TIFF 2017 Movie Review: SHEIKH JACKSON (Egypt 2017)

Movie Reviews of films that will be playing at TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) in 2017. Go to TIFF 2017 Movie Reviews and read reviews of films showing at the festival.

Sheikh Jackson Poster
An Islamic cleric has a crisis of faith when he hears the news that his childhood idol, Michael Jackson, has died.

Director:

Amr Salama

Writers:

Amr Salama, Omar Khaled

Stars:

Basma, Amina Khalil, Ahmad El-Fishawi

Sheikh Jackson is the nickname given to Sheikh as a kid for loving the pop idol Michael Jackson.

The film concentrates on Sheikh as a grown man, now a devout imam (Ahmad Alfishawy) who tends to be praying all the time and demanding devout behaviour of his children, just as his father (Maged El Kedwany), shown in flashback demanded of him.

Didn’t Sheikh learn from his father’s mistakes? Sheikh is also upset that he cannot cry while praying and sees a female psychologist, the sex of which he objects to.

Salama’s film is all over the place, with no observable goal. He has put on centre a subject which western audiences are unfamiliar with and makes no attempt to make him likeable or connected to the audience. The influence of Jackson over Sheikh is also vague at best.

A few comical moments like watching the father pump weights in the gym like a world class bodybuilder helps elevate this otherwise sordid affair.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsijix35ORE

sheikh jackson.jpg

Get to know the short film: UNICORNLAND, 7min, USA, Comedy/Webseries

femalefilmfestival's avatarFEEDBACK Female Film Festival

Short Film Played at the COMEDY FEEDBACK Film Festival in Los Angeles (September 2017)

Ul poster

After her divorce, Annie dates couples to explore her sexuality.

Over eight episodes, Annie dates eight different New York couples, from Wall Street power duos to Bushwick burners. She shares their joys, their sorrows, and their beds, and learns just how many ways there are to love on this wildly intimate tour of modern love in New York City.

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TV REVIEW: TWIN PEAKS – SEASON 03 – EPISODE 18

Part 18 Poster
Cooper and Diane drive 430 miles. Cooper attempts to help a troubled woman he believes to be Laura Palmer.

Director:

David Lynch

Stars:

Kyle MacLachlan, Matt Battaglia, Laura Dern

by Mary Cox

“Part 18: What is your name?”

Anyone hoping for a satisfying conclusion to the series is going to be sorely disappointed as David Lynch has decided to leave us with yet another cliffhanger. After Agent Cooper and Diane manage to jump dimensions (or something) and after yet another awkward sex scene, we learn that the Fireman’s
aforementioned Richard and Linda are none other than Diane and Coop themselves. So much for my Richard Horne theory, right?

Again, Mike (The One-Armed Man) gives us the ultimate question and central theme of this season: is it future, or is it past? The episode ends abruptly with an uncertain conclusion. This seems to be the fate of all of the Blue Rose operatives. Once they get close enough to unraveling the mystery of Judy and
the Owl Cave Ring, their reality is pulled apart and reshaped by an unseen force. Consider both the fates of Major Briggs and Phillip Jeffries.

Unanswered questions: What the hell is up with Audrey? I have a theory that the Peaks world we know, where Cooper is still Cooper, and Laura is dead and wrapped in plastic, exists only in Audrey’s coma mind. I think that the symbol on the Owl Cave Ring is meant to reference the concept of either looping time or infinity, but what does that mean for Cooper? Who are Tina and Billy? The only good news about the ending of this episode is that it leaves open the possibility for a fourth season. This is highly unlikely, but hey, you never know what’s going to happen in another twenty-five years.

My takeaway here is still that the majority of the episodes this season (and possibly those from the first two seasons) are meant to be read as existing in a “dreamworld,” so to speak. From the all-tooconvenient ways Dougie escapes from disasters, leading all the way up to the too-perfect reunion of the characters right at the Twin Peaks sheriff office in “Part 17,” everything that went down was a part of someone’s dream. The question posed by Monica Bellucchi in “Part 14” does remain, though: “Who is the dreamer?” As I’ve mentioned before, this “false dream reality” storytelling device is something David Lynch has used in his past works pretty consistently. We’ve seen it as a major element in both
Mulholland Drive and Lost Highway. That absolutely could be what’s going on here as well.

Ultimately, if you want to try to figure out what the hell is going on: my recommendation that you take a break from Twin Peaks for a few weeks. When you’re ready, come back and revisit the series from start to finish (it goes without saying that you also have to include Fire, Walk With Me) and see what
you think Twin Peaks is really all about. We now (presumably) have all of the pieces of the puzzle, so it’s up to you to try and put it together to see the whole picture.
 

******
“Mary Cox is an entertainment writer from the United States. Her hobbies include making good beer and bad decisions, watching drag queens fight on the internet, and overanalyzing everything. Mary one day hopes to be the person shouting “World Star” in the back of a Waffle House brawl video. She is currently tolerating life in Toronto. You can follow her on Twitter at @M_K_Cox”t

TV REVIEW: TWIN PEAKS – SEASON 03 – EPISODE 17

Part 17 Poster
Cooper arrives in Twin Peaks.

Director:

David Lynch

Writers:

Mark Frost, David Lynch  >

Stars:

Kyle MacLachlan, Jay Aaseng, Dana Ashbrook

by Mary Cox

“Part 17: The past dictates the future.”

A hell of a lot happened in the penultimate episode of Twin Peaks. Cooper has finally defeated Bad Coop with the help of our literal Hand of God character, Freddie. Naido is revealed to be the real Diane, who has an emotional reunion with our favorite FBI agent.

Here’s the thing: I’m still not convinced that anything that everything or anything this season has actually “happened.” When looking over how everything has gone down this season, and especially when we consider the superimposed face of Cooper as he says, “We live inside a dream,” directly to the audience, it seems like Lynch is kind of pulling a Mulholland Drive here. Everything has been too easy, or too convenient for these characters. Lynch is mocking our need for a cute and tied together ending with the scene at the Twin Peaks sheriff station where all our beloved characters, old and new, are uniting or reuniting at last.

Audrey’s appearance at the Roadhouse in last week’s episode, where the final scene was her appearing in an odd, white room, has still gone unexplained. There’s a considerable amount of unfinished business regarding the Fireman’s prophecy of “Richard and Linda, two birds, one stone,” which can only really
point to the mysterious electricity bolder that killed Richard Horne last episode.

Part of me thinks that Season 3 of Twin Peaks is a response to the demand for a continuation of the series. I’ve had this running theory that Lynch is critical of the concept of nostalgia, which is why Agent Cooper spent almost the entirety of this season as Dougie, and why the heart-warming Twin Peaks reunion scene was shadowed with doubt and unease. Lynch leaves us with the pinnacle of self-satisfied nostalgic rehashing as Cooper fulfills his ultimate goal of trying to save Laura Palmer herself.

However, as revealed by Sarah Palmer’s outburst, Cooper isn’t the only agent in this game any more. Is Sarah actually possessed by the entity Judy? Are Judy and the Jumping Man one in the same? Where the hell is Audrey, and is any of this actually happening

******
“Mary Cox is an entertainment writer from the United States. Her hobbies include making good beer and bad decisions, watching drag queens fight on the internet, and overanalyzing everything. Mary one day hopes to be the person shouting “World Star” in the back of a Waffle House brawl video. She is currently tolerating life in Toronto. You can follow her on Twitter at @M_K_Cox”t

TIFF 2017 Movie Review: A WORTHY COMPANION (Canada 2017) ***

Movie Reviews of films that will be playing at TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) in 2017. Go to TIFF 2017 Movie Reviews and read reviews of films showing at the festival.

A Worthy Companion Poster
Plagued by the abuse of her past and the turmoil of failed intimate encounters, Laura struggles to find a lover and a sense of normalcy. Her beacon of hope comes in sixteen year-old Eva, a …See full summary »

Stars:

Evan Rachel Wood, Julia Sarah Stone, Denis O’Hare

Montreal-based fine arts photographers Carlos and Jason Sanchez’s debut feature is a hard psychological thriller which centres on a 30-year-old woman (Evan Rachel Wood) embarking on an intimate yet ultimately manipulative relationship with a 16-year-old runaway (Julia Sarah Stone).

But the woman, Laura begins getting really obsessive and prevents Eva from leaving the house. The relationship turns out to be something like the Stockholm Syndrome. Apparently, though no details are given, Laura has had the same type of ‘stalking’ problems before, as her dad, who employs her mentions in the film.

The film is both disturbing and engaging though one can hardly look forward to a satisfactory or happy ending. Both actresses Wood and Stone bring compassion to their roles and show their need for normalcy.

Unfortunately, as can be seen in the film, this normalcy is not easily to come about and the state of affairs come about from their own personal behavioural flaws.

The film suffers from an open ended ending, which for a film like this, one expects some satisfactory closure.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI1bAF6tOdE

TIFF 2017 Movie Review: EUTHANIZER (Finland 2017) ***1/2

Movie Reviews of films that will be playing at TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) in 2017. Go to TIFF 2017 Movie Reviews and read reviews of films showing at the festival.

tiff.jpgThe carefully balanced (albeit deranged) life of a freelance, black-market pet euthanizer begins to come apart at the seams in this loopy exploitation-movie throwback from Finland, which evokes the brazen psychological insights and aesthetic brio of such grungy genre classics as Monte Hellman’s Cockfighter and Larry Cohen’s God Told Me To.

Director: Teemu Nikki
Writer: Teemu Nikki
Stars: Alina Tomnikov, Santtu Karvonen, Jari Virman

Review by Gilbert Seah

The EUTHANIZER is Veijo, (Matti Onnismaa), an older man with glasses always smoking a pipe who runs a black-market operation euthanizing people’s ailing pets.

The people who go to Veijo either cannot afford having their pet put down by the local vet or have no guts to perform the killing themselves. Each commission also comes with a brutal lecture, as Veijo spills over with Old Testament–style indignation about what shoddy and appalling people his patrons are and how their pets have been mistreated.

Veijo is in reality an animal lover. When his father is hospitalized, he meets the young nurse caring for him. They begin a strange affair, a bit too uncomfortable, I bet to many an audience’s liking.

He also encounters a seedy garage mechanic, Petri (who’s mixed up with a vicious gang of neo-Nazis) who call themselves ‘Soldiers of Finland’ which provide most of the film’s suspense and thrills.

Veijp’s insight and theory of life is intriguing and serves to propel the difficult to fathom plot. But the film works, as director Nikki has the audience constantly rooting for Veijo in this black comedy of manners.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUr9XQxc2gU

TIFF 2017 Movie Review: MIRACLE (Lithuania/Bulgaria/Poland 2017) ****

Movie Reviews of films that will be playing at TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) in 2017. Go to TIFF 2017 Movie Reviews and read reviews of films showing at the festival.

Miracle Poster
Close to bankruptcy, Irena, the owner of a struggling pig farm in tiny post-Communist town finds a surprising benefactor in a handsome American man who appears to be the answer to all her prayers.

Director:

Egle Vertelyte

Writer:

Egle Vertelyte

Edgy, strange and completely engaging, MIRACLE is the kind of small film from a small place like Lithuania (the country’s first film at TIFF in 15 years) that never gets distribution and should be a pick at TIFF.

The story centres on the owner of a struggling post-Soviet pig farm, Irena whose husband is always drunk and is sort of a pig himself. The farm is failing and Irena’s workers make fun of her behind her back. It is all dark and gloomy till an American suddenly appears and brings the so-called MIRACLE into place.

There is another MIRACLE (a plot twist) at the end of the film as well. But not without a price. The American, Bernardas buys and takes over the farm and gives the workers and Irena money for their shares. Irena ends up sleeping with him too.

Vertelyte’s film, especially its dead-pan humour immediately reminds one of the films of Aki Kaurismaki just like the actress who plays Irena looks remarkably alike Kati Outinen, Kaurismaki’s regular actress.

The only problem of the film is a satisfactory ending. But the weird one is good enough for me.

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/231418027

Film Review: HUNTING PIGNUT (Canada 2016)

Hunting Pignut Poster

Bernice, a 15 year old misfit runs away from her rural Newfoundland community in search of Pignut, a tormented and violent gutter punk, after he steals her father’s ashes right out of his urn.

Director:

Martine Blue

Writer:

Martine Blue

Stars:

Taylor Hickson, Joel Thomas Hynes, Bridget Wareham

HUNTING PIGNUT can be considered a true female project (from Newfoundland, Canada) with a female writer and director Martine Blue and two strong female protagonists. It is also Blue’s first feature and an autobiographical one at that. It is therefore not surprising that the film won Best First Feature at the Arizona International Film Festival and Best Canadian Feature at the Female Eye Film Festival.

The story centres on 15-year-old Bernice Kilfoy (rising star Taylor Hickson, fresh from her debut DEADPOOL). She hates her life in tiny, isolated Black Gut, Newfoundland. She believes that she will never live down a traumatic childhood that left her body and psyche deeply scarred. Bean (Amelia Manuel), her mother, tries to be a friend but is too busy struggling to get ahead. Self-centred, lonely, starved for attention and shunned by her peers, Bernice, who is bullied and constantly being beaten up, makes up stories about hanging out with her dad, of whom she hasn’t seen in 10 years. Her dejected spirit takes a strange turn when her dad dies of a heroin overdose and Pignut (Joel Thomas Hynes), a nihilistic gutter punk, shows up for his wake.

The death and funeral service occurs at the start of the film. The service is crashed by Pignuts punk friends who are thrown out of the funeral hall. It is discovered that they have stolen the father’s ashes.

Bernice stumbles upon Pignut’s writing journal and becomes obsessed with discovering more about her father, his mysterious facial tattoo, his best friend Pignut and their clan of nomadic gutter punks. Bernice embarks on an odyssey to hunt down her father’s ashes and to discover her place in his heart and in the world.

The best thing of the film is the depiction of the punk gutter scene. Director Blue drew on her previous experiences when she herself was in this scene. These people, squatted, panhandled and ate food from garbage dumpsters.

Bernice is shown in the film as a rebel who dives into the group, which initially rejects her due to her age.

The trouble with the film is that the story is not credible and filled with too may coincidences. The mother, Bean is genuinely trying to make an effort to connect with her daughter and it is hard to believe that Bernice still shuns her. When Bean travels to the city to find Bernice, she finds her out of the blue in a building doing drugs. The chances of this happening is close to negligible. In another scene after Bernice is beaten up by a punk ember, the cops happen to be right there.

At least Hickson and Manuel deliver winning performances as daughter and mother. Comedienne Mary Walsh, who happens to be appearing in anything Newfoundland has a cameo in the film.

Despite the film’s well intentions, like attempting to show love within the punk group, the film fails from its careless writing. The film benefits from a strong female presence but HUNTING PIGNUT deserves much better.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKSGAmuBTN8

Interview with Festival Director Kristian Day (Interrobang Film Festival)

Presented as part of the Des Moines Arts Festival, the Interrobang film festival is three day multi-venue event taking place in the Des Moines East Village Neighborhood. The audience – whether cinema enthusiasts or curious newcomers – can experience curated screenings from films around the globe as well as experience hands on workshops, celebrity lectures, and industry parties.

Contact

 

Matthew Toffolo: What is your Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers?

Kristian Day: All of our juried films are free to the public. As a filmmaker myself, I hate the process of submitting to festivals. You spend lots of money submitting your films and then if you are selected, the audience has to pay to see them on top of that. Which doesn’t seem like a big deal, but I want to take the risk out of going to a film festival. If your film festival is not a buyers market, then at the very least you want to help guarantee an audience for the films that have been selected.

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

For the first 9 years, the Interrobang Film Festival took place within the Des Moines Arts Festival. We have grown significantly and this year we have become a stand alone three day / multi venue event.

New additions this year:

Interrobang Film Challenge, a timed film competition similar to the 48hr Film Project that takes place the weekend prior and the films will then screen the weekend of the film festival.

Best of Show Award now includes how filmmakers market the film in our city. As most filmmakers know, once they are selected it is up to them to get people to come see their movie. I want to encourage old fashion showmanship. Fliers, parades, billboards, guerrilla marketing , whatever they need to do to get people in the seats! It is not only a big marketing tool for the festival but its fun for the city to have that experience. I give all the filmmakers every media contact in the city thats in my rolodex but they have to get more creative then just sending out press releases.

More parties. I don’t think young people have the attention span to sit and watch movies for hours like they used to. The Youtube generation likes things short, sweet and always moving. So we have a lot more non-screening events including a “Beers with Iowa Filmmakers” party and a cocktail hour with the Iowa Screenwriters Alliance.

What are the qualifications for the selected films?

I can’t say there is a specific qualification to select a film. There are obvious technical aspects I look for but I am always looking for something unique in each one. Sometimes I might watch it and think “this isn’t for me but I know there are definitely some people who will enjoy this”.

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

Sure. The bigger festivals are very political and I get that. If they don’t have some celebrity attached or if it hasn’t created some controversial buzz behind it then they are not really interested in it. But good films find their way. That is one thing I have learned over the years. A good will won’t go unnoticed if the creators never give up.

What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

I work in the film industry full time. I commute from Des Moines, Iowa to LA several times a year. I do this festival year after year because some day I hope that I don’t need to commute to LA for work. I want to see the industry move into more third markets (areas that are not LA or New York) and to do that you have to continue to develop that culture.

From an Iowan perspective, Des Moines is the capital city. It deserves to have a great film festival.

How has your FilmFreeway submission process been?

Great. I love FilmFreeway! We used to use Withoutabox but to be honest it was super tedious, clunky, and convoluted. I like being able to watch films within the site and its easy for the judges to do their work within the system.

Where do you see the festival by 2020?

Buyers market is always the goal. But it could also just take its place among the other festivals like 80/35, 515 Alive, and the Des Moines Arts Festival: an annual event that everyone in the region looks forward to attending, Either way I would be very happy. I don’t actually want to run this festival forever, I do it because it needs to be run by someone who doesn’t want to be the center of attention. The filmmakers, the audience, and everyone who makes the festival what it is are the most important aspects. There are some programers who think that they are the heroes and this not the attitude I want to see. Also whenever I see someone post things like “Great things on the horizon” on social media I am immediately turned off.

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

Once Upon A Time In The West. This is the single greatest film ever made.

In one sentence, what makes a great film?

Charles Bronson, Claudia Cardinale, Henry Fonda, and Jason Robards are what make a great film. (See the answer to the previous question)

How is the film scene in your city?

It’s OK. We have several shows that film here but not many folks are properly trained to work on a real set. I am a 1st AD on a lot of projects and every time on Day 1 I run into either a camera operator or a sound mixer who hits record and yells “speeding” before I tell them to roll. I have to stop everything and explain to them that no one touches anything until I say so.

My dream would be that we would have people who could work on shows in bigger positions, not just PAs. That could happen but they just need to work more and have more opportunities to be trained.
 

 
Interrobang Film Festival2.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.

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Interview with Festival Director Albert G. Nigrin (New Jersey International Film Festival)

The Rutgers Film Co-op/New Jersey Media Arts Center proudly announces the 35th Bi-Annual New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2017. The Festival will be held on select evenings between September 15 and October 15, 2017 and will showcase the best in independent film by featuring premiere screenings and special guest appearances by film directors, screenwriters, cast and crew. For more information go to http://www.njfilmfest.com, call (848) 932-8482 or e-mail us at NJMAC@aol.com or NJMAC12@gmail.com!

 

 Matthew Toffolo: What is your Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers?

Albert G. Nigrin: Our Festival does a terrific job getting independent filmmakers the media/press attention and audience they deserve. Most filmmakers who are screened go out of their way to praise the great work that we do. And they love seeing their films on our huge screen and on our hi-def projection system.

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

You would see enlightening and inspiring films that you couldn’t see any place else in the state of New Jersey as they are all premieres. You would also get to interact with over 20 visiting filmmakers who come from all over the world to present their films and do Q+As with the audience. 17 films will have their New Jersey or Area Premiere screenings as part of the New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2017. Some of these include: Jeremy Bryant’s very edgy short film Hitchhiking with a .357 Magnum; Minwoo Song’s brilliant experimental film Greeting In The Afternoon; Fred Riedel and Jerry Friends documentary film about the making of Lee Ranaldo’s upcoming release — Hello Hello Hello : Lee Ranaldo : Electric Trim; Leslie Ann Coles’ Melody Makers — a rock-doc that traces the birth of rock n’ roll journalism in the 1960s; Goran Trenchovski’s The Golden Five — an intimate feature film from Macedonia about the bonds of friendship, tested by unacknowledged acts of betrayal; Sara Leavitt’s short documentary Riverkeeper about Captain Bill Sheehan who has dedicated his life to preserving and protecting the New Jersey Meadowlands; Scott Morris’s Saving The Great Swamp: Battle to Defeat the Jetport ­– a documentary about a successful grassroots effort to defeat a plan to build the world’s largest jetport on wetlands in the heart of New Jersey; Chiara Bellini’s Life by the Landfill — an inspiring documentary about a determined group of activists who took on the notoriously mismanaged system of trash collection in Rome, Italy; Jimmy Dinh’s hysterically funny and timely feature You Have A Nice Flight, Nurith Cohn’s amusing short film The Little Dictator; Jordna Horowitz’s surreal feature Painless; Sharon’s Chetrit’s surreal short from Israel Soup; and many others. This fall we will also be re-screening the films that were the Best of our Summer 2017 New Jersey International Film Festival. These include: First Bloom (Best Animation) , Kedi (Honorable Mention), The Ravens (Best Short), Emma (Best Feature), Passaic (Honorable Mention), and Levinsky Park (Best Documentary). There will be Free Food served at the New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2017 except the shows on Thursdays prior to all the screenings courtesy of Jimmy John’s of New Brunswick! Visit our website for more info: http://www.njfilmfest.com

What are the qualifications for the selected films?

All works selected are screened by a panel of judges which included media professionals, journalists, students, and academics. Films are prescreened by 1st round judges and they basically weed the good films from the bad ones. We received over 370s for the current Fall 2017 New Jersey Film Festival and these judges selected about 100 films from these to be viewed by a final jury and they pick the finalists which are being publicly screened at our Festival. 17 finalists were selected for our Festival this Fall. All films viewed by the judges are scored from 1-10 with 10 being the highest. Films that receive 7s and higher for the most part were selected as finalists. Each piece is also scored with respect to the following categories: Originality, Creativity, Production Values, and Performances w/ the grades being Superior/Very Good/Good/Fair/Poor/NA. It is really very professionally run.

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

All films are judged equally. Even the ones screened at 8AM get revisited by the jury to make sure they were given a fair shake. Also the fact that we have a two tiered judging process ensures that films are thoroughly examined. We also provide judges comments to any entrant who asks for them. The Festival judging process is, for sure, imprecise and I am certain many good films are not selected but that is the nature of the Festival process.

What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

We do the NJFF to make sure indy films get seen in our state. The New Jersey Film Festival is one of the longest running Film Festivals in New Jersey. It is now in it’s 36th year and I founded it back in 1982. It has grown from a seat of the pants film program to one the state’s largest and most popular Film Festivals.

How has your FilmFreeway submission process been?

Pretty good. It was certainly necessary to give Withouabox some competition. Now there are so many submission platforms to choose from.

Where do you see the festival by 2020?

The New Jersey Film Festival has gone through many different changes for a variety of reasons. It started as a revival program in the 1980s. Then we started doing 1st and 2nd run Art House films in addition to revival screenings due to the fact that our programs were growing and had more income to work, with. In the new millennium the Festival has transformed itself into a Festival which premiers Independent films in New Jersey. I expect the Film Festival to continue what we have been doing the last few years which is to help give a platform in New Jersey for indy films.

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

Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, Maya Deren’s Meshes of the Afternoon and Bunuel/Dali’s Un Chien Andalou.

In one sentence, what makes a great film?

A great film is one that you can watch endlessly and never get tired of it.

How is the film scene in your city?

Vibrant. It was pretty dead when I got to New Brunswick in 1980 but now it is considered the mecca for filmgoers in New Jersey.

New Jersey Film Festival1.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.

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