"The Notorious Mr. Bout," the latest doc from co-directors Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle") and Maxim Pozdorovkin ("Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer") delves into the life of a famous Russian arms dealer. Aside from terrific archival footage the film also takes a long look at the way Bout's case was handled and if it was done so fairly. Also whether or not that matters when everyone knows you're a bad, bad man.
- 11/4/2015
- by Christopher Llewellyn Reed
- Hammer to Nail
You may know the co-directors of The Notorious Mr. Bout for their prior individual projects, the likes include Maxim Pozdorovkin’s co-directed project HBO alongside Mike Lerner, Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer, and Tony Gerber’s acclaimed collaboration with Jesse Moss, Full Battle Rattle, but together Pozdorovkin and Gerber have created a surprisingly funny depiction of international crime by profiling famed arms dealer and novice documentarian, Viktor Bout.
Utilizing a treasure trove of footage shot by the Merchant of Death himself, the filmmakers reimagine the glorified public image bestowed upon him by the bloodthirsty mainstream media by deeply investigating his entire mercantile career via interviews with his best friends and biggest enemies. The Notorious Mr. Bout has been picked up for distribution worldwide by Kaleidoscope Film Distribution, sadly excluding Us screens, so domestically they still seem to be waiting it out. The film premiered earlier this year in Park...
Utilizing a treasure trove of footage shot by the Merchant of Death himself, the filmmakers reimagine the glorified public image bestowed upon him by the bloodthirsty mainstream media by deeply investigating his entire mercantile career via interviews with his best friends and biggest enemies. The Notorious Mr. Bout has been picked up for distribution worldwide by Kaleidoscope Film Distribution, sadly excluding Us screens, so domestically they still seem to be waiting it out. The film premiered earlier this year in Park...
- 11/3/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
Academy invitee Eddie Redmayne in 'The Theory of Everything.' Academy invites 322 new members: 'More diverse and inclusive list of filmmakers and artists than ever before' The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has offered membership to 322 individuals "who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures." According to the Academy's press release, "those who accept the invitations will be the only additions to the Academy's membership in 2015." In case all 322 potential new members say an enthusiastic Yes, that means an injection of new blood representing about 5 percent of the Academy's current membership. In the words of Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs (as quoted in the press release), in 2015 "our branches have recognized a more diverse and inclusive list of filmmakers and artists than ever before, and we look forward to adding their creativity, ideas and experience to our organization." In recent years, the Academy membership has...
- 7/1/2015
- by Anna Robinson
- Alt Film Guide
©Renzo Piano Building Workshop/©Studio Pali Fekete architects/©A.M.P.A.S.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this week that the Los Angeles City Council, in a unanimous vote, approved plans for the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Construction will begin this summer, and ceremonial groundbreaking festivities will occur this fall.
“I am thrilled that Los Angeles is gaining another architectural and cultural icon,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “My office of economic development has worked directly with the museum’s development team to ensure that the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will create jobs, support tourism, and pay homage to the industry that helped define our identity as the creative capital of the world.”
“We are grateful to our incredible community of supporters who have helped make this museum a reality,” said Dawn Hudson, the Academy’s CEO. “Building this museum has been an Academy...
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this week that the Los Angeles City Council, in a unanimous vote, approved plans for the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Construction will begin this summer, and ceremonial groundbreaking festivities will occur this fall.
“I am thrilled that Los Angeles is gaining another architectural and cultural icon,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “My office of economic development has worked directly with the museum’s development team to ensure that the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will create jobs, support tourism, and pay homage to the industry that helped define our identity as the creative capital of the world.”
“We are grateful to our incredible community of supporters who have helped make this museum a reality,” said Dawn Hudson, the Academy’s CEO. “Building this museum has been an Academy...
- 6/27/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Strangely dropping a press release on a historic day where the nation's attention is elsewhere, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed their annual list of new member invitees this morning. For those who criticize the makeup of the Academy there was some good news and the stark realization the organization still has a long way to go. The Academy has spent the last eight to 10 years attempting to diversify its membership and this year's class mostly reflects that. There are significantly more invitees of Asian and African-American descent, but the male to female disparity is still depressing. Out of the 25 potential new members of the Actor's Branch only seven are women. And, no, there isn't really an acceptable way for the Academy to spin that sad fact. Additionally, It's important to realize the 322 people noted in the release have only been invited to join Hollywood's most exclusive club.
- 6/26/2015
- by Gregory Ellwood
- Hitfix
Documentarian Jesse Moss likes to make his films on his own, armed with a camera and a lot of curiosity. His early efforts focused on fascinating characters and topics, from the virtual wars that American soldiers fought before heading to Iraq (Full Battle Rattle) to an up close and personal account of con artist James Arthur Hogue (Con Man).
For his latest film, The Overnighters, Moss spent 18 months in the boomtown of Williston, North Dakota, where he became a close friend of the town’s revered and controversial pastor, Jay Reinke. What began as a modest human-interest story turned into one of the most compelling looks at an American community to come onto the screens in years. The film was one of the hottest documentary titles at Sundance earlier this year, where it won the Special Jury Prize for Intuitive Filmmaking. It is now playing in limited release across the United States,...
For his latest film, The Overnighters, Moss spent 18 months in the boomtown of Williston, North Dakota, where he became a close friend of the town’s revered and controversial pastor, Jay Reinke. What began as a modest human-interest story turned into one of the most compelling looks at an American community to come onto the screens in years. The film was one of the hottest documentary titles at Sundance earlier this year, where it won the Special Jury Prize for Intuitive Filmmaking. It is now playing in limited release across the United States,...
- 10/16/2014
- by Jordan Adler
- We Got This Covered
Thanks to the increase in access to small scale non-fiction films through the barrage of streaming services viewers now have access to – Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime, Mubi, Vudu, etc – people are watching more documentaries than ever before. You can literally turn on any web ready device of your choosing and be watching any number of top quality docs within a number of seconds. It’s nothing short of incredible. But, with ease of access comes an over saturation of content used to fill in the curatorial gaps. For every Marwencol, Senna, Gimme Shelter or The Act of Killing, there are heaps of ordures cinéma clogging up precious bandwidth. And let’s not forget, cinemas themselves are enjoying a renewed trust in the non-fiction form, exhibiting over 100 documentaries on the silver screen last year and banking over $50 Million at the box office in the process, not including the hundreds of...
- 7/28/2014
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
Ifp announced its 2014 slate of 133 new films in development and works in progress selected for its esteemed Project Forum at Independent Film Week. This one-of-a-kind event brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new projects by nurturing the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers. Through the Project Forum, creatives connect with financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. Under the curatorial leadership of Deputy Director/Head of Programming Amy Dotson & Senior Director of Programming Milton Tabbot, this one-of-a-kind event takes place September 14-18, 2014 at Lincoln Center supporting bold new content from a wide variety of domestic and international artists.
“As we set to embark on our 36th Independent Film Week, we are impressed by the outstanding slate of both U.S. and international projects selected for this year’s Project Forum,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of Ifp. “We know that the industry will be as excited as we are with the accomplished storytellers and their diverse and boundary pushing films.”
Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. From documentarians Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How To Nail A Dictator"), and Penny Lane ("Our Nixon") to Michelangelo Frammartino ("Quattro Volte") and Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"), Travis Matthews ("Interior. Leather. Bar") and Yen Tan ("Pit Stop").
Independent Film Week brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new documentary and narrative works-in-progress and support the future of storytelling. The program nurtures the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers through the facilitation of over 3,500+ custom, one-to-one meetings with the financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. In recent years, it has also played a vital role in launching the first films of many of today’s rising stars on the independent scene including Rama Burshtein ("Fill The Void"), Derek Cianfrance ("Blue Valentine"), Marshall Curry ("If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth LIberation Front"), Laura Poitras ("The Oath"), Denis Villeneuve ("Incendies") and Benh Zeitlin ("Beasts of the Southern Wild").
For the full 2014 Project Forum slate visit Here
New For 2014
Evenly split between documentary and narrative features, selected projects hail from throughout the U.S., Europe and Canada, as well Africa, Asia, South America, and the Middle East. New this year, Ifp will be including web series in it programming, as well as spotlighting Latin & Central American artists and content with 15 projects featured across all programs in the Forum.
In a joint effort to recognize the importance of career and creative sustainability, Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on a new $20,000 filmmaker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for active, working filmmakers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting. The grant provides a $20,000 unrestricted prize to encourage the recipient to continue on her or his career path of making quality independent films. American directors or screenwriters working in narrative film who have participated in the Ifp Filmmaker Labs or Ifp Independent Film Week's Emerging Storytellers or No-Borders International Co-Production market are encouraged to apply by the deadline of August 8, 2014.
Narrative Feature Highlights
Narrative features and webseries in Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers and No Borders International Co-Production Market sections highlight new work from top emerging and established creative visionaries on the U.S. and international independent scene.
This year’s slate includes new feature scripts featuring directors Dev Benegal ("Road, Movie"), Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperin ("Now, Forager"), Michelangelo Frammartino ("Le Quattro Volte"),Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda"), Rashaad Ernesto Green ("Gun Hill Road"), Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita Y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"),Alison Klayman ("Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry"), Travis Mathews ("Interior. Leather Bar"), Stacie Passon ("Concussion"), Yen Tan ("Pit Stop"), as well as up-an-coming actor/directors Karrie Crouse ("Land Ho!") and Peter Vack ("Fort Tilden""I Believe in Unicorns").
Producers and executive producers of note attached to participating projects include Jennifer Dubin and Cora Olson ("Good Dick"), Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams ("Hellion"),Laura Heberton ("Gayby"), Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Kishori Rajan ("Gimme the Loot"), Adele Romanski ("The Myth of the American Sleepover"), Kim Sherman ("A Teacher"), Susan Stover ("High Art"), and Alicia Van Couvering ("Tiny Furniture").
Web Storytellers Highlights
For the first time this year, Ifp presents a dedicated spotlight within the Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program for creators developing episodic content for digital platforms. The inaugural slate for the Web Storytellers spotlight includes new works from filmmakers Desiree Akhavan ("Appropriate Behavior", HBO’s Girls), Calvin Reeder ("The Rambler"), and Gregory Bayne ("Person of Interest"), as well as producers Elisabeth Holm ("Obvious Child"), Susan Leber ( "Down to the Bone"), and Amanda Warman ("The Outs,"Whatever This Is"). Two of the series participating are currently in post-production, and will be making their online debut in the coming months – Rachel Morgan’s Middle Americans, starring Scott Thompson, Carlen Altman, and Alex Rennie, and Daniel Zimbler and Elisabeth Gray’s Understudies, starring Richard Kind and David Rasche. [p Spotlight On Documentaries Highlights
The documentary selection includes new work from seasoned non-fiction directors such as Emmy winners Robert Bahar andAlmudena Carracedo ("Made in La"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How to Nail a Dictator"),Ramona Diaz ("Imelda," "Don’t Stop Believin’") Gini Reticker ("Pray the Devil Back to Hell") Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"); from producers such as Court 13’s Benh Zeitlin and Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Liran Atzmor ("The Law in These Parts"), Tim Williams ("Once In A Lifetime") and Hilla Medalia ("Web Junkie"), and follow-up second features from recent doc world “breakouts”Steve Hoover ("Blood Brother") Penny Lane ("Our Nixon"), Michael Collins ("Give Up Tomorrow"), and Michael Nichols and Christopher Walker ("Flex is Kings").
Exciting new work from debut documentary directors previously known for fiction films include Alex Sichel ("All over Me") with her personal doc The Movie about Anna, Lisa Cortés (producer, "Precious") with "Mothership: The Untold Story of Women and Hip Hop," and Daniel Patrick Carbone ("Hide Your Smiling Faces") with Phantom Cowboys.
Sponsors
Independent Film Week’s Premier sponsors are Royal Bank of Canada (Rbc) and HBO. Gold sponsors are A&E IndieFilms and SAGIndie. Silver sponsors are Durga Entertainment, Eastman Kodak Company, National Film & Video Foundation of South Africa and Telefilm Canada. Official Independent Film Week Partner is Film Society of Lincoln Center. Independent Film Week is supported, in part, by funds provided by the Ford Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council for the Arts and Time Warner Foundation.
About Ifp
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Made in NY Media Center by Ifp, a new incubator space developed with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. Ifp represents a growing network of 10,000 storytellers around the world, and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 35-year history, Ifp has supported over 8,000 projects and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers, including Debra Granik, Miranda July, Michael Moore, Dee Rees, and Benh Zeitlin. More info at www.ifp.org.
“As we set to embark on our 36th Independent Film Week, we are impressed by the outstanding slate of both U.S. and international projects selected for this year’s Project Forum,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of Ifp. “We know that the industry will be as excited as we are with the accomplished storytellers and their diverse and boundary pushing films.”
Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. From documentarians Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How To Nail A Dictator"), and Penny Lane ("Our Nixon") to Michelangelo Frammartino ("Quattro Volte") and Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"), Travis Matthews ("Interior. Leather. Bar") and Yen Tan ("Pit Stop").
Independent Film Week brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new documentary and narrative works-in-progress and support the future of storytelling. The program nurtures the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers through the facilitation of over 3,500+ custom, one-to-one meetings with the financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. In recent years, it has also played a vital role in launching the first films of many of today’s rising stars on the independent scene including Rama Burshtein ("Fill The Void"), Derek Cianfrance ("Blue Valentine"), Marshall Curry ("If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth LIberation Front"), Laura Poitras ("The Oath"), Denis Villeneuve ("Incendies") and Benh Zeitlin ("Beasts of the Southern Wild").
For the full 2014 Project Forum slate visit Here
New For 2014
Evenly split between documentary and narrative features, selected projects hail from throughout the U.S., Europe and Canada, as well Africa, Asia, South America, and the Middle East. New this year, Ifp will be including web series in it programming, as well as spotlighting Latin & Central American artists and content with 15 projects featured across all programs in the Forum.
In a joint effort to recognize the importance of career and creative sustainability, Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on a new $20,000 filmmaker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for active, working filmmakers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting. The grant provides a $20,000 unrestricted prize to encourage the recipient to continue on her or his career path of making quality independent films. American directors or screenwriters working in narrative film who have participated in the Ifp Filmmaker Labs or Ifp Independent Film Week's Emerging Storytellers or No-Borders International Co-Production market are encouraged to apply by the deadline of August 8, 2014.
Narrative Feature Highlights
Narrative features and webseries in Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers and No Borders International Co-Production Market sections highlight new work from top emerging and established creative visionaries on the U.S. and international independent scene.
This year’s slate includes new feature scripts featuring directors Dev Benegal ("Road, Movie"), Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperin ("Now, Forager"), Michelangelo Frammartino ("Le Quattro Volte"),Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda"), Rashaad Ernesto Green ("Gun Hill Road"), Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita Y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"),Alison Klayman ("Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry"), Travis Mathews ("Interior. Leather Bar"), Stacie Passon ("Concussion"), Yen Tan ("Pit Stop"), as well as up-an-coming actor/directors Karrie Crouse ("Land Ho!") and Peter Vack ("Fort Tilden""I Believe in Unicorns").
Producers and executive producers of note attached to participating projects include Jennifer Dubin and Cora Olson ("Good Dick"), Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams ("Hellion"),Laura Heberton ("Gayby"), Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Kishori Rajan ("Gimme the Loot"), Adele Romanski ("The Myth of the American Sleepover"), Kim Sherman ("A Teacher"), Susan Stover ("High Art"), and Alicia Van Couvering ("Tiny Furniture").
Web Storytellers Highlights
For the first time this year, Ifp presents a dedicated spotlight within the Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program for creators developing episodic content for digital platforms. The inaugural slate for the Web Storytellers spotlight includes new works from filmmakers Desiree Akhavan ("Appropriate Behavior", HBO’s Girls), Calvin Reeder ("The Rambler"), and Gregory Bayne ("Person of Interest"), as well as producers Elisabeth Holm ("Obvious Child"), Susan Leber ( "Down to the Bone"), and Amanda Warman ("The Outs,"Whatever This Is"). Two of the series participating are currently in post-production, and will be making their online debut in the coming months – Rachel Morgan’s Middle Americans, starring Scott Thompson, Carlen Altman, and Alex Rennie, and Daniel Zimbler and Elisabeth Gray’s Understudies, starring Richard Kind and David Rasche. [p Spotlight On Documentaries Highlights
The documentary selection includes new work from seasoned non-fiction directors such as Emmy winners Robert Bahar andAlmudena Carracedo ("Made in La"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How to Nail a Dictator"),Ramona Diaz ("Imelda," "Don’t Stop Believin’") Gini Reticker ("Pray the Devil Back to Hell") Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"); from producers such as Court 13’s Benh Zeitlin and Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Liran Atzmor ("The Law in These Parts"), Tim Williams ("Once In A Lifetime") and Hilla Medalia ("Web Junkie"), and follow-up second features from recent doc world “breakouts”Steve Hoover ("Blood Brother") Penny Lane ("Our Nixon"), Michael Collins ("Give Up Tomorrow"), and Michael Nichols and Christopher Walker ("Flex is Kings").
Exciting new work from debut documentary directors previously known for fiction films include Alex Sichel ("All over Me") with her personal doc The Movie about Anna, Lisa Cortés (producer, "Precious") with "Mothership: The Untold Story of Women and Hip Hop," and Daniel Patrick Carbone ("Hide Your Smiling Faces") with Phantom Cowboys.
Sponsors
Independent Film Week’s Premier sponsors are Royal Bank of Canada (Rbc) and HBO. Gold sponsors are A&E IndieFilms and SAGIndie. Silver sponsors are Durga Entertainment, Eastman Kodak Company, National Film & Video Foundation of South Africa and Telefilm Canada. Official Independent Film Week Partner is Film Society of Lincoln Center. Independent Film Week is supported, in part, by funds provided by the Ford Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council for the Arts and Time Warner Foundation.
About Ifp
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Made in NY Media Center by Ifp, a new incubator space developed with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. Ifp represents a growing network of 10,000 storytellers around the world, and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 35-year history, Ifp has supported over 8,000 projects and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers, including Debra Granik, Miranda July, Michael Moore, Dee Rees, and Benh Zeitlin. More info at www.ifp.org.
- 7/25/2014
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
Ifp, Filmmaker Magazine’s publisher, announced today the 133 new films in development and works in progress chosen for its Independent Film Wee Forum Project. A complete list of the projects can be found here. Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, from documentarians Tony Gerber (Full Battle Rattle), Pamela Yates (Granito: How To Nail A Dictator), and Penny Lane (Our Nixon) to Michelangelo Frammartino (Le Quattro Volte) and Alexis Dos Santos (Unmade Beds), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero (Mosquito […]...
- 7/23/2014
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Ifp, Filmmaker Magazine’s publisher, announced today the 133 new films in development and works in progress chosen for its Independent Film Wee Forum Project. A complete list of the projects can be found here. Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, from documentarians Tony Gerber (Full Battle Rattle), Pamela Yates (Granito: How To Nail A Dictator), and Penny Lane (Our Nixon) to Michelangelo Frammartino (Le Quattro Volte) and Alexis Dos Santos (Unmade Beds), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero (Mosquito […]...
- 7/23/2014
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Ifp top brass announced on Wednesday (23) their 2014 slate of 133 films in development and works-in-progress selected for Project Forum at Independent Film Week.
Film-makers will include documentarians Tony Gerber (Full Battle Rattle), Pamela Yates (Granito: How To Nail A Dictator) and Penny Lane (Our Nixon) as well as Michelangelo Frammartino (Quattro Volte) and Alexis Dos Santos (Unmade Beds).
For the first time, Ifp will include web series as well as a spotlight on Latin & Central American artists and content.
Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on an inaugural $20,000 film-maker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for working film-makers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting.
Click here for the full 2014 Project Forum slate.
The San Francisco Film Society has launched a suite of film-maker support services. The Sffs Producers Initiative will support independent producers currently working on narrative feature projects, through a combination of financial support, programmes, mentorship...
Film-makers will include documentarians Tony Gerber (Full Battle Rattle), Pamela Yates (Granito: How To Nail A Dictator) and Penny Lane (Our Nixon) as well as Michelangelo Frammartino (Quattro Volte) and Alexis Dos Santos (Unmade Beds).
For the first time, Ifp will include web series as well as a spotlight on Latin & Central American artists and content.
Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on an inaugural $20,000 film-maker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for working film-makers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting.
Click here for the full 2014 Project Forum slate.
The San Francisco Film Society has launched a suite of film-maker support services. The Sffs Producers Initiative will support independent producers currently working on narrative feature projects, through a combination of financial support, programmes, mentorship...
- 7/23/2014
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
"Lord of War" may not have been Nicolas Cage's shining moment, but it probably looked great on paper. The movie sees Cage jet-setting all over the planet with suitcases full of money, and making high-stakes weapons deals in exotic countries. The film is based on the life of Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, and while "Lord of War" may have been a so-so movie, Bout's real life exploits are anything but average.
A new documentary about Bout -- "The Notorious Mr. Bout" -- has made its way to Hot Docs, and it's well worth a look. It may not be as flashy as Hollywood, but it does fill in the blanks on this unimaginable and surprisingly human story. Viktor Bout doesn't love it, but his nickname is "The Merchant of Death." According to authorities around the world, he has earned every letter of this macabre moniker, but Bout thinks...
A new documentary about Bout -- "The Notorious Mr. Bout" -- has made its way to Hot Docs, and it's well worth a look. It may not be as flashy as Hollywood, but it does fill in the blanks on this unimaginable and surprisingly human story. Viktor Bout doesn't love it, but his nickname is "The Merchant of Death." According to authorities around the world, he has earned every letter of this macabre moniker, but Bout thinks...
- 5/2/2014
- by Mark Wigmore
- Moviefone
Documentaries accepted into the Sundance Film Festival often hold an air of prestige, but the actual shoots are seldom as beautiful as the footage appears on screen. Few of the Sundance 2014 cinematographers can claim such a difficult production as Jesse Moss, whose past work includes "Speedo: A Demolition Derby Love Story" and "Full Battle Rattle" and who now comes to Sundance with the controversy-bound "The Overnighters," a provocative documentary surrounding a recent oil boom in small-town North Dakota that has its residents battling with the local pastor. Moss not only shot the feature documentary, but he also directed. Which camera and lens did you use? I shot "The Overnighters" on a Sony F3 with the Red 17-50 and - when I had a little more cash - the Fujinon 19-90. What was the most difficult shot on your movie, and how did you pull it off? I was filming my main subject,...
- 1/25/2014
- by Ziyad Saadi
- Indiewire
Yesterday, the Sundance Institute announced the 29 documentary projects that have been selected to receive in total $550,000 worth of grant money from its Documentary Film Program and Fund. A lot of these are for projects in development by emerging filmmakers, but in there are also some films by more established names such as Jesse Moss (Full Battle Rattle), Lucia Small and Ed Pincus (The Axe in the Attic) and Ashley Sabin and David Redmon, who received audience engagement money for their 2011 doc Girl Model. In a press release, Cara Mertes, the Director of the Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program …...
- 7/12/2013
- by Nick Dawson
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Netflix has revolutionized the home movie experience for fans of film with its instant streaming technology. Netflix Nuggets is my way of spreading the word about independent, classic and foreign films made available by Netflix for instant streaming.
This Week’s New Instant Releases…
Promised Lands (1974)
Streaming Available: 04/19/2011
Cast: Documentary
Director: Susan Sontag
Synopsis: Set in Israel during the final days of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, this powerful documentary — initially barred by Israel authorities — from writer-director Susan Sontag examines divergent perceptions of the enduring Arab-Israeli clash. Weighing in on matters related to socialism, anti-Semitism, nation sovereignty and American materialism are The Last Jew writer Yoram Kaniuk and military physicist Yuval Ne’eman.
Vision: From the Life of Hildegard von Bingen (2009)
Streaming Available: 04/19/2011
Cast: Barbara Sukowa, Heino Ferch, Hannah Herzsprung, Gerald Alexander Held, Lena Stolze, Sunnyi Melles
Synopsis: Directed by longtime star of independent German cinema Margarethe von Trotta, this reverent...
This Week’s New Instant Releases…
Promised Lands (1974)
Streaming Available: 04/19/2011
Cast: Documentary
Director: Susan Sontag
Synopsis: Set in Israel during the final days of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, this powerful documentary — initially barred by Israel authorities — from writer-director Susan Sontag examines divergent perceptions of the enduring Arab-Israeli clash. Weighing in on matters related to socialism, anti-Semitism, nation sovereignty and American materialism are The Last Jew writer Yoram Kaniuk and military physicist Yuval Ne’eman.
Vision: From the Life of Hildegard von Bingen (2009)
Streaming Available: 04/19/2011
Cast: Barbara Sukowa, Heino Ferch, Hannah Herzsprung, Gerald Alexander Held, Lena Stolze, Sunnyi Melles
Synopsis: Directed by longtime star of independent German cinema Margarethe von Trotta, this reverent...
- 4/20/2011
- by Travis Keune
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
By Neil Pedley
This week finds the U.S. Army bringing war games to a whole other level, a '60s sex icon getting an exposé, Ron Perlman returning as the defender of small fluffy kittens everywhere and Eddie Murphy taking cinema egotism to new heights.
"August"
After the warm reception his first feature "Xx/Xy" received at Sundance in 2002, director Austin Chick returned to the snowy slopes of Park City to debut his sophomore effort, which seemed to impress our own Matt Singer when he saw it in January. Assembling an noteworthy ensemble that includes the likes of Robin Tunney, Naomie Harris, Rip Torn and David Bowie, Chick follows Tom and Josh Sterling (Josh Hartnett and Adam Scott, respectively), two brothers desperately trying to right the sinking ship of their failing dot-com company in the weeks leading up to the devastating September 11th attacks.
Opens in New York.
"Days...
This week finds the U.S. Army bringing war games to a whole other level, a '60s sex icon getting an exposé, Ron Perlman returning as the defender of small fluffy kittens everywhere and Eddie Murphy taking cinema egotism to new heights.
"August"
After the warm reception his first feature "Xx/Xy" received at Sundance in 2002, director Austin Chick returned to the snowy slopes of Park City to debut his sophomore effort, which seemed to impress our own Matt Singer when he saw it in January. Assembling an noteworthy ensemble that includes the likes of Robin Tunney, Naomie Harris, Rip Torn and David Bowie, Chick follows Tom and Josh Sterling (Josh Hartnett and Adam Scott, respectively), two brothers desperately trying to right the sinking ship of their failing dot-com company in the weeks leading up to the devastating September 11th attacks.
Opens in New York.
"Days...
- 7/15/2008
- by Neil Pedley
- ifc.com
By Aaron Hillis
The war rages on, and just when you think you've seen every angle explored and exhausted in cinema, in stomps a bizarre new perspective from the desert . and not the one in Iraq, but California's Mojave. Co-directed by Jesse Moss ("Speedo") and Tony Gerber (who previously worked together when Gerber executive produced Moss' doc for AMC, "Rated R: Republicans in Hollywood"), "Full Battle Rattle" takes viewers behind the scenes of Medina Wasl, a fake Iraqi village populated by actual Iraqi exiles that exists as part of the U.S. Army's billion-dollar simulation, an urban warfare training camp where soldiers spend three weeks before experiencing real deployment. Fantasy and reality intermingle in affecting and often strangely comical ways, and Moss and Gerber's film captures this dynamic within the intimate stories of the simulation's players. I spoke with the filmmaking duo about what it took to get insider access,...
The war rages on, and just when you think you've seen every angle explored and exhausted in cinema, in stomps a bizarre new perspective from the desert . and not the one in Iraq, but California's Mojave. Co-directed by Jesse Moss ("Speedo") and Tony Gerber (who previously worked together when Gerber executive produced Moss' doc for AMC, "Rated R: Republicans in Hollywood"), "Full Battle Rattle" takes viewers behind the scenes of Medina Wasl, a fake Iraqi village populated by actual Iraqi exiles that exists as part of the U.S. Army's billion-dollar simulation, an urban warfare training camp where soldiers spend three weeks before experiencing real deployment. Fantasy and reality intermingle in affecting and often strangely comical ways, and Moss and Gerber's film captures this dynamic within the intimate stories of the simulation's players. I spoke with the filmmaking duo about what it took to get insider access,...
- 7/15/2008
- by Aaron Hillis
- ifc.com
Before deploying in Iraq, some U.S. soldiers stop off in the Mojave Desert for a three-week simulation of the conditions they'll face overseas, set in a makeshift complex of villages populated by Iraqi-Americans. The civilians have been given a complex set of instructions for the game. Some are meant to be sympathetic to the American cause, while others are fed up with the occupation. Some have recently lost family; others have joined the police force. The complex has restaurateurs and governmental officials, and even an American cable-news reporter who files stories that run on the TVs back at the base. It's like Laser Tag crossed with "How To Host A Murder," on a monumental scale. And just as with "How To Host A Murder," a lot of the elaborate role-playing devolves into people trying to complete the objectives on their cards as fast as they can, without paying enough attention.
- 7/10/2008
- by Noel Murray
- avclub.com
Just when I thought I had heard everything about the war in Iraq, along comes "Full Battle Rattle."
The documentary goes inside a billion-dollar government project in the Mojave Desert that few know exists: a 1,000-square-mile imitation Iraq, where Us personnel and several hundred Iraqis simulate the war. The Iraqis portray insurgents as well as ordinary citizens caught in the crossfire. The encampment, consisting of 13 faux villages, is the last stop for troops on the way to the real war.
The idea of spending big bucks on a phony war sounds like something out of the Marx Brothers' "Duck Soup," but the stakes are,...
The documentary goes inside a billion-dollar government project in the Mojave Desert that few know exists: a 1,000-square-mile imitation Iraq, where Us personnel and several hundred Iraqis simulate the war. The Iraqis portray insurgents as well as ordinary citizens caught in the crossfire. The encampment, consisting of 13 faux villages, is the last stop for troops on the way to the real war.
The idea of spending big bucks on a phony war sounds like something out of the Marx Brothers' "Duck Soup," but the stakes are,...
- 7/9/2008
- by By V.A. MUSETTO
- NYPost.com
Screenings for the 2008 Sxsw Film Festival (as well as our coverage here at Ifc.com) will carry on as the music contingent rolls into Austin, but last night, the winners of the jury and audience awards were announced.
Daniel Junge's "They Killed Sister Dorothy," about the murder of activist Dorothy Mae Stang, received both the jury and audience prizes for best documentary, while on the narrative side, Jake Mahaffy's "Wellness" and Mark Webber's "Explicit Ills" were given nods by the jury and by the audience. Here's a full list of the winners:
Narrative Feature
Grand Jury Award: "Wellness," dir. Jake Mahaffy
Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble Cast: "Up With Me," dir. Greg Takoudes
Special Jury Award for Cinematography: "Explicit Ills," dir. Mark Webber
Documentary Feature
Grand Jury Award: "They Killed Sister Dorothy," dir. Daniel Junge
Special Jury Award: "Full Battle Rattle," dirs. Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss...
Daniel Junge's "They Killed Sister Dorothy," about the murder of activist Dorothy Mae Stang, received both the jury and audience prizes for best documentary, while on the narrative side, Jake Mahaffy's "Wellness" and Mark Webber's "Explicit Ills" were given nods by the jury and by the audience. Here's a full list of the winners:
Narrative Feature
Grand Jury Award: "Wellness," dir. Jake Mahaffy
Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble Cast: "Up With Me," dir. Greg Takoudes
Special Jury Award for Cinematography: "Explicit Ills," dir. Mark Webber
Documentary Feature
Grand Jury Award: "They Killed Sister Dorothy," dir. Daniel Junge
Special Jury Award: "Full Battle Rattle," dirs. Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss...
- 3/12/2008
- by Alison Willmore
- ifc.com
'Wellness' is winner at SXSW
COMPLETE SXSW 2008 COVERAGE
UPDATED 4:54 p.m. PT March 13
AUSTIN -- Jake Mahaffy's existential, experimental "Wellness" won the best narrative feature jury award at the 2008 South By Southwest Film Festival on Tuesday night.
Awards for documentary grand jury feature and Audience Award for documentary feature went to Daniel Junge for his look at the politics behind a nun's murder with "They Killed Sister Dorothy".
The Audience Award for narrative film went to first-time helmer Mark Webber for "Explicit Ills", a film about poverty and hope in Philadelphia starring Paul Dano and Rosario Dawson. Festival vet Jeremiah Zagar's portrait of his mother and mosaic artist father, "In a Dream", brought home the Emerging Visions Audience Award.
Greg Takoude's "Up With Me", a film written as a collaboration with Harlem teens, took the special jury award for ensemble cast. The documentary special jury award went to "Full Battle Rattle", directed by Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss, about the U.S. Army's urban warfare simulation in the Mojave. "Explicit Ills" also earned a special jury award for Patrice Lucien Cochet's cinematography.
UPDATED 4:54 p.m. PT March 13
AUSTIN -- Jake Mahaffy's existential, experimental "Wellness" won the best narrative feature jury award at the 2008 South By Southwest Film Festival on Tuesday night.
Awards for documentary grand jury feature and Audience Award for documentary feature went to Daniel Junge for his look at the politics behind a nun's murder with "They Killed Sister Dorothy".
The Audience Award for narrative film went to first-time helmer Mark Webber for "Explicit Ills", a film about poverty and hope in Philadelphia starring Paul Dano and Rosario Dawson. Festival vet Jeremiah Zagar's portrait of his mother and mosaic artist father, "In a Dream", brought home the Emerging Visions Audience Award.
Greg Takoude's "Up With Me", a film written as a collaboration with Harlem teens, took the special jury award for ensemble cast. The documentary special jury award went to "Full Battle Rattle", directed by Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss, about the U.S. Army's urban warfare simulation in the Mojave. "Explicit Ills" also earned a special jury award for Patrice Lucien Cochet's cinematography.
- 3/12/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Full Battle Rattle
Panorama
BERLIN -- Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss' documentary Full Battle Rattle opens with a startling scene. A gunbattle rages in Iraq between U.S. forces and insurgents, with nasty looking casualties on both sides. Abruptly, everything stops. A few soldiers wander off to grab food, the dead get to their feet, and one soldier tells a body, "Be comfortable at least when you are dead."
No, it's not a movie set but a military training ground deep in California's hot and barren Mojave Desert. Before deployment to Iraq, Army units spend three weeks training here in conditions that simulate those in the Iraq theater. Mannequins are designed to replicate grievous wounds, and U.S.-based Iraqis play townspeople and insurgents.
It's all a bit bizarre. One soldier tellingly calls it "one big reality TV show," and the movie never makes clear whether such training does any good. Indeed, the movie scrupulously avoids making judgments. About all that the makers get onscreen is a war game where nothing real is at stake. Consequently, Full Battle Rattle has little hope for theatrical exposure outside of festival dates.
The Iraqi "roles" and staged incidents are all scripted. The most interesting thing here is that the scriptwriters foresee nothing but mission failure. The soldiers fail to crush an uprising in this fictional village. Sectarian violence breaks out, and even the mayor gets assassinated.
The personal lives of the Iraqi actors are more compelling than their roles. The town's cop is fighting INS deportation. A village girl is studying hard for her citizenship papers. Her friend worries to death about her family back in Iraq.
The grunts reveal little about themselves other than the fact that none is thrilled about his impending deployment. No wonder: The Army even stages a mock memorial service for fallen comrades. Get used to death, boys.
The movie never produces a moment where this fake war comes to reflect or symbolize the reality of a disastrous war. The film, like the GIs, is strangely passive.
War games are hardly new. All that is singular about this one is the length to which the U.S. military has gone to create a virtual Iraq.
FULL BATTLE RATTLE
Market Road Films/Mile End Films
Credits:
Directors-producers: Tony Gerber, Jesse Moss
Executive producers: Britton Fisher, Pascal Demko
Directors of photography: Tony Gerber, Jesse Moss, Adam Keker
Music: Paul Brill
Editors: Alex Hall, Pax Wasserman, Yuona Kwak
Running time -- 95 minutes
No MPAA rating...
BERLIN -- Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss' documentary Full Battle Rattle opens with a startling scene. A gunbattle rages in Iraq between U.S. forces and insurgents, with nasty looking casualties on both sides. Abruptly, everything stops. A few soldiers wander off to grab food, the dead get to their feet, and one soldier tells a body, "Be comfortable at least when you are dead."
No, it's not a movie set but a military training ground deep in California's hot and barren Mojave Desert. Before deployment to Iraq, Army units spend three weeks training here in conditions that simulate those in the Iraq theater. Mannequins are designed to replicate grievous wounds, and U.S.-based Iraqis play townspeople and insurgents.
It's all a bit bizarre. One soldier tellingly calls it "one big reality TV show," and the movie never makes clear whether such training does any good. Indeed, the movie scrupulously avoids making judgments. About all that the makers get onscreen is a war game where nothing real is at stake. Consequently, Full Battle Rattle has little hope for theatrical exposure outside of festival dates.
The Iraqi "roles" and staged incidents are all scripted. The most interesting thing here is that the scriptwriters foresee nothing but mission failure. The soldiers fail to crush an uprising in this fictional village. Sectarian violence breaks out, and even the mayor gets assassinated.
The personal lives of the Iraqi actors are more compelling than their roles. The town's cop is fighting INS deportation. A village girl is studying hard for her citizenship papers. Her friend worries to death about her family back in Iraq.
The grunts reveal little about themselves other than the fact that none is thrilled about his impending deployment. No wonder: The Army even stages a mock memorial service for fallen comrades. Get used to death, boys.
The movie never produces a moment where this fake war comes to reflect or symbolize the reality of a disastrous war. The film, like the GIs, is strangely passive.
War games are hardly new. All that is singular about this one is the length to which the U.S. military has gone to create a virtual Iraq.
FULL BATTLE RATTLE
Market Road Films/Mile End Films
Credits:
Directors-producers: Tony Gerber, Jesse Moss
Executive producers: Britton Fisher, Pascal Demko
Directors of photography: Tony Gerber, Jesse Moss, Adam Keker
Music: Paul Brill
Editors: Alex Hall, Pax Wasserman, Yuona Kwak
Running time -- 95 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 2/13/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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