Authors — Scott Macaulay

When Should You Give Up?

Over at the literary site The Millions, Edan Lepucki had a post yesterday entitled “Shutting the Drawer: What Happens When a Book Doesn’t Sell?” After receiving rejections from multiple publishers, she writes about her first novel: The truth is, my novel isn’t selling, and it probably won’t. There, I’ve said it. Eventually, a writer must accept rejection, accept the death of her first true darling, and move on. Can I face that sobering reality? Can I put my first book into the drawer, and shut it? Oh, you say, what about self-publishing? DIY? Connecting directly to fans? Bypassing the gatekeepers, […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 24, 2011
RYAN GOSLING BREAKS UP EAST VILLAGE FIGHT

Forgive my brief step into celebrity stalkerville, but via my favorite neighborhood blog, EV Grieve, comes this video showing, apparently, Ryan Gosling stepping into some rather low-key fisticuffs at Astor Place in the East Village. What’s great here is the soundtrack as the shooter slowly realizes that she’s got a celeb in her iPhone sights. (“That’s the guy from the movie!”)
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 22, 2011
JACK FERVER PRESENTS FASSBINDER’S “BITTER TEARS…”

Because Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s The Bitter Tears of Petra Van Kant is one of my favorites by the late German director, I’m reprinting here this email from Ira Sachs, whose IFC Center Queer/Art/Film series is screening the film tonight at 8:00 PM. It’s being presented by choreographer Jack Ferver, who has written a fantastic intro to the film. Dear Friends of Queer/Art/Film, “That little girl’s finger is worth more than the lot of you.” For this month’s August screening, we’re thrilled to finally be able to present a film by the visionary gay German filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder, especially one […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 22, 2011
THE POSTER AS STREET ART

Okay, I’m weird — I’ll stop and notice a movie poster when I have no idea what it’s advertising. Like this wall of one sheets in Manhattan’s East Village for Sean Durkin’s Martha Marcy May Marlene, that makes street art out of giant QR codes. By the way, this controlled and eerie film, which boasts a riveting performance by Elizabeth Olsen, is highly recommended. It comes out October 21 from Fox Searchlight. (If you blow this picture up on your desktop you can scan the codes and go to trailers and clips of the film.) (Post amended after the perceptive […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 21, 2011
THE KINDS OF WRITERS WE ARE LOOKING FOR

About a year ago I posted a call for new writers, a post that led to amazing folks like Zack Wigon and Nicholas Rombes showing up in these pages. So, as we continue to build out and add content to the website, I thought I’d let any journalists out there know our current needs. I continue to look for people who can write with knowledge and authority about the business side of independent film. And I’m also looking for people who know something about filmmaking itself and are genuinely interested in the below-the-line and production worlds (i.e., film sets and […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 21, 2011
ON GATEKEEPERS AND “MALKOVICH’S MAIL”

Each week I write an original newsletter that I usually don’t repost to the blog. Here’s this week’s, about a favorite documentary I just found on YouTube. To receive future newsletters, you can sign up for free here. If I ever teach a course in the film business, there’s a documentary I’m going to make required viewing. My guess is that you probably haven’t seen it because it was made for AMC a few years ago as part of a short-lived strand of docs about film. It’s called Malkovich’s Mail, and it was directed by the independent filmmakers Keith Fulton […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 21, 2011
KOO LAUNCHES “MAN-CHILD” KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN

As a Filmmaker reader, you undoubtedly know Koo from his appearance on our 2008 “25 New Faces” list. Included in the “25” with his partner on The West Side web series, Zack Lieberman, Koo was one of the first filmmakers whose initial medium was the web to be profiled in our round-up. Since The West Side, which remains one of the web’s best narrative series, Koo has developed other projects, including his longest running: NoFilmSchool.com, an invaluable website covering DSRLs, editing software, crowdsourcing, new media, and Web 2.0 in general. One of the site’s best features is the pop-up you […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 18, 2011
INDEPENDENTS AND THE ECONOMY

Shortly after hitting send on this week’s newsletter, in which I wondered whether our current economic situation is similar to 2008, I came across this Reuters article by Joshua L. Weinstein, which wonders pretty much the same thing. Both he and I riff off this week’s Dow roller coaster ride, and while the Friday close was more optimistic than might have been expected on Tuesday, the macro challenges facing both the investment community and consumers remain. Hence, a potentially rocky road ahead. From Weinstein: But Hal Vogel, of Vogel Capital Management and the author of Entertainment Industry Economics: A Guide […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 13, 2011
“LITTLEROCK”‘S ATSUKO OKATSUKA AND MIKE OTT

Tonight at the HSBC offices in midtown was the IFP’s Independent Film Week launch party. Attending were participating filmmakers, several of our 25 New Faces, and many folks from the New York production community. But flying in from L.A. were Mike Ott and Atsuko Okatsuka, whose Littlerock — winner of the Filmmaker-sponsored “Best Film at a Theater Playing Near You” Gotham Award — premieres today at Cinema Village. Read Ray Pride on the movie here, and then check out the film. It’s highly recommended.
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 12, 2011
PAUL RUDD ON MARKETING “OUR IDIOT BROTHER”

Funny or Die has made a very funny video with Paul Rudd pitching Harvey Weinstein marketing ideas for Jesse Peretz’s upcoming Our Idiot Brother. Check it out below. Paul Rudd Pitches Harvey Weinstein from Paul Rudd
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 10, 2011

Cookie	Duration	Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional	11 months	The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy	11 months	The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Cookie	Duration	Description
cfmrk_cic		Used by Cloudflare to route user traffic for this Site.
sparrow_id		Installed by Cloudflare. Used to identify individual clients behind a shared IP address and apply security settings on a per-client basis. It does not store any personal identifiable information.

Cookie	Duration	Description
OAGEO		Installed by the Revive Ad Server. Used to cache geolocation (session, deleted when closing the browser)
OAID		Installed by the Revive Ad Server to distinguish users.