Premiering in the Competition section of the Montreal World Film Festival this week are two American independent productions from directors with long histories in the indie arena. TWELVE THIRTY is the fourth film from writer/director Jeff Lipsky, whose films have been major hits at film festivals worldwide. TWELVE THIRTY is drama about a family with adult children that is broken, and a self-centered young man who, in the span of a week, becomes entangled in each of their lives,...

Friday, October 20----It is a rather unusual career move for a film distributor to transition from buying and selling films to actually making them, but that is exactly what Jeff Lipsky has done. After co-founding October Films (which was bought out by Universal Pictures and eventually morphed into Focus Features) and Lot 47 Films, releasing indie and international gems such as Lars Von Trier's BREAKING THE WAVES, Mike Leigh's SECRETS AND LIES, David Lynch's LOST HIGHWAY, Michael Cuesta's L.I....

Writer/Director Dito Montiel and Executive Producer Sting Thursday, October 19---With the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival already in high gear, a number of special guests and VIPs are expected in town over the next few days, bringing some film star power to South Florida audiences. Tonight, writer/director Dito Montiel will be present at the screening of his debut film A GUIDE TO RECOGNIZING YOUR SAINTS. The film, which had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, was a d...

Monday, June 5----One of the more anticipated programs at the TROIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL is its annual competition for American Independent films. The Festival, over the past 22 years, has been an important showcase for films made outside the Hollywood studio system. This year, six worthy films are competing for the award. The first of them kicks off the section this evening. FLANNEL PAJAMAS, which had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, is unique in two important ways. It...