Chris Sheridan is half of the husband/wife indie team known as Safari Media, LLC. With more than 30 years of collective storytelling experience between them, they launched their first feature film ABDUCTION to rave reviews and festival accolades. Aired worldwide, ABDUCTION won journalism’s highest honor, the prestigious Alfred I. DuPont Award. Given Chris’s extensive journalistic […]

Go west intrepid filmmaker. Go west……or not. Actually, networking opportunities abound near the shores of the Rappahannock. It’s true. Fredericksburg filmmakers are virtually surrounded by talented independents and professionals. Washington, D.C. to our north hosts 96 film festivals annually and Richmond to the south is home of the Virginia Production Alliance. Art is not created […]

Buster Keaton was no slouch. As an artist, he knew comedy. As a filmmaker he knew what every independent filmmaker knows for sure: there is a lot you just have to do yourself. Writer, director, actor, and stunt man may be just a few of the hats he wore. With the boundless energy Keaton displayed […]

RIFF runs on volunteers. Preparing to sail into its fourth season, a lot of work is going on behind the scenes with RIFF 2011 preparation. Steering the helm is one multi-talented and determined woman, Program Director, Beth McClain. While fans and filmmakers anxiously await this year’s festival, here is a peak behind the curtain at […]

‘Sundance for the troops,’  is the nickname of choice for the GI Film Festival. The only one of its kind, this unique festival is dedicated to showing the military in a positive light. Now in its fifth year, Washington, D.C’s GI Film Festival not only served up 31 debut films to eager fans but sponsored […]

 “Most people die with their music still in them,” is the opening line of Music Within. Slightly abridged, this Oliver Wendell Holmes quote is a variation of the similarly distressing adage ‘most people lead lives of quiet desperation.’ True enough. Some do. Others, like Richard Pimentel who became a nationally known activist for disability rights, […]

The GI Film Festival in Washington, D.C. is just around the corner, slightly ahead of the much longed for Memorial Day celebration. While RIFF supporters closed April with a bang at Saturday night’s (aka machine gun bang) successful Speakeasy fundraiser, morning quietly ushered in May’s promised tidings of summer. May holds not only our most […]

Dustin Grella is a talented animation artist. He is also the director/writer of Prayers for Peace, winner Best Documentary RIFF 2010. A man of multiple talents, Dustin is a hard man to pin down. With RIFF 2011 rapidly approaching, his many fans here in Fredericksburg would like to hear about his current projects. TINA: Dustin, […]

Shhhhh.  Mums the word.   The Rappahannock Independent Film Festival is gearing up for their 4th annual by hosting a Speakeasy Fundraiser on April 30th at 8pm. The location is secret, of course, so tracking down the details for us is one Mr. Tobias A. Mazing aka roving reporter (or is that raving?) and his trusty sidekick the […]

Susanne Bier does not make cotton candy movies. If there is one theme this dynamic filmmaker follows it is paying homage to resilience of the human heart. Her work is poignant and this year’s Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner In A Better World is no exception. Teamed once again with writer Anders Thomas Jensen […]