The much maligned profile of Black British actresses has been well documented on this blog over the past 18 months and most recently in the London Evening Standard with the forthcoming feel-good flick ‘Fast Girls’ and the supposed significance of Leonora Crichlow playing the lead role in a British film. On such matters is primarily where Twitter comes into its own as a live news editor run by the public. It doesn’t take long before feedback is immediate and corrected (many thanks to @ECF...
At the time of publication, it was recently announced that ifeatures2, Britain’s low-budget, feature film-making initiative, has just reopened for submissions. Creative England, the BFI Film Fund and BBC Films are joining forces to support the development and production of three full-length features, all to be set within the English regions. Each film will be produced on a budget of £350,000 and the BBC is also pre-buying UK Free TV rights to the completed films. It’s open to writer, direct...
The first time I had heard about Béla Tarr was from a Serbian filmmaker friend who told me that if I wanted to know some real avant-garde plucky cinema, I hadn’t lived until I had seen a Béla Tarr film. As a writer myself, I’m big on unadulterated organic creativity and this exemplary director has gone against all the rules doing everything a filmmaker is taught not to do, making himself quite a name in his 34 years of doing so. Tarr even holds the credit to having directed one...
The first time I had heard about Béla Tarr was from a Serbian filmmaker friend who told me that if I wanted to know some real avant-garde plucky cinema, I hadn’t lived until I had seen a Béla Tarr film. As a writer myself, I’m big on unadulterated organic creativity and this exemplary director has gone against all the rules doing everything a filmmaker is taught not to do, making himself quite a name in his 34 years of doing so. Tarr even holds the credit to having directed one of the ...
By Vanessa McMahonThe first time I had heard about Béla Tarr was from a Serbian filmmaker friend who told me that if I wanted to know some real avant-garde plucky cinema, I hadn’t lived until I had seen a Béla Tarr film. As a writer myself, I’m big on unadulterated organic creativity and this exemplary director has gone against all the rules doing everything a filmmaker is taught not to do, making himself quite a name in his 34 years of doing so. Tarr even holds the credit to having direct...
DRIVE (2011) held its North American premier this week at 2011 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Below is the press conference for the film in competition DRIVE (2011) at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. On panel were: Director Nicolas Winding Refn, Actor Ryan Gosling, Writer Hossein Amini, Editor Mat Newman, Producer Marc Platt and Producer Adam Siegel.Nicolas Winding Refn is a former student of Von Trier so naturally, there was a thick tension in the DRIVE pressroom with ever...
IRON DOORS (2010), a new psychological thriller to make you think. About an investment banker with no name (we never get his name in this film so he’s a kind of Everyman investment banker) wakes up to find himself stuck inside a vault with no way out. ‘No food. No water. No way out.’ We experience his loneliness, hunger, thirst, frustration and even his hallucinations with him as he struggles to stay alive… or we are also left to wonder if he is even alive at all and maybe he has been ...
IRON DOORS (2010), a new psychological thriller to make you think. About an investment banker with no name (we never get his name in this film so he’s a kind of Everyman investment banker) wakes up to find himself stuck inside a vault with no way out. ‘No food. No water. No way out.’ We experience his loneliness, hunger, thirst, frustration and even his hallucinations with him as he struggles to stay alive… or we are also left to wonder if he is even alive at all and maybe he has been ...
Costume Designer Michael Kaplan attended an ‘In Conversations With’ panel in Aruba during the Aruba International Film Festival 2011. Journalist Brandon Harris conducted the interviews. The panel went on for over and hour. Below is transcribed part of the Q and A that followed (to the best of what I could transcribe). Q: How are you able to keep yourself and your soul in the work that you do when it is for someone’s film and they have a specific idea of what they want? And als...
Costume Designer Michael Kaplan attended an ‘In Conversations With’ panel in Aruba during the Aruba International Film Festival 2011. Journalist Brandon Harris conducted the interviews. The panel went on for over and hour. Below is transcribed part of the Q and A that followed (to the best of what I could transcribe). Q: How are you able to keep yourself and your soul in the work that you do when it is for someone’s film and they have a specific idea of what they want? And als...
Interview with 50 Cent in Aruba at AIFF INTERVIEW WITH 50 CENT AT AIFF.On June 15th, 2011 I had the opportunity to interview Mr. Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson at the Hyatt Grand Hotel in Aruba during the 2nd annual Aruba International Film Festival. ’50 Cent’ and I spoke about his music career and his highly anticipated acting role in the soon to be released film THINGS FALL APART (2011) by director Mario Van Peebles. ’50 Cent’ stars in the film and also worked as producer. ME: Hi ...
This was a very endearing press conference, especially in light of Lars Von Trier’s press conference two days prior for MELANCHOLY (2011) that still had everyone’s head spinning in Cannes. Von Trier’s comments on his Nazi sympathies as well as his protested desire to return to Denmark and focus only on soft and hardcore porn had everyone at Cannes thinking twice about Danish cinema and its praiseworthy art-house directors. Nicolas Winding Refn is a former student of Von Trier so naturally,...
This was a very endearing press conference, especially in light of Lars Von Trier’s press conference two days prior for MELANCHOLY (2011) that still had everyone’s head spinning in Cannes. Von Trier’s comments on his Nazi sympathies as well as his protested desire to return to Denmark and focus only on soft and hardcore porn had everyone at Cannes thinking twice about Danish cinema and its praiseworthy art-house directors.
Nicolas Winding Refn is a former student of Von Trier...
The Bang Bang Club is the true story about four, free spirited combat photographers with a passion for danger and search for the truth during the uprisings in apartheid South Africa from Nelson Mandela’s release from serving a life sentence in prison on February 11, 1990, to the first democratic election in 1994, in which he became President until 1999. Follow these fearless young men as they demonstrate bravery, camaraderie, and moral turpitude, in the heart of the apartheid riots and “tr...
A FUTURE WITHOUT OIL (France, 2010) by French director Laetitia Moreau is a 52’ documentary about President of Ecuador Rafael Correa and his fight with Ecuadorians against mass exploitation of oil from industrialized countries. An Ecuadorian scientific team goes on a three-year mission to raise multi-millions of dollars from US and Europe for a new form of energy development that would be more profitable than oil itself, according to their scientific studies...
A FUTURE WITHOUT OIL (France, 2010) by French director Laetitia Moreau is a 52’ documentary about President of Ecuador Rafael Correa and his fight with Ecuadorians against mass exploitation of oil from industrialized countries. An Ecuadorian scientific team goes on a three-year mission to raise multi-millions of dollars from US and Europe for a new form of energy development that would be more profitable than oil itself, according to their scientific studies.
I interviewed Laetiti...
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Tom McCarthy (The Station Agent, The Visitor) has once again written and directed a picture that’s been touted at the festivals; however, his newest film has enough mainstream appeal to be backed by Fox Searchlight Pictures.
Win Win is the story of an attorney, wrestling coach and most importantly, family man, Mike Flaherty (Paul Giamatti) living in a middle class Jersey suburb trying to keep things going in these diffic...
Joint organizer of Cinequest 18, Jens Hussey, introduced the press conference on Saturday afternoon, noting that on the previous day, the festival had recorded its highest ever numbers for mid-week audiences. At this rate, the estimated total attendance of 80,000 people seems a strong reality.The following segments from the 90 minute conference should give you an overview of the talent involved in this year's festival.Robert Peters (Director) - Half Empty “It’s a musical filmed over eight ...
Press conference with Emily Watson and Peter Medak on Dubrovnik International Film Festival 2005 Q&A with Emily Watson and Peter Medak“-Tell us your impressions of Dubrovnik”Emily Watson: “ Its completely stunning. Blows your mind away. It’s absolutely beautiful. We should make films here, its perfect. And the fact you have managed to do not have cars. It’s amazing, it’s really beautiful. ”“-About Dubrovnik impressions?”Peter Medak: “Just magical, absolutely! We just walked a...
