Celeb Crunch

Bellmore, NY (June 17th, 2021) - The Long Island International Film Expo (LIIFE) is the premiere filmmaker community on Long Island, and one of the most respected festivals of its kind in the world; showing almost 125 feature-length films in many different genres each year. Sponsored by the Long Island Film-TV Foundation (LIFTF), the County of Nassau, the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency and Gold Coast Studios, this year the 24th Annual installment will be held from August 10th - August 15th 2021 at the historic Bellmore Movies, 222 Pettit Ave, Bellmore, NY. In addition to the in-theater experience, this year many of LIIFE’s films will also be shown virtually, and will feature films from around the globe including:

Tango Shalom which is actor Joseph Bologna's last film; his son Gabriel Bologna (Director) was an actor in "Tracks" which won at LIIFE and directed The Elevator (HBO Original Release); Produced by Joel Zwick (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) and Robert Meyer Burnett (Agent Cody Banks franchise) and includes Emmy Award winning and Academy Award nominated Actress Renee Taylor (The Do Over, The Nanny, How to be a Latin Lover), Academy Award nominated actress Lainie Kazan (My Favorite Year, My Big Fat Greek Wedding), Jos Laniado (Jessica Jones), Judi Beecher (Taken 3), Bern Cohen (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Karina Smirnoff (Dancing With the Stars) and Marci Fine (Saturday Night Live). My Promise to PJ starring Alec Baldwin, Daniel Baldwin, Stephen Baldwin and William Baldwin, One Moment starring Danny Aiello in his final performance as well as LIIFE's past Rising Star honoree, Sal Rendino (Billions), The Soul of a Farmer with Isabella Rossellini, Lie Hard starring Catherine Curtin (Stranger Things, Orange is the New Black), Joel Marsh Garland (Orange is the New Black), Alysia Curtin (Orange is the New Black) and Melanie Chandra (Code Black) as well as countless other phenomenal films to enjoy all festival long. There is also the Friday the 13th Horror Block at 11:30 PM and a NEW Midnight Madness Block at 11:30 PM Saturday August 14th.

LIIFE is proud to feature Twenty eight films made by Long Islanders, Twenty World Premieres, Nine US Premieres, Thirty-nine New York Premieres, Thirty-seven Long Island Premieres, and Films from ten countries! There are also Thirty Three Female Directors, a record for LIIFE.

The Closing Night Party and Awards Ceremony will be held on Sunday, August 15, 2021 at Bellmore Movies starting at 5:30pm. This year’s presenters and honorees as well as a full slate of panels will be announced shortly.

This year’s panels are free, but you must get your tickets online at www.longislandfilm.com/tickets

You can also learn more about specific showings/times and purchase tickets at: www.longislandfilm.com

Festivals of the past have included such luminaries as the late Danny Aiello, Ed Asner, Blue Bloods’ Robert Clohessy and Abigail Hawk, Ralph Macchio, John Amos, Ally Sheedy, 30 Rock’s Kevin Brown, Cathy Moriarty, Steve Buscemi, Ed Burns, William Sadler, Ilene Kristen, and so many more.

LIIFE has become a must attend festival for serious filmmakers; with local and foreign film screenings, celebrity appearances, entertaining and informative panels, a star-studded awards ceremony, Q & A with filmmakers from the world over and networking galore.

LIIFE's sister festival, Scared for Your LIIFE, a short horror festival, is open for submissions at https://filmfreeway.com/ScaredforyourLiife and the event will be held October 22, 2021 - further details TBA.

For More Information on LIIFE, Visit: www.LongIslandFilm.com

Columbian songstress and dancer Shakira takes the cover of fashion publication Vogue Mexico, edition of July 2021. The 44 year old is a vision for the cover, photographed by Nico Bustos. Clad in a figure-hugging red wrap dress, styled by Juan Cebrian, Shakira turns up the heat, and looks fabulous. The shoot features beauty from hair stylist Franco Gobbi, makeup artist Tom Pecheux, and manicurist Sayaka, and the cover will also be seen on Vogue Latin America for the month.

Tennis sensation and Louis Vuitton ambassador Naomi Osaka is the cover star of fashion publication Vogue Japan's August 2021 edition. Photographed by fashion photographer Zoey Grossman, with the styling works of Patti Wilson, the sports star wears pieces from Louis Vuitton, including a chic bikini top for the cover. Naomi is dolled up by hair stylist Martin Christopher Harper and makeup artist Autumn Moultrie, and goes sporty chic for the cover.

The four-time Grand Slam champion announced yesterday that she is withdrawing from Wimbledon, her team provided the statement: “Naomi won’t be playing Wimbledon this year. She is taking some personal time with friends and family. She will be ready for the Olympics and is excited to play in front of her home fans.” Just few weeks back she also withdrew from Roland Garros following the news conference controversy – Naomi refused to participate in post-match conferences because negative questions and comments affected her mental health (she was fined $15,000).

After withdrawing from Roland Garros she posted the announcement on her social media: 

“The truth is that I have suffered long bouts of depression since the US Open in 2018 and I have had a really hard time coping with that. Anyone that knows me knows I’m introverted, and anyone that sees me at the tournaments will notice that I am often wearing headphones as that dulls my anxiety. Though the tennis press has always been kind to me (and I wanna apologize especially to all the cool journalists who I may have hurt), I am not a natural public speaker and get huge waves of anxiety before I speak to the world’s media. I get really nervous and find it stressful to always try to engage and give you the best answers I can.“

FREE THINKER dives into the beauty of our world from the perspective of a self-proclaimed “Free Thinker” as discussed in the prologue of the album. This album holds up a mirror to society by showing the trials and tribulations of everyday people, the disparity of love and the world as we know it changing forever.  The overarching theme of the album suggests that to live a truly happy life, we must subject our mind to free thoughts and free experiences while allowing ourselves to be open to the challenges that come our way. Split up into four chapters, FREE THINKER sets up a story that truly is meant for any music-lover in the modern age.

ABOUT VERSA THE BAND

Originating from Long Island, New York, Versa the Band made it a priority to create music that was genreless; a discography for anyone to listen to, not defined in any one box. The band — which isn’t much of a band at all — describes itself as a “Music Collective” of artists who come together to collaborate with founder, Ethan Felizzari.

VTB’s sound blends Alternative and Hip Hop with traditional Pop, elements of Jazz, Soft Rock & more. Influences include artists like Bon Iver, James Blake, Rosalia, & soul legend Sam Cooke. With songs like “Chelsea in the Spring”, “Don’t Be Alone”, “Just Friends” & “Pearl”, Versa the Band shows their true individuality by not conforming with any one sound.

LISTEN TO THE ALBUM

Private Soundcloud Link 

STREAMING PLATFORMS 

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/2YB2C6BHssR65456pay2sc?si=outUyymwTfG5ueV7uGS4xA&dl_branch=1

Apple Music - https://music.apple.com/us/artist/versa-the-band/1488377734

Bandcamp - https://versatheband.bandcamp.com/

Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/versatheband

SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS

Instagram - https://instagram.com/versatheband

YouTube - https://youtube.com/versatheband

Twitter - https://twitter.com/versatheband

TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@versatheband?

Facebook - https://facebook.com/versatheband

WEBSITE & EMAIL

Official Website - versatheband.com

Email - music@versatheband.com 

Mgmt Email - zack@ckproductionsnewyork.com & connor@ckproductionsnewyork.com