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Industry News – April 2010

1 Apr , 2010  

Written by Casey Stirling | Posted by:

April is replete with distinctive opportunities for the film aficionado. How did Massachusetts's tax credit fare in committee vote? Which Academy Award-nominated director will be visiting New England? Which festivals should be on your shortlist? ...News & happenings in the local industry for April 2010.

Happenings

Filmmaker Greg Barker presents his HBO documentary Sergio at Boston University on April 2nd as part of a tribute to the film’s editor Karen Schmeer, who died this past February. Schmeer was a BU graduate who lived in Boston for several years and also edited many of Errol Morris’s films. Sergio won a Documentary Editing Award at Sundance in 2009 for Schmeer’s work. The event starts at 7:30 pm in the COM Auditorium (640 Commonwealth Avenue) and is free and open to the public. Visit http://www.bu.edu/phpbin/calendar/event.php?id=97508&cid=17&oid=0 for more information.

Middlesex Community College has announced that director James Cameron will be their guest speaker at this year’s Celebrity Forum 2010. The event will take place June 16th at 8:00 pm. Tickets are $29.50 for standard seating, $39.50 for premier seating, and can be purchased in person at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium Box Office, over the phone at 978-454-2299, or online (http://www.middlesex.mass.edu/cf10/ticket.htm).

Celebrate the Killington Film Festival April 8–11 at the Summit Lodge (Killington Access Road.) The festival begins April 8th at 7:00 pm with the feature documentary Words Aloud. Many of the filmmakers plan to attend the festival, and after-parties will follow some of the events. Tickets to individual screenings are $5 (which includes one free drink and popcorn); all access pass to the festival is $20. Visit http://www.killingtonfilmfestival.org/ for festival schedule and info on where to buy tickets.

The Independent Film Festival of Boston runs April 21–28. Check http://www.iffboston.org/ for updates.

What’s not to love about Matthew McConaughey and Cher? New England’s Trustees of Reservation present “‘B’ Movies at an ‘A’ Location: The Crane Estate in Film,” a series of three films that were filmed in part on the Crane Estate in Ipswich, Massachusetts. Snacks will be available along with behind-the-scenes stories from staff members. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past will screen on April 9th at 7:00 pm, The Next Karate Kid on April 10th at 3:00 pm, and The Witches of Eastwick on April 10th at 7:00 pm. Tickets are $8 for members, $10 general admission. Package deal for all three movies is $20 for members, $25 general admission. Visit http://www.thetrustees.org/things-to-do/northeast-ma/b-movies-ghosts.html for directions and to purchase tickets.

Get your cleats on! MASS MoCA in North Adams, Massachusetts prepares for the World Cup with “Kicking and Screening – Soccer Film Festival” in celebration of the other kind of football. The festival takes place April 23–24 and will feature films, performances, and panel discussions. Festival pass is $25 for adults, $15 for students and kids. Individual events are $8 for adults, $5 for kids. Members receive 10% off. Visit http://www.massmoca.org/event_details.php?id=532 for schedule and to purchase tickets.

Portland, Maine’s Space Gallery (538 Congress St.) presents “A Day with John Sinclair” on April 24th. The event begins at 5:00 pm with a screening of Steven Gebhardt’s film 20 to Life, which explores Sinclair’s life and features interviews with fellow artists and poets, to be followed by a discussion and Q&A with Sinclair. The screening and Q&A are free. At 9:00 pm, the North Star Café (225 Congress St.) hosts an evening of music with Sinclair and the jazz ensemble The Free Radicals. Tickets for the North Star Café event are $8. Visit http://www.space538.org/event_details.php?id=385 for more details.

During what will hopefully be beautiful spring weather, Boston College celebrates its 12th Annual Arts Festival April 29th to May 1st. Along with dance, music, and literary performances, the festival will feature a selection of films on social justice, a live interview with screenwriter and BC grad Bill Cain, and other events. Visit http://www.bc.edu/offices/artscouncil/festival.html to learn more.

Yale University hosts two film festivals this month. The Environmental Film Festival runs April 6–11. All screenings are free and open to the public. Check out the festival website (http://environment.yale.edu/film/) for the schedule and more information. Yale also hosts the Fifth Annual Festival of New Italian Cinema April 15–18. Screenings are also free and open to the public. Check http://www.yale.edu/italian/news/documents/FilmFestival_000.pdf for more details.

The Museum of Fine Arts Boston presents the winners from this year’s Boston Turkish Film Festival on Saturday, April 10th from 1:00 to 2:50 pm. Tickets are $10 general admission, $8 for members, seniors, and students. Visit http://mfa.org/calendar/event.asp?eventkey=42661&date=4/10/2010 for more information. The MFA will also present “The Best of Student Film: SMFA and Tufts Graduate Students Films” on April 22nd and 29th. Visit http://mfa.org/calendar/sub.asp?key=12&subkey=1 for details.

Industry Buzz

On March 11th, the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Revenue voted down House Bill 3854, which would have capped the state’s tax credit for the film industry, making it unlikely that it will go to the House or Senate. Check out the Boston Globe’s coverage: http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2010/03/like_indiana_jo.html.

The New Hampshire Film and Television Office reports that recently introduced House Bill 1664 threatens to shut them down. They are looking for testimonials of how the NH Film and Television Office has affected the state and job opportunities. Visit their blog: http://nhfilmoffice.blogspot.com/2010/03/house-bill-1664-threatens-to-close-new.html, for more information.

On March 7th, Waterford, Connecticut native Geoffrey Fletcher became the first African American to win the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for his work on Precious. Watch his acceptance speech: http://oscar.go.com/nominations/nominees/precious-based-on-the-novel-push-by-sapphire/3485.

It’s a busy time for ABC Studios in New England. Their pilot Boston’s Finest has started shooting in the Boston area. Cast members of the cop show include Katee Sackhoff (24) and Goran Visnjic (ER). Another ABC pilot, Body of Evidence, which is being filmed in Rhode Island, will feature actresses Dana Delany (Desperate Housewives) and Jeri Ryan (Star Trek Voyager).

Tom Hanks was in Boston on March 3rd for the red carpet premiere of his new HBO miniseries The Pacific. The event was held at the JFK Library, where Hanks spoke with New England Cable News: http://www.necn.com/03/03/10/Tom-Hanks-debuts-The-Pacific-at-JFK-Libr/landing.html?blockID=190663&feedID=4215.

Terrestrial Extras recently wrapped shooting in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Written by Jim O’Connell and directed by Jake Fink, the alien encounters film has been submitted to the Provincetown Film Festival. Check out the film’s website (http://terrestrialextrasthefilm.com/) and stay tuned for more updates.

Opportunities

The Rhode Island international Film Festival is now accepting submissions for this summer’s festival. There are a variety of categories and genres that filmmakers can submit to, including feature, short, documentary, and animation. The entry fee is $45. Regular deadline is May 15, late deadline is June 1st, and extended deadline is June 15th. The festival will run August 10–15. Visit http://www.film-festival.org/ for the application form and more information.

Wakefield, Rhode Island’s Main Street Independent Film Festival is currently accepting submissions for this year’s festival. Films should fall under one of the following genres: Narrative/Open, Documentary, Experimental, Animation, News Segment, or Commercial/PSA. The deadline is April 30th. Films will be screened in Wakefield July 9-11. Visit the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (http://www.arts.ri.gov/) for more information.

The 12th annual Roxbury Film Festival is now accepting submissions. Films must be produced, directed, and/or written by or about people of color, with some preference given to past or current residents of New England. More than one film may be submitted and the festival accepts all genres of film. Standard entry fee is $45, with $25 for students, $50 for industry, and an additional $5 late fee. The submission deadline is May 15th, with the festival to take place July 29th to August 1st. Visit http://www.roxburyfilmfestival.org/new/ for complete guidelines.

The 12th annual Maine International Film Festival is currently accepting submissions. They are looking for feature length films in 35mm and video formats, but shorter films will be considered, especially ones about and/or shot in Maine. The entry fee is $45. The deadline for submissions is April 30th. Visit http://www.miff.org/submissions/ for more details.