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Variety's Awards Circuit is home to the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars from Film Awards Editor Clayton Davis. Following Academy Awards history, buzz, news, reviews and sources, the Oscar predictions are updated regularly with the current year's contenders in all categories. Variety's Awards Circuit Prediction schedule consists of four phases, running all year long: Draft, Pre-Season, Regular Season and Post Season. Eligibility calendar and dates of awards will determine how long each phase lasts and will be displayed next to revision date.

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2021 Oscars Predictions:

Best Live Action Short Film

Updated: Feb. 25, 2021

Awards Prediction Commentary: There seems to be a strong three films at the top Pedro Almodóvar’s “The Human Voice” (with Tilda Swinton), Travon Free and Martin Desmond Roe’s “Two Distant Strangers” (with Joey...

Bittu, the live-action short film directed by Karishma Dev Dube, stays with you long after it fades to black and the credits roll. But I am getting ahead of myself…before I go on to praise this stunning and heartbreaking film, let’s set the scene.

Based on a true story, Bittu, set in a forgotten Himalayan community, follows streetwise eight-year-old Bittu and her sweet polar-opposite best friend Chand. On the day the film occurs they have a big fight at school. What happens next brings them to an end they never imagined. According to the director/writer, “At its heart, the film is about a fierce sense of loyalty and friendship held by a young girl who is punished for her individuality and somehow saved by it.”

Check out the trailer

In just over 16 minutes, Karishma Dev Dube has crafted a story that feels completely honest, substantial and perfectly told.

The inexhaustible energy of childhood skips and cartwheels through writer/director Karishma Dev Dube's dramatisation of a tragedy that unfolded in an Indian primary school in 2013.

Her focus is on the friendship between Bittu (Rani Kumari), a snotty-faced rebel who just wants to have fun, and her more studious classmate Chand (Renu Kumari) on a fateful day in school. Dube is helped enormously by her skilful sister Shreya behind the camera - who brought moody monochrome to Indian indie Cat Sticks and here takes a loose and immediate approach to capturing the children, getting down to their level in the classroom as they take an English lesson.

The day hinges on tiny things that could happen anywhere - a swiped pot of ink, a pinkie promise of friendship, a dismissive attitude from the headteacher - but that have a devastating impact.

Dube scripts the kids with naturalism and Saurabh Saraswat...

19th annual New York Indian Film Festival (Nyiff) special focus on new Bengali CinemaBengali is the language of Bangladesh. In fact, its 1971 war of Independence from Pakistan was based upon the language which they favored rather than upon the religion (Muslim) they happened to share with Pakistan.May 7–12, 2019 at the Village East Cinemas, 2nd Ave @ 12th Street, NYC.This year 19th annual New York Indian Film Festival (Nyiff) has a special focus on the new Bengali Cinema, reflecting a resurgence in films coming out of West Bengal. With seven new films, including works by the Bengali masters Buddhadev Dasgupta, Suman Ghosh and other first time filmmakers, it is a reflection on Nyiff’s commitment to young emerging filmmakers from India. Here is a listing of the films (with English subtitles)With seven new films, including works by the Bengali masters Buddhadev Dasgupta, Suman Ghosh and other first time filmmakers, it...

New Trailer & Poster as seen on Indiewire! Cat Sticks Directed by Ronny Sen Written by Ronny Sen and Soumyak Kanti DeBiswas Produced by Theodore Indu Shivdasani, Soumyak Kanti DeBiswas, Tanaji Dasgupta Starring Tanmay Dhanania, Sumeet Thakur, Joyraj Bhattacharjee, Rahul Dutta, Saurabh Saraswat, Sreejita Mitra, Raja Chakravorty, Kalpan Mitra Synopsis: On a rainy night in …

The post New Trailer & Poster to Slamdance’s only Indian Film: Cat Sticks appeared first on Hnn | Horrornews.net.

Ronny Sen’s feature filmmaking debut, “Cat Sticks,” arrives at this year’s Slamdance Film Festival with an eye-catching piece of trivia attached to it: it’s the only Indian film to play at the fest. Yet what will likely set Sen’s work apart is its evocative, eye-catching style and unique approach to dramatizing drug addiction. For the black-and-white film, Sen teamed up with Tanmay Dhanania, who both executive produced and starred in the feature, to help bring Sen’s own experiences to life.

Per the film’s official synopsis: “On a rainy night in Calcutta a group of desperate addicts chase brown sugar, but the permanent intoxication they seek proves elusive. ‘Cat Sticks’ weaves their stories into a chiaroscuro, traverses with them through states high and low, spaces real and unreal. A relentless downpour plays backdrop to lives balanced on a precarious high. Some of them seek a release,...

The Slamdance Film Festival has unveiled its 25th anniversary narrative and documentary feature film competition programs, as well as the lineup for its new breakouts section.

The narrative lineup includes the coming-of-age drama “Spiral Farm,” starring Piper De Palma, daughter of director Brian De Palma, who is making her feature debut as a teenage girl growing up on a commune where life is disrupted by the arrival of two outsiders, a father and son. Amanda Plummer (“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire”), Teo Halm (“Earth to Echo”), and Jade Fusco (“Youth in Revolt”) co-star.

The festival, launched in 1995 as an alternative to Sundance, has included showings of such notable titles as Oren Peli’s “Paranormal Activity.” The fest, which takes place at the Treasure Mountain Inn in Park City, Utah, from Jan. 25 to Jan. 31, will screen 18 movies including 10 world premieres, four North American premieres, and four U.S. premieres.

Slamdance alumni include Joe and Anthony Russo,...

Slamdance has revealed their narrative and documentary feature film competition lineup for their 2019 festival. The fest takes place January 25-31, 2019 in Park City.

This year marks the 25th year of the festival and includes 11 narrative features and 9 documentaries throwing their hats in the ring for the competition. The fest will also include 10 World, 4 North American, and 4 U.S. premieres. All competition films were selected by a team of Slamdance alumni and are feature length directorial debuts with budgets of less than $1 million Usd, and without Us distribution.

Slamdance will also welcome back the Russo Fellowship — a $25,000 prize launched in 2018 by celebrated festival alumni Anthony Russo and Joe Russo to provide a deserving filmmaker with mentorship from the Russo duo.

In addition, the festival will introduce the new Breakouts section, which features non-first-time-feature directors who demonstrate a determined vision...

The Slamdance Film Festival has announced the lineups for its 2019 Narrative and Documentary Feature Film Competition programs. The festival, which takes place annually in Park City, Utah, is celebrating its 25th anniversary next year. In addition to the narrative and documentary features in competition, Slamdance has also announced the lineup for its inaugural Breakouts Section.

Featured films playing at Slamdance are all directorial debuts made for less than $1 million and without U.S. distribution. The films were selected for the 2019 festival by a team of Slamdance alumni. Films in both categories are eligible for the Audience Award and Spirit of Slamdance Award, the latter of which is voted upon by filmmakers at the festival.

“When it comes to discovering talent, Slamdance has consistently shown that its artist led community can do it themselves,” said Slamdance Co-founder and President, Peter Baxter. “In a milestone year, our competition lineup symbolizes this ongoing endeavor.

It’s November – a time for Thanksgiving, feasts, and the presence of relatives. If you have some time off (or are trying to grab some much-needed alone time), here is a list of films opening throughout the coming weeks, separated into categories of wide and limited runs. (Synopses are provided by festivals and distributors.)

Each week we will have more updates and information, so be sure to keep coming back. You can also check our calendar page, which has releases for the rest of the year. Eat well and keep watching!

Week of November 4 Wide

Trolls

Director: Mike Mitchell, Walt Dohrn

Cast: Anna Kendrick, Christine Baranski, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Gwen Stefani, Icona Pop, James Corden, Jeffrey Tambor, John Cleese, Justin Timberlake, Kunal Nayyar, Quvenzhané Wallis, Ron Funches, Russell Brand, Zooey Deschanel

Synopsis: After the Bergens invade Troll Village, Poppy, the happiest Troll ever born, and the overly-cautious curmudgeonly Branch set off...