Chicago’s Black Harvest International Festival of Film and Video specializes in presenting new work by independent filmmakers from Chicago and around the world. This year’s festival includes sixteen feature films and thirty shorts. Approximately 40 percent of the films were produced in the Chicago area or involve artists or subjects particular to the region. As always, the festival features, where possible, personal appearances by filmmakers to engage in audience discussion.
There are special events and parties too. At the festival’s opening night on August 5, when Golden Globe-winning, In one planned special event, Emmy-nominated actress and playwright Regina Taylor will be handed this year’s Deloris Jordan Award for Excellence in Community Leadership.
In another Black Harvest International engagement, NBC 5’s LeeAnn Trotter MCs the program, “A Black Harvest Feast,” which includes Chicago filmmaker Evan Allen-Gessesse introducing his short film “Eric’s Haircut.” Other festival special events are special advance screenings of “Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey,” a profile of Kevin Clash, the African American Muppeteer who brings the beloved character Elmo to life; and “VIVA RIVA!,” an action, neo-noir thriller from the Congo. And for those working to get a film into production, on August 14, there will be a panel discussion “How to Get a Movie Made” – a free DIY workshop covering every aspect of production for the aspiring independent filmmaker. The festival closes September 1.
New Ways Of Storytelling, Branding And Fan Engagement
The universal adaptation of multiple platforms and devices has fragmented audiences and forced content creators and marketers to find new ways of storytelling, branding and fan engagement. The TransVergence Summit in Hollywood, August 7-8, is a conference for content creators, branders and technologists to expand their transmedia knowledge in order to engage audiences across multiple platforms.
At the featured Story Hackathon event of the Summit, the session will be a real-time, 24-hour competition during which five teams of four partners work to develop a cohesive narrative across multiple platforms. Open to writers, designers, filmmakers, developers and more, teams will design a cohesive narrative spanning three or more technological platforms and execute a single one. Informative sessions will cover vital areas such as: transmedia, immersive media, publishing, branded content, second screen, storyworlds, over-the-top television. Co-located with the Summit is the very first West Coast Story Hackathon as well as the Start-Up Salon.
8 Sided Films
8 Sided Films is an active film and webisode production company, based in North Hollywood, focused primarily on the sci-fi genre. The company is presently in production of a full length feature film under writer/director Tennyson E. Stead titled, “Quantum Theory,” the story of Chelsea and Roe, two brilliant, snarky women of science, who develop a prototype with the power to alter reality… until it’s snatched from under them by L.D.I., a ruthless and powerful defense contractor. The film project has open investment opportunities. The production unit of Quantum Theory has prepared an investment plan suited to executive producers looking for business partners as experienced and prepared as they are themselves, or for private investors looking for a management team they can rely on.
The cast of the ‘Quantum Theory’ film project has been screening a promotional webseries showcasing the relationships and humor between the production’s cast members entitled “SASSxACCELERATION,” SASSxACCELERATION is a mocumentary college podcast in which future mad scientists Chelsea Barrington and Gertude Monroe debate and debunk the science of pop culture and modern mythology. The final episode will premiere live on geek web broadcast 1337 Lounge Live, on Thursday, August 15, starting time 18:00. Quantum Theory stars Tybee Diskin and Danielle K. Jones join writer/director Tennyson E. Stead on the live internet broadcast 1337LoungeLive, to answer questions from hosts Jennifer Zhang, Xander Denke and the web audience after the performance.
The pubic is invited to take a role in adding critical commentary to the development of ‘Quantum Theory’ on the 8 Sided Forum. Get Quantum Theory updates and other 8 Sided Projects and find out more about the film at the company’s Twitter link: @QuantumMovie. Another ongoing project for 8 Sided Films is ‘Man and Machine,’ concerning a professor at an overlooked Southern California university who sacrifices his future and his freedom to create a true artificial intelligence.
HollyShorts Festival: 300 Short Films
With a focus on short film produced 30 minutes of less, the ninth annual HollyShorts festival will feature more than 300 short films in competition. International and local next-generation filmmakers will file into Hollywood, August 15-22, for screenings, galas, world premieres, panels and networking events. This year, the HollyShorts Film Festival will open with a feature film. Festival alumni David Rodriguez’s dramedy, ‘Last I Heard,’ will have its Los Angeles premiere on opening day. HollyShorts is awarding two all-expense paid international trips for this year’s winning filmmakers. The overall Best Short Film top prize winner of HollyShorts will win two complimentary tickets to visit Wellington, New Zealand courtesy of festival sponsor StarNow. While in New Zealand, the winner will get to present their film at a local film festival and meet local industry professionals, along with $1K NZD spending cash.
For the second year, HollyShorts is indulging in a competition with NociCinema’s NociCortinFestival 2013, another short film festival of the Southern-Italian region of Puglia, at the heel of the Italian peninsula. Hollyshorts will choose a selection of works from among the films submitted to NociCortin festival to be screened in August at the Ninth Annual HollyShorts Film Festival, and among these films, one will receive the Special HollyShorts Grand Jury Choice Award. The director of the winning film from NociCortin festival will be flown out to Los Angeles to present their film to the American public. HollyShorts Film Festival will include: an opening night ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre (formerly known as Grauman’s), fest screenings, filmmaker Q&A’s, industry panels, and private receptions happening in venues throughout Hollywood during the entire week of the celebration.
Pensacola Para Con
Pensacola Para Con convention will interest fans of science fiction, fantasy, horror, costuming, comics, renaissance, gaming, anime, indie films, paranormal. It is a multi-genre convention for toys, comics, horror movies, original arts, collectibles MMA, wrestling, but will offer something for everyone, including: anime, manga, film, art, comics, sci fi, gaming, celebrities, and more. There will be celebrity meet and greet, discussion panels, screenings, demonstrations, workshops, and contests. This year’s convention, running August 17-19, will help raise funds for American Cancer Society – Making Strides against Breast Cancer. Among special attractions people are encouraged to attend are: investigations at the Pensacola Victorian Inn and Gray House, Seville Quarter Zombies, Geeks and Freaks Masquerade Ball.
Some of the film veteran guests scheduled to appear at Pensacola Para Con include: Gil Gerard (Buck Rogers), Richard Epcar (Animation Voice Actor), Cindy Morgan (CADDYSHACK and TRON), Jason Faunt (Power Rangers and Resident Evil 6), Ari Lehman Jason: (Friday the 13th), Michael Berryman (The Hills Have Eyes, The Devil’s Rejects, Star Trek), Theodus Crane (AMC’s The Walking Dead), and many more.
Broadcast & Cable Trade Fair
Broadcast & Cable is a trade fair covering television, radio and telecommunications engineering of Latin America. The Sao Paulo event is directed at professionals, entrepreneurs and executives in the production and distribution of multimedia electronic content market, including open and subscription TV, radio, internet, industry, production and telecommunications.
Running August 20-22, Broadcast and Cable will have a focus on advance technologies and applications used in production, distribution, testing and operation of TV, internet, radio and other multimedia/transmedia electronics. SET 2013 Congress will run concurrent to Broadcast and Cable in the Exhibition Center. It is organized and promoted by the Brazilian Society of Television Engineering – SET. SET Congress organizes lectures, talk shows, tutorials and debates with leading professionals in the market, who will be discussing scenarios and highlighting trends, new launchings and the latest developments.
Beijing International Radio, TV and Film Equipment Exhibition
Beijing International Radio, TV and Film Equipment Exhibition is an international trade show – summit, awards show, exhibition expo – that will run for five days starting August 20 in Beijing, showcasing products and services related to radio, film and television industry. In October 2007, BIRTV was endorsed by International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers (IABM). BIRTV’s focus is on content while highlighting the latest developments and technical innovation inspired by the international media community. Highlighted technology trends that will be specially showcased or demoed during the conference/exhibition include: Ultra HD (4K/8K), OTT, Mobile Media and Pro Audio, trends reflecting how traditional broadcasting reinvents itself. Related activities such as BIRTV Summit, BIRTV Awards, BIRTV Science and Technology Development Forum (STDF), China Digital Film and Video Editing Awards etc. will also offer new insights.
The BIRTV Summit opens with a Summit Report by President of CCTV Hu Zhanfan. Chief Engineer of CRI, Wang Lian, will address the topic of “Smart Media Network” afterward. After an afternoon break, Sun Jian, Vice President of CTVIT, tackles the topic “The Road of Global Production and Broadcast.” In other talks for the remainder of the afternoon the topic of “The New Developments of Full-media Integration Production and Operation” will be presented by Zhang Dayong, of China Digital Video (Beijing) Limited. And Bannai Tatsushi, Development Department Minister of Panasonic Corp. touts the “Panasonic Technology Development Direction and New Product Application.” John Ive, Director of Business Development and Technology – IABM, closes the Summit addressing “The Broadcast and Media Industry Business Outlook.” To promote a better understanding of BIRTV as well as the China broadcasting industry, BIRTV conducts Group Tour projects for visitors from outside China. This will include, but is not limited to: a visit to CCTV or BTV, the BIRTV2013 Welcome Dinner, a visit to a movie and TV production base, a City Tour excursion, attending the Beijing Opera.
IFAB – International Film Awards Berlin
The International Film Awards Berlin – the ifab – was founded as a non-profit organization dedicated to the creation, distribution, preservation and support of independent cinema created by mostly unknown filmmakers. The awards presentation gives out several awards, including Best Lead Actress and Actor ifab Awards, Best Director ifab Award and the Grand Prize: the Brandenburg Gate Award. Festival venue, The Sputnik, is an arthouse movie theatre located in Kreuzberg, one of Berlins artistic districts. Kreuzberg has emerged from its history as one of the poorest quarters in Berlin in the late 1970s, to one of Berlin’s cultural centers in the middle of the now unified city. Presently, Kreuzberg is one of the trendy districts of Berlin, known for its lively art scene, cafes, bars and restaurants and a bustling nightlife.
BMI
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) will recognize siblings Bryan “Birdman” Williams and Ronald “Slim” Williams of Cash Money Records as Icons at the 2013 BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards, at a New York City ceremony on August 22. The event, formerly known as the BMI Urban Awards, celebrates the songwriters, producers and publishers of the most-performed r&b/hip-hop songs of the previous year. The BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards will include an all-star musical tribute to this year’s Icons, as well as the presentation of the Social Star Award and R&B/Hip-Hop Songwriter, Producer and Publisher of the Year crystals. BMI’s President and CEO Del Bryant and Catherine Brewton will share the evening’s hosting duties with recording artist Ray J. Together, the Williams brothers have overseen the extension of the Cash Money brand beyond music: Cash Money Content, a book publishing division distributed by Atria/Simon and Schuster that has released three New York Times best sellers and will be releasing a new book authored by the Reverend Al Sharpton this fall.
The Cash Money enterprise they founded continues to nurture young talent into internationally recognizable standouts: Young Money Entertainment – the joint venture with Lil Wayne – has steered the rise of recording artists Drake, Nicki Minaj and Tyga. In 2012, Cash Money celebrated the sale of 500 million songs worldwide, a feat made possible by its top-tier artists and focused leadership. This invitation-only event will also honor the world’s premier songwriters, producers and publishers of the most-performed r&b/hip-hop songs of the previous year, as well as the presentation of the Social Star Award, and R&B/Hip-Hop Songwriter, Producer and Publisher of the Year.
Social Media Brazil
With a focus on social networking, Social Media Brazil aims to bring together key people to its Sao Paulo location to discuss and debate various aspects of social media and its cutting edge implementation. For 2013, the August 24 expo will be divided into two rooms – one will be dedicated on lectures related to national and international issues and the other room will be based on interviews and discussions. The one-day conference agenda provides opportunities for learning, networking and some fun through numerous discussions and interactive sessions. The many aspects and utilization of social media will be discussed and debated by professionals and enthusiasts from different parts of the world.
Expo organizer, Media Education of Sao Paulo, has an industry focus in digital marketing. The events this company organizes are accompanied by an international roster of well regarded experts and leaders. Social Media Brazil, Social Media Week Sao Paulo and Search Labs are some of the numerous events that Media Education has organized. Dealing with Facebook Marketing Garage SP, Yahoo Hack Day, Social Media Week SP, Search Labs, Social Media Brazil and New Insights, Media Education seeks to apply as much innovation to develop new approaches to its marketing and media strategies.
Internationale Tanzmesse Biennial Discussion Forum
The Internationale Tanzmesse is a biennial discussion forum, festival and marketplace for communicating and networking in the field of contemporary dance. At the Tanzmesse, international dance companies and artists present their work live on stage and choreographers, dancers, agencies, presenters and cultural institutions network and present their work in a marketplace. The internationale tanzmesse NRW also hosts numerous international gatherings and meetings. The Tanzmesse is a project of the Gesellschaft fur Zeitgenossischen Tanz, based in Cologne. The original aim of the Tanzmesse was to create a platform for dance companies from North-Rhine Westphalia where they could introduce and present choreographic work from the region to a larger regional audience as well as to the professional dance world.
The Tanzmesse’s goal has always been to form a presentation around performance and discussion. The companies could perform their works as well as talk about their projects in a marketplace environment. In 1997, the second Tanzmesse in Essen expanded the marketplace to include international companies and organizations to become a “World Market of Dance Regions.” As an opportunity for all the professionals and individuals who are totally consumed with all aspects of dance, the event which will run August 27-30 has been structured by the organizers to provide owners of dance companies and cultural organizations with a platform through which they can gain visibility for their projects.
Telluride Film Festival 40th Anniversary
This year Telluride Film Festival will be celebrating its 40th Anniversary as it opens its annual festival August 29 running through September 2. To commemorate this occasion an additional day has been added to the usual four-day Festival, making room for a five-day stretch of special programming and festivities. Telluride Film Festival, along with the Town of Telluride, has revealed it is preparing a new venue in time for the 40th Anniversary celebration. The Werner Herzog Theatre will be situated in Telluride’s Town Park Pavilion and become the Festival’s most technologically advanced theatre accommodating 650 pass holders.
And That Is Only A Sample
The above events are only a sample of what is fully listed. Complete details are on the “Media, Entertainment and Performing Arts Industry News and Events” page. The events blog also shows links to pages that are translated into ten of the most widely used international languages read over the Internet other than English. This month’s picture placement highlights The Internationale Tanzmesse dance festival (Ursula Kaufmann photo) in Dusseldorf and upcoming webcasts and other events of 8 Sided Film Productions related to its feature film production of ‘Quantum Theory.’ If the photo does not appear in this post it can be found on the blog page of The Actor’s Checklist.
In a preview of next month’s events, be aware that: AniMazing Spotlight Animation Shorts Festival comes to Burbank, which will also be the setting for the separately run Burbank International Film Festival. The Toronto Film Festival opens in Toronto. International Broadcasting Convention 2013 Conference comes to Amsterdam. Digital Media Wire will host both the NY Games Conference and the Future of Television conferences in New York City. The Oaxaca FilmFest 2013 opens in Oaxaca. Digital Video Expo opens in Los Angeles. The Film Society of Lincoln Center will present the New York Film Festival in New York City.
