Authors — Scott Macaulay
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Shored Up, Opening Today in N.Y., Tackles Rising Tides and Coastal Development
Opening today at Cinema Village in New York is Ben Kalina’s Shored Up, a documentary tackling the issue of rising tides and coastal development. From the film’s website: Our beaches and coastline are a national treasure, a shared resource, a beacon of sanity in a world of constant change…and they’re disappearing in front of us. Shored Up is a documentary that asks tough questions about our coastal communities and our relationship to the land. What will a rising sea do to our homes, our businesses, and the survival of our communities? Can we afford to pile enough sand on our […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 29, 2013 -
Cinematography, Transmedia Classes at the Made in NY Media Center
The new Made in NY Media Center by IFP has announced a round of classes and presentations for December and is offering Filmmaker subscribers a discount for the two involving transmedia. On December 7, one of today’s great cinematographers, Declan Quinn, will present a five-hour master class in the shooting of Mike Figgis’s Leaving Las Vegas. “In this Master Class, Quinn will deconstruct Leaving Las Vegas, scene-by- scene, while discussing his process, choices, obstacles, challenges – what worked and what didn’t,” reads the promo copy. Presented in partnership with Local 600, the day begins at 10:00 AM with a screening […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 29, 2013 -
Hal Hartley Offers Ned Rifle Distribution Rights as Kickstarter Rewards
Please see important update at the bottom of this post. Plenty of tech vendors use Kickstarter as a pre-sale market, so why not filmmakers? In a letter to backers of his film Ned Rifle — reprinted here with permission — director Hal Hartley announces the inclusion of territorial theatrical rights as Kickstarter rewards. Pledge $3,000 and take Hungary. $5,000 gets you Finland. And a cool $9,000 gets you Spanish-speaking Latin America. Of course, these numbers are for theatrical only. Hartley is retaining home video and electronic distribution. But, as he notes in his letter, the asking prices are low, enabling […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 25, 2013 -
“I’m Passing the Torch to You”: Lee Daniels Delivers Commencement Speech at Savannah College of Art and Design
Precious and Lee Daniels’ The Butler director Lee Daniels spoke recently at the Savannah College of Art and Design, where he received an honorary degree. Towards the end of the clip, Daniels talks about his reasons for making the latter film, which he describes as a father-son love story, and what his own teenaged son thought of it.
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 23, 2013 -
Trailer Watch: Lars von Trier’s Nymphomaniac
The use of Rammstein in a trailer is most often a very bad sign, but somehow it works here in the first — and very NSFW — full-length trailer for Lars von Trier’s Nymphomaniac. Previously, as Sarah Salovaara noted on this site, Von Trier and co. created a new form of trailer through the staggered release of clips. Today’s release is the more traditional — and to my mind, more effective — one. Abrupt changes in music and tone, a mixture of shooting formats and fantastic moments with Charlotte Gainsbourg create a vibe that’s not unlike a punk version of […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 22, 2013 -
Survival Prayer Voted Audience Favorite at Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You Screening Series
Benjamin Greené’s documentary Survival Prayer was voted Audience Favorite at the just concluded 8th Annual “Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You” Screening Series, which took place November 15-18 at The Museum of Modern Art. The series, presented by MoMA in partnership with Filmmaker Magazine and IFP, is a curated showcase of outstanding films from the film festival circuit that are currently not available in U.S. theatrical distribution. This was the first year that audience members attending the series were able to fill out ballots noting their response to each film. Survival Prayer, a meditative portrait of aspects […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 22, 2013 -
Trailer Watch: Ms. 45
Hobo With A Shotgun director Jason Eisener cut this fantastic trailer for Abel Ferrara’s 1981 revenge thriller, Ms. 45, which is being re-released December 13 with VOD following March 25. Check out Drafthouse Films’ fantastic remastering job as evidenced by the clips here. Ms. 45 stars the late great Zoë Lund as a shy seamstress who, after multiple assaults in one 24-hour period, goes on a killing rampage against all the men in New York. For more details on the release, with nationwide theatrical dates, visit the film’s page at Drafthouse Films.
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 21, 2013 -
Independent Film and the Reshoot
If you ask me what’s the biggest difference between studio and independent productions, I wouldn’t answer the length of the shooting schedule or luxuriousness of the craft service. No, I’d say it’s the ability to do reshoots. While studio films can hone their stories through test screenings and additional photography, changing endings (Fatal Attraction) and even entire third acts (World War Z), too many independents wind up with depleted contingencies and unwilling investors when additional photography needs arise in post. Producer Rob Cowan wrote about reshoots today at Hollywood Journal, correctly regarding them not as signs of weakness but as […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 20, 2013 -
Must-Watch Music Video: Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone”
Credit Bob Dylan and a 48-year-old song for the best music video of the moment. In “Like a Rolling Stone,” Dylan and co. create a channel-hopping interactive experience in which no two viewings are the same. Click through 16 different channels to watch various TV presenters, reality-show folk, celebrities and, oh yeah, Dylan himself, lip-sync to the song. From the press release: Nearly a half-century later, a groundbreaking interactive project has been created for the song, allowing fans to experience the classic recording in unprecedented ways. Celebrities and reality stars are featured throughout the various channels including cameos by Drew […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 19, 2013 -
Code: Laura Hanna and Matana Roberts on NYC Stop and Frisk
Filmmaker and media activist Laura Hanna — a co-founder of the production company HiddenDriver and director of docs Gattis, James and Hammer — has directed this short documentary about composer and sound artist Matana Roberts’ recent “stop and frisk” encounter on the Williamsburg bridge. Produced by Creative Time Reports and found on their site, it is introduced thusly: As the composer, saxophone player and sound artist Matana Roberts walked across the Williamsburg Bridge one night in May, she asked herself a familiar question: “How am I going to survive as an artist in this town?” It was too enchanting an […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 19, 2013
