Sales and production house Film Constellation is launching world sales rights on U.S. comedy drama “Eephus,” directed by Carson Lund, set to world premiere in the Directors’ Fortnight section in Cannes in May.
In the film, as an imminent construction project looms over a beloved small-town baseball field, a pair of New England Sunday league teams face off for the last time over the course of a day. Tensions flare up and ceremonial laughs are shared as an era of camaraderie and escapism fades into an uncertain future.
“Eephus” is the feature directorial debut of American filmmaker Lund, who also has a cinematography credit on another Directors’ Fortnight title, “Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point.”
“Eephus” is produced by Lund, Tyler Taormina, Michael Basta, David Entin and Gabe Klinger for U.S.-based Omnes Films, in collaboration with executive producers Michael Tonelli, Ashish Shetty, Brian Clark and Jim Christman of Magmys.
In the film, as an imminent construction project looms over a beloved small-town baseball field, a pair of New England Sunday league teams face off for the last time over the course of a day. Tensions flare up and ceremonial laughs are shared as an era of camaraderie and escapism fades into an uncertain future.
“Eephus” is the feature directorial debut of American filmmaker Lund, who also has a cinematography credit on another Directors’ Fortnight title, “Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point.”
“Eephus” is produced by Lund, Tyler Taormina, Michael Basta, David Entin and Gabe Klinger for U.S.-based Omnes Films, in collaboration with executive producers Michael Tonelli, Ashish Shetty, Brian Clark and Jim Christman of Magmys.
- 4/18/2024
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Bertrand Bonello is a cinephile filmmaker of equal caliber to Martin Scorsese or Quentin Tarantino and as brilliant at threading his fascinations into an original tapestry––he just so happens to work in French and a far-dimmer spotlight. Thus it was great, while preparing to screen his unbelievable House of Tolerance at New York’s Roxy Cinema on March 16 and 17, stumbling upon an interview (conducted by Gabe Klinger around the 2011 Cannes premiere) wherein Bonello outlined his dizzying combination of influences––I wasn’t kidding when I called House a lovechild between Tarantino’s Death Proof and Hou’s Flowers of Shanghai.
I’ll add, relevant to our Roxy showing, something Bonello said at the time of release: “I wanted something very, very, very, very soft. I wanted that we could feel the skin of the girls––the costumes, the hair. That’s why the film is shot in 35. That’s...
I’ll add, relevant to our Roxy showing, something Bonello said at the time of release: “I wanted something very, very, very, very soft. I wanted that we could feel the skin of the girls––the costumes, the hair. That’s why the film is shot in 35. That’s...
- 3/7/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Brazil’s Raccord Produções, Chile’s Araucaria Cine and France’s Nord-Ouest Films are teaming to produce acclaimed Brazilian filmmaker Gabe Klinger’s feature drama project “Okonomiyaki.”
“Okonomiyaki” will topline celebrated Brazilian actor-helmer Leandra Leal, Yuki Sugimoto, star of Disney+ series “Mila in the Multiverse,” and feature Marco Pigossi, of Netflix’s “Invisible City” and “Tidelands.”
The feature-length project has been selected for the San Sebastian Film Festival’s Europe-Latin America Co-production Forum, its industry centerpiece, which runs Sept. 25-27.
The film is produced by Clélia Bessa and Marcos Pieri at Raccord, Araucaria’s Isabel Orellana and Nord-Ouest Films’ Ola Byszuk, who are looking fo further financing and co-production, as well as sales and distribution partners for the project.
Offscreen talent includes longtime Pablo Larraín Dp Sergio Armstrong and editor Soledad Salfate, of Sebastián Lelio’s Oscar-winner “A Fantastic Woman.”
Principal photography on “Okonomiyaki” is scheduled to kick-off second quarter next year in Sao Paulo.
“Okonomiyaki” will topline celebrated Brazilian actor-helmer Leandra Leal, Yuki Sugimoto, star of Disney+ series “Mila in the Multiverse,” and feature Marco Pigossi, of Netflix’s “Invisible City” and “Tidelands.”
The feature-length project has been selected for the San Sebastian Film Festival’s Europe-Latin America Co-production Forum, its industry centerpiece, which runs Sept. 25-27.
The film is produced by Clélia Bessa and Marcos Pieri at Raccord, Araucaria’s Isabel Orellana and Nord-Ouest Films’ Ola Byszuk, who are looking fo further financing and co-production, as well as sales and distribution partners for the project.
Offscreen talent includes longtime Pablo Larraín Dp Sergio Armstrong and editor Soledad Salfate, of Sebastián Lelio’s Oscar-winner “A Fantastic Woman.”
Principal photography on “Okonomiyaki” is scheduled to kick-off second quarter next year in Sao Paulo.
- 8/28/2023
- by Emiliano De Pablos
- Variety Film + TV
Fifteen projects have been selected for the forum, seven from first or second-time directors.
Juan Pablo González and Sergio Castro San Martín are among the filmmakers returning for San Sebastian’s Europe-Latin America Co-Production forum, which runs from September 25-27.
Mexican filmmaker González is back with Agua Caliente after his first work Dos Estaciones went on to win the best acting award for lead actor Teresa Sánchez in the world cinema dramatic competition at Sundance, following its participation in the forum in 2019 and Wip Latam in 2022. Agua Caliente is co-directed with Ana Isabel Fernández de Alba.
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Juan Pablo González and Sergio Castro San Martín are among the filmmakers returning for San Sebastian’s Europe-Latin America Co-Production forum, which runs from September 25-27.
Mexican filmmaker González is back with Agua Caliente after his first work Dos Estaciones went on to win the best acting award for lead actor Teresa Sánchez in the world cinema dramatic competition at Sundance, following its participation in the forum in 2019 and Wip Latam in 2022. Agua Caliente is co-directed with Ana Isabel Fernández de Alba.
Scroll down for the...
- 8/14/2023
- by Mona Tabbara
- ScreenDaily
New Release Wall
“Bergman Island” (The Criterion Collection): Writer-director Mia Hansen-Løve’s seventh feature is graceful and complex, a story about stories and the sometimes fragile connections between partners and friends. A couple travel to Fårö, Sweden, where Ingmar Bergman lived and worked, in order to work on their own respective filmmaking projects. There they discover more about themselves than they anticipated. The Blu-ray includes an essay from critic Devika Girish; a short film, “Bergman’s Ghosts,” made during production by actor Gabe Klinger; and interviews with Krieps and Hansen-Løve.
Also available:
“Black Adam” (Warner Bros): Dwayne Johnson is the DC Comics anti-hero, freed from his tomb after 5000 years, now ready to deliver his own version of justice.
“Bones and All” (Warner Bros): The latest from “Call Me By Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino is a romantic horror film about cannibals in love — it’s as divisive...
“Bergman Island” (The Criterion Collection): Writer-director Mia Hansen-Løve’s seventh feature is graceful and complex, a story about stories and the sometimes fragile connections between partners and friends. A couple travel to Fårö, Sweden, where Ingmar Bergman lived and worked, in order to work on their own respective filmmaking projects. There they discover more about themselves than they anticipated. The Blu-ray includes an essay from critic Devika Girish; a short film, “Bergman’s Ghosts,” made during production by actor Gabe Klinger; and interviews with Krieps and Hansen-Løve.
Also available:
“Black Adam” (Warner Bros): Dwayne Johnson is the DC Comics anti-hero, freed from his tomb after 5000 years, now ready to deliver his own version of justice.
“Bones and All” (Warner Bros): The latest from “Call Me By Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino is a romantic horror film about cannibals in love — it’s as divisive...
- 1/12/2023
- by Alonso Duralde
- The Wrap
Director Mia Hansen-Løve is revealing what it was really like filming the 2021 critically acclaimed feature “Bergman Island” with actors Tim Roth and Vicky Krieps.
Also weighing in, “Bergman Island” lead star Krieps cited a “culture clash” between frequent Quentin Tarantino collaborator Roth and Hansen-Løve in a new Vanity Fair profile.
Previously, Roth was rumored to make a crew member cry during production, according to a Filmmaker Magazine op-ed by Gabe Klinger, who had a small onscreen role in the movie.
Owen Wilson was originally attached to co-lead the film but dropped out ahead of production. Hansen-Løve met Roth only two or three times prior to him joining “Bergman Island” and the actor “didn’t know much about Bergman and Sweden.” Krieps plays Hansen-Løve’s insert, a writer/director named Chris, who is married to an older director named Tony, played by Roth, who is inspired by Hansen-Løve’s former romantic partner.
Also weighing in, “Bergman Island” lead star Krieps cited a “culture clash” between frequent Quentin Tarantino collaborator Roth and Hansen-Løve in a new Vanity Fair profile.
Previously, Roth was rumored to make a crew member cry during production, according to a Filmmaker Magazine op-ed by Gabe Klinger, who had a small onscreen role in the movie.
Owen Wilson was originally attached to co-lead the film but dropped out ahead of production. Hansen-Løve met Roth only two or three times prior to him joining “Bergman Island” and the actor “didn’t know much about Bergman and Sweden.” Krieps plays Hansen-Løve’s insert, a writer/director named Chris, who is married to an older director named Tony, played by Roth, who is inspired by Hansen-Løve’s former romantic partner.
- 9/29/2022
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSLight Industry, a much-loved venue for film and electronic art in New York, is creating a beautiful new space to host their talks and screenings. They are seeking donations to cover the costs of construction.Almost 40 years after first meeting as employees of California's Video Archives, Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary, co-writers on Pulp Fiction, will be making a new podcast together, watching and discussing movies that they first discovered in the library of the former video rental store.Apple have landed Steve McQueen's next feature, Blitz, a film set during World War II which will tell the wartime stories of a selection of Londoners.In what is yet another high-profile exit at a major film festival, Tabitha Jackson will be departing from her role as director of the Sundance Film Festival. As IndieWire note in their article,...
- 6/9/2022
- MUBI
Gabe Klinger previously wrote at Filmmaker about the making of his Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater (2013), which is now available on the Criterion Channel. Here, he recounts the last nine years of what he describes as “his sometimes uneasy path as a feature filmmaker” and discusses his latest project. — Editor It’s approaching a decade since I shared some anecdotes in these pages about directing my debut feature, Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater. Conceived with support from Ciné+ — a French pay TV channel where one of our producers, André S. Labarthe, had a pipeline deal […]
The post Looking Back: Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater Director Gabe Klinger on the Six-Year Journey to a New Feature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post Looking Back: Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater Director Gabe Klinger on the Six-Year Journey to a New Feature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/2/2022
- by Gabe Klinger
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Gabe Klinger previously wrote at Filmmaker about the making of his Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater (2013), which is now available on the Criterion Channel. Here, he recounts the last nine years of what he describes as “his sometimes uneasy path as a feature filmmaker” and discusses his latest project. — Editor It’s approaching a decade since I shared some anecdotes in these pages about directing my debut feature, Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater. Conceived with support from Ciné+ — a French pay TV channel where one of our producers, André S. Labarthe, had a pipeline deal […]
The post Looking Back: Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater Director Gabe Klinger on the Six-Year Journey to a New Feature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post Looking Back: Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater Director Gabe Klinger on the Six-Year Journey to a New Feature first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 6/2/2022
- by Gabe Klinger
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
May on the Criterion Channel will be good to the auteurs. In fact they’re giving Richard Linklater better treatment than the distributor of his last film, with a 13-title retrospective mixing usual suspects—the Before trilogy, Boyhood, Slacker—with some truly off the beaten track. There’s a few shorts I haven’t seen but most intriguing is Heads I Win/Tails You Lose, the only available description of which calls it a four-hour (!) piece “edited together by Richard Linklater in 1991 from film countdowns and tail leaders from films submitted to the Austin Film Society in Austin, Texas from 1987 to 1990. It is Linklater’s tribute to the film countdown, used by many projectionists over the years to cue one reel of film after another when switching to another reel on another projector during projection.” Pair that with 2008’s Inning by Inning: A Portrait of a Coach and your completionism will be on-track.
- 4/21/2022
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Funded by Turismo de Portugal, the country’s shoot cash rebate aims to increase Portugal’s international visibility. Secretary of State for Tourism Rita Marques stresses that tourism is a key driver of sustainable growth, job creation and foreign investment, as well as promoting Portuguese and European cultural values: “That’s why we have created one of the most competitive film production incentive systems in Europe, especially oriented to those projects that can bring economic social, and environment value and positive impact to the world.”
Portugal boasts the highest number of sunny days in Europe and greener landscapes than much of Southern Europe. Crews are skilled, multi-lingual and offer highly competitive rates.
The major diversity of natural and cultural heritage within a relatively small country means that shoots can access a wide variety of locales within relatively short distances.
The Portugal Film Commission (Pfc) is complemented by 12 film commissions and offices,...
Portugal boasts the highest number of sunny days in Europe and greener landscapes than much of Southern Europe. Crews are skilled, multi-lingual and offer highly competitive rates.
The major diversity of natural and cultural heritage within a relatively small country means that shoots can access a wide variety of locales within relatively short distances.
The Portugal Film Commission (Pfc) is complemented by 12 film commissions and offices,...
- 3/3/2021
- by Martin Dale
- Variety Film + TV
“Lovecraft Country” and “His House” lead Wunmi Mosaku, a BAFTA award winner, has been cast in Gabe Klinger’s fact-based drama “Dreyana Grooms.”
The film focuses on 16-year-old Dreyana Grooms, who as a young teenager was implicated in a fatal shooting in Chicago during her summer break from school. The event radically altered the course of her young adult life.
Grooms and Klinger co-scripted the project, which is being presented this coming week at the International Film Festival Rotterdam’s CineMart co-production market. The film is produced by CogniCine, Black Monarch Entertainment and Les Films Hatari.
Mosaku, a BAFTA winner for her role in the BBC’s “Damiola, Our Loved Boy,” is currently nominated for a 2021 Critics’ Choice Award for her portrayal of Ruby Baptiste in HBO’s horror drama series “Lovecraft Country,” and a British Independent Film Award for her performance in Remi Weekes’s Netflix horror thriller “His House.
The film focuses on 16-year-old Dreyana Grooms, who as a young teenager was implicated in a fatal shooting in Chicago during her summer break from school. The event radically altered the course of her young adult life.
Grooms and Klinger co-scripted the project, which is being presented this coming week at the International Film Festival Rotterdam’s CineMart co-production market. The film is produced by CogniCine, Black Monarch Entertainment and Les Films Hatari.
Mosaku, a BAFTA winner for her role in the BBC’s “Damiola, Our Loved Boy,” is currently nominated for a 2021 Critics’ Choice Award for her portrayal of Ruby Baptiste in HBO’s horror drama series “Lovecraft Country,” and a British Independent Film Award for her performance in Remi Weekes’s Netflix horror thriller “His House.
- 2/1/2021
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
Selection includes upcoming features from Berlinale award-winner Carla Simon and San Sebastian award-winner Johannes Nyholm.
CineMart, the co-production market of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), has revealed the 17 feature projects to be showcased at the upcoming edition, which will take place entirely online.
The market will run February 1-5, during the 50th IFFR, and will invite filmmakers to pitch their projects virtually to a host of international film professionals in tailored one-to-one meetings, as well as online presentations that are open to all CineMart guests.
Eleven of the filmmakers are returning to IFFR after previously screening films at earlier editions,...
CineMart, the co-production market of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), has revealed the 17 feature projects to be showcased at the upcoming edition, which will take place entirely online.
The market will run February 1-5, during the 50th IFFR, and will invite filmmakers to pitch their projects virtually to a host of international film professionals in tailored one-to-one meetings, as well as online presentations that are open to all CineMart guests.
Eleven of the filmmakers are returning to IFFR after previously screening films at earlier editions,...
- 12/17/2020
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Above: 1986 Japanese poster for She’s Gotta Have It (Spike Lee, USA, 1986).In the ten months since I last did a round-up of the most popular posters on Movie Poster of the Day, two things have happened. I’ve slacked off a bit: after running the site since November 2011 and posting one poster every single day for years, in the past year I’ve let my self-appointed task slide a little and have been posting more sporadically. And at the same time it seems that Tumblr is starting to atrophy. At its height my site had over 300,000 followers—it still does officially, but I would guess that a large percentage of those people are no longer still on Tumblr or rarely check their feed. I’m often asked why I don’t up sticks and move to Instagram instead, but while I love Instagram for personal stuff, Tumblr is still...
- 4/12/2018
- MUBI
Chicago – There is a cinematic event in Des Plaines, Illinois, that celebrated its 4th year last night with the opening night film Signature Move. The Oakton Community College Pop-Up Film Festival is the brainchild of film professor Michael Glover Smith, who also has a film in the festival entitled “Mercury in Retrograde” (Thursday, November 30th, 2017). The second night film, on November 29th, is “Porto,’ directed by Gabe Klinger. Admission for all the screenings is Free and open to the public. For complete information regarding the festival, click here.
4th Annual Oakton Community College Pop-Up Film Festival, Nov. 29th-Dec. 1st, 2017
Photo credit: www.Oakton.edu
Rounding out the festival on December 1st will be the closing night “Shorts Film Program: Women in Danger,” which includes “An Atramentous Mind” by Lonnie Edwards and Layne Marie Williams. Each night features Q&A with the directors for each of the films shown.
Oakton Community...
4th Annual Oakton Community College Pop-Up Film Festival, Nov. 29th-Dec. 1st, 2017
Photo credit: www.Oakton.edu
Rounding out the festival on December 1st will be the closing night “Shorts Film Program: Women in Danger,” which includes “An Atramentous Mind” by Lonnie Edwards and Layne Marie Williams. Each night features Q&A with the directors for each of the films shown.
Oakton Community...
- 11/29/2017
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
"No, please, don't do anything differently..." Kino Lorber has unveiled an official trailer for the romantic drama Porto, about two strangers who meet randomly for an evening of intimacy in the Portuguese city of Porto. The film stars the late Anton Yelchin in one of his final roles (along with the films Rememory and Thoroughbreds) as Jake, who meets the lovely Mati, played by Lucie Lucas. The cast also includes Paulo Calatré and Françoise Lebrun. This already premiered at the San Sebastian Film Festival last year, and has played at numerous film festivals through 2016 and 2017, with a release in the Us this November. This actually reminds me a bit of Drake Doremus' intimate romance film Newness, which also had a trailer today. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Gabe Klinger's Porto, direct from YouTube: Jake (Yelchin) and Mati (Lucas) are two expats who experience a brief but intimate...
- 10/4/2017
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
It’s been just over a year since Anton Yelchin‘s tragic passing, and it’s still hard to believe he’s gone. An actor with gifts and talent he still had yet to share, we can take some comfort that there’s still one more film to treasure from Yelchin in “Porto.”
Read More: Jane Campion Talks Her Career and ‘Top Of The Lake: China Girl’
Directed by Gabe Klinger, executive produced by Jim Jarmusch, co-starring Lucie Lucas, and shot in 35mm, the film tells the story of a romance that blooms between two foreigners in Portugal.
Continue reading ‘Porto’ Trailer: Anton Yelchin Finds Romance In Portugal at The Playlist.
Read More: Jane Campion Talks Her Career and ‘Top Of The Lake: China Girl’
Directed by Gabe Klinger, executive produced by Jim Jarmusch, co-starring Lucie Lucas, and shot in 35mm, the film tells the story of a romance that blooms between two foreigners in Portugal.
Continue reading ‘Porto’ Trailer: Anton Yelchin Finds Romance In Portugal at The Playlist.
- 10/3/2017
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Anton Yelchin passed away after a tragic accident in 2016, but will be long remembered for his past and upcoming projects. His performances in “Like Crazy,” “Alpha Dog,” and the “Star Trek” franchise preface his upcoming role in “Porto” with melancholic hope.
Read More:‘Porto’: Anton Yelchin-Starring Romantic Drama Picked Up By Kino Lorber Ahead of SXSW Premiere
The late actor is set to appear in a number of unreleased films, including the romantic drama “Porto.” Directed by Gabe Klinger, it tells the story of a passionate affair between Jake, a reclusive American, and Mati (Lucie Lucas), a French student in the Portuguese city of the film’s title. The film is a collection of fragmented images and moments as the characters reminisce years later. Although Mati and Jake spend their lives apart, they both feel haunted by the powerful moments they shared.
Fusing time, movement, and character, “Porto...
Read More:‘Porto’: Anton Yelchin-Starring Romantic Drama Picked Up By Kino Lorber Ahead of SXSW Premiere
The late actor is set to appear in a number of unreleased films, including the romantic drama “Porto.” Directed by Gabe Klinger, it tells the story of a passionate affair between Jake, a reclusive American, and Mati (Lucie Lucas), a French student in the Portuguese city of the film’s title. The film is a collection of fragmented images and moments as the characters reminisce years later. Although Mati and Jake spend their lives apart, they both feel haunted by the powerful moments they shared.
Fusing time, movement, and character, “Porto...
- 9/29/2017
- by Raelyn Giansanti
- Indiewire
Santiago International Film Festival (August 20–27, 2017), announced its awards at last night’s closing ceremony.“La familia” by Gustavo Rondón Córdova (Venezuela),
Among the awarded films were: La familia by Gustavo Rondón Córdova (Venezuela), as the Best Film in the International Competition; Sapo by Juan Pablo Ternicier (Chile) in the Chilean Cinema Competition and Hombre eléctrico by Álvaro Muñoz (Chile) in the Local Talent Short Film Competition, which were chosen as the best productions in their categories by a jury composed of representatives of the Chilean and international film industry.
The Audience Award was presented to a Belgian filmmaker Andrés Lübbert for his documentary The Color of the Chameleon/ El Color Del Camaleon a psychological portrait of his father’s unfinished past during the Pinochet regime, that participated in the Chilean Cinema Competition.
2017 Sanfic Industry
Sanfic Industry section, which took place between August 21 and 25, generated an important space for development and...
Among the awarded films were: La familia by Gustavo Rondón Córdova (Venezuela), as the Best Film in the International Competition; Sapo by Juan Pablo Ternicier (Chile) in the Chilean Cinema Competition and Hombre eléctrico by Álvaro Muñoz (Chile) in the Local Talent Short Film Competition, which were chosen as the best productions in their categories by a jury composed of representatives of the Chilean and international film industry.
The Audience Award was presented to a Belgian filmmaker Andrés Lübbert for his documentary The Color of the Chameleon/ El Color Del Camaleon a psychological portrait of his father’s unfinished past during the Pinochet regime, that participated in the Chilean Cinema Competition.
2017 Sanfic Industry
Sanfic Industry section, which took place between August 21 and 25, generated an important space for development and...
- 8/27/2017
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
The thirteenth edition of Santiago International Film Festival, Sanfic (August 20–27, 2017), the largest film festival in Chile, will present more than 100 international and Chilean films, including productions shown and awarded in festivals such as Cannes, Berlin and Venice. Among the feature films will be 7 world and 14 Latin American premieres.
Sanfic (Santiago International Film Festival) is opening the festival to international press this year with Variety Dailies and important international guests for their Sanfic Industry section. Guest attending include Kim Yutani (Sundance programmer), Javier Martin (Berlinale delegate), Molly O ́Keefe (Tribeca Film Institute — fiction features) and Estrella Araiza (Industry director of Guadalajara Iff), to name a few. Matt Dillon is its special guest along with the renowned director of photography Rainer Klausmann.
The Summit starring Ricardo Darín, Dolores Fonzi and Erica Rivas, with an appearance of Christian Slater and renowned Chilean actors Paulina Garcia and Alfredo Castro
The opening film of the...
Sanfic (Santiago International Film Festival) is opening the festival to international press this year with Variety Dailies and important international guests for their Sanfic Industry section. Guest attending include Kim Yutani (Sundance programmer), Javier Martin (Berlinale delegate), Molly O ́Keefe (Tribeca Film Institute — fiction features) and Estrella Araiza (Industry director of Guadalajara Iff), to name a few. Matt Dillon is its special guest along with the renowned director of photography Rainer Klausmann.
The Summit starring Ricardo Darín, Dolores Fonzi and Erica Rivas, with an appearance of Christian Slater and renowned Chilean actors Paulina Garcia and Alfredo Castro
The opening film of the...
- 7/30/2017
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSBlind DetectiveThe San Francisco Museum of Modern Art will hosting what we believe—and correct us if we'r wrong—is the first significant retrospective in the United States of the great Hong Kong genre director Johnnie To.Recommended VIEWINGFor one more day only Gabe Klinger's Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater, a 2013 documentary about two directors on different ends of American independent cinema, will be available to watch for free on Vimeo.A lovely collaboration between Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives) and Japanese composer (and sometimes actor) Ryuichi Sakamoto on the video for a track on his new album, async. Related: the director and composer are holding a short film competition stemming from the album. Critics Christopher Small and James Corning have lately been contributing excellent video essays to the Notebook on such directors as William Friedkin, John Carpenter, and Ernst Lubitsch. For Fandor, they've made another excellent directorial dive, in this case into the contradictory cinema of Hollywood comedy director Leo McCarey.Kirsten Dunst and Elle Fanning shoot "Girls Gone Wild 1863" behind the scenes of Sofia Coppola's The Beguiled. Warning: risqué ankle footage!Recommended Reading
The new issues of Cahiers du cinéma (out now) and Cinema Scope (coming soon) both focus on the just-completely Cannes Film Festival and have Robert Pattinson in the Safdie brothers' Good Time on the cover. Cahiers editor Stéphane Delorme has written a scathing, and to our eyes accurate, assessment of the festival, which we're reading in (please excuse us) adapted Google translation:The program of the Official is truly a program, in the programmatic sense: it has encouraged a certain type of hateful, hollow and pretentious cinema which is becoming sadly the cinema of our time.... In this context, two small wonders emerged: Good Time by the Safdies and The Day After by Hong Sang-soo... Dumont, Garrel, Claire Denis, everyone would have deserved the Palme. Authors in an insolent form that are renewed (musical comedy, sex, comedy) and who still know what it means to stage, edit, plan.This week the great American actress Gina Rowlands celebrated her 85th birthday, and Sheila O'Malley has written an excellent article on her and some of her key performances for RogerEbert.com:Rowlands' work has a way of creating anxiety in viewers. The boundary line between character and actress is obliterated; or, it was never there in the first place. Her work is so unlike what we see from most other actresses (even very good ones) that it's unnerving to watch.Alfred Hitchcock on the set of RopeAmerican Cinematographer has republished an essential 1967 interview with "The Cameraman's Director," Alfred Hitchcock:Q: Do you feel that lighting is perhaps the most important single element in the creation of cinematic mood?
A: Motion picture mood is often thought of as almost exclusively a matter of lighting, dark lighting. It isn’t. Mood is apprehension. That’s what you’ve got in that crop-duster scene. In other words, as I said years and years ago, I prefer “murder by the babbling brook.” you’ve got some of that in The Trouble With Harry. Where did I lay the dead body? Among the most beautiful colors I could find. Autumn in Vermont. Went up there and waited for the leaves to turn. We did it in counterpoint. I wanted to take a nasty taste away by making the setting beautiful. I have sometimes been accused of building a film around an effect, but in my sort of film you often have to do that if you want to get something other than the cliche.We think it's safe to say that Twin Peaks: The Return, despite being 7 episodes and nearly as many hours in, remains a mystery. We're hosting on-going and in-depth recaps of the episodes as they premiere, and at Filmmaker magazine Michael Sicinski has proposed five ideas about David Lynch and Mark Frost's new...thing:This transfer of violent energy is connected to the Black Lodge [...] but more significantly it is related to the program before us. Lynch is warning us that Twin Peaks is not background TV, and that in certain respects it is dangerous stuff. Sorry, young lovers. You need to watch that glass box carefully, because you’re strapping in for the long haul.EXTRASSome jaw-dropping analysis by Jean-Luc Godard on the relationship between film and television, courtesy of critic Max Nelson.From the Filmadrid festival, a meeting of two great figures in the film world: scholar Laura Mulvey and filmmaker Jonas Mekas.Confirming the sense of humor of Robert Bresson (he who put Chaplin's The Gold Rush and City Lights as his favorite films) is this photo of the perhaps the greatest of all filmmakers riding the donkey that appeared in his masterpiece Au hazard Balthazar.
The new issues of Cahiers du cinéma (out now) and Cinema Scope (coming soon) both focus on the just-completely Cannes Film Festival and have Robert Pattinson in the Safdie brothers' Good Time on the cover. Cahiers editor Stéphane Delorme has written a scathing, and to our eyes accurate, assessment of the festival, which we're reading in (please excuse us) adapted Google translation:The program of the Official is truly a program, in the programmatic sense: it has encouraged a certain type of hateful, hollow and pretentious cinema which is becoming sadly the cinema of our time.... In this context, two small wonders emerged: Good Time by the Safdies and The Day After by Hong Sang-soo... Dumont, Garrel, Claire Denis, everyone would have deserved the Palme. Authors in an insolent form that are renewed (musical comedy, sex, comedy) and who still know what it means to stage, edit, plan.This week the great American actress Gina Rowlands celebrated her 85th birthday, and Sheila O'Malley has written an excellent article on her and some of her key performances for RogerEbert.com:Rowlands' work has a way of creating anxiety in viewers. The boundary line between character and actress is obliterated; or, it was never there in the first place. Her work is so unlike what we see from most other actresses (even very good ones) that it's unnerving to watch.Alfred Hitchcock on the set of RopeAmerican Cinematographer has republished an essential 1967 interview with "The Cameraman's Director," Alfred Hitchcock:Q: Do you feel that lighting is perhaps the most important single element in the creation of cinematic mood?
A: Motion picture mood is often thought of as almost exclusively a matter of lighting, dark lighting. It isn’t. Mood is apprehension. That’s what you’ve got in that crop-duster scene. In other words, as I said years and years ago, I prefer “murder by the babbling brook.” you’ve got some of that in The Trouble With Harry. Where did I lay the dead body? Among the most beautiful colors I could find. Autumn in Vermont. Went up there and waited for the leaves to turn. We did it in counterpoint. I wanted to take a nasty taste away by making the setting beautiful. I have sometimes been accused of building a film around an effect, but in my sort of film you often have to do that if you want to get something other than the cliche.We think it's safe to say that Twin Peaks: The Return, despite being 7 episodes and nearly as many hours in, remains a mystery. We're hosting on-going and in-depth recaps of the episodes as they premiere, and at Filmmaker magazine Michael Sicinski has proposed five ideas about David Lynch and Mark Frost's new...thing:This transfer of violent energy is connected to the Black Lodge [...] but more significantly it is related to the program before us. Lynch is warning us that Twin Peaks is not background TV, and that in certain respects it is dangerous stuff. Sorry, young lovers. You need to watch that glass box carefully, because you’re strapping in for the long haul.EXTRASSome jaw-dropping analysis by Jean-Luc Godard on the relationship between film and television, courtesy of critic Max Nelson.From the Filmadrid festival, a meeting of two great figures in the film world: scholar Laura Mulvey and filmmaker Jonas Mekas.Confirming the sense of humor of Robert Bresson (he who put Chaplin's The Gold Rush and City Lights as his favorite films) is this photo of the perhaps the greatest of all filmmakers riding the donkey that appeared in his masterpiece Au hazard Balthazar.
- 6/22/2017
- MUBI
Separately, Stx dates Den Of Thieves, Kino Lorber picks up Anton Yelchin romance Porto.
The New York-based distributor has taken North American rights from ICM Partners and UTA to Janicza Bravo’s feature directorial debut Lemon ahead of its SXSW screening.
The film premiered in Park City in January and opened Rotterdam. Magnolia plans a release later this year.
Lemon stars Brett Gelman, Judy Greer, Michael Cera and Nia Long and centres on a 40-years-old man whose life is unravelling.
Bravo co-wrote the screenplay with Gelman. David Bernon, Paul Bernon and Sam Slater of Burn Later Productions produced with Han West and Houston King.
David Hinojosa and Christine Vachon of Killer Films served as executive producers along with Bravo and Gelman.
STXfilms has dated the Gerard Butler and Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson action thriller Den Of Thieves for January 19, 2018.Kino Lorber has acquired all North American rights to Gabe Klinger’s romantic drama Porto starring the late Anton Yelchin...
The New York-based distributor has taken North American rights from ICM Partners and UTA to Janicza Bravo’s feature directorial debut Lemon ahead of its SXSW screening.
The film premiered in Park City in January and opened Rotterdam. Magnolia plans a release later this year.
Lemon stars Brett Gelman, Judy Greer, Michael Cera and Nia Long and centres on a 40-years-old man whose life is unravelling.
Bravo co-wrote the screenplay with Gelman. David Bernon, Paul Bernon and Sam Slater of Burn Later Productions produced with Han West and Houston King.
David Hinojosa and Christine Vachon of Killer Films served as executive producers along with Bravo and Gelman.
STXfilms has dated the Gerard Butler and Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson action thriller Den Of Thieves for January 19, 2018.Kino Lorber has acquired all North American rights to Gabe Klinger’s romantic drama Porto starring the late Anton Yelchin...
- 3/10/2017
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Kino Lorber has acquired North American rights to Porto, the Gabe Klinger-directed film starring Anton Yelchin and Lucie Lucas. The deal comes as the pic shot in the Portuguese city preps for its North American premiere Sunday at SXSW. The pic is screening in 35mm in Austin, and Kino Lorber is planning a fall theatrical release with a commitment to show the film both on 35mm and digital before a winter VOD bow. It’s one of the final film roles for Yelchin, who died last Ju…...
- 3/10/2017
- Deadline
Just two days before its North American premiere at SXSW, Kino Lorber has picked up Gabe Klinger’s romantic drama, “Porto,” featuring the late Anton Yelchin in one of his final roles. The film also stars Lucie Lucas and was penned by Klinger and Larry Gross, it was also executive produced by Jim Jarmusch. The film was shot on Super 8mm, 16mm and 35mm in the eponymous Portuguese city. The film will have its North American debut at SXSW on Sunday night, with other screeners throughout the week.
Read More: ‘Porto’ Exclusive Clip: Anton Yelchin Stars In New Romance Executive Produced by Jim Jarmusch
The film follows Jake (Yelchin) and Mati (Lucas), “two outsiders in the northerly Portuguese city of Porto who once experienced a brief but intimate connection.” Per the film’s official synopsis, “He’s an American loner exiled from his family; she’s a French student abroad with her professor lover.
Read More: ‘Porto’ Exclusive Clip: Anton Yelchin Stars In New Romance Executive Produced by Jim Jarmusch
The film follows Jake (Yelchin) and Mati (Lucas), “two outsiders in the northerly Portuguese city of Porto who once experienced a brief but intimate connection.” Per the film’s official synopsis, “He’s an American loner exiled from his family; she’s a French student abroad with her professor lover.
- 3/10/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Kino Lorber has acquired all North American rights to Porto, starring the late Anton Yelchin in one of his last films. It's being eyed for a fall theatrical release, with a commitment to screen the film both on 35mm and Dcp before a VOD release in the winter.
The deal was made ahead of the film's North American premiere at SXSW on Sunday.
Directed by Gabe Klinger, Porto stars Yelchin and Lucie Lucas as two outsiders in the northerly Portuguese city of Porto who once experienced a brief but intimate connection. Yelchin is Jake, an American loner exiled from his family; Lucas is...
The deal was made ahead of the film's North American premiere at SXSW on Sunday.
Directed by Gabe Klinger, Porto stars Yelchin and Lucie Lucas as two outsiders in the northerly Portuguese city of Porto who once experienced a brief but intimate connection. Yelchin is Jake, an American loner exiled from his family; Lucas is...
- 3/10/2017
- by Ashley Lee
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
This year’s SXSW Film Festival is currently raging in Austin, Texas, complete with a packed slate that should keep festival attendees pretty happy in between bouts of chowing down breakfast tacos and basking in the good ol’ Texas sunshine. As ever, the festival features a strong lineup of both fresh premieres and festival favorites, new and returning stars, and plenty of opportunities for talent to break out on the festival stage.
From filmmakers to actors (and, sometimes, both at the same time), familiar faces looking to try a new craft to total newbies, this year’s festival has plenty of stars on the rise to look out for (ouch, so bright).
Read More: SXSW 2017: 13 Must-See Films At This Year’s Festival
Who’s going to break out in a big way at this year’s festival? We’ve got some ideas.
Ansel Elgort, actor, “Baby Driver”
If you...
From filmmakers to actors (and, sometimes, both at the same time), familiar faces looking to try a new craft to total newbies, this year’s festival has plenty of stars on the rise to look out for (ouch, so bright).
Read More: SXSW 2017: 13 Must-See Films At This Year’s Festival
Who’s going to break out in a big way at this year’s festival? We’ve got some ideas.
Ansel Elgort, actor, “Baby Driver”
If you...
- 3/10/2017
- by Chris O'Falt, David Ehrlich, Eric Kohn, Jude Dry, Kate Erbland and Steve Greene
- Indiewire
Call me a cynic, but I've always been skeptical of anyone who's in the first few months of dating who says that they and their partner were 'meant to be together' (maybe because at least half of those relationships end almost as quickly as they started). One beautiful night does not mean two people are soul mates, even if a connection is formed. Gabe Klinger's debut feature Porto seems to be pondering the same things: how do we know when something is real love, or just a momentary infatuation? How can we see who someone truly is after only a few hours, when arguably you are seeing them only as they want to be seen? Through this somewhat skeptical and gritty lens, Klinger looks at...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 11/20/2016
- Screen Anarchy
Festival moves to new autumn dates; audience award goes to Heartstone, and Girls Lost wins best children’s film.
Cph Pix’s New Talent Grand Pix has been awarded to Bulgarian filmmaker Ralitza Petrova for her film Godless.
The film, which is co-produced by new Danish production company Snowglobe, previously won the Golden Leopard in Locarno. It tells the story of a young physiotherapist struggling to survive in an economically depressed mountain town in post-Communist Bulgaria, who forms an unlikely bond with one of her elderly patients.
The New Talent Grand Pix – awarded for a debut feature — comes with $11,000 (€10,000); the jury was comprised of director Philippe Grandrieux (France), producer Erika Wasserman (Sweden) and DoP Manuel Alberto Claro (Denmark) [pictured with director Petrova].
In a statement, the jury said, “We were looking for a film-maker and talent who is not afraid to grab the world with the possibilities of cinema itself and use all its means to invite us inside this process...
Cph Pix’s New Talent Grand Pix has been awarded to Bulgarian filmmaker Ralitza Petrova for her film Godless.
The film, which is co-produced by new Danish production company Snowglobe, previously won the Golden Leopard in Locarno. It tells the story of a young physiotherapist struggling to survive in an economically depressed mountain town in post-Communist Bulgaria, who forms an unlikely bond with one of her elderly patients.
The New Talent Grand Pix – awarded for a debut feature — comes with $11,000 (€10,000); the jury was comprised of director Philippe Grandrieux (France), producer Erika Wasserman (Sweden) and DoP Manuel Alberto Claro (Denmark) [pictured with director Petrova].
In a statement, the jury said, “We were looking for a film-maker and talent who is not afraid to grab the world with the possibilities of cinema itself and use all its means to invite us inside this process...
- 11/7/2016
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
One of Anton Yelchin’s final screen performances lifts the melancholic ode to one night’s lost passion in Porto, a messy, scattered drama that, for all its visual resplendence, is too narratively slippery to reach much in the way of profundity. Set in the picturesque Portuguese city of the title, the film demonstrates first-time fiction director Gabe Klinger’s eye for visual storytelling, but his script, co-written by Larry Gross, feels undeveloped for anything further than glib, Instagram-like testaments to cherished moments in time.
Porto loops back and forwards to a single night, the meeting of Yelchin’s Jake and Lucie Lucas’ Mati for a fiery one-night stand. It’s an event that’s unnatural for both, but something urges them both through it. (“It doesn’t feel a matter of choice” says Jake about his own actions.) Real life inevitably encroaches and puts an abrupt end to their relationship,...
Porto loops back and forwards to a single night, the meeting of Yelchin’s Jake and Lucie Lucas’ Mati for a fiery one-night stand. It’s an event that’s unnatural for both, but something urges them both through it. (“It doesn’t feel a matter of choice” says Jake about his own actions.) Real life inevitably encroaches and puts an abrupt end to their relationship,...
- 10/20/2016
- by Ed Frankl
- The Film Stage
The 27th edition of the Stockholm International Film Festival (Nov 9 - 20) will present 200 films from 70 countries.
The Stockholm International Film Festival will kick-off with Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake, followed by a mid-festival ‘middle film’ screening in the shape of Nate Parker’s Birth of A Nation, and will close with Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester By The Sea.
Directors attending the festival include Francis Ford Coppola (who will receive the lifetime achievement award, present a public talk, and screen Apocalypse Now), Ken Loach, Francois Ozon (who receives the festival’s Visionary Award), Ira Sachs, Alice Lowe, Mark Cousins, Anne Fontaine, Gabe Klinger, and many more.
The festival’s main competition line-up is:
A Decent Woman by Lukas Valenta Rinner (Arg, S Kor, Aus)A Taste Of Ink by Morgan Simon (Fr)Albüm by Mehmet Can Mertoğlu (Tur, Fr, Rom)Are We Not Cats by Xander Robin (Us)Birth Of A Nation by [link...
The Stockholm International Film Festival will kick-off with Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake, followed by a mid-festival ‘middle film’ screening in the shape of Nate Parker’s Birth of A Nation, and will close with Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester By The Sea.
Directors attending the festival include Francis Ford Coppola (who will receive the lifetime achievement award, present a public talk, and screen Apocalypse Now), Ken Loach, Francois Ozon (who receives the festival’s Visionary Award), Ira Sachs, Alice Lowe, Mark Cousins, Anne Fontaine, Gabe Klinger, and many more.
The festival’s main competition line-up is:
A Decent Woman by Lukas Valenta Rinner (Arg, S Kor, Aus)A Taste Of Ink by Morgan Simon (Fr)Albüm by Mehmet Can Mertoğlu (Tur, Fr, Rom)Are We Not Cats by Xander Robin (Us)Birth Of A Nation by [link...
- 10/18/2016
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
About three minutes in to the London Film Festival press screening of Porto, the film paused unexpectedly, and a loud voice could be heard from back, apologising for delay, claiming it to have been shown, thus far, in the wrong aspect ratio. The voice belonged to director Gabe Klinger, and such is the indelible […]
The post Lff 2016: Porto Review appeared first on HeyUGuys.
The post Lff 2016: Porto Review appeared first on HeyUGuys.
- 10/12/2016
- by Stefan Pape
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Amat Escalante’s The Untamed (pictured) and Andrea Arnold’s American Honey will compete for the Cinemax Award for the best competition film at the Mexican festival, set to run from November 9-13.
The other selections in the Competencia Los Cabos main competition strand are: Antonio Campos’ Christine, Kristopher Avedisian’s Donald Cried, Matt Johnson’s Operation Avalanche, Gabe Klinger’s Porto, Rafi Pitts’ Soy Nero, Joey Klein’s The Other Half and Kim Nguyen’s Two Lovers And A Bear.
Competing for top honours in Mexico Primero are: Maria José Cuevas’ Beauties Of The Night, Sebastián Hiriart’s Carroña, Rodrigo Cervantes’ Los Paisages, Lucía Carreras’ Tamara y La Catarina, Ricardo Silva and Omar Guzmán’s William, The New Judo Master, and Juan Andrés Arango’s X500.
Festival heads said most of the Mexico Primero entries came through the festival’s Gabriel Figueroa Film Fund.
The winners of the Cinemax Award for best film in the Competencia...
The other selections in the Competencia Los Cabos main competition strand are: Antonio Campos’ Christine, Kristopher Avedisian’s Donald Cried, Matt Johnson’s Operation Avalanche, Gabe Klinger’s Porto, Rafi Pitts’ Soy Nero, Joey Klein’s The Other Half and Kim Nguyen’s Two Lovers And A Bear.
Competing for top honours in Mexico Primero are: Maria José Cuevas’ Beauties Of The Night, Sebastián Hiriart’s Carroña, Rodrigo Cervantes’ Los Paisages, Lucía Carreras’ Tamara y La Catarina, Ricardo Silva and Omar Guzmán’s William, The New Judo Master, and Juan Andrés Arango’s X500.
Festival heads said most of the Mexico Primero entries came through the festival’s Gabriel Figueroa Film Fund.
The winners of the Cinemax Award for best film in the Competencia...
- 10/11/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
After taking home the Best Documentary prize from the Venice Film Festival for Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater, critic-turned-director Gabe Klinger’s first scripted feature is the fractured, woozy love story, Porto. Set in the titular Portuguese city, it dramatizes in non-linear fashion the shared experiences of a rail-thin American nomad, Jake (Anton Yelchin, in a hypnotic parting performance), and a charming local woman, Mati (Lucie Lucas, making her feature starring debut). Porto debuted at the San Sebastián International Film Festival in late September and followed with showings at the Zurich Film Festival, where I was able to catch up with him […]...
- 10/11/2016
- by Carson Lund
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Exclusive: Porto stars Anton Yelchin, who tragically passed away in June this year.
Warsaw-based sales company New Europe Film Sales has announced deals on Porto [pictured], executive-produced by Jim Jarmusch and starring the late Anton Yelchin, and Locarno Best Actor award-winner The Last Family. The films sold to Benelux (Cineart) and Hungary (Mozinet), respectively.
Directed by Gabe Klinger (Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater), Porto stars Yelchin and Lucie Lucas as two outsiders in the titular Portuguese city, experiencing a brief but passionate connection.
The film previously sold to German-speaking Europe (Mfa+) and Brazil (Fenix Filmes).
It played in the San Sebastian Film Festival’s New Directors competition and also screens in the BFI London Film Festival’s First Feature Competition.
Porto has a market screening at the Asian Film Market in Busan tomorrow (Oct 9).
Based on the life of famous Polish painter Zdzislaw Beksinski, The Last Family won the best actor award for Andrzej Seweryn at the...
Warsaw-based sales company New Europe Film Sales has announced deals on Porto [pictured], executive-produced by Jim Jarmusch and starring the late Anton Yelchin, and Locarno Best Actor award-winner The Last Family. The films sold to Benelux (Cineart) and Hungary (Mozinet), respectively.
Directed by Gabe Klinger (Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater), Porto stars Yelchin and Lucie Lucas as two outsiders in the titular Portuguese city, experiencing a brief but passionate connection.
The film previously sold to German-speaking Europe (Mfa+) and Brazil (Fenix Filmes).
It played in the San Sebastian Film Festival’s New Directors competition and also screens in the BFI London Film Festival’s First Feature Competition.
Porto has a market screening at the Asian Film Market in Busan tomorrow (Oct 9).
Based on the life of famous Polish painter Zdzislaw Beksinski, The Last Family won the best actor award for Andrzej Seweryn at the...
- 10/8/2016
- by hjnoh2007@gmail.com (Jean Noh)
- ScreenDaily
This past June, actor Anton Yelchin suddenly passed away at the age of 27. While cinephiles everywhere will remember his numerous film roles, there are still a few posthumous releases featuring Yelchin due for release. One of these is Gabe Klinger’s feature film debut “Porto,” about two outsiders who embark on a night of carefree intimacy in the Portuguese city. Yelchin plays Jake, an American loner exiled from his family, who meets Mati (Lucie Lucas), a French student abroad with her professor lover. One day they find each other and experience a profound connection that’s revisited years later by the two as they’re separately haunted by their time together. Watch an exclusive clip from the film below.
Read More: Anton Yelchin Was Weeks Away From Shooting His Directorial Debut, ‘Travis’
The film is executive produced by director Jim Jarmusch. This year sees the release of two Jarmusch films: “Paterson,...
Read More: Anton Yelchin Was Weeks Away From Shooting His Directorial Debut, ‘Travis’
The film is executive produced by director Jim Jarmusch. This year sees the release of two Jarmusch films: “Paterson,...
- 9/20/2016
- by Vikram Murthi
- Indiewire
Actress Lucie Lucas, director Gabe Klinger, and actor Anton YelchinYou may already know the work of Brazilian-born American Gabe Klinger, perhaps through his writing as a critic for Cinema Scope and Sight & Sound, or through his programming at such venues as the Museum of Modern Art and the International Film Festival Rotterdam. In 2013, Klinger leapt behind the camera for his delightfully idiosyncratic debut film, Double Play, a documentary twofer chatting with and exploring the work of two distinctively different yet unexpectedly compatible American filmmakers, Richard Linklater and James Benning. This move to documenting (and combining) favorite filmmakers seemed like a natural extension of Klinger's advocacy in print and work at cinematheques and film festivals. Yet rather than remaining in the documentary mode, for his follow-up Klinger has gone overseas to Portugal to make a cleverly time-addled romance that's at once elated and melancholy. Porto, taking place in a dreamy, remembered...
- 9/20/2016
- MUBI
Exclusive: Anton Yelchin-starrer Porto is executive produced by Jim Jarmusch.
Poland-based New Europe Film Sales has sold the newly acquired title Porto, executive-produced by Jim Jarmusch and starring the late Anton Yelchin in one of his last screen roles, to German-speaking Europe (Mfa+) and Brazil (Fenix Filmes).
Porto tells a story of two outsiders in the titular Portuguese city who discover a passionate connection. Gabe Klinger’s narrative feature debut will premiere at San Sebastian Film Festival last this month and will also play in the BFI London Film Festival’s first feature competition.
The film is a co-production between Portugal (Bando À Parte), USA (Double Play Films), France (Gladys Glover) and Poland (Madants).
New Europe has also announced that Asaph Polonsky’s One Week And A Day has been picked up for Germany and Austria by Temperclay.
The film premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and won five prizes at the Jerusalem Film Festival...
Poland-based New Europe Film Sales has sold the newly acquired title Porto, executive-produced by Jim Jarmusch and starring the late Anton Yelchin in one of his last screen roles, to German-speaking Europe (Mfa+) and Brazil (Fenix Filmes).
Porto tells a story of two outsiders in the titular Portuguese city who discover a passionate connection. Gabe Klinger’s narrative feature debut will premiere at San Sebastian Film Festival last this month and will also play in the BFI London Film Festival’s first feature competition.
The film is a co-production between Portugal (Bando À Parte), USA (Double Play Films), France (Gladys Glover) and Poland (Madants).
New Europe has also announced that Asaph Polonsky’s One Week And A Day has been picked up for Germany and Austria by Temperclay.
The film premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and won five prizes at the Jerusalem Film Festival...
- 9/10/2016
- by tom.grater@screendaily.com (Tom Grater)
- ScreenDaily
NEWSPortoThe late summer film festival lineups are starting to be unveiled. Toronto, partially announced, already looks massive (highlights include new films directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Jonathan Demme, and, yes, Nick Cannon), San Sebastien has announced the 14 films in its New Directors competition, including Notebook contributor Gabe Klinger's sophomore film Porto, and the Venice Days unofficial sidebar of the Venice Film Festival has its full lineup online.Speaking of lists, Filmmaker Magazine has picked its "twenty five new faces of independent film."A petition has been posted online to save the historic Rko studio globe in Hollywood.Recommended READINGThe Criterion Collection has posted King Hu's notes made for the Cannes Film Festival screening of his prize-winning wuxia classic, A Touch of Zen:But when I started working on the scenario, I discovered that translating the concept of Zen into cinematic terms posed a great many difficulties. Not long afterward, I...
- 7/27/2016
- MUBI
One of the final performances from the late star to be seen as part of San Sebastian’s New Directors line-up.
San Sebastian Film Festival (Sept 16-24) has unveiled the 14 filmmakers set to compete for the Kutxabank-New Directors award, which comes with a prize of €50,000.
The strand, made up of first or second films from international filmmakers, includes Gabe Klinger’s Porto, which features one of the final performances of Anton Yelchin, who died last month.
The film, which stars Yelchin and Lucie Lucas as a young man and woman who have a romantic encounter, also features the voice of late director Chantal Akerman and is executive produced by Jim Jarmusch.
Porto marks Klinger’s narrative feature debut, having previously directed the Venice-award-winning documentary Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater.
Other titles in the strand hail from across Europe, South America and Asia.
New Directors Line-Up
Synopses provided by the festival:
Anishoara
Ana-Felicia Scutelnicu (Germany - Moldova...
San Sebastian Film Festival (Sept 16-24) has unveiled the 14 filmmakers set to compete for the Kutxabank-New Directors award, which comes with a prize of €50,000.
The strand, made up of first or second films from international filmmakers, includes Gabe Klinger’s Porto, which features one of the final performances of Anton Yelchin, who died last month.
The film, which stars Yelchin and Lucie Lucas as a young man and woman who have a romantic encounter, also features the voice of late director Chantal Akerman and is executive produced by Jim Jarmusch.
Porto marks Klinger’s narrative feature debut, having previously directed the Venice-award-winning documentary Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater.
Other titles in the strand hail from across Europe, South America and Asia.
New Directors Line-Up
Synopses provided by the festival:
Anishoara
Ana-Felicia Scutelnicu (Germany - Moldova...
- 7/26/2016
- ScreenDaily
A panel of film industry experts in Rotterdam shared experiences and tips of how best to tackle the festival circuit.
The “human factor” is all-important when making the most of your time at film festivals, according to a nine-strong panel of filmmakers, sales agents and festival reps at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (Iffr).
Speaking on one of this year’s first Iffr industry panels, the line-up told delegates that at a time of technological advance, where so much communication is carried out over laptops and phones, getting face-to-face time with people they may work with for years to come was all-important.
“Before a big festival, you put yourself under pressure as to everything you want to achieve, but you have to focus on watching great movies, meeting great people and being inspired,” said consultant Claudia Landsberger from BaseWorx For Film, previously head of Dutch film promotion outfit Eye International for 20 years.
Producer [link=nm...
The “human factor” is all-important when making the most of your time at film festivals, according to a nine-strong panel of filmmakers, sales agents and festival reps at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (Iffr).
Speaking on one of this year’s first Iffr industry panels, the line-up told delegates that at a time of technological advance, where so much communication is carried out over laptops and phones, getting face-to-face time with people they may work with for years to come was all-important.
“Before a big festival, you put yourself under pressure as to everything you want to achieve, but you have to focus on watching great movies, meeting great people and being inspired,” said consultant Claudia Landsberger from BaseWorx For Film, previously head of Dutch film promotion outfit Eye International for 20 years.
Producer [link=nm...
- 1/31/2016
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Writing for Screen, Geoffrey Macnab notes that the The 45th International Film Festival Rotterdam, running from January 27 through February 7, "opened last night with an unlikely infusion of glamor in the shape of 44-year-old Queen Maxima," attending the festival for the first time. We've collected an interview with the new festival director, Bero Beyer and, so far, reviews of the Iffr 2016 opener, Boudewijn Koole's Beyond Sleep, plus Felipe Guerrero’s Oscuro Animal and Fiona Tan's History's Future. Plus, De Filmkrant's Slow Criticism 2016, with contributions from Thomas Elsaesser, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Adrian Martin, Mark Cousins, Gabe Klinger and many more. » - David Hudson...
- 1/28/2016
- Keyframe
Writing for Screen, Geoffrey Macnab notes that the The 45th International Film Festival Rotterdam, running from January 27 through February 7, "opened last night with an unlikely infusion of glamor in the shape of 44-year-old Queen Maxima," attending the festival for the first time. We've collected an interview with the new festival director, Bero Beyer and, so far, reviews of the Iffr 2016 opener, Boudewijn Koole's Beyond Sleep, plus Felipe Guerrero’s Oscuro Animal and Fiona Tan's History's Future. Plus, De Filmkrant's Slow Criticism 2016, with contributions from Thomas Elsaesser, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Adrian Martin, Mark Cousins, Gabe Klinger and many more. » - David Hudson...
- 1/28/2016
- Fandor: Keyframe
Home to about seventeen million folks, the nation of Chile and more specifically its filmmakers are super well served by Park City programmers. While we have the Sebastián Silvas and Larraíns leading the charge, this hotbed country includes provocative, genre-bending, unique perspectives from a peer countryman/women. In 2012, Marialy Rivas was part of that wave with her grab them by the balls dramedy Young And Wild which would go onto win the World Dramatic Cinema Screenwriting Award. She surfaced for a special project, mini film Melody was part of the Sundance Institute Short Film Challenge. Production on third feature began earlier this year. Since then, she took La Princesita to the 2015 Sundance Institute Music and Sound Design Lab: Feature Film this July and this past September Rivas brought an unfinished copy to San Sebastian’s Films in Progress pix-in-post competition. Inspired by true events, this stars Sara Caballero, Marcelo Alonso,...
- 11/25/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Currently titled after Portuguese’s second largest city and favorite gross domestic product, this fictional feature debut comes from a name who has appeared in such publications as Sight & Sound, Film Comment, and Cinema Scope. Gabe Klinger saw his non-fiction feature debut played out on the Lido (Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater) and earlier this year he packed Lucie Lucas and Anton Yelchin (the narrator is the dearly departed Chantal Akerman) for a Portugal/Paris shoot on the failed love theme. Porto is another Champs-Elysées Film Festival (2015) Us in Progress selected project to be featured on our predictions list, this was filmed in multiple film formats and carries a distinct Euro feel and appeal.
Gist: Co-written by Klinger and Larry Gross, this is the story of the doomed romance between a man (Yelchin) and a woman (Lucas) set in Porto, Portugal.
Production Co./Producers: Rodrigo Areias (Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater...
Gist: Co-written by Klinger and Larry Gross, this is the story of the doomed romance between a man (Yelchin) and a woman (Lucas) set in Porto, Portugal.
Production Co./Producers: Rodrigo Areias (Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater...
- 11/25/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
While the nation of Greece undergoes vast economic reform and it’s unstable political climate is shaking the boat, there is a neat little output of filmmaking talents who are taking the international film festival circuit by storm. We might be adding the name of Sofia Exarchou to a list that includes Babis Makridis, Panos H. Koutras and Alexandros Avranas as Greek filmmakers to look out for. With a pair of shorts under her belt, work on her feature debut began in 2012, Park collected a slew of support in the Crossroads Cnc Development Prize, Thessaloniki 2012, Eurimages Development Award, Sarajevo 2013 and both of the Sundance Institute’s January Screenwriter’s Lab & June Director’s Lab. It was the recent winner of the work in progress at Karlovy Vary, so all signs point to a 2016 fest unveiling with Park City a strong possibility.
Gist: Nine years have passed, and the Olympic Village in Athens,...
Gist: Nine years have passed, and the Olympic Village in Athens,...
- 11/25/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
In this week's Village Voice, Melissa Anderson declares the Museum of the Moving Image's Maurice Pialat retrospective to be "one of the indispensable events of a cine-glutted fall season." We're collecting trailers and reviews: Dan Sallitt on Police and À nos amours, Adrian Martin on La gueule ouverte, Gabe Klinger on Sous le soleil de Satan and Jordan Cronk on Le garçu, plus interviews with Pialat, Sandrine Bonnaire and Jacques Rivette. A special screening's been added, too, the Us premiere of Joachim Lafosse's The White Knights, produced by Sylvie Pialat. » - David Hudson...
- 10/16/2015
- Keyframe
In this week's Village Voice, Melissa Anderson declares the Museum of the Moving Image's Maurice Pialat retrospective to be "one of the indispensable events of a cine-glutted fall season." We're collecting trailers and reviews: Dan Sallitt on Police and À nos amours, Adrian Martin on La gueule ouverte, Gabe Klinger on Sous le soleil de Satan and Jordan Cronk on Le garçu, plus interviews with Pialat, Sandrine Bonnaire and Jacques Rivette. A special screening's been added, too, the Us premiere of Joachim Lafosse's The White Knights, produced by Sylvie Pialat. » - David Hudson...
- 10/16/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
Us in Progress, developed in the framework of Champs Elysées Film Festival in Paris, is the first and only industry event devoted to U.S. indies in Europe. Its aim is to foster the circulation and distribution of films between U.S. and Europe.
The event takes place twice yearly: November at the American Film Festival in Wroclaw, Poland and June here in Paris.
Usually five or six films are selected, all in post production stag, and a jury then decides which will be given further support to finish the film. Sponsors give needed technical support to the winner.
The European trade publication Cineuropa conducted interviews with the co-Founder and Head of Us In Progress, Adeline Monzier, and with Jury Member and Cannes Marche du Film Executive, Julie Bergeron.
The winning film this year was "Diverge".
The team from runner up film here "Queen of Glory" is also interviewed below.
“Most American producers have no idea how to reach the European market”, Adeline Monzier , Founder and organizer, Us in Progress
by Claire La Combe
Cineuropa sat down with Adeline Monzier at Us in Progress Paris to discuss various aspects of both American and European indie film circulation.
Four years ago, when she was head of the Europa Distribution network, Adeline Monzier created Us in Progress, a program dedicated to low-budget U.S. indie films. Today, she is also in charge of the Unifrance office in New York and runs a production company, Black Rabbit Film. In Paris, Cineuropa took the opportunity to discuss various aspects of both American and European indie film circulation with her.
Cineuropa: Why set up a U..S indie event in Europe?
Adeline Monzier: I realized that most American producers had no idea how to reach the European market. Usually, they lack a distribution strategy, not doing the right things at the right time. Films weren’t able to have the run that they could have had. Us in Progress is based on that idea: we show a selection of films to European professionals before they hit the festival circuit. It is about raising awareness. We are focusing on very few films that we think can have a career in Europe or that are worth discovering.
Do you have any success stories?
We have a few success stories. For example, two years ago, we had "Ping Pong Summer" by Michael Tully: Films Boutique discovered the film here and picked up the rights; they knew it would be a niche film with a specific audience, but they sold it in a lot of territories… Not always theatrically… But in terms of revenues for the filmmaker, it was a very interesting deal.
What’s your opinion of the circulation of indie films?
American indies in Europe have a tough time because there are no subsidies to support the distribution of these movies. The European markets are so overwhelmed by American movies that for national bodies, it doesn’t make sense to support their circulation. When faced with a very good European film and a very good U.S. film, distributors will always pick the European one because they can get subsidies. That said, for the audience, American films still have an appeal. The English language will always be easier to sell… So there is ambivalence.
What about the European indies on the U.S. market?
European film is a very small market in the U.S… Foreign movies represent around 2% of the market share, and between 0.5% and 1% are French films. That means there is less space for non-French, non-American movies.
Why?
The American market is very strong and concentrated as well, as in Europe, and blockbusters draw in most of the audience. Plus, Americans are not at all used to subtitled films, and there is no dubbing, because it is too expensive[sic], except for animated films sometimes . (Editor, Sydney here: because Americans do not like dubbed films!)
Do you see any differences in terms of financing practices between Europe and the U.S.?
They are two very different systems. The entire system in the U.S. is based on private equity. You need to have the right connections. Also, the average production budget for an indie film is very low compared to a European film. But Americans are very resourceful; they can usually play several different roles in their films, from editing to producing, just because they want to achieve economies of scale, whereas in Europe, it is much rarer to have a director juggling different positions.
Do you think digitization has had an impact on film circulation?
It is definitely easier for indie filmmakers to distribute their films nowadays. They have access to platforms and VOD. A lot of independent directors now use the day-and-date release because theaters enable you to raise awareness about the film and to help the audience to go and see the film on VOD. Still, income from VOD is very low for independent films. With digital, the problem remains the same! You have to market a film; if you don’t have the money to promote the film, then it is going to be lost within the platform.
Can we predict that digital will foster a common system between the Us and Europe in terms of producing?
No; the markets are too diverse. A lot of European filmmakers go to the Us to shoot because they want to enjoy the freedom of not having the old subsidy system schemes. On the other hand, you have American filmmakers looking for European producers in order to benefit from the whole funding system. So today, there are a lot more cross-connections, but the systems are very different, and I don’t think they will merge, even with digital.
“The biggest challenge is to make a film that will circulate and find an audience”
Julie Bergeron, Cannes Film Market, member of the Us in Progress jury
by Claire La Combe
Cineuropa sat down with Julie Bergeron at Us in Progress Paris to discuss support for independent film and its future prospects
On Wednesday night, the American film "Diverge" by James Morrison was awarded the Us in Progress Award. Just after the ceremony, Cineuropa met up with one of the jury members, Julie Bergeron, head of industry programs at the Cannes Film Market. She elaborated on her views on the topic of support for independent film and its future prospects.
Cineuropa: Why are you part of the Us in Progress jury?
Julie Bergeron: There is a lot of interest in seeing films from Us independents; it is always interesting to look out for films that are made on a low budget and with strong stories. We support the winning producers by offering an accreditation for the Producers’ Network at Cannes to help them to pursue meetings and networking, and hopefully find distribution for their films.
Have you seen any kind of evolution in the selections?
Yes. It seems that they are receiving more and more projects. It is an event that is now well known in the U.S. and Europe. With the link to Poland and the event happening twice a year, we saw an evolution in the diversity of the projects. This year, the diversity was very strong, with a horror-comedy film, a sci-fi movie and an Lgbt romance.
Do you think all of this diversity has a place in the next Producers’ Network?
Yes, of course! We welcome 200 producers at the Breakfast Meetings every morning in Cannes, and they come from all over the world. It is a place where they wish to connect with sales agents, financiers and potential partners to network and discuss their projects. The idea is specifically to support producers who want to connect with the international market. That is the biggest challenge for every filmmaker: to make a movie that will attract a larger audience than in its own country.
Do you see any similarities between American and European independent films?
They are different because in Europe, there is a lot of public support for films, and there is a strong tradition of the author-driven movie. In the U.S., the independents have to find private financing for the films. Plus, they don’t have access to any co-production, because there are no co-production treaties in the Us, whereas in Europe, the movies can access funding from many territories. The Us independents are very much on their own when it comes to financing their films.
What kind of qualities was the jury looking for in the winning film?
We had a lot of discussions; the stages of the presented films were not the same. "Diverge" is the one we found to be the most advanced: it is a low-budget film, and the story – while there is some work still to be done – is really there. There are a lot of genre-film festivals, and hopefully the movie will travel. And also, I think that a young audience driven by sci-fi and genre would like it.
Do you think such an event should be created for European films in America?
I’m not sure; it would be difficult… If a European film does not find a sales agent in Europe, it might be difficult to find one in the USA. The movie would need to have a strong “American” sensibility… There are some work-in-progress (Wip) experiences in Latin America, and they work well. But in Latin America, they don’t have a lot of sales agents; they have to show their films anyway to break through, as they have no alternative. Europeans are more reluctant to show a film that is not yet finished, especially those who are in countries with a strong production capacity. Now the market goes really fast, the windows for the films are getting smaller and smaller, and you have to be sure whenever you show the film that it is the best way to present it to professionals… But wait… I’m not saying that such an event shouldn’t exist!
How do you see the future of the independent film industry?
I think there will always be filmmakers making films independently because it’s a strong medium for expression. In fact, it’s the strongest: you have the sound, the image, the music, the story… You have everything!
Who will be financing them?
Well, you still have strong companies! My hope is that companies that own the distribution platforms, like VoD players, Netflix and all these people, will start investing in the creation process. Canal+ in France takes part in the financing, so if we can bring these “pipes” to invest in the content, then we have a chance, and they are starting to do so, slowly. But it is going to be increasingly driven by big audiences. The pressure there for the kind of independent films that we saw at Us in Progress is enormous. If these small films are not picked up by a big festival and noticed by the industry, their chances of finding distribution are tiny.
"European audiences are more film-educated"
Us in Progress Filmmakers Speak Up
by Claire La Combe
Cineuropa sat down with Jamund Washington ("Queen of Glory"), Nana Mensah ("Queen of Glory"), Baff Akoto ("Queen of Glory") and Gabe Klinger ("Porto, Mon Amour") at Us in Progress Paris to chat about the current and future independent film environment
The four young filmmakers, all living and working in New York City but hailing from diverse backgrounds ranging from Ghana to Brazil, via London, exchanged their opinions on the current and future independent film environment during a chat characterized by idealization and a smidgen of pessimism.
Cineuropa: What is your opinion of film festivals? What role do they play?
Jamund Washington: Anything that gets people to go and sit and watch your story is great.
Nana Mensah: At this point, in the way the game has been shaped, it would not be possible to make independent films without festivals; they are great entry points for films outside the system. There is a sort of renaissance that allows people like me to make films now – the barriers are lower.
Why come here to Paris, to Europe?
Nm: In Paris, I can put my fingers on the pulse of European culture. I think "Queen of Glory" has more meaning here than perhaps in an American market. With its visual aspects and its African topic, our film has links with Europe. We have already received such a warm reception here in France, so I’m hoping that will continue.
Jw: European audiences are more film-educated. We feel like the audience will better understand the stage that we are now at. Not that there are no places where you can find that audience in the United States… I’m just generalising.
Gabe Klinger: Parisian moviegoers are the most sophisticated in the world, and that’s a fact! No one can contest that.
Baff Akoto: The French would contest that (laughs). But seriously, film is culture here, as opposed to predominantly entertainment, which is the case in the Us.
Jw: Yes, culture in the Us is like a small subculture of big entertainment.
Do you have an opinion on the European film-financing system?
BA: I know that the co-production financing system is good. And the soft money in Europe attracts everybody in America from big studio productions to small indie films because it allows a lot of projects to get made that would not necessarily find money. And it provides a framework, too, alternatives that are available for films that would never get financed in America.
How do you feel about digitisation?
BA: In England, a lot of films only get the chance to break out because of digital prints. Anything that helps smaller films to become more visible is good.
Gk: I’m going to be the contrarian. Because digital is not an archival medium, and so we are risking losing all the digital information in 25 years, all these files and DCPs can be corrupted and become inaccessible. In terms of circulation, digital is going to be your best friend, but still… For Porto Mon Amour, we will use digital distribution and on-film copies. It is a luxury; a lot of producers would spend the money on something else. It is the way I want to engage with an audience that still appreciates watching a movie on film. It’s just more expensive.
How do you see the future for independent films?
Jw: I wish I knew – it would make my life a lot easier.
BA: Netflix!
Jw: I don’t know; I think a lot of stuff is going to happen… We should just keep telling stories.
Gk: It is exciting because there is a lot of demand for content right now, and that’s because of the new platform for distribution. Unfortunately, most of it is not in theaters… We will see… The pessimist in me says that the content we are producing now is not going to live very long in cinemas.
BA: Cinema is not going to die, though. No one goes to church, and people still go to the cinema; it is the one place where we still commune.
The event takes place twice yearly: November at the American Film Festival in Wroclaw, Poland and June here in Paris.
Usually five or six films are selected, all in post production stag, and a jury then decides which will be given further support to finish the film. Sponsors give needed technical support to the winner.
The European trade publication Cineuropa conducted interviews with the co-Founder and Head of Us In Progress, Adeline Monzier, and with Jury Member and Cannes Marche du Film Executive, Julie Bergeron.
The winning film this year was "Diverge".
The team from runner up film here "Queen of Glory" is also interviewed below.
“Most American producers have no idea how to reach the European market”, Adeline Monzier , Founder and organizer, Us in Progress
by Claire La Combe
Cineuropa sat down with Adeline Monzier at Us in Progress Paris to discuss various aspects of both American and European indie film circulation.
Four years ago, when she was head of the Europa Distribution network, Adeline Monzier created Us in Progress, a program dedicated to low-budget U.S. indie films. Today, she is also in charge of the Unifrance office in New York and runs a production company, Black Rabbit Film. In Paris, Cineuropa took the opportunity to discuss various aspects of both American and European indie film circulation with her.
Cineuropa: Why set up a U..S indie event in Europe?
Adeline Monzier: I realized that most American producers had no idea how to reach the European market. Usually, they lack a distribution strategy, not doing the right things at the right time. Films weren’t able to have the run that they could have had. Us in Progress is based on that idea: we show a selection of films to European professionals before they hit the festival circuit. It is about raising awareness. We are focusing on very few films that we think can have a career in Europe or that are worth discovering.
Do you have any success stories?
We have a few success stories. For example, two years ago, we had "Ping Pong Summer" by Michael Tully: Films Boutique discovered the film here and picked up the rights; they knew it would be a niche film with a specific audience, but they sold it in a lot of territories… Not always theatrically… But in terms of revenues for the filmmaker, it was a very interesting deal.
What’s your opinion of the circulation of indie films?
American indies in Europe have a tough time because there are no subsidies to support the distribution of these movies. The European markets are so overwhelmed by American movies that for national bodies, it doesn’t make sense to support their circulation. When faced with a very good European film and a very good U.S. film, distributors will always pick the European one because they can get subsidies. That said, for the audience, American films still have an appeal. The English language will always be easier to sell… So there is ambivalence.
What about the European indies on the U.S. market?
European film is a very small market in the U.S… Foreign movies represent around 2% of the market share, and between 0.5% and 1% are French films. That means there is less space for non-French, non-American movies.
Why?
The American market is very strong and concentrated as well, as in Europe, and blockbusters draw in most of the audience. Plus, Americans are not at all used to subtitled films, and there is no dubbing, because it is too expensive[sic], except for animated films sometimes . (Editor, Sydney here: because Americans do not like dubbed films!)
Do you see any differences in terms of financing practices between Europe and the U.S.?
They are two very different systems. The entire system in the U.S. is based on private equity. You need to have the right connections. Also, the average production budget for an indie film is very low compared to a European film. But Americans are very resourceful; they can usually play several different roles in their films, from editing to producing, just because they want to achieve economies of scale, whereas in Europe, it is much rarer to have a director juggling different positions.
Do you think digitization has had an impact on film circulation?
It is definitely easier for indie filmmakers to distribute their films nowadays. They have access to platforms and VOD. A lot of independent directors now use the day-and-date release because theaters enable you to raise awareness about the film and to help the audience to go and see the film on VOD. Still, income from VOD is very low for independent films. With digital, the problem remains the same! You have to market a film; if you don’t have the money to promote the film, then it is going to be lost within the platform.
Can we predict that digital will foster a common system between the Us and Europe in terms of producing?
No; the markets are too diverse. A lot of European filmmakers go to the Us to shoot because they want to enjoy the freedom of not having the old subsidy system schemes. On the other hand, you have American filmmakers looking for European producers in order to benefit from the whole funding system. So today, there are a lot more cross-connections, but the systems are very different, and I don’t think they will merge, even with digital.
“The biggest challenge is to make a film that will circulate and find an audience”
Julie Bergeron, Cannes Film Market, member of the Us in Progress jury
by Claire La Combe
Cineuropa sat down with Julie Bergeron at Us in Progress Paris to discuss support for independent film and its future prospects
On Wednesday night, the American film "Diverge" by James Morrison was awarded the Us in Progress Award. Just after the ceremony, Cineuropa met up with one of the jury members, Julie Bergeron, head of industry programs at the Cannes Film Market. She elaborated on her views on the topic of support for independent film and its future prospects.
Cineuropa: Why are you part of the Us in Progress jury?
Julie Bergeron: There is a lot of interest in seeing films from Us independents; it is always interesting to look out for films that are made on a low budget and with strong stories. We support the winning producers by offering an accreditation for the Producers’ Network at Cannes to help them to pursue meetings and networking, and hopefully find distribution for their films.
Have you seen any kind of evolution in the selections?
Yes. It seems that they are receiving more and more projects. It is an event that is now well known in the U.S. and Europe. With the link to Poland and the event happening twice a year, we saw an evolution in the diversity of the projects. This year, the diversity was very strong, with a horror-comedy film, a sci-fi movie and an Lgbt romance.
Do you think all of this diversity has a place in the next Producers’ Network?
Yes, of course! We welcome 200 producers at the Breakfast Meetings every morning in Cannes, and they come from all over the world. It is a place where they wish to connect with sales agents, financiers and potential partners to network and discuss their projects. The idea is specifically to support producers who want to connect with the international market. That is the biggest challenge for every filmmaker: to make a movie that will attract a larger audience than in its own country.
Do you see any similarities between American and European independent films?
They are different because in Europe, there is a lot of public support for films, and there is a strong tradition of the author-driven movie. In the U.S., the independents have to find private financing for the films. Plus, they don’t have access to any co-production, because there are no co-production treaties in the Us, whereas in Europe, the movies can access funding from many territories. The Us independents are very much on their own when it comes to financing their films.
What kind of qualities was the jury looking for in the winning film?
We had a lot of discussions; the stages of the presented films were not the same. "Diverge" is the one we found to be the most advanced: it is a low-budget film, and the story – while there is some work still to be done – is really there. There are a lot of genre-film festivals, and hopefully the movie will travel. And also, I think that a young audience driven by sci-fi and genre would like it.
Do you think such an event should be created for European films in America?
I’m not sure; it would be difficult… If a European film does not find a sales agent in Europe, it might be difficult to find one in the USA. The movie would need to have a strong “American” sensibility… There are some work-in-progress (Wip) experiences in Latin America, and they work well. But in Latin America, they don’t have a lot of sales agents; they have to show their films anyway to break through, as they have no alternative. Europeans are more reluctant to show a film that is not yet finished, especially those who are in countries with a strong production capacity. Now the market goes really fast, the windows for the films are getting smaller and smaller, and you have to be sure whenever you show the film that it is the best way to present it to professionals… But wait… I’m not saying that such an event shouldn’t exist!
How do you see the future of the independent film industry?
I think there will always be filmmakers making films independently because it’s a strong medium for expression. In fact, it’s the strongest: you have the sound, the image, the music, the story… You have everything!
Who will be financing them?
Well, you still have strong companies! My hope is that companies that own the distribution platforms, like VoD players, Netflix and all these people, will start investing in the creation process. Canal+ in France takes part in the financing, so if we can bring these “pipes” to invest in the content, then we have a chance, and they are starting to do so, slowly. But it is going to be increasingly driven by big audiences. The pressure there for the kind of independent films that we saw at Us in Progress is enormous. If these small films are not picked up by a big festival and noticed by the industry, their chances of finding distribution are tiny.
"European audiences are more film-educated"
Us in Progress Filmmakers Speak Up
by Claire La Combe
Cineuropa sat down with Jamund Washington ("Queen of Glory"), Nana Mensah ("Queen of Glory"), Baff Akoto ("Queen of Glory") and Gabe Klinger ("Porto, Mon Amour") at Us in Progress Paris to chat about the current and future independent film environment
The four young filmmakers, all living and working in New York City but hailing from diverse backgrounds ranging from Ghana to Brazil, via London, exchanged their opinions on the current and future independent film environment during a chat characterized by idealization and a smidgen of pessimism.
Cineuropa: What is your opinion of film festivals? What role do they play?
Jamund Washington: Anything that gets people to go and sit and watch your story is great.
Nana Mensah: At this point, in the way the game has been shaped, it would not be possible to make independent films without festivals; they are great entry points for films outside the system. There is a sort of renaissance that allows people like me to make films now – the barriers are lower.
Why come here to Paris, to Europe?
Nm: In Paris, I can put my fingers on the pulse of European culture. I think "Queen of Glory" has more meaning here than perhaps in an American market. With its visual aspects and its African topic, our film has links with Europe. We have already received such a warm reception here in France, so I’m hoping that will continue.
Jw: European audiences are more film-educated. We feel like the audience will better understand the stage that we are now at. Not that there are no places where you can find that audience in the United States… I’m just generalising.
Gabe Klinger: Parisian moviegoers are the most sophisticated in the world, and that’s a fact! No one can contest that.
Baff Akoto: The French would contest that (laughs). But seriously, film is culture here, as opposed to predominantly entertainment, which is the case in the Us.
Jw: Yes, culture in the Us is like a small subculture of big entertainment.
Do you have an opinion on the European film-financing system?
BA: I know that the co-production financing system is good. And the soft money in Europe attracts everybody in America from big studio productions to small indie films because it allows a lot of projects to get made that would not necessarily find money. And it provides a framework, too, alternatives that are available for films that would never get financed in America.
How do you feel about digitisation?
BA: In England, a lot of films only get the chance to break out because of digital prints. Anything that helps smaller films to become more visible is good.
Gk: I’m going to be the contrarian. Because digital is not an archival medium, and so we are risking losing all the digital information in 25 years, all these files and DCPs can be corrupted and become inaccessible. In terms of circulation, digital is going to be your best friend, but still… For Porto Mon Amour, we will use digital distribution and on-film copies. It is a luxury; a lot of producers would spend the money on something else. It is the way I want to engage with an audience that still appreciates watching a movie on film. It’s just more expensive.
How do you see the future for independent films?
Jw: I wish I knew – it would make my life a lot easier.
BA: Netflix!
Jw: I don’t know; I think a lot of stuff is going to happen… We should just keep telling stories.
Gk: It is exciting because there is a lot of demand for content right now, and that’s because of the new platform for distribution. Unfortunately, most of it is not in theaters… We will see… The pessimist in me says that the content we are producing now is not going to live very long in cinemas.
BA: Cinema is not going to die, though. No one goes to church, and people still go to the cinema; it is the one place where we still commune.
- 6/15/2015
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
Sci-fi thriller wins fourth edition of Us indie showcase in Paris.
James Morrison’s debut sci-fi thriller Diverge has won the fourth edition of indie showcase Us in Progress in Paris.
The time-warp drama revolves around the survivor of a global catastrophe who is given a chance to reclaim his lost former life by stopping the man who caused the cataclysmic event - himself.
It is debut feature for Morrison after shorts Stay True and Little Brother, which travelled the North American festival circuit.
The Paris Us in Progress showcase – a joint initiative between the American Film Festival in Wroclaw, Champs-Élysées Film Festival in Paris and Black Rabbit Film – aims to connect upcoming Us independent films with distributors and sales agents in Europe.
Last year’s winner, Benjamin Dickinson’s Creative Control premiered at SXSW, where it took the Special Jury Recognition for Visual Excellence award, before being picked up for international sales by Paris-based The Coproduction...
James Morrison’s debut sci-fi thriller Diverge has won the fourth edition of indie showcase Us in Progress in Paris.
The time-warp drama revolves around the survivor of a global catastrophe who is given a chance to reclaim his lost former life by stopping the man who caused the cataclysmic event - himself.
It is debut feature for Morrison after shorts Stay True and Little Brother, which travelled the North American festival circuit.
The Paris Us in Progress showcase – a joint initiative between the American Film Festival in Wroclaw, Champs-Élysées Film Festival in Paris and Black Rabbit Film – aims to connect upcoming Us independent films with distributors and sales agents in Europe.
Last year’s winner, Benjamin Dickinson’s Creative Control premiered at SXSW, where it took the Special Jury Recognition for Visual Excellence award, before being picked up for international sales by Paris-based The Coproduction...
- 6/12/2015
- ScreenDaily
In Cannes the pervasive mood of buzz and business really begs for comedy, and Yorgos Lanthimos's English-language debut The Lobster, so far the best film in the competition, was a much-needed intervention of the absurd at the festival. This came additionally as a surprise to me because I've never been a fan of the Greek director of Dogtooth and Alps, preferring instead the work by his producer, Athina Rachel Tsangari, who made Attenburg. But in a festival whose thread of a theme this year of the intrinsic human difficulty of romantic relationships (In the Shadow of Women, My Golden Days, Carol), The Lobster wonderfully refracts these concerns of grave emotional drama into a precise, gimmick-bound dark comedy. Surprisingly touching, it takes adult worries over loneliness, solitude and coupledom and sends them into a perverse alternate world where single people are punished for their social status by being sent to...
- 5/16/2015
- by Daniel Kasman
- MUBI
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