Ruth Bader Ginsburg, an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States and profiled in the 2018 award winning documentary RBG died Friday. She was 87. The Supreme Court announced her death, saying the cause was complications from metastatic cancer of the pancreas.
The winners of the 44th Annual HUMANITAS Prize were announced on Friday with prizes going to ON THE BASIS OF SEX for Drama Feature Film, LOVE, SIMON for Comedy Feature Film, STOLEN DAUGHTERS: KIDNAPPED BY BOKO HARAM for Documentary, and BRIAN BANKS for Independent Feature Film.
The Athena Film Festival (AFF) at Barnard College will open its 2019 edition on Thursday, February 28, with the New York premiere of “Fast Color.” The film, directed by Julia Hart and written by Hart and Jordan Horowitz, stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw as a hero forced to run when her superhuman abilities are discovered. Years after abandoning her family, the only place she has left to hide is home. Lorraine Toussaint and David Strathairn co-star.
AARP The Magazine today announced the nominees for the 18th Movies for Grownups Awards, with A Star Is Born, BlacKkKlansman, Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Green Book and Roma competing in the Best Picture/Best Movie for Grownups category.
EIGHTH GRADE[/caption]
The HUMANITAS Prize which honors film and television writers whose work inspires compassion, hope, and understanding in the human family, has named fifty-eight film and television writers as finalists for the 44th Annual HUMANITAS Prize. All Prize winners will be announced at The 44th Annual HUMANITAS Prize event on Friday, February 8, 2019 at The Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA.
Six college students have also been named as finalists for The David and Lynn Angell College Comedy Fellowship and The Carol Mendelsohn College Drama Fellowship. The winning writers in each category will be awarded $20,000 in prize money.
HUMANITAS will also honor Marta Kauffman with The Kieser Award and Kenya Barris with the VOICE FOR CHANGE Award.
Marta Kauffman is a critically acclaimed writer/director/producer. She won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series for Friends, a series she co-created. She also co-created HBO’s Dream On, was the co-producer for NBC’s Veronica’s Closet, and is the co-creator of Netflix’s Grace and Frankie.
Kenya Barris is also a critically acclaimed writer/producer and the creator of ABC’s Black-ish and Grown-ish. He won The HUMANITAS Prize for Black-Ish: “Hope” in 2017. He won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series in 2016/17. He has received three nominations for Outstanding Comedy Series at the Primetime Emmy Awards.
Since its inception in 1974, The HUMANITAS Prize has awarded over $3.5 million to more than 360 deserving television and motion picture writers whose work examines what it means to be a fully realized human being in a world struggling with racism, terrorism, sexism, ageism, anti-Semitism, political polarization, religious fanaticism, extreme poverty, violence, and unemployment. By deeply exploring the cultures, lifestyles, sexual orientations, political views, and religious beliefs of people who are very different from ourselves, we can dissolve the walls of ignorance and fear that separate us from one another.
All winners, except for those in the Independent Feature Film and College Fellowship categories, designate a non-profit focused on nurturing the next generation of writers to receive their earnings. Past recipients have included Young Storytellers, Film2Future, P.S. Arts, The Heidelberg Project, Rosie’s Theatre Kids, International Documentary Association, and Inside Out Writers.
“HUMANITAS enjoyed an embarrassment of riches this year,” said HUMANITAS President Ali LeRoi, “There were so many incredible submissions from such gifted writers.”
Birds Without Feathers[/caption]
The Whistler Film Festival will present an unprecedented number of female focused films, talent, events, and awards throughout its 2018 programs. The Festival will screen 21 feature films and 18 short films directed or co-directed by women or non-binary individuals, which makes up 46% of this year’s film programming, the highest percentage for the festival to date. WFF will also have 41 Canadian females out of 80 (51%) participating in 11 different talent programs, including 16 directors, 5 producers, 3 screenwriters, 8 filmmakers, 1 actor, and 7 musicians in bands in the Music Showcase.
“The Whistler Film Festival’s female focused initiatives are aligned with several industry wide mandates, and we are committed to promoting the shared goal of breaking the celluloid ceiling, increasing the number of women in the director’s chair, addressing the imbalance of industry diversity behind the camera, and supporting the collaborative efforts to bring more female written and directed narratives to screen, and more females on screen to reflect society,” says Shauna Hardy Mishaw, WFF Executive Director. “With strong representation both in front of and behind the camera in our films, and talent programs this year, Whistler is maintaining a timely leadership role for women in the industry, when the need is not only apparent, the collective is calling for it.“
Felicity Jones in On the Basis of Sex[/caption]
Actress Felicity Jones, who is earning raves for her portrayal of Ruth Bader Ginsberg in On the Basis of Sex, will receive this year’s Variety Award at the British Independent Film Awards ceremony on Sunday December 2. The award recognizes a director, actor, writer or producer who has made a global impact and helps to focus the international spotlight on the UK.
Previous recipients of the award include Benedict Cumberbatch, Jude Law, Kenneth Branagh, Keira Knightley, Liam Neeson, Paul Greengrass, Helen Mirren, Kate Winslet and Gary Oldman who was last year’s honouree.
“When actress Felicity Jones first appeared on your radar, you probably knew she was destined for greatness but you probably didn’t know she would impact so forcefully on all sizes of screens in all kinds of projects,” says Steven Gaydos, Variety’s Vice President and Executive Editor. “She has infused the Star Wars juggernaut with feminine soul as well as womanly grit and she brought gravity and tenderness to the Oscar-winning Theory of Everything. Now she plays a brave woman whose life and achievements loom larger every day. On the Basis of Sex is a rallying cry for women’s rights in a time of political crisis, but in the hands of Felicity Jones, Ruth Bader Ginsberg becomes a woman we don’t simply admire, but we come to deeply understand her drives and relish the soul that sustains her commitment to justice and equality.”
Felicity Jones: “It’s an incredible honor to receive this Award and, in doing so, to join such an illustrious and inspiring group of filmmakers and actors. To support the British film industry on the global stage is a huge privilege and something I feel very proud and lucky to be a part of.”
BIFA comments: “BIFA and Variety have been honoring British talent on the world stage for 18 years; the award recipients have all had exceptional careers spanning award-winning independent films and the biggest of Hollywood blockbusters. Felicity Jones is no exception: she is a remarkable actress and we’re delighted to be able to celebrate her spectacular international achievements on home turf.”
Felicity Jones has been performing on stage and screen since the age of 11. She has twice been nominated for British Independent Film Awards for her performances in Albatross and Ralph Fiennes’ The Invisible Woman. Felicity became a household name for her critically acclaimed performance in James Marsh’s The Theory of Everything which garnered her a Best Actress Nomination at the 87th Academy Awards. She then went on to star in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story which has grossed over one billion dollars worldwide. Jones’ most recent role is portraying the formidable Ruth Bader Ginsberg in Mimi Leder’s On the Basis of Sex. The biopic, which follows a young Ruth’s struggle for equal rights, will release in UK cinemas on February 22, 2019.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28dHbIR_NB4
(l-r) Grace Molony stars as Dorothy Stafford, Margot Robbie stars as Queen Elizabeth I and Georgia Burnell as Kate Carey in MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS, a Focus Features release.[/caption]
Festival goers attending the 18th annual Whistler Film Festival (WFF), taking place from November 28 to December 2, can look forward to 85 fresh films including 50 features and 35 shorts representing 12 countries. WFF is set to open this year with Josie Rourke’s MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS, starring two of last year’s Oscar nominated best actresses, Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie. Rourke’s breathtakingly beautiful directorial debut explores the turbulent life of the charismatic Mary Stuart (Ronan), and her struggle to reclaim her rightful throne as Queen of Scotland, then under the rule of the compelling Elizabeth I (Robbie).
Closing the festival is the Canadian Premiere of groundbreaking surf documentary MOMENTUM GENERATION. Directed by Academy Award-shortlisted and Emmy and Peabody Award-winning filmmakers Jeff and Michael Zimbalist, the documentary follows the biggest names in surfing, including Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, Shane Dorian, Kalani Robb and the late Todd Chesser. Executive produced by Sundance founder Robert Redford with stunning archival footage from the godfather of surf films Taylor Steele, MOMENTUM GENERATION gives audiences an inside look at the lives of these teenagers as they rose to super stardom as the first competitive surfers.
WFF will screen six award season contenders including hosting the Canadian premieres of ON THE BASIS OF SEX, Mimi Leder’s topical biography of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg played by Felicity Jones, and Robert Budreau’s STOCKHOLM with Ethan Hawke and Noomi Rapace. The festival will also feature Western Canadian Premieres of AT ETERNITY’S GATE, director Julian Schnabel’s take on the life on Vincent Van Gogh played by Willem Dafoe; IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK, the first film from director Barry Jenkins since winning the Academy Award for Best Picture with MOONLIGHT; Alfonso Cuarón’s masterful ROMA, which – for the first time ever at WFF – will be shown in 4k projection and 7.2 sound; and FAMILY FIRST (CHIEN DE GARDE) directed by Sophie Dupuis, Canada’s entry in this year’s Best Foreign Language Oscar category.
Other highlights include the World Premiere of Borsos Jury member Bruce McDonald’s CLAIRE’S HAT, an unprecedented filmic mea culpa about the making of the 2001 fiasco PICTURE CLAIRE. This funny, insightful and brilliantly reconstructed exploration documents what went wrong during the shooting of McDonald’s biggest budget movie to date. Direct from its premiere at Telluride, Brigitte Berman’s HUGH HEFNER’S AFTER DARK: SPEAKING OUT IN AMERICA, features a treasure trove of archival footage with everyone from Lenny Bruce to Moms Mabley.
Programming strands include American Indies, Canadian Vanguard, Contenders, Doc Bloc, First Features, From Overseas, From The Vault, Mountain Culture, ShortWork, and World Premieres.
WFF boasts that four of its five films in its American Indies strand will grace Canadian screens for the first time in Whistler. Titles include Wendy McColm’s funny and bittersweet BIRDS WITHOUT FEATHERS; Adisa’s horrifying look at sex trafficking in SKIN IN THE GAME; Alex Harvey’s brilliant WALDEN: LIFE IN THE WOODS with Oscar nominee Demián Bichir; and Emma Forrest’s moving UNTOGETHER, with Jamie Dornan (50 SHADES OF GREY), Jemima Kirke, Lola Kirke, Ben Mendelsohn and Jennifer Grey. Finally, Sebastián Silva’s TYREL features Michael Cera in a story about a lone black man on otherwise all-white weekend of drunken bro debauchery on a birthday trip to a cabin in the Catskills.
This year, 18 Canadian films will compete for Canada’s second largest festival prize in the 15th annual Borsos Competition for Best Canadian Feature. Borsos titles feature seven World Premieres including Jon Silverberg’s haunting WOODLAND (shot in BC); Métis director Shane Belcourt’s mission to Mars comedy RED ROVER starring Cara Gee; Jesse Zigelstein’s restaurant owner drama for foodies NOSE TO TAIL, Carolyn Combs’ ode to multiculturalism in Vancouver BELLA CIAO!; Natty Zavitz’s moving forbidden romance drama ACQUAINTED; Maja Zdanowski’s ambitious multi-character drama IN GOD I TRUST; Zack Bernbaum’s hilariously deadpan road movie about two Toronto Jews on a trek into Poland THE DANCING DOGS OF DOMBROVA; and Rama Rau’s HONEY BEE, which features another unforgettable performance by Julia Sarah Stone (WFF 2017 Star to Watch Alumni) as an underage truckstop hooker.
Western Canadian premieres in the Borsos Competition include Deanne Foley’s poignant exploration of mental illness and maternal yearnings, AN AUDIENCE OF CHAIRS; Kristina Wagenbauer’s moving story of mother/daughter conflict SASHINKA; Geneviève Dulude-De Celles’ A COLONY (UNE COLONIE), a memorable small-town coming of age story; Roz Owen’s study of a disenfranchised First Nations woman TROUBLE IN THE GARDEN featuring Cara Gee; Renée Beaulieu’s shockingly honest THE NATURALLY WANTON PLEASURE OF SKIN (LES SALOPES); Darlene Naponse’s FALLS AROUND HER featuring a career-best performance by Tantoo Cardinal; Lenin M. Sivam’s ROOBHA, a moving and empathetic look at transgender romance within the Canadian Tamil community; Sébastien Pilote’s award-winning coming of age story THE FIREFLIES ARE GONE; Sophie Dupuis’ first feature FAMILY FIRST (CHIEN DE GARDE), Canada’s entry in this year’s Foreign language Oscar category; and the Canadian Premiere of Robert Budreau’s STOCKHOLM with Ethan Hawke and Noomi Rapace.
In addition to the Canadian Premiere of the definitive surfing documentary MOMENTUM GENERATION which will close the festival, this year’s Mountain Culture films include premieres of Whistler-based directors Brian Hockenstein and Tamo Campos’ THE RADICALS which follows a group of snowboarders and surfers who drift from the mountains and oceans into the world of activism; Patagonia’s stunning winter film TREELINE which explores the diverse forests of British Columbia, Nevada, and Japan, directed by Vancouver-based Jordan Manley; and winner of the Best Documentary award at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, FREE SOLO, directed by E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, a stunning, intimate and unflinching portrait of the free soloist climber Alex Honnold’s preparations to achieve his lifelong dream: climbing the face of the world’s most famous rock – the 3,000ft El Capitan in Yosemite National Park – without a rope.
This year’s Doc Bloc competition features a refreshingly diverse line-up. Two BC-based productions will grace our screens, including NEVER BE DONE: THE RICHARD GLEN LETT STORY directed by Roy Tighe about a self-sabotaging Vancouver based stand-up comic, and the World Premiere of FUCK YOU ALL: THE UWE BOLL STORY directed by Sean Patrick Shaul. Canadian premieres include Brian Bellinkoff’s PSYCHONAUTICS: A COMIC’S EXPLORATION OF PSYCHEDELICS with comedian Shane Mauss, and Brigitte Berman’s HUGH HEFNER’S AFTER DARK: SPEAKING OUT IN AMERICA. In addition, WFF will screen the World Premiere of Jaren Hayman’s eye-opening exploration of Canada’s largest black community in THIS IS NORTH PRESTON. Western Canadian premieres include THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING, Tom Donahue’s timely reminder of gender inequality in the film and television industries being shown as part of WFF’s Women on Top Series, and our British Columbia premiere selection includes Laura Marie Wayne’s LOVE, SCOTT, about the lasting impact of a horrific incident of homophobic violence, produced by the National Film Board of Canada.
Other films of note in this year’s lineup include the family-friendly first feature from the Northwest Territories’ Jennifer Walden, ELIJAH AND THE ROCK CREATURE; musical Christmas zombie movie ANNA AND THE APOCALYPSE that simply must be seen to be believed; Gillian McKercher’s realistic look at working in the Alberta oil sands CIRCLE OF STEEL; Collin Friesen’s hilarious comedy about burying a deceased father’s ashes featuring a stand-out performance from Bruce Greenwood, SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS; and Eva Husson’s rousing film detailing a Kurdish all-female battalion, GIRLS OF THE SUN. Borsos award winner Maxime Giroux (FELIX AND MEIRA 2014) returns with his newest THE GREAT DARKENED DAYS, and Gary Burns honors the festival with his Mountain Culture entry MAN RUNNING, about a doctor running a marathon in the Rockies.
Momentum Generation[/caption]
MOMENTUM GENERATION (United States) Dir. Jeff & Michael Zimbalist
A COLONY ACQUAINTED AN AUDIENCE OF CHAIRS BELLA CIAO! THE DANCING DOGS OF DOMBROVA FALLS AROUND HER FAMILY FIRST THE FIREFLIES ARE GONE HONEY BEE IN GOD I TRUST THE NATURALLY WANTON PLEASURE OF SKIN NOSE TO TAIL RED ROVER ROOBHA TROUBLE IN THE GARDEN SASHINKA STOCKHOLM WOODLAND
Ruth Bader Ginsburg biographical drama On the Basis of Sex, directed by Mimi Leder will be presented with the third annual SF Honors award from SFFILM, along with a public screening event Saturday, November 10, 6:30 pm at the Castro Theatre. Lead actors Felicity Jones and Armie Hammer and screenwriter (and nephew of Ruth Bader Ginsburg) Daniel Stiepleman will attend in person and participate in a special pre-screening award presentation followed by an in-depth post-screening conversation about their work.
“Nothing could represent Bay Area values better than the remarkable early career of Ruth Bader Ginsburg and how she and her husband collaborated to remove gender bias from the laws of our country,” said SFFILM’s Executive Director Noah Cowan. “Mimi Leder has told this story beautifully with a magnificent lift from two of our finest young actors, Felicity Jones and Armie Hammer, and we are proud to name it this year’s SF Honors recipient. This award, a major event in the San Francisco cultural season, would not be possible without the support of Todd Traina and Diane B. Wilsey, significant long-time supporters of the cultural infrastructure of the Bay Area and of SFFILM.”
On the Basis of Sex tells an inspiring and spirited true story that follows young lawyer Ruth Bader Ginsburg as she teams with her husband Marty to bring a groundbreaking case before the US Court of Appeals and overturn a century of gender discrimination. The feature will premiere later this year, in line with Justice Ginsburg’s 25th anniversary on the Supreme Court.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28dHbIR_NB4
Now in its third edition, SF Honors adds a Bay Area voice to the end-of-year awards conversation with an annual award and tribute designed to bring particular attention to innovation and audacity in current cinema, featuring a screening and onstage conversation with the creators and cast of one of the best films of the year.
The inaugural SF Honors award was presented in 2016 to Damien Chazelle’s La La Land, with a public screening event and onstage conversation featuring writer/director Damien Chazelle, stars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, and composer Justin Hurwitz at the Castro Theatre. In 2017, SFFILM honored Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour, with Wright, lead actor (and eventual Academy Award winner) Gary Oldman, co-star Ben Mendelsohn, writer/producer Anthony McCarten, and supervising sound editor Craig Berkey taking the stage to discuss their critical and popular hit film. SF Honors is made possible by a $1 million, ten-year gift from SFFILM’s Board Vice President Todd Traina and philanthropist Diane B. Wilsey.
The 32nd edition of AFI FEST will open with the World Premiere of ON THE BASIS OF SEX, the inspiring drama that tells the story of young lawyer Ruth Bader Ginsburg before she became a U.S. Supreme Court Justice. The film directed by AFI Conservatory alumna Mimi Leder (AFI Class of 1973), stars Academy Award® nominee Felicity Jones, Armie Hammer, Justin Theroux, Jack Reynor and Cailee Spaeny, with Academy Award® nominee Sam Waterston and Academy Award® winner Kathy Bates. The Opening Night Gala screening will take place Thursday, November 8, 2018, at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre.
“As one of the first women ever admitted to the AFI Conservatory, it’s particularly meaningful to me that ON THE BASIS OF SEX will open AFI FEST 2018,” said Mimi Leder. “My time at the Conservatory was a life-changing experience and informed my creative journey. I am forever grateful. The origin story of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in this 25th anniversary year of her appointment to the Supreme Court, couldn’t come at a more important moment in our history nor be shown at a more relevant place than AFI FEST, a symbol of artistic integrity and the enduring power of cinema. I hope girls and young women in particular will see the film and find inspiration to realize their own unlimited potential.”
Inspired by a true story, ON THE BASIS OF SEX is the stirring and spirited film that follows young lawyer Ruth Bader Ginsburg as she teams with her husband Marty to bring a groundbreaking case before the U.S. Court of Appeals and overturn a century of gender discrimination.
The film will be released on December 25, 2018, in line with Justice Ginsburg’s 25th anniversary on the Supreme Court.
AFI FEST takes place November 8–15, 2018, in the heart of Hollywood. Screenings, Galas and other events will be held at the TCL Chinese Theatre, the TCL Chinese 6 Theatres, the Egyptian Theatre and The Hollywood Roosevelt.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28dHbIR_NB4