Showing posts with label Out of the Furnace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Out of the Furnace. Show all posts

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Best of the Week/Out of the Furnace Trailer

Hello on a Saturday...


As is the case during the summer, here's the best of what I posted from a week that looked at European Production companies and their connections to Telluride:

BEST OF THE WEEK

BRITS PRODUCE

Two weeks ago, I was looking at domestic distributors that seem to be frequently represented at the Telluride Film Festival.  Last week I focused on smaller scale domestic distributors and a group of individuals that also have a frequent presence.  This week I'm going to be looking at European film production companies that seem to pop up in film credits at Telluride with some frequency.

Today and tomorrow will be centered on the British. The end of the week on the French (and maybe one other).

But let's start with the U.K.:

BBC FILMS



Here's what I have been able to track down from the last half decade vis-a-vis BBC Films at Telluride:

2008: Millions
2009: Fish Tank, Bright Star, An Education
2010: The First Grader, Tamara Drewe
2011: We Have to Talk About Kevin
2012: Ginger and Rosa

BBC Films most likely Telluride offerings for 2013 would include:

"The Invisible Woman" and "Philomena".  There actually seems to have been a backwards confirmation for "The Invisible Woman" as a TFF #40 film according to a Daily Mail story from June 27:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2350412/Backstabbing-RSC--Mantel.html

"Philomena" has also been fairly high on my list of Telluride possibles.  I wouldn't be surprised if both films make the cut  for The SHOW.


UK FILM COUNCIL



This British production house has an even more prevalent profile for Telluride over the past decade than BBC Films does, although they were shut out in 2012.

The UK Film Council track record over the past decade:

2003: Intermission, Touching the Void
2004: Enduring Love, Merchant of Venice
2006: Venus, The Last King of Scotland, Deep Water
2007: When Did You Last See Your Father, Brick Lane
2008: Happy-Go-Lucky
2009: Fish Tank, Bright Star
2010: Tamara Drewe, The King's Speech
2011: Shame, We Need to Talk About Kevin

So They've been represented in 8 of the last 10 years and often with 2 films in those years that they have been represented.  The trouble is that there doesn't seem to be a lot to chose from in the UK Film Council pantheon of films at the moment.

Maybe the most likely is Kevin Macdonald's "How I Live Now".  Macdonald, at one point, was often represented at Telluride but hasn't had a film play TFF since 2007's "My Enemy's Enemy".  The film stars Saoirse Ronan.

We could see Ken Loach's documentary about WWII Britain, "The Spirit of '45".  It played the Berlin Fest.


The third (and least likely possibility from my perspective) is Jonathan Glazer's highly anticipated "Under the Skin" starring Scarlett Johansson as an alien in human form.

Chances:

"How I Live Now" 50%
"Spirit of 45" 30%
"Under the Skin" 15%

BRIT PRODUCERS #2



Yesterday I examined a couple of British production outfits that have been a part of the festival in the past.  Today I'll look at another: Film4.

FILM4 has been a fairly constant presence at Telluride over the past seven years:

2006: Deep Water
2007: When Did You Last See Your Father, Brick Lane
2008: Happy-Go-Lucky, Hunger, Slumdog Millionaire
2009:
2010: Another Year, Never Let Me Go
2011: Shame
2012:

Although Film4 wasn't represented in 2012, they do have a number of possible films in the barrel that could have Telluride potential including:

The John LeCarre adaptation "A Most Wanted Man"
Roger Michell's "Le Weekend"
Kevin Macdonald's "How I Live Now"
Cannes success "The Selfish Giant"
Ken Loach's "The Spirit of 45"
and Jonathan Glazer's "Under the Skin".

All but "A Most Wanted Man" have been addressed/assessed in this space recently ("Le Weekend" and "How I Live Now" were discussed in the "Usual Suspects" posts, "The Selfish Giant" in the Sundance Selects portion of U.S. distribution companies and "Spirit of '45" and "Under the Skin" in yesterday's UK Film Council breakdown).

"A Most Wanted Man" has no other Telluride indicators, so its status as a Telluride "potential" is limited.  Put it 20%.

There are other Brit Film Production houses that have some history with Telluride: Lipsync, See Saw, Film Four, but as of right now, these companies don't have films listed on IMDb that appear to be in position for TFF #40.

LE FRENCH PART ONE

Time to take a look at some of the more often Telluride represented French production houses in terms of their past with the festival and what those companies might have in store that have the potential to play over the Labor Day weekend.  We begin with:

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

Canal+ averages 3 films each year at Telluride.  What do they have that might play this year?

"Blue is the Warmest Color", "Bastards (Les Saluds)", "The Great Beauty", "The Past", "A Castle in Italy", "Mood Indigo", "Camille Claudell: 1915". "The Past" and "Blue is the Warmest Color" have the greatest chance to be on Telluride's 2013 bill of fare.

These seem to be the most likely to me but Canal+ has their finger in a lot of pots, so there could be many others that play.  Check Canal+'s full lineup via IMDb here:
http://www.imdb.com/company/co0028557/?ref_=fn_co_co_1

STUDIOCANAL



Another French production outfit that sometimes plays at Telluride is StudioCanal.  Look at their ten year Telluride track record:

2003: Young Adam, Love Me If You Dare
2004:
2005: Cache
2006: Indigines, Catch a Fire
2007:
2008:
2009:
2010: The Princess of Montpensier
2011:
2012: Love, Marilyn

As you can see, StudioCanal's T-ride participation is hit and miss.  Of the films that StudioCanal has had a hand in, there are two that have some Telluride potential but it's low level potential:

The Coen Brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis" and Michel Gondry's "Mood Indigo".  I'd put both films chances at 20%.

MORE FRENCH PRODUCERS (PART DEUX)

Today I continue looking at French production houses that have been Telluride players in the recent past and also look at those films that they have been a part of that could make the upcoming list of TFF #40 films.

FRANCE2 CINEMA



Here are the films from France2 Cinema that have played Telluride in recent years:

2006: Indigenes
2009: A Prophet, Coco Before Chanel
2010: The Princess of Montpensier
2011: The Kid with a Bike
2012: Rust and Bone

As you can see, France2 has been a modest player and really only in the last four years.  Still, France2 has three films with some Telluride potential: "Blue is the Warmest Color", "Mood Indigo" and "The Great Beauty".

"Blue" has the best chance of playing T-ride.

FRANCE3 CINEMA



France3 has had a larger profile than France2 at Telluride over the past few years:

2003: Dogville, The Tripletts of Belleville
2004:
2005: Lemming, Live and Become, Cache
2006: The Page Turner, Indigenes
2007: The Diving Bell and The Butterfly, Persepolis
2008: I've Loved You So Long
2009: The White Ribbon
2010: The Illusionist, The Princess of Montpensier, Of Gods and Men
2011: The Artist
2012: Superstar, Amour

So France3 is very consistently at Telluride with one or two films a year.  Their current crop has two suspects: "The Past" and "Grigris".  I think "The Past" is very likely and "Grigris" is a 50/50 shot to make the program.

LE FRENCH FINALE

A look at our final couple of French production companies that have had some Telluride connection in the past as I try to divine what they might have in store for us over Labor Day weekend.

CINE+ (CINECINEMA)...one and the same...



CineCinema changed over to Cine+ within the last two years or so 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

Over eight years Cine+(CineCinema) has participated in 21 TFF films, an average of 2-3 per year but trending toward four in three of the last four years.  What do they have in the wings that could play this year?

"Blue is the Warmest Color", "Mood Indigo", "The Past", "Les Saluds", and "The Great Beauty" seem to be the most likely suspects.  Of the five I think "The Past" is the most likely followed by "Blue", "Great Beauty" then "Les Saluds" and "Mood Indigo".


ARTE FRANCE CINEMA




Another Franco production outfit that has had persistent presence in Telluride is arte France Cinema.  Their track record looks like this:

2003: Dogville
2004: The Weeping Meadow
2005: The Child, Cache, Paradise Now
2006: Day Night Day Night
2007:
2008: O'Horten
2009:
2010:
2011: Le Havre, Goodbye First Love
2012:

You can see that arte France Cinema has had a spotty history at T-ride but they do have their hand in four possible Telluride players for this year:

"Michael Kohlhaas"
"Bastards/Les Saluds"
"Camille Claudell: 1915"
"My Sweet Pepper Land"

I'd put all of these at 25% to show at The SHOW.


THIS WEEKS' TEN BETS:

1) Nebraska
2) The Invisible Woman
3) The Story of Children and Film
4) The Past
5) The Unknown Known
6) Daughter of the Dawn
7) Aguirre: The Wrath of God
8) The Immigrant
9) Labor Day
10) The Lunchbox

The rotating tenth spot goes this week to a Sony Pictures Classic film.  Other films floating just below these Ten Bets are:

The Selfish Giant, Like Father Like Son, Life Itself, Only overs Left Alive, Blue is the Warmest Color, Young and Beautiful, 12 Years a Slave, Philomena, Heli and Quai d'Orsay.

"THE ZOG" NEARS COMPLETION



For months I've been reporting on the development and progress on the project to makeover The Hanley Pavilion in Town Park in Telluride so that it can be used as a tenth venue during the film festival.  The Telluride Daily Planet reported yesterday that the progress has been good and that the new "Werner Herzog Theater" (The Zog) is on target.

The story also dropped a couple of interesting items.  First, and perhaps most eye-catching was the revelation that "The Zog" will be mostly a "first come, first serve venue".  Festival co-director Julie Huntsinger is quoted in the article as saying that there will be no passholder distinction at "The Zog".  Huntsinger says in the story that the exception will be in the case of film premieres that occur at the new 750 seat facility.

Another interesting note is that, in addition to the extra fifth day of programming to celebrate the fests 40th anniversary, a special Wednesday afternoon "event" will be held to start the weekend.  The story doesn't give any clues as to what that "event" might be.

Here's the link to the complete Telluride Daily Planet story:

http://www.telluridenews.com/articles/2013/07/07/news/doc51d75875e8e88369135159.txt


OUT OF THE FURNACE TRAILER





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More on Monday.  Have a great weekend.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Le French Part One/Pics from"Furnace"

Good Wednesday to All.

LE FRENCH PART ONE

Time to take a look at some of the more often Telluride represented French production houses in terms of their past with the festival and what those companies might have in store that have the potential to play over the Labor Day weekend.  We begin with:

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

Canal+ averages 3 films each year at Telluride.  What do they have that might play this year?

"Blue is the Warmest Color", "Bastards (Les Saluds)", "The Great Beauty", "The Past", "A Castle in Italy", "Mood Indigo", "Camille Claudell: 1915". "The Past" and "Blue is the Warmest Color" have the greatest chance to be on Telluride's 2013 bill of fare.

These seem to be the most likely to me but Canal+ has their finger in a lot of pots, so there could be many others that play.  Check Canal+'s full lineup via IMDb here:
http://www.imdb.com/company/co0028557/?ref_=fn_co_co_1

STUDIOCANAL



Another French production outfit that sometimes plays at Telluride is StudioCanal.  Look at their ten year Telluride track record:

2003: Young Adam, Love Me If You Dare
2004:
2005: Cache
2006: Indigines, Catch a Fire
2007:
2008:
2009:
2010: The Princess of Montpensier
2011:
2012: Love, Marilyn

As you can see, StudioCanal's T-ride participation is hit and miss.  Of the films that StudioCanal has had a hand in, there are two that have some Telluride potential but it's low level potential:

The Coen Brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis" and Michel Gondry's "Mood Indigo".  I'd put both films chances at 20%.

More French information coming tomorrow.

PICS FROM FURNACE



We began seeing some stills from Scott Cooper's "Out of the Furnace" yesterday.  The pics were originally posted via USA Today.  I've linked to three stories from Rope of Silicon:
http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/first-out-of-the-furnace-pictures-featuring-christian-bale-and-woody-harrelson/

FirstShowing.net:
http://www.firstshowing.net/2013/first-look-christian-bale-woody-harrelson-in-out-of-the-furnace/

The Playlist:
http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/first-images-of-christian-bale-woody-harrelson-in-out-of-the-furnace-20130708

"Out of the Furnace" opens Dec. 6th.

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More tomorrow...


Tuesday, June 25, 2013

700/Sundance Selects and Telluride/The Playlist Guesses Venice

Good Tuesday Everyone...

700



That was the number of Saturday's post...the 700th.  Hard for me to believe.  Doing some quick math, that means that each post has been looked at, on average, 112.4 times.  Thanks to everyone who reads from time to time.

SUNDANCE SELECTS AND TELLURIDE



Only a player in distribution for just a few years, Sundance Selects has been present at the Telluride Film Festival for the last three fests at various levels of involvement.

2010: The Princess of Montpensier, Tabloid
2011: The Forgiveness of Blood, The Kid with a Bike, Goodbye First Love and Into the Abyss
2012: The Central Park Five

At this point, the possible Sundance Selects offerings amount to 5 films that played at Cannes:

Palme d'Or winner "Blue is the Warmest Color", Jury Prize winner "Like Father, Like Son", Francois Ozon's "Young and Beautiful", Clio Bernard's "The Selfish Giant" and Roman Polanski's "Venus in Fur".

My feeling is that "Like Father..." and "The Selfish Giant" might be the more likely T-ride choices...though "Blue" and "Young and Beautiful" seem very possible as well.

Polanski's film seems like the least likely of the five from Cannes.

Sundance Selects also has a documentary entitled "The Summit" which has played in 2 film fests in England and Ireland...that could be a possibility.

Chances:



"Like Father, Like Son" 70%
"The Selfish Giant" 70%



"Blue is the Warmest Color" 60%
"Young and Beautiful" 50%
"Venus in Fur" 20%
""The Summit" 20%

THE PLAYLIST GUESSES VENICE (and T-ride indirectly)



The Playlist Oliver Lyttleton offers his take on potential Venice selections and, in passing mentions 5 films as Telluride possibles:

"Devil's Knot"
"The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby"
"Salinger"
"Out of the Furnace"
and "Foxcatcher"

All of which could join the San Juan SHOW...and none.

I haven't had "Devil's Knot" on my radar at all. I have mentioned the other four.  Each of which has some things working in its favor and other things that indicate that they're not so likely.

To look at Lyttleton's complete list click below:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/predicting-the-2013-venice-film-festival-line-up-20130624

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More tomorrow...

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

A Look at 12 Years/Out of the Furnace in the Furnace/Happy Birthday Roger

Good Wednesday to you.

A LOOK AT 12 YEARS A SLAVE



First official images from Steve McQueen's third feature which has a better than even chance at making the TFF #40 lineup:

From The Playlist:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/first-look-michael-fassbender-benedict-cumberbatch-chiwetel-ejiofor-in-12-years-a-slave-20130618


Also from Rope of Silicon:

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/twelve-years-a-slave-pictures/


OUT OF THE FURNACE INTO THE (OSCAR) FURNACE



Scott Cooper's "Out of the Furnace" has a small Telluride possibility that has grown a bit in the past month and yesterday's announcement that its release date was being moved to a more awards-centric date (November) makes it a slightly larger possible.

Check the post from The Playlist:


http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/out-of-the-furnace-starring-christian-bale-casey-affleck-moves-into-the-heart-of-oscar-season-with-november-27-limited-release-20130618


HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROGER



Director Jason Reitman penned this recent remembrance of critic Roger Ebert who would have turned 71 this week.  Roger was a huge fan of TFF and Reitman has been a player there with some frequency and is likely to return again this year with his new film, "Labor Day".

Here's Reitman's essay from Entertainment Weekly:

http://insidemovies.ew.com/2013/06/18/roger-ebert-birthday-jason-reitman/


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Follow me on Twitter @Gort2

More tomorrow...


Saturday, June 8, 2013

deadCENTER/Best of the Week

Good Saturday to everyone...

DEAD CENTER WEEKEND:

Oklahoma's own film festival:  Check out the last half of OKC's deadCENTER film Fest.  Their website:  The Jogger, Yellow, Spectacular Now, Kings of Summer and more.


BEST OF THE WEEK

Here's a look back at the best posts/stories from this week on MTFB.

40TH TFF POSTER/ARTIST REVEALED
Like the other journalists on the Telluride Film Festival mailing list, I got word late last week that a poster artist had been selected and the poster for TFF #40 had been unveiled.  I have included the poster image and the accompanying news release from TFF P.R. head Shannon Goodwin Mitchell:



TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES DEAN TAVOULARIS
AS 40th ANNIVERSARY FESTIVAL POSTER ARTIST

May 30, 2013

BERKELEY, CA – 40th Telluride Film Festival (August 29 – September 2, 2013), presented by National Film Preserve LTD., proudly announces Oscar-winning production designer Dean Tavoularis as its 2013 poster artist. Tavoularis will attend the 40th Telluride Film Festival over Labor Day weekend to present his poster design to the public and hold a poster signing for festival guests.

As a student, Dean Tavoularis studied painting and architecture at different art schools and went on to work at Disney Studios as an in-betweener in the animation department where he worked on the 1955 film “Lady and the Tramp.” He then transitioned to the live-action department where he worked on the 1954 film “20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.” His career as a production designer began in 1967 when filmmaker Arthur Penn asked him to lead the artistic direction for “Bonny And Clyde.” Three years later, he and Penn teamed up again on “Little Big Man.” He began working with Francis Ford Coppola in 1972 on “The Godfather”, which was the beginning of much collaboration including the latter two films in “The Godfather” trilogy and “Apocalypse Now.”

Tavoularis has spent the last ten years focusing on his work as a painter. His return to film came in 2012 when he was the production designer on Roman Polanski’s “Carnage.” He has worked on over thirty films spanning four decades, landing five Academy-Award nominations and one win for “The Godfather Part II.” Tavoularis lives in Paris and Los Angeles with his wife, actress Aurore Clément.

“We are thrilled Dean agreed to do the poster art for the 40th anniversary,” said Executive Director Julie Huntsinger. “The 40th edition will be a remarkable celebration of TFF’s past and present, and Dean’s work with Telluride is a wonderful parallel. He was a part of Telluride in its very early years when he designed a poster for a TFF celebration called the ‘Spirit of Zoetrope.’ We are excited to have him back and to present his vision for this special year. ”

Tavoularis remarks, “When I was asked by Tom Luddy and Julie Huntsinger if I would design the poster for the 40th Telluride Film Festival, I was first flattered and then thoughtful of being part of the Telluride film history. In my own way I pondered Telluride’s past and in fact all film festivals. Like the word implies, a festival is a fair; people gathering to show their films. It just as well could be their tomatoes. It’s an exchange. I wanted a poster that was simple and joyful, that looked homemade with pure colors in shapes that symbolize a 1:85 screen and an audience. One cannot exist without the other. I am very happy to be a small part of Telluride’s history.”

Dean Tavoularis joins a prestigious list of artists who have shared their talents with Telluride Film Festival. Past poster artists include Ed Ruscha, John Mansfield, Julian Schnabel, Dottie Attie, Doug and Mike Starn, David Lance Goines, Chuck Jones, David Salle, Alexis Smith, Jim Dine, Seymour Chwast, Frederic Amat, Francesco Clemente, Dave McKean, Gary Larson, Chip Kidd, John Canemaker, Mark Stock, Laurie Anderson, William Wegman, Ralph Eggleston, Maira Kalman and Dave Eggers.

To view and download the 40th Telluride Film Festival poster art, visit: http://we.tl/l0OjjbIQN7

40th Telluride Film Festival posters will be available for purchase throughout the five-day Festival or by visiting the TFF website atwww.telluridefilmfestival.org.

40th Telluride Film Festival passes are now available at www.telluridefilmfestival.org.

40th Anniversary of the Telluride Film Festival
Telluride Film Festival is celebrating its 40th Anniversary August 29 – September 2, 2013.  To commemorate this special occasion an additional day has been added to the usual four-day Festival, making room for a five-day bounty of special programming and festivities. Passes are now available for purchase atwww.telluridefilmfestival.org.
  
About Telluride Film Festival
The prestigious Telluride Film Festival ranks among the world’s best film festivals and is an annual gathering for film industry insiders, cinema enthusiasts, filmmakers and critics. TFF is considered a major launching ground for the fall season’s most talked-about films. Founded in 1974, Telluride Film Festival, presented in the beautiful mountain town of Telluride, Colorado, is a four-day international educational event celebrating the art of film. Telluride Film Festival’s long-standing commitment is to join filmmakers and film connoisseurs together to experience great cinema. The exciting schedule, kept secret until Opening Day, consists of over two dozen filmmakers presenting their newest works, special Guest Director programs, three major Tributes to guest artists, special events and remarkable treasures from the past. Telluride Film Festival is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit educational program. Festival headquarters are in Berkeley, CA.

About Our Sponsors
Telluride Film Festival is supported by Land Rover North America, Turner Classic Movies, Ernst & Young, Film Finances, Audible.com, Telluride Mountain Village Owners Association, Universal Studios, Meyer Sound, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Bombardier Business Aircraft, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Américas Film Conservancy, Telluride Foundation, Pine Ridge Vineyards, The London Hotel Group, UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, Dolby, Telluride Alpine Lodging, Crumpler, ShopKeep POS, The Hollywood Reporter, Boston Light and Sound, among others.

THE "ZOG" IS ON TRACK

If you've been reading this blog for the past 9 months, you know that there is a plan to add a new, large venue for TFF #40.  The new facility will be in Town Park and, for the festival, will be named the Werner Herzog Theater (or "The Zog"...well, that's what I'm calling it.  We'll see if that nickname catches on).  The Watch newspaper in Telluride reported this week that the process is humming right along:



STARTING TO READ THE TEA LEAVES

Last February 28th the fine folks at HitFix/InContention gave us their rundown of 25 films that they thought would have Oscar potential for this year.  Included within each film's capsule description was a guess at its fall film festival potential.  I have referenced this article a couple of times since its initial post and thought of it again as I get ready for a summer of Telluride #40 speculation so it seemed like a good place to return to as a way of kicking off the summer.  You can access the entire post here:


For those that would prefer a truncated version...here you go.

Listed alphabetically, here are the 13 films they mentioned as Telluride possibles on the list of 25 (with a comment or two along the way):



"August: Osage County"...I'm dubious that this will actually play Telluride.  This seems more like a New York Film Fest opener or closer to me.  That said, it's not impossible.  Distribution is by The Weinstein Company...past tributee George Clooney is a producer.  Past tributee Meryl Streep plays the lead (or co-lead).

"Captain Phillips"...Again, I'd be surprised.

"Diana"...Third straight film that HitFix lists that I think probably won't play.



"The Fifth Estate"...The Julian Assange film starring Benedict Cumberbatch.  Finally, a film that I think has a fighting shot to make the T-ride playlist.  Bill Condon directs and has been repped at Telluride previously with "Kinsey" which also provides the second bit of Telluride connectivity.  Laura Linney (of "Kinsey" and frequent Telluride appearances) is a in "Fifth Estate".  This might even make the first "Ten Bets" list that'll go up at the end of the month.

"Foxcatcher"...Steve Carell, Mark Ruffalo and Channing Tatum in a true story of murder and Olympic wrestling directed by Bennett Miller.  This is a soft maybe from me at this point, though I'd be pretty psyched if it actually does show at The SHOW.



"Labor Day"...Jason Reitman directs ("Juno", "Up in the Air") after having not been in Telluride with "Young Adult" in 2011.  I think he'll be back.  And I am looking forward to that potential return.  Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin...yes please.  And just to toss a thought out there...A Kate Winslet tribute?

"Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom"...Again, I'm dubious.  Although it has a Telluride pedigree in that its distribution is via TWC and director Justin Chadwick was repped at TFF #37 with "The First Grader".

"A Most Wanted Man"...The TFF connection is pretty thin here but I'd love for it to make the grade.  It's a John LeCarre story and has Philip Seymour Hoffman in it.  Film4 is listed as a producer and that's the only real connection to past TFFs.  Film4 helped produce "Shame", "Never Let Me Go" and "Slumdog Millionaire" and looking at what the have produced for the rest of 2013, I believe they will have some presence at TFF #40.



"Nebraska"...If Alexander Payne's new film isn't on the TFF #40 list I would be shocked.

"Oldboy"...If Spike Lee's new film IS ON the TFF #40 list I would be shocked.


"Out of the Furnace"...Director Scott Cooper's follow-up to "Crazy Heart", the little film that earned Jeff Bridges the Oscar for Best Actor.  The film stars Christian Bale and Casey Affleck.  "Furnace" film doesn't have any particular Telluride pedigree so it wouldn't seem likely.



"Rush"...the Ron Howard directed film about big time auto racing wouldn't seem like the most likely of Telluride films, but T-ride is the only festival that the HitFix article even suggests for the highly anticipated film.

"Serena"...I don't know a lot about this film beyond the fact that it re-unites "Silver Linings Playbook" stars Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence and it's directed  by Susanne Bier. What makes me think it's really possible is that U.S. distributor Magnolia also had "The Hunt" and "A Royal Affair" in its stable last year and they played Telluride.


There are 5 films on the Hit Fix list that I would love to see at Telluride that aren't speculated as T-ride films:
"The Counselor", "Inside Llewyn Davis", "Monuments Men", "Wolf of Wall Street" and "Twelve Years a Slave".  Although I think I could make a good case for "Twelve Years" and a so-so case for "Monuments Men".  The other three...yeah, I'd be surprised too.

CANNES CRITICS COMBINED



As I did last year, I have combined the critics panels totals from the Ioncinema group and the Screen Daily and produced the following chart which shows surprising agreement between the critics and Steven Spielberg's jury.

Ioncinema compiled 16 critics and Screen Daily had 10 evaluating the competition films at Cannes last week.  I’ve compiled them together to create a master review of the 26 critics.  Here’s what that revealed:

Position/Film/Combined Average Rating (9 would be perfect)/Ion rank/SD Rank/Award

1) Blue is the Warmest Color/La Vie d’Adele               7.7       (1)       (1)        Palme d’Or
2) Inside Llewyn Davis                                                 7.0       (2t)      (2)        Grand Prix
3) The Past                                                                  6.5       (2t)      (3)        Best Actress
4) A Touch of Sin                                                        6.4       (4)        (4)       Screenplay
5/tie) Nebraska                                                           5.9       (na)      (3)        Best Actor
5/tie) Only Lovers Left Alive                                        5.9       (5)        (na)
7/tie) The Great Beauty                                                5.8       (6t)      (7)
7/tie) Venus in Fur                                                       5.8       (8t)      (5t)
9) Behind the Candelabra                                            5.6       (6t)      (8t)
10/tie) Like Father, Like Son                                       5.5       (8t)      (8t)
10/tie) Young and Beautiful                                          5.5       (6t)      (10t)

Close, but no cigar: The Immigrant (5.3)

The Bottom Three:
Only God Forgives (3.7), A Castle in Italy (3.6) and Shield of Straw (3.3)

The two sets of critics were wildly divergent on Nebraska and Only Lovers Left Alive.


As far as Telluride goes, almost everything that finished in the top ten has a shot to play with the probable exceptions of “Inside Llewyn Davis” and “Venus in Fur”.  Of course “Behind the Candelabra” won’t play as it has premiered on HBO already.

DEALS AT CANNES (and what they mean...maybe)



Among other things, the Cannes Film Festival serves as a market place for film.  Distribution deals and the distributors that make them can point us to some films that could end up at the Telluride Film Festival.  Consequently I have included a series of links to a variety of stories/posts about acquisitions that occurred at Cannes or in its immediate aftermath:  Beginning with a big swath of multiple posts from IndieWire
:

http://www.indiewire.com/article/cannes-wrap-up-all-the-interviews-news-and-reviews-from-indiewires-festival-coverage?page=2#articleHeaderPanel

More individual stories are as follows:

Sundance Selects grabs "Blue is the Warmest Color" (Palme d'Or winner) and "Like Father, Like Son":

http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/sundance-selects-is-releasing-cannes-winners-blue-is-the-warmest-color-and-like-father-like-son

And "The Selfish Giant":

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cannes-sundance-selects-nabs-north-555986

And "Young and Beautiful"

http://www.indiewire.com/article/sundance-selects-takes-ozons-beautiful-out-of-cannes

 AND...Sony Pictures Classics has "The Lunchbox"



http://www.thewrap.com/movies/column-post/cannes-sony-pictures-classics-buys-lunchbox-93676

Sundance was represented at Telluride last year with "The Central Park Five" and in 2011 by several films.  All four listed above should be considered potential films for the TFF #40 program.

Meanwhile SPC's grab of "The Lunchbox" also means that it has some very definite Telluride potential.  SPC has been very well represented at Telluride for a good long time.




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More on Monday...

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Starting to Read the Tea Leaves

Good Tuesday!

STARTING TO READ THE TEA LEAVES

Last February 28th the fine folks at HitFix/InContention gave us their rundown of 25 films that they thought would have Oscar potential for this year.  Included within each film's capsule description was a guess at its fall film festival potential.  I have referenced this article a couple of times since its initial post and thought of it again as I get ready for a summer of Telluride #40 speculation so it seemed like a good place to return to as a way of kicking off the summer.  You can access the entire post here:

http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/oscars-2014-contenders-25-films-to-watch-for

For those that would prefer a truncated version...here you go.

Listed alphabetically, here are the 13 films they mentioned as Telluride possibles on the list of 25 (with a comment or two along the way):



"August: Osage County"...I'm dubious that this will actually play Telluride.  This seems more like a New York Film Fest opener or closer to me.  That said, it's not impossible.  Distribution is by The Weinstein Company...past tributee George Clooney is a producer.  Past tributee Meryl Streep plays the lead (or co-lead).

"Captain Phillips"...Again, I'd be surprised.

"Diana"...Third straight film that HitFix lists that I think probably won't play.



"The Fifth Estate"...The Julian Assange film starring Benedict Cumberbatch.  Finally, a film that I think has a fighting shot to make the T-ride playlist.  Bill Condon directs and has been repped at Telluride previously with "Kinsey" which also provides the second bit of Telluride connectivity.  Laura Linney (of "Kinsey" and frequent Telluride appearances) is a in "Fifth Estate".  This might even make the first "Ten Bets" list that'll go up at the end of the month.

"Foxcatcher"...Steve Carell, Mark Ruffalo and Channing Tatum in a true story of murder and Olympic wrestling directed by Bennett Miller.  This is a soft maybe from me at this point, though I'd be pretty psyched if it actually does show at The SHOW.



"Labor Day"...Jason Reitman directs ("Juno", "Up in the Air") after having not been in Telluride with "Young Adult" in 2011.  I think he'll be back.  And I am looking forward to that potential return.  Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin...yes please.  And just to toss a thought out there...A Kate Winslet tribute?

"Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom"...Again, I'm dubious.  Although it has a Telluride pedigree in that its distribution is via TWC and director Justin Chadwick was repped at TFF #37 with "The First Grader".

"A Most Wanted Man"...The TFF connection is pretty thin here but I'd love for it to make the grade.  It's a John LeCarre story and has Philip Seymour Hoffman in it.  Film4 is listed as a producer and that's the only real connection to past TFFs.  Film4 helped produce "Shame", "Never Let Me Go" and "Slumdog Millionaire" and looking at what the have produced for the rest of 2013, I believe they will have some presence at TFF #40.



"Nebraska"...If Alexander Payne's new film isn't on the TFF #40 list I would be shocked.

"Oldboy"...If Spike Lee's new film IS ON the TFF #40 list I would be shocked.


"Out of the Furnace"...Director Scott Cooper's follow-up to "Crazy Heart", the little film that earned Jeff Bridges the Oscar for Best Actor.  The film stars Christian Bale and Casey Affleck.  "Furnace" film doesn't have any particular Telluride pedigree so it wouldn't seem likely.



"Rush"...the Ron Howard directed film about big time auto racing wouldn't seem like the most likely of Telluride films, but T-ride is the only festival that the HitFix article even suggests for the highly anticipated film.

"Serena"...I don't know a lot about this film beyond the fact that it re-unites "Silver Linings Playbook" stars Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence and it's directed  by Susanne Bier. What makes me think it's really possible is that U.S. distributor Magnolia also had "The Hunt" and "A Royal Affair" in its stable last year and they played Telluride.


There are 5 films on the Hit Fix list that I would love to see at Telluride that aren't speculated as T-ride films:
"The Counselor", "Inside Llewyn Davis", "Monuments Men", "Wolf of Wall Street" and "Twelve Years a Slave".  Although I think I could make a good case for "Twelve Years" and a so-so case for "Monuments Men".  The other three...yeah, I'd be surprised too.

The remaining 7 films on the HitFix list are Sundance films, will have already opened prior to Telluride or probably has no chance of playing Telluride.

So, from the entire list of 25, the best bets are "Nebraska", "Labor Day" and "The Fifth Estate".

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More on Wednesday...

Monday, April 22, 2013

Rudderless Journey Begins/Burning for The Furnace/The Nugget Re-opens/Folman's Congress at Cannes/The Immigrant (Can someone please title this film?)/Is "The Past" in Our Future?

Good Monday morning!


RUDDERLESS JOURNEY BEGINS


William H. Macy and crew scouting locations in Guthrie, OK. this week.


William H. Macy's "Rudderless" is underway.  Friend of MTFB and script co-author Casey Twenter posted photos from the shoot yesterday here in Oklahoma.


First scene on the first day of shooting for "Rudderless"


William H. Macy with a thumbs as he wraps the first day of the "Rudderless" shoot yesterday.


And I have linked to this story that ran, in part, in the Daily Oklahoman:



BURNING FOR THE FURNACE/OUT OF THE FURNACE



Friend of MTFB Kristopher Tapley of InContention/Hit Fix tweeted earlier this week an exciting prospect of a really intriguing film making the program at T-ride:

https://twitter.com/kristapley/status/324703726344486912

"Out of the Furnace" was also listed as a Telluride possibility in the HitFix "Oscar Contenders 2014: 25 Films to Watch For" post on Feb. 28th.  It's #19 in the photo gallery.

http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/oscars-2014-contenders-25-films-to-watch-for

Director and co-writer Scott Cooper's debut film was "Crazy Heart" which led to Jeff Bridges winning a Best Actor Oscar.  It also won the Oscar for Best Original Song and earned Maggie Gyllenhall a Supporting Actress nomination.

"Furnace" boasts an impressive list of names in the cast: Christian Bale, Casey Affleck, Willem Dafoe, Woody Harrelson, Zoe Saldana, Forest Whitaker and Sam Shepherd.  It's IMDB entry is here:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1206543/?ref_=sr_1




THE NUGGET RE-OPENS



News from Telluride that The Nugget, the actual movie theater in town, has re-opened and is ready for business.   The Telluride Daily Planet reports that the theater will be run by the Telluride Film Festival directly including programming.  The complete story is linked here:

http://www.telluridenews.com/articles/2013/04/19/news/doc51707509eba91571383769.txt

FOLMAN'S CONGRESS AT CANNES



It was something of a surprise Thursday that the announcement of the Cannes lineups did not include Ari Folman's "The Congress".  I passed on word that it was likely to be announced for some part of the program later and sure enough, on Friday, it was announced as the opening film for the Director's Fortnight part of the Cannes program.  See the linked tweet below from Film Festival News:

https://twitter.com/filmfest/status/325219614768377856/photo/1


THE IMMIGRANT...OR LOWLIFE...OR THE NIGHTINGALE...



Here's a new image and a few words about James Gray's "The Immigrant" which has been previously titled "Lowlife" and "The Nightingale".  This film was teased at TFF #39 as a part of the Marion Cotillard tribute I attended with a screening of a few minutes of the film and the presence of Mr. Gray himself.  I'm hoping that signaled a possibility that the entire film shows this year...and maybe a return visit from Ms. Cotillard.

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/new-pics-from-cannes-contenders-james-grays-the-immigrant-nicolas-winding-refns-only-god-forgives-20130418


IS "THE PAST" IN OUR FUTURE?



I have a lot of anticipation for Asghar Farhadi's follow up to "A Separation".  It's playing in competition next month at Cannes.  Previously we had seen a trailer in French.  Now comes an English subtitled trailer linked here from both Rope of Silicon and The Playlist.

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/the-past-english-subtitled-trailer/

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/watch-subtitled-trailer-for-asghar-farhadis-cannes-entry-the-past-starring-berenice-bejo-tahar-rahim-20130418



More on Thursday...