A middle-aged Iranian man makes a desperate bid to keep his apartment as his relationship with his son unravels.
By Emmanuel Itier
Meet Anya Chirkova and Meran Ismailsoy, the filmmakers of “Baba”, which played at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival in the Shorts Program 2 section
1/ Inspiration and goals for this film?
The inspiration came directly from my own personal experiences with my dad. The film essential is about a father and son who drift apart because of ...
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL 2023 ALL EYES ON INDEPENDENT
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Filmfestivals.com coverage by James Nelson (Video Coverage), Claus Mueller, Emmanuel Itier and Bruno Chatelin
BABA Interview ---Sundance 2023
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Emmanuel Itier chatted with director Rashad Frett on his film Ricky in Sundance selection
Rashad Frett is an award-winning Caribbean-American filmmaker based in New York City. He pursued the arts seriously after experiencing 9/11 as a combat medic in the U.S. Army. At that time, creating a positive social impact through the power of media became his passion. Frett is a recent MFA graduate of the NYU Tisch Graduate Film program.
Ricky - Official Trailer from Rashad F. on Vimeo.
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WORLD CINEMA DRAMATIC SPECIAL JURY AWARD: CINEMATOGRAPHY - MAMI WATA
When the harmony in a village is threatened by outside elements, two sisters must fight to save their people and restore the glory of a mermaid goddess to the land.
C.J. "Fiery" Obasi's Ojuju (2014) and O-Town (2015) screened at many festivals, including Gothenburg and Fantasia. Hello, Rain (2018) premiered at Oberhausen and over 40 festivals, winning a Jury Prize at Fantasia, and the BFI S...
James Nelson Interviewed Jarreau Carrillo writer/director & Julius Pryor producer on th ered carpet following their win with The Vacation : Short Film Special Jury Award: Directing
A Black man attempts to take a vacation.
Jarreau Carrillo is originally from Seattle, WA and is based out of Brooklyn, NY. Jarreau attended Morehouse College and received an MFA from New York University's Graduate Film Program where he earned the Spike Lee Production Fellowship. Jarreau's debut featur...
DIRECTING AWARD: U.S. DRAMATIC - THE ACCIDENTAL GETAWAY DRIVER
During a routine pickup, an elderly Vietnamese cab driver is taken hostage at gunpoint by three recently escaped Orange County convicts. Based on a true story.
Sing J. Lee is an award-winning writer and director of Hong Kong descent, born in Manchester, U.K. With a background in music, illustration, and animation, Lee’s early short films have garnered nominations including BBC Best of the North, which led to a deca...
As a young Chinese filmmaker returns to his hometown in search of himself, a long-overdue conversation with his mother drives them into a quest for acceptance and love.
Shuli Huang is a writer-director and cinematographer born in China. After graduating from Beijing Film Academy in 2019, he moved to New York City as an MFA candidate for the NYU graduate film program. Will You Look At Me was selected for the 61st edition of La Semaine de la Critique Cannes.
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AUDIENCE AWARD: WORLD CINEMA DRAMATIC - SHAYDA
Shayda, a brave Iranian mother, finds refuge in an Australian women’s shelter with her 6-year-old daughter. Over Persian New Year, they take solace in Nowruz rituals and new beginnings, but when her estranged husband re-enters their lives, Shayda’s path to freedom is jeopardized.
Tehran-born, Australia-raised Noora Niasari is a writer-director and co-founder of Parandeh Pictures. She is a graduate of arc...
DIRECTING AWARD: WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY - SMOKE SAUNA SISTERHOOD
In the darkness of a smoke sauna, women share their innermost secrets and intimate experiences, washing off the shame trapped in their bodies and regaining their strength through a sense of communion.
Anna Hints is an Estonian film director with a background in contemporary art and experimental folk music. Having deep roots in the distinct culture of South Estonia, Hints’ second home is in India. As ...
James Nelson onboard his empty bus sharing his final Sundance comments from a very busy Park City experience.
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AUDIENCE AWARD: U.S. DRAMATIC - THE PERSIAN VERSION
WALDO SALT SCREENWRITING AWARD: U.S. DRAMATIC - THE PERSIAN VERSION
When a large Iranian-American family gathers for the patriarch's heart transplant, a family secret is uncovered that catapults the estranged mother and daughter into an exploration of the past. Toggling between the United States and Iran over decades, mother and daughter discover they are more alike than they know.
Interview with MARYAM KESHAVARZ wri...
WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY SPECIAL JURY AWARD: VERITE FILMMAKING - AGAINST THE TIDE
Two friends, both Indigenous fishermen, are driven to desperation by a dying sea. Their friendship begins to fracture as they take very different paths to provide for their struggling families.
Sarvnik Kaur, the director, strives to tell stories that hide anxiety and conflict beneath the surface of the "normal" and the "mundane." Her first Indian film, Soz - A Balla...
A meticulous dissection of image-making and a mapping of its movement through society, directors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck use a mind-boggling array of archival footage to collage this sociological study by tracking the transmogrification of photographic philosophy and technology over human history. Weaving and contrasting some of the most iconic, harrowing, and viral images in our collective memory with user-generated footage that transports the viewer through time, space, an...
WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY SPECIAL JURY AWARD: CREATIVE VISION - FANTASTIC MACHINE
From the first camera to 45 billion cameras worldwide today, the visual sociologist filmmakers widen their lens to expose both humanity’s unique obsession with the camera’s image and the social consequences that lay ahead.
A meticulous dissection of image-making and a mapping of its movement through society, directors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck use a mind-b...
Slamdance Film Festival 2023 Awards trifecta winner is “Starring Jerry As Himself” (Grand Jury Documentary Feature Film, Audience Award Documentary Feature Film Winner and Acting Award Winner for Jerry) documenting how an immigrant father Jerry is recruited by the Chinese police to be an undercover agent. This standout world premiere hybrid documentary had sold out screenings and standing ovations (the film is headed to Santa Barbara I...
The trip to Mars can only be understood through Black Americans.” Legendary poet Nikki Giovanni’s revelation is a launching pad to an inspiring exploration of her life and legacy. Through a collision of memories, moments in American history, live readings of her poetry, and impressions of space, Giovanni urges us to imagine a future where Black women lead, and equity is a reality.
Directors Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson (American Promise, The Changing Same) craft a visi...
Smiles & Hugs say it all for Sundance 2023 following awards presentation: thrilled filmmakers
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On the eve of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a team of Ukrainian journalists enter the strategic eastern port city of Mariupol. During the subsequent siege and assault, as bombs fall, inhabitants flee, and access to electricity, food, water, and medicine are severed, the team — the only international journalists left — struggles to cover the war atrocities and to transmit their footage out. Eventually surrounded by Russian soldiers, they shelter in a hospital, unsure of how th...
Our jurors and audiences have voted, and we’re thrilled to announce the award-winners of this year’s Fest! Congratulations to Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson (Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project) who were awarded the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic; Luke Lorentzen (A Still Small Voice) who was presented with the Directing Award: U.S. Documentary; Sing J. Lee (The Accidental Getaway Driver) who received the Directing Award: U.S. Dramatic; and Anna Hints (Smoke...
Get More Screenings In, Today’s the Last Day of Fest
All of our award winners will screen one last time today in Park City, and there are still tickets available to The Pod Generation, The Eternal Memory, and The Persian Version. It will also be a busy afternoon in Salt Lake City with Festival favorites Radical, Judy Blume Forever, Flora and Son, The Deepest Breath, Infinity Pool, Landscape with Invisible Hand, and even more screening to...
As the 2023 Sundance Film Festival winds down, it’s natural to reflect on the impactful, emotional, and inspiring times that we’ve all shared. We’re swapping must-see watchlists and unforgettable stories of early mornings, late nights, and buzzing theaters. One of our favorite ways of marking the incredible w...
With just three days left of the Festival, we’re rounding out a stellar lineup of over 200 films that have captivated audiences in Utah and online across the country. Now, the juries have deliberated and you all have voted, and today the 2023 Sundance Film Festival’s Awards will be announced. We’re excited to honor the artists whose projects have stood out as bold, intimate, and culture-shifting works of art. Follow us on Twitter for all award updates! Find out what fil...
It’s day eight of the Festival and online screenings are in full swing, including Bravo, Burkina!, Fantastic Machine, The Disappearance of Shere Hite, and more. If you’re on the mountain, grab tickets for well-received films The Stroll, Twice Colonized, and A Still Small Voice. Don’t miss your chance to see these movies before the rest of the world.
And if you’re in Salt Lake City, make sure to snag some tickets for Is Anybody Out There?, It's Only Life A...
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