Universal’s vampire horror Abigail is aiming to take a bite out of the box office this weekend, as it opens in 545 sites in the UK and Ireland for Universal – the widest new opener of the weekend.
The film follows a kidnapping that goes outrageously awry. It shot in Ireland and is directed by US filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett – the team behind Scream and Scream VI. The cast includes Matilda The Musical’s Alisha Weir in the titular role, alongside Melissa Barrera and Dan Stevens. Production companies are Project X Entertainment, Vinson Films and Radio Silence.
It’s...
The film follows a kidnapping that goes outrageously awry. It shot in Ireland and is directed by US filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett – the team behind Scream and Scream VI. The cast includes Matilda The Musical’s Alisha Weir in the titular role, alongside Melissa Barrera and Dan Stevens. Production companies are Project X Entertainment, Vinson Films and Radio Silence.
It’s...
- 4/19/2024
- ScreenDaily
Studiocanal’s Amy Winehouse biopic “Back to Black” debuted atop the U.K and Ireland box office with £2.77 million ($3.4 million), according to numbers from Comscore.
It was neck-and-neck for the second spot. Entertainment Film Distributors’ “Civil War,” directed by Alex Garland and starring Kirsten Dunst, debuted with £1.82 million, including previews. In its third weekend, Universal’s “Kung Fu Panda 4” collected £1.75 million over the three-day weekend for a running total of £17.29 million.
In fourth place, in its third weekend, Warner Bros.’ “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” took in £1.18 million for a total of £11.89 million. Rounding off the top five, in its fourth weekend, Sony’s “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” earned £787,000 for a total of £14.06 million.
There were two debuts in the top 10, both from India. Rft Films’ Malayalam-language “Aavesham,” starring Fahadh Faasil, opened in ninth place with £207,300, while Yash Raj Films’ Bollywood film “Bade Miyan Chote Miyan,” with Akshay Kumar,...
It was neck-and-neck for the second spot. Entertainment Film Distributors’ “Civil War,” directed by Alex Garland and starring Kirsten Dunst, debuted with £1.82 million, including previews. In its third weekend, Universal’s “Kung Fu Panda 4” collected £1.75 million over the three-day weekend for a running total of £17.29 million.
In fourth place, in its third weekend, Warner Bros.’ “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” took in £1.18 million for a total of £11.89 million. Rounding off the top five, in its fourth weekend, Sony’s “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” earned £787,000 for a total of £14.06 million.
There were two debuts in the top 10, both from India. Rft Films’ Malayalam-language “Aavesham,” starring Fahadh Faasil, opened in ninth place with £207,300, while Yash Raj Films’ Bollywood film “Bade Miyan Chote Miyan,” with Akshay Kumar,...
- 4/16/2024
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
From fake news in 1902 to livestreaming a man asleep – and everything in between, the big picture gets a bit lost
Although being distributed in the UK with the title Fantastic Machine, this documentary about the camera through history originally had the much more prolix, pretentious and charming moniker And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine. The line is a quote attributed to Edward VII who is said to have reacted with awe when he saw a film of his own coronation – although the footage in question was not of his actual coronation but filmed by French director Georges Méliès with French actors in a Paris studio in advance, the first example of “fake news”.
That is fitting because here directors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck explore the camera and the moving image’s ability to dazzle, deceive and delight through history. That said, their thematic intent seems to...
Although being distributed in the UK with the title Fantastic Machine, this documentary about the camera through history originally had the much more prolix, pretentious and charming moniker And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine. The line is a quote attributed to Edward VII who is said to have reacted with awe when he saw a film of his own coronation – although the footage in question was not of his actual coronation but filmed by French director Georges Méliès with French actors in a Paris studio in advance, the first example of “fake news”.
That is fitting because here directors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck explore the camera and the moving image’s ability to dazzle, deceive and delight through history. That said, their thematic intent seems to...
- 4/16/2024
- by Leslie Felperin
- The Guardian - Film News
Copenhagen-based Dr Sales has snapped up international rights on the anticipated opening film of the 21st Cph:dox Festival, “Life and Other Problems.” Variety debuts the trailer below.
The playful existential film by Danish documentary filmmaker Max Kestner is shepherded by Denmark’s Bullitt Film (Prix Europa for “Absolute Beginners”), with Ruben Östlund’s Swedish banner Plattform Produktion and the U.K.’s Hopscotch Films (“Story of Film”). Bullitt and Plattform teamed up earlier on the 2023 Sundance special jury prize winning doc “And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine.”
Commenting on the Dr Sales pick up, Kim Christiansen, executive producer, in charge of documentaries and co-productions, says: “Max Kestner has for decades been one of the most intelligent filmmakers in Denmark, and I have personally been a huge fan since his 2002 TV series ‘Blue Collar White Christmas,’ which in tone and humor was way ahead of its time.”
“It’s...
The playful existential film by Danish documentary filmmaker Max Kestner is shepherded by Denmark’s Bullitt Film (Prix Europa for “Absolute Beginners”), with Ruben Östlund’s Swedish banner Plattform Produktion and the U.K.’s Hopscotch Films (“Story of Film”). Bullitt and Plattform teamed up earlier on the 2023 Sundance special jury prize winning doc “And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine.”
Commenting on the Dr Sales pick up, Kim Christiansen, executive producer, in charge of documentaries and co-productions, says: “Max Kestner has for decades been one of the most intelligent filmmakers in Denmark, and I have personally been a huge fan since his 2002 TV series ‘Blue Collar White Christmas,’ which in tone and humor was way ahead of its time.”
“It’s...
- 2/9/2024
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
"That's what entertainment's supposed to do..." Strand Releasing has unveiled the official US trailer for the fascinating documentary film called Fantastic Machine, made by two Swedish filmmakers, out to watch on VOD in January. This premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and played at tons of fests all year long (it's the exact same trailer as the festival promo). The original full title is "And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine", which is taken from the reaction of King Edvard VII of England about Georges Méliès' staged recreation of his coronation (in 1902), his one-liner resonating with a double meaning today: "What a fantastic machine the camera is." From the first camera to 45 billion cameras worldwide today, the visual sociologist filmmakers widen their lens to expose both humanity's unique obsession with the camera's image and the social consequences that lay ahead. I watched this at Sundance and it's a compelling,...
- 12/20/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
The Academy has revealed the list of eligible films for consideration in best animated, documentary and international feature of the year, encompassing a broad range of blockbusters and critically acclaimed titles.
GKids’ “The Boy and the Heron,” Pixar’s “Elemental,” Sony’s “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” and Illumination’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” are among the 33 animated films in the running. This is up from 27 in 2023, when “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” took home the prize.
The eventual five nominees are determined by members of the shorts and animation branch, and any Academy members outside the branch who wish to participate. The number of outside members who opt in is unknown. All films submitted for animated feature also qualify for the Academy Awards in other categories, including best picture.
Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Oscars predictions in all categories.
There are 88 films representing their countries for the international feature Oscar,...
GKids’ “The Boy and the Heron,” Pixar’s “Elemental,” Sony’s “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” and Illumination’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” are among the 33 animated films in the running. This is up from 27 in 2023, when “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” took home the prize.
The eventual five nominees are determined by members of the shorts and animation branch, and any Academy members outside the branch who wish to participate. The number of outside members who opt in is unknown. All films submitted for animated feature also qualify for the Academy Awards in other categories, including best picture.
Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Oscars predictions in all categories.
There are 88 films representing their countries for the international feature Oscar,...
- 12/7/2023
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Bookmark this page for the latest updates in the territory.
Screen is listing the 2024 release dates for films in the UK and Ireland in the calendar below.
For distributors who wish to add/amend a date on the calendar, please get in touch with Screen here. Screen is also running a calendar for festival and market dates throughout 2024 here.
January
January 5
Priscilla (Mubi), One Life (Warner Bros), Scala! (BFI), Night Swim (Universal), Blank (Sparky)
January 6
Nabucco - Met Opera 23/24 (Trafalgar)
January 12
Poor Things (Disney), The Boys In The Boat (Warner Bros), Freaks Vs The Reich (Miracle/Dazzler), The Beekeeper (Studiocanal...
Screen is listing the 2024 release dates for films in the UK and Ireland in the calendar below.
For distributors who wish to add/amend a date on the calendar, please get in touch with Screen here. Screen is also running a calendar for festival and market dates throughout 2024 here.
January
January 5
Priscilla (Mubi), One Life (Warner Bros), Scala! (BFI), Night Swim (Universal), Blank (Sparky)
January 6
Nabucco - Met Opera 23/24 (Trafalgar)
January 12
Poor Things (Disney), The Boys In The Boat (Warner Bros), Freaks Vs The Reich (Miracle/Dazzler), The Beekeeper (Studiocanal...
- 11/21/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
“Kokomo City,” D. Smith’s documentary about four trans Black women in New York and Georgia, led all films in nominations for the 17th annual Cinema Eye Honors, the New York-based awards designed to spotlight all facets of nonfiction filmmaking.
The film received six nominations, including Outstanding Nonfiction Feature and Outstanding Direction. Mstyslav Chernov’s “20 Days in Mariupol,” Maite Alberdi’s “The Eternal Memory” and Sam Green’s “32 Sounds” followed with five nominations each.
In the Outstanding Nonfiction Feature category, “Kokomo City,” “The Eternal Memory,” “20 Days in Mariupol” and “32 Sounds” were joined by “Four Daughters,” “Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project” and “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie.”
Matthew Heineman’s “American Symphony” received nominations for Outstanding Production and Outstanding Score, making Heineman the third-most-nominated filmmaker in Cinema Eye history. With 12 nominations overall, he now trails Steve James and Laura Poitras by one.
While many...
The film received six nominations, including Outstanding Nonfiction Feature and Outstanding Direction. Mstyslav Chernov’s “20 Days in Mariupol,” Maite Alberdi’s “The Eternal Memory” and Sam Green’s “32 Sounds” followed with five nominations each.
In the Outstanding Nonfiction Feature category, “Kokomo City,” “The Eternal Memory,” “20 Days in Mariupol” and “32 Sounds” were joined by “Four Daughters,” “Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project” and “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie.”
Matthew Heineman’s “American Symphony” received nominations for Outstanding Production and Outstanding Score, making Heineman the third-most-nominated filmmaker in Cinema Eye history. With 12 nominations overall, he now trails Steve James and Laura Poitras by one.
While many...
- 11/16/2023
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
The Cinema Eye Honors for achievement in nonfiction and documentary films and series has announced nominees for the 17th awards ceremony. “Kokomo City” from D. Smith led the nominees with six. “20 Days in Mariupol,” “32 Sounds” and “The Eternal Memory” each received five nominations. The nominees for outstanding fiction feature also include “Four Daughters,” “Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project” and “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie.”
Outstanding direction nominees include Maite Alberdi for “The Eternal Memory,” Sam Green for “32 Sounds,” Kaouther Ben Hania for “Four Daughters,” Smith for “Kokomo City,” Claire Simon for “Our Body” and Wim Wenders for “Anselm.”
The Cinema Eye 2024 Awards Ceremony takes place on Jan. 12 at the New York Academy of Medicine in East Harlem.
Full list of nominees follows.
2024 Cinema Eye Honors Nominations
Outstanding Nonfiction Feature
20 Days in Mariupol
Directed by Mstyslav Chernov
Produced by Mstyslav Chernov, Michelle Mizner, Raney Aronson Rath...
Outstanding direction nominees include Maite Alberdi for “The Eternal Memory,” Sam Green for “32 Sounds,” Kaouther Ben Hania for “Four Daughters,” Smith for “Kokomo City,” Claire Simon for “Our Body” and Wim Wenders for “Anselm.”
The Cinema Eye 2024 Awards Ceremony takes place on Jan. 12 at the New York Academy of Medicine in East Harlem.
Full list of nominees follows.
2024 Cinema Eye Honors Nominations
Outstanding Nonfiction Feature
20 Days in Mariupol
Directed by Mstyslav Chernov
Produced by Mstyslav Chernov, Michelle Mizner, Raney Aronson Rath...
- 11/16/2023
- by Pat Saperstein
- Variety Film + TV
Two experimental films executive produced by Steven Soderbergh — Eddie Alcazar’s Divinity and Godfrey Reggio’s Once Within a Time – join Neon’s anticipated Cannes Palme d’Or winner Anatomy of a Fall in theaters today, a bit of counterprogramming on a weekend dominated by Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour.
Divinity, about a dark and creepy future populated by bodybuilders hooked on an elixir for eternal life, “was always made for the theater,” said Alcazar. “But it’s kind of a roll of the dice of what a distributor wants to do with it.” Utopia, which acquired the black-and-white romp — set mostly in a mansion on a desert that looks like the moon — after its Sundance premiere (see Deadline review), opens Divinity at Regal Union Square in NYC, expanding to Los Angeles next week, with a national rollout on 11/3.
There will be opening-weekend Q&As with Alcazar, Soderbergh, star Stephen Dorff and DJ Muggs.
Divinity, about a dark and creepy future populated by bodybuilders hooked on an elixir for eternal life, “was always made for the theater,” said Alcazar. “But it’s kind of a roll of the dice of what a distributor wants to do with it.” Utopia, which acquired the black-and-white romp — set mostly in a mansion on a desert that looks like the moon — after its Sundance premiere (see Deadline review), opens Divinity at Regal Union Square in NYC, expanding to Los Angeles next week, with a national rollout on 11/3.
There will be opening-weekend Q&As with Alcazar, Soderbergh, star Stephen Dorff and DJ Muggs.
- 10/13/2023
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
Strand Releasing has acquired North American rights to “Fantastic Machine,” a documentary which is executive produced by Ruben Östlund (“Triangle of Sadness”) and won Sundance Festival’s Creative Vision Award.
Directed by Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck, “Fantastic Machine” went on to win both the Youth Jury Special Mention and the Cinema Vision 14+ awards at the Berlin Film Festival.
The documentary examines humanity’s infatuation with images of itself, and the impact that has on an untethered free market flooded with photos from 45 billion cameras worldwide each minute.
“Strand is thrilled to be handling this innovative documentary: ‘Fantastic Machine’ is truly an original vision that Danielson and Van Aertryck have fashioned, and we look forward to taking it out theatrically,” said Strand co-founder Jon Gerrans, who negotiated the North American deal with Ioanna Stais at Heretic. Strand is planning to release the documentary in late 2023 or early 2024.
“I’m...
Directed by Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck, “Fantastic Machine” went on to win both the Youth Jury Special Mention and the Cinema Vision 14+ awards at the Berlin Film Festival.
The documentary examines humanity’s infatuation with images of itself, and the impact that has on an untethered free market flooded with photos from 45 billion cameras worldwide each minute.
“Strand is thrilled to be handling this innovative documentary: ‘Fantastic Machine’ is truly an original vision that Danielson and Van Aertryck have fashioned, and we look forward to taking it out theatrically,” said Strand co-founder Jon Gerrans, who negotiated the North American deal with Ioanna Stais at Heretic. Strand is planning to release the documentary in late 2023 or early 2024.
“I’m...
- 6/27/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Heretic has acquired world sales rights to “Sweet Dreams,” the sophomore feature from award-winning Bosnian Dutch director Ena Sendijarević (“Take Me Somewhere Nice”).
Set on a remote Indonesian island during the waning days of the colonial era, the film centers on Dutch sugar plantation owner Jan and his wife, Agathe, who are at the top of the food chain. That is, until Jan, upon returning from his nightly visit to his native concubine, Siti, suddenly drops dead in front of his wife.
Desperate to keep the privileges of her status quo, Agathe forces her estranged son Cornelis and his heavily pregnant wife, Josefien, to travel from Europe and take over the family business. In the midst of a workers’ uprising, Cornelis displays his plans for progressive change. But when Jan’s will puts Siti at the forefront of the family estate, ideals prove to be idle and blood thicker than water.
Set on a remote Indonesian island during the waning days of the colonial era, the film centers on Dutch sugar plantation owner Jan and his wife, Agathe, who are at the top of the food chain. That is, until Jan, upon returning from his nightly visit to his native concubine, Siti, suddenly drops dead in front of his wife.
Desperate to keep the privileges of her status quo, Agathe forces her estranged son Cornelis and his heavily pregnant wife, Josefien, to travel from Europe and take over the family business. In the midst of a workers’ uprising, Cornelis displays his plans for progressive change. But when Jan’s will puts Siti at the forefront of the family estate, ideals prove to be idle and blood thicker than water.
- 5/15/2023
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Norwegian distributor Fidalgo has acquired a number of award-winning titles following conversations began at the European Film Market in Berlin in February.
The company’s latest acquisitions include Fantastic Machine, directed by Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck and sold by Heretic. Fidalgo plans a theatrical release this autumn for the documentary about humanity’s obsession with the image. The film won Sundance’s World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Creative Vision and the Ag Kino Award Cinema Vision Award at Berlinale Generation 14plus.
Fidalgo also bought another Sundance award-winning documentary, Anna Hints’ Smoke Sauna Sisterhood, sold by Autlook.
The company’s latest acquisitions include Fantastic Machine, directed by Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck and sold by Heretic. Fidalgo plans a theatrical release this autumn for the documentary about humanity’s obsession with the image. The film won Sundance’s World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Creative Vision and the Ag Kino Award Cinema Vision Award at Berlinale Generation 14plus.
Fidalgo also bought another Sundance award-winning documentary, Anna Hints’ Smoke Sauna Sisterhood, sold by Autlook.
- 5/3/2023
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
The Sundance Film Festival: London 2023 will close with the U.K. premiere of Nicole Holofcener’s “You Hurt My Feelings.”
The comedy-drama is set in Brooklyn and stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Tobias Menzies as a couple whose marriage is thrown into turmoil when she overhears his honest reaction to her latest book.
As previously announced, the festival will open with the U.K. premiere of “Scrapper,” written and directed by Londoner Charlotte Regan, starring Harris Dickinson and newcomers Lola Campbell and Alin Uzun. It follows Georgie, a dreamy 12-year-old girl, who lives happily alone in her London flat, filling it with magic. Suddenly, her estranged father turns up and forces her to confront reality.
Curated by Picturehouse and the Sundance Institute, the 10th edition of the festival is set to take place from July 6-9 July at Picturehouse Central and will showcase 11 feature films that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City,...
The comedy-drama is set in Brooklyn and stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Tobias Menzies as a couple whose marriage is thrown into turmoil when she overhears his honest reaction to her latest book.
As previously announced, the festival will open with the U.K. premiere of “Scrapper,” written and directed by Londoner Charlotte Regan, starring Harris Dickinson and newcomers Lola Campbell and Alin Uzun. It follows Georgie, a dreamy 12-year-old girl, who lives happily alone in her London flat, filling it with magic. Suddenly, her estranged father turns up and forces her to confront reality.
Curated by Picturehouse and the Sundance Institute, the 10th edition of the festival is set to take place from July 6-9 July at Picturehouse Central and will showcase 11 feature films that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City,...
- 5/3/2023
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Oscar-nominated and double Palme d’Or winning film company Plattform Production has premiered its latest film, “A Tiger in Paradise,” by director and editor Mikel Cee Karlsson, as part of a live event that received a standing ovation at Cph:dox, one of Europe’s leading documentary film festivals.
Set in the picturesque Swedish countryside, the doc takes viewers on a surreal journey into the inner world of Swedish indie folk singer-songwriter José González.
Peppered with songs from his latest album “Local Valley,” introspective musings, self-deprecation and playful special effects involving moving portraits, looping techniques and Conway’s famous Game of Life computation model, the film opens with a disarmingly candid disclosure by González about his past mental health issues.
Karlsson tells Variety: “We used José’s mental illness as a jumping off point, in a way, to discuss themes that both of us think are really interesting. We read a lot of the same books.
Set in the picturesque Swedish countryside, the doc takes viewers on a surreal journey into the inner world of Swedish indie folk singer-songwriter José González.
Peppered with songs from his latest album “Local Valley,” introspective musings, self-deprecation and playful special effects involving moving portraits, looping techniques and Conway’s famous Game of Life computation model, the film opens with a disarmingly candid disclosure by González about his past mental health issues.
Karlsson tells Variety: “We used José’s mental illness as a jumping off point, in a way, to discuss themes that both of us think are really interesting. We read a lot of the same books.
- 3/20/2023
- by Lise Pedersen
- Variety Film + TV
Swiss documentary film festival Visions du Réel has revealed the first titles of its 54th edition, which runs April 21 to 30. The event will open with the world premiere of “Nightwatchers” by Juliette de Marcillac, which was filmed at night in an idyllic Alpine resort a stone’s throw from the French-Italian border. As night falls family ski days give way to a game of chase between the police and the volunteers who help migrants.
Mostly doctors, they roam the mountain slopes at night, watching for the arrival of migrants who have just completed long, life-risking journeys. Police surveillance is permanent and denunciation is commonplace, pushing the exiles ever higher up the mountain.
“Nightwatchers”
“It is a cinematic experience in a breathtaking twilight setting, bringing to light a vital and powerful closely-knit network,” the festival said.
Twelve feature films will compete for the Audience Award in the Grand Angle section, including three world premieres.
Mostly doctors, they roam the mountain slopes at night, watching for the arrival of migrants who have just completed long, life-risking journeys. Police surveillance is permanent and denunciation is commonplace, pushing the exiles ever higher up the mountain.
“Nightwatchers”
“It is a cinematic experience in a breathtaking twilight setting, bringing to light a vital and powerful closely-knit network,” the festival said.
Twelve feature films will compete for the Audience Award in the Grand Angle section, including three world premieres.
- 3/14/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
The Swiss documentary festival is set to run April 21-30
The Visions du Reel film festival has unveiled the first titles for its 2023 edition, set to run April 21-30.
The documentary festival, based in Nyon, Switzerland, will open with the world premiere of French director Juliette de Marcillac’s feature debut Nightwatchers. Filmed at high-end ski resort Montgenèvre on the French-Italian border, it tells the story of volunteers trying to help migrants, and the authorities trying to catch them.
The film is part of the Grand Angle competition, with 12 titles competing for the audience award worth Chf 10,000.
The section includes...
The Visions du Reel film festival has unveiled the first titles for its 2023 edition, set to run April 21-30.
The documentary festival, based in Nyon, Switzerland, will open with the world premiere of French director Juliette de Marcillac’s feature debut Nightwatchers. Filmed at high-end ski resort Montgenèvre on the French-Italian border, it tells the story of volunteers trying to help migrants, and the authorities trying to catch them.
The film is part of the Grand Angle competition, with 12 titles competing for the audience award worth Chf 10,000.
The section includes...
- 3/14/2023
- by Orlando Parfitt
- ScreenDaily
The documentary “On the Adamant” has been named the best film of the 2023 Berlin International Film Festival, Berlin organizers announced on Saturday.
The film from director Nicolas Philibert follows life in a daycare center located on the Seine in Paris for adults with mental disorders. It is the first documentary to win the festival’s top prize since “Fire at Sea” in 2016.
German director Christian Petzold won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize, essentially the runner-up award, for his drama “Afire,” while Philippe Garrel won the directing award for “The Plough.” The gender-neutral acting prizes went to Sofia Otero for “20,000 Species of Bees” in the leading performance category and Thea Ehre for “Till the End of the Night” in the supporting category.
The jury president was actress Kristen Stewart. The other jurors were actress Goldshifteh Farahani, directors Valeska Grisebach, Radu Jude and Carla Simón and Johnnie To and casting director Francine Maisler.
The film from director Nicolas Philibert follows life in a daycare center located on the Seine in Paris for adults with mental disorders. It is the first documentary to win the festival’s top prize since “Fire at Sea” in 2016.
German director Christian Petzold won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize, essentially the runner-up award, for his drama “Afire,” while Philippe Garrel won the directing award for “The Plough.” The gender-neutral acting prizes went to Sofia Otero for “20,000 Species of Bees” in the leading performance category and Thea Ehre for “Till the End of the Night” in the supporting category.
The jury president was actress Kristen Stewart. The other jurors were actress Goldshifteh Farahani, directors Valeska Grisebach, Radu Jude and Carla Simón and Johnnie To and casting director Francine Maisler.
- 2/25/2023
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
"That's what entertainment's supposed to do!" Keep our minds off of how bad things are. An early promo trailer is available for a documentary film playing on the festival circuit titled Fantastic Machine, made by two Swedish filmmakers - Axel Danielson and Maximilien van Aertryck. The full title is actually And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine, which is a reference to an old quote that appears in the film. A visually exuberant documentary that uses powerful collages edited out of archive footage, home videos, live-streaming material and private documentation to offer a glimpse at what (or who) is at work when an image of our reality is arranged. Similar in many ways to Sundance 2021's doc All Light, Everywhere. This film is an examination of the history of the camera, taking us through time up to the current day, showing how bad everything has become thanks to manipulation...
- 2/24/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Heretic has closed a raft of deals on Sundance prize-winning documentary “And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine,” with Picturehouse Entertainment acquiring U.K. rights ahead of the film’s European premiere in the Generation 14plus strand at the Berlin Film Festival.
The Athens-based outfit also closed deals for Italy (Teodora Film), Benelux, (September Film), Poland (Against Gravity) and Czech Republic, where the rights were sold to arthouse distributor Aerofilms and the newly launched streaming platform Kviff.TV, both part of the Kviff Group, a media conglomerate built around the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. It’s the first title acquired under the new partnership.
“Fantastic Machine” will also be distributed on HBO channels and HBO Max in Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslavia. The film, which had its world premiere at Sundance in the World Cinema Documentary section, won the festival’s...
The Athens-based outfit also closed deals for Italy (Teodora Film), Benelux, (September Film), Poland (Against Gravity) and Czech Republic, where the rights were sold to arthouse distributor Aerofilms and the newly launched streaming platform Kviff.TV, both part of the Kviff Group, a media conglomerate built around the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. It’s the first title acquired under the new partnership.
“Fantastic Machine” will also be distributed on HBO channels and HBO Max in Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslavia. The film, which had its world premiere at Sundance in the World Cinema Documentary section, won the festival’s...
- 2/13/2023
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
The history of film is filled with fascinating symmetries, with Edison’s early kinescopes like Fred Ott’s Sneeze and The Kiss resembling the kinds of stories friends might send you on Snapchat or Instagram. Unfortunately, Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck’s Fantastic Machine doesn’t know quite what to make of them. An essay film on the study of photography–from the early camera obscuras to cell phone videos and police body-cam footage–it has a seemingly limitless canvas to explore all aspects of photography, including its possibilities, shortcomings, and manipulations. Sourced from found footage, the film presents itself as a roadmap to the unknown, and playfully comes up short in its conclusions.
The starting point is early plate photography: Eadweard Muybridge’s 1859 experiment commonly considered the birth of the motion picture. The documentary then quickly crisscrosses over the next 164-or-so years, only periodically stopping to draw correlations...
The starting point is early plate photography: Eadweard Muybridge’s 1859 experiment commonly considered the birth of the motion picture. The documentary then quickly crisscrosses over the next 164-or-so years, only periodically stopping to draw correlations...
- 2/1/2023
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
Co-directors, cinematographers, producers and editors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck embark on a meticulous dissection of “image-making and a mapping of its movement through society” in Fantastic Machine, the duo’s documentary that utilizes a large catalogue of archival footage to make its point. Danielson and Aretryck discuss the intricate editing process they undertook for the film along with another co-editor Mikel Cee Karlsson. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for […]
The post “The Best Tool for Capturing Human Behavior”: Editors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “The Best Tool for Capturing Human Behavior”: Editors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 1/30/2023
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Co-directors, cinematographers, producers and editors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck embark on a meticulous dissection of “image-making and a mapping of its movement through society” in Fantastic Machine, the duo’s documentary that utilizes a large catalogue of archival footage to make its point. Danielson and Aretryck discuss the intricate editing process they undertook for the film along with another co-editor Mikel Cee Karlsson. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for […]
The post “The Best Tool for Capturing Human Behavior”: Editors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “The Best Tool for Capturing Human Behavior”: Editors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 1/30/2023
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck are co-directors, producers, cinematographers and editors of Fantastic Machine, their documentary that serves as a “meticulous dissection of image-making and a mapping of its movement through society.” Below, the duo discuss how they approached their duties as DPs on the film, including how they view that role as distinctly hunter-like. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Danielson & Van Aretryck: As directors, […]
The post “Our Material Spans 150 Years of Camera Technology”: DPs Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aretryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “Our Material Spans 150 Years of Camera Technology”: DPs Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aretryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 1/30/2023
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck are co-directors, producers, cinematographers and editors of Fantastic Machine, their documentary that serves as a “meticulous dissection of image-making and a mapping of its movement through society.” Below, the duo discuss how they approached their duties as DPs on the film, including how they view that role as distinctly hunter-like. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Danielson & Van Aretryck: As directors, […]
The post “Our Material Spans 150 Years of Camera Technology”: DPs Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aretryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “Our Material Spans 150 Years of Camera Technology”: DPs Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aretryck on Fantastic Machine first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 1/30/2023
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
The 2023 Sundance Film Festival, the festival’s first in-person competition since 2020, has revealed its award winners.
The big winners included Maryam Keshavarz‘s The Persian Version, which earned both the Audience Award and Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award in the U.S. Dramatic Competition, and A.V. Rockwell‘s A Thousand and One, which took home the Grand Jury Prize in the same category.
The Persian Version explores an Iranian-American family’s past as its patriarch gets a heart transplant while A Thousand and One centers around a mother who kidnaps her son from the foster care system in order to find a path toward redemption.
Other winners include Festival Favorite Radical directed by Christopher Zalla and Grand Jury Prize winner for U.S. Documentary, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project.
The festival has highlighted 101 different features and 64 shorts. These films were selected from a total of 15,856 submissions. Most of...
The big winners included Maryam Keshavarz‘s The Persian Version, which earned both the Audience Award and Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award in the U.S. Dramatic Competition, and A.V. Rockwell‘s A Thousand and One, which took home the Grand Jury Prize in the same category.
The Persian Version explores an Iranian-American family’s past as its patriarch gets a heart transplant while A Thousand and One centers around a mother who kidnaps her son from the foster care system in order to find a path toward redemption.
Other winners include Festival Favorite Radical directed by Christopher Zalla and Grand Jury Prize winner for U.S. Documentary, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project.
The festival has highlighted 101 different features and 64 shorts. These films were selected from a total of 15,856 submissions. Most of...
- 1/28/2023
- by Alex Nguyen
- Uinterview
Festival runs through January 29.
A.V. Rockwell’s A Thousand And One took the 2023 Sundance U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic prize and Charlotte Regan’s UK entry Scrapper earned the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic at the 2023 Sundance awards ceremony on Friday.
Audience award winners included Maryam Keshavarz’s The Persian Version in U.S. Dramatic Competition, Madeleine Gavin’s Beyond Utopia in U.S. Documentary, Mstylav Chernov’s 20 Days In Mariupol in World Cinema Documentary, and Noora Niasari’s Shayda in World Cinema Dramatic.
Sundance Institute CEO Joana Vicente said the selection “demonstrated a sense of...
A.V. Rockwell’s A Thousand And One took the 2023 Sundance U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic prize and Charlotte Regan’s UK entry Scrapper earned the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic at the 2023 Sundance awards ceremony on Friday.
Audience award winners included Maryam Keshavarz’s The Persian Version in U.S. Dramatic Competition, Madeleine Gavin’s Beyond Utopia in U.S. Documentary, Mstylav Chernov’s 20 Days In Mariupol in World Cinema Documentary, and Noora Niasari’s Shayda in World Cinema Dramatic.
Sundance Institute CEO Joana Vicente said the selection “demonstrated a sense of...
- 1/27/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Back in Park City, Utah, for the first time since 2020, the Sundance Film Festival concluded with an in-person awards show. The U.S. dramatic grand jury prize went to the Focus Features release “A Thousand and One,” from debut writer-director A.V. Rockwell, one of eight women in this year’s female-led competition.
Jeremy O. Harris, a member of the three-person U.S. dramatic jury at Sundance, choked back tears as he presented the award to Rockwell, admitting that he left the director’s premiere screening and cried on the street, as the film unearthed “all the feelings I’ve learned to mask in public spaces.”
Rockwell’s film is set in an unforgiving New York City in the late ’90s, where a single mother moving from shelter to shelter kidnaps her 6-year-old son from foster care. As they improbably forge a life and bond, their darkest secret threatens to disrupt what they’ve built.
Jeremy O. Harris, a member of the three-person U.S. dramatic jury at Sundance, choked back tears as he presented the award to Rockwell, admitting that he left the director’s premiere screening and cried on the street, as the film unearthed “all the feelings I’ve learned to mask in public spaces.”
Rockwell’s film is set in an unforgiving New York City in the late ’90s, where a single mother moving from shelter to shelter kidnaps her 6-year-old son from foster care. As they improbably forge a life and bond, their darkest secret threatens to disrupt what they’ve built.
- 1/27/2023
- by Matt Donnelly and Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
As the first in-person Sundance Film Festival since 2020 draws to a close, it’s time to see which films are taking home the festival’s most coveted awards. While there are many ways to measure success at Sundance — and many filmmakers are certainly more interested in a big sale than a trophy — the awards are nevertheless an important way of measuring which films resonated with the Park City crowd.
Friday’s award ceremony is the culmination of what has already been a very eventful festival. Despite the multitude of changes that the independent film world and the streaming industry are currently undergoing, this year’s festival still featured its share of buzzy premieres and splashy acquisitions. One of the most talked about movies in Park City has been Chloe Domont’s erotic thriller “Fair Play,” which sold to Netflix for a reported price of 20 million. The festival also featured some...
Friday’s award ceremony is the culmination of what has already been a very eventful festival. Despite the multitude of changes that the independent film world and the streaming industry are currently undergoing, this year’s festival still featured its share of buzzy premieres and splashy acquisitions. One of the most talked about movies in Park City has been Chloe Domont’s erotic thriller “Fair Play,” which sold to Netflix for a reported price of 20 million. The festival also featured some...
- 1/27/2023
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
Worldwide offers in on Beyond Utopia, The Eternal Memory.
Heading into Monday evening Apple and Amazon were understood to be in hot pursuit of Sundance crowd-pleaser Flora And Son as bidding reached the high teens to low twenties range, according to sources.
John Carney’s story of a single mother who tries to get her broken family back together is shaping up to be one of the biggest Sundance deals on record. It stars Bono’s daughter Eve Hewson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Orén Kinlan and Jack Reynor and debuted in Premieres. WME Independent, Fifth Season and FilmNation represent sales.
Following Netflix...
Heading into Monday evening Apple and Amazon were understood to be in hot pursuit of Sundance crowd-pleaser Flora And Son as bidding reached the high teens to low twenties range, according to sources.
John Carney’s story of a single mother who tries to get her broken family back together is shaping up to be one of the biggest Sundance deals on record. It stars Bono’s daughter Eve Hewson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Orén Kinlan and Jack Reynor and debuted in Premieres. WME Independent, Fifth Season and FilmNation represent sales.
Following Netflix...
- 1/24/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Worldwide offers in on Beyond Utopia, The Eternal Memory.
Heading into Monday evening Apple and Amazon were understood to be in hot pursuit of Sundance crowd-pleaser Flora And Son with bidding well into eight figures.
John Carney’s story of a single mother who tries to get her broken family back together stars Bono’s daughter Eve Hewson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Orén Kinlan and Jack Reynor and debuted in Premieres. WME Independent, Fifth Season and FilmNation represent sales.
Following Netflix’s 20m worldwide buy on Chloe Domont’s US Dramatic Competition entry Fair Play and Searchlight Pictures’ swoop on global rights to crowd-pleaser Theater Camp,...
Heading into Monday evening Apple and Amazon were understood to be in hot pursuit of Sundance crowd-pleaser Flora And Son with bidding well into eight figures.
John Carney’s story of a single mother who tries to get her broken family back together stars Bono’s daughter Eve Hewson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Orén Kinlan and Jack Reynor and debuted in Premieres. WME Independent, Fifth Season and FilmNation represent sales.
Following Netflix’s 20m worldwide buy on Chloe Domont’s US Dramatic Competition entry Fair Play and Searchlight Pictures’ swoop on global rights to crowd-pleaser Theater Camp,...
- 1/24/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
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