ten questions for

HAMPTONS FILM FESTIVAL PROGRAMMERS
David Nugent and Josh Koury

Reel Men David Nugent (left) and Josh Koury (right).

Where did you fellows come from to head up the film festival?
David Nugent: I'm also the director of programming for the Newport International Film Festival. I just came from finishing up that festival in June.
Josh Koury: I've been with the Hamptons International Film Festival for four years.

Is there any competition between the Newport and Hamptons Film festivals?
JK: There's a bit of competition, but generally speaking, there is enough independent and studio work to go around.
DN: There's only been a little overlap. There are one or two shorts that will be in both festivals, and both are showing the documentary Taxi to the Dark Side, from the director of Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (Alex Gibney).

What's the most number of movies you've seen in one day?
JK: Like the whole movie?
DN: I've seen five a day at festivals.

How many movies are submitted versus how many are selected?
JK: About 2000 movies are submitted and 120 picked. Only about 40 of them will be looking for distribution.
DN: We just heard that one of our films, My Sexiest Year, with Harvey Keitel and Karolina Kurkova, sold to a distributor. We'll have the world premiere.

What could someone send you to ensure his film was accepted into the festival?
JK: When people are creative with their press kits, I always appreciate it, but at the end of the day, if a film's good it's good.

Have you ever made a movie?
JK: I was a filmmaker before I was a programmer. I took it on the festival circuit, had a great time, then I started my own film festival, the Brooklyn Underground Film Festival. I'm directing and editing a new movie now. It's called We are Wizards, and it's about Harry Potter fans.
DN: I made movies as an undergraduate, but I teach film history with the rest of my time at The New School.

Do you come out to the Hamptons during the summer?
DN: Just for board meetings.
JK: We're usually in and out. I haven't been to the beach once this year. I think I walked by it; it's hard to find time.

What movie did you see outside of the festival that you really liked this year?
DN: There comes a point where I don't get to see a whole lot of movies that aren't for the festival. I saw The Simpsons Movie, The Bourne Supremacy, and Live Free or Die Hard. In terms of festival movies, I absolutely love The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.
JK: I haven't seen a non-festival movie in ages. I think I saw Spider-Man 3.

What's a movie you guys did not agree on?
JK: We're not allowed to tell you! Seriously, though, I feel really good about everything in the festival. Sometimes I might not be in love with a film but I know our audiences will be. What's really important is figuring out what works in the program, even if it's not my cup of tea.
DN: Josh focuses on the competition films very heavily and I focus on the spotlight films.

When you program a festival, how important is it that the films complement each other?
JK: It's really important. When you watch a group of short films, one film totally influences the way you watch the next.
DN: It's analogous to being a museum curator. First you pick the paintings, then you figure out how you want to place them.

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