A Guide to the BUFFALO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

The 7th annual Buffalo International Film Festival reaches screens in Amherst and Buffalo with four nights of films - including several local works including the features Brandonwood and Buffalo Boys making their WNY debuts. Also local are several shorts - screened throughout the festival and in a shorts block on Friday at 4PM, two local documentary including one about Allentown's Theater of Youth and another about climate change.

There is something for everybody including the festivals' most intriguing film - The Thief and the Cobbler - Recobbled Cut which attempts to complete a never completed epic.

The Galas

While maybe not as glamorous as a TIFF outting at Roy Thompson Hall - the festival none the less features an opening and closing night Gala including a little scene film from French filmmaker Luc Besson (director of The Family)  - The Extraordinary Adventures of D'Adele Blanc-Sec and the Theater of Youth documentary Long Live TOY: Defending Children's Theater in the Nickel City.

Trailer for Defending TOY on Vimeo

The Locals

Brandonwood and Buffalo Boys show Friday and Saturday night at 9PM respectively. Buffalo Boys by Raymond Guarnieri has screened at Indie Gathering at the Manhattan Film Festival where it took home several honors. Brandonwood by John J. Fink, will have its world premiere at BIFF after revealing its trailer earlier last month. Both look like strong works - with Buffalo Boys selling out several days in advance - the festival announcing a rush line for those without tickets. Local shorts play before both shows.

Docs

The festival has a strong line up of documentaries including the kid friendly Magic Camp, the Long Bike Back from Buffalo born filmmaker Julia Wrona, the story of a Reverend Gary Davis - a rag time singer in Harlem Street Singer, and Dear Mr. Watterson, an exploration of comic strip Calvin and Hobbs by Joel Allen Schroeder. Comfort Zone: The WNY Climate Change Movie also aims to shine a light on several important air quality issues - gee - thanks Tonawanda! 

A block of Made in Buffalo documentaries also screens on Sunday at 4:30PM.

World Cinema

Earning its title as an INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL - let us not forget several titles the festival is showcasing that otherwise would slip through the cracks (not that Squeaky Wheel and Dipson aren't trying their hardest). Amongst those include the Bollywood dance flick (luckily without the Bollywood running time, the festival quotes it at a lean 95 minutes) - Aayna Ka Bayna, the Chinese sex shop comedy Red Light Revolution - which looks hilarious, and the controversial Turkish film When Darin Falls. 

Also don't forget to check out Casa De Arte (on Elmwood Avenue in Allentown) which will be home to the festival's tribute to Mexican actress Maria Felix, featuring a different Felix film Friday-Sunday at 8PM. Admission to the Felix tribute is free.

The festival offers various ticketing options with general adult admission $10 - with discounts for students, seniors, children and members of the Buffalo Film Society. All tickets on sale at www.buffalofilmfestival.com. 

2 LOCAL PRODUCTIONS to screen at BUFFALO INT'L FILM FEST

** updated 8/2/2013: previously we reported the Buffalo International Film Festival included a tribute to director Ismael Rodriguez, while Rodriguez did direct two of the films screening, the screenings are commemorating the life and work of Maria Felix. We regret the error.

The Buffalo International Film Festival is slowly announcing its line up including a tribute to Mexican actress Maria Felix (more info on her here) as well as the festival’s signature Made in WNY programming. Two local films were announced including John Fink’s Brandonwood (screening October 4^th) and Raymond Guarnieri’s Buffalo Boys (screening October 5^th) - both will screen at The Screening Room in Amherst.

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Brandonwood – written, directed and edited by John J. Fink, and produced and co-staring Tilke Hill (also co-staring in Buffalo Boys), the film, we learn was 7-years in the making, filmed mostly last year in and around the region. Not much is known about the film, as the Buffalo International Film Festival will be its first screening. (90 minutes)

From the filmmaker:

Brandonwood is a romantic thriller following four years in the life of a young couple– from the reckless highs of new love to the lows of circumstances they cannot change on the periphery. Natalie (Kathleen Denecke) a college freshman, begins a relationship with Brandon (Kyle Perry) – an employee of their suburban town’s public works department. Keeping him a secret at first, she alienates her friends and family in the process, the comfort of the relationship morphs into dysfunction as they each come into their own.

Staring: Kathleen Denecke, Kyle Perry, Gerry Maher, Eric Mowery, Kelly Krose, Mike Sarcneli, Travis Hedland, Megan Deanna Smith, Darryl Hart, Andre Calon, Michael Morel and Tilke Hill.

More information at: www.facebook.com/brandonwoodfilm

Brandonwood has not released a trailer however this brief clip has our attention.

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Buffalo Boys – directed by Raymond Guarnieri and written by Guarnieri, Elena Lott and co-star McKenzie Trent had its world premiere at the Manhattan Film Festival (where it took home Best Film- Coming of Age) and also screened at Indie Gathering (where it won Best Crime Drama). Inspired by actual events murder of a teenager whom Guarniei had known the film was written over a nine-month period and filmed in Buffalo last summer. (80 minutes)

From the Filmmaker:

Inspired by a true story, Buffalo Boys follows the life of IAN, a 15-year-old living in Buffalo, NY. After discovering the man who raised him is not his biological father, Ian's world is turned upside down as he heads down a path of self-destruction and murder. His mother, MARY-ANN, refuses to name his real father, fueling Ian's desire to escape suburbia. His girlfriend, LINDSAY, urges him to stay and work things out, while his best friend, DANIEL, continues to lead him down a violent path. Together, the boys sell drugs to make money- until their dealer, MAXINE, offers an easier way to get rich quick...

Staring: Paul Castero, Ro Mack, Ilana Mollick, McKenzie Trent, Matt Tester, Raymond Guarnieri and Tilke Hill.

More information at: www.facebook.com/buffaloboys

The official trailer which provides a great sense of what this film is all about (including some great looking footage at a rave)...

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The Buffalo International Film Festival has made early bird tickets available for both films until August 4^th – afterwards regular prices will apply (however the festival offers discounts for students, seniors, and members of the Buffalo Film Society)….

Brandonwood Tickets (Oct 4^th – 9PM – Screening Room)

Buffalo Boys Tickets (Oct 5^th -  9PM – Screening Room)

Buffalo International Film Festival Website