It’s been a banner year for Saturday Night Live.
The legendary sketch comedy show capped off with a whopping 22 Emmy Awards nominations, including nods for standouts cast members Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones.
While the show won two awards at this weekend’s Creative Arts Emmys — Dave Chappelle won for outstanding guest actor in a comedy series, while Melissa McCarthy’s energetic, scene-stealing Sean Spicer impression helped her win the outstanding guest actress in a comedy series — there are still plenty of awards left for SNL to take back to Rockefeller Center with them.
So, before the big night arrives on Sept.
The legendary sketch comedy show capped off with a whopping 22 Emmy Awards nominations, including nods for standouts cast members Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones.
While the show won two awards at this weekend’s Creative Arts Emmys — Dave Chappelle won for outstanding guest actor in a comedy series, while Melissa McCarthy’s energetic, scene-stealing Sean Spicer impression helped her win the outstanding guest actress in a comedy series — there are still plenty of awards left for SNL to take back to Rockefeller Center with them.
So, before the big night arrives on Sept.
- 9/13/2017
- by Julia Emmanuele
- PEOPLE.com
Written by George Mann, Cavan Scott | Art by Rachael Stott | Published by Titan Comics
It’s late Summer so you know what that means. It’s Dr Who event time. Ain’t no event like a Dr Who event, so it’s nice to see Who mainstays George Mann and Cavan Scott teaming up to write this one. Art is handled mainly by another Who veteran, Rachael Stott, though the fact she has five other artists helping out gives you an idea of the deadline crunch on this series. So, these events always have a Doctor or two meeting up, it’s the law I believe, so let’s get to it and see who turns up. It is, after all, one of those days.
These team ups of course are not just for the grownups, it’s also fun to see the million and one companions, and we start with Captain Jack and Tara,...
It’s late Summer so you know what that means. It’s Dr Who event time. Ain’t no event like a Dr Who event, so it’s nice to see Who mainstays George Mann and Cavan Scott teaming up to write this one. Art is handled mainly by another Who veteran, Rachael Stott, though the fact she has five other artists helping out gives you an idea of the deadline crunch on this series. So, these events always have a Doctor or two meeting up, it’s the law I believe, so let’s get to it and see who turns up. It is, after all, one of those days.
These team ups of course are not just for the grownups, it’s also fun to see the million and one companions, and we start with Captain Jack and Tara,...
- 8/30/2017
- by Dean Fuller
- Nerdly
Equality Now has announced that their annual Make Equality Reality Gala will be held in New York City on Monday, October 30, 2017, at Gotham Hall.
This year’s event, which will mark the organization’s 25th Anniversary, will honor Gucci America President and CEO Susan Chokachi and A Breeze of Hope Foundation Founder Brisa De Angulo. The 2017 Make Equality Reality Gala Co-Chairs are Gloria Steinem, Tara Lynda Guber, Susan Hassan, Chandra Jessee (Inmaat Foundation), Karen Lehner, and Sue Smalley, PhD.
“I am proud to be part of a company that is fully committed to protecting human rights and fighting for gender equality. In 2013 Gucci founded Chime For Change to campaign for education, health and justice for girls and women all over the world, supporting the work of organizations like Equality Now, which are proving – often against extreme odds – that change is possible. It is an honor to partner with Equality Now,...
This year’s event, which will mark the organization’s 25th Anniversary, will honor Gucci America President and CEO Susan Chokachi and A Breeze of Hope Foundation Founder Brisa De Angulo. The 2017 Make Equality Reality Gala Co-Chairs are Gloria Steinem, Tara Lynda Guber, Susan Hassan, Chandra Jessee (Inmaat Foundation), Karen Lehner, and Sue Smalley, PhD.
“I am proud to be part of a company that is fully committed to protecting human rights and fighting for gender equality. In 2013 Gucci founded Chime For Change to campaign for education, health and justice for girls and women all over the world, supporting the work of organizations like Equality Now, which are proving – often against extreme odds – that change is possible. It is an honor to partner with Equality Now,...
- 8/30/2017
- Look to the Stars
Kym (Anne Hathaway) carries herself with the foresight that she is damned. She takes a drag from her ever-present cigarette as she tries to compose herself before the arrival of her family, who are on their way to pick her up from rehab. Her clothes and body language, however, tell a different story. She wears a ratty emerald green coat at all times — a coat that appears a size too large as it hangs listlessly on her frail body. Kym has a perpetual downward glance that can only be achieved through shame and internalized self-hatred. Kym bears her scars for the world to see and, despite her best efforts, she cannot slip away from the glances of everyone around her who can obviously see that she is damaged in a fundamental way. She hasn’t seen much of her family over the past few years, but she’s clean now,...
- 8/10/2017
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
“Orphan Black” goes into its final season with nothing to prove.
After all, it followed up its rockiest storyline with the Castor clones with an excellent fourth season, it earned universal critical acclaim, and star Tatiana Maslany landed a well-deserved Emmy for her breakout role. That’s not too shabby for a show with a fierce but small viewership. Because of that, the series is free to do exactly what it wants and does so well: let the sestras lead.
With all the clone hijinks and amazing performances by Maslany, it’s sometimes forgotten that “Orphan Black” is one of the most feminist shows on TV, and not just because most of its main characters are female. From the beginning, the show broke down gender stereotypes and featured women in all of the powerful roles, letting them have complex identities independent of their relationship to men.
Read More: ‘Orphan Black...
After all, it followed up its rockiest storyline with the Castor clones with an excellent fourth season, it earned universal critical acclaim, and star Tatiana Maslany landed a well-deserved Emmy for her breakout role. That’s not too shabby for a show with a fierce but small viewership. Because of that, the series is free to do exactly what it wants and does so well: let the sestras lead.
With all the clone hijinks and amazing performances by Maslany, it’s sometimes forgotten that “Orphan Black” is one of the most feminist shows on TV, and not just because most of its main characters are female. From the beginning, the show broke down gender stereotypes and featured women in all of the powerful roles, letting them have complex identities independent of their relationship to men.
Read More: ‘Orphan Black...
- 6/9/2017
- by Hanh Nguyen
- Indiewire
The Clone Club is going for one final ride, and it’s going to be a whirlwind. No, seriously, you may just get a little motion-sick.
Before the final season of “Orphan Black” premieres on Saturday, BBC America has released a 60-second video that covers the entire season. As you might expect, the action goes by pretty fast.
Read More: ‘Orphan Black’ Extended Trailer: Could One of the Clone Club Die This Final Season? – Watch
But first, a little reminder of where we left off. Rachel (Tatiana Maslany) went even crazier than usual (losing an eye and then getting a prosthetic one with visions will do that to you) and attacked Susan (Rosemary Dunmore) and Sarah (Maslany), the latter whom escaped with her life. As a reward, Rachel was all set to meet P.T. Westmorland, the Victorian-era founder of Neolution who is still alive.
Meanwhile, an ailing Cosima (Maslany...
Before the final season of “Orphan Black” premieres on Saturday, BBC America has released a 60-second video that covers the entire season. As you might expect, the action goes by pretty fast.
Read More: ‘Orphan Black’ Extended Trailer: Could One of the Clone Club Die This Final Season? – Watch
But first, a little reminder of where we left off. Rachel (Tatiana Maslany) went even crazier than usual (losing an eye and then getting a prosthetic one with visions will do that to you) and attacked Susan (Rosemary Dunmore) and Sarah (Maslany), the latter whom escaped with her life. As a reward, Rachel was all set to meet P.T. Westmorland, the Victorian-era founder of Neolution who is still alive.
Meanwhile, an ailing Cosima (Maslany...
- 6/9/2017
- by Hanh Nguyen
- Indiewire
The sestras will return for their final “Orphan Black” ride in June, but they’ll go down fighting.
When last we left the Leda clones, Alison (Tatiana Maslany) and husband Donnie (Kristian Bruun) had gone out hiding in the woods, along with the very pregnant Helena (Maslany). Meanwhile, Sarah (Maslany) is injured and on the run after Rachel (Maslany) went on a homicidal rampage. Rachel is now about to meet the mysterious P.T. Westmoreland, the founder of Neolution, a Victorian-era man who is somehow still alive. We had also seen Cosima’s (Maslany) reunion with Delphine (Evelyne Brochu), and Kira (Skyler Weller) and Mrs. S (Maria Doyle Kennedy) being held hostage.
Read More: ‘Orphan Black’ Cast and Crew Share 14 Secrets of the Sestrahood — PaleyFest 2017
The trailer the BBC America released on Monday is very similar to the one that we saw earlier: It sets up how the sestras have lost so much,...
When last we left the Leda clones, Alison (Tatiana Maslany) and husband Donnie (Kristian Bruun) had gone out hiding in the woods, along with the very pregnant Helena (Maslany). Meanwhile, Sarah (Maslany) is injured and on the run after Rachel (Maslany) went on a homicidal rampage. Rachel is now about to meet the mysterious P.T. Westmoreland, the founder of Neolution, a Victorian-era man who is somehow still alive. We had also seen Cosima’s (Maslany) reunion with Delphine (Evelyne Brochu), and Kira (Skyler Weller) and Mrs. S (Maria Doyle Kennedy) being held hostage.
Read More: ‘Orphan Black’ Cast and Crew Share 14 Secrets of the Sestrahood — PaleyFest 2017
The trailer the BBC America released on Monday is very similar to the one that we saw earlier: It sets up how the sestras have lost so much,...
- 5/8/2017
- by Hanh Nguyen
- Indiewire
We may not be ready to bid Orphan Black farewell, but at least the sci-fi drama is leaving us with a hell of a parting gift.
VideosOrphan Black Ep, Cast Talk Final Season Theme, ‘Touchy’ Clone Question
BBC America on Wednesday released 10 new images from the series’ upcoming fifth and final season — premiering Saturday, June 10 at 10/9c — teasing Sarah and the clones’ deadliest (and most revealing) adventures yet.
Per a release from BBC America, “the walls close in on Sarah when nearly all her sestras and their allies are brought to heel by Rachel. Even more harrowing is that...
VideosOrphan Black Ep, Cast Talk Final Season Theme, ‘Touchy’ Clone Question
BBC America on Wednesday released 10 new images from the series’ upcoming fifth and final season — premiering Saturday, June 10 at 10/9c — teasing Sarah and the clones’ deadliest (and most revealing) adventures yet.
Per a release from BBC America, “the walls close in on Sarah when nearly all her sestras and their allies are brought to heel by Rachel. Even more harrowing is that...
- 3/22/2017
- TVLine.com
‘Stan Against Evil’ Creator Dana Gould Mixes Laughs and Frights, With a Little Help From His Friends
It’s not fun to get interrupted during an interview… except, that is, when you’re speaking with “Stan Against Evil” creator Dana Gould, and it’s Fred Armisen and Bill Hader who are butting in.
We were in a large conference room at the Beverly Hilton, which IFC had taken over for interviews at the Television Critics Association press tour, and Armisen and Hader had stopped by to say hello to Gould in between interviews for their own series “Documentary Now!”
Read More: ‘Documentary Now!’: Fred Armisen and Bill Hader Start Making Nonsense With Talking Heads Concert Parody
In the space of less than two minutes, Armisen told Gould, “I still quote some of your stand-up,” and Hader and Gould riffed with each other on an impression of a San Francisco comedy club owner. Meanwhile, I just sat there, enjoying the opportunity to witness further proof that the...
We were in a large conference room at the Beverly Hilton, which IFC had taken over for interviews at the Television Critics Association press tour, and Armisen and Hader had stopped by to say hello to Gould in between interviews for their own series “Documentary Now!”
Read More: ‘Documentary Now!’: Fred Armisen and Bill Hader Start Making Nonsense With Talking Heads Concert Parody
In the space of less than two minutes, Armisen told Gould, “I still quote some of your stand-up,” and Hader and Gould riffed with each other on an impression of a San Francisco comedy club owner. Meanwhile, I just sat there, enjoying the opportunity to witness further proof that the...
- 11/3/2016
- by Liz Shannon Miller
- Indiewire
//players.brightcove.net/416418724/default_default/index.min.js
As Donald Trump faces a growing number of sexual assault allegations, his campaign has unveiled a plan to paint Bill Clinton as Bill Cosby, promising it will soon bring forward more women who claim they have been groped or sexually abused by the former president.
“She’s led a program of victim intimidation,” Trump’s campaign CEO Steve Bannon told Trump staffers of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, 68, two advisers who were present told Bloomberg. “This has nothing to do with consensual sexual affairs and infidelities. This is Bill.”
“We’re going to turn him into Bill Cosby.
As Donald Trump faces a growing number of sexual assault allegations, his campaign has unveiled a plan to paint Bill Clinton as Bill Cosby, promising it will soon bring forward more women who claim they have been groped or sexually abused by the former president.
“She’s led a program of victim intimidation,” Trump’s campaign CEO Steve Bannon told Trump staffers of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, 68, two advisers who were present told Bloomberg. “This has nothing to do with consensual sexual affairs and infidelities. This is Bill.”
“We’re going to turn him into Bill Cosby.
- 10/13/2016
- by Tierney McAfee
- PEOPLE.com
Welcome back to the Weekend Warrior, your weekly look at the new movies hitting theaters this weekend, as well as other cool events and things to check out.
This Past Weekend:
Another bad weekend where nothing really popped, which is bad news for a month at the box office where only Clint Eastwood’s Sully exceeded any expectations. Tim Burton’s new film Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children came out just below my predictions with $29 million, but the Mark Wahlberg-Peter Berg disaster flick Deepwater Horizon was right around where I predicted with $20.2 million. The comedy Masterminds tanked with just $6.5 million for the weekend to end up in sixth place while Disney’s The Queen of Katwe did slightly better than predicted with $2.5 million.
The first full weekend in October has a good deal of competition from the release of the video game Mafia III to the...
This Past Weekend:
Another bad weekend where nothing really popped, which is bad news for a month at the box office where only Clint Eastwood’s Sully exceeded any expectations. Tim Burton’s new film Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children came out just below my predictions with $29 million, but the Mark Wahlberg-Peter Berg disaster flick Deepwater Horizon was right around where I predicted with $20.2 million. The comedy Masterminds tanked with just $6.5 million for the weekend to end up in sixth place while Disney’s The Queen of Katwe did slightly better than predicted with $2.5 million.
The first full weekend in October has a good deal of competition from the release of the video game Mafia III to the...
- 10/5/2016
- by Edward Douglas
- LRMonline.com
Last night was all about Hillary Clinton - and fittingly so, as she just accepted her party's nomination for president. But even though she was the star of the show, it was her husband, President Bill Clinton, who seemed to be having the best time of all. He started off a little sleepy - and after four days of non-stop convention-ing, who wouldn't be? via Giphy But when his daughter Chelsea got going, he went full-on proud dad. No way @billclinton is going to be able to hold it together for this. #DNCinPHL #proudpop pic.twitter.com/whAavbbDhA— Lance Ulanoff...
- 7/29/2016
- by Diana Pearl, @dianapearl_
- PEOPLE.com
Last night was all about Hillary Clinton - and fittingly so, as she just accepted her party's nomination for president. But even though she was the star of the show, it was her husband, President Bill Clinton, who seemed to be having the best time of all. He started off a little sleepy - and after four days of non-stop convention-ing, who wouldn't be? via Giphy But when his daughter Chelsea got going, he went full-on proud dad. No way @billclinton is going to be able to hold it together for this. #DNCinPHL #proudpop pic.twitter.com/whAavbbDhA— Lance Ulanoff...
- 7/29/2016
- by Diana Pearl, @dianapearl_
- PEOPLE.com
Chicago – The United States is still fighting the Civil War, which ended in 1865. The rebellious South has never completely given away its anger and sorrow for the changes the war has wrought on them. These larger themes are examined historically in the new film, “Free State of Jones.”
Rating: 4.0/5.0
This is Matthew McConaughey at his finest, his performance as real history figure Newton Knight (that name could never be made up) is understated, subtle and respectful to the source. The direction by Gary Ross (“Seabiscuit”) – who also adapted the screenplay – creates an authentic atmosphere and cogent overview. But mostly this film speaks again to the struggle of the African American race in the U.S., and how a people that were brought here in chains, have never really been unchained as equal citizens in this country. As much as it is a film about Newton Knight, it also resonates as...
Rating: 4.0/5.0
This is Matthew McConaughey at his finest, his performance as real history figure Newton Knight (that name could never be made up) is understated, subtle and respectful to the source. The direction by Gary Ross (“Seabiscuit”) – who also adapted the screenplay – creates an authentic atmosphere and cogent overview. But mostly this film speaks again to the struggle of the African American race in the U.S., and how a people that were brought here in chains, have never really been unchained as equal citizens in this country. As much as it is a film about Newton Knight, it also resonates as...
- 6/24/2016
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Deadlight: Director’s Cut is now out for the PS4 and Xbox One. See what horror awaits you in the new launch trailer released by Deep Silver. Also: a look at Bif Bang Pow and Entertainment Earth’s Sdcc 2016 exclusive Dexter wooden Pin Mate, release details for In the Deep, info on the Mystery Science Theater 3000 reunion show, a poster and release news for Viral, and Zombie with a Shotgun‘s new Indiegogo campaign.
Deadlight: Director’s Cut Launch Trailer Revealed: Press Release: “Larkspur, Calif., June 21, 2016 – The survival horror platformer Deadlight: Director’s Cut is available today for PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PC digitally for $19.99. With the brand-new Survival Arena Mode which offers interactive defenses and novel weapons, players can expect an unforgettably intense struggle against the horde. In addition, the PS4 and Xbox One versions now also encompass the Nightmare Mode,...
Deadlight: Director’s Cut Launch Trailer Revealed: Press Release: “Larkspur, Calif., June 21, 2016 – The survival horror platformer Deadlight: Director’s Cut is available today for PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PC digitally for $19.99. With the brand-new Survival Arena Mode which offers interactive defenses and novel weapons, players can expect an unforgettably intense struggle against the horde. In addition, the PS4 and Xbox One versions now also encompass the Nightmare Mode,...
- 6/22/2016
- by Tamika Jones
- DailyDead
A review of tonight's Veep coming up just as soon as I quote the late Lionel Richie... There's a famous moment at the end of the first season of Cheers that half the TV business has been chasing in the 30-plus years since it first aired. It's the moment where the line gets obliterated between Sam Malone and Diane Chambers' utter disdain for one another and their animal attraction, and one moment they're threatening physical violence, and the next they are passionately making out. If you're the kind of person who reads this blog, odds are you've seen at least the most iconic part of the scene before, but here it is, anyway: That show, and that moment, bottled the idea of Unresolved Sexual Tension, which later series would try variations on. Sometimes, the will-they-or-won't-they couple would have mutual loathing for each other like Sam and Diane (David and Maddie...
- 6/6/2016
- by Alan Sepinwall
- Hitfix
Doctor Who fans, the suspense is over: The new companion has been unmasked!
BBC One announced Saturday that up-and-coming British thesp Pearl Mackie is joining the Season 10 cast as “Bill,” Peter Capaldi new onscreen sidekick. She succeeds Jenna Coleman, whose Clara Oswald made her final appearance in the Season 9 finale (last seen fleeing via Tardis with Game of Thrones‘ Maisie Williams.)
RelatedDoctor Who Spinoff Cast Revealed: Katherine Kelly to Teach Coal Hill Class
Mackie, who is currently starring in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time in London’s West End, said in a lengthy statement:...
BBC One announced Saturday that up-and-coming British thesp Pearl Mackie is joining the Season 10 cast as “Bill,” Peter Capaldi new onscreen sidekick. She succeeds Jenna Coleman, whose Clara Oswald made her final appearance in the Season 9 finale (last seen fleeing via Tardis with Game of Thrones‘ Maisie Williams.)
RelatedDoctor Who Spinoff Cast Revealed: Katherine Kelly to Teach Coal Hill Class
Mackie, who is currently starring in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time in London’s West End, said in a lengthy statement:...
- 4/23/2016
- TVLine.com
You're never too old to ping-pong! Bill Guilfoil, 93, is set to participate in the USA Table Tennis's open tryouts in February for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. A total of 65 men and 16 women will compete in the trials taking place in Greensboro, North Carolina, this year. The youngest contestant is 11-year-old Rachel Sung, and the oldest player is Guilfoil. If he makes it, he'll become the oldest Olympian in history, according to Sports Illustrated. • Need a little inspiration? Click here to subscribe to the Daily Smile Newsletter for uplifting, feel-good stories that brighten up your inbox.Guilfoil, who has been...
- 1/29/2016
- by Rose Minutaglio, @RoseMinutaglio
- PEOPLE.com
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It's the final entry in Wesley's top 100 Christmas TV episodes of all time list, numbers 20 to 1. Merry Christmas to all!
Read entries 100 - 81 here, entries 80 - 61 here, entries 60 - 41 here, and entries 40 - 21 here.
Since the medium’s infancy, viewers have enjoyed sharing holidays with their favourite television characters. We grow invested in our friends on screen over the years; spending Christmas with them is a rite of passage, a chance for us to share tradition from our world with the fictional ones we see on screen. Some shows embrace the season wholeheartedly, characters in good spirits and enjoying the trappings of the season; others skew a little darker, bringing the more oppressive, burdensome side of the holidays to life. Either way, Christmas episodes tend to demonstrate the strengths of our favourite series, and it’s long been a festive ritual of mine to wheel out old...
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It's the final entry in Wesley's top 100 Christmas TV episodes of all time list, numbers 20 to 1. Merry Christmas to all!
Read entries 100 - 81 here, entries 80 - 61 here, entries 60 - 41 here, and entries 40 - 21 here.
Since the medium’s infancy, viewers have enjoyed sharing holidays with their favourite television characters. We grow invested in our friends on screen over the years; spending Christmas with them is a rite of passage, a chance for us to share tradition from our world with the fictional ones we see on screen. Some shows embrace the season wholeheartedly, characters in good spirits and enjoying the trappings of the season; others skew a little darker, bringing the more oppressive, burdensome side of the holidays to life. Either way, Christmas episodes tend to demonstrate the strengths of our favourite series, and it’s long been a festive ritual of mine to wheel out old...
- 12/17/2015
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
If you're not already a fan of the brilliant Yonderland, from the Horrible Histories and Bill team, Rachel thinks you should catch up...
I make no bones about the fact that Horrible Histories is one of one my favourite TV shows. It never fails to make me laugh and I cannot tell you at how many pub quizzes I’ve deployed nuggets of information learned from that show. So, two years ago when it was announced the team behind Horrible Histories were moving on to something new, needless to say, I was rather intrigued. When I discovered fantasy and puppets were being thrown into that mix, I was well and truly sold.
For the uninitiated, Yonderland is a family-friendly, fantasy comedy. It’s the story of full time Mum, Debbie of Maddox (Martha Howe-Douglas) who discovers a portal to another world in her larder. An elf called Elf (voiced by...
I make no bones about the fact that Horrible Histories is one of one my favourite TV shows. It never fails to make me laugh and I cannot tell you at how many pub quizzes I’ve deployed nuggets of information learned from that show. So, two years ago when it was announced the team behind Horrible Histories were moving on to something new, needless to say, I was rather intrigued. When I discovered fantasy and puppets were being thrown into that mix, I was well and truly sold.
For the uninitiated, Yonderland is a family-friendly, fantasy comedy. It’s the story of full time Mum, Debbie of Maddox (Martha Howe-Douglas) who discovers a portal to another world in her larder. An elf called Elf (voiced by...
- 9/22/2015
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
We’ve got questions, and you’ve (maybe) got answers! With another week of TV gone by, we’re lobbing queries left and right about shows including Masters of Sex, Humans, Scream and Complications!
1 | Do Killjoys’ John and Alvis look just a bit too much alike, at a quick glance?
2 | On Hannibal, was Bedelia’s hand down Neal’s throat the biggest plate of crazy on the menu? And does anyone want to take a crack at explaining what the bloody hell was going on there?
VideosHumans Finale Sneak Peek: The Hawkins Plot to Save the Synths
3 | Is Humans’ Mattie...
1 | Do Killjoys’ John and Alvis look just a bit too much alike, at a quick glance?
2 | On Hannibal, was Bedelia’s hand down Neal’s throat the biggest plate of crazy on the menu? And does anyone want to take a crack at explaining what the bloody hell was going on there?
VideosHumans Finale Sneak Peek: The Hawkins Plot to Save the Synths
3 | Is Humans’ Mattie...
- 8/14/2015
- TVLine.com
We’ve got questions, and you’ve (maybe) got answers! With another week of TV gone by, we’re lobbing queries left and right about shows including I Am Cait, True Detective, Humans and Mistresses!
1 | Are we 100-percent certain that Hannibal‘s Dr. Chilton is alive — and not just a figment of multiple imaginations?
2 | Did you get serious Alias vibes from True Detective‘s Ani in her party getup? And who shares TVLine reader Mike’s theory, that the kids who survived the jewel heist way back when somehow became Mayor Chessani’s son and daughter?
RelatedTrue Detective Backlash: HBO...
1 | Are we 100-percent certain that Hannibal‘s Dr. Chilton is alive — and not just a figment of multiple imaginations?
2 | Did you get serious Alias vibes from True Detective‘s Ani in her party getup? And who shares TVLine reader Mike’s theory, that the kids who survived the jewel heist way back when somehow became Mayor Chessani’s son and daughter?
RelatedTrue Detective Backlash: HBO...
- 7/31/2015
- TVLine.com
If you're like us and value your sleep, you probably nodded off into your Ambien dreamland before the party started on post-prime time TV. Don't worry; we've got you covered. Here's the best of what happened last night on late night.
Seth MacFarlane is already known for his impressive vocal talents, so of course the "Family Guy" creator and "Ted 2" director was awesome at Jimmy Fallon's "Wheel of Impressions." Just watch him discuss Time Warner Cable as Liam Neeson (he has a very particular set of channels...), then take on Starbucks as Bobcat Goldthwait, and chat about movies as Ray Romano. All Bobcat impressions are gold, since there's almost no way to miss with that. Of course, these things are never random -- Seth already showed off his Liam impression in Moviefone's Unscripted last year, so they let him do it again.
In his own sit-down interview, Seth discussed how his father,...
Seth MacFarlane is already known for his impressive vocal talents, so of course the "Family Guy" creator and "Ted 2" director was awesome at Jimmy Fallon's "Wheel of Impressions." Just watch him discuss Time Warner Cable as Liam Neeson (he has a very particular set of channels...), then take on Starbucks as Bobcat Goldthwait, and chat about movies as Ray Romano. All Bobcat impressions are gold, since there's almost no way to miss with that. Of course, these things are never random -- Seth already showed off his Liam impression in Moviefone's Unscripted last year, so they let him do it again.
In his own sit-down interview, Seth discussed how his father,...
- 6/23/2015
- by Gina Carbone
- Moviefone
The month of May features a ton of great genre titles coming to VOD and digital platforms, including the highly anticipated zombie drama Maggie, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Abigail Breslin. The Orchard is releasing the Kiwi horror comedy mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows later this month and we also have both Oren Peli’s Area 51 and the sure-to-be-insane The Human Centipede 3 (Final Sequence) from Tom Six to look forward to as well. The indie spookfest Evangeline is also getting a VOD release from Uncork’d Entertainment and look for the latest from Dark Sky Films, Let Us Prey, which arrives the last week of May.
Private Number (Arc Entertainment) - 5/1
A series of sinister phone calls haunt an ex-alcoholic writer as he struggles to finish a novel. Efforts to trace the calls result in dead ends, leaving the author with no choice but to solve the mystery himself.
Private Number (Arc Entertainment) - 5/1
A series of sinister phone calls haunt an ex-alcoholic writer as he struggles to finish a novel. Efforts to trace the calls result in dead ends, leaving the author with no choice but to solve the mystery himself.
- 5/1/2015
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Hillary Clinton is much more than even a 2016 presidential candidate. She's a pop culture touchstone and the "Saturday Night Live" legacy of Hillary impersonations proves it: Clinton has been imitated by nine different performers going all the way back to Jan Hooks. To celebrate this indelible sketch character, let's rank all nine portrayals of the former New York senator and pick the ultimate "SNL" Hillary. Honorable mentions: Drew Barrymore and Rachel Dratch Both Drew Barrymore and Rachel Dratch played Clinton in very brief moments on "SNL." Barrymore played a young Clinton during a 2004 hosting stint and Dratch chimed in with a space-age Hillary in a "State of the Galaxy" sketch from 2006. While they are fun anomalous versions of the former Secretary of State, they aren't representative enough to factor in on this list. 7. Janeane Garofalo During the infamous '94-'95 season of "SNL," Michael McKean and Janeane Garofalo took turns as Bill and Hillary.
- 4/13/2015
- by Louis Virtel
- Hitfix
Despite the numerous opportunities out there, most aspiring filmmakers looking for support and mentorship know that the Sundance Institute’s January Screenwriters Lab and June Directing Lab have been two of the most important talent development initiatives in the independent film world for over 30 years. The great quality of the projects that have been workshopped and propelled through these programs have given us some of the most iconic films and filmmakers in recent memory.
But the institute’s commitment to provide opportunities for new voices that represent an eclectic array of background and experiences goes even further with other, lesser known, initiatives that have the potential to become turning points in the artists' careers. Of these, one of the most exciting programs is the Screenwriters Intensive, which is part the Sundance Institute's Diversity Initiative. This is of course a resource that is not only valuable, but crucial as we try to become a more inclusive society that is appreciative and welcoming of stories that exist beyond the mainstream, homogenous noise.
The Screenwriters Intensive is a 1 1/2 day workshop for writers whose work has been encountered by the institute as part of their outreach for the Labs and which they find especially promising. The writers of 10 projects take part in a program whose elements include a hands-on writing workshop led by creative advisor Joan Tewkesbury (“Nashville”), a screening of a recent Sundance film followed by a candid conversation with the filmmaker, a reception with Sundance staff and the extended Sundance community, and one-on-one meetings with two creative advisors to get feedback on their script. With the Intensive, the Sundance Institute aims to present participants with creative tools that they can take back to their own work, provide a space for dialogue and information sharing about the creative process of making a film (and all of the joys and challenges therein), and foster community among storytellers and an ongoing connection with Sundance.
This year the film screened was Rick Famuyiwa’s “Dope,” which premiered earlier this year in Park City and won a Special Jury Prize for Editing. Following the screening Famuyiwa shared anecdotes about the film’s production and the perseverance needed to stand by the core values of his project in spite of outside opposition. Later that evening, during a casual and highly interactive reception, the fellows had the chance to discuss their latest breakthroughs and newly found questions regarding their personal projects with the institute’s staff and other members of the independent film community. Chatting with them, and having witnessed some of the poignant exercises Ms. Tewkesbury uses in the past, there is not doubt in my mind that this was a groundbreaking experience for the entire group.
The following morning the fellows returned to the institute’s L.A offices to have on-on-one conversations with two advisors from a group of talented and achieved professionals that included Kyle Patrick Alvarez (“The Stanford Prison Expriemnt”), Patricia Cardoso (“Real Women Have Curves“),the aforementioned director Rick Famuyiwa (“Dope”), Deena Goldstone (“Identity Theft”), Tanya Hamilton (“Night Catches Us”), Felicia Henderson (“Gossip Girl”), Elgin James (“Little Birds”), Craig Johnson (“The Skeleton Twins”), Kyle Killen (“The Beaver”), Adam Bhala Lough (“Bomb the System”), Joan Tewkesbury herself, and Ligiah Villalobos (“Under the Same Moon”).
The Screenwriters Intensive fellows come from uniquely different backgrounds, and their projects bring original stories that are sure to showcase new and inventive perspectives on the world. Get to know them and their stories as they are on their way to giving us a great batch of new independent films.
To learn more about the Sundance Institute's programs visit Here
Tara Anaise
Project: "Bombay Stories"
Tara Anaïse is an award-winning writer/director whose first feature, "Dark Mountain," was released by Gravitas Ventures in August of 2014. Other recent work includes the upcoming thriller "Housekeeping," on which she’s a producer, and which is set to be released by Lions Gate in late March of 2015. Her short films have screened at festivals worldwide. Tara is currently developing several new projects, including a post-apocalyptic road movie with a female lead who drives a muscle car and kicks a**, and a romantic drama set in Mumbai in both 1968 and the present day that’s loosely based on her own family’s history. She holds an Mfa in film production from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts and a BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania. She can make a mean pumpkin mezcal cocktail and according to an Amazonian curandero, her spirit animal is the black jaguar. She lives and works in Los Angeles
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"Bombay Stories" is a drama centered around an Indian man returning to the city of his birth after decades of living abroad. When tragedy strikes, he recalls the summer of 1968—at that time, he was twenty-one and having a heartbreaking affair with a married woman right before leaving Bombay, and his entire family, behind for his new home in New York. It’s a story about the complexities of familial relationships and the question of whether or not it’s possible to return home.
It’s very loosely inspired by my own family’s history—my father’s side fled Sindh during the Partition of India in 1947 and rebuilt their lives in Mumbai (which at the time was called Bombay). Then my father left Mumbai (of his own volition) for the U.S. And then I fled the east coast for Los Angeles. I like to say I come from a long line of fleers.
The project is in the development stage. Currently working on a rewrite of the script and I’m planning on directing.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
Don’t take the easy way out. There are certain things I know about my characters and I can write them easily and I can write them well. But the most interesting aspects of a character come from the places we know the least. Don’t be afraid to go down the path that’s half in shadow, this is the kind of exploration that leads to the heart of the thing. I’ll definitely be using Joan’s writing exercises to further develop all of my characters. I’ve never done anything like what we did during her seminar. She had us make lists of things drawn from our own personal experiences – three times in your life you’ve known something was wrong but did it anyway, three places to which you never want to return, three times you’ve felt lost, and so on—and then take one item from each list, put the items on our protagonist, and quickly write a short story about the whole thing. It’s a concrete way to use instances from one’s own life to get to the root of the character.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Going into day two was exciting but nerve-wracking. I woke up at 5am wondering how my advisors were going to react to my script (I tend to expect the worst.) Luckily, no one ripped my script up into tiny pieces and threw it back at me. Adam and Tanya were both really great. They had good things to say about the script, along with insightful suggestions for improving it, which I’m going to explore in the next draft. We talked about the writing process. We talked about production. We talked about navigating the industry. Getting advice from two talented, experienced filmmakers who’d been through this many times before was incredibly helpful, not just for this project, but for my career as a filmmaker as well.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
The first thing I’m going to do is take some time to really get at the heart of each and every character. Then I’ll tackle the rewrite and when the script is ready, I’ll reach out to producers.
Shelby Farrell
Project: "Deidra and Laney Rob A Train"
Shelby Farrell is a screenwriter from Memphis, Tennessee. She is a graduate of Emory University where she was awarded the Kikag screenwriter award and the American Film Institute Conservatory where she finished an Mfa in screenwriting. She was recently featured in the Tracking Board's 2014 Young and Hungry List. She currently writes interactive games for Pocket Gems and is in preproduction for her feature "Deidra and Laney Rob A Train." She is repped by Gersh and Principato-Young.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"Deidra and Laney Rob A Train" is a dramedy about two teenage sisters who start robbing freight trains to support their family after their mother goes to jail. This script was my thesis screenplay for AFI and was featured on the Tracking Board's 2014 Young and Hungry List. Sydney Freeland (Sundance Alumni, "Drunktown's Finest") is attached to direct. Currently our reps are approaching select producers with the project, and we are really excited to see where it goes from here.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
All of the writers and I were pushed to find inspiration from our own past experiences during writing exercises. Through this process, I think we all realized that our screenplays are more autobiographical than we perhaps wanted to believe. Not that I've ever robbed a train, but I could.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Having professional advisors is always a blessing. Their feedback was especially useful in this stage because so many people I work with have read multiple drafts. Having fresh eyes on the script really gave me a new perspective. Also since the advisors are independent filmmakers and Sundance alums they really know what we are going through at this stage of development. I also got great advice on what's coming in the next few months as we get this story off the page.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
As far as this project goes, I feel like the script is in a really good place, but I also know that rewrites never end, and I'm excited to use the notes I received for future drafts. I'm also planning on using the writing exercises we learned in Joan Tewkesbury's workshop as I develop my newer projects. Joan taught us some character development tools that can be applied to any project in any stage.
Jared Frieder
Project: "Three Months"
Jared Frieder is a graduate of the Columbia University fiction writing program and his stories can be found in The Collective Press and The Newer York. His screenplay, "Three Months," has taken the top screenwriting prizes at the Austin Film Festival, the Screencraft Comedy Screenplay Contest, and the Big Bear International Film Festival Screenplay Contest. "Three Months" was also chosen for the 2014 Outfest Screenwriting Lab and was the featured script on The Black List online last November. He is currently developing his animated half-hour pilot, "Marathoners," with Bento Box Entertainment. He was accepted to USC’s Screenwriting Mfa on the Edward Volpe Endowed Scholarship before leaving to work on the ABC Family drama, "Chasing Life."
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
My project, "Three Months," tells the coming-of-age story of Caleb Kahn, a queer Ziggy Stardust-loving teenager from Miami who is exposed to HIV the weekend of his high school graduation and has to wait three months to be tested for the disease. It's a comedy, it's a love story, it's a tale of resilience, and it's a deconstruction of how people in crisis sludge through great periods of waiting. The screenplay has been a passion project of mine and I am very grateful to the Austin Film Festival Screenplay Competition, the Screencraft Comedy Screenplay Contest, and the Big Bear International Film Festival Screenplay Contest for awarding "Three Months" their respective grand prizes. I've also been spoiled by the Outfest Screenwriting Lab and the Sundance Intensive for allowing the script to be workshopped with their brilliant advisors (and some of my all-time heroes.)
After Austin, one of the festival judges (screenwriting phenom, producing master, and all around baller, Oren Uziel) came on board to help bring the script to the screen, along with my management company, Haven Entertainment. We're in the beginning stages of seeing this story come alive and it's pretty much the most exciting thing that has ever happened to me.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
The most important lesson I learned from the Intensive's first day is that Joan Tewkesbury is my spirit animal. The second most important lesson I learned from Ms. Tewkesbury (sweetly nicknamed Tewks by the generous souls of Sundance) is that I tend to use jokes as a means of concealing truth and authenticity (something my protagonist does as well. Let's just say I was channeling.) She helped me crack the comedy facade and delve deeper into character, getting in touch with Caleb's fears, insecurities, and dreams. I'm confident that Tewk's direction will not only take Caleb and "Three Months" to the next level, but also elevate my storytelling in the future. And for that, I will forever be in Ms. Tewkesbury's debt.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Sitting down with Kyle Killen was intimidating at first (he's a certifiable story genius who wrote "The Beaver" and created shows like "Lone Star.") But Kyle tapped into my protagonist in ways that previous advisors couldn't. He helped me dissect Caleb, bringing out deeper layers of his character. We then discussed and determined the most effective way of braiding these emotional undercurrents into the narrative. It's safe to say that my mind was blown.
Kyle Alvarez (esteemed director and fast friend) took a different approach and guided me through "Three Months" from a director's perspective, helping me think about casting, locations, and how aspects of the script would translate on screen. Having mentors come at the project from different angles was really enlightening. Again, I feel incredibly spoiled and grateful.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
Post-Intensive, I'm taking another pass at "Three Months" (because apparently you're never done writing, or that's what they keep telling me.) I'm stoked to take my Sundance notes and weave them through the script where I see fit. Then it's off to the producers for feedback and hopefully the hunt for a director and cast will commence. Also, there will be thank you notes. Lots and lots of thank you notes: to Sundance, to Tewks, to the Kyles, and to the universe for giving me this opportunity.
David J. Lee
Project: "Found"
David J. Lee spent years as an It professional who dreamed of becoming a performer. He finally made the leap and began working as a professional actor who curiously kept getting offers to direct. Finally he gave in, dropped it all, and proceeded to pursue his Mfa in Film Production at USC where, of course, everyone became more interested in his writing. Dave received USC’s First Film Screenwriting Award in 2013, and his thesis script, "Found," was a top 50 Academy Nicholl semi-finalist. His university-produced short, "Paulie," directed by Andrew Nackman, went on to win the Best Film, Audience Award, and Best Writer prizes at the 2014 NBC Universal Short Cuts Festival. Dave was a 2014 Cape New Writers Fellow; he is working on the feature version of "Paulie" while making eyes at the TV world.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
My feature film script is a crime thriller called “Found”. It’s the story of a night worker at a storage facility whose odd, illicit habit of breaking into storage lockers – and her talent for understanding people's lives through their belongings – force her into action when she discovers evidence of a child abduction in one of the units.
“Found" was my thesis script at USC and was a top-50 Nicholl semi-finalist in 2013. Prior to being accepted into the 2015 Sundance Intensive, it had been selected for the 2014 Cape New Writers Fellowship.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
Obviously, at this point I'm many drafts into my script, which means that I'm in a much different mindset than I was when I was originally coming up with the story. It’s a very analytical, left-brain process. Joan Tewkesbury led us through a series of writing exercises which brought me back to that original creative place, which helped me get a new perspective on my characters.
I guess if you’re looking for a specific lesson, it would be, “If you need a fresh perspective, don’t be afraid to put your characters in seemingly irrelevant situations, just to see how they play out, because you’ll be surprised at the relevant places you end up. At the very least, you often end up learning something new about your characters."
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
I was amazed and honored at how much time each advisor had put into their notes. Time is gold for these folks, and they gave us so much of it. It seemed that most of them had received tremendous support from the Sundance Labs or from programs similar to them when they were younger, so they were all there that day out of a desire to give back.
It’s valuable to receive notes from professionals in that these are folks who have more experience than you and a valuable perspective from having worked within the system, and I received some fantastic, insightful feedback that day. At the same time, they’re only perspectives. A note from a working professional may warrant extra consideration, but ultimately, if it doesn’t resonate with you, then it just doesn’t. In the end you weigh those comments against all the other feedback you’ve received over time.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
Keep writing. I’m encouraged by the attention this script has received. When I get it to a place where I’m happy with, then I’ll start looking into getting it made.
Channing Godfrey Peoples
Project: "Miss Juneteenth"
Channing Godfrey Peoples received her Mfa from USC's School of Cinematic Arts. Originally from Texas, she spent her childhood in community theater and has been storytelling ever since. Her films are character driven stories that focus on the resilience of the human spirit, often featuring African-American women at a turning point in their lives. At USC, Channing was awarded funding to direct her documentary, “Carry Me Home”, about the celebratory aspects of African-American Funeral Traditions.
Her narrative Thesis Film, “Red”, is a King Family Foundation Recipient, Jury Award Winner for Directing at the Directors Guild of America Student Film Awards, Panavision New Filmmakers Grant Recipient and nominated for Best Short at Pan African Film Festival and the Africa Movie Academy Awards. Channing won “Best Director” at the Nevada International Film Festival and was honored at the Lois Weber Film Festival in Texas. She wrote, directed and starred in “Red”, which is currently on the festival circuit, most recently screening at Champs-Élysées Film Festival in Paris, France. Channing served as a Time Warner Artist-in-Residence at Howard University in Washington DC. She believes in community involvement and mentors children interested in the arts. Channing is developing her first feature film, “Miss Juneteenth."
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
In Texas, slaves were informed they were free, two long years after 1863's Emancipation Proclamation declared American slaves free. That day was June 19 th, 1865, also known as “Juneteenth”. Today, many communities celebrate the Juneteenth holiday with beauty pageants acknowledging young African-American women who are the descendants of slaves. My story, "Miss Juneteenth," is about one of these women.
Turquoise Jones is a former beauty queen, “Miss Juneteenth 1999”, who lost her pageant's top prize of a college scholarship when an unplanned pregnancy lands her back home tending bar at an aging juke joint. Today, she is a single mother to a teenage girl, who she struggles to keep from going down the same wrong path that she took. She has enrolled her disinterested daughter in this year’s Miss Juneteenth pageant and is fighting to keep her in it.
The project is in development and is based in my hometown of Fort Worth, Texas. Neil Creque Williams ("David’s Reverie") is attached as Producer.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
On our first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab, Joan Tewkesbury lead an incredible writing workshop that challenged me to look deeper into the emotional journey of my story. I was seeking a way to take my script to a deeper emotional level and the workshop certainly aided that endeavor. The lesson for me was to connect to my characters through personal experience and emotion and not be resistant to other possibilities for my story.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
The advisors were incredible and I am in awe of their insight and accomplishments. I was delighted to receive feedback from professionals whose work I have long admired. They provided constructive feedback and challenged me to think of the script in new ways. I also enjoyed exchanging ideas with the other fellows at the Intensive and I was delighted to be surrounded by such diverse talent.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
I am now revisiting the script with a renewed intensity. I will be directing my film, "Miss Juneteenth," so my producer, Neil Creque Williams and I have identified our locations and begun preliminary casting. Our next step is crowdfunding and to continue to apply for support.
Maya Perez
Project: "Umwana"
Maya Perez is a screenwriter and fiction writer. She is a consulting producer for the Emmy Award- winning television series "On Story: Presented by Austin Film Festival," now entering its fifth season on PBS, and co-editor of the book On Story: Screenwriters and Their Craft (University of Texas Press, October 2013). She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Vassar College and is a Michener fellow at the University of Texas at Austin. She grew up in Kenya, Zambia, and the United States and lives in Austin, Texas.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
My project is a feature script, "Umwana," a domestic drama about an American teen who goes to rural Zambia to meet and live with her father and his family. More foreign to her than the cultural differences is the experience of being a member of a family.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
It was great to be reminded of the importance of specificity when depicting characters, and also, how to pull from personal experience without making your characters reflections of yourself. In the workshop we were assigned numerous writing exercises and, though initially intimidating, it was stimulating to be assured there's no limit to the new stories we can quickly craft from scratch. We often think of time as the enemy, in that we don't have enough of it in which to do the work. But sometimes I think I give myself too much time. Some of my better, more visceral writing has been generated under the gun, so to speak.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
One of my advisors hit me with a barrage of questions as soon as I sat down - What is Cassie feeling here? What does Joseph look like? Is it what she expected? What if this happened? What if that happened? So many questions that I started doubting the story's weight altogether. But she kept on and wouldn't let up, so I just wrote them all down until I finally had an answer and then another and eventually realized I know exactly what this story and these characters are about. I had to be sort of beaten down and thrown off balance in order to find the railing. It was terrific. Another advisor - who fortunately came right after - grabbed my shoulders and said he would stalk me until I made this film. He offered to make introductions to agents, managers, producers, and to be there for every draft and question I might have along the way. It was an invaluable experience, to sit down with these talented, professional writers who had read my script so closely and had such constructive questions and encouragement. It felt as though they were as invested in its success as I am.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
My proposed new opening to the script was met with enthusiasm, so I'll make that change, do another revision on the script, and then submit it for the Screenwriters Lab. It was a finalist last year, so hopefully it will go through this year and I'll be able to take advantage of a full week at the Lab to prepare it for production. One of my advisors generously sent me the look book he's using for his current project, and I'm making one of those for "Umwana" as well as researching what shooting on location in Zambia will entail.
Rodrigo Reyes
Project: "Charlie"
Rodrigo Reyes was born in Mexico City in 1983. Supported by the Mexican Ministry of Film, his acclaimed 2012 feature documentary "Purgatorio" featured visceral and intimate portraits of the Us- Mexico border. The film premiered in competition at the 2013 Los Angeles Film Festival and Guadalajara International Film Festival, touring more than 40 festivals including MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight, and winning several jury prizes including the Michael Moore Award for Best Documentary at the Ann Arbor Film Festival. "Purgatorio" has been released theatrically on over 100 screens throughout Mexico, touring Latin America, Spain, and over 30 American cities. In 2013 Filmmaker Magazine named Rodrigo one of 25 New Faces of Independent Film, and in 2014 he was awarded the Tribeca Film Institute Heineken Voices Grant for his upcoming documentary "Sanson And Me," as well as the Canon Filmmaker Award for his hybrid peach picker portrait "Lupe Under The Sun," currently in post-production. Rodrigo attended Uc San Diego, as well as colleges in Madrid and Mexico City, earning a degree in International Studies. He currently lives in California’s Central Valley where he works as an interpreter in the California Superior Court.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"Charlie" is a story about a mother and son living in the heartland of America, who hide a dark secret that is tearing them apart, threatening them with destruction. It’s a twisted, existential fairy-tale that tackles estrangement, loneliness and violence in a unique way. Aside from Sundance, the film has received the support of Nalip’s Latino Media Market.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
I was surprised by some of the tools used in the labs. There was an element of tapping into the subconscious using semi-dada techniques that really clicked with me. The key was coming in with an open mind.
Before the Labs, I felt the project was close to a final draft. That has since been atomized and torn apart at the hinges, which is fantastic, actually. The Intensive helped me pull away from the rut I didn’t know I was in and look at my script with a naked, honest perspective.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Often as independent filmmakers we feel threatened by the industry, their perspectives are senses as criticisms instead of critiques. The Lab did a great job of inviting you to a conversation, not a lecture or a dictate. I felt I could take the advice that honestly connected with me and integrate it with my script, while also fielding key questions to the advisors in a safe space.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
It’s all in my hands now. I have to integrate the conversations, critiques and perspectives gleaned from this process into a new draft.
Luke Uriah Slendebroek
Project: “Sophia/Gordita”
Luke Uriah Slendebroek is a graduate of the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television Mfa directing program. While at UCLA, Luke's films have been awarded The Hollywood Foreign Press Award, The Four Sister’s Award, The Carroll Sax Award in Motion Picture and Television Production, the Edie and Lew Wasserman Film Production Fellowship, and two Motion Picture Association of America Awards. Luke has directed a short documentary for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and he has directed a short film for the Oscar-winning producer and director Robert "Bobby" Moresco as part of an interdisciplinary collaboration at UCLA. He has also directed a number of industrial films for Fortune 500 companies. Luke's films favor the underdogs, involve fantastical worlds, and tend to explore that brief period between childhood and adulthood.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
“Sophia/Gordita” is a coming of age western based on the incredible true story of teenage madam that served the migrant farming communities of the midwest.
Aleksandar Marinovich has stepped on board to help produce the film. Currently we are raising money to finance the film with a goal of shooting in September, 2016.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
The Sundance Intensive was an amazing and immersive experience. The writing techniques I learned during the two days will be crucial as I dive into the next draft of my screenplay entitled “Sophia/Gordita”. Through this workshop, I feel confident to tackle the issues of my screenplay and to dig deeper into motivations that drive my lead character, Sophia.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Patricia Cardoso and Ligiah Villalobos were incredibly generous to offer their guidence and direction on my screenplay “Sophia/Gordita”. Their feedback, although at times challenging, pushed me to dig deeper into the character of Sophia. What really drives her to make the choices in act one that sends her life into a downward spiral during the subsequent acts? As I work through these issues, the outcome will hopefully be a character that no one has ever seen before on the screen, an anti-hero for a new generation.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
I plan on doing another rewrite utilizing the tools and techniques I learned from the Intensive. After the next draft, I will get more feedback from my producer and my film collective, Vices of Reason. Once I get a draft that I’m comfortable with, I’m going to get the script in the hands of anyone that’s willing to read it as well as continue to raise money to finance the film.
Vivian Tse
Project: "These Animals"
Vivian Tse is a filmmaker making both narrative and documentary films. She was a Colonist at the 2013 Nantucket Screenwriting Colony with her feature script "Joe Boy," which was also selected for the 2014 Ifp Transatlantic Partners Program. Tse participated in the 2014 Pov Hackathon with the transmedia documentary film "The Angola Project." Originally from San Francisco, she graduated from the University of Southern California.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"These Animals" is the story of an astronaut's last year on Earth after she agrees to crew a one-way mission to Mars. It's about what the last year of someone's life would be like if she made a decision with stakes that high, what happens to her family and the people around her, the people she loves and who love her.
We're currently in the development stage, trying to put the financing together. Sundance and the A3 foundation was kind enough to give us a grant. And we're in post on a short version of the project which we shot late last year.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
It took a bit of processing but the most rewarding lesson, or at least the one that stuck with me most, was using yourself to dig deeper into your character's journey. Which sounds obvious and certainly its something you're already doing as a writer with everything you write, but you can always go deeper. learning that there is always more to dig up, more of you to add, which is horrifying and invigorating at the same time.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
The advisors were amazing. They're very passionate - it's great. i found it invaluable, even when I didn't agree with the notes. it lets you know how people are reading, understanding and thinking about your story. their perspective was so helpful and it helps to look at my characters and my story in a new way. writing can be very isolating so it's always great to talk to someone who is doing what you're doing. and they share their war stories, telling you to reimagine a scene because they did something similar and it went to shit so don't forget to think about this or that, or that space ships are expensive so maybe try to stay out of a ship as a location. i don't have any space ships in the film but you get my point.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
A re-write for one, casting, financing the rest of the film. Keep pushing forward, hustling, like everyone does, until you make your film.
Diego Velasco & Carolina Paiz
Project: "Los Invadidos"
Diego Velasco and Carolina Paiz, a husband and wife writing team, are currently working on "Los Invadidos," a thriller which Velasco will also direct.
Writer/director Diego Velasco was born in the Us and raised in Caracas, Venezuela. Diego’s short, "Cédula Ciudadano," got him invited into the Fox Searchlab program after winning the Los Angeles Latino Film Festival. In 2003, Diego moved to Los Angeles and formed Open Studios with his wife, a production company meant to make the films they wanted to see in the world. In 2010, Diego made his feature debut with "La Hora Cero" (The Zero Hour). Set in Caracas during the 24-hours of a controversial medical strike, the film followed La Parca, a tattooed hit-man, as he takes an elite hospital hostage in an attempt to save his wounded girlfriend and her child. The film became the highest grossing Venezuelan film of its time. It has won over 35 awards at International festivals and secured distribution in five continents. Currently it has been optioned for an English language remake. In November of 2011, Diego was featured as one the Ten Mover and Reshapers of Latin American Cinema by Variety Magazine.
Growing up in Guatemala during the civil war, Carolina Paiz spent much of her time indoors, reading and watching television, escapes which later provided the foundation for her career as a writer for film and TV. At 15, she left Guatemala for Kent, a boarding school in Connecticut, where she was the first non- native English speaker to be awarded the Robert S. Hillyard award for her achievements in creative writing. Carolina went on to study English and Latin American Studies at Tulane University. The short stories she wrote there were later published by the Caribbean Writer. One of these, Sleep Comes Suddenly, was honored with the Canute A. Brodhurst Award. In 2006, she landed a position as a staff writer on ABC’s "Grey’s Anatomy." She later went on to write on NBC’s "Lipstick Jungle," CBS’s "The Defenders," Fox’s "Gang Related" and currently, Fox’s "Runner." She also developed a series for Fox, "Queen Of the South," based on the hugely successful Spanish novel. Between television projects, Carolina co- wrote and produced the Venezuelan feature "La Hora Cero," the highest grossing Venezuelan film in history.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
The film follows a couple that has just lost their only child and now find themselves on different sides of the spiritual debate. They’re forced to face their problems when they inherit a remote farm in the Venezuelan plains. Hoping for a new start, they soon learn the farm has been invaded by squatters and that there’s more to reality than what you can see…
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
The first day was revelatory. By doing exhaustive and highly personal writing exercises that we then shared with the entire class, we both realized that we hadn't fully tapped into our own fears and desires in writing the characters in our feature. We realized there was far more of us in these characters than we'd anticipated and that embracing that would actually deepen them. Rewriting the script now, the characters have come to life by simply putting ourselves in their shoes.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Our advisors were completely different and had very different points of view on the script, yet both sets of notes complimented each other quite well at the end of the day. Their points of view were enlightening. We had exhausted our resources by asking for notes from every trusted friend and colleague that we knew, and we'd gotten to the point we were afraid they'd stop taking our calls for fear that we'd make them read the script again. We were desperate for fresh eyes from people that didn't know us, didn't know the project, and had no emotional stake in any of it. But what made it truly amazing was the fact that we got to dive in with such skilled writers, and such generous people, and that they truly took the time to give us deep and insightful notes.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
We are currently rewriting the script as per what we've learned and hope to begin our search for financing soon!
But the institute’s commitment to provide opportunities for new voices that represent an eclectic array of background and experiences goes even further with other, lesser known, initiatives that have the potential to become turning points in the artists' careers. Of these, one of the most exciting programs is the Screenwriters Intensive, which is part the Sundance Institute's Diversity Initiative. This is of course a resource that is not only valuable, but crucial as we try to become a more inclusive society that is appreciative and welcoming of stories that exist beyond the mainstream, homogenous noise.
The Screenwriters Intensive is a 1 1/2 day workshop for writers whose work has been encountered by the institute as part of their outreach for the Labs and which they find especially promising. The writers of 10 projects take part in a program whose elements include a hands-on writing workshop led by creative advisor Joan Tewkesbury (“Nashville”), a screening of a recent Sundance film followed by a candid conversation with the filmmaker, a reception with Sundance staff and the extended Sundance community, and one-on-one meetings with two creative advisors to get feedback on their script. With the Intensive, the Sundance Institute aims to present participants with creative tools that they can take back to their own work, provide a space for dialogue and information sharing about the creative process of making a film (and all of the joys and challenges therein), and foster community among storytellers and an ongoing connection with Sundance.
This year the film screened was Rick Famuyiwa’s “Dope,” which premiered earlier this year in Park City and won a Special Jury Prize for Editing. Following the screening Famuyiwa shared anecdotes about the film’s production and the perseverance needed to stand by the core values of his project in spite of outside opposition. Later that evening, during a casual and highly interactive reception, the fellows had the chance to discuss their latest breakthroughs and newly found questions regarding their personal projects with the institute’s staff and other members of the independent film community. Chatting with them, and having witnessed some of the poignant exercises Ms. Tewkesbury uses in the past, there is not doubt in my mind that this was a groundbreaking experience for the entire group.
The following morning the fellows returned to the institute’s L.A offices to have on-on-one conversations with two advisors from a group of talented and achieved professionals that included Kyle Patrick Alvarez (“The Stanford Prison Expriemnt”), Patricia Cardoso (“Real Women Have Curves“),the aforementioned director Rick Famuyiwa (“Dope”), Deena Goldstone (“Identity Theft”), Tanya Hamilton (“Night Catches Us”), Felicia Henderson (“Gossip Girl”), Elgin James (“Little Birds”), Craig Johnson (“The Skeleton Twins”), Kyle Killen (“The Beaver”), Adam Bhala Lough (“Bomb the System”), Joan Tewkesbury herself, and Ligiah Villalobos (“Under the Same Moon”).
The Screenwriters Intensive fellows come from uniquely different backgrounds, and their projects bring original stories that are sure to showcase new and inventive perspectives on the world. Get to know them and their stories as they are on their way to giving us a great batch of new independent films.
To learn more about the Sundance Institute's programs visit Here
Tara Anaise
Project: "Bombay Stories"
Tara Anaïse is an award-winning writer/director whose first feature, "Dark Mountain," was released by Gravitas Ventures in August of 2014. Other recent work includes the upcoming thriller "Housekeeping," on which she’s a producer, and which is set to be released by Lions Gate in late March of 2015. Her short films have screened at festivals worldwide. Tara is currently developing several new projects, including a post-apocalyptic road movie with a female lead who drives a muscle car and kicks a**, and a romantic drama set in Mumbai in both 1968 and the present day that’s loosely based on her own family’s history. She holds an Mfa in film production from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts and a BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania. She can make a mean pumpkin mezcal cocktail and according to an Amazonian curandero, her spirit animal is the black jaguar. She lives and works in Los Angeles
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"Bombay Stories" is a drama centered around an Indian man returning to the city of his birth after decades of living abroad. When tragedy strikes, he recalls the summer of 1968—at that time, he was twenty-one and having a heartbreaking affair with a married woman right before leaving Bombay, and his entire family, behind for his new home in New York. It’s a story about the complexities of familial relationships and the question of whether or not it’s possible to return home.
It’s very loosely inspired by my own family’s history—my father’s side fled Sindh during the Partition of India in 1947 and rebuilt their lives in Mumbai (which at the time was called Bombay). Then my father left Mumbai (of his own volition) for the U.S. And then I fled the east coast for Los Angeles. I like to say I come from a long line of fleers.
The project is in the development stage. Currently working on a rewrite of the script and I’m planning on directing.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
Don’t take the easy way out. There are certain things I know about my characters and I can write them easily and I can write them well. But the most interesting aspects of a character come from the places we know the least. Don’t be afraid to go down the path that’s half in shadow, this is the kind of exploration that leads to the heart of the thing. I’ll definitely be using Joan’s writing exercises to further develop all of my characters. I’ve never done anything like what we did during her seminar. She had us make lists of things drawn from our own personal experiences – three times in your life you’ve known something was wrong but did it anyway, three places to which you never want to return, three times you’ve felt lost, and so on—and then take one item from each list, put the items on our protagonist, and quickly write a short story about the whole thing. It’s a concrete way to use instances from one’s own life to get to the root of the character.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Going into day two was exciting but nerve-wracking. I woke up at 5am wondering how my advisors were going to react to my script (I tend to expect the worst.) Luckily, no one ripped my script up into tiny pieces and threw it back at me. Adam and Tanya were both really great. They had good things to say about the script, along with insightful suggestions for improving it, which I’m going to explore in the next draft. We talked about the writing process. We talked about production. We talked about navigating the industry. Getting advice from two talented, experienced filmmakers who’d been through this many times before was incredibly helpful, not just for this project, but for my career as a filmmaker as well.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
The first thing I’m going to do is take some time to really get at the heart of each and every character. Then I’ll tackle the rewrite and when the script is ready, I’ll reach out to producers.
Shelby Farrell
Project: "Deidra and Laney Rob A Train"
Shelby Farrell is a screenwriter from Memphis, Tennessee. She is a graduate of Emory University where she was awarded the Kikag screenwriter award and the American Film Institute Conservatory where she finished an Mfa in screenwriting. She was recently featured in the Tracking Board's 2014 Young and Hungry List. She currently writes interactive games for Pocket Gems and is in preproduction for her feature "Deidra and Laney Rob A Train." She is repped by Gersh and Principato-Young.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"Deidra and Laney Rob A Train" is a dramedy about two teenage sisters who start robbing freight trains to support their family after their mother goes to jail. This script was my thesis screenplay for AFI and was featured on the Tracking Board's 2014 Young and Hungry List. Sydney Freeland (Sundance Alumni, "Drunktown's Finest") is attached to direct. Currently our reps are approaching select producers with the project, and we are really excited to see where it goes from here.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
All of the writers and I were pushed to find inspiration from our own past experiences during writing exercises. Through this process, I think we all realized that our screenplays are more autobiographical than we perhaps wanted to believe. Not that I've ever robbed a train, but I could.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Having professional advisors is always a blessing. Their feedback was especially useful in this stage because so many people I work with have read multiple drafts. Having fresh eyes on the script really gave me a new perspective. Also since the advisors are independent filmmakers and Sundance alums they really know what we are going through at this stage of development. I also got great advice on what's coming in the next few months as we get this story off the page.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
As far as this project goes, I feel like the script is in a really good place, but I also know that rewrites never end, and I'm excited to use the notes I received for future drafts. I'm also planning on using the writing exercises we learned in Joan Tewkesbury's workshop as I develop my newer projects. Joan taught us some character development tools that can be applied to any project in any stage.
Jared Frieder
Project: "Three Months"
Jared Frieder is a graduate of the Columbia University fiction writing program and his stories can be found in The Collective Press and The Newer York. His screenplay, "Three Months," has taken the top screenwriting prizes at the Austin Film Festival, the Screencraft Comedy Screenplay Contest, and the Big Bear International Film Festival Screenplay Contest. "Three Months" was also chosen for the 2014 Outfest Screenwriting Lab and was the featured script on The Black List online last November. He is currently developing his animated half-hour pilot, "Marathoners," with Bento Box Entertainment. He was accepted to USC’s Screenwriting Mfa on the Edward Volpe Endowed Scholarship before leaving to work on the ABC Family drama, "Chasing Life."
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
My project, "Three Months," tells the coming-of-age story of Caleb Kahn, a queer Ziggy Stardust-loving teenager from Miami who is exposed to HIV the weekend of his high school graduation and has to wait three months to be tested for the disease. It's a comedy, it's a love story, it's a tale of resilience, and it's a deconstruction of how people in crisis sludge through great periods of waiting. The screenplay has been a passion project of mine and I am very grateful to the Austin Film Festival Screenplay Competition, the Screencraft Comedy Screenplay Contest, and the Big Bear International Film Festival Screenplay Contest for awarding "Three Months" their respective grand prizes. I've also been spoiled by the Outfest Screenwriting Lab and the Sundance Intensive for allowing the script to be workshopped with their brilliant advisors (and some of my all-time heroes.)
After Austin, one of the festival judges (screenwriting phenom, producing master, and all around baller, Oren Uziel) came on board to help bring the script to the screen, along with my management company, Haven Entertainment. We're in the beginning stages of seeing this story come alive and it's pretty much the most exciting thing that has ever happened to me.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
The most important lesson I learned from the Intensive's first day is that Joan Tewkesbury is my spirit animal. The second most important lesson I learned from Ms. Tewkesbury (sweetly nicknamed Tewks by the generous souls of Sundance) is that I tend to use jokes as a means of concealing truth and authenticity (something my protagonist does as well. Let's just say I was channeling.) She helped me crack the comedy facade and delve deeper into character, getting in touch with Caleb's fears, insecurities, and dreams. I'm confident that Tewk's direction will not only take Caleb and "Three Months" to the next level, but also elevate my storytelling in the future. And for that, I will forever be in Ms. Tewkesbury's debt.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Sitting down with Kyle Killen was intimidating at first (he's a certifiable story genius who wrote "The Beaver" and created shows like "Lone Star.") But Kyle tapped into my protagonist in ways that previous advisors couldn't. He helped me dissect Caleb, bringing out deeper layers of his character. We then discussed and determined the most effective way of braiding these emotional undercurrents into the narrative. It's safe to say that my mind was blown.
Kyle Alvarez (esteemed director and fast friend) took a different approach and guided me through "Three Months" from a director's perspective, helping me think about casting, locations, and how aspects of the script would translate on screen. Having mentors come at the project from different angles was really enlightening. Again, I feel incredibly spoiled and grateful.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
Post-Intensive, I'm taking another pass at "Three Months" (because apparently you're never done writing, or that's what they keep telling me.) I'm stoked to take my Sundance notes and weave them through the script where I see fit. Then it's off to the producers for feedback and hopefully the hunt for a director and cast will commence. Also, there will be thank you notes. Lots and lots of thank you notes: to Sundance, to Tewks, to the Kyles, and to the universe for giving me this opportunity.
David J. Lee
Project: "Found"
David J. Lee spent years as an It professional who dreamed of becoming a performer. He finally made the leap and began working as a professional actor who curiously kept getting offers to direct. Finally he gave in, dropped it all, and proceeded to pursue his Mfa in Film Production at USC where, of course, everyone became more interested in his writing. Dave received USC’s First Film Screenwriting Award in 2013, and his thesis script, "Found," was a top 50 Academy Nicholl semi-finalist. His university-produced short, "Paulie," directed by Andrew Nackman, went on to win the Best Film, Audience Award, and Best Writer prizes at the 2014 NBC Universal Short Cuts Festival. Dave was a 2014 Cape New Writers Fellow; he is working on the feature version of "Paulie" while making eyes at the TV world.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
My feature film script is a crime thriller called “Found”. It’s the story of a night worker at a storage facility whose odd, illicit habit of breaking into storage lockers – and her talent for understanding people's lives through their belongings – force her into action when she discovers evidence of a child abduction in one of the units.
“Found" was my thesis script at USC and was a top-50 Nicholl semi-finalist in 2013. Prior to being accepted into the 2015 Sundance Intensive, it had been selected for the 2014 Cape New Writers Fellowship.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
Obviously, at this point I'm many drafts into my script, which means that I'm in a much different mindset than I was when I was originally coming up with the story. It’s a very analytical, left-brain process. Joan Tewkesbury led us through a series of writing exercises which brought me back to that original creative place, which helped me get a new perspective on my characters.
I guess if you’re looking for a specific lesson, it would be, “If you need a fresh perspective, don’t be afraid to put your characters in seemingly irrelevant situations, just to see how they play out, because you’ll be surprised at the relevant places you end up. At the very least, you often end up learning something new about your characters."
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
I was amazed and honored at how much time each advisor had put into their notes. Time is gold for these folks, and they gave us so much of it. It seemed that most of them had received tremendous support from the Sundance Labs or from programs similar to them when they were younger, so they were all there that day out of a desire to give back.
It’s valuable to receive notes from professionals in that these are folks who have more experience than you and a valuable perspective from having worked within the system, and I received some fantastic, insightful feedback that day. At the same time, they’re only perspectives. A note from a working professional may warrant extra consideration, but ultimately, if it doesn’t resonate with you, then it just doesn’t. In the end you weigh those comments against all the other feedback you’ve received over time.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
Keep writing. I’m encouraged by the attention this script has received. When I get it to a place where I’m happy with, then I’ll start looking into getting it made.
Channing Godfrey Peoples
Project: "Miss Juneteenth"
Channing Godfrey Peoples received her Mfa from USC's School of Cinematic Arts. Originally from Texas, she spent her childhood in community theater and has been storytelling ever since. Her films are character driven stories that focus on the resilience of the human spirit, often featuring African-American women at a turning point in their lives. At USC, Channing was awarded funding to direct her documentary, “Carry Me Home”, about the celebratory aspects of African-American Funeral Traditions.
Her narrative Thesis Film, “Red”, is a King Family Foundation Recipient, Jury Award Winner for Directing at the Directors Guild of America Student Film Awards, Panavision New Filmmakers Grant Recipient and nominated for Best Short at Pan African Film Festival and the Africa Movie Academy Awards. Channing won “Best Director” at the Nevada International Film Festival and was honored at the Lois Weber Film Festival in Texas. She wrote, directed and starred in “Red”, which is currently on the festival circuit, most recently screening at Champs-Élysées Film Festival in Paris, France. Channing served as a Time Warner Artist-in-Residence at Howard University in Washington DC. She believes in community involvement and mentors children interested in the arts. Channing is developing her first feature film, “Miss Juneteenth."
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
In Texas, slaves were informed they were free, two long years after 1863's Emancipation Proclamation declared American slaves free. That day was June 19 th, 1865, also known as “Juneteenth”. Today, many communities celebrate the Juneteenth holiday with beauty pageants acknowledging young African-American women who are the descendants of slaves. My story, "Miss Juneteenth," is about one of these women.
Turquoise Jones is a former beauty queen, “Miss Juneteenth 1999”, who lost her pageant's top prize of a college scholarship when an unplanned pregnancy lands her back home tending bar at an aging juke joint. Today, she is a single mother to a teenage girl, who she struggles to keep from going down the same wrong path that she took. She has enrolled her disinterested daughter in this year’s Miss Juneteenth pageant and is fighting to keep her in it.
The project is in development and is based in my hometown of Fort Worth, Texas. Neil Creque Williams ("David’s Reverie") is attached as Producer.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
On our first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab, Joan Tewkesbury lead an incredible writing workshop that challenged me to look deeper into the emotional journey of my story. I was seeking a way to take my script to a deeper emotional level and the workshop certainly aided that endeavor. The lesson for me was to connect to my characters through personal experience and emotion and not be resistant to other possibilities for my story.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
The advisors were incredible and I am in awe of their insight and accomplishments. I was delighted to receive feedback from professionals whose work I have long admired. They provided constructive feedback and challenged me to think of the script in new ways. I also enjoyed exchanging ideas with the other fellows at the Intensive and I was delighted to be surrounded by such diverse talent.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
I am now revisiting the script with a renewed intensity. I will be directing my film, "Miss Juneteenth," so my producer, Neil Creque Williams and I have identified our locations and begun preliminary casting. Our next step is crowdfunding and to continue to apply for support.
Maya Perez
Project: "Umwana"
Maya Perez is a screenwriter and fiction writer. She is a consulting producer for the Emmy Award- winning television series "On Story: Presented by Austin Film Festival," now entering its fifth season on PBS, and co-editor of the book On Story: Screenwriters and Their Craft (University of Texas Press, October 2013). She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Vassar College and is a Michener fellow at the University of Texas at Austin. She grew up in Kenya, Zambia, and the United States and lives in Austin, Texas.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
My project is a feature script, "Umwana," a domestic drama about an American teen who goes to rural Zambia to meet and live with her father and his family. More foreign to her than the cultural differences is the experience of being a member of a family.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
It was great to be reminded of the importance of specificity when depicting characters, and also, how to pull from personal experience without making your characters reflections of yourself. In the workshop we were assigned numerous writing exercises and, though initially intimidating, it was stimulating to be assured there's no limit to the new stories we can quickly craft from scratch. We often think of time as the enemy, in that we don't have enough of it in which to do the work. But sometimes I think I give myself too much time. Some of my better, more visceral writing has been generated under the gun, so to speak.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
One of my advisors hit me with a barrage of questions as soon as I sat down - What is Cassie feeling here? What does Joseph look like? Is it what she expected? What if this happened? What if that happened? So many questions that I started doubting the story's weight altogether. But she kept on and wouldn't let up, so I just wrote them all down until I finally had an answer and then another and eventually realized I know exactly what this story and these characters are about. I had to be sort of beaten down and thrown off balance in order to find the railing. It was terrific. Another advisor - who fortunately came right after - grabbed my shoulders and said he would stalk me until I made this film. He offered to make introductions to agents, managers, producers, and to be there for every draft and question I might have along the way. It was an invaluable experience, to sit down with these talented, professional writers who had read my script so closely and had such constructive questions and encouragement. It felt as though they were as invested in its success as I am.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
My proposed new opening to the script was met with enthusiasm, so I'll make that change, do another revision on the script, and then submit it for the Screenwriters Lab. It was a finalist last year, so hopefully it will go through this year and I'll be able to take advantage of a full week at the Lab to prepare it for production. One of my advisors generously sent me the look book he's using for his current project, and I'm making one of those for "Umwana" as well as researching what shooting on location in Zambia will entail.
Rodrigo Reyes
Project: "Charlie"
Rodrigo Reyes was born in Mexico City in 1983. Supported by the Mexican Ministry of Film, his acclaimed 2012 feature documentary "Purgatorio" featured visceral and intimate portraits of the Us- Mexico border. The film premiered in competition at the 2013 Los Angeles Film Festival and Guadalajara International Film Festival, touring more than 40 festivals including MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight, and winning several jury prizes including the Michael Moore Award for Best Documentary at the Ann Arbor Film Festival. "Purgatorio" has been released theatrically on over 100 screens throughout Mexico, touring Latin America, Spain, and over 30 American cities. In 2013 Filmmaker Magazine named Rodrigo one of 25 New Faces of Independent Film, and in 2014 he was awarded the Tribeca Film Institute Heineken Voices Grant for his upcoming documentary "Sanson And Me," as well as the Canon Filmmaker Award for his hybrid peach picker portrait "Lupe Under The Sun," currently in post-production. Rodrigo attended Uc San Diego, as well as colleges in Madrid and Mexico City, earning a degree in International Studies. He currently lives in California’s Central Valley where he works as an interpreter in the California Superior Court.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"Charlie" is a story about a mother and son living in the heartland of America, who hide a dark secret that is tearing them apart, threatening them with destruction. It’s a twisted, existential fairy-tale that tackles estrangement, loneliness and violence in a unique way. Aside from Sundance, the film has received the support of Nalip’s Latino Media Market.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
I was surprised by some of the tools used in the labs. There was an element of tapping into the subconscious using semi-dada techniques that really clicked with me. The key was coming in with an open mind.
Before the Labs, I felt the project was close to a final draft. That has since been atomized and torn apart at the hinges, which is fantastic, actually. The Intensive helped me pull away from the rut I didn’t know I was in and look at my script with a naked, honest perspective.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Often as independent filmmakers we feel threatened by the industry, their perspectives are senses as criticisms instead of critiques. The Lab did a great job of inviting you to a conversation, not a lecture or a dictate. I felt I could take the advice that honestly connected with me and integrate it with my script, while also fielding key questions to the advisors in a safe space.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
It’s all in my hands now. I have to integrate the conversations, critiques and perspectives gleaned from this process into a new draft.
Luke Uriah Slendebroek
Project: “Sophia/Gordita”
Luke Uriah Slendebroek is a graduate of the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television Mfa directing program. While at UCLA, Luke's films have been awarded The Hollywood Foreign Press Award, The Four Sister’s Award, The Carroll Sax Award in Motion Picture and Television Production, the Edie and Lew Wasserman Film Production Fellowship, and two Motion Picture Association of America Awards. Luke has directed a short documentary for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and he has directed a short film for the Oscar-winning producer and director Robert "Bobby" Moresco as part of an interdisciplinary collaboration at UCLA. He has also directed a number of industrial films for Fortune 500 companies. Luke's films favor the underdogs, involve fantastical worlds, and tend to explore that brief period between childhood and adulthood.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
“Sophia/Gordita” is a coming of age western based on the incredible true story of teenage madam that served the migrant farming communities of the midwest.
Aleksandar Marinovich has stepped on board to help produce the film. Currently we are raising money to finance the film with a goal of shooting in September, 2016.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
The Sundance Intensive was an amazing and immersive experience. The writing techniques I learned during the two days will be crucial as I dive into the next draft of my screenplay entitled “Sophia/Gordita”. Through this workshop, I feel confident to tackle the issues of my screenplay and to dig deeper into motivations that drive my lead character, Sophia.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Patricia Cardoso and Ligiah Villalobos were incredibly generous to offer their guidence and direction on my screenplay “Sophia/Gordita”. Their feedback, although at times challenging, pushed me to dig deeper into the character of Sophia. What really drives her to make the choices in act one that sends her life into a downward spiral during the subsequent acts? As I work through these issues, the outcome will hopefully be a character that no one has ever seen before on the screen, an anti-hero for a new generation.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
I plan on doing another rewrite utilizing the tools and techniques I learned from the Intensive. After the next draft, I will get more feedback from my producer and my film collective, Vices of Reason. Once I get a draft that I’m comfortable with, I’m going to get the script in the hands of anyone that’s willing to read it as well as continue to raise money to finance the film.
Vivian Tse
Project: "These Animals"
Vivian Tse is a filmmaker making both narrative and documentary films. She was a Colonist at the 2013 Nantucket Screenwriting Colony with her feature script "Joe Boy," which was also selected for the 2014 Ifp Transatlantic Partners Program. Tse participated in the 2014 Pov Hackathon with the transmedia documentary film "The Angola Project." Originally from San Francisco, she graduated from the University of Southern California.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
"These Animals" is the story of an astronaut's last year on Earth after she agrees to crew a one-way mission to Mars. It's about what the last year of someone's life would be like if she made a decision with stakes that high, what happens to her family and the people around her, the people she loves and who love her.
We're currently in the development stage, trying to put the financing together. Sundance and the A3 foundation was kind enough to give us a grant. And we're in post on a short version of the project which we shot late last year.
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
It took a bit of processing but the most rewarding lesson, or at least the one that stuck with me most, was using yourself to dig deeper into your character's journey. Which sounds obvious and certainly its something you're already doing as a writer with everything you write, but you can always go deeper. learning that there is always more to dig up, more of you to add, which is horrifying and invigorating at the same time.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
The advisors were amazing. They're very passionate - it's great. i found it invaluable, even when I didn't agree with the notes. it lets you know how people are reading, understanding and thinking about your story. their perspective was so helpful and it helps to look at my characters and my story in a new way. writing can be very isolating so it's always great to talk to someone who is doing what you're doing. and they share their war stories, telling you to reimagine a scene because they did something similar and it went to shit so don't forget to think about this or that, or that space ships are expensive so maybe try to stay out of a ship as a location. i don't have any space ships in the film but you get my point.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
A re-write for one, casting, financing the rest of the film. Keep pushing forward, hustling, like everyone does, until you make your film.
Diego Velasco & Carolina Paiz
Project: "Los Invadidos"
Diego Velasco and Carolina Paiz, a husband and wife writing team, are currently working on "Los Invadidos," a thriller which Velasco will also direct.
Writer/director Diego Velasco was born in the Us and raised in Caracas, Venezuela. Diego’s short, "Cédula Ciudadano," got him invited into the Fox Searchlab program after winning the Los Angeles Latino Film Festival. In 2003, Diego moved to Los Angeles and formed Open Studios with his wife, a production company meant to make the films they wanted to see in the world. In 2010, Diego made his feature debut with "La Hora Cero" (The Zero Hour). Set in Caracas during the 24-hours of a controversial medical strike, the film followed La Parca, a tattooed hit-man, as he takes an elite hospital hostage in an attempt to save his wounded girlfriend and her child. The film became the highest grossing Venezuelan film of its time. It has won over 35 awards at International festivals and secured distribution in five continents. Currently it has been optioned for an English language remake. In November of 2011, Diego was featured as one the Ten Mover and Reshapers of Latin American Cinema by Variety Magazine.
Growing up in Guatemala during the civil war, Carolina Paiz spent much of her time indoors, reading and watching television, escapes which later provided the foundation for her career as a writer for film and TV. At 15, she left Guatemala for Kent, a boarding school in Connecticut, where she was the first non- native English speaker to be awarded the Robert S. Hillyard award for her achievements in creative writing. Carolina went on to study English and Latin American Studies at Tulane University. The short stories she wrote there were later published by the Caribbean Writer. One of these, Sleep Comes Suddenly, was honored with the Canute A. Brodhurst Award. In 2006, she landed a position as a staff writer on ABC’s "Grey’s Anatomy." She later went on to write on NBC’s "Lipstick Jungle," CBS’s "The Defenders," Fox’s "Gang Related" and currently, Fox’s "Runner." She also developed a series for Fox, "Queen Of the South," based on the hugely successful Spanish novel. Between television projects, Carolina co- wrote and produced the Venezuelan feature "La Hora Cero," the highest grossing Venezuelan film in history.
Describe your project briefly and at what stage in the creative process it is.
The film follows a couple that has just lost their only child and now find themselves on different sides of the spiritual debate. They’re forced to face their problems when they inherit a remote farm in the Venezuelan plains. Hoping for a new start, they soon learn the farm has been invaded by squatters and that there’s more to reality than what you can see…
Briefly tell us about the most important or rewarding lesson you took from the first day of the Screenwriters Intensive Lab. How will this impact the future development of your project?
The first day was revelatory. By doing exhaustive and highly personal writing exercises that we then shared with the entire class, we both realized that we hadn't fully tapped into our own fears and desires in writing the characters in our feature. We realized there was far more of us in these characters than we'd anticipated and that embracing that would actually deepen them. Rewriting the script now, the characters have come to life by simply putting ourselves in their shoes.
Tell me about your experience during day two and your interaction with the advisors. How important was it for you to get feedback from a professional in the field that has gone through some of the same creative challenges as you?
Our advisors were completely different and had very different points of view on the script, yet both sets of notes complimented each other quite well at the end of the day. Their points of view were enlightening. We had exhausted our resources by asking for notes from every trusted friend and colleague that we knew, and we'd gotten to the point we were afraid they'd stop taking our calls for fear that we'd make them read the script again. We were desperate for fresh eyes from people that didn't know us, didn't know the project, and had no emotional stake in any of it. But what made it truly amazing was the fact that we got to dive in with such skilled writers, and such generous people, and that they truly took the time to give us deep and insightful notes.
Now that you've gone through this learning experience, what are some of the next steps you will be taking as you continue to develop your project?
We are currently rewriting the script as per what we've learned and hope to begin our search for financing soon!
- 4/6/2015
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Wes Anderson's "The Grand Budapest Hotel" won the Original Screenplay honor at the recently concluded Writers Guild Awards while Morten Tyldum's "The Imitation Game" took home the Adapted Screenplay trophy. "The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swarts" written by Brian Knappenberger won Documentary Screenplay award. The film is not nominated for an Academy award.
In TV land, HBO's "True Detective" won the Drama Series award and FX's "Louie" received the Comedy Series trophy.
Here's the complete list of winners (highlighted) and nominees of the 2015 Writers Guild Awards:
Feature Film
Original Screenplay
Boyhood, Written by Richard Linklater; IFC Films
Foxcatcher, Written by E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman; Sony Pictures Classics
The Grand Budapest Hotel, Screenplay by Wes Anderson; Story by Wes Anderson & Hugo Guinness; Fox Searchlight Winner
Nightcrawler, Written by Dan Gilroy; Open Road Films
Whiplash, Written by Damien Chazelle; Sony Pictures Classics
Adapted Screenplay
American Sniper,...
In TV land, HBO's "True Detective" won the Drama Series award and FX's "Louie" received the Comedy Series trophy.
Here's the complete list of winners (highlighted) and nominees of the 2015 Writers Guild Awards:
Feature Film
Original Screenplay
Boyhood, Written by Richard Linklater; IFC Films
Foxcatcher, Written by E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman; Sony Pictures Classics
The Grand Budapest Hotel, Screenplay by Wes Anderson; Story by Wes Anderson & Hugo Guinness; Fox Searchlight Winner
Nightcrawler, Written by Dan Gilroy; Open Road Films
Whiplash, Written by Damien Chazelle; Sony Pictures Classics
Adapted Screenplay
American Sniper,...
- 2/16/2015
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
All things come to an end and the true death arrived for HBO’s True Blood earlier this year. This week, HBO Home Entertainment offers up The Complete Seventh Season along with a mammoth complete series box set. In looking back on the series, it probably hung around a little longer than necessary, especially as things spiraled from over-the-top to insane crazy after series creator Alan Ball left.
The seventy episodes veered further and further from Charlaine Harris’s The Southern Vampire Mysteries novels and even she wrapped up her prose stories recognizing the time had come.
Bon Temps is under attack as things open up, picking up where season six dropped us. The Hep V Vampires are running amuck as many of our favorite supporting characters have been threatened. Pam continues her hunt for Eric leaving Sookie as the calming voice of reason and she’s not feeling all that steady.
The seventy episodes veered further and further from Charlaine Harris’s The Southern Vampire Mysteries novels and even she wrapped up her prose stories recognizing the time had come.
Bon Temps is under attack as things open up, picking up where season six dropped us. The Hep V Vampires are running amuck as many of our favorite supporting characters have been threatened. Pam continues her hunt for Eric leaving Sookie as the calming voice of reason and she’s not feeling all that steady.
- 11/9/2014
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
After seven seasons, the battles between vampires and humans in the small Louisiana town of Bon Temps came to an end with the series finale of True Blood. For many fans of the show, it’s been difficult to say goodbye, but a return to the vampiric community is possible with HBO’s upcoming release of True Blood: The Complete Series and True Blood: The Complete Seventh Season to Blu-ray and DVD.
HBO will release both True Blood: The Complete Series and True Blood: The Complete Seventh Season to home media on November 11th. The Complete Series Blu-ray box set can be purchased for $299.99, complete with 33 discs and all previously released bonus features from past seasons, including 40 audio commentaries.
The Complete Seventh Season Blu-ray will include behind-the-scenes bonus features of the bittersweet last days during the show’s 10-episode final season. We have the official press...
HBO will release both True Blood: The Complete Series and True Blood: The Complete Seventh Season to home media on November 11th. The Complete Series Blu-ray box set can be purchased for $299.99, complete with 33 discs and all previously released bonus features from past seasons, including 40 audio commentaries.
The Complete Seventh Season Blu-ray will include behind-the-scenes bonus features of the bittersweet last days during the show’s 10-episode final season. We have the official press...
- 9/8/2014
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
This post contains plot details of the True Blood series finale, “Thank You,” which aired on Aug. 24. Read the recap.
True Blood showrunner Brian Buckner has done some post-finale reading and knows fans have questions. During a conference call with reporters, he answered some of them. Here’s what you need to know:
• Why did we not see the face of the man Sookie ended up with? “The idea was that we wanted Bill to be correct when he said that Sookie could have a normal life, the twist, of course, being that Sookie chose to keep her power and...
True Blood showrunner Brian Buckner has done some post-finale reading and knows fans have questions. During a conference call with reporters, he answered some of them. Here’s what you need to know:
• Why did we not see the face of the man Sookie ended up with? “The idea was that we wanted Bill to be correct when he said that Sookie could have a normal life, the twist, of course, being that Sookie chose to keep her power and...
- 8/25/2014
- by Mandi Bierly
- EW - Inside TV
True Blood, Season 7, Episode 10, “Thank You”
Written by Brian Buckner
Directed by Scott Winant
Aired Sundays at 9pm Est on HBO
On this week’s (final) episode, Bill makes a difficult request of Sookie, Jessica and Hoyt make a plan for their future, and Pam and Eric start a new business together.
After such a solid final season, True Blood‘s finale is almost a disappointment. Too many storylines feel forced or rushed, and the ending, though happy, rings a little false. Of course, the show didn’t exit without releasing a few more shocking surprises–including a pivotal moment that involves the death of a major character since series’s beginning.
Honestly, not many scenes stand out in the series finale (save a bloody Eric head-bobbing in his car). “Thank You” mainly serves as a chance to wrap up as much story as possible, and the effect is a...
Written by Brian Buckner
Directed by Scott Winant
Aired Sundays at 9pm Est on HBO
On this week’s (final) episode, Bill makes a difficult request of Sookie, Jessica and Hoyt make a plan for their future, and Pam and Eric start a new business together.
After such a solid final season, True Blood‘s finale is almost a disappointment. Too many storylines feel forced or rushed, and the ending, though happy, rings a little false. Of course, the show didn’t exit without releasing a few more shocking surprises–including a pivotal moment that involves the death of a major character since series’s beginning.
Honestly, not many scenes stand out in the series finale (save a bloody Eric head-bobbing in his car). “Thank You” mainly serves as a chance to wrap up as much story as possible, and the effect is a...
- 8/25/2014
- by Ashley Laggan
- SoundOnSight
"True Blood" is officially over, and we're currently covered in a combination of tears, comfort food, and Eric Northman posters. HBO's long-standing vampire drama went all out for its finale season, by which we mean they killed off half the population of Bon Temps -- including Bill Compton. Despite Sookie Stackhouse's fairy feels, Bill met his maker in the"True Blood" final moments -- but his demise is just the tip of the iceberg.
Ready to take a walk down memory lane and revisit this season's goriest, most fangtastic deaths? Well, we've rounded up every obliteration for you to look back on (with GIFs, of course!), so go ahead and pour one out for our fallen homies.
Name: Tara Thornton Time of Death: Season 7, Episode 1 ("Jesus Gonna Be Here") If Tara's untimely doom seems somewhat familiar, it's probably because she died back in Season 4 and turned into a vampire.
Ready to take a walk down memory lane and revisit this season's goriest, most fangtastic deaths? Well, we've rounded up every obliteration for you to look back on (with GIFs, of course!), so go ahead and pour one out for our fallen homies.
Name: Tara Thornton Time of Death: Season 7, Episode 1 ("Jesus Gonna Be Here") If Tara's untimely doom seems somewhat familiar, it's probably because she died back in Season 4 and turned into a vampire.
- 8/25/2014
- by Mehera Bonner
- Moviefone
[Warning: This story contains spoilers from this week's series finale of True Blood, "Thank You."] The final season of True Blood ended Sunday with a three-year time jump, bringing many of its characters to a Thanksgiving hosted by a pregnant Sookie (Anna Paquin) and a husband viewers never see. The seventh season of the Alan Ball-created HBO drama killed off major characters Tara (Rutina Wesley) and Alcide (Joe Manganiello) and saw Sam (Sam Trammell) pack his bags and leave Bon Temps with Nicole (Jurnee Smollett-Bell). Here's where the rest of the series' characters ended up. Bill and Sookie Bill
read more...
read more...
- 8/25/2014
- by Austin Siegemund-Broka
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
If True Blood has taught fans anything, it's that nothing lasts forever - even immortal vampires. After seven seasons, the HBO drama has died the true death and ended on Sunday after 80 episodes of vampires, shape-shifters, werewolves, witches and fairies. Warning: True Blood spoilers ahead for the final time.As the final episode begins, Bill (Stephen Moyer) comes over to explain that he is choosing the true death to give Sookie a normal life with children. Sookie (Anna Paquin) protests and insists he should get help, but asks Bill to leave when he formally implores her to end his life...
- 8/25/2014
- by Patrick Gomez, @PatrickGomezLA
- PEOPLE.com
If True Blood has taught fans anything, it's that nothing lasts forever – even immortal vampires.
After seven seasons, the HBO drama died the true death and ended on Sunday after 80 episodes of vampires, shape-shifters, werewolves, witches and fairies.
Warning: True Blood spoilers ahead for the final time.
As the final episode begins, Bill (Stephen Moyer) comes over to explain that he is choosing the true death to give Sookie a normal life with children. Sookie (Anna Paquin) protests and insists he should get help, but asks Bill to leave when he formally implores her to end his life with the...
After seven seasons, the HBO drama died the true death and ended on Sunday after 80 episodes of vampires, shape-shifters, werewolves, witches and fairies.
Warning: True Blood spoilers ahead for the final time.
As the final episode begins, Bill (Stephen Moyer) comes over to explain that he is choosing the true death to give Sookie a normal life with children. Sookie (Anna Paquin) protests and insists he should get help, but asks Bill to leave when he formally implores her to end his life with the...
- 8/25/2014
- by Patrick Gomez, @PatrickGomezLA
- People.com - TV Watch
In its final episodes, “True Blood” pulled off a real bait-and-switch. The wild, freeform gory action of the first half of the season had led many observers, myself included, to predict an apocalyptic finale with dead bodies draped all over the set. Instead, the last couple of hours were a ‘shipper’s paradise, with the longest, most drawn-out sequence devoted to the surprise marriage of Hoyt and Jessica. Andy presides at the service, which is held at Bill’s house, and the out-of-the-blue nature of the ceremony has Arlene and Holly wondering if vampires can get pregnant. The real explanation is much simpler, and sadder: after Jessica and Hoyt visit the fast-fading Bill and tell him of their feelings for each other, the wedding is put on the front burner so that Bill can be there to witness it. He had another daughter once, when he was a human being,...
- 8/25/2014
- by Phil Dyess-Nugent
- Hitfix
True Blood concluded its seven-season run with a vampire-human wedding and an end to the love story of Bill and Sookie in the series finale, "Thank You."
Picking up where we left off, Bill (Stephen Moyer) meets Sookie (Anna Paquin) at her house and tried to explain to her why he has chosen to die. “This disease, Sookie, has made me feel more human that I have before,” Bill tells her. He belongs in the cemetery with his family – death, after all, is a part of life. He wants to ensure that Sookie lives a whole life – children included. When she asks why he can’t just break up with her. If she’s not strong enough to leave him, then he could leave her, but he says he’s not strong enough. Then Bill asks Sookie for a huge favor: to use her light on him. Kill him, and...
Picking up where we left off, Bill (Stephen Moyer) meets Sookie (Anna Paquin) at her house and tried to explain to her why he has chosen to die. “This disease, Sookie, has made me feel more human that I have before,” Bill tells her. He belongs in the cemetery with his family – death, after all, is a part of life. He wants to ensure that Sookie lives a whole life – children included. When she asks why he can’t just break up with her. If she’s not strong enough to leave him, then he could leave her, but he says he’s not strong enough. Then Bill asks Sookie for a huge favor: to use her light on him. Kill him, and...
- 8/25/2014
- Uinterview
“What if all I want right now is to see you live?” Sookie kicked off Sunday’s True Blood series finale by laying her demands for Bill on the line — but did she get her wish?
Related True Blood‘s Best Deaths | Best Villains | Best Sex Scenes
Ultimately… no, no she did not. “Show me the true death, and you’ll be setting us both free,” he begged, suggesting that she use her “True Kindness” fairy ball on him, thus relieving herself of both him and her fairy-ness in one fell swoop.
It ended up being a murder/funeral for...
Related True Blood‘s Best Deaths | Best Villains | Best Sex Scenes
Ultimately… no, no she did not. “Show me the true death, and you’ll be setting us both free,” he begged, suggesting that she use her “True Kindness” fairy ball on him, thus relieving herself of both him and her fairy-ness in one fell swoop.
It ended up being a murder/funeral for...
- 8/25/2014
- TVLine.com
Hey DEADheads, Ryne from The Moon is a Dead World here with another week of DEADtime TV. Your horror favorites are all back, except for Dominion, but screw that show anyway. Shawn’s got True Blood, and is currently marathoning the current season of Falling Skies, so look for a recap soon. Kevin‘s got Teen Wolf, The Strain, and Under the Dome, and I’ve got the rest!
The Last Ship: “Two Sailors Walk Into a Bar…” - Sunday, August 10 at 9 Pm
Besides the bad joke of the title (“Two sailors walk into a bar… they both walk out”), this episode of The Last Ship is a surprisingly effective hour of television. Not only does it put Co Chandler and Dr. Scott in danger, it also finally focuses most of its plot on the virus that has been plaguing the world, the one we’ve been hearing a...
The Last Ship: “Two Sailors Walk Into a Bar…” - Sunday, August 10 at 9 Pm
Besides the bad joke of the title (“Two sailors walk into a bar… they both walk out”), this episode of The Last Ship is a surprisingly effective hour of television. Not only does it put Co Chandler and Dr. Scott in danger, it also finally focuses most of its plot on the virus that has been plaguing the world, the one we’ve been hearing a...
- 8/23/2014
- by Ryne Barber
- The Liberal Dead
With the end in sight—True Blood’s series finale airs Sunday at 9 p.m. Et on HBO—here’s another look inside some of season 7’s most fun and memorable scenes, which have led us there.
Episode 1, “Jesus Gonna Be Here”: Tara (Rutina Wesley) dies—again.
“It’s kind of like the catalyst for everything else that’s gonna probably happen,” Wesley told EW. “I think it’s kinda cool that the last time you see me, it looks like I’m gonna win the fight, and then you cut to Lettie Mae. Me and that vampire went at it,...
Episode 1, “Jesus Gonna Be Here”: Tara (Rutina Wesley) dies—again.
“It’s kind of like the catalyst for everything else that’s gonna probably happen,” Wesley told EW. “I think it’s kinda cool that the last time you see me, it looks like I’m gonna win the fight, and then you cut to Lettie Mae. Me and that vampire went at it,...
- 8/23/2014
- by Mandi Bierly
- EW - Inside TV
On Sunday, True Blood will meet true death after seven seasons of surprises, sex, surprising sex, and more supernatural beings than most shows could even attempt to incorporate. So to look back at all the craziness that vampires, werewolves, shifters, witches, fairies, and more brought to the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, here’s a quiz comparing some of the most outrageous True Blood moments. Can you tell which of the four options is a lie?
1)
A. Sam shifted into a horse to fight a centaur.
B. Sam shifted into a bull to kill a maenad.
C. Sam shifted...
1)
A. Sam shifted into a horse to fight a centaur.
B. Sam shifted into a bull to kill a maenad.
C. Sam shifted...
- 8/22/2014
- by Samantha Highfill
- EW.com - PopWatch
I think I have accepted that True Blood is a “chick show.” The violence, the fighting, the monsters are all gone. But for me, that just leaves a hell of a lot less that is interesting. And they have wrapped up all the interesting storylines: Tara and her mom; Violet...well, okay, I guess those were the most interesting storylines. But have you noticed that in the last few episodes, Hep V has barely even been mentioned? And we haven’t had any attacks from Hep V vamps since the first couple episodes. I miss those junkie psychopaths.
Bill has decided that he doesn’t want the cure. Worse, he can’t/won’t explain why. Some nonsense about accepting his fate. He later admits to Eric that he is doing it for Sookie. Anyway, Sookie and Jessica don’t take this very well. Sookie slaps him until Eric makes her stop,...
Bill has decided that he doesn’t want the cure. Worse, he can’t/won’t explain why. Some nonsense about accepting his fate. He later admits to Eric that he is doing it for Sookie. Anyway, Sookie and Jessica don’t take this very well. Sookie slaps him until Eric makes her stop,...
- 8/18/2014
- by Ryan Turek
- shocktillyoudrop.com
This post contains plot details of “Love Is to Die,” the True Blood episode that aired on Aug. 17. Read our full recap here.
The penultimate episode of True Blood’s final season had many memorable moments, but the one fans will have the most fun reliving involves Eric (Alexander Skarsgard) and Ginger (Tara Buck). Buck took EW inside what will go down as the series’ funniest sex scene—and explained how not wanting to hand off to your stunt double can lead to a burst of creativity and a great ab workout.
EW: When did you find out Eric was...
The penultimate episode of True Blood’s final season had many memorable moments, but the one fans will have the most fun reliving involves Eric (Alexander Skarsgard) and Ginger (Tara Buck). Buck took EW inside what will go down as the series’ funniest sex scene—and explained how not wanting to hand off to your stunt double can lead to a burst of creativity and a great ab workout.
EW: When did you find out Eric was...
- 8/18/2014
- by Mandi Bierly
- EW - Inside TV
We’ve got questions, and you’ve (maybe) got answers! With another week of TV gone by, we’re lobbing queries left and right about shows including Masters of Sex, True Blood, Teen Wolf and Chasing Life!
1 | From The Killing Episode 3: Wouldn’t Linden have seen Skinner’s wife’s car outside the cabin, when she went to lob the cell phone into the lake?
2 | Between that scene in Outlander (above photo) and that scene in Masters of Sex, wasn’t it a great week to be a female TV character?
3 | Speaking of Masters of Sex, anyone else dreading...
1 | From The Killing Episode 3: Wouldn’t Linden have seen Skinner’s wife’s car outside the cabin, when she went to lob the cell phone into the lake?
2 | Between that scene in Outlander (above photo) and that scene in Masters of Sex, wasn’t it a great week to be a female TV character?
3 | Speaking of Masters of Sex, anyone else dreading...
- 8/15/2014
- TVLine.com
HBO
HBO’s True Blood is known for it’s fantastical (somewhat over-the-top) story lines, gushing amounts of gore and a whole lot of sex. With all of the convoluted story lines the show has gone through during the past seven seasons, the sex scenes are a much needed respite from trying to connect all of the dots.
Between all of the vampires, werewolves, fairies, shape-shifters and humans portrayed on the show, there are bound to be oodles of sexual tension and exploration. “True Blood” doesn’t shy away from any sort of sexual act, which is a main factor that draws in a lot of its viewers. The show has portrayed bondage, orgies, fantasy and any other kind of sex you can think of. Judging by the copious amounts of nudity displayed, the show doesn’t do anything half-assed, and their sex scenes are no exception (pun intended).
Although...
HBO’s True Blood is known for it’s fantastical (somewhat over-the-top) story lines, gushing amounts of gore and a whole lot of sex. With all of the convoluted story lines the show has gone through during the past seven seasons, the sex scenes are a much needed respite from trying to connect all of the dots.
Between all of the vampires, werewolves, fairies, shape-shifters and humans portrayed on the show, there are bound to be oodles of sexual tension and exploration. “True Blood” doesn’t shy away from any sort of sexual act, which is a main factor that draws in a lot of its viewers. The show has portrayed bondage, orgies, fantasy and any other kind of sex you can think of. Judging by the copious amounts of nudity displayed, the show doesn’t do anything half-assed, and their sex scenes are no exception (pun intended).
Although...
- 8/12/2014
- by Holland Baker
- Obsessed with Film
True Blood, Season 7, Episode 8, “Almost Home”
Written by Kate Barnow
Directed by Jesse Warn
Airs Sundays at 9pm Est on HBO
On this week’s True Blood, Sookie seeks the newfound Hep-v cure for Bill, Hoyt reunites with Jessica, Tara makes peace with her mother, and Pam and Eric learn a few business tips.
Last week’s True Blood was very slow in a dull way, but “Almost Home” rectified last week’s lack of intriguing story by simultaneously wrapping up a few loose story threads, tossing in several heavily-reflective character moments, and setting up the season’s–and the series’s–final two episodes.
The best moments of the episode include Hoyt whose return to Bon Temps is filled with plenty of emotion and sweetly subtle character development. Still clueless about his past, Hoyt serves mostly as the catalyst for Jessica and Jason to reevaluate where they are in...
Written by Kate Barnow
Directed by Jesse Warn
Airs Sundays at 9pm Est on HBO
On this week’s True Blood, Sookie seeks the newfound Hep-v cure for Bill, Hoyt reunites with Jessica, Tara makes peace with her mother, and Pam and Eric learn a few business tips.
Last week’s True Blood was very slow in a dull way, but “Almost Home” rectified last week’s lack of intriguing story by simultaneously wrapping up a few loose story threads, tossing in several heavily-reflective character moments, and setting up the season’s–and the series’s–final two episodes.
The best moments of the episode include Hoyt whose return to Bon Temps is filled with plenty of emotion and sweetly subtle character development. Still clueless about his past, Hoyt serves mostly as the catalyst for Jessica and Jason to reevaluate where they are in...
- 8/11/2014
- by Ashley Laggan
- SoundOnSight
Tara's death was swift and sudden in the True Blood season 7 premiere, but fans finally got to say a proper goodbye to Rutina Wesley's character on Sunday's episode of the HBO hit. While on a final V-induced vision, Tara's cousin Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis), mother Lettie Mae (Adina Porter) and stepfather (Gregg Daniel) take a trip back in time to see Tara almost shoot her father with his own gun because he was being physically violent with her mother. Ultimately, Tara cannot bring herself to shoot her father and buries the gun in the backyard as he leaves his family for good.
- 8/11/2014
- by Patrick Gomez
- PEOPLE.com
Tara's death was swift and sudden in the True Blood season 7 premiere, but fans finally got to say a proper goodbye to Rutina Wesley's character on Sunday's episode of the HBO hit.
While on a final V-induced vision, Tara's cousin Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis), mother Lettie Mae (Adina Porter) and stepfather (Gregg Daniel) take a trip back in time to see Tara almost shoot her father with his own gun because he was being physically violent with her mother.
Ultimately, Tara cannot bring herself to shoot her father and buries the gun in the backyard as he leaves his family for good.
While on a final V-induced vision, Tara's cousin Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis), mother Lettie Mae (Adina Porter) and stepfather (Gregg Daniel) take a trip back in time to see Tara almost shoot her father with his own gun because he was being physically violent with her mother.
Ultimately, Tara cannot bring herself to shoot her father and buries the gun in the backyard as he leaves his family for good.
- 8/11/2014
- by Patrick Gomez, @PatrickGomezLA
- People.com - TV Watch
This week's True Blood ties up a number of the season's plot threads, paving the way for the ultimate finale...
This review contains spoilers.
7.8 Almost Home
The end is well and truly nigh. For us anyway – as True Blood’s final season creeps ever-nearer to its conclusion, there was a distinct air of finality to the proceedings this week. Finality and more than a touch of forgiveness. It seems that with Sarah’s capture, and the confirmation of her status as vampire saviour, the spirit of cure and making things all better has somehow spread to the whole town – Eric’s as healthy as he’ll ever be, Hoyt’s a hero, Violet’s a big puddle, and things are looking up for everyone. Well, almost everyone. Bill’s Hep-v induced hallucinations have apparently gone to his head...
Yes, Vampire Bill is about to become Ex-Vampire Bill, deciding as he...
This review contains spoilers.
7.8 Almost Home
The end is well and truly nigh. For us anyway – as True Blood’s final season creeps ever-nearer to its conclusion, there was a distinct air of finality to the proceedings this week. Finality and more than a touch of forgiveness. It seems that with Sarah’s capture, and the confirmation of her status as vampire saviour, the spirit of cure and making things all better has somehow spread to the whole town – Eric’s as healthy as he’ll ever be, Hoyt’s a hero, Violet’s a big puddle, and things are looking up for everyone. Well, almost everyone. Bill’s Hep-v induced hallucinations have apparently gone to his head...
Yes, Vampire Bill is about to become Ex-Vampire Bill, deciding as he...
- 8/11/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
The big news: Eric is cured, praise Godric! There’s not a lot of wasted time building up suspense about it, either: in the opening minutes, he grabs ahold of Sarah Newlin, who begs him to kill her so that she can “return as the Princess of Peace, the Messiah!” Instead of killing her, Eric chomps on her, and lo and behold, the map of blighted veins spread across his body like deadly tattoos clear right up. But there’s no time for celebrating: there’s business to be conducted. Eric, Pam, and Mr. Gus, Jr. and his yakuza minions repair to Fangtasia, where they chain Sarah up in the basement, which is turning out to be the single most overworked set on this final season of “True Blood.” Mr. Gus, Jr. explains that the work of synthesizing Sarah’s blood has been done, but he’s not going to...
- 8/11/2014
- by Phil Dyess-Nugent
- Hitfix
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