Author: festreviews

Turning 54 Today: Justin Theroux

festreviews Happy Birthday

QUOTES:

If I was roped into a seven-year TV contract I’d probably hang myself. It’s a TV show – selling cars, cereal, soda pop. TV is like that. The shows are incidental to the commercials. I always laugh when TV shows pat themselves on the back for being cutting-edge. I mean, an interracial kiss on Ally McBeal (1997) is cutting-edge? I’ve never been shocked by anything on television, except the news.

I didn’t have a lot of ambition, which I think was a good thing. I was ambitious about quality, but I wasn’t ambitious in the “I’ve got to get a pilot!” way.

It’s like, once you’ve seen Tom Hanks win the Golden Globes, the Oscars, you’ve seen his wife, what kind of car he drives, when you watch his movies, you can’t fully get really lost in them.



Turning 65 Today: Antonio Banderas

festreviews Happy Birthday

QUOTES:

I hate that cat [“Puss in Boots” from Shrek 2 (2004)]. Ever since he appeared in my life he’s more important than me. Now women always say, “Oh, I love that cat. He’s so cute”. Before, it was, “I loved you in [The Mask of Zorro (1998)]. And sometimes you think, “Is she saying that because she has some other… intention?” But no. They love the cat, and they hate me.

To be married in our profession is not an easy thing. There’s too many beautiful people around, very interesting people. It’s just a matter of really having-being patient and probably having the capacity and the faith of falling in love with your own wife again. That happens to me.

I don’t want anything I don’t deserve, [but] if they offer me more money, I’m not stupid.

Turning 46 Today: JoAnna Garcia Swisher

festreviews Happy Birthday

QUOTES:

I’ve made my share of mistakes, but had the good fortune to have them not be so public.

I kind of live a private life. I am out a lot, I have amazing friends and see a lot, so it’s not like I’m a hermit. But I just know what I do for a living and that there are certain sensitivities.

I definitely am afraid of the dark. Somehow, in my mind I can always come up with some horrific stuff to worry about.

Turning 53 Today: Angie Harmon

festreviews Happy Birthday

QUOTES’

[on her character’s voluptuousness in Agent Cody Banks (2003)] We had so much stuff in there: shoulder pads and things that look like chicken cutlets. It’s not The Hours (2002), I know – I had prosthetic boobs instead of a prosthetic nose.

I’m half Greek and half American Indian, so my dermatologist told me I’ll never age.

When I feel like I’m not doing what I’m supposed to do as a mother, I torture myself. I find some consolation in the fact that all mommies feel it. If there was a way to cure mommy guilt, I would bottle it and be a bazillionaire

You’re not pretty on the outside unless you’re pretty on the inside.

Watch Today’s FREE Film Festival: EUROPEAN Shorts Festival

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Watch the festival NOW for the next 48 hours by signing up for the FREE 3-DAY trial using the link, or go to http://www.wildsound.ca

Watch today’s Festival:  https://www.wildsound.ca/events/european-shorts-festival

Kazbegi, 5min., Slovakia
Directed by Yakiv Antypenko
Set to a traditional folk song recorded live at a Georgian wedding, this short documentary immerses viewers in the natural and cultural rhythm of the Kazbegi region. With no narration, the film focuses on the detailed sound design and visual atmosphere — where every insect and breeze plays like an instrument in a living orchestra.

https://instagram.com/jackfoto1

TOY, 11min., Greece
Directed by Natasha Smyrnaiou
New Years Eve. Nikos is looking for a New Year’s gift for his godchild in a toy store with a strange salesman. During his stay there, he evoked memories of his own childhood. He finally gets a toy, but not what he thinks..

https://instagram.com/natasha_smyrnaiou

KINOKARENINA, 1min,. Ukraine
Directed by Andrii Makarchenko
She really wanted their wedding day to last forever. But… Dedicated to Jean Cocteau and Leo Tolstoy.

Retrato (Portrait), 1min., Spain
Directed by Ignacio Rodó
Your portrait can capture you. You decide how to shine in it.

https://www.instagram.com/ignacio.rodo

Glasout, 2min., Germany
Directed by Mert Akbai
A couple communicates their love and the glass.

http://www.edition-abel.de/

Watch the DIVERSITY Shorts Film Festival (in case you missed it)

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Watch the festival NOW for the next 48 hours by signing up for the FREE 3-DAY trial using the link, or go to http://www.wildsound.ca

Watch today’s Festival: https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/diversity-shorts-festival

THE PRISONER, 1min., India
Directed by Allabhya Ghosh
Life is confined to a ten-foot-by-ten-foot room. That’s the norm in the suburbs now.

Don’t pretend you didn’t see me, 1min., Argentina
Directed by Jimmy Alejandro Castro Zambrano
The narration of the experiences of a blind person who moves through the city.

https://instagram.com/jimmyartista

MELODRAMA, 34min., Italy
Directed by Giuseppe De Vuono
Rebecca Reveal, a promising designer, lives with her husband in an old farmhouse lost in the middle of the countryside. She is a beautiful woman, visionary and devoted to the art world, he a paranoid and egocentric man. They seem the picture of the perfect family, but both are hiding a secret that will push them beyond their limits.

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Sizwe, 28min., South Africa
Directed by Ayanda Makayi
The story of a young, deaf Xhosa girl, overcoming adversity in the height of lockdown to save her gogo (grandmother).

https://www.instagram.com/sizweshortfilm/

Quantum Causality Conundrum, 2min., USA
Directed by Aki Aitos
While walking back to a college campus, Emma and Lila delve into the nuances of quantum mechanics and causality, balancing profound curiosity with the practical need to get to class on time.

Today’s Podcast: EP. 1561: Screenwriter Shaun Delliskave (CALIGO INN)

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LISTEN to the podcast: http://www.wildsoundpodcast.com/the-film-podcast-by-wildsound/2025/8/9/ep-1561-screenwriter-shaun-delliskave-caligo-inn

watch the best scene reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyK8K0-Hi3k

Get to know the writer:

What is your screenplay about?

Caligo Inn is about a power-hungry senator who goes to a secluded inn to work on his vice-presidential platform, only to be confronted by the ghosts of people destroyed by his ambition—soldiers, victims, even his own son. It’s part political drama, part supernatural reckoning, where he’s forced to face everything he’s tried to bury.

What genres does your screenplay fall under?

It’s a psychological thriller at its core, but it leans heavily into supernatural horror with a strong thread of political drama running through it.

Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?

It puts a fresh spin on the haunted house story by tying the horror directly to real-world politics and personal guilt. It’s creepy, timely, and has a central character who’s both fascinating and deeply flawed—which makes for a compelling watch.

How would you describe this script in two words?

Haunting retribution.

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

Probably The Shining. That mix of isolation, psychological tension, and surreal horror really stuck with me, and you can feel its influence in this script.

Subscribe to the podcast:

https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/

https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

Today’s Writing Deadlines: August 9, 2025

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Submit to these exciting festivals today. Festivals that offer feedback from the industry, plus performance videos.

EROTICA Screenplay Festival:

EROTICA Screenplay Festival – Deadline August 9th

This festival has a guaranteed 4-tier set up for each accepted script. (No matter what, all screenplays submitted receive FULL FEEDBACK on their work.)
1) Full Feedback on your script
2) Actors performance video reading of your script
3) Blog interview promotion.
4) Podcast interview on the Film Festival ITunes show

HISTORY Short Story Festival (everyone wins):

HISTORY Short Story Festival (everyone wins) – Deadline August 9th

Submit you HISTORY short story to the festival here, and we will automatically have it performed by a professional actor and turned into a promotional video for yourself.

History is a narrative that describes, analyzes, and questions past events, and examines the patterns of cause and effect. It’s a collection of stories told by many different people, and is subject to constant revision and reinterpretation. Accept only stories that fit into the HISTORY genre.

CONTEMPORARY FICTION Novel Festival:

Get FULL FEEDBACK on either the 1st chapter or entire novel book from our committee of Professional Writers, and Writing Consultants. Get your novel performed by a professional actor at the festival.

NEW OPTION: Or, just submit for an actor performance reading transcript of your novel (any 5 pages of your book). Great way to promote the sales of your book if you’re already published. (see examples on the video playlist below)

Deadline Today; EXPERIMENTAL/DANCE/MUSIC Festival

Today’s 5 Star FilmFreeway Testimonial: ENVIRONMENTAL Film & Screenplay Festival

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Submit to the Festival via FilmFreeway:

This festival is truly one of the best film festivals I have ever been involved with. Their communication with the filmmakers is first rate. The way the festival is run is like no other and so is the exposure they provide for our films. And unlike any other festival I have ever seen, they do literal video reviews of the people who watched your film and you get to hear first hand what they think! Totally unique and totally amazing!-

August 2025 THRILLER/SUSPENSE Festival Testimonials

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Submit to the Festival via FilmFreeway.

Excellent and useful review notes. Notifications were timely and frequent. Excellent festival for networking opportunities.

Thank you again for your feedback! Honored to have won Best Direction for TEA TIME!

Very good festival and very good feedback. I really appreciate the honest feedback that the viewers gave. The reaction they gave was exactly what I was going for when we filmed the movie. The surprise was to have Stratagem the movie get voted for best feature film. Very humbled and honored. Thank you all for your professionalism and communication.

Awesome festival, but what really sold me was the audience feedback videos they made. Great marketing material for the project! Would definitely recommend for indie filmmakers.