John Wildman

Louis Schwartzberg’s FANTASTIC FUNGI among Dallas’ 2nd Best of Fests film festival brings filmmakers and fest toppers together for a big weekend

By John Wildman 6 years ago

The 2020 edition of Dallas’ Best of Fests doubled down on the remarkable fact that the film festival, which incorporated more than two dozen of Dallas, Fort Worth, and North Texas’ film festivals was accomplished last year, by managing to produce a robust sequel this year. There is a rare collegial relationship between the vast majority of the film festival heads in the area and many of them share several seasonal staffers, volunteers, and, of course, audience members.

Geena Davis, Co-Founder and Chair: Cites Coronavirus concerns, the 2020 Bentonville Film Festival moves dates of fest to August

By John Wildman 6 years ago

“This decision comes after careful consideration and consultation with our partners. Our number one concern is the safety of our content creators and our community of attendees. We are grateful for the support and recommendations we’ve received and look forward to welcoming everyone to the 6th edition of BFF this August.” Bentonville Film Festival, Co-Founder and Chair, Geena Davis said.

Michael Cain Annc’s EarthxFilm to join forces with Dallas International Film Festival for combined 2020 film festival presentation

By John Wildman 6 years ago

EarthxFilm’s Co-Founder and President, Michael Cain, said,” For EarthxFilm and the Dallas International Film Festival, two organizations I helped found to collaborate for the joint 2020 festival is incredibly satisfying. People in North Texas who appreciate film and compelling storytelling will be the beneficiaries.”

Wancang Bu’s silent classic LOVE AND DUTY part of CineCina Film Festival; postpones fest due to Coronavirus

By John Wildman 6 years ago

CineCina Film Festival Founder and Director Vina Sun, added, “However, while it made sense to postpone what is becoming our signature film festival event in order to ensure its success, our mission continues. The special presentation of LOVE AND DUTY both celebrates a formative classic early Chinese film, and provides a lead in to the theme of this summer’s upcoming film festival, including the reveal of the film festival’s poster image.

Lawrence Kasdan honored with King Vidor Award at The 2020 San Luis Obispo International Film Festival

By John Wildman 6 years ago

“The King Vidor Award offers us an opportunity each year to celebrate and honor someone that has impacted our love of cinema, and Lawrence Kasdan epitomizes that as much as anyone” said SLO Film Fest Director Wendy Eidson. “From RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, to THE BIG CHILL, to so much that we love about the STAR WARS films and more, he has either been one of the key people behind their creation or outright been responsible for some of our favorite movie moments.”

Allan Moyle’s THE GUN IN BETTY LOU’S HANDBAG Opens 2020 Oxford Film Festival Announces Special Screenings and Film Events Adding to Jam-packed schedule in March

By John Wildman 6 years ago

Addington, said, “Each year, after we initially set our schedule, exciting films will pop up and potentially be available for us to show to our Oxford Film Festival audiences. This year, we were fortunate enough to grab a few great ones. The Female Filmmaker Retreat is a very exciting addition to offer some real assistance and push to a group of women working on their next films. Project(ions) is another step forward for film as art that we think will add to the fest-going experience. And we’ll see everyone at our Secret Screening for the big reveal!”

SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Emily Wilson’s DANNY’S GIRL amps up the WTF as an online couple meet for the first time

By John Wildman 6 years ago

“Since the world of the film is heightened and the premise is a bit wacky, we needed to make sure that the character’s motivations and behaviors were rooted in sincere emotion. So we rehearsed a lot before shooting in order to make sure that we understood their decisions, cared deeply for them, and ultimately were rooting for them. Since that was the foundation, it freed us up to embrace and experiment with the darker, zanier stuff.”

SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Jay Dockendorf’s THREE DEATHS Tolstoy adaptation is a classic short film as cinematic short story

By John Wildman 6 years ago

“Shooting on film felt like a straightforward way to connect with the past. I think film evokes the “old world” origins of Tolstoy’s story as well as a sense of film history that I wanted to tap into. 35mm also has a deeper, more emotional feeling, I find, and I wanted to soak up the sadness of the story and performances.”

Chusy Jardine’s IT ALL BEGINS WITH A SONG, Benjamin Kasulke’s BANANA SPLIT: The 2020 San Luis Obispo International Film Festival rolls with 2 hot Sundance titles

By John Wildman 6 years ago

“We have set ourselves up for a very musical start, which will lead into a number of special film events that set us apart from a lot of other film festivals: joining our love of food, wine and great cinema into one combined evening” said San Luis Obispo Film Festival Director Wendy Eidson. “When you then add on two very popular films to come out of Sundance this year, 64 George Sidney Independent Film selections, and our growing Central Coast Filmmaker Showcase, we will be rolling out one our most impressive lineups of films and events yet.”