6294 Results for “Open ”
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Fantasia International Film Festival 2023: State of the Genre Nation
The conclusion of Fantasia International Film Festival’s 27th edition brings the temptation to paint a “big picture overview” of the state of the film industry in general, in particular the genre community. The Montréal-based three-week event has never been about blinding star power (while Nicolas Cage was scheduled to be onhand to receive this year’s Cheval Noir Career Achievement Award, the actor had to cancel due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strikes), instead putting directors and audiences front and center. Like last year, a highly anticipated A24 horror release made an appearance just days before opening theatrically (last year Halina Reijn’s […]
by Erik Luers on Aug 31, 2023 -
“If We’re All Gonna Die…Then Why Wouldn’t You Take a Risk as an Artist?” Onur Tukel (Back To One, Episode 265)
Onur Tukel is a boldly independent writer-director-actor who, for more than a decade, has been making cutting edge comedies in New York City that sometimes land in the horror category, sometimes social satire, are often absurd, mostly hilarious and always thoughtful—Catfight, Applesauce, Summer of Blood, The Misogynists, Scenes From An Empty Church, to name just a few. His latest, Poundcake, about a serial killer who only targets straight white men, is maybe his boldest yet, which says a lot. In this hour, he talks about his reluctant approach toward acting in his own films, the ways he has navigated low […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Aug 29, 2023 -
Heart of Darkness (and Light): The 29th Sarajevo Film Festival
Taking place from August 11-18, this year’s 29th edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival, the largest film fest in (and focused on) Southeast Europe, unsurprisingly presented a wealth of cinematic gems to choose from. (And in a variety of venues, from the storied National Theater, built during the Austro-Hungarian takeover, to the evening-only Open Air Cinemas.) That is, when one wasn’t scrambling to catch the numerous talks and masterclasses—taught by this year’s Honorary Heart of Sarajevo recipients/hot tickets Mark Cousins, Lynne Ramsay and Charlie Kaufman—or attending the equally busy CineLink Industry Days (which, like the festival itself, is smartly geared […]
by Lauren Wissot on Aug 29, 2023 -
Locarno 2023: Circles of Reference
Festivals have a baked-in tension between the works they’re meant to showcase—marginal relative to the marketplace, hence the (sometimes pejorative) descriptor “festival film”—and the sponsorships necessary for them to operate, the larger and more corporate the better. Cracks will inevitably emerge; thus, attending Locarno with his latest, The Old Oak, socialist Ken Loach spent part of his press conference dutifully denouncing sponsors UBS Bank, prompting two Swiss journalists sitting next to an attending friend to draw their breath sharply in protest: “UBS is an ethical bank.” Another tension is between the ideal of a “festival film”—work at the boundaries of what’s […]
by Vadim Rizov on Aug 23, 2023 -
Film at Lincoln Center Reveals Currents Lineup for 2023 New York Film Festival
Film at Lincoln Center announces today the Currents lineup for the 61st New York Film Festival, which will take place at FLC and select theaters across NYC from September 29 through October 15. Comprised of 11 features and 36 shorts, the 2023 Currents lineup—which serves to highlight “filmmakers and artists working at the vanguard of the medium”—will feature films from 23 countries and compliment the NYFF Main Slate. “The filmmakers in this year’s Currents lineup range from well-known veterans to prodigious newcomers, and the films encompass narrative, documentary, and experimental modes, sometimes recombined and redefined,” said Dennis Lim, Artistic Director, […]
by Natalia Keogan on Aug 23, 2023 -
Looking Towards 2043: The Worldbuilding Weekend of Experimental Realities
In early July, a cohort of over a dozen filmmakers and artists gathered in the International Documentary Association’s sun-drenched conference room. Some had flown in from as far away as the UK and Serbia, others were local to LA. A number—perhaps most of them—weren’t exactly sure what was in store for them at the weekend-long Experimental Realities event. Or even why exactly they were there. I asked the event organizers how members of the impressive group — who included Greg de Cuir Jr., Alison Nguyen, and Mark Mushiva — were selected. “This is funny because the participants have been asking […]
by Joanne McNeil on Aug 22, 2023 -
“You Are Enough”: Ron Cehpas Jones on Back To One (Expanded Re-Release)
The great actor of the stage and screen, Ron Cephas Jones died on August 19, 2023, at the age of 66. On this episode from 2020, he details the value of a true collaborative relationship with the director, why the script never leaves his side in preproduction, talks about what it was like to slowly build “William” on This Is Us through many seasons of that show, and takes us back to his early days at LAByrinth theater in New York City to explain how Philip Seymour Hoffman forever changed his approach to work, plus much more! This is an expanded version […]
by Peter Rinaldi on Aug 22, 2023 -
Sundance Institute Announces 2023 Documentary Fund Grantees
The Sundance Institute announces today 23 projects that have been selected for the 2023 Documentary Fund, which provides unrestricted grant funding totaling just over $1,000,000 for filmmakers from around the globe. Among this year’s recipients, six projects are in development, 14 are in production and three are in post-production. Grants are made possible by the Open Society Foundations, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Gucci and the Kendeda Fund. Highlights among 2023 grantees are Looking at Ourselves directed by Oscar and Emmy-nominated filmmaker Lourdes Portillo, Adam’s Apple directed by artist and filmmaker Amy Jenkins, Untitled Uvalde Documentary by Anayansi […]
by Natalia Keogan on Aug 21, 2023 -
In the Garden: Remembering Independent Film Distributor, Producer and Mentor Ray Price
I have lived longer and better than many others. I have selfishly demanded that I only do what I wanted to do—which isn’t completely true. But it is true that I have often spurned great amounts of money and stature because I believe good work is essential… The last time we spoke, I had you on speaker-phone as I made my way down the backyard garden, holding my baby in the morning sunshine, and as your words came over the cellphone, they wove into the chorus of finches chirping in the trees and the buzzing of the bumblebees joyously coating […]
by Rodrigo Reyes on Aug 18, 2023 -
“This Movie Could Only Happen at This Budget in New York City”: Vuk Lungulov-Klotz on Mutt
A breakout at Sundance, Berlinale and New Directors/New Films this year, Chilean-Serbian writer-director Vuk Lungulov-Klotz’s debut feature Mutt is as scrappy and charming as its canine title. Following a frenzied 24 hours in the life of New York trans man Feña (Lío Mehiel, the first trans actor to win the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Acting at Sundance), Mutt explores the constant micro-aggressions that trans people face daily—even in a supposedly hyper-tolerant locale, especially from loved ones—and the connections and community that make these encounters sting a little bit less. Even when Feña faces his capricious ex-boyfriend, moody tween […]
by Natalia Keogan on Aug 18, 2023
