Sally Potter's Ginger and Rosa
A24 picks up Sally Potter's Ginger and Rosa
Indie distributor A24 purchased Sally Potter's coming-of-age story Ginger and Rosa, set in 1962 London and starring Elle Fanning, Alice Englert (daughter of Jane Campion), Alessandro Nivola, Christina Hendricks, Annette Benning, Timothy Spall and Oliver Platt. A24 will distribute Ginger and Rosa for an Oscar-qualifying run in late 2012 and a theatrical release in 2013, according to Indiewire. Ginger and Rosa debuted at the Telluride Film Festival, screened at Toronto and is being shown as part of the 50th New York Film Festival Main Slate.
Alain Resnais' You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet
Kino Lorber acquires Alain Resnais' You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet
Kino Lorber purchased U.S. rights to Alain Resnais' You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet before its North American Premiere at the 50th New York Film Festival. You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet, about a group of actors summoned to a screening of Eurydice—a play they all performed over the years—is set to be released in all major markets early 2013, according to Indiewire.
“We are exceptionally pleased to bring Alain Resnais' latest and smartest cinematic confection to American audiences. Full of surprises, wit, and poignancy, You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet is a truly astonishing work from a legendary director (who's almost 90) that reveals new possibilities for the art of cinema,” said Kino Lorber CEO Richard Lorber. “We believe this aptly titled film will assume its place as a classic of tomorrow while very much delighting audiences today.”
You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet screens October 2 in the NYFF Main Slate.
NYFF love from Indiewire
Indiewire's coverage of the New York Film Festival continues with Eric Kohn's profile of Richard Peña and the fate of NYFF after its 50th birthday this year. Kohn calls NYFF, “a gateway for New Yorkers to world cinema, and therefore a major waystation for international auteurs to show their work to American audiences … the Film Society has played an essential role in the history of the medium itself.” The article comments on Peña's successors Kent Jones and Bob Koehler and the conception of splitting the programming into two positions; Jones will take over New York Film Festival programming and Koehler will head Film Society's year-round programming. Kohn's article digs into the breadth of what this means for the Film Society as well as New York movie-going and worldwide influence in the industry.
Penny Marshall directing Dennis Rodman doc
Director of so many of our favorites—Big, A League of Their Own, The Preacher's Wife—Penny Marshall says she has a radar for the insane, or the insane are drawn to her, and who better to promote insanity than pro-basketball player and cultural icon Dennis Rodman? In a recent Wall Street Journal interview, Marshall said she's been working on a Rodman doc after being sought out by Rodman and his agent. There is no release date yet announced for the film, which is partially shot via Skype.
Marshall is also working on a sports film about the first woman inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, Effa Manley, called Effa. Manley co-owned the Newark Eagles in the Negro Leagues (with her husband Abe Manley) from 1935 to 1948, according to Indiewire, making her the first woman to own a professional sports team. Manley was also active in the Civil Rights Movement and social activism until her death in 1981.
Reza Mirkarimi's A Cube of Sugar will no longer be contending for an Oscar nomination
Iran to boycott 2013 Oscars
The Iranian government announced on Tuesday a boycott of the 2013 Oscars because of the anti-Islam film, Innocence of Muslims, according to The Guardian. Innocence of Muslims was partially released as “trailers” in July and September via YouTube by the production company Media for Christ, according to the Huffington Post. On September 9, Al-Nas TV, an Egyptian Islamist television station, broadcast a clip of the film, sparking violent protests against the film in Libya and Egypt resulting in 51 deaths.
“I am officially announcing that in reaction to the intolerable insult to the Great Prophet of Islam we will refrain from taking part in this year's Oscars and we ask other Islamic nations to show their protest like this,” said Iranian Culture Minister Mohammad Hosseini. “This film was made in America and the Oscars are held there, and so far no official stance by the nation that made this film has been taken.”
On Monday, Iran announced that their Oscar entry, Reza Mirkarimi's comedy A Cube of Sugar about a family reuniting for a wedding, will no longer be in the running. Asghar Farhadi's A Separation (NYFF '11) won the Best Foreign Language Oscar on behalf of Iran just last year.
