17730 Results for “”
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“I Knew This Film Was Going to Be a Little Out There”: Editor James Crouch on The Blazing World
Carlson Young’s feature debut The Blazing World features the director as her own lead. Margaret has recurring nightmares hearkening back to the drowning of her sister when she was a child. On the brink of suicide, Margaret finds herself in an alternate world where her sister may yet live. Editor James Crouch discusses relying on simplicity on an otherwise complex movie and the editing choice that made Young cry. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Crouch: I met […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 31, 2021 -
Sundance 2021 Critic’s Notebook 1 (Abby Sun): CODA, Summer of Soul (…Or, How the Revolution Could Not be Televised)
This year, at least tacitly, Sundance is providing the infrastructure, or at the very least supplementing the marketing for events, panels, and film after-parties, that used to circle the periphery of private condos or invite-only events—the festival is the conduit, not the exclusive platform. My Sundance 2021 started not on opening night but in the weeks and months leading up to it, via viewing links shared in advance with many programmers and industry members. Long before that, due to the festival’s mostly-virtual nature, Sundance’s team had lots of news and announcements to share. In summer 2020, they revealed the festival’s hybrid […]
by Abby Sun on Jan 30, 2021 -
Sundance 2021 Critic’s Notebook 2 (Vadim Rizov): The Sparks Brothers, Mother Schmuckers
Now entering their sixth decade of steady musical production, Sparks—brothers Ron and Russell Mael’s remarkably enduring musical project—has proved equally alienating to multiple generations of American listeners no matter what phase they were in. During the very first days of MTV, clips for their Moroder-produced “No. 1 Song in Heaven” and “Try-Outs for the Human Race” were in regular rotation (if only because there was so little else to show). But when not involuntarily exposed to them, American audiences rejected Sparks whether in their glam, disco, ’90s synth or 2002-and-onwards minimalist keyboard-loops periods—especially true of the latter, their longest-lasting mode to […]
by Vadim Rizov on Jan 30, 2021 -
“There Is an Appropriate Numbness and Bareness to It”: DP Lauren Guiteras on Ma Belle, My Beauty
Marion Hill tackles uncharted territory with their polyamorous drama Ma Belle, My Beauty. After moving to rural France, Bertie (Idella Johnson) runs into her ex Lane (Hannah Pepper-Cunningham) who she was previously in a three person relationship with alongside Bertie’s husband Fred (Lucien Guignard). DP Lauren Guiteras walks us through how she captured naturalistic sensuality, the beauty of imperfect lighting, and how she grounded Ma Belle, My Beauty in the tangible world. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Guiteras: I had […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 30, 2021 -
“Maintaining a Respectful Distance”: DPs Sushmit Ghosh and Karan Thapliyal on Writing With Fire
Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh’s feature debut Writing With Fire painstakingly follows Khabar Lahariya, India’s only all-female news network, as they transition from print to digital and challenge the caste system every step of the way. Ghosh acts as co-DP alongside Karan Thlapliyal on the film. The two discuss maintaining a respectul distance from their subjects and the inclement climate conditions of their filming. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Ghosh: When my codirector Rintu and I decided […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 30, 2021 -
“Film as a Prayer”: Editors Jeanne Applegate and Dustin Waldman on Faya Dayi
Jessica Beshir’s feature debut Faya Dayi is all about khat, a plant native to Ethiopia harvested and known for its euphoric properties when chewed. On another level, the film is about khat’s cultural significance as a major cash crop, analyzing its role both economically, socially, and generationally. Editors Jeanne Applegate and Dustin Waldman share the fine line between crafting a visual drug trip and spiritual resonance, extracting meaning from beautiful images, and the liberatory aspect of editing a conceptual film. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 30, 2021 -
“Dalit Women as Colleagues, Bosses, Leaders and Risktakers”: Editors Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh on Writing With Fire
Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh’s feature debut Writing With Fire painstakingly follows Khabar Lahariya, India’s only all-female news network, as they transition from print to digital and challenge the caste system every step of the way. As a director duo, Thomas and Ghosh also took the massive undertaking of editing and producing their film, with Ghosh also acting as one of two cinematographers. The duo share their editing process, what it was like to respectfully but intimately capture the lives of the women of Khabar Lahariya, and reframing the image of Dalit women through editing. Filmmaker: How and why did you […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 30, 2021 -
“The Most Cruel Form of Social Distancing”: Directors Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh | Writing With Fire
How did events of 2020—any of them—change your film, either in the way you approached it, produced it, post-produced it, or are now thinking about it? We had set up an edit studio at a friends’ place in the mountains and were busy working through the post-production when the lockdown was declared in India. That’s when it dawned that we couldn’t head back to Delhi, where our home is, nearly 600 kilometers away. Our consultant editor, the amazing Anne Fabini, was supposed to join us for two weeks. Just a few days before she was scheduled to travel, the travel […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 30, 2021 -
“May Seem Like a Bad Idea to Shoot a Movie with Such a Camera”: DP Carlos Rigo Bellver on El Planeta
Amalia Ulman’s El Planeta is a modern day picaresque, following a young fashion student and her mother as they grift their way into small riches amid the backdrop of post-financial crisis Spain. The film explores consumerism, gendered expectations, and class with devilish humor. DP Carlos Rigo Bellver discusses making an intimate setting for Ulman, who plays the lead, and her mother, who plays Ulman’s mother, to feel comfortable and naturalistic. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Bellver: […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 30, 2021 -
“Online Dating Operates Through a Skein of Lenses”: DPs Martin DiCicco and Daniel Claridge on Searchers
Dating’s complicated arc during the pandemic has been lovingly captured in Pacho Velez’s documentary Searchers. Whether on Grindr, Tinder, or any other app, the question “what are you looking for?” varies from person to person amid the chaos of mid-COVID New York City. DPs Martin DiCicco and Daniel Claridge tell us how they framed Velez as one of the film’s most vital subjects as well as the parallels between film and dating profiles. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 30, 2021
