The 33rd Independent Spirit Awards took place on Saturday, March 3 in Los Angeles. The full winners list is below.
Best Feature
“Get Out”
Producers: Jason Blum, Edward H. Hamm Jr., Sean McKittrick, Jordan Peele
“Call Me by Your Name”
Producers: Peter Spears, Luca Guadagnino, Emilie Georges, Rodrigo Teixeira, Marco Morabito, James Ivory, Howard Rosenman
“The Florida Project”
Producers: Sean Baker, Chris Bergoch, Kevin Chinoy, Andrew Duncan, Alex Saks, Francesca Silvestri, Shih-Ching Tsou
“Lady Bird”
Producers: Eli Bush, Evelyn O’Neill, Scott Rudin
“The Rider”
Producers: Mollye Asher, Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche, Chloé Zhao
Best Female Lead
Frances McDormand
“Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri”
Salma Hayek
“Beatriz at Dinner”
Margot Robbie
“I, Tonya”
Saoirse Ronan
“Lady Bird”
Shinobu Terajima
“Oh Lucy!”
Regina Williams
“Life and Nothing More”
Best Male Lead
Timothée Chalamet
“Call Me by Your Name”
Harris Dickinson
“Beach Rats”
James Franco
“The Disaster Artist”
Daniel Kaluuya
“Get Out...
Best Feature
“Get Out”
Producers: Jason Blum, Edward H. Hamm Jr., Sean McKittrick, Jordan Peele
“Call Me by Your Name”
Producers: Peter Spears, Luca Guadagnino, Emilie Georges, Rodrigo Teixeira, Marco Morabito, James Ivory, Howard Rosenman
“The Florida Project”
Producers: Sean Baker, Chris Bergoch, Kevin Chinoy, Andrew Duncan, Alex Saks, Francesca Silvestri, Shih-Ching Tsou
“Lady Bird”
Producers: Eli Bush, Evelyn O’Neill, Scott Rudin
“The Rider”
Producers: Mollye Asher, Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche, Chloé Zhao
Best Female Lead
Frances McDormand
“Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri”
Salma Hayek
“Beatriz at Dinner”
Margot Robbie
“I, Tonya”
Saoirse Ronan
“Lady Bird”
Shinobu Terajima
“Oh Lucy!”
Regina Williams
“Life and Nothing More”
Best Male Lead
Timothée Chalamet
“Call Me by Your Name”
Harris Dickinson
“Beach Rats”
James Franco
“The Disaster Artist”
Daniel Kaluuya
“Get Out...
- 3/4/2018
- by William Earl
- Indiewire
If The Cage Fighter were a fiction film rather than a documentary, it would feel awfully familiar. This portrait of an aging amateur mixed martial arts fighter uncannily echoes Hollywood movies such as The Champ, Rocky, The Wrestler, Raging Bull and countless others. That the real-life figure at its center seems hellbent on following a trajectory similar to those films' fictional characters gives the documentary its emotional power.
Marking the directorial debut of Jeff Unay (a visual effects veteran whose credits include Avatar and Peter Jackson's King Kong), the documentary revolves around Joe Carman, who's facing a tough time as...
Marking the directorial debut of Jeff Unay (a visual effects veteran whose credits include Avatar and Peter Jackson's King Kong), the documentary revolves around Joe Carman, who's facing a tough time as...
- 2/2/2018
- by Frank Scheck
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
So, you think you’ve caught up with all of this years awards nominees? Guess again. The Indie Spirit Awards has plenty of pictures that might not be on your radar, but are among the best that 2017 had to offer. The quieter winter month of February is the perfect time to catch up with some of those gems, and “The Cage Fighter” is a great place to start.
Directed by Jeff Unay, and nominated for the Truer Than Fiction Award, the documentary follows Joe, a forty year-old facing a handful of personal issues and struggles, who finds a place to release his emotions — in the ring.
Continue reading ‘The Cage Fighter’: Moving Clip From Indie Spirit Award Nominated Documentary [Exclusive] at The Playlist.
Directed by Jeff Unay, and nominated for the Truer Than Fiction Award, the documentary follows Joe, a forty year-old facing a handful of personal issues and struggles, who finds a place to release his emotions — in the ring.
Continue reading ‘The Cage Fighter’: Moving Clip From Indie Spirit Award Nominated Documentary [Exclusive] at The Playlist.
- 2/1/2018
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Smt Heads, Sundance Selects’ “The Cage Fighter” makes sure that 2018’s indie season starts with some punch! This gritty documentary takes the audience through the lense and into the life of an aging Mma fighter.
Check the Trailer out right here:
The Cage Fighter: Opening in theaters and VOD February 2nd Directed by: Jeff Unay Starring: Joe Carman, Norinda Reed, Clayton Hoy, Callie Carman, Delanee Carman, Kira Carman, Mia Carman, & Vernon Beach When life hits him hard, Joe Carman punches back. Newly 40, Joe juggles long hours working in a boiler room, an ongoing custody battle, his wife’s chronic illness, and the demands of raising four girls. The one place he finds release is in the ring, where he competes in the bruising sport of mixed martial arts. Despite the promise he made to his family to stop fighting, Joe continues to train secretly, determined to prove that he can...
Check the Trailer out right here:
The Cage Fighter: Opening in theaters and VOD February 2nd Directed by: Jeff Unay Starring: Joe Carman, Norinda Reed, Clayton Hoy, Callie Carman, Delanee Carman, Kira Carman, Mia Carman, & Vernon Beach When life hits him hard, Joe Carman punches back. Newly 40, Joe juggles long hours working in a boiler room, an ongoing custody battle, his wife’s chronic illness, and the demands of raising four girls. The one place he finds release is in the ring, where he competes in the bruising sport of mixed martial arts. Despite the promise he made to his family to stop fighting, Joe continues to train secretly, determined to prove that he can...
- 1/19/2018
- by Jason Stewart
- Age of the Nerd
"The only time I feel on top of the world is when I'm fighting." IFC Films has debuted the official trailer for a documentary titled The Cage Fighter, which premiered at the True/False Film Festival last year. This docu-drama from director Jeff Unay plays like a feature film with a narrative following the real-life story of a fighter named Joe Carman. Joe is a blue-collar family man who breaks the promise he made years ago to never fight again. Now forty years old, with a wife and four children who need him, he risks everything – his marriage, his family, his health – to go back into the fighting cage and come to terms with his past. Carman stars, and the film's "cast" (if you can call it that) includes Norinda Reed, Clayton Hoy, Callie Carman, Delanee Carman, Kira Carman, Mia Carman, and Vernon Beach. This is a helluva trailer, damn.
- 1/17/2018
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Call Me by Your Name, Get Out and Lady Bird all had great showings at the 2018 Independent Spirit Award nominations!
The nominees were announced on Tuesday morning, with the Armie Hammer-ledCall Me by Your Name leading the pack with six nominations, followed closely by Jordan Peele's critically acclaimed, genre-bending thriller Get Out with five, and Lady Bird, with four.
All three films are competing for Best Picture, along with The Florida Project and The Rider. The Independent Spirit Awards are sometimes seen as a tea leaf for how the Academy Awards will sway -- the Best Picture winner of this show has gone on to also earn the distinction at the Oscars for five out of the last six years.
Peele earned a nod in the Best Director category, and the film's lead, Daniel Kaluuya is up for Best Male Lead, along with James Franco, who is nominated for The Disaster Artist. In the Best Female...
The nominees were announced on Tuesday morning, with the Armie Hammer-ledCall Me by Your Name leading the pack with six nominations, followed closely by Jordan Peele's critically acclaimed, genre-bending thriller Get Out with five, and Lady Bird, with four.
All three films are competing for Best Picture, along with The Florida Project and The Rider. The Independent Spirit Awards are sometimes seen as a tea leaf for how the Academy Awards will sway -- the Best Picture winner of this show has gone on to also earn the distinction at the Oscars for five out of the last six years.
Peele earned a nod in the Best Director category, and the film's lead, Daniel Kaluuya is up for Best Male Lead, along with James Franco, who is nominated for The Disaster Artist. In the Best Female...
- 11/21/2017
- Entertainment Tonight
The nominations for the 33rd Independent Spirit Awards are in, and “Get Out,” “Call Me by Your Name,” “Lady Bird,” “Good Time,” and more have dominated this year’s slate.
Read More: 2018 Oscar Predictions
Over the last several years, the Indie Spirits have become both a champion of underdog indies (see Molly Shannon winning Best Supporting Female last year for “Other People”) and a key indicator in which films and performances could end up with the Oscar (Casey Affleck and “Moonlight” for Best Picture last year). John Mulaney and Nick Kroll will return to host the 33rd Independent Spirit Awards on Saturday, March 3.
The full nominations list is below.
Best Feature
“Call Me by Your Name”
“The Florida Project”
“Get Out”
“Lady Bird”
“The Rider”
Best Director
Jonas Carpignano, “A Ciambra”
Luca Guadagnino, “Call Me by Your Name”
Jordan Peele, “Get Out”
Sean Baker, “The Florida Project”
Benny and Josh Safdie,...
Read More: 2018 Oscar Predictions
Over the last several years, the Indie Spirits have become both a champion of underdog indies (see Molly Shannon winning Best Supporting Female last year for “Other People”) and a key indicator in which films and performances could end up with the Oscar (Casey Affleck and “Moonlight” for Best Picture last year). John Mulaney and Nick Kroll will return to host the 33rd Independent Spirit Awards on Saturday, March 3.
The full nominations list is below.
Best Feature
“Call Me by Your Name”
“The Florida Project”
“Get Out”
“Lady Bird”
“The Rider”
Best Director
Jonas Carpignano, “A Ciambra”
Luca Guadagnino, “Call Me by Your Name”
Jordan Peele, “Get Out”
Sean Baker, “The Florida Project”
Benny and Josh Safdie,...
- 11/21/2017
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
For the twenty-first summer in a row, Rooftop Films will be screening some of the best in independent and documentary film in unique outdoor setting all across the New York City. In that time, they have been the first to identify some of the best filmmaking talent in the world, and through their Filmmakers Fund they’ve backed these filmmakers breakout projects.
Past grantees have included Ana Lily Amirpour’s “The Bad Batch,” David Lowery’s “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints,” Benh Zeitlin’s “Glory at Sea,” Lucy Walker’s “The Tsunami” and many more.
Rooftop digs up gems and shorts that haven’t been getting a ton of word of mouth and shares them – along with popular festival titles like “The Big Sick”– with their dedicated and artistically curious audience who have come to trust their curation.
IndieWire recently checked in with Rooftop program director Dan Nuxoll to find out what films and filmmakers we should have on our radar for 2017.
What film has fallen through the festival cracks this year?
Certainly “The Genius and the Opera Singer” hasn’t yet gotten nearly the love it deserves, but I hope that changes soon. It’s a powerful dark comic documentary that certainly goes to some emotionally difficult places, but watching it is an undeniably unique experience. We showed it this past Saturday and the audience reaction was even more positive than I anticipated. The crowd loved it, despite some heavy moments. It’s a very well-crafted and expertly-edited film and it’s much more entertaining than one might expect. It’s Vanessa Stockley’s first film and it’s a revelation.
I’m also a big fan of Jeff Unay’s “The Cage Fighter,” which is a beautifully shot and very intimate and personal film that premiered at San Francisco a couple of months ago – it’s a gorgeous doc. Plus Morten Traavik and Ugis Olte’s “Liberation Day” is a boisterous and fascinating film about Laibach, who are a very strange strange but wonderful cult Slovenian band who have a very fascist aesthetic and who somehow convince the North Korean government to allow them to perform there. It’s a very enjoyable provocation.
You were the first one to tip me off to Ana Lily Amirpour and Jonas Carpignano. What up and coming filmmaker should we paying to, but we aren’t?
Dave McCary. His film “Brigsby Bear” premiered at Sundance and got very strong reviews but I don’t think it has yet gotten nearly the attention it deserves. McCary and star Kyle Mooney had a successful sketch comedy group and later joined SNL, so going into the premiere I assumed the film would be funny, but I will admit I didn’t have particularly high expectations otherwise. But I definitely underestimate them–it’s strikingly well executed and the comic and emotional components of the film are expertly balanced.
And beyond that, McCary has a unique touch that you rarely see in comedy films–an ability to dance around the character arcs and emotional trajectory of the characters without ever slipping into maudlin sentimentality and never losing the absurd comic energy. Whenever it seems that the film is about to head someplace conventional, McCary injects a perfectly timed comic turnabout that propels the film forward, but never quite in the direction you expect.
There have been a lot of really good dark indie comedies this year, but “Brigsby” is as funny as any of them while also being full of light and warmth and emotional generosity. It’s a special film and I hope that enough people see it so that it becomes a classic and not just a cult classic.
What’s one film in your lineup that does something new and exciting with the medium?
I was blown away by Amman Abbassi’s “Dayveon.” There have been a lot of independent coming of age films over the years, but few of them manage to balance realism and lyrical artistry quite as wonderfully as this debut feature. Capturing the warmth of an Arkansas summer and the emotional confusion of a thirteen year old struggling after the murder of his older brother, Abbassi establishes himself as a sensitive filmmaker with the ability to evoke a delicate subjective experience.
And on the doc side?
I knew the filmmaker Maple Rasza back in college but hadn’t caught up with him in a while and a few months back a mutual friend tipped me off to his latest project, a really exceptional interactive film he has made with Milton Guillen called “The Maribor Uprising: A Live Participatory Film.” He and Milton shot footage from a series of massive protests in Slovenia following some incidents involving comically flagrant government corruption, and instead of turning it into a traditional documentary they created an interactive project in which Maple leads the audience through the footage. The audience can choose to follow different protestors, decide whether to follow the law or follow the less peaceful demonstrators, and much more. We have long been a champion of live cinema events, like those created by Brent and Sam Green, but this film is an interesting variation on the form. Plus it just happens to be a very timely project. I’m really excited for that show.
Also, Dmitri Kalashnikov’s “The Road Movie” is a very fun comic documentary composed entirely of wild footage captured by hundreds of Russian automobile dash cams. It’s a very weird way to experience the Russian road. I loved every minute of it.
What film introduced you to a world you didn’t know anything about?
We showed Yuri Ancarani’s stunning short film “il Capo” a few years back and ever since I have been excited to see what he would do with a feature film. Sure enough, his new documentary “The Challenge” did not disappoint. He somehow managed to convince secretive Qatari sheikhs to let him film their bizarre and decadent lives as they prepare for the massive falconry competitions they hold deep in the desert. The footage he captured is arresting, hilarious and profound. There is barely a word spoken in the entire film but you will never want to look away. I have never seen anything like it.
You always put shorts front and center at Rooftop and dig into the best international short films. I remember two years ago you talking about how there was an inordinate amount of great shorts coming out of Sweden, what you find this year?
Yeah, a lot of those great Swedish short filmmakers are now doing pretty well. Ruben Ostlund just won Cannes after all, and he was one of the talented Swedes I was talking about back then. And there are some truly wonderful new Swedish shorts this year as well – I am particularly fond of “I Will Always Love You Conny,” by Amanda Kernell. It’s a heartbreaking short.
But my favorite short of the year is a Swedish animation that we gave a grant to called “The Burden” by Niki LIndroth Von Behr. It won Gothenburg, and it’s part of a trend that I have noticed lately of a surge in very, very talented young female animators. Ten years ago an animated shorts program would be packed with films by men, and that is definitely not the case anymore. It’s exciting to see women animators from all over the world coming to the fore. We opened the summer with an animated film by a woman and we will end the summer with one, too, and that isn’t a coincidence.
Rooftop Films Summer Festival runs through August 19th. You can find more information here.
Related stories'Brigsby Bear' Teaser Trailer: Kyle Mooney Introduces You to A Highly Original Summer Indie'The Big Sick,' 'The Bad Batch' and More Announced for Rooftop Films' 2017 Summer Series2017 Cannes Critics' Week Announces Lineup, Including 'Brigsby Bear' and Animation From Iran...
Past grantees have included Ana Lily Amirpour’s “The Bad Batch,” David Lowery’s “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints,” Benh Zeitlin’s “Glory at Sea,” Lucy Walker’s “The Tsunami” and many more.
Rooftop digs up gems and shorts that haven’t been getting a ton of word of mouth and shares them – along with popular festival titles like “The Big Sick”– with their dedicated and artistically curious audience who have come to trust their curation.
IndieWire recently checked in with Rooftop program director Dan Nuxoll to find out what films and filmmakers we should have on our radar for 2017.
What film has fallen through the festival cracks this year?
Certainly “The Genius and the Opera Singer” hasn’t yet gotten nearly the love it deserves, but I hope that changes soon. It’s a powerful dark comic documentary that certainly goes to some emotionally difficult places, but watching it is an undeniably unique experience. We showed it this past Saturday and the audience reaction was even more positive than I anticipated. The crowd loved it, despite some heavy moments. It’s a very well-crafted and expertly-edited film and it’s much more entertaining than one might expect. It’s Vanessa Stockley’s first film and it’s a revelation.
I’m also a big fan of Jeff Unay’s “The Cage Fighter,” which is a beautifully shot and very intimate and personal film that premiered at San Francisco a couple of months ago – it’s a gorgeous doc. Plus Morten Traavik and Ugis Olte’s “Liberation Day” is a boisterous and fascinating film about Laibach, who are a very strange strange but wonderful cult Slovenian band who have a very fascist aesthetic and who somehow convince the North Korean government to allow them to perform there. It’s a very enjoyable provocation.
You were the first one to tip me off to Ana Lily Amirpour and Jonas Carpignano. What up and coming filmmaker should we paying to, but we aren’t?
Dave McCary. His film “Brigsby Bear” premiered at Sundance and got very strong reviews but I don’t think it has yet gotten nearly the attention it deserves. McCary and star Kyle Mooney had a successful sketch comedy group and later joined SNL, so going into the premiere I assumed the film would be funny, but I will admit I didn’t have particularly high expectations otherwise. But I definitely underestimate them–it’s strikingly well executed and the comic and emotional components of the film are expertly balanced.
And beyond that, McCary has a unique touch that you rarely see in comedy films–an ability to dance around the character arcs and emotional trajectory of the characters without ever slipping into maudlin sentimentality and never losing the absurd comic energy. Whenever it seems that the film is about to head someplace conventional, McCary injects a perfectly timed comic turnabout that propels the film forward, but never quite in the direction you expect.
There have been a lot of really good dark indie comedies this year, but “Brigsby” is as funny as any of them while also being full of light and warmth and emotional generosity. It’s a special film and I hope that enough people see it so that it becomes a classic and not just a cult classic.
What’s one film in your lineup that does something new and exciting with the medium?
I was blown away by Amman Abbassi’s “Dayveon.” There have been a lot of independent coming of age films over the years, but few of them manage to balance realism and lyrical artistry quite as wonderfully as this debut feature. Capturing the warmth of an Arkansas summer and the emotional confusion of a thirteen year old struggling after the murder of his older brother, Abbassi establishes himself as a sensitive filmmaker with the ability to evoke a delicate subjective experience.
And on the doc side?
I knew the filmmaker Maple Rasza back in college but hadn’t caught up with him in a while and a few months back a mutual friend tipped me off to his latest project, a really exceptional interactive film he has made with Milton Guillen called “The Maribor Uprising: A Live Participatory Film.” He and Milton shot footage from a series of massive protests in Slovenia following some incidents involving comically flagrant government corruption, and instead of turning it into a traditional documentary they created an interactive project in which Maple leads the audience through the footage. The audience can choose to follow different protestors, decide whether to follow the law or follow the less peaceful demonstrators, and much more. We have long been a champion of live cinema events, like those created by Brent and Sam Green, but this film is an interesting variation on the form. Plus it just happens to be a very timely project. I’m really excited for that show.
Also, Dmitri Kalashnikov’s “The Road Movie” is a very fun comic documentary composed entirely of wild footage captured by hundreds of Russian automobile dash cams. It’s a very weird way to experience the Russian road. I loved every minute of it.
What film introduced you to a world you didn’t know anything about?
We showed Yuri Ancarani’s stunning short film “il Capo” a few years back and ever since I have been excited to see what he would do with a feature film. Sure enough, his new documentary “The Challenge” did not disappoint. He somehow managed to convince secretive Qatari sheikhs to let him film their bizarre and decadent lives as they prepare for the massive falconry competitions they hold deep in the desert. The footage he captured is arresting, hilarious and profound. There is barely a word spoken in the entire film but you will never want to look away. I have never seen anything like it.
You always put shorts front and center at Rooftop and dig into the best international short films. I remember two years ago you talking about how there was an inordinate amount of great shorts coming out of Sweden, what you find this year?
Yeah, a lot of those great Swedish short filmmakers are now doing pretty well. Ruben Ostlund just won Cannes after all, and he was one of the talented Swedes I was talking about back then. And there are some truly wonderful new Swedish shorts this year as well – I am particularly fond of “I Will Always Love You Conny,” by Amanda Kernell. It’s a heartbreaking short.
But my favorite short of the year is a Swedish animation that we gave a grant to called “The Burden” by Niki LIndroth Von Behr. It won Gothenburg, and it’s part of a trend that I have noticed lately of a surge in very, very talented young female animators. Ten years ago an animated shorts program would be packed with films by men, and that is definitely not the case anymore. It’s exciting to see women animators from all over the world coming to the fore. We opened the summer with an animated film by a woman and we will end the summer with one, too, and that isn’t a coincidence.
Rooftop Films Summer Festival runs through August 19th. You can find more information here.
Related stories'Brigsby Bear' Teaser Trailer: Kyle Mooney Introduces You to A Highly Original Summer Indie'The Big Sick,' 'The Bad Batch' and More Announced for Rooftop Films' 2017 Summer Series2017 Cannes Critics' Week Announces Lineup, Including 'Brigsby Bear' and Animation From Iran...
- 6/23/2017
- by Chris O'Falt
- Indiewire
Keep up with the wild and wooly world of indie film acquisitions with our weekly Rundown of everything that’s been picked up around the globe. Check out last week’s Rundown here.
– The Orchard has acquired the North American rights to Jordan Ross’s directorial debut “Thumper,” starring “Orange is the New Black’s” Pablo Schreiber. The gritty crime thriller debuted at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival and was written and directed by Ross. The movie also stars Eliza Taylor, Lena Headey, Ben Feldman, Grant Harvey and Daniel Webber. Set in a town of low-income and fractured families, “Thumper” is centered around a group of teens that are lured into working for a dangerous drug dealer. A new girl arrives into town hiding a dangerous secret that will impact everybody and change their lives forever.
Read More: Film Acquisition Rundown: Mubi Buys Philippe Garrel’s ‘Lover for a Day,’ FilmRise...
– The Orchard has acquired the North American rights to Jordan Ross’s directorial debut “Thumper,” starring “Orange is the New Black’s” Pablo Schreiber. The gritty crime thriller debuted at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival and was written and directed by Ross. The movie also stars Eliza Taylor, Lena Headey, Ben Feldman, Grant Harvey and Daniel Webber. Set in a town of low-income and fractured families, “Thumper” is centered around a group of teens that are lured into working for a dangerous drug dealer. A new girl arrives into town hiding a dangerous secret that will impact everybody and change their lives forever.
Read More: Film Acquisition Rundown: Mubi Buys Philippe Garrel’s ‘Lover for a Day,’ FilmRise...
- 6/9/2017
- by Graham Winfrey
- Indiewire
Documentary gets Us deal ahead of international premiere at Doc/Fest.
Sundance Selects has taken Us rights to Jeff Unay’s documentary and directorial feature debut The Cage Fighter.
The film had its world premiere at the San Francisco International Film Festival and is set to have its international premiere at the UK’s Sheffield Doc/Fest on June 10.
James Orara produced and Andrea Meditch executive produced the film, which follows a plumber who becomes a cage fighter to escape the stresses of his everyday life.
“I am very excited that we are partnering with Sundance Selects to bring The Cage Fighter to the public,” commented Jeff Unay, director. “Their prestigious label/brand of films coupled together with their penchant to distribute their films to the widest possible audience is extremely promising and very important to our film. We are proud to be part of the Sundance Selects family.”
The deal for the film was negotiated by [link...
Sundance Selects has taken Us rights to Jeff Unay’s documentary and directorial feature debut The Cage Fighter.
The film had its world premiere at the San Francisco International Film Festival and is set to have its international premiere at the UK’s Sheffield Doc/Fest on June 10.
James Orara produced and Andrea Meditch executive produced the film, which follows a plumber who becomes a cage fighter to escape the stresses of his everyday life.
“I am very excited that we are partnering with Sundance Selects to bring The Cage Fighter to the public,” commented Jeff Unay, director. “Their prestigious label/brand of films coupled together with their penchant to distribute their films to the widest possible audience is extremely promising and very important to our film. We are proud to be part of the Sundance Selects family.”
The deal for the film was negotiated by [link...
- 6/8/2017
- by tom.grater@screendaily.com (Tom Grater)
- ScreenDaily
Rooftop Films has announced its lineup for the 2017 Summer Series. This year’s series will feature more than 45 outdoor screenings in more than 10 venues, including films like Michael Showalter’s Sundance hit “The Big Sick” Ana Lily Amirpour’s “The Bad Batch,” (dates still Tbd).
The series kicks off on Friday, May 19 with “This is What We Mean by Short Films,” a collection of some of the most innovative, new short films of the past year. The screening will take place on the roof of The Old American Can Factory, in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The following night, Saturday, May 20, Rooftop will present a sneak preview screening of Zoe Lister-Jones’ 2017 Sundance entry, “Band Aid,” free and outdoors at House of Vans in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
The entire lineup so far is below. Tickets are already for sale.
Friday, May 19
“This is What We Mean by Short Films”
Saturday, May 20
“Band Aid” (Zoe Lister-Jones)
Saturday,...
The series kicks off on Friday, May 19 with “This is What We Mean by Short Films,” a collection of some of the most innovative, new short films of the past year. The screening will take place on the roof of The Old American Can Factory, in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The following night, Saturday, May 20, Rooftop will present a sneak preview screening of Zoe Lister-Jones’ 2017 Sundance entry, “Band Aid,” free and outdoors at House of Vans in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
The entire lineup so far is below. Tickets are already for sale.
Friday, May 19
“This is What We Mean by Short Films”
Saturday, May 20
“Band Aid” (Zoe Lister-Jones)
Saturday,...
- 5/5/2017
- by Graham Winfrey
- Indiewire
Joe Carman has a face made for the movies, but it’s not a pretty one. With an unkempt beard and tired eyes, he looks like he’s trapped in the headlights of a world that won’t cut him a break. The 40-year-old Seattle figure at the center of “The Cage Fighter” is a broken man defeated by every aspect of his life. Still, he does what he can to bury his troubles with macho swagger whenever he steps into the ring, engaging in the competitive mixed martial arts fighting that his family has urged him to quit. Carman’s persistence is at once inspiring and tragic, a bloodied metaphor for battling forward against impossible odds.
The feature-length debut of director Jeff Unay, “The Cage Fighter” hails from a tradition of intimate cinema verité that encompasses so many details from the lives of its subject that it may as well be a scripted drama.
The feature-length debut of director Jeff Unay, “The Cage Fighter” hails from a tradition of intimate cinema verité that encompasses so many details from the lives of its subject that it may as well be a scripted drama.
- 4/9/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
In 2002, director Thomas Riedelsheimer premiered his documentary “River and Tides – Andy Goldsworthy Working With Time” at the San Francisco International Film Festival. At the time, its future was uncertain: Unlike Sundance, San Francisco wasn’t an active marketplace for movies in search of U.S. distribution. Nevertheless, the movie won a top prize at the festival and began its theatrical life at the Roxie that year before gradually finding an audience nationwide. When it opened in Chicago in early 2003, Roger Ebert gave it four stars, noting its Bay Area origin story and a history of “finding its audience not so much through word of mouth as through hand on elbow, as friends steered friends into the theater.”
Now, Riedelsheimer is returning to San Francisco with a sequel to “Rivers and Tides” called “Leaning Into the Wind,” which updates viewers on the progress of British artist Goldsworthy, and the movie has...
Now, Riedelsheimer is returning to San Francisco with a sequel to “Rivers and Tides” called “Leaning Into the Wind,” which updates viewers on the progress of British artist Goldsworthy, and the movie has...
- 3/30/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Today, the San Francisco Film Society today announced the ten finalists for the 2016 Sffs Documentary Film Fund awards totaling $75,000. The Sffs Documentary Film Fund supports feature-length documentaries in postproduction and was created to support singular nonfiction film work. Finalists were selected from more than 200 applications, and winners will be announced in mid-September.
Read More: How the San Francisco Film Society is Empowering Filmmakers With Technology
Dff has an excellent track record for championing compelling films that have gone on to earn great acclaim. Previous winners include Zachary Heinzerling’s “Cutie and the Boxer,” which won Sundance’s Directing Award for documentary and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature; Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson’s “American Promise,”which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and won the festival’s Special Jury Prize in the documentary category; and Moby Longinotto’s “The Joneses,” which premiered at the 2016 San Francisco International Film Festival.
Read More: How the San Francisco Film Society is Empowering Filmmakers With Technology
Dff has an excellent track record for championing compelling films that have gone on to earn great acclaim. Previous winners include Zachary Heinzerling’s “Cutie and the Boxer,” which won Sundance’s Directing Award for documentary and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature; Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson’s “American Promise,”which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and won the festival’s Special Jury Prize in the documentary category; and Moby Longinotto’s “The Joneses,” which premiered at the 2016 San Francisco International Film Festival.
- 8/18/2016
- by Vikram Murthi
- Indiewire
“Diversity” may be a big buzzword for the film business these days, but for a lot of organizations, the challenges implied by the term are nothing new. While the Academy announced last week that it was inviting 683 new members—many from diverse backgrounds—to their vaunted club, the independent film side of the industry has long been fighting the good fight, with programs, grants and foundations focused on creating a more equitable entertainment ecosystem.
But how well are such initiatives working? “If we’re honest with ourselves, we have to realize there are a lot of well-meaning programs out there that are not having an impact,” said Film Independent’s Josh Welsh. “I’m at a point of great frustration. I am proud of what we’ve accomplished, but at the same time, these studies continue to come out every year that say the numbers in the industry are, as a whole,...
But how well are such initiatives working? “If we’re honest with ourselves, we have to realize there are a lot of well-meaning programs out there that are not having an impact,” said Film Independent’s Josh Welsh. “I’m at a point of great frustration. I am proud of what we’ve accomplished, but at the same time, these studies continue to come out every year that say the numbers in the industry are, as a whole,...
- 7/7/2016
- by Anthony Kaufman
- Indiewire
Kyzza Terrazas’ Somos Lengua and Rodrigo Cervantes’ Los Paisajes each took home post-production services worth $52,000 at the Mexican festival on Friday night.
Imcine director and Gabriel Figueroa Film Fund promoter Jorge Sánchez Sosa presented the awards at the Los Cabos International Film Festival gala event.
A jury comprised of Cristina Garza from Mundial, Santiago de la Paz of Nómadas and Cynthia Wiesner of Wiesner Distribution selected the first prize recipients.
The Fund honours outstanding cinematographers, offers support every year for projects in development and, in collaboration with Labodigital, supports films in post.
A jury comprised of Molly O’Keefe from the Tribeca Film Institute, Ségolène Roederer of Québec Cinéma and Mirsad Purivatra of the Sarajevo Film Festival awarded second prizes in the amount of $5,000 to seven development projects.
The recipients were: Marcelino Islas’ History Lessons; Gustavo Gamou’s F.B.I.; Pau Ortiz’ Outside Of Prison; Luciana Kaplan’s Rush Hour; Andrea Pallaoro’s Beauty Salon; [link...
Imcine director and Gabriel Figueroa Film Fund promoter Jorge Sánchez Sosa presented the awards at the Los Cabos International Film Festival gala event.
A jury comprised of Cristina Garza from Mundial, Santiago de la Paz of Nómadas and Cynthia Wiesner of Wiesner Distribution selected the first prize recipients.
The Fund honours outstanding cinematographers, offers support every year for projects in development and, in collaboration with Labodigital, supports films in post.
A jury comprised of Molly O’Keefe from the Tribeca Film Institute, Ségolène Roederer of Québec Cinéma and Mirsad Purivatra of the Sarajevo Film Festival awarded second prizes in the amount of $5,000 to seven development projects.
The recipients were: Marcelino Islas’ History Lessons; Gustavo Gamou’s F.B.I.; Pau Ortiz’ Outside Of Prison; Luciana Kaplan’s Rush Hour; Andrea Pallaoro’s Beauty Salon; [link...
- 11/13/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
The premiere post-tiff destination (September 20-25th) in the film community and a major leg up for narrative and non-fiction films in development, the Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) announced a whopping 140 projects selected for the Project Forum at the upcoming Ifp Independent Film Week. Made up of several sections (Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program, No Borders International Co-Production Market and Spotlight on Documentaries), we find latest updates from the likes of docu-helmers Doug Block (112 Weddings) and Lana Wilson (After Tiller), and among the narrative items we find headliners in Andrew Haigh (coming off the well received 45 Years), Sophie Barthes (Cold Souls and Madame Bovary), Terence Nance (An Oversimplification of Her Beauty), Lawrence Michael Levine (Wild Canaries), Jorge Michel Grau (We Are What We Are), Eleanor Burke and Ron Eyal (Stranger Things) and new faces in Sundance’s large family in Charles Poekel (Christmas, Again) and Olivia Newman (First Match). Here...
- 7/22/2015
- by admin
- IONCINEMA.com
"Avatar," the sci-fi special effects extravaganza, received six Visual Effects Society Awards including Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Feature Motion Picture at the 8th Annual Ves Awards.
"Avatar" beat fellow Oscar nominees "District 9" and "Star Trek" as well as, "2012" and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
Disney/Pixar's "Up" won three including Oustanding Animation, Outstanding Animated Character ( 'Carl'- No Dad Scene), and Outstanding Effects Animation in an Animated Feature.
"District 9" earned one Ves Award, for outstanding compositing while "Sherlock Holmes" won for supporting Visual Effects in a feature.
The effective use of the Visual Effects technology is one of the strongest qualities of "Avatar." Watch for the film to take home all the special effects categories at the upcoming Academy Awards.
Here's the complete list of winners of the 8th Annual Visual Effects Society Awards:
Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Feature Motion Picture
Avatar
Joe Letteri,...
"Avatar" beat fellow Oscar nominees "District 9" and "Star Trek" as well as, "2012" and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
Disney/Pixar's "Up" won three including Oustanding Animation, Outstanding Animated Character ( 'Carl'- No Dad Scene), and Outstanding Effects Animation in an Animated Feature.
"District 9" earned one Ves Award, for outstanding compositing while "Sherlock Holmes" won for supporting Visual Effects in a feature.
The effective use of the Visual Effects technology is one of the strongest qualities of "Avatar." Watch for the film to take home all the special effects categories at the upcoming Academy Awards.
Here's the complete list of winners of the 8th Annual Visual Effects Society Awards:
Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Feature Motion Picture
Avatar
Joe Letteri,...
- 3/1/2010
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
"Avatar" earned six Visual Effects Society awards, including the top honor for outstanding visual effects in a VFX-driven feature, at the 8th annual Ves Awards.
Also Sunday at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza, Pixar Animation Studio's "Up" -- the leading contender in this year's animated feature Oscar race -- won three trophies: for outstanding animation, outstanding animated character and outstanding effects animation in an animated feature.
In addition to the top honor for outstanding visual effects, 3D scifi epic "Avatar" earned trophies for best single visual effect of the year, outstanding character animation in a live-action feature, outstanding matte paintings, outstanding models and miniatures, and outstanding created environment.
Since the Ves launched its awards in 2002, the winner of the top category has gone on to win the VFX Oscar each year but two. Those instances occurred in 2005, when "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" won the Ves trophy and...
Also Sunday at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza, Pixar Animation Studio's "Up" -- the leading contender in this year's animated feature Oscar race -- won three trophies: for outstanding animation, outstanding animated character and outstanding effects animation in an animated feature.
In addition to the top honor for outstanding visual effects, 3D scifi epic "Avatar" earned trophies for best single visual effect of the year, outstanding character animation in a live-action feature, outstanding matte paintings, outstanding models and miniatures, and outstanding created environment.
Since the Ves launched its awards in 2002, the winner of the top category has gone on to win the VFX Oscar each year but two. Those instances occurred in 2005, when "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" won the Ves trophy and...
- 3/1/2010
- by By Carolyn Giardina
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
No surprise there. It goes without saying that James Cameron's sci-fi spectacle Avatar has the potential to clean house at the 8th Annual Ves Awards for its breath taking visuals by the acclaimed Weta Digital. Cameron will also be picking up a well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award. In the outstanding animated feature category, the nominees include Up, 9, Coraline, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.
The official press release is as followed:
3-D Films Dominate With Most Noms as Avatar grabs 11, Coraline 4, and Visual Effects Company Weta Digital Snags Most Company Noms with 9
Los Angeles, January 19, 2010 - The Visual Effects Society (Ves) today announced the nominees for the 8th Annual Ves Awards ceremony recognizing outstanding visual effects artistry in over twenty categories of film, animation, television, commercials and video games. Nominees were chosen Saturday, January 16, 2010, by numerous blue ribbon panels of Ves members who...
The official press release is as followed:
3-D Films Dominate With Most Noms as Avatar grabs 11, Coraline 4, and Visual Effects Company Weta Digital Snags Most Company Noms with 9
Los Angeles, January 19, 2010 - The Visual Effects Society (Ves) today announced the nominees for the 8th Annual Ves Awards ceremony recognizing outstanding visual effects artistry in over twenty categories of film, animation, television, commercials and video games. Nominees were chosen Saturday, January 16, 2010, by numerous blue ribbon panels of Ves members who...
- 1/22/2010
- Screen Anarchy
James Cameron's "Avatar" led the list of nominations announced Monday by the Visual Effects Society, scooping up 11.
The animated "Coraline," another movie released in 3D, followed with four nominations.
New Zealand-based Weta Digital, which worked on "Avatar," led the company noms with nine.
For visual effects in an effects-driven motion picture feature, the nominees are "2012," "Avatar," "District 9," "Star Trek" and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
Noms for supporting visual effects in a movie went to "Angels & Demons," "The Box," "Invictus," "The Road" and "Sherlock Holmes."
"9," "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," "Coraline," "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" and "Up" were nominated for outstanding animation in an animated feature.
Ves noms in 20 categories, covering film, animation, TV, commercials and video games were chosen Saturday by blue-ribbon panels of Ves members, meeting in Burbank, San Francisco and London.
The eighth annual Ves Awards will be handed out on Feb.
The animated "Coraline," another movie released in 3D, followed with four nominations.
New Zealand-based Weta Digital, which worked on "Avatar," led the company noms with nine.
For visual effects in an effects-driven motion picture feature, the nominees are "2012," "Avatar," "District 9," "Star Trek" and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
Noms for supporting visual effects in a movie went to "Angels & Demons," "The Box," "Invictus," "The Road" and "Sherlock Holmes."
"9," "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," "Coraline," "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" and "Up" were nominated for outstanding animation in an animated feature.
Ves noms in 20 categories, covering film, animation, TV, commercials and video games were chosen Saturday by blue-ribbon panels of Ves members, meeting in Burbank, San Francisco and London.
The eighth annual Ves Awards will be handed out on Feb.
- 1/18/2010
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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