The FAC's Oscar Predix for Six Categories / BAFTA Names Its Winners

Monday...Monday...take that as you will...



THE FAC'S OSCAR PREDIX FOR SIX CATEGORIES

We're coming down to the home stretch of Oscar Season.  The BAFTA's were handed out in London last night (see below) and that's the last piece of evidence pointing us in any direction for what might happen on Oscar night itself.

Oscar final voting begins today and runs to Feb. 21.  Of course, the envelopes are opened on Feb. 26. with today's installment of The FAC I'll have completed a set of predictions for all 24 categories in the last week.  I'll update categories as we move through the next two weeks and have a final posting update in the Thursday, Feb. 23 posting.  That said...

Here are the Oscar winner predictions for the last six categories that The FAC hasn't addressed in this last week: Cinematography, Costumes, Makeup/Hair and the Shorts: Animated, Documentary and Live Action.

As always The FAC uses the published predictions of the following experts to derive its picks:

Erik Anderson/Awards Watch
Clayton Davis/Awards Circuit
Greg Ellwood/The Playlist-Awards Campaign
Scott Feinberg/The Hollywood Reporter
Joey Magidson/Hollywood News
Nathaniel Rogers/Film Experience
Sasha Stone/Awards Daily
Kristopher Tapley/Variety-InContention
Anne Thompson/Indiewire

TFF #43 films are in Bold.

CINEMATOGRAPHY

1) La La Land
2) Lion
3) Moonlight
4) Arrival
5) Silence

Comment: Despite Lion's ASC win last week, La La Land seems fairly secure for the win here.


COSTUMES

1) La La Land
2) Jackie
3) Florence Foster Jenkins
4) Fantastic Beasts
5) Allied

Comment: La La leads here but it's a tight race with Jackie.  This is one of about three or four categories (the others are probably Original Screenplay, Sound Editing and Cinematography) that will determine whether La La Land gets double-digit wins, ties for most Oscars won of all time (11) or, conceivably, breaks the record.



MAKEUP/HAIR

1) Star Trek Beyond
2) A Man Called Ove
3) Suicide Squad

Comment: A moderately close contest between Star Trek and Ove with the Treksters having a sight edge.


ANIMATED SHORT

1) Piper
2) Pearl
3) Borrowed Time
4) Blind Vaysha
5) Pear Cider and Cigarettes

Comment: This is perceived as a tight two horse race between Piper and Pearl.  Off The FAC metric...I wouldn't be stunned by a win from either or even Borrowed Time.

DOCUMENTARY SHORT

1) The White Helmets
2) Joe's Violin
3) 4.1 Miles
4) Extremis
5) Watani: My Homeland

Comment: A dead heat between The White Helmets and Joe's Violin and that's no exaggeration.  The two films were tied in The FAC metric with the tie broken in The White Helmets favor as it had one more pick at the top from The FAC professionals.  This Oscar could easily swing to either film.


LIVE ACTION SHORT

1) Silent Nights
2) Sing
3) Timecode
4) Ennemis Interieurs
5) Le Femme et le TVG

Comment: The predictions in this category are all over the place.  Any of the five could win.

Should The FAC be 100% accurate, La La Land would win another two trophies and added to the previous FAC predictions over this past week would give it a total of 10 trophies on Oscar night: Picture, Director, Actress, Film Editing, Cinematography, Original Score, Original Song (City of Stars), Costumes, Production Design and Sound Mixing.

La La would miss, according to the FAC, in Original Screenplay, Sound Editing, Best Actor and its other Original Song nomination.  The loss to itself for Best Song means that 13 Oscars are the ceiling for La La and the loss of Ryan Gosling in the Best Actor category seems all but certain (to either Denzel Washington or Casey Affleck).  That means that La La Land has to run the table of every one of its remaining nominations to set the all time record which seems a tall order.

I've been saying for a long while that I think La La Land ends the night with nine Oscars.  A great night, but not record setting.  Still, it would be the most since 2003's Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

Currently The FAC has La La Land winning 10 Oscars.

Moonlight wins two.
Fences wins two.

Single Oscar winning films look to be:

Manchester by the Sea
Zootopia
O.J.: Made in America
The Salesman
Hacksaw Ridge
The Jungle Book
Star Trek Beyond

And the Shorts: Piper, The White Helmets and Silent Nights.

Total Oscars going to TFF #43 films: 14.


BAFTA NAMES ITS WINNERS

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (sometimes referenced as the British Oscars) awarded their accolades for the 2016 film year last night (which was late afternoon here in the states).

Damien Chazelle's La La Land did well but it wasn't the blowout that the Golden Globes night was for the film.  La La Land picked up five of the 11 BAFTA's it was nominated for.  Of course, the five wins did include the biggest prize of the night: Best Picture.  La La Land also won for Chazelle's direction and Emma Stone won Best Actress.  It also won for Score and Cinematography.

Kenneth Lonergan's Manchester by the Sea won two honors for Original Screenplay and for Casey Affleck as Best Actor.

Denis Villeneuve's Arrival won the award for Best Sound (a trophy that many thought La La Land might well pick up.

Barry Jenkins' Moonlight surprisingly went home empty-handed.  The film had been nominated for four BAFTAs.

Lion was the other surprise of the night winning two awards for Dev Patel as Best Supporting Actor and also winning for Adapted Screenplay.

Major (Oscar analogous categories) winners here with TFF #43 films in Bold.

Picture: La La Land
Director: Damien Chazelle/La La Land
Actress: Emma Stone/La La Land
Actor: Casey Affleck/Manchester by the Sea
Supporting Actress: Viola Davis/Fences
Supporting Actor: Dev Patel/Lion
Adapted Screenplay: Lion
Original Screenplay: Manchester by the Sea
Documentary: 13th
Foreign Language: Son of Saul (TFF #42)
Animated Feature: Kubo and the Two Strings
Original Music: La La Land
Cinematography: La La Land
Editing: Hacksaw Ridge
Production Design: Fantastic Beasts
Costumes: Jackie
Makeup/Hair: Florence Foster Jenkins
Sound: Arrival
Visual Effects; The Jungle Book


What does any of this mean for Oscar night?
Does it mean that La La Land is likely to fall short in film editing, production, design, costume or film editing?
Does Moonlight get shut out on Feb. 26th?

Most of the pundits seem to think that the BAFTA results might show a smallish trend away from the La La Land avalanche but that it's still solid for a number of wins including picture and director.  It does seem less likely that it will tie or break the record of winning 11 trophies.

BAFTA coverage is here:

from Kristopher Tapley/Variety-In Contention

from Anne Thompson/Indiewire

from Pete Hammond/Deadline

from Paul Sheehan/Gold Derby

from Oliver Lyttleton/The Playlist

from Nathaniel Rogers/The Film Experience



That's a wrap for Monday.  More to come on Thursday...


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

TWITTER @Gort2 (and follow me there as well)

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COMMENT to the Blog

Ten (Plus) Bets #10 / Toni Erdmann News / Add an Doc to Your T-ride List / Oscar Watch Podcast

It's Friday...aren't you glad?

The 43rd Telluride Film Festival starts in 6 days!


TEN (PLUS) BETS #10

Here's the latest version of MTFB's Ten (Plus) Bets for films to appear at the Telluride Film Festival. It's the next to last Ten Bets for TFF #43.  I'll post a final iteration on Wednesday morning just before I head west.  If the past is an indicator, we should see the official list sometime on Thursday morning. We have some additions and adjustments due to news that I'll delve into in more detail below as well as the revelation this past week that The Red Turtle is billed by the Toronto International Film Festival as a North American premiere.

Here's last week's Ten (Plus) Bets:


20) Journey Through French Cinema
19) Defying the Nazis
18) The B-Side
17) Into the Inferno
16) Wakefield
15) Graduation
14) Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer
13) Manchester by the Sea
12) Maudie
11) Una
10) Frantz
9) The Red Turtle
8) Fire at Sea
7) Neruda
6) Bleed for This
5) Moonlight
4) Arrival
3) La La Land
2) Things to Come
1) Toni Erdmann

And now Ten (Plus) Bets #10:

20) Staying Vertical

19) Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fischer and Debbie Reynolds

18) A Journey Through French Cinema

17) Wakefield

16) Norman: The Rise and Fall...

15) Graduation

14) The B-Side

13) Into the Inferno

12) Manchester by the Sea

11) Maudie

10) Frantz

9) Una

8) Fire at Sea

7) Toni Erdmann

6) Neruda

5) Bleed for This

4) Moonlight

3) Things to Come

2) La La Land

1) Arrival

Continued possibilities: Defying the Nazis, Sully, Nocturnal Animals, Exile, The Sense of an Ending, Eternity,The Circle, The Founder, Gold, Miss Sloane, The Mercy, The Accountant

Again, look for a FINAL TEN (PLUS) BETS on Wednesday next week.

TONI ERDMANN NEWS

A couple of items about Cannes critical sensation Maren Ade's Toni Erdmann.

First, the film has been officially chosen as Germany's entrant for the Foreign Language Oscar.  That news came yesterday and really wasn't surprising.  The film was so warmly received that it would have been a stunner if it hadn't been selected.

I went on record yesterday as suggesting that it could even figure into the Best Picture race depending on its reception in Telluride.

That reception, however, seemed to be about to be rendered defunct yesterday when Jason Osiason alerted me to the fact that the film had been unveiled in the second wave of films for Fantastic Fest (Sept. 22-29).  Fantastic Fest listed the film as a U.S. Premiere.  Jason's point, and it was well taken, was that it couldn't very well be a U.S. Premiere if it had already screened at Telluride three weeks earlier.

However...

Toronto has it listed as a Canadian Premiere and would ONLY do that if it had screened somewhere on the North American continent prior to its Sept. 8 screening date in Canada which means to me that Toni plays T-ride.

Additionally, the Fantastic Fest premiere designations for some other films are a little shaky.  For example, both Fantastic Fest and The New York Film Fest claim to be the U.S. Premiere of  Paul Verhoeven's Elle.  Obviously, both things can't be true.  Another oddity: Fantastic Fest lists Andrea Arnold's American Honey as a "Texas" Premiere and yet I can't find any place the film is screening in the U.S. prior to its appearance at Fantastic.  Under normal circumstances that might lead me to think that the film would make Telluride's lineup but its designation as a North American premiere at Toronto makes that improbable.

  

Meanwhile, I also got an email from MTFB friend Christopher Schiller who had noticed that in the second wave of film announcements for the Austin (TX) Film Festival that Garth Davis' Lion (which I thought was a probable Telluride film for a long time) was being listed as a "Texas" Premiere.  He was curious about it for the same reason Jason had been curious about Toni Erdmann's FF designation and it does seem odd.  Austin's Fest runs Oct. 13-20. Lion is labeled by TIFF as a World Premiere.  So why doesn't Austin label it as a North American Premiere?

I wrote yesterday that there might be some uncertainty about "the veracity' of the "honest premiere policy" this year and today's Toni Erdmann and Lion news makes that seem even more plausible today.


Here are links to the relevant announcements from Fantastic Fest and the Austin Film Fest


ADD A DOC TO YOUR T-RIDE LIST

Image via IMDb

You can add another documentary to your list of films making the TFF #43 lineup as an Indiewire story yesterday from Anne Thompson reveals that Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fischer and Debbie Reynolds is set to play.

The doc is co-directed by Fisher Stevens and Alexis Bloom.

The revelation comes in an article Thompson writes about the Oscar prospects for a number of this year's docs.

Thompson also repeats the claim that emerged earlier this week that Werner Herzog's Into the Inferno will also make the lineup.

The complete post is here from Indiewire


OSCAR WATCH PODCAST

Sasha Stone and Ryan Adams of Awards Daily returned to podcasting last night and the  cast includes a discussion of probable Telluride films (as well as the Nate Parker situation).  A certain blog devoted to Telluride's Film Fest gets a mention!  Listen to it here: OscarWatch Podcast


That's a wrap for this Friday.  Stay tuned to this space as I may take the unusual step of posting special notices through the weekend if conditions warrant.  Otherwise, MTFB is back on Monday.

Have a great weekend!

Contact MTFB at:

mpgort@gmail.com

OR on Twitter @Gort2

OR check out Michael's Telluride Film Blog on Facebook:

Michael's Telluride Film Blog Facebook Page

Or leave a comment.

Indiewire Critics Panel Pick Their Most Anticipated Films for Fall / The Mystery of Lion and TWC / Hidden Figures Heads to Toronto / The People's Telluride

Hello and welcome to your Thursday.  I will be arriving in Telluride, if all goes according to plan, two weeks from today.  Additionally, if all goes according to past patterns, we'll have the official release of the Telluride Film Festival #43 schedule two weeks from today.  So close and still so far.



INDIEWIRE'S CRITIC'S PANEL PICK THEIR MOST ANTICIPATED FILMS FOR THE FALL

Earlier this week the folks at Indiewire asked a panel of film critics to name some of the films they are most looking forward to as we head into the fall season.  A n umber of films that are probably headed to Telluride made a mark in their answers.  Mentioned were:

Barry Jenkins' Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan's Manchester by the Sea
Damien Chazelle's La La Land and
Maren Ade's Toni Erdmann

Among the critics queried were Indiewire's own David Ehrlich (who actually wrote the piece) and Tomris Laffly of Film Journal Int'l. both of whom will be contributing to this year's Professionals' Telluride rating of films for TFF #43 reported right here.

Check Ehrlich's complete post here:

http://www.indiewire.com/2016/08/indiewire-critics-survey-most-anticipated-movie-2016-1201716804/



THE MYSTERY OF LION AND TWC

Loyal MTFB reader Jason Osiason messaged me yesterday asking if I knew what was up with Garth Davis' Lion in Toronto.  Me: Nope.

Osiason pointed out that, "quietly" Lion has gone from a Gala to Special Presentation status and wondered if that signaled that it could be back in play as a possible addition to the Telluride lineup.

I did some due diligence and sure enough, Jason has it right.  The film was originally announced at TIFF to be a Gala but is now listed at the TIFF website as a "Special Presentation".  But it's also still listed by TIFF as a World Premiere.

My original answer to Jason was that it could have been done to move things around concerning the availability of talent.

A couple of other possibilities struck me since that original answer.  The switch may also signal something of the internal distress and possible financial status of The Weinstein Company.  A number of sources of late have mentioned that TWC is under some strain.  I don't pretend to know the veracity of those claims and I'm sure no expert in the workings of the Toronto fest but I believe that Galas and Special Presentations require that the distributor take on certain costs and that the Gala is a pricier situation.  It could be that the switch is simply a matter of dollars and cents.

Or it could be a mistake.

Or it could signal a TFF #43 play...though I think that's an unlikely scenario, I still find it difficult to believe that TWC won't have some sort of presence this year.



HIDDEN FIGURES IS HEADED TO FILM FEST...IN TORONTO

I've been following the increased profile of late of Theodore Melfi's Hidden Figures.  The film is about the story of African-American women who worked at NASA in its early days and their little known contributions to the American space effort.

The film has shown up lately in the press with a trailer and images and that rarely happens without a reason.  And now we know what that reason is.

The Toronto organizers announced yesterday that the film will be screened in an unfinished state during TIFF.  It's being billed as an "exclusive sneak peak" which seals its fate in as far as Telluride is concerned.  Not going to happen at TFF #43.  So be it.


The story is here from both The Hollywood Reporter and Awards Circuit:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/taraji-p-hensons-hidden-figures-920326

http://www.awardscircuit.com/2016/08/17/hidden-figures-headed-tiff-exclusive-first-look/


THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

Remember to report your ratings for the films you see at TFF #43 and be a part of MTFB's People's Telluride.  Rate films on a 1 to 5 scale (1=BAD, 5=GREAT) once the fest has concluded.  Send ratings via email to:

mpgort@gmail.com OR
michael_speech@hotmail.com

OR send via Twitter to @Gort2

You can also comment to the blog itself or to MTFB's facebook page.

Also, remember to click on the new FOLLOW button in the upper right hand corner of the Blog's page.  That'll make it easier to get the latest Telluride Film Festival news and speculation quickly.

Tomorrow:  A new "Ten (Plus) Bets", films that are still in play and a look at the rumor mill...come on back!

Toronto Announcement Examined

TORONTO ANNOUNCEMENT EXAMINED

The Toronto International Film Festival announced a total of 68 films this morning.  By examining their announced premiere status one can make a pretty educated guess as to the films from that list of 68 that are likely to make the TFF #43 lineup.  It's not always 100% accurate.  I have seen a film or two listed as a TIFF World Premiere that went on to play Telluride the weekend before Toronto but since the advent of "honest premiere" status that is very rare.

Onto the news from this morning.  Based on their status as "Canadian Premieres" we can probably expect to see the following at Telluride:

Arrival
Bleed for This
Frantz
La La Land
Maudie
Neruda
Things to Come
Toni Erdmann
Una

Manchester by the Sea is also listed as a Canadian Premiere but that would have been true at any rate as it was a Sundance film.  I still think it's a pretty likely owing to things I have read (Wells) and heard.  The CP designation may signal that it might play at Venice in some capacity.

Birth of a Nation is listed as an International Premiere which (as Wells said yesterday) indicates no Telluride play.

One other International Preem is Brotherhood which will have premiered in the UK prior to playing TIFF...so not a T-ride player.

All other films announced this morning were labeled World or North American Premieres which indicates that they will NOT play Telluride and, as it is every year, there were some surprises including:

American Honey
Lion
The Salesman
Salt and Fire.

All films I had thought had superior chances of playing TFF #43.

Also, as I have thought for most of the summer, Elle will not play Telluride.

Films that I had hoped to play Telluride that are off the blocks are:

American Pastoral
Denial
Nocturnal Animals
LBJ
Loving
A Monster Calls
The Secret Scripture
Snowden

People that could be showing up with their films in Telluride:

Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Miles Teller, Aaron Eckhardt, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Rooney Mara and Ben Mendelsohn

Still unannounced after this morning:

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
Silence
Moonlight
20th Century Women
Rules Don't Apply
Allied
War Machine
Fences
HHhH
Gold
Passengers
Miss Sloane
Live by Night
The Accountant
Hidden Figures
Sully
The Founder
The Girl on the Train
The Mercy
The Lost City of Z
Wilson
Passengers
Wild Oats


I'm probably leaving some out.

Here's the official press release from Toronto with descriptions and premiere statuses:

https://gallery.mailchimp.com/bed63d3ce10ec9adba60ea410/files/Galas_and_SPs_2016__.pdf


MORE TO COME...

The Guardian Predicts / The Euro Producers; The French-Cinecinema/Cine+ / Fences Swings for the Fences

Good Thursday World!


THE GUARDIAN PREDICTS

Britain's The Guardian posted a "40 Films We Predict Will Premiere at Venice, Toronto or Telluride" story yesterday.  The predix offer some surprises.  Breaking it down: the article bresks the 40 films into three categories-Dead Certs, Quite Likely and If It's Ready.

The piece names Telluride as a specific possibility for two films that we already know will play somewhere before the BFI/London Fest owing to their status their as European premieres: A United Kingdom and The Queen of Katwe.  United Kingdom seems to me to be the more likely T-ride player of the two.  Venice is listed as a specific designated fest probability for Planetarium while Toronto is listed for A United Kingdom, The Queen of Katwe, The Girl on the Train, Free Fire and The Seagull.

Among their "Dead Certs" the best Telluride potentials look like: Denial (from Bleeker Street which partnered with Netflix last year on Beats of No Nation), One or the other of TWC's The Founder or Lion and Arrival.  Outside T-ride shots in this category: The Secret Scripture, The Mercy and the Malick double play of Weightless and The Voyage of Time.

Interestingly, The Guardian lists Warren Beatty's Rules Don;t Apply in the Dead Cert category which is very intriguing,

In the Quite Likely category you'll fins Telluride possibilities such as HHhH and Gold (the other two Weinstein fall films...at least for the moment), 20th Century Women, War Machine (from Netflix), Wilson and How to Talk to Girls at Parties.

Among the "If It's Ready" films I don't find anything that's A) likely to be ready and B) if it is, likely to be a Telluride bound...though I'd really like to put in a word for Miss Sloane.

It's worth noting that The Guardian sponsored TFF #42.

Check the complete article here:

https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2016/jul/20/40-films-predict-premiere-venice-toronto-telluride-festivals




THE EURO PRODUCERS: THE FRENCH-CINECINEMA/CINE+

CineCinema changed over to Cine+ within the last few years but it's all the same.  This production company has often been represented at Telluride over the last few years:

2005: Lemming, Live and Become
2006: The Page Turner, Indigenes
2007: The Diving Bell and The Butterfly
2008: With a Little Help from Myself
2009: Farewell, Coco Before Chanel, A Prophet, Inferno
2010: The Illusionist, The Princess of Montpensier, Of Gods and Men
2011: Goodbye First Love, The Kid with a Bike, Le Havre, The Artist
2012: Rust and Bone, Superstar, The Attack, Amour
2013: The Past, Blue is the Warmest Color, Le Maison de la Radio
2014: The Gate. The Price of Fame, Two Days One Night, Diplomacy
2015: Marguerite

The best opportunities for Cine+ to play Telluride this year is Slack Bay.  After that their slate doesn't look, at this point, to offer a lot of other possibilities.


FENCES SWINGS FOR THE FENCES

Fences still from Deadline.com

We missed mentioning this acouple of days ago but Denzel Washington's adaptation of August Wilson's Fences has been dated for an awards season qualifying time frame.  Mutiple reports put the film which Washington both directs and stars in as being released in a limited fashion on Dec. 16 and then going wider on Dec. 25.  Fences is from Paramount which is loaded with titles for this awards season.  In addition to Fences they have Allied, Arrival and Silence.

Admittedly, Fences is an unlikely Telluride film...but you never know...

Coverage of the Fences date announcement:

http://variety.com/2016/film/news/denzel-washington-fences-december-release-1201816381/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/denzel-washingtons-fences-snags-awards-912004

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/07/18/denzel-washington-fences-release-date

That's it for Thursday.  Come back tomorrow for the latest Telluride Ten Bets.  It's the last one before announcements from Toronto and Venice.

Contact MTFB at:

mpgort@gmail.com

OR on Twitter @Gort2

OR check out Michael's Telluride Film Blog on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse-107846269309712/

OR leave a comment...

Can We Talk Tributes? / Distribution: Kino Lorber's Telluride Profile / And a Thank You and a Re-Assessment

Good Independence Day America!  It's also a Monday...


CAN WE TALK TRIBUTES?

I know, I know.  It's too early.  Much smarter to do this guesswork later in the summer when the Telluride lineup has been made clearer by the lineup announcements from other festivals (i.e. Toronto, Venice and New York).  Nevertheless, over the weekend, for hoots, I decided to see if recent Telluride history could tell us anything and if we could apply those lessons in terms of creating some notions of who might get the medallions over Labor Day weekend.

Start with looking at tribute recipients over the past dozen years whose selection was in accordance to a film that was going to be a part of the fall release schedule, and perceptually a possible awards contender.  Here's the list of recipient/film (and distributor):

2004-Laura Linney/Kinsey (Fox Searchlight)
2005-Charlotte Rampling/Lemming (Strand) and The Dardennes Brothers/The Child (SPC)
2006-Penelope Cruz/Volver (SPC)
2007-Daniel Day Lewis/There Will Be Blood ( Paramount Vantage)
2008-David Fincher/Benjamin Button (Paramount)
2009-Viggo Mortensen/The Road (TWC-Dimension)
2010-Peter Weir/The Way Back (Mulitple) and Colin Firth/The King's Speech (TWC)
2011-Tilda Swinton/We Need to Talk (Oscilloscope) and George Clooney/The Descendants (Fox Searchlight)
2012-Marion Cotillard/Rust and Bone (SPC) and Mads Mikkelsen/The Hunt and Royal Affair (Magnolia)
2013-Robert Redford/All is Lost (Lionsgate, Roadside) and The Coen Brothers w/ T-Bone Burnett/Inside Llewyn Davis (CBS Films)
2014-Hilary Swank/The Homesman (Roadside/Saban)
2015-Danny Boyle/Steve Jobs (Warners) and Rooney Mara/Carol (TWC)

Takeaways:
21 people tributed:

14 men and 7 women

7 actresses
6 actors
9 directors (Redford and Clooney count here as well as the actor category)
1 musician (T-Bone)

The Weinstein Company-3
Sony Pictures Classics-3
Fox Searchlight-2
Lionsgate et al-2
Paramount-2

So...

A tribute recipient is more likely to be a man and slightly more likely to be a director.  Also, you're more likely to be a tribute recipient if you're in  film from one of the five distribution outlets listed above.

Now, let's apply this information to the films we think might be in play from each of these five.

The Weinstein Company: Lion.  Your best tribute bet from Lion is Nicole Kidman  I actually think that this could be a very real possibility (especially if TFF doubles up on Kidman films playing the fest.  I.E. How to Talk to Girls at Parties).  The director here is Garth Davis, who doesn't have a long enough resume to be a believable candidate and no other cast mate suggests the possibility, especially since Rooney Mara was a tributee last year.  The other outside shot is Wild Oats.  Star Shirley MacLaine was a tribute recipient in 1996 but I could see a Jessica Lange tribute as a very real possibility...if the film rises to Telluride standards.

This note, however, see the latest TWC news below [which means we might consider Matthew McConnaughey as atribute possibility]...

SPC-  They're likely to be in The SHOW with at least two films: Toni Erdmann and The Red Turtle and they could conceivably get in a couple more: Julieta and Elle.  Not a soul is terribly probable here.  Director Pedro Almodovar (Julieta) was a tribute recipient in 1988 and actress Isabelle Huppert (Elle) received one in 1986.  No one else stands out with the possible exception of director Paul Verhoeven (Elle) and I just don't see that.  Though, I do have to say, I am increasingly reassessing my insistence that the film won't play Telluride.  As of this morning, it's moved from a "nope" to a "maybe".

Fox Searchlight- Their only shots at Telluride appear to be Wilson and The Birth of a Nation. No one in BOAN seems very likely as a tribute candidate.  But Wilson is a different matter.  The film's star is Woody Harrelson and I could see that easily as a possibility for tribute.

Lionsgate/Roadside/Saban-Their best bets for Telluride are La La Land and American Pastoral.  La La seems all too young.  Certainly not director Damien Chazelle, whose career has just begun. Among the cast, I suppose Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling are possible but the most probable might be character actor and recent Oscar winner J.K Simmons.

In as far as American Pastoral is concerned: Director/Actor Ewan McGregor wouldn't be a totally crazy option nor would co-star Jennifer Connelly.  By the by, if American Pastoral makes the trip to the San Juans, can we bring Philip Roth?

Paramount- Paramount's bench is deep with films that could make a T-ride lineup if they and the fest see eye to eye.  Allied, Arrival, The Lost City of Z, Silence.  Let's look at the tribute potential for each:

Allied- Director Robert Zemeckis-sure.  Star-Brad Pitt-Yup.  Marion Cotillard-already got one in 2012.

Arrival- Director Denis Villenueve-probably too early in his career.  Amy Adams-yup.  Jeremy Renner and Forest Whitaker-maybe.

The Lost City of Z- Director James Gray is a maybe.  The cast all seems too young-Hunnam, Pattinson, Holland.

Silence- Now, both the director, Martin Scorsese and  lead actor Liam Neeson would be a great choice for a tribute but I suspect that if Silence does a fest at all it will be NYFF or maybe AFI.  Hope I'm wrong.



DISTRIBUTION: KINO LORBER'S TELLURIDE PROFILE

Kino and/or Lorber and Kino Lorber were a hit and miss Telluride presence a decade ago.  They had Blind Mountain at TFF in 2007 and weren't back again until 2010 with La Quattro Volte and Poetry. Then after another lengthy layoff, they've become a solid presenter at Telluride over the last three years.

2013- Burning Bush, La Maison de la Radio, Manuscripts Don't Burn
2014-The Decent One
2015- Ixcanul, Sembene!, Taxi

So for 2016?  Kino Lorber has Berlin Golden Bear winner Fire at Sea in their stable and I really do think that it will make an appearance over Labor Day weekend.  Aside from Fire at Sea, however, I'm not as bullish about other films that KL has.

Slack Bay played at Cannes to middling critical response and no wins in competition.  Tower, the animated documentary about the shootings on the University of Texas campus by Charles Whitman in 1966, has played in a bunch of domestic fests, including South by Southwest so it's off the table.

So, Fire at Sea (80%) seems like the lone entry from Kino Lorber this year but also seems virtual lock to me with an outside shot at Slack Bay (35%) making the program.

Tomorrow our distribution odyssey will continue as we take a look at the newest and hottest players at Telluride from the last couple of years and the newest player that could make a splash at T-ride in 2016.


AND A THANK YOU AND A RE-ASSESSMENT

Much appreciation to Sasha Stone who mentioned me and MTFB in her Saturday story about the upcoming HHhH from The Weinstein Company.  I need to probably go back and retroactively add it to last Wednesday story about films that TWC has in its hopper.

Here's the link to her story:

http://www.awardsdaily.com/2016/07/02/best-picture-watch-hhhh-weinstein-project-about-nazis/

Meanwhile, I stumbled across the fact that Jeff Wells has Stephen Gaghan's Gold listed among his Oscar Balloon films as one of those with "highest expectations".  The film stars Matthew McConnaughey and Edgar Ramirez.  I had been discounting the film altogether as it is also listed at IMDb as being under TWC's Dimension branch (which, to be fair, did provide The Road for Telluride in 2009).

Here's Well's latest Oscar Balloon:

http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/oscar-balloon/

Finally, add to add to the TWC pile this weekend, I heard from a friend who had heard from a friend (so, weigh that as you will) that Lion was screened privately at Cannes and the film wasn't particularly well received.

So after TWC's initial evaluation last week on Wednesday, my thinking has changed just a bit.  On Wednesday I had Lion at 60% and Wild Oats at 30% with Ballerina at 15%.

Now, with the added information add HHhH and Gold to our list and re-adjust:  New TWC chances:

Lion 50%
HHhH 30%
Gold 30%
Wild Oats 30%
Ballerina 15%

And, let me just ask rhetorically, could his be the first year  since I started tracking this stuff (I have TWC/Miramax back to 2006) that The Weinstein Company does not have a film at TFF?


Happy Fourth ya'll.  More on Tuesday...

Contact MTFB at:

mpgort@gmail.com

OR on Twitter @Gort2

OR check out Michael's Telluride Film Blog on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse-107846269309712/

OR leave a comment...

2016 Telluride Ten Bets #2 / Distribution: Lionsgate, Roadside and Saban / The Playlist Wish List for Fall Fests

Welcome to Friday and July, my friends...

2016 TELLURIDE TEN BETS #2

Here's last week's Ten Bets:

10) Lion (Davis, TWC, 11/25)
9) Loving (Nichols, Focus, 11/4)
8) The Red Turtle (Dudok de Wit, SPC, TBA)
7) Moonlight (Jenkins, A24, TBA)
6) American Honey (Arnold, A24, TBA)
5) Fire at Sea (Rosi, Kino Lorber, TBA)
4) The Unknown Girl (The Dardennes, Sundance/IFC, TBA)
3) Toni Erdmann (Ade, SPC, TBA)
2) The Salesman (Fahradi, Amazon/Cohen Media, TBA)
1) Wilson (Johnson, Fox Searchlight, TBA)


Not many changes this week... (Director, Distributor and U.S. release date-if known-in parenthesis)

10) Things to Come (Hansen-Love, Sundance/IFC, TBA)
9) Lion (Davis, TWC, 11/25)
8) Moonlight (Jenkins, A24, 10/21)
7) Fire at Sea (Rosi, Kino Lorber, TBA)
6) The Red Turtle (Dudok de Wit, SPC, TBA)
5) The Unknown Girl (Dardennes, Sundance/IFC, TBA)
4) American Honey (Arnold, A24, 9/30)
3) Toni Erdmann (Ade, SPC, TBA)
2) Wilson (Johnson, Fox Searchlight, TBA)
1) The Salesman (Farhadi, Amazon/Cohen Media, TBA)

In the close category: American Pastoral, Loving, La La Land, A United Kingdom, Salt and Fire, Journey Through French Cinema, Aquarius, Birth of a Nation.


DISTRIBUTION: LIONSGATE, ROADSIDE AND SABAN

This combination of companies has had the fifth largest profile at Telluride over the past six years, though they were absent in 2015, they have averaged collectively 1.25 films/year.  Here's their collective track record since 2010:

2010: Biutiful
2011: Albert Nobbs
2012: Stories We Tell
2013: All is Lost, Gloria
2014: '71, The Homesman, Mommy

So, what do they have lined up for 2016 that might be a Telluride temptation?

Lionsgate:

La La Land
American Pastoral

(I am personally discounting the chances of Deepwater Horizon, Patriots Day and Hacksaw Ridge...though that decision could be premature).  Neither the Roadside Attractions or Saban Films banners have a film lined up currently that feels Telluride-ish so if this group has a shot at the fest this year it looks like one or both of these films from the Lionsgate group.

I think both are 50/50 prospects, although the announcement last week that La La Land was going to open Venice and be in competition makes me give it a slight edge.  Frankly, I'd like both films to SHOW but, just as easily, neither of them could.

On Monday, I'll look at specialty house Kino Lorber.

THE PLAYLIST WISH LIST FOR FALL FESTS

As they do annually, The Playlist posted their 50 film wish list for the fall festival season yesterday afternoon.  In it, they make some guesses about what films will play the fest circuit and which fests. Of the 50 films, they list nine as having a chance at Telluride.  They are:

20th Century Women
Arrival
Gold
How to Talk to Girls at Parties
La La Land
Lion
A Monster Calls
Sully
Trespass Against Us

From their list, if you've read this space much this summer, you will know that I think that 20th Century Women, How to Talk to Girls, La La Land and Lion all have a shot.  The others, not so much in my estimation.

In addition to the nine films they list with a Telluride potential, they list an additional 11 films that I think have a legitimate chance but that they don't connect to T-ride.  Included are: American Pastoral, Jackie, The Lost City of Z, Moonlight, Nocturnal Animals, The Oppenheimer Strategies, The Secret Scripture, Snowden, Una, A United Kingdom and War Machine.

It should be noted that over the past couple of years The Playlist "50 Wish List" has not been particularly prescient about Telluride guesses.  Last year they tagged 13 films in the article and only two panned out.  In 2014 it was one of six.  So, grain of salt people.

Here's the link to the complete post and its 50 films.

http://theplaylist.net/50-films-hope-see-2016-fall-festivals-20160630/#cb-content


That's a wrap for Friday and for the week.  Have a good weekend and come back Monday.

Contact MTFB at:

mpgort@gmail.com

OR on Twitter @Gort2

OR check out Michael's Telluride Film Blog on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse-107846269309712/

OR leave a comment...

Distribution: The Weinstein Company (and Variations) / Dardennes Re-Tool Unknown Girl / Trailering It's Only the End of the World

Good Wednesday World...


DISTRIBTUION: THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY (AND VARIATIONS)

Tracking the Weinsteins as distributors at Telluride for the past decade shows us that they've been a part of The SHOW for a good long while.  Here's their Telluride slate as Miramax or The Weinstein Company or Radius-TWC since 2006:


2006: Venus, Indigenes
2007: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, My Enemy's Enemy, I'm Not There
2008: Happy-Go-Lucky
2009: The Road
2010: The King's Speech
2011: The Artist, Butter
2012: The Sapphires  (also was represented during the Marion Cotillard tribute by James Gray and 5 min. of The Immigrant)
2013: The Unknown Known, Salinger, Tracks
2014: The Imitation Game", "Escobar: Paradise Lost"

2015: Carol

18 films over the past decade including Best Picture winners in 2010 and 2011.  With an average of 1.8 films and a presence every year at the fest, TWC and its ancillary companies are the third most prolific distributor and one of the most consistently represented at Telluride over the past decade.

Let's look at The Weinstein Company's playlist as it is listed today in IMDb:

Lion

Wild Oats

Ballerina

At this point, these look like the only films in the line at TWC that might have a shot at playing. Clearly the most probable is Garth Davis' Lion which is dated for a Nov. 25 release.  The other two films seem as if they don't have a big chance.  I wouldn't completely rule them out though.  Wild Oats stars Jessica Lange and Shirley McLaine and they're enough to make you wonder at least a little about the film.  

One other note...the dating for the release of John Lee Hancock's (The Blind Side, Saving Mr. Banks) The Founder starring Michael Keaton has me scratching my head.  It's set to come out a full month before T-ride/Toronto on Aug. 5th.  This is a film whose pedigree would (and did at one point) make me think that it would be both a T-ride possible and maybe a part of the Oscar convo.  That Aug. 5 date, though, takes it off the fall fest circuit and, for me anyway, sends up a red flare of concern.

Probabilities:

Lion 60%

Wild Oats 30%

Ballerina 15%

 Tomorrow we look at Fox Searchlight.


DARDENNES RE-TOOL UNKNOWN GIRL

Reports surfaced yesterday that the Dardennes Brothers have re-edited their Cannes entry The Unknown Girl.  The film is reported to have been shortened by seven minutes and had 32 separate cuts since its screening in May in France.

The film was received in a lukewarm fashion from critics when it debuted.  The Dardennes actions are said to have been in response to those concerns and further, they claim that some critics have seen the re-vamped version and say that it has improved.

If you read yesterday's post, you'll know that I still regard Unknown Girl as a real Telluride possibility.  Additionally, I had it on last week's initial Telluride Ten Bets list at #4.  This news, I think, strengthens the case that The Unknown Girl makes an appearance in the SHOW.

Coverage of the announced editing is here:

http://www.screendaily.com/dardenne-brothers-re-edit-cannes-drama-the-unknown-girl/5106274.article

http://variety.com/2016/film/global/the-dardennes-brothers-have-re-edited-the-unknown-girl-1201805048/

https://thefilmstage.com/news/the-dardennes-have-re-edited-the-unknown-girl-for-theatrical-release/

http://theplaylist.net/daredennes-re-edited-unknown-girl-muted-response-cannes-20160628/



TRAILERING IT'S ONLY THE END OF THE WORLD

Trailer for Xavier Dolan's It's Only the End of the World via YouTube

Prior to the Cannes Film Fest in May, I would have regarded Xavier Dolan's It's Only the End of the World as a near dead certainty to make the TFF #43 lineup.  Dolan has been on fire here at the start of his career including success at Cannes and Venice and a Telluride slot in 2014.   Additionally, a cast that include Marion Cotillard, Lea Seydoux and Vincent Cassels seems T-ride friendly.

The critics chewed the film up after its premiere in France in May, however.  It had a dismal 4.46 average critic rating on the Urban composite (http://cannes-rurban.rhcloud.com/2016).

After that the film took a huge nose dive in as far as I was concerned in terms of its SHOW profile. Then, at the end of  Cannes, it was named winner of the Grand Prix award.  That knocked me back a little and kept the film on my watch list.

The film still lacks a U.S. distributor and release date, though the release of its trailer yesterday reminded us that it is scheduled for release in Quebec on Sept. 21.

Here are stories covering the release of the trailer:


https://thefilmstage.com/trailer/a-family-reunites-in-first-trailer-for-xavier-dolans-its-only-the-end-of-the-world/

http://www.indiewire.com/2016/06/its-only-the-end-of-the-world-trailer-xavier-dolan-cannes-winner-marion-cotillard-vincent-cassel-1201700306/

http://theplaylist.net/first-trailer-xavier-dolans-end-world-marion-cotillard-lea-seydoux-vincent-cassel-20160628/

http://www.firstshowing.net/2016/watch-first-trailer-for-xavier-dolans-its-only-the-end-of-the-world/


That concludes MTFB for Wednesday...come back for more tomorrow

Contact MTFB at:

mpgort@gmail.com

OR on Twitter @Gort2

OR check out Michael's Telluride Film Blog on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse-107846269309712/

OR leave a comment...

The Day Has Come; First "Ten Bets" for TFF#43 / Two Outside Shots with Trailers

Good Friday everyone...

THE DAY HAS COME: THE FIRST "TEN BETS" FOR TFF #43

A couple of notes...

First, this will be the sixth year of the "Ten Bets" and on average this first list will name approximately six films that will actually be on the TFF #43 lineup when it's announced on Sept. 1. The best initial Ten Bets was the first in 2011 which git eight titles correct.  The worst was actually last year;s when only four films on the very first list made the T-ride lineup.

Also, keep in mind that I'll have weekly updates and the prognostication success rate gets better the closer we get to the Festival.

Third, if you've been reading much of the blog since the Oscars ended, the first Ten Bets won't/shouldn't be much of a surprise.

And finally, as David Letterman used to be fond of saying, "No wagering."

Here's the Ten Bets from MTFB on the last Friday in June, 2016 (Director, Distributor and U.S. release date-if known-in parenthesis)

10) Lion (Davis, TWC, 11/25)
9) Loving (Nichols, Focus, 11/4)
8) The Red Turtle (Dudok de Wit, SPC, TBA)
7) Moonlight (Jenkins, A24, TBA)
6) American Honey (Arnold, A24, TBA)
5) Fire at Sea (Rosi, Kino Lorber, TBA)
4) The Unknown Girl (The Dardennes, Sundance/IFC, TBA)
3) Toni Erdmann (Ade, SPC, TBA)
2) The Salesman (Fahradi, Amazon/Cohen Media, TBA)
1) Wilson (Johnson, Fox Searchlight, TBA)

Close: Things to Come, Aquarius, Birth of a Nation, La La Land, A United Kingdom, Journey Through French Cinema and Salt and Fire.



TWO OUTSIDE SHOTS WITH TRAILERS

We had appearances yesterday for trailers for two films that have a slim chance of making this year's SHOW.  You'll notice that neither is on the above "Ten Bets" list nor the additional films that I have labeled as "close".  Nevertheless, both films could find their way into the Telluride lineup.

Christian Puiu's Sieranevada, which was critically very well received at Cannes in May dropped a trailer with french subtitles.  You can see that here thanks to YouTube:

This is the story from The Film Stage that reported the trailer's release:

https://thefilmstage.com/trailer/travel-to-sieranevada-in-first-trailer-for-cristi-puius-cannes-drama/


Also appearing yesterday was a trailer for Ewan McGregor's directing debut, an adaptation of Philip Roth's American Pastoral.

The film is set for an Oct. 21 limited release and is in the distribution hands of Lionsgate.  Here's its trailer from YouTube:

Here are some posts from that reported the trailer's release yesterday:

http://theplaylist.net/ewan-mcgregor-gets-philip-roth-first-trailer-american-pastoral-20160623/

https://thefilmstage.com/trailer/ewan-mcgregor-makes-directorial-debut-in-trailer-for-philip-roth-adaptation-american-pastoral/


http://www.indiewire.com/2016/06/american-pastoral-trailer-ewan-mcgregor-jennifer-connelly-dakota-fanning-1201692383/

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/06/23/ewan-mcgregor-american-pastoral-trailer

Contact MTFB at:

mpgort@gmail.com

OR on Twitter @Gort2

OR check out Michael's Telluride Film Blog on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse-107846269309712/

OR leave a comment...

Variety's Tapley Talks Telluride and Makes a Few Guesses / Farhadi Joins Cannes Competition Lineup

Good Monday Everyone.  Thanks for taking the time to take a look at Michael's Telluride Film Blog



VARIETY'S TAPLEY TALKS TELLURIDE AND MAKES A FEW GUESSES

Variety's awards co-editor Kristopher Tapley posted an intriguing piece late last week that talked about the rapidity with which The 43rd sedition of TFF sold out of passes.  Tapley analyzes some of what he sees as reasons for the quick sell out.

He also takes a some time to take a very, very preliminary look at some titles that he thinks might make the lineup over Labor Day weekend.  Some surprises included:

Ang Lee's Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

Asghar Farhadi's The Salesman

Garth Davis' Lion

Gavin O'Connor's The Accountant

Andrea Arnold's American Honey

The Dardennes' The Unknown Girl 

Nate Parker's Birth of a Nation

That last, of course was a Sundance hit but has already fairly warmly rumored to be a Telluride possibility.  Both Tapley and The Hollywood Reporter's Scott Feinberg have now mentioned the possibility.

Check Tapley's entire article here:

http://variety.com/2016/film/in-contention/telluride-film-festival-2016-sells-out-passes-1201758017/



FARHADI JOINS CANNES COMPETITION LINEUP

As we expected, the Cannes Fest added seven new films to various programs for next months 69th iteration.  Among the was Asghar Farhadi's The Salesman which was added to the Palme d'Or competition lineup.  The addition bodes well, I think, for Farhadi to make a third appearance at Telluride after successful runs there with A Separation and The Past.

I have linked three stories about the additions which also include the new film from David Mackenzie, He'll or High Water which has been added to the Un Certain Regard section.  Mackenzie's Starred Up played Telluride to wide acclaim in 2013 and this UCR selection could foreshadow a return for him this year.

The stories:

http://www.ioncinema.com/news/film-festivals/farhadis-the-salesman-completes-cannes-main-comp-mackenzies-hell-or-high-water-in-ucr

http://variety.com/2016/film/global/asghar-farhadi-the-salesman-cannes-festival-competition-1201758950/

http://www.thewrap.com/cannes-film-festival-adds-7-new-films/


That's it for this Monday...more to come on Thursday.

Contact me at:

michael_speech@hotmail.com OR

mpgort@gmail.com OR

via Twitter @Gort2 OR to

Michael's Telluride Film Blog's Facebook page: 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse/107846269309712

A Very Early List / Variety's Further Look at France / 44 Films Indiewire Wants at Cannes

Good Monday and I hope everyone had a great Easter holiday...those that had an Easter holiday...


A VERY EARLY LIST

I've been working on looking into the TFF #43 crystal ball for about a month now since the conclusion of the Oscar race on February 28.  Admittedly, I had begun in some small ways before     then but the focus after the close of each year's fest turns to the awards race until it's over.

As I have explained, each year's serious analysis begins with annual January "films-to-come" lists, followed by three film fests that give insight.  Berlin, traditionally, has provided a couple of films that come to Colorado.  Meanwhile Sundance and South by Southwest largely act as exclusionary festivals-they tell you titles that won't be at Telluride (with rare exceptions).

Also, once the Oscars have come and gone, any number of outlets will publish Oscar speculation pieces.  Those stories can give early insight into films that could have the quality to make the T-ride lineup.

Finally we get to where we are...the Cannes Film Fest announces their lineup in two and a half weeks and speculation pieces about that lineup is the next layer of possibilities for Labor Day as their is usually a significant overlap between the Croisette and Colorado Ave.  As a matter of fact, I have two more big Cannes spec pieces that I look at below.

All of that to get to this...a very early list of ten films that seem to me, at least at the moment, to have he best Telluride profile.  I present them here in alphabetical order with no view yet as to their relative chances of making the Telluride lineup...I need more information to do that:


1) Andrea Arnold's American Honey
2) Wim Wenders The Beautiful Days of Aranjuez
3) Gianfranco Rosi's Fire at Sea
4) Garth Davis' Lion
5) Jeff Nichol's Loving
6) Asghar Farhadi's The Salesman
7) Werner Herzog's Salt and Fire
8) Mia Hansen Love's Things to Come
9) The Dardenne Brothers' The Unknown Girl
10) Craig Johnson's Wilson


Let's see how this list looks when we get to September.


VARIETY'S LOOK AT FRANCE

As mentioned above, I continue to dissect the Cannes predictions of a number of industry publications.  Today I'm looking at Peter DeBruge and Elsa Keslassy and their recent post.  They break it down into geographic categories, so I will follow suit in isolating films that might double up between Cannes and Telluride:

U.S. Directors: The Last Face (Sean Penn), Loving (Jeff Nichols)
British/Irish: American Honey (Andrea Arnold), The Secret Scripture (Jim Sheridan)
French: Personal Shopper (Olivier Assasyas)
Romanian: Family Photos (Christian Mungiu)
Other Europeans: Julieta (Pedro Almodovar). The Unknown Girl (The Dardennes), The Beautiful Days of Aranjuez (Wim Wenders)
Canadians; It's Only the End of the World
Latin American: Neruda (Pablo Larrain)
Israel: Oppenheimer Strategies (Joseph Cedar)
Asian: The Salesman/Untitled (Asghar Farhadi)

The complete Variety article is here:

http://variety.com/2016/film/news/cannes-film-festival-predictions-bfg-2016-1201738289/


44 FILMS INDIEWIRE WANTS AT CANNES

And finally, a wish list...probably well informed, from Indiewire, about Cannes films...with my eye toward Telluride...

Among the 44 films that the Indiewire crew lists are:

The Last Face
Loving
Julieta
Neruda
The Unknown Girl
Family Photos
American Honey
It's Only the End of the World
The Beautiful Days of Aranjuez
The Secret Scripture
Personal Shopper
Oppenheimer Strategies
Forushande (the untitled Farhadi Salesman film)
Lion



That'll do for Monday...

Contact me at:

michael_speech@hotmail.com OR

mpgort@gmail.com OR

via Twitter @Gort2 OR to

Michael's Telluride Film Blog's Facebook page: 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Michaels-Telluride-Film-Blog-and-The-Film-Awards-Clearinghouse/107846269309712