Film Society of Lincoln Center Announces 2012 NYFF Artists Academy & Critics Academy

The Film Society of Lincoln Center announced the debut of the NYFF Artists Academy, a new filmmaker development initiative and details for the NYFF Critics Academy, a development program for emerging film critics coordinated with Indiewire and Film Comment Magazine, as well as the filmmakers and writers selected for both programs.

Tapping into both the Lincoln Center and New York film community, NYFF’s Artists Academy will offer an immersive creative experience for 12 up-and-coming filmmakers. Taking place on Wednesday, October 3 at the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, established filmmakers will delve into the creative process and artistic collaboration through case studies and talks. Confirmed participants include writer/director Paul Schrader (AUTO FOCUS, ADAM RESURRECTED), cinematographer Ed Lachman (FAR FROM HEAVEN, “MildrEd Pierce”), and avant-garde filmmaker Robert Lepage (MET). Film director, screenwriter and former film critic Schrader will present a case study of his latest project, THE CANYONS, walking filmmakers through the entire process of production, including a successful Kickstarter funding campaign. Visionary film director and playwright Lepage created a spectacular new Ring Cycle for the Metropolitan Opera last season. As he rehearses a new opera for the Met, he will talk to filmmakers about his vision for combining creativity and new technology.

Regarding the new program, the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Executive Director Rose Kuo said, “Artists Academy will nurture emerging filmmakers to develop their creative skills and to discover new approaches to storytelling with moving images. It will be a collaborative workshop in which master filmmakers will mentor new talent.”

The 12 filmmakers selected (and their latest projects) to take part in the NYFF Artists Academy:

Rodney Ascher, ROOM 237 (documentary feature)
Daniel Carbone, HIDE YOUR SMILING FACES (narrative feature)
Russ Harbaugh, LOVE AFTER LOVE (narrative script)
Simon Jaikiriuma Paetau, WITHOUT ARTIFICIAL TITS THERE IS NO SALVATION (feature script)
Ana Lazarevic, BACHA BAZI: BOYS FOR PLAY (feature script)
Leah Meyerhoff, I BELIEVE IN UNICORNS (narrative feature)
Olivia Newman, FIRST MATCH (narrative short)
Lucas Smith, GHOSTS OF THE ARAL SEA (documentary feature)
Kim Spurlock, THE WHISPERING GIANT (feature script)
Musa Syeed, THE DOCTOR (feature script)
Greg Vander Veer, Miss Hill; CHURCH FOREST (two documentary features in post-production)
Susan Youssef, MARJOURN AND THE FLYING HEADSCARF (feature script)

Building on the success of the recent Critics Academy at the Locarno Film Festival, FSLC will once again join forces with Indiewire and Film Comment Magazine to launch the first Critics Academy NYFF. The program is designed to nurture promising film critics and journalists as they attend and cover screenings and events at this year’s New York Film Festival. It will also provide a context for Indiewire's newly designed Criticwire Network scheduled to launch this fall.

Writers will participate in workshops and mentor sessions with noted critics, working journalists, filmmakers and members of the film industry, including writers and editors from Film Comment Magazine, with their coverage to be published on FilmLinc.com, Indiewire’s Criticwire blog and other outlets.

Writers selected to participate in the NYFF Critics Academy NYFF are:

Forrest Cardamenis
Caitlin Hughes
Peter Labuza
Alec Kubas-Meyer
Blair McClendon
Maxwell Nelson
Corey O'Connell
Fariha Roisin

FSLC’s Director of Digital Strategy, Eugene Hernandez, said, "The New York Film Festival and the Film Society of Lincoln Center have been at the center of film culture for nearly fifty years. Through this new Critics Academy initiative, in association with Indiewire, we're taking aim at preserving and supporting a critical dialogue about new films and classic cinema. Our search has yielded a talented roster of new voices who will immerse themselves in the 50th NYFF and benefit from the advice and experience of some of the city's talented critics."

Indiewire’s Chief Film Critic and Senior Editor, Eric Kohn added, "The Film Society of Lincoln Center has served as the epicenter for critical discussion on a vast range of international cinema for decades, so we couldn't be more excited to help keep that perception alive with this workshop. Indiewire's Criticwire Network was created with the belief that smart, effective film criticism is in a more vibrant state than ever before, and the current New York Film Festival lineup provides an ideal outlet for this year's talented workshop participants to sustain that perception."

The 17-day New York Film Festival highlights the best in world cinema, featuring top films from celebrated filmmakers as well as fresh new talent. The selection committee, chaired by Peña also includes: Melissa Anderson, Contributor, Village Voice; Scott Foundas, Associate Program Director, The Film Society of Lincoln Center; Todd McCarthy, Chief Film Critic, The Hollywood Reporter; and Amy Taubin, Contributing Editor, Film Comment and Sight and Sound.

The New York Film Festival is generously sponsored by Royal Bank of Canada, American Airlines, The New York Times, Stella Artois, illy, HBO, Trump International Hotel and Tower, WABC, WNET, the National Endowment for the Arts and New York State Council on the Arts.