Boots Riley News

As January winds to an end, the party still rages on at Joe's Pub!

Global storytelling nonprofit The Moth today announced its jam-packed live show lineup for 2020. Over the next 12 months, the team behind the award-winning Moth Radio Hour-airing on more than 500 public radio stations nationwide-and The Moth Podcast-downloaded over 73 million times a year- will present close to 600 shows from stages around the world, featuring approximately 5,500 true, personal stories told live, without notes. Also in 2020: The Moth will debut a Pop-Up Porch storytelling pitch experience this summer --the porch, a nod to the organization's roots, will travel from North Dakota to Texas with several stops along the way.

Sundance Institute invites champions of independent storytelling to attend An Artist at the Table Presented by IMDbPro, Sundance Institute's annual fundraising event hosted on the first night of the Sundance Film Festival, Thursday, January 23, 2020, in Park City, Utah. During the celebratory event, Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation, will be honored with the Vanguard Award for Philanthropy. Proceeds from the evening will advance Sundance Institute's mission and programs that discover, support and amplify risk-taking and exciting independent film, media and theatre artists.  In addition to Presenting Sponsor IMDbPro, the event is supported by Lead Sponsor the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation.

Sundance Institute invites champions of independent storytelling to attend An Artist at the Table Presented by IMDbPro, Sundance Institute's annual fundraising event hosted on the first night of the Sundance Film Festival, Thursday, January 23, 2020, in Park City, Utah. During the celebratory event, Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation, will be honored with the Vanguard Award for Philanthropy. Proceeds from the evening will advance Sundance Institute's mission and programs that discover, support and amplify risk-taking and exciting independent film, media and theatre artists. In addition to Presenting Sponsor IMDbPro, the event is supported by Lead Sponsor the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation.

Columbia College Hollywood will host the exceptional filmmakers behind IFC Midnight's 'Greener Grass' as keynote speakers for the college's 2019 CCH Film Fest, set to take place Nov. 1 and 2 on the Los Angeles campus.

Coventry's Belgrade Theatre is gearing up for a series of celebrations next month as Black History Month returns in October 2019.

TimesTalks, The New York Times live conversation and performance series, is pleased to announce HBO as presenting sponsor of the ScreenTimesseries for a second year. Over the course of the year-long sponsorship, ScreenTimes will showcase 12 high profile pre-release screenings, coinciding with key studio release dates in late spring, summer, fall, and the year-end holiday awards season. Each screening will be followed by a conversation with the top creative talent from that film, moderated by a New York Times journalist.

Sundance Institute, in collaboration with A24, invites fans and supporters of independent cinema to celebrate writer/director Lulu Wang with a special premiere screening of her film The Farewell and afterparty at The Theatre at Ace Hotel DTLA on Wednesday, June 26, 2019. Wang, an alumna of Sundance Institute's 2017 FilmTwo Initiative, will be honored with the Institute's annual Vanguard Award presented by Acura at the summer benefit. Proceeds from the evening will advance Sundance Institute's mission and programs that discover, support and amplify risk-taking and exciting independent artists across film, theatre and media. 

Filmmakers from the U.S., Lebanon, Palestine, and the United Kingdom have been selected for the 2019 Sundance Institute Directors and Screenwriters Labs, taking place at the Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah. At the Directors Lab (May 27-June 18), filmmakers will rehearse, shoot, and edit key scenes from their scripts, working in an immersive, hands-on environment with support from accomplished advisors to build their craft as directors and make key discoveries in collaboration with their actors and key crew. Immediately following, the Screenwriters Lab (June 20-24) provides the opportunity to process the insight gained from the Directors Lab through one-on-one story sessions with screenwriter advisors, and find inspiration and guidance for continued development of their screenplays.

The 23rd annual American Black Film Festival (ABFF), taking place in Miami June 12-16, continues to deliver on their promise to showcase some of today's hottest talent and provide a platform for emerging artists. This year's lineup will include conversations, screenings and panels with diverse and inspiring filmmakers, icons and industry executives, presented by some of the most innovative brands in entertainment.

The 23rd annual American Black Film Festival (ABFF), taking place in Miami June 12-16, continues to deliver on their promise to showcase some of today's hottest talent and provide a platform for emerging artists. This year's lineup will include conversations, screenings and panels with diverse and inspiring filmmakers, icons and industry executives, presented by some of the most innovative brands in entertainment.

The acclaimed Steppenwolf ensemble and Board of Trustees host Gala 2019, an extraordinary evening celebrating over four decades of powerful and thought-provoking storytelling. Emceed by one of Hollywood's most in-demand actors, Armie Hammer (Sorry to Bother You, Call Me By Your Name), the party takes place on Saturday, May 11, 2019 at 6:30pm at a new location not far from the theater, Rockwell on the River (3057 N. Rockwell Ave). Golden Globe Winner James Franco (The Disaster Artist, 127 Hours) will be the guest auctioneer. Proceeds from the night generate essential resources to support the innovative new work on Steppenwolf's spaces and expansive education and community programs.

The Shed, New York City's new arts center dedicated to commissioning, develops, and presents original works of art, across all disciplines, for all audiences, will open to the public on April 5 with the world premiere of Soundtrack of America. The five-night concert series, conceived and directed by Steve McQueen with a creative team led by Quincy Jones and Maureen Mahon, celebrates the unrivaled impact of African American music on contemporary culture with performances by a new generation of artists. A free live stream of the April 5 concert will be available on The Shed's website, TheShed.org, and its social media channels.

The 2019 Film Independent Spirit Award winners were announced today, February 23. The awards ceremony was held on the beach in Santa Monica, just north of the Santa Monica Pier, and was broadcast live exclusively on IFC.

The nominees for the 50th NAACP Image Awards were exclusively announced today at the Television Critics Association's (TCA) TV One's joint press conference with Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP and Alfred Liggins, Chairman and CEO of TV One. The winners will be revealed during the Two-Hour LIVE TV special airing on TV One on Saturday, March 30, 2019.

Peace of Mind is like a soundtrack to this crazy time in America. Each of the eight songs has a different theme — like immigration, voter suppression, mental health, etc. And Bhi didn't want to just release them into the album-cycle ether.  So, he and the team at Critical Frequency have packaged these songs, one per episode, into what plays like a half-hour radio show w/ conversations, storytelling and cool sound design (comprised entirely of the stems for that song).  At the end, Bhi shares the full song and the story behind it.  

Sundance Institute will convene dozens of offscreen events, including inclusive and intersectional conversations on the next wave of storytelling, radical data transparency, the future of democracy at its intersection with the arts, behind-the-scenes panels on the art of filmmaking and musical performances that range from intimate to raucous at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival taking place in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Sundance, Utah, January 24 through February 3, 2019.

Final Draft, a Cast & Crew Company, now in its 28thyear as the industry standard for screenwriting software, today announced the honorees for the 14thAnnual Final Draft Awards. Academy Award® winning screenwriter Callie Khouri will be presented the prestigious Hall of Fame Award for her prolific contribution to the art of screenwriting and devotion to writers and the writing community. This year's New Voice Award recipient for Film is writer-director Boots Riley whose critically-acclaimed debut feature Sorry To Bother You announced the arrival of Riley as an exciting, brave new voice in cinema. The New Voice Award for Television will be presented to Tanya Saracho, the dynamic creator and executive producer of the acclaimed Starz Original series Vida. Final Draft will also announce the winners of the prestigious 2018 Big Break® Screenwriting Contest. The 14thAnnual Final Draft Awards will be held at the Paramount Theatre on the Paramount Studios lot in Hollywood, CA on Jan. 29th and will be hosted by comedy duo Randy and Jason Sklar (The Sklar Brothers).

Directors Guild of America President Thomas Schlamme today announced the five nominees for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2018.