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Tokyo International Short Film Festival's Exclusive Interviews with Selected Filmmakers

Hard Light

Albert Syeles Talks About 'Christabel Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra'
03:06

Albert Syeles Talks About 'Christabel Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra'

Albert has been Nominated "Best Music Composer" in 2023 at the Cannes Shorts Festival and WON that honor at Toronto's 2022 Fusion Awards - International Art Festival of Future. His "Christabel" Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra has won First Place top honors at -the 2023 Toronto Indie Filmmakers Festival -the 2022 Toronto Fusion Awards - International Art Festival of Future (Best Score and Best Music Composer) -the 2022 Las Vegas International Film & Screenwriting Festival -the 2022 New Wave Short Film Festival (Munich, Germany) -the 2022 Roma Short Film Festival -the 2022 International Motion Picture Festival of India -the 2022 INDO FRENCH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL -the 2022 Dreamz Catcher International Film Festival -and the 2022 Venus Community Awards "Christabel" also earned HONORABLE MENTION (2nd place) at - 2023 Madrid International Short Film Festival - 2022 New York Tri-State International Film Festival - 2022 Seoul International Short Film Festival - 2022 Fox International Film Festival in Rome - and 2022 Zagreb International Film Festival as well as -FINALIST 2022 Zagreb International Sound & Film Music Festival -NOMINEE 2023 Cannes Shorts for Best Composer and OFFICIAL SELECTION at five other Film Festivals. Currently NOMINEE in the 2023 New Media Film Festival in Los Angeles. The event will be held in June 2023. Albert's "Quietude Jazz Rondo for Orchestra" won HONORABLE MENTION BEST FILM SCORE at the 2022 Tokyo International Short Film Festival. President and co-founder of Romanza - St. Augustine, Inc., and EpiCentre Alliance, both 501(C)(3) nonprofits. Both are dedicated to bringing high-quality arts and cultural events to the Nation’s Oldest City, St. Augustine, FL. EpiCentre Alliance is building St. Augustine's first Performing Arts Centre dedicated to the City's creative community. Romanza produces the annual 17-day-long "St. Augustine's Romanza Festivale of the Arts; the "St. Augustine Celtic Music & Heritage Festival"; and the "Original" St. Patrick's Day Parade.
An Interview with Aaron Leventman
06:51

An Interview with Aaron Leventman

Aaron Leventman attended Columbia University’s Graduate School for film where his thesis screenplay was given a professional reading at the Union Square Theatre in Manhattan. He moved to Santa Fe from Provincetown after his involvement as a writer/director/actor with the Provincetown Theatre Company. When living in Santa Fe, he performed with most of the local theatre companies in both classics and original plays. He’s also appeared in industrials, commercials, short films, and features and is currently represented by South West Artist Group in New Mexico. Aaron has enjoyed over 30 productions of his plays all over the country, many of which are published and available on Amazon.com. He co-produced an evening of his own short works titled Almost Adults that met with tremendous acclaim including the Mayor declaring LGBT Theatre Day in Santa Fe on opening night for the first time in the city’s history. His recent play was a finalist for the Samuel French OOB One Act Play Festival and the Secret Theatre’s One Act Factor, both in New York. He is currently the producer of a bimonthly online LGBTQ+ short play reading series through his company Almost Adults Productions which has been bringing together talent and audiences from all over the world. Aaron is also a playwriting, screenwriting, acting, and film history instructor at Santa Fe Community College, a film festival curator, and has a private writing coach practice. He was proud to have been recently chosen as a fan guest host on Turner Classic Movies, in conversation with TCM host Alicia Malone about the 80s classic Crossing Delancey.
LIA: A Bodybuilding Story - An Interview with Susan Weiss
06:32

LIA: A Bodybuilding Story - An Interview with Susan Weiss

Exploring and photographing the human condition is the major theme in my work. I attempt to connect with people and photograph their lives to document what makes them distinct as individuals. The stories are personal but they become my stories as I photograph and interpret through the lens of my camera, and their lives become my art. It is this attraction to lives that are unique and with a sense of vulnerability that drives my work. Lia: A Bodybuilding Story is the story of a female body builder, a woman with focus, determination, and the goal to participate in a pro tournament. My process is to embed myself with the subject in order to develop a trusted relationship and create a safe space where they are comfortable with me in their environment. For this project I began to photograph at the start of her training in June, 2022, spending many hours with her both in the gym and at other locations. Ultimately, I traveled with Lia and her husband to San Antonio for the competition, documenting her the entire time. Her career path is not something I was familiar with at the start, and in fact, I did not understand it. However, over time I began to respect her work ethic and develop a great admiration for her. I had to reconsider my cultural assumptions and stereotypes of the world in which she operated. It is the process of learning about other people’s lives and experiences that attracts me. It is also my story of the personal challenge to meet and work with strangers and find commonalities and friendship. I discovered parallels with Lia in her focus on training and my newly found knowledge of what her sport entailed, compared to my focus on the documentary work, challenges we both shared. This project has several themes. It is about the act of looking, not the male sexual gaze, but everyone looking and watching, with the mirror, the camera, and the computed being the other major characteristics. Our culture today demands that we observe and communicate via the internet and cellphone and Lia uses these to her advantage to tell her version of beauty and accomplishment. The story also asks the viewer to assess what they consider to be beauty feminine, and if is the same for everyone. Story, Producer: Susan Weiss Editor: Stephen Schaub Assistant Editor, Narrator, Story Editor: Eve O Schaub Sound: Stephen Schaub
Walk Home: An Interview with Josie Copeland
05:08

Walk Home: An Interview with Josie Copeland

A young school teacher reaches breaking point during her walk home and, with the help of her caring colleague, decides to finally face the skeleton hiding in her closet. Mary, a young school teacher in the UK, walks home after work. She is visibly distressed about an earlier argument over maternity leave with one of her colleagues. Her colleague, James, tries to console her and make her smile. It is evident that he likes her, but Mary seems distracted. After James leaves, Mary notices a young child playing with her mother in the park. The girl looks incredibly familiar and Mary leans in for a closer look. Suddenly, Mary’s phone rings and interrupts her train of thought. It is her mother. After a rushed conversation, she hangs up - stressed. Before Mary can gather her thoughts, one of her students, called Zara, taps her on the shoulder. Zara is with her mother, and the two women exchange in polite small talk before Zara and her mother head home. Mary sits down on a nearby bench. She is overwhelmed by her thoughts and thrown into a flashback of a conversation she had with her best friend, Olivia, when they were teenagers. It is clear that Mary has just made a difficult decision. Olivia tries to offer Mary support, but she is not interested. Mary shuts down the conversation. As Mary comes out of the flashback, she notices her colleague James is walking the wrong direction. The two of them start talking and James asks Mary out on a date. Mary explains she is not in a good place and, with a little coaxing from James, she opens up to him and shares the secret she has been carrying. She explains that she had a child when she was a teenager and gave it up for adoption. James’ maturity and understanding melts away Mary’s guilt and shame. Director: Josie Copeland Writer: Sarah Cameron-West Key Cast: Sarah Cameron-West Key Cast: Ross Bayliss Key Cast: Lucy Nicholson Key Cast: Anokhi Zagorski-Shah Cinematographer: Josie Copeland Editor: Sam Chapman
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