2007 Season is Announced

The Berkshire International Film Festival (BIFF) today announced the selection of films that will screen from May 17th through 20th, 2007, in Great Barrington, MA. The film festival will feature some 50 US and international independent feature films, documentaries, and shorts as well as panel discussions, Q & A’s with filmmakers, special screenings of the finalists from the Berkshire Student Film Festival, dance films in collaboration with Jacob’s Pillow in celebration of their 75th anniversary, and a special tribute evening to film director and Berkshire resident, Arthur Penn. Venues for the weekend-long event will be the Triplex Cinema, the historic Mahaiwe Theatre and Mixed Company, all in downtown Great Barrington.

Opening the festival will be the coming of age story, Rocket Science
written and directed by Academy-Award nominee , Jeffrey Blitz (Spellbound) and features incredible performances by Reece Daniel Thomson, Anna Kendrick, Nicholas D’Agosto and Vincent Piazza. Rocket Science is a wry comedy of adolescence tackling the mysteries of life, love and public speaking. The film will be released nationwide this summer by Picturehouse.

Feature, documentary and short films from the US include, Broken English directed by Zoe Cassavetes, Crazy Love directed by Dan Klores, The Music Inn directed by Ben Barenholtz, The Ten directed by David Wain, Cook Off! directed by Guy Shalen, Darius Goes West directed by Logan Smalley, Arranged directed by Stefan Schaefer, War/Dance directed by Sean and Andrea Fine, Children of the War directed by Alexandre Fuchs Park Avenue Cubists directed by James Christe, Trigger Finger directed by Marc Maurino, Drop Back Ten directed by Stacy Cochran, and Made in Brooklyn by Luca Palanca.

International feature, documentary and short films include In The Shadow
of the Moon (United Kingdom) directed by David Sington, Exiled (Hong Kong) directed by Johnny To, View from a Grain of Sand (Afghanistan/US) directed Meena Nanji, Eagle vs. Shark (New Zealand) directed by Taika Waititi, The Last Train (Germany) written by Stephen Glantz, Tale of Tanglewood (Canada) directed by Barbara Willis Sweete, Strike! (Germany) directed by , Little Red Flowers (China) directed by Zhang Yuan, Hunt Angels  (Australia) directed by Alec Morgan, Vier Minuten (Germany) directed by Chris Kraus, Ghosts of the Cite Soleil (Denmark/Uganda) directed by Asgar Leth, Nerves of Steel (Australia) directed by Andrea Ulbrick, What the Future of Music Sounds Like (United Kingdom) directed by Matthew Bate, The Go Master (China) directed by Tian Zhuangzhuang , The Curiosity of Chance (Belgium) directed by Russell Marleau.

In addition to these films, the festival will showcase the winners of the
Berkshire Student Film Festival. The BSFF received nearly 30 films from 5
different Berkshire area schools. The finalist’s films will be shown
twice during the festival with an award-ceremony to follow the second
screening. Among the finalists are Seb’s Cornucopia (Berkshire Country
Day School) directed by David Kaplan, Stasia Whalen, and Riley Waggaman, Across the Table (Berkshire Country Day School) directed by Jane Burns, Annalise Clausen and Rosie Taylor, Undertow (Berkshire Country Day School) directed by Andrew Boyce, The Milker (Williamstown High School) directed by David Rosenthal, What is Love? (Drury High School) directed by Ashlie Perkins, Over the Rainbow (Drury High School) directed by Lauren Skiffington, Lucy in the Sky (Monument Mountain High School) by Erin Potter and Day of Peace (Monument Mountain High School) by Sam Demanby.

The award ceremony will be held after the screening of films on Sunday
with an ice-cream social provided by SoCo Creamery in Great Barrington.
Awards for the students have been generously donated by Canyon Ranch, the Snap Shop in Great Barrington and the Lee Education Enrichment Foundation and Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation.

Opening night festivities include a cocktail party with light supper and
desserts at Pearl’s prior to the screening of Rocket Science, with other
Great Barrington restaurants as well as the Iris Gallery and the Vault
Gallery remaining open for champagne receptions for festival goers.
Premiere sponsors of the event include the Triplex Cinema, Berkshire
Living Magazine, Studio Two, Canyon Ranch, GWFF and The Red Lion Inn.
Supporting sponsors include Bacardi, Stella Artois, Abbotts Livery, Medoff
Inc., and Mixed Company.

The 2007 Festival tribute will be given to distinguished director, Arthur
Penn, a Berkshire County resident, who has worked in film and theater for
over 50 years. Penn is best known for directing one of the most
controversial films of all time, Bonnie and Clyde. Also credited to his
legendary direction are Alice’s Restaurant, Night Moves, Little Big Man,
The Miracle Worker, The Missouri Breaks, and Four Friends. The tribute
will include award-nominated actor, Matt Dillon, Academy-Award winning
actress Estelle Parsons, Berkshire resident and actress Karen Allen,
award-winning screenwriter Walter Bernstein, Mr. Penn’s long-time
producing partner Gene Lasko, and the entire cast from his film of Four
Friends including Reed Birney, Jim Metzler, Jodi Thelen, Craig Wasson, and Michael Huddleston. The tribute evening will be held at the historic
Mahaiwe Theatre on May 19, 2007, which includes a cocktail party with
Arthur Penn and special guests on the stage of the Mahaiwe followed by the tribute and screening of Bonnie and Clyde. The evening will be catered by Berkshire Chef, Michael Ballon of Castle Street Café.
“I am amazed at the incredible talent in the independent filmmaking world that we have garnered for the Festival, said Festival founder and
director, Kelley R. Vickery. It is with great pride, through the hard
work of many individuals, that we present an incredible second year with
over 50 films representing a dozen countries. BIFF is showcasing the best
in feature films, documentaries and shorts today. In addition, BIFF is
proud to be collaborating with one of the great Berkshire artistic
institutions, Jacob’s Pillow and will be screening three dance films to
celebrate the Pillow’s 75th anniversary. BIFF is also showcasing the
talents of our own Berkshire filmmakers and Berkshire students.” Vickery
continued, “I am proud of all the efforts in this community to make this
an integral part of the Berkshire cultural fabric. After such a
successful inaugural season, I know we will continue to build a festival
that the entire community will be proud to call their own.”

Berkshire International Film Festival is a 501©3 non-profit organization
under the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. For more information, to be a sponsor, volunteer or make a contribution to BIFF, please contact kelley@biffma.com or la uren@biffma.com