Category Archives: Cinema

Dark Star Pictures picks up Brande Roderick’s 70s horror throwback “Wineville”

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winevilleDark Star Pictures has acquired the US and Canadian rights to Brande Roderick’s wine-soaked horror film Wineville going into the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. The directorial debut from director/producer/star Roderick (Starsky and Hutch, Baywatch), Dark Star Pictures is planning a September 2024 release of the film in select theaters, followed by VOD/Digital and Physical Media.

Set in the 70s, Wineville follows Tess (Brande Roderick), who is forced to return to the California winery that was her childhood home following the death of her brutal and abusive father. Now a single mom raising her 11-year-old son, Tess dreads setting foot again in the house filled with hateful and painful memories. Once there she is immediately confronted by her bitter and unforgiving aunt, who runs the place with her adult son. However, while trying to sort out her inheritance and dealing with an attraction to the mercurial young ranch hand, a violent murder reveals the evil still just below the surface there. In order to escape once again and save both herself and her boy, Tess will need to uncover the horrible truth of her own past and the roots of the murderous legacy that has been unleashed once again.

Additional cast include Carolyn Hennesy (General Hospital, Cougar Town), Texas Battle (Hard Kill, Coach Carter), Casey King (Star Trek: Pickard) and introducing Keaton Roderick Cadrez. Wineville was written by Richard Schenkman (The Man From Earth), who also produced alongside Roderick, Robin DeMartino, and Todd Slater.
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Charles Crichton’s Classic Caper Comedy THE LAVENDER HILL MOB New 4K Restoration

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THE-LAVENDER-HILL-MOBCharles Crichton’s THE LAVENDER HILL MOB (1951), a classic heist comedy starring Alec Guinness, will run in a new 4K restoration at Film Forum from Friday, May 10 through Thursday, May 16.

“It’s a good job we’re both honest men,” remarks seedy Cockney knickknack manufacturer and hustler Stanley Holloway (13 years later, My Fair Lady’s Alfred Doolittle) as he gets the gist of fastidious bank clerk Guinness’ scheme: to smuggle Bank of England gold bullion out of the country by melting them down into seemingly tacky Eiffel Tower souvenirs.

One of the highlights of the golden years of British comedies from Britain’s famed Ealing Studios, THE LAVENDER HILL MOB was an international smash hit that won screenwriter T.E.B. Clarke an Oscar for Best Writing and a Best Actor nomination for Guinness, as well as a BAFTA Award for Best British Film. Its dénouement atop the real (filmed on location) Eiffel Tower features the most dizzying comedy chase ever.
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Oscar Micheaux and the Birth of Black Independent Cinema 15-Film Festival Opens May 3 at Film Forum

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Oscar-Micheaux-and-the-Birth-of-Black-Independent-CinemaOscar Micheaux and the Birth of Black Independent Cinema, an 18-film festival, including 7 new restorations, of work by the prolific independent director whose pioneering explorations of contemporary Black life paved the way for generations, will run at Film Forum from Friday, May 3 through Thursday, May 9.

Operating on shoestring budgets, Oscar Micheaux (1884-1951) directed and produced more than 40 films between 1919 and 1948, shifting from silent to talkies, and depicting such complex and taboo subjects as religious hypocrisy, interracial marriage, police violence, and lynching, often with all-Black casts and producers. His work explored the Black experience with nuance and depth, often challenging the negative stereotypes so commonly portrayed in films of the era. Micheaux’s films were the first made by a Black filmmaker to be shown in white cinemas, and they were often hugely successful, with Micheaux working directly with theater owners to finance, distribute, and market them.
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KEN LOACH: 21-Film Festivaln of Work by British Director Ken Loach Set To Open at Film Forum

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Photo by Robin Holland

A two-week, 21-film festival of work by British director KEN LOACH, spanning his six-decade career, will run at Film Forum from Friday, April 19 through Thursday, May 2.

The series is preceded by a run of Loach’s latest film – and what he has announced to be his final – THE OLD OAK, opening on Friday, April 5.

Loach’s career began in the mid-1960s when fellow socialist Tony Garnett recruited him to direct episodes for the BBC’s ‘Wednesday Play’ series. Loach’s 10 contributions examined social issues faced by ordinary Britons at the bottom of the social ladder and tackled controversial subjects such as abortion, homelessness, and labor strikes.

Through use of nonprofessional actors, improvised dialogue, and location shooting, Loach developed his realist style, “a subtle cinematic language, merging elements of documentary and fiction.” (James Monaco).
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Med Hondo’s Musical Epic “West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves Of Liberty” New 4K Restoration To Run at Film Forum

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West-Indies-The-Fugitive-Slaves-Of-LibertyThe great French-Mauritian director Med Hondo’s spectacular cinematic odyssey “West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves Of Liberty” (1979) will run at Film Forum in a new 4K restoration from Friday, March 22 through Thursday, March 28.

Adapted from Daniel Boukman’s Les Négriers (The Slavers), a play which Hondo directed in Paris in the early 70s, WEST INDIES: THE FUGITIVE SLAVES OF LIBERTY tells the story of French imperialism as a musical extravaganza.

Aboard an enormous hand built wooden slave ship acting as a multipurpose set, the film traverses the West Indies, Europe, and the Middle Passage, spanning over 400 years. Dynamic, intricately choreographed reenactments depict the effects of official French policy upon the colonized, the enslaved, and their descendants. Surveying the actions and motivations of the resigned, the revolutionary, and the powers that be (along with their lackeys), WEST INDIES is a call to arms for a spectacular yet critical cinematic reimagining of an entire people’s history of resistance and struggle.

At $1.3 million, it was the biggest-budget African production ever, as well as the continent’s first musical. Hondo, who wished “to free the very concept of musical comedy from its American trade mark” remained resolute in his vision, refusing to alter the script and rejecting funding offers from Warner Brothers and MGM when they asked for changes. Mixed critical reception in France barred the film from wider release with it gradually slipping out of circulation.
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Claude Sautet’s French Noir Masterpiece “Classe tous risques”, New 4K Restoration Opens March 15 at Film Forum

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Classe-tous-risquesA new 4K restoration of Claude Sautet’s CLASSE TOUS RISQUES (1960), a masterpiece of French Noir starring Lino Ventura (ARMY OF SHADOWS) and a very young Jean-Paul Belmondo, will run at Film Forum from Friday, March 15 through Thursday, March 21.

Neo-realism meets Noir, as gangster and family man Ventura, holed up in Italy for over a decade, needs some startup money to return to France, where he’s been sentenced to death in absentia. With Milan’s Duomo looming in the background (shot on location), he and a crony execute a split-second payroll heist — in broad daylight — then begin a lightning-fast getaway via underground passages, car, motorcycle, bus, speedboat, and ambulance. Only the beginning of the mounting mayhem.

Bridging argot-rich 50s masterworks like RIFIFI and TOUCHEZ-PAS AU GRISBI with Melville’s pared-down thrillers of the 60s, CLASSE TOUS RISQUES (the title refers to a type of insurance policy, à la DOUBLE INDEMNITY, but is also a pun on “tourist class”) is a penetrating study of a tough guy at the end of his rope, drawn from screenwriter José Giovanni’s first-hand knowledge of the post-war French underworld.
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Tarkovsky’s Haunting Late Masterpiece NOSTALGHIA New 4K Restoration Opens Feb. 21 at Film Forum

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ANDREI-TARKOVSKY---NOSTALGHIAAndrei Tarkovsky’s haunting late masterpiece NOSTALGHIA (1983) will run at Film Forum in a new 4K restoration from Wednesday, February 21 through Tuesday, February 29.

In Tarkovsky’s first film made outside the USSR, Russian expatriate Andrei (Oleg Yankovsky, THE MIRROR), wanders wintry Italian landscapes while returning in memory to his homeland. He becomes obsessed with the Botticelli-like beauty of his translator Eugenia (Domiziana Giordano), as well as with the apocalyptic ramblings of a self-destructive wanderer named Domenico (Erland Josephson, THE SACRIFICE). In one of cinema’s most agonizingly suspenseful sequences, the fate of the world is found hanging on a candle’s flight across a dry pool, culminating in an overwhelming final shot.

Written with Tonino Guerra, frequent collaborator of Michelangelo Antonioni (on every film from L’AVVENTURA through BLOW-UP), Federico Fellini (AMARCORD), and Francesco Rosi (ILLUSTRIOUS CORPSES, CHRIST STOPPED AT EBOLI), NOSTALGHIA is a mystical and mysterious collision of East and West, shot with the tactile beauty that only Tarkovsky could provide.

NOSTALGHIA won the Grand Prix du cinéma de creation prize for Best Director (shared with Robert Bresson for L’ARGENT) and the international film critics prize at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival. Soviet authorities prevented the film from winning the Palme d’Or, which hardened Tarkovsky’s resolve to never work in the Soviet Union again.

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Kristen Stewart to Be Honored With Visionary Award at 2024 Sundance Film Festival’s Opening Night Gala

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Kristen Stewart to Be Honored With Visionary Award at
2024 Sundance Film Festival’s Opening Night Gala: Celebrating 40 Years Presented by Chase Sapphire®
Tables and Tickets Available Now: Annual Event Recognizes Outstanding Independent Storytellers and Raises Funds to Support Nonprofit’s Year-Round Programs

Kristen-Stewart SundanceThe nonprofit Sundance Institute announced today that Academy Award–nominated actress Kristen Stewart will be honored with the Visionary Award at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival’s fundraiser Opening Night Gala: Celebrating 40 Years Presented by Chase Sapphire®, which will take place on January 18, 2024, at the DeJoria Center in Utah. The annual gala enables the nonprofit to raise critical funds to support independent artists year-round through labs, grants, and public programming that nurture artists globally. The 2024 event is made possible with the generous support of Chase Sapphire®, the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation, Acura, and Google TV. The upcoming Sundance Film Festival will take place January 18–28, 2024, in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, as well as online from January 25–28.

Kristen Stewart will receive the Visionary Award in recognition of her work as an uncompromising artist and contributions to the field of independent film. She was nominated for an Academy Award for her performance as Princess Diana in Spencer and was the first American actress to receive a César Award for her role in Clouds of Sils Maria. Stewart’s profound work as an actor has exemplified the bold, risk-taking storytelling that Sundance has championed for many years. Throughout her impressive career, she has had 10 films screen at the Festival, including The Runaways, Adventureland, and Lizzie. She made her directorial debut with Come Swim at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. For the upcoming 2024 Sundance Film Festival, Stewart will be returning with Love Me, premiering in the U.S. Dramatic Competition section and the recipient of the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize, and Love Lies Bleeding, premiering in the Midnight section.

“We are thrilled to honor the immensely talented Kristen Stewart at our Opening Night Gala,” said Joana Vicente, Sundance Institute CEO. “Kristen’s captivating performances across a wide, diverse body of work make her a truly unique talent. With over 10 Sundance films under her belt, she has always remained committed to the art of independent cinema. We are excited to welcome her back to the Festival and can’t wait to see what she has in store for our 40th year.”

“Sundance’s purity, lack of fussy pretension, and its commitment to supporting independence in an industry that doesn’t always value the radical or the sidelined is what makes it by far the homiest place for me to go see, discuss, and present films,” said Kristen Stewart. “Truly honored to be acknowledged by this beloved institution.”

As previously announced, Christopher Nolan will be honored with the inaugural Sundance Institute Trailblazer Award, recognizing an artist’s unwavering dedication and notable contributions to the field of independent film. The annual Vanguard Awards, presented by Acura, honor artists whose work highlights the art of storytelling and creative independence in both nonfiction and fiction. The Vanguard Award for Fiction will be presented to Celine Song, director and writer of Past Lives, and the Vanguard Award for Nonfiction will go to Maite Alberdi, director of The Eternal Memory. Award-winning journalist and producer Pat Mitchell will receive the Vanguard Award for Philanthropy in recognition of her exemplary commitment to the Institute’s support and to philanthropy for social impact. For more information about tables and tickets, please visit festival.sundance.org/opening-night-gala or contact openingnight@sundance.org.

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Ryan Gosling To Receive SBIFF’s 16th Annual Kirk Douglas Award For Excellence In Film

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The Santa Barbara International Film Festival is honored to announce that Ryan Gosling will be receiving the 16th annual Kirk Douglas Award For Excellence in Film. Gosling’s incredible range as a performer can currently be seen in this year’s critically acclaimed cinematic standout, BARBIE. The prestigious award, which benefits Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s year-round educational programs, will be presented on Saturday, January 13, 2024 at a Black-Tie dinner at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara. This marks the second time since the passing of screen legend Kirk Douglas that the honor will be awarded.

“Ryan Gosling has long been both a dramatic and comedic force in front of the camera. This year, thanks to his universally hailed, triumphant performance as Ken in BARBIE – a film that truly demanded the attention of critics and moviegoers around the world – he has become a true cinematic powerhouse,” stated Executive Director, Roger Durling.

Seen as one of the most exciting actors of this generation, Gosling is a two-time Academy Award nominee for his work in “Half Nelson” and “La La Land,” and a four-time Golden Globe nominee and one-time winner for his role as Sebastian in “La La Land.” Over the course of his decades-spanning career, Gosling has additionally garnered numerous accolades, including winning a Film Independent Spirit Award, a National Board of Review Award and more, as well as nominations from BAFTA and the Screen Actors Guild.
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Sundance Institute and The Walt Disney Studios Launch Fund to Support Underrepresented Directors

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Today, the nonprofit Sundance Institute and The Walt Disney Studios are proud to announce the establishment of the Project Advancement and Completion Fund, an initiative designed to provide grants to fiction directors from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds. This fund aims to empower and uplift filmmakers from diverse backgrounds and genres, fostering a more inclusive cinema landscape.

The Project Advancement and Completion Fund will support nine directors currently engaged in fiction features through Sundance Institute’s esteemed artist programs. These talented filmmakers, hailing from a range of traditionally underrepresented communities, including women, AAPI, Black, Indigenous/Native, Latinx, LGBTQIA+, disability-identifying, and religiously marginalized individuals, will be granted the resources needed to bring their unique visions to life.

“After working with several Sundance filmmakers, we know how important it is for directors to develop their first independent feature films in order to take on larger projects at the studio level and we couldn’t be more excited to collaborate with Sundance Institute in an effort to help them do just that,” said Mahin Ibrahim, Director, Creative Talent Pathways, Representation & Inclusion Strategies. “At Disney, we believe in the power of diverse voices and storytelling, and this initiative reaffirms our commitment to empowering underrepresented talent in the industry.”
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