World Premieres, Filmmakers, Mingling and More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media contact: Wendy Kahn
[email protected] (518) 392-7700
www.filmcolumbia.com
Movies Just Part of the Fun
World Premieres, Filmmakers, Mingling and More at FilmColumbia Fest
Chatham, NY, October 5, 2010—Film lovers can do more than just watch world-class movies in
the small town of Chatham at FilmColumbia, starting October 20th. The renowned festival, a
destination for fans now in its 11th year, offers the chance to meet filmmakers and mingle with
actors, producers and directors. In addition to numerous panel discussions, Q&As, and a screenwriting workshop, festival goers can catch two world premieres, and meet the directors right after.
In recent years, FilmColumbia has developed a reputation not only for the quality of its movie
line-up, but for the attendance by leading lights of Hollywood and the indie-movie scene. Last
year, a surprise visit by Precious screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher, who went on to win an Oscar® for
best screenplay, was the talk of the festival.
“What is scheduled over the five days of the festival is exciting enough, but often it’s the
unscripted moments that occur here that are so memorable,” said festival director Calliope
Nicholas. “Bumping into a director at a party, hearing a spirited Q&A with filmmakers, the
surprise “Saturday Night Sneak” feature—these are things our attendees talk about long after the
last screening.”
This year, a major feature was added after the festival program went to press, so festival goers will
have a chance to preview a new release starring Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole, directed by John
Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch). Sunday 9:00 a.m.
Film lovers can also catch two world premieres, including The Aspern Papers, based on a Henry
James novella, which follows a young American publisher to the lush jungles of Venezuela in a
search of lost manuscripts of a famous deceased poet. Q&A after screening with Hudson, N.Y.,
filmmakers Mariana Hellmund and Isabel Barton, Saturday, 5:00 p.m. And Irwin: A New York
Story, which tells the amazing life and times of Irwin Hasen, legendary comic book and comic
strip cartoonist, the sole surviving contributor of D.C. Comics’ “Green Lantern,” creator of
“Wildcat,” cover artist of “Wonder Woman,” and “Superman,” and co-creator of comic strip
character “Dondi.” Q&A with filmmaker Dan Makara and Irwin Hasen, still a charming
raconteur at 92, Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
White Irish Drinkers, with a fine script by director John Gray, and strong performances from an
outstanding ensemble cast, tells a moving coming of age story set in the ethnic enclave of Bay
Ridge, Brooklyn in the 1970s. Director John Gray and cast members Stephen Lang, Karen Allen,
and Peter Riegert will appear following, Friday, 5:00 p.m.
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Film Festival Offers Events for Fans
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More chances to meet and talk with filmmakers include screenings followed by a Q&A for
Eavesdrop, in which we listen in as friends, lovers, intellectuals, and strangers talk about
seduction, lost love, betrayal, and secrets. Director Matthew Miele appears after screening,
Friday, 7:00 p.m. And A.C.U. (Active Combat Uniform), in which two men impersonate active
duty combat heroes on leave from Iraq, scamming the locals for money and sex. Q&A with
Cornwall-on-Hudson filmmaker Steven Strauss and crew after screening, Friday, 3:00 p.m.
FilmColumbia’s shorts program is an annual treat. This year, “art as life” is the theme for
Drawing from Life and El Cortejo, with Q&A after with filmmakers, Friday at 4:30 p.m.
What’s a festival without a party? FilmColumbia offer several chances to rub elbows with
filmmakers and fellow film fans during the Film Columbia Pub Party at the area’s hippest
watering hole, Peint O’ Gwrw Pub on Main Street, Friday, 9:30 p.m. And cocktails columnist
Nora Maynard brings her popular “Classic Cocktails, Classic Films” from New York’s Astor
Wines to the Pub to get you in the mood with delicious cocktails that had “supporting roles”
in movies from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Sip and watch a collection of clips of America’s
best-loved films, learn colorful stories behind the cocktails, and get practical tips on mixing
them up at home, Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
FilmColumbia begins Wednesday, October 20th and runs through Sunday, October 24th,
offering more than 35 screenings and events that turn the charming Main Street of Chatham
into a hotspot destination for more than 6,000 film lovers. Tickets may be purchased
individually for each film or event and moviegoers can pre-order a Gold Pass ($130 members;
$170 non-members), which allows entry into all events. Ticket sales are available online, by mail
or telephone (518-392-3459), with in-person sales also available at the Chatham Book Store.
For a complete listing of movies and events at this year’s festival, visit www.filmcolumbia.com.
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more at: http://www.filmcolumbia.com/MediaInfo.htm
Photos/captions:
FilmColumbia’s Screenwriting Panel offers screenwriters a chance to have their work read and discussed by actors,
including panel moderator Scott Cohen (right), with Steven Vause at last year’s panel.
Hudson filmmakers Mariana Hellmund and Isabel Barton filmed Henry James’ “The Aspern Papers” in
Venezuela, and will appear in a Q&A following the world premiere screening of their new film.
Irwin Hasen, the legendary and colorful cartoonist, appears with filmmaker Dan Makara
after a world premiere screening of “Irwin: A New York Story.”