Andrew Herwitz’s The Film Sales Company has boarded worldwide sales rights ahead of the Cannes market on 10 Kilos and Bad Faith.
10 Kilos directed by Doran Ellan centres on a young woman partying in Bolivia who ends up in a women’s prison after a weekend of partying and rises to the top of the South American country’s drug cartel.
Daniela Kertesz stars alongside Maya Eshet, Luna Mansour and Juan Diego Rodriguez in the drama from Urban Tales Production and Cinemajet.
Political documentary Bad Faith from Stephen Ujlaki and Christopher Jacob Jones exposes the origins of the anti-democracy...
10 Kilos directed by Doran Ellan centres on a young woman partying in Bolivia who ends up in a women’s prison after a weekend of partying and rises to the top of the South American country’s drug cartel.
Daniela Kertesz stars alongside Maya Eshet, Luna Mansour and Juan Diego Rodriguez in the drama from Urban Tales Production and Cinemajet.
Political documentary Bad Faith from Stephen Ujlaki and Christopher Jacob Jones exposes the origins of the anti-democracy...
- 5/7/2024
- ScreenDaily
Two of spring’s starriest releases arrive on digital platforms this week. Neither was a commercial sensation, but each attracted enough buzz to signal long shelf lives ahead. Watch one when you get home from seeing “Challengers.”
The contender to watch this week: “Love Lies Bleeding“
For her sophomore feature, Rose Glass, one of the coolest directors working today, made an erotic lesbian crime thriller starring Kristen Stewart as an ’80s gym manager who falls hard for a bodybuilder (Katy O’Brian), not realizing her new lady has ties to her estranged gangster father (a long-haired Ed Harris). It’s an electric movie oozing with noirish grime, but it wasn’t quite the runaway hit A24 was probably hoping for, collecting a modest $8.7 million at the worldwide box office despite Stewart’s star power. Still, “Love Lies Bleeding” seems destined for cult-favorite status, and Glass has gained a lifetime’s worth of clout.
The contender to watch this week: “Love Lies Bleeding“
For her sophomore feature, Rose Glass, one of the coolest directors working today, made an erotic lesbian crime thriller starring Kristen Stewart as an ’80s gym manager who falls hard for a bodybuilder (Katy O’Brian), not realizing her new lady has ties to her estranged gangster father (a long-haired Ed Harris). It’s an electric movie oozing with noirish grime, but it wasn’t quite the runaway hit A24 was probably hoping for, collecting a modest $8.7 million at the worldwide box office despite Stewart’s star power. Still, “Love Lies Bleeding” seems destined for cult-favorite status, and Glass has gained a lifetime’s worth of clout.
- 4/27/2024
- by Matthew Jacobs
- Gold Derby
“Bad Faith: Christian Nationalism’s Unholy War on Democracy” is the scariest film I’ve seen in a long time. It’s a documentary that explores the rise of Christian Nationalism, and much of what it shows you, about the mutation of the Christian Right into a movement that’s openly abandoned any loyalty to democracy, has been covered in the mass media in recent years. But the film’s directors, Stephen Ujlaki and Chris Jones, go deep into the roots of this movement, and what’s new and disquieting is how the current presidential race changes everything. Viewed against the looming possibility of Donald Trump’s re-election (a scenario that most liberals I know believe is unlikely; I think they may be seriously deluded), the rise of Christian Nationalism takes on a whole new meaning.
In 2017, Trump, once he took the reins of power, was constrained — by the other branches of government,...
In 2017, Trump, once he took the reins of power, was constrained — by the other branches of government,...
- 4/3/2024
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
The Academy has announced the five winners of the 2023 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting who each win a $35,000 prize and mentorship from an Academy member throughout their fellowship year.
The recipients will also be featured at the Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards and Live Read on April 25 at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater (pictured), where an ensemble of actors will read selected scenes from the 2023 winning scripts.
The 2023 winners appear below listed alphabetically:
Brent Delaney, Brownie Mary
At the height of the AIDS crisis, Mary Jane Rathbun illegally distributes cannabis-infused brownies to heal thousands of gay men in...
The recipients will also be featured at the Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards and Live Read on April 25 at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater (pictured), where an ensemble of actors will read selected scenes from the 2023 winning scripts.
The 2023 winners appear below listed alphabetically:
Brent Delaney, Brownie Mary
At the height of the AIDS crisis, Mary Jane Rathbun illegally distributes cannabis-infused brownies to heal thousands of gay men in...
- 3/4/2024
- ScreenDaily
Continuing a tradition that began in 1985, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Thursday named four individuals and one writing team as the final winners for the 2022 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting.
Jennifer Archer from Springwater, Ontario, and Timothy Ware-Hill of Orange, NJ, took two of the spots. The other three went to winners from Southern California including Sam Boyer, J.M. Levine, and the team of Callie Bloem and Christopher Ewing. Each individual and the writing team will receive a 35,000 prize and mentorship opportunities from an AMPAS member for their fellowship year.
A live read of selected scenes from all five of the winning scripts will be performed November 9 during the formal awards ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
The Nicholl Fellowships was established in 1985 through the support of Gee Nicholl in memory of her husband Don Nicholl.
A total of 5,526 scripts from 85 countries were submitted for this year’s competition.
Jennifer Archer from Springwater, Ontario, and Timothy Ware-Hill of Orange, NJ, took two of the spots. The other three went to winners from Southern California including Sam Boyer, J.M. Levine, and the team of Callie Bloem and Christopher Ewing. Each individual and the writing team will receive a 35,000 prize and mentorship opportunities from an AMPAS member for their fellowship year.
A live read of selected scenes from all five of the winning scripts will be performed November 9 during the formal awards ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
The Nicholl Fellowships was established in 1985 through the support of Gee Nicholl in memory of her husband Don Nicholl.
A total of 5,526 scripts from 85 countries were submitted for this year’s competition.
- 9/29/2022
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
The Academy has announced this year’s Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winners, including four individuals and one writing team. Each individual and writing team will receive a 35,000 prize and mentorship from an Academy member throughout the recipient’s fellowship year.
In addition to the winners being featured at the 2022 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards, an ensemble of actors will read selected scenes from the winning screenplays live at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on Nov. 9.
This year’s amateur screenwriters competition received a total of 5,526 scripts from 85 countries. After several rounds that were judged by industry professionals and Academy members, 11 individual screenwriters were selected as finalists, with their scripts read and judged by the Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee before voting on this year’s winners. The 2022 finalists include Michael Boyle (“8 Habits of Highly Murderous People”), Darcy P. Brislin (“We Sing”), Jake Disch (“The Supremes”), Julian Hooper (“Madame”) and S.
In addition to the winners being featured at the 2022 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards, an ensemble of actors will read selected scenes from the winning screenplays live at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on Nov. 9.
This year’s amateur screenwriters competition received a total of 5,526 scripts from 85 countries. After several rounds that were judged by industry professionals and Academy members, 11 individual screenwriters were selected as finalists, with their scripts read and judged by the Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee before voting on this year’s winners. The 2022 finalists include Michael Boyle (“8 Habits of Highly Murderous People”), Darcy P. Brislin (“We Sing”), Jake Disch (“The Supremes”), Julian Hooper (“Madame”) and S.
- 9/29/2022
- by Michaela Zee
- Variety Film + TV
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Science announced on Thursday that four individuals and one writing team have been selected as winners of the 2022 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting.
The prize includes 35,000 for each individual and writing team, as well as mentorship from an Academy member throughout their fellowship year.
On Nov. 9 at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, an ensemble of actors will read selected scenes from the winning scripts.
Also Read:
All 17 Egot Winners, From Audrey Hepburn to Jennifer Hudson (Photos)
The 2022 winners are:
Jennifer Archer (Springwater, Ontario, Canada), “Into the Deep Blue”
Nick Bennet is rebuilding his life after the death of his mom, a DUI, and mandatory grief counseling. Together with Fiona, his fiery best friend from therapy, they navigate the waters of grief and their growing feelings.
Callie Bloem and Christopher Ewing (Los Angeles), “Tape 22”
A music journalist reeling from the...
The prize includes 35,000 for each individual and writing team, as well as mentorship from an Academy member throughout their fellowship year.
On Nov. 9 at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, an ensemble of actors will read selected scenes from the winning scripts.
Also Read:
All 17 Egot Winners, From Audrey Hepburn to Jennifer Hudson (Photos)
The 2022 winners are:
Jennifer Archer (Springwater, Ontario, Canada), “Into the Deep Blue”
Nick Bennet is rebuilding his life after the death of his mom, a DUI, and mandatory grief counseling. Together with Fiona, his fiery best friend from therapy, they navigate the waters of grief and their growing feelings.
Callie Bloem and Christopher Ewing (Los Angeles), “Tape 22”
A music journalist reeling from the...
- 9/29/2022
- by Sharon Knolle
- The Wrap
Haley Hope Bartels (Pumping Black), Karin delaPeña Collison (Coming of Age), Byron Hamel (Shade of the Grapefruit Tree), R.J. Daniel Hanna (Shelter Animal) and Laura Kosann (The Ideal Woman) are the screenwriters and scripts chosen as the winners of the 2021 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition, AMPAS announced today.
Each of the five fellows will receive a $35,000 prize, along with mentorship from an Academy member throughout their fellowship year, which will see them complete a feature-length screenplay. (The Academy will acquire no rights to the works of its fellows and does not involve itself commercially in any way with their completed scripts.)
From November 8-12, one fellow per day will be featured on the Academy’s YouTube channel, in conversations with filmmakers Destin Daniel Cretton, Phil Lord, Our Lady J, Rawson Marshall Thurber and Olivia Wilde, and other content.
Bartels, Collison, Hamel, Hanna and Kosann’s scripts were chosen from...
Each of the five fellows will receive a $35,000 prize, along with mentorship from an Academy member throughout their fellowship year, which will see them complete a feature-length screenplay. (The Academy will acquire no rights to the works of its fellows and does not involve itself commercially in any way with their completed scripts.)
From November 8-12, one fellow per day will be featured on the Academy’s YouTube channel, in conversations with filmmakers Destin Daniel Cretton, Phil Lord, Our Lady J, Rawson Marshall Thurber and Olivia Wilde, and other content.
Bartels, Collison, Hamel, Hanna and Kosann’s scripts were chosen from...
- 11/8/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Wednesday revealed the five winners of its 2020 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition. This year’s five scribes, culled from 7,831 submissions and 10 finalists, will receive a $35,000 prize and be a part of an awards ceremony and virtual table read of their work on December 3.
As in past years, recipients are expected to complete a feature-length screenplay during their fellowship year.
The 2020 winners (listed alphabetically):
James Acker, SadBoi
Beth Curry, Lemon
Vanar Jaddou, Goodbye, Iraq
Kate Marks, The Cow of Queens
Jane Therese, Sins of My Father
The 2020 finalists (listed alphabetically):
Kris A. Holmes, The Seeds of Truth
Fred Martenson, Demons in America
Robin Rose Singer, The Lions of Mesopotamia
David Harrison Turner, Safe Haven
Andrew Wankier, Three Heavens
The Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee is chaired by Academy Short Films and Feature Animation Branch governor Jennifer Yuh Nelson. The members...
As in past years, recipients are expected to complete a feature-length screenplay during their fellowship year.
The 2020 winners (listed alphabetically):
James Acker, SadBoi
Beth Curry, Lemon
Vanar Jaddou, Goodbye, Iraq
Kate Marks, The Cow of Queens
Jane Therese, Sins of My Father
The 2020 finalists (listed alphabetically):
Kris A. Holmes, The Seeds of Truth
Fred Martenson, Demons in America
Robin Rose Singer, The Lions of Mesopotamia
David Harrison Turner, Safe Haven
Andrew Wankier, Three Heavens
The Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee is chaired by Academy Short Films and Feature Animation Branch governor Jennifer Yuh Nelson. The members...
- 9/30/2020
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
The Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee has selected the five winning fellows of the 2020 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition, who were winnowed from ten finalists out of 7,831 scripts submitted for this year’s competition. Each winner takes home a $35,000 prize. Their scripts will be highlighted at the Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards and Virtual Table Read by an ensemble of actors on Thursday, December 3.
The 2020 winners are (listed alphabetically by author):
James Acker, “SadBoi”
Beth Curry, “Lemon”
Vanar Jaddou, “Goodbye, Iraq”
Kate Marks, “The Cow of Queens”
Jane Therese, “Sins of My Father”
The 2020 finalists are (listed alphabetically by author):
Kris A. Holmes, “The Seeds of Truth”
Fred Martenson, “Demons in America”
Robin Rose Singer, “The Lions of Mesopotamia”
David Harrison Turner, “Safe Haven”
Andrew Wankier, “Three Heavens”
The fellowships support each writer’s completion of a feature-length screenplay within the year. (The Academy neither acquires rights...
The 2020 winners are (listed alphabetically by author):
James Acker, “SadBoi”
Beth Curry, “Lemon”
Vanar Jaddou, “Goodbye, Iraq”
Kate Marks, “The Cow of Queens”
Jane Therese, “Sins of My Father”
The 2020 finalists are (listed alphabetically by author):
Kris A. Holmes, “The Seeds of Truth”
Fred Martenson, “Demons in America”
Robin Rose Singer, “The Lions of Mesopotamia”
David Harrison Turner, “Safe Haven”
Andrew Wankier, “Three Heavens”
The fellowships support each writer’s completion of a feature-length screenplay within the year. (The Academy neither acquires rights...
- 9/30/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
The Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee has selected the five winning fellows of the 2020 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition, who were winnowed from ten finalists out of 7,831 scripts submitted for this year’s competition. Each winner takes home a $35,000 prize. Their scripts will be highlighted at the Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards and Virtual Table Read by an ensemble of actors on Thursday, December 3.
The 2020 winners are (listed alphabetically by author):
James Acker, “SadBoi”
Beth Curry, “Lemon”
Vanar Jaddou, “Goodbye, Iraq”
Kate Marks, “The Cow of Queens”
Jane Therese, “Sins of My Father”
The 2020 finalists are (listed alphabetically by author):
Kris A. Holmes, “The Seeds of Truth”
Fred Martenson, “Demons in America”
Robin Rose Singer, “The Lions of Mesopotamia”
David Harrison Turner, “Safe Haven”
Andrew Wankier, “Three Heavens”
The fellowships support each writer’s completion of a feature-length screenplay within the year. (The Academy neither acquires rights...
The 2020 winners are (listed alphabetically by author):
James Acker, “SadBoi”
Beth Curry, “Lemon”
Vanar Jaddou, “Goodbye, Iraq”
Kate Marks, “The Cow of Queens”
Jane Therese, “Sins of My Father”
The 2020 finalists are (listed alphabetically by author):
Kris A. Holmes, “The Seeds of Truth”
Fred Martenson, “Demons in America”
Robin Rose Singer, “The Lions of Mesopotamia”
David Harrison Turner, “Safe Haven”
Andrew Wankier, “Three Heavens”
The fellowships support each writer’s completion of a feature-length screenplay within the year. (The Academy neither acquires rights...
- 9/30/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
The five winners of the 2020 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition were announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Wednesday. Each fellow will receive $35,000 and be highlighted at the Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards and virtual table read, scheduled to take place on Dec. 3. At the awards, an ensemble of actors will read selected scenes from the winning scripts.
The 2020 winners are:
James Acker, “SadBoi”
Beth Curry, “Lemon”
Vanar Jaddou, “Goodbye, Iraq”
Kate Marks, “The Cow of Queens”
Jane Therese, “Sins of My Father”
There have been 166 fellowships awarded since 1986. Past fellows include Michael Werwie (screenwriter of Netflix’s “Lost Girls”), Alfred Botello (co-writing the upcoming “Space Jam: A New Legacy”), Matt Harris and Melissa Iqbal (currently adapting “The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August”).
A total of 7,831 scripts were submitted for this year’s competition. The Academy selected 10 individual screenwriters as finalists before being judged by the fellowships committee.
The 2020 winners are:
James Acker, “SadBoi”
Beth Curry, “Lemon”
Vanar Jaddou, “Goodbye, Iraq”
Kate Marks, “The Cow of Queens”
Jane Therese, “Sins of My Father”
There have been 166 fellowships awarded since 1986. Past fellows include Michael Werwie (screenwriter of Netflix’s “Lost Girls”), Alfred Botello (co-writing the upcoming “Space Jam: A New Legacy”), Matt Harris and Melissa Iqbal (currently adapting “The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August”).
A total of 7,831 scripts were submitted for this year’s competition. The Academy selected 10 individual screenwriters as finalists before being judged by the fellowships committee.
- 9/30/2020
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Five promising writers have been selected as winners of the 2019 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition, out of a total of 7,302 scripts and 12 finalists. The fellows will each receive a generous $35,000 prize, the first installment of which will be distributed at the Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards Presentation & Live Read on Thursday, November 7, 2019, at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. For the seventh consecutive year, an ensemble of notable actors will read selected scenes from the winning scripts.
The 2019 winners are (listed alphabetically by author): Aaron Chung, “Princess Vietnam”; Karen McDermott, “Lullabies of La Jaula”; Renee Pillai, “Boy with Kite”; Sean Malcolm, “Mother”; and Walker McKnight, “Street Rat Allie Punches Her Ticket.”
Each writer comes from a unique background: Chung is a film intern at Entertainment One, with a master’s in screenwriting; McDermott is an attorney and English professor, according to her Twitter bio; and McKnight is a novelist,...
The 2019 winners are (listed alphabetically by author): Aaron Chung, “Princess Vietnam”; Karen McDermott, “Lullabies of La Jaula”; Renee Pillai, “Boy with Kite”; Sean Malcolm, “Mother”; and Walker McKnight, “Street Rat Allie Punches Her Ticket.”
Each writer comes from a unique background: Chung is a film intern at Entertainment One, with a master’s in screenwriting; McDermott is an attorney and English professor, according to her Twitter bio; and McKnight is a novelist,...
- 10/4/2019
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
TheWrap is pleased to announce the jury for the 2017 ShortList Film Festival, which kicks off August 8th and streams on TheWrap’s ShortlistFilmFestival.com for two weeks. This year’s jurors include: Lisa Bunnell, President of Distribution, Focus Features; Lesley Chilcott, Director (“CodeGirl”); Misha Green, Writer and Showrunner (“Underground”); Ryan Heller, VP Acquisitions, First Look Media; Matt Ross, Actor (“Silicon Valley”), Director, Producer (“Captain Fantastic”); Alec Shankman, Senior VP & Head of Alternative Programming, Digital Media and Licensing, Abrams Artists Agency; and Stephen Ujlaki Dean, Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television. Jurors will deliberate and select a top short...
- 7/28/2017
- by Kathy Selim
- The Wrap
Loyola Marymount University's School of Film and Television hit the jackpot with another $5 million gift from a familiar benefactor, the Walter Lantz Foundation, pushing the foundation’s total support of the school to $13 million. The new gift, announced Thursday by film and television dean Stephen Ujlaki, paves the way for construction of new quarters for the school and continues a push by Ujlaki, a longtime movie producer, to put Lmu in the top rank among a growing…...
- 9/22/2016
- Deadline
Organized by Film Independent and the Lmu School of Film and Television in collaboration with Lacma, the film series Camera's d'Afrique has brought some of the best films from West Africa to audiences in Los Angeles.The series curator, Elvis Mitchell, a respected film critic and radio host of Kcrw's The Treatment, selected films from the region that best exemplify the continent's ancient storytelling traditions and that showcase the filmmakers' unique vision.
The series, running until the end of October, opened with the U.S. Premier of Cannes winner Grigris, a Chadian film from veteran director Mahamat Saleh Haroun, and which is now the countries Official Selection for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. Mitchell expressed his excitement to bring these unique perspectives in World Cinema to Los Angeles and hopes that, if successful, the program can explore other regions of the African continent and even the world in future editions.
Read more about Cameras d'Afrique Here
Carlos Aguilar: Could you talk about the approach, and the selection process of the films, I had the chance to watch Grigris, during the opening night, which was great. How did you choose these films?
Elvis Mitchell: Grigris was pretty terrific wasn’t it? It all started with Steve Ujlaki, he is the dean at the Lmu Film School, and he wanted to do a project where we would bring some films over from the Fespaco Film Festival in Burkina Faso but we weren’t able to attend. We wanted to bring films from that festival, so that helped us to focus on West Africa and that part of the world. The problem is that Africa is an enormous continent, and there are so many different films being made in all those countries, so it made it easier for us, in terms of the selection process, to concentrate on films that came from that part of the continent.
Aguilar: Specifically speaking about Grigris, now that it is Chad’s Official Submission for the Academy Awards, how do you think an international audience will receive it?
Mitchell: First of all I think Haroun is a world-class filmmaker; he is basically the Chadian film industry. I think it is such a great piece of filmmaking. It starts off, and you think you are going to get one film, it starts off with all that energy, you get to see Soulémane Démé take to the screen like a movie star, and then it becomes a whole other different story. All his films have been about these lives in transition and this ambition to do something better with your life. I think this kind of encapsulates what he does so beautifully. I think in visual terms it is such a great film to watch. It won the Vulcan Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and I’m just thrilled that finally Chad is getting around to submitting a film. I can’t think of anybody who deserves the nomination as much as Haroun does.
The film demands that kind of attention, what I can tell you about the audience’s reactions to the film afterwards, us that people couldn’t stop talking about it. It was one of those great experiences at Lacma where people were just buzzing about it in the lobby afterwards. People want to stand around talking to other people about it, and that’s when I knew we had something remarkable, which of course is kind of obvious once you see the film. It deserves that kid of attention that it would get just by virtue of being nominated.
Aguilar: More than anything, Grigris is a film about hope. Sometimes it feels like people associate African stories with mere survival and films like the ones you have chosen don’t always get the attention they deserve. Of all the films that you considered, what attracted you to these selection?
Mitchell: Another thing about Grigris is that Haroun has made a career out of picking faces for his movies that have never acted before, but you never know that. Everybody in Grigris takes to the camera as if they were veteran actors and born to the medium. I think that is part of the excitement in seeing that movie. Specially seeing it in a theater in the United States for the first time. I think the excitement is transmitted to the audience, and the audience is infected by it. That was the thing I had in mind when we were selecting the films for the series, I just wanted people to get that kind of sense of sheer pleasure and acceleration that the filmmakers get from making these films. Filmmakers who think to the camera like Wong Kar-wai or Del Toro, these filmmakers, not just Americans, can transmute what they think to the camera, and Haroun is one of them. L’Absence by Mama Keita is another one of those films, I think all the films that are in the series are movies that do that, movies that you just basically get caught up in watching them.
Aguilar: Are there any plans to expand this project and do series on films from other regions of the world, or other parts of Africa?
Mitchell: Certainly we want to. We are looking at this first year of Cameras d’Afrique as just a way to introduce audiences to the idea, anything like this takes a while to catch on. Especially when it’s a part of the world that people don’t really know about, and unfortunately people don’t tend to think of Africa as a place for filmmakers. Like I said in my introduction, there is a storytelling tradition in Africa that’s older than in any other place in the world. I think there is a thrill in seeing that storytelling tradition combined with a relatively new technology as cinema for them. Hopefully we get some traction this year, hopefully we get enough attention, and audiences so we can do this again next year with another region of the continent and start looking to other places as well.
It’s funny that coming out of some screenings people said to me “Are they going to be more films from Mauritania? What about other parts of West Africa?” and I said “We are doing this a step at a time” The more success we have with this, the better place we will be for having more of these movies, and from other regions next time. It’d be great to have films from Cape Verde or Sierra Leone, but we do have films from Mali, Mauritania, and the Ivory Coast. I’m so excited about the idea of being able to continue this and moving on to another part of the continent for next year.
Aguilar: How would you summarize the Cameras d’Afrique series? What makes the films of this region unique or special in comparison to other currents in World Cinema?
Mitchell: There are storytelling traditions that come from Africa that are unique from anywhere else. We had a filmmaker from Burkina Faso, Idriss Diabate, and he was saying his last name, Diabate, is an old Burkina Faso name and it means storyteller. His very name lends itself to that tradition of storytelling. Each country has its own way of communicating a narrative and through that expressing family experiences in emotional stories. With these films we have a chance to see how there are differences, some are subtle, some not so subtle between each of the areas. Just the idea of seeing a type of narrative we’ve not seen before is a chance to be surprised. I think that’s what audiences want, to be stimulated by films and I think that’s what each of these films do in ways that maybe are new and unique to American audiences.
The takeaway is to remember how up everybody was after Grigris, that’s when I felt we had done something right. People didn’t want to leave, they wanted to share this with the people they’ve just seen it with “What did you think of that scene? What did you think of her? Wasn’t she a different person when she took that wig off? “ Everybody had something to say about it, and I think thus far that has been the reaction to all the films we’ve shown. We are hoping that is the reaction to everything we play so audiences can feel like they trust these films coming from a part of the world that they don’t know enough about and just come and take a chance on something new.
The series, running until the end of October, opened with the U.S. Premier of Cannes winner Grigris, a Chadian film from veteran director Mahamat Saleh Haroun, and which is now the countries Official Selection for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. Mitchell expressed his excitement to bring these unique perspectives in World Cinema to Los Angeles and hopes that, if successful, the program can explore other regions of the African continent and even the world in future editions.
Read more about Cameras d'Afrique Here
Carlos Aguilar: Could you talk about the approach, and the selection process of the films, I had the chance to watch Grigris, during the opening night, which was great. How did you choose these films?
Elvis Mitchell: Grigris was pretty terrific wasn’t it? It all started with Steve Ujlaki, he is the dean at the Lmu Film School, and he wanted to do a project where we would bring some films over from the Fespaco Film Festival in Burkina Faso but we weren’t able to attend. We wanted to bring films from that festival, so that helped us to focus on West Africa and that part of the world. The problem is that Africa is an enormous continent, and there are so many different films being made in all those countries, so it made it easier for us, in terms of the selection process, to concentrate on films that came from that part of the continent.
Aguilar: Specifically speaking about Grigris, now that it is Chad’s Official Submission for the Academy Awards, how do you think an international audience will receive it?
Mitchell: First of all I think Haroun is a world-class filmmaker; he is basically the Chadian film industry. I think it is such a great piece of filmmaking. It starts off, and you think you are going to get one film, it starts off with all that energy, you get to see Soulémane Démé take to the screen like a movie star, and then it becomes a whole other different story. All his films have been about these lives in transition and this ambition to do something better with your life. I think this kind of encapsulates what he does so beautifully. I think in visual terms it is such a great film to watch. It won the Vulcan Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and I’m just thrilled that finally Chad is getting around to submitting a film. I can’t think of anybody who deserves the nomination as much as Haroun does.
The film demands that kind of attention, what I can tell you about the audience’s reactions to the film afterwards, us that people couldn’t stop talking about it. It was one of those great experiences at Lacma where people were just buzzing about it in the lobby afterwards. People want to stand around talking to other people about it, and that’s when I knew we had something remarkable, which of course is kind of obvious once you see the film. It deserves that kid of attention that it would get just by virtue of being nominated.
Aguilar: More than anything, Grigris is a film about hope. Sometimes it feels like people associate African stories with mere survival and films like the ones you have chosen don’t always get the attention they deserve. Of all the films that you considered, what attracted you to these selection?
Mitchell: Another thing about Grigris is that Haroun has made a career out of picking faces for his movies that have never acted before, but you never know that. Everybody in Grigris takes to the camera as if they were veteran actors and born to the medium. I think that is part of the excitement in seeing that movie. Specially seeing it in a theater in the United States for the first time. I think the excitement is transmitted to the audience, and the audience is infected by it. That was the thing I had in mind when we were selecting the films for the series, I just wanted people to get that kind of sense of sheer pleasure and acceleration that the filmmakers get from making these films. Filmmakers who think to the camera like Wong Kar-wai or Del Toro, these filmmakers, not just Americans, can transmute what they think to the camera, and Haroun is one of them. L’Absence by Mama Keita is another one of those films, I think all the films that are in the series are movies that do that, movies that you just basically get caught up in watching them.
Aguilar: Are there any plans to expand this project and do series on films from other regions of the world, or other parts of Africa?
Mitchell: Certainly we want to. We are looking at this first year of Cameras d’Afrique as just a way to introduce audiences to the idea, anything like this takes a while to catch on. Especially when it’s a part of the world that people don’t really know about, and unfortunately people don’t tend to think of Africa as a place for filmmakers. Like I said in my introduction, there is a storytelling tradition in Africa that’s older than in any other place in the world. I think there is a thrill in seeing that storytelling tradition combined with a relatively new technology as cinema for them. Hopefully we get some traction this year, hopefully we get enough attention, and audiences so we can do this again next year with another region of the continent and start looking to other places as well.
It’s funny that coming out of some screenings people said to me “Are they going to be more films from Mauritania? What about other parts of West Africa?” and I said “We are doing this a step at a time” The more success we have with this, the better place we will be for having more of these movies, and from other regions next time. It’d be great to have films from Cape Verde or Sierra Leone, but we do have films from Mali, Mauritania, and the Ivory Coast. I’m so excited about the idea of being able to continue this and moving on to another part of the continent for next year.
Aguilar: How would you summarize the Cameras d’Afrique series? What makes the films of this region unique or special in comparison to other currents in World Cinema?
Mitchell: There are storytelling traditions that come from Africa that are unique from anywhere else. We had a filmmaker from Burkina Faso, Idriss Diabate, and he was saying his last name, Diabate, is an old Burkina Faso name and it means storyteller. His very name lends itself to that tradition of storytelling. Each country has its own way of communicating a narrative and through that expressing family experiences in emotional stories. With these films we have a chance to see how there are differences, some are subtle, some not so subtle between each of the areas. Just the idea of seeing a type of narrative we’ve not seen before is a chance to be surprised. I think that’s what audiences want, to be stimulated by films and I think that’s what each of these films do in ways that maybe are new and unique to American audiences.
The takeaway is to remember how up everybody was after Grigris, that’s when I felt we had done something right. People didn’t want to leave, they wanted to share this with the people they’ve just seen it with “What did you think of that scene? What did you think of her? Wasn’t she a different person when she took that wig off? “ Everybody had something to say about it, and I think thus far that has been the reaction to all the films we’ve shown. We are hoping that is the reaction to everything we play so audiences can feel like they trust these films coming from a part of the world that they don’t know enough about and just come and take a chance on something new.
- 10/25/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Rarely do American audiences get to experience the cinematic diversity from the African continent; however, this October thanks to Film Independent and the Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television, audiences in Los Angeles will be able to be part of a month-long series showcasing the best of modern cinema from West Africa. Curated by Film Independent and Lacma curator Ellvis Mitchell, Cameras d'Afrique: The Films of West Africa runs from October 3-28, 2013 at Lacma. The event will feature an array of 21 film, both narrative and documentary, many of which have never been screened in the U.S, most screenings will also include Q&As with the talented African filmmakers.
The event begins Thursday October 3rd with a double feature celebrating the films of Mahamat-Saleh Haroun. Bye Bye Africa, and his latest effort Grigris will be screened followed by Q&A with the director. Grigris was screened at this year's Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim, and it will see its U.S Premiere here.
The program continues on Saturday October 5th with Mama Kéïta’s L’Absence and Gaston Kaboré’s Buud Yam, each film will be followed by Q&A's with the filmmakers, and then a panel discussion moderated by the Mitchell dealing with the current state of West African cinema, the challenges, and the stories from this often unseen region of the world. Other program highlights include the L.A. premiere of Mille Soleils (A Thousand Suns), Djibril Diop Mambéty’s 1973 French New Wave–inspired Touki Bouki, Idrissa Ouédraogo’s 1990 Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix winner Tilaï (The Law), and the 2013 Fespaco Golden Stallion winner Tey (Today), followed by a Q&A with director Alain Gomis and star Saul Williams.
“This series brings me such joy,” said film curator Elvis Mitchell. “Primarily because there's nothing more exhilarating to me than to expose people to exciting new filmmakers and films, let alone bring attention to the art of an area that deserves more attention than it's received in America. The works we're playing demonstrate that film at its best, like any other art form, is idiosyncratic and universal.”
Screenings will be held throughout October at Lacma’s Bing Theater on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Free community screenings and select Q&As moderated by Mitchell will take place on the Loyola Marymount University campus every Monday night.
“We are thrilled to be able to present Caméras d’Afrique: The Films of West Africa. Patrons will have the rare opportunity to see the latest films that have received accolades from the top European and African film festivals as well as classics from the past 50 years," said Lmu Sftv Dean Stephen Ujlaki, adding, “Connecting our students to the rich filmography of West Africa, long a Francophone region, will expose them to different forms of storytelling, inspiring their own unique visions.”
Film Independent, Lacma Film Club, and The New York Times Film Club members can purchase tickets to films for $5 Here
Lacma Members, students with valid ID, and seniors can get tickets for $7, and $10 for general public Here
To make a reservation for the community screenings at the Loyola Marymount University click Here
About Lmu Sftv
Movie industry moguls helped establish Loyola Marymount University’s (Lmu) current campus on the bluffs above west Los Angeles in the 1920s. By 1964, Lmu was formally teaching film and television curriculum, and in 2001, the School of Film and Television (Sftv) was established as its own entity. Today, Sftv offers students a comprehensive education where mastering technical skills and story is equally important to educating the whole person, including the formation of character and values, meaning and purpose. Sftv offers undergraduate degrees in animation, production, screenwriting, film and television studies and recording arts; and graduate degrees in production, screenwriting and writing and producing for television. The school is one of the few film programs providing students with a completely tapeless model of production and post-production, and Sftv’s animation program is one of the few worldwide that teaches virtual cinematography. Selected alumni include John Bailey, Bob Beemer, Francie Calfo, Brian Helgeland, Francis Lawrence, Lauren Montgomery, Jack Orman, Van Partible and James Wong, among others. Get more information at sftv.lmu.edu or facebook.com/lmusftv.
About Film Independent at Lacma
Film Independent at Lacma is a film series produced by Film Independent—the nonprofit arts organization that also produces the Film Independent Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival—and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Lacma) with presenting sponsor The New York Times and premier sponsor Ovation. The Film Independent at Lacma Film Series is curated by Elvis Mitchell and assistant curator Bernardo Rondeau. The program features classic and contemporary narrative and documentary films; emerging auteurs; international showcases; special guest-curated programs, such as Jason Reitman's acclaimed Live Read series; and conversations with artists, filmmakers, and other special guests. For more information, go to filmindependent.org/lacma or lacma.org.
The event begins Thursday October 3rd with a double feature celebrating the films of Mahamat-Saleh Haroun. Bye Bye Africa, and his latest effort Grigris will be screened followed by Q&A with the director. Grigris was screened at this year's Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim, and it will see its U.S Premiere here.
The program continues on Saturday October 5th with Mama Kéïta’s L’Absence and Gaston Kaboré’s Buud Yam, each film will be followed by Q&A's with the filmmakers, and then a panel discussion moderated by the Mitchell dealing with the current state of West African cinema, the challenges, and the stories from this often unseen region of the world. Other program highlights include the L.A. premiere of Mille Soleils (A Thousand Suns), Djibril Diop Mambéty’s 1973 French New Wave–inspired Touki Bouki, Idrissa Ouédraogo’s 1990 Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix winner Tilaï (The Law), and the 2013 Fespaco Golden Stallion winner Tey (Today), followed by a Q&A with director Alain Gomis and star Saul Williams.
“This series brings me such joy,” said film curator Elvis Mitchell. “Primarily because there's nothing more exhilarating to me than to expose people to exciting new filmmakers and films, let alone bring attention to the art of an area that deserves more attention than it's received in America. The works we're playing demonstrate that film at its best, like any other art form, is idiosyncratic and universal.”
Screenings will be held throughout October at Lacma’s Bing Theater on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Free community screenings and select Q&As moderated by Mitchell will take place on the Loyola Marymount University campus every Monday night.
“We are thrilled to be able to present Caméras d’Afrique: The Films of West Africa. Patrons will have the rare opportunity to see the latest films that have received accolades from the top European and African film festivals as well as classics from the past 50 years," said Lmu Sftv Dean Stephen Ujlaki, adding, “Connecting our students to the rich filmography of West Africa, long a Francophone region, will expose them to different forms of storytelling, inspiring their own unique visions.”
Film Independent, Lacma Film Club, and The New York Times Film Club members can purchase tickets to films for $5 Here
Lacma Members, students with valid ID, and seniors can get tickets for $7, and $10 for general public Here
To make a reservation for the community screenings at the Loyola Marymount University click Here
About Lmu Sftv
Movie industry moguls helped establish Loyola Marymount University’s (Lmu) current campus on the bluffs above west Los Angeles in the 1920s. By 1964, Lmu was formally teaching film and television curriculum, and in 2001, the School of Film and Television (Sftv) was established as its own entity. Today, Sftv offers students a comprehensive education where mastering technical skills and story is equally important to educating the whole person, including the formation of character and values, meaning and purpose. Sftv offers undergraduate degrees in animation, production, screenwriting, film and television studies and recording arts; and graduate degrees in production, screenwriting and writing and producing for television. The school is one of the few film programs providing students with a completely tapeless model of production and post-production, and Sftv’s animation program is one of the few worldwide that teaches virtual cinematography. Selected alumni include John Bailey, Bob Beemer, Francie Calfo, Brian Helgeland, Francis Lawrence, Lauren Montgomery, Jack Orman, Van Partible and James Wong, among others. Get more information at sftv.lmu.edu or facebook.com/lmusftv.
About Film Independent at Lacma
Film Independent at Lacma is a film series produced by Film Independent—the nonprofit arts organization that also produces the Film Independent Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival—and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Lacma) with presenting sponsor The New York Times and premier sponsor Ovation. The Film Independent at Lacma Film Series is curated by Elvis Mitchell and assistant curator Bernardo Rondeau. The program features classic and contemporary narrative and documentary films; emerging auteurs; international showcases; special guest-curated programs, such as Jason Reitman's acclaimed Live Read series; and conversations with artists, filmmakers, and other special guests. For more information, go to filmindependent.org/lacma or lacma.org.
- 10/1/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
On Oct. 3, the U.S. premiere of Mahamat-Saleh Haroun’s 2013 Cannes Palme d’Or nominee and Vulcain Prizewinner Grigris at Lacma, kicks off "Caméras d’Afrique: The Films of West Africa," a month-long, 21-film series by Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television, in partnership with Film Independent at Lacma. Haroun will also screen his 1999 Venice best first film winner Bye Bye Africa and do a Q&A moderated by Elvis Mitchell. Lmu Sftv dean Stephen Ujlaki calls the series “a rare opportunity to see the latest films that have received accolades from the top European
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- 9/11/2013
- by Tim Appelo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
This year, Loyola Marymount University's School of Film and Television (Sftv)'s post-grad Incubator Lab program will partner with nonprofit arts organization Film Independent to produce their annual program. The program provides an opportunity for young alumni from the Sftv to develop their first projects under the guidance of industry professionals as they compete for a spot in the Incubator Lab. Launched in 2011, this one-year program helps young film and television hopefuls build their creative portfolio and transition into the industry. To be considered for this year's Incubator Lab, recent alumni submitted creatives projects such as feature film or a TV pilot. The 2013-2014 Incubator Lab cohort will be announced on Monday, June 17 at the 2013 Los Angeles Film Festival's Meet Indiewire's Influencers panel, moderated by Dana Harris, Indiewire's Editor-in-Chief. Dean of Lmu's School of Film and Television Stephen Ujlaki said of the partnership: "Film Independent exists to...
- 6/10/2013
- by Madeline Raynor
- Indiewire
Meredith Brody reports back on Day Four of The Morelia International Film Festival in Patzcuaro, Mexico:Last May I saw The Arbor, by Clio Barnard, on the next-to-last day of the San Francisco International Film Festival. I was enchanted, disturbed, beguiled, and excited – it was my favorite film of the Festival. Which made me sad, because for the duration of the festival people had been continually asking what I’d seen that I liked, and this was the film that I would have liked to tell them about. Here in Morelia I was getting another chance. I strongly urged my breakfast mates at the Hotel Los Juaninos--Peter Becker and Kim Hendrickson of the essential Criterion Collection, Steve Ujlaki, Dean of the Loyola-Marymount School of Film and ...
- 10/26/2011
- Thompson on Hollywood
I know that many of you who read GeekTyrant are interested in becoming future filmmakers, which is awesome! It should come as no surprise to you that since I run a movie blog that I too would like to get into the business of making movies.
The Hollywood Reporter has come up with their list of 25 best film schools with basic details for each one. For those of you wanting to study the art of filmmaking, and wondering what the best schools for this are then this list should come in handy. Check out the full list below, and tell us what you think!
1. American Film Institute
Among the most selective film schools in America, AFI's Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies in Los Angeles offers a two-year conservatory program where students specialize in fields including directing, producing and writing, often coming to the institute after working in the...
The Hollywood Reporter has come up with their list of 25 best film schools with basic details for each one. For those of you wanting to study the art of filmmaking, and wondering what the best schools for this are then this list should come in handy. Check out the full list below, and tell us what you think!
1. American Film Institute
Among the most selective film schools in America, AFI's Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies in Los Angeles offers a two-year conservatory program where students specialize in fields including directing, producing and writing, often coming to the institute after working in the...
- 7/27/2011
- by Venkman
- GeekTyrant
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