PLEASE NOTE: The films on this page have come and gone. This past listing is provided to give you a better sense of the variety of independent and documentary films shown weekly at the ACME Screening Room. For current listings, VISIT THE HOMEPAGE.
ARCHIVED FROM November 2012
Searching for Sugar Man
Friday & Saturday 7 pm; 8:35 pm
Sunday 5 pm
In the late ‘60s, two celebrated producers, who were struck by his soulful melodies and prophetic lyrics, discovered a musician in a Detroit bar. They recorded an album that they believed was going to secure his reputation as one of the greatest recording artists of his generation. In fact, the album bombed and the singer disappeared into obscurity amid rumors of a gruesome on-stage suicide. But a bootleg recording found its way into apartheid South Africa and, over the next two decades, it became a phenomenon. Two South African fans then set out to find out what really happened to their hero. Their investigation led them to a story more extraordinary than any of the existing myths about the artist known as Rodriguez. SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN is a film about hope, inspiration and the resonating power of music.
For the Love of Music - The Club 47 Folk Revival, Plus Meet-the-Director, Todd Kwait
Film Plus Director: Friday & Saturday 7 pm
Film Only: Friday & Saturday 9:15 pm; Sunday 5 pm
The Club 47 Folk Revival, is a documentary exploring the rich history of Club 47, the iconic Cambridge, Massachusetts folk music mecca from 1958-1968. Narrated by Peter Coyote, it explores the influence the Club had on a unique group of folk musicians, from the evolution of the 60s folk revival to the singer-songwriter era. Featured are interviews with Joan Baez, Taj Mahal, Judy Collins, Tom Rush, Maria Muldaur, Geoff Muldaur, Jim Kweskin, Jackie Washington, Jim Rooney, Peter Rowan and many more. The film features previously unreleased audio recordings and photographs of Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Eric Von Schmidt and new performances from the still-performing stars of Club 47 with today’s emerging folk performers, as the folk process continues.
Not Rated,1 hr 46 mins
Todd Kwait is a lawyer and businessman with a lifelong passion for film. This is his third motion picture. Todd wrote, produced and directed Chasin’ Gus’ Ghost which traced the history of Jug Band Music and won the award for Best Music Documentary at the Bare Bones Film Festival and the New York Film and Video Festival. Vagabondo, his second project, looks at the life of singer-songwriter Vince Martin. Mr. Kwait’s recording company Kingswood Records has two recent releases, “Snow Shadows: Songs of Vince Martin” by Alana Amram and the Rough Gems, and Sankofa’s “The Uptown Strut.”
Teheran, 1958. Since his beloved violin was broken, Nasser Ali Khan, one of the most renowned musicians of his day, has lost all taste for life. Finding no instrument worthy of replacing it, he decides to confine himself to bed to await death. As he hopes for its arrival, he plunges into deep reveries, with dreams as melancholic as they are joyous, taking him back to his youth and even to a conversation with Azraël, the Angel of Death, who reveals the future of his children… As pieces of the puzzle gradually fit together, the poignant secret of his life comes to light: a wonderful story of love which inspired his genius and his music …
French with English subtitles, 1 hr 31 mins, Rated PG-13
TRANS, Plus Meet-the-Producer and Experts Featured In Film
Film Plus Producer: 7 pm
Film Only: 9 pm
“TRANS” is an up-close and very personal journey into the transgender world through the memorable stories and the unusual lives of a remarkable cast of characters. It begins with the story of Lt. Commander Christopher McGinn, a Navy flight surgeon selected by NASA to serve on two space missions. But, upon her discharge from the armed forces, Chris McGinn would set out upon a different mission…from which she was never to return. Now Dr. Christine McGinn is able to tell her own amazing story, (picked up by the media on both MSNBC and the Oprah Winfrey show) and provide an entrance into a complex and dramatic world that is “TRANS.”
Not Rated,1 hr 33 mins
Mark Schoen, PhD began producing sexual health films in 1974. As an award-winning filmmaker and human sexuality expert, he has produced more than 50 sexual health films that have been broadcast, used in clinical and educational settings, and by the general public. He is author of the award winning children’s sexual anatomy book and video, Bellybuttons Are Navels. Dr. Schoen has won six prestigious Telly Awards and is an AASECT Certified Sexuality Educator and one of sixteen members on the National Advisory Council on Sexual Health led by former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher at Morehouse University, School of Medicine. He also serves on the Board of the Foundation for the Scientific Study of Sexuality.
Teheran, 1958. Since his beloved violin was broken, Nasser Ali Khan, one of the most renowned musicians of his day, has lost all taste for life. Finding no instrument worthy of replacing it, he decides to confine himself to bed to await death. As he hopes for its arrival, he plunges into deep reveries, with dreams as melancholic as they are joyous, taking him back to his youth and even to a conversation with Azraël, the Angel of Death, who reveals the future of his children… As pieces of the puzzle gradually fit together, the poignant secret of his life comes to light: a wonderful story of love which inspired his genius and his music …
French with English subtitles, 1 hr 31 mins, Rated PG-13
Selected as the opening night film for Sundance 2012, HELLO I MUST BE GOING features acclaimed actress Melanie Lynskey (WIN WIN, UP IN THE AIR, TWO AND A HALF MEN) in her breakout role as Amy, a recent divorcée who seeks refuge in the suburban Connecticut home of her parents (Blythe Danner and John Rubinstein). Demoralized and uncertain of her future, Amy begins an affair with a 19-year-old actor (GIRLS’ Christopher Abbott) that jumpstarts her passion for life and helps her discover an independence and sense of purpose that she has missed for years. Coupling Danner’s subtly riveting performance as a frustrated empty nester with Lynskey’s endearing and nuanced depiction of both the comic and tragic avenues of an existential crossroads, HELLO I MUST BE GOING is a modern, unconventional love story infused with sex, humor, and emotional honesty – everything Amy will need to get on in life.
4 pm – Tree Lighting Bridge & Union Streets
Followed by meet Santa at ACME Screening Room
6:30pm – THE GRINCH
He’s mean, he’s green, and he’s doesn’t like the Yuletide season one bit — Jim Carrey stars in this live-action adaptation of the classic children’s story by Dr. Seuss (aka Theodore Geisel). High atop Mt. Crumpet, the Grinch (Carrey) observes the residents of Whoville joyously preparing to celebrate Christmas. The Grinch was born in Whoville years ago, but was shunned due to his scary appearance, and his unrequited love for Martha May Whovier has turned him bitter; the good cheer of the Whos has been a thorn in his side ever since. Finally the Grinch decides he’s had enough of all this happiness, and with the wary aid of his dog Max, the Grinch conspires to steal Christmas from Whoville, making off with their presents, holiday decorations, Christmas trees, and everything else used to enjoy the holiday.
Selected as the opening night film for Sundance 2012, HELLO I MUST BE GOING features acclaimed actress Melanie Lynskey (WIN WIN, UP IN THE AIR, TWO AND A HALF MEN) in her breakout role as Amy, a recent divorcée who seeks refuge in the suburban Connecticut home of her parents (Blythe Danner and John Rubinstein). Demoralized and uncertain of her future, Amy begins an affair with a 19-year-old actor (GIRLS’ Christopher Abbott) that jumpstarts her passion for life and helps her discover an independence and sense of purpose that she has missed for years. Coupling Danner’s subtly riveting performance as a frustrated empty nester with Lynskey’s endearing and nuanced depiction of both the comic and tragic avenues of an existential crossroads, HELLO I MUST BE GOING is a modern, unconventional love story infused with sex, humor, and emotional honesty – everything Amy will need to get on in life.
On the heels of the annual OSCAR® NOMINATED SHORT FILMS program, ShortsHD presents STARS IN SHORTS, an incredible collection of short films featuring some of the world’s biggest actors! Judi Dench is a neophyte in the complicated landscape of internet dating in “Friend Request Pending.” Colin Firth is an unusually needy neighbor to Keira Knightley in “Steve.” Lily Tomlin gets lost on her way to a funeral in “Procession.” Jason Alexander is a screenwriter at the end of his rope in the musical short “Not Your Time.” Also including short films starring Kenneth Branagh, Julia Stiles, and others, STARS IN SHORTS is the first collection of short films to bring you everything you expect when you go to the movie theater – laughs, drama, and, now, some of the best actors from film and television.
Funding has been made possible in part by the Hunterdon County Board of Chosen Freeholders, through funds administered by The Hunterdon County Cultural & Heritage Commission.
Friday & Saturday 7 pm; 8:35 pm
Film Plus Director: Friday & Saturday 7 pm
Friday 7 pm; 8:40 pm
Film Plus Producer: 7 pm
Friday 7 pm; 8:45 pm
4 pm – Tree Lighting Bridge & Union Streets
Friday & Saturday 7 pm; 9:00 pm