Exclusive: Us, Germany, Australia, Latin America among deals for ‘Walk With Me’.
WestEnd Films has closed key deals on Benedict Cumberbatch-narrated mindfulness documentary Walk With Me, which premiered at SXSW.
The Speakit Films’ title is directed by Marc J. Francis (Black Gold) and Max Pugh (The Road to Freedom Peak).
Rights have gone to the Us, as part of a co-acquisition between Gathr Films and Kino Lorber, to Benelux (Cinemien), Germany, Austria and Switzerland (Dcm), Australia and New Zealand (Village Roadshow), Latin America (Energia), Italy (Feltrinelli), Japan (Gaga), China (Jetsen Huashi Wangju Cultural Media Co), Hong Kong (Cinehub), Korea (Tcast), Taiwan (Encore) and Thailand (Doc Club).
Shot over three years, Walk With Me goes deep inside a Zen Buddhist community which practices the art of mindfulness with their famous teacher Thich Nhat Hanh.
Footage of the monastic life is paired with Cumberbatch reading from insights from Thich Nhat Hanh’s early journals.
The Revenant and Birdman...
WestEnd Films has closed key deals on Benedict Cumberbatch-narrated mindfulness documentary Walk With Me, which premiered at SXSW.
The Speakit Films’ title is directed by Marc J. Francis (Black Gold) and Max Pugh (The Road to Freedom Peak).
Rights have gone to the Us, as part of a co-acquisition between Gathr Films and Kino Lorber, to Benelux (Cinemien), Germany, Austria and Switzerland (Dcm), Australia and New Zealand (Village Roadshow), Latin America (Energia), Italy (Feltrinelli), Japan (Gaga), China (Jetsen Huashi Wangju Cultural Media Co), Hong Kong (Cinehub), Korea (Tcast), Taiwan (Encore) and Thailand (Doc Club).
Shot over three years, Walk With Me goes deep inside a Zen Buddhist community which practices the art of mindfulness with their famous teacher Thich Nhat Hanh.
Footage of the monastic life is paired with Cumberbatch reading from insights from Thich Nhat Hanh’s early journals.
The Revenant and Birdman...
- 5/24/2017
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Benedict Cumberbatch will narrate Marc J Francis and Max Pugh’s feature documentary about Thich Nhat Hanh.
Benedict Cumberbatch is to narrate Walk With Me, a new feature documentary about Zen Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh.
Marc J Francis (Black Gold) and Max Pugh (The Road to Freedom Peak) produce and direct the Speakit Films project, which is now completed and expected to launch later this year.
With unprecedented access during a three-year shooting period, Walk With Me goes deep inside a Zen Buddhist community which practices the art of mindfulness with their famous teacher Thich Nhat Hanh.
The film was shot at the Plum Village monastery in the Dordogne region of France and in the Us.
The footage of the monastic life is paired with Cumberbatch reading from insights from Thich Nhat Hanh’s early journals.
Sherlock star Cumberbatch, who is currently filming Marvel fantasy Doctor Strange, said: “In my life I’ve been so...
Benedict Cumberbatch is to narrate Walk With Me, a new feature documentary about Zen Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh.
Marc J Francis (Black Gold) and Max Pugh (The Road to Freedom Peak) produce and direct the Speakit Films project, which is now completed and expected to launch later this year.
With unprecedented access during a three-year shooting period, Walk With Me goes deep inside a Zen Buddhist community which practices the art of mindfulness with their famous teacher Thich Nhat Hanh.
The film was shot at the Plum Village monastery in the Dordogne region of France and in the Us.
The footage of the monastic life is paired with Cumberbatch reading from insights from Thich Nhat Hanh’s early journals.
Sherlock star Cumberbatch, who is currently filming Marvel fantasy Doctor Strange, said: “In my life I’ve been so...
- 3/30/2016
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
Allow us, for a moment, to pat ourselves on the back. It may not be shaking Hollywood to its foundations, or causing endless Gauloise-fugged chitchat in the Cinematheque Française, but you may have noticed the Guardian film website has had bit of a wash and brush up. Not only do we now have a fetching, purple-tinted central block, but we've also created a whole bunch of fascinating new series to entertain you. Each day at 7.30am we're launching our movie bulletin, featuring the day's key news stories and what's coming up; then we have our new Why I love… feature (today; Human Traffic's title sequences) and – ulp – how things are shaping up for next year's Academy award race with our Oscar predictions 2014 blog.
All that, plus a weekly quiz, the Film on the box...
The big story
Allow us, for a moment, to pat ourselves on the back. It may not be shaking Hollywood to its foundations, or causing endless Gauloise-fugged chitchat in the Cinematheque Française, but you may have noticed the Guardian film website has had bit of a wash and brush up. Not only do we now have a fetching, purple-tinted central block, but we've also created a whole bunch of fascinating new series to entertain you. Each day at 7.30am we're launching our movie bulletin, featuring the day's key news stories and what's coming up; then we have our new Why I love… feature (today; Human Traffic's title sequences) and – ulp – how things are shaping up for next year's Academy award race with our Oscar predictions 2014 blog.
All that, plus a weekly quiz, the Film on the box...
- 8/15/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
There's nothing like a good spat between Hollywood A-listers – so imagine our delight when Sylvester Stallone unveiled some high-level beef with Bruce Willis this week.
Sly appeared to label his erstwhile Expendables co-star "greedy and lazy" on Twitter, after negotiations broke down over Willis's role in the third installment in the 80s throwback action series.
The reason? According to the Hollywood Reporter, Bruce walked away from Expendables 3 after Stallone refused his demands for a $1m a day wage. He had been offered $3m for four days work, but wanted another million on top, according to a "source with knowledge of the situation".
Shortly after that news broke, it was announced that none other than Harrison Ford would be taking Willis's place. As Ben Child observed, the signing seems like a major step up for the action series,...
The big story
There's nothing like a good spat between Hollywood A-listers – so imagine our delight when Sylvester Stallone unveiled some high-level beef with Bruce Willis this week.
Sly appeared to label his erstwhile Expendables co-star "greedy and lazy" on Twitter, after negotiations broke down over Willis's role in the third installment in the 80s throwback action series.
The reason? According to the Hollywood Reporter, Bruce walked away from Expendables 3 after Stallone refused his demands for a $1m a day wage. He had been offered $3m for four days work, but wanted another million on top, according to a "source with knowledge of the situation".
Shortly after that news broke, it was announced that none other than Harrison Ford would be taking Willis's place. As Ben Child observed, the signing seems like a major step up for the action series,...
- 8/8/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
Richard Curtis – the hugely successful writer and director behind Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill and Love Actually is considering retirement.
"This probably will be the last film I will direct," he told Empire magazine in an interview discussing his latest release, About Time. The film features Domhnall Gleeson travelling through time in a bid to change his past and have a better future – and its plot lead our writer to question why it's almost always men who get to be cinematic time travellers, and so rarely women.
Curtis wasn't the only big name hinting at retirement this week – Johnny Depp is considering quitting acting in the near future, he told the BBC – although, if this poll of Guardian readers is anything to go by, film fans would be sorry to see him go.
The big story
Richard Curtis – the hugely successful writer and director behind Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill and Love Actually is considering retirement.
"This probably will be the last film I will direct," he told Empire magazine in an interview discussing his latest release, About Time. The film features Domhnall Gleeson travelling through time in a bid to change his past and have a better future – and its plot lead our writer to question why it's almost always men who get to be cinematic time travellers, and so rarely women.
Curtis wasn't the only big name hinting at retirement this week – Johnny Depp is considering quitting acting in the near future, he told the BBC – although, if this poll of Guardian readers is anything to go by, film fans would be sorry to see him go.
- 8/1/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
One word floated over this cinema week: Partridge. After years of coy suggestions, knock-backs and false starts, the Alan Partridge film – codenamed Alpha Papa – finally saw the light of day.
The film-makers bowed to a social media campaign they certainly didn't have any hand in or encouragement and agreed to hold the world premiere in Norwich – for which Partridge donned a particularly fetching powder-blue
safari suit – before sticking Partridge in a helicopter and flying him to London.
Fortunately, our reviewer liked the film. Jurassic Park…
In the news
Nelson Mandela biopic: watch Idris Elba in the first full-length film trailer
Gwyneth Paltrow and Ewan McGregor join Johnny Depp on Mortdecai
South Africa's censors ban film about predatory teacher as 'child porn'
Despicable Me 2 blocked by Chinese censor, but Smurfs sequel approved
Skyfall highest grossing...
The big story
One word floated over this cinema week: Partridge. After years of coy suggestions, knock-backs and false starts, the Alan Partridge film – codenamed Alpha Papa – finally saw the light of day.
The film-makers bowed to a social media campaign they certainly didn't have any hand in or encouragement and agreed to hold the world premiere in Norwich – for which Partridge donned a particularly fetching powder-blue
safari suit – before sticking Partridge in a helicopter and flying him to London.
Fortunately, our reviewer liked the film. Jurassic Park…
In the news
Nelson Mandela biopic: watch Idris Elba in the first full-length film trailer
Gwyneth Paltrow and Ewan McGregor join Johnny Depp on Mortdecai
South Africa's censors ban film about predatory teacher as 'child porn'
Despicable Me 2 blocked by Chinese censor, but Smurfs sequel approved
Skyfall highest grossing...
- 7/25/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
When Forbes magazine published its list of the film industry's top male earners this week, a collective "Wha?" rose from the planet's movie lovers. Could Robert Downey Jr, that noted human disaster area of 15 years back, really have become shot to the number one spot, with $75m to his name in the last calendar year?
Yes, would be the answer, cementing one of the most extraordinary turnarounds in Hollywood history.
It's having the good sense to have a profit share in The Avengers that appears to be primarily responsible, as well as presiding over the massive success of Iron Man 3. The script for the movie adaptation is writing itself as we speak.
In the news
Fruitvale Station: film based on 2008 killing echoes Trayvon Martin case
Johnny Depp to star in Alice in Wonderland...
The big story
When Forbes magazine published its list of the film industry's top male earners this week, a collective "Wha?" rose from the planet's movie lovers. Could Robert Downey Jr, that noted human disaster area of 15 years back, really have become shot to the number one spot, with $75m to his name in the last calendar year?
Yes, would be the answer, cementing one of the most extraordinary turnarounds in Hollywood history.
It's having the good sense to have a profit share in The Avengers that appears to be primarily responsible, as well as presiding over the massive success of Iron Man 3. The script for the movie adaptation is writing itself as we speak.
In the news
Fruitvale Station: film based on 2008 killing echoes Trayvon Martin case
Johnny Depp to star in Alice in Wonderland...
- 7/18/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
John Carter may not have earned a sequel following the $282m it lost Disney, but it's found a spiritual successor in The Lone Ranger, a new take on the classic Western serial, which is on course to burn a similar sized hole in Mickey Mouse's wallet.
Disney might be wishing they'd killed off the nearly axed Lone Ranger when they had the chance, as the Verbinski and Depp combo behind Pirates of the Caribbean fail to strike gold in the wild wild west. Even with Depp's defence of the film (his role as a Native American in this popcorn flick as an attempt to "right the wrongs of the past", apparently) critics and film-goers alike are steadfastly unconvinced.
In the news
Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa world premiere to be held in Norwich
Sarah Silverman...
The big story
John Carter may not have earned a sequel following the $282m it lost Disney, but it's found a spiritual successor in The Lone Ranger, a new take on the classic Western serial, which is on course to burn a similar sized hole in Mickey Mouse's wallet.
Disney might be wishing they'd killed off the nearly axed Lone Ranger when they had the chance, as the Verbinski and Depp combo behind Pirates of the Caribbean fail to strike gold in the wild wild west. Even with Depp's defence of the film (his role as a Native American in this popcorn flick as an attempt to "right the wrongs of the past", apparently) critics and film-goers alike are steadfastly unconvinced.
In the news
Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa world premiere to be held in Norwich
Sarah Silverman...
- 7/11/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
It's not really our normal speed, but very occasionally a celebrity-in-meltdown story penetrates the ivory-tower fastness that is the Guardian film section. We all like Alec Baldwin here – as an actor, we hasten to add, only ever having met him briefly at Cannes – so the tirade he launched on Twitter at a Daily Mail journalist naturally caught our attention. (Unlike the twenty thousand other tirades on Twitter that day.) No one comes out of it particularly well – Baldwin having to apologise for his homophobic rage, the Mail for messing around with a funeral. At least Baldwin has vowed to get off social media permanently; a change is as good as a rest, no?
In the news
Gravity to open Venice film festival
White House Down tanks at box office – to delight of Us conservatives
Pierce Brosnan...
The big story
It's not really our normal speed, but very occasionally a celebrity-in-meltdown story penetrates the ivory-tower fastness that is the Guardian film section. We all like Alec Baldwin here – as an actor, we hasten to add, only ever having met him briefly at Cannes – so the tirade he launched on Twitter at a Daily Mail journalist naturally caught our attention. (Unlike the twenty thousand other tirades on Twitter that day.) No one comes out of it particularly well – Baldwin having to apologise for his homophobic rage, the Mail for messing around with a funeral. At least Baldwin has vowed to get off social media permanently; a change is as good as a rest, no?
In the news
Gravity to open Venice film festival
White House Down tanks at box office – to delight of Us conservatives
Pierce Brosnan...
- 7/4/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
It's not clever, and it's not funny. Cinema and comedy violence have gone hand in hand for many years and one man – who's dealt out his share of hilarious eyepokes and sidesplitting fingercrushings – has decided to call a halt. Yes, Jim Carrey – the man who wrenched out someone's heart, and handed it back in a doggy bag (in a movie, of course) – took to Twitter to complain that things had gone too far. He was referring specifically to Kick-Ass 2, the sequel to a movie that was, admittedly, well known for his epic levels of comedy ultraviolence. "All good conscience I cannot support that level of violence," wrote Carrey. Of course, he is by no means the first actor to turn on the film he is supposed to be promoting; just look what happened to...
The big story
It's not clever, and it's not funny. Cinema and comedy violence have gone hand in hand for many years and one man – who's dealt out his share of hilarious eyepokes and sidesplitting fingercrushings – has decided to call a halt. Yes, Jim Carrey – the man who wrenched out someone's heart, and handed it back in a doggy bag (in a movie, of course) – took to Twitter to complain that things had gone too far. He was referring specifically to Kick-Ass 2, the sequel to a movie that was, admittedly, well known for his epic levels of comedy ultraviolence. "All good conscience I cannot support that level of violence," wrote Carrey. Of course, he is by no means the first actor to turn on the film he is supposed to be promoting; just look what happened to...
- 6/27/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
This week has been trailer week: the biggest things around, film-wise, have been a clutch of snappy little promos teeing up very different films. First we had the new Scorsese: The Wolf of Wall Street, with Leo DiCaprio doing a Goodfellas-style job on the trading-floor fatcat.
That was followed by Frozen, Disney's Christmas cartoon; it's a (very loose) adaptation of The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen. Then, biggest of all, the return of Ron Burgundy in Anchorman: The Legend Continues. We said it was kind of a big deal, and it is.
In the news
Star Wars: Episode VII – casting wishlist revealed
Edward Snowden story on way to the big screen
Films made in 3D are a marketing gimmick, says director Alan Parker
3D movie improves man's vision after lifetime of impairment
Russell Crowe...
The big story
This week has been trailer week: the biggest things around, film-wise, have been a clutch of snappy little promos teeing up very different films. First we had the new Scorsese: The Wolf of Wall Street, with Leo DiCaprio doing a Goodfellas-style job on the trading-floor fatcat.
That was followed by Frozen, Disney's Christmas cartoon; it's a (very loose) adaptation of The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen. Then, biggest of all, the return of Ron Burgundy in Anchorman: The Legend Continues. We said it was kind of a big deal, and it is.
In the news
Star Wars: Episode VII – casting wishlist revealed
Edward Snowden story on way to the big screen
Films made in 3D are a marketing gimmick, says director Alan Parker
3D movie improves man's vision after lifetime of impairment
Russell Crowe...
- 6/20/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
It's big. Very big. It could be the biggest ever. Man of Steel is here, the latest Superman film, directed by Zack Snyder and with Christopher Nolan's sticky fingerprints all over it. The film itself burst fully formed into the media at 4am on Tuesday morning, when the worldwide media embargo was lifted. Our first look review handed it three big stars, an assessment repeated when the capo, Peter Bradshaw, gave his verdict.
Critics across the planet weighed in, with the word being on the positive side of mixed. That of course cut no ice with the big cheeses at Warner Bros, who have already commissioned a sequel; nor with our man in the stalls, Joe Queenan, who took the exact opposite view to WB. Give the superheroes a rest, was his basic message.
The big story
It's big. Very big. It could be the biggest ever. Man of Steel is here, the latest Superman film, directed by Zack Snyder and with Christopher Nolan's sticky fingerprints all over it. The film itself burst fully formed into the media at 4am on Tuesday morning, when the worldwide media embargo was lifted. Our first look review handed it three big stars, an assessment repeated when the capo, Peter Bradshaw, gave his verdict.
Critics across the planet weighed in, with the word being on the positive side of mixed. That of course cut no ice with the big cheeses at Warner Bros, who have already commissioned a sequel; nor with our man in the stalls, Joe Queenan, who took the exact opposite view to WB. Give the superheroes a rest, was his basic message.
- 6/13/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
In the Guardian film section, we like to think of ourselves as sophisticated, chin-stroking types; above the fray as it were, committed to the cerebral life. So imagine our astonishment when we found ourselves caught up in a veritable firestorm of an exclusive, a news story that did, quite literally, get the entire world going. During an interview to promote his new film Behind the Candelabra, Michael Douglas told our man Xan Brooks that the virus Hpv, which had caused his cancer, had been picked up via oral sex.
Xan dutifully reported Douglas's words in his piece, and all hell swiftly broke loose. The story remained number one on the Guardian website for days and all sorts of health debates were entered into – rather obscuring the fact that Douglas's performance as Liberace is arguably the...
The big story
In the Guardian film section, we like to think of ourselves as sophisticated, chin-stroking types; above the fray as it were, committed to the cerebral life. So imagine our astonishment when we found ourselves caught up in a veritable firestorm of an exclusive, a news story that did, quite literally, get the entire world going. During an interview to promote his new film Behind the Candelabra, Michael Douglas told our man Xan Brooks that the virus Hpv, which had caused his cancer, had been picked up via oral sex.
Xan dutifully reported Douglas's words in his piece, and all hell swiftly broke loose. The story remained number one on the Guardian website for days and all sorts of health debates were entered into – rather obscuring the fact that Douglas's performance as Liberace is arguably the...
- 6/6/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
At the risk of overkill, it's Cannes. Again. On Sunday night, in a swanky ceremony in the Palais du Festivals, the Palme d'Or was conferred on Blue Is the Warmest Colour by Steven Spielberg and his jury.
The decision was a popular one, both inside the hall and among the critical fraternity – at least, our critic, Peter Bradshaw, thought they got it right.
One person who differed was Julie Maroh, the author of the graphic novel it was based on, who accused director Abdellatif Kechiche of reducing her work to
pornography. Peter, though, vehemently disagreed – here's what he wrote in response.
In the news
Anton Corbijn to shoot James Dean biopic, Life
Sam Mendes in talks to direct Skyfall followup
Rituparno Ghosh: Indian film director dies age 49
Eric Roberts to star in The Human Centipede...
The big story
At the risk of overkill, it's Cannes. Again. On Sunday night, in a swanky ceremony in the Palais du Festivals, the Palme d'Or was conferred on Blue Is the Warmest Colour by Steven Spielberg and his jury.
The decision was a popular one, both inside the hall and among the critical fraternity – at least, our critic, Peter Bradshaw, thought they got it right.
One person who differed was Julie Maroh, the author of the graphic novel it was based on, who accused director Abdellatif Kechiche of reducing her work to
pornography. Peter, though, vehemently disagreed – here's what he wrote in response.
In the news
Anton Corbijn to shoot James Dean biopic, Life
Sam Mendes in talks to direct Skyfall followup
Rituparno Ghosh: Indian film director dies age 49
Eric Roberts to star in The Human Centipede...
- 5/30/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
This time last week the biggest story coming out of Cannes was The Great Gatsby – but oh, how quickly things change. Since then critics have been getting in a lather about all manner of things, but no film has been quite as divisive as Only God Forgives, Nicholas Winding Refn's follow-up to Drive.
Starring Ryan Gosling as Julian, a westerner submerged in Bangkok's criminal underworld, it's a creepy, ultraviolent revenge tale that provoked boos and walkouts when it screened at Cannes on Wednesday – although that didn't stop Peter Bradshaw awarding it five stars while declaring that "every scene, every frame, is executed with pure formal brilliance."
Xan Brooks offered more praise (albeit slightly more reserved), while our report from the press conference found the director confessing that he approaches filmmaking "like a pornographer: it's about...
The big story
This time last week the biggest story coming out of Cannes was The Great Gatsby – but oh, how quickly things change. Since then critics have been getting in a lather about all manner of things, but no film has been quite as divisive as Only God Forgives, Nicholas Winding Refn's follow-up to Drive.
Starring Ryan Gosling as Julian, a westerner submerged in Bangkok's criminal underworld, it's a creepy, ultraviolent revenge tale that provoked boos and walkouts when it screened at Cannes on Wednesday – although that didn't stop Peter Bradshaw awarding it five stars while declaring that "every scene, every frame, is executed with pure formal brilliance."
Xan Brooks offered more praise (albeit slightly more reserved), while our report from the press conference found the director confessing that he approaches filmmaking "like a pornographer: it's about...
- 5/23/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
The more observant among you may have noticed the Cannes film festival has started, not that we want to make a big thing of it. Loafing about on the Cote d'Azur for a fortnight, eyeing arthouse films while stroking our collective chins has never held much appeal for us. Oh no. But force ourselves we must.
Peter Bradshaw and Catherine Shoard played in the sand like schoolchildren, as they discussed the films they're looking forward to. Xan Brooks rued the absence of Lars von Trier, but did his best to compensate by sternly holding Leonardo DiCaprio to task.
Well, sort of. But what of the films, you ask? The films! Peter had a
pop at The Great Gatsby, and had some good words to say about The Bling Ring. Xan was slightly underwhelmed by The Congress,...
The big story
The more observant among you may have noticed the Cannes film festival has started, not that we want to make a big thing of it. Loafing about on the Cote d'Azur for a fortnight, eyeing arthouse films while stroking our collective chins has never held much appeal for us. Oh no. But force ourselves we must.
Peter Bradshaw and Catherine Shoard played in the sand like schoolchildren, as they discussed the films they're looking forward to. Xan Brooks rued the absence of Lars von Trier, but did his best to compensate by sternly holding Leonardo DiCaprio to task.
Well, sort of. But what of the films, you ask? The films! Peter had a
pop at The Great Gatsby, and had some good words to say about The Bling Ring. Xan was slightly underwhelmed by The Congress,...
- 5/16/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
Now that Cannes is around the corner, the trailers and teasers, posters and flyers are piling up, ready for the great jamboree that is the Croisette competition. But the one that really got us going was the trailer for a little number that didn't get anywhere near the Palais du Festivals: The World's End, the new one from Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and director Edgar Wright. All of them have been stretching their wings a little since Hot Fuzz – Pegg in Star Trek, Wright with Scott Pilgrim, Frost in the TV adaptation of Money – but their reunion has sparked lots of interest, and fond memories of their previous work. No doubt that's what's behind the plotline – a bunch of middle-aged men get together 20 years after an epic pub crawl to repeat the experience – and find...
The big story
Now that Cannes is around the corner, the trailers and teasers, posters and flyers are piling up, ready for the great jamboree that is the Croisette competition. But the one that really got us going was the trailer for a little number that didn't get anywhere near the Palais du Festivals: The World's End, the new one from Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and director Edgar Wright. All of them have been stretching their wings a little since Hot Fuzz – Pegg in Star Trek, Wright with Scott Pilgrim, Frost in the TV adaptation of Money – but their reunion has sparked lots of interest, and fond memories of their previous work. No doubt that's what's behind the plotline – a bunch of middle-aged men get together 20 years after an epic pub crawl to repeat the experience – and find...
- 5/9/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
As the last metallic shrieks of Iron Man 3 die away, movieland is getting ready for the next blockbuster to come hurtling down the pipe. Attention now turns to a little number called Star Trek Into Darkness, directed by someone named Jj Abrams.
Now, our Jj may have gone over to the dark side by signing up for the next Star Wars movie, but Into Darkness, screened for the press ahead of its world premiere tonight, has shown that the force is still with him. (Or is he living long and prospering? I'm confused.)
Anyway, we posted a call for questions to put to the Stid team; you'll be able to see the outcome next week.
In the news
Michael Fassbender to play Macbeth
Hillary Clinton biopic aimed at potential presidential campaign
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...
The big story
As the last metallic shrieks of Iron Man 3 die away, movieland is getting ready for the next blockbuster to come hurtling down the pipe. Attention now turns to a little number called Star Trek Into Darkness, directed by someone named Jj Abrams.
Now, our Jj may have gone over to the dark side by signing up for the next Star Wars movie, but Into Darkness, screened for the press ahead of its world premiere tonight, has shown that the force is still with him. (Or is he living long and prospering? I'm confused.)
Anyway, we posted a call for questions to put to the Stid team; you'll be able to see the outcome next week.
In the news
Michael Fassbender to play Macbeth
Hillary Clinton biopic aimed at potential presidential campaign
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...
- 5/2/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Our new film on demand is the revealing documentary about China's commercial involvement in Africa
Reading this on mobile? See the film here
Tying in with the Guardian's revealing China in Africa series, here's an opportunity to watch an eye-opening documentary about just what it means. When China Met Africa, directed by Marc and Nick Francis, follows various Chinese enterprises underway in Zambia – from large-scale roadbuilding to small-scale crop-growing – and underscores the uneasy relationship between the two.
It's a genuinely fascinating film that shines a light on the issues involved; here's what we wrote when the film came out in the UK:
[When China Met Africa] puts into concrete images that truism of the geo-political commentariat: that China is a new economic superpower. Specifically, it illustrates a new type of colonialist exploitation in present-day Zambia, enthusiastically aided and abetted by the national government. On a micro level, it involves individual Chinese emigres buying large plots of scrub,...
Reading this on mobile? See the film here
Tying in with the Guardian's revealing China in Africa series, here's an opportunity to watch an eye-opening documentary about just what it means. When China Met Africa, directed by Marc and Nick Francis, follows various Chinese enterprises underway in Zambia – from large-scale roadbuilding to small-scale crop-growing – and underscores the uneasy relationship between the two.
It's a genuinely fascinating film that shines a light on the issues involved; here's what we wrote when the film came out in the UK:
[When China Met Africa] puts into concrete images that truism of the geo-political commentariat: that China is a new economic superpower. Specifically, it illustrates a new type of colonialist exploitation in present-day Zambia, enthusiastically aided and abetted by the national government. On a micro level, it involves individual Chinese emigres buying large plots of scrub,...
- 5/1/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Tyrannosaur (18)
(Paddy Considine, 2010, UK) Peter Mullan, Olivia Colman, Eddie Marsan. 92 mins
Bad things happen to damaged people (and dogs) in this sparse kitchen-sink drama – almost too many bad things for one film to take, between Mullan's volatile drinker, Colman's abused wife and their vicious social circles. There's a redeeming spiritual dimension to the misery, thank God, and as you'd expect of an actor-turned-director, Considine gets incredible performances from his leads.
Midnight In Paris (12A)
(Woody Allen, 2011, Us) Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates. 94 mins
Not finding modern-day Paris to his romantic liking, Allen sends Wilson's tourist back to the fantasy 1920s version, and recruits familiar faces to play familiar cultural legends: (Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, etc). It's so unapologetically wistful, he gets away with it. The French will love it.
Johnny English Reborn (PG)
(Oliver Parker, 2011, Us/Fra/UK) Rowan Atkinson, Rosamund Pike, Gillian Anderson. 101 mins
As formulaic as the...
(Paddy Considine, 2010, UK) Peter Mullan, Olivia Colman, Eddie Marsan. 92 mins
Bad things happen to damaged people (and dogs) in this sparse kitchen-sink drama – almost too many bad things for one film to take, between Mullan's volatile drinker, Colman's abused wife and their vicious social circles. There's a redeeming spiritual dimension to the misery, thank God, and as you'd expect of an actor-turned-director, Considine gets incredible performances from his leads.
Midnight In Paris (12A)
(Woody Allen, 2011, Us) Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates. 94 mins
Not finding modern-day Paris to his romantic liking, Allen sends Wilson's tourist back to the fantasy 1920s version, and recruits familiar faces to play familiar cultural legends: (Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, etc). It's so unapologetically wistful, he gets away with it. The French will love it.
Johnny English Reborn (PG)
(Oliver Parker, 2011, Us/Fra/UK) Rowan Atkinson, Rosamund Pike, Gillian Anderson. 101 mins
As formulaic as the...
- 10/7/2011
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Films that form part of a campaign for social justice are regularly appearing online – greatly increasing their reach and impact
Documentaries that have a campaign at their core have traditionally had strong points of view, but in the past few years the rise of the internet and social media has opened up the conversation and helped galvanise campaigns around these kinds of films.
"People are putting across a strong argument through documentary. It is a very powerful medium," says Fred Grace of Fat Rat Films, who with his partner, Gemma Atkinson, has been making films for charities for 10 years, including UK Uncut, made for BBC's Newsnight in January this year. "People see the film then show it to friends, but it's nothing without the campaigning that comes after it, creating a whole world through social media, websites and grassroots campaigning that galvanises people."
The film, which highlighted the campaign against...
Documentaries that have a campaign at their core have traditionally had strong points of view, but in the past few years the rise of the internet and social media has opened up the conversation and helped galvanise campaigns around these kinds of films.
"People are putting across a strong argument through documentary. It is a very powerful medium," says Fred Grace of Fat Rat Films, who with his partner, Gemma Atkinson, has been making films for charities for 10 years, including UK Uncut, made for BBC's Newsnight in January this year. "People see the film then show it to friends, but it's nothing without the campaigning that comes after it, creating a whole world through social media, websites and grassroots campaigning that galvanises people."
The film, which highlighted the campaign against...
- 6/6/2011
- The Guardian - Film News
By Sean O’Connell
Hollywoodnews.com: A number of documentary films that made splashes at this year’s Sundance and South By Southwest film festivals have been added to the schedule for the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival. A total of 66 selections have been selected for the festival’s New Docs program, which consists of of 43 feature films and 23 shorts from all over the world. This year’s Full Frame fest will be held April 14-17, in Durham, N.C.
“Each year, over a thousand filmmakers give us the opportunity to review their work, and it’s extremely rewarding to curate a selection of titles that represent a wide breadth of the documentary form,” said director of programming, Sadie Tillery.
Specific screening times and venues will be announced with the overall schedule on March 24. Here are the 66 films being screened so far.
New Docs
Angst (Director: Graça Castanheira)
Portuguese filmmaker...
Hollywoodnews.com: A number of documentary films that made splashes at this year’s Sundance and South By Southwest film festivals have been added to the schedule for the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival. A total of 66 selections have been selected for the festival’s New Docs program, which consists of of 43 feature films and 23 shorts from all over the world. This year’s Full Frame fest will be held April 14-17, in Durham, N.C.
“Each year, over a thousand filmmakers give us the opportunity to review their work, and it’s extremely rewarding to curate a selection of titles that represent a wide breadth of the documentary form,” said director of programming, Sadie Tillery.
Specific screening times and venues will be announced with the overall schedule on March 24. Here are the 66 films being screened so far.
New Docs
Angst (Director: Graça Castanheira)
Portuguese filmmaker...
- 3/17/2011
- by Sean O'Connell
- Hollywoodnews.com
Not oil, but coffee!
I received another email from California Newsreel, alerting us that the full-length documentary, Black Gold, is available for free online viewing through the end of this month, so you’re encouraged to head over there and watch it!
In short, the 2006, 77-minute Black Gold traces the complex, conflicted trail from the two billion cups of coffee consumed each day around the world, back to the tens-of-thousands of Ethiopian coffee farmers who produce the beans, and the efforts of 1 man, Tadesse Meskela, campaigning to get a living wage for the many farmers he represents.
“Black Gold provides the most in-depth study of any commodity on film today and offers a compelling introduction to the ‘fair trade’ movement galvanizing consumers around the globe.”
The 2002 film was produced and directed by Marc Francis and Nick Francis.
Click Here (or the image above) to go to the California Newsreel page...
I received another email from California Newsreel, alerting us that the full-length documentary, Black Gold, is available for free online viewing through the end of this month, so you’re encouraged to head over there and watch it!
In short, the 2006, 77-minute Black Gold traces the complex, conflicted trail from the two billion cups of coffee consumed each day around the world, back to the tens-of-thousands of Ethiopian coffee farmers who produce the beans, and the efforts of 1 man, Tadesse Meskela, campaigning to get a living wage for the many farmers he represents.
“Black Gold provides the most in-depth study of any commodity on film today and offers a compelling introduction to the ‘fair trade’ movement galvanizing consumers around the globe.”
The 2002 film was produced and directed by Marc Francis and Nick Francis.
Click Here (or the image above) to go to the California Newsreel page...
- 12/8/2010
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
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