The documentary Samba & Jazz is a vibey affair. Stressing harmonies between Rio de Janeiro and New Orleans, Jefferson Mello's tale of two rhythms is also a tale of two cities. It's their shared pulse that makes American jazz and Brazilian samba close "brothers of blackness," despite differences in instruments, culture and geography. And both family representatives trace their roots to Africa. Beginning in Rio -- which is also where the film played for Festival do Rio aud...

  Harry Shearer  With the Mississippi River about to overflow its banks in the beleaguered city of New Orleans, the specter of Hurricane Katrina, a devastation the city has still not recovered from, becomes an interesting focus of renewed speculation from a somewhat unlikely source. Harry Shearer, the Saturday Night Live veteran, actor/director of several “mockumentaries” (SPINAL TAP) and the voice of several characters on THE SIMPSONS, who also is a New Orleans residen...

The New Orleans Horror Film Festival announces a call for entries for the 2011 season! The early deadline is March 31st, 2011.The NOHFF takes place on Halloween weekend, October 28th - 30th, 2011 and it held in the historic French Quarter of New Orleans. It’s no small wonder and no great surprise that so many of today’s top directors got their start in “low budget horror”. With determination and imagination, these artists have created some truly memorable work that has enco...

Thursday, November 23----One of the exciting events of the Opening Night festivities of the International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam (IDFA) is the international premiere of acclaimed American director Spike Lee's moving opus WHEN THE LEVEES BROKE: A REQUIEM IN FOUR ACTS. The film, which was produced by television cable giant Home Box Office and had its world premiere last month to honor the first anniversary of the devastation in New Orleans due to Hurricane Katrina, will be shown in ...