The Madlab Post Announces Latino Thriller CONTRAPELO as Highlight in shnit Film Festival Showcase

PHILADELPHIA - Oct. 12, 2015 - PRLog -- The Madlab Post, a multimedia project that explores adventures of moviemaking from both sides of the silver screen, is pleased to announce Contrapelo as one of the highlights among the slate of films that will be presented during the planet’s biggest multicultural festival dedicated to shorts. This shnit CINEMAS Worldwide event in Philadelphia will screen 8 films and take place Saturday, October 17, 2015 at 3:00pm in the Roberto Hernandez Theater at Taller Puertorriqueño at 2557 N. 5^th Street.

Art Bonilla (Coneheads, Salvador), Eduardo Roman (21 Days, The Mask of Zorro) and Hugo Medina (Sons of Anarchy, True Blood) star in Contrapelo, a crime thriller directed by American Film Institute Conservatory fellow Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer. The short film is about a proud Mexican barber who is forced to shave the leader of a drug cartel. Attendees at the Philly screening will receive access to an Exclusive audiovisual clip where Contrapelo cinematographer Carolina Costa discusses her favorite scenes from the film with Nicole Ayers of The Madlab Post.

Selected as IndieWire’s “Project of the Day” in 2013, Contrapelo successfully raised over $8,000 on the crowdfunding website Kickstarter, to complete post-production last year. The film has since been nominated for several awards on the film festival circuit. "In the middle of a drug war that has taken the lives of more than 150,000 and ravaged a nation, we seek to ask questions about involvement and responsibility while telling a compelling and entertaining story," said Molo Alcocer, producer of Contrapelo.

The shnit CINEMAS program gives film fans in Philadelphia an opportunity to watch a selection of 8 exquisite short films from all around the world that are nominated for the global competition of the 13^th Annual shnit International Film Festival. The audience will operate as the jury and will choose the winner of The Flaming Faun award, which includes prize money of $20,000. “As we join together in celebration of the year’s best short films from around the world, I am especially excited for the opportunity to showcase Contrapelo at Taller Puertorriqueño, given its standing as the Cultural Heart of Latino Philadelphia,” said Nicole Ayers, Executive Editor and Producer for The Madlab Post.

Advance tickets for the shnit International Film Festival screening, October 17, 2015 in Philadelphia, are on sale now at gum.co/shnitPhilly. For additional information and updates for this one-day only event, visit www.madlabpost.com and @MadlabPost on Twitter.

ABOUT THE SHNIT INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL

shnit is a twelve-day celebration of short film, hosted simultaneously in multiple cities on five continents worldwide. The festival includes three main segments – shnit PLAYGROUNDS, shnit CINEMAS and shnit FINALE.What started as a local initiative in Bern Switzerland is now an exceptional transnational event that connects and inspires makers and fans of short films across the globe. shnit embraces diversity, originality and exchange between creators and an audience from different cultures and backgrounds.

Oscar-winning producer and screenwriter Paul Haggis (Crash, Million Dollar Baby, Casino Royale) served as the festival’s jury president. From cheeky visual clips and touching documentaries to heart-melting drama, absurd comedy and mystical fairy tale, shnit presents a competition program of exceptional quality and density. The organization’s website is www.shnitcinemas.org

ABOUT THE MADLAB POST

The Madlab Post is a production diary featuring tales from the front lines of cinema. Between director interviews and notes from film festival events to analyses of stories and characters on the big screen, it is your backstage pass to independent cinema and beyond. It’s main destination is www.madlabpost.com