Authors — Scott Macaulay
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Asif Kapadia and Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) Document Guantanamo Force-feeding Procedure
Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) submits himself to the force feeding procedure hunger-striking Guantanamo Bay prisoners are currently undergoing twice a day in this painful short video by Senna director Asif Kapadia. As Ben Ferguson describes in The Guardian, the video was directed using the testimony of a hunger striker, Samir Mokbel, provided by the prisoners’ rights organization Reprieve: There was no rehearsal: after all, no acting would be required. He swapped his black leather jacket, jeans and designer shoes for an orange jumpsuit. In an instant, he was no longer Mos Def – rapper and Hollywood star – but a […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 9, 2013 -
U.S. in Progress Accepting Submissions for American Indie Post Funding
A joint program between the American Film Festival in Wroclaw and the Champs Elysées Film Festival in Paris, U.S. in Progress is a twice-yearly showcase for American independents that should be on the radar of all indies seeking post financing and services. The events present American independent works in progress to groups of European buyers, with two films each year winning post service packages. It’s the only European event devoted exclusively to American independents. The Wroclaw edition is upcoming, October 23 – 25, and has an August 15 deadline for submissions. (And, there’s no submission fee.) The Paris edition recently […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 9, 2013 -
Letters from Blocked Filmmakers: David Rosfeld
Is it possible to be blocked even after you successfully complete your film? If you asked me at the start of this series, “Letters from Blocked Filmmakers,” I would have answered no. You could be frustrated, disappointed or even angry, perhaps, but the realization of an artistic goal should have transmuted that feeling of blockage into something else… Or, at least, that was the rationale behind this column. With “Letters from Blocked Filmmakers,” I wanted to create a space on this site for those whose films aren’t getting made but whose voices are still very much worth hearing. I also […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 9, 2013 -
David Fincher Shoots Rooney Mara in Luscious Black and White
David Fincher directed this beautiful Calvin Klein commercial starring his Girl with a Dragon Tattoo muse, Rooney Mara. Karen O. provides Mara’s interior soundtrack as the actress moves from subway to concert hall. At Movie City News, Ray Pride gives the spot a loving meditation: The glimmering of inconsequence… Angles on cafe to compare with Girl With The Dragon Tattoo; Rooney Mara walking same cadence as cyclist in zebra crossing; sugar crystals in coffee instead of Godardian cream; cuttingly crisp and creased white blouse under fitted form of lightest black leather blouson of highest odor; taffeta dress knee-length as girl-kick […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 8, 2013 -
Leaked Teaser Suggests Fascinating M.I.A. Documentary
Apparently frustrated by Interscope’s tardiness in continuing the production of a documentary on M.I.A. he was directing, Steve Loveridge staged a guerrilla action this weekend by uploading a five-minute teaser to YouTube, embedding it on his Tumblr. “Reblog the shit out of this and maybe they’ll wake up,” he wrote. The action did not go over well. Interscope pulled down the clip, and a Roc Nation exec sent Loveridge one of those entertainment industry “I’m really pissed off but, hey, bro, s’all cool” emails, noting that the upload “screws with” the label’s marketing and PR efforts while assuring Loveridge that […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 8, 2013 -
Alix Lambert and Sam Chou Launch Crime: The Animated Series at MoCA
Published in 2008, Alix Lambert’s Crime is one of the most fascinating books on the subject, bringing together in one gorgeously-produced volume interviews with various artists and dramatists who have chronicled crime as well as actual criminals themselves. But the book is just one element of Lambert’s practice surrounding this topic. Her Crime has taken the form of gallery shows, theater pieces and now, animated films. This week Lambert and animator Sam Chou will launch Crime: The Animated Series at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. From MoCA: MOCATV presents a screening of short animated episodes from our […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 8, 2013 -
10 Lessons for Filmmakers from the IFP Narrative Labs
Still the only lab focusing entirely on what happens after rough cut —- from locking picture to devising a distribution strategy — the IFP Narrative Lab concluded its ninth edition last month. When I created the Lab with the IFP almost a decade ago, the idea was simple. A successful career in film is partly based around making mistakes — and then not making those same mistakes again. But first-time filmmakers don’t have prior experience to draw upon, and in today’s hyper-competitive, content-swamped environment, failure is a luxury many of them can’t afford —— especially when that failure is made […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 8, 2013 -
“You’re Always Supposed to Turn Your Phone Off on Set”: Ed Lachman Talks Cinematography
The folks at Craft Truck sat down with legendary cinematographer Ed Lachman, whose credits include Far from Heaven, Virgin Suicides, Life during Wartime, and Ulrich Seidl’s recent Paradise trilogy. Watch part one above and part two at the link.
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 6, 2013 -
Music Video: David Lynch/Nine Inch Nails Epilepsy Warning
David Lynch may be mostly retired from filmmaking these days, but here he is in Paul Sharits/Tony Conrad mode with a music video that comes with an epilepsy warning. If you are non-epileptic, turn the speakers up, the lights down and enjoy David Lynch’s video for Nine Inch Nails’ “Come Back Haunted.”
by Scott Macaulay on Jun 28, 2013 -
Jem Cohen on Museum Hours
Jem Cohen’s highly recommended Museum Hours — the winner of the Filmmaker-sponsored 2013 Cinema Eye Heterodox Award — opens in theaters today from Cinema Guild. Below is an excerpt (about half) of my interview with Cohen in the current print issue of Filmmaker. You can read the whole interview in the issue, and in the iPad version there’s also a 12-minute video with Cohen explicating various scenes in the film. What does it mean, in 2013, to photograph — to reproduce — a painting? Does it, as Walter Benjamin wrote in his 1936 essay “The Work of Art in the […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jun 28, 2013
