WINTER 2009


NewFilmmakers New Years Festival
Friday ( January 2nd ) - Sunday ( January 4th )

Fifty Films That You Really Should See
and admission for a whole evening is only $5


Friday, January 2nd  [Courthouse Theater]

NewFilmmakers presents films about life in the City.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Peter LiPera SAVE CONEY ISLAND (2008, 28 Minutes, Video)
When Thor Equities threatens to build condos, Amos Wengler fights to save the Island.

Erin Harper PASSION (2008, 30 Minutes, Video)
A young jazz musician wrestles with his own desire to make a lasting mark.

 
7:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM
about New York Apartments

Melissa Whitely SCENES MISSING (2008, 10 Minutes, Video)
Robert Greenwood lives on the city street hoping to regain his past.

Shanti Thakur SKY PEOPLE (2008, 13 Minutes, 16MM)
Fiction about people who live above the 13th floor and a real look at class in New York.

Regina Robbins* PREVIOUS TENANTS (2007, 16 Minutes, Video)
You are never alone in a New York apartment.

Bajir Cannon PAINTING ABBY LONG (2008, 14 Minutes, Video)
Abby Long lives in the Bowels of Brooklyn with an evil fairy.


9:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Jonathan Miles THE QUEUE (2007, 10 Minutes, 35MM)
The Queue is a film about limits. A perfectly rational man is driven to extremes by the frustrations of modern life and an automated telephone system. A comical narration guides us through his transformation from passive consumer to radicalised sociopath and violent criminal, as he is pushed to breaking point.

Francis Hsueh & Steven Hahn PRETTY TO THINK SO (2007, 105 Minutes, 16MM)
Life is unexpectedly on the upswing when Hanna, an investment banker recently laid-off during the Internet bust of 2000, falls in love with Jiwon, a brash and successful attorney. Her world begins to crumble, however, when she discovers that one of Jiwon's clients is her childhood friend, Alex, and she must choose between Jiwon and Alex, with whom she shares a deep, tragic connection.

 



Friday, January 2nd [Deren Theater]

Our popular NewAsian Filmmakers Series returns with a programs of new Asian films in addition to our regular documentary series about New York and about The War.

 

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES
About New York  

Dan Kowalski FORGOTTEN NEW YORK: THE COLLECT POND (2008, 8 Minutes. Video)
The Collect Pond that was filled in during the early 1800's and became the infamous Five Points.

Vanessa McDonnell CONEY ISLAND, BROOKLYN, NEW YORK (2008, 8 Minutes, 8MM)
Coney Island. the poor man's playground, is threatened by development.

 Danilo Randjic-Coleman IMMINENT DOMAIN (2008. 42 Minutes, Video)
Imminent Domain is a documentary which examines gentrification in NYC from the perspective of the filmmaker, a life long resident of the Lower East Side. It begins as a highly personal account of the effect a a changing landscape has upon the culture of a neighborhood, before expanding to examine the social and political forces which cause gentrification to occur. Balancing historical perspective, textual analysis, and intimate firsthand accounts, Imminent Domain seeks not to answer the problem of gentrification, but rather, to make the systematic flaws which allow it to develop apparent to the uninformed viewer.
7:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES
About The War  

Donna Bassin LEAVE NO SOLDIER (2008, 72 Minutes, Video)
Leave No Soldier takes a dramatic look at the dynamics of activism by two generations of US war veterans. It tells the story of impassioned journeys by communities of American war veterans who carried a military oath from the battlefield to the home front. The two groups are divided by their politics, but united in their devotion to dead comrades and their commitment to 'leave no fallen soldier behind.


8:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Seojin Lee LOVE PILLS (2008, 3 Minutes, Video)
Tanya Sleiman IF NO WAR? (2007, 6 Minutes, Video)
Theresa Wu GOING HOME (2007, 15 Minutes, Video)
James Feng 600 (2007, 7 Minutes, Video)
Chienwei Chen RANSOM (2007, 19 Minutes, 16MM)  

 
9:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS  FEATURE PRESENTATION

Makiko Ito UNDER THE MAGNOLIA (2007, 90 Minutes, Video)
A Korean Violinist, Jin-Young who has a fiancé, Sun-Ah, happens to meet a Japanese Video Artist, Miki, in Central Park. Jin-Young is hiding his uncertain feelings towards Sun-Ah and Sun-Ah’s elder brother, but he is attracted to Miki who is honest and gentle-mannered. Sun-Ah’s brother doubts Jin-Young, and threatens him if he makes Sun-Ah unhappy. Jin-Young stops seeing Miki, but Miki's roommate encourages her, and Miki leaves her apartment to go to meet him.




Saturday, January 3rd [Courthouse Theater]


In the back of the Courthouse NewFilmmakers discovers sex & violence.

 

 6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Drew Tobia LADYFEMMES (2008, 6 Minutes, 16MM)
An ongoing project about how women view themselves and each other.

Eve Waltermaurer & Hazel Garland FIRST (2008, 39 Minutes, Video)
First is a compilation of 10 women’s' person histories of their developing sexuality. The women of First welcome us into their bedrooms and their private past sharing 'first' stories. We learn about the sexual path from first kiss to first orgasm that is so unique but in many ways so similar across women.

 
6:50PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Kim Cummings* FLOWER OF A GIRL (2006, 5 Minutes, 16MM)
Mark Harris* CONSTANCE (2008, 11 Minutes, Video)
David Dormon LOVE IS HELL (2007, 14 Minutes, Video)
Tommaso Paino RAPTUS (2007, 15 Minutes, Video)
Nathan Crooker PEACE OF MIND (2008, 23 Minutes, Video)


8:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Michael Lenic A BIT OF ROPE (2008, 16 Minutes, Video)

Ryan Gielen* THE GRADUATES (2008, 92 Minutes, Video)
Ben and his three best friends graduate high school and head to Senior Week in Ocean City, Maryland, with two simple goals: party hard and get laid before leaving for college in the fall... Relationships blossom and crumble, and the boys are forced to decide who is a true friend, and who are just 'some guys we grew up with.' This surprisingly touching comedy is part satire, part laughfest, and totally, utterly enjoyable. 'The Graduates' is the first feature from award-winning short filmmaker Ryan Gielen, born and raised in Columbia, MD.


 



Saturday, January 3rd [ Deren Theater ]

NewFilmmakers looks at the Middle East.

 

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Ali Ghazanfar Ghaznavi SARAH'S WORLD (2008, 5 Minutes, Video)
A 2 year old girl looks at the world differently.

David Shadrack Smith TANGIER TREEHOUSE (2007, 57 Minutes, Video)
When a group of Moroccan street children are invited to take part in a treehouse building workshop, they find themselves unexpectedly transformed. Facing difficult choices in their lives -- whether to emigrate to nearby Europe or cope with limited prospects for the future in Tangier -- the treehouse they construct, under the guidance of an American architect, takes on symbolic significance.  

 
7:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Fatima Geza Abdollahyan DEAR TERRORIST – HOW TO BE A MUSLIM IN THE STATES (2008, 19 Minutes, Video)
Dear Terrorist“ gives us an idea of what it means to be a Muslim in the US today, into the epidemic paranoia of everyday life.

Jean Marie Offenbacher TEA ON THE AXIS OF EVIL (2008. 67 Minutes, Video)
When Syria was listed on the ‘axis of evil,’ a New York woman decided it was time to take tea with Syrians.

 
8:45PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND FEATURE PRESENTATION

David Cho NEW YORK NOORIA (40 Minutes, Video)
An embracing and unvarnished portrait of an Afghani-American woman who tragically loses her vision upon arrival to New York, 'New York Nooria' documents Nooria Nodrat as she continues to pick up the pieces of a fractured American Dream by living an unhindered life meant to inspire and uplift.

Moniere* DISSONANCE (2008, 80 Minutes, Video)
The lives of three individuals, an Afghan Jungian-psychoanalyst, a party-animal-turned-nun, and a mentally disturbed young man cross paths and collide. Their experiences with belief intertwine to create a gripping story of how a mixture of faith and abuse can splinter a fragile mind. The film leads us through three stories concurrently with segments from present, past and future; dreams and surreal fantasies. Adam tries to lead a normal life as a landscaper, yet he cannot escape his troubled and tormented past. Dev, Adams best friend convinces him to rectify his troubled past and questions of faith through violence or even murder. Mary was a party-girl in the past, until her experience with a GHB (liquid ecstasy) overdose leads her to a spiritual awakening. Now she has joined the church as a nun in the community where Adam and Dr. Azaad live. Dr. Azaad, one of Adams landscaping clients, embodies the two themes of the film. As a psychologist, he notices symptoms of Adams psychopathology and reaches out to him. As a man of faith, he and his family practice Islam and try to live good Muslim lives.

Sunday, January 4th [ Courthouse Theater ]

In the Courthouse Theater NewFilmmakers examines relationships.

 
6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS EARLY SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Isidore Roussel & Miru Kim BLIND DOOR  (2008, 11 Minutes, 16MM)
A naked figure haunts urban ruins.

Colin Healey WONDERFUL COUNTRY (2008, 30 minutes, 16MM) 
Driven to action by a dead town and a dullard boyfriend, April Norling steals a car and sets off into the wide, wide world in search of a new home.

Kris Cheppaikode VERTICAL LIVING MADE EASY (2008, 24 Minutes, 35MM)
Explores the relationship between a street kid and a cleaning lady who takes him in

 
7:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Eric Cheevers Las Historias Mas Sexy Del Mundo! aka The Sexiest Stories on Earth! (2008, 15 Minutes, 16mm)
Russ Camarda A DOUBLE WHAMMY (2008, 10 Minutes, Video)
Gilbert Khoury I WILL GET YOU HARRY (2007, 7 Minutes, Video)
Trevor St. John THE ART OF GETTING OVER IT (2008, 23 Minutes, 16MM)

 
8:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Katsumi Funahashi  BREATHLESS (2005, 7 Minutes, Video)

Katsumi Funahashi PEOPLE ON MONDAY (2007, 53 Minutes, Video)
Four low level crooks are hired by an unknown boss

 
9:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND FEATURE PRESENTATION

Judson Morgan THE COLLECTIVE (2008, 85 Minutes, Video)
Tyler Clarke is on the red-eye to New York City. Two days ago she received a cryptic voice-mail from her sister Jessica. She was asking for help but she didn't say why. And now that Tyler has come to the city to help her, Jessica is nowhere to be found. In order to find out what has happened, Tyler must delve into a world of darkness and lies, the underbelly of a spiritually depraved community living in a deconsecrated cathedral. They call themselves "The Collective." And Jessica is one of them. Tyler is forced to ask the ultimate question, is she ready to risk her own life to save her sister's?

 

 



Sunday, January 4th [ Deren Theater ]

In the Deren Theater NewFilmmakers gets some action.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Bohagey Bowes TERRY CARLETON GUITARS (2008, 5 Minutes, Video)
A kaleidoscopic look at one man's guitar collection

Mareike Wegener Al Hansen - THE MATCHSTICK TRAVELER (2008, 51 Minutes, Video)
The Matchstick Traveller portrays an artist who was everything at once: beat poet, pop artist, performer, Fluxus artist, author, porn editor, actor, composer, punk band manager - an axis for all post war movements, and still an outcast. The film looks back at his chaotic life, and examines the notion of failure. The Matchstick Traveller is a documentary collage that interweaves remarkable archival footage with the thoughts and memories of those who were there, featuring appearances by daughter Bibbe Hansen, Fluxus artists Ben Vautier, Alison Knowles, Larry Miller, Ben Patterson, Geoffrey Hendricks, the Vienna Actionist Hermann Nitsch, as well as friend and family.

 
7:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Neil Forman LONG NIGHT DRONE (2007, 4 Minutes, Video)

Matthew Petock JACKSON WARD (2008, 18 Minutes, 16MM)

Elena Shpak HALLUCINATION (2008, 46 Minutes, Video)
A movie about two lost girls, one Japanese and the other from Eastern Europe who find each other inside the very strange cult of Japanese nightlife scene –a money -driven nightmare world of salary men looking for entetainment and young women trying to be free. Satomy and Mira create a tiny island of safety and love around themselves as they are pursued by family members, carving out a brief and exquisite moment where tenderness and trust are released into each others hearts before powerful men overcome their innocence, darkness falls.


8:10PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Rob Santana* HIT N RUN (2007, 45 Minutes, Video)
Tracey, a runaway, was left for dead in the bushes. She'd been robbed, assaulted and raped by a hooded man. Who was he? He drove away in that jeep too quickly for her to jot down his license plate number. But the bastard left something behind: His wallet and I.D. He's a family man; wife and teenage daughter. Tracey has no one to turn to. She's broke with no friends. But the wallet becomes her weapon. She uses it to find out where he lives- and seek psychological vengeance through her attacker's innocent daughter.


9:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND FEATURE PRESENTATION

Michael Tiddes CRAWL SPACE (2007, 12 Minutes, 35MM)

Robert Beaucage* SPIKE (2008, 80 Minutes, Video)
In a woodland location crepuscular and foreign, "The Girl" and her three friends stand stranded in a habitat not too dissimilar to that found in many a nursery rhyme. Like the content of such morality poems, this prelapsarian area has its own monster, the same beast that forced their car off-road. Yet far from being a monster from the Id, "Spike" originates from a more corporeal realm: The Girl's suburban childhood.

   

 
 


 

Wednesday, January 7th

NewFilmmakers celebrates it eleventh year with a reception and the screening of a new print of TOO MUCH SLEEP, one of the first and most successful films we have shown.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS RECEPTION

Join us for a free reception.


7:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SPECIAL PROGRAM

The USC Film School 

Brian Winterton 00:05'01 
Li Lu Autumn 
Ian Spohr Dionysius Thrax
Jacob Halajian Benny 
Brian Vidal Defiance 
Tyler Stromberg When Traveling Alone in the Desert 
Cristina Dunlap The Bravest Man in the World 
Leo Cunningham Welcome Home 
Michael Younesi The Copper Baron 


8:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

David Maquiling* TOO MUCH SLEEP (2001, 90 Minutes, 35MM)

While riding the bus home from work one day, night watchman Jack Crawford gets distracted by a cute girl and has his gun stolen from him. In order to get it back, he enlists the help of the volatile local town guru, Eddie, a wise guy with a limitless range of philosophies, bad jokes and unbelievable anecdotes. Their search reveals a series of strange coincidences and characters in the peculiar underworld of life seething below the sleepy surface of suburban New Jersey. A modern American folk story

 



Wednesday, January 14th

NewFilmmakers examines the Bush legacy with three features.


5:45PM INTRO WHILE SEATING:

Elizabeth Tesla GITMO FREEDOM (2006, 8 Minutes, Video)


6:00PMNEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Michael Galinsky* / Suki Hawley* HORNS AND HALOS (2002, 90 Minutes, Video)
The movie is about a little guy that wanted to play with the big kids. Unfortunately, he got what he wanted. After writing several small time bios of people like Star Trek's Captain Picard, James Hatfield decides to hit the big time by writing a bio of then Governor George W. Bush. It worked -- for four days. The movie is about how an average, everyday guy reacts when the microscope of fame is turned back on him. Will he rise to the occasion and become a hero or be beaten down like a dog? Better yet, how would you react if all of your secrets were bared for all to see and judge?


7:30PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND FEATURE PRESENTATION

Nate Jones BLACK NOVEMBER (2008, 10 Minutes, Video)
NOV. 2008: Jack's racist Grandma could go right back into the coma if she finds out the shocking news that Obama has been elected President. So Jack thought of everything: media, TV, phone---anything that could inform her. What he didn't count on was his Republican cousin Gene.

David Modigliani CRAWFORD (2008, 90 Minutes, Video)
In 1999, Governor George W. Bush buys a ranch in Crawford, Texas and calls it "home"; an insular community explodes overnight. Bush declares candidacy for President, using Crawford as the perfect set-piece to project a folksy image. Months later, he thrusts the town of 705 into the spotlight as his token symbol the Presidents "Western White House." Crawford is instantly overrun with international press corps and droves of flocking tourists. Shops open; Main St. booms; the locals watch themselves on national TV. Now, the Crawford's boom is busting like the Presidency itself. Tourists have stopped coming; land is overvalued; the bumper sticker and trinket shops are boarded up. But seven years of political stagecraft have made a graver human impact. Two characters are dead and one is leaving town. Bush is soon to abscond. Left to deal with the aftermath are the real people of Crawford. Their lives are changed forever. And their story is our own.


9:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS THIRD FEATURE PRESENTATION

Maryanne Galvin INTERROGATE THIS (2008, 90 Minutes, Video)
INTERROGATE THIS presents a troubling and deeply human story illustrating the complexities encountered when national security, psychology, politics, ethics and morality collide. Until this past September when the American Psychological Association voted on a referendum requiring policy adjustments regarding psychologists' work in national security sites that prohibits their further involvement in interrogations of detainees, the mental health profession’s involvement in the war-on-terror had not been widely publicized. Yet, for years psychologists and other professionals involved in the war on terror have gone head to head debating their continued involvement as consultants to those conducting the interrogations of suspected terrorists in detention centers throughout the globe. The film puts 13 such individuals in the hot seat, including former NCIS Chief Psychologist Dr. Michael Gelles, Navy psychologist Dr. Carrie Kennedy, career military intelligence officer Col. Steven Kleinman, lawyers representing detainees and human rights organizations such as Physicians for Human Rights, as well as activist psychologists promoting a moratorium on continued involvement in centers where detainees lack human rights.For more information about the film visit www.MGProductions.biz. INTERROGATE THIS is Dr. Galvin’s seventh documentary in as many years. Her films have won awards at numerous independent film festivals and have been broadcast and distributed widely

INTERROGATE THIS features these interviewees who have agreed to participate in Q & A after the screening: 

Dr. Michael Gelles Psychologist Washington, D.C. Dr. Gelles served as the Chief Psychologist for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (1991-2006)

Dr. Steven Reisner, NYC, Co-Founder, Coalition for an Ethical Psychology 

Ghislaine Boulanger, Ph.D., Faculty Clinical Psychology Program, Teachers College, Columbia University, Founding Member, WithholdAPAdues.Com

Dr. Neil Altman, New York University, New York, NY, maker of the resolution for a moratorium on psychologists' participation in interrogations of national security detainees

 



Wednesday, January 21st

NewFilmmakers celebrates Documentaries.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Alexandre Philippe* THE SPOT (2007, 19 Minutes, Video)
November 22, 1963. A day that America and the world will never forget. Four decades later, as the rest of Dallas makes strides as a 21st century city, the spot where President Kennedy was shockingly assassinated remains eerily and forever frozen in time. Somewhere between the documentary short and experimental live action categories, 'The Spot' impressionistically exposes a day in the life of a prosaic site, made significant by the event that has come to define it.

Mishara Canino-Hussung & Bill Hussung CHASING THE DEVIL (2008, 102 Minutes, Video)
John Sterback is a member of the most politically incorrect subculture in America. He's a self-described 'ex-gay,' someone who claims to have changed their sexual orientation from gay to straight. Richard Cohen is John's inspiration and represents the public face of the 'ex-gay' movement while hiding his own controversial past. Chasing the Devil uncovers the truth behind the claims of reparative therapists who attack gay identity as nothing more than a developmental disorder that can be fixed with a healthy dose of therapy and prayer. Joannne Highley and Peterson Toscano take viewers deeper inside the world of ex-gay ministries with their journeys inside New York City's LIFE Ministry, where demons are believed to cause homosexuality, and exorcisms are the perferred form of treatment.


8:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SPECIAL PROGRAM

Cooper Union Film Program


10:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Lisa Katzman TOOTIE’S LAST SUIT (2007, 93 Minutes, Video)
This feature-length documentary, TOOTIE’S LAST SUIT explores the complex relationships, rituals, history, and music of New Orleans’ vibrant Mardi Gras Indian culture while telling the story of Allison “Tootie” Montana, former Chief of Yellow Pocahontas Hunters. Celebrated throughout the New Orleans as “the prettiest,” for the beauty and inventiveness of his elaborately beaded Mardi Gras costumes, Tootie Montana masked for 52 years, longer than any other Mardi Gras Indian.

 



Wednesday, January 28th

NewFilmmakers welcomes the NewLatino Filmmakers back for another year of great films curated by Edwin Pagan.

 



Wednesday, February 4th

NewFilmmakers is giving a frat party and you are invited.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS EARLY SHORT PROGRAM

Can Eskinazi THE PHANTOM BEHIND (2008, 18 Minutes, Video)
Mark Cornell MR MOONLIGHT (2007, 30 Minutes, Video)
Tony Gault CASE HISTORY IN PSYCHOTHERAPHY (2008, 9 Minutes, DVD)


7:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Kelly Knudson A KOLOR TO KILL FOR (2008, 6 Minutes, 16MM)
Jimmy Daggett THREE (2008, 14 Minutes, Video)
Christopher James Richter ELLE AND GUY (2008, 28 Minutes, Video)
Rob Neilson SOUTH OF NO NORTH (2007, 13 Minutes, Video)


8:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Alex Pucci* FRAT HOUSE MASSACRE (2008, 117 Minutes, 16MM)
Set in the late 70s, this gritty and twisted film taps the physical and mental underpinnings of the meaning of the word "brother" in a way reminiscent of the best of late 70s grindhouse and early 80s slashers.

 



Tuesday, February 10th

NewFilmmakers Celebrates Valentine’s Day.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS HOLIDAY SPECIAL SCREENING

Jolie Hales PASSING (2007, 5 Minutes, Video)
Frederic Eger WHEN RONNY MET CINDY (2007, 20 Minutes, Video)
Stephen Franciosa Jr SUPER SLICE (2007, 10 Minutes, Video)

Dusan Sekulovic PUSSYFOOT (2008, 99 Minutes, Video)
Irwin Pelkalvski, a bristly faced resident alien, and friends face their second coming of age in New York City. For Irwin, there are 'women' and then there are 'girls': women want to get married and girls just want to have fun. For the single Anny there are three types of men: married, gay and idiots. Polish polka bars, confusing self help books and a mythical hooker that never sleeps with her clients, confound their American journey.


8:25PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Eric Cheevers LES HISTORIAS MAS SEXY DEL MUNDO No.2 
Jack Truman PHONE SEX GRANDMA (2006, 9 Minutes, Video)
Amy Miketic FATHER (2007, 8 Minutes, Video)


9:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Hilton Ariel Ruiz* ROGUES. REBELS, AND RENEGADES (2008. 60 Minutes, Video)
Art or Porn? That is the question the art world has asked ever since men first put his mask on the wall.

Jonathan Betzler* HOMECOMING (2004, 109 Minutes, Video)
Barry, a happily married video game designer, finds his life quickly spiraling out of control when he runs into an old crush from high school.

 



Wednesday, February 18th

NewFilmmakers goes back to college.
.

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SPECIAL PROGRAM

University Of Texas - Austin Film School


8:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILMS

Vanessa McDonnell" ZOOM INTO GIRL STANDING ON BUSY STREET (2006, 3 Minutes, 16MM)

Eli  Hershko* REFLECTION (2008, 45 Minutes, Video)
An actress on a small theater production is getting ready to give her last performance while dealing with the reveal of a love triangle and betrayal 


9:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS  FEATURE PRESENTATION

Jake Barsha EUGENE (2008, 85 Minutes, Video)
“Do you know what life is? Life is whatever you want it to be!' Eugene Prescott is a lonely man who desperately wants to make a connection with the world and people around him. Like most people he just wants to love and be loved. Tormented by loneliness and a deep need to connect with others, Eugene searches outside of himself for the answers only to find himself more perplexed by his confused sexual tendencies and repressed childhood memories. As the shield of his denial becomes stripped he directs his rage inward. After a failed attempt at dating and an encounter with a hooker Eugene’s search leads him to the streets of Hollywood where he meets Josh, a young hustler who turns tricks to support a heroin habit, and Heather, a beautiful softcore porn model who dreams of starting a new life. Determined to help the young couple change their lives, Eugene comes up with a solution that will profoundly impact the world around him. Despite his best intentions his plans have catastrophic consequences for all of those involved. No one will escape from the events that ensue before all their destinies have been altered forever.
.

 



Tuesday, February 24th

NewFilmmakers visits the old neighborhood.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SPECIAL PROGRAM

Third World Newsreel


8:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Justin Dillard OVERHEARD IN NYC (2007, 6 Minutes, 7 Minutes)
Michael Vincent DREAM GIRL (2008, 13 Minutes, 8MM)
Daniel Muller GOODBYE CANARSIE (2008, 20 Minutes, 35MM)
Frank Mosca IBANKER (2008, 22 Minutes, Video)


9:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Conrad Stojak THE WOODHAVEN PAUSE (2008, 100 Minutes, Video)
There is a time when two men become too old to be father and son. Living in the shadows of their failures, tension builds between Miro & his once brilliant father, Josef in a small, cramped Woodhaven, Queens apartment. Care & affection twists itself into violence all too easily resulting in consequences neither could predict



Wednesday, March 4th

NewFilmmakers gets down and dirty.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS EARLY SHORT PROGRAM

Jimmy Genacarelli A NEIGHBORHOOD STORY (2008, 92 Minutes, Video)
A story about a mafia neighborhood on the Lower East Side from 1990 to today, their codes and traditions.


7:35 NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Marty Stano MOON CAKE (2007, 7 Minutes, Video)
Sascha Just* THREE (2008, 12 Minutes, Video)
Thomas Nagy RESCUE (2008, 12 Minutes, Video)


8:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Nick Oddo* NEW YORK BLOOD (2008, 60 Minutes, Video)
Drug dealing mobster Vinny, who owns a neighborhood whorehouse, wants to take care of his father Lorenzo, a convicted murder just released from prison. But things just don’t work out. Watch as the sins of the father and violence of the son overwhelm good intentions and lead to a blood soaked finale. Stars Vinnie Stigma, best known as the guitarist of the legendary hardcore band Agnostic Front, Marvin W Schwartz from Midnight Mass and I Hate You, Vinny Vella from the Sopranos and Casino, Frank Aquilino from Goodfella’s, A Bronx Tale and The King Of New York, Tak Wah Eng world famous Kung Fu master, and comedian June Rose. 


9:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND FEATURE PRESENTATION

Tao Ruspoli FIX (2007, 95 Minutes, Video)
Racing across Los Angeles in one, unwieldy day, documentary filmmakers Bella (Olivia Wilde) and Milo (Tao Ruspoli) race from Beverly Hills to Watts and places in between to get Milo's brother Leo (Shawn Andrews) from jail to rehab before 8pm, or Leo goes to prison for three years.A story inspired by true events, the trio documents their trip from a suburban police station in Calabasas through mansions in Beverly Hills, East LA chop-shops, rural wastelands, and housing projects in Watts as they attempt to raise the $5,000 required to get Leo into the rehab clinic.Along the way encountering dozens of colorful characters, each with their own anomalous perspective on Leo's larger than life personality and style, and each with their own excuse for why they cannot help out. In the end, it may take a drug deal to get the necessary funds for rehab.




Tuesday, March 10th

NewFilmmakers celebrates creative living.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS EARLY SHORT PROGRAM

Yelena Demikovsky HAPPY TO BE SO (2007, 48 Minutes, Video)
This film is an entertaining story about a New York couple, well-known ballet dancers in 60s and their exciting personalities that greatly complement one another.

Floanne Ankah ONE WAY (2008, 10 Minutes, Video)
Experimental dance happening on Prince & Crosby Streets.


7:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Jouri Smit THE BROTHERS KOWALSKI (2008, 8 Minutes, Video)
Amitabh Klemm THE ART OF STALKING (2007, 14 Minutes, 35MM)
Drew McCreadie THE VALET (2008, 39 Minutes, Video)


8:05PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Dileepan Ganesan THE GIRL ON THE BICYCLE (2008, 7 Minutes, Video)

Lovisa Inserra BUSTER (2008, 72 Minutes, 8MM)
Buster's the story of a guy that anyone in his right mind would run away from. Or should run away from, since Buster spends all his spare time provoking strangers into fights, then refusing to defend himself as they pummel him 'til they grow bored. The only one close to him is his brother Scott, who himself is trying to get his life together. Buster tries in vain to keep Scott next to him in his care free land of non-tax-paying-abusers, knowing he'll loose him sooner or later to Scott’s much prettier and determined girlfriend Jesse. Buster can only beat her at fucking up and does so in a way that's very hard for Scott to ignore. You've probably already guessed, but this is a low budget film. Not put-a-DV-camera-on-my-gas-card low budget -- more like 'shoot the whole thing in Super 8, develop the film in the sink using cheap equipment secured from Russia, except the sulfuric acid, which you've got to extract from old car batteries, because trying to import sulfuric acid from Russia looks just a little shady these days'. But then how the hell else should you tell this kind of a story?

 



Tuesday, March 17th

NewFilmmakers goes to war.


NEWFILMMAKERS SPECIAL PROGRAM

6:00PM Kerri Kock* PASSIONS JUST LIKE MINE (2008, 78 Minutes, Video)
"In a word: awesome. DIY filmmaker Kerri Koch (of the riot grrrl doc Don't Need You) interviews a score of Los Angeles' Latino Morrissey fans--a veritable army, it turns out--and, in the process, orbits that peculiar, powerful connection that an artist can have with his or her fans. Passions starts from some simple observations--Morrissey now lives in L.A., L.A. is predominantly Hispanic, and a large number of young Hispanics have become Morrissey/Smiths fans--and, through interviews, tries to figure out why. Koch doesn't obtain a single answer, if only because each respondent has a personal relationship to Morrissey's music--and it is the music that's connecting with them, a connection that powers these fans' interest in Morrissey's lyrics, life, and ideas. They take Morrissey very seriously, recognizing in his songs their own feelings of alienation, bittersweet hope, and wistful resignation in navigating a world that doesn't always feel welcoming. And, while, yes, seeing a tattoo-covered young Hispanic man talk about getting his boss' permission to come into work late so that he can try to see Morrissey leaving a radio station interview is a loving portrait of sincere fandom, it's the cultural translations--such as Morrissey tribute act Sweet and Tender Hooligans Spanish version of "Lost" ("Perdido")--that testify to this movie's greatest strength: showing how art moves across nationalities, borders, and languages with its emotional impact intact."


7:30PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILMS PROGRAM
About War

Bob Jones THE WAR COMES HOME (2008, 3 Minutes, Video)
Josef Wladyka HUEY (2007, 4 Minutes, 16MM)
Sami Khan HABIBI (2008, 8 Minutes, Video)
Christopher Capelluto LAST STOP (2008, 16 Minutes, 16MM)
Jonathan J. Johnson ADIRONDACK (2008, 20 Minutes, Video)


8:30PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Kirk Gostkowski LEAVE ME BEHIND (2007, 124 Minutes, Video)
Christian Keller, a 21-year-old husband and father, is about to leave for Iraq. In the next three days he is forced to question everything he has come believe while trying to say goodbye to his friends and family.

 



Tuesday, March 31st

NewFilmmakers presents films about the Middle East and America.


6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY PROGRAM

Masoud Farand LOSING AFGHANISTAN (2007, 47 Minutes, Video)
This documentary is a vivid portrayal of post-taliban Afghanistan. A variety of public opinion weaves together a never before told story of present day Afghanistan: its struggles, recent developments, the role of Islam and the breath-taking beauty of the country. It captures the people’s struggle to remain hopeful, their disappointment with the present government and the failed policies of Washington which are threatening the stability of the entire region. It answers the question, “What went wrong?” and poses poignant lessons to be learned.
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Moniere & Masoud Farhand USA: DESIRED & DESPISED (2008, 27 Minutes. Video)
A documentary shot in a variety of countries on how the world perceives The United States: government, culture, life style. What do they despise most about this beautiful country and what do they desire most about this crooked country.

Selcuk Oksuzoglu THE RESTORER (2005, 44 Minutes, Video)
The Restorer is an anthropological documentary about a Turkish-Armenian immigrant, Zeron Ayvazian, an antique rug restorer, living in New York City. Zeron tries to restore old carpets in a city where modern sensibilities and a post 9/11 economy threaten to destroy his traditional handcraft, which has been passed down for generations in his native Anatolia. The film demonstrates the day-to-day economic consequences of a post 9/11 America on the life of a middle-class immigrant who unwillingly gives up his American Dream.


8:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Moniere* OH ABKBAR (2005, 8 Minutes, Video)
A bisexual Arab American lives a two faced-life with his American girl friend. Hell breaks loose when she returns home from her parents’ house, unannounced.

Moniere* KHANJAR (2008, 7 Minutes, Video)
This is a unique Afghan music video about the lost of a loved one. Ehsan Aman’s, the singer, songs are a part of the sound track “The Kite Runner”. He is a musical legend among the Afghan community. 

Affandy Yacoob / Ajmal Yourish AL QAREM (2006, 84 Minutes, Video)
An Afghan family's friend becomes a victim of an FBI agent who lost a brother in 9/11 attacks. Qarem wants to help his friend Nasir, but his family becomes a victim of commoners upset about 9/11 attacks. One tragedy follows another and he finds himself a murderer of three FBI agents and lost in Afghanistan believing in nothing.

 

Our Spring Schedule / Our Spring Festival

 

* NewFilmmaker Alumni