Every day, more and more films are added to the various streaming services out there, ranging from Netflix to YouTube, and are hitting the airwaves via movie-centric networks like TCM. Therefore, sifting through all of these pictures can be a tedious and often times confounding or difficult ordeal. But, that’s why we’re here. Every week, Joshua brings you five films to put at the top of your queue, add to your playlist, or grab off of VOD to make your weekend a little more eventful. Here is this week’s top five, in this week’s Armchair Vacation.
5. Seashore (VOD)
Few things get this writer’s blood pumping faster than seeing that a film made waves at one of the major film festivals, particularly any given year’s Berlinale. One of the lesser talked about mainstays of the festival circuit, many great films have hit Berlin and become...
5. Seashore (VOD)
Few things get this writer’s blood pumping faster than seeing that a film made waves at one of the major film festivals, particularly any given year’s Berlinale. One of the lesser talked about mainstays of the festival circuit, many great films have hit Berlin and become...
- 8/7/2015
- by Joshua Brunsting
- CriterionCast
A Star is Born: Miller’s Returns to Saga of the Streets
Director Keith Miller returns to a similar style of filmmaking with his sophomore film Five Star, once again utilizing non-actors basically playing extended versions of their own selves as seen in his 2012 debut Welcome to Pine Hill. Casting certainly lends the film a bit of authentic integrity, although this doesn’t necessarily translate into innovative filmmaking. A somewhat beleaguered first act slowly gives way to a more absorbing finale, but the film ends just as it finally seems to begin.
Here we focus on the member of a notorious gang, the Bloods, provocatively portrayed by a man who has lived the lifestyle since the age of twelve. However, this sounds much more dramatic than the film actually is, and some of the more laborious aspects on display in Miller’s previous film have a tendency to overpower...
Director Keith Miller returns to a similar style of filmmaking with his sophomore film Five Star, once again utilizing non-actors basically playing extended versions of their own selves as seen in his 2012 debut Welcome to Pine Hill. Casting certainly lends the film a bit of authentic integrity, although this doesn’t necessarily translate into innovative filmmaking. A somewhat beleaguered first act slowly gives way to a more absorbing finale, but the film ends just as it finally seems to begin.
Here we focus on the member of a notorious gang, the Bloods, provocatively portrayed by a man who has lived the lifestyle since the age of twelve. However, this sounds much more dramatic than the film actually is, and some of the more laborious aspects on display in Miller’s previous film have a tendency to overpower...
- 7/24/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
To say that the world of fiction and non-fiction, in cinema, has become blurred is to grossly understate to which boundaries have been pushed. Fiction filmmakers are taking cues aesthetically from the world of documentary cinema, while non-fiction directors are slowly adopting fiction-esque narrative ideas, turning the form into something entirely new.
And then there’s Five Star and its writer/director Keith Miller.
Jumping onto the scene with the superb Welcome To Pine Hill, Miller is back with yet another intimate and neo-documentary style look into a section of the world many of us are not privy to. Miller introduces us in his new picture to a man named James Grant, but introduced to us as Primo. A member of the Bloods since the age of 12 (both here in the picture and in his actual life, hinting at the film’s mix of fact and fiction), Primo is now...
And then there’s Five Star and its writer/director Keith Miller.
Jumping onto the scene with the superb Welcome To Pine Hill, Miller is back with yet another intimate and neo-documentary style look into a section of the world many of us are not privy to. Miller introduces us in his new picture to a man named James Grant, but introduced to us as Primo. A member of the Bloods since the age of 12 (both here in the picture and in his actual life, hinting at the film’s mix of fact and fiction), Primo is now...
- 7/24/2015
- by Joshua Brunsting
- CriterionCast
In 2012, writer-director Keith Miller made his feature debut with "Welcome to Pine Hill," an unhurried drama about a reformed drug dealer in New York City. The movie was imperfect but effective in many ways, mostly thanks to Miller's skill in getting moving performances from non-actors playing versions of themselves. With "Five Star," Miller once again demonstrates his ability to extract nuance from novices, telling another a story about drug dealers struggling with identity. Miller's tale is a kind of coming-of-age story, set in the projects of Brooklyn and following two men linked by tragedy. Primo (real life gang leader James 'Primo' Grant), is a five-star general...
- 7/23/2015
- by Zeba Blay
- ShadowAndAct
Announced today, XLrator Media has acquired North American distribution rights to "Five Star" director Keith Miller's sophomore feature, which premiered at Tribeca 2014. XLrator Media’s multi-cultural Pace label will release the film this summer, although no specific date is given. Here's our review of the film... In 2012, writer-director Keith Miller made his feature debut with "Welcome to Pine Hill," an unhurried drama about a reformed drug dealer in New York City. The movie was imperfect but effective in many ways, mostly thanks to Miller's skill in getting moving performances from non-actors playing versions of themselves. This year, with "Five...
- 4/10/2015
- by Zeba Blay
- ShadowAndAct
Lightning has struck twice for helmer Keith Miller. After seeing his debut film Welcome to Pine Hill find theatrical release partners in the Oscilloscope folks, Deadline reports that XLrator Media’s Barry Gordon has taken Five Star off the streets and is setting it up with a logical, yet-to-be-determined summer release via their Pace label.
Gist: After John’s absent father is struck by a stray bullet, Primo takes it upon himself to verse the young boy in the code of the streets—one founded on respect and upheld by fear. A member of the Bloods since the age of twelve—both in the film and in reality—the streets of Brooklyn are all Primo has ever known. While John questions whether or not to enter into this life, Primo must decide whether to leave it all behind as he vows to become a better husband and father.
Worth Noting:...
Gist: After John’s absent father is struck by a stray bullet, Primo takes it upon himself to verse the young boy in the code of the streets—one founded on respect and upheld by fear. A member of the Bloods since the age of twelve—both in the film and in reality—the streets of Brooklyn are all Primo has ever known. While John questions whether or not to enter into this life, Primo must decide whether to leave it all behind as he vows to become a better husband and father.
Worth Noting:...
- 4/9/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Tribeca Review: 'Five Star' Is A Refreshing Take On A Setting & Characters Too Often Sensationalized
In 2012, writer-director Keith Miller made his feature debut with Welcome to Pine Hill, an unhurried drama about a reformed drug dealer in New York City. The movie was imperfect but effective in many ways, mostly thanks to Miller's skill in getting moving performances from non-actors playing versions of themselves. This year, with Five Star, Miller once again demonstrates his ability to extract nuance from novices, telling another a story about drug dealers struggling with identity. Miller's tale is a kind of coming-of-age story, set in the projects of Brooklyn and following two men linked by tragedy. Primo (real life gang leader James 'Primo' Grant), is a five-star general of...
- 4/23/2014
- by Zeba Blay
- ShadowAndAct
Writer-director Keith Miller's feature-length debut "Welcome to Pine Hill" showed an ambitious willingness to merge documentary and fictional storytelling methods, but with "Five Star," the filmmaker truly manages to fuse them into a compelling whole. Once again relying on non-actors to imbue his narrative with naturalistic intensity, "Five Star" is set amid the perils of gang life in the Brooklyn housing projects and features performances by actual former gang members riffing on their own lives. As a sociological experiment, "Five Star" offers plenty of talking points, but its real triumph is that the cast delivers, yielding a story in which the heightened suspense emerges organically from a gritty foundation of realism. "Five Star" makes its unorthodox production style clear in its prolonged opening sequence, during which bearded, muscular Primo (James "Primo" Grant) sits behind the wheel of his car and recalls the trauma of being behind bars while his son was born.
- 4/18/2014
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Keith Miller has been crafting shorts, documentaries, and features since 2005 (including last year's "Welcome to Pine Hill" with Jaiden Kaine). Exploring gang life, urbanity, and manhood, Miller brings "Five Star" to Tribeca, the story of a gang leader's relationship to a young man caught at a crossroad. Tell us about yourself: I began my creative work as a painter, which I still feel integral to my thinking. Over the course of that practice, my work got more narrative and I began to edit video and start to think about film. As I developed my film-making practice, over the past 7 or 8 years, I saw the potential to push the narrative work to a more active engagement with social and personal issues. This goal is one of the central things that lead me to Five Star. I have always been interested in the 19th century ideas around Realism and the challenge of...
- 4/11/2014
- by Indiewire
- Indiewire
By the looks of it, the Tribeca Film Festival might finally be growing out of their awkward teenage phase and moving into a new era where the nab more than just Sundance and SXSW festival rejects. Artistic Director Frederic Boyer has managed to nab some noteworthy American indie projects such as Lou Howe’s Gabriel (see pic above), Keith Miller’s Five Star, Adam Rapp’s Loitering with Intent, and Tristan Patterson’s Electric Slide.
On the docu front, we’ve got the latest from the likes of notable documentarians Marshall Curry and Jessica Yu. Think Ewan McGregor’s Long Way Round meets child solider movie for Curry’s awesomely titled Point and Shoot — where the Libyan rebel army take hold of Curry’s subject. Yu moves from water shortage in Last Call at the Oasis (read our review) to the biggest pandemic of all; Misconception looks at the consequences...
On the docu front, we’ve got the latest from the likes of notable documentarians Marshall Curry and Jessica Yu. Think Ewan McGregor’s Long Way Round meets child solider movie for Curry’s awesomely titled Point and Shoot — where the Libyan rebel army take hold of Curry’s subject. Yu moves from water shortage in Last Call at the Oasis (read our review) to the biggest pandemic of all; Misconception looks at the consequences...
- 3/4/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Not much here in terms of African diaspora films (since that's our focus here), based on a first glance. But I'll be scrubbing the list, looking at it much closer for any titles that didn't immediately jump out at me. Of note however, is Keith Miller's exploration of masculinity and gang culture in Five Star, a mix of fiction and documentary filmmaking, making its World Premiere at the festival. Miller's last work, the meditative Welcome to Pine Hill, was an S&A highlight in 2012. And in the pure documentary films section is Virunga, directed and written by Orlando von Einsiedel. Also making its World Premiere, the film centers on Virunga, in...
- 3/4/2014
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
The 13th Tribeca Film Festival has announced half its slate for next month’s New York celebration, which runs April 16-27. Culled from more than 6,000 submissions, Tribeca 2014 includes 55 world premieres, 37 first-time filmmakers, and 22 female directors. “Variously inspired by individual interests and experience and driven by an intense sensibility of style, the array of new filmmaking voices in this year’s competition is especially impressive and I think memorable,” said Frederic Boyer, Tribeca’s artistic director. “The range of American subcultures and international genres represented here are both eclectic and wide reaching.”
On April 17, Gabriel will open the World Narrative competition,...
On April 17, Gabriel will open the World Narrative competition,...
- 3/4/2014
- by Jeff Labrecque
- EW - Inside Movies
Two years after the death of Trayvon Martin, filmmaker Alex Mallis releases online After Trayvon, a short doc shot last summer after the day’s wrap of his latest feature. Mallis, who associate produced and was a cinematographer on Keith Miller’s film, Welcome to Pine Hill, introduces it here: Last summer, a day after George Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, our cast and crew wrapped a day of filming in Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn for the upcoming feature, Five Star. Informal conversations throughout the day, between takes, and a fully equipped film crew, […]...
- 2/26/2014
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Two years after the death of Trayvon Martin, filmmaker Alex Mallis releases online After Trayvon, a short doc shot last summer after the day’s wrap of his latest feature. Mallis, who associate produced and was a cinematographer on Keith Miller’s film, Welcome to Pine Hill, introduces it here: Last summer, a day after George Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, our cast and crew wrapped a day of filming in Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn for the upcoming feature, Five Star. Informal conversations throughout the day, between takes, and a fully equipped film crew, […]...
- 2/26/2014
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
When I first started preparing my year-end lists for 2013, I knew for certain that I was going to continue my trend of creating one post with my favorite theatrically released narrative films of 2013 and a separate post with my favorite documentary films of 2o13. This is because I have a difficult enough time ranking films that share no common elements other than they were all shot on a medium that can capture both moving images and sound. The ranking of anything (especially art) seems completely arbitrary to me and the fact that most year-end lists focus on the "top" or "best" really makes no sense. While I guess there are certain basic mechanisms of filmmaking that can be done well (thus making a "good" movie) or can be done poorly (thus making a "bad" movie), for the most part it is all just personal opinion. I prefer to approach talking...
- 12/26/2013
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
What do the recent festival and critical successes "Concussion," "Blue Caprice," "An Oversimplification of Her Beauty" and "Welcome to Pine Hill" all have in common? They were all nurtured during their early stages in the Independent Filmmaker Labs, hosted by the Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp). Today, the New York-based filmmaker organization revealed this year's batch of selected projects. The labs give first-time feature directors a year-long fellowship, specifically affording projects in post-production technical, creative and strategic tools. This year's lab leaders are Scott Mcaulay, Editor-in-Chief of Filmmaker Magazine, director and author Jon Reiss and "High Art" producer Susan Stover. Mentors for this cycle include Jay Duplass, "American Psycho" director Mary Harron, "The Spectacular Now" director James Ponsoldt, the Zeller brothers ("Kid Thing") and director Craig Zobel ("Compliance") Find the 2013 Narrative Lab and Lab Fellows below, with synopses courtesy of...
- 6/10/2013
- by Nigel M Smith
- Indiewire
Oscilloscope Laboratories is opening Keith Miller's quietly absorbing work of cinema verite, Welcome To Pine Hill, in Los Angeles at the Arena Cinema today, June 7th. Pine Hill follows a recently reformed drug dealer, now working as a claims adjuster by day and bouncer by night, who receives some earth-shattering news, forcing him to make peace with those around him, as well as himself. The film received enough votes to appear on the S&A Best of 2012 list, a film that blurs the boundaries between documentary and fiction, presenting an atmospheric depiction of a journey to self-discovery and spiritual redemption, taken by an unlikely cinematic lead...
- 6/7/2013
- by Courtney
- ShadowAndAct
Hosting screenings of such films as Christopher Nolan‘s Following and Oren Peli‘s Paranormal Activity, Slamdance Film Festival has been a birthplace for discoveries akin to its neighbor Sundance Film Festival. Today we have new trailers for one of last year’s most acclaimed premieres, Welcome to Pine Hill. While Keith Miller’s drama quietly shuffled into theaters a few [...]...
- 6/4/2013
- by Jack Cunliffe
- The Film Stage
Following its early 2013 New York City run, Oscilloscope Laboratories has announced that it will open Keith Miller's quietly absorbing work of cinema verite, Welcome To Pine Hill, theatrically in Los Angeles at the Arena Cinema on June 7th; prior to this, the film will premiere on VOD on June 4th. Pine Hill follows a recently reformed drug dealer, now working as a claims adjuster by day and bouncer by night, who receives some earth-shattering news, forcing him to make peace with those around him, as well as himself. It's a work of film art that received enough votes to appear on the S&A Best of 2012 list, a film that blurs the boundaries...
- 5/31/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Evil Dead. This week, these two words are all that matter to horror fans, as the long-awaited reworking of the cult classic The Evil Dead hits theaters. (Actually, two other words matter just as much: Bruce Campbell. I'm not into horror flicks, but yeah, he is the coolest.)
For the rest of us, there is the homegrown comedy Somebody Up There Likes Me (pictured above). Fellow River City film fans, I beg, urge and implore you to see this terrific Austin movie. Sadly (and unsurprisingly), the Friday night show with director Bob Byington and star Nick Offerman in attendance is sold out. But worry not -- there are plenty of other screenings. You also might like the Slamdance 2012 awardwinning feature Welcome to Pine Hill, screening at 9 pm Monday at Stateside.
True cinephiles won't want to miss this week's Austin Film Society Essential Cinema Plus series, which presents four recent films...
For the rest of us, there is the homegrown comedy Somebody Up There Likes Me (pictured above). Fellow River City film fans, I beg, urge and implore you to see this terrific Austin movie. Sadly (and unsurprisingly), the Friday night show with director Bob Byington and star Nick Offerman in attendance is sold out. But worry not -- there are plenty of other screenings. You also might like the Slamdance 2012 awardwinning feature Welcome to Pine Hill, screening at 9 pm Monday at Stateside.
True cinephiles won't want to miss this week's Austin Film Society Essential Cinema Plus series, which presents four recent films...
- 4/5/2013
- by Don Clinchy
- Slackerwood
Oscilloscope Laboratories has picked up and released (or will soon release) several films that we've covered here on S&A in the last year or so - Wuthering Heights, Tchoupitoulas, Mother Of George, Welcome To Pine Hill, and others. All films that tend to be just outside the mainstream, which is great! If they didn't pick these films up, who knows what might have become of them... The company continues that trend by announcing, this morning, that it has acquired all North American rights to Lotfy Nathan’s debut feature, 12 O'Clock Boys, which world premiered earlier this month at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, TX. Here's the synopsis: Pug,...
- 3/26/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
A film that blurs the lines between reality and fiction, “Welcome to Pine Hill” asks audiences to absorb what’s on screen and relinquish their desire to know what really happened. Winner of the top prize at Slamdance 2012, Keith Miller's first feature is an extension of his earlier short film “Prince/William.” The film opens with the short, a recreation of a real-life event where Miller found a dog and ran into the original owner soon after. The two men erupt into an argument over the ownership of the dog, ultimately representing a clash between two separate worlds that raises notions of race and class. “Pine Hill” follows the dog’s original owner Shannon, an ex-drug dealer who has transitioned into a new life working a corporate job only to soon discover he has a rare form of cancer. With a poignant performance from first time actor Shannon Harper,...
- 3/22/2013
- by Erin Whitney
- Indiewire
Oscilloscope Laboratories is releasing Keith Miller's quietly absorbing work of cinema verite, Welcome To Pine Hill, starting Today, March 1 at IFC in NYC. The film follows a recently reformed drug dealer, now working as a claims adjuster by day and bouncer by night, who receives some earth-shattering news, forcing him to make peace with himself. It's a work of art that received enough votes to appear on the S&A Best of 2012 list, a film that blurs the boundaries between documentary and fiction, presenting an atmospheric depiction of a journey to self-discovery and spiritual redemption, taken by an unlikely cinematic lead character - a lonely, single, relatively quiet black...
- 3/1/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Oscilloscope Laboratories will release Keith Miller's quietly absorbing work of cinema verite, Welcome To Pine Hill, starting on March 1 at IFC in NYC. The film follows a recently reformed drug dealer, now working as a claims adjuster by day and bouncer by night, who receives some earth-shattering news, forcing him to make peace with himself. It's a work of art that received enough votes to appear on the S&A Best of 2012 list, a film that blurs the boundaries between documentary and fiction, presenting an atmospheric depiction of a journey to self-discovery and spiritual redemption, taken by an unlikely cinematic lead character - a lonely, single, relatively quiet...
- 2/27/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Transcendental Hurrah: Miller’s Moving Film an Exercise in Isolation
Based on his 2010 short film, Prince/William, Keith Miller has expanded his debut Welcome to Pine Hill into a moving drama that manages to maintain an impressive level of profundity despite being more of a concept than an actual narrative. Using mostly non-actors, including himself, Miller’s film was born out of a chance encounter that inspired the short film. Returning with his most impressive ingredient, lead actor Shanon Harper, the feature won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2012 Slamdance Film Festival. At turns meandering, imprecise, and even stilted, Miller manages to also have created a film and a character that’s memorable, meditative, and moving.
One night in Brooklyn, two strangers clash over the ownership of a puppy. Miller plays a white man currently in possession of the dog while Abu (Shanon Harper), a black man, claims the dog...
Based on his 2010 short film, Prince/William, Keith Miller has expanded his debut Welcome to Pine Hill into a moving drama that manages to maintain an impressive level of profundity despite being more of a concept than an actual narrative. Using mostly non-actors, including himself, Miller’s film was born out of a chance encounter that inspired the short film. Returning with his most impressive ingredient, lead actor Shanon Harper, the feature won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2012 Slamdance Film Festival. At turns meandering, imprecise, and even stilted, Miller manages to also have created a film and a character that’s memorable, meditative, and moving.
One night in Brooklyn, two strangers clash over the ownership of a puppy. Miller plays a white man currently in possession of the dog while Abu (Shanon Harper), a black man, claims the dog...
- 2/25/2013
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Oscilloscope Laboratories will release Keith Miller's Welcome To Pine Hill starting on March 1 at IFC in NYC. A film that received enough votes to appear on the S&A Best of 2012 list, Welcome To Pine Hill straddles the worlds of fact and fiction, documentary and narrative, as it follows a recently reformed drug dealer, now working as a claims adjuster by day and bouncer by night, who receives some earth-shattering news, forcing him to make peace with himself. "An affectionate work of cinema verite, the film blurs the boundaries between documentary and fiction, presenting an unexpectedly quiet and atmospheric depiction of a journey to self-discovery and spiritual...
- 2/19/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Since its inception in 2008, the Adam Yauch co-founded Oscilloscope Laboratories has been the distributor behind an eclectic slate of films, and that tradition continues this year with the 2012 Slamdance Film Festival Grand Jury winner “Welcome To Pine Hill.” The company picked up the film last fall and now a new trailer has been released online. Centered around Shannon Harper, a non-actor in his first acting role, Keith Miller’s feature-length directorial debut (which he also wrote) follows the untrained leading man in his daily routine as an insurance claims adjuster, living in solitude and trying to make ends meet. After receiving an unfortunate medical diagnosis and having to face his own mortality, Harper decides to make peace with all of the people from his former life as a drug dealer. Described as John Cassavetes-esque, the film's almost documentary-like approach shines a light on characters and a world that rarely see a large audience.
- 2/19/2013
- by Cain Rodriguez
- The Playlist
Stills from A Most Wanted Man, Nymphomaniac, Don Jon's Addiction, the remake of Patrick, The Green Inferno, Drinking Buddies, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Riddick, the set of Insidious Chapter Two.
Posters for I'm So Excited, Austenland, The Internship, Frances Ha, Olympus Has Fallen, Red 2, Would You Rather, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, The Host, Passion, Welcome to Pine Hill, and the official one-sheet for the 85th Annual Academy Awards
Shots of toys from New York's recent Toy Fair showcasing plot spoilers from "Star Trek Into Darkness," "After Earth," "Pacific Rim," "After Earth," "Kick Ass 2" and "Man of Steel".
"The first trailer for James Mangold's 'The Wolverine' is set to debut with the March 29th release of 'G.I. Joe: Retaliation'……" (full details)
"Sony Pictures Entertainment and Starz announced a new, multi-year agreement that extends their exclusive first-run output premium pay TV deal. As a result,...
Posters for I'm So Excited, Austenland, The Internship, Frances Ha, Olympus Has Fallen, Red 2, Would You Rather, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, The Host, Passion, Welcome to Pine Hill, and the official one-sheet for the 85th Annual Academy Awards
Shots of toys from New York's recent Toy Fair showcasing plot spoilers from "Star Trek Into Darkness," "After Earth," "Pacific Rim," "After Earth," "Kick Ass 2" and "Man of Steel".
"The first trailer for James Mangold's 'The Wolverine' is set to debut with the March 29th release of 'G.I. Joe: Retaliation'……" (full details)
"Sony Pictures Entertainment and Starz announced a new, multi-year agreement that extends their exclusive first-run output premium pay TV deal. As a result,...
- 2/12/2013
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Every year there are countless indie films that, for all kinds of reasons, never escape the film festival circuit. Thankfully, though, there are companies like Oscilloscope that pluck these underdog films from obscurity and give them a shot on the big (and small) screen. And that's why it's our pleasure to premiere the poster and trailer for Oscilloscope's latest film, Welcome to Pine Hill, which won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2012 Slamdance Film Festival . We haven't seen the film yet, so we'll rely on the official synopsis below to explain the plot, but between the buzz and the trailer we're more than a little excited for Keith Miller's film and can't wait to check it out when it hits theaters on March 1. An extension of Keither Miller's...
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- 2/11/2013
- by Peter Hall
- Movies.com
Last year (2012) was my first experience ever covering Slamdance, albeit remotely from Austin. While watching DVD screeners from the comfort of my home, I discovered one of my favorite narrative films of 2012, Keith Miller's Welcome to Pine Hill. How that film did not get programmed by either Sundance or SXSW is beyond me; nonetheless, that one film taught me a lot about the relevance of Slamdance. Sure, Slamdance might not yet be able to score the star-studded marquee premieres that Sundance is able to program, but they seem to have their thumb on the cutting edge of truly independent cinema. This year, I will be traveling to Park City for my first time to cover the Sundance Film Festival. I never knew that planning for one film festival could be so damn stressful and time-consuming; but, I am still quite determined to fit some Slamdance films into the mix as well.
- 1/17/2013
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
Always eclectic, individual and interesting, Oscilloscope Laboratories has unveiled a slate of films this year that has included everything from the beautiful 70mm wonder "Samsara," LCD Soundsystem's farewell "Shut Up And Play The Hits," Todd Louiso's tender "Hello I Must Be Going," Andrea Arnold's raw "Wuthering Heights" and many more. And looking into 2013, they continue to champion strong filmmaking, as Oscilloscope has picked up Slamdance Film Festival Grand Jury winner "Welcome To Pine Hill," the feature debut of Brooklyn filmmaker Keith Miller. The film was inspired by an encounter between the director and untrained lead actor of the film, Shannon Harper, in which the two argued over the ownership of a perky canine. Intrigued by the man's personality, Miller began a collaboration with Harper that yielded 'Pine Hill' and opens with the very moment that brought them together. From...
- 11/16/2012
- by Christopher Bell
- The Playlist
Keith Miller’s Welcome to Pine Hill is a totally original mixture of gritty, semi-improvised urban drama and freefloating spiritual journey. When I first saw it, I flashed back to J. Hoberman’s take on Carlos Reygadas’s Japon: “handheld Tarkovsky.” The films are very different, but I sensed a similar impulse in Miller’s story of a drug dealer (played here by a revelatory Shannon Harper) attempting to go straight while receiving catastrophic health news. The film plays tomorrow night at BAMcinemaFest. Here’s an interview I did with Miller, previously posted for the film’s Slamdance premiere.
… Read the rest...
… Read the rest...
- 6/22/2012
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
The fourth annual BAMcinemaFest kicks-off tomorrow and runs June 20 - July 1. This exciting festival showcases emerging voices in American independent cinema with NY and North American premieres of films from Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, SXSW, Berlin, and beyond. The fest from BAMCinematek in Brooklyn starts things off with its opening night screening of "Sleepwalk With Me" by director Mike Birbiglia. Starring Birbiglia himself and Lauren Ambrose, the film was co-written by "This American Life" host Ira Glass and centers on a burgeoning stand-up comedian who struggles with the stress of a stalled career, a stale relationship, and the wild spurts of severe sleepwalking he is desperate to ignore (read our SXSW review here).
Later in the week, they've got the highly celebrated "Beasts of the Southern Wild" indie by wunderkind Benh Zeitlin, director Ry Russo-Young's "Nobody Walks," “For Ellen” starring Paul Dano, “Liberal Arts” featuring Elizabeth Olsen, and a repertory...
Later in the week, they've got the highly celebrated "Beasts of the Southern Wild" indie by wunderkind Benh Zeitlin, director Ry Russo-Young's "Nobody Walks," “For Ellen” starring Paul Dano, “Liberal Arts” featuring Elizabeth Olsen, and a repertory...
- 6/19/2012
- by Edward Davis
- The Playlist
Megan Griffiths' "Eden" swept the awards at the 38th Seattle International Film Festival, which held its ceremony Sunday morning at the Seattle Space Needle. "Eden" star Jamie Chung won the Best Actress Golden Space Needle Award, while the film also received the Lena Sharpe Award for Persistence of Vision presented by Women in Film/Seattle, as well as the Reel Nw Award presented by Kcts 9. Here's how all the 2012 Siff awards broke down: The Grand Jury Prize for Best New Director went to Nicolas Provos for "The Invader," while Best Documentary went to "Five Star Existence" directed by Sonja Lindén. The Fipresci Prize for Best New American Film went to "Welcome to Pine Hill," directed by Keith Miller. Golden Space Needle Audience Awards went to "Any Day Now," directed by Travis FIne, for best film and Alan Cumming for best actor; "The Invisible War" directed by Kirby Dick...
- 6/11/2012
- by Dana Harris
- Indiewire
HollywoodNews.com: The 38th Seattle International Film Festival, the largest and most highly-attended event of its kind in the United States concluded today with the announcement of the Siff 2012 Competition Awards and Golden Space Needle Audience Awards. The 25-day Festival, which began May 17, featured over 460 films from more than 70 countries, including 65 feature premieres (24 World, 25 North American, 16 U.S.) and over 700 screenings. Additionally, Siff brought in more than 300 directors, actors and industry professionals.
“A festival’s success is dependent on two basic principles: providing a platform for filmmakers to be celebrated and connecting them to audience members that would not otherwise be aware of their remarkable stories,” said Siff Artistic Director Carl Spence. “This year a record number of filmmakers participated in person and online with virtual Q&A’s successfully expanding the conversation around the best in cinema with passionate audiences, illuminating guests and distinguished industry in attendance.”
Siff Managing Director Deborah Person said,...
“A festival’s success is dependent on two basic principles: providing a platform for filmmakers to be celebrated and connecting them to audience members that would not otherwise be aware of their remarkable stories,” said Siff Artistic Director Carl Spence. “This year a record number of filmmakers participated in person and online with virtual Q&A’s successfully expanding the conversation around the best in cinema with passionate audiences, illuminating guests and distinguished industry in attendance.”
Siff Managing Director Deborah Person said,...
- 6/10/2012
- by Josh Abraham
- Hollywoodnews.com
Live performances by Simeon Coxe of the Silver Apples, Sam Prekop and Archer Prewitt of The Sea and Cake, & More
So, what're you New Yorkers up to this June? BAMcinématek hopes you'll be spending the last two weeks with them: the fourth annual BAMcinemaFest runs June 20 - July 1 and has the strongest lineup yet, including some 2012 festival favorites and sweet surprises.
Cinephiles will be pleased to know that Roberto Rosellini's recently discovered "The Machine That Kills Bad People," which premiered at Cannes last year, will make its American landing in Brooklyn. A magical comedy from a director firmly grounded in neo-realist roots, 'Machine' focuses on a man whose camera murders anyone it manages to snap. Spooky! A biting satire which critiques the Americanization of Italy, the "Germany Year Zero" director's once-lost project has been newly restored and is definitely worth checking out.
A more recent film that's part of the...
So, what're you New Yorkers up to this June? BAMcinématek hopes you'll be spending the last two weeks with them: the fourth annual BAMcinemaFest runs June 20 - July 1 and has the strongest lineup yet, including some 2012 festival favorites and sweet surprises.
Cinephiles will be pleased to know that Roberto Rosellini's recently discovered "The Machine That Kills Bad People," which premiered at Cannes last year, will make its American landing in Brooklyn. A magical comedy from a director firmly grounded in neo-realist roots, 'Machine' focuses on a man whose camera murders anyone it manages to snap. Spooky! A biting satire which critiques the Americanization of Italy, the "Germany Year Zero" director's once-lost project has been newly restored and is definitely worth checking out.
A more recent film that's part of the...
- 5/18/2012
- by Christopher Bell
- The Playlist
I can't remember a time I went to the Seattle International Film Festival (Siff) press launch and looked over the list of films and saw so many I was interested in seeing. The claim to fame for over the years is to call it the largest and most-highly attended festival in the United States. This is a fact I've often taken issue with as I don't equate quantity with quality. Granted, there has been a large number of quality features to play the fest over the years, including Golden Space Needle (Best Film) winners such as Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), My Life as a Dog (1987), Trainspotting (1996), Run Lola Run (1999), Whale Rider (2003) and even recent Best Director winner, Michel Hazanavicius's Oss 117: Nest of Spies in 2006. That said, looking over this year's crop of films I see a lot of films I will be doing my absolute best to see.
- 4/27/2012
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Director: Keith Miller Writer: Keith Miller Starring: Shannon Harper, Keith Miller, Ernest Bastien, Brian Ketover, Lily Jayne, B.J. Rubin, Manuel Maya, Mary Meyers, David Williams, Jaiden Kaine, Mark Anthony Hackett, Junior Adolphe, Willie Meyers, Margaret Meyers, Jay Williams, Thom Jude, Mark Read Keith (Keith Miller) is out walking his pit bull puppy one night. Abu (Shannon Harper) approaches Keith while forcefully stating "That's my dog!" A long and heated discussion about the rightful ownership of the dog ensues. Fueled by the two men's most glaring physical (body size and race) and economic differences, the scenario becomes increasingly tense. I am not sure how Hollywood would have handled such an opening scene -- which was initially released as a short film Prince/William -- but I can promise that the issues of race would not have been handled as adroitly as they are here. Writer-director Keith Miller adapted this scene...
- 1/28/2012
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
The 18th Slamdance Film Festival wrapped up last night in Park City, Utah, giving out honors for independent films in several categories. Awards included:
Audience Awards
Feature Documentary: Getting Up, directed by Caskey Ebeling
Feature Narrative: Bindlestiffs, directed by Andrew Edison
Grand Jury Awards – Narrative
Feature Narrative: Welcome to Pine Hill, directed by Keith Miller
Special Jury Award for Bold Originality: Heavy Girls, directed by Axel Ranisch
Grand Jury Awards – Documentary
Feature Documentary: No Ashes, No Phonenix, directed by Jans Pfeifer
Short Documentary: The Professional, directed by Skylar Neilson
Grand Jury Awards – Short Films
Animation:Venus, directed by Tor Fruergaard...
Audience Awards
Feature Documentary: Getting Up, directed by Caskey Ebeling
Feature Narrative: Bindlestiffs, directed by Andrew Edison
Grand Jury Awards – Narrative
Feature Narrative: Welcome to Pine Hill, directed by Keith Miller
Special Jury Award for Bold Originality: Heavy Girls, directed by Axel Ranisch
Grand Jury Awards – Documentary
Feature Documentary: No Ashes, No Phonenix, directed by Jans Pfeifer
Short Documentary: The Professional, directed by Skylar Neilson
Grand Jury Awards – Short Films
Animation:Venus, directed by Tor Fruergaard...
- 1/27/2012
- by Michelle Profis
- EW - Inside Movies
Awards for Welcome To Pine Hill, Bindlestiffs and No Ashes No Phoenix
Last night the 18th annual Slamdance festival concluded by presenting Audience and Grand Jury awards to the best narrative and documentary films showcased at this year's event.
The Audience Awards went to Getting Up, by Caskey Ebeling, for best documentary and Bindlestiffs, by Andrew Edison, for best feature narrative.
In the Grand Jury Awards, winners came in the form of Keith Miller's Welcome To Pine Hill, which received the Grand Jury Sparky Award for Feature Narrative, and...
Last night the 18th annual Slamdance festival concluded by presenting Audience and Grand Jury awards to the best narrative and documentary films showcased at this year's event.
The Audience Awards went to Getting Up, by Caskey Ebeling, for best documentary and Bindlestiffs, by Andrew Edison, for best feature narrative.
In the Grand Jury Awards, winners came in the form of Keith Miller's Welcome To Pine Hill, which received the Grand Jury Sparky Award for Feature Narrative, and...
- 1/27/2012
- by Robert Munro
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
On the heels of this week’s Slamdance lineup announcement, Welcome to Pine Hill, one of the films premiering in competition, has launched a new Kickstarter campaign. A verite, doc-narrative blend (and an alum of the 2011 Ifp Narrative Labs), Pine Hill follows Shannon Harper, a former drug dealer who reexamines his past after receiving some life-altering news. Director Keith Miller has crafted an intimate, stirring, and emotionally authentic first feature; one that’s sure to have quite a life on the 2012 festival circuit. For now though, Miller and his team need your help. Per their Kickstarter page:
Keith Miller and Shannon Harper first met fighting over a lost puppy one late night in Brooklyn, NY. Inspired by the chance encounter and a range of true experiences they blurred reality and fiction to create a movie called Welcome To Pine Hill. We’re here to raise some last-minute funds to prepare...
Keith Miller and Shannon Harper first met fighting over a lost puppy one late night in Brooklyn, NY. Inspired by the chance encounter and a range of true experiences they blurred reality and fiction to create a movie called Welcome To Pine Hill. We’re here to raise some last-minute funds to prepare...
- 12/21/2011
- by Dan Schoenbrun
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
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