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As winner of the “Best of the Fest,” the filmmakers received a $60,000 camera package and a qualification for an Academy Award nomination. LA Shorts Film Festival prides itself on its past expertise in selecting Award-winning films. Thirty of their festival shorts have received Oscar nominations, including 9 winners in the 12 years of the festival’s existence. Fritz Haber was a brilliant German chemist with one of the most extraordinary dual legacies in history....

Suffice to say, there’s a bit of a budget difference between major Hollywood studio films and indie projects. While the big studios can literally paper city blocks with ads, rent out Times Square billboards, and broker partnerships with billion-dollar brands, smaller players need to rely on homegrown Twitter campaigns and the hustle of grassroots promotion. On that note, let’s dive under the hood and look at a few specific big budget tactics that indies can only dream of....

She began working a variety of jobs in Los Angeles while taking a year off between undergrad and law school, including working as a cocktail waitress and executive assistant for real estate entrepreneur Darin Feinstein, one of the co-owners of the Hollywood nightclub The Viper Room (renamed The Cobra Lounge in the movie). Then Feinstein told Molly that he would need her assistance with the poker game. So Molly went home and searched for info, telling her, “What kind of music do poker players listen to?...

The next day, Van receives word that an executive at the influential SET (Seoul Entertainment Television) wants to meet with Thao for a chance to star in a movie. When Thao arrives, the SET executive is Son, whose wife Yvonne (Mai Thu Huyen) is the Son’s general manager of the station. Seeing Thao’s potential, Yvonne approves Son’s request to make a movie but only authorizes half the budget. Son goes behind Yvonne’s back, raises the remaining funds, and begins the film’s production....

Our tale opens with Ashley (Lexi Berger) taking a beginner’s rock climbing course. Her new friends, Sarah (Hope Forman) and Brandon (Quinton Blanche), warn her that the instructor is not only hot…but single. When Michael (Alex Graff), the instructor, arrives, Ashley instantly feels safe in his hands. After a few weeks of practice, Ashley…and Sarah and Brandon…pass with flying colors. Now, all Michael needs is Ashley’s address to send her “certificate....

About three and a half years after his release, the director grabs a camcorder and interviews the subject of this film (anonymity prevails in this doc). The subject talks about the incident that landed him in jail and his thoughts and feelings leading to the crime. It was a crime of passion of sorts, as the subject’s girlfriend was cheating on him. Matthau then takes the subject to the scene of the crime and walks through the events of that night, including a stark revelation....

In 1959, a toy company known as Mattel decided to create a toy for girls that would allow them not only to dress and pose but to help them become more comfortable with their transition to womanhood. That doll was Barbie, who was met with much controversy as some believed that the doll would give young girls a false image of what women should look like. This controversial subject is still going on today....

Can you give me a breakdown of a timeline for making the movie, when you came up with the idea, writing the script, production, completion, first screening? Alok: It took a day to write the script and then a month of pre-production, scouting locations, and auditioning our friends. Luckily our friends are actors. We spent the weekends of January through March shooting and then edited the film in April and May....

Rawan Hage plays Rosa, a former U.S. Marine once deployed in the Middle East, trying to get her feet back on the ground at home in Los Angeles. She is living with her divorced Latina mother. She and her Syrian father believe that Rosa needs to get a job for stability and finances. When her father comes over for dinner, he offers Rosa a position at his company, but the conversation deteriorates as he condemns Rosa for killing Syrians during her recent tour....

What made you want to get into filmmaking? It was a different dimension at that time (the early 80s) The super-creative energies from the 70s were still lingering in the air. I was inspired by so many films of that time. I’m not exactly sure what started it, but I do recall that in the summer of 1981 (age 13) suddenly deciding I wanted to make films and nothing would ever stop me....

And for Redfield the younger, film begat theater. “I fell into the theater because it was accessible and affordable (and a great way to meet girls); I mean, you could just do it with little money or resources (not the girls, the plays…). Went to Towson State University and did about fifty college and community theatre plays, then started working professionally in regional and dinner theater. But movies were always the driving force....

ELF Bar Zero Nic: A Brief Overview ELF Bar Zero Nic disposable vapes are designed to provide a seamless and convenient vaping experience. These devices come ready to use, filled with high-quality e-liquid and integrated with a long-lasting battery. The compact and user-friendly design makes them suitable for vapers of all levels, from beginners to experienced users. Key Features and Benefits of ELF Bar Zero Nic Disposable Vapes No Charging or Refilling One of the major advantages of ELF Bar Zero Nic disposable vapes is their hassle-free operation....

In my last column I alluded to the fact that because of the start of the new school year, attendance at the D.o.S. had dropped considerably and as a result we were contemplating a change of days. Well, after much begging from my sister and our Ice Cube lovin’ friend Graeme we decided to move movie night up a day to see what happens. Sadly, most of our friends either can’t keep the viewing nights straight or really do all have term papers to write and attendance was still shockingly low with only five people....

Georgie, Bo, and Stephan interview locals, most of whom do not want to talk about it, though a former park ranger has much to say about the haunted land. They get lost in the woods and feel something out there is messing with them. Sound familiar? But, around halfway through the 80-minute runtime, originality takes hold. The documentarians meet Nelson (Jim Johnson), a father who lost his daughter during a hiking trip....

Director Burmeister examines a man so lost in every single aspect of his life, a man so doomed to failure, that he’s a rather self-defeating persona who just doesn’t live up to expectations. After a hectic morning of preparing for a job interview, Mark arrives to the interview barely shaved, in a wrinkled dressy shirt, and instantly we know he’s failed. He’s incoherent, barely present, has no idea how to approach the interview, his etiquette is severely lacking, and he doesn’t even buy his own words that he feeds to the interviewer, which we can plainly see from his expression....

Misha’s husband, Arnold (Tom Keenan), a very successful doctor, suggests that he and his wife get out of the city and spend some time at his family’s cabin. Misha is hesitant but reluctantly agrees to go to the family cabin. There is some marital tension at play between the two, which is only made more pronounced after arriving at the cabin. Misha is totally out of her element at the cabin in the woods....

In the 1950s, now legendary coach Lofton Greene led the recently integrated River Rouge to a record number of state championships in a league of otherwise segregated schools. Paul Greene, Greene’s son who graduated from River Rouge in 1962, talks about his father’s basketball playing and his desire to become a coach. Coming from Kentucky, Lofton Greene had seen truly egregious Southern segregation and didn’t wish to follow that pattern in Michigan....

One fateful day, Nick embarks on a scamming adventure with his daughter, Tasha (Nico Schumacher), reluctantly in tow. Tasha, torn between loyalty and her moral compass, even selects the unsuspecting victim of the day: Oliver (Jervon Monroe), a young man struggling with rent payments. Will Nick’s conscience prevail, or will he continue to exploit the innocent? Can Tasha convince her father to abandon his life of deception? Scammers, in terms of direction, is a masterclass in simplicity....

Young Billy (Carter Grassi) misses his mom very much. His dad (Glen Nicholes Jr.) doesn’t talk about her, leading the middle schooler to believe that he wishes to forget about her. But his best friends, Jake (Dante Corticelli) and Mike (Luca Corticelli) tell Billy of a ritual they discovered that will allow someone to speak to the dead. He jumps at the chance, using his mom’s favorite crossword book. But things at the cemetery don’t go as planned, and Billy’s mom doesn’t manifest....

The men are giddy with excitement and give each other a proud hug over their soon-to-be accomplishment. Right after that is, of course, when the proverbial crap hits the fan, and they get stuck at a mere fifty meters short of their goal. Do they push the limits of their submarine to break the record or go to the surface to live another day? Arthur reminds James that the Russians will be diving the next day....