Authors — Scott Macaulay

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY HEADS FOR EXPANDED RELEASE

Congratulations to 2008 Filmmaker 25 New Face writer/director Oren Peli, whose Paranormal Activity is not only a fantastic, genuinely scary independent horror film but now also the poster child for successful studio release experimentation. Quick recap: Peli’s film, shot with a three-person crew in seven days was bought by Dreamworks at Slamdance, 2008. Rumors were that the studio would shelve the film in favor of a remake, but there was always one problem: like The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity depends on a feeling of casual verisimilitude. Throw in a name actor and that’s blown, and beef up the production […]
by Scott Macaulay on Oct 4, 2009
PICTURING NOLLYWOOD

One of the most reprinted articles we’ve run at Filmmaker was South African producer Jeremy Nathan’s 2002 piece on “No Budget Nigeria,” the thriving Corman-esque film scene otherwise known as Nollywood. Now, artist Pieter Hugo has released a book containing his stunning square-format photos featuring portraits of performers from these films. It’s called, appropriately, Nollywood. In an essay about the images, Federica Angelucci explains Hugo’s approach, which is to compose photographs that play off the mythologies created by the films. An excerpt: Movies tell stories that appeal to and reflect the lives of its public: stars are local actors; plots […]
by Scott Macaulay on Oct 4, 2009
SWANBERG, FUNNY OR DIE, AND EROTICA 2.0

David Lowery, who worked on this short, passed along the link to the latest from Funny or Die, entitled “Birthday Suit.” It’s one of those satires that’s only really one step away from reality. Birthday Suit from Jason Lewis
by Scott Macaulay on Oct 2, 2009
CARY FUKUNAGA’S AMERICA

Nick Dawson at FilmInFocus picked up on this Levi’s commercial directed by Sin Nombre director Cary Fukunaga. Writes Dawson: Susan Hoffman, the executive creative director of ad company Wieden + Kennedy, described the campaign as aiming “to refresh and reinvent the idea of a pioneering spirit for the times in which we live.” Fukunaga’s commercial, entitled “America,” uses the Walt Whitman poem of the same name and juxtaposes the rousing, patriotic words of the poem with lyrical images of a young and untamed country. Fukunaga has great eye for detail and a strong sense of style, and his black and […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 30, 2009
HOW WOULD YOU FEEL ABOUT A PRODUCER CREDIT?

Terence Nance was in the IFP Rough Cut Lab with his very original How Would You Feel in 2008. Now he’s raising finishing funds using a crowdsourcing approach. He only needs five grand. Donate up to $40 and you get a DVD of the film. From $40 – $250 you get a DVD and T-Shirt. From 250 – $1,000, all of the above, a “Special Thanks” credit, and a one-night stay at the filmmaker’s home. More than a grand? All the above, a producer credit and your investment treated as an equity investment. Here’s how Nance describes the movie: HOW […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 28, 2009
RIP, WILLIAM SAFIRE

The New York Times reports that former Nixon speechwriter and columnist William Safire has died. While I disagreed with most of his politics, he had a great run at the Times with a column that was always witty, well-reasoned and well-written — a far cry from much of current right-wing discourse. I thought his final column was spectacular, and I saved a copy on my hard drive to refer to periodically. It’s called “Never Retire,” and it’s about the necessity of keeping the synapses active and continuously adapting to and participating in cultural change. Obviously, it’s even more relevant today […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 27, 2009
NOTES ON A CRISIS: DISCUSSING INDIE FILM AT THE INDIEWIRE/MOMA SUMMIT

Indiewire and MoMA jointly organized a summit at MoMA on September 25 to discuss independent film and its future direction in a time of economic crisis and technological change. That the two groups could assemble a fairly astonishing collection of about 70 distributors, producers, directors, festival reps and others from the community at one place at one time is testament to the strength of the organizations but also the widespread sentiment that our business is changing and that what is yet to come will be defined by our collective actions — or, possibly, non-actions. Some of the attendees, listed here […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 26, 2009
WIN A LUNCH WITH CHRISTOPHER NOLAN

Earlier this week I wrote about Werner Herzog’s Guerilla Film School, which consists of a long weekend soaking up the wisdom of the great German director. Well, here’s another chance for one-on-one auteurist mind meld. The Pablove Foundation, which raises money for and awareness of children’s cancer, is auctioning off a visit to the set of Chris Nolan’s next film and lunch with the director. You and a guest can watch him film and ask him stuff about The Dark Knight, Memento, or for a little more clarity on the ending of The Prestige. The set visit will occur the […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 25, 2009
TAPLIN INTERVIEWS CHERNIN AND CRAWFORD ABOUT MEDIA CIRCA 2020

From Jon Taplin’s blog, his conversation with Peter Chernin, former President of News Corp and Gordon Crawford, the Managing Director of Capital Group, “the most important media investor.” It’s titled Art of the Long View; The Media Company of 2020. ‘ Some notes on the presentation are available at Paid Content. Their lede: For investors wondering if there are still any opportunities in media, former News Corp (NYSE: NWS). COO Peter Chernin has some advice: focus on digital and look to developing countries. In a panel discussion with Gordon Crawford, managing director of The Capital Group Companies, at the USC […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 25, 2009
WERNER HERZOG’S ROGUE FILM SCHOOL

“The Rogue Film School is not for the faint-hearted; it is for those who have travelled on foot, who have worked as bouncers in sex clubs or as wardens in a lunatic asylum, for those who are willing to learn about lockpicking or forging shooting permits in countries not favoring their projects. In short: for those who have a sense of poetry. For those who are pilgrims. For those who can tell a story to four-year-old children and hold their attention. For those who have a fire burning within. For those who have a dream. — Werner Herzog That’s the […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 23, 2009

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