NEW REALITIES FILM FESTIVAL  April 8th, 9th & 10^th 2010
New Realities' first film festival.   New Realities is happy to present its 1st annual film festival, based on the ideas found on this website in cooperation with Streetwise Pictures.

Featuring documentaries, animations and narratives focusing on body, mind and spirit.  Producers of the festival: Alan Steinfeld and Kim Jackson.

From: http://newsun.com/newrealitiesfilmfestival.html

Film Festival for Mind, Body and Spirit
-reviewed by Victoria Barkley

 I recently attended the First Annual New Realities Film Festival,
co-produced by Ms. Kim Jackson of Streetwise Productions and
Mr. Alan Steinfeld.  The event, presented over a number of days
both at the Subud Center and at the Meta Center in New York City,
featured "documentaries, animations and narratives, focusing on
mind, body and spirit."  Mr. Steinfeld, who also hosts the weekly
New Realities television program, introduced the festival on
opening night to an auditorium filled with film and video
enthusiasts, eager to view something new.

Here's a brief synopsis of the Festival's 10 films:

Never Wear a Dead Man's Shoes
A short movie written by Mr. Judd Lear Silverman and directed
by Mr. Alan Steinfeld was by far one of my favorites. In just 15
minutes, this comedy had everyone smiling about the Thanksgiving
Day adventures of a young man visiting a family gathering at
his late uncle's home.   Who says a film needs to be nearly
two hours long? This little gem, packed enough character
development, magic and wit, to win over several currently
running Hollywood movies, at local theaters. I just loved it!
And judging by the audience's endlessly rolling laughter,
everyoneelse loved it too.

Tantric Tourists
The comical travel documentary, which followed the above
mentioned little masterpiece, was directed by Alexander
Snelling. This film had many Laurie Handlers fans in the
audience, applauding her on-screen adventures with a bus
full of spiritual seekers traipsing through India, filmed by
British filmmakers.

Transitions
A London Film School graduate project of Mr. Mark Lee: In this
short narrative, a chance encounter with a bag lady on a New York
City subway creates a cascading chain of events leading to all
sorts of surprising, synchronistic connections.   I especially liked
the ending, which left me wanting more. Perhaps Mr. Lee could
expand his scope by developing it into a feature length story. I
would love to see a longer version, or a sequel!

The Scientist
This docu-fiction, written and directed by Mr. Zach LeBeau —
chronicling a grief stricken, self-medicating, physicist's scientific
exploration into the great unknown, in search of his dead wife and
daughter — did not disappoint.

The Little Soul and the Sun
A children's animated tale of resolving issues around forgiveness,
as seen through the belief system of Mr. Neale Donald Walsch —
perhaps a bit too religious for secular consumption, but charmingly
appropriate for smaller kids in Sunday school.

Sita Sings the Blues
An animated musical amalgam of the Hindu myth of Ramayana
and the filmmaker, Nina Paley's, own marital break-up yarn.
This creative project uses hilariously hip shadow puppets and
original 1920's recordings of jazz singer, Annette Hanshaw to
tell the story.  Ms. Paley's work recently aired on PBS, and is now
available for free viewing online at WNET/Thirteen's "Reel13.org."

Makawasi
Bill Cote documentary: Cote, famous for speculative quests,
filmed yet another one of his thought provoking journeys into
the mysteries of rock formations apparently etched by unknown
hands on a plateau, high in the Andes Mountains.

Disappointment Valley
Moving Cloud Productions' cinematic critique of the Bureau
of Land Management portrays the plight of the wild mustang,
swiftly disappearing from the US southwest.

The Hidden Hand
Explores the UFO phenomena and extraterrestrial contact
throughout history, offered just a taste of filmmaker Mr. James
Carman's half completed work in progress.

The Festival ended with a much awaited special screening of
For the Next 7 Generations. Director Carole Hart, filming a
group of 13 indigenous grandmothers from around the world,
traveling and healing together, sharing their collective wisdom
through spontaneous rituals around the globe.  My favorite scene
was the grandmothers' audience with the Dalai Lama at his
residence in the Tibetan community in India.

Ms. Jackson and Mr. Steinfeld are two brave souls to venture
into showcasing ten films that are not easily categorized.
These carefully chosen independent works, off the beaten path,
were well worth watching.  Below budget, yet groundbreaking
indies like these are generally under-represented by distributors.
Some in spite of winning awards at various film festivals, are still
not picked up for wider circulation. Mr. Steinfeld mentioned a
trend by producers to privately fund their distribution in order to
bring their work to the public.  While Hollywood is churning out
computer generated, high budget, action films for public consumption,
guerrilla filmmakers are quietly offering quality entertainment
to stretch our minds and feed our souls.

To paraphrase Mr. Steinfeld's closing comments in a nutshell:
"It is the artist who intuitively perceives alternate realities first and
brings back images to inform and inspire the rest of us."  Film is the
perfect art form for passing on new vision.

I am looking forward to seeing next year's selections.