Exclusive: UK director Jon Amiel has signed to direct upcoming feature Sands of Fortune which explores the story behind the discovery of oil in Saudi Arabia and the birth of the country’s petroleum and natural gas giant Aramco.
The feature, being put together by producer Uri Singer under his L.A.-based Passage Pictures banner, revolves around the real-life partnership between American geologist Max Steineke and Bedouin Khamis Bin Rimthan, who together discovered the country’s first oil well in 1938.
The script is written by Bernie Campbell, a long-time strategist and speechwriter who has spent years living in Saudi Arabia and was the first American to write for its ruling royal family.
Prolific director, writer and producer Amiel is best known internationally for the multi-award-winning series The Singing Detective as well as movies such as Sommersby, with Jodie Foster and Richard Gere; Copycat with Sigourney Weaver and Holly Hunter,...
The feature, being put together by producer Uri Singer under his L.A.-based Passage Pictures banner, revolves around the real-life partnership between American geologist Max Steineke and Bedouin Khamis Bin Rimthan, who together discovered the country’s first oil well in 1938.
The script is written by Bernie Campbell, a long-time strategist and speechwriter who has spent years living in Saudi Arabia and was the first American to write for its ruling royal family.
Prolific director, writer and producer Amiel is best known internationally for the multi-award-winning series The Singing Detective as well as movies such as Sommersby, with Jodie Foster and Richard Gere; Copycat with Sigourney Weaver and Holly Hunter,...
- 4/10/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Gato Grande, an Amazon MGM Studios company, has upped Megan Espinoza and Moises Amsel to the positions of VPs of Film & TV Development in the company’s newly-launched English-language division.
Espinoza and Amsel will assume responsibility for the daily operations of the new unit, focusing on the creation of original intellectual property in English for both TV and film, sourced from Latin American IP. Additionally, they will be tasked with identifying and managing projects to be developed and produced under the Gato Grande label.
Said Gato Grande CEO Carla Vargas Gonzalez: “I’m very proud of our bi-cultural, top-notch executives who not only guard, seek and appreciate authenticity, but have unmatchable work ethics and high standards. Most of all, they are a joy to work with.”
Espinoza will center on comedy and Young Adult content for both TV and Film, starting with the recently unveiled satirical mystery series “Miami Spice,...
Espinoza and Amsel will assume responsibility for the daily operations of the new unit, focusing on the creation of original intellectual property in English for both TV and film, sourced from Latin American IP. Additionally, they will be tasked with identifying and managing projects to be developed and produced under the Gato Grande label.
Said Gato Grande CEO Carla Vargas Gonzalez: “I’m very proud of our bi-cultural, top-notch executives who not only guard, seek and appreciate authenticity, but have unmatchable work ethics and high standards. Most of all, they are a joy to work with.”
Espinoza will center on comedy and Young Adult content for both TV and Film, starting with the recently unveiled satirical mystery series “Miami Spice,...
- 4/1/2024
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
There's no question that 2016's "Hidden Figures" faced an uphill battle from the beginning of its development. The film was only the third feature directed and co-written by an independent filmmaker, Theodore Melfi, who wrote the script with Allison Schroeder. A period piece set in the 1960s, it follows the true story of three brilliant Black mathematicians who join a task group at NASA in order to help America's space program, and there's no question that the women are the movie's heroines. Being released into a climate that was very hostile to both people of color and women at the time (aka the first months of the Trump administration) and not having a huge pedigree of A-list talent behind the camera, "Hidden Figures" would have to be great in order to be noticed, just like the women the film's about.
Surely, the studio executives at Fox Searchlight, being risk-averse as per their jobs,...
Surely, the studio executives at Fox Searchlight, being risk-averse as per their jobs,...
- 3/9/2024
- by Bill Bria
- Slash Film
American Dreamer deserves better than it has gotten. Shot three years ago during the pandemic this delirously black comedy premiered at Tribeca 2022 and got lost in the crowd. The filmmakers including first time feature director Paul Dektor and screenwriter/producer Theodore Melfi decided to then hold it back and recut and tighten it eliminating 10 minutes of the original running time. In early 2023 it turned up at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, still largely ignored, and then its distribution hunt was further delayed by the Hollywood strikes. Finally Vertical has wisely picked it up and it will be opening in theatres and VOD Friday.
I saw the Tribeca cut and I have seen the final cut. Both worked for me but it was great to experience it a second time in an actual theatre with a very appreciative audience. Comedies work best that way and this one...
I saw the Tribeca cut and I have seen the final cut. Both worked for me but it was great to experience it a second time in an actual theatre with a very appreciative audience. Comedies work best that way and this one...
- 3/7/2024
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
The dubious ideology known as the “American dream” might have lost its meaning amid today’s economic conditions, when making rent each month counts as a triumph for most. But in debuting director Paul Dektor’s occasionally amusing yet messy dark comedy, “American Dreamer,” untenured East Coast economics professor Dr. Phil Loder (Peter Dinklage) holds onto its antiquated gist for dear life, indignantly teaching his subject with an idealist pursuit-of-happiness angle and fantasizing about the day he would proudly buy his very own house.
The trouble is, Dr. Phil (a nickname he detests) doesn’t quite have the means for the property of his dreams — not a modestly comfortable condo or anything, but a giant mansion that would set him back a few million dollars. Still, that doesn’t stop him from frequenting open houses at the kinds of homes he definitely can’t afford and sipping champagne among more qualified buyers.
The trouble is, Dr. Phil (a nickname he detests) doesn’t quite have the means for the property of his dreams — not a modestly comfortable condo or anything, but a giant mansion that would set him back a few million dollars. Still, that doesn’t stop him from frequenting open houses at the kinds of homes he definitely can’t afford and sipping champagne among more qualified buyers.
- 3/6/2024
- by Tomris Laffly
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Following their work together on Ted Melfi’s acclaimed coming-of-age drama St. Vincent, Naomi Watts (Feud: Capote vs. The Swans) and Bill Murray (Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire) have been set to topline The Friend, an adaptation of Sigrid Nunez’s New York Times bestselling novel, from writer-directors Scott McGehee and David Siegel (Montana Story).
Others set to star in the indie include Sarah Pidgeon (Tiny Beautiful Things), Golden Globe nominee Constance Wu (Crazy Rich Asians), Emmy winner Ann Dowd (The Handmaid’s Tale), and Noma Dumezweni (The Watcher).
David Siegel and Scott McGehee
Winner of the 2018 National Book Award for Fiction, The Friend follows a New York writer in the aftermath of her lifelong friend and mentor’s unexpected death. Thereafter, she’s left to deal with his complicated literary legacy, three eccentric ex-wives — and a massive, brokenhearted Great Dane named Apollo.
Currently in production on the film in New York,...
Others set to star in the indie include Sarah Pidgeon (Tiny Beautiful Things), Golden Globe nominee Constance Wu (Crazy Rich Asians), Emmy winner Ann Dowd (The Handmaid’s Tale), and Noma Dumezweni (The Watcher).
David Siegel and Scott McGehee
Winner of the 2018 National Book Award for Fiction, The Friend follows a New York writer in the aftermath of her lifelong friend and mentor’s unexpected death. Thereafter, she’s left to deal with his complicated literary legacy, three eccentric ex-wives — and a massive, brokenhearted Great Dane named Apollo.
Currently in production on the film in New York,...
- 2/26/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Laura Harrier (White Men Can’t Jump) has been tapped for a major role opposite Bill Skarsgård and Nicolas Cage in Lords of War, the sequel to 2005 crime thriller Lord of War, which Andrew Niccol (Anon) wrote and is directing for Vendôme Pictures (Coda), sources tell Deadline.
Lords of War picks up the story of Yuri Orlov (Cage), the world’s most notorious gunrunner, watching as he discovers he has a son, Anton (Skarsgård), who isn’t trying to right his father’s wrongs — he’s trying to top them. Not only selling guns but the “trigger pullers” too, Anton is amassing a mercenary army to fight America’s Middle East conflicts. This is the story of Yuri and Anton’s bitter rivalry — even at odds over the same woman. Who will prevail when father and son go to war?
Specifics as to Harrier’s part are under wraps.
Lords of War picks up the story of Yuri Orlov (Cage), the world’s most notorious gunrunner, watching as he discovers he has a son, Anton (Skarsgård), who isn’t trying to right his father’s wrongs — he’s trying to top them. Not only selling guns but the “trigger pullers” too, Anton is amassing a mercenary army to fight America’s Middle East conflicts. This is the story of Yuri and Anton’s bitter rivalry — even at odds over the same woman. Who will prevail when father and son go to war?
Specifics as to Harrier’s part are under wraps.
- 2/22/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Archstone Entertainment has acquired international rights to “American Dreamer,” a dark comedy starring Peter Dinklage, Shirley MacLaine, Kim Quinn, Matt Dillon and Danny Glover. Paul Dektor (“Frayed”) directs a script written by Theodore Melfi (“Hidden Figures”).
The movie is based on a true story from Chicago Public Radio’s ”This American Life” and follows Dr. Phil Loder (Dinklage), a low-level adjunct professor of economics at Harvard, whose grand dream of owning a home is tragically out of reach — until an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes his way when a lonely, childless, near-death widow (MacLaine) offers Phil her sprawling estate for pennies. But Phil quickly learns the deal is too good to be true.
Dinklage is best known for his work on “Game of Thrones.” MacLaine won an Oscar for “Terms of Endearment” and starred in “The Apartment” and “Postcards From the Edge.” Dillon’s credits include “Crash” and “There’s Something About Mary.
The movie is based on a true story from Chicago Public Radio’s ”This American Life” and follows Dr. Phil Loder (Dinklage), a low-level adjunct professor of economics at Harvard, whose grand dream of owning a home is tragically out of reach — until an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes his way when a lonely, childless, near-death widow (MacLaine) offers Phil her sprawling estate for pennies. But Phil quickly learns the deal is too good to be true.
Dinklage is best known for his work on “Game of Thrones.” MacLaine won an Oscar for “Terms of Endearment” and starred in “The Apartment” and “Postcards From the Edge.” Dillon’s credits include “Crash” and “There’s Something About Mary.
- 2/7/2024
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Vertical has set a March 8th day-and-date release for American Dreamer, an indie comedy starring Peter Dinklage and Shirley Maclaine, to which it’s acquired North American rights.
First introduced to the world at the 2022 Tribeca Festival, the film marks the directorial debut of Paul Dektor, who worked from a script by Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures). Pic is based on a true story from Chicago Public Radio’s This American Life and follows Phil Loder (Dinklage), a twice divorced, frustrated, underpaid professor of economics, whose grand dream of home ownership is tragically out of reach. When an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes his way, Phil strikes a deal with Astrid Finnelli (MacLaine), a lonely, childless, near-death widow who offers her sprawling estate for pennies. But Phil quickly learns the deal is too good to be true and the American dream is not quite what it used to be.
Also starring Kim Quinn,...
First introduced to the world at the 2022 Tribeca Festival, the film marks the directorial debut of Paul Dektor, who worked from a script by Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures). Pic is based on a true story from Chicago Public Radio’s This American Life and follows Phil Loder (Dinklage), a twice divorced, frustrated, underpaid professor of economics, whose grand dream of home ownership is tragically out of reach. When an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes his way, Phil strikes a deal with Astrid Finnelli (MacLaine), a lonely, childless, near-death widow who offers her sprawling estate for pennies. But Phil quickly learns the deal is too good to be true and the American dream is not quite what it used to be.
Also starring Kim Quinn,...
- 2/1/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Editor’S Note: The following blog originally ran in June of 2020. We’re re-posting it here in honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 15. The updated piece includes minor edits and, more importantly, updated info re: streaming availability.
***
In the wake of international protests sparked by the murder of George Floyd by Derek Chauvin of the Minneapolis Police Department on May 25, 2020, practically every big-name streaming service quickly assembled, from their selection of available titles, their own specially curated collection of Black cinema. These collections have provided an invaluable resource for film fans of all racial demographics eager to learn more about the troubled history of American racial inequality.
Thankfully, there’s a lot of truly amazing stuff being spotlighted within these curated lists. We’ve plucked out a few (but definitely not all) of our favorite titles below. Whether based on a true story or totally invented, narrative or nonfiction,...
***
In the wake of international protests sparked by the murder of George Floyd by Derek Chauvin of the Minneapolis Police Department on May 25, 2020, practically every big-name streaming service quickly assembled, from their selection of available titles, their own specially curated collection of Black cinema. These collections have provided an invaluable resource for film fans of all racial demographics eager to learn more about the troubled history of American racial inequality.
Thankfully, there’s a lot of truly amazing stuff being spotlighted within these curated lists. We’ve plucked out a few (but definitely not all) of our favorite titles below. Whether based on a true story or totally invented, narrative or nonfiction,...
- 1/12/2024
- by Film Independent
- Film Independent News & More
Exclusive: Skydance has taken on the challenge of turning the bestselling YA fantasy novel series Ranger’s Apprentice into a live action film, with the hope it can become a franchise. Skydance has gotten control of the John Flanagan book series, and has closed a big deal with Hidden Figures helmer Ted Melfi to adapt, direct, and produce the film. Kim Quinn will also be producer.
Skydance’s David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger will produce alongside Melfi and Quinn. Flanagan will be executive producer, and Matt Grimm will oversee for Skydance.
I’ve heard that Melfi has made a deal worth high 7-figures if the movie gets made. His task will be to take the first two volumes – The Ruins of Gorlan & The Burning Bridge – and get a franchise off the ground that focuses on an orphan named Will who becomes an apprentice to a group of mysterious protectors known as the Rangers.
Skydance’s David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger will produce alongside Melfi and Quinn. Flanagan will be executive producer, and Matt Grimm will oversee for Skydance.
I’ve heard that Melfi has made a deal worth high 7-figures if the movie gets made. His task will be to take the first two volumes – The Ruins of Gorlan & The Burning Bridge – and get a franchise off the ground that focuses on an orphan named Will who becomes an apprentice to a group of mysterious protectors known as the Rangers.
- 1/5/2024
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Teton Ridge Entertainment has hired Jen Gorton as EVP Production and Development.
Gorton is part of the new team that’s being assembled by President Jillian Share for the new studio which focuses on projects that celebrate and amplify stories of the American West.
Share’s team also includes Brandon Mattingly and Christina Poray, who are VPs of Production and Development, and Madeleine Moore, Creative Executive.
Gorton will work with Share to oversee creative development and production of their film, television and new media slates.
Gorton was most recently EVP of Film Production at eOne, where she oversaw development and production as well as negotiated worldwide distribution deals for films including The Starling (to Netflix) starring Melissa McCarthy and directed by Ted Melfi, horror prequel Orphan: First Kill (Paramount) and the Academy Award-nominated Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (Focus Features). She also oversaw that company’s upcoming films Den of Thieves 2: Pantera,...
Gorton is part of the new team that’s being assembled by President Jillian Share for the new studio which focuses on projects that celebrate and amplify stories of the American West.
Share’s team also includes Brandon Mattingly and Christina Poray, who are VPs of Production and Development, and Madeleine Moore, Creative Executive.
Gorton will work with Share to oversee creative development and production of their film, television and new media slates.
Gorton was most recently EVP of Film Production at eOne, where she oversaw development and production as well as negotiated worldwide distribution deals for films including The Starling (to Netflix) starring Melissa McCarthy and directed by Ted Melfi, horror prequel Orphan: First Kill (Paramount) and the Academy Award-nominated Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (Focus Features). She also oversaw that company’s upcoming films Den of Thieves 2: Pantera,...
- 12/8/2023
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Plucky announced the formation of Plucky Pictures and the option of two key properties to launch the division. This milestone is a major move for Plucky on its mission to create engaging content across all media.
This news comes as the company acquired options on two properties:
The Survivalist series of novels from the estate of author Jerry Ahern.
Calabrese the life rights to a member of the Chicago Outfit.
“On the eve of our tenth anniversary, we’re excited to expand our creative services to include longform content development and production” says Jeffrey J. Marks, Partner at Plucky. “Given our success in short form and our stellar reputation for crafting highly regarded main titles and motion content, combined with the opportunity to acquire the rights to a pair of exciting projects, this seems like the natural evolution at the perfect time.”
The Survivalist is an alternate history fiction,...
This news comes as the company acquired options on two properties:
The Survivalist series of novels from the estate of author Jerry Ahern.
Calabrese the life rights to a member of the Chicago Outfit.
“On the eve of our tenth anniversary, we’re excited to expand our creative services to include longform content development and production” says Jeffrey J. Marks, Partner at Plucky. “Given our success in short form and our stellar reputation for crafting highly regarded main titles and motion content, combined with the opportunity to acquire the rights to a pair of exciting projects, this seems like the natural evolution at the perfect time.”
The Survivalist is an alternate history fiction,...
- 11/16/2023
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Uri Singer’s Passage Pictures has announced new feature Sands of Fortune, delving into the story behind the discovery of oil in Saudi Arabia and the birth of the country’s petroleum and natural gas giant Aramco.
The historic drama revolves around the true story of the partnership between American geologist Max Steineke and Bedouin Khamis Bin Rimthan, who together discovered the country’s first oil well in 1938, today known as Dammam No. 7.
Oregon-born, Stanford-educated Steineke was renowned for his expertise in geology as well as his determined nature and adventurous spirit, while Rimthan was a member of the nomadic Al-Amjan tribe with a deep knowledge of the desert, who worked as a guide for the American geologists prospecting for oil in the 1930s.
“The story of Aramco is a testament to human ingenuity and the incredible impact that a single discovery can have on the world. This is...
The historic drama revolves around the true story of the partnership between American geologist Max Steineke and Bedouin Khamis Bin Rimthan, who together discovered the country’s first oil well in 1938, today known as Dammam No. 7.
Oregon-born, Stanford-educated Steineke was renowned for his expertise in geology as well as his determined nature and adventurous spirit, while Rimthan was a member of the nomadic Al-Amjan tribe with a deep knowledge of the desert, who worked as a guide for the American geologists prospecting for oil in the 1930s.
“The story of Aramco is a testament to human ingenuity and the incredible impact that a single discovery can have on the world. This is...
- 8/22/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Director Mike Newell has set an August shoot at U.K. locations for “China Court.”
The film will be directed by Newell from a script by Brian Kinsey, based on the 1961 novel “China Court: The Hours of a Country House” by Rumer Godden.
The film centers around a house, China Court, and the family that inhabits it. The film follows generations of the family over a century, up to the death of the matriarch in 1961. Characters move seamlessly in and out of each other’s timelines as they grow up, fall in love, fall out with each other and – always – pass on to those who follow them the consequences of their actions.
“White Noise” producer Uri Singer has joined forces with Echo Lake’s Mike Marcus (“The Ward”) and U.K.-based Pippa Cross to produce the film.
Fortitude International’s Nadine de Barros and Singer’s Passage Pictures are financing the film.
The film will be directed by Newell from a script by Brian Kinsey, based on the 1961 novel “China Court: The Hours of a Country House” by Rumer Godden.
The film centers around a house, China Court, and the family that inhabits it. The film follows generations of the family over a century, up to the death of the matriarch in 1961. Characters move seamlessly in and out of each other’s timelines as they grow up, fall in love, fall out with each other and – always – pass on to those who follow them the consequences of their actions.
“White Noise” producer Uri Singer has joined forces with Echo Lake’s Mike Marcus (“The Ward”) and U.K.-based Pippa Cross to produce the film.
Fortitude International’s Nadine de Barros and Singer’s Passage Pictures are financing the film.
- 4/5/2023
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Taissa Farmiga (The Gilded Age) will exec produce and star in the Ukrainian drama Anna, from producer Uri Singer (White Noise).
The film written and to be directed by Dekel Berenson is inspired by his same-name 2019 short, which premiered in competition at Cannes before going on to screen at TIFF and other major festivals. It’s a contemporary coming-of-age drama that follows Anna (Farmiga), a Ukrainian immigrant who is training to become a sergeant in the U.S. Army. After weeks at the military base, and as the Russian forces prepare to invade her home country, she’s sexually assaulted by another army officer. After returning to the base, she struggles to complete her course as she reconsiders her values, identity and place in an American army and society that’s not fighting for her, too.
Farmiga is a Ukrainian-American actress best known on the film side for her work...
The film written and to be directed by Dekel Berenson is inspired by his same-name 2019 short, which premiered in competition at Cannes before going on to screen at TIFF and other major festivals. It’s a contemporary coming-of-age drama that follows Anna (Farmiga), a Ukrainian immigrant who is training to become a sergeant in the U.S. Army. After weeks at the military base, and as the Russian forces prepare to invade her home country, she’s sexually assaulted by another army officer. After returning to the base, she struggles to complete her course as she reconsiders her values, identity and place in an American army and society that’s not fighting for her, too.
Farmiga is a Ukrainian-American actress best known on the film side for her work...
- 1/17/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Jaeden Martell (It), Maxwell Jenkins (Lost in Space) and Sadie Soverall (Fate: The Winx Saga) have signed on to star alongside Academy Award winner Nicolas Cage in the survival action-thriller Sand and Stones from Highland Film Group, which will enter production in Dublin, Ireland next week.
The film directed by Ben Brewer (The Trust) is set in a post-apocalyptic and sparsely populated world where Paul (Cage) and his twin teenage sons, Joseph (Martell) and Thomas (Jenkins), have managed to claw out an existence, yet live in constant fear. Until, confronted by imminent danger, they must execute a desperate plan to survive. Details as to Soverall’s role haven’t been disclosed.
Related Story Teresa Palmer Joins Ryan Gosling In Universal's ‘The Fall Guy' Related Story Rlje Films & Shudder Acquire Neil Marshall's Horror 'The Lair' From Highland Film Group Related Story Ming-Na Wen & Esai Morales...
The film directed by Ben Brewer (The Trust) is set in a post-apocalyptic and sparsely populated world where Paul (Cage) and his twin teenage sons, Joseph (Martell) and Thomas (Jenkins), have managed to claw out an existence, yet live in constant fear. Until, confronted by imminent danger, they must execute a desperate plan to survive. Details as to Soverall’s role haven’t been disclosed.
Related Story Teresa Palmer Joins Ryan Gosling In Universal's ‘The Fall Guy' Related Story Rlje Films & Shudder Acquire Neil Marshall's Horror 'The Lair' From Highland Film Group Related Story Ming-Na Wen & Esai Morales...
- 11/21/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Few actors are as effective conveying misanthropy as Peter Dinklage. With his arch line readings and endlessly expressive face, the actor excels at portraying damaged souls possessing an underlying vulnerability. It’s what makes him so perfect for the starring role in the new film scripted by Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures) in which he plays an embittered economic professor desperately searching for happiness but failing miserably at every turn. American Dreamer, recently showcased as the opening night film of the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, is the sort of acerbic black comedy that feels like a throwback to the more cinematically daring 1970s era.
Dinklage plays Philip Loder, an economics professor at a New England university whose lectures mainly consist of angry screeds about social inequality. Philip relates to the subject personally, since he only earns 50,000 a year and doesn’t have the...
Few actors are as effective conveying misanthropy as Peter Dinklage. With his arch line readings and endlessly expressive face, the actor excels at portraying damaged souls possessing an underlying vulnerability. It’s what makes him so perfect for the starring role in the new film scripted by Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures) in which he plays an embittered economic professor desperately searching for happiness but failing miserably at every turn. American Dreamer, recently showcased as the opening night film of the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, is the sort of acerbic black comedy that feels like a throwback to the more cinematically daring 1970s era.
Dinklage plays Philip Loder, an economics professor at a New England university whose lectures mainly consist of angry screeds about social inequality. Philip relates to the subject personally, since he only earns 50,000 a year and doesn’t have the...
- 11/15/2022
- by Frank Scheck
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Agathe Rousselle, the break-out star from the Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane, will lead the sci-fi drama Low Orbit from producer Uri Singer, who was behind the Netflix adaptation of Don DeLillo’s White Noise.
Low Orbit takes place on a failed colony on another planet, where a romance grows between a female shuttle pilot and the wife of a cryogenically frozen engineer that the pilot has been ordered to transport off planet. The project has been described as Moon meets In the Mood for Love.
Nguyen-Anh Nguyen, the Vietnamese-Canadian director behind popular fantasy and sci-fi shorts The Akira Project and Hyperlight, will direct the project. Adam Bradley co-wrote the scrip with Nguyen.
Singer most recently debuted the Noah Baumbach-directed White Noise at the Venice Film Festival. The Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig-starrer is set to open the New York Film Festival.
Agathe Rousselle, the break-out star from the Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane, will lead the sci-fi drama Low Orbit from producer Uri Singer, who was behind the Netflix adaptation of Don DeLillo’s White Noise.
Low Orbit takes place on a failed colony on another planet, where a romance grows between a female shuttle pilot and the wife of a cryogenically frozen engineer that the pilot has been ordered to transport off planet. The project has been described as Moon meets In the Mood for Love.
Nguyen-Anh Nguyen, the Vietnamese-Canadian director behind popular fantasy and sci-fi shorts The Akira Project and Hyperlight, will direct the project. Adam Bradley co-wrote the scrip with Nguyen.
Singer most recently debuted the Noah Baumbach-directed White Noise at the Venice Film Festival. The Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig-starrer is set to open the New York Film Festival.
- 9/15/2022
- by Mia Galuppo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Film premiered at Tribeca Festival.
Vmi Worldwide has picked up international rights and launched talks at TIFF on Joachim Back’s dark comedy Corner Office starring Jon Hamm.
The film received its world premiere earlier this year at Tribeca Festival and follows Orson, a corporate employee trying to move up the ladder who discovers a secret room in his drab office building, which causes problems with his new colleagues.
Rounding out the cast are Danny Pudi, Sarah Gadon and Christopher Heyerdahl. Ted Kupper adapted the screenplay from Jonas Karlsson’s novel The Room.
Producer credits on the Kafkaesque tale are...
Vmi Worldwide has picked up international rights and launched talks at TIFF on Joachim Back’s dark comedy Corner Office starring Jon Hamm.
The film received its world premiere earlier this year at Tribeca Festival and follows Orson, a corporate employee trying to move up the ladder who discovers a secret room in his drab office building, which causes problems with his new colleagues.
Rounding out the cast are Danny Pudi, Sarah Gadon and Christopher Heyerdahl. Ted Kupper adapted the screenplay from Jonas Karlsson’s novel The Room.
Producer credits on the Kafkaesque tale are...
- 9/11/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
The writers behind ABC’s Black-ish, Apple TV+’s Pachinko, Disney’s Oscar-winning Encanto and Adam McKay’s satire Don’t Look Up are among the winners of the 46th annual Humanitas Prizes. The honors were bestowed Friday afternoon in a ceremony at the Beverly Hilton.
Humanitas Prizes have been handed out since 1973 to empower television and film writers whose work explores the human condition in a nuanced, meaningful way. Writers across 10 categories receive 10,000 cash prizes.
Other winners included Nanfu Wang for her documentary In the Same Breath, Matt Harris for writing the script for Ted Melfi’s The Starling starring Melissa McCarthy and Kevin Kline, and Marissa Jo Cerar for penning the “Mother and Son” episode of ABC’s anthology series Women of the Movement.
Also during the ceremony emceed by Larry Wilmore, the Humanitas organization presented Filmmakers for Ukraine with the Kieser Award and Starz president and CEO Jeffrey Hirsch...
Humanitas Prizes have been handed out since 1973 to empower television and film writers whose work explores the human condition in a nuanced, meaningful way. Writers across 10 categories receive 10,000 cash prizes.
Other winners included Nanfu Wang for her documentary In the Same Breath, Matt Harris for writing the script for Ted Melfi’s The Starling starring Melissa McCarthy and Kevin Kline, and Marissa Jo Cerar for penning the “Mother and Son” episode of ABC’s anthology series Women of the Movement.
Also during the ceremony emceed by Larry Wilmore, the Humanitas organization presented Filmmakers for Ukraine with the Kieser Award and Starz president and CEO Jeffrey Hirsch...
- 9/10/2022
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Don DeLillo’s debut novel, “Americana,” is set to be adapted 51 years after it was first published.
“White Noise” producer Uri Singer has bought the rights to the 1971 novel, continuing his streak of adapting a string of DeLillo works that have been deemed “unadaptable.”
“Americana” tells the story of David Bell, an out-of-touch television executive who sets off on a road trip with his female colleague, Sullivan, to make an avant-garde film. The book explores the intricacies of corporate culture and examines how we create realities, whether they are true or not.
Singer tells Variety: “When you read ‘Americana,’ you understand how Don developed into the literary icon he is today. It’s the story of an ‘American Psycho’-type of protagonist, minus the murder, in the toxic and cut-throat world of television, with all the extraordinary minor characters that mark a DeLillo work. Where ‘American Psycho’ just shows the protagonist as he is,...
“White Noise” producer Uri Singer has bought the rights to the 1971 novel, continuing his streak of adapting a string of DeLillo works that have been deemed “unadaptable.”
“Americana” tells the story of David Bell, an out-of-touch television executive who sets off on a road trip with his female colleague, Sullivan, to make an avant-garde film. The book explores the intricacies of corporate culture and examines how we create realities, whether they are true or not.
Singer tells Variety: “When you read ‘Americana,’ you understand how Don developed into the literary icon he is today. It’s the story of an ‘American Psycho’-type of protagonist, minus the murder, in the toxic and cut-throat world of television, with all the extraordinary minor characters that mark a DeLillo work. Where ‘American Psycho’ just shows the protagonist as he is,...
- 9/1/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Deadline has an exclusive track from Benjamin Wallfisch’s score for Ron Howard’s survival drama Thirteen Lives, which is slated for release on all major digital platforms via Milan Records tomorrow, as the film becomes available for streaming on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.
The feature from MGM, Bron Creative, Imagine Entertainment, Storyteller and Magnolia Mae recounts the incredible true story of the tremendous global effort to rescue a Thai soccer team who become trapped in the Tham Luang cave network during an unexpected rainstorm in 2018. Faced with insurmountable odds, a team of the world’s most skilled and experienced divers — uniquely able to navigate the maze of flooded, narrow cave tunnels — join with Thai forces and more than 10,000 volunteers to attempt a harrowing rescue of the twelve boys and their coach. With impossibly high stakes and the entire world watching, the group embarks...
The feature from MGM, Bron Creative, Imagine Entertainment, Storyteller and Magnolia Mae recounts the incredible true story of the tremendous global effort to rescue a Thai soccer team who become trapped in the Tham Luang cave network during an unexpected rainstorm in 2018. Faced with insurmountable odds, a team of the world’s most skilled and experienced divers — uniquely able to navigate the maze of flooded, narrow cave tunnels — join with Thai forces and more than 10,000 volunteers to attempt a harrowing rescue of the twelve boys and their coach. With impossibly high stakes and the entire world watching, the group embarks...
- 8/4/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
At times, “American Dreamer” brings to mind “American Beauty,” even if we’re three recessions removed from an economy conducive to partying like it’s 1999.
Real estate and homeownership remain intrinsically tied to the American dream and, per the movies, so do improper relationships with much-younger women. Dr. Phil Loder (Peter Dinklage), an adjunct professor in cultural economics who makes 50K a year, doesn’t have the wherewithal to luxuriate in funemployment like the protagonist in “Beauty,” but that doesn’t make him any less noxious.
Phil consumes sandwiches dispensed by a break-room vending machine, yet he can’t satiate his obsession with million-dollar listings merely with reality TV on Bravo. He gatecrashes open houses for properties he can’t afford and is not above causing a scene. Realtor Dell (Matt Dillon) patiently humors him and still gets called names. Though Dell is an archetypical greedy bloodsucker (right out of...
Real estate and homeownership remain intrinsically tied to the American dream and, per the movies, so do improper relationships with much-younger women. Dr. Phil Loder (Peter Dinklage), an adjunct professor in cultural economics who makes 50K a year, doesn’t have the wherewithal to luxuriate in funemployment like the protagonist in “Beauty,” but that doesn’t make him any less noxious.
Phil consumes sandwiches dispensed by a break-room vending machine, yet he can’t satiate his obsession with million-dollar listings merely with reality TV on Bravo. He gatecrashes open houses for properties he can’t afford and is not above causing a scene. Realtor Dell (Matt Dillon) patiently humors him and still gets called names. Though Dell is an archetypical greedy bloodsucker (right out of...
- 6/15/2022
- by Martin Tsai
- The Wrap
Writer-producer-director Theodore Melfi has a different take than those who think independent filmmaking is becoming an endangered species; in fact, he tells me right now we are in “a golden age of independent film.” That might be one of the reasons he is bullish about both films he has at this week’s Tribeca Festival in New York City — independently produced movies he is helping shepherd along. On Corner Office, which stars Jon Hamm, he is an executive producer, and on American Dreamer, he is the screenwriter as well as a producer of the comedy that stars Peter Dinklage, Shirley MacLaine and Matt Dillon. Both are for sale, and the bottom line is Melfi truly believes the audience will dictate whatever the perfect form of distribution is, whether it be theatrical, streaming, digital VOD or a combination of all three.
As a director, Melfi has had experience on every level...
As a director, Melfi has had experience on every level...
- 6/13/2022
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Oscar-winning actress and producer Octavia Spencer has signed a development and production deal with ID, discovery+ and October Films to create premium unscripted true crime TV content.
Spencer and her production company, Orit Entertainment, will work with October Films to produce a slate of series and specials that Spencer, discovery+ and true crime and justice network ID will executive produce.
The pact will kick of with two projects now in production. The first has the working title Highway 20, and is an event series that begins with the case of a missing 13-year-old girl. The series will detail a decades long true crime odyssey along an Oregon highway. Other projects are in development as part of the agreement.
“Everyone at Orit Entertainment is committed to shedding light on the most fascinating cases and crime stories with a unique perspective. We are thrilled to launch...
Oscar-winning actress and producer Octavia Spencer has signed a development and production deal with ID, discovery+ and October Films to create premium unscripted true crime TV content.
Spencer and her production company, Orit Entertainment, will work with October Films to produce a slate of series and specials that Spencer, discovery+ and true crime and justice network ID will executive produce.
The pact will kick of with two projects now in production. The first has the working title Highway 20, and is an event series that begins with the case of a missing 13-year-old girl. The series will detail a decades long true crime odyssey along an Oregon highway. Other projects are in development as part of the agreement.
“Everyone at Orit Entertainment is committed to shedding light on the most fascinating cases and crime stories with a unique perspective. We are thrilled to launch...
- 6/9/2022
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: FX is developing The Bobby Love Story, a one-hour drama starring and executive produced by Octavia Spencer, from writer Shalisha Francis-Feusner (Seven Seconds), Kerry Washington’s Simpson Street Productions and ABC Signature, where Spencer and her Orit Entertainment and Washington and Simpson Street are under deals.
Written and executive produced by Francis-Feusner, who also serves as showrunner, The Bobby Love Story is a dramatic true account of an escaped convict, Bobby Love, and his wife of 35+ years, Cheryl Love, who never knew his secret. Bobby Love and Cheryl Love serve as executive producers alongside Girls co-showrunner Jenni Konner.
The Loves’ story was featured in a 2020 multi-part series on Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York blog where it went viral and led to a 10-way bidding war for the rights.
As a Black child in the Jim Crow South, Bobby Love found himself in legal trouble before his 14th birthday.
Written and executive produced by Francis-Feusner, who also serves as showrunner, The Bobby Love Story is a dramatic true account of an escaped convict, Bobby Love, and his wife of 35+ years, Cheryl Love, who never knew his secret. Bobby Love and Cheryl Love serve as executive producers alongside Girls co-showrunner Jenni Konner.
The Loves’ story was featured in a 2020 multi-part series on Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York blog where it went viral and led to a 10-way bidding war for the rights.
As a Black child in the Jim Crow South, Bobby Love found himself in legal trouble before his 14th birthday.
- 10/21/2021
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
As theaters await “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” (Paramount) and “No Time to Die” (United Artists) over the next two weeks, home viewing options are similarly on the rise. “Free Guy” (Disney), honoring a 45-day window, debuts on Premium VOD September 28. Friday sees two theatrical openers: “Addams Family 2” (United Artists) and “The Many Saints of Newark” (Warner Bros.), also available at home.
That left a more routine week on the charts we follow, although some recent releases got attention as they made their first appearances. But price reductions, led by “F9” (Universal), were also important.
The latest entry in the “Fast” series, which opened in domestic theaters in early June, and then at $19.99 on PVOD in late July, just had its price cut to $5.99 (consistent with the timing of past Universal moves). The just-released director’s cut remains at the higher price. The result is a return to #1 at...
That left a more routine week on the charts we follow, although some recent releases got attention as they made their first appearances. But price reductions, led by “F9” (Universal), were also important.
The latest entry in the “Fast” series, which opened in domestic theaters in early June, and then at $19.99 on PVOD in late July, just had its price cut to $5.99 (consistent with the timing of past Universal moves). The just-released director’s cut remains at the higher price. The result is a return to #1 at...
- 9/27/2021
- by Tom Brueggemann
- Indiewire
When looking up the starling species of bird on Google, a few questions pop up. Why are starlings bad? Are starlings good for anything? Why are starlings a problem? Director Theodore Melfi’s The Starling could be substituted for its eponymous bird enemy in any of those sentences. Melfi, who has made hits like St. Vincent and Hidden Figures, takes another swing with his latest, a sappy, melodramatic drama from Netflix.
Starring Melissa McCarthy and Chris O’Dowd as a married couple reeling from their death of their young daughter, The Starling plays into that logline, using weepy original songs from known folk entities like The Lumineers to hammer home a point: losing a child is hard, but don’t worry, there’s still hope. The film takes no time in its ham-fisted metaphors and intentionality, assuming that tragedy equates to story, that a somber score equates to heartache, that death equates to tears.
Starring Melissa McCarthy and Chris O’Dowd as a married couple reeling from their death of their young daughter, The Starling plays into that logline, using weepy original songs from known folk entities like The Lumineers to hammer home a point: losing a child is hard, but don’t worry, there’s still hope. The film takes no time in its ham-fisted metaphors and intentionality, assuming that tragedy equates to story, that a somber score equates to heartache, that death equates to tears.
- 9/17/2021
- by Michael Frank
- The Film Stage
Reuniting with “St. Vincent,” director Theodore Melfi, Melissa McCarthy, and Chris O’Dowd play a married couple on the rocks after the unexpected loss of their baby tears them apart. Calibrated as a crowd-pleaser like their previous collaboration, which had its world premiere at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival where it was runner-up for the audience award, “The Starling” is the kind of cloying, overly sentimental treacle that often gets labeled uplifting, but whose seams show like a mass-produced discount t-shirt.
Continue reading ‘The Starling’: Melissa McCarthy & Chris O’Dowd Offer Emotional Range In A Cloying, Overly-Sentimental Movie [TIFF Review] at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Starling’: Melissa McCarthy & Chris O’Dowd Offer Emotional Range In A Cloying, Overly-Sentimental Movie [TIFF Review] at The Playlist.
- 9/13/2021
- by Marya E. Gates
- The Playlist
If you can get all worked up about a somewhat aggressive little bird that, to the annoyance of homeowner Melissa McCarthy, has decided to take up residence in a tree on her property, you’re welcome to The Starling, an astonishingly treacly film that’s meant to be inspirational but is something close to agony to sit through. Mawkish and reliant upon platitudes in the absence of genuine feeling and anything resembling filmmaking style, director Theodore Melfi’s first feature since the massively successful Hidden Figures in 2016 is a testament to banality that Netflix decided was worth $20 million to acquire. The Starling made its debut at the Toronto Film Festival and if something like this this is now considered worthy of a major festival slot, the world has changed. Can we blame Covid for this too?
Working in a stylistic vein that might be described as bumptious sentimentality, screenwriter Matt...
Working in a stylistic vein that might be described as bumptious sentimentality, screenwriter Matt...
- 9/12/2021
- by Todd McCarthy
- Deadline Film + TV
Late in “The Starling,” at a stage when Melissa McCarthy’s grieving mother has never felt more distant from her withdrawn husband, she receives a pep talk from Kevin Kline’s wise confidante about the titular bird. When starlings mate, he explains, they build and protect their nest together: “They’re just not meant to exist in the world alone.” “Real subtle stuff,” she responds, with a trademark McCarthy grimace.
It’s a bit rich at this point for “The Starling” to lampshade such a cornily obvious metaphor, given that Theodore Melfi’s film has already given us ample scenes of McCarthy’s character growing and nurturing a vegetable garden from scratch on dried-out, weed-strewn land, defending it from the aforementioned starlings as they themselves forge a home of their own from scraps and trash, and cathartically ridding her house of all its furniture for good measure. What could it all mean?...
It’s a bit rich at this point for “The Starling” to lampshade such a cornily obvious metaphor, given that Theodore Melfi’s film has already given us ample scenes of McCarthy’s character growing and nurturing a vegetable garden from scratch on dried-out, weed-strewn land, defending it from the aforementioned starlings as they themselves forge a home of their own from scraps and trash, and cathartically ridding her house of all its furniture for good measure. What could it all mean?...
- 9/12/2021
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Melissa McCarthy and Chris O’Dowd, two of the most endearing actors onscreen, play Lilly and Jack, a married couple happily painting a mural for their infant daughter’s room, as The Starling begins. Cue the opening credits, and we find them a year later, grappling with the unimaginable worst after having lost their baby to sudden infant death syndrome. Lilly is stoically putting one foot in front of the other, which includes visiting Jack at the psychiatric hospital where he is being treated. A project starring these two plus Kevin Kline, directed by Theodore Melfi, of Hidden Figures — what could possibly go wrong? ...
- 9/12/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Melissa McCarthy and Chris O’Dowd, two of the most endearing actors onscreen, play Lilly and Jack, a married couple happily painting a mural for their infant daughter’s room, as The Starling begins. Cue the opening credits, and we find them a year later, grappling with the unimaginable worst after having lost their baby to sudden infant death syndrome. Lilly is stoically putting one foot in front of the other, which includes visiting Jack at the psychiatric hospital where he is being treated. A project starring these two plus Kevin Kline, directed by Theodore Melfi, of Hidden Figures — what could possibly go wrong? ...
- 9/12/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Netflix's "The Starling" has an all-star cast. Many of them — Melissa McCarthy, Chris O'Dowd, and Kevin Kline — are largely known for their comedic talents. If the trailer is any indication, however, this feature is the opposite of a comedy. That doesn't mean it doesn't look good — it just doesn't look full of a lot of laughs.
What the trailer is, is heartbreaking and touching. So much so, in fact, that I cried! What a start to a Wednesday!
I should have been better prepared for a tear-jerker when I saw that Theodore Melfi — director of "Hidden Figures" and...
The post The Starling Trailer: Melissa McCarthy, Chris O'Dowd and Kevin Kline Make Will Make You Cry appeared first on /Film.
What the trailer is, is heartbreaking and touching. So much so, in fact, that I cried! What a start to a Wednesday!
I should have been better prepared for a tear-jerker when I saw that Theodore Melfi — director of "Hidden Figures" and...
The post The Starling Trailer: Melissa McCarthy, Chris O'Dowd and Kevin Kline Make Will Make You Cry appeared first on /Film.
- 8/25/2021
- by Vanessa Armstrong
- Slash Film
Netflix has debuted a new trailer for the comedy-drama ‘The Starling’ featuring Melissa McCarthy and Chris O’Dowd.
After Lilly (McCarthy) suffers a loss, a battle with a territorial bird (the Starling) over dominion of her garden provides an unlikely avenue for her grief and the courage to heal her relationships and rediscover her capacity for love.
Directed by Theodore Melfi, the film stars Melissa McCarthy, Chris O’Dowd, Kevin Kline, Timothy Olyphant, Daveed Diggs, Skyler Gisondo, Loretta Devine, Kimberly Quinn, Rosalind Chao.
Also in trailers – First trailer for ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ has Peter Parker wishing for his anonymity The film is released on September 24th.
The post Melissa McCarthy & Chris O’Dowd suffer an unimaginable grief in trailer for ‘The Starling’ appeared first on HeyUGuys.
After Lilly (McCarthy) suffers a loss, a battle with a territorial bird (the Starling) over dominion of her garden provides an unlikely avenue for her grief and the courage to heal her relationships and rediscover her capacity for love.
Directed by Theodore Melfi, the film stars Melissa McCarthy, Chris O’Dowd, Kevin Kline, Timothy Olyphant, Daveed Diggs, Skyler Gisondo, Loretta Devine, Kimberly Quinn, Rosalind Chao.
Also in trailers – First trailer for ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ has Peter Parker wishing for his anonymity The film is released on September 24th.
The post Melissa McCarthy & Chris O’Dowd suffer an unimaginable grief in trailer for ‘The Starling’ appeared first on HeyUGuys.
- 8/25/2021
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
"I just need a minute to find out what happens next." Netflix has debuted an official trailer for a dramedy film titled The Starling, the latest feature from the director of the Oscar-nominated film Hidden Figures (2016) - Theodore Melfi. This is set to premiere at the 2021 Toronto Film Festival coming up in just a few more weeks, then will arrive on Netflix later in September for everyone to catch. After Lilly suffers a loss, a battle with a territorial bird (The Starling) over dominion of her garden provides an unlikely avenue for her grief and the courage to heal her relationships and rediscover her capacity for love. Melissa McCarthy co-stars as Lilly with Chris O'Dowd, also with Kevin Kline, Timothy Olyphant, Daveed Diggs, Skyler Gisondo, Loretta Devine, Laura Harrier, Rosalind Chao, and Kimberly Quinn. Yeah this certainly looks like another crowd-pleaser, with plenty of charm and heartfelt humor despite exploring grief and loss.
- 8/24/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
BenedictionThe lineup has been unveiled for the 2021 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, which will take place over 10 days (September 9-18) both in-person and physically in Toronto, and digitally across Canada. Wavelengths - FEATURESFutura (Pietro Marcello, Francesco Munzi, Alice Rohrwacher)The Girl and the Spider (Ramon Zürcher, Silvan Zürcher)Neptune Frost (Saul Williams, Anisia Uzeyman)A Night of Knowing Nothing (Payal Kapadia)Ste. Anne (Rhayne Vermette)The Tsugua Diaries (Maureen Fazendeiro, Miguel Gomes)Wavelengths - SHORTSThe Capacity for Adequate Anger (Vika Kirchenbauer)Dear Chantal (Querida Chantal) (Nicolás Pereda)earthearthearth (Daïchi Saïto)Inner Outer Space (Laida Lertxundi)Polycephaly in D (Michael Robinson)“The red filter is withdrawn.” (Minjung Kim)Train Again (Peter Tscherkassky)Midnight Madness After Blue (Dirty Paradise) (Bertrand Mandico)Dashcam (Rob Savage)Saloum (Jean Luc Herbulot)Titane (Julia Ducournau)You Are Not My Mother (Kate Dolan)Zalava (Arsalan Amiri)TIFF DOCSAttica (Stanley Nelson)Beba (Rebeca Huntt)Becoming Cousteau...
- 8/4/2021
- MUBI
Octavia Spencer will be honored with the James Schamus Ally Award at the 2021 Outfest LA LGBTQ Film Festival.
The award will be presented to the actress and producer at Dtla’s Orpheum Theatre on August 22, as part of the festival’s Closing Night Gala.
The Ally Award was created “to honor the efforts of an individual in bringing LGBTQ stories to the forefront.” It takes its name from Oscar-nominated producer James Schamus, who was awarded Outfest’s Achievement Award in 2014. Past honorees include James Franco, Andra Day, and Rita Moreno.
At this year’s festival, Spencer isn’t just an honoree. She also has a film making its world premiere, titled Right to Try, which she produced with Brian Clisham and Stephanie Kluft, via her Orit Entertainment banner.
The documentary short tells the story of Jeffrey Drew, who puts his life on the line to try and help find a cure for HIV.
The award will be presented to the actress and producer at Dtla’s Orpheum Theatre on August 22, as part of the festival’s Closing Night Gala.
The Ally Award was created “to honor the efforts of an individual in bringing LGBTQ stories to the forefront.” It takes its name from Oscar-nominated producer James Schamus, who was awarded Outfest’s Achievement Award in 2014. Past honorees include James Franco, Andra Day, and Rita Moreno.
At this year’s festival, Spencer isn’t just an honoree. She also has a film making its world premiere, titled Right to Try, which she produced with Brian Clisham and Stephanie Kluft, via her Orit Entertainment banner.
The documentary short tells the story of Jeffrey Drew, who puts his life on the line to try and help find a cure for HIV.
- 8/2/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Festival will open with Stephen Chbosky’s ‘Dear Evan Hansen’.
The world premiere of Stephen Chbosky’s musical adaptation Dear Evan Hansen will open 2021 Toronto International film Festival, which runs from September 9-18.
Playing as a Gala Presentation, the film is one of 20 additions to the programme, alongside the North American premiere of Zhang Yimou’s One Second as the closing night film. Shortly after the line-up announcement, Neon said it had acquired the film for North America.
Other newly-announced Gala Presentation world premieres include Walt Becker’s Clifford The Big Red Dog; and Barry Levinson’s The Survivor starring Ben Foster.
The world premiere of Stephen Chbosky’s musical adaptation Dear Evan Hansen will open 2021 Toronto International film Festival, which runs from September 9-18.
Playing as a Gala Presentation, the film is one of 20 additions to the programme, alongside the North American premiere of Zhang Yimou’s One Second as the closing night film. Shortly after the line-up announcement, Neon said it had acquired the film for North America.
Other newly-announced Gala Presentation world premieres include Walt Becker’s Clifford The Big Red Dog; and Barry Levinson’s The Survivor starring Ben Foster.
- 7/20/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Festival will open with Stephen Chbosky’s ‘Dear Evan Hansen’.
The world premiere of Stephen Chbosky’s musical adaptation Dear Evan Hansen will open 2021 Toronto International film Festival, which runs from September 9-18.
Playing as a Gala Presentation, the film is one of 20 additions to the programme, alongside the North American premiere of Zhang Yimou’s One Second as the closing night film. Shortly after the line-up announcement, Neon said it had acquired the film for North America.
Other newly-announced Gala Presentation world premieres include Walt Becker’s Clifford The Big Red Dog; and Barry Levinson’s The Survivor starring Ben Foster.
The world premiere of Stephen Chbosky’s musical adaptation Dear Evan Hansen will open 2021 Toronto International film Festival, which runs from September 9-18.
Playing as a Gala Presentation, the film is one of 20 additions to the programme, alongside the North American premiere of Zhang Yimou’s One Second as the closing night film. Shortly after the line-up announcement, Neon said it had acquired the film for North America.
Other newly-announced Gala Presentation world premieres include Walt Becker’s Clifford The Big Red Dog; and Barry Levinson’s The Survivor starring Ben Foster.
- 7/20/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Taking place September 9-18, Toronto International Film Festival will feature a mix of in-person as well as digital screenings. On the heels of an initial lineup announcement that included Terence Davies’ Benediction, Edgar Wright’s Last Night in Soho, Denis Villeneuve’s Dune, and more, they’ve now unveiled more of their slate.
Featuring 2021 festival highlights from Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Mia Hansen-Løve, Céline Sciamma, and Joachim Trier, the lineup also includes Michael Showalter’s The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Michael Pearce’s Riz Ahmed-led Encounter (pictured above), Phillip Noyce’s Lakewood, Mélanie Laurent’s The Mad Women’s Ball, Zhang Yimou’s One Second, Fabrice du Welz’s Inexorable, and more.
See the lineup below.
Gala Presentations 2021
*previously announced
*Belfast Kenneth Branagh | United Kingdom
World Premiere
Clifford the Big Red Dog Walt Becker | USA/United Kingdom/Canada
World Premiere
.Opening Night Film.
Dear Evan Hansen Stephen Chbosky | USA
World Premiere
The Electrical...
Featuring 2021 festival highlights from Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Mia Hansen-Løve, Céline Sciamma, and Joachim Trier, the lineup also includes Michael Showalter’s The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Michael Pearce’s Riz Ahmed-led Encounter (pictured above), Phillip Noyce’s Lakewood, Mélanie Laurent’s The Mad Women’s Ball, Zhang Yimou’s One Second, Fabrice du Welz’s Inexorable, and more.
See the lineup below.
Gala Presentations 2021
*previously announced
*Belfast Kenneth Branagh | United Kingdom
World Premiere
Clifford the Big Red Dog Walt Becker | USA/United Kingdom/Canada
World Premiere
.Opening Night Film.
Dear Evan Hansen Stephen Chbosky | USA
World Premiere
The Electrical...
- 7/20/2021
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Toronto Film Festival organizers declared two weeks ago they will be welcoming back in-person audiences for a fest that will run from September 9-18. This after Canada made an exemption to allow for the National Hockey League playoffs to happen in country, and more recently that the Toronto Blue Jays will resume playing in the ballpark on Blue Jay Way by the end of the month. The fest also allowed fans to wet their beaks with a few films that were set.
On Tuesday morning, Tff unveiled its first big batch of premieres and galas. Co-heads Joana Vicente and Cameron Bailey have set Dear Evan Hansen at the Opening Night Gala Presentation, with the Stephen Chbosky-directed adaptation of the Broadway hit to premiere September 9 at Roy Thomson Hall.
The festival will close with the Zhang Yimou-directed One Second. That film was originally due to play in 2019 Berlinale, but was...
On Tuesday morning, Tff unveiled its first big batch of premieres and galas. Co-heads Joana Vicente and Cameron Bailey have set Dear Evan Hansen at the Opening Night Gala Presentation, with the Stephen Chbosky-directed adaptation of the Broadway hit to premiere September 9 at Roy Thomson Hall.
The festival will close with the Zhang Yimou-directed One Second. That film was originally due to play in 2019 Berlinale, but was...
- 7/20/2021
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
With Theodore Melfi’s The Starling and Antoine Fuqua’s The Guilty among the thirteen titles that the Toronto International Film Festival have unveiled today we can confirm that Netflix are back on the film festival circuit curriculum. Another hybrid event, the 46th Edition will be a one hundred title edition with a return to some sort of industry component as they’ve programmed acquisition items such as Philip Noyce’s Lakewood and Terence Davies’ Benediction. Among the world preem offerings (to be confirmed once Telluride and Venice finalizes their picks) they’ve included Mélanie Laurent’s Le Bal des Folles, Edgar Wright’s Last Night in Soho, Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast, Eric Warin and Tahir Rana’s Charlotte and a pair of musician based docus in Dave Wooley & David Heilbroner’s Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over and Alison Klayman’s Jagged.…...
- 6/23/2021
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
While all sights are focused on Cannes Film Festival over the next month, the fall festival corner is right around the corner. Toronto International Film Festival is now first out of the gate with their initial selections and details on the festival. Taking place September 9-18, they’ve unveiled several ticket options are available to audiences, from single film tickets for in-person screenings to packages for digital film screenings that allow access for up to 20 digital films. They’ll also hold screenings across cities in Canada, with more details to be announced.
As for the films, they’ve unveiled that Denis Villeneuve’s Dune, after premiering at Venice, will come to TIFF. Also in the lineup is Le Bal des Folles directed by Mélanie Laurent (France) from Amazon Studios, Benediction, directed by Terence Davies (United Kingdom) from Bankside Films, Belfast, from director Kenneth Branagh (United Kingdom) from Focus Features, Charlotte,...
As for the films, they’ve unveiled that Denis Villeneuve’s Dune, after premiering at Venice, will come to TIFF. Also in the lineup is Le Bal des Folles directed by Mélanie Laurent (France) from Amazon Studios, Benediction, directed by Terence Davies (United Kingdom) from Bankside Films, Belfast, from director Kenneth Branagh (United Kingdom) from Focus Features, Charlotte,...
- 6/23/2021
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
New works by Kenneth Branagh, Edgar Wright, and Céline Sciamma will screen at the 2021 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival. In addition, the festival will also host a special presentation of “Dune,” the big-budget adaptation of Frank Herbert’s science-fiction novel that is set to have its world premiere at this summer’s Venice Film Festival.
Branagh’s “Belfast,” a coming-of-age story that follows a young boy in Northern Ireland growing up amidst the political tumult of the 1960s; Wright’s twisty horror film “Last Night in Soho”; and Sciamma’s “Petite Maman,” her follow-up to 2019’s “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” are among the films tapped for the festival’s official selection. Other notable features that will make the trip to Canada include HBO’s Alanis Morissette documentary “Jagged,” which is directed by Alison Klayman, and “The Starling,” an off-beat comedy-drama directed by Theodore Melfi that stars...
Branagh’s “Belfast,” a coming-of-age story that follows a young boy in Northern Ireland growing up amidst the political tumult of the 1960s; Wright’s twisty horror film “Last Night in Soho”; and Sciamma’s “Petite Maman,” her follow-up to 2019’s “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” are among the films tapped for the festival’s official selection. Other notable features that will make the trip to Canada include HBO’s Alanis Morissette documentary “Jagged,” which is directed by Alison Klayman, and “The Starling,” an off-beat comedy-drama directed by Theodore Melfi that stars...
- 6/23/2021
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast, Edgar Wright’s Last Night In Soho, Celine Sciamma’s Petite Maman and Theodore Melfi’s Netflix dramedy The Starling starring Melissa McCarthy and Kevin Kline are among the first announced official selections of the 46th edition of the Toronto Film Festival, which is taking place September 9-18. TIFF is getting a jump on its usual programming announcement (beginning with the fest’s Gala and Special Presentations on July 20) with this “sampling” of what is in store as the festival attempts to go back to some in-person screenings at its key venues after being largely digital in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, which still is causing problems for Canada.
In addition to emphasizing the availability of the live screenings, the fest is touting the return of the digital TIFF Bell Lightbox and TIFF Bell Digital Talks platforms that worked so well last year with trips to...
In addition to emphasizing the availability of the live screenings, the fest is touting the return of the digital TIFF Bell Lightbox and TIFF Bell Digital Talks platforms that worked so well last year with trips to...
- 6/23/2021
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Special IMAX screening event for Dune.
The 46th edition of Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) will return from September 9-18 with in-person screenings at indoor and outdoor venues, as it emerged this week that Ontario is ahead of schedule to enter the final stage of economic reopening.
The festival says it has programmed more than 100 films and that they will be unveiled in the next three weeks. It teased 12 selections including Edgar Wright’s Last Night In Soho (UK) from Focus Features Danis Goulet’s Night Riders (Canada-New Zealand) from Elevation Pictures and Samuel Goldwyn Films, and Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast (UK), also from Focus.
The 46th edition of Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) will return from September 9-18 with in-person screenings at indoor and outdoor venues, as it emerged this week that Ontario is ahead of schedule to enter the final stage of economic reopening.
The festival says it has programmed more than 100 films and that they will be unveiled in the next three weeks. It teased 12 selections including Edgar Wright’s Last Night In Soho (UK) from Focus Features Danis Goulet’s Night Riders (Canada-New Zealand) from Elevation Pictures and Samuel Goldwyn Films, and Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast (UK), also from Focus.
- 6/23/2021
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Peter Dinklage and Shirley MacLaine are set to star in American Dreamer, an indie which has been set to begin production March 15 in Vancouver. The film is written by Academy Award nominee Theodore Melfi, and will be directed by award winning commercial director Paul Dektor. American Dreamer is produced by Peter Dinklage and David Ginsberg’s Estuary Films, Theodore Melfi and Kim Quinn’s Goldenlight Films, Paul Dektor and Flying Firebird LLC. Quinn will also act in the film, playing MacLaine’s daughter Maggie. The film is currently in pre-production.
Pic is told in a similar tone as Melfi’s St. Vincent and based on a true story segment from the This American Life podcast. The film follows Dr. Phil Loder (Dinklage), a low-level, adjunct professor of economics at Harvard, whose grand dream of owning a home is tragically out of reach…until an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes his way when a lonely,...
Pic is told in a similar tone as Melfi’s St. Vincent and based on a true story segment from the This American Life podcast. The film follows Dr. Phil Loder (Dinklage), a low-level, adjunct professor of economics at Harvard, whose grand dream of owning a home is tragically out of reach…until an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes his way when a lonely,...
- 2/2/2021
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Production on Theodore Melfi‘s fourth feature film begin in August of 2019 and he appears to be moving towards more dramatic terrain this time out. So far his filmography includes Winding Roads (1999), his celebrated sophomore feature in 2014’s St. Vincent (read review) and more recently, Hidden Figures (2016). With The Starling, we find Melissa McCarthy, Chris O’Dowd, Kevin Kline, Timothy Olyphant and Daveed Diggs. Netflix boarded the project was in post. Cinematographer Lawrence Sher would have worked on this project right after his work in Joker.
Gist: Written by Matt Harris, this is about a married couple suffers a hardship, leading Jack (O’Dowd) to head off to deal with his grief while Lilly (McCarthy) remains in the “real” world, dealing with her own guilt.…...
Gist: Written by Matt Harris, this is about a married couple suffers a hardship, leading Jack (O’Dowd) to head off to deal with his grief while Lilly (McCarthy) remains in the “real” world, dealing with her own guilt.…...
- 11/24/2020
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
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