IIFA 2009 Venue is China

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After travelling to countries like Britain, South Africa, Singapore,
Dubai and Thailand, the 10th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA)
is heading to Macau, China in 2009.

The event will be three-day long and will be held at the Venetian
Macao Resort Hotel at Macau, China between June 11-13.

2009 IIFA shall celebrate a decade of IIFA demure and promises to be
yet another enthralling experience to be held at the Venetian Macao.
Amitabh Bachchan, the IIFA brand ambassador thinks that it is an
excellent choice for IIFA’s celebrations and we are excited to bring
its magic to that fabulous city.

For the 10th year celebrations, Wizcraft International Entertainment
Pvt. Ltd, the organizers of the event, are promising a whole set of
surprises.

The viewership of IIFA has already crossed 600 million. Each of the
host destinations have reported growth in tourism, film shootings in
their region and growth in Indian investments.

The IIFA Weekend is expected to attract more than 500 noted
personalities from the Indian film industry.

The IIFA 2009 will be sponsored by Videocon.

Best Directors at Filmfare Awards

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The Filmfare Best Director Award is one of the Popular Award presented by the magazine Filmfare to the directors working in the Indian film Industry. It is a part of the magazine's annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films and was first presented in 1954 in the inaugral year.


Bimal Roy leads the winners with seven Best Director Filmfare awards, followed by Raj Kapoor and Yash Chopra, with four in kitty. Chopra has the most nominations, 12, followed by Roy with 7, and Raj Kapoor, Gulzar, Subhash Ghai and Mahesh Bhatt with 6 nominations each.

Sai Paranjpye is the only woman to have ever won the Best Director award. She won it for Sparsh in 1985. Paranjpye had earlier been nominated for Chashme Buddoor in 1982. Other women directors to have been nominated are Mira Nair for Salaam Bombay! in 1990 and Farah Khan for Main Hoon Na in 2005 and for Om Shanti Om in 2008.

Bimal Roy also has the distinction of winning the award thrice in a row, on two separate occasions (1954-1956 and 1959-1961). Mahesh Bhatt is the only other director to have been nominated thrice in a row (1984-1986). Also, no director has ever won if he/she has been nominated twice in the same year - Gulzar in 1974, Basu Chatterjee in 1977 and Hrishikesh Mukherjee in 1980.

Dada Saheb Phalke - The Father of Indian Cinema

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Dadasaheb Phalke - The Father of Indian Cinema was born as Dhundiraj Govind Phalke, at Trymbakeshwar near Nasik in 1870. Being son of a shashtri, Dajishastri Phalke, he was committed to be shastri and was trained for a career, as a Sanskrit scholar.

Dadasaheb Phalke as he was to be later called, came to Bombay (now Mumbai) with his clan when his father joined Wilson College as a professor. Having a keen interest in arts, Dadasaheb Phalke joined Sir J. J. School of Arts in 1885 for a course in Drawing and then continued with his art studies at Baroda’s famous Kalabhavan.

Formerly he earned his living painting the scenes for various dramatic companies. Later, he began as a photographer. In 1903, he joined the Archaeological Department as a photographer and this was where he was introduced to the magic of cinema. Thus, ‘Raja Harishchandra’ was made in 1913 under the banner of Phalke Film Co.

In 1917, Phalke Film Co. was integrated into the Hindustan Film Co.

Dadasaheb’s ‘Raja Harishchandra’ is recognized as the first indigenously made ’story’ film. It was released in Bombay in 1913, and was not only produced, directed, written and photographed by him, but also processed, printed and edited by him. Except for the imported camera, the processing outfit and the raw film, which were not made in India, everything was organized by him locally.

Thus, D.G. Phalke was the foremost pioneer of the Indian Cinema who established the basic norms of film-making in almost every department of this conglomerate art. He was his own scenarist, cameraman, art-director, costume-designer, editor, processor, printer, developer, projectionist and even distributor. This one man institution gave India its most fundamental traditions in film making and established the motion picture as a form of entertainment, a medium, an art, and an aspect and extension of Indian culture.

In fact, it was Dadasaheb Phalke who introduced the first heroine to Indian Cinema.

Those were the times when there was a dearth of talented artistes willing to work in films. Even stage artistes shied away from the new medium, no woman, not eve a dancing girl, would agree to act in a film.

So for the role of Taramati in Raja Harishchandra Phale had to go to a delicate looking young man. He selected Salunke to play Taramati, Salunke who was serving as a cook in a restaurant. Later Salunke played both Rama and Seeta in Lanka Dahan and became the most popular actor and actress of the period. The film was Phalke’s biggest hit.
His other noted films are Shri Krishna Janma (1918),Kaliya Mardan (1919),Setu Bandhan (1923) and Gangavataran (1937).

In the year 1969 that is celebrated as the birth centenary year of the Father of Indian Cinema, in a belifting commemoration of his contribution to Indian Cinema, a new National Award named Dadasaheb Phalke Award was introduced.

This Award is given annually for distinguished contribution to the film medium, its growth and promotion. It has been given to some really eminent personalities.The first recipient of this Award was Devika Rani Roerich, popular as Devika Rani. Last year it went to late legendary filmmaker Tapan Sinha.

At the age of 74 on February 16th, 1944 Dadasaheb Phalke expired in Nasik.

Filmfare Critics Award (Actor) Facts

The Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance Male was considered a special award each year since 1990. These set of awards turned official in 1997.

Though dominated by actress here is a list of the male award winners and the films for which they won.

Interestingly Shahrukh Khan won it for Kabhi Haan Kabhi Na back in 1994. And yet again in 2001 he won it for Mohabbatein.

Likely, Amitabh Bachchan has won it twice. First in 2002 for Aks and in 2005 for Black.

Later Manoj bajpai (1999&2000), Anil Kapoor (1998), Ajay Devgan(2003), Hrithik Roshan(2004), Pankaj Kapoor(2005), Aamir Khan(2007), Darsheel Safary(2008), Manjot Singh(2009) have won it.

In 1992 the award was not given and Anupam Kher was the first actor to have received the award in 1991 for his marvellous performance in Daddy.

Filmfare Awards (Best Actress Category) - Rare Facts

Actress with Most Awards Nutan, with five wins, has more Best Actress wins than any other actress.Nutan is also the oldest winner of the Filmfare Award.She won it for films like Seema, Sujata, Bandini,Milan and Mein Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki.



However, the oldest nominee is Sharmila Tagore. The youngest nominee and winner of the award is Dimple Kapadia who was nominated when she was as young as 16 years.



Actress with Most Nominations Madhuri Dixit has 13 nominations to her credit.She has won the award four times alongwith Meena Kumari and Kajol.

Actress with Most Nominations without ever winning Tabu, Manisha Koirala with some 5 nominations.

Actress with Most Nominations in the same year Shabana Azmi has 4 to her credit.

Seven actresses have won the award twice; in chronological order, they are Waheeda Rehman, Dimple Kapadia, Rekha, Sridevi, Karisma Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai, and Rani Mukerji.

Four actresses have won the award in consecutive years; in chronological order, they are Meena Kumari (1954-55), Jaya Bhaduri (1974-75), Shabana Azmi (1984-85), Rani Mukerji (2005-06).

There has been only one tie in the history of this category. This occurred in 1974 when Jaya Bhaduri and Dimple Kapadia were both given the award.



Only once have siblings been nominated for the Best Actress Award during the same year: Karisma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor in 2002.

In 1962, Meena Kumari was the only nominee, nominated three times, for Aarti, Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, and Main Chup Rahungi.

Rare revelations Filmfare Winners -Actors

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Actor with Most Awards Dilip Kumar Dilip Kumar has won Filmfare Award for Best Actor 8 times for films like Daag, Devdas, Kaala Pani,Azaad,Naya Daur,Kohinoor, Leader and Ram aur Shyam.

Actor with Most Nominations Amitabh Bachchan Big B is nominated 26 times for the Best Actor Category. First time for Zanzeer in 1974 and recently for Sarkar 2006.

Actor with Most Nominations without ever winning Salman Khan for films like Hum Aapke hain koun, Hum dil de chuke sanam ,Pyaar kiya to darna kya,Tere naam, Karan Arjun, Maine Pyaar Kiya and Govinda for Deewana Mastana, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan,Saajan Chale Sasural, Coolie No.1

Actor with Most Nominations in the same year Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan for Aks and Kabhi Khusi Kabhi Gham 2002, Kaante and Devdas 2003, Kal Ho Na Ho and Baghbaan 2004, Khakhee and Swades 2005

Oldest Winner Amitabh Bachchan

Oldest Nominee Dilip Kumar

Youngest Winner Rishi Kapoor He won it for his debut film Bobby in 1974, at the age of 22 years.

Filmfare Critics Award for Best Movie (2000-2009)

The Filmfare Awards are the oldest and most prominent film awards given for Hindi films in India. The yearly awards started in 1953. Movie awards were first given by popular vote. Many complained that films of artistic merit rather than commercial appeal were being overlooked, hence a new award category was added, the Critics Award for Best Movie.

2000 Sarfarosh - John Matthew Matthan The film dealt with an Indian police officer's fight to stop cross-border terrorism and starred Aamir Khan in the role of an IPS Officer.

2001 Halo - Santosh Sivan It tells the story of Sasha (Benaf Dadachandji) who is searching for her lost puppy in the streets of Mumbai and the variety of people that she meets.It also won National Film Award for Best Children's Film.

2002 Dil Chahta Hai - Farhan Akhtar Written and directed by then-newcomer Farhan Akhtar, starring Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Preity Zinta, Sonali Kulkarni and Dimple Kapadia. The plot was set in modern-day urban Mumbai and focuses on a major period of transition in the lives of three young friends.

2003 The Legend of Bhagat Singh - Rajkumar Santoshi The film shows in detail how Singh came to develop his views on the British Raj and his struggle for Indian independence and starred Ajay Devgan, Sushant Singh, and Ian Davies.


2004 Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. - Rajkumar Hirani The story involves protagonist, Munna Bhai, (Sanjay Dutt), a goon, going to medical school. He is helped by his sidekick, Circuit (Arshad Warsi).

2005 Yuva - Mani Ratnam The prime objective of the movie was to motivate educated Indian youths to enter politics.The film tells the stories of three young men from completely different strata of society and one fateful incident on Kolkata's Hooghly Bridge which changes their lives forever.

2006 Black - Sanjay Leela Bhansali Black revolves around a blind, deaf and mute girl(Rani), and her relationship with her teacher (Amitabh) who himself later suffers from Alzheimer's disease.

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2007 Lage Raho Munna Bhai- Rajkumar Hirani It is the second film in the popular Munna Bhai series of Bollywood. Sanjay Dutt stars in this film as Munna Bhai, a Mumbai (Bombay) underworld don, who begins to see the spirit of Mahatma Gandhi. Through his interactions with the image of Gandhi, Munna Bhai begins to practice what he calls Gandhigiri (Satyagraha, non-violence, and truth) to help ordinary people solve their problems.

2008 Chak De! India - Shimit Amin Bollywood sports film about field hockey in India. It is produced by Yash Raj Films and stars Shahrukh Khan as Kabir Khan, the (fictional) former captain of the Indian national field hockey team.

2009 Mumbai Meri Jaan - Nishikanth Kamath It stars R. Madhavan, Soha Ali Khan, Irfan Khan, Paresh Rawal and Kay Kay Menon. It deals with the aftermath of the 11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings, where 209 people lost their lives and over 700 were injured.

Filmfare Best Films 2005-2009

2005 Veer-Zaara - Yash Raj Films - Yash Chopra, Aditya Chopra
The top-grossing Bollywood film of the year was a winner at both the Indian and the international box office, earning over Rs. 750 million worldwide, in addition to being showcased at numerous prominent film festivals around the world. The music of the film, based on old compositions by the late Madan Mohan with lyrics by Javed Akhtar, was the highlight of the film. Upon its theatrical release, Veer-Zaara received mostly positive reviews from critics.




2006 Black - SLB Films - Sanjay Leela Bhansali
This Indian film in Hindi and English was directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Black revolved around a blind, deaf and mute girl, and her relationship with her teacher who himself later suffers from Alzheimer's disease. The first half of the film is an adaptation of Helen Keller's autobiography The Story of My Life.This is a must see movie and is placed in the best works of Bollywood.

2007 Rang De Basanti - UTV Motion Pictures / Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra Pictures - Ronnie Screwvala, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Made on a budget of Rs. 250 million (US$5.5 million), the filming was completed in and around New Delhi.The film's release faced stiff resistance from the Indian Defence Ministry and the Animal Welfare Board due to parts of the film that depicted the use of MiG-21 fighter aircraft and a banned Indian horse race respectively.Along with a gross revenue of Rs. 1.36 billion (approximately US$30 million) at the box office making it one of the highest grossing films in the Bollywood since the year 2000, it had the highest-selling DVD title sales of its time.



2008 Taare Zameen Par - Aamir Khan Productions - Aamir Khan
The film tells the story of eight year old Ishaan (Darsheel Safary) who suffers greatly until a teacher (Aamir Khan) identifies him as dyslexic. Both commercially and critically acclaimed,Taare Zameen Par is the winner of the 2008 Filmfare Best Movie Award. It was declared tax free by the Government of Delhi.



2009 Jodhaa Akbar - UTV Motion Pictures / Ashutosh Gowariker Productions - Ronnie Screwvala, Ashutosh Gowariker
The film centers around the romance between the Muslim Mughal Emperor Akbar the Great, played by Hrithik Roshan, and his Hindu wife Jodhabai, played by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. The music is composed by acclaimed music composer A. R. Rahman. The love story was divine and film shot beautifully.

Best Films at Filmfare Awards (1953-1960)

The Best Films between 1953 to 1960 that bollywood produced and that still hold cine-lovers hearts for their originality and essence. The great filmmakers best works in one read.

Hold back and have a look...





Mughal-E-Azam (1960)An Indian epic film produced and directed by K. Asif was a lavish production that took nine years to finish.The film broke box office records in India when released and held the record for the highest grossing film ever until the 1975 film Sholay broke its record. In 2004, a colorized version of the movie was released theatrically for the first time.


Sujata (1959)Bimal Roy film that starred Sunil Dutt and Nutan supported by Lalita Pawar and Shashikala explored the situation of caste in India.





Madhumati (1958)The movie starring Dilip Kumar, Vyjayantimala, Pran and Johnny Walker dealt with reincarnation and had a gothic noir feel to it. The film was one of Roy's greatest commercial successes.

Mother India (1957)The film ranked #3 in the list of all-time box office hits. It was a benchmark film of Indian Cinema that voiced many social issues.



Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje (1955)The musical drama had Sandhya and Gopal Krishen as lead pair.

Jagriti (1954)This movie is now remembered largely for its patriotic songs, written by Pradeep and set to music by Hemant Kumar.


Boot Polish (1954)This childrens film was a Raj Kapoor production and won accolades for its performances and music.




Do Bigha Zameen (1953) directed by Bengali film director Bimal Roy and starring Balraj Sahni and Nirupa Roy in lead roles, the film is known for its socialist theme, and is an important film in the early parallel cinema of India and is rightly considered a trend setter Like most of movies by Bimal Roy, art and commercial cinema are merged to create a movie that is still looked upon as a benchmark and paved way for future cinema makers in the Indian neo-realist movement, which began in the 1950s. It also won international prize at Cannes.

Mirchi Music Awards 2009

Music … is medicine of life. It is a natural therapy, it has power to make us laugh, Cry and create a serene effect on the listener. In a nut-shell, its been by our side every time we may need and turn to it.



Now it’s time to return the favors and acknowledge the all-giving music. Thank it for everything it’s done for us! And it was only fitting that Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM — India’s hottest radio station, took the lead in this long-overdue gesture.

Radio Mirchi hosted a glittering award show — the Tata Indicom Mirchi Music Awards last Saturday, to honour excellence in Hindi film music and thereby felicitate deserving artists in our music industry.

Eminent personalities from the film and music fraternity attended the award ceremony where trophies were awarded across popular and technical genre for the year 2008 in 17 different categories. The jury’s salute for memorable contribution to music was bestowed upon saxophonist and music arranger Manohari Singh who worked extensively with music director R D Burman.



The Lifetime Achievement Award was given to Bharat Ratna Lata Mangeshkar for her outstanding contribution to the music industry over the years.

Hosts

The hosts for the event were singer Shaan and actress Tulip Joshi.

Performances

Bollywood actors

To make the evening memorable, there were some outstanding performances by chirpy actress Genelia D’Souza, Bipasha Basu and Shahid Kapoor.

Bollywood Singers

Singers Kunal Ganjawala, Neeraj Shridhar, Tulsi Kumar and Shreya Ghoshal enthralled the audience with their mellifluous voices by rendering some of the best songs of the year.

The show stopper of the evening was Abhishek Bachchan who also gave away the two most important awards of the evening – Song of the Year and Album of the Year which were won by Jashn-e-Baharaa from the film Jodhaa Akbar and Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na respectively.

Commenting on the event, Prashant Panday, CEO, ENIL said, “Music is the lifeblood of radio and for Radio Mirchi to host this first edition of the Tata Indicom Mirchi Music Awards is but natural.”

Contest

As a build up to the awards, Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM and Tata Indicom ran the grand “Tata Indicom Talent Hunt” contest for aspiring singers across 23 key locations in India. Aimed at identifying a combination of ideal voice, spunk and X factor, the contest winner — Prachi Shah from Ahmedabad —got a chance to attend as well as perform at the Tata Indicom Mirchi Music Awards.

The Tata Indicom Mirchi Music Awards will be telecast on Sunday April 12, at 9.30 PM on Star Plus

Taare Zameen Par drops curtain on this year’s Asian Film Festival

The occasion of the last screening of the two-week long second Asian Film Festival was held on Thursday evening last week. A large crowd gathered to watch the award winning Indian film “Taare Zameen Par” that highlighted the important message that children are our future and we should take care of them.

The screening was followed by a cultural show with folk dances from Kashmir, Gujrat and Tamil Nadu states by students of the Indian International School.



Before the film officially began, the Indian Consul General Sayeed Ahmed Baba welcomed the guests and remarked that the film has a simple but very strong message, particularly for teachers and parents. The movie is directed and produced by the famous actor Aamir Khan.

The Swiss Consul General Adriene Evequoz, particularly enjoyed the film. “The film removes obstacles and gives hope to parents and teachers on how to help, discuss and take care of special children.”

The aim of the festival was to cultivate interest in and understanding of the traditions and culture of participating countries, and it seemed to succeed overwhelmingly in that department.

Mamdouh Salem the executive director and producer of Rowad Media for Media Production and Distribution said that “The cultural show presented by the Indian school children was very nice, and we got to know about their tradition and culture."

The 2nd Asian film festival ended with a vote of thanks from Japanese Consul General Toshimitsu Ishigure to all the participants in the festival and particularly the Indonesian Consul General for hosting the event at his premises.

Taare Zameen Par drops curtain on this year’s Asian Film Festival

The occasion of the last screening of the two-week long second Asian Film Festival was held on Thursday evening last week. A large crowd gathered to watch the award winning Indian film “Taare Zameen Par” that highlighted the important message that children are our future and we should take care of them.

The screening was followed by a cultural show with folk dances from Kashmir, Gujrat and Tamil Nadu states by students of the Indian International School.



Before the film officially began, the Indian Consul General Sayeed Ahmed Baba welcomed the guests and remarked that the film has a simple but very strong message, particularly for teachers and parents. The movie is directed and produced by the famous actor Aamir Khan.

The Swiss Consul General Adriene Evequoz, particularly enjoyed the film. “The film removes obstacles and gives hope to parents and teachers on how to help, discuss and take care of special children.”

The aim of the festival was to cultivate interest in and understanding of the traditions and culture of participating countries, and it seemed to succeed overwhelmingly in that department.

Mamdouh Salem the executive director and producer of Rowad Media for Media Production and Distribution said that “The cultural show presented by the Indian school children was very nice, and we got to know about their tradition and culture."

The 2nd Asian film festival ended with a vote of thanks from Japanese Consul General Toshimitsu Ishigure to all the participants in the festival and particularly the Indonesian Consul General for hosting the event at his premises.

The occasion of the last screening of the two-week long second Asian Film Festival was held on Thursday evening last week. A large crowd gathered to watch the award winning Indian film “Taare Zameen Par” that highlighted the important message that children are our future and we should take care of them.

The screening was followed by a cultural show with folk dances from Kashmir, Gujrat and Tamil Nadu states by students of the Indian International School.



Before the film officially began, the Indian Consul General Sayeed Ahmed Baba welcomed the guests and remarked that the film has a simple but very strong message, particularly for teachers and parents. The movie is directed and produced by the famous actor Aamir Khan.

The Swiss Consul General Adriene Evequoz, particularly enjoyed the film. “The film removes obstacles and gives hope to parents and teachers on how to help, discuss and take care of special children.”

The aim of the festival was to cultivate interest in and understanding of the traditions and culture of participating countries, and it seemed to succeed overwhelmingly in that department.

Mamdouh Salem the executive director and producer of Rowad Media for Media Production and Distribution said that “The cultural show presented by the Indian school children was very nice, and we got to know about their tradition and culture."

The 2nd Asian film festival ended with a vote of thanks from Japanese Consul General Toshimitsu Ishigure to all the participants in the festival and particularly the Indonesian Consul General for hosting the event at his premises.

Taare Zameen Par drops curtain on this year’s Asian Film Festival

The occasion of the last screening of the two-week long second Asian Film Festival was held on Thursday evening last week. A large crowd gathered to watch the award winning Indian film “Taare Zameen Par” that highlighted the important message that children are our future and we should take care of them.

The screening was followed by a cultural show with folk dances from Kashmir, Gujrat and Tamil Nadu states by students of the Indian International School.



Before the film officially began, the Indian Consul General Sayeed Ahmed Baba welcomed the guests and remarked that the film has a simple but very strong message, particularly for teachers and parents. The movie is directed and produced by the famous actor Aamir Khan.

The Swiss Consul General Adriene Evequoz, particularly enjoyed the film. “The film removes obstacles and gives hope to parents and teachers on how to help, discuss and take care of special children.”

The aim of the festival was to cultivate interest in and understanding of the traditions and culture of participating countries, and it seemed to succeed overwhelmingly in that department.

Mamdouh Salem the executive director and producer of Rowad Media for Media Production and Distribution said that “The cultural show presented by the Indian school children was very nice, and we got to know about their tradition and culture."

The 2nd Asian film festival ended with a vote of thanks from Japanese Consul General Toshimitsu Ishigure to all the participants in the festival and particularly the Indonesian Consul General for hosting the event at his premises.

Indian Film Festival in LA in April

April is usually a pretty warm month in Los Angeles. It’s a perfect month to check out some movies! And the great thing about LA is that it offers variety. In April, while sitting in the cinema and lazily staring at a screen you’ll get a chance to practice your understanding of Japanese, discover the streets of Warsaw, and sing along to Bollywood songs and more!



Indian Film Festival

Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles will take place from April 21-26 at the Arclight. Its goal is to showcase “films from or about India made by Indian and international filmmakers.” Similar to the Japan Film Festival in LA, its mission is to promote a greater appreciation of Indian culture and cinema. Indian culture and its cinema has been greatly appreciated last year, with its pinnacle at the 2008 Oscars where “Slumdog Millionaire” received 8 golden statuettes. And this festival will celebrate the career of Anil Kapoor who played the host of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” in Danny Boyle’s film. One of the films are the festival is “Virasat” in which Anil Kapoor plays the lead role (and I’m sure he’ll attend the festival). To watch a film at this festival will cost $12 for the general public and $9.75 for Seniors and Students.


Three other Film Festivals will also be organized as a part of the April Show, These are Beverly Hills Film Festival, Japan Film Festival and Polish Film Festival.

The 10th annual Beverly Hills Film Festival will take place from April 1-5 at the Clarity theatre’s dedicated to independent filmmakers and will include some premiere of indie films.

The 2nd annual Japan Film Festival in Los Angeles takes place from April 10-16 at the Laemmle’s Monica 4-Plex and from April 17-19 at the Downtown Independent. Japan Film Festival–Los Angeles, JFFLA, was started to help promote Japanese films and Japanese filmmakers. It’s also dedicated to delivering a better understanding and appreciation of contemporary Japanese culture. They will screen films that already premiered in Japan and that were made between 2007 and 2009. A movie that looks really interesting is "Funuke, Show Some Love, You Losers!"

The 10th Annual Polish Film Festival in Los Angeles will take place from April 22 - May 3 at the Laemmle's Sunset 5. This festival will present the best Polish films from 2008 followed by Q&As with the filmmakers and cast. It’s a great place to meet Polish filmmakers (if you want to!) or Polish people working in Hollywood. The program of the festival is not online yet but I hope that they’ll show “Hania” a film directed and shot by the great cinemtographer Janusz Kaminiski.