Filmmaking

“EVE’S NECKLACE” (OR, TODD HAYNES STARTED WITH DOLLS…)

Via Harry Knowles at AICN, here’s a trailer for what looks like one of the more interestingly odd films on the indie circuit at the moment: Eve’s Necklace. It’s playing tonight in Austin at the Alamo Drafthouse Village, and while the on-screen actors may seem a little stiff, their voices are provided by John Hawkes, co-star of the Sundance Grand Prize-winning Winter’s Bone, and Cyndi Williams, lead actress in Kyle Henry’s The Room. This is director Daniel Erickson’s first movie in 20 years. He’s an Austin-based music video director whose two previous feature credits are the independent Scary Movie and […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 6, 2010 Filmmaking
“PRECIOUS” SWEEPS THE 2010 SPIRIT AWARDS

It was a big night for Lee Daniels’ Precious at the 2010 Spirit Awards. The film picked up awards for Best First Screenplay (Geoffrey Fletcher), Supporting Actress (Mo’Nique), Actress (Gabourey Sidibe), Director (Lee Daniels) and Picture. The only other film to win more than one award was Crazy Heart, which picked up Best First Screenplay and Actor (Jeff Bridges). Hosted by Eddie Izzard and presented by Film Independent, the awards were the first Spirits held in downtown L.A. on a Friday night rather than Saturday afternoon at the Santa Monica beach. The Spirits’ gently irreverent tone remained the same — […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 6, 2010 Filmmaking
STORYTELLING AND TRIBECA’S NEW DISTRIBUTION INITIATIVE

Every Thursday I pen an Editor’s Note that goes out to subscribers of our email newsletter (you can subscribe for free here) that is usually not also posted on the blog. I’m reposting today’s newsletter below because some kind of software glitch stripped out most of the punctuation from the copy as well as certain key words. Apologies if you received it and it was less than elegant. Here it is again: The big news in the independent world this week was Tribeca Enterprise’s announcement that it would launch a “virtual film festival” alongside this Spring’s Tribeca Film Festival event. […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 4, 2010 Filmmaking
IFP ANNOUNCES SCRIPT TO SCREEN LINEUP

On March 20 & 21, IFP, with The Writer’s Guild of America, East, will present its annual Script to Screen Conference in New York City. This year’s conference opens with The Daily Show’s Steve Bodow and closes with Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen, Twilight) and Brian Koppelman (Rounders, Ocean’s Thirteen). Other guests include Peter Hedges (About a Boy), Debra Granik (2010 Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner Winter’s Bone) Sophie Barthes (Cold Souls), Ry Russo-Young (You Wont Miss Me) and recent Filmmaker “25 New Face” Lena Dunham (Delusional Downtown Divas) to name a few. The guests will discuss new challenges and opportunities taking […]

By Filmmaker Staff on Mar 3, 2010 Filmmaking
THE ROTTERDAM FILM FESTIVAL VISITS BAM

The International Film Festival Rotterdam has always been an exciting oasis in the festival calendar, a place to see new directors, experimental programming, and to connect with new projects away from the din of more market-defined festivals and red-carpet affairs. (Full disclosure: I’m on the board of Rotterdam’s CineMart.) This year’s festival was a good one — you can read Michael Tully’s wrap-up here — and now New Yorkers have the opportunity to discover the filmmakers of the Tiger Competition. The Tigers consist of films by new filmmakers, and the gamut runs from edgy dramas to intriguing doc-fiction hybrids to […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 2, 2010 Festivals & Events
CUTTING TO THE RHYTHM OF PINK

There’s a fascinating article in the New York Times’ Science section today called “Bringing New Understanding to the Director’s Cut.” It details a scientific study in which the shot length of films over the decades were analyzed and it was determined that as cinema has progressed its editing rhythms have been more closely resembling a natural frequency found in the brain as well as in in “natural and artifactual surroundings.” From the piece: According to the new report, the basic shot structure of the movies, the way film segments of different lengths are bundled together from scene to scene, act […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 2, 2010 Filmmaking
RYAN GOSLING AND ZACH SHIELDS’ DEAD MAN’S BONES

Check this out! A great series of videos (I’ve embedded the first—visit PitchforkTV for all four) of Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields’ Dead Man’s Bones performing with the Philadelphia St. Peter’s Children’s Choir. There’s a talent show too. This is one concert I wish I had been at.

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 1, 2010 Filmmaking
FAITH-BASED FILMMAKING

As Paul Devlin’s article on his film BLAST! in the current issue of Filmmaker notes, films that touch on issues of faith and religion can be tricky sells in the independent film world — even as filmmakers like the Kendrick Brothers work outside of the independent community and find success with their explicitly faith-based films. Here’s a feature narrative on Kickstarter that caught my eye that explores issues of belief and non-belief. From the page on Faith, by Eli Daughdrill: The film is a personal, independent narrative that takes a sensitive but critical look at at religion in America. FAITH […]

By Scott Macaulay on Feb 28, 2010 Filmmaking
SXSW TRAILER WATCH: “TINY FURNITURE”

Here’s the trailer for “25 New Face” filmmaker Lena Dunham‘s second feature, Tiny Furniture, which premieres in the narrative Competition at SXSW. From the Vimeo page: 22-year-old Aura returns home after college to her artist mother’s loft with the following: a useless film theory degree, 357 hits on her YouTube page, and no shoulders to cry on. Starring Dunham and her real-life family, Tiny Furniture is tragicomedy about what does and does not happen when you graduate with no skills, no love life, and a lot of free time. Tiny Furniture Trailer from Lena Dunham on Vimeo.

By Scott Macaulay on Feb 26, 2010 Festivals & Events
2010 NEW DIRECTORS/NEW FILMS REVEALED

The Film Society of Lincoln Center and Museum of Modern Art have announced the films selected for this year’s New Directors/New Films. In its 39th year, the series, taking place March 24 – April 4 at the Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center and the Roy and Niuta Titus Theaters at MoMA, will screen 38 films from emerging filmmakers. Richard Press‘s documentary Bill Cunningham New York will be the opening film, while acclaimed Canadian writer-director Xavier Dolan will close ND/NF with the New York premiere of I Killed My Mother (J’ai tué ma mère). For tickets and more on ND/NF, […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Feb 25, 2010 Festivals & Events

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