Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me Director Chiemi Karasawa’s Rising Star
Although she’s being heralded as a breakout director for the acclaimed documentary Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me, Chiemi Karasawa is no overnight sensation. The California native moved to New York the day after she graduated from Boston University’s film program and began working for a film producer. She apprenticed as a script supervisor, then worked for many years in that position on numerous films including High Fidelity, The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3,
In Their Words: Some of This Year’s Oscar Nominees on Their Craft, Part II
Yesterday we took a look at four filmmakers whose work has earned them an Oscar nomination (in Gravity cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki's case, his sixth), sharing with you some of their thoughts on their craft. In one of the most anticipated Oscars in recent memory, it's refreshing to step back and reflect on exactly how these talented individuals created such memorable moments in such a fantastic year for film.
How Matthu Placek Created the Single Take, 3D A Portrait of Marina Abramović
The synthesis of technology and art is at the very heart of cinema. Filmmakers are natural innovators. Whether they're working on a big budget film or a small independent, there has simply never been a film made in which the crew didn't have to surmount obstacles through ingenuity—be it with state of the art technology or a nuts and bolts solution.
The ingenuity, technical daring and beautiful beating heart Matthu Placek's 130919 •
From Darryl F. Zanuck to Christine Vachon: The Quotable Producer
Jerry Weintraub, a legendary film producer, took to the stage this past Sunday to accept the Golden Globe for best TV movie or miniseries for Behind the Candelabra. The film was the work of a slew of super talented individuals coming together to create something original and daring. Some of those people include the director Steven Soderbergh, his two stars, Michael Douglas as Liberace and Matt Damon as his young lover Scott Thornson,
Looking Back on Some of our Favorite Stories of 2013
When we launched The Credits a little more than a year ago, we aimed to shed a light on the many talented filmmakers who often don’t get much press for their work. While we’ve occasionally spoken to folks who need no introduction (John Waters, for example), most of the filmmakers we’ve focused on have a little less name recognition but a huge amount of talent. We interviewed a lot of people, so the below roundup is really just a taste—there were far too many people to mention in a single post.
Christopher Nolan and the Increasing Utilization of IMAX Cameras in Film
Camera nerds, film lovers, Nolan-heads and even some regular film enthusiasts were abuzz earlier this week when word spread that Christopher Nolan was up to some wild business (once again) with an IMAX camera. Nolan is probably the format’s most prodigious advocate (he’s part of a tribe of filmmakers who utilize the bulky-but-beautiful technology), and he always seem to be pushing the boundaries of what can (and should?) be done with these cameras. This past Monday,
Documentarian Robert Kline Talks Oliver Stone, JFK, & Release of JFK DVD Box-Set
Veteran filmmaker Robert Kline served as Oliver Stone’s producer on Stone’s 1993 film Heaven and Earth. But that didn’t stop the two from arguing about who killed President John F. Kennedy.
“Oliver and I have been on location in Vietnam, and in various areas of the world, and I’ve said to him, ‘You still haven’t given me compelling proof [of a conspiracy]. You optioned two books, one by Jim Garrison and the other by Mark Lane and you made a movie.
Fighting Cancer With Music & Film: The Incredible Documentary No Evidence of Disease
How do you spread awareness about a disease killing 30,000 women a year that barely anybody talks about? Naturally, you start a band.
That’s what six gynecologic oncology surgeons from all over the country did when they created N.E.D., an acronym for ‘No Evidence of Disease.’ Initially created as a cover band to entertain their fellow doctors at a medical conference, the members of N.E.D. saw the potential to reach women using a medium that had been transmitting stories for centuries.
Could This Fall be the Best Film Season in Years?
There are major themes being explored in film in the coming months, in what looks to be a diverse and deeply challenging (in a good way) season of releases. Just going by the excitement of audiences at TIFF, there is reason to hope that we’re looking at one of the most quality-packed stretches in recent cinematic memory.
The plots are diverse, the casts are a mix of globally renown stars and newcomers, but the themes are universal.
A Q&A With Producer & Filmmaking Powerhouse Christine Vachon
Christine Vachon is one of the most important film producers in New York. She has maintained close relationships with a bevy of influential filmmakers while shepherding some of the most challenging, dark and often beautiful films into the world. She has helped provide a voice for directors who might otherwise have been marginalized—she has helped provide some of the juiciest (and most harrowing) female roles to actresses from Julianne Moore to Cate Blanchett to Hillary Swank,
Creativity in Hollywood: Film Visionaries On Creative Process And Inspiration
Unlike most films and television shows, inspiration is not available on-demand. In the highly creative realm of movie-making, a good idea can catapult careers, spark motion picture franchises, and make cinematic history.
Inventing the next film can mean laying the groundwork for brilliant movies and television, from Inception, Taxi Driver, The Master, or Edward Scissorhands.
Of course, caveats abound.
Writer/Director/Producer/Star Lake Bell on In a World…
In the dramedy 'In a World…', out August 9, writer/director/producer/star Lake Bell visits the voiceover industry as a newbie competing for the same gig as her industry-veteran father. Here, Bell, who has delivered memorable acting turns in such movies as No Strings Attached and It’s Complicated, talks about writing the script for her feature-film directorial debut, why she loves trailers, and what “voice” annoys her most.
The Credits: What insight can you offer about voices and accents?
An Evening With Filmmaking Icon Norman Jewison
Lauded filmmaker Norman Jewison may be as entertaining a storyteller in person as he is through film. Rocking New Balance sneakers, sunglasses and youthful exuberance at a July 22 event at the MPAA in Washington, D.C., the 87-year-old filmmaker regaled a delighted audience with tales from his more than four decades of historic success in the industry.
Jewison boasts a repertoire of films that have amassed a remarkable total of 46 Oscar nominations and 12 Oscar Awards.
Narrative Darwinsim: House of Cards Showrunner Beau Willimon Gets Creative
Since shooting on House of Cards began just one year ago this month, Netflix’s debut series has been the focus of tremendous buzz and speculation—due in large part to its innovative distribution model, stars Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright, and executive producer and sometimes director David Fincher. But from the very beginning, it’s been 35 year-old showrunner Beau Willimon who has been in charge of completely overhauling the 1990 British miniseries of the same name and turning it into one of television’s most compelling and often prescient pieces of programming.
Talking With DP Jonathan Ingalls About Killer Whale Documentary Blackfish
For the past 10 years, producer, director, and cinematographer Jonathan Ingalls has been making compelling documentary television (MTV’s I Used to be Fat, A&E’s The First 48 and films such as City Lax: An Urban Lacrosse Story.) This week, perhaps his most controversial project, Blackfish, directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, hits theaters in New York and Los Angeles, after premiering at the Sundance Film Festival in January and making a giant splash.
Producer Kai Cole Talks Much Ado About Nothing, Hubby Joss Whedon, & More
The Master of the Whedonverse takes on Shakespeare in 'Much Ado About Nothing,' which opened to rave reviews on June 7.
Shot in black-and-white in just 12 days, and featuring a group of friends (including Castle’s Nathan Fillion, Angel’s Amy Acker and The Avengers’ Clark Gregg), Joss Whedon’s wonderful, modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic comedy, Much Ado About Nothing, just might be the biggest surprise of the summer.
Recreating the Past on Film, Historical Advisors Are a Director’s Lifelines
The year is 1805. Captain “Lucky Jack” Aubrey is surveying the foggy Atlantic horizon for the renegade Acheron, a Napoleonic privateer warship out to sink Aubrey and his fellow Brits into watery oblivion. As he peers through his telescope, Aubrey suddenly recoils in disbelief—the Acheron is headed straight for his ship!
But wait—what does that enemy ship look like? What color is the telescope Aubrey—or Russell Crowe in period attire—is holding?
Eli Roth on Aftershock, Learning to Love Horror, and Woody Allen
Brilliant, demented horror master Eli Roth — the Frank Sinatra of The Splat Pack — is ready to make the next round of moviegoers barf, thanks to Aftershock, a shock fest that chronicles the hell-on-earth circumstances that befall coastal Valparaiso, Chile, after an earthquake levels the town. While the film is helmed by Chilean director Nicolás López, Roth produces and stars, playing a hapless American who goes from partying and chasing girls to worrying about collapsing nightclubs and escaped prisoners.
Golden Age of Documentaries: A Q&A With Filmmaker Jamie Meltzer
Documentarian Jamie Meltzer knows how to pick his subject matter. Take his award-winning film Informant, which took home the Grand Jury Award at the DocNYC Festival as well as Best Documentary at the Austin Film Festival. Informant examines the life of Brandon Darby, a radical leftist activist turned FBI informant. Darby became a hero when he traveled to a Hurricane Katrina-ravaged New Orleans and braved toxic floodwaters to rescue a friend of his stranded in the Ninth Ward.
Iron Man Unmasked: Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle & More Talk Character
There’s more to Robert Downey Jr. and Don Cheadle’s characters than hardware as they ramp up the buddy action in Marvel’s Iron Man 3, in theaters today.
For all those high-flying, save-the-world acrobatics, sometimes it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that there’s a man behind the suit—Tony Stark is Iron Man. And just as Iron Man is nothing without Tony, it’s nearly impossible to imagine Marvel’s Iron Man films without actor Robert Downey Jr.,
