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Of all the unofficial holidays derived from an apocryphal bit police code, 4/20 is by far the most enduring. And just as “420” has gradually become entrenched as stoner shorthand for marijuana, the date April 20 has become an opportunity not just for college kids looking to indulge in a little extralegal fun, but also for drug law reformers and other advocacy groups to stump for a more reasonable national attitude toward America’s big green weed of choice.

And as marijuana laws have shifted over the years—from outright prohibition, to limited medicinal usage, to tightly regulated recreational use within certain states—marijuana themed movies have likewise evolved. Once upon a time, the only movies that even touched the subject of pot were hysterical propaganda pieces like Reefer Madness. Then, from the 1960s onward, weed became a popular (and hip) subject of broad comedy—in everything from Animal House to Annie Hall to Friday.

I am old enough to admit that the idea of legal marijuana dealers in the U.S. is a strange and bewildering thought. In the new film Green Is Gold, writer/director Ryon Baxter -- who also stars -- accepts that idea as a starting point for what looks like a very intriguing relationship drama about a man and his 13-year-old brother. We have an exclusive clip, showing the moment when our hero applies for a business license for his business, and then what happens from there is not quite what I expected. Here's the official synopsis: In Green Is Gold, a thirteen-year-old boy is forced to live with his estranged brother after their father is sent to prison. Their relationship is soon tested when the older...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

Keep up with the wild and wooly world of indie film acquisitions with our weekly Rundown of everything that’s been picked up around the globe. Check out last week’s Rundown here.

– Exclusive: Samuel Goldwyn Films has picked up the North American rights to the drama “Green Is Gold,” written and directed by Ryon Baxter and starring Jimmy Baxter, Ryon Baxter and David Fine. The film recently had its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival over the summer, where it won the Audience Award for Best Fiction Feature.

The film follows “a thirteen-year-old boy [who] is forced to live with his estranged brother after their father is sent to prison. Their relationship is soon tested when the older brother’s occupation as a marijuana dealer infringes on his ability not only to raise his brother, but to even take care of himself. However, through constant tribulation, they discover...

Indiewire can exclusively announce the first round of films from the Mill Valley Film Festival’s upcoming 39th edition, with a number of high-profile selections from Cannes (“I, Daniel Blake”), Sundance (“Manchester by the Sea”) and Berlin (“Things to Come”) leading the way. Mvff, which runs from October – 16 this year, will also host the premieres of several Bay Area filmmakers’ new works. See the full list below.

Read More: ‘Room’ Declared Audience Award Favorite at 38th Mill Valley Film Festival

“I, Daniel Blake” (Ken Loach)

“Loving” (Jeff Nichols)

“Paterson” and “Gimme Danger” (Jim Jarmusch)

“Neruda” (Pablo Larrain)

“Toni Erdmann” (Maren Ade)

“The Salesman” (Asghar Farhadi)

“The Handmaiden” (Park Chan-wook)

“Elle” (Paul Verhoeven)

“Like Crazy” (Paolo Virzi)

“Manchester by the Sea” (Kenneth Lonergan)

“Christine” (Antonio Campos)

“Maya Angelou and Still I Rise” (Bob Hercules, Rita Coburn Whack)

“Things to Come” (Mia Hansen Løve)

“Fire at Sea”(Giancarlo Rosi)

“Death in Sarajevo...

The film from Jonah Markowitz and Tracy Wares eatned the documentary award and the audience documentary award.

In other prizes handed out at the end of the festival on Thursday, the U.S. Fiction Award went to Remy Auberjonois for Blood Stripe, while the World Fiction Award was presented to Anaïs Volpé for Heis (chronicles).

As previously stated, the Documentary Award went to Markowitz and Wares for Political Animals, and the La Muse Award was presented to Heidi Saman for Namour.

The Nightfall Award went to Jackson Stewart for Beyond The Gates, while the Audience Award for Fiction Feature Film went to Green / is / Gold, directed by Ryon Baxter.

Markowitz and Wares also collected the Audience Award for Documentary Feature Film for Political Animals.

“With all the talk about diversifying Hollywood, the La Film Festival provides proof that talented film-makers with new voices are out there; they just need a platform and that’s what we’re providing...