Authors — Scott Macaulay
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Quentin Tarantino and Paul Thomas Anderson Talk 70mm on Christmas Eve
One of the nice things about a Weinstein Company Christmas Day release of a film by Quentin Tarantino (The Hateful Eight) is that the accompanying marketing material is necessarily cinephilic. Take this yuletide chat between Tarantino and Paul Thomas Anderson, shot in Tarantino’s home theater and moderated by Deadline’s Pete Hammond. Over forty minutes long, it deals with topics like the lifespan of the celluloid format (Tarantino says it has experienced “a reprieve”) as well why both he and Anderson like using the format for shooting films largely set in interiors. Check it out above.
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 25, 2015 -
Section 181, Film Production Tax Incentive, Reinstated (and Retroactive!) in 2016 Spending Bill
Great news for independent film producers: the omnibus spending bill passed by Congress this week and signed by President Obama contains a reinstatement of Section 181, the tax provision that incentivizes film and television production by allowing for immediate deduction of production costs up to $15 million. What’s more, the provision, which expires December 31, 2016, was made retroactive to include costs spent during 2015. (In recent years, Section 181 was retroactively renewed for the prior year at the beginning of the next fiscal year; in 2015, it was allowed to expire completely, and many observers didn’t expect to see […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 19, 2015 -
Showtime Unveils a New Twin Peaks Teaser
We’ll just start by apologizing up front — at Filmmaker, you know, we don’t report on every trailer, one-sheet or still photo released in support of projects of interest. These things are marketing items, you know? Advertisements. But I suspect we will be making an exception for Twin Peaks, especially now that David Lynch is back behind the camera of this Showtime 25-years-later series. A new teaser has just dropped. It’s not much, but it’s something.
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 18, 2015 -
Filmmaker Announces 2015 40%-Off Holiday Sale
Filmmaker announces this week the 2015 edition of its annual subscription drive. Subscribe by the morning of December 23rd for yourself or a friend or loved one and receive a digital or print edition of the magazine for 40% off. Print subscriptions are $10 and digital subscriptions are only $6. Plus, be eligible to win one a great collection of film-related prizes. The full list will be up on the site tomorrow, but some include gifts from our contributors — the brand new edition of Alix Lambert’s documentary, Mark of Cain; columnist Nicholas Rombes’s debut novel, The Absolution of Roberto […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 16, 2015 -
Short Film Premiere: The Nutcracked (NSFW), by Alexandra Nicole Hulme & Celia Rowlson-Hall
Just in time for the holidays is a new realization of the classic Nutcracker — a NSFW, burlesque-themed version full of seasonal cheer, pasties, stripper poles, classical portraiture and surprisingly high production values — choreographed, directed and performed by Alexandra Nicole Hulme and 25 New Face Celia Rowlson-Hall. Rowlson-Hall’s MA is one of our favorite independent features of the year, so this new short is truly an early present. Here are the filmmakers describing the piece: We have dreamed for years now of creating a two-person Nutcracker in which we perform all the roles. We wanted to take this traditional […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 15, 2015 -
Dial it Down a Little: Disney Lets You Shape Actors’ Performances with New Face Director Software
The director Ruben Östlund shoots wide in 4K, composing the individual shots for films like Force Majeure by, in post-production, pushing in and moving from side to side. Now, Disney Research has developed a new tool, Face Director, that offers directors even greater possibilities; it crosses the final frontier in post-production manipulation: actors’ performances. Whereas, previously, directors would shape a performance by using multiple takes or, in post, skillful editing and music, with Face Director directors can alter performance by modulating them between two extremes. From Disney’s page: We present a method to continuously blend between multiple facial performances of […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 13, 2015 -
Atlanta Film Festival Announces First Six Features for its 2016 Edition
Two narrative films and four documentaries, hailing from Bangladesh, Canada, India, Pakistan, Palestine, South Africa, and the United States, were announced today by the Atlanta Film Festival, which unfolds April 1 – 10, 2016. Currently in the midst of a Kickstarter campaign to support filmmaker travel to the festival, the ’16 edition is also its first within the Atlanta Film Society, “a fortified organization title” birthed in October of this year. From the press release: The ATLFS name reflects a year-round mission to lead the community in creative and cultural discovery through the moving image. Connection with a filmmaker dramatically […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 9, 2015 -
Sundance Announces its 2016 Festival Short Film Selections
Sundance today announced the 72 short films that will play in its various short film sections at the 2016 festivals. Spanning narrative and documentary, animation and experimental, the films include plenty of 25 New Faces filmmakers (Darius Clark Monroe, Eva Vives, Calvin Lee Reeder, Terrence Nance, Eddie Alcazar, Kim Sherman, Sebastian Silva, Jack Dunphy, to name just a few) as well as the usual assortment of discoveries that will undoubtedly place on our list in the coming year. In a press release, Mike Plante, Senior Programmer for the Sundance Film Festival, said, “Our longstanding showcase of short films has become […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 8, 2015 -
Short Film Premiere: Leah Shore’s Transgressive Cookie-Themed Animated Holiday Film
Who doesn’t love cookies? And who hasn’t eaten too many in one sitting — perhaps even recently? Filmmaker Leah Shore, who landed on our 25 New Faces list in 2013, set out to make a confectionary-themed holiday card when scatological impulses got in the way. Her typically outrageous and beautifully animated 40-second animation, she says, “morphed into a tiny film, a gross pooptastic one.” (Indeed, Shore’s animation features the most novel appearance of a Christmas tree I think I’ve ever seen.) So perhaps be careful who you send this to, and if you have a sensitive stomach, watch before eating, […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 8, 2015 -
Sundance Announces 2016 Festival Premieres, Spotlight, Kids and Special Events
The internet dreaming of itself via the images of Werner Herzog; Kenneth Lonergan’s follow-up to one of the best films of the decade, Margaret; the directorial debut of longtime independent producer, screenwriter, and former studio head, James Schamus — these are just three highlights unveiled today by the Sundance Film Festival as it announces the final selections of the 2016 edition. Among other films I took immediate note of: new pictures by Filmmaker favorites Ira Sachs, Joshua Marston, Kelly Reichardt, Jeremy Saulnier, Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady, and Todd Solondz — the latter a sequel to one of the most […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 7, 2015
