At last night’s 21st annual Gotham Independent Film Awards Mike Mills‘ Beginners and Terrence Malick‘s The Tree of Life split the Best Feature prize, closing a night filled with shocking outcomes that included the films with the most nominations, The Descendants and Martha Marcy May Marlene, getting shut out. Along with the eight awards handed out, see full list of winners below, there were also sightings by some of the most respected talents working today, including Tilda Swinton, Jim Jarmusch, Christopher Plummer and the co-hosts for the night Oliver Platt and Edie Falco. In addition, career tribute awards were handed […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 29, 2011I was very very lucky. First, because I was blissfully unaware that the Gothams would announce the nominations on that day. In fact I was trying to get used to the idea my film — Beginners— had run its course and now it was time to put it to bed, move on, stop worrying about that project. Which isn’t easy. I started this in 2005, I’m used to putting everything I have into it, and the film contains so many people and places and things I truly love (both the real people who inspired the story and the filmmaking family […]
by Mike Mills on Nov 28, 2011When my husband and co-director, Greg, and I were first alerted that our film was one of 29 eligible for the Gotham Audience Award, we were intrigued, but realistic. We knew the chances that our documentary, Wild Horse, Wild Ride, would make the top FIVE were slim. After all, we were up against many wonderful and worthy films and while Wild Horse has earned numerous audience awards at festivals, it has yet to be nationally released. Still, we thought it was a tremendous opportunity, a kick-in-the pants so to speak, that would motivate us to reconnect with our audiences, do […]
by Alexandra Dawson on Nov 28, 2011I was on my way back to the U.S. after spending a week in Belgium for the 2011 Ghent International Film Festival, where my first feature film Girlfriend had screened in the World Cinema section. My week in Ghent was spent seeing many of the great festival films of the year, eating Belgian chocolate, waffles, and enjoying all the different beer varieties the country proudly offers. In the Mariott elevator I met my favorite foreign filmmaker of the moment – Andrei Zvyagintsev, whose new film Elena ended up winning the festival. I knew Ghent was likely going to be our […]
by Justin Lerner on Nov 26, 2011IFP has announced that the21st annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, taking place Monday, November 28th at Cipriani’s Wall Street will be streaming live on their website. Hosted by Oliver Platt and Edie Falco, the show is widely considered to be the first honors of the award’s season. Up for Best Picture this year are Mike Mills’ Beginners, Alexander Payne’s The Descendants, Kelly Reichardt’s Meek’s Cutoff, Jeff Nichols’ Take Shelter, and Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life. Director David Cronenberg, actors Charlize Theron and Gary Oldman, and Fox Filmed Entertainment CEO and Chairman Tom Rothman will receive career tributes. Presenters at […]
by Jane Schoenbrun on Nov 25, 2011Originally published in the Fall 2011 issue. Take Shelter is nominated for Best Feature and Best Ensemble. As I write this introduction the financial press is buzzing about the BBC appearance of a trader, Allesio Rostani, who flatly stated, “I’m dreaming of a global recession.” He says he hopes — and expects — the world economy to crash. If it does, he’ll make a lot of money because he’s short the Euro and various European government bonds. There’s speculation that he’s a member of the political prankster group the Yes Men, not because of the substance of his commentary (there […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 25, 2011Originally published in the Winter 2011 issue. Meek’s Cutoff is nominated for Best Feature. Before you see the first image of Meek’s Cutoff, you hear the film. Simultaneously swelling is the whoosh of rushing water and Jeff Grace’s unnerving, anxious score, which sounds like strings on guitar played backwards. Imagine a rusty fence gate slowly opening. That’s your invitation to the film. Then a title card — hand-stitched on what looks like the potato-sack material used to cover a wagon — announces that we’re in Oregon, and the year: 1845. This happens quickly, in less than 20 seconds, but by […]
by James Ponsoldt on Nov 23, 2011This Monday night the Gotham Independent Film Awards will honor Tom Rothman, chairman and CEO of Fox Filmed Entertainment, with one of their annual Tribute awards. In a career that’s spanned close to three decades, Rotham has been one of the most successful execs of our era. Along with overseeing at Fox some of the biggest blockbusters ever made, he’s also put his mark on today’s specialty films having founded Fox Searchlight in 1994. Let’s go down memory lane and check out some of his highlights. One of Rothman’s earliest credits was as co-producer for Jim Jarmusch‘s classic, Down By […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 23, 2011At the Gotham Awards next Monday night, IFP is honoring actor Gary Oldman with a career tribute. Oldman’s thirty-year acting career has included memorable performances in Alex Cox’s Sid & Nancy, Francis Ford Coppola’s Dracula, Oliver Stone’s JFK, and, more recently, the Batman and Harry Potter franchises. Oldman’s latest is Tailor, Tinker, Soldier Spy, an adaptation of the 1974 British spy novel by John le Carre. In this interview from Lovefilm.com, Oldman discusses working with costars Colin Firth, John Hurt, and Tom Hardy. And check out this clip from the film, in which the head of the British foreign intelligence […]
by Jane Schoenbrun on Nov 22, 2011Originally published in the Fall 2011 issue. David Cronenberg is a Tribute honoree at this year’s Gotham Independent Film Awards. A Dangerous Method opens in theaters Nov. 23. David Cronenberg’s new film A Dangerous Method is a period piece dealing with the personal and historical relationship between Sigmund Freud (Viggo Mortensen), Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender) and Sabina Spielrein (Keira Knightly). It’s a work that in some ways feels out of place in the Canadian filmmaker’s filmography, and in other ways, perfectly Cronenbergian. The screenplay by Christopher Hampton (who also penned a stage play from which this was developed) is meticulously […]
by Peter Bowen on Nov 22, 2011