Be With Me

Autism. The painful diagnosis is familiar to many parents today. According to recently released CDC statistics, 1 in 68 children in the United States are diagnosed, and it's even worse for boys—1 in 58. Be With Me is the real life story of a mother who fought back; she refused to accept such a debilitating life sentence for her son.

The story of Be With Me began in 1996, when Lori and Jim Cairns could see their 2-year-old son, JR, slipping away. The diagnosis: mild to moderate autism and mental retardation. Doctors predicted JR would be institutionalized by age 17.

The family was crushed and overwhelmed: at the time, autism remained poorly understood, few local resources were available, and the wider medical community considered recovery, as a practical matter, impossible. But inspired by the groundbreaking book, Let Me Hear Your Voice, Lori pursued a then-new therapeutic approach called Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Lori brought various ABA experts to Arizona to help JR and invited parents of other diagnosed children into her home to watch the therapists work with her son. 

The results were astonishing. You can watch the trailer here: Be With Me Preview

Five Past Ten

Shot on locations of Lanzarote, Las Canarias (Canary Islands) — in such otherworldly landscapes as Las Salinas Del Janubio, El Golfo, El Lago Verde, Timanfaya, and Puerto Del Carme — this highly atmospheric music video explores themes of home and physical desire through space rock-like musicianship and tectonic, primal imagery of Earth. Director Lara Celenza of Italy incorporates a motif of the American western, as well.  

The inspiration for this NHFF Official Selection is Italian blues rock musician Nico Greco's studio album, Stone Three Home (2013), which he says is all about finding your home, the place where you truly belong. Celenza develops his concept through her deft use of Eastern religious imagery, sunlight, and a broken down, isolated edifice that says less about home as an ideal where you return than it does about a place where you already exist. 

Five Past Ten will be screened with music videos from around the world. You can watch the trailer here: Five Past Ten Trailer

Retreat

In the midst of the American Civil War, soldiers on both sides have seen things that will haunt them for the rest of their days. But two Union soldiers are more concerned with what's waiting for them back home. Together by chance in the same regiment, they find themselves clashing with more than just their common enemy. 

The production values alone make this period drama an impressive student debut, but there is even more reason to take note. Retreat began as a short story by Pennsylvania teenager Nick Theorin, whose older brother Kurtis adapted it into a screenplay; their brother Kris Theorin, also a teenager, directed and edited the film. They received their funding through a Kickstarter campaign.  

This film is a shining testimony to the dedication and talent of a new generation's emerging filmmakers, who often get things done through their own drive and organizational skills. You can check out the preview here (parental discretion advised): Retreat Trailer

Acceptance

Acceptance is the story of a mother's journey through the seven stages of grief after finding out her nine-year-old son, Josh, has Asperger's Syndrome.

Based on filmmaker Laura Shapanus's real life experience, this self-financed short has plenty to say and lots of heart. Acceptance will move you and stay with you long after the final credits have rolled. You can watch the trailer here: Acceptance Trailer

Insomniacs

Insomniacs is an emotionally charged, romantic drama about two lost souls who connect through a shared misery.

One restless night, on opposite sides of a London flat complex, Jade and Theo are suffering from insomnia. Burdened by lovesickness, Theo spots a light on during these late hours: he observes Jade from a distance, becoming intrigued by a young woman who suffers from a similar affliction, then attracted as he watches her move about.

In the manic episode that follows, Jade escapes to the rooftop and Theo follows. And sparks soon fly. Filmmaker Charles Chintzer Lai, who bases himself in Brooklyn, delivers this kinetic short film with delightful cinematography and a realistic sense of what it's like to be single in a megacity. 

You can watch the trailer here: Insomniacs Trailer

One Wall: Kings of Coney Island

One Wall: Kings of Coney Island celebrates Coney Island, Brooklyn, summer and athleticism. Given the recent devastation of this area due to Hurricane Sandy, this film stands as a portrait of a neighborhood and a subculture that is swiftly disappearing.

Most people who know central character Joe Durso know the handball legend as a foulmouthed egomaniac -- part Muhammad Ali, part Howard Stern -- a man so scornful and profane that even Lenny Bruce might have blushed at some of the verbal daggers he hurled at the brawny gumbahs who spar with him on the concrete courts on Surf Avenue in Coney Island. Were this former champ just another cocky jock talking trash in the playground, this story might be the tale of a colorful character -- big game, big mouth --- who dominated the quirky world of his sport like none other. But the story is more complex. It is the saga of a gifted, fiercely determined kid who spent 20 years becoming the unchallenged master of his game, the game that defined manhood in the bubbling cauldron of Coney Island.

But the film is also about love: love for the game, love for your fellow man. And that's why first-time director Joe Glickman received so much praise from our audience for his work. You can watch the trailer here: One Wall Trailer

2013 Award Winners

Hey Everyone!

Here are the results from yesterday's exciting awards ceremony. Congratulations to all of our filmmakers...you all are winners!!

Lifetime Achievement Award - Christina Crawford

Film Jury Awards

Danny Award, Best Picture - Mad Ship, Canada
   Nominees: Pechorin, Mad Ship, The Assignment, Locomotive, Since I Don't Have You, Legend of
   Love, Sonny Days

Best Director - Khrushch Roman, Russian Federation
   Nominees:  Susan Barry, Matthias Rosenberger, Khrushch Roman, David Yohe, Karl Stieg,
   Tom Megalis, David Mortin

Best Documentary - Out of Print, USA
   Nominees: Surviving Mommie Dearest, Out of Print, Misa's Fugue, 1913 Massacre, Geil of
   Doylestown, All Me: The Life and Times of Winfred Rembert, One Wall: Kings of Coney Island

Best Short Film - Spaghetti for Two, Germany
   Nominees: Autumn, Spaghetti for Two, If I Were a Bell, Possum, Refuge, A Family Dinner,
   Irina

Indie Spirit Award - My Way, USA
   Nominees: No Horizon Anymore, My Way, Locomotive, Legend of Love, Since I Don't Have You,
   Sonny Days, Route 30, Too!, When Time Becomes a Woman

Best Animated Film - Recipe for Love, Canada
   Nominees: The Nature of Things, Recipe for Love

Best Biography - Geil of Doylestown, USA
   Nominees: Misa's Fugue, Geil of Doylestown, Surviving Mommie Dearest, All Me: The Life
   and Times of Winfred Rembert

Artistic Spirit Award - Surviving Mommie Dearest, USA
   Nominees: My Way, Surviving Mommie Dearest, The Assignment, No Horizon Anymore,
   The Risk Factor, The Mercury Cycle

Best Student Film - Sweetly Broken, Czech Republic
   Nominees: Safe, Sweetly Broken, On Becoming a Man, The Road Back, A Flight of Fancy,
   Saving Bella, La Vie en Gris, On Becoming a Man, Sahasi Chori, Mr. Bellpond

Best Adaptation - The Assignment, Canada
   Nominees: Pechorin, The Assignment, Spaghetti for Two

New Hope Award - All Me: The Life and Times of Winfred Rembert, USA
   Nominees: Unlikely Friends, Misa's Fugue, Surviving Mommie Dearest, Battle: Change from
   Within, Shell Shocked, All Me: The Life and Times of Winfred Rembert, My Way

Cultural Spirit Award - Shell Shocked, USA
   Nominees: GMO OMG, Shell Shocked, Battle: Change from Within, Shell Shocked, Out of Print,
   Misa's Fugue, Dit is Ek (This is Me), Out of the Blue

Best Horror Film - Metamorphosis, USA
   Nominees: Side Effects, Metamorphosis, Kingdom of Shadows

Best Comedy - Sonny Days, USA
   Nominees: Grow Up Already, Sonny Days, Girl Clown, Baggage, Young(ish), Ben & Elaine,
   Vena Amoris

Screenplay Jury Awards

Best Screenplay - Taking the King, USA
   Honorable Mention - The Still Life of Cornelius, USA

Best Narrative Feature - all I ever wanted was EVERYTHING, USA, Costa Rica

Best Short Screenplay - Transhumans, USA

Best Mid-Atlantic Screenplay - Scarlett Sunshine, USA

Best Futuristic Screenplay - PRION, USA

Best Dramatic Screenplay - Halfway Home, USA

Music Video Jury Awards

Best Music Video - Old Coats, USA

Best Pop Video - My Dream Girl, USA

Best Alternative Video - Life in Pictures, Canada

Best Hip Hop Video - Top of My Game, USA, Jamaica

Music Video Cultural Spirit Award - Let Your Light Shine, USA

Best Folk Video - What Are We Waiting For, Canada

Best Inspirational Video - Miracle, Poland

Audience Choice Awards

Best Webisode - Chart Star, Australia

Best Music Video - Miracle, Poland

Best Art House Feature - Since I Don't Have You, USA

Best Documentary - Gamers, USA

Best Short Film - Autumn, USA

Best Student Film - The Mercury Cycle, USA

Best Mid-Atlantic Film - One Wall: Kings of Coney Island, USA