Exclusive: Susan Sarandon (Maybe I Do), William H. Macy (Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes) and Marcia Cross (You) have signed on to star in Exit Right, a new indie that veteran documentary filmmaker Thomas A. Morgan will direct from his own script for the London-based Garrick Street Productions and Square Zero Films.
Marking Morgan’s narrative debut, the film centers on Jan Randall (Sarandon), whose brain — affected with inoperable cancer — makes her deeply afraid of being trapped inside. Refusing to take medications that would reduce her final days to a hospital bed, she moves into a tent in her backyard. Determined to give her one last gift, her husband John courageously takes her on a trip around the world — on foot, in their own hometown, for what is truly the trip of a lifetime.
Sarandon’s Jan Randall is adventurous, confident and strong-willed. She retired after a successful career as a journalist,...
Marking Morgan’s narrative debut, the film centers on Jan Randall (Sarandon), whose brain — affected with inoperable cancer — makes her deeply afraid of being trapped inside. Refusing to take medications that would reduce her final days to a hospital bed, she moves into a tent in her backyard. Determined to give her one last gift, her husband John courageously takes her on a trip around the world — on foot, in their own hometown, for what is truly the trip of a lifetime.
Sarandon’s Jan Randall is adventurous, confident and strong-willed. She retired after a successful career as a journalist,...
- 5/30/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Filming is now underway on action adventure movie “Afterburn,” starring Dave Bautista and Samuel L. Jackson with Olga Kurylenko and Kristofer Hivju rounding out the cast.
The film is directed by J.J. Perry, who recently helmed Lionsgate’s “The Killer’s Game,” also with Bautista, working from a screenplay adapted by Matthew Johnson and Nimrod Antal from the “Red 5” comic book of the same name.
Set ten years after a solar flare wiped out technology across the globe, “Afterburn” follows ex-soldier Jake (Bautista), who works as a treasure hunter recovering valuable objects from the old world for powerful clients. His latest mission: team up with freedom fighter Drea (Kurylenko) to recover the Mona Lisa before an unhinged warlord gets there first.
The picture is produced by Neal H. Moritz (“Fast and Furious” franchise) and Toby Jaffe (“Total Recall”) for Original Film and Steve Richards for Endurance Media. Bautista will also produce for Dogbone Entertainment,...
The film is directed by J.J. Perry, who recently helmed Lionsgate’s “The Killer’s Game,” also with Bautista, working from a screenplay adapted by Matthew Johnson and Nimrod Antal from the “Red 5” comic book of the same name.
Set ten years after a solar flare wiped out technology across the globe, “Afterburn” follows ex-soldier Jake (Bautista), who works as a treasure hunter recovering valuable objects from the old world for powerful clients. His latest mission: team up with freedom fighter Drea (Kurylenko) to recover the Mona Lisa before an unhinged warlord gets there first.
The picture is produced by Neal H. Moritz (“Fast and Furious” franchise) and Toby Jaffe (“Total Recall”) for Original Film and Steve Richards for Endurance Media. Bautista will also produce for Dogbone Entertainment,...
- 5/10/2024
- by Alex Ritman
- Variety Film + TV
Kerry Condon (“The Banshees of Inisherin”), William H. Macy and Clifton Collins Jr. have joined director Clint Bentley’s “Train Dreams,” Variety has learned.
Production on the film, from Black Bear and also starring Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones, began earlier this month in Spokane, Wash.
“Train Dreams” is the sweeping and poignant tale of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a day laborer employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America. Forced to spend prolonged periods of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones), and their young daughter, Grainier struggles to make sense of his place in a rapidly changing world. As his story unfolds, he experiences great love, unspeakable loss, and unique bonds on a journey that is both distinct and universal. The picture features a script by Bentley and Greg Kwedar (“Sing Sing”), which is adapted from Denis Johnson’s iconic, Pulitzer Prize-nominated novella of the same name.
Production on the film, from Black Bear and also starring Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones, began earlier this month in Spokane, Wash.
“Train Dreams” is the sweeping and poignant tale of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a day laborer employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America. Forced to spend prolonged periods of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones), and their young daughter, Grainier struggles to make sense of his place in a rapidly changing world. As his story unfolds, he experiences great love, unspeakable loss, and unique bonds on a journey that is both distinct and universal. The picture features a script by Bentley and Greg Kwedar (“Sing Sing”), which is adapted from Denis Johnson’s iconic, Pulitzer Prize-nominated novella of the same name.
- 5/2/2024
- by Alex Ritman
- Variety Film + TV
‘Boiling Point’ Director Philip Barantini to Helm Dennis Lehane Adaptation ‘A Bostonian’ (Exclusive)
Aftersun outfit Tango and A Private War producer Kamala Films are developing an adaptation of the Dennis Lehane thriller short story A Bostonian, tapping Philip Barantini to direct.
Damien Ober will adapt the short story from Shutter Island and Mystic River author Lehane, who will act as an executive producer.
A Bostonian is set in the world of antique dealers and estate sales. According to its synopsis, the tale “centers around Nathaniel Dodson, a mild-mannered proprietor of rare books who has developed an obsession with collecting rejection letters – something he never received when his mother abandoned him as a child. A rumor has developed that he is in possession of a rare and extremely valuable first edition of Tamerlane and Other Poems by A Bostonian (aka Edgar Allan Poe) just as a mysterious woman appears on his doorstep claiming to be his long-lost sister. As they get to know each other,...
Damien Ober will adapt the short story from Shutter Island and Mystic River author Lehane, who will act as an executive producer.
A Bostonian is set in the world of antique dealers and estate sales. According to its synopsis, the tale “centers around Nathaniel Dodson, a mild-mannered proprietor of rare books who has developed an obsession with collecting rejection letters – something he never received when his mother abandoned him as a child. A rumor has developed that he is in possession of a rare and extremely valuable first edition of Tamerlane and Other Poems by A Bostonian (aka Edgar Allan Poe) just as a mysterious woman appears on his doorstep claiming to be his long-lost sister. As they get to know each other,...
- 4/3/2024
- by Mia Galuppo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Felicity Jones and Jonathan Bailey are no longer attached to star in Simon Amstell’s comedy “Maria,” Variety can confirm.
The movie is currently on pause after cast scheduling issues were followed by last year’s Hollywood strikes, although a source says Amstell is in talks to revive the project, which was first launched at Cannes two years ago.
Jones was set to lead the feature, playing a woman called Maria who was struggling with her age and a difficult relationship with her terminally-ill father. According to the logline, Maria then embarked on a questionable relationship with her stepbrother Raffy.
“Bridgerton’s” Jonathan Bailey was lined up to play Maria’s boyfriend while Jason Isaacs was cast as her father.
Variety understands the film, which was due to go into production in 2022, hit its first road bump when Bailey pulled out in order to star in another project. While Isaacs remained on board,...
The movie is currently on pause after cast scheduling issues were followed by last year’s Hollywood strikes, although a source says Amstell is in talks to revive the project, which was first launched at Cannes two years ago.
Jones was set to lead the feature, playing a woman called Maria who was struggling with her age and a difficult relationship with her terminally-ill father. According to the logline, Maria then embarked on a questionable relationship with her stepbrother Raffy.
“Bridgerton’s” Jonathan Bailey was lined up to play Maria’s boyfriend while Jason Isaacs was cast as her father.
Variety understands the film, which was due to go into production in 2022, hit its first road bump when Bailey pulled out in order to star in another project. While Isaacs remained on board,...
- 4/3/2024
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
SXSW organizers on Monday announced the Audience Award winners for the festival’s recently wrapped 31st edition.
The list includes Tracie Laymon’s dramedy Bob Trevino Likes It, which prevailed in Narrative Feature Competition, and the action thriller Monkey Man marking Dev Patel’s directorial debut, which dominated the Headliner section. Other notable winners included A24’s Sing Sing starring Colman Domingo, which won out in Festival Favorite, and Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ dark veteran dramedy My Dead Friend Zoe, starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales and Ed Harris, which won in Narrative Spotlight.
“We are beyond grateful to all our filmmakers, audiences, and volunteers for creating one of the most exciting SXSW Film & TV Festivals ever,” said Claudette Godfrey, VP Film & TV. “We knew our audiences would flip for our program filled with explosive studio films, surprising indie dramas and comedies, riveting TV, powerful documentaries, gripping gems from around the world, and groundbreaking Xr,...
The list includes Tracie Laymon’s dramedy Bob Trevino Likes It, which prevailed in Narrative Feature Competition, and the action thriller Monkey Man marking Dev Patel’s directorial debut, which dominated the Headliner section. Other notable winners included A24’s Sing Sing starring Colman Domingo, which won out in Festival Favorite, and Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ dark veteran dramedy My Dead Friend Zoe, starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales and Ed Harris, which won in Narrative Spotlight.
“We are beyond grateful to all our filmmakers, audiences, and volunteers for creating one of the most exciting SXSW Film & TV Festivals ever,” said Claudette Godfrey, VP Film & TV. “We knew our audiences would flip for our program filled with explosive studio films, surprising indie dramas and comedies, riveting TV, powerful documentaries, gripping gems from around the world, and groundbreaking Xr,...
- 3/18/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
When Colman Domingo steps to the stage to introduce the SXSW premiere of his new film “Sing Sing” — a deeply affecting depiction of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at the titular maximum security prison in New York — he gets a standing ovation before a second of the film has screened. That might be in part because, less than 48 hours later, Domingo will be stepping inside the Dolby Theater for the 96th Academy Awards, nominated for his performance as civil rights activist Bayard Rustin in “Rustin.”
This wasn’t even the world premiere for “Sing Sing” — that was at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, where A24 scooped it up for a theatrical release this July. But as Domingo explains to Variety following the film’s screening at SXSW — where the film received another, much longer standing ovation — there was never any question for him about whether he would attend.
“The funny thing is,...
This wasn’t even the world premiere for “Sing Sing” — that was at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, where A24 scooped it up for a theatrical release this July. But as Domingo explains to Variety following the film’s screening at SXSW — where the film received another, much longer standing ovation — there was never any question for him about whether he would attend.
“The funny thing is,...
- 3/9/2024
- by Adam B. Vary
- Variety Film + TV
Colman Domingo uses the performing arts to connect with fellow inmates in the first trailer for the A24 drama Sing Sing.
Director Greg Kwedar’s feature is set to hit theaters in July after premiering at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival. Sing Sing focuses on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts (Rta) program that allows prisoners at New York’s Sing Sing Correctional Facility to produce and act in their own stage projects. The movie stars Domingo and Paul Raci alongside a cast comprised mostly of formerly incarcerated actors, many of whom previously participated in Rta.
Sing Sing follows the real-life friendship between inmates John “Divine G” Whitfield (Domingo) and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, who plays himself, as the group works to put together an original production entitled Breakin’ the Mummy’s Code. The movie is based on author John H. Richardson’s 2005 Esquire article “The Sing Sing...
Director Greg Kwedar’s feature is set to hit theaters in July after premiering at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival. Sing Sing focuses on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts (Rta) program that allows prisoners at New York’s Sing Sing Correctional Facility to produce and act in their own stage projects. The movie stars Domingo and Paul Raci alongside a cast comprised mostly of formerly incarcerated actors, many of whom previously participated in Rta.
Sing Sing follows the real-life friendship between inmates John “Divine G” Whitfield (Domingo) and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, who plays himself, as the group works to put together an original production entitled Breakin’ the Mummy’s Code. The movie is based on author John H. Richardson’s 2005 Esquire article “The Sing Sing...
- 3/6/2024
- by Ryan Gajewski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In less than a decade, A24 has become one of the industry’s most reliable awards magnets, with Best Picture wins for “Moonlight” and “Everything Everywhere All At Once” and multiple Best Picture nominations – including this year for the 2023 films “Past Lives” and “The Zone of Interest.” So it would perhaps be wise to leave a space on the 2025 Oscars ballot for “Sing Sing.” The acclaimed film – which A24 acquired after it debuted at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival – is out in theaters this summer, and if the newly released and emotional trailer is any indication, it should be a strong contender in numerous top categories.
Out in July, the film focuses on a Sing Sing prison inmate named Divine G (current Best Actor nominee Colman Domingo), who is incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit and “finds purpose by acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men,...
Out in July, the film focuses on a Sing Sing prison inmate named Divine G (current Best Actor nominee Colman Domingo), who is incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit and “finds purpose by acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men,...
- 3/6/2024
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
Colman Domingo is on a remarkable run, and ahead of Oscar night and his nomination for “Rustin,” A24 has released the first trailer for his next moving drama, “Sing Sing.”
Greg Kwedar directed “Sing Sing,” which follows the true story of a leader of a theater troupe in prison and how they use acting to escape the realities of their incarceration, putting on a play all while Domingo’s character is seeking parole. The film is based on a real-life rehabilitation program, and the movie even features a cast that includes formerly incarcerated actors.
Domingo leads the cast that also includes Paul Raci, an Oscar nominee for “Sound of Metal.” And A24, which picked up the film out of last year’s Toronto International Film Festival, has announced it is eyeing a theatrical release this July for the movie. It will have its U.S. premiere at the SXSW Film festival on Friday.
Greg Kwedar directed “Sing Sing,” which follows the true story of a leader of a theater troupe in prison and how they use acting to escape the realities of their incarceration, putting on a play all while Domingo’s character is seeking parole. The film is based on a real-life rehabilitation program, and the movie even features a cast that includes formerly incarcerated actors.
Domingo leads the cast that also includes Paul Raci, an Oscar nominee for “Sound of Metal.” And A24, which picked up the film out of last year’s Toronto International Film Festival, has announced it is eyeing a theatrical release this July for the movie. It will have its U.S. premiere at the SXSW Film festival on Friday.
- 3/6/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
Black Bear has hired Courtney L. Cunniff as senior vice president of film. Cunniff comes to Black Bear from eOne and Hasbro, where she served as vice president of production and development & acquisitions for film titles under both of the company’s banners. Black Bear’s credits include “The Imitation Game,” “I Care A Lot” and “Nyad,” which recently earned Oscar nominations for Annette Bening and Jodie Foster.
In her new role, Cunniff will focus on the development, packaging and production of the company’s slate, which includes such upcoming projects as David Mackenzie’s “Relay” starring Riz Ahmed, Lily James and Sam Worthington; Andrew Patterson’s “The Rivals of Amziah King” starring Matthew McConaughey; and Clint Bentley’s “Train Dreams” starring Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones.
In Cunniff’s previous job at eOne and Hasbro, she sourced and assessed development material and oversaw the path to production for a...
In her new role, Cunniff will focus on the development, packaging and production of the company’s slate, which includes such upcoming projects as David Mackenzie’s “Relay” starring Riz Ahmed, Lily James and Sam Worthington; Andrew Patterson’s “The Rivals of Amziah King” starring Matthew McConaughey; and Clint Bentley’s “Train Dreams” starring Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones.
In Cunniff’s previous job at eOne and Hasbro, she sourced and assessed development material and oversaw the path to production for a...
- 2/23/2024
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
‘Train Dreams’: Joel Edgerton & Felicity Jones To Star In Adaptation Of Denis Johnson’s 2011 Novella
It looks like Joel Edgerton has another drama in the vein of “The Boys In The Boat” and “Thirteen Lives” up next. The actor will co-star with Felicity Jones in “Train Dreams,” Black Bear‘s adaptation of Denis Johnson‘s 2011 novella. It’ll be the third adaptation of Johnson’s literary work for the big screen, after 1999’s “Jesus’ Son” and Claire Denis‘ recent outing, “The Stars At Noon.”
Read More: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2024
Clint Bentley will direct “Train Dreams” from an adapted script he co-writes with his “Sing Sing” co-writer Greg Kwedar.
Continue reading ‘Train Dreams’: Joel Edgerton & Felicity Jones To Star In Adaptation Of Denis Johnson’s 2011 Novella at The Playlist.
Read More: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2024
Clint Bentley will direct “Train Dreams” from an adapted script he co-writes with his “Sing Sing” co-writer Greg Kwedar.
Continue reading ‘Train Dreams’: Joel Edgerton & Felicity Jones To Star In Adaptation Of Denis Johnson’s 2011 Novella at The Playlist.
- 2/8/2024
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
Following up her Best Picture-nominated Past Lives, Celine Song has officially unveiled her next feature. Starring Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, and Pedro Pascal, The Materialists is a romantic comedy that follows “a professional matchmaker who gets involved with a wealthy man but still harbors feelings for the broke actor-waiter she left behind,” Deadline reports. Once again backed by A24, producers Christine Vachon and Pam Koffler of Killer Films, and 2Am’s David Hinojosa, the project is aiming to start shooting this spring, so expect a 2025 release.
Also on the 2025 release calendar is likely Kogonada’s third feature following Columbus and After Yang. Reteaming with Colin Farrell with Margot Robbie also starring, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is said to be an “imaginative tale of two strangers and the unbelievable journey that connects them,” Deadline reports. With production beginning this spring in California, it’ll be Robbie’s second project after Barbie,...
Also on the 2025 release calendar is likely Kogonada’s third feature following Columbus and After Yang. Reteaming with Colin Farrell with Margot Robbie also starring, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is said to be an “imaginative tale of two strangers and the unbelievable journey that connects them,” Deadline reports. With production beginning this spring in California, it’ll be Robbie’s second project after Barbie,...
- 2/8/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Joel Edgerton (The Gift) and Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything) are set to star in Train Dreams, the newest feature from Jockey director Clint Bentley, which will be introduced to international buyers at EFM by Black Bear.
Bentley & Greg Kwedar (Sing Sing) penned the script which is an adaptation of Denis Johnson’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated novella. Damien Ober did a previous draft.
Pic tells the story of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a day laborer employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America. Forced to spend prolonged periods of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones), and their young daughter, Grainier struggles to make sense of his place in a rapidly changing world. As his story unfolds, he experiences great love, unspeakable loss and unique bonds, on a journey that is both distinct and universal.
Producers include Marissa McMahon and Ashley Schlaifer for Kamala Films, Will Janowitz, and...
Bentley & Greg Kwedar (Sing Sing) penned the script which is an adaptation of Denis Johnson’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated novella. Damien Ober did a previous draft.
Pic tells the story of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a day laborer employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America. Forced to spend prolonged periods of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones), and their young daughter, Grainier struggles to make sense of his place in a rapidly changing world. As his story unfolds, he experiences great love, unspeakable loss and unique bonds, on a journey that is both distinct and universal.
Producers include Marissa McMahon and Ashley Schlaifer for Kamala Films, Will Janowitz, and...
- 2/7/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones have signed on to star in the epic drama Train Dreams, which Black Bear is fully financing and will introduce to EFM buyers in Berlin next week.
Clint Bentley (Jockey) directs and production is set to begin in April in Washington State. WME Independent handles US sales.
Train Dreams is described as a “sweeping and poignant” tale of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a day labourer employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America.
Forced to spend prolonged periods of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones) and their young daughter, Grainier struggles to...
Clint Bentley (Jockey) directs and production is set to begin in April in Washington State. WME Independent handles US sales.
Train Dreams is described as a “sweeping and poignant” tale of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a day labourer employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America.
Forced to spend prolonged periods of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones) and their young daughter, Grainier struggles to...
- 2/7/2024
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: It’s no secret that the independent film game is not for the faint-hearted, with the last decade seeing a number of companies and financiers collapse under the weight of the industry’s constant state of flux. But amidst the turmoil and unprecedented change, Teddy Schwarzman has been quietly building his Black Bear label into a full-fledged independent film studio.
The company, which Schwarzman founded as a financing and production outfit back in 2011, has now grown into a business that has tentacles in international sales; theatrical distribution in Canada (Elevation Pictures) and, more recently, the UK (Black Bear UK); a management business; a documentary financing joint venture with New Regency dubbed Double Agent; and a television strand, the latter of which recently deficit-financed AMC’s crime drama Monsieur Spade starring Clive Owen.
When Deadline sits down with Schwarzman in his Santa Monica office for a rare interview, Black Bear...
The company, which Schwarzman founded as a financing and production outfit back in 2011, has now grown into a business that has tentacles in international sales; theatrical distribution in Canada (Elevation Pictures) and, more recently, the UK (Black Bear UK); a management business; a documentary financing joint venture with New Regency dubbed Double Agent; and a television strand, the latter of which recently deficit-financed AMC’s crime drama Monsieur Spade starring Clive Owen.
When Deadline sits down with Schwarzman in his Santa Monica office for a rare interview, Black Bear...
- 11/16/2023
- by Diana Lodderhose
- Deadline Film + TV
“Sing Sing” and “Jockey” filmmakers Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley have signed with CAA for representation.
The award-winning filmmakers’ most recent feature, “Sing Sing,” a prison-set drama, stars Emmy winner Colman Domingo and features a supporting cast that includes Oscar nominee Paul Raci, but is comprised primarily of formerly incarcerated individuals. The film is directed by Kwedar, co-written by both, and produced by Bentley, with its story inspired by the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York.
“Sing Sing” debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival in September and was acquired by A24, in a competitive situation, with the deal brokered by CAA Media Finance.
Kwedar and Bentley’s previous narrative collaborations include “Jockey” and “Transpecos,” both starring Clifton Collins Jr. “Jockey” marked Bentley’s directorial debut, helmed from a script the pair co-wrote and Kwedar produced. The film made its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival,...
The award-winning filmmakers’ most recent feature, “Sing Sing,” a prison-set drama, stars Emmy winner Colman Domingo and features a supporting cast that includes Oscar nominee Paul Raci, but is comprised primarily of formerly incarcerated individuals. The film is directed by Kwedar, co-written by both, and produced by Bentley, with its story inspired by the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York.
“Sing Sing” debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival in September and was acquired by A24, in a competitive situation, with the deal brokered by CAA Media Finance.
Kwedar and Bentley’s previous narrative collaborations include “Jockey” and “Transpecos,” both starring Clifton Collins Jr. “Jockey” marked Bentley’s directorial debut, helmed from a script the pair co-wrote and Kwedar produced. The film made its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival,...
- 11/15/2023
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
“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
A24 has landed the U.S. rights to Sing Sing, the Colman Domingo-fronted drama that premiered at Toronto Film Festival about a performing arts prison program.
Greg Kwedar directs the feature that focuses on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts (Rta) program run out of the eponymous prison that sees the incarcerated producing and acting in stage productions. The story centers on the friendship of Rta alumni John “Divine G” Whitfield (portrayed by Domingo) and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, who plays himself, as they stage an original production.
Outside of Oscar nominee Paul Paci, who plays the program’s resident director, the rest of the ensemble cast is made up of formerly incarcerated performers who went through the Rta program.
Black Bear, the Marfa Peach Company and Edith Productions financed and produced the film, which was written by Clint Bentley and Kwedar.
“The film has an unhurried pace that some might find taxing.
Greg Kwedar directs the feature that focuses on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts (Rta) program run out of the eponymous prison that sees the incarcerated producing and acting in stage productions. The story centers on the friendship of Rta alumni John “Divine G” Whitfield (portrayed by Domingo) and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, who plays himself, as they stage an original production.
Outside of Oscar nominee Paul Paci, who plays the program’s resident director, the rest of the ensemble cast is made up of formerly incarcerated performers who went through the Rta program.
Black Bear, the Marfa Peach Company and Edith Productions financed and produced the film, which was written by Clint Bentley and Kwedar.
“The film has an unhurried pace that some might find taxing.
- 9/16/2023
- by Mia Galuppo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A24 has acquired theatrical distribution rights to “Sing Sing,” five days after the Colman Domingo-starring drama made its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. The indie banner confirmed the deal Friday evening.
Directed by Greg Kwedar, the film is inspired by the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York, following a group of inmates who collaborate on stage shows. Domingo, who was also represented at TIFF with the George C. Wolfe-directed biopic “Rustin” from Netflix, leads “Sing Sing,” joined by a cast that includes Paul Raci, who earned an Academy Award nomination for his supporting turn in “Sound of Metal,” as well as Clarence Maclin and Sean San José.
“Sing Sing” was financed and produced by Black Bear, the Marfa Peach Company and Edith Productions, with Kwedar working with Clint Bentley to adapt the script from Brent Buell’s...
Directed by Greg Kwedar, the film is inspired by the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York, following a group of inmates who collaborate on stage shows. Domingo, who was also represented at TIFF with the George C. Wolfe-directed biopic “Rustin” from Netflix, leads “Sing Sing,” joined by a cast that includes Paul Raci, who earned an Academy Award nomination for his supporting turn in “Sound of Metal,” as well as Clarence Maclin and Sean San José.
“Sing Sing” was financed and produced by Black Bear, the Marfa Peach Company and Edith Productions, with Kwedar working with Clint Bentley to adapt the script from Brent Buell’s...
- 9/15/2023
- by J. Kim Murphy
- Variety Film + TV
A24 has acquired the domestic theatrical rights to “Sing Sing,” starring Colman Domingo, according to an individual with knowledge of the project.
The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and A24 is planning a 2024 theatrical release. The deal is reported to be in the seven figures.
In his review of the film, TheWrap’s Steve Pond wrote: “Written and directed by Greg Kwedar (‘Jockey’), the indie drama is a curious concoction that finds veteran actor Domingo playing a would-be playwright in a theater program at Sing Sing Correctional Facility; his fellow actors, with the notable exception of ‘Sound of Metal’ Oscar nominee Paul Raci, are, for the most part, former prisoners who took place in that actual program and are billed in the credits as playing themselves. The result isn’t seamless or slick, but there’s an urgency and a grit to it, and a sense of lives lost and occasionally regained.
The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and A24 is planning a 2024 theatrical release. The deal is reported to be in the seven figures.
In his review of the film, TheWrap’s Steve Pond wrote: “Written and directed by Greg Kwedar (‘Jockey’), the indie drama is a curious concoction that finds veteran actor Domingo playing a would-be playwright in a theater program at Sing Sing Correctional Facility; his fellow actors, with the notable exception of ‘Sound of Metal’ Oscar nominee Paul Raci, are, for the most part, former prisoners who took place in that actual program and are billed in the credits as playing themselves. The result isn’t seamless or slick, but there’s an urgency and a grit to it, and a sense of lives lost and occasionally regained.
- 9/15/2023
- by Umberto Gonzalez
- The Wrap
Exclusive: In competitive bidding, A24 has acquired U.S. theatrical rights to Sing Sing, the Greg Kwedar-directed drama that stars Colman Domingo. The film premiered at Toronto to rapturous reviews and A24 is plotting a 2024 theatrical release.
Financed and produced by Black Bear, the Marfa Peach Company and Edith Productions, Sing Sing revolves around a theater group that escapes the reality of incarceration through the creativity of staging a play, with a cast that includes actors who have been incarcerated. Clint Bentley & Kwedar adapted the script from Brent Buell’s play, Breakin’ The Mummy’s Code and John H. Richardson’s The Sing Sing Follies.
Bentley and Kwedar produced with Monique Walton. Colman Domingo, Raul Domingo, Michael Heimler, Teddy Schwarzman, Larry Kalas, Larry Kelly, Nancy Schafer, Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, and John “Divine G” Whitfield are the exec producers.
CAA Media Finance brokered the domestic deal, and Black Bear is selling international territories.
Financed and produced by Black Bear, the Marfa Peach Company and Edith Productions, Sing Sing revolves around a theater group that escapes the reality of incarceration through the creativity of staging a play, with a cast that includes actors who have been incarcerated. Clint Bentley & Kwedar adapted the script from Brent Buell’s play, Breakin’ The Mummy’s Code and John H. Richardson’s The Sing Sing Follies.
Bentley and Kwedar produced with Monique Walton. Colman Domingo, Raul Domingo, Michael Heimler, Teddy Schwarzman, Larry Kalas, Larry Kelly, Nancy Schafer, Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, and John “Divine G” Whitfield are the exec producers.
CAA Media Finance brokered the domestic deal, and Black Bear is selling international territories.
- 9/15/2023
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
In his latest feature, Sing Sing, the director Greg Kwedar crafts a sincere story of friendship and artistic expression at Sing Sing, a maximum-security prison in upstate New York. Rehabilitation Through the Arts, or Rta, is a program that helps people in jail cultivate community through theater, dance and other artistic mediums. Using a mix of professional actors and alumni from the program, Kwedar chronicles the experiences of a group of incarcerated men preparing to stage a new and ambitious production. Sing Sing doesn’t set out to be an overtly political film, but its sensitive approach to portraying the lives of its characters makes it an urgent document of our time.
The riots and demonstrations of 2020 renewed conversations about the reach of the carceral state in the U.S. Abolition became a hot topic, but for those unaffected by the tendrils of the American prison system, the lives of...
The riots and demonstrations of 2020 renewed conversations about the reach of the carceral state in the U.S. Abolition became a hot topic, but for those unaffected by the tendrils of the American prison system, the lives of...
- 9/14/2023
- by Lovia Gyarkye
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
‘Sing Sing’ Review: Colman Domingo and a Cast of Ex-Criminals Demonstrate How Art Can Heal in Prison
Cages can’t contain the sheer amount of imagination on offer in “Sing Sing” — not just in the way director Greg Kwedar and his writing and producing partner Clint Bentley conceived of the prison-set drama, but also as an animating force among its characters. Apart from Colman Domingo and a few others, most of the cast are formerly incarcerated alumni of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program, which stages theatrical productions at New York’s Sing Sing Correctional Facility. While inside the walls of a penitentiary, the amateur thespians are afforded the opportunity to step outside their worst offenses and simply inhabit another character for a change, someone who is likely to be more revealing of who they really are than their jail-issued fatigues will allow.
Drawing from their experience as volunteer teachers at correctional facilities, Kwedar and Bentley are conscious of the raw power of seeing these men transform...
Drawing from their experience as volunteer teachers at correctional facilities, Kwedar and Bentley are conscious of the raw power of seeing these men transform...
- 9/12/2023
- by Stephen Saito
- Variety Film + TV
In an unexpected twist, the prison bars have transformed into curtains, drawing back to reveal a compelling story of redemption, humanity and artistry. Impeccably directed by Greg Kwedar, is more than just a film about prison life. It’s a love letter to the transformative power of performing arts, smartly penned by screenwriters Kwedar and Clint Bentley. This emotional drama stars Colman Domingo, Paul Raci, John “Divine G” Whitfield, Sean San Jose, Jon-Adrian Velazquez, David J. Giraudy, Sean “Dino” Johnson, Sean “Divine Eye” Johnson and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin.
The film opens with Divine G (Domingo) onstage reciting the last lines of A Midsummer Night’s Dream to uproarious applause before taking a bow with the rest of the ensemble cast. After the show, he returns to the Sing Sing correctional facility, where it’s revealed he’s a respected member of the population who has written books and stage plays.
The film opens with Divine G (Domingo) onstage reciting the last lines of A Midsummer Night’s Dream to uproarious applause before taking a bow with the rest of the ensemble cast. After the show, he returns to the Sing Sing correctional facility, where it’s revealed he’s a respected member of the population who has written books and stage plays.
- 9/11/2023
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
“Our industry has ingrained such an idea of what to expect from a prison story,” says filmmaker Greg Kwedar, who is hoping to change that narrative with the help of those whose stories had been misrepresented.
Kwedar’s Toronto-bound feature Sing Sing centers on the Rehabilitation Through the Arts (Rta) program run out of the eponymous prison that sees the incarcerated producing and acting in stage productions. The story centers on the real-life friendship of Rta alumni John “Divine G” Whitfield (portrayed by Colman Domingo) and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, who plays himself. The film chronicles the bond that develops between the men as they try to decide which play to perform next. Outside of a few professional actors, including Domingo and Oscar nominee Paul Raci, Sing Sing is populated with formerly incarcerated performers, the majority of them alumni of the Rta program.
The filmmaker first went inside a maximum-security...
Kwedar’s Toronto-bound feature Sing Sing centers on the Rehabilitation Through the Arts (Rta) program run out of the eponymous prison that sees the incarcerated producing and acting in stage productions. The story centers on the real-life friendship of Rta alumni John “Divine G” Whitfield (portrayed by Colman Domingo) and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, who plays himself. The film chronicles the bond that develops between the men as they try to decide which play to perform next. Outside of a few professional actors, including Domingo and Oscar nominee Paul Raci, Sing Sing is populated with formerly incarcerated performers, the majority of them alumni of the Rta program.
The filmmaker first went inside a maximum-security...
- 9/8/2023
- by Mia Galuppo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: Two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank (Million Dollar Baby) is set to star in and executive-produce Nar, a character-driven action-thriller, which WME International is launching for world sales ahead of next week’s AFM in LA.
Set in Latin America, Swank will play a downed pilot, wounded and isolated deep in hostile territory, whose survival relies on trusting a stranger who claims to be part of a vast secret network designed to bring her to safety. N.A.R. (Non-conventional Assisted Recovery) is the name of an actual US Defense Department program.
The film is scheduled to shoot in fall of 2023.
Written by Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar (Jockey), producers are David Thwaites and John Logan Pierson alongside Deepwater Horizon director and Friday Night Lights director and exec Peter Berg for Film 44. Kwedar will direct. Career counterintelligence officer and Nar handler Bryan Stern will serve as executive producer.
Kwedar’s debut as a feature director was Transpecos,...
Set in Latin America, Swank will play a downed pilot, wounded and isolated deep in hostile territory, whose survival relies on trusting a stranger who claims to be part of a vast secret network designed to bring her to safety. N.A.R. (Non-conventional Assisted Recovery) is the name of an actual US Defense Department program.
The film is scheduled to shoot in fall of 2023.
Written by Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar (Jockey), producers are David Thwaites and John Logan Pierson alongside Deepwater Horizon director and Friday Night Lights director and exec Peter Berg for Film 44. Kwedar will direct. Career counterintelligence officer and Nar handler Bryan Stern will serve as executive producer.
Kwedar’s debut as a feature director was Transpecos,...
- 10/28/2022
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: The Imitation Game outfit Black Bear Pictures is bolstering the senior ranks of its fledgling management division with the hire of respected former ICM Partners and William Morris agent Joanne Roberts Wiles.
While a partner at ICM, Wiles represented filmmakers including Cooper Raiff (Cha Cha Real Smooth), the Duplass Brothers (Cyrus), Karyn Kusama (Yellowjackets), Duke Johnson (Anomalisa), Charlie McDowell and Justin Lader (Windfall), Gregg Araki (Now Apocalypse), Jamie Dack (Palm Trees and Power Lines), Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley (Jockey), So Yong Kim (Lovesong), David Siegel and Scott McGehee (Montana Story), and David Lachapelle (Rize).
She also represented talent in front of the camera including Oscar nominee Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Power of The Dog), Hannah Gross (Mindhunter), Garance Marillier (Titane), Théodore Pellerin (Never Rarely Sometimes Always), Dree Hemingway (Starlet), Chris Klein (American Pie), and Alex Pettyfer (Magic Mike).
Wiles will be a Partner in Black Bear’s newly formed management division,...
While a partner at ICM, Wiles represented filmmakers including Cooper Raiff (Cha Cha Real Smooth), the Duplass Brothers (Cyrus), Karyn Kusama (Yellowjackets), Duke Johnson (Anomalisa), Charlie McDowell and Justin Lader (Windfall), Gregg Araki (Now Apocalypse), Jamie Dack (Palm Trees and Power Lines), Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley (Jockey), So Yong Kim (Lovesong), David Siegel and Scott McGehee (Montana Story), and David Lachapelle (Rize).
She also represented talent in front of the camera including Oscar nominee Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Power of The Dog), Hannah Gross (Mindhunter), Garance Marillier (Titane), Théodore Pellerin (Never Rarely Sometimes Always), Dree Hemingway (Starlet), Chris Klein (American Pie), and Alex Pettyfer (Magic Mike).
Wiles will be a Partner in Black Bear’s newly formed management division,...
- 8/9/2022
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Laurence Fishburne (John Wick: Chapter 4) and Clifton Collins Jr. (Nightmare Alley) have signed on to star in the upcoming film Frank & Louis, which Petra Volpe is directing for Participant, Zodiac Pictures and Tyler Perry’s Peachtree & Vine Productions.
In Frank & Louis, a man serving a life sentence (Collins) takes an in-prison job caring for aging and infirm prisoners suffering from memory loss diseases—including one played by Fishburne. What starts as a self-serving mission for parole turns into a deep emotional and transformative relationship, offering a glimmer of redemption in an otherwise unforgiving place.
Volpe and Esther Bernstorff wrote the script. Participant will produce alongside Reto Schaerli and Lukas Hobi of Zodiac Pictures, and Perry and Tim Palen of Peachtree & Vine. Cora Olson is co-producing, with Jeff Skoll and Anikah McLaren of Participant serving as exec producers. McLaren, Elizabeth Haggard and Connor DeSha will oversee the project for Participant.
In Frank & Louis, a man serving a life sentence (Collins) takes an in-prison job caring for aging and infirm prisoners suffering from memory loss diseases—including one played by Fishburne. What starts as a self-serving mission for parole turns into a deep emotional and transformative relationship, offering a glimmer of redemption in an otherwise unforgiving place.
Volpe and Esther Bernstorff wrote the script. Participant will produce alongside Reto Schaerli and Lukas Hobi of Zodiac Pictures, and Perry and Tim Palen of Peachtree & Vine. Cora Olson is co-producing, with Jeff Skoll and Anikah McLaren of Participant serving as exec producers. McLaren, Elizabeth Haggard and Connor DeSha will oversee the project for Participant.
- 5/24/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit streaming platforms in the United States. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.
Apollo 10 ½ A Space Age Childhood (Richard Linklater)
A delightful meditation on childhood in the summer of 1969 set literally in the shadows of NASA’s central operations in Houston, Richard Linklater’s contemplative and vividly animated Apollo 10 ½ A Space Age Childhood reflects on the filmmaker’s own experiences. It captures the joy and wonder of childhood through the eyes of Stan, a ten-year-old who fantasizes about being recruited for “space camp” by NASA. His father (Bill Wise), a frugal but caring man, has uprooted his family from the city to a newly built suburban development in the shadow of the Astrodome and Astroworld amusement parks. Black’s adult narrator fills in the blanks for us with whimsical, nostalgic details that highlight just how...
Apollo 10 ½ A Space Age Childhood (Richard Linklater)
A delightful meditation on childhood in the summer of 1969 set literally in the shadows of NASA’s central operations in Houston, Richard Linklater’s contemplative and vividly animated Apollo 10 ½ A Space Age Childhood reflects on the filmmaker’s own experiences. It captures the joy and wonder of childhood through the eyes of Stan, a ten-year-old who fantasizes about being recruited for “space camp” by NASA. His father (Bill Wise), a frugal but caring man, has uprooted his family from the city to a newly built suburban development in the shadow of the Astrodome and Astroworld amusement parks. Black’s adult narrator fills in the blanks for us with whimsical, nostalgic details that highlight just how...
- 4/1/2022
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Sony Pictures Classics announced today that its feature documentary Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story, co-directed by five-time Oscar nominee Frank Marshall (The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart) and Ryan Suffern (Mr. A & Mr. M: The Story of A&m Records), will hit theaters in New York and Los Angeles on May 13, before expanding to additional markets in the following weeks. It will open against IFC Films’ horror-thriller The Innocents, Roadside Attractions’ comedy Family Camp and Universal’s horror-thriller Firestarter starring Zac Efron and more.
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell, aka “Jazz Fest,” is the signature annual music and cultural event of the city and has been called America’s greatest festival. It has celebrated the music, food, arts and crafts of all of Louisiana since 1970, with hundreds of thousands attending the event each year. The documentary weaves together live performances and...
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell, aka “Jazz Fest,” is the signature annual music and cultural event of the city and has been called America’s greatest festival. It has celebrated the music, food, arts and crafts of all of Louisiana since 1970, with hundreds of thousands attending the event each year. The documentary weaves together live performances and...
- 3/15/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
2022 Film Independent Spirit Awards: ‘The Lost Daughter’ Takes the Top Prize (Complete Winners List)
The 37th annual Film Independent Spirit Awards were handed out Sunday at the Santa Monica Pier, with comedy power couple Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally serving as hosts.
There weren’t too many surprises throughout the night. Troy Kotsur won the first award of the evening, Best Supporting Male Actor for “Coda,” very much as predicted. Taylour Paige took home Best Female Lead Actor, for “Zola,” while Simon Rex, of “Red Rocket,” walked away with Best Male Lead. Ruth Negga won Best Supporting Female Actor for “Passing,” beating out Jessie Buckley from “The Lost Daughter.”
But Maggie Gyllenhaal’s adaptation of the Elena Ferrante book won the three other categories in which it was nominated — Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Feature — and was the night’s biggest victor. Gyllenhaal gave three effusive thank you speeches, spreading her appreciation around to her cast, crew, financiers, publicist, husband and mother. “Women in film!
There weren’t too many surprises throughout the night. Troy Kotsur won the first award of the evening, Best Supporting Male Actor for “Coda,” very much as predicted. Taylour Paige took home Best Female Lead Actor, for “Zola,” while Simon Rex, of “Red Rocket,” walked away with Best Male Lead. Ruth Negga won Best Supporting Female Actor for “Passing,” beating out Jessie Buckley from “The Lost Daughter.”
But Maggie Gyllenhaal’s adaptation of the Elena Ferrante book won the three other categories in which it was nominated — Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Feature — and was the night’s biggest victor. Gyllenhaal gave three effusive thank you speeches, spreading her appreciation around to her cast, crew, financiers, publicist, husband and mother. “Women in film!
- 3/6/2022
- by Missy Schwartz
- The Wrap
Clifton Collins Jr. as Jackson Silva in Jockey. Image by Adolpho Veloso. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics
When tossed off a horse and thrown into the hospital, what makes you get back on that horse? If you are a jockey, it is professionalism, pride and maybe a little bit of madness, hoping the next ride will take you to glory. In the horse racing drama Jockey, the talented Clifton Collins Jr. gives an affecting performance as an aging jockey, whose body has taken too many spills, grappling with a fading career and grasping at a final chance for glory. Director/co-writer Clint Bentley’s finely-crafted, well-acted, authentic drama about a little seen side of racing created buzz when it debuted at Sundance.
Jockeys are athletes engaged in a dangerous sport, one with a higher rate of injuries than most sports, and where most age out by their thirties. Collins’ character is in his forties,...
When tossed off a horse and thrown into the hospital, what makes you get back on that horse? If you are a jockey, it is professionalism, pride and maybe a little bit of madness, hoping the next ride will take you to glory. In the horse racing drama Jockey, the talented Clifton Collins Jr. gives an affecting performance as an aging jockey, whose body has taken too many spills, grappling with a fading career and grasping at a final chance for glory. Director/co-writer Clint Bentley’s finely-crafted, well-acted, authentic drama about a little seen side of racing created buzz when it debuted at Sundance.
Jockeys are athletes engaged in a dangerous sport, one with a higher rate of injuries than most sports, and where most age out by their thirties. Collins’ character is in his forties,...
- 2/11/2022
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Twilight is an ongoing theme in this debut film from Clint Bentley - not just the half-light scenes that frequently occur, whether at dusk or dawn - but the twilight of jockey Jackson Silva's career.
This measured drama, which should definitely be seen in a cinema if at all possible, as it's shadowy scenes won't translate so well to small screen, sees the ageing horseman facing up to infirmity at the same time as grappling with the arrival of a much younger jockey, Gabriel Boullait, who claims to be his son. It may sound like a plot ripe for melodrama, but Bentley puts the emphasis on naturalism and low-key human connection, so that his film achieves a constant simmer rather than bubbling all over the place.
The director, writing with Greg Kwedar, draws on his own experience of hanging out at the racetrack as a child watching his dad ride and.
This measured drama, which should definitely be seen in a cinema if at all possible, as it's shadowy scenes won't translate so well to small screen, sees the ageing horseman facing up to infirmity at the same time as grappling with the arrival of a much younger jockey, Gabriel Boullait, who claims to be his son. It may sound like a plot ripe for melodrama, but Bentley puts the emphasis on naturalism and low-key human connection, so that his film achieves a constant simmer rather than bubbling all over the place.
The director, writing with Greg Kwedar, draws on his own experience of hanging out at the racetrack as a child watching his dad ride and.
- 2/3/2022
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Clifton Collins Jr., Michael Gandolfini, Josh Hamilton and Brooklynn MacKinzie have joined the cast of Cory Finley’s “Landscape With Invisible Hand.”
The quartet join previously announced stars Asante Blackk, Tiffany Haddish and Kylie Rogers in the film adaptation from MGM, Plan B Entertainment and Annapurna Pictures.
Based on National Book Award winner M.T. Anderson’s novel of the same name, “Landscape With Invisible Hand” is described as a “heightened comedy set in a deeply stratified, alien future.”
Production on the film begins this week, marking writer-director Finley’s third movie following the critically-acclaimed “Thoroughbreds” and “Bad Education.” Plan B’s Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner are producing the project with Annapurna’s Megan Ellison and Sue Naegle.
Collins Jr. can currently be seen in Guillermo Del Toro’s “Nightmare Alley,” and will next appear in Kogonada’s “After Yang.” In 2021, the actor earned rave reviews for his leading performance in “Jockey,...
The quartet join previously announced stars Asante Blackk, Tiffany Haddish and Kylie Rogers in the film adaptation from MGM, Plan B Entertainment and Annapurna Pictures.
Based on National Book Award winner M.T. Anderson’s novel of the same name, “Landscape With Invisible Hand” is described as a “heightened comedy set in a deeply stratified, alien future.”
Production on the film begins this week, marking writer-director Finley’s third movie following the critically-acclaimed “Thoroughbreds” and “Bad Education.” Plan B’s Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner are producing the project with Annapurna’s Megan Ellison and Sue Naegle.
Collins Jr. can currently be seen in Guillermo Del Toro’s “Nightmare Alley,” and will next appear in Kogonada’s “After Yang.” In 2021, the actor earned rave reviews for his leading performance in “Jockey,...
- 2/1/2022
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
Clifton Collins Jr is intense and really gets under the skin of an ageing rider with one last shot at glory
‘How many times have you broken your back?” A concerned-looking doctor is asking a jockey. It takes him a few seconds to count. “Three … I think.” The doctor, it turns out, is a vet; the jockey, who’s in his 40s, hasn’t got the cash for medical treatment so slips the racetrack vet a few dollars for an X-ray. It’s a scene typical of this macho-sentimental feature debut from Clint Bentley, which trots a well-trod narrative: the past-his-peak athlete clutching at one last chance of glory before the knacker’s yard. It’s a movie that gets by (and then some) on an intense and focused performance by character actor Clifton Collins Jr, and a truthful-feeling sense of place.
Collins plays the jockey: Jackson Silva is solid and decent,...
‘How many times have you broken your back?” A concerned-looking doctor is asking a jockey. It takes him a few seconds to count. “Three … I think.” The doctor, it turns out, is a vet; the jockey, who’s in his 40s, hasn’t got the cash for medical treatment so slips the racetrack vet a few dollars for an X-ray. It’s a scene typical of this macho-sentimental feature debut from Clint Bentley, which trots a well-trod narrative: the past-his-peak athlete clutching at one last chance of glory before the knacker’s yard. It’s a movie that gets by (and then some) on an intense and focused performance by character actor Clifton Collins Jr, and a truthful-feeling sense of place.
Collins plays the jockey: Jackson Silva is solid and decent,...
- 2/1/2022
- by Cath Clarke
- The Guardian - Film News
A tsunami of buzz and Oscar-telling indicators drop on Thursday, with the major guilds announcing award nominations. The Directors Guild of America (DGA), Writers Guild of America (WGA), Producers Guild of America (PGA) and American Cinema Editors (Ace Eddies) all serve as critical barometers for the Academy Awards, especially in the race for best picture.
DGA has averaged four of their five nominees landing in the Oscars’ best director category, including last year with Aaron Sorkin (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”) getting bumped for Thomas Vinterberg (“Another Round”). The first-time directors’ category, with the exception of Jordan Peele for “Get Out” (2017), has gone on to get a nod at the Academy.
The PGA always provides some big blockbusters and Academy flare, which bodes well for either “No Time to Die” or “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The WGA has a lot of ineligibilities that won’t provide a strong enough indicator for the screenplay categories.
DGA has averaged four of their five nominees landing in the Oscars’ best director category, including last year with Aaron Sorkin (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”) getting bumped for Thomas Vinterberg (“Another Round”). The first-time directors’ category, with the exception of Jordan Peele for “Get Out” (2017), has gone on to get a nod at the Academy.
The PGA always provides some big blockbusters and Academy flare, which bodes well for either “No Time to Die” or “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The WGA has a lot of ineligibilities that won’t provide a strong enough indicator for the screenplay categories.
- 1/26/2022
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Chris Evans and Adam Kersh have launched Fusion Management, an artist-driven management company that will focus on actors, filmmakers and creators.
Their initial management roster features a number of notable clients with a particular focus on indie multi-hyphenates and auteurs. The list includes Sean Baker, who earned raves for “Red Rocket”; filmmaker and actor Amy Seimetz, the co-creator of “The Girlfriend Experience” on Starz and the star of “No Sudden Move”; Cooper Raiff, a writer, director, producer and actor whose film “Cha Cha Real Smooth” premiered at Sundance this week to critical acclaim; and Kelly O’Sullivan, the writer and star of the award-winning “Saint Frances.”
Evans, formerly a manager at One Entertainment, and Kersh, co-founder of Brigade Marketing, bring more than two decades of combined experience within the entertainment industry. The two want Fusion to be a landing ground for both established creators and emerging talent both in front of and behind the camera.
Their initial management roster features a number of notable clients with a particular focus on indie multi-hyphenates and auteurs. The list includes Sean Baker, who earned raves for “Red Rocket”; filmmaker and actor Amy Seimetz, the co-creator of “The Girlfriend Experience” on Starz and the star of “No Sudden Move”; Cooper Raiff, a writer, director, producer and actor whose film “Cha Cha Real Smooth” premiered at Sundance this week to critical acclaim; and Kelly O’Sullivan, the writer and star of the award-winning “Saint Frances.”
Evans, formerly a manager at One Entertainment, and Kersh, co-founder of Brigade Marketing, bring more than two decades of combined experience within the entertainment industry. The two want Fusion to be a landing ground for both established creators and emerging talent both in front of and behind the camera.
- 1/25/2022
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Critically acclaimed specialty holdovers continued to plant their flags in theaters as awards season advances and Oscar nominations loom — and on a weekend with few new releases, most not reporting grosses today.
Among the bigger indies, United Artists Releasing’s Licorice Pizza by Paul Thomas Anderson grossed an estimated $683k in week nine from 772 runs (Fri. $207k; Sat. $288k; Sun. $187k est.). That’s a PSA of $885 and total cume of $10.7 million.
Focus Features said Belfast is at $7.5 million domestic and $10.1 million worldwide after garnering another $30k in the U.S. on 63 screens and seeing a strong $3.1 million open in the U.K./Ireland. Earlier this month, the Kenneth Branagh film received 14 nods on the BAFTA long list.
Sony Pictures Classics’ Penelope-Cruz-starrer Parallel Mothers from Pedro Almodovar, in week five, reports $170.4k on 111 screens (up from 50 last week) for a per screen average of 1,535 and a cume of $611,713.
Also from SPC,...
Among the bigger indies, United Artists Releasing’s Licorice Pizza by Paul Thomas Anderson grossed an estimated $683k in week nine from 772 runs (Fri. $207k; Sat. $288k; Sun. $187k est.). That’s a PSA of $885 and total cume of $10.7 million.
Focus Features said Belfast is at $7.5 million domestic and $10.1 million worldwide after garnering another $30k in the U.S. on 63 screens and seeing a strong $3.1 million open in the U.K./Ireland. Earlier this month, the Kenneth Branagh film received 14 nods on the BAFTA long list.
Sony Pictures Classics’ Penelope-Cruz-starrer Parallel Mothers from Pedro Almodovar, in week five, reports $170.4k on 111 screens (up from 50 last week) for a per screen average of 1,535 and a cume of $611,713.
Also from SPC,...
- 1/23/2022
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
Deep into production on Clint Bentley’s feature directorial debut “Jockey,” star Clifton Collins Jr. reached an impasse: His agent kept calling him up with what the actor referred to as “money scripts,” and the long-time actor just didn’t have the time or the headspace to worry about other projects. Hell, he didn’t have time to worry about anything else but the tiny indie about a jockey nearing the end of his run in the lauded drama. The film premiered at Sundance 2020 after being picked up by Sony Pictures Classics, and has earned Collins the best reviews of his career, plus a recent Indie Spirit nomination for his performance.
“I’m like, ‘If I spend two hours reading another script, that’s two hours you’ve stolen from our budget. Because time is the only currency that cannot be replaced. And I’ll be damned if you take another dollar from this budget,...
“I’m like, ‘If I spend two hours reading another script, that’s two hours you’ve stolen from our budget. Because time is the only currency that cannot be replaced. And I’ll be damned if you take another dollar from this budget,...
- 1/6/2022
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Chicago – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Scott Thompson on Wbgr-fm on December 30th, 2021, reviewing a favorite from the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, “Jockey” – currently in select theaters, see local listings.
Rating: 4.0/5.0
Writer/director Clint Bentley comes from the horse racing world that is the setting for “Jockey,” and imbues his main rider character Jackson (Clifton Collins Jr.) with the old gunslinger mentality. When the young upstart (Moisés Arias) comes to town to challenge Jackson’s legacy, the old horse galloper has to think about riding into the sunset.
“Jockey” is currently in select theaters, see local listings. Featuring Clifton Collins Jr., Moises Arias, Molly Parker, Logan Cormier, Vincent Francia and Marion St. Julien. Written and directed by Clint Bentley. Rated “R”
Click here for Patrick McDonald’s full on-air review of “Jockey”
Jockey
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Classics
Click here for Patrick McDonald’s full...
Rating: 4.0/5.0
Writer/director Clint Bentley comes from the horse racing world that is the setting for “Jockey,” and imbues his main rider character Jackson (Clifton Collins Jr.) with the old gunslinger mentality. When the young upstart (Moisés Arias) comes to town to challenge Jackson’s legacy, the old horse galloper has to think about riding into the sunset.
“Jockey” is currently in select theaters, see local listings. Featuring Clifton Collins Jr., Moises Arias, Molly Parker, Logan Cormier, Vincent Francia and Marion St. Julien. Written and directed by Clint Bentley. Rated “R”
Click here for Patrick McDonald’s full on-air review of “Jockey”
Jockey
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Classics
Click here for Patrick McDonald’s full...
- 1/4/2022
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Directors often mine their past for their films. Clint Bentley returned to the world in which he grew up to make his lauded new film “Jockey.” During a recent Zoom conversation with Film Independent, Bentley noted that his father was a jockey and his film “started from that place of having a specific feeling I wanted to share through a movie. That was just the feeling of what it feels like to be on the backside of the racetrack. I felt there had been a lot of movies about racing, but none had really gotten that lifestyle across and then also showing the life of jockey, which I didn’t feel had been explored.”
“Jockey,” which premiered to strong reviews at Sundance, stars veteran character actor Clifton Collins Jr. (“Capote”) as Jackson, an aging jockey who bares the scars of his job. He’s broken his back several times and...
“Jockey,” which premiered to strong reviews at Sundance, stars veteran character actor Clifton Collins Jr. (“Capote”) as Jackson, an aging jockey who bares the scars of his job. He’s broken his back several times and...
- 1/1/2022
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Sony Pictures Entertainment follows its release of Parallel Mothers last week with Jockey in three theaters in New York and Los Angeles on Friday in a specialty market crowded by holdovers and wide releases, and amid a Covid-19 surge that’s particularly tough on art houses. The frame isn’t ideal for new specialty fare in any case, but gets it on the board for a January rollout ahead of Oscar nominations.
SPC acquired Jockey out of Sundance where it won the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury award for star Clifton Collins Jr. as an aging rider trying to win one last championship race. The directorial debut of Clint Bentley will expand nationwide following its exclusive debut. The Oscar hopeful (87% Rotten Tomatoes’ Critics’ score) was one of Deadline critic Todd McCarthy’s top ten picks of the year. See his review here.
Collins plays Jackson Silvan,...
SPC acquired Jockey out of Sundance where it won the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury award for star Clifton Collins Jr. as an aging rider trying to win one last championship race. The directorial debut of Clint Bentley will expand nationwide following its exclusive debut. The Oscar hopeful (87% Rotten Tomatoes’ Critics’ score) was one of Deadline critic Todd McCarthy’s top ten picks of the year. See his review here.
Collins plays Jackson Silvan,...
- 12/31/2021
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
Holiday movie season is upon us — though the release schedule has never been more confusing, with some blockbusters heading directly to streaming, others in theaters only and various independent films mixing up strategies between theaters, streaming and VOD releases.
It’s a quiet week for new releases, with only a couple fresh titles hitting theaters — including Sundance award winner “Jockey” and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Lost Daughter,” now on Netflix — though the following guide also features coverage of such Oscar contenders as “West Side Story,” “Nightmare Alley” and “Parallel Mothers.”
Here’s a rundown of the films opening this week that Variety has covered, along with information on where you can watch them. Find more movies and TV shows to stream here.
New Releases for the Week of Dec. 31 Exclusively in Theaters
Jockey (Clint Bentley) Critic’S Pick
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Where to Find It: In theaters
“Jockey” gives...
It’s a quiet week for new releases, with only a couple fresh titles hitting theaters — including Sundance award winner “Jockey” and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Lost Daughter,” now on Netflix — though the following guide also features coverage of such Oscar contenders as “West Side Story,” “Nightmare Alley” and “Parallel Mothers.”
Here’s a rundown of the films opening this week that Variety has covered, along with information on where you can watch them. Find more movies and TV shows to stream here.
New Releases for the Week of Dec. 31 Exclusively in Theaters
Jockey (Clint Bentley) Critic’S Pick
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Where to Find It: In theaters
“Jockey” gives...
- 12/30/2021
- by Peter Debruge, Selome Hailu, Jennifer Yuma and Katie Song
- Variety Film + TV
This past year couldn’t be expiring soon enough as far as most of the world is concerned, and we can only hope that the next one will at least provide small measures of relief in one regard or another. May this be true for the planet first and foremost, but also for the world of films. I’ve experienced 2021 as the worst year for movies in quite a few decades. Perhaps if I seriously combed through the 1980s I might find some that were worse, but I nonetheless felt seriously unrewarded for all the hours I put in watching films that simply didn’t rise to the occasion, including some that found significant critical favor with others.
There were, perhaps, a couple of dozen films that ventured into excellence, but just four of these came from what we’re accustomed to calling the big studios — the rest were indies or foreign.
There were, perhaps, a couple of dozen films that ventured into excellence, but just four of these came from what we’re accustomed to calling the big studios — the rest were indies or foreign.
- 12/30/2021
- by Todd McCarthy
- Deadline Film + TV
Some actors you just take for granted. You see them constantly popping up, beautifully supporting the above-the-marquee names, nailing a killer line here, stealthily stealing a scene or two there. Audiences turn in to the real-life equivalent of the DiCaprio-in-Once-Upon-a-Time-in-Hollywood meme whenever these performers show up. These familiar faces become part of the firmament. You know the type: get in, add some texture to the storytelling, get out. Think versatile, clutch character actors like Clifton Collins Jr., who’s played everything from cops to convicts, Western banditos to carnival barkers,...
- 12/30/2021
- by David Fear
- Rollingstone.com
Few things feel better as a film lover than getting to see a longtime character actor, someone who’s been stealing scenes in supporting parts for decades, getting the chance to shine in a plum leading role and absolutely knocking it out of the park. Richard Jenkins in The Visitor. Melissa Leo in Frozen River. Clifton Collins Jr. in Jockey.
Debuting to strong word at this year’s Sundance (our review here), Jockey stars Collins as Jackson Silva, a late-in-his-career jockey trying to make one last push for glory when Ruth (Molly Parker), a trainer and Jackson’s longtime friend, acquires a mighty impressive new horse. At the same time, Jackson’s world is thrown for a loop when a young rider (Moises Arias) shows up claiming to be his son.
This intimate character study, directed by Clint Bentley and co-written by Bentley and Greg Kwedar (who had worked with...
Debuting to strong word at this year’s Sundance (our review here), Jockey stars Collins as Jackson Silva, a late-in-his-career jockey trying to make one last push for glory when Ruth (Molly Parker), a trainer and Jackson’s longtime friend, acquires a mighty impressive new horse. At the same time, Jackson’s world is thrown for a loop when a young rider (Moises Arias) shows up claiming to be his son.
This intimate character study, directed by Clint Bentley and co-written by Bentley and Greg Kwedar (who had worked with...
- 12/28/2021
- by Mitchell Beaupre
- The Film Stage
“There’s so many of us that have been through so much these past two years,” Clifton Collins Jr says about how relatable his role in “Jockey” feels to him. Coming off his recent Indie Spirit Best Actor nomination, the actor suggests that the film about a jockey in the twilight of his career might have a distinctly universal appeal in this day and age. “You just want to hang on and make it through and just have one more hurrah, one more beautiful day or one more ride into the sunset, so to speak,” he says.
“In my case, literally one more ride into the sunset,” he adds, alluding to the film’s signature use of plaintive, elegiac sunrises and sunsets in depicting the world in which these jockeys live and breathe. “I think everybody can identify with the things, the obstacles and challenges that get in our way,...
“In my case, literally one more ride into the sunset,” he adds, alluding to the film’s signature use of plaintive, elegiac sunrises and sunsets in depicting the world in which these jockeys live and breathe. “I think everybody can identify with the things, the obstacles and challenges that get in our way,...
- 12/28/2021
- by Rob Licuria
- Gold Derby
Some actors just do the work. They don’t care about the red carpets or potential commercial endorsements or campaigning for awards. We’re sure Clifton Collins, Jr. would enjoy all of those things, but he’s clearly not driven by it. And that’s one reason it’s gratifying to see him earn an Independent Spirit Award for his performance as a legendary horse rider in Clint Bentley’s “Jockey.” A film that has somehow landed more under the radar this awards season then it should have.
Continue reading Clifton Collins, Jr. Went Above & Beyond For ‘Jockey’ [Interview] at The Playlist.
Continue reading Clifton Collins, Jr. Went Above & Beyond For ‘Jockey’ [Interview] at The Playlist.
- 12/23/2021
- by Gregory Ellwood
- The Playlist
Moisés Arias doesn’t shy away from professing how much he loved shooting his latest film “Jockey,” in which he lived and breathed the life of real-life competitive jockeys within a tight-knit horse racing community in regional Arizona. “To feel a part of that culture, feel like you’re immersed in this horse racing world with the owners and obviously the jockeys and the trainers,” he admits, “was really refreshing and beautiful.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.
“Jockey” stars Clifton Collins, Jr. as Jackson, an aging jockey who after decades on the horse-racing circuit enduring physical injuries, is grappling with failing health and the realization that he is in the twilight of his career. Determined to win one last championship, his dreams are complicated when Gabriel (Arias), a younger up-and-coming rookie shows up claiming to be his son.
DISCUSSJockey in our notorious forums
The indie drama, also starring Molly...
“Jockey” stars Clifton Collins, Jr. as Jackson, an aging jockey who after decades on the horse-racing circuit enduring physical injuries, is grappling with failing health and the realization that he is in the twilight of his career. Determined to win one last championship, his dreams are complicated when Gabriel (Arias), a younger up-and-coming rookie shows up claiming to be his son.
DISCUSSJockey in our notorious forums
The indie drama, also starring Molly...
- 12/23/2021
- by Rob Licuria
- Gold Derby
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.