Exclusive: New film from Travis Mathews heading to Benelux.
M-Appeal has closed a deal on Discreet directed by Travis Mathews with Zeno Pictures for the Benelux.
Mathews is this year’s president of the Queer Palm jury in Cannes who directed the 2014 drama Interior. Leather Bar.(pictured)with James Franco (who also starrred) reimagining the cut sex scenes from controversial 1980 gay thriller Cruising.
Discreet centres on an eccentric drifter who, after years in hiding as he struggled to control his demons, plots revenge when he returns home to discovers that his childhood abuser is still alive.
As the armed man prepares to carry out his plan, he must navigate through the perilous land of masculine fragility in modern-day America.
M-Appeal has closed a deal on Discreet directed by Travis Mathews with Zeno Pictures for the Benelux.
Mathews is this year’s president of the Queer Palm jury in Cannes who directed the 2014 drama Interior. Leather Bar.(pictured)with James Franco (who also starrred) reimagining the cut sex scenes from controversial 1980 gay thriller Cruising.
Discreet centres on an eccentric drifter who, after years in hiding as he struggled to control his demons, plots revenge when he returns home to discovers that his childhood abuser is still alive.
As the armed man prepares to carry out his plan, he must navigate through the perilous land of masculine fragility in modern-day America.
- 5/22/2017
- by geoffrey@macnab.demon.co.uk (Geoffrey Macnab)
- ScreenDaily
Over the last seven years, The San Francisco Film Society (now known simply at Sffilm) has become one the largest nonprofit supporters of independent and documentary film having doled out over $800,000 to individual films in 2016. With targeted and flexible filmmaking grants the SFFilm Maker program has been able to give individual films a significant financial boost when they need it most – ranging from before the script is written all the way to the sound mix.
Read More: San Francisco’s Master Plan to Keep Film Relevant In the 21st Century — Sf International Film Festival
Having played a critical role in successful films like “Short Term 12,” “Beasts of the Southern Wild” and “Fruitvale Station” getting made, Sffs’s support has also come to signal to the rest of the film world that a project is worth tracking.
However, the film society’s mission goes beyond being a key cog in...
Read More: San Francisco’s Master Plan to Keep Film Relevant In the 21st Century — Sf International Film Festival
Having played a critical role in successful films like “Short Term 12,” “Beasts of the Southern Wild” and “Fruitvale Station” getting made, Sffs’s support has also come to signal to the rest of the film world that a project is worth tracking.
However, the film society’s mission goes beyond being a key cog in...
- 4/6/2017
- by Chris O'Falt
- Indiewire
Exclusive: M-Appeal closes series of deals on sales slate.
Berlin-based M-Appeal World Sales has confirmed a raft of sales on its current slate.
Among the deals, the company has sold Body Electric [pictured] by Marcelo Caetano and Discreet by Travis Mathews to Peccadillo Pictures for the UK and Ireland. Both titles are screening in Guadalajara at the moment, and Body Electric will screen at BFI Flare later this week.
“It’s a pleasure to be working with M-Appeal on the fabulous Body Electric which will have its UK premiere at BFI Flare and the astonishing Discreet by Travis Mathews. Body Electric adds beautifully to our catalogue of South American and especially Brazilian cinema, whereas Discreet demonstrates the outstanding talent of Travis Mathews,” Peccadillo Pictures’ managing director Tom Abell commented.
M-Appeal has also closed further deals on its slate of titles.
Jonathan by Piotr J. Lewandowski and Take Me For A Ride by Micaela Ruedahave have both gone to...
Berlin-based M-Appeal World Sales has confirmed a raft of sales on its current slate.
Among the deals, the company has sold Body Electric [pictured] by Marcelo Caetano and Discreet by Travis Mathews to Peccadillo Pictures for the UK and Ireland. Both titles are screening in Guadalajara at the moment, and Body Electric will screen at BFI Flare later this week.
“It’s a pleasure to be working with M-Appeal on the fabulous Body Electric which will have its UK premiere at BFI Flare and the astonishing Discreet by Travis Mathews. Body Electric adds beautifully to our catalogue of South American and especially Brazilian cinema, whereas Discreet demonstrates the outstanding talent of Travis Mathews,” Peccadillo Pictures’ managing director Tom Abell commented.
M-Appeal has also closed further deals on its slate of titles.
Jonathan by Piotr J. Lewandowski and Take Me For A Ride by Micaela Ruedahave have both gone to...
- 3/15/2017
- by geoffrey@macnab.demon.co.uk (Geoffrey Macnab)
- ScreenDaily
Childhood abuse affects its victims in myriad and often abstract ways. The disparate images and mysterious female voiceover that provide Travis Mathews’ “Discreet” its illusory opening do eventually come together, like the concentric cycles of abuse and pain experienced by its woeful protagonist, Alex (Jonny Mars).
A drifter and filmmaker, Alex travels the country in a dark blue van shooting footage of highways. On a passing visit to his unstable mother, he learns that the man who abused him is living in a small cabin on the outskirts of the rural Texas town where his mother lives. Seeking out the older man, Alex finds a severely incapacitated John (Bab Swaffar), complete with an involuntary twitch in his left arm and a vacant stare.
John is a ghoulish cartoon of a predator; even in his weakened state, his fluffy white beard, ruddy red nose, and lanky frame tower over Alex. Facing...
A drifter and filmmaker, Alex travels the country in a dark blue van shooting footage of highways. On a passing visit to his unstable mother, he learns that the man who abused him is living in a small cabin on the outskirts of the rural Texas town where his mother lives. Seeking out the older man, Alex finds a severely incapacitated John (Bab Swaffar), complete with an involuntary twitch in his left arm and a vacant stare.
John is a ghoulish cartoon of a predator; even in his weakened state, his fluffy white beard, ruddy red nose, and lanky frame tower over Alex. Facing...
- 2/19/2017
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
Discreet is a psychological thriller about a mentally disturbed drifter, who in returning home to Texas to make amends with an alcoholic mother, is confronted with a haunted past. Desperate to deal with his demons, Alex sets out to avenge the source, while engaging in psychosexual rendezvous with various strangers along the way. Flashbacks to abusive scenes, creepy motivational videos and images of a floating dead body, blur the lines between reality and fantasy in this thought-provoking, twisted mystery.
The film made its World Premier at the Berlinale film festival this past week, giving us a chance to meet and chat with director, Travis Mathews (Interior Leather Bar and I Want Your Love). In speaking with Mathews, one can easily detect his fascination with exploring taboo topics and delving into the deeper psyche of his characters, which explains his psychology background. He was very insightful as we touched upon several topics,...
The film made its World Premier at the Berlinale film festival this past week, giving us a chance to meet and chat with director, Travis Mathews (Interior Leather Bar and I Want Your Love). In speaking with Mathews, one can easily detect his fascination with exploring taboo topics and delving into the deeper psyche of his characters, which explains his psychology background. He was very insightful as we touched upon several topics,...
- 2/18/2017
- by Jenny Karakaya
- LRMonline.com
Growing up in the 1990s, there certainly wasn’t a lack of big budget tentpole films. We had movies like Jurassic Park, Terminator 2, Independence Day, Men in Black, The Matrix, and many other classics. Though while we may have had our fair share of blockbusters, they don’t compare to what we have today — in quantity or scale. We not only have well over a dozen of them a year, but they all have budgets that dwarf those from my heyday as a youngster (even when taking inflation into account). You can look at the current superhero boom, and it’s rare to find a film that has a budget under $150 million.
In this crowded ecosystem of superhero movies, 20th Century Fox will be letting not just one, but two films within the past year or so that go against the grain of “bigger and better.” Last year’s Deadpool...
In this crowded ecosystem of superhero movies, 20th Century Fox will be letting not just one, but two films within the past year or so that go against the grain of “bigger and better.” Last year’s Deadpool...
- 2/16/2017
- by Joseph Medina
- LRMonline.com
In the months leading up to the 2016 presidential election, there was a sharp national focus on modern masculinity and how it’s supposedly threatened by rising forces in identity politics. Travis Mathews explores that idea in his new film ‘Discreet,” about an eccentric drifter who returns home after years in hiding to discover that his childhood abuser is still alive. Soon he plots his revenge while he navigates an uncomfortable landscape. Check out an exclusive poster for the film below.
Read More: Berlinale 2017 Will Premiere ‘Logan,’ ‘Trainspotting: T2,’ and Hong Sangsoo’s Latest
“‘Discreet’ began as a moody cautionary tale,” says Mathews, “a nightmare warning to what discretion — in its many forms — might bring. Over [the summer of 2015], then into 2016, crystallizing with the Us presidential election, it became increasingly clear that the monster built from years of fear mongering was no longer under anyone’s control. Unhinged, it would answer to no one,...
Read More: Berlinale 2017 Will Premiere ‘Logan,’ ‘Trainspotting: T2,’ and Hong Sangsoo’s Latest
“‘Discreet’ began as a moody cautionary tale,” says Mathews, “a nightmare warning to what discretion — in its many forms — might bring. Over [the summer of 2015], then into 2016, crystallizing with the Us presidential election, it became increasingly clear that the monster built from years of fear mongering was no longer under anyone’s control. Unhinged, it would answer to no one,...
- 1/25/2017
- by Vikram Murthi
- Indiewire
Berlin’s Panorama lineup also includes new films from Us, China and Brazil.
Berlin’s Panorama strand is now complete following the addition of 24 additional titles.
A total of 51 works from 43 countries have been chosen for screening in the section, including 21 in Panorama Dokumente and 29 feature films in the main programme and Panorama Special. 36 of these films will be getting their world premieres at the Berlinale.
The German production Tiger Girl by Jakob Lass will open this year’s edition of Panorama Special at Berlin’s Zoo Palast cinema, along with the previously announced Brazilian production Vazante.
Among newly confirmed films are UK Sundance title God’s Own Country, Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name, Cate Shortland’s Berlin Syndrome, feminist fairy tale The Misandrists by Berlinale regular Bruce Labruce, Erik Poppe’s The King’s Choice and Belgian-French-Lebanese co-production Insyriated which stars Hiam Abbass as a woman trapped in an apartment during war.[p...
Berlin’s Panorama strand is now complete following the addition of 24 additional titles.
A total of 51 works from 43 countries have been chosen for screening in the section, including 21 in Panorama Dokumente and 29 feature films in the main programme and Panorama Special. 36 of these films will be getting their world premieres at the Berlinale.
The German production Tiger Girl by Jakob Lass will open this year’s edition of Panorama Special at Berlin’s Zoo Palast cinema, along with the previously announced Brazilian production Vazante.
Among newly confirmed films are UK Sundance title God’s Own Country, Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name, Cate Shortland’s Berlin Syndrome, feminist fairy tale The Misandrists by Berlinale regular Bruce Labruce, Erik Poppe’s The King’s Choice and Belgian-French-Lebanese co-production Insyriated which stars Hiam Abbass as a woman trapped in an apartment during war.[p...
- 1/25/2017
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
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
Slowly moving away from the docu world, but keeping with real life subjects, filmmaker Travis Mathews first gained entry into Sundance with the New Frontier played Interior. Leather Bar. back in 2013. Fast-forward a couple of years and he might be headed there again. While Oscillate Wildly has been on the Sffs/Krf fast track and landing several West Coast grants and it was reported that shooting took place during the summer, unless this was shot completely off the radar, we believe we’re a tad too early with this one. If not, then we called it.
Gist: Written by Travis Mathews and Keith Wilson, Ben is a hot-headed young gay man with a mild form of spastic cerebral palsy that expresses itself in his swaying walk and intermittent muscle spasms. He lives a solitary and routine life in a working-class neighborhood of Austin, Texas, with no family and few friends.
Gist: Written by Travis Mathews and Keith Wilson, Ben is a hot-headed young gay man with a mild form of spastic cerebral palsy that expresses itself in his swaying walk and intermittent muscle spasms. He lives a solitary and routine life in a working-class neighborhood of Austin, Texas, with no family and few friends.
- 11/25/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Despite being a first time feature filmmaker, if Sophie Goodhart were to get into Sundance…it wouldn’t be her first visit. She started off in the biz when her 2003 short was accepted into Cannes Palme d’Or short comp, but Goodhart was 1/3rd of the scribes involved in the Sundance Film Fest’s Next section selected Homewrecker from directors Todd and Brad Barnes. Shot in Cleveland this past May, she took the basis and the title of her short film and lined up a feature version of it with an attention grabbing cast: Adam Scott, Jenny Slate and Nick Kroll. My Blind Brother is the sort of material that might actually fall into the U.S. Dramatic Comp which recently proved that you don’t need to be a strict drama to be included in that category, but a Premieres directorial debut could also be in the cards.
Gist:...
Gist:...
- 11/25/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Eight filmmaking teams receive the grants to push their projects into the next stage of their creative process, from screenwriting to production. Awarded twice annually, the grants are intended for narrative features that impact the burgeoning Bay Area film community. These are promising projects to watch for. Past films have enjoyed indie success on the festival circuit and theatrically, including Ira Sachs' "Love Is Strange," Destin Cretton's "Short Term 12," Ryan Coogler's "Fruitvale Station," which went all the way to win a Cannes prize, and Benh Zeitlin's Best Picture-nominated "Beasts of the Southern Wild." Read More: Melissa Leo Joins James Franco in Ian Olds' Wartime Drama "The Fixer" Several of this year's winners, from Travis Mathews to Ian Olds, already have considerable traction in the indie film scene and received Film Society backing in 2014. Also, "Jones" writer/director Sally El Hosaini was Sffs's...
- 5/28/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
If you’re looking for a comprehensive overview of the not so distant future in American indie film, a reliable sampling is usually found in the bi-annual Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grants finalist (and future winners) lists. Grants will be awarded next month, but this finalists’ list overviews a look into the 2016-17 pool of talent and feature films. Among the trio of items that are in various stages of production and we’re keeping tabs on, we have Ian Olds (docu helmer of Fixer: The Taking of Ajmal Naqshbandi) who moved into fiction feature filmmaking with The Fixer. Produced by Caroline von Kuhn (Camden Int. Film Fest Managing Director and docu field expert), this is said to include supporting players in the shape of Melissa Leo and James Franco. And speaking of Franco…, Travis Mathews from Interior. Leather Bar. fame has Oscillate Wildly next in line. Beasts of the Southern Wild...
- 4/10/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
15 finalists are up for San Francisco Film Society/Kenneth Rainin Foundation grants. Up to $300,000 will be awarded to one or more narrative feature films now in various stages of production. These grants are given out twice annually, and the spring 2015 recipients will be announced in May. These are promising projects to watch for. Past films have enjoyed indie success on the festival circuit and theatrically, including Ira Sachs' "Love Is Strange," Destin Cretton's "Short Term 12," Ryan Coogler's "Fruitvale Station," which went all the way to win a Cannes prize, and Benh Zeitlin's Best Picture-nominated "Beasts of the Southern Wild." There are a few familiar names on this list with their next projects, like documentary filmmaker Jesse Moss ("The Overnighters"), Ian Olds ("The Fixer," starring James Franco), Travis Mathews, who co-directed "Interior Leather Bar" with Franco, and Boots Riley, the frontman of hip...
- 4/9/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
The San Francisco Film Society (Sffs) and Kenneth Rainin Foundation (Krf) have selected the finallists for the latest round of Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grants.
Up to $300,000 will be awarded to one or more narrative feature film projects at various stages of production. Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grants are awarded twice annually to narrative feature films that will have “significant economic or professional impact on the Bay Area filmmaking community.”
To date more than $2.8m has been awarded since the launch of the Film Society’s flagship grant programme in 2009. Winners of the spring 2015 Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grants will be announced in May.
Spring 2015 Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grant Finallists
Blustar – Stella Kyriakopoulos, co-writer-director and Margaret Shin, co-writer
Screenwriting
Chickenshit – Jessica dela Merced, writer-director
Screenwriting
The Fixer – Ian Olds, writer-director, and Caroline von Kuhn, producer
Production
Freeland – Mario Furloni and Kate McLean, co-writer-directors
Screenwriting
Jones – Sally El Hosaini, writer-director
Screenwriting
The Last Black Man In San Francisco– Joseph Talbot, writer-director...
Up to $300,000 will be awarded to one or more narrative feature film projects at various stages of production. Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grants are awarded twice annually to narrative feature films that will have “significant economic or professional impact on the Bay Area filmmaking community.”
To date more than $2.8m has been awarded since the launch of the Film Society’s flagship grant programme in 2009. Winners of the spring 2015 Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grants will be announced in May.
Spring 2015 Sffs / Krf Filmmaking Grant Finallists
Blustar – Stella Kyriakopoulos, co-writer-director and Margaret Shin, co-writer
Screenwriting
Chickenshit – Jessica dela Merced, writer-director
Screenwriting
The Fixer – Ian Olds, writer-director, and Caroline von Kuhn, producer
Production
Freeland – Mario Furloni and Kate McLean, co-writer-directors
Screenwriting
Jones – Sally El Hosaini, writer-director
Screenwriting
The Last Black Man In San Francisco– Joseph Talbot, writer-director...
- 4/9/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
★★★★☆For their 2013 collaboration, Interior. Leather Bar, Travis Mathews and James Franco worked on the premise of a reimagining the lost 40 minutes of William Friedkin’s 1980 film Cruising - cut by sensors who deemed it too explicit. Rather than present the extent of their footage however, Mathews and Franco’s film appeared as more an experiment in promoting the latter’s attempt to dismantle the effect to himself, of heteronormative sexual propaganda in the American mainstream. Franco as inevitable subject of the film somewhat obscured the sterling and sincere work being done by Mathews in presenting the lives of gay men on screen, for which the release of the collection In Their Room partially rectifies.
- 12/8/2014
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Ifp announced its 2014 slate of 133 new films in development and works in progress selected for its esteemed Project Forum at Independent Film Week. This one-of-a-kind event brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new projects by nurturing the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers. Through the Project Forum, creatives connect with financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. Under the curatorial leadership of Deputy Director/Head of Programming Amy Dotson & Senior Director of Programming Milton Tabbot, this one-of-a-kind event takes place September 14-18, 2014 at Lincoln Center supporting bold new content from a wide variety of domestic and international artists.
“As we set to embark on our 36th Independent Film Week, we are impressed by the outstanding slate of both U.S. and international projects selected for this year’s Project Forum,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of Ifp. “We know that the industry will be as excited as we are with the accomplished storytellers and their diverse and boundary pushing films.”
Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. From documentarians Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How To Nail A Dictator"), and Penny Lane ("Our Nixon") to Michelangelo Frammartino ("Quattro Volte") and Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"), Travis Matthews ("Interior. Leather. Bar") and Yen Tan ("Pit Stop").
Independent Film Week brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new documentary and narrative works-in-progress and support the future of storytelling. The program nurtures the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers through the facilitation of over 3,500+ custom, one-to-one meetings with the financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. In recent years, it has also played a vital role in launching the first films of many of today’s rising stars on the independent scene including Rama Burshtein ("Fill The Void"), Derek Cianfrance ("Blue Valentine"), Marshall Curry ("If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth LIberation Front"), Laura Poitras ("The Oath"), Denis Villeneuve ("Incendies") and Benh Zeitlin ("Beasts of the Southern Wild").
For the full 2014 Project Forum slate visit Here
New For 2014
Evenly split between documentary and narrative features, selected projects hail from throughout the U.S., Europe and Canada, as well Africa, Asia, South America, and the Middle East. New this year, Ifp will be including web series in it programming, as well as spotlighting Latin & Central American artists and content with 15 projects featured across all programs in the Forum.
In a joint effort to recognize the importance of career and creative sustainability, Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on a new $20,000 filmmaker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for active, working filmmakers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting. The grant provides a $20,000 unrestricted prize to encourage the recipient to continue on her or his career path of making quality independent films. American directors or screenwriters working in narrative film who have participated in the Ifp Filmmaker Labs or Ifp Independent Film Week's Emerging Storytellers or No-Borders International Co-Production market are encouraged to apply by the deadline of August 8, 2014.
Narrative Feature Highlights
Narrative features and webseries in Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers and No Borders International Co-Production Market sections highlight new work from top emerging and established creative visionaries on the U.S. and international independent scene.
This year’s slate includes new feature scripts featuring directors Dev Benegal ("Road, Movie"), Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperin ("Now, Forager"), Michelangelo Frammartino ("Le Quattro Volte"),Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda"), Rashaad Ernesto Green ("Gun Hill Road"), Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita Y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"),Alison Klayman ("Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry"), Travis Mathews ("Interior. Leather Bar"), Stacie Passon ("Concussion"), Yen Tan ("Pit Stop"), as well as up-an-coming actor/directors Karrie Crouse ("Land Ho!") and Peter Vack ("Fort Tilden""I Believe in Unicorns").
Producers and executive producers of note attached to participating projects include Jennifer Dubin and Cora Olson ("Good Dick"), Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams ("Hellion"),Laura Heberton ("Gayby"), Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Kishori Rajan ("Gimme the Loot"), Adele Romanski ("The Myth of the American Sleepover"), Kim Sherman ("A Teacher"), Susan Stover ("High Art"), and Alicia Van Couvering ("Tiny Furniture").
Web Storytellers Highlights
For the first time this year, Ifp presents a dedicated spotlight within the Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program for creators developing episodic content for digital platforms. The inaugural slate for the Web Storytellers spotlight includes new works from filmmakers Desiree Akhavan ("Appropriate Behavior", HBO’s Girls), Calvin Reeder ("The Rambler"), and Gregory Bayne ("Person of Interest"), as well as producers Elisabeth Holm ("Obvious Child"), Susan Leber ( "Down to the Bone"), and Amanda Warman ("The Outs,"Whatever This Is"). Two of the series participating are currently in post-production, and will be making their online debut in the coming months – Rachel Morgan’s Middle Americans, starring Scott Thompson, Carlen Altman, and Alex Rennie, and Daniel Zimbler and Elisabeth Gray’s Understudies, starring Richard Kind and David Rasche. [p Spotlight On Documentaries Highlights
The documentary selection includes new work from seasoned non-fiction directors such as Emmy winners Robert Bahar andAlmudena Carracedo ("Made in La"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How to Nail a Dictator"),Ramona Diaz ("Imelda," "Don’t Stop Believin’") Gini Reticker ("Pray the Devil Back to Hell") Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"); from producers such as Court 13’s Benh Zeitlin and Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Liran Atzmor ("The Law in These Parts"), Tim Williams ("Once In A Lifetime") and Hilla Medalia ("Web Junkie"), and follow-up second features from recent doc world “breakouts”Steve Hoover ("Blood Brother") Penny Lane ("Our Nixon"), Michael Collins ("Give Up Tomorrow"), and Michael Nichols and Christopher Walker ("Flex is Kings").
Exciting new work from debut documentary directors previously known for fiction films include Alex Sichel ("All over Me") with her personal doc The Movie about Anna, Lisa Cortés (producer, "Precious") with "Mothership: The Untold Story of Women and Hip Hop," and Daniel Patrick Carbone ("Hide Your Smiling Faces") with Phantom Cowboys.
Sponsors
Independent Film Week’s Premier sponsors are Royal Bank of Canada (Rbc) and HBO. Gold sponsors are A&E IndieFilms and SAGIndie. Silver sponsors are Durga Entertainment, Eastman Kodak Company, National Film & Video Foundation of South Africa and Telefilm Canada. Official Independent Film Week Partner is Film Society of Lincoln Center. Independent Film Week is supported, in part, by funds provided by the Ford Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council for the Arts and Time Warner Foundation.
About Ifp
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Made in NY Media Center by Ifp, a new incubator space developed with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. Ifp represents a growing network of 10,000 storytellers around the world, and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 35-year history, Ifp has supported over 8,000 projects and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers, including Debra Granik, Miranda July, Michael Moore, Dee Rees, and Benh Zeitlin. More info at www.ifp.org.
“As we set to embark on our 36th Independent Film Week, we are impressed by the outstanding slate of both U.S. and international projects selected for this year’s Project Forum,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of Ifp. “We know that the industry will be as excited as we are with the accomplished storytellers and their diverse and boundary pushing films.”
Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. From documentarians Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How To Nail A Dictator"), and Penny Lane ("Our Nixon") to Michelangelo Frammartino ("Quattro Volte") and Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"), Travis Matthews ("Interior. Leather. Bar") and Yen Tan ("Pit Stop").
Independent Film Week brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new documentary and narrative works-in-progress and support the future of storytelling. The program nurtures the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers through the facilitation of over 3,500+ custom, one-to-one meetings with the financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. In recent years, it has also played a vital role in launching the first films of many of today’s rising stars on the independent scene including Rama Burshtein ("Fill The Void"), Derek Cianfrance ("Blue Valentine"), Marshall Curry ("If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth LIberation Front"), Laura Poitras ("The Oath"), Denis Villeneuve ("Incendies") and Benh Zeitlin ("Beasts of the Southern Wild").
For the full 2014 Project Forum slate visit Here
New For 2014
Evenly split between documentary and narrative features, selected projects hail from throughout the U.S., Europe and Canada, as well Africa, Asia, South America, and the Middle East. New this year, Ifp will be including web series in it programming, as well as spotlighting Latin & Central American artists and content with 15 projects featured across all programs in the Forum.
In a joint effort to recognize the importance of career and creative sustainability, Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on a new $20,000 filmmaker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for active, working filmmakers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting. The grant provides a $20,000 unrestricted prize to encourage the recipient to continue on her or his career path of making quality independent films. American directors or screenwriters working in narrative film who have participated in the Ifp Filmmaker Labs or Ifp Independent Film Week's Emerging Storytellers or No-Borders International Co-Production market are encouraged to apply by the deadline of August 8, 2014.
Narrative Feature Highlights
Narrative features and webseries in Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers and No Borders International Co-Production Market sections highlight new work from top emerging and established creative visionaries on the U.S. and international independent scene.
This year’s slate includes new feature scripts featuring directors Dev Benegal ("Road, Movie"), Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperin ("Now, Forager"), Michelangelo Frammartino ("Le Quattro Volte"),Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda"), Rashaad Ernesto Green ("Gun Hill Road"), Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita Y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"),Alison Klayman ("Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry"), Travis Mathews ("Interior. Leather Bar"), Stacie Passon ("Concussion"), Yen Tan ("Pit Stop"), as well as up-an-coming actor/directors Karrie Crouse ("Land Ho!") and Peter Vack ("Fort Tilden""I Believe in Unicorns").
Producers and executive producers of note attached to participating projects include Jennifer Dubin and Cora Olson ("Good Dick"), Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams ("Hellion"),Laura Heberton ("Gayby"), Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Kishori Rajan ("Gimme the Loot"), Adele Romanski ("The Myth of the American Sleepover"), Kim Sherman ("A Teacher"), Susan Stover ("High Art"), and Alicia Van Couvering ("Tiny Furniture").
Web Storytellers Highlights
For the first time this year, Ifp presents a dedicated spotlight within the Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program for creators developing episodic content for digital platforms. The inaugural slate for the Web Storytellers spotlight includes new works from filmmakers Desiree Akhavan ("Appropriate Behavior", HBO’s Girls), Calvin Reeder ("The Rambler"), and Gregory Bayne ("Person of Interest"), as well as producers Elisabeth Holm ("Obvious Child"), Susan Leber ( "Down to the Bone"), and Amanda Warman ("The Outs,"Whatever This Is"). Two of the series participating are currently in post-production, and will be making their online debut in the coming months – Rachel Morgan’s Middle Americans, starring Scott Thompson, Carlen Altman, and Alex Rennie, and Daniel Zimbler and Elisabeth Gray’s Understudies, starring Richard Kind and David Rasche. [p Spotlight On Documentaries Highlights
The documentary selection includes new work from seasoned non-fiction directors such as Emmy winners Robert Bahar andAlmudena Carracedo ("Made in La"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How to Nail a Dictator"),Ramona Diaz ("Imelda," "Don’t Stop Believin’") Gini Reticker ("Pray the Devil Back to Hell") Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"); from producers such as Court 13’s Benh Zeitlin and Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Liran Atzmor ("The Law in These Parts"), Tim Williams ("Once In A Lifetime") and Hilla Medalia ("Web Junkie"), and follow-up second features from recent doc world “breakouts”Steve Hoover ("Blood Brother") Penny Lane ("Our Nixon"), Michael Collins ("Give Up Tomorrow"), and Michael Nichols and Christopher Walker ("Flex is Kings").
Exciting new work from debut documentary directors previously known for fiction films include Alex Sichel ("All over Me") with her personal doc The Movie about Anna, Lisa Cortés (producer, "Precious") with "Mothership: The Untold Story of Women and Hip Hop," and Daniel Patrick Carbone ("Hide Your Smiling Faces") with Phantom Cowboys.
Sponsors
Independent Film Week’s Premier sponsors are Royal Bank of Canada (Rbc) and HBO. Gold sponsors are A&E IndieFilms and SAGIndie. Silver sponsors are Durga Entertainment, Eastman Kodak Company, National Film & Video Foundation of South Africa and Telefilm Canada. Official Independent Film Week Partner is Film Society of Lincoln Center. Independent Film Week is supported, in part, by funds provided by the Ford Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council for the Arts and Time Warner Foundation.
About Ifp
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Made in NY Media Center by Ifp, a new incubator space developed with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. Ifp represents a growing network of 10,000 storytellers around the world, and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 35-year history, Ifp has supported over 8,000 projects and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers, including Debra Granik, Miranda July, Michael Moore, Dee Rees, and Benh Zeitlin. More info at www.ifp.org.
- 7/25/2014
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
On the heels of the 39th edition of the Toronto Int. Film Festival (Sept 4-14), Ifp’s Independent Film Week is where a plethora of fiction, non-fiction and new this year, web-based series from the likes of Desiree Akhavan and Calvin Reeder find future coin. Sectioned off as projects at the very beginning of financing to those that are nearing completion, there happens to be tons of Sundance alumni in the names below. Among those that caught our attention we have Medicine for Melancholy‘s Barry Jenkins’ sophomore feature, produced by Bad Milo!‘s Adele Romanski, Moonlight is about “two Miami boys navigate the temptations of the drug trade and their burgeoning sexuality in this triptych drama about black queer youth”. Concussion‘s Stacie Passon digs into the thriller genre with Strange Things Started Happening. Produced by vet Mary Jane Skalski (Mysterious Skin), this is about “a woman who has...
- 7/24/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
The San Francisco Film Society and the Kenneth Rainin Foundation have unveiled the nine feature film projects that will receive a total of $300,000 in funding from their joint grant program. Several of these burgeoning filmmakers, from Travis Mathews to Ian Olds, already have considerable traction in the indie film scene. The Sffs/Krf Filmmaking Grants, the Film Society's flagship funding initiative, are awarded twice a year to narrative features in all stages of production, with the potential to impact the Bay Area film community. The program has carried a number of significant films to success, including Ira Sachs' 2014 fest hit "Love Is Strange," last year's critics' darlings "Short Term 12" and "Fruitvale Station," and 2013 Best Picture nominee "Beasts of the Southern Wild." Sffs/Krf previously funded writer/director Kat Candler's SXSW fave "Hellion," and they've now awarded her followup project. Sf Film Society executive director Noah Cowan was among the.
- 4/29/2014
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
Whitney Biennial 2014 Whitney Museum of American Art Through May 25, 2014
"I think of the media as a cannibalistic river… that absorbs everything." Gretchen Bender
"The image is dead. The icon is dead. The painting is dead." Patricia Cronin
"I am a deeply superficial person." Andy Warhol
Fade In
Int. Dining Room/Brant House
Table, Bjarne Melgaard “nude African American female” fiberglass figure chairs, “giant stuffed Pink Panther dolls,” enormous ceramic phalluses.
Hypnotic atmosphere.
Adam Driver, Idris Elba, Ellen Barkin, Heath Ledger, Michael Lee Nirenberg, James Franco, Billy Cyborg, Narrator, [Seven Background/Evening Dresses] stoned on their milk-plus, their feet resting on faces, crotches, lips of the sculptured furniture.
Narrator (V.O.):
“Righty right right,” I say. “So what will it be tonight then?”
Camera Pans Slowly Across Darkened Room [Set Dressing: Vintage Gretchen Bender lighted wall sculptures that flash “Korova,” “Moloko Plus,” and “Moloko Vellocet.”]
Move in slowly to Narrator slumped in chair and:
Narrator (V.O):
Well, there we were: my brothers, that is, me and Billy Cyborg,...
"I think of the media as a cannibalistic river… that absorbs everything." Gretchen Bender
"The image is dead. The icon is dead. The painting is dead." Patricia Cronin
"I am a deeply superficial person." Andy Warhol
Fade In
Int. Dining Room/Brant House
Table, Bjarne Melgaard “nude African American female” fiberglass figure chairs, “giant stuffed Pink Panther dolls,” enormous ceramic phalluses.
Hypnotic atmosphere.
Adam Driver, Idris Elba, Ellen Barkin, Heath Ledger, Michael Lee Nirenberg, James Franco, Billy Cyborg, Narrator, [Seven Background/Evening Dresses] stoned on their milk-plus, their feet resting on faces, crotches, lips of the sculptured furniture.
Narrator (V.O.):
“Righty right right,” I say. “So what will it be tonight then?”
Camera Pans Slowly Across Darkened Room [Set Dressing: Vintage Gretchen Bender lighted wall sculptures that flash “Korova,” “Moloko Plus,” and “Moloko Vellocet.”]
Move in slowly to Narrator slumped in chair and:
Narrator (V.O):
Well, there we were: my brothers, that is, me and Billy Cyborg,...
- 3/14/2014
- by bradleyrubenstein
- www.culturecatch.com
He loves to have several irons in the fire so-to-speak, and last night (March 5) James Franco kicked off Franco Fest in New York City.
The “Spring Breakers” stud was joined by Travis Mathews at the IFC Center in Manhattan as he welcomed guests and hammed it up for the shutterbugs.
Meanwhile, James wrote an interesting commentary on David Lynch’s “Twin Peaks” in his latest essay for Vice magazine.
Franco wondered, “The better question, however, is, Who killed Twin Peaks? And the answer to this one is easy: the same person — we’ll assume it was a network executive — who made Lynch provide a solution to the Laura Palmer murder. The key to any drama, if you want to keep it alive, is to keep the tension taught; and the key to keeping any mystery alive is to not solve the mystery. More than that, the allure of most crime mysteries,...
The “Spring Breakers” stud was joined by Travis Mathews at the IFC Center in Manhattan as he welcomed guests and hammed it up for the shutterbugs.
Meanwhile, James wrote an interesting commentary on David Lynch’s “Twin Peaks” in his latest essay for Vice magazine.
Franco wondered, “The better question, however, is, Who killed Twin Peaks? And the answer to this one is easy: the same person — we’ll assume it was a network executive — who made Lynch provide a solution to the Laura Palmer murder. The key to any drama, if you want to keep it alive, is to keep the tension taught; and the key to keeping any mystery alive is to not solve the mystery. More than that, the allure of most crime mysteries,...
- 3/6/2014
- GossipCenter
As Lars Von Trier's controversial and explicit sex odyssey opens in cinemas this weekend, we ask actors what they think about being asked to perform in increasingly graphic sex scenes
The script, Christophe Paou says, was even more sexually explicit, so the French actor knew what he was getting himself into when he signed up for Alain Guiraudie's film, Stranger By the Lake. Paou plays Michel, a handsome and charismatic man – with an extremely sinister side – who meets Franck, a younger man, at a cruising spot. Stranger By the Lake is one of two sexually-explicit films released this weekend, the other being Lars von Trier's much-hyped Nymphomaniac, in which Charlotte Gainsbourg plays Joe, a sex addict. Both films use body doubles for the genital close-ups and the explicit scenes.
Nymphomaniac's producer Louise Vesth said: "We shot the actors pretending to have sex and then had the body doubles,...
The script, Christophe Paou says, was even more sexually explicit, so the French actor knew what he was getting himself into when he signed up for Alain Guiraudie's film, Stranger By the Lake. Paou plays Michel, a handsome and charismatic man – with an extremely sinister side – who meets Franck, a younger man, at a cruising spot. Stranger By the Lake is one of two sexually-explicit films released this weekend, the other being Lars von Trier's much-hyped Nymphomaniac, in which Charlotte Gainsbourg plays Joe, a sex addict. Both films use body doubles for the genital close-ups and the explicit scenes.
Nymphomaniac's producer Louise Vesth said: "We shot the actors pretending to have sex and then had the body doubles,...
- 2/23/2014
- by Emine Saner
- The Guardian - Film News
It seems James Franco is now the hardest-working man in show-business -- if you look back at his 2013, that is.
Franco's multi-tasking started to seem like a Joaquin Phoenix-style put-on a couple years ago; not only was he writing, directing, and starring in various films, but he was also, it seemed, studying for graduate degrees at several universities at once. But then, it became apparent that he really was spreading himself too thin when he practically fell asleep onstage while co-hosting the 2011 Oscars. He took a lot of flak for that, but he hardly seems to have lessened his pace.
Indeed, the Oscar jokes ceased once Franco returned to the good graces of moviegoers with the 2013 smash "Oz the Great and Powerful."
According to IMDb, Franco worked on some 49 film and TV projects in 2013, and while many of those were just guest spots on talk shows, that still means that,...
Franco's multi-tasking started to seem like a Joaquin Phoenix-style put-on a couple years ago; not only was he writing, directing, and starring in various films, but he was also, it seemed, studying for graduate degrees at several universities at once. But then, it became apparent that he really was spreading himself too thin when he practically fell asleep onstage while co-hosting the 2011 Oscars. He took a lot of flak for that, but he hardly seems to have lessened his pace.
Indeed, the Oscar jokes ceased once Franco returned to the good graces of moviegoers with the 2013 smash "Oz the Great and Powerful."
According to IMDb, Franco worked on some 49 film and TV projects in 2013, and while many of those were just guest spots on talk shows, that still means that,...
- 12/26/2013
- by Gary Susman
- Moviefone
Child's Pose is an astonishing Romanian gem that deserved more of a cinema outing, unlike James Franco's attempt to put the vice back into Cruising
The ever narrowing window between the theatrical and DVD release dates of smaller-scale arthouse films is a bittersweet blessing. Viewers in multiplex-only regions get to access them before the critical conversation has cooled entirely, though the sadder flip-side is that their life in cinemas is increasingly brief. Viewed on any size of screen, however, Calin Peter Netzer's astonishing Child's Pose (Studiocanal, 15) – released theatrically only last month – is among the year's most essential films.
There's been a recent critical tendency to elevate indiscriminately just about any product of the so-called Romanian new wave to masterwork status, no matter how dour or protracted, which is perhaps why even discerning audiences were hesitant to see this diamond-hard domestic thriller – a deserved Golden Bear winner at the Berlin film festival.
The ever narrowing window between the theatrical and DVD release dates of smaller-scale arthouse films is a bittersweet blessing. Viewers in multiplex-only regions get to access them before the critical conversation has cooled entirely, though the sadder flip-side is that their life in cinemas is increasingly brief. Viewed on any size of screen, however, Calin Peter Netzer's astonishing Child's Pose (Studiocanal, 15) – released theatrically only last month – is among the year's most essential films.
There's been a recent critical tendency to elevate indiscriminately just about any product of the so-called Romanian new wave to masterwork status, no matter how dour or protracted, which is perhaps why even discerning audiences were hesitant to see this diamond-hard domestic thriller – a deserved Golden Bear winner at the Berlin film festival.
- 12/15/2013
- by Guy Lodge
- The Guardian - Film News
In order to avoid an X rating upon release, forty minutes of gay S&M footage was rumoured to be cut and destroyed from William Friedkin's 1980 film Cruising, starring Al Pacino. Inspired by the mythology of this controversial drama, filmmakers James Franco and Travis Mathews collaborate to imagine their own lost footage in Interior. Leather Bar (2013). To celebrate the DVD release of Mathews' latest this coming Monday (9 December), we have Three copies of the film to give away, courtesy of Peccadillo Pictures. This is an exclusive competition for our Facebook and Twitter fans, so if you haven't already, 'Like' us at facebook.com/CineVueUK or follow us @CineVue before answering the question below.
- 12/13/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
The actor and dilletante talks about his new pornographic arthouse film Interior. Leather Bar and how he's challenging Hollywood's beige treatment of sex
If you're an A-list Hollywood actor you need to have a "thing"; something beyond being just really, really good looking. For George Clooney it's politics, for Leonardo DiCaprio it's saving the tigers, Gwyneth Paltrow has her quinoa muesli, and as Mark Ruffalo's Twitter reveals, he's very much invested in the anti-fracking scene. For James Franco, though, his thing appears to be, well, everything. Once you start researching the 35-year-old's recent antics, it quickly becomes clear just how bizarrely prolific he is: he's currently making five films, with six more in post-production; he's a fervent blogger, tweeter and Instagrammer; he publishes short stories and poetry, famously penning a poem to commemorate the second inauguration of President Obama back in January; he is a sometime multimedia artist, and...
If you're an A-list Hollywood actor you need to have a "thing"; something beyond being just really, really good looking. For George Clooney it's politics, for Leonardo DiCaprio it's saving the tigers, Gwyneth Paltrow has her quinoa muesli, and as Mark Ruffalo's Twitter reveals, he's very much invested in the anti-fracking scene. For James Franco, though, his thing appears to be, well, everything. Once you start researching the 35-year-old's recent antics, it quickly becomes clear just how bizarrely prolific he is: he's currently making five films, with six more in post-production; he's a fervent blogger, tweeter and Instagrammer; he publishes short stories and poetry, famously penning a poem to commemorate the second inauguration of President Obama back in January; he is a sometime multimedia artist, and...
- 12/7/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
In partnership with Filmmaker, Cinema Eye Honors announces the nominees for this year’s Heterodox Award, its fourth annual recognition of a narrative film that successfully and imaginatively weaves documentary strategies, content, and/or modes of production into its fabric. The five nominees are Andrew Bujalski’s Computer Chess; Randy Moore’s Escape From Tomorrow; James Franco and Travis Mathews’ Interior. Leather Bar.; Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Neighboring Sounds and Carlos Reygadas’ Post Tenebras Lux. These selected films are intended to demonstrate the formal possibilities of non-fiction filmmaking, in addition to probing the ever-tenuous boundary between reality and its embellished analogue. “The 2014 Cinema Eye Honors Heterodox nominees prove once again that […]...
- 11/25/2013
- by Sarah Salovaara
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In partnership with Filmmaker, Cinema Eye Honors announces the nominees for this year’s Heterodox Award, its fourth annual recognition of a narrative film that successfully and imaginatively weaves documentary strategies, content, and/or modes of production into its fabric. The five nominees are Andrew Bujalski’s Computer Chess; Randy Moore’s Escape From Tomorrow; James Franco and Travis Mathews’ Interior. Leather Bar.; Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Neighboring Sounds and Carlos Reygadas’ Post Tenebras Lux. These selected films are intended to demonstrate the formal possibilities of non-fiction filmmaking, in addition to probing the ever-tenuous boundary between reality and its embellished analogue. “The 2014 Cinema Eye Honors...
- 11/25/2013
- by Sarah Salovaara
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Created by Michael Lannan, directed by Andrew Haigh (“Weekend”) and starring Jonathan Groff, Frankie J. Alvarez and Murray Bartlett as a trio of friends, the San Francisco-set comedy drama "Looking" seems poised to be a gay, West Coast-centric answer to "Girls." HBO's even pairing the new series, which premieres Sunday, January 19th at 10:30pm, with the returning Lena Dunham hit. The network's just released its first teaser for "Looking," and what's most noteworthy about the short promo is how much it deliberately recalls the trailer for Travis Mathews' 2012 festival favorite "I Want Your Love," which was also about a group of gay male friends in San Francisco, and which included real sex with its scripted drama. It's likely not a coincidence -- Lannan was an assistant director on "I Want Your Love." Take a look at both videos below:...
- 11/11/2013
- by Alison Willmore
- Indiewire
No Salutation: Franco Resurrects Tragic Mineo to Aimless Effect
Like The Broken Tower, which documents the tragic end of poet Hart Crane, James Franco’s second directorial effort from 2011, Sal, also happens to resurrect an artistic queer figure from the past, this time Oscar-nominated actor Sal Mineo, murdered outside his West Hollywood apartment back in 1976. While the film is finally being granted a theatrical release, Franco has gone on to debut a slew of other directorial efforts, expanding his desire to provoke, titillate and subvert notions of queerness in a broader cultural discourse with items like his co-directed Interior. Leather Bar, and even adapting notable literary works, like Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying and Cormac McCarthy’s Child of God. Considering an equally heavy acting schedule, Franco’s output is quantitatively impressive, but quality thus becomes the lack in his exploration of the last hours of the life of Sal Mineo.
Like The Broken Tower, which documents the tragic end of poet Hart Crane, James Franco’s second directorial effort from 2011, Sal, also happens to resurrect an artistic queer figure from the past, this time Oscar-nominated actor Sal Mineo, murdered outside his West Hollywood apartment back in 1976. While the film is finally being granted a theatrical release, Franco has gone on to debut a slew of other directorial efforts, expanding his desire to provoke, titillate and subvert notions of queerness in a broader cultural discourse with items like his co-directed Interior. Leather Bar, and even adapting notable literary works, like Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying and Cormac McCarthy’s Child of God. Considering an equally heavy acting schedule, Franco’s output is quantitatively impressive, but quality thus becomes the lack in his exploration of the last hours of the life of Sal Mineo.
- 11/1/2013
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
The 42nd edition of the Festival du nouveau cinéma will be held in Montreal from October 9 to the 20th, showcasing the best new films and filmmakers from around the world. The festival which has often been described as ‘ baby-tiff’ – picks up the best from Berlinale, Cannes, Venice, Telluride, Toronto and more. This new edition demonstrates the vibrancy of filmmaking in all its forms and for all audiences with an incredible 273 films (146 feature films and 124 shorts) from 47 countries – including (count them) 39 world premieres, 33 North American premieres and 47 Canadian premieres. Of the various sections of the film festival, my favourite program is Time Ø. If you are not familiar with the festival, think of this section of films as the equivalent of Tiff’s Midnight Madness program, only sexier. Here is a break down of what you can see this year.
(Please note: This list is in no particular oder)
****
1- R100
Hitoshi Matsumoto,...
(Please note: This list is in no particular oder)
****
1- R100
Hitoshi Matsumoto,...
- 9/26/2013
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
This year marks the 25th anniversary of NewFest, New York's Lgbt film festival, and the second year the fest has partnered with L.A.'s Outfest and the Film Society of Lincoln Center. NewFest, which kicked off last September 6 and runs through September 11, features 44 films from across the globe, all focused on exploring the modern Lgbt experience. Sundance fave "Concussion" opened the festival with a pre-screening reception and a post-film Q&A with producer Rose Troche and burgeoning director Stacie Passon. The film stars Robin Weigert as a suburban housewife who undergoes a journey of sexual exploration (and perhaps exploitation) after taking a baseball to the head. Multi-hyphenate James Franco is heavily featured in the festival's slate, with New York premieres of two films on which he collaborated: Travis Mathews's "Interior. Leather Bar." and Christina Voros's "Kink." International entries for this year's NewFest include "Free Fall," first-time German director Stephen.
- 9/10/2013
- by Jacob Combs
- Thompson on Hollywood
Strand Releasing has acquired U.S. and select foreign rights to James Franco and Travis Mathews' erotic drama "Interior. Leather Bar," the company announced Monday. "Interior. Leather Bar" premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and went on to screen at the Berlin Film Festival. Strand plans to release the racy movie either later this year or in early 2014. Inspired by the 1980 thriller "Cruising" starring Al Pacino, "Leather Bar" recreates the 40 minutes of gay S&M footage that is rumored to have been cut from the film by director...
- 8/19/2013
- by Jeff Sneider
- The Wrap
No strangers in the Lbgt film distribution business, and for the matter, experimental hard-to-classify sorts such as James Franco’s and Travis Mathews’ Interior. Leather Bar., Strand Releasing find a little of both with their latest acquisition. Making for the rare pick-up of a Sundance New Frontier section programmed title, after pit stops in Park City and Berlin Film Festival earlier in the year, Strand will pick up the baton on this meta project and push towards an eventual 2014 release.
Gist: In order to avoid an X rating, 40 minutes of gay S&M footage was rumored to be cut and destroyed from the 1980 film, “Cruising.” Inspired by the mythology of this controversial film, filmmakers James Franco and Travis Mathews collaborate to imagine their own lost footage. Amid the backdrop of a frenzied film set actor Val Lauren reluctantly agrees to take the lead in the film. Val is repeatedly forced...
Gist: In order to avoid an X rating, 40 minutes of gay S&M footage was rumored to be cut and destroyed from the 1980 film, “Cruising.” Inspired by the mythology of this controversial film, filmmakers James Franco and Travis Mathews collaborate to imagine their own lost footage. Amid the backdrop of a frenzied film set actor Val Lauren reluctantly agrees to take the lead in the film. Val is repeatedly forced...
- 8/19/2013
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Strand Releasing has acquired James Franco and Travis Mathews' erotic drama Interior. Leather Bar from The Film Sales Company. The film, which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and Berlin Film Festival, is inspired by the rumored 40 minutes of gay S&M footage that was edited out of William Friedkin's 1980 thriller Cruising. Strand is planning a late 2013/early 2014 release. The deal was negotiated with Marcus Hu and Jon Gerrans for Strand Releasing and Jason Ishikawa and Andrew Herwitz for The Film Sales Company on behalf of the producers. Photos: The Dirty Dozen: Films that Narrowly Avoided an
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- 8/19/2013
- by Rebecca Ford
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Months after premiering at the Sundance and Berlin Film Festivals, James Franco and Travis Mathews' racy erotic drama "Interior. Leather Bar." has found a home with Strand Releasing, who acquired U.S. and select foreign rights. The film is inspired by the rumored 40-minutes of gay S&M footage edited out of the orignial cut of the 1980 thriller "Cruising," that starred Al Pacino. "I am so excited and pleased that this unusual film has found the perfect home. We are so proud of this and happy to be working with Strand Releasing" said Franco. Read More: Trailer for James Franco Co-Directed Sundance-Selected 'Porn,' 'Interior. Leather Bar.' (Video) "Strand has a long history of pioneering queer art films that challenge the norms of the day; we really couldn't ask for a better fit for our film," Mathews added. The deal was negotiated with Marcus Hu and Jon Gerrans...
- 8/19/2013
- by Nigel M Smith
- Indiewire
The Act Of Killing | This Is The End | Despicable Me 2 | The East | Stories We Tell | Hummingbird | Stand Up Guys | Renoir | I Want Your Love | Night Of Silence | The Battle Of The Sexes | Venus And Serena
The Act Of Killing (15)
(Joshua Oppenheimer, 2012, Den/Nor/UK/Swe/Fin) 122 mins
This astounding documentary is so packed with surreal scenarios, casual corruption and inhumanity, it's difficult to believe it's actually true. It tracks down perpetrators of Indonesia's 60s anti-communist massacres, finding them openly unrepentant about their past atrocities; so much so, they're happy to re-enact them as cinematic scenarios. As well as illuminating modern Indonesia, the process says much about history, its representation and its victors.
This Is The End (15)
(Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen, 2013, Us) Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Jonah Hill. 107 mins
The apocalypse crashes James Franco's Hollywood house party, resulting in a enjoyably crude comedy that mixes stoner-buddy goofing...
The Act Of Killing (15)
(Joshua Oppenheimer, 2012, Den/Nor/UK/Swe/Fin) 122 mins
This astounding documentary is so packed with surreal scenarios, casual corruption and inhumanity, it's difficult to believe it's actually true. It tracks down perpetrators of Indonesia's 60s anti-communist massacres, finding them openly unrepentant about their past atrocities; so much so, they're happy to re-enact them as cinematic scenarios. As well as illuminating modern Indonesia, the process says much about history, its representation and its victors.
This Is The End (15)
(Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen, 2013, Us) Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Jonah Hill. 107 mins
The apocalypse crashes James Franco's Hollywood house party, resulting in a enjoyably crude comedy that mixes stoner-buddy goofing...
- 6/29/2013
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
A film that crams in ample helpings of sex is ultimately found strangely wanting when it comes to dramatic thrust
Were it not for the explicit sex that marks this as an, ahem, offshoot of gay porn studio NakedSword, Travis Mathews' shrugging drama could pass for an example of that grungy, sketchy queer cinema that emerged around the early 1990s. Its couplings among bearded, tattooed San Franciscan hipsters prove laid back to the point of inertia; even the threesomes are oddly half-hearted. There's something to be said for any adult venture employing performers who don't resemble Tom of Finland etchings, but for once representation isn't in itself enough: no matter how many erections Mathews squeezes in, a film named after Chic's finest dancefloor offering frankly demands more dramatic pulse and thrust.
Rating: 2/5
DramaMike McCahill
guardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.
Were it not for the explicit sex that marks this as an, ahem, offshoot of gay porn studio NakedSword, Travis Mathews' shrugging drama could pass for an example of that grungy, sketchy queer cinema that emerged around the early 1990s. Its couplings among bearded, tattooed San Franciscan hipsters prove laid back to the point of inertia; even the threesomes are oddly half-hearted. There's something to be said for any adult venture employing performers who don't resemble Tom of Finland etchings, but for once representation isn't in itself enough: no matter how many erections Mathews squeezes in, a film named after Chic's finest dancefloor offering frankly demands more dramatic pulse and thrust.
Rating: 2/5
DramaMike McCahill
guardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.
- 6/27/2013
- by Mike McCahill
- The Guardian - Film News
★★☆☆☆ Banned from Sydney's Mardi Gras Film Festival due to its graphic real sex and ardently defended by friend-of-director James Franco, Travis Mathews' I Want Your Love (2012) has traversed a treacherous path on its way into UK cinemas. A classic 'point-in-time' tale of middle-class frustration, Mathews' debut is an intriguing - if incredibly flawed - examination of contemporary gay culture. After a decade of trying to make it as a performance artist in San Francisco, Jesse (Jesse Metzger) has decided to move back to his Ohio roots, due largely to a recent break up and the fact he can no longer afford to live in the city.
Jesse's flatmate (who has numerous relationship issues of his own) is organising a mammoth party to celebrate his final night. However, with Jesse clearly hesitant about the big move, this debauched shindig seems to only exacerbate our protagonist's apprehensive feelings about leaving his beloved San Fran.
Jesse's flatmate (who has numerous relationship issues of his own) is organising a mammoth party to celebrate his final night. However, with Jesse clearly hesitant about the big move, this debauched shindig seems to only exacerbate our protagonist's apprehensive feelings about leaving his beloved San Fran.
- 6/27/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
I’m super-excited about this year’s Q-Fest….and I’m not even gay!
There are a pair of must-see gay-themed films making their St. Louis debuts; I Am Divine, a documentary about the late crossdresser and John Waters frequent star, and James Franco’s Interior Leather Bar, a high-concept recreation of scenes that were cut from William Friedkin’s notorious 1980 gay serial killer movie Cruising. Divine was one of the biggest, most outrageous, and proudly different gay cultural icons the world has known and the new documentary about the performer I Am Divine plays at Q-fest this Friday night at 7pm. A high (or low) point in Divine’s career was John Waters 1972’s masterpiece Pink Flamingos where he/she competes for the title of “filthiest person alive” by eating fresh dog poop. With antics like that, it’s no surprise that the emerging punk scene adopted his visage on t-shirts.
There are a pair of must-see gay-themed films making their St. Louis debuts; I Am Divine, a documentary about the late crossdresser and John Waters frequent star, and James Franco’s Interior Leather Bar, a high-concept recreation of scenes that were cut from William Friedkin’s notorious 1980 gay serial killer movie Cruising. Divine was one of the biggest, most outrageous, and proudly different gay cultural icons the world has known and the new documentary about the performer I Am Divine plays at Q-fest this Friday night at 7pm. A high (or low) point in Divine’s career was John Waters 1972’s masterpiece Pink Flamingos where he/she competes for the title of “filthiest person alive” by eating fresh dog poop. With antics like that, it’s no surprise that the emerging punk scene adopted his visage on t-shirts.
- 6/3/2013
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Get Franco! Australia bans another film Directed, co-written and edited by Alberto Viavattene, the horror short film Morgue Street, inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's story, was scheduled for a screening at the A Night of Horror Film Festival, which runs until April 21 in Sydney. However, some serious problems arose: Two days prior to the show, the Australian Classification Board, the same bastions of morality who denied a classification for Travis Mathews' gay -- and sexually explicit -- sort-of love story I Want Your Love earlier this year -- thus irritating James Franco, who created a protest video -- , put a stake through Morgue Street's heart with an Rc -- "Refused Classification" -- rating, officially as a result of "material that is considered to offend against the standards of morality, decency and propriety generally accepted by reasonable adults." Left bleeding by the Australian censorship board, Morgue Street cannot...
- 4/18/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
U.S. Indie of the Month: You might have first heard of I Want Your Love (Tla Releasing) after James Franco defended the film against Australian censorship, and now that it’s on DVD, you see what all the hubbub is about. (Franco is such a fan of the film that he hired director Travis Mathews to collaborate with him on this year’s buzzy Sundance hit Interior. Leather Bar.) Mathews takes the premise that John Cameron Mitchell brought to Shortbus — that explicit sex scenes can underscore character and advance narrative in the same way that the best musical numbers can — but accomplishes it, I think, more successfully than Mitchell did. If you can handle a gay movie that’s “mumble-hard-core,” it’s a fascinating and boldly sexual bit of...
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- 3/29/2013
- by Alonso Duralde
- Movies.com
James Franco seems to be everywhere on the IMDb (and on the world's screens) in 2013 Unlike the very unlucky Warner Bros., which has had no less than five box-office bombs so far this year (click on the link for more information), James Franco has been having a fantastic year so far, as he has been involved in some capacity or other in a number of widely debated films, among them two box-office successes, targeted to families of various shapes, fetishes, and entertainment orientations. (Pictured above: Franco with co-star Mila Kunis in Sam Raimi's Oz the Great and Powerful.) Directed by the Spider-Man movies' Sam Raimi, the fantasy Oz, in which Franco plays the man who becomes The Wizard of Oz, took the no. 1 spot at the worldwide box office last weekend and managed to do it again at the domestic box office this weekend, March 15-17. Also this weekend, Harmony Korine...
- 3/18/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
(Officially) straight guys must handle making a movie about gay sex In William Friedkin's much criticized 1980 cop thriller Cruising, which angered many gay activists at the time, then five-time Academy Award nominee Al Pacino plays a cop investigating a bloody murder in New York City's seedy and nasty (but all-too-alluring) Gay S&M Underworld. Having to "pass for" gay in order to do his job the right way, the cop ends up catching the gay virus (nope, not AIDS; just plain kinky and apparently deadly gay-ness) after hanging out at some really hardcore NY clubs. Now, according to the film's director, no less than 40 minutes of purportedly explicit gay sex scenes ("that material showed the most graphic homosexuality") were cut from the film so the Lorimar / United Artists production wouldn't receive a box-office-murdering X rating. Be that as it may -- well, stranger things have happened, and the "lost...
- 3/16/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
One movie featuring explict gay sex is to serve as "consolation" for the banning of another such movie at a film festival in Australia (pictured above: Brenden Gregory and Jesse Metzger in Travis Mathews' romantic / psychological drama I Want Your Love) Travis Mathews and James Franco's explicit Interior. Leather Bar, about how "straight" and "gay" actors react while filming the recreation of footage supposedly cut from William Friedkin's much criticized 1980 crime thriller Cruising, will be screened as a sort of "consolation movie" for Mathews' own explicit effort I Want Your Love, the tale of two gay male friends who opt to make their friendship into something more physical. Scheduled for a presentation at the 2013 Melbourne Queer Film Festival, Mathews' movie was banned by Australia's Classification Board. Here's a great quote: David Cronenberg, the director of dozens of movies such as Videodrome, Dead Ringers, Naked Lunch, A Dangerous Method,...
- 3/16/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
The 27th London Lgbt Fest offers tons of screenings in the coming days (Pictured above: Underground transgender superstar Divine in John Waters' 1974 sorta class Female Trouble) This year's London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival officially opened with a gala presentation of Jeffrey Schwarz’s I Am Divine this past Thursday. In the coming week, the festival will be showcasing dozens of features and shorts featuring characters of various forms of sexual orientation and gender identity from all over the world. Among tonight's features is John Waters' 1974 camp classic Female Trouble, starring Waters' muse Divine as a youngster who, after running away from home on Christmas Day, getting raped and pregant, and becoming a single mom, is transmogrified from loving schoolgirl to tough criminal. Waters' stock player Edith Massey plays Aunt Ida, who has obviously spent her life hanging out with the wrong straight crowd, remarking at one point in...
- 3/15/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
The controversial banning of film I Want Your Love from the 23rd Melbourne Queer Film Festival has prompted Academy Award nominee James Franco and director Travis Mathews to donate their latest project in its place. I Want Your Love was banned from screening at the festival by the Australian Classification Board on the grounds that explicit sex scenes in the film are not supported by narrative context. An application for an exemption was denied. Franco, who co-directed replacement film Interior. Leather Bar. with Mathews, has taken to YouTube to express his disappointment that the film was refused entry. .This just is such a disappointment to me and seems really silly. The reason I approached Travis to make a film (Interior. Leather Bar.) was because of his work in I Want Your Love,. he said in his video, which was directed to the Australian Classification Board. .It.s very short-sighted and very hypocritical.
- 3/13/2013
- by Emily Blatchford
- IF.com.au
The controversial banning of film I Want Your Love from the 23rd Melbourne Queer Film Festival has prompted Academy Award nominee James Franco and director Travis Mathews to donate their latest project in its place. I Want Your Love was banned from screening at the festival by the Australian Classification Board on the grounds that explicit sex scenes in the film are not supported by narrative context. An application for an exemption was denied. Franco, who co-directed replacement film Interior. Leather Bar with Mathews, has taken to YouTube to express his disappointment that the film was refused entry. .This just is such a disappointment to me and seems really silly. The reason I approached Travis to make a film (Interior. Leather Bar) was because of his work in I Want Your Love,. he said in his video, which was directed to the Australian Classification Board. .It.s very short-sighted and very hypocritical.
- 3/13/2013
- by Emily Blatchford
- IF.com.au
James Franco is up in arms over a movie ban Down Under. The actor has come out in support of the film I Want Your Love after the gay drama was barred by the Australian Classification Board from being screened at several film festivals in the country due to its explicit content. The film, about a gay man's last hurrah in San Francisco the night before he moves back to the Midwest, was directed by Travis Mathews, with whom Franco collaborated on their Sundance project, Interior. Leather Bar. I Want Your Love reportedly includes a six-minute scene in which two actors engage in unsimulated sex. Franco defended Mathews in a video posted on YouTube Monday. "This is such a disappointment to...
- 3/5/2013
- E! Online
In a YouTube appeal, the American actor and film-maker calls censors' reaction to the movie's gay sex scenes 'embarrassing'
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James Franco has called on Australian censors to overturn their ban on a Us film that features a number of explicit gay sex scenes.
In a YouTube appeal, Franco labelled the decision to ban I Want Your Love "embarrassing". The film is directed by Travis Mathews, the Us actor's collaborator on Sundance entry Interior. Leather. Bar. Australia's classification board has refused producers permission to screen it at the forthcoming Melbourne and Brisbane queer film festivals, deeming it overly sexually explicit.
"I don't know why in this day and age something like this, a film that's using sex not for titillation but to talk about being human, is being banned," Franco said in his YouTube appeal, which was posted on Monday. "It's just embarrassing.
Reading this on mobile? Click here to view video
James Franco has called on Australian censors to overturn their ban on a Us film that features a number of explicit gay sex scenes.
In a YouTube appeal, Franco labelled the decision to ban I Want Your Love "embarrassing". The film is directed by Travis Mathews, the Us actor's collaborator on Sundance entry Interior. Leather. Bar. Australia's classification board has refused producers permission to screen it at the forthcoming Melbourne and Brisbane queer film festivals, deeming it overly sexually explicit.
"I don't know why in this day and age something like this, a film that's using sex not for titillation but to talk about being human, is being banned," Franco said in his YouTube appeal, which was posted on Monday. "It's just embarrassing.
- 3/5/2013
- by Ben Child
- The Guardian - Film News
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