Movie review: Using film to ask the right questions

“The Teachers’ Lounge” was one of this year’s Best Foreign Film nominees — though its closely observed drama set inside a contemporary seventh-grade German classroom could have easily been American.  The film’s protagonist, idealistic young teacher Carla Novak, is new to the school, but she soon finds herself pressured by other teachers to identify which of her students might be responsible for a series of thefts from the teachers’ lounge.

This month the Middlebury New Filmmakers Film Festival held a friendly cocktail hour at Middlebury Inn to thank the hosts who had given housing to this year’s filmmakers and guests.

Caitlin Boyle has spent the past two decades working behind the scenes helping filmmakers from throughout the country get their creations seen on screens big and small. She’s now ready for her own starring role, as the new executive director of the Middle … (read more)

The Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival Selects Monthly Screening Series returns to Town Hall Theater in Middlebury with its 2024-25 program beginning Thursday, Oct. 10, with a 7 p.m. screening of “Carlos,” the new documentary feature from director Rudy Va … (read more)

The 10th annual Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival (MNFF) went all-out for its first double-digit birthday, and that paid off in attendance and quality for the five-day extravaganza that dominated the shire town from Aug. 21 to 25.

Celebrated film Director Oliver Stone already has four Academy Awards on his mantel. Now he’ll make some room for his first VTeddy Award, which he accepted this past weekend as one of several honorees at this year’s Middlebury New Film Festival.

Lloyd Komesar received well-earned recognition at what was a fabulous 10th Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival. At both the opening night ceremony last Wednesday and the VTeddy Awards on Sunday night, the one-man, high-energy force behind the concept and l … (read more)

The 10th edition of the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival (MNFF), which kicked off in Middlebury on Wednesday evening, will feature screenings of 130 films (almost half of them feature-length). But in addition to the wide-ranging and high-quality images … (read more)

The film festival’s brain trust confirmed on Saturday that Caitlin Boyle — a nationally-known, Vermont-based consultant who for the past 20 years has facilitated production of scores of independent films — has been picked as MNFF’s first-ever executive di … (read more)

Organizers of the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival (MNFF) always try to amp up the invite list to generate more buzz for what is an annual showcase of work by up-and-coming movie makers.

Four-time Academy Award-winning filmmaker Oliver Stone will be honored for “Impact, Imagination and Excellence” at the 10th Anniversary edition of the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival that will take place Aug. 21-25. Stone will screen and discuss three … (read more)

The Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival recently donated 40 more films to Ilsley Public Library in Middlebury. The donation is comprised of BluRay format films that were screened in recent years either at the festival or as part of the MNFF Selects Monthly … (read more)

A decade after launching the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival in partnership with renowned movie director Jay Craven, Lloyd Komesar has announced plans to step back from his role as hands-on producer and turn over the reins of the growing, late-summer e … (read more)

It’s no small deal to create something from nothing. It’s even more incredulous when what’s created is top-notch.

“The Janes” is a captivating documentary film that delves into the clandestine world of a group of women who risked everything to provide safe and affordable abortions.