Impressions of my imagine: the 26th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival April 28, 2010
Posted by joost in : festivals, film, netherlands , comments closedIt’s April, which for me always means one thing: attending the Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival! Yes, that festival of those creepy posters ™ on my wall. imagine: the 26th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival (as it is officially called) took place from the 14th to the 24th of April. My home festival, which returned home quite literally this year by taking over the Kriterion cinema again – ten years after the last time. Two important things were different for me in the way I experienced the festival this year.
First of all I didn’t think I would be able to attend this year’s edition due to work commitments. Only a few days before the festival started I knew for sure that this suddenly would be possible after all. Before that moment I had deliberately chosen not to look at the films in detail – why rub salt in the wounds by exploring what films I would miss? So I found myself at the festival watching a bunch of films which all were kind of an unexpected treat to begin with. I hardly had any expectations because I read through their descriptions once or twice, ordered the tickets (thanks H.!), somehow managed to dodge the travel chaos due to the volcanic ashes and started watching the films.
Secondly I made a conscious choice not to try to watch every single film of the festival “just because I could”. After seeing a record 52 films at last year’s edition, I pondered whether my overall impression of the festival and the films would be better if I would try to identify and avoid the stinkers in advance. As often said before, one of the reasons why I am not a fan of monthly cinema passes (subscriptions) is that I think it leads one to see more mediocre films. Choosing to watch films more selectively hopefully leads to more awareness and attention and a more positive impression. This lead me to select about two thirds of this year’s festival slate, 33 films out of 50 or so.
The return to the Kriterion cinema turned out to be a successful one. Compared to the last edition one decade ago there were three screens now instead of the two, and the bar area has been enlarged considerably too. All the action (except the Night of Terror) took place in this one location that was all about the festival, with posters adorning all the walls, DVD’s and T-shirts on sale, and Mr. Horror spinning tunes in the evening. The crowds were sparse and low-key in the early afternoon hours, gearing up in the late afternoon, leading to a packed entrance, hallway and staircase in the evening, but never turning into revolting crowds and chaos. My compliments go out to the festival organisation and volunteers who were always on the ball, and who for instance swapped screening rooms and redirected the audience when there was a bigger demand than initially expected.
My favorite films of imagine: the 26th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival
Which of the films stood out and which are the ones that I will remember and talk about long after the festival is over?
AFFF25 / imagine 2009 roundup May 4, 2009
Posted by joost in : film, lifestyle, netherlands , comments closedThe 25th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival / imagine 2009 finished little over a week ago. An excellent moment to look back at the festival and to make a selection from the 51 feature films that I have seen and that stood out for one reason or another. I’ve published a final roundup on the AFFF log in an attempt to summarize all my posts.
Uncle Joost back in NL April 16, 2009
Posted by joost in : film, netherlands, reflection , comments closedI’m uncle Joost as of Sunday the 12th of April. Incredible:
This also means I’m back in The Netherlands til early May, visiting my family (of course) and also to attend the Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival. I will be watching 50+ films in the coming ten days, and I will be blogging about this together with some of my old moviefreak mates over at AFFF log.
Ups and downs November 10, 2008
Posted by joost in : film, funding, netherlands, work , comments closedI’m a bit grumpy, because I didn’t succeed in submitting an application for PULSE 2008. Or to be more precise, I chose not to submit anything.
The past ten days I’ve been working on new scripts ‘tailor made’ for this funding scheme. One of their judging criteria states: “We are looking for original storylines with a powerful visual edge and innovative sound design. Applicants will need to demonstrate how they intend to use digital technology creatively.“, so I thought it would be best to write something with that in mind. Apart from that I was already toying with one or two ideas to write scripts about. As the days progressed, my story outline did not really develop. I changed the direction, thought and wrote some more, changed direction again, decided to restart from scratch, changed genres, started yet another story outline, …
Eventually I ended up with a handful of story outlines, none of them promising enough in my opinion to flesh out into a full script, let alone to write an accompanying proposal including budget and planning. Key thing for me was the internal validation that one of my lecturers mentioned a while ago: ask yourself if this script and this film is good enough for you to be willing to spend (in this case) a couple of months on. And none of the outlines gave me that enthusiasm and belief, so I decided it would be better not to submit anything and to move on to something that does work and that is worth the effort.
I thought that would be KORT!, the Dutch short film initiative by the Dutch Film Fund, NPS, VARA, etc. Turns out that they only accept submissions by established (Dutch) production companies, not by individual writer/directors. With only three weeks to go that leaves me with the minor tasks of writing a 10 page script, finding and getting in touch with a production company that not only wants to represent me and my script but that will also do a detailed planning and budget… It’s safe to say that this is near impossible given the timeline. Which means exit KORT, at least for this year.
Luckily it’s not all doom and gloom. I’ve been asked to help out some more days on the Nine production (first official picture here), which probably means that I’ve done a good job so far. More importantly it enables me to learn more on the intricacies of working on a really big production.
Other good news: Rule 2 will be screened in the non-competitive section at L’Alternativa, the 15th Independent Film Festival in Barcelona, and I have one or two interesting jobs coming up the rest of this month, one day paid camera operating and four days possibly as first AD on a short film.
Funding proposals update (second half of 2008) October 21, 2008
Posted by joost in : film, funding, london, netherlands, producing, screenwriting , comments closedA quick update on the three scripts and proposals for funding that I had been working on in August and September:
NPS One Night Stand – They received 125 entries, my treatment has not made it to the final 18. A pity, although I gauged that this scheme was probably more oriented towards writer/directors who have a couple of years of film making under their belt, so I wasn’t too surprised. At least they’ve seen my name for the first time, more will follow in the future!
UK Film Council / Film4 Cinema Extreme – In progress, will receive feedback half December. I submitted roughly the same treatment here (but adapted to the UK) as to One Night Stand since it is a similar scheme. Chances of success are slim here as well judging on the winners of previous grants, almost all filmmakers with a number of successful short films on their CV’s. Curious to see what will happen nevertheless.
North London Production Fund – Received a phone call last week, my script and proposal made it to the final round and I was invited for an interview! This took place on Friday the 17th of October. I had half an hour to introduce myself, to talk about my plans for the film and to answer a series of questions on the script, the characters, the visuals, etc etc etc. They will tell me this week whether or not they will award me some funding!
Coming up in the next few weeks are new scripts and proposals for:
24th AFFF done April 21, 2008
Posted by joost in : film, netherlands , comments closed52 films in 11 days plus a masterclass, a symposium and a signing session. Madness! But I wouldn’t trade it for anything else in the world.
Read all out posts of the festival, or just skip to the concluding festival impressions, including my personal highlights and recommendations!
The 24th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival April 9, 2008
Posted by joost in : film, lifestyle, netherlands , comments closedYes, it’s here again, the 24th edition of the Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival! For me the main reason the return to Amsterdam, I will be seeing 52 films in the next 10 days. Yay!
Me and Hans will be blogging throughout the festival, sharing our impressions and reviewing the films in our own format.
If you happen to be in Amsterdam and want to meet me there, go to the Tuschinski Art House, you’re bound to bump into me 
Haveseenlist 2008 January 1, 2008
Posted by joost in : film, lifestyle, london, netherlands , comments closedThis post will be updated throughout the year with all the films that I have seen (hence the name). This is the unabridged version. See The obligatory “best films of/in 2008″ post for a summary, the high and the low lights.
Last updated: Wed December 31st, 2008
The Mahabaratha
Eastern Promises
No Country For Old Men (2x)
The Cell
Cruel Intentions
The Kite Runner
Montevideoaki (short) (clips #1 #2)
There Will Be Blood
Cloverfield
I’m Not There
The Matrix
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber From Fleet Street
Suzie Gold
Death Wish II
Youth Without Youth
Anaconda
The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
Clear and Present Danger
Il Conformista
Be Kind, Rewind
The Yes Men
Un baiser s’il vous plaît
When Harry Met Sally
The Fountain
The Queen
The Fountain (director’s commentary)
—- Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival – (50 1/3 films, 16 shorts in 11 days) —-
Fall, The
Dynamite Warrior
European Fantastic Shorts #1
Timecrimes
Film Noir
Dante’s Inferno
Ruins, The
Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer
Weirdsville
Signal, The
Stuck
One Day Like Rain
Vexille
Mad Detective
Rage, The
Hatchet
Inside
REC
Black Water
Twilight Phantom
Mother of Tears: The Third Mother
Across the Universe
5 Centimeters per Second / Voices of a Distant Star
Pistol Whipped
P2
Diary of the Dead
Sword of the Stranger
Devil Dared Me To, The
Appleseed Saga: Ex Machina
Black House
Peur(s) du Noir
Return in Red
Wristcutters: A Love Story
Dororo
Sukiyaki Western Django
Orphanage, The
Bug
Wolfhound
European Fantastic Shorts #2
All the Boys Love Mandy Lane
Fido
Bad Biology
Doctor Infierno
Substitute, The
Dorm
Joshua
Waz
Doomsday
On Evil Grounds
Machine Girl, The
Man From Earth, The
Ed Wood
—- end of AFFF 24 —
The Fountain
Crank
Ironman
The Host
La Vie En Rose
The Diving Bell And The Butterfly
The Green Butchers
Operation Filmmaker
The Bourne Ultimatum
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
James Bond: Casino Royale
Charade
3:10 To Yuma
Persepolis
Batman Begins
Batman
Zidane: un portrait du 21e siècle
The King of Kong
Night at the museum
Sex and the City
The Nines
Southland Tales
12:01 (short)
Peter and The Wolf (short)
Taxi Driver
Reservation Road
WALL-E
Serendipity
The Dark Knight (IMAX)
The Dark Knight (35mm)
Kung Fu Panda
Operatsiya Y i drugiye priklyucheniya Shurika
Clerks II
The Da Vinci Code
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Planet Terror
Beowulf
Speed
I Am Legend
How to loose friends & alienate people
Paris, je t’aime
The Fall
Conversations with other women
Iklimler (aka Climates)
El Gran Zambini (short)
Bedknobs and broomsticks
Eagle vs Shark
Ratatouille
W.
E.T.A. (short)
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Heart of the World (short)
Bamako
Slumdog Millionaire (review that sums up my opinion nicely)
Man on wire
Gomorra
8 1/2
Midnight Meat Train
Eagle Eye
Ratatouille
My Best Friend’s Wedding
1408
Wattstax
Adam’s Apples
Crossing the bridge: The music of Istanbul
I need a holiday June 4, 2007
Posted by joost in : lifestyle, netherlands , comments closedAfter nine days in the Netherlands, I’m in dire need of a holiday! Seriously, what’s up with you guys? You’re a health hazard! Or is it the other way around, am I the one who is to blame for some new prospective members of the AA..? 
In case you’re wondering: I had a great time! Heartwarming to see so many familiar faces, friends and family. Finally plenty of opportunities to talk face to face about life, the universe and everything. Such a great feeling to be in Amsterdam again, and strange at the same time because I have no home there anymore. Thanks to Jaap’s bike and plenty of drinks scattered throughout the week and all over Amsterdam, I had no difficulties feeling right at home though! I owe a big thank you to the people who graciously offered me a place to stay and their hospitality during this week.
A true morale booster this week has been. It also helped me to reflect on my first term at the LFA and the second term that is about to start. Even though I’m tired because of the past reckless week, I am looking forward to a new term that will revolve around a couple of 5 minute films that we will totally create ourselves; screenplay, pre-production and the actual film shoots. I feel confident based on my experiences in the first term and hope I can kick it up a notch to achieve new highs.
Coming Soon February 28, 2007
Posted by joost in : london, netherlands , comments closedKeep watching this space, my posts will (hopefully) appear here in a matter of days.