On Saturday September 29 and during the Los Angeles Irish Film Festival there will be a fund raiser event to support The Solas Galway Picture Palace. The Solas Galway Picture Palace is the first dedicated non-profit arthouse cinema built in Galway City in the West of Ireland. The Picture Palace will screen films in the Irish language, documentary films, Irish-made films, independent worldwide features, classic & archival cinema, and retrospectives and will also cater for students, schools, young people and senior audiences.To learn more about this event we had an interview with the Irish international star Fionnula Flanagan.Fionnula Flanagan’s vast…
Author: Bijan Tehrani
Bijan Tehrani
Bijan (Hassan) Tehrani Founder and Editor in Chief of Cinema Without Borders, is a film director, writer, and a film critic, his first article appeared in a weekly film publication in Iran 45 years ago. Bijan founded Cinema Without Borders, an online publication dedicated to promotion of international cinema in the US and around the globe, eighteen years ago and still works as its editor in chief. Bijan is has also been a columnist and film critic for the Iranian monthly film related medias for 45 years and during the past 5 years he has been a permanent columnist and film reviewer for Film Emrooz (Film Today), a popular Iranian monthly print film magazine. Bijan has won several awards in international film festivals and book fairs for his short films and children's books as well as for his services to the international cinema. Bijan is a member of Iranian Film Writers Critics Society and International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI). He is also an 82nd Golden Globe Awards voter.
Tears of Gaza, an internationally acclaimed documentary about impact of the 2008 Gaza bombings on civilians and children, by filmmaker Vibeke Løkkeberg. After watching news reports from her home in Norway, Løkkeberg attempted to gain access to Gaza to report on events there, but discovered first-hand that international journalists were barred from entering the area. The denial of access further impelled her to report on the story, and she proceeded to gather raw footage from Palestinian cameramen and eye-witnesses living in Gaza who recorded bombings on smart phones. The result is an indelible cinematic experience and historical document that has…
In Americano Martin (Mathieu Demy) is a real-estate broker in his thirties living with his girlfriend Claire (Chiara Mastroianni) in Paris. Claire wants to start a family, but Martin can’t seem to commit. When news arrives from the United States that his estranged mother is dead, Martin sets off with dual passports in hand to tie up the loose ends of a rocky maternal relationship he hasn’t addressed since his childhood, when he returned to France with his father in the wake of his parents’ divorce in California.Arriving in Los Angeles, Martin is greeted by his mother’s best friend Linda…
How far would you go to get that dream job? Just what would you be willing to do? Four corporate warriors come together in one room to compete for one senior management position using The Grönholm Method: a system meant to separate the weak from the strong. But the weak may not be as futile as they appear. A wicked comedy that feels like a thriller, it’s a fool’s game of betrayals, reversals and manipulations that will keep you on the edge of your seat.The Grönholm Method is on stage in Falcon Theatre in Burbank. Bijan Tehrani: How did you…
Betroit, written and directed by Adel Serhan, is a portrayal of three couples as their lives become intertwined with one another. An act of violence disturbs the lives of the group and they come to realize how precious love and family can be. Leila (Darine Hamze) tries to escape from her abusive husband (Hassan Farhat) in hopes of fleeing to Detroit, where her sister Rola (Christine Solomon) lives. Lisa is desperately seeking a divorce from her husband Sam (Derek Kelly) in order to pursue a Hollywood career. She claims her husband physically abuses her in order to get Sam deported…
Last night, Sunday September 9/12 and at the residence of Czech Republic General Consul, I had the pleasure of listening to beautiful pieces of music played by Tereza Stanislav, Czech-Canadian violinist assistant concertmaster of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra since 2003. “Stanislav is a remarkably fine violinist. Her tuning was spot-on and there was a sense of ease in her performance that was completely captivating” writes Calgary Herald. During this memorable evening Janáček sonata for violin and piano & “Pohádka” for cello and piano & A. Dvořák´s Dumky piano trio were performed by Tereza Stanislav, Accompanied by Robert Thies on…
Recipient of the esteemed Teddy Award at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival, Keep the Lights On, directed by Ira Sachs, chronicles an emotionally and sexually charged journey of two men in New York City through love, friendship, and addiction. Documentary filmmaker Erik (acclaimed Danish actor Thure Lindhardt in his first leading role in a U.S. film) and closeted lawyer Paul (Zachary Booth, Damages) meet through a casual encounter, but soon find a deeper connection and become a couple. Individually and together, they are risk takers—compulsive, and fueled by drugs and sex. In an almost decade-long relationship defined by highs,…
The Ambassador is a darkly comic, genre-bending documentary that exposes the corrupt business of selling diplomatic titles to exploit the lucrative and limited resources of war torn, third world nations. Filmmaker/journalist/provocateur Mads Brügger (Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner for Red Chapel) uses humor in his jaw-dropping descent into one of the most dangerous places on the planet: Central African Republic. Bijan Tehrani: How did you come up with the idea of making The Ambassador?Mads Brügger: I had this ambition to make a very different documentary about Africa, a film that would deviate as much as possible from the typical documentary…
Chicken With Plums takes place in Teheran, 1958. Since his beloved violin was broken, Nasser Ali Khan, one of the most renowned musicians of his day, has lost all taste for life. Finding no instrument worthy of replacing it, he decides to confine himself to bed to await death. As he hopes for its arrival, he plunges into deep reveries, with dreams as melancholic as they are joyous, taking him back to his youth and even to a conversation with Azraël, the Angel of Death, who reveals the future of his children… As pieces of the puzzle gradually fit together,…
In the field of animation for the last eighteen years, Cinzia Angelini has worked as an animator in productions involving traditional as well as computer animation. Her work on features ranges from films “Balto” (Amblimation), “Prince of Egypt”, “Eldorado”, “Spirit” and “Sinbad” (Dreamworks), to “Spider-man 2” (“Best Visual Effects” Oscar Winner, 2004) and “Open Season” (Sony Imageworks), “Meet the Robinsons” and “Bolt” (Walt Disney Animation Studios).Her work also includes the DVD specials “How to Train your Dragon” and “Kung Fu Panda2”, as well as the “Despicable Me” Universal Theme Park project for Duncan Studio.Cinzia is currently a story artist at…