GLAAD, formerly the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation released its first annual Studio Responsibility Index (SRI) this week, reporting on the representation of LGBT people in major Hollywood films released by six major movie studios in 2012, including 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures, Walt Disney, Warner Bros. and Sony Columbia. The results are not very good, and sadly not surprising: – In 2012, of the 101 releases from these major studios, only 14 of them contained characters identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (and not a single movie released contained a character who identified as transgender). – Of […]
Though you may not know the name, you certainly should. Alice Guy-Blaché was the first female filmmaker in history, yet few people know her name today. Thankfully, two filmmakers are seeking to change that. Los Angeles-based directors Pamela Green and Jarik van Slujis are currently raising funds through Kickstarter for Be Natural, the first ever in-depth documentary exploring the life and films of Alice Guy-Blaché. It all started when Green happened to catch a segment of a TV-documentary called Reel Models: The Women of Film, about women pioneers of cinema. They very briefly mentioned Alice Guy among a few familiar names. “I […]
Think you’ve already thought of the next best film idea? Pitch it! Filmmaker magazine is happy to be co-presenting the Pitch Panels at this year’s IFP Independent Film Week and Filmmaker Conference. Five days of panels and presentations meant to educate and energize emerging filmmakers, the Filmmaker Conference is your place for inspiration, action and community, September 15-19, at Lincoln Center in New York City. Impressing your friends and family at the dinner table with your pitch is one thing, but with these exciting sessions, filmmakers of all stripes have the chance to dazzle a panel of industry experts who […]
Let’s face it. Being an independent filmmaker often means having to find unusual solutions to problems that most Hollywood filmmakers would just throw money at. You can’t turn around and hire a foley artist to replace those garbled or missing footsteps, or hire a 2nd unit cameraman to film a specific shot you missed, etc. In many cases, you are the one editing your film and so you’ve gotta figure out a way to make it right, and do it free or cheaply (and hopefully fast!) In my continuing quest to seek out the best resources for post-production goodies that […]
As the summer draws to a close, another year of Rooftop Films grants is upon us. The New York-based nonprofit, though perhaps best known for its alfresco screenings across the four major boroughs, also functions as a dedicated support system to independent filmmakers in various stages of the production process. Beyond the traditional cash grants, Rooftop offers assistance in the form of equipment, workshops and post-production services. Those who have previously screened at the festival are exclusively eligible for grants through the Rooftop Filmmakers’ Fund, ensuring a continued, symbiotic partnership between exhibitor and artist. As such, this year’s recipients feature […]
One of the biggest conundrums I’ve experienced as a female filmmaker is watching the women of television advance so much farther than their counterparts in film. Why is there such a great disparity? Take for example this year’s Emmy nominations list. Looking only at nominations for directing, women have the opportunity take a number of prizes home: For Outstanding Directing For A Drama Series Breaking Bad. Episode: Gliding Over All. Directed by Michelle MacLaren. Homeland. Episode: Q&A. Directed by Lesli Linka Glatter. For Outstanding Directing For A Comedy Series Girls. Episode: On All Fours. Directed by Lena Dunham. Modern Family. […]
Last year, to celebrate POV’s 25th anniversary, Filmmaker organized a series of conversations between documentary directors whose work had been featured on the PBS non-fiction showcase. Last month we continued this series with a discussion between filmmakers Stephen Maing and Lixin Fan. This week we are featuring a conversation between Adam Larsen, whose first feature length documentary film Neurotypical is currently streaming on the POV website, and Josh Aronson, director of Oscar nominated documentary on deafness Sound and Fury. Here the two compare their different interview techniques. Click here to watch Larsen’s Neurotypical, an exploration into living with autism and how it reflects on what it means to be “normal”, […]
The Getty Museum made an unusual move for the art world last week when they decided to launch their new “Open Content Program”, making over 4,600 pieces of the Museum’s private collection available to download, use, modify and publish for any purpose (all in beautiful full resolution). About this decision, the museum explains: “The Getty was founded on the conviction that understanding art makes the world a better place, and sharing our digital resources is the natural extension of that belief.” Though there are no films included in the Open Content Program, there’s no doubt a vast treasure trove of […]
Playwright, film director and now novelist Peter Mattei (The Deep Whatsis) was the guest recently on Brad Listi’s Other People podcast, where he told a surprising tale about contemporary Hollywood screenplay sales. Matthei, whose feature Love in the Time of Money was a La Ronde-inspired social X-ray of the early aughts, talks with Listi about working in the dotcom world and advertising, about the empowering nature of fiction writing and then this: I heard a story about a really well established screenwriter who had a great sci-fi script he couldn’t sell. So he finally just went into a comic book […]
One extraordinary passage among many in Peter Maas’s New York Times Sunday Magazine cover article on Laura Poitras and her role in the Edward Snowden story details the symbolic meanings of the documentarian’s most basic act: turning on the camera. By this point in the story, Poitras has been contacted by Snowden, has had a series of encrypted exchanges with him, but doesn’t know who he is. She, along with journalists Glenn Greenwald and Ewan MacAskill of The Guardian, travel to Hong Kong to meet the source for what will be the most explosive national security tale of modern times. […]