Wednesday, October 18----The first of several professional s was held today at the Turks and Caicos International Film Festival, exploring the connection between cinema and music. An intimate group of filmmakers, musicians, industry executives, film critics and cultural officials convened at the Palms Resort for a lively discussion of the challenges and opportunities of mixing the two art forms. The discussion was led by film journalist David Poland, along with film director Sanaa Hamri a...

Tuesday, October 17----The Turks and Caicos International Film Festival, a unique mix of films and music events, hit the beach on Tuesday evening in a series of kick off events that lived up to their hype. The event, which runs through this weekend, will feature the international premieres of over 30 films, as well as offer provocative seminars, special events, live music concerts and, of course, glamorous parties all set in the natural beauty of this Caribbean island archipelago. The Festiva...

Monday, October 16----Filmmakers, musicians, industry professionals and film buffs began arriving today for the official launch of the TURKS AND CAICOS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, which opens tomorrow. The Festival, which will explore the interrelationship between film and music, will present over 30 narrative and documentary films, along with an impressive mix of professional seminars, special events and live music concerts, all set on this beautiful island archipelago in the Eastern Caribbea...

1943. Ils n'avaient encore jamais foulé le sol français, mais parce que c'est la guerre, Saïd, Abdelkader, Messaoud et Yassir vont s'engager comme 130 000 autres "Indigènes" dans l'armée française pour libérer "la mère patrie" de l'ennemi nazi. Ces héros que l'histoire a oubliés vaincront en Italie, en Provence, et dans les Vosges, avant de se retrouver seuls à défendre un village alsacien contre un bataillon allemand. Le film a été dévoilé au dernier festival de Cannes ou il a r...

Best Documentary Winner BEYOND ERUV Sunday, October 15---The "fiercely independent" Woodstock Film Festival announced the winners of its Maverick Awards at a special ceremony on Saturday evening at the Colony Cafe. Eleven awards were given out to films in competition, as well as special tribute awards to distinguished honorees. The Maverick Award for Best Feature Film was awarded to director Julia Loktev, for her provocative DAY NIGHT DAY NIGHT. The film tells the story of a 19-year old girl, ...

Festival Closing Night Gala Saturday, October 14---The 44th edition of the New York Film Festival is drawing to a close, but not without one more weekend of film excitement and diversity. Saturday sees repeat screenings of two of the Festival's most anticipated and debated films, Sofia Coppola's post-modern take on the French Revolution, MARIE ANTOINETTE, and Emmanuel Bordieu's homo-erotic POISON FRIENDS. Another film having its final screening on Saturday is the Turkish drama CLIMATES by d...

Saturday, October 14----Aside from all the films, the parties, the music concerts and other special events, the Woodstock Film Festival offers local filmmakers and visiting film talents an intensive education on all aspects of the filmmaking and distribution process through an exhaustive series of professional seminars. Drawing mainly on film executives, film critics and film mavens from Manhattan (only 100 miles to the south), the Festival offers a rare opportunity to get the lowdown on the s...

Né au Bénin en 1967, Idrissou Mora-Kpaï a quitté son pays à l’âge de 19 ans et après un séjour en Algérie et en Italie, il s’installe en Allemagne où il fait des études de cinéma dans la section réalisation. Après quoi, il s’installe à Paris où il réalise son premier doc « Si-Gueriki, la Reine mère » qu’il a tourné au nord du Bénin et pour lequel il a reçu plusieurs prix dont celui du meilleur documentaire francophone à Namur en Belgique. Son film « Arlit, deuxi�...

Le festival a choisi pour son Jury Cinéma un Président libanais: Elias Khoury (Liban) (Né en 1948 à Beyrouth. Chroniqueur, essayiste, critique littéraire et romancier, Elias Khoury est actuellement Rédacteur en Chef du supplément culturel du quotidien libanais al-Nahar après l’avoir été pour al-Safir. Il tient une rubrique hebdomadaire dans le quotidien arabe paraissant à Londres al-Quds al-Araby. Il est parmi les meilleurs écrivains arabes de sa génération. De ses roman (tradu...

Férid Boughedir, né en 1944, est l'un des plus grands réalisateurs tunisiens. Homme aux multiples talents: il est également critique et historien du cinéma. Son premier long métrage de fiction, Halfaouine, l'enfant des terrasses, reste le film tunisien le plus connu dans le monde. Journaliste à la revue Jeune Afrique depuis 1971, Férid Boughedir est professeur de cinéma à l'Université de Tunis. Il se fait d'abord connaître comme critique cinématographique par ses publications sur ...

Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes Thursday, October 12---Music is the message for the 2nd annual Turks and Caicos International Film Festival, which launches next Tuesday with an ambitious program of film premieres, information seminars and live concert events...all set on the beautiful Caribbean archipelago of the Turks and Caicos Islands. One of the films having its International Premiere at the event is generating big buzz. A profile of the short and tumultuous life of Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes of the all-...

Thursday, October 12----New Yorkers have long had a love affair with French cinema. Each year for the past 44, the New York Film Festival has peppered its program with intriguing films from French talents, old and new. This year, the love affair continues with four films in the main section, as well as seven film classics in the 50 YEARS OF JANUS FILMS retrospective sidebar. As the Festival enters its final weekend, lovers of French cinema still have an opportunity to sample some tasty hors d...

Tuesday, October 10---The 2nd annual Turks and Caicos International Film Festival opens next week with the premiere on October 17 of a documentary film portrait of a unique gospel talent. THE DONNIE MCCURKLIN STORY: FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT is an inspirational concert docudrama about the extraordinary yet controversial life and times of world famous gospel singer Donnie McCurklin. The gospel legend will be attending the Festival to perform in concert. On film, McCurklin is ed by Beyoncé, T...

Monday, October 9---With just one week to go until the start of the 2nd Turks & Caicos International Film Festival, Sandy Mandelberger, the Festivals Editor for FEST21.COM, sat down with Festival Co-Director Jasmine Guy to discuss this year’s event. Jasmine Guy is an actress, director and producer who began as a child star in Hollywood. She has received several Image Award nominations for her television performances in such series as DEAD LIKE ME (2003), AMERICA'S DREAM (1996) and MELRO...

Saturday, October 7----The Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, which this year celebrates its 21st edition as one of the most important venues in the US for independent and international cinema, has announced that its Centerpiece Film will be PITTSBURGH, a non-fiction comedy starring Jeff Goldblum, Illeana Douglas and Ed Begley Jr. The film will screen on Friday, November 3 at the historic Parker Playhouse in downtown Fort Lauderdale. The special event is followed by the Festival's "...

Scene from Almodovar's VOLVER As the New York Film Festival moves into its second weekend, a diverse and tantalizing plate of cinematic offerings is on tap, catered to every kind of viewer. The Festival has created a mix of hotly anticipated films, some unknown gems and new works from some cinematic masters, all of which have their initial premieres this weekend. Three filmmakers who have showcased their past work at the event are presenting their newest films this weekend. Veteran French dire...

Thursday, October 5---The newest film from Spanish director Pedro Almodovar, the hugely anticipated VOLVER, will open the 21st edition of the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival on October 20th at Fort Lauderdale's prestigious Parker Playhouse. VOLVER, which had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, was honored on the Croisette with a Best Screenplay award for its writer/director Pedro Almodóvar, and an unprecedented Best Actress award for the film's ensemble cast, includin...

Thursday, October 5----A documentary co-directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Barbara Kopple on the controversial country-and-western group The Dixie Chicks, will have its International Premiere at the Turks & Caicos International Film Festival, a unique event that fuses film and music. The Festival opens on October 17 on the beautiful Caribbean island archipelago of the Turks and Caicos Islands. DIXIE CHICKS: SHUT UP AND SING, co-directed by Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck, follows the D...

Tuesday, October 3--- A Caribbean archipelago renowned for its superb climate, great underwater snorkeling and majestically pristine beaches. A film festival devoted to the fusion of music and cinema. A meeting place for cinephiles and music afficianados. That is the tantalizing recipe of the Turks & Caicos International Film Festival, which will hold its second annual session from October 17 to 21. The excitement takes place in the beautiful resort city of Providenciales in the Turks ...

Sunday, October 1----It would be hard to find a more entertaining guest for afternoon tea than the director Stephen Frears. His self-deprecating humor, off-kilter sensibility and ingratiating personality were in rousing form on Saturday afternoon, with the director participating in the first of three HBO Films Directors Dialogues at the New York Film Festival. For almost 90 minutes, Frears regaled his audience in a mix of interview and question and answer, moderated by New York Film Festival ...

Saturday, September 30---The first full day of screenings and events at the New York Film Festival, following last evening's gala premiere of THE QUEEN, was a full program of diverse delights, with something for every cinematic taste. Following its enthusiastic reception last evening, and amidst glowing reviews upon its theatrical release today, THE QUEEN director Stephen Frears was in high spirits at the HBO Films Directors Dialogue , held this afternoon at the Kaplan Penthouse, high atop th...

With 169 feature-length films and 65 short films, collectively good for 19,468 minutes of cinema and 596 screenings spread over 14 days, Ghent will once again be transformed into the City of Film during the period of October 11 through October 21. The 33rd edition of the Flanders Film Festival - Ghent focuses on film legend Stanley Kubrick, pays homage to Belgian-French director Agnès Varda, and draws more than 150 talented guests from the world of film to the Flemish city. The Festival actual...

Wednesday, September 27---The official Film Poster of the 44th edition of the New York Film Festival, which opens on Friday, has been unveiled. The poster captures the iconic image of legendary film director Federico Fellini on the set, directing his masterpiece FELLINI SATYRICON in 1969. The photograph is one of the best known and most celebrated of world renowned photographer Mary Ellen Mark . For almost four decades, she has produced pictures that reflect a high level of humanism and worl...

By Nigel D’Sa The Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF), which takes place every October in the south-eastern port city of Busan, South Korea gears up for its 11th edition, its largest thus far. In fact, the festival has grown to such proportions that US entertainment media Variety will begin publishing dailies at PIFF this year, something it until now had only done for the world’s top three film festivals, Cannes, Berlin, and Toronto. In Seoul, South Korea at an unusually crowded ...