News

"Eddie Rouse, a versatile character actor who stood out in such films as American Gangster, The Number 23 and Pandorum, has died." Mike Barnes for the Hollywood Reporter: "Rouse starred as a Sammy Davis Jr. impersonator hired through Craigslist to perform at a boy’s birthday party in Todd Rohal’s Rat Pack Rat, which was funded through Kickstarter and won a jury prize in the shorts competition at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival." Rohal has put together a video tribute sampling Rouse's performances in David Gordon Green’s George Washington, Being Flynn, Nature Calls and more. » - David Hudson...

"Eddie Rouse, a versatile character actor who stood out in such films as American Gangster, The Number 23 and Pandorum, has died." Mike Barnes for the Hollywood Reporter: "Rouse starred as a Sammy Davis Jr. impersonator hired through Craigslist to perform at a boy’s birthday party in Todd Rohal’s Rat Pack Rat, which was funded through Kickstarter and won a jury prize in the shorts competition at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival." Rohal has put together a video tribute sampling Rouse's performances in David Gordon Green’s George Washington, Being Flynn, Nature Calls and more. » - David Hudson...

Eddie Rouse, a versatile character actor who stood out in such films as American Gangster, The Number 23 and Pandorum, has died. He was 60. Rouse, who just weeks ago filmed the pilot for the HBO series Westworld in Utah, died Sunday at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles of liver failure, his manager, Stephen Spacek of Spacek Management, told The Hollywood Reporter. See more Hollywood's Notable Deaths of 2014 Rouse starred as a Sammy Davis Jr. impersonator hired through Craigslist to perform at a boy’s birthday party in Todd Rohal’s Rat Pack Rat, which was funded through Kickstarter and

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by Miss E.

MoreHorror.com

Mile High Horror Film Festival

www.mhhff.com

Oct. 9-12, 2014

Littleton, Colorado

The 5th Annual Mile High Horror Film Festival was a twisted cornucopia of live performance artists, vendors, horror icons, FX artists, shorts, full length features, classics, and live industry panel discussions that drew the most rabid of fans. The repetitious problem of this particular festival is that it is structured in such a way it is impossible to see and do everything, leaving the most enthusiastic of attendees with nagging doubts and fear of “missing something”.

Opening night featured the original 1977 The Hills Have Eyes with all it’s glorious, non-pc dialogue. Original star Michael Berryman (Pluto) provided behind the scenes stories in an engaging Q&A session preceding the screening.

Hosted by The Alamo Draft House, Champion of the Independent Film Genre, Mhhff is growing in attendance every year. With over 80 films from 17 countries,...

Exclusive: Indie film subcription service Fandor has acquired sci-fi short film The Sand Storm ahead of its Telluride debut this weekend, and has set a day and date release coinciding with its world premiere this Sunday, August 31. The narrative short is directed by Jason Wishnow, the filmmaker behind the viral idea-fostering Ted Talks. It co-stars Chinese art star Ai Weiwei (Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry) in the dystopian tale of a city facing a water crisis in the near future, told from the perspectives of a woman, a man, a lover and a water smuggler. Wishnow co-wrote the script with Li-Anne Huang.

Fandor is the indie subscription VOD service that independent producer Ted Hope took the reins of in January. The company will make The Sand Storm available online on Fandor.com simultaneous to its world premiere at Telluride this Sunday at 4pm Mt. Earlier this summer the filmmakers launched a...

The Austin Film Society is kicking off the weekend with another Free Member Friday event. Tonight, Afs Members can enjoy a program of short films at the Marchesa for free, including Kat Candler's original 2012 short Hellion (recently adapted into a terrific feature) and Todd Rohal's Rat Pack Rat, which won a special jury prize at Sundance this year. Come on out even if you're not a member for $10 general admission tickets.

Afs is also hosting some special advance screenings of Richard Linklater's acclaimed new film Boyhood (Debbie's review) this weekend. The 1 pm screening on Sunday at the Marchesa is already sold out, but a 7 pm show still has VIP tickets available that include a private dinner with the director and cast. The acclaimed documentary Manakamana is screening at the Marchesa on Tuesday evening while Sweet Dreams folows on Wednesday. Essential Cinema closes out a busy week with...

Rooftop Films' 18th season has arrived, returning with a summer program featuring over 120 shorts. Throughout the season, the series showings will span different dates, locations, and over a dozen programs curated to compliment the themes of the films. Read More: Rooftop Films Reveals Lineup For 18th Summer Series; 'Obvious Child' to Open Some favorites include Rose McGowan's directorial debut "Dawn," Rooftop Alum & Film Fund Grantee Todd Rohal's Sundance Award Winning "Rat Pack Rat," and the NY Premiere of Lucy Walker's "The Lion's Mouth Opens." Rooftop Programmer Jeff Bowers says, "With tailor-made events and pitch-perfect venues for many programs... these will be nights to remember." Here are the short films of the 2014 Rooftop Films Summer Series. The full schedule including locations and dates will be announced in the coming weeks. 45 7 Broadway (Tomonari Nishikawa | 5’) This is an experimental film about Times Square, the noises and movements at this most.

Two Texas-based short films that were in competition at Sundance 2014 are making their Texas debuts at the SXSW Film Festival: writer/director Todd Rohal's Rat Pack Rat and Dig, by Dallas-based filmmaker Toby Halbrooks.

Halbrooks is an integral member of the filmmakers at Sailor Bear, a Dallas-based production company that includes David Lowery, James Johnston, Shaun Gish and Richard Krause. Last year's Sailor Bear feature Ain't Them Bodies Saints received an award for cinematography at Sundance, and this year's festival featured Alex Ross Perry's Listen Up Philip, also produced by the Sailor Bear team.

Dig stars Austinite Jonny Mars and newcomer Mallory Mahoney, who plays a young girl intrigued by the large hole her father (Mars) is digging in their backyard.

I spoke with Halbrooks in Park City during Sundance about Dig as well as other Sailor Bear projects, including the short film Pioneer. Here's what he had to say.

Ready, Set, Fund is a column about crowdfunding and fundraising endeavors related to Austin and Texas independent film projects.

Several local film projects that ran successful crowdfunding campaigns are making their regional premiere at this year's SXSW Film Festival including the experimental documentary Yakona from San Marcos-based filmmakers Anlo Sepulveda and Paul Collins, Thank You A Lot from Matt Muir and Chris Ohlson, Jeffrey Radice's No No: A Dockumentary, and Todd Rohal's Rat Pack Rat (pictured above). Yakona also received two Austin Film Society Grants (formerly known as the Texas Filmmakers' Production Fund), as did local filmmaker Kat Candler for her feature-length version of Hellion, which also makes its Texas debut at SXSW.

The SXSW Film Conference will feature several sessions that should be of interest to filmmakers who want to learn more about achieving funding for their projects.

"Meet the Insiders: Funding and Special Organizations" will feature several...

Austin Film Society (Afs) members who are filmmakers have the opportunity to submit their short films to screen during the SXSW Film Festival as part of ShortCase, this year's Afs Community Screening. ShortCase is a 70- to 90-minute special screening of locally connected short films.

To submit, you must be a current Afs Make-level member (or above) and either a producer, director or writer of the piece submitted -- one of the people most creatively responsible for the work. If you are not currently an Afs member at the Make level, you can join or upgrade here.

This will be my third year curating the ShortCase film series. This year's jury includes Afs Film Programmer Lars Nilsen and local Afs filmmaker Clay Liford, who produced the Sundance award-winning short Rat Pack Rat, which also screens in the SXSW regular programming.

We remind Afs filmmakers to take advantage of the wealth...

YouTube’s importance at Sundance grows every year. This year, they held free workshops on how to maximize your use of YouTube. Here is the latest schedule of YouTube on Main Street events and press assets, please visit google site ytsundance2014 or Twitter at #YouTubeSundance.

YouTube offered film fans access to the 2014 Sundance Film Festival both on and offline through several initiatives including:

Youtube On Main Street (596 Main Street, Park City, Ut 84060)

Open January 16-25, 2014 at various times. Warm up at “YouTube on Main Street,” the place for the creative community to convene for must-see panels, happy hours, film receptions, screenings, talks and DJ sets. Free Wi-Fi and drinks are available to badge holders when programs are not in session.

Daily Events at YouTube on Main Street:

“Live @ Sundance” On The Sundance Film Festival Youtube Channel Live daily from January 17-24, 2014 at 11am Mst at www.youtube.com/sff. Whether you’re in Park City or Phuket, you can check out the best of the fest daily with “Live @ Sundance.” The one-hour talk show will air live daily at 11am Mst January 17-24, 2014 from “YouTube on Mainstreet” on the sff (Sundance Film Festival) YouTube channel. The show will feature guest hosts Shira Lazar,Casey Neistat andJimmy Conrad, filmmaker interviews, the latest news from the festival, exclusive sneak peeks and more.Yoga (Jan. 17-24; 7:30-9am Mst) - Breathe and ease into warrior pose at these daily yoga sessions. Cassey Ho, star of the popular blogilates channel on YouTube, will lead these classes on January 17-21 Free and open to the public.

Individual Events:

How and Why to Use YouTube Panel (Jan. 22; 2-3pm Mst) - Hear from independent filmmaker Casey Neistat about how he successfully uses YouTube to distribute his films and build an audience. Free and open to the public.YouTube on Main Street and Paste Afternoon Showcase (Jan. 22; 3- 6pm Mst) Paste Magazine’s Josh Jackson will introduce performances by Sleeping at Last, Matt Scannell of Vertical Horizon, Michael Tolcher, and Carina Round. Press RSVP recommended.YouTube Party (Jan. 22; 9pm-1am Mst) Includes Dj set by Mick By invitation onlyNext and Midnight Cocktails (Jan. 23; 9:30-11pm Mst) By invitation onlyThey Came Together Film Reception (Jan. 24; 6:30-8:30pm Mst) - A reception for the world premiere of the romantic comedy. Includes a live Google+ Hangout with talent from the film including Amy Poehler and Paul Rudd. By invitation only.Film Contact: Shelby Kimlick – skimlick@mprm.com

Youtube Presents The 2014 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Program As the presenting sponsor of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Program, YouTube will help showcase some of the official shorts in competition on the sff (Sundance Film Festival) YouTube channel. For a complete list of this year’s short films, please visit Sundance.org. Additionally, Sundance audiences will be exposed to some of the best content on YouTube with select videos from popular YouTube channels to run before short film screenings at the festival.

Youtube Audience Award

On Saturday, January 25, 2014, the YouTube Audience Award will be presented at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival Awards Ceremony to a short film in competition that garners the most amount of views on YouTube between January 16-24, 2014. Check out the films on the sff (Sundance Film Festival) YouTube channel or click here.

The Sundance Institute selected 15 films eligible for this award from this year’s competition that include:

Allergy to Originality

Directed by Drew Christie

4 min, U S A

Animation

A humorous animated 'Op-Doc' explores the rich history of adaptation, plagiarism, and other forms of appropriation in art.

The Big House

Directed by Musa Syeed

5 min, U S A/Yemen

fiction

When a young Yemeni boy ventures out of his cramped apartment and finds a key to the empty mansion down the street, he lets himself and his imagination run wild in the big house.

Burger

Directed by Magnus Mork

11 min, Norway/United Kingdom

fiction

It's late night in a burger bar.

Catherine

Directed by Dean Fleischer-Camp

13 min, U S A

fiction

Catherine returns to work after a hiatus.

Chapel Perilous

Directed by Matthew Lessner

13 min, U S A

fiction

Levi Gold is paid an unexpected visit by Robin, a door-to-door salesman with nothing to sell. The ensuing encounter forces Levi to confront his true mystical calling, and the nature of reality itself. A metaphysical comedy trip-out with Sun Araw.

Crime The Animated Series (Marcus McGhee)

Directed by Alix Lambert and Sam Chou

4 min, U S A/Canada

Animated documentary

From Bank robbers to cops to victims to observers, Crime: The Animated Series explores how crime affects us all. The series is dark, compelling, heartbreaking, and yes - sometimes funny.

Cruising Electric (1980)

Brumby Boylston

1 min, U S A

fiction

The marketing department green-lights a red-light tie-in: 60 lost seconds of modern movie merchandising.

Dig

Directed by Toby Halbrooks

10 min, U S A

fiction

A young girl watches her father dig a hole in their backyard. Mystified about his purpose, the neighborhood comes to watch.

Funnel

Directed by Andre Hyland

7 min, U S A

fiction

A man's car breaks down and sends him on a quest across town that slowly turns into the most fantastically mundane adventure.

Gregory Go Boom

Directed by Janicza Bravo

17 min, U S A

fiction

A paraplegic man leaves home for the first time only to discover that life in the outside world is not the way he had imagined it.

MeTube: August Sings Carmen 'Habanera'

Directed by Daniel Moshel

4 min, Austria

fiction

George Bizet`s "Habanera" from Carmen has been reinterpreted and enhanced with electronic sounds for MeTube, a homage to thousands of ambitious YouTube users and video bloggers, and gifted and less gifted self-promoters on the Internet.

Notes on Blindness

Directed by Peter Middleton and James Spinney

13 min, United Kingdom

Documentary

In 1983, writer and theologian John Hull became blind. To help make sense of his loss, he began keeping an audio diary. Encompassing dreams, memories, and his imaginative life, Notes on Blindness immerses the viewer in Hull's experience of blindness.

Passer Passer

Directed by Louis Morton

4 min, U S A

Animation

An animated city symphony celebrates the hidden world of background noise.

Rat Pack Rat

Directed by Todd Rohal

19 min, U S A

fiction

A Sammy Davis, Jr. impersonator, hired to visit with a loyal Rat Pack fan, finds himself delivering last rights at the boy's bedside.

Tim and Susan Have Matching Handguns

Directed by Joe Callander

2 min, U S A

Documentary

Love is swapping clips with your spouse...

Here's the latest Austin and Texas film news.

Austin-based indie electronica band The Octopus Project won the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Musical Score at this year's Sundance Film Festival for their work on fellow Austinites David and Nathan Zellner's Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter (Debbie's review). This true-to-life drama follows a lonely Japanese woman who travels to America in search of the treasure mentioned in the movie Fargo.The Zellner Brothers discussed their inspiration for Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter, which debuted at Sundance, with The Wall Street Journal. Austinite Todd Rohal's Rat Pack Rat (Debbie's dispatch), about a Sammy Davis Jr. impersonator who's hired to visit a Rat Pack fan, won Sundance's Short Film Special Jury Award for Unique Vision. Austin filmmaker Clay Liford (Wuss) produced. In more Sundance Film Festival news, Austin-based filmmaker David Gordon Green continues to express his appreciation for Iceland (Prince Avalanche...

Love.Love.Love, a short documentary directed by Ftii student Sandhya Daisy Sundaram, won the Short Film Special Jury award for non-fiction at the ongoing Sundance Film Festival.

Set against the Russian Winter landscape, Love. Love. Love. is a film about a universal Russian woman and her big love. It was made as part of Cinetrain, The Russian Winter Project held in Russia in January 2013.

Read: From Russia to Sundance, With Love.Love.Love.

This year’s Short Film program at Sundance comprises of 66 short films selected from a record 8,161 submissions.

Fifteen short films from the 2014 Festival are featured on the Festival’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/sff.

Complete list of awards:

Short Film Grand Jury Prize: Of God and Dogs (Syria) by the Abounaddara Collective

Short Film Jury Award: U.S. Fiction: Gregory Go Boom by Janicza Bravo

Short Film Jury Award: International Fiction: The Cut (Canada) by...

Today’s film is the 2014 short Rat Pack Rat. The film stars Margie Beegle, Steve Little, and Eddie Rouse, and is written and directed by Todd Rohal. Rohal has made a number of short films and three features, including Nature Calls with Johnny Knoxville and Patton Oswalt. Rat Pack Rat made its debut at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival in the Short Films category.

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The post Saturday Shorts: ‘Rat Pack Rat’, premiering at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival appeared first on Sound On Sight.

You don't have to travel to Park City to enjoy great content from the 30th annual Sundance Film Festival. YouTube is offering quite a bit of content for film fans to view online via the Sundance Film Festival YouTube Channel.

As the presenting sponsor of the Sundance 2014 shorts program, YouTube is showcasing several of the official shorts in competition. Fifteen films were selected from this year's competitors, including two short films from Texas: Rat Pack Rat and Dig. The Austin-shot Rat Pack Rat is directed by Todd Rohal and produced by several Austinites including Zack Carlson, Clay Liford, and Ashland Viscosi. Dig is written and directed by Dfw-area producer Toby Halbrooks.

The YouTube Audience Award will be presented at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival Awards Ceremony on Saturday, January 25, to the short film in official competition that receives the most views on YouTube between January 16-24, 2014. And Slackerwood has both Texas...

Since its launch in 2011, Fandor has pegged itself as a cross between Netflix and Sundance. So it makes sense that the indie film streaming site, which recently hired indie film guru Ted Hope as its new CEO, is at this year's Sundance Film Festival looking to acquire (although Hope won't be attending due to prior commitments). The company plans to debut "Rat Pack Rat," a short film by Todd Rohal screening at this year's Sundance, on Fandor today at noon, ahead of its Sundance screening on Friday. While other sites, including YouTube, will make Sundance shorts, including "Rat Pack Rat" available, Fandor's chief content officer Jonathan Marlow said their version will be the highest quality. "We had Todd do a higher bit rate version for us," Marlow told Indiewire. "Although it will be available elsewhere, it will look best on Fandor." When "Rat Pack Rat," about a Sammy Davis Jr....