Every Day Is Special: film festival

Showing posts with label film festival. Show all posts

January 21 – Sundance Film Festival Begins

Posted on January 21, 2016

Starting today in Park City, Utah, the Sundance Film Festival is the largest independent film festival in the United States. It's a showcase for new works from filmmakers all around the world.

There are competitions for American filmmakers and separate ones for international filmmakers – with separate sections for feature-length films, short films, dramatic films, and documentaries.

This is the festival associated with actor / filmmaker Robert Redford and his company, Wildwood. The movie that made Redford a major star was Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid – and Redford played the Sundance Kid. Hence, the name. (The name became “Sundance” in 1991, about 13 years after the festival began. It used to be called the US Film Festival.)

The film festival was originally held in August of 1978, in Salt Lake City, and it was only for American-made films. Its goal was to attract more filmmaking to Utah. But, with Redford's association drawing lots of attention to the festival, with Hollywood giving a surprising amount of support to the festival, and with well-known filmmakers contributing to the festival's success, the festival grew quickly and was profitable almost from the very beginning.

In 1981 the venue was changed to Park City – a ski resort – in January – perfect ski time!

Now there are several hundred films in competition, out-of-competition sections and even smaller festivals springing up at the outskirts of Sundance, including Slamdance, Nodance, Slumdance, It-dance, X-dance, Tromadance, and so forth.

Some really famous directors got their first big break at Sundance, including Kevin Smith and Quentin Tarantino. Some films became famous because of Sundance, including Garden State, Napoleon Dynamite, and Little Miss Sunshine.

Here is a short video sharing bits-and-pieces from the award-winning “Shorts.”

Here was last year's call from a filmmaker to find some cool people to feature in this year's film. Wonder who he ended up picking?

Here is a short video about how to become a filmmaker.

Also on this date:

Squirrel Appreciation Day

Midwife's Day in Bulgaria

Errol Barrow Day in Barbados

Anniversary of the introduction of the smallpox vaccine

Anniversary of one of the first female doctors, Sophia Jex-Blake

Plan ahead:

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February holidays
February birthdays
Historical anniversaries in February

November 29 – December 7 – Marrakech International Film Festival

Posted on November 29, 2013

For the thirteenth year, aspiring film makers will meet with luminaries of the movie world in an international festival! Famed director Martin Scorsese will head up the jury who will judge the films.

You can have a mini-film-festival yourself by watching some indie movies, documentaries, and cartoon shorts.

Have you seen the 2010 animated feature A Cat in Paris? How about the stop-motion film A Town Called Panic? I've heard some really good things about The Secret of Kells (although apparently there is cartoon violence, so it might not be okay for younger kids). All these movies should be available streaming on Netflix.

Netflix streaming offers such wonderful documentaries as Chasing Ice, Waste Land and Exit Through the Gift Shop.

I Googled animated short films for kids and ended up with Fishing with Sam, on You Tube, and a whole bunch of other suggestions on the sidebar!

Where in the world is Marrakech?

If you are in Africa, and you travel the farthest you can go northwest, you'll be in Morocco; and, in the heart of the nation of Morocco, you will find the city of Marrakech. It is an old, fortified city near the foothills of the Atlas Mountains, and it is packed with vendors selling Berber rugs, handicrafts, and modern electronic devices in stalls; it also has modern neighborhoods and brand new hotels and resorts.

Wouldn't you love to go to a traditional Berber market, where you can buy from people who specialize in lemons, or pickles, or green and red and black olives? Another souk might offer all sorts of dried fruits and nuts, and yet another will offer hand-woven baskets, natural perfumes, and iguana skins. Go to one souk for ironware and lanterns and another for tee shirts and slippers.