The Boulder International Film Festival! Check it Out!

Named one of the “25 Coolest Film Festivals” MovieMaker Magazine, the Boulder International Film Festival (BIFF) takes place annually in Boulder, Colo., in mid-February, bringing filmmakers and international fans together for a four-day celebration of the fine art of filmmaking. BIFF, scheduled for Feb. 11-14, 2010, has become a must-attend film festival with screenings, parties, a red carpet gala and special events, and this year will feature 47 films and 31 filmmakers from all over the world.

The Festival will kick off Thursday, Feb. 11 at 6:30 p.m. with an Opening Night Red-Carpet Gala and screening of New Film International’s “The Lightkeepers,” starring Richard Dreyfuss, Blythe Danner, Bruce Dern, Tom Wisdom and Mamie Gummer. Following the screening, award-winning Danner, writer and director Daniel Adams, and producer Straw Weisman will participate in a live question and answer session hosted by BIFF executive producer of special events Ron Bostwick.

The Opening Night Red-Carpet Gala also will include Denver-based Lannie Garrett’s spectacular musical performance of “Songs from the Movies” with her Errand Boys of Rhythm Quintet, as well as appetizers prepared by Savory Cuisines and luxury chocolates from Seth Ellis Chocolatier.

BIFF’s Closing Night Awards Ceremony, taking place Sunday, Feb. 14 at 7 p.m., will feature a tribute to Alec Baldwin, Oscar-nominated and Emmy award-winning television, stage and film actor. The evening’s tribute to Baldwin will include a film retrospective of his work followed by a question and answer session hosted by Bostwick. The event will also include delicious desserts from the Cheesecake Factory, and variety of coffees from Ozo. Tony Bennett’s pianist, Ralph Sharon, will provide the entertainment for the evening.

All festival tickets are currently on sale at www.biff1.com, www.bouldertheater.com or by calling 303-786-7030. Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students and seniors 65 and older. All-access festival VIP passes, including tickets and access to the Opening Night Gala and the Closing Night Awards Ceremony and Tribute, can be purchased for $345. Tickets for the Opening Night Gala are $50 and Closing Night Awards Ceremony tickets are $40.

For more information about the festival please go to www.biff1.com.

Call for Volunteers - White Sands International Film Festival!

WSIFF VOLUNTEER MEETING
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 13TH, 2010 @ 10:00 a.m.
Launch Pad Cafe, Upstairs at Allen Theatres, Cineport 10
700 S. Telshor Blvd. Las Cruces, NM 88011

Interested in working for a fun and exciting festival? The 6th annual White Sands International Film Festival is looking for volunteers! Join us Sat, Feb. 13th for the volunteer meeting. You can also visit www.wsiff.com for more information.

Volunteer benefits include:
Film passes
Meeting film industry professionals and fellow film enthusiasts
Volunteer Appreciation Party

We’re looking for Box Office Volunteers, Film Volunteers, Theatre Managers, and Tech and Administrative Support.
We ask all volunteers to commit to a minimum of three shifts over the course of the
festival (approximately 6 hours) and attend a brief volunteer orientation.

Kierstin Schupack
Festival Director-Los Angeles
The White Sands International Film Festival 2010

email: kierstin@wsiff.com, wsiff.com

SAG Moves towards Joint Bargaining with AFTRA

From the Digital Media Law Blog

The SAG National Board yesterday passed a resolution, by a surprising 82% to 18% vote, directing the guild’s president and National Executive Director to “seek engagement with AFTRA in a joint bargaining agreement for negotiation of the Television/Theatrical Contract,” as quoted in a SAG press release. This move is as I predicted in a blog post three weeks ago, based on conversations then with a confidential source.

Those negotiations, scheduled for October 1 – November 15 of this year, would take place “under the terms of Phase One, modeled on the agreement used successfully in the 2009 Commercials Contract negotiations,” per the resolution. Phase One is the 1981 agreement between the two unions under which they have jointly bargained with the studios for almost three decades, with the notable exception of 2007-2009.

The margin was unexpected, since the board is almost evenly divided between factions that support joint bargaining (Unite for Strength and an independent in Los Angeles, and most or all members of the New York and regional boards) and a group (Membership First) that has generally expressed bitter opposition to joint bargaining under Phase One, a framework that gives SAG and AFTRA equal weight on the negotiating committee. (Because of the lateness of the hour, it was not possible to explore this issue with sources, and a call to a SAG spokesperson was not immediately returned.)

The resolution also directs the President, Ken Howard, and National Executive Director, David White, to “bring a recommendation to the National Board at the earliest opportunity.” The urgency presumably stems in part from the fact that AFTRA’s next national board meeting is February 27 meeting, and more generally from the constraints created by the October 1 date and the various processes leading up to it, as I have previously discussed. The TV/theatrical contract doesn’t expire until June 30, 2011, but the agreement reached last year between the studios and SAG mandates early bargaining, specifically, from October 1 through November 15.

To read the full post, click here.