Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, has announced the filmmakers and projects selected for its second annual Documentary Lab, sponsored by Latino Public Broadcasting. Starting this week and continuing through the end of April, the Documentary Lab is an intensive seven-week program in Los Angeles, with the main focus of assisting documentary filmmakers on their works-in-progress and providing creative feedback. All ...

  Well, no one ever accused London of hogging too much of the world's great weather. In fact, it can be said that one of the reasons for the imperialistic urges of the British Empire was to find sunny climes and get out of the fucking rain. Well, rain is not a bad thing when it is a celluloid downpour, and that is what is on tap when the 18th edition of the Raindance Film Festival begins in London on Wednesday evening. This year’s lineup, which includes 69 UK Premieres, is a co...

Ken Loach doesn’t usually do ‘funny’ so his new film, Looking for Eric, is newsworthy and no wonder Clare Stewart has chosen it to open this year’s Sydney Film Festival; we need a good laugh that’s not at the expense of our bumbling politicians. And there are three Australian films out of the 12 in the Competition, albeit not comedies, vying for the $60,000 Hunter Hall cash prize, reports Andrew L. Urban. But it also ends on an upper, with Lone Scherfig’s An Education. In between, a ...