A weekly report on the best events, openings and happenings in New York.

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Week of March 30, 2009:

The 14th Annual Gen Art Film Festival

At the start of April, the Gen Art Film Festival (GAFF) extends the notion that one great night is better than a lot of mediocre ones by making a great mini film festival based on seven nights of one well-chosen full-length feature, a properly placed short to open, a party and one familiar theater. This year, the premieres will be taking place at the completely redesigned, state-of-the-art Visual Arts Theater on West 23rd Street between 8-9th Avenues.

Presented by Acura, the 14th annual Gen Art FF showcases these seven film premieres, with parties in area clubs, and the people who love them from the directors, stars, and members of this organization, Gen Art, which has been dedicated to the film industry and New York's tastemaking audience.

Based on the idea that the festival can do more by showcasing today's most talented emerging directors and by giving audiences a chance to be part of the red carpet experience, Gen Art FF offers a chance to discover films and talent that will define their genres for years to come.

Gen Art has been synonymous with emerging talent and many famed Hollywood actors alike such as Jennifer Connelly, Adrian Grenier, Taye Diggs, Marcia Gay Harden, Zach Braff, Amanda Peet, Ron Livingston, Jill Hennessey, among others. Notable directors have come through festival including Brad Anderson, Richard Shepherd and Tim Blake Nelson.

This year's festival includes such films as "Lymelife" (starring Alec Baldwin and Rory Caulkin), "Gigantic" (starring Paul Dano), and "Peter and Vandy" (starring Jason Ritter and Jess Weixler), among others. Closing night's film will be "Finding Bliss" (starring Leelee Sobrieski and Denise Richards).

In addition to screenings, there are awards and prizes given as well. The Acura Grand Jury Award is decided by a collection of Gen Art filmmaker alumni, celebrity judges and industry pros. The Jury Award is $10,000 (feature) and $5,000 (short). The Gen Art Audience Award recognizes one short and one feature, as decided by the 21-39 year old, mover/shaker and culture-maker Gen Art audience. And then there's The Stargazer Award which honors a uniquely powerful performance by an emerging actor taking part in the festival.

The festival runs April 1-7, 2009.

For more info, call (212) 255-7300 x505, or visit Gen Art Film Festival

- Brad Balfour

Week of March 23, 2009:

Getting a Great View of The AIPAD Photography Show New York

The Association of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD) presents one of the most important events on the international photography collector's calendar--The AIPAD Photography Show New York. The AIPAD show is the longest running and foremost exhibition of fine art photography. More than 70 of the world's leading fine art photography galleries will exhibit a wide range of museum quality work by contemporary, modern and 19th century masters at the Park Avenue Armory at 67th Street and Park Avenue in New York City.

The 29th edition of The AIPAD show opens with a Gala Preview on March 25 to benefit the John Szarkowski Fund, an endowment for photography acquisitions at The Museum of Modern Art in NYC, established to honor Szarkowski-- one of the most influential photography curators and a photographer in his own right. For further information, contact The Museum of Modern Art, at 212-708-9680 or purchase tickets online.

         
Woman with White Mask                                                Barack and Michelle Obama


Annabella, Portrait in Black and Red

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of AIPAD, The AIPAD Photography Show New York has a thematic "exhibition within an exhibition." From daguerreotype to new media, each gallery will highlight a work that reflects an innovation --such as a technical or artistic development or a seminal work--in the history of photography.

Prints and Fruit                                                  Natasha, Ukraine

The Center for the Legacy of Photography, a new initiative of George Eastman House and the Image Permanence Institute at Rochester Institute of Technology, will also present a special exhibition that includes vintage photographic prints drawn from George Eastman House's extensive collection. The exhibition will provide insight into historic cause-and-effect relationships of materials and processes.

In addition to the standard exhibition booths, the show also has a day of programs on Saturday, March 28, including three panel discussions and a lecture. These programs are free with a paid Saturday admission. Seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Event schedule: March 26 - 29, 2009

For more information, visit: AIPAD

- Brad Balfour

Week of March 9, 2009:

Rendez-Vous with French Cinema 2009

The spring film festival season has now kicked in. As usual it has its start with the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema, held at The Film Society of Lincoln Center Walter Reade Theater and the IFC Center in the West Village. In its 14th year, it began with an extra twist, as one of the inaugural events hailing the re-opened and newly renovated Alice Tully Hall, with the U.S. Premiere of Christophe Barratier’s musical comedy/drama “Paris 36.”

The Film Society and Unifrance’s celebrated annual series, presented this film on March 5th with director Barratier and breakout star Nora Arnezeder attending. This Gallic showcase--one of The Film Society’s most popular annual series--continues through March 15th with some of the finest French films of the previous year. These works from one of cinema’s most prolific and accomplished film cultures highlight both established cinematic masters and inspiring new talents.

Paris 36

Originally screened at the 2008 Toronto Film Festival, “Paris 36” is a vibrant period piece from the writer/director of the award-winning “The Chorus.” It stars veteran French comedian Gérard Jugnot as the manager of a threadbare ’30s music hall that is scheduled to close. Inspired by the electoral victories of socialist Léon Blum and The Popular Front, he leads a movement against a local gangster to take over the hall and transform it into a cooperative in which everyone, from the actors to the stagehands, has a stake. Their success hinges on a promising new act, the velvet-voiced chanteuse Douce (Arnezeder). It will be released in the U.S. beginning April 3.

Other filmmakers and guests will attend screenings during the series including directors Claire Denis, Samuel Collardey, Patrick Mario Bernard, Pierre Trividic, Danièle Thompson, Costa-Gavras, Anne Fontaine, Jean-François Richet, Ilan Duran Cohen, Agnès Varda, Sylvie Verheyde, Martin Provost, Pierre Schoeller, Benoît Jacquot, and prizewinning actress Félicité Wouassi (“With a Little Help from Myself”).

New this year to Rendez-Vous, a program of prize-winning short films by emerging filmmakers will provide “an exclusive introduction to the next generation of French cinema,” says Peña. The seven titles in Tout Court: New French Shorts will screen together, Friday, March 13, at 4:00 p.m. and Sunday, March 15, at 3:15 p.m.

Regular tickets for Rendez-Vous with French Cinema screenings at The Film Society of Lincoln Center are $12.50; $8.50 for Film Society members, students, and children (6-12, accompanied by an adult); and $9.50 for seniors (62+). Tickets for screenings at the IFC Center are $12.50; $9.50 for IFC Center members; and $8.50 for children and seniors. They are available online at filmlinc.com and ifccenter.com, and at the box offices at The Film Society’s Walter Reade Theater and the IFC Center.

Click here for complete program.

- Brad Balfour