EDGE Boston is one of the big local resources for the LGBT community in Boston and they just gave us some incredible coverage for the festival.  In return we want to give them some love so click through and read their article which gives some insight into the festival, our gay interest films and more.

Indie Fest Highlights LGBT Films (EDGE Boston - April 21, 2008)

What are the critics saying about MY EFFORTLESS BRILLIANCE? This is what!

“…a well-executed dissection of a particularly complicated male friendship.”
- Michael Tully, Hammer to Nail

“…Brilliance shows that you can be creative and revolutionary in your filmmaking approach without throwing out all the rules of simple drama.”
- Mark Bell, Film Threat

“The performances by Sean Nelson and Basil Harris seem deceptively casual and understated, but beneath the surface a very real tension exists between the two that simmers without ever erupting and exploding into a contrived denouement.”
- Dan Nuxoll, Rooftop Films

“The sense of improvisation is so strong and the film so gorgeously shot that you’ll feel like you’re tagging along on Eric’s weekend in the country.”
- James McNally, Toronto Screenshots

“Shelton is able to create a sometimes remarkable volume of visual comedy…it’s a nicely rendered, novella-esque character study with some impressive naturalistic performances.”
- Karina Longworth, spout.com

You can also see the trailer on the homepage at http://www.iffboston.org . So see this great film with director Lynn Shelton in attendance!

Thursday April 24th 7:45pm Somerville Theatre
Saturday April 26th 2:45pm Somerville Theatre

The Boston Globe gave us some coverage this weekend. If you didn’t read the Globe yesterday with a scone and some tea here’s your chance.

Program, locations, tickets, A-list elbow rubbing (The Boston Globe - April 20, 2008)

Marquee Geek (The Boston Globe - April 20, 2008)

There’s a lot of excitement surrounding the WE ARE WIZARDS screenings and show. Not sure what to buy tickets for? Here are the details:

Thursday, 7:30pm, Opening Night at the Coolidge:
A screening of the film followed by a special acoustic performance by Harry and the Potters. Tickets are $10.  Screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director and subjects of the film.

Saturday, 4pm at the Somerville :
A screening of the film followed by a Q&A with the director and subjects of the film. Tickets are $9 (film only).

Saturday, 5:45pm at the Somerville:
Wizards Rock! performance by Harry and the Potters, Draco and the Malfoys, The Whomping WIllows, and the Hungarian Horntails. Tickets are $10.

*Wristbands will be given to everyone who buys Wizards Rock! tickets, so that they can stay for the performance after the movie. Anyone without a wristband has to leave, or pay the $10 for the show. You can also just buy tickets for the show.

Tickets for all 3 can be purhased now.

:

Tickets are currently on sale online for all venues.  Monday April 21st, tickets will go on sale at the Somerville Theatre Box Office (for all venues).  

If you’ve ordered tickets online, and you want to come pick them up early, or if you would rather buy tickets in person, the box office is open at the Somerville Theatre.

Pre-Fest hours (Somerville):
Monday - Tuesday: 3pm - 8pm

Festival Box Office opening times (Somerville):
Wednesday: 6pm
Thursday: 5pm
Friday: 5pm
Saturday: 11am
Sunday: 11am
Monday: 4pm

*The Somerville box office closes 15 minutes after the last show start time.

Fest Box Office Hours (Brattle):
Friday April 25th - Sunday April 27th:

Brattle Box Office will open 30 minutes before the first show and will close 15 minutes after the last show start time.

Fest Box Office Hours (Coolidge):
Thursday April 24th- Tuesday April 29th:

Coolidge Box Office will open 30 minutes before the first show and will close 15 minutes after the last show start time.

*Remember, you don’t have to pick up your tickets days in advance, but you should give yourself at least 30 - 60 minutes to pick up tickets, then get your seat. Seating is only guaranteed until 15 minutes before show time.

Hey everyone,

The Opening Night of the Independent Film Festival of Boston is just days away and you can feel the excitement building at the Somerville, Brattle, and Coolidge Corner Theatres. We highly encourage you make it out to our Opening Night Film, Brad Anderson’s TRANSSIBERIAN. We are expecting some very special guests that evening and if you are in the mood for a good thriller, this is it. It’s at 7:30pm this coming Wednesday night at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square and we definitely recommend you get your tickets in advance off the website.

Also, we have some NEW trailers up on the homepage of our website, namely those for AMERICAN TEEN and SAVAGE GRACE. So check out the homepage and scroll through the trailers and get your tickets now to these two amazing films. They are both selling very fast so, once again, we do recommend getting tickets in advance.

Lastly, we’ve learned that not only will all three directors for the film NATURAL CAUSES be in attendance at the festival for their screenings, but the two lead actors will be here as well for the Q&A. We highly recommend you check this film out. This is NOT your typical “relationship film”. This is a really great indie drama that feels completely real, and it announces the emergence of three talented young directors and two real discoveries in the lead actors. Do yourself a favor, and don’t miss this film with all of them in attendance. It screens Thursday and Friday night this week at the Somerville Theatre.

This just in! Harmony Korine, (director of GUMMO and JULIEN DONKEY BOY as well as the writer of KIDS) will be in attendance Thursday April 24th at the Somerville Theatre for his screening of MISTER LONELY. We had previously reported that he wouldn’t be able to make it to the festival, but we just received the call from him and he will be here after all.

We are very excited to have this highly original writer/director at IFFBoston for the first time. Tickets are selling fast for this screening so we do recommend buying in advance on the website.

See you there!

Just keeping everyone informed on some of our press or press related to some of the films we’re showing…

The Gays Love Us (or at least some of the gay themed films we’re showing this year)
Eleven Minutes with Jay McCarroll (Bay Windows - April 17, 2008)

Gray Zone - MEADOWLARK (Bay Windows - April 17, 2008)

LIFE.SUPPORT.MUSIC
Darkness Into Light (The Boston Globe - April 18, 2008)

GOLIATH and SEVERED WAYS
IFFBoston Preview (Meet In The Lobby - April 17, 2008)

Hey everyone,

So the festival is just a few short days away now, and tickets are going fast for a number of films. Some films that you might want to get your tickets for sooner rather than later if you are interested in seeing them inculde:
CRAWFORD (Director David Modigliani in attendance)
LIFE.SUPPORT.MUSIC. (director Eric Metzgar in attendance)
THE CAKE EATERS (director Mary Stuart Masterson in attendance)
TURN THE RIVER (director Chris Eigeman and star Famke Janssen in attendance)
MY WINNIPEG (director Guy Maddin in attendance)
WOODPECKER (director Alex Karpovsky in attendance)
LIONESS (directors Daria Sommers and Meg McLagan in attendance)
GOLIATH (directors Nathan and David Zellner in attendance)
and AMERICAN TEEN (director Nanette Burnstein in attendance)

Also, tickets are going very fast for our Opening Night film TRANSSIBERIAN, and you don’t want to miss that!

If you live in the Boston area, then pick up this week’s Boston Phoenix newspaper. It has a 12-page insert about the festival with the complete schedule, descriptions of all the films, and more! There is also a full page of reviews of some of the films in the festival by Peter Keough. He’ll have more coverage in next week’s issue. And congratulations to the filmmaker team of Eric Poydar and Brett Portanova of LARRY (THE ACTOR) for being included in the Phoenix’s “Best of Boston” list.

Other great festival press you should look out for in the area includes this week’s issue of Bay Windows which includes great interviews with ELEVEN MINUTES subject Jay McCarroll and MEADOWLARK director Taylor Greeson. And definitely pick up a copy of this coming Sunday’s Boston Globe to get extensive coverage of the festival.

Do you have a hardhat? If you’ve got a construction-style hardhat and wear it to one of the screenings of THE GREENING OF SOUTHIE, the filmmakers will give you a free copy of the film on dvd to take home with you. So bust out them hardhats!

Tell your friends, co-workers, and family members to get their tickets now. This year’s edition of IFFBoston will be the best one yet and no one should miss it!

One of the goals of our IFFBlog is to give you some behind the scenes information about how we operate and about the inner workings of film festivals. If you’ve been to our festival you know that the Volunteers are a huge part of what makes our fest work and be as cramazing as it is.

Last year, Naomi Greenfield went from long-time volunteer to first-time filmmaker with her documentary TWISTED: A Balloonamentary. We wanted to get her take on how the festival experience changed for her when she went from behind the scenes to in front of the audience. Check it…

At this time last year, every time I walked through Davis Square and saw signs for the Independent Film Festival of Boston, a flutter of excitement ran through my body and I got a huge smile on my face. I was excited about the creative energy and enthusiasm the festival brought to my neighborhood.

I was excited because last year at this time, I was preparing for the Boston premiere of my film, TWISTED: A Balloonamentary, a film I started 4 years prior while living in Somerville. A film that I was inspired to finish each year as I worked as a Festival Volunteer. I was inspired by all the filmmakers and their visions appearing up on the big screen.

For the past 6 years, I’ve always been impressed by IFFBoston. As a volunteer, you appreciate the festival by how incredibly professional and yet homey it feels, with a great attitude and top-notch films. I also loved experiencing the fest as a filmmaker because we were treated so well! From parties, to technical support, to SWAG to the friendliness and supportiveness of the staff.

My film partner and I just last weekend returned from our 11th film festival and our experience in Boston still ranks in the very top amongst filmmaker experiences. We found that only a few festivals really made an effort to create opportunities for filmmakers to get to know one another and to create a tight knit community for the duration of the festival. It’s a pretty solitary and sometimes lonely experience to make a film, so it was great to get to share an experience and hang out with other filmmakers.

This year, I’m returning to the festival to do introductions before the films. Once again, I can’t wait. This year’s my turn to give back to the festival once again for the amazing experience I had last year at our Boston premiere. And I know when I stand in the main theatre in the Coolidge to introduce one of this year’s official selections, I’ll secretly be imagining a packed house full of last year’s audience of TWISTED: A Balloonamentary, awaiting for my vision to appear on the big screen.

Here’s to another great IFFBoston!

For us here at IFFBoston, it’s amazing to have such support from our returning volunteers and filmmakers. To find someone like Naomi who understands our mission, who wanted to work with us and then premiere her film with us is quite incredible. We’re honored to have her back again this year not as a filmmaker or a volunteer but as a ambassador for IFFBoston by being one of our Intro Staff. She’s the face of Independent Film here in Boston so we’re glad she can represent us to you, the audience.