Exclusive Interview

Obsession, scandal, and shifting loyalties put pressure on a lifelong friendship and a new relationship in Joey Kuhn’s erotic, arresting directorial debut. Budding artist Charlie (Jonathan Gordon) is so hung up on handsome, vain BFF Sebastian (Jason Ralph) that when asked to paint a self-portrait, he can only deliver yet another painting of his friend. In the wake of a scandal that envelops Sebastian after his Bernie Madoff-like father goes to jail, Charlie moves into Sebastian’s luxurious Manhattan apartment, the perfect setup for getting closer to the object of his affection. But Sebastian is like a mirage, always just out […]

In director Mikki del Monico’s “Alto”Rising singer-songwriter Francesca “Frankie” Del Vecchio (Diana DeGarmo) is engaged to her promising musical career and to frozen-food entrepreneur Tony, happily devoted in equal measure to traditional Italian-American culture, her famiglia, and Mom’s lasagna. Frankie’s bella vita is perfectly peaceful—until a dead body shows up in the trunk of her rental car. Obsessed with the exploitative (and hugely popular) TV show Mob Hit, Frankie’s sister Heather convinces Frankie to attend the mafioso’s wake, setting off a string of fateful introductions to the real mobsters in their midst. The entrancingly seductive Nicolette, the daughter of newly […]

In Michael J. Saul’s “The Surface” an aimless young man happens upon a yard sale, where he’s drawn to a vintage 8mm camera. His impromptu purchase awakens unexpected impulses, both artistic and personal, which adjust his life’s course and set him on unfamiliar paths toward illuminating destinations. Evan—played with great delicacy by lithe newcomer Harry Hains—is a waiflike, orphaned 22-year-old who grew up in the foster care system and is still feeling unmoored as he enters adulthood in Los Angeles. He is uninspired by his college classes, growing frustrated with his increasingly critical boyfriend, and eager to find something meaningful […]