The 2006 AFI FEST has chosen actress Penelope Cruz, as the recipient of the festival's annual Tribute. On November 2, the festival will present the U.S. premiere of Pedro Almodovar's Volver, starring Cruz, at Arclight's Hollywood Cineramadome, followed by a Centerpiece Gala. Volver was recently chosen as Spain's official selection for the Best Foreign Film for the 79th Academy Awards.

In celebration of its 20th anniversary, AFI FEST is launching a new program, AFI PROJECT: 20/20, in an effort to enhance international cultural exchange and collaboration among filmmakers around the world. Up to 20 American and international filmmakers (with films at this year's festival) will be chosen to participate in this new program which has the goal of developing ways in which artists and their films can help promote cultural awareness and understanding and challenge stereotypes, while presenting a fresh, clear vision of the common values people share. By sharing their films with audiences here and abroad, AFI PROJECT: 20/20 will encourage understanding and appreciation of values such as freedom of expression, tolerance and rights in intellectual property.

AFI is teaming with several organzations to present this new program, including the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH), the Department of State, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services in support of this effort.

For more information on AFI PROJECT:20/20 or this year's festival events, go to www.afi.com.

Long live indie film,

Michelle

P.S. indieIN is proud to be an affiliate media sponsor for the 2006 AFI FEST.

Of course they are (not)? It is a tricky question to ask and answer. Generally, all truly indie - forgive the pun- filmmakers: struggle to get money to fund their work, struggle to get a crew together for their funds they have, struggle to get the cast that they want for the funds they have and struggle to pay the funds that they have invariably borrowed back. Essentially, being an indie filmmaker is all about struggle and that struggle does not end once the film is made. In my view, the real struggle has just begun. Getting an indie film made is hell, getting an indie film out to the world is the hell below hell. But this is where "all indie filmmakers are alike" theory goes a bit pear shaped (translation: it all goes awry) as some filmmakers take their marketing, distribution and festival strategy very very seriously and are thinking about those very important things like "who is my audience" and "how can i reach them" in the early days of post production. I will digress a moment to not so shamelessly plug indieIN's filmmaker listings - you can as a filmmaker list your film in the zip code search for a mere $10 - so that anyone in any part of the US, Canada and the UK can find your film and where it is playing. Check it our on our ADVERTISE page.

Back to how filmmakers are not alike...some filmmakers are part of the "membership has it's privileges" club which means that they have invariably screened at Sundance once or better yet won a prize there or another major festival and therefore can always use this as a signal to distributors or other festivals or the public for that matter, to gain entry to the small group of films and filmmakers that will always at the very least get a viewing by someone who could potentially help their film get out there. This could be a producer rep, a lawyer, a distributor, etc.

Other filmmakers, specifically, ones in Europe have a lovely thing called government funding that can help filmmakers of any point in their career from the seasoned veteran to the new filmmaker gain funds to help with marketing, distribution and festival play, Here in the UK, the UK Film Council gives filmmakers and/or production companies money to subtitle prints for festival play, go to major festivals and markets outside the UK and P&A money. Filmmakers here complain about the process - how lengthy it is, etc. - but coming from the US where NOTHING like that exists, I remind them how spoiled they are. Did I mention this is money that they don't have to pay back??? The UK is not alone in this. France does it, Spain, Germany, etc....

But with all of this government assistance - filmmakers can also get development money - indie filmmakers in these countries still struggle like their US counterparts. Is the struggle part of being an indie filmmaker? I have always been fascinated by the idea that all the widely considered great artists of this century have had to struggle in some way - with mental illness, addiction of some kind, poverty, abuse, society's ridicule, some physical impediment. Do all outsider or indie artists need that aspect of struggle to make their art? If indie filmmakers were given all of the money to what they wanted, access to distribution, marketing to a wide audience, screens to show their films? Would they still be indie? Come to think of it, wouldn't that make them Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Michael Bay, John Woo or Richard Curtis....

Keeping it indie,

Julie

Recently at an event in San Francisco, Steve Jobs, Apple's co-founder and chief executive unveiled their online movie download service that will be available through the iTunes store. In addition, they revealed iTV, a new device that will allow you to download movies to watch on your own TV. To kick off this new service, iTunes is now offering films from Disney, Pixar, and Miramax films, but talk has already begun about other studios jumping on board. Althought this iTV device will not be available until 2007, the question has been raised of how will this affect DVD rentals. Over the past year, many new DVD clubs have popped up, opening the doors for many indie filmmakers to distribute their films online. Will these new companies be able to compete with Apple?

It's too early to tell, but somehow I suspect that online distribution will follow the same lines as theatrical. The companies with lots of money to market their films will dominate the sector, while the smaller films are left to the niche-companies. I hope, if anything, this new technology does allow for more people to discover indie films that they might not otherwise... but in the comfort of their homes. For now, I guess all we can do is stay tuned...

Long live indie film,

Michelle

The Toronto International Film Festival has been running over 30 years and it is consistently the place where films that you will be seeing at a theater near you - at least those in contention for the Academy Awards - will be screened. This year's festival as eclectic as ever is screening everything from the ridiculous - Borat Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan starring Sasha Baron Cohen's most infamous character - to the sublime Babel the last installment of a magnificent trilogy that began with Amores Perros and 21 Grams from one of the most interesting, I think, directors around, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarittu. The film stars Cate Blanchett, Brad Pitt and Gael Garcia Bernal is told in four languages and is a modern version of the story of the biblical story of The Tower of Babel. The film will be released by Paramount Vantage - the newly named old Paramount Classics. Don't miss it.

Other indie films sure to be released in the upcoming pre pre Awards season and screening for the first time in North America are Anthony Minghella's Breaking and Entering with Jude Law, Juliette Binoche and Robin Wright Penn, Emilio Estevez' directorial debut, Bobby about the assassination of Bobby Kennedy, Barbara Kopple's documentary about the aftermath of the Dixie Chicks infamous comments against President Bush and the War in Iraq in 2003, and John Cameron Mitchell's controversial Shortbus.

In addition to the above films though, the thing I love about Toronto is its true spirit of celebration of the film and filmmakers from all over the world. A list of those filmmakers included this year includes Johnnie To, Lou Ye, Alain Renais, Patrice Leconte, Nanni Moretti, and Werner Herzog just to name a few.

The non screening highlight of this year's festival is certain to be the Vangauard Cinema conversation with John Waters and John Cameron Mitchell - two unbelievably witty auteurs who have made their own way. It is going to be difficult to hear anything either of them say over the laughter.

For more information about what else is on at this year's festival - go to http://www.e.bell.ca/filmfest/2006

Keeping it indie,

Julie

Fall has always been my favorite season. Ever since I was young, I looked forward to shopping for the new school wardrobe full of long sleeves and sweaters, watching the leaves change colors, start of a new season for all of my favorite TV shows. Even though it’s technically the end of year, it feels like a new beginning of sorts.

Well, I’ve been out of school for a long (long) time, but Fall still marks the beginning of a new season, but for film. This is the time of year where filmmakers bring out their best in hopes of being a contender for the Academy Awards. The Fall festivals provide the perfect platform launch films and create a buzz and media extravaganza. Two festivals which are often used for this purpose is the Telluride Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival.

The Telluride Festival, now in its 33rd year, traditionally runs every Labor Day weekend in the small mountain town in Colorado. Telluride stands out from the rest because they do not announce their program previous to the festival, but they have a reputation for selecting outstanding work. Over the years, hundreds of filmmakers, celebrities, press, and film lovers flock to the festival each year to discover such films as The Crying Game, Slingblade, Breaking the Waves, Eve’s Bayou, and Lost in Translation. This year, festivalgoers were the first to discover, Fur, the Diane Arbus biopic starring Nicole Kidman; the documentary, The US versus John Lennon; Alejandro Gonzáles Iñárritu’s powerful drama, Babel; and Mira Nair’s The Namesake.

Next week, the Toronto International Film Festival kicks off, which is arguably one of the most important festivals. Both the press and the public look to Toronto to find out the most promising films of the year. This year some of the premieres will include Infamous, the other Truman Capote biopic; Christopher Guest’s For Your Consideration; and The Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing.

Check out our INFESTIVALS page to find out other festivals that are playing in the next few weeks. And stay tuned!

Long live indie film,
Michelle