This wobbly but well-intentioned broadside against racism has been sitting on the shelf since it won the Dramatic Audience Award at Sundance 2018. What gives? Could it be that this true tale of 1990s Kkk resurgence has nothing to say to the here and now? Not if you live in the real world, where incidents like the white-supremacist Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, have sparked a resurgence of racist attacks from Parkland to El Paso. Just as Spike Lee’s BlackKklansman used an incident from the 1970s to show...
- 2/27/2020
- by Peter Travers
- Rollingstone.com
In this earnest, if limited drama, Jamie Bell plays a far-right footsoldier trying to quit a white-power cult after he falls in love
Jamie Bell’s tough performance carries this forthright, earnest, if limited drama, based on the true story of a far-right American skinhead called Bryon Widner and his attempts to leave a neo-Nazi white-power cult. This involved the agonising removal of his grotesque facial tattoos with their various Hitlerian symbols and fantasy nordic insignia. It’s a vivid metaphor for the denazification process.
The film is written and directed by Israeli-born film-maker Guy Nattiv (working from a TV documentary called Erasing Hate). He was an Oscar-winner this year for his short film, Skin – which has no relation to this feature, other than a shared thematic concern with racial conflict.
Jamie Bell’s tough performance carries this forthright, earnest, if limited drama, based on the true story of a far-right American skinhead called Bryon Widner and his attempts to leave a neo-Nazi white-power cult. This involved the agonising removal of his grotesque facial tattoos with their various Hitlerian symbols and fantasy nordic insignia. It’s a vivid metaphor for the denazification process.
The film is written and directed by Israeli-born film-maker Guy Nattiv (working from a TV documentary called Erasing Hate). He was an Oscar-winner this year for his short film, Skin – which has no relation to this feature, other than a shared thematic concern with racial conflict.
- 9/27/2019
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Jamie Bell admits he was hesitant to sign on to star in “Skin,” his new indie drama about Bryon Widner, a real-life neo-Nazi who left the white supremacy movement and became an FBI informant.
“I was very scared, honestly,” says Bell, who stars as Widner. “There was a lot of fear and trepidation about doing this movie. I was worried. I think that these are a group of people that are not to be messed with, really. They are organized, they’re armed. They’ve shown and they continue to show that they are people who don’t mind being out in the daylight. They don’t care that their faces are out there carrying torches, saying things they they’re saying, carrying the slogans that they’re carrying. So, just from a literal sense of safety, I was afraid.”
I sat down with Bell for this week’s...
“I was very scared, honestly,” says Bell, who stars as Widner. “There was a lot of fear and trepidation about doing this movie. I was worried. I think that these are a group of people that are not to be messed with, really. They are organized, they’re armed. They’ve shown and they continue to show that they are people who don’t mind being out in the daylight. They don’t care that their faces are out there carrying torches, saying things they they’re saying, carrying the slogans that they’re carrying. So, just from a literal sense of safety, I was afraid.”
I sat down with Bell for this week’s...
- 7/25/2019
- by Marc Malkin
- Variety Film + TV
It has been an interesting year for filmmaker Guy Nattiv. Back in January, he took his feature Skin to the Sundance Film Festival, right as his short of the same name was catching on as a potential Oscar winner. The movie got strong buzz at Sundance, then saw its star shine a bit more as the short won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short. Now, after stops at the Tribeca Film Festival and other preview places, the flick now hits theaters (after having been made available on DirectTV for a bit now). Skin is a movie with a tremendous lead performance, though not quite enough else to warrant a recommendation. Expanding on the idea of his short, the film is also based on an MSNBC documentary from 2012. When we meet Bryon Widner (Jamie Bell), he’s covered from head to toe in racist tattoos and a major part...
- 7/25/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
“If the audience didn’t believe in the tattoos, we were dead before we even began,” says director Guy Nattiv of “Skin,” a reality-based drama about white supremacist Bryon Widner, who renounced those beliefs and his body-covering markings.
So Nattiv tapped Emmy-winning makeup maestro Stephen Bettles for the job — a massive project that Bettles says required 14 face and 39 body tattoos just for actor Jamie Bell, who stars as Widner. Working on an indie budget, Bettles created 175 hand-drawn designs that often had to be reapplied daily on a cast that included Bell, 12 other principals and up to 165 additional characters.
“I got the original script and did a breakdown of 51 pages of makeup and tattoo-related notes,” says the British-born, L.A.-based Bettles. “That’s about five times the amount you’d normally see. Saying this was the most extensive job I’ve ever had — that’s putting it mildly.”
Bettles, who...
So Nattiv tapped Emmy-winning makeup maestro Stephen Bettles for the job — a massive project that Bettles says required 14 face and 39 body tattoos just for actor Jamie Bell, who stars as Widner. Working on an indie budget, Bettles created 175 hand-drawn designs that often had to be reapplied daily on a cast that included Bell, 12 other principals and up to 165 additional characters.
“I got the original script and did a breakdown of 51 pages of makeup and tattoo-related notes,” says the British-born, L.A.-based Bettles. “That’s about five times the amount you’d normally see. Saying this was the most extensive job I’ve ever had — that’s putting it mildly.”
Bettles, who...
- 7/24/2019
- by Randee Dawn
- Variety Film + TV
Since he made a dynamite screen debut at 14 in Billy Elliot as a boy from a harsh British mining town who finds himself through the unlikely route of ballet, Jamie Bell has been crushing it as an actor in projects as diverse as Undertow, The Adventures of Tintin, Snowpiercer and Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool. This year, after winning raves as lyricist Bernie Taupin in the Elton John biopic Rocketman, Bell, 33, takes a dramatic change of pace in Skin and delivers an awards-buzzed tour de force.
Based on the story of Bryon Widner,...
Based on the story of Bryon Widner,...
- 7/24/2019
- by Peter Travers
- Rollingstone.com
“Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover” is a proverb whose simple existence proves the fact impressionable souls will do so without fail. This monthly column focuses on the film industry’s willingness to capitalize on this truth, releasing one-sheets to serve as not representations of what audiences are to expect, but as propaganda to fill seats. Oftentimes they fail miserably.
Disney (again) and Tarantino takeover this month and it’s not the best thing for creative diversity when theaters only have four Fridays at their disposal. Add the re-release of Avengers: Endgame to try and squeeze past Avatar for box office supremacy and real estate will be hard to come by. So it’s crucial that the little guys get the word out to steal some attention their way. And a few of the campaigns below do exactly that—if your market is brave enough to bring them to town.
Disney (again) and Tarantino takeover this month and it’s not the best thing for creative diversity when theaters only have four Fridays at their disposal. Add the re-release of Avengers: Endgame to try and squeeze past Avatar for box office supremacy and real estate will be hard to come by. So it’s crucial that the little guys get the word out to steal some attention their way. And a few of the campaigns below do exactly that—if your market is brave enough to bring them to town.
- 7/5/2019
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
The Chicago Critics Film Festival Runs May 17th – 23rd. Stephen Tronicek is covering the event for We Are Movie Geeeks
The shows didn’t start until 3 pm yesterday, so I decided to take a moment to enjoy the city…by going to see Bi Gong’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night in 3D. That was worth it. It may have, in fact, been better than the city.
But at 3 pm, it was time to get back to business. The introducer of Richard Shepard’s The Perfection mentioned that he wouldn’t give it a trigger warning but rather he’d list the very few things that weren’t triggering about it. To me, that sounded a bit like a threat. If a movie leans in too much for the sake of drama, then it might come out false and offensive. The Perfection does, at times. When it works, it...
The shows didn’t start until 3 pm yesterday, so I decided to take a moment to enjoy the city…by going to see Bi Gong’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night in 3D. That was worth it. It may have, in fact, been better than the city.
But at 3 pm, it was time to get back to business. The introducer of Richard Shepard’s The Perfection mentioned that he wouldn’t give it a trigger warning but rather he’d list the very few things that weren’t triggering about it. To me, that sounded a bit like a threat. If a movie leans in too much for the sake of drama, then it might come out false and offensive. The Perfection does, at times. When it works, it...
- 5/21/2019
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Daniel Henshall and Toby Wallace in ‘Acute Misfortune’
Daniel Henshall plays one of the most challenging roles of his career as gun-toting, manipulative and alcohol and drug-fueled painter Adam Cullen in Acute Misfortune.
Yet when the director Thomas M. Wright sent the actor the source material – Erik Jensen’s book Acute Misfortune: The Life and Death of Adam Cullen – four years ago, initially he had his doubts.
“I feared the film would sensationalise Adam and his poor behaviour,” Henshall tells If from New York, where he now lives with his wife. “He could be very charming but I did not particularly like the character.”
Wright, who co-wrote the screenplay with Jensen, quickly convinced him otherwise, explaining the film would look at issues such as acclaim and identity, toxic masculinity and how deeply troubled people can create great art.
Romper Stomper’s Toby Wallace plays Jensen, who was an ambitious 19-year-old...
Daniel Henshall plays one of the most challenging roles of his career as gun-toting, manipulative and alcohol and drug-fueled painter Adam Cullen in Acute Misfortune.
Yet when the director Thomas M. Wright sent the actor the source material – Erik Jensen’s book Acute Misfortune: The Life and Death of Adam Cullen – four years ago, initially he had his doubts.
“I feared the film would sensationalise Adam and his poor behaviour,” Henshall tells If from New York, where he now lives with his wife. “He could be very charming but I did not particularly like the character.”
Wright, who co-wrote the screenplay with Jensen, quickly convinced him otherwise, explaining the film would look at issues such as acclaim and identity, toxic masculinity and how deeply troubled people can create great art.
Romper Stomper’s Toby Wallace plays Jensen, who was an ambitious 19-year-old...
- 4/26/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Skin Trailer Guy Nattiv‘s Skin (2018) movie trailer stars Jamie Bell, Danielle Macdonald, Vera Farmiga, Bill Camp, and Mike Colter. Skin‘s plot synopsis: “Based on the 2012 MSNBC documentary, Bryon Widner was one of the FBI’s most sought after white supremacists. Covered in racist tattoos from head to toe that he earned [...]
Continue reading: Skin (2018) Movie Trailer: Jamie Bell is a Skin Head Seeks Redemption; White Nationalist Threaten His Family...
Continue reading: Skin (2018) Movie Trailer: Jamie Bell is a Skin Head Seeks Redemption; White Nationalist Threaten His Family...
- 4/21/2019
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
So what dropped trailer-wise over the past seven days, you innocently ask? How about the final clip for an upcoming movie about a mutant run amuck and an uncensored look at a TV show about folks trying to bring down power-mad superheroes? Plus an animated show about birdy BFFs voiced by two of the funniest woman on the planet, the return of a horror-flick icon, a look at a limited series about the Central Park Five and a no-holds-barred drama about life as a racist hatemonger. Oh, and a sneak...
- 4/20/2019
- by David Fear
- Rollingstone.com
Based on the true story of former Neo-Nazi Bryon Widner, Skin stars Jamie Bell as a skinhead who turns FBI informant against his white supremacist group. Set to be released by A24, Skin dramatizes the story of removing Widner’s removal of his tattoos and breaking out of his white-power group that was the subject in the 2011 documentary Erasing Hate. Watch […]
The post ‘Skin’ Trailer: Jamie Bell is a Skinhead Who Wants a Clean Slate appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘Skin’ Trailer: Jamie Bell is a Skinhead Who Wants a Clean Slate appeared first on /Film.
- 4/19/2019
- by Hoai-Tran Bui
- Slash Film
After winning the Oscar earlier this year for Best Live Action Short, Israeli filmmaker Guy Nattiv makes his English-language feature debut this May. Under the same title as the award-winning short, “Skin” follows an American neo-Nazi skinhead who turns informant on his white supremacist cohort. The newly released first trailer offers a glimpse of “Billy Elliot” star Jamie Bell in a far different look from his breakthrough role; he dons a smattering of face tattoos and, of course, a shiny bald buzz.
The official synopsis reads: “After a difficult childhood drives him into the grasps of a white supremacist gang, Bryon (Bell) tries to escape to a new life, all the while questioning whether he’s capable of undoing — and repenting for — the evil he’s done.”
“Skin” promises another interesting turn for Danielle Macdonald, breakout star of 2017’s “Patti Cake$.” She plays Bryon’s girlfriend, a single mother...
The official synopsis reads: “After a difficult childhood drives him into the grasps of a white supremacist gang, Bryon (Bell) tries to escape to a new life, all the while questioning whether he’s capable of undoing — and repenting for — the evil he’s done.”
“Skin” promises another interesting turn for Danielle Macdonald, breakout star of 2017’s “Patti Cake$.” She plays Bryon’s girlfriend, a single mother...
- 4/18/2019
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
Ever since he was a child actor Jamie Bell has proven himself to be a dynamic performer. Since “Billy Elliot,” Bell has been bouncing from genre to genre, becoming an underrated talent in the process. But now, he has tackled what is perhaps his darkest role to date in something that sounds relevant and a little bit like “American History X.”
In the upcoming biopic “Skin,” Bell plays Bryon Widner, a young man raised by skinheads, brought up to have hateful beliefs and marking up his body with racist tattoos by the age of 14.
Continue reading ‘Skin’ Trailer: Jamie Bell Plays A Hateful White Supremacist For Oscar-Winner Guy Nattiv at The Playlist.
In the upcoming biopic “Skin,” Bell plays Bryon Widner, a young man raised by skinheads, brought up to have hateful beliefs and marking up his body with racist tattoos by the age of 14.
Continue reading ‘Skin’ Trailer: Jamie Bell Plays A Hateful White Supremacist For Oscar-Winner Guy Nattiv at The Playlist.
- 4/18/2019
- by Matthew St. Clair
- The Playlist
Israeli morning shows were in full-on celebration mode Monday morning, ditching politics-heavy news for wall-to-wall coverage of filmmaker Guy Nattiv — the first Israeli to take home an Oscar in more than four decades.
On Sunday, Nattiv won Best Live Action Short for his movie “Skin” — about a white supremacist father and his young son — giving Israelis a rare and much-welcomed moment of kvelling.
“It’s crazy,” Nattiv told TheWrap Monday. “The whole country is behind ‘Skin.'”
Also Read: Oscars 2019: The Complete Winners List
Just how crazy has it gotten? Israeli TV crews were staked outside the homes of Nattiv’s parents’, sister, and even his aunt at 5 a.m. local time in the hope of landing a quick soundbite from his relatives, who were still in their PJs.
“It’s all anyone can talk about,” Amit Cotler, an entertainment reporter for Israel’s Channel 13, told TheWrap. “It...
On Sunday, Nattiv won Best Live Action Short for his movie “Skin” — about a white supremacist father and his young son — giving Israelis a rare and much-welcomed moment of kvelling.
“It’s crazy,” Nattiv told TheWrap Monday. “The whole country is behind ‘Skin.'”
Also Read: Oscars 2019: The Complete Winners List
Just how crazy has it gotten? Israeli TV crews were staked outside the homes of Nattiv’s parents’, sister, and even his aunt at 5 a.m. local time in the hope of landing a quick soundbite from his relatives, who were still in their PJs.
“It’s all anyone can talk about,” Amit Cotler, an entertainment reporter for Israel’s Channel 13, told TheWrap. “It...
- 2/26/2019
- by Itay Hod
- The Wrap
For whatever reason, four out of the five Oscar-nominated live-action shorts focus on young boys in peril. The lone outlier is French-Canadian “Marguerite,” about an elderly woman whose bond with a nurse allows her to re-assess her own life.
The Irish short “Detainment,” which has gotten some pushback in Britain, digs into the real-life 1973 murder of toddler at the hands of two 10-year-old boys. The Quebec-made “Fauve” is about children trapped in a salt mine. “Mother” from Spain is about a 6-year-old child who calls to say his father left him alone on a beach and that a strange man is coming near him. “
But “Skin,” directed by Israeli-born Guy Nattiv, will likely resonate at a time when white supremacy, anti-Semitism and fear of immigrants seeking asylum in the States has become part of our national conversation. The story focuses on a family of skinheads, particularly a heavily tattooed father...
The Irish short “Detainment,” which has gotten some pushback in Britain, digs into the real-life 1973 murder of toddler at the hands of two 10-year-old boys. The Quebec-made “Fauve” is about children trapped in a salt mine. “Mother” from Spain is about a 6-year-old child who calls to say his father left him alone on a beach and that a strange man is coming near him. “
But “Skin,” directed by Israeli-born Guy Nattiv, will likely resonate at a time when white supremacy, anti-Semitism and fear of immigrants seeking asylum in the States has become part of our national conversation. The story focuses on a family of skinheads, particularly a heavily tattooed father...
- 2/15/2019
- by Susan Wloszczyna
- Gold Derby
Exclusive: Voltage Pictures has boarded international sales on Tim Sutton’s upcoming thriller The Chain, which reunites the filmmaker with his Donnybrook stars Jamie Bell and Margaret Qualley. Both stars are in talks to join in addition to Colette‘s Denise Gough and Captain America: Civil War‘s Sebastian Stan.
Voltage president and COO Jonathan Deckter announced the news today.
The Chain, which Sutton adapted from Tobias Wolff’s award-winning short story of the same name, follows the story of a man’s daughter who is viciously attacked by a dog, setting off a chain of events that ends in unspeakable tragedy. This is the second feature-length adaption of Wolff’s literary work; his memoir This Boy’s Life was adapted into the hit feature film of the same name starring Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio and Ellen Barkin. Production on The Chain will start in April.
Producers are Rumble Films’ David Lancaster and Stephanie Wilcox. Deckter negotiated the deal with Jon Shiffman COO/CFO of Rumble Films on behalf of the producers. UTA will rep North American rights. Rumble Films also produced Sutton’s bare-knuckle pugilist pic Donnybrook which made its world premiere at last year’s Toronto Film Festival’s Platform Section, won the 2018 Fantastic Fest main competition and will be released by IFC Films in 2019.
“The incomparable Tobias Wolff is one of my favorite authors and we’re even bigger fans of Jamie Bell since working with him on the powerful feature Skin,” said Deckter. “We’re thrilled to partner with our friends at Rumble Films to bring Tim Sutton’s adaptation to audiences around the world. It ticks all the boxes for a strong, international commercial contender so we could not be happier to be representing The Chain,” Deckter continued.
The Chain is the latest film to be added to Voltage’s production and sales slate for Berlin. The company recently announced its new production Blackwing from writer David Loughery and its worldwide representation of the social media thriller Follow Me.
Bell who first rose to prominence in his debut role in Billy Elliot, most recently played Bryon Widner in Guy Nattiv’s skinhead redemption drama Skin, which won the Fipresci prize at Toronto and is set to open in the Panorama section at this year’s Berlin. He is repped by UTA and Artists Independent Management.
Two-time Olivier Award-winning actress Denise Gough’s film credits include Bleecker Street Media’s Colette opposite Keira Knightley and Dominic West and Lionsgate’s Juliet, Naked opposite Rose Byrne and Chris O’Dowd. Gough was nominated for Best Featured Actress in a Play at the 2018 Tony Awards for her role in Angels in America. She recently wrapped Monday and can next be seen in 20th Century Fox’s The Kid Who Would Be King, which is currently in release. Gough is repped by UTA and Independent Talent Group.
Stan’s credits include Jonathan Demme’s Ricki and the Flash, Ridley Scott’s The Martian and I, Tonya. Most recently, Stan starred opposite Nicole Kidman in Karyn Kusama’s Destroyer. He is repped by ICM Partners and Brookside Artist Management.
Qualley is best known for her role as Jill Garvey on the HBO series The Leftovers. Her film credits include Shane Black’s The Nice Guys and Maggie Bett’s Novitiate. Qualley will next star in the FX limited series Fosse/Verdon opposite Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams, premiering in the spring. She is repped by UTA and Management 360.
Voltage president and COO Jonathan Deckter announced the news today.
The Chain, which Sutton adapted from Tobias Wolff’s award-winning short story of the same name, follows the story of a man’s daughter who is viciously attacked by a dog, setting off a chain of events that ends in unspeakable tragedy. This is the second feature-length adaption of Wolff’s literary work; his memoir This Boy’s Life was adapted into the hit feature film of the same name starring Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio and Ellen Barkin. Production on The Chain will start in April.
Producers are Rumble Films’ David Lancaster and Stephanie Wilcox. Deckter negotiated the deal with Jon Shiffman COO/CFO of Rumble Films on behalf of the producers. UTA will rep North American rights. Rumble Films also produced Sutton’s bare-knuckle pugilist pic Donnybrook which made its world premiere at last year’s Toronto Film Festival’s Platform Section, won the 2018 Fantastic Fest main competition and will be released by IFC Films in 2019.
“The incomparable Tobias Wolff is one of my favorite authors and we’re even bigger fans of Jamie Bell since working with him on the powerful feature Skin,” said Deckter. “We’re thrilled to partner with our friends at Rumble Films to bring Tim Sutton’s adaptation to audiences around the world. It ticks all the boxes for a strong, international commercial contender so we could not be happier to be representing The Chain,” Deckter continued.
The Chain is the latest film to be added to Voltage’s production and sales slate for Berlin. The company recently announced its new production Blackwing from writer David Loughery and its worldwide representation of the social media thriller Follow Me.
Bell who first rose to prominence in his debut role in Billy Elliot, most recently played Bryon Widner in Guy Nattiv’s skinhead redemption drama Skin, which won the Fipresci prize at Toronto and is set to open in the Panorama section at this year’s Berlin. He is repped by UTA and Artists Independent Management.
Two-time Olivier Award-winning actress Denise Gough’s film credits include Bleecker Street Media’s Colette opposite Keira Knightley and Dominic West and Lionsgate’s Juliet, Naked opposite Rose Byrne and Chris O’Dowd. Gough was nominated for Best Featured Actress in a Play at the 2018 Tony Awards for her role in Angels in America. She recently wrapped Monday and can next be seen in 20th Century Fox’s The Kid Who Would Be King, which is currently in release. Gough is repped by UTA and Independent Talent Group.
Stan’s credits include Jonathan Demme’s Ricki and the Flash, Ridley Scott’s The Martian and I, Tonya. Most recently, Stan starred opposite Nicole Kidman in Karyn Kusama’s Destroyer. He is repped by ICM Partners and Brookside Artist Management.
Qualley is best known for her role as Jill Garvey on the HBO series The Leftovers. Her film credits include Shane Black’s The Nice Guys and Maggie Bett’s Novitiate. Qualley will next star in the FX limited series Fosse/Verdon opposite Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams, premiering in the spring. She is repped by UTA and Management 360.
- 2/4/2019
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
In today’s film news roundup, Rita Moreno joins the “West Side Story” reboot, “Justified Vengeance” unveils its cast, Zane Holtz’s “Beyond the Night” gets acquired, and Jamie Bell’s “Skin” closes territorial deals.
Castings
Rita Moreno will join the cast of Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the Broadway musical “West Side Story.”
Moreno will also serve as an executive producer of the film. She won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Anita in the 1961 film version of “West Side Story.” In the new “West Side Story,” Moreno will be playing Valentina, a reconceived version of the character of Doc, the owner of the corner store in which Tony works.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I see myself revisiting this seminal work,” Moreno said. “And to be asked by Steven Spielberg to participate is simply thrilling! Then to work together with the brilliant playwright, Tony Kushner — what a glorious stew!
Castings
Rita Moreno will join the cast of Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the Broadway musical “West Side Story.”
Moreno will also serve as an executive producer of the film. She won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Anita in the 1961 film version of “West Side Story.” In the new “West Side Story,” Moreno will be playing Valentina, a reconceived version of the character of Doc, the owner of the corner store in which Tony works.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I see myself revisiting this seminal work,” Moreno said. “And to be asked by Steven Spielberg to participate is simply thrilling! Then to work together with the brilliant playwright, Tony Kushner — what a glorious stew!
- 11/28/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Lionsgate UK, Ascot Elite, The Jokers among buyers.
Voltage Pictures has closed key territories including the UK, Germany, France and Italy on the Jamie Bell skinhead drama and Tiff Fipresci winner Skin.
In a string of major deals on the Toronto world premiere that closed since Voltage launched sales at the Afm earlier this month, Lionsgate snapped up rights for the UK, Ascot Elite for Germany and Switzerland, The Jokers for France, and Sun Film Group for Italy and Poland.
Further deals closed in: Spain (Twelve Oaks), Japan (King Records), Baltics and Russia (Volga), South Korea (Contents Panda), Middle East...
Voltage Pictures has closed key territories including the UK, Germany, France and Italy on the Jamie Bell skinhead drama and Tiff Fipresci winner Skin.
In a string of major deals on the Toronto world premiere that closed since Voltage launched sales at the Afm earlier this month, Lionsgate snapped up rights for the UK, Ascot Elite for Germany and Switzerland, The Jokers for France, and Sun Film Group for Italy and Poland.
Further deals closed in: Spain (Twelve Oaks), Japan (King Records), Baltics and Russia (Volga), South Korea (Contents Panda), Middle East...
- 11/27/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
cDrama won Tiff Fipresci Prize for Special Presentations.
With a little over one week to go before Afm kicks off in Santa Monica, Voltage Pictures has picked up international sales rights to Skin, Maven Pictures’ acclaimed drama starring Jamie Bell as a repentant skinhead that premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) last month.
Skin marks the first Us-set feature from Israeli director Guy Nattiv and won the Tiff Fipresci Prize for Special Presentations in Toronto, where it landed a North America distribution deal with A24/Directv, who plan a 2019 launch.
Starring alongside Bell are Vera Farmiga and Patti...
With a little over one week to go before Afm kicks off in Santa Monica, Voltage Pictures has picked up international sales rights to Skin, Maven Pictures’ acclaimed drama starring Jamie Bell as a repentant skinhead that premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) last month.
Skin marks the first Us-set feature from Israeli director Guy Nattiv and won the Tiff Fipresci Prize for Special Presentations in Toronto, where it landed a North America distribution deal with A24/Directv, who plan a 2019 launch.
Starring alongside Bell are Vera Farmiga and Patti...
- 10/22/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
A24 has picked up North American distribution rights to the Jamie Bell-led drama “Skin,” in conjunction with DirecTV. The film had its world premiere during the Toronto Film Festival over the weekend.
Under the deal, A24 will release the film in 2019.
Directed by Israeli filmmaker Guy Nattiv, “Skin” is inspired by the true life story of Bryon Widner, a young man raised by skinheads who is transformed by his relationship with a single mother of three children and a compassionate African American activist.
Bryon decides to turn his back on violence and hatred and to risk everything for a new life of tolerance, empathy, and love.
Widner, whose story also inspired the 2011 MSNBC documentary “Erasing Hate” was one of the FBI’s most wanted white supremacists. He endured death threats and harassment from...
Under the deal, A24 will release the film in 2019.
Directed by Israeli filmmaker Guy Nattiv, “Skin” is inspired by the true life story of Bryon Widner, a young man raised by skinheads who is transformed by his relationship with a single mother of three children and a compassionate African American activist.
Bryon decides to turn his back on violence and hatred and to risk everything for a new life of tolerance, empathy, and love.
Widner, whose story also inspired the 2011 MSNBC documentary “Erasing Hate” was one of the FBI’s most wanted white supremacists. He endured death threats and harassment from...
- 9/11/2018
- by Trey Williams
- The Wrap
A24 and DirecTV have acquired North American distribution rights for the drama “Skin” out of the Toronto Film Festival, Variety has learned.
The movie, about a man raised by skinheads who risks his life to leave a white supremacy group, premiered on Saturday night as part of Tiff’s Special Presentations section. “Skin” received strong reviews and awards-season buzz for Jamie Bell’s performance as Bryon Widner, the subject of the 2011 documentary “Erasing Hate.”
As part of the deal, “Skin” will be released in 2019. The movie is directed by Israeli filmmaker Guy Nattiv, who also produced the picture. The rest of the cast includes Vera Farmiga, Danielle MacDonald, Mike Colter, and Bill Camp.
The movie’s other producers are Oren Moverman; Maven Pictures’ Trudie Styler and Celine Rattray; Jaime Ray Newman; and Dillon D. Jordan. Maven, a production and financing company based in New York, has a proven track record at launching festival darlings.
The movie, about a man raised by skinheads who risks his life to leave a white supremacy group, premiered on Saturday night as part of Tiff’s Special Presentations section. “Skin” received strong reviews and awards-season buzz for Jamie Bell’s performance as Bryon Widner, the subject of the 2011 documentary “Erasing Hate.”
As part of the deal, “Skin” will be released in 2019. The movie is directed by Israeli filmmaker Guy Nattiv, who also produced the picture. The rest of the cast includes Vera Farmiga, Danielle MacDonald, Mike Colter, and Bill Camp.
The movie’s other producers are Oren Moverman; Maven Pictures’ Trudie Styler and Celine Rattray; Jaime Ray Newman; and Dillon D. Jordan. Maven, a production and financing company based in New York, has a proven track record at launching festival darlings.
- 9/11/2018
- by Ramin Setoodeh
- Variety Film + TV
Drama based on true story of a reformed American white supremacist opts for sensationalism over complexity
The brand of fascism on display in Skin, Israeli film-maker Guy Nattiv’s first feature produced in the United States, feels increasingly remote. Nazism is on the rise in the Us, but it’s not all spitting and yowling from feral soldiers in training. They have cleaned themselves up and had slick haircuts in place of the standard skinhead look. They’re on TV and the internet and electoral ballots. Even if Skin wasn’t drawn from true events that played out during the mid-noughties, it would feel entrenched in a recent past.
Bryon Widner, a member of the white supremacist group the Vinlanders Social Club, belonged to a different era of hate. When we first see him, he’s a monster in the mould of Edward Norton’s Derek Vinyard from American History X,...
The brand of fascism on display in Skin, Israeli film-maker Guy Nattiv’s first feature produced in the United States, feels increasingly remote. Nazism is on the rise in the Us, but it’s not all spitting and yowling from feral soldiers in training. They have cleaned themselves up and had slick haircuts in place of the standard skinhead look. They’re on TV and the internet and electoral ballots. Even if Skin wasn’t drawn from true events that played out during the mid-noughties, it would feel entrenched in a recent past.
Bryon Widner, a member of the white supremacist group the Vinlanders Social Club, belonged to a different era of hate. When we first see him, he’s a monster in the mould of Edward Norton’s Derek Vinyard from American History X,...
- 9/10/2018
- by Charles Bramesco
- The Guardian - Film News
When “American History X” came out 20 years ago, part of its appeal was exotic. At the time, Neo-Nazis still seemed an outlandish, subterranean believe-it-or-not element in society. But the fact-inspired “Skin” arrives in a very different landscape, where white supremacists are coming out of the woodwork — running for political office, mainstreaming their rhetoric, providing “dog whistles” to the faithful on national TV.
Israeli director Guy Nattiv’s first U.S. feature is based on the experiences of one Bryon Widner, who gained attention for breaking from his white-power background and having the related tattoos that covered his body (and face) removed at tortuous length. Played by Jamie Bell — with a major assist from “makeup, tattoos, and prosthetic designer” Stevie Bettles — Widner’s story here is essentially one of painful tie-severing from an unhealthy subculture, with limited insight into that culture itself. It’s a narrow treatment of a now pressingly relevant subject,...
Israeli director Guy Nattiv’s first U.S. feature is based on the experiences of one Bryon Widner, who gained attention for breaking from his white-power background and having the related tattoos that covered his body (and face) removed at tortuous length. Played by Jamie Bell — with a major assist from “makeup, tattoos, and prosthetic designer” Stevie Bettles — Widner’s story here is essentially one of painful tie-severing from an unhealthy subculture, with limited insight into that culture itself. It’s a narrow treatment of a now pressingly relevant subject,...
- 9/8/2018
- by Dennis Harvey
- Variety Film + TV
Jamie Bell packed on 20 pounds, wore a prosthetic nose and shaved his head to portray a neo-Nazi in the drama “Skin,” which premieres at the Toronto Film Festival on Saturday night. The movie is based on the life of Bryon Widner, the subject of the 2011 documentary “Erasing Hate,” a skinhead who risked his life when he decided to leave a white supremacy group in Indiana.
Ahead of the film’s premiere, Bell talked to Variety about making the independent movie directed by Guy Nattiv.
When you started preparing for the movie, had Trump been elected president?
He’d already been elected. You know, all fucking hell was breaking loose and all this shit was going on. Actually, I think I talked to Bryon for the first time over Skype the day of Charlottesville. It’s kind of like the easiest time to play a fascist Neo-Nazi because you literally...
Ahead of the film’s premiere, Bell talked to Variety about making the independent movie directed by Guy Nattiv.
When you started preparing for the movie, had Trump been elected president?
He’d already been elected. You know, all fucking hell was breaking loose and all this shit was going on. Actually, I think I talked to Bryon for the first time over Skype the day of Charlottesville. It’s kind of like the easiest time to play a fascist Neo-Nazi because you literally...
- 9/8/2018
- by Ramin Setoodeh
- Variety Film + TV
Skin is the true-life story of reformed white-supremacist Bryon Widner (played by Jamie Bell) a young man raised by skinheads, for whom turning his back on hatred and violence meant undergoing painful and expensive operations to remove the tattoos that signified his terrible past life — a process only possible with the support of a Black activist.
Based on his short of the same name, writer/director Guy Nattiv talked to Deadline about how Bryon’s story hit close to him.
“Because I grew up in Israel with grandfather stories about the Holocaust and about Nazism and the whole fascism that he went through. For me to see to see someone who went through it in another way, a different way, and this journey that this guy made touched me.”
He continued, “My grandfather told me about how he started to forgive the second and third generation of Germans and forgiveness...
Based on his short of the same name, writer/director Guy Nattiv talked to Deadline about how Bryon’s story hit close to him.
“Because I grew up in Israel with grandfather stories about the Holocaust and about Nazism and the whole fascism that he went through. For me to see to see someone who went through it in another way, a different way, and this journey that this guy made touched me.”
He continued, “My grandfather told me about how he started to forgive the second and third generation of Germans and forgiveness...
- 9/8/2018
- by Amanda N'Duka
- Deadline Film + TV
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.