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Pixar and Studio Ghibli tend to spring to mind first when discussing great animation, but there’s a world beyond those two giants. Animated films have grown ever more artful and affecting as more and more folks realize that it’s never just been a medium for kids, with studios and indies alike creating stop-motion marvels, hand-drawn standouts, and CGI spectacles.

The genre has grown so much since we entered the current century, in fact, that it can be easy to forget the Academy Awards didn’t even recognize animation until 2001. As few as three movies were nominated per year until 2010, but since then animation’s increased prominence has been reflected in the race’s competitiveness. Not every worthy movie could make the cut on either the awards circuit or this list, sadly, but rest assured that “How to Train Your Dragon,” “The Secret of Kells,” “The Breadwinner,” and “Loving Vincent,...

Animator Nina Paley’s wit and imagination provide such unique delights that it seems almost churlish to complain that her second feature feels more like a tray of hors d’oeuvres than a full meal — even if it’s inspired by the traditional ritual feast of Passover Seder. But “Seder-Masochism” plays as considerably less of an organic whole than her prior “Sita Sings the Blues,” no doubt in large part because its concept evolved over several years’ course, during which some individual parts were released as standalone shorts.

Nonetheless, this antic nonbeliever’s take on the Book of Exodus is so full of invention that, moment-to-moment, its somewhat disjointed and episodic nature is easy to forgive. Even more than with “Sita,” music rights issues (Paley is a professed “open source activist” and “copyright abolitionist”) will complicate any prospective commercial distribution. But as that film ultimately found a substantial audience despite such hurdles,...

A playfully irreverent jukebox musical that overlays Old Testament icons, autobiographical asides and well-known pops tunes, “Seder-Masochism” was always going to cause a stir. With her follow-up to 2008’s similarly ambitious “Sita Sings the Blues,” director Nina Paley delivers a feminist corrective to some foundational biblical myths that doubles as a sly commentary on Jewish-American identity.

Though the filmmaker will not be on hand to present the film at its world premiere this Monday, she’s created the one-size-fits-all Producer X title for whoever volunteers to represent the film throughout its festival life. Her friend Chantelle Hougland will represent the film in Annecy, and the filmmaker sent her stand-in with message for prospective buyers. “If they approach her,” says Paley, “I asked her to remind them that I’m a copyright abolitionist and a free culture activist. So if they’re still interested after that, then we should talk…”

How...

After naming Alfonso Cuarón the best-reviewed filmmaker of the 21st century and Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer the worst, Metacritic’s next list explores the 25 best movies directed by women. Unsurprisingly, Kathryn Bigelow takes both the #1 and #2 spots with “Zero Dark Thirty” and “The Hurt Locker,” respectively.

Read MoreAlfonso Cuarón Is the Best Director of the 21st Century, According to Metacritic — See the Top 25

Bigelow became the first woman to win the Academy Award for Best Director with the latter, a painfully tense drama about the Iraq War. (Her latest, “Detroit,” just misses the list by a few points.) Ava DuVernay also shows up twice (with “Selma” and “13th”), as does Sarah Polley (“Away from Her” and “Stories We Tell”), while the likes of Sofia Coppola, Mia Hansen-Løve, and Maren Ade are represented as well. Here’s the data-driven review aggregator’s full list:

Read MoreUwe Boll Isn’t the...

The Oscar for best animated short film may not generate nearly as much attention as other categories, but it strikes an exciting contrast with the more traditional forms of storytelling found throughout other categories.

These films usually celebrate animators from around the world — including a number of up-and-comers — who apply a range of visual techniques and sophisticated concepts only possible in the animated medium. This year is entirely North American, but still features a lot of different approaches — and yet, ironically, the frontrunner in the category is a very familiar name: Pixar.

Read More: 2017 Oscar Nominated Documentary Shorts Review: Humanity Prevails in This Politically Charged Group

Fortunately, the company’s latest short deserves the hype. Of course, just landing a nomination helps bring additional attention to these titles, and anyone seeking them out will discover an exciting range of experiences. While this isn’t the strongest list of nominees in recent years,...

Read More: Salma Hayek's Animated Passion Project 'Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet' Acquired by Gkids "The Prophet" by Lebanese author Kahlil Gibran, is among the most popular pieces of poetry in the world. Now, the animators behind such masterpieces as "The Lion King," "The Secret of Kells" and "Song of the Sea" have brought the story to animated life, and Gkids, the film's distributor, has just debuted a stunning new U.S. trailer.  Produced and spearheaded by Salma Hayek, "Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet" was an official selection at Cannes and made its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. The script was written by Roger Allers ("The Lion King") and blends together individual sequences based on Gibrain's poems. Each segment is animated by a different filmmaker, including Tomm Moore ("The Secret of Kells," "Song of the Sea"), Nina Paley ("Sita Sings the Blues")...

Gkids, the American distributor behind 2015 animated Oscar nominees "The Tale of the Princess Kaguya" and "Song of the Sea," will release "Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet" in NY and La on August 7 before expanding wide the following week. This animated telling of Gibran's bestselling 1923 book, which premiered at Cannes, unfolds through standalone chapters by ten directors including Tomm Moore ("Song of the Sea"), Nina Paley ("Sita Sings the Blues") and Bill Plympton ("Cheatin'"). Co-producer Salma Hayek fought hard to bring the celebrated Lebanese poet's work to the screen, and helped close this deal. Salma Hayek on Why She's Passionate About "Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet" The voice cast includes Liam Neeson, Salma Hayek, Quvenzhané Wallis, John Krasinski, Frank Langella and Alfred Molina. The score is by Oscar winner Gabriel Yared (The English Patient), with additional music by songwriters Damien...

Youngsters and oldsters alike…here is the reel deal: The New York International Children’s Film Festival (Nyicff) will be making its presence known in the upcoming days. On tap for the 18th annual event will be a noted variety of creative animated films and shorts for all ages to enjoy and relish. The New York International Children’s Film Festival promises to serve up an array of animated showcases that boasts all styles and formats that should prove imaginative and appealing to our past and present childhood memories.

Please note that the Nyicff will run its operation from February 27, 2015 to March 22, 2015. Additionally, the majority of these impressive feature-length and short films have experienced critical acclaim overseas. Therefore, the impact of the Nyicff’s cinematic selections should be rewarding for ardent fans of animated film fodder designed to capture the spirit of its enthusiastic viewers.

Among the films being displayed...

Sketchy welcomes back Nafeeza Hussain to discuss Nina Paley’s 2009 animated feature “Sita Sings The Blues” featuring the lovely voice of Annette Hanshaw. Enjoy!

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Daddy Won’t You Please Come Home

by Annette Hanshaw

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The post Sketchy Episode 155 – ‘Sita Sings The Blues’ appeared first on Sound On Sight.

Gkids, the American distributor behind 2015 animated Oscar nominees "The Tale of the Princess Kaguya" and "Song of the Sea," has picked up North American rights to "Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet." This animated telling of Gibran's bestselling 1923 book played the festival circuit, including a Cannes premiere, last year. It has been slated for a summer 2015 release. The film unfolds across standalone chapters by ten directors including Tomm Moore ("Song of the Sea"), Nina Paley ("Sita Sings the Blues") and Bill Plympton ("Cheatin'"). Co-producer Salma Hayek fought hard to bring the celebrated Lebanese poet's work to the screen, and helped close this deal. Watch: Salma Hayek on Why She's Passionate About "Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet" The voice cast includes Liam Neeson, Salma Hayek, Quvenzhané Wallis, John Krasinski, Frank Langella and Alfred Molina. The score is by Oscar winner Gabriel Yared (The English...

Gkids, a distributor of award-winning animation for both adult and family audiences, has acquired the North American rights to "Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet," a film inspired by the beloved classic book by Kahlil Gibran.  The gorgeously-animated story was crafted in a collaboration with artists, animators and musicians. The film was written and directed by Roger Allers ("The Lion King"), and individual "chapters" based on Gibran's poems have been designed and directed by various acclaimed animators from around the world, including Tomm Moore (Oscar nominee for "The Secret of Kells" and "Song of the Sea"), Joan Gratz (Oscar winner for "Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase"),  Bill Plympton (Oscar nominee for "Guard Dog" and "Your Face"), Nina Paley (Annecy winner for "Sita Sings the Blues"), Joann Sfar (Cesar winner for "The Rabbi's Cat"), Paul and Gaetan Brizzi...

Adaptation and appropriation are important subtexts to Nina Paley’s award-winning animated epic, Sita Sings the Blues. Paley herself became a cause célèbre among Fair Use activists seeking reforms to copyright law during her struggle to secure rights to jazz vocalist Annette Hanshaw’s recordings. With this video essay, I look at how Paley took inspiration from both the tragic story of Sita in the Ramayana and Annette Hanshaw's bittersweet torch songs to deal with her own breakup>>> - Kevin B. Lee...

Adaptation and appropriation are important subtexts to Nina Paley’s award-winning animated epic, Sita Sings the Blues. Paley herself became a cause célèbre among Fair Use activists seeking reforms to copyright law during her struggle to secure rights to jazz vocalist Annette Hanshaw’s recordings. With this video essay, I look at how Paley took inspiration from both the tragic story of Sita in the Ramayana and Annette Hanshaw's bittersweet torch songs to deal with her own breakup>>> - Kevin B. Lee...

Why Watch? In the spectrum of using an inappropriate platform to deliver an important social message, this short film from Nina Paley (Sita Sings the Blues) reaches Monty Python levels of purity and dedication. Eschewing the typically dry, somber way that profound conflict is often portrayed (while utilizing the absurdity of action movie violence), This Land is Mine strips away everything except murderous domination in order to color a history of a land with many names. Israel, Palestine, The Levant. This short doesn’t exactly offer illumination on the current crisis happening in Gaza, but it condenses thousands of years to show one angle on and beyond the devastation. Again, wacky animation with Andy Williams boldly crooning “The Exodus Song” and a body count rising is a teaching method with teeth. It’s aggressive, semi-satirical and proves you can laugh with your jaw on the floor. There’s a read on this movie that it crassly shares...

First announced early last year, Salma Hayek has teamed up with the Doha Film Institute and Participant Media to adapt Khalil Gibran’s classic novel The Prophet as an animated feature for the big screen. It was said that each of the chapters in the novel would be directed by a different filmmaker, including: Animation director Roger Allers (The Lion King), who'll be in charge of the through-line narrative, while individual chapters will be handled by filmmakers like Tomm Moore (The Secret Of Kells), Joan Gratz (Mona Lisa Descending A Staircase), Bill Plympton (Guard Dog And Your Face), Nina Paley (Sita Sings The Blues), Joann Sfar (The...

Am ambitious animated undertaking of one the bestselling inspirational works of all time has landed an impressive voice cast. Liam Neeson, Salma Hayek, John Krasinski, Frank Langella, Alfred Molina and Quvenzhané Wallis will lend their voices to The Prophet, an adaptation of Kahlil Gibran's collection of writings. Roger Allers (The Lion King) will write and direct an original narrative story based on Gibran's work. The picture is scheduled to be complete by spring of 2014. Hit the jump for more. Deadline reported on the voice cast of The Prophet, as well as some additional animation directors who will be tackling the film's individual chapters. The international team of directors includes Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells), Joan Gratz (Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase), Bill Plympton (Guard Dog and Your Face), Nina Paley (Sita Sings the Blues), Joann Sfar (The Rabbi’s Cat), Paul and Gaetan Brizzi (Fantasia 2000), Michal Socha...

Exclusive: Liam Neeson, Salma Hayek, John Krasinski, Frank Langella, Alfred Molina and Quvenzhané Wallis have all joined the voice cast of Khalil Gibran’s The Prophet, the animated feature film written and directed by Roger Allers, whose animation credits include directing Disney’s The Lion King and Open Season and whose writing and storyboard work encompasses such films as Aladdin, Beauty And The Beast, and The Little Mermaid. The film is being produced by Hayek, Clark Peterson, and Ron Senkowski. Participant Media and Doha Film Institute are financing and are exec producers. Allers’ script was inspired by The Prophet, the iconic book that is one of the biggest sellers in history, north of 100 million copies in over 40 languages since it was first published by Alfred Knopf in 1923. Allers is directing the narrative story, while individual chapters based on Gibran’s poems are being helmed by animation directors from around the world,...

Justine Smith

Bright Star, Jane Campion

Orlando, Sally Potter

Trouble Every Day, Claire Denis

Cleo 5 a 7, Agnes Varda

A New Leaf, Elaine May

The Night Porter, Liliana Cavani

American Psycho, Mary Harron

Anatomy of Hell, Catherine Breillat

Point Break, Kathryn Bigelow

Everyone Else, Maren Ade

Ricky D

Connection, Shirley Clarke

Wuthering Heights, Andrea Arnold

35 Shots of Rhum, Claire Denis

Meshes of the Afternoon, Maya Derin

Seven Beauties, Lina Wertmuller

The Hitch-Hiker, Ida Lupino

Lina Wertmuller- Swept Away

Meek’s Cutoff, Kelly Reichardt

Headless Woman, Lucrecia Martel

Xxy, Lucía Puenzo

Special mention:

Skyscraper – Shirley Clarke

Wasp – Andrea Arnold

On Dangerous Ground – Ida Lupino (uncredited)

Wanda

Chris Clemente

Little Miss Sunshine, Valerie Faris

American Psycho, Mary Harron

Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola

We Need to Talk About Kevin, Lynne Ramsay

Fish Tank, Andrea Arnold

Monster, Patty Jenkins

A League of Their Own, Penny Marshall

Wayne’s World, Penelope Spheeris

Clueless, Amy Heckerling

Point Break,...

(In Alphabetical order)

Meek’s Cutoff

Directed by Kelly Reichardt

Kelly Reichardt had a stellar if hushed 2000s, and then she commenced the current decade with a film that is already beginning to feel like an unsung modern classic. Meek’s Cutoff is one of those exhilarating instances in which a marriage of disparate styles produces something tricky to imagine, but perfect to behold: a period piece set in mid-1800’s Oregon, shot in academy ratio and classically beautiful for it, but with Reichardt’s signature severe naturalism. The result is so stark and understated that it begins to feel graceful, weirdly epic. A small caravan of settlers (featuring Michelle Williams and a once again devout Paul Dano) hires a guide, big-talking Stephen Meek, to help them navigate the Oregon Trail. As the terrain grows less forgiving and water evermore scarce, the settlers begin to wonder if the route Meek...

It was only through an enigmatic public Facebook post that it was revealed that a nearly comprehensive DVD box set of the films of Jonas Mekas was in the works. The post only showed the above image with the words “Coming Soon!” But, coming soon from whom and for where?

On Facebook, there was also a link to a DVD page on Mekas’ official website that offered a bit more clues. The release appears to be a collaboration between the French fashion designer agnes b., the French independent DVD label Potemkine and the French distributor Re:Voir, which has released Mekas’ work on VHS for years.

The Potemkine website lists Mekas’ films as individual upcoming DVD releases with no set dates. There appears to be no listing for the box set image that was posted to Facebook.

Most disappointingly, though, is that the Potemkine product pages indicate that the DVDs will be Zone 2, i.

It was first published in 1923 and remains one of the best-selling books of all time, so it seems extraordinary that nobody has attempted a film adaptation of Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet before. That's about to change, in an ambitious project being shepherded by Salma Hayek and producers Clark Peterson and Ron Senkowski.Gibran's book is a long-form poem (written in English, although Gibran generally wrote in Arabic), the narrative of which sees the prophet Al-Nabi about to embark on an ocean voyage, but waylaid on his way to the docks by a succession of people who prompt him into discussions of life, the universe and everything. It's a "spiritual classic", but adaptable to all faiths, whether deeply or casually held, since it doesn't adhere to any specific religion. As a film, the plan is to make an animated anthology delivered by multiple directors. Among the contributors are Marjane Satrapi...

The 7th edition of the 7 Islands Film Festival commenced in Mumbai with the screening of Nandita Das’s Firaaq at S.P. Jain Auditorium, Bhavan’s College Campus, Andheri.

The festival aims at screenings award-winning films on the theme of non-violence and peace. It has a competition section and gives away prize money of Rs. 1 lakh. This festival is the brainchild of Bankim Kapadiya,Director General, Films Division,Government of India.

Some of the films to be screened at the festival are Mehreen Jabbar’s Ramchand Pakistani, Nina Paley’s Sita Sings The Blues and Mahmoud’s Kaabour’s Being Osama.

The festival will run till January 30, 2012. For complete schedule of the festival, click here.

After grossing almost $95 million on the 3D revamp of The Lion King, director Roger Allers is back to original projects. Deadline reports that the director’s been tapped to adapt and direct the animated feature The Prophet for Salma Hayek‘s Ventanarosa Productions, which will be produced by Clark Peterson and Senkowski.

The feature is based on the classic book by Lebanese writer, philosopher, and artist Khalil Gibran, one which has sold over 100 million copies to date. Allers isn’t the only director lending his talents — other filmmakers have either signed on or are in discussions to helm specific segments of the film. Allers will direct the opening, closing and frame parts of the feature alongside Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells), Sylvain Chomet (The Triplets of Belleville), John Stevenson (Kung Fu Panda), Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis), Chris Landreth (Ryan), Nina Paley (Sita Sings the Blues), Bill Plympton (Guard Dog and...

Sita Sings The Blues is an 82 minute animated film by Nina Paley, whose animation experience prior to this was apparently a 4 minute short film. Paley is an American woman who became aware of the Ramayana story when she was visiting her husband who was posted on a work assignment in India.

As a white girl, raised in a Western country, my own familiarity with the Ramayana – one of India’s great epic tales – is pretty limited. Coming to the story late, and having to rely on mainstream Hindi films and occasional books that make passing reference to the story – I only really know the basics: Ravana, the bad guy with ten heads, kidnapped Sita, the virtuous wife of Rama, the hero of the tale. Rama, with the help of Hanuman, rescued Sita, but doubted her purity having been in Ravana’s custody for so long, and he asked her to...

Although it was announced just yesterday, we know that Gkids, the animation distributor folks who brought us Michel Ocelot’s Azur & Asmar, Nina Paley’s Sita Sings the Blues and Tomm Moore’s The Secret of Kells, were dancing the bolero around Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal’s Chico & Rita when it was presented at Tiff last year. After a year of festival play and favorable reviews, fans of animation can expect to see the musical romance drama circa 1948 sometime in 2012, and La folks can see it during its Oscar qualifying run in the month of December. Gkids will release through its new Luma Films label - animation geared towards adults. Gist: Cuba, 1948. Chico is a young piano player with big dreams. Rita is a beautiful singer with an extraordinary voice. Music and romantic desire unites them, but their journey – in the tradition of the Latin ballad, the bolero – brings heartache and torment.

This is a stunner for me.  Gkids, the North American distribution house responsible for classic modern animation like the works of Michel Ocelot, as well as Nina Paley's Sita Sings the Blues, The Secret of Kells, and many others, has acquired thirteen of Studio Ghibli's features for theatrical/non-theatrical play in the Us.Most of these titles have been with Disney for the last decade, but they haven't done theatrical releases for most of them. Disney will apparently keep home video rights for the films and hopefully they'll step on the gas when it comes to Blu-ray updates of these classics.  The essential details are that Gkids gets distribution rights for all Ghibli features up to and including Spirited Away, including the never before seen in the...

This week’s Must Look At is way not underground, but this cool site came my way this week: It’s a blog devoted to John Tartaglia, the “cement artist” who casted the footprints and handprints of numerous Hollywood stars outside of the famous Mann’s Chinese Theater between 1953 and 1987. This list contains all the stars for whom Tartaglia served as Masonry master. Interesting stuff.Is Netflix trying to kill the DVD? Filmmaker Mag investigates. By the way: Filmmakers offering films for Bad Lit to review via a password-protected Vimeo page is steadily increasing.Light Industry’s Thomas Beard was interviewed by Art in America for his recent “The Unfinished Film” exhibit.The Chicago Arts Archive interviewed filmmaker Amir George about his recent short feature film The Mind of Delilah.For FilmInk, Jason Reed reviews some of the highlights of this year’s Revelation Perth International Film Festival, particularly singling out Zach Clark’s Vacation!

The 2011 edition of a movie critic's dream unreels again this week. In my own home town, I'll be able to show the films of my choice in a classic movie palace, flawlessly projected on a giant screen before a movie-loving audience. To paraphrase Orson Welles when he was given the run of Rko Radio Pictures to make his own movie, it's the biggest train set a boy could ever want.

Ebertfest 2011 runs April 27-May 1. The passes have been sold but we've always been able to find room for everyone in line inside the 1,600-seat Virginia Theater. Its long-term renovation continued this year with work on the lobby, the concession stand and the upstairs lobby. The marquee is a work in progress.

The preservation of theaters like this is invaluable; such buildings will never again be constructed, and most of our filmmakers will never have seen their films with such a large audience.

This was a piece of last week's news that we're getting to late - but is worth highlighting. It’s been reprinted 163 times, sold over 100 million copies and translated into over 40 different languages, so it comes as no surprise that, in an era of Hollywood producers scraping the bottom of the barrel for new ideas, a hugely popular book like Khalil Gibran’s masterpiece The Prophet will be adapted for the big screen. Deadline is reporting that Salma Hayek, operating under her Ventanarosa Productions banner, has partnered with Clark Peterson and Ron Senkowski to produce an animated feature based on the book of 26 poetic essays. Hayek’s producing partner, Jose Tamez, will executive produce along with William Nix and co-financing from Steve Hanson. As each essay deals with such differing topics as joy to death and religion to beauty, The Prophet will get produced along the same lines as Fantasia and Paris,...

“And think not you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course.”

Well, sorry Kahlil Gibran, but they obviously have plans to direct your The Prophet!

Salma Hayek and her Ventanarosa Productions have teamed up with Clark Peterson and Ron Senkowski to produce an animated feature based on Gibran’s beloved book.

According to the latest reports, the intention is for different directors to helm each chapter, with “an interconnecting theme and a musical through-line.”

And we have quite interesting team on board, or, should we say that these are just expectations from this project at the moment?

“It is well to give when asked but it is better to give unasked, through understanding.”

So, here are filmmakers expected to participate so far: Sylvain Chomet (“The Triplets of Belleville”), Kunio Kato (“Tsumiki no ie”), Oscar-winner Chris Landreth (“Ryan”), Tomm Moore (“The Secret of Kells...

Salma Hayek and her Ventanarosa Productions have joined Clark Peterson and Ron Senkowski to produce an animated feature based on the Kahlil Gibran book The Prophet. Hayek’s producing partner Jose Tamez will executive produce with co-financier Steve Hanson. The intention is for different directors to helm each chapter, with an interconnecting theme and a musical through-line. Filmmakers expected to participate so far include Sylvain Chomet (The Triplets of Belleville), John Stevenson (Kung Fu Panda), Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis), Chris Landreth (Oscar-winning short Ryan), Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells), Nina Paley (Sita Sings the Blues), Bill Plympton (Guard Dog and Your Face) and Kunio Kato (Oscar winning short Tsumiki no ie). Other filmmakers are expected to sign on, and the producers are in discussions with private-equity financiers to complete the funding for the picture. The Prophet is one of the best-selling books of all time, having sold over 100 million copies...

2011 marks the tenth year the Oscars have singled out animated films for their own Best Animated Feature Oscar and I started looking over the list of nominees and began to wonder how they might match up with public opinion.

In ten years 34 films have been nominated for the Best Animated Feature Oscar, eight of those nominees have been Pixar films, five of which went on to win with Cars and Monsters, Inc. serving as the two that didn't end up taking home the gold. So Pixar has obviously been crowned king by the Academy, and this year I think we're all expecting Toy Story 3 to make it six wins for the animated studio. Does this mean the top eight animated films over the past ten years were produced by Pixar?

Of course, this isn't an exact science. Looking at only the Academy's animated nominees means several films aren't even...

Maverick actor-director-producer Manish Acharya, of " Loins of Punjab Presents" fame, fell off a horse to his death in Matheran on Saturday morning. The multi-tasker who played almost every role, from camera assistant to director to actor, was 40.Nikhil Chaturvedi, his brother-in-law, said, He was on a holiday with his two children and wife. He fell from the horse and hit himself on the head. He was rushed to the Ambani Hospital in Nerul but was declared dead by doctors."Loins of Punjab Presents", Acharya's last film, received much critical appreciation. A source from the industry said, He was planning a period drama based in the '80s and had begun work on it. Manish planned to make two more films, Chaturvedi added.Going by what the industry had to say about him, Acharya was a multi-faceted talent. He not only acted in films like Farhan Akhtar...

It is with sadness that we must report that director and actor Manish Acharya passed away today. It is being said that it was a riding accident in Matheran but the details are unclear.

His first film Loins of Punjab was critically acclaimed and was called one of the funniest films ever. We spoke to the director about the film and he was warm, funny and gave brilliant and insightful answers to our questions. He was also seen in a small role in the Zoya Akhtar directed Luck By Chance as well as playing the narrator for the wonderful Sita Sings the Blues.

The director will be greatly missed and many in the industry have sent out their shock, their sadness and their thoughts and prayers for his family and friends.

We here at BollySpice mourn the loss of this special man and join in sending out our thoughts and prayers.

People come and go but there are a few that make a mark on society that lasts a life time, and Manish Acharya was one such being. The young director, writer, actor par who has given us films like Loins Of Punjab, Sita Sings The Blues, Luck By Chance is no more. The director who tweeted just yesterday about his impending trip to Matheran is said to have fallen off a horse in Matheran (a popular hill station near Mumbai) and died as a result of brain haemorrhage. This will be the third filmmaker to have passed away at such a young age following Sourabh Usha Narang, then Pankaj Advani. Bollywood Hungama mourns the loss of such talent and sends out its solemn condolences and prayers to Manish's family and friends.

People come and go but there are a few that make a mark on society that lasts a life time, and Manish Acharya was one such being. The young director, writer, actor par who has given us films like Loins Of Punjab, Sita Sings The Blues, Luck By Chance is no more. The director who tweeted just yesterday about his impending trip to Matheran is said to have fallen off a horse in Matheran (a popular hill station near Mumbai) and died as a result of brain haemorrhage. This will be the third filmmaker to have passed away at such a young age following Sourabh Usha Narang, then Pankaj Advani. Bollywood Hungama mourns the loss of such talent and sends out its solemn condolences and prayers to Manish's family and friends.

Young filmmaker Manish Acaharya who directed Loins Of Punjab Presents passed away a short while ago today. Reportedly, he met with a fatal road accident which caused his death. Manish had done his Mfa in Film Directing from the Nyu Tisch School of the Arts. He also acted in Zoya Akhtar's Luck By Chance and was the narrator of Sita Sings The Blues. After Sourabh Usha Narang and Pankaj Advani, Manish is the third young filmmaker who has died this year. One of his last posts...

Big congrats goes to the producers Frederick Thornton, Laura Ragsdale, Sierra Leoni and helmer Mike Ott whose Littlerock - a film that played at the San Francisco, Torino, Vienna and AFI Fest festivals receives a pretty sweet upstart package: a one week showing at the Cinema Village, and other cash prizes including some theatrical release strategy help from the fine folks at Donna Daniels PR.  Other Noms: Kati with an i Robert Greene, director; Douglas Tirola, Susan Bedusa, producers On Coal River Francine Cavanaugh and Adams Wood, directors; Jillian Elizabeth, Adams Wood, Francine Cavanaugh, producers Summer Pasture Lynn True and Nelson Walker, directors/producers; Tsering Perlo, co-director/co-producer The Wolf Knife Laurel Nakadate, director/producer Previous Winners 2009: Ry Russo-Young's You Won't Miss Me 2008: Nina Paley's Sita Sings the Blues 2007: Ronald Bronstein's Frownland 2006: Steve Barron's Choking Man...

I thought we'd take a closer look at the five films selected in the Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You category a.k.a the "fringe" titles that receive a helping hand and some extra love just by being nominated and have very little to do with batch of other films mentioned in yesterday's Gotham award nominations announcement. Previous winners in the section include 2009's You Wont Miss Me, 2008's Sita Sings the Blues, 2007's Frownland, 2006's Choking Man and 2005's I Am a Sex Addict, but this year a documentary could win with a ratio that sees three docs and a pair of narratives. I was only familiar with two of the five in Robert Greene's Kati with an i and Mike Ott's Littlerock, so logically I thought about whipping up breakdown of the section and presenting the mentioned pair and Francine Cavanaugh and...

The year is not over. There are still a few films left. Interesting, though, that The Social Network sits at 97 on Metacritic (sans Armond White’s pan). It has more...

Bill Plympton is the hardest working animator in the world today. No disrespect to any other hard-working animators out there, but it’s absolutely true about Plympton. He’s constantly working on several working short films and features at the same time. Plus, he flies all over the world to film festivals and events to promote his work, which you can read all about on the new blog Scribble Junkies that Plympton produces with his friend Patrick Smith.

And now Bill Plympton has taken on the monumental task of self-distributing his latest feature film Idiots & Angels, which is about a selfish man who magically grows wings one day that instantly make him a target for other people’s selfish desires to abuse his gift for their own gain.

After a successful festival run, Idiots & Angels will finally make its theatrical premiere at the IFC Center in NYC on Oct. 6. Then,...

One of last years great independent film stories was Nina Paley's Sita Sings the Blues, which is a modified retelling and exploration of the Ramayana, one of Hinduism's sacred texts.  While that was made almost exclusively by one person, a remarkable feat especially considering the output, it has taken a team of animators 5 years to create this more faithful retelling of the classic story of Rama, Sita, and Ravana.  Ramayana: The Epic is also an animated feature, and probably one of India's most ambitious projects in this realm.  Following the tanking of Roadside Romeo in 2008, tons of animated projects were shelved in favor of more profitable masala offerings.  According to Business Standard, films like Avatar, Ice Age 3, and other animated features have gotten a great response in India, and as such, they've shot back onto the money men's radars. 

While the animation of this project may look crude to...

Shot in New York City and New Jersey, Hiding Divya tells the story of three generations of women and the taboos created in the South Asian American community from mental illness in the family. Inspired by true stories, the English-language drama is the debut feature from sister filmmakers Rehana Mirza (writer/director) and Rohi Mirza Pandya (producer) and stars Pooja Kumar (Bollywood Hero, Sita Sings the Blues), Deep Katdare (American Desi), and veteran actress Madhur Jaffrey (Cotton Mary, Shakespeare-Wallah) as Divya. Hiding Divya opens in limited release in selected markets across the U.S. on August 20 and will open in New York at Big Cinemas Manhattan.

Synopsis:

Filmmaker Rehana Mirza tackles the taboo of mental illness in the South Asian American community in her writing and directorial feature debut. Hiding Divya provides a rare, realistic and poignant glimpse into the lives of three generations of women - Divya Shah (Madhur Jaffrey...

Gkids presents the New York Int'l Children's Film Festival. Gkids is a distributor of award-winning filmed entertainment specializing in titles that cross over between art-house and family audiences. Recent theatrical releases include Michel Ocelot's acclaimed Azur & Asmar, in partnership with the Weinstein Company, and Nina Paley's animated multiple-festival-winning animated feature, Sita Sings the Blues. Upcoming Gkids releases include Tomm Moore's animated Oscar® nominated The Secret of Kells, and European Film Award winner Mia and the Migoo, by Jacques-Remy Girerd. Gkids is also longtime producer of the New York Int'l Children's Film Festival, North America's largest festival of film for children and teens. Nyicff jury members include Frances McDormand, Uma Thurman, John Turturro, Susan Sarandon, Gus van Sant, James Schamus, and Matthew Modine. The Gkids.TV website is a place where children, teens, and adults can watch, rate, review, buy and share award-winning film and animation from around the world.

There seems to be no exhausting the raw eyeball pleasure to be had from old-fashioned handmade (or semi-handmade, or whatever) animation, and we may be well living through a pop renaissance of it.

The eruptions below the Pixar/Dreamworks budget tier have been spectacular and international, beginning perhaps with 2003's "The Triplets of Belleville," learning from Miyazaki, Oshii, Aardman and the Quays, moving on to Kim Moon-saeng's "Sky Blue," machinima, "The Corpse Bride," "A Scanner Darkly," "Persepolis," "Coraline," "Waltz with Bashir," "Fantastic Mr. Fox," "Mary & Max," "Sita Sings the Blues," "Fear(s) in the Dark," "The Secret of Kells," and now the Belgian nonpareil "A Town Called Panic."

The variety of toolboxes and styles at work seem limitless (the seductive but uniform look of pure 3D computer animation is getting tiresome just as other approaches proliferate), but it's the personal engagement that makes most of the films sing.

Many of...

Nina Paley, maker of the much adored “Sita Sings the Blues”, has found a new set of fans, who love to hate her and make their hatred known on the World Wide Web. Bikas Mishra spoke to the Us based filmmaker on Indian mythology, copyleft, crowd-funding and hatemails…

You seem to be the target of Hindu right wing extremists? How do you take the constant inflow of hate mails and comments?

The flow is not constant; it rises and falls according to how peoples' attention is directed by the extremists' publicity campaigns. Happily, whenever I see a rise in hate mails and troll comments, there is a corresponding rise in donations to the Sita Free Distribution Project. It's another effect of publicity.The hate mails are mostly duplicate spams, which go into a "hate mail" folder. These may someday provide an anthropology or sociology grad student valuable research material.The...

Promotional websites for films — no matter what budget the film is — pretty much blow. Yeah, all of ‘em. Well, not all, but most. Even the big, fancy Flash animation websites with dancing graphics blow.

I’m not saying they blow from a design viewpoint. Yes, lots of these sites look great. Fantastic, even. I’m talking about from a practical standpoint. They’re useless. And, here’s the best piece of advice I can give to underground and low-budget filmmakers: Don’t let your website emulate the websites of big Hollywood movies. In addition: Flash animation is not your friend. Indeed, it is your enemy.

There’s a lot of chatter online these days about the need for filmmakers to promote their films on the Internet. This chatter typically translates into the need to send out massive amounts of stupid Tweets and irritating Facebook updates. If you do those things,...

American cartoonist Nina Paley has one of the hottest indie movies around, Sita Sings the Blues (rating: 86), her animated retelling of the classic Hindi story called the Ramayana, set to the jazz songs of 1920's torch singer Annette Hanshaw. Released for free on the internet in 2008, it zoomed up many critics' best-of lists in 2009, and is finally receiving limited release in some independent theaters this year. I asked her a few questions about the movie and her support of Free Culture -- a method of distribution that she has come to embrace as a way of life. What was it like to offer your own take on the Ramayana? Obviously, the film itself shows how you came to discover the text, as you draw parallels between Sita's story and your own. But some cultural critics were agitated by...

Cartoonist Nina Paley has a distinctive style in her strips, whether she's drawing couples or cats: round, expressive faces with easy, honest smiles and occasionally painful comeuppances. Paley has a goofy sense of humor and a refreshing lack of sarcasm or snark. She spent six years making Sita Sings the Blues, a semi-autobiographical retelling of the Ramayana, a classic Hindu epic, a tragic love story about a prince named Rama who suspects his wife Sita has been unfaithful. Paley, an American, first discovered it on a trip to India that she took with her then-husband, who was living there at the time. When she came back to the States, he dismissed her by email, and she threw herself more deeply into the epic, eventually weaving her own story in with her Sita-centric version of the Ramayana, narrated -- with frequent...

Something of interest to filmmakers… a documentary short on animator Nina Paley’s struggle with the copyrighted music she used in her award-winning feature debut, Sita Sings the Blues – a film I profiled on my previous blog The Obenson Report. It’s not all-inclusive, but there’s enough here to stir up a convo. Nina encountered many copyright issues with the songs she used, and her experiences helped her realize how to “free” her work, while still making some money.