Félicité (Senegal), directed by Alain Gomis[/caption]
This year’s juried award winners of the 29th Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) were announced today at a luncheon at the Hilton Palm Springs on Saturday, January 13, 2018.
The FIPRESCI Prize for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year went to Félicité (Senegal), directed by Alain Gomis. Bursting at the seams with energy, Franco-Senegalese filmmaker Alain Gomis’s Berlin festival prizewinner immerses us in the sights and sounds of Kinshasa while loosely chronicling the day-to-day travails of the eponymous single-mom and nightclub-chanteuse (Congolese singer Véro Tshanda Beya, in an unforgettable performance) at the heart of the film. The film is on the shortlist for the Best Foreign Language Academy Award.
FIPRESCI Prize for the Best Actor in a Foreign Language Film went to Nakhane Touré from The Wound (South Africa). South African co-writer/director John Trengove’s balanced docudrama explores a clandestine relationship between two Xhosa men, set against the backdrop of a traditional coming-of-age ceremony.
The FIPRESCI Prize for Best Actress in a Foreign Language Film went to Daniela Vega from A Fantastic Woman (Chile). Making a living waiting tables in downtown Santiago while pursuing her dream of becoming an nightclub singer, young transgender woman Marina (Daniela Vega in a stunning debut) finds safety and solace from an often cruel world in her relationship with older divorcee Orlando (Francisco Reyes, Neruda). But when Orlando suffers a violent fall and massive injuries in the last moments of a fatal aneurysm, suspicion falls on Marina, causing her to flee the hospital and the eye of a judgmental city.
A special jury of international film critics reviewed 45 of the 92 official submissions for the Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film category screened at this year’s Festival, and all three films that received prizes are on the shortlist for the Best Foreign Language Academy Award.
The New Voices New Visions focuses on films that represent the most distinctive new directors to have emerged in the last year. Each of the twelve films in competition represents the filmmakers debut or second feature. This year’s New Voices New Visions Award went to The Charmer (Denmark), directed by Milad Alami. A searing and topical exploration of the immigrant experience shot through with elements of psychological thriller and erotic drama, Milad Alami’s striking feature debut follows an Iranian man’s increasingly desperate attempts to secure citizenship by seducing a string of Danish women.
Léa Mysius for Ava (France) received the Honorable Mention for Exceptional Direction. Thirteen-year-old Ava’s summer vacation gains a new urgency when she learns she is rapidly going blind. In the face of creeping darkness, she squeezes in all the life she can, rebelling against her mother, stealing a dog, and becoming romantically entangled with a mysterious beach rat, sending her on an unpredictable journey of self-realization.
The John Schlesinger Award, named after the director, writer, producer and festival supporter, is presented to the director of a debut feature documentary, and this year’s award went to Brimstone and Glory (US/Mexico), directed by Viktor Jakovleski. Equal parts awe-inspiring and anxiety-inducing, Brimstone and Glory’s chronicle of an annual fireworks extravaganza in Tultepec, Mexico, is a visual, jaw-dropping spectacle like no other documentary before it.
The Cine Latino Award is presented to the best Ibero-American film screening at the festival. The award aims to highlight the creativity seen in modern Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American films. The Cine Latino Award went to Killing Jesús (Colombia/Argentina), directed by Laura Mora. When university student Paula witnesses her social activist father’s assassination, the inept, uncaring police force drives her to seek justice on her own. But when she finds herself immersed in the killer’s poverty-stricken world she discovers that they might both be victims of the same broken system. Honorable Mention was given to A Fantastic Woman (Chile), directed by Sebastián Lelio.
The HP Bridging the Borders Award that honors the film that is most successful in bringing the people of our world closer together, went to The Insult (Lebanon), directed by Ziad Doueiri. What should have been a trivial altercation, quickly settled and forgotten, instead propels two men (one a local Christian, the other a Palestinian refugee) to the center of a very public scandal in Lebanon, reopening historical and political wounds on both sides.
Terry P.
VIMOOZ is for lovers of independent films + foreign film + documentary + film festivals. We love championing the little films.
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Palm Springs International Film Festival Announces 2018 Award Winners, “Félicité” Wins FIPRESCI Prize
[caption id="attachment_26480" align="aligncenter" width="1400"] Félicité (Senegal), directed by Alain Gomis[/caption]
This year’s juried award winners of the 29th Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) were announced today at a luncheon at the Hilton Palm Springs on Saturday, January 13, 2018.
The FIPRESCI Prize for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year went to Félicité (Senegal), directed by Alain Gomis. Bursting at the seams with energy, Franco-Senegalese filmmaker Alain Gomis’s Berlin festival prizewinner immerses us in the sights and sounds of Kinshasa while loosely chronicling the day-to-day travails of the eponymous single-mom and nightclub-chanteuse (Congolese singer Véro Tshanda Beya, in an unforgettable performance) at the heart of the film. The film is on the shortlist for the Best Foreign Language Academy Award.
FIPRESCI Prize for the Best Actor in a Foreign Language Film went to Nakhane Touré from The Wound (South Africa). South African co-writer/director John Trengove’s balanced docudrama explores a clandestine relationship between two Xhosa men, set against the backdrop of a traditional coming-of-age ceremony.
The FIPRESCI Prize for Best Actress in a Foreign Language Film went to Daniela Vega from A Fantastic Woman (Chile). Making a living waiting tables in downtown Santiago while pursuing her dream of becoming an nightclub singer, young transgender woman Marina (Daniela Vega in a stunning debut) finds safety and solace from an often cruel world in her relationship with older divorcee Orlando (Francisco Reyes, Neruda). But when Orlando suffers a violent fall and massive injuries in the last moments of a fatal aneurysm, suspicion falls on Marina, causing her to flee the hospital and the eye of a judgmental city.
A special jury of international film critics reviewed 45 of the 92 official submissions for the Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film category screened at this year’s Festival, and all three films that received prizes are on the shortlist for the Best Foreign Language Academy Award.
The New Voices New Visions focuses on films that represent the most distinctive new directors to have emerged in the last year. Each of the twelve films in competition represents the filmmakers debut or second feature. This year’s New Voices New Visions Award went to The Charmer (Denmark), directed by Milad Alami. A searing and topical exploration of the immigrant experience shot through with elements of psychological thriller and erotic drama, Milad Alami’s striking feature debut follows an Iranian man’s increasingly desperate attempts to secure citizenship by seducing a string of Danish women.
Léa Mysius for Ava (France) received the Honorable Mention for Exceptional Direction. Thirteen-year-old Ava’s summer vacation gains a new urgency when she learns she is rapidly going blind. In the face of creeping darkness, she squeezes in all the life she can, rebelling against her mother, stealing a dog, and becoming romantically entangled with a mysterious beach rat, sending her on an unpredictable journey of self-realization.
The John Schlesinger Award, named after the director, writer, producer and festival supporter, is presented to the director of a debut feature documentary, and this year’s award went to Brimstone and Glory (US/Mexico), directed by Viktor Jakovleski. Equal parts awe-inspiring and anxiety-inducing, Brimstone and Glory’s chronicle of an annual fireworks extravaganza in Tultepec, Mexico, is a visual, jaw-dropping spectacle like no other documentary before it.
The Cine Latino Award is presented to the best Ibero-American film screening at the festival. The award aims to highlight the creativity seen in modern Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American films. The Cine Latino Award went to Killing Jesús (Colombia/Argentina), directed by Laura Mora. When university student Paula witnesses her social activist father’s assassination, the inept, uncaring police force drives her to seek justice on her own. But when she finds herself immersed in the killer’s poverty-stricken world she discovers that they might both be victims of the same broken system. Honorable Mention was given to A Fantastic Woman (Chile), directed by Sebastián Lelio.
The HP Bridging the Borders Award that honors the film that is most successful in bringing the people of our world closer together, went to The Insult (Lebanon), directed by Ziad Doueiri. What should have been a trivial altercation, quickly settled and forgotten, instead propels two men (one a local Christian, the other a Palestinian refugee) to the center of a very public scandal in Lebanon, reopening historical and political wounds on both sides.
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Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead’s Mind-Bending Indie Thriller THE ENDLESS to Open in Theaters on March 23rd | Trailer
The mind-bending thriller The Endless directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead will open in theaters on March 23rd, 2018. The film stars Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead, Callie Hernandez, Emily Montague, Lew Temple, Tate Ellington and James Jordan.
Following their Lovecraftian modern cult classic Spring, acclaimed filmmakers Moorhead and Benson return with this mind-bending thriller that follows two brothers who receive a cryptic video message inspiring them to revisit the UFO death cult they escaped a decade earlier. Hoping to find the closure that they couldn’t as young men, they’re forced to reconsider the cult’s beliefs when confronted with unexplainable phenomena surrounding the camp. As the members prepare for the coming of a mysterious event, the brothers race to unravel the seemingly impossible truth before their lives become permanently entangled with the cult.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXB0DK3upGY
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LOVE AFTER LOVE Starring Chris O’Dowd and Andie MacDowell, Sets March 30th Release Date | VIDEO
Love After Love directed by Russell Harbaugh and starring Chris O’Dowd and Andie MacDowell, takes an unblinking look at a family navigating their way forward in the shadow of a shared loss.
IFC Films will release Love After Love in theaters and on demand March 30th, 2018.
Suzanne (Andie MacDowell) and Glenn (Gareth Williams) are college theatre professors, enjoying a playful, tempestuous marriage surrounded by students and family. Their two sons are Nicholas (Chris O’Dowd), a successful book editor in a relationship with Rebecca (Juliet Rylance), and Chris (James Adomian), perpetually attempting to find an outlet for his vague, impassioned creativity. When Glenn becomes ill with cancer, the family waits out his last Summer days together.
Glenn’s eventual death prompts curious, contradictory reactions: Nicholas jettisons his long-term relationship with Rebecca and becomes haphazardly engaged to his father’s student, Emilie (Dree Hemingway); Suzanne, now displaced as mother and wife, begins to see a series of men; Chris lurches forward, careening from failure to failure while pursuing an artistic career. Ill-equipped to attend to their mounting emotional needs, the family finds release in alternatively abhorrent and joyful ways.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUb2z6yT_bI
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Indie Thriller “JOSIE” Starring Sophie Turner, Dylan McDermott Eyes a March 2018 Release Date
Eric England’s thriller “Josie” starring Sophie Turner, Dylan McDermott, and Jack Kilmer will be released day-and-date in theaters in March 2018 via Screen Media Films.
The residents of a small, southern town are forever changed when the tattooed, sweet-talking stranger Josie (Sophie Turner) struts into town. Striking up relationships with a local young punk Marcus (Jack Kilmer) and her loner neighbor Hank (Dylan McDermott), she quickly becomes a hot topic of local gossip. But her true intentions for arriving in town are far more sinister when her dark past comes to light.
“Anthony’s story is populated with such rich characters and emotions. It was a privilege to explore and create that world with artists like Dylan and Sophie. I’m truly excited for audiences to see their performances,” said director Eric England.
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Watch Trailer for Award-Winning Documentary THE PEACEMAKER, Portrait of International Peacemaker Padraig O’Malley
The award winning documentary The Peacemaker, directed by James Demo, is an intimate portrait of Padraig O’Malley, an international peacemaker who helps make peace for others but struggles to find it for himself. The film takes us from Padraig’s isolated life in Cambridge, Massachusetts to some of the most dangerous crisis zones on Earth – from Northern Ireland to Kosovo, Nigeria to Iraq – as he works a peacemaking model based on his recovery from addiction. We meet Padraig in the third act of his life in a race against time to find some kind of salvation for both the world and himself.
The Peacemaker will open in New York at Cinema Village on Friday, February 9, 2018 ahead of a wider release.
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT – JAMES DEMO
In 1971, Padraig O’Malley gambled his college scholarship on the Ali-Frazier fight, lost and dropped out of Harvard. He landed at The Plough and Stars, a pub in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he met a number of Irish ex-pats. Through those contacts O’Malley eventually got involved in solving The Troubles in Northern Ireland, even famously bringing Nelson Mandela into the Northern Irish peace process.
I first heard about Padraig four decades later, while I was having a pint at the Plough, which he now owned. At the time, Padraig was in Iraq, moving in and out of the Green Zone, trying to get warring parties to meet with Northern Irish and South African chief-negotiators who had helped settle major conflicts in the past. It surprised me that the owner of this little corner bar was risking his life to do this kind of work.
I had to know more. I got in touch with Padraig and asked him to meet with me. He explained that he never went into his bar because he was a recovering alcoholic, so we agreed to meet late one night in a Boston-area library. He told me the incredible story of his life and how his recovery from addiction informed his current work. I asked him if I could follow him during a new reconciliation effort he was launching in divided cities in conflict zones. As we filmed, and I spent more time with Padraig, it became clear that the conflict I was documenting was more personal, even existential. Four continents and five years later I wrapped production on The Peacemaker, about an extraordinary man who helps make peace for others but struggles to find it for himself.
– James Demo
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2018 New York International Children’s Film Festival Reveals Opening Lineup + VR Mini Fest
[caption id="attachment_26446" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Clockwise: Lu Over the Wall, White Fang, Wolves in the Walls, A Series of Unfortunate Events: Season 2[/caption]
This year’s 2018 New York International Children’s Film Festival opens on Friday, February 23rd, with the East Coast premiere of anime auteur Masaaki Yuasa’s Lu Over the Wall. Boasting a distinctive, off-kilter animation style, eye-popping color palette, and outrageous music, Yuasa’s latest gem is, at its core, a captivating coming of age story. The eponymous Lu is a manic mermaid with a show-stopping voice who helps Kai, a gifted teenager unfulfilled by small-town life, discover his own. Winner of the Grand Prize Cristal Award at Annecy 2017, Lu evokes charming hints of Miyazaki, but claims a frenetic energy and surreal, freewheeling structure all its own.
Rounding out Opening Weekend is the Saturday, February 24th, Opening Spotlight screening of Academy Award®-winning director and NYICFF alum Alexandre Espigares’ debut feature, White Fang. An ambitious animated retelling of the classic Jack London novel, White Fang employs the voice work of Rashida Jones, Nick Offerman, Eddie Spears, and Paul Giamatti to tell the epic journey of White Fang’s life from pup to sled-dog to abused prizefighter and beyond, set in the gorgeously rendered landscape of the Pacific Northwest frontier.
On Saturday, March 10, NYICFF presents a special sneak peek Centerpiece screening of The Austere Academy: Parts 1 & 2, the highly-anticipated first episodes of Netflix’s original program A Series of Unfortunate Events: Season 2. Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and based on the Lemony Snicket series by Daniel Handler, this lauded adaptation is hailed as having “a respect for the ability of young minds to perceive offbeat, incongruous humor, the very quality that made the books so successful in the first place” (The New York Times). The new season returns with an all-star cast, including the brilliant Neil Patrick Harris as Count Olaf, and plenty of nefarious schemes to catch the Baudelaire orphans. Season 2 releases March 30 only on Netflix.
The 2018 Festival will also showcase the inaugural edition of VR JR., a full weekend of Virtual Reality experiences, a special VR creators’ talk, and demos uniquely curated to provide a thoughtful point of entry for children and families to explore this new medium. Taking place Saturday and Sunday, March 3 and 4, the pioneering program showcases the latest VR projects that place kids at the helm of their own immersive story world. Projects include the East Coast premiere of the Neil Gaiman picture book adaptation Wolves in the Walls, directed by Pete Billington, and Golden Globe-nominated director Jorge Gutiérrez’s Son of Jaguar, a new Google Spotlight Story placing viewers into the story of a family of Mexican wrestlers.
The 21st anniversary of the Oscar qualifying Festival will run from February 23rd to March 18th, 2018
OPENING NIGHT:
LU OVER THE WALL, dir. Masaaki Yuasa (Japan) – 2018, East Coast premiere, Animation, 107 minutes Though obedient to his family, Kai’s quiet life in a traditional Japanese seaside town starts to rock and roil when he secretly joins a band with his classmates. His true interest is where they practice —on the foreboding Merfolk Island—a place that turns out to be even wilder than the town lore suggests. Enter Lu: a mermaid girl with the soul and voice of a pop star, who steals the show in this shape-shifting, musical/anime hybrid.OPENING SPOTLIGHT:
WHITE FANG, dir. Alexandre Espigares (France/Luxembourg/USA) – 2018, East Coast premiere, Animation, 85 minutes NYICFF alum and Oscar®-winning short film director Alexandre Espigares returns with his feature debut, a thrilling and thought-provoking adaptation of Jack London’s classic tale. White Fang and his fellow canines call the rugged beauty of the Yukon territory home, but with the Gold Rush of the 1890s they are thrust against the harsh life of profit-seeking prospectors. Will the tribal leader or a new peacekeeping couple offer White Fang another path?CENTERPIECE:
A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS: SEASON 2, THE AUSTERE ACADEMY, dirs. Barry Sonnenfeld and Daniel Handler (USA) – 2018, Special Preview Screening, Live Action, 98 minutes (Parts 1 & 2)VIRTUAL REALITY:
VR JR., Interactive VR Experiences and VR JR. Talk High-quality, innovative programming into new digital realms, offering the first dedicated Virtual Reality mini-fest for kids and families.
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FrightFest Announces Glasgow Film Festival 2018 Line-up, Kicks off with GHOST STORIES
[caption id="attachment_26416" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Ghost Stories[/caption]
FrightFest, the horror fantasy event returns to Glasgow Film Festival for its 13th year, from Thursday March 1, to Saturday March 3, 2018.
This year’s bold line-up, once again housed at the iconic Glasgow Film Theatre, embraces the latest horror, fantasy and sci-fi discoveries from ten countries, spanning four continents, reflecting the world-wide popularity of the genre.
Ghost Stories remains one of the scariest stage shows ever seen and on Thursday night FrightFest kicks off with a special screening of Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson’s smash hit phenomenon. Starring Martin Freedman, Paul Whitehouse, as well as Nyman, this unforgettable screen adaptation terrifies in a whole new thrilling and chilling dimension. Jeremy and Andy will be attending. This is followed by the Scottish premiere of Brian O’Malley’s supernatural romance The Lodgers, a masterful Irish set Gothic ghost story, starring Charlotte Vega and David Bradley.
Friday’s line-up lunges into vampiric action with the UK premiere of Dragos Buliga’s The Wanderers: Quest of the Demon Hunter, an inspired modern twist on Transylvanian mythology. This is followed by the world premiere of writer/director Kelly Greene’s pastiche gem Attack of the Bat Monsters. If you liked The Love Witch, this is your new retro-perfect jam and Kelly will be in attendance. Next up is the UK premiere of The Ravenous, writer/director Robin Aubert’s surreal and wickedly humorous addition to the Living Dead canon.
The 8.45pm presentation is the UK premiere of the powerfully gripping Cold Skin. At the vanguard of French extreme cinema, director Xavier Gens made his name with Frontiere(s) and The Divide. Now he brings us a stunning adaptation of Albert Sánchez Piñol’s acclaimed novel that’s part H.P. Lovecraft, part Joseph Conrad and Xavier will be at the festival to discuss his film. Rounding off the evening is the European premiere of Primal Rage, a creature feature that blows the lid off traditional Bigfoot mythology. Special effects guru/director Patrick Magee has created an intelligent, cunning primitive warrior being guaranteed to terrify.
Getting the Saturday program off to a demonically hellish start is the UK premiere of Paul Urkijo’s visually breath-taking fantasy The Blacksmith and the Devil a vivid Basque fairy-tale, produced by Spanish legend Alex de la Iglesia, This is followed by the European premiere of supernatural chiller Pyewacket, a beautifully paced, dread-filled study of occult belief by writer/director Adam MacDonald. Next up is the UK premiere of Friendly Beast, Gabriela Amaral Almeida’s intense shocker, which explores the latent evil within us all.
Climb on board for a fiendishly tense slay-ride as the evening programme kicks off with the UK premiere of director Adam Marcus’ savvy seasonal shocker Secret Santa. Marcus will be joined onstage by some of the cast and producers. Following this is the much anticipated UK premiere of Tigers Are Not Afraid, an unflinching South of the Border cautionary fable, an audacious mix of Pan’s Labyrinth and Narcos, which firmly announces director Issa López as a rising star of Mexico’s New Wave cinema.
This year’s global celebration of the genre ends on an adrenalin-fuelled high with the European premiere of Neil Mackay’s ultra-violent, action-packed thriller Sixty Minutes to Midnight. Actor Arnold Sydney Junior and producer Frank Leraci will be in Glasgow to introduce the movie.
Alan Jones, FrightFest co-director, said today: “With our bold choices and the quality of programming, FrightFest is once again positioned to deliver at our beloved second home in Glasgow. It’s no surprise to us that the genre has just had its biggest and most successful year. If you’ve ever attended one of our events, you’ll know exactly why. For FrightFest will always create a communal space where the pure enjoyment of the occasion is paramount and a vital shared experience. Welcome to our Pleasure Dome, FrightFest- Glasgow-style”.
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Directors of Documentaries “Icarus” “Abacus: Small Enough to Jail” “City of Ghosts” among 5 Nominated for Directors Guild of America Awards
[caption id="attachment_15896" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Abacus: Small Enough to Jail[/caption]
The directors of five documentaries have been nominated for the Directors Guild of America for the DGA award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary for 2017.
“Directors are driving the push to more distinctive television, eye-catching commercials and powerful documentaries,” said Schlamme. “From 30-second spots to multi-hour mini-series, the nominees across these nine categories are leading that charge. We are proud to honor the tremendous range of excellence found in the projects nominated today. Congratulations to all of the nominees.”
The winners will be announced at the 70th Annual DGA Awards on Saturday, February 3, 2018 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary
The nominees for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary for 2017 are (in alphabetical order): KEN BURNS & LYNN NOVICK The Vietnam War PBS This is Mr. Burns’ and Ms. Novick’s second DGA Award nomination. They were previously nominated in this category in 2007 for The War. BRYAN FOGEL Icarus Netflix This is Mr. Fogel’s first DGA Award nomination. MATTHEW HEINEMAN City of Ghosts Amazon This is Mr. Heineman’s second DGA Award nomination. He won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary in 2015 for Cartel Land. STEVE JAMES Abacus: Small Enough to Jail PBS This is Mr. James’s fourth DGA Award nomination. He won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary in 1994 for Hoop Dreams, and was also nominated in this category in 2008 for At the Death House Door (co-directed with Peter Gilbert) and 2011 for The Interrupters. ERROL MORRIS Wormwood Netflix This is Mr. Morris’s fourth DGA Award nomination. He was nominated in this category in 1999 for Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred Leuchter, Jr. and in 2003 for The Fog of War. Mr. Morris was also nominated in the Commercials category in 2003 for “Pager” and “Alternative Fuel” (Miller), “Bernard” and “Kathryn” (Nike) and “Meanwhile” (Cisco).
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Directors of “Lady Bird” “Patti Cake$” “Wind River” Earn Nominations for 2017 Directors Guild of America Feature Film Awards
[caption id="attachment_19920" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Patti Cake$[/caption]
Directors Guild of America President Thomas Schlamme announced the five nominees for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film, and also for First-Time Feature Film Director for 2017.
“2018 marks the 70th anniversary of the DGA Awards, and filmmaking has reached new heights with each passing year. These nominees embody the excellence that comes to life when unique vision, craft and skill come together in pursuit of masterful storytelling,” said Schlamme. “Being nominated by their peers is what makes this award especially meaningful for directors, and I congratulate all of the nominees for their outstanding work.”
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film
The nominees for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2017 are (in alphabetical order): GUILLERMO del TORO The Shape of Water (Fox Searchlight Pictures) Mr. del Toro’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: J. Miles Dale Production Manager: Dennis Chapman First Assistant Director: Pierre Henry Second Assistant Director: Tyler Delben This is Mr. del Toro’s first DGA Award nomination. GRETA GERWIG Lady Bird (A24) Ms. Gerwig’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Managers: Lila Yacoub, Danielle Blumstein, Jamin O’Brien (New York Crew) First Assistant Directors: Jonas Spaccarotelli, Cedric Vara (New York Crew) Second Assistant Directors: Brendan Lee, Dana Zolli (New York Crew) Second Second Assistant Directors: Lillian Awa, Teri Barber This is Ms. Gerwig’s first DGA Award nomination. MARTIN McDONAGH Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (Fox Searchlight Pictures) Mr. McDonagh’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Bergen Swanson Assistant Unit Production Manager: Peggy Robinson First Assistant Director: Peter Kohn Second Assistant Director: Paula Case Second Second Assistant Director: Spencer Taylor This is Mr. McDonagh’s first DGA Award nomination. CHRISTOPHER NOLAN Dunkirk (Warner Bros.) Mr. Nolan’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Managers: David Witz, Christine Raspillere (France Unit), Chris Brock (UK Unit), Nicky Tüske (Netherlands Unit) First Assistant Directors: Nilo Otero, William Pruss (France Unit), Willem Quarles van Ufford (Netherlands Unit) Second Assistant Director: Eric Lasko, Nicolas Baldino (France Unit), Alexis Chelli (France Unit), Clément Comet (France Unit) Second Second Assistant Director: Alina Gatti This is Mr. Nolan’s fourth DGA Feature Film Award nomination. He was previously nominated for Inception in 2010, for The Dark Knight in 2008 and for Memento in 2001. JORDAN PEELE Get Out (Universal Pictures) Mr. Peele’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Managers: Marcei A. Brown, Rick A. Osako (Fairhope Unit) First Assistant Director: Gerard DiNardi Second Assistant Directors: Ram Paul Silbey, Marc Newland (Fairhope Unit), Jack McKenna (New York Unit) Second Second Assistant Director: Maggie Ballard Location Manager: Kurt Engler (New York Unit) This is one of two DGA Award nominations this year for Mr. Peele. He is also nominated in the First-Time Feature Film category for Get Out.Outstanding Directorial Achievement in First-Time Feature Film
The nominees for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement of a First-Time Feature Film Director for 2017 are (in alphabetical order): GEREMY JASPER Patti Cake$ (Fox Searchlight Pictures) Mr. Jasper’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Sara Blechman First Assistant Director: Inna Braude Second Assistant Director: Natasha Rivera Second Second Assistant Director: Lucas Isabella Additional Second Second Assistant Director: Alice Johnson This is Mr. Jasper’s first DGA Award nomination. WILLIAM OLDROYD Lady Macbeth (Roadside Attractions) Mr. Oldroyd’s Directorial Team: Production Manager: Robert K. Harm Unit Manager: Eugene Galbrath First Assistant Director: George Every Second Assistant Director: Richard Stanley Jan Harris This is Mr. Oldroyd’s first DGA Award nomination. JORDAN PEELE Get Out (Universal Pictures) Mr. Peele’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Managers: Marcei A. Brown, Rick A. Osako (Fairhope Unit) First Assistant Director: Gerard DiNardi Second Assistant Directors: Ram Paul Silbey, Marc Newland (Fairhope Unit), Jack McKenna (New York Unit) Second Second Assistant Director: Maggie Ballard Location Manager: Kurt Engler (New York Unit) This is one of two DGA Award nominations this year for Mr. Peele. He is also nominated in the Feature Film category for Get Out. TAYLOR SHERIDAN Wind River (Acacia Entertainment) Mr. Sheridan’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Christopher H. Warner First Assistant Director: Nicolas Harvard Second Assistant Director: Jason Altieri Second Second Assistant Director: Kristina Massie This is Mr. Sheridan’s first DGA Award nomination. AARON SORKIN Molly’s Game (STX Entertainment) Mr. Sorkin’s Directorial Team: Unit Production Managers: Lyn Lucibello-Brancatella, Stuart M. Besser, Michael Beugg (Los Angeles Unit) Assistant Unit Production Manager: Bart Lipton (Los Angeles Unit) First Assistant Director: Walter Gasparovic Second Assistant Directors: Penny Charter, Travis Rehwaldt (New York Unit), Paula Case (Los Angeles Unit) Second Second Assistant Directors: Conor Griff (New York Unit), Drew Ritson (New York Unit), Bryan Snodgrass (Los Angeles Unit) Location Manager: Dena Ghieth (New York Unit) This is Mr. Sorkin’s first DGA Award nomination.
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14 Films to Compete in Perspektive Deutsches Kino 2018 at Berlin International Film Festival
[caption id="attachment_26432" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Whatever Happens Next[/caption]
14 films, including six full-length fiction and four documentary films, will compete for the Kompass-Perspektive-Preis, endowed with 5,000 euros, at the 2018 Berlin International Film Festival. In addition, a neighborhood film project that focuses on Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz in Berlin will be a guest at Perspektive Deutsches Kino 2018.
Sure, you can always take off. Soon. Right now. Or later. You could just be gone, just steal away from a fully furnished life. But then what happens? Everyone has thought about it but very few actually do it: leave their intended path. It’s risky, it’s exciting, it’s brave and whimsical. Paul Zeise (Sebastian Rudolph) goes for it in the debut film Whatever Happens Next (produced by The StoryBay, Salzwedel) by director Julian Pörksen. Paul travels across the country crashing funerals and parties, moves in with off-the-wall Nele (Lilith Stangenberg) for a while, and generally floats around in the wonderland we call life. A short film by director Julian Pörksen was presented at Perspektive Deutsches Kino in 2012. Whatever Happens Next is his first feature-length fiction work.
Director Susan Gordanshekan is also returning to Perspektive Deutsches Kino with her debut feature Die defekte Katze (A Dysfunctional Cat, produced by Glory Film, Munich). The film tells the story of an Iranian couple who only begin to get to know each other after entering traditional marriage, and then fall short of success when faced with the challenges of life together in Germany. The story is about liberating oneself from different lifestyle ideals and giving love a second chance.
The debut film Verlorene (Lost Ones, produced by VIAFILM, Munich) by Felix Hassenfratz takes us deep into provincial Baden, where everyone knows everybody and the siblings Maria (Maria Dragus) and Hannah (Anna Bachmann) live alone with their father (Clemens Schick) following the death of their mother. Director Felix Hassenfratz is well acquainted with the environment and tells a small town story where fear of the unknown is just as strong as a yearning for it.
The horror/love story Luz is the graduation film by director Tilman Singer and production designer Dario Méndez Acosta from the Academy of Media Arts Cologne. Luz, a young taxi driver from Latin America, stumbles into a police headquarters with the last of her strength. She’s being pursued by a demon, who is determined to finally be close to his beloved. Tilman Singer describes the work as an erotic 16mm thriller that plays with audience perception.
Three more documentary films have also been selected for the Perspektive program. In The Best Thing You Can Do With Your Life (produced by Zita Erffa, Petruvski Films, in Tegernsee, with co-production by the HFF Munich), director Zita Erffa asks her brother László about his motivation for entering a Legion of Christ monastery. Eight years after his departure, she can finally visit him and ask why he left her alone in her family. For both, the camera functions as a catalyst to find harmony. The political documentary Impreza – Das Fest (Impreza – The Celebration, produced by DREIFILM, Munich) also takes a highly personal approach. Her aunt’s 50th wedding anniversary is an opportunity for director Alexandra Wesolowski to visit her family in Poland. But instead of being about the party, the conversations she documents soon focus completely on politics. In Überall wo wir sind (Everywhere We Are, produced by Veronika Kaserer) director Veronika Kaserer follows a family after the death of one of its members – the parents who lost a son and a sister who lost a brother. In the organisation of daily activities and the narratives of the protagonists, battling or grieving, we see the “pact with death” become a “pact with life”.
The 22-minute fiction film Kein sicherer Ort (No Safe Place, produced by Filmmagnet, Munich, with co-production by the HFF Munich) by director Antje Beine supplements the mostly mid-length program with one more young protagonist. Through the eyes of 10-year-old Marie (Lucia Stickel), we see what it means when you’re not allowed to be a child in the place you call home.
The series Film Wanderungen (Film Walks) completes the Perspektive Deutsches Kino program. The project was invited to Perspektive 2018 as a guest. What does “neighborhood” mean? And what is “home”? In the summer of 2017, 140 residents of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz area in the Mitte district of Berlin were interviewed. On the second Berlinale weekend, audiences are invited to take a trip through the living rooms of those residents to watch films together, and engage in conversation.
On Berlinale Publikumstag, February 25, 2018, Perspektive Deutsches Kino will present the winning work in the fiction film competition “Max-Ophüls-Preis 2018”, and the winner of the documentary film competition First Steps Award 2017 (Ohne diese Welt, directed by Nora Fingscheidt).
The Best Thing You Can Do With Your Life By Zita Erffa Documentary World premiere
Die defekte Katze (A Dysfunctional Cat) By Susann Gordanshekan With Pegah Ferydoni, Hadi Khanjanpour, Henrike von Kuick, Constantin von Jascheroff, Arash Marandi Feature film World premiere
Impreza – Das Fest (Impreza – The Celebration) By Alexandra Wesolowski Documentary German premiere
Kein sicherer Ort (No Safe Place) By Antje Beine With Lucia Stickel, Kristina Pauls, Robin Sondermann Medium-long feature films World premiere
Luz By Tilman Singer With Luana Velis, Jan Bluthardt, Julia Riedler, Nadja Stübiger, Johannes Benecke Feature film World premiere
Verlorene (Lost Ones) By Felix Hassenfratz With Maria Dragus, Anna Bachmann, Clemens Schick, Enno Trebs, Meira Durand Feature film World premiere
Whatever Happens Next By Julian Pörksen With Sebastian Rudolph, Lilith Stangenberg, Peter René Lüdicke, Christine Hoppe, Eike Weinreich Feature film World premiere
Überall wo wir sind (Everywhere We Are) By Veronika Kaserer Documentary World premiere
Films announced so far:
draußen (outside) By Johanna Sunder-Plassmann, Tama Tobias-Macht Documentary World premiere
Feierabendbier (After-Work Beer) By Ben Brummer With Tilman Strauß, Julia Dietze, Johann Jürgens, Christian Tramitz Feature film World premiere
Kineski zid (Great Wall of China) By Aleksandra Odić With Elena Matić, Tina Keserović, Faketa Salihbegović-Avdagić, Anja Stanić, Mugdim Avdagić Medium-long feature film German premiere
Rå By Sophia Bösch With Sofia Aspholm, Lennart Jähkel, Lars T. Johansson, Ingmar Virta, Ivan Mathias Petersson Medium-long feature film World premiere
Rückenwind von vorn (Away You Go) By Philipp Eichholtz With Victoria Schulz, Aleksandar Radenković, Daniel Zillmann, Angelika Waller Feature film World premiere
Storkow Kalifornia By Kolja Malik With Daniel Roth, Lana Cooper, Franziska Ponitz Medium-long feature film World premiere
Guest Projects:
Film Wanderungen (Film Walks) 27 participants Doc-series
Ohne diese Welt (Without This World) By Nora Fingscheidt Documentary
Award winner “Max-Ophüls-Preis 2018” for Best Feature Film
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“THE SHAPE OF WATER” Wins Most Awards + Named Best Picture at 23rd Critics’ Choice Awards
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The Shape of Water[/caption]
At the 23rd Annual Critics’ Choice Awards held last night, live from the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, “The Shape of Water,” the most nominated film of the evening, took home four awards, the most of the night, including Best Picture, Best Director for Guillermo del Toro, Best Production Design for Paul Denham Austerberry, Shane Vieau and Jeff Melvin, and Best Score for Alexandre Desplat.
The top film acting awards were bestowed upon Gary Oldman, who took home Best Actor for his work in “Darkest Hour,” and Frances McDormand, awarded Best Actress for “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.” McDormand’s co-star Sam Rockwell won the trophy for Best Supporting Actor, while Best Supporting Actress went to Allison Janney for her standout performance in “I, Tonya.”
Gal Gadot received the #SeeHer Award, and accepted the award from her “Wonder Woman” director, Patty Jenkins.
WINNERS OF THE 23RD ANNUAL CRITICS’ CHOICE AWARDS
FILM:
BEST PICTURE – “The Shape of Water” BEST ACTOR – Gary Oldman, “Darkest Hour” BEST ACTRESS – Frances McDormand, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR – Sam Rockwell, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS – Allison Janney, “I, Tonya” BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS – Brooklynn Prince, “The Florida Project” BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE – “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” BEST DIRECTOR – Guillermo del Toro, “The Shape of Water” BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY – Jordan Peele, “Get Out” BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY – James Ivory, “Call Me By Your Name” BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – Roger Deakins, “Blade Runner 2049” BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – Paul Denham Austerberry, Shane Vieau, Jeff Melvin, “The Shape of Water” BEST EDITING (TIE) – Paul Machliss, Jonathan Amos, “Baby Driver” BEST EDITING (TIE) – Lee Smith, “Dunkirk” BEST COSTUME DESIGN – Mark Bridges, “Phantom Thread” BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP – “Darkest Hour” BEST VISUAL EFFECTS – “War for the Planet of the Apes” BEST ANIMATED FEATURE – “Coco” BEST ACTION MOVIE – “Wonder Woman” BEST COMEDY – “The Big Sick” BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY – James Franco, “The Disaster Artist” BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY – Margot Robbie, “I, Tonya” BEST SCI-FI OR HORROR MOVIE – “Get Out” BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM – “In The Fade” BEST SONG – “Remember Me” from “Coco” BEST SCORE – Alexandre Desplat, “The Shape of Water”TELEVISION:
BEST COMEDY SERIES – The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Amazon BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES – Ted Danson, The Good Place, NBC BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES – Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Amazon BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES – Walton Goggins, Vice Principals, HBO BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES – Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory, CBS BEST DRAMA SERIES – The Handmaid’s Tale, Hulu BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES – Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us, NBC BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES – Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale, Hulu BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES – David Harbour, Stranger Things, Netflix BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES – Ann Dowd, The Handmaid’s Tale, Hulu BEST LIMITED SERIES – Big Little Lies, HBO BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TV – The Wizard of Lies, HBO BEST ACTOR IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TV OR LIMITED SERIES – Ewan McGregor, Fargo, FX BEST ACTRESS IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TV OR LIMITED SERIES – Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies, HBO BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TV OR LIMITED SERIES – Alexander Skarsgård, Big Little Lies, HBO BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TV OR LIMITED SERIES – Laura Dern, Big Little Lies, HBO BEST TALK SHOW – Jimmy Kimmel Live!, ABC BEST ANIMATED SERIES – Rick and Morty, Adult Swim BEST UNSTRUCTURED REALITY SERIES – Born This Way, A&E BEST STRUCTURED REALITY SERIES – Shark Tank, ABC BEST REALITY COMPETITION SERIES – The Voice, NBC BEST REALITY SHOW HOST – RuPaul, RuPaul’s Drag Race, VH1
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Writers of Indie Films CROWN HEIGHTS, GOOK, NOVITIATE Among Finalists for 43rd HUMANITAS Prize
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Crown Heights[/caption]
Thirty-one writers in six television, documentary and independent feature film categories have been named finalists for the 43rd Annual HUMANITAS Prize. The writers are nominated for their work in the 30-Minute, 60-Minute, Children’s Animation, Children’s Live Action, Sundance Feature Film and Documentary categories. Winners will be announced at the annual HUMANITAS Prize event on Friday, February 16, 2018 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.
“In the past few years we have experienced a spectacular renaissance of television and documentary filmmaking,” observed LeRoi. “There is an embarrassment of riches in terms of both the quality and quantity of work, so choosing these finalists from among the wealth of notable submissions we received this year was a challenge — albeit a wonderful one.”
“Whether it’s a deep documentary dive into a challenging subject, a hilarious half-hour sitcom episode or a heartfelt independent feature, all of the finalists used their craft to create work that is both entertaining and enlightening,” added Young. “Television and film have incredible power when it comes to inspiring empathy, compassion, forgiveness and reason, and we are proud to support work that strives to do just that.”
The HUMANITAS Prize was created to honor film and television writers whose work inspires compassion, hope and understanding in the human family. Since its inception in 1974, The HUMANITAS Prize has awarded over $3 million to more than 360 deserving television and motion picture writers whose work affirms the dignity of the human person, probes the meaning of life, and enlightens the use of human freedom.
The HUMANITAS Prize television and documentary finalists are:
Documentary Category
CRIES FROM SYRIA Directed by Evgeny Afineevsky HUMAN FLOW Directed by Ai Weiwei, Written by Chin-Chin Yap, Tim Finch & Boris Cheshirkov HEARING IS BELIEVING Directed by Lorenzo DeStefano ONE OF US Directed by Rachel Grady & Heidi EwingSundance Feature Film Category
CROWN HEIGHTS Written by Matt Ruskin GOOK Written by Justin Chon NOVITIATE Written by Margaret Betts30-Minute Category
BLACK-ISH “Lemons” Written by Kenya Barris THE BIG BANG THEORY “Long Distance Dissonance” Teleplay by Chuck Lorre & Steve Holland & Tara Hernandez, Story by Steven Molaro & Eric Kaplan & Jim Reynolds WILL & GRACE “Grandpa Jack” Written by Alex Herschlag60-Minute Category
GAME OF THRONES “The Dragon and the Wolf” Written by David Benioff & D. B. Weiss MADAM SECRETARY “Good Bones” Written by Joy Gregory THE GOOD DOCTOR “Pilot” Teleplay by David ShoreChildren’s Live Action Category
AN AMERICAN GIRL STORY “Ivy & Julie 1976: A Happy Balance” Written by May Chan DEGRASSI: NEXT CLASS “#ImSleep” Written by Matt Huether SESAME STREET “The Magical Wand Chase: A Sesame Street Special” Written by Ken Scarborough, Raye Lankford, and Jessica CarletonChildren’s Animation Category
DOC MCSTUFFINS “Hannah the Brave” Written by Kerri Grant SOFIA THE FIRST “The Crown of Blossoms” Written by Craig Carlisle SPLASH AND BUBBLES “Pearlene” Written by Michael Foulke