Oscilloscope Laboratories recently send the official trailer for their upcoming release "Bellflower", which played and this year SXSW and Sundance Film Festivals. "Bellflower" opens in New York and Los Angeles on Friday, August 5th, 2011. National rollout to follow soon after that.
Plot Synopsis:
Best friends Woodrow and Aiden spend all of their free time building Mad Max-inspired flamethrowers and muscle cars in preparation for a global apocalypse. But when Woodrow meets a charismatic young woman and falls hard in love, he and Aiden quickly integrate into a new group of friends, setting off on a journey of love and hate, betrayal, infidelity and extreme violence more devastating and fiery than any of their apocalyptic fantasies.
"Bellflower"": Official Trailer
Focus Features has acquired worldwide rights to the contemporary drama Pariah, the debut feature from writer/director Dee Rees. Pariah world-premiered In Competition this past week at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Spike Lee is among the feature’s executive producers. Pariah is produced by Nekisa Cooper.
In tandem with the Pariah acquisition, Focus has engaged Ms. Rees to write a screenplay. The script deal is for a new feature-length film that the writer/director would conceive.
Pariah is one of the Festival’s most acclaimed entries this year; Kyle Smith of The New York Post wrote that Pariah is “emotionally satisfying…with a likeable and believable heroine at its core.” Andrew Barker of Variety wrote that actress Adepero Oduye gives “a wonderful lead performance.”
The feature is an expansion of Ms. Rees’ short film of the same name, which screened at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. Ms. Oduye, who had starred in the short film, portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister (Sahra Mallesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the support of her best friend Laura (Pernell Walker), she is especially eager to find a girlfriend. Wondering how much she can confide in her family, Alike strives to get through adolescence with grace, humor, and tenacity – sometimes succeeding, sometimes not, but always moving forward.
Focus Features CEO James Schamus said, “Dee Rees has made a debut film that celebrates with astonishing artistry the journey of a young woman who simply never gives up on the power of love. We’re thrilled to join her on this next step of a remarkable journey.”
“We’re thrilled to be working with Focus Features. They’re such smart marketers and they love movies, so that we knew Focus was the perfect home for Pariah. We are excited for the film to reach the broadest audience possible,” said Ms. Rees.
The second film that be spotlighted today in our Sundance coverage is "Septien".
Film Synopsis:
Eighteen years after disappearing without a trace, Cornelius Rawlings returns to his family’s farm. While his parents are long deceased, Cornelius's brothers continue to live in isolation on this forgotten piece of land. Ezra is a freak for two things: cleanliness and Jesus. Amos is a self-taught artist who fetishizes sports and Satan. Although back home, Cornelius is still distant. In between challenging strangers to one-on-one games, he huffs and drinks the days away. The family’s high-school sports demons show up one day in the guise of a plumber and a pretty girl. Only a mysterious drifter can redeem their souls on 4th and goal.
Triple-threat actor/writer/director (and disturbingly gifted athlete) Michael Tully creates a backwoods world that’s only a few trees away from our own, complete with characters on the edge of sanity that we can actually relate to. A hero tale gone wrong, Septien is funny when it’s inappropriate to laugh, and realistic when it should be psychotic. Goooaaaaaaaaal!
"Septien": Official Trailer
"Septien" is also available On Demand thought Sundance Selects as part of "Direct from the Sundance Film Festival".
"Direct from the Sundance Film Festival" will be available for approximately 30 days on each cable system's main movies-on-demand channel in a special "Sundance Film Festival" branded section.
As the Sundance Film Festival is winding down, I have not one but two films that I'm going spotlight today. The first film is "Mad Bastards".
Film Synopsis:
TJ is a mad bastard, and his estranged 13-year-old son Bullet is on the fast track to becoming one, too. After being turned away from his mother’s house, TJ sets off across the country to the Kimberly region of northwestern Australia to make things right with his son. Grandpa Tex has lived a tough life, and now, as a local cop, he wants to change things for the men in his community.
Crosscutting between three generations, Mad Bastards is a raw look at the journey to becoming a man and the personal transformation one must make. Developed with local Aboriginal communities and fueled by a local cast, Mad Bastards draws from the rich tradition of storytelling inherent in Indigenous life. Using music from legendary Broome musicians the Pigram Brothers, writer/director Brendan Fletcher poetically fuses the harsh realities of violence, healing, and family.
Screenings:
Saturday January 29th. 4:30 PM Redstone Cinemas 7
"Mad Bastard" is also available On Demand thought Sundance Selects as part of "Direct from the Sundance Film Festival".
"Direct from the Sundance Film Festival" will be available for approximately 30 days on each cable system's main movies-on-demand channel in a special "Sundance Film Festival" branded section.
Paramount Pictures and Indian Paintbrush announced recently the worldwide acquisition of LIKE CRAZY for Paramount Pictures to release in 2011. The Super Crispy Entertainment production from co-writer and director Drake Doremus ("Douchebag"), producers Jonathan Schwartz ("The Way Back," "Douchebag," "Funny Games") and Andrea Sperling ("Kaboom," "Sympathy For Delicious") of Super Crispy Entertainment, and executive producers Audrey and Zygi Wilf had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on Saturday.
Starring Anton Yelchin ("Star Trek," and "Terminator Salvation"), Felicity Jones ("The Tempest") and Jennifer Lawrence ("Winters Bone"), LIKE CRAZY was written by Doremus and Ben York Jones ("Douchebag"). The story follows a British college student who falls for an American student, only to be separated from him when she's banned from the U.S. after overstaying her visa. Entertainment Weekly's Lisa Schwarzbaum said of the movie "Young love has rarely been so palpable or looked so real," while Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times said "LIKE CRAZY" brings a compelling intimacy and heart-stopping delicacy to showing the push and pull of love, longing and regret."
Adam Goodman, President of Paramount's Film Group and Matt Brodlie, Senior VP of Productions and Acquisitions for Paramount, along with Indian Paintbrush's President of Production Mark Roybal negotiated for the rights with the film's reps Rich Klubeck and David Flynn from UTA, along with Schwartz and Doremus' attorney Lawrence Kopeikin from Morris Yorn.
Said Goodman, "Along with our partners at Indian Paintbrush, we are extremely pleased to be a part of such a great movie, and look forward to working with Drake, Jonathan, Andrea and a tremendous cast of actors."
A spokesperson for Indian Paintbrush added, "Drake is a brilliant filmmaker, who has crafted a fresh, iconic film. With Paramount's unrivaled production and marketing teams, Drake, Jonathan, Andrea and their amazing cast are in great hands to share this jewel of a film with the world."
"Paramount and Indian Paintbrush's passion and commitment towards the film is incredibly exciting," said Super Crispy Entertainment President and producer Jonathan Schwartz.
"Kaboom" is also available On Demand thought Sundance Selects as part of "Direct from the Sundance Film Festival".
"Direct from the Sundance Film Festival" will be available for approximately 30 days on each cable system's main movies-on-demand channel in a special "Sundance Film Festival" branded section.
"Kaboom": Official Trailer
Uncle Kent is a sexed-up, achingly true-to-life modern comedy about aging, loneliness, desire, and the awkward intimacies of online friendship.
Kent (Kent Osborne, Hannah Takes the Stairs) is an unmarried children’s-show writer living alone with his cat in Los Angeles. He spends his days sketching gag cartoons and bouncing ideas off his hyperactive friend, Kev (Kevin Bewersdorf), a composer for the show. At night, Kent is a habitué of Internet chat rooms, staving off loneliness by drinking a beer, smoking a bowl, and dialoguing with remote strangers. One of his online acquaintances is pretty environmental journalist Kate (exciting newcomer Jennifer Prediger), who crashes at Kent’s house for the weekend while she’s in town for a conference.
Though they’ve only previously met online, Kent and Kate are instantly at ease with each other in person—shopping, talking, goofing off—and as their dynamic begins to mimic a romantic couple’s, a palpable sexual tension grows alongside their chummy rapport. The only problem is, Kate has a boyfriend. Initially, Kent respects that boundary, even though he isn’t above surreptitiously swiping some naked photos from her digital camera. Then, as an expression of solidarity in their unacknowledged sexual frustration, the flirtatious twosome arrange a three-way with online swinger Josephine (Josephine Decker), further confusing Kent—a middle-aged guy just beginning to sense the emptiness of his collegiate lifestyle—about their chaste friendship.
Screenings:
Wed, January 26th 11:59 PM Egyptian Theatre
Fri, January 28th 5:30PM Library Center Theatre
Sat, January 29 9:00 PM Tower Theatre
"Uncle Kent is also available On Demand thought Sundance Selects as part of "Direct from the Sundance Film Festival".
"Direct from the Sundance Film Festival" will be available for approximately 30 days on each cable system's main movies-on-demand channel in a special "Sundance Film Festival" branded section.
"Uncle Kent": Official Trailer
Today on our Sundance 2011 coverage, we focus on the documentary, "Miss Representation".
Like drawing back a curtain to let bright light stream in, MISS REPRESENTATION uncovers a glaring reality we live with every day but fail to see. Directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the film explores how mainstream media contribute to the under-representation of women in influential positions in America and challenges the media's limiting and often disparaging portrayals of women, which make it difficult for the average girl to see herself as powerful.
In a society where media is the most persuasive force shaping cultural norms, the collective message that our young women and men overwhelmingly receive is that a woman's value and power lie in her youth, beauty, and sexuality--and not in her capacity as a leader. While women have made strides in leadership over the past few decades, the United States still ranks 90th in the world for women in national legislatures, depression rates have doubled among teenage girls, and cosmetic surgery on minors has more than tripled in the last ten years.
Stories from teenage girls and provocative interviews with politicians, journalists, academics, and activists like Condoleeza Rice, Nancy Pelosi, Katie Couric, Rachel Maddow, Margaret Cho, Rosario Dawson and Gloria Steinem build momentum as MISS REPRESENTATION accumulates startling facts and statistics that will leave the audience shaken and armed with a new perspective.
For more information on this film, you can visit the film's official website at: www.missrepresentation.org
Screenings:
Tuesday, January 25 at 9:00 a.m. – Temple Theatre, Park City – 2nd Public
Wednesday, January 26 at 3:45 p.m. – Broadway Centre Cinemas, Salt Lake City – 3rd Public
Thursday, January 27 at 12:00 p.m. – Holiday Village Cinema IV – 4th Public
Saturday, January 29 at 2:30 p.m. – Prospector Square Theatre – 5th Public
"Miss Representation": Official Trailer
Jess, age 18 (Sarah Hagan) and Moss, age 12 (Austin Vickers) are second cousins in the dark-fire tobacco fields of rural Western Kentucky. Without immediate families that they can relate to, and lacking friends their own age, they only have each other. Over the course of a summer they venture on a journey exploring deep secrets and hopes of a future while being confronted with fears of isolation, abandonment and an unknown tomorrow.
Through a series of memories and vignettes, Director Clay Jeter creates a lyrical tale of two solitary, playful and young souls in JESS + MOSS. Jeter delicately imposes a complex assemblage of ways of looking and listening – planes of focus, select pieces of music, and expert sound engineering call attention to cryptic, but suggestive details. The film creates a world where mundane elements swell to bursting and demonstrate the power of cinema to capture the sensation of memory; the beautiful and tragic feeling of the fleeting; and the preciousness of youth and all of its disasters.
Sun, January 23rd at 5:30 PM Prospector Square Theatre
Mon, January 24th at 9:00 PM Redstone Cinemas 8
Tue, January 25th at 3:00PM Broadway Centre Cinemas VI
Thu, January 27th at 9:30 AM Holiday Village Cinema II
Fri, January 28 at 10:30 PM Broadway Centre Cinemas IV
Sat, January 29 at 6:00 PM Holiday Village Cinema IV
For more information on this film, you can visit the film's official website at:http://www.jessandmoss.com
Every Day through out the Sundance Film Festival we'll spotlight on one of the films that are playing at this year's festival. We'll either have stills, film clips, or trailers on some of the films. Today, we turn our attention to the documentary "Page One: A Year Inside The New York Times".
Through the years, the fly-on-the-wall documentary has taken us on the presidential campaign trail, into the foxholes of war and behind the curtain with performers. In the spirit of that tradition, PAGE ONE goes inside the newsroom at The New York Times during one of the most tumultuous eras for journalism since the printing press was invented to reveal a disarmingly candid portrait of the paper of record.
Over the course of a year when WikiLeaks and Twitter emerged as household names and publications like the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Washington Post either folded or significantly reduced their operations, director Andrew Rossi gains unprecedented access to the country's preeminent news factory. Can the foot soldiers of this bastion of old media keep up with the fire hose of information that is the world wide web?
Inside the Times newsroom, journalists on the media desk grapple with the implications of their paper's decision to work with whistleblower Julian Assange, the collapse of traditional models for network television and print advertising, challenges to the Times' authority in the wake of reporting failures during the run up to the war in Iraq and the emergence of the blog voice in the pages of the Gray Lady as exemplified by writers David Carr and Brian Stelter. Meanwhile, they continue to uphold the values of the old-fashioned, shoe-leather reporting that's now on the endangered list. What emerges in the page-one meetings, spearheaded by executive editor Bill Keller, and on the ground with reporters, is an intimate portrait of highly skilled journalists practicing their craft while the sky falls all around them, still hoping that readers will stick with them--even if their work ends up behind a paywall.
Screenings:
Sunday, January 23rd at 6:00pm - Temple Theatre - Public Screening #1 (Premiere)
Monday, January 24th at 11:30am - Holiday Village Cinema II - P&I Screening
Monday, January 24th at 8:30pm - Prospector Square Theatre - Public Screening #2
Tuesday, January 25th at 6:00pm - Sundance Resort Screening Room - Public Screening #3
Wednesday, January 26th at 9:00am - Holiday Village Cinema IV - Public Screening #4
Thursday, January 27th at 6:00pm - Broadway Centre Cinemas VI (SLC) - Public Screening #5
Friday, January 28th at Noon - Temple Theatre - Public Screening #6
Sundance 2011: " Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Titles" Poster and Screening Information
Strangeness is afoot. Most people don't notice the hundreds of cryptic tiled messages about resurrecting the dead that have been appearing in city streets over the past three decades. But Justin Duerr does. For years, finding an answer to this long-standing urban mystery has been his obsession. He has been collecting clues that the tiler has embedded in the streets of major cities across the U.S. and South America. But as Justin starts piecing together key events of the past he finds a story that is more surreal than he imagined, and one that hits disturbingly close to home.
SYNOPSIS
Filmmaker Jon Foy and Philadelphia-based artist and musician Justin Duerr began planning a documentary film about the Toynbee Tiles in 2000. Five years later, they began filming their investigation of these strange street plaques embedded in the asphalt of major U.S. and South American urban intersections that had held Duerr's fascination for over a decade. Having appeared on hundreds of reported examples from the mid-1980s to present, the cryptic four-line message of the Toynbee Tiles read: "Toynbee Idea / In Kubrick's 2001 / Resurrect Dead / On Planet Jupiter". While the text on the plaques was clear enough, neither Duerr nor the numerous media outlets that had documented the phenomenon knew what these tiles meant, how or why they were installed, or who was responsible for them.
Sundance Screenings:
Monday, January 24th at 3:00pm - Holiday Village Cinema IV - Public Screening #1 (Premiere)
Monday, January 24th at 9:00pm - Holiday Village Cinema I - P&I Screening
Tuesday, January 25th at 5:30pm - Prospector Square Theatre - Public Screening #2
Wednesday, January 26th at 4:30pm - Broadway Centre Cinemas IV (SLC) - Public Screening #3
Thursday, January 27th at 9:00am - Yarrow Hotel Theatre - Public Screening #4
Saturday, January 29th at 12:30pm - Holiday Village Cinema II - Public Screening #5
