Thompson on Hollywood

#SXSW: True Crime Meets Cold Weather

Well, I checked out writer-director Aaron Katz's third film Cold Weather to see what the fuss was all about.

By Anne Thompson
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March 17, 2010 3:31 AM
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#SXSW: MacGruber Panel, Trailer

MacGruber cost just $10 million, a micro budget for a Universal release starring Ryan Phillippe, Val Kilmer, Will Forte, Seth Meyers, Powers Boothe and Kristin Wiig. The gang stopped by the IFC House Tuesday for a Matt Singer interview and photo shoot.

By Anne Thompson
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March 17, 2010 2:12 AM
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#SXSW: Tiny Furniture, Brotherhood Win Dramatic Jury and Audience Awards

At the SXSW closing awards ceremony Tuesday night, Lena Dunham's offbeat autobiographical drama Tiny Furniture won the narrative feature jury prize. Shot in November and edited in December, the filmmakers finished the micro-budget drama last Monday, and flew into Austin with a tape in hand. Dunham also won the Emergent Narrative Woman Director Award.

By Anne Thompson
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March 17, 2010 1:20 AM
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Trailer Watch: Scorsese's Boardwalk Empire

Many top directors are turning to HBO. Given the level of interest in quality dramas for adults at the studios, who wouldn't? HBO's the last place willing to spend big bucks for that kind of cinema.

By Anne Thompson
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March 16, 2010 12:39 PM
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#SXSW: Gore-Epic Centurion Makes World Debut

Monday night I squeezed into the last seat at Fantastic Fest's midnight surprise screening of Neil "The Descent" Marshall's Romans vs. Picts epic Centurion at the Alamo Draft House.

By Anne Thompson
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March 16, 2010 5:28 AM
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Avatar DVD Hits Stores April 22, Earth Day

The stateside DVD and Blu-ray release of James Cameron's environment-themed Avatar (at $2.6 billion worldwide, the highest-grossing film of all time) is April 22, the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. The film won three Oscars, for art direction, cinematography and visual effects.

By Anne Thompson
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March 16, 2010 5:09 AM
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Oscar Winner Bigelow in L.A. Superior Court

The week after winning two Oscars for directing and producing The Hurt Locker, Kathryn Bigelow was standing in line at L.A.'s Superior Court. Fulfilling her duty as a citizen, she turned up for jury duty and was placed in the jury pool for a drunk driving case.

By Anne Thompson
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March 16, 2010 4:32 AM
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Sony Worldwide Acquisitions Group Closes Welcome to the Rileys Deal with Apparition

Finally, the ink has dried on the pact with Sony Worldwide Acquisitions Group and distributor Apparition (as reported here) to release Sundance Kristen Stewart-starrer Welcome to the Rileys. They're planning a fall release. Directed by Ridley Scott sprig Jake, the movie was executive produced by Steve Zaillian and boasts a strong script by Ken Hixon.

By Anne Thompson
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March 15, 2010 6:22 AM
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#SXSW : Gondry Goes Animated with Daniel Clowes' Megalomania

Michael Gondry is a marvel--and I would have loved a longer chat than this flip-cam quickie, which skates across his SXSW doc The Thorn in the Heart, about his school teacher aunt Suzette, who the family used to visit deep in the country in the summer. He wanted partly to capture a vanishing world.

By Anne Thompson
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March 15, 2010 4:59 AM
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SXSW: CMG Buys Foreign Rights to Brotherhood

Foreign sales company Cinema Management Group has acquired all rights outside America for Will Canon’s college thriller Brotherhood, which premiered at SXSW Saturday night. The film began ten years ago as Canon's NYU short film Roslyn. He co-wrote Brotherhood, about a frat initiation ritual gone wrong, with Doug Simon. Chris Pollack, Jason Croft, Steven Hein and Tim O’Hair produced with executive producers Jamie Patricof, Kevin Iwashina, Darryn Welch and Chris Ouwinga.