Shortcomings
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Hits & Misses: How Six Sundance 2023 Titles Performed in Distribution
After nearly flatlining during the pandemic years, American independent film saw some signs of life in 2023. While optimists might call it a year of transition as the industry looks for new audiences and a new equilibrium, cynics see an unsustainable and contracting arthouse marketplace, with most producers and distributors increasingly unable to recoup. But, if you look at the fates of last year’s Sundance titles, it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. For all the doom and gloom about the acquisitions market (“No one is buying films!”), 10 out of 12 films in this year’s Dramatic Competition […]
by Anthony Kaufman on Dec 15, 2023 -
“Funnier Is Almost Always Better in My Book”: Editor Robert Nassau on Shortcomings
Ben (Justin H. Min) is a movie theater manager and struggling filmmaker whose life is thrown into tumult when his best friend Alice (Sherry Cola) relocates to New York City for an internship. Adapted from Adrian Tomine’s graphic novel of the same name, actor Randall Park makes his directorial debut with Shortcomings, a film about the complexity of Asian-American identity. Editor Robert Nassau talks about his love of Tomine’s original graphic novel, the religious childhood experience of watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind and how each project he works on teaches him something new. See all responses to our […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 27, 2023 -
“Everyone on Set Cheered When We Did Playback”: DP Santiago Gonzalez on Shortcomings
Ben (Justin H. Min) is the manager of a local movie theater in Berkeley, California and an aspiring filmmaker. Despite living with his girlfriend Miko (Ally Maki), he spends most of his free time obsessing over unattainable blond bombshells, watching an endless stream Criterion DVDs and hanging out with his queer best friend Alice (Sherry Cola). When she decides to move to New York to pursue an internship, Ben experiences a personal crisis. Based on Adrian Tomine’s graphic novel of the same name (who also penned the film’s script), Shortcomings serves as actor Randall Park’s directorial debut. DP Santiago Gonzalez […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 27, 2023
