Category Archives: Film Festivals

Jack Black Boards Pirate Radio Documentary “40 Watts From Nowhere” as Executive Producer

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Jack Black has boarded 40 Watts From Nowhere as executive producer. The music documentary from journalist and filmmaker Sue Carpenter chronicles the rise and fall of her 1990s Los Angeles pirate radio station, KBLT.

The film premiered at the 30th anniversary Slamdance Film Festival and later screened as a Centerpiece selection at Newport Beach. It features interviews with Tom Morello, Mike Watt, Don Bolles, and pirate radio activist Stephen Dunifer. Global sales are handled by Alex Nohe and Blood Sweat Honey.

Based on Carpenter’s 2004 memoir, the documentary revisits the Silver Lake scene through archival footage shot in 1998, when Carpenter ran her 40-watt station from an apartment closet, attracting guests like Mazzy Star and the Red Hot Chili Peppers before an FCC shutdown.

40 Watts From Nowhere marks Carpenter’s directorial debut. Black, a longtime figure in the Silver Lake music community, is represented by Ocean Avenue and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern.

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Bushwick Film Festival Returns Oct. 1 to 5 With Nearly 100 Films, Including 10 World Premieres

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Bushwick-Film-FestivalThe 18th Annual Bushwick Film Festival will take place October 1 to 5 across Brooklyn, showcasing nearly 100 films from emerging indie voices in New York and around the world.

This year’s lineup features 10 world premieres, 11 East Coast premieres, and 24 New York premieres. Highlights include Chilean thriller Todos Somos Justos, among other international and local selections.

Founded in 2007, the festival has become a platform for independent cinema with a focus on underrepresented voices. The 2025 edition carries the theme “Meet Us at the Movies,” encouraging audiences to gather in person to experience films together.

Program details and ticket information are available at bushwickfilmfestival.com

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‘Akashi’ and ‘The Art of Adventure’ to World Premiere at Vancouver International Film Festival

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viff-org-2025

Pender PR has announced its fall festival roster, led by two world premieres at the Vancouver International Film Festival on October 5: Akashi, directed by Mayumi Yoshida, and Alison Reid’s documentary The Art of Adventure.

Akashi stars Yoshida alongside Bun Kimura (Rental Family), Hana Kino (Faceless), Chieko Matsubara (Tokyo Drifter), Kunio Murai (Godzilla vs. Gigan), Hiro Kanagawa (Shōgun), and Ryo Tajima (Avalanche). Reid’s sophomore feature centers Canadian wildlife artist Robert Bateman and environmentalist Bristol Foster.

Other Canadian titles in the slate include Ava Maria Safai’s horror Foreigner, Omorose Osagie’s Lost Wax, Jon Chiang’s Spring After Spring, and Luke Gleeson’s documentary Wədzįh Nəne’ | Caribou Country, among others set to premiere at VIFF, Sitges, Brooklyn Horror, Whistler, ReelWorld, and additional festivals this fall.

Ticket information for Akashi, The Art of Adventure, and other VIFF screenings is available at viff.org
.

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“Monsters Within” Explores a Veteran’s Return Home and a Sibling Bond, Sets October 3 Digital Release

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monsters-withinMonsters Within, the debut feature from filmmaker Devin Montgomery, will be released on digital platforms October 3 via Buffalo 8, with a streaming premiere on Cineverse’s Screambox November 7.

Written, directed, produced by, and starring Montgomery, the film follows Luke Wolf, a war veteran who returns to his hometown and reconnects with his sister Elle, who has Down Syndrome. As Luke struggles with his past and his sense of identity, the bond with his sister becomes central to his journey of facing personal demons. Daniella Montgomery, the director’s real-life sister, plays Elle, anchoring the film with authenticity.

The film also features Kendall Cavener, Skeeta Jenkins, Brandon Stewart, and the late Samuel French (Killers of the Flower Moon, Fear the Walking Dead) in his final role. French’s performance has already been recognized with multiple festival awards, and the film is dedicated to his memory.

Monsters Within has screened at festivals worldwide, earning accolades including Best Feature Film at the Red Dirt International Film Festival, Audience Choice at Bare Bones International Film Festival, and acting honors for both Montgomery and French.

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TIFF Unveils Trailer for Karla Badillo’s Debut Feature Oca

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OcaMexican filmmaker Karla Badillo’s debut feature Oca will have its world premiere in the Discovery section of the 50th Toronto International Film Festival (Sept. 4–14, 2025).

Described as a lyrical fable of pilgrimage and revelation, the film follows Rafaela (Natalia Solián), a young nun traveling to a remote town where a new archbishop has been appointed. Along the way, she encounters a cross-section of Mexican society, testing her devotion and sense of purpose.

The cast also includes Cecilia Suárez, Leonardo Ortizgris, Gerardo Trejo-Luna, Raúl Briones, and Enrique Arreola, alongside non-professional performers from San Luis Potosí.

Shot by cinematographer Diana Garay, Oca was produced by María José Córdova, Badillo, Federico Eisnerbusyc, and Federico Sande. It is a Mexican-Argentine coproduction between Pina Films, Las Jaras, Pucará Cine, and Año Cero.

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“The Art of Adventure” Doc on Robert Bateman to World Premiere at Vancouver International Film Festival

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the-art-of-adventureAlison Reid’s new documentary The Art of Adventure will make its world premiere at the 2025 Vancouver International Film Festival. The feature follows acclaimed Canadian wildlife painter Robert Bateman and biologist Bristol Foster, revisiting their 1957 global expedition and decades of work at the intersection of art and environmental activism.

Screenings are set for October 5 at the Vancouver Playhouse and October 7 at the Granville Island Stage, with Reid, Bateman, and Foster scheduled to attend.

The film traces Bateman and Foster’s early journey in their Land Rover, “The Grizzly Torque,” across Africa and Asia, weaving in Bristol’s original 16mm footage and Bateman’s paintings. It also explores their lasting impact as artists, naturalists, and advocates for conservation.

The Art of Adventure is directed and produced by Reid, whose credits include The Woman Who Loves Giraffes. The film also features appearances by Wade Davis, David Suzuki, Guujaaw, Briony Penn, and others.

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Marion Cotillard Leads Hadžihalilović’s Surreal Drama The Ice Tower

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the-ice-towerAcclaimed French filmmaker Lucile Hadžihalilović (Innocence, Evolution, Earwig) returns with her fourth feature, The Ice Tower, which is set to open in theaters on October 3, 2025. The film stars Marion Cotillard, Clara Pacini, August Diehl, and Gaspar Noé.

Co-written with Geoff Cox, The Ice Tower premiered earlier this year at the Berlin Film Festival. The project reunites Hadžihalilović with Cotillard, who also starred in her 2004 debut feature Innocence. Known for her surreal and unsettling narratives, the director brings her distinctive style to another collaboration with long-time creative partner Noé, with whom she co-founded the production company Les Cinémas de la Zone in the early 1990s.

Hadžihalilović’s work has previously received recognition at international festivals including San Sebastián, Toronto, and Cannes. The Ice Tower continues her exploration of atmospheric, psychological storytelling, blending elements of fantasy and existential unease.

The film will be released in U.S. theaters on October 3.

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Tetsuya Mariko’s “Dear Stranger” Sets International Premiere at Busan Film Festival

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dear-strangerBusan International Film Festival has set the international premiere of Dear Stranger, the latest feature from Japanese director Tetsuya Mariko (Destruction Babies), for its 2025 edition in the “A Window on Asian Cinema” program.

Starring Hidetoshi Nishijima (Drive My Car) and Gwei Lun-Mei (Girlfriend, Boyfriend), the Japan-Taiwan-U.S. co-production was filmed entirely in New York and follows a couple whose lives fracture after the disappearance of their young son forces them to confront buried secrets.

The film reunites Mariko with top collaborators, including cinematographer Yasuyuki Sasaki (Asako I & II), editor Matthieu Laclau (A Touch of Sin), and Grammy-winning musician Jim O’Rourke. The project was shot with a multilingual cast and crew across English, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, and sign language.

Mariko, who won Locarno’s Best Emerging Director Award for Destruction Babies, shifts his focus from violent social critiques to an intimate immigrant drama exploring identity, family, and loss.

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Hawai’i Drama Chaperone Sets Theatrical Run and Digital Release Dates

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ChaperoneChaperone, the debut feature from writer-director Zoë Eisenberg, will screen in Hawai’i theaters from September 11–28, 2025, before arriving on digital and VOD platforms October 3.

Set in rural Hawai’i and featuring an entirely AANHPI cast, the drama centers on 29-year-old Misha Miyamoto, who lives alone in her grandmother’s house and resists pressures from family, work, and relationships to change her unambitious lifestyle. When Misha befriends Jake, an 18-year-old athlete who mistakes her for a high school student, their growing relationship draws her into increasingly reckless behavior.

The film, which explores themes of alienation, identity, and unconventional connection, stars a predominantly local cast and features original music by Taimane. It is produced by Alison Week and Devin Murphy, with executive producers Adam Wong, Lauran Bromley, Gill Holland, and Gerard Elmore.

Eisenberg, a Hawai’i-based filmmaker, has described Chaperone as a story about “finding dangerous comfort in places that reflect what we’re running from.”

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Animated Short Pigasus Launches Globally on YouTube

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pegasusThe award-winning animated short Pigasus is now available worldwide following its debut on YouTube on August 21, 2025. Produced by Arcana Studio and directed by Sean Patrick O’Reilly, the film has screened at nearly 200 international festivals and earned more than 60 awards.

Based on Don McDowell’s book Pigasus: The Lost Paradise Elysium, Battle for Evermore, the story follows a young pig on a fantastical journey of self-discovery, accompanied by creatures like Pegasus and Unicorn. The film blends adventure and fantasy while exploring themes of growth, resilience, and hope.

Originally released in 2023, Pigasus has been recognized at festivals including the World Film Festival in Cannes, the Vegas Movie Awards, and the Hollywood Gold Awards. Its online release marks the first time the short is widely accessible to a global audience.

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