Authors — Scott Macaulay

OF QUESTIONABLE IMPORT

Over at his Cinema Echo Chamber, Brandon Harris has a go at Richard Corliss’s list for Time Magazine of the “25 Most Important Films about Race.” From Corliss’s intro: To celebrate Black History Month, we’ve chosen 25 movies to honor the artistry, appeal and determination of African Americans on and behind the screen. The films span nine decades, and reveal a legacy that was tragic before it was triumphant. At first, blacks were invisible; when they were allowed to be seen, it was mostly as derisive comic relief. The 1950s ushered in the age of the noble Negro, in the […]
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 17, 2008
ANNE THOMPSON SURVEYS INDIE ONLINE DISTRIBUTION

Anne Thompson writes in Variety this week about the marketing challenge facing indies hoping to distribute their films online. In a piece headlined “Frustrated indies seek we distribution,” Thompson looks at all the unsold films out of Sundance this year and then talks with some of the current players in the online distribution space and wonders whether the needs of the former can be met by the current powers of the latter. A passage: The key question is, when will an alternative distribution outlet for indie films emerge — an outlet that can interest enough viewers to bring in meaningful […]
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 15, 2008
VALENTINE’S DAY SHORTS

Since this seems to have been a blog day of embeds and videos, I’ll add one more: this link to Kate Stables’ piece in The Guardian providing links to six online videos all themed for Valentine’s Day. There’s work by Duane Hopkins, Anastasia Kirillova and others, and you’ll find the sweet and romantic as well as the brooding and unexpected. (Hat tip: GreenCine.)
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 14, 2008
THE GREEN STUFF

Here’s the new red-band trailer for David Gordon Green’s Judd-Apatow-produced comedy Pineapple Express.
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 14, 2008
VALENTINE’S DAY AT THE HOME

Sent “in the spirit of Valentine’s Day,” Filmmaker 2007 25 New Face filmmakers Brian Cassidy and Melanie Shatzky passed along this excerpt from The Patron Saints, their doc-in-progress about “faith, uncertainty and sainthood.” For more about their work and their project, visit their blog, Pigeon Droppings and their company website, Pigeon Projects.
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 14, 2008
JONZE AND KANYE

Here’s “Flashing Lights,” a strange and violent video for the Kanye West song directed by West and Spike Jonze.
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 14, 2008
BAD DATE

Ninety-nine percent of interviews with directors and cast members about working on a film fall into the “everyone was so wonderful, it was like a family, I had such a great time” mold. But the opposite can sometimes be a better sell, or, at least, can more effectively cut through marketplace noise. And sometimes filmmakers don’t have a choice — if they want to promote a film that seems like it’s in trouble, they’ve got to spill the beans about what went wrong. A case in point is this article by Missy Schwartz in Entertainment Weekly about the straight-to-video release […]
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 13, 2008
SNEAKING MADONNA’S FILTH AND WISDOM

Indiewire and Daily Motion cover the premiere of Filth and Wisdom, Madonna’s directorial debut which has just unspooled in Berlin. From the Indiewire report by Brian Brooks and Eugene Hernandez: Her first feature may have been made relatively under the radar — at least for a woman of her stature — but iconic actress/author and all around uber pop star, now turned filmmaker, Madonna nevertheless made quite a splash in Berlin today. She landed on the cover of local tabloids ahead of the world premiere of her directorial debut Filth & Wisdom at the Berlinale tonight and huge crowds gathered […]
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 13, 2008
FILM COMMENT SELECTS RETURNS

One of NYC’s most enjoyable screening series returns this week with what looks like a great line-up of films. Film Comment selects begins tomorrow at the Walter Reade theater, and The House Next Door has an exhaustive preview compiled by no less than four critics. (Thanks to GreenCine for the links.) Head over to the Film Comment link and mark U.S. premieres by Grant Gee, Olivier Assayas, Lucas Moodysson (whose Container is pictured) and others in your datebook.
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 13, 2008
FAMILY REALITIES

Anthony Kaufman has a very nice piece in the current Village Voice about producer Paul Mezey, who was involved with two acclaimed Sundance films — Azazel Jacobs’ Momma’s Man, and Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s Sugar (picture). Kaufman calls the group of directors who orbit around Mezey, a group that also includes Joshua Marston and Jim McKay, a “filmmaking family,” and includes some quotes from the producer about the challenges of making “new American realism” within the current climate. It’s really nice to see a producer singled out in the Voice for his great work.
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 13, 2008

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