Filmmaker. Fall 04.

Matthew Ross has some very observant things to say about Alexander Payne's work in his long introduction to his conversation with the director. Which, too, touches on thematic content; but since this is Filmmaker, we also get to listen in on discussion of essential practical matters. For example: "But the key is - and I always tell this to other filmmakers - always write on spec. And keep control of your material as long as humanly possible."

Peter Bowen talks to Mike Leigh: "I think that postwar Britain was at once a very familiar world and a very alien one." And of course, he talks about his unique method of creating the world of a film with his actors.

Stephen Garrett's interview is with David Gordon Green, whose first words about Undertow are, "It's the shittiest, dirtiest movie." He's talking, naturally, about the deep southern grit of the film and only in the most literal sense.

And then there's a terrific reprint from Killed: Great Journalism Too Hot to Print, a piece by Terry Southern on Stanley Kubrick and the making of Dr Strangelove which Esquire rejected because it wasn't gonzo or gossipy enough. Nile Southern, Terry's son, has a spot-on introduction and quotes Terry Southern's reply to the editors: "I have obviously failed to persuade you as to the phenomenal nature of the film itself - i.e., that it is categorically different from any film yet made, and that it will probably have a stronger impact in America than any single film, play, or book in our memory."

Columns and reports:

• Once again, Mary Glucksman checks in on half a dozen genuine independent projects going on at various spots in the country.
• Graham Leggat on games and the movies: "The two industries are converging and there's no turning back." Special focus: Advent Rising.
• Anne Thompson: "Landmark is the country's largest art-house theater circuit, with 204 screens in 57 theaters in 21 markets. But its vital role as the only national circuit that supports independents is under duress."
• A single long string of festival reports: Toronto, Telluride, Karlovy Vary and CineVegas.

• Shari Roman on Sarah Morris's Los Angeles, a short film that "reveals a vast small town, a hermetic bubble of self-congratulatory adoration, glamorously adorned as the epicenter of exponential narcissism."
• Andy Bailey on Damon Wayans's Behind the Smile, "a small, independently financed character drama about the trappings of fame."
• Todd Longwell on the rise of events such as the 48 Hour Film Project and Cinemasports, "the Iron Chef of filmmaking," as it bills itself at its site, where you can dip into a few samples.

Posted by dwhudson at October 15, 2004 1:50 PM