An operatic look at the largely forgotten life and times of Benito Mussolini’s first wife Ida Dalser (Giovanna Mezzogiorno), veteran Italian helmer Marco Bellocchio’s Vincere is a tragedy on scales both intimate and national. Il Duce’s transformation from a anti-war journalist to socialist rebel rouser to brutal fascist dictator is glimpsed through the lens of his misbegotten first marriage to Dalser, a beautiful and politically conscious Milano hair dresser who, enraptured by his charms and ideals, sells off her business and belongings to fund his early publishing efforts. However, in the wake of their marriage and the birth of their […]
by Brandon Harris on Mar 17, 2010The winners of the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas were announced tonight. Here is a complete list of the awards: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE – Marwencol (Director: Jeff Malmberg) Runner-up: War Don Don (Director: Rebecca Richman Cohen) NARRATIVE FEATURE – Tiny Furniture (Director: Lena Dunham) Special Jury Award – Best Ensemble: Myth of the American Sleepover (Director: David Robert Mitchell) SPECIAL JURY AWARD – Best Individual Performance: Brian Hasenfus in Phillip the Fossil (Director: Garth Donovan) Feature Film Audience Awards DOCUMENTARY FEATURE – For Once in My Life (Directors: Jim Bigham & Mark Moormann) NARRATIVE FEATURE – Brotherhood (Director: Will Canon) […]
by Scott Macaulay on Mar 16, 2010Hangin’ at the Austin Chronicle party at Lazona Rosa last night, everyone was in fine spirits: …tall person Zachery Levy, a panelist this year whose Strongman played the festival last year, towering over short person Ben Kasulke, DP of Humpday, The Freebie, Nights and Weekends and more… … A New York minute: Greencard Pictures’ Nick Kadner, here supporting IFC TV’S Food Party, Olivia Thirlby of Juno fame, David Call of Tiny Furniture, and Catfish director Henry Joost… …Gabriele Caroti of Bam Cinematek, who is approaching his deadline to lock the program for BAM Cinemafest, enjoying the rainy evening with Jim […]
by Alicia Van Couvering on Mar 16, 2010The 2010 Tribeca Film Festival today announced its remaining out-of-competition feature film selections in the Encounters, Discovery, Cinemania and Spotlight sections. The Festival will run April 21 to May 2. The Encounters section, comprised of 14 films, include selections include new works by Academy Award-winning filmmakers Alex Gibney and Chuck Workman, Academy Award nominee Dana Adam Shapiro, and featuring actors like Ellen Barkin, Liev Schreiber, Melissa Leo, Rashida Jones, Tilda Swinton, and many more. The Discovery section include documentaries showcasing everything from the North Pole and Congressional redistricting to a comedy tour of the Middle East. Its narrative films feature […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Mar 15, 2010Cameron and I went to pick up Jeanette Maier (the subject of our documentary, and the former high end madam of New Orleans) from the airport in our “Madam-mobile” which is what we’re now calling the 8 passenger van that we ended up renting when we got to town. It’s all they had left, because there are so many folks in town for SXSW and of course everyone had already booked the more subtle smaller cars. While we were waiting, the airport cop grilled us about what we were doing there, because apparently last year there were unmarked vans trying […]
by Scott Macaulay on Mar 15, 2010What’s it like to get out of jail and try to rebuild your life when that life was running a hugely successful brothel in the middle of New Orleans and the Lifetime movie of your experience is about to air? Cameron Yates’ new documentary, The Canal Street Madam, asks that question of Jeanette Maier and generates even more questions than answers. Was Maier a dangerous criminal, transporting women across state lines for the purposes of her own profit and their vicitimization as sex workers, or was she herself the victim of a hypocritical system that convicted and exposed her but […]
by Alicia Van Couvering on Mar 15, 2010So here we are at SXSW for the world premiere of a documentary I produced, The Canal Street Madam. My badge, accordingly, identifies me as Mridu Chandra, “The Canal Street Madam.” I can’t say that we thought of that when we named the film, but it’s definitely my favorite film festival badge so far! We landed in Austin Friday afternoon with what seemed like enough time to rent our car, ditch our winter coats, and get to the Filmmaker Lunch at Troublemaker studios. We drove up to the studio to find that the weren’t letting more people in, because it […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Mar 14, 2010Swinging in to SXSW This is my first SXSW, which feels odd for me as I’ve worked as a producer in digital media & film for more than a decade, but shoots & life got in the way of coming before. But this year I’ve got a great reason to be here – I’m one of the producers of the innovative feature documentary The People Vs. George Lucas, here with director Alexandre O. Philippe, fellow prods Kerry Roy & Vanessa Philippe and DOP Robert Muratore. I’m based in the UK, so it was a long flight over here, and I […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Mar 13, 2010My Arrival. Well, I made it. I’m in Austin for SXSW 2010 to premiere my documentary film, The Weird World of Blowfly. About 2-1/2 years of shooting and editing, endless phone calls, countless emails, and probably 50,000 airline miles to get to this moment. Probably there’s still more work to do on the film — I can already tell you half a dozen places where I want to tweak the color or adjust the mix — but I made it and I’m ready to introduce the film to the world. It’s a coming out party for 93 minutes of HD […]
by Scott Macaulay on Mar 13, 2010The IFP have announced they have teamed up with fellow organizations Shooting People and New York Women in Film & Television to lead the first-ever U.S. delegation to Hot Docs. The members of these organizations will get to attend the Toronto Documentary Forum, International Co-Production Day, and be featured in the Digital Doc Shop market. In addition, the delegation will receive other perks: access to all 255 screenings, Digital Doc Shop screenings, and all Hot Docs discussions, including the Kickstart panels, Hot Docs Talks, CoffeeTalks, and Micro Meanings. There will be over 1,900 documentary professionals from around the world, over […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Mar 12, 2010