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Award-Winning MEDEAS Filmmaker Andrea Pallaoro at the Music Hall for a Q&A Opening Night

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MEDEAS is an intimate portrait of a rural family’s inner lives and their relationship to a harsh and shifting landscape. Ennis, a stern, hard-working dairy farmer struggles to maintain control of his family and surrounding environment, while his wife, Christina, retreats into herself, progressively disconnecting from him and their five children. As tensions increase, each character must confront their yearnings and anxieties, culminating in a dangerous conflict between control and freedom, intimacy and alienation. A journey into the unpredictable boundaries of human behavior, MEDEAS explores the desperate lengths people are driven to by love and self-preservation.

The winner of the New Voices/New Visions Grand Jury Prize at the Palm Springs International Film Festival for MEDEAS , filmmaker Andrea Pallaoro also won the award for Best Director at the Marrakech International Film Festival and the Parajanov Prize for Best Visuals and Aesthetics at the Tbilisi International Film Festival. Additionally, Pallaoro won the UK-Italy Creative Industries Award for Best Innovative Budget at the Venice Film Festival.  Mr. Pallaoro will participate in a Q&A after the 7:30 PM screening at the Music Hall this Friday, March 20.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzGhcZTN64w

THE HUNTING GROUND Q&A at the Claremont 5 Saturday Night

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From the team behind The Invisible War, comes THE HUNTING GROUND, a startling exposé of rape crimes on U.S. campuses, institutional cover-ups and the brutal social toll on victims and their families. Weaving together verité footage and first-person testimonies, the film follows survivors as they pursue their education while fighting for justice – despite harsh retaliation, harassment and push-back at every level.

Kamilah Willingham and Occidental College professor and activist Caroline Heldman are two of the subjects of THE HUNTING GROUND and both will be participating in a Q&A after the 7:10 PM screening at the Claremont 5 on Saturday, March 21.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBNHGi36nlM

LOVE HUNTER Q&A’s this Weekend at the Music Hall

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In the 1990’s, singer-songwriter Milan Mumin, the lead singer of the hugely influential Serbian rock band Love Hunters, electrified and gave voice to a generation of Serbians fighting an oppressive regime. Now, after ten years, we find Milan in New York City, driving a taxi (long shifts and loopy fares), cobbling together funds for a recording session of his dream album—to be recorded and released in America. When his bass guitar player suddenly quits, he finds a talented but prickly replacement, and a romantic spark, in a free-spirited guitarist named Kim. Just as rehearsals start picking up steam, Milan’s longtime Serbian girlfriend Lela arrives with very different plans for their future—she wants him to come home to Serbia where his reputation will let him be anything he wants—but Milan is determined to make his recording in America, at any cost.

We are pleased to open LOVE HUNTER, which the New York Times recently called “one of the most refreshing New York independent features since Ramin Bahrani’s ‘Man Push Cart,” this Friday at the Music Hall Theater. Filmmakers Nemanja Bala and Brane Bala, along with actress Jelena Stupljanin, will participate in Q&A’s after the 7:30 PM screenings Friday through Sunday, March 13, 14 and 15.

http://vimeo.com/111320885

STRAIGHT OUTTA TOMPKINS Q&A’s Opening Weekend at the NoHo

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In STRAIGHT OUTTA TOMPKINS, Zephyr Benson stars as a forlorn teenager abandoned in New York City who mistakes the welcoming embrace of a Lower East Side drug dealer for the love of family. Quickly falling in with a fast crowd and surfing a high of mixology, pills and the absurdity of the party lifestyle, he quickly learns that these friends come with a price. This film hopes to shine a light on the reality of being a teenager in America these days. With more and more teenagers arriving from overseas to study in America, they are experiencing these issues. Many of them are unaware of the laws and legislation in this country, so they are getting involved with the wrong sort of people.

In America, a lot of underage students will try and experience the nightlife long before they are legally supposed to. With the help of fake IDs, more teenagers are getting into clubs easily. It’s become a lot easier to access a fake ID these days. By just searching how to get fake id online, teenagers will be provided with multiple websites that offer these IDs, allowing them into clubs. Of course, underage drinking isn’t advised, but many people do it. Similarly, many teenagers in America experience drug use and other things at a young age, especially if they mix with the wrong crowds.

This film focuses on the issues that teenagers face in America. Hopefully, people will relate to this story and they should enjoy it when it’s released.
We open STRAIGHT OUTTA TOMPKINS this Friday at the NoHo 7. Writer-director-lead actor Zephyr Benson and producer David Rudd will participate in Q&A’s after the 7:50 PM screening on Saturday, March 7th and after the 3:20 screening on Sunday, March 8th. Hopefully, people will enjoy it and share it with their friends.

http://vimeo.com/109762136

DELI MAN Q&A’s at the Royal Opening Weekend

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Jewish culture reflects the heart of a vital ethnic history. As that culture continues to shift and adapt alongside mainstream America, delicatessen food – as its name suggests – remains a beloved communal delicacy. In Houston, Texas, third-generation deli man Ziggy Gruber has built arguably the finest delicatessen restaurant in the U.S. His story – augmented by the stories of iconic delis such as Katz’s, 2nd Avenue Deli, Nate ‘n Al, Carnegie, and the Stage – embodies a tradition indelibly linked to its savory, nostalgic foods.

DELI MAN is the documentary about this culinary tradition and we open the film this Friday at the Royal and Town Center; March 13th at the Playhouse; and March 20th at the Claremont. Ziggy Gruber, owner of Ziggy’s Deli in Houston and the star of DELI MAN will participate in Q&A’s at the Royal opening weekend: after the 7:45 PM screening on Friday, March 6th and after the 3:15 screening on Saturday the 7th. Plus he’ll introduce the 5:30 screening on Saturday. Publicist Ziggy Kozlowski of Block-Korenbrot will moderate the Friday night Q&A; Los Angeles Film Critics Association President Stephen Farber will moderate Saturday afternoon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCXTJGIpY7k

CHAMPS Q&A at the NoHo with the Filmmaker, Heavyweight Champion Evander Holyfield and Adam Carolla

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Built around the stories of heavyweight boxing legends Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield and Bernard Hopkins, who open up about their lives and careers as never before, CHAMPS balances these uncensored recollections with gorgeous reenactments, classic fight footage, and candid interviews with famous fans. More than just a sports documentary, CHAMPS examines what it means to pursue the American Dream through boxing, painting a picture of a controversial and unregulated sport in a moment of crisis.

We are pleased to open CHAMPS at our North Hollywood theater on Friday, March 13. Mr. Holyfield, along with filmmaker Bert Marcus, will participate in Q&A’s after the 7:10 PM screening on Sunday, March 15. Radio host, filmmaker and comedian Adam Carolla will moderate.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9u3wGqwodeY

EVERLY Filmmaker and Actors with Free Autographed Posters at the Music Hall February 28

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In the new action-suspense-thriller EVERLY, Salma Hayek stars as a woman who faces down assassins sent by her ex, a mob boss, while holed up in her apartment. We open EVERLY at the Music Hall on February 27 and on Saturday, February 28 the director Joe Lynch, along with cast members Gabriella Wright, Akie Kotabe, Jen Blanc-Biehn and Caroline Chikezie and co-producer Brett Hedblom, will introduce the 9:55 PM screening and participate in a Q&A afterward, as well as autograph and give away EVERLY posters to the first 30 ticket buyers who take and post a picture of the event and tag themselves, @everlymovie and @musichall on social media.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCWXWgg5H9g

EVERLY Filmmaker and Actors with Free Autographed Posters at the Music Hall February 28

EVERLY Filmmaker and Actors with Free Autographed Posters at the Music Hall February 28

Election Day: Get Out and Vote or Get Out the Vote on March 3rd

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This Tuesday, March 3rd is the 2015 City of Los Angeles Municipal Election Day and there are a lot of races to decide: We’re looking at open offices for Council Districts 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 14; LAUSD Districts 1, 3, 5, and 7; and LACCD Seats 1, 3, 5, and 7.  Get out and vote and if you already voted or didn’t need reminding, look around you to see if there’s someone you know who hasn’t voted or does need reminding. L.A. County in particular has terrible voter turn-out — 31% last time! — and there are some good ideas being discussed to better that, but in the meantime, nagging will have to do. :)

Election Day: Get Out and Vote or Get Out the Vote on March 3rd
A man votes at St. Anthony Grand Lodge in South Los Angeles. (Christina House, For The L.A. Times)