In the opening moments of 20 Days in Mariupol, Mstyslav Chernov’s chilling account of the siege of the Ukrainian port city, a Russian tank marked with the ominous ‘Z’ swivels its turret toward a hospital. On an upper floor of the building, Chernov and his small team record as the cannon slowly rotates towards them, preparing to fire.
“The tank did shoot the hospital right above the floor we were at,” he says. “It hit between the fifth and sixth floors and a patient was killed with that shell.”
It was one of many times he put his life at risk to show the Russian army’s destruction of the city and its systematic targeting of civilians. He remembers feeling his life was about to end.
“Exactly in that moment in the film, this moment of uncertainty, the moment when tanks are shooting at the residential areas, when the hospital...
“The tank did shoot the hospital right above the floor we were at,” he says. “It hit between the fifth and sixth floors and a patient was killed with that shell.”
It was one of many times he put his life at risk to show the Russian army’s destruction of the city and its systematic targeting of civilians. He remembers feeling his life was about to end.
“Exactly in that moment in the film, this moment of uncertainty, the moment when tanks are shooting at the residential areas, when the hospital...
- 2/21/2024
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Genesius Pictures (Good Luck To You Leo Grande, The Radleys) and Messy Hands Productions has debuted the trailer for the documentary ‘Disorder.’
The doc, previously announced by the production company as ‘The Rower’, has evolved as a raw portrayal of the impact of war on veterans as they put down their weapons, step away from danger and are thrust back into society with Ptsd.
We witness Ryan, Amber and Stuart trying to cope as civilians outside a war zone, having suffered trauma on many levels whilst protecting our freedom.
Blewett’s film is a raw portrayal of their daily existence: the challenges they face as they attempt to “normalise” their mental health. They try, but are sometimes unable, to reintegrate into society as an individual and as a collective, often living as hermits, behind closed doors. Featuring moving contributions from war journalist and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Sebastian Junger and writer, photojournalist and filmmaker,...
The doc, previously announced by the production company as ‘The Rower’, has evolved as a raw portrayal of the impact of war on veterans as they put down their weapons, step away from danger and are thrust back into society with Ptsd.
We witness Ryan, Amber and Stuart trying to cope as civilians outside a war zone, having suffered trauma on many levels whilst protecting our freedom.
Blewett’s film is a raw portrayal of their daily existence: the challenges they face as they attempt to “normalise” their mental health. They try, but are sometimes unable, to reintegrate into society as an individual and as a collective, often living as hermits, behind closed doors. Featuring moving contributions from war journalist and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Sebastian Junger and writer, photojournalist and filmmaker,...
- 11/23/2023
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Veterans Documentary ‘Disorder’ Acquired by Freestyle Digital Media for November Release (Exclusive)
Freestyle Digital Media, the digital film distribution division of Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group, has acquired North American VOD rights to documentary feature film “Disorder.”
Written and directed by filmmaker Kate Blewett, the documentary illustrates the impact of war on veterans, following three former service members as they try to cope as civilians with Ptsd. The pic features contributions from war journalist and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Sebastian Junger and writer, photojournalist, and filmmaker Lalage Snow.
“‘Disorder’ is a story not just for war veterans and those who have experienced war, but for the millions of people across the world who have all gone through a shared trauma of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said filmmaker Kate Blewett in a statement. “‘Disorder’ tells the big story of mental health and the isolation of mankind today.”
The film is produced by Debbie Gray of Genesius Pictures and Harvey Morgan of Messy Hands Productions. Freestyle...
Written and directed by filmmaker Kate Blewett, the documentary illustrates the impact of war on veterans, following three former service members as they try to cope as civilians with Ptsd. The pic features contributions from war journalist and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Sebastian Junger and writer, photojournalist, and filmmaker Lalage Snow.
“‘Disorder’ is a story not just for war veterans and those who have experienced war, but for the millions of people across the world who have all gone through a shared trauma of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said filmmaker Kate Blewett in a statement. “‘Disorder’ tells the big story of mental health and the isolation of mankind today.”
The film is produced by Debbie Gray of Genesius Pictures and Harvey Morgan of Messy Hands Productions. Freestyle...
- 11/7/2023
- by Sharareh Drury
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Anonymous Content has hired longtime literary agent and former UTA partner Bec Smith as a partner and manager in their Los Angeles-based lit team. We revealed Smith’s impending exit from UTA last month.
The respected veteran has amassed a client roster including directors and writers such as Coline Abert, Levan Akin, Jane Anderson, Benedict Andrews, Emily Atef, Anthony Chen, Eva Husson, Ellen Kuras, Katrin Gebbe, Sebastian Junger, Julia Leigh, Phillip Noyce, Joshua Oppenheimer, Jennifer Peedom, Maria Schrader, Tali Shalom-Ezer, Dawn Shadforth, Kirsten Sheridan, Goran Stolevski, Warwick Thornton and Max Werner.
Related Story Shocker! Anonymous Content CEO Dawn Olmstead & COO Heather McCauley Resign; Protesting Settlement To Former Top Producer Keith Redmon? Related Story UTA Partner & Top Talent Agent Brian Swardstrom Leaving Agency For New Ventures; Will Produce With 'Nomadland's Peter Spears To Start Related Story UTA Signs Cecillia Aldarondo, Filmmaker Behind SXSW-Premiering Documentary 'You Were My First Boyfriend...
The respected veteran has amassed a client roster including directors and writers such as Coline Abert, Levan Akin, Jane Anderson, Benedict Andrews, Emily Atef, Anthony Chen, Eva Husson, Ellen Kuras, Katrin Gebbe, Sebastian Junger, Julia Leigh, Phillip Noyce, Joshua Oppenheimer, Jennifer Peedom, Maria Schrader, Tali Shalom-Ezer, Dawn Shadforth, Kirsten Sheridan, Goran Stolevski, Warwick Thornton and Max Werner.
Related Story Shocker! Anonymous Content CEO Dawn Olmstead & COO Heather McCauley Resign; Protesting Settlement To Former Top Producer Keith Redmon? Related Story UTA Partner & Top Talent Agent Brian Swardstrom Leaving Agency For New Ventures; Will Produce With 'Nomadland's Peter Spears To Start Related Story UTA Signs Cecillia Aldarondo, Filmmaker Behind SXSW-Premiering Documentary 'You Were My First Boyfriend...
- 3/22/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Director Meg Smaker’s feature-length debut, the intense documentary “The UnRedacted” (formerly known as “Jihad Rehab”), chronicles the plight of Guantanamo detainees undergoing a longterm program of de-radicalization in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking with “The Perfect Storm” author Sebastian Junger at a lively Awards Season Screening Series Q&a at New York City’s Village East Cinema on Sept. 6, Smaker explained that her desire to tell these detainees’ stories came after she experienced a shift in the attitudes of her fellow firefighters after 9/11.
“Before 9/11, my firehouse was a place of love and support and family, and the day after, it became a place of hatred and rage and bigotry,” says Smaker. “And nothing that I saw in mainstream media answered any of the questions generated from the day. The only way I could think about that was to go to Afghanistan on my own.”
Also Read:
‘Last Film Show’ Director Pan Nalin...
Speaking with “The Perfect Storm” author Sebastian Junger at a lively Awards Season Screening Series Q&a at New York City’s Village East Cinema on Sept. 6, Smaker explained that her desire to tell these detainees’ stories came after she experienced a shift in the attitudes of her fellow firefighters after 9/11.
“Before 9/11, my firehouse was a place of love and support and family, and the day after, it became a place of hatred and rage and bigotry,” says Smaker. “And nothing that I saw in mainstream media answered any of the questions generated from the day. The only way I could think about that was to go to Afghanistan on my own.”
Also Read:
‘Last Film Show’ Director Pan Nalin...
- 12/8/2022
- by Jason Clark
- The Wrap
Whatever you think of “The UnRedacted,” a documentary (formerly called “Jihad Rehab”) that got blacklisted after its Sundance premiere and has now been championed by publications from The New York Times to The Atlantic, you have to agree that its director, Meg Smaker, is a fighter.
And now she wants an Oscar nomination.
The film, a deep examination of five men who were jailed and tortured in Guantanamo after fighting for al-Qaeda and other extremist groups and then sent to Saudi Arabia for rehabilitation, prompted a head-spinning reaction at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
Smaker had spent years winning permission from Saudi Arabia to make the film, and more years winning the trust of the men in the film, four Yemenis and a Saudi. The documentary broke new ground in examining the reasons these men were drawn to jihad, and received strong reviews. “This is a movie for intelligent...
And now she wants an Oscar nomination.
The film, a deep examination of five men who were jailed and tortured in Guantanamo after fighting for al-Qaeda and other extremist groups and then sent to Saudi Arabia for rehabilitation, prompted a head-spinning reaction at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
Smaker had spent years winning permission from Saudi Arabia to make the film, and more years winning the trust of the men in the film, four Yemenis and a Saudi. The documentary broke new ground in examining the reasons these men were drawn to jihad, and received strong reviews. “This is a movie for intelligent...
- 11/23/2022
- by Sharon Waxman
- The Wrap
The Perfect Storm star Diane Lane paid tribute today to its director Wolfgang Petersen, who died Friday at 81.
Wolfgang Petersen: A Career In Photos
“My heart is sad today,” she said in a statement to Deadline. “Wolfgang was a big, loving soul. A natural leader via positive encouragement; dare I say, he was a spiritual channel for us, grounding truly big stories to move us all through heights and depths. Literally, just being near him made me a better actor. My sincere condolences and love to his family.”
The Oscar-nominated actress was the female lead in The Perfect Storm, which starred George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and John C. Reilly as commercial fisherman from small-town Massachusetts who get caught in a freak North Atlantic weather event that never had happened in recorded history. The film detailed the men’s battle for survival as multiple storms collided and the desperate attempt to...
Wolfgang Petersen: A Career In Photos
“My heart is sad today,” she said in a statement to Deadline. “Wolfgang was a big, loving soul. A natural leader via positive encouragement; dare I say, he was a spiritual channel for us, grounding truly big stories to move us all through heights and depths. Literally, just being near him made me a better actor. My sincere condolences and love to his family.”
The Oscar-nominated actress was the female lead in The Perfect Storm, which starred George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and John C. Reilly as commercial fisherman from small-town Massachusetts who get caught in a freak North Atlantic weather event that never had happened in recorded history. The film detailed the men’s battle for survival as multiple storms collided and the desperate attempt to...
- 8/16/2022
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Wolfgang Petersen, whose German-language film “Das Boot” launched a successful Hollywood filmmaking career that included star-studded films like “Air Force One” and “The Perfect Storm,” has died, a representative told TheWrap. He was 81.
Petersen died Friday with his wife Maria Antoinette by his side after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
Also Read:
Academy CEO Hints at Oscars Ceremony Having Producers for ‘Multiple Years’
Petersen’s film “Das Boot” or “The Boat” (1981) launched his career in Hollywood after the close-quarters WWII submarine drama received six Academy Award nominations. The film starred Jürgen Prochnow as the German U-boat Captain, and was made into an English-language miniseries by the BBC.
His first Hollywood venture was the live-action fantasy “The NeverEnding Story” (1984), which he co-wrote. The now-cult classic follows a young boy named Bastian (Barret Oliver) who stumbles upon a fantastical world accused via a magical book. The world merges with his own when...
Petersen died Friday with his wife Maria Antoinette by his side after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
Also Read:
Academy CEO Hints at Oscars Ceremony Having Producers for ‘Multiple Years’
Petersen’s film “Das Boot” or “The Boat” (1981) launched his career in Hollywood after the close-quarters WWII submarine drama received six Academy Award nominations. The film starred Jürgen Prochnow as the German U-boat Captain, and was made into an English-language miniseries by the BBC.
His first Hollywood venture was the live-action fantasy “The NeverEnding Story” (1984), which he co-wrote. The now-cult classic follows a young boy named Bastian (Barret Oliver) who stumbles upon a fantastical world accused via a magical book. The world merges with his own when...
- 8/16/2022
- by Dessi Gomez
- The Wrap
Exclusive: Grandview has hired former Gotham Group and Anonymous Content manager Tara Timinsky.
Timinsky joins from Gotham. Among the writer and journalist clients coming with her are author, producer and trans advocate Geena Rocero, Brian Broome, who was most recently named a finalist for the Kirkus Nonfiction Prize for his memoir Punch Me Up To The Gods, The Atlantic’s Kaitlyn Tiffany, Guggenheim fellow Rhonda K. Garelick, and authors Etaf Rum and Lori Nelson Spielman.
Timinsky began her career at Anonymous, where she started in the mailroom and landed her first assistant job working in Business & Legal Affairs. Following the arrival of Howie Sanders and Kassie Evashevski, she transitioned to help found Anonymous’s Media Rights Department, where she was promoted to manager and brokered deals for clients including Cecelia Ahern, Sebastian Junger, Francisco Cantú, Ben Rhodes and The New York Times.
Timinsky said: “I’m immensely excited to join Grandview,...
Timinsky joins from Gotham. Among the writer and journalist clients coming with her are author, producer and trans advocate Geena Rocero, Brian Broome, who was most recently named a finalist for the Kirkus Nonfiction Prize for his memoir Punch Me Up To The Gods, The Atlantic’s Kaitlyn Tiffany, Guggenheim fellow Rhonda K. Garelick, and authors Etaf Rum and Lori Nelson Spielman.
Timinsky began her career at Anonymous, where she started in the mailroom and landed her first assistant job working in Business & Legal Affairs. Following the arrival of Howie Sanders and Kassie Evashevski, she transitioned to help found Anonymous’s Media Rights Department, where she was promoted to manager and brokered deals for clients including Cecelia Ahern, Sebastian Junger, Francisco Cantú, Ben Rhodes and The New York Times.
Timinsky said: “I’m immensely excited to join Grandview,...
- 10/26/2021
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
The author of The Perfect Storm and War discusses the lure of walking the railroads, the safety of small groups, the work of Cormac McCarthy – and literary endeavour in the time of Trump
“I almost died last summer,” Sebastian Junger says, sitting on a bench in Tompkins Square Park on the kind of May day in New York that makes you glad to be simply alive.
Related: Sebastian Junger: 'I got out of war when Tim Hetherington died'...
“I almost died last summer,” Sebastian Junger says, sitting on a bench in Tompkins Square Park on the kind of May day in New York that makes you glad to be simply alive.
Related: Sebastian Junger: 'I got out of war when Tim Hetherington died'...
- 5/23/2021
- by Martin Pengelly
- The Guardian - Film News
National Geographic will premiere Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested’s new feature documentary Blood on the Wall on Sept. 30.
The project is a deep dive into the migrant crisis in Mexico, looking at the caravans coming through the country to the U.S. border, and how it has been exacerbated by drug trafficking and political corruption.
“The issues Mexico faces right now are layered and complex and ultimately intertwined with how the U.S. has approached foreign policy and immigration since the Reagan era,” Junger said in a statement. “The history and the future of the country and its inhabitants is so bound up in the larger forces at work in the region, it’s vital to look at them holistically. We’re reaching a juncture in this election year when understanding the socio-political landscape of our neighbors is incredibly important for people before going into a voting booth.”
The...
The project is a deep dive into the migrant crisis in Mexico, looking at the caravans coming through the country to the U.S. border, and how it has been exacerbated by drug trafficking and political corruption.
“The issues Mexico faces right now are layered and complex and ultimately intertwined with how the U.S. has approached foreign policy and immigration since the Reagan era,” Junger said in a statement. “The history and the future of the country and its inhabitants is so bound up in the larger forces at work in the region, it’s vital to look at them holistically. We’re reaching a juncture in this election year when understanding the socio-political landscape of our neighbors is incredibly important for people before going into a voting booth.”
The...
- 8/3/2020
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
Directors Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested have traveled to the darkest corners of the world, from Afghanistan to Syria and beyond. Together, they earned a News and Documentary Emmy Award and an Oscar nomination for their films, including the harrowing “Restrepo” and “Korengal.” In their new National Geographic documentary “Blood on the Wall,” the journalists-turned-filmmakers pivot to Central America to explore the corruption dictating and impeding the swell of migration into Mexico, diving into such issues as how Acapulco went from tourism hotspot to murder capital of the world. Check out the first trailer for “Blood on the Wall,” exclusive to IndieWire, below. Look for the film on National Geographic on September 30.
Here’s the official synopsis:
“Blood on the Wall” explores the internal and external influences on Mexico as it deals with the key issues of migrant caravans from Central America heading to the U.S., the dangerous but...
Here’s the official synopsis:
“Blood on the Wall” explores the internal and external influences on Mexico as it deals with the key issues of migrant caravans from Central America heading to the U.S., the dangerous but...
- 8/3/2020
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Anonymous Content’s Charlie Scully and Tara Timinsky have joined The Gotham Group as Managers, Deadline has learned first hand.
Scully will be a Manger in the Gotham Group’s literary division while Timinsky will be a Manager in the books/packaging division.
A University of Texas grad whose first job in the biz was interning for award-winning filmmaker Terrence Malick, Timinsky began her career as a trainee at Anonymous Content and subsequently worked in Business and Legal Affairs before moving over to help open up the company’s Media Rights Department, where she was promoted to Manager, working with a range of critically acclaimed and bestselling authors including Cecelia Ahern, Francisco Cantú, Ishmael Beah, Sebastian Junger and Nathaniel Rich, as well as publications including The New York Times. Coming over to Gotham with her is internationally bestselling author Lori Nelson Spielman.
Scully recently was at Anonymous Content for...
Scully will be a Manger in the Gotham Group’s literary division while Timinsky will be a Manager in the books/packaging division.
A University of Texas grad whose first job in the biz was interning for award-winning filmmaker Terrence Malick, Timinsky began her career as a trainee at Anonymous Content and subsequently worked in Business and Legal Affairs before moving over to help open up the company’s Media Rights Department, where she was promoted to Manager, working with a range of critically acclaimed and bestselling authors including Cecelia Ahern, Francisco Cantú, Ishmael Beah, Sebastian Junger and Nathaniel Rich, as well as publications including The New York Times. Coming over to Gotham with her is internationally bestselling author Lori Nelson Spielman.
Scully recently was at Anonymous Content for...
- 6/18/2020
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
The American Film Institute has revealed its full slate of films being presented online for the AFI Docs 2020 Film Festival, which will take place digitally this year. The lineup features 59 films from 11 countries and 12 virtual world premieres, with 61 percent of the films directed by women, 25 percent by Poc directors, and 14 percent by LGBTQ directors. The festival runs June 17–21, with films available to view on Docs.AFI.com. See the full lineup below.
“Now more than ever, it is important to expand our perspectives and listen to voices that may differ from our own, and this year’s festival includes a diverse range of insights and experiences for audiences to share in,” said Michael Lumpkin, AFI Festivals director. “These films explore political and social issues in the U.S. and across the globe, introducing us to the next generation of leaders and shedding new light on figures of the past.”
The...
“Now more than ever, it is important to expand our perspectives and listen to voices that may differ from our own, and this year’s festival includes a diverse range of insights and experiences for audiences to share in,” said Michael Lumpkin, AFI Festivals director. “These films explore political and social issues in the U.S. and across the globe, introducing us to the next generation of leaders and shedding new light on figures of the past.”
The...
- 6/8/2020
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
18th edition runs June 17-21.
A 59-strong line-up at AFI Docs announced on Monday (June 8) includes Deirdre Fishel’s exploration of race, gender and violence in the Minneapolis police department in Women In Blue, and a look at immigration policies under the Trump administration in Blood On The Wall by Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested.
The 18th edition of the festival takes place online this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, and is set to run from June 17-21.
As previously announced, AFI Docs will open with Sundance hit and Apple and A24 acquisition Boys State by Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine,...
A 59-strong line-up at AFI Docs announced on Monday (June 8) includes Deirdre Fishel’s exploration of race, gender and violence in the Minneapolis police department in Women In Blue, and a look at immigration policies under the Trump administration in Blood On The Wall by Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested.
The 18th edition of the festival takes place online this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, and is set to run from June 17-21.
As previously announced, AFI Docs will open with Sundance hit and Apple and A24 acquisition Boys State by Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine,...
- 6/8/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
A major new 9/11 documentary series, a reboot of Explorer and a travelogue from American Idol’s Bobby Bones lead Nat Geo’s latest slate as the factual giant forges ahead with its 2020/21 schedule.
The Disney-owned broadcaster revealed a number of new titles, a slew of feature doc additions and the renewal of Gordon Ramsay: Unchartered.
It has also set a tentative fall plan for its Genius: Aretha, the Cynthia Erivo-fronted drama that was delayed due to the Covid-19 production shutdown.
9/11 comes from Undefeated and La 92 filmmakers Dan Lindsay and T.J Martin, who have teamed up with British production company 72 Films on the six-part series. The series, which is planned to mark 20 years since the terrorist attacks, has already been in production for overs two years, featuring never-seen-before archival footage and new eyewitness witnesses of the event.
Nat Geo is working closely with its new sister companies ABC News...
The Disney-owned broadcaster revealed a number of new titles, a slew of feature doc additions and the renewal of Gordon Ramsay: Unchartered.
It has also set a tentative fall plan for its Genius: Aretha, the Cynthia Erivo-fronted drama that was delayed due to the Covid-19 production shutdown.
9/11 comes from Undefeated and La 92 filmmakers Dan Lindsay and T.J Martin, who have teamed up with British production company 72 Films on the six-part series. The series, which is planned to mark 20 years since the terrorist attacks, has already been in production for overs two years, featuring never-seen-before archival footage and new eyewitness witnesses of the event.
Nat Geo is working closely with its new sister companies ABC News...
- 5/21/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
It was November 2018 and Nanfu Wang had four weeks before picture-lock on her third feature documentary, “One Child Nation.” The film, which Wang co-directed and edited, had already been accepted to the 2019 Sundance Film Festival but wasn’t quite ready.
“I was debating and really struggling with what note to end the film on,” Wang says. “I needed a fresh set of eyes.”
Enter the documentary whisperer, Mark Monroe.
The University of Oklahoma journalism graduate has been the doc industry’s go-to guy for the past decade. His writing on the 2009 Academy Award-winning “The Cove” put him on the map.
“The Cove,” which received equity money from Impact Partners, was Louie Psihoyos’ first film.
“The Cove” producer “Fisher Stevens wanted to bring Mark on to help restructure the film,” says Geralyn White Dreyfous, co-founder and executive producer of Impact Partners. “At the time, Louie’s film was so linear and just straight storytelling.
“I was debating and really struggling with what note to end the film on,” Wang says. “I needed a fresh set of eyes.”
Enter the documentary whisperer, Mark Monroe.
The University of Oklahoma journalism graduate has been the doc industry’s go-to guy for the past decade. His writing on the 2009 Academy Award-winning “The Cove” put him on the map.
“The Cove,” which received equity money from Impact Partners, was Louie Psihoyos’ first film.
“The Cove” producer “Fisher Stevens wanted to bring Mark on to help restructure the film,” says Geralyn White Dreyfous, co-founder and executive producer of Impact Partners. “At the time, Louie’s film was so linear and just straight storytelling.
- 1/7/2020
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
In a lot of ways, the Cannes Film Festival premiere of “For Sama” should have felt like nothing new. After all, the film had premiered in March at the South by Southwest Film Festival and also screened earlier in May at the Hot Docs festival in Canada, making it the rare Cannes film to not premiere on the Croisette.
Beyond that, “For Sama” is a documentary about the bloody conflict in Syria, which has already been the subject of a string of notable nonfiction films, among them Feras Fayyad’s “Last Men in Aleppo,” Evgeny Afineevsky’s “Cries From Syria,” Matthew Heineman’s “City of Ghosts,” Talal Derki’s “The Return to Homs” and Sebastian Junger’s “Hell on Earth” in the feature realm, as well as the Oscar-nominated short docs “The White Helmets” (which won) and “Watani: My Homeland.”
What else, you could ask, is left to say about Syria,...
Beyond that, “For Sama” is a documentary about the bloody conflict in Syria, which has already been the subject of a string of notable nonfiction films, among them Feras Fayyad’s “Last Men in Aleppo,” Evgeny Afineevsky’s “Cries From Syria,” Matthew Heineman’s “City of Ghosts,” Talal Derki’s “The Return to Homs” and Sebastian Junger’s “Hell on Earth” in the feature realm, as well as the Oscar-nominated short docs “The White Helmets” (which won) and “Watani: My Homeland.”
What else, you could ask, is left to say about Syria,...
- 5/15/2019
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
The United Talent Agency has appointed six men and two women as new partners, the agency’s board of directors announced Friday.
Jacob Fenton, Ken Fermaglich, Susie Fox, Ben Jacobson, Ophir Lupu, John Sacks, Bec Smith and Mark Subias have been appointed from across UTA’s businesses, accounting for a 13 percent expansion of the company’s partnership. The agents come from the world of theatre, music, TV, movies, video games and more. Between them they have nearly 70 years of experience at the agency.
“These eight individuals from across our business have been a critical part of UTA’s growth over the past years,” the UTA Board of Directors said in a statement. “Their appointments reflect not just the longstanding contributions each has made, but their leadership, innovation and commitment to creating unique opportunities for our clients. We are proud to have them join our partnership.”
Also Read: Veteran Agent David Lubliner...
Jacob Fenton, Ken Fermaglich, Susie Fox, Ben Jacobson, Ophir Lupu, John Sacks, Bec Smith and Mark Subias have been appointed from across UTA’s businesses, accounting for a 13 percent expansion of the company’s partnership. The agents come from the world of theatre, music, TV, movies, video games and more. Between them they have nearly 70 years of experience at the agency.
“These eight individuals from across our business have been a critical part of UTA’s growth over the past years,” the UTA Board of Directors said in a statement. “Their appointments reflect not just the longstanding contributions each has made, but their leadership, innovation and commitment to creating unique opportunities for our clients. We are proud to have them join our partnership.”
Also Read: Veteran Agent David Lubliner...
- 1/25/2019
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
The UTA board of directors said Friday that the agency has promoted eight agents to partner, repping a 13% expansion of the group. The promotions come from across UTA’s businesses including theater, music, TV, movies and video games.
The new partners include two division heads — Video Games’ Ophir Lupu and Theatre’s Mark Subias — along with Jacob Fenton, Ken Fermaglich, Susie Fox, Ben Jacobson, John Sacks and Bec Smith.
“These eight individuals from across our business have been a critical part of UTA’s growth over the past years,” UTA said in a statement announcing the news. “Their appointments reflect not just the longstanding contributions each has made, but their leadership, innovation and commitment to creating unique opportunities for our clients. We are proud to have them join our partnership.”
More info her, per UTA:
Jacob Fenton, an 18-year UTA veteran who started in the mailroom in 2001 and rose through...
The new partners include two division heads — Video Games’ Ophir Lupu and Theatre’s Mark Subias — along with Jacob Fenton, Ken Fermaglich, Susie Fox, Ben Jacobson, John Sacks and Bec Smith.
“These eight individuals from across our business have been a critical part of UTA’s growth over the past years,” UTA said in a statement announcing the news. “Their appointments reflect not just the longstanding contributions each has made, but their leadership, innovation and commitment to creating unique opportunities for our clients. We are proud to have them join our partnership.”
More info her, per UTA:
Jacob Fenton, an 18-year UTA veteran who started in the mailroom in 2001 and rose through...
- 1/25/2019
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Don Kaye Jan 17, 2019
The Punisher’s Jon Bernthal and Giorgia Whigham describe their characters’ journeys in Season 2.
Frank Castle is back in the second season of The Punisher, the Netflix/Marvel series that followed the introduction of the classic comic book character in Season 2 of Daredevil. Played to perfection by Jon Bernthal (The Walking Dead), the former Marine turned vigilante found himself in the debut season of his own series seeking vengeance on every single person who had something to do with the deaths of his family -- and succeeding in brutal fashion.
As Season 2 opens, Castle has been given a reprieve by the Us intelligence community thanks to the bloody efficiency of his actions. He heads out on the road, where he begins to achieve a modicum of peace and even lets himself enjoy the company of others. But that tranquility is soon shattered when Frank finds himself protecting...
The Punisher’s Jon Bernthal and Giorgia Whigham describe their characters’ journeys in Season 2.
Frank Castle is back in the second season of The Punisher, the Netflix/Marvel series that followed the introduction of the classic comic book character in Season 2 of Daredevil. Played to perfection by Jon Bernthal (The Walking Dead), the former Marine turned vigilante found himself in the debut season of his own series seeking vengeance on every single person who had something to do with the deaths of his family -- and succeeding in brutal fashion.
As Season 2 opens, Castle has been given a reprieve by the Us intelligence community thanks to the bloody efficiency of his actions. He heads out on the road, where he begins to achieve a modicum of peace and even lets himself enjoy the company of others. But that tranquility is soon shattered when Frank finds himself protecting...
- 1/17/2019
- Den of Geek
Exclusive: Emmy and Peabody-winning producer Sara Bernstein has been set as executive vice president at Imagine Documentaries, the recently launched division of Imagine Entertainment that is headed by president Justin Wilkes. Bernstein is a 19-year HBO vet, integral in many of the payweb’s seminal documentary films. Bernstein joins Wilkes in leading the development and production of premium feature docs and non-scripted series, and she will leverage her longstanding relationships within that community.
“I couldn’t possibly think of a better partner than Sara,” Wilkes. “For years, I’ve admired her work as a producer, an executive and as someone who is beloved by talent across the board. I’m so excited that we get to work side-by-side and build this new venture together.”
At HBO, the docus that Bernstein has produced and overseen include Judd Apatow’s Emmy-nominated The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling, Laura Poitras’ Oscar and Emmy winner Citizenfour,...
“I couldn’t possibly think of a better partner than Sara,” Wilkes. “For years, I’ve admired her work as a producer, an executive and as someone who is beloved by talent across the board. I’m so excited that we get to work side-by-side and build this new venture together.”
At HBO, the docus that Bernstein has produced and overseen include Judd Apatow’s Emmy-nominated The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling, Laura Poitras’ Oscar and Emmy winner Citizenfour,...
- 9/5/2018
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Outside, the magazine which has published feature articles that were the basis for both film and television projects such as Everest, The Perfect Storm, Into the Wild, Blue Crush and 127 Hours, has just teamed up with The Gotham Group. The two companies will produce content for film, television and new media for what will be different platforms and distributors. Outside, which began in 1977 and is owned by the Mariah Media Network, is also known as the only magazine to have won three consecutive National Magazine Awards for general excellence.
If you add up the box office for those aforementioned feature projects alone, it totals ovver $700M worldwide. Larry Burke (Outside chairman) and Ellen Goldsmith-Vein (The Gotham Group’s CEO/founder and an avid sports enthusiast), are currently in talks with production companies, financiers, streaming services, broadcast and cable entities to start the partnership rolling.
“Over the last few weeks,...
If you add up the box office for those aforementioned feature projects alone, it totals ovver $700M worldwide. Larry Burke (Outside chairman) and Ellen Goldsmith-Vein (The Gotham Group’s CEO/founder and an avid sports enthusiast), are currently in talks with production companies, financiers, streaming services, broadcast and cable entities to start the partnership rolling.
“Over the last few weeks,...
- 7/16/2018
- by Anita Busch
- Deadline Film + TV
Sebastian Junger was 29 years old and climbed trees working as part of landscaping crews. He was freelancing as a writer and living in Gloucester when the Halloween Nor’easter- the no name storm- was boiling along the coast. When it hit Gloucester, the town learned of the dramatic tragedy that befell the Andrea Gail. He decided to write a chapter for a proposed book about it, and he sent it to his literary agent. He received $35,000 as an advance to writer the entire book. Two years later, his book was finished, and it ended up on the New York
10 Facts You Didn’t Know about the Andrea Gail...
10 Facts You Didn’t Know about the Andrea Gail...
- 6/23/2018
- by Nat Berman
- TVovermind.com
The highest-profile documentary in this year’s Oscar race, “Icarus,” was picked up by Netflix at Sundance for $5 million. Netflix marketers adeptly surfed the news cycle to make sure their subscribers as well as Academy voters know that this movie is at the center of the Russian doping scandal.
With the Olympics front and center at the height of Oscar balloting, this movie could well be watched by the most people and squeak past its two main rivals, Cannes prize-winner Agnes Varda’s “Faces Places,” whose co-director Jr was profiled on “60 Minutes” Sunday, and “Last Men in Aleppo,” which has gotten a fresh wind of attention from the Muslim travel ban.
“Icarus” director Bryan Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play,...
With the Olympics front and center at the height of Oscar balloting, this movie could well be watched by the most people and squeak past its two main rivals, Cannes prize-winner Agnes Varda’s “Faces Places,” whose co-director Jr was profiled on “60 Minutes” Sunday, and “Last Men in Aleppo,” which has gotten a fresh wind of attention from the Muslim travel ban.
“Icarus” director Bryan Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play,...
- 2/27/2018
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
The highest-profile documentary in this year’s Oscar race, “Icarus,” was picked up by Netflix at Sundance for $5 million. Netflix marketers adeptly surfed the news cycle to make sure their subscribers as well as Academy voters know that this movie is at the center of the Russian doping scandal.
With the Olympics front and center at the height of Oscar balloting, this movie could well be watched by the most people and squeak past its two main rivals, Cannes prize-winner Agnes Varda’s “Faces Places,” whose co-director Jr was profiled on “60 Minutes” Sunday, and “Last Men in Aleppo,” which has gotten a fresh wind of attention from the Muslim travel ban.
“Icarus” director Bryan Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play,...
With the Olympics front and center at the height of Oscar balloting, this movie could well be watched by the most people and squeak past its two main rivals, Cannes prize-winner Agnes Varda’s “Faces Places,” whose co-director Jr was profiled on “60 Minutes” Sunday, and “Last Men in Aleppo,” which has gotten a fresh wind of attention from the Muslim travel ban.
“Icarus” director Bryan Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play,...
- 2/27/2018
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
In light of the horrifying and long-lasting war in Syria, Oscar-nominated filmmakers Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested have directed a documentary called “Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of Isis,” which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this year.
The film’s purpose was to capture the harrowing socio-political situation in Syria and to be a relentless portrayal of the death and violence that surrounds the population on a daily basis. IndieWire’s editor-at-large Anne Thompson highlighted the film as a potential Oscar contender for Best Documentary Feature.
“You can’t sugarcoat the suffering of the Syrian people. We didn’t go out to shock people. We went to show people how it really is. It’s entirely documentary, exactly as it is happening. This is the reality,” said co-director Nick Quested.
Read More:How Women Made the Documentary Community
Below are two exclusive shorts that...
The film’s purpose was to capture the harrowing socio-political situation in Syria and to be a relentless portrayal of the death and violence that surrounds the population on a daily basis. IndieWire’s editor-at-large Anne Thompson highlighted the film as a potential Oscar contender for Best Documentary Feature.
“You can’t sugarcoat the suffering of the Syrian people. We didn’t go out to shock people. We went to show people how it really is. It’s entirely documentary, exactly as it is happening. This is the reality,” said co-director Nick Quested.
Read More:How Women Made the Documentary Community
Below are two exclusive shorts that...
- 11/15/2017
- by Alberto Achar
- Indiewire
At the San Francisco Film Society’s Doc Stories, Samantha Power — aka President Barack Obama’s U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations — is a true star. “What a crowd,” she tweeted after a rousing standing ovation for Greg Barker’s HBO documentary “The Final Year,” which features her as part of Obama’s foreign policy team. “Huge thanks to SFFilm Doc Stories & to an incredibly engaged San Francisco audience who saw @thefinalyeardoc not as a retrospective, but as a call to action.”
The third annual Doc Stories (Nov. 2-5) was a rich weekend of nonfiction features and shorts that launched with the world premiere of Alex Gibney’s “Rolling Stone: Stories from the Edge, Part I” (HBO) and closed with Chris Smith’s “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond – Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton” (Netflix).
It’s part of Sffilm executive director Noah Cowan’s...
The third annual Doc Stories (Nov. 2-5) was a rich weekend of nonfiction features and shorts that launched with the world premiere of Alex Gibney’s “Rolling Stone: Stories from the Edge, Part I” (HBO) and closed with Chris Smith’s “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond – Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton” (Netflix).
It’s part of Sffilm executive director Noah Cowan’s...
- 11/6/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
At the San Francisco Film Society’s Doc Stories, Samantha Power — aka President Barack Obama’s U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations — is a true star. “What a crowd,” she tweeted after a rousing standing ovation for Greg Barker’s HBO documentary “The Final Year,” which features her as part of Obama’s foreign policy team. “Huge thanks to SFFilm Doc Stories & to an incredibly engaged San Francisco audience who saw @thefinalyeardoc not as a retrospective, but as a call to action.”
The third annual Doc Stories (Nov. 2-5) was a rich weekend of nonfiction features and shorts that launched with the world premiere of Alex Gibney’s “Rolling Stone: Stories from the Edge, Part I” (HBO) and closed with Chris Smith’s “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond – Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton” (Netflix).
It’s part of Sffilm executive director Noah Cowan’s...
The third annual Doc Stories (Nov. 2-5) was a rich weekend of nonfiction features and shorts that launched with the world premiere of Alex Gibney’s “Rolling Stone: Stories from the Edge, Part I” (HBO) and closed with Chris Smith’s “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond – Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton” (Netflix).
It’s part of Sffilm executive director Noah Cowan’s...
- 11/6/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Syria’s first ever submission in the Motion Picture Academy’s Foreign Language category, “Little Gandhi”, is one of a handful of documentaries submitted for Best Foreign Language Film nomination this year.
It comes to the Academy in a most unusual way. It was selected not by the country which is how submissions are always made, but by a committee of artists in exile. If any of these people had actually been in Syria they would likely have been imprisoned, tortured and executed, for this was the fate of Ghiyath Matar, the Syrian activist who became known for giving flowers and roses to army soldiers in his home town of Daraya, leader of the once peaceful Syrian revolution and the Little Gandhi of the title. It premiered at the ongoing Asian World Film Festival.
I have yet to see the documentary submission for Academy Award® nomination entitled Syria Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of Isis...
It comes to the Academy in a most unusual way. It was selected not by the country which is how submissions are always made, but by a committee of artists in exile. If any of these people had actually been in Syria they would likely have been imprisoned, tortured and executed, for this was the fate of Ghiyath Matar, the Syrian activist who became known for giving flowers and roses to army soldiers in his home town of Daraya, leader of the once peaceful Syrian revolution and the Little Gandhi of the title. It premiered at the ongoing Asian World Film Festival.
I have yet to see the documentary submission for Academy Award® nomination entitled Syria Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of Isis...
- 10/29/2017
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Ten months into the year, it’s hard out here for an Oscar contender. Being worthy of remembering, or being watched by Academy members, demands a warm film-festival reception, rave reviews, effective marketing and distribution, strong theater attendance, and word of mouth. Check out this curated (alphabetical) selection of long-shot performers who are worthy of Oscar consideration, but may see their movies get lost in the intense competitive awards shuffle.
1. Bryan Cranston
Category: Best Actor
Awards: Nominated for Best Actor by SAG and the Oscars for “Trumbo,” Cranston won three Best Actor in a Drama Emmys for playing Walter White in “Breaking Bad” and won SAG Best Actor in TV movie as Lbj in “All the Way.”
Last Hit: “Why Him?” ($60 million domestic)
Title: “Last Flag Flying” (Amazon Studios)
Bottom Line: This layered New York Film Festival opener stars Cranston in one of his signature large, colorful, entertaining performances as Sal,...
1. Bryan Cranston
Category: Best Actor
Awards: Nominated for Best Actor by SAG and the Oscars for “Trumbo,” Cranston won three Best Actor in a Drama Emmys for playing Walter White in “Breaking Bad” and won SAG Best Actor in TV movie as Lbj in “All the Way.”
Last Hit: “Why Him?” ($60 million domestic)
Title: “Last Flag Flying” (Amazon Studios)
Bottom Line: This layered New York Film Festival opener stars Cranston in one of his signature large, colorful, entertaining performances as Sal,...
- 10/16/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Ten months into the year, it’s hard out here for an Oscar contender. Being worthy of remembering, or being watched by Academy members, demands a warm film-festival reception, rave reviews, effective marketing and distribution, strong theater attendance, and word of mouth. Check out this curated (alphabetical) selection of long-shot performers who are worthy of Oscar consideration, but may see their movies get lost in the intense competitive awards shuffle.
1. Bryan Cranston
Category: Best Actor
Awards: Nominated for Best Actor by SAG and the Oscars for “Trumbo,” Cranston won three Best Actor in a Drama Emmys for playing Walter White in “Breaking Bad” and won SAG Best Actor in TV movie as Lbj in “All the Way.”
Last Hit: “Why Him?” ($60 million domestic)
Title: “Last Flag Flying” (Amazon Studios)
Bottom Line: This layered New York Film Festival opener stars Cranston in one of his signature large, colorful, entertaining performances as Sal,...
1. Bryan Cranston
Category: Best Actor
Awards: Nominated for Best Actor by SAG and the Oscars for “Trumbo,” Cranston won three Best Actor in a Drama Emmys for playing Walter White in “Breaking Bad” and won SAG Best Actor in TV movie as Lbj in “All the Way.”
Last Hit: “Why Him?” ($60 million domestic)
Title: “Last Flag Flying” (Amazon Studios)
Bottom Line: This layered New York Film Festival opener stars Cranston in one of his signature large, colorful, entertaining performances as Sal,...
- 10/16/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Doc NYC, America’s largest documentary festival, has announced its 15-film Short List of Oscar contenders along with its opening-night selection, “The Final Year,” in which Greg Barker follows key members of Barack Obama’s administration during their last year in office. The festival runs November 9-16.
Thom Powers, Doc NYC’s artistic director as well as documentary programmer for Tiff, oversees curation of the Short List of films that may be in the running for the Academy Award for Best Documentary feature. This year contains a spectrum of funders and distributors, including four from Netflix — and none from HBO.
Historically, most Doc NYC picks do land on the Academy’s official 15-film Oscar Short List. For the past four years, the Short List had nine to 10 titles overlap, with four or five titles going on to Oscar nominations. For the last six years, Doc NYC screened the documentary that...
Thom Powers, Doc NYC’s artistic director as well as documentary programmer for Tiff, oversees curation of the Short List of films that may be in the running for the Academy Award for Best Documentary feature. This year contains a spectrum of funders and distributors, including four from Netflix — and none from HBO.
Historically, most Doc NYC picks do land on the Academy’s official 15-film Oscar Short List. For the past four years, the Short List had nine to 10 titles overlap, with four or five titles going on to Oscar nominations. For the last six years, Doc NYC screened the documentary that...
- 9/28/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Doc NYC, America’s largest documentary festival, has announced its 15-film Short List of Oscar contenders along with its opening-night selection, “The Final Year,” in which Greg Barker follows key members of Barack Obama’s administration during their last year in office. The festival runs November 9-16.
Thom Powers, Doc NYC’s artistic director as well as documentary programmer for Tiff, oversees curation of the Short List of films that may be in the running for the Academy Award for Best Documentary feature. This year contains a spectrum of funders and distributors, including four from Netflix — and none from HBO.
Historically, most Doc NYC picks do land on the Academy’s official 15-film Oscar Short List. For the past four years, the Short List had nine to 10 titles overlap, with four or five titles going on to Oscar nominations. For the last six years, Doc NYC screened the documentary that...
Thom Powers, Doc NYC’s artistic director as well as documentary programmer for Tiff, oversees curation of the Short List of films that may be in the running for the Academy Award for Best Documentary feature. This year contains a spectrum of funders and distributors, including four from Netflix — and none from HBO.
Historically, most Doc NYC picks do land on the Academy’s official 15-film Oscar Short List. For the past four years, the Short List had nine to 10 titles overlap, with four or five titles going on to Oscar nominations. For the last six years, Doc NYC screened the documentary that...
- 9/28/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Actor-turned-documentarian Bryan Fogel literally delivered the print of “Icarus” to Sundance 2017 at 8:00Am; the film premiered at 10:00Am. By the end of the screening, “Icarus” was in the midst of a bidding war that was eventually won by Netflix for $5 million.
Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play, “Jewtopia,” which he grew into a touring company, a book, and a movie. He eventually came up with the “Icarus” documentary as his next career move.
As a racing cyclist, Fogel thought he could create a “Super Size Me” movie about doping in sports — injecting himself in the butt with steroids to prove how easy it is to evade detection, as Lance Armstrong did for years. Instead, he stumbled...
Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play, “Jewtopia,” which he grew into a touring company, a book, and a movie. He eventually came up with the “Icarus” documentary as his next career move.
As a racing cyclist, Fogel thought he could create a “Super Size Me” movie about doping in sports — injecting himself in the butt with steroids to prove how easy it is to evade detection, as Lance Armstrong did for years. Instead, he stumbled...
- 8/4/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Actor-turned-documentarian Bryan Fogel literally delivered the print of “Icarus” to Sundance 2017 at 8:00 am; the film premiered at 10 am. By the end of the screening, “Icarus” was in the midst of a bidding war that was eventually won by Netflix for $5 million.
Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play, “Jewtopia,” which he grew into a touring company, a book, and a movie. He eventually came up with the “Icarus” documentary as his next career move.
As a racing cyclist, Fogel thought he could create a “Super Size Me” movie about doping in sports — injecting himself in the butt with steroids to prove how easy it is to evade detection, as Lance Armstrong did for years. Instead, he stumbled onto...
Fogel is an unexpected documentarian, to say nothing of an investigative journalist. He started out in Hollywood as a standup comic and actor, but found early success as the creator of a hit Coast Playhouse and Broadway play, “Jewtopia,” which he grew into a touring company, a book, and a movie. He eventually came up with the “Icarus” documentary as his next career move.
As a racing cyclist, Fogel thought he could create a “Super Size Me” movie about doping in sports — injecting himself in the butt with steroids to prove how easy it is to evade detection, as Lance Armstrong did for years. Instead, he stumbled onto...
- 8/4/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Getting out early can be an advantage in the documentary race, which is often front loaded at January’s Sundance Film Festival. While a raft of movies made their mark, the question is which ones can sustain support through the end of the year.
Among that festival’s breakouts were three Syria documentaries. Daring and timely “City of Ghosts” (July 14, A & E/Amazon Studios), which is Matthew Heineman’s follow-up to his Oscar-nominated border drug war thriller “Cartel Land,” will get a major push. Any footage from Syria came from the fearless Raqqa journalists he tracked through Turkey and Germany, where they discover that they are not necessarily safe — anywhere.
It remains to be seen if there will be room for more than one Syrian documentary. HBO Documentary Films is forgoing Emmy consideration for “Winter on Fire” nominee Evgeny Afineevsky’s harrowing “Cries From Syria” (March 10, HBO), planning an Oscar push this fall.
Among that festival’s breakouts were three Syria documentaries. Daring and timely “City of Ghosts” (July 14, A & E/Amazon Studios), which is Matthew Heineman’s follow-up to his Oscar-nominated border drug war thriller “Cartel Land,” will get a major push. Any footage from Syria came from the fearless Raqqa journalists he tracked through Turkey and Germany, where they discover that they are not necessarily safe — anywhere.
It remains to be seen if there will be room for more than one Syrian documentary. HBO Documentary Films is forgoing Emmy consideration for “Winter on Fire” nominee Evgeny Afineevsky’s harrowing “Cries From Syria” (March 10, HBO), planning an Oscar push this fall.
- 7/5/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Keep up with the always-hopping film festival world with our weekly Film Festival Roundup column. Check out last week’s Roundup right here.
Lineup Announcements
– The Provincetown International Film Festival (Piff) has announced the latest slate of programming for its 19th edition, running June 14 – 18. The added programming includes an awards presentation for actress Aubrey Plaza, who will receive the festival’s inaugural Next Wave Award, which recognizes those who have exciting and distinctive voices, take artistic risks, and have a passionate commitment to independent film. Plaza, who stars in and produced the festival’s Closing Night Film, “Ingrid Goes West,” will receive the honor at a ceremony on Sunday, June 18 at Fishermen Hall in Provincetown.
Additionally, the festival announced a special presentation with Julie Klausner and Scott King, the creators of Hulu’s hit original series “Difficult People“ and a special screening of a new documentary from acclaimed filmmakers Sebastian Junger...
Lineup Announcements
– The Provincetown International Film Festival (Piff) has announced the latest slate of programming for its 19th edition, running June 14 – 18. The added programming includes an awards presentation for actress Aubrey Plaza, who will receive the festival’s inaugural Next Wave Award, which recognizes those who have exciting and distinctive voices, take artistic risks, and have a passionate commitment to independent film. Plaza, who stars in and produced the festival’s Closing Night Film, “Ingrid Goes West,” will receive the honor at a ceremony on Sunday, June 18 at Fishermen Hall in Provincetown.
Additionally, the festival announced a special presentation with Julie Klausner and Scott King, the creators of Hulu’s hit original series “Difficult People“ and a special screening of a new documentary from acclaimed filmmakers Sebastian Junger...
- 6/1/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Having made a trilogy of docs viewing the war in Afghanistan through deliberately tight frames (the first of which, Restrepo, earned an Oscar nomination), Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested grapple with a sprawling Middle East topic in Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of Isis. A useful primer for those who haven't paid enough attention and a synthesis for those who've been overwhelmed by years of upsetting news reports, the film explains cause-and-effect relationships that, while hardly unexplored, merit continued attention. Though premiering in limited theatrical release this week, it will reach most of its audience...
- 5/19/2017
- by John DeFore
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In a world where TV networks fight for the opportunity to showcase the best nonfiction content that will keep viewers on their couches, the Toronto-based Hot Docs Canadian International Film Festival (April 27 – May 7) is a very, very good place to be.
What began 24 years ago as a modest showcase for Canadian documentaries is now a sprawling international program that screens 230 titles from 58 countries. The festival still favors homegrown product, but also amplifies movies from Sundance (“Chasing Coral,” “Long Strange Trip,” “City of Ghosts”) and Tribeca (“The Departure,” “A River Below”), as well as some international (Joe Berlinger’s “Intent to Destroy”) and world premieres (“A Moon of Nickel and Ice”).
“Hot Docs creates an environment where you can meet with the best in the documentary world,” said director Cullen Hoback, who brought his sharp pollution whodunit “What Lies Upstream” first to Slamdance, then to Hot Docs (Preferred Content is seeking...
What began 24 years ago as a modest showcase for Canadian documentaries is now a sprawling international program that screens 230 titles from 58 countries. The festival still favors homegrown product, but also amplifies movies from Sundance (“Chasing Coral,” “Long Strange Trip,” “City of Ghosts”) and Tribeca (“The Departure,” “A River Below”), as well as some international (Joe Berlinger’s “Intent to Destroy”) and world premieres (“A Moon of Nickel and Ice”).
“Hot Docs creates an environment where you can meet with the best in the documentary world,” said director Cullen Hoback, who brought his sharp pollution whodunit “What Lies Upstream” first to Slamdance, then to Hot Docs (Preferred Content is seeking...
- 5/9/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
In a world where TV networks fight for the opportunity to showcase the best nonfiction content that will keep viewers on their couches, the Toronto-based Hot Docs Canadian International Film Festival (April 27 – May 7) is a very, very good place to be.
What began 24 years ago as a modest showcase for Canadian documentaries is now a sprawling international program that screens 230 titles from 58 countries. The festival still favors homegrown product, but also amplifies movies from Sundance (“Chasing Coral,” “Long Strange Trip,” “City of Ghosts”) and Tribeca (“The Departure,” “A River Below”), as well as some international (Joe Berlinger’s “Intent to Destroy”) and world premieres (“A Moon of Nickel and Ice”).
“Hot Docs creates an environment where you can meet with the best in the documentary world,” said director Cullen Hoback, who brought his sharp pollution whodunit “What Lies Upstream” first to Slamdance, then to Hot Docs (Preferred Content is seeking...
What began 24 years ago as a modest showcase for Canadian documentaries is now a sprawling international program that screens 230 titles from 58 countries. The festival still favors homegrown product, but also amplifies movies from Sundance (“Chasing Coral,” “Long Strange Trip,” “City of Ghosts”) and Tribeca (“The Departure,” “A River Below”), as well as some international (Joe Berlinger’s “Intent to Destroy”) and world premieres (“A Moon of Nickel and Ice”).
“Hot Docs creates an environment where you can meet with the best in the documentary world,” said director Cullen Hoback, who brought his sharp pollution whodunit “What Lies Upstream” first to Slamdance, then to Hot Docs (Preferred Content is seeking...
- 5/9/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Sales and distribution veteran Mark Lindsay to introduce five new titles to Cannes buyers.
New York-based Saboteur Media has launched a production and finance operation with a broader sales remit and hired former Miramax International senior executive Mark Lindsay as president of distribution.
The moves comes as executive director Nick Quested expands the suite of services beyond those of documentary distributor and sales company initially launched under the auspices of Goldcrest Films.
Saboteur now operates as a stand-alone entity that produces, finances and sells narrative and documentary features, with particular emphasis on empowering the New York creative community and an opportunistic eye towards television.
The company has the ability to finance tax credits and invest equity in select projects, which will not rely on pre-sales in order to get greenlight. It serves as co-producer on all five titles headed for Cannes.
Lindsay, whose executive roles have included head of sales and distribution at Kimmel International, Arclight...
New York-based Saboteur Media has launched a production and finance operation with a broader sales remit and hired former Miramax International senior executive Mark Lindsay as president of distribution.
The moves comes as executive director Nick Quested expands the suite of services beyond those of documentary distributor and sales company initially launched under the auspices of Goldcrest Films.
Saboteur now operates as a stand-alone entity that produces, finances and sells narrative and documentary features, with particular emphasis on empowering the New York creative community and an opportunistic eye towards television.
The company has the ability to finance tax credits and invest equity in select projects, which will not rely on pre-sales in order to get greenlight. It serves as co-producer on all five titles headed for Cannes.
Lindsay, whose executive roles have included head of sales and distribution at Kimmel International, Arclight...
- 4/26/2017
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Prompted by yesterday’s suspected chemical attacks in Syria, National Geographic has released footage from the upcoming doc Hell On Earth: The Fall Of Syria And The Rise of Isis. Filmmaker Sebastian Junger and producing partner Nick Quested made the call to release the 13-minute preview, NatGeo says. The documentary feature, directed by Junger and Quested, will debut at the Tribeca Film Festival this month and air on NatGeo this spring. This preview includes…...
- 4/5/2017
- Deadline
Festival receives record number of submissions as top brass trim roster by 20%.
World premieres of Michael Winterbottom’s The Trip To Spain (pictured), Nick Broomfield and Rudi Dolezal’s Whitney. “can I be me,”, and Hell On Earth: The Fall Of Syria And The Rise Of Isis by Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested are among the line-up at the 16th annual Tribeca Film Festival (April 19-30).
Festival top brass led by new director of programming Cara Cusumano and artistic director Frédéric Boyer unveiled on Thursday 82 of the 98 features that will screen at this year’s edition.
Trimmed down by 20%, the festival received a record number 8,700 submissions, of which 3,362 were features – and includes 32 films in competition comprising 12 documentaries, 10 Us narratives and 10 international narratives. Films in competition will compete for cash prizes totalling $160,000.
Spotlight Narrative section features 15 fiction films, while Spotlight Documentary includes 16 non-fiction films. Five fiction and one documentary film play in Midnight.
The 2017 roster...
World premieres of Michael Winterbottom’s The Trip To Spain (pictured), Nick Broomfield and Rudi Dolezal’s Whitney. “can I be me,”, and Hell On Earth: The Fall Of Syria And The Rise Of Isis by Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested are among the line-up at the 16th annual Tribeca Film Festival (April 19-30).
Festival top brass led by new director of programming Cara Cusumano and artistic director Frédéric Boyer unveiled on Thursday 82 of the 98 features that will screen at this year’s edition.
Trimmed down by 20%, the festival received a record number 8,700 submissions, of which 3,362 were features – and includes 32 films in competition comprising 12 documentaries, 10 Us narratives and 10 international narratives. Films in competition will compete for cash prizes totalling $160,000.
Spotlight Narrative section features 15 fiction films, while Spotlight Documentary includes 16 non-fiction films. Five fiction and one documentary film play in Midnight.
The 2017 roster...
- 3/2/2017
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
A version of this article originally appeared on ew.com.
Emma Watson loves to read.
The actress has that in common with her brainy Harry Potter character Hermione as well as bookish Belle, who she plays in the much-anticipated film Beauty and the Beast, out March 17. In addition to being a bookworm, Watson is also an outspoken feminist and as well as a Un Women Goodwill Ambassador and promoter of the organization’s HeForShe movement, which is dedicated to recruiting men into the movement for gender equality. As a response to her work with the Un, she launched the feminist...
Emma Watson loves to read.
The actress has that in common with her brainy Harry Potter character Hermione as well as bookish Belle, who she plays in the much-anticipated film Beauty and the Beast, out March 17. In addition to being a bookworm, Watson is also an outspoken feminist and as well as a Un Women Goodwill Ambassador and promoter of the organization’s HeForShe movement, which is dedicated to recruiting men into the movement for gender equality. As a response to her work with the Un, she launched the feminist...
- 2/21/2017
- by Madeline Raynor
- PEOPLE.com
Last year, National Geographic’s climate change documentary, “Before the Flood, executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and Fisher Stevens, became the network’s most watched film ever due to it being the most broadly distributed program it had ever released.
Now Variety reports, that in an effort to continue developing outstanding nonfiction work, National Geographic Networks has launched a new banner titled National Geographic Documentary Films, which focuses on producing feature-length documentaries.
“We abandoned the space for some reason, but now we are actively resuming our proper place,” the network’s CEO Courteney Monroe told the publication. “We want to be making timely, issue-oriented, very provocative films with the very best documentary filmmakers in the business. Given the success of ‘Before the Flood’ and ‘He Named Me Malala,’ these are the types of stories we want to be telling.”
Read More: ‘Before the Flood’: Leonardo DiCaprio’s Climate Change...
Now Variety reports, that in an effort to continue developing outstanding nonfiction work, National Geographic Networks has launched a new banner titled National Geographic Documentary Films, which focuses on producing feature-length documentaries.
“We abandoned the space for some reason, but now we are actively resuming our proper place,” the network’s CEO Courteney Monroe told the publication. “We want to be making timely, issue-oriented, very provocative films with the very best documentary filmmakers in the business. Given the success of ‘Before the Flood’ and ‘He Named Me Malala,’ these are the types of stories we want to be telling.”
Read More: ‘Before the Flood’: Leonardo DiCaprio’s Climate Change...
- 1/13/2017
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
Something Better Better Come: Afghan Kids Reign Supreme
In the opening sequence of The Land of the Enlightened following a radio broadcast from President Obama that announces that American troops would soon be pulling out of Afghanistan, first time filmmaker Pieter-Jan De Pue‘s alluring vérité depiction of Afghanistan’s bleak future, makes no bones about the country’s seemingly cursed existence, plotting out the cycle of Afghan misfortune via voiceover of holy legend and images mythical landscapes. “I made a mistake,” he (god) said. “I don’t have any land left for you.” With stunning 16mm cinematography, an empathetic eye, and a great deal of courage, De Pue digs into this lawless desert world, following a renegade band of armed children as they raid weary travelers and trade the opium and lapis lazuli they take as bounty, forging in the end a futureless portrait in which morals are discarded in the name of survival.
In the opening sequence of The Land of the Enlightened following a radio broadcast from President Obama that announces that American troops would soon be pulling out of Afghanistan, first time filmmaker Pieter-Jan De Pue‘s alluring vérité depiction of Afghanistan’s bleak future, makes no bones about the country’s seemingly cursed existence, plotting out the cycle of Afghan misfortune via voiceover of holy legend and images mythical landscapes. “I made a mistake,” he (god) said. “I don’t have any land left for you.” With stunning 16mm cinematography, an empathetic eye, and a great deal of courage, De Pue digs into this lawless desert world, following a renegade band of armed children as they raid weary travelers and trade the opium and lapis lazuli they take as bounty, forging in the end a futureless portrait in which morals are discarded in the name of survival.
- 1/25/2016
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
Nat Geo announced a renewal for StarTalk, a third season premiere date for Cesar 911 and projects from Scott Rudin and Sebastian Junger among other news at TCA’s Winter Press Tour today in Pasadena. National Geographic Channel has picked up a third season of StarTalk hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson for premiere in the fall. The new season will coincide with the release of the StarTalk book, published by Nat Geo Books. The third season of Nat Geo Wild’s Cesar 9…...
- 1/7/2016
- Deadline TV
This powerful, beautifully shot documentary tracks the intense, grim lives of the Afghan national army as they fight the Taliban alone after the Us departed
George W Bush’s notorious “Mission Accomplished” Iraq banner in 2003 is recalled by this excellent film about the tense aftermath of Nato’s withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan. It is an intimate documentary study of the Afghan national army, in whose hands the fight against the Taliban now rests – a tough, perceptive, beautifully photographed film, and something to set alongside Sebastian Junger’s great reportage documentary Restrepo (2010). That film could have been criticised for focusing on Us soldiers’ experience at the expense of the Afghans. Not this one. With great complexity and subtlety, it shows that the Afghan soldiers’ experience does not simply duplicate that of the departed Americans. There is a new loneliness and grimness.
Continue reading...
George W Bush’s notorious “Mission Accomplished” Iraq banner in 2003 is recalled by this excellent film about the tense aftermath of Nato’s withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan. It is an intimate documentary study of the Afghan national army, in whose hands the fight against the Taliban now rests – a tough, perceptive, beautifully photographed film, and something to set alongside Sebastian Junger’s great reportage documentary Restrepo (2010). That film could have been criticised for focusing on Us soldiers’ experience at the expense of the Afghans. Not this one. With great complexity and subtlety, it shows that the Afghan soldiers’ experience does not simply duplicate that of the departed Americans. There is a new loneliness and grimness.
Continue reading...
- 11/12/2015
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
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50 fabulous documentary films, covering hard politics through to music, money and films that never were...
Thanks to streaming services such as Netflix, we’ve never had better access to documentaries. A whole new audience can discover that these real life stories are just as thrilling, entertaining, and incredible as the latest big-budget blockbuster. What’s more, they’re all true too. But with a new found glut of them comes the ever more impossible choice, what’s worth your time? Below is my pick of the 50 best modern feature length documentaries.
I’ve defined modern as being from 2000 onwards, which means some of the greatest documentaries ever made will not feature here. I’m looking at you Hoop Dreams.
50. McConkey (2013)
d. Rob Bruce, Scott Gaffney, Murray Wais, Steve Winter, David Zieff
Shane McConkey was an extreme skier and Base jumper who lived life on the edge, and very much to the full.
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50 fabulous documentary films, covering hard politics through to music, money and films that never were...
Thanks to streaming services such as Netflix, we’ve never had better access to documentaries. A whole new audience can discover that these real life stories are just as thrilling, entertaining, and incredible as the latest big-budget blockbuster. What’s more, they’re all true too. But with a new found glut of them comes the ever more impossible choice, what’s worth your time? Below is my pick of the 50 best modern feature length documentaries.
I’ve defined modern as being from 2000 onwards, which means some of the greatest documentaries ever made will not feature here. I’m looking at you Hoop Dreams.
50. McConkey (2013)
d. Rob Bruce, Scott Gaffney, Murray Wais, Steve Winter, David Zieff
Shane McConkey was an extreme skier and Base jumper who lived life on the edge, and very much to the full.
- 11/12/2015
- by simonbrew
- Den of Geek
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