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Westchester’s upcoming Film Festival is nothing like what
you’ll find at Netflix, your local movie theatre or in the TV Guide – which is
exactly why you should go.
This once-a-year weekend event, scheduled for March 9-11, takes in an Oscar
nominee, a portrait of a popular Yonkers football coach, a look at the most
sought-after music school in the Soviet Union, a satirical thriller about Arab
detainees, and a magical fairy tale about slaves on a 19th century cotton
plantation.
And that’s just the first day.
Two dozen more independent features, documentaries and shorts
will follow as part of the 8th Annual Westchester Film Festival at the City
Center National Amusements’ 15 Cinema de Lux in White Plains. Screenings will
begin at 1 p.m. Friday and Saturday and noon on Sunday and run back to back
throughout the afternoon and evening. The event is co-sponsored by Westchester
County and Cappelli Enterprises Inc.
Topping it all off will be a Sunday evening tribute to actor
Armand Assante who will accept a Lifetime Achievement Award in the City Center’s
Performing Arts Center.
“With eight years under our belt, it seems that Westchester’s
festival is only getting bigger and better,” said County Executive Andy Spano.
“We’ve developed a name on the festival circuit and everyone wants to be part of
it. Once again, we were able to line up some really exceptional films, and this
year in particular we have a great deal of variety.”
While this year’s offerings come from as far as Holland,
Russia and Germany, many more have their roots right here at home. More than a
dozen were directed or written by Westchester residents, with three of the
selections provided by Panorama Entertainment in Port Chester, the only film
distributor in Westchester County.
One student film, Flight to Savannah, about three teenagers
waiting to ship out to Marine boot camp, was shot entirely at Westchester County
Airport.
Among other local highlights:
• DeMatteo: Lessons Beyond the Field – A look at the popular Yonkers
football coach Tony DeMatteo and the many contributions to student athletes he
made over a 30-year career. Shown through the eyes of two Peekskill
director/producers, Michael Variano and Cliff Charles.
• Approaching Union Square –A collage of 11 tales capturing 30-something
New Yorkers struggling to find love and connection in the big city. Writer,
producer and director Marc Meyers is from Peekskill.
• The Ballad of Peter LaFarge – An insider’s look at Peter LaFarge, a
pioneering folk singer in 1960s Greenwich Village and the first Native American
to gain national prominence as a songwriter. The 13-min. documentary includes
information never made public and quotes from Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. Written
and produced by Sandra Shulman (part Cherokee) of White Plains.
• Random Lunacy – A look at Poppa Neutrino, a homeless man
who found an alternative way for his singing and dancing family to survive
outside society. Includes film footage shot by the self-taught Dixieland
musicians, “the Flying Neutrinos,” over 20 years. From Home Team Productions in
Mamaroneck.
• Breath of Life – A short student film about an 18-year-old Cystic
Fibrosis patient who has defied doctor’s predictions. Directed by Dobbs Ferry
resident, Anna Moot-Levin. The expert interviewed is a White Plains resident and
head of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
Not as local, but every bit as entertaining:
• Half Nelson – Starring Oscar-nominated Ryan Gosling. Story about a
young idealistic inner city teacher who tries to inspire 13- and 14-year-olds
while watching his own ideals wither and die in the face of reality.
• Smile. With Beau Bridges, Linda Hamilton and Mika Boorem. Nominated for
the Chinese National Film Award (a first for an American film). Decades-long
restrictions on filming freely in China were lifted for this feature film.
• Normal People Scare Me – A 17-year-old autistic boy wrote and produced
this full-length documentary to help the world understand him and others who
live with the complex brain disorder.
• Johan – See what happens when your whole family is crazy about soccer
and you’re not. A Dutch comedy about the 11th male child in a family of soccer
players – who decides he wants to be a musician.
• Novem – A college student at a garage sale discovers music recorded 30
years earlier by a group of college students who were killed after making the
recording.
• Little Italy – An Italian documentary that explores the
Italian-American experience as it takes a journey through one of Manhattan’s
most interesting neighborhoods.
After all the films are screened, winners will be announced
in the following categories: feature, documentary shorts, documentary features,
resident and non-resident student, international, animation and
screenplay. Attendees will also be able to give their own opinion by voting for
an Audience Choice award.
For more information call the Westchester County Film
Office at (914) 995-2917. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for seniors and
students. One ticket admission covers all performances for a single day.
See full schedule
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