The Rutgers Film Co-op/New Jersey Media Arts Center, in association with the Rutgers University Program In Cinema Studies, presents the New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2016 -- the 35th Anniversary of the festival. Showcasing new international films, American independent features, experimental and short subjects, classic revivals, and cutting-edge documentaries. All films screened at Voorhees Hall unless otherwise noted. The complete festival runs from September 17 to October 28. This preview takes a look at the films being screened in September.
Saturday, September 17 - 7:00pm
Artemis - Heather Freeman (Charlotte, NC) An unfortunate driver witnesses what happens to a deer’s spirit after it is struck by a car. 2016; 4 min.
Safia:Make Them Wheels Roll - Sam Tremayne (Canberra, Australia) A beautiful music video about a man returning to the daily grind. 2016; 4 min.
Gandhiji My Mentor – Nilay Dave (Kendall Park, NJ) Set in India during the tumultuous end of British rule, this new feature film tells an engrossing and expertly acted dramatic story, as it delves into the internal conflicts that confronted Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violent liberation movement. 2016; 97 min. With an introduction and Q+A session with Director Nilay Dave! Co-sponsored by the Rutgers University Centers for Global Advancement and International Affairs (GAIA Centers)
Sunday, September 18 - 7:00pm
Out of the Box – Seymon Pinkhasov (New York, New York) An insightful documentary about Gregory Perkel, a contemporary artist who was born in the former Soviet Union, and now lives and works in New Jersey. 2016; 38 min. With an introduction and Q+A with the director.
Eva Hesse – Marcie Begleiter (New York, NY) Eva Hesse helped to establish what came to be known as the post-minimalist movement before dying of a brain tumor at 34. Art critic Arthur Danto wrote her work is “full of life, of eros, even of comedy… Each piece vibrates with originality and mischief.” The documentary captures these qualities and the psychic struggles of an artist who, in the New York art scene of the 1960s, was one of the few women whose work was taken seriously. 2016; 108 min.
Friday, September 23 - 7:00pm
Broken Tiaras - Dorothy Wallace (North Bergen, NJ) A cross between South Park and School House Rock, Broken Tiaras is a short, animated comedy about a group of avengers, known as the LadyBugs, who rescue little girls from an oppressive beauty pageant. 2016; 7 min. With an introduction and Q+A session with the director.
Woman With Violin - Mariam Bakashvili (Hackettstown, NJ) An immigrant woman rushes to a violin audition, with the hope of changing her life. 2016; 19 min. With an introduction and Q+A session with the director.
The Observer Effect - Eric Hayes (Princeton, NJ) A student facing difficult choices about his future gets mixed up in a dangerous time-travel experiment. 2016; 36 min. With an introduction and Q+A session with the director.
The Lockpicker - Randall Okita (Toronto, Canada) In this superbly directed, acted and photographed feature film, an enigmatic teenager, struggles at home and at school in the wake of a friend’s recent death. Poor and neglected, he resorts to stealing from his fellow students and dreams of an escape from the violence that threatens him and the people he loves. 2016; 105 min. With an introduction and Q+A session with the director.
Sunday, September 25 - 7:00pm
Five Minutes of Fun - Matthew Riddle (Piscataway, NJ) A collection of assembled clips that are meant to be enjoyed without context or plot. 2016; 7 min. With an introduction and Q+A session with the director.
Auto-Cowrecked - Hannah Leder (Sherman Oaks, CA) A man’s life is turned upside-down by a rogue auto-correct. 2015; 8 min.
Twitch - Jesse Richton (New York, NY) A young man with Tourette’s Syndrome moves to New York City and tries to get a job. 2016; 15 min.
After Adderall - Stephen Elliot (New York, NY) Based on Elliot’s memoir, the film stars James Franco in the lead role. Watching from the sidelines, Elliot was inspired to make a movie about James Franco making a movie about him. 2016; 77 min. With an introduction and Q+A session with the director.
Thursday, September 29 - 6:00pm
Dreams That Money Can Buy - Hans Richter. The ultimate Dada/Surrealist cinematic experience. Dreams That Money Can Buy brings to life the dreams of seven people who find themselves in the office of a mind-reading psychiatrist. When he looks into their eyes he sees the reflected images of their unconscious worlds. These visions are then manifested on the screen, in saturated, surrealist color, and are based directly on the drawings, paintings, and scripts of six leading modern artists: Man Ray, Max Ernst, Alexander Calder, Fernand Leger, Marcel Duchamp, and Hans Richter. 1946; 80 min. Co-Sponsored by the Rutgers University Zimmerli Art Museum.
Note: this screening takes place in Ruth Adams #001.