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Exclusive: Concord Originals has partnered with Outfest Fusion to launch a one-of-a-kind short film financing and IP licensing initiative, in support of up-and-coming Lgbtqia+ filmmakers of color.

During Outfest Los Angeles in July, eligible filmmakers will pitch original short films incorporating one of three Concord-licensed songs to Outfest’s Artistic Director Faridah Gbadamosi, Concord Originals’ Director of Development and Production, Charles Hopkins, and a special guest judge yet to be announced. The winning filmmakers will be announced at the conclusion of the festival and will produce their short films with the support of Concord Originals and Outfest, ahead of being showcased at Outfest Fusion in 2023.

Concord Originals will provide financing of up to 25,000 per short film. The songs to be featured in them are “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real),” by Sylvester (co-written by James Wirrick), “Tres Días De Carnaval,” by Celia Cruz and Johnny Pacheco and “You’ll Never Walk Alone,...

Exclusive: Los Angeles’ Dances with Films has announced the lineup for its 2021 film festival, setting Oscar nominees Paul Greengrass and Michael London as the speakers for its inaugural First Films series.

The Dances With Films festival, which had to go virtual in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, is returning for an in-person 24th edition at the Tcl Chinese Theatre, between August 26 and September 12. It kicks off on the 26th with an opening night carpet celebration at the Roosevelt Hotel.

This year’s festival will showcase 40 Narrative Features, 100 Narrative Shorts, 31 Documentaries, 30 Midnight films, 26 Downbeat titles, 27 pilots, and 23 titles in the category of Dances with Kids.

Features on the lineup include Matthew Ya-Hsiung Balzer’s The Catch, starring Kyle Gallner, James McMenamin, Katia Winter and Thomas Kee; Generation Wrecks starring Heather Matarazzo and Emily Bergl; Ryan McDonough and Sean Gannet’s Last Night in Rozzie starring Jeremy Sisto and Neil Brown Jr....

What it means to return home has proven to be a central theme for producer Lucinda Bruce across the past year and a half.

Not only is she involved in Niki Byrne’s US homecoming drama Evan Wood but Covid-19 has brought her back to her native state of Victoria for an extended period.

As someone who spent more than three years living in Vancouver and regularly divides her time between LA and Australia, Bruce told If she felt “very lucky” to be able to reunite with her family in the rural town Ross Creek prior to the pandemic taking hold.

“I got home just before everything got really crazy and have been here ever since, which has been really nice,” she said.

“Being able to be with my parents during the pandemic was awesome because I knew not everyone was able to.”

The importance of family is at the heart of Evan Wood,...

The Santa Barbara Film Festival will open with the world premiere of Aaron Maurer’s documentary Invisible Valley, which profiles the stories of the disparate people that make up the Coachella Valley. It kicks off a festival that will run March 31-April 10 with a hybrid edition that includes online elements and screenings at a pair of pop-up beachside drive-in venues.

The full lineup revealed Tuesday features 47 world premieres and 37 U.S. premieres from 45 countries alongside the fest’s annual tributes featuring the likes of Bill Murray, Carey Mulligan, Sacha Baron Cohen and Amanda Seyfried which will be livestreamed online.

Every film screening will be offered for free this year, with a ticketed online component that will showcase the entire film lineup along with the tributes, industry panels and filmmaker Q&As.

The fest will close with a series of short documentaries by local filmmakers.

Here’s the trailer for Invisible Valley,...

Liza Lapira (Unbelievable) has joined the cast of Dante Basco feature directorial debut The Fabulous Filipino Brothers.

Written by Basco and his brothers Darion Basco and Dionysio Basco, the feature is set in the brothers’ hometown of Pittsburg, Calif., a working-class suburb of Oakland. Starring Basco and his brothers (including Derek Basco), the dark romantic comedy weaves together four vignettes, narrated by their sister, Arianna Basco.

The story follows the brothers and their shenanigans. One of them ventures off to a cockfight for reciprocity while one flies to old Manila where an old flame is rekindled. Another brother delves into the hidden sensuality of Filipino cuisine, while the last brother, struggles to heal deep wounds and finds love in an unexpected package. All this, leading to a shotgun wedding in the backyard of the family house.

In addition to appearing in Lisa Cholodenko’s Netflix limited series Unbelievable with Toni Collette,...