Every week, IndieWire’s Filmmaker Toolkit rounds up the latest in opportunities that can help those looking to advance projects or get a career started in the film industry. The following grants, labs, fellowships, contests and other non-profit opportunities could be a great way to help kickstart your movie and TV dreams.
New Opportunities & Upcoming Deadlines
NBC’s Writers on the Verge
– NBCUniversal’s Writers on the Verge 12-week program focuses on polishing and preparing television writers for a staff writer position on a television series. Writers who are “almost there” but need assistance with their final bit of preparation with their writing and personal presentation skills are encouraged to apply. The program consists of two night classes, which will typically be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 – 10 Pm weekly at NBCUniversal in Universal City, CA. Once accepted, students must attend all classes and turn in all written assignments.
Past...
New Opportunities & Upcoming Deadlines
NBC’s Writers on the Verge
– NBCUniversal’s Writers on the Verge 12-week program focuses on polishing and preparing television writers for a staff writer position on a television series. Writers who are “almost there” but need assistance with their final bit of preparation with their writing and personal presentation skills are encouraged to apply. The program consists of two night classes, which will typically be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 – 10 Pm weekly at NBCUniversal in Universal City, CA. Once accepted, students must attend all classes and turn in all written assignments.
Past...
- 3/24/2017
- by Allison Picurro and Chris O'Falt
- Indiewire
The Anna Gunn-starring film “Equity” is getting the TV treatment at ABC. Deadline reports that the female-led Wall Street thriller is being adapted for the network, which handed out a script commitment plus penalty.
The drama, written by “The Strain” producer Regina Corrado, is set in the world of cutthroat investment banking and centers on Naomi Bishop, a Wall Street banker, played by Gunn in the film, who is navigating a world where big money and high-power reign, and women have yet to break the glass ceiling. It is unknown if any of the film’s actresses will be part of the series.
The adaptation hails from Corrado and Pascal Pictures’ Amy Pascal, with Sony TV’s TriStar Television as the studio. Corrado and Pascal will executive produce with Rachel O’Connor and the movie’s producers Alysia Reiner and Sarah Megan Thomas.
Read More: ‘Equity’: Why It...
The drama, written by “The Strain” producer Regina Corrado, is set in the world of cutthroat investment banking and centers on Naomi Bishop, a Wall Street banker, played by Gunn in the film, who is navigating a world where big money and high-power reign, and women have yet to break the glass ceiling. It is unknown if any of the film’s actresses will be part of the series.
The adaptation hails from Corrado and Pascal Pictures’ Amy Pascal, with Sony TV’s TriStar Television as the studio. Corrado and Pascal will executive produce with Rachel O’Connor and the movie’s producers Alysia Reiner and Sarah Megan Thomas.
Read More: ‘Equity’: Why It...
- 10/19/2016
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
Equity is a film directed, written, produced and financed by women, and the fact that this is so rare it becomes a selling point is a sorry indictment on the state of the industry, so it’s hard to begrudge writer Amy Fox and director Meera Menon for sticking it to the men on camera. Almost […]
The post Equity Review appeared first on HeyUGuys.
The post Equity Review appeared first on HeyUGuys.
- 9/2/2016
- by Andy Psyllides
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
We’ve never seen this before, multiple female characters open about ambition, power, and money. But representation alone does not make for a gripping tale. I’m “biast” (pro): desperate for stories about women
I’m “biast” (con): nothing
(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)
To say that Wall Street shenanigans are well storied onscreen is both an understatement and a misdirection. Sure, there have been lots of movies (and documentaries) set in the world of high finance… and as with nearly ever other human endeavor that gets depicted in film, most of them are about men. Even in movies about Big Money based on real-life events in which women played significant roles, women’s contributions tend to get glossed over or eliminated entirely; see The Big Short. We may think we’ve got a good grip on how Wall Street operates based on the movies we’ve seen,...
I’m “biast” (con): nothing
(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)
To say that Wall Street shenanigans are well storied onscreen is both an understatement and a misdirection. Sure, there have been lots of movies (and documentaries) set in the world of high finance… and as with nearly ever other human endeavor that gets depicted in film, most of them are about men. Even in movies about Big Money based on real-life events in which women played significant roles, women’s contributions tend to get glossed over or eliminated entirely; see The Big Short. We may think we’ve got a good grip on how Wall Street operates based on the movies we’ve seen,...
- 8/30/2016
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
Equity is a film about Wall Street but not the usual kind. For one thing, it is about women working on Wall Street. The film is also not about the economic meltdown or other famous scandal, but instead is just about an investment banker, Naomi Bishop (Anna Gunn), who has risen to the top, playing the investment game with the big boys, in what is predominately a man’s business world. The title refers more to the kind of equity one means when you say “pay equity.”
This is a remarkable film for what it is not – the usual financial drama with men in the lead roles. Not only is the main character a woman but all the major characters are women. In this financial drama, all the really central roles filled by women, and men are in the supporting and romantic interest parts, the movie roles to which women are too often consigned.
This is a remarkable film for what it is not – the usual financial drama with men in the lead roles. Not only is the main character a woman but all the major characters are women. In this financial drama, all the really central roles filled by women, and men are in the supporting and romantic interest parts, the movie roles to which women are too often consigned.
- 8/26/2016
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The Intervention's appealing ensemble. (Courtesy Paramount)
It's no secret that women are still mostly used as beards in studio bromances or scenery in tentpole actioners. But even smaller character-driven films can’t always be counted on to provide satisfaction for those of us yearning to recognize some aspect of ourselves on screen. Faced with intimate stories that fail to bring female characters into focus or ambitious tales that mirror but don’t alleviate the special joys of being a girl (worldwide), female audiences are mostly left to get enlightenment or escape by dreaming ourselves into male characters and stories.
Men rule in the sinister Equity, a sleek woman-powered drama that compels attention from start to finish but occasionally thwarts our need for clarity. Three women’s fates intertwine in what is essentially a horror movie about the perils of being female in the high-stakes world of finance (and elsewhere...
It's no secret that women are still mostly used as beards in studio bromances or scenery in tentpole actioners. But even smaller character-driven films can’t always be counted on to provide satisfaction for those of us yearning to recognize some aspect of ourselves on screen. Faced with intimate stories that fail to bring female characters into focus or ambitious tales that mirror but don’t alleviate the special joys of being a girl (worldwide), female audiences are mostly left to get enlightenment or escape by dreaming ourselves into male characters and stories.
Men rule in the sinister Equity, a sleek woman-powered drama that compels attention from start to finish but occasionally thwarts our need for clarity. Three women’s fates intertwine in what is essentially a horror movie about the perils of being female in the high-stakes world of finance (and elsewhere...
- 8/24/2016
- by Helen Eisenbach
- www.culturecatch.com
Chicago – The key moment in “Equity” is early in the film. The main character was asked at a seminar why she got into high level finance. She paused for a second, and said “money.” The gals can be just as greedy as the guys, and their stakes in that greed can be just as exploitable.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
But this isn’t about greed as much as the madness of financial pursuit. It is portrayed as an addictive high, hard to let go of no matter how much has been added to the bank account. And there are always rivals, and at that level they’ll stop at nothing to get advantage. This is a human story created by women, and not so much a cautionary tale but a lesson in the status quo. The pacing of this story is deliberate, to a fault, yet the humanity is true. There is no evolution in competition,...
Rating: 3.5/5.0
But this isn’t about greed as much as the madness of financial pursuit. It is portrayed as an addictive high, hard to let go of no matter how much has been added to the bank account. And there are always rivals, and at that level they’ll stop at nothing to get advantage. This is a human story created by women, and not so much a cautionary tale but a lesson in the status quo. The pacing of this story is deliberate, to a fault, yet the humanity is true. There is no evolution in competition,...
- 8/14/2016
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Equity Sony Pictures Classics/Broad Street Pictures Reviewed by: Harvey Karten, Shockya Grade: B Director: Meera Menon Written by: Amy Fox, story by Sarah Megan Thomas, Alysia Reiner, Amy Fox Cast: Anna Gunn, James Purefoy, Sarah Megan Thomas, Alysia Reiner Screened at: Sony, NYC, 6/29/16 Opens: July 29, 2016 When a woman congratulates a business associate on the latter’s pregnancy, she may be stabbing her in the back (to avoid hurting the fetus, presumably). This is the case when Samantha (Alysia Reiner) wants nobody in her firm to know her condition, since people on the fast track could transfer quickly to the mommy track if the boss finds out—which is exactly [ Read More ]
The post Equity Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Equity Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 8/3/2016
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
Here’s the thing: The idea of a “strong female character” is not a moral determination. Katniss Everdeen, protagonist of the “Hunger Games” saga, may be a strong female character, but that’s not because she’s a hero — it’s not because she’s possessed with an infallible sense of virtue and a Christ-like selflessness that defies any reasonable human standard. By the same token, slathering Scarlett Johansson in spandex and having her fight alongside Iron Man doesn’t make Black Widow a strong female character either, no matter how many asses she kicks.
The strength of a role has nothing to do with decency, and everything to do with depth.
What makes “Equity” such a vital feminist film, even when its other qualities are often few and far between, is how defiantly it internalizes that idea. At a time when someone can be a mother and a professional (or,...
The strength of a role has nothing to do with decency, and everything to do with depth.
What makes “Equity” such a vital feminist film, even when its other qualities are often few and far between, is how defiantly it internalizes that idea. At a time when someone can be a mother and a professional (or,...
- 7/29/2016
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
When I tried to think of an equivalent to Meera Menon's excellent new Wall Street drama Equity off the top of my head, the task proved incredibly difficult. What other film focusing on the hardball world of investment banking centers on a woman protagonist, after all? It was only after a Google search that I managed to find a single example: Mike Nichols' Working Girl, the breezy 1988 Melanie Griffith starring vehicle that is widely considered one of the best -- yes -- romantic comedies of the 1980s. For all of Working Girl's relative sophistication, it's nowhere near an ideal comparison. Indeed, I feel pretty confident in stating that Equity is the only film of its kind: a hardball financial drama that revolves its plot around an unabashedly ambitious woman who has risen to the top of the investment banking world. The protagonist here is Naomi Bishop (supremely...
- 7/29/2016
- by Chris Eggertsen
- Hitfix
When producers Alysia Reiner and Sarah Megan Thomas cooked up the idea to make the first female-driven Wall Street movie, their mandate for the feature was clear: It would be written by female screenwriter, directed by a female director and lead by a very strong female cast. The duo put years of work into researching the feature, shoring up investors and making sure that what would become “Equity” retained their original vision from top to bottom.
The film follows hard-driving investment banker Naomi Bishop (Anna Gunn) as she embarks on the biggest deal of her career – shepherding a rising Silicon Valley company that smacks of Facebook and Snapchat to its initial public offering – a task she’s made her speciality during a mostly successful career. Burnt by a previous deal that went awry and newly passed over for a major promotion, Naomi is dedicated to doing her job flawlessly. But...
The film follows hard-driving investment banker Naomi Bishop (Anna Gunn) as she embarks on the biggest deal of her career – shepherding a rising Silicon Valley company that smacks of Facebook and Snapchat to its initial public offering – a task she’s made her speciality during a mostly successful career. Burnt by a previous deal that went awry and newly passed over for a major promotion, Naomi is dedicated to doing her job flawlessly. But...
- 7/29/2016
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
"Dudes only" — that might as well be the motto when it comes to big-screen finance dramas such as The Wolf of Wall Street and The Big Short. In Equity, an explosive corporate thriller, a dynamite Anna Gunn fights back. As investment banker Naomi Bishop, the Breaking Bad Emmy winner comes out blazing, and it's not just the dickheads at the top she's gunning for. Even her hedge-funder boyfriend, Michael Connor (James Purefoy, oozing seductive sleaze), will exploit her for selfish reasons. She can't trust the women in her life either: Her protégé,...
- 7/27/2016
- Rollingstone.com
This accomplished finance drama feels fresh for its gender-switch dynamics – but did all the men need to be quite so dim?
Equity is likely one of the more realistic financial sector films out there because I had no idea what the hell anybody was talking about. Well, that’s not exactly true. Director Meera Menon and her three leads, Anna Gunn, Sarah Megan Thomas and Alysia Reiner, extract the drama from Amy Fox’s screenplay while still leaving the jargon intact. I don’t know squat about IPOs (if I did, I’d be on my yacht) but I do know a juicy morality play when I see it, and Equity takes us inside modern Wall Street in a unique and gripping manner.
You may have noticed that all the names listed so far are women. That this is a “female look” at Wall Street is more than a marketing gimmick.
Equity is likely one of the more realistic financial sector films out there because I had no idea what the hell anybody was talking about. Well, that’s not exactly true. Director Meera Menon and her three leads, Anna Gunn, Sarah Megan Thomas and Alysia Reiner, extract the drama from Amy Fox’s screenplay while still leaving the jargon intact. I don’t know squat about IPOs (if I did, I’d be on my yacht) but I do know a juicy morality play when I see it, and Equity takes us inside modern Wall Street in a unique and gripping manner.
You may have noticed that all the names listed so far are women. That this is a “female look” at Wall Street is more than a marketing gimmick.
- 1/28/2016
- by Jordan Hoffman
- The Guardian - Film News
This accomplished finance drama feels fresh for its gender-switch dynamics – but did all the men need to be quite so dim?
Equity is likely one of the more realistic financial sector films out there because I had no idea what the hell anybody was talking about. Well, that’s not exactly true. Director Meera Menon and her three leads, Anna Gunn, Sarah Megan Thomas and Alysia Reiner, extract the drama from Amy Fox’s screenplay while still leaving the jargon intact. I don’t know squat about IPOs (if I did, I’d be on my yacht) but I do know a juicy morality play when I see it, and Equity takes us inside modern Wall Street in a unique and gripping manner.
You may have noticed that all the names listed so far are women. That this is a “female look” at Wall Street is more than a marketing gimmick.
Equity is likely one of the more realistic financial sector films out there because I had no idea what the hell anybody was talking about. Well, that’s not exactly true. Director Meera Menon and her three leads, Anna Gunn, Sarah Megan Thomas and Alysia Reiner, extract the drama from Amy Fox’s screenplay while still leaving the jargon intact. I don’t know squat about IPOs (if I did, I’d be on my yacht) but I do know a juicy morality play when I see it, and Equity takes us inside modern Wall Street in a unique and gripping manner.
You may have noticed that all the names listed so far are women. That this is a “female look” at Wall Street is more than a marketing gimmick.
- 1/28/2016
- by Jordan Hoffman
- The Guardian - Film News
Sony Pictures Classics has picked up worldwide rights to the Wall Street drama Equity. In the film, Anna Gunn plays a senior investment banker that finds herself entangled in a web of politics and deception after she leads a controversial tech Ipo and is being investigated by an aggressive prosecutor (Alysia Reiner) from her past. James Purefoy also stars. Equity was directed by Meera Menon from a screenplay penned by Amy Fox, while Reiner and Sarah Megan Thomas acted as producers. The pic is set to screen Jan. 26 in the U.S. Dramatic section of the Sundance Film Festival. CAA
read more...
read more...
- 1/18/2016
- by Tatiana Siegel
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Sundance Film institute has released the line-up of film for the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Going to Sundance is one of my favorite events of the year. I love going because you never know what kind of movies you're going to see. Sometimes they are great films that amaze and entertain, other times they completely suck ass, but that's all part of the fun of going to the festival. It's an awesome experience for any hardcore movie geek, and if you ever get a chance to go, you need to.
The event takes place in Park City, Utah next year from January 21st to the 31st. It looks like there's a great line-up of movies at next year's event. My favorite portion of the event is the Midnight section because it deals more with geeky genre type movies, but I also enjoy the various sections of other line-ups.
Some of...
The event takes place in Park City, Utah next year from January 21st to the 31st. It looks like there's a great line-up of movies at next year's event. My favorite portion of the event is the Midnight section because it deals more with geeky genre type movies, but I also enjoy the various sections of other line-ups.
Some of...
- 12/6/2015
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
The Sundance Film Festival has today revealed the 65 films which are going to make up the 2016 Us and World Cinema Competition Dramatic and Documentary categories, along with those which make up the out-of-competition Next slate. This is a very diverse and interesting list, and one which Sundance Institute executive director Keri Putnam is clearly very excited to show off next year.
“At a time when big-budget blockbusters and free online content are ubiquitous, independent filmmakers continue to be extraordinarily creative, artful and inventive.”
Sundance 2016 will run from January 21st – 31st in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah. Check out the full list of movies below and let us know which of these you’re most looking forward to seeing (even if some will inevitably fail to ever reach cinemas).
U.S. Dramatic Competition
Presenting the world premieres of 16 narrative feature films, the Dramatic Competition offers Festivalgoers a...
“At a time when big-budget blockbusters and free online content are ubiquitous, independent filmmakers continue to be extraordinarily creative, artful and inventive.”
Sundance 2016 will run from January 21st – 31st in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah. Check out the full list of movies below and let us know which of these you’re most looking forward to seeing (even if some will inevitably fail to ever reach cinemas).
U.S. Dramatic Competition
Presenting the world premieres of 16 narrative feature films, the Dramatic Competition offers Festivalgoers a...
- 12/2/2015
- by Josh Wilding
- We Got This Covered
In last year’s selection of sixteen U.S. Dramatic Competition offerings, it was Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s Me & Earl & the Dying Girl that landed both U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic and Audience Award: U.S. Dramatic awards, it was Rick Famuyiwa’s Dope who landed the richest deal ($7 million range), it was Patrick Brice’s The Overnight that had the most post festival momentum, it was Marielle Heller’s The Diary of a Teenage Girl that received a longer term accolades (Bel Powley won Best Actress at the Gothams) and it might be Robert Eggers’ The Witch that becomes the cult item we reference back in a decade from now. This year we accurately predicted ten of the sixteen items below. Among the more familiar folk, we have established names such as Antonio Campos (Christine – see pic of Rebecca Hall above) and So Yong Kim (Lovesong). We have second...
- 12/2/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
After unexpectedly unveiling their Midnight line-up first, the 2016 Sundance Film Festival have now revealed the 65 films selected for the U.S. Competition, World Competition and out-of-competition Next category. “From diverse backgrounds, places and perspectives, these independent artists are united by the power of their stories and vision. Their films will soon launch onto the global stage, beginning their journeys through our culture. A new year in independent film will start right here—on the mountain—in January,” Robert Redford says.
This year, 120 feature-length films were selected, representing 37 countries and 48 first-time filmmakers, including 28 in competition. These films were selected from 12,793 submissions, including 4,081 feature-length films and 8,712 short films. Of the feature film submissions, 1,972 were from the U.S. and 2,109 were international. 98 feature films at the Festival will be world premieres. Check out the line-up below along with images.
U.S. Dramatic Competition
Presenting the world premieres of 16 narrative feature films, the Dramatic...
This year, 120 feature-length films were selected, representing 37 countries and 48 first-time filmmakers, including 28 in competition. These films were selected from 12,793 submissions, including 4,081 feature-length films and 8,712 short films. Of the feature film submissions, 1,972 were from the U.S. and 2,109 were international. 98 feature films at the Festival will be world premieres. Check out the line-up below along with images.
U.S. Dramatic Competition
Presenting the world premieres of 16 narrative feature films, the Dramatic...
- 12/2/2015
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Trans* characters are difficult to come by in film and television, often being reduced to broad stereotypes or the butt of jokes when they are represented at all. This means the task of telling the story of trans* characters and portraying them in an honest manner falls to independent voices. One group attempting to do so is Trembling Void Studios; in a project spearheaded by Amy Fox, the studio is working on a show detailing the trials and tribulations of a woman in Vancouver in the immediate aftermath of her coming out as a transsexual. The show’s first season will consist of six episodes, each one a half-hour long, and numerous members of the crew are trans* individuals themselves. Despite the heavy subject matter, however, the show is being positioned as a comedy, and promises to explore some of the more light-hearted issues associated with being a trans* individual.
- 3/6/2013
- by Deepayan Sengupta
- SoundOnSight
PARK CITY – It's no secret that there's often more drama backstage, especially of soap opera variety, than on-stage in New York theater. "Heights" plumbs the depths of deceit, ego and lust of the "players" who strut their moments. A splendid cast, prominently Glenn Close, should generate positive select-site sales for this Sony Pictures Classics release.
Based on Amy Fox's stage play of the same name, "Heights" tears back the curtains to reveal the players, essentially, in their bedroom ware or lack thereof. A decidedly twisted romantic roundelay, no character is really like the dialogue they mouth in real life. Their words are usually weapons or cloaks.
The doyenne of deceit is Diana, a domineering lady of the theater whose talents on the boards rival only her triumphs in the bedroom. Her talented photographer daughter, Isabel (Elizabeth Banks) is of more tender stuff but still acts out a role in real-life that contradicts her inner thoughts and desires. Sweet Isabel is engaged to just the sort her high-stage mother wouldn't approve, a square businessman (James Marsden) who ultimately reveals greater cunning and duplicity than the well-practiced drama-heads.
The main characters are either duplicitous, conflicted or, most often, both. They are a conniving assortment, yet entirely likeable with their big appetites and fragile psyches. As befits the profession, there are few wallflowers in screenwriter Amy Fox's pithy and highly amusing drama. Unfortunately, there's also some stage-style overwriting: "Heights" could use some trimming. At times, director Chris Terrio's painstaking connection of all the dots deadens the pace. "Heights" could use a slight trim to a less-bulky size.
An awards banquet for the entire cast, most notably Glenn Close for her wonderfully imperious performance as the "grand lady" of the theater. Beneath her Lady Macbeth bravura, Close shows her sore spots that can never be rubbed out. As her kind-spirited but frustrated daughter, Elizabeth Banks exudes the wounds of a young woman who suffers from her good-heartedness, while James Marsden as her square fiance is staunchly credible as man imploding with a huge secret. George Segal brings kindly and intelligent counterpoint as a worldly rabbi who offers counsel in these treacherous waters.
The well-selected ensemble, including Eric Bogosian as a vaunted director whose chief character insights are centered on manipulating talented and beautiful women, and Jesse Bradford as a gay actor whose sexuality and decency is stretched by both ends, invigorate recognizable character types with perfect detail.
As befits a Merchant Ivory presentation, the look is scrumptious and eloquent, in particular Marla Weinhoff's on-target, stage-world production design and Marina Draghici's personality-stitched costumes.
Heights
Sony Pictures Classics
Merchant Ivory Productions
Producers: Ismail Merchant, Richard Hawley
Director: Chris Terrio
Screenwriter: Amy Fox
Based on the stage play "Heights" by Amy Fox
Executive producer : Paul Bradley
Additional screenplay material: Chris Terrio
Director of photography : Jim Denault
Music: Ken Erskine, Ben Butler
Production designer: Marla Weinhoff
Costume designer: Marina Draghici
Editor: Sloane Klevin
Associate producer: Pierre Proner
Casting: James Calleri
Cast
Diana: Glenn Close
Isabel: Elizabeth Banks
Henry: Eric Bogosian
Alec: Jesse Bradford
Mark: Matt Davis
Ian: Andrew Howard
Marshall: Thomas Lennon
Peter: John Light
Running time – 93 minutes...
Based on Amy Fox's stage play of the same name, "Heights" tears back the curtains to reveal the players, essentially, in their bedroom ware or lack thereof. A decidedly twisted romantic roundelay, no character is really like the dialogue they mouth in real life. Their words are usually weapons or cloaks.
The doyenne of deceit is Diana, a domineering lady of the theater whose talents on the boards rival only her triumphs in the bedroom. Her talented photographer daughter, Isabel (Elizabeth Banks) is of more tender stuff but still acts out a role in real-life that contradicts her inner thoughts and desires. Sweet Isabel is engaged to just the sort her high-stage mother wouldn't approve, a square businessman (James Marsden) who ultimately reveals greater cunning and duplicity than the well-practiced drama-heads.
The main characters are either duplicitous, conflicted or, most often, both. They are a conniving assortment, yet entirely likeable with their big appetites and fragile psyches. As befits the profession, there are few wallflowers in screenwriter Amy Fox's pithy and highly amusing drama. Unfortunately, there's also some stage-style overwriting: "Heights" could use some trimming. At times, director Chris Terrio's painstaking connection of all the dots deadens the pace. "Heights" could use a slight trim to a less-bulky size.
An awards banquet for the entire cast, most notably Glenn Close for her wonderfully imperious performance as the "grand lady" of the theater. Beneath her Lady Macbeth bravura, Close shows her sore spots that can never be rubbed out. As her kind-spirited but frustrated daughter, Elizabeth Banks exudes the wounds of a young woman who suffers from her good-heartedness, while James Marsden as her square fiance is staunchly credible as man imploding with a huge secret. George Segal brings kindly and intelligent counterpoint as a worldly rabbi who offers counsel in these treacherous waters.
The well-selected ensemble, including Eric Bogosian as a vaunted director whose chief character insights are centered on manipulating talented and beautiful women, and Jesse Bradford as a gay actor whose sexuality and decency is stretched by both ends, invigorate recognizable character types with perfect detail.
As befits a Merchant Ivory presentation, the look is scrumptious and eloquent, in particular Marla Weinhoff's on-target, stage-world production design and Marina Draghici's personality-stitched costumes.
Heights
Sony Pictures Classics
Merchant Ivory Productions
Producers: Ismail Merchant, Richard Hawley
Director: Chris Terrio
Screenwriter: Amy Fox
Based on the stage play "Heights" by Amy Fox
Executive producer : Paul Bradley
Additional screenplay material: Chris Terrio
Director of photography : Jim Denault
Music: Ken Erskine, Ben Butler
Production designer: Marla Weinhoff
Costume designer: Marina Draghici
Editor: Sloane Klevin
Associate producer: Pierre Proner
Casting: James Calleri
Cast
Diana: Glenn Close
Isabel: Elizabeth Banks
Henry: Eric Bogosian
Alec: Jesse Bradford
Mark: Matt Davis
Ian: Andrew Howard
Marshall: Thomas Lennon
Peter: John Light
Running time – 93 minutes...
- 1/27/2005
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
PARK CITY -- Sony Pictures Classics said Wednesday that the specialty film banner has pre-emptively acquired Heights, the latest feature from Merchant Ivory Prods. The film, helmed by Chris Terrio and based on a one-act play by Amy Fox, stars Elizabeth Banks, Glenn Close, James Marsden, Jesse Bradford, Matt Davis and U.K. actor John Light. Fox adapted the project for the big screen. SPC has picked up North American rights to the film and, sources said, is now angling for further territories. The acquisition was unveiled by SPC co-toppers Tom Bernard and Michael Barker at a luncheon at Cafe Terigo on Main Street at the Sundance Film Festival.
- 1/22/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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