At the 50th annual Atlanta Film Festival, SaportaReport’s own Maria Saporta and Delaney Tarr hosted a conversation with two film industry veterans about what the next 50 years of film in Atlanta could look like, and what the festival needs to move forward. Amanda Kelso, former interim CEO of the Sundance Institute, started her career […]
Tag: Plaza Theatre
Posted inDelaney Tarr
“Idiots” brings laughter and sold-out crowd to 50th Atlanta Film Festival opening night
The 50th annual Atlanta Film Festival opened with a bang. Or more accurately, it opened with raucous laughter at the sold-out Opening Night presentation of “Idiots” on April 23 at the Plaza Theatre. “Idiots,” a 2026 Sundance Film Festival hit, follows two “unqualified bozos” played by Dave Franco and O’Shea Jackson Jr., who are […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Meet the Reel Friends taking on Atlanta indie film
Meet your Reel Friends. They’re all over Atlanta’s cinema spots: hosting themed screenings at the Tara Theatre, on set for new productions or lingering at Videodrome. The cast of friends and filmmakers make up the many partners of the newly formed multi-pronged production company. They’re young, they’re scrappy, and they’re here to make art about […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Atlanta Film Festival unveils lineup packed with home grown films
Atlanta Film Festival is gearing up for its 49th annual festival lineup of 132 films starting April 24 — and this year, more than 30 films and shorts are from Georgia. The popular 11-day festival is set to run from April 24 to May 4, primarily at the Plaza Theatre and Tara Theatre, with other […]
Posted inLatest News
Thank you George Lefont, 85, for our movie moments in Atlanta
When I heard that George Lefont, the man who made Atlanta a movie town for over 40 years, wasn’t doing well, I went looking for some of my old articles on him. After all, I’d been writing about him since the late 1970s.
Posted inLatest News
Atlanta’s Tara Theatre reopening May 25
An Atlanta treasure, the Tara Theatre, will reopen Memorial Day weekend featuring three new films as well as four old favorites. The Tara was able to secure its operating permits – enabling the theater to reopen after being closed since November, when Regal Cinema abruptly closed the popular movie destination. Chris Escobar, the major owner […]
Posted inColumns, Maria's Metro
Appreciating two legacy Atlanta festivals – Dogwood and ATLFF
It’s a tale of two festivals. The Atlanta Dogwood Festival, now in its 87th year. And the Atlanta Film Festival, now in its 47th year.
Posted inLatest News
Plaza Theatre’s Chris Escobar reopening Tara cinema
Chris Escobar, owner of the Plaza Theatre, announced Tuesday evening at the closing night of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center, that he will be reopening the beloved Tara in the near future.
Posted inLatest News
“Last of the Right Whales”: Documentary provides an intimate, heart wrenching look at the lives of the critically endangered species
“Last of the Right Whales” depicts the harrowing world of the critically endangered North Atlantic right whales and the people who have dedicated their lives to studying and protecting them.
Posted inColumns
Going to the movies – Atlanta Film Festival reinvents the formula
If you love to go to movie theaters to absorb the full effects of a film, then the COVID-19 pandemic has been a tough slog. (The same is true if you love going to live music concerts – indoor or outdoor – like I do).
Posted inLatest News
Deadline extended for $500,000 grant program to restore historic theaters
The Fox Theatre Institute has extended the application deadline for a grant program that is offering up to $500,000 in grants to restore historic theaters across Georgia.
