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Goats might be Chrisopher Neil’s first feature as director, but he’s worked for years as an acting coach and rehearsal adviser on projects as wide ranging as Adaptation, The Virgin Suicides, and Star Wars: Episode 3 – Revenge of the Sith. And it’s clear that Neil has accrued quite a stellar reputation among actors, as evidenced by Goats’ impressive ensemble (which includes David Duchovny, Vera Farmiga, and relative newcomer Graham Phillips.) Based on the quirky debut novel by Mark Jude Proirier (who also wrote the film’s screenplay), Goats is an odd but bittersweet coming of age story.

Filmmaker: How did you first come across Mark Jude Poirier’s novel? What were you first impressions of it?

Neil: I stumbled across the Goats novel by reading a review of it in the New York Times. My first impression was, “How the hell did this guy know and write my story?...

Sundance will have some heavyweight auteurs in the shape of Spike Lee, Rodrigo Cortés, James Marsh and Stephen Frears for the Premieres Section. Among the 15 selected titles, worth highlighting are Leslye Headland’s debut, "Bachelorette" which stars Kirsten Dunst, we’ve got Julie Delpy’s 2 Days in New York and a Blacklist favorite in Celeste and Jesse Forever. Count on Lee’s Red Hook Summer, Cortés’ Red Lights, Marsh’s Shadow Dancer and Frears’ Lay the Favorite to garner the most buzz. "2 Days in New York," France (Director: Julie Delpy, Screenwriters: Julie Delpy, Alexia Landeau) Marion has broken up with Jack and now lives in New York with their child. A visit from her family, the different cultural background of her new boyfriend, her sister’s ex-boyfriend, and her upcoming photo exhibition make for an explosive mix. Cast: Julie Delpy, Chris Rock, Albert Delpy, Alexia Landeau, Alex Nahon. "Arbitrage," U.

While it’s only the beginning of the week, we already have some really interesting casting news to dig through.

First, Vera Farmiga, Keri Russell, Minnie Driver, and Will Arnett have joined the upcoming film Goats. The film, directed by Christopher Neil, is an adaptation of Mark Jude Proirier novel of the same name. Goats “follows teen Ellis (Phillips) as he transfers to the East Coast prep school where his father (Burrell) made his mark as a student.” The foursome join Duchovney, Ty Burrell, and Graham Phillips. Personally, anything Farmiga touches will get me excited, so toss in talented names like Russell, Driver, and Arnett, and you have a film that I’m actually quite interested in checking out.

Read more on Casting: Goats, We Bought A Zoo, and Stan Lee gets his Spider-man cameo…...

Graham Phillips, who played Ben in the TV movie "Ben 10: Race Against Time" and is currently starring in CBS' "The Good Wife," will play the lead in the indie comedy Goats. Other cast members include Will Arnett (When in Rome) and Keri Russell (Extraordinary Measures) whose Fox TV series "Running Wilde" was recently canceled, Ty Burrell ("Modern Family"), David Duchovny ("The X-Files"), Minnie Driver (Ella Enchanted), and Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air).

The story is about a teen named Ellis (Phillips) who moves to the East Coast to attend a prep school where his father (Burrell) had great success. Farmiga plays Ellis' mother, Arnett her boyfriend and Driver her friend. Russell will play his new stepmother. Duchovny will play a father figure to Ellis who goes by "Goat Man."

Goats is based on Mark Jude Poirer's novel of the same title; the author will adapt the screenplay.

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Today Sfn Group, Inc. (the parent company to Spherion and other professional staffing organizations) announced it has renewed Streamy Award-nominated comedy web series The Temp Life for a fifth season, establishing it as the longest-running brand-sponsored original web series top date. Production will begin this September in New York and is scheduled to premiere sometime in November. The Legend of Neil’s Tony Janning will be joining returning series regulars Wilson Cleveland, Rachel Risen, Mark Jude, Chris Stetson,Thom Woodley, Sandeep Parikh and Taryn Southern along with other guest stars to be announced in coming weeks. Related News:‘The Temp Life’ Returns, Stocked Up on Web Series Stars Spherion-backed ‘Temp Life’ Re-Staffs For New Season Illeana Douglas Drops Into ‘The Temp Life’...