Life comes for us all, even slacker filmmakers. Michigan-based indie stalwart Joel Potrykus has always explored loneliness in his work, but his latest, “Vulcanizadora,” plumbs a particular middle-aged variant. This is the alienation of divorced dads becoming estranged from their kids; the existential hell of knowing that you’ve made mistakes and that there’s nothing you can do to change them. In some ways, this is Potrykus’ version of “No Exit.”
To underline the passage of time, “Vulcanizadora” revives the characters Potrykus and his muse Joshua Burge played in 2014’s “Buzzard.” Ten years later, Marty Jackitansky (Burge) and Derek Skiba (Potrykus) are the same overgrown adolescents they once were, even as their circumstances have changed. Sometime in the past decade, Derek got married, had a kid, and then got divorced. Meanwhile, Marty’s petty crimes have escalated, with consequences that are harder to escape than those of his check-fraud scheme in “Buzzard.
To underline the passage of time, “Vulcanizadora” revives the characters Potrykus and his muse Joshua Burge played in 2014’s “Buzzard.” Ten years later, Marty Jackitansky (Burge) and Derek Skiba (Potrykus) are the same overgrown adolescents they once were, even as their circumstances have changed. Sometime in the past decade, Derek got married, had a kid, and then got divorced. Meanwhile, Marty’s petty crimes have escalated, with consequences that are harder to escape than those of his check-fraud scheme in “Buzzard.
- 6/9/2024
- by Katie Rife
- Indiewire
Vulcanizadora, the latest film from Grand Rapids-based guerilla filmmaker Joel Potrykus, is predicated on a conceit that’s faithful to his overarching artistic interests. Two volatile buddies (Potrykus muse Joshua Burge and Potrykus himself) embark on an extended hike to a remote beach, where they plan to execute a plan fit for a Faces of Deathsequel. While the complicated lives they’ve seemingly fled—a pending jail sentence and the crushing weight of having lost child custody—suggest warranted comeuppance, the men nevertheless retreat into childishness. They set off snake fireworks, gorge themselves on convenience […]
The post “We Had a Real Permit For Once in Our Lives”: Joel Potrykus on His Tribeca-Premiering Vulcanizadora first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “We Had a Real Permit For Once in Our Lives”: Joel Potrykus on His Tribeca-Premiering Vulcanizadora first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/8/2024
- by Natalia Keogan
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Vulcanizadora, the latest film from Grand Rapids-based guerilla filmmaker Joel Potrykus, is predicated on a conceit that’s faithful to his overarching artistic interests. Two volatile buddies (Potrykus muse Joshua Burge and Potrykus himself) embark on an extended hike to a remote beach, where they plan to execute a plan fit for a Faces of Deathsequel. While the complicated lives they’ve seemingly fled—a pending jail sentence and the crushing weight of having lost child custody—suggest warranted comeuppance, the men nevertheless retreat into childishness. They set off snake fireworks, gorge themselves on convenience […]
The post “We Had a Real Permit For Once in Our Lives”: Joel Potrykus on His Tribeca-Premiering Vulcanizadora first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “We Had a Real Permit For Once in Our Lives”: Joel Potrykus on His Tribeca-Premiering Vulcanizadora first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/8/2024
- by Natalia Keogan
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Strap in, folks, there's a new Joel Potrykus film premiering. Potrykus is the indie filmmaker behind such peculiar, unsettling cult classics as Ape, Buzzard, and The Alchemist Cookbook. This is his latest feature, the first since Relaxer in 2018. The original logline for Vulcanizadora is intriguing though fairly vague: "Two friends take a trip through a Michigan forest, intent on carrying out a disturbing pact. When their plan fails, one confronts unsettling repercussions at home." Starring Joel Potrykus, Joshua Burge, Bill Vincent, and Solo Potrykus. It's premiering at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival this month, still seeking distribution. The festival adds: "the film expertly navigates multiple tones, striking a balance between the bizarre and the emotionally resonant." Hmmmm... There's not much to this teaser either, barely any footage, only another close-up look at this strange metal contraption going on this guy's head. What is it? Who wants to find out? // Continue Reading...
- 6/4/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Beloved indie filmmaker Joel Potrykus is back onscreen in a multi-hyphenate array of roles for his latest feature, “Vulcanizadora.”
Billed as a dark comedy, “Vulcanizadora” follows two friends, played by Potrykus and Joshua Burge, who embark on a disturbing mission in the Michigan woods to fulfill a disturbing pact. After they fail, one of them must return home to deal with the surreal legal and emotional repercussions after the plan ultimately unravels. Bill Vincent and Solo Potrykus co-star.
“Relaxer” filmmaker Joel Potrykus writes, directs, edits, and leads the feature, which is produced by Hannah Dweck, Matt Grady, Ashley Potrykus, and Theodore Schaefer, with Daniel Berger as an associate producer and Kevin Clancy co-producing. The film is shot in 16mm.
“To me, ‘Vulcanizadora’ is my most personal and my bleakest work,” Potrykus told IndieWire. “It has a weird tone that I’ve been trying to hit for a long time. It...
Billed as a dark comedy, “Vulcanizadora” follows two friends, played by Potrykus and Joshua Burge, who embark on a disturbing mission in the Michigan woods to fulfill a disturbing pact. After they fail, one of them must return home to deal with the surreal legal and emotional repercussions after the plan ultimately unravels. Bill Vincent and Solo Potrykus co-star.
“Relaxer” filmmaker Joel Potrykus writes, directs, edits, and leads the feature, which is produced by Hannah Dweck, Matt Grady, Ashley Potrykus, and Theodore Schaefer, with Daniel Berger as an associate producer and Kevin Clancy co-producing. The film is shot in 16mm.
“To me, ‘Vulcanizadora’ is my most personal and my bleakest work,” Potrykus told IndieWire. “It has a weird tone that I’ve been trying to hit for a long time. It...
- 6/4/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
The Tribeca Film Festival 2024, presented by Okx, today announced its full lineup of feature narrative, documentary, and animated films. This year’s Festival, which takes place June 5-16 in New York City showcases the best emerging talent from across the globe alongside established names.
Of particular note to horror fans, Tribeca Midnight is the “surprising, shocking, frightening, and thrilling” destination for the best in horror and more for late night audiences. Look for buzzy titles like The Devil’s Bath, from filmmakers Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala. But the horror extends beyond the Midnight section, including the premiere of Amfad: All My Friends Are Dead.
Read on for the genre titles scheduled to premiere at Tribeca:
Spotlight Narrative
A launching pad for the most buzzworthy new films, Tribeca’s Spotlight section brings audiences anticipated premieres from acclaimed filmmakers and star performers.
The Damned, – World Premiere. When a ship sinks near her isolated fishing post,...
Of particular note to horror fans, Tribeca Midnight is the “surprising, shocking, frightening, and thrilling” destination for the best in horror and more for late night audiences. Look for buzzy titles like The Devil’s Bath, from filmmakers Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala. But the horror extends beyond the Midnight section, including the premiere of Amfad: All My Friends Are Dead.
Read on for the genre titles scheduled to premiere at Tribeca:
Spotlight Narrative
A launching pad for the most buzzworthy new films, Tribeca’s Spotlight section brings audiences anticipated premieres from acclaimed filmmakers and star performers.
The Damned, – World Premiere. When a ship sinks near her isolated fishing post,...
- 4/17/2024
- by Meagan Navarro
- bloody-disgusting.com
Neon has released an official trailer for Pamela Adlon‘s directorial debut “Babes,” a comedy starring Ilana Glazer and Michelle Buteau.
“Babes” follows childhood best friends Eden (Glazer) and Dawn (Buteau) as Eden becomes pregnant after a one night stand and leans on Dawn to guide her through her pregnancy and beyond. While Dawn navigates motherhood and raising her second child with her husband (Hasan Minaj), she and Eden explore their vastly different adulthoods with one another.
Glazer, the co-creator and star of Comedy Central’s sitcom “Broad City,” co-wrote the screenplay with Josh Rabinowitz. She also produced the movie. The film, which premiered at the SXSW Film Festival last month, is set to release on May 17.
Watch the trailer below.
Black Comedy Thriller ‘Anywhere’ Begins Production in Oklahoma
Adam Seidel’s upcoming black comedy thriller “Anywhere” has commenced production in Oklahoma.
The film’s description reads, “A lonesome roughneck...
“Babes” follows childhood best friends Eden (Glazer) and Dawn (Buteau) as Eden becomes pregnant after a one night stand and leans on Dawn to guide her through her pregnancy and beyond. While Dawn navigates motherhood and raising her second child with her husband (Hasan Minaj), she and Eden explore their vastly different adulthoods with one another.
Glazer, the co-creator and star of Comedy Central’s sitcom “Broad City,” co-wrote the screenplay with Josh Rabinowitz. She also produced the movie. The film, which premiered at the SXSW Film Festival last month, is set to release on May 17.
Watch the trailer below.
Black Comedy Thriller ‘Anywhere’ Begins Production in Oklahoma
Adam Seidel’s upcoming black comedy thriller “Anywhere” has commenced production in Oklahoma.
The film’s description reads, “A lonesome roughneck...
- 4/4/2024
- by Jazz Tangcay, Angelique Jackson, Jack Dunn, Selena Kuznikov and Jaden Thompson
- Variety Film + TV
A filmmaker synonymous with American indie film but hasn’t been picked by Sundance in his first four features in Ape (2012), Buzzard (2014), The Alchemist Cookbook (2016) and Relaxer (2018), perhaps the narrative will change with his fifth feature which moved into production this past summer in Michigan. Joel Potrykus‘ Vulcanizadora sees his muse Joshua Burge for what is naturally a dark comedy.
Gist: This is described as a mind bending ride of comedy, suspense and utter devastation.
Production Co./Producers: Ashley Potrykus, Dan Berger, Dweck Productions’ Hannah Dweck, Factory 25’s Matt Grady.
Prediction: Next.
Sales: Factory 25.…...
Gist: This is described as a mind bending ride of comedy, suspense and utter devastation.
Production Co./Producers: Ashley Potrykus, Dan Berger, Dweck Productions’ Hannah Dweck, Factory 25’s Matt Grady.
Prediction: Next.
Sales: Factory 25.…...
- 11/17/2023
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
If you are familiar with the anarchically grungy films of Joel Potrykus, then you’ve certainly seen the talents of Joshua Burge. His latest lead performance is in Alex Andre’s feature directorial debut Pratfall, in which Burge plays Eli, a troubled insomniac who encounters Joelle (Chloé Groussard), an enigmatic French tourist in Central Park. The two set off on a sleepless New York adventure as the city casts a shadow over them. Ahead of a world premiere at Brooklyn Film Festival 2023 this Saturday, June 3 featuring a Q&a, we’re pleased to exclusively premiere the first trailer.
Here’s an expanded synopsis: “Pratfall centers around Eli, a deeply troubled New Yorker grappling with devastating loss. Reeling from the death of his mother and girlfriend Tina, who tragically succumbed to a drug addiction fueled by the city’s underworld, Eli suffers from insomnia. His life becomes an unending cycle of sleepless nights,...
Here’s an expanded synopsis: “Pratfall centers around Eli, a deeply troubled New Yorker grappling with devastating loss. Reeling from the death of his mother and girlfriend Tina, who tragically succumbed to a drug addiction fueled by the city’s underworld, Eli suffers from insomnia. His life becomes an unending cycle of sleepless nights,...
- 5/31/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Dweck Productions has joined Joel Potrykus’ upcoming dark comedy feature “Vulcanizadora” which will star Joshua Burge.
“Vulcanizadora” will be written and directed by Potrykus, marking his fifth feature and fourth collaboration with Burge following “Ape,” “Buzzard” and “Relaxer.” Plot details for the feature have been kept under wraps with production commencing this summer in Michigan. Dweck joins the project as both producer and financier.
“‘Vulcanizadora’ is a mind bending ride of comedy, suspense and utter devastation, and we are thrilled to be producing the bold and daring fifth feature of the great Joel Potrykus,” said Dweck founder Hannah Dweck. “This is the exact type of boundary pushing, genre bending film we love to help bring to the screen. We can’t wait to watch this with an audience.”
Matt Grady, founder of independent film production and distribution company Factory 25, will produce “Vulcanizadora” alongside Ashley Potrykus and Dan Berger.
“I...
“Vulcanizadora” will be written and directed by Potrykus, marking his fifth feature and fourth collaboration with Burge following “Ape,” “Buzzard” and “Relaxer.” Plot details for the feature have been kept under wraps with production commencing this summer in Michigan. Dweck joins the project as both producer and financier.
“‘Vulcanizadora’ is a mind bending ride of comedy, suspense and utter devastation, and we are thrilled to be producing the bold and daring fifth feature of the great Joel Potrykus,” said Dweck founder Hannah Dweck. “This is the exact type of boundary pushing, genre bending film we love to help bring to the screen. We can’t wait to watch this with an audience.”
Matt Grady, founder of independent film production and distribution company Factory 25, will produce “Vulcanizadora” alongside Ashley Potrykus and Dan Berger.
“I...
- 5/22/2023
- by McKinley Franklin
- Variety Film + TV
Stars: Camille Rowe, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Antonia Zegers, Joshua Burge, Phil Granger | Written and Directed by Jefferson Moneo
After witnessing an alien abduction as a child (and subsequently being told she’s crazy for most of her life) Aurora, now a young woman, joins the UFO cult The Cosmic Dawn after discovering a book written by the group’s leader, Elyse. Aurora’s time at the cult’s remote island compound is marked by miraculous revelations, consciousness-expanding flowers, and a burgeoning friendship with Tom, the resident cook. When a fellow cult member starts to display increasingly bizarre behaviour, Aurora begins to question Elyse’s sanity (and her own) and starts looking for a way out.
Years later, after the dissolution of the cult, Aurora has moved on with her life. She leads a quiet and seemingly normal life. But when Elyse resurfaces in a mysterious video, Aurora is forced to confront her past.
After witnessing an alien abduction as a child (and subsequently being told she’s crazy for most of her life) Aurora, now a young woman, joins the UFO cult The Cosmic Dawn after discovering a book written by the group’s leader, Elyse. Aurora’s time at the cult’s remote island compound is marked by miraculous revelations, consciousness-expanding flowers, and a burgeoning friendship with Tom, the resident cook. When a fellow cult member starts to display increasingly bizarre behaviour, Aurora begins to question Elyse’s sanity (and her own) and starts looking for a way out.
Years later, after the dissolution of the cult, Aurora has moved on with her life. She leads a quiet and seemingly normal life. But when Elyse resurfaces in a mysterious video, Aurora is forced to confront her past.
- 3/7/2022
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
Born over 125 years ago, the legacy of Buster Keaton endures in everything from Jackass to Jackie Chan. The subject of a lauded new book by Dana Stevens has further renewed interest in the Hollywood icon and now a newly-announced biopic will capture the life of the star.
James Mangold, currently wrapping up production on Indiana Jones 5, will direct and produce the 20th Century Studios film, which will be based on Marion Meade’s 1995 book Buster Keaton: Cut to the Chase, Deadline reports. Check out the synopsis of the book below via Amazon.
Buster Keaton (1895–1966) was a brilliant comedian and filmmaker who conceived, wrote, directed, acted, and even edited most of his ten feature films and nineteen short comedies, which are perhaps the finest silent pictures ever made. With a face of stone and a mind that engineered breathtakingly intricate moments of slapstick, Keaton has become an icon of the American cinema.
James Mangold, currently wrapping up production on Indiana Jones 5, will direct and produce the 20th Century Studios film, which will be based on Marion Meade’s 1995 book Buster Keaton: Cut to the Chase, Deadline reports. Check out the synopsis of the book below via Amazon.
Buster Keaton (1895–1966) was a brilliant comedian and filmmaker who conceived, wrote, directed, acted, and even edited most of his ten feature films and nineteen short comedies, which are perhaps the finest silent pictures ever made. With a face of stone and a mind that engineered breathtakingly intricate moments of slapstick, Keaton has become an icon of the American cinema.
- 2/23/2022
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Exclusive: Clay Epstein’s Film Mode Entertainment (Fme) has bolstered its slate for the virtual European Film Market (EFM) with several fresh titles.
The company will present three features to international buyers for the first time on behalf of Screen Media, a Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment Company, including the newly-acquired comedy Dear Elizabeth.
The pic is directed by Scott Abramovitch and stars Tony Hale and Elisha Cuthbert. It follows a man who leads a dull life until he accidentally stalks an old college classmate, actress Elizabeth Banks, on social media. With each failed attempt to prove he knows her, he rediscovers more of himself and the true meaning of friendship.
The project was produced by Scott Abramovitch and David J. Phillips, and executive produced by Daniel Norris Webb, Tony Hale, Jamie Abramovitch, Andrew Kurzon, Salamo Levin and Tony Manolikakis.
Also screening at the EFM as part of the...
The company will present three features to international buyers for the first time on behalf of Screen Media, a Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment Company, including the newly-acquired comedy Dear Elizabeth.
The pic is directed by Scott Abramovitch and stars Tony Hale and Elisha Cuthbert. It follows a man who leads a dull life until he accidentally stalks an old college classmate, actress Elizabeth Banks, on social media. With each failed attempt to prove he knows her, he rediscovers more of himself and the true meaning of friendship.
The project was produced by Scott Abramovitch and David J. Phillips, and executive produced by Daniel Norris Webb, Tony Hale, Jamie Abramovitch, Andrew Kurzon, Salamo Levin and Tony Manolikakis.
Also screening at the EFM as part of the...
- 2/9/2022
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
"They are waiting for you." Cranked Up Films has revealed an official trailer for Cosmic Dawn, an indie sci-fi mystery thriller from Canadian filmmaker Jefferson Moneo. This one is landing in theaters + on VOD starting in February early next year. After witnessing the alien abduction of her mother as a child, Aurora joins the UFO cult "The Cosmic Dawn". Now moved on from the cult, Aurora is forced to confront her past and pursue the ultimate truth about The Cosmic Dawn. Does Elyse really have access to another dimension? Or do her prophesies truly point to mass suicide amongst the surviving cult members? I'm sure we all know there's going to be a sort of ambiguous hint that maybe they were really on to something, right? That crazy shot of her crawling into the woman's chest. This stars Camille Rowe, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Antonia Zegers, Joshua Burge, and Phil Granger. The...
- 11/19/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
A man in a psychiatric ward believes he might be the President of the United States in the trailer for The Current Occupant, this year's July installment of Blumhouse and Hulu's horror anthology series Into the Dark.
Directed by Julius Ramsay from a screenplay by Alston Ramsay (a former political speechwriter in Washington D.C.), Into the Dark: The Current Occupant stars Barry Watson ("The Loudest Voice"), Sonita Henry ("Krypton"), Marvin 'Krondon' Jones III ("Black Lightning"), Lilli Birdsell ("Doom Patrol"), Kate Cobb ("Scandal"), Ezra Buzzington ("Crossbones") and Joshua Burge ("The Revenant").
You can check out the new trailer below, and keep an eye out for The Current Occupant when it's released on Hulu beginning Friday, July 17th.
Synopsis: "Trapped in a mysterious psychiatric ward, a man with no memory comes to believe that he's the President of the United States and the subject of a diabolical political conspiracy. As...
Directed by Julius Ramsay from a screenplay by Alston Ramsay (a former political speechwriter in Washington D.C.), Into the Dark: The Current Occupant stars Barry Watson ("The Loudest Voice"), Sonita Henry ("Krypton"), Marvin 'Krondon' Jones III ("Black Lightning"), Lilli Birdsell ("Doom Patrol"), Kate Cobb ("Scandal"), Ezra Buzzington ("Crossbones") and Joshua Burge ("The Revenant").
You can check out the new trailer below, and keep an eye out for The Current Occupant when it's released on Hulu beginning Friday, July 17th.
Synopsis: "Trapped in a mysterious psychiatric ward, a man with no memory comes to believe that he's the President of the United States and the subject of a diabolical political conspiracy. As...
- 7/2/2020
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Exclusive: Hulu’s Into The Dark has set the cast for its upcoming Independence Day-themed installment and has persevered through Covid-19 to finish the July episode of the Blumhouse horror anthology.
Barry Watson (The Loudest Voice), Sonita Henry (Krypton), Marvin ‘Krondon’ Jones III (Black Lightning), Lilli Birdsell (Doom Patrol), Kate Cobb (Scandal), Ezra Buzzington (Crossbones) and Joshua Burge (The Revenant) star in the episode, which airs on July 17 on the streamer.
The episode, which is written by speechwriter-turned-screenwriter Alston Ramsay and directed by Julius Ramsay, who has helmed episodes of The Walking Dead and The Purge, is titled The Current Occupant.
Trapped in a mysterious psychiatric ward, the episode follows a man with no memory comes to believe that he’s the President of the United States and the subject of a diabolical political conspiracy. As the asylum’s soul-crushing forces bear down on him, he fights to preserve...
Barry Watson (The Loudest Voice), Sonita Henry (Krypton), Marvin ‘Krondon’ Jones III (Black Lightning), Lilli Birdsell (Doom Patrol), Kate Cobb (Scandal), Ezra Buzzington (Crossbones) and Joshua Burge (The Revenant) star in the episode, which airs on July 17 on the streamer.
The episode, which is written by speechwriter-turned-screenwriter Alston Ramsay and directed by Julius Ramsay, who has helmed episodes of The Walking Dead and The Purge, is titled The Current Occupant.
Trapped in a mysterious psychiatric ward, the episode follows a man with no memory comes to believe that he’s the President of the United States and the subject of a diabolical political conspiracy. As the asylum’s soul-crushing forces bear down on him, he fights to preserve...
- 5/13/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Our year-end coverage continues with a look at the best performances of the year. Rather than divide categories into supporting or lead, we’ve written about our thirty favorite performances from 2019, period. Check out our countdown below and start watching the ones you’ve missed here.
30. Masahiro Higashide (Asako I & II)
Japanese director Ryūsuke Hamaguchi followed up his five-hour drama Happy Hour with Asako I & II, an endlessly imaginative and playful riff on Vertigo as well as an adaptation of Tomoka Shibasak’s 2010 novel. Setting our perspective with Erika Karata as Asako Izumiya–a woman who gets entangled with a man who looks the same in two different periods of her life–the actress is excellent in the lead role. However, it’s Masahiro Higashide as the men in question, playing both Ryohei Maruko and Baku Torii, that vibes perfectly with the mysterious, enigmatic vibe the director is exploring here.
30. Masahiro Higashide (Asako I & II)
Japanese director Ryūsuke Hamaguchi followed up his five-hour drama Happy Hour with Asako I & II, an endlessly imaginative and playful riff on Vertigo as well as an adaptation of Tomoka Shibasak’s 2010 novel. Setting our perspective with Erika Karata as Asako Izumiya–a woman who gets entangled with a man who looks the same in two different periods of her life–the actress is excellent in the lead role. However, it’s Masahiro Higashide as the men in question, playing both Ryohei Maruko and Baku Torii, that vibes perfectly with the mysterious, enigmatic vibe the director is exploring here.
- 12/18/2019
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
RelaxerThere is no clear, direct film comparison to provide for Joel Potrykus’s Relaxer. It can feel like a blender of one director’s proclivities and tastes. That speaks well for Potrykus’s imagination, one who alchemizes and is inspired by polar opposite film sensibilities, as there are times Relaxer looks and goes in directions uncharted by current American independent cinema. In its play-like staging, gross-out humor, and signifiers of the end of the century that tease an alternative reality, Relaxer is a gnarly, minimalist tour de force, Sartre’s No Exit for the Y2K period slacker. Slackerdom is hardly the new exploration in American indies. Richard Linklater built his career on such character types. His slackers, however, carried an air of pretension to occupy themselves, like reading the classics or deep-diving into conspiracy theories. Even with Linklater’s Rohmerian style of centering philosophical conversations, his works had an...
- 4/17/2019
- MUBI
When it comes to indie filmmaking, few directors get as much mileage out of their limited budget than Joel Potrykus. Rooted in an often humorous, dark perspective, his work puts character first and his latest film, Relaxer, is perhaps the most ideal example of his inventive eye. Arriving in theaters in the director’s hometown of Grand Rapids today (and expanding to NYC and beyond starting next week), the film follows a couch-bound challenge taken to the extreme as Y2K approaches. We’re pleased to present an exclusive clip from the film, which features Joshua Burge getting a visit from Andre Hyland (who also steals the show in the Sundance hit The Death of Dick Long) as they discuss Jerry Maguire and present a challenge within a challenge.
John Fink said in our review, “While many indie filmmakers like Andrew Bujalski started making films in apartments with their friends...
John Fink said in our review, “While many indie filmmakers like Andrew Bujalski started making films in apartments with their friends...
- 3/22/2019
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Opening and closing to the thunderous sounds of Prokofiev, Relaxer by Joel Potrykus is a grungy meditation on the fine art of relaxation. Relaxer is dark and disturbing. Relaxer is also very funny. The year is 1999. The world is caught in the grip of Y2K fever and fears of the apocalypse. A shut-in named Abbie (Joshua Burge) and his mean brother Cam (David Dastmalchian) live in a squalid apartment lined with graffiti, punk rock flyers and trash. The brothers engage in various dumb "challenges" in order to test each other's will. After Abbie fails a particularly sickening challenge, Cam, who seems to have modeled his life after Lee Ving, lays down the gauntlet: Abbie can't leave the couch until he beats the "glitch" level...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 3/21/2019
- Screen Anarchy
Sitting on a couch playing video games can be a ton of fun. The experience, whether alone or with friends, has been a staple of adolescent and adult entertainment for over a generation now. Some look at it like the lark that it can be. Others, they see it as a detriment to society and part of humanity’s downfall. To some degree, that’s explored in Relaxer, an independent comedy hitting theaters this week. However, what’s more fully on display is a bizarre exercise in discomfort. It’s going to prove divisive for those who see it. This humble critic did not care for it one bit. In fact, it was an actively unpleasant experience. The movie is supposedly a comedy, set in the year 1999. With the impending potential Y2K apocalypse fast approaching, Abbie (Joshua Burge) is stuck on a couch, undergoing abuse from his older brother...
- 3/18/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
“All I’ve ever dreamed about is living on a couch, playing video games with no one bugging me. Relaxer is the nightmare version of my fantasy,” so says Joel Potrykus when it comes to his latest unsettling, yet riveting film. A fitting companion with his brilliant Buzzard, the Y2K-set feature stars Joshua Burge as he undertakes a challenge with grave consequences. Oscilloscope Pictures has now released the first trailer, which grabs a quote from our SXSW review.
John Fink said in our review, “While many indie filmmakers like Andrew Bujalski started making films in apartments with their friends and scaled up to larger projects, Michigan-based madman Joel Potrykus has gleefully and unapologetically scaled down as his career has progressed. His fourth outing, Relaxer, barely even takes place in an apartment, but rather in the corner of a living room where Abbie (Joshua Burge) is stuck on a couch for nearly six months.
John Fink said in our review, “While many indie filmmakers like Andrew Bujalski started making films in apartments with their friends and scaled up to larger projects, Michigan-based madman Joel Potrykus has gleefully and unapologetically scaled down as his career has progressed. His fourth outing, Relaxer, barely even takes place in an apartment, but rather in the corner of a living room where Abbie (Joshua Burge) is stuck on a couch for nearly six months.
- 3/8/2019
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
"You do not leave this couch until the challenge is completed!" Oscilloscope Labs has debuted the trailer for a demented, wacky indie film titled Relaxer, which premiered at the SXSW Film Festival last year. Relaxer is the latest work from American filmmaker Joel Potrykus, who has been making some super funky little films including Ape, Buzzard, and The Alchemist Cookbook. This one is just as funky as all of those: With the impending Y2K apocalypse fast approaching, Abbie is faced with the ultimate challenge - the unbeatable level 256 on Pac-Man - and he can't get off the couch until he conquers it. A survival story in a living room. Starring Joshua Burge, David Dastmalchian, Andre Hyland, Madi Bachman, & Amari Cheatom. This looks totally gross and ridiculous, but apparently "an unforgettable experience" according to one critic. Here's the first official trailer (+ crazy poster) for Joel Potrykus' Relaxer, direct from YouTube...
- 3/7/2019
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
I first caught wind of writer/director Joel Potrykus with his feature debut Ape (trailer) which, at the time of its release in 2012, won him a number of accolades including Best New Director at Locarno. He's made a few other movies in the intervening years but his latest is the first that has caught my attention enough to warrant me making an effort to see it.
Relaxer unfolds over the last few months of 1999, just as the impending Y2K fever is hitting its peak. Potrykus regular Joshua Burge stars as Abbie, a guy obsessed with challenges; reading about them, watching them and doing his own. Problem is, he's never finished an issued challenge.
The movie opens mid-challeng...
Relaxer unfolds over the last few months of 1999, just as the impending Y2K fever is hitting its peak. Potrykus regular Joshua Burge stars as Abbie, a guy obsessed with challenges; reading about them, watching them and doing his own. Problem is, he's never finished an issued challenge.
The movie opens mid-challeng...
- 10/19/2018
- QuietEarth.us
A massive, multi-week celebration of cinema in Montreal, the Fantasia International Film Festival is still going strong with a week of screenings to go. As per usual, the 22nd annual edition of the festival has been brimming with innovative films and eclectic perspectives that are reflected in the newly announced juried award winners:
Press Release: 24 July 2018, Montreal, Canada – The Fantasia International Film Festival is very proud to announce the award winners of the juried sections of its 22nd edition, which celebrates its Closing Night on August 2, 2018.
The festival’s Best Film Award was presented to Daniel Roby's Paris-set science fiction adventure Dans la brume, which opened Fantasia 2018 to massive acclaim and adoration. The epic apocalyptic thriller, which stars Romain Duris and Olga Kurylenko, sees The City of Lights covered in a deadly white fog that threatens the very existence of humanity.
The awards in each of Fantasia’s categories...
Press Release: 24 July 2018, Montreal, Canada – The Fantasia International Film Festival is very proud to announce the award winners of the juried sections of its 22nd edition, which celebrates its Closing Night on August 2, 2018.
The festival’s Best Film Award was presented to Daniel Roby's Paris-set science fiction adventure Dans la brume, which opened Fantasia 2018 to massive acclaim and adoration. The epic apocalyptic thriller, which stars Romain Duris and Olga Kurylenko, sees The City of Lights covered in a deadly white fog that threatens the very existence of humanity.
The awards in each of Fantasia’s categories...
- 7/25/2018
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
The Fantasia International Film Festival is very proud to announce the award winners of the juried sections of its 22nd edition, which celebrates its Closing Night on August 2, 2018.
The festival’s Best Film Award was presented to Daniel Roby’s Paris-set science fiction adventure “Dans la brume”, which opened Fantasia 2018 to massive acclaim and adoration. The epic apocalyptic thriller, which stars Romain Duris and Olga Kurylenko, sees The City of Lights covered in a deadly white fog that threatens the very existence of humanity.
The awards in each of Fantasia’s categories were chosen by carefully selected juries of filmmakers, scholars, journalists, and industry professionals.
The Cheval Noir Awards
Best Film: Dans La Brume (d. Daniel Roby)
Best Director: Nosipho Dumisa (Number 37)
Best Screenplay: Isa Mazzei (Cam)
Best Actor: Joshua Burge (Relaxer)
Best Actress: Kim Da-mi (The Witch Part 1: The Subversion)
Tim Matheson presided over Fantasia’s 2018 Cheval Noir Jury,...
The festival’s Best Film Award was presented to Daniel Roby’s Paris-set science fiction adventure “Dans la brume”, which opened Fantasia 2018 to massive acclaim and adoration. The epic apocalyptic thriller, which stars Romain Duris and Olga Kurylenko, sees The City of Lights covered in a deadly white fog that threatens the very existence of humanity.
The awards in each of Fantasia’s categories were chosen by carefully selected juries of filmmakers, scholars, journalists, and industry professionals.
The Cheval Noir Awards
Best Film: Dans La Brume (d. Daniel Roby)
Best Director: Nosipho Dumisa (Number 37)
Best Screenplay: Isa Mazzei (Cam)
Best Actor: Joshua Burge (Relaxer)
Best Actress: Kim Da-mi (The Witch Part 1: The Subversion)
Tim Matheson presided over Fantasia’s 2018 Cheval Noir Jury,...
- 7/25/2018
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Nosipho Dumisa wins best director award for Number 37.
The 22nd Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal has announced its juried award winners, including Daniel Roby’s best film award recipient and opening night sci-fi thriller Dans La Brume starring Romain Duris and Olga Kurylenko.
Nosipho Dumisa won the best director award for Number 37, while Isa Mazzei’s Cam received the best screenplay award. Joshua Burge won best actor for his role in Relaxer, and Kim Da-mi won best actress for The Witch Part 1: The Subversion.
Each of these awards was decided by the Cheval Noir Jury, which was led...
The 22nd Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal has announced its juried award winners, including Daniel Roby’s best film award recipient and opening night sci-fi thriller Dans La Brume starring Romain Duris and Olga Kurylenko.
Nosipho Dumisa won the best director award for Number 37, while Isa Mazzei’s Cam received the best screenplay award. Joshua Burge won best actor for his role in Relaxer, and Kim Da-mi won best actress for The Witch Part 1: The Subversion.
Each of these awards was decided by the Cheval Noir Jury, which was led...
- 7/24/2018
- by Jenn Sherman
- ScreenDaily
Best Film award winner Dans La Brume Photo: Fantasia Film Festival
Daniel Roby's Dans La Brume, which opened this year's Fantasia film festival, has won its Best Film award, it was announced today. The Cheval Noir jury called it "a lean, terrifying portrait of an extinction-level event from the point of view of a family determined to survive." A special prize went to Dennison Ramalho's ghostly black comedy The Nightshifter.
Nosipho Dumisa won Best Director for Number 37, a gritty South African noir, while Isa Mazzei won Best Screenplay and the New Flesh award for Best Newcomer for Cam, the sinister story of a camgirl whose career is taken over by a doppelgänger. Joshua Burge was named Best Actor for Relaxer and Kim Da-mi Best Actress for The Witch Part 1: The Subversion. "Newcomer Kim Da-mi delivers an immaculate, layered performance, displaying intricacy and range in realms both physical and emotional.
Daniel Roby's Dans La Brume, which opened this year's Fantasia film festival, has won its Best Film award, it was announced today. The Cheval Noir jury called it "a lean, terrifying portrait of an extinction-level event from the point of view of a family determined to survive." A special prize went to Dennison Ramalho's ghostly black comedy The Nightshifter.
Nosipho Dumisa won Best Director for Number 37, a gritty South African noir, while Isa Mazzei won Best Screenplay and the New Flesh award for Best Newcomer for Cam, the sinister story of a camgirl whose career is taken over by a doppelgänger. Joshua Burge was named Best Actor for Relaxer and Kim Da-mi Best Actress for The Witch Part 1: The Subversion. "Newcomer Kim Da-mi delivers an immaculate, layered performance, displaying intricacy and range in realms both physical and emotional.
- 7/24/2018
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
It’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment where Joel Potrykus decided to blow off the Hollywood studio projects sent his way and instead make wacky movies like “Relaxer,” which takes place in a living room and revolves around a guy playing “Pacman” on the brink of Y2K. But it might have been around the time that time someone suggested he direct a sequel to the found footage party movie “Project X.” He’d reached a breaking point.
“I was offered all these scripts for, like, sequels to mid-level successful movies, and I was like, ‘Why?’” Potrykus said in an interview with IndieWire at the SXSW Film Festival in March. “It’s like painting something and then handing off to someone so they can paint over it. Why spend all that time? I have a job that pays well, so I’m not making movies for money.”
Potrykus teaches...
“I was offered all these scripts for, like, sequels to mid-level successful movies, and I was like, ‘Why?’” Potrykus said in an interview with IndieWire at the SXSW Film Festival in March. “It’s like painting something and then handing off to someone so they can paint over it. Why spend all that time? I have a job that pays well, so I’m not making movies for money.”
Potrykus teaches...
- 6/27/2018
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
While many indie filmmakers like Andrew Bujalski started making films in apartments with their friends and scaled up to larger projects, Michigan-based madman Joel Potrykus has gleefully and unapologetically scaled down as his career has progressed. His fourth outing, Relaxer, barely even takes place in an apartment, but rather in the corner of a living room where Abbie (Joshua Burge) is stuck on a couch for nearly six months. While staying there, his cruel (or tough love) brother Cam, (David Dastmalchian), gives him a series of challenges. For the first one, he needs to drink a gallon of curdled milk out of nine baby bottles. Under the watchful eye of a Sony handicam, he’s not permitted to leave the couch under any circumstances until he’s finished.
It’s these type of scenarios that are all over Relaxer, an unsettling and unapologetic comedy of untold horrors. A borderline masterpiece of “what the fuck” insanity,...
It’s these type of scenarios that are all over Relaxer, an unsettling and unapologetic comedy of untold horrors. A borderline masterpiece of “what the fuck” insanity,...
- 3/20/2018
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
A broken home. A leather couch. July of 1999, sixth months before the anticipated “Y2K” hysteria that disturbed the oncoming millennia. Abbie (Joshua Burge), sitting on a sun-dried leather couch, attempts to drink an entire gallon of half-spoiled milk as part of another “challenge” given to him by his brother Cam (David Dastmalchian).
On the verge of vomiting, Abbie wants to give up (again), but being glued to the television screen playing Nintendo dampens the pain that comes alongside his brother’s challenges.
On the verge of vomiting, Abbie wants to give up (again), but being glued to the television screen playing Nintendo dampens the pain that comes alongside his brother’s challenges.
- 3/18/2018
- by Kyle Kohner
- The Playlist
Opening and closing to the thunderous sounds of Prokofiev, Relaxer by Joel Potrykus is a grungy meditation on the fine art of relaxation. Relaxer is dark and disturbing. Relaxer is also very funny. The year is 1999. The world is caught in the grip of Y2K fever and fears of the apocalypse. A shut-in named Abbie (Joshua Burge) and his mean brother Cam (David Dastmalchian) live in a squalid apartment lined with graffiti, punk rock flyers and trash. The brothers engage in various dumb "challenges" in order to test each other's will. After Abbie fails a particularly sickening challenge, Cam, who seems to have modeled his life after Lee Ving, lays down the gauntlet: Abbie can't leave the couch until he beats the "glitch" level...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 3/13/2018
- Screen Anarchy
Great cinema is sometimes grand themes, dramatic camerawork, and sophisticated montage; or, it’s a guy playing “Pac Man” for 90 minutes. Joel Potrykus’ “Relaxer,” the latest wacky gambit from the Michigan-based provocateur, finds the “Buzzard” director reteaming with his perennial star Joshua Burge, again taking a cartoonish lowbrow approach to acerbic social critique. Set on the eve of Y2K, “Relaxer” exclusively takes place in the confines of a living room, where Burge’s character endures prolonged attempts to reach an impossible high score on the the aforementioned video game, while enduring hardships that include milk vomit, fecal matter, overheated cartridges, and rat poison. It’s a grotesque downward spiral, both hilarious and mesmerizing, but above all elevated by its insights into the depraved final gasp of the analog age.
Media scholar Neil Postman diagnosed the ills of entertainment media in his aptly titled 1985 tome “Amusing Ourselves to Death;” that...
Media scholar Neil Postman diagnosed the ills of entertainment media in his aptly titled 1985 tome “Amusing Ourselves to Death;” that...
- 3/10/2018
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Sibling sadism turns absurdist in Joel Potrykus' Relaxer, in which a passive man-child endures baffling deprivation for no reason other than that his big brother dared him to. The follow-up to the Michigan filmmaker's The Alchemist Cookbook and Buzzard, both of which featured outcasts with trouble in mind, the claustrophobic, one-set film clearly invites metaphorical readings — but its allegories will play best to viewers who can stomach the idea of spending eternity on a couch playing Nintendo.
That's pretty much what Joshua Burge's Abbie does here, while his tiny world crumbles around him. We meet the shirtless dweeb in the...
That's pretty much what Joshua Burge's Abbie does here, while his tiny world crumbles around him. We meet the shirtless dweeb in the...
- 3/10/2018
- by John DeFore
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The annual multi-pronged South By Southwest Conferences and Festivals — SXSW, of course — is hitting Austin, Texas later this week for days and days of fresh film offerings (plus music, interactive, and a litany of exciting panels and conversations). With it comes the promise of a brand new festival-going season, along with a slew of films to get excited about finally checking out (and, because it’s Austin, lots of tasty barbecue).
From SXSW regulars like Mark Duplass and Joel Potrykus to rising stars like Carole Brandt and Suzi Yoonessi to marquee names like Wes Anderson and John Krasinski, this year’s SXSW Film Festival is offering up a robust new slate. We’ve picked out a dozen worthy new features to add to your SXSW schedule.
Check out 12 new films from this year’s SXSW that you’re going to want to see Asap.
“A Quiet Place”
The last thing...
From SXSW regulars like Mark Duplass and Joel Potrykus to rising stars like Carole Brandt and Suzi Yoonessi to marquee names like Wes Anderson and John Krasinski, this year’s SXSW Film Festival is offering up a robust new slate. We’ve picked out a dozen worthy new features to add to your SXSW schedule.
Check out 12 new films from this year’s SXSW that you’re going to want to see Asap.
“A Quiet Place”
The last thing...
- 3/7/2018
- by Kate Erbland, Eric Kohn, Jenna Marotta, Jude Dry, David Ehrlich and Steve Greene
- Indiewire
"Feeling down?" Oscilloscope Labs has debuted the first quick teaser trailer for an indie film called The Alchemist Cookbook, from unique filmmaker Joel Potrykus, who last made the cult indie hit Buzzard starring Joshua Burge. This film is about a young outcast named Sean, played by Ty Hickson, who is holed up in a trailer in the woods with "The Alchemist Cookbook" and his cat. After going too far with one of the recipes, he "awakens something far more sinister and dangerous". The poster gives you a little hint at what that might be since this teaser doesn't offer much to work with. If you're curious about this one, have a look. Here's the first teaser trailer for Joel Potrykus' The Alchemist Cookbook, found on YouTube (via Tfs): Young outcast Sean has isolated himself in a trailer in the woods, setting out on alchemic pursuits, with his cat Kaspar as his sole companion.
- 8/12/2016
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
It’s been a well-publicized fact that the production of The Revenant was a physically and emotionally brutal experience. Conditions were incredibly harsh for everybody involved. However, at least one actor was able to keep his sense of humor throughout it all. Tom Hardy apparently kept himself entertained by regularly swearing at one of his co-stars. Joshua Burge played the role of Stubby Bill in Alejandro Inarritu's film that won Leonardo DiCaprio his first Academy Award. In a recent appearance on the I Was There Too podcast, Burge spoke about a regular interaction that he would have with Tom Hardy which appears to have helped both actors get through the grueling shoot. Him and I always had a call and response that we always did. Any time Tom and I would see each other on set, or we’d be passing each other in the makeup room & ...
- 4/21/2016
- cinemablend.com
Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter, Forrest Goodluck, Paul Anderson, Kristoffer Joner, Joshua Burge, Duane Howard, Melaw Nakehk’o, Fabrice Adde, Arthur RedCloud | Written by Alejandro González Iñárritu, Mark L. Smith | Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu
The Revenant a simple story of revenge, but the arduous journey from aggrieved to exacting that revenge is anything but simple. This is Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu’s latest film and is a huge departure from last years eccentric, superhero movie Birdman. We join the history of how the USA was colonised at the point where white settlers from Europe have disrupted and destroyed all prior notions of civilisation to such a degree that Native Americans are reduced to the same killer tactics to survive and thrive as their recent arrivals. These are hard, frontiersmen times. Snow is on the mountainous, untamed ground and peace and tranquility is nothing but a fantasy.
The Revenant a simple story of revenge, but the arduous journey from aggrieved to exacting that revenge is anything but simple. This is Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu’s latest film and is a huge departure from last years eccentric, superhero movie Birdman. We join the history of how the USA was colonised at the point where white settlers from Europe have disrupted and destroyed all prior notions of civilisation to such a degree that Native Americans are reduced to the same killer tactics to survive and thrive as their recent arrivals. These are hard, frontiersmen times. Snow is on the mountainous, untamed ground and peace and tranquility is nothing but a fantasy.
- 1/26/2016
- by Stuart Wright
- Nerdly
Chicago – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 40 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the highly anticipated thriller “The Revenant” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy!
“The Revenant,” which opens on Jan. 8, 2016 and is rated “R,” also stars Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter, Forrest Goodluck, Paul Anderson and Joshua Burge from writer and director Alejandro González Iñárritu and writer Mark Smith. Note: You must be 17+ to win and attend this “R”-rated screening.
To win your free passes to “The Revenant” courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, just get interactive with our social media widget below. That’s it! This screening is on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016 at 7 p.m. in downtown Chicago. The more social actions you complete, the more points you score and the higher yours odds of winning! Completing these social actions only increases your odds of winning; this doesn’t intensify your competition!
Preferably, use your...
“The Revenant,” which opens on Jan. 8, 2016 and is rated “R,” also stars Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter, Forrest Goodluck, Paul Anderson and Joshua Burge from writer and director Alejandro González Iñárritu and writer Mark Smith. Note: You must be 17+ to win and attend this “R”-rated screening.
To win your free passes to “The Revenant” courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, just get interactive with our social media widget below. That’s it! This screening is on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016 at 7 p.m. in downtown Chicago. The more social actions you complete, the more points you score and the higher yours odds of winning! Completing these social actions only increases your odds of winning; this doesn’t intensify your competition!
Preferably, use your...
- 1/2/2016
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Buzzard
Written and directed by Joel Potrykus
USA, 2014
Buzzard, the third film in director Joel Potrykus’ ‘Animal Trilogy’, attempts to be like a low-budget alternative to Fight Club; a rage against the inescapable power of soul-deadening corporations seen through the eyes of one of the system’s former minions. Unfortunately, though, it simply ends up being one of the least inspired entries in the widespread “childish adult” genre, with nothing really insightful to add to it.
Buzzard starts with a close-up of a Nintendo Power Glove on the hand of an unidentified owner (whose head is cut off by the top of the frame) as it is savagely being beaten into submission. Who is this man? And what’s his problem that he would beat up an old Nintendo controller? To answer the first question, that man is Marty Jackitansky (Joshua Burge), a lazy young man who works as a...
Written and directed by Joel Potrykus
USA, 2014
Buzzard, the third film in director Joel Potrykus’ ‘Animal Trilogy’, attempts to be like a low-budget alternative to Fight Club; a rage against the inescapable power of soul-deadening corporations seen through the eyes of one of the system’s former minions. Unfortunately, though, it simply ends up being one of the least inspired entries in the widespread “childish adult” genre, with nothing really insightful to add to it.
Buzzard starts with a close-up of a Nintendo Power Glove on the hand of an unidentified owner (whose head is cut off by the top of the frame) as it is savagely being beaten into submission. Who is this man? And what’s his problem that he would beat up an old Nintendo controller? To answer the first question, that man is Marty Jackitansky (Joshua Burge), a lazy young man who works as a...
- 3/24/2015
- by Antonio Guzman
- SoundOnSight
The day-to-day grind of office life is something most of us tolerate to make a living, but for Marty in Joel Potrykus' "Buzzard," it's an indignity that's beneath him. He's always got some kind of con going on, but his latest scheme is one that will find him in over his head. And today, we have an exclusive clip from the edgy film that won a Special Mention Award from the Junior Jury at the Locarno International Film Festival. Written, directed and starring Joel Potrykus along with Joshua Burge, Teri Ann Nelson, Alan Longstreet, Rico Bruce Wade and Katie Call, the story zeroes in on Marty who seizes an opportunity when it lands right in his lap. Entrusted with some undelivered checks, the young man soon sees the possibility to make some cash, and as you'll see in the sequence below, he's figured out a way to forge the required signatures.
- 3/5/2015
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Marty Jackitansky (Joshua Burge) likes video games, death metal, and horror comics; he doesn't see a future past the stone's-throw distance of his financial horizon, immediately spending everything he makes from his shitty temp job and through a variety of hilarious scams: workers' compensation, bogus merchandise returns, consumer complaints, and a venture into the felony territory of cashing the refund checks of his company's clients. Paranoid about getting caught, he first hides in his co-worker's nerd basement ("The Party Zone!") where they eat Bugles, play last-generation video games, and have duels armed with a lightsaber and a Nintendo Power Glove modified to look like Freddy Krueger's claw. Often very funny, the film is not a comedy; as his anxiety mounts, Marty b...
- 3/4/2015
- Village Voice
The opening minutes of Joel Potrykus' "Buzzard" include a prolonged shot of hustling temp worker Marty (Joshua Burge) as he calmly attempts to con the bank that barely employs him out of a few hundred dollars. Burge's long features, tousled hair and maniacal eyes say it all: This is the face of pure anarchic rage against the system. Potrykus' wildly entertaining black comedy takes its cues from that alarming expression. A slapstick horror show about millennial frustrations with the job market, "Buzzard" is among the first great American satires of the 21st century, its scathing indictment of capitalism delivered as a prolonged, disorienting punchline. Watch: Get Ready for 'Buzzard,' the Craziest Looking Film of 2015 Potrykus has been building to a movie with this kind of focused intensity. "Buzzard" forms the third entry in a loosely-defined trilogy of animal-themed projects, all of which star the Buster Keaton-like...
- 3/3/2015
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
"Buzzard" (March 6)(Film Page) From the creators of "Ape," which won the Best First Feature Special Mention at Locarno in 2012 comes "Buzzard," a film about the disillusionment of the 99 percent. Marty Jackitansky (Joshua Burge), a bored temp at a mortgage office, is out to get what he feels he deserves. He'll swindle and scam corporations out of ten dollars just for the thrill. Soon, Marty hatches a scheme to steal petty refund checks from his mortgage company, thinking he'll somewhat fool banks into cashing them. He reveals his plan to his work friend, Derek (Joel Potrykus), who's seen Marty fail in the past. Marty's growing suspicions force him to hide out in Derek's basement for a week, terrified of the outside world. "Faults" (March 6)(Film Page) The first feature by Riley Stearns, "Faults" features Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Claire, a young woman immersed in a mysterious cult known as Faults.
- 3/2/2015
- by David Canfield
- Indiewire
BAMcinématek at the Bam Rose Cinemas will present a special advance screening of Joel Potrykus' Buzzard on March 4th, followed by a Q&A with the director and screenings of his previous two films, Coyote and Ape. Please visit Bam website for tickets.Joel Potrykus reconfirms his reputation as a 'real deal' in American indie scene with searingly funny and original Buzzard, the conclusion of his animal trilogy after Coyote and Ape, again, starring his muse, the incomparable Joshua Burge, as an angry social miscreant. Enter the world of Marty Jackitansky (Burge) - a $9.50/hr indefinite temp at a mortgage company in Grand Rapids, Mi. When he's not procrastinating at being an office drone, his life at home consists of TV dinners, corn chips, mountain dew, heavy...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 2/28/2015
- Screen Anarchy
High on our list of most anticipated films for 2015 is Buzzard, an indie that first started repulsing critics and audiences at South by Southwest last year, then made its way to Locarno, AFI Fest and Chicago, where we finally caught up with it. Directed by Joel Potrykus, our own Jae Renfrow said it’s slacker cinema at its ugliest and most honest, depicting a loathsome slob and scam artist serving as the cog in a satire on Middle America. From his review:
Buzzard is more than a Midwestern white male fantasy – it’s a mirror to the mangled heart of contemporary culture, and a temporary reprise of punk ideology that we should hurry up and enjoy before it eventually becomes co-opted again, and mass reproduced in Los Angeles glitter factories until the profit runs dry.
The metal filled trailer is certainly ugly and in your face, and looks like it...
Buzzard is more than a Midwestern white male fantasy – it’s a mirror to the mangled heart of contemporary culture, and a temporary reprise of punk ideology that we should hurry up and enjoy before it eventually becomes co-opted again, and mass reproduced in Los Angeles glitter factories until the profit runs dry.
The metal filled trailer is certainly ugly and in your face, and looks like it...
- 1/13/2015
- by Brian Welk
- SoundOnSight
" 'Buzzard'...trumps all generic blockbusters in that it very much is a roller coaster ride, one that thrills, upsets and makes one queasy, all in surprising ways," we wrote in our review out of the New Directors/New Films fest last spring. If you're tired of the tentpole formula and are looking for a film with an original voice and a twisted sense of humor, then this is one you'll probably want to see. You can give "Buzzard" a test run with the first trailer arriving today. Written, directed and starring Joel Potrykus along with Joshua Burge, Teri Ann Nelson, Alan Longstreet, Rico Bruce Wade, and Katie Call, the film follows Marty, a small-time scam artist who goes on the run following his latest scheme. And while comedy is at the fore in the beginning of the picture, the tone soon turns a bit darker, as Marty tries...
- 1/13/2015
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
TwitchFilm has your exclusive first look at the brand new poster for Joel Potrykus' film Buzzard! Potrykus' film is being released by Oscilloscope Laboratories in theaters and digitally on March 6, 2015. Potrykus regular Joshua Burge (Ape and Coyote) stars in this slacker drama. Marty is a caustic, small-time con artist drifting from one scam to the next. When his latest ruse goes awry, mounting paranoia forces him from his lousy small town temp job to the desolate streets of Detroit with nothing more than a pocket full of bogus checks, a dangerously altered Nintendo® Power Glove, and a bad temper. Albert Camus meets Freddy Krueger in Buzzard, a hellish and hilarious riff on the struggles of the American working class. TwitchFilm Managing Editor Peter Martin had this to...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 1/9/2015
- Screen Anarchy
What measure of true grit does it take to interweave separate worlds? In truth, how do we imagine to know that what is set apart does not belong together? Delving into the haphazardly changing depths of identity, a noteworthy trio of cinematic graces is up to the task of responding, even if forming their own questions in reply. As quintessences perform a number of feats, teasingly flickering before our eyes in Eskil Vogt's Blind, meandering through the seemingly shallow waters of Fellipe Barbosa's Casa Grande, and burning to death in overbearing doubt culminating Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala's Goodnight Mommy (Ich seh, Ich seh), the rollercoaster of human frailty never once pulls to a stop.
Deftly swishing the t(r)ail of the narrative's many endings and beginnings, Vogt's feature debut eloquently embodies his screenwriting skills as previously witnessed in hushed, attentive collaborations with director Joachim Trier.
Deftly swishing the t(r)ail of the narrative's many endings and beginnings, Vogt's feature debut eloquently embodies his screenwriting skills as previously witnessed in hushed, attentive collaborations with director Joachim Trier.
- 1/8/2015
- by Ivana Miloš
- MUBI
Buzzard
Directed by Joel Potrykus
Written by Joel Potrykus
USA, 2014
During a post-film Q&A, director Joel Potrykus was asked by young man in the audience what one could do to live a life like Martin Jackitansky, the protagonist, if you could call him that, of Potrykus’ film Buzzard. Jackitansky, played by a volatile Joshua Burge, has a crappy job that he slacks on and steals from but never gets in trouble. He spends his time playing video games, and executing low level scams for free junk food. The inquiring audience member just had to know if he too could live the dream life for the realistically unambitious cog, grinding away in the corporate consumerist badlands of middle America. Though Potrykus gave an honest answer that most of Jackitansky’s traits and scams were autobiographical, it’s probably a safer bet that most of us are already living the Buzzard life,...
Directed by Joel Potrykus
Written by Joel Potrykus
USA, 2014
During a post-film Q&A, director Joel Potrykus was asked by young man in the audience what one could do to live a life like Martin Jackitansky, the protagonist, if you could call him that, of Potrykus’ film Buzzard. Jackitansky, played by a volatile Joshua Burge, has a crappy job that he slacks on and steals from but never gets in trouble. He spends his time playing video games, and executing low level scams for free junk food. The inquiring audience member just had to know if he too could live the dream life for the realistically unambitious cog, grinding away in the corporate consumerist badlands of middle America. Though Potrykus gave an honest answer that most of Jackitansky’s traits and scams were autobiographical, it’s probably a safer bet that most of us are already living the Buzzard life,...
- 10/17/2014
- by Jae K. Renfrow
- SoundOnSight
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