If you had to define the history of American Independent Film with a select few titles you’d want to mention Steven Soderbergh’s 1989 film. Sundance Institute announced today that Steven Soderbergh's sex, lies, and videotape (Sundance Film Festival Audience Award Winner) and Wendell B. Harris's Chameleon Street (1990 Sundance Film Festival Jury Prize Winner) have been selected for the Festival's From the Collection screenings.
Today’s announcement comes with little surprise, but I’m glad to see that Benjamin Button and Frost/Nixon are leveling the playing field sort of speak. While Doubt picked up 4 nominations it couldn’t crack the top 5 noms for Best Dramatic Feature and Milk was almost totally taken off the score card – only Sean Penn got a nod.
Does Pixar stand a chance at receiving an Academy Award Best Picture nomination this year? Kudos go to the Los Angeles Critics Assn. for picking Wall-E as the best film of the year and for backing Zhang-Ke Jia's Still Life – a picture that received a limited release in January and is being honored as Best Foreign and Best Cinematography by the group.
Glenn McQuaid’s black comedy horror film “I Sell the Dead” and the latest from the Broken Lizard clan are among the 29 films from first time filmmakers in both narrative and docu categories that have been announced for the 15th edition of the Slamdance.
Cut down from 24 down to 16 and with less studio content means more films up for sale. Let the buzz begin. Among the must sees: the sombre debut from scribe Oren Moverman (The Messenger), the long awaited debut of Gregor Jordan's The Informers and you'll be surprised by what Killer Films' Katherine Dieckmann's Motherhood might have in store.