Ten Bets #4 for TFF #48 / The Usual Suspects 2021 / The Card Counter Moves Up / Alloy Is No More

 TEN BETS #4 FOR TFF #48

Well, after last week's embarrassing inclusion of Val, I'll try to ne a bit more circumspect with the newest Ten Bets.  Also of note here is that this should be the last Ten Bets prior to the announcement from Toronto (expected next Tuesday) of a number of their selections.  If TIFF follows recent protocol, they will announce titles with premiere status included from which we can reverse engineer some titles that could play Telluride.

Toronto has already announced 13 films that will screen and Focus Features has revealed that Edgar Wright's Last Night in Soho and Kenneth Brannagh's Belfast will both World Premiere at TIFF.

At this point, I'm more or less confident that almost all of the other 13 films that were included on the TIFF pre-announcement list will also likely be World Premieres as well.  That list included: Celine Sciamma's Petit Maman, Theodore Melfi's The Starling and Alison Klayman's Jagged.

The one film on that TIFF pre-announcement list that I still think might be in the Telluride conversation is Denis Villenueve's Dune.  It seems to me that Toronto has been coy with the language that they have used with regard to its status.  We know that Dune will World Premiere at Venice (reportedly on Sept.3rd),  TIFF has billed its screening of Dune as a "World Exclusive IMAX presentation" which sounds way more impressive than "Canadian Premiere".

Last week's Ten Bets:

1) The Power of the Dog/Campion

2) Muhammad Ali/Burns. Burns and McMahon

3) Something(s) from Mark Cousins***

4) Madres Paralelas (Parallel Mothers)/Almodovar

5) The Card Counter/Schrader

6) The Velvet Underground/Haynes

7) Nightmare Alley/Del Toro

8) A Hero/Farhadi

9) Val/Poo, Scott

10) Mothering Sunday/Husson

Here is the fourth iteration of the Ten Bets for TFF #48:

1) Something from Mark Cousins***

2) Muhammad Ali/Burns. Burns and McMahon

3) The Card Counter/Schrader

4) The Power of the Dog/Campion

5) Madres Paralelas (Parallel Mothers)/Almodovar

6) The Velvet Underground/Haynes

7) Nightmare Alley/Del Toro

8) A Hero/Farhadi

9) Julia/Cohen and West

10) Spencer/Larrain

Other Possibles: Dune, Where Is Anne Frank?, Paris 13th District and The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Blonde, Cow, House of Gucci, The Last Duel, Mothering Sunday and Bergman Island.

***Mark Cousins projects that could play:

The Story of Looking

The Storms of Jeremy Thomas

The Story of Film: The Next Generation

THE USUAL SUSPECTS

If you've been a Telluride obsessive for any length of time, you'll have noticed that there are a number of film makers that have be included as a part of the fest several times.  Paying attention to those "Usual Suspects" and whether they have films available for screening can sometimes give you some solid guesses about what films could make the TFF #48 list.

Therefore, in alphabetical order, here are some of The Usual Suspects that could make an appearance at T-ride 2021:

Jacques Audiard: Paris 13th District

Ken Burns: Muhammad Ali

Mark Cousins: The Story of Looking, The Storms of Jeremy Thomas, The Story of Film: The Next Generation

Asghar Farhadi: A Hero

Mia Hansen-Love: Bergman Island

Todd Haynes: The Velvet Underground

Werner Herzog: Last Exit: Space

Roger Michell: Elizabeth

Jason Reitman: Ghostbuster: Afterlife (I'm semi-serious about this)

Paul Schrader: The Card Counter

Martin Scorsese: The Card Counter (Exec. Producer)

Denis Villenueve/Dune

THE CARD COUNTER MOVES UP

Rumors that writer/director Paul Schrader let slip that his new film, The Card Counter starring Oscar Isaac, will play both Venice and then Telluride move that title up in this week's Ten Bets (see above).  The film moves back up to its #3 spot where it began on the very first Ten Bets three weeks ago.

The Car Counter has been on all four Ten Bets lists and always within the top five.

Reporting about the Schrader mention came from Jordan Ruimy's World of Reel and Hollywood Elsewhere's Jeff Wells.

ALLOY IS NO MORE

Word from an anonymous source this week that the famed Alloy Orchestra is no more.  I had an email from a friend pointing me to an article from WBUR, Boston's NPR station.  Jim Sullivan writing on July 8th:

"All things must pass. Or, perhaps, mutate.

After three decades, Alloy Orchestra is no more. (Ken)Winokur has exited; (Terry)Donahue and keyboardist Roger Miller, who joined in 1998 after (Caleb)Sampson’s death, continue on under a new moniker, Anvil Orchestra. Larry Dersch, who’d played with Miller in a previous band, Trinary System, will take Winokur’s spot in the new group.

The Anvil Orchestra makes its debut in Athens, Greece on Aug. 27, once again accompanying “Metropolis.” 

The Alloy Orchestra had become a Telluride Film Fest institution providing music for a number of silent film presentations as a part of the fest for years.

Here's a YouTube video of The Alloy Orchestra scoring the silent version of The Phantom of the Opera from July of 2020.

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I'm Not Too Bright... / Telluride a Hot Destination? / Cannes Critical Response / A Hint on a Short

 I'M NOT TOO BRIGHT

Well, I'm silly.  If you read last Thursday's post, you know I had a whole chunk about how I was thinking that the Val Kilmer documentary "Val" might be  a Telluride selection.  I even boldly put it into last week's Ten Bets at the # 9 spot. 

It was less than 24 hours later that I found that Val has been dated (by Amazon) for an August release. That clearly puts the kibosh on that notion.  I should have been better on my due diligence.  Mea Culpa!

Anyway, I guess Amazon will have a limited release on July 23rd and Amazon subscribers will be able to see the film on August 6th.

TELLURIDE A HOT DESTINATION?

For the past several weeks, there has been a low level buzz that Telluride and Venice both will benefit from some reluctance on the part of film makers to make plans to debut a film in Toronto due to Canada's approach to Covid-19.  Now, with the Delta variant raising numbers, there is some thought that could further push big name films to either Telluride or Venice or both,

Jeff Wells raises that notion in a post on his website Hollywood Elsewhere writing:

"The word along the Croisette is that certain distributors have either pulled their films out of the 2021 Toronto Film Festival or are seriously thinking about same. Why? Because (a) the Telluride and Venice festivals, unlike Toronto, are not leaning on streaming, and (b) distributors greatly prefer live-audience projection screenings."

We should be getting some serious hard info soon as Toronto is set to announce it's first wave of films on July 20th, a week from tomorrow.  That assumes that TIFF announces films with their premiere status designated but I wonder if that will happen this year.  TIFF has already named 13 films that will play there and did so with no premiere designation.  So, who knows?

CANNES CRITICAL RESPONSE

As the second week of the Cannes Film Festival gets ready to launch, let's check in with how critics' panels are reacting to the Plame d'Or competition films.

Ioncinema's panel has Leos Carax's Annette on top.  Here's the latest chart:

And the link to the Ioncinema article.

Screen Daily has Annette on top as well.

Screen Daily's Critics' Panel is linked here.

Reini Urban has Jauques Audiard's Paris 13th District on top but that's with only a single review.

Reini Urban's compilation.

Check back on Thursday for updated critical response.

A HINT ON A SHORT

I ran across a tweet this weekend that lead me to a news story about a short film called Mark of the Butterfly.  The reason I mention it here is that the film maker Chris Carter seems to imply in the news article from South Carolina television station WLTX that the film could play T-ride.  From the article:

"Carter has submitted Mark of the Butterfly to eight different film festivals. He says those festivals have strict rules about premiering it after submitting it. It will officially be able to be seen after the Telluride Film Festival in September."

So, he doesn't actually say that's it's playing Telluride but he sure implies it.

From the same article, here is the description of the film:

"It's about a high-powered attorney, who is one of the top attorneys in the state," explained Carter. "Now, she's up for a prestigious job as the district attorney, but she is suffering from lupus."

The complete article is linked here.

And, from YouTube, here's a trailer for the film:

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Ten Bets #3 for TFF #48 / Thinking Val is a Possible / Teasers and Trailers from Cannes

 TEN BETS FOR TFF #48

Another week closer and a few alterations to this week's Ten Bets,  Here's where I was last week:

1) The Power of the Dog/Campion

2) Muhammad Ali/Burns. Burns and McMahon

3) The Story of Looking/Cousins

4) Madres Paralelas (Parallel Mothers)/Almodovar

5) The Card Counter/Schrader

6) The Storms of Jeremy Thomas/Cousins

7) Nightmare Alley/Del Toro

8) A Hero/Farhadi

9) The Velvet Underground/Haynes

10) Cow/Arnold

Other Possibles: Dune, Julia, Mothering Sunday, Petite Maman, Where Is Anne Frank?, Paris 13th District and The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Blonde and Bergman Island.

After this last week, here's the look at my latest Ten Bets:

1) The Power of the Dog/Campion

2) Muhammad Ali/Burns. Burns and McMahon

3) Something(s) from Mark Cousins***

4) Madres Paralelas (Parallel Mothers)/Almodovar

5) The Card Counter/Schrader

6) The Velvet Underground/Haynes

7) Nightmare Alley/Del Toro

8) A Hero/Farhadi

9) Val/Poo, Scott

10) Mothering Sunday/Husson

Other Possibles: Dune, Julia,  Petite Maman, Where Is Anne Frank?, Paris 13th District and The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Blonde, Cow, House of Gucci, The Last Duel and Bergman Island.

***With what appears now to be three separate projects that could play at Telluride, you have to think Cousins is there with something and maybe all things:

The Story of Looking

The Storms of Jeremy Thomas

The Story of Film: The Next Generation

Will update again next Thursday.

THINKING VAL IS POSSIBLE

A flurry of positive responses out of Cannes and the combo of A24 and Amazon Studios is making me think a TFF bid for the documentary Val-about actor Val Kilmer- could be in the offing.  You can see above how serious I am as I included the film as one of this week's Ten Bets at #9.

The doc reportedly makes use of hundreds of hours of footage shot by Kilmer himself.

Here's the Cannes trailer from YouTube:

TEASERS AND TYRAILERS FROM CANNES

In addition to the Val trailer, here's a sampling of other teasers and trailers out as a result of Cannes' kickoff that could also play Telluride.  All clips via YouTube:

WHERE IS ANNE FRANK

THE VELVET UNDERGROUND

DECEPTION

LAMB

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ICYMI: TFF Wants You Vaxxed / Future Telluride: Inarritu's Current Project / Velvet Underground Teaser

 IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: TFF WANTS YOU VAXXED

I'm re-running this post that I originally put up on Saturday:

TFF #48 Passholders received an email from the festival last Friday informing us that we would need to provide proof of vaccination against Covid-19.  The letter also requested that  if we knew of people that were planning to attend the fest without a pass or were planning to attend free screenings that they would also need to be able to produce proof of vaccination.  Here's that language from the email:

For any friends you may know who are intending to join us without passes, we appreciate you sharing this information. Individual indoor venues will have a vaccination card check point at each Box Office, for those wishing to buy individual tickets or enter a free screening. 

Here's the complete text of the email to passholders:

We are grateful that you are considering returning to the Telluride Film Festival to join us after last year’s hiatus. We view our upcoming festival as an opportunity to celebrate renewal but with tremendous humility, acknowledging the tragic loss of life and social upheaval experienced around the globe.

 

Film is a magical instrument that often serves to bring people together – to celebrate it collectively, to experience emotions in the same room, and to live through the eyes of great artists as they point us toward a better future is something we are all looking forward to with delight. 

 

To ensure a safe, as well as relaxed, few days in the mountains, we are asking all attendees who intend to join us this year to be vaccinated against Covid-19, as an act of kindness and community support, and to assist us in creating a secure environment for reconvening the Telluride experience. 

 

Please take a moment to upload your vaccination card below. Receipt of this information will be required for admittance to Festival theaters and other indoor venues, including any shuttle services. We appreciate your understanding and commitment to a healthy re-opening of arts & culture experiences worldwide. For any friends you may know who are intending to join us without passes, we appreciate you sharing this information. Individual indoor venues will have a vaccination card check point at each Box Office, for those wishing to buy individual tickets or enter a free screening. 

We are impatient for September to get here and to be together again. Take very good care until we see you!!

The wife and I submitted our proof of vaccination Saturday morning.

FUTURE TELLURIDE?  INARRITU'S CURRENT PROJECT

Set photo from Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's Limbo via El Univeral

We've seen and heard whispers about TFF favorite Alejandro Gonzlaez Inarritu's ongoing film project which appears to be titled Limbo.

The Film Stage (via El Universal)  reported recently that filming in Mexico and set photos are giving some hints about what could be included as part of the plot/story of the film.  According to The Film Stage post:

"From their reporting comes word Limbo concerns the Mexican-American War, production having constructed an exact replica of the Chapultepec Castle—site for the 1847 Battle of Chapultepec, a turning point wherein thousands of Mexican soldiers were slain. (Peep their site for a set photo lest the copyright hammer fall upon us.) Considering other set photos feature more modern-looking costumes, perhaps there is some time-jumping in the plot as the director explores Mexican history."

Considering Inarritu's substantial track record at Telluride, you have to keep an eye out for this as a possible selection for TFF #49.

The complete post from The Film Stage is here.

VELVET UNDERGROUND TEASER

Todd Haynes' documentary about the legendary band, The Velvet Underground, is set to play at Cannes within the next few days and there is some contemplation on my part that it could very well be a part of the TFF #48 lineup.

There's a  teaser for the new film now available for viewing on Cannes' official webpage for the film.  

You can find that linked here.

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SPECIAL POST-GET YOUR VAX

 SPECIAL POST-GET YOUR VAX

TFF #48 Passholders received an email from the festival yesterday informing us that we would need to provide proof of vaccination against Covid-19.  The letter also requested that  if we knew of people that were planning to attend the fest without a pass or were planning to attend free screenings that they would also need to be able to produce proof of vaccination.  Here's that language from the email:

For any friends you may know who are intending to join us without passes, we appreciate you sharing this information. Individual indoor venues will have a vaccination card check point at each Box Office, for those wishing to buy individual tickets or enter a free screening. 

Here's the complete text of the email to passholders:

We are grateful that you are considering returning to the Telluride Film Festival to join us after last year’s hiatus. We view our upcoming festival as an opportunity to celebrate renewal but with tremendous humility, acknowledging the tragic loss of life and social upheaval experienced around the globe.

 

Film is a magical instrument that often serves to bring people together – to celebrate it collectively, to experience emotions in the same room, and to live through the eyes of great artists as they point us toward a better future is something we are all looking forward to with delight. 

 

To ensure a safe, as well as relaxed, few days in the mountains, we are asking all attendees who intend to join us this year to be vaccinated against Covid-19, as an act of kindness and community support, and to assist us in creating a secure environment for reconvening the Telluride experience. 

 

Please take a moment to upload your vaccination card below. Receipt of this information will be required for admittance to Festival theaters and other indoor venues, including any shuttle services. We appreciate your understanding and commitment to a healthy re-opening of arts & culture experiences worldwide. For any friends you may know who are intending to join us without passes, we appreciate you sharing this information. Individual indoor venues will have a vaccination card check point at each Box Office, for those wishing to buy individual tickets or enter a free screening. 

We are impatient for September to get here and to be together again. Take very good care until we see you!!

I'll run this post again in Thursday's regularly scheduled post.

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Ten Bets #2 for TFF #48 / A New Possibility Emerges / Trailer for Many Saints

TEN BETS #2 FOR TFF #48

Hi there... from Massachusetts.  

Yes, the Post-ish-Covid  2021 Art Show Circuit continues with the second and final show of the summer season so I am on the road.  

Blew a tire on I-90 today, got the donut spare on after a bit of a struggle and thanks to Conner at Mavis Tire in Chatham, NY and the crew there...got a new tire on before the end of the business day.

Despite the delayed arrival and the eminent Berkshires Art Fest, here's your Thursday edition of MTFB and, as promised, an updated Ten Bets for TFF #48...there's a wrinkle or two.

Last week's Ten Bets (and "Other Possibles" list):

1) The Power of the Dog/Campion

2) Muhammad Ali/Burns, Burns and McMahon

3) The Card Counter/Schrader

4) Nightmare Alley/Del Toro

5) The Velvet Underground/Haynes

6) Bergman Island/Hansen-Love

7) Cow/Arnold

8) A Hero/Farhadi

9) Blonde/Dominik

10) The Story of Looking/Cousins

Don't discount the possibility of: Dune, Julia, Mothering Sunday, Petite Maman, Where Is Anne Frank?, Paris 13th District and The Eyes of Tammy Faye.

News this week about films from Pedro Almodovar (see below) and Mark Cousins has altered this week's Ten Bets which look like this:

1) The Power of the Dog/Campion

2) Muhammad Ali/Burns. Burns and McMahon

3) The Story of Looking/Cousins

4) Madres Paralelas (Parallel Mothers)/Almodovar

5) The Card Counter/Schrader

6) The Storms of Jeremy Thomas/Cousins

7) Nightmare Alley/Del Toro

8) A Hero/Farhadi

9) The Velvet Underground/Haynes

10) Cow/Arnold

Other Possibles: Dune, Julia, Mothering Sunday, Petite Maman, Where Is Anne Frank?, Paris 13th District and The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Blonde and Bergman Island.

Will update again next Thursday.

A NEW POSSIBILITY EMERGES

We found out this week that Pedro Almodovar's Parallel Mothers and Mark Cousins' The Storms of Jeremy Thomas are both going to be available to program for TFF #48 if  Telluride Fest programmers decide to include them.

Almodovar, who for a long while had a run at Telluride recently has been absent.  There had been a 13 year stretch between 2006's Volver and TFF #46 in 2019 when Pain and Glory screened.  I think that return and the success of P&G (Two Oscar nominations for Best International Feature and for Best Actor for Antonio Banderas) makes Parallel Mothers, starring 2006 TFF Tribute recipient Penelope Cruz, a very real possibility for a TFF #48 slot.

Parallel Mothers is set for release in Spain on Sept. 10th.

TRAILER FOR MANY SAINTS

One of  the films that Warner Bros. could bring to Telluride is the Sopranos prequel The Many Saints of Newark.  The film is set for an Oct. 1st release date (after some juggling among the WB lineup this past week).  Warners dropped a trailer for the film which you can enjoy here thanks to YouTube:

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TFF #48 Spec from Someone Besides Myself / Looks at TFF Possibles: Saints, Rockets and BOOM / Your Cousin Has Another / And Finally from TFF #47

TFF #48 SPEC FROM SOMEONE BESIDES MYSELF

Jordan Ruimy's World of Reel has taken a look at the same Pete Hammond report of the recent Telluride Film Fest Annual "To-Do" in L.A. and drawn some conclusions and done some speculating.  He has some ideas that are intriguing that I thought I'd pass along.

Ruimy's analysis of Hammond's claims that there could be as many as four Netflix films at TFF #48 has him suggesting The Power of the Dog, Blonde, The Hand of God and Don't Look Back.

Other films on Ruimy's guess list include: The French Dispatch, King Richard. C'mon C'mon, Last Night in Soho, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, The Whale, The Card Counter, The Tragedy of Macbeth and possibly Nightmare Alley.

As of last Thursday's first "Ten Bets" you know that I'm agreeing with Ruimy on: The Power of the Dog, The Card Counter and Nightmare Alley.

This note though: we're still very early in the serious TFF #48 prediction game.

Here's the link to the Ruimy story.

LOOKS AT TFF POSSIBLES: SAINTS, ROCKETS AND BOOM

Michael Gandolfini as a young Tony Soprano in The Many Saints of Newark

A slew of articles about films that are a part of the conversation for possible Telluride inclusion popped up this past week:

Indiewire looks at The Many Saints of Newark, the prequel film to HBO's classic series The Sopranos.  Here's the link to that.

Indiewire also looks at Red Rocket, Sean Baker's follow up to The Florida Project.  That is linked here.

Meanwhile, SlashFilm runs down a preview of  Lin Manuel Miranda's tick, tick...Boom.  That look is here.

YOUR COUSIN HAS ANOTHER

A scene from Mark Cousins' The Storms of Jeremy Thomas

Mark Cousins, who has already been invited to screen The Story of Looking at Cannes, revealed this past weekend that he has another film selected for Cannes Classics.  Cousins' will be screening The Storms of Jeremy Thomas as a separate selection on the Croisette.

The "twofer" raises the prospect that Cousins, whose ties with the Telluride fest are long and deep, might have both films show up on the TFF #48 list when it's announced on Wednesday, August 31st.

Deadline.com has that story as well as first look footage from the film.  That's linked here.

AND FINALLY, FROM TFF #47

Last year, when Telluride announced the list of films that would have been screened had TFF #47 taken place, TFF regular Roger Michell's The Duke was included.  The comedy starring Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren is now on the cusp of release in the United Kingdom and an official trailer has dropped.

Here's that is via YouTube:

The Duke opens in the U.K. on Sept. 3rd.

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Ten Bets #1 for TFF #48 / Toronto's Early Line / Winners at Annecy

 TEN BETS #1 FOR TFF #48

Well, here we are.  June 24th, 2021.  Roughly two months away from the start of TFF #48.  It's still not a guarantee but each day we get closer, the more confident I feel that we'll all be seeing each other in the San Juans in September...which sounds like a song title from a Crosby/Hope road picture doesn't it?

Here's this year's first actual attempt at a list of films that I feel like could be on the list for TFF #48 when that drops presumably on Sept. 1st.  As always, there are no "locks" on the Ten Bets- at least at this point- and fair warning, my normal track record for the initial Ten Bets each season is roughly 50%.

So, without further ado and drumroll please...

1) The Power of the Dog/Campion

2) Muhammad Ali/Burns, Burns and McMahon

3) The Card Counter/Schrader

4) Nightmare Alley/Del Toro

5) The Velvet Underground/Haynes

6) Bergman Island/Hansen-Love

7) Cow/Arnold

8) A Hero/Farhadi

9) Blonde/Dominik

10) The Story of Looking/Cousins

Don't discount the possibility of: Dune, Julia, Mothering Sunday, Petite Maman, Where Is Anne Frank?, Paris 13th District and The Eyes of Tammy Faye.

Again, grain of salt.

I'll update the Ten Bets list each week as the summer progresses right up to the final Ten Bets which is usually 20-25 bets) on Tuesday, August 31st.

TORONTO'S EARLY LINE

The Toronto International Film Festival dropped the titles of a dozen or so films that will be a part of this year's TIFF.  Unlike most normal announcements from TIFF, no premiere status was included.  The closest the statement came was to characterize Denis Villenueve's Dune as a World IMAX premiere.  Absent the specific premiere status I'm going to assume that any and all of the films are still possible for Telluride including Dune.  Other films of note in as far as Telluride potential that were included in the announcement today were:

Dune, Last Night in Soho, Petite Maman, Belfast, Les Bal des Folles, Lakewood and The Starling.

The complete story of the early announced Toronto films is here from Indiewire,

WINNERS AT ANNECY

The world's largest animated film fest, the Annecy Animation Festival has concluded in France with winning films announced last week.  Annecy is of some note to Telluride observers as films that have played there occasionally are programmed in T-ride over Labor Day weekend.

Big winners were: Flee and My Sunny Maad.  Flee won the top award at the fest, the Cristal.  Flee debuted at Sundance last January which normally precludes a slot in Telluride but there are rare exceptions and I feel like this could be one of those.  

The film is being distributed in the United States by NEON.

The complete rundown about the fest is linked here from Variety.

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Still a Little Wonky / Pete Hammond at the TFF Party / ICYMI: Barry Jenkins Will Guest Direct TFF #48

STILL A LITTLE WONKY

Fair Warning...the next three weeks will be weird and MTFB may not post quite as it normally does.  The Chief Executive is art showing over the next couple of weeks with The Festival of the Arts in Oklahoma City this week (and it does run almost the entire week) followed by a crazy three day drive to the Berkshires in Western Massachusetts to do the Independence Day weekend Berkshires Art Festival.

I'll attempt to keep to my normal Monday/Thursday posting sked and I am planning for the first "Ten Bets" for TFF #48 to hit on Thursday, June 24th.  But no promises...if the art tent collapses... 

PETE HAMMOND AT THE TFF PARTY

Every year, except, of course, last year, the Telluride Film Festival hosts a big wing-ding in L.A.  That wing-wing happened last Thursday.  Deadline's Pate Hammond was on hand and filed a report on Friday filled with hints and guesses at films that could be Telluride bound.  Amoing the juicier of the items was this line about Netflix films:

"I have reliably heard that Netflix — of course, still not going to Cannes next month — will have at least four films at T-Ride if things work out."

If you look back at my review of Netflix possibilities that I posted on May 17th you'll see that I pegged the following as Netflix's most Likely T-ride players:

The Power of the Dog

Blonde

The Hand of God

tick, tick...BOOM

Don't Look Back

If any of this make up that group of four, that's a powerhouse of a lineup!  I'm personally pulling for Dominik's Blonde, Miranda's tick, tick, BOOM, McKay's Don't Look Back and Campion's The Power of the Dog being the four.  

But note Hammond's qualifier "if things work out".

Here's the link back to my May 17th post.

Hammond also mentions Warner Bros. and Denis Villenueve's Dune:

"I am told Warner Bros, which just confirmed Denis Villeneuve’s Dune for Venice, is possibly going to have a film hit Telluride as well, likely one of its awaited fall titles like David Chase’s Sopranos prequel The Many Saints of Newark, Clint Eastwood’s Cry Macho or even November title King Richard with Will Smith."

Personally, I still think Dune is the most likely TFF #48 player from Warners and the one about which I would be most excited.

Then it's to Searchlight.  Here's what Hammond writes:

"There was a strong Searchlight contingent spotted, and they usually are good for one or two movies. Whether Cannes entry Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch is one of them is unknown (it has also been announced for NYFF), but September release The Eyes of Tammy Faye with Jessica Chastain and Andrew Garfield makes sense."

And while I don't discount the possibility that "Tammy Faye" could play (I actually am leaning toward it being at Toronto and skipping T-ride right now), my guess is that Guillermo Del Toro's Nightmare Alley (also from Searchlight) is probably more likely and don't totally discount Taika Waititi's Next Goal Wins.  Check my Searchlight analysis from my May 24th post.

Hammond also says that Amazon Studios was out in force at the Thursday evening soiree. 

The complete Hammond account of he party is linked here.

ICYMI: BARRY JENKINS TO GUEST DIRECT TFF #48

From the TFF press release:

Los Angeles, CA – Telluride Film Festival, presented by National Film Preserve LTD., is proud to announce Academy Award-winning director Barry Jenkins as its 2021 Guest Director. The celebrated filmmaker is set to select a series of films to present at the 48h Telluride Film Festival running September 2 - 6, 2021. 

 Festival organizers annually select one of the world’s great film enthusiasts to join them in the creation of the Festival’s program lineup. The Guest Director serves as a key collaborator in the Festival’s programming decisions, bringing new ideas and overlooked films to Telluride. In keeping with Telluride Film Festival tradition, Jenkins’s film selections, along with the rest of the Telluride lineup, will be kept secret until Opening Day.

“Each year as we think about who a good Guest Director would be, Tom and I weigh different factors,” said executive director Julie Huntsinger. “Many are based in the intellectual realm: film knowledge, appreciation and, of course, serious talent. But our recipe always includes something more ephemeral – something that has to do with the quality of the human heart. Rare is the person who exceeds on each of these criteria. Barry Jenkins checks every box and more. We feel lucky and a little incredulous that our long-time friend and very talented colleague has agreed to join us as Guest Director this year. The whole world knows of Barry’s gifts, and we’re thrilled that he is taking the time to share the films he loves in a place with the people who love him dearly.”

Academy Award winner Barry Jenkins’ feature film debut, MEDICINE FOR MELANCHOLY, was hailed as one of the best films of 2009 by The New York Times and received several Independent Spirit and Gotham Award nominations. In 2019, along with playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney, Jenkins received an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for his second feature the Academy Award and Golden Globe winning Best Picture MOONLIGHT. As well as earning eight Academy Award nominations, ten Broadcast Critics Choice Awards nominations, six Golden Globe nominations and four BAFTA nominations, MOONLIGHT won Best Picture and Director at the Gotham Awards and Best International Film by the British Independent Film Awards. In addition to NYFCC and NBR awarding Jenkins Best Director and LAFCA naming him Best Director and the film Best Picture, Jenkins received a DGA Best Director nomination and won the WGA Award for Best Original Screenplay. His third feature, the adaptation of James Baldwin’s IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK went on to receive three Academy Award nominations and won Best Picture at the Independent Spirit Awards. Jenkins also received the Independent Spirit Award for Best Director. Jenkins’ next feature film projects include a follow up to THE LION KING for Walt Disney Studios as well as a biopic of famed choreographer, Alvin Ailey, for Searchlight Pictures.

For television, Jenkins directed an episode in the first season of the Netflix Original Series DEAR WHITE PEOPLE. His most recent project for television is the critically acclaimed adaptation of Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner Colson Whitehead’s THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD for Amazon. Jenkins has directed all episodes and written a number of the screenplays. Upcoming work includes a script based on the life of the first American Female Olympic boxing champ Clarissa “T-Rex” Shields as well as an adaptation of Netflix’s original documentary, VIRUNGA, about the battle to save the Congo’s mountain gorilla population.

My first Telluride was the 29th festival, in 2002. In the time since, I've done many things at the festival both high -- opening the Werner Herzog Cinema as Ringmaster and, of course, the world premiere of Moonlight -- and low (rolling up the floor of the Max at festival's end was a rite of passage). When I was approached about curating the Filmmakers of Tomorrow program many years ago, I was honored to be invited deeper into the inner workings of the festival I loved so dearly; being invited to curate a program as Guest Director is an honor my 2002 self would never imagine. We've all been tucked away in our silos longing for the day when we can safely venture out into communal spaces to once again partake in the rituals of cinema we love so dearly. I never doubted that the show would once again go on. But having a role in what is shown? Yes, that is quite the honor indeed. My thanks to Tom and Julie for bestowing this wonderful gift upon me. I'll see everyone at the SHOW. 

Past Guest Directors include Pico Iyer, Jonathan Lethem, Joshua Oppenheimer, Volker Schlöndorff, Rachel Kushner, Guy Maddin, Caetano Veloso, Michael Ondaatje, Alexander Payne, Salman Rushdie, Peter Bogdanovich, B. Ruby Rich, Phillip Lopate, Errol Morris, Bertrand Tavernier, John Boorman, John Simon, Buck Henry, Laurie Anderson, Stephen Sondheim, G. Cabrera Infante, Peter Sellars, Don DeLillo, J.P. Gorin, Edith Kramer and Slavoj Žižek.

 The Guest Director program is sponsored by Turner Classic Movies (TCM). Considered throughout the industry as one of the leading authorities on classic film, the network presents great films, uncut and commercial-free, highlighting the entire spectrum of film history. 

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LATE BREAKING: TFF CHOSES BARRY JENKINS AS 2021 GUEST DIRECTOR / Little Late and a Little Short / This and That

LATE BREAKING: TFF CHOSES BARRY JENKINS AS 2021 GUEST DIRECTOR

From the TFF press release:

Los Angeles, CA – Telluride Film Festival, presented by National Film Preserve LTD., is proud to announce Academy Award-winning director Barry Jenkins as its 2021 Guest Director. The celebrated filmmaker is set to select a series of films to present at the 48h Telluride Film Festival running September 2 - 6, 2021. 

Festival organizers annually select one of the world’s great film enthusiasts to join them in the creation of the Festival’s program lineup. The Guest Director serves as a key collaborator in the Festival’s programming decisions, bringing new ideas and overlooked films to Telluride. In keeping with Telluride Film Festival tradition, Jenkins’s film selections, along with the rest of the Telluride lineup, will be kept secret until Opening Day.

“Each year as we think about who a good Guest Director would be, Tom and I weigh different factors,” said executive director Julie Huntsinger. “Many are based in the intellectual realm: film knowledge, appreciation and, of course, serious talent. But our recipe always includes something more ephemeral – something that has to do with the quality of the human heart. Rare is the person who exceeds on each of these criteria. Barry Jenkins checks every box and more. We feel lucky and a little incredulous that our long-time friend and very talented colleague has agreed to join us as Guest Director this year. The whole world knows of Barry’s gifts, and we’re thrilled that he is taking the time to share the films he loves in a place with the people who love him dearly.”

Academy Award winner Barry Jenkins’ feature film debut, MEDICINE FOR MELANCHOLY, was hailed as one of the best films of 2009 by The New York Times and received several Independent Spirit and Gotham Award nominations. In 2019, along with playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney, Jenkins received an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for his second feature the Academy Award and Golden Globe winning Best Picture MOONLIGHT. As well as earning eight Academy Award nominations, ten Broadcast Critics Choice Awards nominations, six Golden Globe nominations and four BAFTA nominations, MOONLIGHT won Best Picture and Director at the Gotham Awards and Best International Film by the British Independent Film Awards. In addition to NYFCC and NBR awarding Jenkins Best Director and LAFCA naming him Best Director and the film Best Picture, Jenkins received a DGA Best Director nomination and won the WGA Award for Best Original Screenplay. His third feature, the adaptation of James Baldwin’s IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK went on to receive three Academy Award nominations and won Best Picture at the Independent Spirit Awards. Jenkins also received the Independent Spirit Award for Best Director. Jenkins’ next feature film projects include a follow up to THE LION KING for Walt Disney Studios as well as a biopic of famed choreographer, Alvin Ailey, for Searchlight Pictures.

For television, Jenkins directed an episode in the first season of the Netflix Original Series DEAR WHITE PEOPLE. His most recent project for television is the critically acclaimed adaptation of Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner Colson Whitehead’s THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD for Amazon. Jenkins has directed all episodes and written a number of the screenplays. Upcoming work includes a script based on the life of the first American Female Olympic boxing champ Clarissa “T-Rex” Shields as well as an adaptation of Netflix’s original documentary, VIRUNGA, about the battle to save the Congo’s mountain gorilla population.

My first Telluride was the 29th festival, in 2002. In the time since, I've done many things at the festival both high -- opening the Werner Herzog Cinema as Ringmaster and, of course, the world premiere of Moonlight -- and low (rolling up the floor of the Max at festival's end was a rite of passage). When I was approached about curating the Filmmakers of Tomorrow program many years ago, I was honored to be invited deeper into the inner workings of the festival I loved so dearly; being invited to curate a program as Guest Director is an honor my 2002 self would never imagine. We've all been tucked away in our silos longing for the day when we can safely venture out into communal spaces to once again partake in the rituals of cinema we love so dearly. I never doubted that the show would once again go on. But having a role in what is shown? Yes, that is quite the honor indeed. My thanks to Tom and Julie for bestowing this wonderful gift upon me. I'll see everyone at the SHOW. 

Past Guest Directors include Pico Iyer, Jonathan Lethem, Joshua Oppenheimer, Volker Schlöndorff, Rachel Kushner, Guy Maddin, Caetano Veloso, Michael Ondaatje, Alexander Payne, Salman Rushdie, Peter Bogdanovich, B. Ruby Rich, Phillip Lopate, Errol Morris, Bertrand Tavernier, John Boorman, John Simon, Buck Henry, Laurie Anderson, Stephen Sondheim, G. Cabrera Infante, Peter Sellars, Don DeLillo, J.P. Gorin, Edith Kramer and Slavoj Žižek.

 The Guest Director program is sponsored by Turner Classic Movies (TCM). Considered throughout the industry as one of the leading authorities on classic film, the network presents great films, uncut and commercial-free, highlighting the entire spectrum of film history. 

 For more information about Telluride Film Festival, visit www.telluridefilmfestival.org.

 LITTLE LATE AND A LITTLE SHORT

Pardon the later than normal posting time for todays' MTFB.  Also pardon it's brevity.  I'm working this week as a part of the staff for the National Speech and Debate Association's National Tournament.  High School students from across the nation and even from around the world are competing remotely to be national champions in a number of events.  We'll wrap up on Saturday.

THIS AND THAT

Here's a summary of a couple of items of interest regarding the 48th Telluride Film Festival:

1) Chances that Wes Anderson's The French Dispatch screening at Telluride  seem to have dimmed this week as an alert MTFB fan sent along an article from The Playlist that labels its already announced New York Film Fest screening as its "American Premiere" which would likely indicate a slot at Toronto but not Telluride.  NYFF also claimed that the film will host the U.S. Premiere as a part of a link to their announcement back in late May.  The link to that statement is: https://www.filmlinc.org/nyff2021/announcements/

2) Dune will play Venice...which could mean that it then makes the trip across the Atlantic to bow at Telluride.  Dune's screening date, however, is claimed to set for Sept. 3rd which doesn't preclude a Venice/Telluride double play but makes it a little trickier.  Indiewire is reporting the Sept. 3rd date.

3) Check out some conversations about Muhammad Ali that are a precursor to the Ken Burns' documentary about the late boxing champion that I suspect will part of the TFF #48 lineup.  You can find that link here.

4) Sean Penn's Flag Day won't rise at Telluride.  The film now has an announced release date of August 13th.

5) Here's a conversation featuring Guillermo Del Toro and Bradley Cooper about Nightmare Alley...which is still on  my list of possible TFF #48 titles.  

That's all for today...

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Ned Beatty 1937-2021 / Cannes Update / One of Those Random Things

 NED BEATTY 1937-2021

Actor Ned Beatty died yesterday.  I can't recall a Telluride connection off the top of my head.  He was just a great actor and I wanted to take  moment and say that in print.  Incredible in Deliverance and the deliverer of one of the finest movie monologues in the history of cinema in Network.

CANNES UPDATE

Since we last touched base about the Cannes' lineup the Director's Fortnight and Critic's Week films have been announced.  A few other films have been announced to various sections as well but it seems to me that the only one announced in the latest batch that has some TFF traction is Ari Folman's Where Is Anne Frank which was announced as a late addition to the Palme d'Or competition.

Here's a link to the latest adds from Awards Watch.

ONE OF THOSE RANDOM THINGS

So a bit of a buzz in the second half of last week that involved a tip from a friend and an IMDb listing.

I'm not going to get into details yet because I need to be more certain that it wasn't a giant error or someone pulling  a prank.  But, should the bare bones of the info pan out, TFF will have a major title that I have mentioned in passing but haven't really thought would be a film with a significant likelihood of playing in Telluride.

I will say that for a period of time late last week, the film was listed at IMDb as playing Telluride and then that was scrubbed before the end of the day that it appeared.  I have more work to do and will get back to you soon.

THE POWER OF THE THE DOG GOES TO VENICE

Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog will be at Venice this year and could possibly make the move to Telluride as a number of Venetian bowing films do.  Campion's last feature film, Bright Star, played T-ride in 2009 as did her Oscar winning The Piano in 1993.  The film is distributed by Netflix and has no announced release date as yet.

Here's coverage from Variety concerning the film's selection by Venice.

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TFF #48- A Big Return? / New Digs for TFF in Telluride / Trailers, Teasers, Posters and Pics of TFF Possibilities

 TFF #48- A BIG RETURN?

We already know that TFF #48 will be bigger than usual with a five day fest rather than the typical four day event.  We also know, officially this week as reported by news outlets in Telluride as well as nationally by Awards Watch and Indiewire that the fest has purchased the Nugget Theater building with plans to establish a substantial continuing presence in Telluride.

But in addition to all that, there are whispers in the ether that Telluride might be a larger than usual locus for films launching at the fall fests.

Eric Kohn and Anne Thompson writing for Indiewire yesterday had some interesting observations in that direction:

(Telluride) "which chose to cancel its VIP mountain gathering last year when it could not stage a live event, is prepping a substantial comeback. The Labor Day gathering has ambitious plans, with an extra day of programming and a slate of expected Oscar hopefuls that may include both Wes Anderson’s Cannes entry “The French Dispatch” and the animated Sundance documentary breakout “Flee.” Telluride is returning strong with its recent acquisition of frequent screening site the Nugget Building, where it intends to create a year-round “cultural center devoted to film, filmmakers, and film culture.” Meanwhile, awards consultants are eager to return to in-person campaign events with a Telluride awards launch."

The momentum about thinking that The French Dispatch could be a  TFF selection has been building a bit over the past few weeks, so Indiewire's speculation adds some fuel to that fire.  Interesting, as well, is the mention of Flee, which has been earning good buzz since its debut at Sundance.  Because Flee is a documentary, it's debut at Sundance doesn't diminish its chances at playing TFF as much as if it were a feature film.  Also, its acquisition by NEON doesn't hurt either.

The concluding sentence from this paragraph also intrigues.  

There have also been a couple of other allusions from other film journos that Telluride could well be in the "sweet spot" this year for a fall film fest and domestic film makers with Covid restrictions and uncertainties regarding European Fests and Toronto. 

Another interesting note here is the reveal that TFF has bought the Nugget Theater building.  That news had been bubbling for a bit and has now been reported by local Telluride media as well Erik Anderson's Awards Watch.  See the news release from the fest about the purchase below.

Not to brag, but I have been sitting on the news for a couple of months.

The complete Indiewire article is linked here.

Stand by!

NEW DIGS FOR TFF IN TELLURIDE

From the TFF Press Office and Shannon Mitchell:

Telluride Film Festival (September 2 – 6, 2021) and the National Film Preserve LTD, a Colorado nonprofit corporation, today announced its acquisition of the Nugget Building in the town of Telluride, Colorado. The Festival’s intent is to maintain and further create a cultural center devoted to film, filmmakers and film culture. 

The building, an iconic piece of Old West history located in the town’s center near the New Sheridan Hotel, will provide a permanent hub for the Festival focused on a fully remodeled Nugget Theater; a regional jewel that will be upgraded to the country’s highest presentation standards. In addition, the Festival intends to construct a rooftop gathering space that will be a site for major Festival events and a year-round venue for education and community programming. Plans also involve the construction of an adjacent filmmaker residency building. A capital campaign, Nugget Project: The SHOW at 50, is underway to raise the necessary funds for the purchase, construction and vital endowments towards future programming.

“The Telluride Film Festival believes that film is best experienced together, in a beautiful cinema, talking afterwards in a communal space with the artists who create these magical stories in the first place,” said Executive Director Julie Huntsinger. “We hope to make the picturesque Nugget Building a beacon for our global society of cinephiles to experience the art form at its best.”

The Nugget Building has been restored by its past owners, and Telluride Film Festival intends to build on their work. 

“The Telluride Film Festival wishes to deeply thank Katrine and Bill Formby for their twenty-year preservation efforts in bringing the Nugget Building back to its former glory, and for generously donating to the Nugget Project: The SHOW at 50 capital campaign that helped us to acquire the building,” said Huntsinger. “We are committed to preserving its history.”

“When we purchased the crumbling, partially blue-stained Nugget Building in 1999, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into,” said former building owners Katrine and William Formby. “Twenty years later, we are now somewhat experts on historical preservation. We are extremely proud of what we have been able to accomplish in bringing this 129-year-old building back to its former glory. All of our decisions have been made with the following in mind: ‘What is the best for the Nugget Building and for Telluride?’ Selling the Nugget Building to the Telluride Film Festival sounds like a happy and appropriate ending to our time as stewards of the building.”

 For more information about Telluride Film Festival’s Capital Campaign or to make a donation, please visit www.telluridefilmfestival.org.

 

TRAILERS OF TFF POSSIBILITIES

With Cannes upcoming and other films getting into the game, we have had a run of teasers and trailers recently for films that could be contenders for TFF inclusion.  Beginning with yesterday's release from Searchlight for Michael Showalter's The Eyes of Tammy Faye:

Petrov's Flu

Bergman Island:

The Year of the Everlasting Storm:

Where Is Anne Frank poster:

Photo from Audiard's 13th District Paris:

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