John Wildman

Utah-based HorrorFest International Film Festival 2022 announces lineup of films and events for this month’s fest

By John Wildman 4 years ago

HorrorFest International Film Festival Co-Founders and Senior Programmers, Adam Mast, John Pugh, and Jeff Sanders, said, “We could not be more excited to roll out this lineup of films and events as we celebrate our 20th year. We have seen this film festival grow over the past two decades to become a truly special film festival that is a stalwart on the international scene, while highlighting the filmmaking accomplishments in our home state of Utah – and yet, never losing the warmth and camaraderie our filmmakers and film fans enjoy here at the Electric Theater in St. George.”

NYC-based Imagine Science Film Festival 2022 announces films and events for mid-October hybrid fest

By John Wildman 4 years ago

New York City’s Imagine Science Film Festival announced the lineup of films and events for the hybrid presentation of its 15th edition, taking place October 14-21. Screenings will kick off with the Opening Night presentation of Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s Utama, and Spotlight Features including a special presentation of Jean-Luc Godard’s classic Alphaville: The Strange Adventure of Lemmy Caution, Ali Cherri’s The Dam (Le Barrage), Jacquelyn Mills’ Geographies of Solitude, and Signe Baumane’s My Love Affair with Marriage.

Mark Koetsier and Dublin Wahlberg’s IN THE BETWEEN makes its World Premiere at NoHo CineFest in L.A.

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Mark Koetsier and Dublin Wahlberg’s short film dealing with a young couple struggling to overcome her PTSD from a traumatic incident while serving in the military and the subsequent opioid addiction made its world premiere at the 9th NoHo CineFest last week. The film was a labor of love for nearly everyone involved with the production and several came out to represent during the film’s debut, beginning with a raucous Opening Night reception with red carpet entrances at North Hollywood’s The Federal Bar.

Preston Miller’s l’Odge d’Oor sneaks NYC premiere in Brooklyn ahead of run at Village East by Angelika next month

By John Wildman 4 years ago

Last night, the film had a sneak preview at Phil Hartman’s The Brick in Brooklyn, which could not have been a more perfect venue to give an audience both a first look at the film, but also an evening to meet Miller, his longtime friend and collaborator (and former noted Village Voice writer) Mark Jacobsen and gain some insight into real New York City-based independent filmmaking from those two as well as Hartman. After an intro from the trio, Jacobson and Miller’s short (which will be stitched into a larger project envisioned by Jacobson), titled The Suitcase also got a first look followed by l’Odge d’Oor, and a second conversation between Miller and Hartman focusing on that film.

Double Exposure Investigative Docs & Symposium 2022 rolls out films and panel subjects

By John Wildman 4 years ago

This year’s slate is a testimony to the incredible dedication of journalists and filmmakers who risk it all to go beyond the headlines,” said Double Exposure founder and co-director Diana Jean Schemo. “From an eight-year long investigation of cross-border land grabs, to an anonymous collective documenting the death of democracy in Myanmar, to a documentary on the devastation of Mariupolis, Ukraine, that cost the director his life, these films all embody a commitment to convey deeper truths at any cost.”

Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival 2022 announces film lineup

By John Wildman 4 years ago

“This year’s edition of the film festival will kick off our fourth decade celebrating the impact that documentary filmmaking has on us as we view our world through the lenses of these incredible filmmakers’ work,” said HSDFF Festival Director, Sheryl Santacruz. “Each year fills us with a renewal of enthusiasm and appreciation for the stories we get to experience in each screening, complimented by the participation of the artists and subjects themselves. The conversations, events, activities, parties, and more are going to make for a fantastic film festival and cultural event next month.”

Lake Travis Film Festival wraps 3rd edition with filmmaker awards

By John Wildman 4 years ago

The Third Lake Travis Film Festival announced its filmmaker awards during brunch at Bee Cave’s famous Star Hill Ranch (15000 Hamilton Pool Rd) as LTFF wrapped up another celebratory weekend packed with film fans and filmmakers converging on the Lake Travis areas of Bee Cave and Lakeway for four days of screenings, panels, parties, and events that the film festival has become noted for. Laura Lehmus’s Sweet Disaster took the jury prize for Best Narrative Feature Film and Gulya Mirzoeva’s Katia and Rimma won the Best Documentary Feature Film award.

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 4 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.”