Gotham Awards
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25 NEW FACES: “GREEN”‘S SOPHIA TAKAL
Originally published in the Summer 2011 issue. Green is nominated for Best Film Not Playing At A Theater Near You. Sophia Takal is engaged to filmmaker Lawrence Michael Levine and their roommate is actress Kate Lyn Sheil. After the three worked on Levine’s debut feature, Gabi on the Roof in July (Takal played the eponymous lead, and Sheil co-starred), Takal decided to make her own movie, which would explore the theme of jealousy. She cast rising star Sheil as an insecure bookstore clerk, Genevieve; Levine as Sebastian, her intellectually patronizing boyfriend; and herself as Robin, the offbeat, emotionally hungry local […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 11, 2011 -
BALANCING ACT: AZAZEL JACOBS’ “TERRI”
Originally published in the Spring 2011 issue. Terri is nominated for Breakthrough Actor. There’s a lot of time to talk when you’re driving a U-Haul from Los Angeles to Portland. And when Azazel Jacobs decided to tag along with his friend, the novelist Patrick deWitt, for the multi-state road trip in 2008, it was only a matter of time between rest stops, refills and a break from traveling to ride ATVs that the topic of deWitt’s latest manuscript would come up. What neither knew then was that deWitt’s story about an overweight high school kid would open new possibilities in […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 10, 2011 -
TWO CLIPS FROM SUNDANCE HIT “PARIAH”
Over at the Shadow and Act blog Tambay Obenson has post two clips from one of the favorites from this past Sundance, Dee Rees‘ Pariah. Opening Dec. 28 through Focus Features, the film highlights the impressive talents — and relentlessness — of its writer-director (who along with being a 25 New Faces alum is nominated for Breakthrough Director at this year’s Gotham Awards) and star Adepero Oduye; as you’ll see in the clips and the trailer below. If you’re a reader of this site you already know a lot about Pariah. One of my favorite pieces on the film is […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 9, 2011 -
“BEING ELMO: A PUPPETEER’S JOURNEY” | director, Constance Marks
Originally posted on Jan. 23, 2011 as part of our annual question we ask directors attending the Sundance Film Festival. Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey is nominated for the Audience Award. [PREMIERE SCREENING: Sunday, Jan. 23, 3:00 pm — Temple Theatre] The most surprising thing I found while making BEING ELMO: A Puppeteer’s Journey was how insanely popular this furry red monster has become. For the past year I’ve carried a bright red Elmo messenger bag. I would get spontaneous feedback every day from almost everyone: old men, teenage girls, postal workers and especially mothers. Hundreds of times I […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Nov 9, 2011 -
OLIVER PLATT & EDIE FALCO NAMED CO-HOSTS OF GOTHAM AWARDS AND AUDIENCE AWARD NOMINEES ANNOUNCED
In a release sent out today, the IFP has announced that actors Oliver Platt and Edie Falco will serve as co-hosts for this year’s Gotham Independent Film Awards, which take place this year on Nov. 28 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City. This is the second straight year two actors known for their work in indie films will be hosting the event. Last year Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson did the honors. Also announced today are the five finalists for this year’s Gotham Independent Film Audience Award. Comprising 29 audience award winners from the top 50 US and […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 9, 2011 -
FIRST LOOK AT CRONENBERG’S “COSMOPOLIS”
It’s not often we can talk about an upcoming David Cronenberg film before his current one is in theaters, but that’s the case with his adaptation of Cosmopolis. Today over at The Playlist they have new photos from the movie which stars Robert Pattinson in the lead. According to The Playlist, “Cosmopolis follows the story of Pattinson’s Eric Packer, a 28-year-old multi-billionaire finance guru…. Set within a 24-hour period, most of the novel takes place in his limousine and we assume the film will do the same. During his day, Packer loses millions of dollars for his clients by telling […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 8, 2011 -
HIGH OCTANE: EVAN GLODELL’S “BELLFLOWER”
Originally published in our Summer 2011 issue, Bellflower is nominated for Breakthrough Director. Here Michael Tully talks to director Evan Glodell about his debut feature and how the exposure at this year’s Sundance has changes his life. From the interview: Did the Sundance selection really help you in concrete ways, like finding representation? Or is that my wishful thinking for your sake since nothing magical has happened in my life? [laughs] It changed everything. We were at our lowest point. We had the movie to a place where we thought it was good, and we had had screenings with friends […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 8, 2011 -
DAVID LOWERY ON STORY STRUCTURE IN “MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE” & “SLEEPING BEAUTY”
Filmmaker David Lowery (Pioneer, St. Nick) has an interesting piece on his blog today comparing the storytelling engines in Sean Durkin’s Martha Marcy May Marlene and Julia Leigh’s Sleeping Beauty. Martha, he argues, deliberately builds tension by withholding key information, while Sleeping Beauty lays everything on the table up front in an attempt to diffuse tension and focus deeper on story, theme, and character. In the article, Lowery also defends Martha against Richard Brody’s recent New Yorker blog post (a response in itself to Anthony Lane’s review of the film) in which Brody argued that the film’s flashback-heavy narrative […]
by Jane Schoenbrun on Nov 7, 2011 -
NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH: STEVE JAMES’ “THE INTERRUPTERS”
Originally published in our Summer 2011 issue, I sat down with Steve James to talk about his latest documentary, The Interrupters. Nominated for Best Documentary for this year’s Gotham Independent Film Awards, this could be the start of a busy award season for the film and its veteran director. From the interview: Though the film touches on some horrible aspects of Chicago, it also has a lot of hope in it. It is kind of a love letter to your city. We wanted the film to be raw, immersive, and uncompromising, but we also didn’t want it to be one […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Nov 7, 2011 -
25 NEW FACES: “WITHOUT”‘S MARK JACKSON
Originally published in our Summer 2011 issue. Without is nominated for Best Film Not Playing At A Theater Near You. Trained as a cinematographer in Italy, Brooklyn-based Mark Jackson says he doesn’t watch many movies. “My grandfather is the reason I make films. He introduced me to the magic of observation and that’s where the vast majority of my inspiration comes from. People watching, followed by embellishment,” says Jackson, whose feature debut Without is currently making the festival rounds. “The other bits come from reading the news.” Comprised of shots that make you feel as if you’re glimpsing the most […]
by Brandon Harris on Nov 4, 2011
