Authors — Filmmaker Staff
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The Green Prince | Director Nadav Schirman
Attention, our audience’s and our own — it’s a valued commodity these days. We struggle to command our audience’s attention, for them to discover our work and then, once they’ve discovered it, to actually focus on it. Meanwhile, we struggle to focus our own attention, to fight our society’s weapons of mass distraction so we can not just see our work to completion but fully discover the meanings within it. What role does attention play in your work? Can you discuss an instance where you thought about some aspect of attention when it came to your film? The Green Prince […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 15, 2014 -
Whiplash | Director Damien Chazelle
Attention, our audience’s and our own — it’s a valued commodity these days. We struggle to command our audience’s attention, for them to discover our work and then, once they’ve discovered it, to actually focus on it. Meanwhile, we struggle to focus our own attention, to fight our society’s weapons of mass distraction so we can not just see our work to completion but fully discover the meanings within it. What role does attention play in your work? Can you discuss an instance where you thought about some aspect of attention when it came to your film? Making Whiplash was […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 15, 2014 -
The Sundance Question: What Role Does Attention Play in Your Work?
Each year, Filmmaker asks the Sundance Film Festival feature directors a question about their filmmaking process. We then compile any and all of the directors’ feedback and bring it to our readers courtesy of our “Sundance Responses.” This year we asked: Attention, our audience’s and our own — it’s a valued commodity these days. We struggle to command our audience’s attention, for them to discover our work and then, once they’ve discovered it, to actually focus on it. Meanwhile, we struggle to focus our own attention, to fight our society’s weapons of mass distraction so we can not just see […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 15, 2014 -
Eight Agent Questions Every TV Writer Wants Answered… Right Now
The following piece on TV writers’ interactions with their agents is excerpted from Chad Gervich’s just-released How to Manage Your Agent: A Writer’s Guide to Hollywood Representation. It can be purchased on Amazon at the link above. How much should I talk to my agent during staffing season? I know they’re superbusy, and super-stressed, so I don’t want to bug them, but I also want to know what’s going on. Should I call once a day? Once an hour? Once a week? What?! “It’s not about how frequently you call,” says Verve agent Amy Retzinger, “although please do not call […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Nov 26, 2013 -
On Missing 99% of What You Need: Lucy Walker’s Advice to Documentary Filmmakers
The following is an extract from Jessica Edwards‘ book Tell Me Something, which collects together advice on non-fiction filmmaking from 50 of the world’s most prominent documentarians, in which two-time Oscar nominee Lucy Wakler shares her wisdom. Tell Me Something is also available as an e-book. This piece of advice has been my lifeline, my mantra, my toehold on sanity and encouragement, the bandage for when I am kicking myself so hard I can’t stand up. It was told to me by Barbara Kopple, the legendary two-time Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker. One of my greatest strokes of luck in life was that she came to […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Nov 25, 2013 -
Load & Play
Laurence Anyways Breaking Glass – Oct. 8 In this striking third feature from the precocious early twentysomething French-Canadian wunderkind Xavier Dolan, the title character is a happily engaged French teacher, Laurence (Melvil Poupaud), whose first novel is about to be published at the dawn of the 1990s. Following an epiphanic 35th birthday party, he confesses to his fiancée, Frédérique (Suzanne Clément), that he longs to transform himself into a woman and asks for her unconditional support. What follows is a simultaneously baroque and rip-roaring three-hour exploration of a touching and unforgettable relationship that also serves as a mildly nostalgic trip […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Oct 21, 2013 -
Super 8
1. Elevision Currently in beta, the short film download site Elevision (elevision.com) is the brainchild of former Wholphin creative director Malcolm Pullinger and Vimeo founder Jake Lodwick. It has a highly curated slate, with quirky titles like Quentin Dupieux’s Wrong Cops: Chapter One and The Arm, co-written and co-directed by Brie Larson. There’s also an embarrassment of riches from “25 New Faces” alums, including Palimpsest (Michael Tyburski and Ben Nabors), Rougarouing (Donal Mosher and Michael Palmieri), A Chjàna (Jonas Carpignano), Pioneer (David Lowery) and Life and Freaky Times of Uncle Luke (Jillian Mayer and Lucas Leyva). 2. Marmoset Portland’s indie […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Oct 21, 2013 -
The POV Conversation: Josh Aronson and Adam Larsen on How to Interview
Last year, to celebrate POV’s 25th anniversary, Filmmaker organized a series of conversations between documentary directors whose work had been featured on the PBS non-fiction showcase. Last month we continued this series with a discussion between filmmakers Stephen Maing and Lixin Fan. This week we are featuring a conversation between Adam Larsen, whose first feature length documentary film Neurotypical is currently streaming on the POV website, and Josh Aronson, director of Oscar nominated documentary on deafness Sound and Fury. Here the two compare their different interview techniques. Click here to watch Larsen’s Neurotypical, an exploration into living with autism and how it reflects on what it means to be “normal”, […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Aug 19, 2013 -
The POV Conversation: Josh Aronson and Adam Larsen on Documenting Culture
Last year, to celebrate POV’s 25th anniversary, Filmmaker organized a series of conversations between documentary directors whose work had been featured on the PBS non-fiction showcase. Last month we continued this series with a discussion between filmmakers Stephen Maing and Lixin Fan. This week we are featuring a conversation between Adam Larsen, whose first feature length documentary film Neurotypical is currently streaming on the POV website, and Josh Aronson, director of Oscar nominated documentary on deafness Sound and Fury. Here the two consider their work helps to define different cultures. Click here to watch Larsen’s Neurotypical, an exploration into living with autism and how it reflects on what it […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Aug 16, 2013 -
The POV Conversation: Josh Aronson and Adam Larsen on Finding the Story
Last year, to celebrate POV’s 25th anniversary, Filmmaker organized a series of conversations between documentary directors whose work had been featured on the PBS non-fiction showcase. Last month we continued this series with a discussion between filmmakers Stephen Maing and Lixin Fan. This week we are featuring a conversation between Adam Larsen, whose first feature-length documentary, Neurotypical, is currently streaming on the POV website, and Josh Aronson, director of the Oscar-nominated documentary on deafness, Sound and Fury. Here the two discuss how they went about searching for a story. Click here to watch Larsen’s Neurotypical, an exploration into living with autism and how it reflects on what it means […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Aug 15, 2013
