News Archives -

KATRA LATINX FESTIVAL JULY 15-18th

Admin — Fri, 28 Jun 2024 21:44:36 +0000

Presented by Welcome Homes, join us for our milestone 5th Annual Katra LatinX Festival at the Regal Essex Crossing in the lower east side of Manhattan. The festival returns July 15-18 with an opening night party at Republic Latin Fusion in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. Each screening is followed by filmmaker Q&As, post-screening networking mixer, and an afterparty. There will also be a closing night gala awards ceremony on July 18th at BKLYN Commons Rooftop Space located in the hip and trendy section of Prospect Park Brooklyn.

FULL SCHEDULE BELOW:

TUESDAY – JULY 16 – 615PM

TUESDAY – JULY 16 – 845PM

WEDNESDAY – JULY 17 – 615PM

WEDNESDAY – JULY 17 – 845PM

$20 GENERAL ADMISSION TO ONE BLOCK

$30 DAY PASS

$50 TWO DAY PASS

$99 ALL ACCESS PASS (includes opening night party with complimentary food and a cocktail, screenings at Regal Essex Crossing, Filmmaker Q&As, post-screening networking, gala award ceremony with complimentary food and drinks)

www.katrafilmseries.com

Movie Theater: Regal Essex Crossing

Located in: Essex Market

Address: 129 Delancey St, New York, NY 10002

Trains: F, J, M, Z

The post KATRA LATINX FESTIVAL JULY 15-18th appeared first on .

11th ANNUAL KATRA HOLIDAY PARTY

Admin — Wed, 06 Dec 2023 02:46:31 +0000

KATRA Film Series is proud to celebrate its 11th Annual Holiday Party at Casa Mezcal in the Lower East Side section of Manhattan. For the first time ever we are hosting an in-person fundraiser bash as we plan to expand and grow in 2024. After the pandemic and Hollywood Strikes put a damper on our plans this year it has been quite a challenge just to stay afloat and we are kindly asking for your support as we continue to find new ways to grow and provide the creative workforce, artists, screenwriters, filmmakers, and actors more opportunities to launch their careers in the Film, TV and media industries.

KATRA is the parent organization to the acclaimed Bowery Film Festival, Urban Dreams Mental Health Film Festival, Katra LatinX Festival, New Faces New Voices, NY Pause Film Festival, and World Webfest Mania.

We will have a VIP open bar, complimentary drink tickets, raffle giveaways, special guests and live DJ music and dancing. Wear your ugliest holiday sweater to be automatically entered into our UGLY SWEATER CONTEST. The winner will receive a 2024 KATRA Universal Gold Pass valid for free admission to all of our screenings and events including our sister festivals ($1000 value). We are also giving away 3 Digital Cinema Packages courtesy of UniversalDCP & 10 additional Universal Passes, T-shirts, stickers, merch and more valued at $10,000+

$25 donation (1 free drink ticket for a glass of wine or beer, 1 raffle ticket and free tapas)

$50 Premium Ticket (2 free drink tickets valid for a glass of wine or beer, 2 free raffle tickets, including 1 ticket to any festival in 2024 and free tapas)

$100 VIP Tickets (open bar for 3 hours, free tapas, 4 raffle tickets, 1 All Access Gold pass ($1000 value which give you access to all 7 festivals in 2024)

WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 13 – 7PM-10pm

CASA MEZCAL – 86 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002

Trains: F, J, M, Z to Delancey/Essex station or B, D to Grand St.

The post 11th ANNUAL KATRA HOLIDAY PARTY appeared first on .

KATRA IS BACK OCT 10-12

Admin — Tue, 03 Oct 2023 20:16:15 +0000

KATRA is back for its Fall Festival at the world famous Regal Essex Crossing multiplex in the lower east side section of Manhattan! Join us October 10th-12th for 3 days of live and in-person screenings, filmmaker Q&As, networking, afterparties followed by a closing night gala award ceremony with complimentary refreshments, wine and beer.

REGAL ESSEX CROSSING – OCTOBER 10-11 – SCREENINGS & Q&As

Located in: Essex Market

Address: 129 Delancey St, New York, NY 10002

BKLYN COMMONS ROOFTOP – OCTOBER 12 – GALA AWARDS PARTY

Address: 495 Flatbush Avenue 2nd floor Bklyn NY 11225

DAILY SHOWTIMES: 6:15PM-8:15PM & 8:45PM-10:45PM

$20 GENERAL ADMISSION for one block & Q&A

$30 DAY PASS – two screening blocks, Q&As, and afterparty

$50 TWO-DAY PASS – admission to all events happening on both days

$99 ALL ACCESS PASS (includes admission to ALL screenings, filmmaker Q&As, afterparties and the invite-only gala awards party with complimentary refreshments at the BKLYN Commons Rooftop)

CLICK HERE FOR FULL SCHEDULE

The post KATRA IS BACK OCT 10-12 appeared first on .

Katra Spring Fest Sells Out multiple theater blocks

Admin — Tue, 09 May 2023 04:36:52 +0000

Great times at our sold out Spring Fest at Regal Essex Crossing in Lower Manhattan a couple of weeks ago! Congrats to all of our filmmakers and screenwriters for an exciting, fun and successful festival. Huge thanks to our sponsors and supporters for your incredible support. We can’t thank you enough for all that you do. Finally, big S/O and thank you to our entire team for your hard work, dedication and commitment this season. We appreciate all that you do and wish you much success.

2023 SPRING FEST WINNERS LISTED BELOW:

Audience Choice Award: A Father’s Son – directed by Patrick Chen

Best Short Film: Blind Stitch – directed by Alexander Bergman

Honorable Mention: AJ’s Story – directed by Christina Richardson & Leon Robinson

Best Episodic Series: Events at Hemlock Manor – directed by Katie North

Outstanding Female Filmmaker: Neha Guatam for “No New Friends”

Best Feature Screenplay: No Address – written by Julia Verdin & James Papa

Runner Up: Head Block – written by Jessica Sadler

Best Short Screenplay: Rivers And Roads – written by Tahnee Nordegg

Runner Up: Girls Night Out – written by Jeanine Barone

The post Katra Spring Fest Sells Out multiple theater blocks appeared first on .

Katra Film Series Presents The Theatrical Premiere of “The Nomad”

Admin — Fri, 17 Feb 2023 00:48:08 +0000

KATRA kicks off its 12th year with the red carpet premiere of acclaimed international filmmaker Daniel Diosdado’s American debut feature “The Nomad”. Join us next Wednesday February 22nd at 6pm EST for the screening at the Regal Essex Crossing Cinema in the Lower East Side. The movie screening will be followed by Q&A with filmmakers/cast members and then a fun afterparty at a place TBD

Tickets are FREE with RSVP. Only a limited number of seats available so make sure to register below as soon as possible!!

THE NOMAD – DIRECTED BY DANIEL DIOSDADO

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/790872947

When a reporter filming a story about an atheist serial killer targeting the city’s priests comes face to face with the killer, she must choose between turning him in and finishing the story … or directing him towards her abusive father and finishing her own.

—–

Daniel is a New York City-based filmmaker and entrepreneur born in Madrid, Spain.
After being internationally awarded in Europe, US and Latin America, Daniel moved to the Big Apple in early 2013, broadening his market and enriching his skills as director, writer and producer. In 2014 he founded Nomada Films with which he has produced several features films along with shorts, corporate videos, music videos, documentaries and series. His production and directorial catalogue includes the feature films “Session” (Spain 2009), “Queen of Tapas” (Spain 2013), “Este Amor Es De Otro Planeta” (Spain, 2019) and The Nomad (USA, 2022).

REGAL CINEMA ESSEX

129 Delancey St, New York, NY 10002

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 22ND – 6PM EST

SCREENING FOLLOWED BY Q&A AND AFTERPARTY (TBD)

ADMISSION FREE WITH RSVP!! SEATS ARE LIMITED!! DON’T MISS IT!!

The post Katra Film Series Presents The Theatrical Premiere of “The Nomad” appeared first on .

Katra’s 11th Year Comes to a Conclusion with its Fall Series

Admin — Tue, 18 Oct 2022 20:51:56 +0000

Katra Films Series’ 11th Year is officially in the can!!! What an amazing week of screenings, conversations, filmmaker Q&As, afterparties and fun awards ceremony!! Huge thank you to our presenting sponsor DIGITAL OCEAN for your incredible support this year and big thanks to all of our industry partners and community supporters Citizens Committee for NYC, Wells Fargo, JMR Professional Digital Cinema Rentals, Freelancers Union, BKLYN Commons, Urbn-TV, UKW Media, Reel Works, Final Draft, International Screenwriters’ Association, NYWIFT, Everyone Matters, No Rest for the Weekend, On The Scene Media Group.

CONGRATS TO ALL THE WINNERS BELOW:

Best Narrative Feature: Cape Carl – directed by Graham Winfrey
Best Feature Documentary: Undiagnosed – directed by Dr. Katia Moritz & Nicholas Miller
Best Short Film: Victim No. 6 directed by – Nancy Menagh
Honorable Mention — Best Short Film: June 22nd – directed by Michael T.
Best Short Documentary: Lap Around The World In 14 Days – directed by Justin Escalona
Honorable Mention — Best Short Documentary: Where The Light Enters – directed by Neha Gautam
Outstanding Female Filmmaker: Kang Blue – directed by Kyung-Ja Lee
Best Episodic/TV Series: Dose – directed by Peter Clark
Honorable Mention — Best Episodic/TV Series: & The Bathroom directed by Alex Saltiel & Nathaniel Jameson
Best Microshort: Send Me a Color – directed by Molly Tomecek
Best Short Screenplay: Wake Me Up written by Karen Wang
Best Short Screenplay Runner Up: Deadweight – written by Mat Sheldon
Best Feature Screenplay: Elektra written by Roxy Mitchell
Best Feature Screenplay — Runner Up: Amy and Angel written by Julia Verdin & Deedee Benkovich

The post Katra’s 11th Year Comes to a Conclusion with its Fall Series appeared first on .

A Triumphant Return To Theaters For Katra Latinx In Its Groundbreaking Third Year

Admin — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 19:58:05 +0000

Katra Latinx Festival returns in THREE DAYS with its first-ever in-person screening for the festival’s milestone third year. The two-day event takes place at Latea Theater located in the Lower East Side from Friday, July 15th to Saturday, July 16th. The festival is screening 27 short film selections over two days. Doors open at 5:45 PM daily. Showings will take place in two blocks, running from 6 PM to 8 PM and 8 PM to 10 PM. Post-screening Q&As occur after each block to give filmmakers a chance to dive deeper into their selections and allow audience members a chance to ask questions. The festival features a wide selection of genres ranging from documentary, narrative, comedy, drama, horror, science fiction/fantasy, dystopian, suspense, romance, and speculative fiction works. Our filmmakers’ ethnic backgrounds hail from different countries of the Latinx diaspora in Central and South America. Just a few include Mexico, Honduras, Cuba, Ecuador, and Columbia. Together, this year’s selections continue KLX’s mission of promoting Latinx visibility in front of and behind the camera, highlighting that the Latinx experience is not a monolith.

Katra Latinx features several documentaries that beautifully enlighten and educate the viewer on Latinx history and culture across the world. Guillermo Alfonso’s “Croqueta Nation” depicts an epic tale of one restaurant owner’s dream of breaking a world record, told through Miami’s culinary scene. The short includes interviews and appearances from several local and prominent Latinx professionals and officials, including award-winning producer Emilio Estefan, iHeartRadio host Enrique Santos, WWE Champion Dana Brooks, and former Mayor of Miami/Dade, Daniella Cava. In “Antonio Norales: Garifuna Guardian,” Mexican American director Walker Simon transports his viewers into the world of the Garifuna people. In this short documentary, viewers learn about the traditions, religion, and culture of the Garifuna and Antonio’s fight to keep their practices alive in a modern age. Tatiana Lopez’s “Living Forest” is an experimental, sensorial film essay that captures the Indigenous Sapara women’s local pursuit of ecological wellbeing and spiritual foundation.

Viewers can expect films that assess the intersection of race within the Latinx community and analyze the nuances, stereotypes, and stigmas engrained in the culture from narrative and documentary perspectives. Walker Simon’s film highlights the Garifuna, descendants of escaped African slaves and the Arawaks, an indigenous group native to South America and the Caribbean. “The Question” by Cuban director Naiyah Ambros, is a comedy that depicts the struggles of modern dating from the perspective of two mixed-race Latinas. “Dad-rahpy” is a comedic series co-directed by the award-winning multi-hyphenate duo, Rick Herrera and Alexandra Gutierrez. The story explores the joys of fatherhood, juggling life’s obstacles, and the start of a developing friendship through two Afro-Latino fathers who randomly met at the park.

The audience can also expect selections that place Latinx characters front and center within genres that are still predominantly centering white narratives. Valeria Lima’s sci-fi, supernatural natural short, “An Indulgence,” relays the story of a mother who is transported to a world where her daughter doesn’t exist after a mysterious eclipse. “The Dark Essence” is a comedic horror series about a Satanic cult seeking mainstream popularity in Mari Assad’s directorial debut. “Anniversary” by Chantel Houston is a sentimental queer drama about a woman’s grief and loss on her anniversary date. Riley Del Rey’s dark political comedy, “Capitol Barbie,” follows the story of a trans-Latina woman who quickly discovers secrets and dark truths after starting a new job on Capitol Hill. This series is socially relevant and opens the floor for a conversation about racism, homophobia, and transphobia in the workplace and overarching society.

Above all, viewers can expect to be thoroughly entertained by our lineup. “Cruel and Unusual Therapy TOO” directed by and starring Gina Marie Rodriguez is a comical narrative about a young woman with erotic transference struggling to find a new therapist she’s not attracted to during the pandemic after her previous one “breaks up” with her. “Love Is Love” by the co-directing trio Alex Hugo, Lourdes Bigio, and Monte Graham is a classic tale about two childhood best friends coming to terms with their romantic feelings for each other. The new-age comedy, “Multi-Hyphenates” explores the story of two young millennial women who are up-and-coming artists in post-pandemic NYC. The series is co-created by Khaya Fraites and Arianna Flores-Moya and accurately conveys the modern everyday struggles of living in the city while navigating careers in the entertainment industry.

Tickets are STILL AVAILABLE on the Katra Film Series website! Options include admission per block and day passes. The full schedule lineup with film synopsis is under the Katra Latinx Festival tab, so take a look at what each day has in store!

Festival Background Information:

Katra Latinx Festival is a sister festival to the Katra Film Series, the award-winning, highly acclaimed international film festival and screenwriting competition dedicated to championing the next generation of diverse, inclusive, and multicultural filmmakers and content creators worldwide. In its 3rd year, Katra Latinx continues its mission of empowering, highlighting, and launching the careers of emerging Latino short filmmakers from around the world.

Social Media:

Follow us on Instagram @KatraLatinxFestival
Our social media hashtags: #katra2022 #katralatinxfestival #katralatinx

Major Festival Partners and Sponsors:

Digital Ocean, Freelancers Union, UKW Media, Urbn/TV, GPop TV, JMR Rentals, BKLYN Commons, Brooklyn Brewery, Media Makers, ReelWorks, NYC Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment

The post A Triumphant Return To Theaters For Katra Latinx In Its Groundbreaking Third Year appeared first on .

Katra begins its 11th Year with a Stellar Lineup for its Spring Fest

Admin — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 19:50:49 +0000

We’ve just wrapped up another impressive Spring Festival last week at the Regal Cinemas – Times Square, screening over 20 shorts by independent, award-winning, and rising talent. There were also four incredible feature films in our online festival portion that screened exclusively on Xerb TV all last week. THANK YOU to all the filmmakers, alumni, audience, and the hard work of our Katra Film Series team for another successful and unforgettable festival! We enjoyed being back for another festival season, showcasing an array of impressive stories with riveting and thought-provoking perspectives. The creativity, originality, and hard work displayed within each of these films is inspiring, and we appreciate filmmakers for continuing to bring their visions to life during these challenging and unprecedented times.

Special HUGE thanks are in order for all of our amazing sponsors and supporters Digital Ocean, Canon, JMR Rentals, NYC’s Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, Freelancers Union, Media Makers, UKW Media, Urbn-TV, Final Draft, Screenblade, BKLYN Commons, NYWIFT, International Screenwriters Association, Meditative Writing, GPop TV, and more!

Finally, congratulations to all of our winners and honorable mentions listed below:

Best Narrative Feature: Alienation – directed by Sam Coyle and screenplay by Madison Walsh

Best Feature Documentary: Sometimes I Dream In Farsi – directed by Pirooz Kalayeh

Audience Choice Award – Best Short Film: Few of Many – directed by Adam Mackie

Honorable Mention – Best Short Film: Blue Moon – directed by Emily Ruhl

Outstanding Female Director: Woman to Woman – directed by Alexandria Collins

Best Short Documentary: Curiosity: The Making of a Scientist, SUPERPOSITION – directed by Sunanda Guankar and Ellen Askey

Best Episodic or TV Pilot: Lola Does Manhattan – directed by Rob Margolies

Honorable Mention – Strength Through Cinema: The Civet – directed by Jose Rivera

Best Feature Screenplay: Legends – written by Danny Alex

Best Short Screenplay: She Creatures – written by Maria and Chris Krovatin

Honorable Mention – Runner Up Feature Screenplay: Winter Bird – written by Stephen Delos Treacy

Honorable Mention – Runner Up Short Screenplay: Heart Cycle – Jay D J Pennington

And don’t forget to check us out on ALL social media platforms at @katrafilmseries for updates and upcoming festivals from us!

The post Katra begins its 11th Year with a Stellar Lineup for its Spring Fest appeared first on .

KATRA FILM SERIES IS BACK!!!

Admin — Fri, 01 Apr 2022 23:05:26 +0000

KATRA Film Series is BACK!!! We are psyched to return this month for our 11th Year in the greatest city in the world! Join us at the world famous Regal Cinemas in TIMES SQUARE NEW YORK April 19-21 with three spectacular nights of screenings, Q&As, afterparties and a closing night gala award ceremony!

We are proud to welcome back major sponsor DIGITAL OCEAN! We also have the incredible support of the NYC’s Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, Canon USA, Freelancers Union, Urbn-TV, UKW Media, GPopTV, JMR Rentals, BKLYN Commons, MediaMkrs, Reel Works and more!

We have over 25+ new films from around the world screening with us. The winners will be chosen by audience vote and we are giving away over $10,000 of in-kind prizes. The screenings will be followed by a filmmakers Q&A panel discussion and afterparties at a venue TBA. We also have the closing night gala awards party happening on Thursday April 21st. The official location will be announced next week.

APRIL 19 AND 20TH – 6PM DOORS OPEN

$20 GENERAL ADMISSION

$30 DAY PASS

$50 TWO-DAY PASS

$100 ALL ACCESS PASS (includes admission to exclusive afterparties and gala award ceremony)

The post KATRA FILM SERIES IS BACK!!! appeared first on .

NY Pause Launches Inaugural Edition with $1000 Cash Prize

Admin — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 18:34:32 +0000

NY Pause Film Festival celebrated its inaugural launch at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in New York City last week to a packed theater! Thank you to all of our volunteers, staff members, filmmakers, audiences and always supportive sponsors for making this night possible. Thank you UKW Media, JMR Rentals, International Screenwriters’ Association, Final Draft, BKLYN Commons, AND Vine BK

Congrats again to our $1000 Cash Prize Winner METROS directed by Jarred Harper and Sarang Sharma for taking home the Audience Choice/Best Episodic award. We would also like to acknowledge the following cinematic works that deserve a special mention.

Strength Through Cinema: While You Were Gone – directed by Jennifer Weber

Best Short Film: Such a Shitty Time – directed by Avra Fox-Lerner

Honorable Mention for Best Short: Troubled Times – directed by Jared Crowelle

Best Documentary: Pause – directed by Marcelo Ignacio Lagreze

Best Animation: RECuerdo – directed by Alfonso M. Rodriguez

The post NY Pause Launches Inaugural Edition with $1000 Cash Prize appeared first on .