Hot Docs is billed as North America’s largest documentary festival, conference and market and this year is offering up 168 films for its 31st edition running April 25-May 5 in Toronto.
It is opening with the international premiere of Luther: Never Too Much about R&b singer-songwriter and producer Luther Vandross.
Among the festival’s 51 world premieres this year are special presentations of Red Fever from Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond and Catherine Bainbridge, and The Ride Ahead from Samuel and Dan Habib.
The international competition includes the world premiere of Farming The Revolution from India and the international premiere of Ukrainian Sundance prize-winner Porcelain War.
It is opening with the international premiere of Luther: Never Too Much about R&b singer-songwriter and producer Luther Vandross.
Among the festival’s 51 world premieres this year are special presentations of Red Fever from Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond and Catherine Bainbridge, and The Ride Ahead from Samuel and Dan Habib.
The international competition includes the world premiere of Farming The Revolution from India and the international premiere of Ukrainian Sundance prize-winner Porcelain War.
- 4/25/2024
- ScreenDaily
Billed as North America’s largest documentary festival, conference and market, Hot Docs offers up 168 films for its 31st edition running April 25-May 5 in Toronto, opening with the international premiere of Luther: Never Too Much about R&b singer-songwriter and producer Luther Vandross.
Among the festival’s 51 world premieres this year are special presentations of Red Fever from Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond and Catherine Bainbridge, and The Ride Ahead from Samuel and Dan Habib.
The international competition includes the world premiere of Farming The Revolution from India and the international premiere of Ukrainian Sundance prize-winner Porcelain War.
This year’s Made In section highlights Spain,...
Among the festival’s 51 world premieres this year are special presentations of Red Fever from Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond and Catherine Bainbridge, and The Ride Ahead from Samuel and Dan Habib.
The international competition includes the world premiere of Farming The Revolution from India and the international premiere of Ukrainian Sundance prize-winner Porcelain War.
This year’s Made In section highlights Spain,...
- 4/25/2024
- ScreenDaily
Distributing films by Todd Haynes, Guy Maddin, Abbas Kiarostami, Laura Poitras, Olivier Assayas, and even Jacques Demy, Zeitgeist Film has been one of the most vital caretakers of independent and international cinema in the last few decades. Founded in New York City in 1988 by Nancy Gerstman and Emily Russo, they will now get a well-deserved celebration at NYC’s Metrograph beginning this Friday, November 3, with the series Zeitgeist Films at 35, and we’re pleased to exclusively debut the trailer.
Along with Olivier Assayas’ Irma Vep, Todd Haynes’ Poison, Derek Jarman’s The Garden, Abbas Kiarostami’s Taste of Cherry, Atom Egoyan’s Speaking Parts, and Jacques Demy’s Umbrellas of Cherbourg (released in a new restoration by Zeitgeist in 1996), the series features premieres of new 4K remasters of Guy Maddin’s Archangel and Marc Rothemund’s Sophie Scholl: The Final Days, plus an exclusive series closing night Member Preview of...
Along with Olivier Assayas’ Irma Vep, Todd Haynes’ Poison, Derek Jarman’s The Garden, Abbas Kiarostami’s Taste of Cherry, Atom Egoyan’s Speaking Parts, and Jacques Demy’s Umbrellas of Cherbourg (released in a new restoration by Zeitgeist in 1996), the series features premieres of new 4K remasters of Guy Maddin’s Archangel and Marc Rothemund’s Sophie Scholl: The Final Days, plus an exclusive series closing night Member Preview of...
- 10/31/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Watch Freedom Dreams: Black Women and the Student Debt Crisis, the latest documentary short from The Intercept. Directed by Astra Taylor and Erick Stoll—two former 25 New Faces of Film from 2006 and 2017, respectively—the doc profiles Black women who have been buried by the staggering amount of student loan debt they’ve accrued. The film is narrated by former Ohio state Senator Nina Turner, who is an advocate for cancelling student loan debt nationwide. The film points out that Black women are often forced to take out more loans compared to other demographics due to an overwhelming lack of intergenerational […]
The post Watch Freedom Dreams: Black Women and the Student Debt Crisis first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post Watch Freedom Dreams: Black Women and the Student Debt Crisis first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 8/22/2022
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Exclusive: Zeitgeist Films and Kino Lorber have acquired North American rights to Eva Vitija’s documentary Loving Highsmith, which takes as its focus Carol and The Talented Mr. Ripley author Patricia Highsmith. Zeitgeist will release the film theatrically this September.
Loving Highsmith is a unique look at the life of the celebrated American author, focusing on Highsmith’s quest for love and her troubled identity through her personal diaries and the intimate reflections of her lovers, friends and family. The film sheds new light on her life and writings, the best known of which were adapted for the big screen: Strangers on a Train, The Talented Mr. Ripley and Carol, a partially autobiographical novel and the first lesbian story with a happy ending in 1950s America. Highsmith herself was forced to lead a double life and had to hide her vibrant love affairs from her family and the public, reflecting...
Loving Highsmith is a unique look at the life of the celebrated American author, focusing on Highsmith’s quest for love and her troubled identity through her personal diaries and the intimate reflections of her lovers, friends and family. The film sheds new light on her life and writings, the best known of which were adapted for the big screen: Strangers on a Train, The Talented Mr. Ripley and Carol, a partially autobiographical novel and the first lesbian story with a happy ending in 1950s America. Highsmith herself was forced to lead a double life and had to hide her vibrant love affairs from her family and the public, reflecting...
- 6/16/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
The writer and film-maker explores the meaning of democracy in a new documentary and book, and discusses the current state of politics, from Donald Trump to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Astra Taylor hasn’t always been interested in democracy. “There was this vagueness about the word that just seemed to be not just corruptible but almost inherently corrupt,” says the writer, film-maker and activist. “I was attracted to words like liberation, emancipation, equality, revolution, socialism. Any other word would get my pulse going more than democracy.” For her, democracy was a word imperial America used to sell free markets and push its agenda.
Yet Taylor, a lifelong activist, says that she also always felt there was “a contradiction” inherent in democracy that puzzled her. For all the cynicism the word attracted, she could see there was power in an idea meant to strengthen the people, a power that she explores in her new documentary,...
Astra Taylor hasn’t always been interested in democracy. “There was this vagueness about the word that just seemed to be not just corruptible but almost inherently corrupt,” says the writer, film-maker and activist. “I was attracted to words like liberation, emancipation, equality, revolution, socialism. Any other word would get my pulse going more than democracy.” For her, democracy was a word imperial America used to sell free markets and push its agenda.
Yet Taylor, a lifelong activist, says that she also always felt there was “a contradiction” inherent in democracy that puzzled her. For all the cynicism the word attracted, she could see there was power in an idea meant to strengthen the people, a power that she explores in her new documentary,...
- 4/17/2019
- by Dominic Rushe
- The Guardian - Film News
I went down yesterday to the port of Piraeus. …I was delighted with the procession of the inhabitants. –Plato, The Republic, Book 1 In her third feature, What is Democracy?, premiering this year at the Toronto International Film Festival, director Astra Taylor takes on the role of ombudswoman to talk to a plethora of individuals about the concept and idea of democracy. As she did in her previous feature, the philosophy doc Examined Life, Taylor poses open-ended questions to her subjects, generously giving them a free rein to not only tell their personal stories but to grapple with big ideas […]...
- 9/7/2018
- by Pamela Cohn
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
I went down yesterday to the port of Piraeus. …I was delighted with the procession of the inhabitants. –Plato, The Republic, Book 1 In her third feature, What is Democracy?, premiering this year at the Toronto International Film Festival, director Astra Taylor takes on the role of ombudswoman to talk to a plethora of individuals about the concept and idea of democracy. As she did in her previous feature, the philosophy doc Examined Life, Taylor poses open-ended questions to her subjects, generously giving them a free rein to not only tell their personal stories but to grapple with big ideas […]...
- 9/7/2018
- by Pamela Cohn
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
m-appeal handles international sales.
Zeitgeist Films in association with Kino Lorber has acquired all North American rights to Israel director Michal Aviad’s timely Contemporary World Cinema selection Working Woman ahead of its anticipated international premiere in Toronto.
m-appeal handles international sales on the drama about Orna, an industrious, talented and ambitious woman who faces sexual harassment in the workplace.
Promoted by a boss who makes inappropriate advances, and married to a struggling restaurateur, Orna becomes the breadwinner for their three children and must find the strength to fight for her self-worth.
Working Woman screens to press and industry on...
Zeitgeist Films in association with Kino Lorber has acquired all North American rights to Israel director Michal Aviad’s timely Contemporary World Cinema selection Working Woman ahead of its anticipated international premiere in Toronto.
m-appeal handles international sales on the drama about Orna, an industrious, talented and ambitious woman who faces sexual harassment in the workplace.
Promoted by a boss who makes inappropriate advances, and married to a struggling restaurateur, Orna becomes the breadwinner for their three children and must find the strength to fight for her self-worth.
Working Woman screens to press and industry on...
- 9/6/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Zeitgeist Films in association with Kino Lorber has acquired all North American rights to Israel director Michal Aviad’s timely Contemporary World Cinema selection Working Woman ahead of its anticipated international premiere in Toronto.
m-appeal handles international sales on the drama, which premiered at Jerusalem Film Festival and centres on Orna, an industrious, talented and ambitious woman who faces sexual harassment in the workplace.
Promoted by a boss who makes inappropriate advances, and married to a struggling restaurateur, Orna becomes the breadwinner for their three children and must find the strength to fight for her self-worth.
m-appeal handles international sales on the drama, which premiered at Jerusalem Film Festival and centres on Orna, an industrious, talented and ambitious woman who faces sexual harassment in the workplace.
Promoted by a boss who makes inappropriate advances, and married to a struggling restaurateur, Orna becomes the breadwinner for their three children and must find the strength to fight for her self-worth.
- 9/5/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Just before its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, Astra Taylor's documentary What Is Democracy? has been picked up for U.S. distribution by Zeitgeist Films.
Zeitgeist plans to open the National Film Board of Canada movie at New York’s IFC Center in January, followed by a wider domestic release.
What Is Democracy? investigates the origins and meaning of the political system just as the proliferation of authoritarianism appears to be undermining democracy worldwide.
Taylor, who wrote the screenplay and directed, will see her latest doc screen first on Sept. 11 in Toronto, after a world ...
Zeitgeist plans to open the National Film Board of Canada movie at New York’s IFC Center in January, followed by a wider domestic release.
What Is Democracy? investigates the origins and meaning of the political system just as the proliferation of authoritarianism appears to be undermining democracy worldwide.
Taylor, who wrote the screenplay and directed, will see her latest doc screen first on Sept. 11 in Toronto, after a world ...
- 8/30/2018
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Just before its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, Astra Taylor's documentary What Is Democracy? has been picked up for U.S. distribution by Zeitgeist Films.
Zeitgeist plans to open the National Film Board of Canada movie at New York’s IFC Center in January, followed by a wider domestic release.
What Is Democracy? investigates the origins and meaning of the political system just as the proliferation of authoritarianism appears to be undermining democracy worldwide.
Taylor, who wrote the screenplay and directed, will see her latest doc screen first on Sept. 11 in Toronto, after a world ...
Zeitgeist plans to open the National Film Board of Canada movie at New York’s IFC Center in January, followed by a wider domestic release.
What Is Democracy? investigates the origins and meaning of the political system just as the proliferation of authoritarianism appears to be undermining democracy worldwide.
Taylor, who wrote the screenplay and directed, will see her latest doc screen first on Sept. 11 in Toronto, after a world ...
- 8/30/2018
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In today’s film news roundup, the second “Fantastic Beasts” movie is named the fall’s most anticipated movie, “What Is Democracy” gets distribution, and the ReelAbilities Film Festival is coming to Los Angeles.
Survey
Warner Bros.’ “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” has been selected as the most anticipated fall movie in a survey by online ticketing service Fandango of more than 1,000 film fans.
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Venom,” “Ralph Breaks the Internet,” and “A Star Is Born” were selected as the season’s other most anticipated blockbusters for the period between Sept. 7 and Thanksgiving weekend.
Fandango managing editor Erik Davis said, “Moviegoers are particularly excited about the long-awaited return to Hogwarts in ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald,’ as well as a double-dose of movies driven by music, with ‘A Star Is Born’ and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ poised as prominent awards season contenders.”
The second “Fantastic Beasts” movie opens Nov. 16 and stars Eddie Redmayne,...
Survey
Warner Bros.’ “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” has been selected as the most anticipated fall movie in a survey by online ticketing service Fandango of more than 1,000 film fans.
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Venom,” “Ralph Breaks the Internet,” and “A Star Is Born” were selected as the season’s other most anticipated blockbusters for the period between Sept. 7 and Thanksgiving weekend.
Fandango managing editor Erik Davis said, “Moviegoers are particularly excited about the long-awaited return to Hogwarts in ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald,’ as well as a double-dose of movies driven by music, with ‘A Star Is Born’ and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ poised as prominent awards season contenders.”
The second “Fantastic Beasts” movie opens Nov. 16 and stars Eddie Redmayne,...
- 8/30/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
The Toronto Intl. Film Festival has added Denys Arcand’s crime thriller “The Fall of the American Empire” and 18 other Canadian films to its lineup.
Nine of the films are directed by women and 14 are world premieres.
“We’re especially proud to present such a diverse group of films,” said Steve Gravestock, senior programmer. “Ranging from science fiction to fantasy, myth to documentary, and romance to a dystopic vision of our neighbours to the south, this year’s Canadian films come from every region in the country, stretching from east to west and north to south.”
“The Fall of the American Empire” stars Alexandre Landry, Maxim Roy, Yan England, and Rémy Girard and centers Landry’s character discovering two bags of money and facing a moral dilemma. Arcand was inspired to make the film after learning about the 2010 murder of two people in a Montreal boutique.
Sony Classics bought the...
Nine of the films are directed by women and 14 are world premieres.
“We’re especially proud to present such a diverse group of films,” said Steve Gravestock, senior programmer. “Ranging from science fiction to fantasy, myth to documentary, and romance to a dystopic vision of our neighbours to the south, this year’s Canadian films come from every region in the country, stretching from east to west and north to south.”
“The Fall of the American Empire” stars Alexandre Landry, Maxim Roy, Yan England, and Rémy Girard and centers Landry’s character discovering two bags of money and facing a moral dilemma. Arcand was inspired to make the film after learning about the 2010 murder of two people in a Montreal boutique.
Sony Classics bought the...
- 8/1/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
The Toronto International Film Festival has added another 19 new titles to its 2018 festival lineup, comprised entirely of features directed by Canadian filmmakers. Each year, Tiff highlights the films that hail from its own shores in a standalone announcement, and this year it includes nine new films from female directors, six debut features, a number of titles from fixtures of the Canadian film scene, and the world premiere of three films that showcase some of the country’s Indigenous talent.
The festival will also play home to a special event world premiere and tribute dedicated to the late filmmaker and conservationist Rob Stewart, centered around his final film, “Sharkwater Extinction.” Stewart passed away in 2017 while working on the film, a followup to his 2006 documentary “Sharkwater.”
“We’re especially proud to present such a diverse group of films,” said Steve Gravestock, Tiff Senior Programmer, in an official statement. “Ranging from science fiction to fantasy,...
The festival will also play home to a special event world premiere and tribute dedicated to the late filmmaker and conservationist Rob Stewart, centered around his final film, “Sharkwater Extinction.” Stewart passed away in 2017 while working on the film, a followup to his 2006 documentary “Sharkwater.”
“We’re especially proud to present such a diverse group of films,” said Steve Gravestock, Tiff Senior Programmer, in an official statement. “Ranging from science fiction to fantasy,...
- 8/1/2018
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
New films from Canadian filmmakers Denys Arcand, Maxime Giroux, Jennifer Baichwal and Bruce Sweeney have been added to 2018 Toronto International Film Festival lineup, which announced its slate of Canadian films on Wednesday.
Nine of the films are directed by women, fsix are debut features and 14 are world premieres.
Canadian features will include Arcand’s “The Fall of the American Empire,” Giroux’s “The Great Darkened Days” and Sweeney’s “Kingsway.”
Also Read: 'Beautiful Boy,' 'A Star Is Born' Highlight Toronto Film Festival Lineup
The Canadian documentaries include Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky’s “Anthropocene,” Ron Mann’s “Carmine Street Guitars” and Thom Fitzgerald’s “Splinters.”
Three of the films – Gwaii Edenshaw and Helen Haig-Brown’s “Edge of the Knife,” Darlene Naponse’s “Falls Around Her” and Miranda de Pencier’s “The Grizzlies” – feature indigenous talent.
A special event will screen the documentary “Sharkwater Extinction,...
Nine of the films are directed by women, fsix are debut features and 14 are world premieres.
Canadian features will include Arcand’s “The Fall of the American Empire,” Giroux’s “The Great Darkened Days” and Sweeney’s “Kingsway.”
Also Read: 'Beautiful Boy,' 'A Star Is Born' Highlight Toronto Film Festival Lineup
The Canadian documentaries include Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky’s “Anthropocene,” Ron Mann’s “Carmine Street Guitars” and Thom Fitzgerald’s “Splinters.”
Three of the films – Gwaii Edenshaw and Helen Haig-Brown’s “Edge of the Knife,” Darlene Naponse’s “Falls Around Her” and Miranda de Pencier’s “The Grizzlies” – feature indigenous talent.
A special event will screen the documentary “Sharkwater Extinction,...
- 8/1/2018
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Anthropocene and The Fall Of The American Empire are among films joining the line-up.
The Toronto International Film Festival has added another 19 Canadian titles to its line-up, among them the world premieres of documentary Anthropocene, Rob Stewart’s Sharkwater Extinction and Miranda de Pencier’s feature directorial debut The Grizzlies.
The new titles for the forty-third edition of the festival – which runs from September 6 to 16 - include nine films directed by women and five debut features and senior programmer Steve Gravestock emphasised the diversity represented.
Scroll down for full line-up
“We’re especially proud to present such a diverse group of films,...
The Toronto International Film Festival has added another 19 Canadian titles to its line-up, among them the world premieres of documentary Anthropocene, Rob Stewart’s Sharkwater Extinction and Miranda de Pencier’s feature directorial debut The Grizzlies.
The new titles for the forty-third edition of the festival – which runs from September 6 to 16 - include nine films directed by women and five debut features and senior programmer Steve Gravestock emphasised the diversity represented.
Scroll down for full line-up
“We’re especially proud to present such a diverse group of films,...
- 8/1/2018
- by John Hazelton
- ScreenDaily
Astra Taylor’s documentary travels the world to discover why Trump and Brexit happened – and where real power lies
The old Churchillian adage is that, for all its flaws, democracy is the least worst system of government. Philosopher, film-maker and activist Astra Taylor takes a more critical view in this fascinating essay, meticulously building an argument that most western countries are being run by a really bad form of democracy. Another kind of more direct democracy is possible if we can be bothered to strive for it. But there’s a catch – that would require the complete collapse of oligarch-led global capitalism. That awkward conclusion makes this documentary a deliberate challenge to complacency – and, as a result, it’s a great watch.
Taylor travels the world meeting thinkers and activists who are troubled by the way democracy operates in their societies. She returns periodically to two main pillars of the...
The old Churchillian adage is that, for all its flaws, democracy is the least worst system of government. Philosopher, film-maker and activist Astra Taylor takes a more critical view in this fascinating essay, meticulously building an argument that most western countries are being run by a really bad form of democracy. Another kind of more direct democracy is possible if we can be bothered to strive for it. But there’s a catch – that would require the complete collapse of oligarch-led global capitalism. That awkward conclusion makes this documentary a deliberate challenge to complacency – and, as a result, it’s a great watch.
Taylor travels the world meeting thinkers and activists who are troubled by the way democracy operates in their societies. She returns periodically to two main pillars of the...
- 6/11/2018
- by Charlie Phillips
- The Guardian - Film News
Over 200 projects announced, including 37 world and 70 UK premieres.
UK documentary festival Sheffield Doc/Fest has unveiled the programme for its 25th edition, which runs from June 7-12 this summer.
Amongst the titles are a screening of McQueen, Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui’s film about the late British fashion designer Alexander McQueen composed of archival footage and personal testimonials.
Last month Sean McAllister’s A Northern Soul was announced as the opening night film.
Scroll down for the full list of films in competition
The 2018 official competition jury includes documentarian Mark Cousins, director Sophie Fiennes and artists Liv Wynter and Samson Kambalu.
UK documentary festival Sheffield Doc/Fest has unveiled the programme for its 25th edition, which runs from June 7-12 this summer.
Amongst the titles are a screening of McQueen, Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui’s film about the late British fashion designer Alexander McQueen composed of archival footage and personal testimonials.
Last month Sean McAllister’s A Northern Soul was announced as the opening night film.
Scroll down for the full list of films in competition
The 2018 official competition jury includes documentarian Mark Cousins, director Sophie Fiennes and artists Liv Wynter and Samson Kambalu.
- 5/3/2018
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
When it played Art of the Real last year, Astra Taylor singled out for Filmmaker the absolutely essential documentary, The Prison in Twelve Landscapes. She wrote: Story has crafted a profound and political film that, while not sensational, is quietly shocking — even if you are already steeped in the project’s central theme. By taking an innovative and unexpected approach to the subject of mass incarceration, Story reveals just how deeply entrenched the problem of over-policing is…. The Prison in Twelve Landscapes is an impressive, genre-subverting work, and one that deserves to be seen on the big screen. It is […]...
- 11/5/2016
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
It’s been a surprisingly interesting month of moving and shaking in terms of doc development. Just a month after making his first public funding pitch at Toronto’s Hot Docs Forum, legendary doc filmmaker Frederick Wiseman took to Kickstarter to help cover the remaining expenses for his 40th feature film In Jackson Heights (see the film’s first trailer below). Unrelentingly rigorous in his determination to capture the American institutional landscape on film, his latest continues down this thematic rabbit hole, taking on the immensely diverse New York City neighborhood of Jackson Heights as his latest subject. According to the Kickstarter page, Wiseman is currently editing the 120 hours of rushes he shot with hopes of having the film ready for a fall festival premiere (my guess would be Tiff, where both National Gallery and At Berkeley made their North American debut), though he’s currently quite a ways away from his $75,000 goal.
- 7/6/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
A lot has gone on in 2014. Our world continues to change rapidly. It no longer will be what it once was and we have to move on from it. Imho, few have a handle on where it is all heading. All the more reason why you should want to dig in deep and explore. All the more reason why we need filters and curators to point us in one direction or the other. All the more reason we need someone to approach it as a business, and stop relying on those who feel forced to do it as a hobby.
Here’s my quick survey on the year in film biz that was, as told by the articles that resonated for me (or at least ten of the subjects). Many thanks to my friends who helped pull this together by recommending reads along the way.
The “Too Many Films?” Debate.
Here’s my quick survey on the year in film biz that was, as told by the articles that resonated for me (or at least ten of the subjects). Many thanks to my friends who helped pull this together by recommending reads along the way.
The “Too Many Films?” Debate.
- 12/23/2014
- by Ted Hope
- Hope for Film
For your Sunday morning, here’s some of what I’ve been reading this past week. At the Rumpus, filmmaker (and 25 New Face) Astra Taylor is interviewed about her book The People’s Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age, which I can’t wait to read. An excerpt: Also, after Examined Life was finished I found myself thinking about the way creative opportunities and distribution channels were shifting. Should I be showing my films in theaters or just think about getting them out online? There were other issues, too. For example, instead of being asked to write an article, […]...
- 4/27/2014
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
For your Sunday morning, here’s some of what I’ve been reading this past week. At the Rumpus, filmmaker (and 25 New Face) Astra Taylor is interviewed about her book The People’s Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age, which I can’t wait to read. An excerpt: Also, after Examined Life was finished I found myself thinking about the way creative opportunities and distribution channels were shifting. Should I be showing my films in theaters or just think about getting them out online? There were other issues, too. For example, instead of being asked to write an article, […]...
- 4/27/2014
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Several filmmakers and Occupy Wall Street supporters are criticizing the Tribeca Film Festival for its inclusion of Brookfield Properties, the owner of Zuccotti Park, as a sponsor for this year's events.
The New York Times reports filmmakers Laura Poitras (“The Oath”), Zach Levy (“Strongman”) and Astra Taylor (“Examined Life”) have petitioned a letter to festival organizers voicing their disappointment and opposition to the sponsor. The open letter states:
We are troubled to learn that the festival has allowed Brookfield Properties to be one of its major sponsors this year and that multiple advertising trailers for Brookfield play in preshow programs.
Given Brookfield’s role in evicting the Occupy movement from Zuccotti Park, Brookfield hardly seems an appropriate sponsor for any festival that aspires to support new creative and cultural ideas. The company should not be given such a high-profile platform to help re-brand themselves as supporters of artistic expression and free speech.
The New York Times reports filmmakers Laura Poitras (“The Oath”), Zach Levy (“Strongman”) and Astra Taylor (“Examined Life”) have petitioned a letter to festival organizers voicing their disappointment and opposition to the sponsor. The open letter states:
We are troubled to learn that the festival has allowed Brookfield Properties to be one of its major sponsors this year and that multiple advertising trailers for Brookfield play in preshow programs.
Given Brookfield’s role in evicting the Occupy movement from Zuccotti Park, Brookfield hardly seems an appropriate sponsor for any festival that aspires to support new creative and cultural ideas. The company should not be given such a high-profile platform to help re-brand themselves as supporters of artistic expression and free speech.
- 4/27/2012
- by Inae Oh
- Huffington Post
"The late writer David Foster Wallace defined the word 'Lynchian' as referring to 'a particular kind of irony where the very macabre and the very mundane combine in such a way as to reveal the former's perpetual containment within the latter.' And this seems a pretty accurate description of my morning at Lynch's house." Craig McLean's conversation with Lynch for the Telegraph about teeth for quite a while before it eventually steers to the new album, Crazy Clown Time.
And via Ray Pride, Nowness meets Lynch in Paris to chat about Club Silencio, buried "six flights below ground level at 142 rue Montmartre": "Accessed through a glittering tunnel leading off the cocktail bar, Silencio has an art deco cinema, reflective dance floor, a Fire Walk With Me-style stage, and a 50s art library featuring a selection of the director's most treasured books from Kafka to Dostoevsky — not to mention...
And via Ray Pride, Nowness meets Lynch in Paris to chat about Club Silencio, buried "six flights below ground level at 142 rue Montmartre": "Accessed through a glittering tunnel leading off the cocktail bar, Silencio has an art deco cinema, reflective dance floor, a Fire Walk With Me-style stage, and a 50s art library featuring a selection of the director's most treasured books from Kafka to Dostoevsky — not to mention...
- 10/23/2011
- MUBI
A rainy today like today’s in New York is a good time to ask yourself, “Does philosophy still matter?” Below is the complete video from last week’s sold out event at the New School. From their blog:
In an age of instant punditry, 24/7 Twitter updates, and political discourse that seems to discourage careful reflection, an all-star panel at The New School will ask Does Philosophy Still Matter?, marking the publication of Nssr Professor James Miller’s new book, Examined Lives: From Socrates to Nietzsche (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011). Panelists include Simon Critchley, professor of philosophy at The New School for Social Research and author of The Book of Dead Philosophers; Anthony Gottlieb, author of The Dream of Reason, a three-volume history of philosophy; James Miller, professor of political science and chair of the Committee on Liberal Studies at The New School for Social Research; Astra Taylor, independent filmmaker and director of Zizek!
In an age of instant punditry, 24/7 Twitter updates, and political discourse that seems to discourage careful reflection, an all-star panel at The New School will ask Does Philosophy Still Matter?, marking the publication of Nssr Professor James Miller’s new book, Examined Lives: From Socrates to Nietzsche (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011). Panelists include Simon Critchley, professor of philosophy at The New School for Social Research and author of The Book of Dead Philosophers; Anthony Gottlieb, author of The Dream of Reason, a three-volume history of philosophy; James Miller, professor of political science and chair of the Committee on Liberal Studies at The New School for Social Research; Astra Taylor, independent filmmaker and director of Zizek!
- 2/5/2011
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In this week's edition, Jason Solomons talks to Mighty Boosh director Paul King about his debut comedy, Bunny and the Bull, nominated for "most imaginative first feature" at the London film festival. He meets Astra Taylor whose documentary Examined Life takes eight leading philosophers on to the streets to enlighten us with their big ideas and is joined by Xan Brooks to discuss the week's releases – César-sweeper Séraphine, box-office phenomenon Paranormal Activity and Jamie Foxx v Gerard Butler vigilante thriller Law Abiding Citizen.
Jason SolomonsXan BrooksJason Phipps...
Jason SolomonsXan BrooksJason Phipps...
- 11/26/2009
- by Jason Solomons, Xan Brooks, Jason Phipps
- The Guardian - Film News
Can Examined Life, a movie featuring nothing but philosophers talking, really be an enjoyable cinematic experience. Surprisingly, yes
Early in the film Examined Life, literary theorist Avital Ronell asks the director Astra Taylor, "What are you getting me into here?" A pertinent question, because Taylor's new documentary makes for a grim outline: eight philosophers talking for 10 minutes each on anything from theories of justice to cosmopolitanism. The nearest we get to a car chase is a long, sweaty drive in an old Volvo to a lecture hall.
What it is, however, is an enjoyable experiment: moral philosophy – the motion picture. After all, your multiplex is more likely to show scenes of teenage devil worship than someone thinking. Film-makers have good reasons to avoid contemplation. For one thing, it is not a pretty business. As Oscar Wilde observed: "The moment one sits down to think, one becomes all nose, or all forehead,...
Early in the film Examined Life, literary theorist Avital Ronell asks the director Astra Taylor, "What are you getting me into here?" A pertinent question, because Taylor's new documentary makes for a grim outline: eight philosophers talking for 10 minutes each on anything from theories of justice to cosmopolitanism. The nearest we get to a car chase is a long, sweaty drive in an old Volvo to a lecture hall.
What it is, however, is an enjoyable experiment: moral philosophy – the motion picture. After all, your multiplex is more likely to show scenes of teenage devil worship than someone thinking. Film-makers have good reasons to avoid contemplation. For one thing, it is not a pretty business. As Oscar Wilde observed: "The moment one sits down to think, one becomes all nose, or all forehead,...
- 11/24/2009
- by Aditya Chakrabortty
- The Guardian - Film News
Filmmaker Astra Taylor (Examined Life) gave the debut Artist Talk for the Walker Art Center's "Raising Creative Kids" series. The series is described as an initiative "designed to make the Walker a destination and resource for families and parents wanting to creatively engage their children." Here's their description of the talk: Raised by independent-thinking bohemian parents, Taylor was unschooled until age 13. Join the filmmaker as she shares her personal experiences of growing up home-schooled without a curriculum or schedule, and how it has shaped her educational philosophy and development as an artist. And, it is embedded below:...
- 11/5/2009
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Cornel West In Director Astra Taylor'S Examined Life. Courtesy Zeitgeist Films. Still in her twenties, documentarian Astra Taylor has already brought a philosophical bent to non-fiction filmmaking and is looking to push the form in new and exciting directions. Taylor was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1979 and grew up in Athens, Georgia. She studied first at the University of Georgia and then got an Ma in sociology, philosophy and cultural theory at the New School for Social Research in New York. In 2001, she co-produced and co-directed the 45-minute documentary Miracle Tree: Moringa Oleifera, about infant malnutrition in Senegal, and the following year acted as associate producer on another doc, Allison Maclean's Persons of Interest...
- 3/11/2009
- by Nick Dawson
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
In her second feature length documentary Examined Life, which opens today at IFC Center, Canadian born, Georgia bred documentarian Astra Taylor whips around the Tri-State area and beyond with eight of the planet’s most renown contemporary philosophers and probes their ever active brains for answers to questions large and small, elemental and abstract. Engaging a diverse and eclectic group of lauded philosophers and/or public intellectuals to step away from the Ivory Tower and into airports and lakesides, Tompkins Square Park and quaint row boats, Taylor’s subjects include Martha Nussbaum, Avital Rennel, Peter Singer, Kwame Anthony Appiah, Judith Butle ...
- 2/25/2009
- by Brandon Harris
- Spout
You have to hand it to filmmaker Astra Taylor. She knows how to take the dullness out of talking heads, the mainstay (and downfall) of countless documentaries.
In "Examined Life," she interviews nine "influential thinkers" on the meaning of it all - and she averts what could have been a snoozefest of historic proportions.
Her secret? Each subject is taken to a colorful public spot and given 10 minutes to pontificate. One strolls down Fifth Avenue, another pilots a rowboat in Central Park, a third rides in the back seat of...
In "Examined Life," she interviews nine "influential thinkers" on the meaning of it all - and she averts what could have been a snoozefest of historic proportions.
Her secret? Each subject is taken to a colorful public spot and given 10 minutes to pontificate. One strolls down Fifth Avenue, another pilots a rowboat in Central Park, a third rides in the back seat of...
- 2/25/2009
- by By V.A. MUSETTO
- NYPost.com
Okay, here's a pull quote you won't often get from me: this film is good for your soul. I'm referring to Astra Taylor's Examined Life, which opens tomorrow at the IFC Center in New York and which is so engaging, hopeful and against-the-grain that it becomes a must-see cinematic tonic for these confusing times. Examined Life is Taylor's documentary about the related acts of thinking and walking. Using the history of mobile thought as her springboard (for more on this, read Rebecca Solnit's Wanderlust), Taylor (pictured) follows eight philosophers as they stroll through their hometown environments engaging in a series of ethical dialogues about the act of living in this world. The film is heady but by no means dry. There's abundant...
- 2/24/2009
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
This week's offerings include an art film about the biblical, a documentary exploring the philosophical, a thriller espousing the dangers of the technological and a film about a badass dude with claws that kills people. We know which one we're going to see.
Download this in audio form (MP3: 7:14 minutes, 10 Mb)
"An American Affair"
We're a country enamored with the marvels of our great democracy while also continuing a nasty habit of cultivating political dynasties, the thrall of which we continue to find irresistible, and there is no finer example of that than the Kennedy family. Put out by tiny indie distributor Screen Media Films, this feature from director William Olsson charts the coming of age of a young boy named Adam (Cameron Bright) who watches and wonders about John F. Kennedy's affair with a woman (Gretchen Mol) living across the street in 1963.
Opens in limited release.
Download this in audio form (MP3: 7:14 minutes, 10 Mb)
"An American Affair"
We're a country enamored with the marvels of our great democracy while also continuing a nasty habit of cultivating political dynasties, the thrall of which we continue to find irresistible, and there is no finer example of that than the Kennedy family. Put out by tiny indie distributor Screen Media Films, this feature from director William Olsson charts the coming of age of a young boy named Adam (Cameron Bright) who watches and wonders about John F. Kennedy's affair with a woman (Gretchen Mol) living across the street in 1963.
Opens in limited release.
- 2/24/2009
- by Neil Pedley
- ifc.com
To say that the films of 29-year-old documentarian Astra Taylor are thought-provoking is not such a lofty compliment; it's literally the goal she has in marrying cinema with philosophy. 2005's "Žižek!" trailed Slovenian psychoanalyst, philosopher and cultural critic Slavoj Žižek around the world as he expounded on ideology and made eccentric observations on love, revolution and his own self-critique. Taylor's latest feature, "Examined Life," is no less absorbing, an intelligent yet accessible anthology of ideas that sees eight highly influential thinkers of our time (including Avital Ronell, Peter Singer, Michael Hardt -- and yes, the wild and wooly Žižek) pontificating while taking walks through modern culture. Kwame Anthony Appiah talks cosmopolitanism from inside an airport, Žižek dissects ecology while digging through a garbage facility and Cornel West compares philosophy to jazz and blues while being driven around the streets of Manhattan by the director herself. When Taylor and I met up over coffee in Williamsburg,...
- 2/19/2009
- by Aaron Hillis
- ifc.com
By Aaron Hillis
To say that the films of 29-year-old documentarian Astra Taylor are thought-provoking is not such a lofty compliment; it's literally the goal she has in marrying cinema with philosophy. 2005's "Žižek!" trailed Slovenian psychoanalyst, philosopher and cultural critic Slavoj Žižek around the world as he expounded on ideology and made eccentric observations on love, revolution and his own self-critique. Taylor's latest feature, "Examined Life," is no less absorbing, an intelligent yet accessible anthology of ideas that sees eight highly influential thinkers of our time (including Avital Ronell, Peter Singer, Michael Hardt -- and yes, the wild and wooly Žižek) pontificating while taking walks through modern culture. Kwame Anthony Appiah talks cosmopolitanism from inside an airport, Žižek dissects ecology while digging through a garbage facility and Cornel West compares philosophy to jazz and blues while being driven around the streets of Manhattan by the director herself. When Taylor...
To say that the films of 29-year-old documentarian Astra Taylor are thought-provoking is not such a lofty compliment; it's literally the goal she has in marrying cinema with philosophy. 2005's "Žižek!" trailed Slovenian psychoanalyst, philosopher and cultural critic Slavoj Žižek around the world as he expounded on ideology and made eccentric observations on love, revolution and his own self-critique. Taylor's latest feature, "Examined Life," is no less absorbing, an intelligent yet accessible anthology of ideas that sees eight highly influential thinkers of our time (including Avital Ronell, Peter Singer, Michael Hardt -- and yes, the wild and wooly Žižek) pontificating while taking walks through modern culture. Kwame Anthony Appiah talks cosmopolitanism from inside an airport, Žižek dissects ecology while digging through a garbage facility and Cornel West compares philosophy to jazz and blues while being driven around the streets of Manhattan by the director herself. When Taylor...
- 2/18/2009
- by Aaron Hillis
- ifc.com
- A couple of months after premiering at Toronto International film festival, the documentary film pick ups are continuing to pile in for many film distribs, and after several months of inactivity, NY-based foreign film/documentary distributor Zeitgeist Films has picked up Astra Taylor's latest doc offering which once again visits with Slavoj Zizek with whom she had visited in Zizek!. Commencing its theater play in January at the IFC Center, Examined Life features the “rock star” philosophers of our time, including Cornel West, Peter Singer, Slavoj Zizek, Judith Butler, Avital Ronell, Michael Hardt, Anthony Appiah and Martha Nussbaum. This interweaves fascinating “walks” with them through places that hold special resonance for them and their ideas -- crowded city streets, deserted alleyways, Central Park and even a garbage dump. ...
- 11/19/2008
- IONCINEMA.com
New York -- Zeitgeist Films has nabbed domestic rights to a pair of prestige pics: "Tulpan," this past May's Festival de Cannes Un Certain Regard winner, and the Toronto film fest academia documentary "Examined Life."
Sergei Dvortsevoy's comedy "Tulpan" follows its protagonist's efforts to convince the title character he's an ideal catch and to show his family he's a good shepherd. The recent New York Film Festival selection is this year's official foreign-language Oscar entry from Kazakhstan.
Astra Taylor's doc "Life" follows such noted academics as Cornel West and Peter Singer outside their classrooms to visit and discuss places of significance to them.
"Life" will open at the IFC Center in January, and "Tulpan" will bow at the Film Forum in April. The New York openings will be followed by limited theatrical rollouts.
The "Tulpan" deal was negotiated with Match Factory's Michael Weber, and the "Life" deal was negotiated with Sphinx Prods.
Sergei Dvortsevoy's comedy "Tulpan" follows its protagonist's efforts to convince the title character he's an ideal catch and to show his family he's a good shepherd. The recent New York Film Festival selection is this year's official foreign-language Oscar entry from Kazakhstan.
Astra Taylor's doc "Life" follows such noted academics as Cornel West and Peter Singer outside their classrooms to visit and discuss places of significance to them.
"Life" will open at the IFC Center in January, and "Tulpan" will bow at the Film Forum in April. The New York openings will be followed by limited theatrical rollouts.
The "Tulpan" deal was negotiated with Match Factory's Michael Weber, and the "Life" deal was negotiated with Sphinx Prods.
- 11/17/2008
- by By Gregg Goldstein
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.