Authors — Natalia Keogan
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“I Wanted to Protect Randi While Also Staying True to Her Experience”: Rivkah Beth Medow and Jen Rainin on Holding Moses
The unexpected (and largely unspoken) challenges of parenthood are rawly probed in Holding Moses, a moving documentary short directed by Rivkah Beth Medow and Jen Rainin. The film follows Randi Rader (Medow is in an open marriage; Rader is her long-term partner), a queer, non-binary dancer and Broadway performer who undergoes a personal reckoning when her son Moses is born with a rare genetic disorder of the 22nd chromosome. Via pre-recorded monologue, Rader shares the difficult journey of digging herself out of a deep depression and learning to love her son unconditionally. The candidness of her emotional trajectory may at […]
by Natalia Keogan on Jan 11, 2023 -
Trailer Watch: Ari Aster’s Beau Is Afraid
The trailer for Ari Aster’s highly-anticipated new film, Beau Is Afraid (formerly titled Disappointment Blvd), has arrived. The writer-director, whose previous films Hereditary and Midsommar have been widely lauded, appears to be continuing his work in the horror genre, though the trailer contains a distinct comedic streak. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix as an emotionally stunted man who embarks on a strange, arduous journey to get home to his mother. Also starring are Nathan Lane, Amy Ryan, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Hayley Squires, Denis Ménochet, Kylie Rogers, Armen Nahapetian, Zoe Lister-Jones, Parker Posey, and Patti LuPone. Beau Is Afraid will hit […]
by Natalia Keogan on Jan 10, 2023 -
Watch: David Ehrlich’s 25 Best Films of 2022
Indiewire’s chief film critic David Ehrlich returns with his annual video countdown of the year’s best films, selecting 25 titles to highlight via clever editing choices and, most distinctly, various needle drops culled from a wide range of 2022 releases, from The Batman to Bones and All. In what’s also become a recent tradition, Ehrlich continues to have the director behind the top-ranked film choose a charity for viewers to donate to, as a way to “help justify the (truly humiliating) amount of time it takes me to make them.” This year, Filmmaker is proud to say that Charlotte Wells, […]
by Natalia Keogan on Jan 9, 2023 -
Short Film Premiere: Nat Gee, Lily Baldwin and Joshua Echevarria on Waves
The abstract yet oppressive sensation of an anxiety attack is captured through intense corporeal movement in Waves, the latest from Brooklyn-based filmmaker Nat Gee. The film stars Lily Baldwin as a woman in the throes of an anxious episode, her oft-idyllic surroundings transformed into hostile environments. A well-manicured flower garden becomes a frightening, frenzied feast (and viny prison); gentle waves crashing upon a sandy shore morph into a violent assailant; a stroll in a verdant, tranquil park turns into an uneasy exercise in losing bodily autonomy. Yet as fascinated as Gee is in conveying the unsettling feeling of being consumed […]
by Natalia Keogan on Dec 20, 2022 -
Gender Biases, Ghoulish Visages and “Jazzy” Broaches: Director Lesley Manning on Ghostwatch 30 Years On
On Halloween night 1992, the BBC switchboard became inundated with an estimated one million phone calls related to a now-infamous TV broadcast. Convincingly filmed as a live news report—even featuring recognizable BBC presenters Michael Parkinson, Sarah Greene and Mike “Smitty” Smith—Ghostwatch convinced a wide swath of the British populace (reportedly including Parkinson’s own mother) that a real-life possession was unfolding in front of their eyes, and that a demonic entity was being channeled through their own screens. Though programmed as part of the network’s narrative anthology series Screen One, many viewers tuned into the program after the identifiable drama banner […]
by Natalia Keogan on Dec 16, 2022 -
Exclusive Clip: Mark Pellington’s Going All the Way: The Director’s Edit
Ahead of its opening weekend at NYC’s Quad Cinema, Filmmaker shares an exclusive clip of Mark Pellington‘s Going All the Way: The Director’s Edit. This re-edit and 4K restoration of Pellington’s feature debut includes a new title sequence created by Sergio Pinheiro as well as 50 additional minutes of previously unseen footage accompanied by new music from composer Pete Adams. Based on the 1970 novel by Dan Wakefield (who also penned the script), the film stars Jeremy Davies and an early-career Ben Affleck as Sonny and Gunner, two young men who return home to Indianapolis after serving in the Korean […]
by Natalia Keogan on Dec 16, 2022 -
Trailer Watch: Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool
Immediately buzzed about after its inclusion in the 2023 Sundance Film Festival feature lineup announcement, the trailer has already arrived for Brandon Cronenberg‘s Infinity Pool. The film stars Alexander Skarsgård as a wealthy novelist who commits manslaughter on foreign soil and is presented the opportunity to have a doppelgänger face the death penalty in his place—for a substantial fee, of course. Also starring are Mia Goth and Cleopatra Coleman. Per the official synopsis: While staying at an isolated island resort, James (Skarsgård) and Em (Coleman) are enjoying a perfect vacation of pristine beaches, exceptional staff, and soaking up the sun. […]
by Natalia Keogan on Dec 8, 2022 -
Sundance Film Festival Announces 2023 Feature Film Lineup
Today, the Sundance Institute announces the comprehensive feature film lineup for the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. For the first time since 2020, the Festival will reconvene in-person, with screenings taking place in Park City, Salt Lake City and the Sundance Resort from January 19-20. An online streaming window will be available for viewers across the country from January 24-29. Of the 99 feature films announced today, 94% are world premieres. “We’re so excited to be coming back in person,” Joana Vicente, Sundance Institute CEO, told Filmmaker via phone call. “Last year was quite devastating with having to pivot late in […]
by Natalia Keogan on Dec 7, 2022 -
Slamdance Film Festival Announces Feature Lineup for 2023
Today, the Slamdance Film Festival announces its 2023 feature lineup, including programming for the Narrative Features Competition, Documentary Features Competition, Breakouts, Unstoppable, and Spotlight Screenings. The 29th annual edition of the festival will adhere to a hybrid model, with events taking place in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah from January 20-26 and online via the Slamdance Channel from January 23-29. “From the streets of Seattle to the psychedelic skies of a unicorn-run dystopia, our filmmakers are transporting audiences to new dimensions with stories that explore the nuance of disability, immigration and gender,” said Festival Manager Lily Yasuda in […]
by Natalia Keogan on Dec 5, 2022 -
Oscar-Winning Documentarian Julia Reichert Dies at 76
Documentary filmmaker Julia Reichert, who won an Oscar with her partner Steven Bognar for American Factory, has died. Reichert passed away in her Ohio home on Thursday night from urothelial cancer after being diagnosed as Stage Four back in 2018. She was 76. Reichert’s filmography has championed the plight of marginalized Americans, particularly through the lens of gender and class. Her first film, Growing Up Female (1971), examined the lives of six women, ages four through 35, and their gendered socialization within American culture. The film was originally completed as her senior project while attending Antioch College in Yellow Springs, […]
by Natalia Keogan on Dec 2, 2022
