There is a film festival every weekend this month and if you're a film geek like me, you won't want to miss any of them.

Festival season kicks off with Project Twenty1's film festival and filmathon.

That festival opened last night and continues through Sunday with screenings, workshops, networking events and parties.

The film festival features shorts submitted as part of Project Twenty1's 21 day filmmaking competition as well as features and shorts submitted to the filmathon.

Stay tuned as I'll announce the winner on Sunday. Yes, I know who it is, but I'm not saying it.

Next week, starting on Friday, Oct. 9, is the Asian American Film Festival.

The festival, in its second year, will have feature films, documentaries and shorts. More than 100 filmmakers submitted their work to this film festival, which highlights movies made by or featuring Asian Americans.

A highlight for this festival is the opening night film, Children of Invention, by Tze Chun & Mynette Louiea.  The film, which was the Sundance official selection, tells the story of Two young children living outside Boston who are left to fend for themselves when their mother gets involved  in a pyramid scheme and disappears.

The festival ends on Sunday, October 11.

On October 15th, a Thursday, the 181/2 Philadelphia Film Festival kicks off.

This is one of two festivals born out of the disagreement between TLA and the Philadelphia Film Society.

TLA has its festival, CineFest, in the spring. (Yes, CineFest will return next year and organizers tell me it'll be better than ever).

The Film Society moved its festival to the fall. However, there wasn't enough time to plan a full festival for this year, so soon after the split. So this year's festival is a half-festival, featuring the creme de la creme from other  film festivals like Cannes, CineVegas, Chicago, Sundance and Toronto.

The month comes to an end with the First Glance Film Festival, which runs from October 22 to 25.

In its 12th year, First Glance is one of the few festivals to truly celebrate independent filmmaking.  The festival packs an impressive amount of indies, most with local connections. Screenings will take place at the Franklin Institute.

The screening was followed by the opening night party at Distrito down the street.

Penny DeeNey was the raffle winner. She walked away with a Glidecam HD-2000.

The festival continues today with workshops on shooting with the Canon 5D Mark ii, marketing through social media, grant writing and  pitching.

At 4:30 p.m., attend the Speed Networking at the Sheraton where aspiring film and animation artists can get together and help each other turn their projects into careers.

Finish the night with a screening of the top Shorts submitted to this year’s Philadelphia Filmathon, followed by a Friday Night FX Party at the Tiberino Museum.

For those of you frustrated with the infrequent postings on this blog, I share your pain.

Between writing for the paper, finishing my movie, getting a degree in animation and just being a mom, Cinema-Scoop sometimes gets neglected.

Now that I'm finally done with school (I graduated in September), I'm ready to finally turn this blog into a resource Philadelphia filmmakers can be proud of.

But in order to make that happen, I need some help!

I'm starting a Cinema-Scoop Panel and I'm  looking for a few good filmmakers, VFX professionals, editors, students, animators and sound designers.

If you would like to contribute by posting once a day, come be a part of our panel!

Talk about an event you attended, a film that inspired you, projects you're working on, networking opportunities, cool projects your friends are working on, the state of the industry, professionals you admire, techniques you are using, new technology or marketing strategies.

Panelists will have their picture, along with a bio and link to their website permanently added to the Cinema-Scoop page.

Help turn Cinema-Scoop into a useful resource for Philadelphia area filmmakers, make new friends, attend cool industry events, promote your work and network with like-minded folks.

If you're interested, send me an e-mail at ldecastro@camden.gannett.com.

I can't wait to hear from you!

After the nasty split between TLA and the Philadelphia Film Society, the City of Brotherly Love was left with two film festivals - CineFest and PFF.

CineFest is long gone, but the Philadelphia Film Festival opens on October 15, sort of...

The society couldn't really plan a full festival this year (one is planned for October 2010, though) so they planned half a festival instead.
That's right, I said half a festival.

This year's PFF is called 18 1/2 PFF (a play on 81/2, the classic Fellini film).

This short version of the festival is only five days long, but packs an impressive 30 films. Most of them are selections from other  film festivals like Cannes, CineVegas, Chicago, Sundance and Toronto, making this mini-festival a great re-cap of film festivals past.

Philadelphia Weekly's Matt Prigge gave us the scoop, so instead of re-inventing the wheel,  I'm glad to share his very informative piece with all of you.

Read his story here, then come back for trailers and reviews from all the film festivals coming to Philly in October, including Project Twenty1, the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival and First Glance.

Most of the films will be screened at two venues - The Ibrahim Theater at the International House (37th & Chestnut) and the Asian Arts Initiative (12th & Race).

The festival will screen 6narrative feature films, 5 documentaries and nearly30 shorts chosen from more than 100 submissions nationwide.

The opening night film is Children of Invention, by Tze Chun & Mynette Louiea.  The film, which was the Sundance official selection, tells the story of Two young children living outside Boston who are left to fend for themselves when their mother gets involved  in a pyramid scheme and disappears.

Most screenings cost $8 and $6 for students.

The festival will also feature a panel discussions, celebrity appearances and parties.

In A Dream

If you didn't catch In A Dream in theaters or if you did and loved it so much you must have your own copy, you're in luck.

For those of you who don't know Jeremiah Zagar's phenomenal film, which came within just a few votes from getting an Oscar nomination, here's  what it's all about:

"In the vibrant, bohemian neighborhood of South Philadelphia, 50,000-square feet of concrete are covered with tile and mirrorsmosaics that were created by renowned artist Isaiah Zagar.

The murals chronicle his love for his wife, Julia, and subtly hint at the darker corners of an extraordinary imagination. Where Isaiah is an obsessive and self-absorbed former Peace Corps volunteer who has become an icon in South Philly's art community, Julia is gracious and warm. For decades, their opposing natures complemented one another perfectly. But, in a moment of great stress, just before picking up their oldest son from a rehabilitation center, the family implodes. Isaiah confesses to an affair with his assistant, is kicked out of the house, and spirals into a debilitating nervous breakdown.

A fascinating portrait of love and betrayal, artistic invention, and the enduring power of family bonds. Winner of awards far and wide, the film features music by The Books, Explosions in the Sky, Efterklang, and Kelli Scarr."

Sales of this DVD will help the filmmaker pay some of the massive debt he incurred during the making of this marvelous documentary. If you can help, pick up a copy (or three) for $24.95.

For those of you who truly loved the film, you can get a limited edition DVD, which ships in mid-October.

For just $60, you get:

• Deleted Scenes

• Alternate Ending

• Cutting Ice to Snow video for Efterklang

• Coney Island, 1945 short film

• Paints on Ceiling short film

• Recommitment short documentary

• Theatrical Trailer

Plus Exclusive Limited Edition Extras

• Deluxe Packaging (designed by Jonah Birns)

• Autographed 13"x18" Movie Poster (signed by Isaiah, Julia, Zeke & Jeremiah Zagar)

• Hand-Crafted Isaiah Zagar Figurine

• Bonus Disc

– Even More Deleted Scenes

– Rare Jeremiah Zagar Short Films

– Short Works by Friends of In A Dream

– Original Fundraising Trailer

– Interviews, Slideshows and More!!

Admittedly, I cut out the part when Jason Mewes makes fun of my large behind (Do you blame a girl?)

Gone from the video are also Corey Haimes ramblings about how Lost Boys II should never have been produced.

I agree with him, but he rambled on for way too long and I had to cut it.

I really had a good time shooting and editing this and I hope you like it too.

Two of my favorite things will come together this weekend - films and cupcakes.

The Second Annual Cupcake Bandit Film Festival will happen on Saturday at Jefferson Square Park.

The rain date is Sunday.

The festivities will start at 5 p.m. with performances by local bands, popcorn, raffles, hot dogs and veggie dogs and, of course, cupcakes!

At 8:30 p.m., the screenings will start with 11 short films from Philadelphia area filmmakers.

Help Philadelphia productions reduce their impact on the environment and have fun while you're at it.

On July 24, the Greater Philadelphia Film Office is hosting S.E.T.S on South Street, a scavenger hunt in search of green products for green productions.

The event will start at 3 p.m. and last until 7 p.m.

All participants will meet at Historic Shambles, 200 Pine Street.

The event is part of Greener S.E.T.S, a GPFO initiative to help Philly productions go greener.

S.E.T.S, launched in 2007, stands for setting entertainment toward sustainability. Through the film office, productions can partner with green businesses, learn where to take their recyclables while shooting in Philadelphia and get tips on how stay green from pre-production to set striking.