Austin Film Festival News: October 2006

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Closing night at AFF!

Just one night left to see great movies at the 13th Annual Austin Film Festival! Here's the complete lineup, or check out the schedule with trailers and more.

American Scary (91 min)
USA

Director: John E. Hudgens

TerrorVision
Thursday, October 26
7:00 PM
Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek

Regional Premiere: American Scary is a look at the nation's tradition of horror hosting, from Zacherley to A. Ghastlee Ghoul. With interviews from major hosts from the 1950s to the present day, along with memories from celebrities and fans who were influenced by these hosts, you'll follow this American folk art form from its glamorous beginnings, through repeated waves of popularity, to its scrappy resurgence and survival in the age of cable access and the Internet. American Scary looks to remind people how much fun local TV could be - and maybe could be again. Featuring Joe Bob Briggs, Tim Conway, Neil Gaiman, Tom Savini and more! With horror host and Austinite Professor Anton Griffin and Frank Della Stritto from Cult Movies Press in attendance!

Journey from the Fall (135 min)
USA/Vietnam

Director: Ham Tran

Special Presentations
Thursday, October 26
7:00 PM
IMAX Theater

Regional Premiere: "The movie begins on the last day of the war and follows the life of Long Nguyen and his family through prison 're-education' camps, dramatic sea escapes on dilapidated boats and finally to Little Saigon. Many of the scenes shot by cinematographer Guillermo Rosas (Master and Commander, Before Night Falls, Titanic, Man on Fire) are breathtaking backdrops to a brutal tale that’s been compared to Schindler’s List." - Orange County Weekly. Inspired by actual events, Journey from the Fall follows one family's fight for freedom in the wake of war-torn Vietnam. In 1975, against his wife's wishes, Long Nguyen chooses to stay in Vietnam and fight for his beloved country. Knowing that his decision may separate him from his family forever, he asks his wife, Mai, to leave their homeland for safer shores. Together with her son and mother-in-law, Mai reluctantly boards a tiny fishing boat bound for America and they begin a perilous journey across the sea. Journey from the Fall is dedicated to the millions of boat people and survivors of the communist re-education camps.

Prison Pups (58 min)
USA

Director: Alice Bouvrie

Documentary Feature Competition
Thursday, October 26
7:00 PM
Regal Arbor Theater

World Premiere: Prison Pups follows four prison inmates as they train puppies for the handicapped and hearing impaired on a minimum-security facility nestled in the rolling farmland northwest of Boston. The peacefulness of this landscape belies a controlled and regimented environment where these inmates live with and train puppies over a 10 to 14 month period. The benefits of taking responsibility and knowing unconditional love can be profound as inmates gain confidence and are empowered by their role as trainers.

The Houston Film Commission presents the Texas Filmmakers' Showcase (102 min)
USA

Shorts Programs
Thursday, October 26
7:15 PM
The Hideout Theater

Short films screening in this program include: Bubblecraft, JO FM, North to Ojinaga, Redemptitude, Room 314, Roslyn, Soul Mates, and Vincent Valdez.

Note: filmmakers in attendance

Walking to Werner (93 min.)
USA

Director: Linas Phillips

Documentary Feature Competition
Thursday, October 26
7:15 PM
Landmark Dobie Theater

Regional Premiere: In the winter of 1974, German director Werner Herzog walked from Munich to Paris to see his dying friend, film critic Lotte Eisner, hoping that by making the journey on foot he would somehow keep her alive. In summer 2005, hoping simply to meet the man who had inspired him to make movies, filmmaker Linas Phillips made his own pilgrimage, walking 1,200 miles from Seattle to Herzog’s Los Angeles home. Braving freeway traffic, weather, the California Highway Patrol, and his own self-doubt, Linas fulfills a dream that parallels the filmic dreams accomplished by his hero, and as one marginal roadside character after another shares a story with him – redemptive, tragic, funny – Linas’ dream becomes much bigger than he originally intended.

Tenacious D in 'The Pick of Destiny' (100 min.)
USA

DIRECTOR: Liam Lynch
WRITERS: Jack Black, Kyle Gass, Liam Lynch
CAST: Amy Poehler, Ben Stiller, Colin Hanks, Jack Black, Kyle Gass, Tim Robbins

Marquee Screenings
Thursday, October 26
7:45 PM
Paramount Theatre

Regional Premiere The legend of the fabled "Pick of Destiny" infuses every page of rock history. This is no ordinary pick, my friends, its sheer power could shake the pillars of Algernon. It is a thing of lore . . . a thing of magic.

Since the dark ages, this supernatural pick has been passed down through many hands. The world's most awesome composers. The hardest of hard rockers. Many of the great masterpieces in music were due to this pick's powerful spell.

Now, the time draws nigh when the pick will be passed to the next generation of rock - the ones they call Tenacious D.

This is their tale of a friendship that would last through the ages and a musical and spiritual synergy so strong that it would reshape our very understanding of the concept of rock

Beyond the Call (82 min.)
USA

Director: Adrian Belic

Special Presentations
Thursday, October 26
8:45 PM
Regal Arbor Theater

Regional Premiere: Made in the cinema verite style of the director's previous and Academy Award nominated film, Genghis Blues, Beyond the Call tells the story of three middle aged men whose idea of adventure is taking desperately needed food and medicine into some of the most dangerous yet beautiful places on Earth: the front lines of war. Ed Artis, Jim Laws and Walt Ratterman are former soldiers and self-styled Knights of Malta. In 1995, they formed Knightsbridge International, a unique humanitarian aid organization with the motto "High Adventure and Service to Humanity." Their specialty is going where death from landmines, bullets, or bombs is as frequent as death from hunger, disease, or the elements. They are a fusion of Mother Theresa and Indiana Jones. Their personal convictions and courage drive them to places like Afghanistan, Albania, Chechnya, Cambodia, Rwanda and the southern Philippines, often before other aid organizations arrive. The three are still on the ground when other aid organizations deem things too dangerous and pull out. Artis explains: "We're not there to change anybody's politics, we're not in the God business, and we pay our own way."

Truth Be Tolled (105 min.)
USA

Special Presentations
Thursday, October 26
9:15 PM
Landmark Dobie Theater
Director: William H. Molina

Government has figured out a way to make money on public infrastructure. The plan is to convert existing Texas roadways into tollways and hand them over to foreign interests without a public vote. Many citizens are crying highway robbery.

Elected officials have passed laws unnoticed to simply pave the way. The political establishment is not listening to the people, but their voices will be heard.

This powerful documentary follows the process as citizens utilize their most important power as members of a democracy: freedom of speech.

From mayors of small cities, political candidates and grass roots groups to working-class Texans, all unite to state their loud opposition. The strongest voices rise from small rural communities whose farms, homes, schools, businesses and churches face the largest forcible eminent domain acquisition in U.S. history.

The Trans-Texas Corridor, a giant scar through the center of the state, will not only rip the heart out of Texas-- it will kill a way of life that has been in the state forever.

Note: filmmakers in attendance

Snoop Dogg's Hood of Horror (80 min.)
USA

DIRECTOR: Stacy Title
WRITERS: Chris Kobin, Jacob Hair, Jonathan McHugh, Tim Sullivan
CAST: Billy Dee Williams, Danny Trejo, Ernie Hudson, Jason Alexander, Method Man, Snoop Dogg

TerrorVision
Thursday, October 26
9:20 PM
Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek

Regional Premiere: Welcome to the Hood of Horror, a place where revenge is a dish served cold in a 40 oz. The Hound of Hell is your guide through three terrifying tales from this nefarious neighborhood and its depraved denizens, including a tagger who finds out that not all gangstas die hard, a spoiled heir to a Texas oil dynasty who murders for money but can’t pay to stay alive, and a major rap star who discovers he’s got a few skeletons in his dressing room - and they’re kicking down the door. This bone-chilling, gut-bursting (literally) anthology proves once and for all, “It AIN’T all good in da Hood!”

Matando Cabos (94 min.)
Mexico

International Showcase: Mexico
Thursday, October 26
9:50 PM
Paramount Theatre

DIRECTOR: Alejandro Lozano
WRITERS: Alejandro Lozano, Kryztof Raczynski, Tony Dalton
CAST: Ana Claudia Talancon, Tony Dalton

Regional Premiere: Matando Cabos tells two sides of a kidnapping gone wrong. The victim is one of the most powerful men in Mexico, Oscar Cabos. Three kidnappers take a man they believe to be Cabos who is really someone else. The real Oscar Cabos has already been accidentally kidnapped by two of his employees. We follow the first group of kidnappers as they learn they have the wrong man and the other group as they try to return the real Oscar Cabos safely back home without endangering their own lives. A retired Mexican wrestler, a noisy parrot, and an Audi crashing into the largest stadium in the world create a world of situations that will impact all the characters in a single night.

Nightmare Detective (106 min.)
Japan/USA

Marquee Screenings, TerrorVision
(Sneak Preview TBA #3)

Director: Tsukamoto Shinya
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) & Conference is pleased to announce the US Premiere of Movie Eye Entertainment's "Nightmare Detective" as part of its 135-film line-up.

The film was directed by veteran Japanese director Tsukamoto Shinya ("Tetsuo: The Iron Man") and combines elements of horror and detective genres with social commentary. Variety notes, ”[Shinya’s] talent for creating and more importantly, maintaining, a frightening mood never falters… His idiosyncratic style, recalling David Lynch at his most perverse, is visceral.”

The film investigates an internet predator who enters victims’ minds while they sleep, an idea that came from the real life Japanese suicide websites which incite readers to commit suicide. The concept also sprung out of the director’s childhood nightmares which he says, “"frightened me, but at the same time they gave me a certain joy as if I were on a roller coaster at a leisure park."

In Japanese with English subtitles.

Closing night at AFF!

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Filmmaker Focus: Dale Kutzera of "Military Intelligence and You!"

Dale Kutzera has worked as a screenwriter for the past six years, first writing several unproduced feature scripts, then co-creating and producing the VH-1 series “Strange Frequency” and later on staff at the CBS series “Without a Trace.” A native of Washington State, he grew up in Tacoma and later attended the University of Washington in Seattle. He has written about film production for such magazines as “American Cinematographer,” “Cinefex,” and “Cinefantastique,” and served as researcher for Rosebud, author David Thompson’s biography of Orson Welles. He is a past recipient of the Carl Sautter Screenwriting Award, the Environmental Media Award (for “Without A Trace”), and was a participant in the prestigious Warner Brothers Writers Workshop.

"Military Intelligence and You!" uses a great deal of World War II military training film footage. How did you discover and then decide to use this footage?

About four years ago, I was developing an idea for a documentary, and part of the process was searching film archives. At the National Archives outside Washington DC I literally picked up the wrong tape in their viewing center and started watching a WWII training film caled "Rear Gunner" starring Burgess Meredith and Ronald Reagan. The idea struck me that there must be other dramatized training films, made with high production values, and that they would all be in the public domain. So that resource percolated in my brain and then later after Iraq started, I began kicking around an idea of making a film by repurposing these old movies.

The WWII parallels to modern politics may seem obvious as presented in the film, but how is today's situation different from that of sixty years ago? What kind of research did you do?

I believe all writers are at their hearts observers, and what I was observing with Iraq was very disturbing to me. You may recall all the jingoism and "my way or the highway" mentality of the lead-in to Iraq...renaming "French Fries" as "Freedom Fries" for instance when the French would not fall lock-step in with the Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld game plan. The comparisons with WWII are stark and, again in my opinion, quite sobering. America was truly united after Pearl Harbor (setting aside, of course, the race prejudice of the era). Men and women enlisted, corporate America got on board and started making tanks instead of cars; average citizens conserved; and even Hollywood mobilized as stars gave up lucrative careers and the industry made films that supported the cause. Compare that to now when there is no shared burden of the draft, but the National Guard is used; when the President encourages people not to sacrifice, but to shop; when corporate America makes huge profits from the war; and when Hollywood is more critical than supportive of the effort.

Period production design is never easy, but "Military Intelligence and You!" looks great.

At one point I was going to work with a terrific production designer from the show I wrote for 'Without A Trace," but our schedules didn't line up. Then we worked briefly with another designer, who ultimately left as we were so far along the "vision" had already been set. So, the task of production design, like so many other jobs on a such a small film, fell to me. The inspiration came from two sources: the old training films themselves, and "Dr. Strangelove." We were cutting between old and new footage, so the overall "feel" of the new material needed to match the old. Takes were longer back in the day, so you may notice the use of longer takes in the new footage. There were also a lot of "push-ins" and "pull-outs" used back then which I mimicked in the new material.

The look of the film was also partially determined by our small budget. I had considered renting any one of the ornate houses available for shooting in Los Angeles, but that would have been expensive, and also required a "circus" of actor trailers, etc. Then I considered renting a standing set, which are also available in Los Angeles and turning, for example, a courtroom set into Central Command, but such sets were often small, and I wanted a sense of space. So that led to the notion of a "black box" set akin to what "Strangelove" did. Fortunately we found a terrific soundstage, Showbiz Studios, that was already painted black. We just had to paint the floor! The bulk of our sets came from Universal Props, and our great radio station equipment was from History for Hire. On a side note, we rented our "hero" costumes, but those for extras I purchased off Ebay...and resold after we wrapped to make a small profit!

I'm glad you like the look of the film, and much of that credit is due to cinematographer Mark Parry. We shot all the Central Command scenes in five days, which is like 8 to 9 script pages a day. That's a lot! But Mark rolled with our limitations, set up a general lighting design, and augmented it with things like a "beauty" light that made the lovely Lt. Monica Tasty glow just a bit hotter than everyone else in the scene. I'd also say the fact we were going to desaturate the color from our high-def shots and add grain and dirt helped to blend the new with the old, and gave use the license to be a bit less finicky in our design.

What's next?

Some well-deserved R & R for starters! Then a combination of finding a home for this film, and going back to the blank page. I have other scripts I'd love to sell or set up, but have gained so much inspiration from the Austin Conference that I may just put on the body-armor again, find the financing, and make another one myself. Thanks to you and everyone at the Festival for a much-needed jump-start, and I hope everyone can come see the film this Wednesday!

Military Intelligence and You! plays tonight (Wednesday) at 9:30 p.m. at the Landmark Dobie Theater

Asian Horror at the IMAX!

Noriko's Dinner Table • dir. Sion Sono
Suicide Club sequel
Regional Premiere
IMAX Theater (map)
Wed, Oct 25, 9:00 PM

Nightmare Detective • dir. Shinya Tsukamoto
"X-Files meets Nightmare on Elm Street"
US Premiere
IMAX Theater (map)
Thu, Oct 26, 10:00 PM

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Filmmaker Focus: Daniel O'Connor

Daniel O'Connor, writer/director, RUN ROBOT RUN!

Run Robot Run! is a science-fiction comedy making its world premiere at the 13th Annual Austin Film Festival today at the Dobie Theater at 3 p.m.

Daniel O'Connor is a Canadian filmmaker living in Toronto. For the past 18 years Daniel has lived a dual existence, making short films and leading his own management consulting company coaching Fortune 500 leaders. With Robot Daniel has finally taken the great leap into feature film production (and living his dream).

Tell me about the evolution of Run Robot Run from concept to script.

I was reading the newspaper one morning about artificial intelligence and how quickly it was progressing and it occurred to me that is only a matter of time til we are replaced by robots in our jobs. They wouldn’t be moody or tired in the morning or cranky – they’d just do their jobs and make us look bad. So I sat down and wrote the screenplay. I had a clear idea of the tone of the film and the screenplay came quite easily.

When writing the screenplay, did you always envision directing it yourself?

I’ve directed every screenplay I’ve written so it was always my intention to direct the film. It’s a great way to make sure your screenplay turns into the movie you wrote.

What aspect of filmmaking surprised you most about jumping from comedy shorts to a feature?

I think the biggest surprise was the way the story had to be structured. It’s one thing to carry a film for 10 or 12 minutes. It’s a completely different thing to do it for an hour and a half. In the editing room I realized that I needed to really be ruthless in trimming the story in order to keep the audience entertained and engaged.

Run Robot Run! is a sci-fi comedy -- there are some nice touches that depict life in the not-so-distant future. Tell me about the production design and some of the pieces of which you're most proud.

We wanted to keep the look clean and sleek. That fit well with our limited budget which didn’t allow for a lot of futuristic CGI. When we needed props I thought that the best ones would be ones that looked like 50s sci-fi props, ones that didn’t compete with films like Minority Report or I, Robot. This movie is a character study so I wanted to ensure that the props didn’t distract from the story. I’m most proud of the beer glasses that are used in the future. They’re gigantic and people find them very funny. I like the idea of exaggerating the trends we see already with food servings getting bigger and bigger.

What direction did you give Peter Mooney (Adam) about how to act like a robot?

Peter plays two roles in the movie, two different aspects of the robot. In the first role, I suggested that he play the role as if he was the nicest guy in the world, very naïve and innocent. In the second part he plays, I said that he should keep the nice guy part but be a lot more cool and hip. It seemed to work.

What's next?

A movie about people who are in jobs that aren’t their dream, people who want to do something different, to unplug from the corporate world and live from the soul.

The feature RUN ROBOT RUN screens at 3 p.m. on October 21st at the Dobie Theater and again at 7:15 p.m. on October 25th at the Arbor. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Friday, October 20, 2006

World premieres, retrospectives, and more!

TONIGHT:

World Premieres at the IMAX
7:15 PM, The Third Monday in October (90 min.) - WORLD PREMIERE Filmmakers in attendance
9:45 PM, Little Chenier (100 min.) WORLD PREMIERE Filmmakers in attendance

Retrospectives at the Texas Spirit
7:30 PM, Payback - Straight Up (90 min.) Brian Helgeland in attendance, Robert Rodriguez introducing
9:45 PM, The Long Kiss Goodnight (123 min.) - Q&A with Shane Black

Gay and Lesbian themes at the Dobie
7:45 PM, Whole New Thing (92 min.) - Writer/Director Amnon Buchbinder in attendance
10:00 PM, Colma: The Musical (111 min.)

Complete list of tonights films available here

Playing tonight: AFF highlights

Underaged voting: local kids make good

Tonight! Don’t miss the WORLD PREMIERE of The Third Monday in October with director Vanessa Roth in attendance! The film follows the presidential elections of 12-year-old kids vying for the promise of leading their middle school student councils in the midst of the 2004 national Presidential election. Some of the students are from the Austin area so you may even meet a star at the screening!

“Third Monday quakes with the wound-up nerves and angst-charged ambition of its bright, funny, precociously poised subjects...”– Austin American-Statesman

“Imagine Vote for Pedro: The Documentary, and you’ve got half the appeal of this lively and insightful chronicle of middle school class elections... Highly recommended.” – Austin Chronicle

Friday 10/20, 7:15pm, IMAX
USA | Run time: 90 min. | Director: Vanessa Roth

Short Films: Good and good for you

Look at that program guide listing for tonight. It’s chock full o’ shorts. Funny shorts, dramatic shorts, shorts that are also docs. Shorts 1 is full of my favorite kind of flick, the twisted-weird-funny kind. All you have to do to make me laugh these days is just say the word “Moosecock.” Shorts 2 also brings the funny, but in a more traditional way. I’ve seen Safety First about twelve times now and it still makes me laugh. Shorts 3 is more serious; it contains some of the most dramatic moments of the Festival outside of the Battle Scars panel. Then there’s the Screenwriter Shorts, Animated Shorts (my favorites? Ujbaz Izbeneki Has Lost His Soul, She She She She’s A Bombshell, and Unfair) and Documentary Shorts. This is so much better than YouTube – not only do you get to see these fantastic nuggets of cinema on the big screen, but we have a whole lotta filmmakers in attendance. It’s gonna be great. Short, but great. –Chris Holland

Shorts Programs screen today at the Hideout and SFA Theater starting at noon.

Other screenings with filmmakers in attendance!

Whole New Thing - “Way of the Screenwriter” scribe, AFF panelist, and writer/director Amnon Buchbinder presents his critically acclaimed film at the Dobie at 7:45 p.m.

Little Chenier - cast and crew (including director Bethany Ashton-Wolf) in attendance at the world premiere of this touching and sometimes bizarre drama set in rural Louisiana. 9:45 p.m. at the IMAX.

Payback: Straight Up with Brian Helgeland Q&A and The Long Kiss Goodnight with Shane Black Q&A tonight at the Texas Spirit Theater. 7:30 p.m. and 9:45 p.m., respectively.

Land of Shadowed Sand (world premiere) with tons of local talent in attendance, including writer/director Austin Hice and co-writer Wylie Maeckerlin. 10:00 p.m. at the Arbor.

The Amateurs - Q&A with actor William Fichtner (Go, Prison Break) after screening at the Alamo Lake Creek at 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Individual guest-from-panel cancellations

This is a list of cancellations in which a particular guest has withdrawn from a panel. The panel will still be held.

• Richard Lewis removed from “Business of Film & Distribution”
• Tom Williams removed from “Finalists & Semi-Finalists”
• John Contrubis removed from “Common Mistakes Writers Make”
• Keith Sweitzer removed from “Roundtable: Production Companies” on Friday morning (still on afternoon Roundtable)
• Juliana Farrell removed from “Roundtable: Production Companies”
• Anne Walker removed from “Roundtable: Production Companies”
• Paul Stekler removed from “Writing Drama”
• Peter Hyams removed from “How Did You Get Your First Movie Made?”
• Diane Estelle Vicari removed from “Reel Life: Narrative Structure in Documentary Filmmaking”
• Alex Smith removed from “Roundtable: Filmmakers” panel (10/22- Driskill Hotel, Citadel Room, 11:30-12:45)
• Scott Rice removed from “Taking the HD Leap” panel (10/21- Driskill Hotel, Citadel Room, 2-3:15)

Filmmaker Focus: Toby Wilkins of "Kidney Thieves"

With a decade of experience as a title designer and vfx artist, Toby's short films have received recognition at dozens of festivals including multiple acceptances to Sundance. Recent projects include the award winning "Staring at the Sun" and a series of shorts "Tales from the Grudge" commissioned by Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures.

How did you encounter Ben Acker's script for Kidney Thieves?

Ben and I were introduced by a producer friend of mine who thought our styles would work well together. Turns out he was right, but it took us a year to figure it out. Ben and I met once, he gave me a bunch of short scripts, Kidney Thieves among them. I really enjoyed a number of the short pieces he had written for his sketch comedy show "AmeriCo the Beautiful" and I wanted to bring them to the screen. I had just had some success with a short thriller called Staring at the Sun and was eager to follow up with something different, but it wasn't until a year later that I was able to find the time and money to make another film happen. Luckily, I never throw anything out, or clean my office, so when the time came to choose a script, Kidney Thieves was still on my shelf, and it felt as fresh to me then as it did the first time I read it.

Do you know anything about Ben's research into the symptoms of renal failure?

I do not. And when pressed for an answer to this question Ben would only give humorous, typically Ben Acker type answers like "It is a true statement that my uncle's renus failed." So you see, Ben's methods are mysterious and he guards them closely.

Did he find any evidence that kidney thieves actually exist?

Perhaps it's best if I let Ben's words speak for him on this one too. When grilled, Ben says he is not a detective. He saw a magazine article and heard about a story on NPR. Or he actually heard a story on NPR. The point is that Ben Acker listens to NPR. And drinks coffee. Sometimes he does the crossword. He's one of those. He does not like sudoku. Numbers? Grow up, he says. Ben Acker is a very funny man and he writes funny scripts and things, he's just not very good at interviews.

That's a pretty high-end cast you've got there. Do you have advice to your fellow filmmakers for attracting "name" actors to a short film?

I don't think there's a trick to attracting actors to a no budget project, or any project probably, either they like the script or they don't. More experienced actors are better at judging if a script is right for them, and if it's not something they are interested in then they are also in a better place to turn it down. If they do respond to the script, the next hurdle is that they respond to you, or at least your body of work. Actors entering into a short film project, or again any project, are really putting themselves on the line, they are letting themselves be exposed in a way that's very hard for those of us behind the camera to understand. So if you can demonstrate that you're not going to make something that will embarrass them, that they are in good hands, then you're well on your way to getting great actors and great performances from them.

Tell us about the picture's production design.

Production designer Jennifer Spence and her crew were an amazing asset on this project. I had worked with her once before, on the short film "Rings" and she really impressed me. Not only with how hard she worked, but how much she was able to do with so little. On a short film budget, a production designer who can stretch every dollar and deliver a top quality result is a dream come true. "Kidney Thieves" takes place in Mexico, and I felt it was essential that the setting feel real, that the audience know where they are from the first frame, or at least believe that the story takes place in the real world. Without a believable reality, the absurdist humor would now work, it would become parody. I spent a lot of time researching photographs of Mexican hotels and interiors, and I relied heavily on Jennifer's knowledge to guide my choice of props and set dressing. I scouted a few hotels in Los Angeles, but dismissed them all as either too clean, to bland, or just too small to shoot in. In the end, Jennifer constructed a perfect set, based on my specific requirements for the film, and she did so flawlessly. The room was created life size, and while this created some logistical problems for shooting, I think it played a large part in making the space feel as reel as it does in the film. Most people are surprised to learn that we shot on a set rather than on location.

There are a few almost touching moments between Paget Brewster and Ethan Embry. What's the role of genuine sentiment in comedy?

Ben and I felt that it was important for these characters to be grounded in a situation that matters to them. Raising the stakes for the characters heightens the comedy. While the absurd humor in the film may be one kind of funny, it is a whole other sort of funny, a whole different sort of absurdity, that comes from adding the potential for love to the scene, or heartbreak. It was the range of styles and emotions in the piece that was so attractive to me as a filmmaker, and I think to the actors as well. The idea that for a third of the film, the audience isn't sure if it's a thriller, or a drama, or a comedy was an interesting experiment for all of us. What really excited me was the opportunity to shoot a comedy with grainy hand-held 16mm in the style of a noir thriller, and have the comedy work not as a parody of the genre, but on a far more genuine level because of the choice.

Kidney Thieves plays Friday, October 20th at 7:40 p.m. in the Stephen F. Austin Theater as part of the Shorts 2 Program and again on Sunday, October 22nd at the Hideout.

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

Passes, badges, Film & Food still on sale at Driskill hotel

We've stopped taking phone and online orders, but you can still buy Film Passes, Conference Badges, and tickets to tonight's Film & Food benefit beginning today at the Driskill Hotel. Passes and badges will remain on sale at the Driskill until Sunday afternoon, after which they will be available at the Festival office (1604 Nueces St.). Film passes are just $35 for all regular movies and Badges start at $95.

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Festival movie trailers up on our MySpace!

Check them out!

Kevin Smith at the 13th Annual Austin Film Festival

Writer/director/actor Kevin Smith will be appearing at this year's festival!

We already plugged this on the main site but I thought it should repeat on the blog for those of you tuned into the RSS feed.

Kevin Smith (Clerks, Dogma) will be in town to support Susannah Grant's Catch and Release, playing at 7:30 on Friday, October 20th at the Paramount theatre. He'll participate in a Q&A after the show. Smith will also appear on a panel ("Writing R-Rated Comedies") during the Conference.

Monday, October 16, 2006

Filmmaker Focus: Keith Stevenson

Keith Stevenson, director/actor, LIKE OLD TIMES

Keith Stevenson grew up in Keyser, W.Va., and now lives in Los Angeles. He received a theater/acting BFA from West Virginia University and later studied filmmaking at the New York Film Academy.

You and Neil McGowan, the film's writer, play the two main characters. Was the story idea developed with that in mind?
I asked Neil if he wanted to answer any or all of these questions. He answered only this one with, "Yeah, pretty much." Saving the words for the page, baby.

Describe the process of getting it from a written script to production.
The accessibility of digital filmmaking blows me away. You can take chances and experiment with scripts and ideas without having to ask, "Is it worth spending the money to make this?" All this film cost to make was $64 and a Saturday afternoon. I think our pre-production meeting went something like, "Pull over here, I need to pick up a couple of tallboys."

What are some scenes or moods in other films that have made an impression on you?
Some of my favorite scenes are the Michael/Enzo the Baker scene in The Godfather; the title sequence from Black Belt Jones, numerous scenes from Little Noises with Crispin Glover and Steven Schub; Mac in the garden after his daughter's crash in Tender Mercies. Simple exchanges between two people tend to stick with me, I guess (except for the Black Belt Jones thing, which is a simple exchange between fist and face).

Were there any funny or unexpected moments on the set?
The most unexpected thing was getting into the AFF. The whole production of the thing was so loosey-goosey, we kind of considered it a learning experience. Austin was our first festival submission ever. We got a kick out of the film, but we weren't even sure if anybody else, even our friends, would like it. That said, Neil wrote a funny and clever script, so he deserves the nod from a festival like Austin that recognizes the writer's contribution to film.

What other projects are you working on now?
We're mid-production on another short Neil wrote called Manny (with our DP, Scott, in front of the camera). I'm in the edit room with a 16mm B&W "foreign film" I wrote and directed called Crepesculum (with Neil and Paula Malcomson). Then we'll get started on another comedy about cat-sitting that Neil wrote.

The narrative short LIKE OLD TIMES will be screened as part of Shorts Program 2 at 7:40 pm on Friday, Oct. 20, and at 9:15 pm on Sunday, Oct. 22. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Saturday, October 14, 2006

Film & Food benefit featuring THE BLACK STALLION this Wednesday

One of the best events of the Festival isn't even technically part of the Festival itself. The Film & Food gala takes place on the eve of the Austin Film Festival and kicks off another eight days of great films and parties.

This Wednesday, October 18th, the AFF will host the 4th annual Film & Food party to benefit its Young Filmmakers Program. The evening will begin at the Paramount Theatre with a 6:30 p.m. retrospective screening of the classic film The Black Stallion followed by a Q&A with screenwriter and Austinite Bill Wittliff (Legends of the Fall, Honeysuckle Rose, "Lonesome Dove" .) Immediately following (8:00 p.m.), guests will gather at the historic Driskill Hotel for an evening of food, drinks, live music and a silent auction.

Film & Food is being produced by Capital Sports & Entertainment, the folks who bring us ACL Music Festival and Lollapalooza, guaranteeing a fantastic event!

Film & Food is touted as one of the premier entertainment events of the year with Austin’s finest restaurants presenting their delicious tastings including, Aquarelle, Dona Emilia’s, The Driskill Grill, Eddie V’s, Evangeline Café, Houlihan’s, Ranch 616, Roaring Fork, Royer’s Round Top Café, Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, Siena, Teo, La Traviata, Viking Home Appliances, and Wink.

Live music on the balconies performed by Dynah and Lucas Hudgins & The First Cousins, a DJ and a fabulous silent auction with such items as weekend packages in Marfa and Austin, Anthony Nak jewelry, reserve wines, clothing from Austin’s top boutiques, luxurious spa services and more.

All proceeds from Film & Food will benefit the Young Filmmakers Program. The Young Filmmakers Program introduces the arts of screenwriting and filmmaking to students ages 9-17, by providing them with an encouraging and supportive arena in which to explore their creativity and improve their communication and storytelling skills. The YFP relies on grants and fundraisers to sustain the high quality and affordability of its services. Hundreds of local students will be invited to attend at no cost for the opportunity to view this amazing classic story shown on the big screen for the first time in years.

Film & Food tickets are $60 for AFF members and $75 for non-members. To purchase tickets log on to www.austinfilmfestival.com. To inquire about corporate and group discounts, please call 800-310-FEST(3378).

Filmmaker Focus: Nicholas Tabarrok

Nicholas Tabarrok, executive producer, A LOBSTER TALE and RUN ROBOT RUN!

Born in Toronto, Tabarrok's film career began like so many do, at the bottom, as a production assistant on a soap opera. He has worked on the accounting and production management side of things, and has been the producer of more than a dozen films, including the sci-fi thriller "Deceived," starring Lou Gosstt Jr., and the television movie "Blackout," starring Jane Seymour.

Briefly describe the two films.
A Lobster Tale is the story of a struggling fisherman who one day finds a mystical moss in his trap that has magical healing powers. Run Robot Run! is a romantic comedy about a guy who gets replaced at work by a very lifelike robot, who then starts dating his girl.

When did you get involved with each of them?
With Lobster I got involved in early 2005. I was involved with RRR much earlier. The writer/director, Daniel O'Connor, and I made our first film together, Stand By Your Booth, in 1998 (which also premiered at the Austin Film Festival, by the way!), and we remained friends. I don't remember the first time be brought be RRR, but it was at least two or three years ago.

They're very different -- a gentle fable and a futuristic, almost slapstick comedy. What drew you to each project?
For Lobster, I thought it was so charming. I just loved this wacky little town it is set in and the funny set of characters. The story was sweet and touching. It reminded me of films like Billy Elliot and Waking Ned Devine. RRR had a lot to do with my friendship and respect for Daniel as a writer/director. I think we make a good team. I also thought it was a film that could be made on a low budget without artistic compromise. The story was about concept and witty dialogue, not big effects and set pieces.

As you were working on them both, did you become more aware of their similarities or of their differences?
Boy, that's an interesting question, and you know, the answer really is neither. The truth is, making a film is such an all-encompassing, overwhelming exercise that you don't really think about anything but that film at that time. No matter how different the content, story, setting, cast, budget, etc., you always have the same set of challenges.

Have you learned any lessons about producing a film from either of these two projects?
I had already produced a handful of films, but I still learned a ton. You do on every film. I would like to think that even veterans like Jerry Bruckheimer learn something new on each film. For Lobster we shot on water, which was a first for me. It's really, really difficult and time-consuming and tricky. I sure learned a lot about that, like next time, don't shoot on water! On RRR, it was a super-low-budget film, so I had to learn how to work with much smaller crews and cast and less equipment. I'm very proud of how it turned out.

The narrative feature A LOBSTER TALE will be screened at 7 pm on Saturday, Oct. 21, and at 7:15 pm on Wednesday, Oct. 25. The narrative feature RUN ROBOT RUN! will be screened at 3 pm on Saturday, Oct. 21, and at 7:15 pm on Wednesday, Oct. 25. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Where to see AFF movies - not just downtown

AFF screenings will be held all over Austin - in the usual places like the historic Paramount Theatre and the Dobie, but also in venues like the Regal Arbor and the Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek. So even if the drive downtown and the hassle of finding a garage are too much for you, an AFF Film Pass is still a good buy.

Here's the full list:

Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek
Regal Arbor
Historic Paramount Theatre
Stephen F. Austin theater/ballroom
Hideout
Landmark Dobie
IMAX at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum
Texas Spirit Theater at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum
Driskill Hotel and Texas State Capitol (panels only)

You can see all of the venues listed with maps, addresses, and contact info on our web site.

Badges, passes, and tickets explained

» When it comes to getting into screenings at the Austin Film Festival, the rules are pretty simple:

Badge holders ($95 and up) get in first (30 minutes before showtime),
followed by Film Pass holders ($35),
followed by those people who buy individual tickets.

Individual tickets are sold only at the venues, and only right before the screening. There are no advance sales for individual tickets. Seating is first-come first-served and many screenings do fill up completely.

» Panels and parties are open only to those festivalgoers who buy a badge. A day badge admits you to Conference panels on Saturday, a weekend badge to Saturday and Sunday panels. A Conference Badge admits you to all of the panels and some of the parties, while an all-access Producer's Badge gets you in to all the Festival events (with the exception of the Awards Luncheon) from October 19th - 26th - the WGAE Opening Night Party, the Film Texas BBQ, the Hair of the Dog Brunch, and more. A full list of parties, including the pre-Festival "Film and Food" benefit, can be found here.

Check out the full range of badges and benefits in our online store.

Friday, October 13, 2006

Sneak Preview TBA #1 is Stephen Frears' "The Queen"

The Austin Film Festival is proud to reveal the first of our Sneak Preview TBA titles - Stephen Frears' highly anticipated new picture The Queen!

The Queen, an intimate, revealing, and often humorous portrait of the British royal family in crisis following the death of Princess Diana, stars Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II, James Cromwell as Prince Phillip, and Michael Sheen as Tony Blair. The film is written by award-winner Peter Morgan and directed by Stephen Frears.

"With prickly dignity of bearing, precision of aristocratic diction, and the gestures of one born and bred to command even in domestic activities as intimate as dialing a phone, walking a dog, or reading the morning newspapers over breakfast, Mirren conjures Elizabeth as an identifiable flesh-and-blood wife, mother, grandmother, and woman with a job to do. She also conveys the importance — and the majesty, unaffected by political fashion — of the institutional Elizabeth II of the House of Windsor, Head of the Commonwealth and Defender of the Faith, a living embodiment of her empire's proud history. In a bathrobe or a crown, watching the telly or receiving curtsies, Mirren's self-possession is a grace that appears at once willed and innate. As she did earlier in the year playing Elizabeth I on HBO, the actor excels at projecting the imperial, not the imperious." - Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly

Add The Queen to your personal AFF screening calendar now. It plays on Thursday, October 19th at 9:15 p.m. at the Bob Bullock IMAX theater.

New panels and panelists added for Austin Film Festival 2006

With new panels and new panelists added all the way up to the festival this year is going to be the best ever!

New panel

Friday, October 20
10:45 a.m. – 12 p.m.

The State of the Documentary
Join Barbara Kopple (Shut Up and Sing, Harlan County USA, American Dream), Cecilia Peck (Shut Up and Sing, "The Hamptons"), and Diane Estelle Vicari, President of the International Documentary Association for a frank discussion about the state of the documentary film. The last few years have yielded an unprecedented influx of documentary films and reality television programming, while introducing new audiences to the format. We'll look at where the documentary is headed and what challenges lie ahead. This panel is free and open to the public.
(Texas State Capitol)

New Panelists

Producer Sean Covel (Napoleon Dynamite) will join the Business of Film & Distribution panel on Saturday, 10/21 (3:45 p.m. – 5 p.m.)

Writer/director Jake Kasdan (The TV Set, Orange County) will join the Writing R-Rated Comedies panel on Friday, 10/20 (1:45 p.m. – 3 p.m.) and the Writer/Directors panel, also on Friday, 10/20 (3:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.)

Writer/director/producer Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Big Chill, Body Heat, The Accidental Tourist) will join the Adapting Material to Film panel on Friday, 10/20 (10:45 a.m. – 12 p.m.)

Actor/writer/director Kevin Smith (Clerks, Clerks II, Mallrats, Chasing Amy) will join the Writing R-Rated Comedies panel on Friday, 10/20 (1:45 p.m. – 3 p.m.)

Check out the full conference lineup here.

Filmmaker Focus: Bethany Ashton Wolf

Bethany Ashton Wolf, co-writer/director/producer, LITTLE CHENIER

Bethany Ashton Wolf began her career in Los Angeles as an actress but soon found herself co-writing and co-producing the controversial indie film "Don's Plum," starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire. She went on to write, produce, and star in the short film "The Burgundy Room," winning three awards at the Louisiana Video Shorts Festival, including the Best of the Fest. Her next project was a SAG experimental called "First and Last," followed by her short film "Wait." "Little Chenier" is her directorial feature debut.

Briefly describe the film.
It's a Cajun story about two brothers who have no one but each other. Living on a houseboat in the bayou, Beaux and his mentally handicapped brother Pemon try to make ends meet. The two live a simple life until Pemon is accused of a crime and Beaux must protect his brother against all odds. This is a classic story about cause and effect. The story is about things unspoken. It is about what we do while we are waiting to know truth.

Where did the initial idea for the story come from?
My brother, Jace Johnson, and I grew up in Lake Charles, La., and we both have always had an insatiable love of the bayou and its people. Years ago my brother had written a short story about two brothers living and fishing on the bayous of Louisiana. I was looking for my next screenplay to write and I kept coming back to his short story. So we flew home, got in an old boat we borrowed from a friend, and just motored out to all the magical places we had encountered as kids -- a floating gas station, grocery store, alligator nests, clusters of houseboat villages, and the most unforgettable sunsets we had ever seen. The most memorable for us was a place our dad had taught us how to fish. We knew instantly this would be our backdrop for the story and from there we began writing the screenplay.

The film looks quite lovely. How did you achieve this?
The look of this film began with my main character: the bayou. The natural backdrop of this film set the pace, tone, and lighting style for me. I used as much natural light as possible. I shot with Kodak 35mm film and I concentrated on adding rich amber, violet, and magenta tones to accent the warm golds and greens in the land and water. Also, I wanted long, fluid shots, like the movement of water. I wanted to film long moments of nothingness. I told my actors, "You can never wait too long. Do nothing. Say nothing. The longer the better for me."

What was it like to shoot on the bayou?
We only had 28 days to shoot, and many times there was no land base for miles. There was a 110 degree heat, and we were in tiny john boats surrounded by alligators, snakes and swarming mosquitoes. And to achieve this magical town we had created in the script, I had to film in 35 locations spread out over 100 miles of bayous and swamps, most of them only reachable by boat. On water days, we would have the actors in a boat, camera crew in a boat, sound and makeup in a boat, and the only way to reach each other was by motoring up. Simple tasks that no one usually thinks twice about, like handing an actor a piece of wardrobe, would become a gigantic procedure. Through it all we were very organized. When you don’t have money, you must plan and strategize, plan and strategize.

Did the hurricanes affect the area?
What started out as a cinematic responsibility to Cajun culture now has become a moral obligation for me, as well as my family. Hurricane Rita hit all the bayou communities where we had filmed just 31 days after we wrapped principal photography, wiping most of them out completely. The community, known as Little Chenier, is gone. Here I had set out to make a film that embraced a culture that thrived on the love of family and the importance of land, and now that land has been lost and those families have been separated. This film represents their hearts and their homes and is the only footage they have of the life they once had on the bayou. For them, it is a piece of living history, and for me it is a platform in which to share their stories and hopefully make people aware of their devastation and need of help.

The narrative feature LITTLE CHENIER will be screened at 9:45 pm on Friday, Oct. 20, and 7 pm on Tuesday, Oct. 24. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Just added - Sneak Preview TBA #3

Hey, look. We just added another Sneak Preview on the closing night of the Festival. 10 pm at the Bob Bullock IMAX theater. More on that soon.

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Filmmaker Focus: Jeremy Kipp Walker

J. Anderson Mitchell (left), writer/co-director, and Jeremy Kipp Walker (right), producer/co-director, SUPER POWERS

Jeremy Kipp Walker & J. Anderson Mitchell's 2007 Academy Award-qualifying debut short film "Goodnight Bill" screened at more than 20 premiere film festivals on the 2005 circuit, winning the Jury Award for Best Short Film at the 2005 Austin Film Festival, a Best of Fest Screenplay Award from the 2005 Rhode Island Film Festival, and numerous other accolades. Walker recently co-produced Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden's feature film "Half Nelson" starring Ryan Gosling, released by ThinkFilm. He joined the staff of Journeyman Pictures in 2001. Prior to Journeyman, Walker worked in production at Woody Allen's Perdido Productions on Allen's features "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion" and "Hollywood Ending." Mitchell recently completed his MFA in dramatic writing at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and has written numerous short and feature screenplays.

How did the initial idea for this story come about? How did it develop?
On his way to work everyday in Manhattan, John (the writer and co-director) would pass an adult store on Sixth Avenue that had a Wonder Woman costume in the display window right next to a bevy of lingerie and naughty ensembles. It always struck him as funny and a bit out of place, but eventually it became the seed to this short film.

Goodnight Bill, which won the Jury Award at the 2005 Austin Film Festival, and Super Powers are very different in tone. Are you deliberately exploring a range of styles?
They are very different projects, indeed. John and I always try to find the best style to coincide with the specific story we're telling. We've made quite a few short films, and each one has a different look, feel and tone because each world and each set of characters are distinct. Some directors have a signature style. We prefer to let the story dictate the mood and feel of the film and interpret our approach from there.

How long did it take to shoot? Given the costumes, were there any funny encounters?
We shot the film over three days in Manhattan. We did two days in an apartment on West 15th Street and then a third day for exteriors and an interior pharmacy in the Financial District. It was a lot of fun having our lead actors running around the streets of Manhattan in their underwear, but the best part had to be when Jay Klaitz (Larry) was dressed as Batman running down a fire escape and a little boy on his father's shoulders looked up from the sidewalk with a huge smile and said, "Look, Daddy! Look! It's Batman!" It was as if he'd just seen Santa flying through the sky on Christmas Eve.

What other types of projects are you working on?
We're working on the script to our first feature project. A small, personal film that we hope to be able to shoot in 2007.

The narrative short SUPER POWERS will be screened as part of Shorts Program 2 at 7:40 pm on Friday, Oct. 20, and at 9:15 pm on Sunday, Oct. 22. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Filmmaker Focus: Andrew McAllister

Andrew McAllister, writer/director, URBAN SCARECROW

Andrew McAllister is a Seattle-based freelance director and editor, most recently producing spots for the Seattle Seahawks and editing a documentary on Evel Knievel for the History Channel. His first feature, "Shag Carpet Sunset," netted enthusiastic reviews, toured the festival circuit (Seattle, Austin, Edmonton among others) and secured distribution through Eclectic DVD. He is currently editing the feature "Crossing Paths," starring Minnie Driver and Jeremy Renner.

How did the initial idea for this story come about?
I was in junior high, my dad was running a bike shop on a busy little road known as Old Highway 99 in Seattle. There was a healthy stretch of 99 that was sort of no man's land -- somewhere between city and suburb. Strip malls were next to strip clubs, there were gravestone merchants, palm readers, mini-golf and of course the motel culture. My first memory of driving down 99 was as the sun began to drop. As we drifted down the road in our red, wood-paneled station wagon, it seemed as if the "no" on every "no vacancy" sign lit up just as we passed by. I remember as a kid seeing families settling in these motels and just feeling like I had discovered this amazing world. I hated where I lived and wanted to live in the motels with the families. So that feeling always stuck with me and I always wanted to make a film about it.

Describe the process of getting it from a written script to production.
It was a scripted production. But I knew two of the main characters, Wes and Derek, were going to be played by teenagers. Peter Richards was 16, he came from a theater background, very devoted and very driven. So it was good, from time to time he'd kind of smile when he looked at some line of dialogue I had written. And I got that he wasn't into it. So we'd rework until it sounded natural. Ben Garman was 19, a completely funny kid, and we just reworked certain scenes so he could get rolling, be in his zone. The things he did were much more spontaneous and interesting than the "spontaneous and interesting" things that were on the page.

What are some scenes or moods in other films that have made an impression on you?
I definitely loved Midnight Cowboy and My Own Private Idaho. I loved the feeling of those films. And a film called Fat City -- that's one of my favorites. I loved those characters, their will and their environment. There's also a comic edge to the film in which I tried to channel the "loose canon" element of Steve Martin's early stand-up comedy and The Jerk.

Any memorable moments during filming?
There was a significant bust in front of the motel we were shooting at. A couple was pulled over and they tried to run from their car, but they were instantly surrounded by about six cop cars. The officers had their shotguns out, screaming. Other than that, everyone living and working at the motel was very friendly and kind.

Has the finished product caused you to see what you wrote in a different way?
Absolutely. The kind of films I like to watch are inherently imperfect. There's a off-kilter quality to them, and I think you can't fight what you're ultimately drawn to. The script is so important in terms of building a team, wrangling confidence, and creating a through line. But once you start putting humans around a camera, you can never ignore what they're bringing to the production. And most of the time, what they have to offer always seems to throw off the preconceived ideas in your head. And I think in the end it makes the production more specific and, if you're lucky, more interesting.

The narrative feature URBAN SCARECROW will be screened at 9:30 pm on Thursday, Oct. 19, and at 5 pm on Sunday, Oct. 22. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Monday, October 09, 2006

Download an overview of our panel schedule

If you're trying to use our online panel schedule, you might have noticed that it's great for creating a personalized calendar but not as well-equipped when trying to browse panels by participant. Enter our downloadable panel overview file, with a grid view and an easily-browsable day-by-day, panel-by-panel survey of all of our Conference program information. Just one more service we provide to you!

Download the Austin Film Festival Conference overview PDF now.

Once you've checked out all the great panels and panelists, buy a Conference badge so you can take advantage of some of the amazing film industry talent that will gather in Austin on October 19th for the Austin Film Festival.

Filmmaker Focus: Seth Caplan

Seth Caplan, producer, DUNCAN REMOVED

A graduate of the University of Texas, Caplan has worked for production companies in New York, Los Angeles, and Amsterdam. Caplan co-founded Enspire Learning, where he produced e-learning courses for Harvard Business School and the Department of Education. After completing his MFA at the American Film Institute, Caplan went on to produce the Burnt Orange feature "The Cassidy Kids." Currently he is working on an animated film "Flatland: The Movie," which stars Martin Sheen and Kristen Bell. Caplan's thesis film "Duncan Removed" was honored with a student Emmy last winter and was a Student Academy Award finalist.

How did the project come together?
Peter Livolsi (the director and co-writer), Eric West (the D.P.) and I all worked together in our first year at school on a really cool short film called Action Will Be Taken. Based on the success of our collaboration, we decided to team together for our thesis.

Describe the generation of the story idea.
Peter Livolsi (director and co-writer) and Matt Schaefer (co-writer) began writing in the fall of 2004. This story was like no other tale they'd tackled. Although they'd begun with the familiar Cyrano story of one man speaking for another on a few dates, they were more interested in the idea of what if this had been going on for a long period of time and dealt with every facet of a person's daily life? Would this man soon be incapable of expressing his own thoughts? Would he even be able to recognize his own thoughts? The notion that the main character could have someone telling him everything to say for such a long a time proved to be the story's most intriguing element, but also its most challenging. Their approach didn't fall into a specific mold or genre, and there were many ways to go about telling it.

Talk a little about the casting.
An important source of support in telling this difficult story were the two actors Peter had asked to play the roles of Ben and Duncan, Ken Marino and Mackenzie Astin. He had become friends with both actors during a short they had made the previous summer called Last Meals Inc. They knew they wanted to work together again, so Peter and Matt began work on Duncan Removed with the two actors in mind to play the lead roles. Peter was also familiar with the work of actress Mina Badie, and it was clear she would make an interesting choice to play Ben's unsuspecting wife, Mary. All three actors contributed enormously by asking pointed questions and making careful suggestions before ever stepping onto the set.

Were you on the set? If so, were there any memorable or unexpected moments?
I was on-set everyday. One of the highlights of the shoot was when line producer Rod Ben-Zeev surprised the crew by arranging for four massage therapy students to show up at lunch and give everyone on the crew five-minute massages. The looks of delight on each crew member's face was awesome! Not surprisingly, we made our day and even got off a couple extra shots!

The narrative student short DUNCAN REMOVED will screen as part of Shorts Program 5 at 7 pm on Saturday, Oct. 21, and at 9:30 pm on Tuesday, Oct. 24. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Sunday, October 08, 2006

Nick Stahl and Janine Turner at AFF 2006

From the blog of Amy Talkington, director of 2006 competition narrative feature The Night of the White Pants:

I just found out that two of our stars -- NICK STAHL and JANINE TURNER -- will be attending the Austin Film Festival premiere! Both Nick and Janine are Texans which is part of the reason that I cast them in the movie... because the movie is about Texans set in Texas and shot in Texas (my hometown of Big D).

I had dinner with Nick recently and he was super excited about screening the movie in Texas. We are all dying to see what the Texas reaction will be.

Read the rest of Talkington's blog entry here.

More announcements regarding celebrities attending this year's Austin Film Festival will be posted right here on the blog, so keep an eye out for new entries!

Saturday, October 07, 2006

Filmmaker Focus: Brian Jun

Brian Jun, writer/director, STEEL CITY

Jun's script for this film was a screenplay finalist at the 2003 Austin Film Festival.

Briefly describe the film.
The film is set in a fictional Midwestern steel town, concerning two working-class brothers, PJ (Tom Guiry) and Ben (Clayne Crawford). Ben and PJ must cope with the aftermath when their father (John Heard) gets incarcerated due to a deadly car accident--especially PJ, the youngest son, who was involved. As PJ comes to terms with a broken family, negligent brother, and a stern uncle, he is forced to re-evaluate his own lackluster life and his pending role as a man in his own respect.

How did the initial idea for this story come about? How did it develop?
After moving to Los Angeles in 2001, I wrote numerous screenplays in the midst of working a healthy dose of miserable day jobs, which only led to more day jobs and little success. So I decided to go back to the Midwest and tell a simple story that could be made on a conservative budget. I started writing dramatic scenes between an incarcerated father and his grown son, whom he abandoned years earlier. Within these scenes, a plot emerged, and I became bold enough to pool all my limited resources together and make the film under any and all circumstances.

What are some scenes or moods in other films that have made an impression on you?
Without a doubt, the work of Ken Loach and his gritty film Sweet Sixteen. American cinema from the '60s and '70s; Five Easy Pieces and its blue-collar Americana; the transient nature that Midnight Cowboy offers. Themes of loneliness and generational relationships are also extremely palpable in Steel City.

What atmosphere or style did you want to create, and how did you go about creating it?
I certainly wanted it to be bleak and desperate, which is why I set it during the winter. My cinematographer (Ryan Samul) and I decided on a blue pallet for most of the scenes to illustrate the working-class environment. We shot tungsten film for all the exterior scenes and let it go uncorrected, overexposing a full stop to get the most out of the 16mm stock. We used this technique for most of the interior scenes as well.

How long did it take to shoot? Were there any memorable or unexpected moments on the set?
18 principle days, 2 days of second unit. In all honesty, most everything went as planned. We had a great crew, great actors, and there were not too many surprises. The name of the game is planning when you're making a film like this, because you don't have the money, time, or resources to correct it on the next day.

Has the finished product caused you to see what you wrote in a different way?
Sure. It allowed me to see all my mistakes, but in a positive way. Making a feature under these circumstances helped me to understand I have the work ethic to make it happen, and has allowed me to grasp what translates well from script to screen, since I served as both writer and director. It's a different ballgame once you hire a crew, actors, and put a camera on a dolly... there's very little time to think.

The narrative feature STEEL CITY will be screened at 7:15 pm on Saturday, Oct. 21, and at 9:15 pm on Tuesday, Oct. 24. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Thursday, October 05, 2006

Filmmaker Focus: Todd Berger

Todd Berger, writer/director, HOLIDAYS WITH HEATHER

Todd Berger hails from the bayous of New Orleans, La., and studied Radio-Televison-Film at the University of Texas at Austin. He has been working as a screenwriter and actor in Los Angeles for the last few years, a city that he has fallen in love with. He doesn't like cheating on Austin with another city like this, but the heart wants what it wants.

How did the initial idea for this story come about? How did it develop?
Well, I've always liked the idea of messing with the chronological order of a story, because in our own minds when we think back upon events or experiences, we don't necessarily remember them in the proper sequence. It's a device that has of course been used time and time before, but usually in dramas about bank heists gone wrong or car crashes that change the lives of moody strangers, so I thought it would be fun to do it in a simple comedy about a boy meeting a girl. On top of that, setting a movie on a holiday but not having it be about that holiday always adds a more magical feeling (just think about Die Hard), so setting this short on EVERY holiday was a good way to give the story a little extra oomph.

You're a UT alum, and your film Occam's Razor: The Great Dialogues of Mindy screened at the 2001 festival. How have you changed as a filmmaker from that short to this one?
I think as a short filmmaker I've definitely become more "experimental." I've realized that short films are really the last true independent filmmaking opportunities out there, because you don't have to answer to anyone and you can do whatever the hell you want. Occam's Razor was basically a straightforward short version of what could easily be a feature film. When we got to talking about shooting Holidays with Heather, the idea of shooting twelve long takes for the twelve holidays sounded like an appealing experiment just to see if it would work. Experimenting with a feature is dangerous, because if it doesn't work the viewing experience can be quite unbearable for 120 minutes -- but if a short if it doesn't work, then you've only wasted ten minutes of people's time.

Can you tell us about the casting?
I now live in Los Angeles, and people might not realize that Austinites, UT grads or not, have formed a mafia out here. Whether or not you knew each other in Austin, you gravitate toward one another out here on the West Coast because you share the common experience of having eaten a Freebirds Monster Burrito and swum at Barton Springs. We even use the "hook 'em" hand signal as our gang sign. So in accordance with the mafia code, you tend to help each other out and send work each other's way. A large portion of the people on the Holidays with Heather shoot – actors, the camera crew, the production designer, etc. -- were all people who have lived in Austin at some point or another.

What are some scenes or moods in other films that have made an impression on you?
I'm a big fan of opening sequences that have absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the movie except for setting the tone. I think the first ten minutes to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom may be the greatest ten minutes in cinematic history. I say, “So long, Lao Che!” all the time when leaving a room.

Has the finished product caused you to see what you wrote in a different way?
For sure. I think the big difference between reading a script and watching a film is that when you read something on paper and get lost or confused, you can always flip back a few pages to remind yourself of what happened. There's no rewinding a film (not until it gets to DVD at least), so you have to make damn sure people don't get too lost in one viewing. Watching the first cut of Holidays with Heather with my editor, we realized how much more confusing the film could be on screen than on paper – so we made changes accordingly.

Some Austinites might remember you from the UT/KVR-TV sketch comedy show "Campus Loop." Are you aware that bus route no longer exists?
I am aware of this, and we were so flattered that UT decommissioned the line in honor of our show going off the air. I heard it's because too many students were crying upon setting foot on the bus and the drivers couldn't take it anymore. On a serious note, I always like to give a shout-out to KVR-TV because that place gave me more experience, opportunity, and friendships than actual school did. I think a lot of RTF students are film snobs who ignore the place because it's "TV," but they don't realize that as a freshman you can walk over, take a couple three-hour classes, and be able to check out equipment and start your own show.

The narrative short HOLIDAYS WITH HEATHER screens as part of Shorts Program 2 at 7:40 pm on Friday, Oct. 20, and at 9:15 pm on Sunday, Oct. 22. Film passes to the Austin Film Festival are just $35 for admission to all screenings (space permitting).

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Free filmmaking panels at Austin Film Festival 2006

The following panels at AFF 2006 will be free and open to the public.

Saturday, 10/21
10:45 a.m. - 12 p.m.

KODAK Look Manager System
This workshop is a software-driven application that allows cinematographers to collaborate with labs and post houses. Directors of photography can pre-visualize a scene by modeling the effects of gels, filters, and post-production techniques on Kodak Film Stocks. DPs can then put that look on display for all the team members with the touch of a button.
(Driskill Hotel, Jim Hogg Room)

Young Filmmakers Panel
This is an open panel specially arranged for students ages 9-17. Panelists discuss how they got started in the industry, give words of advice, and answer questions on the craft and business of screenwriting and filmmaking.
James V. Hart
Jake Sawyer
Joseph Staten
Jesse Trussell - moderator
(Texas State Capitol)

Saturday, 10/21
2-3:15 p.m.
Film/Screenwriting School: Is It Worth It, and What’s Next?
Given the high costs at institutions across the country, are film schools and screenwriting programs worth it, or would your tuition be better invested in your first film?
Steve Collins
Crickett Rumley, New York Film Academy
Fred Strype, Sarah Lawrence
Drew Yanno, Boston College
Tom Copeland – moderator
(Texas State Capitol)

If you're interested in filmmaking you owe it to yourself to check out the other panels at AFF - there will be an absolutely insane number of industry professionals in town sharing their expertise with our attendees, often in very intimate settings. Attending filmmakers & screenwriters include: Michael Ian Black, Sydney Pollack, John August, Jessica Bendinger, Steve Faber, Bob Fisher, Peter Hyams, Christopher McQuarrie, Diana Ossana, Anne Rapp, Bill Witliff, and more. If you're on a budget, the $225 weekend badge gets you access to the bulk of the panels and also entitles you to all of the Austin Film Festival's movie screenings, which run October 19 - 26th. There's plenty of time in the week after the panels to go see the films, so you won't miss anything.

Check out this year's Austin Film Festival schedule to see the great films and events taking place in Austin this October.