Finding The Founder / Euro Producers; The French Part One-Canal+ / A Look at La La Land / Trailering A Monster Calls / And Finally, Miss Sloane

Hello on a Thursday everyone...lots to dissect from yesterday...plus French producer Canal+


FINDING THE FOUNDER

I have spent months not concerned about whether or not John Lee Hancock's The Founder starring Michael Keaton as Ray Kroc, the man who made McDonalds into the global behemoth it is today.  Initially the film was supposed to be a November release but that changed this spring when The Weinstein Company moved its release date to August.  That move meant no Telluride, no Toronto...

Then yesterday, TWC announces that they've decided to move the film back into the thick of Awards season with a new release date of Dec. 16.

So, does that also mean it should be in the conversation for fall festivals?  My head hurts.

Here's the trailer from YouTube:

Here are any number of posts/stories about the new date change for The Founder:

http://deadline.com/2016/07/the-founder-mcdonalds-movie-michael-keaton-release-dat-change-1201785969/

http://deadline.com/2016/07/the-founder-mcdonalds-movie-michael-keaton-release-dat-change-1201785969/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/weinstein-pushes-michael-keatons-founder-910653

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/07/13/founder-release-date-michael-keaton-mcdonalds

http://www.indiewire.com/2016/07/weinstein-awards-slate-michael-keaton-the-founder-december-release-1201705517/

http://www.slashfilm.com/the-founder-release-date/

https://thefilmstage.com/trailer/michael-keaton-builds-a-fast-food-empire-in-first-trailer-for-the-founder/

http://www.thewrap.com/michael-keatons-the-founder-moves-to-december-for-awards-run/

http://www.awardscircuit.com/2016/07/13/weinstein-company-pushes-back-founder-december/

EURO PRODUCERS; THE FRENCH PART ONE-CANAL+

Look at the history of Canal+ as a producer of films that played at Telluride over the last decade:

2003: The Barbarian Invasions, Dogville, Love Me If You Dare, The Tripletts of Belleville
2004: The Weeping Meadow
2005: The Child, Cache, Lemming, Live and Become
2006: Volver, Indigenes, The Page Turner
2007: The Diving Bell and The Butterfly, Terror's Advocate, Jellyfish
2008: With a Little Help From Myself, I've Loved You So Long
2009: Farewell, Coco Before Chanel, A Prophet, The White Ribbon
2010: The Illusionist, Carlos, Of Gods and Men, The Princess of Montpensier
2011: Crazy Horse, Albert Nobbs, Goodbye First Love, The Kid with a Bike, The Artist, Le Havre
2012: Rust and Bone, Superstar, The Attack
2013: Blue is the Warmest Color", Le Maison de la Radio", "The Past"
2014: The Price of Fame, Two Days One Night, Diplomacy
2015: Marguerite


Despite a connection to a single film last year, which, as you can see is anomaly, Canal+ has the chance to be represented by multiple films at Telluride in 2016.  The most likely are:

Things to Come
Elle
Slack Bay
Peshmerga


Check back tomorrow for more on French production companies.


A LOOK AT LA LA LAND

In a big news day yesterday, one of the highlights was the relelase of the first trailer for Damien Chazelle's La La Land.  The film has a lot of heat at the moment and has been announced as the opening night film for the Venice Film Fest.  A good number of people think it has a real shot at making the T-ride lineup.  The trailer intrigues.  Here it is:

And linked here is a ton of coverage that came with the trailer's release:

http://time.com/4397269/ryan-gosling-emma-stone-la-la-land-trailer/?xid=tcoshare

http://www.indiewire.com/2016/07/la-la-land-trailer-emma-stone-ryan-gosling-damien-chazelle-1201705221/

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/07/13/ryan-gosling-city-stars-la-la-land-streaming

http://www.slashfilm.com/la-la-land-trailer/

https://thefilmstage.com/trailer/first-trailer-for-damien-chazelles-la-la-land-starring-ryan-gosling-and-emma-stone/

http://theplaylist.net/watch-ryan-gosling-emma-stone-best-rogers-astaire-first-trailer-la-la-land-20160713/

http://www.thewrap.com/ryan-gosling-la-la-land-trailer-emma-stone-whiplash-director-damien-chazelle-song-video/

TRAILERING: A MONSTER CALLS

Another trailer dropping yesterday was for Focus Feature's J.A. Bayona directed A Monster Calls. It's Telluride profile was negligible until recently but has warmed somewhat in the last week or so. Check the trailer here from YouTube:

 Additionally, here's some of the coverage that accompanied the trailer's appearance:

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/07/13/monster-calls-trailer

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2016/07/12/sneak-peek-exclusive-a-monster-calls-movie/86955404/

http://theplaylist.net/theres-another-bfg-coming-new-trailer-j-bayonas-monster-calls-20160713/

http://www.thewrap.com/watch-liam-neeson-come-to-life-in-a-monster-calls-trailer-video/

https://thefilmstage.com/trailer/a-monster-calls-in-full-length-trailer-for-j-a-bayonas-fantasy-adventure/


AND FINALLY...MISS SLOANE?

Late breaking news last night was the upstart distributor EuropaCorpUSA has dated the Jessica Chastain starring John Madden (Shakespeare in Love) directed gun control drama Miss Sloane for Dec. 9.  Awards season?  Yes.  Festival possibility?  It is now.  The cast, in addition to Chastain is quite inpmressive: Mark Strong, John Lithgow, Michael Stuhlbarg, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sam Waterston.   Note to Telluride...yes please.

Here's the news from Dealine.com and Variety:

http://deadline.com/2016/07/miss-sloane-jessica-chastain-december-release-date-1201786282/

http://variety.com/2016/film/news/jessica-chastain-miss-sloane-december-release-1201814008/


Whew...that'll be all for this Thursday...more tomorrow including a fresh Ten Bets for TFF #43

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Back in the Game / Distribution: Strand Releasing and Focus Features / A Couple of Points of Passenger Interest

Welcome to Wednesday my friends...

BACK IN THE GAME

Well, for the fifth consecutive year the Telluride Film Festival has been gracious enough to grant Michael's Telluride Film Blog status as an actual journalistic endeavor.  I got word a couple of days ago that I had been accredited for TFF #43.

It never fails to blow my mind that MTFB gets accepted in the same breath as Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Sasha Stone's Awards Daily and others.  Journalists and outlets that I read studiously and respect tremendously and I get to play like I belong in that pool for four days a year.


It's cool.

Thanks to the Telluride Film Festival and its directors Tom Luddy and Julie Huntsinger as well as P.R. Chief Shannon Mitchell and P.R. Coordinator Richard Parkin.


DISTRIBUTION: STRAND RELEASING AND FOCUS FEATURES

As we come down the home stretch of our review of distributors who have had the largest presence at Telluride over the last decade or so, we turn our attention to companies who have had a spotty, but serious record of inclusion.  These are outfits that are sometime players that you always need to account for because they show up just often enough that you'd be a fool to overlook them each year as you try to puzzle out possible lineup choices.

It's this type of organization we'll talk about through Friday and then next week, we'll turn our attention to overseas production companies.

Today, however, we look at distributors Strand Releasing and Focus Features.

STRAND RELEASING

Strand started showing up at the SHOW in 2010 and ran off appearances for five straight years before missing last year's SHOW.

2010- Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff
2011- Bonsai
2012- Paradise: Love
2013- The Missing Picture
2014- Dancing Arabs

In 2015, Strand failed to make the TFF #42 lineup.  I thought a year ago that there was some possibility of seeing Cemetery of Splendour but, as you know, that did not happen.

Much like last year, at this point Strand seems to have only one possibility and that is Alain Guiraudie's Staying Vertical.  The film played in Cannes competition and drew fair reviews.  You may have noticed that I posted its poster in yesterday's dispatch.  My feeling right now is that it may be a borderline inclusion in the TFF #43 lineup.  Call its chances 55%.

FOCUS FEATURES

Meanwhile, As we turn to Focus Features we regard a distributor who has had a very sketchy Telluride relationship.  Only three films from them have appeared at T-ride since 2006.

2006- Catch a Fire
2012- Hyde Park on Hudson
2015- Suffragette

Now, I have to tell you that they impressed me last year in that they had the estimable Meryl Streep in Telluride in addition to director Sarah Gavron and writer Abi Morgan.  I also have to admit that I liked the film more than a good many others.  You may recall that in my post-SHOW ratings that The People had it ranked 12the of 14 films and The Professionals had it 12th of 13.  However, IMDb has it currently at 6.9, MetaCritic has it at 67 and Rotten Tomatoes at 73% s, in hindsight, though it didn't set the world on fire, it seems that the film actually came away in modestly good critical shape.

Still, Focus had to have believed or hoped for some awards season traction that never really materialized.

All of those factors will probably have some effect on the Focus decision about which film or films to submit to Telluride (if any) and Telluride's perspective on this films.

Nevertheless, Focus does have a few films that might merit consideration:

Tom Ford's Nocturnal Animals
J. A. Bayona's A Monster Calls
Jeff Nichol's Loving
Colin Trevorrow's The Book of Henry

You could make a decent case for any of these.

Tom Ford's second film, Nocturnal Animals would seem to be highly desired by most of the big fall fests in light of the critical success of his first feature, A Single Man.  Additionally, it features Telluride regular (and MTFB "Usual Suspect) Laura Linney.

You could make a case for Jeff Nichol's Loving, as I have been since it screened at Cannes.  Decent reviews and a film that many in France thought was the film that had the most awards prospects of the Palme competition lineup.

J.A. Bayona's A Monster Calls hasn't necessarily seemed like a Telluride possibility to me until recently.  I, am higher on its prospects this week.  Been hearing a bit of buzz plus one its executive producers is T-ride regular (and another MTFB "Usual Suspect")  Bill Pohlad/River Road Entertainment.  Pohlad has also produced Telluride-screened features 12 Years a Slave, Wild, Into the Wild, Fur and Brokeback Mountain.

The longest shot of the four seems to me to be Treverrow's The Book of Henry.  It's notable Telluride connection is that it stars the young Jacob Trembay of last year's Telluride breakout film Room.

Assessing the chances for these films is complicated by Focus Features spotty T-ride record and the unknown about how their perception of the reception of Suffragette last year had colored their strategy for the fall.

Chances for each:

Loving 60%
A Monster Calls 50%
Nocturnal Animals 40%
The Book of Henry 30%


Tomorrow we'll look at Open Road and Zeitgeist.


A COUPLE OF POINTS OF PASSENGER INTEREST

Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence of Passengers via Teen Daily 

 A few days back I saw a brief blurb that there might some difficulties with a special effects firm and some late 2016 releases.  I kind of slapped in the back of my brain and moved on.

Then I ran across this post from Awards Circuit about the original story and how it could impact the Morten Tyldum film Passengers.

Now, I have mentioned Passengers briefly in the past and suggested that it might be an outside, outside shot to play Telluride because of Tyldum who directed The Imitation Game and seemed to have had a good time when he was there with that film in 2014.  Additionally, the presence of Jennifer Lawrence and her Oscar success (one win and four nominations since 2011) gave the sci-fi drama a bit more of a prestige factor.

The AC article also references the earlier piece from The Hollywood Reporter.

The bottom line is that Passengers could be delayed because of legal action involving this special effects outfit and, more to the point, Awards Circuit's article implies that it almost certainly bags the film for a possible Telluride play.

Now,  I'm not saying that AC is telling us that was in the cards...but it's really interesting speculation for them to come up with.  The actual quote from the piece goes, "...it's possible the producers planned a "Gravity" style campaign to drop the film at Telluride.  This news makes that plan somewhat unlikely now."

Makes you go...hmmmmmm.

The sfx firm is seeking a modification to the injunction to work on soon-to-be-released projects but who knows if that will be granted and how quickly.

I have linked the Awards Circuit and THR stories as well as Passengers IMDb page:

http://www.awardscircuit.com/2016/07/04/could-morten-tyldums-passengers-get-delayed/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/is-jennifer-lawrences-passengers-caught-907755

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1355644/?ref_=ttco_co_tt

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More on the Cannes Film Festival / Creating a Journal / Jon Stewart's Latest Gig Goes to Tribeca

Good Thursday America; how are you?


MORE ON THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL

Jeff Wells/Hollywood Elsewhere is the latest media pundit to chime in with a look at some of the films that he thinks could play in May at the Cannes Film Festival.  Wells' limits his post from yesterday to what he terms "the big bets-the possible awards-season contenders that may not open until the fall".

On his checklist of Cannes' possibles that fit that description are:

Martin Scorsese's Silence
Oliver Stone's Snowden
Damien Chazelle's La La Land
Kenneth Lonergan's Manchester-by-the Sea
Woody Allen's Untitled 1930's set comedy
Nicholas Winding Refn's Neon Demon
Juan Antonio Bayona's A Monster Calls
Warren Beatty's Untitled Howard Hughes film
Asghar Farhadi's The Salesman
Pedro Alamodovar's Julieta
Cristian Mungiu's Family Photos

Wells' also talks a good bit about Jodie Foster's Money Monster which will open later this spring.


I'd probably handicap The Salesman as the most likely Telluride prospect from the Wells' list.  Least likely would the Lonergan as it played Sundance as well as  Beatty's Hughes picture, Allen's comedy, Stone's Snowden and Scorsese's Silence but never say never.

Here's the link to the HE post:

http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/2016/03/hes-cannes-16-excitement-list-doesnt-include-money-monster/

Meanwhile, Roger Freidman from Showbiz 411 also comments on potential Cannes films and there is a good deal of crossover with the Hollywood Elsewhere list including Beatty, Allen, Stone and Foster.  Take a look at that post here:

http://www.showbiz411.com/2016/03/11/cannes-talk-not-just-warren-but-snowden-woody-george-julia-ryan-gosling-big-studio-hits


Finally, Awards Watch posted a Cannes piece earlier this week that, among other things, reflects a bit of confusion about exactly when they will be announcing their competition lineup.  It's probably April 14th but...

Linked here:

http://awardswatch.com/news/2016-cannes-film-festival-news-and-details/


CREATING A JOURNAL

I have undertaken to create a journal that categorizes the films that have played at each of the Telluride Fest that I have attended and provides information such as their distributor and what other fests that a film played at prior to and after their bow at Telluride.  Mostly this is so that I can use that as reference material in my detective work.  I'm about half way through (we began attending TFF in 2006).

One thing that I have discovered is that the occurrence of a film having appeared in the U.S. before playing at Telluride happens occasionally.  For instance, this past year's presentation of Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict played in a number of U.S. festivals including its premiere at the Tribeca Film Fest in April last year.

Other recent films that have appeared in the U.S. before playing at Telluride include:

2015's Sembene!
2014's Keep On Keepin' On (Tribeca)
2013's Sadourni's Butterflies (Seattle), Milius (SXSW) and My Dior (Tribeca)

So, the Telluride policy of North American premieres, which we knew was sometimes waived, may actually be waived a bit more often than I thought.


JON STEWART'S LATEST GIG

 And speaking of films from the Tribeca Film Fest, Jon Stewart who brought his feature film directing debut, Rosewater, to Telluride in 2014, is executive producing a Syrian refugee documentary that will be playing as a part of the Tribeca lineup.  The film is entitled After Spring and is set to World Premiere at Tribeca next month according to The Playlist.  Could Stewart play there and then return to Telluride with in September?

The Playlist post is here:

http://www.indiewire.com/article/after-spring-movie-trailer-poster-syrian-refugee-crisis-tribeca-20160306

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