Anchorage International Film Festival 2012

[UPDATE Oct. 2, 2013:  I've started putting together the 2013 Index Page, but this one is still good for a lot of the background posts in the Overview.]

Daily Alerts
Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2012

The last day of the best of the fest at the Alaska Experience Theater. (4th and C) 

Tonight:

6:30 PM - Snowdance Winners - These are films by Alaskans or about Alaska or shot in Alaska.  Three films will be shown.  I've only seen the third one.

[Dec 27 - that was the beginning of the last Daily Alert.  The winners are posted on the
 AIFF website.  Here are my picks for best films.     I still have some video I want to post and some explanations of why my picks differ from the official picks.]



(Scroll down to see index of daily posts)

Overview:  How to  Get the Most of the Anchorage International Film Festival 2012 (AIFF2012)

WHENFriday November 30 - Sunday December 9.  History suggests that the top films will be shown again right after the festival officially ends. 

The official website for the: Anchorage International Film Festival.


LOGISTICS - How to make your festival experience easier and better by knowing how things work.
  • Unasked FAQs - Answers to basic questions for people trying to figure out the Festival and its jargon.  If you only read one page here, this is the one to read!
     
  • Tips For Film Festival Skeptics -  For people who haven't been to a film festival.  How to find the best movies, see the film makers, see the free shows. [Updated for 2012]

  • Guide to Using the AIFF Website - AIFF added Festival Genius to their website two years ago.  It adds a lot, but there are also some tricks.


Index of Festival Blog Posts  - Below is the easiest way to track the blog posts that I'll put up each day during the festival.  I'll keep these as current as time and wifi connections permit.  The blog itself is always the most current.
MOVIES - Posts on movies - as I post about movies I'll put links here so you can find them more easily than scrolling through the blog.  For all the posts for this year's festival in reverse chronological order use the AIFF 2012 label.  Or look in the November and December blog archive (column on the right) for posts that begin with AIFF 2012.

Features:  (see below too for posts with videos)

12/9/12  AIFF 2012:  Passionflower, Fairbanks Nigerians, Scottish Cons With Scissors, Elder Ping Pong, and Lots of Duct Tape
Quick comments on Passionflower, Alaskaland, and documentaries: Cutting Loose, Ping Pong, and Unfinished Spaces. (Alaskaland was a feature in the Snowdance category)

12/7/12   AIFF 2012: From Miss India to Kenyan Runners
Includes brief comments on the feature Things I Don't Understand.

Posted: 12/3/12:  AIFF 2012:  Truth Dripped Off The Screen From The Film Between Us
I liked it a lot and wanted to let you know, so I did this short post that includes a bit of an interview with the director Dan Mirvish from the Napa Valley Film Festival.  

12/3/12:  AIFF 2012: Paddle To Seattle Guys Do the Ganges - Tonight at 8pm 
Includes brief comments on  Shouting Secrets.


12/2/12:  AIFF 2012: Movie Overdose 
Includes brief comments on Confine and Lad:  A Yorkshire Story

12/1/12: AIFF 2012:  Deadfall Better Than I Expected
Some quick thoughts on the film and my hopes that the festival can get people in the door and the introductory remarks done faster so the films start within, say, ten minutes of their posted time.   

11/30/12:  Eric Bana in Deadfall Opens Festival Tonight Plus Saturday Preview
Small quote from the Tribeca Film festival on Deadfall.  Also includes the Festival Genius schedule for Saturday. 

11/23/12: AIFF 2012:  Mormon Missionaries Fall in Love, or  . . .
Anchorage East High alumnus returns to Anchorage with a key role in "The Fall."  This post reports an aborted Skype interview (bad connection) with director Jon Garcia and actor Harold Phillips.

10/14/12 AIFF 2012: H.P. Lovecraft, Señor Student, Coolio - All Coming to Anchorage International Film Festival 2012: Feature Peek
List of all the Feature films that have been officially selected to be in the festival.  Browse through the table to find something that might be of interest.  


Documentaries:

12/10/12 AIFF 2012:  What Makes A Good Documentary - Cutting Loose and Ping Pong.

12/9/12  AIFF 2012:  Passionflower, Fairbanks Nigerians, Scottish Cons With Scissors, Elder Ping Pong, and Lots of Duct Tape
Quick comments on  Cutting Loose, Ping Pong, and Unfinished Spaces. and features: Passionflower, Alaskaland.


12/7/12   AIFF 2012: From Miss India to Kenyan Runners
Includes The World Before Her which contrasts the training for Miss India contestants to young women in a extremist Hindu camp.  Also includes video of Martin Murdy, director of Where Dreams Don't Fade, a film about Kenyan runners.  Also brief comments on the feature Things I Don't Understand.

12/3/12:  AIFF 2012: Paddle To Seattle Guys Do the Ganges - Tonight at 8pm 
Includes brief comments on  Roadmap to Apartheid.

12/2/12:  AIFF 2012: Movie Overdose 
Includes brief comments  Rousseau's Children and People of a Feather.  

11/4/12 AIFF 2012: Wolves, Cuba, Skiers, Dislecksia - Some Documentary Topics Coming To AIFF 2012   - Use this post to find topics or film locations that might interest you.   This offers a table of all the documentaries sorted by topic and country with links to each if you want to learn more.

Shorts:

12/2/12:  AIFF 2012: Movie Overdose 
Includes brief comments on shorts Mossadegh, Calcutta Taxi, and Suddently Zinat  . . . 

11/27/12  AIFF2012: Roozbeh Dadvand's Mossadegh Takes Different Direction From Movie Argo
Long, detailed, email interview with the USC Film Student director about his film.

11/24/12  AIFF 2012: Take Saturday Morning Tour to Iran, India (Calcutta), and France ..
An overview of four short (@20 minutes each) films in the Native Tongue group shown Sat Dec. 1 and Sun Dec 9.   Mossadegh (Iran)  Calcutta Taxi (India)  Naagahaan, Zinat… (Suddenly, Zinat…) (Iran again), and Lapse (France)

Animated Films in Competition:
    General Posts - I'll list posts here that don't fit into other categories.


    FILM MAKERS - Video posts of film makers. (I'll try to get brief interviews with as many film makers as I can and I'll link them here.)



    12/9/12 - AIFF 2012:  Last Night's Quick Freeze Awards
    Includes a video of the awards, some film snippets, and brief chat with the makers and actors in winning film Max and Molly. 

    12/9/12 -  AIFF 2012: Lapse Director Gilles Guerraz Talks From Paris
    Nine minutes of skype chat with Lapse director Guerraz on the film budget, crew, and learning by doing. 


    12/8/12 - AIFF 2012:  Paul and Bryant Make Out With EverybodyPaul Jones and Bryant Mainord briefly discuss their in-competition film, PNBMOWE, in the Snowdance category at the film makers reception Thursday night. 

    12/8/12 AIFF 2012:  Growing Up With Mentally Unstable Mom - Shelagh Carter Talks About Passionflower - Director talks about her autobiographical movie at film maker reception Thursday night.

    12/7/12   AIFF 2012: From Miss India to Kenyan Runners
    Short video chat with Martin Murdy, director of Where Dreams Don't Fade.

    12/6/2012:  AIFF 2012: Dan Mirvish Created Eisenstadt - A Fake Journalist Who Leaked Palin's Africa Is A Country
    17 minute skype chat video with Dan Mirvish talking about Between Us and how it was made and some other things he did before it got done, like the Eisenstadt character. 

    12/5/2012:  AIFF 2012: No Minors Were Kissed In Shouting Secrets
    My quick reactions and video of Korinna Sehringer's Q&A after the film.

    12/4/2012:   Go Ganges - Respectfully Irreverent Trip Down The Ganges.
    My brief thoughts on the film and video of the film makers after the showing.
     
    12/2/2012:  16 Months in a Brooks Range Cabin: Tom Irons' Arctic Son

    12/1/2012Dan Hartley on Lad: A Yorkshire Story

    12/1/2012:  Vikram Dasgupta Talks About Calcutta Taxi
    Very up close chat at Bear Tooth lobby Friday night.


    THE AUDIENCE SPEAKS - Videos with audience members on the films and festival
    I got a little bit of audience reaction, but people were getting out so fast or I had to run, that I didn't get anything worth posting. 

    AWARDS POSTS - These are the posts on the awards I did live from the ceremony - though I cleaned them up and added a few links and pictures later.]

    Features Awards
    Documentary Awards
    Animation Awards
    Shorts Awards
    Super Shorts Awards
    Snowdance Awards
    Quick Freeze Awards


    Dec. 9, 2012:  AIFF 2012:  Live Blogging Awards - Update
    Some photos from the Awards ceremony, waiting for things to begin.

    BACKGROUND POSTS - Behind the scenes - Looks at the people that put on the festival and how they do it.


    Dec. 14, 2012:  AIFF 2012:  Meet the Festival Director and Alaska SAG Rep

    Two short videos: l) Festival Director Teresa Scott and 2) video of Alaska's representative of the Screen Actors' Guild, Ron Holmstrom. 

    PAST FESTIVALS


    2011 AIFF Tab - A Page like this one for 2011.  Or you can see all the posts in reverse chronological order at the AIFF 2011 label.
    2010 AIFF Tab-  2010 was the first year I used a tab on top.   It gives more of an overview of my posts about the festival with links.  You can also link to all the posts labeled Anchorage International Film Festival 2010 which will give you all the posts from most recent to the oldest.
    2009 AIFF  - posts from the 2009 Festival
    2008 AIFF 
    2007 AIFF


    WARNING:  THAT OTHER SO CALLED ALASKA FILM EVENT

    Comparing the ANCHORAGE and ALASKA International Film Festivals - Real Festival? Scam?

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