Is summer already over? Pity, seems like it came and went quicker than a ride on the Pineapple Express. To make you feel better, we've rounded up a bunch of films to keep your mind distracted.

On Thursday, September 11th, beginning at 9PM Eastern, get a triple dose of burn outs, junkies, and deals gone wrong beginning with "Rush," starring Jason Patric and Jennifer Jason Leigh as a pair of narcotics cops who get caught up in the drug world, and then try to buck the system by altering evidence. Then, check out "Party Monster" (pictured), based on the true story of a guy (played by former child star Macaulay Culkin) who hits the club circuit way too hard. It's an intense look at the often drug-besotted club kid era of the 1980s and 1990s. After that, we give you a lesson on the effect of what cannabis can really do to a person with exploitation classic "Reefer Madness." Your brain may not be able to handle it.

Also this month, IFC is paying homage to the Mighty Penn -- that would be Sean Penn, Spirit Award winner, Golden Globe winner, Oscar winner, the list could go on. Penn's a man of many talents, including director ("The Indian Runner," "The Pledge" and, more recently, "Into the Wild"), writer and producer, but we're celebrating what he does best: acting. Tune in Saturday, September 6th starting at 9pm Eastern for a night of phenomenal performances from one of the greatest actors in film. See Penn take on the role of Sgt. Welsh in war saga "The Thin Red Line," play an undercover cop in "State of Grace" (pictured) and portray a disturbed blue collar worker who plots to kill the president in "The Assassination of Richard Nixon."

Plus, brand new to IFC, the Automat begins Tuesday, September 30th. Every week, we're taking you back to the future with a blend of exclusive, uncensored alternative programming, including anime, original series, plus a film thrown into the mix, and much more. The cycle gets going 8PM Eastern/Pacific.

PREMIERES TO LOOK FOR:

• Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Defying gravity with its martial arts sequences, Ang Lee's impressively shot film tells the story of a mysterious stolen sword. Oscar winner for Best Foreign Film in 2001. Premieres Wednesday, September 3rd at 9PM Eastern.
• Little Fish In this Australian indie, thespian queen Cate Blanchett portrays a former drug addict trying to get her life together. Premieres Thursday, September 4th at 9PM Eastern.
• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou Bill Murray plays Jacques Cousteau-esque oceanographer Steve Zissou, who seeks revenge on the shark that ate one of his team members (no, it's not a great white named "Jaws"). The role made such an impact that it inspired the remix music to this Bill Murray dedication. Premieres Friday, September 5th at 8:30PM Eastern.
• Brothers When a man is shot down in Afghanistan, his brother steps in to help his family and begins falling in love with his wife (Connie Nielsen) in this heartwrenching Danish drama. Premieres Monday, September 8th at 9PM Eastern.
• Guinevere An older photographer becomes involved with his young muse, whom he calls "Guinevere." She soon learns, however, she's just one of many. Ensemble cast includes Stephen Rea, Sarah Polley, and Gina Gershon. Premieres Monday, September 15th at 9PM Eastern.

By Joanna Varikos in What to Watch on IFC | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (2)

Tags: Automat, film, new, premieres, schedule, Sean Penn, September, series

We just launched a photo contest on IFC.com - It's called the IFC Dress Your Kid (and/or Pet!) Like A Rock Star Photo Contest. It's our version of a kid and pet photo contest - instead of cutest kid and pet, we thought it would be fun to see who could be chosen as the coolest mini-rock god or goddess.

http://kidrockstar.ifc.com/

The prizes are - weekly prize of $50 iTunes gift certificate, runner-up prizes of $500 each (coolest kid/coolest pet) and a $5000 grand prize. The kids in the photos have to be between the ages of 0 and 10. (Pets of all ages accepted. ) Entrants are allowed to post multiple photos but only one photo per day. (Note we are screening and approving all entries before posting, so just be patient.)

Even if you not going to upload a photo, you can go check out and "rate" the photos that have been submitted. Let us know what you think!

By IFC | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (2)

Tags: contest

Watch all the great highlights and see if you made the IFC Comic Con News. Check out our complete coverage at this year's Comic-Con here:

• Read all posts in Film News


• All IFC News Video

Thanks to everyone who stopped by the IFC booth at the show. Did you win a Grand Prize? These fans sure did!

• Sony Home Theater System -- Ralph Langer (Pittsburgh, PA)


• HD Camera -- Rosa Martinez (Spring Valley, CA)


• 42" LCD HD TV -- Gianni Pretto (Las Vegas, NV)


• Apple Mac Book -- Wayne Thomson (National City, CA)


• Sony Playstation 3 -- Fatima Camero (San Marcos, CA)

See you next year!

By IFC | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (2)

This month, IFC presents a brand new semi-scripted original series, Z ROCK. By night, Brooklyn-based rockers ZO2 are budding rock stars with groupies and backstage antics - they're thisclose to making it big. But to pay the bills, they perform during the day as "The Z Brothers" at kiddie parties for affluent families. Their manager hooks up Dave Navarro as director of their music video, and books gigs opening for her aunt, Joan Rivers. These fun-loving guys are just trying to make it in the business while dealing with real life. Z ROCK premieres Sunday, August 24th beginning at 11:30PM Eastern/Pacific. Keep your eyes open for celebrity guest appearances throughout the season, including Dave Attell, Sebastian Bach, Dee Snider and many more.

And, while August usually brings scorching weather to a close, things are just heating up with IFC's Summer Sizzler. Turn the AC way up on Thursday, August 7th, because it's going to be one steamy night. Strippers, threesomes and porn will have you wiping the sweat from your forehead over...and over...and over again. Featuring "Dancing at the Blue Iguana," "The Dreamers," the very erotic "When Will I Be Loved," and the premiere of an IFC documentary, "Larry Flynt: The Right to Be Left Alone," all about the free speech advocator who built his empire from three little letters: XXX.

Plus, be sure to check out "Clerks" this month on IFC. If you feared tuning in for the Bennifer "Jersey Girl" flick last month, give yourself a reminder of Kevin Smith's directorial talent with his very first feature film. "Clerks," which was made for less than $30K, is about two convenience store workers who spend a day doing anything but their job, and has become an instant cult classic.

PREMIERES TO LOOK FOR IN AUGUST:

• "TRANSAMERICA" - Independent Spirit Award winner and Oscar nominee Felicity Huffman gives a stellar performance as a man transitioning into a woman who discovers she fathered a son. Premieres Sunday, August 24th at 8:30PM Eastern.


• "THE NEW WORLD" - In between moonlighting as Batman, Christian Bale played John Rolfe, an Englishman who found himself in a love triangle with Indian Princess Pocahontas. Colin Farrell also gives a rather remarkable performance as John Smith. Premieres Monday, August 4th at 9PM Eastern.


• "THE FLORENTINE" - Twists and turns in various peoples' lives all lead to the same bar in one small town. Good script, good direction and great cast, including the late Chris Penn. Premieres Monday, August 18th at 9PM Eastern.


• Also, it's not a full-length film, but these chicks pack a whole lot of punch. The documentary short "THE FIGHTING CHOLITAS" premieres in August, about a group of female Bolivian wrestlers who fight in traditional skirts. Also look out for "LA LECON DE DANSE" (aka "The Dance Lesson"), in which a man shares his ability to perform some unusual dance moves.

By Joanna Varikos | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (6)

Tags: August, films, premieres, schedule, short films, Z Rock

We love making lists here at IFC. That's why we decided to devote the month of July to just that — lists.

Come back every weekday to find a new list calling out the best and worst of independent culture, from the Best Bald People In Music to the 25 Best Films in Black & White.

July 1: Why NOT a space flower?: Six Killer Movie Plants (Film)
July 2: The 10 Most Important Presidential Speeches (Politics)
July 3: The Best "Man" Songs (Music)
July 4: Ten Bittersweet Patriotic Films (Film)
July 7: Best Vowel-less Groups in Music (Music)
July 8: Best Bald People in Music (Music)
July 9: The 25 Greatest Black and White Films (Film)
July 10: Top 10 Presidential Campaign Ads (Politics)
July 11: The 15 Best Documentaries About Elections (Film/Politics)
July 14: Strange Moments in Replacement Actor History (Film)
July 15: The 12 Worst Gaffes of the 2008 Election (Politics)
July 16: The Top 20 Musical Moments in Politics (Music/Politics)
July 17: Once more, from the top! Five comic book reboots (Film)
July 18: Top Five Independent Comedy Sites (Web)
July 21: Ten Films That Have Squandered Their Comedic Talent (Film)
July 22: Scenes For, or Not For, Really Intense Loners (Film)
July 23: Gotham City, A Visual History (Film)
July 24: Counting Down 10 Sadly Underseen Films (Film)
July 25: Five Rising Indie Actors to Watch For (Film)
July 28: The 10 Most Slanderous Cinematic Slights (Film)
July 29: Top 10 Timewasting Sites (Web)
July 30: The 50 Bands Your Kids Should Know (Music)
July 31: Ten Novels and Short Stories That Would Make Good Movies (Film)

By IFC in Lists | Link | 1 Comments | Recommended (17)

Hundreds of years ago, our founding forefathers were spending their Fourth of July weekend getting ready to grant America its independence. Today, we celebrate with some time on the beach and at friends' barbecues, all of which could include sitting in massive traffic as your wallet is depleted thanks to sky-rocketing gas prices. There's a solution: pump the AC, kick up your feet and declare your own independence by tuning into IFC Saturday, July 5th and Sunday, July 6th for a weekend of films born and bred in the USA, featuring "Garden State," with Zach Braff (who also directs) as a guy going home to Jersey in an effort to figure his life out. Then check out "Stolen Summer," about a young Catholic kid plotting to convert his Jewish friend in 1970s Chicago, and a group of troublemakers just trying to get by in NY in "Hurricane Streets." Don't miss these and other films that'll take you on a trip across America without getting on a plane or having to pay a fee for your first piece of checked luggage.

Also in July, it's good guy vs. bad guy in an all out crime spree. Saturday, July 19th and Sunday, July 20th, tune in for a plethora of indie films featuring lock-ups, lockdowns and shakedowns. The line-up includes the Coen brothers' "Miller's Crossing," one of the best gangster films of all time. Taking place in the stylized 1930s, it pits two crime boss rivals against each other as they each try to take control of a city. In "Suicide Kings," ubër cool Christopher Walken gives his usual smooth performance as a Mafioso who gets kidnapped by a bunch of young, rich wanna-be criminals. And catch some cool cinematography and art direction in "Confidence," featuring Ed Burns (who's made quite a niche for himself since directing, writing and starring in his own first film — "The Brothers McMullen" — on a shoestring budget). Also on the schedule: "Trans," "State of Grace," "Never Die Alone" and "The Pope of Greenwich Village" (premiering this month).

PREMIERES TO LOOK FOR IN JULY:

• "BEE SEASON" With a hidden gem of a performance from Richard Gere, "Bee Season" offers a father cheering his daughter on to win the National Spelling Bee. Premieres Tuesday, July 1st at 6:35pm ET.


• "CAMILLA" One of Jessica Tandy's last films, "Camilla" follows a group of people, young and old, on the road (literally) to discovering themselves. Premieres Tuesday, July 8th at 7:25pm ET.


• "THE POPE OF GREENWICH VILLAGE" You can't go wrong with a film from the guy who directed Paul Newman in "Cool Hand Luke." You also can't go wrong watching Eric Roberts and Mickey Rourke play Italian-American cousins getting into a whole lot of trouble, no matter how hard they try to avoid it. Premieres Thursday, July 20th at 9pm ET.


• "JERSEY GIRL" Don't fear the dreaded "Gigli" Ben Affleck/Jennifer Lopez combo — this romantic comedy from, yes, Kevin Smith, is really about the sweetly grown-up relationship that forms between Liv Tyler, as a video store worker, and Affleck as a withdrawn single dad. Premieres Saturday, July 26th at 9pm ET.

By Joanna Varikos in What to Watch on IFC | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (7)

Tags: American cinema, Crime, Gangster, July, schedule

Oh, the horror! If our Grindhouse flick every Friday at midnight isn't enough to send you running for cover, get ready for a triple threat of thrills and exploitation every Thursday in June. Kicking off at 9pm ET, it's back to back to back thrill and chill featuring classic horror films like "Eaten Alive" (featuring a young Robert Englund, pre-Freddy Krueger in the "Nightmare on Elm Street" series), Joe Dante's "The Howling", John Carpenter's "The Fog" (which literally petrified me into thinking creatures would appear whenever the weather called for non-visible conditions after seeing it as a kid,), "Return of the Living Dead" and a slew of others that'll leave you screaming for more.

This June, IFC is also celebrating gay pride month with fabulously queer cinema every Friday night in "Out at the Movies." Boldly going where mainstream films won't, these indies don't hold back when it comes to same-sex love. Don't miss this chance to catch Christina Ricci trying to steal her brother's boyfriend in "The Opposite of Sex," a teen dealing with his crush on a male classmate in "Wild Tigers I Have Known" and a pair of boarding school girls secretly getting frisky (while a young Mischa Barton observes from afar) in "Lost and Delirious." Tune in for a double dose of girl-on-girl and guy-on-guy relations all month long.

And of course, June is also the month IFC premieres our original doc "Heavy Load," which follows four members of the UK band Heavy Load over the course of a year. Filmmaker Jerry Rothwell captures the struggle of these musicians, some with mental handicaps, as they try to fulfill their dreams of becoming successful rockers. "Heavy Load" premiered at the 2008 SxSW Film Festival, and has its first gig on IFC Monday, June 23rd at 9pm ET/10pm PT.

PREMIERING IN JUNE:

• "Made" The much-anticipated Vince Vaughn/Jon Favreau reunion after their indie darling "Swingers," "Made" takes the duo on a comedic journey into organized crime. The famous phrase "You're so money!" from their original teaming takes on new meaning in the follow-up. Saturday, June 7th at 9pm ET.
• "Body of Evidence" The one "body" of film work Madonna actually did a decent job with, this film is pure erotica as she plays a woman engaging in a dirty affair with the lawyer hired to defend her. Monday, June 9th at 9pm ET.
• "Stay" Ryan Gosling ("Half Nelson," "Lars and the Real Girl") is in it. 'Nuff said. Thursday, June 12 at 8:50am ET.
• "Mistress" While some still deny the casting couch ever existed, this one argues otherwise. A screenwriter shopping his script around to potential financiers runs into the same obstacle with them all: each wants his own mistress to star in the film. Danny Aiello and Robert DeNiro are just a few of the noteworthy performances. Friday, June 20 at 6pm ET.
• "Scanners" Eccentric director David Cronenberg takes psychosis to an extreme in this film about a man with superior mental powers on the hunt to find others just like him. Thursday, June 26 at 10:35pm ET.

By Joanna Varikos | Link | 4 Comments | Recommended (9)

Tags: Grindhouse, Heavy Load, June, schedule

The "death house" in Huntsville, Texas has had its share of highly publicized executions. In one case, it was the location of what was almost certainly the wrongful execution of Carlos DeLuna. On May 29th, IFC premieres an original doc, "At the Death House Door," which provides an inside look through the eyes of a former death house chaplain — Pastor Carroll Pickett. Directed by Steve James and Peter Gilbert, the filmmakers behind "Hoop Dreams," the documentary follows Pickett's difficult path in preparing an inmate for execution. Believing some, like DeLuna, were innocent, Pickett recalls his most intimate memories while serving as chaplain. "At the Death House Door" premiered at the 2008 SXSW Film Festival, and won the Inspiration Award at this year's Full Frame Documentary Film Festival.

Also in May, don't miss your ticket to eight days of movies that made their mark on one of the biggest film events in the world — Cannes. Nominees, winners and other films that screened at the French soirée will air on IFC all week long beginning May 17th, during this year's festival. Here's a sampling of what's on the bill: "Bowling for Columbine," the Michael Moore documentary that stirred controversy with its look at the US gun system, and David Cronenberg's "Crash," which delves into a sexually twisted underground world of car crash victims. The ticket line forms here. (And online, don't miss the exclusive IFC.com "Cannes Cam," which will provide 24-hour live webcam coverage of the Cannes red carpet, along with other special video reports from the festival.)

Memorial Day Weekend, IFC presents a series of films to honor those who bravely lived through times of war. Beginning at 1:30pm ET/4:30pm PT on Sunday, May 25th, check out movies that span hundreds of years in battle, from the Civil War to the Bosnian War.

PREMIERING ON THE NETWORK THIS MONTH:

• "Maria Full of Grace" A Spirit Award winner that takes a brutally honest look at Colombian drug trafficking.


• "Last Days" Directed by Gus Van Zant, this film is loosely based on the final hours in the life of Kurt Cobain.


• "24 Hour Party People" Revolving around the guys who created Factory Records in Manchester during the 1970s, this film not only has a kick-ass soundtrack but also serves as a history lesson in how the British town became a mecca for music.


• "Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story" How do you make a movie out of an impossible book? You make the movie about how hard it is to make the movie, in this delightful flick starring Steve Coogan as himself, sort of.


• "SubUrbia" Slacker auteur Richard Linklater directs this look at a night in the lives of five 20-somethings trapped in dead-end jobs, dreaming of escape. Sonic Youth composed the soundtrack.

By Joanna Varikos in What to Watch on IFC | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (17)

Tags: At the Death House Door, Cannes, Cannes Cam, films, May, schedule

Starting in May, IFC presents at least one great new web series per month made by a wide range of up and coming and established creative talent. Here is what we have in store for May.

WILFRED - If modern life has taught us anything, it's that the domestic pet can have as many psychological hang-ups as its contemporary owner. Depression, anxiety, loneliness and fear of abandonment all lead to behavioral problems and an unstable home environment. WILFRED, the series, an in-depth portrait of such a pet 'behaving badly', features an owner, her new suitor and one not-so happy talking dog.

Wilfred the dog is the ultimate flawed character. Like David Brent in The Office, we are charmed by his arrogance and self-righteousness, his falsehoods and misguided passions. Insecure and manipulative, he will stop at nothing to win the love and affection he desires. Although his methods may sometimes be underhand, his innocence and purity of heart can never be questioned. Or can it?

Adam is your boy next door. He causes no trouble and trouble rarely comes his way. When Adam hooks-up with Sarah, he thinks all his Christmases have come at once.

Sarah is the ultimate package: attractive, intelligent, and with her own place. It all seems too good to be true... it is.

Sarah, like any modern single parent, is trying to create a stable life for herself and her "special little man". Sarah has a long list of failed relationships, which have left her and Wilfred jaded. Neither want to see the other hurt again and Adam has walked into an emotional mine field. So how hard can it be to make friends with a dog? That depends on the situation... and the dog.

Wilfred is a hit cult series from Australia. IFC is the first to air this demented little gem in North America. Watch for the premiere on IFC.com in early May, with new episodes every weekday.

YOUNG AMERICAN BODIES - From filmmaker Joe Swanberg (Hannah Takes The Stairs and the upcoming feature Nights and Weekends) comes a brand new season of his long-standing hit, the scripted web series Young American Bodies.

Young American Bodies is an candid, no holds barred look into the intersecting loves lives of six twenty-somethings in Chicago. It's intimate and fearless in its scope, and not surprisingly, timely is relevance and importance.

Young American Bodies premiered with a bang on Nerve.com and now, in partnership with Nerve, IFC.com brings the world premiere of season three of this powerful narrative. Seasons one and two - 20 episodes in total - begin airing on IFC.com in mid-May, rolling out over the course of the month. In late May, IFC.com premiere's season three, in twelve brand new episodes.

Watch for more news soon about more ingenious internet video content from IFC.com. We will be premiering a new web series every month all summer long (and beyond!)

By Melianthe Kines | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (25)