For Immediate Release Contact: Carol O’Sullivan

Dec. 21, 2006 412-681-5449

Pittsburgh Filmmakers Announces

January Programming

(Pittsburgh, PA) – The following are descriptions of Pittsburgh Filmmakers Film Exhibition program for January 2007. The films are screened at Harris Theater, 809 Liberty Avenue (Downtown), the Melwood Screening Room, 477 Melwood Avenue (in North Oakland) and the Regent Square Theater, 1035 S. Braddock Avenue (in Edgewood). For admission prices and current showtimes call 412-682-4111. All titles and dates are subject to change, due to film availability.

The Harris Theater – 809 Liberty Ave

Jan 1 - Jan. 4: Nashville

“For all of his anti-establishment swagger, [Robert] Altman was a consummate Hollywood insider who was not content to make films only outsiders would love. He was a populist at heart, but his movies also challenged the masses. That was his genius.”– Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. When Altman died in late November, we lost one of the great visionaries of American cinema. His movies are legendary for their ensemble (and often all-star) casts, overlapping dialogue and rambling story structures, to the point where younger directors started to mimic his style. Nashville, among his best, tells the intersecting stories of the music business and a political convention. A visual and aural mosaic of a film, it delivers an accurate portrait of America on its bicentennial, with nearly-flawless, mostly-improvised performances from its dozen-plus leading performers. (Robert Altman; USA; 1975; 159 min)

Jan 5 -11: Half Nelson

Already popping up on many top film lists for 2006, this fine little movie slipped under the radar. We thought it deserved another chance. It's the story of a passionate and progressive history teacher (in a knock-your-socks-off performance by Ryan Gosling) struggling with drug addiction, who finds himself in a vulnerable spot. We see an honest depiction of his devotion to his students, who are mostly African-American, but without the cliched heroics of similar-themed movies. There's no easy way out of his self-imposed headlock of self-destruction. Half Nelson conspicuously offers no tidy resolution. But you will not easily shake this compelling story of imperfect individuals doing their best to survive. (Ryan Fleck; USA; 2006; 107 min)

Jan 12 – 18: The Bridge

It opens with a montage of postcard-ready shots of San Francisco's famous Golden Gate Bridge. We see the bright orange span on sunny days and cloudy days, from above and below. Then we watch as a man leaps off. The camera cuts away just before he hits the water below. In early 2004, filmmaker Eric Steel positioned several video cameras around the bridge, filming for 12 months. The documentary profiles seven of the 24 jumpers he recorded that year. It's estimated that more than 1,300 have leapt from the Golden Gate since it was built, and only 26 have survived, including a young man interviewed in the film. Also featured is Richard Waters, a Pittsburgh firefighter who -- as a tourist -- plucked a woman from the ledge before she jumped. Admittedly a tough subject, the film however, remains a poetic and sensitive reflection on suicide. (Eric Steel; USA; 2006; 93 min)

Jan 19 - 25: Family Law

This funny and satisfying movie tells the story of a man who gets to know his father by becoming a parent himself, and who then gets to know himself by understanding his own father. When we meet Ariel, he is an unhappy and uptight public defender who sleeps with his suit on. His father, played by Arturo Goetz (one of Argentina's finest character actors) is a cheerful, widowed Buenos Aires Jewish lawyer, operator, and all-around bon vivant. Needless to say, father and son drive each other crazy. Through its great performances and insightful script Family Law offers a fresh perspective on the way fathers and sons learn to communicate -- a universal topic. With subtitles. (Daniel Burman; Argentina/Italy/Spain/France; 2006; 102 min)

Jan 26 - Feb. 1: Hair High

While the twisted humor of Bill Plymton’s animated films (Mutant Aliens) is well-known, you may not be prepared for the likable characters in this high school horror-romantic-comedy. Set in the 50s, it’s about a love-triangle gone bad and two murdered teens who return to their prom to get revenge. It could have been titled "One Last Kiss." With all the overproduced, over-hyped computer generated films out there Plymton gives us a reason to come back to the theater to watch animation. Features the voices of Ed Begley Jr., Sarah Silverman, Matt Groening (and many more) and the most amazing 50s-style pop music. (Bill Plymton; USA; 2005; 80 min)

Regent Square Theater – 1035 South Braddock Ave.

Thru Jan 11: The Rules of the Game – new print!

Widely regarded as one of the greatest films ever made, Jean Renoir’s brilliant comedy is also a scathing critique of corrupt French society. Upon its release in 1939 the film was severely re-edited and the original negative was destroyed during World War II. This spectacular restoration is the first done on this masterpiece in decades. Set at a manor house in the country during a weekend hunting party, we follow the amorous escapades among the aristocratic guests and those mirrored by the activities of the servants downstairs. If you are a fan of Robert Altman’s Gosford Park, you’ll enjoy seeing where his inspiration came from. With subtitles. (Jean Renoir; France; 1939; 106 min)

Opens Jan 12: Opal Dream

Leave it to the Aussies to gives us that rare bird -- a well-done family film. Opal Dream tells the story of a young girl whose unshakable faith in her two imaginary friends resonates through the Outback. She lives with her quirky family in an opal-mining town, where the frenzied quest for the rainbow-colored gemstones creates a modern day gold rush. A charming 8-year-old spends most of her day with Dingan and Pobby, her invisible best friends. She pushes them on swings, holds their hands in school and sets two extra places at the dinner table – all perfectly harmless -- until the day they go missing. From the director of The Full Monty. (Peter Cattaneo; Australia; 2005; 85 min)

Opens Jan. 19: Iraq in Fragments

Winner of Best Director, Best Cinematography and Best Editing awards in Sundance’s documentary competition, this is a passionate opus in three parts. American director James Longley spent more than two years filming in Iraq to create this stunningly photographed, poetically rendered film of the war-torn country. It offers a series of intimate portraits: a fatherless 11-year-old apprenticed to the owner of a Baghdad garage; Sadr followers in two Shiite cities who rally for regional elections while enforcing Islamic law; and a family of Kurdish farmers who welcome the small measure of freedom the US presence has allowed. A timely and powerful piece of filmmaking. With some subtitles. (James Longley; USA/Iraq; 2006; 94min)

Sunday Night Series: Classic Hitchcock

Jan 7: The Lady Vanishes

In this delicious mystery, Iris discovers the old woman next to her on a train has disappeared. Upon investigation she finds none of the passengers remember her and a psychiatrist suggests the woman never existed. Iris believes something more sinister is going on and enlists the help of a musician. Fabulously witty script. (1938; UK; 97 min)

Jan 14: The 39 Steps

One of Hitchcock's favorite themes was mistaken identity. Here the dashing hero tries to clear his name, only to find himself embroiled with spies and a "cool blonde." The banter in this mystery/romance set the style for sophisticated comedies for years. Features Mr. Memory. (1935; UK; 93 min)

Jan 21: Rebecca

Hitchcock's first American film is about a wealthy, worldly charmer (Laurence Olivier), the innocent girl who falls under his spell, and their dangerously manipulative housekeeper. With its sumptuous black and white photography and chilling Franz Waxman score, Hitch proved he could do gothic quite well. (1940; US; 130 min)

Jan 28: Notorious

Truffaut called this his favorite Hitchcock. The tale of espionage has it all: suspense, an intelligent script, dazzling camerawork, and sizzling performances from Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant. She plays a seductive woman with a "notorious" reputation, who gets talked into spying on Nazis in Brazil. Grant plays her hot boss. (1946; US; 101 min)

Melwood Screening Room – 477 Melwood Ave.

Jan. 19 - 21: Black Gold

A nickname more commonly given to oil, another famously exploited natural resource, Black Gold is about the battle over the world's second most actively traded commodity: coffee. Despite what we fork out for our lattes and French roasts ($80 billion a year), the price paid to coffee farmers has dropped to the point where many have been forced to abandon their coffee fields. This is a journey from the commodity exchange trading floor to the poorest of the world’s farmers. Rather than simply indulging in easy anti-corporate pot shots, however, Black Gold introduces us to the human faces of the lopsided industry. (Marc and Nick Francis; 2006; UK; 82 min)

Jan. 9: Film Kitchen

Presented on the second Tuesday of every month, film Kitchen showcases regional film and video art. Reception begins at 7:00; films begin at 8:00. Co-sponsored by Pittsburgh City paper, WYEP-FM, Isoldi’s in the Strip and Pittsburgh Brewing. For more info: www.filmkitchen.org.

Film Censorship: 100th Anniversary

Since the beginning of motion pictures, there have been organized attempts to cut “offensive” content out of the movies. In 1907, Chicago set up the first local censorship board. Because not everyone's notion of offensive is the same (and has included everything from immoral behavior to unpatriotic ideas) the battle over content continues, even with constitutional protection in place. Throughout this anniversary year, we will show a variety of examples of films that got some folks riled up, reigniting the call for government control.

Jan. 26 – Feb. 1: We start the series with two new prints of Alejandro Jodorowsky’s controversial films, El Topo (1970) and The Holy Mountain (1973).

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