Sally Hawkins and Octavia Spencer in the film THE SHAPE OF WATER.[/caption]
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the 20 films that are still in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 90th Academy Awards.
The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the preliminary shortlist. Later this month, the committee will select the 10 films that will advance to nominations voting.
Nominations for the 90th Oscars will be announced on Tuesday, January 23, 2018.
The 90th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, March 4, 2018, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 6:30 p.m. ET/ 3:30 p.m. PT.
The films are listed below in alphabetical order:
“Alien: Covenant”
“Beauty and the Beast”
“Blade Runner 2049
“Dunkirk”
‘‘Ghost in the Shell”
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”
“Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle”
“Justice League”
“Kong: Skull Island”
“Life”
“Logan”
“Ojka”
“Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”
“The Shape of Water”
“Spider-Man Homecoming”
“Star Wars: The Last Jedi”
“Thor: Ragnarok”
“Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets”
“War for the Planet of the Apes”
“Wonder Woman”
-
20 Films Advance in Visual Effects Competition for 90th Academy Awards
[caption id="attachment_25167" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Sally Hawkins and Octavia Spencer in the film THE SHAPE OF WATER.[/caption]
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the 20 films that are still in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 90th Academy Awards.
The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the preliminary shortlist. Later this month, the committee will select the 10 films that will advance to nominations voting.
Nominations for the 90th Oscars will be announced on Tuesday, January 23, 2018.
The 90th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, March 4, 2018, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 6:30 p.m. ET/ 3:30 p.m. PT.
The films are listed below in alphabetical order:
“Alien: Covenant”
“Beauty and the Beast”
“Blade Runner 2049
“Dunkirk”
‘‘Ghost in the Shell”
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”
“Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle”
“Justice League”
“Kong: Skull Island”
“Life”
“Logan”
“Ojka”
“Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”
“The Shape of Water”
“Spider-Man Homecoming”
“Star Wars: The Last Jedi”
“Thor: Ragnarok”
“Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets”
“War for the Planet of the Apes”
“Wonder Woman”
-
2018 Sundance Film Festival Announces New Indie Episodic, Shorts and Special Events Lineup
[caption id="attachment_25774" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
War Paint[/caption]
The lineup for the new Indie Episodic, Shorts and Special Events sections of the 2018 Sundance Film Festival were announced today. 69 short films will screen at the Festival.
New this year is the Indie Episodic section, designed as a dedicated showcase for emerging independent voices and their work. In recent years, the Festival has screened episodic content in the Special Events section, which includes new independent works that add to the unique Festival experience. This evolution reflects Sundance Institute’s ongoing support of the developing episodic format, which includes the Episodic Lab, where creators develop original projects under the guidance of veteran industry advisors. Works from the new Indie Episodic section premiere at the Festival beginning Monday, January 22 and continuing through Wednesday, January 24.
The works selected in these sections are:
INDIE EPISODIC
America To Me / U.S.A. (Director: Steve James, Segment Directors: Bing Liu, Rebecca Parrish, Kevin Shaw) — This limited series captures a year-long look at one of Chicago’s most progressive and diverse public schools, located in suburban Oak Park. Unprecedented in scope, the series is both intimate and epic in its storytelling as it explores America’s charged state of race, culture and education today. World Premiere The Adulterers / U.S.A. (Creators and screenwriters:: Tonya Glanz, Chris Roberti) — Two co-workers engaged in an extramarital affair discover an unexpected but limited intimacy which unlocks a secret world of creativity and freedom. Cast: Tonya Glanz, Chris Roberti. World Premiere Cherries / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Diaz Jacobs) — After a long separation, two sisters are forced to come together. When the man that once got between them reappears, a triangle emerges and they find themselves in a similar place after many years: suffocating, infuriating and incredibly familiar. Home. Cast: Shannon Plumb, Melora Walters, Robert Maffia, Lora Witty. World Premiere Franchesca / U.S.A. (Executive Producers: Topic Studios, Franchesca Ramsey, Kara Welker, Director: Kaitlin Fontana) — Comedian Franchesca Ramsey finds communion and culture in this digital series which explores beauty and fashion. The pilot episode finds Franchesca escaping ubiquitous internet trolls as she spends the day with friend Michelle Buteau getting an ornate Japanese gel manicure. Cast: Franchesca Ramsey. World Premiere Halfway There / U.S.A. (Director: Rick Rosenthal, Screenwriter: Nick Morton) — When recovering addict Jimmy Bishop finds his sober living facility teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, he is forced to take in his wealthy alcoholic mother as a client. Her arrival solves his immediate financial crisis but also unleashes every other problem he has struggled his whole life to contain. Cast: Matthew Lillard, Blythe Danner, Esai Morales, Sarah Shahi, Nishi Munshi, Paige Hurd. World Premiere High & Mighty / U.S.A. (Director: Carlos Lopez Estrada, Screenwriter: Cesar Mazariegos) — After getting shot multiple times by a mysterious flower delivery man and surviving without a scratch, Chelo discovers he has superhuman powers. But only when he’s drunk or high. With the help of his homies, Chelo will decide whether to use his powers for good…or social media. Cast: Jorge Diaz, J.R. Villarreal, Adam Zastrow, James Eckhouse, Shakira Barrera, Chelsea Rendon. I’m Poppy / U.S.A. (Director and writer: Titanic Sinclair) — Join Internet sensation Poppy as she enters the real world for the very first time and quickly realizes that fame and fortune comes at a price, with secret societies, dangerous fanatics and a very envious mannequin named Charlotte.Cast: Poppy Chan, Samm Levine, Dan Hildebrand, Brad Carter, Kofi Boakye, Madison Lawlor. World Premiere Leimert Park / U.S.A. (Director: Mel Jones, Screenwriters: Davita Scarlett, Mel Jones, Kady Kamakate) — Things get complicated when three friends share a house in South LA’s Leimert Park. Despite being married, beats-maker Mickey hasn’t had an orgasm in three months, Bridget mistakes sex for love while assisting a visiting artist and Kendra shoots videos of her numerous sexual encounters, hoping for her own art show. Cast: Ashley Blaine Featherson, Ashlí Haynes, Asia’h Epperson, Wade Allain-Marcus, Franz Latten, Ikenna Okoye. World Premiere The Mortified Guide / U.S.A. (Director: Michael Mayer, Executive Producers: David Nadelberg, Neil Katcher) — A comedic look at the biggest issues of adolescence – from first loves to fitting in – as adults share their childhood writings and art in front of total strangers. Based on the Mortified stage shows, books, podcast and film, this docuseries celebrates the awkward insecurities that shaped us all. Cast: Robert Woo, Katie Westerfield, Adam Ruben. World Premiere Mr. Inbetween / Australia (Director: Nash Edgerton, Screenwriter: Scott Ryan) — Father, ex-husband, boyfriend: tough roles to juggle in the modern age. Even harder when you’re a hitman. Cast: Scott Ryan, Justin Rosniak, Brooke Satchwell, Damon Herriman, Jackson Tozer, Chika Yasumura. World Premiere Paint / U.S.A. (Creator and director: Michael Walker) — A 30 minute comedy/drama about three young artists, living in Brooklyn, and their adventures trying to make it in the art world and in life. Cast: Joshua Caras, Olivia Luccardi, Paul Cooper, Amy Hargreaves, David Patrick Kelley. World Premiere The Passage / U.S.A. (Director: Kitao Sakurai, Writers: Phillip Burgers, Kitao Sakurai) — Phil, wide-eyed and mute, is on the run from a pagan cult. Phil’s scatterbrained ineptitude keeps getting him into trouble, however, and agents who’ve been hired to recapture him are always one step behind. The result is a series of misadventures that take the trio around the globe. Cast: Philip Burgers, Chad Damiani, Krystel Roche, Juzo Yoshida. World Premiere The Show About The Show (Season 2) / U.S.A. (Director: Caveh Zahedi, Producer: Aziz Isham) — In Season 2, Caveh and Mandy break up over the Show. Caveh gets involved with a fan but the pressure of having every aspect of their relationship made public begins to erode that relationship as well. The Show becomes a runaway train that Caveh struggles to keep from being derailed.Cast: Amanda Field, Ashley Foy, Emmy Harrington, Peter Rinaldi, Karley Sciortino, Caveh Zahedi. World Premiere susaneLand / U.S.A. (Creators: Susane Lee and Andrew Olsen, Director: Andrew Olsen) — Dark, comedic vignettes from one young woman’s life. Cast: Susane Lee, Robert David Hall, Ken Takemoto, Mimi Cozzens, Travis Coles, Caitlin Kim. World Premiere Tammy’s Tiny Tea Time / U.S.A. (Creator: Peter Gulsvig, Screenwriters: Daniel Shepard, Diana McCorry) — An animated comedy about a maladjusted 42-year-old woman with the emotional capacity of a child who shrinks to the size of her toys and forces them to entertain her before introducing several unrelated animated shorts. Cast: Rachel Butera, Nate Corddry, Peter Gulsvig, Jeremy Bent, Diana McCorry. World Premiere This Close / U.S.A. (Director: Andrew Ahn, Creators: Josh Feldman, Shoshannah Stern) — Best friends Kate and Michael, who are deaf, try to balance their personal and professional lives. She’s newly engaged and struggles to grow at work, while he battles self-destructive writer’s block after having his heart broken. As they tackle their own issues, their friendship is put to the test. Cast: Shoshannah Stern, Josh Feldman, Zach Gilford, Colt Prattes, Marlee Matlin, Cheryl Hines. World Premiere Tropical Cop Tales / U.S.A (Director: Jim Hosking, Writers: Jim Hosking, Toby Harvard) — Two burned-out city cops — Keymarion “Primetime” Weeyums and Demetrius “Meechie” Franks — relocate to a tropical paradise for a relaxing twilight to their careers. It ends up being the most vicious, menacing place on earth, not even slightly relaxing. Cast: Wayne DeHart, Charles Noland, Carl Solomon, Nicole Crump, Brian Russell. World PremiereSPECIAL EVENTS
One-of-a-kind moments highlighting new independent works that add to the unique Festival experience. An evolving section, this year includes episodic work, short films and live post-screening discussions. THE KING / U.S.A., Germany, France (Director: Eugene Jarecki, Executive Producer: Steven Soderbergh) — Forty years after the death of Elvis Presley, a musical road trip across America in his 1963 Rolls Royce explores how a country boy lost his authenticity and became a king while his country lost her democracy and became an empire. Cast: Alec Baldwin, Chuck D, Emmylou Harris, Ethan Hawke, Van Jones, Mike Myers. North American Premiere Pass Over / U.S.A (Director: Spike Lee, Playwright/Screenwriter: Antoinette Nwandu) — A provocative riff on Waiting for Godot, capturing the poetry, humor and humanity of this urgent and timely play about two young black men talking shit, passing the time and dreaming of the promised land. Cast: Jon Michael Hill, Julian Parker, Ryan Hallahan, Blake Delong. World Premiere The Trade / U.S.A. (Director: Matthew Heineman, Executive Producers: Morgan Spurlock, Jeremy Chilnick, Pagan Harleman, Matthew Galkin) — A character-driven vérité docu-series which explores the opioid epidemic from the intimate perspectives of growers, addicts and law enforcement on both sides of the border. This interwoven narrative transcends the headlines to convey, with humanity and nuance, the scope and gravity of the crisis. World Premiere Wild Wild Country / U.S.A. (Directors: Chapman Way, Maclain Way, Producer: Juliana Lembi) — When a mysterious guru and his disciples purchase a 64,000 acre ranch in desolate, rural Oregon – and build a $125 million utopian society – a war erupts with neighboring ranchers, pitting one way of life against the other and forcing both sides to take actions neither thought imaginable. Cast: Ma Anand Sheela, Jane Stork, Swami Prem Niren, John Silvertooth. World PremiereU.S. NARRATIVE SHORT FILMS
Agua Viva / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Alexa Lim Haas) — A Chinese manicurist in Miami attempts to describe feelings she doesn’t have the words for. The Blazing World / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Carlson Young) — Margaret has been plagued with dreams of a strange world since she was a little girl. After a mysterious man with a map visits her one night, she decides to give in to the incessant calls of The Blazing World. Blue Christmas / United Kingdom, U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Charlotte Wells) — On Christmas Eve, 1968, in a Scottish coastal town, a debt collector goes to work to avoid confronting his wife’s worsening psychosis at home. Cheer Up Baby / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Adinah Dancyger) — A young woman who has been sexually assaulted by a stranger on the subway is rendered with psychological menace and sensory dislocation in this elliptical tale. The Climb / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Michael Covino) — Kyle is depressed and a weekend bike ride with his best friend, Mike, should help. Fresh air. Camaraderie. Exercise. But Mike has something to say that might ruin the ride. Don’t Be a Hero / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Pete Lee) — A middle-aged woman battles loneliness and boredom by robbing banks on her lunch break. But after the adrenaline rush wears off, she still has to deal with her deeply unhappy life. Inspired by a true story. DAY ONE Emergency / U.S.A. (Director: Carey Williams, Screenwriter: K.D. Dávila) — Faced with an emergency situation, a group of young Black and Latino friends carefully weigh the pros and cons of calling the police. End of the Line / U.S.A. (Director: Jessica Sanders, Screenwriter: Joanne Giger) — A lonely man goes to the pet store and buys a tiny man in a cage. EVE / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Susan Bay Nimoy) — Eve, a 74 year old widow after 30 years of marriage, journeys through grief, sexual passion, and renewal. GREAT CHOICE / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Robin Comisar) — A woman gets stuck in a Red Lobster commercial. Hair Wolf / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Mariama Diallo) — In a black hair salon in gentrifying Brooklyn, the local residents fend off a strange new monster: white women intent on sucking the lifeblood from black culture. Home Shopper / Singapore, U.S.A. (Director: Dev Patel, Screenwriter: Ryan Farhoudi) — In a loveless marriage, Penny finds solace in the hypnotic escape of the home shopping channel. When things take an unexpected turn with her husband, the channel proves to be her saving grace…or was it the problem all along? LaZercism / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Shaka King) — Ask your doctor if LaZercism is right for you. Maude / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Anna Margaret Hollyman) — Teeny thought it was just another routine babysitting job – until she’s shocked to meet the client. As the day goes on, Teeny decides to become the woman she had no idea she always wanted to be…until she gets caught. Men Don’t Whisper / U.S.A. (Director: Jordan Firstman, Screenwriters: Jordan Firstman, Charles Rogers) — After being emasculated at a sales conference, gay couple Reese and Peyton set out to do the most masculine thing they can think of – sleep with some women. DAY ONE Mud (Hashtł’ishnii) / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Shaandiin Tome) — On her last day, Ruby faces the inescapable remnants of alcoholism, family and culture. Painting with Joan / U.S.A. (Director: Jack Henry Robbins, Screenwriters: Jack Henry Robbins, Nunzio Randazzo) — Today on “Painting with Joan”: a mixture of fun, learning and cobalt blue. ULTRAVIOLET / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Marc Johnson) — A woman named Kanchana and several scorpions explore collaborative survival approaches in a posthuman future in which all living beings are considered equal. Inter-species sociability, the Anthropocene and speculative Fabulations unfold in a futuristic and enchanted world. War Paint / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Katrelle N. Kindred) — A young black girl in South L.A. experiences a series of events at the convergence of racism and sexism during the 4th of July holiday. Wyrm / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Christopher Winterbauer) — Wyrm has two days to get his first kiss or he’ll be held back as part of the school district’s No Child Left Alone program and forced to wear his My.E.Q. Remote Monitoring collar through high school.INTERNATIONAL NARRATIVE SHORT FILMS
ARIA / Cyprus, France (Director and screenwriter: Myrsini Aristidou) — Athens, present day. Seventeen-year-old Aria, who is working at Jimmy’s kebab place, is waiting for a driving lesson with her father. DAY ONE Careful How You Go / United Kingdom (Director and screenwriter: Emerald Fennell) — A darkly comic three-part short film about malevolent women. Counterfeit Kunkoo / India (Director and screenwriter: Reema Sengupta) — In a city that houses millions, Smita discovers a strange pre-requisite to renting a house in middle-class Mumbai. She would make an ideal tenant, except for one glaring flaw – she is an Indian woman without a husband. Deer Boy / Poland, Belgium, Croatia (Director and screenwriter: Katarzyna Gondek) — A hunter’s son is born with antlers; a reflection on how each man kills the thing he loves. Fauve / Canada (Director and screenwriter: Jérémy Comte) — Set in a surface mine, two boys sink into a seemingly innocent power game, with Mother Nature as the sole observer. The Fisherman / Cuba, Netherlands, U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Ana Alpizar) — A humble Cuban fisherman is having a harsh winter on the open sea. For the sake of his family and against all odds, he needs to capture a fish tonight. For Nonna Anna / Canada (Director and screenwriter: Luis De Filippis) — A trans girl cares for her Italian grandmother. She assumes that her Nonna disapproves of her – but instead discovers a tender bond in their shared vulnerability. Fry-Up / United Kingdom (Director and screenwriter: Charlotte Regan) — An intimate portrayal of what could be a family’s last day together, set against the urban backdrop of North London. Garfield / United Kingdom (Director: Georgi Banks-Davies, Screenwriter: Myra Appannah) — Krishna wakes up in a strange place, with a strange guy. As she pieces together how she got there, she realizes that the reasons may be bigger than just the night before. DAY ONE Matria / Spain (Director and screenwriter: Álvaro Gago) — Faced with a challenging daily routine, Ramona tries to take refuge in her relationships with her daughter and granddaughter. The Right Choice / United Kingdom (Director: Tomisin Adepeju, Screenwriter: Vijay Varman) — With the help of an adviser, a husband and wife must answer three seemingly harmless questions to create their perfect designer baby. Set me as a Seal Upon Thine Heart / Israel (Director and screenwriter: Omer Tobi) — A gay sauna encounter between a young man and an older man becomes an unexpected lesson about love. SWAMP / Colombia (Director and screenwriter: Juan Sebastián Mesa) — Oscar and his family live in a humble country house threatened by a massive hydroelectric project. In the face of uncertainty and sorrow that means leaving the land where they were born, his grandparents decide to end it all. THURSDAY NIGHT / Portugal (Director and screenwriter: Gonçalo Almeida) — An elusive stranger pays Bimbo a visit in the middle of the night to deliver a vital message. The Turk Shop / Sweden (Director and screenwriter: Bahar Pars) — A comedy about structural racism at the workplace. Would You Look at Her / Macedonia (Director and screenwriter: Goran Stolevski) — A hard-headed tomboy spots the unlikely solution to all her problems in an all-male religious ritual. Wren Boys / United Kingdom (Director: Harry Lighton, Screenwriters: Harry Lighton, John Fitzpatrick) — On the day after Christmas, a Catholic priest from Cork drives his nephew to prison.DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILMS
Baby Brother / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Kamau Bilal) — The director’s baby brother moves back in with his parents. The Driver Is Red / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Randall Christopher) — Argentina, 1960: a true crime story of how secret agent Zvi Aharoni hunts down one of the highest-ranking Nazi war criminals on the run. End Game / U.S.A. (Directors: Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman) — Filmed and edited in intimate vérité style, this work follows visionary medical practitioners who are working on the cutting edge of life and death — and dedicated to changing our thinking about both. I Like Girls / Canada (Director and screenwriter: Diane Obomsawin) — Charlotte, Mathilde, Marie, and Diane reveal the nitty-gritty about their first loves, sharing funny and intimate tales of one-sided infatuation, mutual attraction, erotic moments and fumbling attempts at sexual expression. Intimity / Switzerland (Director and screenwriter: Elodie Dermange) — As she is showering, dressing, putting on her make-up, a woman bares her soul. Judith Loves Martha / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Anna Gaskell) — A wily 87-year-old New Yorker, Judith Godwin is one of very few women of the Abstract Expressionist Movement. A creative awakening in college led her to produce the brilliant, gestural paintings for which she is renowned. Julius Caesar Was Buried in a Pet Cemetery / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Sam Green) — A short documentary portrait of the greatest pet cemetery in the world. My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes / Canada (Director: Charlie Tyrell, Screenwriters: Josef Beeby, Charlie Tyrell) — Filmmaker Charlie Tyrell seeks to better understand his emotionally distant late-father through the personal belongings he left behind…including a stack of VHS dirty movies. Narrated by David Wain. A Night at The Garden / U.S.A. (Director: Marshall Curry) — Months before the start of World War II, 22,000 Americans gathered in New York’s Madison Square Garden to rally in support of Nazism. Nuuca / U.S.A., Canada (Director: Michelle Latimer) — The oil boom in North Dakota has brought tens of thousands of new people to the region and with that has come an influx of drugs, crime and sex trafficking. RX EARLY DETECTION A Cancer Journey with Sandra Lee / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Cathy Chermol Schrijver) — The intense journey of a woman stunned when her routine annual mammogram delivers a cancer diagnosis. This film is unafraid to battle cancer directly, projecting a power to inspire, educate, destigmatize and effect change. SYMPHONY OF A SAD SEA / Mexico (Director and screenwriter: Carlos Morales) — Hugo, a Mexican child and victim of the violence, flees his hometown with one single dream: crossing to the United States to meet his father and leave his past behind. THE TRADER (SOVDAGARI) / Georgia (Director and screenwriter: Tamta Gabrichidze) — Gela sells secondhand clothes and household items in places where money is potatoes. The Violence of a Civilization without Secrets / U.S.A. (Directors and screenwriters: Adam Khalil, Zack Khalil, Jackson Polys) — An urgent reflection on indigenous sovereignty, the undead violence of museum archives and post-mortem justice through the case of the “Kennewick Man,” a prehistoric Paleoamerican man whose remains were found in Kennewick, Washington State in 1996. Volte / Poland (Directors and screenwriters: Monika Kotecka, Karolina Poryzala) — Zuzia, 12, has been training for two years and has extraordinary role topping the acrobatic pyramid. At the start of a new season, it’s clear that she’s lost some grace and lightness. A growth spurt may be the culprit. Wild Wild West: A Beautiful Rant by Mark Bradford / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Dime Davis) — Where do artists come from? An answer explored through paper, percussion, and one pissed off artist. ZION / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Floyd Russ) — A portrait of Zion Clark, a young wrestler who was born without legs and grew up in foster care. DAY ONEANIMATED SHORT FILMS
BLACK / Poland, Japan (Director and screenwriter: Tomasz Popakul) — A pair of astronauts are trapped on an orbital space station due to unexpected nuclear war on Earth. They lost contact with Earth and all attempts to communicate with their base or anybody else have failed. A Brief Spark Bookended by Darkness / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Brent Green) — A hand-drawn animated tale about love in an increasingly dark world. The Burden / Sweden (Director and screenwriter: Niki Lindroth von Bahr) — A dark musical enacted in a modern shopping center, situated next to a large freeway. The employees of the various commercial venues deal with boredom and existential anxiety by performing cheerful musical turns. The apocalypse is a tempting liberator. Eye Bags / Hong Kong (Director and screenwriter: Waikwan Ho) — Through monologue, Talia describes her chronic insomnia. She does not know its cause, and spends many painful nights awake. When Talia meets Ah Gum, a goldfish who lives in her eye bags, they develop an interesting relationship. GLUCOSE / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Jeron Braxton) — Sugar was the engine of the slave trade that brought millions of Africans to America. Glucose is sweet, marketable and easy to consume, but its surface satisfaction is a thin coating on the pain of many disenfranchised people. Hedgehog’s Home / Canada, Croatia (Director and screenwriter: Eva Cvijanović) — In a lush and lively forest lives a hedgehog. Though he’s respected by the other animals, Hedgehog’s devotion to his home annoys a quartet of beasts, who decide to confront him. JEOM / U.S.A., South Korea (Director and screenwriter: Kangmin Kim) — A father and a son both have the same big birthmark on their butt. Believing that the two birthmarks are connected, the son scrubs his father’s birthmark to remove it – but he just can’t get rid of it. Manivald / Estonia, Croatia, Canada (Director: Chintis Lundgren, Screenwriters: Chintis Lundgren, Draško Ivezić) — Manivald is still living at home with his retired mother. The day before his 33rd birthday a hot young wolf named Toomas comes to fix their washing machine. A love triangle develops, which leaves Manivald increasingly frustrated. Marfa / United Kingdom (Directors and screenwriters: Greg McLeod, Myles McLeod) — An isolated town in the Texas borderlands. A place out of time. A shrine to minimalist art. Home to a remote festival. A place where unexplained lights tremble in the night sky. And then there’s the giant lemon. Nevada / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Emily Ann Hoffman) — A young couple’s romantic weekend getaway is interrupted by a birth control mishap in this stop-motion animated comedy. [O] / United Kingdom (Directors and screenwriters: Mario Radev, Chiara Sgatti) — A film that imitates nature in its manner of operation, depicting animated cycles in a world entirely based on sound frequency and vibration. PLUR / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Julie Fliegenspan) — A claymation adaptation of a series of actual voicemails received after making out with someone at a rave. The Shivering Truth / U.S.A. (Directors: Vernon Chatman, Cat Solen, Screenwriter: Vernon Chatman) — An omnibus of painfully riotous daymares, dripping with dream logic; a slate of emotional parables from the deepest caverns of your unconscious, lovingly animated in stop-motion. In other words: it is the Truth. Vox Lipoma / Sweden (Directors and screenwriters: Jane Magnusson, Liv Strömquist) — A short about Ingmar Bergman’s power, sexuality and facial lipoma that gives him no rest. World of Tomorrow Episode Two: The Burden of Other People’s Thoughts / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Don Hertzfeldt) — Written entirely around candid audio recordings of Don Hertzfeldt’s five-year-old niece, “Episode Two” finds Emily Prime swept inside the brain of an incomplete backup clone of her future self, who’s on a mission to reboot her broken mind. DAY ONE Image: Sasha Matthews and Aston Synder Jr. appear in War Paint by Katrelle N. Kindred, an official selection of the Shorts Programs at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.
-
10 Animated Short Films Remain in the Running for 90th Academy Awards
[caption id="attachment_25767" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Dear Basketball[/caption]
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today revealed the 10 animated short films that will advance in the voting process for the 90th Academy Awards. Sixty-three pictures had originally qualified in the category.
Nominations for the 90th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 23, 2018.
The 90th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 4, 2018, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network.
The 10 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production companies:
“Cradle,” Devon Manney, director (University of Southern California)
“Dear Basketball,” Glen Keane, director, and Kobe Bryant, writer (Glen Keane Productions)
“Fox and the Whale,” Robin Joseph, director (Robin Joseph)
“Garden Party,” Victor Caire and Gabriel Grapperon, directors (MOPA)
“In a Heartbeat,” Esteban Bravo and Beth David, directors (Ringling College of Art and Design)
“Life Smartphone,” Chenglin Xie, director (China Central Academy of Fine Arts)
“Lost Property Office,” Daniel Agdag, director, and Liz Kearney, producer (8th in Line)
“Lou,” Dave Mullins, director, and Dana Murray, producer (Pixar Animation Studios)
“Negative Space,” Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata, directors (Ikki Films)
“Revolting Rhymes,” Jakob Schuh and Jan Lachauer, directors (Magic Light Pictures)
-
Nominations Announced for 45th Annie Awards, LOVING VINCENT, THE BREADWINNER and More…
[caption id="attachment_24262" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Loving Vincent[/caption]
The nominations were announced today for the 45th Annie Awards recognizing the year’s best in the field of animation. Best Animated Feature-Independent, spotlighting features with a much smaller distribution footprint than major studio releases, include: In This Corner of the World, Loving Vincent, Napping Princess, The Big Bad Fox & Other Tales and The Breadwinner.
The Annie Awards cover 36 categories and include Best Animated Feature, Best Animated Feature-Independent, Special Productions, Commercials, Short Subjects, Student Films and Outstanding Individual Achievements, as well as the honorary Juried Awards.
The winners will be announced at a black tie ceremony on Saturday, February 3, 2018 at UCLA’s Royce Hall.
Best Animated Feature
CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS: THE FIRST EPIC MOVIE Production Company: DreamWorks Animation CARS 3 Production Company: Pixar Animation Studios COCO Production Company: Pixar Animation Studios DESPICABLE ME 3 Production Company: Illumination THE BOSS BABY Production Company: DreamWorks AnimationBest Animated Feature-Independent
IN THIS CORNER OF THE WORLD Production Company: Taro Maki, GENCO, Inc. and Masao Maruyama, MAPPA Co., Ltd LOVING VINCENT Production Company: BreakThru Films, Production Company Trademark Films, Co-Production Company NAPPING PRINCESS Production Company: Nippon TV THE BIG BAD FOX & OTHER TALES Production Company: Folivari / Panique! / Studiocanal THE BREADWINNER Production Company: Cartoon Saloon / Aircraft Pictures / Melusine ProductionsBest Animated Short Subject
DEAR BASKETBALL Production Company: Glen Keane Productions, Kobe Studios, Believe Entertainment Group HEDGEHOG’S HOME Production Company: National Film Board of Canada, Bonobostudio NEGATIVE SPACE Production Company: IKKI Films / Manuel Cam Studio SCAVENGERS Production Company: Titmouse, Inc. // Adult Swim SON OF JAGUAR Production Company: Google Spotlight Stories, Reel FXBest Animated Special Production
IMAGINARY FRIEND SOCIETY “FEELING SAD” Production Company: Hornet OLAF’S FROZEN ADVENTURE Production Company: Walt Disney Animation Studios PIG: THE DAM KEEPER POEMS Production Company: Tonko House, Inc. REVOLTING RHYMES Production Company: Magic Light Pictures TANGLED BEFORE EVER AFTER Production Company: Walt Disney Television AnimationBest Animated Television/Broadcast Commercial
BISCOTTI. UNA STORIA BUONA Production Company: Hornet JUNE Production Company: Broad Reach Pictures/Chromosphere/Lyft LEAGUE OF LEGENDS ‘LEGENDS NEVER DIE’ Production Company: Passion Animation Studios PLEASE THE CHEESE Production Company: Psyop SAINSBURY’S ‘THE GREATEST GIFT’ Production Company: Passion Animation StudiosBest Animated Television/Broadcast Production For Preschool Children
MICKEY AND THE ROADSTER RACERS Episode: Goofy Gas! Production Company: Walt Disney Television Animation OCTONAUTS Episode: Operation Deep Freeze Production Company: Vampire Squid Productions Limited, a Silvergate Media company, in association with Brown Bag Films PEG + CAT, THE MARIACHI PROBLEM Episode: 220B, The Mariachi Problem Production Company: The Fred Rogers Company/ 100 Chickens Productions THE STINKY & DIRTY SHOW Episode: HaHaHigher / The Waiting Game Production Company: Amazon Studios THROUGH THE WOODS Episode: A Snowy Morning Production Company: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, The Fred Rogers Company, PIP Animation ServicesBest Animated Television/Broadcast Production For Children
BUDDY THUNDERSTRUCK Episode: To Protect and Swerve / Robo Truck of the Future Production Company: Stoopid Buddy and American Greetings for Netflix LOST IN OZ Episode: The Pearl of Pingaree Production Company: Amazon Studios NIKO AND THE SWORD OF LIGHT Episode: From the Cliffs of Catastrophe to the Pools of Destiny Production Company: Amazon Studios TANGLED: THE SERIES – Episode: Queen for a Day Production Company: Walt Disney Television Animation WE BARE BEARS Episode: Panda’s Art Production Company: Cartoon Network Animation StudiosBest General Audience Animated Television/Broadcast Production
BIG MOUTH Episode: Am I Gay? Production Company: Netflix BOJACK HORSEMAN Episode: Stupid Piece of Sh*t Production Company: Tornante Productions, LLC for Netflix RICK AND MORTY Episode: 303 – “Pickle Rick” Production Company: Williams Street Productions ROBOT CHICKEN Episode: Freshly Baked: The Robot Chicken Santa Claus Pot Cookie Freakout Special: Special Edition Production Company: Stoopid Buddy Stoodios SAMURAI JACK Episode: XCIII Production Company: Adult SwimBest Student Film
CRADLE Studio Company: Devon Manney Students: Devon Manney ELSEWHERE Studio Company: Junyi Xiao Students: Junyi Xiao GOOD NIGHT, EVERYBUDS! Studio Company: Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg GmbH Students: Director: Benedikt Hummel, Sound Design & Mix: Lena Beck, Music: Andreas Pfeiffer, Producer: Stefan Michel ONCE A HERO Studio Company: XiaLi Students: Xia Li POLES APART Studio Company: Paloma Baeza Students: Director: Paloma Baeza, Producer: Ser En Low, All Student Crew
-
Wes Anderson’s ISLE OF DOGS to Open 2018 Berlin International Film Festival
The 68th Berlin International Film Festival will open at the Berlinale Palast on February 15, 2018 with the world premiere of Wes Anderson’s animated film Isle of Dogs.
Anderson has previously presented three films in the Berlinale Competition: The Royal Tenenbaums (2002), The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2005), and The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) which opened the 64th Berlin International Film Festival and won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize.
“I’m most delighted that Wes Anderson will kick off the Berlinale Competition again. Isle of Dogs will be the first animated film to open the Festival – a film that will capture audiences’ hearts with its Wes Anderson charm,” says Festival Director Dieter Kosslick.
Isle of Dogs tells the story of Atari Kobayashi, 12-year-old ward to corrupt Mayor Kobayashi. When, by Executive Decree, all the canine pets of Megasaki City are exiled to a vast garbage-dump, Atari sets off alone in a miniature Junior-Turbo Prop and flies to Trash Island in search of his bodyguard-dog, Spots. There, with the assistance of a pack of newly-found mongrel friends, he begins an epic journey that will decide the fate and future of the entire Prefecture.
The voice cast includes Bryan Cranston, Koyu Rankin, Edward Norton, Liev Schreiber, Bill Murray, Bob Balaban, Jeff Goldblum, Scarlett Johansson, Kunichi Nomura, Tilda Swinton, Ken Watanabe, Akira Ito, Greta Gerwig, Akira Takayama, Frances McDormand, F. Murray Abraham, Courtney B. Vance, Yojiro Noda, Fisher Stevens, Mari Natsuki, Nijiro Murakami, Yoko Ono, Harvey Keitel and Frank Wood.
Isle of Dogs will release in US cinemas on March 23, 2018. Internationally, the film will open in cinemas from April 2018.
-
“CALL ME BY YOUR NAME,” “FACES PLACES,” “BPM,” “LOVELESS” Win 2017 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Honors
[caption id="attachment_19777" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Call Me By Your Name[/caption]
The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) voted Call Me By Your Name the Best Picture of 2017, along with Best Actor for Timothée Chalamet, and Best Director for Luca Guadagnino – a tie win with Guillermo del Toro for The Shape of Water. Best Documentary went to the Faces Places, and Best Foreign-Language Film was a tie win for BPM AND Loveless.
2017 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards
BEST PICTURE
“CALL ME BY YOUR NAME” RUNNER-UP: “THE FLORIDA PROJECT”BEST DIRECTOR
GUILLERMO DEL TORO, “THE SHAPE OF WATER” AND LUCA GUADAGNINO, “CALL ME BY YOUR NAME” (TIE)BEST ACTOR
TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET “CALL ME BY YOUR NAME” RUNNER-UP: JAMES FRANCO (“THE DISASTER ARTIST“)BEST ACTRESS
SALLY HAWKINS “THE SHAPE OF WATER” RUNNER-UP: FRANCES MCDORMAND (“THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI“)BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
WILLEM DAFOE “THE FLORIDA PROJECT” RUNNER-UP: SAM ROCKWELL (“THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI “)BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
LAURIE METCALF “LADY BIRD” RUNNER-UP: MARY J. BLIGE (” MUDBOUND“)BEST SCREENPLAY
JORDAN PEELE “GET OUT” RUNNER-UP: MARTIN MCDONAGH (“THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI“)BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
DENNIS GASSNER “BLADE RUNNER” RUNNER-UP: PAUL D. AUSTERBERRY (“THE SHAPE OF WATER“)BEST EDITING
LEE SMITH “DUNKIRK” RUNNER-UP: TATIANA S. RIEGEL (“I TONYA“)BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
DAN LAUSTSEN “THE SHAPE OF WATER” RUNNER-UP: ROGER DEAKINS (“BLADE RUNNER“)BEST MUSIC SCORE
JONNY GREENWOOD “PHANTOM THREAD” RUNNER-UP: ALEXANDRE DESPLAT (“THE SHAPE OF WATER“)BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
“BPM” AND “LOVELESS” (TIE)BEST DOCUMENTARY / NON-FICTION FILM
“FACES PLACES” RUNNER-UP: “JANE”BEST ANIMATION
“THE BREADWINNER” RUNNER-UP: “COCO”NEW GENERATION
GRETA GERWIGDOUGLAS EDWARDS INDEPENDENT / EXPERIMENTAL FILM / VIDEO
LEE ANNE SCHMITT “PURGE THIS LAND”CAREER ACHIEVEMENT
MAX VON SYDOW
-
2017 Whistler Film Festival Awards: ALL YOU CAN EAT BUDDHA and WORTHY COMPANION Tie for Best Canadian Film
[caption id="attachment_25750" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
All You Can Eat Buddha[/caption]
Ian Lagarde’s first feature ALL YOU CAN EAT BUDDHA, and Jason and Carlos Sanchez’s A WORTHY COMPANION tied to win the Borsos Competition for Best Canadian Feature Film at the 2017 Whistler Film Festival. The jury states “each in their own way convey unique visions and creative storytelling the jury believes have made and will make powerful contributions to the world of cinema.”
A WORTHY COMPANION takes a fresh and new perspective that explores the complexity and humanity within the predator, victim relationship. This film questions how we perpetuate manipulative power dynamics between adult and child through the inner struggle of our female protagonists. ALL YOU CAN EAT BUDDHA is a movie that pushes the boundaries of image and sound and proposes an unusual, and assured cinematic narrative that juxtaposes dream and reality in a lost paradise.
In addition, the jury awarded Ian Lagarde with the Best Borsos Director Award presented by the Directors Guild of Canada, British Columbia.
Evan Rachel Wood, star of the Canadian film A WORTHY COMPANION, was the recipient of this year’s Best Performance in a Borsos Competition Film Award. The jury noted that “Evan gives a brave, raw nuance performance that explores the grey areas between predator and victim”.
The Borsos Award for Best Screenplay went to Grayson Moore, writer and co-director of CARDINALS, which presents a fresh take on the psychological drama that unfolds with the unpredictability of a great novel.
Best Cinematography in a Borsos Film went to cinematographer Sara Mishara for A WORTHY COMPANION, with an honorable mention to Nicolas Bolduc for HOCHELAGA, LAND OF SOULS. The jury wanted to acknowledge the work of a director of photography that managed to create a rich and detailed visual universe through a very subtle crafting of the light.
The World Documentary Award was presented to THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ANDRÉ directed by Kate Novack. The jury stated: “The winner of the world documentary award delivers a fascinating portrait of a larger-than-life personality, but admirably escapes the trappings of simple biography by revealing how a towering, influential figure still thrives in an imperfect world.”
The jury also gave an honourable mention to Alan Zweig, director of THERE IS A HOUSE HERE, which is a film that explores the harsh realities of a fractured community and yet it discovers, in fact, that society can gather together and create a strong and supportive community for those in perpetual need.
The Best Mountain Culture Film Award went to DEPTH PERCEPTION directed by Chip Taylor and Chris Murphy. The jury stated that “DEPTH PERCEPTION was a clever and awesome representation of mountain culture, pure entertainment. It was able to tie in the full ‘story’ with a simple well thought out concept. Beautifully shot with exceptional snowboarding. The writing had the perfect balance of edge, accessibility, and meaning. It was able to transport the judges to a place of imagination just outside of realism but staying grounded in themes of the sport, environmentalism, and spiritualism.”
The $1,000 Canadian ShortWork Award went to WE FORGOT TO BREAK UP, directed by Chandler Levack. The jury stated that “this cinematically stunning short film delivers at every turn. It’s beautifully written with wonderfully naturalistic dialogue, it’s poetic, stylish and superbly performed, most notably by our lead. Captivating from start to finish, this first time director is extremely deserving of this recognition.” The jury has given an honorable mention to CYPHER by Lawrence Le Lam.
The International ShortWork Award went to FEAR US WOMEN directed by David Darg. The jury stated: “Compelling from the opening minute, this honest and raw documentary is an unflinching look at the fearless women on the battle front in Syria. It’s a gritty and honest story with an amazing message – one that needs to be told.”
The $500 ShortWork Student Award went to FLOATING LIGHT, directed by Natalie Murao. The jury stated: “The future of BC filmmaking is in very good hands. This was a very impressive lineup of student shorts, so to standout amongst this group is a major accomplishment. For its impressive performances, dreamy aesthetic, and for the assuredness and subtly in its directorial vision, the jury is pleased to give this award to a stunningly accomplished and inventive film that uses a quiet voice to speak loudly. This is a filmmaker with an extremely bright future.”
The MPPIA Short Film Award was awarded to Veronika Kurz for 20 Minutes to Life. The award consists of a $15,000 cash award plus up to $100,000 in services. The completed project will have its world premiere screening at the 2018 Whistler Film Festival.
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists presented this year’s EDA Award for Best Female-directed Feature to Eisha Marjara’s VENUS, a film that tells the tale of a woman in transition. The jury stated: “VENUS is both a touching drama about the hardship of transition and how it affects family, friendships, and relationships but it’s also a really lovely and reaffirming story of love and the strength of friends and family. And we enthusiastically applaud the brilliant performance from Debargo Sanyal, who moved us to new understanding. Brava Majara and Sanyal.”
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists presented the EDA Award for Best Female-Directed Short Film to Sharren Lee’s THE THINGS YOU THINK I’M THINKING. The jury stated: “At its center is a person you don’t often get to see on the screen: Sean, a burn survivor and amputee who re-enters the world of dating. In a bar, he meets with Caleb, an able-bodied and appealing man who appears to take a romantic interest in him. And while, despite having no hands, Sean has managed to master getting around with great agility and some panache, his next roadblock is himself and being able to overcome his fears, insecurities, and trust issues — something that’s probably familiar to all of us. Ultimately, at the heart of the film are two people looking to make a human connection. And we found that we connect with them, too.”
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists presented a Special Jury EDA Award to Kyra Sedgwick for her directorial debut STORY OF A GIRL. The jury stated: “A well balanced, timely and beautifully crafted film about a teenage girl dealing with the fallout of modern-day bullying. Anchored by a wonderful lead performance from Ryann Shane and memorable turns from Kevin Bacon and Sosie. We take special pleasure and pride in presenting the EDA Award to Kyra because as a young actress she actually played the granddaughter of the Eda for whom the awards are named, activist actress Eda Reiss Merin, the mother of AWFJ president, Jennifer Merin. We look forward to seeing more from Kyra!”
-
Tonya Lewis Lee And Nikki Silver’s ToniK Productions’ Film “MONSTER” To Premiere At 2018 Sundance Film Festival
Monster, based on the award-winning novel of the same name by Walter Dean Myers, will world premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. The film from Tonya Lewis Lee and Nikki Silver’s ToniK Productions, and written by Radha Blank (She’s Gotta Have It, Empire), Colen C. Wiley and Janece Shaffer, will debut on Monday, January 22nd at 3PM in the Dramatic Competition.
Shot entirely in New York City, Monster surrounds the story of 17-year-old honors student Steve Harmon. Steve is an aspiring filmmaker attending an elite high school in New York, and is being charged with felony murder for a crime he says he did not commit. “Monster” is what the prosecutor calls Harmon, but is Steve truly a Monster? As Steve’s world comes crashing down around him, the film follows his journey from a smart, likeable young man from Harlem through a complex legal battle that could leave him spending the rest of his life in prison. Monster is sure to stimulate conversation in today’s relevant narrative on youth in prisons, excessive sentencing, peer pressure, and likeminded issues.
Monster features an outstanding ensemble cast including: Kelvin Harrison Jr. (The Birth of A Nation), Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls), Jennifer Ehle (Little Men, Zero Dark Thirty), A$AP Rocky, (Dope, Zoolander 2), Nas, (The Get Down), Tim Blake Nelson (Fantastic Four, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk), John David Washington (Ballers) and Jeffrey Wright (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay 1 & 2, Westworld).
“We’re thrilled and humbled to be participating in this year’s Sundance Film Festival. We believe the current social and cultural landscape makes the message of Monster even more relevant and important,” says Tonya Lewis Lee of ToniK Productions.
“As producers committed to tackling the toughest issues of our time, we believe Monster is no exception. This has been an ongoing passion project for us and we are thrilled to bring it to the public forum.” adds ToniK co-founder Nikki Silver.
In addition to Tonya Lewis Lee, Nikki Silver, and ToniK Productions, Monster producers include Aaron L. Gilbert and Bron Studios, Edward Nahem and Mike Jackson of Get Lifted Film Co. Nas, Red Crown’s Daniel Crown and Yoni Liebling, Creative Wealth’s Jason Cloth and Richard McConnell, Linnea Roberts and Get Lifted’s John Legend and Ty Stiklorius are all executive producers. Legend and Nas will both play a role in the film’s music.
Image: Kelvin Harrison Jr. appears in Monster by Anthony Mandler, an official selection of the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by David Devlin.
-
Critically-Acclaimed Documentary THE FAMILY I HAD to Premiere on Investigation Discovery
In The Family I Had a mother’s love and ability to forgive is profoundly tested when her teenage son kills her daughter. The film which had its world premiere in April at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival will premiere exclusively on Investigation Discovery on Thursday, December 21st.
It’s been ten years since Charity’s son, Paris, killed her daughter, Ella, and she is left questioning both his chance at redemption and her ability to forgive. The Family I Had peels back the layers to reveal a history previously marked by intra-family violence, illuminating the anatomy of a broken family. Multiple accounts allow for conflicting points of view, leaving the audience questioning where the ultimate truth and accountability lies in this family rocked by tragedy.
The Family I Had is co-directed and produced by Katie Green and Carlye Rubin, who have shared a fascination with family stories and the themes of loss and dysfunction within them, stemming from having each experienced loss at a young age. Centering around the taboo, and largely under covered, issue of violence within a family, this revealing new documentary examines the complicated relationships of a family in mourning. With unprecedented access to the family, The Family I Had follows Charity on her journey toward trust with her son and mother, while she tries to redefine her place in the world and rebuild her family. She faces difficult questions as she navigates an uncertain future. Will the fear of losing another child ever go away? Will she ever be able to agree with her mother about Paris’ past and what caused him to commit such a horrific act?
“Filmmakers Katie and Carlye have created an emotionally moving, and brutally honest portrait of a real-life single mother whose family has been ripped apart by an unspeakable tragedy,” said Henry Schleiff, Group President, Investigation Discovery, Destination American and American Heroes Channel. “The Family I Had presents a unique opportunity to consider the complex issues around the loss of a loved one, through this touching story of a family on a path to forgiveness, while desperately seeking a means to move forward.”
“Thematically, we’re very drawn to stories surrounding loss,” said filmmakers Katie Green and Carlye Rubin. “We saw Charity as a mother whose love and ability to forgive was profoundly tested when her son killed her daughter. After losing both of her children, she was left redefining her place in the world, and did so by retracing her family’s past. We wanted to put the audience in that uncomfortable place to challenge their preconceived notions of guilt and accountability (in the same way making this film has challenged ours) so viewers come away with a more nuanced understanding of unconditional love and forgiveness.”
-
2018 London Short Film Festival Unveils Lineup, Spotlights Early Films from Francis Lee, Alice Lowe and More
[caption id="attachment_25734" align="aligncenter" width="1080"]
BRADFORD HALIFAX LONDON, Francis Lee[/caption]
London Short Film Festival (LSFF) unveiled its full 2018 program of over 500 UK and international short films, screening over 10 days, from January 12 to 21, 2018.
The 15th anniversary content includes We Dare To Fail, a strand that screens the early LSFF entries from uncompromising auteur filmmakers. There will be shorts shown from Francis Lee (God’s Own Country), Hope Dickson-Leach (The Levelling), and Alice Lowe (Prevenge). The celebratory retrospective will also feature shorts from the directors behind The Greasy Strangler, Berberian Sound Studio, Couple in a Hole, Spaceship, Gone Too Far, True West, and Nina Forever. There are also early-career cameos from the likes of Michael Fassbender and Danny Dyer when their stars were rising.
Brexit Shorts: Dramas From A Divided Nation marks the one year anniversary of the divisive decision to leave the EU, with new short films from notable scriptwriters and actors in response to the referendum.
Other highlights from the program include trailblazing films from Iranian poet Forough Farrokhzad (in partnership with MUBI), video artist William E Jones’ reclaiming of police surveillance footage of the gay community in 60s Ohio, and LSFF’s own With Teeth artists premiering newly commissioned experimental AV work. Ngozi Onwurah is the first Black British woman to have a feature film released in UK cinemas (Welcome II The Terrordome,1995), and there will be a legacy screening of her rare works, for which Ngozi will be in attendance. Pioneering lesbian filmmaker Barbara Hammer will be answering questions following a screening of her films.
There will also be a retrospective of Dawn Shadforth’s music video back catalogue, looking at the work of pop doyennes Kylie Minogue, Bjork, Sugababes, and Peaches. Other music video events include a new visual project from Domino, in celebration of their long association with LSFF.
A brand new competition strand to celebrate the 15th anniversary is made up of six programs, all of which exemplify the Festival’s commitment to diversity and continual audience development. The 36 selected films take in migration, prejudice, survival and the darker side of family life, and dissect everything from the entertainment industry to reality itself. The esteemed international short film jury includes French filmmaker Lucile Hadžihalilović, international short film festival curator Lili Hartwig, and Fish Tank actress Katie Jarvis. Each LSFF 2018 Competition program will screen twice, at Curzon Soho and Rich Mix.
As always, the core of LSFF is the New Shorts section; programs of short films selected from 2500 open submissions into the Festival, with popular, returning slots from Funny Shit to Leftfield & Luscious, from Lo-Budget Mayhem to A Winter’s Matinee of Romantic Films, alongside new themes around identity, visibility and relationships.
LSFF will screen films at important cultural landmarks in London’s film community, including the ICA, which has hosted LSFF every year since it began. New venues for 2018 includethe Rich Mix in Shoreditch; Regent Street Cinema Curzon Soho, the Rio Cinema in Dalston and the BFI Southbank. The industry program will take place entirely at its new home at MOTH Club in Hackney.
2018 will also showcase new With Teeth projects. LSFF’s long-term short film commissioning fund, aims to become a solid support base for the most exciting emerging cinematic voices and auteurs, supported by Arts Council England National Lottery Funding. Tash Tung, Kim Noce and Zoe Aiano, will premiere newly commissioned experimental work that uses a range of unconventional AV techniques to enhance and communicate beautiful and nuanced stories.
As a champion of diverse and inclusive film, LSFF continues to see a huge contribution from women, LGBT and BAME filmmakers, and in a Festival first will introduce a program led by and for the D/deaf community.
With an established network of sponsors and supporters who help champion the Festival, LSFF strives to become more accessible and inclusive with the support of the BFI and Arts Council England, both awarding funds from the National Lottery. LSFF is also proud to have been awarded the Screen Diversity mark of good practice for meeting the BFI Diversity Standard, which recognises the Festival’s commitment in this endeavour.
LONDON SHORT FILM FESTIVAL 15TH ANNIVERSARY
The festival celebrates its 15th year in 2018 with a retrospective of the early works of auteur directors who all showcased short films at the festival at the beginning of their careers. With films like God’s Own Country, The Greasy Strangler, Berberian Sound Studio, The Levelling, Prevenge, Couple in a Hole, Spaceship, Gone Too Far, True West, Nina Forever representing great British films from the last few years, by uncompromising auteurs, who have all screened early works at London Short Film Festival. We Dare To Fail: 15 Years of LSFF looks at pieces by the directors of films including Francis Lee (God’s Own Country) and Alice Lowe (Prevenge), amongst many others. Filmmakers will be in attendance, and the event will be hosted on stage by LSFF co-founders Philip Ilson and Kate Taylor. Alongside BAFTA winners Simon Ellis and Joe Lawlor & Christine Molloy (The Desperate Optimists), we bring an incredible selection of shorts back to this very special 15th anniversary screening. This impressive collection of shorts come from: FREE SPEECH The Blaine Brothers 2004, 6 mins LITTLE CLUMPS OF HAIR Jim Hosking 2003, 12 mins WHAT THE Simon Ellis 2004, 7 mins WHO KILLED BROWN OWL? The Desperate Optimists 2004, 10 mins A METAPHYSICAL EDUCATION Peter Strickland 2004, 3 mins SHAME Tom Geens 2006, 4 mins LADIES IN WAITING Hope Dickson Leach 2005, 7 mins STICKS AND BALLS Alice Lowe / Jacqueline Wright 2007, 4 mins TIGHT JEANS Destiny Ekaragha 2008, 9 mins KIDS MIGHT FLY Alex Taylor 2009, 7 mins MAN ON A MOTORCYCLE John McClean 2009, 12 mins BRADFORD HALIFAX LONDON Francis Lee 2013, 9 minsPOLITICAL
The Guardian and Headlong Theatre have teamed up to mark the one-year anniversary of the controversial decision to leave the EU, with Brexit Shorts: Dramas From A Divided Nation. A raft of prominent scriptwriters and well-known actors from each region were commissioned to highlight the nation’s growing divisions in their area at a moment of seismic political change. A mix of noteworthy names across screenwriting and acting are involved in the shorts, with scripts and stories from Maxine Peake and Abi Morgan, playwrights David Hare and Gary Owen, and actors including Kristen Scott Thomas, Meera Syal, and Penelope Wilton amongst many others. The screenings will be followed by a panel discussion with Jess Gormley and Noah Payne-Frank from The Guardian, Amy Hodge from Headlong Theatre and a live performance from one of the actors in the films.MUSIC
Dawn Shadforth: Spinning Around takes a look at one of the most quietly prolific music video auteurs of the 90s, Dawn Shadforth, who has created visuals for the likes of Kylie Minogue, Björk, Sugababes, and Peaches. A Q&A with Dawn and special guests follows. This year there’s a celebration of 15 years of LSFF and Domino, working together, It’s All Good!, is an evening of music videos, DJs, giveaways and surprises. Domino have created and curated music videos from a wealth of directors since LSFF’s inception, and this event will see the introduction of new visual projects. To celebrate the legacy of of women in British rap and MC-ing, Home Girls: Live sees LSFF team up with contemporary performers who are currently raising the bar in a scene dominated by men. The closing night party will feature a special guest appearance from Hackney-based Paigey Cakey, and special guests TBA, in a homegrown London-centric talent event. Home Girls: From Cookie Crew to Now, takes stock of the representation of female hip-hop artists over the decades, from the swim-suited video vixen to the in control and hyper sexualized. Cookie Crew, Wee Papa Girl Rappers and She Rockers burst onto the scene in the 80s and 90s with a self-defined, powerful onscreen image. A panel discussion with members of the bands, and key industry figures will follow.LGBTQ
LGBTQ content this year is led by long time LSFF collaborators New Queer Visions. The first film program, Don’t Look Back In Anger, looks at the nature of hate and positivity, with touching stories about queer characters dealing with ups, downs, and everything in between. This is accompanied by Medium Rare, a program of medium length shorts exploring the mixed-up mind of an impressionable young man. In partnership with MUBI, Radical Softness Through A Haptic Lens is a retrospective of the works of Barbara Hammer, feminist filmmaker and one of the pioneers of lesbian film, and Chick Strand, avant-garde documentary filmmaker. The films examine the idea of ‘radical softness’, the power that can be found in in being both abrasively feminine and openly vulnerable, through a soft and kinesthetic style of filmmaking. Following incredibly rare screenings of Superdyke and Soft Fictions, there will be a Skype Q&A with the legendary Barbara Hammer. Also in association with MUBI is Cruelty and Crime, a showcase of the key works of American writer Chris Kraus. From feminist readings of Antonin Artaud to Cold War sleeper agents, via dominatrices and New York City crime scenes, these films are filled with humour, sexuality, abjection, metaphor, allusion, an insatiable curiosity and a Dadaist sense of provocation and absurdity. A collection of 1962 police footage documenting men cruising in a public toilet, was reworked and re-presented by William E Jones as a separate work, Tearoom* in 2007. The experimental video art project shows how surveillance is used as a blunt tool of oppression. The footage shown was eventually used as evidence to prosecute the men of sodomy and public deviancy. Prior to the screening LSFF will also be showcasing Robert Yang’s game The Tearoom, a cruising simulation made in direct response to the film. On release the game ran afoul of the censors and so in a bold piece of satirical provocation Yang replaced all the penises with guns. The game was then successfully passed uncut. Additionally we also welcome filmmaker Sam Ashby, who will present a newly commissioned work in response to Tearoom, and artist Prem Sahib for a post screening discussion of the themes highlighted in the work. *18 – contains scenes of real sexual activity.BAME
When director Julie Dash created the groundbreaking Daughters of the Dust in 1991, a multigenerational tale of black women from the Gullah sea islands struggling to hold on to their culture, little did she know that 25 years later her work would be held up on the world stage thanks to one of the music industry’s most influential artists: Beyoncé. Given the subject matter and the detail paid to the cinematography, Dash’s film provided an obvious touchstone to inspire Beyoncé’s vision in Lemonade. 2009’s Taqwacore: The Birth of Punk Islam refers respectively to ‘taqwa’ and ‘core’, a synthesis of an awe-inspiring consciousness of Allah, and a hard-core punk music style, and a fusion of Muslim and American culture. A panel discussion, Muslim Punk and the New Subculture, hosted by filmmaker Hammad Khan asks what happened to Taqwacore, and questions how class, race, and gender are tied to Muslim resistance to Trump and Brexit. Hammad Khan’s Anima State is arguably the most important film to come out of Pakistan in decades. As we approach the 70th anniversary of the country’s independence from British India, it is an uncomfortable, in-your-face examination of the country’s violence, to its apathy, to its refusal to recognize its moral corruption, in every single facet of Pakistani society. Pioneer of Black British cinema Ngozi Onwurah’s body of work weaves autobiographical narrative with astute socio-political observation. As the first Black British woman filmmaker to have a feature film released in UK cinemas we celebrate Ngozi’s legacy with a screening of early works and panel discussion in Ngozi Onwurah: Shorts. A rare 35mm screening of Welcome II The Terrordome will also show at the festival. The House is Black, a screening of the only known film by one of Iran’s greatest 20th century poets Farough Farrokazad, depicts an isolated community of lepers living in Northwestern Iran, and is soundtracked by a reading from the poet herself. There will be a reading of her work, translated into English, and The Oberhausen Archive have kindly donated a 35mm print of the film.CULTURE
The festival will open with Adrena Adrena’s Movements of A Nebulous Dawn, supported by Arts Council England. This is a one-off audiovisual collaboration, with a 360-degree nebulous orb defying the conventions of theatrical presentation, as musicians perform in-the-round beneath multiple circular projections created by Daisy Dickinson. An improvised live set will see a constantly changing and evolving set of guest musicians from Faust, Wire, Boredoms and other experimental, electronic and progressive bands. Julian Hand, who directed the 2018 LSFF trailer, will be projecting psychedelic visuals using coloured liquids and slides. This year’s festival sees a first for LSFF, with a premiere screening exclusively for D/deaf audiences, curated by LSFF’s Deaf Young programr Zoe McWhinney. Save The Date, a selection of archive and contemporary short films, brings stories about D/deaf culture and experience to the screen. The screening, at BFI Southbank, will be fully supported by BSL interpreters, and films will include BSL dialogue, and/or subtitles. The Final Girls Present: The Witching Hour is a screening of two of the original 1970s documentaries that showcase the continuing, cultural obsession with witchcraft and the occult. Secret Rites is a pseudo documentary illustrating a series of initiation rites for a novice witch, while The Power of the Witch is a rarely-seen documentary featuring interviews with the King and Queen of the witch craze, Alex and Maxine Sanders. The Final Girls will host a panel discussion following the screenings. An in-conversation event around the works of the cult sci-fi author, JG Ballard: This Is The Way, Step Inside, explores the writer’s 20th century preoccupation with the machine vs. the 21st century obsession with the digital towards an anthropological take on disembodiment, honing in on how Ballard perceives both the body, and the human condition. The panel is made up of filmmakers Jason Wood, Simon Barker and Harley Cokeliss, with Ballard scholar Dr. Jeanette Baxter. Radio Atlas: Risk is an award-winning platform for subtitled audio from around the world. A place to hear inventive documentaries and aural art works that have been made in languages you don’t necessarily speak. This intimate event premieres documentaries which explore the thin line between freedom and risk, taking the listener to unexpected places, with a Q&A discussion with Radio Atlas founder Eleanor McDowall.INTERNATIONAL
As the international film strand enters its fourth year, a program of four screenings brings together some of the most unique voices in fiction, documentary and experimental filmmaking. LSFF have shorts from all over the world, with entries from China, Cuba, Slovenia, and Mozambique, to name a fraction. The festival is becoming a key player on the festival circuit when it comes to showing high quality and well-curated international short film.WITH TEETH
With Teeth is a bi-annual commissioning award from LSFF, supported by Arts Council England, aimed at embodying LSFF’s core principle of championing contemporary artists moving image works, diverging from more traditional avenues of funding to nurture diverse and unconventional independent short filmmaking. Following the second round of awards from the commissioning fund, the With Teeth Premiere will showcase the works of the three recipients of this year’s grant, Kim Noce, Zoe Aiano, and Tash Tung. Their films use experimental methods, including Your Mothers Are Mine! a projected live animation by Kim Noce observing the complexities of the mother daughter relationship. A multi-screen fiction explores the multiplicities of the image and female domesticity by Tash Tung in Unknown Pleasure. Zoe Aiano presents a wild and delicate documentary of a life spent communicating with the dead, in Imam Pesnu.INDUSTRY EVENTS
This year’s industry program sees experts from across the industry offering their words of wisdom on everything from getting your film funded, to engaging audiences. There’ll be contributions from Channel 4 Random Acts, BBC3, Noisey, and Bechdel Test Fest; Director of VR and New Media at Raindance Mária Rakušanová, will be sharing her expertise in ‘AR You Feeling It?’ and Alexander Karotsch of Fringe! Film Festival will be there to discuss ethical responsibility in ‘Let’s Talk About Sex’. All LSFF 2018 Industry events take place at MOTH Club, which has been turned into the festival’s day time Industry hub. As well as tips on funding, and what commissioners are looking for, the talks and discussions cover everything from driving feminist change in cinema, depicting sex on screen, how to manage the relationship between filmmakers and progamers, and an insight into how new AR technologies are being used to drive stories and emotional responses.
-
Biopic OLIVER TAMBO: HAVE YOU HEARD FROM JOHANNESBURG to World Premiere on AfriDocs on BET
[caption id="attachment_25737" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Oliver Tambo: Have You Heard from Johannesburg[/caption]
This month, AfriDocs on BET will present a powerful broadcast event, the World Premiere of the just completed biopic: Oliver Tambo: Have You Heard from Johannesburg on the man who freed Nelson Mandela and engineered the fall of Apartheid.
This unique film comes at a critical time in South Africa’s history as the current ANC heads into its elective conference. Through this powerful film viewers are given the rare opportunity for insights into the life, ethos, and politics of Oliver Tambo, the leader of the ANC who was instrumental in bringing an end to apartheid.
The broadcast of the film, just recently been completed in this the 100th year of Oliver Tambo’s birth, could not come at a more opportune moment with the entire southern-African region focused on political upheaval and the toppling of established leaders and norms.
Albie Sachs, the Executive Producer of the film, has this to say of its upcoming screening, “The Oliver and Adelaide Tambo Foundation would like to express its support for the upcoming screening of Oliver Tambo: Have You Heard from Johannesburg on AfriDocs on BET on December 10th. This is a spirited, lively and eminently watchable film that brings Oliver Tambo to life on-screen, with moving and poignant interviews from Chris Hani, Kenneth Kaunda and members of the Tambo family. The film shows not just the politics of the man, but also shines a light on a life lived on principles of ethics, compassion, inclusion, social justice and equality. We hope this film is seen by as many people as possible and we are actively supporting efforts to make it as accessible as possible.”
The film will be broadcast at a special time on December 10th, at 9:30pm CAT and re-broadcast on December 15th at 1:25pm, The film will also be available on #AFRIDOCSANYTIME, www.afridocs.net for a LIMITED run Dec 11th -20th.
Additionally, December will also see the re-broadcast of the classic, Finding Fela, and Omar Sosa: Out of Africa, an intimate musical trip through East Africa with the multiple Grammy nominated Cuban composer, pianist, and bandleader.
3 December
When Paul Came Over the Sea | Jakob Preuss | Germany | 2017 | 97 min
Paul has made his way from his home in Cameroon across the Sahara to the Moroccan coast where he now lives in a forest waiting for the right moment to cross the Mediterranean. This is where he meets Jakob, a filmmaker from Berlin, who is filming along Europe’s borders. Soon afterwards, Paul manages to cross over to Spain on a rubber boat. He survives – but half of his companions die on this tragic 50-hour odyssey. When Paul decides to continue on to Germany, Jakob has to make a choice: will he become an active part of Paul’s pursuit of a better life or remain a detached documentary filmmaker?
Golden Goblet for Best Documentary, Shanghai International Film Festival, 2017
10 December
SPECIAL TIME 9:30pm CAT
Oliver Tambo: Have You Heard from Johannesburg | Connie Field | South Africa | 2017 | 90 min
Political comrades and law partners, Mandela and Tambo shared a political destiny. Nelson Mandela is a household name. Oliver Tambo is virtually unknown. Banned in South Africa, Tambo led the liberation struggle in exile from 1960-1990 while Nelson Mandela was imprisoned on Robben Island. During those 30 years he not only kept the African National Congress (ANC) unified, led his movement both inside and outside South Africa in a successful battle against apartheid, his calls to the international community to isolate and sanction the South African regime created the most globalised human rights struggle of the 20th century. In the end, his actions released Nelson Mandela and laid the foundation for a new South Africa. Suffering a stroke on the eve of success, OR would not live to see his livelong friend become the first black president of a democratic South Africa.
AVAILABLE FREE TO STREAM ON CATCH-UP www.afridocs.net from Dec 11th – 20th
17 December
Omar Sosa: Out of Africa | Olivier Taieb | Cuba/ Africa | 2010 | 52 min
An intimate musical trip with the multiple Grammy nominated Cuban composer, pianist and bandleader through East Africa. Omar Sosa, influenced by traditional Afro-Cuban music, records a song with a local musician in each country in this epic road movie.
24 December
Finding Fela | Alex Gibney | Nigeria | 2014 | 120 min
Finding Fela tells the story of Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s life, his music, his social and political importance. He created a new musical movement, Afrobeat, using that forum to express his revolutionary political opinions against the dictatorial Nigerian government of the 1970s and 1980s. His influence helped bring a change towards democracy in Nigeria and promoted Pan Africanist politics to the world. The power and potency of Fela’s message is completely current today and is expressed in the political movements of oppressed people, embracing Fela’s music and message in their struggle for freedom.
Sundance Film Festival, 2014
-
Michael Pearce’s BEAST Eyes a Spring 2018 Release Date After Sundance Debut
Michael Pearce’s Beast starring Jessie Buckley, Johnny Flynn and Geraldine James will make its U.S. debut in the Spotlight section of the 2018 Sundance Film Festival in January.
The film which premiered to critical and audience praise at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival will be released in Spring 2018 by 30WEST and Roadside Attractions.
The psychological thriller, which is the first feature-length project from writer/director Pearce, centers around a small island community where a troubled young woman falls for a mysterious outsider who empowers her to escape from her oppressive family. When he comes under suspicion for a series of brutal murders, she defends him at all costs and learns what she is capable of.
Roadside Attractions’ Howard Cohen and Eric d’Arbeloff said: “Beast has been heralded as one of the indie success stories from the Toronto Film Festival. It is an extraordinary and deservedly acclaimed directorial debut from Michael Pearce, who delivers a taut, tense, and stirring thriller with a wonderfully complex heroine at the film’s core. Jessie Buckley gives a magnificent and memorable performance and we are thrilled to partner with the team at 30WEST as we help bring this psychosexual drama to audiences throughout the country.”
