Filmmaking

A MUST SEE: THE FINAL JEM COHEN MOVIE NIGHT AT THE IFC

If you’re in New York I highly recommend you check out the final night of what has been a great series at the IFC Center: Movie Night with Jem Cohen. Tonight the program is Shorts, Rarities and Things to Come, and it’s described like this: Unseen films old and new, excerpts from recent collaborations and a glimpse at the methods behind the madness. The final evening in the IFC Center’s “Movie Nights With Jem Cohen” series offers rare films old and new, excerpts from recent collaborations and a glimpse at the methods behind the madness! To be shown: GLUE MAN, […]

By Scott Macaulay on Sep 3, 2009 Filmmaking
BEHIND THE SCENES OF FANTASTIC MR. FOX

There aren’t that many filmmakers working today that I think could cut it making a stop-motion film. Tim Burton has certainly showed he can excel doing it. Another that was born to try his hand at the medium is Wes Anderson. His meticulous attention to detail will only heighten the enjoyment of watching his Fantastic Mr. Fox adaptation. See what I mean here.

By Jason Guerrasio on Sep 2, 2009 Filmmaking
SUNDANCE TO FEATURE NEXT SECTION IN 2010

In a press release sent out today, the Sundance Institute has announced the creation of a new section in the Sundance Film Festival beginning next year called NEXT. The release describes the section as “featuring six to eight films selected for their innovative and original work in low- and no-budget filmmaking.” Capitalizing on the continued interest by filmmakers to do their films in a DIY style, the release goes on to say, “With NEXT, Festival programmers hope to provide a platform for these filmmakers to connect to audiences, industry and press while at the same time inviting the artists to […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Sep 2, 2009 Filmmaking
PREVIEW OF 66th VENICE FILM FESTIVAL

Reporting from the fest, Belle Burke sends this dispatch on what’s in store this year. VFF begins today and wraps Sept. 12. Stay tuned to the blog for more reports from Venice. Do all film festivals begin with disclaimers, denials, and disappointments? In Venice, where discussions can be as heated as the weather, they often do, but maybe it clears the way for the bragging rights of the world’s oldest film festival. Marco Muller, back again as the festival director, still somewhat apprehensive as last-minute plans evolve, emphasizes that it will not be a “provincial festival” even though it has […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Sep 2, 2009 Filmmaking
IFC/CRITERION DVD WISH LIST

With news today from Variety that the Criterion Collection will release some IFC Films titles on DVD and Blu-ray (including A Christmas Tale and Gomorrah in Nov. and Che and Hunger in Dec.) I’m curious what other IFC titles should get the coveted Criterion treatment. 1) In The Loop – Not only would director Armando Iannucci do a great commentary but also included could be episodes of the inspiration for the film, the BBC series The Thick of It. Essay could be written by David Frost (hey, this is a wish list, I can dream). 2) Antichrist – Yes, sex […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Sep 1, 2009 Filmmaking
THE ART OF THE SODERBERGH ONE SHEET

Seeing this poster of Steven Soderbergh‘s latest film, The Informant!, got me thinking about how much I enjoy the creativity behind his one sheets. There’s the ode to the 1940s studio system with The Good German, the pulpy feel of Out of Sight, then there’s the fragmented visual style with The Limey and The Girlfriend Experience. In a time when most filmmakers are just happy audiences show up to the theaters, it’s nice to see there’s at least one who’s still nostalgic for the oldest form of movie marketing (though I have no idea if he has a hand in […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Sep 1, 2009 Filmmaking
JEANNE DIELMAN/CRITERION COLLECTION COOKING CONTEST

Hey Julie and Julia — two can play at that game! The ever forward-thinking Criterion Collection is shaking up the dusty confines of specialty film marketing with their latest promotion. Read: There’s more to cooking on camera than Top Chef, and despite films like Big Night or Julie and Julia that have inspired foodies across the country to run out and prepare elaborate meals, it’s rare that we get a cinematic look at how ordinary folks cook every day. It might not be the first thing that comes up when people talk about Chantal Akerman’s masterpiece Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai […]

By Scott Macaulay on Sep 1, 2009 Filmmaking
RECESSIONARY FILMMAKING IN GREAT BRITAIN

We’ve envied the Brit’s public funding for feature films, government support for new talent, and innovative tax schemes supporting production. They’ve envied our culture of private equity investment for film. Now we’re both about even… or maybe not. From a worthwhile read by Killian Fox in today’s Guardian entitled “Digital: Take a Short Cut to the Cinema”: In [London Film School Director Ben] Gibson’s view, funding opportunities for first-time film-makers are desperately limited, and the lucky few who receive support are being hobbled by the whims of commissioning bodies, who place more weight on “the availability of a certain actor […]

By Scott Macaulay on Aug 29, 2009 Filmmaking
WE LIVE IN PUBLIC Q&A WEBCAST

If you aren’t able to make it to the IFC Center tonight for Ondi Timoner’s Sundance Prize-winning We Live in Public, you can catch the Q&A via a live webcast. The webcast is embedded below, and it’s scheduled to be live at 9:15 and 11:20. Get the Pseudo Button widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox!

By Scott Macaulay on Aug 29, 2009 Filmmaking
MARK KERMODE IS SCARED BY PHILIP RIDLEY

I haven’t seen Philip Ridley’s second feature, The Passion of Darkly Noon…. but I am a fan of his debut film, The Reflecting Skin, which I saw at its premiere at the Toronto Film Festival many years ago. On the basis of that grandiose, gothic picture, I’ve been wanting to see more of him. So, like the BBC’s Mark Kermode, I am looking forward to his new one.

By Scott Macaulay on Aug 28, 2009 Filmmaking

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