Emerging Filmmaker Showcase at the Cannes Film Festival

2012 Finalists

About the Showcase
Since 1989, The American Pavilion has offered opportunities in Cannes to film students from around the world. The 2012 Emerging Filmmaker Showcase will provide an opportunity for young filmmakers to have their work seen by Cannes Festival and Film Market attendees. Prizes will be awarded to filmmakers and the top fifteen films will be screened in a special “Emerging Filmmaker” showcase at The American Pavilion in Cannes.

2012 Winning Films:

WOODY BEFORE ALLEN                     (WINNER – BEST EMERGING FILMMAKER DOCUMENTARY)
2011, 14 min., USA/France/Russia/Germany, Documentary
Director: Masha Vasyukova
Producer: Masha Vasyukova, Anna Medvedeva
Cast: Woody Allen
Contact/Website: info@cheesycuts.com / www.woodybeforeallen.com
Woody/before/Allen is an adventurous meditation on past and present, on two former Konigsbergs – a man and a city that no longer use the name: one a Russian city which was renamed Kaliningrad, another a renowned film director who changed his name to Woody Allen. To commemorate the bizarre connection between these two former Konigsbergs, Masha Vasyukova, a native of the city makes it her mission to put up a statue in Kaliningrad in honor of Woody Allen…

LANGUAGE OF THE UNHEARD          (WINNER – BEST STUDENT DOCUMENTARY)
2011, 21 min., USA, Documentary, Northwestern University
Director: Jacqueline Reyno, Matt Litwiller
Producer: Jacqueline Reyno, Matt Litwiller, Travis LaBella
Contact/Website: thepineridgeproject@gmail.com / http://languageoftheunheardmovie.tumblr.com
Pine Ridge Reservation is home to the Oglala Sioux, a people with one of the most fascinating, controversial, and difficult histories ever told. From the infamous Wounded Knee Massacre to a present day unemployment rate of 80%, the residents of Pine Ridge have many stories that have gone unheard.

TALKING DOG FOR SALE, 10 EUROS (SE VENDE PERRO QUE HABLA, 10 EUROS)  (WINNER – BEST EMERGING FILMMAKER SHORT FILM)
2012, 8 min., France/Spain, Comedy
Writer/Director: Lewis-Martin Soucy
Producer: Lewis-Martin Soucy, Roque Madrid
Cast: Roberto Alvarez, Rikar Gil, Camilo Garcia (voice)
Website: www.monumentalstudio.com
A man inquires about a curious sales ad for a talking dog.

THE LEPIDOCTOR                              (WINNER – BEST STUDENT FILM)
2011, 20 min., USA, Family Drama, University Southern California
Director: Jonathan Barenboim
Writer: Joe Swanson
Producer: Chris Caraballo, Lea Dizon, Mark Kosin
Cast: Jacob Bertrand, Brian Duclos, Shelly Kutz
Contact: Jonathan.Barenboim@gmail.com
After the recent death of his mother, Baxter, an eccentric boy obsessed with collecting and fixing gadgets, learns that some things cannot be repaired.

Thursday, May 24, 2012
The American Pavilion, Roger Ebert Conference Center
There will be a Q&A with Filmmakers after each screening block of films
Filmmaker Awards Ceremony to follow immediately after all the screenings

10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Emerging Documentaries:

TAKE A SEAT EGYPT
2011, 15 min., USA/Egypt, Documentary
Director: Dominic Gill
Producer: Nadia Boctor
Website: www.encompassfilms.com
Dominic Gill uses a tandem bicycle to explore Egypt, inviting local people to help pedal and tell their story in a country undergoing profound change.

RANDY PARSONS: AMERICAN LUTHIER
2011, 8 min., USA, Documentary
Producer/Director: David Aldrich
Cast: Randy Parsons
Contact/Website: americanluthier@gmail.com / www.americanluthier.net
‘Randy Parsons: American Luthier’ is a documentary short about a Seattle guitar-maker whose client list includes Jack White, Jimmy Page, Joe Perry, and many other well-known guitarists.

OVERFISHED
2011, 13 min., USA/Australia/Fiji/Hong Kong/Indonesia/New Zealand, Documentary
Producer/Director: Brian Cavallaro
Cast: Daryl Hannah (voiceover)
Contact: brian.a.cavallaro@gmail.com
Scientists predict that by the year 2048, there will be no more fish in the Pacific Ocean. Filmed in five countries that border the Pacific, ‘Overfished’ explores each nations unique challenges that threaten the hundreds of millions of people that depend on the Pacific for survival.

WOODY BEFORE ALLEN
2011, 14 min., USA/France/Russia/Germany, Documentary
Director: Masha Vasyukova
Producer: Masha Vasyukova, Anna Medvedeva
Cast: Woody Allen
Contact/Website: info@cheesycuts.com / www.woodybeforeallen.com
Woody/before/Allen is an adventurous meditation on past and present, on two former Konigsbergs – a man and a city that no longer use the name: one a Russian city which was renamed Kaliningrad, another a renowned film director who changed his name to Woody Allen. To commemorate the bizarre connection between these two former Konigsbergs, Masha Vasyukova, a native of the city makes it her mission to put up a statue in Kaliningrad in honor of Woody Allen…

Emerging Short Films:

THE CROCODILE (EL COCODRILO)
2012, 15 min., USA, Drama
Director: Steve Acevedo
Producer: Steve Acevedo, Alfredo Barrios, Jr., Stacey Crawford, Woody Andrews
Writer: Alfredo Barrios, Jr.
Cast:  Jacob Vargas, Adolfo Alvarez, Hugo Medina, Manuel Uriza, Shanon Lucio
Contact/Website: steve@steveacevedo.com / www.facebook.com/ElCocodriloMovie
When a Mexican journalist, who has reported on the corrupt ties between the cartels and the military, is pressured to reveal the names of his sources, he flees to the U.S. with his young son. Little does he know that hot on his trail is a cartel sicario dispatched to assassinate him.

I AM NEDA
2011, 20 min., USA, Drama
Producer/Writer/Director: Nicole Kian Sadighi
Cast: Nicole Kian Sadighi, Mary Apick, Apoet NomadAli, Vida Irani
Contact/Website: info@nedathemovie.com / www.IAmNeda.com
June 2009 marked another turning point for Iranians, when mass anti-government protests erupted across Iran, which came to be known as the Green Movement. “I AM NEDA” is the true story of one ordinary girl Neda Agha Soltan, on the backdrop of extraordinary circumstances.

THE DIRECTOR
2011, 1 min., USA, Animation
Director: Destri Martino
Cast: Destri Martino (voiceover)
Contact/Website: info@destrionline.com / www.destrionline.com
One director attempts to make a statement. In a dress. Our heroine, a working film director, decides to make a statement by wearing a dress to set. It doesn’t go as planned. Still, she refuses to stifle her more feminine side, and manages to direct just fine.

SOMETHING SPECIAL
2010, 3 min., New Zealand, Drama
Writer/Director: Kristi L. Simkins
Producer: Catherine Madigan, Barrie M. Osborne
Cast: Daniel Musgrove, Nic Sampson, Billy Squire, Dallas Barnett
Contact/Website: KristiSimkins@TelicFilms.com / SomethingSpecialFilm.com
A young war veteran explores the magnificent wilds of New Zealand to fulfill the last wish of a close friend who died in combat.

TALKING DOG FOR SALE, 10 EUROS (SE VENDE PERRO QUE HABLA, 10 EUROS)
2012, 8 min., France/Spain, Comedy
Writer/Director: Lewis-Martin Soucy
Producer: Lewis-Martin Soucy, Roque Madrid
Cast: Roberto Alvarez, Rikar Gil, Camilo Garcia (voice)
Website: www.monumentalstudio.com
A man inquires about a curious sales ad for a talking dog.

2:30 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.

Student Documentaries:

LANGUAGE OF THE UNHEARD
2011, 21 min., USA, Documentary, Northwestern University
Director: Jacqueline Reyno, Matt Litwiller
Producer: Jacqueline Reyno, Matt Litwiller, Travis LaBella
Contact/Website: thepineridgeproject@gmail.com / http://languageoftheunheardmovie.tumblr.com
Pine Ridge Reservation is home to the Oglala Sioux, a people with one of the most fascinating, controversial, and difficult histories ever told. From the infamous Wounded Knee Massacre to a present day unemployment rate of 80%, the residents of Pine Ridge have many stories that have gone unheard.

KINGDOM INCORPORATED
2011, 15 min., USA, Documentary, Florida State University
Producer/Writer/Director: Christina Campagnola, Lauren Brinkman
Contact: campy7407@yahoo.com
By critically examining the Disney monolith, one discovers the impact of corporate influence on society and the infallible power of perceived innocence.

FINDING BENJAMAN
2011, 9 min., USA, Documentary, Florida State University
Director: John Wikstrom
Cast: Benjaman Kyle
Contact/Website: Jtw439@gmail.com / www.findingbenjaman.com
Benjaman Kyle was found unconscious outside of a Burger King in 2004. He did not have any clothes, any identification, or any memories. Even after seven years, the FBI still doesn’t know who he is. Neither does he.

Student Films:

THE COLLEGIANS
2011, 17 min., USA, Drama, Florida State University
Writer/Director: B.A. Lewis
Producer: B.A. Lewis, Adam Isaacs
Cast: Alexandria Collins, Stefond Johnson, Thomas Wilson, Roderick Randle, Ken Westor, Jared Wofford, Art Wallace
Contact: Onefilmmaker@gmail.com
A swinging drama based on the story of trumpet legend Erskine Hawkins during his college days in the Depression. As a young trumpet player sensation with a big ego he learns the hard way what it means to be a member of the Bama State College band, The Collegians.

THE LEPIDOCTOR
2011, 20 min., USA, Family Drama, University Southern California
Director: Jonathan Barenboim
Writer: Joe Swanson
Producer: Chris Caraballo, Lea Dizon, Mark Kosin
Cast: Jacob Bertrand, Brian Duclos, Shelly Kutz
Contact: Jonathan.Barenboim@gmail.com
After the recent death of his mother, Baxter, an eccentric boy obsessed with collecting and fixing gadgets, learns that some things cannot be repaired.

THIEF
2011, 24 min., USA, Drama, American Film Institute
Director: Julian Higgins
Writer: Julian Higgins, Matthew Wieland
Producer: West McDowell
Cast: Maz Siam, Muneer Katchi, Yousif Alshekh, Ayman Samman, Sana Étoile, Mohamad Tamimi
Website: www.thiefthefilm.com / www.julianh.com / Twitter: @filmjulian
An Iraqi man’s childhood memories return to haunt him when a mysterious stranger visits his isolated hut.

Filmmaker Awards Ceremony and Reception to immediately follow after the Student Films Q&A