Dag Johan Haugerud’s Sex Opens at Film Forum

Posted on May 14, 2025 by admin

The 2024 Norwegian drama Sex, directed by Dag Johan Haugerud, will have its U.S. theatrical premiere on Friday, June 13 at Film Forum in New York. The film is the second in Haugerud’s Love–Sex–Dreams: The Oslo Trilogy, a series of standalone features examining nontraditional forms of intimacy and emotional honesty in modern relationships.

Set in Oslo, Sex follows two male-identified colleagues—both in heterosexual marriages—as they confront aspects of their sexuality and identity that challenge traditional gender roles and relationship norms. One man discloses a recent sexual encounter with another man, while the other wrestles with recurring dreams involving David Bowie and questions of gender fluidity. The narrative focuses on their efforts to communicate these experiences with their wives, exploring themes of vulnerability, trust, and the complexity of love within the framework of monogamous relationships.

The film had its world premiere at the 2024 Berlin Film Festival, where it received the Europa Cinemas Label Award for Best European Film in the Panorama section. Haugerud, also an acclaimed novelist, is known for using restrained storytelling to depict nuanced emotional and social dynamics.

Sex is the second installment in The Oslo Trilogy. The first film, Love, opens at Film Forum on Friday, May 16, with Haugerud scheduled to appear for post-screening Q&As on Friday, May 16 (7:45 PM) and Saturday, May 17 (5:15 PM). The final film in the trilogy, Dreams, which won the Golden Bear at the 2025 Berlinale, is slated to open at Film Forum on Friday, September 12.

Each of the trilogy’s films is self-contained and can be viewed independently, though they are thematically linked by their exploration of intimacy, desire, and identity in contemporary Norwegian society.

Bleeding’ Horror Film Sets Premiere Release

Posted on May 12, 2025 by admin

The horror film “Bleeding”, written and directed by Andrew Bell, will premiere on Screambox and additional VOD platforms on Tuesday, June 10th.

The story follows Eric, a 17-year-old struggling with the loss of his brother, who becomes entangled in a dangerous world where vampire blood is used as a powerful street drug. When Eric’s cousin Sean, the son of an alcoholic police officer, becomes involved in the illegal trade, the two find themselves indebted to a violent dealer.

In a desperate attempt to escape their situation, Eric and Sean break into an empty house and discover a girl locked inside. What begins as a potential solution soon leads to unexpected dangers and connections to their past.

“Bleeding” stars John R. Howley, Jasper Jones, and Tori Wong. The film is produced by Nicholas Payne Santos, Bofan Zhang, and Kenneth Green, with cinematography by Daniel Cho, editing by Andrew Bell, and music composed by Alex Symcox. It is an 88/90 and Rare Books production.

Director Andrew Bell describes the film as an exploration of exploitation and survival, noting: “We wanted to tell you a story about vampires, but show that the real monsters were there all along, preying on the young, feeding off the people that trusted them most.”

‘To Live and Die and Live’ Sets Theatrical Release Following Sundance Debut

Posted on May 11, 2025 by admin

The critically acclaimed film To Live and Die and Live, directed by Qasim Basir, will be released in theaters starting May 16. The movie premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and features performances by Amin Joseph, Skye P. Marshall, Cory Hardrict, Omari Hardwick, Maryam Basir, Dana Gourrier, and Travina Springer.

The film, described as an ode to the city of Detroit, follows Hollywood filmmaker Muhammad (played by Amin Joseph) as he returns home to bury his stepfather. Confronted by past and present relationships, Muhammad’s struggles with addiction and personal loss threaten to derail him from settling his family’s affairs.

To Live and Die and Live is produced by AuthentiQ Films, Significant Productions, CinemaStreet Pictures, and Confluential Films. Producers include Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker, Amin Joseph, Samantha Basir, Dana Offenbach, Cory Hardrict, and Omari Hardwick.

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Tribeca 2025: “This Land” Documentary Short Film to Have NY Premiere

Posted on May 6, 2025 by admin

“This Land,” a documentary short film directed by Mike Bradley, will have its New York premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Festival. The film is included in the Shorts: Common Ground program and will be screened on June 9, 14, and 15. The director is scheduled to attend all three screenings in person.

The film documents the formation of Ganienkeh, a self-governed Mohawk community in upstate New York.

Here’s the doc’s synopsis:

In 1974, a group of Mohawk Indians occupied a defunct girls’ camp in New York’s Adirondack Mountains and established a community they called Ganienkeh. Aiming to practice a more traditional lifestyle and asserting aboriginal title to the land, they stayed for three years, with occasional violent clashes with local residents.

In 1977, they negotiated a land swap with the State of New York and agreed to relocate to a permanent settlement near Plattsburgh, where the community remains. Ganienkeh is one of the only known examples of an Indigenous people reclaiming land from the United States, but it may not be the last.

World Premiere of ESTA ISLA in the U.S. Competition at the Tribeca Festival

Posted on May 4, 2025 by admin

Esta Isla (This Island), the powerful debut narrative feature from Puerto Rican filmmakers Lorraine Jones Molina and Cristian Carretero, will have its world premiere in the U.S. Narrative Competition at the 2025 Tribeca Festival, taking place June 4–14 in New York City.

Starring Zion Ortiz, Fabiola Brown, Xavier Morales, Teófilo Torres, and Audicio Robles, the gripping yet tender drama unfolds in a small seaside town in Puerto Rico. Bebo, a teenager living with his older brother in a public housing complex, fishes to survive. As economic pressures mount, the brothers turn to illicit means for quick money. When a deal goes awry, Bebo is forced to flee with Lola, his girlfriend from a wealthy but troubled family.

Their escape into Puerto Rico’s mountainous interior becomes a journey into the island’s living past. Taken in by Cora in a rural community, Bebo and Lola uncover buried family histories intertwined with the pro-independence movement and Taino traditions. But even in the mountains, danger lurks. With hitmen in pursuit and the sea—their former lifeline—looming as a possible grave, the young couple must face their inner demons and decide whether redemption is possible.
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SFFILM Announces Golden Gate Award and Audience Award Winners at the 68th San Francisco International Film Festival

Posted on May 1, 2025 by admin

L to R, top row: New Directors Awardee: INK WASH, Global Visions Awardee: ALL THAT’S LEFT OF YOU. L to R, bottom row: Cine Latino Awardee: BELOVED TROPIC, Kirby Walker Documentary Award Awardee: SEEDS Seeds. Courtesy of SFFILM and rights holders.

Today, SFFILM announced the winners of the juried Golden Gate Awards competition and the Audience Awards at the 68th San Francisco International Film Festival (SFFILM Festival). Since the Festival’s first edition in 1957, the prestigious Golden Gate Awards have served as a launching pad for internationally renowned filmmakers who are early in their careers and have grown to include Audience Awards as well as serving as a qualifier for films under 40 minutes for the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). In 2025, Academy Award-qualifying honors presented at the Festival included Narrative Short, Documentary Short, and Animated Short.

Golden Gate Awards were given in the feature film categories of New Directors–Ink Wash, Global Visions–All That’s Left of You, Cine Latino–Beloved Tropic, and the newly named Kirby Walker Documentary Award–Seeds.

Honoring the best documentary feature, the Kirby Walker Documentary Award celebrates the legacy of Kirby Walker, beloved Bay Area activist and filmmaker, whose profound curiosity about the lives of others and the world in general sparked a lasting love and respect for documentary filmmaking that allows audiences to develop their own informed viewpoint.
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Sundance Film Festival: CDMX 2025 Announced

Posted on April 30, 2025 by admin

Cinépolis, the leading film exhibition company in Mexico and Latin America, and the Sundance Institute, the nonprofit organization dedicated to the discovery and development of independent artists and audiences and host of the Sundance Film Festival, have partnered for the second edition of Sundance Film Festival: CDMX 2025, as well as upcoming editions in 2026 and 2027. This year’s festival will take place from May 29 to June 1, 2025 in Mexico City, with Cinépolis Diana as the main venue, complemented by Cinépolis Carso, Cinépolis Mítikah, and Cinépolis Oasis Coyoacán.

“Following the launch of Sundance Film Festival: CDMX last year, we are delighted to be returning to audiences in Mexico City and further engaging with the local film community,” said Amanda Kelso, Sundance Institute Acting CEO. “Along with our valued partner Cinépolis, it is an honor to be celebrating independent cinema together again in 2025, and for upcoming editions, as we present this remarkable convening of artists and audiences to discover visionary voices and participate in compelling conversations.”

“The Sundance Film Festival’s return to CDMX in 2025 showcases Cinépolis’ dedication to fostering environments where independent films can reach broader audiences,” said Alejandro Ramírez, CEO of Cinépolis. “We are motivated by the chance for these exceptional movies to inspire future filmmakers and to broaden the dialogue around cinema as a powerful medium for expression and change. And we are proud that our partnership with the Sundance Institute to host Sundance Film Festival: CDMX is extending through 2027.”
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Dark Sky Films Neo-Noir/Horror “A Desert” Sets Premiere

Posted on April 18, 2025 by admin

The Dark Sky horror/thriller has set its LA Premiere at the American Cinematheque Los Feliz 3 – May 1st (with the cast in attendance), New York City: Roxy Cinema – Tribeca May 2nd, Los Angeles, Leammle Glendale on May 2nd.

“A Desert” is described as a sun-bleached neo-noir horror film about time, the chaos of our world, and the relevance of images in the cultural desert we are faced with today.

In the movie, a past his prime photographer heads out on a road trip across the American Southwest to recapture the magic and success of his previous work. Instead, he finds himself thrust into the dark and chaotic underbelly of America and unwittingly drags his wife and a shady private detective down into this nightmare world with him.

With music by Ty Segall whose new album Possession comes out May 30th, A DESERT stars David Yow (Dinner in America, I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore), Kai Lennox (Green Room, The Girl from Plainville), Sarah Lind (A Wounded Fawn, Die, My Love), Zachary Ray Sherman (Under the Banner of Heaven, The CW’s 90210) and Ashley B. Smith (Off Ramp, Extremity).

“A Desert” is the first feature film from director Joshua Erkman, a writer, director, and musician living and working in Los Angeles. He has directed a number of music videos for various rock ‘n roll/punk groups, which have been featured in Rolling Stone, Spin, and Pitchfork.

The film stars David Yow (Dinner in America, I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore), Kai Lennox (Green Room, The Girl from Plainville), Sarah Lind (A Wounded Fawn, Die, My Love), Zachary Ray Sherman (Under the Banner of Heaven, The CW’s 90210), Ashley B. Smith (Off Ramp, Extremity), Rob Zabrecky (Lost River, A Ghost Story) & S.A Griffin (Free LSD, California Scheming).

Official Trailer for “Winter Spring Summer Or Fall”

Posted on April 14, 2025 by admin

Paramount Movies has released an official trailer for an indie romance film titled Winter Spring Summer or Fall.

The film reunites former Wednesday actors Jenna Ortega and Percy Hynes White, and marks the feature directorial debut of writer Tiffany Paulsen.

The film follows Remi and Barnes, two very different teenagers, who meet by chance in the winter of their senior year, then spend four days together over the course of a year that will change their lives forever.

It stars Jenna Ortega, Percy Hynes White, Adam Rodriguez, Marisol Nichols, Elias Kacavas, Jacqueline Emerson, John Raymond Barker, Kate Rachesky, Alireza Mirmontazeri, Kylee Anderson.

“Winter Spring Summer Or Fall” had its world premiere at the 2024 Tribeca Festival on June 6, 2024.

David Mamet’s New Feature Film “Henry Johnson” Sets Release

Posted on April 3, 2025 by admin

Starting Friday May 9th, the film is set to open at the Aero Theatre in Los Angeles, as well as to rent on HenryJohnsonMovie.com. Additional theater listings is set to follow.

The film star Evan Jonigkeit, Shia LaBeouf, Chris Bauer, Dominic Hoffman. The film adaptation is Pulitzer Prize winner’s first movie in a decade.

Written and Directed by Pulitzer Prize winner David Mamet, HENRY JOHNSON follows the title character (Jonigkeit) as he navigates his search for a moral center, after an act of compassion upends his life. Looking to authority figures he encounters along the way — including his eventual cellmate, Gene (LaBeouf) — Henry’s journey leads him down a road of manipulation and ethical uncertainty. The film is an exploration of power, justice and the consequences of letting others choose your path for you.

David Mamet is an award-winning playwright, filmmaker and author. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Glengarry Glen Ross — currently on Broadway in a revival starring Kieran Culkin, Bob Odenkirk and Bill Burr — as well as Academy Award nominations for his screenplays of Wag the Dog and The Verdict. His feature film directorial credits include The Spanish Prisoner, Oleanna, House of Games, State and Main, Heist, Spartan, The Winslow Boy, Redbelt and Phil Spector.