Authors — Scott Macaulay
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An Interview with Shit Year‘s Cam Archer
This post was originally published when Shit Year premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2010. The film opens today at the IFC Center. It is both accurate and reductive to call Cam Archer’s Shit Year, which premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival in the Director’s Fortnight section, the story of a retiring actress grappling with the emotions produced by her move away from the Hollywood spotlight. Of course, on narrative terms, that is what it’s about. Ellen Barkin plays the actress, who has just given her final talk-show interview, moved to a cabin in the woods, and now […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 21, 2011 -
Joe Swanberg, Factory 25 Announce New DVD Subscription Series
Prolific independent director Joe Swanberg announced today a new distribution plan for his next four films. Partnered with Factory 25, Swanberg is offering fans a four-film, one-year subscription to his work. For $99.95 subscribers will receive a box that will fill up each quarter with not only DVDs but also bonus material, including 45rpm records, photo books and posters. “I’m in the nice position right now of having so many [completed] films I’m trying to get out into the world, so I’m taking the plunge and doing something interesting,” says Swanberg.The four films are Silver Bullets and Art History (both […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 20, 2011 -
TORONTO: WHIT STILLMAN DISCUSSES “DAMSELS IN DISTRESS”
Via The Guardian, here’s a talk with Whit Stillman and clips from his new film, Damsels in Distress.
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 19, 2011 -
THOUGHTS ON NETFLIX… QWIKSTER… QWIKFLIX?
Late last night before going to bed I tweeted that I found (soon-to-be-former) Netflix CEO Reed Hasting’s “explanation and reflections” about his company’s pricing change “odd and confusing.” If you haven’t heard, Netflix is splitting in two. Hastings will remain CEO of a streaming video company that will retain the name Netflix. A new CEO, Andy Rendich, has been appointed head of a DVD rental company — formerly Netflix’s core business. The new DVD company will be called Qwikster. Qwikster? It sounds like a new on-the-go breakfast product. (Maybe that’s because I keep flashing back to that little Martian with […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 19, 2011 -
“THE ISLAND PRESIDENT” WINS TIFF DOC AUDIENCE AWARD
The Island President, Jon Shenk’s doc about Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed’s work advocating climate change legislation, has won the Documentary Audience Award at the Toronto International Film Festival. The doc is a spirited, pictorially dazzling story of the charismatic Nasheed’s charmingly quixotic attempt to use the fate of his island nation — ground zero when it comes to impending destruction by rising tides — to alert the world about the dangers of our carbon-producing modern lifestyles. One of the most interesting parts of the doc is Shenk’s behind-the-scenes look at Nasheed in his cabinet meetings and conferences. I interviewed Shenk […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 18, 2011 -
INDEPENDENT FILM WEEK BEGINS
The IFP’s Independent Film Week begins today. Centered this year around the new Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center at Lincoln Center, the event features talks, panels, seminars, screenings and events focused on the art and business of independent film today. You can find some information on the event at the IFP’s site here, and we’ll try to link to some of the live streams as the Film Week goes along. At 4:30 I’ll be doing a “Hot Button” conversation with producers Ted Hope and Mynette Louie that asks, “Is Independent Film a Hobby or a Business.” And throughout the week […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 18, 2011 -
TORONTO PHOTOS AND NOTES, #2
For several people I talked to, my favorite film at Cannes became their favorite film at Toronto. Oslo, August 31 is Joachim Trier’s follow-up to his inspiring hit film, Reprise. That movie, a tale of youth and best friends and literature and longing and rock and roll, was smart, sophisticated and with an emotional arc like a great mix tape. It was also somewhat dazzling in its montage, using split-screen, freeze frames and a European post-punk soundtrack to make its story of young Norwegian literati one that felt like young adulthood everywhere. After several years working on a larger-scale American […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 17, 2011 -
TORONTO PHOTOS AND NOTES, #1
The IFP organized a screening series at TIFF this year for RBC, the Royal Bank of Canada, at the Thompson Hotel. The event turned into a four-night run of Ryan O’Nan’s festival selection, The Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best, which knocked out the crowd each night. As I moderated the Q&A’s, I can attest: this film plays. The movie was selected for the IFP’s Narrative Lab just this past summer, and it happily surprised all of us by finishing so quickly and making it to Toronto. The Brooklyn Brothers is a totally winning tale of a makeshift band on a […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 16, 2011 -
Five Questions with Union Square Director Nancy Savoca
Nancy Savoca’s True Love was an early high-water mark in the modern independent film movement. In fact, its storyline, newcomer casting and loose style is now the template for much current indie drama. So, it’s great to report that over 20 years later Savoca is back with another intimate drama realized on a low budget and entirely outside the industry. With a stellar cast (Mira Sorvino, Tammy Blanchard and Patti Lupone), Savoca explores sister dynamics through the lens of a Canon 5D. The film, Union Square, premieres today at the Toronto International Film Festival. Filmmaker: What were the origins of […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 15, 2011 -
Five Questions with Caprichosos Director Alison Murray
Several years ago director Alison Murray moved to Buenos Aires, where she danced tango competitively, married her tango partner, had two daughters and, now, has completed her fourth feature. Not surprisingly given these life changes, the film, Caprichosos, deals with dance. But instead of tango, Murray has focused on the murga — what she dubs “tango’s poor cousin.” Performed by groups of costumed dancers who rehearse their theatrical presentations for months before premiering them at Carnival, the dance is a local tradition suffused with beauty, drama, and a slight undertone of menace. Writes Murray in a director’s statement, “Unlike its […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 15, 2011
