Sedona Film Festival Rocks With New Films
Sedona Film Fest presents ‘I Am Woman’ premiere Sept. 25-Oct. 1
Uplifting biopic that tells the story of Helen Reddy debuts at Mary D. Fisher Theatre
The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present the Northern Arizona premiere of “I Am Woman” showing Sept. 25-Oct. 1 at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre.
The uplifting biopic “I Am Woman” tells the story of Helen Reddy, the fiercely ambitious Australian singer behind the 1971 megahit anthem that became the rallying cry of the women’s liberation movement.
It is 1966. Helen Reddy arrives in New York with her three-year-old daughter, a suitcase and $230 in her pocket. She had been told she’d won a recording contract, but the record company promptly dashes her hopes by telling her it has enough female stars and suggests she has fun in New York before returning home to Australia.
Helen, without a visa, decides to stay in New York anyway and pursue a singing career, struggling to make ends meet and provide for her daughter. There she befriends legendary rock journalist Lillian Roxon, who becomes her closest confident. Lillian inspires her to write and sing the iconic song “I Am Woman” which becomes the anthem for the second wave feminist movement and galvanizes a generation of women to fight for change.
Helen also meets Jeff Wald, a young aspiring talent manager who becomes her agent and husband. Jeff helps her get to the top, but he also suffers from a drug addiction, which gradually turns their relationship toxic.
Caught in the treadmill of fame and dependent on Jeff to manage her professional life, Helen finds the strength to take control of her own career and keep pursuing her dreams.
“I Am Woman” will be shown at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre Sept. 25-Oct. 1. Showtimes will be 4 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 25, 26 and 27; and 7 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 28, 30 and Oct. 1.
Tickets are $12, or $9 for Film Festival members. For tickets and more information, please call 928-282-1177. Both the theatre and film festival office are located at 2030 W. Hwy. 89A, in West Sedona. For more information, visit: www.SedonaFilmFestival.org.
PHOTO CAPTION (can be used with any photo):
The uplifting biopic “I Am Woman” tells the story of Helen Reddy, the fiercely ambitious Australian singer behind the 1971 megahit anthem that became the rallying cry of the women’s liberation movement.
Sedona Film Festival joins theater venues around the world to present the Manhattan Short Film Festival at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre Sept. 25-Oct. 1
Film lovers in Sedona will join over 100,000 film enthusiasts around the world to view and judge the work of the next generation of filmmakers when the 23rd Annual Manhattan Short Film Festival screens at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre, Sept. 25-Oct. 1, hosted by the Sedona International Film Festival.
This year, the MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival received 971 entries from 54 countries and selected nine finalists. The Final Nine MANHATTAN SHORT selections hail from nine countries with films from Australia, Finland, Iran, Russia, Israel, North Macedonia, State of Palestine and USA. The Final Nine screening simultaneously across the world during a one-month period, with the Best Film and Best Actor awards determined by ballots cast by the audiences in each participating venue.
This year’s Final Nine selections use drama, comedy and animation to address an astonishing number of themes, ranging from identity to parenthood to the seemingly universal frustration caused by the Department of Motor Vehicles no matter the country. The directorial voices are both male and female from countries large and small, often inspired by personal and sometimes harrowing experience. This year’s Final Nine screening also is a rare instance when gripping dramas from Iran, Israel, and the State of Palestine are featured in the same program.
The MANHATTAN SHORT Final Nine are:
Safe Space (Australia), The Stick (Finland), Exam (Iran), Hey, Gray (Russia), White Eye (Israel), Sticker (North Macedonia), Two Little Boys (USA), Maestro (France) The Present (Palestine).
Film synopsis are as follows:
SAFE SPACE: Two veteran detectives craft an intricate interrogation technique to intimidate an apparent witness to police corruption.
THE STICK: An unrelenting little girl pursues her dream of dog ownership even as her parents’ marriage crumbles around her.
EXAM: A teenage girl fits cocaine deliveries into her normal school day schedule despite close observation by religious authorities.
HEY, GRAY: At death’s door, a businessman meets his old dog Gray, which he heartlessly threw out on the street many years ago.
WHITE EYE: A man finds his stolen bicycle but the cost of getting it back is higher than he anticipates.
STICKER: When state bureaucrats won’t renew a man’s automobile registration, the snafu tests his ability to be a good father.
TWO LITTLE BOYS: A student’s secret love for his closeted bully puts him on an unconventional path toward confession and its consequences.
MAESTRO: A stick-wielding squirrel conducts a nocturnal chorus of opera-loving forest creatures.
THE PRESENT: A West Bank shopping trip turns dangerous when a wedding anniversary gift becomes an object of suspicion by the authorities.
You Be the Judge!
Which of these Final Nine short films is best? That’s up to a worldwide audience to decide. Cinema-goers across the United States and the globe will become instant film critics as they are handed a ballot upon entry that allows them to vote for the Best Film and Best Actor. MANHATTAN SHORT is the ultimate audience award that salutes the creative talents of both directors behind the camera and actors in front of it. Votes will be sent through to MANHATTAN SHORT HQ with the winner announced at ManhattanShort.com on Sunday, Nov. 1.
The Manhattan Short Film Festival will be shown at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre Sept. 25-Oct. 1. Showtimes will be: 7 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 25, 26 and 27; and 4 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 28, 30 and Oct. 1.
Tickets are $12, or $9 for Film Festival members. For tickets and more information, please call 928-282-1177. Both the theatre and film festival office are located at 2030 W. Hwy. 89A, in West Sedona. For more information and to order tickets online, visit www.SedonaFilmFestival.org .
PHOTO CAPTION: Film lovers in Sedona will join over 100,000 film enthusiasts around the world to view and judge the work of the next generation of filmmakers when the 23rd Annual Manhattan Short Film Festival screens at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre, Sept. 25-Oct. 1. The nine finalists hail from nine different countries.
Film Fest presents ‘Jonas Kaufmann: My Vienna’ premiere Sept. 26-27
A deeply personal tribute by the star tenor to the world-famous melodies from the birthplace of waltz and operetta
The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present the Northern Arizona premiere of “Jonas Kaufmann: My Vienna” for two shows only on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 26 and 27 at 1 p.m. at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre.
“Jonas Kaufmann: My Vienna” is a deeply personal tribute by the star tenor to the world-famous melodies from the birthplace of waltz and operetta.
Filmed live in the magical setting of the Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna, the concert features popular Viennese music from “Die Fledermaus” and “Wienerblut” by Johann Strauss and Franz Lehár’s “The Merry Widow”, plus many classic songs inspired by the city of Vienna.
Jonas Kaufmann performs with the Prague Philharmonia orchestra under the baton of Maestro Jochen Rieder and is joined by the internationally acclaimed soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen.
Kaufmann has always had a special rapport with Austria and Vienna. His grandmother had a fondness for the light classics and was happy to sing the evergreens of Johann Strauss, Franz Lehár and Robert Stolz – a nice contrast to his grandfather’s passion for Wagner. As a child, Jonas spent much of his free time on his grandparents’ farm in Tyrol. Austrian television was almost more familiar to him than its German counterpart. Since then he has had a deep love for Viennese songs and operetta.
“The music always put me in a good mood”, he recalls. “When I had unlikeable things to do as a student, like cleaning or vacuuming, all I had to do was play Carlos Kleiber’s ‘Fledermaus’ recording, and in no time at all I had a grin on my face.”
“The most important, versatile tenor of his generation.” – The New York Times
“The world’s greatest tenor.” – The Telegraph
“The biggest opera star in the world.” – Classic FM
“The tenor with the golden voice.” – The Guardian
“Jonas Kaufmann: My Vienna” will be shown at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre at 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 26 and 27. Tickets are $15, or $12.50 for Film Festival members. For tickets and more information, please call 928-282-1177. Both the theatre and film festival office are located at 2030 W. Hwy. 89A, in West Sedona. For more information, visit: www.SedonaFilmFestival.org.
Film Fest presents ‘Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles’ Sept. 29
Sumptuous art and decadence of Versailles comes to life in cake form at The Met
The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present the one-day-only premiere of “Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles” on Tuesday, Sept. 29 at 4 and 7 p.m. at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre.
It doesn’t just take innovation to create edible works of art worthy of The Met, it also means looking back at the past for inspiration.
Via London, Versailles, and Instagram, “Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles” follows famous chef Yotam Ottolenghi on his quest to bring the sumptuous art and decadence of Versailles to life in cake form at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
He assembles a team — a veritable who’s who of the dessert world, including Dominique Ansel and Dinara Kasko — to help bring his vision to life. The pastry chefs create a true feast of Versailles complete with a cocktail whirlpool and posh jello shots, architectural mousse cakes, chocolate sculptures, swan pastries, and an edible garden.
Ottolenghi acts as our guide throughout, disassembling pastries to give us the history of ingredients that we now take for granted, like sugar and chocolate.
“Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles” perfectly captures the heights of human achievement and the frailty of decadence, adding taste as one more sense with which to experience the Met.
“Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles” will be shown at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre at 4 and 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 29. Tickets are $12, or $9 for Film Festival members. For tickets and more information, please call 928-282-1177. Both the theatre and film festival office are located at 2030 W. Hwy. 89A, in West Sedona. For more information, visit: www.SedonaFilmFestival.org.
PHOTO CAPTION (can be used with any photo):
Via London, Versailles, and Instagram, “Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles” follows famous chef Yotam Ottolenghi on his quest to bring the sumptuous art and decadence of Versailles to life in cake form at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
