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On August 2, 2002 Portland’s Downtown District’s Under the Stars series showcases the 4th Annual Portland Media Artists Independent Shorts Film Festival in Congress Square. The annual event celebrates the craft of making movies in the state by showcasing shorts by Maine filmmakers. Fourteen shorts have been selected by a jury of filmmakers and will be shown outside on the big screen beginning at 8:30 p.m., with a pre-festival party at 6 p.m. The pre-festival party will take place at local nightclub The Skinny, located at 625 Congress St, one block over from Congress Square. For more information, visit  www.fmstudio.com/pmafilmfest. 

The fourth annual Roxbury Film Festival (RFF) will be held August 15-18, 2002 in Boston, Massachusetts. The festival showcases feature-length films, documentaries, and shorts produced, written, or directed by persons of color. Films will be shown at Northeastern University and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Visit the festival site at www.roxburyfilmfestival.org for more information.

The Rhode Island International Film Festival (RIIFF) runs August 7-12, 2002 in Providence Rhode Island. Now in its sixth year, RIIFF celebrates independent film and is a juried competition showcase for American and international independent filmmakers and their work. For more information about the festival, visit www.film-festival.org. 

RIIFF will also present the fourth annual Kidseye International Film Festival August 7-12, 2002. The festival offers a weeklong program of international children’s films, hands-on workshops, panel discussions and celebrity guests. Details about the festival are available at www.film-festival.org. 

See more film festival listings.

In the News

The State of Massachusetts has continued its budget-slashing.  In late July, Acting Governor Swift vetoed $355 million in state spending.  This included a cut to the Massachusetts Cultural Council budget by 62% from last year’s level –the largest percentage cut of any state agency.  The Mass Cultural Council (MCC) is a rarity in our community — it is one of the only organizations that gives direct funding to artists, and gives support to vital arts organizations in our community. 

The Boston Film & Video Foundation (BFVF) recently established a New Screenwriting Program. Andrew Arthur of Cambridge, Massachusetts has been appointed director of the program, which includes a professional certificate in screenwriting.  Mr. Arthur, a Harvard alumnus and member of Harvard Square Scriptwriters, has taught at Harvard and other area universities. He is also the 2001 winner of the Nantucket Film Festival Tony Cox Award for Excellence in Screenwriting. For information on BFVF’s programs and membership see www.bfvf.org. 

The film "Rock Bottom," directed and co-written by Mary Feuer, was selected as a "recommended pick" at Outfest in the LA Weekly. The film premiered as part of the festival’s "Lookin’ for Love" shorts program on July 21.  The 22-minute short is the story of a lonely man (John Militello, who also co-wrote) who picks up a young street hustler (Timothy Lee DePriest) on Santa Monica Boulevard. When the man takes the hustler to his home, the two bond in unexpected ways. For more information call Firebuilder Pictures at 323-661-3473.

Friends of Art and Film in Central Maine received a $6,000 grant from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation. The grant supported "Vietnam: the Aftermath," a section of the fifth annual Maine International Film Festival (MIFF). MIFF is a project of the non-profit Friends of Art and Film in Central Maine. It showcases American independent and international film, as well as the work of Maine filmmakers. Visit www.miff.org, email info@miff.org, or call 207-861-8138 for more information about the grant or the festival.

 Local Screenings

The Boston Jewish Film Festival films will be shown in Martha’s Vineyard on Sunday evenings through August 11th. The selection of films this year includes award-winning documentaries, comedies, dramas, and thrillers. There will be guest speakers following a number of the films. Screenings begin at 7:30 at The Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center. Admission $10. For further information, including film descriptions, see http://www.mvhc.us/summer_inst.htm or phone 508-693-0745.

"Sweet Old Song" will be shown at the Roxbury Film Festival on Saturday, August 17, 2002 at 7:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.  Both screenings will be followed by discussion with with Howard Armstrong, Barbara Ward Armstrong and filmmakers Leah Mahan and Bill Anderson.  Screening will take place at the Massachusetts College of Art, Tower Auditorium, 621 Huntington Ave., Boston. For more info, call (617)
541-3900 x222 or log on to www.roxburyfilmfestival.com. 

As part of the New England Film Artists Present series, The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA) will screen local filmmaker Lucia Small’s award-winning documentary "My Father, The Genius" on August 23 – September 15, 2002. Small’s film has earned top prizes at the Atlanta Film Festival, the Newport International Film Festival, the New England Film and Video Festival and at the at the Slamdance Film Festival. "Adrift," by Tom Curran is also part of the New England Film Artists Present series, and will screen in August. Visit www.mfa.org for more information about these films and screening times.

The Harvard Film Archive presents "Treasures from the Harvard Film Archive" (Actors O-T) and (Actors U-Z) on July 24 – August 10, 2002 in Cambridge, MA. Double-feature screenings will be shown from Harvard Film Archive’s collection of 7,000 prints. This summer the alphabetical arrangement shifts from film directors to film actors. For more details visit www.harvardfilmarchive.org.