Sydney Levine

Eventival and Black Market Online Joint Venture for Fest Submissions

Peter Belsito — Sun, 19 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Thom Prasek from Prague is a very good friend many years now. This below is an exciting new venture that will help film festivals worldwide to evaluate film submissions.

Eventival - leading online festival information management solution provider, and Black Market Online (BMO) - digital video and content platform in the Cloud, announce the development of a full-featured film submission and evaluation solution for film festivals. The agreement was negotiated by Tomas Prasek, Founder/Director of Eventival, and Sten Saluveer, Head of Development of BMO and Industry Director of Black Nights FF. The full service will be rolled out in summer 2013, with demo available for potential clients during the 2013 Cannes IFF.

The new solution will provide BMO's HD quality video submission and evaluation functionalities to Eventival's database solutions. In addition to core video library and white label functionality, cooperation with BMO will also provide possibilities for keyboard commands and multiple subtitles.

"Adding to the capabilities of Eventival the option to submit and review films with video has always been on our mind, and I am glad that collaboration with a mature platform such as BMO will make it happen", comments Tomas Prasek of Eventival.

"Our in-depth expertise at BMO in technical development and festival management has resulted in a service that is able to cater to the specific needs of the festival and film industries, retaining a cutting edge feature pack whilst not sacrificing usability that is absolutely crucial in this business", adds Sten-Kristian Saluveer, Head of Development at BMO and Industry Director of Tallinn Black Nights FF.

Eventival and BMO will be available in Cannes at the European and Estonian pavilions for further inquiries.

ISA of the Day Ondamax Films

Sydney Levine — Sun, 19 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

Ondamax is the talent discoverer for Latino filmmakers! The newest filmmakers can be found here with their first films.

By: Fernando Frias
Country: Mexico
Year: 2012

Rezeta is a carefree 21 year old model. Born in Kosovo, she traveled the world through modeling and chose Mexico City as her new home. Rezeta's partying lifestyle changes when she meets Alex who is cleaning her trailer during a commercial shoot. Their undeniable chemistry causes their friendship to grow into a complicated relationship. Rezeta has to either commit to Alex and Mexico City, or continue with her whimsical, jet-setting life.

By: Elisa Eliash
Country: Chile
Year: 2012

Ramiro is a freelance journalist who develops a phobia of speed following a near death car accident. He immerses himself in writing the unauthorized biography of an out of control Chilean rock queen. After she dies, Ramiro obsessively searches for her replacement in this dark comedy.

By: Clara Bellar

Country: USA, France

Year : 2013

Being and Becoming takes us into the world of self-education, where parents trust their children to learn freely what they are truly passionate about. Filmmaker and mother Clara Bellar embarks with her son on a journey around the world, finding new perspectives on how to educate our children.

By: Raphael Aguinaga

Country: Argentina, Brazil

Year: 2012

A Man trapped in his past meets a woman who fears for her future. In a drastically changing world full of comedic characters, they learns it is never too late to fall in love.

By: Otto Guerra

Country: Brazil

Year: 2013

Affected by the modern world, the poetic and eccentric country of Sbornia ends up separated from the mainland. An animated feature film based on the musical play Tango & Tragedy.

Ondamax Films is an International production and distribution services company. With a track record ofover 300 projects including films, commercials, tv programs, digital content and music videos, Ondamax Films has an established reputation within the advertising and cinema industries.Through collaborations with renowned filmmakers as well as a new generation of talents, Ondamax Films offers a balance between creative thinking; production expertise and distribution solutions. From 1st-time director independent film to high profile commercials with celebrities like Penelope Cruz, George Clooney and Sean Connery, we are adapting ourselves to any new story. Our advertising portfolio includes work produced for global brands such as L’Oreal, Coca-Cola, Garnier, Maybelline, Gucci, Mercedes, Jaguar, Omega, Ford, Canon, Kellogg’s, Kinder, Lipton, Honda, etc. Our cinema activity has reached worldwide distribution agreements with studios, independent distributors and television networks including Universal, Warner, MGM, HBO, Netflix, Cinemax, Turner, etc. Ondamax Films content has been distinguished with over 500 selections and 125 awards in festivals like Sundance, Cannes, Toronto, Berlin and Venice.

Flm Productions Between India and Europe Just Got Easier

Sydney Levine — Sat, 18 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

The European Film Commission Network and Film France in partnership with Golden Bird Entertainment and peacefulfish aim to make productions easier between Europe and India.

On the occasion of 100 years of Indian Cinema at Cannes, these partners launched a first-of-its-kind high-level panel discussion on combining European financing opportunities with Indian production, financing, and distribution power.

The Cannes panel discussion had a keynote speech from Mr. Uday Kumar Varma, Secretary, Indian Information and Broadcasting Ministry, who guided on the much simplified “Single window clearance for international shoots and co-production treaties”. Producer Johannes Rexin of Heimat film, Germany shared his experiences on the first official German-Indian co-production “Qissa” starring Irrfan Khan. The European Film Commission Network (EUFCN) and Franck Priot, COO, Film France focused on their mission and objectives which have helped them to work with Indian and French production companies and films in France and India. Juliane Schulze, Senior Partner, peacefulfish providec invaluable guidance on European tax incentives, subsidies, and co-financing opportunities. The panel was moderated by Mohinder Walia, Managing Director, Golden Bird Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. (Former MD, Twentieth Century Fox Studios India) and he shared his deep insight on production, financing, and global distribution from an Indian perspective.

This high-level panel discussion addressed the most effective ways for European and Indian film producers to form lasting working relationships and benefit from the different financing landscapes of both territories.

Paladin / 108 Media Acquire Sundance Winner "Metro Manila"

Sydney Levine — Sat, 18 May 2013 16:00:00 GMT

Mark Urman of Paladin, 108 Media's U.S. Distribution arm has acquired Sean Ellis’ Sundance Audience Award Winner Metro Manila for No. America. Urman and 108 CEO Abhi Rastog negotiated the deal with Abigail Walsh, Head of Sales at Independent, who are handling international sales on the film, and Jessica Lacy, on behalf of ICM partners, who represent Ellis.

The North American deal on Metro Manila follows a number of other major sales, including France (Haut et Court), Spain (Festival Films), Scandinavia (NonStop), Japan (New Selects), Middle East (Front Row), Latin America (HBO), Hungary (Vertigo), Greece (Seven Group), Ex Yugoslavia (Cinemania), Singapore (indies Entertainment), and the Philippines (Captive).

Urman characterizes Metro Manila as "a smashing thriller--as smart and stylish as it is suspenseful—that I found impossible to shake-off. We look forward to working with Sean on its release and, even more so, to sharing it with audiences.” Rastogi adds, “this is undoubtedly one of the most exciting films to have emerged on the festival circuit this year, and we are confident that moviegoers and media alike will be blown away by it.”

Ellis produced, directed, photographed, and co-wrote the screenplay of Metro Manila, with Frank E. Flowers, based on his original story. Mathilde Charpentier also produced, and Ellis, Celine Lopez, and Enrique Y. Gonzalez served as executive producers.

Metro Manila centers around Oscar Ramirez, a poor rice farmer from the Northern Philippine mountains, who moves his family to the capital mega-city of Metro Manila in search of a better life. The sweltering capital’s bustling intensity soon overwhelms the Ramirezes, and they fall prey to the manipulations of hardened locals. Left penniless, Oscar gets a lucky break when he is offered steady work at an armored truck company and is taken under the wing of its friendly senior officer, Ong. Grateful for the job, Oscar doesn’t realize how dangerous it is; after all, Manila is a city where machine gun-wielding security guards are seen in every shop, from banks and jewelry stores to Starbucks, and where armed robbery has become a daily occurrence. Driving a cash-laden armored truck makes Oscar a moving target, but robbery isn’t the only danger he faces: when it becomes apparent that Ong was lying in wait for someone just like Oscar for some time, and that his motives for hiring him were far from altruistic, Oscar finds himself ensnared in a web of intrigue far more perilous than anything he faces on the mean streets of Manila

About 108 Media and Paladin:

108 Media is a Toronto-based international sales and distribution company that announced its partnership with Paladin at last year’s Toronto Film Festival. Together Rastogi and Urman have acquired such titles as Michel Gondry’s “The We And The I” and the Deepa Mehta/Salman Rushdie collaboration, “Midnight’s Children,” both currently in release. Also on-screen now are the award-winning British drama, “My Brother The Devil” and the Canadian comedy “And Now A Word From Our Sponsor,” starring Bruce Greenwood and Parker Posey, which was released last week both in select theaters and on cable VOD.

ISA of the Day- Mundial

Sydney Levine — Fri, 17 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

Six months ago Hollywood's Im Global and Mexico's Canana, teamed up to form Mexico-based sales-financing venture Mundial. Recently the company acquired international rights to “Chavez,” actor-turned-director Diego Luna’s portrait of Cesar E. Chavez, a legendary ‘60s U.S. civil rights leader.

Jeff Skoll’s Participant Media took U.S. distribution rights last June.

Since “Chavez” was lead-produced by Canana, the Mexico City-l.A. production company founded by Luna, Gael Garcia Bernal and Pablo Cruz, it was a perfect fit for Mundial to sell “Chavez” internationally.

This news comes right after Mundial acquired “Libertador,” a biopic of 19th-century independence fighter Simon Bolivar, reportedly budgeted at north of $50 million, the Chavez pickup gives Mundial two of the biggest movies, both in post-production, from Latin American directors this year.

Thai Pitch Events Returns To Cannes

Sydney Levine — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Thailand’s Ministry of Culture is once again organizing the Thai Pitch event at this year’s Cannes Film Festival market. Four projects from well-regarded Thai filmmakers have been chosen to take part in this year’s initiative, to be held on Saturday May 18^th from 10:00-15:30. The event will take place at the Thailand Pavilion in Cannes’ Village International no. 140. This year, Thai Pitch will be coordinated by producer and film programmer Raymond Phathanavirangoon.

The four projects include:

A CULINARY MURDER

dir: Somkiat Vithuranich (OCTOBER SONATA)

prod: Pawas Sawatchaiyamet (HEADSHOT, RED EAGLE)

Born poor and raised as the kitchen maid to a wealthy, corrupt family, Anoma spends her childhood learning that the secrets to a man’s heart lie in his stomach. When she is made to marry the master of the house, she begins to transform her culinary skills into a deadly weapon. If food could kill, then her food is the deadliest.

THE GENERAL’S SECRET

dir/prod: Pimpaka Towira (ONE NIGHT HUSBAND)

Rian lives alone with her mother who suffers from a chronic back pain. One day, after a trip, she finds that her mother's condition has gotten better after receiving a homeopathic massage from an old masseuse called “auntie”. Rian does not believe in the treatment, but her mother feels otherwise. She decides to find out auntie’s secret by making a massage appointment with her.

THE WAY BACK

dir: Boonsong Nakphoo (FOUR STATIONS)

prod: Pantham Thongsang (TROPICAL MALADY, MID ROAD GANG)

Sueb decides to leave the capital city Bangkok behind and bring his family to live a humble life in the countryside. Things initially seems to be as joyful as anticipated, until stresses gradually pile up. Unexpectedly, one day his wife takes their only son back to the capital city. Sueb insists on hanging onto his land until he finds the key to a harmonious life.

THE WHITE BUFFALO

dir: Aditya Assarat (WONDERFUL TOWN, HI-SO)

prod: Aditya Assarat, Soros Sukhum (MUNDANE HISTORY, P-047)

This is the story of Peter, a European, who is married to a Thai woman and living in her village. It is a situation that reflects a colonial past, an age when white men came to the East to exploit and build their own paradise. But today, the balance of power has changed. The European is large only in body. He is no match for the cunning and deceit of the Thais.

For more information about the event and individual projects, as well as inquiries into booking meetings, please go to www.thaipitch.com

ISA of the Day: Mexican Epic, 'Cinco de Mayo' being sold by Raven Banner of Canada

Peter Belsito — Wed, 15 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

This a great blending of companies and material. Canada's sales agents have always led the way internationally and Mexico is our pick of cinema territory on the rise.

Toronto-based sales and distribution outfit Raven Banner has picked up international rights to Rafa Lara’s historical epic Cinco de Mayo: The Battle and will commence world sales in Cannes.

Directed by young Mexican sensation, Rafa Lara, the $10 million dollar action adventure is the biggest budget Mexican film to date and was released on a record 500 prints in Mexico. U.S. theatrical is through Pantelion/Televisa/Lionsgate. The film took more than $1 million in its first weekend of domestic release last week.

Cinco de Mayo: The Battle chronicles the story of Mexico’s Battle of Puebla, the most important battle in Mexico’s history. When the unbeatable French army invades Mexico to set up a monarchy, General Ignacio Zaragoza played by Kuno Becker (Goal!, From Prada to Nada), must defend the city of Puebla, commanding a poorly armed and outnumbered troop of men. The film, recounts the bravery of a people pushed to the limit, fighting for their nation, their families and their pride. The film features an all-star Mexican cast (Angelica Aragon, Kuno Becker, Mario Zaragoza, Liz Gallardo and Christian Vasquez). The film was produced by Paco Gallastegui, Rafa Lara and executive produced by Televisa CEO, Emilio Azcarraga.

Today the date is observed in the United States as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride.

The deal with Raven Banner was negotiated by Managing partners, Michael Paszt and James Fler and producers Paco Gallastegui and Rafa Lara. The film screens in the Cannes market on May 16.

“This is such an ambitious epic with flawless production values,” says Paszt. “We’re honoured to be bringing the biggest Mexican film of all time to the international marketplace.”

Director, Lara's previous film, La Milagrosa, was sold in more than 50 territories.

About Raven Banner Entertainment

Raven Banner Entertainment is a sales, distribution and production company, based in Toronto, specializing in genre films for the worldwide market. Through its expertise in strategic project management and campaigns, RBE can also assist in any and all capacities of production, from acquisitions, representation, negotiations, marketing management and plans, and sales.

LatinoBuzz: The House That Joseph B. Vasquez Built

Juan Caceres — Wed, 15 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

Upon the Los Angeles Film Festival announcing their 2013 roster I was excited to see a title familiar to me that would be having its world premiere there. That film is 'The House That Jack Built' – from a screenplay written by Joseph B. Vasquez (Hangin' With The Homeboys) that I'd read close to 15 years earlier as an intern and it was rumored that it would be a Spike Lee/John Leguizamo collaboration. The film itself is a 20 year old journey in the making for the producers. The story revolves around Jack, a Puerto Rican drug dealer who yearns for those long gone memories of what was once a happy, united family where he remembers everything as ethereal-like. So he decides to buy a tenement where they can all be under the same roof in hopes of re-creating that joy, when in reality it will never be the same again as his well intentioned gesture tests the families bond to the point of irreparable dysfunction.

The joy for me at the time was reading the last screenplay written by Joe before he passed away in 1995. My friends and I used to quote the hell out of 'Hangin' With The Homeboys' and laugh at the way he wrote these richly drawn urban characters that could walk a very fine line and he was never afraid to push a few buttons when it came to sex, race and class. He knew the comedy in tragedy. The melancholy in reading his last screenplay was that it was his last screenplay.

Born to drug addicted parents in the South Bronx, Joseph started making movies on a Super 8mm camera at the age of 12. Eventually this would lead him to study film at City College in New York where he honed his craft and would later make a low budget, gritty, if not unwatchable film called 'Street Story' (later barely released as 'Street Hitz') where according to Joe, he was writer, director, cinematographer, editor, sound editor, gaffer, negative cutter and music editor. Working with a slightly larger budget and a little more experience his next film would be 'The Bronx War' (which I own on DVD courtesy of a spot on 125^th st). It was another film with a story line firmly cemented in the street life that he was familiar and comfortable with. 'The Bronx War' would be the one to catch the attention of New Line Cinema. After all, there weren't many Puerto Rican/Black filmmakers coming out of the Bronx, especially ones that spoke to the surging urban market like he did. They would decide to finance a semi-autobiographical screenplay he wrote in about three days called 'Hangin' With The Homeboys' about an epic, odyssey-like guys night out in New York City with four friends. Each of the four characters represented a different part of Vasquez. He was now making a film for a studio and not paying for it out of his own pocket. But Joseph's life played out much like one of his screenplays. During the shoot, he was slashed down the middle of his forehead to his nose by a homeless man as he took the subway to the set, ending what he believed could have been another career as an actor. The tension on the set was unbearable according to his leads. Still, the film was completed and premiered at the '91 Sundance Film Festival to great success and even walked away with a best screenwriting award. Joseph, suffering from severe Bi-polar disorder started to grow wary of studios like New Line Cinema, the very studio that helped him achieve the success he had enjoyed and started turning down projects such as 'House Party 2', citing that the films had gotten too big and were slipping away from his creative and artistic grasp. Instead he opted to do things his own way as before. A result was 'Manhattan Merengue'. This film, understandably failed to move his career to the next level and Joseph began suffering from manic depression when the offers that once presented themselves to him stopped coming in. Once thought to be the next Spike Lee (a comparison he didn't care for), he alienated those around him and at some later point claimed to be Jesus. His behavior became increasingly erratic and drew great concern from those around him as his health deteriorated. At the time no one knew he had AIDS, to which he would succumb to far from the South Bronx he loved and wrote about. At aged 33 he passed away in San Diego, CA. penniless but with his mother, who got clean, by his side.

Producer Mike Lieber, who had known Joe for many years including during his tumultuous times, held on to the script of 'The House That Jack Built', hoping that one day he could finally get it made. It was something he promised Joseph on his death bed that he would do. After attaching Cuban-American, Henry Barrial (Pig) to direct, they raised a budget that was enough to cover a shoot on HD and raised the rest on Kickstarter to bring it home. Casting was primarily done in the Bronx with E.J Bonilla (FOUR, Mamitas) cast to play 'Jack' and joined by an all Latino cast that includes Melissa Fumero, Leo Minaya, Saundra Santiago, John Herrera, Flor De Liz Perez and Rosal Colon.

Mike Lieber fulfilled his promise and Joseph Benjamin Vasquez' new film will premiere at The Los Angeles Film Festival which runs June 13-23. Tickets can be bought at http://www.lafilmfest.com . Give them a “Like”: https://www.facebook.com/thehousethatjackbuiltmovie.

Written by Juan Caceres and Vanessa Erazo, LatinoBuzz is a weekly feature on SydneysBuzz that highlights Latino indie talent and upcoming trends in Latino film with the specific objective of presenting a broad range of Latino voices. Follow @LatinoBuzz on Twitter and Facebook.

Ampav Announces Cannes 2013 Programming

Sydney Levine — Tue, 14 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Well-known filmmakers, movie executives and journalists will be among those featured during the upcoming Industry In Focus Series at The American Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival for its 25^th Anniversary, it was announced by Julie Sisk, Founder and Director of The American Pavilion.

Among those scheduled to participate in relevant and timely industry panels, seminars and “In Conversation” one-on-one dialogues are: James Toback, Randy Quaid, Will Forte, Stephen Frears, Cliff Martinez and many more.

There will also be discussions with top executives from such film companies as RADiUS-TWC and Participant Media, as well as representatives from ICM, WME, Paradigm and The Sundance Institute. Journalists from The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Deadline Hollywood and The Los Angeles Times, among others, will serve as moderators for the Series.

The diverse topics being covered in the Series include: 3D Content Creation, Women in Film,

Marketing and Distribution, Digital Hollywood, American Directors in Film, Music In Film,

The State of the Indie Film Industry, American Producers, An Emerging Filmmaker Showcase,

In Conversation talks with Randy Quaid and Will Forte and a special critic’s panel in honor of Roger Ebert.

The following is the full programming schedule. All Schedule, panels and guests are subject to changes and additions.

THE AMERICAN PAVILION- FULL CANNES 2013 PROGRAMMING LINE UP

Schedule

· Thursday, May 16 at 3pm - Industry In Focus: 3D Content Creation: From Script to Business

· Friday, May 17 at 3pm – Industry In Focus: Women in Film – moderated by Jacqueline Lyanga

· Saturday, May 18 at 11am – Industry In Focus: Marketing and Distribution – moderated by Dana Harris

· Saturday, May 18 at 3pm – Industry In Focus: Digital Hollywood – moderated by Kevin Winston

· Sunday, May 19 at 3pm – In Conversation: American Directors in Film – moderated by Aaron Hillis

· Sunday, May 19 at 9pm - Queer Night Party

· Monday, May 20 at 11am - Industry In Focus: Finance - moderated by Pam McClintock

· Monday, May 20 at 3pm - Industry In Focus: State of the Indie Film Industry - moderated by Pete Hammond

· Tuesday, May 21 at 2pm - Industry In Focus: American Producers - moderated by Scott Macaulay

· Tuesday, May 21 at 3pm- Music In Film-moderated by Thom Powers.

· Wednesday, May 22 at 2pm – In Conversation with Randy Quaid – moderated by Logan Hill

· Wednesday, May 22 at 3:30pm – In Conversation with Will Forte – moderated by Kyle Buchanan

· Thursday, May 23 – 10:30am- Emerging Filmmaker Showcase

· Thursday, May 23 at 3pm – Roger Ebert –Special Critics Panel – Moderated by Annette Insdorf

THURSDAY, MAY 16

3PM

3D Content Creation: From Script to Business

Workshop and reception sponsored by 3D Stereo MEDIA and XPAND, with participation of the International 3D Society

4:40PM-6PM

3D Networking Reception

_______________________________________________________________________________

FRIDAY, MAY 17

3PM

INDUSTRY IN FOCUS: WOMEN IN FILM

· Kate Gerova (Creative Director, Birds Eye View)

· Rosie Wong (Sundance Institute)

· Anne Hubbell (Tangerine Entertainment)

· Amy Hobby (Producer, Shepard & Dark)

· Moderated by: Jacqueline Lyanga (Director, AFI Fest)

________________________________________________________________________________

SATURDAY, MAY 18

11AM

INDUSTRY IN FOCUS: GETTING YOUR FILM TO MARKET: MARKETING + DISTRIBUTION TIPS FROM THE EXPERTS

· Ryan Werner

· Marian Koltai-Levine (PMK-BNC)

· Michael Benaroya (CEO, Benaroya Pictures)

· Lisa Perkins (VP, International Marketing & Publicity, Exclusive Media)

· Moderated by: Dana Harris (Editor-in-Chief, Indiewire)

3PM

INDUSTRY IN FOCUS: DIGITAL HOLLYWOOD

· Col Needham (Founder & CEO, IMDb)

· Jonathan Marlow (Co-founder/Chief Content Officer, Fandor)

· Steve Beckman (FilmBuff)

· Amy McGee (ZEFR/Movieclips.com)

· Moderated by: Kevin Winston (Digital LA)

_______________________________________________________________________________

SUNDAY, MAY 19

3PM

IN CONVERSATION: AMERICAN DIRECTORS IN CANNES

· Jim Mickle (We Are What We Are)

· David Lassiter (The Opportunist)

· David Lowery – (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints)

· James Toback (Seduced and Abandoned)

· Moderated by: Aaron Hillis (Video Free Brooklyn)

_______________________________________________________________________________

MONDAY, MAY 20

11AM

INDUSTRY IN FOCUS: FINANCING A FILM IN 2013

· Nick LoPiccolo (Paradigm)

· Peter Trinh (ICM Partners)

· Deborah McIntosh (WME)

· Paul Miller (Film Financing, Doha Film Institute)

· Bill Lischak (Co-President of OddLot Entertainment)

· Moderated by: Pamela McClintock (The Hollywood Reporter)

3PM

INDUSTRY IN FOCUS: STATE OF THE INDIE FILM INDUSTRY

· Tom Quinn (Radius-TWC)

· Michael Sugar (Anonymous Content)

· Rena Ronson (UTA)

· Jim Berk (Participant Media)

· John Cooper (Sundance Institute)

· Moderated by: Pete Hammond (Deadline Hollywood)

________________________________________________________________________________

TUESDAY, MAY 21

2PM

INDUSTRY IN FOCUS: AMERICAN PRODUCERS IN CANNES

· David Lancaster (Only God Forgives)

· Nick Schumaker (We Are What We Are)

· Jay Van Hoy and Lars Knudsen (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints)

· Emily Wachtel (Shepard & Dark)

· Moderated by: Scott Macaulay (Filmmaker Magazine)

3PM

INDUSTRY IN FOCUS: Music In Film

Cliff Martinez (Composer, Only God Forgives)
Gingger Shankar (Composer, Monsoon Shootout)
Moderated by: Thom Powers (TIFF)

________________________________________________________________________________

WEDNESDAY, MAY 22

2PM

IN CONVERSATION WITH RANDY QUAID:

Moderated by: LOGAN HILL

3:30PM

IN CONVERSATION WITH WILL FORTE (NEBRASKA):

Moderated by: KYLE BUCHANAN (VULTURE)

__________________________________________________________________________

THURSDAY, MAY 23

3PM

SPECIAL FILM CRITICS PANEL – IN HONOR OF ROGER EBERT

· Michael Phillips (Chicago Tribune)

· Kenneth Turan (LA Times)

· Eric Kohn (IndieWire)

· Moderated by: Annette Insdorf (Director of Undergraduate Film Studies, Columbia University)

EMERGING FILMMAKER SHOWCASE

10:30AM - 1:00PM-

Student Short Films & Student Documentaries

4:30PM - 6:15PM-

Emerging Short Films & Documentaries

******

ABOUT THE AMERICAN PAVILION

Celebrating our 25th year as the center of American hospitality for the film industry in Cannes, The Pavilion brings professionals and emerging filmmakers together.

The American Pavilion is the center of activity at the Cannes International Film Festival for the American film community, offering membership for professionals, provocative and insightful programming, immersive student programs, the Emerging Filmmaker Showcase and more.

Serving as a communication and hospitality center for the thousands of Americans in Cannes during the Cannes Film Festival, The American Pavilion provides an impressive array of facilities and services to the international film community. Since its debut at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival, The Pavilion has become a permanent fixture on the Cannes landscape.

For the corporate sponsors of The American Pavilion, the dozens of exhibitors and office holders, and the thousands of American participants, The American Pavilion accommodates the need for information, orientation and recreation. For the duration of the Festival, The American Pavilion provides both a dynamic business environment and an opportunity to relax in comfortable surroundings.

Just a few steps from the Palais des Festivals, where all the major Festival films are premiered, and with a panoramic view of the Bay of Cannes, The American Pavilion is the perfect place to transact business, share ideas and effectively reach the thousands of affluent international business travelers who attend the Festival every year.

ISA of The Day: Noori Pictures

Sydney Levine — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

Noori Pictures is the new name for Sherahazad, Katayoon Shahabi's independent, Iranian international sales agency. After spending 11 months in one of Iran's most notorious prisons for "collaborating with the BBC", she has pitched her tent in Paris where she spent her college years before returning to Iran with idealistic plans which 20 some odd years later she as been forced to abandon.

Her new lineup of films includes a documentary she is producing about Ashghar Farhadi, the director of the Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Language Film 2011:

A Separation (Az Iran, Yek Jodaee)

Color, HD, 16:9, 52 min, 2012-13, Iran

Directors & Research: Azadeh Mousavi, Kourosh Ataei

Producer: Katayoon Shahabi, Azadeh Mousavi, Kourosh Ataei

Stage: POST- PRODUCTION

This documentary film depicts the importance of receiving an Oscar Award for “A Separation” for the

Iranians. It gives a general view on Iran’s society of today. The documentary is narrated with an ironic

language and uses animation in some parts.

Feature

Bending the Rules (Ghaedeye Tasadof)
Color, D-Cinema, 2.00:1, Sound: Digital5.1,94 min., 2013, Iran, 2nd Film, World Premiere

Director, Scriptwriter & Editor: Behnam Behzadi Producer: Behnam Behzadi Director of Photography: Amin Jafari Cast: Amir Jafari, Ashkan Khatibi, Mehrdad Sedighian, Baharan Bani Ahmadi, Neda Jebraeeli, Martin Shamoonpour, Roshanak Gerami, Mohammad-Reza Ghaffari, Elaheh Hesari, Soroosh Sehhat, Omid Roohani

An enthusiastic and amateur theatrical group finds the opportunity to perform abroad which is a great success. Sheherazad, a desperate girl, joins the group and takes the leading role in the play. She decides, unlike her other fellow actors to tell the truth to her father. He is against this trip. The group is now in a dilemma: replace her or....

Bending the Rules is the story of the third generation of the Iranian Revolution that does not want to compromise on their principles and rights with their parents.

Bardou (Oun Khoub Sang Mizanad)
Color, HD, 16:9, 85min, 2013, Iran, Debut, World Premiere

Director & Scriptwriter: Seyed Hadi Mohaghegh Producer: Ebrahim Asghari Director of Photography: Meisam Riahi Cast: Ahmad Derakhshan, Saaed Soheili, Davoud Einabadi

Bardou is the story of a 16-year-old teenager who has recently lost his father and has to get back his father's loan from Nasir, who is unwilling to pay off his debt. In order to get his right and to deal with the difficulties, Bardou has to become a man.

The Bag of Flour (Le Sac de Farine)
Screening : Tuesday, May 21, 11 :30 a.m., Riviera, Palais H, Debut (Market Premier)
Color, 35mm, 92 min, 2012, Belgium, Morocco, France

Director: Kadija Leclere Scriptwriter: Kadija Leclere, Pierre Olivier Mornas Producers: Gaëtan David, Samy Layani, André Logie Editor: Virginie Messiaen, Ludo Troch Director of Photography: Gilles Porte, Philippe Guilbert Cast: Hafsia Herzi, Hiam Abbass, Smain Fairouze, Mehdi Dehbi, Rania Mellouli

Based on the true life of the director, the film traces the story of an eight year-old Moroccan Muslim girl who is living in a Catholic orphanage in Belgium in 1970s. She is taken by her biological father to a poverty-stricken village in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, where she spends her teen ages simultaneous with the years of Hunger Revolt in Morocco...

Death is My Profession (Marg Kasb va Kare Man Ast) Color, 35 mm, 1:1/85, 90 min, 2011, Iran, Debut

Director & Scriptwriter: Amir Hossein Saghafi Director of Photography: Nader Masoumi Editor: Mastaneh Mohajer Producer: Aliakbar Saghafi

Cast: Pejman Bazeghi, Amir Aghaei, Maryam Boobani, Kamran Tafti, Mahchehreh Khalili, Akbar Sangi, Meysam Ghanizadeh, Sonia Espahram, Ramin Rastad

Death is My Profession is about the struggle of people who have to accept any work offered, to survive in a neglected society.

Documentaries in Production

(Looking for Co-Producer)

Local Kitchen (Ashpazkhaneye Mahalli) Color, HD, 16:9, 60 min, 2013-14, Iran, France

Director & Research: Loghman Khaledi Producer: Katayoon Shahabi & Artline Films

Stage: Pre-production

The documentary depicts social and economical aspects of Iranian society through a story about seven women who decide to take part in family economy by establishing a catering that offers traditional food.

The Pain We Share (Darde Moshtarak) Color, HD, 16:9, 60 & 75 min, 2011-13, Iran, Japan & Canada

Directors & Research: Fima Emami & Reza Daryanoush Producer: Katayoon Shahabi & NHK/Japan Broadcasting Corporation

Stage: POST-PRODUCTION

Fima Emami is a filmmaker and daughter of an Iran-Iraq War veteran. She is focusing on the Iranian and American veterans who are suffering from PTSD and the effects it has had on their families including her own family.

Documentaries

Nessa (Nessa)

Color, HD, 16:9, 52 min, 2011-12, Iran

Director & Research: Loghman Khaledi Producer: Katayoon Shahabi

Nessa is a young woman from Kurdistan of Iran, who is trying to progress in her acting and artistic career. Due to the conservative environment, her family prevents her from reaching her goal. The film is about her struggle..

Moving Up (Kami Balatar)

Color, HD, 16:9, 58 min, 2011, Iran

Director & Research: Loghman Khaledi Producer: Katayoon Shahabi

Shahriyar, a garbage collector, has a passion for literature and poetry. He writes imaginative stories to escape from his dull and prosaic life but all the people around him constantly conspire to hold him back from “Moving Up”.

21 Days and Me (21 Rooz va Man) Color, HD, 16:9, 58 min, 2011, Iran

Director & Research: Shirin Barghnavard Producer: Katayoon Shahabi

Nominated for the Best Asian Doc. in Asian Pacific 2011

IWAR Asian Women’s Film Festival (2013/ India)

This film covers the 21 days before the operation of a 35-year-old woman who is struggling with the issue to become a mother or not.

Unwelcome in Tehran (Nakhandeh dar Tehran) Color, HD, 16:9, 52 min, 2011, Iran

Director & Research: Mina Keshavarz Producer: Katayoon Shahabi

Thessaloniki Documentary Festival (2012/ Greece) Filmmor Women's Int'l F. F. (2012/ Turkey)

Mina, the director, is a girl from Shiraz who gets married in order to move to Tehran. Influenced by her own life, she decides to make a documentary about the girls nationwide who, like Azar, move to Tehran to start an independent life.

Reluctant Bachelor (Pir Pesar) Color, HD, 16:9, 58 min., HD, 2011, Iran

Director & Research: Mehdi Bagheri Producer: Katayoon Shahabi

Asiatica Film Mediale F. F. (2012/ Italy) Gene Siskle Film Center (2012/ USA) Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (2013 / USA)

This film is about the director himself who is 30 years old and still living with his parents. He tells his story while trying to revise his attitude towards every member of his family by interviewing them. This film is the reflection of the young generations’ lives in Iran.

Gilles Jacob Resigns As Cannes Head

Peter Belsito — Mon, 13 May 2013 21:30:00 GMT

Big bombshell (but expected!!) announcement from the head of Cannes. Just before the 66th Cannes Film Festival is due to begin, the boss reveals he will step down after 38 years with the festival. He will step down in 2015, after finishing his current three-year term.

"I promised my wife several times I’d stop. This time, I'll do it," said the 83-year-old in an interview with the newspaper Nice Matin.

Jacob has been a part of the festival since 1977, first serving as CEO of the organization and then moving into the president role in 2001.

His presidency was slated to end in 2012, but in 2011, three years were added to his term.

With his statement, he confirms that he will step down in 2015.

Jacob created the Camera d’Or prize in 1978, and the Un Certain Regard and Cinefondation sidebars to highlight younger and new filmmakers.

He will leave his mark not only on the festival but on the city itself, having brought the new building Palais des Festivals to Cannes.

The festival press office confirmed that Jacob would not be available for the position of president after his current term ends. A representative said Jacob had previously signaled that, but confirmed that position in the newspaper interview.

The 2013 Cannes Film Festival runs May 15-26

The Germans Are Out In Force

Sydney Levine — Mon, 13 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Germany has a large number of films in Cannes this year both as coproducer and single producer. Three German co-productions are in the competition including Heli by Amat Escalante (Mexico/ Germany/ France/ Netherlands), the adaptation of the Heinrich von Kleist novella Michael Kohlhaas by Arnaud des Pallières (France, Germany) and Jim Jarmusch's Only Lovers Left Alive (Germany, U.K., France, Cyprus), which has always been supported by the German producer Karl Baumgartner of Pandora. U.S. gets bragging rights but has no actual credit in the film.

Screening in Un Certain Regard are Tore Tanzt, the debut feature film of German director Katrin Gebbe ♀ which is eligible for the Camera d'Or as are first films from all sections, the co-productions My Sweet Pepper Land by Hiner Saleem (France, Germany) and Bastards by Claire Denis (France, Germany).

A digitally remastered version of Fedora by Billy Wilder will be shown in Cannes Classics along with four more German co-productions.

The German short Come And Play by Daria Belova ♀ is in Semaine de la Critique which will also present the German co-production The Lunchbox by Ritesh Batra (India, Deutschland, France).

Directors Fortnight is screening The Congress by director Ari Folmann (Israel, Germany, Poland, Luxembourg, France, Belgium).

The debut feature Summer Outside by Friederike Jehn (Germany, Switzerland) will be shown in Ecrans Juniors / Cannes Cinephiles which is curated by Cannes Cinema during the festival. The Strange Little Cat by Ramon Zürcher (DFFB) will be presented in the L'Acid-series, a special program by the Association du Cinéma Indépendant pour sa Diffusion during the festival.

German Films will be presenting a total of 30 New German Films to professional visitors at Cannes' Marché du Film from 17 to 22 May. Furthermore, this will be the 13th time that German Films joins forces with FOCUS Germany, the amalgamation of the seven major regional film funds, to run the German Pavilion in the International Village of the Marché du Film. The German Pavilion has been a popular platform for many years for people to get know one another personally and to foster an exchange between the accredited festival delegates from the German and international film industries in Cannes.

ISA of the Day: All the Korean Sales Agents in Cannes

Sydney Levine — Mon, 13 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

These are the Korean films in Cannes Short Film Competition, Cinefondation and Semaine de la Critique. Plus there are all the international sales agents!

Stand Details
Stand #122 Village International Pavilion Tel. +33 04 93 99 85 99

SAFE

by MOON Byoung-gon l cast LEE Min-ji, KANG Tae-young, KIM Hyun-gyu

2013 l Thriller, Drama, Horror l 13min | Dolby Digital Stereo

I am sick to death of this exchange booth. Is it possible to escape here? … full story

The Line

by KIM Soo-jin l cast LEE Myung-ha, CHOI Kyu-young, CHO Pan-soo

2013 | Drama, Thriller | 26min | Dolby Digital Stereo

One day, Yoon-jin finds Ji-hoon sitting in front of her house stairs. After a while, she again finds him still on the same place and offers the boy … full story

Breathe Me

by HAN Eun-young l cast CHO Soo-hyang, IM Ho-kyong

2013 | Drama | 20min | Stereo

17 year old A-Young has just given birth in a secluded spot by a railroad. Bleeding heavily, she tries to find refuge. ... full story

CJ Entertainment

Stand Details

Booth B17-C20

Company Representatives

Kini KIM,

EVP, Int’l Sales & Distribution

Heejeon KIM,

SVP, Int’l Sales for Americas & Europe

Bryan Jo,

VP, Int’l Marketing & Distribution

Justin KIM,

Director, Int’l Sales for Americas & Europe

Samantha LEE,

Director, Int’l Sales for Asia

Line-up

A Wedding Invitation
Pororo: The Racing
Adventure (3D)
FLU
FISTS OF LEGEND
FINAL RECIPE

9ers Entertainment

Stand Details

Booth Riviera E14

Company Representatives

LEE Suk-Joon,

CEO

Dabin OH,

Asst. Manager of
Int’l Business Dept.

LEE Jeong-Eun

Line-up

Rockin’ on Heaven’s Door
Are You Ready?
Wedding Scandal
Weird Business
Horny Family
Miss Conspirator

Daisy & Cinergy
Entertainment

Stand Details

Booth Lerins R16

Company Representatives

Erica NAM,

Int’l Sales Director

Dabin OH,

Int’l Sales Manager

Line-up

Horror Stories II
How to Use Guys with
Secret Tips
Don’t Cry, Mommy
Horror Stories
The Taste of Money

FINECUT

Stand Details

Booth Riviera E9/F12

Company Representatives

Youngjoo SUH,

CEO

Yunjeong KIM,

Director of Int’l Sales

Luna H.Y. KIM,

Director of Int’l Sales

Sejin LEE,

Int’l Sales & Marketing

Line-up

MONTAGE
NEW WORLD
MIRACLE IN CELL NO.7
FATAL
NOBODY’S DAUGHTER
HAEWON
LOVE 911

Mirovision

Stand Details

Booth G28

Company Representatives

Jason CHAE

Isabelle PARK

Line-up

Melo
Tumbleweed
The Winter of the Year
was Warm
Mr. Perfect
Red Tango

LOTTE Entertainment

Stand Details

Booth B9-C12

Company Representatives

PARK Ju-young,

Head of Int’l Distribution

HAN Ryan,

Senior Manager

BYEON Eun-hye,

Manager

Line-up

Born to Sing
Very Ordinary Couple
(V.O.C.)
An Ethics Lesson
Mai Ratima

MOUNTAIN PICTURES

Stand Details

Booth KOFIC Pavillion

Company Representatives

Jackson LEE,

CEO

Ellie JO,

Head of International Business

Line-up

NORIGAE
THE SILK FLOWER
COIN LOCKER
OVER AND OVER AGAIN
MISS CHERRY’S LOVE
PUZZLE
WHERE ARE TO GO?

M-LINE Distribution

Stand Details

Booth Riviera B13, C14

Company Representatives

Michelle SON,

Managing Director

Jamie SEO,

Manager

Rachel JOO,

Manager

Dana KIM,

Assistant Manager

Line-up

Marrige Blue
The Fives
T-pang rescue
Pengi and Sommi
Total Messed Family

Showbox/Mediaplex, INC.

Stand Details

Booth Lerins R3-S2

Company Representatives

Judy AHN,

Head of Int’l Business

Soojin JUNG,

VP / Int’l Business

Sonya KIM,

General Manager / Sales & Festival

Eugene KIM,

Assistant Manager / Marketing & Festival

Line-up

MR. GO
HWAYI
SECRETLY GREATLY
COMMITMENT
THE HUNTRESSES

United Pictures

Stand Details

ooth Palais Level 1 24.07

Company Representatives

Danny LEE,

Manager, Internaional Dept.

Gina SHIN,

Assistant Manager,
International Dept.

Wonjai PARK,

Assistant Manager,
International Dept.

Line-up

Cold Eyes

Mouton Cadet Wine Bar

Sydney Levine — Sun, 12 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Official Supplier of Wine to the Cannes Film Festival, the most famously recognized film event in the world. In celebration of the 66th Festival, Mouton Cadet will unveil its Evening Dress Collector Bottle: "Mouton Cadet Edition Spéciale Cannes 2013". This limited edition will be tasted every day in all sorts of atmospheres: at the Official Opening and Closing Dinners, at the Plage des Palmes and at the Hôtel Majestic, Patio Canal +, Nikki Beach, La Plage Orange.

For the third year running, international celebrities will meet at the Mouton Cadet Wine Bar to share exceptional moments. Facing the sea, on the Festival Palace rooftop, the Mouton Cadet Wine Bar will be the most exclusive venue on the Croisette this year again.

Made by the company Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA and distributed in France by its subsidiary Rothschild France Distribution, Mouton Cadet, since its foundation in 1930, has remained loyal to its roots, while evolving towards what has become the world's wine reference for Bordeaux Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée. Mouton Cadet has always been associated with exclusive events in the world of film-making and sport. Since 2012, Mouton Cadet is the Official Supplier to the European Tour (Golf) as well as to the Ryder Cup 2014 and 2018.

ISA of the Day: IM Global

Sydney Levine — Sun, 12 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

IM Global is forming partnerships that reach way beyond its original incarnation. When founder Stuart Ford launched the company in 2007, we had not realized the real meaning of the name IM Global.

What was known from its inception was that the company was one of the leading film financing, production, sales and distribution companies in the world. But when Reliance Entertainment, part of the Indian conglomerate Reliance ADA Group, acquired a majority shareholding in the company in May 2010, the word Global took on new meaning.

Not only did they claim to champion a wide variety of cinema, including mainstream commercial, art house, foreign language and genre fare with their offices in Los Angeles, London, and Mumbai, but their diversification has since expanded to include its newest partnership with Jason Blum’s Blumhouse and in Berlin 2013 its partnership with Canana (Who is Dayani Cristal ?, Sin Nombre, Miss Bala), forming a 50-50 joint venture called Mundial.

Dedicated to international sales of Latin American cinema, Mundial will handle international sales for 8 to 10 Latin American titles per year. The company has picked up three films thus far: Mariana Chenillo's Paraiso, which begins shooting in January; Cannes winner Michael Rowe's new film Manto Acuifero; and Mr. Pig, Diego Luna's fourth work as a director.

Luna, along with fellow actor Gael Garcia Bernal and producer Pablo Cruz, are co-founders of Canana. Under the agreement, Mundial will handle Canana productions.

Mundial's board comprises IM Global CEO Stuart Ford, Canana executives Cruz and Julian Levy, and IM Global's president of international sales and distribution, Jonathan Deckter.

Canana is also part of ParticipantPanamerica, a brilliant production partnership Participant, teaming together Canana,

Chile’s Fabula (Gloria, Young and Wild) of the fabulous Lorrain brothers who made No (with Participant) as well as Sebastian Silva’s best films to date, Colombia’s Dynamo (Undertow, The Hidden Face).

Aside from these two new startup joint ventures, there are other arms:

IM GLOBAL OPUS: Mainstream, commercial cinema targeted at the multiplex audience.
IM GLOBAL ACCLAIM: Critically acclaimed arthouse and specialty cinema.
IM GLOBAL ANTHEM: The best of non-English language cinema from around the world.
IM GLOBAL OCTANE: Branded genre fare.
IM APSARA: A rights acquisition and distribution vehicle that serves the rapidly evolving Asian markets.

In addition there is the 3^rd joint venture, AUTOMATIK: A production and financing joint venture with E1 Entertainment focused on films in the $5 million - $15 million range.

When I think of Stuart Ford now, I understand the I AM Global moniker! Good work!!

ISA of the Day: Blumhouse International

Sydney Levine — Sat, 11 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Blumhouse International is Blumhouse Productions' new international sales division, which will handle sales for films that don’t fall under their first-look deal with Universal. A new division to oversee international sales of films for the micro-budget production company including Sinister 2 and Stretch. Their six previous films grossed a combined $450 million International on combined budgets under $25 Million.

We are happy to write about Jason Blum's success. From the days when he handled acquisitions with Amy Israel for Miramax under the Weinsteins to his establishing Blumhouse Productions, a multi-media production company that has pioneered a new model of studio filmmaking - producing high-quality micro-budget films for wide release, Jason has never lost his responsive attention to the people who work with him in the industry. You can read his very interesting bio here

It is our pleasure to spread the word about his newest endeavor, the launch of Blumhouse International, a new division to oversee international sales of the company's movies. BHI has a worldwide distribution and servicing deal with IM Global and the two companies, with Jason Blum in attendance, will introduce the venture to international distributors at the forthcoming Cannes Film Festival and Marche.

Blumhouse International will meet with international distributors on two initial projects in Cannes. Sinister 2 is a sequel to Blumhouse's 2012 $3 million micro-budget hit which grossed over $87 million worldwide. Stretch is a comedy thriller to be directed by Joe Carnahan and produced by Blum and the director. Tracy Falco will serve as executive producer and Leon Corcos as co-producer. Both projects will begin production later in 2013.

The division will handle sales of films outside Blumhouse's first-look deal with Universal. The launch of BHI builds upon Blumhouse's international success. Six of the company's recent films grossed a combined $450 million foreign on combined budgets of under $25 million.

Said Blum, “We are excited to expand our company’s international presence as the success of our micro-budget films continues to grow across the world.”

Blumhouse already has four micro-budget wide-release movies scheduled to come out including its first film for Universal - The Purge with Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes which opens on June 7th, 2013, Insidious Chapter 2, the sequel to Insidious with FilmDistrict on September 13th, 2013, Paranormal Activity 5 for Paramount Pictures on October 25^th, 2013 and Ghosts for Lionsgate on January 10^th, 2014.

Since its launch, Blumhouse has produced more than 30 feature films including the highly-profitable Paranormal Activity franchise, Sinister and Insidious all of which out grossed their budgets on opening weekend. In addition, Blumhouse has a first-look television deal with Lionsgate and is working on both scripted and non-scripted projects. Blumhouse produced Stranded for SyFy, executive produced The River for ABC and is also working on projects with HBO and MTV.

IM Global, a subsidiary of Anil Ambani’s Reliance Entertainment Group, is one of the film industry’s leading financing, sales and distribution companies with output deals in more than 100 countries and offices in Los Angeles, London, Mumbai and Mexico City. The company was founded by current CEO, Stuart Ford, in 2007.

Polish Producers In Cannes Producers Network

Sydney Levine — Sat, 11 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

It's surprising that this is the first time Polish producers have participated in the Cannes Producers Network considering Poland is one of the upcoming young filmmaking hotspots. Their T-Mobile New Horizons Film Festival, their American Film Festival and US in Progress, Warsaw Film Festival and Krakow Film Festival are all promoting cross-cultural collaboration in new ways and this new generation of filmmakers is so educated and talented. Keep your eyes on Poland!

An exclusive program of meet-and-greets!

Launched in 2004, the Producers Network hosts 550 producers from around the world in a series of meetings and events. Created to stimulate international coproduction and project financing, this event is specially designed for producers. Every day an individually tailored program will be giving the opportunity to meet the various partners the projects require, be it a co-producer, distributor, sales agent or financier.

5 leading Polish Producers in the Program.

Poland will be represented by the top highly successful 5 Producers of young generation the Polish Film Institute is proud to present:

Agnieszka Kurzydło

MD4

Agnieszka was born in 1974 in Kraków. She studied archeology at the Jagiellonian University. She is involved in film industry since 1992. In 2009 became involved with Zentropa International Poland as a managing director. Since the beginning Zentropa International Poland made international co-production films, such as: Antichrist directed by Lars von Trier (2009), The Woman who dreamt of a Man directed by Per Fly (2010), Elles directed by Małgośka Szumowska (2012). In 2011 she established her own company: Mental Disorder 4 (MD4) and she works as the CEO. She produced such films as: BabyBlues directed by Katarzyna Rosłaniec (2012) - world premiere at the TIFF 2012, CrystalBear for the Best Film at the Berlinale 2013 Generation 14plus and Special Mention fromInternational Jury, In the name of directed by Małgośka Szumowska (2013) - world premiere at Berlinale 2013 Competition and Teddy Award. Among MD4 forthcoming projects are:RedSpider directed by Marcin Koszałka (planed premiere 2014) and Kebab & Horoscopedirected by Grzegorz Jaroszuk (planned premiere 2014).

Małgorzata Jurczak

SCORPION ARTE

Graduated from Warsaw University, The Law Department, Lodz Film and TV School, The Production Management and Leeds Metropolitan University, The Northern School of Film and Television. Co-founder of Skorpion Arte Film & TV Production, the independent production company established in Warsaw, 2008.Filmography (producer): The Photographer dir. Waldemar Krzystek (2013), Manhunt dir. Marcin Krzysztalowicz (The Silver Lions Gdynia Flilm Festival 2012, Montreal World Competition 2012) , My name is Ki dir. Leszek Dawid (The Venice Days 2011, Cottbus 2011, Off Camera 2012), The Heritage dir. Andrzej Baranski (The Karlovy Vary 2011), Being like Deyna dir. Anna Wieczur - Bluszcz (2012).

Marta Laryssa Plucińska

FEDERICO FILM

Federico Film was founded in February 1997. Its founder, co-owner, and producer is Marta Laryssa Plucińska. In 2005 her brother, Pawel Pluciński has joined the company. Federico Film is an active producer on the audiovisual market. They take part in national as well as international co-productions. They cooperate with Polish and foreign filmmakers of documentaries, advertisements, video clips and TV series. Present feature productions: Przeklęta Zorica (Crna Zorica) (2012), directed by Radosław Pavkovic, international coproduction Serbian-Polish-Greek, supported by: Polish Film Institute. Mój Rower (My father’s bike) (2012), directed by Piotr Trzaskalski, cinema feature film. Shooting: August 2011. Cast: Michał Urbaniak, Artur Żmijewski, Krzysztof Chodorowski, Witold Dębski, Anna Nehrebecka; Co-producer – Television TVN S.A., Supported by: PISF, Lodz Film Commission.

Mikołaj Pokromski

Pokromski Studio

Educated in business, holds a MBA, a degree in Logistics and Intercultural Management, as a Film Production Master Classin Film Academy Ludwigsburg / La Fémis Paris. Coming from a family working in film, he joined the industry very early starting work in a film services company and eventually worked his way up the role of Film Producer. He currently works both in feature and documentary films, with a number of them being internationally awarded productions. In 2009 started Pokromski Studio, which he heads and produces films. Pokromski Studio acts as independent producer and service provider for international productions in Poland.

Since 2012 is a member of the European and the German Film Academies.

Łukasz Dzięcioł

OPUS FILM

A master's graduate in Film Studies from the University of Lodz, Lukasz Dzieciol also participated in the International Producing Program at Cologne's IFS Internationale Filmschule and in the Los Angeles Film School Producing Program. For the past 10 years, he has been working at Opus Film, a feature film and commercials company, in which he shares ownership. Lukasz's production credits include Slawomir Fabicki's RETRIEVAL, which premiered in 2006 in Un Certain Regard in Cannes and was Poland's candidate for the Foreign Language Oscar. He also produced Adam Guzinski's A BOY ON A GALLOPING HORSE which screened Out of competition in Cannes' official selection the same year.Recently, he produced ZERO by Pawel Borowski, MY FLESH MY BLOOD by Marcin Wrona and COURAGE by Greg Zglinski. The films were screened at several international festivals and garnered major film prizes, respectively. Apart from his work in Europe, Lukasz has also produced film projects in the United States and remains actively involved in ongoing co-operations with US-based production companies. In 2011, he was selected for European Film Promotion’s networking platform, PRODUCERS ON THE MOVE, at the Cannes International Film Festival. Since 2011 he is a member of THE POLISH FILM ACADEMY and EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY.

SodaStream Joins Ampav as Premiere Sponsor

Sydney Levine — Fri, 10 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

The American Pavilion founder Julie Sisk is proud that the American Pavilion will be plastic-bottle free. AmPav's Premiere Sponsor SodaStream is joining the Presenting Sponsors American Express and The Peninsula Hotel Group at Cannes Film Festival 2013.

To create a plastic bottle free environment, a range of freshly-made SodaStream flavored drinks will be available complimentary to guests; re-usable eco-friendly bottles will be re-filled for free with either still, sparkling or flavored drinks. A selection of SodaStream cocktails will also be served from the SodaStream SodaBar, an exciting new design aspect of the updated Pavilion for the 25th anniversary celebrations.

“One Billion bottles and cans are trashed every day, the majority ending up in landfills, parks or oceans. What better place than the beautiful beachside location of Cannes to share with the international film industry that people have a choice; that with SodaStream they are empowered to enjoy great-tasting soda without the hazardous waste.”

“We are thrilled to partner with The American Pavilion to help them with their first ever event without the trash from bottles and cans,” commented SodaStream CEO Daniel Birnbaum.

Ampav founder Julie Sisk also stated: “It makes so much sense for us to partner with SodaStream as The Pavilion was the first entity in Cannes to implement recycling, trucking our recyclables to Marseille every other day. We continue to be as green as possible and conscious of the impact we have on the fragile Cannes environment.”

SodaStream is the world leader in home soda making, where consumers turn tap or filtered water into a mouth-watering array of carbonated beverages without the wasteful bottles. SodaStream’s involvement with AMPAV this year allows the Pavilion to be truly free of cans and plastic bottles. This symbolic move means taking over a long-standing sponsorship by Coca-Cola; SodaStream will host the bar at the American Pavilion as the exclusive soft drink and water provider, offering a far better-for-the-planet and better-for-you experience for visitors.

Founded 25 years ago by industry maven Julie Sisk, The American Pavilion is a place where North American film industry professionals gather to share ideas and network during Cannes Film Festival, the largest and most prestigious film festival in the world. Initially created to provide a convenient single meeting space for all the North American film professionals in town, The Pavilion has grown to become the essential hub for the industry off The Croisette, offering membership for professionals, provocative and insightful programming, immersive student programs, Emerging Filmmaker Showcases, and more.

Luminaries that have supported The Pavilion over the years include: filmmakers Ron Howard, Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, Wong Kar Wai, Spike Lee, Billy Bob Thornton, and stars Tommy Lee Jones, Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, James Franco, Michelle Williams, Jessica Chastain, Robert Duvall, and Matt Lauer amongst many others.

ABOUT SODASTREAM

SodaStream International Ltd. is the world’s leading manufacturer and distributor of home beverage carbonation systems, which enable consumers to easily transform ordinary tap water instantly into carbonated soft drinks and sparkling water. Soda makers offer a highly differentiated and innovative solution to consumers of bottled and canned carbonated soft drinks and sparkling water. Our products are environmentally friendly, cost effective, promote health and wellness, and are customizable and fun to use.

In addition, our products offer convenience by eliminating the need to carry bottles home from the supermarket, to store bottles at home or to regularly dispose of empty bottles. Our products are available at more than 60,000 retail stores in 45 countries around the world, including almost 15,000 retail stores in the United States. In February 2013, SodaStream was ranked 23rd globally in Fast Company’s 50 Most Innovative Companies. The company has also been recognized as one of the UK’s most influential and highly regarded brands in the 2012/2013 CoolBrands® list. SodaStream is a NASDAQ listed company: NASDAQ: SODA

ABOUT THE AMERICAN PAVILION

Celebrating its 25th year bringing professionals and emerging filmmakers together, The American Pavilion is the center of activity for the American film community at the Cannes International Film Festival.

Since its debut at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival, The Pavilion has served as a hospitality and communications hub for the thousands of Americans attending the Cannes Film Festival and Marché, providing an impressive array of facilities and services, including membership for the international film community, provocative and insightful programming, the Emerging Filmmaker Showcase, immersive student programs, and more.

For its corporate sponsors, scores of American participants, and hundreds of exhibitors and office holders, The American Pavilion accommodates the need for information, orientation and recreation, providing both a dynamic business environment and an opportunity to relax in comfortable surroundings for the duration of the Festival.

With a panoramic view of the Bay of Cannes and just a few steps from the Palais des Festivals, where all the major Festival films are premiered, The American Pavilion is now a permanent fixture on the Cannes landscape, proving to be the perfect place to transact business, share ideas and effectively reach the thousands of affluent international travelers who attend the Festival every year.

For more information, visit www.ampav.com.

ISA of the Day: Altitude

Sydney Levine — Fri, 10 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Altitude Film Entertainment is a U.K.-based vertically integrated film company launched last year by Will Clarke, founder of leading U.K. independent producer and distributor Optimum Releasing (now Studio Canal), with Andy Mayson as joint CEO and former Pathe sales chief Mike Runagall as Managing Director of the international sales company.

Now Managing Director of Altitude Film Sales he says, “We are thrilled to be adding five distinctive, commercial projects to our debut Cannes slate that show a breadth of genre and filmmaking and with the right elements and quality to achieve international reach, and working to build further on the strong buyer response we received at AFM and Berlin for projects we have already brought to market.”

His partner, industry vet Will Clarke, Chairman and CEO of Altitude Film Entertainment says, “Altitude’s first year has phenomenally exciting as we are working with filmmakers who have highly original and ambitious projects. Our second film, Jabbar Raisani’s Outpost 37, is about to start filming and we are looking forward to showing distributors first-ever footage on five of our projects.”

Altitude has been focusing on production, financing and international sales with a strong commercial outlook.

The company’s first creative partnerships are with filmmakers James Watkins (The Woman in Black, Eden Lake) and Simon Duric for The Loch; producer/actor Jason Maza (The Knot, Fish Tank, Welcome to the Punch) and director/actor Nick Nevern (Terry, The Sweeney) on The Hooligan Factory; director Jabbar Raisani for Outpost 37; producer Gregor Cameron (Goin’ Down to South Park, Katy Brand’s Big Ass Show)and Owen Harris (Holy Flying Circus) for Kill Your Friends; and Ben Craig (Modern Times) writer Matt Charman (A Night at the Dogs) to make Mythica.

Altitude is bringing five new films to Cannes:

SON OF A GUN – an epic crime thriller directed by Julius Avery, best known for the Cannes award-winning shortJerrycan, and starring Ewan McGregor (The Impossible, August: Osage County), Alicia Vikander (A Royal Affair, The Fifth Estate, The Seventh Son) and Brenton Thwaites (Maleficent, Oculus,). The high-profile film is a visceral, tautly paced heist thriller, centred on a complex relationship between Australia’s public enemy number one and his young protégé. Started shooting on 25 February in Western Australia. Currently in post-production.

CATCH ME DADDY - a taut and uncompromising thriller inspired by the classic character-driven thrillers of the 1970’s and early 80’s (Badlands, The Getaway, Deliverance, Blood Simple, The Friends Of Eddie Coyle). Award-winning commercials and music video director Daniel Wolfe makes his feature debut with a storyabout a couple on the run from the type of violence and crime that the law cannot reach, and overturns the conventions of the thriller genre, with a female lead stepping up as the heroine of the piece. Started shooting on 18March in the UK. Currently in post-production.

OUTPOST 37 - a high concept, sci-fi, action film marking the directorial debut of LA-based director and Visual FX maestro Jabbar Raisani (Game of Thrones, Iron Man, Predators). Jason Newmark (Triangle, Severance) and Laurie Cook produce for Bigscope alongside Trevor Engelson for Underground Entertainment (Remember Me). Will Clarke, Andy Mayson and Mike Runagall executive produce for Altitude. Filming starts on 14 May. Co-written by Raisani with Blake Clifton, the film centres on a documentary crew as they follow an elite unit of marines, tasked with protecting mankind in the aftermath of a devastating alien invasion. As they reach the world’s most dangerous outpost they make a terrifying discovery; the first invasion was just the beginning.

THE GOOD PEOPLE - the highly anticipated original dark and malevolent fairytale chiller to be directed by Corin Hardy, a Screen International Star of Tomorrow and director of brilliant short films and music videos (The Prodigy, Keane, Paolo Nutini). Scientist, Adam, moves with his family to an ancient Millhouse in the Irish countryside. But what seems a rural idyll soon becomes a terrifying fight for survival when the couple comes under attack from horrifying and demonic creatures that lurk in the woods, hell bent on destroying them all. Co-written by Hardy with Olga Barreneche, Joe Neurauter and Felipe Marino of Occupant Entertainment (The Wackness and All The Boys Love Mandy Lane) produce. Altitude is handling international sales and financial packaging on this project.

KILL YOUR FRIENDS - a satirical and hysterically funny evisceration of the music industry set against the iconic backdrop of Cool Britannia and the Britpop era of late 1990’s London, based on John Niven’s cult novel which he is adapting for the screenplay. BAFTA award-winner Owen Harris (Misfits, Holy Flying Circus) is to direct withRafe Spall (Prometheus,Life of Pi, I Give It A Year) cast in the lead role. Gregor Cameron is producing alongside Altitude. The film is set to start shooting this summer.

CineCoup's Cannes Agenda with Brad Pelman

Sydney Levine — Fri, 10 May 2013 17:30:01 GMT

CINECOUP ACCELERATES CANADIAN INDIE FILMMAKERS TO CANNES

For the independent filmmaker, it’s hard enough to secure production financing, let alone make the right connections with international buyers that can unlock audiences around the world. Enter The CineCoup Film Accelerator, a disruptive new platform, piloted in Canada this year, that offers filmmakers the chance at $1M in production financing and a guaranteed release in Cineplex theatres.

THE CINECOUP MODEL

Founded by media entrepreneur, J. Joly, CineCoup is designed to help independent filmmakers develop, market, and finance feature films.

CineCoup works through a gamified selection funnel: teams of three enter the program with a two-minute trailer, and each week they complete missions aimed at packaging their projects and building a fanbase through social media.

Fans play an important role by providing valuable audience feedback and supporting their favourite projects during the Top 60, Top 40 and Top 15 voting rounds.

CINECOUP AT CANNES

Brad Pelman, CineCoup's newly appointed President, Distribution and Sales is headed to Cannes later this month to secure international pre-sale agreements for the Top 10 projects and license the CineCoup model in other markets.

Pelman, who recently departed Alliance Films as Executive VP, Distribution, will be leveraging his international contacts while abroad, including sales agents at Cinetic Media, WME, CAA, UTA, ICM and Submarine. He will be seeking deals in the $1M range and is hopeful some buyers will pick up multiple projects.

Pelman is already in talks with several interested U.S. parties and is hopeful that CineCoup USA will launch at Sundance or SXSW 2014. He will also be meeting with agents from the U.K. and Australia to discuss CineCoup as a format following the USA launch. CineCoup will retain its Canadian rights.

Telefilm is lending its support by offering CineCoup a place in the Canadian Pavilion at Cannes, a great opportunity to find out more for anyone interested in learning more about this innovative model.

CineCoup will announce the Top 10 projects chosen to launch publicly on May 13. All ten projects will be optioned for development. The Top 5 will pitch their projects at the Banff World Media Festival on June 10, where the top project will be announced.

For more information, and to check out the film projects, visit: www.cinecoup.com

Indiewire Exclusive ISA of the Day: 108 Media Acquires Slamdance Winner Jug Face

Sydney Levine — Thu, 09 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

108 Media is not only an international sales agent but works with U.S. Distribution Guru Mark Urman. They recently opened Michel Gondry's The We And The I, the Sundance-prize-winning drama My Brother the Devil, and Deepa Mehta's Midnight’s Children in the U.S.

Now 108 Media has picked up international sales for Jug Face which won the Slamdance Grand Prize for Best Screenplay by Chad Crawford Kinkle in January 2013. When producer Andrew van den Houten stated his confidence that "no stone outside the U.S. market will be left unturned", I wondered (and still am wondering) whether the same is not going to be true within the U.S. Market.

The film was produced by Andrew van den Houten and Robert Tonino for Modernciné, with Lucky McKee, Arrien Schiltkamp, and Loren Semmens serving as Executive Producers. The deal was negotiated by Rastogi and van den Houten. Gravitas Ventures has domestic VOD distribution and the film will be distributed in theaters by Modernciné.

“Working with a company that only takes select films to the international market each year allows for each film to have a unique campaign in finding the right home,” said van den Houten. “Modernciné has always enjoyed being represented by the passion and enthusiasm that people like Mr. Rastogi and his team exude. We look forward to this new collaboration and are confident no stone outside the U.S. market will be left unturned.”

Expanding the slate of films in its international sales operation, 108 Media has acquired the terrifying feature Jug Face, it was announced by 108 CEO Abhi Rastogi. Based on the Slamdance Grand Prize Winning screenplay by Chad Crawford Kinkle, international sales will commence at the Cannes Market this month.

Written and directed by Kinkle, Jug Face thrilled audiences and critics at its Slamdance premiere in January with its dark story of a demonic power worshipped by an isolated rural community. The monster offers health and protection in exchange for human sacrifices, identified when their faces materialize on ceramic jugs fabricated by an entranced potter. Bloody chaos ensues when the newest victim is hidden from the monster. The ensemble cast features Sean Young (Blade Runner), Larry Fessenden (The Last Winter), Lauren Ashley Carter (The Woman, Premium Rush), Daniel Manche (The Girl Next Door), and Sean Bridgers (The Woman, Sweet Home Alabama).

“Chad Kinkle has created a masterfully creepy film with Jug Face,” said Rastogi. “I’m looking forward to introducing his talent and this film to the world and we’ve already started to receive strong interest from multiple buyers in territories spanning the globe.”

Visit Sydneysbuzz.com for an Introduction to Our Rights Roundup

Sydney Levine — Thu, 09 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

Hello fans!

Thank you for reading my blog. We are very proud to have launched our website www.SydneysBuzz.com which is now offering in-depth reports on who is buying what and who are the latest and most active U.S. distributors.

We have posted them in the Reports Section of the website and hope you will like what you see. The special introductory Report, the Pre-Canness Report will show you all the festival films including Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week and ACID with titles linked to Cinando, companies to their own website and the earliest Cannes Rights Roundup showing which rights of those titles have been sold already.

Approximately 2 ½ weeks after Cannes you can buy the Cannes Rights Roundup showing all reported sales by whom and to whom with links for greater research by you.

We are grateful for your support and hope you will check this new development out and give us your feedback.

Have a good Cannes Market!!

Sydney and Peter

France
May 13 - June 17, 2013
Cel Tel: +49 152 0380 5535
Skype: SydneysBuzz
Business: Sydney[a]SydneysBuzz
SydneysBuzz | Member of the indieWIRE Blog Network: http://indiewire.com/sydneylevine/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sydney.j.levine
http://www.facebook.com/SydneysBuzz

LatinoBuzz: ISA of the Day: Latido Films

Sydney Levine — Wed, 08 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

Latido Films

LatinoBuzz: EAST LOS HIGH a TV Series! Exclusive Interviews!

Juan Caceres — Tue, 07 May 2013 19:30:00 GMT

Last week, 'East Los High' (ELH), a project we've been tracking since last year announced that they had signed a deal to exclusively premiere the show on Hulu.com, making it the first English language show with an all Latino cast on the site. In a reality where the market has become saturated with projects that lack originality and heart, writer/director Carlos Portugal set out to create a show that realistically reflected the lives of teenagers from East L.A. that was to be told from an American Latino perspective. Portugal and his team of writers engaged organizations such as Advocates for Youth, Voto Latino and the California Family Health Council in developing this 26 episode series. Now that it's ready to premiere on June 3^rd, with new episodes dropping weeknights, LatinoBuzz caught up with Carlos and actors Alicia Sixtos, Janine Larina and Jorge Diaz and invited them to share their experiences in the making of ELH.

LatinoBuzz: How did you develop these characters and story lines?

Carlos Portugal: The number one rule that I give starting writers is: "Write about what you know." I certainly took this to heart when creating ELH. Personally, I love writing women characters. Especially Latinas. Every major character (Maya, Jessie, Vanessa, Ceci, Soli, Reina, Paulina, Lupe) is either loosely based or a composite of girlfriends and/or relatives. As far as the male characters, I based Hernan (the "veterano" who owns the local taqueria) on my father: A respectful, kind-hearted man that nobody messes with.

LatinoBuzz: Tell me about your decision to use the backdrop of East LA as one of the characters.

Carlos Portugal: You have no idea (or maybe you do) of how so many people, including highly educated Angelenos, are scared of traveling to East LA. I even had a few crew members drop out when they found out that the show was shooting in East LA. There is this preconceived notion that East LA is a dangerous area populated by taggers and gang members. Of course, this is as far from the truth as you can get! It's one of the warmest places full of good restaurants and hard-working families. I try to shatter the stereotypes of ELA that people are used to seeing in movies and TV. (I made a decision early on that there would be no gang members in the show). My hope is that people from East LA get to see themselves in the show portrayed as diverse human beings and not the typical Latino stereotypes we see in TV and films.

LatinoBuzz: How important was having an all Latino cast and also primarily a Latino crew?

Carlos Portugal: I don't think I would have been able to shoot this show in such a record time (67 production days) if it hadn't been for the hard work and dedication of the Latino cast and crew. We shattered the "Latinos are always late" myth once and for all. During the 67 days of shooting not one of the eighty plus actors was ever late to work! I'm truly humbled by their love, passion and dedication to this project. As far as inspiring young Latino filmmakers, seeing a show like this will hopefully excite them so that they would want to create/write/produce/direct and edit their own take on their communities

LatinoBuzz: How did you get all these organizations involved in the development of the series?

Carlos Portugal: We had a product that spoke to all of them. They saw that our hearts were in the right place. Every single person who helped us out was amazing.

Trailer: http://www.hulu.com/watch/483909

LatinoBuzz: The show centers around your character Jessie and Maya, your cousin -What is the dynamic between your characters?

Janine Larina: The dynamic between Maya and Jessie is definitely a roller coaster. A love triangle between two cousins doesn't make for anything less. It changes throughout the season as things happen and certain events come to light. They are both strong Latina young women finding themselves and going through high school. Yes, I used Latina, women and high school in one sentence. So you know there will definitely be some drama.

LatinoBuzz: What do you want people to take away from your character?

Janine Larina: This one is tough because I feel like there is so much that can be learned from Jessie and her journey. I hope that people can relate to her in some way or another and take from her a sense of encouragement to always do what is right regardless of the consequences that may come with it. To be true to who you are and stand up for your beliefs whether they are what is popular or not. Be yourself and the right people will always be there.

LatinoBuzz: It's pretty ground breaking, what do you hope the series achieves?

Janine Larina: I believe this series can achieve a lot in terms of bringing situations to light that aren't so often talked about in certain communities. Sex, drugs and relationships to name a few. Yet, in such an entertaining way. I can only hope that viewers learn from the experiences that the students of East Los High go through and are better equipped with the information they need to perhaps not follow some of the mistakes when put in similar situations.

LatinoBuzz: Tell us a little bit about your character, Jorge.

Jorge Diaz: I play "Paulie", the best friend, the goof ball, the horn-ball....he's a lot more 'talk' than he is 'walk' though. There is, however, a sincerity behind all of his jokes, inappropriate comments, and constant tail-chasing because he truly does care about his best friend Jacob, and his lady friend Soli. There's a good heart behind there somewhere. He was ALOT of fun to play to say the least, and I hope that shows on screen.

LatinoBuzz: Do you feel the characters in ELH are a refreshing break from some of the stereotypes that are often perpetrated in film and television when these characters are in fact fully realized teenagers dealing with teenage problems?

Jorge Diaz: Besides adding to the authenticity of an actual East Los Angeles high school, having East Los High consist of an entire Latino cast gives a group of Latinos a chance to tell their stories! It's a chance to show that stories of young people from East LA are just as important, interesting and relatable as those from teens in Beverly Hills, Orange County, or any other American story for that matter; because that's exactly what they are: American stories. I was actually surprised to find out that a show like this had never done before, considering Latinos make up about 35 percent of the population. We've somehow subconsciously been taught through television that young, rich Caucasian kids represent what it means to be a teenager in the United States. Being an adolescent is a HUMAN experience and anyone can relate to it, you just might see a few more brown faces in this particular one :)

LatinoBuzz:As an actor how was being part of an ensemble?

Jorge Diaz: Being a part of an ensemble with such a loving group of actors is something I'll never forget. I personally connected to this project because I have always wanted to be a teacher at heart and this project allowed us the unique opportunity to combine our love for the craft of acting and be able to bring up certain issues in a fun, non-preachy way. No kid ever wants to be preached to, or ANY person for that matter, but if we are somehow able to see ourselves in another person and be able to fully relate to him/her in a certain circumstance, that right there is what allows a space to grow and be entertained all at the same time. I dig that.

LatinoBuzz: What attracted you to the character of Maya?

Alicia Sixtos: Maya's a really strong girl. A thinker. Listens more than she speaks and cries more than she'd like. People say I'm a bit like her. I think we attracted each other.

LatinoBuzz: How important do you think a project like this is to a community like East Los Angeles?

Alicia Sixtos: I think that if it gets out to cities like East LA, the SF Bay Area (where I'm from), Texas, New Mexico, New York, Central and South America, it could be really different and useful. The underlying story is how to deal with a lot of the issues that teens and young adults find themselves face to face with but the issue is that a lot of adults don't talk about these major issues with teen because its uncomfortable and made taboo.

LatinoBuzz: When you read the whole series did you get a sense that this could be something different?

Alicia Sixtos: Not initially. When I read the series all I could think was; “did I really just read 540 script pages in one sitting?” I have a lot of trouble reading a lot of these 95 page scripts. Point is the story is really compelling. Thinking on it after the fact, I see the potential it has in being very influential for a lot of people. I can't think of a show like this one with its picture and story quality and featuring so many Latino actors. Latinos in America in particular have telenovelas and Disney shows. That's what kids and parents watch now a days, apart or together. ELH could possibly be the bridge in the gap for a lot of families and young people who don't have a path to follow. I'm hoping that it will be. The only way to really make that happen is by word of mouth. So anyone who's reading this make sure you check out East Los High on Hulu.com on June 3^rd and check us on Facebook and Twitter: @eastloshighshow. Thank you for the support Juan, Latinobuzz & IndieWire.

LatinoBuzz: Aurora Guerrero on Making ‘Mosquita y Mari’ & Challenging Hollywood’s Lack of Diverse Stories

Vanessa Erazo — Tue, 07 May 2013 17:30:00 GMT

Determined to challenge Hollywood’s lack of diverse stories Aurora Guerrero set out to make a film that reflected her own identity as a queer woman of color. The result is Mosquita y Mari a sensitive, bold, and thoughtful portrait of two teenage Chicanas whose budding friendship begins to slowly become something beyond just friends. For Guerrero, it’s a personal story rooted in her own experience, “When looking back, long before I identified as queer, I realized my first love was one of my best friends. It was the type of friendship that was really tender and sweet and sexually charged but we never crossed that line.”

In the film, set in Huntington Park, a predominantly Latino city just outside Los Angeles, Mari is a rebellious bad girl who is failing math. Straight-A student Yolanda—who Mari nicknames Mosquita because she looks like, “a pinche mosquita”—offers to tutor her. They hang out, ride bikes, swap music, and do homework. As they spend more and more time together their friendship subtly transforms, evoking that butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling that only a first crush can. It’s a beautifully told almost love story set to the music of local ska bands, the melancholy vocals of Carla Morrison, and other genre-remixing Latino artists.

Mosquita y Mari premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and played in theaters last summer. LatinoBuzz spoke with Guerrero just ahead of the film’s digital release to talk about the challenges of making and distributing independent Latino films.

Though Latinos are making strides in other industries there is still a lack of Latino film directors. How did the idea of becoming a filmmaker come about? What do you think are the major obstacles keeping young Latinos from becoming filmmakers?

Guerrero: It's hard to grow up and not see yourself portrayed in realistic ways on film. From a young age I was really bothered by that. When I did see a film about Latinos I didn't recognize my experience at all. I actually wondered if those type of Latinos really existed because I didn't know anyone like that. For me becoming a filmmaker was about taking back my voice—crafting stories that would move away from the problematic narratives that the studio system would put out about Latinos. I think this is why people like my films. They're refreshing. They feel more real.

As for major obstacles keeping young Latinos from becoming filmmakers, I think our communities are still coming into their identities as storytellers. It's such an important identity to reclaim—it's how our ancestors kept our cultures alive. But a long history of silencing, invisibility, and marginalization has kept generations of Latinos from believing in themselves, from seeing themselves as agents of their own lives. I think there needs to be a focus on this aspect to help cultivate young Latinas to see themselves as cultural producers and defenders.

Raising money for a Latino film (or any film) is a challenge especially in this economy. What was your budget? If you could have raised additional money and had a bigger budget do you think your film would be much different than it is now?

Guerrero: We didn't have a big budget. We were at about 200k. Our funding was pieced together as we went along in the process. A very successful crowdfunding campaign (Kickstarter) got us into production and a series of grants we applied for during production got us through post-production. I think Mosquita y Mari could have benefited from a couple more days of shooting but it wouldn't have changed our budget or our final film significantly. Ultimately I feel like the budget we had pushed me and my collaborators to be as creative as possible. It also allowed me to keep the crew at a small size which felt manageable for me as a first-time feature filmmaker.

You’ve stated in a lot of interviews that the film was inspired by your own personal experience. What was the writing process like? Was it an emotional one since the story was so close to you?

Guerrero: It was definitely emotional. I was writing about feelings and experiences I had never talked about, particularly with my BFF at the time. But it wasn’t a bad emotional process. It felt very liberating. I think that’s what drove my process forward. What got complicated were all the other layers that I wanted to talk about. I had to figure out how to weave in other elements without taking away from the girls and their growing love for each other.

Are you still in touch with the woman whose friendship inspired this story? Did you ever worry what she might think about it?

Guerrero: Let’s just say that I didn’t make it for her. I made it for me.

The story is based upon the friendship of these two girls. The success of the film obviously hinged on casting the two leads. What was the selection process like?

Guerrero: Casting was intense, mainly because we had one month to find all our cast. But I was determined and hopeful that my girls were out there. I just had to somehow get the word out to them so they could find me and this movie. Between my casting director putting word out to managers and agents and organizing word-of-mouth community open casting calls we found our cast. I saw about 300 or more young Latina women for the leads and las cuatas. It was a really validating experience. I mean to be so specific in my breakdown, “Must speak both English and Spanish fluently. Must be open to story of two girls and their developing feelings for each other.” It was amazing to get so many young women identifying with the breakdown and wanting to be part of this film. I think the hardest part was saying “no” to most of them. I had to be very picky. I had to find girls that not only identified with the story personally but that also had the chops to carry it on their shoulders. I was nervous going into the first day of shooting. I wondered if I had made the right choices, especially with only two days of rehearsal prior to shooting. But after our first day I remember thinking to myself, “these girls are really something special.”

You grew up in the Bay (so did I) but most of your films take place in L.A. What’s the deal? As a San Francisco Bay Area native shouldn’t you hate L.A.? Why did you choose to set this specific story in Huntington Park as opposed to obvious choices like S.F. or East L.A.?

Guerrero: You’re funny. I don’t want to take away the fact that Los Angeles has been my muse ever since I moved there to attend film school, but I did originally set Mosquita y Mari in San Francisco’s Mission District. After putting together an initial S.F. budget I quickly learned that I didn’t have the means to shoot there. And I wasn’t so married to having it be the Mission. I just really wanted it in an immigrant setting.

East L.A. has been played out so much on films. It’s gotten to the point where people across the nation, and even the world, think East L.A. to be the only Latino community in California. Nothing against East L.A., but I wanted to capture a community just west of East L.A. that had its own unique history and vibe. I want to bring Huntington Park out of the shadows.

Music is a big part of the story. In a lot of the scenes the characters play songs for each other and hang out listening to music. How did you choose the music?

Guerrero: I connect to specific music early on in my process of writing. I’m constantly on SoundCloud or Remezcla looking to see what new music is being produced by Latino artists. I’m not interested in producing soundtracks or scores that have been recycled in U.S. Latino films throughout the years. I’m looking for music that’s cutting-edge and contemporary. That’s how I see the worlds and characters that I put on screen so the music has got to somehow add to the texture of that world. Outside of the tracks I chose for the film I worked with a wonderful composer named Ryan Beveridge. When we started working together I remember emphasizing to him, “Please, no strumming guitars.” I didn’t want people to recognize the score. I wanted it to be specific to Mosquita y Mari. He was wonderful. I sent him bits of music I was hearing and I was sending him pictures of the neighborhood and he just ran with it. He created something really unique.

There is this beautiful moment in the film where Mosquita is riding on the back of Mari’s bike and “Esta Soledad” by Carla Morrison is playing. There are close-ups of her face, of her hand gliding through the air; she looks so happy and free. The song is so sad and kinda dreamy. What made you choose it?

Guerrero: I believe love is bittersweet, especially young love. Carla Morrison, the score and the opening song are all meant to subtly bring that tone to the film. When I think of Carla Morrison’s voice it feels haunting. Her music always stirs melancholic feelings of loss in me that end up lingering for days. For that specific scene I thought she was the perfect choice to juxtapose Mosquita’s youthful excitement of feeling alive and in the world.

The word gay is never spoken in the film. The characters and setting are Latino but no one directly comments on being Latino, they just are. Why did you choose to tell the story this way?

Guerrero: I think staying away from labels is what makes this film refreshing. Audiences are placed in Mosquita y Mari’s world—their world is Latino, Xicana, it is immigrant. They don’t have to stop to remind themselves of it. They have grown up bicultural. It’s their norm to go in and out of Spanish and English without having to point it out. It’s how I was raised and I thought it was important to depict young people comfortable in their own skin and world. Mosquita y Mari’s story is meant to capture the moments that maybe down the line, maybe in college, they will come to discover were their first moments of queerness.

Mosquita y Mari had its theatrical release last year. What lessons did you learn? What advice would you give to other Latino filmmakers about the distribution of Latino films?

Guerrero: My producer and I released the film ourselves. We didn't have a big budget at all to do this so our theatrical release was very very limited. I think I learned that to open in a city like Los Angeles and New York theater houses expect you to have a big marketing budget or they will pass on your film. We didn't budget accordingly because we were focusing our efforts on reaching our audiences via social media which wasn't going to cost us much. But I feel like social media is something that has yet to be considered a viable platform for marketing in the industry. I think my biggest advice to filmmakers is to look into the many digital platforms that exist for you and your team to distribute your film. A theatrical on a tight budget really only becomes about generating critical reviews for you and your film, not revenue.

Historically, Latino films have had a hard time at the box office. Why do you think Latino films haven’t vibed with Latino filmgoers in the past?

Guerrero: It's interesting. I believe in Mexico there's a big culture of moviegoing, both studio and indie. I think here in the US that's not the case because Latino communities don't have access to indie films. If you go into communities of color you will only find the big theater chains which only play the blockbuster genre films. So how else does our community find out about independent film? Is it talked about in their schools? Is it written about in their local Spanish speaking papers? Are the art house theaters hard to get to? I think social media is starting to close this gap when it comes to learning about films like Mosquita y Mari and Netflix is making them more attainable, but even then I think there is a "deprogramming" that needs to happen so Latino audiences not used to watching indie films can appreciate more nontraditional narrative films

What’s next for you? Any new projects?

Guerrero: Right now I'm developing my second feature film, Los Valientes. It's about a gay, undocumented immigrant who finds himself caught in a web of deceit when the small, working-class town he and his family live in purposes its own anti-immigration law. Since I'm not personally undocumented I approached two groups, DreamActivists PA in Pennsylvania and Dreamers Adrift/Culture Strike in the Bay Area, about becoming Los Valientes community partners. They've all agreed, thankfully! Together we're creating a path to ensure a mutual exchange of knowledge happens between the film and the undocumented communities the film will be set in, which in this case are San Francisco and certain parts of Pennsylvania. We'll be launching a website for the new project soon and we're hoping the fan base we've built around Mosquita y Mari will be excited to follow this new project. In the meantime, we ask people to LIKE our Mosquita y Mari Facebook page where we've been posting all our recent good news, like the screenwriting and development grants that KRF/SFFS and Tribeca recently awarded Los Valientes.

Mosquita y Mari will be available May 7 on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, and Vudu and June 8 on DVD.

For more info on the movie follow @MosquitayMari on Twitter and Facebook.

Written by Juan Caceres and Vanessa Erazo, LatinoBuzz is a weekly feature on SydneysBuzz that highlights Latino indie talent and upcoming trends in Latino film with the specific objective of presenting a broad range of Latino voices. Follow @LatinoBuzz on Twitter and Facebook.

Sydney Levine

Eventival and Black Market Online Joint Venture for Fest Submissions

ISA of the Day Ondamax Films

Flm Productions Between India and Europe Just Got Easier

Paladin / 108 Media Acquire Sundance Winner "Metro Manila"

ISA of the Day- Mundial

Thai Pitch Events Returns To Cannes

ISA of the Day: Mexican Epic, 'Cinco de Mayo' being sold by Raven Banner of Canada

LatinoBuzz: The House That Joseph B. Vasquez Built

Ampav Announces Cannes 2013 Programming

ISA of The Day: Noori Pictures

Gilles Jacob Resigns As Cannes Head

The Germans Are Out In Force

ISA of the Day: All the Korean Sales Agents in Cannes

Mouton Cadet Wine Bar

ISA of the Day: IM Global

ISA of the Day: Blumhouse International

Polish Producers In Cannes Producers Network

Since 2012 is a member of the European and the German Film Academies.

SodaStream Joins Ampav as Premiere Sponsor

ISA of the Day: Altitude

CineCoup's Cannes Agenda with Brad Pelman

*Indiewire Exclusive* ISA of the Day: 108 Media Acquires Slamdance Winner Jug Face

Visit Sydneysbuzz.com for an Introduction to Our Rights Roundup

LatinoBuzz: ISA of the Day: Latido Films

LatinoBuzz: EAST LOS HIGH a TV Series! Exclusive Interviews!

LatinoBuzz: Aurora Guerrero on Making ‘Mosquita y Mari’ & Challenging Hollywood’s Lack of Diverse Stories

Indiewire Exclusive ISA of the Day: 108 Media Acquires Slamdance Winner Jug Face