The Global Film Village

Lone Scherfig talks about casting Cary Mulligan at the Palm Springs Film Festival

// January 17th, 2010 // Comments Off // People

by Marla Lewin

Since her emergence on the international film scene in 2000 with the surprise hit Italian for Beginners, Lone Scherfig has captivated audiences and critics alike with her ability to master both subtle characterization and unforced plotting.  Her striking new film, An Education, has been a huge success since its first screenings at Sundance, where it won the Audience Award for World Cinema. An Education has gone on to win multiple nominations (including best picture) from the Broadcast Film Critics Awards, the British Independent Film Awards, a Golden Globe nod and Best Actress honors from the National Board of Review.

Lone Scherfig spoke with me on Saturday at the Palm Springs Film Festival, where her film was shown.  She said it has been quite a journey since the Sundance Film Festival last year. We discussed the attention the film and Cary Mulligan received at both the Telluride Film Festival and the Toronto Film Festival.  She said she is very happy for Cary, since she had to spend almost a year auditioning for the role. They were considering a few hundred candidates for this critical role, and Cary kept coming in to read. She had been on the top of Lone’s list from the first reading. (more…)

Last Station Opens Palm Springs Film Festival 2010 Interviews

// January 8th, 2010 // Comments Off // Film Festivals

by Marla Lewin

Left to Right: Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren Photo taken by Stephan Rabold, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

I am at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and got to spend opening night interviewing the creative team responsible for this year’s opening night film. I had already seen The Last Station back in November in Los Angeles for the Tribute to Christopher Plummer so this was a wonderful opportunity to meet with these talented people. My first interview was with Bonnie Arnold the producer who secured the book that launched the project originally and assembled the team.

Marla: You may remember we met at the AFI screening in Los Angeles after the tribute to Christopher Plummer. We wrote about the film at that time and said that Helen would get a nomination for her performance. That was before the Golden Globes and now both she and Christopher Plummer were  nominated. (more…)

Last Station opens Palm Springs Film Festival

// December 17th, 2009 // Comments Off // Film Festivals

by Marla Lewin

Helen Mirren and James McAvoy Photo taken by Stephan Rabold, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

This year marks the 21st year of the 2010 Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF). Today Festival Director Darryl Macdonald said, “Our film line-up this year is a strong reflection of the current zeitgeist in world cinema. Sixty-seven first-time feature film directors will screen this year, representing a surge of new filmmaking talent on the world stage. In addition, we’ll showcase a vintage crop of new works by established masters, providing ample evidence of their storytelling prowess that has come of age over the last 20 years. The yin and yang of contemporary filmmaking are fully represented in this year’s edition of PSIFF.”

The Festival launches on Thursday, January 7 with Sony Pictures Classics’ The Last Station and wraps on Sunday, January 17 with independent comedy The Lightkeepers from New Films International. There are Galas, Premieres, a Modern Masters section and Special Presentation Programs with a total of 189 films from 70 countries will unspool at the Festival, running from January 7-18 in Palm Springs, California. (more…)

Jason Reitman, Jeremy Renner, T Bone Burnett to be honored at 2010 Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala

// December 10th, 2009 // Comments Off // Film Festivals

by Marla Lewin

Three more names have been added to honorees list at the 21st Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival.  Academy Award nominated director Jason Reitman will receive its Director of the Year Award for Up in the Air, Jeremy Renner will receive the Breakthrough Performance Award for The Hurt Locker and T Bone Burnett will receive the Frederick Loewe Award for Film Composing for Crazy Heart. The Awards Gala, presented by Cartier, will kick off the Festival on January 5 at the Palm Springs Convention Center and will be hosted by “Entertainment Tonight’s” Mary Hart. The Festival runs January 5-18, 2010.

Jason Reitman

Up in the Air stars Oscar-winner George Clooney and Anna Kendrick who is also being honored at the gala. The film also stars Vera Farmiga and Jason Bateman.

Reitman was honored by the Festival in 2008 with the Chairman’s Vanguard Award for Juno, which was also presented to the cast and writer Diablo Cody. Juno won three Independent Spirit awards and a Grammy Award. Reitman made his feature film directing debut with the 2006 hit, Thank You For Smoking. The film went on to earn a Golden Globe nomination for Best Picture, an Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay, and a WGA nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Reitman was also named Best Debut Director by the National Board of Review. (more…)