Indie News
Six Alamo Drafthouse franchised locations are closing abruptly after their owner filed for bankruptcy.
The venues include five Texas locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, as well as a Minnesota venue in Woodbury. The theaters are operated by Two is One, One is None, LLC, which is filing for Chapter 7. The closure is effective immediately and staff has been informed that their employment has been terminated. In a message from the franchisee to employees that was circulating on social media, the owners said they lost “over $1 million” in 2023. The Texas theaters are located in Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton.
The closures come as the summer box office is suffering a steep decline, with major films such as “The Fall Guy” and “Furiosa” failing to connect with audiences. Hollywood has also struggled to release as many films theatrically, after enduring production shutdowns during Covid and the 2023 actors and writers strikes.
The venues include five Texas locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, as well as a Minnesota venue in Woodbury. The theaters are operated by Two is One, One is None, LLC, which is filing for Chapter 7. The closure is effective immediately and staff has been informed that their employment has been terminated. In a message from the franchisee to employees that was circulating on social media, the owners said they lost “over $1 million” in 2023. The Texas theaters are located in Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton.
The closures come as the summer box office is suffering a steep decline, with major films such as “The Fall Guy” and “Furiosa” failing to connect with audiences. Hollywood has also struggled to release as many films theatrically, after enduring production shutdowns during Covid and the 2023 actors and writers strikes.
- 6/6/2024
- by Brent Lang
- Variety - Film News
Gravitas Ventures has acquired North American rights to horror thriller “I’ll Play Mother,” with the Anthem Sports & Entertainment Company set to release the film in September.
The film, which was acquired from Concourse Media, stars Susanne Wuest (“Goodnight Mummy”), Jo Martin and Shubham Saraf (“A Suitable Boy”). Brad Watson (“The Siege”) directs from a screenplay by Libby Adam, based on an original story by Charles Edwards.
A twisted psychological horror about the relentless and unending paranoia of parenthood, “I’ll Play Mother” follows two children who are placed into the care system after the death of their birth mother. At this point, they realize there is something sinister at play.
The film was produced by Ben Charles Edwards and Kirsty Bell for Dreamtown, commissioned by Goldfinch.
“I’ll Play Mother” marks the first film from Dreamtown’s film slate, an auteur-driven genre production label focused on horror, thriller and sci-fi projects.
The film, which was acquired from Concourse Media, stars Susanne Wuest (“Goodnight Mummy”), Jo Martin and Shubham Saraf (“A Suitable Boy”). Brad Watson (“The Siege”) directs from a screenplay by Libby Adam, based on an original story by Charles Edwards.
A twisted psychological horror about the relentless and unending paranoia of parenthood, “I’ll Play Mother” follows two children who are placed into the care system after the death of their birth mother. At this point, they realize there is something sinister at play.
The film was produced by Ben Charles Edwards and Kirsty Bell for Dreamtown, commissioned by Goldfinch.
“I’ll Play Mother” marks the first film from Dreamtown’s film slate, an auteur-driven genre production label focused on horror, thriller and sci-fi projects.
- 6/6/2024
- by Alex Ritman
- Variety - Film News
The Fantasia International Film Festival returns with its 28th edition from July 18 through August 4, 2024, returning to the Concordia Hall and J.A. de Sève cinemas, with additional screens and events at Montreal’s Cinémathèque québécoise and Cinéma du Musée. The second wave of programming has been unveiled, adding even more genre premieres to an already packed slate.
Come To Daddy director Ant Timpson‘s Bookworm (starring Elijah Wood and Evil Dead Rise‘s Nell Fisher) is the fest’s 2024 Opening Film. Fantasia is also hosting the World Premieres of the dark fantasy The Beast Within, starring “Game of Thrones” actor Kit Harington, Cannes’ hit The Count of Monte-Cristo, and more. The festival is also giving their Canadian Trailblazer Award to Vincenzo Natali, to be presented before the premiere of the new 4K restoration of his 1997 classic Cube.
The second wave of titles, from the press release:
Bookworm
Fantasia’s 28th...
Come To Daddy director Ant Timpson‘s Bookworm (starring Elijah Wood and Evil Dead Rise‘s Nell Fisher) is the fest’s 2024 Opening Film. Fantasia is also hosting the World Premieres of the dark fantasy The Beast Within, starring “Game of Thrones” actor Kit Harington, Cannes’ hit The Count of Monte-Cristo, and more. The festival is also giving their Canadian Trailblazer Award to Vincenzo Natali, to be presented before the premiere of the new 4K restoration of his 1997 classic Cube.
The second wave of titles, from the press release:
Bookworm
Fantasia’s 28th...
- 6/6/2024
- by Meagan Navarro
- bloody-disgusting.com
There are endless challenges to getting an indie feature-length animated film made: Lack of money, not enough time, fruitless rewrites, a vision that can’t get across the finish line. When asked what the biggest challenge was while making their upcoming comedy “Mars,” co-writers and voice actors Sam Brown and Zach Cregger can’t help but riff an answer to a question that inelegantly ignores the elephant in the room.
“Well, Trevor died,” Brown says.
“Trevor died, that was a toughie,” Cregger says. “I guess it was getting it funded — that was bigger than Trevor dying. No, no, no, no, no. Also, Covid was annoying. So let’s go Covid, funding, Trevor dying.”
Trevor is Trevor Moore, the de facto leader of Whitest Kids U’Know, the five-person sketch group — consisting of Moore, Brown, Cregger, Timmy Williams and Darren Trumeter — behind “Mars.” The group, which began as a club at...
“Well, Trevor died,” Brown says.
“Trevor died, that was a toughie,” Cregger says. “I guess it was getting it funded — that was bigger than Trevor dying. No, no, no, no, no. Also, Covid was annoying. So let’s go Covid, funding, Trevor dying.”
Trevor is Trevor Moore, the de facto leader of Whitest Kids U’Know, the five-person sketch group — consisting of Moore, Brown, Cregger, Timmy Williams and Darren Trumeter — behind “Mars.” The group, which began as a club at...
- 6/6/2024
- by William Earl
- Variety - Film News
Music Box Films has bought domestic rights to “In the Summers,” a coming-of-age tale from writer-director Alessandra Lacorazza Samudio which won Sundance’s grand jury prize and directing award in the U.S. dramatic competition.
A directorial debut, “In the Summers” tells the story of two daughters navigating a turbulent but loving father during yearly visits to his home in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The Latin-American family portrait is headlined by Grammy Award-winning Puerto Rican rapper, songwriter, and actor René Pérez Joglar (known in the music industry as Residente), who plays the divorced father, while the two siblings, Violeta and Eva, are played at different ages by several rising actors, including Sasha Calle (“The Flash”) and Lío Mehiel (“Mutt”). The cast is completed by Leslie Grace (“In the Heights”) and Emma Ramos (“New Amsterdam”).
The critically lauded movie will have its New York premiere in June at the Tribeca Film Festival,...
A directorial debut, “In the Summers” tells the story of two daughters navigating a turbulent but loving father during yearly visits to his home in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The Latin-American family portrait is headlined by Grammy Award-winning Puerto Rican rapper, songwriter, and actor René Pérez Joglar (known in the music industry as Residente), who plays the divorced father, while the two siblings, Violeta and Eva, are played at different ages by several rising actors, including Sasha Calle (“The Flash”) and Lío Mehiel (“Mutt”). The cast is completed by Leslie Grace (“In the Heights”) and Emma Ramos (“New Amsterdam”).
The critically lauded movie will have its New York premiere in June at the Tribeca Film Festival,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Griffin Nafly (Everett Blunk) is not like other 14-year-olds. Consider his contribution to his school’s end-of-the-year talent show: a snippet of his latest play in which he reads for both lead roles, a disaffected stockbroker and his drunk wife, as they scream and carry on about everything from infidelity to abortions. While everyone else is happy with pop song duets, it’s Griffin — too old for his years, too young to really break free — who wants to bring some actual art to the suburban stage.
And while that might all be Ok, even kinda fun, the real problem isn’t just that Griffin isn’t like most other 14-year-olds, it’s that he’s not even really like his closest friends either. While his childhood pals, including “Are You There, God? It’s Me Margaret” breakout Abbie Ryder Fortson as his long-suffering second-in-command Kara, are moving into classic young adulthood — finding handsy boyfriends,...
And while that might all be Ok, even kinda fun, the real problem isn’t just that Griffin isn’t like most other 14-year-olds, it’s that he’s not even really like his closest friends either. While his childhood pals, including “Are You There, God? It’s Me Margaret” breakout Abbie Ryder Fortson as his long-suffering second-in-command Kara, are moving into classic young adulthood — finding handsy boyfriends,...
- 6/7/2024
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
The femme fatale is a figure that dates back centuries. In Greek mythology there were The Sirens, whose song dragged sailors to the depths of the seas, as well as Clytemnestra — wife, seductress, and ultimately murderer of King Agamemnon. Even Eve can be considered one for luring Adam into eating the forbidden fruit. But it was motion pictures that elevated the archetype to common nomenclature, starting at the form’s inception with characters played by actresses like Greta Garbo and Louise Brooks, then flourishing in the ‘40s and ‘50s with the popularity of pulp crime narratives.
Bombshells like Rita Hayworth and Barbara Stanwyck came to define the femme fatale, with directors like Charles Vidor and Billy Wilder wielding their strength against the hapless men who populate their films. The ‘80s and ‘90s saw a revitalization of the character type with the rise of erotic thrillers. Glenn Close and Sharon Stone...
Bombshells like Rita Hayworth and Barbara Stanwyck came to define the femme fatale, with directors like Charles Vidor and Billy Wilder wielding their strength against the hapless men who populate their films. The ‘80s and ‘90s saw a revitalization of the character type with the rise of erotic thrillers. Glenn Close and Sharon Stone...
- 6/7/2024
- by Harrison Richlin
- Indiewire
From our colleagues at Psyche comes a beautiful short film by Lynne Sachs that is a decades-long collaboration with the late pioneering feminist filmmaker Barbara Hammer. From the Psyche writeup: In 1998, the pioneering US feminist artist Barbara Hammer (1939-2019) spent a month at an artist residency in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Feeling “compelled to do absolutely nothing” while living in a dune shack without running water or electricity, Hammer documented her solitude with a journal, a tape recorder and a 16mm film camera. For decades, these materials remained in her personal archive, until, as Hammer was nearing the end of […]
The post Watch: Lynne Sachs’s Short Barbara Hammer Film, A Month of Single Frames first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post Watch: Lynne Sachs’s Short Barbara Hammer Film, A Month of Single Frames first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/7/2024
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
From our colleagues at Psyche comes a beautiful short film by Lynne Sachs that is a decades-long collaboration with the late pioneering feminist filmmaker Barbara Hammer. From the Psyche writeup: In 1998, the pioneering US feminist artist Barbara Hammer (1939-2019) spent a month at an artist residency in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Feeling “compelled to do absolutely nothing” while living in a dune shack without running water or electricity, Hammer documented her solitude with a journal, a tape recorder and a 16mm film camera. For decades, these materials remained in her personal archive, until, as Hammer was nearing the end of […]
The post Watch: Lynne Sachs’s Short Barbara Hammer Film, A Month of Single Frames first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post Watch: Lynne Sachs’s Short Barbara Hammer Film, A Month of Single Frames first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/7/2024
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Akira Kurosawa’s classic epic “Seven Samurai” is celebrating its 70th anniversary with a 4K restoration and theatrical re-release.
“Seven Samurai” centers on 16th-century Japanese warriors who protect their village from invaders. Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura lead the three-hour feature hailing from legendary auteur Kurosawa. “Seven Samurai” was his third film following “Rashomon” and “Ikiru.” “Seven Samurai” famously debuted at the 1954 Venice Film Festival, where Kurosawa won the Silver Lion for Best Director.
The 70th anniversary 4K restoration was made possible by Toho Co. Ltd, which released the original film. The restored film debuted at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival; the festival further honored Kurosawa’s contributions to cinema by incorporating a still of “Rhapsody in August” in the official Cannes poster.
The restoration of “Seven Samurai” will be released in the U.S. by Janus Films. Deadline debuted the trailer.
“Seven Samurai” infamously quadrupled its budget during production, with...
“Seven Samurai” centers on 16th-century Japanese warriors who protect their village from invaders. Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura lead the three-hour feature hailing from legendary auteur Kurosawa. “Seven Samurai” was his third film following “Rashomon” and “Ikiru.” “Seven Samurai” famously debuted at the 1954 Venice Film Festival, where Kurosawa won the Silver Lion for Best Director.
The 70th anniversary 4K restoration was made possible by Toho Co. Ltd, which released the original film. The restored film debuted at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival; the festival further honored Kurosawa’s contributions to cinema by incorporating a still of “Rhapsody in August” in the official Cannes poster.
The restoration of “Seven Samurai” will be released in the U.S. by Janus Films. Deadline debuted the trailer.
“Seven Samurai” infamously quadrupled its budget during production, with...
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
While Max Duncan and Xinyan Yu’s Made in Ethiopia takes place in the titular country, it in many ways echoes last year’s Central African Republic-set Eat Bitter, co-directed by Ningyi Sun and Pascale Appora-Gnekindy, which similarly explored China’s capitalist push throughout the continent; and specifically from the Pov of the shared personal toll it’s taking on individuals from very unalike cultures. In this case we’re introduced to an inexhaustibly optimistic woman named Motto, the upbeat Chinese head of a mega industrial park in a rural Ethiopian town. She’s also a true believer that the Chinese dream can be exported to […]
The post “I Don’t Think We Ever Expected To See a Carbon Copy of China’s Industrial Experience [in Ethiopia], and We Certainly Didn’t”: Max Duncan and Xinyan Yu on Their Tribeca-Debuting Made in Ethiopia first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “I Don’t Think We Ever Expected To See a Carbon Copy of China’s Industrial Experience [in Ethiopia], and We Certainly Didn’t”: Max Duncan and Xinyan Yu on Their Tribeca-Debuting Made in Ethiopia first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Lauren Wissot
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
While Max Duncan and Xinyan Yu’s Made in Ethiopia takes place in the titular country, it in many ways echoes last year’s Central African Republic-set Eat Bitter, co-directed by Ningyi Sun and Pascale Appora-Gnekindy, which similarly explored China’s capitalist push throughout the continent; and specifically from the Pov of the shared personal toll it’s taking on individuals from very unalike cultures. In this case we’re introduced to an inexhaustibly optimistic woman named Motto, the upbeat Chinese head of a mega industrial park in a rural Ethiopian town. She’s also a true believer that the Chinese dream can be exported to […]
The post “I Don’t Think We Ever Expected To See a Carbon Copy of China’s Industrial Experience [in Ethiopia], and We Certainly Didn’t”: Max Duncan and Xinyan Yu on Their Tribeca-Debuting Made in Ethiopia first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “I Don’t Think We Ever Expected To See a Carbon Copy of China’s Industrial Experience [in Ethiopia], and We Certainly Didn’t”: Max Duncan and Xinyan Yu on Their Tribeca-Debuting Made in Ethiopia first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Lauren Wissot
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
“It’s just a thrill a minute,” filmmaker Chris Nash is quick to joke of his debut feature, “In a Violent Nature.”
“We made this movie with an audience of maybe five people in mind. So having anybody like it and endure the walking and just the pace of the film, it’s been a testament to the patience of an audience,” he said.
Nash cuts himself short — a metaphor made more apt when you’ve seen just how creative the filmmaker can be with a paralyzed victim and a well-placed log splitter. The extra gutsy first-time feature writer/director and his star Ry Barrett spoke with IndieWire in April at The Overlook Film Festival. That’s an annual horror event in Louisiana, where Nash’s spellbinding slasher deconstruction for IFC Films and Shudder screened for the second time after making its world premiere at Sundance. “In a Violent Nature...
“We made this movie with an audience of maybe five people in mind. So having anybody like it and endure the walking and just the pace of the film, it’s been a testament to the patience of an audience,” he said.
Nash cuts himself short — a metaphor made more apt when you’ve seen just how creative the filmmaker can be with a paralyzed victim and a well-placed log splitter. The extra gutsy first-time feature writer/director and his star Ry Barrett spoke with IndieWire in April at The Overlook Film Festival. That’s an annual horror event in Louisiana, where Nash’s spellbinding slasher deconstruction for IFC Films and Shudder screened for the second time after making its world premiere at Sundance. “In a Violent Nature...
- 6/6/2024
- by Alison Foreman
- Indiewire
In the summer of 1990, screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin became an overnight success with the release of “Ghost,” a romantic thriller that would go on to become the top-grossing film of the year and earn Rubin an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. At least that’s how it seemed from the outside; the truth is that the 47-year-old filmmaker had been kicking around the industry for decades, working as a TV news editor, film museum curator, and writer-for-hire before “Ghost” (and then “Jacob’s Ladder” a few months later) established him as one of the most original voices in Hollywood cinema.
Rubin tells the story of everything that led up to “Ghost” — and everything that came after — in “It’s Only a Movie,” a book that’s half-show business memoir, half spiritual inquiry detailing his lifelong quest for enlightenment. That quest informs Rubin’s best films — “Brainstorm,” “Jacob’s Ladder,” “Ghost,” “My...
Rubin tells the story of everything that led up to “Ghost” — and everything that came after — in “It’s Only a Movie,” a book that’s half-show business memoir, half spiritual inquiry detailing his lifelong quest for enlightenment. That quest informs Rubin’s best films — “Brainstorm,” “Jacob’s Ladder,” “Ghost,” “My...
- 6/6/2024
- by Jim Hemphill
- Indiewire
Netflix Animation held its first slate preview event June 6 at the Tudum in L.A., as a lead-up to the Annecy Animation Festival (June 9-15), where it will premiere Shannon Tindle’s “Ultraman: Rising” (streaming June 14) and tout some of its upcoming works in 2024 and 2025.
Hosted by Christopher Sean (the voice star of “Ultraman: Rising”), attendees were treated to exclusive presentations, previews, and special announcements. The biggest announcement was the full title of Aardman’s next stop-motion feature, “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl,” which will have an Oscar-qualifying run this winter before streaming in 2025.
Directed by franchise creator Nick Park and creative director Merlin Crossingham, who offered a pre-recorded introduction, “Vengeance Most Fowl” marks the return of the villainous penguin, Feathers McGraw, from the Oscar-winning short “The Wrong Trousers.” The film is a cautionary tale of high-tech gone wrong involving an out-of-control “smart gnome” with a mind of its own.
Hosted by Christopher Sean (the voice star of “Ultraman: Rising”), attendees were treated to exclusive presentations, previews, and special announcements. The biggest announcement was the full title of Aardman’s next stop-motion feature, “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl,” which will have an Oscar-qualifying run this winter before streaming in 2025.
Directed by franchise creator Nick Park and creative director Merlin Crossingham, who offered a pre-recorded introduction, “Vengeance Most Fowl” marks the return of the villainous penguin, Feathers McGraw, from the Oscar-winning short “The Wrong Trousers.” The film is a cautionary tale of high-tech gone wrong involving an out-of-control “smart gnome” with a mind of its own.
- 6/6/2024
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Netflix invited members of the press to their impressive Tudum Theater in Hollywood this morning to preview some of their new animated series and feature films. While some of the news was embargoed (including a very funny Nick Kroll reminding everyone of this fact as Lola from “Big Mouth”), the streaming giant does have some things to share. Notably, the Adam Sandler animated Sony Pictures feature franchise “Hotel Transylvania” is being turned into a new animated Netflix series, “Motel Transylvania,” the Skydance animated feature “Spellbound” will hit the service on Nov.
Continue reading Netflix Teases ‘Minecraft,’ ‘Motel Transylvania,’ ‘Twilight Of The Gods,’ ‘Spellbound’ & More at The Playlist.
Continue reading Netflix Teases ‘Minecraft,’ ‘Motel Transylvania,’ ‘Twilight Of The Gods,’ ‘Spellbound’ & More at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Gregory Ellwood
- The Playlist
When directors Elli Hakami and Julian P. Hobbs worked on the 2022 docuseries “House of Hammer,” one of the many things that fascinated them was the role social media played in the public unraveling of actor Armie Hammer’s reputation. “We were very intrigued by how social media had a huge influence on that story, and a huge influence on the women who came forward,” Hakami told IndieWire. “So we wanted to explore what other kinds of stories there were to tell in the social media universe.” The result of Hakami and Hobbs’ curiosity is “Deadly Influence: The Social Media Murders,” a new series from Investigation Discovery that takes a wide-ranging look at murders committed in the world of social media — and uses the visual and aural language of social media itself as a filmmaking tool to find new ways of approaching the true crime genre.
“After doing ‘House of Hammer,...
“After doing ‘House of Hammer,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Jim Hemphill
- Indiewire
The first season of Max’s “Tokyo Vice” introduced audiences to Jake Adelstein (Ansel Elgort), an American crime reporter working in Japan who gets a crash course in both local journalistic practices and the complicated relationship between the police and the yakuza. The filmmakers immersed the viewer in the world of ’90s Tokyo just as Jake was immersed in it, creating a highly kinetic and involving character study that was also a study of a specific time and place. Season 2 retained those qualities but broadened the show’s perspective to provide a more ensemble-oriented look at its world, deepening its exploration of the cops, criminals, reporters, and nightclub hostesses whose lives intersect with or run parallel to Jake’s.
The result was a second season that not only delivered on but surpassed the promise of Season 1, a visually and aurally dense series in which the craft is so thoroughly integrated...
The result was a second season that not only delivered on but surpassed the promise of Season 1, a visually and aurally dense series in which the craft is so thoroughly integrated...
- 6/6/2024
- by Jim Hemphill
- Indiewire
Fiona Harvey, known colloquially as the real “Martha” from Netflix’s hit limited series “Baby Reindeer,” has made good on a vow to sue Netflix. Harvey and her attorneys believe Netflix did not live up to a standard of care in protecting her identity. Further, Harvey says many plot points in “Baby Reindeer” are defamatory and simply untrue. She is suing for $170 million.
“Baby Reindeer” was created by Richard Gadd, who stars in the series as a version of himself. The Netflix program is an adaptation of Gadd’s one-man stage show of the same name. The title is derived from a nickname Martha (Fiona in real life) is said to have given Gadd, whose on-screen character is named Donny. In the stage show and the series, Martha stalks Donny, sexually and physically assaults him, and physically assaults his girlfriend. Martha also has a criminal record for stalking others.
Harvey,...
“Baby Reindeer” was created by Richard Gadd, who stars in the series as a version of himself. The Netflix program is an adaptation of Gadd’s one-man stage show of the same name. The title is derived from a nickname Martha (Fiona in real life) is said to have given Gadd, whose on-screen character is named Donny. In the stage show and the series, Martha stalks Donny, sexually and physically assaults him, and physically assaults his girlfriend. Martha also has a criminal record for stalking others.
Harvey,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Tony Maglio
- Indiewire
“Queer Planet” may seem like the kind of Pride Month programming that gets trotted out every June — “Oooh, look at the cute lil’ gay penguins!” — but this new 90-minute documentary has a lot more on its mind.
“[That] most forms of life do not reproduce strictly heterosexually like we do, is quite a staggering thing to realize,” “Queer Planet” producer and director Ed Watkins told Indiewire. Also staggering is how centuries of research into same-sex behavior in the animal kingdom was hidden or ignored. What “Queer Planet” celebrates should not be news to anyone. But the doc is something of a revelation.
Ably aided by narration from Andrew Rannells that marks this as a very gay time indeed, “Queer Planet” is as smart as it is silly and as important as it is celebratory. Now streaming on Peacock, IndieWire spoke to Watkins over email about the filmmaking process, why he’s tough on Charles Darwin,...
“[That] most forms of life do not reproduce strictly heterosexually like we do, is quite a staggering thing to realize,” “Queer Planet” producer and director Ed Watkins told Indiewire. Also staggering is how centuries of research into same-sex behavior in the animal kingdom was hidden or ignored. What “Queer Planet” celebrates should not be news to anyone. But the doc is something of a revelation.
Ably aided by narration from Andrew Rannells that marks this as a very gay time indeed, “Queer Planet” is as smart as it is silly and as important as it is celebratory. Now streaming on Peacock, IndieWire spoke to Watkins over email about the filmmaking process, why he’s tough on Charles Darwin,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Mark Peikert
- Indiewire
BendFilm, the Oregon-based independent cinema organization which organizes the Bend Film Festival in addition to its year-round activities, has announced a new immersive retreat. From the press release: BendFilm, the nonprofit independent cinema organization, has announced BendFilm: Basecamp, a three-day immersive retreat for emerging creatives and their industry counterparts to connect, learn and collaborate. BendFilm: Basecamp will take place at Caldera Arts outside Sisters, Oregon, from October 7-10, 2024, and flow directly into the 21st annual Bend Film Festival. BendFilm: Basecamp’s inaugural year is made possible, in part, […]
The post BendFilm Announces BendFilm: Basecamp, a Three-Day Immersive Retreat first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post BendFilm Announces BendFilm: Basecamp, a Three-Day Immersive Retreat first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
BendFilm, the Oregon-based independent cinema organization which organizes the Bend Film Festival in addition to its year-round activities, has announced a new immersive retreat. From the press release: BendFilm, the nonprofit independent cinema organization, has announced BendFilm: Basecamp, a three-day immersive retreat for emerging creatives and their industry counterparts to connect, learn and collaborate. BendFilm: Basecamp will take place at Caldera Arts outside Sisters, Oregon, from October 7-10, 2024, and flow directly into the 21st annual Bend Film Festival. BendFilm: Basecamp’s inaugural year is made possible, in part, […]
The post BendFilm Announces BendFilm: Basecamp, a Three-Day Immersive Retreat first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post BendFilm Announces BendFilm: Basecamp, a Three-Day Immersive Retreat first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
The opening lines of “House of the Dragon” Season 2 stem from a character I’m not meant to name speaking of things that have no real bearing in the “Game of Thrones” universe. “Duty is sacrifice,” the man says. (I hope I can say he’s a man.) “It eclipses all things, even blood. All men of honor must pay its price.” Sorry to interrupt, good sir, but who are these “men of honor” you speak of? Are they hiding? Is HBO saving them for the next spinoff? Some are certainly dead, given the body count on which George R.R. Martin has built his brutal world, but there are scant few in “HotD” who fit the description. To be fair, the narrating man qualifies, and his colleagues also appear to be living a principled existence. But having seen nine seasons of heartless betrayals and maniacal power grabs, simply recognizing one...
- 6/6/2024
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Almost 20 years later, and Will Smith is still happiest with his performance in “The Pursuit of Happyness.”
The critically acclaimed 2006 film is based on the true story of an unhoused San Francisco-based single father who rises up in the ranks of a tech company, beginning with door-to-door sales. Smith recently said during an episode of First We Feast’s “Hot Ones” series that “The Pursuit of Happyness” is the “best movie” of his career.
“I think the individual best movie, all around, that I’ve ever made is ‘The Pursuit of Happyness,'” Smith said. “Right behind that is the first ‘Men In Black.’ The direction, cinematography, and music…”
Smith later reunited with “The Pursuit of Happyness” director Gabriele Muccino for drama “Seven Pounds.”
The actor, who won the Oscar for “King Richard,” added to “Hot Ones” that he also has some beloved franchise installments.
“I think among the most...
The critically acclaimed 2006 film is based on the true story of an unhoused San Francisco-based single father who rises up in the ranks of a tech company, beginning with door-to-door sales. Smith recently said during an episode of First We Feast’s “Hot Ones” series that “The Pursuit of Happyness” is the “best movie” of his career.
“I think the individual best movie, all around, that I’ve ever made is ‘The Pursuit of Happyness,'” Smith said. “Right behind that is the first ‘Men In Black.’ The direction, cinematography, and music…”
Smith later reunited with “The Pursuit of Happyness” director Gabriele Muccino for drama “Seven Pounds.”
The actor, who won the Oscar for “King Richard,” added to “Hot Ones” that he also has some beloved franchise installments.
“I think among the most...
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
An ever-upholding vanity project portrait of a dyed-in-the-annals sartorial icon, “Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge” is an engaging enough documentary for the small screen but not big enough to merit anything more. That’s appropriate, as the movie heads to Hulu two and a half weeks after its Tribeca Festival premiere in a New York theater. Directors Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and Trish Dalton’s film is a hagiographic survey of the life and career of the Jewish girl born in Belgium who married into German royalty, became a princess, and started a fashion empire that included the invention of the now-ubiquitous wrap dress. With talking heads including Hillary Clinton and Oprah Winfrey, the documentary emerges more as agitprop for feminist galvanizing in the months up toward an election in which women’s rights are on the slab.
Though certainly spikier and with a zero-fucks-given, indecorous lack of platitudes is talking head Fran Lebowitz,...
Though certainly spikier and with a zero-fucks-given, indecorous lack of platitudes is talking head Fran Lebowitz,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
The press tour for “The Fall Guy” had its stars championing the film’s crew, particularly its stuntpeople, for helping create jaw-dropping spectacle in Doug Leitch‘s latest. But Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt & co. also called for the AMPAS and the Oscars to recognize the feats of stuntmen and women, too: with a stunt category at the annual awards series.
Continue reading AMPAS Reportedly Considering Adding A Stunt Category For The Oscars at The Playlist.
Continue reading AMPAS Reportedly Considering Adding A Stunt Category For The Oscars at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
Five Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and a sixth in Minnesota are closing their doors, effective immediately. The company that franchised the six cinemas — Two is One, One is None LLC — is seeking Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection.
The closures come as summer movie season is under way, but the usually robust period is off to a very slow start. May had a total domestic gross of $570 million that saw underperformance by five potential blockbusters. June will be better, though perhaps not by much.
More than 600 employees at all six locations, including the Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton theaters, are being let go, as are those at a location in Woodbury, Minnesota. The company said it attempted to contact all impacted employees before the news became public.
The loss of six theaters joins a slow drip of similar closures across the country. National Amusements closed its theater in the Bronx,...
The closures come as summer movie season is under way, but the usually robust period is off to a very slow start. May had a total domestic gross of $570 million that saw underperformance by five potential blockbusters. June will be better, though perhaps not by much.
More than 600 employees at all six locations, including the Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton theaters, are being let go, as are those at a location in Woodbury, Minnesota. The company said it attempted to contact all impacted employees before the news became public.
The loss of six theaters joins a slow drip of similar closures across the country. National Amusements closed its theater in the Bronx,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
Tribeca-selected short film “Bite,” written and directed by filmmaker Jorey Worb, is a reclamation of sorts. The 15-minute short is lush, well-acted by breakout lead Troian Bellisario, and captures a story known all too well by too many people, including writer/director Worb.
“Bite” centers on a woman who seeks treatment for jaw pain, or Tmj, and is assaulted by her dentist (Evan Arnold). The encounter leads to a reexamination of lingering Ptsd and a faux Marie Antoinette-esque courtroom scene that plays out as she debates whether or not to go to the authorities. With its poppy set design, reminiscent of “Promising Young Woman,” mixed with a “Girls” kind of millennial dialogue and Wes Anderson-inspired production design, “Bite” tells a #MeToo tale in a completely new and fresh way. The film is one of the many star-studded shorts premiering at Tribeca Festival.
“Having ‘bite’ means standing up for oneself,...
“Bite” centers on a woman who seeks treatment for jaw pain, or Tmj, and is assaulted by her dentist (Evan Arnold). The encounter leads to a reexamination of lingering Ptsd and a faux Marie Antoinette-esque courtroom scene that plays out as she debates whether or not to go to the authorities. With its poppy set design, reminiscent of “Promising Young Woman,” mixed with a “Girls” kind of millennial dialogue and Wes Anderson-inspired production design, “Bite” tells a #MeToo tale in a completely new and fresh way. The film is one of the many star-studded shorts premiering at Tribeca Festival.
“Having ‘bite’ means standing up for oneself,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Abel Ferrara has said, “In movie making, money is no excuse. It doesn’t cost anything to set up a cool looking shot.” In a Violent Nature is the embodiment of that credo. A deconstruction of the slasher genre, the movie tells a familiar story from an unfamiliar point of view as the camera stays with its undead killer Johnny (adorned in a vintage fireman’s mask and armed with a pair of logging hooks) as he traipses through the forest from victim to victim. The film poses the question, as director Chris Nash puts it, “What if Gus Van Sant directed a […]
The post From 2nd Unit to Second Shoot: Dp Pierce Derks on In a Violent Nature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post From 2nd Unit to Second Shoot: Dp Pierce Derks on In a Violent Nature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Matt Mulcahey
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Abel Ferrara has said, “In movie making, money is no excuse. It doesn’t cost anything to set up a cool looking shot.” In a Violent Nature is the embodiment of that credo. A deconstruction of the slasher genre, the movie tells a familiar story from an unfamiliar point of view as the camera stays with its undead killer Johnny (adorned in a vintage fireman’s mask and armed with a pair of logging hooks) as he traipses through the forest from victim to victim. The film poses the question, as director Chris Nash puts it, “What if Gus Van Sant directed a […]
The post From 2nd Unit to Second Shoot: Dp Pierce Derks on In a Violent Nature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post From 2nd Unit to Second Shoot: Dp Pierce Derks on In a Violent Nature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Matt Mulcahey
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
The Video Essay is a joint project of Mubi and Filmadrid International Film Festival. Film analysis and criticism forged a new path with the arrival of the video essay. The limits of this discipline are constantly expanding; new essayists are finding innovative ways to study the history of cinema through moving images. This non-competitive section of the festival is designed to offer this format the platform and visibility it deserves.This selection of seven video essays was programmed by the editors of Notebook and the programmers of Filmadrid. In the coming weeks, a video essay from the program will premiere each Friday on Notebook.Jeu by Daniel TourneurDaniel TourneurWhen Jacques Rivette was asked about how he approached the filming of Out 1 (1971), he replied: “To begin with, the single idea was that of jeu in all the senses of the word: actors’ performance, the interplay of the characters, but also...
- 6/6/2024
- MUBI
Before Wes Anderson skipped this year’s Oscars to film “The Phoenician Scheme” in Germany, fans already knew which actors would be at the heart of the director’s latest ensemble. Benecio del Toro and Mia Threapleton star as a father and daughter whose family business leads them into a dark espionage tale, with Michael Cera, Riz Ahmed, and Anderson regular Bill Murray also starring.
Continue reading ‘The Phoenician Scheme’: Wes Anderson’s Espionage Flick Reportedly Also Stars Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Willem Dafoe & More at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Phoenician Scheme’: Wes Anderson’s Espionage Flick Reportedly Also Stars Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Willem Dafoe & More at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
Francis Ford Coppola has addressed the allegations that he made advances with actresses on the set of “Megalopolis.”
In a report last month by The Guardian, multiple anonymous crew members said Coppola behaved inappropriately amid production. Now, during an hour-long interview Coppola gave to Manohla Dargis of the The New York Times during the Cannes Film Festival, the filmmaker denied the allegations in a roundabout way. In part, Coppola pointed to how he was raised and the morals he learned from his mother, Italia Coppola.
“My mother told me that if you make an advance toward a woman, it means you disrespect her, and the girls I had crushes on, I certainly didn’t disrespect them,” Coppola said.
As the New York Times wrote, “Pressed further, he added that there was a photo of one of the ‘girls’ he kissed on the cheek that had been taken by her father.
In a report last month by The Guardian, multiple anonymous crew members said Coppola behaved inappropriately amid production. Now, during an hour-long interview Coppola gave to Manohla Dargis of the The New York Times during the Cannes Film Festival, the filmmaker denied the allegations in a roundabout way. In part, Coppola pointed to how he was raised and the morals he learned from his mother, Italia Coppola.
“My mother told me that if you make an advance toward a woman, it means you disrespect her, and the girls I had crushes on, I certainly didn’t disrespect them,” Coppola said.
As the New York Times wrote, “Pressed further, he added that there was a photo of one of the ‘girls’ he kissed on the cheek that had been taken by her father.
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Audiences will thankfully have to wait even longer to savor the last of “The Last of Us.”
Series co-creators, executive producers, showrunners, and directors Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann confirmed to Deadline that they are slating at least four seasons for the HBO series starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. Season 2 of “The Last of Us” will premiere in 2025, with a newly released episode count of just seven installments.
But that doesn’t mean that “The Last of Us” is almost out of storylines. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.
“We don’t think that we’re going to be able to tell the story even within two seasons [2 and 3] because we’re taking our time and go down interesting pathways which we did a little bit in Season 1 too,” Mazin said. “We feel like it’s almost assuredly going to be the case that — as long as people keep...
Series co-creators, executive producers, showrunners, and directors Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann confirmed to Deadline that they are slating at least four seasons for the HBO series starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. Season 2 of “The Last of Us” will premiere in 2025, with a newly released episode count of just seven installments.
But that doesn’t mean that “The Last of Us” is almost out of storylines. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.
“We don’t think that we’re going to be able to tell the story even within two seasons [2 and 3] because we’re taking our time and go down interesting pathways which we did a little bit in Season 1 too,” Mazin said. “We feel like it’s almost assuredly going to be the case that — as long as people keep...
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Things have gotten a bit more complicated with labor negotiations for IATSE, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, ahead of the crafts union’s contract expiring on July 31.
The national branch of IATSE told members on Thursday, June 6 that it still has not reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP on a new contract for the Basic Agreement, which covers roughly 50,000 crew members working in Hollywood as part of 13 West Coast Locals. More talks are being scheduled for as early as next week.
But after a late-night bargaining session on June 5, the clock has run out on the negotiation window that was scheduled for IATSE in advance. Talks for the Basic Agreement were already paused once as IATSE shifted to focus on the Area Standards Agreement (Asa), which covers workers everywhere outside of Hollywood. Talks also ended on June 1 for that contract without a deal.
IATSE hoped to have...
The national branch of IATSE told members on Thursday, June 6 that it still has not reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP on a new contract for the Basic Agreement, which covers roughly 50,000 crew members working in Hollywood as part of 13 West Coast Locals. More talks are being scheduled for as early as next week.
But after a late-night bargaining session on June 5, the clock has run out on the negotiation window that was scheduled for IATSE in advance. Talks for the Basic Agreement were already paused once as IATSE shifted to focus on the Area Standards Agreement (Asa), which covers workers everywhere outside of Hollywood. Talks also ended on June 1 for that contract without a deal.
IATSE hoped to have...
- 6/6/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
UFO (Untitled Filmmaker Org) announced today the three filmmakers who have been selected for the latest edition of its Short Film Lab. At the Lab, which begins this month, Emily May Jampel, Arielle Knight, and Samuel Wright Smith will develop new scripted, documentary, and animated nonfiction projects, respectively. As announced in a press release, filmmakers Tahiel Jimenez Medina, Brydie O’Connor, Bren Wyona, and Kevin Xian Ming Yu from the inaugural cohort will continue in the program through December to develop new projects across nonfiction and scripted approaches, as part of the Lab’s staggered enrollment model. From the press release: The […]
The post UFO (Untitled Filmmaker Org) Announces Spring 2024 Short Film Lab Cohort first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post UFO (Untitled Filmmaker Org) Announces Spring 2024 Short Film Lab Cohort first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
UFO (Untitled Filmmaker Org) announced today the three filmmakers who have been selected for the latest edition of its Short Film Lab. At the Lab, which begins this month, Emily May Jampel, Arielle Knight, and Samuel Wright Smith will develop new scripted, documentary, and animated nonfiction projects, respectively. As announced in a press release, filmmakers Tahiel Jimenez Medina, Brydie O’Connor, Bren Wyona, and Kevin Xian Ming Yu from the inaugural cohort will continue in the program through December to develop new projects across nonfiction and scripted approaches, as part of the Lab’s staggered enrollment model. From the press release: The […]
The post UFO (Untitled Filmmaker Org) Announces Spring 2024 Short Film Lab Cohort first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post UFO (Untitled Filmmaker Org) Announces Spring 2024 Short Film Lab Cohort first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/6/2024
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
To no one’s surprise, Lionsgate remains in the “Hunger Games” business. The studio has greenlit an adaptation of Suzanne Collins‘ upcoming prequel ahead of its March 18, 2025, release date. And fans of the franchise won’t wait long for the new film. Lionsgate slates “The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping” for a premier November 20, 2026 theatrical release; so, roughly a year and a half wait.
Continue reading ‘The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping’: Lionsgate Dates Adaptation Of Upcoming Prequel For November 20, 2026 at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping’: Lionsgate Dates Adaptation Of Upcoming Prequel For November 20, 2026 at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
Seth Meyers’ comedy style and tastes have changed in the past decade, or at least since he created adult animated series “The Awesomes.”
The late night host said during his podcast “The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast” with fellow “SNL” alums Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone that “The Awesomes” was unnecessarily R-rated.
The Hulu series, which was co-created by Meyers and Michael Shoemaker and executive produced by Lorne Michaels, ran for 30 episodes from 2013 to 2015. The show satirized the superhero world and starred Meyers, Bill Hader, Rashida Jones, Ike Barinholtz, Steve Higgins, Bobby Lee, Kenan Thompson, and Paula Pell, among a slew of guest stars.
“There’s just too many bleeps, and now I have a 7-year-old who loves it,” Meyers said. “It was trying to be too cool and we didn’t need to be…It’s such a drag now because my son really likes watching...
The late night host said during his podcast “The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast” with fellow “SNL” alums Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone that “The Awesomes” was unnecessarily R-rated.
The Hulu series, which was co-created by Meyers and Michael Shoemaker and executive produced by Lorne Michaels, ran for 30 episodes from 2013 to 2015. The show satirized the superhero world and starred Meyers, Bill Hader, Rashida Jones, Ike Barinholtz, Steve Higgins, Bobby Lee, Kenan Thompson, and Paula Pell, among a slew of guest stars.
“There’s just too many bleeps, and now I have a 7-year-old who loves it,” Meyers said. “It was trying to be too cool and we didn’t need to be…It’s such a drag now because my son really likes watching...
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Ever wanted to see Pharrell Williams‘ life and career get the movie treatment? No? Well, what about if Lego® was involved? Slightly more interesting now? For some reason, that exact thing is what Focus Features has on their slate of Fall theatrical releases this year. “Brick By Brick” is, yes, the story of the hip-hop music icon’s career retold in Lego® form.
Read More: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2024
No one knows why that’s the case, but Pharrell is a whimsical guy, so that probably where “Brick By Brick” comes from.
Continue reading ‘Piece By Piece’: Pharrell Williams Gets The Lego® Treatment On October 11 at The Playlist.
Read More: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2024
No one knows why that’s the case, but Pharrell is a whimsical guy, so that probably where “Brick By Brick” comes from.
Continue reading ‘Piece By Piece’: Pharrell Williams Gets The Lego® Treatment On October 11 at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
Bright and early this morning, the AP reported that Suzanne Collins was at work on a new “Hunger Games” novel, “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.” And sure enough, Lionsgate is already at work on turning that book into another new “Hunger Games” movie. The film adaptation already has a theatrical-release date.
The big-screen version of “Sunrise on the Reaping” will be released by Lionsgate on November 20, 2026, after Collins’ book publishes from Scholastic on March 18, 2025.
And the whole crew is back to shepherd this new “Hunger Games” movie, including franchise producer Nina Jacobson and her partner Brad Simpson for their Color Force banner. Francis Lawrence, who has directed each film since “Catching Fire,” is in talks to return to this one as well. No cast has been announced.
“Sunrise on the Reaping” visits Panem during the 50th Hunger Games — that’s 24 years before the events of the original trilogy...
The big-screen version of “Sunrise on the Reaping” will be released by Lionsgate on November 20, 2026, after Collins’ book publishes from Scholastic on March 18, 2025.
And the whole crew is back to shepherd this new “Hunger Games” movie, including franchise producer Nina Jacobson and her partner Brad Simpson for their Color Force banner. Francis Lawrence, who has directed each film since “Catching Fire,” is in talks to return to this one as well. No cast has been announced.
“Sunrise on the Reaping” visits Panem during the 50th Hunger Games — that’s 24 years before the events of the original trilogy...
- 6/6/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
If Eminem’s catchy new single “Houdini” has you Googling Sherri Papini, well, allow Hulu to act as a second source of information.
The Disney streamer is diving into the Papini case with a three-part docuseries titled “Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini” from filmmakers Erin Lee Carr, Michael Beach Nichols, and executive producers Rob Ford, Allison Berkley and Joseph Freed of Marwar Junction Productions.
The basics of the case are well known: In November 2016, Sherri Papini went for a jog and vanished from the northern California neighborhood where she lived with her husband Keith. This triggered a frenzied search and worldwide headlines.
But as “Houdini” spoils for you, her “kid-nappin’/never did happen.”
Papini was found alive on a Sacramento Highway 22 days later, claiming that she was abducted and tortured by two Hispanic women. She had some brutal-looking injuries she said she received at the hands of her kidnappers,...
The Disney streamer is diving into the Papini case with a three-part docuseries titled “Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini” from filmmakers Erin Lee Carr, Michael Beach Nichols, and executive producers Rob Ford, Allison Berkley and Joseph Freed of Marwar Junction Productions.
The basics of the case are well known: In November 2016, Sherri Papini went for a jog and vanished from the northern California neighborhood where she lived with her husband Keith. This triggered a frenzied search and worldwide headlines.
But as “Houdini” spoils for you, her “kid-nappin’/never did happen.”
Papini was found alive on a Sacramento Highway 22 days later, claiming that she was abducted and tortured by two Hispanic women. She had some brutal-looking injuries she said she received at the hands of her kidnappers,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Tony Maglio
- Indiewire
A well-paced supernatural horror movie that’s built atop a high-concept premise, sustained by impressively elegant direction, hobbled by some of the clunkiest dialogue you’ve ever heard (to say nothing of the non-characters forced to speak it), and then undone by a twist ending so clearly telegraphed from the start that it might as well have been sent to the third act by Western Union, “The Watchers” offers ample evidence to suggest that first-time feature director Ishana Night Shyamalan — of the M. Night Shyamalans — probably wasn’t the most rebellious of children.
If there’s much about her debut that left me wishing the apple had fallen a little further from the tree, there’s also no denying that the “Unbreakable” filmmaker’s daughter has the skill to follow in her father’s footsteps, which she does here even when the material is begging her to blaze her own trail.
If there’s much about her debut that left me wishing the apple had fallen a little further from the tree, there’s also no denying that the “Unbreakable” filmmaker’s daughter has the skill to follow in her father’s footsteps, which she does here even when the material is begging her to blaze her own trail.
- 6/6/2024
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
“I was having a man’s life in a woman’s body,” Diane von Furstenberg, famous Belgian fashion designer and businesswoman, says more than once in the new Hulu documentary. It’s a weird sentiment to say in a doc about female trailblazing empowerment, agency, and freedom, but one supposes it fits for the era when women’s lib was thriving, but perhaps not every woman was reaping its benefits.
But Furstenberg certainly was.
Continue reading ‘Diane Von Furstenberg: Woman In Charge’ Review: A Standard Issue CNN-Like Flattering Portrait [Tribeca] at The Playlist.
But Furstenberg certainly was.
Continue reading ‘Diane Von Furstenberg: Woman In Charge’ Review: A Standard Issue CNN-Like Flattering Portrait [Tribeca] at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Rodrigo Perez
- The Playlist
Ryan Gosling is making the dreams of “Saturday Night Live” writers come true.
In addition to reprising his iconic role for a sequel to skit “Papyrus,” penned by Julio Torres, it’s now been revealed that Gosling’s viral “Beavis and Butt-Head” sketch was a shelved idea from 2018, with Jonah Hill originally being set to portray one half of the cartoon-character duo.
“SNL” hair stylist Jodi Mancuso and makeup artist Louie Zakarian both told The Ankler that the skit was originally pitched when Jonah Hill was hosting a Season 44 episode in November 2018. However, it was canceled due to challenges with the necessary prosthetics.
“Even at that time it was late coming into the show, so there wasn’t a lot of prep time and I wasn’t fully happy with the wigs,” Mancuso said. “Then I think we tried it again, and again I wasn’t happy with it. So...
In addition to reprising his iconic role for a sequel to skit “Papyrus,” penned by Julio Torres, it’s now been revealed that Gosling’s viral “Beavis and Butt-Head” sketch was a shelved idea from 2018, with Jonah Hill originally being set to portray one half of the cartoon-character duo.
“SNL” hair stylist Jodi Mancuso and makeup artist Louie Zakarian both told The Ankler that the skit was originally pitched when Jonah Hill was hosting a Season 44 episode in November 2018. However, it was canceled due to challenges with the necessary prosthetics.
“Even at that time it was late coming into the show, so there wasn’t a lot of prep time and I wasn’t fully happy with the wigs,” Mancuso said. “Then I think we tried it again, and again I wasn’t happy with it. So...
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Morgan Spector probably won’t have a big summer vacation this year. Don’t feel sorry for him though, it appears he’ll soon be in front of the camera for the third season of “The Gilded Age.” The HBO series took a creative and viewership jump in season two. What that means for his character, fictional 19th-century industrialist and “new” New York money George Russell, remains to be seen.
Read More: “The Gilded Age” Season 2 Trailer: Julian Fellowes’ star-studded period drama returns
Russell is inspired by an influential robber baron, Jay Gould, while his wife, Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon), seems to be based on William K.
Continue reading ‘The Gilded Age’: Morgan Spector Has Scripts For Season Three But Isn’t Spilling [Interview] at The Playlist.
Read More: “The Gilded Age” Season 2 Trailer: Julian Fellowes’ star-studded period drama returns
Russell is inspired by an influential robber baron, Jay Gould, while his wife, Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon), seems to be based on William K.
Continue reading ‘The Gilded Age’: Morgan Spector Has Scripts For Season Three But Isn’t Spilling [Interview] at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Gregory Ellwood
- The Playlist
With acclaimed roles in Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest” and Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall,” the latter of which earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress, Sandra Hüller might have had the biggest year of any actress in 2023. The success ensured that many eyes would be on the versatile actress’ next projects, the first of which is set to hit theaters this July.
Frauke Finsterwalder’s “Sisi & I” sees Huller playing a lady-in-waiting to Empress Elizabeth of Austria-Hungary (Susanne Wolff), better known as Sisi, the monarch who famously spent an unprecedented 44 years on the throne. The film, which Finsterwalder co-wrote with Christian Kracht, also stars Georg Friedrich, Stefan Kurt, Sophie Hutter, Anthony Calf, and Angela Winkler.
Per the film’s official synopsis, Empress Elisabeth of Austria-Hungary — known as Sisi (Wolff) —is living in an aristocratic women-only commune in Greece. Countess Irma (Hüller) is sent...
Frauke Finsterwalder’s “Sisi & I” sees Huller playing a lady-in-waiting to Empress Elizabeth of Austria-Hungary (Susanne Wolff), better known as Sisi, the monarch who famously spent an unprecedented 44 years on the throne. The film, which Finsterwalder co-wrote with Christian Kracht, also stars Georg Friedrich, Stefan Kurt, Sophie Hutter, Anthony Calf, and Angela Winkler.
Per the film’s official synopsis, Empress Elisabeth of Austria-Hungary — known as Sisi (Wolff) —is living in an aristocratic women-only commune in Greece. Countess Irma (Hüller) is sent...
- 6/6/2024
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
When will “I Am Legend 2” hit theaters? Michael B. Jordan has no clue, but he’s “excited” to work with one of his childhood heroes on the upcoming sequel.
Read More: ‘I Am Legend 2’: Will Smith Confirms Sequel Has A Script Written & Michael B. Jordan Is Attached
In a new interview with People, the 37-year-old actor confirmed that a follow-up to the 2007 horror actioner starring Will Smith is still “something that is in the works.” “We’re still working on the script and getting that up to par,” Jordan continued.
Continue reading ‘I Am Legend 2’: Michael B. Jordan Confirms “We’re Still Working On The Script” & He’s “Excited” To Work With Will Smith at The Playlist.
Read More: ‘I Am Legend 2’: Will Smith Confirms Sequel Has A Script Written & Michael B. Jordan Is Attached
In a new interview with People, the 37-year-old actor confirmed that a follow-up to the 2007 horror actioner starring Will Smith is still “something that is in the works.” “We’re still working on the script and getting that up to par,” Jordan continued.
Continue reading ‘I Am Legend 2’: Michael B. Jordan Confirms “We’re Still Working On The Script” & He’s “Excited” To Work With Will Smith at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
What if a mysterious machine allowed you to reveal your life’s potential? What if said machine was an arcade-style machine sporting the curious name Morpho located in a small town convenience store? What if the streaming powers stretched such a concept throughout a ten-episode AppleTV+ season, with the potential for more? Such a premise acted as the connective tissue of “The Big Door Prize, “ based on a novel and a passable attempt at light comedy with semi-philosophical notions laced throughout as the residents of Deerfield contend with the machine’s appearance and what exactly the card emerging from a slot below means to each of them.
Continue reading ‘The Big Door Prize’ Season 2 Review: It’s Better, But Does The Mystery Box Comedy Have More Potential? at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Big Door Prize’ Season 2 Review: It’s Better, But Does The Mystery Box Comedy Have More Potential? at The Playlist.
- 6/6/2024
- by Brian Farvour
- The Playlist
Pharrell Williams is revisiting the building blocks of his life — literally.
Williams’ biography is captured by Lego animation for feature film “Piece by Piece,” directed by Academy Award winner Morgan Neville, who also gets Lego-fied for the meta film. As do Gwen Stefani, Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Busta Rhymes, and Snoop Dogg.
Billed as an “unparalleled motion picture experience,” the animated biopic stars Williams as a Lego version of himself as he tells his own life story. Grammy-winning and Academy Award-nominated musician Williams announced the project on Instagram in January 2024, captioning, “Who would’ve thought that playing with Legos as a kid would evolve into a movie about my life. It’s proof that anyone else can do it too… #PieceByPiece.”
“Piece by Piece” has been in the works since early 2019, when Williams reached out to Neville with the concept.
“When I had this crazy vision to tell this story through Lego bricks,...
Williams’ biography is captured by Lego animation for feature film “Piece by Piece,” directed by Academy Award winner Morgan Neville, who also gets Lego-fied for the meta film. As do Gwen Stefani, Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Busta Rhymes, and Snoop Dogg.
Billed as an “unparalleled motion picture experience,” the animated biopic stars Williams as a Lego version of himself as he tells his own life story. Grammy-winning and Academy Award-nominated musician Williams announced the project on Instagram in January 2024, captioning, “Who would’ve thought that playing with Legos as a kid would evolve into a movie about my life. It’s proof that anyone else can do it too… #PieceByPiece.”
“Piece by Piece” has been in the works since early 2019, when Williams reached out to Neville with the concept.
“When I had this crazy vision to tell this story through Lego bricks,...
- 6/6/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
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