Susan von Seggern

Public Relations

Experiential Meditation Film The Portal, Currently Screening Across the US and Australia to Enthusiastic Response, Launches The Portal App Today

11/18/2019 by Susan von Seggern

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Sydney, Australia/New York City – The Portal, a new experiential film that demonstrates the effectiveness of mindful meditation by delving into six powerful personal stories of how the practice brought each of them out of crisis, announced their app launch at their New York City premiere last Friday November 15 at the Village East Cinema (the film’s run there is through November 21). The app is now available globally through the Apple App Store.

The app is designed to facilitate the audience’s ongoing journey into meditation and includes guided meditations, yoga sequences, podcasts, inspirational insights, and behind-the-scenes footage.

Filmed in the USA, Canada, Australia and a Syrian refugee camp in Jordan, THE PORTAL is richly visual and sonically powerful. Mesmerizing cinematography and the raw intimate stories draw the audience in, while the immersive soundscape breaks ground in film history with its use of binaural beats in what is already an evocative score. These landscapes and textures become the sound and visual-scape for the app environment too.

“I believe real-time change is possible, and that through the poignant personal stories and ideas unfolding and weaving together in an immersive way we’ve got a portal to our greatest potential,” said the film’s director, Jacqui Fifer. “This project has been a catalyst for many of us involved and I’m seeing it jump-start a lot of other people too. In hindsight, I’ve spent my life preparing for it and watching many facets of myself emerge and harmonize in order to weave it together–the filmmaker, the musician, the dreamer, the feminine and so on–has been a fun process. I’d say it’s indicative of the times we’re living in, it’s the age of transformation, so to have tools that inspire us and help us move beyond the scars of our past and really come alive to what it is we are here to do is essential right now.”

The film focuses on six deeply moving stories from a diversity of viewpoints – from military veterans to scientists, humanitarians, high-performers and more, There is Ron ‘Booda’ Taylor—a retired US serviceman managing PTSD, Human Rights Expert Amandine Roche whose commitment to global peace took her on a quest for inner peace, Vietnamese refugee Due Quach who overcame developmental trauma through ‘mind hacking’, elite athlete Heather Hennessy who reinvented herself following a career-ending injury, Rabbi Ronnie Cahana who found freedom in the confines of a personal catastrophe, and neurosurgeon James R Doty MD who had to lose everything to find the meaning of life.

Supported by insights from three of the world’s foremost futurists—and a robot—the stories unfold as a beautiful, audiovisual spectacle that takes the viewer on their own mindfulness journey through the pain, joy and memory fragments of life. As THE PORTAL juxtaposes chaos with calm to provoke an emotional and psychological shift in the audience, experts Mikey Siegel, Dr. Julia Mossbridge, and Daniel Schmachtenberger unpack concepts that are emerging from the zeitgeist, inviting us to consider the bigger questions facing our society. How can we approach life in a new way? Is technology a tool for transformation? What does it mean to be human?

ENTER THE PORTAL
Making excellent use of these powerful mediums–film, book… and now app–THE PORTAL opens hearts and minds to an exciting vision for humanity transformed. Said producer and noted meditation leader Tom Cronin, “This is not sci-fi—this is real life. Humankind is staring into an abyss, yet within us all, we have the capability to bring ourselves (and our species) back from the brink. We’re part of a growing movement of game-changers to create a reimagined global future—I think people are ready for something different and technology can play a big role in uplifting us into a brighter future. This is why we created the app to help center people and guide them back to their inner space.”

In the spirit of the cinematic experience, the ENTER THE PORTAL App weaves a captivating and vibrant tapestry of technology, love, human potential, brain-hacking, stillness, and inner peace. Unique to the App experience is the addition of Movement to enhance what is an experiential and genre-defining approach to personal change and to accompany users on the next phase of their human evolution.

“It’s clear we just can’t play by the same old rules anymore when there’s an urgent need for meaning, connection, and harmony staring us in the face,” said Fifer, “We wanted to create a gateway to experience those missing pieces.”

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ABOUT TOM CRONIN
Tom Cronin a former finance expert with a longstanding successful track record in business, as well as meditation, is the founder of The Stillness Project, a global movement to inspire one billion people to sit in stillness, daily. He is passionate about reducing stress and chaos in people’s lives. Tom’s ongoing work in transformational leadership and cultivating inner peace through meditation takes him around the world presenting keynote talks in such countries as Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, Mexico, and the USA; hosting retreats; mentoring clients across the globe; teaching in schools; writing books; hosting mindfulness courses in the corporate sector; and creating THE PORTAL film-book experience, all as part of his commitment to the current planetary shift.

ABOUT JACQUI FIFER
Jacqui Fifer has had a dynamic career in the film industry line producing such films as BETTER WATCH OUT (2016), The OSIRIS CHILD (2016) and INFINI (2015) as well as producing the multi-award-winning dramatic feature CONCEALED (2017). She also co-directed the 2012 and 2013 “Dones en Art” (Women and Film) festivals in Spain. An advocate of human capacity development, Jacqui is thrilled to turn her hand towards a subject that is close to her heart with THE PORTAL experience.

ABOUT SUPERHUMAN INTERNATIONAL (SHI)
SHI is pushing the boundaries with this unique and transformational hybrid feature film experience, The Portal. SHI is an Australian company registered in the state of New South Wales. Tom Cronin is the company director. The project qualifies with the Australian Documentary Foundation for tax concessions.

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Filed Under: Events, Film, Meditation

MANGURAMA BRINGS THE PORTAL TO THEATRES ACROSS NORTH AMERICA

11/07/2019 by Susan von Seggern

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Calm Your Mind, Open Your Heart, Transform The World
New feature documentary from meditation expert, Tom Cronin, takes an inside-out approach exploring how everyday people overcome challenging obstacles.

NEW YORK / LOS ANGELES (October 17, 2019) – Mangurama, a partnership between Abramorama and Giancarlo Canavesio’s Mangusta Productions announced today the North American theatrical run for Tom Cronin and Jacqui Fifer’s groundbreaking documentary THE PORTAL. The film will be released in theaters across North America starting November 1, 2019 (current list of dates is below).

“The time is certainly ripe for THE PORTAL,” stated Abramorama CEO Richard Abramowitz, “The film’s healing potential is exactly what we need at this moment.”

Directed and written by first-time Australian director, Jacqui Fifer, and written and produced by international meditation expert, Tom Cronin (The Stillness Project) the captivating film has inspired crowds throughout the world and audiences across North America will get their chance to experience THE PORTAL this fall.

“We’re thrilled to be working with the amazing team at Mangurama to help bring THE PORTAL to cinemas across North America,” said Cronin. “The film facilitates a collective shift on the planet that takes us into a new era of united living; it had to be groundbreaking, and unique.” THE PORTAL is truly a film for everyone. Its commercially viability raises the genre bar while remaining true to its core message,” Cronin continued.

Mangurama brings THE PORTAL, to theaters opening on November 1st at the Laemmle Monica Film Center in Los Angeles and on November 15th at The Village East Cinema in New York City with additional nationwide engagements below. The film will also be released in Australia and New Zealand around the same time.

THE PORTAL ASKS: As the doomsday clock ticks progressively louder: What would happen if 7 billion people meditated? Could it shift the trajectory of our planet?

THE PORTAL IS: An immersive, cinematic experience that answers the question: How can we really change the world?

Through heart-opening contemplation and shared experiences of transformation on a personal scale, with global implications, six ordinary people (and a robot) show how stillness and mindfulness can unlock personal change and ignite a planetary shift, providing hope to humankind.

Filmed in the USA, Canada, Australia and a Syrian refugee camp in Jordan, THE PORTAL is richly visual and sonically powerful. Mesmerizing cinematography and the raw intimate stories draw the audience in, while the immersive soundscape breaks ground in film history with its use of binaural beats in an already evocative score.

“I believe real-time change is possible, and that through the poignant personal stories and ideas unfolding and weaving together in this way we’ve got a portal to our greatest potential,” said Fifer. “This project has been a catalyst for many of us and I’m seeing it jump-start a lot of other people too. I couldn’t have found a more perfect project for my first foray into feature docs and directing. I’ve spent my life preparing for this film, without realizing, and watching many facets of me emerge and harmonize in order to weave it together–the filmmaker, the musician, the dreamer, the feminine and so on–has been a fun process.”

Featuring an impressive and diverse cast and crew, led by people from all over the world and all walks of life from military veterans, to scientists, performers and more, There is Ron ‘Booda’ Taylor—a retired US serviceman managing PTSD, Human Rights Expert Amandine Roche whose commitment to global peace took her on a quest for inner peace, Vietnamese refugee Due Quach who overcame developmental trauma through ‘mind hacking’, elite athlete Heather Hennessy who reinvented herself following a career-ending injury, Rabbi Ronnie Cahana who found freedom in the confines of a personal catastrophe, and neurosurgeon James R Doty MD who had to lose everything to find the meaning of life.

Supported by insights from three of the world’s foremost futurists—and a robot—the stories unfold as a beautiful, audiovisual spectacle that takes the viewer on their own mindfulness journey through the pain, joy and memory fragments of life. As THE PORTAL juxtaposes chaos with calm to provoke an emotional and psychological shift in the audience, experts Mikey Siegel, Dr Julia Mossbridge, and Daniel Schmachtenberger unpack concepts that are emerging from the zeitgeist, inviting us to consider the bigger questions facing our society. How can we approach life in a new way? Is technology a tool for transformation? What does it mean to be human?

ENTER THE PORTAL
Supported by insights from three of the world’s foremost futurists and philosophers, THE PORTAL opens hearts and minds to an exciting vision for humanity transformed. Said Cronin, “This is not sci-fi—this is real life. Humankind is staring into an abyss, yet within us all we have the capability to bring ourselves (and our species) back from the brink. We’re part of a growing movement of game-changers to create a reimagined global future—I think people are ready for something different.”

THE PORTAL weaves a captivating and vibrant tapestry of technology, love, existentialism, human potential, brain-hacking, stillness and inner peace. It is an experiential and genre-defining approach to personal change as we embark on the next phase of human evolution.

“It’s clear we just can’t play by the same old rules anymore when there’s an urgent need for meaning, connection, and harmony staring us in the face,” said Fifer, “We wanted to create a gateway to experience those missing pieces.”

Is an enlightened planet possible? Enter THE PORTAL and see. Screenings that are confirmed as of 10/24 are as follows:

CityDatesTheater
Santa Monica, CA11/1 – 11/7 (week)Laemmle Monica Film Center
Berkeley, CA11/3 (one day)Rialto Cinemas Elmwood
Sebastopol, CA11/4 (one day)Rialto Cinemas Sebastopol
San Rafael, CA11/4 (one day)Smith Rafael Film Center
San Francisco, CA11/5 (one day)Roxie Theater
Portland, OR11/6 (one day)Cinema 21
Seattle, WA11/7 (one day)Landmark Crest Cinema Center
Bellingham, WA11/8 (one day)Pickford Film Center
Taos, NM11/10 – 11/13 (4 days)Taos Center for the Arts
Santa Fe, NM11/10The Screen
Camas, WA11/11 & 11/14 (2 days)Liberty Theatre
Anchorage, AK11/14 (one day)Bear Tooth Theatrepub
New York, NY11/15 – 11/21 (week)Village East Cinema
Philadelphia, PA11/18 (one day)Landmark’s Ritz Five
Boulder, CO11/19 (one day)Dairy Arts Center
San Diego, CA11/20 (one day)Landmark Hillcrest
State College, PA11/20 (one day)The State Theatre
Encinitas, CA11/21 (one day)La Paloma Theater
Long Beach, CA11/23 & 11/24 (2 days)Art Theatre of Long Beach
Miami Beach, FL11/24 (one day)O Cinema
Sedona, AZ11/25 (one day)Mary D. Fisher Theatre
South Burlington, VT12/3 (one day)Palace 9 Cinema
Nevada City, CA12/15 (one day)Nevada Theatre
Hopewell, NJ12/24 (one day)Hopewell Theater

Please note most of these screenings will feature post-film Q&As with the filmmakers and some will include some of the film’s subjects as well.

Click here to view the press kit

Click here for stills from the film

Click here to view the trailer

For more information on THE PORTAL, please visit www.entertheportal.com

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Filed Under: Events, Film, Meditation

Kirtan Doc Mantra – Sounds into Silence Premieres in New York March 16, LA April 6, Boulder April 18, and is Available for Screenings Across the US via Gathr’s Theatrical on Demand® Platform

03/07/2018 by Susan von Seggern

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Kirtan Enthusiasts Can Book Screenings Now for Theatrical Dates Starting April 24

“A beautiful film which captures the spirit of a music movement that is now spreading across the world. MANTRA is a must-see for anyone who wants to pause and take a look within, accompanied by soulful and uplifting music and singing.”
– Dr. Deepak Chopra, MD, Author of You Are The Universe

Los Angeles, CA – February 22, 2018 – The award-winning documentary about the worldwide Kirtan (chanting) movement, MANTRA – Sounds into Silence will be premiering in New York City on March 16, followed by runs in Los Angeles starting April 6, and Boulder starting April 18. The film is also now available via Gathr‘s Theatrical on Demand® platform for US screenings starting April 24.

A feature-length documentary, exploring the growing musical and social phenomenon of chanting, MANTRA – Sounds into Silence shares the stories of people who are finding healing and a sense of inner peace by singing mantras together. It’s a film about spirituality not religion, about people reconnecting with their true selves and with others.
As our characters’ stories about their connection to the music unfold, we meet the musicians who have inspired them and brought them together. Through these encounters, we will discover how Deva Premal & Miten with Manose, Krishna Das, Snatam Kaur, Jai Uttal, Dave Stringer, Lama Gyurme & Jean-Philippe Rykiel, MC Yogi, C.C. White, Nina Rao, Mirabai Ceiba, Gaura Vani, Charlie Braun, Guru Ganesha, Wah! and others came to this music themselves and to the practice of Kirtan, and how, over the years, it transformed their lives as well.

Other notable experts who appear in the film include: Sharon Gannon, Co-founder, Jivamukti Yoga School, Anand Semaltry, Brahmin & Vedic Astrologer, Stephan Rechtschaffen, MD, Co-Founder Blue Spirit, Costa Rica & Omega Institute, Andrew Newberg, MD, Director of Research, Marcus Institute of Integrative Health, Elizabeth Leuthner, Hope Acts Program, Manager, Jill Purce, Sound Healing Pioneer, Susan Shannon, Buddhist Minister, San Quentin State Prison and more.

For those unfamiliar with Kirtan – it is a participatory, call and response form of singing that is becoming increasingly popular throughout the world as westerners discover its uplifting and healing effects. Kirtan is not in any way religious but many do describe it as spiritual. At a Kirtan event, the lines between musician and audience are blurred: the audience members play a vital role in the music through their singing in response to the “call” of the artist. It is now so popular that several artists have been nominated for and won Grammy awards.

The New York City premiere and run will take place at The Rubin Museum Theater. The Rubin Museum of Art is dedicated to the collection, display, and preservation of the art and cultures of the Himalayas, India and neighboring regions. They recently hosted another successful Gathr spiritual release, Walk With Me, a documentary about the world-famous Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh. MANTRA – Sounds into Silence will premier March 16 followed by a two-week run. The New York run will feature post film Q&As by noted Kirtan artists Charlie Braun (3/16), Gaura Vani (3/17), Nina Rao (3/18), Krisha Das (3/21), Lily Cushman (3/22), Scott Whitmore (3/24), AMBIKA (3/25). They will also lead the audience in a post-film Kirtan experience.

The week-long Los Angeles run will begin at the Santa Monica Laemmle Theater on April 6. The first screening will include a Q&A with the director. Kirtan artists to appear on this run will be announced soon.

A week-long run has also been booked in Boulder, Colorado from April 18-24 at the Dairy Arts Theater. Boulder is something of a spiritual hotbed due to being the home of a Buddhist college, Naropa University, and its stunning natural beauty.

For other US screenings the Mantra team is working with Gathr Films, the creator of Theatrical On Demand® releasing. Theatrical On Demand® allows individuals the opportunity to organize and promote film screenings in movie theaters across the country. With Theatrical On Demand®, fans can bring the films they want to see play in their local movie theater. It is so easy! Fans, called Movie Captains, just pick the date, time, and theater where they want to host their screening. Gathr Films will set everything up. It doesn’t cost Movie Captains anything to host a Theatrical On Demand® screening. Movie Captains don’t have to pay any screening room rental or exhibition fee. All they have to do is promote the film and get people to reserve tickets.

MANTRA – Sounds into Silence was directed by Barcelona based filmmaker Georgia Wyss. Her other recent work includes co-producing/co-writing/editing the documentary No Plorar Mai (Never to Cry) for the Spanish station TV3; editing The Lightbulb Conspiracy – winner of Best Documentary at the Spanish Television Academy Awards, and A Crude Awakening, a feature documentary shown at over 70 film festivals and winner of 5 awards for best documentary. Earlier in her career Georgia focused on music documentaries for VH1 and MTV, including the series “Where Are They Now,” Aretha Franklin’s “The Legends,” and EPKs for Tina Turner, and Paul McCartney’s “Back in the World” tour, and much more.

About Kirtan and the film Wyss notes “It was the music of Deva Premal & Miten that first inspired me, which I discovered in 2005. It was when I was seeking some balance in my fast-paced life of juggling work and raising two small children. I joined meditation and yoga classes where I slowly became aware of the power of music in meditation. These experiences became far more profound when I had to accompany a dear, close friend through cancer and her eventual passing. She died at the age of forty-two. During this time, I delved into the music of Lama Gyurme and Deva Premal & Miten. Their music gave me a feeling of trust, which helped me get through and accept my first experience of losing someone who was close to me.”

She added “In the following years, I deepened my experience of Kirtan, and I discovered that the essence of it is more than just support in difficult times, it is really about people finding themselves and their place in the world. It’s about discovering or rediscovering, in our increasingly atomized world, the joys, and the importance, of belonging; that sense of community that many of us have lost, or, in some cases, never had.”

The film was produced by Raymond McCormack and Georgia, who have a creative partnership together, stretching back more than a decade. With a background in music – having collaborated with leading artists like Sir Paul McCartney and Queen – Raymond made his feature producing debut with Welcome to the Cheap Seats, an award-winning documentary on UK post-punk outfit, The Wonder Stuff. He is also an award-winning director, in his own right, for the Netflix staple, A Crude Awakening.

About Gathr:
Pioneers of Theatrical On Demand®, Gathr uses documentaries and independent films as “empathy-building machines” to galvanize local communities around social impact and political action, while championing a renaissance of theatre-going. Through grassroots marketing and outreach Gathr’s film teams generate public and private screening event requests for its films
and then accommodates and books those requests in local theaters and non-theatrical venues.
Gathr’s Theatrical On Demand® is perfect for niche films’ decentralized communities. The Audience Has Spoken™ www.Gathr.us

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Filed Under: Events, Film

Iggy Pop: Live in Basel 2015 Screens Across America June 16 and 18

05/25/2016 by Susan von Seggern

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New York, NY – May 25, 2016 – Noted event cinema distributors Rising Alternative is excited to bring Iggy Pop: Live in Basel 2015 to the US on June 16 and 18, and beyond. The film shows the legendary artist in his full punk rock glory performing a concert shot last October in Basel, Switzerland, at the Baloise Session festival where he was given a lifetime achievement award. This fantastic set features all of Iggy Pop’s hits, including “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” “The Passenger,” “Lust for Life,” “Nightclubbing,” and 14 more.

And what a lifetime! There‘s a reason why many consider Iggy Pop the godfather of punk — many rock bands, punk and otherwise, of the past and present have either knowingly or unknowingly borrowed more than a thing or two from Pop and his late-‘60s/early-‘70s band, The Stooges, who reunited in 2003 and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

Iggy Pop, an outstanding artist known for his outrageous and unpredictable stage antics is joined by an amazing band including longtime Pop collaborator guitarist Kevin Armstrong, who is also known for his work with David Bowie and Morrissey; keyboard player Seamus Beaghen who often works with Pop, Madness, Paul Weller and David Gray; bassist Ben Ellis, a Scotsman who played with The Catherine Wheel among others; Thomas Dolby’s drummer Mat Hector rounds out the group.

Rising Alternative’s CEO Giovanni Cozzi noted, “We are excited to present the Iggy Pop: Live in Basel 2015 event. Pop is such a beloved career artist, we are thrilled to bring this performance to a wider audience. 2016 is a year to celebrate Iggy Pop with his recent release, doc, and tour, we hope this concert film event adds to his amazing 50 year legacy in rock music. He is loved as a rebel innovator worldwide and so many would still want to have the energy he has and the nerve to take his shirt off in front of all at 69, use whatever language he wants, and just have fun with fans. ”
The film will screen at the following US venues on June 16 and June 18:

AlbanySpectrum
Ann ArborMichigan Theater
AthensCarmike 12
AtlantaMidtown
AtlantaPlaza Theatre Atlanta
BerkeleyShattuck
BethlehemArtsquest
Beverly HillsAhrya Fine Arts Theatre
BostonKendall Square
BoulderCentury Boulder
BoulderBoedecker Theatre
BridgeportShowcase Cinemas Bridgeport
ChicagoMusic Box Theatre
CincinnatiEsquire Theatre
ClaremontClaremont 5
ColumbiaNickelodeon Theatre
DallasThe Magnolia
DenverSIE FilmCenter
DetroitMain Art
DetroitDetroit Institute of the Arts
DurangoAnimas City Theatre
EvanstonEvanston 18
HialeahHialeah 12
HollywoodArclight Hollywood
HolstvileIsland 16: Cinema de Lux
HoustonRiver Oaks
HuntingtonCinema Arts Center
IthacaCinemapolis
JacksonvilleSun-Ray Cinema
Kansas CityTivoli Cinemas
Long BeachArt Theatre of Long Beach
Los AngelesCrest Westwood
LowellCinema de Lux
MiamiO Cinema Wynwood
MinneapolisLagoon
MinneapolisSt. Anthony Main
New YorkSunshine
North HollywoodNoHo 7
OakdaleOakdale 20
OlympiaCapitol Theater
OrlandoEnzian Theater
PasadenaPlayhouse 7
PelhamPelham Picture House
PhiladelphiaRitz 5
PhoenixFilmbar
PortlandClinton Street Theater
PortlandMcMenamins Mission Theater
ProvidenceCable Car Cinema
Redwood CityRedwood Downtown 20
RevereShowcase Cinema de Lux Revere
RochesterTinseltown 16
RocklandStrand Theatre
San DiegoHillcrest
San FranciscoEmbarcadero
San JoseCamera 3 Downtown
San RafaelSan Rafael Regency 6
Santa ClaraFrida Cinema
Santa CruzDel Mar
Santa FeThe Screen
Santa MonicaArclight Santa Monica
Santa MonicaMonica Film Center
SchenectadyProctors GE Theatre
Seattle7 Gables
Silver SpringAFI Silver
SomerdaleCinemark Movies 16
SpringdaleSpringdale 18: Cinema de Lux
TampaStarlight 20
Traverse CityCherry Blossom 14
Vancouver (WA)Kiggins
VorheesRitz Center 16
WashingtonAtlantic Plumbing
West Palm BeachCinemark Palace 20
West Palm BeachParisian 10
Wilkes BarreMoosic Cinemark 20
WinchesterAlamo Winchester
Winston-SalemWynnsong 12
Tucson (screens 6/22)Loft

About Rising Alternative:
Rising Alternative is a leading international distributor of content for exhibition in digital format in cinemas, cultural centers and other public venues. We provide cinemas with complete series of programs from the world’s most prestigious performing arts institutions.
During the past 2 years we have released 22 new titles per year, 12 LIVE via satellite and 10 on DCP and other digital cinema formats. Our exhibition partner network includes more than 600 screens in 40 countries. We maintain offices in New York, Berlin, Barcelona and Stresa, as well as local area agents in Denmark, Israel and the United Kingdom. Rising Alternative management has been involved in the distribution of alternative content internationally since 2006.

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Filed Under: Events, Film, Music

Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC) Announces Executive Director Thor Steingraber’s 2015-2016 Inaugural Season

06/11/2015 by Susan von Seggern

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Valley Performing Arts Center

Valley Performing Arts Center

Stewart Copeland, Linda Ronstadt, Yuja Wang, Bobby and Taylor McFerrin, Nancy Cartwright, David Sedaris, Megan Hilty and John Pizzarelli are among the performing artists taking the stage for the upcoming Valley Performing Arts Center’s (VPAC) 2015-2016 season. The season gets started September 19 and 20, 2015 with two performances by Diavolo/Architecture in Motion and ends on a high note with McCoy Rigby’s production of Dreamgirls, the first Broadway musical to run at VPAC.

Tickets for initial series offerings are on sale now; additional series go on sale Monday, June 22.  Single ticket sales begin Monday, July 6.  For ticket and subscription information, visit valleyperformingartscenter.org or call (818) 677-3000.  … Read More

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Filed Under: Dance, Events, Film, Latino, Music, Theater

No God But Funny Contest Offers $40,000 in Prizes for Sitcom Scripts and Webisode Pilots With Positive Atheist Characters

04/29/2015 by Susan von Seggern

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atheistsTV_NickPisca2014The Center for Inquiry and the Freedom From Religion Foundation have teamed up to create a unique competition for current and aspiring television writers and directors, the No God But Funny Contest. The contest will award $15,000 to those crafting the winning sitcom script and $25,000 to producers of the winning webisode that takes the “ass” out of atheists.

James Underdown, executive director of the Center for Inquiry Los Angeles notes “of the few atheist characters on TV, virtually all are unlikeable. You know TV would be in big trouble if any other group were so unfavorably portrayed. We happen to know lots of godless folks who are great fun to be around. So we are challenging writers to develop funny, fun and well-adjusted atheist characters.”… Read More

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Filed Under: Film, TV

14th Annual DIY Convention ‘For Mature Audiences Only’ Takes Place March 6 and 7

02/24/2015 by Susan von Seggern

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diyconvention-logoThe 2015 DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music & Books, produced by JM Northern Media, has themed the conference “For Mature Audiences Only.” No, they aren’t advising on how to create X rated content, but aiming the forum towards a more seasoned group of musicians, authors, and filmmakers who are transitioning away from corporate supported cultural creation models to a more DIY future. Honoring the best of independent content, the 2015 DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music & Books, is pleased to announce the schedule for its 14th annual event.

“After 13 conferences we noticed that mature artists need somewhat different info than newer creators who have grown up in a more DIY era,” said conference managing director Bruce Haring. We are excited to focus on the challenges faced by over-30 content creators in the market.”… Read More

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Filed Under: Books, Education, Events, Film, Marketing, Music

The Prime Ministers: The Pioneers to Screen at Alexandria’s AMC Hoffman Center March 7 – 13

02/28/2014 by Susan von Seggern

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“A sweeping tome of Israeli politics and history” – Hilary Clinton

“Offers important lessons for the future” – Benjamin Netanyahu

“An extremely important work” – Shimon Peres

The Prime Ministers: The Pioneers is the 13th release by Moriah Films, the Academy Award‐winning documentary filmmaking division of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

Based on the best‐ selling book by Ambassador Yehuda Avner, The Prime Ministers: The Pioneers takes the audience inside the offices of Israel’s Prime Ministers through the eyes of an insider, Yehuda Avner, who served as a chief aide, English language note‐taker and speechwriter to Levi Eshkol, Golda Meir, Yitzhak Rabin, Menachem Begin, and Shimon Peres.

The first of two parts, The Prime Ministers: The Pioneers focuses on Ambassador Avner’s years working with Prime Ministers Levi Eshkol and Golda Meir and then US Ambassador Yitzhak Rabin and reveals new details about the Six‐Day War, the development of Israel’s close strategic relationship with the United States, the fight against terrorism, the Yom Kippur War and its aftermath.… Read More

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Filed Under: Film

On April 23 Liberty Hill Awards Alex Gansa & Howard Gordon, Alison Morgan & Parke Skelton, and Charles F. Johnson

03/20/2013 by Susan von Seggern

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Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa will receive the Upton Sinclair Award at Liberty Hill's Annual Dinner April 23

Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa will receive the Upton Sinclair Award at Liberty Hill’s Annual Dinner April 23

Liberty Hill Foundation’s annual Upton Sinclair Dinner celebrates and honors community leaders at the frontlines of change in Los Angeles and beyond. This year’s recipients of the namesake Upton Sinclair Award are co-creators and executive producers of Showtime’s award-winning series, “Homeland”, Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon. Political activist-philanthropists Alison Morgan and Parke Skelton will receive the Founder’s Award and award-winning television and film producer Charles F. Johnson will receive the Creative Vision Award.

The 2013 fundraising gala takes place on April 23 at the Beverly Hilton. Liberty Hill expects more than 600 friends, supporters, and allies to join in celebration of their 2013 honorees. All proceeds will support Liberty Hill’s mission of change, not charity. Through grants, training programs, and campaigns, Liberty Hill advances social justice in Los Angeles.

The Upton Sinclair award is given annually to a person whose lifelong crusade for equality and justice inspires us today. This year Liberty Hill is proud to present the award to two outstanding individuals, Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon, executive producers of “Homeland.” Friends and collaborators since their senior year at Princeton, Alex and Howard also worked together on television’s “Spenser for Hire,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The X-Files,” and “24.” Alex’s additional television credits include being executive producer and writer on “Dawson’s Creek,” and “Entourage,” as well as writing for numerous other television shows. Howard Gordon’s twenty-five-year career in television includes work on “Angel,” “Sisters,” “The Inside,” and “Strange World.”… Read More

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Filed Under: Charity, Events, Film, TV

Les Lutins du Court-Métrage Presents the Best French Short Films of 2012 at Theatre Raymond Kabbaz October 27

10/01/2012 by Susan von Seggern

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The performance space at Le Lycee Francais de Los Angeles, Theatre Raymond Kabbaz in partnership with the Alliance Française of Los Angeles is pleased to bring Les Lutins du Court-Métrage 2012 to Los Angeles as part of its public performing arts series for a presentation of a selection of the best French Short films of the year with English subtitles. There will be complimentary wine & cheese at intermission. The event will take place at the Theatre Raymond Kabbaz, 10361 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90064 on Tuesday October 27 at 7:30pm. Tickets are $15, or $10 for students. Tickets are available at http://bit.ly/cMAzTT.

Since 1998, the Lutins du Court-Métrage (Leprechauns of the Short Film) has been working to promote and disseminate French short films to a wider audience. More than 2,000 cinema professionals vote in a format inspired by the Césars (the Oscars of France) to determine the 25 best short films of the year, thereby bestowing upon them a mark of excellence. Supported by numerous partners, including the French Ministry of Culture, the French National Center of Cinematography (CNC), the mayor’s office of Paris, and the French National Theater of Chaillot, the Leprechauns of the short film participate in the discovery of young directors, actors and actresses who will be making the films of tomorrow. The Leprechauns, or, as they are known in French, les Lutins, have participated in the emergence of such filmmakers as François Ozon, and actors such as Jérémie Rénier, Ludivine Sagnier, Sylvie Testud and more.

Today, the Leprechauns strive to make young talents known in France and worldwide through a cinematic tour de France, so to speak, during which the best short films of the year are shown in cinemas and overseas spaces.… Read More

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