With summer upon us, the season of the Hollywood blockbuster has finally begun. There’ll be more than our fair share of both good and bad films to crowd us into movie theaters on those hot summer days when all we want is a tub of popcorn, a large diet soda, and two hours of a working air conditioner. But let’s dig through the riffraff and find some worthy films for …more…
Arts America Blog
All Hail the Master Director and Writer, Mr. Joss Whedon
May 18, 2012 by
Life isn’t easy as a Joss Whedon fan. In fact, we’ve gotten a lot of flack over the years. We’ve been made fun of by people who didn’t believe that Buffy the Vampire Slayer is truly one of the best shows of all time (which it is). We’ve watched the poor man go from one great TV project to the next only to face one cancellation after another. But, now …more…
Focus Features: 10th Anniversary Salute at MoMA
May 2, 2012 by
Focus Features, which formed in May 2002 as a division of NBC Universal, has been an influential force in art house filmmaking for over ten years, consistently producing and distributing some of the best independent films in the business. To celebrate its ten year anniversary, the Museum of Modern Art will be featuring screenings of ten classic films from the company’s first decade. Laurence Kardish, Senior Curator at the Department of Film, organized the …more…
Christopher Denham and Zal Batmanglij Talk About ‘Sound of My Voice’
April 26, 2012 by
Sound of My Voice is perhaps one of the most anticipated indie releases of the year, having garnered attention from various film festivals in 2011. As has been posted by fellow Arts America writer Alex A. Kecskes, the film centers around two documentary filmmakers, Peter and Lorna, who infiltrate a cult led by Maggie, a woman that claims to be from the year 2054.
In anticipation of the April 22nd release, Arts …more…
Morgan Spurlock: Super Sized Documentarian
April 12, 2012 by
Morgan Spurlock might not be as much of a household name as, say, Michael Moore, but he’s definitely one of the most entertaining documentary filmmakers around. Spurlock quickly gained recognition with his 2004 hit, Super Size Me, which documented his journey to consume every item on the McDonald’s menu for 30 days without exercise. While he gained nearly 25 lbs and had bouts of depression as a result of his fast …more…
Under the Tribeca Film Fest Hoopla: Three Other Great NYC Film Festivals
April 5, 2012 by
The month of April brings along much more than the highly anticipated Tribeca Film Festival. Although this big film event, founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff, is undeniably a highlight of the New York City film festival season, there are many other great festivals that fall a little under the press radar. Here are three New York City film fests that we recommend adding to your …more…
Interview with Filmmaker David Licata on the New Directors/New Films Festival
March 27, 2012 by
As we posted about a couple of weeks ago, this week is the New Directors/New Films Festival in New York City. We decided to get the inside scoop on what makes this event so special from writer/filmmaker, David Licata, who participated in the festival in 2004.
Celen Cipriaso: Tell us a little about yourself.
David Licata: I’m a writer and a filmmaker. The writing has appeared in literary journals and on …more…
A Dissent from the Critical Mass
March 26, 2012 by
Much hoopla has been shed over a new breakout Indonesian film called, The Raid: Redemption, which was directed by Gareth Evans. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film is currently sitting in generally positive territory with a nice 88% rating on the Tomatometer. The film also got great buzz at Sundance, Toronto, and SXSW film festivals. Mostly, the acclaim has been that because the movie is an unapologetic, extreme action film with …more…
Remembering Casablanca 70 Years Later
March 19, 2012 by
First released in 1942, Turner Classic Movies is celebrating Casablanca’s 70th Anniversary with nationwide screenings on March 21. ...more...
New Directors New Films Festival
February 29, 2012 by
When the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the Museum of Modern Art team up for a film festival, you know the results will be well worth any ticket price. Now in its 41st year, the New Directors/New Films festival is one of the best places to take a look at the most promising emerging talent in the film industry. A few of the artists that have been featured over the years include: John Sayles, Spike Lee, Wim Wenders, Atom Egoyan, Wong Kar Wai, Richard Linklater and Sally Potter. Over the course of March 21- April 1st, this film festival will feature 29 feature films and 12 short films from 28 countries. ...more...
Celebrate To Kill a Mockingbird’s 50th Anniversary at the Ziegfeld Theatre
February 23, 2012 by
As part of Turner Classic’s Road to Hollywood series, Roger Osborne and Spike Lee will host the World Theatrical Premiere Screening of the 50th Anniversary Restoration of To Kill a Mockingbird at New York City’s Ziegfeld Theatre
on March 1.
To Kill A Mockingbird is considered one of the most revered books of our time. It won the Pulitzer Prize and was declared as “Best Novel of the Century” by Library Journal. Films often are unable …more…
Why It Pays to Be Independent of the Academy
February 15, 2012 by
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t going to an Oscar party in a few weeks. I’d also be lying if I said that I haven’t been trying to watch as many Best Picture nominees as I can before the big day. But, well, here’s the thing. Like any other film lover, yes, I will be watching the Oscars. But here’s a little secret, there’s award show that I …more…
Three Unique Oscar Inspired Events Around New York City
February 8, 2012 by
Outside watching as many Best Picture and Acting nominated movies as possible, there’s more than one way to get prepped for the Oscars. Below are three unique Oscar inspired events happening around New York City.
Oscar Docs, 1950-87: Creative Expression at MoMA
Trust the Museum of Modern Art to have one of the more intriguing Oscar inspired events in the city. A film exhibition that is an annual collaboration between the Academy of Motion Picture …more…
A Celebration of Women: The Athena Film Festival
February 1, 2012 by
When one looks at the Best Director Oscar nods every year, you often don’t find a single female name in the bunch. Kathryn Bigelow, who won for The Hurt Locker in 2009, is a recent exception. But that does mean that women aren’t behind the scenes. To get a dose of the amount of female power in the film industry today, attend the Athena Film Festival at Barnard College.
Now in its second …more…
Come Back, Africa Being Screened at the Film Forum Until Feb. 2
January 25, 2012 by
One of the reasons I love New York City is that I love it when I have the opportunity to view an old classic on the silver screen. Starting this weekend on Friday, January 27, Film Forum is holding daily screenings of Lionel Rogosin’s groundbreaking classic, Come Back, Africa.
Here’s a little background on the film:
After making his Academy Award nominated documentary On the Bowery, Rogosin was determined to expose the injustices of …more…
Oliver Stone and Werner Herzog at The New York Public Library
January 18, 2012 by
Let’s be honest. Most of us take our local library for granted. We always tell ourselves that we’ll take advantage of the free archive of books, magazines, and newspapers that the library offers, and then we never even get around to signing up for a library card. But libraries are more than just institutions that offer free literature and web access; often, they host some of the best cultural events …more…
The Countdown to New York Film Fest’s Fiftieth Birthday
January 10, 2012 by
Started in the 1960’s, the New York Film Festival is one of the most highly anticipated film events of the year. While it’s a noncompetitive festival, the NYFF is highly selective, with only around 28 features and 12 shorts chosen each year. 2012 marks the year-long countdown to the festival’s fiftieth year, and the Film Society of Lincoln Center, who produces the NYFF each year, is making …more…
Start the Year with the Sundance Film Festival
January 9, 2012 by
To the general public, the film season in January is pretty much divided up into two categories: Oscar contenders in wide release and the dull lull of new releases that fall to the wayside in light of the Oscar season. However, January is also the month where the next great independent hit can be found at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah from January 19-25. ...more...
Ringing in the New Year in a Filmtastic Way
December 30, 2011 by
Imagine ringing in the New Year with Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe and Cary Grant. If you’re not the type that likes waiting in a packed crowd for hours just to watch a ball drop, consider buying a ticket to the 1st Annual New Year’s Eve Silver Screen Festival at AMC 34th St.
For a Silver Screen General Admission, tickets start at $45 (with a $5.95 fee). You’ll get to …more…
The Beauty of Uncynical Cinema
December 23, 2011 by
There’s a beauty to uncynical cinema. You may be asking yourself, what does that mean? Well, let me tell you. It’s the type of film that the latest Muppets movie represents. It’s not the type of movie where there’s a huge amount of death or violence or CGI. There’s not a large amount of blood or guts or gore. It’s perhaps the type of film that more adheres to the …more…
The Critic’s Meter for the Average Viewer
December 14, 2011 by
Movie critic legend Roger Ebert
The onslaught of the holidays also brings on the avalanche of the critic’s film awards. How much do you let your viewing habits be affected by what the critics say? Are you more likely to see a film because it made the Best Picture list on the National Board of Review? Are you ready to give Tree of Life a chance because the Toronto Film …more…
Holiday Gift Ideas for Indie Film Lovers
December 7, 2011 by
With the holidays coming up, keep in mind that that someone on your holiday gift list is sure to be a film lover. While the obvious gift is purchasing someone’s favorite movie on Blu-ray, DVD, or via Itunes, we at Arts America like to think of the bigger picture. ...more...
The Artist Inspires Remembrance of the Silent Film Era
December 1, 2011 by
While some may balk at the idea of watching a film without sound these days, hopefully sustained momentum behind the Oscar contender, The Artist, will spark a renewed public interest in recognizing the largely forgotten impact of silent film classics. ...more...
Gourmet Theater: Nighthawk Cinema
November 23, 2011 by
Located in the heart of the trendy and artistic neighborhood of Williamsburg, Brooklyn’s Nighthawk Cinema offers up a tasty new theatrical experience for movie lovers. While cocktails and gourmet concessions are nothing new, serving up table side service during an actual film is. ...more...
Video on Demand, the Wave of the Future?
November 18, 2011 by
These days Lars Von Trier is mostly remembered for his unseemly outburst at the Cannes Film Festival. His new film, Melancholia, has been lost in the post scandal shuffle — even with Kirsten Dunst’s Best Actress win at the festival. However, the most interesting aspect about the film is that it quietly launched a controversial way of viewing new movies. Before the film was to be released in theaters on November 11, the film was made available on video on demand first. On October 7, consumers were allowed to view on iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, Playstation and Zune. ...more...
