The fifth Louisiana International Film Festival happened on April 20-23, 2017. It was the first full year after the death of Dan Ireland, the festival’s Artistic Director. It also came after the  floods in 2016 that devastated much of southeast Louisiana.

Both were directly acknowledged in the festival’s programming selections, which gave LIFF 2017 a certain gravitas. Even so, there was plenty of room for celebration as the festival broke new attendance records for some of its films.

My advice would be to anyone, whatever you’re doing, always engage the person on their passions.” – Chesley Heymsfield

Renée Zellweger was the festival’s special guest. She came to be a part of the special screening of The Whole Wide World, a film directed by Dan in 1996 that starred Renée and Vincent D’Onofrio. That film led to her role in Jerry Maguire, which turned her into an international superstar and solidified her friendship with Dan. After the film screened, Renée presented the first annual Dan Ireland Award to the filmmakers behind Kills on Wheels.

In this episode, I share the interviews I did at LIFF 2017 and my experiences at the festival.

Guests in this Episode

• Barry Martyn, jazz drummer; Sally Young – host of Traditional Jazz on WWOZ in New Orleans – starts at 2:06 min. They discuss their involvement with the music doc One Note at a Time, a look at the post-Katrina music scene in New Orleans and how the Musicians’ Clinic helps to cover the medical needs of NOLA musicians.
• Andrew Vogel, Operations Director of LIFF and a California-based actor and producer – starts at 14:01 min.
• Alexander Jeffery, a filmmaker who worked on three of the films that screened at the festival: Memoir, The Verses, and Last Light – starts at 25:11 min.
• Jason Allen, Production Director of LIFF and a 1st AD who is a member of the Directors Guild of America and has lived and worked in Los Angeles for 20 years – starts at 32:36 min.
• Chesley Heymsfield, Executive Director of LIFF and film producer – starts at 49:00 min.
• My comments start at 1:13:13 hr.

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Films & Shows Mentioned

• Backtrack Vodka
• The Book of Clarence
• Cézanne and I
• Ella Brennan: Commanding the Table
• The Hero
  
• Jena Six
• Kills on Wheels
• Last Light
• Man Down
• Memoir
• Memorial Drive
• One Note at a Time
• Patti Cake$
• The Red Pill
• The Ryan Francis Story
• Unrest
• The Verses
• The Whole Wide World

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I also talk briefly about celebrity culture and the troubling societal trend to trivialize or vilify opposing viewpoints. Plus, internet lessons from Werner Hertzog, dubious business practices, battles for sincerity, a compelling vision of what America can be, and favorite festival moments.

This episode, unlike other episodes, did not make it out in time for the 23rd, but much of it was recorded during April 23, the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death. Proceed with caution.

The crowd reacts to Kelsey Grammer.

Listen to the Episode

Related Things

The festival’s distinguished artistic director passed away during the festival. In the few times I got to interact with him, he treated me in a friendly and considerate way. RIP Dan Ireland. 

• Learn more about LIFF:  www.lifilmfest.org
• The INSIDE daily brief
• Neil Postman’s book, Amusing Ourselves to Death
• A New Orleans jazz funeral for Shakespeare
• The nsavides Blog on William Shakespeare
• The ep. with Chesley Heymsfield, the festival’s executive director
• The ep. with actor Michal Papajohn
• The BUKU music festival ep.

The post LIFF 2016, Festival Reflections & Tricky Terrain appeared first on NICKSAV Film & Music SHOW.

This year the festival takes place on April 13-17 in Perkins Rowe, Baton Rouge. Chesley Heymsfield, the festival’s executive director, came on The nsavides Podcast to discuss this year’s lineup.

Listen to the Episode

In addition to this year’s LIFF lineup, we also discuss

• the origins of Cannes and Tribeca film festivals
• Chesley’s experience working for the special-effects visionary, Stan Winston. (As a quick refresher: Stan Winston worked on some of the big special effects in films like Aliens, Edward Scissorhands, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, and Jurassic Park.)
• how to make a big impression at Sundance
• ways to bring sponsors onboard for creative projects
• finding resilience in the midst of difficult times
• how to approach filmmakers, actors, and celebrities at film festivals

Some of the notable films at the festival

• Breaking the Bank – a comedy starring Kelsey Grammer set amidst the volatile backdrop of international banking
• Lo and Behold – a new film from Werner Herzog about the internet’s sociological impact
• Miss Sharon Jones! – a portrait of the singer from two-time Academy Award-winning director Barbara Kopple
• No Greater Love – a documentary that follows Chaplain Justin Roberts into the frontlines of battle at the Kunar Province of Afghanistan and back at home where veterans battle PTSD, depression, and loneliness.
• Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You – a warm look at the TV producer behind acclaimed shows like All in the Family, Maud, and The Jeffersons.
• Raiders! – the true story of three kids who set out to recreate Raiders of the Lost Ark scene by scene on Super 8mm film

Some of the notable events at the festival

• Wednesday, April 13
  • Gala Reception with supermodel and founder of the Every Mother Counts nonprofit, Christy Turlington Burns. Christy is also the executive producer of Every Mother Counts, one of the films screening at the festival.
• Thursday, April 14
  • LSU’s Golden Band from Tiger Land and LSU’s Golden Girls perform at the Perkins Rowe Courtyard.
  • ASKTHETHOMASBROS performs at the Filmmaker’s Lounge.
• Friday, April 15
  • Cosplay  themed afterparty
• More special events can be found at www.lifilmfest.org/special-events-lineup

Special shout outs

With My Soul –  a short film set in the Civil War that explores the effects of war and human trafficking. The film co-stars Jency Griffin Hogan, who also produced, co-directed, co-wrote and co-produced the short. Jency is one of the actors who submitted to the #KnowMonologues Challenge I did with Django Unchained‘s Laura Cayouette.

With My Soul was also written by Kay Landon, who is a fellow co-organizer of the Screenwriters Down South, our script-writing support group in Baton Rouge.

The film screens on Saturday, April 16 at 10:00 AM. It’s one of the shorts in the Official Louisiana Live-Action Short block at Perkins Rowe.

Related Things

• More details about films and festival events can be found at  http://www.lifilmfest.org.
• I share my experiences and notable moments at LIFF 2016 in this podcast episode.
• Some of the people and groups involved in LIFF’s Mardi Gras Masquerade at Sundance 2016 include
  • Michael Foster Project, the band that led the second line down the streets of Park City
  • CC Adcock, a cajun rocker from Lafayette who played music during the party
  • Hot Tails provided some of the Louisiana-themed foods
• The nsavides Podcast came about after I sat in on a hair-and-makeup workshop at LIFF put on by Dana Boisseau, a hair stylist who has worked on films like Django Unchained, The Butler, and Ray. I connected with Dana, and so we did a video and an interview together, and the podcast grew from there.

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