Oscar-winning moviemaker Ron Howard will receive the Director’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 20th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival. Howard will be honored for his 50 years in the industry, with special focus on his upcoming drama Frost/Nixon.

For its 2009 event, taking place May 4-12, the Milan International Film Festival will unveil a new format, allowing more chances to win its Milanese "Oscar" statuette, Leonardo’s Horse.

The American Film Institute has announced the winners of AFI Fest 2008. The festival, now in its 22nd year, offers exposure to the entertainment community while providing audiences with the very best of world movies.

MovieMaker takes a look at some of the best film festivals from late 2007 and early 2008: Big Apple, Whistler, Cucalorus, Hamptons International, Ft. Lauderdale International, Filmstock International, International Festival Summit, Beloit International and Florida ART Film Festivals.

From big to small, longform to short and online to nonline, MM takes a look at some 2007's best and brightest film festivals including Dominican International, Starz Denver, Austin and BendFilm.

From scream queens and student films to music videos and John Leguizamo, the highlights from some of this year's most innovative festivals around the country prove that small fests pack some of the biggest punches.

British director and producer Danny Boyle has been announced as the 2008 recipient of the Austin Film Festival’s “Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award.” The honor is awarded to industry professionals who have demonstrated an unyielding commitment and creativity to moviemaking. AFF co-founder and director Barbara Morgan said of Boyle, “His work is regarded as some of the most cutting -edge and thought-provoking filmmaking today.”

What began 12 years ago in the basement of a little movie theater in Center City Philadelphia with a group of indie moviemakers scrounging up every big screen TV and movie projector they could find has become one of the most revolutionary film festivals in the country. With more than 400 projects shown to date, an audience of more than 10,000 and two separate bi-coastal events (one in Philadelphia and the other in California) being held annually since then, the FirstGlance Film Festival has come a long way from its humble basement beginnings.

Didn't make it to Sundance this year? No worries—there is the Docurama Film Festival, an event of a different sort that you don't have to hop on a plane in order to attend. In fact, you don't even need to leave your living room. Docurama, a leading distributor of documentaries both in digital and DVD forms, commenced its fifth annual film festival today by releasing 12 award-winning documentaries on DVD.

For the last 30 years Mill Valley, California has welcomed moviemakers and audiences with open arms to its annual 11-day film festival. The long-running and well-loved event sells more than 40,000 tickets and attracts more than 200 international moviemakers each year. Hosted by the California Film Institute, the Mill Valley Film Festival focuses on featuring films that have yet to secure U.S. distribution.

From Chariots of Fire to Borat, audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival have been treated to some very memorable premieres since the festival's inception in 1976. With this year’s festival nearing its close on September 13, MM takes a look back at 10 of the landmark premieres TIFF has hosted in its 30 years.

From the minds of Academy Award-winning actress Tilda Swinton and director-producer Mark Cousins has sprung a rather unconventional film festival that combines everything from fairy cakes to Singin’ in the Rain to Joel Coen. Opening on Friday, August 15th and running until August 23rd, the Ballerina Ballroom Cinema of Dreams was conceived on what Swinton calls a “quixotic seizure” when she first stumbled upon, and subsequently fell in love, with an endearing ballroom—called “The Ballerina”—nestled in Nairn, Scotland. Together, Swinton and Cousins have developed an exciting new event that rids itself of red carpets and press conferences, A-list pretension and superficiality, in order to simply appreciate, celebrate and fall in love with the magic of moviemaking.

The open road has long been at the center of Hollywood films and road movies are showing no sign of decline with everything from College Road Trip to Wild Hogs hitting theaters in the past two years. Even in this age of inflated gas prices, audiences find themselves captivated by the ability of the open road to stimulate untouched dreams and desires, create hope when all is lost and promise a freedom that knows no boundaries. Sometimes, there’s just no better feeling than having your hair dancing in the wind as you careen down a vast, desolate and seemingly endless highway... or watching that on screen.

After 25 years of celebrating cinema and connect moviemakers the world over, Avignon Film Festival founder Jerry Rudes bids bon voyage to the cherished event.

Each year cancer kills more than a half million people in America alone. Through the new initiative Stand Up to Cancer, Hollywood industry giants are aiming to bring awareness to this fact and further aid in the fight against the disease. The organization’s first effort is a film challenge that will accept short films (less than three minutes) focusing on the subject of cancer, its effects and/or the battle against it.

Watch out, Midwest: A new festival is coming. It may sound a bit familiar though, for this new fest, the Kansas City FilmFest, is actually a joint effort of two former Missouri-based ones: KC Jubilee Film Festival and FilmFestKC. MM had the chance to ask festival president Fred Andrews a few questions about the new event, discussing both the issues and advantages that come along with re-creating a festival.

The 11th annual Dances with Films, taking place at the Laemmle Sunset 5 Theatre in Los Angeles from July 24 - 31, is a truly independent film festival where what you do, not who you know, is what really matters. Talent trumps connections at Dances with Films; the rules mandate that films in competition involve no established directors, actors, writers or producers.

Moviemakers with heart, take note: The Angelus Student Film Festival is awaiting your next film. The 2008 festival, which will be held Sept. 13 at the Directors Guild of America Theater in Hollywood, honors future moviemakers as they create works that respect the dignity and complexity of the human condition. And after 12 years honoring the inspiring works of student moviemakers, Angelus has expanded to include an accomplished jury for their documentary competition.

A new retrospective on the late, legendary auteur, Ingmar Bergman, who passed away last year at the age of 89, will unspool weekends from July through December at the IFC Center in New York. Entitled “Ingmar Bergman: Film Is the Great Adventure,” the series includes twenty of Bergman’s best films, including Smiles of A Summer Night (1955), The Seventh Seal (1957), Wild Strawberries (1957), Virgin Spring (1960) and Scenes from A Marriage (1973).

A remarkably influential, prolific and creative moviemaker, Ingmar Bergman was born in Sweden in 1918. The son of a Lutheran minister, Bergman’s avid interest in film and theater, as well as his creativity, began early in his life when

While no one can say that Hollywood isn’t a great place to be as a moviemaker, with its star power and extensive history, it’s not necessarily the only place to be. In fact, in the past few decades, the thriving film community of Wilmington, North Carolina has been giving Hollywood a run for its money. There may not be a Grauman’s Chinese Theater or Walk of Fame, yet what Wilmington lacks in legendry it makes up in its hunger for independent moviemaking.

From Friday, June 27th through Sunday, June 29th, the moviemakers of Wilmington will be satiated when the inaugural Wilmington Inside the Film Industry Film Conference brings a chunk of Hollywood to the east coast.

Seems like all those promos must have paid off—first at Cannes, then the TV commercial onslaught—as Kung Fu Panda kicked some serious butt at the box office over the weekend, out-grossing Adam Sandler's new film, You Don't Mess With the Zohan, by 50 percent. The animated action flick, featuring the voices of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman and Jackie Chan, took in $60 million over the weekend—while Zohan earned $40 million.

Harrison Ford and Shia LaBeouf's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull held strong in the number three position with $22.8 million, while last year's surprise topper, Michael Patrick King's Sex and the City, saw a more than 62 percent decline in ticket sales, with a weekend total of $21.3 million.

The indie film circuit's new little movie that could is not a quirky expose that includes a musty yellow VW Bus or a wisecracking pregnant teenager, but instead a harrowing tale that explores the trauma of child abuse through the eyes of a 10-year-old boy.

Little Wings marks the film debut of writer-director Morgan Rhodes, founder of Journey Blue Films, who has previously worked in television, most notably on "Nip/Tuck," and is co-executive producer on "Bitter Brew," a spec pilot.

An exclusive look at nine of the hottest winter and spring film festivals of 2007 and 2008.

Indiana Jones proved he's still got what it takes—at least in box office clout—as the latest film in the George Lucas-Steven Spielberg franchise, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, whipped the competition, with a box office total on track to be the second biggest Memorial Day movie opening ever. The film, which brings Harrison Ford back in the titular role alongside Cate Blanchett and Shia LaBeouf, brought in just over $125 million for the holiday weekend, putting it just behind Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, which had a Friday-through-Monday total of $139.8 million in 2007.

Four years after Carrie Bradshaw bid au revoir to Paris, the sex columnist and her trio of best friends—Charlotte, Miranda and Samantha—are back on the big screen, and women are clinking their cosmo glasses all over. As fans of the TV show gear up for next week’s long-awaited release of Sex and the City: The Movie, MM takes a sneak peek at what all the excitement is about.

It’s hard to escape the buzzword “green” nowadays. More and more people are trying to make their everyday activities environmentally-friendly. Sundance Channel is using the trend to launch their latest “What’s the Big Idea?” contest, inviting the online community to submit a one-minute short film or photo essay that depicts creative ways to go green.

Sundance Channel will narrow the field down to 25 based upon creativity, overall theme, feasibility and presentation. From May 27th to June 24th, the 25 will then go back to the online users, who will pick their five favorite proposals that will go on to be judged by a panel of environmental experts.

Today’s stars keep themselves in better shape than ever before, and audiences seem to like that. In fact, box office receipts for recent flicks featuring some of our favorite aging action heroes are so encouraging that studio execs are practically rubbing their hands together in anticipation of the new Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) and Sylvester Stallone (Rambo) vehicles. Stallone certainly didn’t hurt himself when his more famous screen persona—Rocky Balboa—earned critical acclaim and a respectable $70 million in last year’s titular blockbuster, chasing doubts that the actor-director was simply giving himself a starring role in order to slow a career slide.

In the tradition of all things animated finding appreciation at Cannes (from Shrek to Persepolis), Jack Black and Angelina Jolie's new film, Kung Fu Panda, made its debut on the French Riviera.

Of the three women who have been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director, not one has taken home the little golden man. Lifetime Movie Networks has always been known for prizing stories involving women and this year, it is lending its power to help advance the female moviemaker to new heights with the Every Woman’s Film Competition.

Women from all over the globe have the chance to submit their three- to five-minute short non-documentary film to be judged by a selection of powerful women in Hollywood. Last year’s panel included Angela Bassett, Jennifer Lopez, Lauren Shuler Donner, Gale Anne Hurd and Mimi Leder.

Film geeks like to show off; it's in their job description. Whether it's debating the merits of Lars von Trier or discussing which Evil Dead film is the true masterpiece, it's just what they do. Well, thanks to entrepreneur Mike Ford, what they do has just gotten a bit easier to show off. Ford's UK-based company, Last Exit to Nowhere, sells T-shirts based on fictional companies and locations from films. And although the movies represented tend to skew a bit toward cult favorites (designs include the Winchester Tavern from Shaun of the Dead, the Urban Achievers from The Big Lebowski and Jaws' Amity Island), Ford says this was not deliberate.

Nobody really seems sure what the word “Sundance” even means anymore. Some say it refers to a week in January in which high profile actors and moviemakers congregate to get free stuff and ink their next multi-million dollar deala, while others maintain the word signifies an independent film festival. Regardless, it is tough to deny that the word has always been synonymous with some damn good art.

It’s really impossible to hear something like “sorting hat” or “invisibility cloak” and not feel at least a little of the allure of Harry Potter's universe. When the films brought the J.K. Rowling books to life, it was through the costuming, set design and props. In 2009, “Harry Potter: The Exhibition” will bring 10,000 square feet of artifacts from the enchanting films to 10 or more cities around the world over a five-year period.

As U.S. audiences start counting down the days until Iron Man, one of this spring's most anticipated movies, is released in theaters on May 2nd, film fans across the pond got a sneak peek at hero in action when the film premiered yesterday at the Odean in London's Leicester Square.

He may be the world's best-known film critic, but the movies that Roger Ebert is most interested in celebrating at his annual Ebertfest are far from household titles. In fact, "overlooked" is the adjective Ebert himself would use to describe these films, which make up the program of the five-day fest, which kicks off on April 23rd at the Virginia Theatre in Champaign, Illinois.

At its core, the Los Angeles United Film Festival believes that a film festival can unite people from diverse backgrounds through their love of motion pictures. The LAUFF is one of three “united” film festivals that documentary moviemaker Jason Connell has founded in the past six years.