Author: Bijan Tehrani

Koran By Heart is about three 10-year-old kids – two boys and a girl – who come from all over the Islamic world to compete in Cairo’s prestigious Koran-recitation contest during Ramadan. The recitation of the Koran is a revered and deeply religious tradition, and this “Olympics of Koranic recitation” draws Muslim children from over 70 countries around the world.Nabiollah from Tajikistan, Djamil from Senegal and Rifdha (one of the few girls participating) from the Maldives must memorize 114 chapters, over 6,200 verses, and 200,000 words in Arabic – and not one of them is a native Arab speaker. Moreover,…

Honest Man: the Life of R. Budd Dwyer is a movie about politics and corruption, suicide and survival. Four years in the making, it explores the scandal that led an honest, hardworking man to take his own life. This independently produced feature-length documentary follows Budd Dwyer, a Pennsylvania politician who infamously committed suicide at a televised press conference.The film chronicles Dwyer’s meteoric rise to political power and examines the bribery scandal and subsequent trial that pushed him to his breaking point. Honest Man also delves into the controversy and consequences of the uncensored airing of Dwyer’s death on television stations…

I have been a film director for many years, mostly focused on documentary filmmaking, and my favorite aspect of filmmaking comes in the editing phase. There are more tools for editing a film now than ever before—you are not limited to just a Moviola. There are more technical editing tools, but there is no change in the nature of editing. Editing is a talent that few people have and takes years to perfect; like a musician writing music, you must be able to pick up the tempo of each film you edit. I like what non-linear and digital editing systems…

Produced by Cyril Colbeau-Justin and Jean-Baptiste Dupont, Point Blank stars Gilles Lellouche, Roschdy Zem, Gerard Lanvin and Elena Anaya. Lellouche plays Samuel, a nurse working at a hospital when his pregnant wife (Anaya) is kidnapped before his very eyes. Knocked unconscious, he comes to and discovers that a dangerous criminal named Sartet (Zem) is responsible, and if he’s ever to see his wife again, he must do Sartet’s bidding. Samuel quickly finds himself pitted against rival gangsters and trigger-happy police in a deadly race to save the lives of his wife and unborn child.The following is CWB’s interview with Fred…

Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe After Effects CS5 have introduced a revolutionary way for editing films and adding visual effects to them. To understand more about these two great products of Adobe, we talked to Steve Forde, Senior Product Manager, After Effects and Al Mooney, Product Manager, Adobe Premiere Pro.Bijan Tehrani: My first question is about After Effects and what are the new features that come with the 5.5 version. *Steve Forde: The big new features that we introduce in CS5.5 are things that we heard from a lot of our users who, with the advent of DSLR, are not…

Toon Boom Animation Inc. is the worldwide leader in digital content and animation creation software. Toon Boom carries user-friendly animation applications for all, catering to the needs of children, home users, creative professionals as well as students, educators and schools. As importantly, Toon Boom is fully dedicated to the needs of independent animators and studios, offering a wide product range from powerful pre-production tools to leading-edge animation production solutions. Relying on its extensive expertise in animation production, Toon Boom provides consulting services in the fields of optimization, pipeline integration, production assistance and custom development. To learn more about new animation…

From Elvis’s iconic back-up divas, a homeless club hit wonder to an ambitious cabaret singer/rock hopeful and an inspiring producer impresario…THIS TIME follows the resurrecting careers of both musical legends and struggling lifers, in a music industry far removed from the overnight sensations of “American Idol”. The musicians are recording artists The Sweet Inspirations (best known as back-up singers for Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin and Dusty Springfield), New York cabaret sensation Bobby Belfry, soul diva Pat Hodges (Hodges, James & Smith), composer/producer Peitor Angell and featuring gospel star Cissy Houston. An inspiring portrait of faith, talent and determination, wrapped in…

TURQUAZE is story of Timur (28) and his two brothers, Ediz (36) and Bora (16) that after burying their father in Istanbul, return to Ghent. Their mother remains in Istanbul. The three brothers resume their lives but need to find a new balance. While Ediz plays the dominant father and Bora does silly things with the wrong friends, Timur tries to fulfil his father’s dream: playing the trumpet in a brass band. Sarah, Timur’s girlfriend, thinks it’s cool, until she realises how little he seems to notice her now…TURQUAZE presents a disarmingly honest chronicle of a Turkish family’s life in…

Palm Springs International ShortFest Short Film Festival is one of the most amazing film events on our planet, where you witness the future of cinema and the birth of new, great filmmakers. Palm Springs International ShortFest Market also opens new horizons for filmmakers, who are given opportunities to create more movies. Now in its 17th year, the Palm Springs International ShortFest has become known world-wide for the extraordinary community of filmmakers it attracts, and for the quality and scope of its programming. To learn more about 2011 Palm Springs International ShortFest Short Film Festival and Market, we had an interview…

Viva Riva! Is the story of Riva, a small time operator who has just returned to his hometown of Kinshasa, Congo after a decade away with a major score: a fortune in hijacked gasoline. Wads of cash in hand and out for a good time, Riva is soon entranced by beautiful nightclub denizen Nora (gorgeous Paris-based actress Manie Malone in her screen debut), the kept woman of a local gangster. Into the mix comes an Angolan crime lord Cesar (New York-based African Academy Award winner Hoji Fortuna) relentlessly seeking the return of his stolen shipment of gasoline. Director Djo Tunda…