‘The Woman in Black’
Director:James Watkins
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Janet McTeer, Ciarán Hinds, Emma Shorey
Synopsis: A young lawyer travels to a remote village where he discovers the vengeful ghost of a scorned woman is terrorizing the locals.

On-Set Featurette | Trailer | Official Website

‘Chronicle’
Director: Josh Trank
Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Michael Kelly, Alex Russell
Synopsis: Three high school friends gain superpowers after making an incredible discovery. Soon, though, they find their lives spinning out of control and their bond tested as they embrace their darker sides.

Trailer | Facebook

‘Big Miracle’
Director: Ken Kwapis
Cast: Drew Barrymore, John Krasinski, John Pingayak
Synopsis: In small town Alaska, a news reporter recruits his ex-girlfriend – a Greenpeace volunteer – on a campaign to save a family of gray whales trapped by rapidly forming ice in the Arctic Circle.

On-Set Featurette | Trailer | Official Website

‘The Innkeepers’
Director: Ti West
Cast: Sara Paxton, Pat Healy, Kelly McGillis, Alison Bartlett
Synopsis: During the final days at the Yankee Pedlar Inn, two employees determined to reveal the hotel’s haunted past begin to experience disturbing events as old guests check in for a stay.

Trailer | Official Website

‘Kill List’ (LIMITED)
Director: Ben Wheatley
Cast: Neil Maskell, MyAnna Buring, Harry Simpson, Michael Smiley
Synopsis: Nearly a year after a botched job, a hitman takes a new assignment with the promise of a big payoff for three killings. What starts off as an easy task soon unravels, sending the killer into the heart of darkness.

‘W.E.’ (LIMITED)
Director: Madonna
Cast: Abbie Cornish, James D’Arcy, Andrea Riseborough, Oscar Isaac
Synopsis: A two-tiered romantic drama focusing on the affair between King Edward VIII and American divorcée Wallis Simpson and a contemporary romance between a married woman and a Russian security guard.

Source: IMDb

SXSW has just announced their full 2012 film slate, including ’21 Jump Street,’ ‘The Raid’ (which made a huge splash at TIFF last year and Sundance just a few weeks ago), and so much more. Check out the lineup below!

The 2012 SXSW Film Festival will feature:

NARRATIVE FEATURE COMPETITION

This year’s 8 films were selected from 1,112 submissions. Each film is a World Premiere. Films screening in Narrative Feature Competition are:

Booster

Director/Screenwriter: Matt Ruskin

When Simon’s brother is arrested for armed robbery, he is asked to commit a string of similar crimes in an attempt to get his brother acquitted.

Cast: Nico Stone, Adam DuPaul, Seymour Cassel, Kristin Dougherty, Brian McGrail (World Premiere)

Eden

Director: Megan Griffiths, Screenwriters: Richard B. Phillips, Megan Griffiths, Story by: Richard B. Phillips & Chong Kim

A young Korean-American girl, abducted and forced into prostitution by domestic human traffickers, joins forces with her captors in a desperate plea to survive. Cast: Jamie Chung, Matt O’Leary, Beau Bridges, Jeanine Monterroza, Scott Mechlowicz (World Premiere)

Gayby

Director/Screenwriter: Jonathan Lisecki

Jenn and Matt, best friends since college who are now in their thirties, decide to have a child together, the old-fashioned way – even though Matt is gay and Jenn is straight. Cast: Jenn Harris, Matthew Wilkas, Mike Doyle, Anna Margaret Hollyman, Jack Ferver (World Premiere)

Gimme the Loot

Director/Screenwriter: Adam Leon

When Malcolm and Sofia’s latest graffiti masterpiece is buffed by a rival gang, these two determined Bronx teens must hustle, steal, and scheme to get spectacular revenge and become the biggest writers in the City. Cast: Tashiana Washington, Ty Hickson, Meeko, Zoe Lescaze, Sam Soghor

(World Premiere)

Los Chidos (Germany / Mexico / USA)

Director/Screenwriter: Omar Rodriguez Lopez

The Gonzales family tries hard to hold on to their beautiful Latino traditions of misogyny and homophobia when a tall, white, industrialist stranger appears, challenging their place in the exploitative food chain. Cast: Kim Stodel, María De Jesús Canales Ramírez, Manuel Ramos, Cecillia Gutiérrez, (World Premiere)

Pilgrim Song

Director: Martha Stephens, Screenwriters: Martha Stephens, Karrie Crouse

A pink-slipped music teacher ponders his stalled relationship and place in the world during an arduous trek across Kentucky’s Sheltowee Trace Trail. Cast: Timothy Morton, Bryan Marshall, Karrie Crouse, Harrison Cole, Michael Abbott Jr. (World Premiere)

Starlet

Director: Sean Baker, Screenwriters: Sean Baker, Chris Bergoch

The film explores the unlikely friendship between 21-year-old Jane (Dree Hemingway), and 85 year-old Sadie (Besedka Johnson), two women whose worlds collide in California’s San Fernando Valley.

Cast: Dree Hemingway, Besedka Johnson, Stella Maeve, James Ransone, Karren Karagulian

(World Premiere)

The Taiwan Oyster

Director: Mark Jarrett, Screenwriters: Mark Jarrett, Jordan Heimer, Mitchell Jarrett

Two Ex-Pat Kindergarten teachers in Taiwan embark on a quixotic odyssey to bury a fellow countryman. Cast: Billy Harvey, Jeff Palmiotti, Leonora Lim (World Premiere)

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION

This year’s 8 films were selected from 845 submissions. Each film is a World Premiere.

Films screening in Documentary Feature Competition are:

Bay of All Saints

Director: Annie Eastman

As the last of the notorious water slums is demolished in Bahia, Brazil, will three single mothers face homelessness or rally for a better life? (World Premiere)

Beware of Mr. Baker

Director: Jay Bulger

Ginger Baker is the original rock ‘n roll madman junkie drummer superstar who everyone thought was dead but somehow survived 50+ years of heroin abuse, disastrous experiments and 5 marriages on 4 continents. (World Premiere)

The Central Park Effect

Director: Jeffrey Kimball

The film reveals the extraordinary array of wild birds who grace Manhattan’s celebrated patch of green, and the equally colorful, full-of-attitude New Yorkers who schedule their lives around the rhythms of migration. (World Premiere)

Jeff

Director: Chris James Thompson

A documentary about the people around Jeffrey Dahmer during the 1991 summer of his arrest for the murder of 17 people in Milwaukee. (World Premiere)

Seeking Asian Female

Director: Debbie Lum

When an American man with “yellow fever” meets a Chinese woman half his age online, documenting their attempt to build a marriage from scratch reveals hilarious and troubling complications for the couple and the filmmaker. (World Premiere)

The Sheik and I

Director: Caveh Zahedi

Commissioned by a Middle Eastern Biennial to make a film on the theme of “art as a subversive act,” independent filmmaker Caveh Zahedi (I am a Sex Addict) is threatened with a fatwa. (World Premiere)

The Source

Directors: Jodi Wille, Maria Demopoulos

The Source Family was a radical experiment in ’70s utopian living. Their popular restaurant, rock band, and beautiful women made them the darlings of Hollywood; but their outsider ideals led to their dramatic undoing. (World Premiere)

Welcome To The Machine

Director: Avi Zev Weider

Upon fathering triplets, filmmaker Avi Zev Weider explores the nature of technology, seeking answers about what it means to be human. (World Premiere)

HEADLINERS

Big names, big talent:  Headliners bring star power to SXSW, featuring red carpet premieres and gala film events with some major and rising names in cinema.

Films screening in Headliners are:

21 Jump Street

Directed by: Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, Screenplay by: Michael Bacall, Story by: Michael Bacall & Jonah Hill

Police officers Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) get sent back to high school as undercover cops in the action-comedy 21 Jump Street. Cast: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Brie Larson, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, with Ice Cube (World Premiere)

BIG EASY EXPRESS

Director: Emmett Malloy

Emmett Malloy’s latest film invites us aboard a train ride unlike any other with Mumford & Sons, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros and Old Crow Medicine Show.

(World Premiere)

The Cabin in the Woods

Director: Drew Goddard, Screenwriters: Joss Whedon & Drew Goddard

Five friends go to a remote cabin in the woods. Bad things happen. If you think you know this story, think again.  From fan favorites Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard comes The Cabin in the Woods, a mind-blowing horror film that turns the genre inside out. Cast: Kristen Connolly, Fran Kranz, Anna Hutchison, Chris Hemsworth, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins, and Bradley Whitford (World Premiere)

Decoding Deepak

Director: Gotham Chopra

Filmmaker Gotham Chopra spends a year on the road decoding his father and spiritual icon Deepak Chopra. (World Premiere)

Girls

Director/Screenwriter: Lena Dunham

Created by and starring Lena Dunham (Tiny Furniture), the HBO show is a comic look at the assorted humiliations and rare triumphs of a group of girls in their early 20s.

Cast: Lena Dunham, Allison Williams, Jemima Kirke, Zosia Mamet, Adam Driver (World Premiere)

The Hunter (Australia)

Director: Daniel Nettheim, Screenplay by: Alice Addison, Novel by: Julia Leigh, Original Adaptation by: Wain Fimeri

A mercenary is dispatched from Europe to the Tasmanian wilderness by a mysterious biotech company to search for the last surviving Tasmanian tiger.

Cast: Willem Dafoe, Frances O’Connor, Sam Neill (U.S. Premiere)

Killer Joe

Director: William Friedkin, Screenwriter: Tracy Letts

A garish, Southwestern tale – a violent black comedy about a desperate Texas debtor (Hirsch) who plots to kill his mother with help of his family (Haden Church, Gershon).  They hire a crazy Dallas cop who moonlights as a contract killer (McConaughey) to do the job, but Killer Joe asks for their teenage daughter (Temple) as a retainer. The film is based on Pulitzer Prize winner Tracy Letts’ (August: Osage County) award winning play. Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Gina Gershon, Juno Temple, Thomas Haden Church (U.S. Premiere)

MARLEY (UK / USA)

Director: Kevin Macdonald

The definitive life story of Bob Marley – musician, revolutionary, legend – from his early days to his rise to international superstardom. Made with the support of the Marley family, the film features rare footage, incredible performances and revelatory interviews with the people that knew him best. Directed by Academy-Award-Winner Kevin Macdonald. (North American Premiere)

NARRATIVE SPOTLIGHT

High profile narrative features receiving their World, North American or U.S. Premieres at SXSW.

Films screening in Narrative Spotlight are:

The Babymakers

Director: Jay Chandrasekhar, Screenwriters: Peter Gaulke, Gerry Swallow

Unable to impregnate his wife, Tommy and friends rob a sperm bank – to get Tommy’s long-ago donated sperm back. The crazy plan goes hilariously awry and shows how far a couple will go to create a new life.

Cast: Paul Schneider, Olivia Munn, Kevin Heffernan, Wood Harris, Nat Faxon (World Premiere)

Crazy Eyes

Director: Adam Sherman, Screenwriters: Adam Sherman, Dave Reeves & Rachel Hardisty

Just another story about love.

Cast: Lukas Haas, Madeline Zima, Jake Busey, Tania Raymonde, Regine Nehy (World Premiere)

Do-Deca-Pentathalon

Director/Screenwriter: Jay Duplass, Mark Duplass

Two brothers compete in their own private 25-event Olympics.

Cast: Mark Kelly, Steve Zissis, Elton LeBlanc (World Premiere)

Fat Kid Rules The World

Director: Matthew Lillard, Screenwriters: Michael M.B. Galvin, Peter Speakman

Troy, a depressed overweight teenager, gets sucked into the punk rock world by Marcus, a charming street musician. But when Troy discovers Marcus’ drug addiction, he suddenly must figure out the true boundaries of friendship.

Cast: Jacob Wysocki, Matt O’Leary, Billy Campbell, Lilli Simmons, Dylan Arnold (World Premiere)

frankie go boom

Director/Screenwriter: Jordan Roberts

a flick by bruce about his little brother frank who’s a crybaby fuck who shouldn’t do lame-ass embarrassing shit if he dozn’t want people 2 see it

Cast: Charlie Hunnam, Chris O’Dowd, Lizzy Caplan, Ron Perlman, Chris Noth (World Premiere)

Hunky Dory (UK)

Director: Marc Evans, Screenwriter: Laurence Coriat

From the producer of Billy Elliot comes this funny, coming of age film featuring songs from artists such as David Bowie, Lou Reed, The Beach Boys, Simon and Garfunkel, Dusty Springfield and Electric Light Orchestra. Cast: Minnie Driver, Aneurin Barnard, Danielle Branch, Robert Pugh, Haydn Gwynne

(North American Premiere)

In Our Nature

Director/Screenwriter: Brian Savelson

Taking place over a single weekend, an estranged father and son accidentally end up in the same country house with their two girlfriends.

Cast: Zach Gilford, Jena Malone, John Slattery, Gabrielle Union (World Premiere)

Keyhole (Canada)

Director: Guy Maddin, Screenwriters: Guy Maddin, George Toles

I’m only a ghost… but a ghost isn’t nothing.

Cast: Isabella Rossellini, Jason Patric, Udo Kier, Kevin McDonald, Tattiawna Jones (U.S. Premiere)

See Girl Run

Director/Screenwriter: Nate Meyer

What happens when a 30-something woman allows life’s “what ifs” to overwhelm her appreciation for what life actually is. Disregarding her current obligations, she digs into her romantic past in hopes of invigorating her present.

Cast: Robin Tunney, Adam Scott, Jeremy Strong, William Sadler, Josh Hamilton (World Premiere)

Small Apartments

Director: Jonas Åkerlund, Screenwriter: Chris Millis

When Franklin Franklin accidentally kills his landlord, he must hide the body; but, the wisdom of his beloved brother and the quirks of his neighbors, force him on a journey where a fortune awaits him. Cast: Matt Lucas, Billy Crystal, James Caan, Johnny Knoxville, Juno Temple (World Premiere)

Somebody Up There Likes Me

Director/Screenwriter: Bob Byington

Time flies for everyone:  Thirty-five years in the life of Max, his best friend Sal, and a woman they both adore.  A deadpan fable about time sneaking up on and swerving right around us.

Cast: Keith Poulson, Nick Offerman, Jess Weixler, Stephanie Hunt, Kevin Corrigan (World Premiere)

DOCUMENTARY SPOTLIGHT

Shining a light on new documentary features receiving their World, North American or U.S. Premieres at SXSW.

Films screening in Documentary Spotlight are:

$ELLEBRITY

Director: Kevin Mazur

Renowned celebrity photographer, Kevin Mazur, gives us an all access pass to the life behind the velvet rope and in front of the camera.  Candid, revealing and bold interviews with Jennifer Aniston, Sarah Jessica Parker, Jennifer Lopez, Elton John and more, take us inside the blurred lines of privacy, pliable journalism, celebrity, fame and what it feels like to be consumed. (World Premiere)

America’s Parking Lot

Director: Jonny Mars

Pull up a front row seat as two die-hard fans of ‘America’s Team’ spend their last season with the Dallas Cowboys at historic Texas Stadium, and scramble to preserve their place in America’s Parking Lot. (World Premiere)

The Announcement

Director: Nelson George

On Thursday, November 7, 1991, Earvin “Magic” Johnson made the stunning announcement that he was HIV-positive and would be retiring from basketball immediately. The Announcement gets to the core of Magic’s incredible personal journey. (World Premiere)

Beauty Is Embarrassing

Director: Neil Berkeley

A funny, irreverent and inspirational look into the life and times of one of America’s most important artists, Wayne White. (World Premiere)

Brooklyn Castle

Director: Katie Dellamaggiore

Amidst financial crises and unprecedented public school budget cuts, Brooklyn Castle takes an intimate look at the challenges and triumphs facing members of a junior high school’s champion chess team. (World Premiere)

Code of the West

Director: Rebecca Richman Cohen

Frames a high stakes showdown in the halls of the Montana State Legislature.  The future of medical marijuana is at stake. (World Premiere)

Degenerate Art: The Art and Culture of Glass Pipes.

Director: M. Slinger

A true document of the art and culture of glass pipe-making. It is the first film to ever bring to light this invisible sub-culture in a comprehensive and well-informed format. (World Premiere)

Girl Model

Directors: A. Sabin, David Redmon

Young Russian girls join a modeling agency to seek work in Japan, but get caught up in an unregulated system that reveals an unseemly side of the fashion industry. (U.S. Premiere)

Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters

Director: Ben Shapiro

Acclaimed photographer Gregory Crewdson’s 10-year quest to create a series of haunting, surreal, and stunningly elaborate portraits of small-town American life — filmed with unprecedented access as he makes perfect renderings of a disturbing, imperfect world. (World Premiere)

Just Like Being There

Director: Scout Shannon

Through the eyes of Daniel Danger, Jay Ryan, and the gig poster community, Just Like Being There focuses on poster artists, the music they commemorate, MONDO film posters, fans, bloggers, galleries, collectors and everything in between. (World Premiere)

Scarlet Road (Australia)

Director: Catherine Scott

The film follows the extraordinary work of Australian sex worker, Rachel Wotton. Impassioned about freedom of sexual expression and the rights of sex workers, she specializes in a long over-looked clientele – people with disability. (North American Premiere)

Trash Dance

Director: Andrew Garrison

A choreographer finds beauty and grace in garbage trucks, and against the odds, rallies reluctant city trash collectors to perform an extraordinary dance spectacle. On an abandoned airport runway, two dozen sanitation workers — and their trucks — inspire an audience of thousands. (World Premiere)

Waiting For Lightning

Director: Jacob Rosenberg

From the producers of Step into Liquid, comes the story of visionary skateboarder Danny Way, who jumped China’s Great Wall and created a new movement in sport. (World Premiere)

Wikileaks: Secrets & Lies (UK)

Director: Patrick Forbes

The in-depth story of Wikileaks told by all the key players. Sulphurous, personal and moving, it documents history in the making at the lawless frontier of new technology and mainstream media. (North American Premiere)

WONDER WOMEN! The Untold Story of American Superheroines

Director: Kristy Guevara-Flanagan

This documentary examines the fascinating evolution and legacy of Wonder Woman and introduces audiences to a dynamic group of real life superheroes who continue to fight the good fight both on and off the screen. (World Premiere)

EMERGING VISIONS

Audacious, risk-taking artists in the new cinema landscape that demonstrate raw innovation and creativity in documentary and narrative filmmaking.

Films screening in Emerging Visions are:

Black Pond (UK)

Directors: Tom Kingsley, Will Sharpe, Screenwriter: Will Sharpe

An ordinary family is accused of murder when a stranger dies at their dinner table. Stars BAFTA-winner Chris Langham and British Comedy Award Winner Simon Amstell. Cast: Chris Langham, Simon Amstell, Amanda Hadingue, Colin Hurley, Will Sharpe (North American Premiere)

Dollhouse (Ireland)

Director/Screenwriter: Kirsten Sheridan

Five street teens break into a house in a rich Dublin suburb for a night of partying. But games are twisted into something more emotional and ultimately out of control through a series of surprising revelations. Cast: Seana Kerslake, Johnny Ward, Kate Stanley Brennan, Shane Curry, Ciaran McCabe (North American Premiere)

Eating Alabama

Director: Andrew Beck Grace

A quest to eat locally becomes a meditation on community, the South and sustainability. Eating Alabama is a story about why food matters. (World Premiere)

Electrick Children

Director/Screenwriter: Rebecca Thomas

Rachel, a 15-year-old fundamentalist Mormon, believes she’s had an immaculate conception by listening to rock and roll. She flees to Las Vegas to escape an arranged marriage, seeking answers to her mysterious pregnancy.

Cast: Julia Garner, Rory Culkin, Liam Aiken, Billy Zane (North American Premiere)

Extracted

Director/Screenwriter: Nir Paniry

A scientist is trapped in the memories of a criminal and must solve a crime in order to get back home to his family.

Cast: Sasha Roiz, Dominic Bogart, Jenny Mollen, Nick Jameson, Brad Culver (World Premiere)

Francine (Canada / USA)

Director/Screenwriter: Brian M. Cassidy, Melanie Shatzky

Academy-Award-winner, Melissa Leo, plays Francine, a woman struggling to find her place in a downtrodden lakeside town after leaving behind a life in prison.

Cast: Melissa Leo, Keith Leonard, Victoria Charkut (North American Premiere)

Funeral Kings

Director/Screenwriter: Kevin Mcmanus, Matthew Mcmanus

For three 14-year-old boys at St. Mark’s Middle School, it’s always a good day for a funeral.

Cast: Dylan Hartigan, Alex Maizus, Jordan Puzzo, Charles Odei, Kevin Corrigan (World Premiere)

Hard Labor (Brazil)

Director/Screenwriter: Juliana Rojas, Marco Dutra

Helena prepares to open her own business: a neighborhood grocery store. She hires a maid. But when her husband Octavio is suddenly fired from his job, Helena is left to support the family alone.

Cast: Helena Albergaria, Marat Descartes, Naloana Lima, Marina Flores (U.S. Premiere)

La Camioneta – The Journey of One American School Bus

Director: Mark Kendall

On a 3,000-mile adventure across the borders between the Americas, La Camioneta follows the journey of one out-of-service American school bus as it is repaired, repainted and resurrected into a Guatemalan camioneta. (World Premiere)

The Last Fall

Director/Screenwriter: Matthew A. Cherry

An NFL journeyman struggles to deal with life’s complexities after his professional career is over at age 25.

Cast: Lance Gross, Nicole Beharie, Vanessa Bell Calloway, Harry Lennix, Keith David

(World Premiere)

Leave Me Like You Found Me

Director/Screenwriter: Adele Romanski

Big trees, broken hearts. The story of a lovesick couple’s breakup & makeup while camping in the wilds of California. Cast: Megan Boone, David Nordstrom (World Premiere)

PAVILION

Director/Screenwriter: Tim Sutton

Max, a quietly troubled 15-year-old, leaves his lakeside town to live with his father on the sun-blasted fringe of suburban Arizona.  What begins in a calm and lush environment ends in a drastic, frayed confusion. Cast: Max Schaffner, Zach Cali, Cody Hamric, Addie Barlett, Aaron Buyea (World Premiere)

Sun Don’t Shine

Director/Screenwriter: Amy Seimetz

Two lovers, on the back roads of Florida, do very bad things.

Cast: Kate Lyn Sheil, Kentucker Audley, AJ Bowen, Kit Gwinn, Mark Reeb (World Premiere)

Sunset Stories

Directors: Silas Howard, Ernesto Foronda, Screenwriter: Valerie Stadler

When May returns to LA and runs smack into JP, the man she left behind, past and present collide sending them on a twenty-four hour journey in search of what they lost.

Cast: Monique Curnen, Sung Kang, Joshua Leonard, Mousa Kraish, Michelle Krusiec (World Premiere)

Tchoupitoulas

Director: Bill Ross, Turner Ross

Three young brothers’ immersive journey into the sensory wonders of the New Orleans night.

(World Premiere)

Thale (Norway)

Director/Screenwriter: Aleksander L. Nordaas

The film revolves around huldra, a mythical, tailed creature, found by two crime scene cleaners in a concealed cellar.  Someone’s been keeping her down here for decades, for reasons soon to surface. Cast: Silje Reinåmo, Jon Sigve Skard, Erlend Nervold, Morten Andresen (North American Premiere)

Wildness

Director/Screenwriter: Wu Tsang

A magical-realist portrait of the Silver Platter, a historic bar in Los Angeles that provides a safe space for Latin/LGBT immigrant and queer art communities to come together in love and conflict.

WOLF

Director/Screenwriter: Ya’ke Smith

A family is shaken to the core when they discover their son has been molested. As they struggle to deal with the betrayal, their son heads towards a total mental collapse.

Cast: Irma P. Hall, Mikala Gibson, Jordan Cooper, Shelton Jolivette, Eugene Lee (World Premiere)

24 BEATS PER SECOND

Showcasing the sounds, culture and influence of music and musicians, with an emphasis on documentary.

Films screening in 24 Beats Per Second are:

Amor Cronico (Cuba / USA)

Director: Jorge Perugorria

Weaving footage of singer Cucu Diamantes’ Cuban tour into a fictional love story.  The result is an energetic display of her glamorous and infectious performance style and a fascinating portrait of Cuba today.

Cast: Cucu Diamantes, Adela Legra, Liosky Clavero, Andres Levin, Jorge Perugorria (World Premiere)

Bad Brains: Band in DC

Directors: Mandy Stein, Benjamen Logan

How four young men from DC changed music forever. (World Premiere)

Charles Bradley: Soul of America

Director: Poull Brien

The incredible late-in-life rise of 62-year-old aspiring soul singer Charles Bradley, whose debut album rocketed him from a hard life in the projects to Rolling Stone magazine’s top 50 albums of 2011.

(World Premiere)

Daylight Savings

Director: Dave Boyle, Screenwriters: Dave Boyle, Michael Lerman, Joel Clark, Goh Nakamura

After a devastating breakup, musician Goh Nakamura hits the road with his irresponsible cousin to pursue a promising rebound with fellow musician Yea-Ming Chen.

Cast: Goh Nakamura, Michael Aki, Yea-Ming Chen, Lynn Chen, Ayako Fujitani (World Premiere)

Grandma Lo-fi: The Basement Tapes of Sigrídur Níelsdóttir (Iceland / Denmark)

Director: Kristín Björk Kristjánsdóttir

At the tender age of 70 she started making music – and then she couldn’t stop! A tribute to the Danish/Icelandic artist and late bloomer Sigrídur Níelsdóttir.

Paul Williams Still Alive

Director: Stephen Kessler

A documentary filmmaker tracks down actor/singer/songwriter Paul Williams in an attempt to find out what happened to his idol. (U.S. Premiere)

Rock ‘N’ Roll Exposed: The Photography of Bob Gruen (UK)

Director: Don Letts

Iggy Pop, Debbie Harry, Yoko Ono, Alice Cooper, Billie Joe Armstrong and others discuss the incredible life and work of the world’s foremost rock ‘n’ roll photographer, Bob Gruen.

(North American Premiere)

Sunset Strip

Director/Screenwriter: Hans Fjellestad

The 100-year history of the loudest street on the planet, The Sunset Strip. (World Premiere)

Under African Skies

Director: Joe Berlinger

Paul Simon returns to South Africa to explore the incredible journey of his historic Graceland album, including the political backlash he received for allegedly breaking the UN cultural boycott of South Africa designed to end the Apartheid regime.

Uprising: Hip Hop & The LA Riots

Director: Mark Ford

20 years after riots ripped through Los Angeles, Uprising documents how hip hop forecasted – and some say ignited – the worst civil unrest of the 20th century. (World Premiere)

SX GLOBAL

A diverse panorama of international filmmaking talent, including premieres, interactive documentaries and shorts.

Films screening in SX Global are:

BIJUKA (India)

Director: Ashtar Sayed, Screenwriter: Dr. Mahendra Purohit

Inspired by a true event. Scarecrow tells the true story of a young woman who is attempting to escape from an abusive arranged marriage. Cast: Arti Rautela, Amit Purohit (North American Premiere)

Crulic – The Path to Beyond (Romania / Poland)

Director: Anca Damian

The animated documentary feature-length “Crulic – The Path to Beyond” tells the story of the life of Crulic, the 33-year-old Romanian who died in a Polish prison while on hunger strike.

Cubaton – El Medico Story (Estonia / Sweden)

Director: Daniel Fridell

El Medico – a Cuban house doctor who wants to become a cubaton star – is facing a serious choice between serving the state and becoming a popstar. (North American Premiere)

Her Master’s Voice (UK)

Director: Nina Conti

Watching someone talk to themselves has never been so interesting. (World Premiere)

ITALY LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT (Italy / Germany)

Directors: Gustav Hofer, Luca Ragazzi

Gustav and Luca, two Italians, have to decide: Should they stay in Italy, or leave it? (North American Premiere)

Mustafa’s Sweet Dreams (Greece / UK)

Director: Angelos Abazoglou

Mustafa, a 16-year-old pastry shop apprentice dreams of becoming a famous baklava chef in Istanbul. (North American Premiere)

Pompeya (Argentina)

Director: Tamae Garateguy, Screenwriters: Tamae Garateguy, Diego A. Fleischer

When a film director hires two screenwriters to make a gangster movie, a fiction feast starts: femmes fatales, mobs fighting for the same neighborhood and a limitless hero who defies every movie concept. Cast: José Luciano González, Joel Drut, Chang Sung Kim, Vladimir Yuravel, Miguel Forza de Paul

(U.S. Premiere)

¡Vivan las Antipodas! (Germany / The Netherlands / Argentina / Chile)

Director: Victor Kossakovsky

Haven’t we all wondered at some point what was happening just at this moment beneath our very feet at the other side of the planet?

FESTIVAL FAVORITES

Acclaimed standouts and selected previous premieres from festivals around the world.

Films screening in Festival Favorites are:

Beast (Denmark)

Director/Screenwriter: Christoffer Boe

How long will you go, to hold on to the person you love?

Cast: Nicolas Bro, Marijana Jankovic, Nikolaj Lie Kaas

The Comedy

Director: Rick Alverson, Screenwriters: Robert Donne, Colm O’Leary

Indifferent even to the prospects of inheriting his father’s estate, Swanson (Tim Heidecker), a desensitized, aging Brooklyn hipster, strays into a series of reckless situations that may offer the promise of redemption or the threat of retribution.

Cast: Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, James Murphy, Kate Lyn-Sheil, Alexia Rassmusen

Dreams of a Life (UK / Ireland)

Director: Carol Morley

An imaginative quest to go beyond the newspaper reports and solve the mystery of who thirty-eight year old Joyce Vincent was and why she lay undiscovered for three years after her death in one of the busiest parts of London. (North American Premiere)

God Bless America

Director/Screenwriter: Bobcat Goldthwait

Loveless, jobless, possibly terminally ill, Frank has had enough of the downward spiral of America.  With nothing left to lose, Frank takes his gun and offs the stupidest, cruelest, and most repellent members of society. Cast: Joel Murray, Tara Lynne Barr (U.S. Premiere)

The Imposter (UK)

Director: Bart Layton

In 1994 a 13-year-old disappears without trace in Texas. Three years later he resurfaces in Spain with accounts of a horrifying kidnap. His family is overjoyed – but all is not as it seems.

Indie Game: The Movie (Canada)

Directors: Lisanne Pajot, James Swirsky

With the twenty-first century comes a new breed of artist: the indie game designer. These innovators design and program their distinctly personal games in the hope that they may find connection and success.

KID-THING

Director/Screenwriter: David Zellner

A fever-dream fable about Annie, a rebellious girl devoid of parental guidance or a moral compass.  She roams the countryside looking for adventure, and finds it one day in the form of an abandoned well. Cast: Sydney Aguirre, Susan Tyrrell, Nathan Zellner, David Zellner, David Wingo

Last Call at the Oasis

Director: Jessica Yu

A powerful argument for why the global water crisis will be the central issue facing our world this century.

Lovely Molly

Director: Eduardo Sanchez, Screenwriters: Eduardo Sanchez, Jamie Nash

Exploring the parallels between psychosis, addiction and demonic possession, Lovely Molly tells the story of what really happens before the exorcist arrives.

Cast: Gretchen Lodge, Johnny Lewis, Alexandra Holden (U.S. Premiere)

The Raid (Indonesia)

Director/Screenwriter: Gareth Huw Evans

Rama and his special forces team fight their way through a rundown apartment block with a mission to remove its owner, a notorious drug lord.

Cast: Iko Uwais, Joe Taslim, Doni Alamsyah, Yayan Ruhian, Pierre Gruno

WE ARE LEGION: The Story of the Hacktivists

Director: Brian Knappenberger

We Are Legion takes us inside the world of Anonymous, the radical “hacktivist” collective that has redefined civil disobedience for the digital age.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Live Soundtracks, cult re-issues and much more.  Our Special Events section offers unusual, unexpected and unique film event one-offs.

Films screening in Special Events are:

An Evening With Sacred Bones Records

Director: Jacqueline Castel

Brooklyn-based record label Sacred Bones presents an evening of original and curated programming of music videos, short films, works in progress, and a rare screening of their first film production, Twelve Dark Noons. (World Premiere)

Bernie

Director: Richard Linklater, Screenwriters: Richard Linklater, Skip Hollandsworth

Based on real-life events, this dark comedy follows Bernie Tiede, his recently deceased friend Marjorie Nugent and District Attorney Danny Buck Davidson who is determined to get to the bottom of the crime. Cast: Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine, Matthew McConaughey, Brady Coleman, Richard Robichaux

Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me

Director: Drew Denicola

A feature-length documentary about the massive critical acclaim, dismal commercial failure, and enduring legacy of pop music’s greatest cult phenomenon, Big Star. (Work in Progress)

Casa de mi Padre

Director: Matt Piedmont, Screenwriter: Andrew Steele

Will Ferrell plays a Mexican rancher who must defend his father’s home against the country’s most infamous drug lord. Cast: Will Ferrell, Gael García Vernal, Diego Luna, Genesis Rodriguez, Pedro Armendáriz Jr., Nick Offerman

Girl Walk // All Day

Director/Screenwriter: Jacob Krupnick

A feature-length dance music film that combines freestyle dance with the daily chaos of New York City, set to Girl Talk’s recent mashup album, All Day. Cast: Anne Marsen, John Doyle, Daisuke Omiya

Re:Generation

Director: Amir Bar Lev

5 DJ’s Turn the Table on The History of Music.

Renga (UK)

Directors: Adam Russell, John Sear

A ground breaking feature-length show controlled entirely by the audience using laser pointers. It is the first viable example of a standalone interactive experience capable of running in commercial movie theatres. (North American Premiere)

The Oyster Princess (1919) with original live score by Bee vs. Moth (Germany)

Director: Ernst Lubitsch, Screenriters: Hanns Kraly & Ernst Lubitsch

The Oyster Princess is Ernst Lubitsch’s tart 1919 silent comedy that parodies the rich and the spoiled.  Austin jazz/rock band Bee vs. Moth performs their original score live with the film for the first time. (World Premiere)

Source: SXSW

MakingOf has teamed up with CBS Films to give our viewers the chance to win a poster of ‘The Woman in Black,’ signed by Daniel Radcliffe.

For your chance to win one of three gift packs, follow these three easy steps:

1. Sign up for our free newsletter HERE.
2. Register on the MakingOf film community HERE.
3. Email us at contests@makingof.com with your mailing address; please put “The Woman in Black’ Poster” in the subject line.

Deadline ends at 11:59 PM on Tuesday, February 7th. On Wednesday, February 8th we will select a winner via random drawing and notify them by email. Good luck, movie lovers and stay tuned for more contests.

ONE ENTRY PER HOUSEHOLD. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. CONTESTANTS MUST LIVE INSIDE THE U.S. or CANADA. ITEMS CANNOT BE SHIPPED TO P.O. BOX.

This was a good year for Sundance. Majority of the films were picked up for distribution (standouts: BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD, THE SURROGATE, BLACK ROCK, THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES, V/H/S, LIBERAL ARTS), it snowed, I had a lot of pizza, and my condo roommates didn’t snore too much. A few hours ago the Sundance Institute announced the winners of the festival and you can check them out by reading the press release below!

The Grand Jury Prize: Documentary was presented by Charles Ferguson to:

The House I Live In / U.S.A. (Director: Eugene Jarecki) — For over 40 years, the War on Drugs has accounted for 45 million arrests, made America the world’s largest jailer and damaged poor communities at home and abroad. Yet, drugs are cheaper, purer and more available today than ever. Where did we go wrong and what is the path toward healing?

The Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic was presented by Justin Lin to:

Beasts of the Southern Wild / U.S.A. (Director: Benh Zeitlin, Screenwriters: Benh Zeitlin, Lucy Alibar) — Waters gonna rise up, wild animals gonna rerun from the grave, and everything south of the levee is goin’ under, in this tale of a six year old named Hushpuppy, who lives with her daddy at the edge of the world. Cast: Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry.

The World Cinema Jury Prize: Documentary was presented by Nick Fraser to:

The Law in These Parts / Israel (Director: Ra’anan Alexandrowicz) — Israel’s 43-year military legal system in the Occupied Palestinian Territories unfolds through provocative interviews with the system’s architects and historical footage showing the enactment of these laws upon the Palestinian population.

The World Cinema Jury Prize: Dramatic was presented by Julia Ormond to:

Violeta Went to Heaven (Violeta se Fue a Los Cielos) / Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Spain (Director: Andrés Wood, Screenwriters: Eliseo Altunaga, Rodrigo Bazaes, Guillermo Calderón, Andrés Wood) — A portrait of famed Chilean singer and folklorist Violeta Parra filled with her musical work, her memories, her loves and her hopes. Cast: Francisca Gavilán, Thomas Durand, Luis Machín, Gabriela Aguilera, Roberto Farías.

The Audience Award: U.S. Documentary, Presented by Acura, was presented by Mike Birbiglia to:

The Invisible War / U.S.A. (Director: Kirby Dick) — An investigative and powerfully emotional examination of the epidemic of rape of soldiers within the U.S. military, the institutions that cover up its existence and the profound personal and social consequences that arise from it.

The Audience Award: U.S. Dramatic, Presented by Acura, was presented by Mike Birbiglia to:

The Surrogate / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Ben Lewin) — Mark O’Brien, a 36-year-old poet and journalist in an iron lung, decides he no longer wishes to be a virgin. With the help of his therapist and the guidance of his priest, he contacts a professional sex surrogate to take him on a journey to manhood. Cast: John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy.

The World Cinema Audience Award: Documentary was presented by Edward James Olmos to:

SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN / Sweden, United Kingdom (Director: Malik Bendjelloul) — Rodriguez was the greatest ‘70s US rock icon who never was. Hailed as the greatest recording artist of his generation he disappeared into oblivion – rising again from the ashes in a completely different context many miles away.

The World Cinema Audience Award: Dramatic was presented by Edward James Olmos to:

Valley of Saints / India, U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Musa Syeed) — Gulzar plans to run away from the war and poverty surrounding his village in Kashmir with his best friend, but a beautiful young woman researching the dying lake leads him to contemplate a different future Cast: Gulzar Ahmad Bhat, Mohammed Afzal Sofi, Neelofar Hamid.

The Best of NEXT <=> Audience Award, Presented by Adobe Systems Incorporated, was presented by Tim Heidecker to:

Sleepwalk With Me / U.S.A. (Director: Mike Birbiglia, Screenwriters: Mike Birbiglia, Ira Glass, Joe Birbiglia, Seth Barrish) — Reluctant to confront his fears of love, honesty, and growing up, a budding standup comedian has both a hilarious and intense struggle with sleepwalking. Cast: Mike Birbiglia, Lauren Ambrose, Carol Kane, James Rebhorn, Cristin Milioti.

The U.S. Directing Award: Documentary was presented by Fenton Bailey to:

The Queen of Versailles / U.S.A. (Director: Lauren Greenfield) — Jackie and David were triumphantly constructing the biggest house in America – a sprawling, 90,000-square-foot palace inspired by Versailles – when their timeshare empire falters due to the economic crisis. Their story reveals the innate virtues and flaws of the American Dream.

The U.S. Directing Award: Dramatic was presented by Lynn Shelton to:

Middle Of Nowhere / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Ava DuVernay) — When her husband is incarcerated, an African-American woman struggles to maintain her marriage and her identity. Cast: Emayatzy Corinealdi, David Oyelowo, Omari Hardwick, Lorraine Touissaint, Edwina Findley.

The World Cinema Directing Award: Documentary was presented by Jean-Marie Teno to:

5 Broken Cameras / Palestine, Israel, France (Directors: Emad Burnat, Guy Davidi) — A Palestinian journalist chronicles his village’s resistance to a separation barrier being erected on their land and in the process captures his young son’s lens on the world.

The World Cinema Directing Award: Dramatic was presented by Alexei Popogrebsky to:

Teddy Bear / Denmark (Director: Mads Matthiesen, Screenwriters: Mads Matthiesen, Martin Pieter Zandvliet) — Dennis, a painfully shy 38-year-old bodybuilder who lives with his mother, sets off to Thailand in search of love. Cast: Kim Kold, Elsebeth Steentoft, Lamaiporn Sangmanee Hougaard, David Winters, Allan Mogensen.

The Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award was presented by Anthony Mackie to:

Safety Not Guaranteed / U.S.A. (Director: Colin Trevorrow, Screenwriter: Derek Connolly) — A trio of magazine employees investigate a classified ad seeking a partner for time travel. One employee develops feelings for the paranoid but compelling loner and seeks to discover what he’s really up to. Cast: Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson, Karan Soni.

The World Cinema Screenwriting Award was presented by Richard Pena to:

Young & Wild / Chile (Director: Marialy Rivas, Screenwriters: Marialy Rivas, Camila Gutiérrez, Pedro Peirano, Sebastián Sepúlveda) — 17-year-old Daniela, raised in the bosom of a strict Evangelical family and recently unmasked as a fornicator by her shocked parents, struggles to find her own path to spiritual harmony. Cast: Alicia Rodríguez, Aline Kuppenheim, María Gracia Omegna, Felipe Pinto.

The U.S. Documentary Editing Award was presented by Kim Roberts to:

DETROPIA / U.S.A. (Directors: Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady) — The woes of Detroit are emblematic of the collapse of the U.S. manufacturing base. This is the dramatic story of a city and its people who refuse to leave the building, even as the flames are rising.

The World Cinema Documentary Editing Award was presented by Clara Kim to:

Indie Game: The Movie / Canada (Directors: Lisanne Pajot, James Swirsky) — Follow the dramatic journeys of indie game developers as they create games and release those works, and themselves, to the world.

The Excellence in Cinematography Award: U.S. Documentary was presented by Tia Lessin to:

Chasing Ice / U.S.A. (Director: Jeff Orlowski) — Science, spectacle and human passion mix in this stunningly cinematic portrait as National Geographic photographer James Balog captures time-lapse photography of glaciers over several years providing tangible visual evidence of climate change.

The Excellence in Cinematography Award: U.S. Dramatic was presented by Amy Vincent to:

Beasts of the Southern Wild / U.S.A. (Director: Benh Zeitlin, Screenwriters: Benh Zeitlin, Lucy Alibar) — Waters gonna rise up, wild animals gonna rerun from the grave, and everything south of the levee is goin’ under, in this tale of a six year old named Hushpuppy, who lives with her daddy at the edge of the world. Cast: Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry.

The World Cinema Cinematography Award: Documentary was presented by Jean-Marie Teno to:

Putin’s Kiss / Denmark (Director: Lise Birk Pedersen) — 19-year-old Marsha is a model spokesperson in a strongly nationalistic Russian youth movement that aims to protect the country from its enemies. When she starts recognizing the organization’s flaws, she must take a stand for or against it.

The World Cinema Cinematography Award: Dramatic was presented by Alexei Popogrebsky to:

My Brother the Devil / United Kingdom (Director and screenwriter: Sally El Hosaini) — A pair of British Arab brothers trying to get by in gangland London learn the extraordinary courage it takes to be yourself. Cast: James Floyd, Saïd Taghmaoui, Fady Elsayed.

A U.S. Documentary Special Jury Prize for an Agent of Change was presented by Heather Croall to:

Love Free or Die / U.S.A. (Director: Macky Alston) — One man whose two defining passions are in conflict: An openly gay bishop refuses to leave the Church or the man he loves.

A U.S. Documentary Special Jury Prize for Spirit of Defiance was presented by Heather Croall to:

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry / U.S.A., China (Director: Alison Klayman) — Renowned Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei has garnered international attention as much for his ambitious artwork as his political provocations and increasingly public clashes with the Chinese government.

A U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Prize for Excellence in Independent Film Producing was presented by Cliff Martinez to:

Andrea Sperling and Jonathan Schwartz for Smashed and Nobody Walks

• Smashed / U.S.A. (Director: James Ponsoldt, Screenwriters: Susan Burke, James Ponsoldt) — Kate and Charlie are a young married couple whose bond is built on a mutual love of music, laughter and… drinking. When Kate decides to get sober, her new lifestyle brings troubling issues to the surface and calls into question her relationship with Charlie. Cast: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Aaron Paul, Octavia Spencer, Nick Offerman, Megan Mullally.
• Nobody Walks / U.S.A. (Director: Ry Russo-Young, Screenwriters: Lena Dunham, Ry Russo-Young) — Martine, a young artist from New York, is invited into the home of a hip, liberal LA family for a week. Her presence unravels the family’s carefully maintained status quo, and a mess of sexual and emotional entanglements ensues. Cast: John Krasinski, Olivia Thirlby, Rosemarie DeWitt, India Ennenga, Justin Kirk.

A U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Prize for Ensemble Acting was presented by Cliff Martinez to:

The Surrogate / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Ben Lewin) — Mark O’Brien, a 36-year-old poet and journalist in an iron lung, decides he no longer wishes to be a virgin. With the help of his therapist and the guidance of his priest, he contacts a professional sex surrogate to take him on a journey to manhood. Cast: John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy.

A World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Prize for Artistic Vision was presented by Clara Kim to:

Can / Turkey (Director and screenwriter: Rasit Celikezer) — A young married couple live happily in Istanbul, but their decision to illegally procure a child threatens their future together. Cast: Selen Uçer, Serdar Orçin, Berkan Demirbag, Erkan Avci.

A World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Prize for its Celebration of the Artistic Spirit was presented by Richard Pena to:

SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN / Sweden, United Kingdom (Director: Malik Bendjelloul) — Rodriguez was the greatest ‘70s US rock icon who never was. Hailed as the greatest recording artist of his generation he disappeared into oblivion – rising again from the ashes in a completely different context many miles away.

The inaugural Short Film Audience Award, Presented by Yahoo!, based on online voting for nine short films that premiered at the Festival and are currently featured on Yahoo! Screen, was presented to:

The Debutante Hunters (Director: Maria White) — In the Lowcountry of South Carolina a group of true Southern belles reveal their more rugged side, providing a glimpse into what drives them to hunt in the wild.

The following awards were presented at separate ceremonies at the Festival:

The Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking was awarded to: FISHING WITHOUT NETS / U.S.A. (Director: Cutter Hodierne, Screenwriters: Cutter Hodierne, John Hibey). The Jury Prize in Short Film, U.S. Fiction was presented to: The Black Balloon / U.S.A. (Directors: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie). The Jury Prize in Short Film, International Fiction was presented to: The Return (Kthimi) / Kosovo (Director: Blerta Zeqiri, Screenwriter: Shefqet Gjocaj). The Jury Prize in Short Film, Non-Fiction was presented to: The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom / U.S.A. (Director: Lucy Walker). The Jury Prize in Animated Short Film was presented to: A Morning Stroll / United Kingdom (Director: Grant Orchard). A Special Jury Award for Comedic Storytelling was presented to: The Arm / U.S.A. (Directors and screenwriters: Brie Larson, Sarah Ramos, Jessie Ennis). A Special Jury Award for Animation Direction was presented to: Robots of Brixton / United Kingdom (Director: Kibwe Tavares).

The winning directors and projects of the Sundance Institute | Mahindra Global Filmmaking Award, in recognition and support of emerging independent filmmakers from around the world, are: Etienne Kallos / Vrystaat (Free State) (South Africa); Ariel Kleiman / Partisan (Australia); Dominga Sotomayor / Tarde Para Morir Joven (Late To Die Young) (Chile); and Shonali Bose / Margarita. With a Straw (India).

The Sundance/NHK International Filmmaker Award, honoring and supporting emerging filmmakers, was presented to Jens Assur, director of the upcoming film Close Far Away.

The inaugural Hilton Worldwide LightStay Sustainability Award for a completed feature film was presented to The Island President, directed by Jon Shenk. The in-process feature film award was presented to Solar Mamas, directed by Jehane Noujaim and Mona Eldaief. Each project received $25,000.

The inaugural Sundance Institute Indian Paintbrush Producer’s Award and $10,000 grant was presented to Dan Janvey and Josh Penn for Beasts of the Southern Wild.

The Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prizes, presented to outstanding feature films focusing on science or technology as a theme, or depicting a scientist, engineer, or mathematician as a major character, were presented to Robot & Frank, directed by Jake Schreier and written by Christopher Ford, and Valley of Saints, directed and written by Musa Syeed. The two films will split the $20,000 cash award by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

The 2012 Sundance Film Festival Jurors were: U.S. Documentary Competition: Fenton Bailey, Heather Croall, Charles Ferguson, Tia Lessin, Kim Roberts; U.S. Dramatic Competition: Justin Lin, Anthony Mackie, Cliff Martinez, Lynn Shelton, Amy Vincent; World Cinema Documentary Competition: Nick Fraser, Clara Kim, Jean-Marie Teno; World Cinema Dramatic Competition: Julia Ormond, Richard Pena, Alexei Popogrebsky; Alfred P. Sloan Award: Tracy Day, Helen Fisher, Dr. Robert J. Full, Gwyn Lurie, Alex Rivera; Short Film Competition: Mike Judge, Dee Rees, Shane Smith.

The 2012 Sundance Film Festival presented 117 feature-length films, representing 30 countries by 45 first-time filmmakers, including 24 in competition. These films were selected from 4,042 feature-length film submissions composed of 2,059 U.S. and 1,983 international feature-length films. 91 films at the Festival were world premieres. The Short Film Program was comprised of 64 short films selected from a record 7,675 submissions.

The 2012 Sundance Film Festival runs through January 29 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah. A complete list of films and events is available at www.sundance.org/festival.

The Sundance Film Festival

A program of the non-profit Sundance Institute, the Festival has introduced global audiences to some of the most ground-breaking films of the past two decades, including sex, lies, and videotape, Maria Full of Grace, The Cove, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, An Inconvenient Truth, Precious, Trouble the Water, and Napoleon Dynamite, and through its New Frontier initiative, has showcased the cinematic works of media artists including Isaac Julien, Doug Aitken, Pierre Huyghe, Jennifer Steinkamp, and Matthew Barney. The 2012 Sundance Film Festival sponsors include: Presenting Sponsors – Entertainment Weekly, HP, Acura, Sundance Channel and Chase Sapphire^SM ; Leadership Sponsors – Adobe Systems Incorporated, Bing™, Canon, DIRECTV, Focus Forward, a partnership between GE and CINELAN, Southwest Airlines, Sprint and Yahoo!; Sustaining Sponsors – Bertolli® Frozen Meal Soups, FilterForGood^®, a partnership between Brita^® and Nalgene ^®, Grey Goose^® Vodka, Hilton HHonors and Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, L’Oréal Paris, Stella Artois^®, Timberland, Time Warner Inc. and YouTube^TM. Sundance Institute recognizes critical support from the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development, and the State of Utah as Festival Host State. The support of these organizations will defray costs associated with the 10-day Festival and the nonprofit Sundance Institute’s year-round programs for independent film and theatre artists. www.sundance.org/festival

Sundance Institute

Sundance Institute is a global nonprofit organization founded by Robert Redford in 1981. Through its artistic development programs for directors, screenwriters, producers, composers and playwrights, the Institute seeks to discover and support independent film and theatre artists from the United States and around the world, and to introduce audiences to their new work. The Institute promotes independent storytelling to inform, inspire, and unite diverse populations around the globe. Internationally recognized for its annual Sundance Film Festival, Sundance Institute has nurtured such projects as Born into Brothels, Trouble the Water, Son of Babylon, Amreeka, An Inconvenient Truth,Spring Awakening, I Am My Own Wife, Light in the Piazza and Angels in America. Join Sundance Institute on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Marshall Cook is a man who wears many hats. As you can see from this headline, Cook not only co-wrote the film, but produced, edited, acted, and directed as well. Did I mention he’s only 29? In this interview, Cook discusses trials and tribulations of working both in front and behind the camera, what it was like working with Andy Dick and other comedy greats in the film, and why the film’s subject is so close to home. Enjoy!

MakingOf: ‘Division III: Football’s Finest’ is based on your experiences as a quarterback for 10 years – how much of it was taken from actual experiences you’ve had versus additional fictional storylines?

Marshal Cook: It’s hard to say exactly, but a fair amount. The emotion of my character in the movie is where I was at in college. I definitely didn’t care as much as when I was in high school. I think it was a combination of my disappointing senior year of high school and the overall lack of enthusiasm for football at a liberal arts college (compared to high school where I thought it was the most important thing I could do).

Basically, I pulled situations from high school and college, and then heightened them for the sake of entertainment.

My first pass in college was a 30-yard touchdown on a broken play, and I did get yelled at for it. But I was never compared to Helen Keller (or Helen Yeller), and no coach has ever pulled a knife on me.

Though it’s a pretty aggressive comedy, the movie comes from a lot of real/grounded situations, conversations, themes, emotions, characters.

This is your first feature film and you’re not even 30 yet, how cool is that?

Very cool! Though believe it or not it took what felt like an eternity to get made.

Originally, the Yari Film Group optioned the movie and I was scouting Louisiana to shoot the movie when I was 25. Then it was in and out of option deals until I finally was presented the opportunity to shoot it in Los Angeles for 10 times less money than it was budgeted at. So I directed the movie in March 2010 (when I was 27), edited it when I was 28 and now it is coming out while I can still claim my 20′s.

It feels really good to get this monkey off my back and hopefully the next one will take much less time to get off the shelf…

It has to feel good, but you worked with some of comedy veterans, Andy Dick and Adam Carolla, on the film so it had to have been somewhat intimidating?

Yes, I’m very grateful for everyone’s involvement. Not just these guys but Sasso, Callen, Collins, Fitzsimmons, etc… They all make me laugh.

I think they are all funnier than I am, and that can be intimidating, but it’s not my job to be funny, it’s my job to help create and capture the funny.

I’ve worked with Andy on a few projects prior so I wasn’t intimidated. I was excited to see him bring to life the role I wrote for him. Andy has never been this prominent of a character in a movie, nor has he ever done a role like this, so I appreciated the dedication, excitement and talent he brought to the set every day. Andy was also very collaborative, while at the same time respectful to my role as the director.

Carolla, however was somewhat intimidating for me (at first). I’ve listening to a lot of his podcasts so I’ve heard his rants. I think his brain operates on a faster level than most humans, so me being 20 years younger and telling him what to do just doesn’t seem right even to me. But he was very cool on the set. He came in, made people laugh and was very approachable.

The hardest part about working with people you respect in comedy is making sure you watch them as a “director” and not a “fan” watching a show.

You co-wrote, executive produced, directed, edited, and starred in DIVISION III. This being your first film, how challenging was that?

It was hard, physically and mentally, but still fun. Kind of like playing quarterback, but for 16 hours a day for 22 days. Shooting the football action was especially challenging because I was doing my own stunts and I was exhausted. Plus taking hits in your 20′s feels a lot different than your teens. I was running on pure adrenaline and excitement most of the time. I don’t think I ate the first day of filming. People needed to remind me to take care of myself so I didn’t collapse.

What made it even possible was the support of the cast and crew. Though we were understaffed, the people who were there were tremendously supportive. We didn’t have any time or luxuries, but everyone was able to do their job and have a good time doing it. I always had extra eyes on the monitor (especially when I was in front of the camera). Andy Dick and Paul Henderson (writers) were always watching the scenes and throwing out suggestions on jokes. Tyler Hawes (producer) and Bernie Gewissler (line-producer) also did a good job of hiding me from major challenges or drama so I could just focus on what’s now and what’s next.

Production was like heaven. Post-production was hell. I didn’t want to edit the movie. I had to. We just didn’t have enough money. The editing was actually the hardest, and I did it on a macbook pro (laptop) attached to another monitor, so it was slow. I think I’m a good editor, so I knew I was more than capable, but sitting in front of a monitor for thousands of hours is not what I got into this business to do.

What do you enjoy best – being behind the camera or in front?

It really depends on the scene. I don’t have fun acting “dramatic.” Going to a dark place in my head isn’t fun, it’s work. Some scenes I really enjoyed acting in though. Scenes where there are just 2 actors and simple coverage, where I’m thinking less about the shot than I am the performance, I can enjoy the acting to the point where I’m just present in the scene and not “directing.” Acting is fun! The fact that some actors complain about anything is tragic. I had a lot of fun acting across Andy, Alison Haislip, Bru Muller, Paul Henderson and Greg Fitzsimmons. But if I had to choose, I guess directing is where I get the most fulfillment.

It appears as though films like ‘Major League’ and ‘BASEketball’ had a heavy influence on this film. Were there any films that heavily influenced you during the writing process?

I watched ‘Friday Night Lights,’ ‘Any Given Sunday,’ ‘Necessary Roughness’… Actually, I watched every football movie out there, including the Independent Christian movie “Facing the Giants.” I wanted to get away from clichés but within the sports genre (comedy or drama), that’s hard to avoid. They can’t be good the whole time or bad the whole time, and at the end they either win or lose. I learned very quickly that I wasn’t going to reinvent the wheel, but I didn’t want to directly “spoof” anything either. I think the tone relates more to the first Major League than any other movie because before they call wackier and went back to the minors, Major League was a comedy with dramatic elements, some good sports action and solid acting.

What’s next for you?

Hollywood Answer: I have several projects in numerous stages of development…

I mean, I do, but I don’t know what’s next. I have a few things I want to direct and a few things I want to produce and act in. Nothing I want to direct and star in right away…maybe in the future. I would easily take a job as an actor. What a luxury to be able to just act in a scene that someone else wrote for you and someone else is directing and handing off to someone else do edit and finish… I think a fair amount of them don’t know how good they have it.

‘Division III: Football’s Finest’ is out now on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital Download!

Hosted by a more-toned-down-than-last-year Ricky Gervais, the 69th annual Golden Globes were announced last night with ’The Artist’ and ‘The Decendants’ taking home the top prizes. Check out the full list below (winner bolded). Let us know in the comments section who you wanted to win!

MOTION PICTURE

Motion Picture, Drama
The Descendants
The Help
Hugo
The Ides of March
Moneyball
War Horse

Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture – Drama
George Clooney, The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio, J. Edgar
Michael Fassbender, Shame
Ryan Gosling, The Ides of March
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

Best Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical
The Artist
50/50
Bridesmaids
Midnight in Paris
My Week With Marilyn

Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture  – Drama
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Tilda Swinton, We Need To Talk About Kevin

Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Brendan Gleeson, The Guard
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 50/50
Ryan Gosling, Crazy, Stupid, Love.
Owen Wilson, Midnight in Paris

Best Director – Motion Picture
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
George Clooney, The Ides of March
Michel Hazanvicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, The Descendants

Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role In A Motion Picture
Octavia Spencer, The Help
Berenice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Shailene Woodley, The Descendants

Best Foreign Language Film

A Separation (Iran)
The Flowers of War (China)
In the Land of Blood and Honey (USA)
The Kid With A Bike (Belgium)
The Skin I Live In (Spain)

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon, The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash, The Descendants
Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin, Moneyball

Best Animated Feature Film
The Adventures of Tintin
Arthur Christmas
Cars 2
Puss in Boots
Rango

Best Performance By An Actress in A Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn
Jodie Foster, Carnage
Charlize Theron, Young Adult
Kristen Wiig, Bridesmaids
Kate Winslet, Carnage

Best Original Song – Motion Picture
“Masterpiece” — W.E.
Music & Lyrics by: Madonna, Julie Frost, Jimmy Harry
“Hello Hello” — Gnomeo & Juliet
Music by: Elton John
Lyrics by: Bernie Taupin
“The Keeper” — Machine Gun Preacher
Music & Lyrics by: Chris Cornell
“Lay Your Head Down” — Albert Nobbs
Music by: Brian Byrne
Lyrics by: Glenn Close
“The Living Proof” — The Help
Music by: Mary J. Blige, Thomas Newman, Harvey Mason Jr.
Lyrics by: Mary J. Blige, Harvey Mason Jr., Damon Thomas

Best Original Score – Motion Picture
Ludovic Bource, The Artist
Abel Korzeniowski, W.E.
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Howard Shore, Hugo
John Williams, War Horse

Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role In A Motion Picture
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Albert Brooks, Drive
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen, A Dangerous Method

TELEVISION

Best Television Series – Comedy Or Musical
Modern Family, ABC
Enlightened, HBO
Episodes, Showtime
Glee, FOX
New Girl, FOX

Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series – Comedy Or Musical
Matt LeBlanc, Episodes
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
David Duchovny, Californication
Johnny Galecki, The Big Bang Theory
Thomas Jane, Hung

Best Performance By An Actress In A Television Series – Drama
Claire Danes, Homeland
Mireille Enos, The Killing
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Madeleine Stowe, Revenge
Callie Thorne, Necessary Roughness

Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role In A Series, Mini-Series, Or Motion Picture Made for Television
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story
Kelly Macdonald, Boardwalk Empire
Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey
Sofia Vergara, Modern Family
Evan Rachel Wood, Mildred Pierce

Best Performance By An Actor in A Supporting Role in A Series, Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Paul Giamatti, Too Big to Fail
Guy Pearce, Mildred Pierce
Tim Robbins, Cinema Verite
Eric Stonestreet, Modern Family

Best Performance By An Actor In A Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Idris Elba, Luther
Hugh Bonneville, Downton Abbey
William Hurt, To Big to Fail
Bill Nighy, Page Eight
Dominic West, The Hour

Best Television Series – Drama
Homeland, Showtime
American Horror Story, FX
Boardwalk Empire, HBO
Boss, STARZ
Game of Thrones, HBO

Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series – Drama
Kelsey Grammer, Boss
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Jeremy Irons, The Borgias
Damian Lewis, Homeland

Best Performance By An Actress In A Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Kate Winslet, Mildred Pierce
Romola Garai, The Hour
Diane Lane, Cinema Verite
Elizabeth McGovern, Downton Abbey
Emily Watson, Appropriate Adult

Best Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Downton Abbey,  PBS (Masterpiece)
Cinema Verite, HBO
The Hour, BBC America
Mildred Pierce, HBO
Too Big to Fail,  HBO

Best Performance By An Actress In A Television Series – Comedy Or Musical
Laura Dern, Enlightened
Zooey Deschanel, New Girl
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Laura Linney, The Big C
Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Over the weekend I spoke with two filmmakers who have recently been heavily discussed in the online world, Matthew Peterman and William Brent Bell. These two are the ones responsible for the recent found film footage hit, ‘The Devil Inside’. In this interview, we discuss how Found Footage Films have become such a profitable style of filmmaking, and why the boys are proud of their film’s rather abrupt (and now infamous) ending. Enjoy!

(Editor’s Note: At times it was hard to distinguish who was speaking so I have combined their comments.)

MakingOf: So, Found Footage Films seem to be, you know, all the rage over the last couple of years, pulling in a lot of money on such a small budget. Why do you think it’s so strangely addicting to go out and see the style of film?

Devil Inside boys: I think maybe one of the biggest reasons is that in the last decade or whatever, television has become so much more reality based. When ‘Blair Witch’ came out or even when 24 came out, it was groundbreaking for the camera to be handheld and all of that. And now I think people are really used to less scripted and more raw styles of filmmaking, and it kind of plays itself best in the horror genre really because it makes the experience that more realistic and that much more scarier.

What do you both think the most important aspect of found footage films is? Like, the scares, the story, the dialogue, the ending – what do you think the most important part of it is?

I think a little of authenticity, you know, if you want the audience to believe what they’re watching is real…you can’t take them out of that world, so I think a level of authenticity is one of the biggest things. And that means to us, there are almost a lot of rules that you have to abide to, to keep it authentic.

I totally agree – that’s a great answer. So, regarding the film, when doing your research on exorcisms, you know, how to make them appear as real as possible with going too much overboard. How difficult, if at all, when discussing with priests and the like who take this sort  of thing serious?

Well…we are able to talk to a lot of priests and exorcists…we wanted to put them on camera because in the film and in the cutting room floor we have a lot of real experts, police, and religious people that went on camera – priests and exorcists would not go on camera so we were able to get the information, and here’s the story, it’s really cool and inspired us and it was a bummer that we couldn’t get their cooperation fully.

Alright. I want to talk about the ending and the interactive part of it. You know, it ties in interactively with a website, making it one of the first of its kind. Was that the idea from the beginning and did you ever storyboard completely different endings?

The interactivity was not the idea from the beginning. I think you’re referring to the website [during the credits]. That was an idea [we] came up with which was pretty ballsy and pretty original. We thought it would be a cool thing if people had a polarizing reaction to that…we did like the abrupt ending that we chose, we thought it was kind of a non-Hollywood ending. The one thing we can look back to is realism, and in real life it doesn’t always follow a perfect structure – if things don’t always end when and how you expect them to, so everyone involved with the film thought the kind of ending we have where not everything is completely tied up and things are left unsolved was pretty unique… you never know in this day and age what’s gonna click film-goers and people that like entertainment in general as far as interactivity and things like that.

Absolutely. As far as listening to audience reactions, do you think the audience reactions to this film will impact future projects you guys work on?

Sure! One of our favorite things to do is to be in a theater and listen to the audiences react to the movie. Now that we’ve had so many audiences, we’ve seen the movie so many times and we’ve always been able to kind of gauge through the Internet, some of their responses, it totally informs how we are as filmmakers and at the end of the day it’s just really fun. It’s fun to get people invested in something and see their passion, no matter what the passion’s for based on something you have created.

So the film has made over $36 million and counting on a $1 million dollar budget [$800,000 to be exact]. So clearly it’s a box office success. I know there’s talk online that you have another project in the works but with this being such a huge success, do you have any plans to make a sequel to it?

You know, we’ve all talked about it and I think we’re waiting a little longer to focus [on the international roll-out], and also, if we did it, we need to make sure that it’s a story that we all agree on or otherwise we wouldn’t want to do it but it’s definitely been up for discussion.

MakingOf has teamed up with MGM Home Entertainment to give our viewers the chance to win six great classics, ‘Annie Hall,’ ‘Manhattan,’ ‘The Apartment,’ ‘Notorious,’ ‘Rebecca,’ and ‘Spellbound’ on Blu-ray (all available to purchase on Tuesday, January 24th).

For your chance to win one of three gift packs, follow these three easy steps:

1. Sign up for our free newsletter HERE.
2. Register on the MakingOf film community HERE
3. Email us at contests@makingof.com with your favorite quote from one of our interviews.

Deadline ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, January 23rd. On Tuesday, January 24th we will select three (3) winners via random drawing and notify them by email. Good luck, movie lovers and stay tuned for more contests.

ONE ENTRY PER HOUSEHOLD. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. CONTESTANTS MUST LIVE INSIDE THE U.S. or CANADA. ITEMS CANNOT BE SHIPPED TO P.O. BOX.

The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) have announced nominations for outstanding achievement in writing for the screen during 2011. Winners will be honored at the 2012 Writers Guild Awards on Sunday, February 19, 2012, during simultaneous ceremonies in Hollywood and New York.

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

50/50, Written by Will Reiser; Summit Entertainment

Bridesmaids, Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig; Universal Studios

Midnight in Paris, Written by Woody Allen; Sony Pictures Classics

Win Win, Screenplay by Tom McCarthy; Story by Tom McCarthy & Joe Tiboni; Fox Searchlight

Young Adult, Written by Diablo Cody; Paramount Pictures

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Descendants, Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash; Based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemming; Fox Searchlight

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Screenplay by Steven Zaillian; Based on the novel by Stieg Larsson, originally published by Norstedts; Columbia Pictures

The Help, Screenplay by Tate Taylor; Based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett; DreamWorks Pictures

Hugo, Screenplay by John Logan; Based on the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick; Paramount Pictures

Moneyball, Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin; Story by Stan Chervin; Based on the book by Michael Lewis; Columbia Pictures

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY

Better This World, Written by Katie Galloway & Kelly Duane de la Vega; Loteria Films

If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front, Written by Marshall Curry and Matthew Hamachek; Oscilloscope Pictures

Nostalgia for the Light, Written by Patricio Guzmán; Icarus Films

Pina, Screenplay by Wim Wenders; Sundance Selects

Position Among the Stars, Script by Hetty Naaijkens-Retel Helmrich, Leonard Retel Helmrich; HBO Films

Senna, Written by Manish Pandey; Producers Distribution Agency