Va Film Blog » Director

Aliens! Will Land on October 30

vafilm — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:56:15 +0000

We have chosen a theme for the 21st Virginia Film Festival, taking place October 30 – November 2 and it is Aliens!, exploring “cinema’s fearful and alluring images of immigrants, outsiders, and extra-terrestrials” (you can read the full press release here). Sci-fi aliens will certainly be landing in our theaters, but the primary focus will be on the otherness of immigrants in countries, including ours, conflicted about their role as “host.”

A film like The Brother From Another Planet by last year’s VFF guest John Sayles makes the alien/immigrant connection clear and would be a perfect selection (although I’m also open to less explicit sci-fi allegories!).

I’m very interested in the kind of films our visiting Festival Fellow Hamid Naficy calls “accented” in that their filmmakers’ styles and subjects reflect a double consciousness of their native and host societies (among Naficy’s examples are Atom Egoyan, Mira Nair, and Luis Bunuel). And films about immigrants and outsiders will be welcome…including new work on the illegal immigrant debate, such as the work-in-progress by the Virginia-based filmmakers at the YouTube channel 9500 Liberty.

What other titles, guests, and events should I consider? Post your suggestions by sending a reply here, and help me program a great and timely festival.

Kin Flicks Wraps

vafilm — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 00:03:08 +0000

KIN FLICKS is over. I’ve got some highlights of my own to mention, and photos by Festival photographer Jack Looney to share in this posting. But I’d love to know what events were highlights for you, and I encourage you to send comments to this blog. While you’re at it, let me know what themes you’d like us to consider for the 2008 Festival. (more…)

Final Guests and Films Announced!

vafilm — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 20:53:53 +0000

We’ve just put out our final announcement, and slotted three more films in the 2007 Film Festival program. John Turturro will be our featured guest on November 3 at the Paramount with his rude and remarkable new musical on marriage and infidelity, Romance and Cigarettes. The following morning, he will screen his first impressive directorial effort, Mac, in which Turturro plays a working man whose ambition destroys his family ties. We’re also announcing the scheduling of Sony Classics’ extraordinary new animated feature, Persepolis, about an Iranian girl’s coming of age, and the addition of actor Sean Patrick Thomas as a special guest joining John Sayles and Maggie Renzi with Honeydripper.

2007 Schedule is Up & Tickets are On Sale!

vafilm — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:39:22 +0000

You can click on the schedule tab above to see the full program. Over the next few days, we’ll be adding more substantial information on each film, including film trailers, so come back to find out more.

In the meantime, my recommendation is that you go to the News Release below or here for a guide to help you navigate through the deluge of films. The release explains the structure of the program, such as the seven “Focus On” filmmakers (including Tamara Jenkins) whose works are woven through it. It also highlights the major premieres and guests, including opening night guests John Sayles and Maggie Renzi with Honeydripper, Nick Broomfield with Ghosts, Charles Burnett with Killer of Sheep, and the world premiere of Hoop Reality (the title lost its plural form yesterday, according to producer Lee Caplin). (more…)

Five Festival Guests

vafilm — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 05:19:16 +0000

The festival program will be unveiled here on Friday, and our online box office will open here as well. I promised to reveal some of our featured artists ahead of time, though, and I’ve been remiss. (more…)

Back from Toronto

David Hopper — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 19:28:32 +0000

I promised to report back from the Toronto Film Festival. Actually, I’m still reeling from the 27 films I watched last week. (more…)

Kin Flicks Countdown

vafilm — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 03:20:08 +0000

On October 5, the full KIN FLICKS program will be unveiled (along with a new design) on this site. Between now and then, however, I’m planning to reveal the identities of featured artists every week on this blog. (more…)

The Film Festival as Superpower

Richard Herskowitz — Tue, 08 May 2007 04:24:00 +0000

I ran off to the Tribeca Film Festival last Thursday night. Now here I am, 23 films later, ready to report for blogging duty. Those 23 films include seven shorts, plus three feature selections I watched on my laptop on the bus, after downloading them thanks to Tribeca’s partnership with the amazing new Jaman service. I’m not sure my fellow passengers were as thrilled by the flicker effects of Ken Jacobs’ RAZZLE DAZZLE as I was. (more…)

Home Movies

Richard Herskowitz — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 21:15:00 +0000

A suggestion came in today that we show Su Friedrich’s film about her father, Sink or Swim and Alan Berliner’s film about his dad, Nobody’s Business. Friedrich also made a film I love about her relationship with her mother, The Ties That Bind. (more…)

Your suggestions

Richard Herskowitz — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 00:24:00 +0000

Thanks for all the tips. There are more suggestions pouring in than I received last year, and I’m relieved that the theme is going over so well.

Here are some reactions to your thoughts…… (more…)