Writer/Director Jerome Yoo took his cloistered feelings of stifled creativity and claustrophobia from the pandemic and poured them into the creation of his idiosyncratic short River Boy Blues. Inspired by an old folk tale, with injections of fantasy and an improvised approach to production, River Boy Blues follows a troubled teen couple on an outlandish trip to find a happy home for a pet turtle. Their relationship is far from ideal and nothing in this selfish pair’s path seems planned but this chaos is as delightful as it is confusing. Yoo overcame the restrictions of a small crew and limited resources by adopting a guerilla shooting style which echoed his continually adaptive approach to the film’s script. As River Boy Blues premieres on Dn’s pages today, we speak to Yoo about the freedom he found in his less structured production process, the procedures put in place...
- 3/21/2024
- by Sarah Smith
- Directors Notes
Lawrence (Isaiah Lehtinen) and Matt (Percy Hynes White) are best friends. It’s the sort of implicitly understood, ritualised friendship which gives the impression of having been there since birth. Every weekend they watch Saturday Night Live together. Matt throws his mum out of her own living room so they can be their truest selves when doing so. They make films together. This one opens with a clip of Reject’s Night, their own spin on A Christmas Carol, which Lawrence chose to direct for class because he found the assigned topic – a video essay on bias in the media – boring. They’re supposed to be making the school’s end of year video together, but that’s not going to plan.
Is it Matt’s fault? There’s a girl he likes and he wants to bring her in as editor. She has real talent, as it happens, and the two click creatively,...
Is it Matt’s fault? There’s a girl he likes and he wants to bring her in as editor. She has real talent, as it happens, and the two click creatively,...
- 3/8/2023
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The official trailer for the upcoming Canadian comedy film “I Like Movies” has arrived.
The film, which premiered at TIFF in September 2022 and recently screened as part of their Top Ten Film series, is the feature debut from Toronto-based director Chandler Levack.
Read More: New CBC Show ‘Push’ Is Canada’s First Major-Network Primetime Series Featuring Leading Cast With Disabilities
The official film synopsis reads: “Socially inept 17-year-old cinephile, Lawrence Kweller (Isaiah Lehtinen) gets a job at a video store, where he forms a complicated friendship with his older female manager.”
We're excited to present the new poster for...
The film, which premiered at TIFF in September 2022 and recently screened as part of their Top Ten Film series, is the feature debut from Toronto-based director Chandler Levack.
Read More: New CBC Show ‘Push’ Is Canada’s First Major-Network Primetime Series Featuring Leading Cast With Disabilities
The official film synopsis reads: “Socially inept 17-year-old cinephile, Lawrence Kweller (Isaiah Lehtinen) gets a job at a video store, where he forms a complicated friendship with his older female manager.”
We're excited to present the new poster for...
- 2/21/2023
- by Melissa Romualdi
- ET Canada
The Vancouver Film Critics Circle has named Everything Everywhere All at Once as its best international feature of 2022.
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert were also named best directors for their award season contending comedy, which also earned Michelle Yeoh the crown as best actress. Earlier, A24’s Everything Everywhere All at Once led the field for the 95th Academy Awards with 11 nominations, including best picture.
The international film categories at the Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards, handed out Monday night, also saw Martin McDonagh pick up the best screenplay trophy for The Banshees of Inisherin, which also had Colin Farrell winning for best actor and co-star Brendan Gleeson named best supporting actor. The Searchlight film picked up nine Oscar nominations.
Elsewhere, Jessie Buckley won for best supporting actress for her performance in Women Talking, Laura Poitras’ All the Beauty and the Bloodshed was named best documentary of 2022 and Netflix’s...
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert were also named best directors for their award season contending comedy, which also earned Michelle Yeoh the crown as best actress. Earlier, A24’s Everything Everywhere All at Once led the field for the 95th Academy Awards with 11 nominations, including best picture.
The international film categories at the Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards, handed out Monday night, also saw Martin McDonagh pick up the best screenplay trophy for The Banshees of Inisherin, which also had Colin Farrell winning for best actor and co-star Brendan Gleeson named best supporting actor. The Searchlight film picked up nine Oscar nominations.
Elsewhere, Jessie Buckley won for best supporting actress for her performance in Women Talking, Laura Poitras’ All the Beauty and the Bloodshed was named best documentary of 2022 and Netflix’s...
- 2/14/2023
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Under veteran Executive Director Roger Durling, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival has thrived by surfing the awards season wave and programming a ton of onstage interviews with Oscar contenders.
This year’s edition marks a return to a fully live, in-person film festival. The festival will showcase 52 world premieres and 78 U.S. premieres from 43 countries, along with free community education and outreach programs.
Every year, screenwriters, directors, and producers promote their films on panels, and the likes of Kristen Stewart, Will Smith, Brad Pitt, Bong Joon Ho, Adam Driver, Renée Zellweger, Laura Dern, Viola Davis, Lupita Nyong’o, Saoirse Ronan, Bruce Dern, Jeff Bridges, Melissa McCarthy, Isabelle Huppert, Viggo Mortensen, Rami Malek, Glenn Close, Ben Affleck, Christopher Nolan, Sam Elliott, and many more submit to in-depth tributes.
The panels, tributes, and special screenings lure local cinephiles and Academy members eager to hear Oscar contenders talk about their creative process. All...
This year’s edition marks a return to a fully live, in-person film festival. The festival will showcase 52 world premieres and 78 U.S. premieres from 43 countries, along with free community education and outreach programs.
Every year, screenwriters, directors, and producers promote their films on panels, and the likes of Kristen Stewart, Will Smith, Brad Pitt, Bong Joon Ho, Adam Driver, Renée Zellweger, Laura Dern, Viola Davis, Lupita Nyong’o, Saoirse Ronan, Bruce Dern, Jeff Bridges, Melissa McCarthy, Isabelle Huppert, Viggo Mortensen, Rami Malek, Glenn Close, Ben Affleck, Christopher Nolan, Sam Elliott, and many more submit to in-depth tributes.
The panels, tributes, and special screenings lure local cinephiles and Academy members eager to hear Oscar contenders talk about their creative process. All...
- 2/8/2023
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
The Santa Barbara Intl. Film Festival celebrates movies and the people who make them.
One essential element of Sbiff is its focus on film education. With a carefully curated program, executive director Roger Durling says, “We’re educating your average filmgoer that comes to the festival.” Every event — from panels to tributes — is designed to teach, he says. This includes awards celebrating renowned stars including Angela Bassett, Brendan Fraser and Cate Blanchett.
“The format is a 90-minute conversation,” he says. “It’s not an awards evening where the person shows up and gets the award. Cate Blanchett will be on stage talking about her craft and career.”
Beyond staples such as films and panels, the program includes a variety of educational opportunities for cinephiles of all ages. For Durling, one of the most exciting parts of Sbiff is the Film Studies Program in which 30 undergraduate students from around the country...
One essential element of Sbiff is its focus on film education. With a carefully curated program, executive director Roger Durling says, “We’re educating your average filmgoer that comes to the festival.” Every event — from panels to tributes — is designed to teach, he says. This includes awards celebrating renowned stars including Angela Bassett, Brendan Fraser and Cate Blanchett.
“The format is a 90-minute conversation,” he says. “It’s not an awards evening where the person shows up and gets the award. Cate Blanchett will be on stage talking about her craft and career.”
Beyond staples such as films and panels, the program includes a variety of educational opportunities for cinephiles of all ages. For Durling, one of the most exciting parts of Sbiff is the Film Studies Program in which 30 undergraduate students from around the country...
- 2/5/2023
- by Malina Saval
- Variety Film + TV
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival announced plans Wednesday for 52 world premieres and 78 U.S. premieres spanning a total of 43 countries throughout the 11-day event.
“At a time where there’s a dwindling of movie theater attendance, the role of film festivals has never been more important,” said Sbiff executive director Roger Durling. “At Sbiff, with the 38th edition, our marching orders are clear, to celebrate movies and to nurture and exalt the film community, the artists as well as the cinephiles. It’s a great slate with 43 countries represented.”
The festival starts Feb. 8 with the world premiere of “Miranda’s Victim” from director-producer Michelle Danner. The period piece is set in the year 1963 and documents the true story of Patricia “Trish” Weir (Abigal Breslin), who attempts to put her abuser behind bars after being kidnapped and sexually assaulted at 18 years old.
Director Chandler Levack’s “I Like Movies” will...
“At a time where there’s a dwindling of movie theater attendance, the role of film festivals has never been more important,” said Sbiff executive director Roger Durling. “At Sbiff, with the 38th edition, our marching orders are clear, to celebrate movies and to nurture and exalt the film community, the artists as well as the cinephiles. It’s a great slate with 43 countries represented.”
The festival starts Feb. 8 with the world premiere of “Miranda’s Victim” from director-producer Michelle Danner. The period piece is set in the year 1963 and documents the true story of Patricia “Trish” Weir (Abigal Breslin), who attempts to put her abuser behind bars after being kidnapped and sexually assaulted at 18 years old.
Director Chandler Levack’s “I Like Movies” will...
- 1/18/2023
- by Katie Reul
- Variety Film + TV
The 38th edition of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, which will run Feb. 8-18, will open with Miranda’s Victim, one of 52 world premieres in this year’s lineup, and will close with the U.S. premiere of I Like Movies, one of 78 U.S. premieres, the fest announced Wednesday.
These are, of course, in addition to a slew of the career-retrospective tributes for which the fest is famous, which this year will celebrate the likes of Cate Blanchett, Brendan Fraser, Angela Bassett, Jamie Lee Curtis, Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, as well as panels with breakthrough artists, artisans, directors, writers, producers, female creatives and international filmmakers.
The fest will also offer a variety of free educational programs, including Mike’s Field Trip to the Movies (for 4,000-plus fourth through sixth grade students from low-income schools throughout Santa Barbara County), which this year will feature a screening of Guillermo del Toro...
These are, of course, in addition to a slew of the career-retrospective tributes for which the fest is famous, which this year will celebrate the likes of Cate Blanchett, Brendan Fraser, Angela Bassett, Jamie Lee Curtis, Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, as well as panels with breakthrough artists, artisans, directors, writers, producers, female creatives and international filmmakers.
The fest will also offer a variety of free educational programs, including Mike’s Field Trip to the Movies (for 4,000-plus fourth through sixth grade students from low-income schools throughout Santa Barbara County), which this year will feature a screening of Guillermo del Toro...
- 1/18/2023
- by Scott Feinberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Santa Barbara Film Festival To Open With Abigail Breslin Drama ‘Miranda’s Victim’ As Full Lineup Set
The Santa Barbara Film Festival has today unveiled the lineup for its 38th edition, taking place in-person from February 8-18.
The festival will open with the world premiere of the courtroom drama Miranda’s Victim, from director Michelle Danner. Pic tells the true story of Trish Weir (Abigail Breslin), who in 1963 was kidnapped and brutally raped by Ernesto Miranda. Committed to putting her assailant in prison, Trish’s life is destroyed by America’s legal system as she triggers a law that transforms the nation. Ryan Phillippe, Luke Wilson, Donald Sutherland, Mireille Enos, Andy Garcia and more also star.
Closing out Sbiff 2023 is the Chandler Levack-directed I Like Movies, which makes its U.S. premiere. The film starring Isaiah Lehtinen, Romina D’Ugo, Krista Bridges and Percy Hynes White follows the socially inept, 17-year-old cinephile Lawrence (Lehtinen) as he gets a job at a video store, there forming a complicated...
The festival will open with the world premiere of the courtroom drama Miranda’s Victim, from director Michelle Danner. Pic tells the true story of Trish Weir (Abigail Breslin), who in 1963 was kidnapped and brutally raped by Ernesto Miranda. Committed to putting her assailant in prison, Trish’s life is destroyed by America’s legal system as she triggers a law that transforms the nation. Ryan Phillippe, Luke Wilson, Donald Sutherland, Mireille Enos, Andy Garcia and more also star.
Closing out Sbiff 2023 is the Chandler Levack-directed I Like Movies, which makes its U.S. premiere. The film starring Isaiah Lehtinen, Romina D’Ugo, Krista Bridges and Percy Hynes White follows the socially inept, 17-year-old cinephile Lawrence (Lehtinen) as he gets a job at a video store, there forming a complicated...
- 1/18/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
For Lawrence Kweller (Isaiah Lehtinen), the 17-year-old cinephile protagonist of “I Like Movies,” the film’s title isn’t just a statement of fact. It’s also a suit of armor, an all-purpose excuse, and an earnest attempt at connection. Connection isn’t easy for Lawrence, a state of affairs that’s only partially his own fault. He’s sullen, callous, condescending, stubbornly delusional, and even a bit sexist. But he’s also intelligent, ambitious, hyper-articulate, and as vulnerable as a baby bird that’s fallen from its nest.
Lawrence exists on a continuum that also includes “Rushmore’s” Max Fischer and “Lady Bird’s” Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson, but he’s a more realistic character than either of them. All teenagers think that they’re special and it’s extremely unfair that the world has yet to recognize their gifts. But “I Like Movies” is too grounded of a film to entertain these fantasies.
Lawrence exists on a continuum that also includes “Rushmore’s” Max Fischer and “Lady Bird’s” Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson, but he’s a more realistic character than either of them. All teenagers think that they’re special and it’s extremely unfair that the world has yet to recognize their gifts. But “I Like Movies” is too grounded of a film to entertain these fantasies.
- 9/17/2022
- by Katie Rife
- Indiewire
Chandler Levack's feature film debut "I Like Movies" is bursting with personality — just like its protagonist, Lawrence Kweller (Isaiah Lehtinen). Lawrence is a would-be auteur; a burgeoning cinephile, obsessed with film culture and confident that he has a bright future in the industry. Like many film-lovers of this caliber, he suffers from a strong case of self-importance. Mix that with his age, troubled home life, and personal trauma, and we have a recipe for a pretty intolerable young man.
At least, that's what you would expect. "I Like Movies" strikes the right balance for Lawrence between vulnerable and loathsome, presenting a character we can root for, even as we disprove of his actions. Written and directed by Chandler Levack — who also developed a love of the movies growing up in Burlington, Ontario — "I Like Movies" feels personal, presenting a story that is at times hilarious, occasionally very dark, and always entertaining.
At least, that's what you would expect. "I Like Movies" strikes the right balance for Lawrence between vulnerable and loathsome, presenting a character we can root for, even as we disprove of his actions. Written and directed by Chandler Levack — who also developed a love of the movies growing up in Burlington, Ontario — "I Like Movies" feels personal, presenting a story that is at times hilarious, occasionally very dark, and always entertaining.
- 9/11/2022
- by Sarah Milner
- Slash Film
A reverie of 2002 and 2003 in Toronto’s sleepy Burlington suburb, I Like Movies initially takes on the appearance of nostalgia with its sight of lined video store walls viewed in the age of streaming. But tougher subject matter is somewhat at hand, as we hone in on high school senior and outcast Lawrence (Isaiah Lehtinen), the kind of kid who makes sure to note it as “Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch-Drunk Love” when buying a ticket from a hapless cashier. A one-track mind making him oblivious to the pain of his single mother (Krista Bridges) and most of those around him, he’s basically the realistic version of the teen cinephile / aspiring filmmaker romanticized to countless young people by the character of Dawson Leery.
Recovering from his father’s suicide four years earlier and besieged by emotional problems, his life begins to revolve entirely around his desperation to get into...
Recovering from his father’s suicide four years earlier and besieged by emotional problems, his life begins to revolve entirely around his desperation to get into...
- 9/9/2022
- by Ethan Vestby
- The Film Stage
Academy Award winner Buffy Sainte-Marie (An Officer and a Gentleman) has been set as the latest honoree of the TIFF Tribute Awards, which return to an in-person gala fundraiser during the 47th edition of the Toronto Film Festival, at Royal York Hotel on September 11th. TIFF also announced today that its gala will feature a musical performance by songwriter, poet, filmmaker and artist Mustafa. Presenters confirmed for the event include Darren Aronofsky, Olivia Colman, Sam Hunter, Sarah Polley and Jason Reitman, with more names to be announced in the coming days, alongside TIFF Rising Stars Natalia Aranguren, Gabriel Labelle, Isaiah Lehtinen, Carmen Madonia, Thuso Mbedu, Joshua Odjick, Aaron Pierre, Choi Seung-yoon and Ty Simpkins.
Sainte-Marie will receive the Jeff Skoll Award in Impact Media, recognizing leadership in creating a union between social impact and cinema. Past recipients in the category include Alanis Obomsawin in 2021 and Mira Nair in 2020.
Sainte-Marie is an Indigenous Canadian-American singer-songwriter composer,...
Sainte-Marie will receive the Jeff Skoll Award in Impact Media, recognizing leadership in creating a union between social impact and cinema. Past recipients in the category include Alanis Obomsawin in 2021 and Mira Nair in 2020.
Sainte-Marie is an Indigenous Canadian-American singer-songwriter composer,...
- 9/7/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Eddie Redmayne, Viola Davis, Lee Jung-jae to participate in on-stage conversations.
TIFF has announced the In Conversation With… series and the talent development programmes and participants.
On-stage conversation participants include Eddie Redmayne, Viola Davis and Lee Jung-jae, while Sarah Gadon is announced as the TIFF Micki Moore Residency.
The festival has also unveiled the 10 Industry Selects roster of acquisition titles. TIFF runs from September 8-1.
In Conversation With…
The In Conversation With… series features Damien Chazelle, the director of La La Land and Whiplash whose December release Babylon is expected to be an awards contender; Viola Davis and Gina Prince-Bythewood,...
TIFF has announced the In Conversation With… series and the talent development programmes and participants.
On-stage conversation participants include Eddie Redmayne, Viola Davis and Lee Jung-jae, while Sarah Gadon is announced as the TIFF Micki Moore Residency.
The festival has also unveiled the 10 Industry Selects roster of acquisition titles. TIFF runs from September 8-1.
In Conversation With…
The In Conversation With… series features Damien Chazelle, the director of La La Land and Whiplash whose December release Babylon is expected to be an awards contender; Viola Davis and Gina Prince-Bythewood,...
- 8/23/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: The New York-based Visit Films has acquired world rights excluding Canada to the video store dramedy I Like Movies, which will debut as part of the Discovery program at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival.
The film was co-written and directed by first-time filmmaker Chandler Levack who negotiated the deal with Ryan Kampe of Visit Films alongside producer Lindsay Blair Goeldner and co-producer Evan Dubinsky.
Set in Burlington, Ontario, in 2003, the film follows hyper-ambitious teenage cinephile Lawrence Kweller, who dreams of attending film school at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. In order to raise the hefty tuition fee, he gets his dream job at the local video store, Sequels. Wracked with anxiety about his future, Lawrence begins alienating the most important people in his life, including his best friend, Matt Macarchuck, and his single mother, Terri, all while developing a complicated friendship with his older female manager, Alana.
The film was co-written and directed by first-time filmmaker Chandler Levack who negotiated the deal with Ryan Kampe of Visit Films alongside producer Lindsay Blair Goeldner and co-producer Evan Dubinsky.
Set in Burlington, Ontario, in 2003, the film follows hyper-ambitious teenage cinephile Lawrence Kweller, who dreams of attending film school at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. In order to raise the hefty tuition fee, he gets his dream job at the local video store, Sequels. Wracked with anxiety about his future, Lawrence begins alienating the most important people in his life, including his best friend, Matt Macarchuck, and his single mother, Terri, all while developing a complicated friendship with his older female manager, Alana.
- 8/10/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Network: Syfy.
Episodes: 10 (hour).
Seasons: One.
TV show dates: December 30, 2018 — March 20, 2019.
Series status: Cancelled.
Performers include: Benjamin Wadsworth, Benedict Wong, Lana Condor, María Gabriela de Faría, Luke Tennie, Liam James, Michel Duval, Henry Rollins, Taylor Hickson, Siobhan Williams, Sean Depner, Jack Gillett, Ryan Robbins, Juan Grey, and Isaiah Lehtinen.
TV show description:
Based on the Image Comics graphic novel by writer Rick Remender and illustrator Wes Craig, the Deadly Class TV show is a dark, coming-of-age action thriller, developed for television by Remender and Miles Orion Feldsott. Within a late 1980s counterculture setting, the story follows Marcus Lopez Arguello (Wadsworth), a street kid who is recruited into Kings Dominion, a private academy. The twist...
Episodes: 10 (hour).
Seasons: One.
TV show dates: December 30, 2018 — March 20, 2019.
Series status: Cancelled.
Performers include: Benjamin Wadsworth, Benedict Wong, Lana Condor, María Gabriela de Faría, Luke Tennie, Liam James, Michel Duval, Henry Rollins, Taylor Hickson, Siobhan Williams, Sean Depner, Jack Gillett, Ryan Robbins, Juan Grey, and Isaiah Lehtinen.
TV show description:
Based on the Image Comics graphic novel by writer Rick Remender and illustrator Wes Craig, the Deadly Class TV show is a dark, coming-of-age action thriller, developed for television by Remender and Miles Orion Feldsott. Within a late 1980s counterculture setting, the story follows Marcus Lopez Arguello (Wadsworth), a street kid who is recruited into Kings Dominion, a private academy. The twist...
- 6/5/2019
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
Exclusive: It was a plethora of Deadly Class riches today as the New York Comic Con panel for the Syfy series of a school for assassins not only played its entire pilot plus dropped the premiere date, a new teaser trailer and some further castings.
The punk fueled 1980-set series based on Rick Remender and Wes Craig’s comic will hit the small screen on January 16 at 10 Pm it was announced at the top of the Deadly Class panel Saturday.
With Ep Remender, plus cast members Marvel alum Benedict Wong, lead Benjamin Wadsworth, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before star Lana Condor, María Gabriela de Faría, Luke Tennie and Liam James , today’s panel at the Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan then screening a surprise world premiere of the first episode of Deadly Class.
A new teaser trailer of the Anthony and Joe Russo executive produced series was also...
The punk fueled 1980-set series based on Rick Remender and Wes Craig’s comic will hit the small screen on January 16 at 10 Pm it was announced at the top of the Deadly Class panel Saturday.
With Ep Remender, plus cast members Marvel alum Benedict Wong, lead Benjamin Wadsworth, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before star Lana Condor, María Gabriela de Faría, Luke Tennie and Liam James , today’s panel at the Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan then screening a surprise world premiere of the first episode of Deadly Class.
A new teaser trailer of the Anthony and Joe Russo executive produced series was also...
- 10/6/2018
- by Dominic Patten and Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
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