Filmmaking

THREE IN THE KEY OF SUNDANCE

A while back I posted a call for Sundance and Slamdance filmmakers to send me information about their own DIY marketing and release plans. After the Sundance selection this week, many of its filmmakers are scrambling for publicists (Ted Hope has published a helpful list of indie film publicists here at his Truly Free Film blog) but others are also building up their own marketing infrastructure. One of those filmmakers is Mike Mohan, whose One Too Many Mornings is premiering in the new Next section. The film has an excellent blog containing posts from Mohan and his actors, including a […]

By Scott Macaulay on Dec 6, 2009 Filmmaking
So You Didn’t Get Into Sundance…

So you didn’t get into Sundance…. I’m sorry. Trust me, I feel your pain. As a producer I’ve received both the acceptance calls as well as the rejection ones. (Actually, the rejection call is sometimes not even a call, but a form email or letter.) In some cases, I’ve known that the film probably didn’t have much of a shot, although in others, the rejection came as a shock — one that threw our director and production team into a quandary over the film’s future direction. So, what do you do if your film didn’t get into Sundance? The first […]

By Scott Macaulay on Dec 5, 2009 Filmmaking
BEST OF DECADE: READERS’ CHOICE

So what’s your favorite film of the decade — Lost in Translation or There Will Be Blood? Who’s your favorite director — the Coen brothers or Steven Soderbergh? We want to hear what our readers feel was the best in American independent and specialty films in the 2000’s. Take our survey and the results will be printed in our upcoming Winter issue. And by taking the survey you’ll receive a discount code to half-off a print subscription. UPDATE: After you’ve done your survey, head over to our Forums where we created a Best of 2000’s section. Discuss the your favorites […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Dec 4, 2009 Filmmaking
UP IN THE AIR’s JASON REITMAN ON OUR LAYOFF ECONOMY

Although as I write this its Tomatometer is at 89%, Jason Reitman’s Up in the Air is something of a Rorschach test for critics, with some finding the film to be both canny and empathetic, a Hollywood picture calibrated for the emotional temperature of a country with a 10% unemployment rate. Others see its Hollywood sheen and evocation of the family as obviating the economic reality it is set against. (J. Hoberman of the Village Voice writes: “… a satire unsullied by anger, Up in the Air floats above the pain.” I am solidly in the “pro” camp, feeling that […]

By Scott Macaulay on Dec 3, 2009 Filmmaking
FIRST-HAND SUNDANCE ADVICE FROM A FESTIVAL VET

Paul Rachman, whose feature documentary American Hardcore, premiered at Sundance in 2006 and then was sold to Sony Classics, penned a 17-page chapter of Chris Gore’s Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide. Here are some of the tips listed in the chapter: – Your festival preparation starts the day you find out you have been accepted. If you are not working nonstop from that moment until your World Premiere, then you are most likely leaving important things undone. – The most important thing about your major festival world premiere is to keep it that way—a premiere. Do not start sending the […]

By Scott Macaulay on Dec 3, 2009 Filmmaking
SUNDANCE ANNOUNCES 2010 PREMIERES, SPOTLIGHTS, NEW FRONTIER, MIDNIGHT & NEXT TITLES

The Sundance Institute has announced the titles that will be in the non-competition categories for the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. Notables going to Park City in January include Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, Nicole Holofcener, the Duplass bros, Michael Winterbottom (with two films), the Safdie bros, Gaspar Noé and Philip Seymour Hoffman‘s directorial debut. Also announced are the films taking part in the newly created NEXT series, where films and their filmmakers will travel the country showing their films in theaters during the fest. The Sundance Film Festival will runs January 21-31 in Park City, SaltLake City, Ogden and […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Dec 3, 2009 Filmmaking
VARIETY REVIEWS GOTHAM WINNER YOU WON’T MISS ME

Alone among our Gotham “Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You” nominees was the winner, You Won’t Miss Me, because it was the sole film not to have received a Variety review. That was nicely remedied tied its win, as Ronnie Scheib caught up with the film and had this to say. Ry Russo-Young’s sophomore outing, You Won’t Miss Me, circles, tracks and finally zeroes in on Shelly (co-scripter Stella Schnabel, daughter of helmer Julian), a troubled 23-year-old Gothamite newly released from a mental institution. Quasi-experimental pic unfolds in nonchronological, unconnected moments, its heroine’s day-to-day existence lacking the […]

By Scott Macaulay on Dec 3, 2009 Filmmaking
SUNDANCE ANNOUNCES 2010 COMPETITION LINEUP

The Sundance Institute announced today the films that will be in competition for the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. Sundance also announced that there will be no opening night film this year. “By moving away from one opening night to a ‘night of Competition,’ we bring the focus back to our core,” says the director of the festival, John Cooper, in the announcemnt. Some of the familiar faces showing up to Park City for ’10 include Alex Gibney wih his doc on Jack Abramoff, Jeffrey Blitz examines what happens when people hit the lottery, Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman look at […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Dec 2, 2009 Filmmaking
HOW TO BE DISCOVERED BY HOLLYWOOD, 2009 EDITION

In the wake of District 9 and the effectiveness of its viral campaign, studios are looking for budget-conscious, effects-skilled directing talent. Reports the Heat Vision blog, Uruguayan director Fede Alvarez, who has been making shorts since 2001, posted a no-budget (reportedly less than $500) short depicting a robot attack on the town of Montevideo. The short went up in early November, the industry took notice, and the director signed with CAA and Anonymous Content just before the Thanksgiving holiday. He now has a deal with Sam Raimi’s Ghost House Pictures to develop an original project. The short is cool and […]

By Scott Macaulay on Dec 2, 2009 Filmmaking
PRECIOUS & THE LAST STATION LEAD SPIRIT NOMINATIONS

Film Independent announced the nominations for this year’s Spirit Awards. The award will be celebrating its 25th anniversary this year when the ceremony takes place on Friday, March 5. Precious and The Last Station lead in nominations with five each, including Best Feature and Best Director. Full list of nominations below. BEST FEATURE (500) Days Of SummerAmreekaPrecious Sin Nombre The Last Station BEST DIRECTOREthan Coen, Joel Coen, A Serious ManLee Daniels, PreciousCary Joji Fukunaga, Sin NombreJames Gray, Two LoversMichael Hoffman, The Last Station BEST FIRST FEATURE A Single Man Crazy Heart Easier With Practice Paranormal Activity The Messenger Awards Guide […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Dec 1, 2009 Filmmaking

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