Feature Story Archives - Page 12 of 13

I met Count Dracula..”We build the houses We will never live in”

By Bijan Tehrani on 08/20/2017 Feature Story

I started working as a construction worker at the age of six. I was working along with ten other workers building a housing project in a Tehran suburb. My life was limited to carry red bricks for other workers; I was carrying bricks from dawn to sunset and even in my dreams. The only joy of my life was listening to the stories of Mashdi, an old worker. Mashdi loved to tell us the stories of his old days working in the movie theaters. During the silent movie era, he had worked as an interpreter of the captioned text for the…

How Indian cinema fought fascism in World War II

By World Cinema Reports' Editors on 08/19/2017 Feature Story

Christopher Nolan’s film Dunkirk raised questions recently about the erasure of India from the war effort – any portrayal of Indian soldiers or reference to their contribution was noticeably absent. But even in India, the country’s role in the conflict tends to be overshadowed by the major events of the Indian independence movement that coincided with the war years. Within this larger conversation about cultural retellings of the war, it is important to look at the how India’s own film industry responded and how it was filtering the stories of the war through the prism of cinema. Editorials in film magazines such as The Mirror rallied the public…

Ali Noori Oskouei,s Release from Heaven at Montreal Animation FEST

By World Cinema Reports' Editors on 08/17/2017 Feature Story

The face of animation is eve changing and the fields in which it is becoming prominent, are increasingly diverse. Now in its fourth year, the Montreal International Animation Film Festival (MIAFF), also known as Animaze, will celebrate animation in all its forms from August 17-20. “If you think of animation at its most basic level, short cartoons, like Mickey Mouse, come to mind,” said MIAFF director Laurie Gordon. “But it is really an umbrella term because animation, whether hand drawn or 3D images rendered through a software, is used not only in television, films and gaming but also in research.”…

Indian filmmakers should explore Indian stories

By World Cinema Reports' Editors on 08/15/2017 Feature Story

Director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra believes Indian filmmakers should explore stories that are rooted in the country rather than presenting “American ideas” in local packaging. Mehra, whose films “Rang De Basanti” and “Delhi 6” were lauded internationally, says it was the Indian connect in his stories that made them popular with the audiences abroad. In an interview with PTI, Mehra says, “If we really want the world to see our cinema, we need to tell Indian stories. We need to show real India and not American ideas made in India. My endeavour is to change the western gaze at Indian cinema.”…

Late Romanian Director Radu Gabrea’s Film Festival Finds a New Home

By James Ulmer on 08/02/2017 Feature Story

With the passing of Romanian director Radu Gabrea earlier this year, it was anyone’s guess whether the small cineaste-friendly film festival he founded six years ago, in Transylvania would have the capacity to survive, much less thrive. But to the happy surprise of festival afficianados in Europe and beyond, Gabrea’s cinematic gem – formerly called the Medias Central European Film Festival (MeCEFF) and set in the sleepy hills of central Romania — will resurrect itself September 3-9 in Romania’s third largest city, Timisoara. Re-christened the Central European Film Festival (CEFF), the 7th edition of the festival plans to offer twice…

Iranian Short Film RETOUCH goes for OSCAR Consideration

By CWB News Department on 06/28/2017 Feature Story

RETOUCH written and directed by Kaveh Mazaheri won Best Live Action Film Award (over 15) minutes at the Palm Springs International ShortFest Film Festival and goes for 2018 Best Short Film Oscar consideration, a great success for this film. Film critics give RETOUCH a good chance to get the Oscar nomination as it has also won an award at Tribeca Film Festival. RETOUCH In the corner of the home, Maryam’s husband does weightlifting. Suddenly, the weight falls on his throat and puts him between life and death. Maryam tries to save him, but she just decides to stop helping and…

CWB, ELAC 2017 Life Achievement Award for Noureddin Zarrinkelk

By CWB News Department on 03/12/2017 Feature Story

On March 25th Cinema Without Borders and East Los Angeles College, in a tribute to legendary Noureddin Zarrinkelk celebrate his life achievement by awarding him their 2017 Life Achievement Award. This award ceremony is part of the Southeast European Animation Day that will be held at 1301 Avenida Cesar Chavez, Monterey Park, CA 91754. Screenings will be held in the Music Recital Hall theater (Building S2) Free parking will be available in Structure #3 (off Avenida Cesar Chavez) or Structure #4 (corner of Floral and Collegiate Avenues). To attend please RSVP at rsvpanim@gmail.com or call 310 422 4629 Dr. Noureddin…

Academy Award Winner Albert Wolsky & THE SALESMAN Oscar

By Bijan Tehrani on 03/03/2017 Feature Story

Almost a week after the Oscar award ceremony and announcement of the Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman as the winner of the Best Foreign Language Oscar, there is heated debate in social media over this film and its Oscar. There are many that claim there has been a strong political motivation behinds awarding the Oscar to the Salesman. https://vimeo.com/226594597 To clarify this matter we had the opportunity and honor of speaking to Mr. Albert Wolsky, an Academy Award winner, about the process of selecting the the Best Foreign Language film and the quqlities of the Salesman. Albert Wolsky has won the…

Greg Laemmle Talks Watching Movies To Build Communities

By Wyatt Phillips on 11/15/2016 Feature Story

In the age of Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, along with a growing list of content streaming platforms, where does the movie theater fit in? I would argue, it fits in perfectly; in fact, I would insist that patronizing movie theaters is a necessity to the health and endurance of our passion for cinema. Consider this, which of those streaming services really provide the viewer with a sense of community while watching a film? To examine the movie theater industry more closely, Conversations Without Borders sat down with Greg Laemmle, who along with his father Robert Laemmle, runs Los Angeles’ own…

CRISTINA by Michèle Ohayon at Palm Springs ShortFest, an interview

By Wyatt Phillips on 06/23/2016 Feature Story

An intimate portrait of a friend who was diagnosed with cancer, CRISTINA is the latest documentary from Academy Award Nominated director Michèle Ohayon. Michele is based in Los Angeles with her company Kavana Entertainment, which is currently engaged with international projects spanning across different genres. CRISTINA will premiere at the Palm Springs International Short Film Festival on June 25th at 4:30pm. Born in Casablanca and raised in Israel, Michèle graduated from Tel Aviv University (Film & Television), after serving in the army. She has spent the last thirty years directing and producing documentaries that deal with issues of human conflict,…

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