Independent Film

Watch Olivia Cooke in New Trailer for KATIE SAYS GOODBYE

[caption id="attachment_18355" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Katie Says Goodbye[/caption] Signature Entertainment has released a new trailer for Katie Says Goodbye starring Olivia Cooke, which premiered at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival where it won the Discovery Award for Best Film. Olivia Cooke won the Best Actress award at the Manchester International Film Festival. Living in a struggling desert town in Arizona composed of little more than a trailer park and a small diner, Katie (Olivia Cooke: Me, Earl and The Dying Girl) dreams of a new life in San Francisco. In order to best save the necessary funds to leave her desolate town and start anew, Katie prostitutes herself to a handful of regulars that frequent the diner she waitresses at. As Katie draws near to saving the funds she believes her new life requires, she encounters a young ex-convict named Bruno (Christopher Abbott: It Comes at Night). Katie quickly falls in love, much to the dismay of Bruno’s coworkers at the local auto body shop. As a relationship with Bruno begins to form, the delicate harmony of their small town slowly begins to fall into disarray. https://youtu.be/B6TfLcoeE7M
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Watch Jaden Smith as a Mysterious Skateboarder in SKATE KITCHEN Trailer

Magnolia Pictures has released the official trailer for Skate Kitchen starring Jaden Smith as a mysterious skateboarder. The film that premiered earlier this year at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival is the first narrative feature from The Wolfpack director Crystal Moselle, and will be released in select theaters on August 10. Camille, an introverted teenage skateboarder (newcomer Rachelle Vinberg) from Long Island, meets and befriends an all-girl, New York City-based skateboarding crew called Skate Kitchen. She falls in with the in-crowd, has a falling-out with her mother, and falls for a mysterious skateboarder guy (Jaden Smith), but a relationship with him proves to be trickier to navigate than a kickflip. Writer/director Crystal Moselle immersed herself in the lives of the skater girls and worked closely with them, resulting in the film’s authenticity, which combines poetic, atmospheric filmmaking and hypnotic skating sequences. SKATE KITCHEN precisely captures the experience of women in male-dominated spaces and tells a story of a girl who learns the importance of camaraderie and self-discovery. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT1izrIxoos
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Holt McCallany and Vincent Pastore Set to Star in IRON TERRY MALONE

[caption id="attachment_30356" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Vincent Pastore. © Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons[/caption] Actors Holt McCallany (“MindHunter”) and Vincent Pastore (“The Sopranos”) will headline the upcoming dark comedy “Iron Terry Malone” directed by award-winning filmmaker Johnny Greenlaw (Mommy’s Box). The screenplay, based on true events, hails from award-winning actors/writers Christian Keiber and Robert John Keiber. Utilizing many of the same locations used by Elia Kazan’s On The Waterfront (1954), the film is set largely in Hoboken, N.J., with the owner and ﬁve regulars teaming up to kill off one of their own to save their favorite bar from closing. McCallany, the acclaimed star of Netflix’s ‘’Mindhunter’’, plays a local mobster named Mean Mike, who with the bar’s owner Harry Moffet, played by John Doman (The Wire), hatch the plan to off the town beggar and drunk “Iron” Terry Malone, played by Pastore. Befriending Malone by getting him so drunk he can’t think or remember where he is, the six would-be assassins ﬁrst try poisoning him. Then, they try freezing him. Then, they run him over with a car, but Malone will just not die! And as summer turns to winter, things go from bad to worse, as this unlikely group of killers begins to turn on each other and ﬁnd out just why their marked man is called “Iron” Terry Malone. “What excites me about this ﬁlm, besides the stellar cast, is the story and screenplay”, says Greenlaw. “The fact that it is based on actual events, that took place many years ago, we get to look inside the depths of humanity and what you’re willing to sacriﬁce just to get by in life. I look forward to bringing this dark comedy to the big screen.” Adds writer Christian Keiber : “Iron Terry Malone”, is a true passion project of mine. To be able to bring this ﬁlm to life alongside my friends and family, both in the cast and crew, is the sole reason I became a ﬁlmmaker.” In addition to McCallany, Pastore and Doman, the film’s superlative ensemble also includes, Christian Keiber (“Gotham’’), Bill Sorvino (“Who’s Jenna..?”), Kerry McGann (“Bloodrunners’’), Johnny Greenlaw (“Mommy’s Box”), Robert John Keiber (“Trust Me, I’m a Lifeguard”), Maureen Van Zandt (“The Sopranos’’), and Gary Pastore (“The Deuce’’). Sam Calagione, owner of Dogfish Head Brewery, the official beer sponsor of the film, will also appear in the movie. Kerry McGann, Bill Sorvino, Johnny Greenlaw, Jason L. Koerner and Bryce C. Campbell serve as producers, with Christian Keiber as executive producer. “Iron” Terry Malone begins production in Hoboken, NJ in November.
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Yen Tan’s Emotional Family Drama “1985” Set for October Release

Wolfe Releasing has acquired writer director Yen Tan’s 1985, starring Cory Michael Smith, Academy Award nominee Virginia Madsen, Emmy and Golden Globe winner Michael Chiklis and Jamie Chung, for a theatrical release this October. The Texas-set family drama had its World Premiere at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival, where it was praised as “a miracle of a film” (Film School Rejects), “a poignant, even provocative meditation on a part of LGBTQ history” (The Daily Beast), “a deeply emotional tearjerker and family story… that earns its tears honestly and scrupulously” (The Wrap) and “a model of eloquent restraint” (The Hollywood Reporter). 1985 marks a continuing relationship between Tan and Wolfe, following their release of his acclaimed romantic drama Pit Stop. The film was produced by HutcH and Ash Christian, with HutcH also serving as Director of Photography (shooting the film in gorgeous black-and-white on 16mm film), co-editor, and conceiving the story with Tan. 1985 was inspired by Tan’s award-winning short film of the same name, and follows Adrian (Smith), a closeted young man returning to his Texas hometown for Christmas during the first wave of the AIDS crisis. Burdened with an unspeakable tragedy in New York, Adrian reconnects with his brother (Aidan Langford) and estranged childhood friend (Chung), as he struggles to divulge his dire circumstances to his religious parents (Madsen and Chiklis). “I’m beyond thrilled to be partnering with Wolfe on 1985. It is a crucial part of our history that deserves to be revisited and discussed with new perspectives. The crux of the story is a message that inspires love, hope, and empathy in times of crisis. We can’t wait to bring this timely film to a wide audience,” Tan said. “It has been four years since we worked with Yen on his award-winning film Pit Stop, and we are honored to collaborate with Yen and HutcH on their beautiful new film 1985. The film has blown audiences away with powerful performances from an incredible cast, the wonderful direction and writing from Yen, and HutcH’s masterful camera work,” said Wolfe’s Jim Stephens. “Wolfe will continue to screen the film at top festivals through the summer including Frameline and Outfest as we gear up for a theatrical release in October and getting the film out to award voters.”
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Jeremy Zagar’s Sundance Award-Winning Debut Feature WE THE ANIMALS Opens on August 17

Jeremy Zagar’s We The Animals, based on the celebrated novel by Justin Torres, and winner of the Innovator Award at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival will open on August 17 in New York and Los Angeles with a national rollout to follow.

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Watch New Trailer for Jordana Spiro’s Sundance Winner NIGHT COMES ON

Check out the new trailer that dropped for NIGHT COMES ON, the powerful directorial debut from actress Jordana Spiro (Netflix’s Ozark) which had its world premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival where it won the NEXT Innovator Award. The film is co-written by Angelica Nwandu, who is the founder of The Shade Room, and features breakthrough performances by two fast rising stars, Dominique Fishback (HBO’s The Deuce) and newcomer Tatum Marilyn Hall. NIGHT COMES ON follows Angel LaMere (Dominique Fishback) as she is released from juvenile detention on the eve of her 18th birthday. Haunted by her past, Angel embarks on a journey with her 10 year-old sister (Tatum Marilyn Hall) to avenge her mother’s death. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJrOkFVIzLE The film will open in the theaters below as well as on digital/VOD on August 3, 2018. New York – Cinema Village Los Angeles – Laemmle NoHo Baltimore – Parkway Theatre Atlanta – Plaza Theatre Chicago – Cinemas Entertainment Cleveland – Tower City Greensboro, NC – Red Cinema Phoenix – Harkins Valley Art **Additional cities to follow
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NEON to Release Nia DaCosta’s Feminist Western LITTLE WOODS Starring Tessa Thompson and Lily James

Nia DaCosta’s debut film Little Woods which premiered in April at Tribeca Film Festival has bee acquired by NEON for release in the US. Written and directed by DaCosta, the resulting film is a reimagining of the traditional western film as told from the female perspective. Little Woods is a modern Western that tells the story of two sisters, Ollie (Tessa Thompson) and Deb (Lily James), who are driven to work outside the law to better their lives. For years, Ollie has illicitly helped the struggling residents of her North Dakota oil boomtown access Canadian health care and medication. When the authorities catch on, she plans to abandon her crusade, only to be dragged in even deeper after a desperate plea for help from her sister. Little Woods is an intimate look at the plight of the working class in rural America. The film features performances by Tessa Thompson (Sorry to Bother You, Creed), Lily James (Baby Driver, Darkest Hour), Luke Kirby (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), James Badge Dale (13 Hours) and Lance Reddick (John Wick,John Wick 2).
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IDEAL HOME Starring Steve Coogan and Paul Rudd as a Hilarious Gay Couple Opens June 29th [Trailer]

Ideal Home written and directed by Andrew Fleming (The Craft, Dick, Hamlet 2) and starring Steve Coogan, and Paul Rudd, as a hilarious bickering gay couple will open in theaters and VOD on June 29th. The film also stars Jack Gore (Billions, Wonder Wheel), Jake McDorman (Lady Bird, CBS’s 2018 revival of Murphy Brown, Limitless the TV series, Shameless), and Alison Pill. Ideal Home is the touching and humorous story of Erasmus and Paul (Steve Coogan and Paul Rudd), a bickering gay couple whose life is turned inside out when a ten-year old boy shows up at their door claiming to be Erasmus’ grandson. Neither Paul, nor Erasmus, are ready to give up their extravagant lifestyles to be parents, but maybe this little kid has thing or two to teach them about the value of family. https://youtu.be/lK3qmEe2cJg
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NEVER STEADY, NEVER STILL Starring Shirley Henderson to Open in NYC in Late June

Never Steady, Never Still, the feature film debut of writer/director Kathleen Hepburn, and starring Shirley Henderson & Théodore Pellerin will open in NYC on June 22nd at AMC Empire 25. Never Steady, Never Still is a tender and heartbreaking story of a physically disabled mother and discontent son – each alienated from their world and struggling to manage in the face of grief, guilt and chronic disease. The film is set in the rugged and unforgiving rural north of British Columbia, Canada and the story spans an entire year in the lives of the characters. Having lived with Parkinson’s disease for almost two decades, Judy (Shirley Henderson) is faced with the heightened challenges of daily life when her husband and caregiver dies of a sudden heart attack on their isolated property on the shores of Stuart Lake. Meanwhile, her teenage son Jamie (Théodore Pellerin), pushed by his father to get a job on the oil fields, is terrified by the idea of filling his shoes at too young an age, and grappling with the daunting task of becoming a man in world that has no apparent room for weakness.
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NATHAN’S KINGDOM, Coming-of-Age Film on Autism, Premieres at Dances With Films Festival [Trailer]

Nathan’s Kingdom, a dramatic motion picture about one young man’s battle with autism and the fantasy world to which he and his sister escape, premieres on the West Coast at this year’s acclaimed Dances With Films Festival on Wednesday, June 13, 7:15 PM at TCL Chinese Theatres, Auditorium 1, 6925 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90028. Actors from the film, including writer-director Olicer Muñoz, will be in attendance. Jacob Lince, 24, takes away any preconceived notion of what an actor on the spectrum should “act” like, as his character, Nathan, leads the audience into a dark fantasy while he struggles with his teenage opiate-addict sister, Laura, (played by Madison Ford), his sole and loving caregiver. Rather than surrender to social services, Nathan and Laura risk it all to find “Nathan’s Kingdom” — as they battle monsters, endure mythical wars, and confront an underground civilization of ghouls — in hope of finding a fictitious kingdom with the potential to transform their lives forever. ”I was adamant that the title role of Nathan be played by an actor on the autism spectrum,” says the film’s writer-director-producer Olicer J. Muñoz, 38, who contacted the Performing Arts Studio West (PASW), a one of a kind non-profit and state-funded training facility for adults with developmental disabilities. Through the organization, Muñoz auditioned dozens of actors and discovered his lead actor, Lince. Muñoz began writing the script upon graduating with an M.F.A. from the prestigious American Film Institute (AFI). Earlier in his career, the bi-lingual (Spanish) filmmaker worked with Academy Award winner (“Scared Straight”), Emmy and Peabody Award winning producer Arnold Shapiro who instilled in Muñoz the golden rules of filmmaking. “Shapiro taught me how to master a story and allow the narrative to take on a life of its own. It was under his watch that I began writing and developing Nathan’s Kingdom,” says Muñoz, whose family hails from Mexico. Muñoz counts Oscar-winning directors Guillermo del Toro, Peter Jackson and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu as his directing role models. Nathan’s Kingdom was co-produced by Michelle Opitz who received her B.F.A. from Chapman University where she met Muñoz and later studied at the American Film Institute (AFI). Emily Beach (Brown Eyed Girls Productions) is also co-producer under Opitz’s and Beach’s banner. Visual effects, CGI animation, combined with live action and unique sound design enhance the highly stylized fantasy film sequences that reflect the inner workings of Nathan’s imagination. Nathan’s Kingdom had its world premiere in March 2018 at the Sedona International Film Festival where it won its prestigious “Director’s Choice – Heart of The Film Festival Award.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuDbF42I5l8
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Colin McIvor’s Unforgettable True Story ZOO Sets Release Date [Trailer]

Written and directed by Colin McIvor, ZOO has been a crowd favorite on the festival circuit and will now be released in theaters and on demand on June 8, 2018 by Samuel Goldwyn Films. Based on a true story, Tom (Art Parkinson) and his misfit friends fight to save Buster the baby elephant during the air raids on Belfast in 1941. The film stars Art Parkinson (San Andreas and TV’s Game of Thrones), Penelope Wilton (The BFG), and Toby Jones (Captain America: The First Avenger); and is rated PG for thematic elements, some war action and language. Director Colin McIvor said: “Such an amazing true story from our own hometown really had to be told on screen. It was a fabulous experience to work with such a talented cast and crew and to know that ZOO will be seen in America is fantastic.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMhc0MNWdRU Release Date: June 8, 2018 – Opening in the theaters below as well as on digital/VOD Los Angeles – Playhouse Boston – Apple Cinema Cambridge Rancho Niguel – Regency Rancho Niguel Palm Desert – Palm Desert 10 The Villages, FL – Rialto Chicago (Skokie) – Village Crossing 18 New York (Hanover, NJ) – East Hanover 12 **Additional cities to follow
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COMING SOON: Production Wraps on Martha Stephens’ TO THE STARS, Starring Kara Hayward, Liana Liberato

Production has wrapped in Oklahoma for TO THE STARS, the latest feature film from director Martha Stephens (LAND HO!, PILGRIM SONG). Written by Shannon Bradley-Colleary, the 1960s coming-of-age story centers on the powerful friendship forged between a shy farmer’s daughter (Kara Hayward, MOONRISE KINGDOM) and a reckless new girl in town (Liana Liberato, IF I STAY). Shea Whigham (TAKE SHELTER), Malin Akerman (“Billions”), Tony Hale (“Veep”), Lucas Zumann (20TH CENTURY WOMEN), Jordana Spiro (“Ozark”), and Adelaide Clemens (“Rectify”) round out the cast. Stephens’ last film LAND HO!, which she co-wrote and co-directed, premiered at Sundance, was distributed by Sony Pictures Classics, and won the John Cassavetes Award at the Film Independent Spirit Awards. The film is produced by Kristin Mann (MIDNIGHT SPECIAL) and Laura D. Smith (IT FOLLOWS) in partnership with Erik Rommesmo of Northern Lights Films (THE HERO), Carlos Cuscó and Emerson Machtus of Foton Pictures (THE LITTLE HOURS) and Kerri Elder and Blake Elder of Rockhill Media (ALL THE BIRDS HAVE FLOWN SOUTH). Image: Left to Right: Kara Hayward, Liana Liberato, Tony Hale, Malin Akerman, Shea Whigham, Jordana Spiro, Lucas Zumann, Adelaide Clemens
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