This spring Philadelphia’s film community will come together for 12 days to celebrate internationally acclaimed dramas, comedies, documentaries and shorts this spring for the Philadelphia Film Festival and CineFest 2009.
The Philadelphia Film Festival and CineFest 2009, a festival jointly organized by the Art Alliance, Philadelphia Cinema Alliance and Greater Philadelphia Film Office, will feature more than 250 films from 45 countries. The festival will run from March 26 to April 6 and will screen films from a host of categories, at various venues all across the city of Philadelphia.
The festival will feature highlights such as the Opening Night film, (500) Days of Summer, written by local Philadelphia film maker and University of Pennsylvania graduate Scott Neustadter. Another anticipated film is The Nail: The Story of Joey Nardone, made in and around South Philadelphia.
“The Festival is growing and changing and finding new movies to feature. Filmmakers are always finding new things to talk about. The Philadelphia Film Festival/ CineFest is always trying to remain consistent with the times,” explains Matthew Ray, Director of Media Relations of Philadelphia Cinema Alliance. He also acknowledges that social media is playing a vital role in shaping the thought process and style of the filmmaking. Ray reiterates that new social mediums, such as YouTube, have changed the way in which we communicate with each other, and it changes the way filmmakers communicate with an audience.
The Festival will also host two filmmaker panels that will be open to the public. The first panel discussion, which will be held on March 28, will feature Philadelphia documentarians who will talk about how their work and how they represent Philadelphia’s African American community through their film sensibilities. The second panel, which will be held on April 4, will discuss the effect of living in Philadelphia on local filmmakers and the existence of the ‘Philadelphia Aesthetic’ that has molded the collective cinematic conscious of local filmmakers. For more information on the filmmakers panels, visit http://www.phillycinefest.com/panels.cfm.
In conjunction with the film festival, the Greater Philadelphia Film Office will be hosting a ‘Set in Philadelphia’ (“SIP”) day on March 28, filled with panels and workshops that cater to budding filmmakers and writers. A special “PhillyPitch 2009!” gives participants the opportunity to pitch their story to a high-powered panel of industry players and allows them to listen to valuable feedback. Learn more at http://film.org/film/events/index.cfm?eventID=234.
During the Festival, Media Independence (MiND), a non-profit organization focused on bringing quality television programming through a multi-platform, will also be hosting a series of video production workshops that caters to new filmmakers. To find out more about their calendar of events, visit www.mindtv.org.
As more and more productions are filmed in the Philadelphia Region each year, the film industry has continued to grow and created jobs for creative individuals in the region. As the local film community grows there are more independent and large scale productions filmed in the area. The Greater Philadelphia Film Office reported that in February 2009, 10 film and television projects have submitted paperwork to begin production. Production revenue is also expected to exceed $347 million and to create an estimated 1,500 jobs in the Philadelphia Region.
Mickey Rooney was recently in Philadelphia filming a scene for an independent movie, “Saddle Up! With *** Wrangler and *** Joe.” He is also featured in another movie “The Wages of Spin,” about the bandstand era in the Philly music scene, which will be playing at the Festival. Philadelphia is also currently the filming location for “Law Abiding Citizen,” a movie starring Jamie Fox and Gerard Butler. Other television series that have filmed in Philadelphia include “Hack”, “Philly”, “Ambush Makeover,” “Animal Cops,” “Viva La Bam,” “Trading Spaces,” “Dinner Impossible,” “Cold Case” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”
Many film production companies have filmed movies in Philadelphia which has allowed the local film industry to establish a name for itself. Philadelphia has produced outstanding filmmakers such as Scott Neustadter, the Quay Brothers and M. Night Shyamalan. With Philadelphia slated for many of their movies’ premieres, more filmmakers are choosing to use Philadelphia as a platform to showcase their works.
“Philadelphians suffer sometimes from being overshadowed by big brother New York and big sister D.C. But this is an opportunity for them to see what Philly has to offer. In today’s tough times, it’s cheaper to go to Philly than to go to Toronto,” explains Ray. However, he also points out that times are getting tougher for potential filmmakers. “It has not been easy to get funding and approval these days and for those who have their movie made and shown, it is an achievement in itself.”
To view a full schedule of events for the Philadelphia Film Festival/CineFest 2009, visit www.phillycinefest.com.