SUNY Potsdam Hosts Events for First-Ever St. Lawrence International Film Festival

St. Lawrence International Film Festival Brings Special Screenings, Performances and Receptions to SUNY Potsdam This Weekend

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SUNY Potsdam is a proud sponsor of the first annual St. Lawrence International Film Festival.

POTSDAM, NY (10/21/2015)(readMedia)-- The State University of New York at Potsdam is a proud sponsor of the inaugural St. Lawrence International Film Festival, featuring more than 25 films, live events, panels and special screenings on both sides of the U.S./Canadian border, in Ottawa, Brockville, Canton and Potsdam. The festival premieres tomorrow, Thursday, Oct. 22, with events running through Sunday, Oct. 25.

Thanks to the support of a generous donor, all students at the Associated Colleges of the St. Lawrence Valley (including SUNY Potsdam, Clarkson University, SUNY Canton and St. Lawrence University) can now attend all festival events for free! To register, just fill out the form at www.stlawrencefilm.com/student-registration.

Faculty and staff can get a discount on their festival passes and tickets to special events. Simply purchase your passes and use the discount code UNIVERSITY20 at checkout, at stlawrencefilm.com.

SUNY Potsdam will host numerous events throughout the first annual St. Lawrence International Film Festival, including:

Friday, Oct. 23:

  • Masterclass: Joe Kraemer, Craft & Career (9:30 to 10:30 a.m., Sara M. Snell Music Theater, SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music): Hollywood composer Joe Kraemer will show different versions of cues from "Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation" and "Jack Reacher," with time permitting. The composer will discuss the process of writing music, from conception to final recording. Learn about working with or against temp music, writing to style, synths versus live instruments, and any other question you can come up with. Don't miss out on this rare chance to get in-depth insight into the craft of composition!
  • Sync: Music in Film & Film Music (11 a.m. to 12:10 p.m., Snell Theater): Music supports the visual story in a way no one can underestimate. This panel discussion will focus on how composers decide the palette to build their themes on, which moments need music, how to select prerecorded music and secure rights, and how both score and source music can work together. Panelists include Joe Kraemer and Tony Verderosa '86, with moderator Jerod Sommerfeldt.
  • Comedy in the Stream: Digital Shorts & the New Media of Laughter (12:45 p.m. to 1:55 p.m., Black Box Theater, SUNY Potsdam Performing Arts Center): Comedy consumption has irrevocably changed, and ideas now only have a few minutes to stand out in the onslaught of online content. Hear about the world of web entertainment from pros on either side of the camera.
  • Producing Music for Film & Television: Tony Verderosa '86, KBV Records (3:30 to 4:30 p.m., Dance Theater, Performing Arts Center): Crane School of Music alumnus Tony Verderosa '86 will cover performance technique and real-time compositions, using live electronics with drums and triggers, plus hands-on software demonstrations. This session will offer an in-depth look at producing records and music for film and TV.

Saturday, Oct. 24:

  • Screening, "The Hunting Ground" (2 to 4 p.m., Proscenium Theater, SUNY Potsdam Performing Arts Center): From the Academy Award-nominated filmmaking team behind "The Invisible War" comes this startling exposé of sexual assault on U.S. campuses, institutional cover-ups and the brutal social toll on victims and their families.
  • Empire State Film Awards Pre-Reception (6 to 7 p.m., Snell Theater Lobby, Crane School of Music): This pre-reception will celebrate the winning film, "The Preppie Reception."
  • Empire State Award Film, "The Preppie Connection" (7 to 9 p.m., Snell Theater, Crane): This film and its director will be awarded the inaugural Empire State Award for Excellence in Filmmaking, which is awarded either to a New York story or a New York filmmaker. A true story, "The Preppie Connection" follows a New York private school student who ran a drug trafficking ring to make friends with the popular kids in the 1980s. Toby Mann, a lower-class scholarship student, finds himself in over his head as he delves into the dangerous world of Colombian drug cartels. Director Joseph Castelo's first feature, "The War Within," was an Independent Spirit Award nominee.

Sunday, Oct. 25:

  • Short Steps Forward, Associated Colleges Film Competition Winners Screening (2 to 3 p.m., Wakefield Recital Hall, Crane School of Music): This quick program of four student shorts compiles the winners of the St. Lawrence International Film Festival Associated Colleges Film Competition. Students from SUNY Canton, St. Lawrence University, SUNY Potsdam and Clarkson University were encouraged to submit their work, up to five minutes in length, to compete to represent their campus at the festival. One film will be selected as the grand prize winner.
  • Screening & Live Performance with the Mambo Legends Orchestra, "For the Love of the Mambo" (3 to 5 p.m., Snell Theater, Crane): The documentary "For the Love of the Mambo" by Marsha Baxter and Doyle Dean, will screen, followed by a live performance featuring Mambo Legends Orchestra leaders John "Dandy" Rodriguez, Mitch Frohman and Jose Madera, each of whom spent more than 25 years working with Tito Puente. The documentary follows Mambo Legends musicians as they pass the intricate rhythms on to the next generation, members of the Crane Latin Ensemble at The Crane School of Music.
  • Closing Night Film, "Frank and Cindy" (7:30 to 9:30 p.m., Snell Theater): Based on his documentary about coming home to live with his mother and stepfather, director G.J. Echternkamp mines his own family's imperfections for a touching and hilarious story of failure and denial. His mother Cindy was the ultimate groupie of one-hit wonder 80s new wave band OXO, and married his stepfather Frank, with dreams of glamor and awards shows. Starring Rene Russo, Oliver Platt and Johnny Simmons, the film shows how that didn't quite work out.
  • Closing Night Party (9 to 11:30 p.m., Performing Arts Center Lobby): Celebrate a successful first St. Lawrence International Film Festival after a weekend of great films on both sides of the border. Featuring food, drink and live music.

For a full festival schedule, including events at locations in Canton, Brockville and Ottawa, visit www.stlawrencefilm.com/schedule-2/.

The international festival will run from Oct. 22 to 25, screening 60+ films in venues on both sides of the U.S.-Canadian border. The Festival Opening Gala will feature a special 35th anniversary screening of "The Blues Brothers," with Dan Aykroyd in attendance. For more information on the St. Lawrence International Film Festival, or to download the film festival app for iOS or Android devices, visit www.stlawrencefilm.com.

For directions to SUNY Potsdam and maps of campus, please visit www.potsdam.edu/about/visit/maps.cfm.

Founded in 1816, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of only three arts campuses in the entire SUNY system. SUNY Potsdam's arts curriculum offers the full palette: music, theatre, dance, fine arts and creative writing. No matter the discipline, people from all backgrounds can find their creative compass at Potsdam, with myriad arts immersion experiences available for both campus and community.

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