Women in Film PDX Announce Vision Grant Winners

Women In Film Portland (WIF-PDX) recently announced that local filmmakers Fran Bittakis and Betty Alcaraz are the recipients of the WIF-PDX 2023 Vision Grant, a signature program that supports production of a film by a local female or nonbinary storyteller every year. Over four dozen people applied for the 2023 funds. A committee made up of WIF-PDX board members and two award winning filmmakers, Alicia J. Rose and Dawn Jones Redstone, then reviewed applicants and narrowed it down to four finalists. Continue reading... “Women in Film PDX Announce Vision Grant Winners”

Oscilloscope Labs Release New Trailer – “Sometimes I Think About Dying”

Oscilloscope Labs released the official trailer for the #oregonamde indie film, “Sometimes I Think About Dying” and announced its release date, on January 26, 2024. The feature was produced by, and stars, Daisy Ridley (Star Wars prequel trilogy) and first premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Set in Oregon, it cast features Ridley, Dave Merheje, Parvesh Cheena, Marcia DeBonis, and Bree Elrod. “Sometimes I Think About Dying is “an unexpected fable on the virtues of living.”

Daisy Ridley,  recently shared her thoughts on the movie and her experiences filming in Oregon.

Continue reading... “Oscilloscope Labs Release New Trailer – “Sometimes I Think About Dying””

World Premiere Virtual Watch Party

ROCK ‘N’ ROLL MAY NEVER DIE, BUT IT SURE CAN KILL!

YOU’RE INVITED to the world premiere watch party of the horror tv pilot, John Sunshine’s Lost Rock ‘n’ Roll Tapes, an international award-winning boldly dark comedic horror/supernatural rock-mock series set in the 1970s and present day Pacific Northwest.

4 friends seek out obscure ’70s rock bands to interview in an attempt to be hired by CREEM Magazine. Each episode follows the friends as they descend into a fantastical world where abhorrent creatures emerge from the shadows as a dark force pursues them. Continue reading... “World Premiere Virtual Watch Party”

PassinArt Theatre: Pacific Northwest Multi Cultural Readers Series & Film Festival

PassinArt Theatre is having their second biennial Pacific Northwest Multicultural Readers Series & Film Festival Thursday – Sunday, August 17-20, 2023 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Portland, Oregon.

The festival will be a jam-packed, four-day whirlwind of wall-to-wall readings, screenings, masterclasses and panel discussions addressing the issues of the day as they shape theaters of color, television, and film.

In attendance, we will have celebrity co-hosts Javon Johnson [The Oval, Boo! Madea Halloween] and Bobby Yan
[Stalker, K Love] welcome industry luminaries including Regina Taylor [I’ll Fly Away, CSI Vegas, Justified]; Rose Bianco [Cobra Kai, East New York, Minx]; Rhavynn Drummer [Tyler Perry/national casting director]; Ted Lange [The Love Boat]; Stephanie Frederic [film/tv producer Girls’ Trip, All Eyez on Me, Night School, American Gangster]; Professor Vera J. Continue reading... “PassinArt Theatre: Pacific Northwest Multi Cultural Readers Series & Film Festival”

“A Perfect Day for Caribou” Screens at Cinema 21 on August 15

To anyone reading – hi, my name is Jeff Rutherford.

In May 2021, I went into the high desert of Central Oregon with a few friends and shot a feature film. Over the course of that summer, we edited that film in a little house off SE Division St. And then a year later, we premiered that film, which is called A PERFECT DAY FOR CARIBOU, in Cineasti del presente at the 75th Locarno Film Festival. Now a year after the world premiere, we’re bringing the film home for one night only. Continue reading... ““A Perfect Day for Caribou” Screens at Cinema 21 on August 15”

SAG-AFTRA Offers Indie Productions “Interim Agreements” During Strike

Prior to the start of TV/Theatrical/Streaming negotiations, SAG-AFTRA made the decision to allow producers, who may otherwise fall within the scope of the strike order, to apply for an Interim Agreement. These Agreements are for projects that have been confirmed to be separate from the AMPTP and entirely independent.

The Interim Agreement is not a waiver. It is a contract that includes all terms and conditions for producers looking to employ SAG-AFTRA members on their specific independent productions.

The union thoroughly vets and approves each and every project seeking an Interim Agreement. Continue reading... “SAG-AFTRA Offers Indie Productions “Interim Agreements” During Strike”

DOWNWIND: In The Wake of OPPENHEIMER, Portland Director Premieres Documentary About Nevada Nuclear Weapons Test Site


My name is Mark Shapiro and I’m the co-director/producer of DOWNWIND, a new documentary that exposes the US Government’s 928 nuclear detonations from 1951-1992 at the Nevada Test Site near Las Vegas and the impact of radioactive fallout on countless communities — and the environment.
Watch the DOWNWIND trailer here: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/831729316
The film features two-time Oscar-winner Michael Douglas, political satirist Lewis Black and is narrated by iconic anti-nuke activist Martin Sheen. Matthew Modine from Stranger Things is the executive producer. Legendary animator Bill Plympton contributed original animation. Continue reading... “DOWNWIND: In The Wake of OPPENHEIMER, Portland Director Premieres Documentary About Nevada Nuclear Weapons Test Site”

Kelly Reichardt’s #OregonMade “Showing Up” To Be Released April 7th

 

Kelly Reichardt has shot six of her eight movies here in Oregon, the latest being the comedy-drama, “Showing Up” starring long-time collaborator, Michelle Williams, and Oregon writer, Jonathan Raymond (co-written by Reichart). “Showing Up” first premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, competing for the Palme d’Or.

The film will be released on April 7 (A24). More about Williams and Reichardts’ past collaborations here in interview with Williams.

 

 

  Continue reading... “Kelly Reichardt’s #OregonMade “Showing Up” To Be Released April 7th”

#OregonMade “Half Sisters” Opens

“Half Sisters,” the feature film from Oregon filmmaker Devin Fei-Fan Tau, starts its limited theatrical run this month. The film stars Kristy Dawn Dinsmore (“Vikings”) and Sydney Winbush (“Shrill”). April’s theatrical release will be followed by a wide run on demand in July.

“Half Sisters” centers on two estranged half-sisters – one white, one mixed race – reuniting after the death of their grandmother, at a remote family cabin in the midst of a raging storm. Learning that a $1M inheritance is at stake, the two women become reluctant allies, facing down multiple threats — both internal and external. Continue reading... “#OregonMade “Half Sisters” Opens”

Daisy Ridley Ruminates About The Oregon Coast And Filming “Sometimes I Think About Dying”

Daisy Ridley (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Dustin Lane)

Daisy Ridley, (Star Wars prequel trilogy) recently shared her thoughts on the movie Sometimes I Think About Dying” and her experiences filming in Oregon. Ridley portrays Frances, a young woman dealing with anxiety and despair, in this thought-provoking movie that recently premiered in competition at Sundance. During the filming, Ridley spent time in Astoria and on the Oregon Coast, and she had nothing but good things to say about these locations.

Continue reading... “Daisy Ridley Ruminates About The Oregon Coast And Filming “Sometimes I Think About Dying””