The Lone Star International Film Festival, Fort Worth, in Sundance Square, today announced Christine Jeffs’ SUNSHINE CLEANING will screen on Wednesday, November 12 at the AMC Palace Theater in Sundance Square as the Opening Night Gala offering and Joel Hopkins’ LAST CHANCE HARVEY will screen Saturday, November 15 as the Closing Night Gala for the second edition of the festival.
LSIFF Centerpiece Screenings will be Jaffar Mahmood’s SHADES OF RAY and Nikita Mikhalkov’s award winning film, “12.”
LSIFF also announced films comprising a dynamic new Russian Films Spotlight section curated by Visiting Artistic Director Kirill Razlogov of the American Film Festival in Moscow. Those films include THE BANISHMENT, LIVE TO REMEMBER, and MONA LISA ON ASPHALT. They are joined by “12” and NIRVANA (in the Narrative Competition) for a total of five films representing Russia in the festival.
Directed by Christine Jeffs, SUNSHINE CLEANING revolves around a single mom and her slacker sister as they find an unexpected way to turn their lives around. Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams), a former high school cheerleading captain, finds herself, at thirty-something, a single mother working as a maid. Desperate to get her son into a better school, Rose persuades her sister Norah to go into the lucrative crime scene clean-up business with her. In no time, the girls are up to their elbows in murders, suicides and other…situations.
Nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, the film also stars Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Steve Zahn and Mary Lynn Rajskub. The film is slated for limited release in March of 2009.
Academy Award® winners Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson reunite in LAST CHANCE HARVEY, a hopeful romance that celebrates new beginnings—at any age. The heartfelt romantic comedy, which takes place in London, is about a man down on his luck (Hoffman) who finds an unlikely companion (Thompson) while in London attending his daughter’s wedding. The growing connection between the pair inspires both as they unexpectedly transform one another’s lives. The film also stars Kathy Baker, James Brolin, Eileen Atkins, Liane Balaban and Richard Schiff. The Overture Films release is due in theaters December 26, 2008 in New York and Los Angeles and then in theaters nationwide January 23, 2009.
LSIFF will feature two Centerpiece Screenings including SHADES OF RAY and the film, “12.”
Thursday, November 13
Centerpiece Screening at 8:00PM.
SHADES OF RAY will screen on Thursday, November 13. Directed by Jaffar Mahmood, the film follows the awkward sorting out of relationships after an American-born young man comes home one night to find his Pakistani father on his doorstep. The young man’s Caucasian mother had thrown his father out of the house. The situation would be difficult enough were it not for the fact he has just proposed to his Caucasian girlfriend – who hasn’t given him an answer. While struggling to reunite his parents, the young man meets a South Asian girl of mixed descent, just like him, and must decide where his identity truly lies. The film stars Zachary Levi, Kathy Baker, and Bonnie Somerville.
Friday, November 14
Centerpiece Screening at 7:30PM.
“12” will screen on Friday, November 14. Directed by Nikita Mikhalkov, the drama is an adaptation of 12 ANGRY MEN, set in a Russian school in the war-torn republic of Chechnya. 12 jurors are struggling to decide the fate of a Chechen teenager who allegedly killed his Russian stepfather. The jurors are a collection of personalities representing the fragmented society of modern day Russia.
HOW TO BE will screen on November 15 at 7:00PM. Directed by Oliver Irving, the film is a wry coming-of-age comedy about a twenty-something young man who gets dumped by his girlfriend, moves back in with his parents and hits a quarter-life crisis. He then uses his inheritance money to indulge in retail and new age therapies only to end up enlisting the help of an eccentric self-help guru. The film stars Robert Pattinson and Rebecca Pidgeon.
Tomas Alfredson’s thriller, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN will screen on November 14 at 10:30PM. The Norwegian film follows the relationship that develops between an overlooked and bullied boy and a beautiful, but peculiar girl who turns out to be a vampire.
WENDY AND LUCY will screen on November 13 at 8:30PM. Directed by Kelly Reichardt, the film stars Michelle Williams as a young woman who must deal with unexpected hardship as she travels to Alaska with her pet dog in search of a job and a new life.
To honor Sidney Lumet’s influence on Nikita Mikhalkov’s “12”, the festival will screen Lumet’s classic 12 ANGRY MEN on November 16 at 3:30PM. LSIFF will also screen Lumet’s NETWORK to complete the tribute to the director and his work.
In honor of the 2008 LSIFF Rising Star recipient Melonie Diaz. Spencer Parson’s I’LL COME RUNNING will screen on November 16 at 1:30PM.
The Russian Films Spotlight is the result of an official partnership formed between LSIFF, the Lone Star Film Society, Inc. (LSFS) and the American Film Festival of Moscow (AMFEST) with the purpose of bringing the best in contemporary American cinema to Moscow and the best in contemporary Russian cinema to Fort Worth as well as working together to bring the best in contemporary World cinema to both events.
In addition to screening the Russian works, LSIFF will also have several of the filmmakers and cast members in attendance to meet with the public and participate in Q&A’s after the screening of their films. Among those confirmed to attend the film festival will include Olga Sutulova (Cast – NIRVANA), Andrey Zvyagintsev (DIR- BANISHMENT), and Natalia Naumova (Cast – MONA LISA ON ASPHALT).
Razlogov, AMFEST director Felix Rosenthal, LSIFF Director Dennis Bishop, and LSFS President J. Mitchell Johnson are also working together to gain corporate funding for a media education program that will facilitate filmmaker, exhibition, and production exchanges between the U.S. and Russia. The exchange comes at an exciting time in Russia as they celebrate 100 years of cinema in their country as well as a new cinematic movement with record breaking box office numbers and promising new creative talent.
Razlogov is the director of the Russian Institute for Cultural Research, holds a doctorate in film, politics, and religion, and is an internationally known film critic. The Russian representative in the Culture Committee of the Council of Europe, he is the author of numerous books and articles on film and culture, including First Century of Cinema, published in Moscow in 1996.
“One of the things I tried to do during my already long life in and with the movies was to facilitate contacts between cultures, artists and works of art from my native country Russia and the rest of the world. The nascent relationship between the Russian Film Academy, Amfest (Moscow festival of American Independent Films) and the Lone Star International Film Festival in Fort Worth serves the goal of creating new links and contacts between American and Russian films and public, between filmmakers and film industries of two countries still divided politically but very close culturally,” said Razlogov.
“In our second year, the Lone Star Film Festival has both broadened its outreach by forging what is truly a unique and exciting relationship with the American Film Festival of Moscow, and also put together a great selection of quality films for Fort Worth film enthusiasts. This will be the first opportunity for the people of Fort Worth to see these films and frankly, it may be the only opportunity for them to see some of them play on the big screen. We also have great music, great parties, educational screenings and panels with an emphasis on supporting the local film community while reaching out to partner with the world class museums and organizations in Fort Worth,” said Dennis Bishop, LSIFF director.
Bishop also cited the work and leadership of Director of Programming and Development, Alec Jhangiani in helping to put together this year’s selection of films, including the new Russian Spotlight section.
The five-day festival will take place November 12-16, 2008 and feature a selection of narrative, documentary, feature and short films from around the world. Venues will include the AMC Palace Theatre, the Four Day Weekend Theater, and the Scott Theatre, as well as the just opened Norris Conference Center, the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, and the Kimbell Art Museum.
Anticipation for the event extends to the Fort Worth mayor’s office, with Mayor Mike Moncrief stating, “On behalf of the City Council and the citizens of Fort Worth, it is my pleasure to welcome the 2nd Annual Lone Star International Film festival to our city. Fort Worth is widely recognized as one of the most livable cities in the nation, and it’s our hope that al in attendance will savor their stay and enjoy our unique mix of cultural attractions found only in the city ’Where the West Begins.’”
LSIFF will begin on Wednesday, November 12 with a Focus Fort Worth program that will feature a series of screenings for local special interest and educational organizations in the community including Fort Worth Imagination Celebration, the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Fort Worth, and the Arc of Greater Tarrant County, and the Southwest and Trimble Tech High School media programs.
The LSIFF schedule is comprised of 55 films (28 features and 27 shorts). The LSIFF full schedule of films are as follows:
Centerpiece Screenings
SHADES OF RAY
DIR: Jaffar Mahmood
Cast: Zachary Levi, Kathy Baker, Bonnie Somerville
12
DIR: Nikita Mikhalkov
Narrative Feature Competition
A QUIET LITTLE MARRIAGE
DIR: Mo Perkins
Cast: Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Charlie Day, Melanie Lynsky
HOTEL VERY WELCOME
DIR/SCR: Sonja Heiss
MY MARLON AND BRANDO
DIR: Huseyin Karabey
THE NEW YEAR PARADE
DIR: Tom Quinn
NIRVANA
DIR: Igor Voloshin
Documentary Competition
ONE FAST MOVE OR I’M GONE: KEROUAC’S BIG SUR
DIR: Curt Worden
THEY CAME TO PLAY
DIR: Alex Rotaru
TRINIDAD
DIR: Jay Hodges, P.J. Raval
VISUAL ACOUSTICS: THE MODERNISM OF JULIUS SHULMAN
DIR: Eric Bricker
Narrator: Dustin Hoffman
New Russian Cinema
THE BANISHMENT (Izgnanie)
DIR: Andrei Zvyagintsev
LIVE TO REMEMBER
DIR: Alexander Proshkin
MONA LISA ON ASPHALT
DIR/SCR: Vladimir Naumov
Spotlight Films
HOW TO BE
DIR: Oliver Irving
Cast: Robert Pattinson, Rebecca Pidgeon
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
DIR: Tomas Alfredson
VEXILLE
DIR: Fumihiko Sori
VIRTUAL JFK
DIR/SCR: Koji Masutani
WENDY AND LUCY
DIR: Kelly Reichardt
Cast: Michelle Williams
Tribute
I’LL COME RUNNING
DIR: Spencer Parsons
NETWORK (1976)
DIR: Sidney Lumet
12 ANGRY MEN (1957)
DIR: Sidney Lumet
Panther City Showcase
KARMA POLICE
DIR/SCR: John Venable
TEEN A GO-GO
DIR: Melissa Kirkendall
Focus Fort Worth
BEFORE THE MUSIC DIES (2006)
DIR: Andrew Shapter
HAIRSPRAY (2007)
DIR: Adam Shankman
MARY POPPINS (1964)
DIR: Robert Stevenson
MUSIC LESSON
DIR: Virginia Galloway
Short Film Competition
THE ABATTOIR
DIR: T.J. Volgare
THE AVIATRIX
DIR: Toddy Burton
BEHOLDEN
DIR: David Jibladze
BLOOM
DIR: Lance Larson
CITY OF CRANES
DIR: Eva Webber
DOXOLOGY
DIR/SCR: Michael Langan
GLORY AT SEA:
DIR: Benh Zeitlin
MY MOM SMOKES WEED
DIR/SCR: Clay Liford
ONE OF THE LAST (Uno degli ultimi)
DIR: Paul Zinder
QUICK FEET, SMALL HANDS
DIR: Paul Harrill
QUINCY AND ALTHEA
DIR: Doug Lenox
RIDGE COUNTY REQUIEM
DIR: Carey Russel
SCAREDYCAT
DIR/SCR: Andy Blubaugh
SEBASTIAN’S VOODOO
DIR: Joaquin Baldwin
SIDE EFFECTS
DIR: Chuck Rose
SILENT SNOW
DIR: Jan van den Berg
SMALL APARTMENT
DIR: Andrew T Betzer
THE SMALLEST RIVER IN ALMIRANTE
DIR: Joshua Rofe
SPIDER
DIR: Nash Edgerton
STARS AND SUNS
DIR: Sarah Soquel Morhaim
SUGAR
DIR: Alex Beh
TECHNOPHILIAC
DIR: Anthony Vasiliadis
THE TRAVELER
DIR: Greg Beauchamp
EL TAXISTA
DIR: Luis Robledo
WHEN THE LIGHT’S RED
DIR: Keith Wilson
THE WHITE DRESS
DIR: Vanessa Gildea
WOMAN IN BURKA
DIR: Jonathan Lisecki
