Sara Nodjoumi - Atlanta, Milledgeville, Gainesville, and a Winter Update

The latest update from Sara Nodjoumi, producer of The Iran Job, on her Southern Circuit tour:

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Sunrise flight to Atlanta

My Southern Circuit tour started with an uneventful early morning flight to Atlanta on Sunday. I say uneventful because we had two other people from our filmmaking team attend the first half of the tour and the forecast called for snow right before each of our trips. So getting to Atlanta and finding a sunny 60 degree day was a lot like being in heaven.  (Till, the director - attending the first three screenings, Julien, our Associate Producer - was at the next two and I was scheduled to do the last five.)

The drive to Milledgeville was supposed to be two hours but it took me three. My big secret in life is that I'm not really an experienced driver. I've only really started driving over the last few years and in 2013 I finally overcame my biggest fear which was driving on the highway. So renting a car and driving three hours was definitely a personal challenge and I'm glad to say I overcame it!

In Milledgeville, my lovely host Joe Windish gave me a tour of the Georgia College campus while the screening was taking place. After the Q&A and reception, some of the faculty and I went out for pretty awesome brick oven pizza. I was impressed that such a varied faculty hung out together and lucky to meet a couple of lovely Iranian professors. One of whom knew my parents back in the day in NY.

On the road to Gainesville

The next day was another two hour drive to Gainesville, which of course took me three hours - but I didn't mind - by that time I located NPR and the classic rock station so between the two I stayed entertained. (Sadly I couldn't find a good country music station which was one of the things I was looking forward to!). Southern charm and hospitality abound, my hosts Gladys, Jeff, and Alan where absolutely lovely and I think we had quite possibly the longest Q&A afterwards. And I mean that as a compliment -- it's lovely to be able to answer questions and hear audience reactions. I especially love presenting the film to folks who are not always in touch with many Iranians/Middle Eaterners.

My hosts in Gainesville

Next on the list was Auburn on Tuesday night, Memphis on Wednesday night and Charlotte on Thursday night. But every time I looked at the weather it seemed the looming ice storm and I were going to be heading in the same direction all week. After much back and forth, Teresa and I decided it would be best for me to cut my trip short and head back home. Sad as it was, I think it was the right decision considering the many cancelled flights and thick ice that's settled over most of the region.

Teresa and her team have definitely started something special and I wish them the very best for the remaining tours for this year. Maybe summer tours are a better idea considering the weird weather we're all experiencing.

Screening Postponed Due to Weather

Due to inclement weather, the screening of The Iran Job at the Halsey Institute of Art in Charleston scheduled for tomorrow, February 13, is postponed until a future date. We will continue to post updates as they become available.

Weather Updates

A note from Teresa Hollingsworth, Director of the Southern Circuit:

Tonight's (February 11) screenings will continue as scheduled.

Joel Fendelman will be at the Morris Museum for David, and Sara Nodjoumi will Skype with Auburn University for The Iran Job.

We are dealing with screenings one day at a time depending on weather, and will post updates as necessary.

Till Schauder - Till Talks Tennessee!

Hello everyone. I'm Till Schauder, director of THE IRAN JOB. Last night was the first screening of the film's tour at ETSU in Johnson City. I had looked forward to this tour for months now but last night far exceeded my expectations. My fabulous hosts - Anita, Shara, Heidi, Lise and all the volunteers - were fantastic representatives of Southern hospitality. And the audience was much more diverse than I expected. I never thought I would meet an Iranian blue grass musician in Tennessee -- or anywhere in fact! But there he was, the fabulous Erfan, who seems to have quickly grown into a local legend - for good reason.

Check out Erfan's video

The diversity continued today, when I was picked up for a guest lecture at Shara's ETSU film class by Martin, a student from Spain. It seems the world is coming together in Johnson City, and it's fabulous. As Martin walked me over to the class he told me about a short doc he recently completed about… an Iranian guy who came all the way from Tehran to Tennessee to study… bluegrass music. So Erfan is well on his way to becoming the next big thing and Martin's film proves there's some serious filmmaking talent in this school. I encouraged Martin to make this a feature length doc, or at least an hour long piece -- and I think FROM TEHRAN TO TENNESSEE would be a cool title (Full disclosure: I had a working title once FROM TEXAS TO TEHRAN, which ended up not working for that film (which later became THE IRAN JOB) -- but I still like the TT alliteration and think for this Erfan project it would be just perfect.

Martin's short doc on Erfan

After the class (pics attached) I drove from Johnson City to Cullowhee, NC today for a screening tonight at Western Carolina University -- a beautifully recreational drive compared to NYC traffic - and am now looking forward to the show tonight. Already sad that my stint here is over after tomorrow's screening at Clemson University, but I know the folks who'll come down to represent the film once I leave - our associate producer Julien Segui and my co-producer (of films and babies) Sara Nodjoumi - will have a magical time as well. I am so impressed by what Teresa and South Arts are doing here. I already want to come back next year -- with the kids! No better way to see the South!

February Update - New Films and Filmmakers on the Southern Circuit!

Happy February, folks! We have three new films and filmmakers touring the Southern Circuit this month. The topics cover interesting and nuanced themes interwoven in beautifully diverse styles. Keep reading to find out more about The Iran Job, David, and Bidder 70.

We are also currently accepting filmmaker and venue partners for the 2014-15 Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers. The deadlines are approaching quickly, so make sure you submit your applications ASAP. Find out more information on our website.

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Till Schauder worked at Roger Corman’s Concorde Pictures in Los Angeles before attending the University of Television and Film, Munich. In Germany he wrote and directed the award winning films Strong Shit (Max Ophüls Film Festival Reader’s Award), and City Bomber. After earning a government grant (DAAD) for the arts he made his U.S. debut with the romantic comedy Santa Smokes which won several international awards, among them Best Director at the Tokyo International Film Festival and the Studio Hamburg Newcomer Award. Duke’s House, about Duke Ellington’s Harlem home premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. In 2007 Schauder worked as director and series producer for Berlin-based Story House Productions on Galileo Mystery, the most successful weekly science magazine on German cable, Pro7. In 2007 Schauder founded Partner Pictures. In 2012, Schauder directed and produced the critically acclaimed documentary, The Iran Job, which completed two of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns of all time, was the recipient of numerous grants and was released in the U.S. in Fall 2012, ultimately picked up by Film Movement and re-distributed on all platforms in June 2013. He teaches film classes at NYU and has been a guest lecturer at various other campuses. He has also been invited to serve on film festival juries and panels, e.g. at the Munich International Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival, & Bahamas International Film Festival, amongst others.

The Iran Job follows American basketball player Kevin Sheppard as he accepts a job to play in one of the world’s most feared countries: Iran. With tensions running high between Iran and the West, Kevin tries to separate sports from politics only to find that politics is impossible to escape in Iran. Along the way he forms an unlikely alliance with three outspoken Iranian women. Thanks to these women, his apartment turns into an oasis of free speech, where they discuss everything from

Schedule:
Feb 3: ETSU Mary B. Martin School of the Arts, Johnson City, TN
Feb 4: Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC
Feb 5: Clemson University, Clemson, SC
Feb 6: Presbyterian College, Clinton, SC
Feb 7: Link Centre, Tupelo, MS
Feb 9: Georgia College, Milledgeville, GA
Feb 10: The Arts Council, Gainesville, GA
Feb 11: Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn, AL
Feb 12: Indie Memphis, Memphis, TN
Feb 13: Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, Charleston, SC

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Joel Fendelman is an accomplished award winning film director. In 2011 he completed the highly acclaimed feature film David, which won the ecumenical prize at the Montreal World Film Festival. In 2008 he produced Needle Through Brick, a feature documentary which screened at the Museum of Moving Image in New York. His short films have traveled the globe to prestigious festivals like Cannes, Chicago, Miami, Zimbabwe. As a freelancer Joel has produced and edited content for companies such as A&E, PBS and American Express. Joel is currently working on his second feature film that takes place in Singapore about the story of a Filipina migrant worker. Joel holds a BFA with honors from the Savannah College of Art and Design, and in 2012 he was invited as visiting artist to co-teach a documentary film class at the National University of Singapore. Joel continues to embrace stories that communicate the underlying connection between all people.

David: The Movie: As the son of the Imam of the local Brooklyn mosque, eleven year-old Daud has to juggle the high expectations of his Father (Maz Jobrani) and his feelings of isolation and difference – even from his peers in the Muslim community. Through an innocent act of good faith, Daud inadvertently befriends a group of Jewish boys who mistake him as a fellow classmate at their orthodox school, in the neighboring Jewish community.

Schedule:
Feb 6: Miramar Cultural Center Artspark, Miramar, FL
Feb 7: The Palace Theater, Gallatin, TN
Feb 9: Clifton Center, Louisville, KY
Feb 11: Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA
Feb 13: Wallace State Community College, Hanceville, AL
Feb 15: Serenbe Institute for Art, Culture, and the Environment, Chattahoochee, GA
Feb 16: Winder Cultural Arts Center, Winder, GA

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George and Beth Gage, as Gage & Gage Productions, have created award-winning documentaries since 1993. After successful careers producing television commercials and narrative features, they did an “about face” and began producing documentaries with a conscience.

Gage & Gage Productions creates compelling personal films that empower viewers, initiate dialogue and prompt action on provocative issues. Concentrating on the environment and social justice, they present issues underrepresented in the current media. Their films educate, entertain, inspire and motivate viewers to become actively involved in humanitarian and climate justice issues. Together they co-produce and co-direct the films. Additionally, Beth chooses the film’s subject and creates the stories while George is responsible for the films’ stunning cinematography.

Gage & Gage Productions has completed seven long-form documentaries. Their films have been distributed theatrically, on television, educationally and for consumer DVD. They have screened in national and international markets. The films have won dozens of awards at national and international film festivals and have been highly acclaimed by film reviewers.

Bidder 70 follows college student, Tim DeChristopher, who derailed President Bush’s widely protested federal oil and gas lease auction. Bidding 1.8 million dollars, he saved 22,000 acres surrounding Utah’s National Parks with no intention to pay or drill. The Obama administration agreed to save the land and invalidated the auction, but indicted Tim on two felonies facing ten years in prison. Bidder 70 illuminates how the choices we make determine our future and the world we live in.

Schedule:
Feb 21: City of Hapeville, Hapeville, GA
Feb 22: Banners at McNeese, Lake Charles, LA
Feb 24: The City of Suwanee, Suwanee, GA
Feb 25: Arts Council of Central Louisiana, Alexandria, LA
Feb 26: Vermilionville Living History Museum, Lafayette, LA
Feb 27: Madison-Morgan Cultural Center, Madison, GA