Alan Cumming’s search for information about Tonka, the baby chimp that starred in the 1997 film “Buddy” alongside him and Rene Russo, has finally borne fruit. The actor recently offered a 10,000 reward for information about the animal, which was thought to be dead in 2021.
“During the months we filmed together, baby Tonka and I became good friends, playing and grooming each other and just generally larking about,” Cumming said at the time. “It’s horrible to think he might in a cage in a dark basement somewhere or have met some other fate, so I’m appealing to whoever knows what has become of him to please come forward claim the reward.”
This week, Tonka was found alive in the home of longtime owner Tonia Haddix, where he had access to a 60-inch TV and a tablet device, and had recently participated in a St. Patrick’s Day party, according to Rolling Stone.
“During the months we filmed together, baby Tonka and I became good friends, playing and grooming each other and just generally larking about,” Cumming said at the time. “It’s horrible to think he might in a cage in a dark basement somewhere or have met some other fate, so I’m appealing to whoever knows what has become of him to please come forward claim the reward.”
This week, Tonka was found alive in the home of longtime owner Tonia Haddix, where he had access to a 60-inch TV and a tablet device, and had recently participated in a St. Patrick’s Day party, according to Rolling Stone.
- 6/4/2022
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
Last May, Tonka the chimpanzee, an elderly ape who starred in George of the Jungle and Buddy alongside actor Alan Cumming in 1997, died, according to court records.
The chimp had recently suffered a stroke and died from heart failure, his owner Tonia Haddix claimed, submitting a declaration and court documents to a Missouri judge that detailed how the animal’s body was burned in a fire pit.
But this week, Tonka was found alive, secretly hidden away for the past year in Haddix’s Sunrise Beach, Missouri home where he reportedly had a 60-inch TV,...
The chimp had recently suffered a stroke and died from heart failure, his owner Tonia Haddix claimed, submitting a declaration and court documents to a Missouri judge that detailed how the animal’s body was burned in a fire pit.
But this week, Tonka was found alive, secretly hidden away for the past year in Haddix’s Sunrise Beach, Missouri home where he reportedly had a 60-inch TV,...
- 6/4/2022
- by Cheyenne Roundtree
- Rollingstone.com
Participants to receive $10,000 in services, and mentorship.
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) has announced the 10 projects selected for the third annual Screen Forward Labs running in New York from April 24-28.
The Ifp’s year-long fellowship for content creators with serialised projects provides participants with $10,000 worth of services and a comprehensive mentorship to bring their projects to fruition.
The Screen Forward Labs will culminate with all projects pitching to investors, distributors, tech companies and network executives at Ifp Film Week 2017.
The 2017 Screen Forward Episodic Lab fellows are: Aeris by creator, director and producer Lukas Huffman, co-producer Amy Zhang and executive producer Shin Campos; Anamnesis by co-creators, directors, writers, producers and editors Alex Calleros and Michael Tucker, producer Ryan McDuffie and executive producers Jeremy Norris and Patrick Norris; Angry Black Women from creators, writers and executive producers Dahéli Hall and HaJ and director Angie Browne; and Camp Abercorn by creator, director, writer and producer...
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) has announced the 10 projects selected for the third annual Screen Forward Labs running in New York from April 24-28.
The Ifp’s year-long fellowship for content creators with serialised projects provides participants with $10,000 worth of services and a comprehensive mentorship to bring their projects to fruition.
The Screen Forward Labs will culminate with all projects pitching to investors, distributors, tech companies and network executives at Ifp Film Week 2017.
The 2017 Screen Forward Episodic Lab fellows are: Aeris by creator, director and producer Lukas Huffman, co-producer Amy Zhang and executive producer Shin Campos; Anamnesis by co-creators, directors, writers, producers and editors Alex Calleros and Michael Tucker, producer Ryan McDuffie and executive producers Jeremy Norris and Patrick Norris; Angry Black Women from creators, writers and executive producers Dahéli Hall and HaJ and director Angie Browne; and Camp Abercorn by creator, director, writer and producer...
- 4/24/2017
- ScreenDaily
The premiere post-tiff destination (September 20-25th) in the film community and a major leg up for narrative and non-fiction films in development, the Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) announced a whopping 140 projects selected for the Project Forum at the upcoming Ifp Independent Film Week. Made up of several sections (Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program, No Borders International Co-Production Market and Spotlight on Documentaries), we find latest updates from the likes of docu-helmers Doug Block (112 Weddings) and Lana Wilson (After Tiller), and among the narrative items we find headliners in Andrew Haigh (coming off the well received 45 Years), Sophie Barthes (Cold Souls and Madame Bovary), Terence Nance (An Oversimplification of Her Beauty), Lawrence Michael Levine (Wild Canaries), Jorge Michel Grau (We Are What We Are), Eleanor Burke and Ron Eyal (Stranger Things) and new faces in Sundance’s large family in Charles Poekel (Christmas, Again) and Olivia Newman (First Match). Here...
- 7/22/2015
- by admin
- IONCINEMA.com
Read More: Attention, Screenwriters: Nicholl Fellowship Application Deadlines Coming Up The Hamptons International Film Festival (Hiff) has announced the mentors and screenwriters participating in its 14th annual Screenwriters' Lab, taking place this weekend, April 10-12, at the The Maidstone Hotel in East Hampton, NY. Co-sponsored by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Hiff Screenwriters' Lab pairs budding screenwriters with established writers, directors and producers for a weekend of one-on-one mentoring sessions. This year’s mentors include: Alexander Dinelaris (Academy Award winner for "Birdman: Or the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance"), Nicole Perlman (co-writer of "Guardians of the Galaxy"), Evan Hayes (President of Production at Parkes+MacDonald/Image Nation) and Helen Schulman (celebrated author and co-screenwriter of the film "P.S."). The four selected screenplays for 2015 are: Kendell Kline's "Jane," Jared Goodman's...
- 4/8/2015
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Hamptons International Film Festival executives have announced participants for 14th annual Screenwriters’ Lab, set to run from April 10-12.
The lab, co-sponsored by the Alfred P Sloan Foundation, has selected four mentors and four screenplays to be paired for a weekend of one-on-one mentoring sessions at the Maidstone Hotel in East Hampton.
The mentors include Birdman writer Alexander Dinelaris, Guardians Of The Galaxy co-writer Nicole Perlman, Parkes+MacDonald/Image Nation president of production Evan Hayes and author-screenwriter Helen Schulman.
The screenplays include: Kendell Kline’s Jane, about Jane Goodall’s early travels to Africa and the conflict she faced in pursuit of her studies of chimpanzees; and Jared Goodman’s European Zero based on true events surrounding the first European citizen to have AIDS.
Rounding out the quartet are: Philip Aceto’s The Gloaming, which explores the life of a troubled janitor who develops a relationship with a Sudanese refugee; and Ísold Uggadóttir’s And Breathe Normally...
The lab, co-sponsored by the Alfred P Sloan Foundation, has selected four mentors and four screenplays to be paired for a weekend of one-on-one mentoring sessions at the Maidstone Hotel in East Hampton.
The mentors include Birdman writer Alexander Dinelaris, Guardians Of The Galaxy co-writer Nicole Perlman, Parkes+MacDonald/Image Nation president of production Evan Hayes and author-screenwriter Helen Schulman.
The screenplays include: Kendell Kline’s Jane, about Jane Goodall’s early travels to Africa and the conflict she faced in pursuit of her studies of chimpanzees; and Jared Goodman’s European Zero based on true events surrounding the first European citizen to have AIDS.
Rounding out the quartet are: Philip Aceto’s The Gloaming, which explores the life of a troubled janitor who develops a relationship with a Sudanese refugee; and Ísold Uggadóttir’s And Breathe Normally...
- 4/8/2015
- ScreenDaily
Captive Beauty tells an unflinching and unforgettable story of four women – Catalina, Leidy, Diana and Marta - who are all serving time for various crimes in Medellin’s notorious and largest female prison. They are also participants of a week long beauty pageant held at the prison complete with catwalks and being pampered. Some of these women will never leave prison but the pageant serves to restore some dignity and let them feel like a queen for a moment. Jared Goodman shared his journey with us.
LatinoBuzz: Your first film was Road to the Big Leagues, what was it about documentaries that drew you to it?
Jared: Studying film in college left me eager to tell a story – I had just graduated, was always passionate about baseball, and after pitching the project to a Boston based production company, I found myself in the Dominican Republic playing with children, interviewing stars, and finding out what made them tick. All of this led to the creation of Road to the Big Leagues, a film about the fascinating journey of young Dominican players attempting to make it big. The experience was great, empowering and I quickly began hunting for another experience, another story to tell.
LatinoBuzz: You are from Boston, when and how did the idea to shoot in Medellín’s largest female prison about an inmate beauty pageant come up?
Jared: I simply came across an article about this beauty pageant in a prison and it instantly resonated with me – it had to be my next project. So many powerful themes were present that I just couldn’t ignore and in a matter of months Spencer Kehe (producer) and I were making arrangements to go to Medellin. Spencer was instrumental in getting us an incredible amount of access to the prison.
LatinoBuzz: Was shooting a documentary under those circumstances easy?
Jared: The prison was actually a relatively easy place to film. After the first couple of weeks the prisoners as well as the prison guards got so used to us that we were free to go pretty much anywhere and talk to anyone. I think that for the most part the majority of the prisoners liked us being there.
LatinoBuzz: What creative decisions do you make beforehand?
Jared: Going into production the main goal was to keep the camera running, and capture as many vérité scenes as possible. I knew that patience would be the key; that I had to simply let it all unfold in front of me and the building blocks of the film would present themselves. So in the beginning, we stayed in the prison every day, all day, for over a month, filming as much as possible. It wasn’t until we were about half way done with post production, once we had our story shaped, that we started styling the scenes with interesting cuts and experimenting with a strong score to help make the film more theatrical. Our editor, Daniel Rezende (City of God, The Motorcycle Diaries, and recently, The Tree of Life), is master time manipulator. He added so much to this film.
LatinoBuzz: How was finding funding for Captive Beauty?
Jared: Finding funding is always a challenge, but thankfully we had the support of a successful, New York based production company. Once we returned with great footage we were able to edit a trailer that helped us secure a large grant to help us complete post-production.
LatinoBuzz: I like that you didn't sensationalize their crimes. How did you get these women - convicted murderers, kidnappers etc to open up to you on camera?
Jared: For the first two weeks I didn’t ask our protagonists why they were in prison. I just wanted to get to know them as much as possible and develop a level of trust between us. Finally, once I did interview them, I found the result to be intensified. They were now telling their crimes to a friend and when they admitted to what they had done (murder, kidnapping, treason) they all came to tears and showed an incredible degree of openness and vulnerability. The strongest parts of this film are the interviews. The women are brutally honest.
LatinoBuzz: These women grew up in a beautiful country under brutal circumstances. How important was it to find those moments of humanity in them?
Jared: I came to learn quite a bit about the duality of mankind from making this film. Of course these women have a bad side to them, but with spending more time with them, I came to see more and more good in them. These moments naturally came out, and in order to tell a complete story they had to be included.
LatinoBuzz: Your first film is about shooting for your dreams and this was about dreams deferred, stolen or lost; what would you say you took away from the subject matters in both your films?
Jared: I’m drawn to the human spirit – how it is affected by struggle, how it embraces opportunity, and how it faces challenge. Yes, my first two films are at opposite ends of the spectrum, but to me it is imperative that I treat my subjects with dignity, regardless. This all leaves me with the experience of the human spirit, which fascinates and moves me personally, no what shape it takes.
LatinoBuzz: Have you ever thought to go back and see what became of these women?
Jared: I am friends with several of them. As each one is released, they reach out to me, and we catch up. Social media has thankfully made it possible for me to maintain a relationship with most everyone who I have worked with in my films over the years.
LatinoBuzz: Any other subject matter you would like to explore through the documentary lens?
Jared: So many! Currently I am helping produce a 30 for 30 doc for Espn with director Mario Diaz. I also have a new documentary that I hope to start shooting this summer in NYC and finally I have a narrative film that I am hopeful to begin production on some time in 2014 as well.
For the latest on the film give them a ‘Like at https://www.facebook.com/CaptiveBeauty
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: Your first film was Road to the Big Leagues, what was it about documentaries that drew you to it?
Jared: Studying film in college left me eager to tell a story – I had just graduated, was always passionate about baseball, and after pitching the project to a Boston based production company, I found myself in the Dominican Republic playing with children, interviewing stars, and finding out what made them tick. All of this led to the creation of Road to the Big Leagues, a film about the fascinating journey of young Dominican players attempting to make it big. The experience was great, empowering and I quickly began hunting for another experience, another story to tell.
LatinoBuzz: You are from Boston, when and how did the idea to shoot in Medellín’s largest female prison about an inmate beauty pageant come up?
Jared: I simply came across an article about this beauty pageant in a prison and it instantly resonated with me – it had to be my next project. So many powerful themes were present that I just couldn’t ignore and in a matter of months Spencer Kehe (producer) and I were making arrangements to go to Medellin. Spencer was instrumental in getting us an incredible amount of access to the prison.
LatinoBuzz: Was shooting a documentary under those circumstances easy?
Jared: The prison was actually a relatively easy place to film. After the first couple of weeks the prisoners as well as the prison guards got so used to us that we were free to go pretty much anywhere and talk to anyone. I think that for the most part the majority of the prisoners liked us being there.
LatinoBuzz: What creative decisions do you make beforehand?
Jared: Going into production the main goal was to keep the camera running, and capture as many vérité scenes as possible. I knew that patience would be the key; that I had to simply let it all unfold in front of me and the building blocks of the film would present themselves. So in the beginning, we stayed in the prison every day, all day, for over a month, filming as much as possible. It wasn’t until we were about half way done with post production, once we had our story shaped, that we started styling the scenes with interesting cuts and experimenting with a strong score to help make the film more theatrical. Our editor, Daniel Rezende (City of God, The Motorcycle Diaries, and recently, The Tree of Life), is master time manipulator. He added so much to this film.
LatinoBuzz: How was finding funding for Captive Beauty?
Jared: Finding funding is always a challenge, but thankfully we had the support of a successful, New York based production company. Once we returned with great footage we were able to edit a trailer that helped us secure a large grant to help us complete post-production.
LatinoBuzz: I like that you didn't sensationalize their crimes. How did you get these women - convicted murderers, kidnappers etc to open up to you on camera?
Jared: For the first two weeks I didn’t ask our protagonists why they were in prison. I just wanted to get to know them as much as possible and develop a level of trust between us. Finally, once I did interview them, I found the result to be intensified. They were now telling their crimes to a friend and when they admitted to what they had done (murder, kidnapping, treason) they all came to tears and showed an incredible degree of openness and vulnerability. The strongest parts of this film are the interviews. The women are brutally honest.
LatinoBuzz: These women grew up in a beautiful country under brutal circumstances. How important was it to find those moments of humanity in them?
Jared: I came to learn quite a bit about the duality of mankind from making this film. Of course these women have a bad side to them, but with spending more time with them, I came to see more and more good in them. These moments naturally came out, and in order to tell a complete story they had to be included.
LatinoBuzz: Your first film is about shooting for your dreams and this was about dreams deferred, stolen or lost; what would you say you took away from the subject matters in both your films?
Jared: I’m drawn to the human spirit – how it is affected by struggle, how it embraces opportunity, and how it faces challenge. Yes, my first two films are at opposite ends of the spectrum, but to me it is imperative that I treat my subjects with dignity, regardless. This all leaves me with the experience of the human spirit, which fascinates and moves me personally, no what shape it takes.
LatinoBuzz: Have you ever thought to go back and see what became of these women?
Jared: I am friends with several of them. As each one is released, they reach out to me, and we catch up. Social media has thankfully made it possible for me to maintain a relationship with most everyone who I have worked with in my films over the years.
LatinoBuzz: Any other subject matter you would like to explore through the documentary lens?
Jared: So many! Currently I am helping produce a 30 for 30 doc for Espn with director Mario Diaz. I also have a new documentary that I hope to start shooting this summer in NYC and finally I have a narrative film that I am hopeful to begin production on some time in 2014 as well.
For the latest on the film give them a ‘Like at https://www.facebook.com/CaptiveBeauty
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...
- 5/21/2014
- by Juan Caceres
- Sydney's Buzz
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