Peekskill Film Festival May 11-15

The Peekskill Film Festival, founded to promote film literacy in the vibrant and historic Hudson River city of Peekskill, starts May 11.

At the top of the lineup: SINCE: THE BOMBING OF PAN AM FLIGHT 103, an award-winning documentary about the 1988 Lockerbie Bombing, will make its Hudson Valley debut at the inaugural Peekskill Film Festival May 14.

Hudson Valley native, filmmaker Phil Furey (Director, Producer, Composer), as well as several local family members of Flight 103 victims, will attend the screening and participate in a Q&A after the film.

The film, which documents the lives of a handful of family members of victims killed during one of the first mass terror attacks, had its world premiere at the Austin Film Festival in November, with various appearances across the United States at the Napa Valley Film Festival, Phoenix Film Festival, and the Newport Beach Film festival among others.

Filmed over the course of nearly a decade, SINCE follows three families of victims, who were part of a group of Syracuse University students returning home from a semester abroad in London when they were murdered aboard Pan Am Flight 103. The 747 Jumbo Jet was ripped apart by a bomb shortly after takeoff on December 21, 1988, with its wreckage raining down upon the small market village of Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 11 people on the ground in an absolutely hellish scene. The film painstakingly documents the groundbreaking history of the event, which was the first major terrorist attack against the United States, a nation wholly unprepared for the new age of politically fueled mass killings. From the beginning, the American families felt they were abandoned by their government, a feeling that was made strikingly apparent when the victims' bodies were returned at the livestock quarantine section of JFK airport and forklifted off the back of a filthy, spraypainted truck, while horrified family members looked on. Through it all, the families forged ahead and fought their battles in the media, took down the once-iconic Pan Am with a massive civil suit, and transformed from ordinary citizens into sharp political operatives who demanded changes to aviation security.

Unfortunately, the government ignored their warnings, and the Flight 103 families' suggestions to improve security weren't implemented until after 9/11.

Here's the full schedule of workshops, films and venues:

THURSDAY, MAY 12

Alchemy Post Sound 1000 N. Division Street (The Hat Factory)

7:30 - 9:00PM

Foley Workshop
Have you ever been interested into what goes into making a film sound the way it does? This 90- minute workshop with Emmy-nominated Foley artist Leslie Bloome will include a live demonstration learning how film sounds before and after Foley is added. Q and A to follow.

FRIDAY, MAY 13

The Paramount Hudson Valley Theater, 1008 Brown Street

8PM

Special Selection

“But Not For Me,” (2015). Director: Ryan Carmichael.

A struggling, disillusioned young writer discovers a fledgling sense of hope when a beautiful violinist moves in next door and agrees to perform with him on the city streets. Q and A with director Ryan Carmichael and producer Ryan Stefaniak to follow.

SATURDAY, MAY 14

The Paramount Hudson Valley Theater, 1008 Brown Street

12-1:00 PM

Workshop with Impolite Company

Join Ryan Carmichael and Jason Stefaniak, producers, directors, and founders of the production team Impolite Company, for an informative workshop. Multiple award winners (including an Emmy,) Carmichael and Stefaniak will screen film clips by underrepresented and overlooked minority filmmakers and talk about expression through filmmaking. A hallmark of Impolite Company is their desire to mentor young people and inspire media literacy.

SATURDAY, MAY 14 Film Screenings @ The PARAMOUNT 2PM -- 10PM

2PM: “Americanos: Latino Life in the United States” (2000) Directors: Susan Todd and Andrew Young

Americans of Latino and Hispanic descent are transforming the face of America. Latinos have made enormous contributions to our national heritage in the arts, politics, business, education, science and religion. Americanos celebrates this remarkable legacy, through the stories of some of the most compelling Latino-Americans alive today. The film explores the diversity of Latinos, from a Mexican-American Elvis impersonator to the first Hispanic woman in the President's cabinet, and along the way, explodes the stereotypes. Infused with the music of Carlos Santana, Eddie Palmieri, Celia Cruz, Lhasa and others.

“A Way Out” (2015). Director: Jason Tostevin
For aging gangster Vic, a ride with his upstart protege becomes a twisted game of cat and mouse when both killers discover the other has been keeping a deadly secret.

“Mother of the Week” (2015). Director: Lee Davis

“Mother of the Week” is the story of a stressed-out working mom determined to be everything to everyone, no matter what the circumstances. This film is for Everymom and anyone who knows and loves her.

“Break Away” (2016). Director: Dalton Thorvilson

The story of a couple who are breaking apart.... literally.

5:30PM
Special Screening

“Since: The Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103” (2015). Director: Phil Furey

The 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, killed 270 innocent people and ushered the frightful new age of terrorism. Bound together in tragedy, the victims’ relatives fought tooth and nail for justice, only to watch it unravel for Libyan oil.

Screening will be followed by Q&A with Director Phil Furey and appearances by local Pan Am Flight 103 family members.

8PM

Special Selection

“La Jaula De Oro” (2013). Directed by Diego Quemada-Diez

The most awarded Mexican film in history -- with over 80 international accolades including 9 Ariel awards and an Un Certain Talent prize from the Cannes Film Festival -- Diego Quemada-Diez's acclaimed debut feature tells the story of three teenagers from the slums of Guatemala who travel to the USA in search of a better life. On their journey through Mexico they meet Chauk, a Tzotzil teen from Chiapas who doesn’t speak Spanish. Travelling together in cargo trains, walking on the railroad tracks, they will soon have to face a harsh reality.

“La Jaula De Oro” strikes a particularly resonant note for many residents of Peekskill, who are Guatemalan, Ecuadorian, and Mexican immigrants.

Sunday, May 15

The Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art (HVCCA) 1701 Main Street

12-4 PM

“Last Train to Babylon” (2016). Director: Luis Ayala

After missing the last train home out of New York City, Sam and Susie, two strangers find themselves stuck in Pennsylvania Station until sunrise. With lots of time to kill and absolutely nothing to do, they decide to go back out into the night and explore the city after hours.

“The Usual” (2014). Directors: Troy Peterson and Robert Cafarelli

George has breakfast, sees a movie, and goes to the park with his friend Paul all the time, but when Paul doesn't show one day, the townspeople act no differently...like Paul is still there with George.

“Evergreen” (2015). Director: Beatrice Copeland

The story of Sam, a young girl who, with the help of a gaggle of neighborhood kids, turns her backyard into a city of tree forts.

The Peekskill Coffee House 101 S. Division Street

5- 6PM

“The Great American Jukebox” (2011). Director: Andrew Stein

'”The Great American Jukebox” covers the period from the mid 1930s through the early 1960s through the eyes and ears of the American jukebox. The documentary features several vintage jukeboxes playing the popular music of each of the musical periods: the Jazz Age, the Big Band years, Rhythm & Blues, and early Rock & Roll.
The narration guides you through the evolution of jukebox technology, and shows how the music from each decade affected the design of the jukebox and how it impacted American music culture.

Here's what its organizers say:

The Peekskill Film Festival (PFF) was founded to promote film literacy in the vibrant and historic Hudson River city of Peekskill, NY, and is an important opportunity to view new works by emerging filmmakers, including features, shorts, documentaries, animation and student work.

In 2016, the PFF will also concentrate on Black and Hispanic filmmakers and themes, featuring films sorely overlooked in more conventional festivals. Through informative workshops, and networking opportunities, The PFF will facilitate educational and career-oriented programming for students of film and filmmakers. The festival hopes to introduce, involve and immerse youth from underserved communities of color to a world where they, too, can contribute and create.

We want the world to come out and see our homegrown talent, and our youth to learn valuable tools in the art of filmmaking. We want people to see film that they wouldn’t necessarily have access to while learning about the heritage and the journey of their immigrant neighbors. We want people to learn about our community, about our beautiful city: our library, our art, our panaderias, our restaurants, our theaters, our clubs, our woods, our schools, our riverfront, our people. We want the world to learn about Peekskill, and see all that we have going on!

Our Purpose:

• • Give up and coming filmmakers, writers, actors and producers a chance for their work to be shown in a festival setting,
  • Provide exposure to award winning films and performers who reflect the diversity of the city of Peekskill.;

• • Promote film literacy through workshops and lectures, providing participants a chance to see important, overlooked, and often excluded works of film.,
  • Start dialogues. Create. Network!

Festival Specifics:

Tickets: $10. Proceeds to benefit the cultural programming of The Field Library, the major source of information for the City of Peekskill.