Film Festival
Zelda Adams, John Adams and Toby Poser’s Fantasia and FrightFest-winning horror film “Where the Devil Roams” will open the fourth edition of India’s Wench Film Festival (Feb. 9-March 3). The festival was founded in 2020 by filmmaker Sapna Moti Bhavnani (“Sindhustan”) to “bridge the gender gap in India by driving opportunities and conversations through the gaze of a woman inclusive of Biwoc, LGBTQ+ women and non-binary in art, fashion, and film powered by tech,” per the organizers. It specializes in the horror, sci-fi and fantasy genres.
The team, which also includes artistic director Uma da Cunha, programmers Heidi Honeycutt who is the co-founder of the women-focused Etheria Film festival, Shelagh Rowan-Legg, director of the Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies, “The Lunchbox” producer Vivek Rangachari, have curated a lineup of 29 films, including 14 India premieres and 10 Asia premieres.
Highlights include Ariane Louis-Seize’s “Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person,” Jenn Wexler’s “The Sacrifice Game,...
Zelda Adams, John Adams and Toby Poser’s Fantasia and FrightFest-winning horror film “Where the Devil Roams” will open the fourth edition of India’s Wench Film Festival (Feb. 9-March 3). The festival was founded in 2020 by filmmaker Sapna Moti Bhavnani (“Sindhustan”) to “bridge the gender gap in India by driving opportunities and conversations through the gaze of a woman inclusive of Biwoc, LGBTQ+ women and non-binary in art, fashion, and film powered by tech,” per the organizers. It specializes in the horror, sci-fi and fantasy genres.
The team, which also includes artistic director Uma da Cunha, programmers Heidi Honeycutt who is the co-founder of the women-focused Etheria Film festival, Shelagh Rowan-Legg, director of the Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies, “The Lunchbox” producer Vivek Rangachari, have curated a lineup of 29 films, including 14 India premieres and 10 Asia premieres.
Highlights include Ariane Louis-Seize’s “Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person,” Jenn Wexler’s “The Sacrifice Game,...
- 2/7/2024
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
There was no escaping “Red Rooms” at Fantasia.
Awarded the Cheval Noir Award for best feature at the 27th edition of the fest, Pascal Plante’s film also took honors for screenplay and Dominique Plante’s haunting score, as well as an outstanding performance award for Juliette Gariépy.
“The ultimate effect a film can achieve is to implant a significant and lasting emotional memory. ‘Red Rooms’ masterfully accomplished that goal,” said jurors David Hewlett, Brenda Lieberman, Jourdain Searles, Virginie Sélavy and Gary Sherman.
“With incredible skill and artistry, without resorting to gore or violence, this film delivers not only an extremely disturbing and frightening experience but introduces you to characters and situations you may never forget.”
Produced by Nemesis Films, it takes on the trial of a man accused of murdering teenage girls and selling videos of his crimes online. But Plante wanted to focus on women who follow him.
Awarded the Cheval Noir Award for best feature at the 27th edition of the fest, Pascal Plante’s film also took honors for screenplay and Dominique Plante’s haunting score, as well as an outstanding performance award for Juliette Gariépy.
“The ultimate effect a film can achieve is to implant a significant and lasting emotional memory. ‘Red Rooms’ masterfully accomplished that goal,” said jurors David Hewlett, Brenda Lieberman, Jourdain Searles, Virginie Sélavy and Gary Sherman.
“With incredible skill and artistry, without resorting to gore or violence, this film delivers not only an extremely disturbing and frightening experience but introduces you to characters and situations you may never forget.”
Produced by Nemesis Films, it takes on the trial of a man accused of murdering teenage girls and selling videos of his crimes online. But Plante wanted to focus on women who follow him.
- 7/30/2023
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Tentpole arrives in UK on Friday.
Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer has grossed an estimated $2.4m from the first 10 international markets on Wednesday via Universal Pictures International.
The tentpole starring Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer, the so-called “father of the atomic bomb”, earned $1.4m in France, $500,000 in Indonesia, $300,000 in Belgium, and $100,000 in Philippines.
There were opening day records for Nolan in Indonesia and Belgium. In other Wednesday debuts Egypt generated $74,000 and Iceland $31,000.
Oppenheimer will open in 78 markets over the weekend and was ready to open on Thursday in Australia, Mexico, Germany and Saudi Arabia, followed on Friday by the UK,...
Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer has grossed an estimated $2.4m from the first 10 international markets on Wednesday via Universal Pictures International.
The tentpole starring Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer, the so-called “father of the atomic bomb”, earned $1.4m in France, $500,000 in Indonesia, $300,000 in Belgium, and $100,000 in Philippines.
There were opening day records for Nolan in Indonesia and Belgium. In other Wednesday debuts Egypt generated $74,000 and Iceland $31,000.
Oppenheimer will open in 78 markets over the weekend and was ready to open on Thursday in Australia, Mexico, Germany and Saudi Arabia, followed on Friday by the UK,...
- 7/20/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Viaplay to lay off 25% of staff representing around 450 jobs.
France’s Canal+ Group has taken a minority stake in Scandinavian streamer Viaplay who earlier today (July 20) announced a company overhaul that includes cutting a quarter of its workforce.
Canal+ sent a terse statement late on Thursday announcing that it had acquired a 12% stake in the leading pay-tv player in the Nordic countries.
The news comes fresh off of Viaplay’s announcement that it will lay off 25% of its staff representing around 450 jobs and will focus on its core local business, plus sports and international distribution.
Viaplay president and CEO Jorgen Madsen Lindemann...
France’s Canal+ Group has taken a minority stake in Scandinavian streamer Viaplay who earlier today (July 20) announced a company overhaul that includes cutting a quarter of its workforce.
Canal+ sent a terse statement late on Thursday announcing that it had acquired a 12% stake in the leading pay-tv player in the Nordic countries.
The news comes fresh off of Viaplay’s announcement that it will lay off 25% of its staff representing around 450 jobs and will focus on its core local business, plus sports and international distribution.
Viaplay president and CEO Jorgen Madsen Lindemann...
- 7/20/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Reminiscent of the Quentin Tarantino / Robert Rodriguez collaboration Grindhouse with its throwback features and faux trailers for non-existent movies, filmmaker and artist Pat Tremblay’s new book Terror in the Ailien Realms: Transdimensional Horror Movie Posters & Their Film Reviews consists of posters for and reviews of movies that have never existed!
An explanation of what this book is all about was provided in a press release (via Variety), “Drawn by the deep nostalgia of roaming video rental stores to find cool movies to watch by judging what its VHS box’s artwork would entice or beguile, filmmaker & artist Pat Tremblay has created a series of horror movie posters with the assistance of AI. He then proposed to talented individuals within the horror movie scene to write imaginary reviews for them. The result is a captivating mixture of styles, ranging from the enigmatic and alluring to the outrageously hilarious. The dimensional...
An explanation of what this book is all about was provided in a press release (via Variety), “Drawn by the deep nostalgia of roaming video rental stores to find cool movies to watch by judging what its VHS box’s artwork would entice or beguile, filmmaker & artist Pat Tremblay has created a series of horror movie posters with the assistance of AI. He then proposed to talented individuals within the horror movie scene to write imaginary reviews for them. The result is a captivating mixture of styles, ranging from the enigmatic and alluring to the outrageously hilarious. The dimensional...
- 7/20/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
An unwelcome conundrum for Venice and TIFF.
Festivals, and in particular the fall trifecta of Venice, Toronto and Telluride, are likely to be heavily impacted should SAG-AFTRA members still be on strike by the time fall season comes around, according to sources.
SAG-AFTRA has outlined what members can and cannot do once the Guild’s strike begins on Friday in a strict strike notice that prohibits performance work, interviews and auditions, and promotional duties.
Scroll down for full strike rules
Besides the devastating effect on Hollywood productions, most of which are expected to come to a screeching halt on Friday...
Festivals, and in particular the fall trifecta of Venice, Toronto and Telluride, are likely to be heavily impacted should SAG-AFTRA members still be on strike by the time fall season comes around, according to sources.
SAG-AFTRA has outlined what members can and cannot do once the Guild’s strike begins on Friday in a strict strike notice that prohibits performance work, interviews and auditions, and promotional duties.
Scroll down for full strike rules
Besides the devastating effect on Hollywood productions, most of which are expected to come to a screeching halt on Friday...
- 7/14/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Nicolas Cage will pick up this year’s Cheval Noir Career Achievement Award at Fantasia.
“He is one of the most individualistic and captivating screen presences in the last 40 years. Beyond his unique charisma, the kinds of atypical characters he’s been drawn to and what he can bring to them is so special and rare,” artistic director Mitch Davis told Variety.
“Audiences lose their minds when he goes to these energetically extreme places: ‘Vampire’s Kiss’ was my first experience with that and I was absolutely floored. But they are also transfixed by the quiet, textured qualities he brings to more somber characters. He’s a one-of-a-kind treasure in American film.”
Throughout the years, Cage has been embracing genre cinema, admitted Davis. And it has embraced him back.
“He’s someone who sincerely loves cinema and has always embraced genre storytelling. I wish he could have been in the...
“He is one of the most individualistic and captivating screen presences in the last 40 years. Beyond his unique charisma, the kinds of atypical characters he’s been drawn to and what he can bring to them is so special and rare,” artistic director Mitch Davis told Variety.
“Audiences lose their minds when he goes to these energetically extreme places: ‘Vampire’s Kiss’ was my first experience with that and I was absolutely floored. But they are also transfixed by the quiet, textured qualities he brings to more somber characters. He’s a one-of-a-kind treasure in American film.”
Throughout the years, Cage has been embracing genre cinema, admitted Davis. And it has embraced him back.
“He’s someone who sincerely loves cinema and has always embraced genre storytelling. I wish he could have been in the...
- 7/6/2023
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Canada’s Fantasia International Film Festival has announced the opening film of its 27th edition: Pascal Plante’s “Red Rooms,” about a high-profile case of a serial killer and the woman (Juliette Gariépy) obsessed with him.
“It’s a film of enormous emotional force, unbelievably controlled and smart, with a staggering performance from Gariépy. Pascal is one of the greatest talents of his generation in Quebec cinema and among the strongest filmmakers in the country right now,” says festival’s artistic director Mitch Davis.
“In a sense, it’s an unconventionally grim note to open a festival on. It’s a profoundly disturbing film. But I know the audience is going to be left completely breathless by it.”
“As a Montrealer, I have been a regular festival goer of Fantasia for years now, but it’s the first time one of my features will be screened in their lineup. I...
“It’s a film of enormous emotional force, unbelievably controlled and smart, with a staggering performance from Gariépy. Pascal is one of the greatest talents of his generation in Quebec cinema and among the strongest filmmakers in the country right now,” says festival’s artistic director Mitch Davis.
“In a sense, it’s an unconventionally grim note to open a festival on. It’s a profoundly disturbing film. But I know the audience is going to be left completely breathless by it.”
“As a Montrealer, I have been a regular festival goer of Fantasia for years now, but it’s the first time one of my features will be screened in their lineup. I...
- 6/8/2023
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
The Farrah Fawcett Foundation Tex-Mex Fiesta co-chairs Alana Stewart and Jaclyn Smith led the 2022 event at The Rustic in Dallas, Texas this year, as opposed to their usual Beverly Hills location.
Sheryl Crow Performs at The Farrah Fawcett Foundation Tex-Mex Fiesta
Attended by more than 350 guests from Hollywood and Dallas, this event raised funds for the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge and Stand Up To Cancer.
The Rustic was transformed with floating pinatas, colorful lanterns, and mariachis for the fiesta-themed event, designed and produced by The James Group. Guests sat under a starry Texas sky at festive tablescapes as they enjoyed endless margaritas and Tex-Mex food (Farrah’s favorite). Guests were greeted with an opening performance by Sydney Sherrill and stylish gift bags provided by Neiman Marcus. The burlap totes were filled with several full-sized luxury products: Retrouve’s face serum, Sobel Skin moisture cream, a Knesko Nanogold Repair face mask,...
Sheryl Crow Performs at The Farrah Fawcett Foundation Tex-Mex Fiesta
Attended by more than 350 guests from Hollywood and Dallas, this event raised funds for the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge and Stand Up To Cancer.
The Rustic was transformed with floating pinatas, colorful lanterns, and mariachis for the fiesta-themed event, designed and produced by The James Group. Guests sat under a starry Texas sky at festive tablescapes as they enjoyed endless margaritas and Tex-Mex food (Farrah’s favorite). Guests were greeted with an opening performance by Sydney Sherrill and stylish gift bags provided by Neiman Marcus. The burlap totes were filled with several full-sized luxury products: Retrouve’s face serum, Sobel Skin moisture cream, a Knesko Nanogold Repair face mask,...
- 11/4/2022
- Look to the Stars
The festival wrapped up its 26th edition on August 3.
Korean action film The Roundup and US sci-fi The Artifice Girl won the gold awards for best Asian feature and best international feature, respectively, at the audience awards for the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal, which wrapped its 26th edition on August 3.
Starring Eternals and Train To Busan’s Done Lee as a ‘best of a cop’, The Roundup is directed by Lee Sang-yong and acts as a sequel to 2017’s The Outlaws. The gold winner was also a box office hit in South Korea, recording over 12.5 million admissions (as...
Korean action film The Roundup and US sci-fi The Artifice Girl won the gold awards for best Asian feature and best international feature, respectively, at the audience awards for the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal, which wrapped its 26th edition on August 3.
Starring Eternals and Train To Busan’s Done Lee as a ‘best of a cop’, The Roundup is directed by Lee Sang-yong and acts as a sequel to 2017’s The Outlaws. The gold winner was also a box office hit in South Korea, recording over 12.5 million admissions (as...
- 8/5/2022
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
Audience winners to be announced at fest’s climax on August 3.
Karim Ouelhaj’s Belgian genre title Megalomaniac has been named best feature film at Fantasia International Film Festival, while July Jung has been declared best director for Next Sohee and Alexandre Desplat claimed the best score prize for Final Cut.
Megalomaniac earned the top prize at the Montreal festival’s 26th edition and return to an in-person event. Ouelhaj’s fourth film is inspired by the unsolved case of the Butcher of Mons serial killer who murdered five women from 1996-97.
‘Megalomaniac’: Fantasia Review
Eline Schumacher won an...
Karim Ouelhaj’s Belgian genre title Megalomaniac has been named best feature film at Fantasia International Film Festival, while July Jung has been declared best director for Next Sohee and Alexandre Desplat claimed the best score prize for Final Cut.
Megalomaniac earned the top prize at the Montreal festival’s 26th edition and return to an in-person event. Ouelhaj’s fourth film is inspired by the unsolved case of the Butcher of Mons serial killer who murdered five women from 1996-97.
‘Megalomaniac’: Fantasia Review
Eline Schumacher won an...
- 7/25/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
“Stranger Things’” Francesca Reale and “Succession’s” Dagmara Domińczyk are attached to star in horror drama “Surgat,” from Michael Borowiec and Sam Marine Borowiec, the New York-based writing-directing team behind “Man Underground,” which won best first feature at the 2016 Fantasia Film Festival.
Sean Lyness is joining Josh Ruben as a producer on the project.
The cast and producer additions add extra weight to a title which is shaping up as one of the highest-profile titles at this year’s Frontières Market, which takes place over July 21-24, running parallel to Montreal’s Fantasia Film Festival.
“Surgat” will be presented to potential co-production partners, financiers and sales agents at the Frontières Official Selection Pitch Session held this Thursday, July 21.
Currently at the financing stage, “Surgat” turns on a young pregnant woman, Heather, whose life is thrown into chaos when a demonic spirit is released upon her home, possessing her family members...
Sean Lyness is joining Josh Ruben as a producer on the project.
The cast and producer additions add extra weight to a title which is shaping up as one of the highest-profile titles at this year’s Frontières Market, which takes place over July 21-24, running parallel to Montreal’s Fantasia Film Festival.
“Surgat” will be presented to potential co-production partners, financiers and sales agents at the Frontières Official Selection Pitch Session held this Thursday, July 21.
Currently at the financing stage, “Surgat” turns on a young pregnant woman, Heather, whose life is thrown into chaos when a demonic spirit is released upon her home, possessing her family members...
- 7/21/2022
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
Fest unveils second world premiere this week after Sanaa Lathan directorial debut.
Universal’s gay romantic comedy Bros will get its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in September.
Billy Eichner stars in the story about two men with commitment problems who try to have a relationship. Eichner co-wrote the screenplay with director Nicholas Stoller, and Judd Apatow, Stoller and Josh Church produced. Eichner and Karl Frankenfield served as executive producers.
Eichner is the first openly gay man to co-write and star in his own major studio film. Bros features an entirely 2Slgbtqia+ principal cast including Luke Macfarlane,...
Universal’s gay romantic comedy Bros will get its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in September.
Billy Eichner stars in the story about two men with commitment problems who try to have a relationship. Eichner co-wrote the screenplay with director Nicholas Stoller, and Judd Apatow, Stoller and Josh Church produced. Eichner and Karl Frankenfield served as executive producers.
Eichner is the first openly gay man to co-write and star in his own major studio film. Bros features an entirely 2Slgbtqia+ principal cast including Luke Macfarlane,...
- 7/15/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
The festival features 32 world premieres in total.
The UK horror and fantasy film festival Frightfest (August 25-29) has unveiled its 2022 line-up, with the world premiere of Neil Marshall’s action horror The Lair set to open the event.
Starring Charlotte Kirk, the film tells the story of a Royal Air Force pilot who, after her plane is shot down, finds herself stranded in an underground bunker where she ends up awakening deadly man-made biological weapons. Marshall will also be introducing a restoration of one of his previous films Dog Soldiers.
Closing the festival is the European premiere of Scott Mann...
The UK horror and fantasy film festival Frightfest (August 25-29) has unveiled its 2022 line-up, with the world premiere of Neil Marshall’s action horror The Lair set to open the event.
Starring Charlotte Kirk, the film tells the story of a Royal Air Force pilot who, after her plane is shot down, finds herself stranded in an underground bunker where she ends up awakening deadly man-made biological weapons. Marshall will also be introducing a restoration of one of his previous films Dog Soldiers.
Closing the festival is the European premiere of Scott Mann...
- 7/15/2022
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
International hits 200m, UK leads way on 19m.
Thor: Love And Thunder is expected to cross 400m at the global box office today (July 14) after Wednesday ticket sales propelled the running total to 382.4m and saw the tentpole ease past 200m internationally.
A further 25.3m on Wednesday brought in 16.4m from international markets and 8.9m from North America to raise the respective tallies to 203.5m and 178.9m heading into the second weekend.
The Disney/Marvel Studios release grossed 1.9m in France on the Wednesday opening day leading into a four-day Bastille Day holiday weekend where the country is in the...
Thor: Love And Thunder is expected to cross 400m at the global box office today (July 14) after Wednesday ticket sales propelled the running total to 382.4m and saw the tentpole ease past 200m internationally.
A further 25.3m on Wednesday brought in 16.4m from international markets and 8.9m from North America to raise the respective tallies to 203.5m and 178.9m heading into the second weekend.
The Disney/Marvel Studios release grossed 1.9m in France on the Wednesday opening day leading into a four-day Bastille Day holiday weekend where the country is in the...
- 7/14/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
International hits 200m, UK leads way on 19m.
Thor: Love And Thunder is expected to cross 400m at the global box office today (July 14) after Wednesday ticket sales propelled the running total to 382.4m and saw the tentpole ease past 200m internationally.
A further 25.3m on Wednesday brought in 16.4m from international markets and 8.9m from North America to raise the respective tallies to 203.5m and 178.9m heading into the second weekend.
The Disney/Marvel Studios release grossed 1.9m in France on the Wednesday opening day leading into a four-day Bastille Day holiday weekend where the country is in the...
Thor: Love And Thunder is expected to cross 400m at the global box office today (July 14) after Wednesday ticket sales propelled the running total to 382.4m and saw the tentpole ease past 200m internationally.
A further 25.3m on Wednesday brought in 16.4m from international markets and 8.9m from North America to raise the respective tallies to 203.5m and 178.9m heading into the second weekend.
The Disney/Marvel Studios release grossed 1.9m in France on the Wednesday opening day leading into a four-day Bastille Day holiday weekend where the country is in the...
- 7/14/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Canada’s Fantasia International Film Festival will close its 26th edition with a screening of July Jung’s “Next Sohee,” an interesting take on exploitation starring the Wachowski siblings’ regular collaborator, South Korean actress Bae Doona.
The film, which premiered at Cannes Critics’ Week, won’t be the only title to discover on the closing night, however, with a special screening of A24’s horror comedy “Bodies Bodies Bodies” also planned. Directed by Halina Reijn and featuring Amandla Stenberg, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” breakout Maria Bakalova and Pete Davidson, the film shows a party game that leads to murder, all the while maintaining “a taut balance of uneasy tension and wicked humor,” teased the festival organizers.
The announcement came alongside Fantasia’s third wave of titles, finally rounding up this year’s varied selection. Among the world premieres, Raúl Cerezo and Fernando González Gómez will bring “The Elderly,” Shuichi Okita “The Fish Tale,...
The film, which premiered at Cannes Critics’ Week, won’t be the only title to discover on the closing night, however, with a special screening of A24’s horror comedy “Bodies Bodies Bodies” also planned. Directed by Halina Reijn and featuring Amandla Stenberg, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” breakout Maria Bakalova and Pete Davidson, the film shows a party game that leads to murder, all the while maintaining “a taut balance of uneasy tension and wicked humor,” teased the festival organizers.
The announcement came alongside Fantasia’s third wave of titles, finally rounding up this year’s varied selection. Among the world premieres, Raúl Cerezo and Fernando González Gómez will bring “The Elderly,” Shuichi Okita “The Fish Tale,...
- 7/1/2022
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
“Face Off” helmer John Woo will receive a Career Achievement Award during Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival, about to celebrate its 26th edition. The Hong Kong filmmaker is currently working on “Silent Night,” starring Joel Kinnaman and Kid Cudi.
“I defy anyone to watch ‘Bullet in the Head,’ ‘Hard Boiled’ or ‘The Killer’ and not walk away wanting to break down the shots and make a movie. His use of camera movement, close-ups, the ways he would block and choreograph, it’s astonishing to look at,” Fantasia’s artistic director Mitch Davis told Variety, noting the “unexpected poetry” of Woo’s work.
“They are such unconventionally soulful films. I wish we could somehow unleash a flock of doves in the cinema when he steps onto the stage. Backlit.”
The festival, which will unspool July 14 – Aug. 3, has also unveiled its first wave of titles, starting with a selection of world...
“I defy anyone to watch ‘Bullet in the Head,’ ‘Hard Boiled’ or ‘The Killer’ and not walk away wanting to break down the shots and make a movie. His use of camera movement, close-ups, the ways he would block and choreograph, it’s astonishing to look at,” Fantasia’s artistic director Mitch Davis told Variety, noting the “unexpected poetry” of Woo’s work.
“They are such unconventionally soulful films. I wish we could somehow unleash a flock of doves in the cinema when he steps onto the stage. Backlit.”
The festival, which will unspool July 14 – Aug. 3, has also unveiled its first wave of titles, starting with a selection of world...
- 5/12/2022
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
The Sadness shocked festival audiences and now its heading to Shudder! Here's the official acquisition announcement, revealing that The Sadness will be released across Shudder in the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand on May 12th:
"Shudder, AMC Network’s premium streaming service for horror, thriller and the supernatural, has acquired rights to Canadian director Rob Jabbaz’s feature debut The Sadness following its impressive festival run that began at the prestigious 74th annual Locarno Film Festival and celebrated screenings at the Fantasia International Film Festival and Fantastic Fest, where the film took awards for Best First Feature in Montreal and for Best Horror and Best Direction in Austin. The film will be available exclusively on Shudder in the US, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand on Thursday, May 12.
Said Craig Engler, general manager of Shudder, “The Sadness is a brutal, boundary pushing shocker,...
"Shudder, AMC Network’s premium streaming service for horror, thriller and the supernatural, has acquired rights to Canadian director Rob Jabbaz’s feature debut The Sadness following its impressive festival run that began at the prestigious 74th annual Locarno Film Festival and celebrated screenings at the Fantasia International Film Festival and Fantastic Fest, where the film took awards for Best First Feature in Montreal and for Best Horror and Best Direction in Austin. The film will be available exclusively on Shudder in the US, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand on Thursday, May 12.
Said Craig Engler, general manager of Shudder, “The Sadness is a brutal, boundary pushing shocker,...
- 4/13/2022
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
Horror network Shudder has acquired the rights to The Sadness, directed by Rob Jabbaz and shot on location in Taiwan. The film is produced by David Barker and executive produced by Li-Cheng Huang, while Eunice Cheng associate produced for Machi Xcelsior Studios.
The Sadness follows a young couple, played by Regina Lei (76 Horror Bookstore) and Berant Zhu, trying to reunite amid a city ravaged by a plague that turns its victims into deranged, bloodthirsty sadists. Tzu Chiang Wang (It’s Drizzling) and In Ru Chen also star.
“It’s been such an enjoyably bizarre journey getting The Sadness made and distributed! I’m incredibly excited for everyone out there to finally see it!” said Rob Jabbaz.
The Sadness was renowned for receiving trigger warnings from genre festival programmers who had never before felt the need to use such labels. Likened to as...
The Sadness follows a young couple, played by Regina Lei (76 Horror Bookstore) and Berant Zhu, trying to reunite amid a city ravaged by a plague that turns its victims into deranged, bloodthirsty sadists. Tzu Chiang Wang (It’s Drizzling) and In Ru Chen also star.
“It’s been such an enjoyably bizarre journey getting The Sadness made and distributed! I’m incredibly excited for everyone out there to finally see it!” said Rob Jabbaz.
The Sadness was renowned for receiving trigger warnings from genre festival programmers who had never before felt the need to use such labels. Likened to as...
- 4/13/2022
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
“Gotham” star Ben McKenzie and “Instinct” actress Bojana Novakovic are attached to star in the new J-horror film “Bloat,” Variety can reveal.
Produced by Bazelevs, the production banner of Screenlife pioneer Timur Bekmambetov, “Bloat” is a co-production with Russian streaming platform Okko, French production and sales house Pulsar Content (“The Deep House”), and Japanese production company flag Co., Ltd.
Filming has already started in New York and will continue in Japan. Pic marks the first time Okko has co-financed an international production. Pulsar Content will handle international sales and is launching pre-sales at the European Film Market.
“Bloat” stars McKenzie as a military officer stationed in Turkey while his wife (Novakovic) is vacationing in Japan with their kids. During the stay, their younger son almost drowns in a lake. Soon after the accident, the parents realize that something is wrong with their boy.
McKenzie’s critically acclaimed roles include the...
Produced by Bazelevs, the production banner of Screenlife pioneer Timur Bekmambetov, “Bloat” is a co-production with Russian streaming platform Okko, French production and sales house Pulsar Content (“The Deep House”), and Japanese production company flag Co., Ltd.
Filming has already started in New York and will continue in Japan. Pic marks the first time Okko has co-financed an international production. Pulsar Content will handle international sales and is launching pre-sales at the European Film Market.
“Bloat” stars McKenzie as a military officer stationed in Turkey while his wife (Novakovic) is vacationing in Japan with their kids. During the stay, their younger son almost drowns in a lake. Soon after the accident, the parents realize that something is wrong with their boy.
McKenzie’s critically acclaimed roles include the...
- 2/11/2022
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Academic at Canadian genre festival issues call for support.
A clarion call has rung out to support genre films by Indigenous peoples in North America and beyond and back filmmakers to tell their own stories on the big screen at an artist talk at the 25th edition of Canada’s Fantasia International Film Festival.
In an eye-opening presentation entitled ‘Haunting The National Consciousness: The Rise Of Indigenous Horror’, assistant professor at the Portland State University department of Indigenous nations studies Kali Simmons, who is of Oglala Lakota descent, called for Indigenous filmmakers to be allowed to change centuries of prejudice,...
A clarion call has rung out to support genre films by Indigenous peoples in North America and beyond and back filmmakers to tell their own stories on the big screen at an artist talk at the 25th edition of Canada’s Fantasia International Film Festival.
In an eye-opening presentation entitled ‘Haunting The National Consciousness: The Rise Of Indigenous Horror’, assistant professor at the Portland State University department of Indigenous nations studies Kali Simmons, who is of Oglala Lakota descent, called for Indigenous filmmakers to be allowed to change centuries of prejudice,...
- 8/16/2021
- by Stuart Kemp
- ScreenDaily
Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival, North America’s largest genre dedicated film festival, will host a special pre-festival screening of James Gunn’s “The Suicide Squad” on Wednesday evening, before kicking off in earnest on Thursday and running Aug. 5-25.
Much of this year’s event will be held online, as travel to and from Montreal is still difficult for many would-be attendees, although organizers are also closely monitoring the health and safety guidelines laid out by public officials in Montreal and will host a limited lineup of in-person screenings at the Cinéma du Musée and Cinéma Impérial.
2021 marks the 25th edition of the Fantasia Festival. To celebrate the occasion, Fantasia’s artistic director Mitch Davis spoke with Variety about the event’s first quarter-century, how Fantasia has changed in that time, and what sets it apart from other similar events.
Exhibition
Davis has been with Fantasia since 1997, but...
Much of this year’s event will be held online, as travel to and from Montreal is still difficult for many would-be attendees, although organizers are also closely monitoring the health and safety guidelines laid out by public officials in Montreal and will host a limited lineup of in-person screenings at the Cinéma du Musée and Cinéma Impérial.
2021 marks the 25th edition of the Fantasia Festival. To celebrate the occasion, Fantasia’s artistic director Mitch Davis spoke with Variety about the event’s first quarter-century, how Fantasia has changed in that time, and what sets it apart from other similar events.
Exhibition
Davis has been with Fantasia since 1997, but...
- 8/2/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Viavision’s second deluxe Film Noir boxed finds real variety in the film style, with entries that range from low-budget efforts to a picture filmed on location in Mexico. Richard Conte solves a notorious movie studio murder in Hollywood Story, Gig Young is a cop who considers going crooked in City that Never Sleeps, Glenn Ford dodges murderous treasure hunters in Plunder of the Sun and Steve Cochran’s cop really does go rogue in Private Hell 36.
Essential Film Noir Collection 1
Blu-ray (Region-Free)
Viavision [Imprint] 18, 19, 20, 21
1947-1957 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 327 min. / Street Date October 28, 2020 / Available from Viavision [Imprint] / 149.99
Starring: Richard Conte, Julia Adams; Gig Young, Mala Powers, Marie Windsor; Glenn Ford, Diana Lynn, Patricia Medina; Ida Lupino, Steve Cochran, Howard Duff.
Directed by William Castle, John H. Auer, John Farrow, Don Siegel
Viavision’s noir series throws a wide net, with two debuts on Blu-ray and one full debut on home video.
Essential Film Noir Collection 1
Blu-ray (Region-Free)
Viavision [Imprint] 18, 19, 20, 21
1947-1957 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 327 min. / Street Date October 28, 2020 / Available from Viavision [Imprint] / 149.99
Starring: Richard Conte, Julia Adams; Gig Young, Mala Powers, Marie Windsor; Glenn Ford, Diana Lynn, Patricia Medina; Ida Lupino, Steve Cochran, Howard Duff.
Directed by William Castle, John H. Auer, John Farrow, Don Siegel
Viavision’s noir series throws a wide net, with two debuts on Blu-ray and one full debut on home video.
- 6/29/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Tagline: "Pull Your Shift Together." 12 Hour Shift is dark comedy from director Brea Grant (After Midnight). This film had its International Premiere at the Fantasia Film Festival, in Montreal recently. Shot in Jonesboro, Arkansas, this title is already getting set to show on home entertainment formats throughout North America. The film stars: David Arquette (The Tripper), Angela Bettis, former professional wrestler Mick Foley and Kit Williamson. The story takes place in 1999, over a double-shift in the hospital. Here, underground organ harvesting and selling are taking place. Now, a few release details are available for 12 Hour Shift. A few early reviews have come out this Summer. Mitch Davis talks about the story and Mandy's (Bettis) drug addiction: "for one, because she’s an addict, and the extra pay will go a long way. More importantly, she needs to go because it’s the hospital work that funds her habit.
- 9/7/2020
- by noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)
- 28 Days Later Analysis
Distributor holds all rights in US, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, China and worldwide airlines.
Sony Pictures Classics (Spc) has set an awards corridor release for French Exit and dated the Azazel Jacobs’s New York Film Festival closing night selection for February 12, 2021.
Michelle Pfeiffer and Lucas Hedges star in the drama about an imperious New York widow whose wealth has shrunk and flees to Paris with her son and their talking cat in a bid to start a new life.
Tracy Letts voices the cat, Small Frank. Jacobs directed French Exit based on the novel by Patrick deWitt.
The cast includes Danielle Macdonald,...
Sony Pictures Classics (Spc) has set an awards corridor release for French Exit and dated the Azazel Jacobs’s New York Film Festival closing night selection for February 12, 2021.
Michelle Pfeiffer and Lucas Hedges star in the drama about an imperious New York widow whose wealth has shrunk and flees to Paris with her son and their talking cat in a bid to start a new life.
Tracy Letts voices the cat, Small Frank. Jacobs directed French Exit based on the novel by Patrick deWitt.
The cast includes Danielle Macdonald,...
- 8/20/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
Clapboard Jungle: Surviving The Independent Film Business
A couple of years ago, Justin McConnell took his highly distinctive horror film, Lifechanger, to Fantasia - we spoke to star Lora Burke about it. This year he’s back with a very different film – Clapboard Jungle, which is also set to screen at Frightfest. It’s a documentary about the film industry which loosely follows his journey in making and promoting Lifechanger, with lots of good advice for people at the start of their own filmmaking careers and an astounding number of big name interviewees, from Guillermo Del Toro to George Romero, Michael Biehn, Lloyd Kaufman and Fantasia’s own Mitch Davis. Shortly before all the chaos of the festival began, he and I connected and I asked him how much the film stemmed from his journey with Lifechanger or if it was a project he had felt drawn to separately from that.
A couple of years ago, Justin McConnell took his highly distinctive horror film, Lifechanger, to Fantasia - we spoke to star Lora Burke about it. This year he’s back with a very different film – Clapboard Jungle, which is also set to screen at Frightfest. It’s a documentary about the film industry which loosely follows his journey in making and promoting Lifechanger, with lots of good advice for people at the start of their own filmmaking careers and an astounding number of big name interviewees, from Guillermo Del Toro to George Romero, Michael Biehn, Lloyd Kaufman and Fantasia’s own Mitch Davis. Shortly before all the chaos of the festival began, he and I connected and I asked him how much the film stemmed from his journey with Lifechanger or if it was a project he had felt drawn to separately from that.
- 8/20/2020
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Legendary filmmaker John Carpenter will receive the Fantasia Lifetime Achievement Award during the online edition of the festival. While predictably focusing on the new, the Fantasia Film Festival will also celebrate its 24th edition by acknowledging those who have paved the way, starting with a Lifetime Achievement Award for John Carpenter, who attended the event back in 1998. “He’s such a brilliant storyteller on every front and his works have inspired legions of filmmakers, cinematographers and composers. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that he is one of the most influential filmmakers of the last 45 years”, co-director and head programmer Mitch Davis tells Cineuropa. The late José Mojica Marins, a past recipient of the award, will be commemorated with showings of his three films, and a live talk with Dennison Ramalho, co-screenwriter of his 2008 horror Embodiment of Evil. “As the history and future of Brazil’s cinema.
What at first seems like an idyllic farmhouse and a fresh start for one family becomes a fight not only for their survival... but for their very souls in the new horror movie The Soul Collector. Written and directed by Harold Hölscher, The Soul Collector is coming to Digital and VOD in North America on June 12th, and we've been provided with the tense trailer ahead of its release.
"Produced and set in South Africa, The Soul Collector is a fresh new tale of demonic terror, with a captivating South African cast, including Tshamano Sebe (Lazarus), Keita Luna (Mary), Garth Breytenbach (William), Inge Beckman (Sarah), Chris April (Obara), and Owam Arwen Mditshwa (Vuyiswa).
In an attempt to start a new life with his young, fragmented family, bankrupt William Ziel returns to the farm he inherited from his estranged father. Lazarus, the farmhand who took care of William's father in his lonely final hours,...
"Produced and set in South Africa, The Soul Collector is a fresh new tale of demonic terror, with a captivating South African cast, including Tshamano Sebe (Lazarus), Keita Luna (Mary), Garth Breytenbach (William), Inge Beckman (Sarah), Chris April (Obara), and Owam Arwen Mditshwa (Vuyiswa).
In an attempt to start a new life with his young, fragmented family, bankrupt William Ziel returns to the farm he inherited from his estranged father. Lazarus, the farmhand who took care of William's father in his lonely final hours,...
- 4/30/2020
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
In today’s film news roundup, “Maze Runner” director Wes Ball gets a sci-fi gig, Montreal’s Fantasia festival goes virtual, Saudi fantasy drama “Scales” finds a home, and “Point Defiance” and “Waterlily Jaguar” are set for release.
Project Launch
“Maze Runner” director Wes Ball will direct an adaptation of the sci-fi adventure “The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August” for Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners.
The film centers on a man repeatedly born into the same life and remembers all his past experiences. He seeks to save the world by outmaneuvering a similarly gifted rival who’s willing to make any sacrifice to attain a godlike knowledge.
The movie is based on a novel written by Catherine Webb under the pseudonym Claire North, who won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel and was nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke Award for Best Science Fiction Novel.
Project Launch
“Maze Runner” director Wes Ball will direct an adaptation of the sci-fi adventure “The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August” for Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners.
The film centers on a man repeatedly born into the same life and remembers all his past experiences. He seeks to save the world by outmaneuvering a similarly gifted rival who’s willing to make any sacrifice to attain a godlike knowledge.
The movie is based on a novel written by Catherine Webb under the pseudonym Claire North, who won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel and was nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke Award for Best Science Fiction Novel.
- 4/30/2020
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
While the Covid-19 pandemic has forced film festivals to postpone and cancel their cinematic gatherings this year, the team behind Fantasia International Film Festival is looking to bring the magic of their festival online with a virtual version that will feature screenings geo-blocked to homes in Canada:
Press Release: Montreal, Quebec - 29 April 2020 - Given the continuing uncertainty related to physical cinema spaces and large gatherings which will likely continue through the remainder of the calendar year due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival has announced their decision to mount its highly-anticipated 2020 edition as a cutting edge virtual fest in August.
To deliver this, the acclaimed genre film event will be working with Festival Scope and Shift72 via their newly-launched online festival platform, most recently utilized for Cph:dox and Visions du réel’s celebrated virtual editions. This platform offers studio-grade DRM and will be MPAA compliant,...
Press Release: Montreal, Quebec - 29 April 2020 - Given the continuing uncertainty related to physical cinema spaces and large gatherings which will likely continue through the remainder of the calendar year due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival has announced their decision to mount its highly-anticipated 2020 edition as a cutting edge virtual fest in August.
To deliver this, the acclaimed genre film event will be working with Festival Scope and Shift72 via their newly-launched online festival platform, most recently utilized for Cph:dox and Visions du réel’s celebrated virtual editions. This platform offers studio-grade DRM and will be MPAA compliant,...
- 4/29/2020
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Geo-blocked line-up will include films from cancelled SXSW and Tribeca festivals.
Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival will stage a virtual edition of its 2020 festival from August 20-September 2.
The genre event will work with Festival Scope and Shift72 via their new online festival platform that was deployed by recent virtual editions of Cph:dox and Visions du Réel.
Fantasia’s virtual line-up will include world premieres of features including titles from the cancelled SXSW and Tribeca editions, whose original selections will be given credit.
Flagship short film showcases, juried competitions, and audience awards will remain in place. Fantasia will offer filmmaker...
Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival will stage a virtual edition of its 2020 festival from August 20-September 2.
The genre event will work with Festival Scope and Shift72 via their new online festival platform that was deployed by recent virtual editions of Cph:dox and Visions du Réel.
Fantasia’s virtual line-up will include world premieres of features including titles from the cancelled SXSW and Tribeca editions, whose original selections will be given credit.
Flagship short film showcases, juried competitions, and audience awards will remain in place. Fantasia will offer filmmaker...
- 4/29/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
Run The Race, Full Count, The Other Side Of Heaven 2: Fire Of Faith on Grace Films label.
Los Angeles-based Premiere Entertainment Group (Peg) has boarded international rights to a trio of faith-based films led by Run The Race and will shop the titles here under its Grace Films label.
Tanner Stine and Evan Hofer star in Run The Race, a drama set against the backdrop of high school sports where two brothers from a small Southern town must reconcile their opposing worldviews when one of them gets an opportunity to play American Football at the University of Florida.
Roadside...
Los Angeles-based Premiere Entertainment Group (Peg) has boarded international rights to a trio of faith-based films led by Run The Race and will shop the titles here under its Grace Films label.
Tanner Stine and Evan Hofer star in Run The Race, a drama set against the backdrop of high school sports where two brothers from a small Southern town must reconcile their opposing worldviews when one of them gets an opportunity to play American Football at the University of Florida.
Roadside...
- 11/6/2019
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
Despite such melodramatic flourishes as a near-disaster on a storm-tossed sea, a violent attack on an apostate by a group of religious zealots, and a startling (albeit not entirely convincing) death by lightning bolt, Mitch Davis’ “The Other Side of Heaven II: Fire of Faith” is as tedious as rush-hour traffic and as bland as a communion wafer. It’s conceivable that this sincere but overextended tale of a dedicated Mormon missionary on assignment in the South Pacific might appeal to many of the faithful who flocked to its 2001 predecessor, “The Other Side of Heaven,” another adaptation (also written and directed by Davis) of an autobiographical book by John H. Groberg. But even members of that target audience probably will prefer home-screen viewing to a theatrical experience, since frequent usage of the pause and fast-forward controls can work wonders when it comes to making something this sluggishly paced more bearable.
- 6/29/2019
- by Joe Leydon
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Almost two decades after The Other Side of Heaven became one of the buzz titles that would help propel the faith-based movie market, original director Mitch Davis and star Christopher Gorham are ready to take the wraps off the sequel. The pic, titled The Other Side of Heaven 2: Fire of Faith, is now set to hit theaters June 7, 2019 via Davis’ Two Roads Productions, the company behind inspirational films including 2016’s The Stray, 2015’s Christmas Eve and 2008’s Language of the Enemy.
The original The Other Side of Heaven, which co-starred Anne Hathaway, grossed $4.75 million at the box office via Excel Entertainment and found even more traction on home video via Disney, centered on the true story of Mormon Elder John H. Groberg (Gorham) and his missionary adventures in Tonga in the 1950s as a 19-year-old bachelor. The sequel also based on true events tells of his return to...
The original The Other Side of Heaven, which co-starred Anne Hathaway, grossed $4.75 million at the box office via Excel Entertainment and found even more traction on home video via Disney, centered on the true story of Mormon Elder John H. Groberg (Gorham) and his missionary adventures in Tonga in the 1950s as a 19-year-old bachelor. The sequel also based on true events tells of his return to...
- 10/22/2018
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Oh Fantasia. You would not be the festival that we love so much if you did not add a coveted screening after the last of our team have left the city. Your festival director Mitch Davis was hinting at this news last night but we had to wait until now to find out that we have all left you too soon. The festival just announced that they have added a clsoing night screening of Jonas Åkerlund's heavy metal dramedy Lords of Chaos. Fantasia is proclaiming it is likely the final theatrical screening of the unrated version of Åkerlund's shocking film. This screening will likely be sold out by the time you have read through this. Find out here! Montreal's long-running Fantasia International...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 7/27/2018
- Screen Anarchy
Just yesterday, the Fantasia Film Festival announced their massive second wave of programming, which included Brazilian writer-director Dennison Ramalho‘s Among the Living. Set to hold its World Premiere at next month’s Montreal-based festival, programmer Mitch Davis says the film is “brimming with grotesque imagination and otherworldly magick.” Proof is in these awesome first photos, which put the practical […]...
- 6/15/2018
- by Brad Miska
- bloody-disgusting.com
The Fantasia International Film Festival is all set to return to Concordia University, The Cinémathèque Québécoise, and The McCord Museum for the 22nd edition of the festival, which takes place from July 12st to August 1st 2018. Talented Montreal illustrator Donald Caron, who has crafted emblematic imagery for the event since 2011, has designed a whimsical new original poster for the festival’s 2018 edition – check it out below.
From the press release:
More than ever, Fantasia now provides a prominent showcase for Quebec cinema by presenting dozens of shorts by local creators, as well as a selection of feature films from Quebec. In addition, the festival pays tribute to a key figure in the Quebec film industry with its Denis Héroux Award, which has been granted since 2016 to a local creator to mark exceptional contributions to the development of genre and independent cinema in Quebec.
In celebrating this, it is with great...
From the press release:
More than ever, Fantasia now provides a prominent showcase for Quebec cinema by presenting dozens of shorts by local creators, as well as a selection of feature films from Quebec. In addition, the festival pays tribute to a key figure in the Quebec film industry with its Denis Héroux Award, which has been granted since 2016 to a local creator to mark exceptional contributions to the development of genre and independent cinema in Quebec.
In celebrating this, it is with great...
- 4/11/2018
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
Summer Of '84
The opening film of this year's Fantasia film festival was announced today. François Simard, Anouk Whissell, and Yoann-Karl Whissel's Summer Of '84 will enjoy its Canadian première at the Montreal event.
The film focuses on a group of teenagers who become convinced that a police officer living nearby is a serial killer and set out to gather evidence - putting them in danger. We love everything that it represents," said festival co-Director Mitch Davis, praising the film for its storytelling.
Also announced was Quebecois horror anthology Montreal Dead End. More of the line-up is expected to be revealed soon.
Fantasia will run from 12 July to 1 August....
The opening film of this year's Fantasia film festival was announced today. François Simard, Anouk Whissell, and Yoann-Karl Whissel's Summer Of '84 will enjoy its Canadian première at the Montreal event.
The film focuses on a group of teenagers who become convinced that a police officer living nearby is a serial killer and set out to gather evidence - putting them in danger. We love everything that it represents," said festival co-Director Mitch Davis, praising the film for its storytelling.
Also announced was Quebecois horror anthology Montreal Dead End. More of the line-up is expected to be revealed soon.
Fantasia will run from 12 July to 1 August....
- 4/10/2018
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The Stray Purdie Distribution Director: Mitch Davis Written by: Mitch Davis, Parker Davis Cast: Michael Cassidy, Sarah Lancaster, Connor Corum, Scott Christopher, Eliza de Azevedo Brown, Shiloh Screened at: Critics’ link, NYC, 9/28/17 Opens: October 6, 2017 America is dog country. Forty-four percent of our households have dogs: seventy-eight million canines find themselves as U.S. […]
The post The Stray Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post The Stray Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 10/3/2017
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
Guillermo del Toro will have a busy fall promoting his new movie “The Shape of Water,” but he’s squeezing in time to plug another project that’s not his own: Dario Argento’s expressionistic horror classic “Suspiria.” As a guest curator at the upcoming 50th edition of the Sitges Film Festival in Spain, Del Toro will curate a series of Italian gothic and giallo films, but he’s particularly keen on returning Argento’s work to the big screen.
“Dario especially needs this now that we have a little historical perspective to position ‘Suspiria’ as the work of pure madness and cinematic joy it is,” said del Toro. “I think it’s very important to celebrate his place in history.”
Argento’s ominous, tonally complex work follows an American ballet student (Jessica Harper) who enters a German dance school that turns out to be a haven for witchcraft. For many genre aficionados,...
“Dario especially needs this now that we have a little historical perspective to position ‘Suspiria’ as the work of pure madness and cinematic joy it is,” said del Toro. “I think it’s very important to celebrate his place in history.”
Argento’s ominous, tonally complex work follows an American ballet student (Jessica Harper) who enters a German dance school that turns out to be a haven for witchcraft. For many genre aficionados,...
- 8/25/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
When Philippe McKie was seven years old in 1996, his cinephile father took him to a screening of the Japanese anime “The End of Evangelian” at the very first edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal. “It blew my mind,” said McKie in a recent interview. “It created this love for international cinema — and this love for Japanese cinema.”
That passion continued through his teen years, as he continued watching movies at the three-week genre festival and eventually went to film school at Montreal’s Mel-Hoppenheim School of Cinema, before leaving the city to make movies in Japan. Now he’s back in an entirely new context, as a filmmaker with two short films in competition, both made abroad. “It hasn’t even fully dawned on me that I’m part of it now,” he said.
“I know the programmers by reputation but it’s my first time being a part of the fest.
That passion continued through his teen years, as he continued watching movies at the three-week genre festival and eventually went to film school at Montreal’s Mel-Hoppenheim School of Cinema, before leaving the city to make movies in Japan. Now he’s back in an entirely new context, as a filmmaker with two short films in competition, both made abroad. “It hasn’t even fully dawned on me that I’m part of it now,” he said.
“I know the programmers by reputation but it’s my first time being a part of the fest.
- 7/16/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
"One dog can change everything." Purdie Distribution has revealed a trailer for a new dog movie called The Stray, about a stray dog named Pluto who changes the lives of one family. The full cast of mostly unknowns includes Sarah Lancaster, Michael Cassidy, Scott Christopher, Connor Corum, Jacque Gray, Cory Dangerfield and Coral Chambers. I'm a big, big time dog lover, and I'm always on the lookout for films about dogs, but this doesn't look that good. Oddly, the dog barely shows up in the trailer that much. It's all about the people. This looks about as cheesy and mediocre as A Dog's Purpose, the other dog movie this year. At least the doggie looks cute, with his charming different colored eyes. That's about all I can say. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Mitch Davis' The Stray, direct from YouTube: The Stray tells the true story of how a stray dog,...
- 6/16/2017
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Our weekly Film Festival Roundup column explores notable stories and news updates from the circuit. For a rundown of the latest festival announcements, go here.
Just a few months after premiering his 100th movie at Cannes, Japanese filmmaker Takashi Miike has already completed his 101st. The prolific director unveiled his outlandish samurai epic “Blade of the Immortal” in May, and will follow that up with “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable – Chapter 1,” set to make its North American premiere at the 21st edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival on its opening night, July 13.
No other filmmaker on the planet cranks out movies with Miike’s regularity, and he shows no sign of slowing down. How does he do it?
See More‘Blade of the Immortal’ Review: Takashi Miike’s Landmark Feature Is One of His Most Lethal Genre Offerings Ever — Cannes
Miike is best known in the West for his extreme genre efforts,...
Just a few months after premiering his 100th movie at Cannes, Japanese filmmaker Takashi Miike has already completed his 101st. The prolific director unveiled his outlandish samurai epic “Blade of the Immortal” in May, and will follow that up with “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable – Chapter 1,” set to make its North American premiere at the 21st edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival on its opening night, July 13.
No other filmmaker on the planet cranks out movies with Miike’s regularity, and he shows no sign of slowing down. How does he do it?
See More‘Blade of the Immortal’ Review: Takashi Miike’s Landmark Feature Is One of His Most Lethal Genre Offerings Ever — Cannes
Miike is best known in the West for his extreme genre efforts,...
- 6/15/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
A former Fox News Radio correspondent filed a lawsuit on Thursday, claiming she was fired after using the hotline set up for employees to report cases of sexual harassment. Jessica Golloher claims she was fired 24 hours after utilizing the “hotline” that was set up on the heels of on-going sexual harassment allegations that have resulted in founding CEO Roger Ailes, co-president Bill Shine and star Bill O’Reilly’s exit from the network. Golloher filed the suit in New York State Supreme Court and names 21st Century Fox, Fox News, Fox News Radio Network vice president Mitch Davis and Director of News.
- 5/4/2017
- by Brian Flood
- The Wrap
(Editor’s Note: IndieWire has partnered with Directv this month for A Celebration of Cinema — focusing on the latest indie and genre titles available on Directv.)
Genre is a close-knit community. The independent filmmakers behind the bloody and wonderfully weird genre films rely on a small, dedicated fan base who respond to good filmmaking that pushes boundaries. Yet so much of this work exists outside of the mainstream, prompting us to ask the question: How do genre fans keep up with the latest films and filmmakers? IndieWire checked in with genre fans and hunted around the internet to find the answers.
Film Festivals
In this sense, genre films are like other independent films, premiering at a handful of festivals with trusted curation can be the perfect platform to launch a movie. And while a number of films that draw from both the arthouse and genre tradition — for example “The Witch,...
Genre is a close-knit community. The independent filmmakers behind the bloody and wonderfully weird genre films rely on a small, dedicated fan base who respond to good filmmaking that pushes boundaries. Yet so much of this work exists outside of the mainstream, prompting us to ask the question: How do genre fans keep up with the latest films and filmmakers? IndieWire checked in with genre fans and hunted around the internet to find the answers.
Film Festivals
In this sense, genre films are like other independent films, premiering at a handful of festivals with trusted curation can be the perfect platform to launch a movie. And while a number of films that draw from both the arthouse and genre tradition — for example “The Witch,...
- 11/15/2016
- by Indiewire Staff
- Indiewire
Director Yedidya Gorsetman and co-writer Mark Leidner wanted to be the next Duplass Brothers.
Inspired by the micro-budget mumblecore films they’d seen coming out of SXSW, they made “Jammed,” a $17,000 feature about a couple trying, and failing, to relive their youth by going to a jam band festival.
After screening the film at smaller film festivals, Gorsetman came to an important realization: he wanted to continue pursuing his career as a filmmaker, but that making micro budget indies wouldn’t be a path to career sustainability.
Read More: Why Indie Horror Films Are Doing Better Than Ever
“I want to make films that were accessible to a larger audience, in part because it would allow me to make more movies” said Gorsetman.
Gorsetman and Leidner quickly started on their horror script “Room Service.” Based on lessons from working with limited resources on “Jammed,” they wrote a film with a...
Inspired by the micro-budget mumblecore films they’d seen coming out of SXSW, they made “Jammed,” a $17,000 feature about a couple trying, and failing, to relive their youth by going to a jam band festival.
After screening the film at smaller film festivals, Gorsetman came to an important realization: he wanted to continue pursuing his career as a filmmaker, but that making micro budget indies wouldn’t be a path to career sustainability.
Read More: Why Indie Horror Films Are Doing Better Than Ever
“I want to make films that were accessible to a larger audience, in part because it would allow me to make more movies” said Gorsetman.
Gorsetman and Leidner quickly started on their horror script “Room Service.” Based on lessons from working with limited resources on “Jammed,” they wrote a film with a...
- 8/29/2016
- by Chris O'Falt
- Indiewire
Yeon Sang-ho’s apocalypse thriller won the Cheval Noir Award for Best Feature and the Audience Award for Best Asian Feature as the festival came to an end in Montreal.
RedPeter Film’s Train To Busan is on a roll after it hit 10million admissions in its native South Korea on August 7. The film premiered in the Midnight Screenings section in Cannes and has sparked remake offers. Well Go USA Entertainment released it in the Us in July.
Organisers at the 20th Fantasia International Film Festival said the event, which boasted 19 world premieres, 209 screening and 11 Vr films, attracted more than 100,000 spectators.
Guillermo Del Toro (pictured with Fantasia co-director Mitch Davis and fantasia co-director of international programming Anthony Timpone) and Takashi Miike received the Cheval Noir and Lifetime Achievement Awards.
Jean-Claude Lord received the inaugural Prix Denis Héroux honouring his contribution to developing the Québécois genre.
Other Cheval Noir award-winners included best director Kiyoshi Kurosawa for Creepy, E J-Yong...
RedPeter Film’s Train To Busan is on a roll after it hit 10million admissions in its native South Korea on August 7. The film premiered in the Midnight Screenings section in Cannes and has sparked remake offers. Well Go USA Entertainment released it in the Us in July.
Organisers at the 20th Fantasia International Film Festival said the event, which boasted 19 world premieres, 209 screening and 11 Vr films, attracted more than 100,000 spectators.
Guillermo Del Toro (pictured with Fantasia co-director Mitch Davis and fantasia co-director of international programming Anthony Timpone) and Takashi Miike received the Cheval Noir and Lifetime Achievement Awards.
Jean-Claude Lord received the inaugural Prix Denis Héroux honouring his contribution to developing the Québécois genre.
Other Cheval Noir award-winners included best director Kiyoshi Kurosawa for Creepy, E J-Yong...
- 8/8/2016
- by govi2016@lawnet.ucla.edu (Alec Govi)
- ScreenDaily
Montreal’s genre festival also unveils first wave of titles for its upcoming 20th Anniversary edition.Scroll down for first wave of titles
Guillermo del Toro and Takashi Miike are set to attend the 20th anniversary edition of Fantasia International Film Festival (July 14-Aug 2) in Montreal.
In his first-ever appearance at the festival, del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy) will be presented with the Cheval Noir award.
He will also deliver a masterclass and host the Canadian premiere of documentary Creature Designers: The Frankenstein Complex, in which he is featured.
Meanwhile, prolific director Miike will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award for the mark he has left on the festival over its 20 years. Nearly 30 of his films have been showcased at Fantasia and he has opened the festival three times.
Miike will also host the North American premiere of his latest film Terraformars, about a team of misfits who must fight humanoid cockroaches to colonise Mars, and As The...
Guillermo del Toro and Takashi Miike are set to attend the 20th anniversary edition of Fantasia International Film Festival (July 14-Aug 2) in Montreal.
In his first-ever appearance at the festival, del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy) will be presented with the Cheval Noir award.
He will also deliver a masterclass and host the Canadian premiere of documentary Creature Designers: The Frankenstein Complex, in which he is featured.
Meanwhile, prolific director Miike will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award for the mark he has left on the festival over its 20 years. Nearly 30 of his films have been showcased at Fantasia and he has opened the festival three times.
Miike will also host the North American premiere of his latest film Terraformars, about a team of misfits who must fight humanoid cockroaches to colonise Mars, and As The...
- 5/26/2016
- by ian.sandwell@screendaily.com (Ian Sandwell)
- ScreenDaily
The first trailer has been released for a new film called Christmas Eve that comes from director Mitch Davis (The Other Side of Heaven) and stars Patrick Stewart (X-Men), Jon Heder (Blades of Glory), Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Max Casella (Inside Llewyn Davis), and Gary Cole (Office Space).
I actually really like the concept of this film that centers on six people in New York who end up getting stuck inside elevators on Christmas eve. It looks like a fun holiday feel-good movie. Here’s the synopsis:
When a power outage traps six different groups of New Yorkers inside elevators on Christmas Eve, they find that laughter, romance, and a little holiday magic will get them through – and change their lives in unexpected ways. A heartless real estate tycoon (Patrick Stewart) clings to life in a precarious construction elevator hundreds of feet off the ground. Unexpected relationships bloom for...
I actually really like the concept of this film that centers on six people in New York who end up getting stuck inside elevators on Christmas eve. It looks like a fun holiday feel-good movie. Here’s the synopsis:
When a power outage traps six different groups of New Yorkers inside elevators on Christmas Eve, they find that laughter, romance, and a little holiday magic will get them through – and change their lives in unexpected ways. A heartless real estate tycoon (Patrick Stewart) clings to life in a precarious construction elevator hundreds of feet off the ground. Unexpected relationships bloom for...
- 11/7/2015
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.