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Top Chinese social media platform Weibo has banned the official account of the German consulate in Guangzhou for “violating community standards” after it posted information about a LGBTQ film festival jointly hosted with 16 other foreign governments.

The ban, which has now been in effect for more than two full days, was instated after nationalist Weibo users flooded the platform’s censors with reports that the German consulate’s message was politically problematic.

All of the diplomatic mission’s prior content is no longer accessible and its page now reads: “This account cannot currently be viewed because of complaints that it has violated regulations related to ‘Weibo Community Standards.’”

Foreign embassies in China frequently host film screenings, talks and cultural events about sensitive topics that typically couldn’t take place outside their premises. Li Dan, the curator of the China Women’s Film Festival who works closely with international embassies on these sorts of film showcases,...

Israeli American Horror/Comedy Happy Times Coming to DVD & VOD on February 9th A Dinner Party Descends into Murderous Mayhem The Most Violent Sabbath Dinner in 2,000 Years! Michael Mayer, director and co-writer of the 2012 Israeli drama Out in the Dark, returns withHappy Times, a decidedly raucous horror-comedy. to be released on DVD, Blu-ray …

The post Artsploitation Invites You to Dinner appeared first on Horror News | Hnn.

M-appeal has acquired world sales rights to Michael Mayer’s dark comedy “Happy Times,” and will present the film to buyers at Cannes. Mayer’s debut feature, “Out in the Dark,” world premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, sold to more than 40 countries, and screened at more than 125 festivals, winning 27 awards.

“Happy Times” centers on a Shabbat dinner at a swanky Hollywood Hills mansion, over the course of which a toxic mix of alcohol, egos, cultural differences, lust and greed derails the evening as secrets are revealed, relationships get tested and bodies become endangered.

The screenplay was written by Guy Ayal and Mayer, who describes the film as “a crazy mix of comedy and violence, with ‎outrageous performances.”

The pic stars Stéfi Celma, best known for Netflix series “Call My Agent!”, and Mike Burstyn, who appeared in the series “Juda.” The producer is Paola Bisson, and Erri de Luca is executive producer.

In today’s film news roundup, Sam Richardson will play an Nsa agent, Stefi Celma joins “Happy Times” and “Pretty Bad Actress” gets distribution.

Castings

Sam Richardson will star opposite Melissa McCarthy in New Line’s action-comedy “Superintelligence.”

McCarthy’s spouse Ben Falcone will direct from Steve Mallory’s script. The movie was set up last year with McCarthy and Falcone as producers through their On the Day production company.

McCarthy will play a former corporate executive whose life is turned upside down when she is selected for observation by the world’s first super-intelligence — an artificial intelligence that may or may not take over the world.

Richardson will play an Nsa agent. James Corden, Bobby Cannavale and Brian Tyree Henry also star. “Superintelligence” opens Dec. 25, 2019.

Richardson appeared with McCarthy in “Spy” and stars in HBO’s “Veep” and Comedy Central’s “Detroiters,” which he co-created. He is repped by UTA,...

With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options — not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves — we’ve taken it upon ourselves to highlight the titles that have recently hit platforms. Every week, one will be able to see the cream of the crop (or perhaps some simply interesting picks) of streaming titles (new and old) across platforms such as Netflix, iTunes, Amazon, and more (note: U.S. only). Check out our rundown for this week’s selections below.

Antichrist (Lars von Trier)

Like the majority of Lars von Trier films, from the first moments of Antichrist, one will be able to discern if it’s an experience they want to proceed with. For those will to endure its specific unpleasantness, there’s a poetic, affecting exploration of despair at its center. Chaos reigns, indeed. – Jordan R.

Where to Stream: FilmStruck

Donnie Darko (Richard Kelly)

Last year marked...

Lousy Smarch is almost here and the debut schedules for all the movies and series that will be hitting Netflix in March have arrived. We also have the Amazon Prime folks covered as well! The second season of Marvel’s Daredevil and the premieres of the fourth season of House of Cards and the first season of the new comedy Flaked, with Will Arnett hit the small screen. Did you forget about the premiere of the Judd Apatow-produced Pee-wee’s Big Holiday? We didn’t.

On the Amazon Prime front, check out below to see what you’ll be able to stream for free and what’s going to have a cost. Let’s watch!

All Title Dates are Subject to Change

Netflix U.S. Release Dates Only

Available 3/1

Adult Beginners (2015)

Ahora o Nunca (2015)

Aldnoah.Zero: Season 2

American Pie Presents: Beta House (2007)

American Pie Presents: The Naked Mile...

March 2016 is a sad month for some Netflix subscribers.

Say goodbye to '90s films "American Pie" (1999), "Hackers" (1995), Mel Gibson's "Hamlet" (1990), "Indecent Proposal" (1993) and "Jumanji" (1995) in March. Also disappearing: Will Smith movies "Hitch" (2005) and "Men in Black II" (2002), as well as oodles of TEDTalks that are all expiring next month.

Here's the complete list of what's leaving Netflix streaming in March.

Leaving March 1, 2016

"Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman" (2000)

"American Pie" (1999)

"American Wedding" (2003)

"Atlantis: The Lost Empire" (2001)

"The Babysitters" (2007)

"The Chosen One" (2010)

"Down and Out in Beverly Hills" (1986)

"Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights" (1992)

"Gone in 60 Seconds" (2000)

"Hackers" (1995)

"Hamlet" (1990)

"Hannie Caulder" (1971)

"Hardball" (2001)

"Hart's War" (2002)

"Hitch" (2005)

"Indecent Proposal" (1993)

"Johnny Dangerously" (1984)

"Jumanji" (1995)

"Masters of the Universe" (1987)

"Men in Black II" (2002)

"The Monster Squad" (1987)

"Not Another Teen Movie" (2001)

"Paycheck" (2003)

"Switchmas" (2013)

"The United States of Leland" (2003)

"Wings" (1927)

Leaving March 2, 2016

"Stevie Nicks: In Your Dreams" (2013)

Leaving March 3, 2016

"Night Catches Us" (2010)

Leaving March 4, 2016

"Getting...

The wait is almost over, Ultimate Night of the Living Dead #3 issues will be released on February 24th. Also in this round-up: details on The X-Files UFO event, Shudder's partnership with Sundance Film Festival, two Doctor Who Blu-rays, Yoga Hosers comic, and House Shark.

Ultimate Night of the Living Dead #3: "For those of you that have been looking for our 3rd issues, your patience will be rewarded. Issue 3 Super Packs and individual titles will be released on February 24th, 2016.

Follow as Evans County continues to fall into the grips of an undead invasion. See the invasion from 10 different perspectives.

Sh*t’s about to get real."

---------

The X-Files UFO: "It’s an Out-Of-This-World X-Files Experience That Fans Won’t Want to Miss

Come See the UFO Today in Los Angeles At The Grove (189 Grove Dr., La) from 8:00 Am – 10:00 Pm

Share your Pictures on Your Favorite...

The Jewish Film Institute's new VOD platform, Jfi On Demand, includes festival favorites from the Sfjff archives over the past three decades, including "5 Days" by Yoav Shamir, "Aliyah" by Elie Wajeman, "Out in the Dark" by Michael Mayer, "Forgiveness" by Udi Aloni, "Live and Become" by Radu Mihaileanu and more. The 35th edition of the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival returns to the Bay Area this year from July 23 to August 9, 2015 at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco, the CinéArts Theatre in Palo Alto, the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael, The California Theatre in Berkeley, and the Lakeside Theater in Oakland. Since 1981, the festival has screened over 1500 films. Read More: Noir City and Jewish Film Festival Compete for San Francisco Cinephiles To view all 35 film titles on Jfi On Demand, visit jewishfilminstitute.org.

We're back with the horror highlights of Day 2 of this year's Sdcc, and you better rest up! On tap are "The Walking Dead," "Bates Motel," "Sleepy Hollow," Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, Scream Factory, and More!

What you'll find below is just the tip of the iceberg (and it does include a few "fringe" panels that we thought might be interest). Be sure to visit the official San Diego Comic-Con 2014 website for the full lineup.

Day 2: Friday, July 25, 2014

10:00 Am - Publishers Weekly: Behind the Digital Line

As digital comics have become a driving force of the medium, more publishers and creators have launched digital first lines of comics. How do publishers and creators deal with the unique properties of the web and tablet? How do readers react? Are they an evolution from webcomics or their own medium? And how will technological evolution affect storytelling as more choices arise? Pw's...

What’s new, what’s hot, and what you may have missed, now available to stream.

streaming now, before it’s on dvd

The Final Member: the world’s only penis museum is no joke, but there’s plenty funny (and enlightening, and poignant) in this sweet portrait of a man dedicated to completing his life’s work [my review] [at Amazon Instant Video] Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit: why reboot remains a question, but this is a smart popcorn thriller with a surprisingly sensitive performance by Chris Pine, and a wonderfully badass one by Kevin Costner [my review] [at Amazon Instant Video] The Lego Movie: you’ve seen this all before — it’s Toy Story meets The Matrix — just not done in Legos [my review] [at Amazon Instant Video] Lone Survivor: true story of a failed Navy Seal mission acknowledges the powerful fraternity of soldiers without being jingoistic, and depicts the intensity and adrenaline of a battlefield without being pornographic [my review] [at Amazon Instant Video]

new to streaming

The Patrol: a rough experience,...

Films and literature.

These are perhaps the most powerful mediums in the world that can influence like no other.

Through these, society can be educated, discrimination can be eradicated and positive social change made into reality.

Sadly, there is still much discrimination towards Lgbtqia (Lesbian; Gay; Bisexual; Transgender; Queer; Intersex; Asexual) persons throughout the world and not just in India where being something other than “straight” is criticised and furthermore, homosexuality is now a crime.

However, the journey towards Lgbtqi human rights continues to progress despite the challenges.

May is a big month for celebrating and inspiring hope through both films and literature as the biggest gay and lesbian film festival in India, the Kashish Mumbai International Queer Film Festival kicks off on the 21st of May – 25th of May 2014.

Kashish was founded by Sridhar Rangayan, a courageous and inspirational activist and film maker.

In its 5th edition, the festival...

A still from the opening film “Out in the Dark”

Kashish Mumbai International Queer Film Festival 2014 will open with Michael Mayer’s Out in the Dark (Israel, Palestine, USA), a love story between an ambitious Palestinian student and an idealistic Israeli lawyer caught in a minefield of socio-political conflict.

The festival which will take place from May 21 – May 25 at Liberty Cinema, New Marine Lines and Alliance Française de Bombay; will screen around 154 films from 31 countries including shorts and features in both narrative and documentary category.

Twenty-eight Indian films will be screened at the festival. National Award winning director Ravi Jadhav’s Marathi short film Mitraa, based on Vijay Tendulkar’s play Mitrachi Goshta, will be screened on Saturday May 24, 4.45 pm at Liberty Cinema in a short film package ‘Indian Showcase’.

Pradipta Ray who was the winner of Riyad Wadia Award for Emerging Indian Filmmaker at Kashish 2012 will return with Bengali...

What’s new, what’s hot, and what you may have missed, now available to stream.

streaming now, while it’s still in theaters

Maidentrip: a remarkable documentary about a remarkable kid, and an incredibly optimistic look one young person making her dreams come true [my review] [at Amazon Instant Video]

streaming now, before it’s on dvd

The Wolf of Wall Street: a debauched end-of-empire horror story disguised as an outrageous comedy, with remarkable performances from Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill [my review] [at Amazon Instant Video] 47 Ronin: historical action drama can’t quite decide how fantastical it wants to be, and so ends up in an intriguing but unsatisfying mushy middle [at Amazon Instant Video]

new to streaming

Kill Your Darlings: murder mystery among the early Beats in 1940s New York; Daniel Radcliffe is a revelation as young Allen Ginsberg [at Amazon Instant Video] Saving Mr. Banks: smart, snappy story about the making of Disney’s Mary Poppins will leave you walking on air; Tom Hanks,...

While the Academy Awards is the ceremony sure to earn the most ink over the coming weeks, the GLAAD Media Awards are an honor held more closely to the hearts of some. Seeking to celebrate films, TV shows, mini-series and websites that represent the Lgbt community, GLAAD's ceremony shines a spotlight on a part of the artistic community that has been forced into the shadows for too long. You can see the full list of nominations at THR, but we're sharing the film nominations below: Outstanding Film - Wide Release Blue Is the Warmest Color (Sundance Selects) Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features) Kill Your Darlings (Sony Pictures Classics) The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (Sony Pictures Releasing) Philomena (The Weinstein Company) Outstanding Film - Limited Release Concussion (RADiUS-The Weinstein Company) Geography Club (Breaking Glass Pictures) Out in the Dark (Breaking Glass Pictures) Reaching for the Moon (Wolfe Releasing) Yossi (Strand...

With two big ceremonies coming up (April 12th in Los Angeles and May 3rd in New York City), the 2014 GLAAD Media Awards has a ton of great nominees all vying for a trophy.

On the film end of things, “Dallas Buyers Club” and “Blue is the Warmest Color” both received nods, and “Orange is the New Black” and “Pretty Little Liars” lead the way for television.

The GLAAD Media Awards honors the biggest and brightest stars in entertainment, journalism and real-life Lgbt movements.

The nominees for the 2014 GLAAD Media Awards are:

Outstanding Film – Wide Release

Blue Is the Warmest Color (Sundance Selects)

Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features)

Kill Your Darlings (Sony Pictures Classics)

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (Sony Pictures Releasing)

Philomena (The Weinstein Company)

Outstanding Film – Limited Release

Concussion (RADiUS-The Weinstein Company)

Geography Club (Breaking Glass Pictures)

Out in the Dark (Breaking Glass Pictures)

Reaching for the Moon...

This morning the national Lgbt media advocacy organization GLAAD announced nominees for the 25th Annual GLAAD Media Awards. According to GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis, the year “has brought momentous progress for Lgbt people and families – and our nominees have created images and stories that continue to challenge misconceptions, shatter stereotypes, and change hearts and minds of millions all across the globe.”

There are 130 nominees in 29 categories but a few notable honorees include wide release films Dallas Buyers Club, Philomena and Kill Your Darlings, all of which were previously reviewed here on TheBacklot.

In the limited release category, Geography Club scored a nod. (The film is based on the classic Ya novel by AfterElton alum Brent Hartinger.)

In the outstanding TV drama category, ABC Family scored 2 nominees: The Fosters and Pretty Little Liars.

In the TV comedy category, perennial nominees Modern Family and Glee were joined by Brooklyn Nine-Nine and...

The nation’s Lgbt media advocacy group has revealed the nominees for its 25th annual GLAAD Media Awards. In the Outstanding Film – Wide Release category, Sundance Selects’ Blue Is The Warmest Color will go up against Focus Features’ Dallas Buyers Club, Sony Pictures Classics Kill Your Darlings, Sony Pictures’ The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones and The Weinstein Company’s Philomena. On the TV side, nominees for Outstanding Drama Series are The Fosters (ABC Family), Grey’s Anatomy (ABC), Orphan Black (BBC America), Pretty Little Liars (ABC Family) and Shameless (Showtime). The Comedy Series hopefuls are Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox), Glee (Fox), Modern Family (ABC), Orange Is The New Black (Netflix) and Please Like Me (Pivot). The MSNBC leads all networks with four noms, followed by ABC with three. Sony Pictures, The Weinstein Company and Breaking Glass Pictures are the only multiple nominees on the film side. The honors recognize media for their fair,...

The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association (Galeca), of which I am a proud voting member, has announced the nominees for its annual Dorian Awards named with a nod to the great and gay wit of Oscar Wilde.

The usual suspects ("American Hustle," "Gravity," "Her," "12 Years a Slave," "Dallas Buyers Club," "Blue is the Warmest Color") will vie for the Film of the Year against the not-so-unusual suspect "Laurence Anyways."

Lily Tomlin is deservingly receiving the Timeless Star honor simply because she's timeless! And of course, she's an .an actor or performer whose exemplary career is marked by character, wisdom and wit..

Winners will be revealed on January 21st.

Here's the full nominations list of the 2013 Dorian Awards:

Film of the Year

American Hustle (Sony)

Blue is the Warmest Color (IFC)

Dallas Buyers Club (Focus)

Gravity (WB)

Her (WB)

Laurence Anyways (Breaking Glass)

12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight)

Film Performance...

To mark the release of Out in the Dark on October 14th we’ve been given 3 copies to give away on DVD.

The award-winning directorial debut from Michael Mayer, gay drama Out In The Dark (15) stars newcomer Nicholas Jacob as Arab student Nimr alongside Michael Aloni (Policeman, Infiltration) who plays Jewish lawyer Roy. A gripping story of forbidden Arab-Israeli love, Nimr is rejected by Islamic society for his sexuality, and outcast by Jewish society for his nationality.

Please note: This competition is open to UK residents only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Small Print

Open to UK residents only The competition will close 31st October at 23.59 GMT The winner will be picked at random from entries received No cash alternative is available

The usual T&Cs can be found here. Good Luck!

The post Win Out in the Dark on DVD appeared first on HeyUGuys.

The Israel-Palestine conflict has been ongoing for decades, affecting the lives of millions. Out in the Dark certainly isn’t the first film to address this conflict. But, now, director Michael Mayer (who co-wrote the script with Yael Shafrir) explores this conflict with a very personal perspective in Out in the Dark. Unfortunately—or maybe fortunately for Mayer—making this story more personal and character-driven makes the subject matter even more infuriating; it will get under your skin.

Nimr (Nicholas Jacob) is a Palestinian student taking a special class in Tel Aviv. One night after the class, he goes to a gay bar to see his drag queen friend Mustafa (Loai Nofi) perform. At the bar, he has a meet-cute with Israeli lawyer Roy (Michael Aloni). Despite their instant attraction to each other, Nimr knows that going any further with him would make things very complicated, so he does not pursue Roy.

Nobody Knows: Mayer’s Debut Explores Personal is Political with Tragic Gay Love Story

For his screen debut, Israeli born director Michael Mayer’s Out in the Dark further complicates the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by giving us a story about two young men from opposite sides of the track, as it is, falling in love. The result is a complicated series of road blocks for the couple, a situation that causes not only familial strife, but political and violent turmoil. Mayer has tapped into a predicament not often visited cinematically when exploring the ever present conflict in the Mid-East, and he’s managed to not only make a memorable debut, but an unflinching document about the violence and hardships Lgbt people face in this hostile territory.

Sneaking dangerously across the border one night to get from Ramallah to Tel Aviv, Nimir (Nicholas Jacob), a young Palestinian student is on his way to see his close friend,...

When it's concerned with the most trying of lives in the most troubled of regions, it can feel petty to complain that a tragic-minded romantic thriller is laying things on too thick. Out in the Dark is the story of a closeted gay Palestinian man who falls in love with a Tel Aviv lawyer the same week or so that his—the Palestinian's—brother is stockpiling guns and murdering another gay Palestinian who crossed the border for the chance to be himself. And all that's before Israeli security forces gets involved.

The movie is involving, the romance affecting, the sex sound, and the catch-as-catch-can handheld camerawork smartly appropriate for the scenario—the film opens on Nimr (Nicholas Jacob), the Palestinian, skulking in and out of shadows just across...

Michael Mayer came to the topic of "Out in the Dark," his debut feature which had its world premiere at last year's Toronto International Film Festival and opens in theaters September 27, through a combination of chance and unexpected passion.  The Israeli-born filmmaker was eating dinner in Los Angeles with a friend from Tel Aviv who mentioned his work with gay Palestinians living in Israel and told Mayer about their legal, political and emotional uncertainties.  "It kind of blew me away," he told me in a phone interview last week.  "It was the first time since film school when I was like, 'oh shit, I want to tell that story.'" On his next trip to Israel, Mayer began to research the issue--"at first, for my own benefit," as he puts it--and what he discovered challenged his preconceptions of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.  Here was a liminal space where political stereotypes were scrambled,...

Top 10 suffer against summery competition, but multi-platform release for Ben Wheatley's civil war drama is hailed a success

The winner

Blazing skies across the UK and the two most-watched TV programmes of the year provided formidable alternatives to cinemagoing at the weekend. Box-office fell hard, especially on Sunday when the Murray-Djokovic Wimbledon men's final peaked at 17.3m viewers. Murray's previous match, Friday's semi-final against Jerzy Janowicz, peaked at 13.2m viewers.

Despicable Me 2 posted the smallest decline in the top 10 – down 60% from the previous weekend – for a 12-day cumulative total of £22.9m. That figure already puts the film ahead of the total lifetime gross of £20.2m for the original Despicable Me.

Despicable Me 2's decline compares unfavourably with many previous animated hits – Toy Story 3 fell just 29% in its second frame – although not many faced the particular challenges presented at the weekend. Based on the relative amounts grossed...

★★★☆☆ 'When boundless love meets sectarian boundaries' is by no means the most enticing underpinning narrative; nor does it sound particularly controversial. However, Michael Mayer's feature debut, Out in the Dark (2012), proves that even the most overplayed melodies of love and war can sing with innovation. Juggling a myriad of political hot potatoes including racism, homosexuality and domestic violence, Mayer transcends through all the capricious clichés grown stagnant through repetition. Instead, this first-time Israeli director turns over a modern day Romeo and Juliet yarn scarred by the truths of geopolitical immorality.

Opting for the provocative itinerary of two gay lovers split by the animosity between their nations, Mayer clearly intends to establish his divisive directorial footing early in his career. If not for the amorous dynamics between his two leads, Nicholas Jacob and Michael Aloni, he may have struggled to shed the melodrama moniker from his skillset. Yet, it's Jacob...

The top stories of the week from Toh! Reviews:This Weekend: Head to Disney's Big-Budget Western 'The Lone Ranger,' Sundance Hit 'The Way, Way Back' and 'Despicable Me 2'Can Runaway Western 'The Lone Ranger' Make Its Money Back? Review and Round-Up'Venus Vs.' Review: Venus Williams Fights Gender Equality at Wimbledon in Ava DuVernay's Rousing Sports DocFeatures:toh! Lists the Ten Best Films of 2013 ... So FarImmersed in Movies: Guillermo del Toro Talks 'Pacific Rim' Robot Porn (Video)Johnny Depp Loves Buster Keaton: Check Out the Great Silent Comedian (Many Clips)News:Meet Criticwire's New Editor and Head Writer, Sam AdamsHarvey Weinstein Can't Let 'Butler' Title Loss GoIn the Works: Do We Need a New Version of Steinbeck's 'Grapes of Wrath'? Spielberg Thinks SoInterviews:Mads Mikkelsen Talks 'The Hunt' (Exclusive Video)Festivals:Il Cinema Ritrovato: Alexander Payne Talks Influential Films, Cinephilia, Screenwriting and MoreFrameline Film Festival 2013 Winners: 'Out in the Dark,...

If Shakespeare had sought to write of star-crossed lovers today he might boldly have chosen a tale of woe like that of Nimr and Roy. Out in the Dark bears touching witness to the tentative dance of a brand new relationship and to a bond stretched taut across a volatile divide. Not the well-thumbed legend of Romeo and Juliet perhaps, but the reimagined story of a contemporary Mercutio and Tybalt – political, dynamic, passionate and devastating.

Roy (Michael Aloni) is a beautiful careless playboy, working as a lawyer for the family firm, emboldened by the cushion of ignorance that his father’s money provides. Nimr (Nicholas Jacob) is a student of psychology with his eyes firmly fixed on an horizon and a future far from the fear and dishonesty of his daily life. When they meet in a Tel Aviv club their connection is instant, their attraction absolute. Despite his misgivings,...

Frameline, the world's longest running Lgbt film festival, announced its 2013 winners for both audience and juried awards after wrapping up its 37th year this past Sunday. Michael Mayer's gay Israeli-Palestinian drama "Out in the Dark" received the Outstanding First Feature prize from jury members Robert Hawk, Joao Federici (Mix Brasil fest director) and Mel Pritchard (BuskFilms). Stacie Passon's indie tale of lesbian ennui "Concussion" -- well-reviewed at Tiff and Sundance -- garnered an honorable mention. Both of these films will screen in La at Outfest in July. (Read a fascinating interview with Passon via Women and Hollywood here.) Jury members M.T. Silva (Pixar), Masashi Niwao (CAAMFest director) and Joachim Post (programmer of the Hamburg Queer Film Festival) awarded Outstanding Documentary to Marta Cunningham's portrait of Lgbt violence "Valentine Road." Runners-up were Yoruba Richen's "The New Black" and SXSW hit "Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton" --.

Emir Baigazin’s Harmony Lessons won the 39th Seattle International Film Festival’s Best New Director grand jury prize on Sunday [9] as top brass handed out jury and audience awards.Scroll down for full list of winners

The Siff 2013 Best Documentary grand jury prize went to Penny Lane’s Our Nixon and Lucy Walker earned a special jury prize for The Crash Reel, while Kyle Patrick Alvarez took the Best New American Cinema grand jury prize for C.O.G.

In the audience awards, Henk Pretorius’ Fanie Fourie’s Lobola won the Best Film Golden Space Needle Award and Morgan Neville’s Twenty Feet From Stardom took the corresponding documentary prize.

The Best Director Golden Space Needle Award went to Nabil Ayouch for Horses Of God, while best actor was awarded to James Cromwell for Still Mine and best actress to Samantha Morton for Decoding Annie Parker.

The Best Short Film Golden Space Needle Award was presented to [link...

Sheffield Doc/Fest | Dunoon film festival | A Nos Amours | Seret – The London Israeli film and television festival

Sheffield Doc/Fest

Sheffield doesn't quite have the same ring as Cannes or Venice, but in documentary terms it's a fair comparison. This is a market and a meeting place for professionals, and guests this year include Walter Murch, Jonathan Franzen, Trevor McDonald and Captain Sensible, as well as just about every British documentarian you can think of. But this is also the place to see the latest in non-fiction film: 120 films, many of them premieres, on topics ranging from Pussy Riot to Uri Geller's CIA missions, Indonesian genocide, and Bradley Wiggins.

Various venues, Wed to 16 Jun

Dunoon film festival

Edinburgh and Glasgow festivals bring world cinema to Scotland, but this inaugural festival brings Scottish cinema to Scotland, and helps put a seaside town on the cultural map. There are some recent international releases,...

Welcome to “It Is Known – Season 3 Deconstructed”! Every week, you will find my extensive review of the week’s episode of Game of Thrones.

I will explore the narrative that the show weaves. And what a narrative indeed! The story is complex, the characters are manifold, the twists and turns unexpected. I will deconstruct the episodes piece by piece, moving from character to character. This is an unusual approach, I admit, and a bit cumbersome at times, but the show basically does the same. The episodes are just parts of one, epic story, and as parts we have to examine them if we hope to get everything that happens.

There will be no real spoilers for future events, but I will reference the books from time to time, so if you haven’t read them, you might want to be careful around these reviews, although I’ll try to keep the references cryptic.

The always-popular Austin Jewish Film Festival is back with a selection of stimulating films. The fest starts tomorrow night (Saturday, April 13) and runs through Friday, April 19 at Regal Arbor. Tickets and festival badges are still available, and some noon screenings are free.

Austin Film Society is co-sponsoring two of the fest's movies this year:

The Other Son (pictured above) (Lorraine Levy, France/Israel, 2012) is a powerful, yet hopeful, portrait of two young men -- one Palestinian, one Israeli -- switched at birth. They learn to transcend cultural, national and religious boundaries after they meet. [screening info]Out in the Dark (Michael Mayer, Israel, 2012) joins the growing list of well-made Israeli films exploring gay life in Israel. In this film, we see the difficulties of love between a young Palestinian student and a slightly older Israeli lawyer. In a well-acted but tough role as a homophobic cop, new Austin resident Alon Pdut proves...

The BFI London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival is something I truly appreciate. It warms my heart to know that there are actually plenty of films out there that star more than just straight white men as protagonists; and it's a shame that they end up relegated to a single, yearly event.

There were a huge number of films showing this year, almost guaranteeing a wide range of experiences on offer - but I only got to watch one in particular. Out in the Dark, filmed in 2012 and directed by Michael Mayer.

Maguey, pronounced Ma Gay -- the plant from which Tequila is distilled here in the State of Jalisco and the City of Guadalajara -- is the perfect name for the Gay Prize of the Festival International de Cine de Guadalajara (Ficg).

Ficg The Maguey Awards

(Aka: Premios Maguey: Pasiones intimas del cine queer or Intimate Passions of Queer Cinema)The jury -- comprised of Colombian Juan Carlos Arcienegas of CNN Latino, journalist and film critic; Kevin Murphy, Germany, Talent Campus; Darryl MacDonald, Director of Palm Springs Iff, Swedish filmmaker Ingrid Ryborg and Alexander Mello,Brazil, Director at Diversity in Animation. International Festival of Lgbt Animation--made a quick and easy decision after one hour of deliberation, but it took 2 1Ž2 hours to write the statement.

The line-up

Included some films I had seen including the Chilean (again!!) film by Esteban Lorrain The Passion of Michelangelo which I quite liked when I saw it at Berlin’s Efm; Gun Hill Road, Sundance 2012’s debut feature and Masters Film (from Nyu Graduate Film School) Gun Hill Road by New Yorker Rashaad Ernesto Green, Graduate of Dartmouth College, recipient of the Princess Grace Foundation Award and Spike Lee Fellowship which most unfortunately has been caught in the bankruptcy of its U.S. distributor Motion Picture Film Group (See Indiewire: What Happens You’re your Distributor Goes Bankrupt – Why Gun Hill Road is now Finally on DVD), Sundance 2012 lesbian Chicana film Mosquito y Mari, Any Day Now, starring Alan Cummings which I saw at the Napa Valley Film Festival where it won the Audience Award and the 2013 Sundance film Joshua Tree 1951: A Portrait of James Dean.

And the winner is: Quebranto (Disrupted), from Mexico, the memorial and testimony of trail blazers Fernando García, known as Pinolito, who was a child actor in the seventies and Doña Lilia Ortega, his mother, an actress. Fernando came out as a transvestite some years ago, and now calls himself Coral Bonelli. They live together in Garibaldi, Mexico yearning for their past in the movies, while Coral bravely comes to terms with her gender identity. They both still perform.

Honorable Mention went to the Israeli film Out in the Dark

The announcement and celebration party at the Black Cherry was great fun. I was honored to meet the great and beautiful Mexican actress Laura Zapata. I hung out with my new-found friends Lydia Genchi from Nomad Film Distribution in Italy and Catalina Arango of Zancudo Films from Argentina, and old friends Darryl, Jc and Kevin up until midnight when the prize should have been announced, but instead, the disco dancing with two great dancers a la “Rage” in West Hollywood went on another half an hour… Someone saw the poor exhausted dancers in their open window dressing room above the club afterward, self absorbed in private activities as they tried to rest their beautiful bodies. Personally I wish they would add a Latin beat to the monotony of one-one-one-one-one-one-one beat which really exacerbated my tinnitus.

So I went home, sharing a car with Swedish Staermose Soren of Yellow Bird Productions and Greek Patrice Vivancos, spokesman for Media Mundus which is Media’s international film fund and whom I had seen earlier moderating the roundtable on funds and funding strategies for Latin America.

One movie featuring explict gay sex is to serve as "consolation" for the banning of another such movie at a film festival in Australia (pictured above: Brenden Gregory and Jesse Metzger in Travis Mathews' romantic / psychological drama I Want Your Love) Travis Mathews and James Franco's explicit Interior. Leather Bar, about how "straight" and "gay" actors react while filming the recreation of footage supposedly cut from William Friedkin's much criticized 1980 crime thriller Cruising, will be screened as a sort of "consolation movie" for Mathews' own explicit effort I Want Your Love, the tale of two gay male friends who opt to make their friendship into something more physical. Scheduled for a presentation at the 2013 Melbourne Queer Film Festival, Mathews' movie was banned by Australia's Classification Board. Here's a great quote: David Cronenberg, the director of dozens of movies such as Videodrome, Dead Ringers, Naked Lunch, A Dangerous Method,...

"The But in the Joke" had everything we need from a "Bones" episode: A gruesome murder, vastly differing opinions on important things like art and humor, personal reflection, a living person covered in body parts, glue and peanut butter...

This recap explains how that all works.

Art and science, fused together as one

What is art, really? Is it the woman who can recreate human identities out of just a few skull fragments? Is it the man who defaces billboards in creative and interesting ways? Is it the human remains accidentally adhered onto the body of another person?

Ok, so it's probably not that last one. But art was definitely an instigator when a street artist finds himself glued to the decomposing remains of a stand-up comedian.

The unfortunate young man, Seth Zalinski, is immediately transported to the Jeffersonian, where the squints determine that peanut butter is the only way...

"Out in The Dark," which will have its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival Friday, has been acquired for U.S. distribution by the independent distributor, Breaking Glass, the festival announced on Thursday. The film marks the feature debut of Israeli director Michael Mayer. It follows two young men, a Palestinian grad student and an Israeli lawyer, played by Nicholas Jacob and Michael Aloni,  who meet and fall in love, amid personal and political intrigue. The film was written by Yael Shafrir and Mayer, and produced by Lihu Roter and Mayer.  ...