ANTONIO'S SECRET Q&A and upcoming Guest Appearances

We had amazing filmmakers visit us this weekend and ImageOut was very proud to be able to provide talkback sessions to our audiences. But the Q&A following last night's screening of the powerful ANTONIO'S SECRET just blew me away. At one point, Director Jay Altarejos needed to pause as he became clearly (and understandably) emotional while answering a question about gay life and the perceptions of homosexuality in the Philippines. The people who stayed for the Q&A really raised very good questions and it was probably the most intense and meaningful Q&A session we've had in a while at the Festival.

My endless gratitude to both Jay Altarejos and Arvin Viola (Director of Photography) for traveling all the way up to Rochester from the Philippines just to attend the International Premiere of ANTONIO'S SECRET.

Tomorrow, Richard Berkowitz will be attending the screening of his film SEX POSITIVE and will also be a guest at WCMF's The Break Room at 8:30am. Actress and filmmaker Diana Lee Inosanto is also scheduled to attend the screening of THE SENSEI. Hope to see you all there.

Mulligans Screening Ends A Great First Weekend

It's been a wonderful weekend full of loads of great movies, and I can't think of a better way to end it than with the screening of Mulligans that took place Sunday night. Derek James and Charlie David were just as friendly (and cute) in person as I could have hoped. I'm exhausted, however, so just a quick photo post for now, with more updates to come later.

Click photos for full res versions.


Photos by Matt DeTurck

First Weekend is History!

Wow. The weekend flew by quickly! And what a wonderful weekend it was. Great films. Great guests. Great audiences. I know it's too late for me to be blogging since I'm exhausted and still have to wake up early to take Charlie and Derek to the airport. But I just had to share something that I thought was really interesting. For the screening of MULLIGANS on Sunday night, a group of loyal Charlie David followers actually flew into town just to meet Charlie and to see the film. Two women came from Paris (as in France - can you believe it?); one girl flew in from London, UK; one from North Carolina; and another woman and her husband from Long Island. They all stayed at the Clarion Hotel. I think it's great that we can help Rochester tourism!

More posts to come...

Out on the Town

I met up with our guests from To Each Her Own last night for a night out in Rochester. Heather Tobin, director, and Kristen Dealy, actress, joined us for Karaoke at Nasty D's. We had a great time. Both women were so happy to be hear and are very excited to present their film this evening. And let me tell you, not only can Kristen act, but she's a pretty mean Karaoke singer too!

There are still tickets left for the film tonight. You can pick them up at the Little Theater Box office all day today. Come on out and see a great film and chat with the filmmaker and cast!

Jay McCarroll Has Designs On Rochester

I went to the screening of Eleven Minutes today at the Dryden and finally seeing it with an audience was awesome. Everyone there seemed to really enjoy the film. I love the way that the film documents the creative process of putting together a fashion show. As someone who doesn't follow the world of high fashion in the least and, I'll admit it, has never watched a single episode of Project Runway, the film is fascinating! It really gave me an appreciation for how much real work goes into putting a show like that together.

Even better was the Q&A with Jay McCarroll and co-director Rob Tate that followed the film. Starting off with a presentation of celebratory birthday cake to Jay (happy birthday Jay!), the designer offered up lots of gossip on the stars of Project Runway and filled us in on the winding path his career has taken in the two years since putting the show together. Probably the most entertaining post-film Q&A I've ever been to, Jay answered every question with his trademark catty wit and even continued to take questions after poor Michael tried to wrap things up! It was also great to hear Rob talk about creating the film and setting out to make it the "anti-Project Runway" by showing the creative process warts and all, avoiding the simplified techniques of reality TV. All in all, it was a fantastic time and I'm looking forward to many more in the coming week!

Click the photos to see the full-size versions.



Photos by Matt DeTurck

It's a Beautiful Saturday!

We had a good start for our second day. I know it's beautiful out today (which is not good for walk-in ticket sales!) but if you'd prefer to cool off inside the theater, you can still buy same day tickets at the theater boxoffice. And if you are buying tickets for other future shows, there is a separate counter setup for that. Please ask any ImageOut volunteer at the theater.

Getting ready to pickup the ELEVEN MINUTES talents from the airport. It should be another fun day at ImageOut!

Loud Pants and Audio Issues

One day down, nine more to go! Opening Night would have been perfect had we not encountered audio issues on both films. The audiences were very gracious though but I know the experience would have been more delightful if the sound were perfect. But we have addressed the issue so it should be better in the next few days.

And what a fabulous party! Those who were not in attendance really missed a good one.

Anyway, I'm still surprised at how much of a hit my pants were!

Tonight is the Night!

Very excited about Opening Night. With two sold out shows and some people possibly showing up for RUSH tickets, the energy at the Little will be great tonight! I hope to see you all there.

I had a radio guest stint at WCMF earlier today and those guys were a hoot. I hope we were able to reach out to people outside of our usual audiences. It would be great to share all our wonderful films to everyone who loves movies.

I was also on WBER earlier this week and I was surprised at the feedback I got from the many people who listen to Jen V. I'm not a big radio person so I am not familiar with local stations anyway. Again, I'm just glad ImageOut can reach out to more people.

Parking at the Little

Our two Opening Night features are both sold out. Parking will definitely be a challenge. In case you don't know, you can conveniently park at the East End Garage and have a short walk to the theater. It won't be too far from Eros anyway when you have to walk back to your car after the party!

Rush Line

I am thrilled that both opening night films have sold out, and predict that many more will follow in the footsteps of The World Unseen and Were the World Mine.

If you didn't get your tickets early, there's always the rush line! Hang around outside the theater just a few minutes before the show begins (though you may want to get there even earlier to have a better shot) and wait to see how many tickets are available for immediate purchase.

I know I'll be in line right next to you for the first opening night film. In the excitement of getting ready for the festival, I bought one ticket too few myself!

Buying Tickets?

Now that online ticket sales have ended, ImageOut tickets are not available for purchase until Friday, Oct. 10 when the festival begins. The theatre boxoffice will sell tickets for any films screening at that venue on that day. Ticket committee members are available at the theatre lobby to sell tickets for other days.

CITY Newspaper Features ImageOut

ImageOut is prominently featured in this week's CITY Newspaper hitting the newsstands today. Read the cover story and check out Rochester's fabulous film critic Dayna Papaleo's take on 16 of the film selections.

ImageOut was also on the cover of THE INSIDER last weekend.

WERE THE WORLD MINE Also Sells Out

WERE THE WORLD MINE tickets are gone . . . for now. Both our Opening Night films have officially sold out as of Tuesday evening. But Rush Only tickets will be available at the Little Theatre on Friday right before the film screenings.

Don't forget that online tickets sales end at 5pm today. Tickets for the festival will be available at the theater venues once the festival starts.

TRU LOVED looks like it's the next one like to sell out so don't miss out on a hilarious family comedy. Get your tickets now!

THE WORLD UNSEEN is Sold Out!

Program 1 is officially the first show to sell out at ImageOut 16. THE WORLD UNSEEN tickets have been selling briskly in the last few days, even outselling the also popular WERE THE WORLD MINE, although that is not too far behind. So if you haven't bought your tickets yet, you have until Wednesday at 5pm to get them online. Otherwise, all tickets will be available at the theaters when the Festival begins on Friday, Oct. 10.

We do have reserved tickets for all our shows and most of the time, not all of those tickets get used. For sold out shows, we offer them as Rush Tickets right before the film starts. So if you ever want to go to a sold out screening, you should really try our Rush Line as we have never turned people away in the past.

Argentina's XXY

ImageOut 16's Narrative Centerpiece is the incredible drama XXY about a teen hermaphrodite, raised as a female, who begins to question the gender choice made for her by her parents. This award-winning film has been featured in many international film festivals and was Argentina's official entry to the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar competition.

With all the many great choices you have in this year's lineup, I don't want you to miss out on possibly one of the best films we've had in the festival. So if you could squeeze in another program in your busy ImageOut schedule, I would highly recommend XXY.

To Read or Not To Read

Subtitled films have always been a hard sell -- not just for our audiences here but in many other US cities as well. Is it because people are just too lazy to read? Now I was just reading an article in the NY Times and someone said that subtitles are becoming acceptable to more people nowadays. And this welcome trend is being attributed to the popularity of text messaging, IM, and even emails to some extent. People are being forced to read more and more!

Anyway, we have tons of great foreign films and it would be a shame if you'd miss them just because you stay away from subtitles.

I'll take this opportunity to make a correction -- GRIMM LOVE as printed in the Festival program was mistakenly labeled as a subtitled film. It's actually in English! No subtitles required.

OTTO; OR, UP WITH DEAD PEOPLE is another one that is really mostly in English. I don't even remember subtitles to be honest.

Dark Horses...

One of the biggest challenges for the programming committee is trying to capture the essence of movies in writing for the festival program. We take great pride in our comprehensive program write-ups, but it is often difficult to fully express the emotion created visually and aurally by our most interesting films, and this year is no exception. It is a shame that some movies sometimes get overlooked in each lineup because words just cannot do them justice. Those who take a chance on films that seem unusual or heavy are usually glad they did.

One such dark horse candidate for this year’s audience favorite is Four Minutes. It is a favorite of a number of programmers, including Jes G who recommends the film here.

I am always excited to introduce and share the “Women’s Shorts” programs, and this year’s Arts and Crafts is sure to please a diverse audience. A wide range of entertaining and thought-provoking short films, the program will make you laugh, think, and maybe even shed a few tears. We have so much fun curating shorts programs and hope you will join us.

The World Unseen

I am so excited that tickets are selling very quickly to the Opening Night feature The World Unseen. In fact, there are only a few tickets left! I don’t know why you would be, but if you have been holding out on purchasing your festival tickets, this is definitely one movie that is well worth the rush to online ticket sales. You won’t want to miss this stunning drama featuring rich scenery, a poignant and moving storyline, and sultry leading ladies.

Remember that your ticket to either of the Opening Night films also includes admission to the after-party at Eros Restaurant, just a short stroll from the Little Theater. Enjoy hors d’oeuvres from the Eros kitchen, chocolate tasting from Hedonist Artisan Chocolates, and a cash bar featuring our Premiere Sponsor, High Falls Brewing Co.

We have a Winner!

I just had an e-meeting with the 3 Jury Members for the Flower City Flicks Short Film Competition and they have selected the Best Local Short for this year. Amazingly, it's a unanimous choice! The winner receives the first ever Mary Elizabeth Knight Award and $500. The winning film will be announced after the screening of the Flower City Flicks Program on Sunday, Oct. 12. Come join us and celebrate our local filmmakers!

Adam Lubitow's Picks

Ciao - Probably my favorite film of this year's festival, I was deeply moved by this story of two men drawn together following the death of their close friend. I loved the intimate tone of the film and the way in which the characters are developed through their conversations. Subtle, extremely well-acted, and powerful, I can't recommend Ciao highly enough. Plus, it doesn't hurt that it's lead actors are so easy on the eyes!

Grimm Love - Dark, disturbing, and unforgettable, Grimm Love is unlike anything we've ever shown at ImageOut. A fascinating and shocking take on the infamous true story of the Cannibal of Rohtenberg, this is the perfect film to showcase in our brand-new "ImageOut There!" lineup of films highlighting those films whose subject matter delves into the taboo and the unsettling.

~Adam Lubitow, Programmer