French film-maker and journalist Claude Lanzmann, best known for directing the Holocaust documentary Shoah, died today in Paris, he was 92.
His first documentary Pourquoi Israel? (Why Israel?) was released in 1973, and he began filming Shoah, a year later in 1974, conducting a series of filmed interview with death camp survivors all over the world. Lanzmann was reportedly attacked while attempting a covert interview, and was hospitalized for a month.
Over nine hours long and 11 years in the making, Shoah presents Lanzmann’s interviews with survivors, witnesses and perpetrators during visits to German Holocaust sites across Poland, including extermination camps.
Released in Paris in April 1985, Shoah won critical acclaim and many prestigous awards, including the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Non-Fiction Film in 1985, a special citation at the 1985 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, and the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary in 1986. That year it also won the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Non-Fiction Film and Best Documentary at the International Documentary Association.
Lanzmann has released four feature-length films based on unused material shot for Shoah.
A Visitor from the Living (fr) (1997) about a Red Cross representative, Maurice Rossel, who in 1944 wrote a favourable report about the Theresienstadt concentration camp.
Sobibor, October 14, 1943, 4 p.m. (2001) about Yehuda Lerner, who participated in an uprising against the camp guards and managed to escape.
The Karski Report (fr) (2010) about Polish resistance fighter Jan Karski’s visit to Franklin Roosevelt in 1943.
The Last of the Unjust (2013) about Benjamin Murmelstein, a controversial Jewish rabbi in the Theresienstadt ghetto during World War II.
Previously unseen Shoah outtakes have also been featured in Adam Benzine’s HBO documentary Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah (2015), which examines Lanzmann’s life during 1973–1985, the years he spent making Shoah.
Lanzmann’s final film, Napalm, which premiered at Cannes in 2017, drew on his earlier visits to North Korea as a young journalist, in which he revealed his brief affair with a North Korean nurse.
Claude Lanzmann received a Honorary Golden Bear at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival, and was made Grand Officer of the National Order of the Legion of Honor on July 14, 2011.
Update: Berlinale issued a statement
French director and author Claude Lanzmann has passed away.
“Claude Lanzmann was one of the great documentarists. With his depictions of inhumanity and violence, of anti-Semitism and its consequences, he created a new kind of cinematic and ethical exploration. We mourn the loss of an important personality of the political-intellectual life of our time,” says Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick.
Claude Lanzmann’s film Shoah (1985) made cinematic history as an unparalleled masterpiece of commemorative culture. The nine-and-a-halfhour documentary on the genocide of European Jews was screened in the Berlinale Forum in 1986 and received numerous international awards.
Born in Paris in 1925 to Jewish parents, Claude Lanzmann fought in the Résistance, studied philosophy in France and Germany, and held a lectureship at the then newly founded Freie Universität Berlin in 1948/49. His exploration of the Shoah, anti-Semitism and political struggles for freedom infuse both his cinematic and journalistic work.
His first film was made in 1972, the documentary Pourquoi Israël (Israel, Why; France 1973), in which he illustrates the necessity of Israel’s founding from the Jewish perspective. In the film Tsahal, which screened in the 1995 Berlinale Forum, he focuses on women and men who serve in the Israeli Army. Sobibor, 14 octobre 1943, 16 heures (France 2001), about the 1943 revolt in the Sobibor extermination camp in Poland, was also screened in the Berlinale Forum, in 2002.
In 2013, the Berlinale honoured him with an Homage and awarded the Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIV7SYk9mWkTerry P.
VIMOOZ is for lovers of independent films + foreign film + documentary + film festivals. We love championing the little films.
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RIP: Claude Lanzmann Director of Holocaust Documentary SHOAH Dead at 92
French film-maker and journalist Claude Lanzmann, best known for directing the Holocaust documentary Shoah, died today in Paris, he was 92.
His first documentary Pourquoi Israel? (Why Israel?) was released in 1973, and he began filming Shoah, a year later in 1974, conducting a series of filmed interview with death camp survivors all over the world. Lanzmann was reportedly attacked while attempting a covert interview, and was hospitalized for a month.
Over nine hours long and 11 years in the making, Shoah presents Lanzmann’s interviews with survivors, witnesses and perpetrators during visits to German Holocaust sites across Poland, including extermination camps.
Released in Paris in April 1985, Shoah won critical acclaim and many prestigous awards, including the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Non-Fiction Film in 1985, a special citation at the 1985 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, and the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary in 1986. That year it also won the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Non-Fiction Film and Best Documentary at the International Documentary Association.
Lanzmann has released four feature-length films based on unused material shot for Shoah.
A Visitor from the Living (fr) (1997) about a Red Cross representative, Maurice Rossel, who in 1944 wrote a favourable report about the Theresienstadt concentration camp.
Sobibor, October 14, 1943, 4 p.m. (2001) about Yehuda Lerner, who participated in an uprising against the camp guards and managed to escape.
The Karski Report (fr) (2010) about Polish resistance fighter Jan Karski’s visit to Franklin Roosevelt in 1943.
The Last of the Unjust (2013) about Benjamin Murmelstein, a controversial Jewish rabbi in the Theresienstadt ghetto during World War II.
Previously unseen Shoah outtakes have also been featured in Adam Benzine’s HBO documentary Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah (2015), which examines Lanzmann’s life during 1973–1985, the years he spent making Shoah.
Lanzmann’s final film, Napalm, which premiered at Cannes in 2017, drew on his earlier visits to North Korea as a young journalist, in which he revealed his brief affair with a North Korean nurse.
Claude Lanzmann received a Honorary Golden Bear at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival, and was made Grand Officer of the National Order of the Legion of Honor on July 14, 2011.
Update: Berlinale issued a statement
French director and author Claude Lanzmann has passed away.
“Claude Lanzmann was one of the great documentarists. With his depictions of inhumanity and violence, of anti-Semitism and its consequences, he created a new kind of cinematic and ethical exploration. We mourn the loss of an important personality of the political-intellectual life of our time,” says Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick.
Claude Lanzmann’s film Shoah (1985) made cinematic history as an unparalleled masterpiece of commemorative culture. The nine-and-a-halfhour documentary on the genocide of European Jews was screened in the Berlinale Forum in 1986 and received numerous international awards.
Born in Paris in 1925 to Jewish parents, Claude Lanzmann fought in the Résistance, studied philosophy in France and Germany, and held a lectureship at the then newly founded Freie Universität Berlin in 1948/49. His exploration of the Shoah, anti-Semitism and political struggles for freedom infuse both his cinematic and journalistic work.
His first film was made in 1972, the documentary Pourquoi Israël (Israel, Why; France 1973), in which he illustrates the necessity of Israel’s founding from the Jewish perspective. In the film Tsahal, which screened in the 1995 Berlinale Forum, he focuses on women and men who serve in the Israeli Army. Sobibor, 14 octobre 1943, 16 heures (France 2001), about the 1943 revolt in the Sobibor extermination camp in Poland, was also screened in the Berlinale Forum, in 2002.
In 2013, the Berlinale honoured him with an Homage and awarded the Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIV7SYk9mWk
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Logo Unveils 2018 Documentary Slate – LIGHT IN THE WATER, WHEN THE BEAT DROPS and QUIET HEROES
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Light in the Water[/caption]
Logo Documentary Films today announced its 2018 slate which includes Light in the Water, When the Beat Drops and Quiet Heroes. The first film, Light in the Water, premiering Thursday, July 19th on Logo, details the humble beginnings of one of the first openly gay masters swim and water polo club in 1982. When the Beat Drops, premiering August 9th, follows a crew of gay African-American men as they pioneer the Southern-rooted underground dance scene known as “bucking.” The Sundance Film Festival favorite, Quiet Heroes, which tells the story of one female doctor fighting to save the denigrated and largely male AIDS population in the socially conservative Salt Lake City area, premieres August 23rd. Logo Documentary Films division recently received the 2018 Television Academy Honor for Forbidden: Undocumented and Queer in Rural America as well as its third Daytime Emmy for KEVYN AUCOIN Beauty & The Beast in Me.
“Now more than ever, it is imperative for us to tell the stories of our community’s ability to triumph over adversity,” said Taj Paxton, VP of Logo Documentary Films. “These documentaries represent our bravery and our continued fight against stigma and the sting of hatred and intolerance.”
The 2018 slate includes:
LIGHT IN THE WATER / Premieres Thursday, July 19th at 8PM ET/PT on Logo
Light in the Water reveals the untold story of a group of gay men and women who found one another through their love of competitive swimming, ultimately becoming a family and a force for the LGBTQ sports movement.
The West Hollywood Aquatics Team were pioneers in gay sports, from registering as one of the first openly gay Masters swim teams in 1982, to pushing through the devastation of the AIDS crisis. This documentary reveals the inside story of a group of trailblazers who personified the change they wanted to see and created a legacy for equality in sports that lives on in the team today.
Light in The Water is produced by Patty Ivins Specht and Lis Bartlett and directed by Bartlett. Executive Producers from Logo Documentary Films are Pamela Post and Taj Paxton.
WHEN THE BEAT DROPS / Premieres Thursday, August 9th at 8PM ET/PT on Logo As Voguing exploded out of the ballroom scene of NYC, “bucking,” an electric and subversive underground dance scene, was boldly pioneered in the clubs of the Deep South as a new form of self-expression and education. Together with his crew of fellow gay African-American men, Anthony Davis, a heavy-set, Atlanta-born kid with a love of dance, helped grow bucking into a national movement, complete with fierce competitions. In the process, Davis created a haven for a generation of displaced black gay men. When the Beat Drops had its premiere at the 2018 Miami Film Festival where is won the “Knight Documentary Achievement Award” and recently received the “Outstanding Documentary Jury Award” at Frameline42: San Francisco International LGBTQ Film Festival. The film will also serve as the Documentary Centerpiece at Outfest Film Festival in Los Angeles on July 19th. It is a World of Wonder (WOW) production and is the directorial debut of internationally acclaimed choreographer Jamal Sims, who brings a sensitive intimacy to the subject’s brilliant artistry and their inspiring lives. When the Beat Drops is produced by WOW’s Emmy Award-winning Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, along with Jordan Finnegan. Pamela Post and Taj Paxton serve as executive producers from Logo Documentary Films. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qc3292–FL4 QUIET HEROES / Premieres Thursday, August 23rd at 8PM ET/PT on Logo In Salt Lake City, Utah, the socially conservative religious monoculture complicated the AIDS crisis, where patients in the entire state and intermountain region relied on only one doctor, Dr. Kristen Ries. Quiet Heroes is the story of her fight – against stigma, shame and ignorance – to save a maligned population everyone else seemed willing to just let die. Quiet Heroes had its world premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. It is directed and produced by Jenny Mackenzie, Jared Ruga and Amanda Stoddard. Pamela Post and Taj Paxton serve as executive producers from Logo Documentary Films.
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Works in Progress, Eurimages Lab Project and Docs in Progress Prizes Awarded at 2018 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
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ALL THIS VICTORY[/caption]
On Works in Progress at the 2018 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, eleven projects were presented from countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, and now also the Middle East. The jury chose ALL THIS VICTORY by director Ahmad Ghossein as the winning project. A prize in the value of 100,000 Euro will be given to the project.
The Eurimages Lab Project prize went to the winning project NORMAL by director Adele Tulli. KVIFF is the first of four international film festivals in Europe to be awarding the Eurimage prize. KVIFF has selected projects for the Eurimage prize that surpass traditional film methods and are based on international cooperation. The prize was awarded in the value of 50,000 Euro.
The Docs in Progress prize went to the winning project THE PROJECTIONIST. For this section, projects are chosen from Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, and the Middle East. The winning film received a cash prize in the amount of 5,000 Euro.
A Special Mention was awarded to the Polish project Little Poland.
ALL THIS VICTORY
90 min, Lebanon, France, Germany
Directed by: Ahmad Ghossein
Scriptwriter: Ahmad Ghossein, Abla Khoury, Syllas Tzoumerkas
Producer: Georges Schoucair, Myriam Sassine, Marie-Pierre Macia, Claire Gadéa, Fabian Massah
Camera: Shadi Chaaban
Music: Charbel Haber
Cast: Karam Ghossein, Adel Chahine, Boutros Rouhana, Issam Bou Khaled, Sahar Minkara Karame, Flavia Juska Bechara, Eli El Choufani, Charles Hbailiny
Language: Arabic
Genre: fiction
Release date: 07/03/2019
Synopsis:
Lebanon, July 2006. War is raging between Hezbollah and Israel. During a 24-hour ceasefire, Marwan heads out in search of his father, who has refused to leave his Southern village, leaving his wife Rana alone to prepare their immigration to Canada. Marwan finds no traces of his father and the ceasefire is quickly broken, forcing him to take shelter in the house of Najib, his father’s friend. Marwan finds himself trapped under a hail of bombs with Najib and a group of elders, who are friends of his father. Tension rises inside and outside of the house. Suddenly, a group of Israeli soldiers enter the first floor. The next three days sees the situation spiral out of control.
NORMAL
70 min, Italy, Sweden
Directed by: Adele Tulli
Scriptwriter: Adele Tulli
Producer: Valeria Adilardi, Laura Romano, Luca Ricciardi
Camera: Clarissa Cappellani, Francesca Zonars
Music: Andrea Koch
Language: Italian
Genre: creative documentary
Release date: 01/10/2018
What’s missing: final editing, sound post-production, color grading, international promotion, production financing gap
Synopsis:
An unsettling visual journey through gender norms in contemporary Italy. Blending realist and experimental aesthetics, Normal sketches a disorienting portrait of the accepted ideas of normality. A kaleidoscopic mosaic of everyday-life scenes observes the ritualized performance of femininity and masculinity in ordinary interactions, from birth to adulthood, interpreting gender as a corporeal and performative practice, a social ceremony, a collective mise-en-scène affecting our gestures, desires, behaviours, and aspirations. With an innovative and visionary film language, Normal meditates on the everyday constraints of gendered reality, producing a poignant reflection on a current and crucial matter.
THE PROJECTIONIST
70 min, Ukraine, Germany, Poland
Directed by: Yuriy Shylov
Scriptwriter: Yuriy Shylov
Producer: Gennady Kofman, Olha Beskhmelnytsina, Dirk Simon
Camera: Yuriy Shylov, Serafim Kusakin, Illya Ehorov
Language: Ukrainian, Russian
Genre: dramedy, documentary
Release date: 02/11/2018
What’s missing: sales agent, distributors, broadcasters, festivals
Synopsis:
Valentin is an eccentric projectionist. For 44 years, he’s been working in one of the oldest movie theatres in Kiev’s city centre. In his projection booth, he drinks with war veterans, dances with the show girls from next door or cuts his friend’s hair. Every day at work seems like another adventure. The turmoil on Maidan Square and the war remain behind the scenes, while the life on screen creates an alternative reality. It all comes to an abrupt end when a fire breaks out in the cinema and Valentin is forced to retire. He looks after his dying mother, rushing to help her the moment she calls. With an average life expectancy for men in Ukraine of 64 years, Valentin is aware that he does not have much time left. Still, he fights desperately to find a new meaning in life in a rapidly changing country.
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SCIENCE FAIR, VIRUS TROPICAL, RESPETO Among First 6 Films Selected for 2018 Calgary International Film Festival
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Science Fair directed by Cristina Costantini and Darren Foster[/caption]
The Calgary International Film Festival has revealed the first six youth focused films coming to the 19th annual festival from September 19 to 30, 2018.
The films were selected by a group of Calgary high school students recruited by the Calgary International Film Festival for its new Generation Next program. With the help of the festival’s experienced film programming team, the students picked six youth-focused films from a roster of new films from around the world.
The six films will have special screenings for high school classes participating in the Generation Next program. These same films will also screen as part of the regular festival lineup. Schedule information and individual ticket sales will be announced August 28.
The six Generation Next films are as follows:
FILM SCHOOL AFRICA: Nathan Pfaff’s powerful and heartwarming feature directorial debut follows Katie Taylor, a Los Angeles casting director, as she teaches filmmaking to youth in an impoverished South African community.
L’ANIMALE: Director Katharina Mueckstein’s second feature film is a raw, honest coming-of-age drama with a synth-heavy soundtrack that takes us down the familiar path of trying to fit in amongst friends, and figuring out our identity.
RESPETO: A bold, dark, utterly unique and electric film filled with original poetry and rap music, lead by Filipino hip-hop artist and YouTube star Abra.
SCIENCE FAIR: In this inspiring documentary, we meet a global roster of teenage scientists as they compete for the top prize at the International Science and Engineering Fair.
THE MISEDUCATION OF CAMERON POST: Based on the novel by Emily M. Danforth, Cameron (Chloë Grace Moretz) gets caught with another girl in the backseat of a car on prom night, and is quickly shipped off to a conversion therapy
VIRUS TROPICAL: Born into an unconventional Ecuadorian family, Paola grows up between Ecuador and Colombia and finds herself unable to fit in any mood.
“It was amazing to work with the high school students and learning which films and themes really resonate,” said Brenda Lieberman, Lead Programmer with the Calgary International Film Festival. “Our students were committed to curating a strong list of films and the program itself really opened their eyes to a wide range of genres, topics and styles of film and all competing on the festival circuit. Even being exposed to World Cinema for the first time was incredible for them.”
Generation Next is a new program, the first of its kind in Canada, and strives to empower youth voices and help local students consider careers in the Alberta film industry.
“Calgary Film is always striving to add diversity in our festival’s film selection, which Generation Next makes possible,” says Calgary Film Executive Director Steve Schroeder. “We are also inspiring local students to pursue careers in filmmaking.”
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Watch New Sweet Trailer + Poster for Jack C. Newell’s Teen Drama HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL
Samuel Goldwyn Films today released the official poster and trailer for Jack C. Newell’s teen drama Hope Springs Eternal. The film stars Mia Rose Frampton (Bridesmaids), Pej Vahdat (Bones), Beth Lacke (Frequency), Stony Blyden (Hunter Street), Juliette Angelo (NCIS), Beau Brooks, Lauren Giraldo (FML), and all of the Cimorelli sisters. The film is slated for a day and date release on August 10.
Hope Gracin is known as “the girl dying of cancer” and has fully embraced this identity. Posting YouTube videos, having fun with friends, an Australian boyfriend, and being popular have been results of this identity… until her tests show that she is cured. Hope, unsure of what her new future holds, hides the truth. But as what happens with most secrets, the truth comes out. How will everyone react? With the help of her friends and loved ones, Hope faces her fear of living only to discover the beauty of living.
Hope Springs Eternal is one of the debut films for the burgeoning new production company Gylden Entertainment. The film was directed by Jack C. Newell and written by Stephnie Mickus.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6zmzJ8wqZ0
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HEAVY WATER and BETHANY HAMILTON: UNSTOPPABLE Among Films at DIFF’s 2018 Wavescape Surf Film Festival
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Heavy Water[/caption]
The 14th edition of the Wavescape Surf Film Festival takes place at the Durban International Film Festival, headlined by the African premiere of smash-hit feature documentary Heavy Water, by California-based South African Michael Oblowitz on July 22.
Heavy Water: The Life and Times of Nathan Fletcher will open Wavescape on Sunday July 22. The film is one of 22 films Wavescape brings to Durban this year, including features and shorts from Sierra Leone, Namibia, South Africa, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Australia, Hawaii, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Canada, among others.
Wavescape Director Steve Pike, aka Spike, says that the lineup for DIFF was one of the most exciting in years. “We’re honored to have several other African premieres, such as the incredible story of Bethany Hamilton, who lost an arm to a shark; and the gritty documentary Secrets of Desert Point, a piece of pioneering surf history.”
From Monday July 23 to Friday July 27, Wavescape moves to Arena 5, Village Walk, uShaka Marine World for five 6pm screenings, which are free. The screenings at uShaka open with a lineup of three short films and two features, the soulful Perilous Sea and Church of the Open Sky, a master piece of surf filmmaking by Australian director Nathan Oldfield.
Wavescape closes with Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable, the untold story of Hamilton’s journey from childhood to motherhood and how she lost an arm to a tiger shark as a child. However, her relentless determination turns her into one of surfing’s great pro surfers and big wave riders, despite her disability. Bethany rewrites the phrase “Surfs Like a Girl.”
The midweek highlight is the documentary Secrets Of Desert Point, an excellent piece of historical story telling by Director Ira Opper, who chronicles the story of how a young Californian and his friends stumble across a perfect wave in the early 1980s from leaky boats among the remote islands of Indonesia, but it was fraught with dangers, from drugs to pirates and deadly coral reefs.
Spike says there are also excellent films about travel – the quest for reach for something precious, like the soulful travels of a Moroccan who brings clean water to the poor communities of Africa while working his way towards the infamous waves of Skeleton Bay in Namibia. The Seawolf is pure surf soul as we follow “eight surfers on a two-year journey to remote places to find the most dangerous waves on terrifyingly shallow rock slabs. Filmed in high definition 4k on Red Cameras, this is a enriching viewing experience”.
Several films tackle the emotional side of the human condition, such as Finding Purpose, a short film about Durban big wave surfer Tammy-Lee Smith who finds purpose riding big waves after pain and loss. A Million Waves tells the story of Kadiatu Kamara, 19, who is left to face the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone alone after her dad dies. She finds hope surfing in the waves.
In Visit, we travel with a shy, former street kid from Durban on his trip to England to visit the land of the funders who saved him from disappearing down a dark and dangerous rabbit hole. There is Adam, an award-winning short film about a Cape Town surfer diagnosed with a chronic form of cancer; or Awen, in which we see the uncomfortable reality of a young Chinese man who clashes with his mother because she wants him to become a fisherman like his ancestors, but he just wants to go surfing.
However, beyond the pain of being human come films to celebrate the visual poetry of the natural world, and the spiritual enrichment that the act of surfing and being in the ocean brings. Sea Lone eulogises some of the world’s top women longboarders on a surf trip to Sri Lanka.
Shape Qui Rit is a cute short about a two year old girl who “shapes” her dream surfboard; Night Rose sees an elderly lady in England transported by a vision into the ocean for a night surf; Black Rain catches a session in the tropics that cracks with the sea surface chatter of a thunderstorm, while The Edge Of North follows top British surfers to Scotland for a refreshing surf trip on the doorstep of their home.
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Influential Rock Doc KILL YOUR IDOLS to be Re-Released in October 2018
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Kill Your Idols – Yeah Yeah Yeahs[/caption]
Scott Crary’s influential rock documentary, Kill Your Idols will be re-released with special event theatrical screenings and 2xDVD set by Submarine Deluxe. The roc doc will be available on VOD for the first time ever with a rollout across multiple platforms planned for October 2018.
A chronicle of New York City’s diverse art punk and no wave music scenes across three decades, the documentary includes original interviews and performances with bands and artists like Suicide, Lydia Lunch, the late Glenn Branca, Sonic Youth, Swans, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The 2xDVD expanded edition will include over 90 minutes of bonus content, including 20 minutes of never-before-seen footage from the original production, commentaries and two brand new featurettes, produced exclusively for the reissue.
Produced by Crary and executive produced by Submarine’s own Dan Braun and Josh Braun, Kill Your Idols was distributed in 2006 by Palm Pictures and Showtime/Sundance Channel. The film won the award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Tribeca Film Festival and also screened at SXSW, the BFI London Times Film Festival, among others. The doc has been called “iconic” by Black Book, “still shocking” by Uncut and, in 2013, was included in the permanent archives of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
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CALIBRE, THOSE WHO ARE FINE, WHITNEY and NEVADA Win Top Awards at 2018 Edinburgh International Film Festival
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CALIBRE[/caption]
After screening 121 new features, including 20 world premieres, from 48 countries across the globe, the Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) announced the Award Winners for this year’s 72nd edition. Commenting on the incredibly high standard of entries at this year’s Festival and the outstanding quality of the submissions they were judging, the juries stressed that they had some tough decisions to make in choosing one winner in each category, giving Special Mentions to several films.
AWARDS WINNERS
THE MICHAEL POWELL AWARD FOR BEST BRITISH FEATURE FILM
The winner of the prestigious Michael Powell Award for Best British Feature Film, which honors imagination and creativity in British filmmaking, went to British filmmaker Matt Palmer’s debut feature, CALIBRE, which received its World Premiere at the Festival. The winner was chosen by the Michael Powell Jury comprised of Ana Ularu, Jason Connery and Iain de Caestecker. The Michael Powell Jury said: “Being part of the Edinburgh International Film Festival through the lens of serving on the Michael Powell Award jury has been an extraordinary experience. Art should not leave its reviewers unimpressed or passive, and we hope these awards named after a titan of the industry will have a far-reaching effect. A particular theme that featured in the films in competition this year was of children carrying the burden of adulthood. It has been fantastic to see a range of diverse films acknowledging the wealth of talent and craft in British filmmaking. We present the Michael Powell Award to CALIBRE, which unanimously made the biggest impact on us. Beautifully shot, technically accomplished, with a fantastic ensemble performance, director and screenwriter Matt Palmer pitches the tension and emotional journey flawlessly. We are fully invested in the characters and their dilemmas as the choices they make lead to a shattering conclusion.” Director Matt Palmer said: “We’re so honoured for CALIBRE to win this prestigious award, particularly considering the incredible list of previous winners. We’ve been completely thrilled by the amazing response from Edinburgh International Film Festival audiences and had a fantastic experience at the Festival, which has been the perfect lead up to CALIBRE’S global release on Netflix today.”THE AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE IN A BRITISH FEATURE FILM
The award for Best Performance in a British Feature Film went jointly to actresses Liv Hill and Sinead Matthews for their roles in JELLYFISH and was also selected by the Michael Powell jurors. The jury said: “In the category of Best Performance in a British Feature Film, the Michael Powell jury recognises an actress who carries their character in every bone of their body and on whose shoulders rests the ultimate success of the film. Liv Hill’s performance in JELLYFISH encompasses a wide range of superbly delivered emotion, from acute comedy to the depths of despair. As her story unfolds, we see a 15-year old girl dealing with so much that we are completely invested, and the intensity, intelligence and nuance of her portrayal made us shed a tear. The award also goes to Sinead Matthews who creates a visceral character of abysmal highs and lows with assured powerful and elegant touches. In less capable hands, the character could have been detrimental to the movie but her thoughtful and complex portrayal of a woman in the grip of mental health issues was extraordinary.” Liv Hill said: “”I am absolutely thrilled to receive this award and even more delighted to be sharing it with the extraordinary Sinead Matthews. JELLYFISH was a very special experience for me and I still feel so lucky to have worked with James Gardner on his first feature – and mine! Thank you to the jury and Edinburgh International Film Festival for supporting the film.” Sinead Matthews said: “I am so completely thrilled and honoured to be given a prestigious award like this and to share it with Liv Hill makes it all the more special.”THE AWARD FOR BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
The award for Best International Feature Film went to Cyril Shäublin’s THOSE WHO ARE FINE, which received its UK Premiere at this year’s Festival. The winner was chosen by the International Jury comprised of Gráinne Humphreys, Simin Motamed-Arya and Yung Kha. The International Jury said: “The international jury were united in their decision to award best film to THOSE WHO ARE FINE. We agreed that the film was a playful and engaging commentary on contemporary society; elements and ideas were unified with a minimalist elegance by the director and cinematographer. A fresh and vital new talent.” Cyril Shäublin said: “Edinburgh welcomed us and our film warmly, both the people and the sun were beaming. It was great how people from the audience started talking to us about our film, after the screenings outside the cinema, questioning the movie and sharing with us their own ways of looking at things. That’s the best we can ask for. To get this award on top of that all is just wonderful. Thank you so much EIFF for all the support, from the heart!” The International Jury also gave a Special Mention to Likarion Wainaina’s SUPA MODO for its “excellent portrait of community and family.”THE AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
The award for Best Documentary Feature Film went to Kevin Macdonald’s much-anticipated WHITNEY. This year’s jury was comprised of Gaston J-M Kaboré, Nada Cirjanic and Kate Muir. The Documentary Jury said: “An assured film which delivers on every count, from narrative momentum to superb journalism and flawless editing, exposing a story which has timely and timeless resonance.” Director Kevin Macdonald said: “It’s great to win Best Documentary at Edinburgh particularly as I started my life in documentaries at the Festival 20 years ago working as a documentary programmer. It means a lot to me.” A Special Mention went to ISLAND OF THE HUNGRY GHOSTS with the jury saying: “Our special jury mention goes to ISLAND OF THE HUNGRY GHOSTS, directed by Gabrielle Brady. We wanted to recognise this new voice and Brady’s fresh, radical, visually stunning take on the refugee crisis.”THE AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FILM
The award for Best Short Feature Film went to Emily Ann Hoffman’s NEVADA. Special Mentions were also given to SOULS OF TOTALITY and COSMIC KALEIDOSCOPE. The Short Film Jury said: “This stop-motion animation was commended for its originality and in particular for its depiction of intimacy. It tackled an interesting and important subject in a unique and charming way.” Emily Ann Hoffman said: “Thank you so much to the film festival and the jury for this honour. I truly wish I could be there to celebrate with you all in person. NEVADA is about intimacy and vulnerability, but more importantly, it is about a woman exercising her right to govern her own body. I’m so happy to have this message be received and celebrated internationally. Cheers to all the other filmmakers and thank you again!”THE EIFF WORKS IN PROGRESS WINNER
The winner of this year’s EIFF Works in Progress and recipient of the £2,500 prize is RIDING THE WAVE by Martyn Robertson. Martyn Robertson said “Pitching amongst so many other strong fiction and non-fiction projects was daunting but a very worthwhile experience. The chance to meet sales agents and distributors along with potential financiers was great too. This award means I can continue following Ben & Marti’s story in the immediate future. This award solves the problem of continuing filming a time sensitive documentary while we piece together completion financing. It’s also welcome recognition for a project that I’ve been working on for nearly two years now and gives me added confidence in my story and quest to complete this film. Thanks to everyone in the Industry & Talent Development team at EIFF for the opportunity to participate and for selecting my project to receive this year’s award!” The aforementioned Award winners were announced today ahead of Sunday’s Closing Night Gala, which concludes the 12-day Festival with the UK Premiere of SWIMMING WITH MEN. The winner of the Festival’s Audience Award will be announced at the Closing Night Gala.
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WIDE TIDE: THE LEGEND OF CULEBRA to Open 20th Sidewalk Film Festival
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Wide Tide: The Legend of Culebra[/caption]
Wide Tide: The Legend of Culebra, directed by Theo Love, will open the 20th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival, on Friday, August 24 at the beautiful Alabama Theatre. White Tide tells the larger-than-life story of a desperate Florida familyman who goes on a wild treasure hunt for $2 million worth of cocaine. The fast-paced, stylish, fun and poignant rollercoaster ride of a documentary is the perfect kickoff to Birmingham’s best weekend of the year. Director Theo Love is a Sidewalk Film Festival alum and Producer Bryan Storkel, a regular attendee since 2007, has screened 6 films at Sidewalk.
The festival revealed the first feature film selections – Support the Girls directed by Andrew Bujalski, If I Leave Here Tomorrow: A Film About Lynyrd Skynard directed by Stephen Kijak and Damsel directed by David Zellner and Nathan Zellner.
Support the Girls
Director: Andrew Bujalski
Narrative / Run Time: 90 Minutes / USA
Starring: Regina Hall, Haley Lu Richardson, Dylan Gelula, James Le Gros
The general manager at a highway-side ”sports bar with curves” has her incurable optimism and faith, in her girls, her customers, and herself, tested over the course of a long, strange day.
If I Leave Here Tomorrow:A Film About Lynyrd Skynard
Director: Stephen Kijak
Documentary / Run Time: 95 Minutes / USA
The authorized documentary explores the music and backstory of the legendary American band.
Damsel
Directors: David Zellner, Nathan Zellner
Narrative / Run Time: 113 Minutes / USA
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Mia Wasikowska and David Zellner
It’s the Wild West, circa 1870. Samuel Alabaster, an affluent pioneer, ventures across the American frontier to marry the love of his life, Penelope. As his group traverses the west, the once-simple journey grows treacherous, blurring the lines between hero, villain and damsel.
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Rasmus Kloster Bro’s Claustrophobic Thriller CUTTERHEAD to World Premiere at Neuchâtel Fantastic Film Festival [Trailer]
Rasmus Kloster Bro’s ‘Cutterhead’ will be making its world premiere in the International Feature Film Competition at the 18th Neuchâtel Fantastic Film Festival, the Swiss festival dedicated to fantasy and related genres.
The story in Rasmus Kloster Bro’s feature debut follows Rie, a PR-coordinator visiting a tunnel boring machine to portray the well-oiled European cooperation in the Copenhagen Metro construction. When an accident occurs, she is unable to escape and takes refuge in an airlock with Croatian miner Ivo and Bharan, a worker from Eritrea. They put their lives and bodies in each other’s hands to survive the heat, pressure and mud in the claustrophobic cutterhead.
‘Cutterhead’ is written by the director in collaboration with Mikkel Bak Sørensen, producer is Amalie Lyngbo Quist for Beo Starling, and the cast includes Christine Sønderris, Samson Semere and Krešimir Mikic.
Director Rasmus Kloster Bro graduated from the alternative Danish film school Super16. His work includes radio fiction, music videos, video installation and short films, of which ‘Kiss My Brother’ (2010) and ‘Barvalo’ (2012) have won a number of awards.
https://vimeo.com/277629882
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Watch Official Trailer + Poster for JULIET, NAKED Starring Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke, Chris O’Dowd
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Rose Byrne and Ethan Hawke in JULIET NAKED[/caption]
Roadside Attractions today released the official trailer and poster for Juliet, Naked directed by Jesse Peretz and starring Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke, Chris O’Dowd. Juliet, Naked will open in theaters on August 17, 2018.
Annie (Rose Byrne) is stuck in a long-term relationship with Duncan (Chris O’Dowd) – an obsessive fan of obscure rocker Tucker Crowe (Ethan Hawke). When the acoustic demo of Tucker’s hit record from 25 years ago surfaces, its release leads to a life-changing encounter with the elusive rocker himself. Based on the novel by Nick Hornby, Juliet, Naked is a comic account of life’s second chances.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMjSNkAaABs
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Madeline got the Part! MADELINE’S MADELINE Trailer Is Here Redefining The Trailer Formula
Oscilloscope Laboratories today released the trailer for Madeline’s Madeline from writer/director Josephine Decker, and starring newcomer newcomer Helena Howard. Madeline’s Madeline will open in theaters in New York on August 10th and Los Angeles on August 17th.
Madeline got the part! She’s going to play the lead in a theater piece! Except the lead wears sweatpants like Madeline’s. And has a cat like Madeline’s. And is holding a steaming hot iron next to her mother’s face – like Madeline is.
Madeline (newcomer Helena Howard) has become an integral part of a prestigious physical theater troupe. When the workshop’s ambitious director (Molly Parker) pushes the teenager to weave her rich interior world and troubled history with her mother (Miranda July) into their collective art, the lines between performance and reality begin to blur. The resulting battle between imagination and appropriation spirals out of the rehearsal space and rips through all three women’s lives.
Writer/director Josephine Decker has long been an independent filmmaker to admire, utilizing a welcome expressionistic approach that imbues her subjects with a vibrant sense of urgency. Anchored by a commanding performance from newcomer Helena Howard, Decker’s exploration of the thin lines between illness and artistry displays a rare sensitivity for capturing the struggles of discovering a sense of one’s self that defies easy narrative categorization.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_ezPTjSSPw