Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Marriage Story, and Parasite are among the films nominated by the Phoenix Critics Circle for the best films of 2019 awards. Members have narrowed the films from 2019 to the top nominees in each category. Voting is underway for the winners and they will be announced on Saturday, December 14th, 2019.
Showtime will air the television premiere of the documentary Pavarotti from Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ron Howard on Monday, December 30 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
HBO Documentary Films has acquired the powerful and eye-opening documentary Welcome to Chechnya, from Academy Award nominated director David France (“How to Survive a Plague,” “The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson”). This searing documentary shadows a group of brave activists risking their lives to confront the ongoing anti-LGBTQ persecution in the repressive and closed Russian republic of Chechnya. With unfettered access and a commitment to protecting anonymity, this documentary exposes these underreported atrocities, while highlighting an extraordinary group of heroic people confronting crushing brutality.
Participant and Magnolia Pictures have acquired North American rights to the documentary JOHN LEWIS: GOOD TROUBLE, directed by acclaimed filmmaker Dawn Porter (TRAPPED, GIDEON’S ARMY). The film chronicles the life and career of the legendary civil rights activist and Democratic Representative from Georgia. Magnolia is planning a Spring 2020 theatrical release.
The Houston Film Critics Society (HFCS) has again nominated five indie films to compete for this year’s 2019 TIFA (Texas Independent Film Award) awarded to an independently financed film shot in Texas.
Quentin Tarantino’s 1969 period piece “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood,” Martin Scorsese’s epic gangster film “The Irishman” and Noah Baumbach’s intimate portrait of divorce “Marriage Story” lead the nominations for St. Louis Film Critics Association’s 2019 awards.
Little Chief, a narrative short film directed by Indigenous filmmaker Erica Tremblay (Seneca-Cayuga), will world premiere as part of the Shorts Selection at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. The story stars an Indigenous cast, including Starring Lily Gladstone as Sharon, Julian Ballentyne as Bear and Lily Gladstone (Certain Women, Billions); and was produced through the Sundance Institute Native Filmmakers Lab.
Watch as a typical night for a group of war veterans at the local VFW turns into an all-out battle for survival in the new trailer for Joe Begos’ VFW. The action/thriller/horror film starring Stephen Lang, William Sadler, Martin Kove, David Patrick Kelly, Sierra McCormick,Tom Williamson, Travis Hammer, Dora Madison with George Wendt and Fred Williamson opens in theaters, on demand and digital on February 14, 2020.
Sundance Film Festival announced the works selected across the Indie Episodic, Shorts and Special Events sections of the 2020 Festival. Of the projects announced, 48% were directed or created by one or more women, 33% were directed or created by one or more filmmaker of color, and 19% by one or more people who identify as LGBTQIA. 7 were supported by Sundance Institute in development, whether through direct granting or Labs.
Films ranging from Prince’s 1984 autobiographical hit “Purple Rain” and Spike Lee’s 1986 breakout movie “She’s Gotta Have It” to this year’s biggest public vote getter, Kevin Smith’s 1994 “Clerks” are among the 2019 selection of 25 of America’s most influential motion pictures added to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress.
Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite took the top spot among films released in 2019 in Film Comment’s annual end-of-year survey. Of the films that screened at festivals worldwide but have not announced stateside distribution, Sergei Loznitsa’s State Funeral, Eloy Enciso Cachafeiro’s Endless Night, and Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s To the Ends of the Earth received the top rankings.
Georgian film director Zaza Urushadze known internationally for his film Tangerines passed away on December 7th, reportedly of heart attack, according to local news sites. He was 53.