Having recently shifted away from their one-film-a-day approach, Mubi has now unveiled their October lineup, which is headlined by Ira Sachs’ stellar drama Passages following its theatrical run this summer. The slate also features handpicked selections by Sachs, with work by Maurice Pialat, Luchino Visconti, Jack Hazan, Shirley Clarke, and Tsai Ming-liang.
Also arriving in October is “Watch If You Dare: Horror Halloween,” a series featuring a trio of giallo classics, with The Fifth Cord, The Possessed, and Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion, alongside Guillermo del Toro’s The Devil’s Backbone and more. The service will also spotlight the work of underseen Japanese director Yasuzô Masumura, including his aching melodrama Red Angel, his biting workplace satire Giants and Toys, his thrilling noir Black Test Car, and more.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
October 1
The Infiltrators, directed by Alex Rivera, Cristina Ibarra | National Hispanic Heritage Month
The Vanished Elephant,...
Also arriving in October is “Watch If You Dare: Horror Halloween,” a series featuring a trio of giallo classics, with The Fifth Cord, The Possessed, and Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion, alongside Guillermo del Toro’s The Devil’s Backbone and more. The service will also spotlight the work of underseen Japanese director Yasuzô Masumura, including his aching melodrama Red Angel, his biting workplace satire Giants and Toys, his thrilling noir Black Test Car, and more.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
October 1
The Infiltrators, directed by Alex Rivera, Cristina Ibarra | National Hispanic Heritage Month
The Vanished Elephant,...
- 9/28/2023
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
The Sundance Institute has today named the participants and projects set for the latest edition of its Producers Lab, taking place at Utah’s Sundance Mountain Resort from July 24-28, as well as for its Producers Intensive, taking place this fall.
Feature Film producers taking part in the Producers Lab include Pierre M. Coleman (Ricky), Julia Kennelly (Clare), Liz Lian (Skin), Valerie Castillo Martinez (Anita) and Cameron Morton (Lollygag). Among those coming to the Lab with documentary projects are Colleen Cassingham (Life After), Nicole Docta (The Dead Zone), Emma D. Miller (Untitled Mistress Dispeller Project), Jolene Pinder (Fun House) and Flor de oro Tejada (Wild Darlings Sing the Blues (And It’s a Song of Freedom)).
Fellows for the third edition of the Producers Intensive, on the fiction side, include Alifya Ali and Samantha Skinner (’06-’07), Paula González-Nasser (Saca Tu Lengua), Kyra Knox (South Side Girls), Xin Li (Santa Anita...
Feature Film producers taking part in the Producers Lab include Pierre M. Coleman (Ricky), Julia Kennelly (Clare), Liz Lian (Skin), Valerie Castillo Martinez (Anita) and Cameron Morton (Lollygag). Among those coming to the Lab with documentary projects are Colleen Cassingham (Life After), Nicole Docta (The Dead Zone), Emma D. Miller (Untitled Mistress Dispeller Project), Jolene Pinder (Fun House) and Flor de oro Tejada (Wild Darlings Sing the Blues (And It’s a Song of Freedom)).
Fellows for the third edition of the Producers Intensive, on the fiction side, include Alifya Ali and Samantha Skinner (’06-’07), Paula González-Nasser (Saca Tu Lengua), Kyra Knox (South Side Girls), Xin Li (Santa Anita...
- 7/24/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Kat Taylor & Tom Steyer’s TomKat MeDiA has unveiled its slate of social justice-themed projects for 2022. The multi-platform media company has secured rights to Duff Wilson’s eco-thriller Fateful Harvest and Aaron Bobrow-Strain’s award-winning work of narrative non-fiction, The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez, with plans to develop both as feature films.
Based on a Seattle Times investigative series reported by Wilson that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, Fateful Harvest is the riveting account of an alarming environmental scandal. Published in 2001, the book tells the story of Patty Martin — the mayor of a small Washington town called Quincy — who discovers American industries are dumping toxic waste into farmers’ fields and home gardens by labeling it “fertilizer.” She becomes outraged at the contaminated soil, failed crops, dead horses, and fatal, rare diseases in her town, as well as the direct threat to her own children’s health.
Based on a Seattle Times investigative series reported by Wilson that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, Fateful Harvest is the riveting account of an alarming environmental scandal. Published in 2001, the book tells the story of Patty Martin — the mayor of a small Washington town called Quincy — who discovers American industries are dumping toxic waste into farmers’ fields and home gardens by labeling it “fertilizer.” She becomes outraged at the contaminated soil, failed crops, dead horses, and fatal, rare diseases in her town, as well as the direct threat to her own children’s health.
- 8/3/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Distributor pivoted after coronavirus pandemic forced theatre closures.
Films released via Oscilloscope Laboratories’ virtual cinema initiative have generated more than $200,000 since the company reconfigured its distribution plans when the coronavirus pandemic forced theatres to close.
Through Thursday (May 14), Saint Frances, Other Music, Best Of CatVideoFest, The Infiltrators and Clementine had generated $215,108 at the virtual box office.
O-Scope kicked off its virtual cinema programme with The Avalon venue in Washington DC on March 16 as soon as it became clear theatre closures would endure for a while.
The New York-based distrbutor splits net revenue with participating theatres, who typically set a $12 price point for online ticket sales.
Films released via Oscilloscope Laboratories’ virtual cinema initiative have generated more than $200,000 since the company reconfigured its distribution plans when the coronavirus pandemic forced theatres to close.
Through Thursday (May 14), Saint Frances, Other Music, Best Of CatVideoFest, The Infiltrators and Clementine had generated $215,108 at the virtual box office.
O-Scope kicked off its virtual cinema programme with The Avalon venue in Washington DC on March 16 as soon as it became clear theatre closures would endure for a while.
The New York-based distrbutor splits net revenue with participating theatres, who typically set a $12 price point for online ticket sales.
- 5/15/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
People risk all kinds of things to make movies — money, reputations, sometimes even their health. But in “The Infiltrators,” it feels as if the crew we see on-screen is putting their lives on the line for a cause they believe in, and that the movie is just a byproduct, as opposed to the principal mission.
In that way, it’s like “The Cove,” the remarkable dolphin-saving doc in which marine-life activists sneaked into a secluded Japanese killing field like soldiers on a special-ops mission. “The Infiltrators” also documents a courageous undercover operation, this one involving Dreamers who turn themselves over to Border Patrol officers in order to assist their fellow undocumented immigrants from inside a federal detention center — except, in this case, directors Cristina Ibarra and Alex Rivera rely on a mix of talking heads and reenactment footage to dramatize a mission for which principal coverage was limited to a few audio recordings.
In that way, it’s like “The Cove,” the remarkable dolphin-saving doc in which marine-life activists sneaked into a secluded Japanese killing field like soldiers on a special-ops mission. “The Infiltrators” also documents a courageous undercover operation, this one involving Dreamers who turn themselves over to Border Patrol officers in order to assist their fellow undocumented immigrants from inside a federal detention center — except, in this case, directors Cristina Ibarra and Alex Rivera rely on a mix of talking heads and reenactment footage to dramatize a mission for which principal coverage was limited to a few audio recordings.
- 5/2/2020
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
The Oscilloscope Laboratories docu-thriller The Infiltrators is hitting virtual cinemas today before making its way to on-demand and digital June 2. The virtual release is becoming a staple for many film titles as it allows audiences to purchase film tickets through a theater’s website and, in turn, helps continue support of theaters that have been closed due to Covid-19.
Directed by Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra, the film made its world premiere last year at the Sundance Film Festival where it the won the Next Section Audience Award. The hybrid pic blends feature filmmaking, re-enactments of real-life events and documentary footage to tell the true story of young undocumented immigrants who are intentionally detained by Border Patrol and thrown into a for-profit detention center.
More from DeadlineWestern Thriller 'True History Of Kelly Gang' And '60s Coming-Of-Age Drama 'To The Stars' Make Debuts - Specialty Streaming PreviewComing-Of-Age Foodie Comedy 'Abe' Fires Up,...
Directed by Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra, the film made its world premiere last year at the Sundance Film Festival where it the won the Next Section Audience Award. The hybrid pic blends feature filmmaking, re-enactments of real-life events and documentary footage to tell the true story of young undocumented immigrants who are intentionally detained by Border Patrol and thrown into a for-profit detention center.
More from DeadlineWestern Thriller 'True History Of Kelly Gang' And '60s Coming-Of-Age Drama 'To The Stars' Make Debuts - Specialty Streaming PreviewComing-Of-Age Foodie Comedy 'Abe' Fires Up,...
- 5/1/2020
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
"No one knows how this will all end." Oscilloscope Labs has debuted the official trailer for an acclaimed indie documentary-feature hybrid titled The Infiltrators, that first premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. It won the Next Audience Award & Best of Next award, and went on to pick up a few more prizes including the Rogue Award as the Ashland Film Festival. The film is about a rag-tag group of undocumented youth - known as "DREAMers" - that deliberately get detained by the Us Border Patrol in order to infiltrate a shadowy, for-profit detention center. By weaving together documentary footage of the real infiltrators with re-enactments of the events inside the detention center, The Infiltrators tells an incredible and thrilling true story in a genre-defying new cinematic language. Starring Maynor Alvarado, Chelsea Rendon, Manuel Uriza, Juan Gabriel Pareja, and Vik Sahay. Looks like a vitally important and rousing, inspiring film. Here's...
- 3/4/2020
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
For twelve years now, the Cinema Eye Honors selection committees, comprised of filmmakers from the documentary community, help to whittle down a curated list of must-see non-fiction film and television. At the annual Cinema Eye brunch, Cinema Eye Honors founding director A.J. Schnack and his team unveiled the first in a series of awards announcements, including nominees for two new awards: Outstanding Achievement for a Broadcast Film or Series in Editing and Cinematography.
Netflix, 30 for 30, Hulu and Showtime Documentary Films hosted the lunch at Tartine Bianco in Los Angeles, attended by many filmmakers, including many of this year’s non-fiction contenders: Nanfu Wang + Jialing Zhang, Todd Douglas Miller, Petra Costa, Steven Bognar + Julia Reichert, Lauren Greenfield, and Feras Fayyad.
Beyoncé Knowles-Carter’s “Homecoming” (Netflix) led the Broadcast honorees with three nominations: Broadcast Film, Broadcast Editing and Broadcast Cinematography. Other multiple nominees included National Geographic’s “Apollo: Mission to the Moon,...
Netflix, 30 for 30, Hulu and Showtime Documentary Films hosted the lunch at Tartine Bianco in Los Angeles, attended by many filmmakers, including many of this year’s non-fiction contenders: Nanfu Wang + Jialing Zhang, Todd Douglas Miller, Petra Costa, Steven Bognar + Julia Reichert, Lauren Greenfield, and Feras Fayyad.
Beyoncé Knowles-Carter’s “Homecoming” (Netflix) led the Broadcast honorees with three nominations: Broadcast Film, Broadcast Editing and Broadcast Cinematography. Other multiple nominees included National Geographic’s “Apollo: Mission to the Moon,...
- 10/24/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
For twelve years now, the Cinema Eye Honors selection committees, comprised of filmmakers from the documentary community, help to whittle down a curated list of must-see non-fiction film and television. At the annual Cinema Eye brunch, Cinema Eye Honors founding director A.J. Schnack and his team unveiled the first in a series of awards announcements, including nominees for two new awards: Outstanding Achievement for a Broadcast Film or Series in Editing and Cinematography.
Netflix, 30 for 30, Hulu and Showtime Documentary Films hosted the lunch at Tartine Bianco in Los Angeles, attended by many filmmakers, including many of this year’s non-fiction contenders: Nanfu Wang + Jialing Zhang, Todd Douglas Miller, Petra Costa, Steven Bognar + Julia Reichert, Lauren Greenfield, and Feras Fayyad.
Beyoncé Knowles-Carter’s “Homecoming” (Netflix) led the Broadcast honorees with three nominations: Broadcast Film, Broadcast Editing and Broadcast Cinematography. Other multiple nominees included National Geographic’s “Apollo: Mission to the Moon,...
Netflix, 30 for 30, Hulu and Showtime Documentary Films hosted the lunch at Tartine Bianco in Los Angeles, attended by many filmmakers, including many of this year’s non-fiction contenders: Nanfu Wang + Jialing Zhang, Todd Douglas Miller, Petra Costa, Steven Bognar + Julia Reichert, Lauren Greenfield, and Feras Fayyad.
Beyoncé Knowles-Carter’s “Homecoming” (Netflix) led the Broadcast honorees with three nominations: Broadcast Film, Broadcast Editing and Broadcast Cinematography. Other multiple nominees included National Geographic’s “Apollo: Mission to the Moon,...
- 10/24/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Beyonce’s “Homecoming” has landed three nominations to lead all films in the first round of noms for the Cinema Eye Honors, a New York-based awards ceremony established in 2007 to honor all aspects of nonfiction filmmaking.
In an announcement made at a luncheon in downtown Los Angeles, Cinema Eye Honors organizers unveiled nominations in seven categories, including new categories for broadcast editing and cinematography. “Homecoming” received nominations in both those new categories, as well as for the outstanding broadcast film of the year.
It faces off in that last category against “Apollo: Mission to the Moon,” “At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal,” “Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists,” “Leaving Neverland” and “The Sentence.”
Also Read: 'Homecoming' Film Review: Beyoncé's Powerful Documentary Captures Her Once-in-a-Lifetime Coachella Triumph
Other shows with multiple nominations were the broadcast series “Salt Fat Acid Heat” and “Tricky Dick,” which received two each.
In an announcement made at a luncheon in downtown Los Angeles, Cinema Eye Honors organizers unveiled nominations in seven categories, including new categories for broadcast editing and cinematography. “Homecoming” received nominations in both those new categories, as well as for the outstanding broadcast film of the year.
It faces off in that last category against “Apollo: Mission to the Moon,” “At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal,” “Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists,” “Leaving Neverland” and “The Sentence.”
Also Read: 'Homecoming' Film Review: Beyoncé's Powerful Documentary Captures Her Once-in-a-Lifetime Coachella Triumph
Other shows with multiple nominations were the broadcast series “Salt Fat Acid Heat” and “Tricky Dick,” which received two each.
- 10/24/2019
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
In today’s film news roundup, Paramount sets up another Will Smith sci-fi project, “Distant Harmony: Pavarotti in China” gets re-released and pro-immigrant “The Infiltrators” finds a home.
Project Launch
Paramount Pictures has signed Will Smith to produce and star in a movie adaptation of Marcus Sakey’s dystopian trilogy “Brilliance.”
Akiva Goldsman will write the script and produce with James Lassiter and Shane Salerno. “Brilliance” will be a co-production between Goldsman’s Weed Road, Smith’s Westbrook and Overbrook and Salerno’s the Story Factory.
The story is set in a world where 1% of the children are born with powerful intellectual gifts and demonized by society. A director is not yet on board.
Smith starred in “Aladdin” and will next be seen in Ang Lee’s sci-fi thriller “Gemini Man,” which Paramount opens on Oct. 11. The news was first reported by Deadline.
Re-release
Giant Pictures, the digital film distribution division of Giant Interactive,...
Project Launch
Paramount Pictures has signed Will Smith to produce and star in a movie adaptation of Marcus Sakey’s dystopian trilogy “Brilliance.”
Akiva Goldsman will write the script and produce with James Lassiter and Shane Salerno. “Brilliance” will be a co-production between Goldsman’s Weed Road, Smith’s Westbrook and Overbrook and Salerno’s the Story Factory.
The story is set in a world where 1% of the children are born with powerful intellectual gifts and demonized by society. A director is not yet on board.
Smith starred in “Aladdin” and will next be seen in Ang Lee’s sci-fi thriller “Gemini Man,” which Paramount opens on Oct. 11. The news was first reported by Deadline.
Re-release
Giant Pictures, the digital film distribution division of Giant Interactive,...
- 9/7/2019
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Oscilloscope Laboratories has acquired U.S. rights to the critically acclaimed immigration feature The Infiltrators. Directed by Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra, the film made its world premiere earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival where it went on to won the Audience Award: Next and the Next Innovator Prize. Oscilloscope is set to release the feature in theaters before streaming on digital platforms.
The Infiltrators is a very timely docu-thriller that tells the true story of young immigrants who get detained by Border Patrol, and put in a shadowy for-profit detention center — on purpose. Marco (Maynor Alvarado) and Viri (Vida‘s Chelsea Rendon) are members of the National Immigrant Youth Alliance, a group of radical Dreamers who are on a mission to stop deportations. And the best place to stop deportations, they believe, is in detention. However, when they try to pull off a prison break in reverse,...
The Infiltrators is a very timely docu-thriller that tells the true story of young immigrants who get detained by Border Patrol, and put in a shadowy for-profit detention center — on purpose. Marco (Maynor Alvarado) and Viri (Vida‘s Chelsea Rendon) are members of the National Immigrant Youth Alliance, a group of radical Dreamers who are on a mission to stop deportations. And the best place to stop deportations, they believe, is in detention. However, when they try to pull off a prison break in reverse,...
- 9/5/2019
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Ken Kirby is ready to jump into the soapy prime time drama of Dynasty. The Good Trouble actor is set to recur on the CW reboot of the iconic series in the role of Evan Tate, Trixie’s (Jessi Goei) older brother. And as we all know, Trixie is Fallon’s (Elizabeth Gillies) friend who died ten years ago and whose body was pulled from the lake in the season finale.
Kirby’s casting is refreshing in a time when Dynasty has seen a slew of changes in its casting during the first two seasons. The lead role of Cristal went through two changes. The first time Ana Brenda Contreras replaced original star Nathalie Kelley after the end of Season 1. And recently, Contreras was replaced by Daniella Alonso as the series headed into Season 3. In addition, Elizabeth Gillies recently took over the role of Alexis from Nicollette Sheridan. And original...
Kirby’s casting is refreshing in a time when Dynasty has seen a slew of changes in its casting during the first two seasons. The lead role of Cristal went through two changes. The first time Ana Brenda Contreras replaced original star Nathalie Kelley after the end of Season 1. And recently, Contreras was replaced by Daniella Alonso as the series headed into Season 3. In addition, Elizabeth Gillies recently took over the role of Alexis from Nicollette Sheridan. And original...
- 9/5/2019
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Some 40% of selections hail from female directors.
The Us premiere of Argentinian rom-com An Unexpected Love starring Ricardo Darín and the world premiere of Days Of Light bookend the 2019 AFI Latin American Film Festival, set to run in Silver Spring, Maryland, from Sept. 12-Oct. 2.
Some 53 films from 23 countries will screen at the 30th anniversary event during National Hispanic Heritage Month. Organisers said nearly 40% of the selections hail from female directors.
An Unexpected Love, directed by Patagonik’s Juan Vera marks Darín’s first outing as producer and he stars in the rom-com alongside Mercedes Morán.
Days Of Light is an...
The Us premiere of Argentinian rom-com An Unexpected Love starring Ricardo Darín and the world premiere of Days Of Light bookend the 2019 AFI Latin American Film Festival, set to run in Silver Spring, Maryland, from Sept. 12-Oct. 2.
Some 53 films from 23 countries will screen at the 30th anniversary event during National Hispanic Heritage Month. Organisers said nearly 40% of the selections hail from female directors.
An Unexpected Love, directed by Patagonik’s Juan Vera marks Darín’s first outing as producer and he stars in the rom-com alongside Mercedes Morán.
Days Of Light is an...
- 8/28/2019
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
In today’s film news roundup, a movie about the deadly Camp Fire is in the works, “The Infiltrators” will open the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival and former Rogers and Cowan topper Tom Tardio will run the Napa Valley Film Festival.
Project Launch
Focus Features is producing the survival story movie “Paradise,” based on events during the deadly 2018 Camp Fire.
The fire caused 85 fatalities and destroyed the small town of Paradise, Calif. Matthew Heineman, who was Oscar-nominated for “Cartel Land,” is set to direct and write the script. Temple Hill will produce along with Heineman.
The story will centers on Heather Roebuck, who gave birth via C-section minutes before the local hospital became engulfed by flames. Focus has optioned life rights for Roebuck, her fiancé and their children along with Butte County emergency medical workers Sean Abrams, Mike Castro, Shannon Molarius and Robin Cranston – who ended up becoming...
Project Launch
Focus Features is producing the survival story movie “Paradise,” based on events during the deadly 2018 Camp Fire.
The fire caused 85 fatalities and destroyed the small town of Paradise, Calif. Matthew Heineman, who was Oscar-nominated for “Cartel Land,” is set to direct and write the script. Temple Hill will produce along with Heineman.
The story will centers on Heather Roebuck, who gave birth via C-section minutes before the local hospital became engulfed by flames. Focus has optioned life rights for Roebuck, her fiancé and their children along with Butte County emergency medical workers Sean Abrams, Mike Castro, Shannon Molarius and Robin Cranston – who ended up becoming...
- 7/10/2019
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Blumhouse Television has optioned the Sundance award-winning documentary-narrative film, The Infiltrators from Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra to adapt as a scripted series. Jenniffer Gomez will write and produce the adaptation. The critically praised film premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival and was honored with The Audience Award: Next and The Next Innovator Prize.
The Infiltrators, a hybrid of real-time documentary footage and dramatic reconstructions, tells the real – and surreal – story of three young undocumented immigrants, Marco Saavedra, Viridiana Martinez and Mohammad Abdollahi, who in 2012 dared to defy the system by embarking on a high-risk mission to infiltrate a secretive for-profit detention center. By intentionally getting detained by the Border Patrol and voluntarily surrendering their freedom, these “Infiltrators” went into detention to uncover cases of abuse, organize behind bars, and help other detainees (and themselves) eventually get free. The story is a jail-break — in reverse.
The Infiltrators, a hybrid of real-time documentary footage and dramatic reconstructions, tells the real – and surreal – story of three young undocumented immigrants, Marco Saavedra, Viridiana Martinez and Mohammad Abdollahi, who in 2012 dared to defy the system by embarking on a high-risk mission to infiltrate a secretive for-profit detention center. By intentionally getting detained by the Border Patrol and voluntarily surrendering their freedom, these “Infiltrators” went into detention to uncover cases of abuse, organize behind bars, and help other detainees (and themselves) eventually get free. The story is a jail-break — in reverse.
- 5/2/2019
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Bam has released the full lineup for its 11th annual BAMcinemaFest, a “platform for both emerging and established filmmakers as well as unconventional and often overlooked films,” which will run this year from June 12 — 23. This year’s 12-day festival includes 18 NY premieres, one U.S. premiere, and three world premieres.
Gina Duncan, Associate Vice President of Film, told IndieWire of the programming picks, “We have the same goal every year: to present the best American independent cinema being made today. But this is the first year that I’ve felt the films fit together as a cohesive whole; they are linked by a naturalness, an intimate focus, and boundless creativity. As the larger film conversation continues to focus on record-breaking box offices, it feels defiant to present a program that centers film as art.”
This year’s festival will open on June 12 with the New York premiere of Lulu Wang...
Gina Duncan, Associate Vice President of Film, told IndieWire of the programming picks, “We have the same goal every year: to present the best American independent cinema being made today. But this is the first year that I’ve felt the films fit together as a cohesive whole; they are linked by a naturalness, an intimate focus, and boundless creativity. As the larger film conversation continues to focus on record-breaking box offices, it feels defiant to present a program that centers film as art.”
This year’s festival will open on June 12 with the New York premiere of Lulu Wang...
- 5/2/2019
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Toronto – Just weeks after the Sundance premiere of “The Infiltrators,” Cristina Ibarra and Alex Rivera’s documentary about conditions inside a Florida immigration detention center, one of the film’s subjects, Claudio Rojas, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) agents and deported back to his native Argentina.
Rojas, who spent 19 years living in the U.S., had been an inside source for a documentary that exposed abuses inside the Broward Transitional Center, a for-profit institution that has detained hundreds of immigrants without trial. His ordeal served as a timely reminder of the countless lives still imperiled by the recent migrant crisis — a historical event that’s offered raw material for a number of documentaries screening at the Hot Docs Canadian Intl. Film Festival this year.
“It’s an ongoing theme that’s more important than ever,” said Shane Smith, Hot Docs director of programming. “Filmmakers are...
Rojas, who spent 19 years living in the U.S., had been an inside source for a documentary that exposed abuses inside the Broward Transitional Center, a for-profit institution that has detained hundreds of immigrants without trial. His ordeal served as a timely reminder of the countless lives still imperiled by the recent migrant crisis — a historical event that’s offered raw material for a number of documentaries screening at the Hot Docs Canadian Intl. Film Festival this year.
“It’s an ongoing theme that’s more important than ever,” said Shane Smith, Hot Docs director of programming. “Filmmakers are...
- 5/2/2019
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
The Montclair Film Festival will hold the world premiere of the restoration of the 1959 movie “The Diary of Anne Frank,” Variety has learned exclusively.
The black-and-white film, directed by George Stevens, has been restored by Twentieth Century Fox and the Film Foundation. The holocaust drama was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won three, including best supporting actress for Shelly Winters.
The festival, now in its eighth year, will take place May 3-12 in Montclair, N.J., and features more than 150 films, events, discussions and parties. The festival had previously announced that it would open with a screening of Tom Harper’s “Wild Rose,” with star Jessie Buckley attending for a post-screening Q&A.
This year’s Storyteller Series will include A Conversation with Mindy Kaling, moderated by Stephen Colbert, taking place May 4 and A Conversation with Ben Stiller, moderated by Colbert, on May 5. Olympia Dukakis will attend for a...
The black-and-white film, directed by George Stevens, has been restored by Twentieth Century Fox and the Film Foundation. The holocaust drama was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won three, including best supporting actress for Shelly Winters.
The festival, now in its eighth year, will take place May 3-12 in Montclair, N.J., and features more than 150 films, events, discussions and parties. The festival had previously announced that it would open with a screening of Tom Harper’s “Wild Rose,” with star Jessie Buckley attending for a post-screening Q&A.
This year’s Storyteller Series will include A Conversation with Mindy Kaling, moderated by Stephen Colbert, taking place May 4 and A Conversation with Ben Stiller, moderated by Colbert, on May 5. Olympia Dukakis will attend for a...
- 4/5/2019
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Ava DuVernay, John Leguizamo, and Laura Poitras have added their signatures to a letter fighting against the impending deportation of Claudio Rojas, subject of the documentary “The Infiltrators.” The non-fiction feature from directors Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra debuted in Park City earlier this year to strong reviews, with IndieWire’s Eric Kohn saying it made a “strong case for abolishing Ice.”
Rojas is a native of Argentina but has lived in the United States for 19 years. The International Documentary Association said in a memo that Rojas has been detained by Ice and is now being held at the Krome Detention Center in South Miami-Dade after what should have been a routine check-in. Rojas is now facing deportation as early as sometime this week.
“We feel strongly that detaining a protagonist of a documentary film has a chilling effect on those whose stories we tell as documentary journalists, and restricts...
Rojas is a native of Argentina but has lived in the United States for 19 years. The International Documentary Association said in a memo that Rojas has been detained by Ice and is now being held at the Krome Detention Center in South Miami-Dade after what should have been a routine check-in. Rojas is now facing deportation as early as sometime this week.
“We feel strongly that detaining a protagonist of a documentary film has a chilling effect on those whose stories we tell as documentary journalists, and restricts...
- 4/2/2019
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
March 1
– Now in its fourth year, the Doc10 film festival is proud to announce their official 2019 film slate. Presented by Chicago Media Project, Doc10 will open with the critically acclaimed Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez documentary “Knock Down the House” and close with Emmy Award-winning director John Chester’s “The Biggest Little Farm.” In celebration of the highly curated event, filmmakers from this year’s ten best documentaries will be descending on Chicago for screenings and Q&A’s. Doc10 will also showcase Vr content, industry panels, and creative workshops, and takes place from April 11 – 14, 2019 in Chicago, Il.
Winner of the Audience Award at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, “Knock Down the House” follows progressive activist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other insurgent female candidates running for Congress in 2018. Setting their sights on making a difference, the film chronicles these women as they fight for the issues they are most passionate about and shake...
– Now in its fourth year, the Doc10 film festival is proud to announce their official 2019 film slate. Presented by Chicago Media Project, Doc10 will open with the critically acclaimed Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez documentary “Knock Down the House” and close with Emmy Award-winning director John Chester’s “The Biggest Little Farm.” In celebration of the highly curated event, filmmakers from this year’s ten best documentaries will be descending on Chicago for screenings and Q&A’s. Doc10 will also showcase Vr content, industry panels, and creative workshops, and takes place from April 11 – 14, 2019 in Chicago, Il.
Winner of the Audience Award at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, “Knock Down the House” follows progressive activist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other insurgent female candidates running for Congress in 2018. Setting their sights on making a difference, the film chronicles these women as they fight for the issues they are most passionate about and shake...
- 3/1/2019
- by Indiewire Staff
- Indiewire
More than a decade after breaking out with Sleep Dealer, Alex Rivera (co-directs with Cristina Ibarra) returns with a docu feature nimbly includes dramatized re-enactments. Much like when young pilot named Luke Skywalker made the impossible three point shot into the Death Star, The Infiltrators details how Dreamer activists embrace the Orange state colors with an unfathomable covert mission to truly help fellow men and women detained by Border Patrol. The world premiere screening (only the second docu film to break the Next section) took place at the Library and cast, crew and super heroes without capes were in attendance.…...
- 2/11/2019
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
Clemency (Chinonye Chukwo)U.S. – DRAMATICGrand Jury PrizeClemency (Chinonye Chukwo)Directing AwardThe Last Black Man in San Francisco (Joe Talbot)Special Jury Award for Vision and CraftHoneyboy (Alma Har’el)Special Jury Award for Creative CollaborationThe Last Black Man in San Francisco (Joe Talbot)Special Jury Award for Breakthrough PerformanceRhianne Barreto (Share)Waldo Salt Screenwriting AwardShare (Pippa Bianco)Audience AwardBrittany Runs a Marathon (Paul Downs Colaizzo)
Next Next Audience AwardThe Infiltrators (Cristina Ibarra, Alex Rivera)Next Innovator AwardThe Infiltrators (Cristina Ibarra, Alex Rivera)
U.S. – DOCUMENTARYGrand Jury PrizeOne Child NationDirecting AwardAmerican Factory (Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert)Special Jury Award for an Emerging FilmmakerJawline (Liza Mandelup)Special Jury Award for Moral UrgencyAlways in Season (Jacqueline Olive)Special Jury Award for EditingApollo 11 (Todd Douglas Miller)Special Jury Award for CinematographyMidnight Family (Luke Lorentzen)Audience AwardKnock Down the House (Rachel Lears)
World Cinema – DRAMATICGrand Jury PrizeThe Souvenir (Joanna Hogg)Directing AwardThe Sharks (Lucia...
Next Next Audience AwardThe Infiltrators (Cristina Ibarra, Alex Rivera)Next Innovator AwardThe Infiltrators (Cristina Ibarra, Alex Rivera)
U.S. – DOCUMENTARYGrand Jury PrizeOne Child NationDirecting AwardAmerican Factory (Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert)Special Jury Award for an Emerging FilmmakerJawline (Liza Mandelup)Special Jury Award for Moral UrgencyAlways in Season (Jacqueline Olive)Special Jury Award for EditingApollo 11 (Todd Douglas Miller)Special Jury Award for CinematographyMidnight Family (Luke Lorentzen)Audience AwardKnock Down the House (Rachel Lears)
World Cinema – DRAMATICGrand Jury PrizeThe Souvenir (Joanna Hogg)Directing AwardThe Sharks (Lucia...
- 2/3/2019
- MUBI
Chinonye Chukwu’s “Clemency,” a drama starring Alfre Woodard as a prison warden agonizing over capital punishment, has won the Grand Jury Prize for dramatic films at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, which handed out its awards at a ceremony in Park City on Saturday evening.
Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang’s “One Child Nation” won the Grand Jury Prize for documentaries.
The directing awards in the U.S. dramatic and documentary competitions went to Joe Talbot for “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” and Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert for “American Factory,” respectively.
Also Read: Sundance's Haves and Have Nots: Can Traditional Indie Distributors Still Compete?
The Grand Jury Prizes in the World Cinema Dramatic competition went to Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir,” while in the World Cinema Documentary competition it went to “Honeyland” by Ljubomir Stefanov and Tamara Kotevska.
Audience awards went to “Paul Downs Colaizzo’s “Brittany Runs a Marathon...
Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang’s “One Child Nation” won the Grand Jury Prize for documentaries.
The directing awards in the U.S. dramatic and documentary competitions went to Joe Talbot for “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” and Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert for “American Factory,” respectively.
Also Read: Sundance's Haves and Have Nots: Can Traditional Indie Distributors Still Compete?
The Grand Jury Prizes in the World Cinema Dramatic competition went to Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir,” while in the World Cinema Documentary competition it went to “Honeyland” by Ljubomir Stefanov and Tamara Kotevska.
Audience awards went to “Paul Downs Colaizzo’s “Brittany Runs a Marathon...
- 2/3/2019
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
The 2019 Sundance Film Festival drew to a close this evening with the annual awards ceremony, which was hosted by filmmaker and actress Marianna Palka at the Basin Recreation Fieldhouse in Park City, Utah.
Of the four Grand Jury Prizes given to competition films — the festival’s highest honors — each was directed or co-directed by a female filmmaker, reflecting last year’s Directing winners, who were all women. This year’s Grand Jury Prize winners include Chinonye Chukwu’s “Clemency” (U.S. Dramatic), Nanfu Wang’s “One Child Nation” (U.S. Documentary), Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir” (World Dramatic), and Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov’s “Honeyland” (World Documentary).
Both of the U.S. winners are still without U.S. distribution, so here’s hoping a big win at tonight’s show might loosen up some purse strings for these essential — and now award-winning — features.
At this year’s festival, women...
Of the four Grand Jury Prizes given to competition films — the festival’s highest honors — each was directed or co-directed by a female filmmaker, reflecting last year’s Directing winners, who were all women. This year’s Grand Jury Prize winners include Chinonye Chukwu’s “Clemency” (U.S. Dramatic), Nanfu Wang’s “One Child Nation” (U.S. Documentary), Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir” (World Dramatic), and Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov’s “Honeyland” (World Documentary).
Both of the U.S. winners are still without U.S. distribution, so here’s hoping a big win at tonight’s show might loosen up some purse strings for these essential — and now award-winning — features.
At this year’s festival, women...
- 2/3/2019
- by Kate Erbland and Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
Undocumented immigrants are detained by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on a regular basis, and their experiences could provide the foundation of a potent documentary, or a riveting social thriller. “The Infiltrators” endeavors to be both: Husband-and-wife co-directors Alex Rivera (“Sleep Dealer”) and Cristina Ibarra (“Las Marthas”) oscillates from real-life accounts of Dreamer activists going undercover in detention facilities to help reunite immigrants with their families, and fictional reenactments of the drama that unfolded inside.
The experimental approach takes some time to settle in and doesn’t always click, but at its best, “The Infiltrators” manages to personalize the undocumented struggle by transforming it into an unlikely blend of activism and suspense that makes a compelling case for the abolishment of Ice.
The two-pronged approach reflects its creators’ many modes: Rivera’s 2008 “Sleep Dealer” was a sci-fi allegory for contemporary immigration concerns, while Ibarra directed several documentaries on the same subject.
The experimental approach takes some time to settle in and doesn’t always click, but at its best, “The Infiltrators” manages to personalize the undocumented struggle by transforming it into an unlikely blend of activism and suspense that makes a compelling case for the abolishment of Ice.
The two-pronged approach reflects its creators’ many modes: Rivera’s 2008 “Sleep Dealer” was a sci-fi allegory for contemporary immigration concerns, while Ibarra directed several documentaries on the same subject.
- 2/1/2019
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Chronicling the audacious acts of a group of organized undocumented youth prior to the Obama-implemented, temporary relief known as Daca (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), “The Infiltrators,” from Latinx directors Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra, is a vital piece of hybrid cinema that shines light into the obscure realm of privately-operated immigration detention facilities. The timely film world-premiered Friday night at the Sundance Film Festival.
Interweaving firsthand accounts in talking-head format and scripted reenactments, Rivera and Ibarra construct a high-stakes, real-life drama centered on the National Immigrant Youth Alliance (Niya), comprised of resourceful and deeply committed DREAMers who’ve dared to defy the system, not only for their own benefit but also for the greater good.
“Everyone needs a plan,” says Niya activist Marco Saavedra (played by Maynor Alvarado in the docufiction sections) when detailing their strategy behind the 2012 infiltration of the Broward Transitional Center, an immigration jail in Florida,...
Interweaving firsthand accounts in talking-head format and scripted reenactments, Rivera and Ibarra construct a high-stakes, real-life drama centered on the National Immigrant Youth Alliance (Niya), comprised of resourceful and deeply committed DREAMers who’ve dared to defy the system, not only for their own benefit but also for the greater good.
“Everyone needs a plan,” says Niya activist Marco Saavedra (played by Maynor Alvarado in the docufiction sections) when detailing their strategy behind the 2012 infiltration of the Broward Transitional Center, an immigration jail in Florida,...
- 1/26/2019
- by Carlos Aguilar
- The Wrap
Sundance has always been pretty gay. Whether the festival was supporting queer filmmakers to lead the indie film boom of the ’90s, ushering in the dawn of the New Queer Cinema, or unofficially partnering with OutFest to share programmers and titles, Park City has always been fertile ground in which Lgbtq cinema can thrive. This year brings fewer solely queer offerings than previous years, but the program still has plenty to look forward to.
This year’s program marks the first in Kim Yutani’s new role as director of programming. Formerly a senior programmer for the festival, Yutani began her career at OutFest, where she lived and breathed queer films in her roles as artistic director and director of programming. Yutani reports to festival director John Cooper, another out and gay power player in independent film.
When Sundance released its first round of programming, it boasted that 40 percent, or...
This year’s program marks the first in Kim Yutani’s new role as director of programming. Formerly a senior programmer for the festival, Yutani began her career at OutFest, where she lived and breathed queer films in her roles as artistic director and director of programming. Yutani reports to festival director John Cooper, another out and gay power player in independent film.
When Sundance released its first round of programming, it boasted that 40 percent, or...
- 1/23/2019
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
In today’s film news roundup, immigration drama “The Infiltrators” gets financing, Jake Busey is starring in a high-school comedy, and Stuart Ford’s Agc Studios hires two former Im Global executives.
Project Financing
Chicago Media Project Invest/Impact’s Paula Froehle and Steve Cohen have joined the immigration drama “The Infiltrators” as executive producers and financiers, Variety has learned exclusively.
Cmp I/I has invested previously in the Academy Award-winning documentary “Icarus,” “Won’t You Be My Neighbor,” and Showtime’s series “The Fourth Estate.”
Directed and produced by Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra, “The Infiltrators” centers on a small group of young undocumented immigrants who embark on a high-risk mission inside America’s for-profit detention system in order to set people free. The film, which mixes documentary with narrative dramatization, stars Chelsea Rendon, Vik Sahay, Maynor Alvarado, and Manuel Uriza.
Production is currently underway in Southern California. The...
Project Financing
Chicago Media Project Invest/Impact’s Paula Froehle and Steve Cohen have joined the immigration drama “The Infiltrators” as executive producers and financiers, Variety has learned exclusively.
Cmp I/I has invested previously in the Academy Award-winning documentary “Icarus,” “Won’t You Be My Neighbor,” and Showtime’s series “The Fourth Estate.”
Directed and produced by Alex Rivera and Cristina Ibarra, “The Infiltrators” centers on a small group of young undocumented immigrants who embark on a high-risk mission inside America’s for-profit detention system in order to set people free. The film, which mixes documentary with narrative dramatization, stars Chelsea Rendon, Vik Sahay, Maynor Alvarado, and Manuel Uriza.
Production is currently underway in Southern California. The...
- 8/31/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
The docs are often the toughest nuggets to guess in our annual Sundance predictions, as we had Cristina Ibarra & Alex Rivera‘s The Infiltrators pegged for a launch this past January.
Continue reading...
Continue reading...
- 11/16/2017
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
Labs take place over two sessions at Sundance Resort, Utah, in July.
Sundance Institute has announced the eight projects selected for its annual Documentary Edit and Story Labs.
The Documentary Edit and Story Lab is centred on nurturing non-fiction storytellers during the later stages of post-production.
The selected projects are:
Always In Season (Us) Jacqueline Olive (director)
Charm City (Us) Marilyn Ness (director), Don Bernier (editor)
Facing The Dragon (Afghanistan/Us) Sedika Mojadidi (director), Sinead Kinnane (editor)
Freedom Fields (UK/Libya) Naziha Arebi (director), Alice Powell (editor)
Impeachment (Brazil) Petra Costa (director), Jordana Berg (editor)
The Infiltrators (Us) Cristina Ibarra (co-director/co-editor), Alex Rivera (co-director/co-editor)
People’s Republic Of Desire (China/Us)Hao Wu (director), Nanfu Wang (editor)
Warrior Women (Us) Christina D. King (co-director), Elizabeth Castle (co-director), Kristen Nutile (editor)
Overseen by documentary film programme director Tabitha Jackson and Labs director Kristin Feeley, each lab connects independent director and editor teams with seasoned documentary filmmakers...
Sundance Institute has announced the eight projects selected for its annual Documentary Edit and Story Labs.
The Documentary Edit and Story Lab is centred on nurturing non-fiction storytellers during the later stages of post-production.
The selected projects are:
Always In Season (Us) Jacqueline Olive (director)
Charm City (Us) Marilyn Ness (director), Don Bernier (editor)
Facing The Dragon (Afghanistan/Us) Sedika Mojadidi (director), Sinead Kinnane (editor)
Freedom Fields (UK/Libya) Naziha Arebi (director), Alice Powell (editor)
Impeachment (Brazil) Petra Costa (director), Jordana Berg (editor)
The Infiltrators (Us) Cristina Ibarra (co-director/co-editor), Alex Rivera (co-director/co-editor)
People’s Republic Of Desire (China/Us)Hao Wu (director), Nanfu Wang (editor)
Warrior Women (Us) Christina D. King (co-director), Elizabeth Castle (co-director), Kristen Nutile (editor)
Overseen by documentary film programme director Tabitha Jackson and Labs director Kristin Feeley, each lab connects independent director and editor teams with seasoned documentary filmmakers...
- 6/8/2017
- ScreenDaily
The Sundance Institute has announced the eight projects selected for its annual Documentary Edit and Story Lab, which will take place in two sessions at the Sundance Resort in Utah, including June 23 – July 1 and July 7 – 15. The Documentary Edit and Story Lab was designed to “create an incubation space for nonfiction storytellers to creatively interrogate their projects during the later stages of post-production. Among the breathtaking scenery of the Sundance Mountain Resort, filmmakers take advantage of the Lab’s creative environment to intensively explore story, dramatic structure and character development, centering their work around their own original motivation and intention.”
The Lab will be overseen by Documentary Film Program Director Tabitha Jackson and Labs Director Kristin Feeley, and will combine independent director and editor teams with world-renowned documentary filmmakers who serve as mentors and advisors. For the second year, the Lab will also host writers-in-residence Eric Hynes and Logan Hill, as...
The Lab will be overseen by Documentary Film Program Director Tabitha Jackson and Labs Director Kristin Feeley, and will combine independent director and editor teams with world-renowned documentary filmmakers who serve as mentors and advisors. For the second year, the Lab will also host writers-in-residence Eric Hynes and Logan Hill, as...
- 6/8/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
While the first of two weekends of the Austin City Limits Festival will create an influx of out-of-towners and even more traffic than usual, local theaters offer more choices than ever for those of you not braving Zilker Park. There are no less than 10 new releases opening, but first I want to focus on this week's specialty screenings.
The Austin Film Society is kicking off their "Art Horror" series for October with Andrzej Zulawski's Possession. Released in 1981, the film stars Sam Neill and Isabelle Adjani and plays out like a paranoid fever dream. Beautifully shot with an incredible score, it's screening in 35mm at the Marchesa tonight, Sunday afternoon and again on Tuesday evening so there's no excuse for missing this one! On Wednesday, Doc Nights will feature Las Marthas with director Cristina Ibarra in attendance for a Q&A and Essential Cinema's "The Films Of Satyajit Ray" series...
- 10/3/2014
- by Matt Shiverdecker
- Slackerwood
'Las Marthas' follows two young women as they prepare to 'debut' at a Colonial Ball hosted by the elite Society of Martha Washington. The Ball is held each year in a month long celebration of George Washington's birthday. And these Mexican-Americans do not mess around when it comes to celebrating ol' Georgie's birthday. They go in. Elaborate one-of--a-kind gowns and all. Yes, Mexican-Americans celebrating the birth of a man who pretty much stretched the border a little further south to claim territories that once belonged to Mexico. This is not 'Bizarro World'. It's Laredo, Texas. What makes 'Las Marthas' unique is Chicana filmmaker Cristina Ibarra's skillful and mindful exploration of the complexities to find a fascinating coming of age story culturally steeped in history.
LatinoBuzz: If one is to judge by what's been show on film and television, it seems the border stories all have a recurring theme and there was little originality left. How did you stay away from the “other” Laredo, Texas border stories as much as possible?
Cristina Ibarra: Growing up along the Us/Mx border in El Paso, Texas I felt somewhat alienated by what I saw on television in both Mexico and the United States. Especially when it was news reports about the border region. But I didn’t really have the tools to express this discontent until I left home. Now that I am a filmmaker, I enjoy telling stories that break down some of the more common stereotypes. My producing partner, Erin Ploss-Campoamor, likes to quote novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who has this great Ted talk about the danger of perpetuating a “single story” about a culture. We feel like our film breaks down that “single story” about the border, and Latinos in particular. Which is not to say that we are dismissing the importance of films about immigration, the drug war or violence. We are simply adding a new voice to the mix. Deepening our perceptions about not just the border region and Latinos, but also reminding ourselves that as Americans, we live with multiple identities within us. My goal is to make films that embrace the nuances and contradictions of these many different stories.
LatinoBuzz: You've explored Documentaries and Narratives now, what's the biggest difference in your approach or even what are the similarities?
Cristina Ibarra: I feel like I use many of the same building blocks when it comes to story. For example, in both documentary and fiction films, we need to set up the world, connect with the protagonists, and understand their conflict. That is useful in both kinds of films, even if the production approach varies. Of course, the most striking difference is that in fiction, you have more control of the story before you go into production. You can build all of the necessary creative relationships before going into “battle,” so to speak. My documentary productions have evolved much more slowly, as I have gradually built relationships with my subjects. This kind of production is much more intimate. The relationship is a collaboration, as it develops, the story deepens. So the production process can be quite long. Documentaries work when you are able to capture and connect with a real person who is letting you into their world. But I feel like those skills translate well into narrative fiction films as well, where I often try to achieve a similar level of authenticity.
LatinoBuzz: What type of Stories do you want to keep creating?
Cristina Ibarra: Complex, nuanced stories…hybrids. I love exploring the borderland contradictions of my childhood. I enjoy working in both fiction and documentary. I want to continue to do both. But I’m also eager to experiment some day with combining the two and building a hybrid film. My childhood playgrounds were my father’s junkyards, or yonkes, one in Juarez, Mexico, the other in El Paso, Texas. I want to use his yonke as a metaphorical inspiration to mix and match used parts from my documentary and fiction work and recycle these elements into a new kind of storytelling approach. Erin and I have been talking about how we might do that in our next film 'Love & Monster Trucks'.
LatinoBuzz: How did you settle on these protagonists? Did you become close or keep a distance to allow them to be themselves?
Cristina Ibarra: As soon as I saw the colonial ball gowns that Linda Leyendecker Gutierrez designs, I was captivated. Then I was lucky, because I was able to meet many of the debutantes in Linda’s studio, when they came to get their gowns fitted. It was an incredible opportunity, because I was able to talk to these girls as they were undergoing this amazing transformation into young women. They were being taught how to present a very polished exterior. They were getting lessons in etiquette, how they speak to their elders, how to talk to the media. And here they are, meeting this strange filmmaker who is asking them to open up, and basically do the exact opposite of what they have just been taught. It was not easy. So I ended up following the two girls who opened up to me the most: Laura Garza Hovel, a legacy daughter, and Rosario Reyes, a guest representing Nuevo Laredo. And they naturally became the protagonists of the film. We just got lucky that they happened to come from two different positions in Society, because it helped create a richer and more complex coming-of-age portrait.
LatinoBuzz: Do you think perhaps, that maybe another filmmaker with a different sensibility or a different ideology might look on this Colonial Pageant and Ball in a much more negative light and shape the film in such a manner of how it may look to an outsider who is merely taking it at face value.
Cristina Ibarra: There have already been those kinds of news stories about the celebration, in which journalists portrayed the debutantes as frivolous, and questioned why their event was so expensive, considering all of the social and economic ills along the border. So the Society was very nervous about opening themselves up to criticism again. But I saw many other dimensions to the story that might not be so obvious to someone who just quickly parachutes in to cover the controversy and then leaves. My intention was always to examine this coming-of-age story in a much more intimate, complex and nuanced way. I absolutely agree that another filmmaker would bring another sensibility to the story. But it was important for me to stay true to my original intentions, even if it meant making a different kind of film than people expected.
LatinoBuzz: What type of Stories do you want to keep creating?
Cristina Ibarra: Complex, nuanced stories…hybrids. I love exploring the borderland contradictions of my childhood. I enjoy working in both fiction and documentary. I want to continue to do both. But I’m also eager to experiment some day with combining the two and building a hybrid film. My childhood playgrounds were my father’s junkyards, or 'yonkes', one in Juarez, Mexico, the other in El Paso, Texas. I want to use his yonke as a metaphorical inspiration to mix and match used parts from my documentary and fiction work and recycle these elements into a new kind of storytelling approach. Erin and I have been talking about how we might do that in our next film 'Love & Monster Trucks'.
LatinoBuzz: You have an impressive crew of notable filmmakers in their own right. How did you manage to get them to take this ride with you?
Cristina Ibarra: Sometimes the timing works out just right so that some of my best and most loved friends have been able to join me in between working on their own films. Natalia Almada, Eddie Martinez, Ray Santisteban, Craig Mardsen, Prashant Bhargava and, of course, Erin Ploss-Campoamor, all have their own stellar track records as filmmakers in their own right. Each relationship is different, but there is always love there. We each have to trust that we will bring our specific skills to the same vision. Filmmaking is a team effort for me. I love collaborating and working with friends who know what I am trying to do and love me for it.
LatinoBuzz: What is truth to you when it comes to writing?
Cristina Ibarra: Wow, this is a good question. Truth is an ideal and a principle to follow when writing. It doesn’t always look the same to every one person, but you know you have achieved it when your work connects with an audience. That spark of recognition and connection can be transformative.
LatinoBuzz: Who influences you aesthetically in both documentary and narrative?
Cristina Ibarra: All of my filmmaking friends influence my work in both forms. But there is one visionary artist, Lourdes Portillo, who has always been a beacon of light for me. She has such a wicked and brilliant sense of humor in all of her work. I also love that she is undeniably hybrid in her approach.
LatinoBuzz: I know you personally: As a Selena fan, did you hate Jennifer Lopez being cast in the movie? Did you hold that Selena lunch box of yours close to you and rock back and forth at night like a crumbling mess?
Cristina Ibarra: You are right, it is hard to please a Selena fan! I think I am in the minority here among my Chicana friends, but I actually really enjoy Jennifer Lopez as an actress, especially as Selena. She owned that role. I have some friends who worked on that film and we all love Jennifer Lopez from way back before she became J-Lo.
Watch Las Marthas for a limited time online and for local listings visit: http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/las-marthas/film.html & dig: https://www.facebook.com/lasmarthasmovie for further updates!
Written by Juan Caceres . LatinoBuzz is a weekly feature on SydneysBuzz that highlights Latino indie talent and upcoming trends in Latino film with the specific objective of presenting a broad range of Latino voices. Follow [At]LatinoBuzz on Twitter and Facebook .
LatinoBuzz: If one is to judge by what's been show on film and television, it seems the border stories all have a recurring theme and there was little originality left. How did you stay away from the “other” Laredo, Texas border stories as much as possible?
Cristina Ibarra: Growing up along the Us/Mx border in El Paso, Texas I felt somewhat alienated by what I saw on television in both Mexico and the United States. Especially when it was news reports about the border region. But I didn’t really have the tools to express this discontent until I left home. Now that I am a filmmaker, I enjoy telling stories that break down some of the more common stereotypes. My producing partner, Erin Ploss-Campoamor, likes to quote novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who has this great Ted talk about the danger of perpetuating a “single story” about a culture. We feel like our film breaks down that “single story” about the border, and Latinos in particular. Which is not to say that we are dismissing the importance of films about immigration, the drug war or violence. We are simply adding a new voice to the mix. Deepening our perceptions about not just the border region and Latinos, but also reminding ourselves that as Americans, we live with multiple identities within us. My goal is to make films that embrace the nuances and contradictions of these many different stories.
LatinoBuzz: You've explored Documentaries and Narratives now, what's the biggest difference in your approach or even what are the similarities?
Cristina Ibarra: I feel like I use many of the same building blocks when it comes to story. For example, in both documentary and fiction films, we need to set up the world, connect with the protagonists, and understand their conflict. That is useful in both kinds of films, even if the production approach varies. Of course, the most striking difference is that in fiction, you have more control of the story before you go into production. You can build all of the necessary creative relationships before going into “battle,” so to speak. My documentary productions have evolved much more slowly, as I have gradually built relationships with my subjects. This kind of production is much more intimate. The relationship is a collaboration, as it develops, the story deepens. So the production process can be quite long. Documentaries work when you are able to capture and connect with a real person who is letting you into their world. But I feel like those skills translate well into narrative fiction films as well, where I often try to achieve a similar level of authenticity.
LatinoBuzz: What type of Stories do you want to keep creating?
Cristina Ibarra: Complex, nuanced stories…hybrids. I love exploring the borderland contradictions of my childhood. I enjoy working in both fiction and documentary. I want to continue to do both. But I’m also eager to experiment some day with combining the two and building a hybrid film. My childhood playgrounds were my father’s junkyards, or yonkes, one in Juarez, Mexico, the other in El Paso, Texas. I want to use his yonke as a metaphorical inspiration to mix and match used parts from my documentary and fiction work and recycle these elements into a new kind of storytelling approach. Erin and I have been talking about how we might do that in our next film 'Love & Monster Trucks'.
LatinoBuzz: How did you settle on these protagonists? Did you become close or keep a distance to allow them to be themselves?
Cristina Ibarra: As soon as I saw the colonial ball gowns that Linda Leyendecker Gutierrez designs, I was captivated. Then I was lucky, because I was able to meet many of the debutantes in Linda’s studio, when they came to get their gowns fitted. It was an incredible opportunity, because I was able to talk to these girls as they were undergoing this amazing transformation into young women. They were being taught how to present a very polished exterior. They were getting lessons in etiquette, how they speak to their elders, how to talk to the media. And here they are, meeting this strange filmmaker who is asking them to open up, and basically do the exact opposite of what they have just been taught. It was not easy. So I ended up following the two girls who opened up to me the most: Laura Garza Hovel, a legacy daughter, and Rosario Reyes, a guest representing Nuevo Laredo. And they naturally became the protagonists of the film. We just got lucky that they happened to come from two different positions in Society, because it helped create a richer and more complex coming-of-age portrait.
LatinoBuzz: Do you think perhaps, that maybe another filmmaker with a different sensibility or a different ideology might look on this Colonial Pageant and Ball in a much more negative light and shape the film in such a manner of how it may look to an outsider who is merely taking it at face value.
Cristina Ibarra: There have already been those kinds of news stories about the celebration, in which journalists portrayed the debutantes as frivolous, and questioned why their event was so expensive, considering all of the social and economic ills along the border. So the Society was very nervous about opening themselves up to criticism again. But I saw many other dimensions to the story that might not be so obvious to someone who just quickly parachutes in to cover the controversy and then leaves. My intention was always to examine this coming-of-age story in a much more intimate, complex and nuanced way. I absolutely agree that another filmmaker would bring another sensibility to the story. But it was important for me to stay true to my original intentions, even if it meant making a different kind of film than people expected.
LatinoBuzz: What type of Stories do you want to keep creating?
Cristina Ibarra: Complex, nuanced stories…hybrids. I love exploring the borderland contradictions of my childhood. I enjoy working in both fiction and documentary. I want to continue to do both. But I’m also eager to experiment some day with combining the two and building a hybrid film. My childhood playgrounds were my father’s junkyards, or 'yonkes', one in Juarez, Mexico, the other in El Paso, Texas. I want to use his yonke as a metaphorical inspiration to mix and match used parts from my documentary and fiction work and recycle these elements into a new kind of storytelling approach. Erin and I have been talking about how we might do that in our next film 'Love & Monster Trucks'.
LatinoBuzz: You have an impressive crew of notable filmmakers in their own right. How did you manage to get them to take this ride with you?
Cristina Ibarra: Sometimes the timing works out just right so that some of my best and most loved friends have been able to join me in between working on their own films. Natalia Almada, Eddie Martinez, Ray Santisteban, Craig Mardsen, Prashant Bhargava and, of course, Erin Ploss-Campoamor, all have their own stellar track records as filmmakers in their own right. Each relationship is different, but there is always love there. We each have to trust that we will bring our specific skills to the same vision. Filmmaking is a team effort for me. I love collaborating and working with friends who know what I am trying to do and love me for it.
LatinoBuzz: What is truth to you when it comes to writing?
Cristina Ibarra: Wow, this is a good question. Truth is an ideal and a principle to follow when writing. It doesn’t always look the same to every one person, but you know you have achieved it when your work connects with an audience. That spark of recognition and connection can be transformative.
LatinoBuzz: Who influences you aesthetically in both documentary and narrative?
Cristina Ibarra: All of my filmmaking friends influence my work in both forms. But there is one visionary artist, Lourdes Portillo, who has always been a beacon of light for me. She has such a wicked and brilliant sense of humor in all of her work. I also love that she is undeniably hybrid in her approach.
LatinoBuzz: I know you personally: As a Selena fan, did you hate Jennifer Lopez being cast in the movie? Did you hold that Selena lunch box of yours close to you and rock back and forth at night like a crumbling mess?
Cristina Ibarra: You are right, it is hard to please a Selena fan! I think I am in the minority here among my Chicana friends, but I actually really enjoy Jennifer Lopez as an actress, especially as Selena. She owned that role. I have some friends who worked on that film and we all love Jennifer Lopez from way back before she became J-Lo.
Watch Las Marthas for a limited time online and for local listings visit: http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/las-marthas/film.html & dig: https://www.facebook.com/lasmarthasmovie for further updates!
Written by Juan Caceres . LatinoBuzz is a weekly feature on SydneysBuzz that highlights Latino indie talent and upcoming trends in Latino film with the specific objective of presenting a broad range of Latino voices. Follow [At]LatinoBuzz on Twitter and Facebook .
- 2/19/2014
- by Juan Caceres
- Sydney's Buzz
In celebration of the 25th season of PBS’ groundbreaking documentary series Pov, Filmmaker is this week running a four-part conversation series between two non-fiction directors with close ties to the show. A few weeks ago, acclaimed documentarian Jennifer Fox — whose 20-year project, My Reincarnation, kicks off the 2012 Pov season today — and The Last Conquistador director Cristina Ibarra, a relative newcomer to the non-fiction scene, sat down to talk about a variety of issues that arise from their work. Despite radically different backgrounds and, at the time of the conversation, being literally continents apart — NYC resident Fox was in Amsterdam, talking to Ibarra over Skype — the two found much common ground and dug in deep in their discussion of the documentary craft.
In this final part, Fox and Ibarra give their individual takes on the huge disparity between the number of men and women working in film.
Jennifer Fox: I have to say,...
In this final part, Fox and Ibarra give their individual takes on the huge disparity between the number of men and women working in film.
Jennifer Fox: I have to say,...
- 6/21/2012
- by Nick Dawson
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In celebration of the 25th season of PBS’ groundbreaking documentary series Pov, Filmmaker is this week running a four-part conversation series between two non-fiction directors with close ties to the show. A few weeks ago, acclaimed documentarian Jennifer Fox — whose 20-year project, My Reincarnation, kicks off the 2012 Pov season this Thursday — and The Last Conquistador director Cristina Ibarra, a relative newcomer to the non-fiction scene, sat down to talk about a variety of issues that arise from their work. Despite radically different backgrounds and, at the time of the conversation, being literally continents apart — NYC resident Fox was in Amsterdam, talking to Ibarra over Skype — the two found much common ground and dug in deep in their discussion of the documentary craft.
In this penultimate part, the two directors discuss the extent to which making a non-fiction film is, by necessity, an act of faith.
Cristina Ibarra: I’ve...
In this penultimate part, the two directors discuss the extent to which making a non-fiction film is, by necessity, an act of faith.
Cristina Ibarra: I’ve...
- 6/20/2012
- by Nick Dawson
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In celebration of the 25th season of PBS’ groundbreaking documentary series Pov, Filmmaker is this week running a four-part conversation series between two non-fiction directors with close ties to the show. A few weeks ago, acclaimed documentarian Jennifer Fox — whose 20-year project, My Reincarnation, kicks off the 2012 Pov season this Thursday — and The Last Conquistador director Cristina Ibarra, a relative newcomer to the non-fiction scene, sat down to talk about a variety of issues that arise from their work. Despite radically different backgrounds and, at the time of the conversation, being literally continents apart — NYC resident Fox was in Amsterdam, talking to Ibarra over Skype — the two found much common ground and dug in deep in their discussion of the documentary craft.
In this second of four parts, Fox and Ibarra talk about the vocational nature of being a non-fiction filmmaker.
Jennifer Fox: I think for me, when I...
In this second of four parts, Fox and Ibarra talk about the vocational nature of being a non-fiction filmmaker.
Jennifer Fox: I think for me, when I...
- 6/19/2012
- by Nick Dawson
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In celebration of the 25th season of PBS’ groundbreaking documentary series Pov, Filmmaker is this week running a four-part conversation series between two non-fiction directors with close ties to the show. A few weeks ago, acclaimed documentarian Jennifer Fox — whose 20-year project, My Reincarnation, kicks off the 2012 Pov season this Thursday — and The Last Conquistador director Cristina Ibarra, a relative newcomer to the non-fiction scene, sat down to talk about a variety of issues that arise from their work. Despite radically different backgrounds and, at the time of the conversation, being literally continents apart — NYC resident Fox was in Amsterdam, talking to Ibarra over Skype — the two found much common ground and dug in deep in their discussion of the documentary craft.
In this first of four parts, the two directors talk about how and why they gravitated towards the realm of non-fiction filmmaking.
Cristina Ibarra: I grew up in El Paso,...
In this first of four parts, the two directors talk about how and why they gravitated towards the realm of non-fiction filmmaking.
Cristina Ibarra: I grew up in El Paso,...
- 6/18/2012
- by Nick Dawson
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
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