Geena Davis’ Bentonville Film Festival Expands Under BFFoundation; Gravitas Ventures To Play ‘The Holy Game’; ‘Rockfield’ Finds Home At Abramorama – Film Briefs

Angelique Jackson Stacey Abrams has been tapped to receive the inaugural Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice award as part of the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival.The new award named for Belafonte — the Emmy-winning actor, activist and civil rights leader — is intended to recognize individuals who have used storytelling and the arts to enact change in their communities.Abrams, in addition to her work as a politician and voting rights activist, also produced last year’s gripping documentary “All

Manori Ravindran International EditorThe London Indian Film Festival is back in cinemas this summer after an all-virtual effort in 2020.In a challenging year for India and South Asia, the Bagri Foundation-run London festival and sister events in Birmingham and Manchester will premiere new indie films from the Indian subcontinent and diaspora, running from June 17-July 4.

Organizers of the Sundance Film Festival said Thursday that next year’s fest will run January 20-30, 2022 and be a mix of in-person and virtual. The news comes after this year’s edition was all-virtual because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Jordan Moreau The Sundance Film Festival has announced the dates for its 2022 edition, which will take place in-person and online in a hybrid format.The festival will return to Park City, Utah, from January 20-30, 2022.“We can’t wait to return to Park City, Salt Lake City — and beyond — for next year’s Sundance Film Festival,” the organization announced Thursday. “The 2022 Festival will take place in-person and online January 20-30.

The Sundance Film Festival will return to Park City for 2022, setting Jan. 20-30 as the dates for next year’s in-person event.But next year’s Sundance will also remain online after the festival saw record attendance at the 2021 edition, with more than 600,000 people attending the virtual fest.

Ahead of the pic’s June 16 world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival, Netflix has snapped up the Blumhouse TV and Ryan Murphy executive produced documentary Pray Away which investigates the enduring harm of conversion therapy and the “pray the gay away” movement. An August release on the streamer is currently set.

PRAGUE (Reuters) - The Czech Republic's Karlovy Vary film festival, based in a spa town in the west of the country, plans to roll out the red carpet again in 2021, with organisers setting a later opening than usual on Tuesday. Launched in 1946 in what was then Czechoslovakia, the festival is now one of central and eastern Europe's leading cinema events.

Nature must be healing because non-virtual film festivals are making a comeback. Not only is Telluride returning to Colorado this Labor Day weekend, but after a two-month delay, the 2021 Cannes Film Festival appears to be moving forward from its traditional May dates to July.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaThe casts of “Fargo,” “Raging Bull,” “The Five Heartbeats,” and “The Royal Tenenbaums” will reunite at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival.In addition, the festival, which is returning to in-person events after COVID scrambled plans for the 2020 edition, will host talks with the likes of Bradley Cooper, Amy Schumer, Gina Prince-Bythewood, M.

Manori Ravindran International EditorThe Berlin Film Festival has confirmed that its in-person June event will go ahead as planned, taking place as an outdoor event.Organizers said the event will run from June 9-20, noting that “the Berlinale is pleased to be able to give audiences the enjoyment of an open-air cinema experience at 16 venues in total at the Summer Special.

The 31st Inside Out Toronto 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival this week unveiled its full lineup for its virtual edition, which will run May 27-June 6. A total of 143 films including 33 features and five episodic series will unspool, according to new executive director Lauren Howes and director of programming Andrew Murphy. A total of 70% of this year’s selected films are by women/trans/non-binary directors

Bleecker Street has acquired U.S. rights to Fran Kranz’ Mass, which made its world premiere at Sundance back in January. A fourth quarter theatrical release is currently planned.

EXCLUSIVE:  AMC Networks’ RLJE Films has taken North American rights to the Elijah Wood and Luke Kirby dramatic thriller No Man of God, based on real transcripts and conversations between serial killer Ted Bundy and FBI agent Bill Hagmaier. The deal for the Amber Sealey-directed feature went down ahead of the pic’s Tribeca Film Festival premiere in June. The pic is now scheduled to hit theaters in August.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefDocumentaries and pictures made by female filmmakers dominated the prize ranks of South Korea’s Jeonju International Film Festival. Some, including “Splinters” which won the festival’s Grand Prize, were qualified on both counts.“Splinters” aka “Esquirlas,” is an Argentinian-made documentary about the military-industrial complex, which premiered last year at the Mar Del Plata festival.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorLast year, shortly after the pandemic hit the U.S., WarnerMedia’s TCM — with about three weeks notice — shifted its annual in-person TCM Classic Film Festival to a hybrid online/network experience.When the TCM team determined they were not going to be able to hold the fest in-person again in 2021, they made an even bigger pivot to provide two virtual venues for this year’s Classic Film Festival — on both the TV network and with corporate sibling HBO Max.For the

Jazz Tangcay Artisans EditorCharli XCX Documentary to Close Inside Out Film FestivalToronto’s 2021 Inside Out film festival will take place online from May 27 to June 6. The 2SLGBTQ+ (two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer/questioning) fest will open with Natalie Morales’ “Language Lessons,” which picked up the audience award at this year’s SXSW Film Festival.

Gravitas Ventures has acquired North American rights to Meander, a horror thriller written and directed by Mathieu Turi. It will now get a July 9, 2021 release date in theaters and on on-demand platforms.

One of our most anticipated films of the year? “Italian Studies,” the collaboration between Academy Award-nominated actress Vanessa Kirby “Pieces of A Woman“) and Adam Leon, the indie filmmaker behind the American indie writer/director behind acclaimed films like “Gimmie The Loot” and “Tramps.” And we’re fortunate enough to unveil the exclusive first-look image from the film.

Geena Davis' Bentonville Film Festival will be produced as an annual program of the newly formed nonprofit BFFoundation in Arkansas, organizers revealed on Wednesday. The foundation, which recently opened a new office in downtown Bentonville, will continue its mission to create a deeper impact for racial and gender equality in media while growing the film industry in Arkansas.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans EditorThe New York ReelAbilities Film Festival has announced a selection of exclusive events and speakers to accompany its 13th annual ReelAbilities Film Festival programming.Highlights include the pilot reading of “Disgraced” with Julie Klausner (“Difficult People”), Shannon DeVido (“Best Summer Ever”)  and Alex Scordelis (“Difficult People”)The festival’s closing night will also feature the subject of the film “Not Going Quietly,” activist Ady Barkan, along with the