Art Film Talk

Zev Berman co-wrote and directed Borderland, which opens today (Friday November 9, 2007) as part of the 8 Films to Die For Horror Fest taking place in 350 theaters throughout the United States. The film, based on true events, tells the story of three Americans on a road-trip south of the border who tangle with a cult practicing human sacrifice. We talk about the origins of the project, genre issues, casting, and the cinematographic techniques behind the look of the film. Borderland is his second feature-length film.

Borderland: Cast: Brian Presley, Martha Higareda, Jake Muxworthy, Rider Strong, Damian Alcazar, Sean Astin; Screenwriter: Zev Berman, Eric Poppen; Producers: Randall Emmett, George Furla, Lauren Moews, Elisa Salinas; Original Music: Andrés Levin; Cinematographer: Scott Kevan; Editor: Eric Strand; Production Designer: Tim Galvin; Set Decorator: Pachilu Moreno; Costume Designer: Monica Araiz.

 Art Film Talk #22 Zev Berman [24:23m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Florian Borchmeyer is co-director of Havana: The New Art of Making Ruins (2006, German title: "Havana - Die Neue Kunst Ruinen Zu Bauen") which won the Special Jury Award at the 2006 LA Latino International Film Festival.

This unique documentary traces the reflections and thoughts of a group of Havana residents who spend their days living in buildings on the verge of collapse. There is more to Havanas ruins than the facades romanticized in countless films and documentaries, their beauty resides in the poetry of its ruins and in the stories of the people who reside in them, serving as a metaphor for the gradual collapse of the city and Cuba's political system.

Havana: The New Art of Making Ruins is available from Cinema Guild. Credits: Produced by: Matthias Hentschler, Florian Borchmeyer; Screenwriter: Florian Borchmeyer; Director of Photography: Tanja Trentmann; Editor: Birgit Mild; Sound: Frank Schreiner.Produced by: Matthias Hentschler, Florian Borchmeyer; Screenwriter: Florian Borchmeyer; Director of Photography: Tanja Trentmann; Editor: Birgit Mild; Sound: Frank Schreiner.

Special thanks to Elissa Mintz who edited this episode. Theme music by Colin Owens.

 ArtFilmTalk #21 [16:50m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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David Tames talks with Thom Fitzgerald about his new film, 3 Needles, which opens in several U.S. theaters on Friday, December 1, 2006 in conjunction with World AIDS Day. The cast includes Lucy Liu, Chloe Sevigny, Olympia Dukakis, Sandra Oh, Stockard Channing, and Shawn Ashmore.

The film consists of three stories about the ways different people deal with the AIDS epidemic and the sacrifices they are willing to make: In Montreal, a porn actor hides his illness so he will not lose his job while his mother makes her own pact with the disease in order to care for him; In South Africa a nun negotiates a deal to save the lives of disease-stricken children in her mission; In a Chinese village, a young entrepreneur buys blood from farmers who use the money to improve their lives, unaware that she is spreading death. Thom Fitzgerald has said, "In North America and Europe we have such a cognitive awareness of how not to spread AIDS, but in much of the rest of the world, people are innocently infected through ignorance and cultural practice."

The interivew was edited by Elissa Mintz and recorded at the 2006 Rio International Film Festival. Theme music by Colin Owens.

 Art Film Talk Episode #19 [16:03m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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We continue our conversation with David Redmon (Director, Producer, and Editor) and Ashley Sabin (Associate Producer) about their documentary film, Mardi Gras: Made in China (2005, 72 min.) and their decision to self-distribute, the technical aspects of the film, and what's next for them (Part 2 of 2).

 Art Film Talk Episode #18 [13:14m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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David Tames talks with David Redmon (Director, Producer, and Editor) and Ashley Sabin (Associate Producer) about their documentary film, Mardi Gras: Made in China (2005, 72 min.). The film presents a fascinating critique of globalization by following Mardi Gras beads from their origin to destination. David Redmon take us from the revelers on Bourbon Street where he askes the question, where do the beads came from? to the factory in China where they are made and back again.

Mardi Gras: Made in China was among the best documentaries to emerge from the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and it is screening in colleges this fall. Visit the Mardi Gras: Made in China Web Site for information on screenings and copies of the DVD. The home video the DVD will soon be available.

This is part one of the interview. The conversation continues in the next episode with a discussion on the decision to self-distribute, the technical aspects of the film, and what's next for them. The interview was recorded on April 30, 2006 in the Boston Public Garden on the weekend of the Boston premiere of the film.

 Art Film Talk Episode 17 [16:50m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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David Tames talks with Chris Paine, director of the new film Who Killed the Electric Car, at the 15th Woods Hole Film Festival.

The film chronicles the life and mysterious death of the GM EV1 electric car, examining its cultural and economic effects and how they reverberated through the halls of government and big business. In 1990 California passed the Zero Emissions Mandate (ZEV) which encouraged the commercialization of the electric car. But the electric car threatened the status quo. The film tries to get at the truth behind its demise through interviews with automakers, legislators, engineers, consumers and car enthusiasts. The film is currently in theaters, so see the film and tell a friend.

Coverage of the Woods Hole Film Festival will continue in the next episode.

 Art Film Talk Episode #14 [12:56m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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