Filmmaking
Filmmaking
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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 […]
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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 […]
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LARRY GROSS ON MARK RUFFALO’S SYMPATHY FOR DELICIOUS
Over at MovieCityNews, David Poland posts Larry Gross’s thoughts on three Sundance films he’s seen. One of them — Mark Ruffalo’s — we haven’t. A key graph is below, but read the whole article at the link. The film makes a dizzying and largely successful turn toward social commentary and religious allegory, always done with a mixture of realism and dark humor worthy of some of the most interesting movies written by Paddy Chayefsky, like Network and Altered States. That has me doubly excited to see this.
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ASTRA TAYLOR ON INTERNET SERFDOM
Okay, I promised Sundance posts only for the duration of the festival… but that was before I got grounded in Phoenix. I hope to make it to Sundance tonight, but the weather is not being hospitable. In the meantime, I started reading on the plane the new issue of The Baffler, a beautifully produced journal of arts and ideas that is taking a valiant stand against the technocratic pressures that are dumbing down print journalism. In fact, that process is partially the subject of documentary filmmaker Astra Taylor’s “Serfing the Net,” an essay in which she argues that the ideologies […]
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PARAMOUNT TAKES SUPERMAN IN FIRST BIG DEAL AT SUNDANCE
According to Variety, Paramount has acquired worldwide rights to Davis Guggenheim and Participant Media‘s doc Waiting For Superman. The film, which premieres at Sundance on Friday, examines the public education crisis in the U.S. This is Guggenheim’s second go around with Paramount, his Oscar winning doc An Inconvenient Truth was released through Paramount Vantage.
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NIGHT CATCHES US PRODUCER RON SIMONS BLOGS FROM SUNDANCE
When I was first approached to blog for Filmmaker, I thought: “I’m too new at this to say anything anyone would want to read.” It turns out that my naiveté and fresh perspective are the very things that Scott was looking for. So here goes… My name is Ron Simons (commonly misspelled Simon or Simmons), and I’m producer of the film Night Catches Us, which premieres in the Dramatic Competition at Sundance 2010. I am new to the field of indie films as a producer as this is my first film. What a trip so far! At every stage of […]
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THOUGHTS ON THE NEW N.Y. STATE FILM TAX CREDIT REGS?
I’m trying to keep the blog Sundance/Park City/Slamdance-focused for the next ten days, but I want to take note of the new New York film tax incentive regulations proposed in Governor Patterson’s new budget. From Georg Szalai’s article in the Hollywood Reporter: New York film and TV industry executives on Tuesday lauded Gov. David Paterson’s budget proposal that includes $420 million per year in state money for the continuation of a 30% tax credit for productions in the Empire State through 2014. The governor’s 2010-11 budget proposal calls for spending cuts in various areas but for production incentives worth $420 […]
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YOUTUBE SCREENING SUNDANCE FILMS
Announced today, YouTube, which is sponsoring the Sundance Film Festival‘s NEXT section, is partnering with the fest to make five festival films (three from this year, two from ’09) available for rental on YouTube starting this Friday. The five films will be:Louis Psihoyos‘s The CoveTze Chun‘s Children of InventionMichael Mohan‘s One Too Many MorningsBrad & Todd Barnes‘s HomewreckerLinas Phillips‘s Bass Ackwards The films are only available during the festival for a three-day rental price of $3.99. The deal is a non-exclusive revenue share deal between YouTube and the filmmakers. YouTube has also announced the start of “Filmmakers Wanted.” A campaign […]
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Script Supervising Goes Digital
When I started out script supervising almost 20 years ago, the tools of the trade were a stopwatch, a pen or pencil, paper, a Polaroid camera and that all important bible, the script. Each script supervisor had his or her own idiosyncratic system for “maintaining continuity” of a film or a TV show, but walk on any set and the basic tools were all the same. Maybe you typed up your notes at the end of the night on, yes, a typewriter; maybe you didn’t. Well the tools have now gone digital, thanks in large part to script supervisor Anthony […]
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OUR 12 MOST ANTICIPATED FILMS AT SUNDANCE 2010
As we pack our bags for the Sundance Film Festival, all of our correspondents this year have weighed in on the premieres that we’re most excited to see. Check back daily throughout the festival for features, reviews and commentary. 3 Backyards, Eric Mendelsohn. (pictured) I’ve heard from crew who worked on this that it’s great, and I’m a Judy Berlin fan. It’s a domestic drama with Edie Falco and Elias Koteas, and I really hope this is a film that can get suburban-disconnectedness — the bread of butter of Sundance movies — right. — Alicia Van Couvering The Company Man, […]
