Widely revered in reggae and hip-hop circles, Lee “Scratch” Perry is one of 20th century music’s most influential and mysterious artists, a tried-and-true rasta man whose lasting contribution goes beyond spawning some of reggae’s most seminal acts. He was, in fact, the driver for the aesthetic innovations that germinated into the two genres mentioned above, and he reinvented the image of the studio engineer from mere technician to artistic focal point. Now in his mid seventies and expatriated to Switzerland, he’s the subject of the feature-length doc The Upsetter, from the directors Adam Bhala Lough (The Carter, Weapons) and […]
A few years ago I took part in the IFP Narrative Labs with a feature I wrote and directed called Mr. Sadman, about a 1990 Saddam Hussein double who loses his job and moves to Los Angeles to start his life over — a satire about what it truly means to become American. We had a brief, almost nonexistent festival run and then regrouped and thought about next steps. Every now and then we’d get an inquiry from a distributor or sales agent, but in the end nothing really ever made sense for either us or them. “No stars” plus […]
For Miranda July’s second feature film, THE FUTURE, the performance artist and director mixes humor, fantasy and psychodrama to explore the anxieties of adulthood.
Short films can often be gateways to feature films, experiments in storytelling, or stand alone works of art. After film school I still made one short film every year, but for me they were ways to try out ideas before committing to something feature sized. For some folks they are end goals that are beautifully done and well thought out. Sometimes however, we get short films that are too long, or ideas that exist between short format and feature length. Plus, with the introduction of Youtube and Vimeo we also seem to have an over abundance of “short films” that […]
While procrastinating working yesterday, I was following Ed Burns’ Twitter stream, in which he detailed the no-budget nature of his latest film, Newlyweds. With a shooting budget of $9,000, Burns worked with a three-person crew, shot on the Canon 5D (which he owns), had the actors wear their own clothes and do their own hair and make up, and worked without lights (except an occasional china ball) and sound mixer (the actors wore lavs). Tweeted Burns, “Sound is important but don’t let it slow you down. The Italian Neo-realists didn’t and they made some pretty great films…. No disrespect to […]
The below post was written by Billy Mulligan, producer of the SXSW film, Yelling to the Sky. Six days of nonstop on-the-go hustle, with a few moments of pause for food coma recovery. That’s my SXSW in a nutshell. As a SXSW first-timer, I had heard countless times that it’s important to take the time to appreciate the Austin foodscape. After finally experiencing some of the culinary delights myself, it can’t be stressed enough that the Trailer Food culture that is ingrained into every fiber of the city is enough of a reason for any man, woman or child to […]
Robbie Pickering took home the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at SXSW last night for his grim Southwestern drama Natural Selection. The Jersey Village, Texas native and NYU grad’s debut feature, which tells the story of a sterile Christian housewife sent by her dying husband to find and bring back his illegitimate son from the Florida hinterlands before he dies, also won prizes for the performances of its stars, Rachael Harris and Matt O’Leary, plus its score, writing and editing. Filmmaker caught up with him during the festival to discuss his multiple prize-winning debut. Filmmaker: What inspired […]
There are at least ten narrative films at SXSW this year directed by women — twice as many as last year. At first glance, they share almost nothing in common. There’s a campy ‘50s-inspired vampire romp My Sucky Teenage Romance, by the 18-year-old Emily Hagins, and Small Beautifully Moving Parts by a pair of married adult women co-directors (each married, not to each other), Annie J. Howell and Lisa Robinson, about a pregnant woman so fascinated by electronic gadgets that she can’t begin to face the organic reality of having her baby. Some films feature male protagonists (No Matter […]
Screening Times: Monday March 14th, 6:30pm (State Theatre), Tuesday March 15th, 11:00am (Alamo Lamar A), Friday March 18th, 6:30pm (State Theatre) In the dark comedy American Animal, a delusional, terminally ill young man (director, writer, editor and star Matt D’Elia) spends a long, booze and drugs-fueled night with his soon to be relocating roommate (Brendan Fletcher) as they prepare to take vastly different paths in life and death. Filmmaker: How did you first conceive of the character of Jimmy? Did you always intend to play him yourself? D’Elia: Like American Animal‘s lead character, Jimmy, I was also very ill in […]
Screening Times: Monday March 14th, 1:15pm (State Theatre), Tuesday march 15th, 11:30am (Alamo Lamar C), Friday March 18th, 9:00pm (State Theatre) In Small, Beautifully Moving Parts, after tech-geek obsessive Sarah (Anna Margaret Hollyman) gets pregnant, she sets off for the West Coast for a baby shower that goes all wrong. Thrown into a tailspin, she rents a van and hits the road in search for the source of her innate anxiety, her eccentric and estranged mother, who lives off the grid in the American West. Filmmaker: How did you first conceive of your project? Howell: In 2006, we began making […]