Mediawan Rights, the distribution arm of the wider media group, manages scripted, unscripted, format and feature documentary sales, keying European content onto international airwaves. And if initially heritage titles, foreign-language fare and time-tested perennials made up much of the catalogue, the group’s expanding footprint and well-capitalized partnerships promise a new yield of premium fare developed in-house and marked by global ambitions.
“We’ve seen a radical shift,” says Mediawan Rights CEO Valérie Vleeschhouwer. “Our catalogue from six years ago has little in common with that of today. We really wanted to move upmarket, to increase our own creative output in both fiction and documentary distribution to better respond to global demand. [In doing so] we’ve gone from being a local player to a truly international one.”
As distribution titles like the Emmy-winning doc “Kubrick by Kubrick” and the Dutch thriller “The Golden Hour” travel far and wide – with the former selling...
“We’ve seen a radical shift,” says Mediawan Rights CEO Valérie Vleeschhouwer. “Our catalogue from six years ago has little in common with that of today. We really wanted to move upmarket, to increase our own creative output in both fiction and documentary distribution to better respond to global demand. [In doing so] we’ve gone from being a local player to a truly international one.”
As distribution titles like the Emmy-winning doc “Kubrick by Kubrick” and the Dutch thriller “The Golden Hour” travel far and wide – with the former selling...
- 5/16/2024
- by Ben Croll
- Variety Film + TV
UK documentary specialist Dogwoof has boarded international sales on Oliver Stone’s Lula, ahead of its world premiere at Cannes, where it will receive a special screening.
Gersh is handling US rights on the project, which follows the story of Brazil’s beloved president Luiz Inácio ‘Lula’ da Silva, and his journey from the presidential palace to imprisonment for 19 months, and back again to regain the presidency in 2022.
The documentary, co-directed by Rob Wilson, features unprecedented access to Lula and his closest advisors through a series of interviews, revealing the inside story of ‘Operation Car Wash’ – a landmark anti-corruption probe...
Gersh is handling US rights on the project, which follows the story of Brazil’s beloved president Luiz Inácio ‘Lula’ da Silva, and his journey from the presidential palace to imprisonment for 19 months, and back again to regain the presidency in 2022.
The documentary, co-directed by Rob Wilson, features unprecedented access to Lula and his closest advisors through a series of interviews, revealing the inside story of ‘Operation Car Wash’ – a landmark anti-corruption probe...
- 5/13/2024
- ScreenDaily
Oliver Stone is unveiling his long-awaited documentary “Lula” at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
Stone filmed the documentary about thrice-elected Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva that encompasses the ruler’s incarceration between 2018 and 2019 and his return to power. Stone was in production on the feature in 2021 during which time Lula da Silva contracted Covid while filming in Cuba.
“Lula” is the latest addition to the star-studded Cannes lineup, which also includes new films from Paul Schrader, Francis Ford Coppola, Yorgos Lanthimos, Andrea Arnold, David Cronenberg, Ali Abbasi, Sean Baker, Jia Zhangke, and Paolo Sorrentino.
Stone teased “Lula” to Jacobin earlier this year, saying that the film would be released “hopefully before the end of the year.”
“As you know, I had him in the other films with Hugo Chávez. And of course, he’s gotten a very dramatic story, with his going to jail after his second term. Now...
Stone filmed the documentary about thrice-elected Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva that encompasses the ruler’s incarceration between 2018 and 2019 and his return to power. Stone was in production on the feature in 2021 during which time Lula da Silva contracted Covid while filming in Cuba.
“Lula” is the latest addition to the star-studded Cannes lineup, which also includes new films from Paul Schrader, Francis Ford Coppola, Yorgos Lanthimos, Andrea Arnold, David Cronenberg, Ali Abbasi, Sean Baker, Jia Zhangke, and Paolo Sorrentino.
Stone teased “Lula” to Jacobin earlier this year, saying that the film would be released “hopefully before the end of the year.”
“As you know, I had him in the other films with Hugo Chávez. And of course, he’s gotten a very dramatic story, with his going to jail after his second term. Now...
- 4/22/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
The Savages director said he made the remarks “before the film even came out” and while he was promoting his documentary Nuclear Now.
Oliver Stone was clearing up his Barbie comments from last year after an interview with the filmmaker resurfaced recently. Deadline took a deserved shot from him also. Click below to see the whole statement by the multi-Oscar winner:
My statement on #Barbie — @Deadline #GretaGerwig #BarbieMovie pic.twitter.com/ek0vquIu2f
— Oliver Stone (@TheOliverStone) January 23, 2024
“At the time, I was busy promoting my nuclear documentary in Europe and had little to no knowledge of the project beyond its title,” he said in a post he shared on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. His comments resurfaced virally but he made it clear that he said them before he watched Barbie in theaters last July. That is too long a time span to be served back up as fresh aggregation.
Oliver Stone was clearing up his Barbie comments from last year after an interview with the filmmaker resurfaced recently. Deadline took a deserved shot from him also. Click below to see the whole statement by the multi-Oscar winner:
My statement on #Barbie — @Deadline #GretaGerwig #BarbieMovie pic.twitter.com/ek0vquIu2f
— Oliver Stone (@TheOliverStone) January 23, 2024
“At the time, I was busy promoting my nuclear documentary in Europe and had little to no knowledge of the project beyond its title,” he said in a post he shared on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. His comments resurfaced virally but he made it clear that he said them before he watched Barbie in theaters last July. That is too long a time span to be served back up as fresh aggregation.
- 1/23/2024
- by The Deadline Team
- Deadline Film + TV
Oliver Stone has a lot of opinions about the current film industry and says movies like Barbie are contributing to the “infantilization of Hollywood.”
In an interview from June 2023, the filmmaker suggested Ryan Gosling shouldn’t have been involved in the Greta Gerwig film and instead focus on “more serious films.”
“Ryan Gosling is wasting his time if he’s doing that shit for money. He should be doing more serious films. He shouldn’t be a part of this infantilization of Hollywood. Now it’s all fantasy, fantasy, fantasy, including all the war pictures: fantasy, fantasy,” Oliver said in an interview with City Am.
Update: Oliver Stone Clears Up Resurfaced ‘Barbie’ Comments: “I Apologize For Speaking Ignorantly”
Stone took a shot at the Fast and Furious franchise as well, saying that he used to enjoy the films, but recently, they “have become like Marvel movies. I mean, how many crashes can you see?...
In an interview from June 2023, the filmmaker suggested Ryan Gosling shouldn’t have been involved in the Greta Gerwig film and instead focus on “more serious films.”
“Ryan Gosling is wasting his time if he’s doing that shit for money. He should be doing more serious films. He shouldn’t be a part of this infantilization of Hollywood. Now it’s all fantasy, fantasy, fantasy, including all the war pictures: fantasy, fantasy,” Oliver said in an interview with City Am.
Update: Oliver Stone Clears Up Resurfaced ‘Barbie’ Comments: “I Apologize For Speaking Ignorantly”
Stone took a shot at the Fast and Furious franchise as well, saying that he used to enjoy the films, but recently, they “have become like Marvel movies. I mean, how many crashes can you see?...
- 1/22/2024
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Distribution platform Gathr and documentary distribution agency Roco Films have teamed to create Roco Voices, a new speakers bureau.
Roco Voices, launching Nov. 14, will offer live speaking engagements with filmmakers and subject matter experts from Roco Film’s docu film catalog. The initial cohort of filmmakers to debut with Roco Voices include Academy Award winners and nominees Oliver Stone (“Nuclear Now”), Ross Kauffman (“Born Into Brothels”), Justine Shapiro (“Promises”), Sam Green (“The Weather Underground”), David France (“How to Survive a Plague”), Geralyn Dreyfous (“The Square”), and Roger Weisberg (“Sound and Fury”). (All Roco clients have the opportunity to opt-in.)
Powering Roco Voices is Gathr’s talent booking technology. (The company started beta-testing earlier this year.) The collaboration is a one-stop shop for Roco Films’ customers to search, discover, negotiate, and book filmmakers, doc talent and subject matter experts while also licensing impact-driven and educational film screenings.
“The shared experience of...
Roco Voices, launching Nov. 14, will offer live speaking engagements with filmmakers and subject matter experts from Roco Film’s docu film catalog. The initial cohort of filmmakers to debut with Roco Voices include Academy Award winners and nominees Oliver Stone (“Nuclear Now”), Ross Kauffman (“Born Into Brothels”), Justine Shapiro (“Promises”), Sam Green (“The Weather Underground”), David France (“How to Survive a Plague”), Geralyn Dreyfous (“The Square”), and Roger Weisberg (“Sound and Fury”). (All Roco clients have the opportunity to opt-in.)
Powering Roco Voices is Gathr’s talent booking technology. (The company started beta-testing earlier this year.) The collaboration is a one-stop shop for Roco Films’ customers to search, discover, negotiate, and book filmmakers, doc talent and subject matter experts while also licensing impact-driven and educational film screenings.
“The shared experience of...
- 11/14/2023
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
Simone Scafidi’s documentary is an immersive deep dive into the creative process and life of Argento.
Mediawan Rights has unveiled the first trailer for Simone Scafidi’s documentary Dario Argento Panico ahead of the film’s world premiere in Venice Classics on Saturday (September 2).
The film zooms in on titular Italian filmmaker Dario Argento as he finishes writing the script for his last feature in a hotel as a film crew shoots a movie about him.
Produced by UK-based Paguro Film, the documentary has already been sold to horror streamer Shudder for the US, UK, Canada, Latin America, Spain,...
Mediawan Rights has unveiled the first trailer for Simone Scafidi’s documentary Dario Argento Panico ahead of the film’s world premiere in Venice Classics on Saturday (September 2).
The film zooms in on titular Italian filmmaker Dario Argento as he finishes writing the script for his last feature in a hotel as a film crew shoots a movie about him.
Produced by UK-based Paguro Film, the documentary has already been sold to horror streamer Shudder for the US, UK, Canada, Latin America, Spain,...
- 9/1/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
One of the most iconic scenes in Oliver Stone‘s 1991 classic “JFK” involves Donald Sutherland as a mysterious operative filling Kevin Costner‘s Jim Garrison in on the forces behind the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. In an exhilarating tour de force performance for which Sutherland should have been Oscar-nominated, the actor tells a mesmerizing story packed with dense information that blows Garrison’s — and by extension, the viewer’s — mind, shifting the movie into an intense higher gear that propels the film’s final hour. The scene is unthinkable without Sutherland, and yet it could have gone a very different way.
At a live edition of IndieWire’s Filmmaker Toolkit podcast presented by the American Cinematheque in Los Angeles, writer, producer, and director Stone revealed that he had discussed the role Sutherland eventually played with one of his childhood heroes. “I had been dumb enough to go to Marlon Brando,...
At a live edition of IndieWire’s Filmmaker Toolkit podcast presented by the American Cinematheque in Los Angeles, writer, producer, and director Stone revealed that he had discussed the role Sutherland eventually played with one of his childhood heroes. “I had been dumb enough to go to Marlon Brando,...
- 8/31/2023
- by Jim Hemphill
- Indiewire
Riyadh-registered Middle East and North Africa integrated media group Srmg has announced the launch of Asharq Documentary, an Arabic language, free-to-air factual channel available on a variety of platforms.
Asharq Documentary joins a growing bouquet of channels gathered under the Asharq News Network banner, which also include Asharq News, Asharq Business with Bloomberg, and the soon-to-launch Asharq Discovery.
Srmg said the creation of Asharq was in response to growing audience appetite for more long-form, high-quality documentaries in the Mena region.
The group said that according to an in-house study more than 80% of those surveyed in Mena wanted more and higher quality factual Arabic content.
It also noted that its Asharq News channel has already aired over 400 hours of quality documentaries with strong viewing figures and positive audience engagement.
“The Mena region currently lacks a comprehensive Arabic language documentary channel that delves into the topics shaping our world today,” said Srmg CEO Jomana R.
Asharq Documentary joins a growing bouquet of channels gathered under the Asharq News Network banner, which also include Asharq News, Asharq Business with Bloomberg, and the soon-to-launch Asharq Discovery.
Srmg said the creation of Asharq was in response to growing audience appetite for more long-form, high-quality documentaries in the Mena region.
The group said that according to an in-house study more than 80% of those surveyed in Mena wanted more and higher quality factual Arabic content.
It also noted that its Asharq News channel has already aired over 400 hours of quality documentaries with strong viewing figures and positive audience engagement.
“The Mena region currently lacks a comprehensive Arabic language documentary channel that delves into the topics shaping our world today,” said Srmg CEO Jomana R.
- 8/30/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Oliver Stone has joined Paul Schrader in praising Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” as an instant classic.
The “JFK” and “Natural Born Killers” director shared on Twitter that he finally saw the three-hour J. Robert Oppenheimer epic over the past weekend, saying he was “gripped by Chris Nolan’s narrative.” Stone also added that he was familiar with the source material, the nonfiction book “American Prometheus” by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, as he “once turned the project down because I couldn’t find my way to its essence. Nolan has found it.”
Since “Oppenheimer” opened on July 21, the film has already grossed $405 million globally and it continues to sell out across IMAX venues, with viewers flocking to Nolan’s preferred 70mm IMAX experience.
Two weeks ago, fellow filmmaker Paul Schrader praised “Oppenheimer” as “the best, most important film of this century.”
Stone, meanwhile in a Twitter thread continued, “His...
The “JFK” and “Natural Born Killers” director shared on Twitter that he finally saw the three-hour J. Robert Oppenheimer epic over the past weekend, saying he was “gripped by Chris Nolan’s narrative.” Stone also added that he was familiar with the source material, the nonfiction book “American Prometheus” by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, as he “once turned the project down because I couldn’t find my way to its essence. Nolan has found it.”
Since “Oppenheimer” opened on July 21, the film has already grossed $405 million globally and it continues to sell out across IMAX venues, with viewers flocking to Nolan’s preferred 70mm IMAX experience.
Two weeks ago, fellow filmmaker Paul Schrader praised “Oppenheimer” as “the best, most important film of this century.”
Stone, meanwhile in a Twitter thread continued, “His...
- 8/1/2023
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
‘Dario Argento Panico’ will premiere in Venice Classics.
Mediawan Rights, the sales arm of European content group Mediawan, has boarded Simone Scafidi’s documentary Dario Argento Panico ahead of the film’s Venice Classics premiere as it continues to ramp up its documentary slate.
The film follows the legendary Italian filmmaker as he finishes the script for his final film in a hotel alongside a crew shooting a movie about him.
It has already been sold to horror streamer Shudder for the US, UK, Canada, Latin America, Spain, Portugal and Australia and to distributor Non-Stop for Scandinavia. It will be released in Italy via Plaion.
Mediawan Rights, the sales arm of European content group Mediawan, has boarded Simone Scafidi’s documentary Dario Argento Panico ahead of the film’s Venice Classics premiere as it continues to ramp up its documentary slate.
The film follows the legendary Italian filmmaker as he finishes the script for his final film in a hotel alongside a crew shooting a movie about him.
It has already been sold to horror streamer Shudder for the US, UK, Canada, Latin America, Spain, Portugal and Australia and to distributor Non-Stop for Scandinavia. It will be released in Italy via Plaion.
- 7/27/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Oliver Stone said Friday he was shocked to hear that the stars of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer had walked out of its London premiere the day before as SAG-AFTRA officially declared strike action.
“I know several producers are opening movies, like Oppenheimer. Chuck Roven, he was in London. I heard it was going to be cancelled,” said Stone, when asked for his view on the strike.
“I don’t know if it went ahead but all the actors left. That was shocking that they really meant business and cut off right away all the promotion, which is big.”
Commenting on the ongoing 11-week WGA strike, Stone suggested the roots of the current industrial action lie in the deal brokered to end the five-month writers strike in 1988.
“There was a basic miscarriage of justice way back when, when Brian Walton was the head of the WGA, when we gave in. I...
“I know several producers are opening movies, like Oppenheimer. Chuck Roven, he was in London. I heard it was going to be cancelled,” said Stone, when asked for his view on the strike.
“I don’t know if it went ahead but all the actors left. That was shocking that they really meant business and cut off right away all the promotion, which is big.”
Commenting on the ongoing 11-week WGA strike, Stone suggested the roots of the current industrial action lie in the deal brokered to end the five-month writers strike in 1988.
“There was a basic miscarriage of justice way back when, when Brian Walton was the head of the WGA, when we gave in. I...
- 7/14/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Jurors include Whit Stillman, Florian Zeller, Maria Schrader, Joana Vicente.
French filmmaker Claire Denis will lead the international competition jury for the 40th Jerusalem Film Festival, which runs from July 13-23.
Denis will be joined by directors Whit Stillman, Florian Zeller and Maria Schrader on the jury, plus Sundance Institute CEO Joana Vicente.
Hungarian director Kornel Mundruczo will preside over the Israeli competition jury. Directors make up the majority of the jurors across the competitive sections, including Jasmila Zbanic, Ali Abbasi, Sebastian Meise, Julian Rosefeldt, Joseph Cedar, Sebastien Lifshitz, Barbara Albert, Alexandru Belc and Manuela Martelli, plus Mathilde Henrot from Locarno Film Festival.
French filmmaker Claire Denis will lead the international competition jury for the 40th Jerusalem Film Festival, which runs from July 13-23.
Denis will be joined by directors Whit Stillman, Florian Zeller and Maria Schrader on the jury, plus Sundance Institute CEO Joana Vicente.
Hungarian director Kornel Mundruczo will preside over the Israeli competition jury. Directors make up the majority of the jurors across the competitive sections, including Jasmila Zbanic, Ali Abbasi, Sebastian Meise, Julian Rosefeldt, Joseph Cedar, Sebastien Lifshitz, Barbara Albert, Alexandru Belc and Manuela Martelli, plus Mathilde Henrot from Locarno Film Festival.
- 7/7/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone, known for his work in films like ‘Scarface’, ‘Platoon’, ‘Wall Street’ and ‘JFK’, has described ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ as “disgusting beyond belief,” and that Marvel movies are not “believable”.
In an interview with Variety, the 76-year-old director said: “I saw ‘John Wick 4’ on the plane. Talk about volume. I think the film is disgusting beyond belief. Disgusting. I don’t know what people are thinking. Maybe I was watching G.I. Joe when I was a kid.”
He continued: “But (Keanu Reeves) kills, what, three, four hundred people in the f****g movie. And as a combat veteran, I gotta tell you, not one of them is believable. I realise it’s a movie, but it’s become a video game more than a movie. It’s lost touch with reality.”
“The audience perhaps likes the video game. But I get bored by it. How many cars can crash?...
In an interview with Variety, the 76-year-old director said: “I saw ‘John Wick 4’ on the plane. Talk about volume. I think the film is disgusting beyond belief. Disgusting. I don’t know what people are thinking. Maybe I was watching G.I. Joe when I was a kid.”
He continued: “But (Keanu Reeves) kills, what, three, four hundred people in the f****g movie. And as a combat veteran, I gotta tell you, not one of them is believable. I realise it’s a movie, but it’s become a video game more than a movie. It’s lost touch with reality.”
“The audience perhaps likes the video game. But I get bored by it. How many cars can crash?...
- 6/20/2023
- by Agency News Desk
- GlamSham
Oliver Stone settled into a sofa on the terrace of the Radisson Blu Hotel in Cluj, Romania, apologizing for the jetlag and gazing at a downcast sky that had briefly parted over the Transylvanian hillside. “Let’s see if we can find some blue,” he said, describing himself — despite ample evidence to the contrary — as a “hopeful” person. But after a week of steady downpours in this picturesque medieval city, the weather refused to cooperate. From the hotel terrace it was gray as far as the eye could see.
Stone was in Romania to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Transilvania Film Festival, which also programmed a small retrospective in honor of the three-time Academy Award-winning director including his latest film, the pro-nuclear-energy documentary “Nuclear Now,” which Variety’s Owen Gleiberman described as an “intensely compelling, must-see” doc after its premiere at the Venice Film Festival last year.
Before receiving the award,...
Stone was in Romania to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Transilvania Film Festival, which also programmed a small retrospective in honor of the three-time Academy Award-winning director including his latest film, the pro-nuclear-energy documentary “Nuclear Now,” which Variety’s Owen Gleiberman described as an “intensely compelling, must-see” doc after its premiere at the Venice Film Festival last year.
Before receiving the award,...
- 6/19/2023
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
The 22nd edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival kicked off Friday night in the city of Cluj-Napoca with the international premiere of Northern Comfort, a comedy directed by Icelandic filmmaker Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurðsson, and with a tribute to the film’s star, Timothy Spall.
The famed British character actor, known for his roles in Mike Leigh’s Topsy-Turvy and Mr. Turner, Cameron Crowe’s Vanilla Sky, Edward Zwick’s The Last Samurai, Tom Hooper’s The King’s Speech and the Harry Potter films, received this year’s lifetime achievement award at the festival’s opening gala.
The Icelandic-uk-German co-production Northern Comfort is part of the massive Nordic Focus at the festival this year, with more than 40 films from Norway, Iceland, Denmark, Finland and Sweden, as well as live music performances and cine-concerts. Some of the Nordic highlights include Ruben Östlund’s 2022 Palm d’Or winner Triangle of Sadness, Lars von Trier...
The famed British character actor, known for his roles in Mike Leigh’s Topsy-Turvy and Mr. Turner, Cameron Crowe’s Vanilla Sky, Edward Zwick’s The Last Samurai, Tom Hooper’s The King’s Speech and the Harry Potter films, received this year’s lifetime achievement award at the festival’s opening gala.
The Icelandic-uk-German co-production Northern Comfort is part of the massive Nordic Focus at the festival this year, with more than 40 films from Norway, Iceland, Denmark, Finland and Sweden, as well as live music performances and cine-concerts. Some of the Nordic highlights include Ruben Östlund’s 2022 Palm d’Or winner Triangle of Sadness, Lars von Trier...
- 6/10/2023
- by Stjepan Hundic
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
When push comes to shove, the Transilvania Intl. Film Festival has always prided itself on pushing the envelope, preferring to err on the side of provocation where other fests might choose to play it safe. That mentality has been encoded into the fest’s DNA since its beginnings in the tumultuous post-Communist era, when civil liberties and artistic freedom were still far from guaranteed in the newly democratic Romania.
Yet after a turbulent period of unprecedented disruption, brought on first by the coronavirus pandemic and then by the widespread humanitarian and economic crises spurred by Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine, even TIFF founder Tudor Giurgiu admits, “These were tough years.” The temptation might have been there to tinker with a formula that has made the festival such a success for the past two decades.
But for its 22nd edition, which runs June 9 – 18 in the picturesque medieval city of Cluj,...
Yet after a turbulent period of unprecedented disruption, brought on first by the coronavirus pandemic and then by the widespread humanitarian and economic crises spurred by Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine, even TIFF founder Tudor Giurgiu admits, “These were tough years.” The temptation might have been there to tinker with a formula that has made the festival such a success for the past two decades.
But for its 22nd edition, which runs June 9 – 18 in the picturesque medieval city of Cluj,...
- 6/9/2023
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Bali International Film Festival (Balinale) kicks off its 16th edition from Thursday, 1 June until Sunday, 4 June 2023 bringing together a diverse group of acclaimed filmmakers and prominent professionals from the film, entertainment, and creative industries to celebrate cinema.
Balinale showcases the finest Indonesian and International movies.
Over our 4-day event will present forty-five films from thirteen countries at Park23 Creative Hub Cinema Xxi, Tuban Kuta, Bali. Several of these films are world, Asian, and international premieres. Opening Balinale is A Guilty Conscience directed by Jack Ng. actor, Dee Ho, will be at the festival to present the film.
Notable films include Sisu from Finland, directed by Jalmari Helander; Klondike from Ukraine, directed by Maryna Er Gorbach; Where the Wind Blows from Hong Kong, directed by Philip Yung; and Women Talking from the United States, directed by Sarah Polley.
In competition 2023
In 2023, the festival's juried competition will present awards in several artistic and technical categories: Narrative Features,...
Balinale showcases the finest Indonesian and International movies.
Over our 4-day event will present forty-five films from thirteen countries at Park23 Creative Hub Cinema Xxi, Tuban Kuta, Bali. Several of these films are world, Asian, and international premieres. Opening Balinale is A Guilty Conscience directed by Jack Ng. actor, Dee Ho, will be at the festival to present the film.
Notable films include Sisu from Finland, directed by Jalmari Helander; Klondike from Ukraine, directed by Maryna Er Gorbach; Where the Wind Blows from Hong Kong, directed by Philip Yung; and Women Talking from the United States, directed by Sarah Polley.
In competition 2023
In 2023, the festival's juried competition will present awards in several artistic and technical categories: Narrative Features,...
- 6/1/2023
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
Distribution
Anthony Lapaglia‘s upcoming factual series “The Black Hand” is set to be distributed internationally by eOne.
The three-part series will explore Australia’s Italian community, looking at the difficulties they face, their politics, the threat of war and the mafia. According to the series synopsis, The Black Hand is the name for a gang of Italian criminals in Australia.
Alan Erson, Lapaglia, Michael Tear exec produce. Adam Grossetti and Kate Pappas produce. “The Black Hand” is directed by Kriv Stenders and written by Grossetti, Stenders and Anya Beyersdorf.
The series was produced by Wildbear Entertainment for ABC in Australia. The deal with eOne excludes Australia and Scandinavia.
“The Black Hand is truly the definition of premium factual,” said Kate Cundall, eOne’s VP for acquisitions. “We’re very excited about the opportunity to take to market a hugely popular genre like true crime with some amazing auspicious.”
***
Meanwhile,...
Anthony Lapaglia‘s upcoming factual series “The Black Hand” is set to be distributed internationally by eOne.
The three-part series will explore Australia’s Italian community, looking at the difficulties they face, their politics, the threat of war and the mafia. According to the series synopsis, The Black Hand is the name for a gang of Italian criminals in Australia.
Alan Erson, Lapaglia, Michael Tear exec produce. Adam Grossetti and Kate Pappas produce. “The Black Hand” is directed by Kriv Stenders and written by Grossetti, Stenders and Anya Beyersdorf.
The series was produced by Wildbear Entertainment for ABC in Australia. The deal with eOne excludes Australia and Scandinavia.
“The Black Hand is truly the definition of premium factual,” said Kate Cundall, eOne’s VP for acquisitions. “We’re very excited about the opportunity to take to market a hugely popular genre like true crime with some amazing auspicious.”
***
Meanwhile,...
- 5/31/2023
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
Giant Pictures has hired Alamo Drafthouse’s Ahbra Perry and AMC Networks’ Jennifer Luisi to two new director roles, while promoting Madeleine Schumacher to director of distribution.
Perry will be the director of Ott Channels, overseeing the development of new and existing streaming channels. She will also head up theatrical acquisitions for the Drafthouse Films label. In that capacity, she will work with Alamo founder Tim League and Fantastic Fest director Lisa Dreyer. She comes to Giant from Alamo where she led their year-round VOD platform.
Luisi will be Giant Pictures’ new finance director, coming off a 15-year tenure at AMC Networks. She will take on responsibility for the financial management and planning of Giant’s VOD and theatrical business.
Schumacher, meanwhile, will move upwards to director of distribution, where she will lead Giant’s content team related to the company’s release slate of over 50 films and documentaries per...
Perry will be the director of Ott Channels, overseeing the development of new and existing streaming channels. She will also head up theatrical acquisitions for the Drafthouse Films label. In that capacity, she will work with Alamo founder Tim League and Fantastic Fest director Lisa Dreyer. She comes to Giant from Alamo where she led their year-round VOD platform.
Luisi will be Giant Pictures’ new finance director, coming off a 15-year tenure at AMC Networks. She will take on responsibility for the financial management and planning of Giant’s VOD and theatrical business.
Schumacher, meanwhile, will move upwards to director of distribution, where she will lead Giant’s content team related to the company’s release slate of over 50 films and documentaries per...
- 5/12/2023
- by Scott Mendelson
- The Wrap
The breakdown of the Writers Guild of America’s contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers could benefit the documentary industry. Especially those documentary filmmakers with projects seeking distribution.
At least that’s the hope.
Like film and television scribes worried about the survival of screenwriting as a viable profession, hundreds of nonfiction filmmakers with independently made docus are grappling with the streamers’ new distribution landscape, which, for the most part, no longer includes acquiring titles that aren’t commissioned.
If the writers strike lasts for several months, the thought is that not only broadcast networks but also streaming companies will begin to face holes in their narrative content, which could, in turn, lead to the purchase of indie docus to fill the void.
At the Hot Docs film festival in Toronto, documentary producers, programmers and filmmakers are not only celebrating independently made fare but also...
At least that’s the hope.
Like film and television scribes worried about the survival of screenwriting as a viable profession, hundreds of nonfiction filmmakers with independently made docus are grappling with the streamers’ new distribution landscape, which, for the most part, no longer includes acquiring titles that aren’t commissioned.
If the writers strike lasts for several months, the thought is that not only broadcast networks but also streaming companies will begin to face holes in their narrative content, which could, in turn, lead to the purchase of indie docus to fill the void.
At the Hot Docs film festival in Toronto, documentary producers, programmers and filmmakers are not only celebrating independently made fare but also...
- 5/4/2023
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
“The Super Mario Bros. Movie” (Universal) is projected to gross another $40 million in its fourth weekend, an achievement held only “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Avatar: The Way of Water” and “Black Panther” in 2018.
That puts Illumination’s animated film at $1.022 billion worldwide and $490 million domestic. If it hits $650 million domestic — now possible — it will surpass any cartoon feature this century. (“Shrek 2” and “Incredibles 2” reached $600 million adjusted).
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” (Disney) opening next weekend will end Mario’s #1 streak, but “Smb” should stay strong for weeks to come. It could surpass “Maverick” ($719 million) — an even more impressive feat when it lacks a concentration premium tickets and sells many more lower-priced children’s priced tickets.
Though at a lower gross and hold, “Evil Dead Rise” (Warner Bros. Discovery) at #2 with $12.5 million, adds to the positive news. Its 50 percent second-week drop was low end for a genre film. Even better,...
That puts Illumination’s animated film at $1.022 billion worldwide and $490 million domestic. If it hits $650 million domestic — now possible — it will surpass any cartoon feature this century. (“Shrek 2” and “Incredibles 2” reached $600 million adjusted).
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” (Disney) opening next weekend will end Mario’s #1 streak, but “Smb” should stay strong for weeks to come. It could surpass “Maverick” ($719 million) — an even more impressive feat when it lacks a concentration premium tickets and sells many more lower-priced children’s priced tickets.
Though at a lower gross and hold, “Evil Dead Rise” (Warner Bros. Discovery) at #2 with $12.5 million, adds to the positive news. Its 50 percent second-week drop was low end for a genre film. Even better,...
- 4/30/2023
- by Tom Brueggemann
- Indiewire
Sideshow/Janus Films is estimating a $36k gross or $18k per theater average for The Eight Mountains on two NYC screens, the strongest opening weekend to date for the team behind Drive My Car and Eo.
The Cannes co-Jury Prize-winning film by Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeesch follows the profound friendship over decades of Pietro (Luca Marinelli) from Turin, and Bruno (Alessandro Borghi), who grew up in an isolated village in the Alps. It was Film at Lincoln Center’s highest-grossing new release opening of 2023 and marks the biggest per screen average of any new European release so far this year.
It’s is also the best opening of an Italian move Stateside since The Great Beauty, said producer Ira Deutchman. The Fine Line Features founder and Columbia prof is the head of Cinema Made In Italy, a initiative sponsored by Cinecitta’ that contributes P&a funds to Italian films for U.
The Cannes co-Jury Prize-winning film by Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeesch follows the profound friendship over decades of Pietro (Luca Marinelli) from Turin, and Bruno (Alessandro Borghi), who grew up in an isolated village in the Alps. It was Film at Lincoln Center’s highest-grossing new release opening of 2023 and marks the biggest per screen average of any new European release so far this year.
It’s is also the best opening of an Italian move Stateside since The Great Beauty, said producer Ira Deutchman. The Fine Line Features founder and Columbia prof is the head of Cinema Made In Italy, a initiative sponsored by Cinecitta’ that contributes P&a funds to Italian films for U.
- 4/30/2023
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
"To survive, you need to know one more thing: how to fight." IFC Films has revealed an official US trailer for the acclaimed indie drama titled R.M.N., the latest work from acclaimed, award-winning Romanian filmmaker Cristian Mungiu. This premiered in competition at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival last year, and we posted a trailer back then when it initially debuted. One of my least favorite of the fest. An analysis of the driving forces of human behavior when confronted with the unknown, of the way we perceive the other and how we relate to an unsettling future. The director explained the title last year: "Rmn in English is Nmr: Nuclear Magnetic Resonance – basically a brain investigation. Given how the world looks today, I feel we need one." The film stars Marin Grigore, Judith State, and Macrina Bârlădeanu. Described as a "gripping portrait of ethnic and economic resentments tearing at the fabric of a small mountain town.
- 3/22/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
"The very thing that we fear... is what may save us." Yes, indeed, listen to Oliver. He did his research on this, he knows what's good. Abramorama has unveiled the official trailer for a documentary titled Nuclear Now, the latest feature made by prolific director Oliver Stone. This premiered at the 2022 Venice Film Festival last year, where I first saw it and wrote a glowing review of it. A vitally important film for our times, this is more of Stone's urgent climate change documentary than anything else. He addresses the problems, the propaganda, the people, and dives into the most appropriate solution for the moment - atomic energy, or nuclear power. Instead of shutting down and demolishing nuclear plants, we should be building more because yes - nuclear power is the only immediate solution to turn off all of the goal & gas plants while still producing enough power to maintain the worldwide demand for electricity.
- 3/21/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
The towering voice of film director Oliver Stone opens the trailer of Nuclear Now with the words: “We may have come to a point in time when Earth is asking us: ‘Do you know what you’re doing?'”
It’s a valid question Mother Earth may have as the climate crisis continues unresolved, worsening as time passes. Stone’s new documentary film, out April 28, aims to present a possible solution to it all, although it might make many people afraid: What if we used nuclear energy?
On Tuesday, Abramorama...
It’s a valid question Mother Earth may have as the climate crisis continues unresolved, worsening as time passes. Stone’s new documentary film, out April 28, aims to present a possible solution to it all, although it might make many people afraid: What if we used nuclear energy?
On Tuesday, Abramorama...
- 3/21/2023
- by Tomás Mier
- Rollingstone.com
“We may come to a point and time when Earth is asking us, “do you know what you are doing?’” That’s one of the lines of the voiceover in Oliver Stone’s new documentary, “Nuclear Now.” Has Stone gone off the reservation in recent years, seemingly backing Vladimir Putin, defending Harvey Weinstein, and coming up with all kinds of controversial ideas and statements? Well, maybe, but maybe more true to form—as he’s constantly challenged conventional wisdom— Stone seems to ask us to rethink what we assume are foundational truths.
Continue reading ‘Nuclear Now’ Trailer: Oliver Stone Wants To Fight Climate Change With Nuclear Power at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘Nuclear Now’ Trailer: Oliver Stone Wants To Fight Climate Change With Nuclear Power at The Playlist.
- 3/21/2023
- by Edward Davis
- The Playlist
Oliver Stone’s new film is once again taking a provocative stance on a hot-button issue, this time tackling climate change.
His upcoming documentary Nuclear Now (trailer below) makes the case that nuclear energy is the best solution to meet global energy needs. The film — previously titled Nuclear — premiered at the Venice Film Festival last year. Its messaging has received praise from critics, though the film’s execution has been chided for being very drab, which is rather uncharacteristic for Stone.
“We’ve run out of time to be afraid,” Stone says in the trailer. “We’ve been trained from the very beginning to fear nuclear power. The very thing that we fear is what may save us.”
The film – which was written by Oliver Stone and Joshua S. Goldstein – has been called a follow-up or counterweight of sorts to Al Gore’s 2006 Oscar-winning climate change clarion call, An Inconvenient Truth.
His upcoming documentary Nuclear Now (trailer below) makes the case that nuclear energy is the best solution to meet global energy needs. The film — previously titled Nuclear — premiered at the Venice Film Festival last year. Its messaging has received praise from critics, though the film’s execution has been chided for being very drab, which is rather uncharacteristic for Stone.
“We’ve run out of time to be afraid,” Stone says in the trailer. “We’ve been trained from the very beginning to fear nuclear power. The very thing that we fear is what may save us.”
The film – which was written by Oliver Stone and Joshua S. Goldstein – has been called a follow-up or counterweight of sorts to Al Gore’s 2006 Oscar-winning climate change clarion call, An Inconvenient Truth.
- 3/21/2023
- by James Hibberd
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Updating previous exclusive with trailer: Watch the first trailer Nuclear Now, the pro-nuclear energy documentary from three-time Academy Award winner Oliver Stone. Abramorama and Giant Pictures on March 3 acquired North American rights to the pic, which premiered (as Nuclear) at last year’s Venice Film Festival.
Abramorama will open the film theatrically in New York, Los Angeles, and select markets beginning April 28, bringing it to theaters across the U.S. and Canada on its “Nuclear Now Day” of May 1st, with Giant Pictures then bringing it to digital and streaming platforms.
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The film that Stone wrote with professor & Ph.
Abramorama will open the film theatrically in New York, Los Angeles, and select markets beginning April 28, bringing it to theaters across the U.S. and Canada on its “Nuclear Now Day” of May 1st, with Giant Pictures then bringing it to digital and streaming platforms.
Related Story ‘Ernest & Celestine: A Trip To Gibberitia’ Acquired By Gkids Related Story Oscar-Nominated Director Simon Lereng Wilmont On Working With Ukrainian Kids In 'A House Made Of Splinters': It's All About Understanding "Their Hopes, Dreams, Fears" Related Story Giant Pictures Takes U.S. Theatrical, VOD Rights To Oscar-Nominated Documentary 'A House Made Of Splinters'
The film that Stone wrote with professor & Ph.
- 3/21/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
As it continues ramping up its premium docu slate, Mediawan has boarded “Sobibor – Escape from History,” a four-part documentary which is being developed by leading Dutch banner Submarine (“Last Hijack”).
In the documentary series, the infamous death camp will be portrayed through the eyes of the rebels and survivors. It will tell the epic true story of a group of Jewish prisoners who managed to escape from inside the living hell of a Nazi concentration camp and attempt to rebuild their lives. Some seeked retribution, others redemption. Their children struggle to this day in different ways with the trauma of their parents. The series also follows two surviving relatives, a daughter and a niece who return to Poland, to their ancestral villages where their relatives were banished.
Sobibor was one of the most gruesome Nazi extermination camps in WW2 in Poland. And yet, on October 14, 1943, a group of Jewish prisoners...
In the documentary series, the infamous death camp will be portrayed through the eyes of the rebels and survivors. It will tell the epic true story of a group of Jewish prisoners who managed to escape from inside the living hell of a Nazi concentration camp and attempt to rebuild their lives. Some seeked retribution, others redemption. Their children struggle to this day in different ways with the trauma of their parents. The series also follows two surviving relatives, a daughter and a niece who return to Poland, to their ancestral villages where their relatives were banished.
Sobibor was one of the most gruesome Nazi extermination camps in WW2 in Poland. And yet, on October 14, 1943, a group of Jewish prisoners...
- 3/20/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: XYZ Films has claimed North American rights to the sci-fi pic The Artifice Girl, starring Tatum Matthews (The Waltons: Homecoming) and Lance Henriksen (Aliens), which this past weekend had its U.S. premiere at SXSW after world premiering to critical acclaim at Fantasia Film Festival.
The film marking the feature debut of writer-director Franklin Ritch — which like Uni’s horror hit M3GAN, looks at the increasingly top-of-mind subject of AI through a genre prism — is slated for a theatrical release in 15+ U.S. Markets, as well as an accompanying digital debut this spring.
Related Story Oliver Stone Documentary ‘Nuclear Now’ Acquired By Abramorama, Giant Pictures Related Story Netflix Hops On 'Run Rabbit Run', Acquires XYZ Films Sundance Midnight Title Starring Sarah Snook Related Story Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead's Rustic Films Teams With V Channels & XYZ On Genre Slate
The Artifice Girl follows a small team of...
The film marking the feature debut of writer-director Franklin Ritch — which like Uni’s horror hit M3GAN, looks at the increasingly top-of-mind subject of AI through a genre prism — is slated for a theatrical release in 15+ U.S. Markets, as well as an accompanying digital debut this spring.
Related Story Oliver Stone Documentary ‘Nuclear Now’ Acquired By Abramorama, Giant Pictures Related Story Netflix Hops On 'Run Rabbit Run', Acquires XYZ Films Sundance Midnight Title Starring Sarah Snook Related Story Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead's Rustic Films Teams With V Channels & XYZ On Genre Slate
The Artifice Girl follows a small team of...
- 3/14/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Entertainment Squad has picked up North American rights to the critically acclaimed coming-of-age comedy Cherry, which won an Audience Award at SXSW last year upon its bow in the Online Premieres section. The film directed by Sophie Galibert and starring Alexandria Trewhitt (From Scratch) is slated for release in theaters this spring.
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Written by Galibert, Arthur Cohen and Anne-Claire Jaulin, Cherry follows a young woman (Trewhitt) who has 24 hours to make the most important decision of her life: whether or not to keep an unplanned pregnancy.
Shincy Lu, Galibert, Phillipe Gompel and Cohen produced the pic, which also stars Hannah Alline (Doom Patrol) and Angela Nicholas (Deadwood).
Entertainment Squad...
Related Story Oliver Stone Documentary ‘Nuclear Now’ Acquired By Abramorama, Giant Pictures Related Story Saudi Arabia's Film AlUla Begins Construction On Large Studio Complex Related Story 'Motherly' Lands U.S. Deal With Entertainment Squad Ahead Of Fright Fest London Bow
Written by Galibert, Arthur Cohen and Anne-Claire Jaulin, Cherry follows a young woman (Trewhitt) who has 24 hours to make the most important decision of her life: whether or not to keep an unplanned pregnancy.
Shincy Lu, Galibert, Phillipe Gompel and Cohen produced the pic, which also stars Hannah Alline (Doom Patrol) and Angela Nicholas (Deadwood).
Entertainment Squad...
- 3/7/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
In “Nuclear Now,” his intensely compelling, must-see documentary, Oliver Stone makes the vital and historical case that nuclear power has been the victim of a perception/reality conundrum, one that is now in the process of being overturned. The perception is that nuclear power is dangerous: too dangerous to be an essential component of providing our energy needs. The reality, argues Stone, is that nuclear power is clean, abundant, and safe, and that the ominous fact of our energy crisis — the looming catastrophe of climate change, the hopeful but stubbornly incremental growth of renewables like wind and solar — is too urgent for nuclear power not to be an essential component of providing our energy needs.
Those are the two sides of the debate, and they’ve been entrenched for so long that it’s hard, at a glance, to see much possibility for change. But that’s where a documentary...
Those are the two sides of the debate, and they’ve been entrenched for so long that it’s hard, at a glance, to see much possibility for change. But that’s where a documentary...
- 10/11/2022
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
For years, Oliver Stone was one of cinema’s most dynamic stylists, a director so visually pugnacious that he made Kevin Costner repeating “Back and to the left” in a cornball Louisiana accent something aesthetically gripping.
It’s head-scratching to now watch Stone’s new documentary Nuclear and ponder how he has somehow made a film about the end of the world that’s so drab it makes An Inconvenient Truth look like an artistic phantasmagoria.
That I probably agree with most of Stone’s points about the need to destigmatize nuclear power isn’t exactly secondary; most people’s responses to documentaries have absolutely nothing to do with filmmaking and absolutely everything to do with whether or not they endorse the ideology or thesis espoused. So if Nuclear galvanizes a handful of people and even convinces a few more around nuclear power issues,...
For years, Oliver Stone was one of cinema’s most dynamic stylists, a director so visually pugnacious that he made Kevin Costner repeating “Back and to the left” in a cornball Louisiana accent something aesthetically gripping.
It’s head-scratching to now watch Stone’s new documentary Nuclear and ponder how he has somehow made a film about the end of the world that’s so drab it makes An Inconvenient Truth look like an artistic phantasmagoria.
That I probably agree with most of Stone’s points about the need to destigmatize nuclear power isn’t exactly secondary; most people’s responses to documentaries have absolutely nothing to do with filmmaking and absolutely everything to do with whether or not they endorse the ideology or thesis espoused. So if Nuclear galvanizes a handful of people and even convinces a few more around nuclear power issues,...
- 9/13/2022
- by Daniel Fienberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Looking dapper in a blue blazer, Oliver Stone is chit-chatting with the press inside a glass box on the terrace of an antiquated hotel on the Venice Lido. He’s been posing for a few photos and doing rounds of interviews during this afternoon of rain that has somewhat dampened the festival glamor. Still, his presence has been felt on the terrace. He’s a stately figure. A big name is in town.
When the doors are closed to the glass box, no sound comes from the commotion outside on the terrace where Berlusconi babes and tired-looking journalists mill about.
Continue reading Oliver Stone Talks ‘Nuclear’ And Hollywood’s Misguided Love Of Disaster Movies [Interview] at The Playlist.
When the doors are closed to the glass box, no sound comes from the commotion outside on the terrace where Berlusconi babes and tired-looking journalists mill about.
Continue reading Oliver Stone Talks ‘Nuclear’ And Hollywood’s Misguided Love Of Disaster Movies [Interview] at The Playlist.
- 9/11/2022
- by Liza Foreman
- The Playlist
The most important question of our times is: how do we solve climate change? It's a tough one to answer. How do we stop destroying our planet, how do we transition to better / safer energy without using fossil fuels anymore? Can society actually transition smoothly? What can we do as an individual to help? Everyone seems to be thinking about this and one person who has been thinking about it quite intently is filmmaker Oliver Stone. Stone has stepped back from making narrative features, but is still making documentaries as he gets older. His latest doc film is called Nuclear, and it just premiered at the 2022 Venice Film Festival as an important climate change feature at the end of the fest. Half of the film is about global warming and how we let this happen and what's going on with the world. The other half offers a viable answer: nuclear power.
- 9/11/2022
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Click here to read the full article.
In the film business, as in politics, timing is everything. And the timing of Nuclear, Oliver Stone’s new documentary, could hardly be worse.
The doc, which premiered out of competition at the Venice Film Festival on Friday, Sept. 9 and is being sold worldwide by the Gersh Agency, is a plea for world powers to invest heavily in nuclear power as the only realistic alternative to fossil fuels in the fight against climate change. It’s a thoughtful and reasoned argument, backed by an array of experts and supported with an encyclopedia’s worth of facts and figures which, thanks to Stone’s skill as an editor and storyteller, don’t weigh down the film’s 105-minute running time.
Too bad, then, that Nuclear debuts just as Russian and Ukraine forces battle it out over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, with daily news coverage of the shelling,...
In the film business, as in politics, timing is everything. And the timing of Nuclear, Oliver Stone’s new documentary, could hardly be worse.
The doc, which premiered out of competition at the Venice Film Festival on Friday, Sept. 9 and is being sold worldwide by the Gersh Agency, is a plea for world powers to invest heavily in nuclear power as the only realistic alternative to fossil fuels in the fight against climate change. It’s a thoughtful and reasoned argument, backed by an array of experts and supported with an encyclopedia’s worth of facts and figures which, thanks to Stone’s skill as an editor and storyteller, don’t weigh down the film’s 105-minute running time.
Too bad, then, that Nuclear debuts just as Russian and Ukraine forces battle it out over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, with daily news coverage of the shelling,...
- 9/11/2022
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Oliver Stone is on a mission to debunk widely held views about nuclear power and its dangers. Continuing with his recent string of documentary projects, the Oscar-winning director’s latest, “Nuclear,” looks towards the future with both urgency and encouraging confidence that human innovation can reverse the effects of climate change.
Two principles dominate this undeniably informative, if didactically conceived nonfiction piece, premiering at the Venice Film Festival: One is the role of fear as a deterrent for progress, while the other explains how the enormous energy of the supernova that created the solar system remains within the planet in the form of uranium. To go nuclear, Stone argues, is to harness nature’s ancient power.
Stone narrates the entire film. His deep and monotone voice, as he explains the concepts related to nuclear power in great depth or provides historical contexts, colors the already dense material with an overly academic tone.
Two principles dominate this undeniably informative, if didactically conceived nonfiction piece, premiering at the Venice Film Festival: One is the role of fear as a deterrent for progress, while the other explains how the enormous energy of the supernova that created the solar system remains within the planet in the form of uranium. To go nuclear, Stone argues, is to harness nature’s ancient power.
Stone narrates the entire film. His deep and monotone voice, as he explains the concepts related to nuclear power in great depth or provides historical contexts, colors the already dense material with an overly academic tone.
- 9/9/2022
- by Carlos Aguilar
- The Wrap
Presenting his latest documentary, “Nuclear,” at the Venice Film Festival, director Oliver Stone reflected on the climate crisis with an uncommon tone – optimism.
“[We need to] get away from that mentality of fear,” Stone said from a press conference just before his film’s world premiere. “Like everyone else, I saw ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ in 2006, and it was scary. I kept reading the news, and it kept getting worse.”
“The movies, television, books [about climate change] are all negative,” he continued. “And I find all that doomsday stuff to be depressing beyond belief.”
The filmmaker looked to address the issue by focusing on action, and by offering scalable and effective solutions. He found them in nuclear energy, and in a 2019 book, “A Bright Future: How Some Countries Have Solved Climate Change and the Rest Can Follow,” written by American University professor Joshua S. Goldstein.
Asked what drew him to the text, Stone was unequivocal. “This book is hopeful,...
“[We need to] get away from that mentality of fear,” Stone said from a press conference just before his film’s world premiere. “Like everyone else, I saw ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ in 2006, and it was scary. I kept reading the news, and it kept getting worse.”
“The movies, television, books [about climate change] are all negative,” he continued. “And I find all that doomsday stuff to be depressing beyond belief.”
The filmmaker looked to address the issue by focusing on action, and by offering scalable and effective solutions. He found them in nuclear energy, and in a 2019 book, “A Bright Future: How Some Countries Have Solved Climate Change and the Rest Can Follow,” written by American University professor Joshua S. Goldstein.
Asked what drew him to the text, Stone was unequivocal. “This book is hopeful,...
- 9/9/2022
- by Ben Croll
- Variety Film + TV
Surprisingly, Nuclear is not one of Oliver Stone’s “devil’s advocate” documentaries, the spate of films he started making in the early 2000s that seemed to troll liberals everywhere by spending time with notorious human-rights abusers such as Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez and Vladimir Putin. In the real world right now, nuclear power is about as toxic as those three men put together, but this intelligent and surprising film is an investigation into how that PR damage came about, which makes it arguably more of a piece with his famous conspiracy thriller JFK than any of those. At nearly two hours, it’s a hard watch, being dominated by Stone’s dense, monotonous voice-over and featuring scientists with next to no screen presence (this explains a lot about Adam McKay’s decision to shoot Don’t Look Up with A-listers). Nevertheless, it puts forward a lot of unexpected proposals about nuclear energy,...
- 9/9/2022
- by Damon Wise
- Deadline Film + TV
Oliver Stone is in Venice this year to debut his latest documentary, Nuclear. Written alongside political scholar Joshua S. Goldstein, the film sets out to re-examine the role nuclear power can play in our lives and makes the case that the energy source is humanity’s only realistic alternative to fossil fuels in the fight against climate change. Deadline sat down with Stone and Goldstein prior to the film’s premiere on the Lido to discuss why the pair decided to link up and how the lengthy production process almost “took the life” out of Stone.
As always, the JFK and Platoon director is candid in his assessment of politics abroad as well as back home, concluding that climate change will be “the killer of all time” and the United States may fall into a civil war over the FBI investigation into former president Donald Trump. Stone also suggests that...
As always, the JFK and Platoon director is candid in his assessment of politics abroad as well as back home, concluding that climate change will be “the killer of all time” and the United States may fall into a civil war over the FBI investigation into former president Donald Trump. Stone also suggests that...
- 9/7/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
High-profile espionage cases in the post-war period often invoke the grisly fate of the Rosenbergs, the first U.S. citizens to be convicted and executed by electric chair for sharing atomic secrets with the Soviet Union in peace time. But in the new documentary “A Compassionate Spy,” filmmaker Steve James tells the incredible story of Manhattan Project scientist Ted Hall, who shared classified nuclear secrets with Russia — and got away with it.
The Participant and Kartemquin Films-produced documentary, which has its world premiere in Venice on Sept. 2, is one of a number of films at this year’s festival that tackle the topic of nuclear disaster: Projects from Noah Baumbach’s feature adaptation of Don DeLillo’s “White Noise” through to Oliver Stone’s on-the-nose documentary “Nuclear” all contemplate some aspect of our nuclear past and future.
“There will be people who will look at what Ted did and say,...
The Participant and Kartemquin Films-produced documentary, which has its world premiere in Venice on Sept. 2, is one of a number of films at this year’s festival that tackle the topic of nuclear disaster: Projects from Noah Baumbach’s feature adaptation of Don DeLillo’s “White Noise” through to Oliver Stone’s on-the-nose documentary “Nuclear” all contemplate some aspect of our nuclear past and future.
“There will be people who will look at what Ted did and say,...
- 9/2/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Laura Poitras’ “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed,” Steve James’ “A Compassionate Spy” and Evgeny Afineevsky’s “Freedom on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom” are among 11 documentaries making their world premieres at the Venice Film Festival this year, with Poitras’ competition title vying for a Golden Lion — a rare feat for a doc at a major international film festival.
The growing number of high-profile non-fiction films in and out of competition at Venice suggests that major European film festivals have finally accepted documentaries as viable, cinematic art.
While docs at the Toronto International Film Festival and major U.S. fests, including Sundance, Telluride and South by Southwest, have long been the belles of the ball, the most prominent international festivals, including Venice, Cannes and Berlin, have been slow to embrace non-fiction content, especially in competition.
“There had been what I would only characterize as an illogical resistance to thinking...
The growing number of high-profile non-fiction films in and out of competition at Venice suggests that major European film festivals have finally accepted documentaries as viable, cinematic art.
While docs at the Toronto International Film Festival and major U.S. fests, including Sundance, Telluride and South by Southwest, have long been the belles of the ball, the most prominent international festivals, including Venice, Cannes and Berlin, have been slow to embrace non-fiction content, especially in competition.
“There had been what I would only characterize as an illogical resistance to thinking...
- 8/30/2022
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
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