Authors — Matt Prigge
-
Watch: Critic Adam Nayman Discusses the Circularity of the Coen Brothers’ Films
The critic Adam Nayman has a new book out, with the self-explanatory title The Coen Brothers: This Book Really Ties the Films Together. It’s one of those large Abrams doorstops, like Matt Zoller Seitz’s books on Wes Anderson and Oliver Stone — filled with glossy, well-chosen pictures as well as thoughtful, eloquent analysis that more than justifies their literal heavy-osity. Nayman has now taken part in a new video for TIFF, where he focuses in on one of the themes running throughout his film-by-film essays: the notion of circularity in the films of Joel and Ethan Coen. Nayman starts with […]
by Matt Prigge on Nov 19, 2018 -
Criterion Collection to Launch Their Own Streaming Channel Post-FilmStruck
Some good news for those crushed by the looming demise of FilmStruck: The Criterion Collection, a major part of the cinephilic streaming site that’s coming to an end on Nov. 29, will be launching its own freestanding service. Their solo venture is scheduled to go live in spring of 2019, and it will act much as it did on its FilmStruck channel, with thematic programming, spotlights, retrospectives, supplemental features, double features and guest introductions. Those interested in signing up as a “charter member” — meaning you’ll be notified when the service is officially launching and receive a subscription at a […]
by Matt Prigge on Nov 16, 2018 -
Watch: Olivier Assayas Discusses Ingmar Bergman’s ‘Absurdly Important’ Persona
Olivier Assayas speaks eloquently about his own work, able to talk about them both abstractly and practically. No surprise, then, that he’s as sharp when talking about other filmmakers’ films. A new video from TIFF finds the acclaimed French filmmaker — most recently of Non Fiction, Personal Shopper and Clouds of Sils Maria, and whose 1994 classic Cold Water was reissued earlier this year — talking Ingmar Bergman. Specifically he discusses Persona, the Swedish legend’s game-changing 1966 whatzit, about a caretaker (Bibi Andersson) tending to a damaged actress (Liv Ullmann). Bergman, according to Assayas, showed “that you could be both […]
by Matt Prigge on Nov 16, 2018 -
Watch: Tim Burton’s Dumbo gets a trailer
Tim Burton’s a good choice for a live-action (plus) CGI remake of Dumbo, the latest Disney animated classic to get the reboot treatment. Though he’s only made one circus movie prior — 2003’s Big Fish, though Batman Returns does feature, as semi-sympathetic villains, rejected carnival staffers — his whole CV is crammed with paeans to society’s oddballs and rejects, who he knows how to treat as entertainment for the masses. Judging from its new trailer, his Dumbo will be even more of a weepie than the 1941 original, about a young elephant with giant ears who can theoretically (and sometimes […]
by Matt Prigge on Nov 15, 2018 -
Watch: The New ‘Roma’ Trailer
We’ve already been given a trailer for Roma, Alfonso Cuarón’s highly acclaimed and hotly anticipated personal epic, and this new one doesn’t feature too much footage that hasn’t already been seen. Still, it’s a beautiful package. Against the strains of Pink Floyd’s “The Great Gig in the Sky,” we get glimpses from a movie culled from its filmmaker’s own memories: running through the streets of Mexico City, a toy train, the home’s housekeeper in private moments of bliss, a tempestuous ocean, the mother grabbing tight on the father, afraid to let him go. It’s a rare case of truth in […]
by Matt Prigge on Nov 13, 2018 -
Minding the Gap Leads This Year’s Cinema Eye Honors Nominees
The non-fiction-centric awards body Cinema Eye Honors announced its nominees for 2018, ranging over 10 categories, such as directing, production, cinematography and, of course, Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking. Among the biggest recipients is Bing Liu’s Minding the Gap, which raked up a total of seven nominations — the most of any title this year. Others with multiple nominees include Robert Greene’s Bisbee ’17, RaMell Ross’ Hale County This Morning, This Evening and Sandi Tan’s Shirkers. The winners will be announced at the 2019 Honors Awards Ceremony on January 10, 2019, which will be held at the Museum of […]
by Matt Prigge on Nov 9, 2018 -
SFFILM and Dolby Institute Launch A Fellowship, Which Will Go to Michael Tyburski and Ben Nabors’ Film Palimpsest
Sound, sadly, is not an area of filmmaking most people think of first, if at all. A new program may change that. SFFILM and the Dolby Institute have teamed up to create a fellowship that will help filmmakers all the way from development through post-production. The help will come in many ways, from providing artistic and industry guidance to negotiating introductions to key independent film players. Because Dolby is involved, it will also provide a cash grant that allows them to speak with sound designers as early as the screenwriting phase, on top of post-production support that includes a Dolby […]
by Matt Prigge on Nov 9, 2018 -
“It’s Impossible to Predict [an Audience’s] Reactions, and I Make No Effort to Do It”: Frederick Wiseman on Monrovia, Indiana and His 51-Year Career
In the last 51 years, Frederick Wiseman has made 42 non-fiction films, plus two fiction features. In a sense, each film is the same: The filmmaker, a sprightly and sharp 88, goes to an institution — or, in a handful of cases, a confined area — with a small crew. (Currently it’s his longtime cameraman John Davey and Davey’s assistant Jim Bishop.) Wiseman doesn’t do research; as he’s said countless times, “The shooting is the research.” He does no interviews. There is no onscreen text describing who is who, or even where is where. He rarely shows any person more than once. […]
by Matt Prigge on Oct 26, 2018 -
“We Can Do Whatever We Want”: The Makers Of The Podcast Mission To Zyxx On Doing Indie Sci-Fi Comedy On The Cheap
Sound-only projects got an entire day at IFP Week 2018, which may irk sticklers wondering what podcasts are doing in a seminar once dedicated solely to film. Well, as more and more filmmakers consider themselves some-kind of cross-platform storyteller, podcasts are natural medium for their work. (See, for example, this Filmmaker article on filmmakers embracing that medium.) And, IFP itself added audio storytelling as one of its main areas of interest earlier in the year. To boot, independent aural projects and independent cinema share a lot of similar concerns, aesthetic as well as financial. Take Mission to Zyxx, an improvised […]
by Matt Prigge on Sep 26, 2018 -
“How Do You Possibly Do Justice to All This in a Single Film?”: Steve James on America to Me
Steve James has never shied away from going big. From his 1994 breakthrough, the near-three-hour Hoop Dreams, through long-players like Stevie and The Interrupters, the filmmaker has never been afraid to blow well past documentary’s traditional 90-minute mark. (He’s also played ball, as with 2016’s Oscar-nominated Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, which clocks in at a brisk 88.) Still, even for James, America to Me is ambitious. It’s his second dalliance with TV, after 2004’s The New Americans, spanning 10 hour-long episodes, which begin on Starz on Aug. 26. But it’s not just size that matters. It’s the scope, and the […]
by Matt Prigge on Sep 25, 2018
