With a major last 12 months, starring in half a dozen films and receiving an Oscar nomination, Colman Domingo’s best performance of the bunch is in Greg Kwedar’s drama Sing Sing. A TIFF premiere that was picked up by A24 for a release this July, the film follows a theater troupe that finds escape from the realities of incarceration through the creativity of putting on a play. Based on a real-life rehabilitation program and featuring a cast that includes formerly incarcerated actors, the first trailer has now arrived ahead of its SXSW U.S. premiere.
I said in my TIFF review, “Reminiscent of Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’ piercing Folsom Prison therapy program documentary The Work, Sing Sing is most interested in the rediscovering of a soul’s humanity after years of presenting a veneer of socially conditioned callousness perpetrated by both the system that was the reason for...
I said in my TIFF review, “Reminiscent of Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’ piercing Folsom Prison therapy program documentary The Work, Sing Sing is most interested in the rediscovering of a soul’s humanity after years of presenting a veneer of socially conditioned callousness perpetrated by both the system that was the reason for...
- 3/6/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
“We are here to become human again.” This is the mantra of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program, founded in Sing Sing Correctional Facility, a prison just north of New York City, and the subject of Greg Kwedar’s emotionally restorative new feature. While led by a stellar Colman Domingo with an equally great supporting turn from Paul Raci, the majority of Sing Sing‘s cast knows the program all too well, either as alumni or currently going through it. That authenticity in casting carries through every frame and every line, as if Kwedar has walked these halls and been in these rooms, an observer to the intimate conversations he’s scripted alongside Clint Bentley.
Set in 2005, when the film’s inspiration from John H. Richardson’s Esquire article “The Sing Sing Follies” was published, the film follows a theater troupe attempting to mount their latest production, an ambitious (semi-)original work involving Egyptians,...
Set in 2005, when the film’s inspiration from John H. Richardson’s Esquire article “The Sing Sing Follies” was published, the film follows a theater troupe attempting to mount their latest production, an ambitious (semi-)original work involving Egyptians,...
- 9/18/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
The act of making an observational documentary is built on hope. Or at least, on the slightly reckless faith that once the cameras are rolling, patterns and arcs will duly emerge, coalescing into insightful, manageable storylines that can with luck be shaped to deliver an uptick of optimism. Joshua Altman and Bing Liu’s “All These Sons” certainly starts off in that vein, introducing us to its cast of characters — all men from Chicago’s South and West sides, involved in one of two programs addressing the scourge of gun and gang violence in the city — with the familiar energy of the urban social issues doc, promising illumination, hard-won wisdom, maybe even inspiration. Then the ambivalence of real life starts to tarnish that shiny promise, and “All These Sons” becomes a far more interesting, far less simple film.
The two programs targeting local at-risk youth are both loosely faith-based: the...
The two programs targeting local at-risk youth are both loosely faith-based: the...
- 3/29/2022
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
Did starring in “The Shawshank Redemption” (and then directing “Dead Man Walking” the following year) leave Tim Robbins with a profound compassion for the members of America’s prison system, or was that profound compassion what compelled him to pursue those jobs in the first place? Either way, it seems the famous actor and sometime filmmaker still fervently believes in the words of Sister Helen Prejean, who Susan Sarandon played in “Dead Man Walking”: “Everyone is worth more than their worst act.”
Robbins’ first directorial effort since 1999’s “Cradle Will Rock” finds him going back to jail in order to help extend that ethos into the real world. , “45 Seconds of Laughter” takes us inside the maximum-security fortress of Calipatria State Prison, where a few special members of Robbins’ theater company (The Actors’ Gang) lead a troupe of violent criminals in a commedia dell’arte workshop that’s meant to...
Robbins’ first directorial effort since 1999’s “Cradle Will Rock” finds him going back to jail in order to help extend that ethos into the real world. , “45 Seconds of Laughter” takes us inside the maximum-security fortress of Calipatria State Prison, where a few special members of Robbins’ theater company (The Actors’ Gang) lead a troupe of violent criminals in a commedia dell’arte workshop that’s meant to...
- 10/4/2019
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
“Everyone is worth more than their worst act,” said Roman Catholic sister and anti-death penalty advocate Helen Prejean, and it’s with these words that “45 Seconds of Laughter” closes. It’s an apt sentiment on which to leave Tim Robbins’ sincerely felt documentary study of the therapeutic acting workshops run by his own theater company in a California prison — not least because the film is itself at pains to identify its human subjects only by their present, not their past. But if it’s also an obvious callback to Robbins’ penitentiary-set 1995 drama “Dead Man Walking,” which won Susan Sarandon an Oscar for playing Prejean, the self-reference doesn’t exactly flatter the new film: Occasionally heart-stirring but also rather slight, Robbins’ mellow first foray into docmaking is far removed from his pre-millennial era of artistic and political urgency.
“45 Seconds of Laughter” is, in fact, Robbins’ first big-screen directorial outing since 1999’s “Cradle Will Rock,...
“45 Seconds of Laughter” is, in fact, Robbins’ first big-screen directorial outing since 1999’s “Cradle Will Rock,...
- 9/20/2019
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Set in a unique program behind the walls in the city jail of Richmond, Va, 16 Bars is an electrifying and heartbreaking story of what might have been if some offenders had chosen a different path. Arriving from all walks of life–from decent upbringings to abject poverty and homelessness–the men sign up for a series of programs on the jail’s sixth floor pod which include anger management training, classes, and access to a makeshift recording studio under the tutelage of hip-hop legend Speech (aka Todd Thomas) from the band Arrested Development.
Working across genres from hip-hop to country, director Samuel Bathrick focuses primarily on the journey of Speech along with a group of offenders awaiting trial or release: De’vonte, Anthony, Garland, and Teddy. The jail’s dedicated program manager Sarah–whose commitment extends beyond the white and blue concrete walls of the modern jail–plays the role of disciplinarian and guidance counselor,...
Working across genres from hip-hop to country, director Samuel Bathrick focuses primarily on the journey of Speech along with a group of offenders awaiting trial or release: De’vonte, Anthony, Garland, and Teddy. The jail’s dedicated program manager Sarah–whose commitment extends beyond the white and blue concrete walls of the modern jail–plays the role of disciplinarian and guidance counselor,...
- 11/10/2018
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
A year of uncertainty–to put it lightly–at every waking moment, 2017 won’t be remembered fondly. Offering brief moments of solace, the best cinema of the year included both escapism and a glimpse of humanity that was undetectable when looking at headlines. It was also the rare year that didn’t ramp up in quality in latter months; in fact, only one film in my top 10 actually premiered in the fall, with a trio of others getting theatrical releases during that time.
It hurt to leave off Lady Bird, The Untamed, The Other Side of Hope, Ex Libris – The New York Public Library, and the year’s best blockbuster, Okja, but when all is said and done, here are the 15 films that most resonated with me this year. Along with the below feature, one can see a vague ranking of all ~150 films I’ve viewed here, as well as...
It hurt to leave off Lady Bird, The Untamed, The Other Side of Hope, Ex Libris – The New York Public Library, and the year’s best blockbuster, Okja, but when all is said and done, here are the 15 films that most resonated with me this year. Along with the below feature, one can see a vague ranking of all ~150 films I’ve viewed here, as well as...
- 1/2/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Jairus McLeary in the Soho House screening room on The Work: "It's very masculine. That's why Amy Foote, our editor, and Alice Henty, the producer, they were the first women to see this footage." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Rebecca Miller's Arthur Miller: Writer; Doug Nichol's California Typewriter; Andrew Rossi on Okwui Okpokwasili's Bronx Gothic; Elvira Lind's Bobbi Jene; Michael Almereyda's Escapes on Hampton Fancher; Brett Morgen's Jane on Jane Goodall; Ceyda Torun's KEDi; Sabine Krayenbühl and Zeva Oelbaum's Letters From Baghdad with Tilda Swinton voicing Getrude Bell; Griffin Dunne's Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold; Agnès Varda and Jr's Faces Places; Neasa Ní Chianáin and David Rane's School Life; Ferne Pearlstein's The Last Laugh; Lara Stolman's Swim Team; Kirk Simon's The Pulitzer At 100, and Josh Koury and Myles Kane's Voyeur on Gay Talese...
Rebecca Miller's Arthur Miller: Writer; Doug Nichol's California Typewriter; Andrew Rossi on Okwui Okpokwasili's Bronx Gothic; Elvira Lind's Bobbi Jene; Michael Almereyda's Escapes on Hampton Fancher; Brett Morgen's Jane on Jane Goodall; Ceyda Torun's KEDi; Sabine Krayenbühl and Zeva Oelbaum's Letters From Baghdad with Tilda Swinton voicing Getrude Bell; Griffin Dunne's Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold; Agnès Varda and Jr's Faces Places; Neasa Ní Chianáin and David Rane's School Life; Ferne Pearlstein's The Last Laugh; Lara Stolman's Swim Team; Kirk Simon's The Pulitzer At 100, and Josh Koury and Myles Kane's Voyeur on Gay Talese...
- 11/17/2017
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk’s “An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power” had its world premiere at Sundance 2017 — the evening before Donald Trump’s inauguration. Since then, they’ve had to update their film, a follow-up to Al Gore’s 2006 Oscar-winning documentary, with the changes the new administration has made in regard to climate change.
“In many ways it was an era ago,” Shenk said in a conversation with IndieWire Editor at Large Anne Thompson following a screening at the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series. “[When] we finished the film we didn’t know what he was going to do. We heard, of course, his campaign promises…leading up to his announcement in June to leave the Paris accords, it became more and more apparent…that we really owed it to the film to update those last few minutes.”
Read More:‘The Work’ Director Jairus McLeary Reveals How He...
“In many ways it was an era ago,” Shenk said in a conversation with IndieWire Editor at Large Anne Thompson following a screening at the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series. “[When] we finished the film we didn’t know what he was going to do. We heard, of course, his campaign promises…leading up to his announcement in June to leave the Paris accords, it became more and more apparent…that we really owed it to the film to update those last few minutes.”
Read More:‘The Work’ Director Jairus McLeary Reveals How He...
- 11/8/2017
- by Jean Bentley
- Indiewire
The Oklahoma City bombing occurred more than 20 years ago, but it remains the worst act of domestic terrorism in America. The documentary “Oklahoma City” traces the interactions between law enforcement and fringe groups in Ruby Ridge and Waco that led to Timothy McVeigh’s deadly bombing.
After a screening of the PBS American Experience film at the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series, director Barak Goodman and producer Emily Singer Chapman said in a Q&A that there is a very clear line between the anti-government white-supremacist groups living off the grid in the ’90s and the alt-right movement today.
Read More:‘City of Ghosts’ Director Matthew Heineman Explains How to Fight Isis Without Bombs
“Some of the leaders of Charlottesville were the very same people who were involved in the white-supremacist movement back then — they’ve just traded in their camouflage for chinos and polo shirts, but it...
After a screening of the PBS American Experience film at the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series, director Barak Goodman and producer Emily Singer Chapman said in a Q&A that there is a very clear line between the anti-government white-supremacist groups living off the grid in the ’90s and the alt-right movement today.
Read More:‘City of Ghosts’ Director Matthew Heineman Explains How to Fight Isis Without Bombs
“Some of the leaders of Charlottesville were the very same people who were involved in the white-supremacist movement back then — they’ve just traded in their camouflage for chinos and polo shirts, but it...
- 10/27/2017
- by Jean Bentley
- Indiewire
Leave it to a Grateful Dead documentary to run for four hours. And leave it to Grateful Dead fans to want even more.
“Only Deadheads — you show them a four-hour film and they’re like, ‘What else is there?,'” Amir Bar-Lev told IndieWire Editor at Large Anne Thompson during an intermission Q&A of “Long Strange Trip.”
Read More:How ‘I Called Him Morgan’ Helped Trumpeter Lee Morgan’s Friends Find Peace With His Tragic Death
The theatrical version of the film, which is available to watch on Amazon as a six-hour miniseries, played as part of the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series in Los Angeles.
Bar-Lev and Thompson discussed their Deadhead pasts, celebrity cameos, and the decade-long journey it took for his film to come to fruition.
“The band doesn’t seek out publicity and also has got a healthy mistrust of something that’s going to define them,...
“Only Deadheads — you show them a four-hour film and they’re like, ‘What else is there?,'” Amir Bar-Lev told IndieWire Editor at Large Anne Thompson during an intermission Q&A of “Long Strange Trip.”
Read More:How ‘I Called Him Morgan’ Helped Trumpeter Lee Morgan’s Friends Find Peace With His Tragic Death
The theatrical version of the film, which is available to watch on Amazon as a six-hour miniseries, played as part of the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series in Los Angeles.
Bar-Lev and Thompson discussed their Deadhead pasts, celebrity cameos, and the decade-long journey it took for his film to come to fruition.
“The band doesn’t seek out publicity and also has got a healthy mistrust of something that’s going to define them,...
- 10/26/2017
- by Jean Bentley
- Indiewire
There are no talking heads in “One of Us,” Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady’s expertly crafted portrait of three ex-Hasidic Jews adjusting to secular life. Refreshingly, the interviews in this tense documentary take place on the move; there is a restless energy to the way Luzer drives around Los Angeles in search of auditions, or Etty’s furtive glances through shuttered blinds. The three subjects of “One of Us” are always looking over their shoulders, whether in precaution of real threats or just to make sense of the brave new world in which they find themselves.
Centering on only three subjects, Ewing and Grady keep the film’s focus narrow and intimately human. Luzer is the most charismatic of the bunch; an aspiring actor who got his start playing Hasidic characters, he learned about the secular world as a teenager by secretly watching movies in his car. “The plan...
Centering on only three subjects, Ewing and Grady keep the film’s focus narrow and intimately human. Luzer is the most charismatic of the bunch; an aspiring actor who got his start playing Hasidic characters, he learned about the secular world as a teenager by secretly watching movies in his car. “The plan...
- 10/25/2017
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
The line of men quietly strolling single-file into Folsom Prison in the opening scenes of Jairus McLeary’s documentary “The Work” don’t look happy. And they’re not; they have issues. But they’re also not convicts. They’re outsiders who have traveled to Sacramento, Calif., from around the country to participate in a four-day intensive group therapy with convicts, aided by trained facilitators. It’s an admittedly arresting concept in healing — mixing maximum-security criminals with free men in a safe space outside the rules of the yard, to see where their emotional pain converges — and it’s one...
- 10/25/2017
- by Robert Abele
- The Wrap
It took a serious level of trust for the prisoners who participate in an intense therapy session at Folsom State Prison in California to allow director Jairus McLeary inside the emotional four-day self-help discussion for his new documentary, “The Work.”
After a showing of the film at the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series, McLeary revealed that he had volunteered at the program, run by the nonprofit Inside Circle Foundation (of which his psychologist father, James McLeary, is CEO), for more than half a decade before the inmates allowed him to film there. Jairus and his producer brothers Eon and Miles were joined by their father and “The Work” subject Vegas, a former inmate, in a discussion of the film with IndieWire Special Projects Editor Steve Greene.
The McLearys had all volunteered in the program, which James administers, for years. Because of that, they knew they couldn’t really...
After a showing of the film at the International Documentary Association’s annual screening series, McLeary revealed that he had volunteered at the program, run by the nonprofit Inside Circle Foundation (of which his psychologist father, James McLeary, is CEO), for more than half a decade before the inmates allowed him to film there. Jairus and his producer brothers Eon and Miles were joined by their father and “The Work” subject Vegas, a former inmate, in a discussion of the film with IndieWire Special Projects Editor Steve Greene.
The McLearys had all volunteered in the program, which James administers, for years. Because of that, they knew they couldn’t really...
- 10/25/2017
- by Jean Bentley
- Indiewire
Just a few short hours ago, the precursor season kicked off this morning for 2017 with the nominations for the 27th annual Ifp Gotham Independent Film Awards. Yes, we’ve reached that point in the year. Precursors will begin trickling in, starting to establish early frontrunners. Leading off is the Ifp Gotham Independent Film Awards, which will give us an idea of which indies are contenders, as opposed to just pretenders. This won’t be the last word on them, by any stretch, but it is the first word, and that’s something to take note of. Gotham is beginning a run that will ultimately end up at the Academy Awards in March. As you’ll see below, Get Out led the field with four nominations, followed by Call Me By Your Name, Columbus, The Florida Project, and Lady Bird with three apiece. There was also Good Time, I, Tonya, and Mudbound among multiple nominees,...
- 10/19/2017
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
There are few places in the world more terrifying than prison. For most of us, it is an environment we will never have to experience first hand, but for those who are incarcerated, it is a community of division, hostility and persecution, with little opportunity for redemption or rehabilitation. In The Work, court videographer Jairus McLeary and documentarian Gethin Aldous venture inside one of the most notorious correctional facilities of them all, Falsom Maximum Security Prison in California, to witness an extraordinary program of therapy and communication. Over a four-day period, a selection of prisoners, many of them serving multiple life sentences for murder and gang-related crimes, come together for a special retreat and healing session. Leaving any gang affiliations, grudges or other...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 10/17/2017
- Screen Anarchy
"For four days, let's be, what we could be..." The Orchard has unveiled an official trailer for the acclaimed documentary titled The Work, which goes inside the Folsom Prison to follow three outsiders as they watch and participate in a four-day group therapy retreat with level-four convicts. From directors Jairus McLeary & Gethin Aldous, the film first premiered at the SXSW Film Festival earlier this year where it won the Grand Jury Prize. This looks like an utterly fascinating inside look at how complicated and emotional prison reformation is, and how hard it is to rehabilitate prisoners. Described as a "powerful and rare look past the cinder block walls, steel doors and the dehumanizing tropes in our culture to reveal a movement of change and redemption that transcends what we think of as rehabilitation." Definitely want to see it. Watch below. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Jairus McLeary & Gethin Aldous's doc The Work,...
- 10/6/2017
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
There are few prisons more notorious or infamous than Folsom. It’s rarely viewed as a place of healing or compassion, but the upcoming documentary “The Work” will make you second guess any preconceived notions you might have about the place.
Directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous, the eye-opening film gives audiences an intimate and intense look at a program that sees members of the public brought into Folsom for a therapy retreat.
Continue reading ‘The Work’ Trailer: Go Deep Inside Folsom Prison [Exclusive] at The Playlist.
Directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous, the eye-opening film gives audiences an intimate and intense look at a program that sees members of the public brought into Folsom for a therapy retreat.
Continue reading ‘The Work’ Trailer: Go Deep Inside Folsom Prison [Exclusive] at The Playlist.
- 10/6/2017
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Radical therapy sessions with maximum-security prisoners in a Us jail make for extraordinary viewing
Three volunteers from the outside world – Charles, a bartender; Chris, a museum associate; and Brian, a teaching assistant – enter New Folsom Prison in California. They are there, along with other visitors and trained facilitators, to experience and engage in group therapy over a “four-day intensive” with prisoners serving long sentences for violent and/or gang-related crime. Their interactions, conclusions and traumas are all chronicled in a new documentary called The Work, directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous.
For 17 years, New Folsom prison has shown the insight and intelligence to allow extraordinary therapeutic work to flourish within its walls. Like my experience in the UK of developing a new kind of therapy for violent and often gang-affiliated prisoners – on which I drew for my script for the 2013 David Mackenzie film Starred Up – it is dependent on...
Three volunteers from the outside world – Charles, a bartender; Chris, a museum associate; and Brian, a teaching assistant – enter New Folsom Prison in California. They are there, along with other visitors and trained facilitators, to experience and engage in group therapy over a “four-day intensive” with prisoners serving long sentences for violent and/or gang-related crime. Their interactions, conclusions and traumas are all chronicled in a new documentary called The Work, directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous.
For 17 years, New Folsom prison has shown the insight and intelligence to allow extraordinary therapeutic work to flourish within its walls. Like my experience in the UK of developing a new kind of therapy for violent and often gang-affiliated prisoners – on which I drew for my script for the 2013 David Mackenzie film Starred Up – it is dependent on...
- 9/14/2017
- by Jonathan Asser
- The Guardian - Film News
Prisoners engage with members of the public in an intensive therapy session in this extraordinarily moving documentary
There is a scene in the first 20 minutes of Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’s observational documentary The Work where a grown man cries. It’s no ordinary cry; this is a full-body sob; a keening wail bottled up for literally years; the desperate, feral cry of someone in unimaginable pain. He wants to feel what it’s like to mourn for his sister. “Take me with you,” says one of the man’s colleagues when he bites his lip, trying not to surrender to the tears. “I’m not going anywhere.” And so they come, in floods. Watching this scene is a visceral experience. Some moments are unbearable to watch; others are utter catharsis.
At Folsom state prison, a medium security institution in California, inmates and members of the public come together...
There is a scene in the first 20 minutes of Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’s observational documentary The Work where a grown man cries. It’s no ordinary cry; this is a full-body sob; a keening wail bottled up for literally years; the desperate, feral cry of someone in unimaginable pain. He wants to feel what it’s like to mourn for his sister. “Take me with you,” says one of the man’s colleagues when he bites his lip, trying not to surrender to the tears. “I’m not going anywhere.” And so they come, in floods. Watching this scene is a visceral experience. Some moments are unbearable to watch; others are utter catharsis.
At Folsom state prison, a medium security institution in California, inmates and members of the public come together...
- 9/10/2017
- by Simran Hans
- The Guardian - Film News
The critically acclaimed prison documentary The Work is set to open in New York theaters on October 20 and will expand to Los Angeles on October 27 with more cities following. The doc directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary Feature earlier this year at the South by Southwest Film Festival. The Orchard and First Look Media's new entertainment studio Topic acquired the North American rights shortly after. Set inside a…...
- 8/14/2017
- Deadline
The Orchard is set to release prison documentary The Work on Oct. 20 in New York and Oct. 27 in Los Angeles, with more cities following.
In the film, level-four inmates at California’s Folsom State Prison are joined by three men from outside the penitentiary for a four-day group therapy retreat. Set entirely in one room, the doc follows the men as they engage in the intensive therapy workshop, exiting their comfort zones and stripping down the barriers and stereotypes between the free men and the incarcerated men.
The Work is director Jairus McLeary’s first documentary. McLeary volunteered at Folsom’s...
In the film, level-four inmates at California’s Folsom State Prison are joined by three men from outside the penitentiary for a four-day group therapy retreat. Set entirely in one room, the doc follows the men as they engage in the intensive therapy workshop, exiting their comfort zones and stripping down the barriers and stereotypes between the free men and the incarcerated men.
The Work is director Jairus McLeary’s first documentary. McLeary volunteered at Folsom’s...
- 8/14/2017
- by Helen Murphy
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Michael Haneke’s Happy End also among titles in non-competitive strand.
The Sarajevo International Film Festival (August 11-18) has unveiled the line-up for its Kinoscope programme, with 17 titles competing.
The non-competitive strand, which first launched in 2012, selects titles from around the globe and excludes territories featured in the main competition.
Among this year’s cohort are major titles to have competed at Cannes including the Palme d’Or-winner The Square, Michael Haneke’s latest feature Happy End and Andrey Zvyagintsev’s well-received Loveless.
Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa’s Gabriel And The Mountain, Léonor Serraille’s Montparnasse Bienvenüe, Chloé Zhao’s The Rider and Valeska Grisebach’s Western are also included.
The 2017 Kinoscope Line-up
Ava
France, 2017, 105 min.
Director: Léa Mysius
Gabriel And The Mountain / Gabriel E A Montanha
Brazil, France, 2017, 127 min.
Director: Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa
A Ghost Story
USA, 2017, 93 min.
Director: David Lowery
Godspeed / Yi Lu Shun Feng
Taiwan, 2016, 111 min.
Director: Mong-Hong Chung
Happy End
France, Austria, Germany...
The Sarajevo International Film Festival (August 11-18) has unveiled the line-up for its Kinoscope programme, with 17 titles competing.
The non-competitive strand, which first launched in 2012, selects titles from around the globe and excludes territories featured in the main competition.
Among this year’s cohort are major titles to have competed at Cannes including the Palme d’Or-winner The Square, Michael Haneke’s latest feature Happy End and Andrey Zvyagintsev’s well-received Loveless.
Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa’s Gabriel And The Mountain, Léonor Serraille’s Montparnasse Bienvenüe, Chloé Zhao’s The Rider and Valeska Grisebach’s Western are also included.
The 2017 Kinoscope Line-up
Ava
France, 2017, 105 min.
Director: Léa Mysius
Gabriel And The Mountain / Gabriel E A Montanha
Brazil, France, 2017, 127 min.
Director: Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa
A Ghost Story
USA, 2017, 93 min.
Director: David Lowery
Godspeed / Yi Lu Shun Feng
Taiwan, 2016, 111 min.
Director: Mong-Hong Chung
Happy End
France, Austria, Germany...
- 7/25/2017
- ScreenDaily
Documentary festival announces winners.
Matthew Heineman’s City Of Ghosts has won the grand jury award at Sheffield Doc/Fest (June 9-14).
The award, supported by Screen International and Broadcast, comes with a cash prize of £2,000 ($2,800).
The film covers covert citizen journalist group Rbss (Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently), who are exposing the horrors of life under Isis rule via the media. Amazon have picked up worldwide rights to the film.
On behalf of the jury, Paul Mason said, “City of Ghosts is a passionate portrayal of people who took their lives in their hands to fight an evil that looms over the world. In our discussions we wanted the film makers to answer: who created Isis and who sustains it today? A compelling and vital film.”
The jury also included Andrea Arnold and Anand Pathwardan.
There was also special mentions for The Death And The Life of Marsha P. Johnson, [link...
Matthew Heineman’s City Of Ghosts has won the grand jury award at Sheffield Doc/Fest (June 9-14).
The award, supported by Screen International and Broadcast, comes with a cash prize of £2,000 ($2,800).
The film covers covert citizen journalist group Rbss (Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently), who are exposing the horrors of life under Isis rule via the media. Amazon have picked up worldwide rights to the film.
On behalf of the jury, Paul Mason said, “City of Ghosts is a passionate portrayal of people who took their lives in their hands to fight an evil that looms over the world. In our discussions we wanted the film makers to answer: who created Isis and who sustains it today? A compelling and vital film.”
The jury also included Andrea Arnold and Anand Pathwardan.
There was also special mentions for The Death And The Life of Marsha P. Johnson, [link...
- 6/13/2017
- by orlando.parfitt@screendaily.com (Orlando Parfitt)
- ScreenDaily
Rooftop Films has announced its lineup for the 2017 Summer Series. This year’s series will feature more than 45 outdoor screenings in more than 10 venues, including films like Michael Showalter’s Sundance hit “The Big Sick” Ana Lily Amirpour’s “The Bad Batch,” (dates still Tbd).
The series kicks off on Friday, May 19 with “This is What We Mean by Short Films,” a collection of some of the most innovative, new short films of the past year. The screening will take place on the roof of The Old American Can Factory, in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The following night, Saturday, May 20, Rooftop will present a sneak preview screening of Zoe Lister-Jones’ 2017 Sundance entry, “Band Aid,” free and outdoors at House of Vans in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
The entire lineup so far is below. Tickets are already for sale.
Friday, May 19
“This is What We Mean by Short Films”
Saturday, May 20
“Band Aid” (Zoe Lister-Jones)
Saturday,...
The series kicks off on Friday, May 19 with “This is What We Mean by Short Films,” a collection of some of the most innovative, new short films of the past year. The screening will take place on the roof of The Old American Can Factory, in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The following night, Saturday, May 20, Rooftop will present a sneak preview screening of Zoe Lister-Jones’ 2017 Sundance entry, “Band Aid,” free and outdoors at House of Vans in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
The entire lineup so far is below. Tickets are already for sale.
Friday, May 19
“This is What We Mean by Short Films”
Saturday, May 20
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- 5/5/2017
- by Graham Winfrey
- Indiewire
If one wants to experience the best independent cinema the year has to offer this summer, one of your best bets is the well-curated line-up at Brooklyn’s BAMcinémaFest. They’ve now unveiled this year’s slate for the festival running from June 14-25, including some of of my favorite films of the year thus far (A Ghost Story, Golden Exits, Columbus, Marjorie Prime, and Landline) as well as highly-anticipated others (the SXSW hit Gemini and Stephen Cone‘s Princess Cyd come to mind).
“I’m incredibly proud of the program our team has put together,” says Gina Duncan, Associate Vice President, Cinema. “From the endearing comedy The Big Sick to the micro-budget Princess Cyd and Lemon, the audacious first feature from Janicza Bravo, the line-up truly reflects the breadth of American independent cinema today. Other highlights include the world premiere of Jim McKay’s, En el Séptimo Día an...
“I’m incredibly proud of the program our team has put together,” says Gina Duncan, Associate Vice President, Cinema. “From the endearing comedy The Big Sick to the micro-budget Princess Cyd and Lemon, the audacious first feature from Janicza Bravo, the line-up truly reflects the breadth of American independent cinema today. Other highlights include the world premiere of Jim McKay’s, En el Séptimo Día an...
- 5/4/2017
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Dogwoof planning UK cinema release for award-winning prison documentary.
Dogwoof has acquired worldwide sales rights to the SXSW-winning documentary The Work.
The UK-based company will manage all the films’ sales outside of North America – where they will be handled by The Orchard – as well as distribution in the UK for a 2017 release.
Dogwoof will hold market screenings for the project, which is directed by Jairus McLeary and co-directed by Gethin Aldous, in Cannes this year.
“We are beyond excited to be partnering with Dogwoof for an international release of The Work,” McLeary said.
“It’s taken a lot of hard years and the gracious support of so many people along the way to finish what we started and we’re honoured that a company as highly regarded as Dogwoof both understands and supports what we hoped to accomplish with our film.”
The Work won the Grand Jury Documentary prize at SXSW, and follows...
Dogwoof has acquired worldwide sales rights to the SXSW-winning documentary The Work.
The UK-based company will manage all the films’ sales outside of North America – where they will be handled by The Orchard – as well as distribution in the UK for a 2017 release.
Dogwoof will hold market screenings for the project, which is directed by Jairus McLeary and co-directed by Gethin Aldous, in Cannes this year.
“We are beyond excited to be partnering with Dogwoof for an international release of The Work,” McLeary said.
“It’s taken a lot of hard years and the gracious support of so many people along the way to finish what we started and we’re honoured that a company as highly regarded as Dogwoof both understands and supports what we hoped to accomplish with our film.”
The Work won the Grand Jury Documentary prize at SXSW, and follows...
- 5/2/2017
- ScreenDaily
Distributor also teams with Topic on SXSW winner The Work.
The Orchard has acquired all North American rights to After The Reality and separately has jointly acquired The Work with Topic.
David Anderson’s feature directorial debut After The Reality stars Matthew Morrison as a contestant on a Bachelorette-style reality show who reconnects with his estranged sister after their father dies.
Sarah Chalke also stars alongside Laura Bell Bundy, Juan Pablo Di Pace, John Heard, and Jane Lynch.
John Hermann, Alex Koehne and David Anderson produced under the USofAnderson Production Company. Film Mode will represent international sales in Cannes.
The distributor will release the film digitally and on VOD on April 25. The Orchard brokered the deal with Marc Simon of Fox Rothschild.
Meanwhile The Orchard and Topic, First Look Media’s new entertainment studio, have partnered to acquire all North American rights to Blanketfort Media’s The Work, winner of the grand jury prize for best documentary...
The Orchard has acquired all North American rights to After The Reality and separately has jointly acquired The Work with Topic.
David Anderson’s feature directorial debut After The Reality stars Matthew Morrison as a contestant on a Bachelorette-style reality show who reconnects with his estranged sister after their father dies.
Sarah Chalke also stars alongside Laura Bell Bundy, Juan Pablo Di Pace, John Heard, and Jane Lynch.
John Hermann, Alex Koehne and David Anderson produced under the USofAnderson Production Company. Film Mode will represent international sales in Cannes.
The distributor will release the film digitally and on VOD on April 25. The Orchard brokered the deal with Marc Simon of Fox Rothschild.
Meanwhile The Orchard and Topic, First Look Media’s new entertainment studio, have partnered to acquire all North American rights to Blanketfort Media’s The Work, winner of the grand jury prize for best documentary...
- 4/7/2017
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Keep up with the wild and wooly world of indie film acquisitions with our weekly Rundown of everything that’s been picked up around the globe. Check out last week’s Rundown here.
– Kino Lorber has acquired the North American rights to Bill Morrison’s “Dawson City: Frozen Time,” about the true history of a collection of 533 reels of film (representing 372 titles) dating from the 1910s to 1920s, which were lost for over 50 years until being discovered buried in a sub-arctic swimming pool deep in the Yukon Territory. The film tells the unique history of a Canadian gold rush town and how cinema, capitalism and history intersect.
“Dawson City” had its world premiere at the 73rd Venice Film Festival and North American premiere at 2016 New York Film Festival. The film also played at the BFI/London Film Festival and the 2017 Rotterdam International Film Festival, and screened Thursday at the TCM...
– Kino Lorber has acquired the North American rights to Bill Morrison’s “Dawson City: Frozen Time,” about the true history of a collection of 533 reels of film (representing 372 titles) dating from the 1910s to 1920s, which were lost for over 50 years until being discovered buried in a sub-arctic swimming pool deep in the Yukon Territory. The film tells the unique history of a Canadian gold rush town and how cinema, capitalism and history intersect.
“Dawson City” had its world premiere at the 73rd Venice Film Festival and North American premiere at 2016 New York Film Festival. The film also played at the BFI/London Film Festival and the 2017 Rotterdam International Film Festival, and screened Thursday at the TCM...
- 4/7/2017
- by Graham Winfrey
- Indiewire
The Orchard and First Look Media’s new entertainment studio Topic have acquired North American rights to feature documentary “The Work,” co-directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous, which made its world premiere at the 2017 SXSW Film Festival, where it… Continue Reading →...
- 4/7/2017
- by Aramide A. Tinubu
- ShadowAndAct
The Orchard and Topic, First Look Media’s new entertainment studio, have acquired all North American rights to prison therapy documentary The Work.
The Blanketfort Media film, directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous, made its world premiere at SXSW earlier this year and won the fest's grand jury prize for best documentary. The Orchard plans a theatrical release this fall.
The Work, an immersive film shot entirely inside Folsom Prison, captures group therapy sessions that put members of the public alongside convicts inside the legendary California maximum-security prison.
Producers are Alice Henty, Jairus McLeary, Eon McLeary, Miles McLeary and...
The Blanketfort Media film, directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous, made its world premiere at SXSW earlier this year and won the fest's grand jury prize for best documentary. The Orchard plans a theatrical release this fall.
The Work, an immersive film shot entirely inside Folsom Prison, captures group therapy sessions that put members of the public alongside convicts inside the legendary California maximum-security prison.
Producers are Alice Henty, Jairus McLeary, Eon McLeary, Miles McLeary and...
- 4/7/2017
- by Ashley Lee
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Orchard and First Look Media’s new entertainment studio Topic has acquired North American rights to The Work, the documentary co-directed by Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous and shot inside Folsom Prison. The pic won the 2017 SXSW Film Festival's Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary. The Orchard plans a fall theatrical release. McLeary, a court videographer, makes his directorial debut in the pic, about the convicts and civilian volunteers who run a one-of-a-kind…...
- 4/7/2017
- Deadline
“Most Beautiful Island”
A short, stressful, and utterly spellbinding debut that transforms the immigrant experience into the stuff of an early Polanski psychodrama, “Most Beautiful Island” was a worthy winner of the SXSW Grand Jury Prize for best narrative feature, and might prove to be a breakthrough moment for a major new talent: Spanish actress Ana Asensio not only wrote, directed, and produced this fraught metropolitan thriller, she also appears in just about every frame.
It would be criminal to reveal too much about what happens to her character, a Manhattan immigrant who’s struggling to make a life for herself in the big city and in for the longest night of her life, but it’s thrilling to watch the anxiety of neo-realism as it slowly bleeds into something that resembles the suspense of the orgy sequence from “Eyes Wide Shut.” Creating a lucid sense of reality only so...
A short, stressful, and utterly spellbinding debut that transforms the immigrant experience into the stuff of an early Polanski psychodrama, “Most Beautiful Island” was a worthy winner of the SXSW Grand Jury Prize for best narrative feature, and might prove to be a breakthrough moment for a major new talent: Spanish actress Ana Asensio not only wrote, directed, and produced this fraught metropolitan thriller, she also appears in just about every frame.
It would be criminal to reveal too much about what happens to her character, a Manhattan immigrant who’s struggling to make a life for herself in the big city and in for the longest night of her life, but it’s thrilling to watch the anxiety of neo-realism as it slowly bleeds into something that resembles the suspense of the orgy sequence from “Eyes Wide Shut.” Creating a lucid sense of reality only so...
- 3/18/2017
- by Chris O'Falt, David Ehrlich, Eric Kohn, Kate Erbland and Steve Greene
- Indiewire
“Most Beautiful Island” by director Ana Asensio and “The Work” by directors Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous have taken the top prizes at the 2017 edition of the South by Southwest Film Festival. “Most Beautiful Island” was declared the winner of the Narrative Feature Competition, while “The Work” won the Documentary Feature Competition. Also Read: 'Baby Driver' Review: Edgar Wright Floors It Before Driving Off a Cliff The festival tonight also announced the full slate of awards by its Grand Jury. The film festival, which runs through Saturday, will screen 130 features, among them 84 world premieres. See the full list of.
- 3/15/2017
- by Ross A. Lincoln
- The Wrap
SXSW handed out its annual film awards tonight, naming Ana Asensio’s Most Beautiful Island as the best narrative work of the festival, and Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’s prison therapy piece The Work as best documentary.
In addition to Asensio’s crime thriller, the SXSW jury also acknowledged the work of The Strange Ones and A Bad Idea Gone Wrong, which both received nods for performance. Miao Wang’s coming-of-age story Maineland and Nanfu Wang’s I Am Another You, about underground culture in Florida, both also won documentary awards.
You can see the full list of winners here; meanwhile, the festival also garnered strong buzz for a number of films that weren’t up for award consideration, including entusiastic reviews touting James Franco’s The Disaster Artist and Edgar Wright’s next film, Baby Driver.
[via Variety]...
In addition to Asensio’s crime thriller, the SXSW jury also acknowledged the work of The Strange Ones and A Bad Idea Gone Wrong, which both received nods for performance. Miao Wang’s coming-of-age story Maineland and Nanfu Wang’s I Am Another You, about underground culture in Florida, both also won documentary awards.
You can see the full list of winners here; meanwhile, the festival also garnered strong buzz for a number of films that weren’t up for award consideration, including entusiastic reviews touting James Franco’s The Disaster Artist and Edgar Wright’s next film, Baby Driver.
[via Variety]...
- 3/15/2017
- by William Hughes
- avclub.com
Ana Asensio's psychological thriller Most Beautiful Island took the narrative feature tonight as the SXSW fest announced its film award winners at the Paramount Theatre in Austin. Shot on Super 16, the Spain-u.S. co-production looks at the plight of undocumented female immigrants hoping to make a life in New York. Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’ The Work won the documentary feature prize. Set at Folsom Prison, it follows three men from outside as they participate in a…...
- 3/15/2017
- Deadline
At a packed Paramount Theater this evening, the SXSW Film Festival, now at the halfway mark, handed out their big film awards. The fest’s two big competition jury prizes went to director Ana Asensio’s “Most Beautiful Island” (Best Narrative Feature) and directors Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’s “The Work” (Best Narrative Feature).
Read More: Terrence Malick Makes a Rare Appearance at SXSW 2017 and Digs Deep On His Process
Asensio, a Spanish actress and filmmaker living in New York, shot her film in super 16mm. It tells the story of undocumented female immigrants struggling to start a life in New York. It is a feature film debut for Asensio, who also stars and wrote the screenplay. “Island” is being billed as a dramatic thriller and was produced by the New York horror master Larry Fessenden’s Glass Eye Pix.
The Doc Prize winner, “The Work,” is an intense...
Read More: Terrence Malick Makes a Rare Appearance at SXSW 2017 and Digs Deep On His Process
Asensio, a Spanish actress and filmmaker living in New York, shot her film in super 16mm. It tells the story of undocumented female immigrants struggling to start a life in New York. It is a feature film debut for Asensio, who also stars and wrote the screenplay. “Island” is being billed as a dramatic thriller and was produced by the New York horror master Larry Fessenden’s Glass Eye Pix.
The Doc Prize winner, “The Work,” is an intense...
- 3/15/2017
- by Chris O'Falt
- Indiewire
Ana Asensio’s Most Beautiful Island, a psychological thriller about undocumented female immigrants in New York, has won the Grand Jury Award in the narrative feature competition at the South by Southwest Film Festival. The Grand Jury Award for documentary feature went to The Work, from directors Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous, which looks at a four-day group therapy session in Folsom Prison.
The SXSW Film Awards, presented by FilmStruck, were announced Tuesday night, while the film portion of the SXSW Conference and Festivals continues through Saturday. The awards were hosted by Saturday Night Live castmember Sasheer Zamata. Audience Awards will...
The SXSW Film Awards, presented by FilmStruck, were announced Tuesday night, while the film portion of the SXSW Conference and Festivals continues through Saturday. The awards were hosted by Saturday Night Live castmember Sasheer Zamata. Audience Awards will...
- 3/15/2017
- by Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Festival brass on Tuesday evening announced jury and special award winners out of Austin, Texas.
Ana Asensio’s Most Beautiful Island prevailed in the SXSW narrative feature competition, while special jury recognition for breakthrough performance wet to James Freedson-Jackson from The Strange Ones.
The cast of A Bad Idea Gone Wrong earned best ensemble honours.
Top documentary honours went to Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous for The Work.
The inaugural SXSW Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award in honour of a filmmaker “whose work strives to be wholly its own, without regard for norms or desire to conform” went to Assholes by Peter Vack.
In the shorts categories Forever Now won narrative shorts, while the documentary prize went to Little Potato, the Midnight Shorts prize to The Suplex Duplex Complex, and the animated shorts prize to Wednesday With Goddard.
Click here for the full list of winners. Audience award winners will be unveiled on March 18.
Ana Asensio’s Most Beautiful Island prevailed in the SXSW narrative feature competition, while special jury recognition for breakthrough performance wet to James Freedson-Jackson from The Strange Ones.
The cast of A Bad Idea Gone Wrong earned best ensemble honours.
Top documentary honours went to Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous for The Work.
The inaugural SXSW Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award in honour of a filmmaker “whose work strives to be wholly its own, without regard for norms or desire to conform” went to Assholes by Peter Vack.
In the shorts categories Forever Now won narrative shorts, while the documentary prize went to Little Potato, the Midnight Shorts prize to The Suplex Duplex Complex, and the animated shorts prize to Wednesday With Goddard.
Click here for the full list of winners. Audience award winners will be unveiled on March 18.
- 3/14/2017
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Imagine a Tony Robbins session with a bunch of testosterone-fueled convicts and you’ll start to get an idea of “The Work,” an emotionally riveting documentary that may very well be the most powerful group therapy ever caught on camera. Co-directors Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous gained access to a tense four-day session at Folsom State Prison, where inmates engage with civilians in intimate conversations about their repressed frustrations. Scene by scene, their masculine armor falls away, and the tears erupt with volcanic intensity. The minimalist scenario, almost exclusively set within the confines of a nondescript room, foregrounds the visceral process of confronting anger and regret through a fascinating collaborative approach, with results that are alternately terrifying and cathartic.
“The Work” captures one of two annual sessions in which male prisoners and civilians joining together in close quarters to talk through their greatest fears and traumatic memories. While this initially...
“The Work” captures one of two annual sessions in which male prisoners and civilians joining together in close quarters to talk through their greatest fears and traumatic memories. While this initially...
- 3/14/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Putting the viewer into a men’s circle like no other, The Work is a remarkable piece of reportage. Twice a year, Folsom State Prison, near Sacramento, Calif., invites outsiders to enter its gates as part of a four-day program of intensive group therapy. Court videographer Jairus McLeary, who directed the film with Gethin Aldous, has been making the trip from Illinois since 2003, and his firsthand experience of the therapeutic retreats as a participant rather than an observer infuses the finished product. Premiering in competition at South by Southwest, the doc is certain to stir up further interest on the...
- 3/11/2017
- by Sheri Linden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
After drawing attention to the festival’s annual Gaming Awards, organizers behind the South by Southwest Film Festival have posted the full, comprehensive lineup, revealing that the likes of Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver and Free Fire, the riotous ensemble thriller from Ben Wheatley, are among those films that will screen for critics and attendees.
Per SXSW 2017‘s website, this year’s showcase will host “84 World Premieres, 11 North American Premieres, and 6 Us Premieres. First-time filmmakers account for 51 films, continuing our tradition of unearthing the emergent talent of tomorrow.” British auteur Ben Wheatley (Kill List, Sightseers, A Field in England) is a regular of the Texas festival, and will be rubbing shoulders with other favorites including Michael Winterbottom, Nacho Vigalondo, Michael Showalter.
SXSW 2017 begins on March 10th in Austin, Texas and you can get up to speed on everything the festival has to offer down below.
Narrative Feature Competition
A Bad Idea Gone Wrong...
Per SXSW 2017‘s website, this year’s showcase will host “84 World Premieres, 11 North American Premieres, and 6 Us Premieres. First-time filmmakers account for 51 films, continuing our tradition of unearthing the emergent talent of tomorrow.” British auteur Ben Wheatley (Kill List, Sightseers, A Field in England) is a regular of the Texas festival, and will be rubbing shoulders with other favorites including Michael Winterbottom, Nacho Vigalondo, Michael Showalter.
SXSW 2017 begins on March 10th in Austin, Texas and you can get up to speed on everything the festival has to offer down below.
Narrative Feature Competition
A Bad Idea Gone Wrong...
- 1/31/2017
- by Michael Briers
- We Got This Covered
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