VFF15 FEATURE FILM SELECTIONS
(Listed in Alphabetical Order)
Directed by Robert Rippberger
A documentary feature unlike any other as Newsweek Middle East editor, Janine di Giovanni, risks it all to show us the human side of war.
ACTOR FOR HIRE (Comedy/90 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Marcus Mizelle
Being a bald, out of work actor and desperate to be seen, Jesse discovers the power of persona in the form of a cheap wig. Wearing a part to play the part can be hairy business in this industry satire where status, celebrity, and friendship are all on the line.
ALL IN TIME (Dramatic Comedy/97 mins/2014/USA)
Directed by Chris Fetchko and Marina Donahue
Charlie quits his job in New York to move home to Pennsylvania to manage his favorite hometown rock band, firmly believing the band’s glory days are ahead of them. His supportive girlfriend shares his love for the band, but the band’s guitarist, who has experienced the harsh reality of the music business, doesn’t share Charlie’s wide-eyed optimism. His attitude derails Charlie’s best efforts to bring the band success and sends Charlie spiraling into an emotional, financial, and romantic tailspin. Charlie hits rock bottom when he loses both the band and his girlfriend, but gets some unexpected help from his elderly neighbor who sets him back on his path.
BONED (Comedy/84 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Laura Lee Bahr
A struggling actress must play the role of a detective in order to save an adorable Maltese puppy from a murderous group of Goth thugs, a Devilish Dominatrix, and a handsome, lying doctor.
CONGO BEAT THE DRUM (Documentary/57 mins/2014/Israel)
Directed by Ariel Tagar
Two musicians from Tel Aviv travel to Jamaica to record an album with forgotten reggae artists from the past. The film follows Ariel Tagar (Kalbata) and Uri Wertheim (Mixmonster), from their basement studio in Tel Aviv, all the way to the Kingston ghettos, looking for their favourite singers of days gone by. In Jamaica, they encounter a strange, often challenging culture while trying to achieve their goal. A unique musical journey into the forgotten corners of reggae of the seventies and eighties, and a rare glimpse into the smoky, dusty world of Rub-a-Dub and its past champions.
DIRTY BEAUTIFUL (Dramatic Comedy/95 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Tim Bartell
A lonely artist brings a young, drifter woman back to his tiny apartment to live with him. Between his obsessive tendencies and her non-stop drinking, something strange happens…they start to care for each other.
IT PLAYS LIKE LOVE (Dramatic Comedy/70 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Jeremy Waltman and Adam Lucas
A theatre company unravels when its director casts his two lead actors, both working to save their broken marriage, in a self-indulgent play that makes them recreate the director's recently-failed relationship.
SLINGSHOT (Documentary/90 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Paul Lazarus
A quirky genius with a sharp wit and a provocative worldview, Dean Kamen is our era’s Thomas Edison. He takes on the world’s grand challenges one invention at a time. Best known for his Segway Human Transporter, Kamen has reconceived kidney dialysis, engineered an electric wheelchair that can travel up stairs (the iBot), reworked the heart stent, built portable insulin pumps, founded FIRST robotics to inspire young students, and on and on. Holder of over 440 U.S. and foreign patents, Kamen devotes himself to dreaming up products that improve people’s lives. For the last 15 years, he has relentlessly pursued an effective way to clean up the world’s water supply. SlingShot focuses on Segway inventor Dean Kamen, his fascinating life, and his work to solve the world’s water crisis.Facebook || Twitter || Trailer
THE WRISTWATCH (Drama/88mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Gino Gaetano and Devin Dilmore
Four characters lives are transformed when they come into contact with a supernatural wristwatch that reveals the light and darkness within and brings forth a higher level of consciousness.
The 2015 Valley Film Festival runs October 21-25 at Laemmle NoHo7. Full schedule and tickets available shortly.
