Early Bird Passes for RHFIFF 2009 now on sale!
The 8th annual Rochester High Falls International film Festival will take place May 13 – 18, 2009 at various venues around Rochester. Guests can enjoy five jam-packed days seeing new independent films and meeting directors and filmmakers who are eager to share their work with Rochester audiences.
But film is just the beginning! RHFIFF also brings western New York audiences special access to the film world. In addition to features, documentaries, short films, animation, and children’s programming from around the world, attendees can also enjoy panel discussions with filmmakers, master classes, gala receptions with film industry guests, informal coffees with filmmakers, award ceremonies, and more. All-Access pass holders also have exclusive entry to private parties with celebrities and film stars.
All –Access Passes, the best way to fully enjoy Rochester’s "five day party," cost $175 at the door, but EARLY BIRDS can get $40 off the regular price here at this web site for a limited time starting October 1st! Click on "Tickets and Passes" to place your order for home delivery of your 2009 pass, and enjoy Rochester’s most exciting annual event.
CALL FOR WORK announced for Main Program, Shorts and Children's/Young Adult Program
ROCHESTER, NY, September 4, 2009: Officials at the Rochester High Falls International Film Festival announced today a "Call for Work" for its Main Program, as well as its Shorts and Children's/Young Adult Program. This is the first time the Festival has opened up the Main Program for unsolicited submissions -- this section had previously been "invitation-only," said Artistic Director Catherine Wyler, since its inaugural year in 2001. "We are very excited about this new initiative," Wyler commented, "and are looking forward to receiving a wide spectrum of entries that we might not otherwise have access to." Festival Director and Co-Programmer Ruth Cowing, who will oversee the initiative, added that she suggested opening the program with "an eye towards discovering an 'indie gem,' or a groundbreaking new filmmaker who has yet to emerge on the festival circuit."
The majority of the Main Program will still most likely be culled from the best films that Wyler and Cowing are able to see at such top festivals as Toronto and Sundance, said Wyler. The popular and long-standing "Local Link" sidebar, spotlighting films with local and regional ties, will also continue, said Cowing.
The Shorts and Children's/YA programs have had an open call since the beginning of the Festival, added Cowing, with very successful results -- final selections have gone on to much acclaim, awards, and Oscar nominations.
For deadlines, fees and selection criteria, see the RHFIFF submissions page.
RHFIFF 2008 Official Selection to play at George Eastman House
FLOW: FOR LOVE OF WATER (official selection, RHFIFF 2008) will play at the Dryden Theatre at the George Eastman House on Saturday, November 22nd at 8 p.m. as part of its Human Spirit Series. In this 83 minute provocative documentary, director Irina Salina introduces viewers to the fact that people around the world are fighting for their basic human right to access free water. Locations include an African shantytown where citizens secretly reconnect their water pipes, and India, where a "water guru" who promotes community-based initiatives. A Canadian author also exposes the disturbing realities behind the global bottled water business. Focusing on issues of pollution and corporate responsibility, filmmaker Salina depicts the increasingly at odds relationship between humans and the quintessence of our existence.
Panelists taking part in a post-film discussion on Nov. 22 are Salva Dut, a native of Sudan, Africa, living in Rochester, who has dedicated his life to drilling wells and providing safe drinking water in his native land; M. Ann Howard, associate professor of Science, Technology & Society, Rochester Institute of Technology; and Wayne Howard, chairman of the Sierra Club Great Lakes Committee.
Human Spirit Series continues at the Dryden through November and December, with monthly screenings that celebrate the power of the Human Spirit. The films have been selected in the hopes that they will stimulate thought, discussion, passion, and action. Each selection explores the potential of adding meaning to one's life through contributions, in all manner of ways, to the lives of others. The Oscar-winning drama, A Man for All Seasons (Saturday, December 13th at 8 p.m.) stars the late Paul Scofield as Sir Thomas More in a finely realized retelling of the clash between the spiritually unyielding More and the adulterous King Henry VIII in 16th century England.
Further information:
http://dryden.eastmanhouse.org/films/flow-for-love-of-water/
