The story of THE MACALUSO SISTERS begins in 1985. The Macaluso sisters (Maria, Pinuccia, Lia, Katia and Antonella) are five young, orphaned siblings who live in and work from a shabby rooftop apartment in Palermo, Sicily. They make a living by renting doves out for ceremonies of all manner. Following each gig, the doves return home on their own, by air, naturally. One hot summer, a rare beach outing is planned on a day off from work. Near the close of a day full of enchantment, reverie, and close encounters with secret lovers, a shocking catastrophe transpires. That single event…
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In The Man Who Sold His Skin, directed by Kaouther Ben Hania, Tunisian film nominated for Best International Film Oscar, Sam Ali, is a young sensitive and impulsive Syrian, who has left his country for Lebanon to escape the war. To be able to travel to Europe and live with the love of his life, he accepts to have his back tattooed by one of by the World’s most sulfurous contemporary artist. Turning his own body into a prestigious piece of art, Sam will however come to realize that his decision might actually mean anything but freedom. We had the…
Tove directed by Zaida Bergroth , is Finland’s 2021 Oscar entry. Tove is also screened online this weekend at the Scandinavian Film Festival LA. In the midst of her artistic struggles and unconventional personal life, Tove Jansson found worldwide success from an unexpected side project: the creation of the beloved world of the Moomins. Helsinki, 1945. The end of the war brings a new sense of artistic and social freedom for painter Tove Jansson. Tove’s desire for liberty is put to the test when she meets theatre director Vivica Bandler. Her love for Vivica is electric and all-consuming. As she…
“Maryam (22) accidentally kills her husband Nasser (65) and is sentenced to death. The only person who can save her is Mona (37), Nasser’s daughter. All Mona has to do is appear on a popular live TV show and forgive Maryam. But forgiveness proves difficult when they are forced to relive the past.” This is the synopsis of Yalda, A Night for Forgiveness, the latest film by Massoud Bakhshi, and the winner of 2020 Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Dramatic Competition and the nominee for 2021 Lumières Awards, the French equivalent of Golden Globes. Hamidreza Nassiri has sat down to…
LAST CALL is about the life of Dylan Thomas, the famous Welsh poet and writer, examines his life and loves in New York City in Last Call. a fanciful drama about the last days of a literary legend. Inspired by the real life of a man who was regarded as one of the twentieth century’s most influential lyrical poets, Last Call stars Rhys Ifans (The Fantastic Flitcrofts) as Thomas, two-time Academy Award-nominee John Malkovich (In the Line of Fire, Places in the Heart) as Thomas’s confidant and enabler, Dr. Felton, and in supporting roles, Rodrigo Santoro (Westworld), Romola Garai (Atonement),…
In Over The Moon, Fei Fei, a bright young girl fueled with determination and a passion for science, builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. There she ends up on an unexpected quest, and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures. Directed by animation legend Glen Keane, and produced by Gennie Rim and Peilin Chou, Over the Moon is an exhilarating musical adventure about moving forward, embracing the unexpected, and the power of imagination. The film stars Cathy Ang, Phillipa Soo, Ken Jeong, John Cho, Ruthie Ann Miles, Sandra Oh, Robert…
Sergio Navarretta’s The Cuban is an independent film with an impressive cast: the legendary Louis Gossett Jr., Canadian rising star Ana Golja, Academy Awards nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo, Lauren Holly and Giacomo Gianniotti. To learn more about The Cuban we had an interview with Sergio Navarretta, The Cuban’s director: https://vimeo.com/444742327 In The Cuban, nineteen-year-old Mina Ayoub is a pre-med student who has given up her dream of becoming a singer. Orphaned as a baby in Afghanistan, Mina’s grandfather sent her to Canada at the age of eight to live with a lone aunt, Bano. A former doctor herself, Bano wants nothing…
I have known Michael Frank for almost thirty five years and I met him for the first time in Finish embassy in Tehran, when I was receiving my visa to attend the Tampre Film Festival as a jury member. Michael just rushed to meet me as I was the first person in Iranian film industry he had encountered. I found Michael s young msn full of energy and love for people, Back then I could not imagine that later we will get involved in a few projects and become close friends. Lately I had the opportunity of interviewing Michael Franck…
It is almost over three years that I had the privilege of meeting Mark Pellington in person and interview him for his amazing body of work in narrative feature filmmaking and creating many of the best music videos of our time. Mark is a very kind and humble artist and human being. (Bijan Tehrani) I asked Mark, if he wants to pick his top 5 music videos which ones he may choose: https://vimeo.com/431371957 Mark Pellington is an American filmmaker, photographer, and artist. He was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Bill Pellington, a linebacker who played football with the…
In January this year and at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, I had the opportunity of meeting Eline Farideh Koning , the main character in Finding Farideh, Iranian documentary film, in person. Eline Farideh was quite enthusiastic about being part of making this important documentary, representing Iran in 2020 Oscars. After a successful and full house screening of Finding Farideh, I interviewed Eline Farideh on camera: https://vimeo.com/422546627 “Finding Farideh” is a feature-length documentary about an Iranian girl named Farideh, who had been abandoned in a holy shrine in Iran when she was 6 months old in 1976, and then…