Filmmaker Interviews
FIVE QUESTIONS WITH GREGG ARAKI- 20 YEARS OF NEW QUEER CINEMA (3/29/2012)
This year is the 20th Anniversary of Gregg Araki’s The Living End and the birth of New Queer Cinema as a whole. Outfest’s Legacy Project has preserved Araki’s films, as well as the work of several New Queer directors, including Swoon! After a screening of -- continue reading →
MAKING A NATURAL SELECTION WITH ROBBIE PICKERING (3/16/2012)
Writer/director Robbie Pickering has settled into the Film Independent family in more ways than one over the past six years and this Friday is a bit of a graduation ceremony as his film, Natural Selection, makes it’s way to theaters across the country. Pickering has -- continue reading →
THE FREEDOM OF BEING DARDENNE: DOUG JONES INTERVIEWS THE DARDENNE BROTHERS (3/12/2012)
In recent years, “Dardenne-like” has become a favorite descriptor of international film critics. If a film features an economical, but emotionally complex narrative, a naturalistic approach to filmmaking and a penchant for lower class protagonists brought to life mostly by non-professional actors, you can bet -- continue reading →
96 MINUTES WITH AIMEE LAGOS (2/17/2012)
96 Minutes is the story of a carjacking and the separate stories of the four people involved. Based on true events she saw as a college student, Aimee Lagos’s directorial debut gives a gripping view into the lives and experiences of four very different young -- continue reading →
IF A TREE FALLS AN INTERVIEW MARSHALL CURRY AND SAM CULLMAN (2/15/2012)
Surely someone who destroys property as part of a political protest is a criminal, but are they a terrorist? If a Tree Falls is the Oscar-nominated documentary directed by Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman that addresses that question. Members of the radical environmental activist group -- continue reading →
GUNS, DRUGS, AND BEAUTY QUEENS: AN INTERVIEW WITH GERARDO NARANJO (1/20/2012)
Gerardo Naranjo’s third feature film, Miss Bala, dares to take on a very weighty subject—the pervasive violence perpetrated on ordinary citizens all over Mexico by drug cartels. Set in Tijuana, newcomer Stephanie Sigman stars as Laura, a young woman trying to escape an impoverished existence -- continue reading →
A BURNING ISSUE: A CONVERSATION ABOUT ADDICTION INCORPORATED (1/13/2012)
A Conversation About Addiction Incorporated with Director Charles Evans Junior and Behavioral Scientist Victor DeNoble In the 1980s, Victor DeNoble was a research scientist at a major tobacco company, where he was tasked with finding a substitute for nicotine that would not cause heart attacks. -- continue reading →
THE POLITICAL GETS PERSONAL IN PHYLLIDA LLOYD’S IRON LADY (1/10/2012)
Let’s start with the factors against anyone making The Iron Lady: It’s a period political drama about an elderly woman with dementia. If you know her, you’re probably over 40, and chances are good, you don’t like her. But the majority of moviegoers worldwide might -- continue reading →
FILMMAKER INTERVIEW: THE MAKING OF PARIAH (12/06/2011)
Film Independent is excited to screen Dee Rees’ debut feature Pariah on December 8 as one if its Project Involve community screenings. Dee and her producer Nekisa Cooper are both Film Independent Fellows – Nekisa was in Project Involve in 2008-2009, Dee and Nekisa were finalists -- continue reading →
FILMMAKER INTERVIEW: ALRICK BROWN SPEAKS KINYARWANDA (11/30/2011)
Kinyarwanda (also sometimes known as Rwanda, Ruanda or Rwandan), is a dialect of the Rwanda-Rundi language spoken by some 12 million people. Kinyarwanda combines six different stories together for one narrative that takes place during the genocide in Rwanda. All that I knew about -- continue reading →
