“The Inspection” tells a heartbreaking story about surviving intense military training as a closeted gay man.
Tony and Emmy-nominated actor Jeremy Pope (“One Night in Miami”) stars as Ellis French, a homeless youth who joins the Marine Corps after his mother (Gabrielle Union) disowns him for being gay. Yet during training, Ellis falls for his superior (Raúl Castillo) while enduring the wrath of his sergeant (Bokeem Woodbine) after his sexual orientation is exposed.
Written and directed by Elegance Bratton, the A24 film “The Inspection” premieres at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival and is set to close the New York Film Festival.
Bratton’s semi-autobiographical film was part of the Tribeca Film Institute project, with Bratton’s bio listing him as being thrown out of his mother’s house in New Jersey at age 16, leading him to be homeless for a decade prior to joining the U.S. Marine Corps as a combat cameraman.
Tony and Emmy-nominated actor Jeremy Pope (“One Night in Miami”) stars as Ellis French, a homeless youth who joins the Marine Corps after his mother (Gabrielle Union) disowns him for being gay. Yet during training, Ellis falls for his superior (Raúl Castillo) while enduring the wrath of his sergeant (Bokeem Woodbine) after his sexual orientation is exposed.
Written and directed by Elegance Bratton, the A24 film “The Inspection” premieres at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival and is set to close the New York Film Festival.
Bratton’s semi-autobiographical film was part of the Tribeca Film Institute project, with Bratton’s bio listing him as being thrown out of his mother’s house in New Jersey at age 16, leading him to be homeless for a decade prior to joining the U.S. Marine Corps as a combat cameraman.
- 8/23/2022
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Arthouse streamer and distributor Mubi is launching a U.S. in-theater offering this month letting members see one film a week that it selects at participating cinemas starting in New York City. It said Mubi Go will roll out nationwide in selected markets with LA next in early 2022.
Mubi Go (available in the U.K. and India) will launch Oct. 29 with Netflix’s Passing, directed by Rebecca Hall, that premiered at Sundance and screened at the New York Film Festival. Subscribers can get a free ticket during the film’s theatrical engagement at the Paris Theater and IFC Center ahead of its Nov. 10 streaming release on Netflix.
Adapted from the 1929 novel by Nella Larsen, Passing is the story of two Black women, Irene Redfield (Tessa Thompson) and Clare Kendry (Ruth Negga), who can pass as white but choose to live on opposite sides of the color line during the height of the Harlem Renaissance.
Mubi Go (available in the U.K. and India) will launch Oct. 29 with Netflix’s Passing, directed by Rebecca Hall, that premiered at Sundance and screened at the New York Film Festival. Subscribers can get a free ticket during the film’s theatrical engagement at the Paris Theater and IFC Center ahead of its Nov. 10 streaming release on Netflix.
Adapted from the 1929 novel by Nella Larsen, Passing is the story of two Black women, Irene Redfield (Tessa Thompson) and Clare Kendry (Ruth Negga), who can pass as white but choose to live on opposite sides of the color line during the height of the Harlem Renaissance.
- 10/19/2021
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
Port Authority, filmmaker Danielle Lessovitz’s gritty debut feature, is “so New York” that one of its least surprising traits is that Martin Scorsese is credited as executive producer. Opening in the cold, shadow-filled halls of the metro transportation hub that provides the film its title, the narrative follows Paul (Fionn Whitehead), a twentysomething arriving in from Pittsburgh, as he attempts to get in touch with his estranged sister (Louisa Krause). A bloody altercation on the subway leads to a chance encounter that connects Paul to a few (temporary) friends, odd jobs, and shelters to live in. One evening, Paul meets […]
The post “You Have to Work with What Reality is Giving You”: Danielle Lessovitz on Port Authority first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “You Have to Work with What Reality is Giving You”: Danielle Lessovitz on Port Authority first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/7/2021
- by Erik Luers
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Port Authority, filmmaker Danielle Lessovitz’s gritty debut feature, is “so New York” that one of its least surprising traits is that Martin Scorsese is credited as executive producer. Opening in the cold, shadow-filled halls of the metro transportation hub that provides the film its title, the narrative follows Paul (Fionn Whitehead), a twentysomething arriving in from Pittsburgh, as he attempts to get in touch with his estranged sister (Louisa Krause). A bloody altercation on the subway leads to a chance encounter that connects Paul to a few (temporary) friends, odd jobs, and shelters to live in. One evening, Paul meets […]
The post “You Have to Work with What Reality is Giving You”: Danielle Lessovitz on Port Authority first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “You Have to Work with What Reality is Giving You”: Danielle Lessovitz on Port Authority first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/7/2021
- by Erik Luers
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit streaming platforms in the United States. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.
Ahead of the Curve
In 1990, a 23-year-old named Frances “Franco” Stevens applied for multiple credit cards. When she was approved, she withdrew as much cash as she could from them, and used the money to launch Deneuve, one of the first lesbian magazines in the United States. In a fiction feature-length film, this moment would arrive halfway through the running time, the percussion in the score would tense as we saw an actor convey the fear and hopefulness of someone attempting something bold and risky. A mellow piano would probably announce that this is “the” make or break moment for our heroine. – Jose S. (full review)
Where to Stream: VOD
Bad Tales (D’Innocenzo Brothers)
Amid the litany of horrors the biting little film Bad Tales presents,...
Ahead of the Curve
In 1990, a 23-year-old named Frances “Franco” Stevens applied for multiple credit cards. When she was approved, she withdrew as much cash as she could from them, and used the money to launch Deneuve, one of the first lesbian magazines in the United States. In a fiction feature-length film, this moment would arrive halfway through the running time, the percussion in the score would tense as we saw an actor convey the fear and hopefulness of someone attempting something bold and risky. A mellow piano would probably announce that this is “the” make or break moment for our heroine. – Jose S. (full review)
Where to Stream: VOD
Bad Tales (D’Innocenzo Brothers)
Amid the litany of horrors the biting little film Bad Tales presents,...
- 6/4/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Photo: ‘Port Authority’/Momentum Pictures ‘Port Authority’ is a very interesting microcosmic glimpse at the larger social perception of LGBTQ+ representation and sensibility, today. While paying homage to gay and trans women, writer/director Danielle Lessovitz crafts a story of love between an unlikely pair and, simultaneously, an unnecessarily bleak portrait of those she chooses to represent. ‘Port Authority’ opts to focus largely on the white male lead and his inability to cope with homosexuality, a rather overused trope. A sad truth, especially, as the film is buoyed by a wonderful performance from Leyna Bloom, a transexual woman of color and former cover model and activist. She stars alongside Fionn Whitehead, of ‘Dunkirk’ fame, and the two very much carry the film, especially Bloom. Related article: A Tribute to Laverne Cox: The Trailblazing Trans Icon Who Changed the Face of Entertainment Related article: Trans Representation in Film, TV & Streaming...
- 6/4/2021
- by Tyler Sear
- Hollywood Insider - Substance & Meaningful Entertainment
We might finally see some light returning to the specialty box office this Memorial Day weekend.
Bố Già (Dad, I’m Sorry) is a comedy-family drama directed by comedian and Vietnam television host Trấn Thành and Vũ Ngọc Đãng. The movie is an adaptation of a hit web drama that was originally released on YouTube, where it garnered more than 90 million views for its five-episode run.
The film follows the story of Sang, an old motorbike taxi driver from a low-class neighborhood in downtown Saigon, as he struggles to make ends meet for his family.
It was planned to hit domestic screens during the Lunar New Year holidays but was postponed by Covid-19 until this weekend.
Estimates have Bố Già earning between $350-380 thousand dollars on 20 screens, give or take. If the Galaxy Studio-distributed film closes out strong this 4-day weekend, the Vietnamese-language comedy-drama will average $15-20K per screen.
Bố Già (Dad, I’m Sorry) is a comedy-family drama directed by comedian and Vietnam television host Trấn Thành and Vũ Ngọc Đãng. The movie is an adaptation of a hit web drama that was originally released on YouTube, where it garnered more than 90 million views for its five-episode run.
The film follows the story of Sang, an old motorbike taxi driver from a low-class neighborhood in downtown Saigon, as he struggles to make ends meet for his family.
It was planned to hit domestic screens during the Lunar New Year holidays but was postponed by Covid-19 until this weekend.
Estimates have Bố Già earning between $350-380 thousand dollars on 20 screens, give or take. If the Galaxy Studio-distributed film closes out strong this 4-day weekend, the Vietnamese-language comedy-drama will average $15-20K per screen.
- 5/31/2021
- by Brandon Choe
- Deadline Film + TV
While gems like “Lingua Franca,” “Tangerine,” and “Pose” have given face to transgender women of color through open, real love stories, trans romance movies are still in short supply. Director Danielle Lessovitz, a queer woman, attempts to expand that scope with her film “Port Authority,” starring Fionn Whitehead and Leyna Bloom.
Continue reading ‘Port Authority’ Leaves Its Trans-Led Love Story Stranded [Review] at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘Port Authority’ Leaves Its Trans-Led Love Story Stranded [Review] at The Playlist.
- 5/28/2021
- by Robert Daniels
- The Playlist
Oscar-winner Al Pacino and Meadow Williams star in American Traitor: The Trial of Axis Sally, the historical drama hitting select theaters this Memorial Day weekend via Vertical Entertainment and Redbox Entertainment. Michael Polish directed the film, which is based on a true story and follows the life of American woman Mildred Gillars (Williams) and her lawyer (Pacino), who struggle to redeem her reputation.
Dubbed “Axis Sally” for broadcasting Nazi propaganda to American troops during World War II, Mildred’s story exposes the dark underbelly of the Third Reich’s hate-filled propaganda machine, her eventual capture in Berlin, and subsequent trial for treason against the United States after the war.
Mitch Pileggi, Thomas Kretschmann, Lala Kent, Carsten Norgaard, and Swen Temmel round out the cast. The pic, which is based on William E. Owen’s novel, Axis Sally Confidential, is also available on-demand. William and Vance Owen’s book Axis Sally Confidential,...
Dubbed “Axis Sally” for broadcasting Nazi propaganda to American troops during World War II, Mildred’s story exposes the dark underbelly of the Third Reich’s hate-filled propaganda machine, her eventual capture in Berlin, and subsequent trial for treason against the United States after the war.
Mitch Pileggi, Thomas Kretschmann, Lala Kent, Carsten Norgaard, and Swen Temmel round out the cast. The pic, which is based on William E. Owen’s novel, Axis Sally Confidential, is also available on-demand. William and Vance Owen’s book Axis Sally Confidential,...
- 5/28/2021
- by Amanda N'Duka
- Deadline Film + TV
While our massive summer preview will give you an in-depth look at the films we’re most looking forward to over the next four months, it’s time to dive a bit deeper into May. As theaters reopen, more films than ever will head exclusively to the silver screen first, but there’s still plenty of at-home offerings for those awaiting their vaccination. Check out our preview below.
13. Those Who Wish Me Dead (Taylor Sheridan)
After scripting the acclaimed Sicario and Hell or High Water, Taylor Sheridan embarked on his second directorial feature, Wind River, which I was fairly mixed on at its Sundance premiere. However, I am curious about his follow-up, Those Who Wish Me Dead, starring Angelina Jolie, Nicholas Hoult, Aidan Gillen, Finn Little, Jon Bernthal, and Tyler Perry. Based on Michael Koryta’s novel, it’s a survival thriller set amongst the Montana wilderness as a fire blazes.
13. Those Who Wish Me Dead (Taylor Sheridan)
After scripting the acclaimed Sicario and Hell or High Water, Taylor Sheridan embarked on his second directorial feature, Wind River, which I was fairly mixed on at its Sundance premiere. However, I am curious about his follow-up, Those Who Wish Me Dead, starring Angelina Jolie, Nicholas Hoult, Aidan Gillen, Finn Little, Jon Bernthal, and Tyler Perry. Based on Michael Koryta’s novel, it’s a survival thriller set amongst the Montana wilderness as a fire blazes.
- 5/5/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Premiering back at Cannes Film Festival in 2019, Danielle Lessovitz’s drama Port Authority will finally be arriving this summer. Executive produced by Martin Scorsese and starring Leyna Bloom, Fionn Whitehead, and McCaul Lombardi, the film follows a young man who arrives to NYC with nowhere to go. A momentary encounter with Wye (Leyna Bloom), a trans woman of color, leads him to seek her out, but things soon get more complicated as their relationship blossoms. Ahead of a May 28 release, the first trailer and poster have arrived.
Ed Frankl said in his review, “A deceptively simple romance doesn’t take away that there is something quietly radical at work in the New York love story Port Authority, set in the underground Kiki ballroom dance community. This is grounded in a believable reality, directed by first-timer Danielle Lessovitz, executive produced by Martin Scorsese and starring a promising Fionn Whitehead and Leyna Bloom,...
Ed Frankl said in his review, “A deceptively simple romance doesn’t take away that there is something quietly radical at work in the New York love story Port Authority, set in the underground Kiki ballroom dance community. This is grounded in a believable reality, directed by first-timer Danielle Lessovitz, executive produced by Martin Scorsese and starring a promising Fionn Whitehead and Leyna Bloom,...
- 4/29/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Momentum Pictures has debuted a new trailer for the executive produced by Martin Scorsese, trans love story, ‘Port Authority’.
After getting kicked out of his home in central Pennsylvania, Paul (Fionn Whitehead) arrives at NYC’s dizzying central station with nowhere to go. A momentary encounter with Wye (Leyna Bloom), a trans woman of colour, leads him to seek her out. Transfixed by her beauty and confidence, a love soon blossoms. But as the two learn more about each other, Paul’s false narratives begin to surface and the double life he lives must be reconciled.
Written and directed by Danielle Lessovitz and executive produced by Martin Scorsese, the film stars Leyna Bloom (the first black/Asian trans woman to be featured in the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition (coming out this Summer 2021), the first trans woman of colour to lead a feature film at the Cannes Film Festival and...
After getting kicked out of his home in central Pennsylvania, Paul (Fionn Whitehead) arrives at NYC’s dizzying central station with nowhere to go. A momentary encounter with Wye (Leyna Bloom), a trans woman of colour, leads him to seek her out. Transfixed by her beauty and confidence, a love soon blossoms. But as the two learn more about each other, Paul’s false narratives begin to surface and the double life he lives must be reconciled.
Written and directed by Danielle Lessovitz and executive produced by Martin Scorsese, the film stars Leyna Bloom (the first black/Asian trans woman to be featured in the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition (coming out this Summer 2021), the first trans woman of colour to lead a feature film at the Cannes Film Festival and...
- 4/29/2021
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
"Who says I like you?" Momentum Pictures has released an official US trailer for the indie titled Port Authority, which originally premiered back in 2019 at the Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section. Marking the feature directorial debut of filmmaker Danielle Lessovitz, Port Authority is a love story set in New York's kiki ballroom scene. The story follows Paul, a 20 year old from Pennsylvania, who arrives at NYC's central bus station and quickly catches eyes with Wye, a Black trans girl voguing on the sidewalk. After Paul seeks her out in secret, an intense love between them blossoms. But when Paul discovers Wye is trans, he is forced to confront his own identity and what it means to belong... Fionn Whitehead stars as Paul, and Leyna Bloom stars as Wye, with a small cast including McCaul Lombardi, Louisa Krause, and William Dufault. It's also executive produced and presented by Martin Scorsese!
- 4/28/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Global distributor, producer and streamer Mubi has snapped up major European markets for hot Sundance title “Pleasure,” which delves into the world of the porn industry in Los Angeles.
The service has acquired all rights to the provocative film in the U.K., Ireland, Italy and Turkey. Directed by Ninja Thyberg, the film recently received its world premiere as part of Sundance’s World Cinema Dramatic Competition.
Starring newcomer Sofia Kappel, “Pleasure” tells the story of a young woman (Bella Cherry) who moves from a small town in Sweden to Los Angeles in pursuit of stardom, and lands squarely in the porn industry. Variety’s chief film critic Owen Gleiberman praised “Pleasure” in his review, calling it an “intentionally stark” and “disturbingly authentic” look at what the porn industry has become.
“A movie like ‘Pleasure’ jerks the skeevy, compulsive porn world out of the closet in a way that few movies have,...
The service has acquired all rights to the provocative film in the U.K., Ireland, Italy and Turkey. Directed by Ninja Thyberg, the film recently received its world premiere as part of Sundance’s World Cinema Dramatic Competition.
Starring newcomer Sofia Kappel, “Pleasure” tells the story of a young woman (Bella Cherry) who moves from a small town in Sweden to Los Angeles in pursuit of stardom, and lands squarely in the porn industry. Variety’s chief film critic Owen Gleiberman praised “Pleasure” in his review, calling it an “intentionally stark” and “disturbingly authentic” look at what the porn industry has become.
“A movie like ‘Pleasure’ jerks the skeevy, compulsive porn world out of the closet in a way that few movies have,...
- 2/9/2021
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Arthouse streaming service Mubi has snapped up rights to Toronto International Film Festival title “Shiva Baby” for the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Austria, India, Turkey and Latin America.
Written and directed by Canadian filmmaker Emma Seligman, “Shiva Baby” follows a young bisexual Jewish woman at a shiva — a mourning tradition in the Jewish community — at which she must confront her over-achieving ex-girlfriend as well as her sugar daddy, his girlfriend and their baby.
Utopia Media boarded the film ahead of its Toronto premiere.
“Shiva Baby” — which began life as a short written and directed by Seligman while studying film at New York University — screened in the narrative feature competition at SXSW, and received its public premiere at last month’s TIFF. Variety critic Tomris Laffly said of the movie, “Think of this late-coming-of-age farce as a funny ‘Krisha’ or the indoor apocalypse that takes place in ‘Mother!’ — but with broken glass objects,...
Written and directed by Canadian filmmaker Emma Seligman, “Shiva Baby” follows a young bisexual Jewish woman at a shiva — a mourning tradition in the Jewish community — at which she must confront her over-achieving ex-girlfriend as well as her sugar daddy, his girlfriend and their baby.
Utopia Media boarded the film ahead of its Toronto premiere.
“Shiva Baby” — which began life as a short written and directed by Seligman while studying film at New York University — screened in the narrative feature competition at SXSW, and received its public premiere at last month’s TIFF. Variety critic Tomris Laffly said of the movie, “Think of this late-coming-of-age farce as a funny ‘Krisha’ or the indoor apocalypse that takes place in ‘Mother!’ — but with broken glass objects,...
- 10/8/2020
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Sundance winner and upcoming BFI London Film Festival title “Farewell Amor” will bow in December on curated streaming service Mubi.
Mubi has acquired worldwide VOD rights, excluding North America, Africa, China and Israel, on the film. IFC has acquired the North America rights.
Producer Huriyyah Muhammad won the Sundance Institute/Amazon Studios Producers Award for narrative features at the Sundance Film Festival, where the film received its world premiere in the U.S. dramatic competition section in January. It will play at the BFI London Film Festival’s ‘Love’ strand in October.
Written and directed by feature debutant and Sundance Institute fellow Ekwa Msangi, the film follows an Angolan immigrant reunited with his family in New York City after 17 years. Now strangers sharing a one-bedroom apartment, they discover a shared love of dance that may help them overcome the distance between them.
Stars include Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine (“Blood Diamond...
Mubi has acquired worldwide VOD rights, excluding North America, Africa, China and Israel, on the film. IFC has acquired the North America rights.
Producer Huriyyah Muhammad won the Sundance Institute/Amazon Studios Producers Award for narrative features at the Sundance Film Festival, where the film received its world premiere in the U.S. dramatic competition section in January. It will play at the BFI London Film Festival’s ‘Love’ strand in October.
Written and directed by feature debutant and Sundance Institute fellow Ekwa Msangi, the film follows an Angolan immigrant reunited with his family in New York City after 17 years. Now strangers sharing a one-bedroom apartment, they discover a shared love of dance that may help them overcome the distance between them.
Stars include Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine (“Blood Diamond...
- 9/21/2020
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
CAA has signed actress, model and activist Leyna Bloom.
Bloom became a prominent name in the New York City ballroom community as a member of the legendary House of Miyake-Mugler. In 2017, she went from serving face in ballroom to serving fierceness on the catwalk, becoming one of the few openly transgender models to walk the runway during New York Fashion Week. She also became the first transgender woman of color to appear in Vogue India.
She continued to break ground as the only transgender model to walk the runway at Paris Fashion Week for Tommy Hilfiger x Zendaya’s Fall/Winter collection.
Bloom pivoted to acting and made her big-screen debut in Danielle Lessovitz’s Port Authority, which premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival and competed in the Un Certain Regard competition. The film was backed by executive producer Martin Scorsese and, once again, Bloom made history as Port Authority...
Bloom became a prominent name in the New York City ballroom community as a member of the legendary House of Miyake-Mugler. In 2017, she went from serving face in ballroom to serving fierceness on the catwalk, becoming one of the few openly transgender models to walk the runway during New York Fashion Week. She also became the first transgender woman of color to appear in Vogue India.
She continued to break ground as the only transgender model to walk the runway at Paris Fashion Week for Tommy Hilfiger x Zendaya’s Fall/Winter collection.
Bloom pivoted to acting and made her big-screen debut in Danielle Lessovitz’s Port Authority, which premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival and competed in the Un Certain Regard competition. The film was backed by executive producer Martin Scorsese and, once again, Bloom made history as Port Authority...
- 8/3/2020
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Goteborg Film Festival, the biggest showcase of local and international movies in the Nordics, will kick off its 43rd edition with Maria Bäck’s “”Psychosis,” and will close with actor-turned-director Mårten Klingberg’s “My Father Mary Anne.”
Both timely Swedish dramas dealing with trauma post-sexual abuse, and the experience of a transgender priest, respectively, “Psychosis” and “My Father Mary Anne” will have their world premiere at Goteborg.
Stellan Skarsgård, who just won a Golden Globe for his performance in the hit HBO series “Tchernobyl,” will receive the prestigious Nordic Honorary Dragon Award and will be honored with a retrospective of some of the greatest films of his career. As part of the tribute, the estival will also host the Nordic premiere of “The Painted Bird” which was recently shortlisted for the international feature film category at the Oscars. During the festival, Skarsgård will also having a masterclass.
In addition to opening the festival,...
Both timely Swedish dramas dealing with trauma post-sexual abuse, and the experience of a transgender priest, respectively, “Psychosis” and “My Father Mary Anne” will have their world premiere at Goteborg.
Stellan Skarsgård, who just won a Golden Globe for his performance in the hit HBO series “Tchernobyl,” will receive the prestigious Nordic Honorary Dragon Award and will be honored with a retrospective of some of the greatest films of his career. As part of the tribute, the estival will also host the Nordic premiere of “The Painted Bird” which was recently shortlisted for the international feature film category at the Oscars. During the festival, Skarsgård will also having a masterclass.
In addition to opening the festival,...
- 1/7/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Global streamer Mubi has taken U.S. and UK rights to Sergei Loznitsa’s documentary State Funeral, which explores the impact of the death of Soviet Union leader Joseph Stalin in 1953.
The doc premiered at Venice this year and also played Toronto. Mubi will give the film a U.S. theatrical run, starting exclusively at New York’s Lincoln Center from May 1, before streaming it in both the U.S. and UK from May 24.
Comprised of rarely-seen archive footage, the film depicts how the Soviet Union was rocked by the death of Stalin on March 5, 1953. It chronicles how the broadcasters and newspapers revealed the death, the endless procession of mourners in Moscow’s Red Square, the hasty appointment of Malenkov as successor, and the ceremonial burial attended by numerous Soviet leaders.
Ukrainian filmmaker Loznitsa’s credits include the drama Donbass, which was a critical hit at Cannes in 2018. His...
The doc premiered at Venice this year and also played Toronto. Mubi will give the film a U.S. theatrical run, starting exclusively at New York’s Lincoln Center from May 1, before streaming it in both the U.S. and UK from May 24.
Comprised of rarely-seen archive footage, the film depicts how the Soviet Union was rocked by the death of Stalin on March 5, 1953. It chronicles how the broadcasters and newspapers revealed the death, the endless procession of mourners in Moscow’s Red Square, the hasty appointment of Malenkov as successor, and the ceremonial burial attended by numerous Soviet leaders.
Ukrainian filmmaker Loznitsa’s credits include the drama Donbass, which was a critical hit at Cannes in 2018. His...
- 12/19/2019
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
While the cinematic fare of 2019 casts a wide-ranging net, a largely male-centric line-up dominates the awards season buzz. But from Martin Scorsese’s mature mobster saga “The Irishman” (Netflix) to Todd Phillips’ dark comic-book spinoff “Joker” (Warner Bros.), many of the year’s masculine-leaning picks were either led or significantly aided by women storytellers’ vision and craftsmanship behind the camera.
With the enormous task of producing both of the aforesaid films, as well as executive-producing Josh and Benny Safdie’s manic crime tale “Uncut Gems” (A24), Emma Tillinger Koskoff is among the year’s most prominent creative forces. (Her 2019 credits also include two notable female-driven films: Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir” and Danielle Lessovitz’s “Port Authority.”) Koskoff has been Scorsese’s collaborator for 17 years, and “The Irishman” had been on the filmmaker’s plate for over a decade. From the early days, Koskoff responded to the story’s unflinching...
With the enormous task of producing both of the aforesaid films, as well as executive-producing Josh and Benny Safdie’s manic crime tale “Uncut Gems” (A24), Emma Tillinger Koskoff is among the year’s most prominent creative forces. (Her 2019 credits also include two notable female-driven films: Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir” and Danielle Lessovitz’s “Port Authority.”) Koskoff has been Scorsese’s collaborator for 17 years, and “The Irishman” had been on the filmmaker’s plate for over a decade. From the early days, Koskoff responded to the story’s unflinching...
- 12/4/2019
- by Tomris Laffly
- Variety Film + TV
The project is filming and set for a 2020 delivery.
Paris-based mk2 films will kick off sales this Afm on Emmanuel Courcol’s French comedy The Big Hit starring Kad Merad as a struggling actor, running theatre workshops in a local prison, who takes a rag-tag troupe of convicts on tour with a performance of Samuel Beckett’s famous play Waiting for Godot.
Agat Films is lead producing with actor-director Dany Boon on board as a co-producer through his company Les Productions du Ch’timi. Memento Films has taken French rights.
Merad, who is best known internationally for his role in...
Paris-based mk2 films will kick off sales this Afm on Emmanuel Courcol’s French comedy The Big Hit starring Kad Merad as a struggling actor, running theatre workshops in a local prison, who takes a rag-tag troupe of convicts on tour with a performance of Samuel Beckett’s famous play Waiting for Godot.
Agat Films is lead producing with actor-director Dany Boon on board as a co-producer through his company Les Productions du Ch’timi. Memento Films has taken French rights.
Merad, who is best known internationally for his role in...
- 10/31/2019
- by 1100388¦Melanie Goodfellow¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
New section sees three up-and-coming Filipino directors competing with five indie filmmakers from Southeast Asia.
The Philippines’ QCinema International Film Festival is launching a new competition section, Asian Next Wave, that will focus on emerging filmmakers from the Southeast Asian region.
The new section sees three up-and-coming Filipino directors, who received production funding from the festival, competing with five indie filmmakers from other countries in Southeast Asia.
The three local films in competition are Rae Red’s Babae At Baril, Arnel Barbarona’s Kaaway Sa Sulod and The Cleaners from Glenn Barit, while Southeast Asian titles include Mattie Do’s The Long Walk,...
The Philippines’ QCinema International Film Festival is launching a new competition section, Asian Next Wave, that will focus on emerging filmmakers from the Southeast Asian region.
The new section sees three up-and-coming Filipino directors, who received production funding from the festival, competing with five indie filmmakers from other countries in Southeast Asia.
The three local films in competition are Rae Red’s Babae At Baril, Arnel Barbarona’s Kaaway Sa Sulod and The Cleaners from Glenn Barit, while Southeast Asian titles include Mattie Do’s The Long Walk,...
- 10/7/2019
- by 89¦Liz Shackleton¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
San Sebastian — Paris-based MK2 has boarded “Alcarràs,” the second feature film of Catalan auteur Carla Simón (“Summer 1993”), a leading member of a bright new generation of lauded and laurelled Catalan women directors including Neus Ballús, Belén Funes, Meritxell Colell, among others.
Currently in development, “Alcarràs” will be produced by Madrid-based production-distribution outfit Avalon– the Spanish distributors of Ruben Östlund’s “The Square,” Robin Campillo’s “120 Beats Per Minute,” and producers of “Summer 1993″ and Carlos Marques-Marcet’s “The Days to Come,” at this year’s San Sebastian Festival in its Made in Spain showcase.
Simón’s autobiographical debut “Summer 1993” snagged the Best First Film Award and the Generation Kplus Grand Prix at Berlin in 2017. The feature was Spain’s 2018 Oscars race entry, nominated for the Efa Discovery Award and won three Goyas including best new director. Carla Simón also received the Women in Motion Emerging Talent Award in Cannes in 2018.
Inspired by her own adoptive family,...
Currently in development, “Alcarràs” will be produced by Madrid-based production-distribution outfit Avalon– the Spanish distributors of Ruben Östlund’s “The Square,” Robin Campillo’s “120 Beats Per Minute,” and producers of “Summer 1993″ and Carlos Marques-Marcet’s “The Days to Come,” at this year’s San Sebastian Festival in its Made in Spain showcase.
Simón’s autobiographical debut “Summer 1993” snagged the Best First Film Award and the Generation Kplus Grand Prix at Berlin in 2017. The feature was Spain’s 2018 Oscars race entry, nominated for the Efa Discovery Award and won three Goyas including best new director. Carla Simón also received the Women in Motion Emerging Talent Award in Cannes in 2018.
Inspired by her own adoptive family,...
- 9/25/2019
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Festival celebrating Us cinema unveils full line-up of 45th edition.
The Deauville American Festival has unveiled a female-focused programme spotlighting women behind and in front of the camera for its 45th edition.
The festival, unfolding in the luxury northern French resort of Deauville Sept 6-15, courted controversy earlier in the week when it announced it was opening with Woody Allen’s A Rainy Day in New York.
It will be the feature’s biggest festival screening after backers Amazon cancelled its release after its 2017 shoot when molestation allegations by the director’s adopted daughter Dylan Farrow resurfaced amid the rise...
The Deauville American Festival has unveiled a female-focused programme spotlighting women behind and in front of the camera for its 45th edition.
The festival, unfolding in the luxury northern French resort of Deauville Sept 6-15, courted controversy earlier in the week when it announced it was opening with Woody Allen’s A Rainy Day in New York.
It will be the feature’s biggest festival screening after backers Amazon cancelled its release after its 2017 shoot when molestation allegations by the director’s adopted daughter Dylan Farrow resurfaced amid the rise...
- 8/23/2019
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Nate Parker’s politically charged drama “American Skin” is set to play at the 45th edition of the Deauville American Film Festival following its world premiere at Venice.
“American Skin,” which tells the story of a Gulf War veteran whose son is killed by a police officer, marks Parker’s first feature film since the news resurfaced that he had once been charged and acquitted of rape. His debut film, “The Birth of a Nation,” won a prize at Sundance in 2016 but flopped at the box office.
Parker directed and stars in “American Skin.” News of the film’s inclusion in Deauville’s lineup comes a day after it was revealed that “A Rainy Day in New York” by Woody Allen, who has also confronted allegations of sexual assault, would open the festival.
At the same time, Deauville will showcase six films directed by women, the most in the feet’s history,...
“American Skin,” which tells the story of a Gulf War veteran whose son is killed by a police officer, marks Parker’s first feature film since the news resurfaced that he had once been charged and acquitted of rape. His debut film, “The Birth of a Nation,” won a prize at Sundance in 2016 but flopped at the box office.
Parker directed and stars in “American Skin.” News of the film’s inclusion in Deauville’s lineup comes a day after it was revealed that “A Rainy Day in New York” by Woody Allen, who has also confronted allegations of sexual assault, would open the festival.
At the same time, Deauville will showcase six films directed by women, the most in the feet’s history,...
- 8/22/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
A deceptively simple romance doesn’t take away that there is something quietly radical at work in the New York love story Port Authority, set in the underground Kiki ballroom dance community. This is grounded in a believable reality, directed by first-timer Danielle Lessovitz, executive produced by Martin Scorsese and starring a promising Fionn Whitehead and Leyna Bloom, the first trans woman of color to headline a film at Cannes.
Whitehead plays 20-year-old ex-con Paul, a Pittsburgh native dropped off at the New York City terminal of the title, stumbling out into the city without friends or family–a sister he hoped would meet him never materializes. On the subway he’s beaten up and robbed, but taken in by Lee, who offers him the chance to survive in seedy work as removal men, kicking out tenants who haven’t paid their rent–the foot soldiers of gentrification. To survive in a dog-eat-dog city,...
Whitehead plays 20-year-old ex-con Paul, a Pittsburgh native dropped off at the New York City terminal of the title, stumbling out into the city without friends or family–a sister he hoped would meet him never materializes. On the subway he’s beaten up and robbed, but taken in by Lee, who offers him the chance to survive in seedy work as removal men, kicking out tenants who haven’t paid their rent–the foot soldiers of gentrification. To survive in a dog-eat-dog city,...
- 6/11/2019
- by Ed Frankl
- The Film Stage
Karim Ainouz’s “The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao” has been named the best film in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, a jury headed by director Nadine Labaki announced on Friday.
The Brazilian family drama was adapted from a decades-spanning novel by Martha Batalha but focuses on the 1950s, when the status of women in Brazilian society was undergoing change. It deals with two women who cause family upheaval by challenging the patriarchy.
Other awards in the Un Certain Regard section were Oliver Laxe’s “The Fire Will Come,” Jury Prize; Kantemir Balagov for “Beanpole,” Best Director; Chiara Mastroianni for “On a Magical Night,” Best Performance; and Michael Angelo Covino’s “The Climb” and Monia Chokri’s “A Brother’s Love,” Un Certain Regard Heart Prize.
Also Read: 'I Lost My Body,' 'Vivarium' Win Prizes in Cannes Critics' Week Section
Bruno Dumont...
The Brazilian family drama was adapted from a decades-spanning novel by Martha Batalha but focuses on the 1950s, when the status of women in Brazilian society was undergoing change. It deals with two women who cause family upheaval by challenging the patriarchy.
Other awards in the Un Certain Regard section were Oliver Laxe’s “The Fire Will Come,” Jury Prize; Kantemir Balagov for “Beanpole,” Best Director; Chiara Mastroianni for “On a Magical Night,” Best Performance; and Michael Angelo Covino’s “The Climb” and Monia Chokri’s “A Brother’s Love,” Un Certain Regard Heart Prize.
Also Read: 'I Lost My Body,' 'Vivarium' Win Prizes in Cannes Critics' Week Section
Bruno Dumont...
- 5/24/2019
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
In “Port Authority,” a gritty New York-set coming of age drama with a tender romance at its heart, for once it’s not the trans character who is hiding something. Wye (Leyna Bloom) has never made a secret of her gender identity; instead, as she points out to her paramour Paul (Fionn Whitehead), it is he who made an assumption about who she was. “You gotta look around you,” she tells him. The rest of the film, which premiered in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section to raves, is more interested in what Paul is hiding, and whether he could ever be accepted into Wye’s world of queer balls and familial houses. When she challenges him to name which ball category he would walk, he answers: “White boy realness.”
The phrase is a challenge, both to Paul and the viewer. Ball categories are aspirational and performative by their very nature.
The phrase is a challenge, both to Paul and the viewer. Ball categories are aspirational and performative by their very nature.
- 5/22/2019
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
‘Port Authority’s’ Leyna Bloom on Trans Representation: ‘Now Women Like Me Have a Seat at the Table’
Leyna Bloom, who stars in Un Certain Regard selection “Port Authority,” sat down in Cannes Monday to talk about what it means to her to be the first trans actress of color starring in a festival selection.
At the Variety and Kering talk moderated by Ramin Setoodeh, the first-time actress said that when she heard the film was coming to Cannes, it was a dream come true, but she realized, “There’s still so much work to be done, even in this moment.”
“Port Authority,” directed by Danielle Lessovitz, is set in the kiki ballroom scene in New York, in which various “houses” perform in drag dance competitions. Bloom started out in the ballroom scene when she was a teenager in Chicago, moving to New York at 17.
“When you arrive at Port Authority, you have this hope in mind that someone will see you,” she said, describing her first days in New York.
At the Variety and Kering talk moderated by Ramin Setoodeh, the first-time actress said that when she heard the film was coming to Cannes, it was a dream come true, but she realized, “There’s still so much work to be done, even in this moment.”
“Port Authority,” directed by Danielle Lessovitz, is set in the kiki ballroom scene in New York, in which various “houses” perform in drag dance competitions. Bloom started out in the ballroom scene when she was a teenager in Chicago, moving to New York at 17.
“When you arrive at Port Authority, you have this hope in mind that someone will see you,” she said, describing her first days in New York.
- 5/20/2019
- by Pat Saperstein
- Variety Film + TV
French writer/director Axelle Ropert is set to direct “Petite Solange,” a film that will star Léa Drucker and Philippe Katerine, who won the best acting nods at this year’s Cesar Awards for their performances in “Custody” and “Sink or Swim,” respectively.
MK2 films will handle international sales. Haut et Court has acquired rights for French distribution.
Produced by Aurora Films with a budget of 1.5 million euros ($1.675 million), “Petite Solange” follows a vibrant and sentimental 12-year-old girl whose world starts to crack when her parents’ marriage falls apart.
“‘Petite Solange’ is a gentle and tender drama with a much needed point of view; that of a young girl surrounded by love but also caught in her parents’ break up, and the impact of their divorce on her own search for love,” said Juliette Schrameck, managing director at MK2 films. “Petite Solange” is set for delivery in 2020.
Ropert, who is...
MK2 films will handle international sales. Haut et Court has acquired rights for French distribution.
Produced by Aurora Films with a budget of 1.5 million euros ($1.675 million), “Petite Solange” follows a vibrant and sentimental 12-year-old girl whose world starts to crack when her parents’ marriage falls apart.
“‘Petite Solange’ is a gentle and tender drama with a much needed point of view; that of a young girl surrounded by love but also caught in her parents’ break up, and the impact of their divorce on her own search for love,” said Juliette Schrameck, managing director at MK2 films. “Petite Solange” is set for delivery in 2020.
Ropert, who is...
- 5/19/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Launched just over 50 years ago by Marin Karmitz and now headed by his sons, Nathanael and Elisha, Paris-based MK2 films accomplished a double deed at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Not only does it have five movies playing in competition for the second consecutive year, it represents in international markets three of the four female-directed films competing, Mati Diop with “Atlantics,” Justine Triet’s “Sybil” and Celine Sciamma with “Portrait of a Young Lady on Fire.”
Aside from the competition, MK2 also has Monia Chokri’s “A Brother’s Love” and Danielle Lessovitz’s “Port Authority” playing in Un Certain Regard.
Nathanael Karmitz and Juliette Schrameck, the managing director of MK2, said the company was not following any quota or positive discrimination to ramp up their roster of female-directed films but were simply drawn to the originality and quality of the projects.
“Three of the four women directors in...
Aside from the competition, MK2 also has Monia Chokri’s “A Brother’s Love” and Danielle Lessovitz’s “Port Authority” playing in Un Certain Regard.
Nathanael Karmitz and Juliette Schrameck, the managing director of MK2, said the company was not following any quota or positive discrimination to ramp up their roster of female-directed films but were simply drawn to the originality and quality of the projects.
“Three of the four women directors in...
- 5/18/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Danielle Lessovitz’s “Port Authority” is a coming-of-age story for the “Pose” and “RuPaul’s Drag Race” era. Set in New York City’s Lbgt ball scene in the current day, the film, which premiered on Saturday in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival, explores a key question put to its protagonist late in the film: “What are you looking for in a family?”
That search for family in all its forms is at the heart of “Port Authority,” the feature debut from Lessovitz. With Martin Scorsese on hand as an executive producer, she has made a rough but vital film about the ways in which we strive to make the mean streets a little less mean.
Also Read: 'Pain and Glory' Film Review: Antonio Banderas Plays Pedro Almodóvar - Sort Of
“Port Authority” begins in the bus depot that gives the film its name,...
That search for family in all its forms is at the heart of “Port Authority,” the feature debut from Lessovitz. With Martin Scorsese on hand as an executive producer, she has made a rough but vital film about the ways in which we strive to make the mean streets a little less mean.
Also Read: 'Pain and Glory' Film Review: Antonio Banderas Plays Pedro Almodóvar - Sort Of
“Port Authority” begins in the bus depot that gives the film its name,...
- 5/18/2019
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Nearly 30 years after “The Crying Game” depicted a man’s revulsion at discovering his partner was trans, “Port Authority” sets the record straight. When Paul (Fionn Whitehead) learns that ballroom dancer Wye (Lenya Bloom) is a “femme girl” soon after their romance has blossomed, he doesn’t retch or try to flee. The pair engage in a levelheaded debate about the ethics of communication, and then he more or less gets over it.
Director Danielle Lessovitz’s proficient debut follows a lot of familiar beats, with the template for a gritty, naturalistic New York City love story about inner-city troublemakers done many times before. Yet her ability to address the drama’s specific hook in measured terms enables this scrappy little movie to strike a quietly progressive note.
“Kids” by way of “Paris is Burning,” Lessovitz’s story reorients the perspective of a straight white guy from the midwest by turning him into the outsider.
Director Danielle Lessovitz’s proficient debut follows a lot of familiar beats, with the template for a gritty, naturalistic New York City love story about inner-city troublemakers done many times before. Yet her ability to address the drama’s specific hook in measured terms enables this scrappy little movie to strike a quietly progressive note.
“Kids” by way of “Paris is Burning,” Lessovitz’s story reorients the perspective of a straight white guy from the midwest by turning him into the outsider.
- 5/18/2019
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
The Port Authority Bus Terminal on West 42nd Street in New York has a long and gritty history in movies as the point of entry to a multicultural world of excitement, hustle and danger. More than just a transit hub, it's often a gateway to a new life, one that can be rewarding or punishing. In writer-director Danielle Lessovitz's affectingly intimate first feature, which takes its title from that teeming transport complex, it serves to open up the world of a damaged young Pittsburgh transplant, played with raw emotional transparency beneath a veneer of toughness by Fionn Whitehead ...
- 5/18/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
The Port Authority Bus Terminal on West 42nd Street in New York has a long and gritty history in movies as the point of entry to a multicultural world of excitement, hustle and danger. More than just a transit hub, it's often a gateway to a new life, one that can be rewarding or punishing. In writer-director Danielle Lessovitz's affectingly intimate first feature, which takes its title from that teeming transport complex, it serves to open up the world of a damaged young Pittsburgh transplant, played with raw emotional transparency beneath a veneer of toughness by Fionn Whitehead ...
- 5/18/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Streaming service Mubi — whose first production, transgender love story “Port Authority” from first-time director Danielle Lessovitz, is in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard — is stepping up film production activity. It now has plans for a 10-picture slate, including a film from French director Rachel Lang.
Mubi has boarded Lang’s “Mon Legionnaire,” her follow-up to “Baden Baden,” which launched in 2016 at Berlin and was Mubi’s first U.S. theatrical release. “Legionnaire,” a drama set against the backdrop of the Foreign Legion, is currently shooting.
Efe Cakarel, CEO of the arthouse streaming service, said he was delighted with Un Certain Regard’s plum Saturday evening slot for the premiere of “Port Authority,” which Mubi boarded in the development stage and co-financed with Rodrigo Teixeira’s Rt Features and Martin Scorsese’s Sikelia, which executive produced. Wme and France’s MK2 are selling the pic in Cannes, handling U.S. and international,...
Mubi has boarded Lang’s “Mon Legionnaire,” her follow-up to “Baden Baden,” which launched in 2016 at Berlin and was Mubi’s first U.S. theatrical release. “Legionnaire,” a drama set against the backdrop of the Foreign Legion, is currently shooting.
Efe Cakarel, CEO of the arthouse streaming service, said he was delighted with Un Certain Regard’s plum Saturday evening slot for the premiere of “Port Authority,” which Mubi boarded in the development stage and co-financed with Rodrigo Teixeira’s Rt Features and Martin Scorsese’s Sikelia, which executive produced. Wme and France’s MK2 are selling the pic in Cannes, handling U.S. and international,...
- 5/17/2019
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Rt Features has pulled off quite a feat. The producer of “Call Me By Your Name” and “The Witch” has three films debuting in Cannes Film Festival’s official selection, a nearly unheard-of accomplishment.
“It’s a dream,” said Rodrigo Teixeira, the production company’s founder. “We shot three films last year and all three films are premiering in Cannes.”
The movies in question include Danielle Lessovitz’s “Port Authority,” a story of sexual identity set in New York’s “ballroom” scene; Karim Aïnouz’s “The Invisible Life Of Eurídice Gusmão,” a drama about two sisters that spans three decades; and Robert Eggers’ “The Lighthouse,” a black-and-white horror film starring Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe.
That’s not the only way that Teixeira made a splash at this year’s festival. He also announced plans to make James Gray’s “Armageddon Time,” a coming-of-age drama that will feature Donald and Fred Trump as characters.
“It’s a dream,” said Rodrigo Teixeira, the production company’s founder. “We shot three films last year and all three films are premiering in Cannes.”
The movies in question include Danielle Lessovitz’s “Port Authority,” a story of sexual identity set in New York’s “ballroom” scene; Karim Aïnouz’s “The Invisible Life Of Eurídice Gusmão,” a drama about two sisters that spans three decades; and Robert Eggers’ “The Lighthouse,” a black-and-white horror film starring Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe.
That’s not the only way that Teixeira made a splash at this year’s festival. He also announced plans to make James Gray’s “Armageddon Time,” a coming-of-age drama that will feature Donald and Fred Trump as characters.
- 5/17/2019
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Here’s a first clip of Cannes Un Certain Regard pic Port Authority, produced by Martin Scorsese’s Sikelia Productions and Call Me By Your Name outfit Rt Features. Fionn Whitehead (Dunkirk), newcomer Leyna Bloom and McCaul Lombardi (American Honey) star.
Writer-director Danielle Lessovitz’s feature debut, a result of Rt and Sikelia’s joint venture to foster emerging filmmakers, is a love story set in New York’s kiki ballroom scene (the Lgbt subculture that includes competitive performances and dance). Lessovitz is one of Deadline‘s Cannes Ones To Watch.
The movie follows Paul (Whitehead), an early twentysomething who arrives at the central bus station and quickly catches eyes with Wye (Bloom), a girl voguing with her brothers on the sidewalk. After Paul seeks her out in secret, an intense love blossoms. But when he discovers that Wye is trans, he is forced to confront his desire for...
Writer-director Danielle Lessovitz’s feature debut, a result of Rt and Sikelia’s joint venture to foster emerging filmmakers, is a love story set in New York’s kiki ballroom scene (the Lgbt subculture that includes competitive performances and dance). Lessovitz is one of Deadline‘s Cannes Ones To Watch.
The movie follows Paul (Whitehead), an early twentysomething who arrives at the central bus station and quickly catches eyes with Wye (Bloom), a girl voguing with her brothers on the sidewalk. After Paul seeks her out in secret, an intense love blossoms. But when he discovers that Wye is trans, he is forced to confront his desire for...
- 5/17/2019
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Leyna Bloom is about to shatter an important glass ceiling.
On Saturday, she will become the first transgender woman of color to star in a movie that premieres at the Cannes Film Festival. In “Port Authority,” directed by Danielle Lessovitz, Bloom plays a trans woman from New York’s kiki ballroom scene who falls in love with a lost drifter (Fionn Whitehead).
“This is the moment that I’ve dreamed about,” says Bloom, a first-time actress and model who lives in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. “This moment is a door that has been opened for a lot of people to sit at the table. How do you see something like this? It’s never happened. I just want to take it all in and know that there’s still work to be done.”
In its 72-year-history, the Cannes Film Festival has been a prestigious — but stodgy — club that has elevated mostly male story tellers.
On Saturday, she will become the first transgender woman of color to star in a movie that premieres at the Cannes Film Festival. In “Port Authority,” directed by Danielle Lessovitz, Bloom plays a trans woman from New York’s kiki ballroom scene who falls in love with a lost drifter (Fionn Whitehead).
“This is the moment that I’ve dreamed about,” says Bloom, a first-time actress and model who lives in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. “This moment is a door that has been opened for a lot of people to sit at the table. How do you see something like this? It’s never happened. I just want to take it all in and know that there’s still work to be done.”
In its 72-year-history, the Cannes Film Festival has been a prestigious — but stodgy — club that has elevated mostly male story tellers.
- 5/16/2019
- by Ramin Setoodeh
- Variety Film + TV
James Gray is going back to school for his next feature.
“The Lost City of Z” filmmaker will write and direct “Armageddon Time,” a memoir about growing up in Queens, New York, in the mid-1980s. In a twist, Fred Trump, the Queens-based real estate developer who sired Donald Trump, and the current president will appear as characters, although the events will unfold long before there was ever a Trump in the White House.
The movie reunites Gray with Rt Features, the producer of his upcoming sci-fi epic “Ad Astra.” Rt Features’ Rodrigo Teixeira will produce “Armageddon Time.” Gray pitched Teixeira on the idea while they were shooting “Ad Astra.” It draws on his experiences as a student at the Kew-Forest School in Queens. Fred Trump served on the board of the private school and Donald Trump was an alumnus. The school’s principal will be a central character.
“It...
“The Lost City of Z” filmmaker will write and direct “Armageddon Time,” a memoir about growing up in Queens, New York, in the mid-1980s. In a twist, Fred Trump, the Queens-based real estate developer who sired Donald Trump, and the current president will appear as characters, although the events will unfold long before there was ever a Trump in the White House.
The movie reunites Gray with Rt Features, the producer of his upcoming sci-fi epic “Ad Astra.” Rt Features’ Rodrigo Teixeira will produce “Armageddon Time.” Gray pitched Teixeira on the idea while they were shooting “Ad Astra.” It draws on his experiences as a student at the Kew-Forest School in Queens. Fred Trump served on the board of the private school and Donald Trump was an alumnus. The school’s principal will be a central character.
“It...
- 5/16/2019
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Danielle Lessovitz’s feature directing debut—and Un Certain Regard entry—Port Authority follows Paul (Fionn Whitehead), who arrives at the titular bus station and quickly meets eyes with Wye (Leyna Bloom), a girl voguing on the sidewalk. An intense love blossoms, but when Paul discovers that Wye is trans, he is forced to confront his own identity. A love story set in the kiki ballroom scene—the Lgbt subculture that includes competitive performances and dance—it boasts Martin Scorsese as a producer via his company Sikelia’s joint venture with Rt Features to foster emerging filmmakers.
Lessovitz says Port Authority was inspired by a performance of Antony and the Johnsons she caught about 10 years ago. Lead singer Antony (who is now Anohni) “felt very clearly like the spirit of a woman in a male-presenting body. I wondered what a love story would be with Antony as the center of...
Lessovitz says Port Authority was inspired by a performance of Antony and the Johnsons she caught about 10 years ago. Lead singer Antony (who is now Anohni) “felt very clearly like the spirit of a woman in a male-presenting body. I wondered what a love story would be with Antony as the center of...
- 5/16/2019
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Led by “Bacurau,” directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles, and Marco Bellocchio’s “The Traitor,” both playing Cannes competition, Brazil has five movies selected for this year’s Cannes, seven if including Acid, the best result in living memory. It also makes Brazil Cannes’ fourth-biggest national cinema presence, after France (46 productions), the U.S. (11) and Belgium (nine).
One more title can be partly chalked up to Brazil: Robert Eggers’ “The Lighthouse,” produced by Rodrigo Teixeira at Sao Paulo-based Rt Features, which, extraordinarily enough, also has “The Invisible Life” and “Port Authority” in Un Certain Regard.
Yet most of these selections came on April 18, the same day that Christian de Castro, head of Brazil’s all-powerful film-tv agency head Ancine, recommended staff to halt new and recently approved incentive awards, in a memorandum leaked to the press.
Ancine contributes some $300 million a year into Brazil’s film-tv industries.
The...
One more title can be partly chalked up to Brazil: Robert Eggers’ “The Lighthouse,” produced by Rodrigo Teixeira at Sao Paulo-based Rt Features, which, extraordinarily enough, also has “The Invisible Life” and “Port Authority” in Un Certain Regard.
Yet most of these selections came on April 18, the same day that Christian de Castro, head of Brazil’s all-powerful film-tv agency head Ancine, recommended staff to halt new and recently approved incentive awards, in a memorandum leaked to the press.
Ancine contributes some $300 million a year into Brazil’s film-tv industries.
The...
- 5/16/2019
- by John Hopewell and Marcelo Cajueiro
- Variety Film + TV
On March 26, Apex, the state-run Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency, announced that it was pulling key financing for Cinema do Brasil, Brasil’s private-sector equivalent of France’s trade body UniFrance.
With a new top management set to settle in at Apex from mid-May, film export org Cinema do Brasil may be pulled back from the brink, the government informing the org in late April that it would be interested in renewing Apex funding.
Cannes may not be CdB’s last market. Brazil’s left-leaning industry is light years away from President Jair Bolsonaro’s far-right government. Even so, according to Andre Sturm, CdB topper, the government recognizes that film gives a good image of Brazil abroad.
The Apex scare underscores the current volatility of Brazilian politics. Its resolution would reflect one of the biggest revolutions shaping cinema in this century: the dramatic development in world cinema production, of...
With a new top management set to settle in at Apex from mid-May, film export org Cinema do Brasil may be pulled back from the brink, the government informing the org in late April that it would be interested in renewing Apex funding.
Cannes may not be CdB’s last market. Brazil’s left-leaning industry is light years away from President Jair Bolsonaro’s far-right government. Even so, according to Andre Sturm, CdB topper, the government recognizes that film gives a good image of Brazil abroad.
The Apex scare underscores the current volatility of Brazilian politics. Its resolution would reflect one of the biggest revolutions shaping cinema in this century: the dramatic development in world cinema production, of...
- 5/16/2019
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
On March 26, Apex, the state-run Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency, announced that it was pulling key financing for Cinema do Brasil, Brazil’s private-sector equivalent of France’s trade body UniFrance.
With a new top management set to settle in at Apex from mid-May, film export org Cinema do Brasil may be pulled back from the brink, the government informing the org in late April that it would be interested in renewing Apex funding.
Cannes may not be CdB’s last market. Brazil’s left-leaning industry is light years away from President Jair Bolsonaro’s far-right government. Even so, according to Andre Sturm, CdB topper, the government recognizes that film gives a good image of Brazil abroad.
The Apex scare underscores the current volatility of Brazilian politics. Its resolution would reflect one of the biggest revolutions shaping cinema in this century: the dramatic development in world cinema production, of...
With a new top management set to settle in at Apex from mid-May, film export org Cinema do Brasil may be pulled back from the brink, the government informing the org in late April that it would be interested in renewing Apex funding.
Cannes may not be CdB’s last market. Brazil’s left-leaning industry is light years away from President Jair Bolsonaro’s far-right government. Even so, according to Andre Sturm, CdB topper, the government recognizes that film gives a good image of Brazil abroad.
The Apex scare underscores the current volatility of Brazilian politics. Its resolution would reflect one of the biggest revolutions shaping cinema in this century: the dramatic development in world cinema production, of...
- 5/15/2019
- by John Hopewell and Marcelo Cajueiro
- Variety Film + TV
Bob Spit
(Cesar Cabral)
Showcased at the first Cannes’ Animation Day, this Nsfw claymation feature spins off a previous short film and the work of famed Brazilian cartoonist Angeli the Killer.
Brief Story From The Green Planet
(Santiago Loza)
Three outsiders are tasked
with returning an alien to its planet. A low-fi road movie about friendship.
Ghost Killer Vs. Bloody Mary
(Fabrício Bittar)
Backed by Warner Bros.
Brasil and Netflix, this $3 million horror-comedy follows a group of paranormal investigators on YouTube looking to explain the ghost terrorizing local school bathrooms.
Sales: Raven Banner
Indianara
(Aude Chevalier-Beaumel, Marcelo Barbosa)
In this polemical docu feature, Brazilian icon Indianara leads the fight against a repressive government to protect her country’s transgender population.
Invisible Life
(Karim Aïnouz)
A banner Brazilian title from Rt Features focuses on two sisters’ lives — denied access to a quality labor market, their voices challenged — from the 1950s to early 1970s.
(Cesar Cabral)
Showcased at the first Cannes’ Animation Day, this Nsfw claymation feature spins off a previous short film and the work of famed Brazilian cartoonist Angeli the Killer.
Brief Story From The Green Planet
(Santiago Loza)
Three outsiders are tasked
with returning an alien to its planet. A low-fi road movie about friendship.
Ghost Killer Vs. Bloody Mary
(Fabrício Bittar)
Backed by Warner Bros.
Brasil and Netflix, this $3 million horror-comedy follows a group of paranormal investigators on YouTube looking to explain the ghost terrorizing local school bathrooms.
Sales: Raven Banner
Indianara
(Aude Chevalier-Beaumel, Marcelo Barbosa)
In this polemical docu feature, Brazilian icon Indianara leads the fight against a repressive government to protect her country’s transgender population.
Invisible Life
(Karim Aïnouz)
A banner Brazilian title from Rt Features focuses on two sisters’ lives — denied access to a quality labor market, their voices challenged — from the 1950s to early 1970s.
- 5/15/2019
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
In 2014, Danielle Lessovitz was brought to her first New York ball, where the Lgbtq community competes in glamorous dance and posing competitions. "I was watching someone doing a duckwalk — there was a sense of the person breaking and coming into being, as if the spirit and the body had separated for a moment," she says. "I was processing the death of my father around this time, and it was sort of transcendent for me. It stuck with me." It stuck with her so much that Lessovitz decided to make a film set in this ...
- 5/15/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In 2014, Danielle Lessovitz was brought to her first New York ball, where the Lgbtq community competes in glamorous dance and posing competitions. "I was watching someone doing a duckwalk — there was a sense of the person breaking and coming into being, as if the spirit and the body had separated for a moment," she says. "I was processing the death of my father around this time, and it was sort of transcendent for me. It stuck with me." It stuck with her so much that Lessovitz decided to make a film set in this ...
- 5/15/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
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Pedro Almodóvar, "Pain and Glory"
Photographed by Nico Bustos in Madrid for TheWrap
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Abel Ferrara, "Tommaso"
Photographed by Paolo Santambrogio in Rome for TheWrap
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Jérémy Clapin, "I Lost My Body"
Photographed by Hélène Cica in Paris for TheWrap
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Pedro Almodóvar, "Pain and Glory"
Photographed by Nico Bustos in Madrid for TheWrap
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Abel Ferrara, "Tommaso"
Photographed by Paolo Santambrogio in Rome for TheWrap
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Jérémy Clapin, "I Lost My Body"
Photographed by Hélène Cica in Paris for TheWrap
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- 5/14/2019
- by Wrap Staff
- The Wrap
Every major film festival has a programming team; at Cannes, the festival identity is usually embodied by one person. Since Thierry Fremaux was promoted to General Delegate of the Festival in 2007, the festival leader has become its sole public face, addressing every question about its selection process, responding to backlash about its choices, and guiding filmmakers up the red carpet each night.
But the festival has always relied on a network of programmers, and in the wake of conversations about the need for gender parity around the world, Cannes revealed its gender-balanced programming team earlier this year. The news came with a new position: Former film journalist Stephanie Lamome had been promoted from an earlier role on the eight-person selection committee to serve as artistic advisor of the film department. The new role requires her to comb through submissions and oversee many of the finer details of the programming process.
But the festival has always relied on a network of programmers, and in the wake of conversations about the need for gender parity around the world, Cannes revealed its gender-balanced programming team earlier this year. The news came with a new position: Former film journalist Stephanie Lamome had been promoted from an earlier role on the eight-person selection committee to serve as artistic advisor of the film department. The new role requires her to comb through submissions and oversee many of the finer details of the programming process.
- 5/14/2019
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Just a few years ago, it would’ve been tough to imagine bankable movie stars such as Julia Roberts and Meryl Streep booking lead roles on TV series. Yet dealmakers arriving in Cannes looking to assemble indie features, while buoyed by a robust economy, are saddled with a painful Achilles’ heel: dozens upon dozens of streaming services, cable and pay TV channels are competing for the same top talent, both behind and in front of the camera. While independents are strategizing ways to fill their pipelines with quality content and recognizable faces, it’s a tough battle.
Even once-reliable supporting actors in features, like Cannes vet Margo Martindale (who stars with Melissa McCarthy in Warner Bros.’ upcoming “The Kitchen” and toplines the CAA/Secret Engine-repped acquisition title “Blow the Man Down”), feels “where movies are being made now are on 10-episode or streaming shows” like her Amazon series, “Sneaky Pete.
Even once-reliable supporting actors in features, like Cannes vet Margo Martindale (who stars with Melissa McCarthy in Warner Bros.’ upcoming “The Kitchen” and toplines the CAA/Secret Engine-repped acquisition title “Blow the Man Down”), feels “where movies are being made now are on 10-episode or streaming shows” like her Amazon series, “Sneaky Pete.
- 5/7/2019
- by Gregg Goldstein
- Variety Film + TV
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