Alice Diop’s award-winning courtroom drama doubles as an unsentimental study in empathy with one of the year’s most mesmerising performances
More on the best films of 2023More on the best culture of 2023
At this year’s Venice film festival, Alice Diop’s unblinking stunner Saint Omer was handed the prize for best debut film – a reward that would have seemed inadequate if it hadn’t shortly afterwards taken the grand prix in the main competition, and inaccurate under any circumstances. Diop’s film is only a debut if you’re happy to disregard documentary as a lesser branch of cinema that somehow doesn’t count; as her first dramatic feature, Saint Omer merely extends the clear-eyed gaze and burning social interest of her non-fiction work into new narrative terrain, with nary a tremor of uncertainty. Films like We showed Diop has form in braiding truth, storytelling and intense...
More on the best films of 2023More on the best culture of 2023
At this year’s Venice film festival, Alice Diop’s unblinking stunner Saint Omer was handed the prize for best debut film – a reward that would have seemed inadequate if it hadn’t shortly afterwards taken the grand prix in the main competition, and inaccurate under any circumstances. Diop’s film is only a debut if you’re happy to disregard documentary as a lesser branch of cinema that somehow doesn’t count; as her first dramatic feature, Saint Omer merely extends the clear-eyed gaze and burning social interest of her non-fiction work into new narrative terrain, with nary a tremor of uncertainty. Films like We showed Diop has form in braiding truth, storytelling and intense...
- 12/14/2023
- by Guy Lodge
- The Guardian - Film News
Amidst the potential 2024 majors––Jia Zhangke, Olivier Assayas, Leos Carax, Arnaud Desplechin, Paul Schrader, and Kiyoshi Kurosawa but a handful––we should invest as much hope in a new film from Alain Guiraudie. Late last year we reported on his feature Miséricorde (Mercy in English), and this week CG Cinéma’s Romain Blondeau announced the commencement of shooting with Claire Mathon (his Dp on Staying Vertical and Stranger By the Lake) in tow.
Miséricorde is said to follow a noir-like plot concerning Jérémie, a 30-year-old who returns to his native Saint-Martial for a friend’s funeral. While there “he must contend with rumors and suspicion, until he commits an irreparable act and finds himself at the centre of a police investigation.” Knowing Guiraudie’s unflinching visions of violence and sexuality (not least in his superb novel Now the Night Begins), I am already girding my loins. Catherine Frot, Felix Kysyl,...
Miséricorde is said to follow a noir-like plot concerning Jérémie, a 30-year-old who returns to his native Saint-Martial for a friend’s funeral. While there “he must contend with rumors and suspicion, until he commits an irreparable act and finds himself at the centre of a police investigation.” Knowing Guiraudie’s unflinching visions of violence and sexuality (not least in his superb novel Now the Night Begins), I am already girding my loins. Catherine Frot, Felix Kysyl,...
- 11/1/2023
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Just weeks before Alain Guiraudie is set to begin production on his seventh feature film, we learn (via the lesinrocks folks) that the cast of Miséricorde is comprised of veteran actress Catherine Frot along with Felix Kysyl, Jean-Baptiste Durand, Jacques Develay and David Ayala. Guiraudie will be reteaming with cinematographer Claire Mathon for a third time – they previously paired on Stranger by the Lake and Staying Vertical. Mathon was most recently on the set for Pablo Agüero’s Saint-Ex. Sold by the Les Films du Losange folks, with production beginning in next month we figure that a Cannes showing is not in the cards with a Locarno or Venice premiere more probable.…...
- 10/13/2023
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
Beta Cinema has boarded international sales on “Not a Word,” which will have its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in the competitive Platform section. The cast is led by Maren Eggert, who won the best acting award at the Berlin Film Festival for “I’m Your Man.”
The film is written and directed by Hanna Slak, whose credits include the Slovenian Oscar entry “The Miner,” and was lensed by Claire Mathon, the cinematographer of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Saint-Omer,” “Stranger by the Lake” and “Spencer.”
Eggert plays ambitious musician and conductor Nina. When her teenage son, Lars, has a strange accident at school, she decides to take a break from city life and together they head to their vacation home on an island on the rugged Atlantic coast. Bound in silence, their already brittle relationship is pushed to the edge.
Jona Levin Nicolai co-stars as the provocative teenage son while Maryam Zaree,...
The film is written and directed by Hanna Slak, whose credits include the Slovenian Oscar entry “The Miner,” and was lensed by Claire Mathon, the cinematographer of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Saint-Omer,” “Stranger by the Lake” and “Spencer.”
Eggert plays ambitious musician and conductor Nina. When her teenage son, Lars, has a strange accident at school, she decides to take a break from city life and together they head to their vacation home on an island on the rugged Atlantic coast. Bound in silence, their already brittle relationship is pushed to the edge.
Jona Levin Nicolai co-stars as the provocative teenage son while Maryam Zaree,...
- 8/2/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Hong Kong Arts Centre Moving Image Programme Presents “CameraWomen: Films by Women Cinematographers”
Women have held vital positions in filmmaking since the beginning of its history. Based on our current knowledge, the first credited female director of photography (Dp) is Italian Rosina Cianelli in 1915, but there are earlier examples in US magazines. Cinematography is traditionally a male profession. It is a technical and physical job, involving endurance and heavy lifting, which have not been thought of as something that women were good at. But as time goes by, many women have broken the stereotype, and secured their place in this line of work by making films across genres. Today, women cinematographers are still a minority, and widespread recognition of their contribution is still overdue. To appreciate their efforts, the Hong Kong Arts Centre (Hkac) presents this programme with their partners to introduce their work, accompanied by after-screening talks with them or their directors.
There have also been more women taking up creative roles in Hong Kong filmmaking.
There have also been more women taking up creative roles in Hong Kong filmmaking.
- 5/21/2023
- by Suzie Cho
- AsianMoviePulse
It’s not the type of work which wins the big awards – too simple, focused on getting results rather than getting attention – but Claire Mathon’s cinematography in the slow-paced, quietly devastating Saint Omer is a thing of beauty. Revealing every nuance as light filters through tall windows into a provincial French courtroom, it reveals the defendant, Laurence Coly (Guslagie Malanda), almost as an afterthought. Dressed in a soft brown suit which blends into the surrounding woodwork, she is small, quiet, speaking when spoken to in the unvarnished manner of one who has lost all hope. Yes, she acknowledges, she left her infant daughter alone on a beach where she would be drowned when the tide came in. No, she does not believe that she is guilty of murder.
The film is based on a real trial which director Alice Diop attended as an observer in 2016. Here, we see it.
The film is based on a real trial which director Alice Diop attended as an observer in 2016. Here, we see it.
- 2/2/2023
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
’Rise’ and ’Pacifiction’ are also strong contenders.
Louis Garrel’s crime-infused romantic comedy The Innocent and Dominik Moll’s investigative drama The Night Of The 12th are the frontrunners for France’s 48th annual Cesar Awards with 11 and 10 nominations respectively.
Scroll down for full list of nominations
Cédric Klapisch’s dance drama Rise and Albert Serra’s political thriller Pacifiction follow with nine nominations each.
The titles are all selected in the best film category alongside Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi’s Forever Young.
Despite a strong showing from French female directors at both the box office and festivals, the best director category is all-male this year.
Louis Garrel’s crime-infused romantic comedy The Innocent and Dominik Moll’s investigative drama The Night Of The 12th are the frontrunners for France’s 48th annual Cesar Awards with 11 and 10 nominations respectively.
Scroll down for full list of nominations
Cédric Klapisch’s dance drama Rise and Albert Serra’s political thriller Pacifiction follow with nine nominations each.
The titles are all selected in the best film category alongside Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi’s Forever Young.
Despite a strong showing from French female directors at both the box office and festivals, the best director category is all-male this year.
- 1/25/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Dominik Moll’s The Night of The 12th has won best film at the 28th edition of France’s Lumière Awards in Paris on Monday evening.
The investigative drama, which was nominated in six categories, also won Best Screenplay.
The film, which debuted in the Cannes Film Festival’s non-competitive Cannes Première section, stars Bastien Bouillon as a police detective who becomes obsessed with a case involving a complex female murder victim.
Best director went to Albert Serra for French Polynesia-set drama Pacification. The feature also clinched two other prizes: Best Actor for Benoît Magimal and Best Cinematography for Artur Tort.
Virginie Efira won Best Actress for her performance in Rebecca Zlotowski’s Other People’s Children about the challenge of navigating the stepmother role.
Nadia Tereszkiewicz won Best Female Revelation for her performance in Forever Young and Dimitri Doré, Best Male Revelation for Bruno Reidal.
Alice Diop clinched best documentary category for We,...
The investigative drama, which was nominated in six categories, also won Best Screenplay.
The film, which debuted in the Cannes Film Festival’s non-competitive Cannes Première section, stars Bastien Bouillon as a police detective who becomes obsessed with a case involving a complex female murder victim.
Best director went to Albert Serra for French Polynesia-set drama Pacification. The feature also clinched two other prizes: Best Actor for Benoît Magimal and Best Cinematography for Artur Tort.
Virginie Efira won Best Actress for her performance in Rebecca Zlotowski’s Other People’s Children about the challenge of navigating the stepmother role.
Nadia Tereszkiewicz won Best Female Revelation for her performance in Forever Young and Dimitri Doré, Best Male Revelation for Bruno Reidal.
Alice Diop clinched best documentary category for We,...
- 1/16/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Céline Sciamma's 2019 romance "Portrait of a Lady on Fire," although only made three years ago, recently appeared in the 2022 Sight and Sound Film Poll as the 30th best film of all time. It won Best Screenplay and the Queer Palm at Cannes, was nominated for 11 César Awards, and topped any number of critics' best-of-the-year lists. And, honestly, it's just that good. When it was released on Blu-ray directly to the prestigious Criterion Collection, few could claim to have batted an eye.
Sciamma's film is about romance, but it's also about looking. Looking at someone, drifting into their eyes, sharing their space, connecting with their heart and body, falling in love with them as a work of art. In the late 18th century, a portrait painter named Marianne (Noémie Merlant) has been commissioned by a dry aristocrat to paint a portrait of Héloïse (Adèle Haenel) as a means of "selling...
Sciamma's film is about romance, but it's also about looking. Looking at someone, drifting into their eyes, sharing their space, connecting with their heart and body, falling in love with them as a work of art. In the late 18th century, a portrait painter named Marianne (Noémie Merlant) has been commissioned by a dry aristocrat to paint a portrait of Héloïse (Adèle Haenel) as a means of "selling...
- 1/14/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Céline Sciamma's "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" is not only a heart-wrenching romantic drama featuring two revelatory performances, but it's also a visually stunning film as beautiful as the love story within it. Although the titular painting is worth the price of admission alone, the cinematography — which was wrongfully snubbed at the Oscars — is worth admiring in the same way. From the pastel colors to the dimly lit night sequences, "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" is a mesmerizing sight that tells its story just as efficiently as any piece of dialogue does. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the filmmakers behind "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" looked to another revered period piece for their lighting philosophy, namely Stanley Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon."
"Portrait of a Lady on Fire" takes place during the 18th century, a point in time that sees Marianne (Noémie Merlant) and Héloïse (Adèle Haenel) fall in love on an isolated French island.
"Portrait of a Lady on Fire" takes place during the 18th century, a point in time that sees Marianne (Noémie Merlant) and Héloïse (Adèle Haenel) fall in love on an isolated French island.
- 1/14/2023
- by Marcos Melendez
- Slash Film
Dominik Moll’s The Night of The 12th, which world premiered in Cannes in May, has topped the nominations for the 28th edition of France’s Lumière Awards.
The awards are voted on by members of the international press corp hailing from 36 countries based in France.
The Night Of The 12th was nominated in six categories including best film, director and screenplay. The film debuted in the Cannes Film Festival’s non competitive Cannes Première section.
The investigative drama is Moll’s seventh feature. It stars Bastien Bouillon, with support from Bouli Lanners, as a police detective who becomes obsessed with a case involving a complex female murder victim.
Other multi-nominated titles include Albert Serra’s French Polynesia-set drama Pacification five nominations.
Four films received four nominations each: Alice Diop’s Saint-Omer; Rebecca Zlotowski’s Other People’s Children; Louis Garrel’s The Innocent and Gaspar Noé’s Vortex.
Diop,...
The awards are voted on by members of the international press corp hailing from 36 countries based in France.
The Night Of The 12th was nominated in six categories including best film, director and screenplay. The film debuted in the Cannes Film Festival’s non competitive Cannes Première section.
The investigative drama is Moll’s seventh feature. It stars Bastien Bouillon, with support from Bouli Lanners, as a police detective who becomes obsessed with a case involving a complex female murder victim.
Other multi-nominated titles include Albert Serra’s French Polynesia-set drama Pacification five nominations.
Four films received four nominations each: Alice Diop’s Saint-Omer; Rebecca Zlotowski’s Other People’s Children; Louis Garrel’s The Innocent and Gaspar Noé’s Vortex.
Diop,...
- 12/15/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
The Kiev Trial.His second film of the year—and seventh since the start of the decade—Sergei Loznitsa’s latest archival documentary, The Kiev Trial, is a chronicle of the titular 1946 hearing that saw fifteen Nazi officers convicted of crimes against humanity in a ruling that would predate the Nuremberg sentences by a few months. “If The Natural History of Destruction was a symphony,” Loznitsa told me as we sat to discuss his latest halfway through the fest, “The Kiev Trial is a chamber piece.” Unveiled in Cannes just a few months ago, Natural History cartwheeled across a vast and lugubrious canvas of carpet-bombings during World War II. Where that film was sprawling, the narrative here is much more straightforward. We begin with a brief parade of post-war, rubble-littered Kiev before venturing into the courtroom, which we’ll only leave to witness the Nazis’ executions together with a crowd of 200,000 besieging Kalinin Square.
- 9/10/2022
- MUBI
In 2016, in the courtroom of Saint-Omer, a small, untouristed town off a D-road between Calais and Lille, the trial took place of a young Senegalese Frenchwoman accused of murdering her baby: an act so utterly antithetical to accepted ideas of motherhood and womanhood that it is inescapably considered the “worst of all possible crimes.” The woman, a PhD student with a reported genius Iq and a flair for flamboyantly intellectual French, confessed but claimed sorcery as the real culprit. It’s the kind of true story that presents an obvious opportunity for a sensitive social drama given to sober, sorrowfully objective observations about the perilous, tumbling vortex of class, gender, ethnic and cultural issues in which it plays out. “Saint Omer,” the deceptively austere, extraordinarily multifaceted fiction debut from documentarian Alice Diop, is not that film.
Instead, positioned on a mesmerizingly steady axis stretching, as though along a fascinated gaze,...
Instead, positioned on a mesmerizingly steady axis stretching, as though along a fascinated gaze,...
- 9/7/2022
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
In 1997, UCLA cinematography professor William McDonald was home with his newborn daughter. As he looked into her eyes in his sleep-deprived state he began to wonder what her life would be like if she grew up and wanted to become a cinematographer. Would she have the same opportunities as men who wanted to study cinematography? Would she be able to find work after getting a degree and experience?
At the time, female cinematography students were few and far between. Things looked similarly bleak for working female DPs during that period. McDonald thought that could change if more women had the opportunity to study and train in the field, so he set a goal of admitting 50% female students into cinematography studies each year.
“The simple premise is that if you make a generational commitment — and about 25 to 30 years is a generational commitment — to flooding the market with exceedingly talented people from...
At the time, female cinematography students were few and far between. Things looked similarly bleak for working female DPs during that period. McDonald thought that could change if more women had the opportunity to study and train in the field, so he set a goal of admitting 50% female students into cinematography studies each year.
“The simple premise is that if you make a generational commitment — and about 25 to 30 years is a generational commitment — to flooding the market with exceedingly talented people from...
- 3/9/2022
- by Karen Idelson
- Variety Film + TV
Éric Baudelaire’s distinctive A Flower In The Mouth (Une Fleur à La bouche), co-written with Anne-Louise Trividic, shot exquisitely by Claire Mathon, stars recording artist Oxmo Puccino making his impressive acting debut, and Dali Benssalah. The 67-minute film, produced by Sylvie Pialat and Baudelaire, had its world premiere screening this past weekend in the Forum section of the 72nd Berlin Film Festival and is bisected into two filmic hemispheres, both dealing with flowers in existential ways.
A woman is carefully, beautifully gift-wrapping a package in a small shop. It is already dark outside, autumn maybe, and a man (Oxmo...
A woman is carefully, beautifully gift-wrapping a package in a small shop. It is already dark outside, autumn maybe, and a man (Oxmo...
- 2/15/2022
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
In April 2019, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences board of governors decided to change the name of the foreign-language-film category, saying it was “outdated within the global film community.” So they renamed it “international film.” It’s better, but still not precise: All films are international, whether they’re in English or not. This year’s Academy Awards race provides many reminders of that fact.
Several 2021 Oscar contenders seem like all-American films, such as “West Side Story,” though the cinematographer is Janusz Kaminski, from Poland; “Nightmare Alley” boasts Dp Dan Laustsen (Denmark), editor Cam McLauchlin and production designer Tamara Deverell (both Canada), not to mention director Guillermo del Toro (Mexico) and stars Cate Blanchett and Toni Collette (both from Australia).
“Coda,” the great funny/poignant comedy about a U.S. family, includes producer Philippe Rousselet (France) and Dp Paula Huidobro (Mexico City), in addition to stars Emilia Jones (the U.
Several 2021 Oscar contenders seem like all-American films, such as “West Side Story,” though the cinematographer is Janusz Kaminski, from Poland; “Nightmare Alley” boasts Dp Dan Laustsen (Denmark), editor Cam McLauchlin and production designer Tamara Deverell (both Canada), not to mention director Guillermo del Toro (Mexico) and stars Cate Blanchett and Toni Collette (both from Australia).
“Coda,” the great funny/poignant comedy about a U.S. family, includes producer Philippe Rousselet (France) and Dp Paula Huidobro (Mexico City), in addition to stars Emilia Jones (the U.
- 1/23/2022
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
It’s tempting to draw a straight line between the Academy’s increasingly global composition and the unprecedented triumph of Bong Joon Ho’s “Parasite” in 2019. And if we regard the Academy’s changing attitude less as a driver and more as a symptom of a more general broadening of cultural horizons, the correlation is more than pure coincidence.
But the real story of international talent making waves at the Oscars is more complex, differing from category to category and complicated by varied international release strategies. With respect to the role international festivals can play in this process, “Parasite’s” win at Cannes gave it an enviable profile boost in 2019, but even that was a little anomalous: in recent years Venice has eclipsed Cannes and U.S. festivals as a launchpad for Oscar players.
Cannes prizewinner “Drive My Car” has a shot at Oscar noms in several categories.
After 2020’s instability,...
But the real story of international talent making waves at the Oscars is more complex, differing from category to category and complicated by varied international release strategies. With respect to the role international festivals can play in this process, “Parasite’s” win at Cannes gave it an enviable profile boost in 2019, but even that was a little anomalous: in recent years Venice has eclipsed Cannes and U.S. festivals as a launchpad for Oscar players.
Cannes prizewinner “Drive My Car” has a shot at Oscar noms in several categories.
After 2020’s instability,...
- 1/21/2022
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
After a charged premiere at the Venice Film Festival, Pablo Larraín’s Spencer has become one of this season’s hottest contenders. A haunting study of one particular Christmas at Sandringham for Diana, Princess of Wales, as her marriage falters and the Royal fairytale turns grim, Spencer features a landmark performance by Kristen Stewart that has catapulted her to the top of the Best Actress race. Joe Utichi meets Larraín and Stewart to dig deep into the production.
What was the jumping-off point for Pablo Larraín and Kristen Stewart for the film that would become Spencer? The pair share a look and laugh.
“It’s a very reasonable question,” Larraín says.
“And a reasonable start of a conversation,” Stewart agrees.
But it’s also impossible for them to know how to respond. “Depending on how we answer the conversation can go any which way, so which conversation is this going to be?...
What was the jumping-off point for Pablo Larraín and Kristen Stewart for the film that would become Spencer? The pair share a look and laugh.
“It’s a very reasonable question,” Larraín says.
“And a reasonable start of a conversation,” Stewart agrees.
But it’s also impossible for them to know how to respond. “Depending on how we answer the conversation can go any which way, so which conversation is this going to be?...
- 12/8/2021
- by Joe Utichi
- Deadline Film + TV
Kristen Stewart is note-perfect in this ghostly and inventive vision of Princess Diana fighting for her sanity
In 2013, respected German film-maker Oliver Hirschbiegel (director of Downfall) turned the Princess of Wales’s stormy life into a farce with Diana, a tatty soap opera featuring a tilt-headed, big-haired Naomi Watts reciting platitudes lifted wholesale from the pages of Hello! magazine. In stark contrast, Chilean director Pablo Larraín’s thematic companion piece to his 2016 hit Jackie offers a bold and somewhat mysterious portrait of a woman searching for her own identity, conjuring “a fable from a true tragedy” that, for all its dramatic invention, feels remarkably truthful. Playing out over three excruciating days at Sandringham – from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day – and carried shoulder high by a note-perfect Kristen Stewart, Spencer (the very title of which seems to present a challenge to the House of Windsor) dances between ethereal ghost story, arch social satire and no-holds-barred psychodrama,...
In 2013, respected German film-maker Oliver Hirschbiegel (director of Downfall) turned the Princess of Wales’s stormy life into a farce with Diana, a tatty soap opera featuring a tilt-headed, big-haired Naomi Watts reciting platitudes lifted wholesale from the pages of Hello! magazine. In stark contrast, Chilean director Pablo Larraín’s thematic companion piece to his 2016 hit Jackie offers a bold and somewhat mysterious portrait of a woman searching for her own identity, conjuring “a fable from a true tragedy” that, for all its dramatic invention, feels remarkably truthful. Playing out over three excruciating days at Sandringham – from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day – and carried shoulder high by a note-perfect Kristen Stewart, Spencer (the very title of which seems to present a challenge to the House of Windsor) dances between ethereal ghost story, arch social satire and no-holds-barred psychodrama,...
- 11/7/2021
- by Mark Kermode, Observer film critic
- The Guardian - Film News
by Nathaniel R
A woman driving alone stops at a diner along the road to ask directions. She’s lost which is as common a problem as it gets. In any usual circumstance this would go unnoticed by other patrons but this is not a usual circumstance and this woman is far from common, and no Commoner at that. The whole room stops to gawk at her. This clever gambit early in Spencer sets Princess Diana (Kristen Stewart) immediately apart from humanity. A elegant but sterile aerial shot from the gifted cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire) futher isolates her when she reaches that destination. She’s just a tiny figure about to be swallowed up in an imposing estate.
While the opening scenes of Spencer are promising and mobile, and the craft of the filmmaking as rich as you’d expect from the Chilean master Pablo Larraín,...
A woman driving alone stops at a diner along the road to ask directions. She’s lost which is as common a problem as it gets. In any usual circumstance this would go unnoticed by other patrons but this is not a usual circumstance and this woman is far from common, and no Commoner at that. The whole room stops to gawk at her. This clever gambit early in Spencer sets Princess Diana (Kristen Stewart) immediately apart from humanity. A elegant but sterile aerial shot from the gifted cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire) futher isolates her when she reaches that destination. She’s just a tiny figure about to be swallowed up in an imposing estate.
While the opening scenes of Spencer are promising and mobile, and the craft of the filmmaking as rich as you’d expect from the Chilean master Pablo Larraín,...
- 11/6/2021
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Wins at Toronto and Middleburg film festivals pushed Kenneth Branagh’s “Belfast” into front-runner status. The visually stunning, heartwarming film shot by Haris Zambarloukos is so deliciously rich that this film could walk home with a few statues come 2022.
Multiple contenders, also shot in black-and-white, could find themselves in the running. There is Robbie Ryan, whose lush camerawork in Mike Mill’s “C’mon C’mon” has been receiving praise for the dreamy images in the Joaquin Phoenix-starrer. Eduard Grau added warm textures to Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut “Passing.” Close-ups were key to this tale of colorism. Bruno Delbonnel gave a noir-esque feel to each frame of “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” the dark cinematography lending itself to the tale.
While black and white might dominate, the ASC needs to hear the plea that women cinematographers have shot some of the year’s best films. Ari Wegner’s “Power of the...
Multiple contenders, also shot in black-and-white, could find themselves in the running. There is Robbie Ryan, whose lush camerawork in Mike Mill’s “C’mon C’mon” has been receiving praise for the dreamy images in the Joaquin Phoenix-starrer. Eduard Grau added warm textures to Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut “Passing.” Close-ups were key to this tale of colorism. Bruno Delbonnel gave a noir-esque feel to each frame of “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” the dark cinematography lending itself to the tale.
While black and white might dominate, the ASC needs to hear the plea that women cinematographers have shot some of the year’s best films. Ari Wegner’s “Power of the...
- 11/5/2021
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
The cinematography field is packed with immeasurable talent but not equal opportunities, particularly for women. When a tragedy occurs such as the loss of Halyna Hutchins, who died at 42 after being shot by a prop firearm on the set of the indie film “Rust,” the absence is felt throughout the industry.
In the 93 years of the Academy Awards, Rachel Morrison is the only woman ever to be nominated for cinematography, for her work on Dee Rees’ “Mudbound.” And the cinematographers’ branch has a poor track record for honoring diverse and inclusive artists. Case in point: A Black cinematographer has never won the category, and only two have been nominated (Remi Adefarasin for 1998’s “Elizabeth” and Bradford Young for 2016’s “Arrival”).
This year, multiple women are bringing their A-game to high-profile films. Ari Wegner creates distinct visions in Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” from Netflix and Janicza Bravo’s “Zola” from A24.
In the 93 years of the Academy Awards, Rachel Morrison is the only woman ever to be nominated for cinematography, for her work on Dee Rees’ “Mudbound.” And the cinematographers’ branch has a poor track record for honoring diverse and inclusive artists. Case in point: A Black cinematographer has never won the category, and only two have been nominated (Remi Adefarasin for 1998’s “Elizabeth” and Bradford Young for 2016’s “Arrival”).
This year, multiple women are bringing their A-game to high-profile films. Ari Wegner creates distinct visions in Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” from Netflix and Janicza Bravo’s “Zola” from A24.
- 11/4/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
As the year winds down, November brings a packed slate of new releases––including festival favorites we can already recommend and others that hold a great deal of promise. From some of the greatest auteurs working today to breakthrough voices, there’s much to check out. See our picks below.
16. The Humans (Stephen Karam; Nov. 14 in theaters and on Showtime)
One of the notable premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival was writer-director Stephen Karam’s debut feature The Humans, adapted from his Tony Award-winning play. Coming from A24, the film follows Richard Jenkins, Jayne Houdyshell, Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Steven Yeun, and June Squibb in a story of a family who gathers in Manhattan for a Thanksgiving meal as their fears are laid bare. As C.J. Prince said in his TIFF review, “Everything is wrong in The Humans, Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his Tony-winning play. Set entirely...
16. The Humans (Stephen Karam; Nov. 14 in theaters and on Showtime)
One of the notable premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival was writer-director Stephen Karam’s debut feature The Humans, adapted from his Tony Award-winning play. Coming from A24, the film follows Richard Jenkins, Jayne Houdyshell, Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Steven Yeun, and June Squibb in a story of a family who gathers in Manhattan for a Thanksgiving meal as their fears are laid bare. As C.J. Prince said in his TIFF review, “Everything is wrong in The Humans, Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his Tony-winning play. Set entirely...
- 11/2/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Little girls growing up wanting to be princesses might think again after seeing Kristen Stewart in this dramatized snapshot of three days in the life of the late ‘people’s princess,’ Lady Diana Spencer. Though the movie doesn’t deal with Diana’s death, the looming knowledge of what is to come for the young mother hangs heavy throughout. But instead of directly dealing with that sorrow, Pablo Larraín’s “fable from a true tragedy” focuses on the gilded cage of Diana’s life over Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day in 1991. What results is one the most depressing Christmas movies of recent times.
Spencer opens with a close up shot of a dead pheasant, as a multitude of land rovers bring lavish supplies to Sandringham ahead of the seasonal celebrations, the wheels perilously close to the pheasant as they pass. Not a candle in the wind, then, this Diana,...
Spencer opens with a close up shot of a dead pheasant, as a multitude of land rovers bring lavish supplies to Sandringham ahead of the seasonal celebrations, the wheels perilously close to the pheasant as they pass. Not a candle in the wind, then, this Diana,...
- 11/1/2021
- by Rosie Fletcher
- Den of Geek
Whenever a film begins with a disclaimer asserting that the story you’re about to see is fictional — and furthermore, that what shall unfold on-screen “should not be considered a reflection of a reality” — it’s hard not to go in assuming the exact opposite. Why protest so much if there’s no factual basis there? In the case of “Undercover,” our skepticism is precisely the filmmakers’ intent: That introductory, legally obligatory text could hardly make its irony any clearer with actual scare quotes. Names have been changed, but anyone familiar with the headlines can tell that Thierry de Peretti’s no-frills, teeth-gritted procedural thriller has been drawn from the real-life case of former French anti-narcotics chief Francois Thierry, charged in 2017 with complicity in large-scale drug smuggling using police resources. It’s a sensational affair that de Peretti treats with sober practicality, emulating the patient investigative techniques of the journalist...
- 9/26/2021
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Blue Moon (Crai Nou) by Romanian director Alina Grigore won the Golden Shell at the 69th San Sebastian Film Festival whose top awards were swept by female filmmakers and actors.
For the first time, the film festival a gender neutral acting award. The Best Leading Performance prize was shared. Jessica Chastain was honored for her portrayal of televangelist Tammy Faye Messner in The Eyes of Tammy Faye. The other winner was 16 -year-old Flora Ofelia Hofmann Lindahl, star of the Danish film As in Heaven (Du som er i himlen). The film’s Tea Lindeburg was named Best Director.
Other major female winners included Tatiana Huezo, whose Prayers for the Stolen (Noche de fuego) took the prize for Best Latin American film, Claire Mathon, Best Cinematography winner for Undercover (Enquête sur un scandale d’état) and Lucile Hadzihalilovic whose film Earwig was recognized with the festival’s special prize.
The sole...
For the first time, the film festival a gender neutral acting award. The Best Leading Performance prize was shared. Jessica Chastain was honored for her portrayal of televangelist Tammy Faye Messner in The Eyes of Tammy Faye. The other winner was 16 -year-old Flora Ofelia Hofmann Lindahl, star of the Danish film As in Heaven (Du som er i himlen). The film’s Tea Lindeburg was named Best Director.
Other major female winners included Tatiana Huezo, whose Prayers for the Stolen (Noche de fuego) took the prize for Best Latin American film, Claire Mathon, Best Cinematography winner for Undercover (Enquête sur un scandale d’état) and Lucile Hadzihalilovic whose film Earwig was recognized with the festival’s special prize.
The sole...
- 9/26/2021
- by The Deadline Team
- Deadline Film + TV
Other winners included Earwig, Jessica Chastain, Tea Lindeburg and Terence Davies.
A debut feature by Romanian director Alina Grigore, Blue Moon has won the Golden Shell award for best film at the 69th edition of the San Sebastian International Film Festival (Ssiff).
The victory adds another woman director as winner of a festival’s main prize following the Palme d’Or win at Cannes for Julia Ducournau’s Titane and the Venice Golden Lion triumph for Audrey Diwan’s Happening.
Other awards in Ssiff’s main competition included a special jury prize for Earwig, by Lucile Hadzilhalilovic; the Silver Shell...
A debut feature by Romanian director Alina Grigore, Blue Moon has won the Golden Shell award for best film at the 69th edition of the San Sebastian International Film Festival (Ssiff).
The victory adds another woman director as winner of a festival’s main prize following the Palme d’Or win at Cannes for Julia Ducournau’s Titane and the Venice Golden Lion triumph for Audrey Diwan’s Happening.
Other awards in Ssiff’s main competition included a special jury prize for Earwig, by Lucile Hadzilhalilovic; the Silver Shell...
- 9/25/2021
- by Elisabet Cabeza
- ScreenDaily
Female directors and actors reigned supreme at tonight’s San Sebastian Film Festival awards ceremony, with the Romanian actor-turned-director Alina Grigore taking the Golden Shell for Best Film for her intimate debut feature “Blue Moon.” The film, a raw realist study of a young woman attempting to free herself from an abusive rural household, was an unexpected winner, besting a number of higher-profile auteur films in the festival’s main competition. Yet a full spectrum was covered: At the opposite end of the celebrity scale, Jessica Chastain was one of two Best Leading Performance winners for “The Eyes of Tammy Faye.”
This was the second year in a row that a first-time female filmmaker took the festival’s top prize. Last year, Georgian writer-director Dea Kulumbegashvili swept the board for her debut “Beginning,” which won the Golden Shell in addition to Best Director, Actress and Screenplay. Kulumbegashvili returned to the...
This was the second year in a row that a first-time female filmmaker took the festival’s top prize. Last year, Georgian writer-director Dea Kulumbegashvili swept the board for her debut “Beginning,” which won the Golden Shell in addition to Best Director, Actress and Screenplay. Kulumbegashvili returned to the...
- 9/25/2021
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
A Kristen Stewart-led Princess Diana don’t-call-it-a-biopic-because-it’s-only-set-in-a-small-period-of-time-we-obviously-mustn’t-take-as-an-encapsulation-of-her-life from the director of Jackie is, er, something about which we had certain questions. But we were mostly with Spencer, which follows Diana as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, during which time she decides to end her marriage to Prince Charles. With a festival run mostly behind and theatrical premiere kicking off November 5, we have a full trailer.
As David Katz said in our review, “Larraín once again swipes from more original filmmakers, and his swings for profundity end up stranded in camp. But this is a film that will potentially delight, challenge, and force its wide target audience to take seriously on its own terms.”
Also starring Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris, the Steven Knight-scripted drama boasts cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire...
As David Katz said in our review, “Larraín once again swipes from more original filmmakers, and his swings for profundity end up stranded in camp. But this is a film that will potentially delight, challenge, and force its wide target audience to take seriously on its own terms.”
Also starring Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris, the Steven Knight-scripted drama boasts cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire...
- 9/23/2021
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
With Ema now finally getting a U.S. release this month, Pablo Larraín is quickly returning with his Kristen Stewart-led Princess Diana drama Spencer. Ahead of a festival run and theatrical release this November via Neon, the first teaser has arrived.
The drama––which follows Diana as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles––will premiere at Venice Film Festival followed by a stop at TIFF. Also starring Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris, the Steven Knight-scripted drama boasts cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire) and composer Jonny Greenwood as part of the crew.
“Isn’t it the key of cinema to have an actor or a character in a crisis? All the dramatic theory orbits around that somehow,” the director tells Vulture. “There are movies like...
The drama––which follows Diana as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles––will premiere at Venice Film Festival followed by a stop at TIFF. Also starring Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris, the Steven Knight-scripted drama boasts cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire) and composer Jonny Greenwood as part of the crew.
“Isn’t it the key of cinema to have an actor or a character in a crisis? All the dramatic theory orbits around that somehow,” the director tells Vulture. “There are movies like...
- 8/26/2021
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
The colors are lavish and the gowns are magnificent, but there’s a sense of anguish and mystery in the first trailer for “Spencer,” the much-anticipated biopic about Princess Diana starring Kristen Stewart.
This first look shows Stewart struggling and drifting through these vast palace corridors, but there’s secrets she’s not showing, responding when one of her aides say, “They know everything” by calmly confiding, “They don’t.”
“Spencer” focuses on the one weekend when Princess Diana decided to leave her marriage to Prince Charles during Christmas 1991. Spencer was her maiden name before she wed the British royal. Here’s the full synopsis for the film:
December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game.
This first look shows Stewart struggling and drifting through these vast palace corridors, but there’s secrets she’s not showing, responding when one of her aides say, “They know everything” by calmly confiding, “They don’t.”
“Spencer” focuses on the one weekend when Princess Diana decided to leave her marriage to Prince Charles during Christmas 1991. Spencer was her maiden name before she wed the British royal. Here’s the full synopsis for the film:
December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game.
- 8/26/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Pablo Larraín is gearing up for a major second half of 2021. At long last, his dance/relationship drama Ema will arrive next month (more on that later) and the premiere of his Kristen Stewart-led Princess Diana drama Spencer has now been confirmed.
Variety reports the drama––which follows Diana as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles––will premiere at Venice Film Festival. Also starring Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris, the Steven Knight-scripted drama boasts cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire) and composer Jonny Greenwood as part of the crew.
Before Spencer likely arrives this fall via Neon, Music Box Films will finally get a theatrical release to Ema on August 13, following a digital release on September 14. Led by Mariana Di Girólamo and Gael García Bernal,...
Variety reports the drama––which follows Diana as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles––will premiere at Venice Film Festival. Also starring Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris, the Steven Knight-scripted drama boasts cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire) and composer Jonny Greenwood as part of the crew.
Before Spencer likely arrives this fall via Neon, Music Box Films will finally get a theatrical release to Ema on August 13, following a digital release on September 14. Led by Mariana Di Girólamo and Gael García Bernal,...
- 7/13/2021
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Pablo Larraín’s upcoming Princess Diana drama “Spencer” has found its Prince Charles in English actor Jack Farthing. The 35-year-old performer is currently filming the project opposite Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, a new photo of which has been released (see below). Larraín has been filming “Spencer” in Germany, but now the production is heading to the United Kingdom for the final stretch of principal photography. Neon will be releasing “Spencer” in theaters later this year.
The official “Spencer” synopsis reads: “December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumors of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.”
“Spencer” is a contained narrative set over the course of a single Christmas weekend as Diana...
The official “Spencer” synopsis reads: “December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumors of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.”
“Spencer” is a contained narrative set over the course of a single Christmas weekend as Diana...
- 3/25/2021
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Filming has shifted to the U.K. Thursday on “Spencer,” the biographical film that stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, and the film has also added to its cast Jack Farthing as Prince Charles.
The film, directed by Pablo Larraín, focuses on the one weekend when Diana decided to leave her marriage to Prince Charles. Spencer was her maiden name before she wed the British royal. Kristen Stewart stars as Princess Diana in “Spencer” alongside Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins and Sean Harris. The film is directed by Larraín, who transformed Natalie Portman into Jackie Kennedy for the film “Jackie,” and written by Steven Knight, known for “Peaky Blinders,” “Locke” and “Dirty Pretty Things.”
Neon, which is expected to release “Spencer” later this year, also released another new image of Stewart as Diana, which you can see above. The film hopes to hit theaters this fall ahead of the 25th anniversary...
The film, directed by Pablo Larraín, focuses on the one weekend when Diana decided to leave her marriage to Prince Charles. Spencer was her maiden name before she wed the British royal. Kristen Stewart stars as Princess Diana in “Spencer” alongside Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins and Sean Harris. The film is directed by Larraín, who transformed Natalie Portman into Jackie Kennedy for the film “Jackie,” and written by Steven Knight, known for “Peaky Blinders,” “Locke” and “Dirty Pretty Things.”
Neon, which is expected to release “Spencer” later this year, also released another new image of Stewart as Diana, which you can see above. The film hopes to hit theaters this fall ahead of the 25th anniversary...
- 3/25/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Pablo Larrain directs the feature that stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana.
Pablo Larrain’s Spencer has cast Poldark star Jack Farthing as Prince Charles, as the shoot moves to the UK for the final stretch of filming.
The film, which stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, has been shooting in Germany since January 28 at the Schloss Marquardt in Potsdam, a castle which is doubling as Sandringham Estate. But the production has now moved to the UK for the remainder of filming and is shooting on location in Norfolk.
Farthing is a London-born actor who played George Warleggan in all...
Pablo Larrain’s Spencer has cast Poldark star Jack Farthing as Prince Charles, as the shoot moves to the UK for the final stretch of filming.
The film, which stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, has been shooting in Germany since January 28 at the Schloss Marquardt in Potsdam, a castle which is doubling as Sandringham Estate. But the production has now moved to the UK for the remainder of filming and is shooting on location in Norfolk.
Farthing is a London-born actor who played George Warleggan in all...
- 3/25/2021
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Pablo Larraín’s “Spencer” has found its Prince Charles in “Poldark” star Jack Farthing. Production has also moved to the U.K.
The film, which unveiled a second image of star Kristen Stewart as Diana, focuses on one weekend in the life of the late princess, as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles. Filming kicked off in Germany in January and will now move to the U.K.
Promotional materials for the film provide the following scene-setter: “December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.”
The project...
The film, which unveiled a second image of star Kristen Stewart as Diana, focuses on one weekend in the life of the late princess, as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles. Filming kicked off in Germany in January and will now move to the U.K.
Promotional materials for the film provide the following scene-setter: “December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.”
The project...
- 3/25/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran and Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Petite Maman had its world premiere at last week’s online Berlin Film Festival.
Mubi has acquired all UK-Ireland rights to Céline Sciamma’s Petite Maman, which had its world premiere at last week’s online Berlin Film Festival.
The distributor has also acquired rights on the film for Turkey, in deals done with international sales agent mk2.
The film will be released theatrically in all territories, Mubi has confirmed to Screen.
Petite Maman centres on eight-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her grandmother and is helping clean out her mother’s childhood home, when she strikes up a relationship...
Mubi has acquired all UK-Ireland rights to Céline Sciamma’s Petite Maman, which had its world premiere at last week’s online Berlin Film Festival.
The distributor has also acquired rights on the film for Turkey, in deals done with international sales agent mk2.
The film will be released theatrically in all territories, Mubi has confirmed to Screen.
Petite Maman centres on eight-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her grandmother and is helping clean out her mother’s childhood home, when she strikes up a relationship...
- 3/9/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Arthouse streamer and distributor Mubi has acquired all rights for Céline Sciamma’s well-received Berlin Film Festival title Petite Maman for the UK, Ireland and Turkey.
Sciamma’s follow-up to Cannes hit Portrait of a Lady on Fire, tells the story of 8-year-old Nelly who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mother, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves and Nelly meets a girl her own age, named Marion, in the woods building a treehouse.
You can check out review for the film here.
Written and directed by festival favourite Sciamma, the film was shot by cinematographer Claire Mathon, Sciamma’s frequent collaborator, and produced by Bénédicte Couvreur of Lilies Films.
Cast includes Gabrielle Sanz,...
Sciamma’s follow-up to Cannes hit Portrait of a Lady on Fire, tells the story of 8-year-old Nelly who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mother, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves and Nelly meets a girl her own age, named Marion, in the woods building a treehouse.
You can check out review for the film here.
Written and directed by festival favourite Sciamma, the film was shot by cinematographer Claire Mathon, Sciamma’s frequent collaborator, and produced by Bénédicte Couvreur of Lilies Films.
Cast includes Gabrielle Sanz,...
- 3/9/2021
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
After the ambitious and wildly popular Portrait of a Lady on Fire shot Céline Sciamma into the arthouse stratosphere, she has returned with her fifth feature, Petite Maman, a warm and contained film whose scale is more akin to Tomboy. The mighty hype from Sciamma fans anticipating the film’s Berlinale premiere may be too much to bear for this delicate, low-key film. Of course it’s as impeccably directed and carefully structured as we’ve come to expect from Sciamma. But it’s more of a slow simmer than Portrait’s fiery blaze. Beware instantaneous hot takes: this is a modest work, one to sit with and chew over, one to look back on fondly after letting it percolate.
With Petite Maman, Sciamma returns to the topic of her first three features—childhood—now with one eye on the adult characters. We meet eight-year-old Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) in the hospital,...
With Petite Maman, Sciamma returns to the topic of her first three features—childhood—now with one eye on the adult characters. We meet eight-year-old Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) in the hospital,...
- 3/3/2021
- by Orla Smith
- The Film Stage
Neon has scooped up North American rights to Céline Sciamma’s sixth feature directorial Petite Maman, bringing the Oscar-winning film studio back in business with the French filmmaker behind 2019’s award-winning pic Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Already there is great word of mouth brewing from critics on Sciamma’s new title out of its world premiere at the Berlinale.
The drama stars sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal. In Pete Maman, 8-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
The drama stars sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal. In Pete Maman, 8-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
- 3/3/2021
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Neon has acquired North American rights to Céline Sciamma’s latest feature, “Petite Maman,” following its premiere at the Berlin Film Festival.
The sale reunites Sciamma with Neon, the New York-based independent studio that released her acclaimed drama “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.”
Written and directed by Sciamma, “Petite Maman” follows 8-year-old Nelly, who loses her beloved grandmother and goes to help her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and build the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day, her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
It stars sisters Joséphine and Gabrielle Sanz, as well as Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Variety’s chief film critic Peter Debruge praised the film,...
The sale reunites Sciamma with Neon, the New York-based independent studio that released her acclaimed drama “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.”
Written and directed by Sciamma, “Petite Maman” follows 8-year-old Nelly, who loses her beloved grandmother and goes to help her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and build the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day, her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
It stars sisters Joséphine and Gabrielle Sanz, as well as Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Variety’s chief film critic Peter Debruge praised the film,...
- 3/3/2021
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
There’s a scene towards the end of Céline Sciamma’s dreamy new feature, Petite maman, in which two eight-year-old girls carry an inflatable canoe to a river, and paddle it vigorously around and under a pyramid-like structure, only to emerge on the other side. It’s hard to express succinctly what makes this brief sequence so breathtaking. Everything about it—the canoe’s canary-yellow Pro Explorer logo, the girls' bright galoshes, the angelic choral music, the transition from murkiness to the vast sweep of the autumnal landscape—is exquisite. In the subsequent medium shot, the girls’ faces have an astute, determined expression, as if they’ve just conquered the earth—or maybe something even more precious, such as a sense of their own bravery, and power. The feeling of release is immense, all the more so since much of this intimate tale takes place in contained domestic spaces, with only brief forays outdoors.
- 3/3/2021
- MUBI
Eight-year-old Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) sits in the backseat of her mother’s car outside of the nursing home where her beloved grandmother has just died, and watches through the window as her young parents (Nina Meurisse and Stéphane Varupenne) share a tender embrace. The half-quizzical look on Nelly’s face suggests that she hasn’t seen them hug in a while — that perhaps this moment is doubly charged. She wonders what they mean to each other, and what it feels like to lose someone forever, and whether her mother ever sat alone in a car on a gray fall afternoon and watched as her mother was consoled over her mother’s death. Nelly understands that her mom didn’t become 31 without being eight along the way, but why is that so hard to imagine? It’s like looking at a bird and trying to picture when it was a dinosaur.
- 3/3/2021
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
One of the best surprises of the Berlinale 2021 lineup is that the newest film from Céline Sciamma––marking her fifth feature and first since her widely acclaimed Portrait of a Lady on Fire––is completed after shooting only a few months ago. Details have been sparse when it came to Petite Maman, but now the festival has unveiled a full synopsis, while also revealing a runtime of only 72 minutes.
Starring Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, and Margot Abascal, the film will find Sciamma returning to themes of adolescence, which she explored in different facets in Water Lillies, Tomboy, and Girlhood. Check out the synopsis below via Berlinale’s official site.
Eight-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mum, Marion, used to play and where...
Starring Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, and Margot Abascal, the film will find Sciamma returning to themes of adolescence, which she explored in different facets in Water Lillies, Tomboy, and Girlhood. Check out the synopsis below via Berlinale’s official site.
Eight-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mum, Marion, used to play and where...
- 2/18/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Spencer – Photo: Courtesy of Pablo Larraín
Principal photography has begun on Spencer, which focuses on one weekend in the life of Princess Diana, as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles.
Filming will take place in Germany and the UK and an autumn 2021 launch is anticipated. 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of Diana’s death.
December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.
Kristen Stewart is Princess Diana. Cast members joining Stewart include BAFTA Award nominee Timothy Spall, Academy Award nominee Sally Hawkins and Sean Harris.
Spencer is directed...
Principal photography has begun on Spencer, which focuses on one weekend in the life of Princess Diana, as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles.
Filming will take place in Germany and the UK and an autumn 2021 launch is anticipated. 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of Diana’s death.
December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.
Kristen Stewart is Princess Diana. Cast members joining Stewart include BAFTA Award nominee Timothy Spall, Academy Award nominee Sally Hawkins and Sean Harris.
Spencer is directed...
- 1/28/2021
- by Michelle Hannett
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Fans got a first look at Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana from her new film “Spencer” on Wednesday. The film, directed by Pablo Larraín, focuses on the one weekend when Diana decided to leave her marriage to Prince Charles. Spencer was her maiden name before she wed the British royal.
Principal photography has begun on the film, with shooting taking place in Germany and the UK. And Neon is expected to release “Spencer” later this fall ahead of the 25th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death in 2022.
The first look, which you can see above, shows Stewart peering out a window behind a black hat with fish-net veil. With her short blonde hair, Stewart’s resemblance to Diana is striking.
“Spencer” is set over a Christmas holiday in December 1991 when Princess Diana is with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Here’s the full synopsis:
December, 1991:...
Principal photography has begun on the film, with shooting taking place in Germany and the UK. And Neon is expected to release “Spencer” later this fall ahead of the 25th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death in 2022.
The first look, which you can see above, shows Stewart peering out a window behind a black hat with fish-net veil. With her short blonde hair, Stewart’s resemblance to Diana is striking.
“Spencer” is set over a Christmas holiday in December 1991 when Princess Diana is with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Here’s the full synopsis:
December, 1991:...
- 1/27/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
That's the first shot of Kristen Stewart as Diana in Pablo Larraín's next film Spencer, one of our presumed Oscar hopefuls for 2021 though the release plans aren't at all firm yet. Let's hope it goes better for Kristen than it did for Naomi Watts!. So we might be looking at our first Best Actress nominee of the new film ye -- No, we can't get into that yet; we're still in this season.
There's no word yet on who is playing Prince Charles but the film takes place over a single weekend (the best kind of biopic!) and we trust Larraín to make this totally interesting since his films always are, even the ones that are totally filled with hard-to-watch hatefulness. Larraín's films are always exquisitely put together and this one will be no exception with the cinematographer of Portrait of a Lady on Fire (Claire Mathon), two time...
There's no word yet on who is playing Prince Charles but the film takes place over a single weekend (the best kind of biopic!) and we trust Larraín to make this totally interesting since his films always are, even the ones that are totally filled with hard-to-watch hatefulness. Larraín's films are always exquisitely put together and this one will be no exception with the cinematographer of Portrait of a Lady on Fire (Claire Mathon), two time...
- 1/27/2021
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
First Look at Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana in Pablo Larraín’s Spencer; Jonny Greenwood to Score
After returning to Chile with Ema for his Jackie follow-up, Pablo Larraín is now back to major English-language productions. Shooting has begun on Spencer, which focuses on one weekend in the life of Princess Diana (Kristen Stewart), as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, and decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles.
With the first look revealed above, the cast has also expanded Stewart will be joined by Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris. Shooting is taking place in Germany and the UK, and the film is eying a fall 2021 release ahead of 2022, which will mark the 25th anniversary of Diana’s death.
Rounding out the crew is Director of Photography Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire), Costume Designer Jacqueline Durran (Academy award-winner for Little Women and Anna Karenina), Make Up and Hair Designer Wakana Yoshihara and...
With the first look revealed above, the cast has also expanded Stewart will be joined by Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris. Shooting is taking place in Germany and the UK, and the film is eying a fall 2021 release ahead of 2022, which will mark the 25th anniversary of Diana’s death.
Rounding out the crew is Director of Photography Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire), Costume Designer Jacqueline Durran (Academy award-winner for Little Women and Anna Karenina), Make Up and Hair Designer Wakana Yoshihara and...
- 1/27/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
To mark the start of production on Pablo Larraín’s “Spencer,” Neon has released a first look image of Kristen Stewart in character as Princess Diana. The movie, which features a script by “Locke” screenwriter and “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight, is set over the course of a single weekend in Diana’s life as she spends the Christmas holiday with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk. The film tracks Diana’s emotional journey as she comes to a decision to leave her marriage to Prince Charles.
The official “Spencer” synopsis from Neon reads: “December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.
The official “Spencer” synopsis from Neon reads: “December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumours of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.
- 1/27/2021
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Pablo Larrain-directed feature will begin shooting in Germany on January 28.
Pablo Larrain’s Spencer, starring Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, is set to begin shooting in Germany tomorrow (January 28) with Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins and Sean Harris joining the cast.
Filming in the UK will take place after the German shoot and an autumn 2021 launch for the film is anticipated. 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of Diana’s death.
A first-look at the US actress, best known for her leading role in the Twilight franchise, has been released, which was taken during hair, make-up and costume tests.
Stewart is also known...
Pablo Larrain’s Spencer, starring Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, is set to begin shooting in Germany tomorrow (January 28) with Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins and Sean Harris joining the cast.
Filming in the UK will take place after the German shoot and an autumn 2021 launch for the film is anticipated. 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of Diana’s death.
A first-look at the US actress, best known for her leading role in the Twilight franchise, has been released, which was taken during hair, make-up and costume tests.
Stewart is also known...
- 1/27/2021
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
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