The second annual show celebrates the best of black artists in film and television, including 'Power’s' Omari Hardwick and film legend Billy Dee Williams. The American Black Film Festival’s awards night, ABFF Honors, celebrated its second year of recognizing the excellence of today's black filmmakers and remembering the iconic work of the past, hosted by Cedric The Entertainer at the Beverly Hilton on Sunday night.I Will Follow.Black Panther, where Coogler is the first black male director to direct a film with a $200M budget, and DuVernay’s A Wrinkle in Time, where she is the first black female to direct a film with a $100M budget, debuting March 9th.Power’s Omari Hardwick was honored with the Distinguished Alumni Award, presented by Armie Hammer, celebrating his multi-faceted career as an actor, producer, spoken word artist, and more.Martin received the classic television award. Martin Lawrence, Tichina Arnold, and Carl Payne II took to the stage, but in a … [Read more...] about Ava DuVernay, Issa Rae, Tiffany Haddish Honored at American Black Film Festival Awards
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Early Screening of ‘Entourage’ Movie to Kick Off Inaugural Greenwich Film Festival (Exclusive)
Entourage, the highly anticipated movie inspired by the HBO television series of the same name, will have a special screening — ahead of its official premiere and release on June 3 — on May 26 to help kick off the inaugural Greenwich International Film Festival, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. Doug Ellin, the show's creator and the film's writer and director, is a member of the fest's board. GIFF, which will run from June 4-7, also announced its full film slate. It will consist of 31 films: five narrative shorts, four documentary shorts, 10 narrative features, five documentary features and six special screenings. The opening night screening — which will take place on June 5, not June 4 — will be Colin Hanks' directorial debut, the Tower Records documentary All Things Must Pass, which will be followed by an opening night party at which fest board member Jenna Bush Hager will serve as master of ceremonies. The fest's stated mission is "to harness the power of … [Read more...] about Early Screening of ‘Entourage’ Movie to Kick Off Inaugural Greenwich Film Festival (Exclusive)
Jon Stewart on Embracing the Film Festival Circuit, Finding Humor in Drama
Over the past 15 years, through his hilarious and even-handed nightly presentation of current events on Comedy Central's The Daily Show, comedian Jon Stewart has become, against all odds, the Walter Cronkite of his generation: the most trusted man in news. But when a 2009 Daily Show interview with Maziar Bahari, a London-based journalist who was in Iran covering the Ahmadinejad-Mousavi election for Newsweek, resulted in that journalist's imprisonment, it was no laughing matter. Fortunately, after spending 118 days behind bars, Bahari was released and, in 2011, he wrote about his ordeal in Then They Came for Me: A Family's Story of Love, Captivity and Survival, which was co-authored by Aimee Molloy. At that point, the "real" journalist asked the "fake" journalist to help bring his story to the attention of Hollywood. Stewart, however, decided it would be easier to adapt and direct the film himself. And that is how he wound up at the Telluride Film Festival with the film Rosewater … [Read more...] about Jon Stewart on Embracing the Film Festival Circuit, Finding Humor in Drama
The Battle to Find a New Berlin Film Festival Director
Dieter Kosslick, with his black fedora and bright red scarf, has been the enduring symbol of the Berlin International Film Festival for the 17 years he has served as festival director.But with his contract up in May 2019, he only has two festivals left — including the one that kicks off Feb. 15. And already a battle has erupted over his legacy and what comes next.In late November, 79 directors — including art house stars Fatih Akin (In the Fade), Maren Ade (Toni Erdmann) and Oscar winner Volker Schlondorff (The Tin Drum) signed an open letter calling for a post-Kosslick transformation.When he steps down, the directors wrote, the Berlinale should "refresh and renew" the festival and think about its "fundamental direction." Innocuous enough. But the letter, published by Spiegel magazine, has set off a wave of Dieter bashing."The Berlinale has gotten bigger and bigger [under Kosslick], but its profile continues to diminish," says German director Christoph Hochhausler, a … [Read more...] about The Battle to Find a New Berlin Film Festival Director
SXSW Film Festival Announces 2018 Lineup
The lineup for this year’s SXSW Film Festival (March 9-18), and there’s a lot to dig through. Some quickly noted highlights among the world premieres: The Last O.G., Jordan Peele’s less-than-a-year-later follow-up to Get Out, with Tracy Morgan and Tiffany Haddish; Jinn, the feature debut from last year’s 25 New Face Nijla Mu’min; Jim Cummings’ feature-length adaptation of his Sundance-winning short Thunder Road (he documented his festival experience in a series of video diaries starting here); Wild Nights with Emily, a comedy starring Molly Shannon as Emily Dickinson from Madeline Olnek (The Foxy Merkins). The full line-up is below; the opening night film is John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place. NARRATIVE FEATURE COMPETITION FamilyCast: Taylor Schilling, Bryn Vale, Brian Tyree Henry, Jessie Ennis, Blair Beeken, Matt Walsh, Allison Tolman, Eric Edelstein, Kate McKinnon, Fabrizio Guido (World Premiere)First … [Read more...] about SXSW Film Festival Announces 2018 Lineup