(Long Island, N.Y.) The Hamptons International Film Festival celebrated its 19th year to an array of celebrities, actors, movie enthusiasts and independent filmmakers between October 13th through October 17th, 2011.
The Hamptons International Film Festival was established to provide a platform for independent filmmakers from around the world to express their vision. The Festival is traditionally held for five days in the autumn in theater venues from Southampton to Montauk and attracts roughly over 18,000 visitors. At least twenty countries are represented in the slate of roughly 100 films that are showcased each year, with an awards package worth over $200,000. The festival continues to play a part in the awards season, with the 2010 edition earning a total of 30 Academy Award nominations (THE KING’S SPEECH, BLACK SWAN, 127 HOURS, TOY STORY 3). The 2010 edition also featured eventual Best Picture winners of the Academy Award (THE KING’S SPEECH), Golden Globe (THE KING’S SPEECH) and Independent Spirit Award (BLACK SWAN).
The festival features shorts, documentaries and narratives. The festival is also famous for presenting a variety of programs including; a Breakthrough Performers program, which showcases up-and-coming acting talent (past participants include Rooney Mara, Emmy Rossum, Emily Blunt, and Blake Lively); “A Conversation With.”, an intimate Q&A session with a film luminary (past participants include Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Sharon Stone, Steve Buscemi, Alan Alda, Vanessa Redgrave, Frances McDormand, Sidney Lumet, Julian Schnabel, Isabella Rossellini, Gena Rowlands, Robert Altman, and Marty Bregman); and Films of Conflict & Resolution, which utilizes the power of cinema to increase understanding of the human realities of war and conflict.
The Hamptons International Film Festival has highlighted many significant films that have won Golden Globes and the Academy Awards including:
Black Swan (2010) – East Coast premiere; Academy Award winner for Best Actress; Winner of 3 Independent Spirit Awards including Best Director, Best Female Lead and Best Feature; BAFTA Award winner for Best Actress; Golden Globe winner for Best Actress.
The King’s Speech (2010) – East Coast premiere; winner of 4 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Actor in a Leading Role, Best Director and Best Writing (Original Screenplay); Golden Globe winner for Best Actor; Director’s Guild of America Award for Best Director; winner of 7 BAFTA’s including Best Leading Actor, Best Film, Best Original Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor, Best Outstanding British Film and Best Supporting Actress; Independent Spirit Award winner for Best Foreign Film.
Blue Valentine (2010) – East Coast premiere; 1 Academy Award nomination; 2 Critics Choice Award nominations; 2 Golden Globe nominations; 1 Independent Spirit Award nomination.
127 Hours (2010) – East Coast premiere; 6 Academy Award nominations; 7 BAFTA nominations; 8 Critics Choice Award nominations; 3 Golden Globe nominations; 1 Independent Spirit Award nomination.
Barney’s Version (2010) – US premiere; 1 Academy Award nomination; Golden Globe winner for Best Performance by an Actor – Musical or Comedy.
Waiting for Superman (2010) – 2010 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award winner.
Toy Story 3 (2010) – Academy Award winner for Best Original Song and Best Animated Feature; BAFTA Award winner for Best Animated Feature; Golden Globe winner for Best Animated Feature.
Up in the Air (2009) – New York premiere; 6 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Director, Actor and Supporting Actress.
The Young Victoria (2009) – Academy Award winner for Best Costume Design.
The Messenger (2009) – Independent Spirit Award winner for Best Supporting Actor; 2 Academy Award nominations.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) – US premiere; 2 Academy Award nominations.
Girl with a Dragon Tattoo (2009) – US Premiere; Audience Award at European Film Awards.
Ajami (2009) – US premiere; Academy Award nominee for Best Foreign-Language Film.
Slumdog Millionaire (2008) – East Coast premiere; winner of 8 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Director; Golden Globe for Best Picture.
The Wrestler (2008) – Golden Globe winner for Best Actor; Independent Spirit Award for Best Picture; 2 Academy Award nominations.
At this year’s festival I was happy to interview Directors Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass at the festival’s opening night film “Jeff, Who lives at Home” starring Actress Susan Sarandon.
Directors Mark and Jay Duplass take on brotherly dynamics as well as fate and love in this delightfully hysterical comedy. Thirty-four-year-old Jeff (Jason Segel) spends his days steadily breaking the code of life’s challenges and the profound mysteries of the universe . from the comfort of his mother’s basement. A phone call from his exasperated mom (Susan Sarandon) pleading with him to complete a simple task shakes a disgruntled Jeff off the couch. Suddenly, the universe begins to deliver important signs that could unlock his true destiny in life. Jeff crosses paths with his disgruntled older brother (Ed Helms), who is embroiled in a crisis of his own. A funny madcap journey ensues, forcing the two very different siblings to face earth-shattering challenges together.
I also had a chance to interview Actress Shailene Woodley about the secret life of the American Teenager, “The Descendants” starring Actor George Clooney. The film depicts a family adjusting to a boating accident. After his wife is put on life support, Matt King (George Clooney) tries to re-connect with his estranged daughters, Scottie (Amara Miller) and Alexandra (played brilliantly by HIFF 2011 Breakthrough Performer Shailene Woodley). The family reunion is far from perfect. His daughter Alexandra spills the gossip that her mother had an affair with a real estate agent, Brian (Matthew Lillard). As Matt and his daughters head to Kauai to confront Brian, the family has to decide whether to sell off their land.
Actress Stine Fischer Christensen shared her enthusiasm for starring in the film “Cracks in the Shell” with me on the red carpet. Stine Fischer Christensen stars as Fine, a struggling theater student and aspiring actress whose lackluster stage performances result from a difficult home life. Fine is suddenly shocked to receive an invitation to audition for, and to be subsequently be cast in a famous director’s newest production. Her new director encourages self-discovery in order to connect with her difficult role, but Fine’s lack of boundaries prompts the full-scale excavation of her latent dark side. Christensen gives an extraordinary stunning performance that won her a top acting prize at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival.
Also on the red carpet was Actor Michael Rispoli who promoted his film “The Rum Diary” starring Movie Star Johnny Depp.
Thirteen years after “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Actor Johnny Depp once again channels the gonzo exploits of Hunter S. Thompson in “The Rum Diary.” Actor Depp (a real life friend of Thompson) stars as Paul Kemp, a freelance journalist in the ’50s who journeys to Puerto Rico for a good story. He soon realizes that he is thrown into a passionate triangle with an American woman whose fiancé is deeply involved with gangsters, illegal business, corruption and of course rum. The film is set amidst the stunning backdrop of the Caribbean islands. “The Rum Diary” is a must see that could only come from the inimitable imagination of Hunter S. Thompson.
Later in the weekend I interviewed legendary Photographer David Bailey who is famous for his avant-garde meta-biography of Andy Warhol. The eccentric film caused a veritable circus of controversy in 1973 when it was set to be released on television in the United Kingdom. British authorities declared the film “likely to offend millions.” Attempting a Warholian portrait of Warhol himself, Bailey’s friendship and ease with the famous faces of the Factory reveals their humor, candor and reverence for the unknowable Andy. The film is a gem both for its filmmaking style and the history it captures, Bailey’s “Warhol” is essential viewing for lovers of 20th century pop art and culture.
At the Maidstone Arms Inn I was delighted to do a series of interviews with Actor Matthew Modine promoting his film “Jesus Was a Commie,” Survivor Colin Goddard’s film “Living for 32” and Director Jim Loach’s film “Oranges and Sunshine.”
“Jesus is a Commie” is an avant-garde short, co-directed by Matthew Modine. The film poses the question, was Jesus a utopian communist?
The film “Living for 32” follows Colin Goddard, a survivor of the shooting massacre on the Virginia Tech campus in 2007. The film explores and reveals how easy it is to buy a gun without identification or a background check.
In our interview while dining on brunch at the Maidstone Inn, Director Jim Loach revealed the synopsis of “Oranges and Sunshine.” This stirring drama is based on a true story. Margaret Humphreys beautifully portrayed by Actress Emily Watson is a British social worker who stumbles upon one of the largest scandals in the United Kingdom in recent memory. Humphreys uncovers the heartbreaking “home children” program which deported 130,000 youngsters from England without the knowledge or consent of their families. In the face of bureaucratic opposition, Humphreys embarks on a journey to unite these lost sons and daughters with their loved ones, often risking her own safety. “Oranges and Sunshine” is the story of a seemingly ordinary but truly courageous woman.
My closing interview was at the Hedges Inn in East Hampton with Executive Producer Joanna Plafskky and Director Jennifer Fox for the film “My Reincarnation.”
The story depicts an exiled Buddhist Dzogchen master Chögyal Namkhai Norbu and his Italian-born son, Yeshe and their spiritual journey together. Yeshe, acknowledged to be the reincarnation of a great Buddhist monk, struggles to reconcile the expectations placed on him with his desire for a normal life. He finally makes a revelatory decision. Ms. Fox captures the truth behind a father-son relationship evolving before crowds of students hungry for the master’s spiritual wisdom.
Jennifer Fox is an internationally acclaimed director, producer, camerawoman and educator. Her first film, “Beirut: The Last Home Movie” was broadcast in twenty countries, released theatrically in nine, and won seven international awards, including Best Documentary Film and Best Cinematography at the 1988 Sundance Film Festival. She produced, directed and shot the groundbreaking ten-hour PBS/BBC/ARTE series “An American Love Story” which screened in its full 10-hour form at festivals internationally, including the Sundance and Berlin Film Festivals (1999). “Love Story” premiered in the USA nationally on PBS primetime. It received a Gracie Award for Best Television Series and was named “One of the Top Ten Television Series of 1999” by “The New York Times”, “Time Out”, “The Boston Globe”, “Time Magazine”, and “The New York Daily News”.
For more information about the Hamptons International Film Festival please visit http://hamptonsfilmfest.org.
