The Legacy of Milos Forman
In 1978, esteemed director Milos Forman and his Screenwriting mentor Frank Daniel were appointed co-chairs of the Film Program. Under their leadership, the program flourished and became the world-renowned institution of film education that it is today. In many ways, Forman was the "creative founder" of Columbia Film, having shaped and refined its commitment to narrative filmmaking anchored in strong screenplays. He gave it a character as distinct as his own—original, passionate, intelligent, and international.
News
The 45th Annual Seattle International Film Festival featured two films by alumni and faculty this year, Bora Kim '11 for House of Hummingbird and Sameh Zoabi '05 and Professor Dan Kleinman for Tel Aviv on Fire. The festival took place from May 16-June 9, 2019, showcasing more than 400 films from nearly 90 countries to 140,000+ attendees.
Moara Passoni, a current student, co-wrote the documentary, The Edge of Democracy, which screened in New York this month and premiere on Netflix soon thereafter. It previously screened at the Sundance Film Festival in January. Watch it firsthand at Rooftop Films in NYC on June 11th.
The Columbia University School of the Arts Film Program presented the 32nd Annual Columbia University Film Festival (CUFF), a week-long program of screenings, screenplay, and teleplay readings in New York. The celebration will continue with events in Los Angeles from June 11-13, 2019. School of the Arts' Dean Carol Becker, “Welcome to the 32nd Columbia University Film Festival—the culminating event for our MFA Film students. In 1987 when the Festival began, it consisted of only four shorts, followed by a panel discussion. Now the Festival has become a true Columbia tradition,…
Halston, a documentary by alumnus Frédéric Tcheng '07 will be released theatrically on May 24th.
The Little Goddess, written and directed by current student Gauri Adelkar, and Nice Talking to You, written and directed by current student Saim Sadiq, and co-produced by alumnus Joseph Capotorto '18 and alumna Federica Belletti '18 have been shortlisted for the 2019 BAFTA Student Film Awards in the Live Action category.
Where There’s Smoke, an immersive storytelling experience created by Faculty member Lance Weiler, received its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this month.
Over twenty-three Columbia filmmakers were selected to participate in this year’s Tribeca Film Festival which ran from April 24 to May 5th, and several took home awards. The festival announced their winning filmmakers on May 4th marking the culmination of its 2019 Festival, where 113 feature-length films, 63 short films, and 33 immersive storytelling projects representing 44 countries were screened.
The Directors' Fortnight section of the 2019 Cannes Film Festival has selected two features by Columbia alumni—Cancion Sin Nombre (Song Without a Name) by Melina Leon 08’, and Huo Zhe Chang Zhe (To Live to Sing) by Johnny Ma ’16.
Jessica Shields '18 was recently awarded the Humanitas Prize's Carol Mendelsohn College Drama Fellowship for her pilot Rue Pigalle. “The Humanitas prize was created to honor film and TV writers whose work inspires compassion, hope, and understanding in the human family” as stated on Deadline. “The Carol Mendelsohn College Drama Fellowship exists to recognize and reward the talents of young writers with financial support to empower them to tell meaningful stories,” according to the Humanitas Prize's website.
Refuge, directed and co-written by Federico Spiazzi '18, co-written by Fernanda Frotte '17, produced by Federica Belletti '18 and co-produced by Maggie Briggs ’19 will have its world premiere at the Montclair Film Festival in early May.
South Mountain, written & directed by faculty member Hilary Brougher, made its world premiere in the Narrative Feature Competition at the South By Southwest Film Festival last March.
Three Columbia filmmakers have been nominated for 2019 BAFTA Awards in Television.
