wilde is the biopic telling the infamous story of Oscar Wilde, one of Ireland’s and the Victorian era’s greatest playwright and poet. Above that he represented the rise in the appreciation for all things aesthetic, fashion and style as well as being one of the wittiest historical figures that I can think of. His life wasn’t all plaudits though, and he courted controversy to the full.

The film begins with Wilde returning from America, marrying Constance Wilde and having two boys, Cyril and Vyvyan. Then it begins, not wanting to over-state anything, his rise and fall. Taking the theatre world by storm, Wilde’s plays illuminate the west end and he becomes the toast of the town. With an invigorated zeal for socialising, Wilde acquaints himself with all the lavishness his success affords him.

This ignites a spark within Wilde, especially after becoming familiar with Robbie Ross. After their meeting Wilde’s ‘outs’ himself amongst the homosexual community, and in doing so becomes the person he may’ve always known he was. Then the shift moves from his work to his personal life. An intense affair rises between Wilde and Lord Alfred Douglas, nicknamed Bosie. Bosie is drawn to the artful and wise Wilde, while Wilde is drawn to the youthful pretty Bosie.

Their relationship has its ups and downs, mainly due to Bosie’s impetuousness, but ultimately has its dramatic anchor in the film as in Wilde’s life by being the scandal that brought shame upon Wilde’s family and indeed his professional reputation. Bosie’s father, the Mad Marquess of Queensberry, files a lawsuit against Wilde and his lewd illegal behaviour.

The ensuing court case, is widely publicised and the witch hunt that surrounds it sees the steadfast Wilde prosecuted for his actions and sentenced to four years hard labour after refusing to take exile. Then we witness Wilde’s decline, removed of his style in gaol. Even on his release when he takes refuge in Europe his healthy withers and Wilde dies resolute but very much alone in Paris, 1900.

As a fan of Wilde’s work, I feel this film does tremendous justice to the man, played with sheer perfection by Stephen Fry. Fry said of the role that it was the one he was born to play, and he is in no way over stating that fact. And the filmmakers have done a wonderful job of adding to the creation by giving Fry just the right appearance as a young-twenty-something but also as the broken-aged-man Wilde becomes during his incarceration. And special mention should go to Jude law who, aside from looking good in the role, acts as a great folly to Wilde, being that they are at different stages of their lives.

The only criticism of the film is that those who aren’t familiar with Wilde may struggle to be enraptured by the drama of the film which never really peaks. I think that to be slightly mis-guided as Wilde himself fully understood what was going on, there was no outrage from him, though he did stand resolutely and argued his case to spite all that, though sadly without success. What stands is the memory of such outrageous persecution from the justice system and society to persecute someone, when today that wouldn’t even enter the consciousness.

WILDE, 1997

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1997 Movie Review: WAG THE DOG, 1997 – Starring: Robert DeNiro, Dustin Hoffman

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WAG THE DOG MOVIE POSTER
WAG THE DOG, 1997
Movie Reviews

Directed by Barry Levinson
Starring: Dustin Hoffman; Robert De Niro; Anne Heche
Review by Tom Coatsworth

SYNOPSIS:

When the US President gets caught with his pants down, days before the election, his spin-doctors create a fictitious war to divert attention.

Nominated for 2 Oscars: Best actor in a leading role: Dustin Hoffman;

Best Screenplay: David Mamet; Hilary Henkin

REVIEW:

Political satire in feature filmmaking is exceptionally rare. It’s a poor-boy genre that is shunned by producers, who prefer to make money. And so it’s a thrill to see top notch talent driving a witty political script all the way to the bank. On a fifteen million dollar budget ‘Wag The Dog’ grossed sixty-four million box-office worldwide — nothing to sneer at.

The story begins with scandal: the President has been accused by a Firefly Girl of sexual fondling. It’s only days before the election. He has a commanding lead in the polls but the story spells disaster. The President is in China. One of his chief advisors, Winifred Ames (Anne Heche), brings in ‘Mr. Fixit’ – Conrad Brean (De Niro) to handle the crisis. It seems an impossible task.

But lying helps: the President is sick and cannot leave China for at least a day – this buys time. Brean and Ames fly to California where they enlist Hollywood producer, Stanley Motss (Hoffman), to produce their war. (The Motss character was based on movie producer Robert Evans. Hoffman does a pitch-perfect job emulating Evans and was nominated for an Oscar. Evans, a former actor, insisted: “I was wonderful in that part”).

Brean wants a war – not a real war, but a pageant – he wants a song, a story line; he wants patriotic fervor to rise up and quell the Firefly Girl story. He pulls Albania out of the air. “What did they ever do for us? What do we know about them? They seem sort of shifty”. (Motss chimes in: they have ‘the bomb’ – a suitcase bomb – Albanian terrorists with a suitcase bomb in Canada.) Motss calls in his go-to team – John (Willie Nelson), a Nashville songwriter; the Fad King (Denis Leary) and Liz Butsky (Andrea Martin). They brainstorm the night away and by morning they have a song and a strategy.

They create film footage of the “War”. On a Hollywood Soundstage an actress (Kirsten Dunst) is hired to play a refugee fleeing a war torn village. She runs in front of a blue screen while a burning village complete with sirens and crying villagers is supplied digitally. Five hours later it is on the evening news. The Firefly story is buried. “It’s a pageant”, says Brean.

On route to Nashville Brean and Ames are detained by the CIA. There is no war and no bomb and someone has to answer for it. Brean spins the CIA agent (William H. Macy) like a top: if there were peace — you would be out of a job. Mr. CIA appears completely bamboozled and lets them go. However no sooner are they in Nashville they get word the war is over! The CIA has informed the Presidents rival and hence the public that hostilities with Albania have ended and all is right with the world! “This is nothing!” shouts Motss, “I’m producing this war, it’s not over till I say its over – we need an act 2”. Motss and the Fad King quickly spin Act2.

A soldier with a name like shoe has been caught behind enemy lines and is being held by the terrorists — a war hero. This plays perfectly with an ‘old shoe’ song they have dreamed up. The Army searches its ranks for a soldier by that name — William Schumann (Woody Harrelson). The campaign begins anew. The cry goes up: “bring back ‘Old Shoe’”. The new song is planted in the Library of Congress – 1930. Motss and Brean throw old shoes tied together over telephone lines and in tops of trees; catchy idea. The media loves it. (I remember when the movie appeared because so did the shoes – on telephone lines all over town.) School children start letter writing – the Firefly story is buried once again – they are almost home.

And then they meet Schumann – a dangerous psychotic who’s spent fifteen years in a military prison for raping a nun. (Part of the charm of the script is that as easily as the spin-doctors churn out lies and as easily as the public buys them the professional branches of the government – the Army, the CIA — are never really taken in and never quite go along with the charade.)

Harrelson is hilarious as the psycho soldier. I was particularly impressed with De Niro who displays some serious light, comedy chops. His attempts at broad comedy — at playing course, dumb, silly people — have never worked. Here he is at home. Hoffman is clicking as the slick Hollywood mogul; and Anne Heche fills some tall high heels, poised as she is between these two legends.

The script is deliciously funny and a subject of controversy – David Mamet, one of America’s finest, brashest playwrights, wrote the working script. It was nominated for an Oscar. But the original script, based on a book by Larry Beinhart, was written by Hilary Henkin. Barry Levinson has claimed that Mamet wrote his draft without reading the book or Henkin’s draft – but the case went to court and both Mamet and Henkin are now credited with screenwriting: they should get together more often, it’s brilliant.

‘Wag’ was released a month before the Clinton intern scandal, and so it was prescient. What’s more some believe the movie served to hamstring President Clinton’s actions: critics tied the timing of a missile attack on an enemy camp with a Presidential desire to ‘change the subject’. Whether it was true or not ‘Wag’ had spun ‘spin’ out of the box and there was no going back: the public had wised up. Since the days of Aristophanes that’s as good as it gets: ‘Wag The Dog’ is political satire at its finest. Enjoy.

wag the dog

1997 Movie Review: TWIN TOWN, 1997 Dir. Ingmar Bergman

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TWIN TOWN, MOVIE POSTERTWIN TOWN, 1997
Movie Reviews

Directed by Ingmar Bergman

Cast: Victor Sjöström, Bibi Andersson, Ingrid Thulin, Gunnar Björnstrand, Jullan Kindahl, Folke Sundquist
Review by DJ Haza

SYNOPSIS:

Julian and Jeremy, two brothers known as the “Lewis Twins”, prefer to spend their time on drugs and joyriding. When their father, Fatty Lewis, breaks his leg working for local bigwig Bryn Cartwright, they show up demanding compensation. Underestimating the vicious humour of the twins Bryn brusquely refuses to pay for the un-insured Fatty and unleashes a ferocious feud.

 

REVIEW:

Kevin Allen’s first outing as a Director is a rip-roaring story of drugs, bent coppers, thieves and family in the Welsh city of Swansea. The stories follows the Lewis Twins, played by Rhys and Llyr Ifans, as they steal cars, barter for prescription drugs and quiz each other as they smoke weed through a home made bong whilst sharing a bath. Life is anything but ordinary for these troublesome Twins. Living in two caravans with their father – Fatty (Huw Ceredig), mother – Jean (Di Botcher), sister – Adie (Rachel Scorgie) and the dog – Cantona, banter is a plenty.

Across town two of Swansea’s finest officers; Greyo (Dorien Thomas) and Terry Walsh (Dougray Scott) meet outside Swansea train station for a drug deal. As they wait they admire the Dylan Thomas quote on the pavement ‘An ugly, pretty town’. However, Terry Walsh refers to Swansea as ‘a pretty, shitty city’. Greyo is alarmed to see the amount of cocaine that Terry has ordered and thinks they are going to struggle to sell it, but Terry has big ideas. Another major player in Swansea is Bryn Cartwright (William Thomas), a local businessman who thinks he’s the big man in town.

When Fatty falls off a roof and breaks his leg whilst doing a job for Bryn the Twins think their father should have some compensation. They appeal to Bryn on their father’s behalf and are told, ‘take your sticky sticky and fuck off back to noddy land’. The Twins are not happy. Their revenge is swift and when the Cartwright’s family dog is found beheaded Bryn wants to send the Twins a message. In cahoots with Terry on the drug deal he asks him a favor – an eye for an eye, a dog for a dog. Terry’s bright idea to plant the Cartwright’s dog collar in Cantona’s dog house and then set to fire to it goes catastrophically wrong. The caravans catch fire and the Twins parents and sister are incinerated in the blaze. Now the Twins mean business.

As Bryn and Terry conspire to keep their actions quiet Greyo is seeking to find the murderer of the Lewis family. As Greyo thinks he’s close to finding the Lewis’ murderer Terry and Bryn blackmail him into stopping his investigations. They remind him his prints are all over the cocaine. However, when Greyo meets with Bryn’s wife, Bonnie, and she admits her suspicions of Bryn and that her and her daughter, Lucy, need to get away Greyo knows he has to do the right thing.

As family and friends gather outside the church to say farewell to the Lewis family the car carrying Fatty’s body goes missing. The Twins begin to hatch their final plan. Bryn is gagged and tied to the motorized garage door with a noose around his neck as the Twins steal his boat. When Greyo and Bonnie arrive at the Cartwright’s house, ‘the Ponda Rosa’, to pack her bags the garage door gets stuck. Greyo clambers into the garage to find Bryn hung.

On Swansea pier Fatty’s male voice choir start to converge. On Bryn’s boat the Twins have Terry tied to Fatty’s coffin and they push it off the boat as the male voice choir begins to sing. Terry’s body sinks with Fatty’s coffin and the Twins salute their father as they fulfill his wishes – to be buried at sea. With their vengeance fulfilled the Twins sail off into the night with dreams of Morocco and finding the source of their marijuana.

The comical Twins are fantastic characters with no redeeming features apart from their will to fulfill their father’s wish and seek vengeance for their losses. Terry and Greyo are absolutely clueless and Bryn is a small time idiot, but believes he is above the law. An array of other characters add amusement to the dark, yet comical story. Bryn’s daughter; who is sleeping with Dai the karaoke king, gets pissed on by the Twins whilst singing in a karaoke contest. Emrys; whilst walking his dog, buys a hotdog filled with magic mushrooms and marijuana off the Twins. Later he is seen cuddling a sheep in a field with his trousers around his ankles. Some hilarious Welsh dialogue including Dai’s – ‘as they say in Llandow, chow for now’ will keep you chuckling before the film takes a dark turn.

Twin Town is a fantastic little film of small time people trying to enhance their own lives in whatever ways are available to them. Every character is outrageously surreal, yet totally believable as they all try to enhance their own lives. Some deal drugs, some rob cars and others want to travel the world singing karaoke. The one thing they all have in common is that they all want more than what Swansea has offered them so far. Twin Town won’t be remembered as an art-house classic or a British blockbuster, but it will be remembered for it’s comical characters, fantastic dialogue and clever story. It may not be to everyone’s taste, but if you think ordinary life is not so ordinary and find regular people hilarious then you could do a lot worse with two hours of your time than watch Twin Town.

TWIN TOWN, 1997

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