Monday, December 25----While most industries take a rare respite during Christmas week, for the film industry it is a frenzied period that is not the least bit sleepy or relaxed. For film distributors, the Christmas-New Year's holiday period has become one of the most essential make-or-break weeks of the year, with Americans (and presumably others) adding movie-going as part of their Holiday celebrations. In other words, after the spate of last minute Christmas shopping, going out to the movie...

Thursday, December 21----If another indication of the growing influence of non-fiction film was needed, the prestigious Sundance Film Festival has decided to open its ten-day celebration of indie and international cinema with a documentary film. CHICAGO 10, a factual and fanciful look at the infamous trial of organizers of the demonstrations at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in the summer of 1968, a turning point in America’s evaluation of the Vietnam War, will open the Festiv...

Monday, December 18----The marathon of end-of-the-year film nominees continues, with the announcement of the choice by the Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) of their annual Critics Choice Awards. The Association is the largest film critics organization in the United States and Canada, representing 200 television, radio and online critics. Founded in 1995, the BFCA presents its annual Critics Choice Awards each year to honor the finest achievements in filmmaking. The winners will be...

The continued expansion of film festivals and their financial support by public authorities is well known. There are clear economic and political benefits derived from investing in cultural events since more visitors come to the venue of the festival and support the local economy through expenditures on lodging, meals, local products and other leisure activities. Further, support for the arts is an appealing political activity since there are no controversies involved and provides prestige for ...

Tuesday, December 12---UNITED 93, the harrowing re-enactment of the last hours on one of the doomed planes hijacked on September 11, 2001, has received the nod as Best Picture of the Year, from the New York Critics Circle, considered the most prestigious and influential of all the national film critics associations. The win by UNITED 93, which was echoed last week by the Washington DC Film Critics Association, catapults the docudrama into prime position for multiple Golden Globe and Oscar nomi...

Tuesday, December 12---UNITED 93, the harrowing re-enactment of the last hours on one of the doomed planes hijacked on September 11, 2001, has received the nod as Best Picture of the Year, from the New York Critics Circle, considered the most prestigious and influential of all the national film critics associations. The win by UNITED 93, which was echoed last week by the Washington DC Film Critics Association, catapults the docudrama into prime position for multiple Golden Globe and Oscar nomi...

Un peu d'exercice pour votre anglais? Withoutabox, Inc., the media company comprising the world’s largest independent film network and FilmFestivals.com, the leading information and practical application services for the film festival community, have struck a strategic alliance aimed at providing an unprecedented range of marketing solutions to film festival professionals both in North America and across Europe and Asia. Withoutabox CEO and co-founder David Straus and FilmFestivals.com CEO Ma...

Aiming at better serving the festival community worldwide the industry leaders have struck an alliance that was announced at the recent festival Summit in Las Vegas. THE NEW CO OP SERVICES AND MARKETING SUITES WILL BE ANNOUNCED SHORTLY. Withoutabox, Inc., the media company comprising the world’s largest independent film network and FilmFestivals.com, the leading information and practical application services for the film festival community, have struck a strategic alliance aimed at providing...

2 pm session closing day panel ...

Moderated by Jon Fitzgerald Sponsoring was the centre of the debate. Key questions on how to contact the sponsors, at what time...were answered! listen to the audio podcast. Bob Donlon Senior Marketing Manager with Adobe made a sensation giving out his email to the attendance; let me give you another tip his personal blog Doug Cole Director of of Entertainment Marketing with HP discussed HP involvement in large festivals to small ones Darrien Michele Gipson: SAGIndie Event Coordinator deals ...

Sponsors Share Their Success Stories and Initiatives for the Future Moderator: Jon Fitzgerald, President, Right Angle Studios Doug Cole, Director of Entertainment Marketing, Hewlett Packard Darren Michele Gipson, National Director, SAGIndie Bob Donlon, Senior Marketing Manager, Digital Video & Audio Manager, Adobe Guerilla PR for Film Festivals Chris Gore, President, FilmThreat Festival Filter: Understand How the Film Festival is an important outlet for the distribution of independent film...

Sunday big day: we all meet, some 250 festival professionals, long time no see, and how is filmfestivals.com doing? How was your festival this year…? GREAT. What are you drinking…? Social friendly with a sense of a community Good crowd, some new festivals that came to learn, others that came to teach and keynote. Great diner with some friends David S. from withoutabox and Brian D. from Smartsound… Kobe Beef Burger, so good, was that for real or was I too tired? Day one Monday 9 in the mor...

Saturday, December 2----Despite the high profile given Dutch documentary films at this year's International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam (IDFA), and the apparently enthusiastic reaction from Amsterdam audiences, the Friday edition of the IDFA Dagkrant Daily reported that a crisis is looming. Correspondant Jorn Rossing Jensen reported that local documentary filmmaking has entered "a financial limbo", following the former government's budget cuts for the public broadcasters and the transi...

Saturday, December 2----At the "think tank" conference dubbed DocAgora, one of the many parallel events here at the International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam (IDFA), the marketing, financing and sales opportunities for documentaries on the web was discussed in a lively debate. One of the most vocal proponents was James Fabricant, the head of marketing and content for MySpace UK. Fabricant was one of several speakers who offered some glimpses into the way that documentary filmmakers can...

Friday, December 1-----The Gotham Awards, held in a former luxury cruise line docking pier on the Hudson River, has become New York's biggest film party. Now in its 16th year, it has established a reputation and a following among the indie film world, particularly filmmakers, executives and talent that call New York home. It has reorganized in the past year (after splitting with the former IFP West, which presents the Independent Spirit Awards in Los Angeles over Oscar weekend), putting great...

Thursday, November 30----While it is true that most major international film festivals do showcase important documentary films, the explosion of documentary-only film festivals, as evidenced here at the International Documentary Film Festival (IDFA) in Amsterdam, is nothing less than an explosion. With brochures littering the industry areas, it is amazing and heartening to see such a massive public interest in the documentary form. So, instead of writing a long article, I am simply going to l...

PÉTITION POUR SAUVER LA COORDINATION EUROPÉENNE DES FESTIVALS DE CINÉMA La Coordination européenne des Festivals de Cinéma, crée en 1995, à l’initiative d’une petite dizaine de manifestations, rassemble aujourd’hui près de 250 festivals de cinéma et audiovisuel dans les 25 pays de l’Union européenne Ces 250 festivals représentant le réseau le plus important qui ait su fédérer des professionnels de l’image à l’échelle européenne, pour favoriser la circulation des œ...