22nd Philadelphia Film Fest

The schedule for the 22nd Philadelphia Film Festival is now available online. The Festival runs from October 17-27, and tickets go on sale October 1.

This year's program follows up on the festival's previous strengths as a best-of-festivals fest. It's a great chance to see films, particular world cinema films and smaller local productions, that otherwise might not get a Philadelphia theatrical release. I personally wish there would be more adventuresome repertory screenings and more international documentary selections, but I will hardly lack for films to see.

So far, these screenings are on my radar to attend:

Burning Bush, a Czech historical that's part of a trend of televisual art films
A Touch of Sin, Jia Zhang-Ke's latest work, a continuation of his thematic exploration of the cultural changes coming to contemporary China
In Bloom, a Georgian coming-of-age drama that's gotten good play on the European film festival circuit
Let the Fire Burn - as someone who did not live in Philadelphia in the 1980s, I could stand to see a good documentary about the MOVE saga, and this one sounds promising
La Maison de la Radio - Nicolas Philibert made the amazing observational documentary Etre et Avoir, but his other films have not always found wide distribution in the US

One Day Retrospective of Cleopatra

I can't say that Cleopatra (1963) has been top of the list of Classical Hollywood films I've been eager to see reissued theatrically, but that said I've not actually seen the film, and this Wednesday, May 22, the Ritz East will have a 1:00 and 7:00 screening of a digital restoration.

Other Mid-March screenings

As exciting as the Marker and Varda events are, they're not the only thing coming up.

Wednesday, March 13
7pm
The Last Days of Pompeii 
(dir. Mario Caserini, Italy, 1913)
35mm screening with live musical accompaniment
International House

Friday, March 15
8pm

Exhumed Horror:

Terror Train

dir. Roger Spottiswoode, 1980, 35mm

Horror Express

dir. Eugenio Martín, 1972, 35mm

International House

Saturday, March 16

11am

Howl’s Moving Castle 

part of a Hayao Miyazaki retrospective

Bryn Mawr Film Institute

Tuesday, March 19

7pm

Secret Cinema presents

B movie double feature: The Crime of Helen Stanley/Madame Spy

16mm

at The Chestnut Hill Film Group

at Woodmere Art Museum

9201 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia

Admission: FREE

Marker (and Varda)

There's an embarrassment of riches this week, as Penn, Temple, and Slought are organizing a commemorative symposium on Chris Marker's work, with visiting filmmakers to include Agnes Varda. Here's a rundown of events:

Wed. March 13

6pm
Agnès Varda, in conversation with Molly Nesbit

University of Pennsylvania, Meyerson Hall

Thurs. March 14
7PM
Screening: Beaches of Agnes (Varda 2008)

Varda in person

International House

Friday, March 15

5:30PM

opening panel and reception for Chris Marker event

Slought Foundation

reservation recommended

Saturday, March 16

10AM-6PM

Chris Marker event

Slought Foundation

reservation recommended

Saturday, March 16

7PM

Screening: early Chris Marker collaborations

International House

Los Angeles School films at I House

Starting tomorrow and running through January, the International House will be screening a series of films associated with the "Los Angeles School" of African-American filmmakers to emerge in the 1970s and 80s. The series will include famous titles with new prints, more obscure films, and filmmaker appearances.

As Above, So Below (Larry Clark)

Saturday, January 5th 
2:00pm
Daughters of the Dust (Dir. Julie Dash, 1991, 35mm, color, 112 min.) - New print! Julie Dash's masterpiece, the story of an island family, descendants of escaped slaves, living off the Southern coast of the US in 1902 and contemplating a move to the U.S. mainland. Superb performances, cinematography, music and touches of magical realism grace this unforgettable film, named to the National Film Registry in 2004.
Also showing: Diary of an African Nun (Dir. Julie Dash,1977, 16mm, b/w, 15 min.) - New print! 

5:00pm
Emma Mae (Dir. Jamaa Fanaka, 1976, 35mm, 100 min.) - New print! Emma Mae arrives in Los Angeles from Mississippi replete with rough edges and an exceptional ability to kick ass. Her plain looks and shy demeanor set her apart from other "Blaxploitation" heroines. But when folks underestimate her, she surprises everyone, including her no-good boyfriend Jesse, with her extraordinary physical and emotional strength.
Also showing: A Day in the Life of Willie Faust, or Death on the Installment Plan (Dir. Jamaa Fanaka, 1972, Digital video from 16mm, color, 16 min.)

8:00pm
My Brother's Wedding (Dir. Charles Burnett, 1983/2007, Digital Video, color, 82 min.) - Director's cut! Laid off from his factory job, Pierce (EveretteSilas) marks time working at his family's dry cleaning store, swapping loaded jabs with his brother's upper middle-class fiancé and hanging out with his best friend, recently released from prison.
Also showing: A Little Off Mark (Dir. Robert Wheaton, 1986, 16mm, b/w, 9 min.)

Saturday, January 12th 

2:00pm
Bless Their Little Hearts (Dir. Billy Woodberry, 1984, 35mm, b/w, 84 min.) - New restoration! Bless Their Little Hearts chronicles the devastating effects of underemployment on a family in Los Angeles. Nate Hardman and Kaycee Moore deliver gut-wrenching performances as the couple whose family is torn apart by events beyond their control.
Also showing: The Pocketbook (Dir. Billy Woodberry, 1980, 35mm, b/w, 13 min.) - New restoration!

5:00pm
Compensation (Dir. Zeinabu irene Davis, 1999, Digital video from 16mm, b/w, 90 min.) In two Chicago love stories, set a century apart, a deaf woman and a hearing man face the specter of death, and confront intraracial differences across lines of gender, class, education and ability. Through innovative use of sign language and title cards evoking the silent film era, Compensation is accessible to deaf and hearing audiences.
Also showing: Dark Exodus (Dir. Iverson White, 1985, 16mm, b/w, 28 min.) - New print!

8:00pm
Passing Through (Dir. Larry Clark, 1977, 35mm, color, 111 min.) - New print! Eddie Womack, an African-American jazz musician, is released from prison for the killing of a white gangster. Not willing to play for the mobsters who control the music industry, Womack searches for his musical mentor, Poppy Harris. The film repeatedly turns to various musicians improvising, leading one critic to call it "the only jazz film in the history of cinema."
Also showing: When it Rains (Dir. Charles Burnett, 1995, 16mm, color, 13 min.)

Wednesday, January 16th        

7:00pm
A Different Image (Dir. Alile Sharon Larkin, 1982, 16mm, color, 51 min.) - New print! An African American woman contemplates self-identity, heritage and perception on the streets of the sprawling Los Angeles metropolis.
Also showing: Grey Area (Dir: Monona Wali, 1981, 16mm, b/w, 38 min.) - New print! Cycles (Dir. Zeinabu irene Davis, 1989, Digital Video from 16mm, b/w, 17 min.) Water Ritual #1: An Urban Rite of Purification (Dir. Barabara McCullough, 1979, 35mm, b/w, 6 min.) - New restoration!

Saturday, January 19th 

2:00pm
As Above, So Below (Dir. Larry Clark, 1973, 16mm, color, 52 min.) - New print! A rediscovered L.A. Rebellion masterpiece, Larry Clark's film comprises a powerful political and social critique in its portrayal of Black insurgency.
Also showing: I & I: An African Allegory (Dir. Ben Caldwell, 1979, 16mm, color, 32 min.) - New print! Ujamii Uhuru Schule Community Freedom School (Dir. Don Amis, 1974, Digital Video from 16mm, color, 9 min.) Medea (Dir. Ben Caldwell, 1973, Digital Video from 16mm, color, 7 min.

5:00pm
Your Children Come Back to You (Dir. Alile Sharon Larkin, 1979, 16mm, b/w, 30 min.) - New print! A single mother ekes out a living from welfare check to welfare check, struggling to provide for her daughter. She is faced with the decision to look after her personally, or allow her sister-in-law to provide "more than enough" to go around.
Also showing: Fragrance (Dir. Gay Abel-Bey, 1991, Digital video from ¾" videotape, b/w, 38 min.) Shipley Street (Dir. Jacqueline Frazier, 1981, Digital video from 16mm, color, 25 min.) Rich (Dir. S. Torriano Berry, 1982, 16mm, b/w, 22 min.) - New print!

8:00pm
Black Art, Black Artists (Dir. Elyseo J. Taylor, 1971, Digital video from 16mm, color, 16 min.) A visual survey of black art since the 19th century, punctuated with jazz and blues selections, and a running commentary by woodcut printer Van Slater.
Also showing: Bellydancing - A History & an Art (Dir. Alicia Dhanifu, 1979, Digital Video from 1" videotape, color, 22 min.) Festival of Mask (Dir. Don Amis, 1982, Digital video from16mm, color, 25 min.) Four Women (Dir. Julie Dash, 1975, 16mm, color, 7 min.) - New print! Define (Dir. O.Funmilayo Makarah, 1988, Digital video, color, 5 min.)

Saturday, January 26th 

5:00pm
Child of Resistance (Dir. Haile Gerima, 1972, 16mm, b/w and color, 36 min.) Inspired by a dream Haile Gerima had after seeing Angela Davis handcuffed on television, Child of Resistance is an abstract and symbolic film that follows a woman imprisoned as a result of her fight for social justice.
Also showing: Brick by Brick (Dir. Shirikiana Aina, 1982, Digital video from 16mm, color, 33 min.) L.A. In My Mind (Dir: O.Funmilayo Makarah, 2006, Digital video, color, 4 min.) Rain (Dir. Melvonna Ballenger, 1978, Digital Video from ¾" videotape, color, 16 min.) The Dawn at My Back: Memoir of a Black Texas Upbringing (excerpt) (Dir. Carroll Parrott Blue, Kristy H.A. Kang; The Labyrinth Project, 2003, Digital video adapted from DVD-ROM, color, 10 min.)

8:00pm
Bush Mama (Dir. Haile Gerima, 1975/1979, 16mm, b/w, 97 min.) - New print! Introduced by director Haile Gerima A powerfully moving look at the realities of inner city poverty and systemic disenfranchisement as experienced by Dorothy, a pregnant welfare recipient in Watts, played by the magnetic Barbara O. Jones. Motivated by the incarceration of her partner T.C. and the protection of her daughter and unborn child, Dorothy undergoes an ideological transformation from apathy to action. 
Also showing: Daydream Therapy  (Dir. Bernard Nicolas, 1977, Digital Video, b/w and color, 8 min.)

Presented in association with UCLA Film & Television Archive and supported in part by grants from the Getty Foundation and The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. The series is curated by Allyson Nadia Field, Jan-Christopher Horak, Shannon Kelley, and Jacqueline Stewart. Co-sponsored by Scribe Video Center, Temple University Department of Film and Media Arts, and Philadelphia Weekly

Ross McElwee tonight

Ross McElwee will be presenting and screening his latest film Photographic Memory tonight at University of Pennsylvania:

Thursday, November 8, 2012
5:30pm
401 Fisher Bennett Hall
University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia Film Festival 2012 schedule

The Philadelphia Film Festival 2012 has posted its schedule online. They have a handy feature that organizes your screenings for you, or you can even download the entire schedule into iCal.

Tickets are currently on sale for Philadelphia Film Society members. General public tickets go on sale Monday, October 1.

UPDATE: As a follow-up on earlier news on free ticket vouchers for the Festival, the PFF website mentions the films eligible for the free tickets. They're all from the American Independents series, on first-come basis. Details here. I'm actually surprised the free tickets are not incentives for daytime weekday screenings, but hey, it's their promotion!

Plans for the Roxy?

It's all in the preliminary/rumor phase, but Molly Eichel of the Inquirer reports that the Roxy is planning both a renovation and a switch to a first run/repertory mix. If true, that would be an amazing addition to Philly's film offerings.

Complimentary Tickets to the Phila Film Fest

The Philadelphia Film Festival is coming up in October. They release the schedule on Sept. 27 and I will give an update then. In the meantime, they are offering a special promotion for complimentary tickets for those who register on their website (scroll to the bottom of this page). Only certain screenings will honor the comp tickets and it's on a first-come basis, but still, it's a great way to supplement your festival viewing or to see some of the festival on a budget.

Fringe Philadelphia events

PIFVA has updated their calendar and are listing the remaining media-oriented events in the Philly Fringe festival.

Africa, I Will Fleece You

The Cinémathèque Internationale of Phildalphia
presents in conjunction with The African American Museum in Philadelphia

Africa, I Will Fleece You! 

Directed by Jean-Marie Téno  

Cameroon/France/Germany 1993 

88 minutes 

French 

Thursday, September 20, 2012 
from 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

The African American Museum in Philadelphia
7th and Arch St, Philadelphia

Part of the Territories: Africa series

This documentary of repressive political realities in Cameroon begins with the 1990 publication of an open letter to President Biya calling for a national conference – and the immediate arrest of the letter’s author and publisher. The narration then examines the nation’s colonial history, beginning with the first German missionary in 1901.

Presented in partnership with The African American Museum in Philadelphia, Territories: Africa is a foreign film series featuring filmmakers and stories from Africa and across the Diaspora. The intention of these screenings is to expand the discussion surrounding international film language and to challenge and explore modern and historic representations of and by Africans around the world

Lecture on Media, State, and Power in Iran at Temple University's Center City Campus

Please join PCMS for our last event of the season, co-sponsored with Temple's Middle East and
North Africa Study Group:

War Cultures and Culture Wars: Media, State, and Power in Iran

Thurs., April 26, 5:00-6:30 pm
Room 308, Temple University Center City (TUCC)

Niki Akhavan is an Assistant Professor of Media Studies at The Catholic University of America. Her
research focuses on the relationship between digital technologies and Iranian transnational
political and cultural production. She has published on the Iranian blogosphere and trends in
discourses about Iranian media, and is currently completing a manuscript entitled "Electronic Iran:
The Cultural Politics of an Online Evolution".

Screening of "Bed and Sofa" and perfomance with Psoy Korolenko

Moscow’s renowned troubadour, “wandering scholar” and “singing professor,” Psoy Korolenko, presents a film screening and performance of his live sound track and rap style-commentary to the Russian silent movie classic 'Tretya Meshchanskaya' ('Bed and Sofa') by Abram Room and Victor Shklovsky (1927; 75 min).

Saturday April 28th, 9:00pm
Doors open at 7:30pm
Fergie's Pub - 1214 Sansom St.
$10

For more information, check out the Facebook event page!

The Mark of Zorro with Live Score at Bryn Mawr

The Bryn Mawr Film Institute will be holding a screening of Douglas Fairbanks' 1920 The Mark of Zorro accompanied by a flamenco/tanjo/salsa/mariachi quintet playing an original score to the film.

The quintet is an unusual mash-up of players from many corners of the Philly music scene: the brass band The West Philly Orchestra, the tango group Oscuro Quintet, the avant-improv group Inzinzac, and the rock band Tj Kong and the Atomic Bomb.

When:
Tuesday May 22, 7:30pm
Bryn Mawr Film Institute
824 W. Lancaster Ave
Bryn Mawr, PA
$12

www.brynmawrfilm.org

Below are the links for the band rehearsal and a trailer for The Mark of Zorro with the new score.

Rehearsal:

Trailer:

Peter Greenaway at Slought

Penn Cinema Studies presents

Peter Greenaway in person

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

5:00pm & 8:00 pm
at the Slought Foundation, 4017 Walnut Street
Screening: The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover and Rembrandt's J'accuse

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

6:00pm

University of Pennsylvania, B1 Meyerson Hall

Lecture: "Cinema is Dead, Long Live Cinema"

Thursday, April 12, 2012

6:30pm
at the Slought Foundation, 4017 Walnut Street
Conversation with Jean-Michel Rabaté and Alan Singer: "Golitzius and the Pelican Company"