Filmmaking
Filmmaking
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2012 CINEMA EYE HONORS NOMINEES ANNOUNCED
In a ceremony last night at the Sheffield Doc/Fest in London the nominees were announced for the 5th annual Cinema Eye Honors. Complete list of nominees are below. Recognizing the best in nonfiction work, this year marks the first time six films will be vying for the top prize. 33 films from 12 countries are among this year’s nominees, including four nominations for seven films (The Arbor, Dragonslayer, Hell and Back Again, The Interrupters, Nostalgia for the Light, Position Among the Stars and Senna) and four individual nominations for The Interrupters‘ director Steve James. Winners will be announced on January […]
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BOOTSY COLLINS IS 60
Happy birthday to bass player extraordinaire and cultural icon Bootsy Collins, who turns 60 today. As this tribute in the Cincinnati City Beat notes, the Parliament Funkadelic member (and Bootsy’s Rubber Band leader) is perhaps the most sampled bass player in history. Below is the TV1 documentary on Collins, a performance with James Brown, and a clip with George Clinton and Snoop Dogg.
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CINELAN LOOKING FOR INTERNATIONAL FILMMAKERS FOR ITS FOCUS FORWARD SERIES
Cinelan, the video publisher that syndicates three-minute documentary films, has announced today an open invitation to non-North American filmmakers to contribute to its Focus Forward series. Teaming with GE, it’s an initiative of three-minute docs that focuses on innovation and ideas that change the world. In addition to Oscar and award-winning filmmakers who have signed on to produce the 30 three-minute films such as Joe Berlinger, Lixin Fan, Liz Garbus, Alex Gibney, Steve James, Barbara Kopple, Ross Kauffman, Cinelan co-founded Morgan Spurlock, Jessica Yu and newly announced filmmakers Lucy Walker, Stanley Nelson, Phil Cox and Leslie Iwerks, Cinelan is accepting brief […]
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Edit Center Epilogue
Today I went by the Edit Center to watch Family Tree, as edited by: us. I take back my hubris about color correcting. I feel like one of my scenes is too dark, but otherwise I enjoy seeing the whole film and wish I had been in class for the discussion afterwards. I once had a job I didn’t like (well, more than once). One day I said I was going out to get a cup of coffee and on my way to the deli I passed a movie theater. A film I wanted to see was just about to […]
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The Blue Velvet Project, #34
Second #1598, 26:38 The open space surrounding the car. The feeling of freedom. The two car mirrors, one of them reflecting Jeffrey’s face. The pink barrette in Sandy’s hair, and the impossible beauty of the length of her arm. The light between the branches and leaves of the trees, and the way those trees fill most of the frame. The vanishing point near the middle of the screen, doubling back on us via the rear view mirror. Sandy and Jeffrey talk in a car, but not a moving car. The emergence of mechanical reproduction is accompanied by modernity’s increasing understanding […]
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CRASH THE SUPER BOWL IS BACK THIS YEAR!
SPONSORED POST Want to break into the commercial business on the largest stage imaginable? Doritos has launched their Sixth Annual “Crash The Super Bowl” contest, calling on filmmakers to create 30-second spots that will compete for a spot on this year’s big game. Last year’s memorable commercial, “Pug Attack,” featured a dog crashing through a glass door to get to the chips. Its creators, Tess Ortbals and J.R. Burningham, went on to form their own commercials company, Mythmakers Entertainment. This year’s winner will have a shot at a $1 million cash prize, the opportunity to work with some of the […]
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WHY NETFLIX IS CRASHING
Felix Salmon at Reuters has a succinct explanation of why Netflix stock is crashing. (Note to non-investors: a stock and a company are two different things. A stock looks at not only current value but future growth potential. Thus, a good company with a healthy but slowly growing business can be worth less than a similarly sized company that might be losing money but is expected to grow into larger earnings.) In a post titled “Why Netflix Stock is So Volatile,” he explains that Netflix’s meteoric rise to a $300 share price drove short sellers from the stock. Then, when […]
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Will The Section 181 Film Tax Incentive Be Extended?
The film tax incentive known as “Section 181” is due to expire at the end of this year, removing one enticement producers have been using to convince investors to finance independent feature films. Part of the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004, Section 181 allowed investors to write off the complete cost of a qualified film in the first year. (Normally, this write-off is amortized, occurring in future years as a film demonstrates that it is money-losing.) If and when profits then occur, they are treated as ordinary income by investors. At the close of 2009, Section 181 was similarly […]
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DISCOVERING JACKSON C. FRANK IN “MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE”
If you went to see Sean Durkin‘s haunting debut Martha Marcy May Marlene over the weekend you’re probably still digesting Durkin’s dark story, the exhausting performance by Elizabeth Olsen and the beautiful cinematography from the film’s DP Jody Lee Lipes. But tucked away in all this is a soothing song delivered by John Hawkes titled “Marcy’s Song.” Playing Patrick, the manipulative leader of the “community,” he wins over Martha with an acoustic guitar and a song from a little-known ’60s folk singer. Jackson C. Frank only released one album in his career, but his life is ripe for a biopic […]
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JOSS WHEDON MAKES A SECRET SHAKESPEARE ADAPTATION
News broke earlier today over Twitter that Joss Whedon has finished principal photography on what may be a screen adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. The official website, appears to give little information on the project — just a cast list and a poster. According to the site, Whedon regulars Nathan Fillion, Amy Acker, and Alexis Denisof star. Clicking on the poster, however, reveals an official press release: Bellwether Pictures proudly announces the completion of principal photography on MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, a modern version of Shakespeare’s classic comedy adapted and directed by Joss Whedon (Marvel’s upcoming THE AVENGERS, […]
