Author: CWB News Department

“Representation matters” is a guiding principle of the Pocahontas Reframed Film Festival, and it’s the reason the film screenings, which showcase the perspectives of Indigenous people, return Nov. 17-19. According to the festival’s director, Brad Brown, the event is the largest Indigenous film festival on the East Coast. Now in its seventh year, Pocahontas Reframed is designed to raise awareness surrounding Native American languages, cultures and societies through film. Held at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture’s Robins Family Forum, new this year is a marketplace dedicated to Native American and Indigenous peoples’ crafts, artwork and jewelry. Food trucks will also…

Winner of 2023 Bridging The Borders Award for 21th edition of Polish Film Festival, LA has been announced today. 2023 Polish Film Festival, LA was held at El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood. Cinema Without Borders jury picked “Big Little Words” Directed by Mariusz Brozekfor the Honorary Mention and “Stagnant,” Directed by Konrad Kultys as the winner of the MOZAIK Bridging The Borders Award., Offered by Cinema Without Borders and sponsored by MOZAIK Philantropy. MOZAIK Bridging The Borders Award Jury Statement: ” As jurors for the esteemed Polish Film Festival, we have had the privilege of viewing a remarkable selection of…

2018 : Everyone is a Hero, India’s Oscar Entry, Directed by Jude Anthany Joseph, is about Anoop, a former military officer who withdrew from service due to the trauma of witnessing soldiers’ deaths in combat, is currently employed at a small store owned by the visually impaired Bhasi. Anoop’s affection is directed towards Manju, a teacher who recently joined the local government school. The two are contemplating marriage. Anoop aspires to travel to Dubai and enlists the help of his friend Rameshan to secure a visa. The story also follows the trajectory of Shaji, a government officer overseeing disaster management,…

BEHIND THE HAYSTACKS happens during the 2015 refugee crisis on the Greece-North Macedonia border and  seen through the eyes of three morally culpable family members with overlapping and contradicting versions. A middle-aged fisherman living on Greece’s northern border, who is drowning in debt, starts to smuggle migrants across the border lake, in exchange for a hefty fee. His wife, a housewife and devout churchgoer, is seeking the truth in God’s Word, while their daughter tries to define her own life within an oppressive environment. Until a tragic incident strikes the family, pushing the three heroes to face their own personal…

21th Hungarian Film Festival , LA will be held from October 27th to November 2nd 2023 at Laemmle Monica Film Center, 1332 2nd Street, Santa Monica, CA 90401. Four Souls of Coyote 2023, feature, animation, 104 minutes Set in the present day, Native American teenagers confront the crew of an oil pipeline project, just down the hill from the land of their ancestors. The grandfather evokes the ancient tale of their Creation myth, reminding all of us that the challenges facing humanity are universal, and that we need to find our place in the great circle of creatures. Director: Áron…

I grew up watching films in movie theaters, and never enjoyed those private screenings for critics, or watching films along the usual festival crowds. I loved to sit in a dark theater and witness the reaction of ordinary movie goers to the films. I loved movies that entertained the audiences, but at the same time their bug was biting them. letting them carry the film outside the theater and live with it for a while or for the rest of their lives. That was the reason I fell in love with Hawks’ RED RIVER, Ford’s THE SEARCHERS, Hitchcock’s VERTIGO, Georges…

Coming from two countries at odds with each other, Iranian-American Leila (Layla Mohammadi) strives to find balance and embrace her opposing cultures, while boldly challenging the labels society is so quick to project upon her. When her family reunites in New York City for her father’s heart transplant, Leila navigates her relationships at arm’s length in an effort to keep her “real” life separate from her family life. However, when her secret is unceremoniously revealed, so are the distinct parallels between her life and that of her mother Shireen (Niousha Noor). Punctuated by a bright color palette, snappy comedic relief,…

Neither a conventional biopic nor a traditional concert film, JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE is a raw and intimate portrait of the legendary folk singer and activist that shifts back and forth through time as it follows Joan on her final tour and delves into her extraordinary archive, including newly discovered home movies, diaries, artwork, therapy tapes, and audio recordings. Baez is remarkably revealing about her life on and off stage – from her lifelong emotional struggles to her civil rights work with MLK and a heartbreaking romance with a young Bob Dylan. A searingly honest look at a…

From Signe Baumane, director of Rocks in My Pockets, comes a new award-winning animated feature about a spirited young woman determined to find love in the bewildering world. My Love Affair With Marriage follows Zelma on her 23-year quest for perfect love and lasting marriage set against a backdrop of historic events in Eastern Europe. Told from a woman’s point of view, the film blends historical, biological, societal, and emotional arcs with a lively sense of humor and musical numbers. This animated film for adults tackles the issues of love, gender norms, domestic violence, fantasies and toxic relationships to propel…

The Ancient Trees , is a beautifully and masterfully written, produced, and ‏directed series by young and talented Iranian filmmaker Hamid Koreyli. The The Ancient Trees series is a successful effort to introduce and comprehensively and expertly review the exceptionally-old trees of Iran along with providing unseen pictures and detailed history and information. This collection is produced in the form of a documentary series in six approximately fifty-minute episodes, each episode is focused on the introduction of one of Iran’s tree species. https://vimeo.com/872420790?share=copy In order to introduce these trees, a trip was made to the habitat of each tree and–while…