John Wildman

Ninja Thyberg’s Pleasure, James P. Gannon’s Deerwoods Deathtraop, Margaret Brown’s Descendant and more! Catching up to Sundance 2022, 2021

By John Wildman 3 years ago

We have a tremendous backlog of Films Gone Wild interviews that we are going to try and catch up on during the next month or so. We’ll start off with three films that we spoke to during the Sundance Film Festival – both the 2022 edition and even going back to a 2021 highlight. A couple of these interviews include my good friends Angela Tabora and Erin Lim from the incredibly fun and informative Bitch Talk podcast out of San Francisco. We have been teaming up on the next generation of what was the Daily Buzz show created by the legendary Irene Cho for a couple of years now. The spirit of those interviews combining our three points-of-view would make Irene happy, I think, as it remains true to her mission to not just talk to celebrities, but to discover new filmmakers as well as some cool veterans and occasional famous person and talk about the films that fascinate us and dig into their work in a fun way.

Christine Choy for Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival 2022, previews October fest with honorees announcement

By John Wildman 4 years ago

HSDFF Festival Director Sheryl Santacruz, said, “We are all very excited to return to the film festival’s longtime home and arguable epicenter at the Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa. It will be a continuation of the process we began last year to get back to theater screenings and in-person events the way our film fans and filmmakers have come to know and love for three decades now.” Santacruz added, “This year’s honorees are also particularly special for Hot Springs. Choy has made an indelible impact through her trailblazing, activist filmmaking, and we cannot think of a better recipient for this year’s award. And, of course, the Renaud Brothers’ contributions, not just to the Arkansas filmmaking community but to non-fiction storytelling in general, is immeasurable; we are proud to rename this award in Brent’s honor.”

Redux’s Heimir Bjarnason, John Gray, Melissa Jo Peltier, Marilys Ernst: Festival of Cinema NYC’s 2nd Photo Call highlighted Iceland, NYC filmmaking, and SUSHI

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Festival of Cinema NYC hosted a second photo call as the film festival headed into its final weekend (It’s one of the rare film festivals to still have a long enough schedule that it has TWO weekends) The carpet saw a visiting filmmaker from Iceland (REDUX’s Heimir Bjarnason, a filmmaking team with two flms at the fest (John Gray, Melissa Jo Peltier, and Marilys Ernst with the films THE GAME IS UP: DISILLUSIONED TRUMP VOTERS TELL THEIR STORIES and THE LITTLE DRUMMER BOY), Michelle Girolami, who was put through her paces all over New York City in the sci-fi thriller IMPLANTED, the trio (Tim Martin, Nickolas Manesiotis, and Alexx Diaz) from the short film SUSHI, and DANCE TILL DAWN’s Ayesha Adamo making her last appearance at a fest in the states before moving to study in Amsterdam. In other words, there was actually a lot going on for a modest film festival photo call.

Tallgrass Film Festival 2022 announces lineup for 20th Anniversary edition

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Tallgrass FF program director Andre Seward, said, “This edition of Tallgrass will be one to remember for sure. Every year we say the same thing, that this year’s films are the best we’ve seen. There is no doubt that it is true for this year as well. I am very proud to be able to present the line-up that we have for our 20th anniversary. The wide range of genres and styles will give everyone a chance to find something to fall in love with during the festival.”

Jayson Simba ‘s Festival of Cinema NYC kept the red carpet fun going with the first of two mid-week photo calls

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Therefore, the first FOC NYC photo call featured Daniel Merino Villavicencio’s SWEET PEA & GLASS (Important note: Villavicencio has attended every FOC NYC fest, from fan to volunteer to filmmaker. That’s a very cool progression to any of us that love the film festival circuit and believe in it, as I most definitely do.), and Nathan Buck, the director and writer of UNDER SPANISH SKIES was also there, having made the trip from Berlin to attend the film festival. You make that kind of trip to attend a film festival then you best be getting more out of it than your garden variety Q&A.

Atlanta’s OUT ON FILM rolls out impressive lineup of films and events for 35th Anniversary edition

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Out on Film Festival Director Jim Farmer said, “Our 35th Anniversary presentation will hit all the notes that Out on Film has become celebrated for over the past four decades, with a wonderful combination of films from around the world, as well as from our amazing city of Atlanta. We’ve got a great honoree in Colman Domingo who somehow will manage to be on hand in the middle of his incredibly packed production schedule, and new wrinkles in store, including our very first screenplay competition coupled with a queer filmmaker celebration.”

Sidewalk Film Festival 2022 now underway goes BIG with 250+ films and events

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Sidewalk Film Festival Creative Director and Lead Programmer, Rachel Morgan, said, “The programming team is incredibly excited about the Sidewalk line-up this year. We feel certain that we’ve once again gotten close to the impossible goal of “something for everyone”. 2022 has been especially notable for exceptional Alabama films from the opening night selection Butterfly in the Sky that recently premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival to Margaret Brown’s Obama-Endorsed Descendant to the super sly Pretty Problems and even an Alabama-made horror double feature (The Third Saturday in October). We’re also incredibly honored to have worked with Showtime to host several films including Mcenroe and Nothing Compares and, of course, we’ve partnered with our BFF A24 to host Funny Pages and God’s Creatures. Then there are the 60 plus other features and 250 or so shorts. And you know us… the parties.”

Festival of Cinema NYC 2022 Announces Award Winners after audience-filled return to theaters

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Festival of Cinema NYC Founder and Executive Director Jayson Simba, said, “Our film festival, like all festivals, works hard to bring people back to theaters and recapture the excitement of going to the movies again. The fact that this year, attendees from across the five boroughs came out in large numbers to celebrate cinema with filmmakers who flew in from as far away as Iceland, Germany, Japan, and the UK, was incredibly exciting for all of us. That enthusiasm and support was evident – from the Forest Hills Community to the filmmakers all the way through the final award being announced. It became clear that friendships and relationships had been forged throughout the 10 days at our film festival.”

The Lake Travis Film Festival 2022 announces lineup for next month’s fest outside of Austin

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Lake Travis Film Festival Founder and Executive Director, Kat Albert, shares, “The third year brings an opportunity to hone into what we best…curating an overall cinematic experience. We do not sell individual tickets. The suburbs don’t have a traditional downtown, so we’ve worked to make our pop-up style festival work with three walkable hubs. Thursday and Friday are in the Oaks at Lakeway. Saturday is in the Hill Country Galleria and Sunday is Texas Film Industry Day at Star Hill Ranch. The festival is young but garnering a reputation as a unique experience for filmmakers, screenwriters, and the local community.”