Category Archives: Film

MAN OF STEEL kicks off Movies in the Park 10th Season

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MitP 10MitP10 ManofSteelMovies in the Park kicks off its 10th season tonight with MAN OF STEEL.  This 2013 movie, a re-boot of the Superman franchise, stars Henry Cavill as the titular hero.  Others in the cast are Amy Adams, Michael Shannon (who has filmed movies in Little Rock), Diane Lane, Russell Crowe, Richard Schiff, Christopher Meloni, Kevin Costner and Laurence Fishburne.

Just before the movie, founders Blake Rutherford, Heather Allmendinger and Ben Beaumont will be honored.  The celebration will be on Wednesday, June 11 at 8:30 p.m. at the First Security Amphitheater, just prior to the kickoff of the 2014 season.

The popular outdoor free movie night, held at the First Security Amphitheater, has been going strong for ten years now.  Movies in the Park has now grown to a season of eight films per year, on average, reaching audiences of up to 3,000 people. It’s a staple event in Central Arkansas. Communities from across the state, and the country, have reached out for guidance as they have tried to implement similar programs in the own communities.

Since 2008, the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau has been managing Movies in the Park.

To check out more information about the movies being played this year, please visit

http://moviesintheparklr.net.

ROCKing the TONY AWARDS – Denzel Washington

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Rock the TonysDenzelDENZEL WASHINGTON

Little Rock connection: Played baseball at Lamar Porter Field while filming scenes for A Soldier’s Story.

Tony Awards connection: Won the 2010 Tony for Actor in a Play for his performance in Fences. Currently starring in A Raisin in the Sun which is nominated for five Tony Awards tonight, including Best Revival of a Play.

Movies in the Park founders to be honored on June 11

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MitP 10Movies in the Park founders Heather Allmendinger, Ben Beaumont and Blake Rutherford, will be honored for their hard work and vision in creating the ever popular Little Rock Movies in the Park, celebrating its 10th season this year.

The celebration will be on Wednesday, June 11 at 8:30 p.m. at the First Security Amphitheater, just prior to the kickoff of the 2014 season.

Movies in the Park began as an idea by Blake Rutherford. While walking through the River Market one day, he wondered why the city didn’t use the amphitheater for outdoor movies. He did a little research, and found a model for Movies in the Park from the popular Summer Movie Series at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, NC.

Blake then called friends, Heather and Ben, and reached out to community leaders to get the idea off the ground. The movie series at the Museum of Art in Raleigh was more than 10 years old at the time, and they were very helpful in getting Movies in the Park started in Little Rock.

Comcast was the first anchor sponsor on board with the event, followed by much support from KURB B 98.5 FM, Arkansas Times, Stone Ward, City of Little Rock and more.

“One of our goals from the beginning was to ensure that the movies would be completely free for all in the community to enjoy,” said Blake Rutherford. “We received tremendous support from several organizations to get the event going and we are very happy to see it continue as one of the most popular community events in Little Rock.”

The popular outdoor free movie night, held at the First Security Amphitheater, has been going strong for ten years now. The first movie to be shown was “A River Runs Through It,” which was selected as a nod to Little Rock and the Amphitheater’s location. It drew less than 400 people. Four films were shown the first year in 2004.

Movies in the Park has now grown to a season of eight films per year, on average, reaching audiences of up to 3,000 people. It’s a staple event in Central Arkansas. Communities from across the state, and the country, have reached out for guidance as they have tried to implement similar programs in the own communities.

Since 2008, the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau has been managing Movies in the Park.

To check out more information about the movies being played this year, please visit

http://moviesintheparklr.net.

The 2014 Little Rock Film Festival Award Winners

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LRFF coverHere are the award winners from the 2014 Little Rock Film Festival.

Diamond Award

Governor Mike Beebe

Golden Rock, Best Narrative

Kumiko: The Treasure Hunter, dir. David & Nathan Zellner

Golden Rock, Best Documentary

Virunga, dir. Orlando von Einsiedel

Arkansas Times Audience Award

Korengal, dir. Sebastian Junger

Special Jury Prize for Extraordinary Courage in Filmmaking

Matthew VanDyke, Point and Shoot

Special Jury Prize for Cinematic Nonfiction

Ne Me Quitte Pas, dir. Sabine Lubbe Bakker & Niels van Koevorden

Best Southern Film

Stop the Pounding Heart, dir. Roberto Minervini

Best World Short

King of Size, dir. Peter Dowd

Charles B. Pierce Award, Best Made in Arkansas Film

Sacred Hearts, Holy Souls, dir. Mark Thiedeman

Best Made in Arkansas Director

John Hockaday, Stuck

Best Made in Arkansas Performance

Ed Lowry, Matter of Honor

Youth Filmmaking Award

Connor Leach, Consequences

The 2014 Little Rock Film Festival Says Farewell Today

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8th-annual-little-rock-film-festival-78The 2014 Little Rock Film Festival comes to a close today with films and an awards gala.

The week is capped off with the Awards Gala, which will see the awarding of the Golden Rock Documentary and Golden Rock Narrative Awards. This year the gala takes place at the Old State House Museum. At 8:15, the final film of the festival will be shown. Devil’s Knot plays at the Ron Robinson Theater.

Among the films being shown today are Rich Hill (Tracy Droz Tragos and Andrew Droz Palermo), Man Shot Dead (Taylor Feltner), Before I Disappear (Shawn Christensen), Point and Shoot (Marshall Curry), I Believe in Unicorns (Leah Meyerhoff), Buzzard (Joel Potrykus), Life After Death (Joe Callander), Virunga (Orlando von Einsiedel) and Fort Tilden (Sarah Violet Bliss & Charles Rodgers).

There are two sets of World Shorts being shown today.

  • “Pieces of Life” which includes – “The Bravest, The Boldest” by Moon Molson, “Looms” by Trevor Funk, Nathan Funk, Morgan Funk, “Lambing Season” by Jeannie Donohoe, “The King of Size” by Peter Dowd, “Ghosts on the Mountain” by Jared Jakins, and “June July August” by Jason Affolder
  • “Askew” which features “Where the Red Fox Lies” by Jeff Ray, “Songs from the Outside” by Michael Van Ostade, “The Cyclist” by Christopher Bryan, “Minimus” by Jonathan Hopkins, “Cherry Pop: The Story of the World’s Fanciest Cat” by Kareem Tabsch and “Tin & Tina” by Rubin Stein.

The Arkansas Shorts for the final day are:

  • “Altered States” which features “Origin” by Caleb Fanning, “Strangers” by Justin Nickels, “Mal” by Joshua Harrison and Michael Armstrong, “An Ode to Angeline” by Sarah Jones and “Collection Day” by Scott Eggleston.
  • “Face to Face” including – “Watch the Rhine” by Taylor Dan Lucas, “Homefront” by Eric White, “Man of God” by Matthew Aughtry, and “Sacred Hearts, Holy Souls” by Mark Thiedeman.
  • “Arkansas Up Close” which includes – “The 21 Mile Marathon” by Tyler Tarver, “An Uncertain Bill of Health” by Eric White, “Flokati Films Presents ‘Red Octopus’” by Johnnie Brannon and “Glass Eyes of Locust Bayou” by Simon Mercer.

For more information, visit www.littlerockfilmfestival.org. When attending events use the hashtag #LRFF2014 on social media posts.

First ever LR Film Festival Artisan Street Fair today from 10:30 to 5:30

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Screen-Shot-2014-04-19-at-11.35.12-PMIn keeping with its goal of promoting the local arts and culture, Little Rock Film Festival is hosting its first ever Artisan Street Fair – today from 10:30 to 5:30.. The event will be part of the 2014 Film Festival, which that takes place May 12th -18th this year, and take place by our main festival venue: CALS Ron Robinson Theater in downtown Little Rock.

LRFF’s Artisan Street Fair will pay homage to our Southern roots by bringing together a collection of Little Rock’s best vendors in a bustling downtown outdoor marketplace.  We will curate the finest artisanal food, vintage clothing, jewelry, crafts, home goods, drinks and much more, giving film festival goers, filmmakers and shoppers the joy of discovering the next ‘big thing’ here in Little Rock and also giving them a taste of some of the best things rocking Little Rock.

With visiting filmmakers from around the United States and the world and with more than thousands of festival goers attending the event during the Little Rock Film Festival, what better day and audience to showcase Little Rock and to offer a taste of our Southern Hospitality and Culture?

CASE AGAINST 8 among Saturday films at 2014 Little Rock Film Festival

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LRFF coverA full slate of films and activities is served up on Saturday at the Little Rock Film Festival.

The Case Against 8, Bryan Cotner and Ryan White’s look at the fight to overturn California’s Proposition 8 will be featured tonight at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre. Three films with avian inspired titles are also on tap: Brian Campbell and Will Scott’s The Night the Blackbirds Fell (at The Joint), Joel Potrykus’ Buzzard (at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater) and Mockingbird Don’t Screen: The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant (at The Joint). Two other headline films this evening are David & Nathan Zellner’s Kumiko: The Treasure Hunter (at Historic Arkansas Museum) and Mariano Cohn & Gaston Duprat’s Living Stars (at Stickyz Rock ‘n’ Roll Chicken Shack).

The day starts with Killing Time (Jaap van Hoewijk) and Fishtail (Andrew Renzi) followed by Manakamana (Stephanie Spray & Pacho Velez), Point and Shoot (Marshall Curry), Big Significant Things (Bryan Reisberg), Sympathy Pains (Joe Dull) and Manny (Leon Gast & Ryan Moore).

Afternoon films include Life After Death (Joe Callander), Korengal (Sebastian Junger), Two Step (Alex R. Johnson), Stop the Pounding Heart (Roberto Minervini), Viruna (Orlando von Einsedel), The Overnighters (Jesse Moss) and I Believe in Unicorns (Leah Meyerhoff).

The Arkansas Shorts to be shown on Saturday are:

  • “Lessons in Loss” – “The Shoes of Havim” by Kenn Woodard, “A Matter of Honor” by David Bogard, “Sidearoadia” by Bruce Hutchinson and “13 Pieces of the Universe” by Tara Sheffer.
  • “Adventure Time” – “In Borrowed Time” by Dustin Barnes, “Stuck” by John Hockaday, “Spontaneous History Lesson by Evan” by Douglas Bankston, “Citizen Noir,” by Michael Ferrera, and “Undercover” by Marcel Guadron.
  • “Unbroken Spirits” – “A Broken Road to Hope” by Nathan Willis, “After the Tsunami,” “True Athlete” by Tyler West, and “Blowing Smoke” by Mike Holifield.

The World Shorts shown on Saturday are:

  • “Our Times” – “The Usual” by Dawn Higginbotham, “Families Are Forever” by Vivian Kleiman, “Confusion Through Sand” by Danny Madden, “Distance” by Aimee Long, “Little Black Fishes” by Azra Deniz Okyay, and “Broke” by Benham Jones
  • “Mental and Physical” – “By the Sea” by Robert Machoian, “LE PLONGEON” by Delphine Le Courtois, “Strike: The Greatest Bowling Story Ever Told” by Joey Daoud, “Insomniacs” by Charles Chintzer Lai, “Dog Food” by Brian Crano, “The Lipstick Stain” by Dagny Looper and “Into The Silent Sea” by Andrej Landin
  • “Multifariousness” – “Sketch” by Stephen T. Barton, “X-RAY MAN” by Kerri Yost, “Breaking Night” by Yolonda Ross, “Yearbook” by Bernardo Britto, “MASTER MUSCLES” by Efrén Hernández, “Pity,” by John Pata and “One Armed Man” by Tim Guinee.
  • “Cinematic Stories” including – “Cinephilia” by Leah Chen Baker, “The Spymaster” by Patrick Tapu, “Last Shot” by Greg Popp, “Phil Collins and the Wild Frontier” by Ben Powell, “Lomax” by Jesse Kreitzer and “A Stitch in Time (for $9.99) by Mu Sun

 

Levi Agee will lead a discussion on “The Future of Film Tech” this afternoon as well.

 

For more information, visit www.littlerockfilmfestival.org.  When attending events use the hashtag #LRFF2014 on social media posts.