Recent local productions include Alexandre Moratto’s Venice 2021 premiere 7 Prisoners.
Sao Paulo’s film and audiovisual body Spcine has greenlit the second cash rebate programme offering 30 and increasing available funds fourfold to 8m.
The joint venture between the city and state government will support national and international film and TV productions that film in the city. Wednesday’s announcement (May 18) comes after the first rebate allocated funding to two high-end series and a film and is said to have supported 14,000 jobs.
Recent international productions in Sao Paulo include Conquest produced by Keanu Reeves, the Wachowskis’ Sense 8, Black Mirror, Netflix’s De Volta Aos 15,...
Sao Paulo’s film and audiovisual body Spcine has greenlit the second cash rebate programme offering 30 and increasing available funds fourfold to 8m.
The joint venture between the city and state government will support national and international film and TV productions that film in the city. Wednesday’s announcement (May 18) comes after the first rebate allocated funding to two high-end series and a film and is said to have supported 14,000 jobs.
Recent international productions in Sao Paulo include Conquest produced by Keanu Reeves, the Wachowskis’ Sense 8, Black Mirror, Netflix’s De Volta Aos 15,...
- 5/18/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
The feature film “Freda” and short film “You Can Always Come Home,” both family dramas, earned top prizes at the 39th edition of Miami Dade College’s Miami Film Festival. Presented in a hybrid format this year, with both in-theater and virtual presentations, the 2022 Festival ran from March 4-13.
Making its U.S. premiere at this year’s Festival, “Freda,” directed by Géssica Généus, earned the top award for her first feature set in Haiti, the $25,000 Knight Marimbas Award. The winning film was selected by jury members Damon D’Oliveria, April Dobbins and Rubén Peralta Rigaud. Of the film, the jury noted, “this film resonated with all of us for its strong, female-centered narrative, and its exceptional performances from emerging actors. We couldn’t stop thinking about this world and these characters, and we appreciated being immersed in a place that we don’t often see onscreen – portrayed in such a realistic,...
Making its U.S. premiere at this year’s Festival, “Freda,” directed by Géssica Généus, earned the top award for her first feature set in Haiti, the $25,000 Knight Marimbas Award. The winning film was selected by jury members Damon D’Oliveria, April Dobbins and Rubén Peralta Rigaud. Of the film, the jury noted, “this film resonated with all of us for its strong, female-centered narrative, and its exceptional performances from emerging actors. We couldn’t stop thinking about this world and these characters, and we appreciated being immersed in a place that we don’t often see onscreen – portrayed in such a realistic,...
- 3/13/2022
- by Malina Saval
- Variety Film + TV
Two family dramas, the feature film Freda and short film You Can Always Come Home, have earned the top prizes at the 39th edition of Miami Dade College’s Miami Film Festival. Presented in a hybrid format with in-theater and virtual presentations, the 2022 Festival ran from March 4 through tomorrow.
Making its US premiere at this year’s Festival, Freda, directed by Géssica Généus, earned the top award for her first feature. Set in Haiti, the $25,000 Knight Marimbas Award, supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, is an international competition for new narrative feature films that best exemplify richness and resonance for cinema’s future.
The winning film was selected by jury members Damon D’Oliveria, April Dobbins, and Rubén Peralta Rigaud. The jury said, “This film resonated with all of us for its strong, female-centered narrative, and its exceptional performances from emerging actors. We couldn’t stop...
Making its US premiere at this year’s Festival, Freda, directed by Géssica Généus, earned the top award for her first feature. Set in Haiti, the $25,000 Knight Marimbas Award, supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, is an international competition for new narrative feature films that best exemplify richness and resonance for cinema’s future.
The winning film was selected by jury members Damon D’Oliveria, April Dobbins, and Rubén Peralta Rigaud. The jury said, “This film resonated with all of us for its strong, female-centered narrative, and its exceptional performances from emerging actors. We couldn’t stop...
- 3/13/2022
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
The Brazilian Filmmakers Collective will launch formally on February 16 at the Berlin Film Festival’s European Film Market.
Formed by a dozen Brazilian filmmakers, and counting such acclaimed directors Ramin Bahrani (Netflix’s The White Tiger) and Fernando Meirelles (City of God) on the creative advisory board, the collective was created last year as a hub for Brazilian filmmakers working abroad to share resources, opportunities and promote creative enrichment.
The group’s directorial work has premiered at film festivals around the world including Toronto, Venice, Sundance, SXSW, New York and more. Members are at similar stages in their careers: they have each premiered their first or second feature films at A-list festivals or are working on their first feature projects with the support of competitive A-list fellowships such as the Torino Screenwriting Lab, TIFF Filmmaker Lab, Sundance Labs, Tribeca Institute Fellowships, Sffilm Residencies, Hola Mexico, and more.
Despite the differences in approach and styles,...
Formed by a dozen Brazilian filmmakers, and counting such acclaimed directors Ramin Bahrani (Netflix’s The White Tiger) and Fernando Meirelles (City of God) on the creative advisory board, the collective was created last year as a hub for Brazilian filmmakers working abroad to share resources, opportunities and promote creative enrichment.
The group’s directorial work has premiered at film festivals around the world including Toronto, Venice, Sundance, SXSW, New York and more. Members are at similar stages in their careers: they have each premiered their first or second feature films at A-list festivals or are working on their first feature projects with the support of competitive A-list fellowships such as the Torino Screenwriting Lab, TIFF Filmmaker Lab, Sundance Labs, Tribeca Institute Fellowships, Sffilm Residencies, Hola Mexico, and more.
Despite the differences in approach and styles,...
- 2/9/2022
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
“Red Notice,” the art-heist thriller starring Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds, is set to become Netflix’s most-watched movie in its first 28 days of release.
The film broke into Netflix’s Top 10 Most Popular English Films of all time this past week, registering 277.9 million hours viewed since its Nov. 12 release — and it has hit the No. 2 spot in just 10 days. That puts it on pace to surpass the current No. 1 holder, Sandra Bullock’s “Bird Box,” which scared up 282 million hours viewed in its first 28 days. In addition, for the second week in a row, “Red Notice” cracked Netflix’s Top 10 in all 94 countries.
Evidently boosted by the popularity of “Red Notice,” Johnson-starrer “Central Intelligence” (14.91 million hours viewed) and Reynolds’ “6 Underground” (7.77 million hours) both broke into the Top 10 English films for the week of Nov. 15-21.
Netflix released the new data, which ranks its most popular titles based on viewing hours,...
The film broke into Netflix’s Top 10 Most Popular English Films of all time this past week, registering 277.9 million hours viewed since its Nov. 12 release — and it has hit the No. 2 spot in just 10 days. That puts it on pace to surpass the current No. 1 holder, Sandra Bullock’s “Bird Box,” which scared up 282 million hours viewed in its first 28 days. In addition, for the second week in a row, “Red Notice” cracked Netflix’s Top 10 in all 94 countries.
Evidently boosted by the popularity of “Red Notice,” Johnson-starrer “Central Intelligence” (14.91 million hours viewed) and Reynolds’ “6 Underground” (7.77 million hours) both broke into the Top 10 English films for the week of Nov. 15-21.
Netflix released the new data, which ranks its most popular titles based on viewing hours,...
- 11/23/2021
- by Todd Spangler
- Variety Film + TV
Miami film fans have an express pass to the best of the world’s film festivals at Miami Dade College’s eighth annual Miami Film Festival Gems, an offshoot of the Miami Film Festival. The Gems line-up expands to seven days this year (Nov. 4-10) and offers in-person screenings of lauded features selected from prestige festivals and international awards season contenders.
“We’re trying to capture the vibe of the moment,” says Jaie Laplante, Miami Film Festival’s executive director and co-director of programming. The festival programmers selected from the prizewinners and standouts of Cannes, Venice, Toronto, New York and other fests. The result is a Telluride-like experience where audiences, “see everything together in a concentrated period of time.”
Some titles will be available virtually as well.
“People are so excited about the line-up: all the films can be recommended,” says Lauren Cohen, Miami Gems co-director of programming.
Fest attendees...
“We’re trying to capture the vibe of the moment,” says Jaie Laplante, Miami Film Festival’s executive director and co-director of programming. The festival programmers selected from the prizewinners and standouts of Cannes, Venice, Toronto, New York and other fests. The result is a Telluride-like experience where audiences, “see everything together in a concentrated period of time.”
Some titles will be available virtually as well.
“People are so excited about the line-up: all the films can be recommended,” says Lauren Cohen, Miami Gems co-director of programming.
Fest attendees...
- 11/4/2021
- by Kathy A. McDonald
- Variety Film + TV
Alexandre Moratto’s feature about workers lured into modern-day slavery in Brazil takes an unexpected turn
You would expect a film about human trafficking and modern-day slavery to be devastating, and this Brazilian drama duly horrifies. But it doesn’t evolve in quite the direction you might anticipate which, strictly from a film point of view, makes it much more interesting than your standard social realism. With a Brechtian approach that compels the viewer to question both their own ethical assumptions and tacit complicity in a worldwide consumerist culture that exploits people all over the planet, 7 Prisoners is deeply uncomfortable but utterly compelling viewing.
The film reteams director Alexandre Moratto, making his second feature-length work after Sócrates in 2018 with young actor Christian Malheiros, who starred as the title character. This time Malheiros plays Mateus, a young man from Brazil’s deep inland farm country, who has accepted a job offer...
You would expect a film about human trafficking and modern-day slavery to be devastating, and this Brazilian drama duly horrifies. But it doesn’t evolve in quite the direction you might anticipate which, strictly from a film point of view, makes it much more interesting than your standard social realism. With a Brechtian approach that compels the viewer to question both their own ethical assumptions and tacit complicity in a worldwide consumerist culture that exploits people all over the planet, 7 Prisoners is deeply uncomfortable but utterly compelling viewing.
The film reteams director Alexandre Moratto, making his second feature-length work after Sócrates in 2018 with young actor Christian Malheiros, who starred as the title character. This time Malheiros plays Mateus, a young man from Brazil’s deep inland farm country, who has accepted a job offer...
- 10/20/2021
- by Leslie Felperin
- The Guardian - Film News
7 Prisoners had been expceted to fly the flag.
In an unexpected move the Brazilian Academy of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts has selected Aly Muritiba’s Private Desert (Deserto Particular) over Alexandre Moratto’s 7 Prisoners as its submission for the 2022 Academy Awards.
Private Desert premiered in Venice Giornate Degli Autori where it won the Bnl People’s Choice Award. Antonio Saboia stars as a police officer who is kicked off the force for violent behaviour and sets off in search of his online love.
The film shot in Sobradinho, Juazeiro, Bahia, and Curitiba and is produced by Grafo Audiovisual and Fado Filmes.
In an unexpected move the Brazilian Academy of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts has selected Aly Muritiba’s Private Desert (Deserto Particular) over Alexandre Moratto’s 7 Prisoners as its submission for the 2022 Academy Awards.
Private Desert premiered in Venice Giornate Degli Autori where it won the Bnl People’s Choice Award. Antonio Saboia stars as a police officer who is kicked off the force for violent behaviour and sets off in search of his online love.
The film shot in Sobradinho, Juazeiro, Bahia, and Curitiba and is produced by Grafo Audiovisual and Fado Filmes.
- 10/15/2021
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
For his human trafficking drama coming soon to Netflix, director Alexandre Moratto looked to Brazilian star Rodrigo Santoro to play the film’s menacing villain Luca. But though Santoro stands out in “Love, Actually,” “300,” “Westworld” and “Lost,” Moratto argues that he’s nearly unrecognizable in this film.
“Some people don’t even recognize him in this role, because he completely transforms himself for the film,” Moratto told TheWrap at the Toronto International Film Festival. “He’s such a massive global star, and the fact that people are doing a double take, it just shows the great lengths he went to to completely transform himself for this role.”
“7 Prisoners” made its premiere at TIFF and is the story of a rural worker in Brazil named Mateus (Christian Malheiros) who travels with a group of other young men for a job in Sao Paolo at a junkyard. Over time they...
“Some people don’t even recognize him in this role, because he completely transforms himself for the film,” Moratto told TheWrap at the Toronto International Film Festival. “He’s such a massive global star, and the fact that people are doing a double take, it just shows the great lengths he went to to completely transform himself for this role.”
“7 Prisoners” made its premiere at TIFF and is the story of a rural worker in Brazil named Mateus (Christian Malheiros) who travels with a group of other young men for a job in Sao Paolo at a junkyard. Over time they...
- 9/21/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
With all of Netflix‘s films at the Venice Film Festival and Telluride this year, it’s easy for the second film of an upstart director to get lost in the mix. However, based on reviews from the festival, Alexandre Moratto‘s “7 Prisoners” deserves all the recognition it can get.
‘7 Prisoners’: Tense Brazilian Human Trafficking Drama Asks How Far You Will Go To Survive [Telluride Review]
After its world premiere in Venice and Telluride, “7 Prisoners” looks poised to be a breakout hit for its Brazilian-American director.
Continue reading ‘7 Prisoners’ Trailer: Alexandre Moratto’s Celebrated Venice Feature Comes To Netflix This November at The Playlist.
‘7 Prisoners’: Tense Brazilian Human Trafficking Drama Asks How Far You Will Go To Survive [Telluride Review]
After its world premiere in Venice and Telluride, “7 Prisoners” looks poised to be a breakout hit for its Brazilian-American director.
Continue reading ‘7 Prisoners’ Trailer: Alexandre Moratto’s Celebrated Venice Feature Comes To Netflix This November at The Playlist.
- 9/15/2021
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
“Socrates” director Alexandre Moratto returns with “7 Prisoners,” a lean and intense moral thriller about a smart kid who finds trouble in São Paulo. The Brazilian hostage film world-premiered to acclaim at the Venice Film Festival and is now set to be released in theaters and on streaming globally from Netflix this November. The streaming giant is eyeing an Oscar push for the film as a strong contender for Best International Feature out of Brazil. Exclusive to IndieWire, watch the trailer for the film below.
Here’s the synopsis courtesy of Netflix:
18-year-old Mateus (Christian Malheiros) hopes to provide a better life for his working-class family in the countryside. Accepting a new job in São Paolo, he is shuttled into the city with a handful of other teenage boys from his town, unaware of what awaits them: exhausting work in a scrapyard and their identity cards seized by a vicious taskmaster and exploiter,...
Here’s the synopsis courtesy of Netflix:
18-year-old Mateus (Christian Malheiros) hopes to provide a better life for his working-class family in the countryside. Accepting a new job in São Paolo, he is shuttled into the city with a handful of other teenage boys from his town, unaware of what awaits them: exhausting work in a scrapyard and their identity cards seized by a vicious taskmaster and exploiter,...
- 9/15/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Near the beginning of “7 Prisoners,” the illuminated high-rise skyline of São Paulo draws murmurs of admiration from a group of young rural Brazilians as a minivan ferries them into the city for the first time in their lives. They’ve never personally known their world to be so big, though within minutes of Brazilian-American director Alexandre Moratto’s accomplished, socially conscious thriller, it’ll grow smaller than they could ever have imagined. As migrant labor turns swiftly and all too plausibly into modern-day slavery, vivid, in-the-moment terror turns to more sustained, sweaty moral panic: The only way out of this prison, it seems, is to become a jailer yourself.
Moratto’s first film “Socrates,” a tender-tough, street-level study of a gay teen surviving homelessness in São Paulo, won him the Someone to Watch Award at the 2019 Independent Spirit Awards, and the more polished, pumped-up “7 Prisoners” seemingly hits the...
Moratto’s first film “Socrates,” a tender-tough, street-level study of a gay teen surviving homelessness in São Paulo, won him the Someone to Watch Award at the 2019 Independent Spirit Awards, and the more polished, pumped-up “7 Prisoners” seemingly hits the...
- 9/10/2021
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Fresh off the Venice Film Festival world premiere of his upcoming drama, 7 Prisoners, director Alexandre Moratto has been signed by WME. The Netflix title is in the Horizons Extra section here and will next screen at the Toronto International Film Festival.
A protégé of filmmaker Ramin Bahrani, Moratto first garnered attention with his award-winning debut feature Socrates, shot at a budget of $20,000 with a crew of 16-20 year olds from a Unicef-supported project providing opportunities to low-income communities in Brazil.
Socrates went on to screen at over 50 film festivals, earning Moratto two major film grants and three Independent Spirit Award nominations, including the John Cassavetes Award for best film with a budget of under $500,000 and the Someone to Watch Award, the latter of which he won.
Bahrani served as a producer on Socrates and also produces 7 Prisoners. In Deadline’s review, Anna Smith called it a...
A protégé of filmmaker Ramin Bahrani, Moratto first garnered attention with his award-winning debut feature Socrates, shot at a budget of $20,000 with a crew of 16-20 year olds from a Unicef-supported project providing opportunities to low-income communities in Brazil.
Socrates went on to screen at over 50 film festivals, earning Moratto two major film grants and three Independent Spirit Award nominations, including the John Cassavetes Award for best film with a budget of under $500,000 and the Someone to Watch Award, the latter of which he won.
Bahrani served as a producer on Socrates and also produces 7 Prisoners. In Deadline’s review, Anna Smith called it a...
- 9/8/2021
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
, the second feature by filmmaker Alexandre Moratto (“Socrates”) hinges on the moral dilemma that confronts a poor 18-year-old farm worker after he trades the outskirts of Catanduva for the big city of São Paulo in order to send money back to his ailing mom.
The kid’s name is Mateus (“Socrates” lead Christian Malheiros), and he’s a rock-solid human who would do anything to support his family. It’s with evident reluctance that Mateus has agreed to leave home, and he winces when his mom presents him with a new shirt for the occasion — she could’ve bought an entire month’s worth of groceries for the same amount. Mateus is more accepting of the protective necklace she gives him for good luck, and the aviation magazine that his little sister offers with a similar degree of ceremony; with big dreams and a good head on his shoulders, there...
The kid’s name is Mateus (“Socrates” lead Christian Malheiros), and he’s a rock-solid human who would do anything to support his family. It’s with evident reluctance that Mateus has agreed to leave home, and he winces when his mom presents him with a new shirt for the occasion — she could’ve bought an entire month’s worth of groceries for the same amount. Mateus is more accepting of the protective necklace she gives him for good luck, and the aviation magazine that his little sister offers with a similar degree of ceremony; with big dreams and a good head on his shoulders, there...
- 9/7/2021
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
An imprisoned teen tries to escape in 7 Prisoners, Netflix’s powerful addition to the Venice Film Festival’s Horizons Extra category. But 18-year-old Mateus (Christian Malheiros) isn’t in a conventional prison: he’s working at a junkyard in Brazil’s São Paulo when his new boss, Luca (Rodrigo Santoro), locks him and his co-workers into the complex, playing mind games and demanding long hours. While some try to run for it, Mateus develops a strategy which involves impressing the boss and becoming his right hand man. But will the plan work, or will he be sucked into the other side of human trafficking?
It’s a gripping premise from director Alexandre Moratto, who co-wrote the screenplay with Thayná Mantesso. The writers take time to establish the characters, introducing Mateus as an ambitious young man who’s keen to send money home to his family in the country, before heading onto bigger things.
It’s a gripping premise from director Alexandre Moratto, who co-wrote the screenplay with Thayná Mantesso. The writers take time to establish the characters, introducing Mateus as an ambitious young man who’s keen to send money home to his family in the country, before heading onto bigger things.
- 9/6/2021
- by Anna Smith
- Deadline Film + TV
Contrary to what its title might imply, director Alexandre Moratto’s sophomore feature “7 Prisoners” isn’t set in a correctional facility or during an armed conflict, but in the underbelly of urban Sao Paolo, Brazil. A lean, unflinching and acutely topical peek at modern-day slavery sold as an opportunity for economic advancement, this naturalistic thriller concerns a victim coerced into becoming a victimizer for survival.
Ripped from their rural hometowns with the promise of steady and well-remunerated work, a pack of young men without avenues for education head to the big city. They are neither the first nor the last, but merely part of a large operation. Mateus (Christian Malheiros), a Black 18-year-old, and three others arrive at a scrap-metal junkyard. A scruffy Rodrigo Santoro, a Hollywood regular back in his home country, plays the callous Luca, who welcomes them to their live-in positions stripping copper and sorting steel.
Ripped from their rural hometowns with the promise of steady and well-remunerated work, a pack of young men without avenues for education head to the big city. They are neither the first nor the last, but merely part of a large operation. Mateus (Christian Malheiros), a Black 18-year-old, and three others arrive at a scrap-metal junkyard. A scruffy Rodrigo Santoro, a Hollywood regular back in his home country, plays the callous Luca, who welcomes them to their live-in positions stripping copper and sorting steel.
- 9/6/2021
- by Carlos Aguilar
- The Wrap
Three years after making a name for himself with his impressive debut feature Socrates, Brazilian-American filmmaker Alexandre Moratto returns with another story examining the struggles faced by those living on the margins of society in Brazil. While Socrates — which won Moratto the Someone to Watch Award at the Independent Spirit Awards — dealt with extreme poverty and homophobia, 7 Prisoners, premiering in Venice’s new Horizons Extra section and landing on Netflix this year, explores the horrors of modern-day enslavement, following a young boy (Socrates lead Christian Malheiros) lured from the countryside to Sao Paulo to work at a junkyard. Once there, however, he finds ...
Three years after making a name for himself with his impressive debut feature Socrates, Brazilian-American filmmaker Alexandre Moratto returns with another story examining the struggles faced by those living on the margins of society in Brazil. While Socrates — which won Moratto the Someone to Watch Award at the Independent Spirit Awards — dealt with extreme poverty and homophobia, 7 Prisoners, premiering in Venice’s new Horizons Extra section and landing on Netflix this year, explores the horrors of modern-day enslavement, following a young boy (Socrates lead Christian Malheiros) lured from the countryside to Sao Paulo to work at a junkyard. Once there, however, he finds himself ...
Though the Venice Film Festival will serve as a launching pad for several blockbusters, festival artistic director Alberto Barbera this year is introducing a section called Horizons Extra, dedicated to more offbeat works of all genres with no length constraints although they must be more than an hour long. These pics will be judged by festgoers.
The Horizons Extra section is an extension of Horizons, the Venice section focusing on new trends in world cinema that, under Barbera, became a competition instrumental in promoting emerging auteurs.
It’s a small but significant new component of the fest’s programming structure that, along with the competitive Venice VR Expanded section dedicated to virtual reality works of any length and format, gives the festival a spot to host innovative programming.
With Horizons Extra, Barbera is boosting his effort “to give value to a certain kind of cinema that is auteur-driven, ambitious and demanding,...
The Horizons Extra section is an extension of Horizons, the Venice section focusing on new trends in world cinema that, under Barbera, became a competition instrumental in promoting emerging auteurs.
It’s a small but significant new component of the fest’s programming structure that, along with the competitive Venice VR Expanded section dedicated to virtual reality works of any length and format, gives the festival a spot to host innovative programming.
With Horizons Extra, Barbera is boosting his effort “to give value to a certain kind of cinema that is auteur-driven, ambitious and demanding,...
- 8/27/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Toronto Film Festival Adds Docs and Midnight Titles Including ‘Titane,’ ‘Attica’ and ‘Neptune Frost’
The Toronto International Film Festival announced which films will fill the TIFF Docs, Midnight Madness, and Wavelength sections at this year’s edition of the event, which runs from Sept. 9-18. The festival also added new titles to the Special Presentation and Contemporary World Cinema programs.
Opening TIFF Docs is the world premiere of “Attica” by Stanley Nelson, which tells the story of the 1971 Attica prison riot. Coming about as a result of the prisoners’ fight for more humane living conditions and lasting for five days, it remains the deadliest prison rebellion in U.S. history.
Wavelengths will open with “Neptune Frost” from directors and married couple Saul Williams and Anisia Uzeyman. The film is billed a sci-fi musical romance between an intersex hacker and a coltan miner that will follow the “virtual marvel born as a result of their union.” This marks the North American premiere of the film,...
Opening TIFF Docs is the world premiere of “Attica” by Stanley Nelson, which tells the story of the 1971 Attica prison riot. Coming about as a result of the prisoners’ fight for more humane living conditions and lasting for five days, it remains the deadliest prison rebellion in U.S. history.
Wavelengths will open with “Neptune Frost” from directors and married couple Saul Williams and Anisia Uzeyman. The film is billed a sci-fi musical romance between an intersex hacker and a coltan miner that will follow the “virtual marvel born as a result of their union.” This marks the North American premiere of the film,...
- 8/4/2021
- by Selome Hailu
- Variety Film + TV
BenedictionThe lineup has been unveiled for the 2021 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, which will take place over 10 days (September 9-18) both in-person and physically in Toronto, and digitally across Canada. Wavelengths - FEATURESFutura (Pietro Marcello, Francesco Munzi, Alice Rohrwacher)The Girl and the Spider (Ramon Zürcher, Silvan Zürcher)Neptune Frost (Saul Williams, Anisia Uzeyman)A Night of Knowing Nothing (Payal Kapadia)Ste. Anne (Rhayne Vermette)The Tsugua Diaries (Maureen Fazendeiro, Miguel Gomes)Wavelengths - SHORTSThe Capacity for Adequate Anger (Vika Kirchenbauer)Dear Chantal (Querida Chantal) (Nicolás Pereda)earthearthearth (Daïchi Saïto)Inner Outer Space (Laida Lertxundi)Polycephaly in D (Michael Robinson)“The red filter is withdrawn.” (Minjung Kim)Train Again (Peter Tscherkassky)Midnight Madness After Blue (Dirty Paradise) (Bertrand Mandico)Dashcam (Rob Savage)Saloum (Jean Luc Herbulot)Titane (Julia Ducournau)You Are Not My Mother (Kate Dolan)Zalava (Arsalan Amiri)TIFF DOCSAttica (Stanley Nelson)Beba (Rebeca Huntt)Becoming Cousteau...
- 8/4/2021
- MUBI
Titles include a new film from ‘Host’ director Rob Savage.
Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has added 35 feature titles to its line-up for 2021, predominantly across the TIFF Docs, Midnight Madness and Wavelengths strands.
The new titles include 11 world premieres, consisting of eight in TIFF Docs and three in Midnight Madness.
Titles in the latter include Dashcam, the new film from Rob Savage, director of 2020 pandemic horror hit Host. Savage was named a Screen Star of Tomorrow in 2013.
Also in the Midnight Madness section is Kate Dolan’s You Are Not My Mother, inspired by the mythology of the Changeling, which...
Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has added 35 feature titles to its line-up for 2021, predominantly across the TIFF Docs, Midnight Madness and Wavelengths strands.
The new titles include 11 world premieres, consisting of eight in TIFF Docs and three in Midnight Madness.
Titles in the latter include Dashcam, the new film from Rob Savage, director of 2020 pandemic horror hit Host. Savage was named a Screen Star of Tomorrow in 2013.
Also in the Midnight Madness section is Kate Dolan’s You Are Not My Mother, inspired by the mythology of the Changeling, which...
- 8/4/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
New nonfiction films from directors Liz Garbus, Stanley Nelson, and E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin will screen at the Toronto International Film Festival as part of the TIFF Docs program, TIFF organizers announced on Wednesday.
Nelson’s documentary “Attica” will serve as the opening-night film in the section, while other docs at the festival will include Garbus’ “Becoming Cousteau,” Barry Avrich’s “Oscar Peterson: Black + White,” Penny Lane’s “Listening to Kenny G” and Vasarhelyi and Chin’s “Rescue.”
The festival’s Midnight Madness section will open with the Cannes Palme d’Or winner “Titane,” by Julia Ducournau, while TIFF has also added three Special Presentations films that also premiered in Cannes: Nadav Lapid’s “Ahed’s Knee,” Bruno Dumont’s “France” and Ari Folman’s “Where Is Anne Frank?”
In the Contemporary World Cinema section, additions include Juho Kuosmanen’s “Compartment No. 6” and Khadar Ayderus Ahmed’s “The Gravedigger’s Wife.
Nelson’s documentary “Attica” will serve as the opening-night film in the section, while other docs at the festival will include Garbus’ “Becoming Cousteau,” Barry Avrich’s “Oscar Peterson: Black + White,” Penny Lane’s “Listening to Kenny G” and Vasarhelyi and Chin’s “Rescue.”
The festival’s Midnight Madness section will open with the Cannes Palme d’Or winner “Titane,” by Julia Ducournau, while TIFF has also added three Special Presentations films that also premiered in Cannes: Nadav Lapid’s “Ahed’s Knee,” Bruno Dumont’s “France” and Ari Folman’s “Where Is Anne Frank?”
In the Contemporary World Cinema section, additions include Juho Kuosmanen’s “Compartment No. 6” and Khadar Ayderus Ahmed’s “The Gravedigger’s Wife.
- 8/4/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
The programme for the 2021 Venice Film Festival has been unveiled, and includes new films from Pedro Almodóvar, Jane Campion, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michelangelo Frammartino, Pablo Larraín, Paul Schrader, Ridley Scott, and more.Parallel MothersCOMPETITIONParallel Mothers (Pedro Almodóvar)Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon (Ana Lily Amirpour)Un Autre Monde (Stephane Brize)The Power of the Dog (Jane Campion)America LatinaL’Evenement (Audrey Diwan)Official CompetitionThe Hole (Michelangelo Frammartino)Sundown (Michel Franco)Lost Illusions (Xavier Giannoli)The Lost Daughter (Maggie Gyllenhaal)Spencer (Pablo Larrain)Freaks Out (Gabriele Mainetti)Qui Rido Io (Mario Martone)On The Job: The Missing 8 (Erik Matti)Leave No Traces (Jan P. Matuszyński)Captain Volkonogov EscapedThe Card Counter (Paul Schrader)The Hand of God (Paolo Sorrentino)Reflection (Valentyn Vasyanovych)The Box (Lorenzo Vigas)Out Of COMPETITIONFeaturesDune (Denis Villeneuve)Il Bambino Nascosto (Roberto Andò)Les Choses Humaines (Yvan Attal)Ariaferma (Leonardo Di Costanzo)Halloween Kills (David Gordon Green...
- 8/3/2021
- MUBI
Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera seems pretty relaxed after announcing what, on paper, looks like one of the strongest Lido lineups in recent memory. There is of course an underlying fear that the Delta variant could spoil the party, but he doesn’t seem too worried.
Barbera spoke to Variety about the lower number of women directors in competition this year and the fact that Hollywood is back in full force — alongside Netflix.
Last year there were eight films directed by women in competition, this year there are five. What happened?
We are talking about small variations [in numbers] that can occur even purely by chance. Two years ago, there were two [women directors in competition]. Last year, there were eight. This year, there are five. On the whole, if you look at the total number of submissions, the percentage of films by women directors last year was around 28%; this year it’s 26%; two...
Barbera spoke to Variety about the lower number of women directors in competition this year and the fact that Hollywood is back in full force — alongside Netflix.
Last year there were eight films directed by women in competition, this year there are five. What happened?
We are talking about small variations [in numbers] that can occur even purely by chance. Two years ago, there were two [women directors in competition]. Last year, there were eight. This year, there are five. On the whole, if you look at the total number of submissions, the percentage of films by women directors last year was around 28%; this year it’s 26%; two...
- 7/27/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Taking place September 1 through 11, the Venice Film Festival has now unveiled its lineup, after a few teases of what it contains (the opening night selection of Madres Paralelas by Pedro Almodovar and Denis Villeneuve’s Dune). Among the selections are Jane Campion’s The Power of a Dog, Paul Schrader’s The Card Counter, Pablo Larrain’s Spencer, Ana Lily Amirpour’s Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon.
Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut The Lost Daughter, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, Paolo Sorrentino’s The Hand of God, and Edgar Wright’s The Last Night in Soho will premiere there, along with new shorts by Radu Jude and Tsai Ming-liang.
Check out the line below for the festival that will feature 50% capacity at screenings.
Venezia 78 – Competition
Madres Paralelas, dir: Pedro Almodovar
Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon, dir: Ana Lily Amirpour
Un Autre Monde, dir: Stéphane Brizé
The Power Of The Dog,...
Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut The Lost Daughter, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, Paolo Sorrentino’s The Hand of God, and Edgar Wright’s The Last Night in Soho will premiere there, along with new shorts by Radu Jude and Tsai Ming-liang.
Check out the line below for the festival that will feature 50% capacity at screenings.
Venezia 78 – Competition
Madres Paralelas, dir: Pedro Almodovar
Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon, dir: Ana Lily Amirpour
Un Autre Monde, dir: Stéphane Brizé
The Power Of The Dog,...
- 7/26/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
The Venice film festival runs September 1-11.
The line-up for the 78th Venice Film Festival (September 1-11) is being unveiled this morning at around 11:00 Cest (10:00 BST) by festival president Roberto Cicutto and artistic director Alberto Barbera.
The press conference will be live-streamed here below, and the story will be updated with the films as they are announced.
As previously announced, Pedro Almodóvar’s Parallel Mothers will open the festival in competition. Denis Villeneuve’s Dune will also have its world premiere at the festival out of competition on September 3.
Bong Joon Ho will preside over the competition jury that also includes Chloé Zhao,...
The line-up for the 78th Venice Film Festival (September 1-11) is being unveiled this morning at around 11:00 Cest (10:00 BST) by festival president Roberto Cicutto and artistic director Alberto Barbera.
The press conference will be live-streamed here below, and the story will be updated with the films as they are announced.
As previously announced, Pedro Almodóvar’s Parallel Mothers will open the festival in competition. Denis Villeneuve’s Dune will also have its world premiere at the festival out of competition on September 3.
Bong Joon Ho will preside over the competition jury that also includes Chloé Zhao,...
- 7/26/2021
- by Orlando Parfitt
- ScreenDaily
Philadelphia-based Breaking Glass Pictures (Bgp) and Brazil’s O2 Play, the distribution arm of O2 Filmes, which is co-owned by Oscar-nominated director Fernando Meirelles, have inked a two-way distribution partnership.
The new pact kicks off with Bgp’s North American release of a Brazilian drama by Eliane Coster, “Half Brother” (“Meio Irmão”), a timely story of a young man who films a homophobic assault and faces death threats to dissuade him from releasing the footage. Release is slated for LGBTQ celebration, Pride Month, on June 15.
“Being a life-long fan and distributor of Brazilian Cinema, it gives me great pleasure to bring titles to U.S. audiences that may not find domestic distribution otherwise,” said Breaking Glass CEO Rich Wolff. “This partnership was years in the making, and we are thrilled to be working with O2 Play for many releases to come.”
The new pact formalizes a relationship that began in...
The new pact kicks off with Bgp’s North American release of a Brazilian drama by Eliane Coster, “Half Brother” (“Meio Irmão”), a timely story of a young man who films a homophobic assault and faces death threats to dissuade him from releasing the footage. Release is slated for LGBTQ celebration, Pride Month, on June 15.
“Being a life-long fan and distributor of Brazilian Cinema, it gives me great pleasure to bring titles to U.S. audiences that may not find domestic distribution otherwise,” said Breaking Glass CEO Rich Wolff. “This partnership was years in the making, and we are thrilled to be working with O2 Play for many releases to come.”
The new pact formalizes a relationship that began in...
- 5/28/2021
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
EntertainmentNetflix has announced that they will be releasing new, unseen films every week in 2021.Tnm StaffPIXABAYOn Tuesday, Netflix announced that it will release a whopping 71 movies through the course of the year. The lineup has movies starring A-list actors like Leonardo Dicapirio, Gal Gadot, Ryan Reynolds, Chris Hemsworth, Dwayne Johnson and more. Netflix has promised its users new films released every week. Among them is Red Notice starring Gal Gadot, Dwayne Johnson and Ryan Reynolds; Don’t Look Up, a political satire disaster film featuring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence; and the zombie apocalypse film Army of the Dead. After his hit movie Extraction, Chris Hemsworth’s upcoming sci-fi thriller Escape From Spiderhead is also a part of the line-up. The teen romance novel adaptationsTo All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and The Kissing Booth will have their third instalments releasing this year as well, with To All the Boys: Always and Forever,...
- 1/13/2021
- by AjayR
- The News Minute
Netflix has made good on its high-profile promise to deliver new movies every week.
Teased last October in national commercial spots, the streaming monolith is guaranteeing its roughly 193 million subscribers unseen features every week in 2021. Largely consisting of original productions as well as some splashy acquisitions, the slate has 71 titles across genres — from musicals to action, romantic comedies to family animation.
Dwayne Johnson, Melissa McCarthy, Halle Berry, Jason Momoa, Amy Adams, Ryan Reynolds, Chris Hemsworth and Lin-Manuel Miranda are among those featured in sizzle reel released Tuesday (watch below) showcasing their respective projects, which will roll out over the next 12 months.
Highlights include the mega-budgeted heist film “Red Notice,” starring Gal Gadot, Johnson, and Reynolds; the Western “The Harder They Fall” with Regina King, Idris Elba and “Lovecraft County” breakout Jonathan Majors; Adams’ “The Woman in The Window”; Zach Snyder’s “Army of the Dead”; Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Tick, Tick … Boom!
Teased last October in national commercial spots, the streaming monolith is guaranteeing its roughly 193 million subscribers unseen features every week in 2021. Largely consisting of original productions as well as some splashy acquisitions, the slate has 71 titles across genres — from musicals to action, romantic comedies to family animation.
Dwayne Johnson, Melissa McCarthy, Halle Berry, Jason Momoa, Amy Adams, Ryan Reynolds, Chris Hemsworth and Lin-Manuel Miranda are among those featured in sizzle reel released Tuesday (watch below) showcasing their respective projects, which will roll out over the next 12 months.
Highlights include the mega-budgeted heist film “Red Notice,” starring Gal Gadot, Johnson, and Reynolds; the Western “The Harder They Fall” with Regina King, Idris Elba and “Lovecraft County” breakout Jonathan Majors; Adams’ “The Woman in The Window”; Zach Snyder’s “Army of the Dead”; Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Tick, Tick … Boom!
- 1/12/2021
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
Brazilian-American filmmaker Alexandre Moratto won the Someone To Watch prize at the 2019 Film Independent Spirit Awards for his feature debut Socrates, which finally reached UK cinemas and VoD this week. It was a deserving win for a lean and emotionally resonant portrait of 15-year-old Socrates' (Christian Malheiros) resilience in the face of grief, poverty and his burgeoning sexuality. Chatting to the director - who was largely raised in the US and now splits his time between there and Brazil - he admits "it's really strange " to find himself promoting the film again because of the situation with the pandemic but that it was "a nice surprise", adding, "It's like a second life for the movie."
Director Alexandre Moratto The project is quite unusual, in that Moratto worked in tandem with the Quero Institute in Brazil, a Unicef project that aims to...
Director Alexandre Moratto The project is quite unusual, in that Moratto worked in tandem with the Quero Institute in Brazil, a Unicef project that aims to...
- 9/5/2020
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Driven by the sort of passion that is the province of the young and a finely worked central performance from Christian Malheiros made all the more remarkable by the fact that it marks his screen debut, Socrates sees a young man struggling to cope with grief and poverty.
Made by director Alexandre Moratto (writing with Thayná Mantesso), with a teenage crew from the Unicef-supported Quero Institute, which aims to improve social inclusion for youngsters but like the acting performance from Malheiros, there's barely a trace of inexperience on display. It's a lean slice of life, shot through with the sort of humanism the Dardennes brothers have made their stock-in trade, which wastes little time, beginning, as it does, with the death of Socrates' mother - a moment of shock for him and for us.
The youngster may look older than his 15 years and be willing to work at his mother's old.
Made by director Alexandre Moratto (writing with Thayná Mantesso), with a teenage crew from the Unicef-supported Quero Institute, which aims to improve social inclusion for youngsters but like the acting performance from Malheiros, there's barely a trace of inexperience on display. It's a lean slice of life, shot through with the sort of humanism the Dardennes brothers have made their stock-in trade, which wastes little time, beginning, as it does, with the death of Socrates' mother - a moment of shock for him and for us.
The youngster may look older than his 15 years and be willing to work at his mother's old.
- 9/2/2020
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
A gay teen comes of age in a desperate situation in this audacious and elegant debut made on a shoestring
Brazilian-American film-maker Alexandre Moratto makes a bold feature debut with Socrates, a very personal, good-looking film resourcefully made on a micro-budget with the help of an LGBT charity in Brazil – and produced by the Iranian film-maker Ramin Bahrani.
Christian Malheiros plays Socrates, a gay teen in São Paulo who becomes homeless when his mother dies. It leaves him desperate to pay the rent, desperate to find a job and desperate to find his way in the world. And the death of his mum creates a situation in which he can’t avoid dealing with his bitter, vengeful and homophobic dad, who has the legal right to his mother’s ashes.
Brazilian-American film-maker Alexandre Moratto makes a bold feature debut with Socrates, a very personal, good-looking film resourcefully made on a micro-budget with the help of an LGBT charity in Brazil – and produced by the Iranian film-maker Ramin Bahrani.
Christian Malheiros plays Socrates, a gay teen in São Paulo who becomes homeless when his mother dies. It leaves him desperate to pay the rent, desperate to find a job and desperate to find his way in the world. And the death of his mum creates a situation in which he can’t avoid dealing with his bitter, vengeful and homophobic dad, who has the legal right to his mother’s ashes.
- 9/2/2020
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Since its inception in 1994, the Indie Spirits’ “Someone to Watch” Award has singled out such rising filmmakers as Larry Fessenden, Marc Forster, Debra Eisenstadt, Lynn Shelton (with Barry Jenkins also nominated that same year), Anna Rose Holmer, and Justin Chon. Earlier this year, Brazilian first-time filmmaker Alexandre Moratto joined those rarified ranks with his micro-budgeted “Socrates.”
The film, made for just $20,000 with a group of mostly brand-new talents at the Querô Institute in Brazil, also picked up nods for the John Cassavetes Award and Best Male Lead, pitting star Christian Malheiros against such heavy-hitters as Ethan Hawke, Joaquin Phoenix, John Cho, and Daveed Diggs. Now, the film is gearing up for its North American release.
Per the film’s official synopsis: “After his mother’s sudden death, Socrates, a 15-year-old living on the margins of São Paulo’s coast, must survive on his own. As he faces isolation because of his sexuality,...
The film, made for just $20,000 with a group of mostly brand-new talents at the Querô Institute in Brazil, also picked up nods for the John Cassavetes Award and Best Male Lead, pitting star Christian Malheiros against such heavy-hitters as Ethan Hawke, Joaquin Phoenix, John Cho, and Daveed Diggs. Now, the film is gearing up for its North American release.
Per the film’s official synopsis: “After his mother’s sudden death, Socrates, a 15-year-old living on the margins of São Paulo’s coast, must survive on his own. As he faces isolation because of his sexuality,...
- 7/17/2019
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
In today’s film news roundup, stunt coordinator Shauna Duggins is moving into the director’s chair, an arm-wrestling comedy is heading for the big screen and “Socrates” gets sold.
Director Hired
Emmy-winning stunt coordinator Shauna Duggins will direct the action drama “Guardian” from Cory Byam’s script in her directorial debut.
Voltage Pictures and Wonderland Sound are the production companies. Producers are McG and Mary Viola, Voltage’s Nicolas Chartier and Dominic Rustam. Steven Bello of Wonderland and Jonathan Deckter of Voltage are also executive producers of the project, alongside Duggin’s long-time collaborator Brian Machleit.
“Guardian” tells the multi-layered story of a top assassin who becomes the reluctant guardian for the son of the last man he killed – entangling himself in a mob power struggle and an unexpected crisis of conscience. Duggins became the first female stunt professional to win an Emmy in 2018 for her work on Netflix’s “Glow.
Director Hired
Emmy-winning stunt coordinator Shauna Duggins will direct the action drama “Guardian” from Cory Byam’s script in her directorial debut.
Voltage Pictures and Wonderland Sound are the production companies. Producers are McG and Mary Viola, Voltage’s Nicolas Chartier and Dominic Rustam. Steven Bello of Wonderland and Jonathan Deckter of Voltage are also executive producers of the project, alongside Duggin’s long-time collaborator Brian Machleit.
“Guardian” tells the multi-layered story of a top assassin who becomes the reluctant guardian for the son of the last man he killed – entangling himself in a mob power struggle and an unexpected crisis of conscience. Duggins became the first female stunt professional to win an Emmy in 2018 for her work on Netflix’s “Glow.
- 6/11/2019
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Audience award for best feature went to Billy Corben’s documentary Screwball.
Birds Of Passage by Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra has won the $40,000 Knight Marimbas Award at the 36th Miami Film Festival.
The filmmakers’ Ciudad Lunar Productions will split the festival’s top jury prize with the film’s Us distributor The Orchard, which will distribute the film in select markets including Miami on March 15.
Sponsored by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the award is presented to the film “that best exemplifies richness and resonance for cinema’s future”. The Audience Award for Best Feature went...
Birds Of Passage by Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra has won the $40,000 Knight Marimbas Award at the 36th Miami Film Festival.
The filmmakers’ Ciudad Lunar Productions will split the festival’s top jury prize with the film’s Us distributor The Orchard, which will distribute the film in select markets including Miami on March 15.
Sponsored by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the award is presented to the film “that best exemplifies richness and resonance for cinema’s future”. The Audience Award for Best Feature went...
- 3/11/2019
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
The 2019 Film Independent Spirit Awards have revealed their nominations. Leading the pack is Jeremiah Zagar’s Malickian coming-of-age tale We the Animals, which nabbed five nods, while grabbing four each were Paul Schrader’s First Reformed, Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade and Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here. Rounding out the Best Feature category was If Beale Street Could Talk and Leave No Trace.
Some of our favourite performances of the year, including Helena Howard, Regina Hall, Carey Mulligan, Richard E. Grant, and Ethan Hawke got nods in their respective categories. Suspiria earned the Robert Altman Award for its ensemble. The Favourite and Roma, which were only eligible for Best International Film, earned nods in that category alongside Burning, Happy as Lazzaro, and Shoplifters.
Check out the nomination list below ahead of a February 23 ceremony.
Best Feature
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
If Beale Street Could Talk
Leave No...
Some of our favourite performances of the year, including Helena Howard, Regina Hall, Carey Mulligan, Richard E. Grant, and Ethan Hawke got nods in their respective categories. Suspiria earned the Robert Altman Award for its ensemble. The Favourite and Roma, which were only eligible for Best International Film, earned nods in that category alongside Burning, Happy as Lazzaro, and Shoplifters.
Check out the nomination list below ahead of a February 23 ceremony.
Best Feature
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
If Beale Street Could Talk
Leave No...
- 11/17/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Roma, The Favourite nominated for best international film.
You Were Never Really Here and First Reformed led the 2019 Spirit Awards announced in Los Angeles on Friday (16), earning four nods apiece.
Both films are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace, If Beale Street Could Talk, and Eighth Grade.
You Were Never Really Here is also contention for director Lynne Ramsay, lead male Joaquin Phoenix, and editor Joe Bini while First Reformed earned additional nods for Paul Schrader in the director and screenplay categories, and Ethan Hawke for male lead.
Leave No Trace is nominated for director Debra Granik and supporting female Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie,...
You Were Never Really Here and First Reformed led the 2019 Spirit Awards announced in Los Angeles on Friday (16), earning four nods apiece.
Both films are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace, If Beale Street Could Talk, and Eighth Grade.
You Were Never Really Here is also contention for director Lynne Ramsay, lead male Joaquin Phoenix, and editor Joe Bini while First Reformed earned additional nods for Paul Schrader in the director and screenplay categories, and Ethan Hawke for male lead.
Leave No Trace is nominated for director Debra Granik and supporting female Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie,...
- 11/16/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
The nominations for the 34th Independent Spirit Awards were announced live this afternoon, setting the stage for the awards season with a decidedly indie bent. Over the last several years, the Indie Spirits have become both a champion of underdog indies and a key indicator in which films and performances could end up with the Oscar.
Some of the year’s biggest titles are, however, not eligible for this year’s Indie Spirits per their rules, including “Vice,” “The Sisters Brothers,” and “Mary Queen of Scots,” while Alfonso Cuarón’s lauded “Roma” only qualifies for Best International Film.
Favorites like “Eighth Grade” and “First Reformed” dominated the big categories, with each film earning four nominations, including Best Feature for both, Best Actress for “Eighth Grade” lead Elsie Fisher, and Best Actor for “First Reformed” star Ethan Hawke. “We the Animals” led the entire field with five total noms. A number...
Some of the year’s biggest titles are, however, not eligible for this year’s Indie Spirits per their rules, including “Vice,” “The Sisters Brothers,” and “Mary Queen of Scots,” while Alfonso Cuarón’s lauded “Roma” only qualifies for Best International Film.
Favorites like “Eighth Grade” and “First Reformed” dominated the big categories, with each film earning four nominations, including Best Feature for both, Best Actress for “Eighth Grade” lead Elsie Fisher, and Best Actor for “First Reformed” star Ethan Hawke. “We the Animals” led the entire field with five total noms. A number...
- 11/16/2018
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Film Independent’s Los Angeles event boasts 42% female-directed entries.
Film Independent’s La Film Festival has unveiled the line-ups for five of its sections, with Gregory Dixon’s Olympia, Alex Moratto’s Socrates and Linda Midgett’s Same God among the world premieres.
The festival, which runs from September 20 to 28 this year in Los Angeles, announced 40 features, 41 shorts and 10 episodic shorts from a total of 26 countries.
In competition categories, 42% of the festival titles are directed by women and 39% by people of colour, said Film Independent, the non-profit that also produces the Spirit Awards.
Scroll down for full line-up
Jennifer Cochis,...
Film Independent’s La Film Festival has unveiled the line-ups for five of its sections, with Gregory Dixon’s Olympia, Alex Moratto’s Socrates and Linda Midgett’s Same God among the world premieres.
The festival, which runs from September 20 to 28 this year in Los Angeles, announced 40 features, 41 shorts and 10 episodic shorts from a total of 26 countries.
In competition categories, 42% of the festival titles are directed by women and 39% by people of colour, said Film Independent, the non-profit that also produces the Spirit Awards.
Scroll down for full line-up
Jennifer Cochis,...
- 8/1/2018
- by John Hazelton
- ScreenDaily
The La Film Festival has placed a heavy emphasis on diversity in its competition film slate, with 42% of the films directed by women and 39% helmed by people of color.
The 24th edition of the festival is also positioning itself as an event for unveiling lesser-known talent. It will take place Sept. 20-28 as it moves from its traditional June slot to the fall awards season.
The Los Angeles event follow the Venice International Film Festival, which begins in late August; the Telluride Film Festival, which runs over Labor Day; and the Toronto Intl. Film Festival, which starts on Sept. 6. The festival will end just as the New York Film Festival begins.
“Our mission of finding fresh new voices from different geographical and cultural axes remains true,” said L Film Festival director Jennifer Cochis. “These storytellers are united by their ability to transport, impact and inspire audiences with the power of their craft.
The 24th edition of the festival is also positioning itself as an event for unveiling lesser-known talent. It will take place Sept. 20-28 as it moves from its traditional June slot to the fall awards season.
The Los Angeles event follow the Venice International Film Festival, which begins in late August; the Telluride Film Festival, which runs over Labor Day; and the Toronto Intl. Film Festival, which starts on Sept. 6. The festival will end just as the New York Film Festival begins.
“Our mission of finding fresh new voices from different geographical and cultural axes remains true,” said L Film Festival director Jennifer Cochis. “These storytellers are united by their ability to transport, impact and inspire audiences with the power of their craft.
- 7/31/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Forty feature films including 24 world premieres highlight the official La Film Festival competition lineup in the fest’s move into the crowded fall festival corridor, away from their previous early-summer perch.
Among the movies in competition is the highly regarded Swedish film Border (Grans) from director Ali Abbasi, a Neon pickup out of Cannes that took the top prize in that festival’s No. 2 competition, Un Certain Regard. It is listed as a “California Premiere,” which means it likely will show up first in Telluride, Toronto or both before Laff, which runs September 20-28. It will play in the World Fiction Competition across a field of categories that also include U.S. Fiction, Documentary, La Muse, Nightfall. Short Films, and Episodes: Indie Series from the web.
“Our mission of finding fresh new voices from different geographical and cultural axes remains true,” Laff Director Jennifer Cochis said. “These storytellers are united by their ability to transport,...
Among the movies in competition is the highly regarded Swedish film Border (Grans) from director Ali Abbasi, a Neon pickup out of Cannes that took the top prize in that festival’s No. 2 competition, Un Certain Regard. It is listed as a “California Premiere,” which means it likely will show up first in Telluride, Toronto or both before Laff, which runs September 20-28. It will play in the World Fiction Competition across a field of categories that also include U.S. Fiction, Documentary, La Muse, Nightfall. Short Films, and Episodes: Indie Series from the web.
“Our mission of finding fresh new voices from different geographical and cultural axes remains true,” Laff Director Jennifer Cochis said. “These storytellers are united by their ability to transport,...
- 7/31/2018
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
For its 24th edition, Film Independent’s newly configured Los Angeles Film Festival has revealed its first fall lineup (September 20 – 28), the second under the leadership of Festival Director Jennifer Cochis. The date moves Laff into awards season and direct competition with AFI Fest (November 8 – 15), the last of the fall festivals. This year’s Laff program includes 40 feature films, 41 short films, and 10 short episodic works representing 26 countries. Across the competition categories 42 percent of the films are directed by women and 39 percent are directed by people of color.
The festival remains committed to a diverse lineup of feature films, shorts and episodic series for its U.S. Fiction (“original voices with distinct visions from emerging and established American independent filmmakers”), Documentary (“character-driven non-fiction films from the U.S. and around the world”), World Fiction (“unique fiction films from around the world by emerging and established filmmakers”), La Muse (“fiction and documentary films...
The festival remains committed to a diverse lineup of feature films, shorts and episodic series for its U.S. Fiction (“original voices with distinct visions from emerging and established American independent filmmakers”), Documentary (“character-driven non-fiction films from the U.S. and around the world”), World Fiction (“unique fiction films from around the world by emerging and established filmmakers”), La Muse (“fiction and documentary films...
- 7/31/2018
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
For its 24th edition, Film Independent’s newly configured Los Angeles Film Festival has revealed its first fall lineup (September 20 – 28), the second under the leadership of Festival Director Jennifer Cochis. The date moves Laff into awards season and direct competition with AFI Fest (November 8 – 15), the last of the fall festivals. This year’s Laff program includes 40 feature films, 41 short films, and 10 short episodic works representing 26 countries. Across the competition categories 42 percent of the films are directed by women and 39 percent are directed by people of color.
The festival remains committed to a diverse lineup of feature films, shorts and episodic series for its U.S. Fiction (“original voices with distinct visions from emerging and established American independent filmmakers”), Documentary (“character-driven non-fiction films from the U.S. and around the world”), World Fiction (“unique fiction films from around the world by emerging and established filmmakers”), La Muse (“fiction and documentary films...
The festival remains committed to a diverse lineup of feature films, shorts and episodic series for its U.S. Fiction (“original voices with distinct visions from emerging and established American independent filmmakers”), Documentary (“character-driven non-fiction films from the U.S. and around the world”), World Fiction (“unique fiction films from around the world by emerging and established filmmakers”), La Muse (“fiction and documentary films...
- 7/31/2018
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Film Independent has selected rising filmmakers Nicholas Greene, Jacob Hatley, Krisy Gosney, Aldo Velasco, Amber Sealey, Daniel Casey, Morna Ciraki, and Alex Moratto for its 2013 Directing Labs, an annual intensive program that helps promising directors develop new feature films, perfect their craft, and advance their careers.From now until mid-April, these eight filmmakers will work on their next projects with the aid of professional mentors, stipends, access to a variety of production resources including digital camera and sound packages, and more.James Ponsoldt (“The Spectacular Now,” “Smashed”), Karen Moncreiff (“The Trials of Cate McCall,” “The Dead Girl”), and Angela Robinson (“True Blood,” “The L Word”) are among the mentors who will help guide these filmmakers with script feedback, casting and workshopping scenes, and more.Greene, a New York-based British filmmaker whose short film “Salar” was shortlisted for the 2011 Oscars, will work on “A Death in the Andes,” his film about...
- 2/5/2013
- backstage.com
While not all films mentioned below are necessarily guaranteed future place among the Sundance Film Festival elite, it’s certainly a step in the right direction for the filmmakers and more importantly the producers backing the future of independent film. Among the eleven project participants below selected for the annual Creative Producing Labs and Creative Producing Summit (July 30 – August 3) in the Feature Film category we find such names as future superstars in Summer Shelton (she worked with Ramin Bahrani) and receives the first ever Bingham Ray Creative Producing Fellow, Tory Lenosky (worked as an assistant to Jay Van Hoy and Lars Knudsen) and Lucas Joaquin (second unit producer for Beasts of the Southern Wild). Here is the full press release below.
Feature Film Creative Producing Lab
The Feature Film Creative Producing Lab is a five-day Lab where narrative feature film producers work with an accomplished group of Creative Advisors to develop their creative instincts,...
Feature Film Creative Producing Lab
The Feature Film Creative Producing Lab is a five-day Lab where narrative feature film producers work with an accomplished group of Creative Advisors to develop their creative instincts,...
- 7/18/2012
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
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