The origins of the name Factory 25 came from the actual factory number in Virginia where the Honus Wagner T206 tobacco card was printed.  The Wagner T206 is one of the most fetishized and obsessed over pieces of ephemera of the 20th century.  Twenty five is also the Factory Records catalog number of the album Closer by Joy Division considered by many as being one of the best records of all time.

High and low concept films and music docs have a home at FACTORY 25, the new Brooklyn-based independent film + music label. Beginning in September 2009, FACTORY 25 has been releasing films, theatrically, digitally, and on DVD, and curates provocative limited edition DVD/Vinyl combination packages. Specializing in indie niche projects, FACTORY 25 is committed to delivering films and music in perfect analog or digital quality on DVD and vinyl in aesthetically interesting packaging.

CONVENTO will be released theatrically starting in March and will soon be available through digital/vod/dvd platforms- stay tuned.

Visit the Factory 25 site pre-order your dvd and add to your netflix cue now!

‘Convento’ joins The Documentary Blog’s Best Films of 2011 with some heavy weights including: ‘Fake It So Real’, ‘The Interrupters’, ‘Bombay Beach’, ‘Project Nim’ and ‘Senna’.  We are very honored to be on both Jay Cheel and Charlotte Cook’s list for top films this year- with so many amazing documentaries out there.   Check Out The Full Article Here

20. Fake it so Real 

19. The Harvest  

18. Beats Ryhmes and Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest 

17. Shut Up Little Man! An Audio Misadventure 

16. The Real Rocky

15. Position Among The Stars 

14. Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop

13. Into The Abyss

12. Bill Cunningham New York

11. Bombay Beach

10. Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory

9. Undefeated

8.  Life in a Day

7. Convento

6. The Interrupters

5. Abendland

4. Buck

3. The Arbor

2. Senna

1. Project Nim

I am thrilled to finally announce my childhood dream of coexisiting with prehistoric beasts, dinosaurs and mummies has come true!  On Friday November 11th at 8pm, my feature film Convento which has been on tour ever since SXSW, has finally landed in the big apple- at The American Museum of Natural History, part of the 35th Margaret Mead Film Festival.

If you purchase a ticket for the film you will also get access to the solo show of the kinetic artist Christiaan Zwanikken, who is bringing his mechanoid beasts all the way from his studio on Saturn.  If you haven’t seen these robotic skeletal beasts check them out here.   Come solo or bring the kids- a ticket grants you entrance into the museum.

Co presented by ROOFTOP FILMS and the Consulate General of Netherlands in NYC

Here is the full event on FACEBOOK

CONVENTO will be the closing night film at the 2011 Camden International Film Festival co sponsored by Rooftop Films.  The film will screen outdoors at The Cellar Door Winery. The weekend will jam packed with international documentaries.  During the festival I will be showing a series of video installations in a variety of locations- including a forest, an old ship and some yet-to-be-determined sights.  The work is an on-going collaboration with the kinetic artist & sculptor Christiaan Zwanikken.  Below is a preview I cut together- I hope to see you there!

Come see Convento this Friday, September 9 at 8:15pm at the Ruth Lilly Visitors Pavilion at the IMA. For more information & full blog entry click here:  IMA BLOG

A few years ago, I was traveling in Portugal with friends, driving along the southern coast in search of good, cheap eats and local wine.   On the road, you meet people.  We heard rumors of a secret monastery in the Alentejo region, converted into an artist retreat and nature preserve.  Feeling adventurous, we decided to check it out.  I had this strange feeling there was something there waiting for me, beckoning me, but at the time I had no idea it would be the focus of my first feature film.

We made the drive from a coastal touristy backdrop to the barren countryside.  The green hills slowly became orange and tan and you could begin to hear the hissing sun.   The Alentejo is brutal in the summer, and we felt this intensity as we arrived at The Convento Sao Francisco, in the village of Mértola.

My first impression was an impressive gate daring me to swing open and explore.  It was so quiet, except for the hum of winged insects and the faint crescendos of clicking storks in the distance. There was no one to greet us and I felt like an outsider immediately, of mythological proportion.

After what felt like an eternity, I slowly lifted the latch on the gate, feeling the warm rusted surface on my fingers. As we slowly made our way up a long winding path, the background shifted before our eyes. Tall trees, exotic flowers and hidden stone sculptures suddenly replaced the once dry earth.  As we made our way deeper into the grounds, an oasis in the middle of this desert-like region surrounded us.  The sun’s rays, now dappled through the tall trees, illuminated a falcon circling above us…

Continue reading full blog here:  IMA BLOG

Review by Mike Tully

Jarred Alterman’s Convento is a multi-fold achievement. It’s an inspiring tribute to a well-adjusted family, it’s a reverent document of a very special place, and it’s perhaps most distinguishable as a stunning showcase for Christiaan Zwanikken’s artwork. As described in the film’s press notes, Christiaan is a “kinetic artist who reanimates skeletal parts and deceased wildlife with servomotors and robotics.” These creatures would be awesome (and by ‘awesome’ I mean the original definition of that term) in any environment, yet here, they become something altogether more indelible. They’re like wandering, leftover figures from some extinct futuristic planet.

That said, it isn’t just the artwork itself that brings Convento to such rich life. In the way that Christiaan thrillingly fuses the natural world with mechanics in his work, director/cinematographer/editor Alterman delivers a similarly perfect marriage of form and content.

Just about anyone can become an accomplished technical filmmaker. Clearly, Alterman knows how to photograph and edit, and his collaboration with musician Lawrence Dolan cannot be understated—it’s an excellent sonic expression of the element of sci-fi naturalism that defines Christiaan’s work. But there is something deeper going on here. I have no idea how much time Alterman spent at Sao Francisco or how well he knew the Zwanikkens before pressing the record button, but with every static camera placement, every slow dolly, every edit, it feels as if he was connecting to his material on a more instinctive, spiritual level. Whatever energy is in the air or water that makes Sao Francisco such a special place, Alterman managed to bottle that into this film.

Read the full review at Hammer to Nail

Continue Reading Full Article Here

Jarred Alterman’s striking film is the story of the Zwanikken family living in a converted monastery in Mertola, Portugal. Here he talks to EIFF about micro-narratives, Charlie Chaplin and robotic ants.
Alterman’s statement “I hate art-speak” might be surprising given that ‘Convento’ focuses on a family of artists, however this is exactly the appeal of his film and its characters, robotic or otherwise.

Christiaan Zwanikken’s kinetic sculptures fuse the preserved remains of the flora and fauna of the Portugese mountains with mechanics and microchips to create quirky animated creatures.

Their movement, Alterman explains, references the work of comic actors such as Charlie Chaplin and  Buster Keaton, among others, “Kids love these pieces and are more receptive to them than adults…”

Read the full article here

EIFF has truly made this a special event:  Christiaan Zwanikken will have a public exhibit at the Teviot house from June 15-24th with a collection of kinetic sculptures.  Jarred Alterman will also screen a collection of short ‘kinetic’ films as out door projections.  After the Sunday premiere of ‘Convento’, EIFF is hosting an after party at The Caves with a special guest DJ and Jarred Alterman will provide projection loops for visuals.

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE

CLICK HERE FOR FULL EVENT DETAILS

‘Convento’ will have its NY Premiere at The American Can Factory, Saturday July 16th part of Rooftop films Summer Series, with special guest Christiaan Zwanikken (and his kinetic creations).
The premiere is not your typical screening- Rooftop films has created an event that starts with live music as the sun sets, followed by a few selected short films and the premiere of ‘Convento’.

After the premiere, head downstairs to the after party with the cast and crew, in an outdoor exhibition of kinetic sculptures and video installations.

Please visit the official site for tickets- seating is limited!

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE