For Immediate Release Contact: Carol O’Sullivan

October 7, 2008 412-681-5449

Pittsburgh Filmmakers Announces Special Events for 2008 Three Rivers Film Festival

(Pittsburgh, PA) – The 2008 Three Rivers Film Festival, presented by Pittsburgh Filmmakers and Dollar Bank, runs November 7 - 22. Now in its 27^th year, the festival is one of the most eagerly awaited events in Pittsburgh, featuring independent American cinema, the hottest new documentaries and critically acclaimed international films. There are visiting filmmakers, informal discussions, live music, parties and more. The venues are the Harris Theater, the Melwood Screening Room, and the Regent Square Theater.

On Opening Night, November 7, three films will premiere at three separate locations, with a party to follow at Pittsburgh Filmmakers’ Oakland location. At the Harris Theater is Louise Bourgeois: The Spider, the Mistress and the Tangerine,a documentary about the legendary sculptor whose work can be seen in Pittsburgh’s Katz Plaza. The film’s co-director, New York art critic Amei Wallach, is coming to town to introduce the film.

At the Regent Square Theater is Tamas: A Portrait, the inspiring story of Kiski prep school’s legendary teacher and coach, Tamas Szilagyi. We travel with him as he returns to Hungary after 50 years. It’s produced by actor (and Pittsburgh native) David Conrad, who was one of his students. Conrad and Szilagyi have been invited to the premiere.

The Melwood Screening Room boasts the Pittsburgh premiere of My Tale of Two Cities, directed by Carl Kurlander. This funny valentine to Pittsburgh is also Carl’s memoir about leaving a screenwriting career in Hollywood to come home. We follow Carl as he searches for a meaningful life back home, only to find Pittsburgh experiencing a mid-life crisis of its own. It stars the City of Pittsburgh, and features many of its best-loved ambassadors. Kurlander will attend the screening. (Please note: On Nov. 28, as part of "Pittsburgh's Homecoming Weekend" celebrating the city's 250th birthday, a special Thanksgiving weekend red-carpet screening of this film at The Byham Theater benefits the “Youth and Media Program” of Steeltown Entertainment Project and Holy Family Institute.)

The Opening Night Party will be held again this year at 477 Melwood Avenue – transformed for one night into a classic Hollywood nightclub. Opening Night tickets are $25 and include your choice of opening night film, the party with a DJ, food, drinks and dancing. All films begin at 7:30; the party starts at 9:00pm.

From 5:30 - 7:00 a VIP cocktail party takes place at Concept Art Gallery, next to Regent Square Theater. (For information about the $75 VIP tickets, call Ann at 412-681-5449, ext. 206.)

As a sidebar this year, the festival is partnering with the Polish Cultural Council to bring five Polish films to Pittsburgh. On November 12, actor, screenwriter and director Jerzy Stuhr (The Big Animal) will be in Pittsburgh to present his film, Twists of Fate, a gripping story of moral choices spanning two generations. Stuhr has won a host of awards including the 2005 Life Achievement Award at the Venice Film Festival, and is best known internationally for his role as the slow-witted hairdresser in Kieslowski's White. Tickets for this event, which includes a reception, are $15. A gallery show of Polish poster art opens the same night in the adjoining gallery.

On Friday, November 14, the first annual Three Rivers Film Symposium will take place from 10:00am to 5:00pm, at Filmmakers Oakland headquarters. The day-long event is entitled “The Short Film: A Genre Unto Itself?” and will examine what makes short films effective, how are they are shaped, and how they are consumed. Distinctions between the traditional genres of narrative, documentary, experimental, and animation will be looked at. There will be screenings, presentations, discussions and a catered lunch for the attendees – filmmakers, film scholars, film students, and lovers of film of all types. A dozen speakers will participate, including featured guest, Ernie Gehr, a New York-based experimental filmmaker and educator. Cost at the door: $30 (or $15 with the purchase of a six-pack pass, for PF/PCA members, students, Screenie subscribers). There is also a discount with advance registration (by November 11). It is free for holders of a Silver Screenie festival pass. For more information call: 412-681-5449, ext. 219.

On Sunday, November 16, Boston’s Alloy Orchestra is back in town with The Last Command. This restored print of legendary director Josef von Sternberg’s acclaimed melodrama was nominated for Best Picture in 1928. It tells the story of a Hollywood extra (Emil Jannings) called upon to play a general in a movie about the Russian Revolution. But he’s no ordinary extra. He is the former commanding general of the Russia army! And in a cruel twist of fate, the director of the movie happens to be an old adversary (Pittsburgh’s own William Powell), who delights in humiliating the general. The Last Command is a powerful movie with brilliant acting, and is enhanced by Alloy’s live music – a stirring combination of found percussion and state of the art electronic synthesizers. For years they’ve captivated Pittsburgh audiences performing with Blackmail, Phantom of the Opera and other silent classics. Tickets are $15; Regent Square.

The Film Festival concludes on Saturday night, November 22 with Pittsburgh Reframed (at 250) a program of short films based on a promotional Bicentennial film commissioned in 1958. Each short will include some or all of the original footage, reconfigured. Local film and video artists participating include: Tony Buba, Olivia Ciummo, Brian Cohen, Matthew R. Day, Patrick Francart, Carolina Loyola Garcia, Anna Hawkins, Ben Hernstrom, Charlie Humphrey, Thad Kellstadt, Brady Lewis, Michael Mallis, Jesse McLean, Gordon Nelson, Drew Pavelchak, Bob Rutkowski, Elizabeth Seamans, Minette Seate, Chris Smalley and Josh Tonies.

Tickets for Closing Night at Regent Square are $15 and include a reception with the artists next door at Concept Art Gallery.

This year’s festival art – soon to be seen on sides of buses, flyers, posters, programs and T-shirts – was done by the Pittsburgh design firm of Vance Wright Adams and Associates.

How to get tickets:

Special Events (Opening Night, Closing Night, The Last Command with Alloy Orchestra, Twists of Fate with Jerzy Stuhr) tickets go on sale October 23. They can be purchased online at www.proartstickets.org or at the front desk at Filmmakers (477 Melwood Ave) during business hours.

The Six-Pack Pass is $40 (six admissions plus a T-shirt). These are on sale now at all Crazy Mocha locations; receive a free coffee with purchase. These are also sold online at proartstickets.org, at all three theaters, and at the front desk at Filmmakers during business hours.

A new Silver Screenie Pass is on sale now also. This is good for all films and the four Special Events for $125 (or $195 for two). This pass also gets you into the VIP cocktail party on Opening Night at Concept Art Gallery, and the Symposium. These passes are available online at proartstickets.org, at all three theaters, and at the front desk at Filmmakers during business hours.

For the first time, Single Tickets for any one film can be purchased in advance online at www.proartstickets.org (up until 4:00 on weekdays; Saturday afternoon shows close Friday at 4:00; Sunday afternoon shows close Saturday at 4:00.)

As always, single tickets are sold at the theaters one half-hour before showtime.

The complete schedule will be announced in mid-October. It will be online at www.3RFF after October 15.

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