Filmmaking

PRODUCER RON SIMONS ON SUNDANCE PRESS HIGHS AND LOWS

Here is Night Catches Us producer Ron Simons’ fourth post from Sundance. January 24th was a good day. I finally got to have in-person conversations with two of the powerhouses of the Sundance Institute: Michelle Satter and Anne Lai (both of whom have been crucial in making this film come into being). They’d both fielded worried, stressed, beseeching calls from Sean, Tanya and myself. They were ever supportive with sage advice administered with calming tones and gracious patience. I also got to meet a number of other filmmakers at the Producer’s Brunch. The key note speaker was Lynette Howell, who […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 26, 2010 Filmmaking
CINETIC FILM BUFF LAUNCHES ONLINE

The online destination for Cinetic Film Buff, the distribution label for Cinetic Rights Management, has launched. The site points you to where to see films like Big Fan, Collapse and Let Them Chirp Awhile, and there’s also a blog with links to articles dealing with films and digital distribution. Check it out at the link.

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 25, 2010 Filmmaking
PRODUCER RON SIMONS ON PREMIERING NIGHT CATCHES US

Producer Ron Simons has been blogging from Sundance about his trip there with his first film, Tanya Hamilton’s Night Catches Us. Scroll back through the blog for his earlier posts. Night Catches Us has premiered! The last two days have been a symphony of interviews and press meetings. The day of the premiere our PR firm (Fatdot — a great PR firm by the way!) shuffled Tanya (our director) and me off to TV interviews, photo shoots and a taping for the Sundance Channel, among others. We’d wanted to include my producing partner Sean Costello in these activities but all […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 25, 2010 Filmmaking
BURIED NABBED BY LIONSGATE

Thought by most to be an obvious choice, Lionsgate has acquired the much buzzed about Sundance Midnight film Buried, according to Variety. Directed by Rodrigo Cortes and written by Chris Sparling, the film stars Ryan Reynolds as a U.S. contract driver in Iraq who after a sudden attack on his convoy awakens to find himself buried alive inside a coffin with nothing more than a lighter, a cell phone, and little memory of how he ended up there. The trade reports the deal was between $3 to $4 million. Other titles in buyer’s sights include Josh Radnor‘s happythankyoumoreplease, Debra Granik‘s […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Jan 24, 2010 Filmmaking
YOUTUBE vs. PHYSICAL MEDIA AND OTHER SUNDANCE NOTES

The YouTube/Sundance partnership that is streaming five films for rental during the festival has gotten a lot of ink, with many filmmakers and industry observers hopeful that the experiment will generate numbers that will help guide future online distribution decision-making. At the Producer’s Brunch today I ran into Children of Paradise producer Mynette Louie, who shared the data she’s received so far. Interestingly, physical media (i.e., DVDs) is currently winning out over the new model strategy. The publicity generated by the YouTube launch and the button Louie and director Tze Chun added to their page has generated $1,000 in DVD […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 24, 2010 Filmmaking
SOLUTION-BASED: NEW BREED AT PARK CITY PART 2

Here’s the second of the New Breed videos discussing the current and future states of distribution. From the makers: Filmmakers Zak Forsman and Kevin K. Shah of Sabi Pictures arrive at Park City with an intent to define the questions most relevant to independent distribution options. Insights from Brian Newman, Dan Mirvish, Jon Reiss and Ira Deutchman open a path toward discovering some real solutions. NEW BREED PARK CITY – Discovering the Questions from Sabi Pictures on Vimeo. Watch New Breed Part 1.

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 24, 2010 Filmmaking
A REPORT FROM THE SLAMDANCE/OPEN VIDEO COALITION FILMMAKER SUMMIT

“Independent filmmakers have always been very good about making their films, but they’ve had to rely on other outside advice [with regards to distribution],” said filmmaker and Slamdance founder Paul Rachman at the Filmmaker Summit, a Saturday-morning confab here at Park City hosted by Slamdance and the Open Video Alliance. Indeed, with the collapse of traditional acquisitions-based models for independents and the flourishing of DIY strategies and new platforms, perhaps the largest growth business in independent film right now is in seminars and conferences devoted to its future. This one condensed a lot of thought from some of the key […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 23, 2010 Filmmaking
A FILMMAKER SUMMIT PRE-SHOW IN PARK CITY

Here is the first of the New Breed video reports realized this year in collaboration with Filmmaker and The Workbook Project. This one’s an open discussion between Lance Weiler, Peter Baxter, Saskia Wilson-Brown, Brian Newman and Paul Rachman just prior to Slamdance and the Open Video Alliance’s Filmmaker Summit in Park City, which starts in just a little more than an hour. If you’re not in town you can stream the summit here. NEW BREED PARK CITY – AN OPEN DISCUSSION from Sabi Pictures on Vimeo. For Filmmaker‘s complete Sundance coverage, visit our special Sundance section.

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 23, 2010 Filmmaking
AT SLAMDANCE, SOLATRIUM SCREENED AND MASHED

When I taught the IFP Rough Cut Lab a while ago, one of the most intriguing projects was Chris Bower‘s Moon Europa, an idiosyncratic sci-fi drama with green overtones. Bower is still at work on the feature, which will shoot this summer, but for now check out Solatrium, which plays at Slamdance on the 22nd and the 28th. The filmmaker describes the film as the “story of Bria Living, a female astronaut who attempts to cure her regret and ennui by abusing her medication Solatrium. Little does she know she is a test subject for the Nevco Corporation who is […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 22, 2010 Filmmaking
A SUNDANCE INDUCTION: PRODUCER RON SIMONS BLOGS FROM THE FESTIVAL

Producer Ron Simons is blogging from Sundance with his first feature, Tanya Hamilton’s Competition title, Night Catches Us (pictured). Here’s his second post. Well I am here! The journey was not without its complications, but I’m here. While the flight to SLC was not delayed (actually arrived 15 minutes early), there were a number of disgruntled passengers sharing the flight with me. While I was uncomfortably sleeping (having slept only an hour and a half last night due to packing), another poor soul was suffering across the aisle from me. Apparently the gray haired gentleman boarded the non-stop from JFK […]

By Scott Macaulay on Jan 22, 2010 Filmmaking

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