Join us for a virtual conversation with AFI alumnus and award-winning independent filmmaker Joe Burke! Joe’s latest indie dramedy, Burt, which was shot in seven days for $7K, was recently acquired by FilmHub in a partnership deal following a highly successful festival run. (Winner Best Picture Phoenix Film Festival, Winner Best Comedy Feature Cinequest, Winner Special Jury Award Florida Film Festival, Jury Award Winner Anchorage International Film Festival)
Joe will share the complete behind-the-scenes journey of Burt, from its early creative development through its accolades on the festival circuit and its big digital release this month. He will reflect on his firsthand experiences managing an independent production, connecting with festival audiences, and navigating the distribution landscape to bring the project to commercial release.
Joe Burke
Filmmaker
About Joe Burke:
Joe Burke is an independent filmmaker from Toledo, Ohio known for the award-winning films Burt, Four Dogs, Another Cancer Movie, and House Sitting. After studying filmmaking and theater at Columbia College Chicago, Burke moved to Los Angeles to earn his MFA in Directing from the American Film Institute (AFI). His character-driven independent films blend humor, heart, and raw authenticity. Follow @joeburkefilm and visit www.BurtTheMovie.com for more!
Varda Bar-Kar
Award-Winning Filmmaker
About the moderator:
Varda Bar-Kar is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker whose work spans documentaries, scripted projects, and television. Her films have premiered on Netflix, PBS, and HBO/MAX, and screened at major festivals worldwide, earning support from the Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, The Miranda Family Foundation, The Kenneth Rainin Foundation, and Jewish Story Partners. She has directed for FOX’s hit series 9-1-1 and served as a consulting producer on Netflix’s Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me.
Her more recent PBS documentary, Artbound: The Cheech, launched the Emmy-winning series Artbound as its premiere episode, spotlighting Cheech Marin’s outstanding advocacy for Chicano art. Varda also directed Fandango at the Wall (Executive Producers Quincy Jones, Carlos Santana), which follows Maestro Arturo O’Farrill and legendary son jarocho musicians in a transborder celebration of unity, inspiring the Grammy-winning album “Fandango at the Wall” in New York which features music from the film. Her earlier feature Big Voice, a portrait of a high school choir director and his most advanced students striving for excellence, premiered on Netflix, aired nationally on PBS, and earned a Bronze Telly Award.
IMPORTANT DETAILS:
This panel will take place virtually over ZOOM. Ticket purchasers will receive a ZOOM link to this panel 2 hours before the published start time. If you don’t already have the ZOOM app, please make sure to download on your device before the panel start time.
If you purchase an All-Access Pass for our June Festival events prior to the date of this panel, you will also receive admission to this virtual panel, included as part of your pass.
If you are a current Annual Member of NFMLA, please email info@nfmla.org to receive a complimentary ticket to this panel. If you are not an Annual Member of NFMLA and would like to join, you can become a member here.
