Yahoo! to Sponsor Short Film Program at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival

To further demonstrate the company’s commitment to the creative community, Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO), the premier digital media company, today announced it is the Official Sponsor of the Short Film Program at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, which runs January 19-29, 2012 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.




As a sponsor, Yahoo! will premiere a select number of short films from the Festival on Yahoo! Movies, a leading online movie destination that reaches 27.5 million users per month. Consumers will also be able to vote for an audience award, which will be presented to the winning filmmaker at the Short Film Awards party taking place during the Festival.



“Yahoo! delivers premium content experiences to both consumers and advertisers,” said Mickie Rosen, senior vice president, Yahoo! Media Network. “Partnering with an iconic institution that promotes talent and creativity not only expands our premium content offerings but also reinforces our commitment to the creative community.”



“The Short Film Program at the Sundance Film Festival has established itself as a launch pad for great storytellers whose work impacts audiences in exciting ways,” said Keri Putnam, executive director of Sundance Institute. “Yahoo!’s sponsorship dramatically extends that impact to millions of users around the world. The Festival and its filmmakers appreciate the support and additional exposure Yahoo! will provide.”



The announcement was made today at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity when Ross Levinsohn, executive vice president of Yahoo! Americas, hosted an on-stage dialog with Robert Redford, founder and president of Sundance Institute, as well as Ben Silverman, founder and CEO of Electus. The discussion focused on the power of storytelling and its role in creating premium content. For more information about Yahoo! at the Cannes Lions festival, visit yadvertisingblog.com or advertising.yahoo.com.

Ian Thomasson: An Indie Film Actor


In November 2010, Ian made his debut as Beth Bradley’s “Baby Angel” in the production of "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" at the Fort Mill Community Playhouse. He enjoyed working with the other FMCP cast members (his playhouse family). This opportunity had a big impact on him. In January 2011, Ian auditioned and was accepted as a company member with NarroWay Productions in South Carolina. He was casted in the "Lord of Light" stage production and he has been casted for a leading role in "The Gospel According to Tennessee" for August 2011 as well as "The Fourth Cross" stage production which is scheduled for 2012.

In June 2011, Ian will be involved in the second season filming of "Avenue C" as one of the younger performers in the production. In November 2011, he will be competing in the 2011 Models of the South Conference in Charlotte. Finally, Ian has participated as an extra in a couple of films in North Carolina. Ian enjoys reciting scripted lines that he has heard with stage performances, on television or in movies. It is the parents’ desire for him to gain experience with Print Ads (Fashion and Commercial) as well as TV Commercials. It is their hope that such experience will lead to television and film opportunities. As for recreation, Ian enjoys playing outdoors which includes swimming, basketball, riding his Razor scooter and climbing anything that stands.

Ian's website is:

www.thebrockagency.com/ithomasson

markthomasson@comporium.net

RECUT: Mommie Dearest

The tables are turned in this recut.  Mommie is terrorized by her evil daughter!



The Interview: Lynn Casper and Channing Duke creators of Pink Sheep Film Festival


Channing Duke

Lynn Casper




















NCIndieSeen sat down with Lynn Casper and Channing Duke the founders of the Pink Sheep Film Festival that went underway here in Wilmington, NC Friday June 10th.  The festival featured a broad range of short films and features that addressed issues in the LGBTQ community.  They festival and the films representated is more inclusive rather than exclusive.  Instead of focusing on "gay issues" the festival refocuses its direction on "gender neutral" issues that adds a wider spectrum of topics for filmmakers.
 


NCIndieSeen:  You guys launched tonight Wilmington's very first annual LGBTQ film festival.  First of all, tell us about what the Pink Sheep Film Festival represents and why did you decide to bring it to Wilmington, NC?

 
Lynn: Well Wilmington is kinda known for its film industry and Cucalorus has been having film festivals every year for a number of years now and they've started making a name for themselves.  We just wanted to do something that would that would highlight LGBT people and incorporate film an the creative community that has been happening here in Wilmington. 


Channing: I also feel like since its Pride Week, that alot of people are going to pride events and this is a good festival to have to educate people and to not only educate people but to teach tolerance and to let people know that even though they may not be involved directly with th LGBTQ community that they can actually come to these film festivals and socialize and be educated and become more tolerant in the community.

NCIndieSeen:  How did you guys come up with the title Pink Sheep?

Lynn: Well we didnt want to openly say this was a gay and lesbian film fest or a queer film fest.  We wanted to come up with a name that was more original to kind of seperate ourselves and make Wilmington stand out and have a film festival with its own identity.  So my friend Andy Myers who also helped out with the festival, looked online and researched different festivals that were happening and there's this organization in Seattle called Three Dollar Bill and we liked how it was kind of indirect.  The name of their festival kind of hinted towards queer or LGBTQ references.  So we wanted something that was kind of ambiguous yet witty and clever.  So we researched different references that people were using and there was this one thing we came across that someone referred to themselves as the pink sheep of the family.  So we kind of liked that imagery that stood out around it.  Seeing a field of white sheep and seeing a pink sheep sticking out and we could both relate to that. 


Channing:  I also feel that one of the things about being called the Pink Sheep Film Festival is it doesn't just bring in people from the queer community,  but it also makes people who are not in the queer community come to the festival.  It's not like "I'm not queer I can't come to this film festival".  If it was labeled as gay or lesbian people would feel like I don't want to come to that because its not directed towards me.  So I feel like Pink Sheep film made it a wider spectrum of people who would come to it and feel more accepted to come here.

NCIndieSeen:  This is your first film festival and it did really well, you had a lot of people coming out to support it.  What are your plans for next year?  Have you got to that bridge yet?

Lynn:  Well we have discussed doing recurring events throughout the year.  To keep queer film happening in Wilmington.  We looking at doing a monthly or bi-monthly film series and definitely we want to do another film festival next year and maybe even a bigger one. 


Channing:  I think we learned alot this year about what you have to put into a film festival.  Everything from programming, volunteers, sponsorship and stuff like that.  I think next year its gonna be alot better.  It was amazing this year but its definitely a learning process, it was the first time I ever programmed a film festival as well as Lynn and this was a great stepping stone.  We want to keep recurring events throghout the year about this festival to help educate the community and bring tolerance to the community.

NCIndieSeen: What do you hope festival goers will take away from the Pink Sheep Film Festival?


Channing:  Personally I had a lot of people come up to me tonight and alot of the films they saw they were like, "I think this will help the older generation of the queer community remember what it was like going through coming out for the younger generation".  I had alot of people actually come up to me and say, "I think these are really good films that shows what it's like to be queer, young, and growing up and having to go through all of things with school, family, community, work, and relationships."  I feel like people took alot away from it and I heard alot of people say it was very inspirational.


Lynn:  The thing with film is that it can appeal to people of all different age groups.  Tonight we had older people, younger people, and everyone in-between.  Film as a medium used to educate and bring people together is very powerful, so I think using creative art forms in general is definitely a great way to bridge the gay community with the non-gay community.  To help get people on our side and just to show them what it's like for us and the struggles that we go through.  The fact that coming out is a big deal for us and what it means to us.

Channing: I definitely feel like doing things like this in the community will help bridge that gap.  Right now the straight community may feel that they can't reach out to us or may feel disconnected from us.  I think having film festivals and different kinds of events that are queer friendly helps bring people together and thats what we want to do. We want to being the queer community and the non-queer community together and just watch films.


For more information about Pink Sheep Film Festival and future events from Lynn and Channing stay up on their updates through Facebook

Also check out NCIndieSeen's Facebook page for photos from the festival!

 

Call for Entries - Strange Beauty Film Festival, Durham, NC



The Strange Beauty Film Festival is now accepting entries for its 2012 edition.


Situated somewhere between terrifying reality and sublime fever dreams, Strange Beauty seeks short films (30 mins. or less) that make us wonder, gasp, shiver, and keep our eyes glued to the screen. Things that will come back to us days later and haunt us for years to come. All genres, all formats welcome. If your film is strangely beautiful, beautifully strange, or some combination thereof, we want to see it.


The third annual edition of the festival will take place February 16-18, 2012 at Manbites Dog Theater in gritty Durham, NC. The deadline for entries is DECEMBER 15, 2011. Entry fee is an astonishingly low $10.


Find complete details and entry form at our web site: http://www.strangebeauty.org/


Video sample of last year's festival CLICK HERE!!!

Pink Sheep Film Festival Movie Preview


The Pink Sheep Film Festival founded by Lynn Casper and Channing Duke goes underway this weekend in Wilmington, NC.  This is a film festival that is not to be missed and the first ever GLBT themed film festival in the city of Wilmington.  The festival is open to everyone especially cinephiles like us!



For more information about the festival check out this link or email pinksheepfilm@gmail.com



Pink Sheep Film Festival will be held on June 10th at Jengo’s Playhouse. The films begin at 7 pm and will screen the shorter films first, break for intermission, and then screen the longer feature films. There will also be an after party at 10 pm. Anyone and everyone is invited to attend, even if you can only attend the party. Advance tickets are on sale for $7 here at Edge of Urge (18 Market St. downtown) and $10 at the door.


List of all films:

Short block:

Bedfellows
Punch Me
Back to Life
Pay No Attention to the man in a Bear Suit
Cappuccino
The Love Permit

Features:

Put This on The Map
Whistlin’ Dixie


WHISTLIN’ DIXIE (Directed by Meredith Heil)


Whistlin’ Dixie invites the viewer to travel along as filmmaker Meredith Heil explores America’s Southern heartland in search of queer sound. The film journeys through the region’s independent, queer lo-fi scene, tracking down the LGBTQ musicians, fans and activists that are actively using DIY music to build safe spaces and strike down prejudices, therein altering the political and social climate of the new South for generations to come



Whistlin' Dixie: Queer Sounds, New South Trailer from Meredith Heil on Vimeo.


PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE MAN IN A BEAR SUIT (Directed by Michael Blair)


An insecure and uncertain writer tries to draw a line between himself and his body, represented by a man in a bear suit. With the help of the bear, a medical student and his mostly imaginary crush, he re-evaluates his ideas about himself and finds even more reasons to be insecure and uncertain.




TRAILER #1 - Pay No Attention to the Man in the... by uncgfilm


BEDFELLOWS (Directed by by Pierre Stefanos)

Bedfellows follows the adventure of 20-something Bobby as he returns to the gay bar where he got his heart broken for the first time. Upon meeting and spending the night with an attractive stranger named Jonathan, Bobby dreams about what a lifetime relationship with him could be like. The dream takes us on a thirty-year journey of ups-and-downs in life and love. But what will happen when Bobby wakes up to reality in the morning?





PUNCH ME (Directed by Robert X. Golphin)

With a romance on the rocks and a father on his sick bed, a young man must accept his true identity before he loses the two people he loves most.







THE LOVE PERMIT (Directed by Christopher Ludgate)

Naive Mr. Young is strapped to the hot seat in a very controlled political environment that imposes some outrageous sanctions on people’s lives. During an encounter with an administrator while applying for a love & sex permit, he finds himself increasingly on guard, becoming tangled in red tape and incriminating words.






CAPPUCCINO (Directed by Tamer Ruggli)

While trying to find his way between his classmate and sexual fantasy Damien and his very generous but protective mother Gina, his life is about to change.


1st Annual Pink Sheep Film Festival!



Pink sheep film festival comes to Wilmington


On June 10th, 2011, Pink Sheep Film will be holding its first annual Pink Sheep Film Festival in Wilmington, NC in honor of Wilmington Pride week. Showcasing a series of LGBTQ - themed films that portray the lives of LGBTQ people, the event will start at 7PM with our MC Tara Nicole, (a frequent entertainer at Ibiza Nightclub) announcing the events of the night.

A block of short films will be shown with a quick intermission followed by a feature length film. After the film screenings, we’ll move it to the backyard where music videos will be projected on a screen & food & drinks will be served. The Screening and after party will be held at Jengo’s Playhouse located on 815 Princess St. Tickets will be on sale in advance for $7 at Edge of Urge and $10 the day of at Jengo’s door. Pride event pass holders will be able to purchase tickets at a discounted price of $5. Due to limited seating, ticket sales will be on a first-come, first-serve basis.


Stay updated on the Pink Sheep Film Festival, like us at facebook.com/pinksheepfilm


Questions? Contact pinksheepfilm@gmail.com