IFC Serves Up A Diverse Slate Of Indie Fare Across All Platforms In 2001

To get you in the mood for the awards show weekend, IFC will present a “Best Fest” of past Spirit Award favorites, beginning Monday, March 19 and continuing each night leading up to the live awards presentation onSaturday, March 24. The line-up includes The Brothers McMullen, High Art, Pi, Slums of Beverly Hills, Star Maps, Smoke, The Sweet Hereafter, El Mariachi, Clerks, Death and The Maiden, In The Company of Men, The Funeral, Matewan and All Over Me.

54th ANNUAL CANNES INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OPENING AND CLOSING CEREMONIES – Air live Wednesday May 9 at 1:30PM/ET and Sunday, May 20 at 1:30PM/ET

IFC returns to the French Riviera this May for exclusive, live coverage of the Cannes International Film Festival. Film critic Roger Ebert is your personal escort down the red carpet and translator for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. Mingle with A-list stars and see who will de-throne the golden duo Bjork and Lars Von Trier to become this year’s top winners. The live presentation of awards includes the Jury Prize, Grand Jury Prize, Best Female Performance, Best Male Performance, and the highly sought-after Palme D’Or.

Film fans can also get an exclusive insider’s look at the festival on ifctv.com. IFC’s Broadband and Web components complement the network’s on-air offerings with a live cybercast of both ceremonies as well as festival updates, clips and interviews.

And to keep you in the spirit, or esprit as they say in France, IFC will present a movie marathon featuring two festival favorites from years gone by each night between the ceremonies beginning at 8:00PM/ET.

ORIGINAL SERIES

INDEPENDENT FOCUS

Tune in to catch Independent Focus, IFC’s original series produced and presented in cooperation with Independent Feature Project/West. In these insightful one-on-one interviews, the industry’s biggest and brightest join host Elvis Mitchell (film authoritarian and critic for The New York Times) in front of a live audience for an in-depth look at the art of filmmaking and a discussion about their latest and greatest works. Previous guests have included acclaimed visionaries Oliver Stone (Salvadore), Jim Jarmusch (Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai), John Waters (Pecker), Steven Soderbergh (The Limey), John Sayles (Limbo), Wes Anderson (Rushmore), David Lynch (Lost Highway), Paul Thomas Anderson (Magnolia), Richard Linklater (Newton Boys), the Coen Brothers (Blood Simple) and the Hughes Brothers (American Pimp). Guy Ritchie is the next director to visit the hot seat to chat about his highly anticipated new release, Snatch. (*Airdates and times to be announced; contact IFC for more information).

FILM FESTIVALS

SMITH’S PICKS – Saturday, January 20 and Sunday, January 21
beginning at 8:00PM/ET

Director Kevin Smith (Dogma) takes over the IFC airwaves for a weekend and hosts a collection of his favorite indies. The line-up includes: Glengarry Glen Ross, The Last Temptation of Christ, Stranger Than Paradise, House of Games, and Smith’s own feature debut, Clerks.

THE COMPLETE KINGDOM – Friday, January 26 and Saturday, January 27
beginning at 8:00PM/ET

Spend all weekend working the night shift in a Copenhagen E.R. with a frightening crew. Catch master director Lars Von Trier’s (Dancer in the Dark) epic, surreal tour-de-force about a Danish medical institution where science and reason take a back seat to the bizarre and unpredictable. The Kingdom I airs on Friday, January 26 at 8:00PM/ET followed by The Kingdom II on Saturday, January 27 at 8:00PM/ET.

TOUGH LOVE – Wednesday, February 14 beginning at 8:00PM/ET

Ain’t love grand? Not according to IFC. In fact, we think it’s a bit painful. But curl up with your sweetie anyway on Valentine’s Day for our “tough love” festival, where amour literally hurts. Beginning at 8:00PM/ET on Wednesday, February 14, the line-up of love stories gone wrong includes Boxing Helena, Jungle Fever and The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover.

BLACK HERITAGE WEEK – Tuesday, February 6 through Sunday, February 11 beginning at 8:00PM/ET

IFC celebrates Black History Month with acclaimed independent filmmakers Spike Lee, Charles Burnett and Matty Rich. The weeklong festival of groundbreaking films including Do The Right Thing, Crooklyn, The Glass Shield, Delroy Lindo on Spike Lee,
Jungle Fever, To Sleep With Anger and Straight Out of Brooklyn runs each night between Tuesday, February 6 and Sunday, February 11 beginning at 8:00PM/ET.

JOHN CASSAVETES WEEKEND – Saturday April 7 and Sunday April 8

Not doing anything this weekend? We’ve got the perfect thing. Spend your Saturday and Sunday afternoons brushing up on your film studies with masterpieces from the late, great director John Cassevetes. Stay home and check out Faces, Shadows, The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie, Opening Night, A Woman Under the Influence.

FILM PROGRAMMING STRANDS

ESCAPE FROM HOLLYWOOD – Every Sunday at 8:00PM/ET

Escape From Hollywood guarantees viewers an exciting retreat deep into the world of “off-Hollywood cinema,” paying homage to the ever-growing number of independent films that have gone above and beyond to make indelible marks in a Hollywood blockbuster world.

Hosted by Ted Demme (Beautiful Girls, The Ref), Escape From Hollywood boasts an array of guests from the indie film world to discuss the very best and biggest independent film titles including High Art, Manhattan Murder Mystery, Do The Right Thing, After Hours, Slums of Beverly Hills, Pi, The Last Seduction and Brothers McMullen.

ALL ACCESS IFC – Last Thursday of Every Month at 8:00PM/ET

All Access IFC is IFC’s innovative way of bringing indie fans deep inside their favorite films. Alternate endings, behind-the-scenes forays, rare out-takes and running audio commentary are all on tap the last Thursday of every month with an exclusive, never-before-seen look at the hottest films to hit the indie scene. Upcoming titles on All Access IFC include Walkabout, Once Were Warriors, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Clerks.

THE NEXT WAVE – First Monday of Every Month at 9:00PM/ET

IFC proudly presents a special film selected by IFC’S Next Wave Films division. Through this exciting strand, IFC viewers see high quality indies that until this broadcast have had little or no public exposure. In most cases, IFC presents world premieres giving the films and the up-and-coming filmmakers the forum they rightly deserve. So tune in and glimpse the indie film world of tomorrow. Upcoming titles include Mugshot, Walking to the Waterline and The Bible and Gun Club.

DV THEATER – Third Wednesday of Every Month at 11:30PM/ET

IFC’s newest strand showcasing films shot on video, the next generation of filmmaking. Each month, we’ll present a feature from today’s most outstanding, cutting-edge filmmakers.
DV Theater takes the movie-watching experience above and beyond existing parameters with an innovative, multi-platform approach that reaches on-air, Broadband and Internet audiences simultaneously. Upcoming titles include Big Monday and Home Page.

FILM PREMIERE HIGHLIGHTS

Upcoming IFC film premiere line-up includes:

• GIRLS TOWN – Director Jim McKay’s (Our Song) debut film about three young women coping with the suicide of one of their friends. A moving and believably portrayed story with an amazing cast led by Lili Taylor (I Shot Andy Warhol). Also starring Idina Harris (Dangerous Minds) and Aunjanue Ellis (Men of Honor). Premieres Thursday, February 1 at 9:45PM/ET

• TELLING LIES IN AMERICA – Director Joe Eszterhas’ (Basic Instinct) semi-autobiographical story centers on a Cleveland teen (Brad Renfro) in the early 1960s, who befriends the town’s hottest disc jockey (Kevin Bacon). He eventually comes to realize that the DJ is unscrupulous and on the take with payola. Sharp-edged performance by Bacon (Hollow Man) and a complex one by Renfro (Apt Pupil), co-starring Calista Flockhart (Ally McBeal) and Maximillian Schell (Little Odessa).
  Premieres Sunday, February 4 at 8:00PM/ET

• AMATEUR – An ex-nun, played by French actress Isabelle Huppert (Madame Bovary), working as a pornographer connects with Martin Donovan (The Opposite of Sex), an amnesiac with an unsavory history. As they search for a way to escape the past, they discuss the meaning of their lives in hilariously vague ways. Director Hal Hartley’s (Flirt) dialogue is tart and concise, filled with acidic but low-key humor. Also starring Elina Lowensohn (Nadja) and Michael Imperioli (The Sopranos).
  Premieres Friday, February 2 at 11:45PM/ET

• WILD MAN BLUES – In 1996, with his public image at a record low, clarinetist and filmmaker Woody Allen set off on a tour of Europe with his New Orleans jazz band. Accompanying him were his controversial girlfriend Soon-Yi and Oscar-winning documentarian Barbara Kopple (American Dream). Allen’s 1940’s jazz style as energetic as is his love of music.
  Premieres Sunday, February 4 at 9:45PM/ET

• HIGH ART – bAlly Sheedy (The Breakfast Club) won an Independent Spirit Award for her comeback role as a lesbian photographer with a drug addiction and a serious inability to cope with the NYC commercial art scene. Radha Mitchell (Pitch Black) is an editor at a glitzy photo magazine seduced by Sheedy and her need to succeed. First time director Lisa Cholodenko gives us this absorbing study of dependency, both chemical and emotional.
  Premieres Sunday, March 4 at 8:00PM/ET

• PI – Sean Gullette is a brilliant New York mathematician obsessed with describing all natural phenomena and human behavior through numbers. He thinks he can predict patterns in the stock market and now Wall Street wants him. Director Darren Aronofsky’s (Requiem for a Dream) first feature takes us on a wild trip into the mind of a genius and the mouth of madness.
  Premieres Saturday, March 10 at 8:00PM/ET

• THE SLUMS OF BEVERLY HILLS – This semi-autobiographical story from director Tamara Jenkins follows a lower-middle-class teenager, played by Natasha Lyonne (American Pie), and her neurotic family who are constantly on the move in Beverly Hills. Marisa Tomei (Unhook The Stars) stars as the sexually expressive and mentally depressed cousin who has escaped from rehab. This coming of age film also stars Alan Arkin (Glengarry Glen Ross) and Kevin Corrigan (Steal This Movie).
  Premieres Saturday, March 3 at 8:00PM/ET

• PERMANENT MIDNIGHT – Ben Stiller (Meet The Parents) gives an outstanding performance as Jerry Staul, a B-level television writer whose drug addiction impedes his career and marriage. The film underlines the motive and the real night and day reality of Stahl’s addiction. Based on the autobiography of Jerry Stahl, a solid supporting cast includes the ubiquitous Janeane Garafolo (Mystery Men), Elizabeth Hurley (Austin Powers), Cheryl Ladd (TV’s Charlie’s Angels) and Owen Wilson (Bottle Rocket).
  Premieres Saturday, April 7 at 8:00PM/ET

• YOUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS – Director Neil LaBute’s (In the Company of Men) hard-hitting film about two socially and sexually dysfunctional couples and how their relationships fall apart then into each other’s beds. LaBute’s film features scathingly intelligent dialogue delivered by a talented cast including Ben Stiller (Meet The Parents), Jason Patric (After Dark, My Sweet), Aaron Eckhardt (Erin Brockovich), Catherine Keener (Being John Malkovich) and Nastassja Kinski (Paris, Texas).
  Premieres Sunday, April 8 at 8:00PM/ET

• BUFFALO 66 – Vincent Gallo (The Funeral) stars as a newly released ex-con, who has convinced his family he’s been out of town with his beloved wife for the last five years. He kidnaps Christina Ricci (200 Cigarettes) to play-act the role of his non-existent wife and she falls for him almost immediately. Gallo delivers a great performance as the motor mouthed ex-con in his screenwriting and directorial debut. Also starring Angelica Huston (Ever After), Ben Gazzara (Summer of Sam), Mickey Rourke (Pope of Greenwich Village) and Rosanna Arquette (Crash).
  Premieres Sunday, April 29 at 8:00PM/ET

• MEN WITH GUNS – Federico Luppi stars in this critically acclaimed IFC Production, as a wealthy doctor who is approaching retirement and has never paid close attention to the realities of his Mexican heritage. He decides to track down former students from a government-sponsored program to bring medicine to remote villages and tribes. Writer-director John Sayles’ (Lone Star) mystical and dreamlike film is a compelling look at humanity and the search for goodness of mankind. Also starring Mandy Patinkin (Princess Bride).
  Premieres Thursday, April 5 at 10:15PM/ET

ifcRANT ON TELEVISION

True to ifcRANT’s pledge to deliver the first interactive, cross-platform publication, film enthusiasts can also experience the voice of independent film over the airwaves, with
ifcRANT On Television. An extension of ifcRANT The Magazine and ifcRANT Online, the insider rants are a series of 60-second segments airing on the network interstitially between IFC programming. The segments are a forum for prominent indie figures to pontificate on their favorite subject or air their grievances.

Kevin Smith (Dogma), John Waters (Cecil B. Demented), the cast and director of Chuck & Buck, Denis Leary (Jesus’ Son), Frank Whaley (Swimming With Sharks), Natasha Lyonne (But I’m a Cheerleader), and Chris Eigeman (The Last Days of Disco) all join the ranks of the ifcRANT On Television pioneers, Nick Nolte (Affliction) and Jim Jarmusch (Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai).

The Independent Film Channel (IFC), managed and operated by Bravo Networks, is the first and most widely distributed channel dedicated to independent film presented 24 hours a day, uncut and commercial-free. IFC Entertainment, a division of IFC, consists of IFC Productions, a feature film production company; IFC Films, a theatrical film distribution company; Next Wave Films, established to provide finishing funds and other vital support to emerging filmmakers; and IFC Originals, which produces cutting-edge original programming for the network. In addition, IFC Productions recently launched InDigEnt, an initiative that helps established filmmakers shoot productions on digital video for the big screen.

Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation and NBC, is at the forefront of innovation in cable programming. Rainbow manages American Movie Classics, We: Women’s Entertainment, Bravo, The Independent Film Channel, MuchMusic USA, Rainbow Sports, News 12 Networks and MetroChannels as well as the Rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation and Rainbow Network Communications. Rainbow also holds a majority stake in Madison Square Garden Properties. In addition, Rainbow is a fifty-percent partner in FOX Sports Net.

Contact:
Elektra Gray

(516) 803-4542
egray@rainbow-media.com