By Glenn Dunks
Turkish cats, white supremacist terrorists, underground artists, climate change activists, controversial politicians, hackers, ballerinas and YouTube celebrities. These are just some of the subjects of the One-hundred-and-seventy films that have been submitted for the Best Documentary Feature Academy Award. Yes, that 170 figure is a record and no, you probably haven't heard of a lot of them. Not even I had, and I write a weekly column on the subject.
We have tried to cover as many as possible, but trust me there's only so much we can do! Of course, on one hand, the number of titles listed here is daunting and massive. On the other hand, I must admit that a number this large actually somewhat puts my guilt at not covering enough to rest. It's simply too many! And it ought to be even longer! It's disappointing to see award season-worthy titles like In Transit,...
Turkish cats, white supremacist terrorists, underground artists, climate change activists, controversial politicians, hackers, ballerinas and YouTube celebrities. These are just some of the subjects of the One-hundred-and-seventy films that have been submitted for the Best Documentary Feature Academy Award. Yes, that 170 figure is a record and no, you probably haven't heard of a lot of them. Not even I had, and I write a weekly column on the subject.
We have tried to cover as many as possible, but trust me there's only so much we can do! Of course, on one hand, the number of titles listed here is daunting and massive. On the other hand, I must admit that a number this large actually somewhat puts my guilt at not covering enough to rest. It's simply too many! And it ought to be even longer! It's disappointing to see award season-worthy titles like In Transit,...
- 10/28/2017
- by Glenn Dunks
- FilmExperience
Come see Broadway stars Ken Ard Smokey Joe's Caf Jelly's Last Jam Dangerous Games Song and Dance Starlight Express Cats The Little Prince and the Aviator Marlowe Steven 'HeaveN' Cantor In Transit Tony Award nominee and Drama Desk Award winner Robert Cuccioli Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark Les Miserables Jekyll and Hyde Joshua Dela Cruz Aladdin Lana Gordon Chicago The Lion King Jesus Christ Superstar Taylor Iman Jones Groundhog Day Crystal Kellogg Finding Neverland School of Rock-The Musical, Tari Kelly Groundhog Day Something Rotten Stanley Wayne Mathis Nice Work If You Can Get It The Book of Mormon Wonderful Town Kiss Me Kate You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown The Lion King Jelly's Last Jam Oh. Kay Jon Peterson Cabaret Wayne Pretlow The Civil War Ciara Renee Pippin Big Fish Anthony Rosenthal Falsettos Drama Desk Award nominee Nora Schell Spamilton Ayla Schwartz Frozen and Sarah Jane Shanks Cats Bright Star Promises,...
- 10/19/2017
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Erin Mackey In Transit, Wicked and Wade McCollum Ernest Shackleton Loves Me will lead a private reading of Till Soon, Anne, a new musical with book and lyrics by Christine Toy Johnson and music by Bobby Cronin on Friday, October 6.
- 10/4/2017
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Primary Stages announced today that the Primary Stages 2017 Gala will take place on Monday, October 16, 2017 at 630 pm. The event, which will be held at Tribeca 360 10 Desbrosses Street, will honor Lynn Ahrens amp Stephen Flaherty, the Tony-winning songwriting team of Ragtime, Once on This Island, and Anastasia Artistic Honorees Janet B. Rosen and Marvin Rosen, producers of In Transit on Broadway Producer Honorees and Jose Mendez and Katie Graziano of The Excel Group and Mic Floor Covering, LLC Corporate Honorees.
- 8/30/2017
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Santiago International Film Festival (August 20–27, 2017), announced its awards at last night’s closing ceremony.“La familia” by Gustavo Rondón Córdova (Venezuela),
Among the awarded films were: La familia by Gustavo Rondón Córdova (Venezuela), as the Best Film in the International Competition; Sapo by Juan Pablo Ternicier (Chile) in the Chilean Cinema Competition and Hombre eléctrico by Álvaro Muñoz (Chile) in the Local Talent Short Film Competition, which were chosen as the best productions in their categories by a jury composed of representatives of the Chilean and international film industry.
The Audience Award was presented to a Belgian filmmaker Andrés Lübbert for his documentary The Color of the Chameleon/ El Color Del Camaleon a psychological portrait of his father’s unfinished past during the Pinochet regime, that participated in the Chilean Cinema Competition.
2017 Sanfic Industry
Sanfic Industry section, which took place between August 21 and 25, generated an important space for development and...
Among the awarded films were: La familia by Gustavo Rondón Córdova (Venezuela), as the Best Film in the International Competition; Sapo by Juan Pablo Ternicier (Chile) in the Chilean Cinema Competition and Hombre eléctrico by Álvaro Muñoz (Chile) in the Local Talent Short Film Competition, which were chosen as the best productions in their categories by a jury composed of representatives of the Chilean and international film industry.
The Audience Award was presented to a Belgian filmmaker Andrés Lübbert for his documentary The Color of the Chameleon/ El Color Del Camaleon a psychological portrait of his father’s unfinished past during the Pinochet regime, that participated in the Chilean Cinema Competition.
2017 Sanfic Industry
Sanfic Industry section, which took place between August 21 and 25, generated an important space for development and...
- 8/27/2017
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
What It Is: As someone who works in beauty, new products are constantly hitting my desk, which means my routine doesn’t ever stay the same for too long. But in an effort to live like Kim Kardashian, I swapped out everything — and I mean everything — in my regimen so I could mimic the Kkw Beauty mogul’s routine for a few weeks.
Who Tried It: Kaitlyn Frey, Style & Beauty Assistant and Kardashian superfan
Why We Tried It: I love the Kardashians, and I’m willing to try anything that makes me feel like like the 6th member of the KarJenner sister squad.
Who Tried It: Kaitlyn Frey, Style & Beauty Assistant and Kardashian superfan
Why We Tried It: I love the Kardashians, and I’m willing to try anything that makes me feel like like the 6th member of the KarJenner sister squad.
- 8/18/2017
- by Kaitlyn Frey
- PEOPLE.com
One of Broadway's most acclaimed designers, Clint Ramos, joins Rob and Kevin, via phone, to discuss his illustrious career, which includes collaborating on such recent productions as Sunday In The Park With George, In Transit, Eclipsed, Violet, Six Degrees Of Separation, Kid Victory, and countless others.
- 8/14/2017
- by Behind the Curtain
- BroadwayWorld.com
Every week, IndieWire asks a select handful of film and TV critics two questions and publishes the results on Monday. (The answer to the second, “What is the best film in theaters right now?”, can be found at the end of this post.)
This week’s question: What was the most surprising movie of the 2017 summer movie season?
Kate Erbland (@katerbland), IndieWire
“Girls Trip”!!! I can’t think of a more pleasant movie-going experience I’ve had this summer, and I saw a screening of “Dunkirk” in IMAX where my hair was literally blown back from my head and a screening of “Rough Night” where everyone was given glasses of rose and bachelorette crowns before they walked in, so I’ve done some living this season. There’s nothing quite like seeing a raucous comedy in a packed theater filled with people who are having just as much fun as you are.
This week’s question: What was the most surprising movie of the 2017 summer movie season?
Kate Erbland (@katerbland), IndieWire
“Girls Trip”!!! I can’t think of a more pleasant movie-going experience I’ve had this summer, and I saw a screening of “Dunkirk” in IMAX where my hair was literally blown back from my head and a screening of “Rough Night” where everyone was given glasses of rose and bachelorette crowns before they walked in, so I’ve done some living this season. There’s nothing quite like seeing a raucous comedy in a packed theater filled with people who are having just as much fun as you are.
- 8/7/2017
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
The thirteenth edition of Santiago International Film Festival, Sanfic (August 20–27, 2017), the largest film festival in Chile, will present more than 100 international and Chilean films, including productions shown and awarded in festivals such as Cannes, Berlin and Venice. Among the feature films will be 7 world and 14 Latin American premieres.
Sanfic (Santiago International Film Festival) is opening the festival to international press this year with Variety Dailies and important international guests for their Sanfic Industry section. Guest attending include Kim Yutani (Sundance programmer), Javier Martin (Berlinale delegate), Molly O ́Keefe (Tribeca Film Institute — fiction features) and Estrella Araiza (Industry director of Guadalajara Iff), to name a few. Matt Dillon is its special guest along with the renowned director of photography Rainer Klausmann.
The Summit starring Ricardo Darín, Dolores Fonzi and Erica Rivas, with an appearance of Christian Slater and renowned Chilean actors Paulina Garcia and Alfredo Castro
The opening film of the...
Sanfic (Santiago International Film Festival) is opening the festival to international press this year with Variety Dailies and important international guests for their Sanfic Industry section. Guest attending include Kim Yutani (Sundance programmer), Javier Martin (Berlinale delegate), Molly O ́Keefe (Tribeca Film Institute — fiction features) and Estrella Araiza (Industry director of Guadalajara Iff), to name a few. Matt Dillon is its special guest along with the renowned director of photography Rainer Klausmann.
The Summit starring Ricardo Darín, Dolores Fonzi and Erica Rivas, with an appearance of Christian Slater and renowned Chilean actors Paulina Garcia and Alfredo Castro
The opening film of the...
- 7/30/2017
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Albert Maysles never got to watch his last film with an audience, passing away just a month before “In Transit” premiered at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival, but simply completing the documentary marked the realization of a long-held dream. Maysles had wanted to shoot a film about passengers on a train for decades, but had trouble finding funding for a documentary whose subjects could only be discovered after shooting began.
Now, the film is finally released — but its future remains uncertain.
“In Transit” played at roughly a dozen film festivals and was being prepped by Al Jazeera America for a theatrical run with the help of sales agent Submarine Deluxe when Al Jazeera’s U.S. arm was abruptly shuttered in 2016, leaving the rights to the film in legal limbo. Part of the problem was that Al Jazeera had agreed to finance a 50-minute documentary for TV, not a feature film, so determining who had the rights to the feature-length version was a legal quandary.
The Maysles Documentary Center has been trying to purchase the rights to the documentary themselves, a more than two-year process that remains unresolved; in the meantime, they’ve been able to arrange for one-week runs at the organization’s own cinema and at New York’s Metrograph, starting on Friday. The team behind the film hopes to introduce the documentary to more audiences in the future, whether through traditional distribution or self-distribution.
Read More: Review: Albert Maysles’ Intimate Iris Apfel Documentary ‘Iris’
These prolonged efforts are only the latest chapter in a project that, decades before its completion, had taken on a mythological quality. “People refer to it as his white whale,” said co-director Lynn True. “It just never came together for a lot of reasons, one being that it’s rather unwieldy just boarding a train and spontaneously meeting people and capturing their stories.”
In 2013, Maysles finally attracted the financial backing of Al Jazeera America, and with the help of co-directors True, David Usui, Nelson Walker and Ben Wu, began interviewing passengers on on Amtrak’s Empire Builder, the busiest long-distance train route in America, which makes the three-day trip between Seattle and Chicago.
The movie marked the first original production of the Harlem-based Maysles Documentary Center, which has its own 55-seat cinema. That wound up working in its favor — the original contract with Al Jazeera included the right to screen the film at the theater that carried the director’s name, so “In Transit” was always destined to show in at least one theater. (The Metrograph screenings were set up in negotiation between the theater and the film’s producers, not Al Jazeera, which is unaffiliated with the release; the producers declined to comment on the arrangement with the broadcaster, and Al Jazeera did not return requests for comment.)
Shot in the tradition of Direct Cinema, the documentary is made up of a series of interconnected vignettes, where passengers share their fears, hopes and dreams, or simply let the filmmakers capture conversations with friends, family and new acquaintances on the train.
“We just had to board the train cross our fingers that we would find interesting people who would let us film them,” said True. As she and the other filmmakers soon discovered, the simple act of asking where someone is going could be all it took to stumble upon fascinating documentary subjects. The “characters” in the film range from a young woman who opened up about being raised by crackheads to an elderly woman who had just visited a daughter she gave up for adoption 47 years earlier.
Shot during the height of the U.S. oil boom, the filmmakers frequently found workers traveling to and from the oil fields in North Dakota, or wives and partners of these workers, most of whom talked about the challenges of being away from loved ones for extended periods of time.
One of the central figures of the documentary is a pregnant passenger who was already passed her due date upon boarding the train, creating a uniquely stressful situation for the Amtrak crew, which had to monitor her on a daily basis and became something like an extended family. “That was just documentary magic,” said True.
Though Maysles had no way of knowing whether his decades-long ambition of shooting passengers on a train would lead to footage that could be edited into a compelling narrative, he was always drawn to how trains could bring strangers together, according to True. “He loved trains because of this unique ability they had to kind of support these unlikely friendships and interactions,” she said. “It was pretty interesting to me how many of the stories played into Albert’s vision so precisely — this idea that trains afford strangers the opportunity to connect in a way that they wouldn’t necessarily if they were just passing on the street.”
During segments in which single individuals speak directly to the camera, “In Transit” reveals that, regardless of age, gender or background, most people have a natural inclination to show their own vulnerability. “If you give people the chance to really be honest, people are so much more similar than we all give them credit for,” True said.
One of the key components to Maysles approach to documentary filmmaking was to avoid entering any situation with preconceived ideas or any sort of end goal. “He was such a proponent of observing quietly and listening and allowing stories to unfold on their own terms and follow things wherever they led,” True said.
According to Maysles’ daughter Rebekah Maysles, who served as a producer on his 2014 documentary “Iris,” about fashion icon Iris Apfel, one of her father’s original ideas for the film was to follow passengers off the train and continue shooting footage in their homes. As with most of his documentaries, however, formulating a strict plan was not part of the equation. “He didn’t really prepare himself at all,” she said. “I think it worked.”
Read More: Film Community Pays Tribute to Albert Maysles
Maysles wasn’t around to celebrate when “In Transit” won a special mention in the documentary feature category at Tribeca, but more important to Rebekah Maysles was her father’s reaction to seeing the finished film. “He loved it,” she said.
“In Transit” opens Friday, June 23 at the Metrograph and Maysles Documentary Center.
Stay on top of the latest in gear and filmmaking news! Sign up for the Indiewire Toolkit newsletter here.
Related stories'Documentary Now!': The Secrets to Recreating Film History the Right WayDaily Reads: How Hollywood Disrespects Respect Melissa McCarthy's Success, 'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt's' Post-Identity Comedy Utopia, and MoreMetrograph and Criterion Team Up to Bring You Criterion Live! With D.A. Pennebaker...
Now, the film is finally released — but its future remains uncertain.
“In Transit” played at roughly a dozen film festivals and was being prepped by Al Jazeera America for a theatrical run with the help of sales agent Submarine Deluxe when Al Jazeera’s U.S. arm was abruptly shuttered in 2016, leaving the rights to the film in legal limbo. Part of the problem was that Al Jazeera had agreed to finance a 50-minute documentary for TV, not a feature film, so determining who had the rights to the feature-length version was a legal quandary.
The Maysles Documentary Center has been trying to purchase the rights to the documentary themselves, a more than two-year process that remains unresolved; in the meantime, they’ve been able to arrange for one-week runs at the organization’s own cinema and at New York’s Metrograph, starting on Friday. The team behind the film hopes to introduce the documentary to more audiences in the future, whether through traditional distribution or self-distribution.
Read More: Review: Albert Maysles’ Intimate Iris Apfel Documentary ‘Iris’
These prolonged efforts are only the latest chapter in a project that, decades before its completion, had taken on a mythological quality. “People refer to it as his white whale,” said co-director Lynn True. “It just never came together for a lot of reasons, one being that it’s rather unwieldy just boarding a train and spontaneously meeting people and capturing their stories.”
In 2013, Maysles finally attracted the financial backing of Al Jazeera America, and with the help of co-directors True, David Usui, Nelson Walker and Ben Wu, began interviewing passengers on on Amtrak’s Empire Builder, the busiest long-distance train route in America, which makes the three-day trip between Seattle and Chicago.
The movie marked the first original production of the Harlem-based Maysles Documentary Center, which has its own 55-seat cinema. That wound up working in its favor — the original contract with Al Jazeera included the right to screen the film at the theater that carried the director’s name, so “In Transit” was always destined to show in at least one theater. (The Metrograph screenings were set up in negotiation between the theater and the film’s producers, not Al Jazeera, which is unaffiliated with the release; the producers declined to comment on the arrangement with the broadcaster, and Al Jazeera did not return requests for comment.)
Shot in the tradition of Direct Cinema, the documentary is made up of a series of interconnected vignettes, where passengers share their fears, hopes and dreams, or simply let the filmmakers capture conversations with friends, family and new acquaintances on the train.
“We just had to board the train cross our fingers that we would find interesting people who would let us film them,” said True. As she and the other filmmakers soon discovered, the simple act of asking where someone is going could be all it took to stumble upon fascinating documentary subjects. The “characters” in the film range from a young woman who opened up about being raised by crackheads to an elderly woman who had just visited a daughter she gave up for adoption 47 years earlier.
Shot during the height of the U.S. oil boom, the filmmakers frequently found workers traveling to and from the oil fields in North Dakota, or wives and partners of these workers, most of whom talked about the challenges of being away from loved ones for extended periods of time.
One of the central figures of the documentary is a pregnant passenger who was already passed her due date upon boarding the train, creating a uniquely stressful situation for the Amtrak crew, which had to monitor her on a daily basis and became something like an extended family. “That was just documentary magic,” said True.
Though Maysles had no way of knowing whether his decades-long ambition of shooting passengers on a train would lead to footage that could be edited into a compelling narrative, he was always drawn to how trains could bring strangers together, according to True. “He loved trains because of this unique ability they had to kind of support these unlikely friendships and interactions,” she said. “It was pretty interesting to me how many of the stories played into Albert’s vision so precisely — this idea that trains afford strangers the opportunity to connect in a way that they wouldn’t necessarily if they were just passing on the street.”
During segments in which single individuals speak directly to the camera, “In Transit” reveals that, regardless of age, gender or background, most people have a natural inclination to show their own vulnerability. “If you give people the chance to really be honest, people are so much more similar than we all give them credit for,” True said.
One of the key components to Maysles approach to documentary filmmaking was to avoid entering any situation with preconceived ideas or any sort of end goal. “He was such a proponent of observing quietly and listening and allowing stories to unfold on their own terms and follow things wherever they led,” True said.
According to Maysles’ daughter Rebekah Maysles, who served as a producer on his 2014 documentary “Iris,” about fashion icon Iris Apfel, one of her father’s original ideas for the film was to follow passengers off the train and continue shooting footage in their homes. As with most of his documentaries, however, formulating a strict plan was not part of the equation. “He didn’t really prepare himself at all,” she said. “I think it worked.”
Read More: Film Community Pays Tribute to Albert Maysles
Maysles wasn’t around to celebrate when “In Transit” won a special mention in the documentary feature category at Tribeca, but more important to Rebekah Maysles was her father’s reaction to seeing the finished film. “He loved it,” she said.
“In Transit” opens Friday, June 23 at the Metrograph and Maysles Documentary Center.
Stay on top of the latest in gear and filmmaking news! Sign up for the Indiewire Toolkit newsletter here.
Related stories'Documentary Now!': The Secrets to Recreating Film History the Right WayDaily Reads: How Hollywood Disrespects Respect Melissa McCarthy's Success, 'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt's' Post-Identity Comedy Utopia, and MoreMetrograph and Criterion Team Up to Bring You Criterion Live! With D.A. Pennebaker...
- 6/23/2017
- by Graham Winfrey
- Indiewire
For those who believe that death represents a journey from one plane of existence to another, it will seem apropos that the final feature directed by the late and legendary documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles, made when he was nearly 90 years old, takes place entirely on a cross-country train. In Transit, on which Maysles collaborated with four other directors, can’t compare to the pioneering Direct Cinema docs he made with his brother, David (who died in 1987)—such classics as Salesman (1969), Gimme Shelter (1970), and Grey Gardens (1975). But it’s very much of a piece with Maysles’ lifelong commitment to capturing reality on the fly, offering a vivid cross-section of regular folks who all happen to be aboard the Empire Builder, an Amtrak train that makes a three-day journey between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest. The film’s ideal audience is people who, riding public transportation, would ...
- 6/21/2017
- by Mike D'Angelo
- avclub.com
Days before stepping into the title role of Disney’s Aladdin on June 13, Broadway favorite Telly Leung is staying mum on the secrets behind that beloved magic carpet. Mostly because he’s content to remain in the dark himself.
“There’s a part of me that doesn’t want to know,” the actor tells Et of the illusion that finds packed houses at the New Amsterdam Theatre gasping night after night. “I remember seeing the show, and as somebody who’s done plenty of Broadway and knows all the tricks, I had no idea how that worked onstage. It really was magic -- it took my breath away.”
More: James Monroe Iglehart Says Goodbye to Genie and 'Aladdin' on Broadway
Like countless kids of his generation, Leung grew up on the 1992 animated film, which joined Disney’s successful roster of Broadway musical adaptations in 2014. “Instead of having a princess as the hero, it was cool...
“There’s a part of me that doesn’t want to know,” the actor tells Et of the illusion that finds packed houses at the New Amsterdam Theatre gasping night after night. “I remember seeing the show, and as somebody who’s done plenty of Broadway and knows all the tricks, I had no idea how that worked onstage. It really was magic -- it took my breath away.”
More: James Monroe Iglehart Says Goodbye to Genie and 'Aladdin' on Broadway
Like countless kids of his generation, Leung grew up on the 1992 animated film, which joined Disney’s successful roster of Broadway musical adaptations in 2014. “Instead of having a princess as the hero, it was cool...
- 6/9/2017
- Entertainment Tonight
This week the Broadwaysted crew is dropping a sick beat and going a cappella with the amazingly talented FriendOfTheShow Telly Leung This week we're drinking beer and white wine while Telly spills about the incredible experience of In Transit, his favorite places to get Chinese Hot Pot, and the sexy secret shows between the Flower Drum Song and Hairspray dressing rooms.
- 5/24/2017
- by Broadwaysted
- BroadwayWorld.com
Broadway stars Jessie Mueller Tony Award, Beautiful, Chesney Snow In Transit, Adrienne Warren Shuffle Along, Christopher Jackson Hamilton, and Bd Wong M Butterfly joined 60 students from Rosie's Theater Kids - the musical theater and education organization for NYC public school students -- on stage at the school's annual spring benefit evening, entitled 'Passing It On' at the Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College 68 St. between Park and Lexington Avenues on Sunday evening, April 23. The students also performed in pieces choreographed and directed by Chase Brock Spiderman Camille A. Brown and Wong. Scroll down for photos from the star-studdedevent...
- 4/27/2017
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Russ Kaplan, a creator of the Broadway musical In Transit and leader of the eponymous jazz band Russ Kaplan 7, will be appearing with his band in 'Russ Kaplan's Broadway Jazz Session,' along with guest vocalists Justin Guarini, Shayna Steele, and beatboxer Chesney Snow. The concert will be held at The Green Room 42 570 10th Ave, New York, NY 10036 on Sunday, April 30 at 800 Pm. Tickets are 20 and available at httpsweb.ovationtix.comtrspe.c10157817. There is no food and drink minimum.
- 4/25/2017
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Cory has a day off out of town with little to do but sit and chat with another awesome designer, so this week we bring you a brand new episode with Sound Designer and very distinguished gentleman, Alex Hawthorn Aside from following in the footsteps of past guests with fantastically groomed facial hair Mr. Zinn and Mr. Nigrini, Alex is one of the leading Associate Sound Designers on Broadway, on the cutting edge of new advents in sound design technology. Fresh of his collaboration with Ken Travis on In Transit, Alex discusses the myriad of difficulties in finding the right sound for Broadway's first a capella musical.
- 2/24/2017
- by in 1: the podcast
- BroadwayWorld.com
In Transit'sNicholas Ward made his Broadway debut in his mid-30s in On The Town and now has a featured role in the a cappella musical, where he is the foundation of the chord. Growing up 'in the sticks' he never dreamed he'd be creating music on Broadway, but with some faith, a good foundation, and the trust that life will come full circle, he is on the rise. It's his appreciation of magical moments that makes himso congenial, but it's his knowledge that they must be shared that makes him so special.
- 2/3/2017
- by Broadway's Backbone
- BroadwayWorld.com
Hillary Clinton did a litmus test in NYC by hitting Broadway and getting encouraging results ... amid rumors she'll run for mayor. Hillary and Bill hit up a performance of "In Transit" Wednesday night at Circle in the Square Theatre, where the cast and guests gave her a standing O while chanting her name. By the end of the a capella show, Hillary herself started a standing ovation for the cast ... then went backstage for a meet and greet.
- 2/2/2017
- by TMZ Staff
- TMZ
It has been quite the whirlwind for the multi-faceted Colin Hanlon who spent this past holiday season taking on double-duty in two Broadway productions - In Transit and Falsettos. Hanlon played a large part in developing the role of Steven in the a cappella musical and is currently stepping in for Telly Leung who will return at the end of January.
- 1/21/2017
- by Courtney Savoia
- BroadwayWorld.com
Happy New Year Broadwaysted fans We're so excited to kick off the year with a podcast crossover explosion as we pour out Makers Mark and Ginger with Podcast Prince Patrick Hinds Patrick spills about his three brilliant podcasts the long-running Theater People, the official BroadwayCon Podcast, and the new documentary-style Broadway Backstory in partnership with TodayTix. We chat about eccentric infomercial people, Patrick joins Kevin's side in the ongoing conversation about American Psycho, and Patrick talks about the time he interviewed Alice Ripley with a sock, WhatHaveYouSeenThisWeek includes our Broadwaysted trip to Laguardia High School's Les Miserables The School Version with the best non-professional program bio ever as well as our fun time on the subway seeing In Transit.
- 1/3/2017
- by Broadwaysted
- BroadwayWorld.com
Ever wonder what’d happen if Nicholas Sparks somehow got his hands on a Stephen King script, and went all “sappy love story” on it while butchering the intended dread? That, in a sense, is Passengers – a creeper-feature that somehow blossoms into romantic sci-fi schmaltz about a girl who’s literally forced into loving someone.
What a great message. If your crush doesn’t reciprocate feelings (or is catatonic), tamper with her life (or transport pod) and trick her into starry-eyed lustiness. Wrong and right don’t matter when it comes to love! She’ll come around in the end, because you (the male) dictate all scenarios. Kinda like if Misery gender-flipped and went celestial, where James Caan ends up loving Kathy Bates anyway.
Before even attempting a plot recap, I’m blanketing the rest of my review in a Spoiler Warning. There’s no way to address gaping plot...
What a great message. If your crush doesn’t reciprocate feelings (or is catatonic), tamper with her life (or transport pod) and trick her into starry-eyed lustiness. Wrong and right don’t matter when it comes to love! She’ll come around in the end, because you (the male) dictate all scenarios. Kinda like if Misery gender-flipped and went celestial, where James Caan ends up loving Kathy Bates anyway.
Before even attempting a plot recap, I’m blanketing the rest of my review in a Spoiler Warning. There’s no way to address gaping plot...
- 12/22/2016
- by Matt Donato
- We Got This Covered
He came in second place on the inaugural season of Fox’s megahit American Idol. But looking back on it, Justin Guarini sure is glad he didn’t win.
The 38-year-old singer and actor — currently earning rave reviews for his turn in Broadway’s new musical In Transit — told People that while there are things he would have changed about his time on the show, beating out Kelly Clarkson for the top prize isn’t one of them.
“I think my life would have gone differently had I won,” Guarini said. “I was not ready, and I was just naive.
The 38-year-old singer and actor — currently earning rave reviews for his turn in Broadway’s new musical In Transit — told People that while there are things he would have changed about his time on the show, beating out Kelly Clarkson for the top prize isn’t one of them.
“I think my life would have gone differently had I won,” Guarini said. “I was not ready, and I was just naive.
- 12/15/2016
- by Dave Quinn
- PEOPLE.com
It’s appropriate that theatergoers take a down escalator to enter the Circle in the Square, the underground venue where the new musical “In Transit” opened Sunday. After escaping the subway to get to the Circle, you then confront a replica onstage of the Lexington Avenue line. That feeling of discomforting familiarity never fully leaves. “In Transit” is not the first subway musical to grace Broadway. The more provocatively titled “Subways Are for Sleeping,” written by Jule Styne, Adolf Green and Betty Comden, opened in 1961, enjoyed a very brief run, and tells the story of a journalist reporting on the.
- 12/12/2016
- by Robert Hofler
- The Wrap
Known for writing original music for Disney’s Winnie the Pooh and Frozen, for which she and her husband, Robert Lopez, won an Academy Award and two GRAMMYs, Kristen Anderson-Lopez is now returning to her roots for her latest project: In Transit, an a cappella musical now in previews and officially opening on Broadway Sunday, Dec. 11. The show, starring Justin Guarini of American Idol fame, tells the intertwined stories of 11 New Yorkers navigating the challenges of city life.
Yes, before becoming a sought-after lyricist for upcoming films such as Disney’s Gigantic, Lopez made music with her mouth in the a cappella group Bob Ross Juice Box with In Transit’s book, music and lyric co-writers, James-Allen Ford, Russ Kaplan and Sara Wordsworth. It was there that the idea for a “theatricappella” experience first came together. “We were not fantastic as a group, but I’m really excited that we found our way to writing and sharing...
Yes, before becoming a sought-after lyricist for upcoming films such as Disney’s Gigantic, Lopez made music with her mouth in the a cappella group Bob Ross Juice Box with In Transit’s book, music and lyric co-writers, James-Allen Ford, Russ Kaplan and Sara Wordsworth. It was there that the idea for a “theatricappella” experience first came together. “We were not fantastic as a group, but I’m really excited that we found our way to writing and sharing...
- 12/9/2016
- Entertainment Tonight
Glenn here. Despite writing about (at least) one documentary a week since March, it feels like we've barely made a dint in covering the mammoth list of 145 titles that will be competing for the five coveted nominations in Best Documentary Feature category at the upcoming Oscars. Collectively, The Film Experience has reviewed 30 of the list, and we hope to cover a bunch more as we get closer to nominations.
There are a lot of noteworthy titles on this list so even making it to the 15-strong shortlist will be tough. And it's worth remembering that big titles are left off and smaller little-known titles get elevated every year. I have never heard of quite a few of these - and many others only have/had qualifying runs with releases planned for 2017 so it's impossible to really gauge some of them. What big titles will be left off? Will the recent scandals help or hinder Weiner,...
There are a lot of noteworthy titles on this list so even making it to the 15-strong shortlist will be tough. And it's worth remembering that big titles are left off and smaller little-known titles get elevated every year. I have never heard of quite a few of these - and many others only have/had qualifying runs with releases planned for 2017 so it's impossible to really gauge some of them. What big titles will be left off? Will the recent scandals help or hinder Weiner,...
- 10/30/2016
- by Glenn Dunks
- FilmExperience
Kansas City Repertory Theatre welcomescelebrated Latin American film, television, and music star Mauricio Martinez in theiconic role of Che in the musical Evita, directed by Kc Rep Artistic Director Eric Rosenand starringMariand Torres, playing the role of Eva Peron, who will be making her Broadway debut in the production of In Transit this fall.Evitaruns through Oct. 2, at Kc Rep's mainstage Spencer Theatre, located on the Umkc campus.Opening Night is this Friday, September 16, andBroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below...
- 9/14/2016
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
The Film Society of Lincoln Center announces today the list of filmmaker talks at the 54th New York Film Festival, which runs from September 30th through October 16th. These include the annual On Cinema master class, Directors Dialogues, as well as Meet The Makers, a series of talks with creators of projects in the festival’s Convergence session. On Cinema and Directors Dialogues are presented by HBO®.
Read More: Nyff Reveals Main Slate of 2016 Titles, Including ‘Manchester By the Sea,’ ‘Paterson’ and ‘Personal Shopper’
This year’s On Cinema will feature a conversation with legendary American independent filmmaker Jim Jarmusch and Nyff Director Kent Jones. Jarmusch, a Nyff veteran many times over, has two films in the festival this year: “Paterson” in the Main Slate section, and documentary “Gimme Danger,” about iconic punk rock band The Stooges, in the Special Events section. The in-depth discussion will explore Jarmusch’s indelible career,...
Read More: Nyff Reveals Main Slate of 2016 Titles, Including ‘Manchester By the Sea,’ ‘Paterson’ and ‘Personal Shopper’
This year’s On Cinema will feature a conversation with legendary American independent filmmaker Jim Jarmusch and Nyff Director Kent Jones. Jarmusch, a Nyff veteran many times over, has two films in the festival this year: “Paterson” in the Main Slate section, and documentary “Gimme Danger,” about iconic punk rock band The Stooges, in the Special Events section. The in-depth discussion will explore Jarmusch’s indelible career,...
- 9/8/2016
- by Vikram Murthi
- Indiewire
Director Nathan Singh has been selected to be the 2016 Sdcf Sir John Gielgud Fellow. He will be assisting Seret Scott on her production of Electra at the Court Theatre in Chicago, Il. Director Rhonda Kohl has been selected to be the 2016 Sdcf Shepard and Mildred Traube Fellow. She will be working with Kathleen Marshall on the Broadway production of In Transit at the Circle in the Square Theatre in NYC.
- 9/7/2016
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Here’s your daily dose of an indie film, web series, TV pilot, what-have-you in progress — at the end of the week, you’ll have the chance to vote for your favorite.
In the meantime: Is this a project you’d want to see? Tell us in the comments.
Mr. Chibbs
Logline: NBA All-Star Kenny Anderson is in a mid-life crisis, grappling with his identity and coming to terms with his past and he searches for relevancy in his future.
Elevator Pitch:
This is not your typical basketball documentary. Like Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” we follow Kenny as he travels back to people and places of his past witnessing him reconciling the good with the evil. What happens to a sports superstar once their talent has left them, and they are forced to confront who they will be for the rest of their lives. “Men’s courses will foreshadow certain ends,...
In the meantime: Is this a project you’d want to see? Tell us in the comments.
Mr. Chibbs
Logline: NBA All-Star Kenny Anderson is in a mid-life crisis, grappling with his identity and coming to terms with his past and he searches for relevancy in his future.
Elevator Pitch:
This is not your typical basketball documentary. Like Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” we follow Kenny as he travels back to people and places of his past witnessing him reconciling the good with the evil. What happens to a sports superstar once their talent has left them, and they are forced to confront who they will be for the rest of their lives. “Men’s courses will foreshadow certain ends,...
- 9/1/2016
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
Producer Janet B. Rosen announced today that Broadway's first a cappella musical In Transit will star David Abeles Once, 2016 'America's Got Talent' contestant Moya Angela Ghost The Musical, 2012 American Beatbox Vice Champion Steven 'HeaveN' Cantor Broadway Debut, Justin Guarini Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown 'American Idol', Telly Leung Allegiance, Erin Mackey Amazing Grace, Gerianne Perez Broadway Debut, Margo Seibert Rocky, Chesney Snow Broadway Debut, James Snyder IfThen, Mariand Torres Broadway Debut, Nicholas Ward On the Town, Adam Bashian Broadway Debut, Laurel Harris Beautiful and Aurelia Williams Broadway Debut.
- 8/30/2016
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Producer Janet B. Rosen announced today that the new musical In Transit will premiere on Broadway in Fall 2016 at Circle in the Square Theatre 235 West 50th Street. With a book, music and lyrics by Academy Award winner Kristen Anderson-Lopez Frozen, James-Allen Ford, Russ Kaplan and Sara Wordsworth, vocal arrangements by Deke Sharon Pitch Perfect, 'The Sing-Off' and musical supervision by Rick Hip-Flores Rocky, In Transit will be directed and choreographed by three-time Tony Award winner Kathleen Marshall Anything Goes, Nice Work If You Can Get It.
- 6/27/2016
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
No need to cue the band … “In Transit,” Broadway’s very first a cappella musical, is set to open in fall 2016. Academy Award-winning composer Kristen Anderson-Lopez (“Frozen”) joined James-Allen Ford, Russ Kaplan and Sara Wordsworth to write the book, music and lyrics on the new show, which will open at Circle in the Square Theatre. “In Transit” is described as a new, modern musical bringing to life a vivid tapestry of characters and music in the city that never sleeps … or stands still. Inspired by the vibrant rhythms of life on the subway, “In Transit” follows the intertwining lives.
- 6/27/2016
- by Linda Ge
- The Wrap
Glenn here. Each Tuesday we bring you reviews and features on documentaries from theatres, festivals, and on demand. This week we look at the final work of Albert Maysles, In Transit.
Last week we looked at Chantal Akerman's final film, and this week completely by accident I am reviewing another final film by another towering name in documentary filmmaking. In a career that includes Grey Gardens, Salesman, Gimme Shelter, and Monterey Pop, Albert Maysles has made many films that are considered among the greatest non-fiction titles ever made. And while last year’s glimpse into the life of aging fashion icon Iris Apfel, Iris, was billed as his last work, it is in fact this deeply searching piece of cinema verite made in collaboration with Lynn True, David Usui, Nelson Walker III, and Benjamin Wu that is his last work and an incredibly fitting one, too. It’s the...
Last week we looked at Chantal Akerman's final film, and this week completely by accident I am reviewing another final film by another towering name in documentary filmmaking. In a career that includes Grey Gardens, Salesman, Gimme Shelter, and Monterey Pop, Albert Maysles has made many films that are considered among the greatest non-fiction titles ever made. And while last year’s glimpse into the life of aging fashion icon Iris Apfel, Iris, was billed as his last work, it is in fact this deeply searching piece of cinema verite made in collaboration with Lynn True, David Usui, Nelson Walker III, and Benjamin Wu that is his last work and an incredibly fitting one, too. It’s the...
- 6/7/2016
- by Glenn Dunks
- FilmExperience
Above: Us poster for Salesman (Maysles Brothers & Charlotte Zwerin, USA, 1968). Designer: Henry Wolf. Courtesy of Film/Art Gallery.Starting today, Film Forum in New York is hosting The Maysles & Co., a comprehensive two-week long retrospective of the work of the legendary “Direct Cinema” documentarians Albert and David Maysles—best known for Gimme Shelter (1970) and Grey Gardens (1976)—and their various collaborators, most especially Charlotte Zwerin. Grey Gardens, a film whose title has entered the lingua franca, is the only documentary ever to be turned into a Tony-winning Broadway musical, an Emmy-winning TV dramatization, and an SNL-alumni parody, but its poster, a simple framing of a photograph by Herb Goro, doesn’t really do the film justice. Gimme Shelter, on the other hand—the Maysles’ biggest international success—has inspired a wide variety of designs. For me, the stand-out is the stark black and white one sheet with all-Helvetica type, the first one featured below.
- 4/16/2016
- by Adrian Curry
- MUBI
Broadway's 40 theatres aren't the only places to catch performances from your favorite stars Well after Broadway orchestras begin their overtures, ensemble members take their dance breaks, and performers belt out their eleven o'clock numbers, the party continues at various cabaret venues throughout New York City. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you some cabaret highlights for this week as picked by our theatre editors, including Maxine Linehan 'One -The Songs of U2'rso at 54The Music of Rope amp We Foxes in ConcertKim Maresca at 54 BelowJudy Gold at 54 Belowand In Transit The Musical In Concert.
- 3/13/2016
- by Louisa Brady
- BroadwayWorld.com
Film festivals are truly a wonderful thing. Be it the globe’s biggest festivals like Cannes or the recently-concluded Sundance Film Festival, or the smallest of the small, festivals across the planet are bringing together film fans from all walks of life, to see pictures ranging from Oscar nominated dramas like Embrace of the Serpent to the experimental art installation The Sky Trembles. Just looking at this year’s Portland International Film Festival lineup, films range from the final documentary from Albert Maysles, In Transit, to the Palme d’Or winning Deehpan. And then there are even smaller pictures, like the newest film from experimental filmmaker Soon-mi Yoo, Songs From The North.
The type of meditative documentary that makes its biggest mark on the festival circuit, where itself has been floating around since 2014, Yoo’s film takes a look at modern Korean identity, a topic that she has attempted to...
The type of meditative documentary that makes its biggest mark on the festival circuit, where itself has been floating around since 2014, Yoo’s film takes a look at modern Korean identity, a topic that she has attempted to...
- 2/19/2016
- by Joshua Brunsting
- CriterionCast
Last year, 2.5 billion people traveled by rail across the wild expanse of China. With each passing year the country continues to sink massive amounts of money into the high speed infrastructure – this year alone the China Railway Corp. plans to spend a whopping $121.5 billion toward construction and expansion. In The Iron Ministry, the latest feature production from Harvard’s Sensory Ethnography Lab, director/editor/cameraman J.P. Sniadecki attempts to convey what those numbers look like from the inside out. Riding tracks throughout China throughout 2011 and on through 2013 with the camera rolling, Sniadecki’s curious findings flow with affectionate intrigue and an instinctive eye for beauty in the mundane.
The Iron Ministry joins an immense body of train-centric documentary cinema, from its birth back at the beginnings of film itself by way of the Lumière brothers’ Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat through D.A. Pennebaker’s mid-century short Daybreak Express...
The Iron Ministry joins an immense body of train-centric documentary cinema, from its birth back at the beginnings of film itself by way of the Lumière brothers’ Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat through D.A. Pennebaker’s mid-century short Daybreak Express...
- 2/16/2016
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
Piff 39: Five Films Criterion Collection Fans Should See at the Portland International Film Festival
Tomorrow night, the Northwest Film Center kicks off their 39th annual Portland International Film Festival. They’ll be screening Klaus Härö’s The Fencer as the opening night film (unfortunately the screenings are sold out, but there will be an additional showing on Sunday the 14th). Over the course of the next sixteen days there will be over 90 feature films shown around town at various theaters.
This is one of my favorite festivals that I’ve had the privilege of attending, and I cannot wait to see a some of the films that they have programmed.
As usual, we here at the site will be covering a number of the films throughout the festival, but I wanted to make sure that any local Criterion Collection fans were alerted to some of the treats that we have in store. While there are many films at the festival that will align with...
This is one of my favorite festivals that I’ve had the privilege of attending, and I cannot wait to see a some of the films that they have programmed.
As usual, we here at the site will be covering a number of the films throughout the festival, but I wanted to make sure that any local Criterion Collection fans were alerted to some of the treats that we have in store. While there are many films at the festival that will align with...
- 2/11/2016
- by Ryan Gallagher
- CriterionCast
You’re forgiven if you didn’t know much about the Denver Film Festival. Nevertheless, there’s a lot to talk about in the aftermath of the ten day affair. Highlights included very interesting industry panels (a new addition this year), a few films slated for a wide release, and a local debut for a major Colorado-produced film, The Boat Builder. In a state where most of the money for films was recently devoured by Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, it was nice to see a Colorado-made film get a warm reception.
I wasn’t able to finagle my way into every film I wanted to; such is the tragedy of any festival. But, I was able to see a variety of films big and small and elbow my way into a few industry panels. Below are brief reviews of every film I saw, from the incredible — to the barely edible.
I wasn’t able to finagle my way into every film I wanted to; such is the tragedy of any festival. But, I was able to see a variety of films big and small and elbow my way into a few industry panels. Below are brief reviews of every film I saw, from the incredible — to the barely edible.
- 11/27/2015
- by Max
- SoundOnSight
The American Film Festival is building families. The 6th edition (October 20-25, 2015) of the Wroclaw, Poland film fest was better than any of the previous four I have attended as a jury member for the Us in Progress section. Networking with the USiP filmmakers, past participants Matt Sobel (“Take Me to the River”),Leah Meyerhoff (“I Believe in Unicorns”),Reza Sixo Safai (“A Girl Walks Home at Night Alone”) and whose present project “ The Loner” (he produced and stars in it, Daniel Grove directed) won at USiP, etc. mingled with Indie Star Awardees David Gordon Green and Hal Hartley and other filmmakers like Jenner Furst ("Welcome to Leith") invited to present their films and to eat and party together over five days and four nights which lasted until the wee hours of the morning.
African American Women's classics also showed for the first time ever to appreciative Polish audiences. Though luckily for them, but a sad miss for the audiences, every one of the filmmakers was too busy with other work to attend. The selected films brought rarely before scenes of life in America to a new public.
You can be sure Ava DuVernay was invited, and you can be equally certain that she was very busy with multiple projects.
When I was in Trinidad, I heard from the film's distributor, Michelle Materre, a well known lecturer and film curator whose film series and discussion group, Creatively Speaking, takes place at the N.Y. Film Society’s Lincoln Center and in L.A. that Julie Dash was busy working on a TV series or a doc. I hope one of you reading this will email me a more news of her, because since her film “Daughters of the Dust” premiered at Sundance in 1991, her fan base has grown and eagerly awaits more stories from her. For those who missed her instant classic at Sundance, "Daughters of the Dust" presents a transgenerational saga set on the fictitious island of Ibo's Landing in 1902 about a young woman's quest for identity. Guichees, or Gullahs, aka the Georgia Sea Islanders are U.S.'s most African community still living today off the Georgia and South Carolina coast. The film was presented to the audience as a radical feminist manifesto and landmark of independent American cinema.
Other films included in the series, curated by Ula Sniegowsk and a young film academic Ewa Drygalska, included Katherine Collins' (who tragically died of cancer at age 46) 1982 film "Losing Ground", Tanya Hamilton's "Night Catches Us", the popular and fabulous " The Secret Life of Bees" another Sundance premiering film, by Gina Prince-Blythewood (2008), Dee Rees' 2012 Sundance film "Pariah" and her recent HBO (who incidentally is an important sponsor of the festival with a showcase of its own films) fictional doc "Bessie" starring the one and only Queen Latifah, and Ava DuVernay's "Middle of Nowhere" and "Selma".
While we're on the subject of African American movies, the Spike Lee mentored new talent Michael Larnell, was here with my favorite "Next" generation film " Cronies".
Us in Progress had two out of six selected films about African Americans, the Four Award winning "Alaska Is a Drag" directed by former L.A. and Sundance Festival worker, debuting director Shaz Bennett, produced by Melanie Miller and Diane Becker; and "The Alchemist Cookbook" written and directed by Joel Potrykus. Other films included "Dope", documentarians' Albert Maysles' " In Transit", Nick Broomfield's "Tales of the Grim Sleeper" and Frederick Wiseman's "In Jackson Heights", Mark Silver's "3 ½ Minutes, Ten Bullets", sleeper hit "Tangerine" by Sean Baker, "Field Niggas" a nocturnal portrait of Harlem by Khalik Allah, David Gordon Green's “George Washington", and last, but by no means least, Clint Eastwood's "Bird" as part of his extensive retrospective.
This festival is held in the largest Arthouse multiplex in Europe, built and owned (as is the festival itself, along with New Horizons Film Festival in July and several others) by arthouse film distributor and entrepreneur Roman Gutek.
Fabulous. Written by Sydney Levine in her hotel room at The Monopole where an opera rehearsal wafts through the morning air of a sunny, dry 50*F metropolis mixing with the sound of the streetcar. This has been a fabulous experience topped off by a fabulous tour of the city and today a visit to Europe's most fabulous zoo and aquarium.
African American Women's classics also showed for the first time ever to appreciative Polish audiences. Though luckily for them, but a sad miss for the audiences, every one of the filmmakers was too busy with other work to attend. The selected films brought rarely before scenes of life in America to a new public.
You can be sure Ava DuVernay was invited, and you can be equally certain that she was very busy with multiple projects.
When I was in Trinidad, I heard from the film's distributor, Michelle Materre, a well known lecturer and film curator whose film series and discussion group, Creatively Speaking, takes place at the N.Y. Film Society’s Lincoln Center and in L.A. that Julie Dash was busy working on a TV series or a doc. I hope one of you reading this will email me a more news of her, because since her film “Daughters of the Dust” premiered at Sundance in 1991, her fan base has grown and eagerly awaits more stories from her. For those who missed her instant classic at Sundance, "Daughters of the Dust" presents a transgenerational saga set on the fictitious island of Ibo's Landing in 1902 about a young woman's quest for identity. Guichees, or Gullahs, aka the Georgia Sea Islanders are U.S.'s most African community still living today off the Georgia and South Carolina coast. The film was presented to the audience as a radical feminist manifesto and landmark of independent American cinema.
Other films included in the series, curated by Ula Sniegowsk and a young film academic Ewa Drygalska, included Katherine Collins' (who tragically died of cancer at age 46) 1982 film "Losing Ground", Tanya Hamilton's "Night Catches Us", the popular and fabulous " The Secret Life of Bees" another Sundance premiering film, by Gina Prince-Blythewood (2008), Dee Rees' 2012 Sundance film "Pariah" and her recent HBO (who incidentally is an important sponsor of the festival with a showcase of its own films) fictional doc "Bessie" starring the one and only Queen Latifah, and Ava DuVernay's "Middle of Nowhere" and "Selma".
While we're on the subject of African American movies, the Spike Lee mentored new talent Michael Larnell, was here with my favorite "Next" generation film " Cronies".
Us in Progress had two out of six selected films about African Americans, the Four Award winning "Alaska Is a Drag" directed by former L.A. and Sundance Festival worker, debuting director Shaz Bennett, produced by Melanie Miller and Diane Becker; and "The Alchemist Cookbook" written and directed by Joel Potrykus. Other films included "Dope", documentarians' Albert Maysles' " In Transit", Nick Broomfield's "Tales of the Grim Sleeper" and Frederick Wiseman's "In Jackson Heights", Mark Silver's "3 ½ Minutes, Ten Bullets", sleeper hit "Tangerine" by Sean Baker, "Field Niggas" a nocturnal portrait of Harlem by Khalik Allah, David Gordon Green's “George Washington", and last, but by no means least, Clint Eastwood's "Bird" as part of his extensive retrospective.
This festival is held in the largest Arthouse multiplex in Europe, built and owned (as is the festival itself, along with New Horizons Film Festival in July and several others) by arthouse film distributor and entrepreneur Roman Gutek.
Fabulous. Written by Sydney Levine in her hotel room at The Monopole where an opera rehearsal wafts through the morning air of a sunny, dry 50*F metropolis mixing with the sound of the streetcar. This has been a fabulous experience topped off by a fabulous tour of the city and today a visit to Europe's most fabulous zoo and aquarium.
- 10/28/2015
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
The Tucson’s Loft Film Fest starts today and runs until Sunday October 25. The program will bring some of the best works from around the globe to Tucson, many of which will be have their local premier during the festival.
The acclaimed drama "Court," a quietly devastating portrait of political injustice involving an elderly folk singer facing persecution for his art, is India’s official Oscar entry for Best Foreign Language Film, as well as the winner of the Lion of the Future Award for director Chaitanya Tamhane at the Venice Film Festival. This is the film’s Tucson Premiere.
"Mustang" France’s official entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar and winner of the Europa Cinemas Label award at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, is a haunting portrait of five young sisters struggling to come of age under highly unusual circumstances in a remote Turkish coastal village. The film makes its Arizona Premiere at The Loft Film Fest.
The Loft Film Fest 2015 will also showcase numerous top prize winners from major film festivals around the world, including Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, Venice and more.
The highly-anticipated new British drama "45 Years," directed by Andrew Haigh ("Weekend"), will have its Arizona Premiere at The Loft Film Fest. This riveting and melancholy tale of a long-married couple confronting a dark secret from their past, has generated major Oscar buzz and garnered the Best Actress and Best Actor awards at the 2015 Berlin International Film Festival for its celebrated stars, Charlotte Rampling ("Swimming Pool") and Tom Courtenay ("Doctor Zhivago").
The moving Italian drama "Mia Madre"from acclaimed filmmaker Nanni Moretti ("The Son’s Room"), stars Margherita Buy ( "Days and Clouds") and John Turturro ("O Brother, Where Are Thou?") and tells the story of a harried filmmaker juggling with production of her new film with caring for her dying mother. Winner of the prestigious Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the Cannes Film Festival, the film will also have its Arizona Premiere at The Loft Film Fest.
"Taxi" the crowd-pleasing comedy/drama from Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, ("The White Balloon") follows the filmmaker himself as he assumes the role of taxi driver for a number of diverse citizens in his home country, learning about their lives as he ferries them through the city. Winner of the Fipresci Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival,"Taxi" makes its Tucson Premiere at The Loft Film Fest.
Just a few of the other major international festival award winners hitting the screen at the Loft Film Fest include Pedro Costa’s "Horse Money" (winner of the Locarno International Film Festival award for Best Director); Sebastian Silva’s "Nasty Baby," starring Kristin Wiig (winner of the Teddy Award for Best Feature Film at the Berlin International Film Festival) and "In Transit," the final film from legendary documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles (winner of a Best Documentary Special Jury Mention at the Tribeca Film Festival).
Many more prize-winning features, documentaries and short films will light up the screen at The 2015 Loft Film Fest. In addition to acclaimed films, the fest brings an incredible line-up of filmmakers and special guests to Tucson! Rita Moreno ("West Side Story"), Alfonso Arau ( " Like Water for Chocolate.""Three Amigos"), Larry McMurtry & Diana Ossana (10th Anniversary Screening of "Brokeback Mountain"), Bobcat Goldthwait ("Call Me Lucky"), Michael Joplin (brother of Janis Joplin with the doc "Janis: Little Girl Blue"), Andrea B. Scott ("Florence, Az"), Francesco Clerici ("Hand Gestures"), Jessica Cox & Nick Spark ("Right-Footed") and Justin Johnson ("Double Digits") are among the guests who will be on hand to present films alongside critically-acclaimed films selected from prestigious festivals around the globe. For more information and to purchase tickets and passes, please visit: www.loftfilmfest.org.
The acclaimed drama "Court," a quietly devastating portrait of political injustice involving an elderly folk singer facing persecution for his art, is India’s official Oscar entry for Best Foreign Language Film, as well as the winner of the Lion of the Future Award for director Chaitanya Tamhane at the Venice Film Festival. This is the film’s Tucson Premiere.
"Mustang" France’s official entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar and winner of the Europa Cinemas Label award at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, is a haunting portrait of five young sisters struggling to come of age under highly unusual circumstances in a remote Turkish coastal village. The film makes its Arizona Premiere at The Loft Film Fest.
The Loft Film Fest 2015 will also showcase numerous top prize winners from major film festivals around the world, including Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, Venice and more.
The highly-anticipated new British drama "45 Years," directed by Andrew Haigh ("Weekend"), will have its Arizona Premiere at The Loft Film Fest. This riveting and melancholy tale of a long-married couple confronting a dark secret from their past, has generated major Oscar buzz and garnered the Best Actress and Best Actor awards at the 2015 Berlin International Film Festival for its celebrated stars, Charlotte Rampling ("Swimming Pool") and Tom Courtenay ("Doctor Zhivago").
The moving Italian drama "Mia Madre"from acclaimed filmmaker Nanni Moretti ("The Son’s Room"), stars Margherita Buy ( "Days and Clouds") and John Turturro ("O Brother, Where Are Thou?") and tells the story of a harried filmmaker juggling with production of her new film with caring for her dying mother. Winner of the prestigious Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the Cannes Film Festival, the film will also have its Arizona Premiere at The Loft Film Fest.
"Taxi" the crowd-pleasing comedy/drama from Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, ("The White Balloon") follows the filmmaker himself as he assumes the role of taxi driver for a number of diverse citizens in his home country, learning about their lives as he ferries them through the city. Winner of the Fipresci Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival,"Taxi" makes its Tucson Premiere at The Loft Film Fest.
Just a few of the other major international festival award winners hitting the screen at the Loft Film Fest include Pedro Costa’s "Horse Money" (winner of the Locarno International Film Festival award for Best Director); Sebastian Silva’s "Nasty Baby," starring Kristin Wiig (winner of the Teddy Award for Best Feature Film at the Berlin International Film Festival) and "In Transit," the final film from legendary documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles (winner of a Best Documentary Special Jury Mention at the Tribeca Film Festival).
Many more prize-winning features, documentaries and short films will light up the screen at The 2015 Loft Film Fest. In addition to acclaimed films, the fest brings an incredible line-up of filmmakers and special guests to Tucson! Rita Moreno ("West Side Story"), Alfonso Arau ( " Like Water for Chocolate.""Three Amigos"), Larry McMurtry & Diana Ossana (10th Anniversary Screening of "Brokeback Mountain"), Bobcat Goldthwait ("Call Me Lucky"), Michael Joplin (brother of Janis Joplin with the doc "Janis: Little Girl Blue"), Andrea B. Scott ("Florence, Az"), Francesco Clerici ("Hand Gestures"), Jessica Cox & Nick Spark ("Right-Footed") and Justin Johnson ("Double Digits") are among the guests who will be on hand to present films alongside critically-acclaimed films selected from prestigious festivals around the globe. For more information and to purchase tickets and passes, please visit: www.loftfilmfest.org.
- 10/21/2015
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
Albert Maysles at the premiere of Simon Trevor's White Gold Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
On October 4, the morning before the world premiere of Steven Spielberg's Bridge Of Spies, starring Tom Hanks, Amy Ryan, Alan Alda, Mark Rylance, Billy Magnussen and Eve Hewson (Bono and Ali's daughter), during the New York Film Festival, the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the Maysles family will host a tribute to Albert Maysles.
Filmmakers Morgan Neville, Fabien Constant, Varon Bonicos and Guy Maddin, together with Gay Talese and Frédéric Boyer, sent a tribute when they heard the news about Albert's passing on March 5.
Iris Apfel at The Paris Theatre Iris premiere on Albert Maysles: "Oh, he was the greatest. I'm very lucky, very lucky." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
The event at Alice Tully Hall will include a selection of clips from the career of the master documentarian and his brother David. In 2014, the...
On October 4, the morning before the world premiere of Steven Spielberg's Bridge Of Spies, starring Tom Hanks, Amy Ryan, Alan Alda, Mark Rylance, Billy Magnussen and Eve Hewson (Bono and Ali's daughter), during the New York Film Festival, the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the Maysles family will host a tribute to Albert Maysles.
Filmmakers Morgan Neville, Fabien Constant, Varon Bonicos and Guy Maddin, together with Gay Talese and Frédéric Boyer, sent a tribute when they heard the news about Albert's passing on March 5.
Iris Apfel at The Paris Theatre Iris premiere on Albert Maysles: "Oh, he was the greatest. I'm very lucky, very lucky." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
The event at Alice Tully Hall will include a selection of clips from the career of the master documentarian and his brother David. In 2014, the...
- 10/1/2015
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Now in its 13th year, the American Film Institute's AFI Docs Film Festival runs June 17-21 in Washington, D.C. and Silver Springs, M.D. In total the fest has slated 81 films from 25 countries, with world premieres including Brad Horn's "First and 17," Greg Whiteley's "Most Likely to Succeed" and Discovery's "Rise: The Promise of My Brother's Keeper." AFI Docs will open with Magnolia Pictures' fest favorite "Best of Enemies," a charming portrait of the 1968 televised sparring wars between William F. Buckley, Jr. and Gore Vidal. The fest will then close with HBO's adored music doc "Mavis!" AFI Docs will recognize Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Stanley Nelson ("The Black Panthers: Vanguards of the Revolution") as its 2015 Charles Guggenheim honoree at the National Archives' William G. McGowan Theater on June 19. Other highlights include "In Transit," partly directed by Albert Maysles, Alex Gibney's "Steve...
- 5/20/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
The American Film Institute has released the full slate of screenings for its AFI Docs 2015 Film Festival. Of the 81 films from 25 different countries, four are world premieres: Dawn Porter's "Rise: The Promise of My Brother's Keeper," Chris Temple and Zach Ingrasci's "Salam Neighbor," Natalie Avital's "The Three Hikers" and Brad Horn's "First and 17." Other notable filmmakers with projects screening in the festival include the late Albert Maysles ("In Transit"), Alex Gibney ("Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine"), Abigail Disney ("The Armor of Light"), David Holbrooke ("The Diplomat") and Joshua Oppenheimer ("The Look of Silence"). Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville's "Best of Enemies" will open the festival on June 17, while "Mavis!" from Jessica Edwards will screen closing night on June 21. Read More: AFI Docs Names Ida's Michael Lumpkin as New...
- 5/20/2015
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
It is not surprising that documentarian Albert Maysles thought that fashion icon Iris Apfel would make a compelling subject for a film. Both artists kept on working late into the twilight of their careers, confounding expectations. Maysles, who died in March at the age of 88, will forever be one of the non-fiction film’s greatest forerunners, responsible for such indelible works as Gimme Shelter and Grey Gardens. Apfel, now 93, still works tirelessly and continues to be a no-holds-barred trendsetter of the New York fashion scene. Long beyond their time, both Maysles and Apfel will be immortalized by aspirants of the art form they championed.
With the exception of In Transit, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April, Iris marks Maysles’ last film. And while it may have a master both in front of and behind the camera, despite its often-effortless entertainment, this is a minor work. Nevertheless, Apfel is a terrific subject,...
With the exception of In Transit, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April, Iris marks Maysles’ last film. And while it may have a master both in front of and behind the camera, despite its often-effortless entertainment, this is a minor work. Nevertheless, Apfel is a terrific subject,...
- 5/15/2015
- by Jordan Adler
- We Got This Covered
Aferim!This year, Tribeca moved back home, swapping out the East Village’s AMC Loew’s 7 for the venue they once used, the nearly invisible Regal Battery Park Stadium 11 as one of the festival’s main theater locations. Whether it is coincidence or just one of the festival’s grand themes, the finest films I saw were about movement. Characters search high and low for someone or something. While carrying strange cargo, they journey to the West, to the East, wherever, going from point A to point B. If not travelling, then characters are stuck, stranded, or even trapped in a spot, but desiring to move, move, move. There’s a whole lotta riding and talking going on in Radu Jude’s Aferim! Shot on black-and-white film (Kodak Double-x), the film is set in 1855 Wallachia, a time in which the Romani people had subhuman status, being slaves to landowning Boyars,...
- 5/4/2015
- by Tanner Tafelski
- MUBI
The recent death of American documentarian Albert Maysles places something of an unfair burden on “Iris,” his penultimate production. (“In Transit” was completed but has yet to be released.) This lightweight portrait of a style icon is best enjoyed without being seen as the one of the final films in a distinguished career that included such classic films as “Grey Gardens” and “Gimme Shelter.” In terms of personal style, Iris Apfel might be seen as a distant cousin to “Gardens” protagonist Little Edie Beale — both women have a taste level and a gift for fashionable improvisation that all the...
- 4/30/2015
- by Alonso Duralde
- The Wrap
Read More: Tribeca Review: Albert Maysles' 'In Transit' is a Fitting End to His Career During Indiewire and Apple's Tribeca Talk for "In Transit," which was hosted at the Apple Store in Soho, Manhattan during the Tribeca Film Festival, co-director Nelson Walker expressed appreciation for the collaborative directing that characterized the film's production. He and directors Lynn True, David Usit and Ben Wu contributed to Albert Maysles' final project. "It helped that there were so many different shooters, because we all had different sensibilities and could connect with different types of people," said Walker during the talk, which was moderated by Indiewire's Eric Kohn. "Sometimes we would see somebody who was interesting; sometimes the people would come to us." The documentary is the final project of legendary filmmaker and direct cinema pioneer Albert Maysles ("Salesman," "Grey Gardens"), and explores the unique...
- 4/28/2015
- by Becca Nadler
- Indiewire
Read More: Meet the 2015 Tribeca Filmmakers In advance of this year's Tribeca Film Festival, Indiewire sent out a questionnaire to the filmmakers taking their work to Tribeca. Below you'll find a selection of their responses to the question of which films inspired them. Andrew Renzi ("Franny") "I'm inspired by all sorts of films, but among the ones I already mentioned, for 'Franny,' I was inspired by 'The Great Beauty,' 'The Leopard,' 'The Cable Guy' and 'Divorce Italian Style.'" Lynn True, Nelson Walker, Ben Wu and David Usui ("In Transit") Lynn True: "There are too many to name, but I'll admit being totally inspired by 'The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller,' which I saw when I was about seven years old when I probably didn't even know what a documentary was." Nelson Walker: "It's sort of cheating, but I'd...
- 4/21/2015
- by Travis Clark
- Indiewire
Read More: Meet the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival Filmmakers Numerous documentaries have attempted to create a diverse portrait of the United States of America, but none has ever achieved this solely by boarding our country's busiest long-distance train, the Empire Builder. In the documentary "In Transit," filmmakers Lynn True, Nelson Walker, Ben Wu and David Usui take the ride to hear stories from the train's various passengers and learn about the dreams and desires that are universal among us, regardless of where we come from or where we're going.What's your film about in 140 characters or less? "In Transit" is a portrait of America told through the stories of passengers aboard the Empire Builder, our nation's busiest long-distance train route. Now what's it Really about?"In Transit" is about finding common ground with our fellow passengers, and recognizing that we share many of the same hopes, fears and dreams, regardless of where we've come from or.
- 4/21/2015
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
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