"The Slamdance 2004 Film Festival has invited 19 feature films to compete at our tenth annual festival," Peter Baxter, Slamdance President/Co-Founder, announced today. Eleven of the Competition Features screening this year are fictional narratives and eight are documentaries. In addition to the 19 feature length films, 13 of which are premieres, Slamdance will also screen 21 short films in competition. Special Screenings, films screening out of competition and festival events will be announced a...

"The Slamdance 2004 Film Festival has invited 19 feature films to compete at our tenth annual festival," Peter Baxter, Slamdance President/Co-Founder, announced today. Eleven of the Competition Features screening this year are fictional narratives and eight are documentaries. In addition to the 19 feature length films, 13 of which are premieres, Slamdance will also screen 21 short films in competition. Special Screenings, films screening out of competition and festival events will be announced a...

"Why Even Bother with a Film Festival?"First of all, a warning: most of the 300-plus "film festivals" in NorthAmerica are not really film festivals. They are screening events. Theyshow a few films and tapes in a less-than-excellent venue andgenerally do very little for your film. A lot of scams are out there too...One in NYC (we won't mention names here, but they are easy to checkon) attempts to charge the filmmaker anywhere between $300 and$3000 to "participate" in their so-called Independent F...

Slamdance will screen 19 feature films 7 documentaries and 21 shortsFEATURE FILMS SCREENING IN COMPETITION: DEAR PILLOW - (USA, 85 min., Narrative, 2003). WORLD PREMIERE A 17-year-old supermarket bag boy finds a mentor in a porno magazine writer and soon he is enmeshed in some very adult situations. Directed by Bryan Poyser. www.dearpillow.com GOLDFISH GAME - (Belgium, 105 min., Narrative, 2002) US PREMIERE In this modern day fable about an extended family that comes together at a castle in the ...

Sundance, Park city, Salt Lake City Opening Night Riding Giants will open Sundance festivities in Park City, January 15th A documentary by Stacy Peralta (the skateboarder-turned-filmmaker who won the director's prize at Sundance 2001 for the extreme-sports documentary "Dogtown and Z-Boys). Screenwriters - Stacy Peralta and Sam George. The first docu to open Sundance ever. "Watching a 90-foot wave coming across the screen at the Eccles is somethi...

Untitled Document The Future's Bright, The Future's Figgis Despite the imminent release of Cold Creek Manor,a thriller he made for Touchstone, Mike Figgis spent last week promoting artistic autonomy and experimentation. Returning to the very cinema in Newcastle where he was first infected with the film bug, Figgis performed - yes performed - an enthralling remix of his real-time, split-screen LA story Timecode. The performance was the final act of the city...

The Stockholm International Film Festival officially closed November 25th with a screening of "E! Audience Award winner," The Station Agent. Tipped as the favorite of the festival, the film lived up to its reputation from beginning to end. It is not hard to understand why the film won the hearts of the Stockholm audience. The area where the story takes place in Newfoundland NJ is a little like a small Swedish town, set far away from everything, where people speak slowly, and savor their words i...

Catherine Hardwicke's Thirteen, a noteworthy film in the Stockholm International Competition was a festival favorite, a film about Tracy, a young woman who goes haywire when Evie, the hottest woman in high school wants her to hang out with her. The story is true, and the script was written and acted by Nikki Reed who plays Evie, the woman who in real life led her astray into a world of sex , shoplifting and drugs. More crucial to the story is the role of substance abuse. Tracy ...

Grand Slam winner Schultze Gets the Blues rides away with Stockholm Bronze Horse and BEST FIRST FEATURE The phrase "Independent Movie" has been abused over the last five years. "Indies" now have bankable stars, studio financing and distribution deals. Where's the real independent projects with no names, low budget and people working for the love of filmmaking - not the money? "Bachelorman" is just such an in...

AFI American Film Institute 2003 Festival is playing to appreciative audience this week in Los Angeles, California. The Festival opened with the U.S. Premiere of Nigel Cole's CALENDAR GIRLS. Nigel walked the red carpet to celebrate the start of AFI FEST 2003 and the stars of the film were there as well to add to the glamour. Kevin Costner was a crowd favorite as he swaggered down the red carpet while wearing pale snakeskin cowboy boots and jeans. This past weekend at the Roosevelt Hotel, they ...