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Rewinding the past seven days of the wonderful world of independent films:

Deals. Twilight fans will have the opportunity to see Kristen Stewart in a different type of role later this year. In Udayan Prasad's The Yellow Handkerchief, based on a story by Pete Hamill, Stewart jumps into a stranger's car. She and the driver (Eddie Redmayne) are soon joined by a newly-released convict (William Hurt) as they travel through rural Louisiana toward a hoped-for reunion with the ex-con's beloved (Maria Bello). Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired U.S. rights and is planning a theatrical release, according to indieWIRE.

Hans-Christian Schmid's legal thriller Storm will also hit theaters later this year, indieWIRE says, courtesy of Film Movement. Kerry Fox stars as a prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague; she must convince a witness (Anamaria Marinca from 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days) to testify in order to convict a former officer of war crimes.

Box Office. Arriving with this year's Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in hand, Yojiro Takita's Departures took the #1 spot among indies. Set in and around a Japanese business tasked with preparing bodies for burial, the drama earned $8,327 per screen at the nine theaters where it opened in New York and Los Angeles, Box Office Mojo reports.

Also performing well in its debut weekend, Pressure Cooker grossed $8,151 at one theater in New York. The documentary, directed by Jennifer Grausman and Mark Becker, follows a high school culinary arts class in Northeast Philadelphia, where teacher Wilma Stephenson tries to help her students earn college scholarships. We've embedded the fiery trailer below.

After the jump: Outfest lineup, plus Transformers 2 in Los Angeles.

Let's start this week's Indie Roundup by noting Eugene Novikov's fine article on seven indies that deserve a little love in the next few months. Beyond his picks, my indie summer begins with Jim Jarmusch's The Limits of Control. Jarmusch is an idiosyncratic director who continues to riff on some of the same themes that have occupied his subtle, haunting, and beautiful films since the 1980s. His latest, photographed by Christopher Doyle, follows a mysterious loner (Isaach De Bankolé) who journeys across Spain. It opens in New York and Los Angeles on Friday before expanding in the following weeks.

Deals. Zheng Wei's drama Fish Eyes, which is screening this week at the Tribeca Film Festival, has been picked up by Benten/Watchmaker Films. Shot on a tiny budget with non-professional actors, and set during the period between the Sichuan earthquake and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, the film revolves around a father, his son, and a mysterious woman who enters their lives. Fish Eyes is the debut of director Zheng, and also represents the debut plunge into theatrical waters for Benten. The company acquired all North American, UK, and European rights for the film.

Box Office. Playing on one screen, Nursery University resided at the top of the indie charts last weekend, according to Box Office Mojo, grossing $11,307. Directed by Marc H. Simon and Matthew Makar, the documentary aims to provide "a good-humored look at the oddly competitive environment of nursery school admissions," where the annual tuition is upwards of $20,000. James Toback's doc Tyson opened on seven screens and enjoyed decent returns (7,731 per-screen average), with Paolo Sorrentino's biopic Il Divo close behind ($6,934 each at two screens).

After the jump: LAAPFF!

What's been happening at the Tribeca Film Festival the past couple of days?

Deals. Discussions are underway on several titles, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Distribution executives were spotted at Conor McPherson's drama The Eclipse, a title that jumped out at me when the lineup was first announced. The great Ciaran Hinds (Rome, Munich) stars in an "atmospheric drama about a widower who sees and hears strange things in his house." Aidan Quinn and Iben Hjejle (High Fidelity) also star. Other titles "in play" include Cheryl Hines' comedy Serious Midnight, written by the late Adrienne Shelly, starring Kristen Bell, Justin Long, and Meg Ryan; Jake Goldberger's drama Don McKay, starring Thomas Haden Church and Elisabeth Shue; and Marshall Curry's Racing Dreams, a documentary about Go-Kart racing.

Our Coverage. Kirby Dick's "engrossing, revelatory" doc Outrage makes its message clear, wrote Eric D. Snider: "If you're a politician who publicly oppresses the gay community while secretly belonging to it, Kirby Dick will kick your closet door down and tell the world what a hypocrite you are." Eric also reviewed the Academy Award-winning Japanese drama Departures, "a perfect Oscar choice, a fine film that's gently funny and moving and not the least bit challenging or controversial." You can view all our coverage by clicking this handy link.

Blog Talk. The aforementioned doc Racing Dreams "alienated and creeped ... out" Jeffrey Wells of Hollywood Elsewhere, who explained: "I trust I'm not the only urban-residing blue-state guy who despises the whole blue-collar NASCAR thing." I'm sure the feeling is mutual. Eric Kohn at The Wrap describes Off and Running, a doc by Nicole Opper, as "the fascinating story of an adopted African-American teen raised by lesbian Jewish parents in Brooklyn ... The combination of community forces behind its existence makes [it] the quintessential Tribeca product."

One thing about the Academy Awards' Best Foreign Language category that separates it from the acting, screenplay, director, and best picture categories is that in order to vote, Academy members must prove that they have actually seen all five nominees. In a way, this is good: it means there's less politicking and favoritism and more sincere praise for the film that voters actually believe is best. But on the other hand, the Academy members who have time to go to special screenings of the five nominees are liable to be the old, retired ones, and their tastes might not accurately reflect those of the Academy in general.

All of this was relevant this year, when a Japanese film no one had ever heard of, called Departures, won the Oscar when all the forecasts had been for either The Class or Waltz with Bashir (which, not coincidentally, were the only two nominees that had played in the U.S. at that point). The Academy voters had seen all five films. Had they, in their wisdom, chosen the film that truly was best?

The answer is: eh, maybe. Now that Departures is making the festival rounds in advance of its stateside release in May, we're able to see why it appealed to the voters. As it turns out, it's a perfect Oscar choice, a fine film that's gently funny and moving and not the least bit challenging or controversial. It tells its story with elegant simplicity and is aimed at neither the lowest common denominator nor the highbrow art-house crowd. Pleasantly in the middle is where it sits, and it's happy to be there.

The Tribeca Film Festival kicks off tonight with a few changes from years past. The schedule is a little leaner and tighter, and Sundance veteran Geoffrey Gilmore has just arrived at the fest's parent company, Tribeca Enterprises. Having just launched in 2002, the festival is still finding its identity. Good thing we're here to help it look! Cinematical's Erik Davis and yours truly will be covering the festival over the next week. In the meantime, here are seven films we're looking forward to.

Whatever Works
Woody Allen's latest comedy is exciting for two reasons. For one thing, it marks his return to New York after setting his last four films in Europe. For another thing, it stars Larry David, whose famed neurotic pessimism makes him a perfect match for Allen's style. This is Tribeca's opening-night film, accompanied by much ballyhoo and fanfare -- but for some reason, we lowly members of the press aren't able to attend. Our badges get us into most public screenings, but not this one. So, um, we're looking forward to it, and that's all we'll be able to do: look forward to it. It's the kind of situation Larry David would complain about before finding some way to make it worse for himself.

That was fast! The ink is barely dry on yesterday's post and the Tribeca Film Festival has already announced the rest of their feature film lineup for this year's edition, which runs from April 22-May 3. A few quick picks:

Blank City. Celine Danhier's doc examines "the DIY independent film movement that emerged in tandem with punk rock in late '70s downtown New York." Living in Los Angeles at the time, I got to see only a few of those films, just enough to get me really interested, so this could be educational and enlightening for modern indie film lovers.

Serious Moonlight. Cheating in the countryside -- and it's a comedy! Cheryl Hines directs from a script by the late Adrienne Shelly, with Meg Ryan, Timothy Hutton, and Kristen Bell. That's a lot of talent in a small package.

Tell Tale. The director of L.I.E. and Twelve and Holding makes a psychological thriller inspired by Edgar Allan Poe? I'm there! Josh Lucas (meh) but acting aces Lena Headey and Brian Cox provide support.

Other promising titles, and why: Don McKay (black comedy, Thomas Haden Church, Elisabeth Shue, Melissa Leo); City Island (dysfunctional family comedy, Andy Garcia, Alan Arkin); and Love the Beast (doc, cars, Eric Bana's directorial debut).

Tribeca will also be showcasing NYC premieres of films like blaxpoitation flick Black Dynamite, Academy Award winner Departures, and Steven Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience, as well as midnight thrills with Ti West's The House of the Devil and Newsmakers, a Russian remake of Johnny To's Hong Kong police drama Breaking News.

Cinematical will be on the ground to bring you complete coverage of the festival. After the jump: the official announcement. Dig in!

Subtitle of the Week: "My kung fu skills aren't too bad, eh?" -- Donnie Yen in Ip Man.

This week's edition of Asian Cinema Scene includes capsule reviews of films that were recently released on DVD in Asia.

Departures Takes Off: Yojiro Takita's drama Departures, the Academy Award winner for Best Foreign-Language Film, was a popular success during its initial run in Japan last fall. It resurged in the wake of the Oscar victory, ascending to the top of the charts. Departures also swept the 32nd Annual Japanese Academy Awards two days before the Oscars. The director's follow-up film, Sanpei the Fisher Boy, is due for release later this month. [Sources: Screen Daily; Japan Times; Toronto J-Film Pow-Wow; Nippon Cinema.]

Ip Man Inspires: Biopics are always better with martial arts, aren't they? Highly respected Wing Chun master Ip Man (Donnie Yen) lives a comfortable life in Fo Shan, China, but after the Japanese invade in 1937, he is reduced to living with his wife and young son in abject poverty. He works humbly alongside his fellow countrymen in a coal factory until he is forced to use his martial arts skills to defend his country's honor against the Japanese.

Teaming again with director Wilson Yip (SPL, Flash Point), Yen is perfectly suited to play the stoic, peaceful man who refused to buckle under to imperial rule. Simon Yam plays a factory owner and Hiroyuki Ikeuchi embodies General Miura. The great Sammo Hung choreographed the action scenes, which are pretty terrific. I don't think it's a spoiler to say that Ip Man eventually counted Bruce Lee among his students. (Trailer embedded below.)

After the jump: Brief looks at Beast Stalker and Legendary Assassin -- plus trailer!

In this week's edition of Asian Cinema Scene, we cover the unexpected and the surprising.

Oscar Shocker: One of the few genuine surprises of last night's Oscar telecast was the victory by Japan's Departures (Okuribito) as Best Foreign Language Film. Most observers thought that Israel's Waltz with Bashir or France's The Class would win; the former won the Golden Globe, while the latter picked up the Independent Spirit Award.

Of course, most observers haven't actually seen Departures, which played the Montreal film festival rather than Toronto last fall, and had its US Premiere at the Hawaii Film Festival shortly thereafter. As I reported in January, Regent Releasing acquired distribution rights and announced summer release plans. Regent has already updated the film's official site to reflect the Academy Award victory, but there's no word yet on whether they might push the release up to take advantage of the attention.

Yojiro Takita's film follows a young musician who is forced to take a job preparing corpses for cremation. It's a movie about "finding your bliss, even if the world thinks your bliss is odd, icky and a marriage breaker," as described by Mark Schilling in The Japan Times. Four subtitled clips are available at the official site.

Banned in China: As disheartening as it may be to hear, it's not really surprising that China's censors refused to pass Derek Yee's Shinjuku Incident because it is "too violent," according to the director (as reported by Variety). What is surprising is that the film stars Jackie Chan. The excellent-looking trailer is embedded below.

After the jump: More on Shinjuku Incident.

OK, I think this is the last narrowing-down-the-list that will occur before the actual Oscar nominations are announced a week from Thursday. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has whittled the candidates in the Best Foreign-Language category to these nine semi-finalists. It is from these that the five nominees will be chosen:

Revanche, Austria; The Necessities of Life, Canada; The Class, France; The Baader Meinhof Complex, Germany; Waltz with Bashir, Israel; Departures, Japan; Tear This Heart Out, Mexico; Everlasting Moments, Sweden; Three Monkeys, Turkey.

If the Turkish film is nominated, it will be a first for that country, which has submitted a film every year since 1992 but has never made the Big 5. The other countries have all been nominated before, though Mexico and Israel have never won.

These nine shortlist contenders were culled from 67 entries. After embarrassing situations in previous years where the Academy's stodgy old foreign-language nominating committee neglected films that should have at least made the shortlist, a new rule was implemented this year that allowed that group to choose only six of the nine semi-finalists. The other three were chosen by the Academy's "foreign-film executive committee," which skews younger and less boring. The Academy didn't say which films on the shortlist came from which group, though.

As you probably know, each country is permitted to submit only one film per year. If you want to see what everyone submitted this year -- and rail against the Academy for not shortlisting, say, Italy's Gomorra or Jordan's Captain Abu Raed -- the complete list is here.