Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Premiere: The Lucky Ones by Joseph Alvaro and Matt Zoller Seitz Screens at Ridgewood Guild International Film Festival - Explores Love Lost

Ridgewood Film Festival Semifinalist in the Web/New Media Category "The Lucky Ones" Celebrates the Lives' of the Loved and Lost


Ridgewood resident Joseph Alvaro considers himself one of “The Lucky Ones.”

When his wife Frances passed away in 2009, the producer and author was devastated, but he never stopped being thankful for the life they shared and turned his attention to raising three teenage children. It wasn’t until 2014 when he and friend, Matt Zoller Seitz, editor-at-large at RogerEbert.com and the television critic for New York magazine and Vulture.com, realized that they shared a common bond – their appreciation for the wives that they loved, and had lost. They both felt that they were one of “The Lucky Ones.” They also recognized that there wasn’t a platform for people to celebrate and memorialize their loved ones who had passed.


Monday, April 22, 2019

Stories to Inspire: TEEEM Students to Premiere Film about their Non-Profit Work for Third World Countries at Ridgewood Guild International Film Festival


The Red Carpet of the Ridgewood Guild International Film Festival in downtown Ridgewood, NJ will be filled with excited and proud students on Opening night, April 24th.  That's because their new films will be premiering and they will be proud about that. But, in addition to their filmmaking prowess, what they should be most proud about it that they are not just the documentarians but also active participants of the subject they are filming.

Four films will be shown about a project called TEEEM -  The Empathetic Entrepreneur Equality Mission. In a nutshell, this organization puts high school students to work to support programs to help families and women in third world coutries. Our high school partners and their corresponding sites include Ridgewood/Cambodia, Pascack Valley/Burkina Faso, Northern Highlands/Senegal, Waldwick/Kenya, Westwood/Ethiopia and Bergenfield/Peru.

Four schools/programs which have created and produced films which will be shown at the festival. These student filmmakers are:

Sunday, April 21, 2019

Interview: Entertainer Vincent Pastore Talks About his Present, his Past and Most Importantly the Legacy of the The Sopranos Family and His Own

by Suzanne Ordas Curry


Vincent Pastore, best known as Big Pussy on the iconic HBO series The Sopranos, did not plan on becoming an actor. Raised in a suburb of New York City, growing up in a humble home, he wasn’t one of those guys that dreamed of being in front of the screen growing up. In his twenties he worked at a nightclub and was just happy where he was. Ironically, as a night club manager his job and life could have easily been reflected as a character on an episode of The Sopranos.

But flash forward 20 years. He made a name for himself on one of the biggest shows ever to hit TV, and HBO. Flash forward today, 20 years after The Sopranos and he still gets recognized on the streets for his role.

Update: See the versatile Vincent Pastore in the new movie VAULT now in theaters and Clinton Road, on demand now.

Thursday, April 18, 2019

First Song Released from New Movie Killan and The Comeback Kids: "Where We Should Be Today" is Folksy, Melodic and Meaningful

Taylor A. Purdee, writer/director of the soon-to-be-released film Killian and the Comeback Kids, has released a song from his upcoming movie. Killian & The Comeback Kids is a feature film that centers around  Killian (Taylor Purdee), who returns to his hometown from college, intent on touring the U.S. with his bandmate Ben (Liam Higgins). When their plan is derailed, Killian gathers former childhood friends to audition for a music festival coming to their once prosperous steel town.  The movie is filled with original folk music written by Taylor A. Purdee and Liam Higgins. You can listen to it here: https://thecumberlandkids.bandcamp.com/track/where-we-should-be-today

New Star Wars Trailer Dropped for the Rise of Skywalker


Attention Star Wars fans. If you're not already hyped up about the new Stars Wars attraction coming to Disney, here's something else to keep you going. View trailer from The Rise of Skywalker here:



Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Play Review: NJ Paper Mill Playhouse's Benny and Joon is a Mix of Hope, Heartbreak, Hilarity and Powerful Music

by Beth Abramson Brier

A look. A laugh. More looks. More laughs. And so it goes, without any dialogue, as the curtain goes up on Benny and Joon, making its East Coast premiere at Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey. When the actors finally do speak their first lines it just gets funnier. Yup. This is a play about mental illness, about loss, about pain, about struggling to understand. And I am laughing along with everyone else in the theater. You see, this is also play about love, friendship, grilled cheese and a goldfish named Steven.

Wednesday, April 10, 2019

"Hollywould Comes to Ridgewood": Tickets on Sale Now for Meet & Greet/Movie Premiere with Academy Award - Nominated Actor Eric Roberts at Ridgewood Guild International Film Festival April 25th

Tickets are on sale now for the special Eric Roberts Meet and Greet at the Ridgewood Guild International Film Festival in Ridgewood, NJ on April 25th. This Academy Award and Golden Globe - nominated actor will be on the Red Carpet for the premiere of his new movie, the Joshua Coates film entitled Hollywould. 

The evening starts at 6pm with the Red Carpet. Eric and his fellow cast will be there as well as filmmakers, cast and crew from the other films at the festival playing that evening. The Red Carpet is a free event and will be held outside the Bow Tie Theater on Ridgewood Avenue.

Thursday, April 4, 2019

VIEW: The New York City Skyline is Forever Changed with Hudson Yards - A First Day Impression of this City of Glass within a City

The Vessel at Hudson Yards, NYC

by Suzanne Ordas Curry

For anyone obsessed with architecture, New York City or the future it’s worth the trip to visit Hudson Yards.

Coming into NYC through the Lincoln Tunnel, I had seen the progress of these mirrored silhouettes over the last few years, though it was only in the last year really that these imposing skyscrapers were noticeable to the casual observer.

I had been reading articles about them, New York magazine had a great article on how they came to be. In a nutshell, the plan came to fruition during the Bloomberg administration. It is a 20 billion dollar complex with varying uses, retail, commercial residential and entertainment. Though the recreational aspects are for anyone, many of the shops and residences are intended for the high-end user.

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

Event: Women in the Arts & Media Coalition Presents 6th Annual Biennial Awards in NYC - Alysia Reiner Hosts

By Suzanne Ordas Curry

When women collaborate, good - no - great things happen! The Women in the Arts and Media Coalition, which is a coalition of dozens of entertainment and female-related organizations, held its bi-ennial Collaboration Awards Gala the SVA Theater in NYC on March 30, 2019 to recognize collaborative works of excellence by females.

Hosting the event with a smile was Alysia Reiner, from the films Equity and Egg and the TV shows Orange is the New Black, The Deuce and Better Things. Alysia was ubiquitous during the event, which she ackowledged early on with humor. Her team from Egg won the Acclaimed Collaboration Award and she also read an act from the winning play Preservation at the end of the event. The event started with a Red Carpet and cockail reception in the lobby. Leaders and members from many of the member organizations mingled and talked new projects.