Opening Night Selection! Sneak Preview!
Director Allison Anders and Producer Nancy Griffin will introduce
SUGAR TOWN
at 7:00pm
(USA, 1999) directed by Allison Anders and Kurt Voss w/ Rosanna Arquette, Ally Sheedy, Lucinda Jenney, John Taylor, John Doe, Michael Des Barres
Print Source: October Films
Independent maven, Allison Anders (Gas Food Lodging, Mi Vida Loca), returns with a rollicking new film co-directed by Kurt Voss about the unpredictability of the music business set among the familiar Los Angeles backdrop. Weaving a myriad of quirky characters and situations, SUGAR TOWN seamlessly plays on the comedic and ironic moments of contemporary urban life. A fantastic ensemble cast includes Ally Sheedy (High Art) as Liz, a neurotic production designer looking for a fulfilling relationship, and her friend Eva (Rosanna Arquette), an actress, who is a bit distressed at being offered the “mother” roles rather than those of the seductress. Eva introduces Liz to Gwen, a young, aspiring rock star, who cleans houses to pay the rent. We quickly realize Gwen will stop at nothing to get her shot at success. Meanwhile, Eva’s husband, Clive (John Taylor of Duran Duran), is desperately trying to revive his music career with his aging bandmates and their once legendary producer, Burt (Larry Klein). Not able to get the needed money for a demo, Burt resorts to the help of a wealthy widow, Jane (Beverly D’Angelo), who agrees to fund the project for a price of her own. Energetic and insightful, SUGAR TOWN delicately reveals the underbelly of the industry through its well drawn characters and superb writing. -Lisa Viola

Directors/screenwriters ALLISON ANDERS and Kurt Voss first collaborated on the feature Border Radio while still attending UCLA Film School. Anders is one of the few women directing films about strong female characters as seen in her previously acclaimed films, Gas Food Lodging, Mi Vida Loca and Grace of My Heart.

 

U.S. Premiere!
ROSIE:
The Devil In My Head
at 9:30pm
(Belgium, 1998) directed by Patrice Toye w/Aranka Coppens, Sara de Roo, Dirk Roofthooft, Frank Vercruyssen, Joost Wijnant
Print Source: New Yorker Films
Patrice Toye is sure to join the ranks of other internationally acclaimed women directors, based on the power and complexity of this debut feature. ROSIE: THE DEVIL IN MY HEAD is the touching story of a young teenager’s unconditional love for her mother. Rosie is a precocious and bright 13 year-old, who’s longing for her mother’s love mirrors the latter’s struggle to reconcile the events of her past to the consequences of the present. While Rosie’s mother demonstrates absolute love for her daughter, she is in constant conflict over the fact that Rosie came into her life at an enormously young age. In fact, the two are only 14 years apart and, like most 27 year-old women, she is struggling to deal with the insecurities in her own life. To the outside world they are sisters with a mysterious past. But to each other, there is an unbreakable mother/daughter bond that links them together. In an attempt to make sense of the emotional chaos that surrounds her, Rosie creates a bright and imaginative world with her one and only friend Jimi. Together they embark on a reckless journey intensified by Rosie’s drive to help her mother achieve happiness. At it’s world premiere screening at the Toronto International Film Festival, Variety praised this stirring and very poignant film as “The most incisive look at adolescent angst since Heavenly Creatures.”

PATRICE TOYE was born in 1967 in Belgium and has directed several short and documentary films. ROSIE: THE DEVIL IN MY HEAD is her debut feature.