festival

Interview with Festival President Sergey Mavrody (Blow-Up Film Festival)

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The 2016 BLOW-UP ARTHOUSE FILM FESTIVAL brings the most original storytellers together with very adventurous audiences for its annual program of dramatic and documentary films, shorts, animations, experimental films, and student work. The Festival was named after the Michelangelo Antonioni’s iconic film “Blow-Up”.

For more information, to go: http://www.blowupfilmfest.com/

I recently sat down with the Festival President Sergey Mavrody:

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

We believe we succeed in promoting authentic voices that can awaken new ideas that have the power to push creative boundaries, spark new levels of compassion and understanding, and even lead to social change.

  • What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival this year (2016)?

I would expect to bring the most original storytellers together with very adventurous audiences. It would be a great range of quality art-house films from all over the world. I would also expect a smart audience, people, who love art-house films.

  • What are the qualifications for the selected films?

The Festival welcomes serious, independent films aimed at a specific audience rather than a mass-market consumer. We would like to see films made primarily for aesthetic and philosophical reasons rather than commercial profit. The festival would like to approach the caliber of films made by such great directors as Eisenstein, Antonioni, Fellini, Tarkovsky, Godard, Truffaut, Kurosawa.

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

Yes and no. On one hand, many films have to try very hard to get seen and recognized. On the other hand it is hard to miss a truly great and talented film.

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

The main motivation would be to discover new talented artists promoting that type of films that fit well into our vision, that push creative limits and educate audiences. On the other hand, if we have passion we don’t really need a motivation.

  • How has the festival changed since its inception?

The festival is always evolving. We have changed names, concepts, and places of screening, websites, staff, jury, method of film submission.  This is a great question and answer could be very long.

  • Where do you see the festival by 2020?

By 2020 the festival will be making an even greater impact on the world cinema by discovering talented filmmakers and setting new standards.

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

The most times in my life I have seen the films I made, of course.

  • In one sentence, what makes a great film?

Well, Jean-Luc Godard once said: all you need for a great movie is a gun and a beautiful girl J That was an irony, of course. Truth: that’s what makes a great film in a nutshell. More specifically, this includes an authentic story and a sincere unpretentious artistic expression.

  • How is the film scene in your city?

The MovieMaker Magazine recently unveiled its list of cities with the best film scene. You’re probably wondering who topped the list? Well, it’s my Chicago! According to the magazine – the criteria they used include festivals, film schools, movie-related vendors, local theatres, living standards, unemployment rate, median home price and aggressive tax incentives. Chicago is also rich in filmmaking history and has seen an increase in both independent and Hollywood film productions in the last few years. As we speak, a bunch of film production trucks parked right on my street. They are filming the “Empire” TV series.

BIO: Sergey A. Mavrody

Sergey Mavrody moved to US from Moscow, Russia in 1990. He was granted a green card as an “Alien of Extraordinary Ability”.  Sergey received his first graduate degree in animation from VGIK film school, Moscow, Russia. Sergey earned his second MFA degree in Computer Animation from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Sergey was a Production Designer for the Emmy Award-winning musical film “The Bridge”. Sergey produced and directed several animated films. His films have received numerous international awards.

Sergey is also a professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and DeVry University. Sergey served as a board member and as a head of the jury at several film festivals. He is a founder and a president of the Blow-Up Arthouse International Film Festival.

 

http://blowupfilmfest.com/

 

 

 

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Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 10-20 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto on the last Thursday of every single month. Go tohttp://www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

Interview with Festival Director Mark Mos (Los Angeles Short Film Festival)

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Don’t miss Los Angeles Short Film Festival
Sat-Sun, March 5-6
Promenade Playhouse, Santa Monica CA

smarturl.it/lsff

I recently sat down with the Festival Director Mark Mos to chat more about the festival.

Matthew Toffolo: What is the Los Angeles Short Film Festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers?

Mark Mos: We invite specialists from Industry. They see potential dreaming in hearts of filmmakers. For sure they have great audience and if we screen web episode for example, same audience go online and follow rest of the episodes.

Matthew: What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival this year (2016)?

Mark: We have short film with James Franco, called Walk in the Winter, but also 30+ films, directors, producers, actors at Q and A we organize after each block/program.

Matthew:  What are the qualifications for the selected films?

Mark: Quality of the story. You don’t have to rent or purchase great camera if you want to tell what is inside you. Just invite your friends, shoot something, practice. One of your films maybe good, another not, but let judges of the festival decide. Each judge is different, so you never know what they will pick up. But please…place credits at the end of the film. We do not want to see your sponsors, or whole bunch of names at the beginning. We want to see first scene of yours…not bunch of letters and who sponsored you. This may wait, when we select your film.

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

Mark: First 2 minutes of the film is very important. I guess festivals want to see some professional skills, even if film is submitted by student. If your actress reads script in her mind and her work is terrible, festival judges will not suffer for rest of the film. Directing might be good, cinematography brilliant, but if you actor is terrible then whole project you may considered trash. I know it’s heavy, but you do the same while watching TV…you skip channels to see something interesting. I guess judges go to another film if yours is not interesting or not well done.

Matthew:  What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

Mark: Helping each other. We like to see smiling faces when they get award or certificate. There is nothing more beautiful then happiness of another person.

Matthew:  How has the festival changed since its inception?

Mark: Oh it changes constantly. We have more films for screenings, Q and As are longer and venue is upgraded with bigger screen with new seats.

Matthew:  Where do you see the festival by 2020?

Mark: Bigger, better, nicer

Matthew:  What film have you seen the most times in your life?
Mark: I’m a fan of Die Hard, so when it’s on TV it’s not easy for me to switch channel for something else.

Matthew:  In one sentence, what makes a great film?
Mark: Having soul in it.

Matthew:  How is the film scene in your city?
Mark: Well… Santa Monica is a film city. Bay Watch was shooting here and many…I mean many, many more.

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Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 10-20 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto on the last Thursday of every single month. Go to www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

Interview with Festival Director Juri Koll (Fine Arts Film Festival)

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The Fine Arts Film Festival (FAFF) is dedicated to showing the finest films in the world about art, photography, collectors and artists of all mediums in and out of their studios, galleries, museums, public art, and alternative art spaces. This includes video art, curated as a film medium.

For more information, go to http://www.thefineartsfilmfestival.com/

I recently met with the Festival Director Juri Koll to talk more about the festival.

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

Juri Koll: We provide a wonderful audience for films that focus on art or the art world in some way – which is a very niche place in the film world. Lots of films of this kind are lost in the mix of film festivals so we provide a place to showcase these kinds of films.

Matthew: What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival?

Juri: You will see films here that you may never see anywhere else in the world. Sometimes they screen with us before a quick run at theaters.

The location for the screenings is the historic Beyond Baroque Theater in Venice, California, long renowned as a hub of creative endeavor in Los Angeles, and Southern California in general.

You will meet exceptionally creative filmmakers, artists, musicians and literary artists of all kinds, along with your usual film crowd, as many of the filmmakers who work in the studios and independent productions houses live and also work in Venice. Plus it’s a block or two from the world famous Boardwalk and the beach, so there’s plenty to do after you’ve seen the films!

Matthew: What are the qualifications for the selected films?

Juri: Film subject matter must be related to the art world in some way, whether it be art and artists in or outside their studios, collectors, galleries, museums, public art, and alternative art spaces or other art related subject. It can also be a video art piece itself, which may be accept to be curated with others for a film debut.

Films must have been completed after January 2, 2014.

Other than that it can be any kind of film – narrative, doc, experimental, music video, art – anything that speaks to creativity.

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

Juri: Yes, in our case that’s the reason we created the Festival – because these kinds of films are sort of lost in the mix of all the great films you can see when you go to festivals. I think films about artists – especially documentaries – are often overlooked because people feel they have probably seen one and seen them all – that could not be further from the truth. The films we show are dramatic, funny, witty, jarring, crazy, creative, emotional, awe-inspiring, heartfelt, and real.

Matthew: What motivates you and your team to do this festival?

Juri: A love of and belief in the creative spirit in everyone. We love artists because we are artists.

Matthew: How has the festival changed since its inception?

Juri: We’ve gone from a small regional festival with a few entries into a truly international event in the place we believe to be the center of creativity in the arts in the entire world right now – Los Angeles.

In Los Angeles, Venice is known as one of the top creative hubs of the city. It’s got a century long history of making art that has impacted the art and entertainment worlds globally.

Matthew: Where do you see the festival by 2020?

Juri: We hope to move to a larger venue next year, and perhaps by 2020 we’ll be in multiple venues across the city. We’re working with local museums to bring programming to them as well.

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

Juri: That’s a tough one. Apocalypse Now, perhaps. Maybe Rocky. There’s lots of them.

Matthew: In one sentence, what makes a great film?

Juri: A film where each shot and each cut are done for a purpose, where the whole film becomes the story, where you remember the film long after you leave the theater.

Matthew: How is the film scene in your city?

Juri: We are the film capital of the U.S. and the world, so our standards are the highest anywhere. The scene is dynamic, vibrant. Constantly – 24/7 – projects are being talked about, bought, sold, started and completed…

and sometimes never completed. We live where dreams are made. People here will help you our on your project if you just ask – you just have to be honest, open, easy to work with, and have a great idea.

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Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 10-20 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto on the last Thursday of every single month. Go to www.wildsound.ca for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

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Juri Koll Bio:

Along with regularly curating and managing traveling exhibits, and exhibiting his paintings and photographs, Juri Koll produces and directs documentaries on artists and other art world figures. He has produced and managed feature films such as Texas Heart (Lin Shaye), Until The Music Ends (Slash, Chrystal Method), American Cowslip (Val Kilmer, Bruce Dern, Rip Torn), Hardcore Hearts, and The Truth About Kerry (Stana Katic). Juri has produced and/or directed over 90 short films, both fiction and documentaries. His films have screened all over the world, in over 70 festivals, including Cannes, the Cork International Film Festival, the Australian International Film Festival, and won many awards. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America and a regular signatory to SAG/AFTRA.

After graduating from California Institute of the Arts with majors in Fine Art and Filmmaking, Mr. Koll produced the first Art/World documentaries from 1990 – 1995. He worked with major curators in their museums and galleries, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The National Gallery in Washington, D.C., the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco. His subjects included world famous and infamous artists and curators from the Renaissance period to the present. Recently, Juri’s first documentary, In The Steel: A Portrait of Mark di Suvero, (1991), was accepted into the Archives of American Art at the Smithsonian Institution. A Founder/Director of the Venice Institute of Contemporary Art, which produces FAFF, he recently curated the traveling show Water Works, which exhibited at the Museum of Art and History in Lancaster, CA in Fall, 2015, and presented films from FAFF at the LA Art Show at the LA Convention Center in January 2016. For more information: juri@veniceica.org

Interview with Larry Laboe, Executive Director, NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA)

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Founded in 2007, the non-profit 501(c)3 organization NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA) has established itself as a strong gathering place for cinema with over 60,000 subscribers in the Los Angeles community, screening 950+ films from over 57 countries. In addition to fostering the advancement of emerging filmmakers and our members in Los Angeles, NFMLA’s objective is to promote the cultural advancement of filmmaking.

http://www.newfilmmakersla.com/

Matthew Toffolo Interviews Larry Laboe, Executive Director

Matthew: What is the goal of your film festival?

Larry: To help filmmakers connect with audiences and industry professionals.

Matthew: How has the festival changed since its inception until your upcoming 2015 festival?

Larry: The festival has grown to offer more opportunities for our selected filmmakers. Some of these opportunities include first-look distribution from ShortsHD / Shorts International, TV4 Entertainment, Seed & Spark, NUVOtv and a chance to be nominated for the FOX Global Directors / FOX Global Writers programs.

Matthew: How many films are you showcasing at your Film Festival?

Larry: We showcase approximately 200 films annually.

Matthew: Can you give us a sneak peak of what to except for the 2015 Festival?

Larry: Some of the best indie films from around the world!

Matthew: Is there going to be an overall theme for the 2015 festival?

Larry: All of our programs are very diversified, so we generally do not theme our programs, though this year we will offer some thematic programs focusing on minority filmmakers.

Matthew: Where do you see your festival in 5 years?

Larry: Continually growing and perhaps expanding into other cities.

Matthew: What’s the current status of the Film Scene in your city?

Larry: LA is the mecca of indie filmmaking. We’re very excited to be part of a city that includes talented filmmakers, writers, producers, actors and more. LA offers some of the very best, while still highlighting international cinema and filmmakers.

Matthew: What film have you seen the most in your life?

Larry: I like to focus on indie films. I have many favorites….too many to choose just one!

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Matthew Toffolo, Interviewer BIO

Filmmaker of over 20 short films and TV episodes, Matthew Toffolo is the current CEO of the WILDsound Film and Writing Festival. He had worked for the organization since its inception in 2007 serving as the Short Film Festival’s moderator during the Audience Feedback sessions.

Go to http://www.wildsound.ca and submit your film, script, or story to the festival.

Go to http://www.wildsoundfestival.com and watch recent and past winning writing festival readings.

7 Questions with FilmFreeway.com Founder Zachary Jones

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Today we are in conversation with Zachary Jones, the Founder of FilmFreeway.com, the new alternative submission center for Film Festivals and Filmmakers/Screenwriters. A startup from Canada that launched in February 2014 that is already becoming stiff competition to the dominance of withoutabox for over 15 years.

Matthew Toffolo – First off, congrats on announcing 1250 Film Festivals in your database as of this interview. That’s amazing in such a short time. What has been the key to your success so far?

Zachary – Thank you so much! The secret is really quite simple. We set out to re-invent festival submissions with modern technology and a fair business model. FilmFreeway offers a simple, user-friendly service that is always 100% free to filmmakers and writers. We back that up with friendly, reliable customer service from real people who care and are happy to assist our customers anytime.

MT – What motivated you to begin this start up?

Zachary – Festival submissions have been dominated for far too long by a company with grossly outdated technology, a miserable user experience, excessive fees and an overall predatory business model. It was about time somebody changed that.

MT – There have been many other startups attempting to compete with the competition, but almost all have failed. Why do you think your company has succeeded so far over the rest?

Zachary – We created FilmFreeway to be incredible simple and easy to use for both filmmakers and festivals. We added to that by offering the service 100% free to filmmakers. Our mandate when building FilmFreeway was to make it fair and simple. That seems to be the magic formula that has resonated with over 85,000 filmmakers and counting so far!

MT – Bottom-line, why is your site better than the competition?

Zachary – FilmFreeway is lightyears ahead of Withoutabox when it comes to the user experience we offer. Our online screeners play in beautiful, crystal-clear HD. We also integrate with Vimeo and YouTube. The days of paying $3 each time to submit a pixelated, standard definition online screener are over. With FilmFreeway, filmmakers can have their project added and ready to submit in under 5 minutes. Also, our search engine for discovering amazing festivals is powerful and fast. It’s a night and day experience when compared to Withoutabox. Here what filmmakers are saying on Twitter: https://filmfreeway.com/pages/love

MT – The main issue with film festivals is that you were forced to use the main submission source in order to succeed because that’s where all the filmmakers were submitting their films. But, because the company took so much commission from the festivals, it was impossible for most of them to not to lose money and therefore many festivals have been forced to shut down. Or, they were forced to raise their submission fees to stay in the black, which takes more money from the filmmakers themselves, which in the end forces them to submit to less festivals than they want and therefore gives them less opportunity to get their film out there. It has been a vicious cycle. How are you going to be different while still being profitable for your own company and site?

Zachary – You’re exactly right! We’ve already heard from many festivals that have told us that thanks to FilmFreeway they can once again afford to operate their festivals and stay in business. We are actually helping the industry thrive, rather than suck the blood out of it like Withoutabox. We offer optional paid marketing services for festivals which helps to pay our overhead and make sure that FilmFreeway will always remain 100% free for filmmakers and writers.

MT – What was the first film festival to sign up to your website?

Zachary – The wonderful Food & Farm Film Festival was the very first to sign up:https://filmfreeway.com/festival/foodfarmfilmfestival

MT – What is FilmFreeway’s ultimate goal?

Zachary – To simply provide the best film festival submissions experience in the world for filmmakers and festivals alike. You can expect to see continued improvement and added features as we grow and develop as well. We’re always listening to the feedback of the community to make FilmFreeway even better. Thank you again for all of your support!