KUCI: Film School

UNA / Film School interview with Director Benedict Andrews

UNA, based on David Harrower's play 'Blackbird' follows a young woman’s journey to reclaim her past. Fifteen years earlier, UNA ran away with an older man, Ray, a crime for which he was arrested and imprisoned. When she comes across a photo of him in a trade magazine, UNA tracks him down and turns up at his workplace. Her abrupt arrival threatens to destroy Ray’s new life and derail her stability. Unspoken secrets and buried memories surface as Una and Ray sift through the wreckage of the past. Their confrontation raises unanswered questions and unresolved longings. It will shake them both to the core. UNA gazes into the heart of a devastating form of love and asks if redemption is possible. Bolstered by the remarkable performances of Rooney Mara and Ben Mendelson, UNA rips at the fragile facade of two irreparably damaged people forced to reconcile entangled their past. Director Benedict Andrews talks about the making of his complex, intimate and relentlessly raw tale of abuse, and unresolved emotion.
For news and updates go to: westendfilms.com/una

Blood Stripe / Film School interview with Director Remy Auberjonois and Writer and Actor Kate Nowlin

Blood Stripe: A scarlet stripe that runs down the dress trousers worn by officers of the United States Marine Corps 
Our Sergeant returns home after a third tour with the Marines. Unable to sleep, wracked by paranoia and anxiety, it is clear that in addition to the scars she bears on her body, Our Sergeant carries unseen wounds. When a boisterous homecoming party provokes an explosive outburst, Our Sergeant has nowhere to turn, and so she runs... deep into the North Woods. Discovering a picturesque summer camp on a lake, Our Sergeant seeks refuge and at first, finds solace. But she cannot outrun her own heart of darkness and the pristine wilderness becomes fraught with peril. Actor (Weeds, Veep) and director and writer Remy Auberjonois joins us for a conversation on his compelling and complex portrait of a returning soldier (Kate Nowlin) on the brink. 
For news and updates go to: bloodstripefilm.com
The Blood Stripe opens at the Laemmle Music Hall Friday, October 13

Unrest / Film School interview with Director Jennifer Brea

Jennifer Brea is a Harvard PhD student soon to be engaged to the love of her life when she’s struck down by a mysterious fever that leaves her bedridden. She becomes progressively more ill, eventually losing the ability even to sit in a wheelchair, but doctors tell her it’s "all in her head." Unable to convey the seriousness and depth of her symptoms to her doctor, Jennifer begins a video diary on her iPhone that eventually becomes the feature documentary film Unrest.  Once Jennifer is diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), commonly called chronic fatigue syndrome, she and her new husband, Omar, are left to grapple with how to live in the face of a lifelong illness. Refusing to accept the limitations of bedbound life, Jennifer goes on an inspiring virtual voyage around the world where she finds a hidden community of millions confined to their homes and bedrooms by ME. These patients use the internet, Skype and Facebook to connect to each other — and to offer support and understanding. Many ME patients have experienced uncertainty, confusion and even disbelief from the medical community and society as a whole. After all, it’s easy to ignore a disease when patients are too sick to leave their homes. In Unrest, Jennifer shares her pain and the most intimate moments of her life in order to offer hope and visibility to those who suffer alone in dark, silent rooms. Though Jennifer and Omar may have to accept that they will never live the life they originally dreamed about, together they find resilience, strength, and meaning in their community and each other. Director, subject and activist Jennifer Brea joins us to talk about her journey, illness and her determination to make things better for people living with ME.
For news and updates go to: unrest.film
Help raise awareness and take action, go to: unrest.film/time-for-unrest

Cadillac Tramps: Life on the Edge / Film School interview with Director Jamie Sims Coakley

The 1990's were the "Golden Age" of the Orange County California music scene. Bands like The Offspring, No Doubt, Sugar Ray and Social Distortion where blowing up the mainstream and selling millions of records around the world.  Meanwhile, the undisputed kings of the O.C. scene, The Cadillac Tramps, were falling apart.  Infighting, addiction, frustration and dysfunction would tear the band apart at the peak of their success, but their bond would prove too strong to remain broken for long. THE CADILLAC TRAMPS: LIFE ON THE EDGE  is a humble, honest and entertaining look at five young men who found each other in sobriety, created a lasting musical legacy that influenced indie rock’s biggest bands, and overcame the past to support lead singer Michael "Gabby" Gaborno as he fights for his life from the ravages of Hep-C. First time filmmaker, Jamie Sims Coakley, expertly mixes a colorful combination of archival footage, insightful artist interviews and intimate vérité footage together into an arresting, heartwarming and cautionary tale of brotherhood, reflection and the power of music to heal and unite us. Director Jamie Sims Coakley joins us  to talk about the music, the what ifs, and the bond that has been their musical journey.
For news and updates go to: cadillactrampsdocumentary.com

I Am Another You / Film School interview with Director Nanfu Wang

When Chinese filmmaker Nanfu Wang (Hooligan Sparrow) first came to America, Florida seemed like an exotic frontier full of theme parks, prehistoric swamp creatures, and sunburned denizens. As she travels wide-eyed from one city to another, she eventually encounters a charismatic young drifter named Dylan. Fascinated by his rejection of society's rules and unsure of his past, Nanfu follows Dylan with her camera on a journey that spans years, takes her across America, and explores the meaning of freedom. But as Nanfu delves deeper into Dylan’s world, she discovers something that calls her entire worldview into question. Director, Producer, Cinematographer & Editor Nanfu Wang is an award-winning filmmaker based in New York City. Her feature debut Hooligan Sparrow was shortlisted for the 2017 Academy Award for best documentary feature. Since its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival 2016, Hooligan Sparrow has screened at more than 100 festivals in over 25 countries including Hot Docs, Sheffield, Full Frame, and Human Rights Watch Film Fest. It opened theatrically across North America and was later released on POV, Netflix, Amazon, and iTunes. It has won over twenty awards internationally including a Cinema Eye Honor for the Best Debut Film, the George Polk Award for the journalistic achievement, and the Truer than Fiction Award at the Independent Spirit Awards. Wang was honored by the International Documentary Association with the 2016 Emerging Filmmaker Award. Director Nanfu Wang joins us to talk about Dylan, freedom, travel and her own experience on the streets.
For news and updates go to: iamanotheryoufilm.com
facebook.com/iamanotheryoufilm

Bobbie Jene / Film School interview with Director Elvira Lind

After a decade of stardom in Israel, American dancer Bobbi Jene decides to leave behind her prominent position at the world-famous Batsheva Dance Company, as well as the love of her life, to return to the U.S. to create her own boundary breaking art. Tracking the personal and professional challenges that await her, Elvira Lind’s film lovingly and intimately documents the dilemmas and inevitable consequences of ambition. BOBBI JENE delves into what it takes for a woman to gain her own independence in the extremely competitive world of dance and to find self-fulfillment in the process.
Bobbi Jene: Born in Centerville, Iowa. From 2005-2014 she was a member of the Batsheva Dance Company under the artistic direction of Ohad Naharin. She is an alumnus of the Juilliard School, North Carolina School of the Arts, and the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School. Her choreography and solo work has been presented by The Batsheva Dance Company, PS122 COIL Festival, The Israel Museum, and the Luminato Festival. Bobbi is a certified GAGA teacher and has taught Ohad Naharin's repertory in schools and universities around the world.
Director Elvira Lind: Elvira Lind graduated from City Varsity - School of Media and Creative Arts in Cape Town, South Africa in 2006 majoring in documentary film. She has worked within that field since directing and shooting documentaries of various lengths for TV, cinema, and web on four different continents. Elvira now lives and works out of New York, where she also writes on various fiction projects. Elvira's first feature documentary Songs for Alexis competed at IDFA in 2014 and screened at a long list of international festivals. Director Elvira Lind stops by to talk about an amazing artist, pushing against artistic boundaries and love.
For news and updates go to: bobbijene.oscilloscope.net
facebook.com/bobbijene

The Pathological Optimist / Film School interview with Director Miranda Bailey

Who is the man behind the most highly controversial, intensely debated topics in modern medicine? In THE PATHOLOGICAL OPTIMIST, director Miranda Bailey brings us a character study of Dr. Andrew Wakefield, one of 13 co-authors of a notorious 1998 paper in the UK medical Journal The Lancet, but who became the very public face of what has come to be known as “The Anti-Vax Movement.” An expat from Britain who currently resides in Austin, Texas, Wakefield allowed Bailey and her team to follow him and his family for five years beginning in 2011 as he fought a defamation battle in the courts against the British Medical Journal and journalist Brian Deer. The results of that case – and the self-reflection, pronouncements, and observations of Wakefield, his legal team, wife, and his children – create a complex and incisive look at one of our era’s most fear-provoking and continuously provocative figures. THE PATHOLOGICAL OPTIMIST takes no sides, instead letting Wakefield and the battles he fought speak for themselves. Director Miranda Bailey joins us to talk about her riveting portrait of a man driven to prove his detractors wrong.
Director’s statement: “I gravitate towards provocative and discussion-making material for most of my films. When I began this journey in 2010, Andrew Wakefield was much less known in the United States than he is now. But those who did know him seemed to have very strong feelings either for or against him. I was curious as to who he was and how he could stand up to such rejection from his peers and such scrutiny in the media regarding his part in the MMR Scandal. As the style of my film evolved, I decided it was not my place to defend Andrew Wakefield, nor was it to condemn him. My interest lies in observance. I asked questions and observed. It is up to the audience to decide what they see. ”
For news and updates got to: The Pathological Optimistfilm.com
facebook.com/ThePathologicalOptimist

Soy Nero / Film School interview with Rafi Pitts

Nero (Johnny Ortiz) is sent back to Mexico after failing to cross the Tijuana border. Under  cover of Fourth of July fireworks, Nero makes his second attempt across a concrete trench spanning an interstate highway to the promise land. He hitches a ride with Seymour (Michael Harney), a paranoid pistol-toting veteran traveling with his daughter. Soon after, Nero runs away at a gas station when the local  police question Seymour. Nero makes his way through East Los Angeles, looking for his brother, Jesus (Ian Casselberry), and lands in the plush suburbs of Beverly Hills. Jesus pretends to be a car mechanic living in a gauche Beverly Hills mansion to impress his younger brother, but the ruse won’t last forever. The young Maldonado is now half way around the world fighting for the United States Army to obtain his citizenship. Nero is manning an outpost in the middle of nowhere with his fellow soldiers and commanding officer (Rory Cochrane). The group fights back a hostile ambush after gunning down a car that failed to acknowledge the checkpoint. Nero must survive the unforgiving Middle East desert, and face the harsh reality of being a green card soldier for the United States Army. Rafi Pitts’ films have attained acclaim and awards around the globe. Pitts’ first feature, The Fifth Season (1997), premiered in the Venice Film Festival. His second, Sanam (2000)  was hailed by French critics and compared to The 400 Blows (1959). In 2003, Pitts presented his controversial feature documentary, Cinéma, de notre temps: Abel Ferrara: Not  Guilty (2003) in the Official Selection of the Locarno Film Festival. It’s Winter (2006)  premiered in the Berlin Competition, and one year later, the Seattle International Film Festival honored Pitts with the Emerging Masters Award for his work. Director Rafi Pitts joins us to talk about his gripping tale of people in search of place, security and a new life.
For news and updates go to: soynero.com

Motherland / FIlm School interview with Director Ramona Diaz

MOTHERLAND takes us into the heart of the planet’s busiest maternity hospital in one of the world’s poorest and most populous countries: the Philippines. The film’s viewer, like an unseen outsider dropped unobtrusively into the hospital’s stream of activity, passes through hallways, enters rooms and listens in on conversations. At first, the surrounding people are strangers, but as the film continues, it's absorbingly intimate, rendering the women at the heart of the story increasingly familiar. In a hospital that is literally bursting with life, we witness the miracle and wonder of the human condition. Diaz, a veteran documentarian began filming in the search of a story on reproductive justice, visited the Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital in Manila, Philippines.  As the busiest maternity ward in the world, it averages 60 births a day—and at its peak, as many as 100 babies within a 24-hour period.  Fabella Hospital is the final safety net for very poor pregnant women, most of whom cannot afford either contraception or the $60 delivery fee.  Immersing the viewer with a fly on the wall cinema verité approach,” MOTHERLAND -  winner of World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Commanding Vision at Sundance will open on September 22 in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Monica Film Center. Director Ramona Diaz stops by to talk about her immersive intimate film that finds intimacy and caring in the midst of controlled bedlam.
For news and updates go to: motherland-film.com

Machines / Film School interview with Director Rahul Jain

Marrying stunning visuals with social advocacy, Rahul Jain’s debut documentary — winner of the Special Jury Award for Cinematography at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival — takes audiences into the labyrinthine passages of an enormous textile factory in Gujarat, India. Jain’s camera wanders freely between pulsating machines and bubbling vats of dye to create a moving portrait of the human laborers who toil away there for 12 hours a day to eke out a meager living for their families back home. Interviews with these workers and the factory owners who employ them reveal the stark inequality and dangerous working conditions brought about by unregulated industrialization in the region. This political message is delivered amidst the unsettling beauty of the factory’s mechanical underworld and the colorful, billowing fabrics it produces. Director Rahul Jain joins us to talk about the making of his stark, mesmerizing, and unsettling film and the penetrating sense of complicity we all should feel for the men and the inhumane work conditions they find themselves in.
For news and updates go to: Machines
facebook.com/machinesmovie