VF14 OFFICIAL LINE-UP ANNOUNCED... Tickets now on sale!

VISIONFEST to kick off 14th annual run with the U.S. Premiere

of the off-the-wall comedy DON PEYOTE featuring Dan Fogler;

NEVER makes NY debut as Closing Night Selection!

CHASING TASTE and SAND CASTLES round out feature offerings;

CHANGE: THE LIFEPARTICLE EFFECT and HOME COURT head the docs category

New York City – April 16, 2014 – VISIONFEST 14: THE OTHER FESTIVAL (VF14) has announced its complete program line-up for its annual event, which runs May 14 thru May 18, 2014, at Tribeca Cinemas (corner of Laight and Varick Streets in New York City).  The film festival, whose mission to “promote domestic filmmaking” is supported and propelled by its organizing entity, the Domani Vision Film Society, a not-for-profit organization, this year celebrates its fourteenth annual outing. With 36 films, combining narrative features, shorts, documentaries, experimental, and animated works, all of the titles being showcased originate exclusively from U.S. based filmmakers.  Advance tickets now on sale at: www.visionfest.com

The “Official Opening Night Selection” this year features a vividly colorful program line-up, starting off with the short subjects, COSMIC FLOWER UNFOLDING, an experimental animation by VF alum, Benjamin Ridgway, and the charming, live-action/animated short, ADONIS by David Dibble.  The duo of trippy shorts paves the way for the evening’s feature presentation, the U.S. Premiere of the highly anticipated, DON PEYOTE, featuring Dan Fogler as Warren Allman, a 32 year-old, unemployed stoner, whose mid-life crisis over his upcoming wedding sends him on the drug trip of a lifetime.  The psychedelic romp, which also stars Josh Duhamel and Jay Baruchel, is packed with a host of celebrity cameos, big laughs, and giant ‘heart,’ as Warren weaves in and out of perceived reality, apocalyptic dreams, and an obsession with Doomsday theories, which propel him into making a documentary on the subject while his fiancé is busy planning their wedding.  Dan Fogler co-directed the film with Michael Canzoniero, both men are VF alumni, and WEDDING BROS, one of their earlier collaborations, marked one of the festival’s quickest selling “sold out” shows since the event’s inception. “We’re really pumped about opening our film festival with Don Peyote this year,” stated VF co-director, Frank Lewallen, adding: “It’s smart, funny, visually unique… It’s unlike any other film I’ve ever seen, and to have the opportunity to offer it to New York audiences with this Special Advance Screening, just before it goes out theatrically, makes this show even more special and a hot ticket to have on May 14^th.”

Also screening in New York for the first time are the narrative features, CHASING TASTE by Sean Gannet and SAND CASTLES by Clenét Verdi-Rose.  The former unveils on Friday, May 16, 2014, at 7:00 p.m., preceded by the Daniel Campos comedy-musical short, TODAY’S THE DAY, featuring Danny DeVito.  The dramatic and hauntingly poetic, SAND CASTLES, headlines the sole Saturday evening, May 17 screening, and is preceded by the equally evocative short, INTO THE DARK, by Lukas Hassel, another VF alum.

The “Official Closing Night Selection” unfolds with a very eclectic group of films.  First up is FLAWS, a short subject created by 16-year-old filmmaker, Gabrielle Giacomo, who wears all production hats on the project and even appears before camera.  The film was originally submitted as part of a special program called For Kids By Kids, but when festival organizers decided to forego the ‘sidebar’ screening, FLAWS was kept in the Independent Vision Showcase by unanimous vote, making Gabrielle Giacomo the youngest filmmaker ever to have a film in the adult line-up at VF.  Immediately following, is the comedic short, COOTIE CONTAGION, by Joshua Smooha, which features a cast made up solely of children.  Next up, Zina Brown, another VF alum, returns to the festival with the visually dazzling, DREAM OF THE LAST BUTTERFLIES.  The evening’s feature presentation is Brett Allen Smith’s NEVER, which boasts the acting debut of Zelda Williams (daughter of Robin Williams), and music by Nora Kirkpatrick.

This year’s IVA (Independent Vision Awards) Ceremony will immediately follow the closing night’s program, with an after-party and photo-op, spilling into the adjacent Varick Room.

Among some of the other highlights at VF14, is the ‘Out of Competition’ special screening of the short doc, REAL CHANGE, by Adam Becker, which is featured as part of this Special Benefit Screening, for which, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Real Change – Real Change exists to provide opportunity and a voice for low-income and homeless people while taking action for economic justice.  The feature doc in the same program will be CHANGE: THE LIFEPARTICLE EFFECT, directed by Edwin Kim & EJ Lim. The documentary, HOME COURT, by Monica Alba and Ben Teitelbaum, headlines Program 02, on Thursday, May 15, at 7:00 p.m.

For additional details and/or to request Press Accreditation, please contact Kate Mistretta:

press@visionfest.com

Here is the full VF14 Line-up:

WEDNESDAY – MAY 14

PROGRAM 01 -- 8:00pm -- Tribeca Cinemas 2

COSMIC FLOWER UNFOLDING  D: Benjamin Ridgway – 2min. Experimental

ADONIS  D: David Dibble – 10min. Narrative

DON PEYOTE  D: Michael Canzoniero & Dan Fogler – 98min. Narrative

THURSDAY – MAY 15

PROGRAM 02 -- 7:00pm -- TC 1

MONKEY RAG  D: Joanna Davidovich – 4min. Animation

FIRST PRIZE  D: Kevin McMullin – 10min. Narrative

LAST STOP IN SANTA ROSA  D: Elizabeth Lo – 5min. Documentary

FOR THE LOVE OF DOGS  D: Tim O’Donnell – 26min. Documentary

HOME COURT  D: Monica Alba & Ben Teitelbaum – 40min. Documentary

PROGRAM 03 -- 8:00pm -- TC 2

COOKING WITH VENUS  D: Glen & Shaun Vivaris – 3min. Narrative

TAG  D: Freeland Shreve – 5min. Narrative

OPEN SPACES  D: Nick Rafter – 15min. Narrative

WAKE  D: Judith Kenny – 10min. Narrative

MOUSTACHE  D: Carl Evans – 20min. Narrative

THE WEST BEGINS AT FIFTH AVENUE  D: Donald Gray & Kryssa Schemmerling. 17min. Narrative

GRAPE  D: Daniel Stine – 29min. Narrative

PROGRAM 04 -- 9:30pm -- TC 1

AUTHORIZED DRONE STRIKE ZONE  D: Christopher Wasmer – 6min. Documentary

AMONG THE INNOCENT  D: Louis Mansfield – 7min. Narrative

LOAD  D: Paul-Anthony Navarro – 10min. Narrative

KAWOMERA: PLANT, PRAY, PARTNER FOR PEACE  D: Marla Mossman – 15min. Doc

REAL CHANGE  D: Adam Becker – 9min. Documentary (Out of competition)

CHANGE: THE LIFEPARTICLE EFFECT  D: Edwin Kim & EJ Lim – 48min. Documentary

FRIDAY -- MAY 16

PROGRAM 05 -- 7:00pm -- TC 2

TODAY’S THE DAY  D: Daniel Campos – 13min. Narrative

CHASING TASTE  D: Sean Gannet – 89min. Narrative

PROGRAM 07 -- 9:30pm -- TC 2

WHAT CHEER?  D: Michael Slavens – 18min. Narrative

THE HEEBIE-JEEBIES  D: Todd Slawby – 9min. Narrative

FLESH COMPUTER  D: Ethan Shaftel – 14min. Narrative

KILLER KART  D: James Feeney – 15min. Narrative

THE SOUND  D: Sacha Iskra – 15min. Narrative

GHOST LIGHT  D: PJ Germain – 20min. Narrative

BULLY  D: Robert Weiermair – 24min. Narrative

SATURDAY – MAY 17

PROGRAM 07 -- 8:00 pm -- TC 2

INTO THE DARK  D: Lukas Hassel – 14min. Narrative

SAND CASTLES  D: Clenét Verdi-Rose – 93min. Narrative

SUNDAY – MAY 18

PROGRAM 8 -- 6:30pm -- TC 2

FLAWS  D: Gabrielle Giacomo – 2.5min. Narrative

COOTIE CONTAGION  D: Joshua Smooha – 8min. Narrative

DREAM OF THE LAST BUTTERFLIES  D: Zina Brown – 10min. Music/Narrative

NEVER  D: Brett Smith – 83min. Narrative

THE IVA CEREMONY -- 8:30pm -- TC 2