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"I want to find my sister... not rid the world of evil." 4Digital Media has revealed an official trailer for an indie horror thriller film titled Winter Island, the feature directorial debut of filmmaker Tony Doupé. This premiered at a few horror festivals already earlier this year, and it'll be out to watch on VOD in the US in Spetember just before October's horror season. When a young girl is found dead on a small, wooded island, her teenage brother's postmortem visions point to an evil presence within their own family. He soon comes across eerie, potentially supernatural phenomena and begins to suspect the worst. The horror stars Elijah Carnazzo as Galen, Jason Adkins, Ashlyn Harlos, Katie Prentiss. Early reviews describe the film as "a classic ghost story in the tradition of some of the best titles the subgenre has to offer." The trailer pretty clearly hints at the religious undertones within this story,...

Written and directed by Andrew Finnegan, Indican Pictures will release Simple Creature on Blu-ray and DVD on July 25th. A modern retelling of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”, the film stars Carollani Sandberg, D’Angelo Madili, Russell Hodgkinson, Alycia Delmore, Tony Doupé and Hans Altwies. “Techie college student, Em (Carollani Sandberg) heads home for holiday break, blissfully thinking […]...

Tagline: “We Make Better Humans.” Indican Pictures will begin the experiment with Andrew Finnigan's Simple Creature this summer. This thriller involves: the protagonist, a terrible crash and new technology. All three elements lead to a permanent change in Em (Carollani Sandberg). The film also stars: D'Angelo Madili (The Invoking), Russell Hodgkinson ("Z Nation"), Alycia Delmore and Tony Doupé. And, the official trailer, for Simple Creature, is here. The film's synopsis talks of a holiday break. Em, while travelling, is involved in a brutal crash. Her father is a scientist, with access to life-changing technology. Now, Em has a chance to piece her body and mind together, but she has turned into something else. The film's official artwork is hosted above. It shows Em undergoing her change. Part technology and part human, Em will chill audiences this July 25th. On this date, Simple Creature will be available on DVD and VOD,...

*full disclosure: an online screener of this film was provided by an anonymous source. Director writer: Nathan Hendrickson. Cast: Kate Alden, Jesse James, Chelsea Farthing, Tony Doupe and Tonya Skoog. The Hollow One is a horror film from Nathan Hendrickson. Hendrickson has come from a video game development background and The Hollow One is this director's first film. This indie title is currently on the film festival circuit, with a recent appearance at the Seattle International Film Festival. In the film, a family struggles to overcome a being, made of nothingness. But, love does not always conquer the void, in horror. As the film's theme struggles to take hold, a creepy atmosphere develops in an old barn and farmhouse. Mostly shot at night, the film's tone is consistent. Unfortunately, many other film elements struggle to find affect. The Hollow One is a mostly enjoyable feature, which suffers from the introduction...

Indie supernatural horror film The Hollow One is one of those movies that seems to get everything right, and yet somehow it just doesn't add up to anything remarkable. Could it possibly be a case where the end product just doesn’t live up to the promise of its trailer? Perhaps this writer’s expectations were just too high for such a promising premise. In any event, as it pertains to The Hollow One, let’s just say that the sum of its parts is greater than the whole. More on this later, but first, what’s it all about?

Rachel (Kate Alden) and her younger sister Anna (Chelsea Farthing) seem to live an idyllic life in a small farming village with their parents, Michael (Tony Doupe) and Linda (Tonya Skoog), but things change one fateful night when Mic [Continued ...]...

See the trailer for The Off Hours, starring Amy Seimetz, Ross Partridge, Lynn Shelton and Scoot McNairy. Megan Griffiths directs as well as writing the screenplay for the indie film, drawing complex characters and staying true to them, respecting their shortcomings and yearnings for connection. The film premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim and also stars Tony Doupe, Bret Roberts and Gergana Mellin. You're awake when everyone else is asleep. You're standing still as traffic is whipping by at 70mph. Your off hours are spent trying to figure out why you're here, whether you want to stay, and how to leave. In The Off Hours, Amy Seimetz (Tiny Furniture) alluringly commands the screen as Francine, a waitress whose liberation from her mundane existence is long overdue. In the dreamlike and restless world of the night shift at a highway diner, Francine's life consists of casual encounters and transient.

See the trailer for The Off Hours, starring Amy Seimetz, Ross Partridge, Lynn Shelton and Scoot McNairy. Megan Griffiths directs as well as writing the screenplay for the indie film, drawing complex characters and staying true to them, respecting their shortcomings and yearnings for connection. The film premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim and also stars Tony Doupe, Bret Roberts and Gergana Mellin. You're awake when everyone else is asleep. You're standing still as traffic is whipping by at 70mph. Your off hours are spent trying to figure out why you're here, whether you want to stay, and how to leave. In The Off Hours, Amy Seimetz (Tiny Furniture) alluringly commands the screen as Francine, a waitress whose liberation from her mundane existence is long overdue. In the dreamlike and restless world of the night shift at a highway diner, Francine's life consists of casual encounters and transient.

Why Watch? This look at interwoven lives brought together by a gas station robbery asks the tough question of what happens to humanity when a slip of paper is tossed into the mix. In this case, the piece of paper happens to be a winning lottery ticket. Something so small, can change the course of violence. It’s a tight, yet fairly predictable exercise in human nature, but it’s best feature is undoubtedly Rider Strong. The guy from Boy Meets World is in this thing. Seriously. Check it out. Plus, festival favorite Lynn Shelton (Humpday) has a small but important role. What Will It Cost? Just fifteen minutes of your time. Does it get better any better than that? Only if we bought you a winning lotto ticket while you watched. Check out Your Lucky Day for yourself: Your Lucky Day (2010) Written and Directed By: Dan Brown Starring: Rider Strong, Lynn Shelton...

Good things come to those who wait, as writer-director Megan Griffiths will attest. The debut feature from the Seattle-based filmmaker, The Off-Hours, was seven years in the making before it finally went into production last spring. Inspired by Griffiths’ own experiences working the night shift, this moody, atmospheric indie captures the lives of the people who frequent a diner in a nowhere truckstop town, including pretty young waitress Francine (Amy Seimetz), her foster brother Corey (Scoot McNairy), soft-spoken truck driver Oliver (Ross Partridge), and alcoholic diner owner Stu (Tony Doupe). There are also cameos from fellow directors Lynn Shelton (whose Humpday stormed Sundance in 2009, and who is a consulting producer on this film) and Calvin Reeder, who also has his first feature, The Oregonian, playing in Park City this January.

In addition to The Off-Hours, Griffiths has another film at Sundance this year as she is one of the producers...

Check out this featurette for The Off Hours, featuring behind-the-scenes interviews with cast and production. The Off Hours is directed by Megan Griffiths and stars Amy Seimetz, Ross Partridge, Tony Doupe, Scoot McNairy, Lynn Shelton and Gergana Mellin.

About The Off Hours:

You’re awake when everyone else is asleep. You’re standing still as traffic is whipping by at 70mph. Your off hours are spent trying to figure out why you’re here, whether you want to stay, and how to leave. In The Off Hours, Amy Seimetz (Tiny Furniture) alluringly commands the screen as Francine, a waitress whose liberation from her mundane existence is long overdue. In the restless world of the night shift at a highway diner, Francine’s life consists of casual encounters and transient friendships. What she wants is out of reach–or is it that she’s lost track of wanting anything at all?...

Last year, to much hype about the future of film festivals bringing films into people’s homes over the Internet, the Sundance Film Festival launched Next, a curated series of 8 “innovative” and “low-budget” films that also played on YouTube — for a price — for the duration of the fest.

As an innovative program, Next proved to be largely disappointing — to the indie film industry anyway, not to the filmmakers themselves. Getting into Sundance is a cachet for any filmmaker in and of itself, so that was bonus for these films. However, during the fest at the time, many film bloggers and writers complained that the Next films were impossible to find on YouTube. Plus, the entire program didn’t end up turning the industry or the current film festival paradigm on its ear, and financially it sounded like it was all a big bust.

But, Next, or as the festival also...

After announcing the 58 films in four categories that would be eligible for awards at Sundance, the film fest has now announced the next 57 movies to be screened this coming January. These 57 films are of course out of competition and will be included in Premieres, Next, Spotlight, New Frontiers and Midnight categories. Most are big name projects from already established filmmakers and some have already made their way around film festival in 2010. The list includes Kevin Smith’s Red State, Tom McCarthy’s Win Win, Morgan Spurlock’s documentary The Greatest Movie Ever Sold, Submarine, I Saw the Devil (which had plenty of buzz at Tiff) and my most anticipated film of 2011, Hobo With a Shotgun.

Here is the full list:

Premieres

To showcase the diversity of contemporary independent cinema, the Sundance Film Festival Premieres section offers the latest work from American and international directors as well as world premieres of highly anticipated films.

Festival Adds New Native Showcase

As Previously Announced, Slacker to Screen From the Collection

Park City, Ut – Sundance Institute announced today the lineup of films selected to screen in the 2011 Sundance Film Festival out-of-competition sections Next (<=>), Spotlight, New Frontier, Park City at Midnight, as well as a new Native Showcase. The 2011 Sundance Film Festival runs January 20-30 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah. The complete list of films is available at http://www.sundance.org/festival/.

Trevor Groth, Director of Programming said, “The Sundance Film Festival is uniquely a festival of discovery and we are once again privileged to showcase the work of talented new artists, including a special section devoted to Native filmmakers. But it’s also exciting to see returning directors honing their skills and emerging with dazzling new films. And the Next section highlights visionary work that shows aesthetic creativity is not limited by budget.

Yes, you read that right, they are out of competition but into lesbians courtesy of the midnight lineup.

What do we have to look forward to waiting two years for? Let's see..

Hobo With a Shotgun

Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same (you had me at lesbian)

Attenberg (I'm loving the coming Greek weird wave)

And many many more films, some of which we'll probably never get to see. Damn.

Full list after the break.

Next ()

Eight American films selected for their innovative and original work in low- and no-budget filmmaking. Each is a world premiere.

Bellflower / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Evan Glodell) - A ballad for every person who has ever loved and lost - with enough violence, weapons, action and sex to tell a love story with apocalyptic stakes. Cast: Evan Glodell, Jessie Wiseman, Tyler Dawson, Rebekah Brandes.

The Lie / U.S.A. (Director: Joshua Leonard; Screenwriters: Jeff Feuerzeig,...

Following yesterday's announcement of the U.S. and World Cinema Dramatic and Documentary Competitions, the Sundance Film Festival has unveiled the second part of their lineup, which includes the more starry-eyed Premieres section, the best-of-fests Spotlight section, the sure-to-be-culty Park City at Midnight section, the low-budget Next section, and the more experimental New Frontier section (an extension of New Frontier Program, the collection of video art installations which has already been noted here for playing James Franco's dramatic multimedia examination of "Three's Company.")

In addition to the return of filmmakers like "Chuck & Buck"'s Miguel Arteta, "Clockwatchers" director Jill Sprecher, Kevin Smith and "The Station Agent"'s Thomas McCarthy to Park City, the festival will also welcome less frequent or first-time Sundance attendees such as Hollywood types Al Pacino ("Son of No One") and Tobey Maguire ("The Details") and mumblecore alums Joe Swanberg ("Uncle Kent," which announced it's been...

Now in it's second year, Sundance's Next section which helps put the spotlight on low and no-budget films is stacked with familiar names and faces and of the eight we predicted Andrew Dosunmu's Restless City and Joshua Leonard's The Lie. Here are the list of eight world premieres. Bellflower /U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Evan Glodell) A ballad for every person who has ever loved and lost – with enough violence, weapons, action and sex to tell a love story with apocalyptic stakes. Cast: Evan Glodell, Jessie Wiseman, Tyler Dawson, Rebekah Brandes. The Lie /U.S.A. (Director: Joshua Leonard; Screenwriters: Jeff Feuerzeig, Joshua Leonard, Mark Webber and Jess Weixler, based on the short story by T. Coraghessan Boyle) A man overwhelmed and disappointed with life tells a lie to avoid going to work… what could possibly go wrong? Cast: Joshua Leonard, Jess Weixler, Mark Webber, Alia Shawkat,...

The Sundance Film Festival announced the in competition film line-up for the film festival running January 20th through January 30th 2011 in Park City, Utah.

Today the festival has announced the line-up for the non-competition films and there is one hell of a line-up! There are a ton of great films that will be premiering at the festival, and if you're going you have a lot of great films to choose from!

Each film has an incredible cast and a great story. These films include Cedar Rapids, about a man traveling to an insurance conference, featuring Ed Helms, John C. Reilly and Sigourney Weaver; Kevin Smith's Red State, about a group of misfits encounter extreme fundamentalism in Middle America; The Details, about domestic tensions spawned by raccoons with Tobey Maguire, Elizabeth Banks, Laura Linney, Ray Liotta, Dennis Haysbert; I Melt With You, starring Thomas Jane, Jeremy Piven, Rob Lowe, Christian McKay,...

Well, yesterday, we saw the full list of films in-competition; today, we get to see those titles that have been selected for Sundance 2011′s out-of-competition lineup.

And as I said with yesterday’s post, I’ll be going over the complete list, highlighting titles that need to be, taking into consideration this blog’s specific interests. The only title that immediately stands out is Brit John Akomfrah’s The Nine Muses, which MsWOO positively reviewed, after seeing it at the London Film Festival in October. Read her review Here.

But look for future posts profiling any other titles I deem worthy. I’ve applied for press credentials to attend next year’s festival. I won’t know until the 23rd of this month, whether I’ve been granted press access or not. If I am, I will attend the festival; and if I’m not, well, I probably won’t.

Well, if the Competition titles at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival don't generate any early year Oscar buzz, I think it's safe to say the Out of Competition titles will. Several films that have already been seen and positively reviewed can be found in the fest's Spotlight Line-Up along with a batch of anticipated hopefuls in the Premiere Section.

Beginning with the festival's premieres, Miguel Arteta (Youth in Revolt) is bringing Cedar Rapids to Park City where it will debut before it hits theaters only a couple weeks later on February 11. "Big Love" co-producers, Jill and Karen Sprecher are bringing an impressive cast for their crime drama The Convincer. Jacob Aaron Estes's The Details, which was shot only a few miles from my house in the Queen Anne district of Seattle, arrives with Elizabeth Banks, Laura Linney and Tobey Maguire in tow.

Mark Pellington (The Mothman Prophecies) will debut I Melt with You,...

Wednesday, the 2011 Sundance Film Festival announced the 58 films in four categories [1] that would be eligible for awards. Today, they've announced the next slice of their line up - 57 out of competition films in the Premieres, Next, Spotlight, New Frontiers and Midnight categories. This is generally where you get many of the bigger name projects and this year is no exception. We already knew [2] that Kevin Smith's Red State would be on the list, but there's also Tom McCarthy's new film Win Win, Morgan Spurlock's documentary The Greatest Movie Ever Sold, the highly buzzed-about Submarine, Fantastic Fest darling I Saw the Devil as well as Hobo With a Shotgun and a whole bunch more including films with Al Pacino, Tobey Maguire, Jeremy Piven, Kevin Spacey, Demi Moore, Paul Rudd and others. As we said yesterday, the announcement of the movies playing the 2011 Sundance Film Festival is like looking into our film futures.

Yesterday we revealed the in-competition line-up for this years Sundance Film Festival. Today the programmers have announced the second wave, the out-of-competition line-up. It includes six categories and you can check them all out below. We already knew Kevin Smith‘s Red State would be screening, as he announced on his podcast last night. The rest of this out-of-competition line-up is pretty unbelievable.

We get Cedar Rapids (from Youth In Revolt‘s Miguel Arteta), Mark Pellington‘s I Melt With You, My Idiot Brother starring Paul Rudd, Tom McCarthy‘s Win Win, as well as Dito Montiel‘s third feature The Son of No One. We also have new documentaries by Morgan Spurlock and Eugene Jarecki. Some of my favorite Tiff films are also making an appearance, including Submarine (pictured above) and Meek’s Cutoff. Check it out below.

Premieres

To showcase the diversity of contemporary independent cinema, the Sundance...

We got our hands on a pretty cool clip from the upcoming slasher flick Frayed the offers a car chase and the first reveal of the killer! What's better than that?

Co-directed and written by Rob Portmann and Norb Caoili and co-written by producer Kurt Svennungsen, Frayed tells the tale of small town sheriff Pat Baker (Tony Doupe), who is facing a worst case scenario: His insane son, who offed his mother 13 years ago, has escaped from a mental asylum and is loose in the woods where Baker's daughter (Alena Dashiell) is camping. To no one's surprise, the masked psycho gets right back into the killing groove, with the suspense and wanton bloodshed accelerating all the way to an unnerving climax in this gripping thriller.

For more visit the official Frayed website here, and look for the flick on DVD on August 25 (pre-order below).

Frayed - Clip 1

Uploaded by dreadcentral.

A slasher thriller from Lionsgate will be released on DVD this August 25 and "Frayed" will offer a new twist to the genre with a young child developing into a matricidal killer. Shot in dark tones "Frayed" now offers a glimpse of the villain in this first one-sheet and trailer. Not to be missed in the summer this film is a true horror piece with a restricted rating attached for several violent scenes. Have a look at the ominous looking trailer inside.

Here is a brief synopsis for "Frayed:"

"Small-town sheriff Pat Baker (Tony Doupe) is facing a worst-case scenario: His insane son, who offed his mother 13 years ago, has escaped from a mental asylum and is loose in the woods where Baker's daughter (Alena Dashiell) is camping. To no one's surprise, the masked psycho gets right back into the killing groove, with the suspense and wanton bloodshed accelerating all...

Who reading this has ever had a crazy friggin' sibling? I did. Every time my brother borrowed shit from me, I'd get it back "fixed", if I even got it back at all. Considering nothing was ever broken when I gave it to him, this was most troubling. In any event I guess I'm lucky that was the extent of it because Lionsgate's new film Frayed is set to show audiences how frightening brotherly love can be!

Co-directed and written by Rob Portmann and Norb Caoili and co-written by producer Kurt Svennungsen, Frayed tells the tale of small town sheriff Pat Baker (Tony Doupe), who is facing a worst case scenario: His insane son, who offed his mother 13 years ago, has escaped from a mental asylum and is loose in the woods where Baker's daughter (Alena Dashiell) is camping. To no one's surprise, the masked psycho gets right back into the killing groove,...