Authors — Natalia Keogan
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“We Often Speak of the Film as a ‘Making-of-a-Ghost’ Story”: Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer on God’s Creatures
The brackish waves of the Atlantic are a source of livelihood and peril for the inhabitants of a coastal Irish fishing village in God’s Creatures, the directorial work of Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer. Aileen O’Hara (Emily Watson) is the manager of a local fishing plant, tasked with sifting through daily catches of oysters and haddock on a whirring conveyor belt and preparing them for market. She is diligent yet warm, providing a maternal presence for many of her employees, namely young Sarah (Aisling Franciosi, The Nightingale). During an ordinary shift, Aileen and a handful of other employees witness […]
by Natalia Keogan on Sep 29, 2022 -
“A Club You’ve Always Wanted To Be a Part Of”: Abigail Disney and Kathleen Hughes on DCTV Firehouse Cinema’s Inaugural Film The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales
Founded in 1972, DCTV (Downtown Community Television Center) has the distinction of being one of the rare permanent cinema landmarks in NYC. Housed in a striking firehouse on Lafayette Street in Chinatown, the non-profit media center has long been the one of the most prominent documentary production and film education centers in the country. After a storied legacy of hosting various educational programs, folding-chair screenings, master classes, panel discussions and Chinatown-specific community events, on its 50th anniversary the building will now finally house its own specialized cinema. “We don’t make films for ourselves, we make films for people to see […]
by Natalia Keogan on Sep 22, 2022 -
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On‘s Team on IP Development at Gotham Week 2022
Several years back, Jenny Slate and Dean Fleischer-Camp traveled with friends to attend an out of town wedding. Opting to scrimp on lodging costs, the duo shared a crowded hotel room with four other friends. Slate just happened to be the only girl in the group, which led to her adopting a “teeny-tiny” voice to communicate her comparative petiteness to the other men in the room. The voice, a running joke for the rest of the weekend, became the eventual creative spark that would launch a web series, children’s books and feature-length film released by A24. Soon thereafter, the first […]
by Natalia Keogan on Sep 20, 2022 -
“Emotional Heartbreak Can Be Dangerous”: Ti West on His Technicolor X Prequel Pearl
Pearl, Ti West’s prequel to the 70s slasher-inspired X, is a far more claustrophobic study of psychological ruin and bodily decay than it is a gory exercise in picking off victims one by one. Unburdened by the heavy prosthetics and dual role that defined her performance in X, star and co-writer Mia Goth, that film’s de facto villain, gives a gloriously unsettling performance as the now titular character depicted during her early 20s in 1918. Pearl lives under the domineering thumb of her German mother Ruth (Tandi Wright), cares for her Spanish flu-stricken father (Matthew Sunderland) and desperately yearns for […]
by Natalia Keogan on Sep 16, 2022 -
“What if the Worst Thing That Could Happen Actually Happened?”: Director/Co-writer Christian Tafdrup on Speak No Evil
Two European families—one Danish, one Dutch—meet during a picturesque Italian vacation in Christian Tafdrup’s Speak No Evil. Their bond is immediate, and soon enough the Dutch couple enthusiastically invite the Danes to visit them in Holland. The gesture is friendly enough, but the sincerity of the statement isn’t necessarily taken at face value. Shortly after the Danes—Bjørn (Morten Burian), Louisa (Sidsel Siem Koch) and their daughter Agnes (Liva Forsberg)—return to their well-kept abode, they receive a postcard in the mail. As it turns out, the Dutch family was completely serious about their offer, inviting them to visit their home in […]
by Natalia Keogan on Sep 14, 2022 -
“Cops and Prosecutors Truly Work the Same Side”: Ingrid Raphaël and Melissa Gira Grant on Their FOV Doc They Won’t Call It Murder
When 16-year-old Julius Tate, Jr. was killed during a SWAT raid by undercover Columbus police officers in December of 2018, citizens swiftly gathered to protest the unjust killing of a child. One year later, during an anniversary vigil mourning Tate’s loss, Ingrid Raphaël, co-creator of No Evil Eye and Film Futura, and Melissa Gira Grant, a New York-based reporter covering police brutality, came together to co-direct and collaborate on They Won’t Call It Murder, a documentary short from Field of Vision that captures the enduring grief and activism that surviving families of police violence undertake. The film, embedded above, makes […]
by Natalia Keogan on Sep 7, 2022 -
(Screen)Play Press Launches, Announces Six Inaugural Titles
Mexican-American filmmaker Eva Aridjis announced today the launch of (Screen)Play Press, which will publish scripts that have not yet been developed into feature films. Founded by Aridjis and fellow filmmaker/screenwriter Christine Vartoughian over a cup of coffee this past May, the first six titles published by (Screen)Play Press specifically spotlight scripts written by women. Each title will be available in paperback and e-book versions. “What we’d really love to emphasize is how many great un-produced screenplays we know are out there, and our desire to get these stories out into the world regardless of whether or not a film version […]
by Natalia Keogan on Aug 29, 2022 -
Trailer Watch: Elegance Bratton’s The Inspection
A24 has released a trailer for The Inspection, the narrative feature debut from writer/director Elegance Bratton. However, this isn’t a total departure for the filmmaker, who previously directed the 2019 documentary Pier Kids about queer homeless youth in NYC. Similarly rooted in non-fiction, the story behind The Inspection is one taken from the Bratton’s lived experience as a gay man who enlisted in the military during the aughts. The film follows a fictional version of Bratton named Ellis French (Pose‘s Jeremy Pope), a young gay man who enlists in the Marines during the height of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell […]
by Natalia Keogan on Aug 23, 2022 -
SFFILM and Kenneth Rainin Foundation Announce the 18 Feature Projects Selected for the 2022 SFFILM Rainin Grant
SFFILM, in partnership with the Kenneth Rainin Foundation, announced today the 18 feature projects that will receive SFFILM Rainin Grants totaling $450,000. These grants will provide funding to advance each project to its next creative stage, generally entailing support for screenwriting and further development. Distributed on an annual basis, the SFFILM Rainin Grant is typically awarded to “to filmmakers whose narrative feature films meaningfully explore pressing social issues and/or have significant economic or professional impact on the Bay Area filmmaking community,” according to a press release. However, this does not mean that the grants are reserved exclusively for Bay Area […]
by Natalia Keogan on Aug 22, 2022 -
Gotham Week 2022 to Feature Panels with Jenny Slate and Directors of Bodies Bodies Bodies and The Janes
The panels have been announced for the 2022 Gotham Week Conference, the first time the event will occur in person since 2019. The panelists include Jenny Slate and other team members behind Marcel the Shell With Shoes On, director of Bodies Bodies Bodies Halina Reijn and co-directors of The Janes Tia Lessin and Emma Pildes. Slate, who voiced the title character and co-wrote the script, will be joined by Marcel director Dean Fleischer Camp and animation director Kirsten Lepore. Other panelists at the 2022 Gotham Week Conference include Adamma and Adanne Ebo, the respective director and producer of Honk For Jesus. […]
by Natalia Keogan on Aug 19, 2022
