Think about the experience of sitting and watching a movie. What is it about that big, wonderful image that connects with you? If you’re a diehard cineaste the answer might be the film’s cinematography or its use of music, special effects, sound design or something else. But for most audiences, chances are that the primary point of connection is the characters—and probably the actors embodying them.
It’s these performances that we identify with, root against and even lust after. But as much as their agents and managers might care for you to believe otherwise, actors don’t pop up in these roles by accident. Enter the Casting Director.
One of the most important (and unsung) positions on any film crew, the Casting Director is the person responsible for assembling the actors tasked with translating the script’s character description and dialogue into flesh-and-blood.
Below, we’ve...
It’s these performances that we identify with, root against and even lust after. But as much as their agents and managers might care for you to believe otherwise, actors don’t pop up in these roles by accident. Enter the Casting Director.
One of the most important (and unsung) positions on any film crew, the Casting Director is the person responsible for assembling the actors tasked with translating the script’s character description and dialogue into flesh-and-blood.
Below, we’ve...
- 3/18/2024
- by Matt Warren
- Film Independent News & More
Coral Island creators have revealed parts of what’s coming in update 1.1, the game’s first major post-launch content update.
Coral Island 1.1 update adheres to the 2024 roadmap shared around the time of the game’s launch, albeit with a few new additions. The game launched with several work-in-progress elements that included the game’s main quest. The upcoming update is slated to make amends in that regard.
What’s Coming With Coral Island Update 1.1 Coral Island Update 1.1-1.3 Content Roadmap (Image via Stairway Games)
Coral Island update 1.1 will add the remaining parts of the Giants questline and the Savannah region. This means the main quest will not have any missing pieces forcing you to halt your playthrough, if you are playing for the story.
As another fair chunk of content, the Town Rank S questline and its various categories are getting significant additions. Town Rank S will be an end-game...
Coral Island 1.1 update adheres to the 2024 roadmap shared around the time of the game’s launch, albeit with a few new additions. The game launched with several work-in-progress elements that included the game’s main quest. The upcoming update is slated to make amends in that regard.
What’s Coming With Coral Island Update 1.1 Coral Island Update 1.1-1.3 Content Roadmap (Image via Stairway Games)
Coral Island update 1.1 will add the remaining parts of the Giants questline and the Savannah region. This means the main quest will not have any missing pieces forcing you to halt your playthrough, if you are playing for the story.
As another fair chunk of content, the Town Rank S questline and its various categories are getting significant additions. Town Rank S will be an end-game...
- 2/28/2024
- by Manodeep Mukherjee
- GamesHorizon
The Florida Project director Sean Baker has come on board to executive produce Modern Whore, Nicole Bazuin’s documentary adaptation of Andrea Werhun’s sex work memoir.
The feature-length hybrid film is currently shooting narrative re-enactments as part of a doc based on Modern Whore: A Memoir, a 2022 book that recalled Werhun’s work as an escort and in strip clubs, for which Bazuin provided extensive photography.
The illustrated memoir in turn sprang from a 2020 short film Modern Whore that Werhun starred in, Bazuin directed and which had its world premiere at SXSW. The Modern Whore feature documentary will be told from Werhun’s perspective and have her portray her former escort alias Mary Ann and her stripper persona Sophia, as well a more recent foray into OnlyFans as part of her sex work career in Toronto.
The indie will also incorporate writing and collaborations with other sex workers telling their own stories.
The feature-length hybrid film is currently shooting narrative re-enactments as part of a doc based on Modern Whore: A Memoir, a 2022 book that recalled Werhun’s work as an escort and in strip clubs, for which Bazuin provided extensive photography.
The illustrated memoir in turn sprang from a 2020 short film Modern Whore that Werhun starred in, Bazuin directed and which had its world premiere at SXSW. The Modern Whore feature documentary will be told from Werhun’s perspective and have her portray her former escort alias Mary Ann and her stripper persona Sophia, as well a more recent foray into OnlyFans as part of her sex work career in Toronto.
The indie will also incorporate writing and collaborations with other sex workers telling their own stories.
- 1/16/2024
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Neon has acquired North American rights to the romantic dramedy Anora, the latest feature from award-winning indie filmmaker Sean Baker (The Florida Project). It will be released in theaters sometime next year.
Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yuriy Borisov, Karren Karagulian, and Vache Tovmasyan star in the pic, shot on 35mm by DoP Drew Daniels, the synopsis for which remains under wraps. Samantha Quan, Alex Coco, and Baker served as producers. FilmNation Entertainment is handling worldwide rights, having already licensed to Le Pacte in France, Lev in Israel, Kismet in Australia and New Zealand, and Focus Features/Universal Pictures International for the rest of the world.
News of the acquisition follows Neon’s announcement of They Follow, a sequel to David Robert Mitchell’s cult classic horror It Follows, on which Mitchell is set to reteam with star Maika Monroe. Neon will produce, distribute and handle international sales. Other titles on...
Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yuriy Borisov, Karren Karagulian, and Vache Tovmasyan star in the pic, shot on 35mm by DoP Drew Daniels, the synopsis for which remains under wraps. Samantha Quan, Alex Coco, and Baker served as producers. FilmNation Entertainment is handling worldwide rights, having already licensed to Le Pacte in France, Lev in Israel, Kismet in Australia and New Zealand, and Focus Features/Universal Pictures International for the rest of the world.
News of the acquisition follows Neon’s announcement of They Follow, a sequel to David Robert Mitchell’s cult classic horror It Follows, on which Mitchell is set to reteam with star Maika Monroe. Neon will produce, distribute and handle international sales. Other titles on...
- 11/2/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson and Joe Manganiello team up in upcoming Shout! Studios thriller The Kill Room, and the official trailer for the rated “R” movie has arrived.
The Kill Room will release in theaters on September 28, 2023.
IGN debuted the trailer this week. Check it out below.
The dark comedic thriller was directed by Nicol Paone and written by Jonathan Jacobson.
The Kill Room follows “an art dealer (Thurman) who teams with a hitman (Manganiello) and his boss (Jackson) for a money laundering scheme. The plan accidentally turns the hired killer into an overnight avant-garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld.”
Maya Hawke, Thurman’s real life daughter, also stars in the film.
“’The Kill Room’ is a sharp, darkly comic evisceration of the art collecting scene, delivered with wily relish by Uma Thurman and director Nicol Paone. We’re confident this will...
The Kill Room will release in theaters on September 28, 2023.
IGN debuted the trailer this week. Check it out below.
The dark comedic thriller was directed by Nicol Paone and written by Jonathan Jacobson.
The Kill Room follows “an art dealer (Thurman) who teams with a hitman (Manganiello) and his boss (Jackson) for a money laundering scheme. The plan accidentally turns the hired killer into an overnight avant-garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld.”
Maya Hawke, Thurman’s real life daughter, also stars in the film.
“’The Kill Room’ is a sharp, darkly comic evisceration of the art collecting scene, delivered with wily relish by Uma Thurman and director Nicol Paone. We’re confident this will...
- 8/4/2023
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Shout Studios acquired North American rights to “The Kill Room,” a thriller starring Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson and Joe Manganiello.
The distribution and production division of indie Shout Factory has emerged victorious in a bidding war at Cannes Film Festival. Shout Studios plans to release the film in theaters this fall.
“The Kill Room” was directed by Nicol Paone and written by Jonathan Jacobson. The dark comedic-thriller follows an art dealer (Thurman) who teams with a hitman (Manganiello) and his boss (Jackson) for a money laundering scheme. The plan accidentally turns the hired killer into an overnight avant-garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld.
“’The Kill Room’ is a sharp, darkly comic evisceration of the art collecting scene, delivered with wily relish by Uma Thurman and director Nicol Paone. We’re confident this will play very well with audiences who like their entertainment both witty and visceral,...
The distribution and production division of indie Shout Factory has emerged victorious in a bidding war at Cannes Film Festival. Shout Studios plans to release the film in theaters this fall.
“The Kill Room” was directed by Nicol Paone and written by Jonathan Jacobson. The dark comedic-thriller follows an art dealer (Thurman) who teams with a hitman (Manganiello) and his boss (Jackson) for a money laundering scheme. The plan accidentally turns the hired killer into an overnight avant-garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld.
“’The Kill Room’ is a sharp, darkly comic evisceration of the art collecting scene, delivered with wily relish by Uma Thurman and director Nicol Paone. We’re confident this will play very well with audiences who like their entertainment both witty and visceral,...
- 7/6/2023
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
Mubi has announced its lineup of streaming offerings for next month, including the exclusive streaming premiere of Albert Serra’s extraordinary Pacifiction, a trio of films by Todd Haynes, two by Michael Haneke (Caché and Amour), plus works by David Cronenberg, Shin’ya Tsukamoto, and Derek Jarman.
Additional selections include Alice Rohrwacher’s Corpo Celeste, Luchino Visconti’s Rocco and His Brothers, Sean Baker’s early film Starlet, and Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s short Mekong Hotel.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
June 1 – Is This Fate?, directed by Helga Reidemeister | What Sets Us Free? German Feminist Cinema
June 2 – Safe, directed by Todd Haynes | I Really Love You: Three by Todd Hayne
June 3 – Caché, directed by Michael Haneke | Close-Up on Michael Haneke
June 4 – Amour, directed by Michael Haneke | Close-Up on Michael Haneke
June 5 – Topology of Sirens, directed by Jonathan Davies
June 6 – Tetsuo, the Iron Man, directed by Shin’ya...
Additional selections include Alice Rohrwacher’s Corpo Celeste, Luchino Visconti’s Rocco and His Brothers, Sean Baker’s early film Starlet, and Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s short Mekong Hotel.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
June 1 – Is This Fate?, directed by Helga Reidemeister | What Sets Us Free? German Feminist Cinema
June 2 – Safe, directed by Todd Haynes | I Really Love You: Three by Todd Hayne
June 3 – Caché, directed by Michael Haneke | Close-Up on Michael Haneke
June 4 – Amour, directed by Michael Haneke | Close-Up on Michael Haneke
June 5 – Topology of Sirens, directed by Jonathan Davies
June 6 – Tetsuo, the Iron Man, directed by Shin’ya...
- 5/23/2023
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Kim Kardashian close-up. Pic credit: @kimkardashian/Instagram
Kim Kardashian is proving she can work a caption, even if the aim is to have eyes on her unusual gym look.
The 41-year-old billionaire mogul made headlines over the weekend as she rocked a silky and nude-colored bikini and thigh-high boots for a gym session, and there was more to come.
Posting a 2.0 for her army of Instagram followers on Sunday, the Hulu star showed off her 2022 weight loss in a skimpy and pool-ready look as she posed from a gym and showed off the 25-pound dumbbells that she uses.
Kim highlighted her toned abs and curvy waist in a barely-there and tiny two-piece in satin, adding dramatic thigh boots with stiletto heels. She covered her shoulders a little with a tight white shrug while posing in low-key makeup and with her blonde hair down.
“I do my own heavy lifting,” the...
Kim Kardashian is proving she can work a caption, even if the aim is to have eyes on her unusual gym look.
The 41-year-old billionaire mogul made headlines over the weekend as she rocked a silky and nude-colored bikini and thigh-high boots for a gym session, and there was more to come.
Posting a 2.0 for her army of Instagram followers on Sunday, the Hulu star showed off her 2022 weight loss in a skimpy and pool-ready look as she posed from a gym and showed off the 25-pound dumbbells that she uses.
Kim highlighted her toned abs and curvy waist in a barely-there and tiny two-piece in satin, adding dramatic thigh boots with stiletto heels. She covered her shoulders a little with a tight white shrug while posing in low-key makeup and with her blonde hair down.
“I do my own heavy lifting,” the...
- 8/15/2022
- by Angela Perry
- Monsters and Critics
Exclusive: Dree Hemingway (The Unicorn) is the latest addition to the cast of Yale Entertainment’s darkly comedic thriller The Kill Room, from writer Jonathan Jacobson and director Nicol Paone. She joins an ensemble that also includes Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson, Joe Manganiello, Maya Hawke, Debi Mazar and Larry Pine, as previously announced.
The Kill Room centers on hitman, Reggie (Manganiello), his boss (Jackson), an art dealer (Thurman) and their money laundering scheme that accidentally turns the hitman into an overnight Avant-Garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld. Hemingway will play Anika, the owner of a successful art gallery that rivals Thurman’s.
Jordan Yale Levine, Jordan Beckerman, and Jon Keeyes are producing under their Yale Productions banner alongside Anne Clements of Idiot Savant Pictures, Paone, Thurman, Dannielle Thomas and Jason Weinberg from Untitled Entertainment, and William Rosenfeld of Such Content. Executive producers include Robert Kapp,...
The Kill Room centers on hitman, Reggie (Manganiello), his boss (Jackson), an art dealer (Thurman) and their money laundering scheme that accidentally turns the hitman into an overnight Avant-Garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld. Hemingway will play Anika, the owner of a successful art gallery that rivals Thurman’s.
Jordan Yale Levine, Jordan Beckerman, and Jon Keeyes are producing under their Yale Productions banner alongside Anne Clements of Idiot Savant Pictures, Paone, Thurman, Dannielle Thomas and Jason Weinberg from Untitled Entertainment, and William Rosenfeld of Such Content. Executive producers include Robert Kapp,...
- 5/19/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
Filmmaker Sean Baker (The Florida Project) had an unexpected inspiration for his latest film Red Rocket, which centers on fast-talking, washed-up porn star Mikey Saber (Simon Rex) who, having exhausted his options and goodwill in Los Angeles, returns to his Texas hometown where he quickly exerts his charming con artist patter to bend the locals, including his ex-wife, to his self-indulgent will.
Baker said the revelation that sparked the film came out of research he and co-screenwriter Chris Bergoch did for a previous project, Starlet, which was also set in the porn industry.
“Getting to know people within that industry, we realized there was this archetype, because we met a handful of men like Mikey Saber – and they even had a term applied to them within the industry,...
Filmmaker Sean Baker (The Florida Project) had an unexpected inspiration for his latest film Red Rocket, which centers on fast-talking, washed-up porn star Mikey Saber (Simon Rex) who, having exhausted his options and goodwill in Los Angeles, returns to his Texas hometown where he quickly exerts his charming con artist patter to bend the locals, including his ex-wife, to his self-indulgent will.
Baker said the revelation that sparked the film came out of research he and co-screenwriter Chris Bergoch did for a previous project, Starlet, which was also set in the porn industry.
“Getting to know people within that industry, we realized there was this archetype, because we met a handful of men like Mikey Saber – and they even had a term applied to them within the industry,...
- 12/29/2021
- by Scott Huver
- Deadline Film + TV
Multi-faceted filmmaker Mark Duplass discusses the movies he wishes more people knew about with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Duck Butter (2018)
The Puffy Chair (2005)
Prince Of Broadway (2008)
Tangerine (2015)
The Florida Project (2017) – Dennis Cozzalio’s review
Red Rocket (2021)
Starlet (2012)
Take Out (2004)
Mack & Rita (Tbd)
Old Joy (2006)
First Cow (2020)
Wendy And Lucy (2008) – Dennis Cozzalio’s favorite movie of 2020
Henry Fool (1997)
Trust (1990)
Amateur (1994)
Medicine For Melancholy (2008)
Shang-Chi (2021)
Your Sister’s Sister (2011)
My Effortless Brilliance (2008)
What the Funny (2008)
Humpday (2009)
True Adolescents (2009)
Man Push Cart (2005)
The White Tiger (2021)
Baghead (2008)
The Do-Deca-Pentathlon (2012)
Language Lessons (2021)
Stevie (2002)
Hoop Dreams (1994)
American Movie (1999)
What Happened Was… (1994) – Ti West’s trailer commentary
Manhunter (1986) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
My Dinner With Andre (1981)
Creep (2014)
Grown-Ups (1980)
Abigail’s Party (1977)
Nuts In May (1976)
Secrets And Lies (1996) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Naked (1993)
Parallel Mothers (2021)
The Freebie (2010)
East Of Eden (1955) – Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary
Strange...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Duck Butter (2018)
The Puffy Chair (2005)
Prince Of Broadway (2008)
Tangerine (2015)
The Florida Project (2017) – Dennis Cozzalio’s review
Red Rocket (2021)
Starlet (2012)
Take Out (2004)
Mack & Rita (Tbd)
Old Joy (2006)
First Cow (2020)
Wendy And Lucy (2008) – Dennis Cozzalio’s favorite movie of 2020
Henry Fool (1997)
Trust (1990)
Amateur (1994)
Medicine For Melancholy (2008)
Shang-Chi (2021)
Your Sister’s Sister (2011)
My Effortless Brilliance (2008)
What the Funny (2008)
Humpday (2009)
True Adolescents (2009)
Man Push Cart (2005)
The White Tiger (2021)
Baghead (2008)
The Do-Deca-Pentathlon (2012)
Language Lessons (2021)
Stevie (2002)
Hoop Dreams (1994)
American Movie (1999)
What Happened Was… (1994) – Ti West’s trailer commentary
Manhunter (1986) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
My Dinner With Andre (1981)
Creep (2014)
Grown-Ups (1980)
Abigail’s Party (1977)
Nuts In May (1976)
Secrets And Lies (1996) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Naked (1993)
Parallel Mothers (2021)
The Freebie (2010)
East Of Eden (1955) – Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary
Strange...
- 12/21/2021
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Red Rocket throws a curveball to viewers who think they know what to expect from a Sean Baker movie. There are surface commonalities connecting it to his previous works—docu-realistic stylings, detailed worldbuilding and the centering of marginalized communities. Yet, unlike his last three pictures Starlet, The Florida Project and Tangerine—which marinated in the humanity of, respectively, a young female porn star, transgender sex workers and a family living with invisible homelessness—the man under the magnifying-glass this time is an increasingly disturbing presence. Washed-up adult movie star Mikey Saber (played with real verve by Simon Rex) is selfish to the point of […]
The post “Embracing the Male Gaze”: Sean Baker on Red Rocket first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “Embracing the Male Gaze”: Sean Baker on Red Rocket first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 12/9/2021
- by Sophie Monks Kaufman
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Sean Baker likes to turn his camera on the people and places Hollywood usually ignores.
In films like “Tangerine,” the story of a transgender sex worker that was shot with an iPhone, and “The Florida Project,” a look at an unemployed single mother and her young daughter who live in a rundown motel in the shadow of Walt Disney World, Baker has made a career of dramatizing lives lived on the economic margins. “Red Rocket,” his latest effort, is no different. The offbeat comedy centers on Mikey Saber, a down-and-out adult film star who returns to his small Texas hometown after washing out of the industry. There, he sells weed as a side hustle, while attempting to seduce a 17-year old donut shop worker who he wants to transform into a porn actress. A meet cute, it decidedly is not.
The film debuted to raves at the Cannes Film Festival...
In films like “Tangerine,” the story of a transgender sex worker that was shot with an iPhone, and “The Florida Project,” a look at an unemployed single mother and her young daughter who live in a rundown motel in the shadow of Walt Disney World, Baker has made a career of dramatizing lives lived on the economic margins. “Red Rocket,” his latest effort, is no different. The offbeat comedy centers on Mikey Saber, a down-and-out adult film star who returns to his small Texas hometown after washing out of the industry. There, he sells weed as a side hustle, while attempting to seduce a 17-year old donut shop worker who he wants to transform into a porn actress. A meet cute, it decidedly is not.
The film debuted to raves at the Cannes Film Festival...
- 12/6/2021
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Red Rocket director and co-screenwriter Sean Baker revealed that Mikey Saber, the always-hustling washed-up porn actor who returns to the Texas hometown that wasn’t exactly sorry to see him go, was inspired by real-life adult-film actors he encountered and that he always envisioned as a role for Simon Rex.
“My co-screenwriter, Chris Bergoch and I, we were doing research on a film that we made … called Starlet, which also focused on the adult-film industry,” Baker told Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles, sharing a panel with the film’s actors Rex, Bree Elrod and Suzanna Son.
“Getting to know people within that industry, we realized there was this archetype, because we met a handful of men like Mikey Saber – and they even had a term applied to them within the industry, slang term: ‘suitcase pimp,’” said Baker, whose most recent indie hit was 2017’s The Florida Project. “We found...
“My co-screenwriter, Chris Bergoch and I, we were doing research on a film that we made … called Starlet, which also focused on the adult-film industry,” Baker told Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles, sharing a panel with the film’s actors Rex, Bree Elrod and Suzanna Son.
“Getting to know people within that industry, we realized there was this archetype, because we met a handful of men like Mikey Saber – and they even had a term applied to them within the industry, slang term: ‘suitcase pimp,’” said Baker, whose most recent indie hit was 2017’s The Florida Project. “We found...
- 11/15/2021
- by Scott Huver
- Deadline Film + TV
With the musical accompaniment of ‘N Sync’s “Bye Bye Bye,” A24 has released the first trailer for Sean Baker’s “Red Rocket” with Simon Rex.
Shot in secret during the pandemic, the upcoming dramedy is written by Baker and Chris Bergoch. It stars Rex as Mikey Saber, a porn star who returns to his hometown of Texas City, Texas, after his Los Angeles lifestyle leaves him broke. When he arrives home, claiming to be a reformed man, his ex-wife Lexi (Bree Elrod) and mother-in-law Lil (Brenda Deiss) aren’t happy to see him, and things take another turn when a teen girl named Strawberry catches his eye.
Displaying Mikey’s smooth-talking charm in a turquoise tie-dye shirt, the trailer shows him bike-riding to job interviews, getting into verbal spats and claiming to be able to “100% out-cardio” a guy who gut-punches him outside a drive-thru donut shop. “Red Rocket” premiered...
Shot in secret during the pandemic, the upcoming dramedy is written by Baker and Chris Bergoch. It stars Rex as Mikey Saber, a porn star who returns to his hometown of Texas City, Texas, after his Los Angeles lifestyle leaves him broke. When he arrives home, claiming to be a reformed man, his ex-wife Lexi (Bree Elrod) and mother-in-law Lil (Brenda Deiss) aren’t happy to see him, and things take another turn when a teen girl named Strawberry catches his eye.
Displaying Mikey’s smooth-talking charm in a turquoise tie-dye shirt, the trailer shows him bike-riding to job interviews, getting into verbal spats and claiming to be able to “100% out-cardio” a guy who gut-punches him outside a drive-thru donut shop. “Red Rocket” premiered...
- 10/5/2021
- by Clayton Davis and Selome Hailu
- Variety Film + TV
Texas City in Galveston County, Texas, in the summer of 2016. Mikey Saber (Simon Rex)—or Mike Davies, as he’d rather not be called—lopes off a greyhound bus into the broiling heat, covered in facial bruises, his possessions only a stale, dirt-caked sports bag thrown over his shoulder. This is no triumphant Odyssean homecoming, a prodigal son welcomed into the bosom of redemption. He is trouble: all devilishly good-looking male-model cheekbones and taut physique, whose real desire to please induces nothing but suffering to others and himself. This is his latest rodeo.
As a Sean Baker protagonist, he’s actually a slight anomaly, although this is still a very Bakeresque milieu. Whereas his past work threw ingenuous, warm-hearted individuals into hostile worlds (festooned always in bright cinematography and decor), here the first-billed on the cast list is the monster. Or the hero of his own life, and deliverer of others,...
As a Sean Baker protagonist, he’s actually a slight anomaly, although this is still a very Bakeresque milieu. Whereas his past work threw ingenuous, warm-hearted individuals into hostile worlds (festooned always in bright cinematography and decor), here the first-billed on the cast list is the monster. Or the hero of his own life, and deliverer of others,...
- 7/16/2021
- by David Katz
- The Film Stage
Sean Baker has been making critically acclaimed films for years about people living on the fringes of polite society, some of whom engage in sex work, and some of whom are played by non-actors — most notably 2012’s Starlet, 2015’s Tangerine and my personal favorite, 2017’s The Florida Project — but they have collectively received only a single Oscar nomination, best supporting actor for Florida Project‘s Willem Dafoe. I would expect that to change with his latest work in that vein, the electric Red Rocket, which had its world premiere in competition at the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday and has left seemingly ...
- 7/15/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Sean Baker has been making critically acclaimed films for years about people living on the fringes of polite society, some of whom engage in sex work, and some of whom are played by non-actors — most notably 2012’s Starlet, 2015’s Tangerine and my personal favorite, 2017’s The Florida Project — but they have collectively received only a single Oscar nomination, best supporting actor for Florida Project‘s Willem Dafoe. I would expect that to change with his latest work in that vein, the electric Red Rocket, which had its world premiere in competition at the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday and has left seemingly ...
- 7/15/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Red Rocket director Sean Baker is prepared to receive hate mail, he said at a press conference in Cannes on Thursday.
Baker said he’s been the recipient of plenty of angry comments before, so he is philosophical about the impending reaction to Red Rocket‘s open-ended tale of a washed-up porn star in pursuit of a teenager. He’s also confident that A24, the film’s U.S. distributors, will support him.
“A24 is taking it domestically in the United States, and you know they’re a fearless company, and I think they’re going to take anything that comes our way head on,” he said. “But I don’t want to be negative about it. I know we’re tackling tough subjects here, and I know there are themes and images that are triggering in this film, I get it. But again, it’s part of the discussion…...
Baker said he’s been the recipient of plenty of angry comments before, so he is philosophical about the impending reaction to Red Rocket‘s open-ended tale of a washed-up porn star in pursuit of a teenager. He’s also confident that A24, the film’s U.S. distributors, will support him.
“A24 is taking it domestically in the United States, and you know they’re a fearless company, and I think they’re going to take anything that comes our way head on,” he said. “But I don’t want to be negative about it. I know we’re tackling tough subjects here, and I know there are themes and images that are triggering in this film, I get it. But again, it’s part of the discussion…...
- 7/15/2021
- by Antonia Blyth
- Deadline Film + TV
In showbiz, they have awards for everything — Oscars, Golden Globes and, of course, the Palme d’Or. Adult film actor Mikey Davies, aka “Mikey Saber,” has five Avn Awards, and he creates opportunities to humble-brag about them constantly now that he’s back in Texas City, the tiny Gulf Coast town he and girlfriend Lexi left together shortly after high school. They got married, moved to Los Angeles, and made a decent living shooting porn together for a time. But that was roughly 20 years ago, and now, Mikey has fallen on hard times. Or limp times, as the case may be.
There must be dozens, if not hundreds, of American indie films about young people escaping a dead end like Texas City and heading east or west, where opportunity lies. Sean Baker’s “Red Rocket” (the director’s first film to compete for the top prize at Cannes) is about...
There must be dozens, if not hundreds, of American indie films about young people escaping a dead end like Texas City and heading east or west, where opportunity lies. Sean Baker’s “Red Rocket” (the director’s first film to compete for the top prize at Cannes) is about...
- 7/14/2021
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
A24 has released the first official look at Sean Baker’s “Red Rocket” ahead of the film’s world premiere next month in competition at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. “Red Rocket” is Baker’s first Palme d’Or contender, although he’s no stranger to Cannes as his last directorial effort, “The Florida Project,” was one of the most acclaimed breakouts in the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar of the 2017 festival. Baker’s previous efforts screened at festivals such as Sundance (“Tangerine”), SXSW (“Starlet”), and more.
While A24 has not released an official synopsis for “Red Rocket,” here’s how Deadline described the movie when it was first announced last year: “‘Red Rocket’ is a darkly comedic film about Mikey Saber, a 39-year old ‘suitcase pimp.’ That is the kind of pimp who lives off of women in the adult film industry. Finding himself down and out in Los Angeles, Mikey decides...
While A24 has not released an official synopsis for “Red Rocket,” here’s how Deadline described the movie when it was first announced last year: “‘Red Rocket’ is a darkly comedic film about Mikey Saber, a 39-year old ‘suitcase pimp.’ That is the kind of pimp who lives off of women in the adult film industry. Finding himself down and out in Los Angeles, Mikey decides...
- 6/24/2021
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
After the Covid-19 pandemic forced last year’s in-person festivities and competition to be cancelled, the Cannes Film Festival will be returning in full force this year, running from July 6 until July 17. The top prize there is the coveted Palme d’Or, and this will be the first time it’s awarded since 2019 when Bong Joon Ho’s “Parasite” claimed it. That film would go on to win the Oscar for Best Picture, becoming the first to claim both prizes since “Marty” did it in 1955. This year’s jury will be headed by Oscar winner Spike Lee, who won the Grand Prix in 2018 for “BlacKkKlansman,” which went on to win him the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar.
The track record of a filmmaker at Cannes can sometimes offer tea leaves as to who might be in a good position to take the Palme. Eight of the entries this year come from...
The track record of a filmmaker at Cannes can sometimes offer tea leaves as to who might be in a good position to take the Palme. Eight of the entries this year come from...
- 6/13/2021
- by Charles Bright
- Gold Derby
Indie filmmaker Sean Baker has emerged for his first project since 2017’s Academy Award-nominated feature “The Florida Project,” and it’s a dazzling, 1970s-esque, gritty and glamorous throwback on the streets of New York for fashion line Khaite. The short film serves as a showcase for Khaite’s fall/winter collections for 2021. Check it out below.
Shot on the streets of New York and within its subterranean corridors, the short hearkens back to classic New York cinema from the ’70s. The film was produced by Prodject in creative collaboration with Superprime.
“This project has honestly been one of the most creatively cathartic experiences I have worked on. This is our crazy love letter to New York City and I hope audiences have as much fun watching as we had making it,” Baker said.
Baker’s next feature “Red Rocket,” starring Simon Rex as a washed-up porn star returning to his small hometown in Texas,...
Shot on the streets of New York and within its subterranean corridors, the short hearkens back to classic New York cinema from the ’70s. The film was produced by Prodject in creative collaboration with Superprime.
“This project has honestly been one of the most creatively cathartic experiences I have worked on. This is our crazy love letter to New York City and I hope audiences have as much fun watching as we had making it,” Baker said.
Baker’s next feature “Red Rocket,” starring Simon Rex as a washed-up porn star returning to his small hometown in Texas,...
- 3/6/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
A24 will distribute Sean Baker’s next film “Red Rocket,” a comedic drama about a washed up porn star who returns to his small Texas hometown.
“Red Rocket” marks Baker’s first feature since “The Florida Project,” an acclaimed coming-of-age story that was also backed by A24. Though it’s unclear when “Red Rocket” will be released, Baker says the film is expected to debut in theaters.
“I am very excited to be reuniting with the wonderful team at A24 who will once again be bringing my film to U.S. audiences,” Baker said in a statement. “As a champion of the theatrical experience, I am thrilled A24 will give my film a theatrical release with their talent for bold marketing and distribution savvy. My gratitude goes out to FilmNation and the ‘Red Rocket’ cast and crew for helping me bring the film to fruition.”
The film, which stars Simon Rex,...
“Red Rocket” marks Baker’s first feature since “The Florida Project,” an acclaimed coming-of-age story that was also backed by A24. Though it’s unclear when “Red Rocket” will be released, Baker says the film is expected to debut in theaters.
“I am very excited to be reuniting with the wonderful team at A24 who will once again be bringing my film to U.S. audiences,” Baker said in a statement. “As a champion of the theatrical experience, I am thrilled A24 will give my film a theatrical release with their talent for bold marketing and distribution savvy. My gratitude goes out to FilmNation and the ‘Red Rocket’ cast and crew for helping me bring the film to fruition.”
The film, which stars Simon Rex,...
- 2/25/2021
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
TikTok’s fourth most-followed creator, the musician Loren Gray, is getting into the jewelry biz.
Gray, 18, who first rose to fame on TikTok predecessor Musical.ly and today counts 50 million followers on the micro-video app, has launched a new jewelry brand called &Always, which she says has been in the works for a year. The line comprises necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and barrettes ranging in price from $16 to $44, inspired by Old Hollywood glamour and featuring a vintage mirror shape that is a nod to Gray’s overarching bid to transform the mirror into a symbol of self-confidence.
The line will exclusively be sold via its website -- which will also feature a 'Hall Of Mirrors' section where consumers can showcase how they’re styling their pieces.
At launch, there are two themed collections, which the brand calls 'editions': the Starlet Mirror Edition and the Otherworld Edition -- the latter of which...
Gray, 18, who first rose to fame on TikTok predecessor Musical.ly and today counts 50 million followers on the micro-video app, has launched a new jewelry brand called &Always, which she says has been in the works for a year. The line comprises necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and barrettes ranging in price from $16 to $44, inspired by Old Hollywood glamour and featuring a vintage mirror shape that is a nod to Gray’s overarching bid to transform the mirror into a symbol of self-confidence.
The line will exclusively be sold via its website -- which will also feature a 'Hall Of Mirrors' section where consumers can showcase how they’re styling their pieces.
At launch, there are two themed collections, which the brand calls 'editions': the Starlet Mirror Edition and the Otherworld Edition -- the latter of which...
- 12/3/2020
- by Geoff Weiss
- Tubefilter.com
If you love independent cinema, you’re almost certainly a fan of Sean Baker. Along with his partner in crime and writer Chris Bergoch, Bake has been making beloved indies that even manage to be elevated towards Oscar contention. The Florida Project was cited with an Academy Award nomination, but Tangerine was a close miss, while other work of theirs like Starlet is top notch as well. Yesterday, some news came down the pike about their next project. That alone would be exciting, but add in that Baker and Bergoch not only have penned the flick, but it’s almost finished shooting. Read on for a bit more about this development… According to an exclusive from Variety, Baker and Bergoch are almost done with a new movie called Red Rocket. Starring Simon Rex, nothing is known about it just yet, but indie cinema fans should obviously be excited. More when we have it,...
- 11/11/2020
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Other than the strange saga earlier this year of Bella Thorne’s aborted OnlyFans documentary and having video discussions with Abel Ferrara, Tangerine director Sean Baker has been busy, but mostly quiet, about upcoming projects since the release of 2017’s highly acclaimed The Florida Project.
That hiatus is over, but Baker remains ever unpredictable with his choices, revealing today that he shot and produced a film in secret during quarantine. Speaking to Variety, Baker disclosed that the film is a dark comedy called Red Rocket and stars Simon Rex, a prolific actor whose biggest mainstream credit is an appearance in the Scary Movie franchise. The rest of his work we’ll let you discover for yourself.
Co-written with Chris Bergoch, who had a hand in previous Baker films including Tangerine, The Florida Project, and Starlet, the film was lensed by Waves cinematographer Drew Daniels. Baker is currently looking for distribution.
That hiatus is over, but Baker remains ever unpredictable with his choices, revealing today that he shot and produced a film in secret during quarantine. Speaking to Variety, Baker disclosed that the film is a dark comedy called Red Rocket and stars Simon Rex, a prolific actor whose biggest mainstream credit is an appearance in the Scary Movie franchise. The rest of his work we’ll let you discover for yourself.
Co-written with Chris Bergoch, who had a hand in previous Baker films including Tangerine, The Florida Project, and Starlet, the film was lensed by Waves cinematographer Drew Daniels. Baker is currently looking for distribution.
- 11/10/2020
- by Michael Snydel
- The Film Stage
Sean Baker is nearing completion on “Red Rocket,” a dark comedy he’s been shooting in secret in Texas. Variety first reported the news, adding that production on “Red Rocket” will finish before the end of the month. Plot details for the movie are being kept under wraps. “Red Rocket” stars “Scary Movie” franchise veteran Simon Rex. Additional cast members are not known at this time. Baker often works with non-actors, so it wouldn’t be surprising to hear the cast is made up largely of unknown talents.
Baker was last in theaters with “The Florida Project,” which debuted to rapturous acclaim in the Directors Fortnight sidebar of the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. A24 released “The Florida Project” in the U.S. to a $5.9 million gross. The indie ended its run globally with $11 million. At the Oscars, “The Florida Project” picked up a nomination for Best Supporting Actor thanks to Willem Dafoe’s performance.
Baker was last in theaters with “The Florida Project,” which debuted to rapturous acclaim in the Directors Fortnight sidebar of the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. A24 released “The Florida Project” in the U.S. to a $5.9 million gross. The indie ended its run globally with $11 million. At the Oscars, “The Florida Project” picked up a nomination for Best Supporting Actor thanks to Willem Dafoe’s performance.
- 11/10/2020
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Sean Baker is close to wrapping “Red Rocket,” a secret film he has been shooting in Texas.
The dark comedy will star Simon Rex of the “Scary Movie” franchise and “Jack & Jill.” Plot details are being kept under wraps, but production should be finished this month. The film was independently financed and will be looking for distribution.
Baker isn’t the only director to take up his camera in secret. Steven Soderbergh applied a similar under-the-radar approach while making his upcoming movie “Let Them All Talk,” which will star Meryl Streep and Gemma Chan.
Work on “Red Rocket” commenced as Hollywood and the independent film community that Baker belongs to are trying to find a way to make movies safely during coronavirus. The film has employed industry standard safety protocols.
“Red Rocket” marks Baker’s first feature since 2017’s “The Florida Project,” which earned rhapsodic reviews, as well as...
The dark comedy will star Simon Rex of the “Scary Movie” franchise and “Jack & Jill.” Plot details are being kept under wraps, but production should be finished this month. The film was independently financed and will be looking for distribution.
Baker isn’t the only director to take up his camera in secret. Steven Soderbergh applied a similar under-the-radar approach while making his upcoming movie “Let Them All Talk,” which will star Meryl Streep and Gemma Chan.
Work on “Red Rocket” commenced as Hollywood and the independent film community that Baker belongs to are trying to find a way to make movies safely during coronavirus. The film has employed industry standard safety protocols.
“Red Rocket” marks Baker’s first feature since 2017’s “The Florida Project,” which earned rhapsodic reviews, as well as...
- 11/10/2020
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
This year, the motion picture academy achieved its five-year goal of doubling the number of women among its membership. In all, 819 film professionals were invited to become part of the organization that hands out the Oscars. Compare this intake to the totals of the previous five years: 842 in 2019; a record 928 in 2018; 774 in 2017; 683 in 2016; 322 in 2015; and 271 in 2014.
While Academy Awards nominees are automatically eligible for consideration, the rest of the candidates must go through a fairly cumbersome process. A candidate must meet certain branch specific requirements before even being eligible.
For example, actors must “have a minimum of three theatrical feature film credits, in all of which the roles played were scripted roles, one of which was released in the past five years, and all of which are of a caliber that reflect the high standards of the Academy.” For writers, directors and producers they need have just two of these credits.
While Academy Awards nominees are automatically eligible for consideration, the rest of the candidates must go through a fairly cumbersome process. A candidate must meet certain branch specific requirements before even being eligible.
For example, actors must “have a minimum of three theatrical feature film credits, in all of which the roles played were scripted roles, one of which was released in the past five years, and all of which are of a caliber that reflect the high standards of the Academy.” For writers, directors and producers they need have just two of these credits.
- 7/1/2020
- by Paul Sheehan
- Gold Derby
Actress/model Dree Hemingway ("Starlet"), the daughter of Mariel Hemingway ("Star 80") poses for the December 2019 issue of "Elle" (Spain) magazine, wearing Paco Rabanne fashion, photographed by Xavi Gordo:
The great-granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway, Dree first played 'Jane', the lead in the feature "Starlet" (2012).
She was a 'Playboy Playmate' in the first 'non-nude' issue of Playboy magazine (March 2016).
Specializing in independent features, Hemingway had a supporting role in "Listen Up Philip" (2014)...
...and leading roles in "The People Garden" and "Live Cargo".
In 2017, Hemingway appeared in "It Happened in L.A.", "Love After Love", with upcoming films including "7x7", "In a Relationship"...
..."Wanderland", "Run With the Hunted", "The Unicorn" and "Violet".
Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek Dree Hemingway...
The great-granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway, Dree first played 'Jane', the lead in the feature "Starlet" (2012).
She was a 'Playboy Playmate' in the first 'non-nude' issue of Playboy magazine (March 2016).
Specializing in independent features, Hemingway had a supporting role in "Listen Up Philip" (2014)...
...and leading roles in "The People Garden" and "Live Cargo".
In 2017, Hemingway appeared in "It Happened in L.A.", "Love After Love", with upcoming films including "7x7", "In a Relationship"...
..."Wanderland", "Run With the Hunted", "The Unicorn" and "Violet".
Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek Dree Hemingway...
- 12/9/2019
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
James Ransone isn’t taking it for granted. He’s not taking “It” for granted, either. While the long-time television actor and indie mainstay has been working in Hollywood for nearly two decades, his latest role in Andy Muschietti’s much-hyped “It Chapter Two” is his biggest gig yet. It almost didn’t happen, and not just because of good old-fashioned industry drama or scheduling issues, but because the Indie Spirit winner nearly left the business long before he could dig into a breakout 20 years in the making.
“I’ve just never been in a pop culture thing like this, I’ve never had a moment like this,” Ransone said in a recent interview with IndieWire. “I didn’t know this thing was as big as it was, I had no idea it was going to be as massive as it was. It feels like some like hand of God,...
“I’ve just never been in a pop culture thing like this, I’ve never had a moment like this,” Ransone said in a recent interview with IndieWire. “I didn’t know this thing was as big as it was, I had no idea it was going to be as massive as it was. It feels like some like hand of God,...
- 9/4/2019
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Unlikely bonds that blossom across the age divide have long been a staple of big-screen storytelling, prompting plenty of cringes and eye rolls along the way. But the really good movies about intergenerational friendship — Sean Baker’s Starlet and Stephen Cone’s Princess Cyd are semi-recent examples — don’t clobber you with the warm-and-fuzzy joy of a younger and an older person connecting. Their emotional pull comes from how fragile the ties binding the two characters are — how tenuous and tentative and awkward.
One of the strengths of Bull, a modest, plaintively lovely debut feature from writer-director Annie Silverstein, is ...
One of the strengths of Bull, a modest, plaintively lovely debut feature from writer-director Annie Silverstein, is ...
- 5/15/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Unlikely bonds that blossom across the age divide have long been a staple of big-screen storytelling, prompting plenty of cringes and eye rolls along the way. But the really good movies about intergenerational friendship — Sean Baker’s Starlet and Stephen Cone’s Princess Cyd are semi-recent examples — don’t clobber you with the warm-and-fuzzy joy of a younger and an older person connecting. Their emotional pull comes from how fragile the ties binding the two characters are — how tenuous and tentative and awkward.
One of the strengths of Bull, a modest, plaintively lovely debut feature from writer-director Annie Silverstein, is ...
One of the strengths of Bull, a modest, plaintively lovely debut feature from writer-director Annie Silverstein, is ...
- 5/15/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
“One Cut of the Dead,” a micro-budget horror film that last year defied the odds to become one of the biggest hits of the year in Japan, is headed for an English-language remake.
Patrick Cunningham, a Japan-based American producer whose credits include “Martha Marcy May Marlene” and “Starlet,” is behind the venture.
The original film, which depicts the zombie invasion of a low-budget movie shoot, had its debut at the Yubari festival in northern Japan in March of last year and played the following month at the Festival of Far East Film in Udine, Italy.
It received a nominal two-screen commercial release in Japan in June. But, buoyed by positive feedback, it scored more screens and played for several months. By the end of December, its cumulative gross had risen to $26.3 million – nearly 1,000 times its production budget of just $27,000.
“Most U.S. and Western audiences won’t get to see it.
Patrick Cunningham, a Japan-based American producer whose credits include “Martha Marcy May Marlene” and “Starlet,” is behind the venture.
The original film, which depicts the zombie invasion of a low-budget movie shoot, had its debut at the Yubari festival in northern Japan in March of last year and played the following month at the Festival of Far East Film in Udine, Italy.
It received a nominal two-screen commercial release in Japan in June. But, buoyed by positive feedback, it scored more screens and played for several months. By the end of December, its cumulative gross had risen to $26.3 million – nearly 1,000 times its production budget of just $27,000.
“Most U.S. and Western audiences won’t get to see it.
- 3/20/2019
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Ellie Kemper isn’t trying to change the world, but she’s hoping her new book will change your mind about ice cream, at the very least. The “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” actress is hitting the road this month in support of her debut work, “My Squirrel Days,” which tracks the Missouri native’s journey from awkward adolescence to Emmy-nominated star.
Framed around a series of personal anecdotes and essays, publisher Scribner says “My Squirrel Days” is a “funny, free-wheeling tour” of Kemper’s life. Rather than write a traditional memoir or advice book, Kemper says she wanted to release a collection of stories that were equal parts uplifting and irreverent. As she writes in the introduction, “This book is not so much a tribute to brave women everywhere as it is a record of my favorite ice cream brands. I wrote what I knew and I know what I wrote.
Framed around a series of personal anecdotes and essays, publisher Scribner says “My Squirrel Days” is a “funny, free-wheeling tour” of Kemper’s life. Rather than write a traditional memoir or advice book, Kemper says she wanted to release a collection of stories that were equal parts uplifting and irreverent. As she writes in the introduction, “This book is not so much a tribute to brave women everywhere as it is a record of my favorite ice cream brands. I wrote what I knew and I know what I wrote.
- 10/20/2018
- by Tim Chan
- Variety Film + TV
New Indie For a straight white guy, writer-director Sean Baker tells some of the most compassionate and empathetic stories about marginalized communities. The man behind Tangerine and Starlet returns with The Florida Project (Lionsgate Home Entertainment), a powerful tale of a young girl (played indelibly by Brooklynn Prince) and her barely-getting-by mother (Bria Vinaite) as they eke out a day-to-day existence in a Crayola-colored motel in the shadow of Walt Disney World. Willem Dafoe received richly deserved Oscar and Independent Spirit nominations for his turn as the hotel’s compassionate manager. Not always an easy watch – and I love the ending, even though it’s been divisive – this is a powerful and heartfelt story of people just trying to make it in...
- 3/15/2018
- by Alonso Duralde
- Movies.com
Despite casting Willem Dafoe and working with a $2 million budget — the biggest in Sean Baker’s career — the director knew that his sixth feature, “The Florida Project,” couldn’t abandon what’s become his personal trademark: populating his films with untapped talent.
Read More:Willem Dafoe On What He Learned From Working With Non-Actors on ‘The Florida Project’ — Exclusive
“For me, Spike Lee was always one that really did it right,” Baker said. “He would have big A-list stars in his films, and then he would always give fresh faces to some of the bigger supporting characters. He would be introducing so many new faces to the world, new talent to the industry, which is I think really important.”
“The Florida Project” has received glowing reviews (IndieWire gave it an A-, and it’s currently rated 95 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and received multiple awards, including Golden Globes and SAG nominations for Dafoe.
Read More:Willem Dafoe On What He Learned From Working With Non-Actors on ‘The Florida Project’ — Exclusive
“For me, Spike Lee was always one that really did it right,” Baker said. “He would have big A-list stars in his films, and then he would always give fresh faces to some of the bigger supporting characters. He would be introducing so many new faces to the world, new talent to the industry, which is I think really important.”
“The Florida Project” has received glowing reviews (IndieWire gave it an A-, and it’s currently rated 95 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and received multiple awards, including Golden Globes and SAG nominations for Dafoe.
- 12/15/2017
- by Jenna Marotta
- Indiewire
Princess CydStephen Cone has been making movies at a steady clip for over a decade and yet remains largely unknown. It is a momentous and wholly deserved occasion then for him to receive a retrospective at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York. Despite mixed receptions and even more erratic distribution patterns, his collection of films isn’t as motley as one might think. While each might tiptoe in a different direction, they maintain a hand in the Stephen Cone universe, imprinted by the same particular humanistic insight. In one of his earliest films, In Memoriam (2011), a young man so subsumed with the sudden death of a couple, fallen from a roof during the throes of pleasure, conducts his own investigation into their ill-fated demise. Innocuous curiosity masks what is essentially an existential inquiry and takes a self-referential pivot when he decides to recreate and film the events,...
- 11/7/2017
- MUBI
Exclusive: Chris Bergoch, who co-wrote and produced the critically acclaimed The Florida Project directed by Sean Baker, has signed with Verve. The Florida Project, led by a cast of Willem Dafoe and little scene-stealer Brooklynn Prince, has already been garnering Oscar buzz. The film, which premiered in Cannes in the Directors’ Fortnight this year, was just released by A24 on October 6. The other co-writer of the project was Baker. Bergoch also co-wrote Starlet and Tanger…...
- 10/24/2017
- Deadline
Writer/director Sean Baker is an old hand when it comes to telling stories about the marginalized. Be it take-out delivery workers in Take Out, street hustlers in King of Broadway, sex workers in Starlet or a trans woman in Tangerine. In The Florida Project, he once again turns his eye to those society glazes over; the people living one step away from the street.
Moonee is a boisterous six-year-old who spends the days of her summer holiday hanging out with her friends Scooty and Jancey. The trio waste away their days the way we all used to, cruising the neighbourhood causing a little trouble, hanging out with other kids and basically staying out from the crack of dawn until the street lights come on. While this would have been acceptable once upon a [Continued ...]...
Moonee is a boisterous six-year-old who spends the days of her summer holiday hanging out with her friends Scooty and Jancey. The trio waste away their days the way we all used to, cruising the neighbourhood causing a little trouble, hanging out with other kids and basically staying out from the crack of dawn until the street lights come on. While this would have been acceptable once upon a [Continued ...]...
- 10/17/2017
- QuietEarth.us
Sean Baker’s vivid new film The Florida Project is now playing in New York and Los Angeles and it recently played at the New York Film Festival, fulfilling the director’s long-time dream. While at the festival, he sat down with his producer Chris Bergoch and acting coach Samantha Quan at the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center Amphitheater.
The trio took part in Nyff Live, a nightly event held during the festival to go deep into the process of making the films highlighted across every category of the fest. Baker and Bergoch talked about stumbling upon the ‘hidden homeless’ in south Florida that inspired The Florida Project. They also discussed casting breakout star Brooklyn Prince and The Little Rascals influence throughout Baker’s films. Throughout the talk, one gets a taste for Baker’s humanism and how it drives every storytelling decision across his oeuvre. He is gifting American...
The trio took part in Nyff Live, a nightly event held during the festival to go deep into the process of making the films highlighted across every category of the fest. Baker and Bergoch talked about stumbling upon the ‘hidden homeless’ in south Florida that inspired The Florida Project. They also discussed casting breakout star Brooklyn Prince and The Little Rascals influence throughout Baker’s films. Throughout the talk, one gets a taste for Baker’s humanism and how it drives every storytelling decision across his oeuvre. He is gifting American...
- 10/8/2017
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
Sean Baker, the creator of Fox’s Greg the Bunny, enjoyed breakout success (and Oscar buzz) with the 2015 film Tangerine. Telling the story of two transgender prostitutes, the movie was notably shot entirely on an iPhone 5. Once again, modern technology -- this time, Instagram -- is playing a pivotal role in the 46-year-old director’s latest film, The Florida Project, about 6-year-old Moonee (Brooklynn Prince), and her tumultuous childhood, growing up right outside the happiest place on Earth, Walt Disney World.
Moonee and her young, out-of-work, single mom Halley (Instagram star Bria Vinaite) live week to week in the Magic Castle budget motel, run by the hardworking yet kindhearted Bobby (Willem Dafoe). It was Baker’s co-writer Chris Bergoch who brought the plight of Orlando’s hidden homeless population to Baker’s attention, and together they got to work on this film.
“I’ve always been inspired by The Little Rascals,” Baker says, referring...
Moonee and her young, out-of-work, single mom Halley (Instagram star Bria Vinaite) live week to week in the Magic Castle budget motel, run by the hardworking yet kindhearted Bobby (Willem Dafoe). It was Baker’s co-writer Chris Bergoch who brought the plight of Orlando’s hidden homeless population to Baker’s attention, and together they got to work on this film.
“I’ve always been inspired by The Little Rascals,” Baker says, referring...
- 10/6/2017
- Entertainment Tonight
by Nathaniel R
Blade Runner 2049 is our current prediction for "Most Nominations Without Best Picture" though maybe it'll snag that, too.Here at The Film Experience I like to keep track of favorites all year long for two reasons. The first is to not to be unduly influenced by the studio shenanigans of backloading the film year with their intended Oscar hopefuls. The second is to prevent forgetfullness when it comes time to give out the Film Bitch Awards, my own virtual awards fest to close out each film year. When I don't keep careful track it's much harder to wrap things up at year's end.
Being a bit late this quarter, here are Best ofs per Oscar category from films released from July through October 6th (an extra week added on because we're running late). This list does not include films with known release dates from now until the end of the year.
Blade Runner 2049 is our current prediction for "Most Nominations Without Best Picture" though maybe it'll snag that, too.Here at The Film Experience I like to keep track of favorites all year long for two reasons. The first is to not to be unduly influenced by the studio shenanigans of backloading the film year with their intended Oscar hopefuls. The second is to prevent forgetfullness when it comes time to give out the Film Bitch Awards, my own virtual awards fest to close out each film year. When I don't keep careful track it's much harder to wrap things up at year's end.
Being a bit late this quarter, here are Best ofs per Oscar category from films released from July through October 6th (an extra week added on because we're running late). This list does not include films with known release dates from now until the end of the year.
- 10/5/2017
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Sean Baker is amazed some people still think he’s a new filmmaker. That implies that he’s young. On the contrary. “I’m old,” Baker remarked during his talk at Ifp Week 2017. (Or at least he’s 46.) Back in 2015, Tangerine put him on the map. And it was shot on an iPhone 5S, which made him seem like some millennial who’d never even heard of a Bolex. As it happens, Tangerine was his fifth film. The others weren’t obscure; Four Letter Words, Take Out, Prince of Broadway and Starlet were all acclaimed. (He also spent years as the co-creator of […]...
- 9/19/2017
- by Matt Prigge
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Earlier this week, we got a Trailer for a rather small independent movie that could make a pretty big splash during the awards season. This probably won’t shock you, but it’s also an A24 release. The flick in question is The Florida Project, which has been building some steady buzz since the Cannes Film Festival, especially for Willem Dafoe. Long considered by some to be overdue for a statue, Dafoe has received career best notices for his turn here. If he’s truly as good as advertised, he could help drive this movie right through the precursors. Watch out for this one folks. The film is a look at growing up in poverty. The catch is, it’s seen through the eyes of a rather precocious and innocent six year old girl. Moonee (Brooklynn Prince) and her friends, including Jancey (Valeria Cotto), run around the a week to...
- 8/16/2017
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Aaron and Mark talk Criterion and art films with Sean Baker, director of Tangerine, The Florida Project, Starlet, Prince of Broadway, Take Out, and creator of Greg the Bunny. Sean is not only a great director, but he’s a huge cinephile and Criterion fan. We had a great time talking about his work and influences, his trip into the Criterion closet, and sharing wish lists of great directors we’d like to see on home media.
Episode Links Sean Baker’s Criterion Top 10 Sean Baker’s Criterion Closet Video Sean’s Dog from Starlet – Instagram Tangerine – Official Site A24 Acquires The Florida Project Why Sean Baker’s ‘The Florida Project’ Was the Hot Buy of Cannes Episode Credits Aaron West: Twitter | Website | Letterboxd Sean Baker: Twitter | Facebook Mark Hurne: Twitter | Criterion Now: Twitter | Facebook Group Criterion Cast: Facebook | Twitter
Music for the show is from Fatboy Roberts’ Geek Remixed project.
Episode Links Sean Baker’s Criterion Top 10 Sean Baker’s Criterion Closet Video Sean’s Dog from Starlet – Instagram Tangerine – Official Site A24 Acquires The Florida Project Why Sean Baker’s ‘The Florida Project’ Was the Hot Buy of Cannes Episode Credits Aaron West: Twitter | Website | Letterboxd Sean Baker: Twitter | Facebook Mark Hurne: Twitter | Criterion Now: Twitter | Facebook Group Criterion Cast: Facebook | Twitter
Music for the show is from Fatboy Roberts’ Geek Remixed project.
- 7/9/2017
- by Aaron West
- CriterionCast
Aside from having an exceptional gift for finding beauty in disenfranchised outsider existences, director Sean Baker also has a special feeling for female friendship — tracing the unlikely connection that develops between a porn actress and a lonely octogenarian widow in Starlet; the scrappy loyalty of two transgender prostitutes in Tangerine; and now in The Florida Project, the infectious joy and shared summer adventures of a pair of 6-year-old girls living in neighboring budget motels, who create their own magic kingdom across the poverty line from Walt Disney World, Orlando.
The two sparkling recruits playing those roles, Brooklynn Kimberly Prince...
The two sparkling recruits playing those roles, Brooklynn Kimberly Prince...
- 5/23/2017
- by David Rooney
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
There are surely few sweeter delights in this troubling world of ours than seeing Willem Dafoe politely escort a group of storks off a motel driveway. It is, perhaps, the best of a number of striking visual flourishes in Sean Baker’s The Florida Project, an aesthetically rich but narratively slight film that sees the writer-director (along with cinematographer Alexis Zabe) switch from the saturated and much-celebrated iPhone camerawork utilized for his last film Tangerine to the crackle and unmistakable warmth of celluloid.
Indeed, it proves a perfect tool for capturing the bizarre imitation-Disney hotels in which the film plays out, but could it be too beautiful for its own good? Baker indulges just a little too much time shooting his young hyperactive actors in off-key locations and perhaps not enough on their character development or narrative arcs.
Newcomers Brooklynn Prince and Bria Vinaite play Moonee and Halley, respectively, a...
Indeed, it proves a perfect tool for capturing the bizarre imitation-Disney hotels in which the film plays out, but could it be too beautiful for its own good? Baker indulges just a little too much time shooting his young hyperactive actors in off-key locations and perhaps not enough on their character development or narrative arcs.
Newcomers Brooklynn Prince and Bria Vinaite play Moonee and Halley, respectively, a...
- 5/22/2017
- by Rory O'Connor
- The Film Stage
“The Little Rascals” meets “The Little Fugitive” in Sean Baker’s “The Florida Project,” a loose, endearing followup to “Tangerine” and another deep dive into impoverished America from the inside out. Baker has staked his filmmaking career on coaching vivid performances from non-traditional actors, and “The Florida Project” features a six-year-old girl in a freeflowing narrative and largely inhabits the limitations of her perspective, with mostly winning results.
Where “Tangerine” took place across the across the busy streets of Los Angeles, “The Florida Project” unfolds almost exclusively within the constraints of a budget motel on the outskirts of Orlando. The purple-hued Magic Castle Motel exists in Disney World’s decrepit backyard, and provides a very different sort of playground for the kids who live in its confines.
See MoreWillem Dafoe Goes to Disney World: Sean Baker Reveals Details and Photos of ‘The Florida Project’ — Exclusive
These include Moonee (Brooklynn Prince...
Where “Tangerine” took place across the across the busy streets of Los Angeles, “The Florida Project” unfolds almost exclusively within the constraints of a budget motel on the outskirts of Orlando. The purple-hued Magic Castle Motel exists in Disney World’s decrepit backyard, and provides a very different sort of playground for the kids who live in its confines.
See MoreWillem Dafoe Goes to Disney World: Sean Baker Reveals Details and Photos of ‘The Florida Project’ — Exclusive
These include Moonee (Brooklynn Prince...
- 5/22/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
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