Looking to TFF #53 / BAFTA Nominees Announced / Behind the Scenes: Hamnet and H Is for Hawk / Visitations: The Secret Agent

 LOOKING TO TFF #53

Every year about this time MTFB moves into a transition phase as Oscar season closes in on completion (with nominees announced and Oscar winners set to be announced in about six weeks).  We begin to cast our eyes toward Labor Day weekend and what films may flicker to life in the San Juan mountains of Southwest Colorado.

One way to begin that transition is to look at lists of films named to "most anticipated" lists.  We start that today with The Film Stage's 100 Most Anticipated Films of 2026.  I have parsed the list and have come up with 16 titles that seem most possible for TFF #53.  Here those are in the order that The film Stage has ranked them (with director's name included in parentheses):

100) Digger (Inarritu)

78) At the Sea (Mundruczo)

71) Artificial (Guadagnino)

53) Ink (Boyle)

48) Untitled Eisenberg (Eisenberg)

42) Bucking Fastard (Herzog)

36) Parallel Tales (Farhadi)

33) Butterfly (Bagalov)

31) The Unknown (Haradi)

25) Jack of Spades (J. Coen)

15) Ancient History (Baker)

13) A Long Winter (Haigh)

7) Paper Tiger (Gray)

6) Untitled Mike Leigh (Leigh)

2) The Way of the Wind (Malick)

Historically 6-8 of these films will actually make it to Telluride.  Last year's stab at this yielded six films hat made it to TFF #52.  The year before...also six.

The complete listing from The Film Stage is linked here.

BAFTA NOMINEES ANNOUNCED

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts named its nominees for film excellence this week.  TFF films actually earned more BAFTA noms than Oscar noms with 43.  Here's how TFF #52 films did:

Hamnet (11): Best Film, Direction, Best British Film, Actress (Buckley), Supporting Actor (Mescal), Supporting Actress (Watson), Adapted Screenplay, Production Design, Costumes, Makeup/Hair and Score.

Sentimental Value (8): Best Film, Direction, Film Not in the English Language, Actress (Reinsve), Supporting Actress (Lilleaas), Supporting Actor (Skarsgard), Original Screenplay and Casting.

Frankenstein (8): Best Supporting Actor (Elordi), Cinematography, Production Design, Sound, Special Visual Effects, Costumes, Makeup/Hair and Score.

Bugonia (5): Best Direction, Actor (Plemons), Actress (Stone), Adapted Screenplay and Score.

Pillion (3): Outstanding British Film, Adapted Screenplay and Best British Debut.

The Secret Agent (2): Best Film Not in the English Language, Original Screenplay.

Single nominations for:

Blue Moon: Best Actor (Hawke).

If I had Legs I'd Kick You: Best Actress (Byrne).

H Is for Hawk: Outstanding British Film.

It Was Just an Accident: Best Film Not in the English Language.

Cover-Up: Best Documentary.

Apocalypse in the Tropics: Best Documentary.

The complete list of BAFTA nominees is linked here.

BEHIND THE SCENES

*HAMNET

https://x.com/hamnetmovie/status/2015133832140501226?s=20

*H IS FOR HAWK

https://x.com/roadsidetweets/status/2014763864575844662?s=20

VISITATIONS: THE SECRET AGENT

Director Kleber Mendonca Filho for The Secret Agent from The Contending.

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MTFB Oscar Take: Updated Predictions for Best Picture, Direction and Lead Acting / Visitations: Sentimental Value and Pillion

MTFB OSCAR TAKE: UPDATES PREDICTIONS FOR BEST PICTURE, DIRECTION AND LEAD ACTING

Here's the fifth set of predictions for the four major categories.  TFF #52 predicted nominees are in Bold.

BEST PICTURE

1) One Battle After Another (1)

2) Sinners (3)

3) Hamnet (2)

4) Marty Supreme (4)

5) Sentimental Value (5)

6) Frankenstein (6)

7) It Was Just an Accident (7)

8) Train Dreams (10)

9) Wicked: For Good (9)

10) Bugonia (NR)

Others: The Secret Agent, Avatar: Fire and Ice, and F1.

 

BEST DIRECTION

1) Paul Thomas Anderson/OBAA (1)

2) Chloe Zhao/Hamnet (2)

3) Ryan Coogler/Sinners (3)

4) Jafar Panahi/It Was Just an Accident (4)

5) Joachim Trier/Sentimental Value (5)

Others: Guillermo del Toro/Frankenstein, Josh Safdie/Marty Supreme and Kleber Mendanca Filho/The Secret Agent.

BEST ACTRESS

1) Jesse Buckley/Hamnet (1)

2) Rene Reinsve/Sentimental Value (2)

3) Rose Byrne/If I Had Legs I'd Kick You (NR)

4) Emma Stone/Bugonia (5)

5) Chase Infiniti/OBAA (NR)

Others: Cynthia Erivo/Wicked: For Good, Amanda Seyfreid/The Testament of Ann Lee and Kate Hudson/Song Sung Blue.

BEST ACTOR

1) Timothee Chalamet/Marty Supreme (1)

2) Leonardo DiCaprio/OBAA (2)

3) Walter Moura/The Secret Agent (3)

4) Michael B. Jordan/Sinners (5)

5) Ethan Hawke/Blue Moon (4)

Others: Joel Edgerton (Train Dreams), George Clooney/Jay Kelly and  Jesse Plemons/Bugonia.

This set of predictions suggests that five TFF #52 films will be nominated for Best Picture which would be an all time record for films from TFF.

VISITATIONS

 

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas for Sentimental Value from Pop Culture Confidential.

Joachim Trier for Sentimental Value from Pop Culture Confidential.

Henry Melling for Pillion from Gold Derby.

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MTFB Oscar Take: After Short Lists: Cinematography, Editing, Score and Song / Oscar Shortlist and TFF / London Film Critics and TFF

MTFB OSCAR TAKE AFTER SHORT LISTS:  CINEMATOGRAPHY, EDITING, SCORE AND SONG

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

1) Sinners (3)

2) One Battle after Another (2)

3) Hamnet (1)

4) Frankenstein (4)

5) Train Dreams (5)

Others: F1, Marty Supreme and Nouvelle Vague.

BEST EDITING

1) One Battle After Another (1)

2) Sinners (2)

3) F1 (4)

4) Marty Supreme (5)

5) Hamnet (3)

Others: Frankenstein, It Was Just an Accident and Sentimental Value.

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

1) Sinners (1)

2) One Battle After Another (2)

3) Hamnet (3)

4) Frankenstein (4)

5) Train Dreams (NR)

Others: F1, Marty Supreme and Bugonia.

ORIGINAL SONG

1) Golden/K Pop Demon Hunters (1)

2) I Lied to You/Sinners (2)

3) Dear Me/Diane Warren: Relentless (3)

4) The Girl in the Bubble/Wicked: For Good (4)

5) Train Dreams/Train Dreams (NR)

Others: Last Time (I Seen the Sun)/Sinners, No Place Like Home/Wicked: For Good and Drive/F1. 

OSCAR SHORTLISTS AND TFF

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced its Shortlists for 12 different categories as Academy members get ready to cast their votes to nominate films and individuals for the 2026 Oscars. At this point a film can only be nominated in any of the 12 categories if they have been shortlisted.

Among the films from TFF #52 Frankenstein lead the way with six mentions.  Overall TFF #52 were mentioned 27 times across a broad array of the ten categories.  Here' where TFF films landed:

Frankenstein (6): Best Casting, Cinematography, Makeup/Hair, Score, Sound and Visual Effects.

Hamnet (3): Casting, Cinematography and Score.

Sentimental Value (3): Casting, Cinematography and International Feature.

The Secret Agent (2): Best International Feature and Casting.

Bugonia (2): Best Cinematography and Score.

TFF #52* feature films with Single mentions:

The Ballad of a Small Player: Cinematography.

Nouvelle Vague: Cinematography.

Cover-Up: Documentary.

Apocalypse in the Tropics: Documentary (*TFF #51)

It was Just an Accident: International Feature.

Jay Kelly: Score.

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere" Sound.

TFF #52 Short Films:

All the Empty Rooms: Doc Short.

All the Walls Come Down: Doc Short.

Last Days on Lake Trinity: Doc Short.

Extremist: Live Action Short.

The complete list of all Oscar Short Lists can be found here.

LONDON FILM CRITICS AND TFF

The London Film Critics Circle has named their nominees for film excellence.  Here's how TFF #52 faired:

Hamnet (8): Film of the Year, British/Irish Film of the Year, Director of the Year, Screenwriter of the Year, Actress of the Year, British/Irish Performer of the Year, Young British/Irish Performer of the Year (X 2).

The Mastermind (4): Film of the Year, Actor of the Year, British/Irish Performer of the Year, Technical Achievement: Music.

Sentimental Value (4): Film of the Year, Foreign Film of the Year, Actress of the Year, Supporting Actress of the Year.

Pillion (3): British/Irish Film of the Year, Supporting Actor of the Year, Breakthrough Filmmaker.

The Secret Agent (2): Foreign Film of the Year, Actor of the Year.

Urchin (2): Breakthrough Performer of the Year, Breakthrough Filmmaker.

Single nominations for:

It was Just an Accident: Foreign Film of the Year.

Cover-Up: Documentary of the Year.

One to One: John and Yoko: Documentary of the Year (*TFF 51)

Riefenstahl: Documentary of the Year (*TFF 51)

Bugonia: British/Irish Film of the Year

Blue Moon: Actor of the Year.

If I Had Legs I'd Kick You: Actress of the Year.

Frankenstein: Supporting actor of the Year.

The complete list of all London Critics nominees is linked here.

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MTFB Oscar Predictions Round Two: Lead Acting/ Gold Derby Has Hamnet in Front / TFF #52 and the British Independent Awards

 MTFB OSCAR PREDICITONS ROUND TWO: LEAD ACTING

MTFB continues its up date of  Oscar predictions with the Lead acting Categories.  These predictions will include the actors current ranking as well as its position from two weeks back.  TFF #52 films are in Bold.

BEST ACTRESS

1) Jesse Buckley/Hamnet (1)

2) Rene Reinsve/Sentimental Value (2)

3) Cynthia Enviro/Wicked: For Good (3)

4) Emma Stone/Bugonia (4)

5) Amanda Seyfried/The Testament of Ann Lee (NR)

Others: Kate Hudson/Song Sung Blue, Sidney Sweeney/Christy and Rose Byrne/If I Had Legs I'd Kick You.

1) Timothee Chalamet/Marty Supreme (2)

2) Leonardo Di Caprio/OBAA (1)

3) Walter Moura/The Secret Agent (3)

4) Ethan Hawke (NR)

5) Michael B. Jordan/Sinners (5)

Others: George Clooney/Jay Kelly, Joel Edgerton (Train Dreams), Jeremy Allen White (Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere.

Comment:  At this early point there would be five TFF #52 performances nominated for Best Lead: Buckley, Reinsve, Stone, Moura and Hawke.  Big movers up are Seyfried and Hawke.  Also note Chalamet's rise to number one among the men over DiCaprio.

Next post: Supporting Actors.

GOLD DERBY HAS HAMNET IN FRONT

In a very interesting twist Gold Derby now has Chloe Zhao's Hamnet fractionally ahead of Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another.  The edition posted yesterday revealed that.  You can see that post linked here.

Additionally Gold Derby has five TFF #52 in the predicted five for Best Picture: Hamnet, Sentimental Value, It was Just an Accident, Frankenstein and Bugonia.  Five BP nominations for films that played Telluride in a single year would establish a new record TFF.

TFF #52 AND THE BRITISH INDEPENDENT FILM AWARDS

Five TFF #52 films were nominated for British Independent Film Awards on Monday.  Henry Lighton's Pillion had the most nominations of any Telluride film with 10.  Harris Dickinson's Urchin had six.  Here's the complete breakdown:

Pillion (10): Best British Independent Film, Best Direction (Lighton), Screenplay (Lighton), Lead Performance (Melling), Supporting Performance (Skarsgard), Debut Director (Lighton), Debut Screenplay (Lighton), Costuming, Editing and Make-up/Hair.

Urchin (6): Best British Independent Film, Best Lead Performance (Millane), Debut Director (Dickinson), Breakthrough Producer (Pearch). Casting, Music Supervision.

Sentimental Value (1): Best International Independent Film.

It Was Just an Accident (1): Best International Independent Film.

H Is for Hawk (1): Best Cinematography.

The complete list of nominees can be found here on the BIFA website.

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MTFB Oscar Predictions: Screenplays / TFF #52 Has 24 Gotham Award Nominations / New Trailer for Sentimental Value / Visitations: Bugonia and Ballad of a Small Player

 MTFB OSCAR PREDICTIONS: SCREENPLAYS

Today I am concluding my first wave of Oscar predictions for this year with the focus on the Screenplay categories.  All contenders from TFF #52 films are listed in Bold.

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

1) Sinners

2) Sentimental Value

3) Marty Supreme

4) Jay Kelly

5) It Was Just an Accident

Others: A House of Dynamite, The Secret Agent and Weapons.

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

1) One Battle After Another

2) Hamnet

3) Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

4) Bugonia

5) Train Dreams

Others: No Other Choice, Frankenstein and Song Sung Blue.

Currently, if all of MTFB's current predictions came true in the Big Eight categories, 10 TFF #52 films would receive 21 nominations with another 12 nominations possible.  Here's that breakdown by film:

Sentimental Value (6): Best Picture, Direction, Actress (Reinsve), Supporting Actress (Fanning), Supporting Actress (Lilleaas), Original Screenplay.

Hamnet (5): Best Picture, Direction, Actress (Buckley), Supporting Actor (Mescal) and Adapted Screenplay.

Jay Kelley (3): Best Picture, Supporting Actor (Sandler) and Original Screenplay.  Three other possibilities: Direction, Actor (Clooney), Supporting Actor (Crudup).

It Was Just an Accident (3): Best Picture, Direction, Original Screenplay.

The Secret Agent (2): Best Picture, Best Actor (Moura).  Two other possibilities: Best Picture and Original Screenplay.

Bugonia (1): Adapted Screenplay.  Two other possibilities: Best Picture and Actor (Plemons)

Springsteen: Deliver me from Nowhere (1): Best Actor (White).  Two other possibilities: Best Picture and Supporting Actor (Strong).

Other films with Oscar possibilities:

If I Had Legs I'd Kick You: Best Actress (Byrne).

Blue Moon: Best Actor (Hawke).

Frankenstein: Adapted Screenplay.

I'll start the first round of updating predictions with next Monday's post.

TFF #52 HAS 24 GOTHAM AWARDS NOMINATIONS

Here's how Gotham Awards nominations went for TFF #52 films.  The big surprise was that If I Had Legs I'd Kick You had the biggest footprint among all 13 TFF #52 films to get a nomination.  TFF #52 films had a combines 24 nominations:

If I Had Legs I'd Kick You (4): Best Feature, Direction, Outstanding Lead Performance (Byrne), Original Screenplay.

It was Just an Accident (3): Best International Feature, Direction, Original Screenplay.

Hamnet (2): Best Feature, Outstanding Lead Performance (Buckley).

Sentimental Value (2): Outstanding Supporting Performance (Lilleaas), Outstanding Supporting Performance (Skarsgard).

The Mastermind (2): Best Direction, Outstanding Lead Performance (O'Connor).

Blue Moon (2): Outstanding Lead Performance (Hawke), Outstanding Supporting Performance (Scott).

The Secret Agent (2): Outstanding Lead Performance (Moura), Original Screenplay.

Pillion (2): Outstanding Supporting Performance (Skarsgard), Adapted Screenplay.

Bugonia (1): Best Feature

Nouvelle Vague (1): Best International Feature.

Frankenstein (1): Outstanding Supporting Performance (Elordi).

Jay Kelly (1): Outstanding Supporting Performance (Sandler).

Urchin (1): Breakthrough Direction.

NEW TRAILER FOR SENTIMENTAL VALUE

VISITATIONS: BUGONIA AND BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER

Bugonia: Writer Will Tracy on Bugonia from Awards Radar: 

https://awardsradar.com/2025/10/29/interview-writer-will-tracy-chats-about-working-with-yorgos-lanthimos-and-adapting-bugonia/

Battle of a Small Player:

Colin Farrell and Fila Chen for Ballad of a Small Player from Next Best Picture:

YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4f4b0HAG9Q&t=2s

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MTFB Oscar Predictions: Supporting Acting / New Poster for Pillion / Visitations: Scott Cooper

MTFB OSCAR PREDICTIONS: SUPPORTING ACTING

Today I am continuing my first wave of Oscar predictions for this year with the focus on the Supporting Acting categories.  All contenders from TFF #52 films are listed in Bold.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1) Teyana Taylor/One Battle After Another

2) Ariana Grande/Wicked: For Good

3) Amy Madigan/Weapons

4) Elle Fanning/Sentimental Value

5) Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas/Sentimental Value

Others: Regina Hall/One Battle After Another, Gwyneth Paltrow/Marty Supreme and Jennifer Lopez/Kiss of the Spider Woman.

SUPPORTING ACTOR

1) Stellan Skarsgard/Sentimental Value

2) Sean Penn/One Battle After Another

3) Paul Mescal/Hamnet

4) Adam Sandler/Jay Kelly

5) Benicio del Toro/One Battle After Another

Others: Delroy Lindo/Sinners, Billy Crudup/Jay Kelly and Jeremy Strong/Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere.

NEW POSTER FOR PILLION

Fresh from A24, here's a new poster for Henry Lighton's Pillion:

VISITATIONS

The Next Best Picture Podcast interviews Scott Cooper for Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere.

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Checking the Oscar Experts: Next Best Picture / Trailers: Bugonia, PiIlion and If I Had Legs I'd Kick You

 CHECKING THE OSCAR EXPERTS: NEXT BEST PICTURE

With the New York Film Festival comes to a conclusion this weekend, we continue our series of check-ins with a variety of Oscar prognosticators on the Best Picture race with Matt Neglia of Next Best Picture.  Neglia just updated his predictions last Wednesday.  Here's the films he currently predicts will be Best Picture nominated (TFF #52 films are Bold):

1) One Battle After Another

2) Sinners

3) Hamnet

4) Marty Supreme

5) Sentimental Value

6) Jay Kelly

7) It Was Just an Accident

8) Song Sung Blue

9) Wicked: For Good

10) Avatar: Fire and Ash

So Matt has a record tying four TFF films predicted to be nominated for Best Picture.

Here is the link to Next Best Picture's Oscar Predictions.

BEST PICTURE SCOREBOARD

Let's update our chart of the all of the BP predictions from the accumulated predictions we have gathered so far.  To this point with input from Gold Derby (GD), The Hollywood Reporter (THR), Variety (V),  Awards Watch (AW),  Awards Radar (AR) and Next Best Picture (NBP) here's where TFF #52 films stand for BP predictions:

Hamnet (6): GD, THR, V, AW, AR, NBP

Sentimental Value (6): GD, THR, V, AW, AR, NBP

Jay Kelly (5): GD, THR, AW, AR, NBP

Bugonia (4): GD, THR, V, AR

It Was Just Accident (4): GD, THR, AW

The Secret Agent (2): THR, V, NBP

Frankenstein (2): V, AW

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere (2): AW, AR

TRAILERS FROM BUGONIA, PILLION AND IF I HAD LEGS I'D KICK YOU

From YouTube:

BUGONIA

PILLION

IF I HAD LEGS I'D KICK YOU

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Checking with Oscar Experts: Awards Watch/ Scoreboard for Best Picture / Clip: Born to Run / Visitations: Behind the Scenes: Springsteen and Paul Mescal and The History of Sound / New Posters: Jay Kelly, Springsteen, Frankenstein and Pillion

CHECKING WITH OSCAR EXPERTS: AWARDS WATCH

We continue today with our rundown of Oscar gurus and their early line Best Picture nominee predictions as we move through the New York Film Festival which will end the wave of the four major fall film fests: Venice, Telluride, Toronto and NYFF.

Today's view comes from Erik Anderson who runs Awards Watch.  Here are his current predictions for Best Picture.  TFF #52 films are Bold.

1) One Battle After Another

2) Hamnet

3) Sinners

4) Sentimental Value

5) Jay Kelly

6) Marty Supreme

7) Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere

8) It Was Just an Accident

9) Frankenstein

10) Wicked: For Good

Other TFF #52 in the 11-20 spots:

13) The Secret agent

15) Bugonia

This set of predictions would put six TFF #52 titles in the list of ten nominees which would be a TFF record.

The complete list from Awards Watch as well as Best Direction predictions can be found here.

SCOREBOARD FOR BEST PICTURE 

To this point with input from Gold Derby (GD), The Hollywood Reporter (THR), Variety (V) and Awards Watch (AW) here's where TFF #52 films stand for BP predictions.

Hamnet (4): GD, THR, V, AW

Sentimental Value (4): GD, THR, V, AW

Jay Kelly (3): GD, THR, AW

Bugonia (3): GD, THR, V

It Was Just Accident (3): GD, THR, AW

The Secret Agent (2): THR, V

Frankenstein (2): V, AW

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere (1): AW

CLIP: BORN TO RUN FROM SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE

From 20th Century Studios and YouTube, a clip of Born to Run:

VISITATIONS

BEHIND THE SCENES OF SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE

From YouTube:

PAUL MESCAL FOR THE HISTORY OF SOUND FROM INDIEWIRE:

Paul Mescal on The History of Sound.

NEW POSTERS

JAY KELLY:

SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE:

FRANKENSTEIN:

PILLION:

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Distributor Monday #4: A24 / Bugonia Has a Teaser / Tidbits: Hedda, It Was Just and Accident, Two Prosecutors

 DISTRIBUTOR MONDAY #4: A24

We continue to look at film distribution outlets that have historically had a strong presence at the Telluride Film Festival to see what films they might be proffering to TFF for the 2025 edition.  Today's company is A24.  A24 first landed at Telluride in 2012 with Ginger and Rosa and followed the next year with Jonathan Glazer's Under the Skin which made quite the splash.  Since then A24 has been an almost constant presence at TFF.  Since their debut at T-ride in 2012, A24 has only missed three times: 2014, 2018 and last year.  Last year's absence ended a four year run of A24 having multiple films at the fest including 2023 when it had four: Janet Planet, Occupied City, Tuesday and The Zone of Interest.

So, where does that put A24 on the possibility of being back at TFF in 2025?

The odds suggest that they will be back but...I'm not so sure.  A24 has two pretty big films set to come out this fall season.  Josh Safdie's Marty Supreme (Dec. 25th)  and Benny Safdie's The Smashing Machine (Oct. 3rd).  Pretty clearly with its Christmas Day release, A24 thinks that Marty Supreme is prime awards season catnip.  With Timothee Chalamet in the lead, they're probably right.  

The Smashing Machine is intriguing.  As attested to by what we've seen from photos from the set, Dwayne Johnson has managed a significant makeover.  I get the sense that this is Johnson's play for a prestige picture.

Trying to divine A24's release strategy for these and additionally any fall festival strategy is tough to do.  There are credible reports that The Smashing Machine will play Venice.  Not so much as regards Marty Supreme.

It's worth noting that the Safdie Brothers and A24 debuted Uncut Gems at Telluride in 2019.  It subsequently played Toronto, New York and London before opening in limited release on Dec. 13th followed by going wide on Christmas Day.

A24 also has a couple of other possibilities.  Here's the rundown for each listed in alphabetical order.  All participants who have attended TFF in the past are indicated with *.

Eternity.  Director: David Freyne.  Stars: Miles Teller*, Elizabeth Olsen, DaVine Joy Randolph. Release date: TBD.  IMDb description:

After death, everybody gets one week to choose where to spend eternity. For Joan, Larry, and Luke, it's really a question of who to spend it with.

This film is a true wild card from A24 at this point.

Marty Supreme.  Director: Josh Safdie*.  Stars: Timothee Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A'zion.  Release date: Dec. 25th.  IMDb description:

Marty Mauser, a young man with a dream no one respects, goes to hell and back in pursuit of greatness.

Marty probably is A24's best shot at an awards season contender.

Pillion.  Director: Henry Lighton.  Stars: Alexander Skarsgard, Henry Melling.  Won the Screenplay award for Cannes' Un Certain Regard section.  Release date: TBD.  IMDb description:

A directionless man is swept off his feet when an enigmatic, impossibly handsome biker takes him on as his submissive.

A24 acquired Pillion in October of 2024.  It was a critical success at Cannes with a combined of 7.30 on Cannes rating org's critics collective.  That was the 4th best among Un Certain Regard films and 15th best overall for the fest.  Based on this, Pillion might actually be A24's best bet for TFF #52.

The Smashing Machine.  Director: Benny Safdie*.  Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt.  Release date: Oct. 3rd.  IMDb description:

The story of mixed-martial arts and UFC champion Mark Kerr.

As mentioned above, The Smashing Machine is likely to premiere at Venice.  Does it make the jump from Venice to Telluride?  

Chances:

Pillion: 50%

Marty Supreme 25%

The Smashing Machine 25%

Eternity 20%

Next Monday we'll take a look at Searchlight.

BUGONIA HAS A TEASER

The latest collaboration between Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone has a teaser.  Here that is from YouTube:

Bugonia currently sits at #3 on MTFB's Ten Bets for TFF#52.  Most of that is because both Lanthimos films, The Favourite and Poor Things, played Venice and then came to Telluride.  The history is there.  I also think that star and producer Emma Stone really loves Telluride.

The film is a remake of a 2003 South Korean film titled Save the Green Planet.  That film played at the Cannes Film Festival.

TIDBITS: 

***The Toronto International film Festival announced five world premieres for its 2025 edition this past week.  Of the five only one had been among films that I thought had some shot at at TFF #52.  That was Nia DaCosta's Hedda.  With this announcement you can scratch it off your Telluride dance card.  Here's the gist from Variety.

***Current #1 on MTFB's Ten Bets, Jafar Panahi's It Was Just an Accident has been dated for release in the U.S. on Oct. 15th.  The Gold Derby article post with that news notes that for distributor Neon it's essentially the same dating as last year's Palme and Oscar winner Anora.  Does that mean Neon will also follow the same strategy with regard to where the film plays during the fall fest circuit?  My bet, at least right now, is yup!

Here's the link to the Gold Derby post.

***Janus acquires Two Prosecutors.  The Hollywood Reporter reported last week that Janus films had acquired North American rights for Sergei Loznitsa's Two Prosecutors.  The film played in Palme d'Or competition at Cannes in May winning the Francois Chalais Prize.  Janus's play improves the film's profile for TFF consideration.

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