Copenhagen documentary film festival: Alessandra Celesia’s urgent documentary about the residents of an estate in Belfast speaks to the lasting trauma of political violence
Alessandra Celesia’s film is part seance, part news story: a documentary about the run-down New Lodge estate in Belfast. It is primarily about the families who still live with the unresolved agony of the Troubles a quarter of a century on, the psychic residue of political violence coexisting with sexism, domestic abuse, substance abuse and futile rage against drug dealers in working-class neighbourhoods. But there is something else too. Along with TV news stories about the Queen’s death there is the sensational revelation that for the first time, the Catholic community in Northern Ireland now outnumbers the Protestant. The thought can hardly be said out loud; could it be that times are changing and reunification – that concept which caused so much bloodshed – is...
Alessandra Celesia’s film is part seance, part news story: a documentary about the run-down New Lodge estate in Belfast. It is primarily about the families who still live with the unresolved agony of the Troubles a quarter of a century on, the psychic residue of political violence coexisting with sexism, domestic abuse, substance abuse and futile rage against drug dealers in working-class neighbourhoods. But there is something else too. Along with TV news stories about the Queen’s death there is the sensational revelation that for the first time, the Catholic community in Northern Ireland now outnumbers the Protestant. The thought can hardly be said out loud; could it be that times are changing and reunification – that concept which caused so much bloodshed – is...
- 3/16/2024
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
U.S. content management, financing and sales banner Cinetic Media has secured world rights to the life affirming doc “Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other,” about legendary photographer Joel Meyerowitz and artist and author Maggie Barrett, his wife.
Rising filmmaking duo Manon Ouimet and Jacob Perlmutter of London-based Manon et Jacob are making their documentary debut, with Ouimet serving as producer alongside multi-Oscar nominated Danish producer Signe Byrge Sørensen of Final Cut Four Real.
“Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other” is having its world premiere March 16 in the Dox:award main competition at Copenhagen’s leading documentary festival Cph:dox, and also screen in the international competition section of Thessaloniki Documentary Festival on the same day.
Pedigree co-producing partners attached include Fremantle-owned doc label Undeniable, helmed by Mandy Chang, and long-time Final Cut for Real U.S. partners Louverture Films.
The character-driven documentary chronicles the loving yet...
Rising filmmaking duo Manon Ouimet and Jacob Perlmutter of London-based Manon et Jacob are making their documentary debut, with Ouimet serving as producer alongside multi-Oscar nominated Danish producer Signe Byrge Sørensen of Final Cut Four Real.
“Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other” is having its world premiere March 16 in the Dox:award main competition at Copenhagen’s leading documentary festival Cph:dox, and also screen in the international competition section of Thessaloniki Documentary Festival on the same day.
Pedigree co-producing partners attached include Fremantle-owned doc label Undeniable, helmed by Mandy Chang, and long-time Final Cut for Real U.S. partners Louverture Films.
The character-driven documentary chronicles the loving yet...
- 3/7/2024
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
Ottessa Moshfegh may have been channeling Hitchcock for her screenplay for William Oldroyd’s “Eileen,” but star Marin Ireland turned to a much different filmmaker for creative inspiration on the 1960s-set noir. The film was co-written by Luke Goebel.
Ireland, nominated for Best Supporting Performance for “Eileen” opposite Anne Hathaway, who was also nominated, came by IndieWire’s spot at the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards red carpet to talk the 2023 Neon release. In the film, Ireland plays the mother of a teenager who’s been arrested for his father’s murder, and she’s hiding a secret.
“I had read the book years earlier, and I was like, what are we doing? Where did this come from?” Ireland said of her first meeting with Moshfegh. “She told me about this documentary she had watched called ‘Lost for Life’ about teens who were convicted as adults, who were serving life sentences,...
Ireland, nominated for Best Supporting Performance for “Eileen” opposite Anne Hathaway, who was also nominated, came by IndieWire’s spot at the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards red carpet to talk the 2023 Neon release. In the film, Ireland plays the mother of a teenager who’s been arrested for his father’s murder, and she’s hiding a secret.
“I had read the book years earlier, and I was like, what are we doing? Where did this come from?” Ireland said of her first meeting with Moshfegh. “She told me about this documentary she had watched called ‘Lost for Life’ about teens who were convicted as adults, who were serving life sentences,...
- 2/25/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio and Vincent Perella
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Ahead of EFM 2024, XYZ Films has promoted James Emanuel Shapiro to President of Domestic Distribution, upping Alex Williams to Sr. Manager, Acquisitions and Development.
Shapiro, formerly the Executive Vice President of U.S. Distribution, reports to XYZ CEO Nick Spicer and Partner Nate Bolotin. The promotions come following XYZ’s recent hiring of Celine Lin for the role of Senior VP of International Sales.
XYZ launched its domestic distribution arm in 2021 and has since then released films from Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead (Something in the Dirt), Nic Cassavetes (God Is a Bullet) and Michelle Garza (Huesera: The Bone Woman).
Said the Partners at XYZ in a joint statement, “These are well deserved promotions and we couldn’t be happier for James and Alex. James has done a terrific job launching the division, with strong support from Alex, and we’re excited about our upcoming slate.”
Prior to his time at XYZ Films,...
Shapiro, formerly the Executive Vice President of U.S. Distribution, reports to XYZ CEO Nick Spicer and Partner Nate Bolotin. The promotions come following XYZ’s recent hiring of Celine Lin for the role of Senior VP of International Sales.
XYZ launched its domestic distribution arm in 2021 and has since then released films from Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead (Something in the Dirt), Nic Cassavetes (God Is a Bullet) and Michelle Garza (Huesera: The Bone Woman).
Said the Partners at XYZ in a joint statement, “These are well deserved promotions and we couldn’t be happier for James and Alex. James has done a terrific job launching the division, with strong support from Alex, and we’re excited about our upcoming slate.”
Prior to his time at XYZ Films,...
- 2/12/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Veteran German film and TV executive Dirk Schweitzer has left his position as CEO of producer/distributor Splendid Medien and has taken over as CEO of Mmc Group, the parent company of Cologne’s Mmc Studios.
Björn Siecken, former CFO at Splendid, will join Schweitzer as CFO of Mmc. Nico Roden will stay on as managing director of Mmc Studios, who run the Cologne backlot, and Bastie Griese will remain managing director of production division Mmc Movies, working together with Schweitzer to expand the company’s film and TV operations nationally and internationally.
Former Splendid boss Andreas Klein, son of company founder Albert E. Klein, has returned to run the company as CEO. Schweitzer took over operations at Splendid from Klein in 2020, with Klein continuing as an advisor to the company. Schweizer joined Splendid in 2013 from producer/distributor Tele-München Group, where he was managing director. Before that, he spent 10 years...
Björn Siecken, former CFO at Splendid, will join Schweitzer as CFO of Mmc. Nico Roden will stay on as managing director of Mmc Studios, who run the Cologne backlot, and Bastie Griese will remain managing director of production division Mmc Movies, working together with Schweitzer to expand the company’s film and TV operations nationally and internationally.
Former Splendid boss Andreas Klein, son of company founder Albert E. Klein, has returned to run the company as CEO. Schweitzer took over operations at Splendid from Klein in 2020, with Klein continuing as an advisor to the company. Schweizer joined Splendid in 2013 from producer/distributor Tele-München Group, where he was managing director. Before that, he spent 10 years...
- 2/12/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Cph:Forum, the financing and co-production event on the industry programme of Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival, has selected new projects from the producers of Flee and Cow for its 2024 edition; and has refreshed its industry awards with six prizes.
Danish producer Signe Byrge Sorensen will participate with Freedom (working title), directed by Camilla Nielsson, who previously made Sundance 2021 title President about a challenger in Zimbabwe’s corrupt presidential elections.
Scroll down for the full list of Forum projects
Sorensen is CEO of Danish documentary production house Final Cut For Real, which has made films including The Killing Of A Journalist,...
Danish producer Signe Byrge Sorensen will participate with Freedom (working title), directed by Camilla Nielsson, who previously made Sundance 2021 title President about a challenger in Zimbabwe’s corrupt presidential elections.
Scroll down for the full list of Forum projects
Sorensen is CEO of Danish documentary production house Final Cut For Real, which has made films including The Killing Of A Journalist,...
- 2/8/2024
- ScreenDaily
Spoilers follow.
Jonathan Glazer's "The Zone of Interest" takes place mostly in a pristine, clean two-story home in the Polish countryside. It has a large, verdant lawn, an outsize greenhouse, and spacious bedrooms for the occupants' children. Its garden is well-maintained and regularly fertilized. They have a small pool, even, equipped with a waterslide. People come to visit the manse's occupants regularly, and everyone comments on how nice it is, and how proud they are of Rudolf (Christian Freidel) and his wife Hedwig (Sandra Hüller) for maintaining such a lovely estate.
Sharing a wall with the estate is the Auschwitz concentration camp. It's the early 1940s and the smokestacks are billowing, belching out the ashes of hundreds upon hundreds of murdered Jews. During the day, Rudolf has meetings with other Nazi generals, discussing the logistics of how to use furnaces to dispose of human beings more efficiently. The Hades...
Jonathan Glazer's "The Zone of Interest" takes place mostly in a pristine, clean two-story home in the Polish countryside. It has a large, verdant lawn, an outsize greenhouse, and spacious bedrooms for the occupants' children. Its garden is well-maintained and regularly fertilized. They have a small pool, even, equipped with a waterslide. People come to visit the manse's occupants regularly, and everyone comments on how nice it is, and how proud they are of Rudolf (Christian Freidel) and his wife Hedwig (Sandra Hüller) for maintaining such a lovely estate.
Sharing a wall with the estate is the Auschwitz concentration camp. It's the early 1940s and the smokestacks are billowing, belching out the ashes of hundreds upon hundreds of murdered Jews. During the day, Rudolf has meetings with other Nazi generals, discussing the logistics of how to use furnaces to dispose of human beings more efficiently. The Hades...
- 1/12/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
How do you embody pure evil? While the discussion swirls regarding precisely how much Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest is meant to humanize the Nazis, by the film’s final moments, there’s no mistaking the director’s point in showing the physical distress on one’s body enacting daily atrocities. Christian Friedel, who plays commandant of the Auschwitz concentration camp Rudolph Höss, was up for the difficult task of portraying this seething wickedness while attempting to keep control of his relationship with his wife (Sandra Hüller) and family connection intact.
With the Cannes winner expanding in theaters, I spoke with Friedel about why Glazer didn’t want him to read the Martin Amis novel in preparation, looking to The Act of Killing as inspiration, the physicality of his performance, and what he’s gleaned from multiple viewings of the film.
The Film Stage: I know you worked...
With the Cannes winner expanding in theaters, I spoke with Friedel about why Glazer didn’t want him to read the Martin Amis novel in preparation, looking to The Act of Killing as inspiration, the physicality of his performance, and what he’s gleaned from multiple viewings of the film.
The Film Stage: I know you worked...
- 12/21/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
“Jury Duty” is a reality show. Or is it a sitcom? A documentary? An elaborate prank?
How about all of the above?
One of 2023’s defining breakouts, the Amazon Freevee series is the crown jewel of an ascendant hybrid genre sometimes referred to as docu-comedy. Even the people who made the show aren’t sure how to classify it. Director Jake Syzmanski and co-creator Lee Eisenberg say they’ve never heard that term. Eisenberg suggested hidden-camera comedy, but that’s not really accurate either, as everyone involved knew they were being filmed. Robyn Adams, a producer, used “outlined improv.” Whatever nomenclature best applies, this increasingly common format has enjoyed a banner year, with “Jury Duty,” Peacock’s “Paul T. Goldman,” BBC and Netflix’s “Cunk on Earth,” and HBO’s “How To with John Wilson” picking up where the likes of Sacha Baron Cohen and Nathan Fielder left off.
“There was a big worry about,...
How about all of the above?
One of 2023’s defining breakouts, the Amazon Freevee series is the crown jewel of an ascendant hybrid genre sometimes referred to as docu-comedy. Even the people who made the show aren’t sure how to classify it. Director Jake Syzmanski and co-creator Lee Eisenberg say they’ve never heard that term. Eisenberg suggested hidden-camera comedy, but that’s not really accurate either, as everyone involved knew they were being filmed. Robyn Adams, a producer, used “outlined improv.” Whatever nomenclature best applies, this increasingly common format has enjoyed a banner year, with “Jury Duty,” Peacock’s “Paul T. Goldman,” BBC and Netflix’s “Cunk on Earth,” and HBO’s “How To with John Wilson” picking up where the likes of Sacha Baron Cohen and Nathan Fielder left off.
“There was a big worry about,...
- 12/2/2023
- by Matthew Jacobs
- Indiewire
Welcome to the world of documentaries, where real lives and real stories come to life on the screen. There’s something profoundly moving about witnessing the human experience captured through the lens of a camera – the raw emotions, the untold struggles, and the amazing moments that shape our lives. As a documentary enthusiast who believes in the power of storytelling, I’m excited to share with you a curated list of seven documentaries that offer a deep dive into the complexities of our existence.
Related: 10 Must-Watch Documentaries That Changed Public Perception
These documentaries are more than just films; they’re windows into the lives of individuals who have experienced the spectrum of human emotions and challenges. From the comfort of your couch, you’ll have the privilege of walking in their shoes, experiencing their journeys, and gaining insights that might just change your perspective on the world.
Each documentary on...
Related: 10 Must-Watch Documentaries That Changed Public Perception
These documentaries are more than just films; they’re windows into the lives of individuals who have experienced the spectrum of human emotions and challenges. From the comfort of your couch, you’ll have the privilege of walking in their shoes, experiencing their journeys, and gaining insights that might just change your perspective on the world.
Each documentary on...
- 10/25/2023
- by Pia Vermaak
- buddytv.com
Documentaries have the remarkable ability to open our eyes to the world’s realities, challenge our preconceived notions, and transform our perspectives. In an age where information inundates our lives from various sources, these cinematic works offer a unique and intimate platform to engage with issues that matter.
Related: 7 Best Mind-Expanding Documentaries
Over the years, certain documentaries have left an indelible mark, altering the course of public perception and, in some cases, even driving real-world change. This article delves into ten must-watch documentaries that have wielded the power of truth to reshape the way we view the world around us.
“Blackfish” (2013)
A Deep Dive into Captive Marine Life
This documentary hit me like a tidal wave. “Blackfish” pulled back the curtain on how marine animals are treated in captivity, specifically focusing on orcas at SeaWorld. It’s not all fun and games; the film peeled away the glossy exterior to...
Related: 7 Best Mind-Expanding Documentaries
Over the years, certain documentaries have left an indelible mark, altering the course of public perception and, in some cases, even driving real-world change. This article delves into ten must-watch documentaries that have wielded the power of truth to reshape the way we view the world around us.
“Blackfish” (2013)
A Deep Dive into Captive Marine Life
This documentary hit me like a tidal wave. “Blackfish” pulled back the curtain on how marine animals are treated in captivity, specifically focusing on orcas at SeaWorld. It’s not all fun and games; the film peeled away the glossy exterior to...
- 10/25/2023
- by Pia Vermaak
- buddytv.com
’No Me Llame Ternera’ features interview with a former leader of the Basque terrorist group Eta.
The San Sebastian Film Festival has rejected public calls for it to withdraw a Netflix documentary from its line-up that features an exclusive interview with a former leader of Basque terrorist group Eta.
Directed by Jordi Évole and Màrius Sánchez, No Me Llame Ternera is set to open the festival’s Made in Spain section on September 22.
The documentary explores some of Eta’s decisive moments until it disbanded in 2018, and has an interview between Évole and Josu Urrutikoetxea, also known as Josu Ternera,...
The San Sebastian Film Festival has rejected public calls for it to withdraw a Netflix documentary from its line-up that features an exclusive interview with a former leader of Basque terrorist group Eta.
Directed by Jordi Évole and Màrius Sánchez, No Me Llame Ternera is set to open the festival’s Made in Spain section on September 22.
The documentary explores some of Eta’s decisive moments until it disbanded in 2018, and has an interview between Évole and Josu Urrutikoetxea, also known as Josu Ternera,...
- 9/13/2023
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
The San Sebastian Film Festival has issued a statement standing by its decision to screen a Netflix-backed documentary about Josu Urrutikoetxea, the former leader of the Basque separatist militant group Eta.
The documentary entitled No me llame Ternera revolves around an exclusive interview between renowned Spanish journalist Jordi Évole and Urrutikoetxea, who goes by the nickname of Josu Ternera. The title translates as “Don’t call me Ternera”.
Over its 60-year history, Eta killed 883 people as part of its campaign to create a separate Basque state northern Spain and southwest France, before it was dissolved in 2018.
On the run for 16 years, Urrutikoetxea was arrested in France in May 2019 having been found guilty in absentia of being a member of a terror group. He was acquitted in a retrial in 2021 for lack of evidence.
The inclusion of No me llame Ternera as the opening film of San Sebastian’s Made...
The documentary entitled No me llame Ternera revolves around an exclusive interview between renowned Spanish journalist Jordi Évole and Urrutikoetxea, who goes by the nickname of Josu Ternera. The title translates as “Don’t call me Ternera”.
Over its 60-year history, Eta killed 883 people as part of its campaign to create a separate Basque state northern Spain and southwest France, before it was dissolved in 2018.
On the run for 16 years, Urrutikoetxea was arrested in France in May 2019 having been found guilty in absentia of being a member of a terror group. He was acquitted in a retrial in 2021 for lack of evidence.
The inclusion of No me llame Ternera as the opening film of San Sebastian’s Made...
- 9/12/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Well-known international TV exec Michael Murphy is leaving Beyond after 19 years and has launched his own business.
Murphy has been with producer-distributor Beyond International for nearly two decades, but will launch Rockabill Media at MIPCOM Cannes with a trio of projects.
Banijay closed an estimated $30M deal for Beyond in January, with Beyond distribution business then assimilated into the Banijay Rights catalog.
The Ireland-based Murphy had been at Beyond since 2009, holding roles such as General Manager for Beyond Distribution and, more recently, Executive Director of Beyond Entertainment Holdings and of specialist music content producer and distributor BeyondTNC.
Murphy has owned a Rockabill Media entity since 2012 but is launching the production outfit as a new business of the same name. The operation will work on international TV and film projects and provide consultancy in areas such as content strategy, distribution, executive production and financing.
The business opens this week, and is working on three projects.
Murphy has been with producer-distributor Beyond International for nearly two decades, but will launch Rockabill Media at MIPCOM Cannes with a trio of projects.
Banijay closed an estimated $30M deal for Beyond in January, with Beyond distribution business then assimilated into the Banijay Rights catalog.
The Ireland-based Murphy had been at Beyond since 2009, holding roles such as General Manager for Beyond Distribution and, more recently, Executive Director of Beyond Entertainment Holdings and of specialist music content producer and distributor BeyondTNC.
Murphy has owned a Rockabill Media entity since 2012 but is launching the production outfit as a new business of the same name. The operation will work on international TV and film projects and provide consultancy in areas such as content strategy, distribution, executive production and financing.
The business opens this week, and is working on three projects.
- 9/5/2023
- by Jesse Whittock
- Deadline Film + TV
When the American Film Institute announced last year that it was merging AFI Docs, the organization’s annual Washington, D.C., documentary film festival, into the Los Angeles-based AFI Fest, Jamie Shor called Sky Sitney.
Shor, president of PR Collaborative, and Sitney, director of the film and media studies program at Georgetown, had both previously worked for AFI Docs. Shor’s publicity firm had done work for the former festival, previously known as Silverdocs, while Sitney served as AFI Docs festival director from 2005-2014.
“Sky and I were both thinking to ourselves that Washington, D.C., was not going to have a doc presence,” says Shor. “It collectively broke our hearts.”
So, the duo spent the last year and a half creating and building DC/Dox, a new nonfiction film festival based in the nation’s capital. The inaugural four-day festival kicks off on June 15 with the D.C. premiere of...
Shor, president of PR Collaborative, and Sitney, director of the film and media studies program at Georgetown, had both previously worked for AFI Docs. Shor’s publicity firm had done work for the former festival, previously known as Silverdocs, while Sitney served as AFI Docs festival director from 2005-2014.
“Sky and I were both thinking to ourselves that Washington, D.C., was not going to have a doc presence,” says Shor. “It collectively broke our hearts.”
So, the duo spent the last year and a half creating and building DC/Dox, a new nonfiction film festival based in the nation’s capital. The inaugural four-day festival kicks off on June 15 with the D.C. premiere of...
- 6/15/2023
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
Rarely a film “reinvents the wheel” when it comes to cinematic language, and, on top of that, does it to maximize the emotional impact. The documentary “The Act of Killing” by Joshua Oppenheimer and associates is one of such films. Although, production-wise, it is not an Asian film, it is so rooted in the context of Indonesia it could serve as a recommendation for the Movie of the Week here.
Oppenheimer first came to Indonesia to film parts of his 2003 video-documentary “The Globalisation Tapes”, but there he found a haunting story from the country's history and spent the greatest part of the following ten years working on the project. During the 60s, the tensions mounted between the left-leaning government lead by Sukarno and the army that resulted in a series of massacres of suspected communists, progressive intellectuals, syndicalists and members of the Chinese minority. Massacres were conducted by the military and the paramilitary forces,...
Oppenheimer first came to Indonesia to film parts of his 2003 video-documentary “The Globalisation Tapes”, but there he found a haunting story from the country's history and spent the greatest part of the following ten years working on the project. During the 60s, the tensions mounted between the left-leaning government lead by Sukarno and the army that resulted in a series of massacres of suspected communists, progressive intellectuals, syndicalists and members of the Chinese minority. Massacres were conducted by the military and the paramilitary forces,...
- 6/13/2023
- by Marko Stojiljković
- AsianMoviePulse
On New Year’s Day, Peacock dropped the first three episodes of its true crime series “Paul T. Goldman,” a documentary loosely based on Paul Finkelman’s semi-autobiographical self-published book. The show, utilizing reenactments and behind-the-scenes shots, has the eccentric Finkelman telling the story of his relationship with his second wife, whom he believed was living a double life as a prostitute, dating her pimp and running an international sex trafficking ring.
It was directed by “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” director Jason Woliner, who brought an ambitious use of satire to the streaming platform. Finkelman’s unique delivery and distorted facts and his attempt to set the record straight in the form of a movie that he directs and writes himself, starring himself, creates an unconventional type of nonfiction storytelling. Still, Peacock and Woliner saw it as a documentary and decided to submit it for Emmys consideration in outstanding documentary or nonfiction series.
It was directed by “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” director Jason Woliner, who brought an ambitious use of satire to the streaming platform. Finkelman’s unique delivery and distorted facts and his attempt to set the record straight in the form of a movie that he directs and writes himself, starring himself, creates an unconventional type of nonfiction storytelling. Still, Peacock and Woliner saw it as a documentary and decided to submit it for Emmys consideration in outstanding documentary or nonfiction series.
- 6/2/2023
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
The creative forces behind four of the documentary films and shows that are hoping to compete at this year’s Emmys took some time to chat with Gold Derby and discussed several topics including their favorite documentaries, surprising subjects covered by docs and the changing nature of what documentaries can be. This was part of Gold Derby’s Meet the Experts panel on TV Documentaries that included Ellen Goosenberg Kent (“Afghan Dreamers”), Michael Gasparro (“Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal”), Zach Heinzerling (“Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence”) and Jimmy Chin (“Wild Life”).
You can watch the TV documentary group panel above with the people behind these four programs. Click on each person’s name above to be taken to each exclusive interview.
Gasparro sighted classic documentary films like “The Thin Blue Line” as his entry point into the genre but also cited one that was a milestone for documentary series.
You can watch the TV documentary group panel above with the people behind these four programs. Click on each person’s name above to be taken to each exclusive interview.
Gasparro sighted classic documentary films like “The Thin Blue Line” as his entry point into the genre but also cited one that was a milestone for documentary series.
- 6/2/2023
- by Charles Bright
- Gold Derby
Whittaker’s claim for unfair dismissal will proceed at a hearing in late June
Producer and entrepreneur Andy Whittaker has confirmed that he is engaged in ongoing legal action against Dogwoof Ltd, the London-based documentary film distribution and production company he founded in 2003.
Whittaker was dismissed as an employee of the company in June 2022 for undisclosed reasons. He began legal action, understood to relate to unfair dismissal and discrimination, in August 2022.
Whittaker remains a minority shareholder in Dogwoof, which has released 31 Oscar-nominated documentaries including Free Solo, Blackfish and The Act Of Killing.
The company’s current CEO is Barcelona-born Anna Godas...
Producer and entrepreneur Andy Whittaker has confirmed that he is engaged in ongoing legal action against Dogwoof Ltd, the London-based documentary film distribution and production company he founded in 2003.
Whittaker was dismissed as an employee of the company in June 2022 for undisclosed reasons. He began legal action, understood to relate to unfair dismissal and discrimination, in August 2022.
Whittaker remains a minority shareholder in Dogwoof, which has released 31 Oscar-nominated documentaries including Free Solo, Blackfish and The Act Of Killing.
The company’s current CEO is Barcelona-born Anna Godas...
- 6/1/2023
- by Geoffrey Macnab
- ScreenDaily
There is a persistent hum of the incinerator furnace of Auschwitz throughout the entire 106 minutes of Jonathan Glazer's new film "The Zone of Interest." 106 minutes of being gently reminded — through sound, small actions, and abstract imagery juxtaposing the natural human order — of the indifference to suffering all people are capable of. Glazer's first feature film in ten years is a sick, bleak, and absolutely vital reimagining of the Holocaust drama, one that finds a new way — and possibly a more effective way — to put an important spotlight on the face of atrocities. There is always a lesson in the horrors of the real world, and Glazer's movie serves this one up on a silver platter, along with the severed head of our own potential apathy. There is absolutely no doubt this quiet film will go down in history as one of the definitive narratives of Holocaust fiction. Do not look away.
- 5/21/2023
- by Lex Briscuso
- Slash Film
“Seven Winters in Tehran,” about a 19-year-old Iranian woman sentenced to death for killing the man who tried to rape her, will open the 34th annual Human Rights Watch Film Festival on May 31 in New York City.
The festival, co-presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the IFC Center, will feature 10 documentaries about humanitarian challenges around the world. This year’s edition spotlights themes and topics including the Ukraine conflict (“When Spring Came to Bucha”), climate gentrification and justice (“Razing Liberty Square”), women’s rights (“Draw Me Egypt”) transgender rights (“Into My Name”) freedom of the press (“The Etilaat Roz”) and access to health care in the United States (“Pay or Die”).
“From the war in Ukraine to women’s rights and bodily autonomy, to environmental gentrification and freedom of the press, these films span some of the most pressing human rights issues of our time,” says John Biaggi,...
The festival, co-presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the IFC Center, will feature 10 documentaries about humanitarian challenges around the world. This year’s edition spotlights themes and topics including the Ukraine conflict (“When Spring Came to Bucha”), climate gentrification and justice (“Razing Liberty Square”), women’s rights (“Draw Me Egypt”) transgender rights (“Into My Name”) freedom of the press (“The Etilaat Roz”) and access to health care in the United States (“Pay or Die”).
“From the war in Ukraine to women’s rights and bodily autonomy, to environmental gentrification and freedom of the press, these films span some of the most pressing human rights issues of our time,” says John Biaggi,...
- 4/27/2023
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
Neon has unveiled a raft of cast additions for Joshua Oppenheimer’s musical The End as principal photography begins in Ireland.
The freshly-unveiled cast includes Moses Ingram, Michael Shannon, Bronagh Gallagher, Tim McInnerny, and Lennie James. They join previously announced lead actors Tilda Swinton and George MacKay.
Neon is co-financing the international co-production. The long-gestated project revolves around the story of the last human family.
Principal photography has begun in Ireland and will continue through the spring in Italy and Germany.
“I am thrilled to be making The End in collaboration with this miraculous ensemble of artists. I am in awe of each of them. It has been a journey of six years to reach this point, and I could not be more humbled,” said Oppenheimer.
Final Cut for Real’s Signe Byrge Sørensen and Oppenheimer are producing with Wild Atlantic Pictures, The Match Factory, Dorje Film, Moonspun Films and Anagram co-producing.
The freshly-unveiled cast includes Moses Ingram, Michael Shannon, Bronagh Gallagher, Tim McInnerny, and Lennie James. They join previously announced lead actors Tilda Swinton and George MacKay.
Neon is co-financing the international co-production. The long-gestated project revolves around the story of the last human family.
Principal photography has begun in Ireland and will continue through the spring in Italy and Germany.
“I am thrilled to be making The End in collaboration with this miraculous ensemble of artists. I am in awe of each of them. It has been a journey of six years to reach this point, and I could not be more humbled,” said Oppenheimer.
Final Cut for Real’s Signe Byrge Sørensen and Oppenheimer are producing with Wild Atlantic Pictures, The Match Factory, Dorje Film, Moonspun Films and Anagram co-producing.
- 3/23/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI, and sign up for our weekly email newsletter by clicking here.NEWSThe Act of Killing. Though he’s known for nonfiction, Joshua Oppenheimer just began production on a musical about the end of the world, fittingly called The End. Filming now in Dublin, it stars Tilda Swinton and George Mackay, via the production company’s website.After 23 years, A.O. Scott is stepping away from film criticism at the New York Times, transitioning to a new role as a critic at large for the Book Review. He conducts his own exit interview.In comedy news, Safdie muse and Razzie record-breaker Adam Sandler was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor this week in Washington, D.C.Finally, we’re thinking of the character actor Lance Reddick this week, who died suddenly last Friday at...
- 3/22/2023
- MUBI
First announced back in the fall of 2021, one of our most-anticipated films in development is The End, a narrative feature from The Act of Killing and The Look of Silence director Joshua Oppenheimer. Starring Tilda Swinton and George MacKay, it’s described as a “Golden Age musical about the last human family,” and now with production getting underway in Ireland, we have more new details about the project.
“I’m the mother in basically the richest family on the planet. The father has been at the forefront of engineering the destruction of the biosphere, and they’ve lived for the last 20-something years in a bunker underneath Middle America, which is like Versailles,” Swinton told W Magazine, while also revealing at her SXSW keynote last weekend she’s headed from Austin to Dublin to begin production.
Courtesy of the production company’s site, it’s also been revealed that cinematographer...
“I’m the mother in basically the richest family on the planet. The father has been at the forefront of engineering the destruction of the biosphere, and they’ve lived for the last 20-something years in a bunker underneath Middle America, which is like Versailles,” Swinton told W Magazine, while also revealing at her SXSW keynote last weekend she’s headed from Austin to Dublin to begin production.
Courtesy of the production company’s site, it’s also been revealed that cinematographer...
- 3/21/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
American-European media fund Apx Group and André Singer’s Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning documentary and non-scripted company Spring Films have launched a joint production initiative.
Under the accord, Apx and Spring will form a joint venture entity in London, owned equally by both, in which Apx and Spring will invest in new productions over the next five years.
The joint venture will look to develop and produce new and breakthrough content.
The parties said they also saw the agreement as an opportunity to curate a library of “unique content” with global distribution potential.
Spring Films is behind a string of award-winning, non-fiction works including Singer’s 2014 production Night Will Fall, about a lost documentary shot by Alfred Hitchcock and Sidney Bernstein about German concentration camps, which won Peabody, Emmy and Rts awards.
Further highlights of its past slate include the Oscar-nominated and Bafta-winning The Act of Killing (2012) as well as The Inferno...
Under the accord, Apx and Spring will form a joint venture entity in London, owned equally by both, in which Apx and Spring will invest in new productions over the next five years.
The joint venture will look to develop and produce new and breakthrough content.
The parties said they also saw the agreement as an opportunity to curate a library of “unique content” with global distribution potential.
Spring Films is behind a string of award-winning, non-fiction works including Singer’s 2014 production Night Will Fall, about a lost documentary shot by Alfred Hitchcock and Sidney Bernstein about German concentration camps, which won Peabody, Emmy and Rts awards.
Further highlights of its past slate include the Oscar-nominated and Bafta-winning The Act of Killing (2012) as well as The Inferno...
- 3/16/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Apx Group, a New York-, Los Angeles- and London-based film, media and entertainment fund owned by a group of private financiers from the U.S., Italy, Spain and the U.K., has struck a joint venture agreement with London documentary producer Spring Films (Joshua Oppenheimer’s The Act of Killing, Andre Singer‘s Night Will Fall, Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds).
The partners said on Thursday that they would invest in new productions over the next five years. “The joint venture will look to develop and produce new and breakthrough content,” they said. “The parties also see this agreement as an opportunity to curate a valuable library of unique content that will have the potential for global distribution.”
Spring has made documentaries for the likes of Netflix, Apple TV+, HBO, the BBC and Sky and earned two Oscar nominations.
Apx, led by global CEO Shelley Hammond, is planning a public...
The partners said on Thursday that they would invest in new productions over the next five years. “The joint venture will look to develop and produce new and breakthrough content,” they said. “The parties also see this agreement as an opportunity to curate a valuable library of unique content that will have the potential for global distribution.”
Spring has made documentaries for the likes of Netflix, Apple TV+, HBO, the BBC and Sky and earned two Oscar nominations.
Apx, led by global CEO Shelley Hammond, is planning a public...
- 3/16/2023
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Tilda Swinton returned to the SXSW Film & TV stage for the first time in nine years, and in it she shared profound ideas about ambition, about why she hesitates to call herself an “actor,” about the joy of returning to public places after the pandemic. But the real burning question of the afternoon, and the one that really got Swinton going, was a question about a viral video.
If you haven’t seen it, you’re in for a treat. Swinton last year went viral for a reaction of her fangirling to a barista’s latte art. She was astonished, and didn’t stop being astonished for a solid 30 minutes. Watch it below.
During her keynote panel on Monday in conversation with Sundance director Eugene Hernandez, Swinton was asked via an online audience question about her reaction to seeing her face in a foamy cup of coffee: “The purity of...
If you haven’t seen it, you’re in for a treat. Swinton last year went viral for a reaction of her fangirling to a barista’s latte art. She was astonished, and didn’t stop being astonished for a solid 30 minutes. Watch it below.
During her keynote panel on Monday in conversation with Sundance director Eugene Hernandez, Swinton was asked via an online audience question about her reaction to seeing her face in a foamy cup of coffee: “The purity of...
- 3/13/2023
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
Leading documentary sales agent Philippa Kowarsky – who handled Oscar nominees “The Act of Killing,” “Collective” and “Flee” – gave a masterclass at the Thessaloniki Intl. Documentary Festival this week.
Kowarsky recently returned to Cinephil, the documentary sales company she founded, as executive chair, after a brief stint at BBC’s doc strand Storyville. Cinephil’s current lineup includes Oscar nominee “A House Made of Splinters.”
Cinephil’s previous experience on “Flee” helped pave the way for “A House Made of Splinters,” but obstacles emerged she said. “The film had won best directing at Sundance and no one wanted it. We’ve been everywhere with this film – no one wanted it, or there were distributors that wanted it for deals that were so unattractive, we weren’t going to do it. But we had more and more festivals and we were winning more and more awards around the globe, and nothing in America.
Kowarsky recently returned to Cinephil, the documentary sales company she founded, as executive chair, after a brief stint at BBC’s doc strand Storyville. Cinephil’s current lineup includes Oscar nominee “A House Made of Splinters.”
Cinephil’s previous experience on “Flee” helped pave the way for “A House Made of Splinters,” but obstacles emerged she said. “The film had won best directing at Sundance and no one wanted it. We’ve been everywhere with this film – no one wanted it, or there were distributors that wanted it for deals that were so unattractive, we weren’t going to do it. But we had more and more festivals and we were winning more and more awards around the globe, and nothing in America.
- 3/11/2023
- by Tara Karajica
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Drafthouse Films has acquired North American rights to the documentary Chop & Steele, about the creators of the Found Footage Festival, announcing plans to release the film in April at Alamo Drafthouse theaters as part of a double bill with another newly-acquired doc, A Life on the Farm.
Chop & Steele premiered at Tribeca in 2022 and went on to a robust North American festival run that encompassed Calgary, Philadelphia, Seattle, Denver, the Heartland International Film Festival in Indianapolis, the Sidewalk Film Festival in Birmingham, Ala., and the San Francisco Independent Film Festival.
In Chop & Steele, Found Footage Festival principals Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher, “lifelong friends who tour the country with their popular VHS oddities festival, are slapped with a federal lawsuit after pranking a local news station as ‘strong men’ Chop and Steele. Many notables are featured in the doc, including David Cross, Bobcat Goldthwait, Reggie Watts, and Howie Mandel.
Chop & Steele premiered at Tribeca in 2022 and went on to a robust North American festival run that encompassed Calgary, Philadelphia, Seattle, Denver, the Heartland International Film Festival in Indianapolis, the Sidewalk Film Festival in Birmingham, Ala., and the San Francisco Independent Film Festival.
In Chop & Steele, Found Footage Festival principals Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher, “lifelong friends who tour the country with their popular VHS oddities festival, are slapped with a federal lawsuit after pranking a local news station as ‘strong men’ Chop and Steele. Many notables are featured in the doc, including David Cross, Bobcat Goldthwait, Reggie Watts, and Howie Mandel.
- 3/11/2023
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
As the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival reaches the quarter-century mark this year, the festival’s industry arm, Agora, will host a range of events and initiatives looking to bolster documentary production and distribution in both the host country and the wider region.
Headlining the industry program is the Agora’s co-production and co-financing forum, which takes place March 6 and will present 14 projects in development by documentary filmmakers from Southeastern Europe, the Middle East and the Black Sea region. Another highlight, Agora Docs in Progress, showcases 11 films nearing completion and ready to hit the festival circuit this year.
The success of those two programs is evident in the selection at this year’s festival: Fifteen documentaries that have been supported in previous editions of the Agora will celebrate world, international or European premieres in the competition sections or Open Horizons section, including Agora Docs in Progress alumni “Narrow Path to Happiness” (pictured), by Kata Oláh,...
Headlining the industry program is the Agora’s co-production and co-financing forum, which takes place March 6 and will present 14 projects in development by documentary filmmakers from Southeastern Europe, the Middle East and the Black Sea region. Another highlight, Agora Docs in Progress, showcases 11 films nearing completion and ready to hit the festival circuit this year.
The success of those two programs is evident in the selection at this year’s festival: Fifteen documentaries that have been supported in previous editions of the Agora will celebrate world, international or European premieres in the competition sections or Open Horizons section, including Agora Docs in Progress alumni “Narrow Path to Happiness” (pictured), by Kata Oláh,...
- 2/28/2023
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
George MacKay is virtually unrecognizable in the erotic revenge thriller “Femme,” directed by Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping. With slicked-back hair and a heavy-handed neck tattoo, the dashing, soft-spoken British actor, well known for his period roles, is transformed into the kind of East London gangster you’d go out of your way to avoid.
Part of what makes MacKay’s character, Preston, so menacing is the fact that he’s deeply closeted. When one night he’s teased in front of his friends by Nathan Stewart-Jarrett’s drag artist Jules — dressed up as Aphrodite Banks — he responds with violence so severe that it shatters Jules’ confidence to ever perform in drag again. The attack emboldens Jules to ensnare an unwitting Preston in an intense sexual relationship with the intention of outing him on the Internet.
It’s not only Jules’ character who trades in drag, explains MacKay.
Part of what makes MacKay’s character, Preston, so menacing is the fact that he’s deeply closeted. When one night he’s teased in front of his friends by Nathan Stewart-Jarrett’s drag artist Jules — dressed up as Aphrodite Banks — he responds with violence so severe that it shatters Jules’ confidence to ever perform in drag again. The attack emboldens Jules to ensnare an unwitting Preston in an intense sexual relationship with the intention of outing him on the Internet.
It’s not only Jules’ character who trades in drag, explains MacKay.
- 2/19/2023
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Documentary filmmaker Simon Lereng Wilmont won a Peabody Award in 2017 for “The Distant Barking of Dogs,” which focused on a young boy living in the Ukraine with his grandmother during wartime. When Wilmont learned that she was deathly ill, he wanted to know: What might become of that boy? He began visiting orphanages near the Ukrainian frontline and quickly learned: The institutions were too big, too much the same. Except for one.
“There was such a different feeling,” the Danish director told me on Zoom. “There was a carpet on the floor, and it was worn out. The paint on the walls was old and chipped, but there were kids’ drawings hanging on the wall. And in one of the rooms nearby, I could see an elderly lady trying to teach some of the girls music. A lot of small kids were running around in chaos and laughing and chasing...
“There was such a different feeling,” the Danish director told me on Zoom. “There was a carpet on the floor, and it was worn out. The paint on the walls was old and chipped, but there were kids’ drawings hanging on the wall. And in one of the rooms nearby, I could see an elderly lady trying to teach some of the girls music. A lot of small kids were running around in chaos and laughing and chasing...
- 2/8/2023
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Gort in Galway has the highest percentage of migrants in Ireland. This documentary simply lets people talk to camera – to wonderful effect
Irish film-maker Treasa O’Brien has created a valuable and empathic documentary essay project about history, memory and community; it is executive produced by The Act of Killing’s Josh Oppenheimer, whose influence is detectable in one verbatim-cinema-type “dream re-enactment” scene (although I must say that this is the one creative avenue that doesn’t really go anywhere).
Town of Strangers is set in the town of Gort in County Galway, perhaps best known for being the site of Coole House, the home of Lady Gregory and the Irish literary revival of Yeats, Synge, O’Casey and Shaw. None of that is mentioned, however: O’Brien focuses on its 21st-century distinction of having Ireland’s highest percentage of migrants. O’Brien auditions for people to come and be involved in her documentary,...
Irish film-maker Treasa O’Brien has created a valuable and empathic documentary essay project about history, memory and community; it is executive produced by The Act of Killing’s Josh Oppenheimer, whose influence is detectable in one verbatim-cinema-type “dream re-enactment” scene (although I must say that this is the one creative avenue that doesn’t really go anywhere).
Town of Strangers is set in the town of Gort in County Galway, perhaps best known for being the site of Coole House, the home of Lady Gregory and the Irish literary revival of Yeats, Synge, O’Casey and Shaw. None of that is mentioned, however: O’Brien focuses on its 21st-century distinction of having Ireland’s highest percentage of migrants. O’Brien auditions for people to come and be involved in her documentary,...
- 2/7/2023
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
The Telluride Film Festival’s emphasis on documentary has not wavered in recent years. But the prominence of nonfiction fare at the 49th edition has arguably made this year’s Telluride the autumn Sundance, where some of the biggest buzz is for docs.
The lineup, kept under wraps until the eve of the fest’s opening on Sept. 2, includes 16 docs from novice and veteran documentarians, including Steve James (“A Compassionate Spy”), Matthew Heineman (“Retrograde”), Chris Smith (“Sr.”) Ondi Timoner (“Last Flight Home”) and Ryan White (“Good Night Oppy”). (Additional “secret” screenings have yet to be announced.)
The rising level of documentaries at the Colorado fest is largely due to the influence of Telluride executive director Julie Huntsinger.
“This year, there is almost parity with the narrative features in the [main feature] program,” says Huntsinger, who co-directs Telluride with Tom Luddy. “It’s not us actively seeking it. For lack of a better word,...
The lineup, kept under wraps until the eve of the fest’s opening on Sept. 2, includes 16 docs from novice and veteran documentarians, including Steve James (“A Compassionate Spy”), Matthew Heineman (“Retrograde”), Chris Smith (“Sr.”) Ondi Timoner (“Last Flight Home”) and Ryan White (“Good Night Oppy”). (Additional “secret” screenings have yet to be announced.)
The rising level of documentaries at the Colorado fest is largely due to the influence of Telluride executive director Julie Huntsinger.
“This year, there is almost parity with the narrative features in the [main feature] program,” says Huntsinger, who co-directs Telluride with Tom Luddy. “It’s not us actively seeking it. For lack of a better word,...
- 9/2/2022
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: London-based Dogwoof has boarded world sales, excluding North America, on The Last Rider, the latest documentary from MRC Non-Fiction and filmmaker Alex Holmes on the story of cyclist Greg LeMond.
The deal was negotiated between Dogwoof CEO Anna Godas and Amit Dey, MRC’s Executive Vice President of Non-Fiction. This is the second Alex Holmes film Dogwoof has represented, following 2019’s Maiden. The Last Rider will make its World Premiere at Telluride this weekend. Dogwoof will present the film to buyers ahead of TIFF.
The doc follows the story of Greg LeMond, who came back from the brink of death after a hunting accident to win the closest race in the history of the Tour de France beating his rivals Laurent Fignon and Pedro Delgado. LeMond remains the only American to have won the race without performance-enhancing drugs.
The Last Rider is a New Black Films production. Victoria Gregory,...
The deal was negotiated between Dogwoof CEO Anna Godas and Amit Dey, MRC’s Executive Vice President of Non-Fiction. This is the second Alex Holmes film Dogwoof has represented, following 2019’s Maiden. The Last Rider will make its World Premiere at Telluride this weekend. Dogwoof will present the film to buyers ahead of TIFF.
The doc follows the story of Greg LeMond, who came back from the brink of death after a hunting accident to win the closest race in the history of the Tour de France beating his rivals Laurent Fignon and Pedro Delgado. LeMond remains the only American to have won the race without performance-enhancing drugs.
The Last Rider is a New Black Films production. Victoria Gregory,...
- 9/2/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
The content available on most streaming services changes regularly, and Hulu is no exception. As such, having a handy guide for what to watch each month can be an invaluable resource. And so, without further ado, we present to you the 60 best movies on Hulu right now.
What can you expect from the Hulu catalog specifically? Well, for one, plenty of 20th Century productions, as well as films made under its specialty label, Searchlight Pictures. Ever since Disney bought Fox (which also gave the Mouse House a controlling share of Hulu), the streaming service has been the exclusive streaming destination for all 20th Century films. Hulu also has a pretty strong, albeit constantly revolving, selection of films from other studios, so there's plenty of good stuff to choose from. Given that HBO Max seems to be going through some turbulent times, Hulu currently seems to be the go-to place for...
What can you expect from the Hulu catalog specifically? Well, for one, plenty of 20th Century productions, as well as films made under its specialty label, Searchlight Pictures. Ever since Disney bought Fox (which also gave the Mouse House a controlling share of Hulu), the streaming service has been the exclusive streaming destination for all 20th Century films. Hulu also has a pretty strong, albeit constantly revolving, selection of films from other studios, so there's plenty of good stuff to choose from. Given that HBO Max seems to be going through some turbulent times, Hulu currently seems to be the go-to place for...
- 8/23/2022
- by Layla Halfhill
- Slash Film
NYC Weekend Watch is our weekly round-up of repertory offerings.
Film at Lincoln Center
As the 4K restoration of Keane opens (read our interview with Lodge Kerrigan here) and Three Colors: Blue continues alongside Three Colors: White, the series “Animating Funny Pages” shows the inspiration of Owen Kline’s new feature—work by Robert Downey Sr, Frank Tashlin, and more.
Film Forum
To mark the great Alain Resnias’ centennial, a massive retrospective continues with Marienbad, Hiroshima, Je t’aime, je t’aime, and some of his lesser-seen (but no less great) features—Mélo, Stavisky, Love Unto Death, and Life is a Bed of Roses.
Bam
“Intimate Epics” continues with Happy Hour, Barry Lyndon, Andrei Rublev, and Sátántangó.
Museum of the Moving Image
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Licorice Pizza, and Sleeping Beauty all play on 70mm this weekend, while one of cinema’s most unsung heroes—women in Australian cinema—get...
Film at Lincoln Center
As the 4K restoration of Keane opens (read our interview with Lodge Kerrigan here) and Three Colors: Blue continues alongside Three Colors: White, the series “Animating Funny Pages” shows the inspiration of Owen Kline’s new feature—work by Robert Downey Sr, Frank Tashlin, and more.
Film Forum
To mark the great Alain Resnias’ centennial, a massive retrospective continues with Marienbad, Hiroshima, Je t’aime, je t’aime, and some of his lesser-seen (but no less great) features—Mélo, Stavisky, Love Unto Death, and Life is a Bed of Roses.
Bam
“Intimate Epics” continues with Happy Hour, Barry Lyndon, Andrei Rublev, and Sátántangó.
Museum of the Moving Image
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Licorice Pizza, and Sleeping Beauty all play on 70mm this weekend, while one of cinema’s most unsung heroes—women in Australian cinema—get...
- 8/18/2022
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
The government of Zimbabwe has banned “President,” Danish filmmaker Camilla Nielsson’s Oscar-shortlisted documentary about the African nation’s corrupt 2018 presidential election, Variety can exclusively reveal.
In a letter dated June 16, the country’s censorship board slapped a ban on the Sundance prize-winning documentary, insisting that it “has the potential to incite violence” as Zimbabwe gears up for presidential elections in 2023.
The filmmakers are now challenging the ruling in Zimbabwe’s constitutional court, promising a long legal battle ahead.
“President” is the follow-up to Nielsson’s critically acclaimed “Democrats,” which chronicled the laborious construction of Zimbabwe’s 2013 constitution. It captures Zimbabwe at a crossroads, as it prepares for its first election since the ouster of Robert Mugabe, who was forced from power after nearly four decades in the wake of a 2017 military coup.
The film follows opposition leader Nelson Chamisa as he challenges the dictator’s successor, Emmerson Mnangagwa, while...
In a letter dated June 16, the country’s censorship board slapped a ban on the Sundance prize-winning documentary, insisting that it “has the potential to incite violence” as Zimbabwe gears up for presidential elections in 2023.
The filmmakers are now challenging the ruling in Zimbabwe’s constitutional court, promising a long legal battle ahead.
“President” is the follow-up to Nielsson’s critically acclaimed “Democrats,” which chronicled the laborious construction of Zimbabwe’s 2013 constitution. It captures Zimbabwe at a crossroads, as it prepares for its first election since the ouster of Robert Mugabe, who was forced from power after nearly four decades in the wake of a 2017 military coup.
The film follows opposition leader Nelson Chamisa as he challenges the dictator’s successor, Emmerson Mnangagwa, while...
- 8/8/2022
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Philippa Kowarsky is leaving her role as Commissioning Editor of BBC’s Storyville documentary strand after a year in post.
In an internal post, BBC Films Director Eva Yates told colleagues Kowarsky would be “leaving the team to pursue other ventures outside of the BBC.
“I would like to personally thank Philippa for her contribution to the success of Storyville over the past year, during which time she has built a rich and varied slate of films. I wish her all the best for her future plans.”
Kowarsky’s commissions while at the BBC included The Earth is as Blue as an Orange, which followed a Ukrainian family living under siege in 1997.
Yates said she would update “soon on next steps for Storyville.” She is taking on oversight and commissioning duties for Storyville in the interim.
Kowarsky has joined from Cinephil, the international sales and advisory firm which she founded...
In an internal post, BBC Films Director Eva Yates told colleagues Kowarsky would be “leaving the team to pursue other ventures outside of the BBC.
“I would like to personally thank Philippa for her contribution to the success of Storyville over the past year, during which time she has built a rich and varied slate of films. I wish her all the best for her future plans.”
Kowarsky’s commissions while at the BBC included The Earth is as Blue as an Orange, which followed a Ukrainian family living under siege in 1997.
Yates said she would update “soon on next steps for Storyville.” She is taking on oversight and commissioning duties for Storyville in the interim.
Kowarsky has joined from Cinephil, the international sales and advisory firm which she founded...
- 8/4/2022
- by Jesse Whittock
- Deadline Film + TV
BBC Storyville commissioning editor Philippa Kowarsky is departing the corporation to pursue other ventures. Director of BBC Film Eva Yates will be the interim commissioning contact for BBC Storyville until a replacement for Kowarsky is found.
In a notice to BBC staff, seen by Variety, Yates wrote: “I’m writing to let you know that Philippa Kowarsky will be leaving the team to pursue other ventures outside of the BBC. I would like to personally thank Philippa for her contribution to the success of Storyville over the past year, during which time she has built a rich and varied slate of films. I wish her all the best for her future plans.”
“We will update you soon on next steps for Storyville. In the interim, please come to me with any issues or commissioning decisions that may arise,” Yates added.
As director of BBC Film, Yates already had oversight of Storyville.
In a notice to BBC staff, seen by Variety, Yates wrote: “I’m writing to let you know that Philippa Kowarsky will be leaving the team to pursue other ventures outside of the BBC. I would like to personally thank Philippa for her contribution to the success of Storyville over the past year, during which time she has built a rich and varied slate of films. I wish her all the best for her future plans.”
“We will update you soon on next steps for Storyville. In the interim, please come to me with any issues or commissioning decisions that may arise,” Yates added.
As director of BBC Film, Yates already had oversight of Storyville.
- 8/4/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Conflict hot spots, war frontlines, and violent protests may seem the most obvious places for journalists to die in the line of duty, but “The Killing of a Journalist,” which recently premiered at Toronto’s Hot Docs, compellingly illustrates how investigative journalism—particular the kind that crunches numbers and sticks its nose in the shady corners where politics and organized crime intersect—is more insidiously deadly.
Directed by U.S. journalist Matt Sarnecki—a senior producer for the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (Occrp) and Bucharest-based since 2013—the film began as an investigation of the brutal murder of investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová in their home in February 2018. It was the first-ever targeted killing of a journalist in Slovakia.
Kuciak, who was self-taught in understanding financial data but highly effective at sifting through numbers for clues to corruption, had frequently focused on combative millionaire businessman Marián Kočner,...
Directed by U.S. journalist Matt Sarnecki—a senior producer for the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (Occrp) and Bucharest-based since 2013—the film began as an investigation of the brutal murder of investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová in their home in February 2018. It was the first-ever targeted killing of a journalist in Slovakia.
Kuciak, who was self-taught in understanding financial data but highly effective at sifting through numbers for clues to corruption, had frequently focused on combative millionaire businessman Marián Kočner,...
- 5/9/2022
- by Jennie Punter
- Variety Film + TV
Over the course of a celebrated 40-year career, veteran Danish editor Niels Pagh Andersen has worked on critically acclaimed films including Pirjo Honkasalo’s “The 3 Rooms of Melancholia” and Joshua Oppenheimer’s Oscar-nominated “The Act of Killing” and “The Look of Silence.”
One of the key takeaways from those collaborations, which he explores in his new book “Order in Chaos: Storytelling and Editing in Documentary Film,” is the importance of the creative synergy that forms between an editor and a filmmaker.
“The artistic vision is the director’s responsibility. But with the [editing] process, there I feel it’s also my responsibility that we get the best out of the two of us,” says Andersen, who gave a masterclass this week at the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. “If you can have the creative dialogue, then you create something that is bigger than the individual.”
In “Order in Chaos,” Andersen offers readers a...
One of the key takeaways from those collaborations, which he explores in his new book “Order in Chaos: Storytelling and Editing in Documentary Film,” is the importance of the creative synergy that forms between an editor and a filmmaker.
“The artistic vision is the director’s responsibility. But with the [editing] process, there I feel it’s also my responsibility that we get the best out of the two of us,” says Andersen, who gave a masterclass this week at the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. “If you can have the creative dialogue, then you create something that is bigger than the individual.”
In “Order in Chaos,” Andersen offers readers a...
- 3/16/2022
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Digital distributor Giant Pictures has acquired Drafthouse Films, the genre movie label formed by Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League.
Giant Pictures general manager Nick Savva will serve as CEO of the company, which will continue to operate under the title Drafthouse Films. League will become the chairman of Drafthouse Films.
“Giant Pictures’ investment enables Drafthouse Films to continue releasing the provocative, visionary, and artfully unusual genre films from around the world that have always defined the Drafthouse brand,” Savva said. “At the same time, this acquisition gives Giant new theatrical releasing capabilities which complement our existing digital distribution and streaming technology businesses.”
Drafthouse Films was created as the distribution arm of Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas in 2010 before being spun off from the exhibitor. Past titles on Drafthouse Films’ slate were “Bullhead,” “The Act of Killing,” “Spring” and “Cheap Thrills.” Giant Pictures partners with studios and filmmakers to release movies and TV shows across major streaming platforms,...
Giant Pictures general manager Nick Savva will serve as CEO of the company, which will continue to operate under the title Drafthouse Films. League will become the chairman of Drafthouse Films.
“Giant Pictures’ investment enables Drafthouse Films to continue releasing the provocative, visionary, and artfully unusual genre films from around the world that have always defined the Drafthouse brand,” Savva said. “At the same time, this acquisition gives Giant new theatrical releasing capabilities which complement our existing digital distribution and streaming technology businesses.”
Drafthouse Films was created as the distribution arm of Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas in 2010 before being spun off from the exhibitor. Past titles on Drafthouse Films’ slate were “Bullhead,” “The Act of Killing,” “Spring” and “Cheap Thrills.” Giant Pictures partners with studios and filmmakers to release movies and TV shows across major streaming platforms,...
- 3/9/2022
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
Imagining what “In the Mood for Love” might have been like had Apichatpong Weeraserhakul directed it will land you somewhere in the vicinity of “Before, Now & Then,” Kamila Andini’s beguiling drama set in 1960s Indonesia. Anyone familiar with that country’s history, even if only through Joshua Oppenheimer’s devastating companion documentaries “The Act of Killing” and “The Look of Silence,” knows that there’s little happiness on the other side of this film’s end credits, but Andini’s literary adaptation is so transfixing that her characters never feel as doomed as we know them to be.
The “before” prologue finds Nana (Happy Salma) and her sister Ninsingh (Rieke Diah Pitaloka) fleeing for their lives, with our heroine convinced that both her husband and father are dead as the result of the country’s anticommunist purge — a fate that may await her should she refuse to marry an...
The “before” prologue finds Nana (Happy Salma) and her sister Ninsingh (Rieke Diah Pitaloka) fleeing for their lives, with our heroine convinced that both her husband and father are dead as the result of the country’s anticommunist purge — a fate that may await her should she refuse to marry an...
- 2/13/2022
- by Michael Nordine
- Variety Film + TV
“Why do women wear their hair long?,” asks the irrepressible Dais of her mother Nana as she sits in front of the mirror, dressing her hair as if there were nothing more important in life. To all appearances, life moves slowly in 1960s West Java. Dais wants to have her hair short like Daddy’s, so she doesn’t have to spend so much time in the shower. And why, she goes on, do you wear it in a bun? “A woman must be good at keeping secrets,” replies Nana (Happy Salma) fondly. “What happens in her household is under her bun.”
There is enough unspoken tragedy in Nana’s life to clog a dozen hairbrushes, some of which we have already seen; things here haven’t always moved at the pace of a painting.
The opening scene of Kamila Andini’s Berlin Film Festival competition entry Before, Now & Then...
There is enough unspoken tragedy in Nana’s life to clog a dozen hairbrushes, some of which we have already seen; things here haven’t always moved at the pace of a painting.
The opening scene of Kamila Andini’s Berlin Film Festival competition entry Before, Now & Then...
- 2/12/2022
- by Stephanie Bunbury
- Deadline Film + TV
Showtime Documentary Films has acquired “2nd Chance,” about the life and legacy of Richard Davis, from director and Oscar-nominated screenwriter Ramin Bahrani.
The feature length-documentary centers on Davis, the charming and brash inventor of the modern-day bulletproof vest, who shot himself 192 times to prove his product worked.
“Richard Davis is a fascinating documentary subject whose character reveals a deeper metaphor for America today,” said Bahrani. “I am very thankful to the producers and entire filmmaking team for being part of such a thought provoking and timely film. We are thrilled to partner with Showtime and look forward to bringing ‘2nd Chance’ to audiences.”
Written, directed, and produced by Bahrani, “2nd Chance” is produced by Daniel Turcan & Johnny Galvin of Vespucci, Charles Dorfman and Jacob Grodnik. The film is executive produced by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Joshua Oppenheimer, Myles Estey, Bahareh Azimi and Marlon Vogelgesang. Endeavor Content and Samuel Marshall Films produced and financed the film.
The feature length-documentary centers on Davis, the charming and brash inventor of the modern-day bulletproof vest, who shot himself 192 times to prove his product worked.
“Richard Davis is a fascinating documentary subject whose character reveals a deeper metaphor for America today,” said Bahrani. “I am very thankful to the producers and entire filmmaking team for being part of such a thought provoking and timely film. We are thrilled to partner with Showtime and look forward to bringing ‘2nd Chance’ to audiences.”
Written, directed, and produced by Bahrani, “2nd Chance” is produced by Daniel Turcan & Johnny Galvin of Vespucci, Charles Dorfman and Jacob Grodnik. The film is executive produced by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Joshua Oppenheimer, Myles Estey, Bahareh Azimi and Marlon Vogelgesang. Endeavor Content and Samuel Marshall Films produced and financed the film.
- 1/29/2022
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
On the Eastern border of Ukraine in the Donbas region is the city of Lysychansk, only 90 kilometers from Lugansk, where along the bank of the Donets lies the Lysychansk Center for the Social and Psychological Rehabilitation of Children.
This halfway house serves as a momentary intervention for neglected and at-risk children while the state decides where to place them. It is there that director Simon Lereng Wimont, who was shortlisted for an Oscar with his last film “The Distant Barking of Dogs,” filmed his new documentary “A House Made of Splinters” which will world premiere at Sundance in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Cinephil is handling world sales for the film.
Produced by Monica Hellström of Final Cut for Real – whose credits include “Flee,” currently challenging for documentary and international feature Oscars, as well as “The Act of Killing” and “The Look of Silence” – and Sami Jahnukainen of Donkey Hotel,...
This halfway house serves as a momentary intervention for neglected and at-risk children while the state decides where to place them. It is there that director Simon Lereng Wimont, who was shortlisted for an Oscar with his last film “The Distant Barking of Dogs,” filmed his new documentary “A House Made of Splinters” which will world premiere at Sundance in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Cinephil is handling world sales for the film.
Produced by Monica Hellström of Final Cut for Real – whose credits include “Flee,” currently challenging for documentary and international feature Oscars, as well as “The Act of Killing” and “The Look of Silence” – and Sami Jahnukainen of Donkey Hotel,...
- 1/24/2022
- by JD Linville
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Burgeoning documentary production company Sandbox Films has hired Patrick Hurley to fill the newly created position of Distribution Producer, also announcing today that it has launched construction on a new headquarters in New York City.
As Distribution Producer, Hurley will take the lead on distribution strategy, developing bespoke plans and campaigns for each production and working closely with release partners worldwide to maximize each film’s impact and audience. He comes to Sandbox with a decade of experience in connecting documentaries with release partners and audiences, having previously served as Industry Director at Sheffield DocFest and Distribution Manager at Dogwoof.
“Patrick uniquely understands the needs of independent filmmakers, as well as the nuances of a changing industry landscape,” said Sandbox’s Head of Production & Development, Jessica Harrop. “As an impact-minded company, we hope our films connect with large audiences to inspire critical thinking and expand minds. But this can...
As Distribution Producer, Hurley will take the lead on distribution strategy, developing bespoke plans and campaigns for each production and working closely with release partners worldwide to maximize each film’s impact and audience. He comes to Sandbox with a decade of experience in connecting documentaries with release partners and audiences, having previously served as Industry Director at Sheffield DocFest and Distribution Manager at Dogwoof.
“Patrick uniquely understands the needs of independent filmmakers, as well as the nuances of a changing industry landscape,” said Sandbox’s Head of Production & Development, Jessica Harrop. “As an impact-minded company, we hope our films connect with large audiences to inspire critical thinking and expand minds. But this can...
- 1/19/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Firstly, it seems like something of a miracle that any film will be premiering at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. Like, in-person, in theaters, in Park City. After launching an ambitious — and quite popular — hybrid festival for its 2021 edition, the annual event is preparing for a slightly more traditional event in 2022. As announced earlier this year, online screenings will still take place in 2022, but Park City is readying to mount a larger in-person event as well.
And while we can’t wait for that, there’s a whole pack of other eager would-be Sundance attendees feeling a very different kind of anticipation these days: the filmmakers. While the end of November spells the start of holiday time for most, it also comes with a particular anxiety for those who have submitted their film to the fest. As we approach the inevitable lineup announcements, we’ve done our usual scouting around to...
And while we can’t wait for that, there’s a whole pack of other eager would-be Sundance attendees feeling a very different kind of anticipation these days: the filmmakers. While the end of November spells the start of holiday time for most, it also comes with a particular anxiety for those who have submitted their film to the fest. As we approach the inevitable lineup announcements, we’ve done our usual scouting around to...
- 11/22/2021
- by Kate Erbland and Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Russian cinematographer Mikhail Krichman, renowned for his collaborations with Andrey Zvyagintsev on films like Oscar nominees “Leviathan” and “Loveless,” shared some of his secrets during the Imago masterclass at EnergaCamerimage Film Festival, all the while engaging in a friendly dialogue with two-time Oscar nominee Ed Lachman. They both won Golden Frogs at the Polish festival, for “Leviathan” and “Carol” respectively.
Unable to be in Toruń in person, Krichman opened up about his upcoming project, Joshua Oppenheimer’s musical “The End,” starring Tilda Swinton.
“I haven’t done musicals before, with all these dance numbers. This is Joshua’s first fiction film and his approach is very interesting,” he said, admitting he was “amazed and frightened” by Oppenheimer’s documentaries “The Look of Silence” and “The Act of Killing.”
Music is also on Lachman’s mind, working on Todd Haynes’ film about singer Peggy Lee. “It’s a drama, but seen through music.
Unable to be in Toruń in person, Krichman opened up about his upcoming project, Joshua Oppenheimer’s musical “The End,” starring Tilda Swinton.
“I haven’t done musicals before, with all these dance numbers. This is Joshua’s first fiction film and his approach is very interesting,” he said, admitting he was “amazed and frightened” by Oppenheimer’s documentaries “The Look of Silence” and “The Act of Killing.”
Music is also on Lachman’s mind, working on Todd Haynes’ film about singer Peggy Lee. “It’s a drama, but seen through music.
- 11/20/2021
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
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