In January, prolific songwriter Diane Warren received her 15th Academy Award nomination in the best song category for “The Fire Inside,” for the film “Flamin’ Hot,” directed by Eva Longoria. On March 10, Warren held onto her Oscar record in the category for more nominations without a single win when she lost to Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell for their “Barbie” song “What Was I Made For?”
But Warren doesn’t have much time to wallow in self pity. The songwriter, whose catalogue includes “Only Love Can Hurt Like This,” “Un-Break My Heart,” and “If I Could Turn Back Time,” is due in Austin on March 12 for the SXSW premiere of Bess Kargman’s documentary “Diane Warren: Relentless.”
It’s a doc that multiple nonfiction helmers have attempted to make, which isn’t surprising since Warren has penned nine No. 1 and 33 top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and is tied for...
But Warren doesn’t have much time to wallow in self pity. The songwriter, whose catalogue includes “Only Love Can Hurt Like This,” “Un-Break My Heart,” and “If I Could Turn Back Time,” is due in Austin on March 12 for the SXSW premiere of Bess Kargman’s documentary “Diane Warren: Relentless.”
It’s a doc that multiple nonfiction helmers have attempted to make, which isn’t surprising since Warren has penned nine No. 1 and 33 top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and is tied for...
- 3/12/2024
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
SweeTarts have been around since 1962, but the latest marketing plans for the candy try to embrace the future.
The tangy tablets are sponsoring a film festival on TikTok that aims to harness the energy of non-traditional filmmakers who use the social-media venue to showcase everything from a cappella singing to skateboarding skills to recipes. The entries won’t require big Hollywood budgets, or the trappings of a film set, just the creativity it requires to make a short TikTok video.
“Typical award-show concepts really tend to be a little more exclusive,” says Jennifer Brownson, the senior brand manager of SweeTarts at Ferrara, the candymaker behind Nerds, Lemonheads and Now and Later. “We are excited to support everyday creators and storytellers with this activation.”
Contestants may submit starting Friday, August 1 ,and continue through September 7. Fans can submit and engage with short TikTok films in four categories: “Best Expression of ‘Be Both...
The tangy tablets are sponsoring a film festival on TikTok that aims to harness the energy of non-traditional filmmakers who use the social-media venue to showcase everything from a cappella singing to skateboarding skills to recipes. The entries won’t require big Hollywood budgets, or the trappings of a film set, just the creativity it requires to make a short TikTok video.
“Typical award-show concepts really tend to be a little more exclusive,” says Jennifer Brownson, the senior brand manager of SweeTarts at Ferrara, the candymaker behind Nerds, Lemonheads and Now and Later. “We are excited to support everyday creators and storytellers with this activation.”
Contestants may submit starting Friday, August 1 ,and continue through September 7. Fans can submit and engage with short TikTok films in four categories: “Best Expression of ‘Be Both...
- 8/11/2022
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
Today we are recognizing Wildlife, as well as co-writer/director Paul Dano, plus co-writer Zoe Kazan and star Carey Mulligan. Our Hollywood Film Tributes recognize films and talent for their excellence in the art of filmmaking. In a just world, Dano and Kazan’s script for Wildlife would have been a no brainer Best Adapted Screenplay nominee. The former’s directorial debut is so well written, in addition to well directed and well acted, that it 100% was deserving of a citation. From our rave of a review back in October: 2018 has been a hell of a year for actors making their directorial debuts. Bradley Cooper is obviously getting a lot of the acclaim, but don’t sleep on Paul Dano. Along with his partner Zoe Kazan, they have adapted the Richard Ford novel Wildlife, with Dano directing. The result is something spectacular. Ever since the Sundance Film Festival, the movie has been building acclaim.
- 1/26/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
This article marks Part 26, the final entry of the Gold Derby series analyzing 84 years of Best Original Song at the Oscars. Join us as we look back at the timeless tunes recognized in this category, the results of each race and the overall rankings of the winners.
The 2015 Oscar nominees in Best Original Song were:
“Earned It” from “Fifty Shades of Grey”
“‘Til It Happens to You” from “The Hunting Ground”
“Manta Ray” from “Racing Extinction”
“Writing’s on the Wall” from “Spectre”
“Simple Song #3” from “Youth”
Won: “Writing’s on the Wall” from “Spectre”
Should’ve won: “‘Til It Happens to You” from “The Hunting Ground”
This race in Best Original Song began on a rather disheartening note, with the release of the full list of tunes eligible for consideration in the category. Notably absent from the list, in spite of rave reviews and a Golden Globe nomination, was...
The 2015 Oscar nominees in Best Original Song were:
“Earned It” from “Fifty Shades of Grey”
“‘Til It Happens to You” from “The Hunting Ground”
“Manta Ray” from “Racing Extinction”
“Writing’s on the Wall” from “Spectre”
“Simple Song #3” from “Youth”
Won: “Writing’s on the Wall” from “Spectre”
Should’ve won: “‘Til It Happens to You” from “The Hunting Ground”
This race in Best Original Song began on a rather disheartening note, with the release of the full list of tunes eligible for consideration in the category. Notably absent from the list, in spite of rave reviews and a Golden Globe nomination, was...
- 1/1/2019
- by Andrew Carden
- Gold Derby
It’s always a good sign when a film drops a Trailer almost six months in advance of its theatrical release. Having seen Wildlife, I can attest to it being one of the best movies of the year so far. The flick has played at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival as well as the Cannes Film Festival, stacking up on its bona fides. The directorial debut from Paul Dano has a ton going for it and could be a fall/winter awards contender. A Trailer recently debuted, highlighting a lot of what makes it so strong a work. You’ll be able to see it at the end of this article, but first…some discussion. The film is an adaptation of the Richard Ford novel of the same name. A drama centered on the Brinson family, as seen through the eyes of teenager Joe (Ed Oxenbould). Watching his father Jerry (Jake Gyllenhaal...
- 5/24/2018
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Paul Dano’s impressive directorial debut is based on Robert Ford’s 1990 novel. As is common with Ford’s fiction, one of the protagonists has some relationship with sport and, like many of his characters, the parents in Wildlife are drifters of sorts. The setting is Montana, where Ford’s popular short stories were set.
Dano very quickly sets the scene and this seemingly sweet small-town family is soon revealed to be a poisonous cauldron bubbling below a calm surface. Dad is Jerry (Jake Gyllenhaal), mum is Jeanette (Carey Mulligan) and their 14-year-old only son is Joe (Ed Oxenbould). The trio of Js seem happy: Jerry has a job at the golf club, Jeanette is a stay-at-home mum and Joe is sailing through school and tackling football. Yet this apparent idyll is not what it seems: Jerry used to be a pro golfer, Jeanette is lonely in her new town...
Dano very quickly sets the scene and this seemingly sweet small-town family is soon revealed to be a poisonous cauldron bubbling below a calm surface. Dad is Jerry (Jake Gyllenhaal), mum is Jeanette (Carey Mulligan) and their 14-year-old only son is Joe (Ed Oxenbould). The trio of Js seem happy: Jerry has a job at the golf club, Jeanette is a stay-at-home mum and Joe is sailing through school and tackling football. Yet this apparent idyll is not what it seems: Jerry used to be a pro golfer, Jeanette is lonely in her new town...
- 5/9/2018
- by Jo-Ann Titmarsh
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Joining such memorable events as Ornette’s week at Lincoln Center in 1997 and the celebration in his honor at Celebrate Brooklyn which was the last time he played in public and which is now documented in an incredible box set alongside the memorial held for him at Riverside Church and Wynton's own celebration of Ornette at Lincoln Center will be Ornette Coleman: Tomorrow is the Question, July 11–16 as part of their yearly indoor festival. There will be a four-part series honoring Ornette's work as a composer, innovator, and performer.
The evenings include a screening of Naked Lunch with live accompaniment by such giants as Ravi Coltrane, Henry Threadgill, Charente Moffatt, and Denard Coleman. Coleman will also be part of a Prime Time Reunion that will honor guitarist Bern Nix who sadly recently passed away and who had been a long time member of the original band. This night the members will include Joshua Redman,...
The evenings include a screening of Naked Lunch with live accompaniment by such giants as Ravi Coltrane, Henry Threadgill, Charente Moffatt, and Denard Coleman. Coleman will also be part of a Prime Time Reunion that will honor guitarist Bern Nix who sadly recently passed away and who had been a long time member of the original band. This night the members will include Joshua Redman,...
- 6/28/2017
- by steve dalachinsky
- www.culturecatch.com
Welcome back to This Week In Discs where we check out tomorrow’s new releases today! Youth What is it? Two old friends reunite at a resort in the Swiss Alps to share memories of the past and hopes for their limited futures. Fred (Michael Caine) is a celebrated conductor being wooed by the British government to perform for the Queen, but as a widower his bigger concern is trying to reconnect with his estranged daughter (Rachel Weisz). Mick (Harvey Keitel) meanwhile is a film director past his prime and trying to bring together a new project in an attempt to get back on top. Why buy it? More observational character piece than narrative-driven drama, Paulo Sorrentino’s wise and relaxing ode to life is quite possibly 2015’s most beautiful film. Each frame reveals eye-catching visuals in nature, architecture, human motion, or even the simple, occasionally sad visage of Caine or Keitel. The...
- 3/1/2016
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
There's already been quite a stir over the two nominated Best Original Song nominees that producers decided not to include in the telecast: Racing Extinction's "Manta Ray" by J. Ralph and Anohni (our only transgender nominee) and Youth's "Simple Song #3" by David Lang (also Nathaniel's 2015 favorite). The reason for not including these songs with their more famous competitors in the telecast was "time constraints."
The timing of the Oscar ceremony is undoubtably tricky, so let's do a little math.
The three performed songs each were shortened from their full length, a great way to still get them on an already long broadcast. "The Writing's On the Wall" lost the most time at almost two minutes, but "Earned It" was the shortest performance at roughly 2 minutes and 30 seconds. Let's assume the two unfamous songs should be given that amount of time as a minimum. "Til It Happens to You...
The timing of the Oscar ceremony is undoubtably tricky, so let's do a little math.
The three performed songs each were shortened from their full length, a great way to still get them on an already long broadcast. "The Writing's On the Wall" lost the most time at almost two minutes, but "Earned It" was the shortest performance at roughly 2 minutes and 30 seconds. Let's assume the two unfamous songs should be given that amount of time as a minimum. "Til It Happens to You...
- 2/29/2016
- by Chris Feil
- FilmExperience
The winners of the 88th Annual Academy Awards have been announced, the biggest award Best Picture went to 'Spotlight.' 'The Revenant' took home the Best Director Oscar for Alejandro González Iñárritu, making Iñárritu the third director in history to win back-to-back directing and Leonardo DiCaprio finally got his Oscar for Best Actor (and there was much rejoicing).
Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki also won his third Best Cinematography Oscar in a row for 'The Revenant.' 'Mad Max: Fury Road' was the big winner of the night for most awards, sweeping the technical categories to earn six Oscars, including Best Production Design.
It was a great year for Irish talent picking up nominations but only Stutterer, which was directed by Irishman Benjamin Cleary managed to pick up a award in Best Short Film (Live Action). The short can be viewed on the Rte player here.
With all the talk of Leonardo DiCaprio...
Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki also won his third Best Cinematography Oscar in a row for 'The Revenant.' 'Mad Max: Fury Road' was the big winner of the night for most awards, sweeping the technical categories to earn six Oscars, including Best Production Design.
It was a great year for Irish talent picking up nominations but only Stutterer, which was directed by Irishman Benjamin Cleary managed to pick up a award in Best Short Film (Live Action). The short can be viewed on the Rte player here.
With all the talk of Leonardo DiCaprio...
- 2/29/2016
- by noreply@blogger.com (Flicks News)
- FlicksNews.net
It’s been such a good year at the movies that I’m a little bit surprised by the degree to which I’m approaching tomorrow night’s Academy Awards ceremony with something resembling… disinterest. And again, it’s not necessarily the movies. It’s hard to remember a year when there wasn’t at least one obvious howler among the five, or now five-to-10 nominees—just by turning to random pages in Robert Osborne’s 70 Years of Oscar—The Official History of the Academy Awards I am reminded that The Turning Point, Midnight Express, Fatal Attraction and Mississippi Burning were all lauded by the Academy with Best Picture nominations. This year all eight movies nominated are, in my eyes, worthy of some measure of honor, including Room, my choice for the movie of the year. Yet I can’t remember the last time—could it have been 1991?—when I...
- 2/28/2016
- by Dennis Cozzalio
- Trailers from Hell
The Academy Awards have just erased the silver lining of an awards season that has been rightfully dominated by stories of omission and institutional injustice.
Lost in the justifiable furor over #OscarsSoWhite is the fact that a transgender person has received an Academy Award nomination for the first time since songwriter Angela Morley earned two in the mid-Seventies. Mercury Prize-winning musician Anohni (née Antony Hegarty) has been recognized for her song "Manta Ray," the J. Ralph duet she was commissioned to co-write and perform for the climate crisis documentary Racing Extinction.
Lost in the justifiable furor over #OscarsSoWhite is the fact that a transgender person has received an Academy Award nomination for the first time since songwriter Angela Morley earned two in the mid-Seventies. Mercury Prize-winning musician Anohni (née Antony Hegarty) has been recognized for her song "Manta Ray," the J. Ralph duet she was commissioned to co-write and perform for the climate crisis documentary Racing Extinction.
- 2/25/2016
- Rollingstone.com
Today signals the one week mark as we head into the home stretch to Hollywood’s biggest night, the 88th Academy Awards. For the die-hard awards season watcher, this year’s Oscar race has been both a dream and an absolute hair-pulling nightmare.
The race for Best Picture has never been more exciting with no clear front runner. For the first time in years, it’s anyone’s game and a nail biter down to when the final award is announced.
The precursor guild awards, along with last week’s British Academy Film Awards (the BAFTAs), did little to help the quandary with the predictions. The Big Short received a huge boost when it won the Producers Guild award, while filmmaker Alejandro G. Iñárritu took home the Directors Guild award for helming The Revenant.
The Revenant received 12 nominations and Mad Max: Fury Road has 10 leaving the Oscar pundits with varying predictions.
The race for Best Picture has never been more exciting with no clear front runner. For the first time in years, it’s anyone’s game and a nail biter down to when the final award is announced.
The precursor guild awards, along with last week’s British Academy Film Awards (the BAFTAs), did little to help the quandary with the predictions. The Big Short received a huge boost when it won the Producers Guild award, while filmmaker Alejandro G. Iñárritu took home the Directors Guild award for helming The Revenant.
The Revenant received 12 nominations and Mad Max: Fury Road has 10 leaving the Oscar pundits with varying predictions.
- 2/22/2016
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Lady Gaga may have understandably hogged the media's coverage of this year's Best Original Song category but she's not the only Grammy winning composer in the mix. Diane Warren (the main writer of "Til It Happens to You") and The Weeknd "Earned It" are also Grammy winners. So is David Lang, an eclectic composer best known for his classical work. He's nominated for "Simple Song No. 3" from Youth, the lynchpin song of the whole movie. Like Jane Fonda's movie star in the same film, his song is hyped consistently by the story and characters before we fatefully cross paths with it.
Lang hasn't worked in movies too often, though he did contribute to the incredibly memorable music in Requiem for a Dream (2000). After his elevating and Oscar nominated work on Youth, we're hoping he spends more time composing for our screens.
When David Lang sat down to talk to...
Lang hasn't worked in movies too often, though he did contribute to the incredibly memorable music in Requiem for a Dream (2000). After his elevating and Oscar nominated work on Youth, we're hoping he spends more time composing for our screens.
When David Lang sat down to talk to...
- 2/19/2016
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Pharrell, Lady Gaga, the Weeknd and Sam Smith are all set to appear at this year's Oscars, which will also feature a "special performance" from Dave Grohl, Entertainment Weekly reports.
The latest list of presenters and performers also includes last year's Best Song winners John Legend and Common, as well as Star Wars: The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams, Sacha Baron Cohen, Morgan Freeman and Henry Cavill.
A current list of everyone set to appear at the 88th Academy Awards is available on the Oscars' website. Of the musicians named,...
The latest list of presenters and performers also includes last year's Best Song winners John Legend and Common, as well as Star Wars: The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams, Sacha Baron Cohen, Morgan Freeman and Henry Cavill.
A current list of everyone set to appear at the 88th Academy Awards is available on the Oscars' website. Of the musicians named,...
- 2/18/2016
- Rollingstone.com
Paolo Sorrentino's film "Youth" tells the story of composer Fred Ballinger (Michael Caine) and the famous song he must come to terms with when he's offered the opportunity of a lifetime: to perform it for the Queen. The tune is "Simple Song #3," written by David Lang, who earned an Oscar nomination for Best Song. As tells us during our recent webcam chat (watch above), the process of writing it was unique. -Break- Oscar predictions: Will Ennio Morricone finally win Best Score for 'The Hateful Eight'? "I had to be done before they finished the script," Lang explains. Because so much of "Youth" is built around the song, he had to write it long before it began filming, before it was even cast, "so I didn't have anything to go on really." Even director Sorrentino wasn't sure exactly what he wanted from the composition. "He said he wanted to have an emotional reaction,...
- 2/16/2016
- Gold Derby
By Scott Feinberg
The Hollywood Reporter
Lady Gaga, just hours after performing at the Super Bowl, broke into song. Sam Smith, just hours before performing at THR‘s Nominees Nite party, mused about the lack of gay Oscar winners. And David Lang, a Pulitzer Prize winner and Yale University professor, disclosed how he found his lyrics through a Google search. It all happened at the second annualTHR/Billboard Song Summit, a gathering of the best original song Oscar nominees at the Beverly Hilton hotel immediately after the Academy’s Oscar Nominees Luncheon. (You can check out last year’s edition here.)
This year’s seven participants represented all five nominated songs: Smith and Jimmy Napes, nominated for “Writing’s on the Wall” from the Bond film Spectre; Gaga and Diane Warren, nominated for “Til It Happens to You” from the sexual assault documentary The Hunting Ground; Lang, nominated for “Simple...
The Hollywood Reporter
Lady Gaga, just hours after performing at the Super Bowl, broke into song. Sam Smith, just hours before performing at THR‘s Nominees Nite party, mused about the lack of gay Oscar winners. And David Lang, a Pulitzer Prize winner and Yale University professor, disclosed how he found his lyrics through a Google search. It all happened at the second annualTHR/Billboard Song Summit, a gathering of the best original song Oscar nominees at the Beverly Hilton hotel immediately after the Academy’s Oscar Nominees Luncheon. (You can check out last year’s edition here.)
This year’s seven participants represented all five nominated songs: Smith and Jimmy Napes, nominated for “Writing’s on the Wall” from the Bond film Spectre; Gaga and Diane Warren, nominated for “Til It Happens to You” from the sexual assault documentary The Hunting Ground; Lang, nominated for “Simple...
- 2/16/2016
- by Patrick Shanley
- Scott Feinberg
Titles backed by Film4 this year have a total of 15 Oscar nominations including a Best Picture and Best Director nomination and three of the five Oscar Best Actress Nominees: Cate Blanchett, Brie Larson, Charlotte Rampling. The total tally of Film4’s awards nominations and wins across the Academy, BAFTA, critics groups, guilds, etc. in 2015 to date is: 181 wins out of a total 581 nominations (95% of which were in the U.S.) across 11 films - “Room”, “Carol”, “Suffragette”, “Youth”, “The Lobster", "Ex Machina", "45 Years”, “Amy”, “Macbeth”, “Slow West”, and “Dark Horse”.
Film4 has already had two Academy Best Picture wins in recent years with "Slumdog Millionaire" and "12 Years A Slave" amid other Academy Award nominations, so we can declare they are a force to be reckoned with.
This year again they have more nominations than most Hollywood Studios! The New York based Distribution and Production Company A24 has seven nominations, and people are talking about them as serious players in the Oscar race, so let’s talk about Film4.
Film4 is known for working with the most distinctive and innovative, both new and established, talent. It develops and co-finances films and is well known for its involvement with “The Last King of Scotland” (2006), “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008), “This is England” (2006), “Seven Psychopaths” (2012), “12 Years a Slave” (2013) as well as its most recent crop of successes in the current awards season which has also already garnered a record number of BAFTA nominations this year - 22 in all.
Sue Bruce Smith is the head of distribution and brand strategy at Channel 4’s feature film division, Film4. She supports the building and financing of projects from the U.K. broadcaster. She works in some capacity across most of the Film4 slate but has been particularly associated with films like “Room”, “The Lobster”, “Slumdog Millionaire”, “The Last King of Scotland”, “Tyrannosaur”, “The Imposter” and “Le Weekend”,
Sue has been at Film4 over 12 years. Prior to this she has worked variously in U.K. distribution, broadcaster investment in film, international sales and independent production at Palace Pictures, BBC Films, Littlebird and Film4.
Sl: Can you define what exactly you do at Film4?
Sue Bruce Smith: What I do varies quite a bit from film to film. Some of the seasoned producers are more adept at finding partners and don’t need much in the way of help putting their finance together. However, we also work with emerging producers and directors who require more guidance so I am on hand to help them access the right co-production or distribution partners to ensure the film is built in the best possible way. Once the film is completed, I again get involved in the strategy for the launch of the film and I oversee the distribution activity. Protecting and maximizing the strength of our Film4 brand is a key consideration in everything I do. We are also the only free-to-air channel dedicated to film in the U.K. so this really helps define our strong brand.
Sl: How are productions greenlit at Film4?
Sue Bruce Smith:The creative and commercial team within Film4 will guide a project through development to final greenlight. David Kosse, Director of Film4 is a key part of the whole progression of the film and his final decision, based very much on the soundings he gets from his senior team, also obviously draws heavily on his valuable experience and understanding of film investment and the international marketplace. The Film4 team is a very inclusive team of about 23 people working across development, production, finance and distribution. it is also able to draw upon additional resources within the Channel4, most specifically in marketing and press.
Sl: Do you do co-productions?
Sue Bruce Smith: If you mean financial co-productions, yes lots. These tend to be U.S. set financial co-productions or they might come out of Europe. But official co-productions are relatively rare as it is more difficult and takes longer to set up. “Room”, however, was an official co-production with Telefilm Canada and “The Lobster” was the result of a wonderful collaboration of over five different European co-producers.
Sl: What sort of budget parameters do you work with?
Sue Bruce Smith: We span from the very low to sometimes quite high. We try not to limit ourselves and allow the project to find its optimum level. When we developed “Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk” with Ink Factory, in the course of looking for partners we found a fan in Tom Rothman who at that time was in the process of rebuilding production at TriStar and we have ended up, as a result, being involved in an Ang Lee film! However these are the exceptions and the range is usually between Us $3m to Us$15m.
Going forward, we are keen to be bolder in how Film4 invests especially when we feel a film is a potential break out. We operate a cross subsidy model where the bigger, more commercial investments allow us to generate revenue that then supports the new emerging talent. It is worth noting that absolutely everything we earn from our films goes straight back into more development and film investment.
Sl: Do you have special “strands” for particular types of films?
Sue Bruce Smith: We don’t really distinguish films in strands we just work across many levels and genres. First time filmmakers tend to have smaller budgets - around Us$3m and they are built in a slightly different way. For our larger projects I’d say our sweet spot is $10 – 15 million.
Sl: How do you find projects?
Sue Bruce Smith:: We are constantly scouting for interesting new talent, watching shorts like “Robots of Brixton” where we found Kibwe Tavares, culling talent from our TV arm (like Yann Demange who worked with us on the TV series “Top Boy” before making “'71”) from theater (Lucy Kirkwood who we are making a short film with and developing a feature), the arts (which is where Steve McQueen originated and is still very active) and writing (Alex Garland who adapted “Never Let Me Go” for us and went on to make his striking debut “Ex Machina”)
Sl: I notice you don’t do international sales like you used to in the 80s.
Sue Bruce Smith: Yes we shed the international sales division and the U.K. Distribution arm back in 2002 and brought the focus back to our core development and co-financing activities. We currently work with a wide range of sales agents like Protagonist, Hanway, Cornerstone, FilmNation, Westend, Pathe, Studio Canal, Independent and others.
Sl: In the early days in the 1980s operations were different.
Sue Bruce Smith: David Rose, in 1982, was the real visionary behind Film4. He decided Channel4 would be different from all other TV channels. Channel4 was the first U.K. broadcaster, through its film arm, Film on Four, to develop and co-finance films and, crucially, to allow these films to play in cinemas before their television transmission on Channel4. Our theatrical model became Film on Four and HBO, Sbs and Arte followed this lead. “Walter” by Stephen Frears followed this route in 1982. Frear's next film “My Beautiful Laundrette” followed shortly after in 1985
(An aside here by Sydney Levine):
If my readers will indulge me for a little history lesson in how films change with technological change, I want to point out that in the early days of home video, in 1985, Sue and I (a couple of the pioneer women in the modern business) shared in the good fortune resulting from the shift in the movie and TV business.
Working for the biggest TV production house in U.S. in the days of “Dallas”, I came to Lorimar to buy for home video, the fastest growing new technological distribution tool yet. We put up $175,000 advance to acquire home video rights to the Film4 feature “My Beautiful Laundrette” for U.S. $75,000 of that was to be used as P&A by theatrical distributor Orion Pictures Classics’ platform theatrical release – to platform first in N.Y. and L.A for critical reviews, and then, if profitable, to expand across the nation. It was the first British film to come to U.S. in many a year (except of course for the James Bond franchise). Orion Classics was headed by Michael Barker, Tom Bernard and Donna Gigliotti who paid no advance but used the P&A allotment wisely and well. It was a happy association that we shared a couple of more times before they moved on to form Sony Pictures Classics and I moved on to Republic Pictures, reconstructed by Cnb’s Russell Goldsmith, former CEO of Lorimar. This Film4 picture, “My Beautiful Laundrette” was by complete unknowns in the U.S. and was a first for us all. We did not know it would go on to gross $7 million at the box office (a huge amount at that time for an independent film) and would sell 75,000 video units (at $50 wholesale a piece = $3,750,000). We at Lorimar made a $1 million profit and overages of $1 million went to Channel 4 and $1 million went to Working Title. I got a $100 bonus, and we were all delighted. My association with Film4 was followed by many loyal and loving years and reunions, but that is another lesson.
To quote Adam P. Davies, the writer of the U.K. Film Finance Handbook 2005/6: How to Fund Your Film:
Stephen Frears’s 1985 “My Beautiful Laundrette” signalled a change in direction for the industry in that TV backed film investment started to feed local productions. The Channel4 film encouraged the broadcasters to increase investment in filmmaking over the late 80s and also launched Working Title, initially run by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radcliffe (who left in 1992 to run her own company) and later Eric Fellner, with whom Bevan runs the company today [in a longstanding deal with Universal-Focus]. Video distributor and producer Palace Pictures, run by Nik Powell and Stephen Woolley, followed the success in 1985 of Neil Jordan’s “Company of Wolves” with “Mona Lisa” in 1986. The British Film Commission launched in 1992 [when “The Crying Game” had its world success].
Sue was at Palace Productions when I was at Lorimar and Republic and our paths crossed many times and so I was quite eager to share the latest good fortune of the 2016 Academy Awards at a time when the Academy is being besieged by negative publicity. At that time, back in ’85, I suggested to Michael and Tom that they put up Daniel Day Lewis for Best Actor Nomination and as I recall, they told me British films or British actors in British films were not acceptable to the Academy, and so neither he nor the film was put up for nomination.
“My Beautiful Laundrette” obviously had Asian actors; it was about a gay skinhead and a Pakistani. Diversity was at its core, but it did not get past the British line of demarcation the Academy had drawn in ’85. Its ethnic boundaries might have existed if anyone had tried to test them but that was not even an issue in 1985. “Diversity” in those days did not exist as a word one used and the very idea of diversity was even more limited than today.
Film4 has had a key role in proactively promoting different voices and stories since the 1980s. And today diversity is a crucial consideration in the decisions Film4 makes about its developments and productions with the aim of increasing diversity across all areas of the business. They have several films currently in development with Bame writers and directors and are successfully working with many female directors such as Andrea Arnold, Debbie Tucker Green, Susanna White, Clio Bernard, Sarah Gavron and Lynne Ramsay.
In January last year parent company Channel4 launched the 360 Degree Diversity Charter which is all about a commitment to implementing diversity on and off screen and to measuring its progress. It is tied to Project Diamond, an industry-wide diversity monitoring system. Its results will be published in the next few months.
Film4 has developed and co-financed many of the most successful U.K. films of recent years, Academy Award-winners such as Steve McQueen’s "12 Years a Slave", Danny Boyle’s "Slumdog Millionaire", Phyllida Lloyd’s "The Iron Lady” and Martin McDonagh’s "In Bruges" in addition to critically-acclaimed award-winners such as Mike Leigh’s "Mr. Turner", Chris Morris’ "Four Lions", Shane Meadows’ "This is England", Ben Wheatley’s “Sightseers", Clio Barnard’s "The Selfish Giant" Jonathan Glazer’s "Under the Skin" and David Mackenzie’s "Starred Up".
Film4’s recent releases include; Lenny Abrahamson’s “Room", Todd Haynes’ “Carol", Sarah Gavron’s “Suffragette", Justin Kurzel’s “Macbeth", Yorgos Lanthimos’ "The Lobster", Asif Kapadia’s box office record breaking documentary “Amy", Andrew Haigh’s "45 Years", Alex Garland’s "Ex Machina", Paolo Sorrentino’s “Youth", Peter Strickland’s "The Duke of Burgundy", Daniel Wolfe’s "Catch Me Daddy" and John Maclean’s "Slow West".
Forthcoming releases include; Ben Wheatley’s "High-Rise" and "Free Fire", Ang Lee’s "Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk", Benedict Andrews’ “Una" and Andrea Arnold’s "American Honey".
For further information visit www.film4.com/productions, but for now, here is the Cheat Sheet on Film4’s 2016 Total Oscar Nominations numbering 15. It will be at my side as I watch the Awards on February. Parenthetically, I am also looking forward to watching the fashions before the show, and inside the show, to catching that one loose cannon who will deliver the only inspirational speech in a rather inspirationless, basically boring, but still worthy traditional show.
3 of 5 Oscar Best Actress Nominees – Cate Blanchett, Brie Larson, Charlotte Rampling
Nomination tally by film:
“Room” – 4 - Picture, Actress, Director, Best Adapted Screenplay
“Carol” – 6 –Actress, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Costume Design, Original Score
“Ex Machina” – 2 –Original screenplay, Visual Effects
“Amy” – 1 – Documentary Feature
“45 Years” – 1 – Actress
“Youth” – 1 – Original Song
Film4-backed films Oscar® nominations in full:
“Carol”
Actress in a Leading Role: Cate Blanchett
Actress in a Supporting Role: Rooney Mara
Adapted Screenplay: Phyllis Nagy
Achievement in Cinematography: Ed Lachman
Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original score): Carter Burwell
Achievement in Costume Design: Sandy Powell
“Room”
Best Motion Picture of the Year: Ed Guiney
Achievement in Directing: Lenny Abrahamson
Actress in a Leading Role: Brie Larson
Adapted Screenplay: Emma Donoghue
“Ex Machina”
Original Screenplay: Alex Garland
Achievement in Visual Effects: Andrew Whitehurst, Paul Norris, Mark Ardington and Sara Bennett
“45 Years”:
Actress in a Leading Role: Charlotte Rampling
“Youth”
Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original song): Simple Song # 3, music and lyrics by David Lang
“Amy”
Best Documentary Feature: Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees...
Film4 has already had two Academy Best Picture wins in recent years with "Slumdog Millionaire" and "12 Years A Slave" amid other Academy Award nominations, so we can declare they are a force to be reckoned with.
This year again they have more nominations than most Hollywood Studios! The New York based Distribution and Production Company A24 has seven nominations, and people are talking about them as serious players in the Oscar race, so let’s talk about Film4.
Film4 is known for working with the most distinctive and innovative, both new and established, talent. It develops and co-finances films and is well known for its involvement with “The Last King of Scotland” (2006), “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008), “This is England” (2006), “Seven Psychopaths” (2012), “12 Years a Slave” (2013) as well as its most recent crop of successes in the current awards season which has also already garnered a record number of BAFTA nominations this year - 22 in all.
Sue Bruce Smith is the head of distribution and brand strategy at Channel 4’s feature film division, Film4. She supports the building and financing of projects from the U.K. broadcaster. She works in some capacity across most of the Film4 slate but has been particularly associated with films like “Room”, “The Lobster”, “Slumdog Millionaire”, “The Last King of Scotland”, “Tyrannosaur”, “The Imposter” and “Le Weekend”,
Sue has been at Film4 over 12 years. Prior to this she has worked variously in U.K. distribution, broadcaster investment in film, international sales and independent production at Palace Pictures, BBC Films, Littlebird and Film4.
Sl: Can you define what exactly you do at Film4?
Sue Bruce Smith: What I do varies quite a bit from film to film. Some of the seasoned producers are more adept at finding partners and don’t need much in the way of help putting their finance together. However, we also work with emerging producers and directors who require more guidance so I am on hand to help them access the right co-production or distribution partners to ensure the film is built in the best possible way. Once the film is completed, I again get involved in the strategy for the launch of the film and I oversee the distribution activity. Protecting and maximizing the strength of our Film4 brand is a key consideration in everything I do. We are also the only free-to-air channel dedicated to film in the U.K. so this really helps define our strong brand.
Sl: How are productions greenlit at Film4?
Sue Bruce Smith:The creative and commercial team within Film4 will guide a project through development to final greenlight. David Kosse, Director of Film4 is a key part of the whole progression of the film and his final decision, based very much on the soundings he gets from his senior team, also obviously draws heavily on his valuable experience and understanding of film investment and the international marketplace. The Film4 team is a very inclusive team of about 23 people working across development, production, finance and distribution. it is also able to draw upon additional resources within the Channel4, most specifically in marketing and press.
Sl: Do you do co-productions?
Sue Bruce Smith: If you mean financial co-productions, yes lots. These tend to be U.S. set financial co-productions or they might come out of Europe. But official co-productions are relatively rare as it is more difficult and takes longer to set up. “Room”, however, was an official co-production with Telefilm Canada and “The Lobster” was the result of a wonderful collaboration of over five different European co-producers.
Sl: What sort of budget parameters do you work with?
Sue Bruce Smith: We span from the very low to sometimes quite high. We try not to limit ourselves and allow the project to find its optimum level. When we developed “Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk” with Ink Factory, in the course of looking for partners we found a fan in Tom Rothman who at that time was in the process of rebuilding production at TriStar and we have ended up, as a result, being involved in an Ang Lee film! However these are the exceptions and the range is usually between Us $3m to Us$15m.
Going forward, we are keen to be bolder in how Film4 invests especially when we feel a film is a potential break out. We operate a cross subsidy model where the bigger, more commercial investments allow us to generate revenue that then supports the new emerging talent. It is worth noting that absolutely everything we earn from our films goes straight back into more development and film investment.
Sl: Do you have special “strands” for particular types of films?
Sue Bruce Smith: We don’t really distinguish films in strands we just work across many levels and genres. First time filmmakers tend to have smaller budgets - around Us$3m and they are built in a slightly different way. For our larger projects I’d say our sweet spot is $10 – 15 million.
Sl: How do you find projects?
Sue Bruce Smith:: We are constantly scouting for interesting new talent, watching shorts like “Robots of Brixton” where we found Kibwe Tavares, culling talent from our TV arm (like Yann Demange who worked with us on the TV series “Top Boy” before making “'71”) from theater (Lucy Kirkwood who we are making a short film with and developing a feature), the arts (which is where Steve McQueen originated and is still very active) and writing (Alex Garland who adapted “Never Let Me Go” for us and went on to make his striking debut “Ex Machina”)
Sl: I notice you don’t do international sales like you used to in the 80s.
Sue Bruce Smith: Yes we shed the international sales division and the U.K. Distribution arm back in 2002 and brought the focus back to our core development and co-financing activities. We currently work with a wide range of sales agents like Protagonist, Hanway, Cornerstone, FilmNation, Westend, Pathe, Studio Canal, Independent and others.
Sl: In the early days in the 1980s operations were different.
Sue Bruce Smith: David Rose, in 1982, was the real visionary behind Film4. He decided Channel4 would be different from all other TV channels. Channel4 was the first U.K. broadcaster, through its film arm, Film on Four, to develop and co-finance films and, crucially, to allow these films to play in cinemas before their television transmission on Channel4. Our theatrical model became Film on Four and HBO, Sbs and Arte followed this lead. “Walter” by Stephen Frears followed this route in 1982. Frear's next film “My Beautiful Laundrette” followed shortly after in 1985
(An aside here by Sydney Levine):
If my readers will indulge me for a little history lesson in how films change with technological change, I want to point out that in the early days of home video, in 1985, Sue and I (a couple of the pioneer women in the modern business) shared in the good fortune resulting from the shift in the movie and TV business.
Working for the biggest TV production house in U.S. in the days of “Dallas”, I came to Lorimar to buy for home video, the fastest growing new technological distribution tool yet. We put up $175,000 advance to acquire home video rights to the Film4 feature “My Beautiful Laundrette” for U.S. $75,000 of that was to be used as P&A by theatrical distributor Orion Pictures Classics’ platform theatrical release – to platform first in N.Y. and L.A for critical reviews, and then, if profitable, to expand across the nation. It was the first British film to come to U.S. in many a year (except of course for the James Bond franchise). Orion Classics was headed by Michael Barker, Tom Bernard and Donna Gigliotti who paid no advance but used the P&A allotment wisely and well. It was a happy association that we shared a couple of more times before they moved on to form Sony Pictures Classics and I moved on to Republic Pictures, reconstructed by Cnb’s Russell Goldsmith, former CEO of Lorimar. This Film4 picture, “My Beautiful Laundrette” was by complete unknowns in the U.S. and was a first for us all. We did not know it would go on to gross $7 million at the box office (a huge amount at that time for an independent film) and would sell 75,000 video units (at $50 wholesale a piece = $3,750,000). We at Lorimar made a $1 million profit and overages of $1 million went to Channel 4 and $1 million went to Working Title. I got a $100 bonus, and we were all delighted. My association with Film4 was followed by many loyal and loving years and reunions, but that is another lesson.
To quote Adam P. Davies, the writer of the U.K. Film Finance Handbook 2005/6: How to Fund Your Film:
Stephen Frears’s 1985 “My Beautiful Laundrette” signalled a change in direction for the industry in that TV backed film investment started to feed local productions. The Channel4 film encouraged the broadcasters to increase investment in filmmaking over the late 80s and also launched Working Title, initially run by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radcliffe (who left in 1992 to run her own company) and later Eric Fellner, with whom Bevan runs the company today [in a longstanding deal with Universal-Focus]. Video distributor and producer Palace Pictures, run by Nik Powell and Stephen Woolley, followed the success in 1985 of Neil Jordan’s “Company of Wolves” with “Mona Lisa” in 1986. The British Film Commission launched in 1992 [when “The Crying Game” had its world success].
Sue was at Palace Productions when I was at Lorimar and Republic and our paths crossed many times and so I was quite eager to share the latest good fortune of the 2016 Academy Awards at a time when the Academy is being besieged by negative publicity. At that time, back in ’85, I suggested to Michael and Tom that they put up Daniel Day Lewis for Best Actor Nomination and as I recall, they told me British films or British actors in British films were not acceptable to the Academy, and so neither he nor the film was put up for nomination.
“My Beautiful Laundrette” obviously had Asian actors; it was about a gay skinhead and a Pakistani. Diversity was at its core, but it did not get past the British line of demarcation the Academy had drawn in ’85. Its ethnic boundaries might have existed if anyone had tried to test them but that was not even an issue in 1985. “Diversity” in those days did not exist as a word one used and the very idea of diversity was even more limited than today.
Film4 has had a key role in proactively promoting different voices and stories since the 1980s. And today diversity is a crucial consideration in the decisions Film4 makes about its developments and productions with the aim of increasing diversity across all areas of the business. They have several films currently in development with Bame writers and directors and are successfully working with many female directors such as Andrea Arnold, Debbie Tucker Green, Susanna White, Clio Bernard, Sarah Gavron and Lynne Ramsay.
In January last year parent company Channel4 launched the 360 Degree Diversity Charter which is all about a commitment to implementing diversity on and off screen and to measuring its progress. It is tied to Project Diamond, an industry-wide diversity monitoring system. Its results will be published in the next few months.
Film4 has developed and co-financed many of the most successful U.K. films of recent years, Academy Award-winners such as Steve McQueen’s "12 Years a Slave", Danny Boyle’s "Slumdog Millionaire", Phyllida Lloyd’s "The Iron Lady” and Martin McDonagh’s "In Bruges" in addition to critically-acclaimed award-winners such as Mike Leigh’s "Mr. Turner", Chris Morris’ "Four Lions", Shane Meadows’ "This is England", Ben Wheatley’s “Sightseers", Clio Barnard’s "The Selfish Giant" Jonathan Glazer’s "Under the Skin" and David Mackenzie’s "Starred Up".
Film4’s recent releases include; Lenny Abrahamson’s “Room", Todd Haynes’ “Carol", Sarah Gavron’s “Suffragette", Justin Kurzel’s “Macbeth", Yorgos Lanthimos’ "The Lobster", Asif Kapadia’s box office record breaking documentary “Amy", Andrew Haigh’s "45 Years", Alex Garland’s "Ex Machina", Paolo Sorrentino’s “Youth", Peter Strickland’s "The Duke of Burgundy", Daniel Wolfe’s "Catch Me Daddy" and John Maclean’s "Slow West".
Forthcoming releases include; Ben Wheatley’s "High-Rise" and "Free Fire", Ang Lee’s "Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk", Benedict Andrews’ “Una" and Andrea Arnold’s "American Honey".
For further information visit www.film4.com/productions, but for now, here is the Cheat Sheet on Film4’s 2016 Total Oscar Nominations numbering 15. It will be at my side as I watch the Awards on February. Parenthetically, I am also looking forward to watching the fashions before the show, and inside the show, to catching that one loose cannon who will deliver the only inspirational speech in a rather inspirationless, basically boring, but still worthy traditional show.
3 of 5 Oscar Best Actress Nominees – Cate Blanchett, Brie Larson, Charlotte Rampling
Nomination tally by film:
“Room” – 4 - Picture, Actress, Director, Best Adapted Screenplay
“Carol” – 6 –Actress, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Costume Design, Original Score
“Ex Machina” – 2 –Original screenplay, Visual Effects
“Amy” – 1 – Documentary Feature
“45 Years” – 1 – Actress
“Youth” – 1 – Original Song
Film4-backed films Oscar® nominations in full:
“Carol”
Actress in a Leading Role: Cate Blanchett
Actress in a Supporting Role: Rooney Mara
Adapted Screenplay: Phyllis Nagy
Achievement in Cinematography: Ed Lachman
Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original score): Carter Burwell
Achievement in Costume Design: Sandy Powell
“Room”
Best Motion Picture of the Year: Ed Guiney
Achievement in Directing: Lenny Abrahamson
Actress in a Leading Role: Brie Larson
Adapted Screenplay: Emma Donoghue
“Ex Machina”
Original Screenplay: Alex Garland
Achievement in Visual Effects: Andrew Whitehurst, Paul Norris, Mark Ardington and Sara Bennett
“45 Years”:
Actress in a Leading Role: Charlotte Rampling
“Youth”
Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original song): Simple Song # 3, music and lyrics by David Lang
“Amy”
Best Documentary Feature: Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees...
- 2/10/2016
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Your Evening Lol
Elite Daily "A Letter From The Oscar Board On Why Carol Was Totally Snubbed"
Link Love
This Had Oscar Buzz Joe Reid's hilarious tumblr of lost (on-paper) dreams
Mnpp Pic of the Day Tom Hiddleston welcomes you to High-Rise... without pants
Coming Soon Steve Coogan and John C Reilly will headline the upcoming biopic Stan & Ollie about the movie comedy duo Laurel & Hardy - any guesses as to who pretends to be supporting for the Oscar campaign?
Chud on the major changes from book to screen for The Revenant (obviously spoilers) including its completely different ending
Twitter Assassins Creed starring Michael Fassbender is a wrap. It's still nearly a year from theaters though (Dec 21st)
Variety Anne Hathaway to headline the sci-fi comedy The Shower which is being described as 'a cross between Attack the Block and Bridesmaids.' Hmmm
Variety apparently Connie Nielsen has replaced...
Elite Daily "A Letter From The Oscar Board On Why Carol Was Totally Snubbed"
Link Love
This Had Oscar Buzz Joe Reid's hilarious tumblr of lost (on-paper) dreams
Mnpp Pic of the Day Tom Hiddleston welcomes you to High-Rise... without pants
Coming Soon Steve Coogan and John C Reilly will headline the upcoming biopic Stan & Ollie about the movie comedy duo Laurel & Hardy - any guesses as to who pretends to be supporting for the Oscar campaign?
Chud on the major changes from book to screen for The Revenant (obviously spoilers) including its completely different ending
Twitter Assassins Creed starring Michael Fassbender is a wrap. It's still nearly a year from theaters though (Dec 21st)
Variety Anne Hathaway to headline the sci-fi comedy The Shower which is being described as 'a cross between Attack the Block and Bridesmaids.' Hmmm
Variety apparently Connie Nielsen has replaced...
- 1/19/2016
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Below are the songs nominated for Best Original Song. Among the nominees are David Lang’s “Simple Song #3” from Youth, Sam Smith’s “Writing’s On The Wall” from Spectre,...
- 1/17/2016
- by Jazz Tangcay
- AwardsDaily.com
Sure, Coachella iscool, but we're pretty sure the hottest concert ticket of 2016 is actually going to take place on Hollywood's biggest night. When the Academy Award nominations were announced on Thursday, music fans might have been excited to see some major names on the Best Original Song list: The Weeknd, Lady Gaga and Sam Smith all have a chance of taking home the trophy on Feb. 28. Also nominated are David Lang for "Simple Song #3" from Youth and J. Ralph and Antony Hegarty (of the band Antony and the Johnsons) for their song "Manta Ray" from Racing Extinction. And even though,...
- 1/14/2016
- by Julia Emmanuele, @julesemm
- PEOPLE.com
While diverse, this year's nominees in the Academy Awards' Best Original Song category are competing on an even playing ground. Most of the writers and performs are first-time nominees, with two-time Best Documentary winner J. Ralph and, now, eight-time Best Original Song Nominee Diane Warren as the exceptions. Still, it's an Oscar-winner free game and has many hitmakers vying for a very rare award for musicians to nab.
From booming ballads to sexy themes for Bdsm love stories to emotional rap tracks, this year's roster of nominees are representative of...
From booming ballads to sexy themes for Bdsm love stories to emotional rap tracks, this year's roster of nominees are representative of...
- 1/14/2016
- Rollingstone.com
Update 01.12.16:
And the winners are…
Awfj Best Of Awards
These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.
Best Film: Spotlight
Best Director: Tom McCarthy – Spotlight
Best Screenplay, Original: Spotlight – Josh Singer, Tom McCarthy
Best Screenplay, Adapted: Carol – Phyllis Nagy
Best Documentary: Amy
Best Animated Film: Inside Out
Best Actress: Charlotte Rampling – 45 Years
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Kristin Stewart – Clouds of Sils Maria
Best Actor: Leonardo Di Caprio – The Revenant
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Paul Dano – Love & Mercy
Best Ensemble Cast: Spotlight and Straight Outta Compton (Tie)
Best Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road – Margaret Sixel
Best Cinematography: Carol – Edward Lachman
Best Film Music or Score: The Hateful Eight – Ennio Morricone
Best Non-English-Language Film: Son of Saul
Eda Female Focus Awards
These awards honor women only.
Best Woman Director: Marielle Heller – The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Best Woman Screenwriter: Emma Donoghue...
And the winners are…
Awfj Best Of Awards
These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.
Best Film: Spotlight
Best Director: Tom McCarthy – Spotlight
Best Screenplay, Original: Spotlight – Josh Singer, Tom McCarthy
Best Screenplay, Adapted: Carol – Phyllis Nagy
Best Documentary: Amy
Best Animated Film: Inside Out
Best Actress: Charlotte Rampling – 45 Years
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Kristin Stewart – Clouds of Sils Maria
Best Actor: Leonardo Di Caprio – The Revenant
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Paul Dano – Love & Mercy
Best Ensemble Cast: Spotlight and Straight Outta Compton (Tie)
Best Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road – Margaret Sixel
Best Cinematography: Carol – Edward Lachman
Best Film Music or Score: The Hateful Eight – Ennio Morricone
Best Non-English-Language Film: Son of Saul
Eda Female Focus Awards
These awards honor women only.
Best Woman Director: Marielle Heller – The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Best Woman Screenwriter: Emma Donoghue...
- 1/12/2016
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
Years after Ricky Gervais roasted Mel Gibson at an earlier Globes show the pair hugged on stage when the Australian introduced footage from Mad Max: Fury Road.
Prior to introducing Gibson, Gervais, tongue firmly in his cheek, referred to previous bad blood between the pair. “I’m sure it’s embarrassing for both of us and I blame NBC for this terrible situation.”
After the embrace Gibson turned to the comedian and said: “I love seeing Ricky once every three years because it reminds me to get a colonoscopy.”
A subsequent exchange was bleeped out.
The Martian was named best musical or comedy. Ridley Scott accepted the award and said “Screw you” as music began to play while he thanked a long list of collaborators.
Scott rounded off by saying: “Finally I know my [late] brother Tony would have been here tonight for sure and I know many of you knew him and loved him. I love you...
Prior to introducing Gibson, Gervais, tongue firmly in his cheek, referred to previous bad blood between the pair. “I’m sure it’s embarrassing for both of us and I blame NBC for this terrible situation.”
After the embrace Gibson turned to the comedian and said: “I love seeing Ricky once every three years because it reminds me to get a colonoscopy.”
A subsequent exchange was bleeped out.
The Martian was named best musical or comedy. Ridley Scott accepted the award and said “Screw you” as music began to play while he thanked a long list of collaborators.
Scott rounded off by saying: “Finally I know my [late] brother Tony would have been here tonight for sure and I know many of you knew him and loved him. I love you...
- 1/11/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
The Revenant and The Martian shared top honours at the 2016 Golden Globe Awards for drama and musical or comedy respectively as the former also earned best director and dramatic actor and the latter best actor in a musical or comedy.Scroll down for full list of winners
Todd Haynes’ Carol headed into the ceremony at the Beverly Hilton on Sunday evening with the highest number of nominations - five - and left empty-handed. Similarly The Big Short, nominated for four, failed to translate a single nod into a trophy at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s annual shindig.
Away from the business of winning awards, arguably the most anticipated part of the evening was the inevitable encounter between show host Ricky Gervais and Mel Gibson, making his return to the limelight after years in the wilderness following a series of anti-Semitic and misogynistic remarks and erratic behaviour.
Introducing the Australian, whom he roasted...
Todd Haynes’ Carol headed into the ceremony at the Beverly Hilton on Sunday evening with the highest number of nominations - five - and left empty-handed. Similarly The Big Short, nominated for four, failed to translate a single nod into a trophy at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s annual shindig.
Away from the business of winning awards, arguably the most anticipated part of the evening was the inevitable encounter between show host Ricky Gervais and Mel Gibson, making his return to the limelight after years in the wilderness following a series of anti-Semitic and misogynistic remarks and erratic behaviour.
Introducing the Australian, whom he roasted...
- 1/10/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Like Frank Zappa, Yale professor David Lang is a highbrow composer with a taste for the bizarre, and an artist who has smuggled difficult work into mass culture. “Paradoxically, people are willing to hear stranger things in film than in the real world — film audiences are more open to music than a music audience is,” said Lang, whose art song “Simple Song #3” in Paolo Sorrentino’s “Youth” is a contender for the Best Original Song Oscar. Instead of coming in at the end of filming, like most composers, Lang wrote the tune beforehand. The idea was to define the entire.
- 1/8/2016
- by Tim Appelo
- The Wrap
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists has announced the nominees for their 2015 Eda Awards recognizing the amazing work done by and about women -- both in front and behind the camera. According to their site, "the EDAs are named in honor of Awfj founder Jennifer Merin.s mother, Eda Reiss Merin, a stage, film and television actress whose career spanned more than 60 years. A dedicated foot soldier in the industry, Eda was one of the founders of AFTRA and a long-standing Member of AMPAS."
Todd Haynes' "Carol" led the pack with nine nominations, followed by "Mad Max: Fury Road" with six, "Room" and "Spotlight" with five each, and "The Martian" with four.
I wish I can vote for the Eda Awards because their Special Mention Awards are just too darn fun with categories like "Best Nudity," and "Actress Most In Need of a New Agent!"
Winners of the 2015 Eda...
Todd Haynes' "Carol" led the pack with nine nominations, followed by "Mad Max: Fury Road" with six, "Room" and "Spotlight" with five each, and "The Martian" with four.
I wish I can vote for the Eda Awards because their Special Mention Awards are just too darn fun with categories like "Best Nudity," and "Actress Most In Need of a New Agent!"
Winners of the 2015 Eda...
- 1/5/2016
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
1. "Simple Song #3" ("Youth"): Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang looked inward at his minimalistic roots to compose this song that summarizes the life of a retired conductor (Michael Caine) forced to confront his mortality at a Fellini-esque Swiss spa. He also found inspiration in Igor Stravinsky's mathematical precision but at the same time was emotionally demonstrative. The result is that the entire movie hangs on a song that's anything but simple. 2. "Writing's on the Wall" ("Spectre"): Despite some sniping from hardcore fans, Sam Smith’s melancholy ballad became the first James Bond theme to reach #1 in the UK. He captures the essence of Bond's Pov, which is a rarity: he's lonely and trapped and looking for a way out. In fact, Smith, who was touched by Bond's vulnerability, admitted that Sam Mendes instructed him to write a love song about 007 calling it quits. Read More: The 6 Best Score Oscar Contenders.
- 12/29/2015
- by Bill Desowitz
- Thompson on Hollywood
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists has announced the nominees for the 2015 Eda Awards.
Carol leads this year’s nominations with nine, followed by Mad Max: Fury Road with six, Room and Spotlight with five each, and The Martian with four.
The Awfj is an association of professional female movie critics, reporters and feature writers working in print, broadcast and online media, dedicated to supporting work by and about women – both in front of and behind the cameras.
The Eda Award winners will be announced on January 12, 2016.
Awfj Best Of Awards
These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.
Best Film
Carol
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
Room
Spotlight
Best Director
Lenny Abramson – Room
Todd Haynes – Carol
Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu – The Revenant
Tom McCarthy – Spotlight
George Miller – Mad Max Fury Road
Ridley Scott – The Martian
Best Screenplay, Original
Ex Machina – Alex Garland
Inside Out – Pete Docter,...
Carol leads this year’s nominations with nine, followed by Mad Max: Fury Road with six, Room and Spotlight with five each, and The Martian with four.
The Awfj is an association of professional female movie critics, reporters and feature writers working in print, broadcast and online media, dedicated to supporting work by and about women – both in front of and behind the cameras.
The Eda Award winners will be announced on January 12, 2016.
Awfj Best Of Awards
These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.
Best Film
Carol
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
Room
Spotlight
Best Director
Lenny Abramson – Room
Todd Haynes – Carol
Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu – The Revenant
Tom McCarthy – Spotlight
George Miller – Mad Max Fury Road
Ridley Scott – The Martian
Best Screenplay, Original
Ex Machina – Alex Garland
Inside Out – Pete Docter,...
- 12/28/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
At Deadline’s big day-long awards-season event The Contenders Presented By Deadline last month, Youth composer David Lang explained his process to a packed DGA Theatre audience of AMPAS and guild voters. Speaking on the Fox Searchlight panel, Lang focused on his collaboration with director Paolo Sorrentino in creating music that would reflect the emotional journey of the main character — a newly retired composer — played by Michael Caine. Because the film is indeed, in…...
- 12/23/2015
- Deadline
Best Picture:
The Big Short, Paramount
Ex Machina, A24 Films
Inside Out, Disney/Pixar
Mad Max: Fury Road, Warner Bros.
The Martian, 20th Century Fox
The Revenant, 20th Century Fox
Room, A24 Films
Sicario, Lionsgate
Spotlight, Open Road Films
Steve Jobs, Universal
Best Direction Of A Motion Picture:
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, The Revenant
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Lenny Abrahamson, Room
Ridley Scott, The Martian
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
Best Performance By An Actor In A Leading Role:
Brian Cranston, Trumbo
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Matt Damon, The Martian
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Tom Hardy, Legend
Best Performance By An Actress In A Leading Role:
Brie Larsen, Room
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Charlize Theron, Mad Max: Fury Road
Emily Blunt, Sicario
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn
Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role:
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Michael Shannon, 99 Homes
Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Tom Hardy, The Revenant...
The Big Short, Paramount
Ex Machina, A24 Films
Inside Out, Disney/Pixar
Mad Max: Fury Road, Warner Bros.
The Martian, 20th Century Fox
The Revenant, 20th Century Fox
Room, A24 Films
Sicario, Lionsgate
Spotlight, Open Road Films
Steve Jobs, Universal
Best Direction Of A Motion Picture:
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, The Revenant
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Lenny Abrahamson, Room
Ridley Scott, The Martian
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
Best Performance By An Actor In A Leading Role:
Brian Cranston, Trumbo
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Matt Damon, The Martian
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Tom Hardy, Legend
Best Performance By An Actress In A Leading Role:
Brie Larsen, Room
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Charlize Theron, Mad Max: Fury Road
Emily Blunt, Sicario
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn
Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role:
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Michael Shannon, 99 Homes
Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Tom Hardy, The Revenant...
- 12/18/2015
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
Photo by Gianni Fiorito. © 2015 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation All Rights Reserved
Youth centers on two life-long friends, both successful and famous, a film director and composer/orchestra conductor, who are vacationing together in a posh Swiss resort. Michael Caine plays the retired composer/conductor Fred Balinger and Harvey Keitel plays director Mick Boyle, who isn’t retired but is working on what he thinks may be his last important film.
This lushly beautiful, intelligent, and moving English-language film is directed and written by Paolo Sorrentino, who won the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar for “The Great Beauty” last year. Besides that Oscar winner, Sorrentino also directed “Il Divo,” a chilling look inside Italian politics, and the comic and strange road movie “This Must Be The Place,” with Sean Penn as an aging rocker honoring his Jewish grandfather’s last request. Sorrentino’s skill as a director is widely acknowledged but his complex,...
Youth centers on two life-long friends, both successful and famous, a film director and composer/orchestra conductor, who are vacationing together in a posh Swiss resort. Michael Caine plays the retired composer/conductor Fred Balinger and Harvey Keitel plays director Mick Boyle, who isn’t retired but is working on what he thinks may be his last important film.
This lushly beautiful, intelligent, and moving English-language film is directed and written by Paolo Sorrentino, who won the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar for “The Great Beauty” last year. Besides that Oscar winner, Sorrentino also directed “Il Divo,” a chilling look inside Italian politics, and the comic and strange road movie “This Must Be The Place,” with Sean Penn as an aging rocker honoring his Jewish grandfather’s last request. Sorrentino’s skill as a director is widely acknowledged but his complex,...
- 12/18/2015
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Watch this brand new feature from Fox Searchlight on the music in Youth. Director Paolo Sorrentino talks about the creative way in which music is used in the film. Last month,...
- 12/15/2015
- by Jazz Tangcay
- AwardsDaily.com
From Paolo Sorrentino, the internationally renowned writer and director of Italy’s Oscar-winning foreign language film The Great Beauty, comes Youth – a poignant tale of how we each find our own passion in life.
Starring Academy Award winner Michael Caine as Fred and Academy Award nominee Harvey Keitel as Mick, Youth explores the lifelong bond between two friends vacationing in a luxury Swiss Alps lodge as they ponder retirement.
While Fred has no plans to resume his musical career despite the urging of his loving daughter Lena (Academy Award Winner Rachel Weisz), Mick is intent on finishing the screenplay for what may be his last important film for his muse Brenda (Golden Globe nominee, Academy Award winner Jane Fonda). And where will inspiration lead their younger friend Jimmy (Paul Dano), an actor grasping to make sense of his next performance?
Set against a sprawling landscape of unforgettable sights and intoxicating music,...
Starring Academy Award winner Michael Caine as Fred and Academy Award nominee Harvey Keitel as Mick, Youth explores the lifelong bond between two friends vacationing in a luxury Swiss Alps lodge as they ponder retirement.
While Fred has no plans to resume his musical career despite the urging of his loving daughter Lena (Academy Award Winner Rachel Weisz), Mick is intent on finishing the screenplay for what may be his last important film for his muse Brenda (Golden Globe nominee, Academy Award winner Jane Fonda). And where will inspiration lead their younger friend Jimmy (Paul Dano), an actor grasping to make sense of his next performance?
Set against a sprawling landscape of unforgettable sights and intoxicating music,...
- 12/11/2015
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Nominees for the 73rd Annual Golden Globe Awards were announced this morning from the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA.
Todd Haynes’ Carol received the most nominations with five nominations including Best Motion Picture, Drama, Best Director, Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama for both Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara and Best Original Score for Carter Burwell.
The Big Short, The Revenant, Steve Jobs received four each, while The Danish Girl, The Hateful Eight, The Martian, Spotlight and Room received three globe noms a piece. Best surprises of the morning were the inclusions in the supporting actor category – Sylvester Stallone for his performance in Creed and Paul Dano’s portrayal of Brian Wilson in Love & Mercy.
Noticeably absent from today’s announcement were Tom Hanks (Bridge Of Spies), Johnny Depp (Black Mass), Michael Keaton and Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight).
The Academy announces their nominations next month live on Thursday,...
Todd Haynes’ Carol received the most nominations with five nominations including Best Motion Picture, Drama, Best Director, Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama for both Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara and Best Original Score for Carter Burwell.
The Big Short, The Revenant, Steve Jobs received four each, while The Danish Girl, The Hateful Eight, The Martian, Spotlight and Room received three globe noms a piece. Best surprises of the morning were the inclusions in the supporting actor category – Sylvester Stallone for his performance in Creed and Paul Dano’s portrayal of Brian Wilson in Love & Mercy.
Noticeably absent from today’s announcement were Tom Hanks (Bridge Of Spies), Johnny Depp (Black Mass), Michael Keaton and Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight).
The Academy announces their nominations next month live on Thursday,...
- 12/10/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Joy, surprise and humility on a day of celebration for film’s leading lights.
Thursday brought good news for plenty in the industry as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominees.
Screendaily spoke to some of the nominees. The Golden Globe awards ceremony will take place on January 10, 2016 in Los Angeles.
Best Motion Picture – Drama
“We are swept away by the generosity of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association with five Golden Globe nominations, and especially the double best actress nomination of Cate and Rooney. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the hard work of Number 9, Killer and Film 4 come to light in the making of this wonderful Todd Haynes film.”
Producers Elizabeth Karlsen, Stephen Woolley & Christine Vachon, Carol
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
“I am grateful to the HFPA for recognising Joy and the picture’s leading light, Jennifer, who has taken new risks, across the lifespan story of this picture that can spread inspiration...
Thursday brought good news for plenty in the industry as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominees.
Screendaily spoke to some of the nominees. The Golden Globe awards ceremony will take place on January 10, 2016 in Los Angeles.
Best Motion Picture – Drama
“We are swept away by the generosity of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association with five Golden Globe nominations, and especially the double best actress nomination of Cate and Rooney. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the hard work of Number 9, Killer and Film 4 come to light in the making of this wonderful Todd Haynes film.”
Producers Elizabeth Karlsen, Stephen Woolley & Christine Vachon, Carol
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
“I am grateful to the HFPA for recognising Joy and the picture’s leading light, Jennifer, who has taken new risks, across the lifespan story of this picture that can spread inspiration...
- 12/10/2015
- ScreenDaily
Joy, surprise and humility on a day of celebration for film’s leading lights.
Thursday brought good news for plenty in the industry as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominees.
Screendaily spoke to some of the nominees. The Golden Globe awards ceremony will take place on January 10, 2016 in Los Angeles.
Best Motion Picture – Drama
“We are swept away by the generosity of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association with five Golden Globe nominations, and especially the double best actress nomination of Cate and Rooney. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the hard work of Number 9, Killer and Film 4 come to light in the making of this wonderful Todd Haynes film.”
Producers Elizabeth Karlsen, Stephen Woolley & Christine Vachon, Carol
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
“I am grateful to the HFPA for recognising Joy and the picture’s leading light, Jennifer, who has taken new risks, across the lifespan story of this picture that can spread inspiration...
Thursday brought good news for plenty in the industry as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominees.
Screendaily spoke to some of the nominees. The Golden Globe awards ceremony will take place on January 10, 2016 in Los Angeles.
Best Motion Picture – Drama
“We are swept away by the generosity of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association with five Golden Globe nominations, and especially the double best actress nomination of Cate and Rooney. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the hard work of Number 9, Killer and Film 4 come to light in the making of this wonderful Todd Haynes film.”
Producers Elizabeth Karlsen, Stephen Woolley & Christine Vachon, Carol
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
“I am grateful to the HFPA for recognising Joy and the picture’s leading light, Jennifer, who has taken new risks, across the lifespan story of this picture that can spread inspiration...
- 12/10/2015
- ScreenDaily
Full list of nominations; The Big Short, The Revenant, Steve Jobs secure four nods.Scroll down for full list of nominations
Todd Haynes’ Carol leads the nominations for the 2016 Golden Globe Awards nominations, which were revealed this morning at the Beverley Hills Hilton Hotel.
The period drama, based on the Patricia Highsmith novel, secured nominations for best film (drama), lead actresses Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, director Haynes and Carter Burwell for best original score.
In the best film (drama) category, Carol will compete against Mad Max: Fury Road, The Revenant, Room and Spotlight.
In the best actress (drama) category, Blanchett and Mara will go up against Brie Larson for Room, Saoirse Ronan for Brooklyn (the film’s sole nomination) and Alicia Vikander for The Danish Girl.
The best actor (drama) category, Bryan Cranston (Trumbo) will be in competition with Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant), Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs), Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl) and Will Smith ([link...
Todd Haynes’ Carol leads the nominations for the 2016 Golden Globe Awards nominations, which were revealed this morning at the Beverley Hills Hilton Hotel.
The period drama, based on the Patricia Highsmith novel, secured nominations for best film (drama), lead actresses Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, director Haynes and Carter Burwell for best original score.
In the best film (drama) category, Carol will compete against Mad Max: Fury Road, The Revenant, Room and Spotlight.
In the best actress (drama) category, Blanchett and Mara will go up against Brie Larson for Room, Saoirse Ronan for Brooklyn (the film’s sole nomination) and Alicia Vikander for The Danish Girl.
The best actor (drama) category, Bryan Cranston (Trumbo) will be in competition with Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant), Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs), Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl) and Will Smith ([link...
- 12/10/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Paolo Sorrentino makes movies the way musicians create music—lingering themes swirl together with short spurts of philosophical flirtation and bawdy jokes, placid imagery routinely collides with florid representation and the occasional heavily laden visual metaphor. But they also have an ephemeral quality which suggests a certain resistance to the rigidity of interpretation, that the experience of the way the images and sounds come together (or don’t) is the primary attraction. And it’s all seemingly colored by an underlying suspicion that whether it’s the devil or the divine in the details, to resist luxuriating in them would be to risk missing the overarching emotional pull Sorrentino’s movies are capable of, which for all their intellectual dabbling is what ends up being their most potent and meaningful quality.
A movie like The Great Beauty seems itself to sing, its techno-blasted party-at-the-edge-of-eternity vibe in contrapuntal balance with the...
A movie like The Great Beauty seems itself to sing, its techno-blasted party-at-the-edge-of-eternity vibe in contrapuntal balance with the...
- 12/4/2015
- by Dennis Cozzalio
- Trailers from Hell
I’ve been teasing it out for a few weeks, but I absolutely adored Youth. Paolo Sorrentino’s film is a beautiful feast for the eyes, incredibly well acted by the quartet of Michael Caine, Paul Dano, Jane Fonda, and Harvey Keitel, not to mention incredibly poignant. Reviews out of the Cannes Film Festival had been mostly positive, but I was very nearly blown away by how great this was. Not only is it among the top dozen things I’ve seen this year, I think it has a good chance to be an under the radar Oscar contender in the acting categories, among other places. I’d watch out for Youth, which opens in limited release on Friday… The movie is a drama with comedic tinges. We follow retired orchestra composer Fred Ballinger (Caine) as he spends an annual holiday at a resort in the Alps. He’s joined,...
- 11/30/2015
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
In “Youth,” Michael Caine plays a world renowned composer reflecting upon his past and his future while vacationing in the Swiss Alps. David Lang, himself a world renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, felt a special kinship with the character when he was brought on board to write the score. As he tells us during a recent webcam chat (watch below), “I really wanted it to be as accurate as possible. I really wanted to feel that this man was a real composer. It’s such a great gift to my field -- to nerdy classical musicians everywhere -- to make a major motion picture about a composer. -Break- Subscribe to Gold Derby Breaking News Alerts & Experts’ Latest Oscar Predictions He continues, "I really loved the idea that it might be something that would happen to me. I really did try to project myself into the character as much as possible.” Lang...
- 11/26/2015
- Gold Derby
David Lang isn’t used to the press extravaganza. He’s on day two of a three-day press extravaganza for Youth and is having a lot of fun. I sat...
- 11/20/2015
- by Jazz Tangcay
- AwardsDaily.com
Photo by Gianni Fiorito. © 2015 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation All Rights Reserved
From Paolo Sorrentino, the director of Italy’s Oscar foreign language winner The Great Beauty comes Youth, about two longtime friends vacationing in the Swiss Alps.
Oscar winning actor Michael Caine plays Fred, an acclaimed composer and conductor, who brings along his daughter (Rachel Weisz) and best friend Mick (Harvey Keitel), a renowned filmmaker.
While Mick scrambles to finish the screenplay for what he imagines will be his last important film, Fred has no intention of resuming his musical career. The two men reflect on their past, each finding that some of the most important experiences can come later in life.
Fox Searchlight has released an emotional new clip from the upcoming movie.
The film features an original score by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang, who first met Sorrentino when his composition “I Lie” was used in The Great Beauty.
From Paolo Sorrentino, the director of Italy’s Oscar foreign language winner The Great Beauty comes Youth, about two longtime friends vacationing in the Swiss Alps.
Oscar winning actor Michael Caine plays Fred, an acclaimed composer and conductor, who brings along his daughter (Rachel Weisz) and best friend Mick (Harvey Keitel), a renowned filmmaker.
While Mick scrambles to finish the screenplay for what he imagines will be his last important film, Fred has no intention of resuming his musical career. The two men reflect on their past, each finding that some of the most important experiences can come later in life.
Fox Searchlight has released an emotional new clip from the upcoming movie.
The film features an original score by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang, who first met Sorrentino when his composition “I Lie” was used in The Great Beauty.
- 11/18/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Personally I think Paolo Sorrentino is too young to be ruminating on age. But to listen to Harvey Keitel and Michael Caine as they face the hurdles of growing old is a treat. And in the end, this is a film about youth, not old age.
In the 1980s producers Hisami Kuroiwa and Peter Newman created the two hit films “Smoke” and “Blue in the Face” in which Harvey Keitel played a younger version of himself while living in Brooklyn in a working class neighborhood. Now in “ Youth”, he is a director of some note, planning his next production to star the great “Brenda” (Jane Fonda) while holing up with his crew in an A level sanitorium (spa) somewhere in the Swiss Alps. La Fonda is superb as a brassy, vulgar star who in her sneering way causes Harvey to lose hope in the future. Future is an attribute of Youth.
While memory shows the past forgotten and far away, it is the future that looks so close and that keeps us young. Harvey Keitel demonstrates this to his crew by having them look though the different ends of a telescope. The demonstration of the different views captures the essence of this film as it looks out upon the beautiful clean mountain nature of the Swiss Alps.
Michael Caine, a retired composer and conductor, and his daughter played by Rachel Weisz, are superb as only a father and daughter of their high caliber could be. While Caine refuses to appear before the Queen to conduct his simple tunes created and sung only by his deceased wife, he is able to conduct nature and its noises divinely and is able to reconstruct a future for himself and his daughter.
This Pathe-sold, Pathe coproduction between Italy, France , Great Britain and Switzerland, looks like the sequel to “A Great Beauty” and like most sequels, it falls short of its model. Part Fellini and party Thomas Mann (Magic Mountain) the visuals and the music almost exceed the film itself. However, the cast holds the entity together and like life on Magic Mountain, the audience must allow itself to sink into the posh comfort while dealing with the distinct discomforts of life’s aging processes.
In the press conference, a large dias with Paulo Sorrentino, Paul Dano
Harvey Keitel, Michael Caine, Rachel Weisz and Jane Fonda, in a smallish press room spoke of what made them work on this film; what past roles they, like the actor in the film, could not shake off; their thoughts on aging, how it is to work in Hollywood with Hollywood mores.
Watch the press conference here:
http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/mediaPlayer/15329.html
Jane said, “This film is not a satire on Hollywood, it is very true to life. The relationship between the actress Brenda, and her producer-director is very true to life, ‘a la Sorrentino’, that is, somewhat surreal.”
Michael Caine’s response to the question of working in Hollywood and the relationships among actors, directors and producers was that “Making movies is the same everywhere, only [in Hollywood] you get more money for it.”
It has been 49 years since Michael Caine was in Cannes. “Alfie” 50 years ago won in Cannes, but he did not, and so he never came back. This time however he loves the film so much that he would go with it anywhere for free. “If any of us gests an award we all [the cast] should get awards.”
Someone asked Sorrentino about his choice of the Norwegian group. He looked a bit confused and said he did not choose them. His music supervisor and composer, David Lang did it all.
His Dp, Luca Bigazzi, and he have been friends for a very long time and Sorrentino’s own vision and the Dp’s are very close to the same. It is the visuals which are always most outstanding in his films and within such a framework, the characters he studies are rigorously tested by the high level of circumstances in which they must perform. This is literal for the actors as well as for the characters who find themselves in the top, almost god-like position.
When asked, “Have any roles stuck to them longer perhaps than they would like?”
· La Fonda immediately spoke up naming “Barbarella” which has stuck to her and said she, she is conflicted by it.
Harvey answered “no”. · Rachel said “The Mummy”. “I don’t regret it at all, but young people are always saying, ‘Oh you’re from ‘The Mummy’. I like it.”
· Michael Caine said “Alfie” and commented on Alfie being a womanizer whereas he has been married to the same woman for 46 years.
Why is Sorrentino so interested in the passage of time?
“This is the only thing that interests people”, he said, “me at least. The theme fascinates me. I am passionately interested in the future which gives us freedom. The future gives us the feeling of youth. Optimistically, it dispels our fears.”
The question arose about how Sorrentino got such a wonderful ensemble:
Harvey: “Everyone of us has personal reasons for working in this film. We all have feelings about time.”
Paul Dano: “For me, it comes from the writing. I pore over it and figure out how we’ll do what we do. Paulo’s writing is wonderful.”
Rachel agrees with both but for her it’s all about the director, unifed in turn by a piece of music. How a director directs gives a point of view. If another director directed this movie, it would be an entirely different movie.
Michael Caine, who already cited the fact that both he and Harvey Keitel were soldiers though at different times, but that they share a soldierly bond in their long-time friendship, again cited being a soldier, going into an extremely dangerous situation in which you try to keep everyone alive. This was his experience with “Youth”.
Paolo added that “Music and cinema are two forms of art, two forms of beauty that will never disappear and is constantly changing”
On aging:
Jane spoke of her obvious make up in her scene, showing her vulnerability to aging.
Michael Caine spoke of showing his aging body.
Jane answered, “Yes one is vulnerable playing an old woman putting up the mask of makeup. When she removes it (and the wig) she becomes very vulnerable and that is fun to play.”
How does Jane Fonda define youth?
“Age is very much a question of attitude. If you have passion in your life, you are young. You remain young and vital in mind when you have passion in your life. I do and the film does.”...
In the 1980s producers Hisami Kuroiwa and Peter Newman created the two hit films “Smoke” and “Blue in the Face” in which Harvey Keitel played a younger version of himself while living in Brooklyn in a working class neighborhood. Now in “ Youth”, he is a director of some note, planning his next production to star the great “Brenda” (Jane Fonda) while holing up with his crew in an A level sanitorium (spa) somewhere in the Swiss Alps. La Fonda is superb as a brassy, vulgar star who in her sneering way causes Harvey to lose hope in the future. Future is an attribute of Youth.
While memory shows the past forgotten and far away, it is the future that looks so close and that keeps us young. Harvey Keitel demonstrates this to his crew by having them look though the different ends of a telescope. The demonstration of the different views captures the essence of this film as it looks out upon the beautiful clean mountain nature of the Swiss Alps.
Michael Caine, a retired composer and conductor, and his daughter played by Rachel Weisz, are superb as only a father and daughter of their high caliber could be. While Caine refuses to appear before the Queen to conduct his simple tunes created and sung only by his deceased wife, he is able to conduct nature and its noises divinely and is able to reconstruct a future for himself and his daughter.
This Pathe-sold, Pathe coproduction between Italy, France , Great Britain and Switzerland, looks like the sequel to “A Great Beauty” and like most sequels, it falls short of its model. Part Fellini and party Thomas Mann (Magic Mountain) the visuals and the music almost exceed the film itself. However, the cast holds the entity together and like life on Magic Mountain, the audience must allow itself to sink into the posh comfort while dealing with the distinct discomforts of life’s aging processes.
In the press conference, a large dias with Paulo Sorrentino, Paul Dano
Harvey Keitel, Michael Caine, Rachel Weisz and Jane Fonda, in a smallish press room spoke of what made them work on this film; what past roles they, like the actor in the film, could not shake off; their thoughts on aging, how it is to work in Hollywood with Hollywood mores.
Watch the press conference here:
http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/mediaPlayer/15329.html
Jane said, “This film is not a satire on Hollywood, it is very true to life. The relationship between the actress Brenda, and her producer-director is very true to life, ‘a la Sorrentino’, that is, somewhat surreal.”
Michael Caine’s response to the question of working in Hollywood and the relationships among actors, directors and producers was that “Making movies is the same everywhere, only [in Hollywood] you get more money for it.”
It has been 49 years since Michael Caine was in Cannes. “Alfie” 50 years ago won in Cannes, but he did not, and so he never came back. This time however he loves the film so much that he would go with it anywhere for free. “If any of us gests an award we all [the cast] should get awards.”
Someone asked Sorrentino about his choice of the Norwegian group. He looked a bit confused and said he did not choose them. His music supervisor and composer, David Lang did it all.
His Dp, Luca Bigazzi, and he have been friends for a very long time and Sorrentino’s own vision and the Dp’s are very close to the same. It is the visuals which are always most outstanding in his films and within such a framework, the characters he studies are rigorously tested by the high level of circumstances in which they must perform. This is literal for the actors as well as for the characters who find themselves in the top, almost god-like position.
When asked, “Have any roles stuck to them longer perhaps than they would like?”
· La Fonda immediately spoke up naming “Barbarella” which has stuck to her and said she, she is conflicted by it.
Harvey answered “no”. · Rachel said “The Mummy”. “I don’t regret it at all, but young people are always saying, ‘Oh you’re from ‘The Mummy’. I like it.”
· Michael Caine said “Alfie” and commented on Alfie being a womanizer whereas he has been married to the same woman for 46 years.
Why is Sorrentino so interested in the passage of time?
“This is the only thing that interests people”, he said, “me at least. The theme fascinates me. I am passionately interested in the future which gives us freedom. The future gives us the feeling of youth. Optimistically, it dispels our fears.”
The question arose about how Sorrentino got such a wonderful ensemble:
Harvey: “Everyone of us has personal reasons for working in this film. We all have feelings about time.”
Paul Dano: “For me, it comes from the writing. I pore over it and figure out how we’ll do what we do. Paulo’s writing is wonderful.”
Rachel agrees with both but for her it’s all about the director, unifed in turn by a piece of music. How a director directs gives a point of view. If another director directed this movie, it would be an entirely different movie.
Michael Caine, who already cited the fact that both he and Harvey Keitel were soldiers though at different times, but that they share a soldierly bond in their long-time friendship, again cited being a soldier, going into an extremely dangerous situation in which you try to keep everyone alive. This was his experience with “Youth”.
Paolo added that “Music and cinema are two forms of art, two forms of beauty that will never disappear and is constantly changing”
On aging:
Jane spoke of her obvious make up in her scene, showing her vulnerability to aging.
Michael Caine spoke of showing his aging body.
Jane answered, “Yes one is vulnerable playing an old woman putting up the mask of makeup. When she removes it (and the wig) she becomes very vulnerable and that is fun to play.”
How does Jane Fonda define youth?
“Age is very much a question of attitude. If you have passion in your life, you are young. You remain young and vital in mind when you have passion in your life. I do and the film does.”...
- 6/16/2015
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Cannes — Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino has already dipped his toe into the familiar genre of characters of a certain age reminiscing about the good old days with 2013's "The Great Beauty." He even won an Oscar for it. Two years later he returns to the Cannes Film Festival with "Youth," a follow-up that stands besides "Great Beauty" thematically while also presenting a decidedly different point of view. “Youth” starts off with The Retrosettes Sister Band performing a cover of “You Got the Love," interpreted in a retro style and a twist on the old adage “everything old is new again.” In this case, everything new is old again, a theme that may or may not apply to the central characters in Sorrentino’s cinematic opera. The movie centers on Fred Ballinger (Michael Caine), a legendary British composer and conductor, and Mick Boyle (Harvey Keitel), a famous American film director. Friends for 60 years,...
- 5/22/2015
- by Gregory Ellwood
- Hitfix
Hop to it! Principal dancers Tiler Peck (top), Robert Fairchild (left), Amar Ramasar (middle) and Tyler Angle (right). Photograph by Henry Leutwyler (2010). Courtesy of New York City Ballet. Art New York’s cultural epicenter shifts that much closer to its geographic center this week, when Lincoln Center hosts dueling events on October 7. For jazz lovers, there’s the public listening party for the Savory Collection, a recently discovered, top-shelf set of 1930s recordings by Count Basie, Billie Holiday, Fats Waller, and others. And for ballet enthusiasts, the New York City Ballet holds their annual Fall Gala. Between beloved works by George Balanchine, a new ballet premieres: Plainspoken is choreographed by principal dancer Benjamin Millepied with music by David Lang. Sarah Jessica Parker—a tutu-lover if there ever was one—takes a turn as the event’s honorary chair. jalc.org, nycballet.com...
- 10/1/2010
- Vanity Fair
Chicago – One of the great overlooked films of 2009 was the slyly titled “(Untitled).” Jonathan Parker, the writer/director of the film, fashions a sharp yet human tale about the world of art galleries and the next-big-thing. The (Untitled) DVD and Blu-Ray is being released on September 21st, 2010.
(Untitled) is a take-off on the ubiquitous name that artists give their works when mere descriptive words are not enough. The film features Adam Goldberg, Eton Bailey and Marley Shelton as an unusual triangle of artists and art representatives. Shelton plays gallery owner Madeleine, whose life’s purpose is to find the next cutting-edge artist. Goldberg and Bailey play brothers, one a successful hotel lobby artist, the other a struggling composer of atonal symphonies. Their interplay is the basis for commentary about the eternal question of ‘What is Art?’
Adam Goldberg and Marley Shelton Get Direction from Jonathan Parker in ‘(Untitled)’
Photo credit:...
(Untitled) is a take-off on the ubiquitous name that artists give their works when mere descriptive words are not enough. The film features Adam Goldberg, Eton Bailey and Marley Shelton as an unusual triangle of artists and art representatives. Shelton plays gallery owner Madeleine, whose life’s purpose is to find the next cutting-edge artist. Goldberg and Bailey play brothers, one a successful hotel lobby artist, the other a struggling composer of atonal symphonies. Their interplay is the basis for commentary about the eternal question of ‘What is Art?’
Adam Goldberg and Marley Shelton Get Direction from Jonathan Parker in ‘(Untitled)’
Photo credit:...
- 9/21/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
What is art? Can a thumbtack on an otherwise blank wall be a picture? Can someone kicking a bucket filled with chains be music? Most of us, with good reason, would say no. It takes more inherent talent to make art; more then just sticking a tack up on a wall or just making seemingly random noise. If that’s you, go listen to Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band. Go on, we’ll wait. It was considered the 58th best album in Rolling Stone magazine’s “Top 500 albums of all time.” As you listen to it you may think there’s a lot of improvising going on. On the contrary, these songs were notated and practiced, in order to be played the exact same way every time. Crazy, huh? If that’s not enough, go into any modern art gallery and you will, more often then not,...
- 10/23/2009
- by Marco Duran
- Atomic Popcorn
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