1-20 of 43 items « Prev | Next »
Did 'Grease: Live' Set a New Standard for Judging TV Musicals?
1 hour ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
When Fox first announced it was going to air a live version of the popular stage and film sensation "Grease," there wasn't much to be said outside of, "Well, here comes another live TV musical." While plenty of people were excited to hear some of their favorite musical numbers performed on live TV (and see Julianne Hough as both the good and bad versions of Sandy), no one really expected anything all that ambitious. But what we got Sunday night was ambitious — at least, from a production standpoint. With the camera swirling around expansive sets as the stars hand-jived their way through elaborately choreographed numbers, most critics and audience members alike agreed "Grease: Live" took the modern take on live musicals to a new level. The direction and production didn't just take full advantage of their multiple stages across the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, CA, but drew attention to »
- Indiewire
“The Idea of the Mother Who Leaves”: Rebecca Daly | Mammal
1 hour ago | Filmmaker Magazine - Blog | See recent Filmmaker Magazine news »
In every film, there is the story that you knew you were telling, the story the audience perceives. But there is always some other story, a secret story. It might be the result of your hidden motivations for making the film, or, instead, the result of themes that only became clear to you after you made the movie. It might be something very personal, or it might be a story you didn’t even know you were telling. What is your film’s secret story? For me, starting with a story, I like there to be a strong theme or idea at […] »
- Filmmaker Staff
Notes around "Nana," Part 1
1 hour ago | MUBI | See recent MUBI news »
I would like to accompany 2011's Nana with a printed text at the door of a public screening, a text written precisely before the word “contextualize” (b. 1934) existed as the verb form of “context” (b. 1840).It would be Jean Epstein, 1921—"Now the tragedy is anatomical. The décor of the fifth act is this corner of a cheek torn by a smile. Waiting for the moment when 1,000 meters of intrigue converge in a muscular denouement satisfies me more than the rest of the film. Muscular preambles ripple beneath the skin. Shadows shift, tremble, hesitate. Something is being decided. A breeze of emotion underlines the mouth with clouds. The orography of the face vacillates. Seismic shocks begin."(…)"The film is nothing but a relay between the source of nervous energy and the auditorium which breathes its radiance…" (from “Magnification”)Or Antonin Artaud writing in 1927—"The human skin of things, the epidermis of »
- Andy Rector
Future Tense: Sifting Through the Patterns of Vr Storytelling at Sundance
2 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Read More: The 2016 Indiewire Sundance Bible: All the Reviews, Interviews and News Posted During The Festival It may seem all the buzz around virtual reality at this year’s Sundance Film Festival came out of nowhere, but it’s actually the culmination of the decade-long vision of New Frontier Curator and Sundance Film Festival Senior Programmer Shari Frilot to guide the fest in evolving the section into a showcase of innovation and visionary forward thinking about how tech and story might work together. Back in 2007, Sundance Film Festival launched New Frontier, a new iteration of the experimental Frontiers section that had been around since 1996. If festival attendees and press have sometimes struggled with what to make of New Frontier, that’s probably part of the point. In the festival’s first press release announcing the 2007 curation, fest director John Cooper noted the expanded program was to "provide a platform not only for filmmakers, »
- Kim Voynar
The 12 Major Breakouts of the 2016 Sundance Film Festival
2 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Royalty Hightower, star of "The Fits" The young star of Anna Rose Holmer's deeply intriguing Next title, Hightower commands every frame of "The Fits" with genuine charisma, nuanced emotion and a natural ability to act and move in ways that might shock — this is, after all, her first feature film role. Hightower, however, isn't surprised, mainly because she's wanted to be a star her whole life. A warm reception for both "The Fits" and Hightower's individual performance should help that dream become a reality. Check out our Sundance Springboard with Hightower to hear more from the star-in-the-making herself. Unique Documentaries like "Cameraperson" and "Kate Plays Christine"Sundance's dedication to experimenting with the forms and traditions of documentary filmmaking has recently started informing their picks in a major way, and new works by both Robert Greene and longtime Dp Kirsten Johnson made that »
- Kate Erbland
SXSW Winner 'Creative Control' Gets a Head-Shatteringly Bold Poster
2 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
With just over a month to go before Benjamin Dickinson's "Creative Control" is released in theaters, Amazon and Magnolia Pictures have debuted a transfixing new poster on Mashable that teases the head-shattering madness that's in store for the movie's central character (played by Dickinson). Read More: SXSW Review: 'Creative Control' is a Fresh and Exciting Sci-Fi Cautionary Tale "Creative Control" centers around a young advertising executive who attempts to use virtual reality glasses in order to carry out an illicit affair with his best friend's girlfriend. The film won a visual excellence jury prize at the SXSW Film Festival last year. The film hits select theaters on March 11. Check out the striking poster below. »
- Zack Sharf
Watch: Short Film Sensation 'The Chickening' is an Insane and Genius Stanley Kubrick Remix
2 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
If you've been paying attention at all to the short film circuit over the past year, Nick DenBoer and Davy Force's "The Chickening" has probably turned up in numerous places. The short has become something of a midnight movie sensation after screenings at Tiff, Beyond Fest, Telluride Horror Show, and, most recently, Sundance, and now you can finally see what the fuss is about thanks to DenBoer's Vimeo page. Read More: Watch: Eddie Alcazar and Flying Lotus' Mesmerizing Short Film is So Nsfw We Can't Even Say Its Name Equal parts insane and genius, "The Chickening" remixes Stanley Kubrick's horror film "The Shining" by digitally altering the movie into a poultry-stuffed comedy adventure. In this unforgettable version of the story, the menacing Overlook Hotel becomes the outrageous Charbay’s Chicken World, a state-of-the-art poultry production facility and resort strategically built on an active »
- Zack Sharf
Memo to Distributors: Buy These 2016 Sundance Titles
2 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Read More: The 2016 Indiewire Sundance Bible: All the Reviews, Interviews and News Posted During The Festival "All These Sleepless Nights"During a festival that saw multiple titles blur the lines of the traditional documentary, Michal Marczak's "All These Sleepless Nights" made the strongest case for foregoing those genre distinctions altogether. Following a handful of Warsaw youth on their search for stability and meaning in city life, Marczak threads a fluid and assured narrative that's almost hyper-real. Along the way, his subjects cycle through angst, intimacy and uncertainty, all against a shifting array of gorgeous backdrops. Sparsely furnished apartments, rain-drenched parks, moonlit beaches and even the middle of a busy street all serve as the canvases for its characters' tales of youthful indecision. And there's some joy amidst those struggles, particularly in the film's musical moments (it's amazing what one simple Disney song singalong or »
- Eric Kohn and Steve Greene
Jared Leto Joins Sundance Cult Doc 'Holy Hell' as Executive Producer
3 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Will Allen's buzzy cult documentary "Holy Hell" may still be looking for a U.S. distributor after its buzzy premiere at Sundance last week, but it's now getting official backing from a major movie star. Oscar winner Jared Leto is coming aboard the doc as an executive producer, Variety reports, which should give the film some major selling potential. Read More: How I Shot That: Dp Polly Morgan Explains How She Went Undercover for 'Holy Hell' The documentary chronicles Allen's 20 years of living inside a California spiritual cult named Buddha Field. The director recorded his entire experience and offers up a look into the extreme ideals and expectations that make up this community, as well as the cracks that begin to unfold as trust is turned into paranoia and truths are revealed about their enlightened leader. The movie, which includes interviews with ex-cult members, was first announced »
- Zack Sharf
2016 Sundance Deals: The Complete List of Festival Pick-Ups
3 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
One thing that became abundantly clear in the days leading up to the 2016 Sundance Film Festival was just how big of a year it was going to be for bidding wars and sales deals. It started eight days before opening night, when Netflix threw its hat into the ring first by picking up streaming rights to Sian Heder's feature debut, "Tallulah," starring Ellen Page and Allison Janney. The deal would be the first of five for the streaming giant, a second one of which, the Iranian horror film "Under the Shadow," was also acquired before the festival began. Read More: It's Complicated: How Netflix and Amazon Add a Big Wrinkle to Sundance Deal-Making While Netflix seemed to be leading the pack early on, it was ultimately Amazon Studios that dominated the Sundance buying market. After starting early with the streaming rights for "Complete Unknown" (that marked the third »
- Zack Sharf
Sundance 2016. Awards
3 hours ago | MUBI | See recent MUBI news »
U.S. – DRAMATICGrand Jury PrizeThe Birth of a Nation (Nate Parker)Directing AwardSwiss Army Man (Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert)Special Jury AwardAs You Are (Miles Joris-Peyrafitte)Special Jury Award – Breakthrough Performance Spa Night (Joe Seo)Special Jury Award – Individual PerformanceMorris from America (Craig Robinson)The Intervention (Melanie Lynskey)Waldo Salt Screenwriting AwardMorris From America (Chad Hartigan)Audience AwardThe Birth of a Nation (Nate Parker)Next Audience AwardFirst Girl I Loved (Kerem Sanga)
U.S. – DOCUMENTARYGrand Jury PrizeWeiner (Elyse Steinberg, Josh Kriegman)Directing AwardLife, Animated (Roger Ross Williams)Special Jury Award for EditingNUTS! (Penny Lane, Thom Stylinski)Special Jury Award for Social Impact FilmmakingTrapped (Dawn Porter)Special Jury Award for WritingKate Plays Christine (Robert Greene)Special Jury Award for Vérité FilmmakingThe Bad Kids (Lou Pepe, Keith Fulton)Audience AwardJim: The James Foley Story (Brian Oakes)
World Cinema – DRAMATICGrand Jury PrizeSand Storm (Elite Zexer)Directing AwardBelgica (Felix van Groeningen)Special Jury Award »
- Notebook
Watch: 'Hail, Caesar!' Clip Teases the Channing Tatum Musical You've Always Dreamed About
3 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Read More: Watch: The Coen Brothers Go Back to Hollywood's Golden Age in Hilarious 'Hail, Caesar!' Trailer The geniuses over at Universal sure are putting together one great marketing campaign for the Coen Brothers' highly anticipated comedy "Hail, Caesar!," which opens nationwide this Friday, February 5. After releasing a slap-filled sneak peek last week featuring stars George Clooney and Josh Brolin, the distributors have released two new clips that shine a spotlight on a singing Channing Tatum and a feisty Scarlett Johansson. The Hollywood-set comedy takes place over a single day, during which a studio fixer must deal with various shooting problems, chief among them the kidnapping of an actor. In addition to new clips, Birth.Movies.Death has premiered two great new Mondo posters for the film by Francesco Francavilla and Blt Communications. Check out all of the new material below. Read More: The Coen Brothers Stage a Kidnapping in 'Hail, »
- Zack Sharf
Watch: Meet the Team Behind Slamdance Audience Award Winner 'Honey Buddies' (Exclusive)
4 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Read More: Exclusive: Slamdance is Coming to Hollywood With Mind-Bending Meta Film 'Director's Cut' Among this year's movies that competed at the 2016 Slamdance Film Festival was "Honey Buddies," which ended up winning the Audience Favorite Award for narrative feature. Directed by newcomer Alex Simmons and starring David Giuntoli ("Grimm") and Flula Borg ("Pitch Perfect 2"), "Honey Buddies" is a highly comedic ode to friendship and the great outdoors. When David is dumped just days before his wedding, his upbeat and very German best man Flula convinces him to go on David's honeymoon together: a seven day backpacking trip through the Oregon wilderness. On the trail, the two friends meet a conspiracy theorist, a friendly backpacker and a bloodthirsty predator, all of whom test their friendship and their lives. In the exclusive Slamdance TV spot above, Simmons and Borg take reflect on both the filmmaking and Slamdance »
- Jake Spencer
Exclusive: Watch the Opening Sequence of Vibrant Indian Comedy 'Dr. Cabbie'
4 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Read More: The 9 Indies You Must See This February: 'The Witch,' 'Triple 9' and More From producer Salman Khan and director Jean-François Pouliot comes "Dr. Cabbie," a bright and colorful new comedy about a doctor from India who redirects his life to become a cab driver in Canada. The film is being distributed by Momentum Pictures on VOD this month, and Indiewire has an exclusive first look at the movie's opening sequence. The sequence above teases what's in store for the film's main character, Deepak Chopra (Vinay Virmani), who passes his medical exams and graduates at the top of his class, fulfilling his dream to follow in his father's footsteps. After heading home to show his mother his degree, Deepak convinces her that they should move to Canada so he can pursue his medical career properly, and thus begins the film's fish-out-of-water adventure. "Dr. Cabbie" co-stars Kunal Nayyar »
- Jake Spencer
Female Cinematographers Share Their Skills and Stories in 'Women of Light'
4 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Here's your daily dose of an indie film, web series, TV pilot, what-have-you in progress -- at the end of the week, you'll have the chance to vote for your favorite. In the meantime: Is this a project you’d want to see? Tell us in the comments. Women of Light Logline: A feature documentary highlighting some of the leading women in cinematography and inspiring those of the future. Elevator Pitch: Did you know there are less than 15 women out of the more than 350 members of the American Society of Cinematographers? "Women of Light" is a documentary focused on the leading women in the industry and their struggles and successes of how they got there. It is a film about past challenges, present ambitions and future impacts women are making in the world of cinematography. Production Team: Director: Julia Swain Producers: Julia Swain, Chelsi Johnston, Annie Pace, Andrew Becker Cinematographers: »
- Indiewire
Daily | In the Works | Woody, Bigelow, Zemeckis
4 hours ago | Keyframe | See recent Keyframe news »
As we catch up with news of projects in the works, we note that Woody Allen has cast Elaine May and Miley Cyrus in his upcoming series for Amazon. Plus: Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal are taking on the 1967 Detroit riots. Jaume Collet-Serra and Liam Neeson are re-teaming for The Commuter. Park Chan-wook will adapt Project Itoh's 2007 science fiction novel Genocidal Organ. Jared Harris will join Brad Pitt in Robert Zemeckis's untitled spy thriller. Harrison Ford and Anthony Hopkins are attached to star opposite Natalie Dormer, Paul Bettany and Martin Freeman in Official Secrets. Uma Thurman, Barkhad Abdi and Laurent Lafitte have joined Indian star Dhanush, Gemma Arterton, Abel Jafri and Seema Biswas in the cast of Marjane Satrapi’s The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir. And we've got much more. » - David Hudson »
Watch: 'Archer' Season 7 Teaser is The Greatest Event in Television History
5 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Read More: Watch: NBC Rebooting 'Hart to Hart' With a Gay Couple Is a Great Reason to Rewatch Adam Scott's Version A few years ago, Adam Scott debuted what would become a series known as "The Greatest Event in Television History." Taking a behind-the-scenes look at the making of a masterpiece, while framed as the countdown to its unveiling, Scott and his cohorts recreated a number of classic TV title sequences. The franchise has covered everything from "Simon & Simon" (with Jon Hamm) to "Hart to Hart" (with Amy Poehler), and he even nabbed Tom Hanks for a cameo in "Bosom Buddies." What does this have to do with the seventh season of "Archer"? Well, the good folks behind FX's long-running spy spoof have paid homage to a title sequence of their choosing — namely, "Magnum P.I." Tom Selleck is an oft-referenced hero to Archer on the series, and »
- Ben Travers
Watch: 9 Must-See Sundance Chats with Werner Herzog, Charlie Kaufman and More
5 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
Most of buzz around the Sundance Film Festival involves the movies and distribution deals, but the true gems of the event are the industry panels and conversations that bring together some of the most influential filmmakers and storytellers in the business. To that degree, Sundance doesn't get much better than with its Cinema Café chats, which pairs up talent — from actors and filmmakers behind the festival's hottest titles to jury members and industry heavyweights — to discuss their careers and the business at large. Read More: The 2016 Indiewire Sundance Bible: All the Reviews, Interviews and News Posted During The Festival This year saw discussion teams ranging from Rebecca Hall and Michael Shannon to Lena Dunahm and Norman Lear, Chelsea Handler and Morgan Spurlock and Keegan-Michael Key and Natasha Lyonne, among others. Because Sundance live streams these Cinema Café discussions, all 9 of them from last week are now available to »
- Zack Sharf
Monica Bellucci, 'My Big Night' and More Headline 33rd Miami International Film Festival
5 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
The 33rd Miami International Film Festival has announced the full lineup for its 2016 edition, running March 4-13, and includes more than 100 features from over 40 countries, plus special tributes to Monica Bellucci, Gavin Hood and more. "This year's lineup is like a prism that invites Miami to see the world with an illumination that only the cinema, and the artists that create the work, can provide," said the Festival’s Executive Director and Director of Programming Jaie Laplante in an official statement. "The programmers have populated the program with films and events that are essential to the complex, dynamic, ever-changing Miami of the now." This year’s Festival will showcase 129 films in total, including 100 feature films and documentaries and 29 short films. New to the festival this year will be the Marquee Series category, which is dedicated to on-stage conversations with major film personalities. Guests of the inaugural program include Monica »
- Zack Sharf
The 9 Indies You Must See This February: 'The Witch,' 'Triple 9' and More
5 hours ago | Indiewire | See recent Indiewire news »
"Rams" (February 3) (Film Page)Director: Grímur HákonarsonCast: Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Theódór Júlíusson, Charlotte Bøving, Gunnar JónssonCriticwire Average: BWhy is it a Must See? Grímur Hákonarson's second feature, "Rams," was last year's Cannes Un Certain Regard prize winner, and after playing the international festival circuit to much critical acclaim, Cohen Media Group is finally bringing the Icelandic dark comedy to U.S. theaters. Mixing painterly visuals with blunt, deadpan humor, the movie involves two estranged brothers who own neighboring sheep farms but have not spoken to each other for four decades. When an incurable illness strikes one of their flock, authorities determine all the sheep in their region must be killed, prompting the two to set aside their differences in a quest to save their animals. Outside of Wes Anderson movies, deadpan humor and artistic vision »
- Zack Sharf
1-20 of 43 items « Prev | Next »
« Prev | Next »