Chicago – On Tuesday, December 2nd, the Midwest Independent Film Festival will award their 2014 “Best of the Midwest” honors with a ceremony at The Underground Nightclub in Chicago. The evening will be hosted by Festival Director Mike McNamara, and nominees include “Animals” – directed by Collin Schiffli, “The Starfish Throwers” – directed by Jesse Roesler and “Happy Christmas” – directed by Joe Swanberg.
Presented by the Midwest Independent Film Festival
Photo credit: MidwestFilm.com
The Midwest Independent Film Festival is a year-round movie event in Chicago that takes place the first Tuesday of every month, at the Landmark Century Centre Cinema. The festival has been named by Chicago Magazine in their “Best of Chicago” issue, and has become one of the top places for local filmmakers, producers and actors to network in the city.
The nominees for the “Best of the Midwest” Awards are as follows….
Best Music Video
“Shadow” directed by Ryan O...
Presented by the Midwest Independent Film Festival
Photo credit: MidwestFilm.com
The Midwest Independent Film Festival is a year-round movie event in Chicago that takes place the first Tuesday of every month, at the Landmark Century Centre Cinema. The festival has been named by Chicago Magazine in their “Best of Chicago” issue, and has become one of the top places for local filmmakers, producers and actors to network in the city.
The nominees for the “Best of the Midwest” Awards are as follows….
Best Music Video
“Shadow” directed by Ryan O...
- 12/1/2014
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Stars: James Pumphrey, Christopher Meloni, Brett Gelman, Laura Ramsey, Alex Rennie, Keely Hazell | Written by Todd Sklar, Alex Rennie | Directed by Todd Sklar
You know you’re in for a tough time with a movie, especially a comedy, when the promotion centres around one of the smaller roles and Not the films leads. And so is the case with Awful Nice. Yes, despite the appearance of Christopher Meloni (Law & Order: Svu, True Blood) amongst the cast of unknowns, the apparent star of this film – at least according to the PR spiel rolled out for the movie so far – is “British FHM darling Keely Hazell”.
Yeah doesn’t look good does it?
Awful Nice tells the story of Jim and Dave. Two brothers who haven’t seen each other in years, but when their father unexpectedly dies, they are forced to travel down to Branson together to redeem their inheritance; the family’s lake house.
You know you’re in for a tough time with a movie, especially a comedy, when the promotion centres around one of the smaller roles and Not the films leads. And so is the case with Awful Nice. Yes, despite the appearance of Christopher Meloni (Law & Order: Svu, True Blood) amongst the cast of unknowns, the apparent star of this film – at least according to the PR spiel rolled out for the movie so far – is “British FHM darling Keely Hazell”.
Yeah doesn’t look good does it?
Awful Nice tells the story of Jim and Dave. Two brothers who haven’t seen each other in years, but when their father unexpectedly dies, they are forced to travel down to Branson together to redeem their inheritance; the family’s lake house.
- 7/25/2014
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
Ifp announced its 2014 slate of 133 new films in development and works in progress selected for its esteemed Project Forum at Independent Film Week. This one-of-a-kind event brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new projects by nurturing the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers. Through the Project Forum, creatives connect with financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. Under the curatorial leadership of Deputy Director/Head of Programming Amy Dotson & Senior Director of Programming Milton Tabbot, this one-of-a-kind event takes place September 14-18, 2014 at Lincoln Center supporting bold new content from a wide variety of domestic and international artists.
“As we set to embark on our 36th Independent Film Week, we are impressed by the outstanding slate of both U.S. and international projects selected for this year’s Project Forum,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of Ifp. “We know that the industry will be as excited as we are with the accomplished storytellers and their diverse and boundary pushing films.”
Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. From documentarians Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How To Nail A Dictator"), and Penny Lane ("Our Nixon") to Michelangelo Frammartino ("Quattro Volte") and Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"), Travis Matthews ("Interior. Leather. Bar") and Yen Tan ("Pit Stop").
Independent Film Week brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new documentary and narrative works-in-progress and support the future of storytelling. The program nurtures the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers through the facilitation of over 3,500+ custom, one-to-one meetings with the financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. In recent years, it has also played a vital role in launching the first films of many of today’s rising stars on the independent scene including Rama Burshtein ("Fill The Void"), Derek Cianfrance ("Blue Valentine"), Marshall Curry ("If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth LIberation Front"), Laura Poitras ("The Oath"), Denis Villeneuve ("Incendies") and Benh Zeitlin ("Beasts of the Southern Wild").
For the full 2014 Project Forum slate visit Here
New For 2014
Evenly split between documentary and narrative features, selected projects hail from throughout the U.S., Europe and Canada, as well Africa, Asia, South America, and the Middle East. New this year, Ifp will be including web series in it programming, as well as spotlighting Latin & Central American artists and content with 15 projects featured across all programs in the Forum.
In a joint effort to recognize the importance of career and creative sustainability, Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on a new $20,000 filmmaker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for active, working filmmakers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting. The grant provides a $20,000 unrestricted prize to encourage the recipient to continue on her or his career path of making quality independent films. American directors or screenwriters working in narrative film who have participated in the Ifp Filmmaker Labs or Ifp Independent Film Week's Emerging Storytellers or No-Borders International Co-Production market are encouraged to apply by the deadline of August 8, 2014.
Narrative Feature Highlights
Narrative features and webseries in Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers and No Borders International Co-Production Market sections highlight new work from top emerging and established creative visionaries on the U.S. and international independent scene.
This year’s slate includes new feature scripts featuring directors Dev Benegal ("Road, Movie"), Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperin ("Now, Forager"), Michelangelo Frammartino ("Le Quattro Volte"),Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda"), Rashaad Ernesto Green ("Gun Hill Road"), Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita Y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"),Alison Klayman ("Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry"), Travis Mathews ("Interior. Leather Bar"), Stacie Passon ("Concussion"), Yen Tan ("Pit Stop"), as well as up-an-coming actor/directors Karrie Crouse ("Land Ho!") and Peter Vack ("Fort Tilden""I Believe in Unicorns").
Producers and executive producers of note attached to participating projects include Jennifer Dubin and Cora Olson ("Good Dick"), Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams ("Hellion"),Laura Heberton ("Gayby"), Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Kishori Rajan ("Gimme the Loot"), Adele Romanski ("The Myth of the American Sleepover"), Kim Sherman ("A Teacher"), Susan Stover ("High Art"), and Alicia Van Couvering ("Tiny Furniture").
Web Storytellers Highlights
For the first time this year, Ifp presents a dedicated spotlight within the Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program for creators developing episodic content for digital platforms. The inaugural slate for the Web Storytellers spotlight includes new works from filmmakers Desiree Akhavan ("Appropriate Behavior", HBO’s Girls), Calvin Reeder ("The Rambler"), and Gregory Bayne ("Person of Interest"), as well as producers Elisabeth Holm ("Obvious Child"), Susan Leber ( "Down to the Bone"), and Amanda Warman ("The Outs,"Whatever This Is"). Two of the series participating are currently in post-production, and will be making their online debut in the coming months – Rachel Morgan’s Middle Americans, starring Scott Thompson, Carlen Altman, and Alex Rennie, and Daniel Zimbler and Elisabeth Gray’s Understudies, starring Richard Kind and David Rasche. [p Spotlight On Documentaries Highlights
The documentary selection includes new work from seasoned non-fiction directors such as Emmy winners Robert Bahar andAlmudena Carracedo ("Made in La"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How to Nail a Dictator"),Ramona Diaz ("Imelda," "Don’t Stop Believin’") Gini Reticker ("Pray the Devil Back to Hell") Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"); from producers such as Court 13’s Benh Zeitlin and Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Liran Atzmor ("The Law in These Parts"), Tim Williams ("Once In A Lifetime") and Hilla Medalia ("Web Junkie"), and follow-up second features from recent doc world “breakouts”Steve Hoover ("Blood Brother") Penny Lane ("Our Nixon"), Michael Collins ("Give Up Tomorrow"), and Michael Nichols and Christopher Walker ("Flex is Kings").
Exciting new work from debut documentary directors previously known for fiction films include Alex Sichel ("All over Me") with her personal doc The Movie about Anna, Lisa Cortés (producer, "Precious") with "Mothership: The Untold Story of Women and Hip Hop," and Daniel Patrick Carbone ("Hide Your Smiling Faces") with Phantom Cowboys.
Sponsors
Independent Film Week’s Premier sponsors are Royal Bank of Canada (Rbc) and HBO. Gold sponsors are A&E IndieFilms and SAGIndie. Silver sponsors are Durga Entertainment, Eastman Kodak Company, National Film & Video Foundation of South Africa and Telefilm Canada. Official Independent Film Week Partner is Film Society of Lincoln Center. Independent Film Week is supported, in part, by funds provided by the Ford Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council for the Arts and Time Warner Foundation.
About Ifp
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Made in NY Media Center by Ifp, a new incubator space developed with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. Ifp represents a growing network of 10,000 storytellers around the world, and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 35-year history, Ifp has supported over 8,000 projects and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers, including Debra Granik, Miranda July, Michael Moore, Dee Rees, and Benh Zeitlin. More info at www.ifp.org.
“As we set to embark on our 36th Independent Film Week, we are impressed by the outstanding slate of both U.S. and international projects selected for this year’s Project Forum,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of Ifp. “We know that the industry will be as excited as we are with the accomplished storytellers and their diverse and boundary pushing films.”
Featured works at the 2014 Independent Film Week include filmmakers and content creators from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. From documentarians Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How To Nail A Dictator"), and Penny Lane ("Our Nixon") to Michelangelo Frammartino ("Quattro Volte") and Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), as well as new work from critically acclaimed artists and directors Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"), Travis Matthews ("Interior. Leather. Bar") and Yen Tan ("Pit Stop").
Independent Film Week brings the international film and media community to New York City to advance new documentary and narrative works-in-progress and support the future of storytelling. The program nurtures the work of both emerging and established independent artists and filmmakers through the facilitation of over 3,500+ custom, one-to-one meetings with the financiers, executives, influencers and decision-makers in film, television, new media and cross-platform storytelling that can help them complete their latest works and connect with audiences. In recent years, it has also played a vital role in launching the first films of many of today’s rising stars on the independent scene including Rama Burshtein ("Fill The Void"), Derek Cianfrance ("Blue Valentine"), Marshall Curry ("If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth LIberation Front"), Laura Poitras ("The Oath"), Denis Villeneuve ("Incendies") and Benh Zeitlin ("Beasts of the Southern Wild").
For the full 2014 Project Forum slate visit Here
New For 2014
Evenly split between documentary and narrative features, selected projects hail from throughout the U.S., Europe and Canada, as well Africa, Asia, South America, and the Middle East. New this year, Ifp will be including web series in it programming, as well as spotlighting Latin & Central American artists and content with 15 projects featured across all programs in the Forum.
In a joint effort to recognize the importance of career and creative sustainability, Ifp and Durga Entertainment have partnered on a new $20,000 filmmaker grant for an alumnus of Ifp. The grant is intended for active, working filmmakers who are also balancing a filmmaking career with parenting. The grant provides a $20,000 unrestricted prize to encourage the recipient to continue on her or his career path of making quality independent films. American directors or screenwriters working in narrative film who have participated in the Ifp Filmmaker Labs or Ifp Independent Film Week's Emerging Storytellers or No-Borders International Co-Production market are encouraged to apply by the deadline of August 8, 2014.
Narrative Feature Highlights
Narrative features and webseries in Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers and No Borders International Co-Production Market sections highlight new work from top emerging and established creative visionaries on the U.S. and international independent scene.
This year’s slate includes new feature scripts featuring directors Dev Benegal ("Road, Movie"), Alexis Dos Santos ("Unmade Beds"), Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperin ("Now, Forager"), Michelangelo Frammartino ("Le Quattro Volte"),Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda"), Rashaad Ernesto Green ("Gun Hill Road"), Aurora Guerrero ("Mosquita Y Mari"), Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy"),Alison Klayman ("Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry"), Travis Mathews ("Interior. Leather Bar"), Stacie Passon ("Concussion"), Yen Tan ("Pit Stop"), as well as up-an-coming actor/directors Karrie Crouse ("Land Ho!") and Peter Vack ("Fort Tilden""I Believe in Unicorns").
Producers and executive producers of note attached to participating projects include Jennifer Dubin and Cora Olson ("Good Dick"), Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams ("Hellion"),Laura Heberton ("Gayby"), Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Kishori Rajan ("Gimme the Loot"), Adele Romanski ("The Myth of the American Sleepover"), Kim Sherman ("A Teacher"), Susan Stover ("High Art"), and Alicia Van Couvering ("Tiny Furniture").
Web Storytellers Highlights
For the first time this year, Ifp presents a dedicated spotlight within the Rbc’s Emerging Storytellers program for creators developing episodic content for digital platforms. The inaugural slate for the Web Storytellers spotlight includes new works from filmmakers Desiree Akhavan ("Appropriate Behavior", HBO’s Girls), Calvin Reeder ("The Rambler"), and Gregory Bayne ("Person of Interest"), as well as producers Elisabeth Holm ("Obvious Child"), Susan Leber ( "Down to the Bone"), and Amanda Warman ("The Outs,"Whatever This Is"). Two of the series participating are currently in post-production, and will be making their online debut in the coming months – Rachel Morgan’s Middle Americans, starring Scott Thompson, Carlen Altman, and Alex Rennie, and Daniel Zimbler and Elisabeth Gray’s Understudies, starring Richard Kind and David Rasche. [p Spotlight On Documentaries Highlights
The documentary selection includes new work from seasoned non-fiction directors such as Emmy winners Robert Bahar andAlmudena Carracedo ("Made in La"), Pamela Yates ("Granito: How to Nail a Dictator"),Ramona Diaz ("Imelda," "Don’t Stop Believin’") Gini Reticker ("Pray the Devil Back to Hell") Tony Gerber ("Full Battle Rattle"); from producers such as Court 13’s Benh Zeitlin and Dan Janvey ("Beasts of the Southern Wild"), Liran Atzmor ("The Law in These Parts"), Tim Williams ("Once In A Lifetime") and Hilla Medalia ("Web Junkie"), and follow-up second features from recent doc world “breakouts”Steve Hoover ("Blood Brother") Penny Lane ("Our Nixon"), Michael Collins ("Give Up Tomorrow"), and Michael Nichols and Christopher Walker ("Flex is Kings").
Exciting new work from debut documentary directors previously known for fiction films include Alex Sichel ("All over Me") with her personal doc The Movie about Anna, Lisa Cortés (producer, "Precious") with "Mothership: The Untold Story of Women and Hip Hop," and Daniel Patrick Carbone ("Hide Your Smiling Faces") with Phantom Cowboys.
Sponsors
Independent Film Week’s Premier sponsors are Royal Bank of Canada (Rbc) and HBO. Gold sponsors are A&E IndieFilms and SAGIndie. Silver sponsors are Durga Entertainment, Eastman Kodak Company, National Film & Video Foundation of South Africa and Telefilm Canada. Official Independent Film Week Partner is Film Society of Lincoln Center. Independent Film Week is supported, in part, by funds provided by the Ford Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council for the Arts and Time Warner Foundation.
About Ifp
The Independent Filmmaker Project (Ifp) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Made in NY Media Center by Ifp, a new incubator space developed with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. Ifp represents a growing network of 10,000 storytellers around the world, and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 35-year history, Ifp has supported over 8,000 projects and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers, including Debra Granik, Miranda July, Michael Moore, Dee Rees, and Benh Zeitlin. More info at www.ifp.org.
- 7/25/2014
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
The comedy of antisocial behavior tends to work best when there's a nucleus of actual humanity, if only to remind you why all the incivility is funny.
The creators of Awful Nice seem to be aware of that contrast, but never really succeed at grounding their characters in real human behavior, and as a result, the interactions of the two leads are like a finger hitting a single piano note for 90 minutes.
Jim (James Pumphrey) and Dave (Alex Rennie) inherit a lake house in Branson, Missouri, from their dead father, and decide to renovate and flip it. Jim is impulsive, easily distracted by food, toys, or quantities of shiny coins, dragging Jim, an associate college professor, into wrestling contests, destructive indoor and outdoor sports, and antisocial behavior in pu...
The creators of Awful Nice seem to be aware of that contrast, but never really succeed at grounding their characters in real human behavior, and as a result, the interactions of the two leads are like a finger hitting a single piano note for 90 minutes.
Jim (James Pumphrey) and Dave (Alex Rennie) inherit a lake house in Branson, Missouri, from their dead father, and decide to renovate and flip it. Jim is impulsive, easily distracted by food, toys, or quantities of shiny coins, dragging Jim, an associate college professor, into wrestling contests, destructive indoor and outdoor sports, and antisocial behavior in pu...
- 3/5/2014
- Village Voice
The relationship between brothers can be one both loving and competitive, and both of those qualities are right up front in the upcoming comedy "Awful Nice." Co-written and directed by Todd Sklar, and based on his short film “'92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card,” film stars James Pumphrey, Alex Rennie, Christopher Meloni, Brett Gelman, and Keeley Hazell, and tells the story Jim and Davie, brothers who haven't seen each other in years, who are reunited when their father dies, and must take a trip to redeem their inheritance. And that's the start of a mishap filled series of misadventures, and in this clip, we see the pair take their rivalry to absurd levels. "Awful Nice" opens on March 7th. Watch below.
- 3/4/2014
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Director Todd Sklar’s new brothers comedy, ‘Awful Nice,’ is bringing familial camaraderie to theaters with the film’s release. Screen Media Films will distribute the film, which Sklar co-wrote with Alex Rennie, on March 7. ‘Awful Nice,’ which debuted at last year’s SXSW, stars James Pumphrey, Alex Rennie, Christopher Meloni, Brett Gelman and Keeley Hazell. Screen Media Films has released the following synopsis for the comedy: Todd Sklar’s ‘Awful Nice’ centers on estranged brothers Jim (James Pumphrey) and Dave (Alex Rennie) who are forced to travel to Branson together to renovate and flip the lake house they’ve inherited from their just-deceased father. A series of hilarious mishaps and costly misadventures follow [ Read More ]
The post Brothers Become Awful Nice in Todd Sklar’s New Comedy Release appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Brothers Become Awful Nice in Todd Sklar’s New Comedy Release appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 2/4/2014
- by Karen Benardello
- ShockYa
Cleverly expanding upon the narrative set-up from his short film '92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card, Todd Sklar takes the story of two hapless brothers brought together by their father's funeral and shows us the aftermath. Awful Nice essentially begins with a replay of '92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card, as Jim (James Pumphrey) tracks his brother Dave (Alex Rennie) and bribes him into returning to Minnesota for their father's funeral. It quickly becomes apparent why these two siblings have grown so far apart. They do not like each other -- you might even say that they detest each other. Fist fights and wrestling matches are inevitable, but after their father's funeral they still decide to go on a road trip together to Branson, Mo. Why? Well, they plan on selling their family's summer home in order to cash in on their inheritance.
- 11/12/2013
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
AFI Fest 2013 presented by Audi, a program of the American Film Institute, today announced the remaining sections and films that will screen in the festival’s World Cinema, American Independents, Breakthrough, Midnight, Cinema’s Legacy and Presentations programs. AFI Fest, which redefines Hollywood today as a place where icons and emerging artists bring audiences together to experience global cinema in the movie capital of the world, will take place November 7 through 14 at the historic Tcl Chinese Theatre, the Chinese 6 Theatres, the Egyptian Theatre and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.
World Cinema showcases the most anticipated and prize-winning international films of the year, the American Independents section features work by U.S. filmmakers, Breakthrough highlights work discovered only through the blind submission process, Midnight’s selections tend toward the macabre and Cinema’s Legacy highlights restorations and classic films.
This year’s program includes the return of several filmmakers to AFI Fest...
World Cinema showcases the most anticipated and prize-winning international films of the year, the American Independents section features work by U.S. filmmakers, Breakthrough highlights work discovered only through the blind submission process, Midnight’s selections tend toward the macabre and Cinema’s Legacy highlights restorations and classic films.
This year’s program includes the return of several filmmakers to AFI Fest...
- 10/22/2013
- by Melissa Thompson
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The distributor has acquired Us rights to Todd Sklar’s comedy and has earmarked a spring 2014 theatrical and VOD release preceded by a nationwide college tour of event screenings and interactive parties through Sklar’s Range Life.
Awful Nice premiered at SXSW and stars James Pumphrey and Alex Rennie as estranged brothers forced to flip their recently deceased father’s house.
Screen Media president Suzanne Blech and manager of acquisitions and marketing Seth Needle brokered the deal with CAA for the producers.
Jason Krigsfeld and Joseph Krigsfeld of Brothers K Productions produced with Michael Forstein, Adam Paulsen, Sklar, Maury Steinman and Brock Williams.
Awful Nice premiered at SXSW and stars James Pumphrey and Alex Rennie as estranged brothers forced to flip their recently deceased father’s house.
Screen Media president Suzanne Blech and manager of acquisitions and marketing Seth Needle brokered the deal with CAA for the producers.
Jason Krigsfeld and Joseph Krigsfeld of Brothers K Productions produced with Michael Forstein, Adam Paulsen, Sklar, Maury Steinman and Brock Williams.
- 7/9/2013
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
To call director Todd Sklar's sense of humor peculiar is to understate the weird and wacky no-holds-barred comedy we've come to know in his work. One look at his hit short '92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card and his punch-you-in-the-balls style will be apparent. With Awful Nice, that short has now seen the feature adaptation treatment, and if the small version had you chuckling, the super-sized package will have you in stitches As seen in 92Samrc, the story begins when Jim (James Pumphrey) finds his brother Dave (Alex Rennie) passed out in a wigwam and bribes him into driving back to Minnesota with him to attend their father's funeral. Drinking contests turn into fist fights and eventually Jim and Dave set out for Branson,...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 3/14/2013
- Screen Anarchy
Director Todd Sklar's short film, brazenly titled "'92 Skybox Alonso Mourning Rookie Card," followed a pair of estranged brothers drawn together by the untimely passing of their father. At less than 13 minutes, it managed to economically set up two aimless characters and let them run wild to comic effect, culminating with a kitchen food fight for the ages. Before either their crude personalities or the relentless virile jokes grew tiresome, it was over. No such luck with "Awful Nice," Sklar's feature-length treatment of the material, which resembles the short in spirit but takes its puerile energy to a tedious extreme. At the same time, Sklar and his cast display an admirable commitment to the zany task at hand, attempting to inject nearly ever scene with caustic wit. Brothers Jim (James Pumphrey) and Dave (Alex Rennie) are both unruly in their own distinct ways that pull them out of reality.
- 3/11/2013
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
After self-releasing his first feature film, Box Elder, around the country in 2008, director Todd Sklar has had a successful run of it with major U.S. film festivals. His short ’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card premiered at Sundance in 2012, which he has made into the feature Awful Nice. Co-written by Sklar and Alex Rennie, Awful Nice follows the misadventures of two brothers who travel back home to Branson, Missouri, to put their recently deceased father’s estate in order. Starring Christopher Meloni, Alex Rennie, and James Pumphrey, Awful Nice premiers in the Narrative Feature Competition category tomorrow at SXSW. Filmmaker: Awful Nice is an expansion …...
- 3/9/2013
- by Alexandra Byer
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
South by Southwest (SXSW) is just one of many film festivals, we here at Sound On Sight cover yearly. The fest, which takes place every spring in Austin, Texas, began in 1987, and has continued to grow in size every year. The fest announced the first wave of films back in early January, and the lineup included some highly anticipated films such as The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, Evil Dead, Downloaded and Spring Breakers. Now the full lineup has been announced, and it just might be one of the best lineups the festival has ever programmed.
SXSW takes place March 8-16 in Austin Texas. Here are just some of the films we are excited about.
Narrative Feature Competition – This year’s 8 films were selected from 1,191 submissions. Each film is a World Premiere.
Awful Nice
Director/Screenwriter: Todd Sklar, Screenwriter: Alex Rennie
Estranged brothers Jim and Dave must travel to Branson together when...
SXSW takes place March 8-16 in Austin Texas. Here are just some of the films we are excited about.
Narrative Feature Competition – This year’s 8 films were selected from 1,191 submissions. Each film is a World Premiere.
Awful Nice
Director/Screenwriter: Todd Sklar, Screenwriter: Alex Rennie
Estranged brothers Jim and Dave must travel to Branson together when...
- 2/1/2013
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Some of the best films of the 2012/2013 calender year from Richard Linklater, Harmony Korine, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Andrew Bujalski, Jeff Nichols, David Gordon Green, Shane Carruth and Joshua Oppenheimer are among the headliner names for the 2013 edition of the South by Southwest Film Festival. With a little over 100 plus film line-up (a whopping 2000+ titles were submitted), almost 70 are world premieres: there is the highly anticipated sophomore film (that has been on our radar since it first went into production) with M. Blash’s (The Wait), Joe Swanberg who makes SXSW his second home will premiere Drinking Buddies, veteran indie filmmaker John Sayles saddles in with Go For Sisters, and rounding out the Narrative Spotlight section we’ve got The Bounceback from Bryan Poyser, Loves Her Gun from Geoff Marslett along with titles we thought might break into Park City, but found an Austin home instead with Jacob Vaughan’s Milo and...
- 2/1/2013
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
AFI Fest 2012 presented by Audi, a program of the American Film Institute, today announced the remaining sections and films that will screen in the festival.s World Cinema, Breakthrough, Midnight and Shorts programs. AFI Fest, which annually presents the best of world cinema in the movie capital of the world, will take place November 1 through 8 at the historic Grauman.s Chinese Theatre, the Chinese 6 Theatres, the Egyptian Theatre and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.
World Cinema showcases the most anticipated and prize-winning international films of the year, Breakthrough highlights work discovered only through the submission process and Midnight.s selections are always haunting. Both World Cinema and Breakthrough feature a number of films making their North American or U.S. Premieres, including The Angels. Share, Greatest Hits, Laurence Anyways, Nairobi Half Life, Pieta, White Elephant and Zaytoun.
Two of the shorts in competition are from AFI Conservatory.s recent class of...
World Cinema showcases the most anticipated and prize-winning international films of the year, Breakthrough highlights work discovered only through the submission process and Midnight.s selections are always haunting. Both World Cinema and Breakthrough feature a number of films making their North American or U.S. Premieres, including The Angels. Share, Greatest Hits, Laurence Anyways, Nairobi Half Life, Pieta, White Elephant and Zaytoun.
Two of the shorts in competition are from AFI Conservatory.s recent class of...
- 10/16/2012
- by Melissa Thompson
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Today, AFI 2012 announced its complete lineup, after previously debuting its New Auteurs, Young Americans, Galas and Special Screenings we finally get a look at the Midnight, Breakthrough, Shorts, and deliriously good World Cinema Selections.
The Shorts section, with almost too many to count, features new work from Nacho Vigalando, Nicolas Provost, and even Shia Labeouf (Cannes selected), among many others. The four Midnight titles all played in Tiff 2012’s Midnight Madness selection, and here we see John Dies at the End making a stop here after originally premiering at Sundance. They’ve nabbed three North American premieres in their Breakthrough section, including Kid from Fien Troch, Nairobi Half Life from David Tosh Gitonga, and Oh Boy from Jan Ole Gerster. But AFI has managed to really impress with it’s World Cinema selections. Just as they nabbed Cannes premiere Holy Motors for their Special Screenings, they’ve nabbed several high...
The Shorts section, with almost too many to count, features new work from Nacho Vigalando, Nicolas Provost, and even Shia Labeouf (Cannes selected), among many others. The four Midnight titles all played in Tiff 2012’s Midnight Madness selection, and here we see John Dies at the End making a stop here after originally premiering at Sundance. They’ve nabbed three North American premieres in their Breakthrough section, including Kid from Fien Troch, Nairobi Half Life from David Tosh Gitonga, and Oh Boy from Jan Ole Gerster. But AFI has managed to really impress with it’s World Cinema selections. Just as they nabbed Cannes premiere Holy Motors for their Special Screenings, they’ve nabbed several high...
- 10/16/2012
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Filly Brown director Youssef Delara and his wife agreed to have their photo taken by me in the shuttle from Salt Lake to Park City…even after they had been traveling for the last 24-hours. They were complete champs and Youssef didn’t even seem all that tired. He kept up with all my annoying questions, and was excited and eager for Filly Brown‘s premiere today.
Friday morning was the perfect mix of snowy but not too cold, and still quiet before the masses arrived in Park City for the 2012 festival.
Sundance Channel Headquarters promotes tagging your message.
Welcome to the New York Lounge in Park City! Enjoy free bagels, coffee, and conferences on distribution, film financing, marketing, and production. Hosted by the New York State Governor’s Office for Motion Picture & Television Development, the lounge was one of the most popular spots for filmmakers and moviegoers on Main Street…...
Friday morning was the perfect mix of snowy but not too cold, and still quiet before the masses arrived in Park City for the 2012 festival.
Sundance Channel Headquarters promotes tagging your message.
Welcome to the New York Lounge in Park City! Enjoy free bagels, coffee, and conferences on distribution, film financing, marketing, and production. Hosted by the New York State Governor’s Office for Motion Picture & Television Development, the lounge was one of the most popular spots for filmmakers and moviegoers on Main Street…...
- 1/21/2012
- by alexandra byer
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Ken Jacobs' Seeking The Monkey King, Alexis Dos Santos' Random Strangers and the Cannes winning Nash Edgerton's Bear are part of the shorts program which this year is comprised of 64 films selected from a whopping 7,675 submissions. Among the titles that have caught our attention we find actress Brie Larson getting behind the camera for The Arm, The Safdie brothers continue what they do best which is an output of films in all lengths (The Black Balloon), we have one fourth of Kyle Henry short film collage in Fourplay: Tampa and also in the U.S. Narrative section of 32 we have one of our 2010 American New Wave 25 selected individuals who brings The Fort to the fest (see pic above). Other new shorts worth noting come from Lucy Walker who visited Japan's devastated zone coming up with the short docu The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom, we have Don Hertzfeldt...
- 12/7/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
Barring any late additions or surprises, the full lineup for the 2012 edition of the Sundance Film Festival (January 19 through 29) is now complete. We've seen the the Competition and Spotlight, Park City at Midnight, Next <=> and New Frontier lineups, the Premieres and the Documentary Premieres. Today's the festival's unveiled its Short Film program. Once again, straight from the release:
U.S. Short Films
This year's 32 U.S. short films were selected from 4,083 submissions.
U.S. Narrative Short Films
’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card (Director: Todd Sklar, Screenwriters: Todd Sklar, Alex Rennie) — Jim and Dave are brothers who haven't spoken in years and don't like each other very much, but are forced to come together for a week when their dad dies in Kansas City. A limited edition 1992 Skybox Series Alonzo Mourning rookie card is a point of contention.
The Arm (Directors and screenwriters: Brie Larson, Sarah Ramos, Jessie Ennis) — In an...
U.S. Short Films
This year's 32 U.S. short films were selected from 4,083 submissions.
U.S. Narrative Short Films
’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card (Director: Todd Sklar, Screenwriters: Todd Sklar, Alex Rennie) — Jim and Dave are brothers who haven't spoken in years and don't like each other very much, but are forced to come together for a week when their dad dies in Kansas City. A limited edition 1992 Skybox Series Alonzo Mourning rookie card is a point of contention.
The Arm (Directors and screenwriters: Brie Larson, Sarah Ramos, Jessie Ennis) — In an...
- 12/6/2011
- MUBI
Below are the titles selected to screen in the Short Film Program at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.
See films in competition. See films in the Spotlight, Park City at Midnight, Next and New Frontier sections. See films in Premieres section.
64 films have been selected from a record 7,675 submissions (up 16% from last year).
This year the shorts program will be presented by Yahoo!. Part of their sponsorship includes featuring a select group of shorts from this year on their premium video destination, Yahoo! Screen during the fest. There you will be able to vote on your favorite and the winner will be presented with the Yahoo! Audience Award at the end of the fest.
The 2012 Sundance Film Festival takes place Jan. 19-29.
U.S. Narrative Short Films
’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card (Director: Todd Sklar, Screenwriters: Todd Sklar, Alex Rennie) — Jim and Dave are brothers who haven’t spoken in years...
See films in competition. See films in the Spotlight, Park City at Midnight, Next and New Frontier sections. See films in Premieres section.
64 films have been selected from a record 7,675 submissions (up 16% from last year).
This year the shorts program will be presented by Yahoo!. Part of their sponsorship includes featuring a select group of shorts from this year on their premium video destination, Yahoo! Screen during the fest. There you will be able to vote on your favorite and the winner will be presented with the Yahoo! Audience Award at the end of the fest.
The 2012 Sundance Film Festival takes place Jan. 19-29.
U.S. Narrative Short Films
’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card (Director: Todd Sklar, Screenwriters: Todd Sklar, Alex Rennie) — Jim and Dave are brothers who haven’t spoken in years...
- 12/6/2011
- by Jason Guerrasio
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
For our Fall 2008 issue we highlighted Missouri filmmaker Todd Sklar, who embarked on a Diy road trip with his film Box Elder and three others, screening at arthouses and colleges throughout the midwest.
Sklar is now in production on his next feature, Awful Nice, through his Range Life Entertainment company.
Shot in Branson, Missouri, the film follows estranged brothers Jim (James Pumphrey) and Dave (Alex Rennie) as they return to Branson to renovate the vacation home that their recently deceased father left them.
Sklar co-wrote the script with Rennie. Shooting begins in Branson next week and will end in mid November.
Sklar recently wrapped on a short film version of the story titled ’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card (the card is behind one of the brothers’ fights) that he hopes to screen in festivals before locking picture on Awful Nice. “One thing I noticed at a lot of festivals over...
Sklar is now in production on his next feature, Awful Nice, through his Range Life Entertainment company.
Shot in Branson, Missouri, the film follows estranged brothers Jim (James Pumphrey) and Dave (Alex Rennie) as they return to Branson to renovate the vacation home that their recently deceased father left them.
Sklar co-wrote the script with Rennie. Shooting begins in Branson next week and will end in mid November.
Sklar recently wrapped on a short film version of the story titled ’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card (the card is behind one of the brothers’ fights) that he hopes to screen in festivals before locking picture on Awful Nice. “One thing I noticed at a lot of festivals over...
- 10/16/2011
- by Jason Guerrasio
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
The Raindance Film Festival lineup got some one crowded out by all the London Film Festival announcements yesterday but it most definitely should not be overlooked. This is the place where loads of awesome indie get to come and get noticed. One of the movies playing at the festival is called Incredibly Small and the director, Dean Peterson emailed me yesterday to give me a heads up on the trailer and poster that has been released for the movie.
The cast includes Susan Burke, Stephen Gurewitz, Alex Karpovsky, Amy Seimetz, Alex Rennie, Bob Byington, Ron Lynch, Darlene Westgor, Dave Mercer, Charles Hubbell and Eric Hisle.
Incredibly Small focuses around a couple Anne (Burke) and Amir (Gurewitz) who decide to move in together after graduating at their university. Amir has been left to find the accommodation and what he finds is somewhat inadequate and miniature!
Synopsis: Two recent college graduates, Anne,...
The cast includes Susan Burke, Stephen Gurewitz, Alex Karpovsky, Amy Seimetz, Alex Rennie, Bob Byington, Ron Lynch, Darlene Westgor, Dave Mercer, Charles Hubbell and Eric Hisle.
Incredibly Small focuses around a couple Anne (Burke) and Amir (Gurewitz) who decide to move in together after graduating at their university. Amir has been left to find the accommodation and what he finds is somewhat inadequate and miniature!
Synopsis: Two recent college graduates, Anne,...
- 9/10/2010
- by David Sztypuljak
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
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