Oscar 2020 First Attempt-Best Actor / Looks at The Way I See It and The Truffle Hunters /The Bee Gees Go to HBO

OSCAR 2020 FIRST ATTEMPT-BEST ACTOR

MTFB continues its first pass at predicting Oscar nominees for 2020-21 in various major categories.  Today we're looking at Best Actor with, as always, a focus on those performances that were a part of the list of 29 films that TFF released that would have been screened as a part of TFF #47.  Performers designated with *** are in films that may not be released prior to the Feb, 28, 2021 Oscar eligibility deadline.   TFF#47 performers are in Bold:

1) Anthony Hopkins/The Father

2) Gary Oldman/Mank

3) Tom Hanks/News of the World***

4) Delroy Lindo/Da 5 Bloods

5) Bill Murray/On the Rocks

6) Daniel Kaluuya/Judas and the Black Messiah***

7) Joaquin Phoenix/C'mon C'mon***

8) Ben Affleck/The Way Back

9) Matt Damon/Stillwater***

10) Michael Fassbender/Next Goal Wins***

LOOKS AT THE WAY I SEE IT AND THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS

This week we got new footage from two TFF #47 documentaries.  Initially, we were treated to the a first clip from Dawn Porter's The Way I See It which focuses on Pete Souza who spent time as the Chief Official White House photographer for Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama.

Here's that clip from YouTube:

If you have trouble viewing this video, here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evHHCHocAqQ

Also, ahead of its play at the Zurich film festival, we have a new clip from Greg Kersahe and Michael Dweck's The Truffle Hunters.  Also from YouTube:

As with the above clip, if you have trouble viewing here's the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS1AWDp7ftE

THE BEE GEES GO TO HBO

We got word this week that Frank Marshall's documentary focusing on The Brothers Gibb has been acquired by HBO.  The Bees Gees: How Do You Mend a Broken Heart was announced as an official TFF #47 selection back at the end of July and now mxdwn.com reports that HBO Documentary Films now has plans to screen the doc on this fall on HBO Max and their flagship platform.

The mxdwn.com article form Sept. 26th is linked here.

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The Other Side of the Wind Confirmed / It Looks Like No Eyes / Aretha Franklin and Telluride / The People's Telluride Rides Again

Good Monday everyone.  We're down to the last few days to TFF #45 and I can feel the excitement building...tapping my foot here...


THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND CONFIRMED

Ray Kelly at Wellesnet.com wrote this weekend that what we have been thinking is true and that is that Orson Welles' final film The Other Side of the Wind will bow at Telluride following its screening in Venice.

Kelly cites a "festival source speaking on condition of anonymity" as revealing that the first showing in the United States  for the long gestating film project will be at Telluride.  I can also tell you that I have been assured that Kelly's source is well placed.

I will certainly have it on my list of films to catch at some point during the weekend and am curious which film makers will be part of the film's entourage.  At a guess, I'd venture Frank Marshall and Peter Bogdanovich.  Both of whom have been instrumental in finishing the project.  Additionally, Bogdanovich acts in the film as well.

You can read Kelly's entire story at Wellesnet.com here.


IT LOOKS LIKE NO EYES

In other Orson Welles/Telluride news, it appears that we will not be seeing Mark Cousins' The Eyes of Orson Welles next week.  I ran across a listing of Cousin's screenings including those at which he is scheduled to do question and answer sessions and it seems that the film and he are booked in Europe during Labor Day weekend.

The Eyes of Orson Welles examines Welles and his career through the lense of  little known artwork that Welles created.

On a brighter note, I still have a good deal of confidence that the "making-of" documentary about The Other Side of the Wind will play at TFF #45.



ARETHA FRANKLIN AND TELLURIDE

With this week's passing of the Queen of Soul I have had a number of folks reach out to me asking if I think that this turn will change the status of the documentary Amazing Grace.  The film was twice seemingly set to play Telluride in 2015 and 2016 only to be thwarted by legal issues at the last minute both years.

The doc was shot during two days as Franklin live recorded the songs that would become the album Amazing Grace.

My feeling is that we may eventually see it and even at Telluride but that isn't likely to be this year by any means.  Franklin's family and estate will now have to decide what they think about the situation.

Chris Willman writing for Variety posted a lengthy story on Friday about the status of Amazing Grace as well an authorized biopic at MGM that reportedly would cast Jennifer Hudson as Aretha.

Take a look at that story here for a deep dive into where both of those projects are in terms of seeing the light of day.

Nick Allen also had a piece about the doc this past weekend in The Telegraph.


THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE RIDES AGAIN!

For the seventh consecutive year MTFB is soliciting your input for The People's Telluride.  All you have to do is watch films during the fest and then, when it's all over, report to me your assessment of each film on a 1-5 scale with 1 being "UGH!" and 5 being "GREAT".

When the time comes, you can send those ratings to me in any of the following ways listed as contact info for me listed below.

EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

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Netflix Will Go Theatrical with the Wind / Karlovy Vary Lineup Announced / Documentary Corner

Welcome to the last day of May for 2018...


NETFLIX WILL GO THEATRICAL WITH THE WIND

Indiewire reported yesterday that Orson Welles' final film, The Other Side of the Wind, which has been completed after decades of effort, will get a theatrical release in the fall.

Indiewire's Jenna Marotta included Twitter traffic from producer Frank Marshall's account that flat said that a fall theatrical release strategy.  Indiewire also credits Wellesnet with having originated the story.

Interestingly, the original Welles net post notes that Marshall was asked directly (by Hollywood Elsewhere's Jeff Wells) if the screening(s) would occur before TFF #45 and they report that Marshall ignored the question.  Here's the Twitter screenshot:

Additionally, both the Wellesnet and Indiewire posts report that the release strategy is still in the planning stages.

The Wellesnet post is here.

The Indiewire story is here.



KARLOVY VARY LINEUP ANNOUNCED

The Czech based Karlovy Vary Film Festival announced their lineup this week.  That announcement is of some note to Telluride obsessives as there are usually some films that play there that also make the grade then for TFF.

Last year, for example, TFF #44 included Land of the Free, A Man of Integrity and The Other Side of Hope all of which played at the Czech festival before appearing at Telluride.

Over the years I have been attending T-ride (since 2006) several other films have followed this path including:

2016-The Eagle Huntress, Fire at Sea, Graduation, Toni Erdmann
2015-Ixcanul, Rams, 45 Years
2014-'71, Leviathan, Mommy, Wild Tales
2013-Gloria, The Lunchbox, Missing Picture, The Story of Children and Film
2012-Amour, Barbara, Paradise:Love, Piazza Fontana, What Is This Film Called Love?
2011-The Kid With a Bike, Le Havre, Pina, A Separation, Turin Horse
2010-Border, Cameraman: Jack Cardiff, The Illusionist, Le Quattro Volte, Of Gods and Men, Poetry
2009-Fish Tank, Gigante, Room and a Half, Samson + Delilah, The White Ribbon
2008-Gommorah, O'Horten, Tulpan, Waltz with Bashir
2007-4 Months 3 Weeks & Days, The Band's Visit, The Counterfeiters, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Jar City, Secret Sunshine
2006-12:08 East of Bucharest

So, as you can see, the average number of films that play both fests is four per year (with a statistically noticeable tie to films that have played Berlin or Cannes prior to their inclusion at Karlovy Vary.

With all that said, none of the announced films scream"This will play Telluride".  At a guess I might keep an eye on Ewa Bukowska's 53 Wars, Vladimir Bitokov's Deep Rivers and Giedre Beinoiriute's Breathing Into Marble.

Articles with the lineups included are here from Variety and The Playlist.


DOCUMENTARY CORNER

Errol Morris' Wormwood played TFF #44 and is available to stream on Netflix.  Indiewire put together an in depth look at the series from the Telluride regular earlier this week.

The lengthy article includes interview material with Morris.

You can read the piece from author Chris O'Falt here.

That's today's installment of MTFB.  More to come next week...


EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

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