Filmmaking

@SXSW: PALLOTTA, SWANBERG, LIPES, RUSSO-YOUNG AND MORE

At SXSW, the first festival to play out after Twitter passed the tipping point, I’ve seen something I’ve never seen before at a festival: people passed out after a long night of partying with their laptops open on their laps. For those more awake, early response here has been very good for the opening night film, John Hamburg’s I Love You, Man, starring Paul Rudd; David Lowery’s St. Nick; Joe Swanberg’s Alexander the Last; Gary Hustwit’s Objectified. One outsider recommendation: at a party last night, one industry vet raved to me about 45365, which refers to the zip code of […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 15, 2009 Filmmaking
SXSW FILM BEGINS IN AUSTIN

SXSW kicks off today, and here at Filmmaker we’ve aggregated our coverage in a standalone page that you can reach by clicking here. Up now are a number of pieces, including Alicia Van Couvering’s interviews with Joe Swanberg, whose Alexander the Last premieres this weekend and is available nation-wide on IFC On Demand, and the team of Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister-Jones of the film Breaking Upwards. There’s also Ry Russo-Young’s conversation with editor Lance Edmands and a series of “Austin Survival Tips” we’ve collected from a number of SXSW vets. I’ll be moderating the DIY distribution panel Sunday at […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 13, 2009 Filmmaking
Tony Stone on Severed Ways

A graduate of Bard College, filmmaker Tony Stone’s first feature, Severed Ways: The Norse Discovery of America, unleashes an almost-new genre – the indie historical drama. It might also be the ultimate heavy metal video. Based on historical research, Severed Ways follows two Vikings stranded in medieval America, encountering both Native Americans and monks, everyone trying to survive. It is deeper than an action film as the Vikings are complete characters, violent but missing their girlfriends. In a way, Old Joy with Vikings. Shot on mini-DV, the result is stunning, a period piece that looks like a painting but feels […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Mar 12, 2009 Directing
BIG NEWS AT FOX: RICE TO TV; UTLEY, GILULA TO RUN SEARCHLIGHT

From Variety comes news of an executive reorganization at Fox, with the big news for independents that Peter Rice, president of Fox Searchlight, will be moving over to become chairman of Fox Broadcasting. Nancy Utley and Steve Gilula, formerly COO’s of the specialty label, will now jointly take over Rice’s job. From the press release as published at Deadline Hollywood Daily: “Peter Rice is one of our most talented creative executives, having championed such films as Slumdog Millionaire, Little Miss Sunshine, and Juno during his tenure at Fox Searchlight. As we increasingly look to apply unconventional approaches to our traditional […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 12, 2009 Filmmaking
REBECCA YELDHAM NAMED DIRECTOR OF THE LOS ANGELES FILM FESTIVAL

Film Independent announced today that producer and former executive and festival programmer Rebecca Yeldham has accepted the post of Director of the Los Angeles Film Festival. From the press release: “Rebecca has a wide range of experience in the industry and she’s an inspiring leader — her many talents make her a natural fit for the Los Angeles Film Festival,” said Dawn Hudson, Executive Director of Film Independent. “She has been intimately involved in the building of this festival and the organization over the last nine years as a Film Independent Board member. Rebecca shares our vision of expanding the […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 12, 2009 Filmmaking
IF YOU HAVE A FILM AT SOUTH BY…

If you have a film at SXSW and would like to send short reports on the festival, your film, and your experience there for Filmmaker blog posting consideration, you can email me at editor.filmmakermagazine AT gmail.com. We have a number of feature interviews going up throughout the festival, and we’ll be posting from the ground, but Filmmaker always welcomes first-person pieces from those involved with the films themselves. And, if you are attending, stop by my panel on Sunday at 1:00pm. (Why does the SXSW calendar function keep auto-syncing it do my calendar at 2:00pm?) It’s entitled “Self-Distribution: Not All […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 12, 2009 Filmmaking
SOUTH BY GIRLS JUST WANNA…

As I sit here editing the interviews and short reports we’ll be posting in our SXSW section beginning Thursday night/Friday morning, I’m wondering what level of SXSW reporting rises to the level of the impactful meaningfulness we aspire to on this blog. There is less industry news at SXSW, and fewer (try no) eight-figure acquisitions… but does that mean that we should be promoting a contest in which all you aspiring filmmakers create a music video for Double D’s “South By Girls”? From the site: It all started as a joke. On a Twitter challenge from a record-industry friend, Eston […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 11, 2009 Filmmaking
GO, SPEEDCINE, GO!

Former publicist Reid Rosefelt resurfaces today with the launch of SpeedCine, a site that acts as a database for legal film viewing and downloading on the web. It’s a clever idea. You scan through the titles listed on the site, click one, and you’re sent to a page with links to the various viewing options on the ‘net. For example, say I want to watch Jeff Lipsky’s Flannel Pajamas. One click and I see that I can instantly watch it on Amazon VOD or, if I have a subscription, via Netflix. I can also download to rent from Jaman or […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 11, 2009 Filmmaking
JOHN COOPER ANNOUNCED AS DIRECTOR OF THE SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL

Tonight the Sundance Institute announced the appointment of John Cooper as the new director of the Sundance Film Festival. Cooper has been with Sundance for 20 years and now, following Geoff Gilmore’s departure to Tribeca Enterprises, steps into the leadership position. When Holly Willis interviewed him for this magazine three years ago she wrote, “Funny, self-deprecating and entirely approachable, Cooper is known to thousands of American filmmakers as the guy who calls with really excellent news. For the festival, he’s integral, the armature that supports everything.” We congratulate Cooper on the appointment and look forward to talking with him in […]

By Scott Macaulay on Mar 11, 2009 Filmmaking
RACHEL/SYNECDOCHE CONTEST

Today Jonathan Demme‘s Rachel Getting Married and Charlie Kaufman‘s Synecdoche, New York are released on DVD and Blu-Ray. We’re giving away 1 DVD & Blu-Ray disc of each film to the first people to e-mail us the correct answers to the designated questions below. The answers can be found in our stories on the films in the Fall, 2008 issue. E-mail your answer to editor.filmmakermagazine AT gmail.com. (In subject line put in the film title and either “DVD” or “Blu-Ray” so we know what question you’re answering. Please only answer 1 question.) The winners will be notified and mailed the […]

By Jason Guerrasio on Mar 10, 2009 Filmmaking

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