For Immediate Release Contact: Carol O’Sullivan

Sept. 19, 2008 412-681-5449

Pittsburgh Filmmakers Announces

October Programming

(Pittsburgh, PA) – The following are descriptions of Pittsburgh Filmmakers Film Exhibition program for October 2008. 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

Oct. 4 - 9: Chris and Don: A Love Story

One of the most deeply-felt love stories ever made, this one happens to be true. Writer Christopher Isherwood and artist Don Bachardy met in 1952 and fell in love, and this documentary is a beautiful tribute to their 34-year love affair. It combines historical footage, home movies, celebrities and whimsical animated sequences to create a comprehensive portrait of two remarkable lives. Isherwood is perhaps best known for The Berlin Stories, the inspiration for Cabaret, and his history is covered in detail through autobiographical writings. Dovetailing with Bachardy’s own accomplished career in portraiture and painting, his remembrances are interspersed with comments from Leslie Caron, John Boorman and even Miss Liza herself. Features a wonderful jazz-inflected original score. (Tina Mascara and Guido Santi; USA; 2007 90 min)

Oct. 10 - 16: Metropolis

The big news for classic film buffs this summer was that a complete version of Fritz Lang’s silent masterpiece was discovered in Argentina. Long believed lost in its original form, the German Expressionist film has been shown in several edited versions, each with a slight variation in storyline. The best and most recent, which we are showing this week, was restored to pristine condition and re-released four years ago to rave reviews, but still contains a few missing scenes. You’ll have to wait until 2010 to see Lang’s complete vision of a futuristic society where science runs amok, but this (next best) version is still an outstanding cinematic gem. (Fritz Lang; Germany; 1927; 124 min)

Oct. 17 - 31: Trouble the Water

“…a spellbinder you do not want to miss.” – Rolling Stone

This winner of the Grand Jury Prize for documentary at Sundance, had audiences on their feet. And the inspiring story has generated nothing but rave reviews since. It's an account of Hurricane Katrina from the inside. Kimberly Rivers Roberts and her husband Scott were stuck in New Orleans on August 28, 2005, so she turned on her video camera. Within a few hours, Katrina was pummeling their home in the ninth ward, mere blocks from one of the soon-to-fail levees. She continued to film their excruciating ordeal, from a night huddled in a cramped and leaking attic to the subsequent search for shelter and financial support. Filmmakers Lessin and Deal took this extraordinary footage to craft a brilliant, transformative film about beating the odds and surviving in the face of massive government ineptitude and neglect. (Tia Lessin and Carl Deal; USA; 2008; 96 min)

Regent Square Theater – 1035 South Braddock Ave.

Through Oct. 16: Frozen River

“A gripping, beautifully written drama suffused with authenticity. – Film Journal

Critics can’t stop raving about Melissa Leo’s (Homicide: Life on the Streets) Oscar-worthy performance in this Sundance prizewinner. Shot in the sub-zero temps of upstate New York, this indie feature tells the compelling story of a middle-aged mother (Melissa Leo) of two teenagers, who’s lured into the illegal world of immigrant smuggling, when she teams up with a young mom from the nearby Indian reservation. (2008;USA; 97 min)

Oct. 17 - 26: A Man Named Pearl

If you liked The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, you’ll love this charming documentary about self-taught topiary artist, Pearl Fryar. A South Carolina factory worker for 36 years, he began trimming his bushes with such skill and vision that his home became a major tourist destination. His work is not the kind of cutesy animals one might expect, but elaborate and beautifully designed abstract shapes often forged late at night by the 66-year-old Pearl. An inspirational portrait emerges through the testimony of his family, neighbors, and assorted passersby. Pearl isn’t trying to please anyone but himself, and he’s not sending a message – other than the one finely etched as the centerpiece in his yard: “Love, Peace & Goodwill.” (Scott Galloway, Brent Pierson; USA; 2008; 78 min)

Oct. 27 – Nov. 2: The Memsahib

Back by request! This beautiful film is the story of a strong-willed woman’s search for her connection to two cultures. The journey begins in 1851, when Grace Roberts arrives in India, newly married to the local Raja. She soon discovers the unorthodox choices she’s made in her life are difficult for both the British and the Indian to accept. She called a memsahib – someone in a sinful marriage. Flash-forward 150 years in the same location, as we meet Asha Randall embarking on a journey of self-discovery while she delves into her past. This impressive feature-length film from former PF film student, Kruti Majmudar explores the eternal themes of love, sacrifice and identity. (Kruti Majmudar; US/ India; 2005; 101 min)

Sunday Night Series: Smokin’ Sundays

Whether you are for or against smoking in public places, there was a time when smoking in the movies was portrayed as glamorous, sexy (cough, cough) and fashionable. Here are four great examples.

Oct 5: Breathless

In this French New Wave classic, Jean-Paul Belmondo plays a sexy young hoodlum on- the-run with an ever-present cigarette dangling from his lips. Jean Seberg plays the girl who can’t resist his charms. (Jean Luc-Godard; France; 1960; 89 min)

Oct 12: Now, Voyager

The fabulous Bette Davis stars as Charlotte, an ugly duckling who turns into a swan with the help of some tweezers, some great hats, and some cigarettes. In one of the most romantic (and imitated) scenes in cinema history her married lover (Paul Henreid) lights two cigarettes and hands her one. (Irving Rapper; USA; 1942; 93 min)

Oct 19: To Have and Have Not

The plot is about smuggling in Martinique, but audiences still come out to see the chemistry between Humphrey Bogart and a sassy, 19-year-old newcomer named Lauren Bacall. You can almost see it smolder from the tips of their cigarettes to the tips of their toes. (Howard Hawks; USA; 1944; 100 min)

Oct 26: Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Not many movie stars rival Audrey Hepburn as a fashion icon. And in her signature role as Holly Golightly, she is simply stunning with that long cigarette holder. Hepburn plays the call girl with a poignant blend of sophistication and innocence. With an Oscar-winning score by Henry Mancini. (Blake Edwards; USA; 1961; 115 min)

Melwood Screening Room – 477 Melwood Ave.

Oct 3 & 4: Ann Arbor Film Festival

America’s oldest and most prestigious festival of independent film is held each year in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The touring program (now in its 46^th year) is a wide-ranging compilation of prize-winning experimental, animated, documentary and narrative films. As the longest-running film festival of its kind in North America, it is steeped in a rich tradition of ground-breaking cinema. FREE, as part of RADical weekend.

Oct 5: Considering Democracy

-with filmmaker Keya Horiuchi in person.

“An iron hand in a velvet glove, this documentary offers a cinematic mirror that allows U.S. citizens to see ourselves through the eyes of the world. The image you see in this well done and powerful documentary might surprise you." -Godfrey Reggio, Director Koyaanisqatsi Shot in ten countries, Considering Democracy weaves together seemingly different topics into an interconnected tapestry of information. The documentary brings views from around the world, mixing it with information and empowerment.  (Keya Lea Horiuchi; 2008; 60 min) More info: www.consideringdemocracy.com

Oct 11: Burning the Future: Coal in America

-with filmmaker David Novack in person.

This impassioned indictment of mountaintop removal mining and its disastrous effects on the environment make a convincing case against the coal industry's propaganda to the contrary. Focusing on a group of West Virginians resolved to fight the despoiling of their land and the poisoning of their water, this eco-documentary conveys both the beauty and the ravaging of the Appalachians. Mountaintop removal mining, as the film illustrates, detonates the equivalent explosive power of a Hiroshima bomb every 11½ days. At risk are some 1.4 million acres of Appalachian woodlands that one ecologist ranks second only to the rainforests in diversity. (David Novack; 2008; USA; 89 min)

More info: www.burningthefuture.org

Oct. 14: Film Kitchen

This showcase of regional film and video art is presented on the second Tuesday of every month. Co-sponsored by City Paper, WYEP-FM, Pittsburgh Brewing, and DH Creative. Reception at 7:00; films at 8:00pm.

Oct 16: The Piano

Set during the mid-19th century in a muddy frontier New Zealand backwater, this is the dramatic, sensual Oscar-winning story of a mute woman, her daughter, and her piano teacher. Stars Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill and Anna Paquin. Cosponsored with Pitt Arts. (Jane Campion; Australia/New Zealand; 1993; 121 min)

Oct 19, 1:00 – 7:00pm: Handmade Puppet Dreams Film Marathon

Co-presented with Black Sheep Puppet Festival.

Handmade Puppet Dreams is a selection of short puppet films by independent artists curated by Heather Henson, daughter of Jim Henson. All three collections will be screened along with puppet film submissions from local artists. Runs throughout the day; stop in at any time. For a complete schedule: www.blacksheeppuppet.com/schedule

Oct 23: Greeting From Pittsburgh: Neighborhood Narratives

Oakland screening.

Oct 17 – 18: Short films by Bruce Conner – FREE!

Presented with Carnegie Museum of Art’s exhibition Life on Mars, the 2008 Carnegie International, where Bruce Conner's beautiful and haunting series of photos (Butterfly Angel) are part of the exhibit. This is a rare chance to see five of his early short films, where evidence of Conner’s (1993- 2008) profound impact on postwar American cinema and popular culture, including the modern music video, can be found. (Approx. 70 min)

Cosmic Ray

Channeling the "black magic" of Ray Charles' music, Conner used occult symbols and mysterious images to create this nocturnal and raucous masterpiece. (1962, 4.5 min)

Crossroads

Conner’s fascination with the atomic bomb is followed to its furthest extreme, "expanding" 27 different shots of the 1946 Bikini Atoll a-bomb test footage into a two-part epic that juxtaposes Patrick Gleeson’s soundtrack in the first half against the hallucinatory music of Terry Riley in the second. (1976, 36 min)

A Movie

The ultimate found footage film, A Movie summarizes - and critiques - the history of modern cinema in just twelve minutes. (1957; 12 min)

Permian Strata

Conner's mordant gem discovers wonderfully strange and subversive subtexts at work within an obscure 1940s Biblical film. (1969; 4 min)

Report

Haunted by JFK's assassination, Conner obsessively filmed television coverage of the killing, funeral and miscellaneous contemporary programming, repurposing the footage into a sorrowful portrait of a lost hero. (1963-67, 13 min)

###