| Sarasota Film Festival. April 10-19, 2015. |
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HOUSES * BRAND: A SECOND COMING * LAMB
RADIATOR * AT RISK SUMMER * DEVILTOWN * EEL
Welcome to SFF’s first edition of Must-See 7: our way of keeping you in-the-know about some of our favorite films of the festival! Each day we’ll feature seven films that exemplify the brilliant minds and hearts of independent film. |
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Houses
In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, three friends come to terms with life, art, and family using the storm as a metaphor for change and transition. The story follows the rehearsals of an Off-Broadway Play and the lives of the Director, his Muse and a washed out Actor who has just lost everything to the sea. Shot in the aftermath of the storm, this highly improvised film stars Nick Sandow from Orange Is The New Black and Michael Imperioli & John Ventimiglia from The Sopranos.
Director Jenner Furst and actor John Ventimiglia in attendance.
Sat, Apr 11 7:15 PM
Sun, Apr 19 12:15 PM
Buy tickets for HOUSES here! |
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Brand: A Second Coming
Russell Brand skillfully balances philosophy, history and humour as he embarks on his first-ever world tour and meets with a wide and fascinating range of people- including Mike Tyson, Pink, 50 Cent, Noel Gallagher, to American Marines, orphans in Kenya, socialists in London and inmates on death row and empowers people to stage a non-violent revolution. Directed by Ondi Timoner, the only person to win Sundance twice (with her films Dig and We Live in Public.)
Director Ondi Timoner in attendance.
Thu, Apr 16 1:00 PM
Fri, Apr 17 3:15 PM
Buy tickets for BRAND: A SECOND COMING here! |
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Radiator
In a film executive-produced by Oscar winning actress Rachel Weisz, debut writer/director Tom Browne begins what should be a long career with a darkly comic and intensely personal examination of family life, marriage, age and love. When Daniel goes back to help his long-suffering mother deal with his increasingly cantankerous and increasingly ill father, he gets more than he bargained for. Browne set the film in his deceased real-life parents’ home. Deeply felt, beautifully rendered.
Director Tom Browne and producer Rachel Weisz in attendance.
Sat, Apr 18 2:45 PM
Sun, Apr 19 3:30 PM
Buy tickets for RADITATOR here! |
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Lamb
Lamb, based on the novel by Bonnie Nadzam, traces the self-discovery of David Lamb in the weeks following the disintegration of his marriage and the death of his father. Hoping to regain some faith in his own goodness, he turns his attention to Tommie, an awkward and unpopular eleven-year-old girl. Lamb is convinced that he can help her avoid a destiny of apathy and emptiness, and takes Tommie for a road trip from Chicago to the Rockies, planning to initiate her into the beauty of the mountain wilderness. The journey shakes them in ways neither expects.
Director/Actor/Producer Ross Partridge and actress Jennifer Lafleur in attendance.
Thu, Apr 16 7:15 PM
Fri, Apr 17 5:00 PM
Buy tickets for LAMB here! |
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At Risk Summer
Young adult author and filmmaker e.E. Charlton-Trujillo stashes her belongings, rents a car, and sets off on a unique book tour across the U.S., with the goal of empowering youth on the fringes of society. She holds free creative writing workshops at alternative high schools, homeless shelters and juvenile detention facilities along the way. With no professional film crew, the kids often become the camera and sound techs for the film. As someone who has “been there,” Charlton-Trujillo relates to these forgotten kids and unlocks their creative voices. These marginalized “youth on the fringe” are seen and heard, sometimes for the first time in their lives, and the transformation is magical.
Director e.E. Charlton-Trujillo in attendance.
Sun, Apr 12 9:45 AM
Tue, Apr 14 2:45 PM
Buy tickets for AT RISK RUMMER here! |
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Deviltown
In his first feature, Harvey Mitkas enlists a motley crew of helpers including Lindsay Burdge, Alex Karpovsky, Lawrence Levine, Jennifer Prediger, and Sophia Takal. When a young woman’s (Takal) sister goes missing, she sets out on a quest to find her on her own, eventually enlisting the help of a questionable private investigator (Alex Ross Perry). The result is a dreamy, surrealistic, comedic film noir that still leaves the audience guessing even after the film is over.
Actors Sophia Takal, Lawrence Michael Levine, and Noah Gershman in attendance.
Thu, Apr 16 9:15 PM
Fri, Apr 17 12:0 PM
Buy tickets for DEVILTOWN here! |
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Eel
Controversial filmmaker Haytham Bisherat (Aaron Ramzi)—obsessed with the legacy of his work—invites novelist Charles Amundsen (Ty Foster) to watch and chronicle his latest experiment. Haytham has imprisoned his cast—Sara Morin (Nathalie Biermanns), Anna Bertrand (Sina J. Henrie), and Daniel Farmer (Brennan Kelleher)—in an isolated modernist compound in the desert. As they plumb the depths of their characters’ weaknesses and neuroses, Haytham’s sadistic manipulations quickly spiral out of control, and Charles finds that in Haytham’s mind, there are no observers: only collaborators.
Director James Kaelen and producer Blessing Yen in attendance.
Thu, Apr 16 4:30 PM
Sun, Apr 19 4:45 PM
Buy tickets for EEL here!
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