Exclusive articles:
Film in Pictures: Mike Mills’ Beginners
I'm gearing up for TIFF here, and in comes the first wave of pictures from Mike Mill's sophomore feature Beginners - a film that should be at the top of many buyer's lists next month, and is one of my most anticipated features of the year as it's been a long wait since Thumbsucker.
Zeitgeist Films Checkmate ‘Queen of Play’
I sort of lost track on this Euro item which at one point had Bruno Ganz set to star opposite Sandrine Bonnaire. Looks like Queen of Play would eventually pick up Kevin Kline; the actor got to practice his French in a feature film for a first time. A Tribeca 2009 entry, this centers on a hotel chambermaid (Bonnaire) whose growing interest in chess is nurtured by her American employer (Kline).
Cannes Pick-up in August: Biutiful Going to Roadside Attractions?
With strong critical support from Sundance, Roadside successfully launched Winter's Bone this summer and will appropriately handle the Gothams and Indie Spirits Awards, but Alejandro González Iñárritu's Biutiful is a different creature.
Nick Cassavetes Greenlights ‘Yellow’
Yellow, a project noted back in January, appears to be Cassavetes' renewal with the indie form. Filming begins in L.A. next month, and sweet Oklahoma in mid-October.
Image of the Day: Black Venus’s Abdellatif Kechiche
With Black Venus, Kechiche will once again compete in Venice and the voluminous almost three hour drama will surely met with the same fate: critically applauded, difficult to market in North America. I'm crossing my fingers for a TIFF North American premiere to alter the film's fate.
