With the rallying cry of its hashtagged title, Tom Gilroy’s #WaynesvilleStrong is a darkly comic and scarily plausible vision of a very near future in which low-wage work, enforced patriotism and the panoptic powers of the internet combine to create a pandemic hellscape that one laid-off meatpacking worker must delicately navigate, one videocall prompt at a time. The short was made quickly, in May and during quarantine, with everyone appropriately socially distanced, and to its great credit that what was political satire just two months ago is now turning into, with the current battles over “reopening,” political reality. The short […]...
- 7/21/2020
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
With the rallying cry of its hashtagged title, Tom Gilroy’s #WaynesvilleStrong is a darkly comic and scarily plausible vision of a very near future in which low-wage work, enforced patriotism and the panoptic powers of the internet combine to create a pandemic hellscape that one laid-off meatpacking worker must delicately navigate, one videocall prompt at a time. The short was made quickly, in May and during quarantine, with everyone appropriately socially distanced, and to its great credit that what was political satire just two months ago is now turning into, with the current battles over “reopening,” political reality. The short […]...
- 7/21/2020
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Premiering today here at Filmmaker is #WaynesvilleStrong, a short film by Tom Gilroy starring Nick Sandow (Orange is the New Black) that, with dystopic wit, speaks directly to today’s arguments around workplace reopening during the pandemic. Set in a distressingly-possible near future, Sandow is a quarantined worker who has fallen afoul of the government’s official “reopen, rejoice and rebuild” policy. Stuck in a videochat hellhole of automated prompts, Sandow’s worker becomes increasingly agitated as the contours of a new, neoliberal form of pandemic-fueled social control becomes apparent. Gilroy describes the film as “a kind of […]...
- 7/21/2020
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Premiering today here at Filmmaker is #WaynesvilleStrong, a short film by Tom Gilroy starring Nick Sandow (Orange is the New Black) that, with dystopic wit, speaks directly to today’s arguments around workplace reopening during the pandemic. Set in a distressingly-possible near future, Sandow is a quarantined worker who has fallen afoul of the government’s official “reopen, rejoice and rebuild” policy. Stuck in a videochat hellhole of automated prompts, Sandow’s worker becomes increasingly agitated as the contours of a new, neoliberal form of pandemic-fueled social control becomes apparent. Gilroy describes the film as “a kind of […]...
- 7/21/2020
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Any list of the most breakthrough independent films of the 21st century is bound to include some, if not all, of the following titles: “Boyhood,” “The Babadook,” “Frances Ha,” “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” and “Blue Is the Warmest Color.” The connection between these releases is IFC Films, the indie distributor now celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2020. IFC Films has become one of the definitive indie film studios over its first two decades by supporting visions from the world’s most beloved auteurs, including Richard Linklater, Jennifer Kent, Noah Baumbach, Olivier Assayas, Steve McQueen, the Safdie brothers, Lars von Trier, Ken Loach, the Dardenne brothers, Andrea Arnold, and Alfonso Cuarón.
IFC Films started its historic run with the December 2000 release of “Spring Forward,” the Tom Gilroy drama starring Ned Beatty and Liev Schreiber as two parks department workers in New England who forge a friendship over a year working together.
IFC Films started its historic run with the December 2000 release of “Spring Forward,” the Tom Gilroy drama starring Ned Beatty and Liev Schreiber as two parks department workers in New England who forge a friendship over a year working together.
- 4/7/2020
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Over 100 well-known names – including writers, actors, directors and musicians – have signed a pledge supporting Lorde's decision not to perform in Israel.
The statement was published in The Guardian following backlash over the Kiwi singer’s cancellation of her concert in Tel Aviv. It is a direct response to a full page ad published in the Washington Post on January 1 which called Lorde a bigot and also attacked her homeland of New Zealand.
“We deplore the bullying tactics being used to defend injustice against Palestinians and to suppress an artist’s freedom of conscience. We support Lorde’s right to take a stand,” reads the letter in The Guardian. "Shmuley Boteach, the author and promoter of the advert, supports Israel’s illegal settlements and wrote last month on Breitbart to thank Donald Trump for “electrifying the world” with his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in defiance of international law.
The statement was published in The Guardian following backlash over the Kiwi singer’s cancellation of her concert in Tel Aviv. It is a direct response to a full page ad published in the Washington Post on January 1 which called Lorde a bigot and also attacked her homeland of New Zealand.
“We deplore the bullying tactics being used to defend injustice against Palestinians and to suppress an artist’s freedom of conscience. We support Lorde’s right to take a stand,” reads the letter in The Guardian. "Shmuley Boteach, the author and promoter of the advert, supports Israel’s illegal settlements and wrote last month on Breitbart to thank Donald Trump for “electrifying the world” with his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in defiance of international law.
- 1/8/2018
- Look to the Stars
The San Francisco Film Society and Djerassi Resident Artists Program have awarded Tom Gilroy the 2015 Djerassi Residency Award / San Francisco Film Society Screenwriting Fellowship, for continuing development of his script "Our Lady of the Snow." The Fellowship provides uninterrupted time for work and reflection, like a writer's retreat, in the Santa Cruz Mountains overlooking the Pacific Ocean. From September 8 through October 7, everything will be provided for the recipient. Gilroy is the award-winning writer/director of three films, including Berlinale premiere "The Cold Lands," which received the Film Society's 2014 Sffs/Kenneth Rainin grant for screenwriting. He teaches film at Columbia, has been a mentor and fellow at the Sundance Labs, writes political columns for the Huffington Post and is a poet of haikus. Synopsis for "Our Lady of the Snow": When the Bishop decides to sell a gothic convent isolated in the snowy woods, the elderly nuns...
- 7/28/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
The Austin Film Society's "Films Of Roger Corman" series (Jette's preview) continues this weekend at the Marchesa with 1961's The Pit And The Pendulum starring Vincent Price. Tonight's screening is a Free Member Friday event for any members of Afs (with General Admission tickets also available). It will also screen again on Sunday afternoon. Tom Gilroy's The Cold Lands is scheduled for a "Best of the Fests" booking on Tuesday at the Marchesa and Thursday's Essential Cinema selection features Barbara Stanwyck (Elizabeth's preview) in William Wellman's Lady Of Burlesque. This extrememly rare 35mm print is on loan from the Library Of Congress, making it a night you won't want to miss!
Austin Film Society is also presenting the Texas premiere of Sin City: A Dame To Die For in 3D on Wednesday evening at the Paramount. Co-directors Robert Rodriguez and (just announced!) Frank Miller will be in attendance for an introduction,...
- 8/15/2014
- by Matt Shiverdecker
- Slackerwood
Some may call filmmaker Tom Gilroy old fashioned. His sensibilities tend to reference a style of storytelling that’s very much connected to the past. Take his new feature film, The Cold Lands: the film tells the story of teenager Atticus (newcomer Silas Yelich) whose single mom (the always marvelous Lili Taylor) dies suddenly. Silas takes to the woods like Henry David Thoreau to escape civilization only to meet up with a kindred spirit, the drifter Carter (Peter Scanavino). It’s through this unlikely friendship that both men regain a certain trust in civilization.>>> - Adam Schartoff...
- 8/2/2014
- Fandor: Keyframe
Some may call filmmaker Tom Gilroy old fashioned. His sensibilities tend to reference a style of storytelling that’s very much connected to the past. Take his new feature film, The Cold Lands: the film tells the story of teenager Atticus (newcomer Silas Yelich) whose single mom (the always marvelous Lili Taylor) dies suddenly. Silas takes to the woods like Henry David Thoreau to escape civilization only to meet up with a kindred spirit, the drifter Carter (Peter Scanavino). It’s through this unlikely friendship that both men regain a certain trust in civilization.>>> - Adam Schartoff...
- 8/2/2014
- Keyframe
Michael Stipe has spoken about releasing his first new music since Rem split in 2011.
The singer-songwriter has recorded new material for his friend Tom Gilroy's film The Cold Lands.
Stipe worked on a soundscape rather than traditional songs for the movie's soundtrack, alongside musician Andy LeMaster.
"He's a tremendous producer, he's a tremendous person," Stipe told Salon.
"I know I work well with other people - to have someone to bounce something off of works for me, and I don't actually write music. I wrote melodies and I tend to write along to other people's music. That's what I've done most of my career as a musician."
He continued: "I went to Andy knowing that if I painted myself into a corner, he'd pull me out - and also that he'd be more than a neutral engineer/collaborator to work with. We work really well together.
"This is, in fact,...
The singer-songwriter has recorded new material for his friend Tom Gilroy's film The Cold Lands.
Stipe worked on a soundscape rather than traditional songs for the movie's soundtrack, alongside musician Andy LeMaster.
"He's a tremendous producer, he's a tremendous person," Stipe told Salon.
"I know I work well with other people - to have someone to bounce something off of works for me, and I don't actually write music. I wrote melodies and I tend to write along to other people's music. That's what I've done most of my career as a musician."
He continued: "I went to Andy knowing that if I painted myself into a corner, he'd pull me out - and also that he'd be more than a neutral engineer/collaborator to work with. We work really well together.
"This is, in fact,...
- 6/4/2014
- Digital Spy
Cinereach, the not-for-profit film support and production company, is offering moviegoers who see at least two of the four Cinereach-supported pictures in theaters this month special, one-of-a-kind artist gifts. The films — all of which are very good, by the way — are Matt Wolf’s Teenage, Tom Gilroy’s The Cold Lands, Eliza Hittman’s It Felt Like Love and Daniel Carbone’s Hide Your Smiling Faces. (The first two are at the IFC Center in New York now; It Felt Like Love opens next week and Hide Your Smiling Faces on the 28th). Here is info from Cinereach: Why? Indie releases unite! […]...
- 3/15/2014
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Cinereach, the not-for-profit film support and production company, is offering moviegoers who see at least two of the four Cinereach-supported pictures in theaters this month special, one-of-a-kind artist gifts. The films — all of which are very good, by the way — are Matt Wolf’s Teenage, Tom Gilroy’s The Cold Lands, Eliza Hittman’s It Felt Like Love and Daniel Carbone’s Hide Your Smiling Faces. (The first two are at the IFC Center in New York now; It Felt Like Love opens next week and Hide Your Smiling Faces on the 28th). Here is info from Cinereach: Why? Indie releases unite! […]...
- 3/15/2014
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In The Cold Lands, Tom Gilroy’s intelligent and evocative new film, a resourceful teen is left to contend with a set of existential questions after he leaves home and tries to tough it out in the woods. Atticus (Silas Yelich) and his mother Nicole (Lili Taylor) live an ascetic lifestyle—though he’s interested in hip-hop and video games, Nicole’s doing her best to keep pop culture and materialistic influences at bay. Together, they roam around Upstate New York in a Subaru station wagon, looking for salvageable items left by the roadside and taking long walks during which they explore the rich […]...
- 3/14/2014
- by Kevin Canfield
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In The Cold Lands, Tom Gilroy’s intelligent and evocative new film, a resourceful teen is left to contend with a set of existential questions after he leaves home and tries to tough it out in the woods. Atticus (Silas Yelich) and his mother Nicole (Lili Taylor) live an ascetic lifestyle—though he’s interested in hip-hop and video games, Nicole’s doing her best to keep pop culture and materialistic influences at bay. Together, they roam around Upstate New York in a Subaru station wagon, looking for salvageable items left by the roadside and taking long walks during which they explore the rich […]...
- 3/14/2014
- by Kevin Canfield
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Eleven-year-old Atticus (Silas Yelich) knows everything a boy his age should: Jobs suck, zombie-massacring video games are cool, and he's way too old to let his mom check him for ticks.
Still, he adores her: Nicole (Lili Taylor) may or may not be a survivalist, but she's so full of grit, resolve, and self-reliance that Boy and Girl Scouts should pray to her in their time of need. But Nicole's independent spirit might not be the best legacy to leave her son.
In the thoughtful and touching coming-of-age tale The Cold Lands, writer-director Tom Gilroy examines self-reliance as a philosophy and way of life. When his single mother suddenly dies, Atticus decides to subsist in the vast woods behind their house rather than leave his fate to the grown-ups his mother so d...
Still, he adores her: Nicole (Lili Taylor) may or may not be a survivalist, but she's so full of grit, resolve, and self-reliance that Boy and Girl Scouts should pray to her in their time of need. But Nicole's independent spirit might not be the best legacy to leave her son.
In the thoughtful and touching coming-of-age tale The Cold Lands, writer-director Tom Gilroy examines self-reliance as a philosophy and way of life. When his single mother suddenly dies, Atticus decides to subsist in the vast woods behind their house rather than leave his fate to the grown-ups his mother so d...
- 3/12/2014
- Village Voice
We've added the trailer as well as the poster for Cinereach's "The Cold Lands," starring Lili Taylor, Peter Scanavino and introducing Silas Yelich. Tom Gilroy wrote and directed the film which opens in limited theaters on March 14th, 2014. "Once Upon a Time. Now." When his fiercely self-reliant mother dies unexpectedly, eleven year-old Atticus is wary of the authorities and flees deep into the forests surrounding his Catskills home. Wandering the woods in shock, relying on what meager food and shelter he comes across, Atticus' grasp on reality begins to fray. His sheltered, off-the-grid childhood dissolves into a directionless life on the move, avoiding other people while trying to differentiate between reality and fantasy.
- 2/26/2014
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Death weighs heavily on those left behind, and children in particular can be sent reeling, trying to make sense of the impact and loss it can impress upon them. And in "The Cold Lands" we see how one young boy struggles to cope when a surprising new friend comes along to try and set him back on track. From writer/director Tom Gilroy, and starring Lili Taylor and Silas Yelich, the drama tells the tale of eleven year old Atticus who flees deep into the forests surrounding his Catskills home after his mother unexpectedly passes away. Trying to survive on whatever food and shelter he can find, Atticus soon crosses paths with Carter, a scruffy, pot smoking drifter, and they forge a bond and alliance. In this exclusive clip, we watch as Atticus and his mother looks in on a dream house and at a life that seems out of...
- 2/19/2014
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Short Term 12 and Big Easy Express took home top prizes at the 4th American Film Festival in Wroclaw.
The American Film Festival (Aff) in Wrocław, Poland has awarded the audience award for Best Narrative Feature ($10,000) to Destin Daniel Cretton’s Short Term 12.
The audience award for the Best Documentary Feature ($5,000) went to Emmett Malloy for Big Easy Express.
The festival, focused entirely on independent American cinema, closed with the Polish premiere of Steven Soderbergh’s Behind the Candelabra on Oct 27.
A total of 80 films were screened at the Nowe Horyzonty cinema in Wrocław, of which 52 films received their Polish premiere such as Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, As I Lay Dying by James Franco and Don Jon by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. There were three European premieres and one world premiere, Blue Highway by Kyle Smith.
The number of admissions exceeded 17,000 for the second consecutive year.
The Aff also featured a retrospective of Shirley Clarke, a mini-retrospective...
The American Film Festival (Aff) in Wrocław, Poland has awarded the audience award for Best Narrative Feature ($10,000) to Destin Daniel Cretton’s Short Term 12.
The audience award for the Best Documentary Feature ($5,000) went to Emmett Malloy for Big Easy Express.
The festival, focused entirely on independent American cinema, closed with the Polish premiere of Steven Soderbergh’s Behind the Candelabra on Oct 27.
A total of 80 films were screened at the Nowe Horyzonty cinema in Wrocław, of which 52 films received their Polish premiere such as Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, As I Lay Dying by James Franco and Don Jon by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. There were three European premieres and one world premiere, Blue Highway by Kyle Smith.
The number of admissions exceeded 17,000 for the second consecutive year.
The Aff also featured a retrospective of Shirley Clarke, a mini-retrospective...
- 10/31/2013
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Opening with Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive the latest edition of the American Film Festival in Wroclaw, Poland (22-27 October 2013) has screened some of the most important American independent films of the year. Being the only festival of its class in Eastern and Central Europe the festival has become the most important venue to connect American filmmakers with European buyers and audiences through programs like U.S. in Progress Wrocław (23-25 October 2013).
This year's program taking place at the New Horizons cinema presented 80 movies out of which 42 are Polish premieres, 3 are European premieres and 1 is a World Premiere. Among them 10 documentaries and 17 feature films competed for cash prizes in the audience-vote competitions.
The first competitive section - Spectrum ($10,000 audience award for the Best Narrative Feature) included films that have been well-received here in the U.S such as A Teacher by Hannah Fidell, Blue Caprice by Alexandre Moors, Afternoon Delight by Jill Soloway, Short Term 12 by Destin Cretton, The Spectacular Now by James Ponsoldt, and Bluebird by Lance Edmands. The second competition - American Docs ($5,000 audience award for Best Documentary Feature) had a selection of films depicting varied current issues in American society including Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia by Nicholas Wrathall, The Armstrong Lie by Alex Gibney, Our Nixon by Penny Lane, Northern Light by Nick Bentgen, Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton by Eric Slade and Stephen Silha and Before You Know It by Pj Raval.
The American Film Festival also ran a retrospective of Shirley Clarke and presented Polish premieres of high-profile films such as As I Lay Dying by James Franco, Quentin Dupieux’s Wrong Cops, Jeffrey Friedman and Rob Epstein’s Lovelace, Much Ado About Nothing by Joss Whedon, Touchy Feely by Lynn Shelton, At Any Price by Ramin Bahrani, and Maladies by Carter. The festival also screened Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Sundance hit Don Jon along several U.S. in Progress participants and festival hits like I Used to be Darker by Matt Porterfier and Hide Your Smiling Faces by Daniel Patrick Carbone. Lastly, a special section titled 'Masterpieces of American Cinema 90 Years of Warner Bros." showed 14 digitally-remastered productions by the studio from The Jazz Singer by Alan Crosland (1927) through A Clockwork Orange ,The Exorcist and Christopher Nolan’s Inception
The festival will close on October 27th with Steven Soderbergh's Emmy Award-winning film Behind the Candelabra.
All competitions titles:
Spectrum
American Milkshake by David Andalman, Mariko Munro, USA 2012, 82'
Blue Highway by Kyle Smith, USA 2013, 70'
Coldwater by Vincent Grashaw, USA 2013, 104'
The Spectacular Now by James Ponsoldt, USA 2013, 95'
Drinking Buddies by Joe Swanberg, USA 2013, 90'
Lily by Matt Creed, USA 2013, 85'
A Teacher by Hannah Fidell, USA 2013, 75'
Blue Caprice by Alexandre Moors, USA 2013, 93'
Pearblossom Hwy by Mike Ott, USA 2012, 78'
Afternoon Delight by Jill Soloway, USA 2013, 105'
Stand Clear of the Closing Doors by Sam Fleischner, USA 2013, 102'
Short Term 12 by Destin Cretton, USA 2013, 96'
The Cold Lands by Tom Gilroy, USA 2013, 100'
In a World... by Lake Bell, USA 2013, 93'
A Song Still Inside by Gregory Collins, USA 2013, 82'
Bluebird by Lance Edmands, USA 2013, 90'
American Docs
Big Easy Express by Emmett Malloy, USA 2012
Off Label by Michael Palmieri, Donal Mosher, USA 2012
Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia by Nicholas Wrathall, USA, Italy 2013
Fall and Winter by Matt Anderson, USA 2013
The Armstrong Lie by Alex Gibney, USA 2013
Lenny Cooke by Ben Safdie, Joshua Safdie, USA 2012
Our Nixon by Penny Lane, USA 2013
Northern Light by Nick Bentgen, USA 2013
Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton by Eric Slade, Stephen Silha, USA 2013
Before You Know It by Pj Raval, USA 2012
U.S. Progress Projects
This year 6 projects in the final production stages were chosen to take part in the two-day workshop knows as U.S. in Progress Wroclaw (23-25 October, 2013). The event presents the American independent projects to European buyers, post-production houses and festivals in order to help them achieve completion and to foster the circulation and distribution of these films in Europe.
Selected from over 40 submission the chosen projects are the dramas Lake Los Angeles by Mike Ott (produced by Athina Rachel Tsangari), Happy Baby by Stephen Elliott (produced by Jessica Caldwell ) and Some Beasts by Cameron Nelson (produced by Ashley Maynor and Courtney Ware), crime story Wild Canaries by Lawrence Michael Levine (produced by Sophia Takal, Kim Sherman and McCabe Walsh), frontier black comedy Sun Belt Express by Evan Wolf Buxbaum (producers: Noah Lang and Iyabo Boyd) and Summer of Blood – a New York vampire comedy by director-producer Onur Tukel.
The prizes are awarded by a jury of professionals and include post-production services from European partner companies worth almost $60.000 and promotional services from other partners. Us in Progress’ partners are: Platige Image (Warsaw), Di Factory (Warsaw), Alvernia Studios (Krakow), composer Maciej Zielinski of Soundflower Studio (Warsaw), Soundplace (Warsaw), DCinex (Belgium), Vsi (Paris), Europa Distribution, Cicae and Cannes Marche du Film’s Producers Network.
U.S. in Progress Wrocław (formerly Gotham in Progress) was started in 2011 by the New Horizons Association and Black Rabbit Film. Previous films presented at the event included, among others: I Used To Be Darker by Matt Porterfield, American Milkshake by David Andalman (both shown at Sundance Ff in 2013), Hide Your Smiling Faces by Daniel Carbone (Berlinale Generation, Tribeca), Bluebird by Lance Edmands (Tribeca, Karlovy Vary), Jason Cortlund & Julia Halperin’s Now, Forager: a Film About Love and Fungi (Rotterdam, New Directors/New Films, Gotham Awards nominee), Amy Seimetz’s Sun Don’t Shine (SXSW, Edinburgh Iff, Gotham Awards nominee) and Devyn Waitt’s Not Waving But Drowning (Sarasota Ff).
U.S. in Progress Wrocław is supported by the City of Wrocław, American Embassy in Warsaw and Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
For more information on the American Film Festival and the U.S. in Progress projects visit Here...
This year's program taking place at the New Horizons cinema presented 80 movies out of which 42 are Polish premieres, 3 are European premieres and 1 is a World Premiere. Among them 10 documentaries and 17 feature films competed for cash prizes in the audience-vote competitions.
The first competitive section - Spectrum ($10,000 audience award for the Best Narrative Feature) included films that have been well-received here in the U.S such as A Teacher by Hannah Fidell, Blue Caprice by Alexandre Moors, Afternoon Delight by Jill Soloway, Short Term 12 by Destin Cretton, The Spectacular Now by James Ponsoldt, and Bluebird by Lance Edmands. The second competition - American Docs ($5,000 audience award for Best Documentary Feature) had a selection of films depicting varied current issues in American society including Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia by Nicholas Wrathall, The Armstrong Lie by Alex Gibney, Our Nixon by Penny Lane, Northern Light by Nick Bentgen, Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton by Eric Slade and Stephen Silha and Before You Know It by Pj Raval.
The American Film Festival also ran a retrospective of Shirley Clarke and presented Polish premieres of high-profile films such as As I Lay Dying by James Franco, Quentin Dupieux’s Wrong Cops, Jeffrey Friedman and Rob Epstein’s Lovelace, Much Ado About Nothing by Joss Whedon, Touchy Feely by Lynn Shelton, At Any Price by Ramin Bahrani, and Maladies by Carter. The festival also screened Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Sundance hit Don Jon along several U.S. in Progress participants and festival hits like I Used to be Darker by Matt Porterfier and Hide Your Smiling Faces by Daniel Patrick Carbone. Lastly, a special section titled 'Masterpieces of American Cinema 90 Years of Warner Bros." showed 14 digitally-remastered productions by the studio from The Jazz Singer by Alan Crosland (1927) through A Clockwork Orange ,The Exorcist and Christopher Nolan’s Inception
The festival will close on October 27th with Steven Soderbergh's Emmy Award-winning film Behind the Candelabra.
All competitions titles:
Spectrum
American Milkshake by David Andalman, Mariko Munro, USA 2012, 82'
Blue Highway by Kyle Smith, USA 2013, 70'
Coldwater by Vincent Grashaw, USA 2013, 104'
The Spectacular Now by James Ponsoldt, USA 2013, 95'
Drinking Buddies by Joe Swanberg, USA 2013, 90'
Lily by Matt Creed, USA 2013, 85'
A Teacher by Hannah Fidell, USA 2013, 75'
Blue Caprice by Alexandre Moors, USA 2013, 93'
Pearblossom Hwy by Mike Ott, USA 2012, 78'
Afternoon Delight by Jill Soloway, USA 2013, 105'
Stand Clear of the Closing Doors by Sam Fleischner, USA 2013, 102'
Short Term 12 by Destin Cretton, USA 2013, 96'
The Cold Lands by Tom Gilroy, USA 2013, 100'
In a World... by Lake Bell, USA 2013, 93'
A Song Still Inside by Gregory Collins, USA 2013, 82'
Bluebird by Lance Edmands, USA 2013, 90'
American Docs
Big Easy Express by Emmett Malloy, USA 2012
Off Label by Michael Palmieri, Donal Mosher, USA 2012
Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia by Nicholas Wrathall, USA, Italy 2013
Fall and Winter by Matt Anderson, USA 2013
The Armstrong Lie by Alex Gibney, USA 2013
Lenny Cooke by Ben Safdie, Joshua Safdie, USA 2012
Our Nixon by Penny Lane, USA 2013
Northern Light by Nick Bentgen, USA 2013
Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton by Eric Slade, Stephen Silha, USA 2013
Before You Know It by Pj Raval, USA 2012
U.S. Progress Projects
This year 6 projects in the final production stages were chosen to take part in the two-day workshop knows as U.S. in Progress Wroclaw (23-25 October, 2013). The event presents the American independent projects to European buyers, post-production houses and festivals in order to help them achieve completion and to foster the circulation and distribution of these films in Europe.
Selected from over 40 submission the chosen projects are the dramas Lake Los Angeles by Mike Ott (produced by Athina Rachel Tsangari), Happy Baby by Stephen Elliott (produced by Jessica Caldwell ) and Some Beasts by Cameron Nelson (produced by Ashley Maynor and Courtney Ware), crime story Wild Canaries by Lawrence Michael Levine (produced by Sophia Takal, Kim Sherman and McCabe Walsh), frontier black comedy Sun Belt Express by Evan Wolf Buxbaum (producers: Noah Lang and Iyabo Boyd) and Summer of Blood – a New York vampire comedy by director-producer Onur Tukel.
The prizes are awarded by a jury of professionals and include post-production services from European partner companies worth almost $60.000 and promotional services from other partners. Us in Progress’ partners are: Platige Image (Warsaw), Di Factory (Warsaw), Alvernia Studios (Krakow), composer Maciej Zielinski of Soundflower Studio (Warsaw), Soundplace (Warsaw), DCinex (Belgium), Vsi (Paris), Europa Distribution, Cicae and Cannes Marche du Film’s Producers Network.
U.S. in Progress Wrocław (formerly Gotham in Progress) was started in 2011 by the New Horizons Association and Black Rabbit Film. Previous films presented at the event included, among others: I Used To Be Darker by Matt Porterfield, American Milkshake by David Andalman (both shown at Sundance Ff in 2013), Hide Your Smiling Faces by Daniel Carbone (Berlinale Generation, Tribeca), Bluebird by Lance Edmands (Tribeca, Karlovy Vary), Jason Cortlund & Julia Halperin’s Now, Forager: a Film About Love and Fungi (Rotterdam, New Directors/New Films, Gotham Awards nominee), Amy Seimetz’s Sun Don’t Shine (SXSW, Edinburgh Iff, Gotham Awards nominee) and Devyn Waitt’s Not Waving But Drowning (Sarasota Ff).
U.S. in Progress Wrocław is supported by the City of Wrocław, American Embassy in Warsaw and Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
For more information on the American Film Festival and the U.S. in Progress projects visit Here...
- 10/26/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
The Oregon based film festival, BendFilm (October 10-13) has announced the full slate of films competing in the tenth annual festival. The films totaling 16 narratives, 17 documentaries and 49 shorts, are competing for the Brooks Resources Corporation five thousand dollar prize for best in show and Best Narrative Feature juried awarded with a $60,000 camera rental prize from Panavision. Below find the full lineup, with synopses courtesy of BendFilm. The Narrative Features are:"Bouy"-In writer/director Steven Doughton, a mother answers the phone to hear a voice from her distant past—their conversation tests the strength of a deep yet betrayed love."Calloused Hands"-Written and directed by Jesse Quinones, in which a neglected and abused 12-year-old manages to forge his own path in life when his grandfather insists he study for his Bar Mitzvah.(Pacific Northwest Premiere""The Cold Lands"-Tom Gilroy’s tale of young Atticus who flees into...
- 9/3/2013
- by James Hiler
- Indiewire
In 2000, IFC Films released Spring Forward, the first feature directed by actor Tom Gilroy. Starring Ned Beatty and Liev Schreiber, it’s a quiet, unassuming film full of carefully observed interpersonal intricacies, focusing on the growth of the two men’s relationship over the course of a year while they work for the Parks Department in a small Connecticut town. One of the smartest, subtlest indie films of its era, Spring Forward won awards and an impressive array of rave reviews. Nevertheless, it took Gilroy nearly a decade to get going on his second feature, The Cold Lands, which is only …...
- 6/18/2013
- by Jim Allen
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
The Sarasota Film Festival, which runs from April 5 - April 14, will open with Gabriela Cowperthwaite's "Blackfish," a documentary about the history of killer whales in captivity. The 15th annual festival will close with Noah Baumbach's "Frances Ha," starring Greta Gerwig. Sundance Special Jury Prize winner "The Spectacular Now," starring Shailene Woodley, will screen as the festival's Narrative Centerpiece Film and Barbara Kopple's documentary "Running From Crazy" will screen as the Documentary Centerpiece Film. Two-time Academy Award winner Kopple will also be honored at the festival with the Director's Award. Other highlights include the world premiere of Will Slocombe's "Pasadena," starring Peter Bogdanovich and Cheryl Hines, Carlos Puga's "Burma," Justin Schwarz' road movie "The Discoverers," and the North American premiere of Tom Gilroy's "The Cold Lands." The Sff's Visions Competition lineup will be announced March 13, along with the rest of the program. Below are the.
- 3/4/2013
- by Erin Whitney
- Indiewire
Cinereach is an innovative new force for good works in the independent film community. This not-for-profit film production company and foundation that champions vital stories, artfully told, was created and led by young philanthropists, entrepreneurs and filmmakers, Cinereach supports fiction and nonfiction filmmakers from all over the world through its Productions, Grants & Awards and Fellowships initiatives, and through partnerships with Sundance Institute’s programs. Cinereach has supported over 100 films in the Us and internationally, including Circumstance, Pariah, The World Before Her, Planet of Snail, Girl Model, Code of the West and many more. Cinereach Production Beasts of the Southern Wild was released in the Us in 2012 by Fox Searchlight Pictures, and is nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
After collaborating with Cinereach for many years on films including Benh Zeitlin’s four time Academy Award nominated film, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Joshua Marston’s The Forgiveness of Blood, and Tom Gilroy’s The Cold Lands (premiering at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival), Paul Mezey has signed on as Producer in Residence at the not-for-profit production company and foundation. Mezey will support development, production and distribution of Cinereach’s productions, as well as being involved in the organization’s grant-making activities and other key initiatives.
Mezey is the founder of Journeyman Pictures, through which he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and award winning films including Maria Full of Grace (2005 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role) and Half Nelson (2007 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role).
Cinereach offers each of its productions a custom support framework adapted to its unique needs. This flexible continuum of financing, guidance and infrastructure encourages filmmakers like Beasts of the Southern Wild’s Benh Zeitlin to take essential creative risks. Mezey has been a key architect of this producing approach and, as Producer in Residence, will guide the organization as it continues to evolve.
“Paul has influenced so much of how we approach our work at Cinereach already,” said Cinereach’s founder and Executive Director Philipp Engelhorn. “We look forward to a more holistic collaboration with Paul, and further benefiting from his tremendous experience and courageous independent spirit.”
“Working with Cinereach has been a transformative experience,“ states Mezey. “There is pure dedication to creating the conditions under which filmmakers can flourish and fulfill the full ambition of their work. As a creative producer, I know that our interests are aligned at every step and I am excited to continue to help build a model that can bring surprising and unexpected films to the screen.”...
After collaborating with Cinereach for many years on films including Benh Zeitlin’s four time Academy Award nominated film, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Joshua Marston’s The Forgiveness of Blood, and Tom Gilroy’s The Cold Lands (premiering at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival), Paul Mezey has signed on as Producer in Residence at the not-for-profit production company and foundation. Mezey will support development, production and distribution of Cinereach’s productions, as well as being involved in the organization’s grant-making activities and other key initiatives.
Mezey is the founder of Journeyman Pictures, through which he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and award winning films including Maria Full of Grace (2005 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role) and Half Nelson (2007 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role).
Cinereach offers each of its productions a custom support framework adapted to its unique needs. This flexible continuum of financing, guidance and infrastructure encourages filmmakers like Beasts of the Southern Wild’s Benh Zeitlin to take essential creative risks. Mezey has been a key architect of this producing approach and, as Producer in Residence, will guide the organization as it continues to evolve.
“Paul has influenced so much of how we approach our work at Cinereach already,” said Cinereach’s founder and Executive Director Philipp Engelhorn. “We look forward to a more holistic collaboration with Paul, and further benefiting from his tremendous experience and courageous independent spirit.”
“Working with Cinereach has been a transformative experience,“ states Mezey. “There is pure dedication to creating the conditions under which filmmakers can flourish and fulfill the full ambition of their work. As a creative producer, I know that our interests are aligned at every step and I am excited to continue to help build a model that can bring surprising and unexpected films to the screen.”...
- 1/25/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
After collaborating with Cinereach for many years on films including Benh Zeitlin’s four time Academy Award-nominated film, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Joshua Marston’s The Forgiveness of Blood, and Tom Gilroy’s The Cold Lands (premiering at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival), Paul Mezey has signed on as Producer in Residence at the not-for-profit production company and foundation. Mezey will support development, production and distribution of Cinereach’s films, as well as being involved in the organization’s grant-making activities and other key initiatives. Mezey is the founder of Journeyman Pictures, through which he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and award-winning …...
- 1/17/2013
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Michael Stipe has invited renaissance-actor James Franco and English filmmaker Sam Taylor-Wood to join him on a list of guest directors who will create a series of short films to accompany each track on upcoming R.E.M. album Collapse Into Now. The record can be found now streaming at NPR; it will be released officially on March 8.
Stipe, who like most recording artists is trying to revive the album as a viable format, conceived of the Collapse Into Now Film Project as a way to help resuscitate the neglected art of the long player. "It was really fun for me to curate, working with all these different artists, and seeing how they interpreted the songs," Stipe told NME. "The thing that was surprising is how much they interlockingly work, like an album."
The videos for the projects will be released through various web and network outlets of the course of the next several weeks.
Stipe, who like most recording artists is trying to revive the album as a viable format, conceived of the Collapse Into Now Film Project as a way to help resuscitate the neglected art of the long player. "It was really fun for me to curate, working with all these different artists, and seeing how they interpreted the songs," Stipe told NME. "The thing that was surprising is how much they interlockingly work, like an album."
The videos for the projects will be released through various web and network outlets of the course of the next several weeks.
- 3/4/2011
- by Theo Spielberg
- Huffington Post
Indie distributors Regent Releasing and Film Movement have snagged two film fest faves.
Regent has acquired worldwide rights to Russell Brown's sophomore feature "The Blue Tooth Virgin." Austin Peck, Bryce Johnson, Tom Gilroy and Karen Black star in the story of a rift between a screenwriter and his close magazine editor friend. "Virgin," which won the special jury award at this year's Seattle International Film Fest, will hit theaters in early 2009.
Film Movement nabbed North American rights to Fernando Eimbcke's Mexican dramedy "Lake Tahoe." The Spanish-language tale of a teen and the strange inhabitants of his small town picked up the Fipresci Award and the Alfred Bauer Prize at this January's Berlin International Film Festival. It will be released in U.S. theaters next year.
Regent's Mark Reinhart negotiated the "Virgin" deal with Eastgate Pictures' Ronna Wallace. Film Movement's Adley Gartenstein negotiated the "Tahoe" deal with Funny Balloons' Peter Dunner.
Regent has acquired worldwide rights to Russell Brown's sophomore feature "The Blue Tooth Virgin." Austin Peck, Bryce Johnson, Tom Gilroy and Karen Black star in the story of a rift between a screenwriter and his close magazine editor friend. "Virgin," which won the special jury award at this year's Seattle International Film Fest, will hit theaters in early 2009.
Film Movement nabbed North American rights to Fernando Eimbcke's Mexican dramedy "Lake Tahoe." The Spanish-language tale of a teen and the strange inhabitants of his small town picked up the Fipresci Award and the Alfred Bauer Prize at this January's Berlin International Film Festival. It will be released in U.S. theaters next year.
Regent's Mark Reinhart negotiated the "Virgin" deal with Eastgate Pictures' Ronna Wallace. Film Movement's Adley Gartenstein negotiated the "Tahoe" deal with Funny Balloons' Peter Dunner.
- 10/29/2008
- by By Leslie Simmons and Gregg Goldstein
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In a lovely but definitely not lonely place -- Nantucket Island -- a hack screenwriter gets lucky and finds another guy's work to rip off with murky "neo-noir" consequences in John S. Johnson's overwrought independent feature.
The atmosphere of repressed violence and kinky sex is thick in Johnson's slow-moving scenario, which takes off when one-hit wonderboy Elliott Callahan (Tom Gilroy) ducks out of Hollywood to make one last stand with the help of his agent. The parallels to Tarantino are obvious -- Elliott's only big hit is a violent action film bearing resemblance to a prior Hong Kong movie -- but "Ratchet" takes a promising premise and devolves into a preposterous thriller.
A drinker and always available, Elliott has to deliver a new script or go to court. He's a loner and not talented -- and easily distracted once he's settled near the beach. Not to worry. There are two femme fatales, an old Hollywood chum who's now a jealous maniac, a greasy tough guy with a script and a perverted police chief to bounce ideas off.
Art is worked into the proceedings with the character of Julia (Murit Koppel), whose painting about her sister's rape and murder catches the eye of attentive Elliott when she shows him her lair. Alas, she's somehow involved with scary Carver (Matthew Dixon), an intense but crude local who recognizes Elliott and immediately throws him a copy of his own opus.
All about bondage and voyeurism and told from a murderer's point of view, Elliott loves Carver's script so much that he types it into his computer and phones L.A. with the good news. He's got something, and there's still time to get involved with the flirtatious real estate lady (Margaret Welsh) who drives by occasionally.
Carver discovers the theft, and Elliott shoots him. He then seems to get away with it when the body disappears. Credibility and coherence disappear soon after as the uncharismatic lead cruises through an obstacle course of sin-city encounters in a bucolic setting.
Johnson's direction is routine, and the performances range from lazy to catastrophic. Starting with the script, "Ratchet" is an unsatisfying potboiler.
RATCHET
Phaedra Cinema
Ratchet Prods.
in association with Altar Rocks Films
Writer-director John S. Johnson
Producers George Belshaw, John S. Johnson
Executive producer Hank Blumenthal
Director of photography Joaquin Baca-Asay
Production designer Debbie Devilla
Costume designer Jana Rosenblatt
Music Paul Schwartz
Editors James Lyons, Keith Remaer
Casting Susan Shopmaker
Color/stereo
Cast:
Elliott Callahan Tom Gilroy
Catherine Ripley Margaret Welsh
Tim Greenleaf Mitchell Lichtenstein
Julia Webb Murit Koppel
Henry Carver Matthew Dixon
Chief Groves John A. Mackay
Running time -- 114 minutes
No MPAA rating...
The atmosphere of repressed violence and kinky sex is thick in Johnson's slow-moving scenario, which takes off when one-hit wonderboy Elliott Callahan (Tom Gilroy) ducks out of Hollywood to make one last stand with the help of his agent. The parallels to Tarantino are obvious -- Elliott's only big hit is a violent action film bearing resemblance to a prior Hong Kong movie -- but "Ratchet" takes a promising premise and devolves into a preposterous thriller.
A drinker and always available, Elliott has to deliver a new script or go to court. He's a loner and not talented -- and easily distracted once he's settled near the beach. Not to worry. There are two femme fatales, an old Hollywood chum who's now a jealous maniac, a greasy tough guy with a script and a perverted police chief to bounce ideas off.
Art is worked into the proceedings with the character of Julia (Murit Koppel), whose painting about her sister's rape and murder catches the eye of attentive Elliott when she shows him her lair. Alas, she's somehow involved with scary Carver (Matthew Dixon), an intense but crude local who recognizes Elliott and immediately throws him a copy of his own opus.
All about bondage and voyeurism and told from a murderer's point of view, Elliott loves Carver's script so much that he types it into his computer and phones L.A. with the good news. He's got something, and there's still time to get involved with the flirtatious real estate lady (Margaret Welsh) who drives by occasionally.
Carver discovers the theft, and Elliott shoots him. He then seems to get away with it when the body disappears. Credibility and coherence disappear soon after as the uncharismatic lead cruises through an obstacle course of sin-city encounters in a bucolic setting.
Johnson's direction is routine, and the performances range from lazy to catastrophic. Starting with the script, "Ratchet" is an unsatisfying potboiler.
RATCHET
Phaedra Cinema
Ratchet Prods.
in association with Altar Rocks Films
Writer-director John S. Johnson
Producers George Belshaw, John S. Johnson
Executive producer Hank Blumenthal
Director of photography Joaquin Baca-Asay
Production designer Debbie Devilla
Costume designer Jana Rosenblatt
Music Paul Schwartz
Editors James Lyons, Keith Remaer
Casting Susan Shopmaker
Color/stereo
Cast:
Elliott Callahan Tom Gilroy
Catherine Ripley Margaret Welsh
Tim Greenleaf Mitchell Lichtenstein
Julia Webb Murit Koppel
Henry Carver Matthew Dixon
Chief Groves John A. Mackay
Running time -- 114 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 9/29/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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