A PLACE IN THE MIDDLE JOINS NEWTOWN FILM FEST!
As our exciting inaugural program continues to unroll, we are delighted to bring you another inspiring piece- A PLACE IN THE MIDDLE. Derived from the feature length film titled Kuma Hina, A PLACE IN THE MIDDLE demonstrates the true meaning of aloha. An engaging learning piece, its learning goals (as stated on their official website aplaceinthemiddle.org) are vast and important, such as: understanding the power that comes from one’s own culture and respecting the culture of others, the benefits of diversity to individuals, schools, and the broader community, the true meaning of aloha and its core concept of love, honor, and respect, not to mention many other points. "The Newtown Programming team is honored to have A Place In the Middle as our opening short film!" says Cristin Carlin, Founder and Executive Director, Newtown Film Festival. A PLACE IN THE MIDLE is the true-life story of a young Hawaiian girl who aspires to lead her school's all-male hula troupe and an inspiring teacher who uses traditional culture to empower her. She's fortunate that her teacher understands first-hand what it's like to be “in the middle” - the Hawaiian tradition of embracing both male and female spirit. Together they set out to prove that what matters most is what's in your heart. Don’t miss this one-of-a-kind, inspirational piece at the Newtown Film Fest. A PLACE IN THE MIDDLE will be screening at Edmond Town Hall Theatre on September 18, 6PM as the premiere film of the Opening Night Shorts program. Make sure to spread the word, bring a group, and enjoy this fun and educational piece. Please follow us on Twitter.com/NewtownFilmFest and Facebook.com/NewtownFilmFest for more information. We are also currently on the lookout for local sponsors. If you are interested in being a part of this year’s amazing community festival, please send an email to [email protected]. Food, media, and material sponsors are all welcome and appreciated! NEWTOWN! WE WANT TO SEE YOU AT THE MOVIES!
As part of our inaugural Newtown Film Fest, taking place Sept. 18-20 at Edmond Town Hall, we are inviting you, the amazing Newtown community to the theatre! We are pleased to announce the 2015 festival will be completely FREE and open to the public! Our goal is to bring inspiring, motivational, moving pieces to a community that invokes those very traits. Please help us spread the word. This is a labor of love for film to all those involved and we want to bring a constant flow of guests enjoying the amazing selection we’ve compiled. While you’re out and about enjoying the Newtown Arts Festival, please drop by Edmond Town Hall for a collection of shorts, docs, animation, and features that are sure to please the entire family. We are going to be occupying the theatre for the entire fall weekend. Donations, however large or small, are greatly appreciated and can be made in person to one of the several Newtown Film Fest employees that will be at Edmond Town Hall, or online at www.newtownfilmfest.com and make sure to click the DONATE button at the bottom. ACADEMY-AWARD NOMINATED ANIMATED FEATURE SONG OF THE SEA JOINS NEWTOWN FILM FEST FEATURE LINE-UP
This week marks the roll out of the Inaugural Newtown Film Fest 2015 program. Yesterday, we brought you the festival hit MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED, which will be screening at NFF Saturday, 9/19. Today, we are very excited and honored to announce the spotlight animated feature SONG OF THE SEA. "Song of the Sea is an enchanting, magical film that must be seen on the big screen to get the full experience!" says Rachel Olson, Director of Community Outreach/Sponsorship. Distributed and brought to Newtown by New York based GKIDS, SONG OF THE SEA, directed by Tomm Moore, finds Ben, a young Irish boy, and his little sister Saoirse, a girl who can turn into a seal, embarking on an adventure to free the faeries and save the spirit world. Traditionally animated, the breathtaking feature will bring both children and adult along for a thrilling ride. The film was nominated for Best Animated Feature during the 87th Annual Academy Awards. In this captivating animated adventure inspired by the ancient Irish legend of the selkies — magical beings who live as seals in the water and as humans on land — a young brother and sister must unlock the magical secrets of their ancestry in order to find their way home. This screening is co-hosted with Friends of Earl Bales. (TIFF) SONG OF THE SEA will screen at Edmond Town Hall on Sunday, September 20 at 1PM. Check out the official trailer HERE! NEWTOWN FILM FEST BRINGS FESTIVAL HIT TO CONNECTICUT Presenting a very special screening of MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED The Newtown Film Fest is thrilled to welcome the 2015 documentary hit on the need for educational reform in America, MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED, to its inaugural 2015 program. “Most Likely to Succeed reinvents how we define and approach education in America, it is a must see!" says Festival Programmer Priya Gupta. MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED, directed by Greg Whiteley, made its US Premiere at Sundance this past January to enthusiastic reviews. A documentary about education and curriculum reform in 21st century America, the film has been making its way across screens nationwide to spread the word that change is necessary. Where a college diploma once meant a guaranteed job, now more than half of America's new college graduates are unable to find employment. Director Greg Whiteley locates the source of the problem not in the economy but in our educational system, which was developed at the dawn of the Industrial Age to train obedient workers and has changed little since, despite radical changes in the marketplace wrought by technology and the outsourcing of labor. With a world of information available a click away, and the modern workplace valuing skills like collaboration and critical thinking, our rote-based system of learning has become outdated and ineffective. (Sundance) MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED will screen at Edmond Town Hall, Newtown, CT on September 19, 7PM. Check out the official trailer HERE! NEWTOWN FILM FEST AND ARTS FESTIVAL PARTNER TO CREATE A WEEKEND OF ENTERTAINMENT
(Newtown, CT) July 16, 2015- Newtown Film Festival is thrilled to announce a very special partnership with the Newtown Arts Festival. The Newtown Arts Festival features collaborative productions with various arts groups the entire month of September with the signature, outdoor event taking place on September 19 and 20 on the Fairfield Hills campus, in conjunction with the film fest dates of September 18, 19, and 20. The Newtown Film Fest is excited to join forces with an established Newtown institution to bring the town the very best in independent art and film to locals and travelers alike. "We are excited to work with the Newtown Art's Festival to bring a full spectrum of artistic and creative forms to Newtown,” said film festival founder and executive director Cristin Carlin. The annual Newtown Arts Festival is presented by the Newtown Cultural Arts Commission: “The Newtown Cultural Arts Commission established the Newtown Arts Festival to promote and support local arts and the community through arts-inspired entertainment, education, exhibits, and sales. The festival showcases all forms of creative expression, such as visual arts, dance, music, written word, and theatre in the setting of a town-wide celebration. Proceeds will support grants and scholarships for local artists and arts organizations, future festivals, and other work of the Newtown Cultural Arts Commission.” "September is fast becoming 'arts month' in Newtown," said Terry Sagedy, Newtown Arts Festival chairman. "We're thrilled to have an expanded film offering this year with the partnership of the highly-anticipated Newtown Film Festival." For more information about the Newtown Arts Festival and Newtown Cultural Arts Commission, please visit http://www.newtownartsfestival.com Follow us on Twitter.com/NewtownFilmFest and Facebook.com/NewtownFilmFest AWARD-WINNING SHORT FILM TO KICK-OFF INAUGURAL NEWTOWN FILM FEST
(Newtown, CT) July 14, 2015— Newtown Film Festival is excited to announce the Connecticut Premiere of Don Hertzfeldt’s award-winning short, WORLD OF TOMORROW. The animated short will open the 3 day festival at Edmond Town Hall on September, 18, 2015. Hertzfeldt’s moving piece about a little girl taken on a mind-bending tour of her distant future is sure to appeal to all audiences at Newtown Film Fest. "I completely fell in love with this film; it absolutely blew me away,” said NFF Executive Director and Founder Cristin Carlin. “The film is poignant and endearing, and has a great heart. I am so thrilled to be able to share it with Newtown in September." Seven of his films have screened in competition at the Sundance Film Festival, where he is the only filmmaker to have won the overall Grand Jury Prize for Short Film twice. Don Hertzfeldt is an Oscar-nominated American independent filmmaker whose animated films include It's Such a Beautiful Day, The Meaning of Life, Billy's Balloon, and Rejected. His work has played around the world, receiving over 200 awards, and recently appeared in a special guest appearance on The Simpsons. Time Out New York said of WORLD OF TOMORROW, "At the risk of perilously underselling it, World of Tomorrow might be one of the most satisfying short films since Chris Marker’s 1962 landmark, La Jetée... and is almost certain to be the highlight of this year’s Sundance, full stop... Wise, hilarious, and formally daring…" After creating animated films for nearly twenty years using traditional tools (pencil, paper, and 35mm cameras), WORLD OF TOMORROW represents Hertzfeldt's first 100% digital production. The voice cast stars English illustrator Julia Pott alongside Hertzfeldt's four-year-old niece, Winona. Winona's voice was quietly recorded while she and Hertzfeldt drew pictures together and talked about the world. From these raw sessions, Hertzfeldt took her candid reactions and partially rewrote the story (and Julia's lines) to create their characters' seamless conversations. LAST CALL FOR ENTRIES, SUBMISSION DEADLINE FOR FIRST ANNUAL NEWTOWN FILM FESTIVAL JUNE 1ST
May 26, 2015 -- The programming team of the Newtown Film Festival is hard at work screening the entries for this year’s inaugural fall festival, but that doesn’t mean you’ve missed your chance to partake in the event! The submission deadline for this year’s festival is end of day Monday, June 1st. The feedback has been immensely positive for the newborn festival and we look forward to having as many locals and film enthusiasts participate as possible. The family-friendly, feel good film atmosphere is coming together as submissions continue to be screened. If you, or someone you know would like to submit, please visit our website and submit through our Film Freeway page. All submissions are free. The Newtown team has some great plans ahead, so keep up as we share the program later this summer and announce special events. Please reach out to the NFF team if you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns. We love to hear from you! [email protected] Regular Submission Deadline and Opportunity to be Involved:
Summer is fast approaching and that means Newtown Film Festival’s Regular Submission Deadline will be coming up June 1st. Take this chance to submit your work or pass along the information encouraging others to join. Once again, the festival's mission is aimed to support family-friendly, educational, feel-good films of all lengths. Our programming team is working hard to curate a feature and short program that accurately reflects these values. In addition to the upcoming deadline, we are in search of some special guests who can help make the First Annual festival a fantastic experience. As we aim to bring film to the area, we also aim to bring the people who help create these films. Newtown Film Festival is working on panels that will take place throughout the three days and will feature industry members, filmmakers of all ranges, and key people that bring these stories to life. Since the festival is rooted in the community, we are reaching out for your help! If you know of anyone exceptionally knowledgeable or gifted in the art of filmmaking or the industry, please feel free to reach out to us. [email protected] Stay connected on Twitter @newtownfilmfest and Facebook/NewtownFilmFest for updates! |
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