New Filmmakers New York Presents Spring Festival Beginning Tonight Thru 4/10

NewFilmmakers New York presents SPRING FESTIVAL April 1st - 10th.

The NewFilmmakers NY Series screens at Anthology Film Archives on the Lower East Side at 32 Second Avenue & 2nd Street. Tickets for Spring Fest at NewFilmmakers NY are only $6 and are available at the Anthology Box Office the night of screening.

Visit NewFilmmakers.com for more information.

Sunday, April 1st

NewFilmmakers celebrates writing, acting, filmmaking, and the other dark arts.

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST SHORT PROGRAM
about writing

Choice Skinner SELLING IT
Matt McClain THE DICK
Sean Ryan UNTITLED
Vadim Brin AUTUMN MUSE

7:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND SHORT PROGRAM
about acting

Sergio Marcos INSPECTOR SANCHEZ
Adam Goldhammer 1-800-CHOICES
Doron Hagay ACTING
Henry Moskowitz JUSTIFIED TRUE BELIEF

8:45PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Simon Mercer KING DONG

Lamont Jack Pearly KING OF B (2011, 53 Minutes, Video)
A fictional dark comedy, about Kevin Schmitz, an aspiring actor, who takes his craft seriously, believes he is his idol Kurt Russell. Losing all sense of reality, Kevin ends up in a psychiatric facility.

Monday, April 2nd
NewLatino Filmmakers presents new Latino Film Night

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS EARLY SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Edie Monroy and Dawn Del Orbe THE WALK HOME

Directors' Statement (Edie Pilar Monroy and Dawn Del Orbe)
The Walk Home stemmed from a bad dream Edie had as a teenager. It was one of the most vivid dreams she had ever had and scared her into loving life.
When deciding to adapt it into a screenplay, she thought long and hard on how to make sure viewers would understand the same message she had received.

In three short chapters The Walk Home focuses on the age old warning Be Careful What You Wish For.

Jeune, an angst-ridden, masochistic teenager decides to cut Homecoming just to spite her parents. As she makes her way back home alone mysterious things begin to happen, but being too self-involved and judgmental, she ignores the otherworldly eccentricities that seem to be sending her a message.

All too often people wish death upon themselves to escape their lives, but deep down inside they don't really mean it. If Death came to answer you, could you convince him otherwise? 

Watch the trailer here.

James Joint SECRETOS CONOCIDOS- View the trailer here.

Clara Martínez-Lázaro SI BEMOL
Eddie Fernandez MARTIAL WORLD

7:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM
with NewLatino Filmmakers

David Liz LUZ
Michael Martinez ESPERANZA
Bill Sorice OH HAPPY DAY
Ryan Perez STOPPING AT ALL STATIONS
Keyri Soto THE BALLAD

8:45PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION
with NewLatino Filmmakers

Eddie Fernandez FINAL LEVEL
It is the year 2005. Recently certified female instructor Alex Deleon returns home with Bryan Torri, a black belt in Aikido. They had been celebrating Alex's new instructorship.

Monday, April 2nd
NewFilmmakers presents a Music Night

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Michael Streissguth RECORD PARADISE: THE MUSICAL LIFE OF JOE LEE
Record Paradise rolls with Joe Lee, black sheep of a blue-blood Maryland family.

7:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Benjamin Ridway TRIBOLUMINESCENCE
Dorian Levi MERAUDER - UNTIL
Ryan Guiterman THUNDERSTRUCK

8:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Vipal Monga BLACK FEBRUARY
Black February chronicles an unprecedented series of concerts performed in New York City by legendary jazz composer and conductor Lawrence D. 'Butch' Morris. Watch the trailer here.

9:30PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND FEATURE PRESENTATION

Andrew Menan WITHOUT A CROWD
Throw out the script. Roll the camera. Grab your guitar and pour the Whiskey. You might get a crowd. You might not.

Tuesday, April 3rd
NewFilmmakers presents Indian Film Night

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Teju Prasad NOT A FEATHER, BUT A DOT
A look at the history, changes and perceptions of the Indian-American community in the US.

7:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Aaron Lehman ABODE OF THE SERPENT
A documentation of the tribes inhabiting the Dang Forest in Gujarat, India.

8:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST FEATURE PRESENTATION

Phil Rached WHERE THE SUN HAS A MUSTACHE
Escape into the surroundings of Bahadursinh Jhala, servant to Prince JayBapa. (Jayasinhji Jhala).

9:30PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND FEATURE PRESENTATION

Chandra Pemmaraju LOVE LIES AND SEETA
The movie follows the lives of 3 guys who met Seeta, an adopted indian daughter of american parents. See the trailer here.

Wednesday. April 4th
NewFilmmakers Presents New York Filmmakers.

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS FIRST SHORT PROGRAM
Brooklyn Filmmakers

Winston James MIND STROLL
Lara Izagirre BICYCLE POEM
Leo Fiorica LAST SUPPER
Melanie Travis THE APARTMENT
Jason Hinkle DEAR RENI
Gabriel Wilson THE LEMON
Margarita Jimeno SWIMMING AWAY
Noelia Santos TRIPTYCH

7:45PM NEWFILMMAKERS SECOND SHORT FILM PROGRAM
Manhattan Filmmakers

Eric Norcross WALK OF THE CITY
Chin Tangsakulsathaporn A MOMENT
Doug C. Williams BLOTTER
Germano Cecere TIME LAPSE
Kent Kitzman PREDATOR / PREY
Daniel Perry POSSUM
Edward Caban FRIENDS AND STRANGERS- View the trailer here.
Thomas Leveritt GIRDER

9:30PM NEWFILMMAKERS FEATURE PRESENTATION

Nick Sandow PONIES
PONIES is about the hopes and broken dreams of our large immigrant population. The film examines the tensions and treachery that arise in the seedy world of off-track betting in New York City, where three men from very different backgrounds connect and clash with each other.

Friday, April 6th
A Thrilling Friday Night At The Movies

6:00PM NEWFILMMAKERS SPECIAL PROGRAM
with NewFilmmakers Animation Group

7:15PM NEWFILMMAKERS SHORT FILM PROGRAM

Jerome Green RUNNER
Sid Bodalia ALONELINESS
Justin Lisson HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Filipe F. Coutinho BLACK MASK

Sunday, April 08

6:00 PM Documentary Series

Jinhee Park VOICE UNKNOWN (2011, 33 minutes)
This film reveals the voice of a North Korea refugee woman living in the US. She settled down in an American city after the incredible journey from North Korea. She works at a Korean grocery store now. She shares her psychological condition of living.

7:30 PM First Short Program

Rob Sabal PASSING THROUGH (2011, 7 minutes)
PASSING THROUGH explores the tension between representation and abstraction as it documents a journey from Tokyo to Ishinomaki, Japan in May 2011.
Girard Tecson THE LAST FAREWELL (2011, 12 minutes)
Jerry tries to stop the girl that he loves from leaving the country.
Xiaocao Liu CABBY (2011, 19 minutes)
A lonely cab driver tries to connect with people in the busy city of Beijing.
Lucas Chu NEW NEIGHBOR (2011, 20 minutes)
An old widower is entrenched in his daily routines. A young man moves in next door and invites the old man to a housewarming party.

8:45 PM Second Short Program

Mariko Takai A DARK SIDE OF HUSBAND AND WIFE (2011, 6 Minutes)
Seems like a perfect middle aged couple strolling in Central Park in a beautiful day. But life is not always what we expect it to be. Whatever happens, love exists - in the past, in the present and in the future.
Jamie Nishizaki SCHOOL DAYS SHOOT (2011, 4 minutes)
This work is a four minute film revolving around the theme of life high school soccer players.While the viewer reminisces on their high school days, they can enjoy a story of club activities and love.Based on the athlete's way of thinking.
Christina Rubenstein UNREST (2009, 16 minutes)
Manila, Philippines, 1986. A little girl is torn between opposing sides of a civil revolution. Amidst the chaos, she inadvertently sets off a devastating chain of events that tests her mother's love, and transforms her into a victim of social unrest.
Boim Hwang LE DAVID (2010, 19 minutes)
On the day before the opening of the exhibition, David, a man on the pedestal is proudly waiting for his Parisian debut. When Sophie Soulier, his creator and blossoming young artist is interviewed by a journalist, she shamelessly worships her masterpiece
DAE KYU LEE RENDEZVOUS POINT (2011, 26 minutes)
A Korean army platoon was sent to a recon and gets ambushed by North Korean soldiers. Corporal Yoon-Seok Kang is the only survivor from his platoon. He gets lost in the woods with a shot wound on his leg. He meets Private Charlie Brown.

Monday, April 09

6:00 PM First Comedy Short Film Program

Tom Sutch THE GUILTY PARTY (2011, 13 minutes)
A timid young man inadvertently gets involved in his roommates accidental murder, and struggles to stay silent to protect himself and his antagonizing friend.
Liann Kaye SLASH FICTION (2011, 16 minutes)
When a very conservative library gets a unisex bathroom, chaos ensues! The idea that any person of any age or gender could co-inhabit the most intimate and private of spaces aggravates and terrifies the staff.
Omri Bezalel E.X.A (2010, 24 minutes)
A 17 year old girl is one competition away from being the number one rated Excretion Artist (EXA) in the world, but has to decide if this is what she really wants.

7:00 PM Second Comedy Short Program

Beth Trifilo AFTERNOON INDULGENCE (2012, 3 minutes)
All a woman really needs to indulge herself is chocolate, right?! Afternoon Indulgence is a charming short film that highlights the connection between sex and chocolate for women, and exposes this sexist aphorism with a delightful alternative. 
Nira Burstein THE LIGHT HOUSE (2011, 12 minutes) 
A utilities worker goes to a house to turn off the electricity and ends up going on an unexpected adventure.
IVÁN CORTÁZAR DESASTRE(S) (2011, 12 minutes)
Ivan loses everything; keys, wallets, mobiles, pretty much anything that ends up on his hands. This special ability, as well as his balding head, is a genetic inheritance of his father,
Anthony Marinelli Walt Whitman NEVER PAID FOR IT (2012, 25 minutes) 
A black comedy about a semi-employed would-be poet, his criminal brother, and a Ukrainian prostitute in Besonsonhurst, Brooklyn.
Matthew Foster CLICKED (2011, 36 minutes)
Max designs online ads. He and his snide colleague Beth are in competition for a promotion based on the ads they've designed for a hardware store. Max would really be in with a shot ... if only he had some creative talent.

8:30 PM Third Comedy Short Film Program

Courtney Ware RASPBERRY JAM (2011, 10 minutes)
A mystical tale about a man who loses everything on his journey toward hope. Oh, and there's a leprechaun, too.
Saralyn Armer WHERE IN THE GPS? (2011, 11 minutes)
As three friends travel into the labyrinth of roadways that is Los Angeles, they must decide if a once guiding light can still be trusted.
Lawrence Zoeller HOW TO BREAK UP WITH YOUR MOTHER (2011, 18 minutes) 
A young couple confront the man's domineering mother.
Michele Remsen JUKE (2011, 25 minutes)
A woman tries to buy a jukebox and gets juked.

10:00 PM Feature Presentation

Toby Poser RUMBLESTRIPS (2012, 85 minutes)
A mother is arrested for growing marijuana, and in between conviction and sentencing she takes her two young daughters on an RV trip to come to terms with and prepare them for her absence.

Tuesday, April 10

6:00 PM First Short Program

Spring Festival Screening
about Vampires
Paulo J. Maia LA REINA VAMPIRA (2010, 11 minutes)
As he attempts to confront his own issues, a writer is absorbed and dominated by the world he creates, where a lonesome beautiful girl awaits the fate he wrote for her: becoming The Vampire Queen.
Unoc Min VAMPIRE WAI INTERVIEW (2010, 30 minutes)
Story of a girl who begins to doubt her identity as a human being. She works for small outsourcing production which delivers works for cable TV production. During she interviews with living vampires.

7:00 PM Second Short Program

Spring Festival Screening
about Ghosts
A. James Marcolin I AM ALIVE (2011, 15 minutes)
What if the line between life and death was thinner than we think? Are we really sure about what our eyes can see...Do we really have power to control our life against death?
Ryan Sokol ALONE (2011, 24 minutes)
Some fears cannot be faced.
Marc Masciandaro IMPOSTOR (2011, 25 minutes) 
A lonely office drone must resort to desperate measures for a date with the woman of his dreams.  Watch the trailer here.

8:15 PM Third Short Program

Spring Festival Screening
about Martial Arts
Bryan Felber UNIVERSITY OF THE STREETS (2011, 12 minutes) 
When a woman's purse is stolen in the Lower East Side, Martial Arts Grand Master, Ro, and his friend, Leon, are forced to work together with the culprit in this action-packed blaxploitation comedy.
Nick Twemlow THE LAYING ON OF HANDS (2010, 9 minutes)
A son searches for his mother in a world populated with men crawling on their hands and knees, chained to leashes; women writhing in biblical ecstasy; giants falling to their knees after being dealt a death touch. The Laying on of Hands is a personal journey.
LINETTE LUCAS FRIEND & FOE (2010, 33 minutes) 
Moses and Akeem have shared a genuine bond since adolescence. As the years progress, having the same passion for martial arts and chess creates an inseparable brotherhood between the two. During their latter years, Akeem offers to help Moses.

Stephan Berwick FINAL WEAPON (2010, 15 minutes) 
Final Weapon A Stephan Berwick film, featuring an appearance and music by Lou Reed The Final Weapon is a 15 minute action drama about holding, passing, and protecting an ancient form of martial art that when employed, renders the user invincible for 20 minutes, after which he/she dies. The film takes viewers through the painful odyssey of an aging warrior making a fatal choice about using this weapon for his last battle. With Lou Reed appearing as 'The Holder' of the secret 'Final Weapon' and famed Taijiquan master, Ren Guangyi, as 'Holder 1', the film is fueled by a stirring use of music by Reed. The film also stars Michael Woods, one of Hong Kong's most popular Western action performers from the 1980s through the early 1990s, who came out of film retirement specifically to star as 'Protector 1'.

The Final Weapon spurs questions about power and survival with a subtle story and diverse characters, dramatizing the vitality and fatality that comes with the power to determine ones own fate, as well as the fate of others. Inspired by the reality of weapons of mass destruction, Final Weapon reveals that there are those given the responsibility to use devastating weapons and those tasked with protecting such weapons. The question suggested by the film is whom are more important - those tasked with using such weapons or those responsible for protecting them?

The film was written, directed, and musical directed by Stephan Berwick, a Western pioneer of mainland China martial arts who was an early 'foreign' actor in the Hong Kong action film renaissance of the 1980s, under the famed director, Yuen Woping and action star Donnie Yen. Berwick performed in memorable films, such as 'Tiger Cage' and the 'In the Line of Duty' series. The Final Weapon is his film and musical directorial debut.

Shot over three days at minimal budget in Minnesota and Wisconsin in high definition, the Final Weapon employed an experienced, talented crew from the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. Sampson Rolen edited and colorized the film, the director of photography was Sam Fischer, and the make-up artist was Laura Hart, with costume advisory provided by Donna Berwick, whose credits include costume designer for Spike Lee's 'Inside Man'.

The film was produced by Berwick and Jose Figueroa, in association with Minnesota-based production houses; Restraining Hollywood, Rolen Motion Pictures, and 185 Media. Watch the trailer here.

9:30 PM Feature Presentation

Reinaldo Marcus Green THE INTERVIEW (2011, 7 minutes)
A businessman enters a job interview he will never forget.
D.V. Nikt BIG BANG KISS (2006, 75 minutes) 
Three Yugoslav partners-in-crime connect in Amsterdam to execute the final stage of a deal, but as the undertaking fails, their unity crumbles. Retreating to the hideout set-up by their mysterious boss Mr. Marinkovich, Branko and Zeka are puzzled.