Filmmaker Joe Swanberg clobbered Badass Digest critic Devin Faraci — in the ring, that is. I’ll leave it up to you to decide who scored more rhetorical points in their on-stage debate at Fantastic Fest. But after the verbal duel, the two climbed in the ring — literally — for a boxing match of which Swanberg emerged the victor. Indeed, Faraci’s haymakers were no match for Swanberg’s driving jabs. Matt Singer at Indiewire has the full transcript of the talk. An excerpt is below, as is a video of the fight. Devin Faraci: Joe, I want to thank you for […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 23, 2012Right now on Kentucker Audley’s No Budge website, it’s Frank V. Ross week. If that name elicits a blank response, it’s not an uncommon reaction. Though Chicago-based Ross is one of the original class of mumblecore directors, he never received the attention that was given to so many of his DIY peers, such as Andrew Bujalski, the Duplass brothers or Joe Swanberg (a fellow Chicagoan with whom Ross has collaborated numerous times). Nevertheless, his recent films Present Company (2008) and Audrey the Trainwreck (2010) have gained him a number of champions within the indie community, and those two films have […]
by Nick Dawson on Jul 11, 2012The Maryland Film Festival, which wrapped its 2012 edition on Sunday, is one of the East Coast’s most intimate and engaging film events. With 40 features, over 70 shorts and an amazingly healthy contingent of loyal filmmakers annually making the trip to Baltimore, Maryland functions as both a discovery festival and friendly pit stop for directors on the independent circuit. John Waters hosts a movie — this year Barbara Loden’s seminal and still influential Wanda — and takes the audience out partying afterwards; the Opening Night consists of shorts, not some star-bloated, sub-standard mini-major feature; and, for the second year […]
by Scott Macaulay on May 11, 2012While director Joe Swanberg is in the midst of issuing his one-year, four-film DVD subscription series through Factory 25, he has uploaded a new film, Marriage Material, to Vimeo, where it can viewed free until the end of the month. From the Vimeo page a description of the film: Emily and Andrew, a young couple living in Memphis, agree to babysit their friend’s 6-month-old for a day. The experience causes them to examine their own relationship and their feelings about marriage and children. Marriage Material is shot by Adam Wingard, whose You’re Next opens later this year from LionsGate. It […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jan 16, 2012The world doesn’t need another list of the best films of the year, but after considering my own recent lists, I realized there were a handful of movies‹excellent independent work that has largely flown under the radar‹that even I initially overlooked. Here are seven bold American low-budget movies from 2011 that may have been forgotten in theatrical release, but should make for essential home viewing (if you haven’t seen them yet) in 2012. And I’ll be among the first in line to see where these young directors go next. 1. Silver Bullets. All I can say is that I […]
by Anthony Kaufman on Jan 2, 2012Continuing an extraordinarily prolific phase that has also encompassed his year-long subscription service, Joe Swanberg premieres his latest film, Caitlin Plays Herself, tonight at Brooklyn’s reRun theater. His new star is Caitlin Stainken, a member of the Neo-Futurists Theater Ensemble. Here’s the description and a clip. Making its North American debut, CAITLIN PLAYS HERSELF is the last in a trio of provocative, self-reflexive new dramas premiering at reRun this season from acclaimed auteur Joe Swanberg (SILVER BULLETS, ART HISTORY). Inspired by Eric Rohmer’s THE GREEN RAY and the life of lead actress Caitlin Stainken (a member of the “Neo-Futurists” experimental […]
by Scott Macaulay on Dec 2, 2011Prolific independent director Joe Swanberg announced today a new distribution plan for his next four films. Partnered with Factory 25, Swanberg is offering fans a four-film, one-year subscription to his work. For $99.95 subscribers will receive a box that will fill up each quarter with not only DVDs but also bonus material, including 45rpm records, photo books and posters. “I’m in the nice position right now of having so many [completed] films I’m trying to get out into the world, so I’m taking the plunge and doing something interesting,” says Swanberg.The four films are Silver Bullets and Art History (both […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 20, 2011With his features Home Sick, Pop Skull and A Horrible Way to Die, Adam Wingard is carving out a reputation as one of the most imaginative and visually sophisticated directors working in modern horror. His films are mindful of genre conventions, finding ways to subvert them through unexpected characterizations that have real psychological depth. His latest movie reinvents the home invasion thriller. We spoke to Wingard about blood, style and directing other directors. Filmmaker: Your previous film, A Horrible Way to Die, tweaked the serial killer genre by setting it within the world of addiction and recovery, and exploring those […]
by Scott Macaulay on Sep 10, 2011In recent months, Joe Swanberg has been making movies. A lot of movies. I don’t know how many, but I think his unreleased films could outnumber other filmmakers’ back catalogs. And, I think he’s thinking of interesting new ways to get them out. Hopefully there will be more news on that front soon, but in the meantime, here, via Indiewire, is the trailer (NSFW, by the way) for Autoerotic, his latest film premiering via IFC Midnight. The ensemble cast features the talented Kate Lyn Sheil (Green), and the film is co-directed by Adam Wingard. According to IFC Midnight: Autoerotic follows […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 12, 2011Screening Times: Saturday March 12th, 5:30pm (Alamo Lamar C), Tuesday March 15th, 12:00pm (Alamo Ritz 1), Friday March 18th, 7:00pm (Alamo Lamar C) A couple of young, New York sophisticates travel upstate in order to research a book on sustainable farming, but when a working-class local woman becomes the object of their affection, jealousy and sexual gamesmanship threaten to ruin there relationship. Green, a new film from the team behind the recently opened Gabi on a Roof in July, marks the directorial debut of that film’s producer, editor and star, Sophia Takal. Filmmaker: You and many of your collaborators worked […]
by Brandon Harris on Mar 12, 2011